Tons of Coaching Carousel News...KG....

EDIT: Calipari takes the UK job officially...no surprise at all to me...but THE story of this (outside of the obvious) is the recruiting shockwaves...there could be as many as 6 of the top 10 recruits in the country affected by this move (3 were at least verballed to Memphis with 2 more set to, etc).....Keep an eye out...

Got a late start....but here we are

• John Calipari STILL mulling the Kentucky thing...it's been nearly 2 days now...this is going Billy Donovan quite quickly lol.... I think he goes...8 years, $35 million reported offer and that's just patently absurd for a college basketball coach....can't see him turning that down especially when he'll probably be able to lure his top 2 recruits right there with him.....
• Next domino? Mike Anderson...currently the coach of Missouri who received a 2+ million dollar offer from Georgia today to be their head coach BUT would also be the leading candidate at Memphis should Cal leave....Keep your eyes open....but he'd generate alot of buzz in Athens...
• Tony Bennett (of Wazzu) to coach Virginia....Meh...I know Virginia has alot of money/rich alumni...but you still can't recruit there....at least not when Tony Bennett plays in the 50s like his dad lol....Shameful that I can't have the same defensive love for Wazzu next year...sigh

And now for non-coaching stuff....

• KG to be shut down until the playoffs? He'll sit at least the next 4 with a knee issue....There's literally no reason IMO to play him again until the playoffs....he doesn't need the tuneup...
• Gary Sheffield released by Detroit....Caught me off guard but all reports are showing he's lost a good deal of bat speed...and if he doesn't have that....he's pretty much a non-factor since he can't play defense anymore....
• The Braves extend Chipper Jones until 2012....effectively making him a Brave for life....I've never been the biggest fan of his (especially for a Braves diehard) but I like the idea of a guy only playing for one team so I'm fine with this.... EXCEPT for the fact that the Braves are now on the hook for approx. $13 million to a 39-year-old 3B in 2012....yikes
• Courtney Paris...the Oklahoma women's basketball double-double machine....is the first 4-time 1st-team All-American in the sport...congrats...she's pretty much good for like 24 and 15 a night....great player, big ups....

Have a great day folks....baseball starts Sunday so I'll have the rest of the preview up by Friday

Final 4 Set, A little NBA, Tiger....

Greetings!

• Michigan State by 12 huh? I doubt you saw that one coming....I was on the record on them making it a ballgame, but holding Louisville to 52 points is something to behold...They exposed their drive and kick offense, and absolutely dominated on the glass....Goran Suton was everywhere, and anytime you can hold Terrance Williams to 1-7 shooting, you can beat Louisville....Impressive coaching display by Izzo as well, using their strength inside and their depth to his advantage
• UNC over Oklahoma.... First of all, the fact that Blake Griffin managed 23 and 16 (on only 9-12 shooting) was unbelievable simply b/c his guards couldn't make shots, and he was veritably triple-teamed all day long because of it.... 9-29 shooting from their 3 guards isn't going to do it though...ESPECIALLY when (as a team) they started 0-15 on 3's....Too much talent/scoring options from UNC....and Ty Lawson is playing out of his mind in spurts, and had I known he was in the physical shape to be playing 36 minutes on that toe.....sigh, I won't even say it.... An underlying result of this game to me? Hansborough managed only 8 points.... that shouldn't surprise you when you realize who was guarding him....
• So the final 4 is set....Full Preview Friday or Saturday morning.....

Now to some other stuff....

• Tiger, Tiger, Tiger Woods ya'll.... The King himself comes back from 5 down to start the day and he makes a near 20-footer for the win on 18....can't make this stuff up.....What do you say? He's the best...
• The Hawks get a good win....or so it seems? LA wasn't near full-strength with Kobe at half-steam so I'm not impressed....but it looks good on the resume ESPECIALLY when you consider Joe Johnson shot 4-18...that normally indicates a loss....
• John Calipari to Kentucky? Ehhhh I don't really see how either party would want to get mixed in...Calipari is forever shady and Kentucky's already done the whole probation thing.... and Calipari has virtually no restrictions (indicated by his inability to graduate anyone at Memphis) and no competition where he currently resides....30 wins every year as long as he keeps recruiting.....
• Who in the world though Kevin Gregg would beat out Carlos Marmol for the Cubs closer job? Not me.... but I guess when Gregg didn't allow a run all spring that might have done it...
• Seth Curry, brother of Davidson's Stephen Curry and 20+ point scorer at Liberty (as a Freshman)...will transfer to....DUKE! The story was released earlier in the week that he wanted more exposure...that will certainly provide that....he can't play until 2010-11 because of the 1-year rule for D-1 transfers....but he should step in immediately and Coach K doesn't have to worry about filling that spot as Curry is a proven commodity at the college level....of course it's all a moot point if they can't recruit any athletes up front and they keep trotting out Brian Zoubek clones....
• Jeff Capel to meet with Blake Griffin about his "future"...I'll say this...if Capel can convince him to come back? That's the most shocked I would've ever been about somebody coming back to school...and I mean ever....more than Matt Leinart, more than Tim Duncan....more than anyone...It just doesn't happen in today's college hoops
• Chris Paul was from another planet last night down the stretch....making steals, all his FTs....An extremely clutch, impressive performance....
• Memo to Phoenix....if you can't beat Sacto (and allow 126 points to them) you don't deserve consideration for the playoffs.....and now that you are 3.5 games out....Wave goodbye....and to think, Dallas got run of the court by Cleveland (to the tune of 45 points or so in the last 3 quarters since Dallas was up 17 in the 1st half) and still reside comfortably in 8th
• And finally...Mark Cuban got fined by the NBA for criticizing refs via Twitter....awesome lol

A Big-Time Saturday....

First of all...let's recap the best day of the tourney so far from a quality standpoint...

• UConn outlasts Missouri....Missouri hung tough throughout but just too much down the stretch...Freshman Kemba Walker was everywhere (7-9 FG, 23 points, 5 boards, 5 dimes) and he, along with AJ Price, was enough to offset Thabeet's foul trouble and lack of production....Missouri did what they had to do (go right at Thabeet and take him away, etc.) and just came up a little short....Well played on both accounts but in the end....the 45-26 rebounding advantage (patently absurd btw) is what propelled UConn...just too many second shots...
• Game of the tourney: Nova over Pitt.... Big-time ending featuring a stupid inbounds pass by Nova for a TO....2 huge FTs by Mr. Clutch Levance Fields to tie it....then a beautiful play design/execution by Jay Wright and Scottie Reynolds for the win.... big-time performance and a well-played back-and-forth game.... I'll quickly throw Jamie Dixon under the bus for only getting DaJuan Blair 9 shot attempts (he went 9-9 btw) but other than that, the reason Pitt faltered was simply a lack of wing production outside of Sam Young.... Biggs, Dixon, Wanamaker, and Gibbs combined for 10 points...that's not going to cut it in this type of game against the plethora of guards Nova throws at you.... Key stat of the game? Villanova goes 22-23 at the line.... When you win by 2? That's even more magnified....
• Overall? I thoroughly enjoyed the slate... 2 well-fought games by teams that didn't lay eggs...and this sort of saved this year's tournament for me...I had been losing a bit of that fire from underwhelming performances...I'm back

Now....to the Sunday Preview..... First of all, THE PICKS....Now 12-10-1 after the UConn cover....

• Michigan State +7
• Oklahoma +7

As you can see I like both underdogs...here's why

• Mich State/Louisville....2 big factors here.....it's a virtual MSU homegame in Minneapolis....and Louisville has been told how great they are for 2 straight days....there will be a slight letdown if nothing else but b/c they can't possibly shoot that well 2 games in a row....Michigan State will grind the game down, defend, and not be rattled by the pressure b/c their lead guard play is exceptional.... I still like Louisville in the game (Too much Terrance Williams IMO), but look for it to come down to the last 5 minutes....
• UNC/Oklahoma.....Once and for all, we'll all put to rest any of the hangers-on who think Psycho T is the best player in the nation.... Blake Griffin will go nuts here if they single him up (which they shouldn't)....the key to the game? How do Willie Warren and Austin Johnson respond to the biggest game of their lives against veterans Lawson and Ellington? If they can hold their own, Oklahoma wins....I don't necessarily think Warren will get battered...but with how Lawson looked on Friday, I have no choice but to think Roy Williams will be basically forced to double Blake Griffin.... Tony Crocker CANNOT disappear for Oklahoma to have a chance either....UNC already has the depth advantage...I like UNC b/c Lawson looks 100% and this entire team has been here before from Roy Williams on down, whereas Oklahoma doesn't have one guy who's been this far....

To the Elite 8 We Go....

A flop of a night last night....

• Louisville takes Arizona behind the woodshed.... literally.... 103-64 shouldn't happen in the Sweet 16...and don't give me the "Arizona is a #12 seed" stuff....they don't have 12 seed talent and they're from a power conference...so stop it....I think this is more embarrassing for Arizona than indicative of how well Louisville played....they played great...but at no point should they be 39 points better than Arizona on a neutral court....blame the Cats for that...THIRTEEN guys scored Louisville...I don't recall ever seeing that lol....at least Chase Budinger showed up...he was the only one
• Oklahoma picks apart Syracuse....this was "only" a 13 point final score...but it wasn't that close...Oklahoma led by somewhere in the 20s for most of the 2nd half and they were never challenged... Tony Crocker played his best collegiate game (28 points, 6 threes, lockdown D on Devendorf) and ALMOST overshadowed Blake Griffin's 30 and 14 (I kid, I kid)....Griffin was awesome...but that should've been foreseen when factoring Syracuse plays that 2-3 zone...bad matchup...Johnny Flynn tried to carry the Cuse himself despite banging his shoulder early (22 points, 6 dimes) but he wasn't enough to combat Devendorf and Rautins shooting a combined 7-24 and the Orangemen big guys being totally overmatched
• UNC puts on a show.... Well, I was the one touting Gonzaga...you heard it.... then the first 15 minutes of the game happened....UNC put on quite honestly the best offensive exhibition for that amount of time I can ever remember seeing in College....they shot 67% and scored 45 points in the first 15 minutes...and that's all despite shooting 5-13 from the line during that time....they should've been over 50....that pretty much ended things for the Zags, who actually shot well early...just not well enough to combat UNC....Ty Lawson was everywhere with 19 and 9 (despite only taking 9 shots) and they seemingly didn't even need anything from Tyler Hansborough (Psycho T! lol) who somehow ended with 24 and 10 despite never seeming like he was doing anything....the backbreaker? Gonzaga cut it to 11 in the 2nd half....timeout....then Bobby Frasor takes (and makes) his only 2 shots in back to back trips...suddenly its 17 and its over.....Sadly, I thought Gonzaga played decently (47% shooting, only 12 TO's)....not great by any means...but the fact that they lost by 21 is a testament to how ridiculous UNC's offense was....and it didn't help that UNC converted on nearly every Gonzaga TO (19 points off 12 TOs) and won the rebounding battle 40-28
• There WAS one good game....Michigan State edged Kansas in a game to the wire.... Kalin Lucas hit a leaning and-1 to cap it for Michigan State and despite shooting 5-15 and not playing well, will now be hyped beyond measure (lol)....Goran Suton was the story for Mich. State carrying them offensively to the tune of 20 and 9 and somehow adding 5 steals from his center spot.... Sherron Collins and Cole Aldrich were quite good...but the role players had nothing to offer....however, I appreciated this close game infinitely...lol

To Saturday.... First...The PICKS! (10-8-1 entering Friday, Now 11-10-1)

• UConn -5.5 over Missouri

That's it for that lol....Previews now....

• UConn/Missouri.... I love the Huskies here....now, let me tell you where my allegiance lies...I'm openly rooting for Missouri....that's out of the way now....UConn is simply a terrible matchup for Missou...Think of it this way, Louisville coach Rick Pitino loudly proclaims how terrible of a matchup UConn is for them b/c they love to go to the rim and there's that 7'3 guy in the middle....plus, the UConn guards deftly handle backcourt pressure....now....imagine that Missouri is basically a Louisville clone...except less talented...hmmm.... I won't dumb it down that much...and I WAS impressed by Missouri against Memphis...but this is another animal...the only way they hang here is having their big guys take Thabeet away from the rim by making some jumpshots, and somehow rattle AJ Price and company...I don't see it....
• Villanova/Pitt.... Another good matchup for Pittsburgh (whose bracket just opened up for them).... These teams are familiar with each other obviously and Villanova took their only meeting in Philly this year.... Contrasting styles with Villanova being more up-tempo and guard oriented where as Pitt will grind you to a halt and ride DaJuan Blair...the key for me? Sam Young... He was borderline awful in the Xavier but has a tendency to follow stinkers with solid outputs...he needs to be on tonight for them to win....Villanova has to contain DaJuan Blair.... While Dante Cunningham is a very good player, he's a bad matchup for Villanova b/c Cunningham is lean while Blair can just body him to the rim.... I like Pitt in the game (and not just because I picked them), but it should be entertaining

Sweet 16 Thursday Wrap; Friday Preview

Greetings..... Forgive my tardiness this morning...let's get it...

• UConn puts away Purdue....Purdue was hanging until midway through the 2nd half when UConn turned the Jets on and blew away the hapless Boilermakers....just not enough talent for Purdue to beat a Huskies team that looks great the last 2 weeks...Chris Kramer for Purdue is certifiably nuts...just going AT Hasheem Thabeet....lol....4 guys in double figures for UConn....a ho-hum type victory
• And they'll matchup WITH.....Missouri who ran virtual circles around Memphis in the first half (up 13 at half) and held their ground late in scoring 102 points in a regulation game...I predicted a game in the high 80s/90s...but jeez...5 guys scored 13 or more for Missouri in the win....the lone bright spot for Memphis? Freshman Tyreke Evans was awesome last night...33 points in the biggest game of his young career....That Missouri/UConn matchup should be quite good
• Villanova pounds Duke into submission...this was a close game in the 1st half....and then it wasn't anymore? Lol...Duke shot the ball abysmally (27% FG, 19% threes, 4-32 from Scheyer and Henderson)....but Nova was very impressive on both ends especially in the 2nd half...scoring 51 points with balance....9 guys scored 4 or more points in the game for Nova....Impressive victory....and they'll face?
• Pitt....who held off Xavier with a big-time 2nd half....first of all, this game was exceedingly ugly....both teams shot under 35% from the field...and while some of that is that both of these teams play defense....some of it was just poor offense....downright poor offense at that....Levance Fields hit the biggest shot of the night (again) on one of those "No...No....YES!" type of threes....vintage for him....I wasn't impressed....but my Tourney champion rolls on.....lol All-Big East regional final in the East bracket is sort of fitting....

To Friday.....First? The picks....9-7-1 entering Thursday....1-1 Thursday.....10-8-1 Entering Friday

• Arizona +9 over Louisville...I don't think they win...but they hang around for 37 minutes or so....
• Gonzaga +8.5 over UNC...I just can't see NOT taking the 8 points with the Zags....but I'm biased....
• Michigan State -1.5 over Kansas

To the actual action...

• Arizona/Louisville....The key matchup here? Nic Wise vs. Edgar Sosa...and no, that's not a joke....if Nic Wise plays well, Arizona hangs here b/c Edgar Sosa is their biggest liability....I see that happening...but not enough to win it outright....but hey, go Cats lol
• Gonzaga/UNC....you know where I stand...I honestly think Gonzaga is the best matchup (outside of UConn maybe) for UNC in the entire field....the depth....the ability to score at every position on the floor...Pargo can handle Lawson....I love the Zags...would I be surprised if they lost? No....but I like them more than everybody else you'll meet
• Cuse/Oklahoma....I honestly have no idea here....I know Blake Griffin has no match on the Cuse side of things....I know Johnny Flynn should go off against the Freshman guards of Oklahoma....but in the end I'm sort of clueless...this may be the most intriguing matchup of the night....I'll pick Cuse based on the fact that I just can't stand having Freshman guards on the other side...but when Blake Griffin puts up his 37 and 19...I'll run home
• Mich. State/Kansas....These teams played in January....The Spartans dominated....take that for what you will...I think the bigger thing is this game is in Minneapolis....aka a home game for Michigan State....and the coaching advantage? Clearly with Izzo....the key matchup is between the best players on both teams who HAPPEN to play the same position...Kalin Lucas vs. Sherron Collins....if Lucas can play this to anywhere near a draw....Michigan State wins....and they will....

The Madness: 2nd Thursday

Let's get back to it shall we! First...to the lines....YTD 9-7-1 and profiting lol

• Xavier +7.5 over Pitt....I don't think Xavier wins this game outright...but 7 is a ton for Pitt to be laying given their style of play....I hope I'm wrong (I picked Pitt to win it all, etc. etc.) but this is the play
• Duke -2 over Villanova.... I know I know I know....Duke in the tourney, blah blah blah....but I love the matchup for them....and this is a better Duke team than the last few years... They've gone with the more athletic lineup featuring Elliot Williams and they are defending in the backcourt, not suffering from Greg Paulus anymore, and are a veteran team....and Nova, who is guard heavy, is a good matchup for them....

To the other 2 games not discussed above....

• Memphis/Missouri....I like Memphis alot in this game....Missouri is going to try to press them as they do to everyone...but Memphis has better athletes....only way Missouri wins this game is if they force Tyreke Evans into some freshman mistakes and capitalize on them consistently...I don't see it....too many athletes with a coaching advantage so I go Memphis
• Purdue/UConn....I like Purdue in the game more than most people would...just not enough to bet on it....or is it that I just don't trust UConn? The matchups are there....Robbie Hummel HAS TO be full-strength and effective for Purdue to have any shot, but they'll slow it down...hang around...get the "underdog" neutral crowd in their favor down the stretch and make UConn make plays....this won't be a blowout....but in the end, I think AJ Price and company are too much here...take it with a grain of salt

A Wednesday Night at Philips Arena

So I was at the Hawks/Spurs game last night at the Highlight Factory (laughter).... and had a few thoughts....10 to be exact

1. The Crowd was absolutely dreadful....first of all, the game was "sold out"....this is a shocker in itself since it's the Hawks, but at tip time...I'm not exaggerating here at all btw....it was maybe 30% full....the stands filled throughout but it was probably the most lackluster packed house I've ever witnessed...it was worse than any late 90's Braves crowd....ESPECIALLY when you factor that the game was in single digits throughout, Tony Parker was out of control, and Joe Johnson had 30 points
2. Josh Smith was abysmal....this isn't news....3-12 shooting....a total liability on the offensive end....sounds like a broken record to me...
3. Flip Murray was absolutely unconscious in the 1st half...and Mike Woodson subsequently rewarded his 6-8 FG, 13 point half with only 28 minutes even on a night when Mike Bibby had it going AND Tony Parker was doing whatever he wanted....
4. Speaking of Parker....there's no matchup on this team for him....Mike Woodson won't even think about putting Bibby on him....Joe Johnson is too tall and Parker can just blow by him....Flip isn't a good defender...Acie Law was in street clothes....but after all that....Parker was UNBELIEVABLE last night....18-25 FG...42 points, 10 dimes and I had the feeling throughout he could've had 55-60...he took the entire 3rd quarter off it seemed like...if he makes jump shots, he's literally unguardable....and you don't realize how fast/crafty he really is until you are live
5. Roger Mason....24 minutes...18 points....0 assists....he was in a zone shooting it (7-10) but I can't get a dime? Speaking of which...I was informed last night by a confidant (hm, Ryan) that the Spurs had 13 assists for the game....they scored 102 points.....aka alot of Iso's for Tony Parker and Roger Mason....
6. Oh yea...I forgot...Tim Duncan, aka the most valuable player of the the last 15 years and the best Power Forward of all time....was a late scratch.....Manu Ginobili was a shell of himself...and the Spurs won by 10 on the road in a building that the Hawks had been dominating in.....I have no idea
7. Mario West should never play 9 minutes in a close game....
8. I liked Drew Gooden better with the hair patch....
9. Has anyone noticed that Bruce Bowen is D-O-N-E? His minutes are now Ime Udoka's....he looked old/slow/disinterested last night...like visibly so....and if your only skill is defense/intensity/etc...and you can't do that? Good luck to you....
10. This Hawks team isn't beating Miami in round 1....say what you want....home-court, blah blah blah.....Who stops Wade? Is there an ounce of your being that thinks if he wants to win the series the Heat won't win it? I've seen this movie before....Home court helps...but the team I saw last night doesn't stand a chance against a full-strength Heat squad.....add in Bennett Salvatore with a zebra shirt....end of series