Fin

So there are folks like @rushthecourt and @ballinisahabit who have been covering college hoops proficiently and professionally. I have been honored to call them along with several others "blog mates" even though I'm not as technically knowledgeable and my modus operandi has always been to be as stupid silly as possible when talking about basketball. I remember during Bracket Busters week many years ago I was watching the Memphis/Louisville game. All Darius Washington had to do is make his foul shots and the Tigers would be in the Tournament. When Washington missed his final shot and broke down on the court I wanted to talk to someone, anyone about it. That got me started blogging. A few years later I approached some bloggers to do a weekly blogpoll. I only expected about 5 of them to participate but imagine my surprise when over 20 bloggers signed up. Then advertisers started e-mailing and began PAYING me for my blog. Then other bloggers began asking me questions and inviting me out to events. Then With Leather mentioned me, then Sports Illustrated came calling... Those were the heydays of my blogging experience and I thought (and wished) that it would never end.

Well, I guess all things good and bad do come to an end. So it is with some sadness I announce that I will not be continuing this endeavor going forward. There are a few reasons for this:

1) Work. For those who don't know I work in the Finance/Investment arena and the way the market has been and with my new responsibilities of managing even more money my work life has become all consuming.

2) 11 month old son. He's been kicking my ass. The time I do not spend at work is devoted to him. We can always sit down and watch college hoops but there is a big difference between watching and writing. As soon as my laptop is out he takes it and jumps on it. I don't know how other bloggers with kids can do it.

3) General malaise. I just don't have the same passion to write anymore, probably due to the first two issues.

So what I found out is that Twitter is more convenient for me to comment on basketball (or football or politics or cooking). That is where I will be found from now on. I may post here occasionally but don't expect it.

Thanks to everyone who has helped me throughout the years, like my West Coast posse! It's been real, it's been fun. And...

GO AZTECS

ESPN Releases College Basketball Schedule

Oh yes, we are getting closer and closer to the start of college hoops, citizens. Behold the power of the 2011-2012 TV schedule!

The one thing we immediately zoomed in on was this...

Baylor is returning some strong ballers (Scott Drew, Quincy Miller). And don't forget Perry Jones who easily compares to Kawhi Leonard. This will be a "show me" game for all the doubters who think the Aztecs will fall off this season.

We're one of them.

So in 30 days it'll be time to buckle up. Also, that is when we will start posting on a more regular basis. But in the meantime, who else is excited about the Alabama/LSU football game on November 5th?

The Chinese don't like Blacks anyway

What started as a friendly game of basketball between the Georgetown Hoyas and China's Bayi Rockets turned real ugly real fast as a full scale riot erupted on the court:

A woman sitting in the Georgetown fan section directly behind the bench implored Chinese police to try to calm the situation, saying someone was going to get hurt. The Chinese police had been watching the tensions escalate to the point of physical confrontations but made no attempts to break up any of the fights taking place on the court.

Well, you know what we always say... Don't go to foreign countries.

Grand Theft Laptop

College students love them some laptops. They go all luchini if there is one nearby that they can get their grubby little hands on. Case in point:

UCLA men's basketball player Jerime Anderson has been suspended indefinitely following his arrest Tuesday evening. Anderson, a senior point guard, was arrested on campus by University Police and was charged with gankin' a laptop.

Not too good for coach Ben Howland who loses his best 3 point shooter for an undetermined period of time.


This is it (what)...

I Before We and Drunk Cooking

So two things came to mind today while we wait for this horrible, horrible college basketball off season to end. The first is a question that comes up again and again on the blog and our Twitter Feed:

Why do you use the term "we" all the time? Isn't it just you writing? Are you schizophrenic?

Well, no. We think. Actually it goes like this; Yes, I (Gabby) write about 95% of the stuff on the Blog and Twitter. But I have friends who help me. So if I am using the term "we" that means that whatever it is that I am saying was a collaborative thought or expression. If I am using the word "I" that means it was solely me who came up with whatever crap that I am spewing.

The second thing was an overdue introduction to our audience on someone who we have been watching and laughing ourselves silly over:

This is Hannah Hart, proprietor of My Drunk Kitchen. She adeptly combines two things I love to do, cooking and drankin' to hilarious effect. Before Baby M2M was born I use to do this a lot. But Baby M2M does not allow me the quiet time necessary to nurse a hangover so I stopped. Plus Mrs. M2M says that it would be good for my health to stop too. But Hannah has taken up the slack for me. So check her out, citizens. You'll be glad you did.

Also, I do have to say that since I stopped drankin' and cooking my meals have been a whole lot more tasty. I guess that is another benefit of sorts.

Carry on.

But who is the captain?

We totally stole this from SB Nation but it was too good not to share. Can you guess what Lions coach Schwartz is saying?

We think the conversation started like this:

Schwartz: "Where's the fudge?"
Voice in headphones: "Where's the fudge... What?"
Schwartz (pictured above): "Where's the fudge, captain?!"

Hey, we all like fudge. What? You think he said "what the fuck happened?" Naw, he's not that type of person.

CBS lets Gus Johnson go

Yes, this makes total sense. Terminate the contract of your most popular college basketball play by play man. Seriously, the universally acknowledged MOST POPULAR college basketball broadcast personality. Let go of the guy that college football fans wish would call THEIR games. Just disregard the man that SINGLEHANDEDLY puts the excitement into March Madness. The man that guarantees a boost in ratings for the games he calls. Really CBS? Really?

REALLY?!

Hey, at least we still have Jim Nantz, right?

Follow us LIVE during the NFL Draft tonight!

We will be tweeting real time reactions during the 76th Annual National Football League Selection Meeting, otherwise known as the Draft bay-bee.

Follow us on Twitter @March2Madness

The fun starts at 8 pm EDT. Let the snark commence.

Oh no they didn't

The Feds are interviewing San Diego State basketball players because they knew the names of the University of San Diego players who liked to get high and gamble on sports. The shit has Just... Gotten... Real... Yo.

Thankfully it looks like just minor inquiry to build their case against USD. None of the Aztecs were directly or indirectly involved so we can calm down somewhat. Please don't tarnish our one glimmering season!

Pimping 101

Those Catholic basketball players in San Diego done did some shit that would make Dr. Dre proud. If you didn't hear the news then allow us to lay out what happened in lyrical form...

The sun went down when we hit Old Town
on our way to F Street, with Mary Jane in da back seat
Checkin our rearview, cause broke homies they will do
jack moves, attack fools b-ballers smack fools
Tried to set us up for that Zaga game
Fuck around and we could give up a minus 17 thang
but USD don't represent no losin points
My man Brandon Johnson hit dat three to flush da joint
so on, and so on, our bets let us roll on
We be slangin that weed so we can get our stroll on
Didn't nobody wanna be in da mix; now everybody
be at our games cause they know we got da fuckin fix
Shave dat point? Shave dat point?
That's how we make coin and you know you want to join, fool
But we ain't slippin with da dollas we kickin
While our book keep rakin and Gaslamp hoes keep fakin we'll be
Rollin back up Linda Vista, With everybody sayin

Florida players steal cars

Have you not heard of Drive Time?

University of Florida forwards Erik Murphy and Cody Larson probably enjoyed themselves during the spring football game but walking there and back sucked. So they decided to rectify that situation:

"The Gators were arrested early Sunday morning after allegedly attempting to break into a car in St. Augustine. Both were charged with felony third-degree burglary"

However, they needed someone to look for cops so they kept it all in the family by grabbing someone else from the team:

"Josh Adel, a team manager, was charged with principal to burglary after police said he served as the lookout."

Coach Donovan has suspended both indefinitely.

Coach of the Year!

San Diego State's Steve Fisher has been named the 2011 Naismith Men's Basketball College Coach of the Year. Thank you for a wonderful season we will be telling our children about for years to come.

Go Aztecs!

Welcome to the off season of the dream

Image above is enhanced while you listen to this.

Now begins the most dreaded part of the year where there is no more college basketball left. The sadness of this consumes us. We will try and past the time with other ventures, like paying attention to our significant others. Also, this blog will downshift from the hyperactive multiple daily posts to occasional posts about our second loves like cooking, politics and college football. We will resume full power basketball operations in November.

You can still follow us on our "world famous" Twitter feed as well where the 140 character snark will probably continue uninterrupted. So be safe out there and Mahalo.


Aw, buck up. It's only 7 months...

A collegiate obituary for Jacob Pullen

Throughout this season the one thing we have always noticed about the ubiquitous Kansas State guard was his role as peacekeeper between coach Frank Martin and the other players. There were countless times we saw Martin rip apart one of his guys only to have Pullen walk over, pull the kid aside and put his arm on his shoulder, seemingly saying "It's ok, you know what to do so lets do it." Also, the number of times we saw Martin rip Pullen directly? Zero.

The gang over at Rush The Court have always been strong admirers of Pullen. We just wanted to throw our two cent worth in. You'll be missed, Jacob.

A cheater prevails

UConn 53 - Butler 41

Well this should ease the glaring light of Jim Calhoun's apparent lack of internal controls. This game was UGLY, with both teams unable to make shots. C'mon, you guys need to make shots! Anyways, finally in the second half Connecticut's Jeremy Lamb suddenly got his grove back and prevented the score from being a lot lower. Butler's Matt Howard tried to keep his team in it but none of his shots were going in (reference above). At one point we predicted the final score to be 41-40. Guess we weren't that far off. So the University of Connecticut are your 2011 NCAA Basketball champs and now we can begin the whole "Will Calhoun retire?" meme.

Some sights from the NC game...


Happy Husky fans.


Bulldog players during the final seconds of the game.


Matt Howard's parents. Sad.


Net cutting!




At the March to Madness HQ.

Shaka Smart will leave Virginia Commonwealth

VCU's Athletic Director said "We're going to keep him. We will be proactive about it." But the cold hard numbers say otherwise. Take a gander -

Top NCAA Division 1A basketball coaching salaries



Bottom NCAA Division 1A basketball coaching salaries



See that highlighted name? That's coach Smart, citizens. The amount of money VCU would need to come up with just to be competitive with the current market value of coaches with his credentials would be enormous. And VCU is no University of Richmond when it comes to fundraising. To be quite frank, the Rams don't have the horses for this. The only way coach Smart returns is if he has some sense of loyalty to the program (and he wants an even bigger payday next year).

A final ode to the VCU Rams

We were the trendy ones here!
Sitting in the locker room
Surrounded by my players
The media hasn't left
But my head is pounding
It's already UConn's turn
But the stink of our game
Are still stuck in my shirt
How we played was fading
In the light of the scoreboard
How we shot was bullshit
We played the pussy way
And I guess I'll never find out
Which one of you
Allowed this shit
VCU has failed
and now Richmond must fall
Richmond must fall

Oh my gawd!

Connecticut 56 - Kentucky 55

Ok, we are going to say it. Kemba Walker is a better player than Jimmer Fredette. This is simply because Walker has guided his time to the title game and without him they would have lost in either the Sweet 16 or Elite 8. BYU with Jimmer lost in the Sweet 16. There's your proof.

This game was a typical Kentucky comes out and smacks you in the mouth, Kemba Walker wills UConn back in the game with some clutch plays, Kentucky cannot make the final shot because of Walker's antics. And so the stage is set for Butler/UConn. Right now we have no clue who we think will win.

The end of the road for the Commonwealth

Butler 70 - VCU 62

We predicted this one. At first it seemed that Butler tried to play the Rams game and were failing miserably. But then the Bulldogs returned to what they know best; grinding it out and doing damage in the paint. The most amazing stat to this game was that Butler held VCU to 36% three point shooting while VCU allowed Butler to increase their 3 point shooting to 36%. Chew on that.

Bulldog coach Stevens is the Stephen Hawking of college basketball.

Charles Barkley said something intelligent

We have railed against the One-And-Done rule countless times. And throughout this tournament we have made our opinion of Sir Charles known.

But amazingly enough we are both in complete agreement that this 1 year removed from high school rule is killing both college and pro basketball. You have to hear what Barkley says about this.

Yes, we are agreeing with the "great blow job" dude. What has this world come to...

Everybody be hating on us

So yes, Kentucky is a fine program and all. A winning one to boot, regardless of what you may think of their current coach. Well, you may think better or worse after you hear what coach Calipari said about other basketball programs -

Other basketball teams don't want to beat us. They want to BE us.

For a man with a myriad of NCAA investigation inquiries at multiple schools and the inability to keep a cohesive team for more than one year that is indeed a bold statement. Let's hope it doesn't come back to bite them in the ass.

What if Gus Johnson was your HS history teacher?

Tell us why he can't call the NC Game?

The crying game

We already tweeted about this earlier but it was so good it deserved a full blog post. The article, written by Zach Hillesland talks about and explains why college seniors cry when they lose in the NCAA Tournament. What makes this a must read is that he explains this in painful detail...

"The real reason they cry is because they go from feeling like it’s the middle of their careers to knowing it’s the absolute end, all in the span of one 40-minute game. The end brings the wave of emotions that was both built up and suppressed for the past four years. This is the last game I’ll ever play with my friends and teammates. This is the last time I’ll play for my school. This could be the last time I’ll be part of a team. What is next?"

We here have always teased them but we wanted to take a step back and acknowledge the sacrifice they give to their school for the love of the game. As the saying goes most of them will go pro in something other than sports.

Congrats to Kawhi Leonard!

Associated Press 2nd team All-Americans:

Marcus Morris - University of Kansas
Derrick Williams - University of Arizona
Ben Hansbrough - University of Notre Dame
Jordan Taylor - University of Wisconsin
Kawhi Leonard - San Diego State University

Go Aztecs!

Mailbag

Sometimes we get very interesting e-mails from our readers. Such as this one from a mgrealdeals:

"Dick Vitale is a grade 1 Psychopath... He is always about HIMSELF everything has to do with him!!! "me" this "i" that ....ughhhh....He is ignorant and is always trying to call attention to himself. He has ruined more games for me than I can count. I now just turn off the volume when he is announcing..ABSOLUTELY THE WORST EVER!!!!!!!!"

Except for the "grade 1 Psychopath" comment we have similar feelings but we also realize he is a college basketball institution. He is not going away anytime soon. The way we deal with him is purely from a comic relief perspective and we do not rely on him for any sort of knowledgeable insight to the game.

For example, when he says something absolutely absurd like this we respond "Oh you funny silly old man!" Perhaps if you look at him that way it will ease your pain.

Mahalo for your readership.

Know your enemy (VCU edition)

No music or introductions like we normally do since this isn't concerning San Diego State. But with one of us living here in Richmond, VA we are getting besieged with questions about the Rams upcoming matchup with Butler so here we go -

Don't expect VCU to blow out Butler like they have done to previous opponents. The way the Bulldogs are built they simply will not allow that. Whereas Kansas tried multiple times to take control of the game and exert their will on VCU, Butler will simply hang with the Rams and make it a close game. This is where they are dangerous (see example one or example two). Their modus operandi is to wait for when you are the weakest and then try and kill you (see example three). You can count on luck as Duke did last year or you can attempt to make it a horse race as Butler's opponents have tried in vain to do this year.

The third option would be for VCU to play Butler's game, essentially neutralize Butler in the paint with their second (and third and fourth) chance shots. Then it comes down to who can shoot more effectively from beyond the arc, which the Rams have a slight advantage (Rams 48% to Bulldogs 27%).

So there you go. Now that you have this simple road map we Richmond folks are expecting great things. We're looking at you, coach Smart...

The game that no one cared about

Kentucky 76 - North Carolina 69

So there was Butler and Virginia Commonwealth. Two outstanding games that featured underdogs that became top dogs this weekend. The UConn/Arizona was a thrilling affair featuring two great guards (and possible POY) in Williams and Walker. There was even some controversy regarding VCU's win.

And then there was the UNC/Kentucky game. A game where we said it would not matter who wins. Outside of the fan base was there anyone who was rivited to their chairs doing their best Gus Johnson impersonation? We think not. Some folks came to the Tar Heels and Wildcats defense saying that we should love the game for the game and it's not all about the Cinderellas and these are two top programs. We tried, but we just couldn't get into it.

But here's to the UConn/Kentucky matchup. We are slightly more excited about that.

Kansas/VCU 2nd half analysis

Please. Make the pain go away.

Kansas/VCU 1st half analysis

Yup. That just about sums it up.

Butler will make you sweat

Butler 74 - Florida 71 Overtime

"I feel sick to my stomach. It hurts right now."
- Florida forward Chandler Parsons

It was the second overtime game in the past two days. And Butler proved again that they're no Cinderella. Florida and especially Parsons should be given all due credit. They played an amazing game and hit the shots they were suppose to hit, virtually overwhelming the Bulldogs at times. Butler just would not lie down and die. The Gators were such odds on favorites even the NCAA were prematurely celebrating their potential win. What is the saying about hubris?

In the end Florida became just another victim of Butler's maniacal march toward the Final Four and maybe the National Championship. But it has been a hell of a march to watch.

Busted

Well, Kentucky did it to us and we are officially out. We have to admit this has been the worst we have ever done in the past 3 years outside of the VCU pick. Still it doesn't detract from the awesomeness that is the NCAA Tournament. Good luck to the 8 remaining teams.

Eight is never enough

Virginia Commonwealth 72 - Florida State 71 Overtime

This is what it's all about. Both teams were neck and neck throughout the contest with Florida tying it at the end of regulation. Then with 7 seconds left in overtime VCU hits an EASY layup to move ahead 72 to 71. There were still 7 seconds on the clock and Florida State's ball but the Rams Jamie Skeen blocked any chance the Seminoles had to win the game.

If there were ANY lingering doubts about VCU belonging in the tournament (not likely at this point but still) they have now been erased with authority. The Rams have proven that they can blow out opponents or grind out wins. Borrowing from an old joke about VCU they didn't belong in the field of 64. They belonged in the Elite Eight, although some are saying they will be a sacrificial lamb lame for Kansas. And no matter what coach Shaka Smart is a wanted man after this is all said and done.

Flame on!

North Carolina 81 - Marquette 63
Kansas 77 - Richmond 57

These two games were ugly. UGLY. Let us not speak any more about them.

Duke, did you see the Sunrise yesterday morning?

Shhhh... Just watch. You'll understand.

Playing the part of Magnum P.I. was Arizona forward Derrick Williams. Playing Ivan was Michael William Krzyzewski.

(HT: The Blogfather, EDSBS)

Bracket update

We are nearing destruction. Duke hurts us big time and we have only two teams in the Final Four. This has turned out to be the worst year for our bracket picks.

But not busted yet (using official M2M definition of the term "busted").

Thank you!

So first, the 3 stages of grief for San Diego State fans:

Denial Aztec: It's over. We lost by 7 points. Go to bed.


Angry Aztec: Did you really think we could win? Maybe you need a drink, it's ok. Calm down.


Sad Aztec: Maybe you're drinking too much. We lost. It's done.

Thank you Steve Fisher for forcing us to believe in miracles. We did not expect much this year and you gave us so much. We will tell Baby M2M of the time the Aztecs were in the Sweet 16.

Thank you D.J. Gay. You truly are a field general when it mattered.
Thank you Billy White. Your X factor 3 pointers saved our asses at times.
Thank you Malcolm Thomas. When we got into trouble foul wise you were there.
Thank you Kawhi Leonard. Only a sophomore and the star of our team. You will be missed.
Thank you Chase Tapley. The combo of you and White crushed BYU in the MWC title. Enough said.
Thank you James Rahon. We doubted your shooting ability. You proved us wrong.

Now the scary part. This team is no more. The team that will be in it's place next season will have only a fraction of the ability. Back to the desert? Yes...

And the beat goes on

Arizona 93 - Duke 77

Absolut Domination. Kyrie Irving could have been at 200% and wouldn't have matter. Nothing mattered for the Blue Devils. They were totally horsewhipped at the Honda Center by the Wildcats. Once again they were stripped and laid bare for all to see. We could only assume Coach Lavin was sitting somewhere laughing his but off. Beware of Arizona you Huskies.

The mighty once unbeatable Duke is OOT.

Know Your Enemy

A little Green Day if you please.

Introducing the University of Connecticut Huskies

Make no illusions about this: The Aztecs cannot win against UConn the way they are currently playing. We all know about Kemba Walker so we won't waste your time talking about him. What makes the Huskies so dangerous are Alex Oriakhi, Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb. At any time one or all three of these players will turn into a "Kemba Walker" and start either lighting you up from outside or breaking your ankles in the paint. Tell us now who on the Aztecs roster can counteract that?

Bueller?

The key to this game is turnovers. As in we MUST limit UConn's offensive production by stealing the ball. We do this quite well actually. The thing is that we must turn those turnovers into points. Which we have been horrible at. We need to take our best game we've ever played and multiply that by 50. Okay, maybe just 10. You get the point. Believe it or not there are very concerned Husky fans out there. We still don't fully understand what they are so worried about.

Anyways, go Aztecs.

The Royal Bracket

So everyone knows that President Obama is doing quite well with his bracket picks (that he took the time to do instead of solving that whole Israeli/Palestinian thing). Some are pretty upset at this. But we know the truth of how he did so well. He has Secret Service agents read blogs and then feed him the intel.

He even got San Diego State right.

Will they have Honor Code police?

While everyone else is celebrating BYU's annihilation of Gonzaga and their trip to the Sweet Sixteen we want to talk about an under the radar story. Will Brigham Young be alright in New Orleans? We're serious! In a city where sex and booze are beyond pervasive how can these fresh faced, slightly naïve kids survive? Hey, one of their comrades went down already because of something most folks in the Big East feel is mandatory.

We're not the only ones who are concerned with our Mormon friends venture into "Sin City of the East". We can only hope Coach Rose has an early bed check for the Cougars. Like 5 pm.

Tennessee basketball is winning

Oh, there is so much wrongness going on in that Tweet. First, why was Pearl fired?? What, do you live under a rock? That's akin to someone coming up to you and asking "why was Reagan president?"

Next, he was fired for allegedly lying to investigators? No honey baby, that was an absolute damned fact he was lying to the NCAA.

So now we wait and see what the official penalties and sanctions will be for the Vols. Just because Bruce is gone doesn't mean they are off the hook.

Bracket update

Notre Dame and Syracuse were teams that damaged our Elite Eight brackets but besides that no major changes from yesterday. East still looking like the genius picks followed by West.

They report, you decide

So the fair and balanced folks just pinned our nation's hopes on Butler, the penultimate heartland team. Seriously:

"(Butler's) starting to win back the hearts and minds of America's college basketball fans, too."

If this is the case then America is fucked. We don't see the Bulldogs getting past Wisconsin's swing-style offense.

Coach Stevens, you can't let the terrorists win!

Big East fraud

Eleven Big East Teams came into the tournament last Thursday.

As of this morning there are only two teams left.

We still have three more rounds to go.

Johnny Rotten was wise.

Richmond State Of Mind

Virginia is for lovers... of college basketball.

By the time I get to Arizona

Arizona 70 - Texas 69

Similar to the Pitt/Butler game this came down to the last seconds and a foul call. With nine seconds left the Wildcats would have just tied it with a two pointer and sent the game into overtime but with a foul on Arizona's Derrick Williams the two became a three point play. This left Texas flat footed with no time left.

Game over. Don't cry. There's next year.

Bracket update

First, Luke Winn is kinda right. The Aztecs are a shaky #2 seed. Remember, we felt they should have been a #3 to #5 seed. Looking at the bracket above we did not have them getting to the Sweet Sixteen because of the issues that came up glaringly in the Temple game (missed shots, unable to convert turnovers, unable to maintain leads). We said as much in our game update.

That being said we are extremely happy and couldn't be prouder at the fact that we are going to the Sweet Sixteen. We had every right to celebrate like we had won the Final Four. Because we and a lot of other people in SDSU Nation did not expect them to get this far. Go Aztecs.

Next, the Pitt thing. Ouch that hurts but we are still in it. Remember, our definition of a busted bracket is if one (or both) of your National Championship game teams lose before said game. The East is shaping up to be our best region, meanwhile the Southeast looks like absolute wreckage. Who could have predicted Richmond would look so studly? All in all this is shaping up to be one of our down years in bracket picking. We'll see what happens today.

Hollywood Ending

San Diego State 71 - Temple 64 Double Rainbow

We are mentally exhausted. So yeah, there was a game yesterday with SDSU playing Temple. And the Aztecs were doing good for awhile...



But then we reverted back to "classic SDSU". Game tied in the final seconds and we had a chance at the game winning shot. We missed.

Overtime. After a seesaw battle the game became tied again and once again SDSU had the chance at the game winning shot. We missed.

Double overtime. This time we turned into "Aztecs 2.0" and managed to build a permanent lead for the win. So yes, San Diego State University is headed to the Sweet Sixteen in Anaheim, California. Glory Be. Like we said we are exhausted but we're still partying knowing that UConn may await us.

In Every Dream Home a Heartache

Butler's inexplicable 71 - 70 win over Pittsburgh

Ummm, yeah... First we are shocked at the Pitt loss. Boy are we going to hear Mea culpa coming from our Pitt friends on Monday. The game ended on two fouls essentially. First, on Butler's possession...

No, we are not going to do it. We can't clearly explain what happened. Just know a #1 seed went down tonight. Click on the link above for video.

Steve Fisher presser

Another quick one after the Temple double rainbow...

SDSU Head To Head matchup presented by CBS Sports

Please don't send any more hate mail

West "fuckin" Virginia is out early. Again.

If you were reading our Twitter feed you would have seen us prematurely proclaiming victory for the Mountaineers. West Virginia's Joe Mazzulla and Casey Mitchell were positively on fire for most of the game... Most of the game. They seemed to have run out of steam towards the end and then Kentucky's Brandon Knight took over, eventually spuring his Wildcats on to a 71 to 63 win. He did better than what he did against Princeton. Which was ultimately bad for Huggy Bear.

Bracket update

Second Round analysis: Obviously the East and Southeast were our best picks and where we have the most brackets in tact. On the inverse is the other regions. Chalk is winning out so far in this tournament. We are not busted yet but we'll see what this weekend holds...

And yes, we still love that Georgetown pick (or non pick depending on how you look at it).

VCU gives 18 reasons why they belong

The Rams slap the taste out of the Hoyas mouths 74 to 56

Virginia Commonwealth are on a mission, Special Ed style. In the interest of full disclosure we picked USC to beat VCU but does it matter? We also picked this:



Georgetown was ripe to fall. But that shouldn't diminish from the type of ass kicking basketball the Rams are bringing. If you hinder their ability to shoot from the perimeter they'll bury you in the paint. If you play the bully role in the lane as Georgetown did they'll just shoot threes all day. Pick your poison.

So henceforth we shall no longer disrespect VCU. They truly belong here and they are one team the Selection Committee got right.

From 3 to 2

Illinois 73 - UNLV 62

Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, losin' my soul
Down in a hole, feelin' so small
Down in a hole, outta control
I'd like to fly but my
Wings have been so denied

We were really really hoping that all three Mountain West teams would advance to the 2nd (3rd) round this weekend. Looks like it's just the two of us, Jimmer.

Pearl Watch: Tennessee/Michigan

Is Bruce Pearl a dead mam walking? For every game they play it has the possibility to be his last, so the Volunteers in essence are fighting not for a possible NCAA championship but for Pearl's career.

Game odds: Tennessee -1 1/2



Go Vols!