Final Four Predictions

If this hasn’t been the craziest NCAA Tournament ever, I couldn’t stand one with any more upsets than this one! Duke is the only #1 seed left, but some people even think that they could get beat in their first Final Four game. Duke needs to be careful and not go into the home stretch of the season thinking that they have a championship locked up; while they are the best team left overall, they still have to win two games against quality opponents. Here is my take on both games:

#5 Butler – #5 Michigan State (6:07pm, CBS) 

Who would’ve guessed that these teams would advance further than Kansas or Syracuse? But that is the beauty of the NCAA Tournament, anything can happen. Looking at both teams’ rosters, Michigan State has the size advantage, speed advantage, and experience advantage. Since Butler also has the pressures of playing in front of many friends and family, I’ll pick Michigan State. MSU’s coach, Tom Izzo, is severely underrated, there is no one I would rather have to set up a last minute play than him. Lastly, an interesting matchup will be Butler’s Gordon Hayward, a 3 position player, and MSU’s forward Raymar Morgan. Both are playing great and should be fun to watch this Saturday.

#1 Duke – #2 West Virginia (8:47pm, CBS)

If you would’ve asked me for my pick for the better team of these two prior to West Virginia’s Elite Eight win against Kentucky, I would’ve easily said Duke – with no hesitance; but the Mountaineers just keep winning – it might not look good – but they’re winning. Duke still should win, but who knows. This game will turn into a defensive battle, maybe not low scoring, but every point will be earned by both teams. West Virginia doesn’t have the most efficient offense, but can really get after the ball and make games close. If Duke can keep getting offensive rebounds, they will be tough to beat. The deciding factor on my pick is Duke’s guards – they are experienced, great shooters, and don’t turn the ball over much. Duke will have to play hard physically, something that they have struggled with at times, but I think they will easily win this one.

Unless you’re a Duke, Michigan State, or West Virginia fan, you’ll probably end up pulling for Butler. Butler would be the “Cinderella” of the decade if they could get a Final Four win, but that’s a big if.

Posted by Tom

Down the Stretch for College Basketball

Usually, college basketball is considered to start heating up in the month of February.  Well, here we are, and it sure is hot.

The Big East has once again the most  consistent, talented top-to-bottom conference, after many pundits speculated a down year for the 16-team super-conference.  Syracuse, Villanova

Syracuse looks to win the Big East in a tight race with Villanova and Georgetown.

and Georgetown have been the biggest players, and it looks like the Final Four will have at least one Big East team in it.

Where did the Pac-10 go?  It seems to have disappeared of the radar of college basketball, and for good reason.  There is no team that is actually good from the Left Coast’s biggest conference, and plenty of downright terrible ones.  With no teams ranked and lackluster play, it looks like the Pac-10 will only get 1 team into the tournament: the league champion.

The ACC has fallen a little down in the rankings as well.  With only 2 teams ranked (and one, Georgia Tech, destined to fall out of the Top 25 this week), the ACC has experienced a slump this year.  The only really good team seems to be Duke (20-4 8-2 ACC), who is ranked in the Top 10.  Maryland, however, is also a threat, and Virginia Tech and Virginia look to make the NCAA tournament as well.

The Big 12 conference is right up there with the best of them, with national powerhouse

The Kansas Jayhawks look to close out this season with a Big 12 conference championship.

Kansas and slumping-but-still-good Texas right there in the race.  Add teams like Baylor and Kansas State in there, and you have a competitive, Top 3 basketball conference.

The Big 10 seemed to have been won by Michigan State just a week ago.  Yet they lost to major challenger Purdue just a few days ago.  It seems like the Boilermakers and Spartans will headline the Big 10 for the rest of the season.  Meanwhile, teams like Ohio State will look to make a run to get an at-large bid for the NCAA Tournament.

So, are you ready for the stretch run towards the postseason?  The races are tight everywhere, from the Big East to the ACC to the Big 12.  March Madness will soon be upon us!

Posted by Ben

Why the ACC will win the ACC/Big 10 Challenge

              

As you might know, the ACC/Big 10 Challenge is this week.  The series is tied up going into the night of December 2nd.  Many think that this is the year that the Big 10 will break through and finally win one of these challenges (they never have).  Many expert writers are firm in their beliefs that the Big 10 will do it.

I’m not, and I’ll tell you why.  First of all, it is tied at 3-3 tonight.  The ACC could get 3 big wins tonight, with Clemson playing a down Illinois team and Duke playing Wisconsin.  Also, Miami is playing a very overrated Minnesota team  The ACC is still going to win this in my opinion.  They need 3 wins, and they can do that very easily tonight. 

I think that this year is the best chance for the Big 10.  But it’s not happening.  This is a down year for the ACC, and this conference will only get better over the next few years.  They should change it to the ACC/Big East Challenge, or even the ACC/Big 12 challenge.  These matchups would be far more closer than what is happening now.

The ACC is 10-0 in this challenge, and, in my opinion, they will be 11-0 by the end of the week

Posted by Ben