First Round

[Quillback]

Watched most of the St. Louis game, kept switching between it and the ND State upset over Oklahoma. I thought SLU was dead, but the foul them immediately strategy paid off as NC State stunk at the free throw stripe. I haven't watched SLU much this year, but I was impressed by how hard Jordair Jett (what a name!) played throughout the game.

[stlfisher]

I thought SLU was a goner too...pretty incredible comeback. I still can't believe all the free throws that were missed. Saw a stat this morning that both teams shot better from the field and 3 point line than from the free throw line. NC state is good free throw shooting team so that was surprising. Many of the games yesterday were thrillers....one of the most exciting I can remember.

SLU has a really tough matchup against Louisville, but you have to respect how hard SLU plays. It is not very glamorous, but they certainly get the most of their players. Should be fun to watch!

[ozark trout fisher]

It was a pretty great set of games yesterday. 4 Overtime games? Goodness. And most of the overtime games didn't even look like they were going to end up that close until the final couple of minutes.......Think SLU/NC State, New Mexico State/SDSU, and ASU/Texas, NDSU/Oklahoma. All looked like they were going to be blowouts (or at least relatively unexciting finishes) until very late on.

But the best game was one of the first and didn't go to OT. Dayton/OSU was probably played at a higher level than any other game of the day and had a fantastic finish. It was hard to see Aaron Craft's career end in the first round against a mid-major though. I was kinda pulling for OSU this year in place of Mizzou, because I'm a huge Craft fan. That's already over with. Guess Eastern Kentucky will have to be my new favorite:)

It seemed like no one in the tournament was allowed to hit a free throw, which opened the door for all these crazy comeback wins.

[BATCAB27]

I thought Manhattan was gong to pull off the upset. Louisville was my pick to win it all but after watching last night I wish I could change it. If Mizzou is at all thinking about a coaching change, Frank Masiello of Manhattan needs to be on the short list.

[ozark trout fisher]

And Duke goes down to Mercer....that's two times in 3 yrs that that the Blue Devils have suffered a shocking first round upset.

As good as they still are, I don't think there is any question they are starting to lag behind the Michigan States, Syracuses and Louisvilles of the world at this point in terms of their status as a team that can do damage in the tournament.

[Wayne SW/MO]

I don't think this kind of start is unheard of. There are always teams that don't get the respect they deserve, but in college BB the talent hasn't always been that far apart. The teams who survived and the teams who have "easy" opponents ahead should really settle down now and take no one for granted.

It's more fun now to figure out who will join WS, MSU and FL in the final 4. Yeah I know I shouldn't have posted that, they'll probably all lose their next game.

[ozark trout fisher]

Yeah, there's no predictability. What we know, from history, is that a top 10-15 team will win the national championship, and all of the teams in the final 4 will be top 30-40 teams. And a 16 seed probably won't beat a #1. Everything else, we basically have no idea.

A massive single elimination tournament is simultaneously the best and worst way to crown a champion: the process of doing so is ridiculously fun, but at the end, you probably won't have the best team winning because of sheer randomness involved when everyone has to play (at least) 6 games.

But who would have it any other way? The flaws are obvious but everything else makes it worth it.

[Quillback]

The Vols beat up UMass. I'm looking at the Vols as sort of a proxy for Arkansas and Mizzou. It will be interesting to see how a mid-level SEC team like Tennessee does, considering how much we've heard about the SEC being weak once you get past FL and KY. The Vols bigs have some skill and play D well, they could be a tough out going forward.

[Wayne SW/MO]

You probably won't have the best team winning because of sheer randomness involved when everyone has to play (at least) 6 games.

But who would have it any other way? The flaws are obvious but everything else makes it worth it.

6 games, or the fact that many of the teams only need one game play "over their heads" to make waves and ruin an otherwise great season.

But I agree it's the best solution going.

[ozark trout fisher]

The Vols beat up UMass. I'm looking at the Vols as sort of a proxy for Arkansas and Mizzou. It will be interesting to see how a mid-level SEC team like Tennessee does, considering how much we've heard about the SEC being weak once you get past FL and KY. The Vols bigs have some skill and play D well, they could be a tough out going forward.

I agree that they are dangerous and underrated, and have been most of the season. And they are a game against Mercer from the Sweet 16. That frontcourt is terrifying.

They have lost a lot of close games (mostly a sign of bad luck) and whooped Virginia and Xavier (and poor Mizzou) by margins that are beyond impressive. They've beaten up on a whole bunch of opponents in a row, at this point, with the exception of that controversial, technical foul filled loss to UF.

With the draw they have at this point, they're a serious final four contender.