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Busted
Brackets My 2011 NCAA Tournament bracket has been shredded for good. It didn't take long for the college hoops parity to eat my brackets alive.....thanks to your choice of any under-performing Big East team. For the record, nine of them have been sent to the couch after the opening weekend of play. Thanks for playing, Rick Pitino....that was quick. You, too...Jamie Dixon. And to think I picked Pitt for the Final Four? What was I thinking? St. John's....please. Syracuse....somehow you knew Jim Boeheim would get that "glazed-over" look before making the trip to Houston. Throw in Rick Barnes at Texas and a lackluster performance by Purdue, and you start to get the picture. But it has been fun to watch, because anything can happen. Of the 16 teams still remaining, Ohio State and Kansas look a little bit better than everyone else....but this is March Madness.....one bad half, and it can change everything. I wonder if ESPN's Jay Bilas still believes that VCU has beaten nobody and doesn't belong in the Big Dance? I spoke with Shaka Smart on the Sirius/XM show. The hot, new coach of the Rams told me that his kids were excited when they heard Bilas question their résumé and credentials for playing in the tourney. Three straight blowout wins in five days has propelled VCU into the national limelight....and Bilas into his patented backstroking, flip-flopping mode. How about double-digit seeds like Richmond, Marquette and Florida State? They are still alive and kicking. It has been an entertaining tourney to date, and I suspect the suspense and drama will continue for a few more weeks. I like the new television partnership with CBS and Turner....even though Charles Barkley couldn't name two starters on any team unless he had Kenny Smith whisper the name to him or text him on his favorite phone plan. Duke and UNC are still playing, and Coach K has picked up win #900 in the process....that's pretty impressive. If both blue-bloods keep this up, maybe they can meet in Houston....and K can try to break Bob Knight's record in the process. The Big East failure will receive the most ink and pub this week, and that's a shame. While it is a big story....the bigger story surrounds the 16 teams that are still playing. I figured up that since the Big East's last NCAA championship (UConn in 2004), the league has produced 54 teams in the Big Dance with only four Final Four appearances and zero title games. Of the 54 teams that received NCAA bids, nearly half of them (26) were placed as top-4 seeds. Despite the impressive numbers, the Big East has come up short in recent years. Perhaps UConn or Marquette can change all of that, in the next couple of weeks. The Huskies have been rolling since winning the Big East title, and Marquette's dynamic guard play will be put to the test when they play the Heels on Friday. In case you were wondering, here are the breakdowns of each BCS conference and their title drought:
There was an interesting tidbit in the NY Times this week, that pointed out that the higher-seeded teams in the tourney are 36-12 heading into the Sweet 16. The Big East teams are 7-6 as the higher seed....which means the rest of the field has produced a record of 29-6 by the higher seeds. That stat shows you what a lame tourney the Big East has had so far......but we still have big games to play. If you would have asked me last week to name the league that would have the most teams in the Sweet 16, I can assure you that the ACC would not have been named......I can't believe that the conference leads the way, with three teams. I've had a number of emailers and callers mention to me that the depth and quality of Big East basketball reminds them of SEC football. I have to remind these folks of the following:
There is nothing that compares to SEC Football.....especially a basketball league that seems to have a tough time in crunch time. Speaking of college football, what is going on in Columbus? No, I'm not talking about the "Vest" determining that he's earned a 5-game suspension, but I'm talking about Kirk Herbstreit having to move his family to Nashville because of all the negative comments from Buckeye Nation towards him and his family for doing a great job on ESPN. That's embarrassing. Fans need to understand that Herbie is doing a job....and I think he's the best in the business. To treat one of your own that way is criminal. The Herbstreits deserve better treatment than that....but I have a feeling that they will love Nashville. |
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