And, we’re back!
Monday night heralded the return of our most humble temple who was out for three weeks due to injury. Just in time too, since we are currently in Judgment Week, the time where bubbles galore start popping. Just think, next time you hear from me, it will be March! This looks to be an amazing March despite the fact that neither North Carolina, UCLA nor Indiana will be in the Field of 64 (not baring a miracle or three) since the discovery of tobacco.
On the rise is the Atlantic 10, who is quietly racking up At-Large bids. If the season ended today, and Joe Lunardi is right (and he tends to be) the A-10 would have 5 bids. That is same as the Big Ten, one more than SEC and FOUR more than the Pac-10! Crazy! But URI and Dayton are on the bubble, and as Brad Pitt says, “In this town, your luck can change just like that.” (Incidentally, Dayton plays UMass on Sat and I am torn between being a spoiler or wanting more bids for my beloved conference. I digress.)
Which means that these last games are crucial for many teams. What is on tap for Sat?
#2 Kentucky at #17 Tennessee 12p: The Wildcats have taken down both Vandy and Tennessee, but that was at home. Now the Wildcats travel to Knoxville. There is no bid on the line as both teams are locks, but lets face it, you love seeing Bruce “The Human Creamcycle” Pearl don the Orange Jacket like he just won some Jack Daniels Masters Tourney. Fashion woes aside, the battle of the Blue and Orange is great.
Michigan at #9 Ohio State 12p: Ok, this game is not what is should be. Staring the season ranked at #15, The Blue did not live up to exceptions. However, if there is one thing I know about Wolverines from my time at The Thom, they love knocking “The Definite Article” down a bit. The Nuts are not in danger of missing the tourney, but it would be nice to push them down the seeding chart.
#1 Kansas at Oklahoma State 4p: Blue and Orange meet again in Big 12. Since Kansas is undefeated in conference, every game is a must watch, and you know Travis Ford and the Cowboys want rush the floor after taking down #1 at home – especially since they are on the bubble.
#8 Villanova at #4 Syracuse 9p: This nightcap has been circled on the calendar since the start of conference play. Nova has taken a couple of hits recently, losing to upstart UConn and Pitt. They have dropped in the rankings and also was replaced by Purdue as the fourth #1 seed in the Lunardi Report. So, the question is, if they beat Cuse in “The Igloo” do they go back to #1 seedom or does Cuse come down? Those questions and more will be answered on Sat!
Devil Induction: It was just announced the Christian Laettner will be inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame for his college work. Honestly, I love that the HOF does reward all levels of the game, and while his NBA career was ‘Duketastic‘ in every sense of the word, he did make his name for his college play. I expect there to be a large protest of Kentucky fans outside the induction ceremony guarding the entry. Sorry, I had too. Go Defense.
Here is the schedule for Saturday and remember…the games start at noon (as does the hoops menu and drink specials! Woohoo!)
Top 25 Action:
12:00 PM (2) Kentucky at (17) Tennessee
12:00 PM Michigan at (9) Ohio State (Just not what is once was…)
12:00 PM Notre Dame at (13) Georgetown (Swilkins vs. CatPop)
12:00 PM (16) Pittsburgh at St. John’s
1:30 PM (20) Vanderbilt at Arkansas
2:00 PM Cincinnati at (7) West Virginia (The Huggins Classic)
2:00 PM (21) Texas at (23) Texas A&M
4:00 PM (1) Kansas at Oklahoma State
8:00 PM Missouri at (6) Kansas State
9:00 PM (8) Villanova at (4) Syracuse
Bubbles, Bubbles, Bubbles!
12:00 PM Boston College at Georgia Tech
1:30 PM Baylor at Oklahoma
2:00 PM North Carolina at Wake Forest
4:00 PM Texas Tech at Nebraska
4:00 PM Maryland at Virginia Tech
4:00 PM Minnesota at Illinois
6:00 PM Charlotte at George Washington
7:00 PM Massachusetts at Dayton
8:00 PM Southern Miss at Memphis
