I don't think it would be fair to call the 2011 NCAA Tournament the greatest tournament of all-time. At least not yet.
The first half of the first day was outstanding. There were a couple of classics during the tournament's round of 32. The Sweet 16 featured plenty of intrigue, and the Elite 8 was as good as any Elite 8 since 2005.
But does that make the best NCAA Tournament of all-time?
Who knows. That answer is far too subjective -- and far too reliant on where you happened to attend undergrad -- to ever have a definitive answer. It also depends on your definition of great. There are plenty of fans out there that probably think that the 2008 Final Four, in which all four No. 1 seeds advanced for the first time, was the greatest Final Four of all time. There is an equally large faction that considers this year's Final Four, in which we don't have a No. 1 or No. 2 seed for the first time ever and have the highest total seeds in tournament history, to be the greatest ever.
Arguing greatness is, in the end, pointless. Everyone has a different definition and a precious few will be convinced to change their opinion.
But I think the one thing that we can all agree on is that this NCAA Tournament may be the most unexpected and unconventional. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that each of the four teams in this NCAA Tournament can be considered a cinderella of sorts.
None of the four teams headed to Houston were supposed to here.
East region champ: No. 4 Kentucky
This wasn't supposed to be the year that Kentucky made the Final Four.
The was supposed to be their in between season, with a loaded recruiting class coming to campus next year.
Kentucky sent five players to the first round of the NBA Draft in 2010. Everyone knew that John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins were going to be gone after one season. Big Blue Nation probably got two extra years out of Patrick Patterson, who could have been a lottery pick as a freshman. But two of those first rounders, Eric Bledsoe and Daniel Orton, were surprise departures. Combine those losses with the decision by the NCAA to render Enes Kanter permanently ineligible, and this Kentucky team was left with just a six man rotation.
Three of those players were highly touted freshmen. The other three? DeAndre Liggins, Darius Miller, and Josh Harrellson. Liggins and Miller were top 50 recruits that had underperformed in their two seasons in Lexington. Harrellson was a JuCo transfer that was known more for being a fan favorite and the team's resident jokester than an interior force.
And while Big Blue Nation would probably disagree with me, the fact of the matter is that the Wildcats probably deserved their four seed. This is a group that underperformed throughout the regular season, struggling away from Rupp Arena and finishing at 10-6 in a weak SEC.
But something happened in March.
Something clicked.
Josh Harrellson has become a monster in the paint, using every bit of skill in his 6'11", 250 lb frame to become a blue collar workhorse. DeAndre Liggins has developed into a defensive stopper that, at 6'6", is to the Wildcats what Chris Kramer was to Purdue and David Lighty was to Ohio State. Darius Miller has become a knock down shooter with a knack for making a big play.
It feels weird touting Kentucky as an underdog, but that is what they were just three weeks ago. The NCAA Tournament is all about matchups and who gels at the right time.
And this Kentucky team has gelled. They are playing their best basketball of the season, they are getting significant contributions from everyone on the floor, and they are in the Final Four after beating both Ohio State and North Carolina despite not having gotten anything close to their best player's (Terrence Jones) best basketball.
West region champ: No. 3 UConn
Back in May, when UConn received their Notice of Allegations from the NCAA, I questioned whether it would be the death penalty for UConn basketball.
And while it looks quite silly now, based on what has happened in the last 10 months -- well, the last month -- knowing what I know now, my opinion would not have changed.
That should tell you just how impressive this run has been for the Huskies.
UConn was picked 10th in the Big East in the preseason, and rightfully so. They were a team with NCAA sanctions hanging over their head, with a head coach that appeared to be one step away from a convalescent home, and with a young and unproven roster surrounding a 6-foot-nothing point guard that still had a ways to go before his skill set caught up with his tools.
After a terrific non-conference portion of the schedule, which included a Maui Invitational title and a win at Texas, the Huskies came back to earth in Big East play. They went 4-9 against the 11 Big East teams that made the NCAA Tournament, lost four of their last five games in the regular season, and finished ninth in the Big East and playing on the Big East Tournament's first day.
That's when this magical run started.
UConn won five games in five days in New York City, winning the tournament title and earning that three seed. And after winning four games over the past two weekends, the Huskies are now headed to Houston for their second Final Four in three seasons.
Southeast region champ: No. 8 Butler
It may be unfair to call a team making their second straight Final Four a cinderella, but everything about this Butler team screams cinderella.
They finished in a three-way tie for first place in the Horizon League at 13-5. To do so, they had to bounce back for a stretch of four losses in five games, which was capped with the Bulldogs fell at the hands of Youngstown State, a Horizon bottom-feeder.
Butler came into the NCAA Tournament on a roll, winning their last nine games (two of which came in the Horizon Tournament), earning an eight seed and a date with Old Dominion in the first round of the dance. That roll didn't slow down in the dance, as the Bulldogs won four more games to get to the Final Four.
Those wins, mind you, weren't blow outs.
Like any cinderella, Butler has had to scrap and claw to get where they are, taking advantage of some lucky bounces along the way. In their first round game, Matt Howard happened to have a loose ball land in his hands before scoring the buzzer-beating layup in the first round win over Old Dominion. The Bulldogs nearly blew a second round game against Pitt on a silly foul by Shelvin Mack, but thanks to a missed free throw from Gilbert Brown and an even sillier foul by Nasir Robinson, Butler once again advanced.
The Bulldogs managed to avoid blowing a 20 point lead to Wisconsin before taking on Florida in the Elite 8. More magic was in store against the Gators. Seldom-used freshman Chrishawn Hopkins made two plays in the second half to help erase an 11 point deficit and swing the tide of momentum in the Bulldogs' favor before some questionable late-game shot selection from Florida put Butler in another Final Four.
In some ways, Butler's run to the Final Four this season is much more of a cinderella story than last year's. The Bulldogs had some expectation last year. They were a preseason pick to make the Final Four. They struggled through non-conference play, which put a damper on their seeding and their status nationally, but that was still a team with a lottery pick that defended as well as anyone in the country.
This year? They have no such lottery pick, and probably don't have an NBA player on the roster. They don't play an elite level of defense. Yet, here they are.
Back in the Final Four.
Southwest region champ: No. 11 VCU
The Rams may very well be the biggest cinderella of all time.
Very few people thought that the Rams had a shot at making the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday. Not after they lost their last four games in Colonial play. Shaka Smart was so convinced that his team wasn't going to get a bid that he didn't even get them together for the selection show. Brad Burgess went to Five Guys. Ed Nixon watched cartoons. Brandon Rozell did his homework. Joey Rodriguez was the only player that actually watched.
And he was rewarded.
VCU got in, but just barely. They were going to have to take part in the first ever at-large play-in game. The Rams locked up USC defensively, advancing to face Georgetown in the round of 64. They ran the Hoyas and then Purdue off the court with a barrage of three pointers, following that up with a nail-biting, overtime win against Florida State.
Up next was powerhouse Kansas, who was staggered by a series of haymakers thrown by the suddenly-confident rams early in the game. VCU answered a 6-0 start by the Jayhawks with a 19-4 run that was pushed to a 39-15 surge. Kansas was never able to take the lead back, and VCU was headed to the Final Four.
What makes VCU's run so incredible is that they are playing, without a doubt, their best basketball of the season.
The Rams are undersized, but they are loaded with shooters and difficult matchups for teams with more traditional lineups. They also like to press and get their opponents out of an offensive rhythm. And that is precisely what they have done in their first five games of this tournament. For a team that barely cracked the top third in defensive efficiency in the regular season, they have been one of the best defensive teams in this tournament. Even their shooting from beyond the arc is at a level that the Rams have not experienced this season. VCU never hit more than 11 threes in a game in the regular season. They have made 12 in a game three times in five NCAA Tournament games.
VCU has already set a record of sorts.
After Saturday's national semifinal against Butler, VCU will become the first team to ever play in six NCAA Tournament games without having played in the national championship game.
It doesn't get more cinderella than that.
Even this year.
Continue reading...
Monday, March 28, 2011
Four teams, four cinderella stories |
Another NCAA Tournament, another early flameout from Bill Self |
Bill Self should forever be indebted to Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts.
Back in 2008 when Kansas won the national title, the Jayhawks were able to overcome a nine point deficit in the final 2:12 thanks to Rose and CDR missing four of five free throws down the stretch. If those had made just one more free throw, Memphis and John Calipari would have had a national title wiped from the record books.
That wasn't the only break that Self caught in that tournament, either. We all know about the three that Mario Chalmers hit to force overtime with 2.1 seconds left, but what about Jason Richards'?
If you have forgotten, Kansas played Davidson in the Elite 8 in 2008. That Davidson team was riding the hot hand of Stephen Curry, but the combination of tired legs and Brandon Rush forced the future Golden State Warrior into an off-night against the Jayhawks. Davidson was still able to hang around, however, and had the ball down 59-57 with the chance to take a last second shot. But Jason Richards' 25 footer, which looked similar to Chalmers', found the bottom of the back board instead of the bottom of the net.
And its that miss that has saved Self's reputation.
Its the reason that he is a national title coach and not the Kansas coach that is 0-6 in the Elite 8.
If Richards hits that shot, Self is Rick Barnes. He's Jamie Dixon with McDonald's all-americans. He's just another coach that can dominate the regular season but always seems to fail to live up to expectation in March.
His notable failings at Kansas?
In 2005, the Jayhawks lost to Bucknell in the first round as a No. 3 seed. In 2006, it was Bradley knocking off the No. 4 seed Jayhawks. Self led No. 1 seed Kansas to the Elite 8 in 2007, where they lost to No. 2 seed UCLA, and in 2009, after Self lost most of his roster to the NBA or graduation, surprised many by getting Kansas a No. 3 seed and taking them to the Sweet 16.
But in 2010, the Jayhawks were once again upset on the first weekend of the tournament, losing to No. 9 Northern Iowa as a No. 1 seed in the second round.
This year, however, may be the most excruciating for Kansas fans.
The Jayhawks all but had a Final Four sewn up. After a first weekend full of upsets, all Kansas had to do to make the Final Four was to beat the third place team from the Atlantic 10 and the fourth place team from the Colonial. To make matters worse, most Jayhawk fans envisioned a free pass to the title game with No. 8 seed Butler waiting for them in the Final Four.
But like last year against Northern Iowa, VCU took control early and never looked back. After jumping out to a six point lead, Kansas looked like the mid-major. They looked like the team that was overmatched. The Rams knocked them back with a barrage of threes, and Kansas all of a sudden looked flustered. How flustered? They shot 2-22 from three and 15-28 from the line.
And once again, Bill Self was heading home early.
It begs the question -- how much value should we put into NCAA Tournament performance would evaluating a coach?
Because Self is certainly the furthest thing from a bad basketball coach.
In his first season at Kansas, he finished second in the Big 12. In each of the seven seasons since then, he's won or shared the Big 12 regular season title. In five of those seasons, he's won the Big 12 tournament title. He spent three seasons at Illinois before coming to Kansas. In his first two years with the Illini, he won the Big Ten regular season title. His third year, he won the Big Ten tournament title. That means that in the 11 years that Bill Self has been a major conference basketball coach, he has won a conference championship 10 of those years. In five of those years, he won both the regular season and tournament titles.
Criticize all you want, that is an impressive resume.
But we don't value consistency. College basketball fans, especially the fans of a program like Kansas, don't value conference titles or 30 win seasons. They want banners. They want Final Fours and national titles. Regular season success is great for a resume.
But postseason success is what makes you a legend.
The ironic part of all of this?
Bill Self was Shaka Smart 12 years ago. He was Brad Stevens. He built Tulsa into a powerhouse in the WAC, taking them to the 1999 NCAA Tournament and then advancing to the Elite 8 of the 2000 NCAA Tournament as a No. 7 seed.
Bill Self's tournament success at Tulsa got him to a position where he can be ripped for his lack of tournament success at Kansas.
Ironic, isn't it?
So be warned, Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens. It isn't always going to be fun and games once you're coaching the big boys.
And be thankful, Bill Self, for Derrick Rose, Chris Douglas-Roberts, and Jason Richards. They've saved your reputation.
Continue reading...
The ending was a disappointment, but this was still a great season for UNC |
This post can also be found at Beyond the Arc.
The season may have come to a disappointing end, losing to Kentucky 76-69 in the East Regional final, but this was not a disappointing year for North Carolina.
In fact, if I had told you on January 17th -- the day after North Carolina lost to Georgia Tech by 20 points -- that the Tar Heels would win the ACC regular season title and make it to the Elite 8, I think that every single Carolina Blue clad fan would have been ecstatic.
Last season, North Carolina skidded their way to a .500 season, finishing 5-11 in ACC play and ending up in the NIT. In the offseason, they lost Ed Davis to early entry, the Wear twins to a transfer, and Will Graves to a violation of team rules. Despite all of that drama, there was still plenty of talent of the roster. And as a stockpile of McDonald's all-americans tends to do, the expectations for this team built.
The Heels were considered one of the top 15 teams in the country in the preseason. They were thought to be Duke's one true contender for an ACC title. But, once again, North Carolina fizzled at the start of the season. A 12-5 start combined with a couple of underwhelming wins against overmatched opponents dropped the Heels all the way out of the top 25.
It looked like North Carolina was once again going to be headed to a disappointing finish to the season.
But thanks to a midseason switch at the point, from Larry Drew to Kendall Marshall, the Heels suddenly were a power house. Their fast break was clicking. Tyler Zeller and John Henson became a formidable front line. And Harrison Barnes finally found the rhythm that had all the analysts predicting he would be an all-american during the preseason.
I'm not big on moral victories, especially when dealing with a program like North Carolina, whose blue-blooded pedigree and endless recruiting budget puts them at an advantage over just about every one of the 345 other D-I programs.
That said, disappointed and frustrated Tar Heel fans need to remember where this team was two months ago.
North Carolina had a fantastic finish to the season. In a year full of disappointing finishes and underperforming powerhouses, the Tar Heels were a bright spot. Two freshmen injected life into this team midway through the season and made North Carolina relevant in the national title picture.
Carolina fans have a right to be disappointed. You should never be happy with a loss.
But when those kids arrived back in Chapel Hill tonight, I hope that they got a heroes welcome. They gave you something to cheer about until late March. There are a lot of teams that wish they could say that.
And hey, you still made it farther than Duke. That counts for something, right?
Continue reading...
POSTERIZED Awards: "Best 'Chestnuts' Dunk" |
B.I.A.H has spent the whole season documenting the best dunks, posters, gym-jammers, rim-rockers, tip-dunks and alley-oops. With the Final-Four upon us, it is time to decide what dunks were the best of the best.
Over the course of the week, we will announce the finalists for each category, and you, the viewers, will be given a chance to vote for the winner using the interactive poll at the bottom of each post. We will also have a panel of experts vote, and the dunk with the most overall votes from judges and viewers will be declared the winner.
The 2010-2011 B.I.A.H POSTERIZED Awards continue with the"Best 'Chestnuts' Dunk of the Year"
You don't need to think very hard about why the term "Chestnuts" is used. At the risk of losing our core audience of 9-14 year-olds, we'll spare the details.
But before we continue, we must first clarify a few specifications. First, there is a substantial difference in a poster-dunk and a chestnuts-dunk. A posterization implies that the defender tried to contest the dunk with a shot-block. Giving an opponent "the chestnuts" implies that the defender went for the charge call, only to have the ball-handler leap over him, thus "chestnutting" him.
Now, that being said, some of the nominees for this category are also candidates for Dunk of the Year, but we aren't asking you to vote for Dunk of the Year right now. We want you to determine which of the following dunks featured the most brutal and humiliating display of "Chestnuts". Emphasis should be put on the actual "chestnutting". If the defender falls on his back at the first point of contact, the "Chestnuttage" is weakened.
(Remember: voting begins at the bottom of the post)
The Other Categories
Best Two-footed Dunk
Best P-b-P Call
Best Highlight-Reel Dunk
Best Tip-Dunk
Best Alley-oop
Best Poster-Dunk
Dunker of the Year
Dunk of the Year
Now that we have clarified this issue, let's move on to the nominees:
CJ Fair, Syracuse
Ramon Galloway, South Carolina
Jordan Hamilton, Texas
Scotty Hopson, Tennessee
Kyle Kuric, Louisville
Dwayne Lathan, Indiana State
E’Twaun Moore, Purdue
Marcus Morris, Kansas
Andre Roberson, Colorado
Conjoint Analysis
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POSTERIZED Awards: "Best Call" |
B.I.A.H has spent the whole season documenting the best dunks, posters, gym-jammers, rim-rockers, tip-dunks and alley-oops. With the Final-Four upon us, it is time to decide what dunks were the best of the best.
Over the course of the week, we will announce the finalists for each category, and you, the viewers, will be given a chance to vote for the winner using the interactive poll at the bottom of each post. We will also have a panel of experts vote, and the dunk with the most overall votes from judges and viewers will be declared the winner.
The 2010-2011 B.I.A.H POSTERIZED Awards continue with "The Best Call" after the jump
By themselves, dunks are pretty-awesome. But when we are provided with a person's audible reaction to an epic dunk, the value of the highlight goes way up. After all, What would Jerome Lane's backboard-shattering dunk be withouth Bill Raftery's "SEND IT IN, JEROME!"?
(Voting begins at the bottom of the post)
The Other Categories
Best Two-footed Dunk
Best Chestnuts Dunk
Best Highlight-Reel Dunk
http://www.ballinisahabit.net/2011/03/posterized-awards-best-tip-dunk-of-year.html
Best Alley-oop
Best Poster-Dunk
Dunker of the Year
Dunk of the Year
Here are the nominees for "The Best Call"
Kyle Casey, Harvard (Mark Adams on the call)
Jared Cunningham, Oregon State (Kevin Calabro on the call)
CJ Fair, Syracuse (Dickie Simpkins on the call)
Brady Jardine, Utah State (Dave Flemming & Sean Farnham on the call)
Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette (Dickie Simpkins on the call)
Tony Mitchell, Alabama (Clay Matvick & Joe Dean on the Call)
Tom Pritchard, Indiana (Gus Johnson & Jim Jackson on the call)
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POSTERIZED Awards: "Best Two-Footed Dunk" |
B.I.A.H has spent the whole season documenting the best dunks, posters, gym-jammers, rim-rockers, tip-dunks and alley-oops. With the Final-Four upon us, it is time to decide what dunks were the best of the best.
Over the course of the week, we will announce the finalists for each category, and you, the viewers, will be given a chance to vote for the winner using the interactive poll at the bottom of each post. We will also have a panel of experts vote, and the dunk with the most overall votes from judges and viewers will be declared the winner.
The 2010-2011 B.I.A.H POSTERIZED Awards will get underway with the first category, "Best Two-footed Dunk of the Year", after the jump
It's easy to posterize somebody when you get a running start and can jump off of one foot. but not every player is given such luxury. A junk off of two feet is ussaully more power than finesse, but it still can be just as beautiful as a tomahawk or windmill jam.
(NOTE: Voting begins at the bottom of the post. the Polls will stay open until Monday, April 4)
The Other Categories
Best P-b-P Call
Best 'Chestnuts' Dunk
Best Highlight-Reel Dunk
Best Tip-Dunk
Best Alley-oop
Best Poster-Dunk
Dunker of the Year
Dunk of the Year
Here are the nominees:
John Holland, Boston
Brady Jardine - Utah State
Terrence Jones, Kentucky
Phillip McDonald, New Mexico
DJ Stephens, Memphis
Mitchell Watt, Buffalo
John Williams, UNC-Asheville
Rodney Williams, Minnesota
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Second Weekend Recap |
As much as I love the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, I think that the second weekend -- the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds -- are actually my favorite part of the dance.
The chaos, coast-to-coast madness, and desire to be able to watch and listed to all four games at once makes that first weekend wild and fun and entertaining, but the second weekend is when every game becomes a heavy weight battle. It only helps when the results are as memorable as they were this past weekend.
Six No. 1 and No. 2 seeds went down over the past four days. A No. 11 seed made the Final Four. A No. 8 seed out of the Horizon League made its second consecutive Final Four. Two of college basketball's elite advanced to the Final Four despite what most assumed to be a down year.
There were buzzer beaters and there were beatdowns, all exciting and shocking and memorable in their own right. Here's my attempt at recapping that madness:
Game of the Weekend: Butler 74, Florida 71 OT
This game was Butler basketball at its finest. The Bulldogs were outplayed fairly thoroughly in the first half, but thanks to some tough defense and timely shot-making, Butler was able to cut the deficit to 33-32 at the half. In the second half, Florida continued their terrific play, pounding the ball inside and flustering the Bulldogs with a zone that they switched to man with less than 10 seconds left on the shot clock.
But with the score 51-42 midway through the half, Brad Stevens put in Chrishawn Hopkins, a seldom-used freshman point guard that had played well in practice, and Hopkins delivered. On the first possession he was in the game, he threw a gorgeous, no-look pass for a layup. 30 seconds later, he drilled a three that cut the lead to four. He didn't do much the rest of the game, but those five points were enough to tip the momentum into Butler's favor. The game would eventually end up in overtime, where we had one of the most exciting four possessions of the tournament. Butler had opened up a 67-64 lead with Erving Walker found Kenny Boynton for a three with just over two minutes left. After Ronald Nored gave Butler the lead back with two free throws, Walker drilled a three to give the Gators the lead. But at the other end, Shelvin Mack -- who had 27 points in the game -- answered with a three of his own, and Florida was never able to get the lead back. Walker and Boynton both misfired on threes in the final minute.
Studs of the Weekend: VCU Rams
What the Rams did this weekend cannot be understated. Hell, what they have done in this tournament deserves massive amounts of credit. On Friday, VCU took on a Florida State team that was a terrible matchup for them. They were obliterated in the paint, to the tune of 21 offensive boards and 20 second chance points, but still managed to hit enough from beyond the arc to take the game to overtime. With 7.9 seconds left, Joey Rodriguez found Bradford Burgess for a layup to give the Rams the win.
On Sunday, however, is when the Rams made history. VCU played a nearly perfect game, knocking Kansas off-balance early, to beat Kansas and advance to the Final Four. VCU tied a season high (that they set in the tournament) with 12 threes, got 26 points and 10 boards from Jamie Skeen, and saw Rodriguez make three huge plays down the stretch as they beat the tournament's most talented remaining team to advance to the Final Four. It was a perfect storm of opportunity and execution.
They showed out too:
Dud of the Weekend: Tyrel Reed and Brady Morningstar, Kansas
Its tough to place the blame for a loss on any one player, especially when a team combines to go 2-22 from three and 15-28 from the free throw line. But its also difficult to ignore just how poorly Reed and Morningstar played in the loss to VCU. The two senior started combined for just 11 points in the loss to the Rams, shooting a combined 2-16 from the floor and 1-10 from three. There were multiple other factors in the loss, but that shooting performance -- many of those misses came late in the game as Kansas was trying to make a comeback -- may as well have been the nail in the coffin.
They didn't show up:
Biggest Shot: Brandon Knight vs. Ohio State
After Jon Diebler hit a three with 20 seconds left in the game to tie it at 60, Brandon Knight hit a ridiculously tough pull-up over Aaron Craft, who had held him to just seven points on 2-9 shooting prior, for his second game-winner of the tournament:
Biggest Shot Part Deux: Bradford Burgess vs. Florida State
With VCU down 71-70 in overtime and just 7.9 second left on the clock, Burgess managed to lose Derwin Kitchen on an out-of-bounds play under the basket:
Biggest Shot Redux:
Safe Travels: Jimmer Fredette, BYU
On Thursday night, Florida knocked off the Cougars in overtime, ending the career of one of the most entertaining players in the recent history of college basketball. And as only The Jimmer can do, he went out with a 32 point performance which drew criticism from the experts.
That criticism was probably fair. Fredette was just 11-29 from the floor and 3-15 from beyond the arc, missing a number of shots that he has hit all season long. But that one poor performance should not sully the reputation of the guy that became college basketball's hero this season. Jimmer lit up scoreboards all season long. He hit jumpers from 30 feet on a consistent basis. He scored 29 points a night and carried a BYU team that was thoroughly mediocre without him all the way to the Sweet 16.
Fredette was going to lose at some point. He simply did not have the supporting cast to make a run at a national title. The shame is that immediately after his career ended, the talk started about what kind of pro he would become. The kid was a hero this season. Before we go discussing what he'll be at the next level, let's all sit back and remember just how good he was at this level.
Jimmer, it was a pleasure, my friend. You will be missed.
Continue reading...
Monday Morning Dump |
- Dan Wetzel on the high-cal match-up between Kentucky and UConn
- According to Bloomberg, Kentucky spends more money on recruiting than any team in the country
- Despite losing to UConn and the possibility that Derrick Williams won't return, Arizona has a lot to look forward to next season. But the win for UConn was about more than just Kemba Walker
- Speaking of UConn, the Huskies were ranked 10th in the Big East pre-season polls, and ninth in the conference tournament, but are now one of the top four teams in the country
- The Kentucky Wildcats are the early favorites out of Vegas to win the National Championship. Speaking of the wildcats, John Clay provides 20 quick-hitters on the 'Cats trip to Houston. This is the third different team John Calipari has taken to the Final Four, but he assured the University President that Kentucky would not be the third team to have their Final Four banner taken down. But I don;t think anybody, Kentucky fan or not, expected to be in the Final Four with this team
- It was difficult to comprehend what Butler did last season. But two years in a row? That may be unfathomable . According to Nick Fasulo, what the Bulldogs have done defies conventional wisdom. Luke Winn states that this year's Final Four run is even more improbable than the Bulldogs run a season ago. After being banned from participation in the regional portion of the NCAA tournament, Butler's live mascot Blue II has been cleared to participate in Final Four festivities in Houston
- David Steel provides some insightful opinion on how the NCAA can reform it's standards to give the college athletes more options
- An awesome-read on the big East all-historical team tournament (sponsored by Charles Barkley and his atrocious golf swing)
- Ty Duffy has a solid take on the Fab Five documentary backlash (I told myself I wouldn't link to Ty Duffy anymore because TBL snubbed BIAH's Gus Johnson Countdown. I'm still pissed, but this is a pretty good read)
- There may not be any No. 1 or No. 2 seeds in the Final Four, but this isn't the worst pairings we've seen
- A look at the conference records for the NCAA Tournament
- Some interesting statistics regarding the internet traffic of the two mid-major schools participating in the Final Four
- Wyoming is heavily targeting Old Dominion Blaine Taylor as their next head coach
- Missouri State head coach Cuonzo Martin has been hired by Tennessee to succeed Bruce Pearl as the head coach of the Volunteers. Some fans may not like the hire, but it's certainly a good one. But Steven Pearl does not like the hire
- Kent State head coach Geno Ford will be introduced today as the new head coach at Bradley
- Chris Mooney has been given a 10-year extension by Richmond to remain as the Spiders head coach
- Dayton coach Brian Gregory may or may not have been offered the Georgia Tech head coaching job. UPDATE: Jeff Goodman reported that Gregory is expected to replace Paul Hewitt as the next head coach of Georgia Tech
- It could be a busy off-season for Atlantic-10 coaches. The conference known for it's coaching stability could see numerous changes due to opening at larger conference schools
- Despite being rumored as a candidate for the Oklahoma job, Buzz Williams will reportedly stay at Marquette
- Mid-major coaches who put together an unexpected Sweet Sixteen run are often coaching a different team the following year
- Head coach Chris Mack is going to stay at Xavier, and so is superstar guard Tu Holloway (At least, for now he is). Apparently Mack turned down an offer to take the job at Tennessee
- According to Jeff "Scoopmaster" Goodman, Tennessee has reached out to Shaka Smart and Central Florida's Donnie Jones
- North Carolina State is apparently interested in Shaka Smart
- Lost Letterman lists the top ten best head coaching candidates from mid-major schools
- USC center Nikola Vucevic is going to hire an agent and enter the NBA draft
- Michigan's sophomore stand-out Darius Morris will test the NBA draft waters, but won;t hire an agent
- Maryland forward Jordan Williams is seriously thinking about entering the NBA draft
- La Salle's Aaric Murray is transferring. Right now he list includes Rutgers, Kentucky, West Virginia and Florida
- Minnesota center Colton Iverson is transferring. He becomes the fifth Golden Gopher to leave the program in three years
- Maine's Murphy Burnatowski has been granted a release from their program. He was viewed by many as the most talented player on the team, but a rift grew between himself and head coach Ted Woodward during the regular season
- Many players have already stated their plans for the future, whether it's staying or going. But Duke's Kyrie Irving is waiting to decide. He says there is no guarantee he will return, but has not made a decision yet
- If Jared Sullinger stays at Ohio State, which he said he would do, the Buckeyes will likely start out the 2011-2012 season as the No. 1 team in the country
- Kentucky freshman Doron Lamb stated over the weekend that he will return to Kentucky for his sophomore season
- Adam Zagoria reports that some of the top freshman are weighing their "one-and-done" options
- Some more NBA draft buzz. Kansas' Thomas Robinson will test draft waters and Texas' Tristan Thompson has reportedly signed with an agent. Or maybe he hasn't
- JaMychael Green will return to Alabama for his senior season. The forward named to the All-SEC first team and will be a candidate for the SEC preseason Player of the Year ward next season
- Some interesting videos from the first week on the job for new Providence head coach Ed Cooley. Speaking of Cooley, the Providence Journal documented some of his thoughts on what he has ahead of him and his new team. Can Cooley build quality depth with recruits, something Keno Davis was unable to do?
- A brief look at Bill Self's recent NCAA tournament choke jobs
- Wonder how Drexel Dragons players and fans feel about this improbably VCU tournament run. If you remember, VCU needed at Jamie Skeen buzzer-beater to defeat the Dragons in the CAA tournament. The Dragons also beat the Rams in Richmond back in February 64-60
- Wake Forest landed a commitment from class of 2012 center Andre Washington
- Future Washington Husky Tony Wroten Jr. ran the fastest 100-meter-dash in the state of Washington
- A cool story about the hectic 48-hour schedule of Washington State basketball assistant Jeff Hironaka
- A look at the good and the bad of the Miami Hurricanes 2010-2011 season
- The selections for the third annual All-Chicago college basketball teams
- A pretty neat list on the ten best arenas built in the past 15 years
- A look at what it's like inside the locker room of a National Championship-winning team
- Brad Stevens has two words for ya: Suck It
- From the files of "you can't make this stuff up": Delaware mother climbs a pole to protest basketball hoop removal
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Sunday, March 27, 2011
Tennessee hires Cuonzo Martin; hire is much better than UT fans think |
Bruce Pearl was arguably the single biggest storyline through out the season.
What were his violations? What was his punishment going to be? Was he going to be fired?
With that in mind, it was almost a shock when Cuonzo Martin was announced as Bruce Pearl's replacement.
"Cuonzo is among the most promising young coaches in the game, and we are excited about the coaching ability, toughness and energy that he brings to our program," Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton said. "He has a proven track record of success as a head coach at Missouri State and an assistant at Purdue as well as an outstanding career as a college basketball player."
The hiring was shock because it happened so quickly and without much warning, but also because it didn't involve Tennessee getting shot down by too many bigger names.
You see, the rumors and speculation involving Tennessee's coaching search included much bigger names that Martin, who had spent the previous three seasons at Missouri State. The wish list that was leaked included Jamie Dixon, Jay Wright, Anthony Grant, Mark Turgeon, and Gregg Marshall.
And the Vols ended up with a guy whose resume includes three seasons at an MVC school, a CIT title, and a single win in the NIT.
So you can understand why the reaction from those in Knoxville has been less than enthusiastic. (Read the comments here. The message board trolls are out en masse.)
When you have a passionate, rabid fan base that expects a homerun hire, they are not going to be excited when they end up with a bloop double.
But before you trash Martin, Vol fans, I urge you to do a bit of research. When Martin took over Missouri State, the Bears had just five scholarship players. He took a team that was 3-15 in the Missouri Valley in 2008-2009 to the regular season conference title this season. He may not be the kind of coaching commodity that Brad Stevens, or Shaka Smart, or Chris Mooney is, but Martin was a guy that was on the radar for a lot of high major programs.
An example? A lot of Purdue fans had Martin pegged as a possible replacement for Matt Painter should the Boilermakers head coach bolt for Missouri.
There is more to Martin than just what happens on the court. He made it out of St. Louis' rough east side. He beat life-threatening cancer when he was 26 years old. Read this, and tell me that Martin isn't a guy that you want to root for.
This hire will only send the wrong kind of shockwaves through Knoxville.
It shouldn't. Cuonzo Martin is far from a bad hire. And given the circumstances at Tennessee, any Vol fan with some sense should, eventually, be pleased.
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VCU Shaka'd the world!!! |
This post can also be found at Beyond the Arc.
And we all thought that Butler's run was incredible.
VCU has now done something that no other team has done before. The Rams, who took part in the first ever at-large play-in game just 16 short days ago, is now headed to the Final Four after capping off their astonishing run through the bracket with a 71-61 win over No. 1 seed Kansas. It was their fifth straight win in the NCAA Tournament, becoming the first team to ever do so before reaching the Final Four.
The Rams knocked off teams from five of the six BCS conferences. They were the underdog in each of the five games. Their star point guard nearly transferred in the offseason after former head coach Anthony Grant took the job at Alabama. Their star center is a cast-off from Wake Forest. Hell, head coach Shaka Smart, who played basketball at D-III Kenyon College, didn't even gather his team to watch the NCAA Tournament selection show because he did not believe they were getting in.
Like George Mason in 2006, the Rams have gone from a questionable addition to the tournament to two wins from a national title.
But unlike George Mason, VCU has a real, honest-to-god shot at winning this thing.
VCU didn't luck into the Final Four. They aren't headed to Houston because they were given the benefit of a friendly whistle or took advantage of a soft bracket. VCU smothered USC on the defensive end of the floor. They ran both Purdue and Georgetown off of it. After squeaking by Florida State in the Sweet 16, the Rams overcame a hot start by Kansas to take down the tournament's most talented remaining team.
And this is where VCU's story starts to differ from George Mason.
When the Patriots made the Final Four in 2006, they knocked off some impressive opponents, but they did so in dramatic fashion. Against a talented-but-enigmatic UConn team that had been struggling throughout the tournament -- if you remember, that team nearly lost to Albany in the first round -- George Mason overcame a 12 point halftime deficit to win in overtime when Denham Brown's last second three bounced off the rim.
VCU needed no such luck. And VCU didn't need to make a comeback.
After the Jayhawks scored the first six points of the game, VCU responded with a 19-4 run that they stretched out to a 39-15 surge. They were up by 14 at the half. Kansas made couple runs at the Rams in the second half, at one point getting as close as two, but VCU had an answer every time.
And while Jamie Skeen will look like the hero, finishing with 26 points and 10 boards, VCU's real savior was the diminutive Joey Rodriguez. His stat line was, frankly, pretty ugly. He finished with nine points, five boards, five assists, four turnovers, and shot 2-8 from the field.
But it was Rodriguez who sparked VCU's final push.
After airballing a three the previous possession and seeing Kansas get within 57-52 with less than five minutes left, Rodriguez stepped up and buried a three early in the shot clock. (In hind sight, it was a pretty dumb shot, one that surely had Smart doing the old "No, no, no, YES!!") A minute later, Rodriguez dribbled his way under the rim, somehow finding Brad Burgess at the top of the key for a wide open three that pushed the lead to nine points. Two minutes later, Rodriguez again found Burgess, this time on a nifty pass that led to a layup, to put VCU up 65-57 with less than two minutes left.
You see, the thing about VCU in this game -- in this tournament -- is that they played like the favorite. They were the ones that jumped all over Kansas. They were the team that made the Jayhawks fall back on their heels. The Rams were playing confident, physical basketball. They were jawing after baskets and diving on loose balls.
Kansas?
They spent the first half looking hesitant and unconfident. They took quick, ill-advised shots early in the possession. They turned the ball over and missed free throws (15-28 on the game). The Jayhawks were flustered. They looked ill-prepared for playing on this kind of stage.
VCU may not have been the more talented team, but they were the better team on Sunday afternoon.
And the beauty of the NCAA Tournament is that being the better team on one afternoon is all you need to advance.
That's why a team that didn't even think they would get a shot to dance will now be performing on the sport's biggest stage.
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Elite 8 Preview: No. 1 Kansas vs. No. 11 VCU |
When: Sunday, 2:20 pm EST, CBS
The Details: The comparisons between the George Mason run to the Final Four and VCU run to the Elite 8 are, frankly, astonishing.
Mason and VCU are both CAA schools. They both struggled at the end of the regular season. They both got questionable at-large bids and had quite a few folks criticizing the committee for including them into the tournament. And in the Elite 8, both played the last No. 1 seed left in the tournament, who also just so happened to be the most talented team in the country.
George Mason shocked the world. They beat UConn and made the Final Four. As an 11 seed. Can VCU do the same?
Key Matchups: The Morrii vs. Bradford Burgess
Marcus and Markieff Morris make up one of the most versatile, talented, and efficient front line duos in the country, and that doesn't even include Thomas Robinson, who may end up being the best NBA prospect of the three. They can score on the perimeter or in the post. They can pass and they can rebound. The Morrii are the reason that Kansas is able to run the offense that they run.
VCU, on the other hand, does not have a ton of size. Jamie Skeen is a borderline NBA prospect and has been one of the most important pieces for the Rams all season long. And while Shaka Smart does have a couple of other big men available in his rotation, VCU is at their best when they play Brad Burgess at the four. Burgess is more of a perimeter player than a post player, and part of what makes VCU's offense so dangerous is the fact that their four man can do things like score 49 points and hit 9-11 from three against Purdue and Florida State.
Will Shaka Smart be able to stay with the small lineup, or will the Jayhawks be too big?
Key Stats: Kansas' turnover percentage
Kansas is a better basketball team than VCU. That much cannot be debated. They are going to make things very difficult for the Rams defensively, and as we mentioned earlier, their front court strength will be difficult for the Rams to matchup with.
That said, VCU likes to press, and they are pretty good at forcing turnovers in that press. The Jayhawks, specifically the three members of their point guard rotation (Tyshawn Taylor, Josh Selby, Elijah Johnson), have a penchant for turning the ball over. VCU is going to need to force some turnovers and get some easy baskets if they want to pull off this upset.
X-factors: Brandon Rozzell
Rozzell is an instant offense kind of player for Shaka Smart. He's got the ability to knock down six or seven threes in a game. He can go for 25 points on a given night. He's perfectly capable of reeling off 10 points on his own in a three minute span. But he's also capable of having an 0-9 night. The Rams will need Rozzell to be shooting well on Sunday.
Rozzell's shooting underlies a bigger point -- VCU has to make their threes. Kansas is far and away the best team that the Rams will have played in this tournament. I hate to use the cliche, but the three pointer in the great equalizer in college hoops. The Rams will have to be making them to have a shot.
And the winner is?: Kansas Jayhawks
The thing that I liked the most about Kansas on Friday night was the attitude that they had coming in. On Thursday, the local media in Lawrence reported an incident where one of the Morris twins said "you boys better be ready" to the Richmond players when they crossed paths at a practice session. Prior to the game on Friday, the two teams had a bit of a skirmish in the tunnel leading to the arena floor. Kansas is playing with an attitude and a swagger. They are now the heavy favorite to win this tournament, and if they are playing with that attitude, with a chip on their shoulder, they are going to be very tough to knock off.
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Elite 8 Preview: No. 2 North Carolina vs. No. 8 Kentucky |
When: Sunday, 5:05 pm EST, CBS
The Details: In an NCAA Tournament that has been all about the underdog and the cinderella story, a matchup of Kentucky and North Carolina gives the traditional college hoops fan their dose of blueblood.
The Wildcats and the Tar Heels have already played once this season. UNC won at home, beating Kentucky by two points on a night that Terrence Jones shot 3-17. North Carolina is a very different team than the one that played that night, thanks in large part to the play of Kendall Marshall. But Kentucky is a different team as well. Instead of relying entirely on their talented freshmen to carry them, John Calipari's team has gotten tremendous play and leadership out of the trio of upperclassmen that see playing time.
Key Matchups: Big men in transition
Tyler Zeller has developed into a very good low post scorer. He has a nice little jump hook that he's put some range on, he's a decent face-up shooter, and he can score on the offensive glass. But where Zeller has become the most dangerous is in transition.
I cannot remember the last big man that I've seen run the floor as well as Zeller. He routinely beats slower footed post players to the rim, getting easy dunks off of makes and misses. It helps that Kendall Marshall is like a quarterback running the show, throwing sensational outlet passes. John Henson can get out and run the floor as well.
That's going to be an issue for Kentucky. Josh Harrellson is not the most fleet afoot. He can get beat down the floor. The lack of depth that Kentucky has in their front court won't help Harrellson stay fresh, either.
Key Stats: Terrence Jones scoring
Jones has not shown up for the NCAA Tournament. He has 30 points and 20 rebounds in three games. He's taken all of 23 shots in those three games, has grabbed just three offensive boards, and taken just 10 free throws.
Keep in mind, this is the Terrence Jones that some thought had an outside shot at winning national player of the year early in the season. He's a muscular, 6'9" lefty with the ability to score in the post, off the dribble, or on the perimeter. The issue with Jones has been that he tends to be a ball hog, and Kentucky certainly does not need him to become a black hole on offense. But they will need him to become a scoring threat.
X-factors: DeAndre Liggins vs. Harrison Barnes
Slowly but surely, DeAndre Liggins has become one of the most important glue guys in the country. On the one hand, he is a terrific defender. He's got length, he's got size, and he moves his feet well. He'll have his work cut out for him against Barnes, who is one of the most talented offensive players in the country. There isn't much that Barnes cannot do on the offensive end of a basketball court, and he's played his best basketball of the season down the stretch. 
Liggins has also become a valued weapon offensively this year. He's knocking down threes. He's putting the ball on the floor and getting to the rim. He's finding assists. Coach Cal has shown that he trusts Liggins quite a it late in the season.
And the winner is?: North Carolina
I picked Kentucky in my bracket (so please don't kill me, Big Blue Nation), but the more I think about it the more I like this matchup for the Tar Heels. I don't think that Jones and Harrellson are going to be able to stay with UNC's bigs in transition.
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Jeremy Ham goin' Lamb |
Kemba Walker is, and forever will be, this UConn team's star.
That's what happens when you throw a talented group of rugrats on your back and carry them to a Maui Invitational title, a Big East Tournament title, and, after Saturday night's 65-63 win over Arizona, a trip to the Final Four. That's what happens when you have a player of the year kind of season and turn a team that wasn't supposed to contend in conference play into a national title contender. UConn is 12-0 in tournament play -- 3-0 in the Maui, 5-0 in the Big East, and now 4-0 in the NCAA's -- and Kemba has averaged 27.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, and 5.0 apg in those games.
That's how you become a star. That's how you become a hero. That's how you turn yourself into a top ten pick.
And while Kemba hasn't exactly disappointed these past two games, its been Jeremy Lamb -- the long-armed Robin to Kemba's Batman -- that put UConn into the Final Four. 
Against San Diego State, Kemba had 34 points and took the game over down the stretch. He scored all 12 points in a 12-2 run that turned a 54-53 deficit into a 65-56 lead with just over four minutes left. But San Diego State scored the next eight points, cutting UConn's lead to just one with 1:39 left.
That's when Lamb stepped up.
The freshman drilled a three to stop the Aztec run and, with just 30 seconds left in the game, made a steal that led to a dunk, giving UConn a 70-64 lead and sealing the win. Lamb finished with 26 points on 9-11 shooting from the floor.
Against Arizona, Lamb played just as big of a role down the stretch. Kemba was struggling in the second half, as Arizona was running two or three guys at him when he would try to penetrate. The space wasn't there, so Jim Calhoun used him almost as a decoy, running off of screens and setting up Lamb along the baseline. And the youngster responded, finishing with 12 of his 19 points in the second half.
It wasn't just the points he scored, however. It was when he scored them.
UConn had opened up a 50-41 lead midway through the second half, but Arizona came back, using a 14-2 run capped by back-to-back emphatic dunks from Derrick Williams and Jesse Perry to take a 55-52 lead.
Lamb responded. He made consecutive baseline jumpers to give UConn the lead back. After Alex Oriakhi and Kemba both scored, it was Lamb who stole a Derrick Williams pass and went the distance for a dunk, capping a 10-0 run that put UConn firmly in control.
This isn't a surprise. Lamb has always had this kind of talent. He's a slender (that's putting it kindly) 6'5" with the wingspan of a 747. He's a smooth slasher with a charmin-soft floater. He's terrific at avoiding charges. He's an excellent shooter in the mid-range, fundamentally sound coming off of screens, and has a three-point stroke that could develop into something deadly. He's the second-coming of Rip Hamilton.
Lamb's issue was assertiveness. He's passive by nature, and too often early in the season he opted to defer to Kemba or, well, anyone else on the roster. That passivitiy that disappeared in March, however, as Lamb has been a monster the past nine games, averaging 16.0 ppg in the Big East and NCAA Tournaments.
He's got the tools and he's showing the ability to step up and perform when the lights are brightest. He's got star written all over him.
The problem?
Its only so long before the NBA notices.
Lamb has a ways to go before he's able to contribute at the next level. But with his skillset, his physical tools, and his performance in March, all Lamb needs to do is convince one GM he's worth a first round pick.
Whether or not he decides to leave is besides the point.
UConn is headed to the Final Four. Kemba Walker is the reason why.
But the Huskies wouldn't still be playing if it wasn't for Jeremy Lamb.
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Saturday, March 26, 2011
Jim Calhoun may not like Jeremy Lamb's dad |
Back in 1984, when Jim Calhoun was still coaching at Northeastern and Jeremy Lamb was almost a decade from coming into existence, VCU knocked off Northeastern in the NCAA Tournament thanks to a buzzer beater.
The guy that hit the game-winning shot? Rolando Lamb. Jeremy's father.
There's video of it, too:
Its quite possible the only things in this world greater than youtube are wireless internet and DVR.
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You have to appreciate just how impressive Butler's last two touraments are |
Butler's trip to the Final Four last season was unforeseen.
But it wasn't unfathomable.
They were a top ten team in the preseason. They were a top five team defensively. They had a lottery pick on the wing, a couple of other scorers on the roster, and a number of role players that understood their jobs. They were a team in every sense of the word, they got hot at the right time, and they took advantage of some good matchups by making it all the way to the national title game.
This season?
The Bulldogs saw that lottery pick suit up for the Utah Jazz. They lost their best defender to graduation. They stumbled through much of the regular season before winning nine straight, including two games in the Horizon League Tournament, just to get to the dance.
That is what makes this year's run to the Final Four so impressive.
The Bulldogs aren't a secret anymore. They were the biggest story is all of college basketball last year. They didn't sneak up on anyone this season. And they still managed to beat four very good basketball teams en route to a second straight Final Four appearance. As an eight seed. That is the lowest seed to reach the Final Four since George Mason made it as an 11 in 2006.
What Brad Stevens has done the past two seasons with this Butler team is one of the most incredible and most impressive accomplishments in the history of college basketball.
And there is no exaggeration in that statement.
Making a Final Four is difficult. You have to win four straight games against good basketball teams. There is a lot of skill involved, and nearly as much luck. Its all about getting the right matchups and exploiting the mismatches. Its about winning close games and performing in the clutch.
(Here's an incredible stat -- Butler is 9-1 in the NCAA Tournament the past two seasons. Of those nine wins, only one came by more than double digits. That was last year's first round game against UTEP.)
There are great coaches that have never made a Final Four -- Jamie Dixon and Mark Few immediately come to mind. Programs like Duke and Kentucky and UCLA consider it an accomplishment to make back-to-back Final Fours. And those are the programs with the massive recruiting budgets and the McDonald's all-americans and the future NBA Draft picks.
This is Butler. This is a team whose home gym, Hinkle Fieldhouse, has ten times the tradition that the program does. This is a team who lucked into Gordon Hayward and his late growth spurt and pulled Shelvin Mack out of Lexington because he was a late-bloomer in high school.
This two year run by the Bulldogs?
This is why college basketball is so great.
Because the team that has all the odds stacked against them -- ahem, Boise State -- doesn't need to have a perfect regular season to play for the national title.
Enjoy it, folks.
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Florida was flawed all along |
This post can also be found at Beyond the Arc.
The decision making ability of Erving Walker and Kenny Boynton bears a striking resemblance to my golf game.
I'm not terrible at golf. I'd call myself mildly capable. At 6'3" and currently sitting on the wrong side of 230 lb, I can hit a golf ball pretty far. That said, regardless of what club I swing, 95% of the time, where the ball ends up is about 45 degrees to the right of where I aim. But the other 5% of the time, the ball goes straight. And there is no better feeling in the world than when that golf ball that I just hit is sitting in the middle of the fairway some 225 yards away from the tee.
The problem? Every time I hit a picture perfect shot, I manage to convince myself that I am capable of doing the same thing. Over and over again. Even though, deep down, I know that I actually hit a terrible shot 95% of the time.
I'm convinced that is what has happened with Walker and Boynton.
Because there is no other way to explain the fact that on Florida's three most important possessions in their 74-71 overtime loss to Butler, those two were taking deep threes.
Its not that they aren't capable of hitting those shots. Both Walker and Boynton have hit some big shots throughout the season for the Gators. They hit big shots in this game. With Butler up three in the overtime, Walker drove and found Boynton curling in behind him. Boynton hit the three, which tied the game at 67.
On the very next possession, after Butler had scored at the other end, Walker drilled a three off the dribble to give Florida a 70-69 lead.
Those were big shots. And they weren't the only big shots that Florida's guards have hit this season.
But, as is the case with my golf game, Walker and Boynton managed to convince themselves that because they have hit big threes this season, they can hit every big three they take.
And it wasn't just Walker's three at the end of regulation, Boynton's three with a minute left in overtime, or Walker's three at the end of the overtime.
Throughout the second half, the Gators got away from what got them the lead. Alex Tyus and Vernon Macklin were dominant this afternoon. Tyus finished with 14 points and 10 boards on 6-12 shooting. Macklin looked like the kid that earned the nickname The Big Ticket when he was a senior in high school, finishing with 25 points on 11-14 shooting from the floor. It wasn't necessarily pretty, but Macklin dominated whoever Butler threw at him.
But down the stretch Florida started settling for jumpshots. They stopped penetrating. They stopped feeding the post. And it played right into Butler's hands.
This isn't a new issue, either. Leadership and decision making from their back court has been an achilles heel for the past two seasons for the Gators.
Billy Donovan put together a talented team. He outcoached Brad Stevens, who admitted as much after the game. But the Gators were flawed.
And that flaw reared its ugly head at the worst possible time.
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