Day 1 Review & Day 2 Picks

Well Day 1 is over and I must agree with Dan’s assessment below, there really wasn’t much to it. I watched every single game (the great advantage to having the job that I do) and most of them were boring. Some people think the day was bad because there were no upsets, but there were only three games that were even remotely interesting; Duke vs. Belmont, Marquette vs. Kentucky, and for the first 35 minutes Southern Cal vs. Kansas State. Here is to hoping Day 2 is better, and without further babbling here are the Day 1 award winners:

Player of the Day- Joe Crawford, Kentucky and Bill Walker, Kansas State. Didn’t I tell you to watch the backcourt of Kentucky? Well Joe Crawford in his final collegiate game put on an absolute show, hitting 5 three’s and making 13 FG, tying his career high of 35 points (by the way he set that mark on March 5 on Senior night in the Colonial Center against the Gamecocks). He kept knocking down shots in the second half to keep Kentucky within closing distance of Marquette, but never could get them over the top. As for Walker, he was the spark for Kansas State in the first half. He scored 17 of his 22 before the half, starting the game off with a three pointer, igniting Kansas State to a ten point halftime lead while star Freshmen Michael Beasely struggled with foul trouble. Walker deferred to Beasley in the second half but most of the damage had already been done by Walker; then with Southern Cal closing fast, after 2 Taj Gibson free throws had cut the lead to 6, Walker drilled a three with a little over 4 minutes remaining, pushing the lead back out to 9 and the Trojans would never get that close again.

Coach of the Day- Rick Byrd, Belmont. Coach Byrd had his team prepared, and most important, not scared or in awe of the name on the front of the jersey. Belmont did not give in to Duke’s pressure defense, committing fewer TO’s than the Blue Devils. And defensively they guarded Duke’s dribble drives well and held them to under 30% from behind the arc. All those factors are what gave Belmont a chance to win the game, and coach Byrd gets credit for having his team prepared, in the end it came down to Duke having better players.

Most Impressive Team- Notre Dame & Pittsburgh. Now maybe everyone overrates George Mason a little because of what happened 2 years ago, but they are still a quality team. Unfortunately someone forgot to tell Notre Dame. The Fighting Irish came out and put their foots right on the throat of Mason and never let up. Notre Dame imposed their will and ran GMU right out of the Pepsi Center in Denver. Pittsburgh, who’s bandwagon I have finally jumped off at the wrong time, came out against an Oral Roberts team who is making their 3rd straight tournament appearance (meaning they have some experience) and made quick work of them. Trailing early, 13-10 with twelve minutes remaining, the Panthers ripped off a 37-11 runt o finish the half, and basically the game.


Day 2 Picks

No. 15 American University at No. 2 Tennessee- I am going to go ahead and say Tennessee in a 35+ point route.

No. 10 Davidson at No. 7 Gonzaga- I am on the Davidson Wildcats bandwagon baby, I have a man crush on Stephen Curry

No. 10 Saint Mary's at No. 7 Miami (FL)- I can’t lie, I know almost nothing about St. Mary’s except they have a good Australian kid on their team. I have seen Miami play, which is why I will take St. Mary’s.

No. 12 Western Kentucky at No. 5 Drake- I love Courtney Lee and the Hilltoppers Mascot, plus Drake relys on the 3 ball and they will be playing for the first time in a Dome stadium which are difficult to shoot in, Western Kentucky in the upset

No. 10 South Alabama at No. 7 Butler- South Alabama probably got the most favorable seed in the tournament, but not a favorable draw. Butler is a legit top 15 team and they have veteran guards, which I always drool over come tournament time, so I will take Butler.

No. 15 UMBC at No. 2 Georgetown- While UMBC is the original college choice of Teaneck great Juvens Delinois, I am going to have to take the Georgetown in this one, although Martin must be seriously conflicted with Juvens’ school and his beloved Hoyas matching up.

No. 15 Austin Peay at No. 2 Texas- If Austin Peay doesn’t watch out Texas could score upwards of 120 points.

No. 13 San Diego at No. 4 Connecticut- the Torreros of San Diego are coming in on a hot streak but I don’t think they have the size to compete, I will go with UConn in a close one.

No. 16 Mount St. Mary's at No. 1 North Carolina- Psycho T will outrebound the Mount by himself, and he may eat one of their players too.

No. 13 Siena at No. 4 Vanderbilt- I want to say there is a chance for an upset here but when I really look at it I just don’t think Siena can compete with Vanderbilts size and athleticism, so I will go with Vandy.

No. 9 Oregon at No. 8 Mississippi State- Maybe I am an SEC homer but I am taking Mississippi State in a big way here.

No. 9 Arkansas at No. 8 Indiana- If Indiana comes out early and makes shots Arkansas will give up, they have no character. I take Indiana to win comfortably.

No. 14 Boise State at No. 3 Louisville- I think this could be the upset of the day. Boise State has veterans and they play hard and tenacious defense. Everyone is singing the praises of Louisville and many people have them as a sleeper Final Four team, I think the Broncos will have people squirming in their seats all night over this score, but in the end Louisville will prevail.

No. 11 Saint Joseph's at No. 6 Oklahoma- I guess I have to pick an upset and this game seems to be as good as any. Oklahoma has terrible guards who have lead them right out of games this year, if the bad Austin Johnson comes to play then St. Joes will win. UPSET SPECIAL- St. Josephs Hawks.


No. 12 Villanova at No. 5 Clemson- People are loving this game as an upset, because Villanova has been around in recent years and Clemson hasn’t made the tournament since 1998. However, Clemson is the best team in the country at dictating style of play and tempo. They will get the undermanned Nova team to run up and down the court and play a game of havoc, and Clemson is better than you are at that type of game. I think Clemson will impose their will and win this game going away.

No. 16 Texas-Arlington at No. 1 Memphis- thanks for showing up, UT-Arlington.