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).

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.

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.

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.

Kevin O'Neill to be fired Monday

O'Neill was reinstated Monday because his team got picked to be in the NCAA Tournament. Prove us wrong.



Kevin O'Neill, USC's currently suspended basketball coach will be officially relieved of his duties on Monday, March 14th according to sources close to the program (which means it's true). O'Neill and his crazy ass wife got into a fight with an Arizona fan at a Marriott bar. Both O'Neill and his wife were intoxicated.

This ends the strange sad affair of a man who was fucked over by former Arizona coach Lute Olsen, stumbled into the gig at Southern California, was so-so there and now potentially unemployed. C'est la vie.

Obviously Coastal Carolina is f*&ked now

Their 22 game winning streak? Gone.

Kierre Greenwood, their starting point guard? Gone.

Mike Holmes, their starting forward? Gone.

Desmond Holloway, their leading scorer? Gone.

Something we thought we would never see

Kansas State and Michigan State having to play-in to the tournament!



(Courtesy CBSSports.com)

For the love of Pete, no...

ESPN’s premiere college basketball analyst, Dick Vitale, has signed a contract extension through the 2014-2015 season.

Sigh.

%^*&%$@!

Sigh. We've been through this before:

The official March to Madness position of Article 10, Section 1(b)(i) of the 2005 NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement is that of opposition.

The rule that basically forces high school kids to play college basketball for a minimum of 1 year before joining the NBA should be changed to 3 years. There is a lot of support for this out there but then comes this jackass who apparently feels that people should believe the sun rotates around the earth again:

"With the NBA's labor agreement about to expire, the players' union reportedly is going to ask the league to drop the age restriction. Good. It's time to stop this charade and for all said parties to quit faking it. The NBA and the NCAA need to agree that if a kid is going to college, he has to do more than sleep through two courses before cashing a check."

We. Couldn't. Disagree. More. This is precisely why this rule needs to be strengthened, not eliminated. He then goes on explaining how all these one-and-done players are "fake students" and are making a mockery out of the NCAA and the NBA. Well no shit dude, this is precisely why the rule needs to be strengthened. If you strengthened the rule you would not have kids "sleeping through two courses before cashing a check". The environment right now is producing what you do not like. To eliminate it would take a step back to the wild west days of Kwame Brown, Robert Swift and Jonathan Bender. We HATE the NBA so peace be unto you if that's what you want. However if you were to see it OUR way it would be a win-win situation:

1) Committed student-athletes for the NCAA
2) More polished and mature players for the NBA

Is it really this hard to understand this needs to be done?

Quick Steve Fisher presser

(HT: Rush The Court)

Church ballin'

This is an interesting story: Jimmer Fredette's older brother TJ was teaching Jimmer how to ball while working on his rap career.

Just go back a dozen years when TJ had Jimmer dribbling in the dark, or with a work glove on his hand, or through a darkened gauntlet in the church hallway filled with friends popping out of doorways to test Jimmer’s concentration.

Interesting techniques but hey, whatever works.

Sense and Sensibility in the NCAA

What does Ted Forstmann, Vegas and Rachel Newman-Baker have in common?

So let's get this straight. President of powerful talent agency company makes deal to represent college basketball coaches? Check. Also makes deal for licensing and marketing of college basketball? Check. Then turns around and starts betting on college basketball games to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars? Check. So the NCAA Director of Agent, Gambling and Amateurism tells the public she intends to do nothing? Check.

But she then turns around and bans a poor kid from Turkey from playing for Kentucky because he made a couple of bones playing for his national team? Oh, we got that checked.

Oi vey, NCAA.

How have you been spending the off season?

Reading about conference reorgs? Players behaving badly? Coaches behaving badly? Thankful that college football is here to bide the time? It's been eventful so far, however nothing will beat the summer of 2008 for off season shenanigans.

As for us will begin posting anew around the beginning of November. We usually post more during the summer and fall but we've been admittedly lazy this time around. And with Gabby welcoming a newborn in December it might be a little chaotic around here right at the start of the season.

Two more months to go. Just hang on.

Calipari is laughing

Yes, that is life...

Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl has been a very busy bee this off-season. Yesterday he held a press conference to finally talk about what he has been doing:

1) Lying to NCAA investigators
2) Lying to NCAA investigators with the intent to hide illegal recruiting activities he and his staff were engaged in
3) Covering up lying to NCAA investigators with the intent to hide illegal recruiting activities he and his staff were engaged in

South Carolina Representative Joe Wilson had had some choice words for Pearl in light of these finding. Ultimately the hammer came down on Pearl with a one year recruiting ban for the Vols coach. In addition he has been fined $1.5 million which works out to about a $300,000 per year salary deduction on the life of his contract with Tennessee.

Some feel Pearl should be fired. Some are wondering why the hell not? We feel his 126-46 record may have something to do with that. Good job, coach!

What does it mean?

So...

Utah and BYU are leaving the Mountain West Conference next year. In their place the MWC is getting Boise State, Nevada and Fresno State.

From a basketball perspective... things are looking pretty good for SDSU! While the two schools leaving have powerful programs the three schools joining don't exactly invoke fear on the hardwood. And who's left to fill the void after this? New Mexico? Too streaky. UNLV? Perhaps.

That is all.

Nooooooo

John "The Wizard of Westwood" Wooden - 1910 to 2010

Won 10 NCAA College Basketball Championships with UCLA
7 of them consecutively
Revolutionized coaching
Never swore even when angry
Married his high school gal
When she passed away in 1985 he never remarried
Almost every single college basketball coach today list him as an influence


And now, he's gone.

We saw a wonderful comment on another site: A great coach but a better person. Our loss is heaven's gain. I would pay to see his eyes when he meets up with (his wife) Nell again.

Yeah, we're tearing up now.

Phil Knight, Nike and well heeled Ducks

Reportedly the University of Oregon wants to offer Michigan State coach Tom Izzo a contract worth somewhere north of $32 million dollars over multiple years to become their next basketball coach.

Yes, Tom Izzo.

Heck, why not Mike Krzyzewski? Jim Calhoun? Roy Williams?

How freaking ridiculous is this? Izzo is no John Calipari folks.

UPDATE: It is so ridiculous that coach Izzo had to take time out of preparing his team against Butler in the Final Four to deny being interested.

And now, a special comment

National Public Radio and Sports Illustrated's Frank Deford talks about the merits of expanding the NCAA Tournament to 96 teams.

Needless to say he makes the coaches look like fools.

On another programming note make sure to tune in tonight for our coverage of the opening rounds.

You're fired

Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez has been fired today. The Pirates went 19-14 and lost the first round of the NIT against Texas Tech.

Plus their players were punching people in the nuts.

Go education!

See this man?

Get to know him.

Love him.

For he speaks the truth:

ATLANTA -- Education Secretary Arne Duncan criticized and says college basketball is hurt by players who enter the NBA after only one season at his keynote speech at the NCAA convention Thursday.

Now that just makes our pie holes smile. Can we float a rumor that Duncan is running for NCAA president?