What The Hell? (UPDATED)

This might be one of the slowest sports news day of the sports year so far. This is my only idea so if this is the last you hear from us today, I apologize but that's sometimes how the blog day works when it's slow around the nation.  For the next couple paragraphs, come with me on a rant about polls (one of my favorite topics as my diehard readers know).

I heard on PTI yesterday that someone voted for Ohio State Buckeyes at number one, instead of being an unanimous decision for the Connecticut Huskies. Did this joker think that college basketball all the sudden adopted the BCS?  It is an indefensible move, and of course, this is the only secret poll of the season. Therefore no one will come out and defend why Ohio State is deserving of the number one spot. There are only two ways where I  could see a coach making this decision.



One would be that VCU won it all, it's hard to believe a team with a 11 losses deserved to be number one at the end of the year.  People spoke out how they took advantage of being in the tournament, but I agree with most that they did not belong based on their resume. The other would have been if Ohio State lost in the Final Four because then they put a good run together beating Kentucky and North Carolina, so I could see someone giving them some credit for their body of work.

I hope this coach defending his decision because I would honestly love to hear his or her thoughts on why the Buckeyes deserved to be number one when they lost in the round of 16. Are we sure my buddy and Big 10 loyalist, Doz doesn't have a vote?  By the way, Marquette finished 20th which made me smile.

Update: Found it was Northern Arizona's coach Mike Adras who casted the vote for Ohio State. Still don't agree with his decisions. 

-Charlie.

Why UConn Wins

I told Pat that I would write the rebuttal to why the Connecticut Huskies will cut down the nets tonight in Houston, but as the day progresses, it's hard for me to cheer for UConn. I love Kemba Walker, but that's about it. I cannot stand Jim Calhoun and my hatred for Geno Auriemma carries over to the men's team.  I still think the Huskies will win tonight, but your boy Chuckie T will not be cheering for them.  I like to see the Big East take it, but I am a sucker for the feel good story. So here are the three reasons or ways that UConn can beat the Butler Bulldogs.



1.) Kemba, Kemba, Kemba- Of course, we are looking for comparisons for Kemba Walker, and no one is allowing him to just be Kemba. Is this one of the best 10 game span we have ever seen? Absolutely, but why do we have to say it reminds me of Pervis Ellison or Danny Manning? It's something that grinds me with the media sometimes.  Big East fans are not shocked at the things Walker does on the court. He made plays all season no matter who was guarding him during the year so I am not worried about Ronald Nored locking him up tonight. Not to mention, Walker is better when giving the ball to Jeremy Lamb or Alex Oriaki.  I told you that all throughout the tournament, and it took a couple big games from Lamb for people to believe me about the significance of the other Huskies.

2.) Keep Matt Howard Off The Glass and Court- I don't know if I can remember a player like Howard who is always attacking the glass and somehow finding the ball in his hands. He is guaranteed a double-double therefore it's imperative that UConn finds Howard on every rebound. When Butler gets those second-chance opportunities, they never lose. The other thing about Howard is he always finds himself in foul trouble, and Butler is an entirely different team when he is not on the court.  If I am UConn, I attack inside to start off the game and try to get a quick 2 fouls on Howard.

3.) Push The Ball- I don't know if there is a better player in the nation than Kemba in transition. If he controls the pace, Butler could be in big trouble. I like UConn much better running up and down the court than UConn playing in the half court letting Butler assembled their tough defense . Butler had some troubles with VCU's fast pace style of offense, same thing happened when Butler played Florida.  The Huskies need to find ways to sprint out whenever they get the defensive rebound.

I will take UConn 67-64, with Kemba hitting a three with under 10 seconds left. If I am a Butler fan, the last thing I want to see tonight is Mr. Walker have the ball in his hands with the shot clock turned off because there is no doubt that the ball is going in. If you need an example...

-Charlie.

Why Butler Wins

Well folks, the month of March has come and gone. However, just because we are forced to turn the page on the kitchen calendar, doesn't mean that March Madness hasn't crawled into the early part of April.  The madness continued on Sunday night when both #1 seeds in the NCAA Women's D1 Final Four lost.  The other thing that ruffled some feathers with Wisconsinites was the three-game sweep at the hands of the Cincinnati Reds.  Granted it was the first series against the reigning NL Central Champs, I don't think anyone was expecting an 0-3 start burdened by sloppy defense, bullpen troubles, and an besides Rickie Weeks, an offense that lacked any early April fireworks.  Let's hope that Miller Park gets the Crew back on track with a seven-game homestand against the Braves and Cubs.

The big ticket event of the day though is none other than the 2011 Men's NCAA Basketball Championship game.  Charlie and I had a little discussion about who we thought would win and it led us to preview the game in a different light.  I believe that the Butler Bulldogs will avenge last year's heartbreaking, buzzer-beating loss on Monday night.  Charlie envisions Kemba and the Huskies playing the role of "East Coast Villain."

Without further ado, here are my three keys to why Butler will be barking as the National Champs on Monday night:

1)  Ronald Nored vs. Kemba Walker: Ronald Nored didn't have glittering offensive statistics against VCU, but his defense is as good, if not better than his counterpart.  In the VCU game, Brandon Rozzell was the victim of Nored's torrid defense. Not coincidentally, Nored virtually shadowed Rozzell as each player slated 29 minutes in the contest.  Consider that Rozzell was the only other player on VCU besides Jamie Skeen to score in double-digits in the Kansas game, shooting 4 of 8 from the field including 4 of 7 from three.  Nored chased Rozzell all over and never gave him an open look in the semifinal.  Rozzell shot 1 of 5 from the field and 0-3 from beyond the arc limiting him to two points and warranting Virginia police to issue a missing persons report.  That being said, I think Nored can match Walker on the defensive side of the ball. Don't get me wrong, Walker will get his points, but he'll have to work harder than he has up to this point in the tournament.  I see Walker taking a lot of shots with less success and forcing up some shots when it comes to crunch time.  I think Walker goes 7-24 from the field, 2-8 from long range, and mirrors the last two games going 5 for 6 at the free throw line.  That gives him 21 points, but means that he took 6 to 7 shots more this game rather than getting the ball to his teammates.

2) Player X: I also think Butler will win because they tend to spread the ball around more on offense.  Shelvin Mack and Matt Howard are the unquestioned leading scorers for the Bulldogs.  The key here is that in every game of the tournament besides the Pitt game, Butler had double figures from Mack, Howard, and Player X. Against ODU, it was Andrew Smith.  When Mack struggled against Wisconsin, it was Shawn Vanzant that stepped up.  With a Final Four berth on the line, Khyle Marshall came off the bench for Butler and contributed 10 points and 7 offensive rebounds. In the clash on Saturday against VCU, Shawn Vanzant again stepped up, but it was the 8 consecutive points from Zach Hahn that willed Butler during a crucial stretch of the game.  I'll continue with the theme of being bold, even with the fear of looking like a amateur (which I am) and say that I expect Vanzant to be Player X for Butler on Monday with 13 points.

3) Brad Stevens: For all the experience that Jim Calhoun has in his vault, recent success sides with Stevens and his Butler squad. I won't give you the whole script because we know how close this team came last year to winning the whole thing against arguably a better Duke team.  With a staggering 117-24 record already amassed in 4 years at Butler, Stevens has also become the youngest coach to reach back-to-back National Championship games at the age of 33.  I think the edge goes to Butler here because the players emulate and relate more to their younger coach than UConn does with their coach.  Stevens is a new-age of coaches that has taken more to statistical analysis than just your X's and O's system.  An article I read earlier noted that Stevens and his coaching staff will know where they want to force each UConn player and under what circumstance based on analysis that covers the entire season, highlighted by trends in postseason play. 

Therefore, trying to stay as far away from cliche as I can, I think this is the "underdog's" chance to bring home the National Title on Monday night.  I think Shelvin Mack will also have his struggles especially if Kemba Walker is the man guarding him, but for the three reasons above, I believe that Butler wins this one in the final minute, 68-64.

-Pat

Final Four Picks

I planned on doing this long, extensive post about the Final Four but then it dawned on me that everyone has heard the stories about each team. We know these squads like the back of our hand in the day and age of the world we live in. Instead, I am going to deliver my points in a couple sentences with hopes not to ramble to either look like a champion, or an idiot by the end of night.



11) VCU v. 8) Butler: It's kind of useless to put the seeds in there, but hey, it's what the cool kids are doing. I think this will be a better game than people expect to be because I am sure casual fans *cough Brett Boyer cough* see this as an ESPN BracketBuster.  No power conference tend to turn people off. It's like being at the bar with a bunch of fairly attractive people, no one is really that hot, it's perfect way to sum this battle. VCU has played out their mind in the past two weeks, but at some point that magic will run out. The clock strikes midnight for the Rams as Butler will play them strong on defense, which will translate into a victory. Butler 71-65

4.) Kentucky v. 3.) Connecticut: The purists of the game have a difficult time watching this one. It's two of the most unethical coaches in college basketball going up against one another for a shot at the National Championship. It's like watching a fight between Bernie Madoff and Rod Blagojevich (yes I had to look that up) and you really don't care who wins because you do not want the other to succeed.  For me, I just see it as basketball and there will always be shitty people no matter what industry you are in.  Even though the Wildcats can earn me some money with a win plus my mancrush on Josh Harrellson, I have a hard time seeing them pull through. People don't nearly give Kemba Walker enough credit for his defense and I think that will shine as he shuts down Brandon Knight, Kentucky's x-factor. UCONN 75-67

-Charlie.

Elite Eight Picks

Tomorrow, the first two Final Four tickets will be punched. A lot of interesting story lines and I hope for good games. Generally, the Elite Eight tends to bring second-tier games compared to the ones we have had in the past weeks. I hope for the best especially since the Law of Gus will be in effect.

8.) Butler v. 2.) Florida- Common sense would tell you take Butler because they always find a way to win. One thing that is beginning bother me is the consistent praise by the national media like they are the little brother of the NCAA.

Nope, they are a top 20 program and expectations should be set. Matt Howard isn't stopped by anybody and it seems Andrew Smith will be okay to play Saturday. I see Chandler Parsons being a huge matchup disaster for the Bulldogs because Howard will have to go inside against Alex Tyus who will also be a problem.  I think the guards are pretty even both sides, but Parsons ends up being the difference. UF 70-65

5.) Arizona v. 3.) Connecticut- Deron out of Jersey made a mention how this Wildcat team reminds him of the 1997 team who were not expected to win it all (MY GOD THAT'S MILES SIMON'S MUSIC!!!!). He is right and honestly, anything is possible for the Cats. Derrick Williams is unbelievable and it's hard to bet against guy who is named Mo-Mo Jones. The question is will the Wildcats have an answer for Mr. Walker? Kemba has made everyone look silly in the last 8 games. Kemba needs to keep Jeremy Lamb in the mix if  they want to win this one. But I think this will be a classic. Williams is unguardable right now, I haven't seen enough defensively from Alex Oriakhi to put money on him. The Cats take it late in the second half UA 82-79

-Charlie.

The Good, The Bad, and The Dukies

Before the Sweet Sixteen started, I sat with a bracket that was in the 96 percentile. I started having dreams of getting a 10,000 dollar check from Yahoo! and laugh my way to not having a summer job this year. But Thursday hit me like a ton of bricks. There were some things I liked, but most of it was bad.  Thankfully the Black Rose on Oakland helped me drown my sorrows.

The Good

-Florida deserves all the credit in the world for how they played defense against Jimmer Fredette. It seemed every shot took a ton of effort to get off, and they completely gassed him by the overtime period.

-Since Jimmer is now gone, Derrick Williams is the new face of March Madness 2011.  The only comparison I have for him is a stronger Lamar Odom. He throws down some nasty dunks and can step outside to hit big shots.
-Let's not forget about the Kemba Walker Show, he scored 36 in a win for the Huskies. But like I talked about earlier this week, he got others involved such as Jeremy Lamb who dropped 24. Big time excited for Williams v. Walker on Saturday night.  
-Butler is the better version of Gonzaga, no longer underdogs.

The Bad

-Wisconsin did their usual Badger thing bowing out in the Sweet Sixteen. I know that will upset some Badger fans, but for whatever reasons, they cannot get to that next level. Additionally, this fourth time in five years that they have lost a lower seed. Questions have to start coming out about Bo Ryan. I thought Jordan Taylor forced a lot of shots like last Saturday. Also there is a missing person report out for Jon Leuer in New Orleans because you couldn't find him on the basketball court. This is something I saw on Twitter via the Big Lead about the Badgers recruiting budget, which is unbelievably low and makes more impressive of what they do every year. Think if they increased that by 50 percent. 


-You could tell San Diego State got tight in the final minutes. They couldn't do anything after the technical with 10 minutes left.  It seems like they froze up and didn't create the shots as they had in the first half.
-Jimmer got infected with the SI curse. Now, it understood the curse outweighs the Law of Gus. 

Dukies

-We here at SnoTap told you so. I felt uneasy about my National Champion pick after seeing the chemistry with Kyrie Irving. I wish I would have just went chalk with Ohio State, but now it's up to Kentucky to save my bracket. Eric nailed this a week ago and deserve credit
-Eric also had the comment of the day "Last night was a complete DOY game from Arizona." Agreed, human highlight reel from the Cats. 
-Duke decided to quit. No one can tell me otherwise either. Arizona had this epic run, but Duke did nothing to punch them back in the mouth. If I were one of the Plumlees' I would put Mo-Mo Jones on his ass during this run to show Duke was there.   
-Reminded me a lot of LSU knocking out Duke in 2006, but the Blue Devils were favored more in that tournament.
-Nolan Smith did not look like himself in the last two games, and that sent Duke off the tracks.
-I wouldn't call this a black mark on Coach's K career, but he could have saved this season if he limited the play of Kyrie Irving. It's more his fault than anyone else.

-Charlie.

My Sweet 16 Picks (Southeast/West Region)

The second weekend of March Madness provides great theater because we all wonder if Cinderella's slipper will still fit on Thursday or Friday, and what new storylines will develop for the weekend. Due to the new format being able to see every game, I feel more involved with this tournament than ones in years past. 

West Region

3.) Connecticut vs. 2.) San Diego State- I read an interesting stat via The Big Lead: "UConn Huskies are 0-7 since 1992 in NCAA Tourney games in opponent's state".  That makes me feel uneasy, but did anyone ever consider Kemba Walker?  D.J. Gay will struggle trying to get shots off against Walker for damn sure.  But I worry about who will actually defend Kawhi Leonard on the Huskies. They have a couple big bodies, but nothing at Leonard's level. I feel it will be a pro-Aztec crowd, but I am confident the Huskies will win. The Aztecs have not done anything remarkable, just beat teams they were supposed to. I think Kemba and the crew is on another level.  UCONN 77-68

5.) Arizona v. 1.) Duke- A lot of people do not think Arizona belongs here because of some bad calls in their last game against Texas. But Derrick Williams and his crew does not care. He is an absolute monster, and I do think Duke will have some problems against him. Williams could get the Plumlee brothers and Ryan Kelly into some serious foul trouble. Don't think I missed Coach K's comments about trying to get Kyrie Irving being more involved, which scares me because one of the best coaches is trying to sabotage a National Championship contender. The Dukies will get it together and get a big game out of Seth Curry, just feel it's his time to shine.  DUKE 73-66 

Southeast Region 

3.) BYU v. 2.) Florida- Jimmer got the SI Curse. It sucks when he will shoot about 10 for 32 with 18 points. The Cougars have faced two teams that are very similar to their style of play leading to much success. But now they run into the big bad Gators who are nothing like them. By the way, anyone else find it hilarious that they are a bunch of Mormons roaming Bourbon Street as we speak? What could they do there? Anyways, the Gators have a great combination of size with Alex Tyus and Patric Young plus the guard play of Kenny Boyton and Erving Walker. I believe the Gators will have too much size and speed for the Cougars. Sadly, this is where Jimmer time comes to end.  UF 81-67 

8.) Butler v. 4.) Wisconsin- A white boy wet dream!  Just kidding.  This game could go several ways, and I am stealing this thought from my buddy Ron. He told me last week his wish would be for Bo Ryan to have deep conversation with Rob Jeter about UWM's success against Butler. I personally think the Badgers need to go inside much more than they have been doing in the first two games.  The two biggest things I would like to see if I am a Badger fan would be to get Matt Howard into foul trouble and lock Shelvin Mack down. This will be a complete nail-biter with Jordan Taylor hitting the big shot in the final seconds.  UW 64-62

-Charlie. 

Somebody Get Geno a Happy Meal

University of Connecticut head women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma can't seem to keep his trap shut. He's back at his same whiny shenanigans that he was in the news for when his team broke the NCAA record for consecutive wins.

This time it comes after his team advanced to the Sweet 16 last night with a victory over Purdue in front of a half-full (or, as Geno looks at it, half-empty) arena in Storrs, CT. In his post-game press conference he sarcastically suggested that they should offer free-parking or more giveaways to get fans to watch his team.

"I guess we need to win more," Auriemma said. Here's a thought, maybe it's just that no one likes to watch unathletic people try to play basketball. Maybe if they dunked the ball more, there would be more people in the stands?

In the fans' defense, they probably just figured a team that has won 112 of its last 113 games, would automatically cruise into the Sweet 16 and were trying to beat the weather and get to Philadelphia ahead of time. Obviously it doesn't effect his players as much as it effects him.

-Mitch

An Ode To Kemba

The Connecticut Huskies burst on to the scene this year at the Maui Invitational because no one predicted the Huskies would be very good this year, rather people saw them as an average team who might slide into the NCAA Tournament. I really cannot blame people for thinking that way. Last year, Kemba Walker looked like a ball hog who forced bad shots all the time was the star of their team. I can remember begging Kemba to shoot the ball. This year has been a completely other story.  Walker made an Optimus-Prime like transformation into one of the best players in college basketball and I am convinced he will be a good pro for years to come. 

Walker plays his own forty minutes of hell by barely spending any time on the bench. It stunned me that the Huskies punched Bucknell in the mouth. Walker's motor is unbelievable unlike anyone in college basketball. Walker gives a team everything they want, and then some. Kemba is a lot of like Kobe Bryant in this small sense (NO WAY am i comparing these teams, no way.. just pointing it out). When he gets people involved and does not shoot over 21-23 times, UConn will win the basketball game. Some of the worst performances by the Huskies this year have been when Kemba does not try to get Jeremy Lamb or Alex Oriakhi involved in the game.

There is not a player who has more confidence and swagger than Walker. While Jimmer Fredette has some onions, no one's are bigger than Kemba. I remember watching an overtime game with Marquette-UConn, and could not have been more scared this season. I just waited for Kemba to shake and bake with a teardrop at the buzzer to seal a win for the Huskies. Thankfully, it didn't happen, but every time you play Walker, there is that fear. I am thankful for that college basketball delivers guys like Kemba. You can refer to him by first name and everyone knows who are talking about.

-Charlie.

The Big Road Win Marquette Needed

With college basketball, the games are never on at the exact times. As a student without a DVR, I missed most of the Marquette-UConn game because I was filming my weekly television show for TV-10. Of course, I had to rely getting updates every once in awhile....

The First update I received was 34-23 Marquette up at half. Yes! Kemba Walker only with six points, and the Golden Eagles weren't shooting well, just being glass cleaners owning the Huskies on the boards.

Big Cat texts me right before my taping, 'Marquette looking tough'. Of course they were I wasn't watching and every time I watch, it's like inserting needles into my eyes, ears, and nose. 

After I got done filming, I turned on a TV to see Marquette down 49-41. Shit. I had a tough time believing the never-ending story of Marquette's season blowing first half leads kept happening. I cannot believe Marquette stayed in the game by starting the second half shooting 2 of 19 as a team. Chris Bosh did worse as an individual last night to give you some perspective.  I had this distinct feeling that this might have been the final blow to Marquette's season.

But somehow, someway, the light got turned on that I have been waiting for all season.  If you have read my rants from the past games, I have been very critical of Marquette's late game offense. No one had the marbles to take big shots. All of that was true until last night when Darius Johnson-Odom rose to the occasion. DJO had an off night for most of the game, but the last three minutes plus overtime, he found a way to turn it on.

The thing I loved about DJO's takeover was he did not settle for long shots and threes, something DJO did a ton in these situations earlier this season. DJO penetrated the lane like I have never seen him do before. For once, someone took this Marquette team on their shoulders. I hope DJO did the big balls dance when he got to the locker room. He deserved it.

After any big win, I worry about a letdown in the following game especially when Marquette faces a guy like Providence's Marshon Brooks. But I feel Buzz Williams told his boys, the tournament started in Hartford, Connecticut and the attitude is now win or go home.

-Charlie.

The Return of St. John's

I thought I would take a close look at the St. John's Red Storm after the 17 point upset of UConn last night.

I'll start by saying that Lavin made the right choice by coming to St. John's University. To me, it's easy to see that this school can recruit itself. These players can either stay close to home or come from out of state to play in the Garden a.k.a. the Mecca of basketball. They also get to play for a well known and good coach in Lavin.

In brief, I think St. John's is for real this year. They are just 6-5 in the Big East but they have plenty of quality victories. They beat then #3 Duke by 15 points. They've beaten both Notre Dame and Georgetown at home. Then, like I said, they beat the Connecticut Huskies last night by 17.

I think this team gets its advantage with leadership. A senior-laden group led by guard Dwight Hardy who is averaging 16.6 points per game after his 33 against UConn last night. Hardy also dropped 26 on America's Duke Blue Devils.

The Storm also have some decent post play with Justin Brownlee grabbing five boards a game and shooting 49% from the field and the big-bodies in Justin Burrell (not the Justin Borrell we all love) and Sean Evans coming off the bench.

Dwight Hardy and The Storm will be dancing come March.

They have a pretty favorable Big East schedule for the stretch run that will help their case. They get Pitt just once this year and it's at home. The toughest game other than that will be the trip to Villanova on Feb. 26th.

I could see the Storm making a push into the Sweet 16 but then again, they might be one of those teams that get all this hype and become the "sexy pick" just to lay an egg to a team like VCU or Valparaiso. We'll have to wait and see what they do, on their home floor, in Big East tournament to get a good indicator.

-Mikko

The First Taste: Trick Shot Quarterbacks

have no idea if this will be a regular thing on the blog, but I usually troll the internet to start my day. Why not share something cool I saw with my SNO Tap friends and give them a potential preview of what will be on deck for the day. Also if you have a better nickname for it, go ahead and tell me. Here is what's on the way today: Daily Debate, ARodg, Arod, Teddy T., and maybe Sean Payton from me who knows with th other ones.  Props to Deadspin for the video.