Apologies on the delay this week, still hurting so bad by just a despicable second half by the Blue Devils. 28 points is just not going to cut it on the offensive end, and neither will that defensive performance. Saw the “Awful coaching” analysis of the game and it made me want to die with all the little mistakes we made that added up and ended in the worst turnover ever.

HOWEVER, we are unbiased here and a fan of the game, and that was an instant classic. At the end of the day, someone has to win and someone has to lose, and while I am not happy, that game was a classic, and the rest of the games this past weekend. In regards to the conversations on both coaches, Jon Scheyer is still the man/chosen one in my eyes. Give him some more time, its only year 4, but he does have a choking problem, point blank period. Dan Hurley, psychopath and you have huge balls. Respect, but he are actually so lucky that the ref has some feel and is ok with headbutting him. You can’t call a tech there, but I mean, that just has to be a tech. Paradoxical, but it works.

LOOKING AHEAD

Arizona vs. Michigan is actually going to be great. I do think that they were the 2 best teams all year and have the best rosters. I hate Michigan as a team, and Yaxel is probably my least favorite player in the country, but they are loaded. Cadeau has gotten so much better, and their size and physicality is just hard to match. Arizona would be my pick if I was forced to put money on the game, but it is literally a coin toss. I just trust Burries and Bradley more in the backcourt to create more good shots throughout the game, and think that they have the team speed to stop Michigan in transition. Will be a classic. HOWEVER, the idea that this is actually the national championship is silly to me. Illinois and UConn are good. The Balkan 5 are the boys, and Wagler is legitimately nasty. Tarris Reed is a problem, and Uconn just gets it done, a la Terps Lax. Hurley effect is real as is the mindset that “We are a team of destiny” which has to be going on in the Uconn locker room. That game with be great as well, and I think the winner will show up to play on Monday as well.

If I am making picks, I would take Illinois and I would take Zona, with Zona winning in the championship. However, thing about the final 4, every team is good and playing good basketball so think they are both just pure coin toss games. If I can get out of my feelings and bring myself to watch, I know I will be juiced.

Recapping:

Duke vs. Uconn

We all saw it. We all are talking about it. Thrill of victory agony of defeat. Duke man, you cant keep doing this to me. However, price you pay for rooting for a blue blood team is that every time you lose, it is a massive event where you get clowned and heart ripped out because you think you can win it all. If were going to lose going forward, a heinous choke is something we can leave out.

Michigan vs. Tennessee

Straight BTA. Great run by Tennessee, but just not enough on the roster to compete with that Michigan team. Favorite play of the game was when Yaxel was being a dickhead and not picking up the ball in the backcourt before getting boomed on by the Tennessee guard. If you haven’t seen it, give it a watch, and it could make you get a good chuckle. Rick Barnes is a legend, and getting to 3 elite 8’s in a row is cool. Fun fact about Michigan, Dusty May was the only coach in the Sweet 16 who didn’t play college basketball. Gives me some hope as I am a couple years away from taking over a JV team and running the most diabolical full court press.

Purdue Zona

In short, great fight out of Purdue in the first half, but Zona was just to good. Purdue enters a new era without TKR Smith and Loyer which will be interesting, but Painter has a program bigger than any player which is cool. Big question for Zona that is looming is what happens with Tommy Lloyd, with the potential of Kansas and UNC jobs opening up.

Illinois Iowa

Struggled to watch honestly, was at the bar dominating a pool table (getting dominated). Saw some gross moves by Wagler, and can imagine that it was not a great watch. Defense of Illinois has really stepped up and the KenPom stats, which do have value in my opinion love them. Ben Mccullom is the boy, but the Cignetti chatter does feel a little excessive.

Eliminated Teams in Sweet 16

St. Johns.

Rick Pitino is the man. The Italian suits are actually so fire. He is the godfathers. “Rick Pitino, I take ‘em to strip clubs and casinos.” Great career for Zuby. I think I saw that he is coming back for another year, so hopefully he is able to reload in the portal, and there is no reason to think he wont.

Bama

Another good year that was marked with a lot of distractions. Labaron Philon is a certified demon and while he is a sophomore, should be up there with all the freshman in the draft conversation. Hard to think he is a sleeper. Nate Oats is linked to a lot of jobs and his style is so fun to watch. Does it translate to winning? A lot would have to go right.

MSU

Just can’t go down by 19 early (unless your Uconn literally shoot me) but valiant comeback. Love Izzo, but his lore in march is a little gassed up. Sources close to the program say that they have basically the whole team coming back and a great recruiting class, and Izzo wants to die on the court, so that is exciting going into 26-27.

ISU

Hard to bounce back after losing an All American. Shrunk the floor for the rest of their team, and they just couldn’t get it going against Tennessee. Have to imagine if they are able to keep their coach, they will be there to stay.

Arkansas

Calipari just gets it done. Hes a legend and totally rebuilt that program in 2 years. Bet UK wish they still had him instead of that chump Mark Pope. Acuff is literally the worst defender in the country and think he is the guy that gets a GM fired for drafting him to high, but hes so gross on offense. Also stealing his fit for my pickup runs going forward.

Houston

Literally got set up for them to succeed with games in Houston and 1 seed eliminated, but just cant get it done. They have a program that just has continued success, and will be back, but lost one of their freshman who was supposed to be big next year to the portal, along with losing 2+ starters to the draft.

Texas

Good run. Props for beating the Zags.

Nebraska

Hoiberg got screwed for coach of the year in the Big 10. Really hope this wasn’t a flash in a bottle and that they can keep this going into the future.

Well, that was electric. Lots of chalk, and that is just fine with me. The people complaining about the chalk are the same people who would be complaining that there are a bunch of double-digit seeds in the elite 8 final 4. I will always die on the hill that I want the big dogs to be in the tournament for as long as possible. Final 4 of all of the top seeds is cinema to me, and I would like to point out that I mentioned that Cinderella is dead in the last column, and the it is pretty clear that the no one is wearing any glass slippers.

Kind of funny that the big underdog this year is the team with a top 10 NIL fund and the number 1 endowment in the country. Now we are set up for a goated ass sweet 16 and I could not wait.

Rooting for your Bracket

Not a fan of people who are upset about a great game because it messes up their bracket. Like during the Duke game, I am hearing people rooting for Duke because they have them in the final 4. Another example is the rooting for Florida when they are in a dogfight with Iowa. Like dude, your bracket is cooked regardless, and its way to early to project if this results in you winning money. If there is money involved in the final 4 and what not, go for it, but in these early rounds when the points are low, who cares, root for the upset and the great game. Everyone’s bracket is busted, so if I am hearing about 1 of your 20 brackets (which is a separate discussion) that’s busted if Arizona loses, going to look at you differently.

Teams Remaining Recaps

EAST

Duke 71 vs. Siena 65 Duke 81 vs. TCU 58

Well that was terrifying. Only got nervous with about 6 minutes left but that was overall pretty pathetic in round one. Huge to get Ngongba back, who was +20 when he was on the court against TCU. Allows Brown to play more aggressively and Duke to stay big at all times. The supporting cast and Boozer showed up big time in the second half. Sarr with 14 and 8, Evans with 17, and Brown with a great performance. Feeling extremely confident going into St. Johns.

Upcoming – St. Johns Friday at 6:10

St Johns. 79 Vs UNI 53 St Johns. 67 vs. Kansas 65

Saw it was a BTA session against UNI and didn’t tune in to intently. However, that game against KU was one that I was particularly excited about, and it was an instant classic to say the least. Absolutely some of the ugliest basketball I have ever watched in the first half and I couldn’t have loved it more. The full court press is electric and they play super hard. As that game would down, was a little worried that they had a collapse in them. Also great that Pitino calls his white guy “Bells”.

Upcoming – Duke Friday at 6:10

MSU 92 vs. NDSU 67 MSU 77 vs. Louisville 69

Absolutely dominated NDSU to the point that I wasn’t to dialed in. However, was blessed with the opportunity to watch Coen Carr and the boys against Louisville and was beyond impressed. If he can pretend like he is going to make jump shots and still make the impact he does on defense and in transition it totally changes team. Izzo in March continues to be a thing, and despite how much I hate Fears, you have to respect him. Pretty consistently the best player on the court, and definitely eats a lot of criticism so his boys can just focus on playing.

Upcoming – UConn Friday at 8:45

UConn 82 vs. Furman 71 UConn 73 vs. UCLA 57

Dan Hurley and Karaban just get it done. Tarris Reed with an insane stat line against Furman to hard carry (31 and 27… damn.) but against top level size in UCLA kind of got shut down a bit. Good thing Karaban just epitomizes winning, as he is 15-1 in the NCAA tournament in his career which is a ridiculous stat. Don’t watch them and get overly scared or impressed by anything, but a la Terps lax, they just get it done.

Upcoming – MSU Friday at 8:45

SOUTH

Houston 78 vs. Idaho 47 Houston 88 vs. A&M 57

They did not play with their food. Sampson has them starting off strong to begin the tournament, and they have been balanced to begin. They have a lot of good players with multiple getting into the star realm, with Fleming consistently being great. Cenac, Tugler, and Sharp all being great in their roll.

Upcoming – Illinois Thursday at 9:05

Illinois 105 vs. Penn 70 Illinois 76 vs. VCU 55

Illinois fans in my community are feeling PRETTY GOOD right now. Starting to get dare I say, overconfident. However, I am with them. They look good and if I was an Illinois fan, I would already be talking crazy about what they are going to do to Houston. They didn’t play with their food at all, and the big guys actually looked like they had a little toughness. Mirkovic is electric despite the fact that he can’t move, and didn’t know they could guard enough to hold a division 1 team to under 60 points. Wagler/Flemings duel is going to be great television and I am personally excited.

Upcoming – Houston Thursday at 9:05

Nebraska 76 vs. Troy 46 Nebraska 74 vs. Vandy 72

One of the stories of the tournament. Congrats on their first tournament win against Troy, and congrats on beating a legitimate team to go to the Sweet 16. They are solid all around with elite shooting, and their defense isn’t free buckets. Actually really excited for their rivalry matchup next round, which will possibly be the most white guys on one court in decades.

Upcoming – Iowa Thursday at 6:30

Iowa 67 vs. Clemson 61 Iowa 73 vs. Florida 72

Well done by the Hawkeyes, whose faithful have been waiting for a real run for years. Bennet Stirz and the Euro Bobby Mo Transfer is extremely tough. My opinion on them prior to the tournament was that they couldn’t beat teams better then them and I was quickly proven wrong, and happy to be. Clemson game was a ref show, but that’s just the cards that were dealt. Florida game was another ref show and the fact that Iowa won with a bad shooting day out of Stirz is actually huge.

Upcoming – Nebraska Thursday at 6:30

MIDWEST

Michigan 101 vs. Howard 80 Michigan 95 vs. St. Louis 72

Didn’t watch any of their games, but heard that the St. Louis game was far closer than the score reflected. The Lenderborg dunk and Mara alley oop were insane highlights, and starting to feel like I prematurely said they were looking vulnerable. Their road is also a cake walk coming up against a handicapped Bama and with Joshua Jefferson going down against Iowa State, but you play the games for a reason.

Upcoming – Bama Friday at 6:35

Iowa State 108 vs. Tennessee State 74 Iowa State 82 vs. Kentucky 63

They have fully came to play. Elephant in the room is the Joshua Jefferson injury, which despite the scores is an absolutely massive deal. However, they are far from a one man show with the rest of their starters all capable of dropping 15-20 points and carrying the load while he is out. Also so glad that they were able to embarrass Kentucky to the point where people are complaining about their coach after 2 years. Tennessee will be a good game regardless if Jefferson is healthy enough to give it a go or not, but would love to get him back for potential matchup against Michigan.

Upcoming – Tennessee Friday at 9:10

Bama 91 vs Akron71 Bama 90 vs. TTU 65

Watched game against the Zips and as someone who was fading the Tide, thought they looked pretty good. Didn’t watch against TTU as a result of the score/extreme exhaustion but this whole thing with the drug dealer is still so ridiculous. One of the dumber things I think a person has done in a long time. However, would love to see them beat up on Michigan.

Upcoming – Michigan Friday at 6:35

Tennessee 78 vs. Miami OH 56 Tennessee 79 vs. UVA 72

Thank you, Tennessee, for ending Miami in the way that you did. Did not need to hear from Miami fans that they could have made a deep run if the ball bounced the different way a couple times. Rick Barnes is also a legend who lives in the Sweet 16. UVA game was great and their defense is what carried them down the stretch. Going forward, they have 2 guys who you can throw the ball to and say “hey man, can you get us one?” which is a luxury not many teams have, although Ament looked scared in the crunch against UVA. ISU will obviously be a tough game, but more than possible for them to lock in and play good hoops and get it done.

Upcoming – Iowa State Friday at 9:10

WEST

Zona 92 vs. LIU 58 Zona 78 vs. Utah State 66

At this point in the season, I think that they have to be the favorites to win it all. Just have a complete team, and no big flaws at all. Size, guards who can score, rebound and don’t turn it over, dynamic wings, forwards who board everything and hit layups. I mean…. They’re good. However, that Utah State game was a lot closer than the score reflects and if they had a body who could halfway compete with the bigs of AZ, could be a totally different result.

Upcoming – Arkansas Thursday at 8:45

Arkansas 97 vs. Hawaii 78 Arkansas 94 vs. High Point 88

One of the more fun teams to watch in the tournament. Happy that everyone is getting to be able to watch what Acuff has been up to all year. In my opinion, outside of DP he is the best guard in the draft, and is the best point guard in the country. He controls the game, can score whenever he wants, and also facilitates. However, we do have to point out that he will be a Trae Young level defender in the league, and also doesn’t guard anyone now. Little bit of strategy involved as he is already to small to guard, and also, if he gets in foul trouble, the game is over for Arkansas. Pretty obvious that he’s told to not foul and give up points if that’s the decision he has to make. I also want to show a little bit of love to the rest of the team, because they pick up the slack defensively while also rebounding and being able to score/penetrate off of Acuff’s initiation.

Upcoming – Zona Thursday at 8:45

Purdue 104 vs. Queens 71 Purdue 79 vs. Miami 69

Unfortunately, was unable to watch as I would have loved to get in on a Purdue hate watch. Heard the game was closer than the score reflected, and that Loyer was in his bag. Box score reflects that, and that has to be exciting for Purdue knowing he has had a tough year. Also just an absolute cake walk for them going to the Sweet 16.

Upcoming – Texas Thursday at 6:10

Texas 79 vs. BYU 71 Texas 74 vs. Zags 68

My favorite team of the tournament to this point. Beating AJ and then the Zags is a great way to get into my good graces. Game against BYU was a dogfight because the AJ guy is really good, but Texas has the size to play with anyone. Also their guards/Swain can score just enough to win games. The thing with them is that they can be winning the whole game, but absolutely love to just make awful plays and take awful shots in crunch time. Against the Zags, their big dude gave Ike problems and the Zags just aren’t good enough on offense this year. I was pumped to say the least. Phone calls were made out celebrating the Zags loss from the bar.

Upcoming – Purdue Thursday at 6:10

Superlatives

Team - Texas

Player - Darius Acuff

Moment - St. Johns and Iowa Game Winners

Narritives - Big dogs are going to eat

Coach - Sean Miller/Ben Mccullom

Cheers.

Ez

Attached are the picks. Sorry about the photo quality. General theme of this year again is Go with the Big Dogs. With the changing landscape of college sports, I think that the top of college hoops will just continue to be better than the rest and that Cinderella is dead. Not saying that we aren’t going to get a crazy upset in the first round with a top 4 seed going down, but I do not see a lot of double digit seeds touching Sweet 16. For your teams that you are selecting to go to the Final 4, you gotta think, “who do I trust to win 4 games in a row against solid teams?” and go from there.

Couple Disclaimers

Reality of the situation is that no one knows what’s going to happen. I am well aware that I am far from an expert on the sport of basketball, and my only advantage is that I watch more games than just about anyone from November-March. Since I know that I know nothing, I often pick my bracket with what I am rooting to happen. They always say that “You can’t teach heart” and I hope my passion flows into the locker rooms of my boys. For example, when I filled out this bracket I just wrote Duke into the champion slot and then filled it out from there. I have only had Duke not winning one year that I can remember, Brandon Ingram’s year, and that team was not good. Also, I hate a lot of teams. What are the odds that no one out of UNC, Gonzaga, and Kentucky make it to the second weekend? Pretty low, but there was no chance that I was putting any of them in the sweet 16. Also not a big fan of Hurley and I’ve been high on UCLA all year so I am riding with that. What are the odds UCLA beats UConn? Not high but we ride. I also am a little romantic about the game, seen with the Duke Houston Final 4 matchup.

Thoughts on Upsets

Its fun to pick 1 that you just ride to the sweet 16, and if it happens you look like the man. Will never forget when I picked Oakland to beat Kentucky first round, and when it happened I felt like the man. Once again, this was purely a Kentucky hate pick, but they don’t ask why you pick something when you got it right. They just say well done. This year, I think that the real upsets will happen in the round of 32, which is by far my favorite round of the tournament. Extremely disappointed that I will have to be at a women’s soccer game on Sunday at 1:00 central, but that’s another conversation for another day, and I will have the Hulu up on the phone no doubt. But back to upsets, it is just not worth it to pick them in your brackets. The numbers are not on your side, and if you are wrong and someone you picked to lose early goes on a run, you are totally cooked. The goal of the brackets isn’t to have a perfect first 2 rounds, but actually to get the final 4 correct. That’s why you might look at my bracket and be like “wow look at all this chalk” but I just want the best chance of getting the Elite 8/Final 4 correct, even though theres probably no chance I do.

Good luck to everyone, unless your in a pool with me.

And. Here. We. Go. What a week yet again. Really enjoying the quality of the games that I am watching, with these teams being just about finished products at this point. Teams know their identity, and its awesome to be able to see everyone go at each other. Everyone is watching the games now and has an opinion but love all of the discourse that is buzzing around my days now. Have to admit, I got complacent this week with my watching, going against my guns and watching a lot of games under the influence of alcohol and at the local watering holes, but its your classic 90/10 situation here (meaning 10% of life is what happens and 90% is what you do next shout out Henry Dodge). However, it was St. Patty’s in Chicago and it just had to be done.

The madness has also begun with crazy endings just seeming to happen all the more often in the blessed month of march. Not sure if people were able to watch the Ivy league championship, but that was one of the best games I have ever watched, and I just cannot wait for more of these instant classics.

Also was able to lock into some of the mid major games and those small gyms are just absolutely electric. The crowd pops in the small gyms just mean more, and it is also great to just watch some terrible basketball on occasion that ends with a super tough step back at ends of possessions.

Not going to do the game-by-game recap this week with the sheer amount of banger games but going to do an initial reaction of each region. Obviously going to lock in and figure out a bunch of obscure stats that mean absolutely nothing about each matchup before I make my picks, but also think at the end of the day, you got to pick with your gut, or the team with a better mascot. Got some discourse of things on my mind but then a quick bracket overview at the bottom.

Something I’m Tired of

I am tired of watching the first 4 out and last 4 in graphics and all of the conversation that goes around the bubble. Auburn is actually pathetic for literally pushing propaganda as to why they should being the tournament and Joe Lanardi is even worse for being a pawn of the SEC/ESPN and putting them constantly in the conversation. For the record Joe, they lost 3 games in a row at one point this year, and you moved them into the last 4 in. This week I have to watch them jump a bunch of teams because they had a strong performance against Mississippi State. Congratulations Auburn, you played a good game against a team that 13-19. On the flip side of the coin you got Andy Katz talking about all of these Big 10 teams who need to be in. I understand that you are going to have biases and opinions, but shamelessly gassing up the teams who are in the conference you cover and then posing as an expert on the topic is pathetic. If you’re going to be on national television, address the bias or get out of here. Also, you guys have literally the coolest job ever can you just be respectable and do a good job.

Also, the thing that we have to talk about is that THEY HAVE NO IDEA. They aren’t sitting in the rooms having the discussions about the bubble, and I understand that we have to talk about something, but it actually so annoying. We literally have no idea, so stop pushing these fake stats and metrics that you can manipulate to push a narrative down our throats.

One more thing on the bubble talk, while it is frustrating that these teams who just need to win/put up a decent performance and they just cant do it, we have to remember that these teams are not good. Everyone in this bubble conversation would be ranked somewhere between 35-43, so end of the day, we cannot rely on these teams to get the job done. In my opinion, more of the talking by these big media sports heads should be on the seeding, because that actually matters in the national title race. The difference between a 4 seed and a 3 see is huge in terms of the road to the Final Four, and even more important is the top 2 seeds who get to pick their location. Why aren’t we talking about that? Feel like the road/opponents/seeding needs to be something that we need to discuss ESPN, but once again, what do I know.

WHOSE HOT

· Purdue – Still skeptical but just won the Big 10. Were preseason #1 and national title favorites to start the year. Congrats to smith on the assist record as well. That’s cool.

· Arkansas – Darius Acuff needs to be in that number 1 pick conversation and Calipari has tourney experience

· Vandy- Tyler Tanner and Duke Miles are an elite backcourt and if you’re a “Guards win in March” guy they are a good team for you to pick

· Wisco – I am scared of them if I am a high ranked team. They can literally just outscore you. Stay away from Duke.

· Iowa State – Put up a good showing at the Big 12 in blowing out the inferior opponents, and paying Zona super tough to the point where they needed a buzzer beater

WEEKLY SUPERLATIVES

· Team – Purdue. Big 10 champs. Looked good on defense

· Player – Darius Acuff. – Hes gross.

· Game – Penn vs Yale. Literally a duel for the ages.

· Play – Akron game winner. That was tough. Hometown kid. Hit the Dwade. I like it. Also has a sick name.

o Honorable Mention – Jaden Bradley Game winner and TJ Power Overtime forcer

Quick Thoughts by Region

EAST – Tough region. Region of the Blue Bloods with Duke, Kansas, MSU, UConn, and St Johns. Dangerous 8,9 teams with Ohio State and TCU which I don’t love for my Boys. USF is going to be a trending pick and definitely could beat L’Ville if they don’t have a great shooting day, but I’m riding with the Cards. The second round matchups are going to be really fun here with St. Johns v Kansas, and however it shakes down at the bottom.

Like Duke is make it out if Ngonba is playing, and saw a report yesterday that Caleb Foster is slotting back in if they make it to the Elite 8.

Sweet 16 Initial Picks

· St Johns, UCLA, Duke, MSU

o Think that UConn is not playing great right now

WEST – Much weaker region than the East in my opinion. Game I already have circled is Wisconsin/Arkansas, which I am actually a little upset about because I wanted to pick both of them to go far. The bottom half of the bracket has no one I would consider a dangerous team outside of Purdue. Like Texas to make a run past BYU and the Zags, but definitely have some bias present with that pick. Miami/Mizzou is a fun game to watch and think that they

Final 4 Pick - Arizona will cruise until the Sweet 16 and if they get past Wisco/Arkansas, should be good to make the final 4, unless the Purdue we saw this week is what we run into again.

Sweet 16 Initial Picks

· Texas, Purdue, Zona, Wisco/Arkansas (Splitting Hairs Hard but leaning towards Wisconsin)

MIDWEST – They mentioned it in the selection show, but a lot of good guards in this one. Not as convinced that Michigan is the team to beat anymore, especially based on how they have been playing, but once again think they should be chilling into the Sweet 16. Bama would definitely give them a good game should the stars align. In the bottom half of the bracket, Santa Clara is dangerous and I think will beat Kentucky. UVA is still underrated and that game against Iowa State would be great. On the Zips against Texas Tech as the upset of the region.

Final 4 Pick – Michigan is still beyond talented, and I think they will gt it done. Especially with how the top of the bracket looks. They should get confident as well too going into the Sweet 16.

Sweet 16 Initial Picks

· Bama, UVA, ISU, Michigan

SOUTH – Houston has the possibility of playing a home game in the second weekend, which will be important advantage for them going forward. Vandy has to feel disrespected with their ranking, especially after making it to the SEC title and beating the 1 seed in Florida, so think they might make a nice little run. Troy is a sneaky upset pick against Nebraska, but I am not ready to make that prediction yet. Illinois is going to be dangerous with their offense. Florida has been a team I am high on all year, and excited about the potential rematch with Vandy

Final 4 Pick – Houston. So well coached and have more than enough talent obviously. Being at home is a massive advantage and I think something they we capitalize on.

Sweet 16 Initial Picks

· Florida, Vandy, Houston, Illinois

Will be making some changes to these and putting my bracket up here on the internet at some point. However, know I am in the same bracket challenges with a lot of the readers, so don’t want to mess up the prospects of making money.

Took a Hajj down to Durham and Cameron Indoor for Duke UNC this weekend. It was without a doubt, a Mount Rushmore Moment in my life up to this point and something I will never forget. Absolutely unbelievable. Chicken skin the entire time. That gym was so loud from an hour before tip off until the final whistle, with no breaks. The Cameron Crazies, while just as nerdy as advertised, do go hard for this and make a lot of noise and look ridiculous. It was cool to see the infamous borderline harassment of sideline out of bounds plays life, and also to just be in what is in my opinion, the best atmosphere in college hoops. Also stopped in the Duke Basketball Hall of Fame, and while I am beyond into it and have been for 23 years now, seeing all of it in front of me was pretty amazing in terms of the history, the trophies, etc.

Duke does it the right way to, with all the bells and whistles attached. They have a cheer for every situation, the fans care, standing up the entire game, and they really lean into the “this is a glorified high school gym” theme with tight hallways, less than ideal seats, and lack of A/C. I loved it. As we all know, when you are at the game you see things that you miss on TV, and being there made me all the more convinced that this Duke team could natty. Boozer is literally unstoppable, Evans is free juice with no conscious, Brown and Sarr and everywhere on defense and play with so much passion, and Jon Scheyer is a conductor with the offense. They are locked in. Not sure what I could ever do to top that in terms of a sports experience as that is my #1 bucket list item, but wow. Thank you parents. That was great.

Top 25

1. Duke – Just so good on both ends of the floor. Need them to be healthy. Won’t win chip without Ngongba or Foster.

2. Zona – Will be shocked if they are not in final 4

3. Michigan – Tough win against Iowa. Would drop below Florida and stay above Houston with loss today by Sparty, but think they will win by double digits.

4. Florida – Very dangerous team, however the narrative that they are better than last year is utterly ridiculous. The SEC is just way worse.

5. Houston – Couple solid wins here this week. Interested in how they do in Big 12 tourney.

6. ISU – Were losing to ASU at halftime Saturday. Ended up winning by 20-25 points. I like when teams do that

7. UConn- Slowly moving down and down in this. Defense is an issue, and if they don’t get to 75 points, its hard for them to win.

8. Illinois – Could easily be higher if they would just be a little more competitive in their losses. Think they probably are better than Nebraska, but I think I know what I am getting more, especially in crunch time with Nebraska. Illinois relies a little to much on the step back 3 for my liking.

9. Kansas – DP with a 27-point explosion on 66% shooting. For the haters, he has been playing over 30 minutes a game lately. For the glazers, he’s due to stop playing at halftime here soon.

10. MSU – Get lumped in with the “really good team but not a serious contender in Big 10” category. Ranking also assumes that they play competitive game against Michigan and lose by 10 - adjacent

11. Nebraska – Ugly against UCLA, but that’ll happen. Still trust them to get to sweet 16. Play Iowa today

12. UVA – We know what they are. Really good and score the ball a lot. Play fast and I like to watch it.

13. St. Johns – Squeaked out a couple this week. Not very convincing

14. Zags – Hate that no one else can win a game and I have to have them this high.

15. Arkansas – Calipari knows what hes doing and their backcourt is elite. Maleek Thomas had 28 Saturday and Acuff had somewhere around there mid week. Not a lot of teams have that.

16. UNC – Wilson done for the year really hurts. Almost feel bad for them. Almost. Still a good team.

17. Bama – Not moving them from my last week ranking. We know what they are. Also got a rivalry win.

18. Wisco- I am scared of their offense. They can beat anyone if they make shots, and they make shots a lot.

19. Texas Tech – I think this is appropriate, with the asterisk that they are a giant slayer and show up against the big name teams.

20. Miami OH – Something to be said about winning every game by 2 points. They also have some swag. Like the talking shit to student section after rivalry win. That is good stuff

21. Vandy – Good win at Tennessee. Not consistent one bit.

22. St. Mary’s – Getting excited about Zags rematch in WCC final

23. Louisville – Really liked seeing them win at Miami. Need Brown to get healthy to make a run.

24. Miami Fl. – They were due for a loss so I am not to worried about it.

25. Purdue – Sympathy ranking because they have really good players. 0-2 on the week. 5 losses at home. Not trending well going into tourney.

Outside looking in –

· BYU – Big win this week to right the ship

· Nova – Are they good? No. Do they win games? Yes.

· UCLA - Stacking some wins here

· Georgia – Could do damage in SEC tourney

Week of 3/1-3-7

Purdue 74 OSU 82 – Another disappointing showing out of the Boilers here. OSU is playing for their tournament lives and does have an elite offense, but have to feel very hesitant about Purdue, especially with the way that everyone has been showing up and the inconsistent defense.

Duke 93 NC State 64 – Wow. BTA. NC State runs a zone for the first time all season. Heard that it was really going to slow down Boozer. 26 on 8-10 shooting with 10 boards and 4 assist. Is that good? Nc State has looked pathetic on defense their last 3 outings, which is putting them back near the bubble.

Iowa State 57 Zona 73 – Billed up as a really big game. Absolute slop fest in the first half that looked like a really athletic rec league game, but Arizona was able to open up a comfortable lead to start the second and didn’t look back. Know a lot of people are high on ISU, but I just don’t see them in the same realm as the Duke’s, Michigan’s, Zona’s of the world.

TCU 73 TTU 65 – TCU is one of the most interesting teams on that bubble line, especially considering how they are capable of playing. When they look good, they can play with anyone, but the issue is that they rarely look good. Also a blemish for Texas Tech, who is a team that I have to admit, I am terribly confused about.

Clemson 63 UNC 67 – One of the only times in my life I was happy UNC won. Clemson just doesn’t have enough scoring/a guy to get it done in crunch time. UNC also shot the shit out of the ball which was fun to watch.

Georgia 98 Bama 88 – Georgia quietly has won 4 out of 5 in the SEC and locked up a at large bid. However, for those of you who put a lot of value in guard play in building brackets, not sure how many I would put above Philon from Bama.

Kansas 60 ASU 70 – That was pathetic. One of the worst shooting displays I’ve seen out of a team considered to be in the Final 4 race. Peterson was awful, Bidunga couldn’t make a layup, and ASU played hard. Definitely an eye opening game.

Nebraska 52 UCLA 72 – UCLA is hard to beat at home, and have added their 3^rd top ten win of the season to their resume. They do have a massive advantage at home, and good enough players to capitalize on their opponents not playing at 100%. Also worth pointing out that for every game that teams have a bad one that we can chalk up to west coast trip, UCLA has just as many where they have to travel to the Midwest/East coast and have similar issues. A sleeper to make a run as a 10 seed.

Cincinnati 90 BYU 68 – Bad. AJ inefficient and just lost on defense all the time. This was ugly to the point where I stopped watching.

Kentucky 85 Texas A&M 96 – Didn’t watch but a score to note in the middle of the SEC.

Miami 77 SMU 69 – What happened to SMU? They are definitely back into the bubble after being a team that could be in the top tier of the ACC, where Miami is definitely stamped.

Arkansas 105 Texas 85 – This Darius Acuff guy is unbelievable. Coach of Texas says he needs to be in #1 pick/national player of the year conversation which feels excessive, but he is beyond tough. Another guard who if that’s what you care about in your bracket, can carry a team.

Michigan 71 Iowa 68 – An absolute rock fight of a game. Back and forth the entire time. Michigan did not play well by any means, but winning on the road against a solid team when you don’t play well matters.

UNC 61 Duke 76.- Boots on the ground. Absolutely unbelievable. Boozer against NBA size had a tough outing… 26 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 turnover. Is that good? Dame Sarr is still my favorite player on the team as he just plays with insane passion and just takes away the other teams point guard. Duke does have an injury bug to worry about, with 2 starters currently in walking boots with Ngonba and Foster, but no heinous reports yet. Bummer about Wilson being out, was halfway hoping that UNC had a decent run. Trimble in so athletic live.

Arkansas 88 Mizzou 84- Mizzou is on the good side of the bubble right now. Important game for Arkansas to win a close one on the road, which is something they have struggled with in the past.

UConn 62 Marquette 68 – Didn’t watch but saw the antics out of Hurley. Its funny until its not. Grow up big dog, but if you want to flex your natty’s on me its fine. Really bad loss though as Marquette is pathetic this year.

Louisville 92 Miami 89 – Absolutely massive win on the road, without Brown. L’ville continues to be a team that I like, but don’t trust one bit with their inconsistency, and with Brown in and out of the lineup.

Vandy 86 Tennessee 82 – A mid off. Neither team is bad, but neither team is good. Expect both to maybe make it to the sweet 16.

Florida 84 Kentucky 77 – Kentucky should be more on the bubble than they are. Florida is dominant in the SEC. Would be shocked if they don’t win SEC tournament.

Wisco 97 Purdue 93 – Make it 5 home losses for Purdue this year. That’s pathetic. Wisconsin can literally outscore anyone, who would terrify me if I was a fan of their opponent. Also struggle to stop a nosebleed sometimes but that does not matter if you can score 97.

TTU 76 BYU 82 – BYU’s big 2 now both drop 20. Texas Tech loses 2 in a row after a massive win over ISU. I think this is the reality of the Red Raiders going forward, and I overreacted to my overreaction last week in my rankings. Not putting to much stock in BYU at all after the win. Storming court here is soft.

Ez Regular Season Awards

· National Player/ACC/Freshman of the year – Cam Boozer (Duke)

o Argue with a wall. No more Boozer slander will be tolerated. Bit my tongue a week ago with some strangers who were talking crazy. Won’t happen again. Willing to burn bridge for this man.

· National Coach of the Year – Jon Scheyer (Duke)

o Feels like glaze but its not. Lost 5 players to the NBA. Now has the #1 team in the country, starting 3 bench guys from last year and 2 freshman, and could easily be undefeated. No portal work. Don’t think they are the most talented team and he has that offense dialed around Boozer, and that defense is insane.

· Big 12 Player of the Year – AJ Dybantsa (BYU)

o Would have been JT Toppin pending the Injury. This kid is unbelievable though, and I do not even like him

· Big 12 Coach of the year – Johnny Dawkins (UCF)

o Talent gap but has them contending night in/night out and in NCAA tournament

· Big East Player of the Year – Zuby Ejiofor (St Johns)

o He is massive in person. Just as good as most people say, aside from Pitino, and had unbelievable season.

· Big East Coach of the year – Don’t know if anyone deserves it in all honesty.

· Big 10 player of the year – Yaxel Landeborg (Michigan)

o Could be Wagler, Could be Fears, but win the team success, just has to be Yaxel

· Big 10 Coach of the Year – Fred Hoiberg (Nebraska)

o Not sure how you could argue with this. Seeking first tournament win in program history

· SEC Player of the Year – Darius Acuff (Arkansas) / Thomas Haugh (Florida)

o Both had unbelievable years and are so good. Acuff for individual demon time and Haugh for the team success.

· SEC Coach of the Year – Dennis Gates (Mizzou)

o For conference awards feel like you have to value what happens in conference more. They had an insane midseason turnaround.

FIRST TEAM ALL AMERICAN

· Cam Boozer

· JT Toppin

· Darius Acuff

· AJ Dybantsa

· Yaxel Lendeborg

SECOND TEAM ALL AMERICAN

· Joshua Jefferson

· Kingston Flemings

· Thomas Haugh

· Keaton Wagler

· Jeremy Fears

Third Team All American

· Braden Burries

· Christian Anderson

· Labaron Philon

· Caleb Wilson

· Zuby Ejiofor

CONFERENCE CHAMP WEEK SCHEDULES

· A10 – Turn it on if games are boring or VCU/Dayton are in close ones

· ACC – Start Watching Friday in Semis

· Big 12 – Start Watching Wednesday All Day

· Big East – MSG. Might need to watch every game for Aura

· Big 10 – Lots of bubble action/seeding implications that is worth watching early in week

· SEC – If your eyes can handle it, lots of seeding implications starting Thursday

· WCC Chip – Tuesday Night

Selection Sunday in 7 Days. We sleep in May. Ez.

Woke up this morning and smelled something special in the air. At first, I thought it was my Taco Bell that was next to me in bed (Mom and any people who look down on my personal hygiene, this is a joke) but after looking at my watch I realized that this was the smell of March. A warm welcome to all in what is, with all due respect, the best month of the year, and one filled with heartbreak, celebration, game winners, upsets, birth of legends, Bill Raftery Onions, and listening to casuals try to talk ball. Do not be that guy.

1 more week of the regular season for the power conferences, which I will be giving a brief overview of below, and mid majors are diving into conference tournaments this week. Enjoy.

Conference Overviews – Descriptions will be their outlook going into NCAA Tourney

ACC

National Title Contenders – Duke

Can Make Run – UNC, UVA, Louisville, Miami

Limping in – NC State, Clemson, SMU

Need Help – Standford, Cal

Big 12

National Title contenders – Zona, Houston

Can Make a run – Texas Tech, Kansas, Iowa State

Win a game or 2 - UCF

Limping In – BYU

Need Help – TCU, Cinci

Big East

National Title Contenders – Uconn

Can Make Run – St Johns

Happy to be there – Nova

Need Help – Seton Hall

Big 10

National title Contenders – Michigan

Can make a run – Nebraska, MSU, Illinois, Purdue,

Sleepers – Wisco, UCLA, Iowa

Need help – OSU, IU, USC

SEC

National Title Contender- Florida

Can Make run – Bama, Arkansas

Don’t want to see them – Tennessee, Kentucky, Vandy

Bubble – A&M, Mizzou, Texas

Top 25

1. Duke – This defense does not play games

2. Zona – I love Burries and Bradley. They have 8 starters as well. Pretty cool

3. Michigan – Cason injury will hurt them more than people think.

4. Florida – Tried to tell you early. Chinyelu are Haugh so good.

5. UConn – BTA session against St Johns was reassuring. 4 point win against Seton Hall was not.

6. Houston – Not gonna penalize a team for losing at Kansas.

7. Nebraska – Really good team, with a superstar in Pryce. I like them!

8. ISU – Surprised by the loss at home, but TTU is like that. Also Big 12 effect is real and you are just gonna lose sometimes.

9. Kansas – Ranking their peak, where they are a final 4 team, but the valley is tough to watch sometimes.

10. Texas Tech – Moved them far to low following Toppin’s Injury. Accept my apology and understand that the jump is a correction of human error.

11. Illinois – We know what they are. Statistically, their offense is literally perfect, but they will struggle against long athletic teams.

12. MSU – No shooting but they just win with pure grit. Kind of love it, especially with Fears chilling out on the dirty plays.

13. St Johns – 19% is still just running through my head. Has to be an anomaly, but what are they going to do when it happens again.

14. UVA – confirmation of opinion against Duke. Really solid team that plays team basketball, but there is a talent gap.

15. UNC – Really hoping Wilson gets back for Saturday. Big win against cards.

16. Purdue – Just not very good. 4 losses in that arena…. Couldn’t imagine having a “historic gym” and “3 all American caliber players” and losing that much at home.

17. Bama – When the style works, it works hard. Could be a season defining win against Tennesse.

18. Zags – So busted. Glad people know that they are busted.

19. Arkansas- We know what they are at this point. Getting rolled up in a backwood on the road against that Florida team would happen to a lot of people.

20. Miami Fl. – The more I watch, the more I like. They have players who would be real threats on any team in the country.

21. Tennessee – Ament could carry offensively in March.

22. UCF – Quietly wins games all the time in the Big 12.

23.Wisconsin – That offense does not care who you are. If they decide that they just don’t want to miss on a given evening, that’s exactly what will happen

24. Miami OH – The courtesy ranking. I do have to say, the fact that they just get it done night in night out is really impressive and kind of fun. Watching the Western game, you just knew they were somehow going to win.

25. Kentucky – Hate Kentucky as a program, but if I remove the whole bias thing from the equation, a team that is fun to watch. Don’t have a superstar, kind of a random group of guys playing for a fan base that is so critical they ran Calipari out of town. Noticably improving too which is fun

Outside Looking In

BYU – 2 bad loses.

Vandy- Just not trending in the right way

St. Mary’s – Any team that beats the Zags gets my flowers.

Louisville – Still think they are sneaky. 0-2 on the week

Weekly Recap –

Houston 56 Kansas 69 – Quiet game out of DP, but this is what happens when stars are injured. The supporting cast figures it out and can step up when the main guy has a off night. Phog Allen does it again. Houston kind of struggling at the time of this game losing 3 in a row.

Louisville 74 Carolina 77 – Not as close as the score reflects. This is what happens with Louisville and the “huck sesh” strategy (shooting 3s as much as possible) and you just don’t make shots. Really big win for the Heels as Wilson gets healthy.

NC State 61 UVA 90 – Blowout city. NC State is falling apart to end the year, and UVA is a real contender to tough elite 8 final 4. For those who haven’t watched UVA, this is not Tony Bennetts style where you win games in the 50s, they want to run and outscore you

UCF 97 BYU 84 – Didn’t watch the game so can’t give you to much insight here, but what I can assume is that BYU did what they always do every 5 games and forget that you do have to sometimes try on defense.

St Louis 62 Dayton 77 – St Louis is collapsing to end the year, and Flyers are starting to play some really good ball (good coms TC). Would be cool to see a couple teams come out of the A10, especially with the crazy that’s being talked by some coaches there

St Johns 40 UConn 72 – Straight Belt. In a contrast of styles where UConn cant really guard but gets great shots all game and St Johns who guards really well but literally looks like the boys at the rec center on offense sometimes. This was a time where it was Ez and Chuck B were doing some cardio and making sure the backboard is strong as the Red Storm shot 19 PERCENT I REPEAT 19 PERCENT FROM THE FIELD.

MSU 76 Purdue 74 – Great game. Dualling point guards. Fears outplayed Smith which is hard to say when you look at Smith’s stat line, but when it was time to win the game, Fears just got it done. Big game for Cooper, big white dude for sparty, who battled with TKR all game too. Purdue continues to be fraudulent, but I will still have to listen to people on TV try to convince people that they are good because they have some former all Americans. First win at Mackey for Sparty since ’14 and Purdue’s 4^th loss at home this year.

Michigan 84 Illinois 70 – Illinois was talking a lot of crazy, and I don’t think you want to be doing that against Michigan this year. This was what you would expect in this game, with Michigan taking a lead early and just handling business the rest of the way. Real story line going forward is that backup point guard LJ Cason blew out his knee, who was a major reason I thought Michigan was going to win it all. He is elite in his role and losing him hurts.

UVA 51 Duke 77 – Shocked but also not really. Duke’s defense is literally insane, and I am obsessed with Dame Sarr. Boozer with an off night have 18, 9, and 4 in 30 minutes, but big story is that this high powered UVA offense could not crack Cameron on the Blue Devils.

Kansas 61 Zona 84 – Reality is if you give up a 19-0 run and a 14-0 run in the same game, your going to lose. Burries is still not getting talked about enough with the freshman class.

TTU 82 Iowa State 73 – Might be time to seriously reevaluate how we are talking about Texas Tech. Losing a first team all American should really hurt you, but another reason this team is hard to beat is still there. They have 4 to 5 guards who can all shoot, drive, guard, and rebound more than their size, and without Toppin, that just more space on the floor for them to eat. Winning on the road against ISU is stupid impressive.

Arkansas 77 Florida 111 – That’s a lot of points. Tried to tell you all year that Florida is a championship contender, but what do I know. Wasn’t close from the get-go.

Zags 59 St Mary’s 70 – hahahahahahahahaahahahahahah. St Mary’s locks up tourney bid.

Bama 71 Tennessee 69 – Collapse by the vols. Ament did get hurt so that is kind of busted but cannot be choking 14 point leads at home. Philon is super good for Bama who are starting to play a lot better ball

Other scores to note

· BYU 71 WVU 79 – That’s a bad loss

· Louisville 75 Clemson 80 – Bounce back for Clemson. Needed it

· Vandy 77 Kentucky 91 – 2 teams trending the opposite way.

· NC State 90 ND 96- Pathetic out of NC State

Weekly Superlatives

· Team – Texas Tech – Add another onto the list of huge wins they have

· Bubble winner – Missouri/Santa Clara – Missouri wins games. Santa Clara rises with the result of St. Mary’s win over the Zags

· Bubble Loser – Cal/Seton Hall – Had opportunities to make statements but sold

· Take of the week - I’m just telling you, there’s not that much different between the Big East and the Atlantic 10.” – Coach of St Joes with kind of a banger take. I don’t hate it!

· Play – Miami Game winner

Aura Farmer - Labaron Philon -

Looking Ahead

#8 ISU at #2 Zona at 8:00 Monday

Clemson at #15 UNC at 6:00 Tuesday

#15 UNC at #1 Duke at 5:30 Saturday

Vandy at #21 Tennessee at 1:00 Saturday

Louisville at #20 Miami FL at 1:00 Saturday

#23 Wisconsin at #16 Purdue at 3:00 Saturday

#10 TTU at BYU at 9:30 Saturday

Iowa at #7 Nebraska at 4:00 Sunday

#11 MSU at #3 Michigan at 4:30 Sunday

Quiet week, but what I will personally be doing is watching all of these Mid Major conference tourneys to figure out what team I will be glazing going into the tournament. This is March.

Cheers. Ez.

Sorry for the delay, but what a week in college basketball. All of the stars fully aligned, and we were able to get what it seemed like was 100 top 25 games, and also had a serious of upsets that just added even more juice to the world of college hoops. Also want to call out that we are officially 2 weeks away from conference tournament season, and if any of my colleagues get there hands on this, they know not to bother me here as I will be locked in. However, leading up to then continue to bother me during work, nothing I hate more than being productive. Also feeling the need to call out how brutal the reality of sports is. At the point in the season where injuries happen and stack up for teams. There totally changes the outlooks of seasons. For those who do not know, Texas Tech lost their first team all American JT Toppin to a ACL this week, and the reality is that it totally changes that team from a Final Four contender, to one that would be lucky to make it to the Elite 8.

Brief Scheduling Conversation

Was down in Chapel Hill this weekend watching my boy Charlie Pope play some lax and ran into a fellow basketball fanatic in Mr. Pierce (WAYS Hank) and gave me a little idea about something to discuss this week. The big games last week included some interesting out of conference match ups (marquee one being Duke vs. Michigan) and he pointed out how this is one of the first weeks after NFL/CFB wraps up and everyone’s attention shifts toward March Madness. This is something that will and should continue to be a trend going forward, but it is important to point out the logistical hoops that need to get jumped through. While I obviously have little to know idea how hard it is, I was fortunate enough to have conversations with Intersport, who is a company who sets up a lot of these games. Obviously, there are sponsors involved, that love the idea of these massive games that will have huge viewership/attendance/dollars getting thrown around, but also conversations about the venue, with conferences and their scheduling, coaches on board, TV networks, etc. All of these people need to figure it out and get on the same page both logistically, but also financially, which makes it extremely difficult. The big variable as well is that these games are scheduled years in advance, so there is also a lot of forecasting involved as well. Something to consider is doing more of these games and moving the conference start potentially up a week. Wouldn’t it be fun to have a designated week where everyone just has a hype ass out of conference game in late February? I know this is greed they speak about in the bible with an already insane slate, but could be a fun idea to stay up on top of the insane conference games that happen this time of year (I love you Big 12). I know as a fan I would fade the bars on a Saturday and enjoy a full slate of hoops from the comfort of my Lazy Boy. Need to get more dialed into the logistics of everything to fully have a complete thought and opinion, but I just love it man!

Top 25

1. Duke – What a win. Surprised honestly. Most Quad 1/ranked wins in the nation. Will say every time I watch, never think they are going to lose

2. Michigan – Still think they are the best team but can’t have them ranked above a team that beat them on a neutral site.

3. Zona – Bounce back week for the boys with 2 ranked wins. Massive win against Houston in the battle for the top of the Big 12.

4. Florida – Continuing to get better. In terms of resume this could seem high, but if you have watched them recently totally understand that they are very real contenders

5. UConn - Starting to love this team less. Loss to Creighton is not good, and there defense is just not what you would expect out of UConn but road win at Nova is nice

6. ISU – Huge win at Houston. Tough loss to Saunders-less BYU. However, we reward good wins in this poll.

7. Houston – Had a really tough week. Opportunity to bounce back tonight against Kansas. Would have fell more if not for injuries/every other top team losing

8. Nebraska – Loss to Iowa, which I think was less a reflection on Nebraska and more of a “Iowa is actually good”

9. St Johns – Continue to win in the Big East, which is weak. Big team, but contrary to UConn, skeptical about their scoring. Decided to move them up high mostly because UConn lost again, which makes me think there are some real teams in the Big East

10. Illinois – Still trying to figure out how to play with Boswell I would imagine. Loss to UCLA hurts badly but we know how hard those west coast trips can be

11. Kansas – Didn’t watch but apparently they looked so bad against Cinci. Cannot be losing at home to them. Starting to be just about over all this “DnP” drama, but I am still obsessed with his game

12. UVA – Just a super solid team. Don’t think they win anything important, but also don’t see them losing a game they shouldn’t. Miami win they got this week is good

13. Purdue – Win at Nebraska Kind of changes how you look at them as a team. Not a contender in my mind but have good players. Saw a video that theyre that good AAU team from the suburbs who kills the busters in local tourneys(i.e Iowa) but can’t beat actually good teams in big tournaments (Michigan)

14. Zags – Frauds. Hate em!!

15. MSU – Solid win this weekend against a strong OSU team, but just not enough shooting to make a run

16. UNC – Wilson and Veesaar out is as good of an excuse to lay an egg that you can have, but really need them both healthy. If they are, they can beat anyone with their talent, but also need some stronger guard play

17. Texas Tech – Hate to see Toppin go down like that, especially for a team that I loved to watch. Totally changes the outlook, but doesn’t change the fact that they are good and can score, just need to do it differently.

18. BYU – Massive win against ISU. First big win of the year, and it comes without Saunders. AJ is just going to have to be a super demon every game, which is more than possible

19. Bama – What a week for them, including a huge OT win against Arkansas. Philon and Halloway continue to be gross and score, which is what they find themselves having to do every game (have to outscore instead of get stops)

20. Arkansas- Played in one of the best games out there against Bama. Acuff glaze is getting a little out of control, but there is not a long list of players your taking over him

21. Tennessee – Ament is an unquestioned star, and looks like his KD comp more and more each game

22. Louisville – Tough loss against SMU, who is a good team, but on the road so not gonna hate to much. Brown has fully emerged into who we thought he was

23. Vandy – Tough loss to a good Tennessee Team but they get a lot of good shots. Know what they are at this point

24. Miami OH – They just continue to win. Would be really cool if they go into March undefeated

25. Miami FL – Tough loss at UVA but its gonna make me want to rank them even more. Really good stretch of basketball being played by the Canes, and Jai Lucas has totally rebuilt their roster through the portal.

Outside Looking In

· Nova

· Wisco

· St. Louis

Weekly Superlatives

· Team – Duke. I mean, what else needs to be said. A massive win. Hope I am not hearing any more Boozer slander.

· Game – Bama vs. Arkansas. No other choice for this one. 115-117 final with multiple guys going for 35+. Double OT. This is what its all about

· Risers:

o Bama/Tennessee. SEC is full of parody and these two are able to stack some wins here.

· Fallers

o Clemson. Awful week. Cannot be losing to FSU at home and expect to get respect.

o Kansas- Bad loss to Cinci. This Peterson Drama has fully taken over this time at this point.

· Bubble Winner – UCLA. Huge win for the Bruins, really taking advantage of the West Coast home games. Now have 2 top 10 wins and have to feel good about making it into the postseason.

· Bubble Loser – Texas. Tough loss at Georgia in a battle that could have implications near the bubble and was unable to make a statement against LSU at home.

Weekly Recap:

Houston 67at ISU 70 – Massive win for ISU at the crib. Both teams played well I thought, and the game winner was a no-dip 3. Just gorgeous to watch.

Michigan 91 at Purdue 80 – Exactly how you would expect it to go. Michigan jumps ahead early and Purdue does just enough to keep it close.

Nebraska 52 at Iowa 57 – Great home win for the Hawkeyes. Stirz is a star and was shocked to find out that a proud program like Iowa just does not win ranked games.

BYU 68 at Zona 75 – Zona bounces back after a really tough week in BYU’s first big game without Saunders. Really big fan of Zona the more I watch, just not sure what the major flaw of this team is.

Creighton 91at UCONN 84 – Huge upset on the road in the Big East. Didn’t watch, but by just judging by the score, the big program for UConn showed up again, with that problem being that they cannot stop a leak.

Arkansas 115 at Bama 117 (2OT) – What. A. Game. Old fashioned point guard dual shootout. Acuff with 49 and Philon with 35. Taking both in the lottery if I am a NBA GM.

Duke 68 vs Michigan 63 – Game of the week showed up. Back and forth the entire time. All this talk about Boozer struggling against NBA size… not sure that’s a viable argument. Lendenburg balled but Elliot Caudeau had the stinkers of all stinkers.

Zona 73 at Houston 66 – Back end of a tough week for Houston with a tough loss at home. Zona is really good, as is Houston, and there is still no reason to think that this isn’t a final 4 preview.

Cinci 84 at Kansas 68 – Bad loss. Apparently, DP and Kansas looked like they’ve never played together before. Still one of the most confusing teams in the country.

UVA 86 at Miami 83 – Real reflection on the strength of the ACC this year. Good game, with two good teams going at each other hard.

Tennessee 69 at Vandy 65 – Two of the most equal teams in the SEC. Good game and just a score to note going into the SEC tournament.

Games of the Week (2-23-3-1)

1. Houston at Kansas: Monday at 8:00 – Both Teams in need of a big bounce back

2. St. Johns at UConn: Wednesday at 6:00 – Rematch of an instant classic in Storrs.

3. Michigan at Illinois: Friday at 7:00 – Battle at the top of the Big10

4. MSU at Purdue: Thursday at 7:00 – 2 teams on fraud watch looking to make a statement

5. UVA at Duke: Saturday at 11:00 – How real of a team is UVA?

6. Kansas at Zona: Saturday at 3:00 – Big 12 just does not chill.

7. TTU at Iowa State: Saturday at 3:00 – What does TTU look like without Toppin

8. Bama at Tennessee: Saturday at 5:00 – Two frisky teams going at it. Every Bama game is fun to watch

9. Louisville at UNC: Monday at 6:00 – Top of the ACC going at it. Lots of questions for both teams

10. Arkansas at Florida: Saturday at 7:30 – In my opinion, best 2 teams in the SEC

11. Vandy at Kentucky: Saturday at 1:00 – Good battle of teams that I think could get hot going into March

Played some basketball for the first time in a while this week, which was a good, healthy reminder about how ass I am, but also a wake-up call that I am in awful shape. Could be time to put the frozen pizzas down and go for a jog with this great weather, but I probably won’t. Also, ridiculous to see people who are actually good play against Muggles like myself, and then try to imagine the extreme level that these guys are on. As always, the slate did not disappoint this week, and not sure if anyone is watching, but we are 2 weeks away from March. If you’re not locked in on the hoops now, you might not ever be.

Want to do a little contender/pretender thing that big sports media likes to do, because I have some thoughts in a year that is totally wide open in the race to Indianapolis (home of the final 4).

TOP 25

1. Michigan – If you counted wins by 10+ as wins, and anything less than 10 as a loss, they would still be first in the Big 10. I think that makes sense. DUKE SATURDAY AT!!

2. Houston – 2 solid wins. Massive week with games at ISU and against Zona.

3. Duke – Handled business against Clemson and Pitt. Big one ahead.

4. Zona – 0 and 2 on the week. No need for concern. BYU and Houston this week.

5. UCONN – Tough showing against G’town but still got the win. Need them to start blowing teams out.

6. Florida – Clearly the class of the SEC. I was always saying to trust in them and now they are starting to look like a finished product

7. Texas Tech – Best inside-out combo in the country. What a win at Zona.

8. ISU – Bounce back win against Kansas. Lots of depth, but tough loss against TCU

9. Nebraska – Pryce Sandfort is that guy. Tough loss to Purdue at the crib.

10. Kansas – Not looking to much into loss against ISU. They had a stinker and that’ll happen

11. Illinois – Getting Kylan Boswell back is massive for them after tough loss to Wisco.

12. UNC – Hate to drop them, but it needs to be done with Wilson out. I do think that this could be beneficial for them long term, similar to Kansas when DP was out.

13. UVA – Got it done this week, but it was ugly

14. Purdue – Big win at Nebraska, but think they actually tried to lose the game. Blew out Iowa

15. Zags – Won against a real team! They are fraudulent

16. St. John’s – What a fight, but the Johnnies continue to be strong and win. They know who they are

17. MSU – Pathetic against Wisco. Not enough shooting to be a real threat

18. Arkansas – Trust the talent and Calapari to get it done

19. L’Ville – Development of Brown makes them a scary team

20. St. Louis – They are real and will have motion going forward.

21. Vandy – Beat good Auburn and A&M teams

22. Wisco – They arguably have the best wins in the nation. Offense is stupid explosive

23. BYU – With Richie Saunders out, it’s the AJ and RW3 show

24. Bama – 2 solid wins this week and can always just get hot and win

25. Miami OH – I hate them.

Outside looking in:

· Miami FL – 2 big wins. Depth of the ACC is real

· Tennessee – Big fan of Ament when hes on. Fun to watch

· Nova – Pretty clearly the third team in the Big East

Superlatives

· Player – Mykel Brown – Had a 45 bomb and 27 the following game this week.

· Game – Arizona, Kansas – Phog Allen is just electric and that was a great game

· Risers

Texas Tech – No one wants to play them. JT Toppin starting to challenge Boozer for player of the year, and the list of PG’s I would take above Anderson is not very long

Big wins this week. Looked good against Iowa and for 90% of the game against Nebraska

· Fallers

Zona – No cause for concern but 0-2 forces a fall. Still on the 1 line

Clemson – 0-2 on the week with a tough loss to VT

MSU – Just looked so bad against Wisco.

Iowa – Bad loss to the Terps, and blown out by Purdue

· Clip – MASSIVE FIGHT between former teammates. Pretty pathetic out of PC

WEEKLY RECAP

Arizona 78 – Kansas 82 – No DP, no problem. They say it’s hard to play in Phog Allen, but its really just because you have to play Kansas every time. Bidunga might be my favorite Non Dukie to watch, and they have dogs everywhere. Zona is really good. If we’ve talked ball you know how I feel about DP, but sitting out with the flu against the number 1 undefeated team in the country is soft as charmin.

NC State 77 – Louisville 118 – 118 points in a college game. That is nuts. Was previously really high on NC State. Not after this performance (also lost to Miami Fl). Cards shoot the hell of the 3 and if its falling, they can play with anyone.

ISU 55 TCU 62 – Back and forth game. Really impressive stuff out of the Horned Frogs after they let ISU come back. I thought it was over but they said, “Gimme that” and took the win.

Wisconsin 92 Illinois 90 (OT) – Great game once again that comes down to free throws. Shocked Wagler didn’t ice the game there, but as we are starting to see, a loss to Wisco is not a bad one.

Purdue 80 Nebraska 77 – Actually pathetic to watch. Purdue gave it their all to lose the game, but a really impressive win on the road regardless. Nebraska frantic comeback came up just short. Both teams need to shoot some free throws

UNC 66 Miami 75- Miami has good players with a new coaching staff. Tre Donaldson (Michigan) and Malik Reneau (IU) are legit anywhere, and a win that Vegas was all over. Wilson breaks his hand for the Tar Heels.

MSU 71 Wisco 92 – BTA Session. MSU just could score with Wisco, who like every other team in basketball, if they are making shots is tough to beat. They just get really hot sometimes. They are peaking at the right time.

Texas Tech 78 Arizona 75 (OT) – Great game to watch. Totally back and forth the entire game. Good mix of scoring droughts and explosives in a great atmosphere. Koa Peat going down for the second half definitely hurts, but Arizona’s whole thing is that they have stupid depth. Prove it.

Clemson 54 Duke 67 – Battle for the top of the ACC standings. Boring game, but as a Duke fan I will take that. Starting to feel like I know what I am going to get every game.

Kansas 56 ISU 74 – Another BTA session. ISU has a lot of good players and a lot of guys who can grab 12 points, play good defense, and move the ball. Egg laying 101 by the Jayhawks.

Kentucky 83 Florida 92 – The swamp was loud. Kentucky honestly played a good game, but Florida is just really good at the end of the day.

Looking Ahead (What a slate)

Houston at Iowa State - Monday at 8:00

Michigan at Purdue - Tuesday at 5:30

Arkansas at Bama - Wednesday at 6:00

BYU at Zona - Wednesday at 8:00

IU at Purdue - Friday at 7:00

Tennessee at Vandy - Saturday at 1:00

Arizona at Houston - Saturday at 2:00

Iowa State at BYU - Saturday at 9:30

Thanks and enjoy Presidents Day!

Duke vs. Michigan - Saturday at 5:30

My little brother asked me this week what the most iconic sports moment I’ve ever watched live was, and I obviously had more than a couple. Had I been a UNC fan, you would have heard the Seth Trimble game-winner being mentioned, which is something that was brutal/insane to watch. That game on Saturday night, and that rivalry as a whole, is just simply the ATB (all-time best) in all sports in my opinion. As a sports addict, you have to be able to put loyalties aside and just appreciate how awesome they are. Watching the videos of the students getting wasted drunk in the street is just awesome, as much as I hate UNC. The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat, as they say. Excited to be able to enjoy the opportunity to watch more of these rivalries over the next couple of weeks, especially with all of the parody that we are seeing this year, and see more of these moments where we will look back on in a couple of years and say “yeah, that was nuts”.

Went to Depaul St Johns this week. Got literally on top of the court for 18 dollars so that was sick, and was able to be in the tunnel for the legend walking by. My buddy game pointed out that the Avengers were at this game, Pitino, D Rose, The Red Panda, and Hot Rod Strickland, so that was sick and well worth the coin.

Top 25

1. Michigan – Did bad things to Penn State. Chill part of the schedule until it really ramps up to end the year

2. Arizona – Big test Monday against Kansas in Phog Allen

3. Houston – Believer in Sampson and this team. Very balanced on O with star power to back It up

4. Duke – Loss to UNC doesn’t change anything in how I view them

5. UConn – Similar to Duke, one loss to a quality opponent doesn’t change much

6. Iowa State - Snuck out a win against Baylor this week. Kansas this upcoming Saturday.

7. Illinois – Tough loss against Sparty on the road, but want to keep in mind that Wagler had a rare stinker in this one.

8. Nebraska – Bounced back against Rutgers this week. Play Purdue Tuesday

9. Kansas - Massive road on the road against TTU and are playing really good ball

10. Florida – Dominated a good A&M team, and eye test wise, is the class of the SEC

11. UNC – Statement win against Duke. Wilson is one of them ones and guard play is improving

12. TTU – Missed Anderson badly against Kansas, and as a result, Toppin struggled. Continue to think that if they play well, they are contenders

13. UVA – Continue to win against teams they are supposed to

14. MSU – Brutal loss against Minnesota and really show that they have zero shooting, but that’s a big win against a hot Illinois team

15. Zags- Cannot be losing to Portland.

16. St Johns – Super hot team right now. Looked massive in person, and they are hot

17. Purdue – Have to be concerned a lot if you’re a Purdue fan with a close game against an awful Oregon team, but big opportunity for a win against Nebraska

18. Clemson – Really solid team that does it by committee. Duke on Saturday

19. St Louis – Dominating the A10. Looking like they will have 1 loss going into March

20. Arkansas – Bounce back blowout win against Mississippi State

21. Louisville – Talented team that has a little bit more time to put it all together

22. Iowa – Are they ever going to play the class of the Big 10?

23. BYU – Pathetic stuff out of the Cougars. Just cannot win against a top team and the loss to Oklahoma State is bad

24. Miami OH – Its time. Do not think they are good one bit, and if they lose 2 regular season games and the conference tournament, do not deserve to be in

25. Vandy – I guess they fill this last spot, but the loss to Oklahoma at home is brutal

Outside Looking In – Alabama, Kentucky, NC State, Nova

Weekly Recap – 2/2 – 2/8

Kansas 64 Texas Tech 61 – Great game overall. Texas Tech was without its “Robin” in Christian Anderson, who was a spectacle during the broadcast. Bidunga dominated Toppin inside and Peterson showed why he is that guy, hitting 2 contested threes in the last minute or so to tie and take the lead.

IU 75 USC 81 – Big game on the bubble this week in the Big 10. Elijah Arenas in one of his first couple games back went crazy, scoring 29. Another example of how brutal these west coast trips in conference play are.

UPSETS – BYU 92 Oklahoma St. 99/ Minnesota 76 MSU 73 / Zags 80 Portland 87 – 2 big upsets through the week. Only watched MSU game and my Fears hating goes up every time I watch, but he is really good. Minnesota sucks so this one hurts. BYU allegedly had a awful defensive performance against the Cowboys.

A&M 97 Bama 100 – Absolute shootout in the upper half of the SEC. Fun to watch and expect both teams to win a game or 2 in March.

Duke 68 UNC 71 – As a Duke fan, extremely disappointed as I thought they were the better team for pretty much the entire night. Boozer had a couple shots he normally hits, and the foul trouble hurt badly for the Blue Devils. Gotta give credit where credit is due, Wilson was a cocaine bear in the first half (even though he might have gotten outplayed by Boozer, but we won’t talk about it yet) and Veesar was dominant in the second. Will have a hard time convincing you this isn’t the best rivalry in sports. Always. Delivers. Don’t love Scheyer complaining about the court storming, but if your UNC got to have some pride and stay in the seats in a rivalry win. Lil Bro behavior.

Illinois 82 MSU 85 – Absolute stinker out of Wagler and Fears put up a great performance with 26 and 15. Insane game down through crunch time, and one of those where the home court really comes into play. Coen Carr alley oop from half court would have been the best play I saw this week, if not for the Seth Trimble game winner.

Houston 77 BYU 66 – Houston flexed its defensive muscles, and although Dybantsa did his thing, this is a team game. Houston has guys, a system, and it just works. Cenac has a huge game, and his mid-range is just automatic.

Alabama 96 Auburn 92 – Iron Bowl hoops edition was fun to watch. In crunch time and with close games, Bama will be tough to beat because of the elite guard play. Don’t think either team is necessarily good this year, but can both can win a first-round game.

UConn 72 St Johns 81 – What a game and what a venue. Allegedly suites for this game were going for 12k a pop. Ejiofor and Reed were going at it down low, and major props to everyone on the court, honestly. Both teams played hard and were not scared, with the Johnnies just making more plays in the clutch. The full court press really wears teams down, and you can see it at the end of games.

Kentucky 74 Tennessee 71 – Another massive comeback win for UK. Noah Ament had another massive game and since it’s starting so late in the year, no one is really talking about him, but definitely could be in the top 5 draft pick discussion. UK is stacking games here and is in the tournament. How good are they actually? I don’t know, but this is a big statement win and adds to the parody in the SEC.

Weekly Superlatives

Game – Uconn at St Johns – Big East Final Preview??

Player – Zuby Ejiofor. A little bit of “I watched you live this week bias” but he was really big in person and really good. Pitino says he is a top 5 player he’s coached, which feels like glaze, but still something that does matter.

Soundbite – Hes got balls as big as church bells.

Plays – Coen Carr Half Court Lob and Seth Trimble Shot.

Mid Major – Liberty. Cannot sleep on the flames who won 2 close ones this week.

Riser – UNC/St. Johns

Faller – BYU/Zags

Games of the Upcoming Week (Central times)

#2 Arizona at #9 Kansas – Appointment TV type of game, Monday at 8:00

#17 Purdue at #8 Nebraska – Opportunities for both to reestablish themselves top contenders Tuesday at 6:00

#12 Texas Tech at #2 Arizona – Quite simply a big 1. Saturday TBD

#18 Clemson at #4 Duke – Duke bounce back vs. Clemson statement opportunities. Saturday 11:00

#9 Kansas at #6 ISU – How will Kansas handle Cyclones elite defense? Saturday at Noon.

#17 Purdue at #22 Iowa – Big game for both teams, and in the Big 10 standings. Point guard duel with Stirz and Smith. Saturday at 4:00

Kentucky at #10 Florida – A big one for a Kentucky team that’s been playing well. Saturday at 3:00

IU at #7 Illinois – One more win against a contender puts IU firmly in the tournament, I would think. Sunday at Noon.

UCLA at #1 Michigan – Personally really like and believe in this UCLA team and like watching Michigan as well.

Breslin was absolutely rocking prior to the game, and all of East Lansing was buzzing. Was a great time. Home court advantage is something that is so big in these conference games and will continue to be, especially on the bubble. Coin flips both ways, obviously, and those road wins need to be even more appreciated.

Feels like a good time to talk about some of the metrics/ratings were starting to hear going into seeding conversations. Everyone has a stat that has stats that make them higher/lower than others, so it’s relevant to know the difference.

NET Ratings - Predictive rankings in who would be who. Where you hear Quad 1 wins. Factors Location of the games matters. Factors for no data from before the season. Does not factor in winning percentage or scoring margin.

• Quadrant 1: Home 1-30, Neutral 1-50, Away 1-75

• Quadrant 2: Home 31-75, Neutral 51-100, Away 76-135

• Quadrant 3: Home 76-160, Neutral 101-200, Away 135-240

• Quadrant 4: Home 161-353, Neutral 201-353, Away 241-353

KENPOM Rankings - Adjusted Def/Off Stats per 100 possessions. Does not factor in the location of the game. Considers winning margin (Adjusted Efficiency Margin) and the opponent. Also has a “Luck” rating, which is a measure of the deviation between a team’s winning percentage and the expected winning percentage based on metrics. Does not consider injuries in the ranking. All numbers.

Example of discrepancy - St Louis is 16 in NET but 25 in KenPom.

Results of the Week

Duke 83 - Louisville 52 – Big run at the end of the first and to start the second to blow the game open. Just a dominant defensive performance, and honestly, pretty pathetic out of the Cards. Secondary scoring and defense showed up. Straight BTA session.

Arizona 86 – BYU 83 – Massive, frantic comeback by BYU in the last minute of the game to have a chance at the end of the game. The other 39 minutes should be the story of the game, with the Arizona backcourt dominating. BYU Big 3, who combine for the most points, couldn’t get going like normal.

Nebraska 72 - Michigan 75– Pryce Sandfort is one of the most underrated transfers/players in the country, has a quick trigger, and scored 20 in 5 straight. Nebraska held them off for nearly the entire game, which is beyond impressive, especially in hostile territory and shorthanded playing without their big guy and 6^th man. Turning point in the game at 6:05 when Michigan got into the bonus with neither team being able to hit a shot. Very much had a Final 4/Conference championship vibe to the game.

MSU 88 - Rutgers 79 (OT) – Pissed!! Rutgers is awful! What are we doing Sparty? Right before I go to see you live? My commentary before the absolute onions on #99 and a great comeback in the last 4 min. Crazy game up in Piscataway/worst state in America. Gotta love Izzo teams as they just never stop fighting, also just a great play design to force OT, where Rutgers had no chance. Not a Fears fan, but simply put, he’s tough, scoring a career high at the time, 29.

IU 72 – Purdue 67 – Shocked by the result and starting to get concerned with Purdue. IU is not good, but these dudes got the job done and put themselves back in the tournament conversation. Home court advantage is just impossible to put a value on, especially in these rivalry games. Loyer has been awful in Big10 play and is doing nothing to take the load off Smith in the backcourt. A lot of big games remaining on the schedule, so lots of opportunities to build confidence/resume going into March.

MSU 71 – Michigan 84 – Was boots on the ground for this one. Gym was absolutely rocking prior to the game with the classy “Fuck you Dusty” chants over an hour before the game. Michigan promptly jumped Sparty to start the game, building over a 20-point lead. Izzo’s halftime speech must have been one of the all-time best, because they came out hot to start coming all the way back, but Michigan just responded in crunch time, and after MSU took the lead, they just calmly hit shots/got stops to comfortably win. Landenberg and Caudeu put up strong performances all game long, hitting timely shots, along with the bigs just doing their thing. Fears is one of the most unbearable players to watch with the flopping and antics, but he is really good at the game. At the end of the day, hard to win games shooting 16% from 3.

Texas Tech 80 – UCF 88 – Big 12 shows its depth, with a mid-level team getting the win at home against a scorching hot Red Raider squad. People forget that UCF also beat KU this year, so quietly stacking a really good resume.

Kansas 90 – BYU 82 – Not as close as the score reflects. KU jumped on them early and literally could not miss a shot. Petterson had a loud 18 in the first half and didn’t even play in the 2^nd with cramping issues, but will still get headlines. However, in my opinion, the bigger story is the depth of Kansas.. 5 guys can go out there and get you 15-20 points. On the BYU side, AJ was quiet early, which isn’t his fault, as he got doubled every time he looked to score. Richie Saunders did everything he could to lead a comeback, and got it within single digits, obviously, but far to little, far too late.

Kentucky – 85 Arkansas 77 – Kentucky gets its lick back against Calipari on the road. Acuff couldn’t really get it going early, and the Razorbacks and Kentucky played some really good ball. Oweh with an efficient 24, which is what UK fans were expecting to start the year. Kentucky is an interesting team and is improving. Don’t think anyone wants to see them in March, due to the 5-star effect.

IU 98 – UCLA 97 – Absolutely unbelievable game, and a massive win for the Hoosiers. Major bubble implications on this game, with both of these squads fighting for the right to play in March, after failing to live up to expectations to start the year. Nick Dorn and Lamar Wilkinson were demons down the stretch in a game that was a who-has-it-last situation. UCLA has a lot of good players and needs to get it together. If they can, have a feeling they will make a run.

Florida 100 - Bama 77 - Ouch. That was ugly. Florida coming into really good form with front court leading the way and improved guard play. Tough look for Bama after Golden was talking before the game. 72 paint points for the Gators.

Illinois 78 - Nebraska 69 - Insane offensive explosion in the first half, just great shooting. Illinois dominates the second half, especially in the paint. Wagler is one of those guys at the end of the game who just generates good shots every possession.

Superlatives

· Player – Brayden Burries is a 3^rd star for Zona and will be nasty in the league next year

· Game – IU vs. UCLA

· Riser – UCF/IU – Big moves on the bubble

· Faller – Bama – Pathetic showing against Florida.

· Mid Major -

TOP 25

1. Michigan – Big, athletic, can play multiple styles. Best Team

2. Zona – Burries evolution makes them even scarier.

3. Duke – Boozer and Co. play winning ball. Elite defensively.

4. UConn – They just get it done, and blew out Creighton.

5. Houston - Flemings and Cenac are elite freshmen, and they also have experienced stars and great coaching.

6. ISU - Bounced back from a tough week and are back in good form. Did bad things to KState

7. Illinois - Wagler continues to be one of the best players in the country and team is balling with win at Nebraska.

8. Nebraska – Elite and firmly in the contender category. Should have beaten Michigan on the road without the 6^thman and the big guy. Loss at home vs. Illinois was disappointing

9. Zags – Defeated Rival St. Mary’s. Graham Ike is one of the best players in the nation.

10. Florida – Huge bounce back win against Bama, and did bad things to South Carolina. Golden is a demon of a coach, and their front court is up there with the best.

11. TTU – Loss at UCF doesn’t change what I think about them.

12. Kansas – Improving and talented. Phog Allen is so tough to play at

13. MSU – Can’t be shooting 16% from 3 and want to win. Gotta be a bad week at practice.

14. UNC – Wilson and Veesar make an elite frontcourt, and the freshman PG is improving

15. UVA – Thijs de Ridder is the best player no one is talking about. 2-0 week

16. Purdue – Brutal loss to the Hoosiers, but a rivalry game on the road happens. Loyer finally had a good game against the Terps

17. Vandy – Blew out Kentucky, and the offense is back to getting good shots.

18. BYU – Tough week going 0-2 and looking not great, but still such a young team with so much talent.

19. St. John’s – Watching them live at DePaul this week. Good winning streak

20. St. Louis – Best non-Zags Mid Major by far. Win every game by double digits.

21. Clemson – Do it by committee every night

22. Arkansas – Tough loss to Kentucky. Need more consistency if they want to be a threat. Acuff being the best Calipari Guard convo needs to stop.

23. Louisville – Caught the belt against Duke but got a solid win against SMU.

24. Iowa- USC is a solid team, and that is another good win. Want them to play the top Big 10 team

25. Tennessee- Noah Ament is finally scoring like he is supposed to, which is exciting. Coach Rick Barnes is one of the best

Outside Looking In – Bama, Texas A&M, Miami OH, Nova

Games of the Week

1. #3 Duke at #14 UNC Saturday at 5:30 - Say Less

2. #12 Kansas at #10 Texas Tech Monday at 8:00 - Texas Tech bounce back game against hot KU

3. #4 UConn at #19 St. Johns Friday at 7:00 - Top of the Big East.

4. #8 Illinois at #13 MSU Saturday at 7:00 - Another insane environment

5. #7 Houston at #18 BYU Saturday at 9:30 - Another opportunity for BYU Statement win

6. #10 Florida at Texas A&M Saturday at 7:30 - Could possibly be a game for the top of the SEC

7. Indiana at USC Tuesday at 9:00 - Big game on the bubble

8. Texas A&M at Bama Wednesday at 6:00 - A&M has won 4 in a row

Those who have been following this year already know this is a generational class, headlined by Petterson, Dybantsa, Boozer, and Caleb Wilson (UNC). However, this is only the tip of the iceberg, with many of the top teams being led by “Diaper Dandies”, and this week all of the stars aligned and went nuclear. There will be more discussion than ever with the freshman below and in the national news, but this is yet another example that not all recruiting classes/5 stars are created equal. I also think that it is a little ironic that there is some much debate over NIL and these former G Leagers coming back to play and how NIL creates an environment where athletes are incentivized to stay in school, raising the quality of play (which I completely agree with) but it is still the uber talented Freshman that are dominating games/headlines. Similar to last column, I am going to run through the games of the week that I watched, provide some superlatives and my top 25, and look forward to the week ahead (which has me losing sleep with anticipation)

Weekly Recap

St. Johns 65 - Seton Hall 60 – Not very good hoops cannot lie, but a great game. St. John’s is on a heater (winning 8 of 9) and Seton Hall needs to get a win to stay in the tourney hunt. Just don’t think the Big East is very good at all this year but the Red Storm need to be at the top of the “Not Uconn” tier. St. Johns can only play well when their defense is dominant like any Pitino team, but worried about their scoring and ability to guard for 40 min. The importance of the bonus is huge here, with the Red Storm getting foul shots with around 12 minutes left in the second, spearing the 15 pt comeback.

Miami OH 107 - Kent State 101 (OT) - Red Hawks are a fun story and a sick team to watch. Great competitive game, and that gym was rocking, and one that I am really happy I tuned in for. Suder is a demon and Miami has a lot of swag, which you have to have to win a road back-and-forth game in OT. That is a gritty/impressive win, but how many loses is Miami allowed before they aren’t a at large team with a strength of schedule of 305? MAC will be a great conference to watch going into tourney time.

Vandy 68 - Arkansas 93 – Shooting display from Arkansas early. The freshman backcourt of Maleek Thomas and Darius Acuff are so fun to watch and names to know for the league next year. The supporting cast is solid but inconsistent with Brazile and Thornton, but when they rebound and guard, they are so good. All the talent in the world to win the SEC but can they put it together? Vandy couldn’t get looks as they have in the past and I think it’s time to bring out the panic meter. Their little guard, Tyler Tanner, who was averaging 18 struggled against big athlete defenders but he could penetrate, but they did grab a blowout win to end the week.

Purdue 67 - UCLA 69 – What a game in the late-night slate. Big shot Bilodeau in crunch time for the game after a frantic comeback. UCLA was hyped up coming in this season, and this could turn their year-round with Cronin calling the shots and Donovon Dent coming to town and finally playing well. Can’t blame Purdue really for a loss like this, tough opponent on a Weekday west coast trip, but blowing a 12-point lead in both halves does suck. I don’t want to say I told you so, but I have been saying I am worried about Purdue when Smith has an off night due to his usage rate, which we saw here tonight. However, he is so good, and the supporting cast is solid, so no reason to think they will not be contenders in the tournament. (More Purdue below)

Purdue 82 - Illinois 88 - What a great old-fashioned point guard duel. Keaton Wagler shows yet again that he is one of the best freshman guards in the country, despite being unknown (ranked in the 200s) going into the season, and Braden Smith did everything he could to help Purdue bounce back, dropping 27 and 12. 0-2 week for the Boilers, which is extremely disappointing, especially with Kylan Boswell injured for Illinois. Big time shot making by the Europeans and Wagler in crunch time, and 46 out of the freshman breaks all sorts of records and is one of the best performances I have seen in a long time. Keep in mind, this was at Mackey area. The more I think about it, the more impressive the win gets.

UNC 85 – UVA 80 - 16-point comeback by the Tar Heels. Caleb Wilson and Henry Veesaar make a dominant interior, and a healthy Seth Trimble takes this team to their top level. UVA collapsed but showed that they can be competitive against very talented teams, making up that second tier of competitive teams in the much-improved ACC, where wins will be hard to come by against your NC States, Miamis, SMUs, Clemsons, Lousiville’s of the world.

Texas Tech 90 - Houston 86 - Another great duel and back-and-forth game at the top of the Big 12. JT Toppin with another 30 and 10 game against elite interior defenders all game. Even though he is constantly getting glazed, I still think he needs more attention. He is unstoppable going to his left. Flemings went Cocaine Bear mode for Houston, scoring 42 with 6 assists, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Houston star Freshman Cenac battled foul trouble all game, but speaks to Texas Tech getting in the paint and crashing glass. The supporting cast also stepped up for TTU, with 3 of their other starters combining for 48. Season split in the series but will both be at the top of the Big 12 race. Do not be shocked to see either of these guys in the Final 4.

Nova 67 - Uconn 75 (OT) – Another example of the Huskies just getting it done. Nova is much improved with Kevin Willard and competed like crazy despite bad shooting efforts, by some of their main guys. Solo Ball and Karaban are just people I trust to make winning plays, and say whatever you want about Hurley, he has a powerhouse. Waiting for Silas Demary, the transfer point guard, to really lock in and show up every night which would take them to a whole new level.

Auburn 76 - Florida 67 – Didn’t see this coming at all. Been an Auburn hater all year after their performance in game one (Overtime with BETHUNE COOKMAN…. literally pathetic) but grab a huge win in the swamp. Florida battles back in the 2nd, coming back from 15 down at the half, but Auburn made more plays down the stretch, ending the gators 5 game win streak. Haugh continues to be the boy dropping 27.

Tennessee 79 - Bama 73 – SEC is an absolute gong show right now with a lot of really good teams, but I am not sure if there are any great ones. A win worth noting, especially when it comes to seeding in the NCAA tournament. Also worth noting is Noah Ament, a top 5 recruit for Tennessee, who has quietly stacked a couple of really nice games together, scoring an efficient 29 here after being really disappointing to start the year.

Weekly Superlatives -

Game - Purdue vs. Illinois/Houston vs. TTU/Nova vs. UConn (don’t think I could have a better Saturday)

Riser - Illinois and UNC

Faller - Purdue

Player - Keaton Wagler (shoutout to Dybantsa, Flemings, Boozer, Acuff, Ament, and Braden Smith as well)

MidMajor - Troy. 3-0 this week Sun Belt leading the conference and will be another scaring team in March

Nickname - Flight 55 (Coen Carr)

Soundbite -

Top 25

1. Michigan - Massive week for the Wolverines against Nebraska and MSU

2. Zona - Jump UConn. Have a legit Big 3 down in Tuscon.

3. UConn - Have to knock them for going to OT vs. Nova at the crib. Just get it done.

4. Duke - Boozer is so good. Feeling better about secondary scoring, and still 1 collapse away from being undefeated.

5. Nebraska - Continue to win. Huge second half against MN to blow them out. Huge week against Michigan and Illinois.

6. Iowa State - Back in the win column this week with dominant wins.

7. Houston - Still love this team despite the road loss at TTU.

8. Illinois - Already discussed, but that massive win was without Kylan Boswell who is their veteran guard.

9. Zags- Did not watch but had a 2 point win against San Francisco this week. Play St. Mary’s on Saturday.

10. TTU - JT Toppin is somehow underrated. Final 4 and National Title contender if the supporting cast plays like they did.

11. BYU - Have a legit Big 3. Will see how legit they are after this week.

12. Purdue - Have to drop them a decent amount. They need more out of Loyer/TKR and the boys if they want to be contented, but Smith is so fun to watch. They also get scored on really easily.

13. MSU - Will be boots on the ground for their game against Michigan. Fears had an insane game with 17 and 17.

14. Kansas - 2-0 week without Petterson who now has an ankle problem.

15. Florida- Really hate that loss against Auburn, but trust them to stay solid.

16. UNC - Think that 2nd half vs. UVA could be a turning point in the season. Great to have Trimble back and healthy.

17. Arkansas - Blowout win against Vandy and win against solid LSU leads to rise

18. UVA - Losing at home and choking a lead sucks, but they are back to relevancy

19. Louisville - Mikel Brown is back and dropping 20 already. Need to compete at Duke

20. Bama - They are losers for grabbing a G Leaguer, but it definitely helps their roster and need for a big guy

21. Vandy - Pathetic showing against Arkansas, but they still generate great shots and will win big games in SEC going forward.

22. St Johns. - Congratulations to Rick Pinino on his 900th win (1 of 7 all time) and they are playing better ball.

23. St. Louis. - Difference between them and Miami is that they are playing in a much better conference and winning games by 20 points

24. Iowa - Quiet week for them, but still a team no one wants to see

25. Clemson - Tough loss at NC State, but they are solid and will win games in ACC

    OUTSIDE BUT PEEKING IN: Miami OH, Wisco, NC State

Games of the Week (Times in Central)

1. #5 Nebraska at #1Michigan Tuesday at 6:00

2. #2 Arizona at #11 BYU Monday at 8:00

3. #1 Michigan at #13 MSU Friday at 7:00

4. #11 BYU at #14 Kansas Saturday at 3:30

5. #8 Illinois at #5 Nebraska Sunday at 3:00

6. #19 Louisville at #4 Duke Monday at 6:00

7. #20 Bama at #15 Florida Sunday at 12:00

8. Kentucky at #17 Arkansas Saturday at 5:30 (Steaking Kentucky against Calipari)

9. Purdue at Indiana Tuesday at 8:00 (A rivalry that just means more. Scared for the Hoosiers)

Thank you all and be safe in this Polar Vortex.

Sidebar if any of you think this is wack and don’t need this in your life, just let the boy know.

WEEKLY RECAP

• Iowa State 63 - Kansas 84

  • Kansas with a statement win, reminding everyone how hard it is to win in Phog Allen. ISU suffers its first defeat in dramatic fashion. Petterson as always, is the best player on the floor, even with an inefficient game.

• Iowa State 70 - Cincinnati 79

  • Bad loss. Cinci is not good, even though they have the best name in the country on their squad (Jizzle James) but this is why you strap up every night.

• UConn 69 - Seton Hall 64

  • UConn is as healthy as they have been all year, and are separating from the pack of elite teams. Off ball action of Solo Ball is impossible to guard, but want to give props to the Pirates, led by the old coach of St. Peters. A team to watch that could make some noise in March despite their loss to Butler on Saturday.

• UConn 64 - Gtown 62

  • Been a massive fan of Gtown this year and wanted to shout this out because they are going to be back. Ed Cooley, old coach of Providence with patchy hair, will have these boys right soon.

• UVA 79 - Louisville 70

  • Speaks a lot more to UVA than the Cards in my opinion. Cards have been without superstar Freshman and top 10 pick for a number of games now, and as you can imagine, it is tough to win when your Top 10 pick is injured. However, UVA absolutely shoots the shit out of the ball. This is not your Tony Bennett UVA with the pack line defense, but more of a modern team that wants to space you out and stroke that thang.

• Purdue 79 - Iowa 72

  • Purdue shows their resiliency with a nice little comeback against a solid ass team. Iowa has Bennet Stirz from Drake last year (a tournament darling) and he is cold to say the least. My criticism of Purdue has always been and will continue to be “What happens when it isn’t working for Smith?” Yes they have other good players but they rely on him, but here they showed they can win with him being relatively quiet.

• Kentucky 75 - LSU 74 and Kentucky 80 - Tennessee 78

  • Massive week for Mark Pope and crew. Shut down their point guard for the year, and heard the noise that they suck. 2 massive comeback victories and a little reminder that “we still have 5 stars”

• UNC 78 - Cal 84 and UNC 90 - Stanford 95

  • Tough fucking west coast trip. While yes, this is a good ACC this year, you are UNC and you need to win those games.

• Florida 98 - Vandy 94

  • What a game. That much scoring is just awesome in college ball. Vandy has in my opinion the best offense in the nation, but Florida letting people know that this program is elite. Thomas Haugh is the SEC player of the year in my opinion, and now that the guards are playing better, a real contender.

• BYU 71 - Texas Tech 84

  • The immaturity of BYU is evident here, as is the legitimacy of Texas Tech. People were concerned about them early in the year, but that one-two punch of Toppin and Anderson is tough to stop. Games like this are gonna happen with BYU (see Clemson game earlier in year) but they are uber talented and can compete with anyone.

• Georgia 90 - Arkansas 76

  • Cannot get a read on this Arkansas team man. They are so good when they play good ball and compete defensively, but then also let up 90 points to Georgia. The SEC is wide open and is a fun race to watch.

SUPERLATIVES OF THE WEEK

Player - Cameron Boozer had an absurd west coast trip. The best player in the nation. Get used to this.

Game - Miami OH vs. Buffalo. What a comeback to remain undefeated for the Red Hawks, who are the best story in hoops.

Riser - Kansas/Florida. Petterson looks healthy. 2 big wins. Everyone wrote them off, but they didnt write back for the time being. Florida is figuring it out. If you talked to me about them at all, you know I was glazing. Happy to see it come to fruition.

Faller - UNC/Iowa State. While you cant blame ISU for loss at Kansas, you can definitely blame them for losing to Cincinnati. UNC week was also pathetic.

MidMajor - Winthrop. Keep an eye on them as a potential spoiler in March.

Top 25 (Not purely resume based rankings)

1. Michigan - The best team I have watched this year. Elite everywhere

2. UConn - They just get it done man.

3. Zona - Undefeated with Bradley leading and Peat and Burries helping. Not a diss having them at 3.

4. Purdue - Really good team. Have a lot of good players. Contrary to Uconn do not trust to get it done.

5. Duke - Best I have felt about my boys all year. Secondary scoring is emerging and Dame Sarr is the best perimeter defender in the nation.

6. Houston - Everyone is talking about Kingston Flemings but the other freshman are just as impactful. Arguably the best coach in the country.

7. Nebraska - The story of the year. Shoutout Hoiberg.

8. Iowa State- Don’t want to let a bad week ruin what has been an amazing season so far. Have one of the best wins in the country at Purdue and an elite player in Jefferson.

9. Florida - I know what their record is. I also know they are getting better and have a lot of that Natty core back. If the guards step up, they are a contender yet again. They have won 8 out of their last 9.

10. Zags - Maybe some bias involved with this ranking. Ike is massive and they are good, but I despise the Zags.

11. Illinois - Euro ball season is fun to watch but I do think the stereotype is real and they are soft. Have one of the most underrated players in the country (Keaton Wagler). 6-1 in the Big 10

12. Texas Tech - Best 1-2 punch in the nation. Massive test against Houston inbound.

13. BYU - Immature team, but Dybanstsa literally looks like an alien out there.

14. MSU - A classic Izzo team. Compete harder than everyone and Fears is one of the ultimate leaders.

15. Kansas - Been discussed already but just so hot and cold. Need healthy Petterson

16. Vandy - A really tough week with losses to Texas and Florida. However, their offense is so good and gets a good shot nearly every possession. Just cannot be losing games where you score 94 at home.

17. UVA- 2 big acc wins this week and a solid ass team. Considered having them at 15 above Kansas but I do think a talent gap exists.

18. Bama - The guard play is just so fun to watch with Halloway and Philon. As fun as it is, I don’t know if the style leads to winning with this roster.

19. Arkansas - Such a young team. Thought they had a legit chance to win SEC but they just cannot stack days.

20. UNC - As much as I hate them I think I want them to ignore this week. Better team than what they showed.

21. Louisville - Been a tough stretch without Brown. Got Duke this week with an opportunity to right the ship.

22. Georgia - I really don’t think they are good when I watch them, but you have to respect the wins. tough loss to Ole Miss but that happens in conference play.

23. Clemson - A team I need to watch more in full transparency. Good resume and should have another massive win against BYU in the Garden if it wasn’t for a huge collapse.

24. St. Louis - 17 and 1 is 17 and 1. A team that has won 11 in a row is a confident team, and is one to look out for as the season progresses.

25. Iowa - They looked really good against Purdue at times. Definitely a team that people do not want to play.

GAMES TO WATCH THIS WEEK (Times Central)

1. Illinois - Purdue Saturday 2:00

2. Houston - Texas Tech Saturday 5:30

3. UNC - UVA Saturday 1:00

4. Vandy - Arkansas Tuesday 8:00

5. Michigan - IU Tuesday 6:00

Thank you all and please again let me know what works and what doesn’t

Regards,

Michael Leoni

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