NCAA Tournament Dreams Made

     In an always exciting but more importantly an incredibly unpredictable 2010 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament, the only Number 1 seed remaining in the field is the Duke Blue Devils out of the Atlantic Coast Conference at (32-5) overall.  The Number 1 overall seed in the tournament, the Kansas Jayhawks out of the Big 12 Conference, were ousted in the 2nd round by the Northern Iowa Panthers in a game in which the Panthers controlled throughout and simply handed it to the heavily favored Jayhawks.  Most notably, Northern Iowa Senior Guard Ali Farokhmanesh went from a no namer to the biggest name in college basketball overnight, as he hit the best shot of his career by nailing a shot from distance with 30 seconds left in the game to push the Panthers lead to 4.  Kansas couldn't recover after that.  The win was also enough to have Northern Iowa provide Head Coach Ben Jacobsen to a 10 year contract extension.  That moment in the tournament completely carved up everyone's brackets, except for maybe those Northern Iowa faithful. 

          The Northern Iowa win over Kansas would have been the biggest story of the tournament if it weren't for the recent success of the Butler Bulldogs, a 5 seed that has made their first NCAA Tournament Final Four in school history.  Butler (32-4), out of the Horizon League, has overcome the likes of the Number 1 seeded Syracuse Orange in the Sweet Sixteen and the Number 2 seeded Kansas State Wildcats in the Elite 8.  Butler stand out forward Gordon Hayward has played like a star throughout March Madness and has spelled trouble for each opponent he's faced, scoring 17 points against Syracuse and 22 points versus Kansas State.  Hayward is averaging 15 points and over 8 rebounds on the year, however, his 6'9'' frame, toughness, and quickness has provided him with the tools necessary to play all positions on the floor.  His transition defense and aggressiveness on the offensive end has been the main reason Butler has looked to him during clutch times in the game.  Even though he has a baby face, opponents don't want to step up to Gordo, as he'll either drive around you or shoot well over the top.  Butlers approach towards team defense feeds their offense and has propelled them towards a legitimate shot at the National Championship game.

      The West Virginia Moutaineers are the Number 2 seeded team in the East bracket and won the Big East Championship in New York City this year.  However, their biggest win so far being their huge victory over the Number 1 seeded Kentucky Wildcats 73 to 66 in the Elite 8.  The West Virginia alum and Head Coach Bobby Huggins has led West Virginia to it's first Final Four appearance since 1959 when they were led by Hall of Famer Jerry West.  Nonetheless, the biggest story of this Elite 8 matchup between the only Top 2 seeds to make it to the Elite 8 for their region, is the fact that backup Guard Joe Mazzulla scored 17 points and started the game due to the injury of starting Guard Darryl Bryant.  Mazzulla had not attempted a three point field goal this year until the game against Kentucky, when he drained a 3 pointer in the first half.  Mazzulla continued his attack of the Wildcats defense, as he made defenders pay dearly for leaving driving lanes open while Kentucky defenders attempted to fall into a help defense position against more notable scorers such as Da'Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks.  The second huge factor in the game was the fact that the Wildcats couldn't hit the broadside of a barn from three point land, as they shot a hurrendous 4 of 32, which is an abismal 12% from beyond the arc.  It was evident throughout the game that Kentucky's inexperience played a role in the overall outcome of the game, however, I don't think it played as much of a role as people might think.  Kentucky's aggressiveness and raw talent had allowed them to steamrole through their conference schedule and the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament, however, the experienced, long, and athletic Mountaineers front line disrupted the scoring attack and outside shooters of the Wildcats.  Ultimately, allowing the Moutaineers to grind out the game and play their style of play.  The transition game of the Wildcats was not able to play a role in the outcome, as the West Virginia defense was suffocating. 

      There is no doubt that this NCAA Tournament has been flipped upside down, and has allowed the lower seeds to have a phenomenal shot at a National Championship.  The Number 6 seeded Tennesee Volunteers and the injury ridden 5th seeded Michigan State Spartans will play for a shot at a Final Four appearance, while Duke will attempt to continue a shot at Coach K's 4th National Championship if they can advance against the Number 3 seeded Baylor Bears from the Big 12 Conference.  If the trend continues, Baylor will eliminate the 4th Number 1 seed from the tournament, however, we will see if the tournament shockers continue.  I must say, all of these upsets definitely provide evidence of the large expanse of talent across America.  Those trends are great for the game of Basketball and certainly for March Madness in years to come.

Kentucky Gets No.1 Disease and Falls to Gamecocks

         What a day for the new No.1 ranked team in the AP and Coaches Poll, as the unranked South Carolina Gamecocks(12-8) shocked the new No.1 Kentucky Wildcats(19-1) to hand the Wildcats their first loss of the season by a score of 68 to 62.  This was the first time in school history the South Carolina Gamecocks have beaten a number 1 ranked team, and it couldn't have come at a better time.  South Carolina was led by Senior Guard Devan Downey who scored 30 points on 9 of 29 shooting from the floor, as he fearlessly attacked the rim again and again against John Wall and company.  There was no doubt that Wall knew he had his hands full with Downey, as Wall played off the ball more in order to allow space and not get beat.  However, Wall needed help in this game, as Calipari pulled up his big men to double team Downey out on the perimeter.  This game was a defensive battle, as both teams defensive strategies were extremely successful, causing each squad to shoot under 40% from the field.  Furthermore, turnovers played a role, as the Wildcats coughed it up 15 times in this one, providing Downey ample opportunities to push the ball up the floor and create fast breaks.  The Cats were kept on their heels, as the Gamecocks used the crowd to further pump themselves up, and further deplete the fight in the new AP No.1 team. 

         It's been the wierdest thing so far this year, but I think Kansas, Texas, and now Kentucky would all tell you that having that number 1 stamp on your back isn't at all easy to defend.  In prior years, the number 1 ranked teams have rolled to victory over unranked opponents, however, this year has been different, as each number 1 team noted above has had it's share of close calls and now Kentucky see's itself defeated.  The pressure of being number 1 may have played a role tonight, as Kentucky's talent is unquestionable, yet their leaders are all Freshman, as Guard John Wall, Forward DeMarcus Cousins, and Guard Erik Bledsoe are each in their first year and don't any experience playing in tough environments on the road.  It will be interesting to see how Kentucky responds in their next matchup against Vanderbilt on January 30th, however, that game will be at home.  It's clear that men's college basketball is wide open this year, as anyone can get beat by a team that puts on the pressure and plays tough defense.  Nice showing from the Gamecocks, and if they keep it up, then they may even get a NCAA tournament bid out of this.

Men's NCAA Top 5 Basketball Teams - Star Videos

AP Top 25  - Videos


1. Kentucky (65) 19-0  - John Wall



2. Kansas 19-1  - Sherron Collins



3. Villanova 18-1  - Scotty Reynolds



4. Syracuse 20-1  - Wesley Johnson



5. Michigan State 18-3  - Kalin Lucas



6. Texas 17-2 

7. Georgetown 15-4

8. Duke 16-3 

9. West Virginia 15-3 

10. Purdue 16-3

11. Kansas State 16-3

12. Brigham Young 20-1 

13. Gonzaga 16-3

14. Tennessee 15-3

15. Temple 17-3 

16. Wisconsin 16-4

17. Pittsburgh 15-4

18. Mississippi 15-4

19. Connecticut 13-6 

20. Ohio State 14-6

21. Vanderbilt 15-3

22. Georgia Tech 14-5

23. New Mexico 18-3

24. Baylor 15-3

25. UAB 17-2

Others Receiving Votes

Florida State 111, Northern Iowa 106, Clemson 103, Wake Forest 98, Butler 69, Mississippi State 42, Texas A&M 29, Oklahoma State 25, Missouri 24, Maryland 22, Cornell 16, Old Dominion 11, Xavier 11, UNLV 6, Northwestern 5, Siena 3, Virginia 3, Saint Mary's 2, Louisiana Tech 2, California 2, Coastal Carolina 1, Harvard 1.

Dropped From Rankings

Clemson 17, Northern Iowa 20, Mississippi State 23.