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The
Devil Made Me Do It Coach K and his Blue Devils are back in college basketball's hallowed ground. The trip this week to Indy will mark Krzyzewski's 11th Final Four. That's pretty impressive....especially when you consider K is now 11-1 in regional finals. When the brackets were announced, there were screams of favoritism thrown Duke's way.....it was the NCAA and CBS Sports way to guarantee decent TV ratings. As it turned out, Duke had to beat a #4 seed (Purdue) and win a road game against #3 Baylor to gain their invite to the Final Four. Given Duke's track record recently, that was far from a gimme for the Blue Devils. Duke's win over Purdue was their first win over a team seeded 4 or better since 2001....and I can assure you that nobody played a tougher road game in the entire tournament than Duke did in dismantling a very talented Baylor squad. You don't have to like 'em...but it's hard to argue about their success. Ironically, the Blue Devils are the last #1 seeded team to survive what has been a volatile March Madness. Who could have imagined Butler and a beat-up Michigan State team to survive? It should be an amazing homecoming for the hometown Bulldogs, and Tom Izzo always seems to make an appearance on the final weekend of the season. West Virginia lost their point guard and still had enough to take down Coach Cal's talented freshmen. I was 0-for-4 in my Final Four picks....now I know how it feels to be President Obama. But this tournament has been crazy and entertaining, and I suspect that will continue for one more weekend. And if it turns out Coach K can cut down the nets one more time, it will give him four national titles during his amazing career. That would be the same number as Roy Williams and Dean Smith combined. I'll let the debate continue from there...... UNC is trying to to win a championship of their own, too. This Wednesday, the Heels play Rhode Island in the NIT Semis. Roy Williams' guys are playing their best ball of the year, and for the third game in a row, they are an underdog. I sense that is a non-issue for Roy's boys. What is an issue is the apprehension some UNC fans have in winning the NIT. Maybe it has something to do with Duke still playing in the real tournament? But regardless of that discussion, there is no question that North Carolina's youngsters are gaining some valuable playing time and experience with this late run. I suspect that it will pay big dividends next season, when UNC returns to prominence. I'd still love to see UNC win the NIT and hang the banner in Carmichael.....the place where the late season run all started. Nice week, Urban. Urban Meyer evidently needs another vacation. I'm assuming he's had one, since the recruiting season. The Florida Gators' brilliant coach lost his mind last week, when he was caught on tape ripping a reporter for supposedly doing his job. I have no problem with a coach defending his kids and players, but there's a way to do it....Meyer not only crossed the line, he obliterated it. I thought this guy resigned...err....took a leave of absence? He's as intense now as ever before.....and we're still 170 days away from the opening kick-off of the 2010 college football season. I worry about guys like this....they are beyond Type A+++++ personalities. He is such a control freak, that he doesn't know when to let it go. To Urban's credit, he finally took a breath and came to his senses when he formally apologized to the reporter, Jeremy Fowler. But the reputation of Meyer and his program continued to get smashed nationally, with his hot-head move on the practice field. The weather geeks are completely out of control. I found out something with Sunday night's never-ending, non-stop coverage of wind and a raindrop....weather geeks reminded us that in case of a tornado, it is a good idea not to stay in a mobile home. Who knew? I hope Artie Lange is happy.....it appears that the "Joe Buck Live" show is history. I will never forget the train wreck that was his first show. I'm a fan of Buck's play-by-play work, but his HBO show was a disaster. Since the debut, Lange has tried to kill himself in an apparent suicide attempt. Buck would have probably helped him after his appearance on the show's debut. Now it's Buck's show that is dead. Somehow, Buck won't have to concern himself with the HBO experiment; he can move on to what he does best. |
Packman
on Sports Commentary
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