Go Indiana!

Oops, sorry. Wrong Indiana team (by the way, if you want to know what The Sidler looks like, just picture that kid, aged about 5 years, with glasses).

Anyway, big game for the Hoosiers against UCONN today. Even though UCONN suspended a starting guard and his backup for the game, this still means a lot to Indiana, the Big Ten, and, by extension, the Gophers. The Hoosiers are ranked number 7 in the country, and really have gotten there more by not losing than by beating anybody. The only really good team they've played is Xavier, and they lost by 15. Their best wins are at home versus Kentucky and Georgia Tech - not exactly impressive. And while a win against UCONN wouldn't exactly be tip top quality, a loss would be devastating, and a blowout win would validate the team, and the conference.

Today's Card:
UCLA -16.5 @ Oregon State
San Fran +9 vs. St. Mary's
Temple +1 vs. St Joe's (P)
Cal +1 vs. Stanford
Minnesota +8 @ Ohio State
Purdue -1 vs. Wisconsin (W)
Memphis -12.5 vs. Gonzaga (L)
Villanova -2 vs. Notre Dame (L)
Texas A&M -1.5 @ Oklahoma State (W)
Washington +8.5 @ Arizona (L)
Indiana -9 vs. UCONN (L)

Yesterday: 2-1
Season: 252-230

I'll be back with thoughts on afternoon games as I watch them.

and I'm back:

- Memphis up 10-0 on Gonzaga with just 2 and a half minutes gone. Memphis super athletic, fast, and attacking. Gonzaga slow, white, unprepared. I'm sure they'll settle a bit and make a game of it, but right now this isn't even as close as 10-0.

- I haven't seen enough of Kansas to put them in here, but Memphis is a lot better than North Carolina, UCLA, Duke, Tennessee, or anybody else you want to throw in here.

- Derrick Rose is sick. Please, please let the Wolves get Rose.

- Wow. Give Gonzaga credit, as they just took the lead with two minutes left in the first half. I still think Memphis is the best team in the NCAA though, they seemed to lose interest a bit.

- Indiana looking good on the offensive boards, despite being very undersized to UCONN. That was the biggest concern for them I thought, and they're getting it done. DJ White is so much the man.

- Eric Gordon definitely knows he's on national TV. He's trying to do WAAAAAAAAAAY too much. He's no Derrick Rose.

- Here's why I hate myself sometimes. All year, and before the year even started, I said Villanova sucked. So today they were at home against Notre Dame, a team who has sucked on the road, in a game they really, really need, so I go ahead and take Nova -2. Well, ten minutes left and Notre Dame is up by 16. I need to stop overthinking.

- Gordon can't stop A.J. Price on the dribble. Didn't expect that.

- Girl scout just stopped by to sell cookies. I did not ask if they were made from real Girl Scouts. Pregnant wife commanded I order 8 boxes of thin mints, seems excessive. I also just realized that having a girl, which we are, means selling girl scout cookies. Which means walking around, talking to people, in the cold. Super.

- Indiana shooting 25% with four to go in the first half, after starting 3-3. If they don't turn it around in a hurry, expect a whole lot of "The Big Ten is Overrated", "The Big Ten Sucks", and "Should the Big Ten be a Mid-Major" stuff coming up.

- Indiana looks like absolute garbage. Down 29-24 at half, shooting less than 25%, falling into going one-on-one instead of running an offense, and getting killed on the boards. Embarrassing.

- Memphis pretty much has this one locked up, but they aren't going to cover, giving me a nice 0-2 start, and likely 0-3. I've gone deathly cold.

- I'm officially worried about Memphis in March due to their 58% free throw shooting as a team.

- Indiana down nine with fifteen to go. Let's see, they've stopped driving to the basket, they don't bother to pass into the paint, they don't really run an offense. They sit around passing around the perimeter and then chuck up a three or try a one-on-one move and shoot a fade away. I have money on them and care about the Big Ten and I'm pissed, I can't imagine how I'd feel if I was an actual Indiana fan. This is brutal.

- None of Indiana's guards can stop any of UCONN's guards, and UCONN is missing two of their top four guys. This is depressing.

- Absolutely, without question, the worst game I've seen played by anybody this year, as Indiana loses to UCONN 68-63, in a game that wasn't even that close. Complete and total embarrassment. I'd be shocked if Indiana even wins in the first round of the tournament this year. Be back later for Gophers game.