March Madness 2012 Predictions, Bracket Picks, Teams, Players, History

March Madness 2012 Predictions: Ben Brust Will Make an Impact

2011-12-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

We have an early March Madness 2012 prediction for you, the Wisconsin Badgers sophomore guard Ben Brust will make his precense known in a big way during March Madness 2012. Brust didn't play much at all for the Badgers last year but he is showing in this 2011-2012 season that he can be a prime time college offensive weapon. Brust can shoot his jumper from anywhere on the court and went 7 for 7 from three point range in a game this season. The most impressive thing on Brust and why teams will need to fear him during March Madness 2012 is that he can get himself open to take his deadly accurate long three point shots, often these guys can't do that but he can. We all know the Badgers will make like their 12 straight or something March Madness appearance if Brust can get it going the Badgers could get Bo Ryan to that NCAA Final Four that is missing from the resume.

March Madness 2011 Championship Game: Butler vs UCONN

2011-04-04T17:28:00.000-07:00

Who would have thought that the March Madness 2011 Championship game would feature Butler vs UCONN. While a lot of the experts and even the president picked a ton of chalk to be in the Final Four we ended up with two teams virtually nobody but their most die hard fans picked to be in the Championship game. While we predicted a lot of upsets we didn't see these two either. UCONN we liked with Walker and their defense but we thought all it would take is one off night from Walker and they would be sent packing. Butler struggled this year at times and while they finished the regular season strong that was in the Horizon League, we are all for mid-majors but that league just wasn't great this year. So how did they get here, well the simple explanation is Walker for UCONN has been outstanding and Butler while they lost there top dog from last year returned pretty much the rest of last years championship team which clearly is just a winning combination of talent overall.

So you ask what is our prediction for the March Madness 2011 Championship game, we feel that the UCONN defense is going to be to much for UCONN to overcome. Even if Butler doesn't win this game give them a ton of credit because they already have done something truly remarkable. Of course the next question is what school will Butler's coach be at next season, he can't possibly stay can he.

March Madness 2011 Final Four: Odds Out The Window?

2011-03-29T17:25:00.000-07:00

We told you all that March Madness 2011 was going to be the year of the upset, the thing is even we didn't see this coming with no 1 or 2 seeds in the Final Four and in there place teams like Butler and VCU. Of course we weren't like most with all number 1 seeds in the Final Four but even we thought Duke and Ohio State would meet there. Our logic for calling this the year of the upset was there weren't any truly great teams we could find this season, so we felt like everyone outside of Ohio State was very vulnerable and Duke we thought had the coaching to pull them through. When we looked at the Brackets we knew Uconn could make a run, Kentucky we called as a dark hoarse, Butler we didn't respect, and we had no clue like everyone else on VCU.

So the question is do you throw the NCAA Basketball Odds out the window again for the Final Four? First we want to say it sucks that VCU and Butler will be playing in the semis as we would much rather have seen if each of these two teams have one more upset in them, the good news is of course that everybody wants to see an underdog in the final game and it is now guaranteed. If you look at the stats and the tape on VCU you have to go with VCU pulling one last mini upset, but this game is really a pick em especially with Butler's prior Final Four Experience. In the other semi game we are going with UCONN as absent of a great team a great player on a mission is the next best thing.

March Madness 2011: San Diego State Overrated?

2011-03-20T15:01:00.000-07:00

We have been saying San Diego State is overrated and with their close call versus Temple others are also wondering. Watch the video below and let us know what you think, but we still think they are overrated. Sure Temple is a nice team but they are a 7 seed for a reason and San Diego is in our mind more of a 5 or 6 than the 2 that they got, so are view is sure it was a close game and that is why we thought Temple or PSU had a great chance to beat them before the tournament started.

March Madness 2011 Impact Players Ben Hansbrough

2011-03-20T14:53:00.000-07:00

Ben Hansbrough is one of the very best impact players in March Madness 2011. Of course his brother was a memorable player as well but Ben has a chance to equal his brother in that regard. Below is a nice recent interview with Ben Hansbrough.

March Madness 2011 Second Round Day 1 Talk

2011-03-17T22:00:00.000-07:00

Well this was a truly great day of basketball for the first day of the March Madness 2011 second round. It is hard to know even where to start with all of the close games and some big upsets, plus some great individual efforts. We were liking the Richmond Spiders over Vanderbilt all they way and it happened with a hard fought game that Richmond came out on top of 69 to 66 despite being down as many as 11 points in the first half, unfortunately we didn't have them moving on in the next round but they have an interesting opponent now.

Of course the huge upset that we didn't have and probably not many did was Morehead State over Louisville, they won on a three by Demonte Harper with 4.2 seconds left 62 to 61. I mean who could have seen this coming, what a dream for the in state "rival" Morhead State but when you have a big guy who will play in the NBA and a hot shooter you have a shot against anyone. One interesting fact is that a 13 seed has defeated a 4 now for the fourth straight year and that this is the third time it has happened to a Big East team. Morehead State will take on Richmond in their next game, raise your hand if you had that.

Moving on to individual performances how about Kemba Walker folks, that man is on a mission. The most impressive thing about this game is he trusted his teammates and didn't force things and instead dished out 12 assists to go with 18 points and 8 boards. UCONN just took Bucknell apart with Walker doing his thing, final score 81 to 52. With Connecticut's defense and Walker playing well this team actually has a good chance to ride this wave of solid basketball to the Final Four.

For our next individual performances we go to a pair of them at the same school as Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer showed that Seth Davis is just a babble head and not an expert as he somehow picked against a school with two Naismith Award Finalists versus a school without one of them or a single impact player on the roster. Impact players sort of help in March, Taylor had 21 points and 6 assists and Leuer had 22 points and 7 boards and both played solid defense. We told you not to pick Belmont and hopefully you listened.

Speaking of predictions we have had our fair share of ones that we came out wrong on, and if you followed us we are sorry but Penn State played a tough game before loosing to Temple 66 to 64, that one could have gone either way. The one that surprised us most again involved a Big Ten team as we really didn't see Michigan State having trouble with UCLA, but the Bruins showed us more than we thought they had with their 78 to 76 win.

We will leave you pondering this interesting point, yesterday the two basketball powers of Louisville and Kentucky could have lost to Morehead State and Princeton if Kentucky hadn't won 59 to 57 with the help of a layup by Knight with 2 seconds remaining.

March Madness 2011 Final Four Predictions

2011-03-16T21:38:00.000-07:00

We have held out on giving our March Madness 2011 Final Four predictions, but here they are and no we didn't choose all number 1 seeds. Ohio State is in the toughest region but we decided we had to pick them to go to the Final Four as they are without a doubt the team with the least holes in the nation. Duke is probably in the second hardest region but we are going with them as well to make the Final Four based on strong upperclassmen leadership with a star player in Nolan and the best coach in the nation. We will not be going with Kansas as we believe the Big Twelve wasn't that strong this year and we just don't think this team has the hoarses that others do, instead we take Notre Dame led by Hansbrough. The last of our Final Four predictions is the toughest, we don't think Pitt is a very strong 1 seed but number 2 Florida is way over rated, and number 3 BYU we haven't been sky high on all year and now they are playing short so that has us digging pretty deep into the Southeast Region for that last Final Four spot and we had debated between Wisconsin, Butler, and St. Johns, and decided on St. Johns with very good coaching and a crazy number of seniors (if Wisconsin hadn't just went 2 for 21 in a game from beyond the arc they would have been the pick, and it was really a toss up)

So who is going to be playing in the National Mens Basketball Championship game? We have Ohio State defeating Notre Dame 74 to 62, so what do you have for March Madness 2011 Final Four predictions.

March Madness 2011 Teams by State

2011-03-16T21:15:00.000-07:00

We like lists so here is one we try and do every year, the March Madness 2011 teams by state. Before the list a few thoughts we have about the list is what happened to basketball in California, Pennsylvania has 6 teams, both Alabama teams lost in the first round play in games, 29 states plus 1 district are represented, and Virginia is officially the mid major state. So what state has the best combination of teams, we will go with Pennsylvania but there is a strong case for North Carolina, Indiana and Ohio. Let us know your thoughts.

Alabama
University of Alabama Birmingham
Alabama State

Arizona
University of Arizona

Arkansas
Arkansas Little Rock

California
San Diego State University
University of Southern California
UCLA
UC Santa Barbara

Colorado
Northern Colorado

Connecticut
University of Connecticut

Florida
Florida State
Florida

Georgia
University of Georgia

Indiana
Butler
Indiana State
Notre Dame
Purdue

Illinois
University of Illinois

Kansas
University of Kansas
Kansas State University

Kentucky
University of Kentucky
Louisville
Morehead State

Massachusetts
Boston University

Michigan
University of Michigan
Oakland
Michigan State

Missouri
University of Missouri

Nevada
UNLV

New Jersey
Princeton
St. Peters

New York
Long Island
Syracuse
St Johns

North Carolina
University of North Carolina
Duke
North Carolina Asheville

Ohio
Ohio State
Xavier
Cincinnati
Akron

Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh
Villanova
Bucknell
Temple
Penn State

South Carolina
Clemson
Wofford

Tennessee
Belmont
University of Tennessee
Memphis
Vanderbilt

Texas
TX San Antonio
University of Texas
Texas A and M

Utah
BYU
Utah State

Virginia
George Mason
Hampton
Richmond
VCU
Old Dominion

Washington
University of Washington
Gonzaga

Washington DC
Georgetown

West Virginia
West Virginia University

Wisconsin
Marquette
University of Wisconsin

Clemson vs UAB March Madness 2011

2011-03-15T22:54:00.000-07:00

Stop the presses Clemson won during March Madness for the first time in over a decade, 14 years to be exact (beat Tulsa in the second round 1997) and they did it in style beating UAB 70 to 52. Clemson was led in the big win by a career night by Jarai Grant, he had 22 points a personal collegiate best. Clemson has to play West Virginia next and they are big underdogs in our opinion, however unlike those who are worried they are doubly challenged by going on short rest we think it will be a benefit to them and that game will be closer than you think. A loss is going to be a loss though no matter how you cut it.

UNC Asheville vs Arkansas Little Rock - March Madness 2011

2011-03-15T22:46:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2011 got off to the start we like to see with the first game of UNC Asheville vs Arkansas State going to OT after Asheville overcame a 10 point Arkansas State second half lead . Asheville won 81 to 77 to be the first team moving on and they will play Pitt next. Matt Dickey and J.P. Grimm both had 22 points for Asheville in the winning effort. Believe it or not UNC Asheville now has an all time winning record in March Madness at 2-1, that likely will change shortly but this really was a great tournament moment.

March Madness 2011 Second Round Picks

2011-03-15T22:22:00.000-07:00

These are our March Madness 2011 Second Round Picks now that we have had some real time to look over the bracket, and we have tried to include our thoughts on each game. As most of you hopefully know with the expansion of March Madness the second round is basically what the first round used to be.

East Region Second Round Picks.

1 Ohio State versus 16 (Texas San Antonio or Alabama State) This is like the freebie question on a test, trust us they are harder from here. Ohio State might not win by as many as you think because they aren't that type of number 1 overall seed but they will probably still win by 25.

8 George Mason vs 9 Villanova - See things got tougher in a hurry do you take the 9th best team in the East that stumbled down the stretch or do you take a team that has won their last like 16 out of 17 games? We take George Mason this isn't their first time at the dance and we think that they are more than capable of beating a Villanova squad that has grown very used to l
losing.

5 West Virginia vs Clemson - Clemson had to win in the first round just to get a chance at West Virginia, Clemson took apart UAB 70 to 52 and we think this is going to be the game that next year people point to the play in teams might have an advantage in the second round as Clemson will stay real close with West Virginia but in the end they fall to the Mountaineers.

4 Kentucky vs 13 Princeton - Kentucky coach John Calipari would likely be working at an Ivy League institution like Princeton if basketball was a normal school subject, but in basketball Kentucky is an Ivy League institution and Princeton is lucky to have good students sometimes. The coaching gives this game to Kentucky alone.

6 Xavier vs 11 Marquette - We really like Xavier but Marquette is a dangerous team for an 11, we doubt the Marquette players even think one bit they are an underdog. Marquette has played a tougher schedule, we go with Marquette.

3 Syracuse vs 14 Indiana State - Welcome back to March Madness Indiana State, unfortunately you are short one all time great player to beat Syracuse, Syracuse moving on.

7 Washington vs 10 Georgia - How is Georgia even as high as a 10 seed, despite that fact we think they beat Washington as the SEC might still be a little better than the PAC 10 this season.

2 North Carolina vs 15 Long Island - North Carolina despite the setback versus Duke coming into its own as the young studs find their footing, could Long Island ever become a Cinderella school sure if they got the right NY sleeper stud but they don't have it this year. UNC moving on.

West Region March Madness 2011 Second Round Picks

1 Duke vs 16 Hampton - Finally the test maker put another easy one on here, we like the experience of Duke and then you combine that with the HOF coaching and we think that will be enough for Duke to bring down Hampton.

8 Michigan vs 9 Tennessee - Michigan will win this game, they have a great young squad going and this will be their jumping off point. Tennessee is run by a slime and they will frankly get what they deserve.

5 Arizona vs 12 Memphis - There aren't a lot of good teams in the PAC 10 and we can't even be sure that Arizona is that good of team but again we think they have better coaching which means something to us in March, so Arizona moves on but not by much.

4 Texas vs 11 Oakland - Oakland has a big 6-11 stud in Keith Benson so it is very tempting here to go for the big upset but we can't do it because we need Texas later on in our bracket. If you have Oakland nice try but do you really want to move them on past Arizona as well?

6 Cincinnati vs 11 Missouri - Missouri can score an awful lot at times, we are going with the upset here. Kind of an unusual pick for us as We do think the Big East is much better than the Big Twelve but we think Missouri might catch Cincy off guard.

3 Connecticut vs 14 Bucknell - Big time players can do a lot for a team in March, Connecticut has one of those just ask the guys in the Big East, Bucknell does not so they will go home early.

7 Temple vs 11 Penn State - Penn State has been playing really hungry of late led by the play of senior Taylor Battle, Penn State takes down Temple.

2 San Diego State vs 15 Northern Colorado - We aren't completely sold on San Diego State but we do know they are better measurably than Northern Colorado, this should be a typical game for San Diego so they move on.

Southwest March Madness 2011 Second Round Picks

1 Kansas vs 16 Boston University - Kansas is a very good team, it was nice to be reminded that Boston has a University and a College but a Boston All Star team isn't good enough in basketball to beat Kansas.

8 UNLV vs 9 Illinois - As typical this is a hard 8 vs 9 game to predict. We have to go with the team from the better conference with more solid wins and that is Illinois.

5 Vanderbilt vs 12 Richmond - Richmond has been rolling late this season, they have senior forward Justin Harper and they shoot a pretty high percentage so we are taking them in the upset. We have to be honest though part of our reasoning is Louisville will smoke either moving forward.

4 Louisville vs 13 Morehead State: Morehead State lost to Eastern Illinois this season, enough said! Louisville moving on.

6 Georgetown vs 11 USC or VCU - We like USC over Georgetown, March Madness is no place to end an epic losing streak and Georgetown is on the wrong wave.

3 Purdue vs 14 St. Peters - Purdue is licking its wounds after to straight losses that weren't pretty but they got a good team to get their mojo back, Purdue has 2 Naismith finalists we feel that will be enough in the March Madness 2011 second round vs any 14 seed.

7 Texas A and M vs 10 Florida State - Texas A and M can't seem to beat a really good team but luckily Florida State is just the sort of average team they beat with regularity, we like Texas A and M.

2 Notre Dame vs 15 Akron - Akron hasn't played a team in the same stratosphere as Notre Dame all season, and they haven't beaten the "quality" opponents they have faced so Mr Hansbrough and Notre Dame we will see you moving on.

Southeast Region March Madness 2011 Second Round Picks

1 Pitt vs 16 N.C. Asheville - Asheville won the play in game and that is one more win than half the teams in March Madness 2011 if not more, but they don't get another win.

8 Butler vs 9 Old Dominion - This is a game to tune into we want to see what happens, Butler didn't look to have it this year but they have come on strong. Neither of these teams has faced quality enough competition to get a great read on them, we go with the hot team that has a really good taste in their mouth from last year, Butler moving on.

5 Kansas State vs 12 Utah State - Utah State is a real nice solid team and they shoot the ball better, we go with Utah State in this one.

4 Wisconisn vs 13 Belmont - A lot of people are over Belmont with the upset, 13 seeds don't win very often and they usually don't beat a team with 2 Naismith Award finalists. Could Belmont win sure, but this is more of a suckers bet than an educated choice.

6 St. Johns vs 11 Gonzaga - We like all of those seniors on St. Johns to take down Gonzaga without much trouble. St. Johns hasn't been dancing in a while and Gonzaga is here every year but we are very confident Steve Lavin will have the Red Storm ready to live up to their March Madness 2011 potential.

3 BYU vs 14 Wofford - BYU is a little shorthanded but it won't matter against Wofford, it will matter in the next round though.

7 UCLA vs 10 Michigan State - UCLA drew a really bad team to draw, who wants to face MSU in March? Sure if this was a typical UCLA team this would be must see TV, but this is a UCLA squad that closely represented the rest of the averageness in the PAC 10 this season so they go down to the well prepared Spartans.

2 Florida vs 15 UC Santa Barbara - Finally another easy pick, UC Santa Barbara features junior forward Orlando Johnson and his 21.1 points per game and they could use a couple more players like him to beat Florida. Florida is our last pick to win.

Well it should be interesting to see how we do, you will notice we weren't to afraid of upsets but hopefully you don't think we went overboard. Any March Madness 2011 second round picks you really have a problem with.

March Madness 2011 First Round Picks

2011-03-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

It is really hard to believe with this new system how fast the March Madness 2011 First Round starts, so without further delay here are our March Madness 2011 First Round picks.

Tuesday:

In the Southeast region you have the 16 seeds doing battle, we feel like a gambler with a real problem even talking about a pick for this game (luckily we are just doing brackets) but here goes we take UNC Asheville over Arkansas Little Rock and you can take this pick to the bank as the Asheville shoots better and has played better competition this season.

In the East region you have the 12s doing battle which is actually sort of cool especially when you consider 12s have advanced during March Madness before. We are still trying to figure out how UAB made the tournament so we are going with the Clemson squad that in their last game took UNC to overtime, we suggest you do the same.

Wednesday:

The second of the East Region games features TX San Antonio vs Alabama St. in another thriller of a 16 vs a 16 seed. Both of these teams are on a pretty good roll and really we are happy for them getting to play this game as it should be pretty fair, we are going with TX San Antonio because frankly not many teams shoot the ball any worse than Alabama St.

The Southwest game is one we are really going to try and tune into, right after we locate where Tru TV is. VCU played a pretty tough non conference schedule but they lost like all of those tough games, but then again that was ages ago so can they beat USC? USC played well against the Big Twelve this year beating Texas and taking Nebraska and Kansas to the wire but then again USC took its lumps in the PAC 10 so that might mean we have been giving the Big Twelve to much credit this season. We are going with USC because when they loose it isn't by much but really we think this is a great pairing and we can't wait for the result.

March Madness 2011 Mascots / Nicknames List NCAA Basketball Tournament

2011-03-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

Of course there are some of you out there that get stumped on which team to pick and go to the final resort of picking your March Madness 2011 winners based on the battle of the mascots / nicknames so we have prepared a list for you. For those of you who don't pick your NCAA Basketball seed winners based on mascots which is probably a good call, maybe you will get a chuckle out of some of the bad nicknames or the matchups.

East Region:

#1 Ohio State - Buckeyes

#2 North Carolina - Tar Heels

# 3 Syracuse - Orangeman

# 4 Kentucky - Wildcats

# 5 West Virginia - Mountaineers

# 6 Xavier - Musketeers

# 7 Washington - Huskies

# 8 George Mason - Patriots

# 9 Villanova - Wildcats

# 10 Georgia - Bulldogs

# 11 Marquette - Golden Eagles

# 12 UAB - Blazers

# 12 Clemson - Tigers

#13 Princeton - Tigers

# 14 Indiana State - Sycamores

# 15 Long Island - Blackbirds

# 16 Texas San Antonio - Road Runners

#16 Alabama State - Hornets

West Region:

#1 Duke - Blue Devils

#2 San Diego State University - Aztecs

# 3 Connecticut - Huskies

# 4 Texas - Longhorns

# 5 Arizona - Wildcats

# 6 Cincinnati - Bearcats

# 7 Temple - Owls

# 8 Michigan - Wolverines

# 9 Tennessee - Volunteers

# 10 Penn State - Nittany Lions

# 11 Missouri - Tigers

# 12 Memphis - Tigers

#13 Oakland - Golden Grizzlies

# 14 Bucknell - Bison

# 15 Northern Colorado - Bears

# 16 Hampton - Pirates

Southwest Region:

#1 Kansas - Jayhawks

#2 Notre Dame - Fighting Irish

# 3 Purdue - Boilermakers

# 4 Louisville - Cardinals

# 5 Vanderbilt - Commodores

# 6 Georgetown - Hoyas

# 7 Texas A and M - Aggies

# 8 UNLV - Running Rebels

# 9 Illinois - Fighting Illini

# 10 Florida State - Seminoles

# 11 USC - Trojans

# 11 Virginia Commonwealth (VCU) - Rams

# 12 Richmond - Spiders

#13 Morehead State - Eagles

# 14 St. Peters - Peacocks

# 15 Akron - Zips

# 16 Boston University - Terriers

Southeast Region:

#1 Pittsburgh - Panthers

#2 Florida - Gators

# 3 BYU - Cougars

# 4 Wisconsin - Badgers

# 5 Kansas State - Wildcats

# 6 St. Johns - Red Storm

# 7 UCLA - Bruins

# 8 Butler - Bulldogs

# 9 Old Dominion - Monarchs

# 10 Michigan State - Spartans

# 11 Gonzaga - Zags

# 12 Utah State - Aggies

#13 Belmont - Bruins

# 14 Wofford - Terriers

# 15 UC Santa Barbara - Gauchos

# 16 North Carolina Asheville - Bulldogs

#16 Arkansas Little Rock - Trojans

So folks do you see anything interesting, how many Aggies or Terriers does a bracket need you would think one would be enough for those names. Of course the Wildcats are well represented as always, and in our opinion the Southwest Region has the most depth for original nicknames.

March Madness 2011 Predictions: Upset Picks

2011-03-13T21:19:00.000-07:00

If you weren't following us earlier we said that March Madness 2011 will be the year of the upset so here are our early March Madness 2011 predictions for upset picks now that the bracket is finalized.

East Region:
In the first round we like Georgia over Washington, we don't even know how Georgia got as high as a 10 seed but Washington has its own issues. Yes we know Washington beat Arizona in OT to win the PAC 10 tournament but really how much does that mean this season, our wager is the SEC is better than the PAC 10.

Also in the first round you might want to go with Marquette over Xavier, even though we like Xavier Marquette can beat them and we don't see Xavier getting by Syracuse in the next round anyways.

That is all we see right now in the East, pick a lot of chalk early in this tough region.

West Region:

In the first round go ahead with Penn State over Temple as PSU just seems like a squad that wants it right now and they have a great leader in Taylor Battle.

We like Missouri over Cincinnati in a little riskier upset pick, Missouri can fill the bucket so we will have to see if Cinci can keep them in check.

If you really want to go against Duke we would suggest picking Texas to knock them off as that is the most likely scenario we see.

Southwest Region:

We will start off with Richmond over Vanderbilt as this should be a close game either way and again neither of these teams will make it past the second round anyways.

You have to ask yourself if a losing streak like what Georgetown is on is meant to be broken during March Madness we are going with the big upset pick of USC over Georgetown, and this is one fearless prediction as USC needs to get by VCU first just to make it happen.

Southeast Region:

Now this is one tough region to pick upsets in because there are so many to choose from.

We will get it going with Utah State over Kansas State, this Utah State squad is pretty solid.

If you were listening to Seth Davis during the selection show he jumped all over Belmont over Wisconsin which is tempting based on the Badgers sorry performance last time out versus Penn State. We saw that game and Wisconsin didn't show up to start the game, our guess is that they show up enough to get past Belmont and remember they did almost win a game going 2 for 21 from three point range and they shoot way better than that normally.

Michigan State will take apart UCLA, sorry folks you got a bad draw in Michigan State. In fact we will take Michigan State over Florida in the second round as well.

Also in the second round we have St. Johns all day over BYU, those seniors at St. Johns will make some noise.

After we sit down with the brackets for another day or so we might update these March Madness 2011 predictions but for now this is how we see it.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Surprises / Debate

2011-03-13T20:50:00.000-07:00

So every year and the March Madness 2011 bracket is no different there are some teams that get left out or get in or are ranked to high. After today we would prefer not to talk about the bracket makeup itself so lets run through some of the debate. We think that Colorado is the team that got the short end of the stick as we saw them as a bracket team and even one that would maybe win its first game. Virginia Tech was on the bubble again this year and frankly we are OK with the committee leaving them out just like they do every other year, one of these years you guys will get in look even Penn State managed to make it in, also St. Mary's being left out wasn't a big shocker. We can't be sure how it was that Georgia got a 10 seed as 11 seed Marquette we think would have their way with them, and we don't even love the Big East like some. The interesting thing about Georgia is that they drew Washington another team we don't have a solid read on considering they played a lackluster PAC 10 slate so it is possible they can get a chance to be thumped by UNC and claim they belonged at the 10 seed. Finally the Big East has 11 teams in the draw and the Big Ten has 7, is that many teams for both of those conferences we say no as they clearly were superior to the rest of the nation this season, we can see Penn State knocking of San Diego State University (but we don't think we are picking it yet, check back to find out) let us know what is your gripe?

March Madness 2011 Bracket Hardest Region

2011-03-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

Now that the March Madness 2011 bracket has been announced what is the hardest region to get to the Final Four from? We would have to go with the East followed by the West region. The East should have been the easiest region as it is headed up by the number 1 overall seed Ohio State but it sure doesn't look like that as it has North Carolina as the 2 seed which is very dangerous, we really like the 6 seed in Xavier, the 11 seed Marquette is capable of beating Ohio State, and you have a team like number 4 Kentucky who we aren't high on this season but they have great coaching which means a lot in March.

When you look at the West Region in the March Madness 2011 bracket which is probably the second most difficult you have Duke which was probably the last 1 seed and they are joined by a whole bunch of teams that can clearly get hot and make a run to Houston. You see UCONN which went wild at the Big East Tournament to win it, you have Texas which went on a great run this season, and a San Diego State squad which we aren't as high on as most but will concede they are capable of making it to Houston. To round out the region bracket rankings we would have the Southeast next followed by the Southwest as the easiest region for Kansas to run through. As always let us know your thoughts.

March Madness Second Round Schedule Thursday March 17,2011:Live Scores,Time,TV

2011-03-13T19:49:00.000-07:00

March Madness First Round Schedule 2011

Thursday March 17, 2010
Game time (all ET),location,live and final scores on this page

Note: TV is on different stations this year so make sure to check.

East Regional

12 TBA vs 5 West Virginia

Thursday March 17| Time 12:15| Tampa, FL | TV: CBS

13 Princeton vs 4 Kentucky

Thursday March 17| Time 2:45| Tampa, FL | TV: CBS

West Regional

14 Bucknell vs 3 UCONN

Thursday March 17| Time 7:20| Washington DC | TV: TNT

11 Missouri vs 3 Cincinnati

Thursday March 17| Time 9:50| Washington DC | TV: TNT

10 Penn State vs 7 Temple

Thursday March 17| Time 2:10| Tuscon, AZ | TV: TNT

15 N. Colorado vs 2 San Diego State

Thursday March 17| Time 4:40| Tuscon, AZ | TV: TNT

Southwest Regional

13 Moorehead State vs 4 Louisville

Thursday March 17| Time 1:40| Denver, CO | TV: TBS

12 Richmond vs 5 Vanderbilt

Thursday March 17| Time 4:10| Denver, CO | TV: TBS

Southeast Regional

15 UC Santa Barbara vs 2 Florida

Thursday March 17| Time 6:50| Tampa, FL | TV: TBS

10 Michigan State vs 7 UCLA

Thursday March 17| Time 9:20| Tampa, FL | TV: TBS

9 Old Dominion vs 8 Butler

Thursday March 17| Time 12:40| Washington DC | TV: Tru TV
16 TBA vs 1 Pitt

Thursday March 17| Time 3:10| Washington DC | TV: Tru TV

14 Wofford vs 3 BYU

Thursday March 17| Time 7:15| Denver, CO | TV: CBS

13 Belmont vs 4 Wisconsin

Thursday March 17| Time 6:50| Tusco, AZ | TV: Tru TV

11 Gonzaga vs 6 St Johns

Thursday March 17| Time 9:45| Denver, CO | TV: CBS

12 Utah State vs 5 Kansas State

Thursday March 17| Time 9:57| Tuscon, AZ | TV: Tru TV

March Madness First Round Schedule Wednesday March 16,2011:Live Scores,Time,TV

2011-03-13T18:45:00.000-07:00

March Madness First Round Schedule 2011

Wednesday March 16, 2010
Game time (all ET),location,live and final scores on this page

TV: Tru TV

East Regional

16 TX San Antonio (19-13,9-7) vs 16 Alabama State (17-17,11-7)

Wednesday March 16|Time 6:30|Dayton, OH

Southwest Regional

12 VCU (23-11,12-6) vs 12 USC (19-14,10-8)

Wednesday March 16|Time 9:00|Dayton, OH

March Madness First Round Schedule Tuesday March 15,2011:Live Scores,Time,TV

2011-03-13T18:35:00.000-07:00

March Madness First Round Schedule 2011

Tuesday March 15, 2010
Game time (all ET),location,live and final scores on this page

TV: Tru TV

Southeast Regional

16 UNC Asheville (19-13,11-7) vs 16 AR Little Rock (19-16,7-9)

Tuesday March 15|Time 6:30|Dayton, OH

East Regional

12 Clemson (21-11,9-11) vs 12 UAB (22-8,12-4)

Tuesday March 15|Time 9:00|Dayton, OH

March Madness 2011 Predictions

2011-03-13T16:10:00.000-07:00

The March Madness 2011 bracket is out so now comes the March Madness 2011 predictions as you try to fill out your bracket all the way to the championship. It is early as the brackets have just recently been announced but we will get some predictions going. First March Madness prediction to get out of the way is that Ohio State the number 1 overall seed will in fact win the championship game, you would be wise to pick chalk on them. The East as is already being said is probably the toughest region which it shouldn't be because of Ohio State being in it the East but still don't pick against the Buckeyes as they have a down low game, an outside game and they play defense and they showed while playing in the tough Big Ten. Who will Ohio State face in that championship game, we are predicting Kansas a team that is playing well and appears at first blush to have an easy draw. If you are looking for early upset March Madness 2011 predictions you should start in the Southeast as there are many potential ones to choose from and we think it is a long shot that Pitt will go to the Final Four so feel free to pick against them. We will of course refine these March Madness 2011 predictions as we have more time to study the bracket.

March Madness 2011 Number 1 Seeds

2011-03-13T15:18:00.001-07:00

The number 1 seeds for March Madness 2011 are Ohio State, Duke, Kansas, and Pittsburgh. These four were virtual locks for number 1 seeds coming into the day with maybe the exception of Duke had they lost to UNC in the ACC Conference Tournament championship game. The only team that maybe could have gotten on that one line might have been Notre Dame but as things are no team should have a beef with these teams as the 1 seeds.

March Madness 2011 Number 1 Overall Seed Ohio Seed

2011-03-13T15:06:00.000-07:00

Ohio State is the March Madness 2011 overall seed and that should surprise nobody. The Buckeyes had a great season waiting until February for their first loss a road stumble at Wisconsin that happens to everyone. The Buckeyes only had one more loss after that and that was to Purdue on the road, again no shame in that. The Buckeyes won the Big Ten Conference Tournament but did have a big scare when Northwestern brought them to OT so for those who draw Ohio State they are beatable. Ohio State is of course led by freshman sensation Jared Sullinger who plays hard down low on both ends of the court and gives the Buckeyes a big boost by opening up the outside shooters like Jon Diebler and William Buford. One thing that people overlook on this Buckeyes team that freshman Aaron Craft is a lock down defender on the perimeter so don't expect one hot shooting player to beat the Buckeyes.

March Madness 2011 Predictions: Conference Championship Sunday

2011-03-13T10:32:00.000-07:00

Here are our March Madness 2011 predictions for one of the most exciting days of March, Conference Championship Sunday. There are some great games this year and none better than in the ACC with the classic Duke vs North Carolina matchup, we have Duke all the way in this one vs this years upstart North Carolina squad. North Carolina has really come on late with their youth becoming more experienced but we think they will have a lot more maturing to do to beat Duke in a conference championship game. In the SEC you have another really great game with Florida vs Kentucky and we take Florida in a very close game. The Atlantic 10 features Richmond vs Dayton and we are going with the favorite if for no other reason to add some suspense to the March Madness 2011 bubble, but in all seriousness Richmond is a good squad and should have this. In the final conference tournament game of 2011 you have number 1 Ohio State vs a suddenly hot Penn State squad that has gone from not on the bubble to in the dance in a week. We actually like Penn State to win this game and the reason is that they are playing some great intense defense and will close out on OSU's three point shooters, this is a bit of a fearless prediction but we feel that PSU can get it done. Stay with us for all the talk and craziness that will start when the brackets are released.

March Madness 2011 Bracket

2011-03-13T10:19:00.000-07:00

Here is the complete March Madness 2011 bracket for making your picks all the way to the Championship Game. Let us know what you think of the teams in the bracket leave your thoughts in the comments section. How did Colorado get left out?

March Madness 2011 Bracket Shakers: Big Ten Big Upsets

2011-03-12T09:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a crazy day for the March Madness 2011 Bracket thanks to big upsets in the Big Ten Conference tournament. Purdue fresh off of a loss to Iowa to end the regular season got smacked by a hungry Michigan State squad trying to prove they belonged in the March Madness 2011 Bracket, final score 74 to 56. Purdue had beaten MSU both times during the regular season but the Spartans showed once again that their program knows how to win in March. What does this do for the bracket, we think Michigan State is now a lock with four wins over ranked opponents and frankly some of the conference tournament play showing the second tier of the Big Ten was pretty good this year. For Purdue they were knocking on the door of a 1 seed just last week and now they are looking at a 3 and possibly a four.

The other Big Ten shaker yesterday to the March Madness 2011 bracket was when the custodians installed invisible guards on the baskets for the Wisconsin vs Penn State tilt and the Badgers lost 33 to 36. The Badgers didn't come to play as they found themselves down 0-14 before they even scored a point deep into the first half. The Badgers shot 2 for 21 from 3 point range which you would think is almost impossible considering they are a solid three point shooting team. Despite all of their offensive problems they played solid defense and Taylor took a game winning shot which clanged on the second to last possession and another game tying three which clanged it was just that sort of game and one heck of an ugly loss. What does this game do to the March Madness 2011 bracket, well Penn State would need to get to the tournament finals to even be on the bubble for the bracket and for Wisconsin will still probably a solid squad their national perception has plummeted after the OSU loss and now this so they might be all the way down to a 5 or 6 seed but should be a 4 seed. Speaking of the Buckeyes if you didn't here about it somehow they needed overtime to sneak by mighty Northwestern so there was something upset special in the air in Indianapolis. We told March Madness 2011 is the year of the upset.

March Madness 2011 Predictions: Upsets

2011-03-09T20:10:00.000-08:00

With March now in full swing we have some fearless March Madness 2011 predictions items for you, March Madness 2011 will be the year of the upset. Already of the 8 conference tournaments that have crowned a champion only one of them was a number 1 seed and that is Belmont. Our prediction is that you are going to see at least one of those play in game winners also win at least their next one as well during March Madness. In addition look for some big upsets by the lower seeded Big Ten and Big East teams as there isn't much that separates them from any team below the four line, teams like Marquette, and Michigan assuming they get in are very capable of winning during March Madness 2011. Plus you have wildcards like Gonzaga and Michigan State that have had down years but you just can't bet against these programs in March as Gonazga has already proved and MSU still can. Finally we really like Arizona out of the PAC 10 to pull off some upsets, this team is on the cusp with great coaching for March Madness and finally the bodies again to start getting it done.

March Madness 2011, the year of the upsets. Let us know who are your early picks to pull upsets?

March Madness 2011 Colorado Bubble Bracket Predictions

2011-03-07T20:40:00.000-08:00

The following is a list of March Madness 2011 Colorado bubble predictions heading into championship week.

ESPN: in

CBS: out

CNNSI: in

Yahoo: out

Blogging the Bracket: out

Bracketville: out

NBC: not looking good

Daily Bracket: in

Bracketography: in

Summary 4 in 4 out and a not looking good

March Madness 2011 Boston College Bubble Picks

2011-03-07T20:28:00.000-08:00

The following is a list of March Madness 2011 Boston College bubble predictions heading into major conference tournaments.

ESPN: in

CBS: in

CNNSI: in

Yahoo: in

Blogging the Bracket: in

Bracketville: in

NBC: in

Daily Bracket: in

Bracketography: in

Summary 9 in 0 out but many are assuming at least 1 conference tourney win.

March Madness 2011 Baylor Bubble Predictions

2011-03-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

The following is a list of March Madness 2011 Baylor bubble predictions heading into championship week.

ESPN: out

CBS: out

CNNSI: out

Yahoo: out

Blogging the Bracket: out

Bracketville: out

NBC: need a deep tournament run

Daily Bracket: out

Bracketography: out

Summary 0 in 8 out and a prayer

March Madness 2011 Alabama Bubble Predictions

2011-03-07T20:14:00.000-08:00

The following is a list of March Madness 2011 Alabama bubble predictions heading into championship week.

ESPN: out
CBS: out
CNNSI: in
Yahoo: out
Blogging the Bracket: out
Bracketville: in
Fox Sports: out
NBC: need to win 1 maybe 2
Daily Bracket: out
Bracketography: out

Summary 2 in 7 out and a maybe

March Madness 2011 Bubble Watch

2011-03-07T19:41:00.000-08:00

The March Madness 2011 bubble is doing a lot of moving with just days until the March 2011 Bracket will be finalized.

Alabama: Bubble In
Baylor: Out
Boston College: Out
Colorado: In
Georgia: Out
Memphis: Out
Michigan: In
Michigan State: Out
Missouri State: Out
Nebraska: Out
Virginia Tech: In
Washington State: Out
USC: In

March Madness 2011 Automatic Bids List

2011-03-07T17:32:00.000-08:00

The following are the March Madness 2011 automatic bid teams that we already know will be part of the dance.
UNC - Ashville (19-13,11-7): Big South Tournament Champ
Belmont (30-4,19-1): Atlantic Sun Tournament Champ
Morehead State (24-9-13-5): Ohio Valley Tournament Champ
Indiana State (20-13, 12-6): Missouri Valley Tournament Champ

March Madness 2011: Rankings Update

2011-03-07T17:20:00.000-08:00

With just conference tournaments to go before March Madness 2011, here are the final rankings of the regular season.

AP Top 25
RK TEAM RECORD PTS
1 Ohio State (52) 29-2 1,612
2 Kansas (13) 29-2 1,569
3 Pittsburgh 27-4 1,493
4 Notre Dame 25-5 1,416
5 Duke 27-4 1,265
6 North Carolina 24-6 1,209
7 San Diego State 29-2 1,197
8 Brigham Young 28-3 1,187
9 Purdue 25-6 1,108
10 Texas 25-6 1,081
11 Syracuse 25-6 984
12 Florida 24-6 931
13 Wisconsin 23-7 870
14 Louisville 23-8 794
15 Kentucky 22-8 639
16 Arizona 25-6 562
17 St. John's 20-10 462
18 Xavier 24-6 437
19 Kansas State 22-9 345
20 West Virginia 20-10 294
21 Connecticut 21-9 281
22 Georgetown 21-9 244
23 Utah State 28-3 234
24 Temple 24-6 209
25 Cincinnati 24-7 202
Others receiving votes: Texas A&M 177, Vanderbilt 101, Villanova 64, UCLA 40, UNLV 29, Missouri 22, George Mason 12, Old Dominion 11, Alabama 10, Belmont 9, Butler 9, Gonzaga 6, Saint Mary's 4, Virginia Commonwealth 3, UAB 2, Harvard 1
Dropped from rankings: Villanova 19, Vanderbilt 21, Missouri 22, Texas A and M 24

ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll
RK TEAM RECORD PTS
1 Ohio State (25) 29-2 767
2 Kansas (6) 29-2 748
3 Pittsburgh 27-4 702
4 Notre Dame 25-5 678
5 Duke 27-4 595
6 San Diego State 29-2 592
7 North Carolina 24-6 560
8 Brigham Young 28-3 546
9 Purdue 25-6 537
10 Texas 25-6 518
11 Syracuse 25-6 492
12 Florida 24-6 456
13 Wisconsin 23-7 396
14 Louisville 23-8 364
15 Arizona 25-6 285
16 Kentucky 22-8 274
17 Utah State 28-3 237
18 St. John's 20-10 230
19 Connecticut 21-9 165
20 Xavier 24-6 150
21 Texas A and M 23-7 146
22 Georgetown 21-9 117
23 Kansas State 22-9 113
24 Vanderbilt 21-9 80
25 Temple 24-6 77
Others receiving votes: West Virginia 64, Villanova 43, UCLA 36, Cincinnati 31, Missouri 23, UNLV 16, George Mason 14, Saint Mary's 11, UAB 4, Boston College 3, Florida State 2, Alabama 1, Harvard 1, Washington 1
Dropped from rankings: Villanova 19, Missouri 24, George Mason 25

March Madness 2011 1 Seed: Ohio State

2011-03-06T21:55:00.000-08:00

When Ohio State destroyed Wisconsin at home they secured a March Madness 2011 1 seed, make no mistake about it. The entire basketball nation saw what the Buckeyes did to a solid Badger squad on CBS, and for all of you two seed looking to move to the one line you have one less chance because OSU is now a lock. Frankly there is no way that the Buckeyes can shoot the ball like that again probably if they played say the next 20 games versus Iowa but it doesn't matter because besides the crazy game of hoarse beyond the arc they showed why they are as close to a great team as it gets this year. Ohio State can beat you inside and outside, and as demonstrated versus WI they can play some lock down defense against top notch players. We aren't sure yet if we are picking Ohio State to win when the brackets are announced but they are a 1 seed.

The more interesting question now is how much Wisconsin drops because of this loss, are guess is quite a bit but is it fair considering it was a road game and OSU made a deal with the devil to shoot like that? On a day when in the NBA the best team record wise the Spurs managed to loose by 30 at home is it fair the Badgers might have just dropped to the 5 line for one bad game versus one of the three best teams in the country? Frankly we believe that to many people apply the physics of college football to college basketball despite the fact the season is much longer, probability wise you are more likely to have a bad loss the more games you play against solid teams.

March Madness 2011: Jordan Taylor Impact Player

2011-03-03T20:25:00.000-08:00

Jordan Taylor of the Wisconsin Badgers figures to be a player you will hear about a lot during March Madness 2011. You might recall that Jordan Taylor went off on Ohio State in the second half allowing the Badgers to pick up the victory on the then undefeated team, well tonight he destroyed Indiana on the road for 39 points. At the time that he went off on Ohio State he was just left off the Cousy Award finalist for the best point guard in the nation, they corrected that mistake but he likely won't win despite likely being the most deserving of the award. Jordan Taylor has proven without a doubt he is the most complete point guard in the country, he has an epic assist to turnover ratio that leads the nation and on nights like this he can fill the hoop every way possible as evidenced by 39 points on 11 of 19 shooting, 7 of 8 from 3, and 10 for 10 from the line and yes he had 1 turnover. Taylor usually doesn't need to be the go to guy as the Badgers also have Jon Leuer but he was in foul trouble and Taylor proved he can put the hammer down on a team, something that becomes critical in the NCAA tournament.

Are the Badgers as sexy as UNC or even still BYU no they aren't but they are a team that will cause you all sorts of problems no matter who you are. With the Badgers having a go to guy like Taylor that is now being talked about as Big Ten Player of the Year, a Jon Leuer, three point shooting, and the best free throw shooting percentage and the fewest turnovers in the nation if your team draws the Badgers you got a bum deal.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: Top Conference Bids?

2011-03-03T16:48:00.000-08:00

So this has been the year of the Big East as everybody including us has called them the top conference and they could get 11 teams in the March Madness 2011 bracket. The Big Ten team has been considered the second best conference most of the year but has the Big Ten overtaken the Big East as having the top teams in the March Madness 2011 bracket. According to the ESPN Power Rankings which came out today and is a pretty solid indication of how good teams are, this week the Big Ten gets Ohio State at number 1, Purdue at 5 and Wisconsin at 7 in comparison for the Big East Pitt is 3, Noter Dame 6, and the next team is number 14 Syracuse. So is the Big Ten really better at the top or has the Big East just beaten up on their own records so they don't look as strong at the top?

We love to take sides but in this one we think the great decider is going to have to be March Madness 2011, and how great is that. We just can't figure it out as we think all three of the top Big Ten team would have road losses for sure in the Big East against the top teams and are very confident that every Big East team would probably loose at Ohio State and Wisconsin without a fluke. Again can't wait for March Madness to settle this one, hopefully we get to see some of the possible big time matchups.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Riser: UNC

2011-03-02T21:28:00.000-08:00

UNC is a big time March Madness 2011 bracket riser and the big reason is freshman Harrison Barnes who hit a three with seconds on the shot clock to get UNC the big 72 to 70 road win versus FSU. Harrison Barnes is clearly coming into his own in the second half of the season we all know that, but this latest winning shot is the proof positive this is one clutch kid and that is what you need during March Madness. Without Barnes proving he is a clutch player, if he was just a freshman scoring 18 points a game we would say you don't have to worry much about UNC they don't quite have it but clutch makes all the difference and you better watch out. We have had a fearless prediction that Duke beats UNC in the final regular season conference game at home and we will stay with it because we believed in it despite already knowing about Barnes, but we have to be honest we are questioning a little if it is fearless or crazy. The way we see UNC picks up a 3 seed in the March Madness 2011 bracket and they make it where they should based on that seed the Elite Eight.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: UCONN Seed?

2011-03-02T21:16:00.000-08:00

UCONN lost again this time at West Virginia 56 to 65, West Virginia is 10-7 in conference and a pretty good team so a road loss could almost be expected but where does UCONN now fall into the March Madness 2011 bracket? The question is can you really drop them because of this loss which is now 3 out of their last 4, well no not really we don't think you should as they did just about as good as we could expect them to do in this game. We would have called them a 5 seed before this game and we will stay with them as a 5 seed. UCONN finishes out the regular season with a game versus Notre Dame at home, and you know what if they win that game and if no other teams pull a Texas or BYU we will still have them as a five seed because that is pretty much what they are.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Predictions: BYU - Sell Now

2011-03-02T21:01:00.000-08:00

Well we finally had BYU near the top of the March Madness 2011 bracket predictions and what happens when you buy high sometimes you get burned real bad as BYU is now a sell, sell, sell. In the world of stocks sometimes major news rocks you and then it isn't as bad as it seems and things return to normal and the sellers look like fools, and sometimes the stock circles the drain like GM and this is one of those times.

Today sophomore starting forward Brandon Davies got suspended for the season when he apparently thought all of that religion talk was just talk at BYU but they decided to make an example of him and suspend him for having sex with his girlfriend, message delivered to every Mormon in the country no doubt. Back to the basketball side of things, we didn't have to wait long to find out the impact of the suspension as they got rocked by New Mexico at home 64 to 82, yes that is the Lobos who beat BYU 86-67 at home, BYU's only other conference loss. New Mexico is getting/got it done against BYU the same way they did before by scorching the nets a thing they do against a lot of teams but without winning. Look we have to go back to what we were saying before this team just doesn't have enough besides the super star Fredette and now they really don't to be considered a top team, they are a nice team. We won't even call them a good or great team because especially after today we think you could flip a coin on a neutral site if they could beat the top 4 teams in the Big Ten or Big East.

Our new March Madness 2011 bracket prediction is that BYU is a 5 seed after being exploited in their conference tournament (remember this suspension will look like an injury in the eyes of the committee, they look at the present stock and sell as well), don't pick this team to go to the Final Four whatever you do they could but they could also fly out early it all depends on Fredette.

March Madness 2011 Prediction: Duke Seed?

2011-03-01T18:13:00.000-08:00

Duke just lost their 2nd game of the season a 64 to 60 failure versus Virginia Tech on the road after climbing to a number one ranking that lasted a week as they are number 4. Virginia Tech is decent and a bubble team so a close road loss isn't as big of a deal as some people are making it into, it isn't like they are slip sliding away yet like Texas. If you want a key stat for this game Kyle Singler went 1 for 7 from beyond the arc. We are still going with the fearless March Madness 2011 prediction that Duke will still get a 1 seed. Duke has Clemson at home and then finishes the regular season on the road versus UNC, we think this is going to be an epic game that Duke comes out on top of.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Prediction: Texas

2011-03-01T17:59:00.000-08:00

What on earth has happened to Texas, a couple of weeks ago we could have argued if this team is the number 1 overall seed in the March Madness 2011 bracket and now they have lost 3 out of 4. Texas proves that the madness can start before March, loosing to a bubble team when you are up 22 is just crazy even on the road and then following that up with a 5 point loss at home to Kansas State shows the slide is in full swing. We will agree with those that say Kansas State is a pretty dang good team that is hot but this was a home game, no excuses can be given from a team that was thought to be top notch. Texas was held to 34% shooting and after Colorado torched the nets against them they let Kansas State do the same at 50%. When you let two straight opponents shoot over 50% from the floor it isn't hard to figure out your major problem.

Here is our current March Madness 2011 bracket prediction for Texas - 3 seed, they just really shot themselves in the foot with these losses and the Big Twelve while good isn't as sound as the Big Ten and Big East.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Riser: Marquette

2011-02-28T20:02:00.000-08:00

Marquette until very recently was on the March Madness 2011 bubble but we are now calling them a riser after 3 straight wins. Marquette started off the winning over a week ago by beating Seton Hall at home 73-64, then beat UCONN 74-67 on the road in OT for the marquee win, and finished out the week with a 86-62 home beat down of Providence. How is Marquette suddenly rolling you ask in a tough Big East, the answer is that their sophomore class has upped its game to the point it can now win against the rest of the very senior laden conference. In the blowout over Providence sophomore Chris Otule had 16 and fellow sophomore Junior Cadougan had 10 and 10 assists. If you face this team in March watch out because they can light the nets as they are 16th in the nation in shooting percentage at .478 and are 21st overall in points scored.

March Madness 2011 Riser: BYU

2011-02-28T19:52:00.000-08:00

Well we all know BYU you had a huge week and they now figure to be a number 2 seed for March Madness 2011. Jimmer Fredette and BYU beat San Diego State on the road and Colorado State at home. Of course the big victory was over San Diego State (80-67) and while we haven't been super high on BYU this year because of their schedule and the same actually goes for SDSU itself, a road victory like that in a very hostile environment has us following in line as believers, this is the best team in the West. In the win of San Diego Jimmer had a real nice game that shows why he probably should be National Player of the Year which we actually have never questioned, Jimmer scored 25 and added 9 assists in a complete performance. Can BYU get a number 1 seed when things are all said and done, we now think they can considering their best of the West title.

March Madness 2011 Bubble Watch: Colorado Update

2011-02-28T19:44:00.000-08:00

Colorado looked just a week ago to be hanging on to the March Madness 2011 bubble by a slim margin with it just looking like a formality they wouldn't be mentioned by next week but a week can make all the difference. Colorado beat Texas Tech on the road and then pulled the big upset by ruining Texas's week with a big comeback win at home. Colorado was down as much as 22 in the game but scoring machine Alec Burks 24 of his 33 in the second half, not just a scorer he also had 10 boards and 4 assists in his impact performance.

Colorado still has some work to do before they get into March Madness 2011 but it is very a capable cause now as they should be in if they beat Iowa State March 2 on the road and beat Nebraska on the 5th at home. Iowa State for you none followers of the Big 12 is horrible at 2-12 in conference and Nebraska is a very winnable home game. It looks like Colorado just jumped up and burst some other teams bubble big time, but who.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Impact: Regular Seasons Champions

2011-02-28T19:29:00.000-08:00

The following list is for the teams that have already claimed regular season championships and are now a guaranteed bid in the March Madness 2011 bracket or as the number 1 seed for their conference tournament an odds on favorite.

America East - Vermont (13-3)
Atlantic Sun - Belmont (19-1)
Big South - Coastal Carolina (16-2)
Colonial - George Mason (16-2)
Horizon - Milwaukee (13-5, split title with Butler and Cleveland State)
MAAC - Fairfield (15-3)
Missouri Valley - Missouri State (15-3)
Northeast - Long Island (16-2)
Ohio Valley - Murray State (14-4)
Patriot - Bucknell (13-1)
Southern - Charleston (14-4 in South, split with Wofford) / Western Carolina (12-6 in North, split with Chattanooga)
Summit - Oakland (17-1)
Sun Belt - Florida Atlantic (13-3 in East) / Arkansas State (11-5 in West, split with Louisiana-Lafayette)
West Coast - Saint Mary's (11-3, split title with Gonzaga)

March Madness 2011 Prediction: Josh Gasser, Badgers

2011-02-23T20:49:00.000-08:00

The Wisconsin Badgers beat Michigan on the road on a last second banked in shot by freshman Josh Gasser, final score 53-52. We have an early 2011 March Madness prediction for you, you don't want to have your team play the Badgers during March Madness because this freshman Josh Gasser will find a way to wreck your dreams. Josh typically doesn't fill the stat sheet, but he has like when he scored like 20 in his first game, or that game he had the first triple double for a freshman in the Big Ten since Magic Johnson, but what you really have to be worried about is when the game is on the line he is going to beat you. This kid just has that extra gear that kicks in at crunch time, he flies at loose balls, he plays strong defense, he just elevates his game you would think we would be talking but a senior or a pro but we are talking about a lightly recruited freshman player at Wisconsin. Make no mistake about it you don't want the Badgers in March, they shoot free throws outstandingly, they don't turn it over, and they have an "x" factor in Josh Gasser. Sure this team doesn't quite have it all, and shouldn't even go to the elite 8 but no matter who you are you don't want to end up playing them.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: Falling Ohio State

2011-02-21T17:24:00.000-08:00

So the Ohio State Buckeyes winning percentage is dropping like a rock after their second loss of the season this time at Purdue 63-76, but how about Ohio State's March Madness 2011 bracket seeding is it falling as well? Well 2011 as many have said and we would agree with is a year of many very good teams and no great teams, so the answer is no. Until the Buckeyes loss we were all holding out hope that they were a great team but in the back of our minds we all knew it wasn't true, they are a very good team. There is no shame in loosing at Wisconsin and Purdue, but they lost both rather convincingly and it is clear that they aren't enough better than either of those two teams to be a great team. So now back to the Ohio State's bracket seeding we consider them to still be a one seed and see that holding, we know many of you would like to see more shakeup and have them fall out of the one line but it won't happen. The Big Ten conference is probably the second best conference in the nation behind the Big East and if the Buckeyes go through it with only two losses both at the hands of the conferences other power teams, well what more can you really ask for? Frankly we don't believe Duke, Texas, Pitt, or Kansas would have less losses in the Big Ten and that is your answer as to why they don't fall. Of course are final thought is Ohio State was probably a little lucky to make it as far as they did without a loss.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Riser: San Diego State

2011-02-19T15:29:00.000-08:00

Like BYU, San Diego State is a March Madness 2011 riser that the major conference fans hate to see keep on winning but win they did as they beat Air Force 70 to 58 on the road to get their 27th win of the season. Malcom Thomas had 20 in this one and Kawhi Leonard had 18 in the Aztecs win. Unlike BYU San Diego State isn't led by one star but they still haven't played anyone and we will tell you why this team has no business being a top seed in the March Madness 2011 bracket. We don't believe that their big guys can match up against big guys from the other top teams they will be playing, Thomas and Leonard look pretty good against who they get to play in conference but they will be exposed badly in March.

March Madness 2011 1 Seed Update: Kansas

2011-02-19T15:20:00.000-08:00

Kansas which just this week was able to wrestle the number 1 ranking from Ohio State will keep it again this week as Kansas defeated Colorado 89 to 63 at home. Great to see a team rise to number 1 and not have a letdown. We don't think that Kansas will get the number 1 seed in the tournament because we think Ohio State will if they win the rest of their games including games against Wisconsin and Purdue to come. In this game Kansas shot 52.4% from the field and 50% from three hitting 11. All five of Kansas's starters scored in double figures led by Markieff Morris with 26 a season high for him. Anytime you have the potential for balanced scoring like Kansas does you have a real good thing going for March Madness.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Riser BYU

2011-02-19T15:14:00.000-08:00

A lot of us who cheer for big conferences like the Big East and the Big Ten can't stand to see a team rising in the March Madness 2011 bracket like BYU. We say they haven't played anyone, WTF well we have bad news for you they aren't going to loose to TCU as they have a very comfortable second half lead over TCU. BYU looks no worse than a three seed right now in how the committee will seat them but we are with you and say no way should they be that high. We will use this game against TCU as an example TCU sucks they have 1 game in the Mountain West Conference and while Jimmer Fredette is a great college player he is 3 of 9 shooting from beyond the arc in this game which equals a loss against any team with a pulse during March Madness 2011. Our point is that yes they have a star but that doesn't make a great team and if he has one off night they should loose, but they don't because they get to play teams like TCU far to often.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Buster: Texas Losses

2011-02-19T15:07:00.000-08:00

In a rather large upset that is definitely going to be the top March Madness 2011 bracket buster this Saturday Texas had their first loss in conference play going down 70 to 67 in Lincoln. How on earth could Texas loose to Nebraska well first it is always tough to win on the road in conference play (Nebraska is 15-1 this season at home after all) and it is almost impossible when your star had a 3 for 16 shooting game, he still had 18 but yikes.

March Madness 2011 bracket impact. This one loss we are sad to say knocks Texas to the 2 line for now and the worst part is the win can't really get Nebraska even on the bubble.

March Madness 2011 Prediction: St. Johns a Bracket Buster

2011-02-19T14:59:00.000-08:00

This a March Madness 2011 prediction nobody would have seen coming to start the season, St. Johns will not only get into the March Madness 2011 bracket but they are going to make some noise. St. Johns is led by senior guard Dwight Hardy who can score with the best of them averaging 17.1 points per game but one of the big things about Hardy is he comes up even bigger in big games scoring 33 vs Uconn and 26 vs Duke. If you are wondering how this team that was considered a rebuilding program has beaten 5 teams in the top 15 this season look no further than it is led by seniors, 4 out of the 5 starters are seniors and the top man off the bench is as well. Anytime you have senior leadership in the college game you can have some success, what we find a little surprising though is that overall the Big East is pretty senior heavy this season so the jump for St. Johns you would think would be lessoned. So our only conclusion is that have a new coach the caliber of Steve Lavin can really make a difference when you have older capable players willing to listen.

Our fearless March Madness 2011 prediction for St. Johns right now is they make it to the second weekend off of some big play from Hardy but they don't have enough overall three point shooting to survive further.

March Mandness 2011 Bracket Shaker St. Johns vs Pitt

2011-02-19T14:41:00.000-08:00

St. Johns didn't figure to make March Madness 2011 if you talked to people before the start of the season but after their 60 to 59 point win over vs Pitt at the Garden we guarantee you St. Johns is dancing in 2011. With their latest upset they have now beaten 5 teams in the top 15 and two in the top five which is a resume just about every team in the country can be jealous of. To get this win Dwight Hardy had a dramatic under-hand flip in at the buzzer. This was a real nice win for St. Johns (17-9, 9-5) as they were able to build a strong lead to start the game and then had to deal with adversity with their top two scorers relegated to the bench with foul trouble. Pitt got up by as many as 6 in the second half but St. Johns fought back for another win. Pitt falls to 24 and 3 and 12 and 2 in the wicked tough Big East. Dwight Hardy led St. Johns with 19 points despite the first half foul trouble and Ashton Gibbs had 26 points for Pitt leading all scorers.

March Madness 2011 bracket impact analysis, we don't think this one loss alone drops Pitt off of the 1 line of the bracket but of course gets them one step closer to being a 2 seed. For St. Johns we thought they were going to get in but this essentially clinches it in our mind, what a turn around for this program.

March Madness 2011 Monday Rankings Talk

2011-02-13T21:57:00.000-08:00

The Ohio State Buckeyes finally lost a game as they went down Saturday in Madison, so will they drop out of the one spot. We think they will but shouldn't, CBS already has their rankings out for the week and they keep OSU at number one but they likely in the minority as it is always fun to vote a new number one despite the logic. While we agree with Ohio State keeping the one we also were a little surprised Wisconsin didn't jump a little higher in the CBS rankings but then again their number 9 Georgetown is hard to argue against as well. You can find the CBS rankings here, http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/rankings/top25

March Madness 2011 Bracket Shaker this Sunday?

2011-02-13T21:42:00.000-08:00

Nope the March Madness 2011 bracket didn't shake this Sunday at least not on the high end as for the first time in recent memory there wasn't even one loss in the top 25 on a Sunday.

#5 Duke 81-71 over Miami
#9 UCONN 69 - 60 over Marquette
#12 Purdue 81-70 over Illinois
#16 Arizona 67-52 over Arizona State
#25 Minnesota 62-45 over Iowa

March Madness 2011 Bubble Watch: PAC Ten Monday Update

2011-02-13T21:20:00.000-08:00

Whatever happened to basketball on the West Coast? With March Madness 2011 approaching faster than you think their isn't even one lock yet to play in the tournament.

PAC 10 Bubble Watch

Arizona (10-2, 21-4)- Arizona is barely on the bubble and will likely graduate to a lock very soon, they had a 67 to 52 victory over in state rival Arizona State that almost seals the deal. It is hard to believe that we can even be talking about them on the bubble with that record but they haven't really beaten anyone. They have a one game lead on the conference at present and we have no doubt they will win the conference.

UCLA (9-3, 17-7) - Unlike Arizona UCLA actually has some decent victories that allow them to get into the dance without winning the PAC 10. The Bruins beat BYU and St. Johns and that helps a lot. UCLA beat Oregon State at home 69 to 61, a win is a win but this one falls only into the needed to win because a loss would have been embarrassing. UCLA is going to get every opportunity they need to finish the season out strong and impress with games against Arizona, Washington and Washington State to finish out the season.

Washington (8-4, 16-7) - Washington can flat out score with the second highest scoring average in the country but they had a rough stretch in conference play and they need to finish hot. They beat Stanford 87-76 at home on Saturday. There next game is against Arizona State on the road, so they better win that one against the lowly Sun Devils. Our guess is that the Huskies will take some more stumbles again and will not be dancing in March Madness 2011, but that is just our fearless prediction.

March Madness 2011 Bubble Watch: Big Ten Monday Update

2011-02-13T21:00:00.000-08:00

As we will do every week up until the March Madness 2011 bracket is released, we will check in on the bubble watch every Monday.

Big Ten Bubble Watch
Illinois (6-6, 16-9) - Illinois lost on their own floor to a Purdue squad that didn't exactly play lights out shooting a whopping 28.6 from the floor in the first half. Sophomore reserve guard Brandon Paul gives hope for the Illini future as he had 23 points in this game but there will quickly be no March Madness 2011 future unless things turn around quick. Illinois has a big win against Wisconsin at home but that is about it, they do have chances though to get themselves to the dance though as they still have games left against Ohio State, and Purdue but they really need to rise to the occasion and get one of those two.

Minnesota (6-7, 17-8) - The Gophers really looked like a lock before the injuries and transfers occurred as they do have wins against West Virginia, UNC and Purdue. The Gophers finally ended their loosing streak with a nice 62-45 win on the road versus Iowa. Sure Iowa was probably a little emotionally spent after a tough loss to Wisconsin but the Gophers moved pretty closed to being in March Madness 2011. The Gophers have a very favorable schedule coming up so if they win most of they can real a few off they will be dancing.

Michigan State (6-6, 14-10) - The Spartans didn't play this weekend but they did win their last game versus Penn State and knocked PSU out of the March Madness 2011 bubble talk. The Spartans have games left with Ohio State, Purdue, Minnesota and Illinois but they need to win a lot as it is hard to explain away 10 losses and a win against Purdue or Ohio State might just be required.

Ohio State Reaction to First Loss: March Madness 2011 Impact Game

2011-02-12T21:43:00.000-08:00

Here is some tape of the reaction to Ohio State's first loss of the season at the hands of Wisconsin. Listen to the press conference highlights from coach Thad Matta David Lighty, and William Buford.

Coach Speak with Villanova's Jay Wright / Bo Ryan

2011-02-12T21:29:00.000-08:00

For those of you who missed it ESPN had a great interview on Saturday with Villanova coach Jay Wright and we highly encourage you to check it out. Wright is one of the coaches who just has the gift of gab and has some great quotes and thoughts in a simple composed manner. On Villanova's epic loss to Rutgers he said they just need to feel the loss as a team and then have a good breakfast as a team and a good practice. He also said that he believes the Big East should have at least 10 teams in and he thinks the conference's strength this year is in experienced players and not as many super stars. We really can't do him justice try to find it.

In other coach speak Bo Ryan at halftime of the big victory over OSU gave his usual no kidding deadpan quotes with the best a question about what they need to do on defense, he said play it the way he coaches it (now that is not a line a lot of coaches have the guts to serve up to a cute girl on the sidelines). It should be noted after the game he really praised the Buckeyes and said something to the effect you will continue to hear a lot about them, also at halftime when asked about Sullinger he deflected praising the whole team. Finally when asked where this victory ranks he said he will evaluate that in 20 years from the Jersey shore.

March Madness 2011 Prediction: Wisconsin No Fluke

2011-02-12T21:10:00.000-08:00

The Wisconsin Badgers beat the 24-0 Buckeyes at home at the Kohl Center in a game they were actually favored in. You decided to say that is nice they win at home a lot they are always pretty decent but come March Madness 2011 they won't make noise, they aren't that great. In fact up until a couple of months ago Badger fans themselves didn't appreciate their current squad saying the program was going downhill fast with a lack of recruiting in recent years, well we are here to say is whatever you do don't sleep on the Badgers during March Madness 2011 because they can do very real damage and very well could be the best dark hoarse pick in 2011.

Why you ask, first this team has not one but to very Marquee game changing players in Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer who are both upperclassman. Any time you have two players that can keep you in a game like these two can you have a good shot in any tournament. These two are very quietly one of the best inside outside duos in the country. Taylor in this game went off for 27 as you know and that isn't the first time he has just gone off, and as he completes maturing it is likely to happen with more regularity. Jon Leuer can hit shots both inside and outside which gives him two ways in any game to take over, plus he rarely ever misses a free throw. So two players great but that doesn't make a game changing tournament team you say, what does though is when you throw in the ability to really stroke it behind the arc at times. As they showed in this game and it wasn't just Taylor but a whole slew of players, now that makes a scary team during March Madness. As potential three point shooters who can get hot the Badgers have Taylor, Leuer, Nankivil, Gasser, Bruezewitz, Tim Jarmusz, and Rob Wilson who didn't even play. If you were paying attention one of the things you will notice is we just mentioned every player in the starting rotation. So we have three point shooting, two game changing players, and what else well we will add to that exceptional free throw shooting and they don't turn it over so it is highly unlikely to knock them off if they are up at the end of the game. We would mention that they have solid enough interior defense to keep a player like Sullinger from destroying them, a major bug a boo that befalls a lot of tournament teams. Lastly they have a lot of experienced players that have beaten teams like Duke and Ohio State, so they have gotten it done as winners.

So the Badgers actually have quite a bit going for them but why aren't they an even better team. First they really don't have enough players who can beat you off the dribble so that is a problem when the threes don't fall or when you need a last second shot to close out a game. Next while they have a lot of solid players behind Taylor and Leuer they don't have one more star which you really need to be exceptional in March Madness. The guy to watch is the triple double freshman in Josh Gasser if he gets hot in the tournament watch the heck out for Wisconsin, he very quitely had a very nice game against the Buckeyes scoring 11 on 4 of 5 shooting had one turnover and 7 rebounds. The Gasser kid is a difference maker he had a huge rebound to get their prior OT victory at Iowa State. If Gasser rises to a star level that is three stars, a lot of three point shooting and one scary team.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: Ohio State Loss Impact

2011-02-12T20:21:00.000-08:00

It finally happened the Ohio State Buckeyes lost unable to get their 25th straight win in addition to what would have been their first win in a long time in Madison. What does this mean for the 2011 March Madness bracket, our guess is likely not all that much at all. Their is no shame in loosing to a quality Badger squad in the Kohl Center where they rarely loose, in fact Ohio State in this game showed why they look to be a top contender for the Final Four at the very least. In this game Ohio State showed you five minutes of the prettiest basketball you are going to find as they started the second half, this came against a quality team that was playing hard and well. During this time Ohio State flashed their excellent smothering defense in addition to how devastating their inside outside game can be with Sullinger inside and players like Buford and Diebler. Just as in the tournament any team can loose if the other team shoots the lights out of the building from beyond the arc as the Badgers did at 12 of 24 from deep, rarely missing at all in the second half.

Lets talk about what this Ohio State team has going for it, first you have to start off with the freshman national player of the year candidate Jared Sullinger. Sullinger is just a really high quality player at a very early age. You will hear a lot of people talk about his offense and he is quite the player with great footwork and a nice inside game, in this game he scored 19 points on 7 of 12 shooting and made all 4 free throws. What we also want to tell you is a players really good defense for a freshman and most impressive in this game had only 1 fall and it was a touchy call at best.

So you ask if you are Texas, Kansas, or Pitt what else do they have well they have a whole compliment of players that play great defense and are high quality field goal shooters. When you have Sullinger and add a Buford, a Lighty, a Diebler and the other freshman Craft you are guaranteed to be in any game.

The one player we really want to highlight out of that grouping as you probably know a lot about the rest is the other freshman Aaron Craft, he had 8 points in this game and just has that look of a player that will rise up by March Madness time. Craft has the ability to provide the one thing this team maybe lacks a little and that is enough players to beat you to the hoop, Craft can do that and he is fearless.

Our fearless March Madness 2011 prediction after this game is that Ohio State should still be the number 1 team in the country and the number 1 seed in the bracket overall. We know they won't stay number 1 this week but you could make an argument they should.

March Madness 2011 Bracket is Shook: Ohio State vs Wisconsin

2011-02-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

Ohio State came into Madison against the Wisconsin Badgers undefeated at 24-0 and yet they weren't favored to beat the Badgers, the reasons why were the Badgers don't loose at home and oh yes they aren't half bad themselves. If you are a normal college basketball fan that checks this site you probably watched this barn burner but for those of you who aren't we will give you the fast breakdown before we get into the real talk. Wisconsin got off to an early lead and didn't relinquish until the last play of the first half, Wisconsin built the lead through solid defense and good ball movement mixed with working the clock. In the second half Ohio State rose up to start the half with an impressive championship looking run which put them up 15. The Buckeyes built there lead by being incredibly efficient on offense, it was really quite the display inside and outside with Buford and Sullinger.

As Dicky V started to sing the OSU praises and a Badgers death march the Badgers leader Jordan Taylor took over the game. Taylor had a lot of help but in the second half he was on fire, Taylor scored 8 straight points in a flash in the middle of the second half. in all he scored 27 on the day off of 6 of 9 three point shooting and had one turnover, now that is a heck of a ball game. As the Badgers got the lead back with some great three point shooting they never let it go and the Badger fans got to rush the field of play for the second time in a season versus the Buckeyes (they did so in football as well, defeating the number 1 OSU football team).

OK a lot of you like we know already knew this part, we were going to make a long post with what this means for Wisconsin and Ohio State going forward but we decided it would get to long so we are going to give you two separate breakdowns one for the Buckeyes and one for the Badgers as they both are going to be big players in March Madness 2011.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Impact Game: Ohio State vs Wisconsin

2011-02-09T21:46:00.000-08:00

The Ohio State buckeyes are still undefeated and it is February, that is doing insanely well but they likely have their toughest challenge of the regular season at Wisconsin on the road on Saturday. The question is are the Buckeyes that good that they are going to roll through Madison and get the win, keep in mind the Badgers just don't loose at the Kohl Center ask Duke's team last year. Our prediction is the Buckeyes will take their first stumble of the season in Madison, but don't worry OSU fans they still will keep that number one ranking. A lot of teams facing the number 1 undefeated team in the country might have a little anxiety over if they can get it done, they might feel the hype but we would be willing to bet money the Badgers could care less if Ohio State is number 1 the fact is they are just another Big Ten team coming to where Big Ten teams loose 99.9% of the time the Badgers will feel no pressure in fact the Buckeyes lead the Big Ten race over the Badgers by enough that it is unusual they won't be facing the pressure of trying to win the league title even. No pressure, soft rims, running hot team, and solid coaching equals a Buckeyes loss.

Fact you might not know if the Badgers do beat the Buckeyes they will have knocked off the number 1 Buckeyes football team and the number 1 Buckeyes basketball team in the same season, for those of you not in the know over the last decade and a half OSU and UW have had the quietest most meaningful rivalry in the Big Ten.

Watch this video of the CBS experts with their predictions and thoughts on the Buckeyes and Badgers.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: Big East Fall

2011-02-09T20:48:00.000-08:00

The Big East has been brutal to teams trying to make top lines in the March Madness 2011 bracket. This time it was Villanova giving up the rush the court celebration as Rutgers picked them off in the final seconds. Jonathan Mitchell had a four point play in the final second for the win, just crazy folks. He shot a 24 foot three pointer and somehow Corey Fisher fouled him, really how do you screw up that bad. Fisher was the goat in this game as he had a bad final seconds also missing a key free throw, but you know they wouldn't have been in a position to win on the road without him either. There is some debate out there if the long inbound pass wasn't thrown from a foot inbounds but whatever this Big East basketball at its finest.

March Madness 2011 Big Ten Riser - Badgers

2011-02-09T20:33:00.000-08:00

The Wisconsin Badgers were red hot versus MSU hitting tough shots all game long, of course you knew the tables were going to turn and they shot as bad as you can shoot in the first half against Iowa. The bad news for the rest of the Big Ten is that the Badgers displayed that they actually can close out a game on the road beating Iowa in OT. You might look at this game just off record and think this was a complete sign of the Badgers weakness but Iowa has played significantly better in recent weeks and their crowd was amped for this game, make no mistake this was a good road win by a team that just might make some noise if they can get a sharp shooter hot during March Madness 2011. That by the way is the key for the Badgers, they will only go far if one of their perimeter shooters not named Leuer or Taylor gets hot. The Badgers just don't have the defense this year to make a run on defense alone.

March Madness 2011 Prediction: Duke and UNC

2011-02-09T20:20:00.000-08:00

Well Duke pulled out a great victory over UNC at home 75 to 71 after being down most of the game. Nolan Smith as anyone could have predicted was right in the middle of the comeback and he has to be front and center at the top of player of the year lists now, he had 34 points in all. Sophomore guard Seth Curry added 22 points off the bench, his season average is only 8 so big game for him. One of the positives for UNC is that they competed extremely well with stud freshman Harrison Barnes having only a lackluster night with 9 points, 6 boards and 2 blocks. Junior Tyler Zeller led North Carolina with 24 points on 10 of 14 shooting. If you missed this game you missed a good one. Our fearless March Madness 2011 is that Duke will be playing in the National Title game while UNC is back and will be making an Elite Eight run as they grow better every game. Games like this help both teams in their development towards March, and help fans feel the power of college basketball before then.
Bonus early and fearless March Madness prediction: Nolan Smith is MVP of the tournament.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Shaker Game

2011-02-09T16:54:00.000-08:00

Big game for the 2011 March Madness bracket in Duke vs UNC at Cameron indoor where Duke does not loose. Duke is the number 5 team in the country and UNC checks in at 21 but rankings hardly matter in a rivalry game of this magnitude. UNC has the rising stock of freshman Harrison Barnes who was called my many the number 1 recruit in the country for his class, he might have started a bit slow but in the last 5 games he has averaged 18.8 points while shooting a much higher 51.5% from the field than the 37% over the rest of the season. Is Barnes enough to give Duke a run in this game, some experts say yes but we say no way not with the Duke defense. Duke is looking very much like the last of the one seeds for March Madness 2011. We are sure you know but the players to keep your eye on most are Nolan Smith a POY canidatefor Duke and the UNC frosh Barnes.

March Madness 2011 Bubble Watch: Michigan State Update

2011-02-08T21:21:00.000-08:00

Well Michigan State actually needs to even work their way back onto the March Madness 2011 bubble especially after the beat down they absorbed at the Kohl Center in Madison. To be fair the Spartans ran into a bit of a buzz saw that day in a game where the Badgers made some really tough shots, but they are reeling. How bad is it you ask, well Tom Izzo apparently got a message of support from Gilbert owner of the Cavaliers who as you might remember also likely offered him a job this last off-season in a bid to keep the King. Yes that is right a guy who's pro paid players have gotten him 0 victories in 24 games is offering his support. Michigan State can back on track at home against an actually pretty tough Penn State squad that beat them at Happy Valley. We have been giving this team a lot of thought as this epic fail of a team has kind of come out of know where and as of now we are going to make the bold prediction that you know what there is still basketball to be played and the Spartans clearly usually play their best at the end of the year so they will make March Madness 2011 somehow someway and they will even make it to the Sweet Sixteen. How do you like that fearless prediction?

March Madness 2011 Big Ten Teams: Purdue Wins

2011-02-08T20:29:00.000-08:00

The number of Big Ten teams that project to play in March Madness 2011 appears to be quickly dwindling but Purdue is one that is a lock. Purdue beat Indiana today 67 to 53 at home for their fourth straight win over the once proud Hoosiers. Note to Vols fans cheaters don't get ahead. Anyways Purdue got another win to go to 8-3 in the Big Ten and 19-5 overall on star JaJaun Johnson's birthday he had 15 points but Moore led with 25 points. It is really hard to tell right now how good Purdue is as they didn't do well against the Badgers who have been inconsistent themselves but they do have two great players in JaJaun and Moore and our prediction is that they should be at least a four seed and make some noise during March Madness.

March Madness Bubble Watch: Kentucky

2011-02-08T20:16:00.000-08:00

Kentucky takes on Tennessee and their newly returned coach Bruce Pearl tonight. Kentucky you would think would always be a lock for the NCAA tournament especially with Calipari as the coach but not so as a loss would drop them to 4-5 in the SEC and only 16 and 7 overall. Kentucky is number 18 still in the rankings but still they really can't afford a slide of any magnitude. Frankly we are rooting hard for Kentucky in this game because there is something more fishy about Bruce Pearl as a coach and a person than even Calipari, as you recalled Pearl is just coming off of an 8 game suspension for lying to the NCAA. This is just another smooth move from the guy with the poor dressing skills.

Update: Kentucky did pull out a 73 to 61 win at home which brings them one step closer to being a real lock in the March Madness 2011 tournament. Junior guard DeAndre Liggins had a nice game to lead all scorers with 19 points.

Michigan State Spartans 2011: Epic Fail

2011-02-06T11:48:00.000-08:00

Michigan State has been to March Madness 12 times in a row but it really looks like the streak will be over in an absolutely EPIC Fail situation. The Spartans came into the season as favorites for the Final Four instead they look like a disaster and just got completely humiliated by Wisconsin on national TV on CBS. The Spartans were thought to have a lot of talent coming back but they really miss the defensive efforts of Raymar Morgan. In addition Tom Izzo has had to deal with an unusual amount of unrest in the program with suspensions and transfers. Every team making the March Madness 2011 bracket has to be jumping for joy because the Spartans have shown everybody more often than not they will knock you off in March.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Shaker Sunday

2011-01-30T17:28:00.000-08:00

There were a lot of upsets this weekend but none bigger than the Sunday upset of St. Johns beating #3 Duke 78 to 93 in the Garden. Holy cow this upset unlike the one of UCONN yesterday is going to have some real ramifications in the seeding for the March Madness 2011 bracket. For starters St. Johns just might get themselves on to the bubble with this 15 point victory. The end year are probably most interested in is what happens to Duke, well because of this game they are off the 1 line for sure and might have a difficult game getting back their with the Big East dominance this year. Ohio State looks at this point to be a lock for a number 1 and that only leaves three spots to fill with likely two going to Big East schools and with the upset we like the chances of a Big Twelve team locking down a 1 seed. Senior guard Dwight Hardy came up big in the win for St. Johns with only 1 turnover and 26 points.

UCONN 2011 March Madness Bracket Key Game

2011-01-29T20:56:00.000-08:00

Don't worry UCONN, their will be more big Big East falls and more than likely they will be at your hands. UCONN Still a 2 seed.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Shaker Saturday

2011-01-29T19:15:00.000-08:00

Just when you thought the March Madness 2011 bracket was starting to come into focus it became upset Saturday in the Big East and elsewhere in the top 25. Ohio State tried its best to join the party but was able to get buy a pesky Northwestern team 58 to 57 but others were not so lucky. In Big East upsets number 5 Uconn lost a heart breaker in double overtime 78 to 79, number 7 Villanova lost 69 to 66 to number 20 Georgetown and number 10 Syracuse lost to Marquette 70 to 76. In the Big Ten number 15 Wisconsin had a chance to beat a solid Penn State team on the road and move up in the bracket but instead went ice cold in the second half and let PSU state their case for making March Madness with a 52 to 56 victory. And the biggest March Madness 2011 bracket shaker of the day was BYU loosing to New Mexico 77 to 86, BYU was looking like a team that could make it all the way up to a two line and now they probably with this bad loss and a lack luster schedule coming up likely can't make it above the 6 line.

March Madness 2011 Bracket: Bracket Shaker Ohio State vs Purdue

2011-01-26T17:14:00.001-08:00

In what was a big game for the very top of the March Madness 2011 bracket Ohio State took apart a very solid Purdue squad. In our view the Big East can keep talking but Ohio State will be the number 1 seed in the March Madness 2011 bracket. Watch this highlight video of the Buckeye vs Purdue game.

March Madness 2011 Bracket Talk - BYU Seed?

2011-01-26T17:07:00.000-08:00

What seed should BYU be so far in the March Madness 2011 bracket, they have a good record and a "sexy" player that could take them far in Jimmer Fredette. Watch this video from CBS on their thoughts on BYU and more, we think they are wrong and BYU is at least a 2 seed. Tell us what you think!

March Madness 2011 Bubble Update

2011-01-26T17:00:00.000-08:00

It is never to early to look at the March Madness 2011 bubble so without further blather here goes.

Baylor - In
Wichita State - Out
UCLA - Out
Oklahoma State - In
Richmond - In
Washington State - In
UAB - Out
Penn State - Out

Your thoughts, let us know.

March Madness 2011 Brackets - Conference Bid

2011-01-26T16:57:00.000-08:00

Every year the debate rages on what conference deserves the most bids to March Madness but in 2011 it is clear that the Big East will fill the largest number of bracket slots. For those of you who live on the West Coast and don't get to see enough Big East basketball we can assure you this year the conference is the real deal. The most interesting debate in the 2011 March Madness bracket is what conference should get the second most bids, right now ESPN's Bracketology has the Big Twelve and Big Ten tied with six bids each but the Big Ten came into the year over rated, in particular teams like Minnesota and Michigan State with that we see the Big Twelve getting the second most amount of teams in. One thing that should be pointed out is that the dominance of the Big East looks like it is going to squeeze out a lot of those "Mid-Major" we all like to see make noise.

This is what the bids by conference for the March Madness 2011 bracket currently looks like.
Big East - 11
Big 12 - 6
Big Ten - 6
SEC - 5
ACC - 5
Mountain West - 3
Pac-10 - 3
Horizon - 2
West Coast - 2
Missouri Valley - 2
Colonial - 2
Atlantic 10 - 2

March Madness 2011 Dates

2011-01-26T16:46:00.000-08:00

Mark your calender folks these are the March Madness 2011 dates!

March Madness First Round 2011 dates - March 15, 16
March Madness Second and Third Round 2011 dates - March 17, 18, 19, 20
March Madness Regionals 2011 dates - 24, 25, 26, 27
March Madness Elite Eight / Final Four dates - 2,4

March Madness 2011 Big Twelve Update

2011-01-24T20:23:00.000-08:00

The Big Twelve should make a big impact in the March Madness 2011 bracket and it looks like the two top teams making that noise will be number 6 rated Kansas and number 7 rated Texas. Watch this view from Fox Sports on if Texas can't get by Kansas by March Madness 2011 time.

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video?vid=5a4746f2-ff16-4193-9ad0-81a6cd6c94a8" target="_new" title="">Goodman: Jump the Jayhawks?</a>

March Madness 2011: Josh Gasser Impact Player Potential

2011-01-24T19:10:00.000-08:00

The Wisconsin Badgers just beat up Northwestern, which while a little surprising in the brutality of it doesn't raise a lot of eyebrows except that Badger freshman Josh Gasser had a triple double in the game. You read correctly a triple double from a freshman, to put that in perspective there hasn't even been a triple double during Big Ten play by anybody in years. Is Josh Gasser the player that gives the Badgers another scoring threat besides Taylor and Leuer and turns this team into a legit March Madness 2011 Sweet Sixteen contender?

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video?vid=03b967b9-52cb-43e9-b3fd-3591b1c3b1ba" target="_new" title="">Highlights: (18) Wisconsin - NW</a>

March Madness 2011 Bracket Update

2011-01-24T19:04:00.000-08:00

After the latest rounds of upsets which included Duke loosing to Florida State watch what CBS has in this March Madness 2011 bracket update.

March Madness 2011 Impact Game: Ohio State vs Purdue

2011-01-24T19:00:00.000-08:00

The 2011 Ohio State Buckeyes are the number 1 team in the country right now and will be facing number 12 Purdue at home in what should be one of their toughest tests to keep the number 1 ranking. Watch this preview for the big Ohio State vs Purdue game.

Snap Judgment Final Four Preview

2010-03-28T17:41:00.000-07:00

Duke (78-71 over Baylor) and Michigan State (70-69 over Tennessee) prevailed on Sunday in two hard-fought contests, settling the 2010 Final Four in Indianapolis. The national semifinals will pit two five seeds, Michigan State and Butler, against each other on one side and two powerhouses, Duke and West Virginia, on the other. A couple thoughts on these match-ups:

- Both semis involve one team with huge recent tournament success against a program entering virtually uncharted territory. Tom Izzo and MSU have made the Final Four an incredible six times in the last 12 years, while Butler makes its first such appearance. And the Dukies who thought the six-year wait between Blue Devils' most recent Final Four berths was an eternity should consult long-suffering Mountaineers faithful, whose program is back on this stage for the first time since 1959, when The Logo suited up for WVU.

- For all the attention given the Bulldogs playing only seven miles from its Indianapolis campus, keep in mind that Butler has under 4,000 undergrads and little long-term basketball tradition. Its home-court advantage, if any, will be significantly less than what basketball pundits will lead you to believe. Michigan State and West Virginia are huge schools whose fans travel well, and Duke has a national fan base that will represent it well in Indy.

- So much for the "talent wins championships" credo - at least for this year. The best NBA prospects on the Final Four rosters are mostly future late-first or early second round picks: Gordon Hayward of Butler, Durrell Summers of MSU, Devin Ebanks and Da'Sean Butler of WVU, and Kyle Singler and Mason Plumlee of Duke (though the latter two are unlikely to declare for the 2010 draft).

I'll leave the actual game-by-game analysis for the so-called experts. They'll provide plenty of it between now and Saturday, and remember: judging by the near-unanimous percentage of them who picked either Kansas or Kentucky to win it all, they're not always right.

-Michael Garcia

March Madness 2010 Elite Eight Talk

2010-03-28T08:07:00.000-07:00

How about Butler moving on to the Final Four after beating Kansas State 63 to 56, we have to admit we didn't see this coming. We had Butler loosing very early in our bracket despite their long winning streak heading into the tournament. Our thought process was that we didn't think Butler was playing very good competition this year as their league was down, and despite the fact they were winning it wasn't always pretty. Despite Butler's play so far during March Madness we still thought Kansas State would win with their tough defense and clutch shooting but it didn't happen but Gordon Hayward scored 22 points for Butler and they played the great defense instead of K State. How far is Butler playing from their campus in the Final Four, only 5 miles, all we can say is look out to the other Final Four teams.

West Virginia beat Kentucky and we saw this coming all the way, we really like this Mountaineers squad with coach Huggins coaching his alma mater. Kentucky was off with their shooting which helped, in fact Kentucky missed 38 three point shots in a row between the Cornell and West Virginia games. If we could change our bracket we would have West Virginia winning it all in their first Final Four appearance since Jerry West took them their in 1959.

March Madness 2010 Sweet Sixteen Recap

2010-03-27T08:20:00.000-07:00

Another great day of basketball for the last four games of the March Madness 2010 Sweet Sixteen. The game of the day turned out to be Tennessee vs Ohio State which was a great hard fought battle. That play though sure looked like a clear foul, there isn't any rule we are aware of that says it is OK to mug a guy on a last second shot. Would we have wanted the game to end on free throws, no way but you still have to call the game the right way at all times. We didn't have Ohio State going to the Final Four and the reason was what you saw on the court yesterday, Turner can play great but Ohio State doesn't have enough ammo on the rest of the team so if he is off for even a couple minutes in a game it is a problem. All Michigan State seems to do in March is win, coach Izzo clearly does his best work in March because this team didn't look like an Elite 8 team all year but they are after beating Northern Iowa 59 to 52. Michigan State even managed to win without star guard Kalin Lucas, junior guard Durrell Summers led the team with 19 points and 7 boards against the Panthers. In the other 2 games Duke and Baylor rolled over Purdue and St. Mary's, both teams are looking tough heading towards the Final Four.

March Madness 2010 Sweet Sixteen Talk

2010-03-25T11:33:00.000-07:00

Who do you have winning today in the March Madness 2010 Sweet Sixteen, do you think the upsets will continue? Our bracket like many of yours isn't doing as well as we had hoped but we are in the 83% percent tile of brackets in a large pool, which could be worse. Speaking of worse have you seen what percent tile the "experts" at ESPN are at? Dick Vitale is at 18.2% and ESPN bracket annalist Joe Lundardi is at 12.6% yikes. So remember next year to keep us in mind if Obama doesn't fill out a bracket, the president is still at 92%, we are feeling better about the advisors he uses.
Back to the Sweet Sixteen games we have Xavier over Kansas State in our bracket and aren't to sure if we still like the pick as K State really is playing great defense. We are going to have faith though that if Kansas can loose to Northern Iowa, Kansas State can easily loose to a solid Xavier team. Syracuse plays Butler today and we think they will have no problem in this game as they have looked sharp. Washington has surprised a lot of people who thought the PAC 10 was as bad as advertised, the Huskies have done well but the Madness will stop against West Virginia.
Can Cornell really beat Kentucky, we absolutely believe in Big Red and if given the chance to fill out our bracket again we would have them beating the Wildcats. We had Cornell originally beating Wisconsin in our bracket but changed it so that Wisconsin would be beating Kentucky, which we thought would happen if they played. We didn't think that Cornell could beat the Wildcats when filling out the bracket but knew they would beat Wisconsin if given the chance due to matchup problems, so we changed everything on Cornell to have them loose before they got to play Wisconsin. After seeing the first two games though Cornell is playing way better than we ever thought possible with the sharp shooting of Wittman leading the way, so look out Kentucky.

March Madness 2010:Saturday's Best

2010-03-21T00:01:00.000-07:00

What about St. Mary's effort in that upset win over Villanova, sure Omar Samhan is a beast and played like it with 32 points and 7 rebounds but there is so much more to this team. The team passes very well which plays a key role in Samhan's scoring, in addition they play very solid defense. It is true that the team has 5 Australians on the team but don't think that this team plays international ball, they don't.
OK now to Omar Samhan he is a beast and that was probably the best game by a player so far in the tournament. Omar runs the court well and puts a lot of pressure on the other teams big to get back and cover him. He scores in multiple ways with terrific touch and has great awareness to where he is around the basket. We had seen a little bit of him before the tournament but what he has done against more stellar competition is truly eye opening.
BYU put up a fight and actually led for a lot of the first half but Jacob Pullen got knocked down and it must have been one of those bumps that gets motors to start because he was running on high after that. Pullen scored 20 points in the first half in addition to playing stellar defense much of that coming after he injured his hip. Pullen ended up with a career high 34 points shooting 7 of 12 from beyond the arc. Kansas State gave up 72 points to BYU but that is pretty good considering that they are normally a scoring juggernaut, Fredette was held to 21 points on 5 of 13 shooting his first game under 30 in 4 games.
Butler is used to the role of the underdog but versus Murray State they were the Goliath that hung on for the win 54 to 52. Give a lot of credit to both teams and the coaching as they made excellent counter moves and traded leads multiple times. How about the defense by Butler on that last chance by Murray State, how many times do you see a team not even be able to get a shot off.
Hello Northern Iowa, you screwed up our bracket and everyones else's and we couldn't be happier. How about that shot from Farokhmanesh I bet he never thought that so many people would ever be able to pronounce his name correctly. Northern Iowa did a great job of playing in your face defense and keeping the game played at the pace they dictated. They had to survive a valiant effort from Kansas but they did it despite some problems inbounding the ball. Kansas has nothing to be ashamed with as they ran into a team that played their heart out, had a game plan and got the job done.

Heroes of March Madness

2010-03-20T17:04:00.000-07:00

Already in 2010's Big Dance, we've seen Jimmer Fredette of BYU, Quincy Pondexter of Washington, Ishmael Smith of Wake Forest, Jordan Crawford of Xavier, Danero Thomas of Murray State, and Omar Samhan of Saint Mary's (twice now) step up and deliver wins to their respective squads. More so than in any other sporting event, March Madness winners are not necessarily the best teams, but the teams with the best players. That's why Kansas and Kentucky are the prohibitive favorites to cut down the nets in Indianapolis - both the Jayhawks and the Wildcats have players who can rise to the occasion and single-handedly pull out a W.

Thomas has already shot his way into Tournament lore with his buzzer-beater to knock off Vanderbilt, but this year's truly Laettner-esque performance has yet to be crafted. It's impossible to guess who the next hero of March will be, but I'll toss out four names to watch: Fredette, Evan Turner of Ohio State, DaSean Butler of West Virginia, and LaceDarius Dunn of Baylor.

With respect to the thrilling upsets and heart-stopping finishes, the best reason to watch the NCAA Tournament is the abundance of heroic performances. Especially in the first weekend, when the match-ups are tighter and the games more unpredictable, one player can take his team over and carry them to one or two improbable victories. Whether it's a lights-out shooter from a mid-major whom few people had heard of (Fredette) or a former stud recruit finally growing into his own Nikes (Pondexter), some of the best March Madness moments come from big-time players transcending their own abilities at critical junctures. If the rest of this tournament is anything like the first two-plus days, us basketball fans have a lot to look forward to in that regard.

March Madness 2010 Friday's Best

2010-03-19T23:42:00.000-07:00

How about number 12 Cornell just taking it to Temple, look for Cornell to beat the Badgers as well as Wisconsin won't match up well against them.
How about the Maryland freshman forward Jordan Williams 21 point and 17 rebound performance leading them to a victory over Houston.
Everybody including Obama seemed to be picking Siena over Purdue but we were vindicated for choosing Purdue in our bracket as JaJuan Johnson went off for 23 and it was clear they still had more talent on the floor.
How about the PAC 10 with their only two teams advancing to the Second Round after everybody talked about how bad the PAC 10 was this year. Cal beat Louisville 77 to 62 to extend the Big East's teams string of upsets against them.
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets hit 24 of 25 free throws to upset Oklahoma State 64 to 59.
Pittsburgh has 6 players score in double figures to beat Oakland 89 to 66 and overcome giving up 28 to Keith Benson.
Missouri forces Clemson into 20 turnovers to get an 86 to 78 win. With the help of those forced turnovers they outscored Clemson 22 to 2 on fast break points.
Dallas Lauderdale plays great defense to help Ohio State beat UC Santa Barbara 68-51. Lauderdale had 8 blocks and 12 boards.
Senior Gonzaga guard Matt Bouldin scored 14 points in the second half to help the Bulldogs hang on for the win over Florida State.
Jordan Crawford had 28 points for Xavier as he sparked the 65 to 54 win over Minnesota. It was all tied up at the half as the Gophers height frustrated Xavier but Crawford had it figured out in the second half.

How did our bracket do on Friday, well not nearly as well as Thursday. We originally had Cornell for the win and changed it because we then had to pick them to beat Wisconsin and that changed a lot in our bracket later on. We knew picking Oakland over Pitt was risky but sense we didn't have Pitt moving on in the next round we did it anyways, we thought Benson would do it for Oakland and he had 28 but they didn't play defense. We missed on Louisville vs California but that was an 8 and 9 and could have gone either way. We did hit on the Missouri win over Clemson as we were sure their defense would carry them and it did. We are really frustrated that our whole East Regional could look perfect right now if we went with Cornell like we did at first, as it is we are now down to 77.9% of brackets nationally but are still setup pretty good in the second round.

March Madness 2010:12 New Mexico State - 5 Michigan State Final

2010-03-19T22:55:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010 Final
12 New Mexico State - 5 Michigan State
Midwest Regional
Final score 70 Michigan State 67 New Mexico State

Someone might want to notify Big Ten powers Wisconsin and Michigan State that they are supposed to play in the second half during March Madness. Michigan State looked to be cruising in the first half up 42 to 29 at the half and then the wheels fell off for a while in the second. Kalin Lucas scored a career high 25 points to help the Spartans earn the win but it was Raymar Morgan who after New Mexico St. came back from 13 down to tie it scored 4 straight points. For New Mexico State Troy Gillenwater scored 17 points including a three pointer with 17 seconds left that made it very interesting cutting the MSU lead to one, but it was also Gillenwater that got called on a rare lane violation on the Morgan free throws after the big three that gave Morgan another chance to make it a 3 point game. Michigan State plays Maryland in the Second Round of March Madness 2010 and we had them loosing that game in our bracket and will stay with that pick as Maryland looked good despite an off night from Vasquez.

March Madness 2010:16 Vermont - 1 Syracuse Final

2010-03-19T22:39:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010
16 Vermont vs 1 Syracuse
West Regional
Final score 79 Syracuse 56 Vermont

Five years ago Vermont shocked Syracuse in the first round but this time Syracuse used a balanced attack and didn't have any problems beating them. Five players for Syracuse scored in double figures being led by Wes Johnson and his 18. Syracuse really focused on running a solid zone defense and ran it pretty perfectly in the win. On offense the Orange shot the ball well making 10 of 22 three pointers and 54.5% overall from the field. One not so great stat for Syracuse is they committed 16 turnovers which is not the mark of a 1 seed versus a 16 seed. Syracuse plays Gonzaga in the second round of March Madness 2010 and we picked them to win that game in our bracket and will keep that pick. We still like our pick for Syracuse not to make the Final Four as we still don't see it happening and the Big East is proving to have been a bit over rated this year.

March Madness 2010:15 UC Santa Barbara - 2 Ohio State Final

2010-03-19T22:28:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010 Final

15 UC Santa Barbara - 2 Ohio State

Midwest Regional

Final score 68 Ohio State 51 UC Santa Barbara

Evan Turner had a tough game for Ohio State with only 9 points on 2 of 13 shooting, but he did add 10 boards. Turner's off night didn't matter for the Buckeyes as they won fairly easily with the aid of the strong games from Jon Diebler and Dallas Lauderdale. Diebler was sick but still hit 7 of 12 three pointers to finish with 23 points. Lauderdale played great defense with 8 blocks and 12 boards. Orlando Johnson had 20 points for the Guachos in the loss. Ohio State will play Georgia Tech in the Second Round of March Madness 2010, we have Ohio State winning in our bracket and still like the pick. Watch for Evan Turner to come back with authority in the game against GT.

March Madness 2010:13 Houston - 4 Maryland Final

2010-03-19T22:18:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010 Final
13 Houston - 4 Maryland
Midwest Regional
Final score Maryland 89 Houston 77

Houston played Maryland very close in the first half but in the second the Terrapins pulled away despite star Greives Vasquez having a quite night with 16 points. Freshman forward Jordan Williams carried the load in Vasquez's stead as he had a shocking 21 points and 17 rebounds, he averaged 9.2 and 8.3 during the regular season. The nations leading scorer Aubrey Coleman had 26 for Houston in the loosing effort. Maryland will take on Michigan State in the second round of March Madness 2010 on Sunday and we have Maryland picked to win in our bracket and still believe in that pick. Two stats that really jumps out at us in this game is that Maryland had 19 assists and out-rebounded Houston 47 to 27.

March Madness Second Round Schedule Saturday March 20,2010:Live Scores,Time,TV

2010-03-19T22:03:00.000-07:00

March Madness First Round Schedule 2010

Saturday March 20, 2010
Game time (all ET),location,live and final scores on this page

All TV is CBS or DirectTV

West Regional

13 Murray State vs 5 Butler (52-54)

Saturday March 20|Time 3:20|San Jose,CA

7 BYU vs 2 Kansas State (72-84)

Saturday March 20|Time 8:10|Oklahoma City

South Regional

10 St. Mary's vs 2 Villanova (75-68)

Saturday March 20|Time 1:05|Providence,RI

11 Old Dominion vs 3 Baylor (68-76)

Saturday March 20|Time 5:45|New Orleans

East Regional

11 Washington vs 3 New Mexico (82-64)

Saturday March 20|Time 5:50|San Jose,CA

9 Wake Forest vs 1 Kentucky (60-90)

Saturday March 20|Time 8:15|New Orleans

Midwest Regional

14 Ohio vs 6 Tennessee (68-83)

Saturday March 20|Time 3:35|Providence,RI

9 Northern Iowa vs 1 Kansas (69-67)

Saturday March 20|Time 5:40|Oklahoma City

March Madness Second Round Schedule Sunday March 21,2010:Live Scores,Time,TV

2010-03-19T17:48:00.000-07:00

March Madness First Round Schedule 2010

Saturday March 21, 2010
Game time (all ET),location,live and final scores on this page

All TV is CBS or DirectTV

West Regional

8 Gonzaga vs 1 Syracuse

Sunday March 21|Time 12:10|Buffalo,NY

6 Xavier vs 3 Pittsburgh

Sunday March 21|Time 4:50|Milwaukee

South Regional

5 Texas A&M vs 4 Purdue

Sunday March 21|Time 5:50|San Jose,CA

8 California vs 1 Duke

Sunday March 21|Time 5:00|Spokane,WA

East Regional

10 Missouri vs 2 West Virginia

Sunday March 21|Time 2:40|Buffalo,NY

12 Cornell vs 4 Wisconsin

Sunday March 21|Time 2:50|Jacksonville,FL

Midwest Regional

10 Georgia Tech vs 2 Ohio State

Sunday March 21|Time 2:20|Milwaukee

5 Michigan State vs 4 Maryland

Sunday March 21|Time 2:30|Spokane,WA

March Madness 2010:10 Missouri - 7 Clemson Final

2010-03-19T15:54:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010
10 Missouri vs 7 Clemson
East Regional
Final score 86 Missouri 78 Clemson

We picked Missouri for the upset because of their defense and were rewarded as they forced 20 turnovers in the victory. Those 20 turnovers led to 22 fast break points for Missouri and was a big reason they won the battle of the paint 42 to 28. Missouri was led in scoring with 20 points each for Ramsey and English, Bowers added 15 and Tiller added 10. Missouri faces West Virginia in the second round and we see them loosing after not being able to force enough turnovers for easy points.

March Madness 2010: 14 Oakland - 3 Pittsburgh Final

2010-03-19T15:41:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010
14 Oakland vs 3 Pittsburgh
West Regional
Final Score 89 Pittsburgh 66 Oakland

We picked Oakland as our 14 seed upset and it looked good early but Pittsburgh pulled away. We thought the big guy Keith Benson would tip this in Oakland's favor and he had 28 points but it wasn't nearly enough as Oakland couldn't play solid enough defense. Pittsburgh burned them for 89 points which we didn't see coming, 6 players scored in double digits with Brown and Dixon leading the way at 17. The thing that really hurt Oakland is they had 17 turnovers and it is hard to pull the upset when you do that. Pittsburgh plays Xavier in the second round, and we had Xavier advancing.

March Madness 2010:13 Wofford - 4 Wisconsin Final

2010-03-19T15:29:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010 Final
13 Wofford vs 4 Wisconsin
East Regional
Final score 53 Wisconsin 49 Oakland

Wofford was able to make a game of it after being down 8 at the half by making a huge run to start the second half where they made like 8 consecutive shots, which is pretty remarkable against a Badger defense that held them without a field goal for 9 minutes at one point in the first half. The Badgers needed a big performance from Jon Leuer and that is what they got as he was strong the whole second half and hit the winning jumper and the sealing free throws in addition to playing the defense that forced the key Wofford turnover. For the Badgers it was a weird game in that they had to go away from their swing offense because the best way to beat Wofford was clearly to attack down low. The Badgers play Cornell in the second round game and will have their hands full because they don't match up well with them and Wisconsin is shooting the ball very poorly right now.

March Madness 2010:4 Purdue - 13 Siena Upset Update

2010-03-19T11:59:00.000-07:00

March Madness 2010 Upset Update
4 Purdue vs 13 Siena
South Regional
Final Score 72 Purdue 64 Siena
(latest update always at the bottom of the article.)
Siena has taken the lead at 18 to 15 as the game is now being played at a faster pace that they prefer, they are on an 8 to 0 run. Kramer is getting beat due to his lack of height on the defensive end. Alex Franklin is off to a great start with 10 points on 4 of 7 shooting for Siena. Johnson is leading the way for Purdue with 9 points. What is really hurting Purdue right now besides the quicker pace is they are 0 for 6 from three point range. A lot of people picked this Siena upset with Hummel being injured, we didn't as we thought Johnson would be enough to get a victory but the matchup problem Kramer is having on defense needs to get corrected.
It is now 20 to 19 Siena with 7:35 to go in the half.
Purdue has asserted themselves in the second half and are now up 56 to 43 halfway through the second.
JaJuan Johnson has been a beast for Purdue with 20 so far, Grant has added 11 and Moore 10.
Purdue got the win like we thought they would, you had to think Purdue would be playing with authority in this game, Johnson finished with 23. Purdue still has a lot of talent and while we thought they would play Utah State in the second round and win we will still take them over Texas A&M who advances to face them in the second round.