March 25, 2009 –
by Brendon
In last week’s preview, I mused about the possibility of two Tigers, two Huskies and a Dick Enberg meeting up in Glendale this week. Enberg, two teams of Tigers and one team of Huskies will be there, but Purdue crashed the party with a two-point win over Washington on Saturday evening. Despite being one of just two teams seeded below the top four lines to make it to the second weekend of the Tournament, the Boilermakers fit right in a region where all four defenses are among the nation’s top 10.
Let’s take a look at these matchups, which will leave Enberg saying, “Oh, my!” and Jay Bilas being a self-righteous — though usually accurate — know-it-all. Some things never change.
No. 5 Purdue vs. No. 1 Connecticut (7:07 p.m. ET): Purdue is a team I’ve touted for a long time as a potential Final Four team, but I failed to stick to my guns when I picked Washington to defeat Purdue in the Second Round on Saturday. The Boilermakers weren’t able to keep Washington off the offensive glass, but they did keep the Huskies off the foul line thanks in large part to JuJuan Johnson’s presence inside. Connecticut presents similar problems for Purdue’s capable defense, but these Huskies are better at both shooting and taking care of the ball than Washington is. Read More »
Posted in National Perspective, Reviews/Previews
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Tagged A.J. Price, Cal State-Northridge, Connecticut, DeMarre Carroll, Dick Enberg, Doneal Mack, E'Twaun Moore, Gavin Edwards, Georgetown, Hasheem Thabeet, J.T. Tiller, JaJuan Johnson, Jay Bilas, Jeff Adrien, Jerel McNeal, Jim Calhoun, Keaton Grant, Leo Lyons, Marcus Denmon, Marquette, Matt Painter, Memphis, Mike Anderson, Missouri, Pierre Henderson-Niles, Purdue, Robbie Hummel, Robert Dozier, Roburt Sallie, Shawn Taggart, Stanley Robinson, Syracuse, Texas, Texas A&M, Tyreke Evans, Washington, Wesley Matthews, West Region
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January 27, 2009 –
by Brendon
I had written most of a full on article on the Marquette-Notre Dame, but I realized I didn’t have that many new or interesting things to say about it, especially about the Irish. So, instead, I’m going to do one of those lazy, bullet-point-itemed pieces — one that will include topics beyond Marquette-Notre Dame, the kind of stories that get the worn-out baseball beat writer through the dog days of summer (not that I’m worn out).
• I’m not sure that fans around the country realize how dire a situation Notre Dame is in. The Coaches Poll still assigned a little number next to the Irish this week despite a third straight loss on Saturday to Connecticut, which indicates to most that NDU has nothing to worry about. Most prognosticators — you can see BaselineStats.com’s projection listed under “Base” — still had the Irish in the field entering Monday’s matchup with Marquette, and five projectors who put who new brackets on Monday even had Notre Dame at a No. 6 seed or higher. I think they’re wrong. Read More »
Posted in Big East, Reviews/Previews
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Tagged Bracket Project, Buzz Williams, Connecticut, Earl Clark, Fran McCaffery, Iona, James Anderson, Jay Bilas, Kevin McAlarney, Louisville, Marquette, Mike Brey, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Providence, Ryan Ayers, Sean McDonough, Siena, Syracuse, Terrence Williams, Travis Ford, Villanova, West Virginia
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January 20, 2009 –
by Brendon
Big Monday is one of the great nights in the college basketball week, at least in theory. The evening typically starts out with a terrific matchup between a couple of powerhouse Big East teams. The 7 p.m. ET game is usually broadcast by Sean McDonough, Jay Bilas and Bill Raftery, for my money the best crew in all of sports.
After two hours of pure college basketball enjoyment, that well-known network sends us to the Great Plains — usually Lawrence, Kan. — and Ron Franklin proceeds to complain about how long the Big East games are before the Jayhawks proceed to beat down whatever Big 12 fodder the league has presented the Jayhawks with on that night (I do love Fran Fraschilla, though).
I know that this isn’t always the case — there are often good matchups that go down to the wire, but it seems like the Big 12 game is always an underwhelming denouement to what should be a stirring basketball double-header. The same was true on Monday night when Texas A&M visited Lawrence and was double-teamed and dribble-penetrated out of the building in a matter of minutes of Kansas’ 73-53 win. Read More »
Posted in Big 12, Game of the Night
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Tagged B.J. Holmes, Baylor, Big 12, Big Monday, Bill Raftery, Brady Morningstar, Bryan Davis, Chinemelu Elonu, Cole Aldrich, Donald Sloan, Fran Fraschilla, Jay Bilas, Josh Carter, Kansas, Marcus Morris, Mario Little, Mark Turgeon, Markieff Morris, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ron Franklin, Sean McDonough, Sherron Collins, Texas, Texas A&M, Tyler Reed, Tyshawn Taylor
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