Top Seeds Are Struggling In First Round Of NBA Playoffs

Posted on April 28, 2014 by admin

The National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs are just over halfway through the first round, and there are a few surprises. The top seeds in each conference have been struggling. 3 teams are facing elimination as of the results on Sunday, April 27th. But 4 of the remaining 5 series are tied at 2 games apiece.

In the only close game on Sunday, the 5th seeded Portland Trail Blazers beat the 4th seeded Houston Rockets 123-120 in overtime at Portland. You’d think that teams who finished the regular season with the same 54-28 regular season record would be tied in their series after 4 games, but that’s not the case. LaMarcus Aldridge has been huge for the Trial Blazers, with 2 40-point games, leading them to a 3-1 series lead.

The other 4th and 5th seeded teams are also at 3-1 in favor of the 5th seeded team, the Washington Wizards in the Eastern Conference. Trevor Ariza scored 30 points for the Wizards on Sunday, in their 98-89 win over the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls will face elimination in Game 5 at home on Tuesday.

Also in the Eastern Conference on Sunday, the 3rd seeded Toronto Raptors have tied their series with the Brooklyn Nets at 2 games, with an 87-79 road win in Brooklyn. DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors with 24 points. Game 5 will be back in Toronto on Wednesday.

In Oakland, the Golden State Warriors evened their series with the Los Angeles Clippers at 2 games also, with a 118-97 rout. Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 33 points. Game 5 will be back in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

The other 4 series all played on Saturday. As I mentioned, the top seeds certainly aren’t cruising along in the first round of the NBA playoffs. The San Antonio Spurs, who finished the regular season with the best record in the league, have fallen behind the 8th seeded Dallas Mavericks, 2 games to 1, after Vince Carter nailed a 3-pointer to give the Mavericks a 109-108 victory on Saturday.

The Indiana Pacers, who are the top seed in the Eastern Conference, evened their series with the 8th seeded Atlanta Hawks, who finished the regular season with a 38-44 record, with a 91-88 victory. The Pacers struggled down the stretch in the regular season, and it has continued into the playoffs.

Oklahoma City, who is the 2nd seed in the Western Conference evened their series with the Memphis Grizzlies at 2 games, with a 92-89 overtime win on Saturday. Reggie Jackson, not Mr. October, actually led the Thunder with 32 points, rather than MVP candidate Kevin Durant. Game 5 is Tuesday in Oklahoma City.

The 2-time defending champion Miami Heat are plugging along nicely, leading their series with the Charlotte Bobcats 3-0, after a 95-88 victory on Saturday. LeBron James, not surprising led the Heat with 30 points. The Bobcats face elimination on Monday at home.

I look for the Spurs and Pacers to prevail in their series, even though they have struggled thus far. The Heat will close out the Bobcats real soon. I also think the Thunder will win their series with the Grizzlies, but probably in 7 games.

The Wizards and Trail Blazers just need one more win, and I don’t see the Bulls and/or Rockets winning 3 in a row to take those series. The Nets should outlast the Raptors, probably also going 7 games. But the Clippers, with the racism allegations against their owner Donald Sterling, seem to be a bit rattled. I think they will be eliminated by the Warriors.

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Overtimes Are Wild In NHL Playoffs

Posted on April 24, 2014 by admin

The National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs are about half way through the first round, and have already had 9 games go into overtime. 36% of the 25 games through Wednesday, April 23rd have gone into at least one overtime. The games have been close, and 6 of the 8 series are tied at 2 games apiece, or are 2 games to 1.

In the Western Conference, the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks‘ series with the St. Louis Blues is similar to the Anaheim Ducks – Dallas Stars series in that the series is tied at 2 games, and the home team has won every game, but the Blackhawks – Blues series has had 3 overtime games, while the Ducks – Stars series hasn’t had any.

On Wednesday, the Blackhawks’ Bryan Bickell tied the game at 3 with 3:52 remaining, which eventually led to overtime. Then 11:17 into overtime, Patrick Kane won the game for the Blackhawks with his 2nd goal of the game, and 3rd of the series. I wish he was as clutch in the Olympics, for Team USA. Now the teams go back to St. Louis for Game 5 on Friday.

In Dallas, the Ducks had a 2-0 lead after the first period, but within 6:33 of the 2nd period, the game was tied. Then the Stars added 2 more goals in the 3rd period, to even the series at 2-2. This series will also resume on Friday, when the teams go back to Anaheim. The Ducks are the top seed in the Western Conference.

The other series played on Wednesday night, was between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Columbus Blue Jackets. This series is now tied at 2 also, but these teams split home and away games. The Blue Jackets tied the game at 3 on a goal by Brandon Dubinsky with 24 seconds left in the 3rd period. Then won the game 2:49 into overtime on a goal by Nick Foligno. Game 5 is back in Pittsburgh on Saturday.

3 of the other series are at 2 games to 1, with the higher seeded team leading all 3 series. These would include the Colorado Avalanche over the Minnesota Wild in the Western Conference. In the Eastern Conference, the top seeded Boston Bruins lead the Detroit Red Wings, while the New York Rangers have the current advantage over the Philadelphia Flyers.

However, there are 2 series that have been one-sided, one in each conference. In the Eastern Conference, the Montreal Canadiens have already eliminated the higher seeded Tampa Bay Lightning in 4 straight games. 3 of the games were decided by one goal, and one went to overtime, but if you lose close or get blown out, it’s still a loss.

In the last series to be mentioned, the San Jose Sharks have taken a 3 games to none lead in their series with the Los Angeles Kings. They hammered the stingiest defense in the NHL regular season for 13 goals in the first 2 games, then added a 4-3 overtime win in Game 3.

The higher seeded teams still have the advantage in all 7 of the ongoing series. But it looks like there will be at least a few 7 game series in the first round of the NHL playoffs. That could take a real toll on teams that will face the rested Canadiens, and possibly the Sharks, if they finish off the Kings soon. Of course, they could be rusty when the second round starts, so you never know. I will be enjoying this all the way through the Stanley Cup Finals.

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The NHL Playoffs Began With Some Great Games

Posted on April 18, 2014 by admin

The National Hockey League (NHL) playoffs started on Wednesday with 3 games, followed by 4 more games on Thursday. 3 of the first 7 games have gone into overtime, including the St. Louis Blues – Chicago Blackhawks game that went into a 3rd overtime, briefly. 5 of the 7 games were decided by only 1 goal. The Boston Bruins – Detroit Red Wings series doesn’t start until Friday, for some reason.

On Thursday in St. Louis, the Blues tied the score at 3 with only 1:45 remaining in the 3rd period, on a goal by Jaden Schwartz. The next goal didn’t occur until the 6th period. But 26 seconds into the 3rd overtime period, Alexander Steen won the game for the Blues, to take Game 1 at home 4-3.

In Colorado, the Minnesota Wild took a 4-2 lead after 2 periods. The Avalanche scored in the 3rd period to cut the deficit to 1, then tied the game with 14 seconds left, on a goal by Paul Stastny. Then 7:27 into overtime, guess who scored again. If you said Stastny, you’re right. He scored his 2nd goal of the game, the game winner, to deliver a home win for Colorado 5-4.

In New York, the Philadelphia Flyers scored first, but it was all Rangers after that. With a goal later in the 1st period, and 3 more in the 3rd period, the Rangers cruised to an easy 4-1 victory at home. The Flyers only managed to get 15 shots on goal in the game, compared to 36 for the Rangers.

In the final game on Thursday night, the San Jose Sharks stormed out to a 5-0 lead over the Los Angeles Kings after 2 periods, and finished with a 6-3 win. The Kings allowed the fewest goals in the NHL in the regular season. Goalie Jonathan Quick had an uncharacteristically poor game in net for the Kings.

Back on Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins overcame a 2 goal deficit to defeat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3. 2 power play goals in the 2nd period 45 seconds apart, tied the game, then a goal in the 3rd period by Brandon Sutter gave the hometown Penguins the victory.

The Montreal Canadiens and the Tampa Bay Lightning went to overtime to decide the first game of their series on Wednesday. Steven Stamkos of the Lightning tied the game in the 3rd period at 4, with his 2nd goal of the game. However, Dale Weise won the game for the Canadiens 18:08 into the first overtime.

In the latest game on Wednesday night, the Anaheim Ducks dominated the Dallas Stars in the first half of the game, leading 4-0. But after giving up 2 goals in 93 seconds late in the 2nd period, there was suddenly a game in Anaheim. The Stars scored again in the 3rd period, but the Ducks held on for a 4-3 win.

In case you’re keeping score, home teams went 7-0 in the first 2 days of the NHL playoffs. Goalies didn’t really stand out in these games. Every team other than the Flyers scored at least 3 goals. There are 3 games on Friday, including Game 1 of the Bruins – Red Wings series.

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Bubba Watson Wins His Second Masters

Posted on April 14, 2014 by admin

Bubba Watson won the Masters golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia on Sunday. This was his second Masters victory, after also winning in 2012. These are his only 2 major victories so far in his career. Not bad though, 2 green jackets, 2 years apart.

Watson had a battle through the first 9 holes on Sunday with 20 year old Jordan Spieth. Both golfers started the day at 5 under par, and Spieth was at -8 after birdieing the 7th hole. Watson was 2 shots back at the time. But after consecutive bogeys for Spieth on 8 and 9, while Watson had birdies on the same holes, the 2 shot deficit became a 2 shot lead. The suspense was over after Bubba took the lead.

Spieth was vying to become the youngest Masters champion ever, but it was not meant to be. He ended up tied for 2nd place with Jonas Blixt of Sweden, 3 shots back at -5. Blixt was the only golfer to shoot under par in all 4 rounds.

Watson joined Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson as the only other multiple major winners in the last 22 tournaments. He is also the 17th player to win multiple Masters tournaments. Watson led the field in driving distance averaging over 305 yards per drive. He was also 5th in greens in regulation, and 16th in putting. Put all that together and that’s how you win another Masters, and a cool $1.62 million winning purse.

The future of golf in the United States appears very bright, even without Tiger Woods, who is recovering from back surgery. 4 Americans finished in the top 6 at the Masters, including the aforementioned barely out of his teens Spieth. Will Watson win some of the other majors, will Spieth become the next dominant American, will Woods make a big comeback after surgery, or will someone else become the top golfer in 2014? Only time will tell.

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Connecticut Wins The NCAA Basketball Championship…Twice

Posted on April 9, 2014 by admin

Connecticut‘s men’s team won the 2014 NCAA Basketball Championship, with a 60-54 win over Kentucky on Monday night. Then their women’s team did the same thing, routing Notre Dame 79-58, and finishing their season 40-0 on Tuesday night. This was only the second time ever, that the men and women from the same college each won national championships, and the last time was also Connecticut (UConn) in 2004.

Another similarity between the men and women of UConn is that they are both undefeated in title games, the men are 4-0, while the women are 9-0. This was the 5th undefeated season for the women, and the rest of the country only has 3 undefeated seasons combined ever. Geno Auriemma has been the head coach for all 9 championships, and now holds the record for the most women’s titles.

Let’s go back to the men’s final. UConn won their 4th title since 1999, which is the most of any college. They also set the record for the highest free throw percentage in an NCAA tournament at 87.8%, and made all 10 free throws in the final game. Kentucky was only 13 of 24 on their free throws. Neither team shot very well from the field (UConn – 42%, Kentucky – 39%) but UConn point guard Shabazz Napier scored 22 points and won the Final 4 Most Valuable Player (MVP) award.

UConn came out strong to start the game, opening up a 30-15 lead, before Kentucky went on a 16-5 run, to end the first half with UConn leading just 35-31. UConn, who led the entire game, caught fire at just the right time. They seemed like a very unlikely title contender after losing their final regular season game 81-48 to Louisville. But after beating St. Joseph’s 89-81 in overtime in their first round tournament game, UConn proceeded to defeat 5 straight higher seeded teams to win the championship.

A nice return to the tournament for the Huskies, after being barred last year because of poor grades. I think it’s good for the tournament when a 7th seeded team in their region, with 8 losses, goes on to win 6 straight games including the national championship. It will be interesting to see how many of Kentucky‘s 5 freshman starters will return, and how many will go to the NBA now.

The UConn women are the more dominating of these 2 national champions on campus. Not only have they won back-to-back titles, but they crushed a previously undefeated Notre Dame team. UConn dominated in the paint, outscoring Notre Dame 52-22. The absence of forward injured Natalie Achonwa proved to be disastrous for the Irish.

At halftime UConn held a 45-38 lead, but put the game away early in the with an 18-4 run to start the 2nd half . UConn shot 47% from the field, and held Notre Dame to under 36%. The last team to beat UConn was Notre Dame in their conference tournament last year, when both were members of the Big East. UConn is now in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) and Notre Dame is in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Notre Dame has now lost the championship game in 3 of the last 4 years.

What a year for Connecticut in their new conference, winning both NCAA Basketball championships. Their men’s team will lose at least a few of their starters to the NBA, including Napier, and the women’s team will lose some starters too, but tournament MVP Breanna Stewart is only a sophomore. I wonder how long their winning streak will continue. Their team and NCAA record is 90 consecutive wins. Stewart will be a senior if that record falls.

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Connecticut vs. Kentucky For The NCAA Basketball Championship

Posted on April 7, 2014 by admin

The combatants are set for the NCAA Basketball Championship game on Monday in Arlington, Texas. Connecticut (UConn) will play Kentucky for the title. Connecticut overcame a slow start to beat Florida, the final remaining top seed, 63-53. Kentucky earned their spot by winning a great game over Wisconsin 74-73.

Florida came out strong at the beginning of their semifinal game with UConn, taking a 16-4 lead halfway through the first half. But the Huskies finished the half on 21-6 run of their own. So at halftime, the big early deficit for UConn became a 25-22 lead. It didn’t get any better for the Gators in the second half. UConn shot 56% from the field in the game, and 5 for 12 of 3-pointers, while Florida shot just 39% overall, and hit only 1 of 10 3-pointers.

DeAndre Daniels led the Huskies with 20 points and 10 rebounds, as they advanced to the championship game as a #7 seed in their region. This loss for the Gators ended a 30-game winning streak.  Florida only had 3 assists in the entire game. The last team to beat Florida…was UConn back on December 2nd 65-64. After a great season, Florida must be having nightmares about the Huskies.

Kentucky returned to the championship game, which they won 2 years ago over Kansas 67-59. This was a back and forth game the whole way. #2 seed Wisconsin took an 8-point lead early in the 2nd half, but Kentucky proceeded to go on a 15-0 run. The Wildcats’ 7-point lead didn’t last long as the Badgers fought back to take the lead.

With the game tied at 71, Wisconsin’s Traevon Jackson was fouled by Kentucky’s Andrew Harrison as he attempted a 3-point shot with 15 seconds remaining, giving him 3 free throws. An excellent free throw shooter, Jackson however missed one of them. Kentucky trailed by 2 as Aaron Harrison, the twin brother of Andrew, made a long 3-pointer, to give the Wildcats a 1 point lead with 5.7 seconds left.

Jackson put up a last second shot that missed, and Kentucky was on their way for a chance to win their 2nd title in 3 years. They were ranked #1 in the preseason, with all their incoming freshman stars, but eventually fell out of the Top 25, and became a #8 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Monday’s championship game features the lowest seeded combination of teams to ever play in the title game. In fact, neither of these teams were even in the NCAA tournament last year. UConn is no stranger to championships though. They won the title in 2011, as well as back in 1999 and 2004. Kentucky will be playing to win their 9th men’s NCAA basketball championship.

I haven’t been very good at picking winners in this tournament, like almost every else, but how many people really picked UConn over Florida? I’m going with Kentucky to win the championship on Monday, but it wouldn’t be a big surprise if Connecticut prevailed.

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Florida, Wisconsin, Connecticut & Kentucky Are In The Final Four

Posted on March 31, 2014 by admin

The Final Four is set in the NCAA College Basketball Tournament. Florida, Wisconsin, Connecticut and Kentucky won their respective regions and will go to Arlington, Texas to decide the 2014 National Champion.

Top seeded Florida finally ended the successful run of 11th seeded Dayton in the South region 62-52, on Saturday in Memphis, TN.  This was the 30th straight win for the 36-2 Gators, who won all 18 of their conference games in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Dayton Flyers held a 21-19 lead, before Florida went on a 19-3 run to finish the first half, with a 38-24 lead. Scottie Wilbekin led the Gators with 23 points.

It took overtime to decide the West regional winner on Saturday in Anaheim, CA. 2nd seeded Wisconsin eliminated top seed Arizona, as Nick Johnson missed a last chance to win the game for the Wildcats, but it left his hand after the buzzer anyway. This was the 7th overtime game of the tournament, which is a new record. Frank Kaminsky scored 28 points and had 11 rebounds for the victorious Badgers of the Big 10 Conference.

On Sunday in New York, the 7th seeded Connecticut Huskies took down 4th seeded, and most experts’ pick for tournament winner, Michigan State, to win the East region 60-54. Connecticut is only the 2nd #7 seed to ever make the Final 4. This game was decided at the free throw line. The Huskies made 21 of 22 free throws while the Spartans only took 8 free throws, making 7 of them. Connecticut is representing the American Athletic Conference (AAC) in it’s first year, after reorganization as the former Big East Conference.

In the last regional final, the 8th seeded Kentucky Wildcats beat 2nd seed Michigan 75-72 in Indianapolis, IN to win the Midwest region. Aaron Harrison of Kentucky hit a 3-pointer with 2.3 seconds remaining to give the Wildcats their margin of victory. Kentucky was 7 for 11 on 3-pointers. Julius Randle led them with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Kentucky is headed to their 3rd Final Four in the last 4 years, winning the title in 2012.

The Final Four starts on Saturday with Connecticut taking on Florida in their national semifinal meeting. The Huskies were the last team to beat Florida, way back on December 2nd. As good as Connecticut has played, I’m going with Florida to stretch their winning streak to 31 games.

The other semifinal will be Wisconsin against Kentucky. Kentucky was the preseason #1 with all their freshman stars coming in, but they struggled during the season, even dropping out of the Top 25. However, especially after beating defending champion Louisville on Friday, their team is coming together at the right time. So I’m taking Kentucky to win, and face SEC rival Florida to determine the National Champion.

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The Sweet 16 Is Set In The NCAA Basketball Tournament

Posted on March 24, 2014 by admin

The Sweet 16 is set in the NCAA College Basketball Tournament. All but one of the top seeds has advanced to the 4th round. Wichita State was the only one not to advance, losing in the best game of the tournament so far, 78-76 to 4th seeded Kentucky. This was Wichita State’s first loss of the year, after starting the season with 35 wins.

Interestingly, 2 of the #2 seeds qualified for the Sweet 16, and only one of the #3 seeds. However, all of the #4 seeds are still alive. Villanova and Kansas were the #2 seeds eliminated in the third round. Villanova lost to 7th seeded Connecticut 77-65, while Kansas barely came up short against 10th seeded Stanford 60-57. The only remaining 3rd seed is Iowa State, who beat 6th seeded North Carolina 85-83 in a controversial ending. North Carolina head coach was calling for a time out with just over a second left, but the referees didn’t see him, and they ruled that time had run out, keeping them from attempting a last shot.

The lowest remaining seed left in the tournament is 11th seeds Dayton and Tennessee. Dayton beat one of the aforementioned 3rd seeds, Syracuse, by a score of 55-53. Syracuse lost 6 of their final 9 games, after starting 25-0. Tennessee cruised past 14th seed Mercer 83-63. Tennessee is the only member of the Sweet 16 that played in the first round, so they have already won 3 games in the tournament.

Top seeds Florida, Arizona and Virginia each won by at least 16 points in their third round games. But the 4th seeds were even more impressive. San Diego State, Louisville and UCLA all won by at least 15 points, while Michigan State beat a game 12th seeded Harvard team 70-63. UCLA ended 12th seeded Stephen F. Austin’s 29-game winning streak 77-60.

Another notable elimination of a 3rd seed was 6th seeded Baylor blowing out Creighton 85-55. The nation’s leading scorer, Creighton’s Doug McDermott scored 15 points in a losing effort. He finished his career the 5th all-time leading scorer in Division I NCAA basketball history, with 3,150 points.

Only 4 of the 16 third round games were decided by less than 7 points. 10 of the Sweet 16 teams are seeded #1-4 in their prospective regions, while the other 6 teams range from #6 to the two #11 seeds. At least one of the lower seeded teams will make it to the Elite 8, since on Thursday 1oth seeded Stanford will play #11th seed Dayton in the South region.

The other game on Thursday in the South region in Memphis, Tennessee is #1 Florida against #4 UCLA. In the West region in Anaheim, California #1 Arizona will play #4 San Diego State, and #2 Wisconsin plays #6 Baylor. On Friday, the East region will take place in New York with #1 Virginia vs. #4 Michigan State, and #3 Iowa State against #7 Connecticut. The Midwest region which is in Indianapolis, will pit #2 Michigan against #11 Tennessee, and head coaches John Calipari and Rick Pitino will square off in #4 Louisville vs. #8 Kentucky.

In 3 of the regions a #1 will play a #4 seed, so we will see if the #4s remain strong. It looks like I may have given Wichita State and Creighton the kiss of death with my last article. I still hope the underdogs keep winning as long as possible. It makes it more interesting, than the top seeds winning all the games in the NCAA College Basketball Tournament.

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6 Upsets In The First Full Round Of The NCAA Basketball Tournament

Posted on March 22, 2014 by admin

The NCAA Basketball Tournament kicked into high gear on Thursday, with the second round, but the first round where every team plays a game. The first round consists of 4 games where the winners fill in the last 4 spots of the 64-team tournament. With 16 teams in each region, I consider any team seeded 11th or lower beating a 6th seed or higher to be an upset worth mentioning.

The highest seeded team to go down to defeat in their first game, was Duke (26-9). Mercer (27-8) won the Atlantic Sun Conference and entered the Midwest region as a 14th seed. They went on a 20-5 run at the end of the game, with the experience of starting 5 seniors, to eliminate 3rd seeded Duke 78-71. Mercer located in  Macon, Georgia will face another upset winner, 11th seeded Tennessee (23-12), in the third round on Sunday. Tennessee beat Iowa (20-13) 78-65 in a first round game, before easily taking down 6th seeded Massachusetts (24-9) 86-67.

In the West region, the only real upset was the Summit League Champions North Dakota State (26-6) who is the 12th seed, beating 5th seeded Oklahoma in overtime 80-75. North Dakota State will face 4th seeded San Diego State (30-4), who is the Mountain West Champions, on Saturday. San Diego State beat 13th seeded New Mexico State (26-10) 73-69 in the second round.

On Thursday in the South region, 11th seeded Dayton (24-10) pulled off the first significant upset of the tournament, defeating 6th seeded Ohio State (25-10) 60-59. Dayton will face 3rd seeded Syracuse (28-5) in the third round, after Syracuse (28-5) stomped on 14th seeded Western Michigan (23-10) 77-53. Stephen F. Austin (32-2) who is the Southland Conference Champion and 12th seed in the region, overcame an 11-point deficit to beat 5th seeded Virginia Commonwealth (26-9) in overtime 77-75. Stephen F. Austin will face 4th seeded UCLA (27-8), who pulled away in the second half from 13th seeded Tulsa (21-12) on Friday 76-59.

The only sizable upset in the East region was 12th seeded Harvard (27-4) ending the short run of 5th seeded Cincinnati (27-7) with a 61-57 victory. Harvard will be rewarded for their win with facing almost everybody’s tournament winner, 4th seeded Michigan State (27-8) in the third round on Saturday. Michigan State’s Adreian Payne scored 41 in an easy win over 13th seeded Delaware (25-10) 93-78, who is the Colonial Athletic Association Champions.

Only 6 teams seeded 11th or lower advanced into the 3rd round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament this year, but as you can see, those are my focus in this article. I’m rooting for the underdogs in almost all of the games. Although I wouldn’t mind seeing top seeded Wichita State (35-0) win the Midwest region, they are the Missouri Valley Conference Champions, and they crushed Cal Poly (14-20) 64-37 on Friday.  Wichita State, which made the Final 4 last year, will play 8th seeded Kentucky (25-10) on Sunday, but are still relatively new as a basketball power.

Another high seed that I am rooting for is 3rd seeded Crieghton (27-7), who finished 2nd in their first year in the Big East Conference, and beat 14th seeded Louisiana Lafayette (23-12) 76-66. Last year Creighton beat Wichita State for the Missouri Valley Conference title. If both teams keep winning, they would meet in the Final 4 semifinals, with the winner playing for the National Championship.

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March Madness Is About To Begin

Posted on March 17, 2014 by admin

The NCAA Basketball Tournament brackets have been set. March Madness will begin shortly. 68 teams are vying for the National Championship. 8 teams play this Tuesday and Wednesday, and the winners are added to the 60 teams that are already locked into their corresponding brackets in the 4 regions. The West region will be played in Anaheim, California, the Midwest in Indianapolis. Indiana, the South in Memphis, Tennessee, and the East in New York City.

The top seeded team in the West region is Arizona, even though they were upset by UCLA in the Pacific (PAC) 12 title game 75-71. Arizona (30-4) was the #1 ranked team for much of the first half of the regular season. Wisconsin (26-7) is the 2nd seed in the West, after losing in the Big 10 semifinal to Michigan State 83-75. Creighton (26-7) is the 3rd seed, although they were upset in the Big East Conference Championship by Providence 65-58. The 4th seed is San Diego State (29-4) who also lost in their conference championship game, to New Mexico 64-58 in the Mountain West.

Undefeated Wichita State (34-0) is the top seed in the Midwest Region. They cruised through the Missouri Valley Conference unscathed, beating Indiana State for the conference title 83-69. The 2nd seed is Michigan (25-7) out of the loaded Big 10. They lost in the conference championship to Michigan State 69-55. The 3rd seed in the Midwest is Duke (26-8), who lost to Virginia for the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) championship 72-63. Defending NCAA Champion Louisville (29-5) is the 4th seed, after winning the first-ever American Atlantic Conference (AAC) title game 71-61 over Connecticut. The 4th seed in the Midwest seems pretty low for the overall #5 ranked team.

Overall #1 ranked Florida (32-2) is the top seed in the South regional. They just slipped by Kentucky 61-60 to win the Southeastern Conference (SEC) tournament. Kansas (24-9) is the 2nd seed, after losing to Iowa State in the Big 12 semifinals. Syracuse (27-5) is the 3rd seed, losing in the first round of the ACC tournament to North Carolina State 66-63. After starting the season with 25 straight wins, Syracuse has lost 5 of their last 7 games. Not a good way to enter the NCAA Tournament. UCLA (26-8) grabbed the 4th seed in the South after winning the PAC 12 tournament.

Moving over to the the East region, Virginia (28-6) is the top seed, after winning the ACC tournament, it’s first since 1976. Villanova (28-4) is the 2nd seed, even after losing their Big East quarterfinal game against a .500 Seton Hall team, 64-63. The 3rd seed is Iowa State (26-7). the Big 12 Champions, after defeating Baylor 74-65 for the conference title. Michigan State (26-8) is the 4th seed as Big 10 Champions. Finally healthy, no one is looking forward to facing them in the tournament.

All the madness begins on Tuesday, with the 4 games in the first round, then the real action kicks into gear on Thursday with 16 games, and 16 more on Friday. By the end of the weekend, 68 teams will be down to the Sweet 16. I’m not a huge college basketball fan, but I do like the NCAA Tournament. With all the games going on, you can watch the end of one game, then switch to the end of another game. The champion has to win 6 games in a row, unless for some reason, the teams playing the first round go on a shocking run through the tournament.  Bring on the Madness!

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