The fact that I spent my free time watching rounds 2 and 3 meant I was not able to continue with my predictions. Now that the field is narrowed down I shall re-start blessing the masses with predictions as slick as J-Will's passes.
As usual *winner's in BOLD*
EAST REGION:
1 Ohio State v. 4 Kentucky -- Ohio State came out in the third round and got knocked in the mouth by George Mason and their 11-2 run to start the game. They responded by kicking George Mason in the nuts. Kentucky has a young team and a shallow bench. Potential for disaster: High.
11 Marquette v. 2 North Carolina -- UNC beat out a seriously underrated Washington squad but there were mental errors. Marquette overcame a very talented, very well coached, and very familiar Syracuse team. This should be a close game but I still think the Big East is close to as good as advertised so Marquette should have the grit to pull this one out.
WEST REGION:
1 Duke v. 5 Arizona -- Arizona combined determination and poor refereeing (both ways mind you) to beat out flat footed Texas. Duke narrowly avoided disaster against Michigan. I don't see Duke playing poorly in back to back games under Coach K.
3 UConn v. 2 San Diego State -- San Diego State is not the type of team to blow people out. They grind it out and play ridiculous defense. It could spell danger for them if Kemba Walker gets hot at the wrong time, but I think they can harass him to the point where his legs are tired late in the second half. After all he has been carrying UConn since the beginning of the Big East Tourney.
SOUTHWEST REGION:
1 Kansas v. 12 Richmond -- Any other year this would be an ideal upset pick. But Kansas is playing like they want it this year and when Illinois pushed them and made it 56-51, Kansas responded with a 10-0 run and the final score ended up being 73-59. It just seems like their year with all the upsets in the region.
11 VCU v. 10 Florida State -- I'd like to give myself credit for pointing out in my first round predictions that VCU was out to prove people wrong. I'd also like to pat myself on the back for not heeding my own advice and picking Georgetown to beat them in my brackets. I'm not really sure about this game, but I just can't get behind "Florida State is an Elite Eight caliber team"
SOUTHEAST REGION:
8 Butler v. 4 Wisconsin -- I have Wisconsin in the Final Four so that explains this pick. Butler seems to have EVERYTHING fall their way this year so if you are putting money up, it may be wise to pick with them. Their coach is underrated.
3 BYU v. 2 Florida -- This game really hinges on Jimmer Fredette. If he continues to play out of his mind then they can win every game. If not, then no. Just imagine if BYU didn't suspend the Davies kid.
March 23, 2011
March 17, 2011
Friday's Round 2 Predictions (Now Streamlined)
After trial and error last night, or simply just error, I've decided to do my predictions by region instead of time of tip-off. Heeeeere we go. *Slick Rick voice*
*winner in BOLD*
EAST:
1 Ohio State v. 16 UT-San Antonio -- Not much to see here... Or is there?
8 George Mason v. 9 Villanova -- Villanova choked away a two-seed last year and ended this year on a cold streak.
6 Xavier v. 11 Marquette -- This should be a good game but I've heard good things about Tu Holloway and Xavier so I'm going with them.
3 Syracuse v. 14 Indiana State -- There ain't no Larry Legend here. There is Scoop Jardine on Syracuse though.
7 Washington v. 10 Georgia -- I like the way this Washington team plays and with a point guard named Isaiah Thomas, I like this team getting to at least the Sweet 16.
2 North Carolina v. 15 Long Island -- It seems crazy yes, but it's just crazy enough to work. UNC starts slow and gets stagnant for stretches, Long Island scores and then scores some more after that.
WEST:
1 Duke v. 16 Hampton -- I don't like Duke but I'm not that crazy.
8 Michigan v. 9 Tennessee -- With the spectre that is the Bruce Pearl saga surrounding this Tennessee team, I don't see them playing very well. Plus Michigan has Tim Hardaway Jr.
5 Arizona v. 12 Memphis -- Two words, Derrick Williams.
4 Texas v. 13 Oakland -- Mid-major teams with NBA prospects are dangerous come tourney time. Oh wait, teams with NBA prospects are dangerous come tourney time.
SOUTHWEST:
1 Kansas v. 16 Boston University -- Not worth it.
8 UNLV v. 9 Illinois -- Did the Big Ten really deserve 7 teams in the tourney this year? I doubt it.
6 Georgetown v. 11 VCU -- If Chris Wright is healthy and himself this Georgetown team could make it to the Elite Eight. Without a fully healthy Wright, Georgetown could lose here.
3 Purdue v. 14 St. Peter's -- I'm feeling lazy, not much to see here.
7 Texas A&M v. 10 Florida State -- Toss up really. I like the Singleton kid on Florida State, but he has been hurt.
2 Notre Dame v. 15 Akron -- Yawn.
Yesterday: 11-5 Tournament: 14-6
*winner in BOLD*
EAST:
1 Ohio State v. 16 UT-San Antonio -- Not much to see here... Or is there?
8 George Mason v. 9 Villanova -- Villanova choked away a two-seed last year and ended this year on a cold streak.
6 Xavier v. 11 Marquette -- This should be a good game but I've heard good things about Tu Holloway and Xavier so I'm going with them.
3 Syracuse v. 14 Indiana State -- There ain't no Larry Legend here. There is Scoop Jardine on Syracuse though.
7 Washington v. 10 Georgia -- I like the way this Washington team plays and with a point guard named Isaiah Thomas, I like this team getting to at least the Sweet 16.
2 North Carolina v. 15 Long Island -- It seems crazy yes, but it's just crazy enough to work. UNC starts slow and gets stagnant for stretches, Long Island scores and then scores some more after that.
WEST:
1 Duke v. 16 Hampton -- I don't like Duke but I'm not that crazy.
8 Michigan v. 9 Tennessee -- With the spectre that is the Bruce Pearl saga surrounding this Tennessee team, I don't see them playing very well. Plus Michigan has Tim Hardaway Jr.
5 Arizona v. 12 Memphis -- Two words, Derrick Williams.
4 Texas v. 13 Oakland -- Mid-major teams with NBA prospects are dangerous come tourney time. Oh wait, teams with NBA prospects are dangerous come tourney time.
SOUTHWEST:
1 Kansas v. 16 Boston University -- Not worth it.
8 UNLV v. 9 Illinois -- Did the Big Ten really deserve 7 teams in the tourney this year? I doubt it.
6 Georgetown v. 11 VCU -- If Chris Wright is healthy and himself this Georgetown team could make it to the Elite Eight. Without a fully healthy Wright, Georgetown could lose here.
3 Purdue v. 14 St. Peter's -- I'm feeling lazy, not much to see here.
7 Texas A&M v. 10 Florida State -- Toss up really. I like the Singleton kid on Florida State, but he has been hurt.
2 Notre Dame v. 15 Akron -- Yawn.
Yesterday: 11-5 Tournament: 14-6
March 16, 2011
Thursday's Round 2 Predictions
The tourney is upon us. I used two different "strategies" in formulating my brackets this year, neither of which worked last year. I used a numbers "strategy" in which I took personal bias out of the equation, and I also went with my gut. I feel like my gut has become more substantial over the last year so it would follow that it's picks will also be more substantial. Let us hope. On to Thursday's second round match ups.
*winner in BOLD*
12 o'clock hour:
5 West Virginia v. 12 Clemson -- They had similar conference records but West Virginia plays in the Big East and not the ACC.
8 Butler v. 9 Old Dominion -- Butler has been playing well recently but it seems like Old Dominion is the better team.
1 o'clock hour:
4 Louisville v. 13 Morehead State -- Aside from having an incredibly funny name, Morehead State features 6'8" Kenneth Faried who is averaging 17.6 ppg 14.5 rpg and 2.4 bpg. It will not be enough.
2 o'clock hour:
4 Kentucky v. 13 Princeton -- The benefit of recruiting one and done players is that you end up getting more one and done players the next year.
7 Temple v. 10 Penn State -- I like Temple. I haven't watched Penn State.
3 o'clock hour:
1 Pittsburgh v. 16 UNC-Asheville -- I had to go to the basketball team's ESPN website to see if it was spelled Ashville or Asheville.
4 o'clock hour:
2 San Diego State v. 15 Northern Colorado -- My gut tells me the Final will be San Diego State against Kansas. Ohio State and Wisconsin lose in the Final Four. Interesting... my "research" bracket has Belmont beating Wisconsin today.
5 Vanderbilt v. 12 Richmond -- I really like Richmond. Kevin Anderson is a beast. So is Vanderbilt's John Jenkins. This should be a fun game no matter how it turns out.
6 o'clock hour:
2 Florida v. 15 UC-Santa Barbara -- Apparently Florida is pretty good. They should win here, but I'm not sold.
7 o'clock hour:
3 Connecticut v. 14 Bucknell -- Kemba Walker.
4 Wisconsin v. 13 Belmont -- Belmont is a trendy pick here. If one of my brackets is right, the other cannot be. In retrospect that seems foolish.
3 BYU v. 14 Wofford -- If BYU hadn't suspended that Davies kid, I would have predicted a San Diego State/BYU Final that rocks college basketball to it's core. One can dream.
9 o'clock hour:
6 Cincinnati v. 11 Missouri -- Cincinnati likes to slow the game down and Missouri plays at a breakneck pace. Normally the tournament favors the defensive team but Missouri's uptempo style comes from their defense. Probably not the most interesting game, but it should be a good one.
5 Kansas State v. 12 Utah State -- Utah State is another popular upset pick. For good reason too. Kansas State seems to have trouble playing well consistently. That is disastrous this time of year.
6 St. John's v. 11 Gonzaga -- If DJ Kennedy didn't go down with a knee injury I think St. John's could have done work. Stupid basketball.
7 UCLA v. 10 Michigan State -- This doesn't seem like your normal Michigan State team and UCLA has some guy that is 6'10" 305.
*winner in BOLD*
12 o'clock hour:
5 West Virginia v. 12 Clemson -- They had similar conference records but West Virginia plays in the Big East and not the ACC.
8 Butler v. 9 Old Dominion -- Butler has been playing well recently but it seems like Old Dominion is the better team.
1 o'clock hour:
4 Louisville v. 13 Morehead State -- Aside from having an incredibly funny name, Morehead State features 6'8" Kenneth Faried who is averaging 17.6 ppg 14.5 rpg and 2.4 bpg. It will not be enough.
2 o'clock hour:
4 Kentucky v. 13 Princeton -- The benefit of recruiting one and done players is that you end up getting more one and done players the next year.
7 Temple v. 10 Penn State -- I like Temple. I haven't watched Penn State.
3 o'clock hour:
1 Pittsburgh v. 16 UNC-Asheville -- I had to go to the basketball team's ESPN website to see if it was spelled Ashville or Asheville.
4 o'clock hour:
2 San Diego State v. 15 Northern Colorado -- My gut tells me the Final will be San Diego State against Kansas. Ohio State and Wisconsin lose in the Final Four. Interesting... my "research" bracket has Belmont beating Wisconsin today.
5 Vanderbilt v. 12 Richmond -- I really like Richmond. Kevin Anderson is a beast. So is Vanderbilt's John Jenkins. This should be a fun game no matter how it turns out.
6 o'clock hour:
2 Florida v. 15 UC-Santa Barbara -- Apparently Florida is pretty good. They should win here, but I'm not sold.
7 o'clock hour:
3 Connecticut v. 14 Bucknell -- Kemba Walker.
4 Wisconsin v. 13 Belmont -- Belmont is a trendy pick here. If one of my brackets is right, the other cannot be. In retrospect that seems foolish.
3 BYU v. 14 Wofford -- If BYU hadn't suspended that Davies kid, I would have predicted a San Diego State/BYU Final that rocks college basketball to it's core. One can dream.
9 o'clock hour:
6 Cincinnati v. 11 Missouri -- Cincinnati likes to slow the game down and Missouri plays at a breakneck pace. Normally the tournament favors the defensive team but Missouri's uptempo style comes from their defense. Probably not the most interesting game, but it should be a good one.
5 Kansas State v. 12 Utah State -- Utah State is another popular upset pick. For good reason too. Kansas State seems to have trouble playing well consistently. That is disastrous this time of year.
6 St. John's v. 11 Gonzaga -- If DJ Kennedy didn't go down with a knee injury I think St. John's could have done work. Stupid basketball.
7 UCLA v. 10 Michigan State -- This doesn't seem like your normal Michigan State team and UCLA has some guy that is 6'10" 305.
March 15, 2011
It's Tourney Time (First Round Predictions)
With the new NCAA men's basketball tournament format, round 1 is being played tonight and tomorrow night (Tuesday and Wednesday). The selection committee made some horrendous choices this year which is odd seeing as the expansion of teams was supposed to make it easier. Oh well. The NCAA, one of the only places where you can make money off of athletes and punish them for getting paid. On to the predictions.
Tuesday
16 UNC - Asheville v. 16 Arkansas - Little Rock (6:30 pm) -- I'm not going to act like I've seen these teams play. Neither team has an impressive win on their schedule but UNC-Asheville has losses to tougher opponents than UALR.
16 UNC - Asheville
12 Clemson v. 12 UAB (9:00 pm) -- UAB is one of the teams that I feel should have been left out. Nothing very impressive about their schedule. Losses to Southern Miss, Tulsa, Arizona State, and East Carolina combined with one win over a tourney team (VCU, who was a questionable selection to some) and two losses to Memphis (who wouldn't have made the tourney without winning the conference tourney) don't bode well for this team. Compare that to Clemson. Their losses to non-tourney teams came within the ACC and/or on the road (@South Carolina by 4, @Maryland by 2, @Virginia by 2, @NC State by 8). While the road losses and lack of marquee wins hurt Clemson's chances to advance past the first weekend, they shouldn't have a problem with UAB. I think Colorado or Alabama could beat either of these teams however.
12 Clemson
Wednesday
16 Texas - San Antonio v. 16 Alabama St. (6:30 pm) -- Again, never seen either of these teams this year. The only reason I know Alabama St is from NCAA College Hoops 2k8 (which I still play to this day) where I played against them as my Alcorn State start up team. Anyway... Alabama St. played tougher teams this year than Texas-San Antonio, so I give them the nod. Toss up really.
Alabama St.
11 VCU v. 11 USC (9:00 pm) -- VCU has only a few good wins this year (UCLA (neutral court), @Old Dominion, vs. George Mason) mixed with only a couple bad losses (@Georgia State, @Northeastern). However that pales in comparison with USC's complete inconsistencies all year. USC has some big wins (vs. Texas, @Tennessee, vs. UCLA, vs. Arizona, @Washington) and some head scratching losses (vs. Bradley, @TCU, Oregon twice, @Oregon State). I would love to give USC the benefit of the doubt and assume they will put their talent together at the right time, but I have a feeling VCU is looking to prove some people wrong.
VCU
Tomorrow night (Wednesday) -- Predictions for Thursday's games (Round 2)
Tuesday
16 UNC - Asheville v. 16 Arkansas - Little Rock (6:30 pm) -- I'm not going to act like I've seen these teams play. Neither team has an impressive win on their schedule but UNC-Asheville has losses to tougher opponents than UALR.
16 UNC - Asheville
12 Clemson v. 12 UAB (9:00 pm) -- UAB is one of the teams that I feel should have been left out. Nothing very impressive about their schedule. Losses to Southern Miss, Tulsa, Arizona State, and East Carolina combined with one win over a tourney team (VCU, who was a questionable selection to some) and two losses to Memphis (who wouldn't have made the tourney without winning the conference tourney) don't bode well for this team. Compare that to Clemson. Their losses to non-tourney teams came within the ACC and/or on the road (@South Carolina by 4, @Maryland by 2, @Virginia by 2, @NC State by 8). While the road losses and lack of marquee wins hurt Clemson's chances to advance past the first weekend, they shouldn't have a problem with UAB. I think Colorado or Alabama could beat either of these teams however.
12 Clemson
Wednesday
16 Texas - San Antonio v. 16 Alabama St. (6:30 pm) -- Again, never seen either of these teams this year. The only reason I know Alabama St is from NCAA College Hoops 2k8 (which I still play to this day) where I played against them as my Alcorn State start up team. Anyway... Alabama St. played tougher teams this year than Texas-San Antonio, so I give them the nod. Toss up really.
Alabama St.
11 VCU v. 11 USC (9:00 pm) -- VCU has only a few good wins this year (UCLA (neutral court), @Old Dominion, vs. George Mason) mixed with only a couple bad losses (@Georgia State, @Northeastern). However that pales in comparison with USC's complete inconsistencies all year. USC has some big wins (vs. Texas, @Tennessee, vs. UCLA, vs. Arizona, @Washington) and some head scratching losses (vs. Bradley, @TCU, Oregon twice, @Oregon State). I would love to give USC the benefit of the doubt and assume they will put their talent together at the right time, but I have a feeling VCU is looking to prove some people wrong.
VCU
Tomorrow night (Wednesday) -- Predictions for Thursday's games (Round 2)
March 10, 2011
My 5 Favorite NBA Players To Watch... Of All Time
Tonight I'm putting up my five favorite players to watch highlights of all time. Yes, this is only players I was alive to watch.
5) Rod Strickland -- Wu Tang is perfect for Rod Strickland. If you dont get it then oh well.
4) Tim Hardaway -- Enough said.
3) Michael Jordan -- Decided to use something different from the normal highlights we see. Ala Jordan defecating on the Knicks.
2) Jason Williams -- Dude was sick on the Griz and Kings. So fun to watch.
1) Allen Iverson -- Come on man, you expected different? Best little man to play the game. When your top play of all time is BETTER than crossing up Jordan, the top spot is always yours.
5) Rod Strickland -- Wu Tang is perfect for Rod Strickland. If you dont get it then oh well.
4) Tim Hardaway -- Enough said.
3) Michael Jordan -- Decided to use something different from the normal highlights we see. Ala Jordan defecating on the Knicks.
2) Jason Williams -- Dude was sick on the Griz and Kings. So fun to watch.
1) Allen Iverson -- Come on man, you expected different? Best little man to play the game. When your top play of all time is BETTER than crossing up Jordan, the top spot is always yours.
March 9, 2011
My 5 Favorite NBA Players To Watch... Currently.
First post of 2011. I know I've been slacking over the past three months but I apologize for nothing. Tonight's post involves my favorite 5 players to watch this year in the NBA. Hmm... I guess the title was self explanatory. On to the show....
5) Nick Young, Washington Wizards -- The Zach Randolph of guards. There is not a shot on the court that he has turned down. Which on the Wizards at least brings some excitement outside of that John Wall fellow. Oh yeah, this kid is legit.
4) Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers -- The only knock against him is that I prefer guard play.
3) Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls -- Before this season started I said "Give it two years and Derrick Rose will be the best point guard in the NBA". It looks like I was wrong.
2) LeBron James, Miami Heat -- Say what you will about him; the man is entertaining.
1) Monta Ellis, Golden State Warriors -- Soooo very slept on.
5) Nick Young, Washington Wizards -- The Zach Randolph of guards. There is not a shot on the court that he has turned down. Which on the Wizards at least brings some excitement outside of that John Wall fellow. Oh yeah, this kid is legit.
4) Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers -- The only knock against him is that I prefer guard play.
3) Derrick Rose, Chicago Bulls -- Before this season started I said "Give it two years and Derrick Rose will be the best point guard in the NBA". It looks like I was wrong.
2) LeBron James, Miami Heat -- Say what you will about him; the man is entertaining.
1) Monta Ellis, Golden State Warriors -- Soooo very slept on.
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