Friday, March 29, 2013

Sweet 16: Thursday Wrap/Friday Preview

Greetings! I'm still on the road so forgive the shorter post as I'm operating via iPhone. Lets go!

- Down goes Indiana! The #1 seed Hoosiers went down in a heap to #4 seed Syracuse last night by a 61-50 margin. Michael Carter-Williams had his "breakout" game, scoring 24 points and grabbing 6 rebounds but it was the Syracuse zone defense that smothered Indiana. Tyler Zeller was woefully bad for the Hoosiers (3-10 FG) and they had no answers. Really impressive performance by the Cuse.

- The other upset of the night was #3 Marquette knocking off #2 Miami. The Golden Eagles got 30 bench points and led throughout the game in denying Miami their elite 8 appearance. I wasn't shocked by the result (I picked Marquette) but they ease of victory was pretty jarring and the fighting Buzz Williams' were impressive.

- In the other two games, Ohio State knocked down a game-winning three to break a tie with 2 seconds remaining to advance. The Buckeyes led by a significant margin in the 2nd half before letting go a bit but LaQuinton Ross had a huge half including the game winner and they escaped. Later, Wichita State took La Salle to the woodshed, winning by 14 but looking like they were 20 points better than their offensively-challenged opponent.

What to watch for on Friday...

7:15 - #12 Oregon vs. #1 Louisville (CBS) - Louisville is explosive but I think Oregon can hang. They've been really impressive in the tournament and their guards won't be spooked by the endless Louisville pressure. I'd certainly pick the Cards but it'll be closer than you'd think.

7:37 - #4 Michigan vs #1 Kansas (TBS) - I'm not even being a homer when I say that I believe Michigan is the better team here. It'll come down to making shots (namely threes) and whether Burke and company can do anything in the paint with Withey looming. I don't trust Bill Self's guards at all, and because of that, I'm taking Michigan.

9:45 - #2 Duke vs #3 Michigan State (CBS) - Game of the day. Tom Izzo and Coach K. Two experienced teams, and this is gonna be fun. I have no conviction either way, but ill take Duke with a gun to my head because of Ryan Kelly. Awesome game.

9:57 - #15 FGCU vs #3 Florida (TBS) - I think the dream ends here in a big way for FGCU. Florida is very, very good and they have 4 days to prep for the fury from FGCU. Florida by 17.

Enjoy!

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