I Make The Call

Archive for the ‘College Basketball’ Category

If I were a betting man, and took outrageous odds, I still would not have picked Butler to go to the final four. You would have to be insane to even think about it. Guess what fans, Butler is going to the final dance come Monday. They have made a believer out of me so I am picking them for the big upset.

Why? I haven’t a clue, but I do know that Butler’s big three matches up with Duke’s big three and that alone gives them a chance for the upset. You will have Scheyer, Singler and Smith versus Hayward, Howard and Veasley.

Both front lines have a little beef, but Hayward is superior. Butler can’t shoot like they did against Michigan State, relying soley on free throws. They must be that same kind of defense, but keep the Blue Devils from making three pointers, and that will be very hard to do.

For Butler to win, they must shoot around 49% and keep Howard out of foul trouble. I MAKE THE CALL.

Let’s be for real. If you average 30 wins per season over the last 4 years, can you really be considered to be a Cinderella at the big dance?

Collier laid the infrastructure years ago. Coach Stevens just continued with the maintenance and replacement parts.

I must say that he did one hell of a job with the program. The problem with the other teams is that none of them took Butler seriously.

Well, they are in the final four and of all the teams still standing, Butler is the only one that is at home. For the rest of the pundits, other than UCLA, 1972, who can top that. I MAKE THE CALL.

What would it feel like if you were given the chance to play at home in the NCAA Basketball Tourney?

Butler can do it if this little university of 4,500 students beats Kansas State on Saturday. Butler has the longest winning streak, 23 games, the next closes is Ohio State.

These Bulldogs, and that is exactly what they were last night, when they bit Syracuse, the number one team in that region. Yes, the number 5 team, bit into the number one team and took them out.

Butler got 23 points off 18 turnovers by the Orangemen and for the first time in school history are into the Elite 8. I MAKE THE CALL.

Of the 16 teams left at the big dance, three of them are double digits seeds. St Mary’s seeded 10, Washington 11 and the darling of the dance, Cornell seeded 12.

One can make the argument that they were seeded to low, but the fans up in Ithica, New York are having the time of their lives. No one expected an Ivy League to go this far. It has been 31 years for any Ivy League to come this far, and Jeff Foote, the center and guards Ryan Wittman and Louis Dale are feeling no pain.

Coach Donahue is the only remaining Philly coach at the big dance and he is definitely enjoying this ride.

Yes, they will meet Kentucky the fastest and least experience team left in the tournament, but sometimes, old age and cohesiveness overcome youth and skill. I am giving Cornell a chance to win, but only if they are able to turn the game into a half court game. Other than that, Kentucky will run them out of the arena. I MAKE THE CALL.

Can anyone tell me what Northern Iowa’s Mascot is? I bet you can’t. The only person of note that came out of Northern Iowa that we all know is Curt Warner, retired quarterback of the Arizona Cardinals.

Last Night, a junior guard whose first name is Ali, and I refuse to even attempt to pronounce or spell his last name, was David who slew Goliath. The Jayhawks were the overall number one in the field of 65, but was cut down by ninth seeded Northern Iowa, 69 to 67. This beat down left the door open for Kentucky to take it all the way to Indianapolis. I MAKE THE CALL.

Okay, the Hokies were left out of the big dance, but Georgia Tech with a worst win loss record who the Hokies beat head to head are in.

What’s up with that? Like Bobby Knight said, both team should have been invited.

When asked by the media, Coach Seth Greenburg would not speak to who should have been left out.

Like the gentleman that he is, he simply said speaking on that issue was left to the sports pundits and that he had no right to spoil anyone’s joy that was invited to the big dance.

Now, is that class or what?

Even though he felt that the Hokies should have been invited, he had no ill feelings for the team that might have caused his team a chance to play in the big tournament.

I do believe that Virginia Tech Hokies should have been invited and at the same time wonder why Utah State and Wake Forest were invited.

Somewhere along the way, the Selection Committee missed a turn. I MAKE THE CALL.

DeSean Butler, the Mountaineer Savior, with 4.2 second left on the clock, put up the ugly, but game winning shot to send the Hoyas packing.

Everyone in Madison Square knew that the shot was Butler’s. How could Monroe and company allow him to run past them and put up that ugly , but effective shot?

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Get ready for the March Madness Dance.

My bracket will be up this week, and I hope that all of you basketball fanatics, fans and pundits, have your prognosticated caps to meet my challenge. 

My blog will show you the final four teams. Be ready to rock and roll. I MAKE THE CALL

You can download your bracket here

The Big East, perhaps the most balanced conference in all of college basketball, top seeds took a pounding yesterday.

Three of the four high seeds are now like Casper the Ghost. They are all gone, toast, finished, its’ over for them.

They all lost. West Virginia’s DaSean Butler, saved the Mountaineers from the same fate as the other top seeds at the buzzer with an awesome three pointer.

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It is almost that time of year when madness descends upon the the basketball conferences.

Which conference is the Best?

• Is it the Big East with 5 teams with a lock on being invited to the big dance?
• Can it be the Big 12 with 5 teams also and the number one team in the country atop the standings?
• Or is it the big 10 with four teams with a lock on an invite to the dance?

• Oklahoma is a big disappointment from the big 12
• Michigan State appears to be fading
• Perdue and Ohio State are left fighting for supremacy in the big 10

The rest of college basketball teams are weak, regardless of conference with the exception of three teams in the SEC:

• Kentucky
• Tenneessee
• Vandy

In my humble opinion, the best conference is the Big East with teams such as

• Syracuse
• Villanova
• Pittsburgh
• Georgetown

The way to the Championship is through the Big East. You can take it to the bank. It is gospel. You will see Kentucky and Syracuse in the finals. I MAKE  THE CALL.