May 22, 2013

Recap: 2009 NCAA Tournament, first weekend

Four days in.  By now we all might have gotten our fill of Gus Johnson, and definitely have had more than enough of Bill Raftery doing his best Tourette’s impression.   WITH THE KISS! GRUGGGG!!! We’ve screamed at the players that we love to hate.  Now we are subjected to what could be the worst three days of our lives – when we have to listen to Doug Gottleib take up 45 minutes of Sportscenter.  We get to hear the term “Bracket-buster” more than anyone should ever have to endure.  That being said, we also have some time to reset, restock our fridges, and “be contributing members of society” for a few days.

So, with all of that out of the way, here’s an incredibly superficial review of the weekend:

The Buckeyes lost to Siena, who many people (after the fact) claimed that they had said Siena was the new George Mason.  Siena gave Louisville a good game in the second round, which maybe lessens the blow to Buckeyes fans.  For me, it doesn’t.  Hopefully Club Trillion‘s take on it will help me mend, whenever it’s posted. [Read more...]

It’s OSU. It’s Dayton! LIVE!!

While Michigan State and Wisconsin continue to represent the Big Ten in the NCAA Tourney, and fellow-bubble team Villanova marches on the path of upset wins, the Ohio State Buckeyes are alive and well in the NIT.

After topping Cal by 17, the Buckeyes will play host to the also-snubbed University of Dayton – a team that should not be overlooked – where the winner can only sit back and say “what if.” What if either one of these schools was given the slot that was taken by Villanova? Surely, either of the Ohio-based squads could have given Clemson a run for their money. And Siena? Please.

[Read more...]

03/15 Morning Minute: It’s NCAA Inundation!

Kent State UniversityEverywhere you look these days, it’s NCAA hoops.  You cannot help but to catch some of the MAC Tournament action, given that it’s in our back yard.  It’s looking like a Kent State University versus Akron University finals, which is more than sure to draw a solid crowd today.  Neither team had a cakewalk to get where they are at this point.  KSU needed a buzzer-beater by MAC standout Al Fisher, and a few Akron ballers have some bumps and bruises to deal with as well.  Personally, I’m a bit glad I’m not downtown today as parking would be a disaster for us working folk.  However, you can’t deny the atmosphere is going to be amazing.  Flannery’s Pub will likely be able to pay their rent for the month of March on today alone…

The sad truth to all of this is that us Clevelander’s will have to be pulling for the winner of this tournament game, possibly along with Xavier, as the “Ohio” plays given last night’s Ohio State loss to Michigan State.  It’s going to take quite a bit of luck and/or reputation for the Buckeyes to get in to the Big Dance this year – unless the committee opts for five Big Ten teams, yet again.  Losing to Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa are going to hurt.  Big time.  Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana and Michigan State are pretty much locks to get in.  Matta and Company could definitely be on the outside looking in come tomorrow night.

[Read more...]