Final Four Live Blog - Duke vs West Virginia

FINAL THOUGHTS

3 Stars

1) Singler, Scheyer, Smith - The Big 3 for Duke combined for 63 points. It was simply a masterclass performance.

2) Bob Huggins - The compassion shown for his injured superstar was as real as sports gets.

3) Da'Sean Butler - A tragic end to his WV career, but he has a lot to be proud of during his time in Morgantown.

Final Thoughts - Well, that was about what we expected. A game that was dominated by Duke. But, at least we didn't get the greatness of high and mighty Duke jammed down our throats. CBS did a great job keeping the adoration to a minimum during the game broadcast. I hope that Monday's broadcast will be short of the hyperbole that we'll hear ad nauseum over the next two days. I sure as heck didn't have Butler and Duke in the finals. It's the fitting end to one of the maddest Marches we've seen in a long time. Thanks for joining us for our Final 4 live blog. Bye for now...

2nd Half

*OK, let's cut through the crap and give a couple thoughts on the title game before our Monday pick, here's how Butler might be able to beat the Dukies...

1) Butler will be a huge underdog... but don't be surprised to see a close game. Butler will have to play a slow it up style because Duke doesn't have the capability to get out and run.

2) Duke will most likely crush Butler on the offensive glass. It's going to take a masterclass of boxing out to stay competitive on the boards. No 2nd chance points for Duke.

3) Butler's going to have to match Duke shot for shot - Duke shot 52% in the Semis... Butler 30%. If that happens Monday it'll be a replay of last year.

Final Score - Duke 78 WVU 57

2:07 - That's never stopped Duke from running up the score... 75-57

2:40 - Duke up 15 and we've now entered Gar-Bage time. Bleh.

3:39 - We had to wait 21 seconds for Clark to refer to it as a David v Goliath matchup.

*Seriously though, I hope race isn't a factor in the pregame hype. Both teams have more white dudes than we're accustomed to seeing on the national stage, but that doesn't and shouldn't have anything to do with the game, the analysis, or anything else. Of course, I'll expect all of the typical stereotypes to be thrown out there in the prelude to the title game.

As much as I (and 85% of sports fans) dislike Duke, give them credit for getting to the finals by having Smith, Scheyer, and Singler play career-best bball. Similarly, Butler is playing the best team ball of the tournament and has beat Syracuse, Kansas State, and Michigan State on the way to the Finals.

4:00 - This is the WVU team I expected to see against UK. Announcers are right that this is Duke's best game of the tourney by far. Time to hit the exits in Indy and watch the sports world drool over the Great White Hope against the Great White Hype! Butler vs Duke! Monday night!

5:50 - Scheyer to the hoop. He has no moves. He looks like he's going in slow motion. But, he finds a way to get to the basket and get lay-ins. There's no physical explanation for his success. This is why we hate Duke. They cheat by using Flubber.

*Interesting to see the Twitter world talk about the Huggins/Butler scene. Established media types saying it's one of the most touching scenes they've ever seen. Rest of the world talking about awkward closeness and intimacy. I guess I'll lean towards the former... although the sophomoric college side of me goes with the latter. Come on, I'm out of school. That was an awesome player/coach moment.

*Duke's Big 3 now 19/37, 10/18 3PT, and 55 pts combined. That's the story of the game right now.

7:07 - Huggy with a timeout down 15. Smith now has 19 for the game. Maybe we can get UConn's women's team out here to try and beat the Dukies.

8:12 - Butler being carted to the back. Looks like a bad ending for one of WVU's finest.

8:59 - Good Lord. Duke is not this good. 63-48. I'm officially in denial... Butler now on the floor writhing in pain. Replay shows what could be a bad left knee injury. Huggins is now on the loor consoling Butler in what could be a touching scene if he wasn't so awkwardly close to his face. This looks bad. At this point you hope it doesn't affect his future career in the NBA.

10:06 - You want to know the best way to play bad defense? A) Allow easy shots from the perimeter. B) When said shots are missed, allow offensive rebounds and second chances to the opposition. WVU is executing this plan perfectly.

11:14 - Ironically, if anything, the refs are keeping West Virginia in this game. Eh, whatever. I'll give up on the Duke hate for the year. I've still got a Saints Super Bowl to celebrate and not even a Duke title can ruin that.

11:44 - A Class B technical? I knew I should have brought my NCAA rulebook to watch the game!

11:44 - HOLY CRAP! A technical foul called on Duke for one of the Plumlees hanging on the rim... Smith holds his private parts as our pops comments, "He must have got hit in the nuts." That's the highlight of this game thus far.

12:11 - Nolan Smith is showin the scouts something tonight. Nice drive to the bucket to go to the line. He looks like he could be a combo guard off the bench in the Association. WVU in trouble down 12 and now turning the ball over consistently.

13:00 - Nolan Smith. Is. A. Knock down. Shooter. Someone mail this telegram to the guy in the sweatsuit standing on the sidelines.

14:11 - Right on cue CBS. The Dookies haven't shot a free throw yet tonight. They're living on the outside game. *Mental note - already dreaming of scenarios where Butler wins Monday night including Celtic Pride-esque kidnapping scheme* It's a movie people, take it easy.

14:42 - "Zoubs" finally called for an over the back foul. Unfortunately, no ref conspiracies tonight. There's always Monday Duke-hating universe!

*Here's a good piece from the NY Daily News that is pro-Gus. 49-40 Duke. Hey, I'm trying to cope with an eventual Duke title, bear with me.

*The best I could find is a Facebook group. 17 members?!?! You can do better sports fans and Facebook!!

16:09 - Tell me again why you would leave Nolan Smith standing wide open at the 3 point line? Maybe after 8 3 point makes Huggy will want to guard him.

16:35 - Good drive from Butler to try and get in rhythm offensively. Is it just me or has the crowd and atmosphere seemed dead all night? Nantz and Kellogg's drab commentary hasn't helped matters. I feel like I'm watching a midseason game instead of a national semifinal. Is there a Gus Johnson petition out there somewhere to bring him to the Final 4??

17:30 - Smith hits an important 3 to keep WVU within single digits. The Neer's defense has been losing guys all night, they'll need to keep Duke at or below 40% this half to have some hope.

18:38 - That was one of the more awkward loose ball scrambles I can remember seeing. Much like the 1st game, this seems much larger than an 8 point lead for the Dookies.

19:30 - Does anyone notice the weird design on the back of Duke's uniforms? Can't make it out what it is but saw kinda a similar thing with UK. Good sign with Mazzula finding the first bucket of the half.

20:00 - WVU has to do 3 things - 1) Get Da'Sean Butler in the offense 2) Play perimeter defense 3) Start searching for good tickets for Monday's game

1st Half

END OF HALF - Well, the Neers don't make a dent in the score after Smith goes to the bench. Lucky to be down only 8 at the half 39-31. We'll be back for the home stretch after halftime!

:55 - Duke shooting well tonight (55% and 7/14 from 3), but here's more fodder for conspiracy theorists. Duke played in the regional with the huge dome, has inherit advantage. (Shhh, don't say anything about WVU playing in the Carrier Dome)

1:30 - Poor positioning on the defensive glass from the Neers. Missed chances to end the first half with some mo it looks like.

2:30 - My bet is that the Dick Enberg Tribute won't include his epic WVU/UK pregame botchfest from last weekend. Nolan Smith with 3 fouls (what is Coach K thinking???) and WVU can cut into the lead.

3:20 - WVU discovering they can attack the basket. Guys falling all over the place. Mazzula is lying on the floor as Smith waltzes to the hoop. Boos reign down as fans rush towards the court! Hey, I'm trying to channel my inner Bill Walton. Anything to survive a Duke blowout.

4:00 - Thank goodness "banana cut" has entered are basketball lingo. Finally Clark Kellogg has awakened!

4:27 - Duke now shooting the lights out. Maybe they'll waste all their baskets tonight? I may boycott TV for a month if Duke wins this national title. At least they'll be 32 more teams in next year's tournament.

5:04 - Nolan Smith gets his 58th 2nd chance 3 pointer in the last 2 games. 34-24.

5:42 - Duke now out to a 10 pt lead after back2back 3's by Singler and Smith. Pray for Butler.

6:16 - WVU needs Butler in the offense. As that ball went out of bounds you could see the fear in Row 1 with the raised court. Yipes.

6:56 - Mazzula changes jerseys. Ripped, blood, same thing. Nantz not exactly on his A game tonight. Someone tell him the most watched golf tourney in the history of the universe is right around the corner.

6:56 - WVU now 3/4 from downtown. But, they still find themselves trailing. Scheyer and Singler are getting way too many easy paths to the basket. WVU has to start playing some Big East defense here.

8:34 - Give it to Singler, if he's going to shoot like Kobe Bryant, Duke is hard to beat. Those are terrible shots and WVU has to bet that they won't fall all night. 23-18.

9:04 - WVU shooting over 50% from the field and getting thoroughly outplayed so far. Not a good sign.

*This is the article I've been looking for. The best, and most systematic case against rooting for Duke now and forever from SBNation. Give it a read at halftime or after the game. Duke 21 WVU 16.

10:15 - And another timeout. Gotta say, I'm disappointed in Special K thus far. I think his "Allen Wrench" quote from Game 1 might have self-retired his goofy euphemisms.

10:41 - Great to see Huggy Bear dressed up for this big game. Finally WVU makes a 3 with Jones. 18-14.

11:03 - Duke's doing a better job getting to the rim. They lead by 4. WVU has got to play some better interior defense. Crap. And now Singler is catching fire. Make it 18-11.

12:46 - Add another reason to the list, their players sound like Clark Kellogg. Lance Thomas wants to "pursue the pumpkin" and I want to pursue the mute button.

13:05 - That was a strange shot from Smith. Much like Game #1, Butler has to realize he is the best player on the floor and take the game over for the Neers.

13:30 -

*Here's one look from the Chicago Sun-Times about Coach K as "annoyingly arrogant."

*Duke's most detested moments

*Hearing Clark Kellogg refer to "Zoubs"

Oh, and Duke is up 11-9

16:20 - And now the teams trade 3's. Scores tied at 7. I think both teams enjoy the physical, slower tempo. Duke will have a much harder time on the offensive glass than against Baylor.

17:40 - Both teams on the board. WVU having a block party the opening 2 minutes and Ebanks gives them a 4-2 lead.

18:54 - Butler way off with his first 3. Coach K must be gaining so many fans with that stool on the far sidelines. I'll try and find some good Duke-hating links at the first commercial.

19:49 - 11 seconds in and the first call goes Duke's way. This blog might not last long tonight.

20:00 - The key early will be WVU's outside shooting. If they drain it from international waters in any similarity like they did against UK, it will bode well. We'll underway and the Neers win the tap.

PREGAME

*Duke's video package makes you just love them even more, right?

*I'm still waiting for UK to come out on the court for this game, and so is my bracket.

*Give Huggy credit - he knows that he has to battle Duke on the inside. Don't underestimate the Saints-like quality with this Mountaineer team. They're playing for an entire state and plan on taking the trophy on tour if they win.

*Good. A look inside the Butler locker room. Coach Stevens is smart enough to tell his team they'll shoot better on Monday. I hope he said that with a straight face. Butler now commences into some sort of clapping song. The dork factor of this team is skyrocketing exponentially.

*OK, I have no idea who this guy is, or what this movie is, all I know is I don't want to see it. Great, now we have to be subjected to The NCAA National Semifinal Show presented by CapitalOne. Ugh.

Game 1 has just concluded, I'm going to go recharge the batteries and we'll be back for the tip of Mountaineers vs Blue Devils. Country Bumpkins vs Intellectual Elites. Huggy Bear vs Coach K. It's All Relative vs Cameron Crazies. Jerry West vs Jay Bilas. John Denver vs whoever has written a song about Durham, NC. A live blog of West Virginia vs Duke coming up next!

Yoders' Live Blog: Final 4 Live Blog - Butler/MSU

POSTGAME

As is our liveblog custom... it's our 3 stars and final thoughts!

1st Star - Gordon Hayward (Butler)

-Stepped into the national spotlight tonight with his gamewinning defensive plays and led all scorers with 19. Wake up America, he's the best player left in the tournament.

2nd Star - Barack Obama (President)

-Anytime you beat a former All-American in HORSE as the sitting POTUS, you get a shout out from RSS!

3rd Star - Dairy Queen

-No doubt getting some extra publicity from the perplexing Clark Kellogg. I wonder what he's gonna pull out of the bag for Game 2 and Duke?

Final Thoughts

That was perhaps the ugliest close game I can remember since the epic Memphis/UCLA 50-45 shootout in the 2006 Elite 8. If Butler wants to complete the Cinderella story, they'll have to do more than score 8 points and get one basket in the final 10 minutes Monday night. For Michigan State, another overachieving tourney that ends in the Final 4, but they have to be commended for getting there once again. Fans, we are one night away from Jim Nantz poetically proclaiming "THE BUTLER DID IT!"

This is a big win for little guys everywhere. Watching the game in Youngstown, Butler hung tough but Y1 is right that MSU overachieved to get this far and ran out of gas tonight. No matter who wins tonight, Butler will be the biggest title game underdog since Villanova. It's going to take a much, much better performance offensively to beat either WVU or Duke.

2nd Half

END OF GAME - Hayward makes the critical block and then gets the game-clinching rebound. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't memorable. But it doesn't matter. Butler's dream is still alive! They beat Sparty 52-50!

:2.0 - Nobody on the ball... and they give the foul with 2.0 seconds. Ideal scenario for Butler there to get Lucious on the line. Vanzant right in his jersey.

:5.5 - Might be too risky to foul in this spot... see: Kansas State v Xavier.

:5.5 - Nored 3/12 in the tourney and he has ice water running through his veins! 3 point lead. State does take a TO with 5.5. Or do they? Great, confusion reigns and Izzo is furious? Interesting.

:6.1 - It was the Green iso and Hayward comes up huge with the block! Un-be-liev-a-ble! Fantastic defensive play. 2 big free throws for Butler to make it a 3 point game.

:23 - Clark is right that State has to go quick. Maybe Lucious with a drive or a Green iso. The way this game has gone you have to favor the defense here, right?

:30 - Unlucky! Hayward nonchalantly passes to Nored who drives and sees one crawl out of the rim. Sparty with a chance now down 1 with the ball.

:56 - Good botch from Nantz. Butler with a 1 pt lead - not game tied. Hayward has to take the shot here.

:56 - This time it's Roe with the offensive rebound... and? A foul? Oook. A chance to make it a 1 point game as Mack reenters for the Doggies. Green at the line.

1:35 - Finally! Hayward misses a 3 but gets the pass back from Vanzant I believe and lays it in. Biggest play of the game so far to get that rebound and save it to a streaking Hayward, who has 40% of Butler's points tonight.

2:00 - Green hits in the paint and it is now a 2 point game!

2:23 - Good foul from Roe to stop the 3 on 1 break. Still, MSU's half-court offense looks like vintage Mike Brown in the postseason, except Michigan State doesn't have LeBron James to bail them out.

2:36 - The Bulldog offense consists of 3 free throws the last 10 minutes. They're clinging to this 3 pt lead. Now 10 straight misses and finally MSU has a chance to tie. Where's Jimmy Chitwood?

3:20 - Butler should be in full-fledged panic mode. 9 straight misses and Mack on the bench.

3:46 - Bad shot from Lucious. Butler is still leading by 4 without a FG for 9 minutes! MSU is on a 4-3 run over the last 8 minutes. I knew there was a reason I wanted to blog these games tonight. 7 points in the last 8 minutes!!! Now I know why the regular season sucked. That's the thing about March Madness - once we hit April, we remember why November-February was so forgettable.

4:19 - H & H blew some GOLDEN chances for baskets that trip. We're approaching "Do either of these teams want to win" territory.

5:30 - Finally a bucket from Morgan draws the lead to 4. Finally it seems like the crowd is getting into this one.

6:04 - Butler's half court offense suffering. Thank goodness Michigan State is bailing them out with even worse half court offense. Hayward won't say no though as he goes back to the stripe again. The lead seems bigger than 5.

7:30 - Again, a combined 8 minute FG drought both ways. 46-41 Butler.

8:00 - Thank God Coach K is arriving in the building. Get ready for an unbearable 2nd half for the doubleheader. Wow, and a Magic shot in the crowd! Two for the price of one.

8:35 - Layup botch from Jukes could be a turning point. State can't get a bucket though as Hayward calmly sees a ball go out of bounds. Not exactly Wojo out there pounding the floor... thankfully.

9:00 - Wow. 4 guys with 3 or more fouls on MSU. Butler has got to attack the basket in the closing stages. For Sparty, it'll have to be Green, Summers, and Lucious to get them back.

9:24 - Bad flop attempt from Green. Now everyone on the MSU roster, Magic Johnson and Mateen Cleaves has 3 fouls. Isn't Cleaves the least likely former Final 4 star to be arrested on suspicion of DUI?

9:50 - Green gets a nice looking clothesline from Nored and is called for losing the ball out of bounds. Love these college refs.

10:00 - Teams trading tournovers now. A foul on the inside, Butler in the bonus and Howard misses. Boy, the atmosphere in the building doesn't tell you there's 10 minutes left in a national semifinal.

11:32 - Shelvin Mack hurt? Oh boy. In other news, Clark Kellogg is trending on Twitter - both for his POTUS loss to Pres. Obama and his announcing abilities. Where's Marcelo Balboa when you need him? OK, I take that last one back.

12:15 - Lucious careless with the ball and Veasley with a breakaway jam! Butler now with their largest lead of 7. Good stat from Nantz - Sparty's largest deficit of the tourney. Can they find composure without their floor general?

13:00 - Jukes cleaning the glass. Butler has been much better on the boards so far this half. Intensity ratcheting up like a giant Allen Wrench!!

14:05 - Finally we see MSU's athleticism as Summers throws it down!! 39-37 Butler.

15:24 - Hey! Now we're on a roll as Kellogg uses an actually identifiable basketball term! Howard with a nice reverse layin and Butler suddenly to a 5 pt advantage 38-33. Clark is right that Sparty needs to start running to stay in the game.

15:37 - I like Izzo attacking Hayward defensively as Green takes a trip to the stripe. CUE THE PRETTY AUGUSTA MUSIC! For the PTI fans out there, don't lie and say that you weren't fooled by their April 1 joke. Well played ESPN. Over/Under on cat calls/distractions on course for Tiger is 1.5.

15:54 - Now Nored draws a trip to the line looking for his first points. Can Hayward be the guy and get his teammates involved? That'll be the question this second half. It looks like MSU is really missing Kalin Lucas this game in the half court - he wasn't terribly missed against Tennessee in an up and down game.

16:41 - From Y2 via his ITouch in Youngstown, Hayward has most to gain and hes playing like it. You can also follow his Tweets and our account via the link at the top right of the page.

17:16 - Roe off with his 3rd "PF" (thanks for the abbreviation Clark). Butler's offense flowing better this half, but still having trouble with outside shooting. Their half court D is picking up though.

18:21 - Butler finally back in front thanks to Veasley and Howard crashing the glass. 32-31 Dogs.

18:51 - A three answered by Hayward going back to the line. He looks so smooth off the dribble and pundits think he'll be the best NBA pro from these Final 4 teams. Tonight is the first night where I've seen that.

19:30 - Howard finally with a shot attempt but it falls out. Good coaching to try to get him involved early. The occasion hasn't been too big for Stevens so far.

20:00 - Clark Kellogg's street cred needs to be Dairy Queen'd after losing a horse game to the president. By the way, I know I may sound a little tough on Nantz and Kellogg, but I do play by play on the D3 level... and Kellogg sounds like a student journalism major trying too hard to be either Dick Vitale or Bill Raftery. Where's Billy Packer anyways...

Halftime

*Actually, that might be the hardest interview Obama has had to give outside of Fox News.

*Obama's got a good game. The scouting report says you have to force him to his right. Thank you, I'll be here all week.

*Gordon Hayward is 5/9 with 13 points. His FGA so far in the tourney: 7, 8, 13, 14. Good for Butler that he's been much more aggressive, but Nored and Howard are a combined 0-0 from the floor. That's gotta change in half #2.

Half - Well, at least the game is tied. Clearly, the winner of Game 2 will be favored Monday night. If I'm Butler, I'm encouraged to be tied at half shooting 5/14 from downtown. If I'm MSU, I'm encouraged to be tied with Morgan on the bench with 3. It's close, but let's hope for a more invigorating 2nd half. At least we had an Allen Wrench and Dairy Queen reference from Clark Kellogg - he's bringing his A game!

1st Half

:30 1st - Matt Howard has been Dairy Queen'd 9 times this year according to Clark. Let's see... Dairy Queen'd... he got ice cream? A blizzard?? Umm... ohhhh he got dq'd! He fouled out. Gotcha. Oh, and Butler ties it with a 3.

1:00 1st - Butler struggling mightily offensively as Mack is rejected. Nantz tries telling us it's been a good one, although the crowd seems like it's at the Westminster Dog Show. Are there any Butler fans at this game??? What happened to that homecrowd?

2:52 1st - Surprised that CBS is still doing that Saturday Night Fights thing, at least we'll get to hear Gus then. Quick Butler TO as MSU extends the lead to 5. Hey, at least it gives me more blogging time. Butler 1 of their last 6 from downtown... now I remember why I thought they might go out 1st round. I also remember when I was a lock to win my bracket pool. Thank you Syracuse, OSU, and UK.

3:30 1st - Oh boy, Kellogg and Obama. Obama is what I like to call an Allen Wrench President... ok, I'll stop with the politics now.

3:30 1st - Yipes. 9 combined scoreless minutes finally broken by stereotypical white bench big guy for MSU. Hayward immediately answers. This is as aggressive as he's been the entire tourney. 24-23 Spartans. Oh, and it's another timeout.

While we're in timeout here's some random thoughts from around the sports world today. AKA, the soccer I watched this morning...

1) Drogba was offside for the 2nd Chelsea goal. They move ahead of Man U with the 2-1 win today. With Rooney hurt, United might be out of the EPL race and CL to Bayern.

2) Speaking of Bayern they moved top of the Bundesliga by winning with 10 men at Schalke. Impressive D, especially by masked man Martin DeMechelis. They'll be favored to advance past Man U in the CL this week taking a 2-1 lead to Old Trafford.

3) Man City scored 3 goals in 7 minutes to start the game at Burnley. As a Liverpool fan, I'm slowly coming to the realization that the Gerrard/Benitez Era is over. Maybe they can win the Euorpa League 2 years in a row!

4:30 1st - Impressive that Gordon Hayward was elected Freshmen class president at Butler? What is this, high school? Hey, I could've done that too, but I didn't wanna.... still looking for our first points since the under 8 TO.

6:00 1st - Hayward has gone cold, but MSU's offense is starting to turn the ball over. Surprised to see Butler play into Sparty's game by jacking up quick 3's.

7:26 1st - Mack taking the scoring load from Hayward. By my calculation that's 19 of 20 pts between the 2. "That's called rakin it and takin it." Please make it stop - no, it's much funnier if it continues. Is there anyone we can rake and take Gus Johnson and Bill Raftery about now? Shoot, I'd even take Tim Brando and Mike Gminski or Brad Nessler and Jimmy Dykes. Eh, maybe just Gus. 22-20 Spartans.

9:15 1st - Kellogg talks about Summers lighting up Michigan St's offense after making a 3. I was gonna retire the blog if he said, "I like to call him The Clapper."

10:07 1st - And now Morgan is in foul trouble with 3. Kellogg talks about Draymond Green as the team's leader?? You mean the 4th leading scorer? Puzzling. Mack with the And 1 draws Butler within 1.

11:02 1st - Now Hayward picks up a foul. We hit the under 12 and it's 18-14. Boy, these automatic TV timeouts kill any momentum in the college game. Wait until the 2nd half when we'll have about 37 timeouts called. Ugh.

11:50 1st - Refs will play a big role in this game. So far it's pretty even. Hey, gotta get them warmed up to screw over West Virginia tonight, right? Oh, and Sparty's midrange game has been insanely good. 18-12 MSU.

13:00 1st - Now we're seeing Gordon Hayward start to lift his team and be more aggressive offensively. 2 straight buckets and then Butler back to the line.

14:16 1st - Ouch. Matt Howard with 2 fouls inside of 6 minutes. That's what Clark Kellogg likes to call a slap chop. Don't ask me why. 16-9 MSU.

14:30 1st Half - BTW, I've decided to switch the entry times to the game times. Hey, I'm running this thing. MSU on a nice run to get back to 12-7 ahead. It might be smart of them to up the tempo, they are that kind of team with Lucious running the show and not Lucas.

6:16 - OMG! Thank you God! We have our first Clarkism of the evening and it was before the first TV timeout!!! Zach Hahn is what I call Allen Wrench!!!! "He's got one specific, unique purpose." Wow. That is phenomenal.

6:14 - Good start thus far, 4 threes made, 2 by each team as Mack goes to the line. Could have been run out of the building after that 6-0 start.

6:10 - Tonight won't be a full play-by-play, but we'll break down what's happening and of course point out things that need to be laughed at throughout the night. I'm going solo, so I'm gonna need to save up the energy. Let's just hope we get 1 good game tonight. MSU in white, Butler in the dark bluish/black. MSU wins the tap!

6:07 - Gordon Hayward looks like he's 11 years old. Can you really picture this guy in the NBA? Butler gets an F- for the "eye test." Thank goodness Kirk Herbstreit isn't here to talk about how Butler looks walking off the bus...

6:01 - Muse's Uprising song has been all over the place. I've seen it in about 5 different commercials, ads for V, and now for Butler! I love Knights of Cydonia and the rest of their stuff is growing on me... gotta love the British rock reference early on! By the way, I was paying zero attention to what Clark was actually saying.

5:58 - Clark Kellogg's strong analysis that these 4 teams ranked in the Top 11 preseason were "kinda sorta expected to be here." This will be a fun night.

5:56 - And we get the official welcome with one of the most underrated network openings to a sporting event. I don't know why, I love the bracket with the scenes from yesteryear. Good luck with that and 96 teams... hello friends!

It's a tall task, but what better way to celebrate this year's Final 4 with a live blog of the semifinal games in the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Stop by Randall Simon's Sausages throughout the night for updates and commentary on Butler-Michigan State and Duke-West Virginia. You can be sure that we'll have lots of laughs, and maybe something insightful to say too. See you at 6!

5 Reasons Why It's OK To Hate Duke

We're now at the Final 4, but we have to address Duke advancing to the Final 4 today. For a lot of normal college basketball fans, yesterday was a sad day. Why? We hate Duke. So, for those of us out there that are looking forward to driving a burning Q-Tip into your ears this week while the media wets their pants talking about Coach K's Dukies, this article is for you!

1) The Bracket

Duke was the only #1 Seed to advance to the Final 4. Now that most of the tournament has played out, we can look back and see that in a way we were right about this year's version of March Madness. This is what we said before the tourney began before the madness began...

"The Group of TeleTubbies is the South, which in irony of ironies, is Duke's bracket!! Somewhere Dickie V is smiling. Duke has the weakest 2 (Nova), 3 (Baylor, yes, Baylor is a 3 seed), 4 (Purdue - without Robbie Hummel and coming off of an 11 pt 1st half in the Big 10 Semis), and 6 (ND). Glad to see the committee is doing all they can to get Coack K back to the Final 4. Only Duke's terrible recent tourney history can keep them from reaching Indy. Ridiculous."

In the end, we didn't give Baylor enough credit, but the rest of the bracket played out on schedule. In fact, Baylor should have beaten Duke yesterday (more on that in a little bit). But, from the beginning, it was clear that the powers that be were doing the Dukies a favor. Compare that to Kansas who was in the same bracket where very capable 5 and 6 Seeds (MSU/Tenn) WHO JUST HAPPENED TO BE RANKED 13 AND 15 IN THE COUNTRY played in a great regional final. How convenient that we forgot about that whole S Curve thing this year...

2) Baylor Got Screwed

-I'm not going to use this space to complain that Baylor played 5 on 8 the entire game. For the most part, the refereeing was solid, but you hate to see one call change the course of a game. And isn't it something that that call usually goes the way of Duke. Let's set the scene...

4:37 left in the game, Baylor leads 59-57. Quincy Acy drives to the hoop and into a sliding and sideways Brian Zoubek. Acy scores and everybody in the building, including the Duke broadcast team of Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg thinks it's an And 1 opportunity and the 5th foul on Zoubek... but no! Of course not! It's an offensive foul! Duke then goes on a 10-2 run. Ball game over.

So, instead of being up 5 - you get a crushing call going against you. For Baylor, I can understand how the wheels came falling off from there. Even if that call didn't happen, it's not like Baylor would have strolled to victory... but it would have been nice to see if they could.

3) Dick Vitale

-For years, Dick Vitale's transparent love affair with all things Duke has sickened college basketball fans across the country. His endless spewing of praise and adoration along with his tired schtick turns off fans. Well, get ready for a long week America, this was Vitale this morning about the insanity of the Duke haters...

"What is there to hate about a bunch of kids that play hard, play with feeling, play with intensity, play the right way, go to class, get their degrees, do things with integrity. I totally get amazed by those out there that have such an anti-feeling... and there's a lot of jealousy involved about their success."

It's not that we hate the kids Dickie - we hate that you and your friends love Duke so darn much. Here are some facts for Dickie V -

1) Duke is not the only team that plays hard - see Virginia, West.

2) Duke is not the only team that plays with feeling - I guess John Wall or Evan Turner can't feel, what monsters.

3) Duke is not the only team with players that go to class - maybe Dickie V is there with the kids in class though, just to make sure they're doing their Calculus homework.

4) Duke is not the only team that gets their degree - in fact, Duke's Graduation Rate is 92%. 6 teams that made this year's tournament (BYU, Marquette, Notre Dame, Utah State, Wake Forest, and Wofford) all rank at 100%. And yet, I bet that Dickie, or anyone else at ESPN, isn't going to spend a second of air time talking about those programs. Here's the full list.

5) Duke hasn't been to a Final 4 since 2004 - In comparison, Michigan State is at their 3rd Final 4 since then and North Carolina has won 2 titles, you tell me who I should be jealous of...

OMG - now Colin Cowherd is talking about Duke's diversity. Let's just move on before I get angry.

***UPDATE - Let's add Duke fans to this one thanks to this great and hilarious article from our friends at Rumors & Rants where they interview actual Duke fans. Just be thankful that you aren't one of them.

4) Conspiracy Theory

-It's funny how the conspiracy theorists only come out for the NBA Playoffs. Waaahh... David Stern wants the Lakers and Celtics in the Finals.... waaahhh Lebron James always gets every call. Umm... did we just witness what happened yesterday and throughout the tournament? Let's take a trip to Crazy Town and let the conspiracy theorists have some fun!

*Refereeing in yesterday's game. It might not show up throughout, but look which way the biggest call of the game went - check.

*Easiest bracket - check.

*The NCAA can opt out of its TV deal with CBS after this year. Ratings = dollars. Duke = ratings. The question is, who picks up the red phone first to give Duke the best chance to make it - the NCAA or CBS? Seeing Nantz and Kellogg follow Duke's yellow brick road to Indy adds further spice to the whole network conspiracy. I can't believe I'm agreeing with Jason Whitlock here, but conspiracy theories make for strange bedfellows.

*Coach K is secretly a Communist Spy and was also the second gunman on the grassy knoll.

OK, I made that last one up, but I almost had you for a second!

5) Duke Colored Glasses

-When one program is shoved down your throats as all that is right with the world, you begin to ask questions. What makes Duke so much superior to other programs? Is it because they're smarter? Or their coach is a "good guy" and "respectable"? Is it because they have "good kids" who "play hard" and "play the right way"?

Does Duke tangibly play harder or righter than Michigan State, UNC, UK, or other top programs? No! Yet, they are lifted up as the holy grail of basketball programs. Don't get me wrong, it's great that they recruit good kids and that they graduate and all the rest. It is admirable. But Duke is not the only team in the country that does these things.

In an age where so many guys are out after a year, it is the programs and coaches that become the leading characters. Duke and Coach K don't recruit the one and done guys like Derrick Rose, John Wall, or DeMarcus Cousins. You rarely see guys at Duke with headbands and tattoos like DeMarcus Cousins. You see understated guys like Scheyer, Singler, and Smith. You see Duke recruit guys that will likely stay for 4 years in school. Yes, they can ball, but they won't make a lot of noise doing it.

Here's 2 takes about UK's talented big man - who might symbolize the Duke divide.

From CBS's Gary Parrish

No, the biggest threat to Kentucky's national title hopes is that DeMarcus Cousins seems a little unbalanced and capable of snapping at any time. Or, as Louisville's Edgar Sosa reportedly put it after the game, Cousins is a "nutcase." The guy is capable of getting 20 and 15 in the Final Four against Kansas or of throwing a punch at Sherron Collins before the first media timeout.

From RealGM

He undoubtedly doesn’t have the maturity of a Blake Griffin in 2009, or Oden/Durant in 2007, but he has a great sense of the game, plays extremely hard within a team concept and is genuinely well-liked and well-respected by his teammates... Ultimately in Cousins, I see a pretty decent guy who plays with a lot of emotion. I might need a longer vetting process if my future unborn daughter brought him home instead of someone like Evan Turner, but he shouldn’t have any serious problems to override his talent.

And yet, the stigma of Cousins is that he is a nutcase and unbalanced. By the way, don't tell me Cousins lost his cool and cost UK against WVU - Cousins didn't shoot 4/32 from downtown. And yet, he plays as hard or harder than any of Duke's big guys - however that judgment is made. Compare that to glowing articles about Jon Scheyer and Kyle Singler. Here's a great line about Singler from Bleacher Report:

He is willing to play the entire game without a break, grab rebounds, make hustle plays, and hit big baskets without receiving any credit on the national level... It's true—no one in the nation works harder and more efficiently for his team than Singler does for Duke.

Is it the tattoos and the headband and the showing of emotion that scares us? If DeMarcus Cousins put on a Duke uniform would we see more clearly the big man with the high basketball IQ with the skills to be a future All-Star - I bet we would. If Singler didn't play for Duke would folks say he's the hardest working player in the nation? Of course not - he'd be Jon Diebler. In the end, that's my biggest problem with the love affair with Duke. Nobody sees past the uniform.

NCAA Sunday Elite 8 Picks and Saturday Recap

Well, that was fun while it lasted. With Kentucky's loss to Huggy Bear yesterday, RSS is officially 0 for 12 in our Final 4 picks. That's right. Zip. Zilch. Nada. Squadoosh. ZERO. That's the first time that I can remember going 0 for in the Final 4, but we told you from the beginning it was going to be a weird tournament, and it has. Now, let's just all pray for a Duke loss today. Or maybe for a Duke win... let's just recap Saturday's action first!

1) Biggest Winner - Bob Huggins & Brad Stevens

-The biggest winners from yesterday are 2 coaches making their first Final 4 appearances after taking two completely different paths to college bball's showcase event. Huggy Bear is making his first Final 4 appearance in 26 years of coaching including 15 previous NCAA Tourney births. He has had some great players before at Cincy, K State, and now WVU, but this Mountaineer club might be his best all-around team. Although they aren't as flashy, they get it done with his trademark rough and tough style.

In contrast, Brad Stevens was one of the youngest coaches in college bball when he was hired in 2007. He's in his 3rd year of coaching and he looks like he belongs on the 7th grade JV team. His career record in those three years is a remarkable 88-14! Sure, his team plays in the Horizon League, but Butler is now firmly entrenched as one of the top programs in the country. Perhaps even more so than Gonzaga, Butler has shredded the mid-major tag and it has been their boy wonder coach that has taken them back home to the promised land.

2) Biggest Loser - Kentucky

-And my bracket along with the brackets of the millions that had either UK or KU cutting down the nets in Indy. Wow. Kentucky wasn't just bad, they were shockingly bad! John Wall (more on him later) shot poorly, turned the ball over, and made bad decisions. DeMarcus Cousins got himself in foul trouble, and anybody in a white uniform shot 3's like Ben Wallace shoots free throws - oh, and they were terrible at the foul line too. When you go 4/32 from downtown and 16/29 at the foul line, you don't deserve to make the Final 4 - let alone the NIT. Simply atrocious.

3) Best Performance - Joe Mazzula

-The WVU backup point guard who has battled injuries throughout his entire career, including a debilitating shoulder condition, outplayed his opposition who was only the unanimous 1st Team All-American Point Guard. Mazzula hit his first 3 of the season as a part of a remarkable first half where WVU didn't make a single 2 pointer yet shot the lights out from beyond the arc. Mazzula led the Mountaineers excellently and got to the rack several times against UK's defense. It will be interesting to see how Bob Huggins, now in his first Final 4, handles Mazzula and Truck Bryant returning from injury at the PG spot.

4) Best Game - Butler 63 Kansas State 56

-Neither game was a classic, but at least this game was somewhat competitive down the stretch. Give a tired K State team credit for fighting back to take the lead with under 5 minutes left to play, but Butler was too tough and too ruthless in their execution to let a history-making Final 4 appearance fall by the wayside.

5) Biggest Escape - None

-But, there is someone that needs called out...

6) Biggest Choke Job - John Wall

-You know, John Wall gets a lot of hype and praise, but he was the most disappointing player in this tournament. Wall never took over a game as his own. Wall never became the IT guy for the tourney ala Carmelo Anthony or Derrick Rose. Yes, he's super talented and aggressive, and will probably make a great NBA point guard. But in this tournament, and especially yesterday, you didn't get the feeling that John Wall could put Big Blue on his back. You didn't get the feeling that John Wall would just say no to losing. Kentucky could have sang My Old Kentucky Home and waltzed to an easy national title in this field... but Calipari's freshmen had an absolutely terrible shooting day and their star was subpar.

7) Highlight of the Day - Dick Enberg Pregame Fail

-Sadly, I can't find a clip of this, but Dick Enberg's pregame as West Virginia and Kentucky came on air was about the most brutal and awkward 2 minutes of a nationally televised sports broadcast I can remember. From the best of my recollection, here it is...

"Welcome to Syracuse for the East Regional Final between West Virginia and top seed Kentucky. *show Elite 8 bracket* Congratulations to the Butler Bulldogs as they advance to their first Final 4 where they will face the winner of Michigan State and Baylor" come to Dick & a puzzled Jay Bilas

FYI, Michigan State is playing Tennessee, Baylor is playing Duke, but wait it gets better...

"And the winner of this game will play Duke... or... (awkward pause and Jay Bilas looking horrified like he just got a B+ on his most recent English paper)... who does Duke play? Oh, yes, Baylor. (Loooooonger awkward pause, more awkward staring from Bilas) *now in excited voice after awakening from short catnap* AND BUTLER.... *pause, Jay forcing a smirk* will, uhhh go home to uhh play in the Final 4 in Indianapolis *we've now set a record for dramatic pauses in a TV pregame* Well, let's get to this game here...

This was just painful. What made it worse was the halftime schtick proclaiming it Dick Enberg day in Syracuse. I thought he was retiring, darn. Enberg is a sports broadcasting legend, but he got scores, names, and pretty much everything wrong yesterday. He confused DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson about 19 times yesterday. I think it's time to hang it up Dick. But hey, at least he's not as bad as Dick Stockton.

8) One Shining Thought - Is Butler A Cinderella?

-My brother might argue that Cinderella is dead, as he did in this space yesterday. But with Butler now going home for their first Final 4 appearance - we have to ask, is Butler a Cinderella? Well, they will fill the shoes of the media darlings and the underdogs that most fans will root for. But, heck, they have to be favored to make the national title game and defeat either Tennessee or Michigan State.

This isn't a true Cinderella in the form of George Mason - an 11 seed from the Patriot League that downed UNC and UConn on the way to the Final 4. Butler was ranked in the Preseason Top 10 and hasn't been out of the Top 20 all season long. They have NBA prospects in Gordon Hayward and maybe Shelvin Mack. So, they aren't a true Cinderella. In fact, it's kinda insulting to what Butler has done this past decade to call them a Cinderella. But, make no mistake, Butler is indeed a Cinderella. Even though they are better than that, they still represent the little guys everywhere. They're still not from a BCS conference. And they'll wear the slipper come next Saturday.

Saturday PICKS

MIDWEST REGIONAL

Michigan State (5) vs. Tennessee (6)

-You know, I'm going to try something different that might be a little bit more successful than actually trying to break down these games and think and analyze. Green is my favorite color.

Pick: Michigan State

SOUTH REGIONAL

Duke (1) vs. Baylor (3)

-See above.

Pick: Baylor

*Seriously though, my biggest regret from this whole bracket is underselling Baylor and the triumvirate of Udoh, Dunn, and Carter. Even though Baylor was picked 10th in the preseason Big XII standings, this is a talented bunch. How could they be picked 10th out of 12??? I'm still not sold on Duke - they beat Purdue by mere size more than anything. If Baylor ups the tempo they will have a good chance.

Today's early game is a pure toss-up. Tennessee might be playing a little better ball without the injury concerns and they have the rallying aspect of coming together after the dismissal of several players earlier in the season. In all honesty, that helped this Tennessee group grow up and find themselves - losing Tyler Smith might have been the perfect example of addition by subtraction. Then again, never pick against Tom Izzo in the tourney. Ah, who knows... just watch the games. I better go before I start rambling like Dick Enberg...

NCAA Friday Sweet 16 Picks & Thursday Recap

Wow. We hoped that the second weekend would be just as good as the first, and thanks to the Instant Classic between Kansas State and Xavier, it looks like going that way. What an unbelievable game with some of the best and longest clutch shotmaking in recent memory. But, there were 3 other games last night and 4 more tonight. Let's roll!

1) Biggest Winner - College Basketball

-When you watch a game like Xavier and Kansas State played last night, college basketball is the winner. Sports is the winner! My Lord. You can test the significance of a game like that because random people become totally invested. When your Facebook and Twitter feeds are blowing up over a game between Xavier and Kansas State, you know you are watching something special. Where else in the world could a game between a bunch of college kids captivate an entire country? It's a shame either team had to lose, but everyone won last night.

2) Biggest Loser - Offensive Basketball in Syracuse

-Yup, it's time to call out Cornell and the Wash/WVU game. The first half especially in the Wash/WVU game was some atrocious offense and there were 44 total TO's. On one possession, Washington had 6 shots at the basket and couldn't make one! West Virginia really struggled without Truck Bryant but Washington couldn't capitalize. Then... everyone's favorite Ivy League team went out and scored 45 points including 6 in the final 15 minutes of the 1st half! Cornell and Washington had great chances to get upsets, but they might as well have been shooting from where Jordan Crawford was in Salt Lake City last night with their offensive ineptitude.

3) Best Performance - Jacob Pullen, Denis Clemente, Terrell Holloway & Jordan Crawford... and Gus Johnson

-The 4 guards in the classic combined for 111 points! Crawford had 32, Holloway 26, Pullen 28, and Clemente 25. Unbelievable. This game was so special because of the insane shots these guards made down the stretch. Holloway made 3 out of 3 FT's to get the game to OT. Clemente scored 21 points after the 1st Half. Pullen scored 15 points in the final minute of regulation and the 2 OT's including a clutch shot at the end of every period. His game-winning shot at the end of the second OT was fantastic basketball IQ running to the top of the key and fooling the defense. And, what can you say about the 30+ footer of Jordan Crawford... yes, it was waaaaay better than his dunk over LeBron James.

All of these guys were stars. It's a shame that Xavier had to lose another close NCAA tourney game. It seems like they are always on the short end of these classics. But, all of these guys had such epic performances that it made for an unforgettable night. Especially, when Gus Johnson had the call. Is there a better marriage in the universe than Gus Johnson and March Madness? Why is he not announcing the Final 4?!?! Below are the highlights with Screamin' Gus at his best last night, but why the heck not show the Gus Johnson tribute video right now!

4) Best Game - DUH!

-Of course the game of the day was the KSt/Xav showdown, so we'll use this space to rank where that game places amongst the Top 5 Tourney Games of the last 10 years...

1) Kansas/Memphis - Nat'l Title '08

2) KSt/Xavier - Sweet 16 '10

3) Illinois/Arizona - Elite 8 '05

4) George Mason/UConn - Elite 8 '06

5) UCLA/Gonzaga - Elite 8 ''06

Yes, Kansas State and Xavier places right behind the '08 title game, and could maybe even go above it. These are some great games on this list, but what set K State and Xavier apart last night was the incredible long-range clutch shooting. While Crawford and Holloway were going nuts on one end, Jacob Pullen was the epitome of clutch for the Cats. Xavier ran out of miraculous shots at the end of 2OT in an absolute thriller.

5) Biggest Escape - Kentucky

-UK escaped because they clearly played their worst offensive game they will play this tournament. John Wall was inconsequential, Eric Bledsoe was invisible, and Patrick Patterson thinks he's Dirk Nowitzki all of a sudden. However, it was the muscle of DeMarcus Cousins down low that enabled Big Blue to win ugly. UK's defense led the way, but they escaped because Cornell's 3 PT shooting didn't arrive in the Carrier Dome. Cornell had a big chance last night to get a legendary upset. The rest of the field won't be so lucky on the road to Indy.

6) Biggest Choke Job - Andy Rautins & Scoop Jardine (Syracuse)

-My goodness. I could spend an entire article chronicling Syracuse's choke job last night. They trailed most of the game, and found themselves up 4 with 5 minutes to play. This is Syracuse's play by play in the final 5 minutes. Hide your eyes if you are an Orange fan. Remember, the score is 54-50 when this madness begins.

4:25 Scoop Jardine missed 3 pointer

4:03 Kris Joseph Steal

4:22 Foul on Andy Rautins

3:44 Andy Rautins Turnover

2:58 Scoop Jardine missed 2 pointer

2:22 Andy Rautins Turnover

1:37 Andy Rautins missed 3 pointer

:45 Scoop Jardine missed 3 pointer

:37 Foul on Scoop Jardine

:34 Scoop Jardine makes 3 pointer

When this version of March Madness ends... the score was 61-56 Butler. The Bulldogs went on an 11-0 run while Syracuse's backcourt peed down their legs. 0-5 with 2 turnovers in 7 possessions and Wes Johnson, your best player, didn't touch the ball once! Just an amazing choke job. We wondered if Syracuse's backcourt could get it done in a crunch time situation and support Johnson... and they couldn't. Jim Boeheim should thank Xavier and K State for taking the attention off of the Orange being crushed last night.

7) Highlight of the Day - Come on, right?

-The only downer was our own yelling drowned out Gus Johnson. The greatest announcing call in NCAA Tournament history happens at the 1:25 mark.

8) One Shining Thought - Sports Is Fun... So Why Not Scream?

-Allow me to dwell on this announcing theme one more time. As Bill Simmons said last night, any game that makes Gus Johnson a trending topic on Twitter is a good thing. But, for all of the fans of Gus's style, there are many detractors. They don't like the screaming and the schtick. I couldn't disagree more. Sports isn't Larry King Live. Sports is about having fun and yelling and screaming when something amazing happens and losing control when a dude nails a 30 footer to tie the game in OT. Gus Johnson was doing what millions across the country were last night. As someone that does play by play on the small college level, I try to do 2 things - tell the story, and have fun. If you ain't having fun announcing or watching sports, you are in the wrong place - go watch truTV. Gus Johnson is everything that is right about sports and March Madness in particular.

There are some that enjoy Jim Nantz saying "Hello Friends" in his calm demeanor and Clark Kellogg trying his best to make up terrible random euphemisms for things. I like Kellogg, but ever since he became the #1 broadcaster for CBS he is trying way too hard with his nonsensical analogies and lingo *FYI - sounds like a great idea for a running diary*. There are critics that argue Gus is too over the top.. are you kidding? Give me excitement! Give me drama! Don't give me drawn out, complicated analogies that nobody understands and boring play by play. This is March Madness, not March Professional Broadcast Journalism School! I want Gus Johnson announcing the Final 4 and my drive to work every day, make it happen CBS!

FRIDAY PICKS

MIDWEST REGIONAL

Ohio State (2) vs Tennessee (6)

-The Bucks are quietly a heavy favorite to reach Indy. UT has made a great run to make it to the Sweet 16 after all of the early season turmoil, but the run stops here. The Bucks are playing with such amazing chemistry, partly because they only play 6 guys. Nevertheless, if Evan Turner keeps the turnovers down and Jonny Diebler keeps hitting bullseyes from downtown, OSU will advance.

Pick: OSU

Northern Iowa (9) vs. Michigan State (5)

-This game was a toss up before we found out Kalin Lucas would be out. Now, one has to wonder whether Michigan State will have the composure in the half court to play UNI's style. This isn't your older brother's MSU team - this is a group that likes to get out and run. With Ali F and the rest of the Panthers still riding high, they are the favorite to go through. Also, since I have MSU in the Elite 8 in my pool, I'm going with a little reverse psychology here since my picking record is you know... awful.

Pick: UNI

SOUTH REGIONAL

Baylor (3) vs. St. Mary's (10)

-The Gaels are the most under the radar upset bid, but they may have the best chance of any team left against Baylor. The Bears have finally convinced me that they belong in the Sweet 16, but that doesn't mean they will easily run by St. Mary's. SMU big man Omar Samhan makes any All-Tourney team thus far averaging over 30 PPG through the first 2. The Gaels firmly outplayed a reeling Nova team in Round 2, and present matchup issues for almost anyone. On the other hand, Baylor is a team that is solid all the way around and has 3 legit scorers in Dunn, Carter, and Udoh. They haven't been overly impressive, but they've got the job done. I've undersold Baylor so long that I know by picking them now they will lose. Oh, well.

Pick: Baylor

Duke (1) vs. Purdue (4)

-Let me be the first to tell you - these are the games that Duke loses. Michigan State, LSU, West Virginia, Villanova. They all have in common that they beat Duke in the Sweet 16 or earlier in the last several years... and they all beat the Dukies by playing physically dominating basketball. For some reason, Coach K has had soft as tissue paper teams in the latter half of the last decade. Purdue, even without Robbie Hummel, is capable of winning by playing the same type of rugged style.

Chris Kramer (every girl's dream evidently?) can shut down Jon Scheyer and is providing bonus points on offense. He even hit the game-winning shot in OT against A&M. JaJuan Johnson and E'Twaun Moore will have to get buckets to win this game... and they will. Everyone, including me, counted out Purdue at the start of this tournament. But, give credit to Matt Painter for rallying his club and finding them ways to win. Yes, maybe this is more hopeful than anything, but the Boilers will shock this Madness-loving world again tonight.

Pick: Purdue

NCAA Thursday Sweet 16 Picks & Preview

Well, now we're into the business end of the tournament. The Sweet 16 is upon us. Will one of the most memorable and exciting tournaments in recent memory provide us more great games and classic moments? Let's hope so... as long as I walk home with the money. Let's get it on!

West Regional

(1) Syracuse vs (5) Butler

-Syracuse has been perhaps the most surprisingly dominant team through their first 2 games in the NCAA tournament without Arinze Onuaku. Against Gonzaga, Orange superstar Wes Johnson scored 31, and the supporting guard play of Andy Rautins and Scoop Jardine has boosted the Cuse offense in the postseason. Butler meanwhile had more of a struggle getting by fellow mid-majors UTEP and then Murray State in a low scoring game.

Ironically, it may be the offense of Syracuse that sees them home here. Unlike most Butler teams, this group outside of Shelvin Mack aren't great 3 point shooters, which will hurt against the 2-3 zone. Unless Butler can really slow it down and make it a half court game, Syracuse can run and gun past the Bulldogs. I just don't see enough on offense for Butler to finally get past the Sweet 16. PICK - SYRACUSE

(6) Xavier vs (2) Kansas State

-This might be the one Sweet 16 matchup that nobody is talking about, but is very compelling. Did you know this is Xavier's 3rd straight Sweet 16? And that they're only 1 of 2 teams to accomplish that feat? (The other is Michigan State... yea, no Big East or ACC teams, hmm) Evidently there is some history here too with the teams with the teams trading big victories on their home courts the last 2 seasons, so it could be physical and intense.

This game comes down to the matchup in the backcourt - Jordan Crawford and Terrell Holloway for Xavier vs Jacob Pullen and Denis Clemente for K State. This game might feature two of the best guard tandems in the NCAA Tournament. Both duos are explosive scorers and playmakers. But, Clemente and Pullen might just be a bit more dynamic, and play a little bit more defense... which could offset Xavier's previous tourney experience. It'll be close, but the pick is Kansas State.

East Regional

(11) Washington vs (2) West Virginia

-Poor Washington. They're not mid-major enough to be grouped in with the other Cinderellas as an 11 seed, but they're not good enough to be grouped in with the favorites from the big conferences either. They're almost like the Brady Quinn of NCAA Tournament teams... sorry Browns fans, too soon? West Virginia is another team added to the list of ones that have to deal with injuries, losing PG Truck Bryant this week in practice.

Washington will play similarly to Missouri and try to speed up the game against West Virginia. The difference is that Washington has an experienced and established scorer - Quincy Pondexter. Mizzou would have beat the Neers if they had any sort of consistent shooting. The WVU offense, which isn't exactly a Picasso to begin with, will feel the loss of Bryant and become discombobulated. Bob Huggins' teams never strike me as ones that have the poise to deal with adversity. Yes, somehow, Washington makes it to the Elite 8. PICK - WASHINGTON

(1) Kentucky vs (12) Cornell

-Who would have ever thunk that the most intriguing matchup in the Sweet 16 would ever feature the Big Red of the Nard Dog! A year ago, Cornell was just another nerd patrol team losing in the NCAA Tourney... and Kentucky was trying to pretend like the Billie Gillespie Era didn't exist. And yet, here we are, with two of the most explosive offenses in the country meeting in the Sweet 16. Cornell the ruthless, veteran executioners... UK the young, brash, explosive Showtime style.

Honestly, seeing Cornell in the Sweet 16 is no surprise. Temple and Wisconsin might have been the absolute perfect matchup for the Big Red. Cornell could play their style of basketball -outexecute, and outshoot those teams without fear of being dominated physically or athletically. Kentucky is a different story. Everyone says that we will see Kentucky falter because of their youth and immaturity, much like Memphis was finally exposed 2 years ago with Derrick Rose and co. They say that a team of freshmen can't win it all. Well, this UK team looks anything but a team of freshmen.

The key for UK is that John Wall isn't doing it himself anymore. Cousins and Patterson on the inside, and perhaps more importantly - Eric Bledsoe in the backcourt are giving Wall more than enough support. Kentucky will out run and out gun Cornell while having enough defensive muscle to push them around in the half-court defense. Now, Cornell is good enough at what they do that they will score their points and keep up with Big Blue for the most part. But, unless they shoot some ungodly percentage tonight, UK marches on. PICK - KENTUCKY

NCAA Sunday 2nd Round Picks & Saturday Recap

What was that about the elite teams being able to tiptoe through the upset minefield? Umm... about that. UNI's upset win over Kansas sent shockwaves around March Madness and created carnage in bracket upon bracket nationwide. But, Kansas' win wasn't the only story to emerge from Saturday's action. A recap and Sunday's picks are right here at RSS.

1) Biggest Winner - UNI... and Kentucky & Kansas State

-Of course Northern Iowa is the biggest winner for pulling off the biggest 8/9 v 1 upset ever. Some might put this upset in the ranks of the greatest of all-time, but I'm not going there yet. UNI has the poise and the goods to go even farther and saying it is that big of an upset does their talent injustice. But, UK and K State are also big winners for impressive victories and losing their chief competitor. If KSU gets past Syracuse, they don't have to face a KU team they were 0-3 against, and UK takes the favorite mantle.

2) Biggest Loser - Kansas

-I have to eat my words because I thought Kansas would blow out Northern Iowa, but I'm not crying over this upset having KU out in the next round to Michigan State (cha-ching!). Kansas' loss just proves that even the elite teams aren't really that elite. Sharron Collins has won a lot of titles, but he's no John Wall or Evan Turner. And, the Jayhawks now have a history under Bill Self of bowing out to mid-major opponents (Bradley, Bucknell, UNI). Other top seeds must now watch their backs that they don't follow the same fate.

3) Best Performance - Jacob Pullen Kansas St.

-Going up against the highly touted Jimmer Fredette, Pullen proved that he is part of one of the best backcourts in the country in Manhattan. Pullen scored 34 points in only 29 minutes including 7 3's against BYU. Guard play is so crucial in this tournament, and Pullen & Clemente are capable of taking KSU all the way. With Gilbert Arenas out of the picture, we could use a new Agent Zero ya know...

4) Best Game Excluding UNI/KU - Butler 54 Murray St 52

-Of course the game of the day was UNI's miraculous win, but Butler's victory over Murray State was everything a tournament game should be - close, tight, and tense. Murray had a great effort to come back and lead late, but it was the Bulldog defense down the stretch that ultimately booked their ticket to the Sweet 16.

5) Biggest Escape - Baylor

-The least fancied of the top seeds was able to escape a very worthy Old Dominion team before pulling out to an 8 point win. With St. Mary's beating Villanova, Baylor can get to the Elite 8 by beating 3 double digit seeds. Most will scoff, but this year that's nothing to roll your eyes about. Lacedarius Dunn and crew are slowly turning knuckleheads like me into believers. And, if they get their inspiration from the famous New Orleans Saints "Bring the Wood" bats, they might lift the trophy like New Orleans did.

6) Biggest Choke Job - Villanova

-In the 9 months this blog has existed, I've made a lot of dumb picks, but saying Villanova would rebound and blow out St. Mary's was one of the worst. Nova's tournament performance looked like a team that finished the year 2-5 - one more worthy of a 10 seed than a 2. Scottie Reynolds was a shadow of his clutch self, and their insides were ripped apart by the Gaels. Jay Wright didn't have his team ready to play, and they are very deserving of their early exit.

7) Highlight of the Day - Ali Farokmanesh UNI

-Simply one of the gutsiest shots of all-time. Put yourself in Ali F's shoes. Your team has almost been pressed into submission, you've missed your last 5 shots, and you can easily burn most of the last 30 seconds off. 98% of people wouldn't risk taking that shot, but Farokmanesh did, and he became a hero, plus he has a sweet name...

8) One Shining Thought - The Greatest Tournament In The World

-Yesterday was a perfect example of why we love the NCAA tournament, and why there is nothing like it in all of sports. Where else could a team like Northern Iowa be able to take the same court as the almighty Kansas and think that they could get a famous win? Where else could we find such pure joy and love of sport than this tournament? The NCAA Tournament is the greatest tournament in the world because of what we saw yesterday. Each and every year we meet new heroes, new teams, see new upsets, and witness new games that we'll remember for a long, long time.

SUNDAY PICKS

Syracuse (1) vs Gonzaga (8)

-Syracuse is an endangered species. A top seed and a Big East powerhouse. The makeup of the Orange is different than that of Kansas or the other Big East teams though. Their 2-3 zone will frustrate the Zags, and they'll get enough from Wes Johnson to get them to the Sweet 16. Plus, they have the best homecourt advantage right now playing in Buffalo.

Pick: Cuse

Missouri (10) vs. West Virginia (2)

-This game will be closer than the experts think. Mizzou's style is a mismatch nightmare for any team coached by Bob Huggins. Mizzou will keep coming at West Virginia, even if they get down early and will hang with the Mountaineers. I want to pick the upset, but Mizzou has really missed the duo of DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons, who led them to the Elite 8 last year. It'll show in a game where WVU will be strong enough on the inside to win.

Pick: WVU

Michigan State (5) vs. Maryland (4)

-Sparty is shaking after their near upset at the hands of New Mexico St. Greivis Vasquez and the Terps have been as under-the-radar as a Top 4 seed could be entering Round 2. The Terps have been playing good ball as of late, but can this team buckle down and slog it out with Michigan State if the pace slows? I think both teams will probably want to keep the tempo up with athletes all over the floor, but the floor leadership of Kalin Lucas will make the difference when the going gets tough.

Pick: MSU

Cornell (12) vs. Wisconsin (4)

-Don't be fooled by Cornell's 12 seed, they were the better team against Temple and they'll be the better team in this matchup. Cornell is much like the prototypical mid-major tournament success story. They shoot well from outside, they're great in the half-court, and they don't turn the ball over. Wisconsin can't outathlete Cornell like they we might see from UK in the next round.

Pick: Cornell

Xavier (6) vs. Pittsburgh (3)

-This is the hardest game to call of the Sunday slate. Like seemingly every 3 seed in this field, PItt just doesn't strike the casual observer as a team capable of making a deep tourney run. Xavier was lifted by an amazing performance from Jordan Crawford in R1 and they are very capable of winning another game. This will be a slugfest, which suits both teams... but I think Pitt is just slightly better at the hardhat/lunchpail style.

Pick: Pitt

Texas A&M (5) vs. Purdue (4)

-These two schools were popular picks to get upset in R1, but they came through against Utah St. and Siena. A&M especially was very impressive in victory. Outside of Kansas' loss, the Big XII has had an outstanding tournament. However, it looks like the Boilermakers might finally be learning how to play without Robbie Hummel - feed JaJuan Johnson (23/15 v Siena).

Pick: Purdue

California (8) vs. Duke (1)

-Which would be more surprising: 2 #1 seeds exiting in Round 2, or 2 out of 2 Pac 10 teams making the Sweet 16? Let's face it, they would be equally surprising. It would take a gigantic upset for the Bears to top the Blue Devils, but if this tourney has shown us anything it's that anything is possible. We know Duke is nowhere near as good as Kansas, but I can't see them falling to Cal.

Pick: Duke, reluctantly