Thoughts and Predictions on the NCAA Tournament

-First of all, I have to say I was mighty impressed with the tourney selection committee. Seemingly every year, the committee makes some baffling inclusion that one could only assume was the result of a sizable bribe (remember the Air Force decision a few years back?) or some inexplicable exclusion like Syracuse last year (They may be my alma mater’s arch enemy, but I don’t like to see them screwed arbitrarily). This year, the boys in the war room did an impeccable job with their selection of the 65 participants. Granted, their job was a little easier this year than usual; on Wednesday of conference tournament week, 8 teams tried their best to play their way OUT of the real tourney. Furthermore, I was impressed with the “aggressive seeding” employed by the committee. They did not indiscriminately follow the AP Poll to determine a team’s rank; a decision I applaud. For example, one top 5 team didn’t get a 1 or 2 seed, and one top 10 team in the poll was not considered a top 24 team by the selection committee. The two polls are often fallacious because many of the voters are only able to watch a handful of games a week, which usually means that the amount of television coverage and hype end up effecting rankings more than actual talent on the basketball court. Because the selectors use a more intricate and precise system to determine seeds, their rankings of college sides are far more accurate, which is why I’m avoiding picking Butler like the plague. Of course, I did not agree with every placement; par exemple, I felt Indiana, a top 25 side from a major conference with only 7 losses, should not have to play the top ranked seed in the tourney only a few miles from their opposition’s campus in the second round. As well, I think Xavier/Georgia were both mutually screwed. A protected seed should not have to play a major conference champion. Yes, Georgia had a horrendous season until about a week ago, but only a legitimately talented side can win the SEC tournament. Georgia should not have to play a protected seed in the first round and Xavier shouldn’t be rewarded for an almost-flawless season having to play a red-hot team from the conference that has produced the past two national championship teams.

-Anyone who picks Butler is a terrorist. Why? You’re picking against the USA. That’s a first round no-brainer.

-Memphis’ free throw shooting will be their downfall. I can’t say whether it’ll be in the second round or the Final Four, but an abysmal performance at the line will be the reason for their tournament demise.

-I feel badly for Cornell. The Ivy League representative can usually at least count on being the intellectually superior side in their first round match-up in the NCAA Tournament. Unfortunately for the university that is home to the nation’s preeminent ornithology lab, this year they will be the inferior side in terms of both ball skillz and smartz. Poor Cornell, they thought the “safety school” chants were done for the year. They’ve only just begun.

-I think the idea of a mid-major beating one of the top four Big East seeds is preposterous. UConn, Louisville, and Georgetown all have a good chance of facing a mid-major next round. Teams like St. Joe’s and Davidson can prepare all they want for the defenses of these seemingly impenetrable juggernauts, but they simply can’t prepare for the level of physicality of these sides. Habitually, in order for a mid-major to defeat a higher ranked opponent, they have to rely on hot shooting from the outside. The big boys of the Big East don’t just give up easy shots; they fight tooth and nail until the last tick of the shot clock to prevent an open look. Most mid-major sides have not played a team anywhere near as herculean as Georgetown, UConn, or Louisville, which means their bodies have not endured the physical punishment. A team can’t prepare for that in 48 hours. In particular, it seems like Davidson has become the trendy pick over second-ranked Georgetown. This, frankly, is absurd. Davidson has won a number of games in a row, but in their important games against elite teams earlier in the year, they were unable to prevail in close games, whereas Georgetown is 6-0 in identical scenarios. People claim that Stephen Curry will light the Hoyas up. You mean, just like Joe Alexander did last week? I’ll spare you the suspense. If Davidson plays Georgetown, Curry goes 5-17 for fourteen points in a losing effort. Georgetown is one of the best defensive teams in the country, the likes of which Davidson has yet to face this year. I think an outcome more likely than an upset is an extremely frustrated Davidson struggling to reach the 50 point mark.

-Best Quote so far: “Humphrey and Burrell (who are marking each other on defense) are pounding each other down there!” God Bless CBS

-Every year, my favorite part of the tournament is when my least favorite white player is eliminated from the tourney, and he cries like a little bitch and CBS just eats it up. In the past few years, we’ve had epic breakdowns from cracker greats like Adam Morrison and J.J. Reddick. This year, the sobfest I really can’t wait to see is when Chris Paulus and the Dukies go down way earlier than they expect and the tears start gushing through the ducts. In the words of Eric Cartman, there is nothing tastier than “the sweet tears of unfathomable sadness. Yummy.”

TOMORROW RIVE BROG GEORGETOWN VS WVU/UCONN

The title pretty much covers it. We’ll have Brog correspondent Petey K contributing live from the Garden

Georgetown vs. Villanova Preview

Both sides of the aisle have to be happy with this match up. Villanova is obviously ecstatic because they advanced in such dominating fashion over Syracuse to win the battle of the safety schools (excluding Newhouse) to play Georgetown in the first round. This has all but assured Nova an invitation to the Big Dance. Furthermore, the Wildcats get a chance to avenge their second most nefarious loss of the season (the first being the phantom call against NC State in Orlando). For those of you who did not see the first encounter between these two Catholic institutions, it was tied with less than a second remaining and Villanova was whistled for a foul which resulted in a Jonathan Wallace trip to the free throw line that sealed the game for Georgetown (To clarify: it was clearly a foul. However, since there was no feasible way J-Wall could have released a shot before the end of regulation I feel the ref should have used his discretion, kept his whistle in his pocket, and allowed overtime to decide the outcome). Nova isn’t the only team who benefits from this matchup; Georgetown did NOT want to play Syracuse in a hostile, partisan environment such as Madison Square Garden. The Hoyas have fared horribly against ‘Cuse in recent seasons, especially in Syracuse supporter strongholds. No matter how shoddy a season they have, the Cuse look like a different team when they play the Hoyas (38-12 anyone?).  Though the Orangemen (not the Orange) are the Hoyas’ arch rival, Georgetown considers Nova to be a legitimate rival, and would relish the opportunity to defeat Villanova in a non-tainted fashion. As for a result, if Villanova shoots the ball the way they did in the second half against Syracuse, they could beat any team in the nation. This is highly unlikely however because Georgetown has one of the best field goal defenses in the country. Expect another close game between the two powerhouses, but look for the number nine team in the country to prevail.

Georgetown: Unflappability Down the Stretch Makes Them a Legitimate Final Four Threat

On Saturday, Georgetown (my alma mater) clinched its second consecutive Big East regular season men’s basketball title marking their triumphant return to national prominence after a five year hiatus. As was brilliantly articulated by Mark Wise in his Washington Post article, the Hoyas have returned from the brink of basketball obscurity to a powerhouse. Honestly, after my first two years at the school (the 2002-2004 seasons), I had doubts that I would ever witness a resurgence of Hoya Paranoia. That season was marred by an ineffectual coach, an apathetic fan base, and a distinct ability to botch close games. Not only was the team losing, it would do so in the most heartbreaking fashion. I would go as far as to nominate this five game stretch for the Georgetown Hoyas in the 2002-2003 as the most gut wrenching for any college basketball team this decade: a one point loss to Pittsburgh, an overtime loss to Seton Hall, a double overtime loss to Notre Dame by a single point, an eight point loss to Syracuse (an inflated result for Syracuse due to endgame fouling), and a one point loss to UCLA. These failures permeated through campus, resulting in an aura of pure despair. The whole Georgetown student body knew the Hoyas were a side capable of beating any team in the country, but the myriad last-minute calamities absolutely sucked the belief out of the supporters and players alike. Fortunately, the well-documented renaissance under John Thompson III was only a season away, ushering in an era of hoops prosperity. Not only has he lured high-profile recruits and gaudy rankings back to the Hilltop, but more importantly, he’s re-instilled the sense of belief back into the players, the students, and the city. This team, whose legacy this decade was one of incompetence in the final minutes, is now imperturbable down the stretch, faring an incredible 6-0 in games decided by three points or less. Pundits are quick to write off the Hoyas because their, ahem, “unique” offensive style isn’t as aesthetically pleasing as Duke or Carolina to basketball purists (read: they play ugly), their abundant turnovers prevent them from beating a top caliber opponent (a detriment, but not necessarily true), and their capricious three point shooting has let them down at times throughout the season. They’re forgetting an important point; none of these statistics or observations can change the fact that Georgetown just knows how to win games. The Hoyas know it doesn’t have to be pretty or perfect; it just has to be a victory. Georgetown’s ability to simply win ballgames due to their unflappability under pressure makes them an utterly terrifying opponent. Come tourney time, if it’s under two minutes remaining and a one possession game, the other team might as well just call it quits; everyone in the arena knows Georgetown will be walking away with the W.

This is Why SFSers Should Not Become Music Icons

Are you familiar with the American singer Amerie? Until last week, I considered her musical persona rather enigmatic. She doesn’t seem to pander to American audiences. She invited Laotian-French R & B giant Willy Denzey (he is supercool; youtube: L’orphelin, Et si tu n’existais pas, Mon royaume, and Cette lettre) to feature in her song “Losin’ U.” As well, she brought in Korean hip-hop’s Se7en (they should really consider changing their name if they want to break into the American market, because all I think about when I see Se7en written like that is Gwyneth Paltrow’s head in a box) for a track. She even participated in the song for Amel Bent’s condom advocacy campaign “Protège-toi.” I couldn’t understand why this singer didn’t seem to care about augmenting her appeal in the States, and why she opted to concentrate on foreign markets, so I finally Wikipedia-ed her. There, I discovered that she attended good ole’ Georgetown. Oooooh, now it all makes sense!