Now that the dust has settled...

I would just like to say first off that I correctly picked 63 of the 65 teams correctly in my mock brackets below (same as Mr. Lunardi). I had Syracuse and Drexel in and Stanford and Arkansas out.

Now, what I would like to say is what I have been telling my friends for the last two days. I think the committee got 63-64 of the 65 teams correct. I think the last 3-4 spots should have came down to Illinois, Arkansas, Stanford, Purdue, Syracuse, Drexel, and Kansas State. Now of this group the committee took four of them. No one can sit here and tell me, someone who watches as much college basketball as any of the experts, that Syracuse is not one of the four best teams out of that group! I have no problem with Stanford, Purdue, and Illinois being in the tournament as I think they are all deserving. But, I have a big problem with Arkansas!

The problem I see is this: If Arkansas isn't in then should Syracuse be in over Drexel? Yes Drexel beat Syracuse head to head...But, the game was played over two months ago! Drexel couldn't beat the top teams in the CAA how could they beat the top teams in the Big East like the Orange did? The committee is getting too wrapped up in numbers and not looking at the teams as a whole. If Syracuse and Drexel and Arkansas all played on a neutral court 20 times who would win the majority? That is the question that should be asked. You give Syracuse a shot at any of them in their own building and the Orange would win 7 of 10 times! Those are the facts the committee should look at.

One more point I would like to make about the snub is that of Villanova. I have been saying all year that I thought they should be in the tournament if they made a run. My predictions in a previous post way back when stated this fact that if they could get to better than 9-7 and make a run in the BE tourney that they would be in. Well, they finished at 9-7 and won just one game in the tourney. Oh, and they finished 9th!

I have been just taking the high RPI of Villanova for granted all year, saying 'Oh their RPI is high so they must have beaten some teams.' Well let me look at their resume, especially non-conference: Lost at Xavier...Won at Iowa (who is terrible), Won at Oklahoma (who is terrible), Lost at home to Drexel, Wont at home to Temple (who is terrible), Won at home to Texas (best win of the year...Now the Big East: Lost at WV, at Syracuse, at ND, at Marquette, Lost at home to Depaul, Pitt, and GTown...Wins: ND, LVille, and Syracuse at home...GTown, and Providence were the big road wins.

Looking at this resume you get: Texas, Penn, ND, Lville, and GTown as the only tourney teams they beat...They lost to Xavier, ND, Marquette, Pitt, and GTown...That is a 5-5 record against tourney teams...Same as Syracuse! Looking deeper at this just makes me hate the RPI even more!

The bottom line is that is Villanova is a 9 seed and Arkansas is in the tourney, then how in the world can you not say that Syracuse is one of the 34 best at large teams? Yes Nova went and played teams on the road, but Oklahoma? Iowa? losing to Xavier? If you say that Syracuse played too many teams at home and lost to the ones they should have won then the same goes for Nova...Just because they played teams on the road doesn't make them a better team.

I was going to make some points about seeding in the NCAA tourney that I thought are way off, but what's the point? Ill just say that Niagara should not be in the play-in game! I'm not going to boycott the NIT because I think the seniors deserve more than that. Lets go out and not only win the NIT but just destroy the field. Jimmy should not let up. If they get up by 15+ just put the hammer down and drive the stake deeper! Make it a WV/Syracuse final so the committee can see just how tough the Big East actually is!

Watch the game tomorrow and treat it like a stepping stone for next year, because that's what Ill be doing!

GO 'CUSE!!

I'm no expert but...

Ok, I don't want to blog about how Syracuse was snubbed because a case can be made for or against them getting in the tourney. What I don't understand is that if they left them out because they didn't play any true non conference opponents then why was Drexel left off? Drexel played Villanova, Syracuse, and Creighton on the road and beat all three. If non-conference road games is what is important then Drexel should be there.

If the unbalanced league schedule is a problem then how is Arkansas in? They went 7-9 in the WORST major conference in the country! 7-9! Syracuse went 10-6 with wins over Georgetown, Marquette, Villanova, Providence, and Depaul...Who did Arkansas beat? The swept Vanderbilt, Ill give them that. But, they swept Alabama who just wasn't very good all year and they finished FOURTH in the SEC West! Just don't understand what the committee was thinking.

As for my mock bracket I did below. I may have gotten some of the seeds wrong, but I missed just TWO teams! I had Syracuse and Drexel in and I had Stanford and Arkansas out. Arkansas never even crossed my mind! I missed the exact same number as Joe Lunardi! He also has Syracuse and Drexel in, but he missed Illinois and Old Dominion. Just goes to show you that the "experts" can just about guess like the rest of us!

What a shame!

GO 'CUSE!!

Brackets Are Done! (UPDATED 3-10)

We finished the brackets quicker than anticipated. The brackets are below...What is strange is that we didn't look at Joe Lunardi's bracket until the very end and we have very similar results and seeds. Maybe I do think like Joe.

Anyways, please provide comments and let me have it! The brackets are up to date through games played yesterday. I have taken the Joe Lunardi approach and give you my last four teams in and last four teams out. Props must be given to my good friends Andy and Will who helped out with the brackets!

Here we go:

WEST (San Jose)

Sacramento
(1) UCLA
(16) North Texas

(8) Arizona
(9) Xavier

Columbus
(5) Tennesse
(12) Illinois

(4) UNLV
(13) New Mexico St

Lexington
(6) Butler
(11) Drexel

(3) Washington St
(14) Texas A&M Corpus Christie

Winston Salem
(7) Boston College
(10) Winthrop

(2) Texas A&M
(15) Niagara


EAST (East Rutherford)

New Orleans
(1) Florida
(16) Delaware St

(8) Villanova
(9) Indiana

Spokane
(5) Maryland
(12) Old Dominion

(4) Nevada
(13) Holy Cross

Buffalo
(6) Virginia Tech
(11) Gonzaga

(3) Pittsburgh
(14) Penn

Chicago
(7) Creighton
(10) VCU

(2) Wisconsin
(15) Eastern Kentucky


MIDWEST (St. Louis)

Lexington
(1) Ohio St
(16) Central Connecticut

(8) USC
(9) Kentucky

Buffalo
(5) Notre Dame
(12) George Washington

(4) Texas
(13) Toledo

Sacramento
(6) BYU
(11) Purdue

(3) Southern Illinois
(14) Vermont

New Orleans
(7) Duke
(10) Texas Tech

(2) Georgetown
(15) Long Beach


SOUTH (San Antonio)

Chicago
(1) Kansas
(16) Weber St/Miss. Valley St

(8) Vanderbilt
(9) Syracuse

Spokane
(5) Virginia
(12) Davidson

(4) Louisville
(13) Wright St

Columbus
(6) Marquette
(11) Georgia Tech

(3) Memphis
(14) Oral Roberts

Winston-Salem
(7) Oregon
(10) Michigan St

(2) North Carolina
(15) Belmont



Here is the run down of seeds (they are not ranked in order):

1 seeds:
UCLA
Kansas
Florida
Ohio St

2 Seeds:
North Carolina
Georgetown
Wisconsin
Texas A&M

3 Seeds:
Memphis
Southern Illinois
Pitt
Washington St

4 Seeds:
Texas
Nevada
Louisville
UNLV

5 Seeds:
Notre Dame
Virginia
Maryland
Tennessee


6 Seeds:
Marquette
BYU
Virginia Tech
Butler

7 Seeds:
Boston College
Creighton
Oregon
Duke

8 Seeds:
USC
Villanova
Vanderbilt
Arizona

9 Seeds:
Syracuse
Kentucky
Indiana
Xavier

10 Seeds:
Winthrop
Texas Tech
VCU
Michigan St

11 Seeds:
Drexel
Georgia Tech
Purdue
Gonzaga

12 Seeds:
Illinois
Old Dominion
George Washington
Davidson

13 Seeds:
New Mexico St
Wright St
Holy Cross
Toledo

14 Seeds:
Texas A&M – Corpus
Penn
Oral Roberts
Vermont

15 Seeds:
Niagara
Eastern Kentucky
Long Beach
Belmont

16 Seeds:
North Texas
Central Connecticut
Delaware St
Weber St/Miss Valley St


Bids By Conference:
Big East (7)
ACC (7)
Big Ten (6)
Pac – 10 (5)
Big 12 (4)
SEC (4)
Colonial (3)
Mountain West (2)
Missouri Valley (2)
Horizon (2)
WAC (2)
Atlantic 10 (2)

Last 4 in:
Old Dominion
Purdue
Illinois
Georgia Tech

Last 4 Out:
Florida St
Stanford
Clemson
Michigan

Get ready for Sunday night

After a tough loss yesterday to Notre Dame I just can't believe all the so called Orange fans who are debating whether or not the Orange is in the NCAA's! I mean come on...are you serious? 10-6 in the Big East and a big end to the season and these Orange "fans" have them out and WV in?This debate will be going on up until Selection Sunday and probably even after that, but the facts are clear...if you want to put WV in the tourney then the Orange has to be in!

Syracuse could have easily won the Notre Dame game had our big men (most notably TRob) made some damn free throws. Notre Dame is a great shooting team, no question about it, and I said going into the game that Syracuse doesn't match up well against them. Just think about, Syracuse scored their second most points in a Big East game this year (the most was also against Notre Dame), and still lost the game. Notre Dame shoots the ball so well as a team that it is so hard for Syracuse to match up to everyone. I am personally not worried about this team. They are going to make it to the big dance as no better than a 9 seed. Personally I would like to see them be an 11 or 12 seed because the second round matchups would be better.

For those people still wondering whether or not Syracuse should be in the tournament, I say give me 4 or 5 teams that you feel are better than them that are on the bubble. You wouldn't be able to find them. Syracuse is not a lock on anybody's brackets, but they are a lock in my opinion!

I started my mock brackets a few days ago and I am going to finish my bracket today at work, as it will be a slow day in the office! I will post my mock bracket selections later in the day...so look forward to them!

GO 'CUSE!!

Eight Straight!

Syracuse has now won eight consecutive Big East Tournament games. Just one shy of UConn's record of 9 straight. Syracuse won in the same fashion that they have been winning, big contributions from Nichols and Devo and then just enough from everyone else.

With the Orange down by two at the half I was sitting in my office just waiting for Nichols to start making some shots, something he failed to do in the Villanova game. Then, after missing his first three in the second half, he started to catch fire, going 7-11 on threes after his very cold start. Nichols finished with 28 points, 19 of which came after the first half. Once again, he was doing it from all spots on the floor. He hits a three from the corner, then scores on a drive to the hoop, then hits another three from a different spot on the floor, and then the game was essentially over. An 8-1 Nichols run put the Orange up 15 and well on their way to facing Notre Dame in the quarterfinals.

In the first half, without Nichols doing much, Devo was able to keep the Orange close by scoring 15 first half points. No outside shots by Devo in the first half...NONE! This is amazing considering how often he comes down and just pulls up from three. Devo was great at getting in the lane and finishing drives. I couldn't count how many layups he got in that first half as it just seemed to easy for him. With him scoring 15 points and Harris contributing a solid 6 points, the Orange were able to be down just 2 at the half despite shooting terribly to start the game.

This was a solid win for the Orange and should be enough to get them in the field of 65 (I thought they were in before this win). Now comes a rematch with Notre Dame, a team that just shot lights out against the Orange when they met in the Dome earlier this year. I don't think there is any possible way that Notre Dame can shoot like they did on that day, as they just couldn't miss anything, and they still only won by 12 points...103-91. Should be a very good game down at the Garden, just like most of the games are.

An interesting note from other games is that the higher seeded team advanced in every game except the Depaul/Villanova game...but who actually thought Depaul would win that anyways?

I was at work during the game and watching it online...my props to ESPN 360...so, I didnt hear Doug Gottlieb after the game, but I did hear him at halftime of the West Virginia game. For the first time in my life I actually heard Doug give the 'Cuse respect. He said that the Orange is on a roll now and he predicts they will beat Notre Dame and then with the way they are playing, they can go far in this tournament. He said, "Wouldn't it be interesting to see how high a seed the Orange could get if they can win the whole thing again?" Just goes to show you that when you play well, which the Orange has done of late, the "experts" will start to give you credit.

Big win for the Orange and now I am back at work and trying to squeeze all my work into a few hours so I can once again load up ESPN 360 and watch the Orange battle the Irish!

Stats from the game:

Scoring:Nichols: 28...Devo: 19...Roberts: 9...Watkins: 8...Rautins: 7...Harris: 6...Wright: 1

Rebounds:Watkins: 10...Roberts: 8...Harris: 8...Nichols: 5 Rautins 3...Devo...2...Wright: 1

Assists: Harris and Devo: 4...Nichols: 3...Rautins and Wright: 2...Watkins: 1

Turnovers:Harris and Rautins: 4...Nichols, Devo, and Watkins: 3...Roberts: 1

Steals: Harris and Rautins: 2...Watkins: 1

Blocks:Watkins: 3...Nichols, Roberts, Rautins, and Devo...1

Syracuse shot 45% from 3

UConn shot 35% from the field and just 21% from 3

GO 'CUSE!!

Bracket Challenge!

I am going to host a FREE college basketball bracket challenge for all those interested!

I want all you so called "bloggers" to take aim and try and beat me!

Please leave comments for any suggestions that you may have as to how you would like it to be run (Maybe have you pay to play). I will email everyone with all the details of where the bracket will be held...Most likely I will host it on yahoo sports or espn.com!

Email me at: dtaylor716@gmail.com if you want to be in...

GO 'CUSE!!

Villanova pregame thoughts

Well, the calendar has turned to March and it is now officially March Madness time!

One more regular season game to go for this up and down Orange season.

If Syracuse wins then they have a shot at the 4 seed in the BE tourney...Lets got Scarlet Knights! Even with a loss, Syracuse is guaranteed the 5 seed. It will be awfully hard to three-peat playing 4 days in a row. This is not a must-win game by any standards but a loss tomorrow and a loss in the first round of the BE tourney and Orange fans may have to sweat it out come next Sunday.

I'm wondering what happens if Syracuse beats Villanova tomorrow. My bet is that all the "experts" put Villanova in as like a 7 seed and the Orange in as a 9 seed. Seems like the more wins the Orange get, the more people say Villanova is in. This whole RPI system just boggles my mind. I agree with Jay Bilas in how the NCAA needs a new formula as this current system is just plain awful in today's game.

Back to the game at hand! Syracuse comes in riding a nice 5 game winning streak and Villanova comes in off from their win at UConn. (Or should I say Scottie Reynolds comes in after a win at UConn). Reynolds dropped 40 points on UConn and he fouled out with under 2 minutes to play! If this kid isn't rookie of the year in the Big East then something is wrong. Villanova owes Kelvin Sampson all the love they can give because had he not bolted for Indiana, Reynolds would be playing at OU.

It is going to be interesting to see how Boeheim uses everyone in this game. Roberts is hurt so do you give him limited minutes in hopes he can get a little more healthy for the Big East Tourney? Or do you continue to play him because this would be a huge win? What about Josh Wright? If he is healthy do you play him or does he continue to ride the pine and watch the team play better without him? Is he going to keep the same 6 1/2 man rotation going or give Wright and Gorman more minutes? (The 6 being...Devo, Rautins, DNic, Roberts, Watkins, and Harris) Should be very interesting on how the game is managed.

Another interesting side note is this: Will this be the last home game coached for Jay Wright? Rumors continue to speculate that he will be the next coach of the 76ers. If they make the NCAA tournament then are we witnessing the end of Wright at 'Nova?

Contain Reynolds and make someone else beat you, is my motto for this game! Nardi has always shot the ball well against the Orange so they need to contain him, but Reynolds is capable of 25-30 points every night. When he penetrates, make sure someone helps out...Something UConn failed to do the other night.

All in all my prediction is 'Cuse 74 Nova 69...Game will be close until the final 3 minutes when the Orange go on a run to put it away and then Nova hits some meaningless shots at the end.

GO 'CUSE!!