WCHA Final Five

The WCHA final five begins tonight at the Xcel. Tonights play-in game features the Gophers vs St. Cloud State. The winner of tonights game moves on to Friday's semi-finals to play #1 seed Colorado College. The other semi-final will feature the University of we hate native americans vs the Denver Pioneers.

The Gophers head to the Final Five after possibly the longest 3 game series in the history of the WCHA. The Gophers lost 1-0 in double OT, won 2-1 in OT and won 3-2 in double OT to advance. There are three keys to tonights game for the Gophers. 1) Kangas, 2) score 3+ goals and 3) stay out of the penalty box. They follow my keys and I guarantee victory.

Next years Hoby Baker winner needs to continue playing like he did last weekend. That might be a bit much to ask, but I have never been one to shy away from asking for to much. Kangas either gets shutouts all weekend or I write him off faster than Frazee! Seriously, if the Gophers want any chance of advancing this weekend Kangas can not allow more than two goals a game. Sad, but true.

Next to the Play of Kangas goal scoring is the next biggest factor for the gophers. I know that sounds like the dip shit analyst who says "whoever scores more goals will most likely win the game", but the Gophers need to find a way to score 3 goals without playing 100 minutes of hockey. Last Sundays game was a perfect example of what I am talking about. The Gophers had numerous chances to score goals right in front of the net and instead of putting the puck in the corner of the net the forwards would rush shots and hit the Mavericks goalie in the chest. The Mavericks goalie (Zacharias) played well last weekend, but the Gophers made him look better than he is. Mouth breather Jase Weslosky is not the goalie Zacharias is, so 3 goals isn't like asking for the moon.

ATTENTION TO THE BEARS GUY PELTIER!!!! The 3rd key to tonights game for the Gophers is staying out of the penalty box. St. Cloud basically lives by it's power play. Their #1 unit of Roe, Lasch and Nodl is possibly the best power play unit in the country. As a team, St. Cloud leads the WCHA in PP efficiency at 21.9%. That means the Gophers can only take necessary penalties. Note to Peltier, we don't need any Cross Checking, Roughing, Boarding or whatever other dumb penalty you decide take 60 feet behind the play. Those are the penalties that will get the Gophers beat tonight. Maybe the gophers should just sit Peltier all weekend? Hey Bear, nice player!

Predictions for the weekend.

Play-in game MN 4 St. Cloud 2. The Gophers will be to tired to skate all over the rink which is a good thing for this team. They will sit back and play "system" hockey and rely on Kangas to make saves. How much does it suck that the Gophers have turned into the Wisconsin Badgers of college hockey? God I can't wait for some actual talent to get back in the program next year! Also, keep your eyes out for the Todd slinging his shit on the ice if the gophers happen to lose. I am on record as saying The Todd doesn't have the arm to get it over the glass.

Semi-final #1 Denver 3 UND 2. Upset of the weekend. UND has been playing to good for to long. The also looked very poor last weekend. On top of that, Denver will be looking forward to this game after the cheap crap UND pulled up in Grand Forks last month. Yet another banner slips through the fingers of Neanderthal Hakstol.

Semi-final #2 CC 3 MN 1. Gophers have nothing left and even if they did Colorado would still beat them. I still think CC is the class of the WCHA.

3rd Place Game. Who really cares other than the Sioux fans who will still act like winning this game is a big deal, f'ing losers!

Championship- CC 5 Denver 2. Denver can't skate with CC. CC locks up a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Tom Pohl update from the University of Minnesota. Gophers Pohl in Intensive Care Following Surgery at Rochester Hospital. University of Minnesota senior Tom Pohl is in intensive care following surgery resulting from an injury suffered in the Golden Gophers double overtime victory over Minnesota State on Sunday in Mankato . Pohl sustained a skull fracture when his head hit the boards in front of the teams bench at 6:09 of the second period. The injury resulted in bleeding on the brain and Pohl was airlifted to St. Marys Hospital in Rochester . Successful surgery was performed to stop the bleeding and stabilize the fracture. Pohl remains at the hospital for further observation.We are very fortunate that he has tremendous medical care, said Minnesota coach Don Lucia, who is in Rochester with Pohl and his family. Were looking forward to him returning to school at one hundred percent and our thoughts and prayers remain with Tom and the Pohl family.

Here is a link to the Gophers incoming recruits. Things are really looking up talent wise. Only two questions marks coming in over the next two years, Brandon Martell and Josh Birkholz. Martell just isn't that good and Birkolz comes off as a whiny kid who pouts when things aren't going his way....f'ing cake eater! http://gopherpuck.blogspot.com/2007/01/committed-gopher-recruits.html

Kyle Okposo played in his first NHL game Tuesday night for the New York Islanders. The Black Ginger played 14 minutes and registered two shots on net. It looks like two months of Minor league hockey got his development back on track. Good thing he got out while the getting was good.

Lastly, even though the smartest man in Grand Forks is on record as saying the Gophers won't make the NCAA tournament they are a lock. The worst team to make the NCAA tournament in Gophers history....without a doubt, but I will still take a game or two in the NCAA after the season this team has had.

Lastly, Lastly....WWWWWW, nice NCAA picks! I thought you where suppose to be the hoops guy on this blog? The Sports Guy knows more about college hoops!

Hey Sports Guy, Stick to the NBA

In Bill Simmons column today about the NCAA tournament, he has this to say about UCLA:

the Bruins don't have a low-post stud (like Michael Beasley) or an ankle-breaking perimeter guy (like Jerryd Bayless)

Um, I suppose if you really wanted to you could probably argue that Kevin Love isn't a "low-post stud" because he is an inside/outside type player and although he can score from the block, that isn't really his best feature. I'd argue against you, but I can see it. But to say they don't have an ankle-breaking perimeter guy is ridiculous. How do you not consider Darren Collison, and even Russel Westbrook, an ankle breaker? Stick to the NBA Bill, stick to the NBA.

Terps kill Gophs; Rickert smells nice

Oof. I generally enjoy the NIT (sadly, I'm used to going to these games), and when a high quality program like Maryland comes to town, I usually look forward to it, no matter how sick I am of that particular year's Gopher squad. I met up with The Old Man, Snacks, and The Todd last night for the game, and this was going to be The Todd's first ever Gopher basketball experience. After throwing back a couple at the Knight Cap (and winning in the meat raffle) we headed off to the game, The Todd a bundle of excitement, thrilled to attend a game and to see his twin and hero Spencer Tollackson in person. Hopefully, the game would be a good experience.

Boy, was that ever wrong. Maybe the worst game I've ever attended, and I was here last year. From the beginning it was clear Tubby was going to be using this game to see what he had for the future, which was a good idea, but it quickly became obvious that the future is not so bright that you have to wear shades. It seemed neither Maryland nor the Gophers were particularly excited to be there, and the game quickly deteriorated into the caliber of a pick-up game at the Y - or the Australian league. Sloppy passing, sloppy defense - I can't even count how many times Terrapin players beat the whole Gopher team down the floor - and altogether ugly basketball. Although, since The Todd is a hockey fan, it was probably boring enough to be right up his alley.

To make matters worse, somehow the home crowd was especially homerish and unintelligent, roaring with displeasure at even the most obvious call against the Gophers and misunderstanding some of the simplest rules and concepts - loudly. The worst was the standing ovation after a foul was called on Maryland in the second half, against 8 Gopher fouls. Lopsided, to be sure, however there is no rule that says fouls have to be even, and it was clear that the Terps weren't committing fouls, but the Minnesota fans were damn well convinced the refs had it out for the Gophers, just like every single loss they've had over the years. I think the smartest fans other than ourselves at the game were the pair of ten year olds sitting next to The Todd who said, at least twice, "Whatever you do, don't give the ball to number 50", breaking Todd's heart in the process.

As far as players go.....meh. Damian Johnson played more minutes than the three seniors combined, and looking good. Westbrook attacked the basket and was aggressive, but really played poorly. Shamala was the second most aggressive offensively player for the team, which is seriously frightening. Hoffarber twice drove the lane, and when he couldn't get all the way to the rim, dished it out instead of shooting a floater or pull up jumper, showing that he has two shots in his bag - a three pointer and a lay-up - and making it clear he has a lot of work to do. Busch proved he doesn't belong on a D-I court, except in garbage time.

As bad as the game was, we still had a great time, which I will show you in pictures. Such as this picture of the view we had at the Knight Cap:



Yes, that's a dude. Hot.

Once at the game, we noticed there was nobody in most of the suites up high in Williams, so myself, Snacks, and the Todd decided to go see if we could make it up there.

Once I made up, we realized the door behind us would lock so we couldn't get back out that way. I was once again sent up to make sure there was an actual way out. Here is Snacks waiting for me, and probably doubting both my brilliance and ninja skills.



After eluding one usher, I had to jedi-mind trick another. He was all, "Can I see your ticket" and I was "You don't need to see my ticket" with a hand wave, and he was all, "I don't need to see your ticket. Move along." So we made it. If you're curious, here is the view from the suites:



And here is Snacks and I enjoying the suite, thank you Boston Scientific:



As nice as it was, they weren't stocked with booze at all - we checked - or food, and the start of the second half was brutally awful, so we made our way back down. Who should we run into in the hallway, but the one, the only, the man, the legend, Rick Rickert - who is very tall. As we walked passed, I slapped hands with him and said "What up Rick!" thinking it would be a very good bit for DWG, and chuckling a bit inside. But then The Todd did me one better, and completely one-upped me and the rest of the world. He asked for a picture, which Rick was gracious enough to grant him. As I took the picture, I looked back to see Snacks as far away as possible, trying not to laugh. Here it is, the greatest moment in Down with Goldy history, captured for all the world to see:



It's a bit blurry, as the Todd's camera phone, your typical 16-year old girl's phone, had some issues with this one, but it's here. [EDIT = much better picture now] And no, that's not a short Spencer Tollackson with Rickert, it's actually Todd.

The Todd's reaction after the picture, "Rickert smells nice."

Golf at the Blue Monster.

More of the good ole Grandslam babble for our golf fans this week:

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Let's start this week of with a little word of wisdom from our own N. Faldo last week with this statement......"WWWW great jab, GS do you know how to use the shift+letter to capitalize? Thanks for the dazzling recap and stretch pick of Eldrick, which if you are a degenerate gambler, like the rest of the group on the site seem to be, you would know that to pick against the field; unless its the Master's, US Open at Pebble, British at St. Andrew's, PGA at Merion, any event linked to Buick or any event played at Firstone CC, is a bad pick even when it's Tiger. March Madness is all around us yet the twins guy and hockey dude have poured their hearts out with no thoughts of just mailing it in. Come on and get the oars in the water kid."

Seriously "Faldo", week after week you just continue to stick your foot in your mouth. Just remember this, I.......Grandslam am a great golfing mind!

Tiger Woods seems to amaze me week after week. The guy has a 7 shot deficit after 36 holes to the #10 player in the world Vijay Singh, and come Sunday he would make Vijay into a non-factor.

Of course Tiger Woods being one for the dramatic did it again on Sunday. On the 72nd hole tied for the lead, he hit it to about 30 feet on his approach. And what a surprise the only person dumber than our own "Nick Faldo" is Johnny Miller. Am i the only one that can't stand this guy?? So Tiger hits it to 30 feet and Johnny Miller says "there is a 90% chance that this tournament is going to a playoff."

So i hear this and run off to do something for about 5 minutes tops and when i come back the damn news is on, and i was pissed. Sure as shit, Tiger would knock it in, in dramatic fashion like the #1 player in the world would. ATTENTION PGA Tour record books, clear alot of space for Mr. Eldrick "Tiger" Woods. As if we didn't know this already, but this guy is going to shatter every single big time record there is on the PGA Tour.

The guy is 31 or something and just tied Ben Hogan with his 63rd career victory, with only Jack Nicklaus and Sam Snead left in his way to being the all-time winningest golfer. Tiger has separated himself so far from the rest of the field right now, that it is ridiculous. That being said I have asked the question once, but could Tiger win every tournament he starts in this year?? Could he win the career grandslam again, but all in the same year?? These are some questions that only time will tell, but it will be fun to watch.

The best players in the world will travel south to Miami for the CA-World Golf Championships at Doral and the famed Blue Monster. This tournament year after year always seems to come down to the 18th hole which is always one of the if not the toughest hole on the PGA Tour. When describing the 18th, i heard someone describe it as "safe haven on the 18th hole is about as easy to find as a calm mortgage lender. With no bailouts anywhere on the hole and a green that's shaven tightly and sloping straight into the water, With the 18th hole again prove to show its ugly fangs and end someones dream about winning a World Golf Championship. With this type of format we are guaranteed again this week to see one of the strongest fields in Golf, which will make for an exciting 4 days.

Quite frankly i would have to be a complete idiot not to, so my pick to win this week is Tiger Woods. I will keep picking this guy week after week until he proves me wrong. However i have a sneaky pick this week and that's the "spiderman" Camillo Villegas. Oh and this week there is also an inaugural event being played aside from the CA with the Puerto Rico Open, you don't care and i don't care but i'm still gonna try and pick a winner. That is, and going way out on a limb will pick Pablo Martin!

Enjoy the big dance this week and watch a little golf, it will be good!!!

-Grandslam

Here's What's Going to Happen: South Region

FIRST ROUND

#1 Memphis over #16 TX-Arlington: The Tigers have been kicking the piss out of bad teams all year, no reason for that to stop

#8 Mississippi State over #9 Oregon: Another contrast type game, as Miss State is one of the best defensive teams in the country, but is mediocre offensively, and Oregon is a quality offensive team, but is the worst defensive team in the tournament other than 15 & 16 seeds. You know what they say, defense wins championships - and first round games. Plus the Bulldogs' Jarvas Varnardo (4.6 blocks per game) is everything I always wanted Antoine Broxsie to be.

#12 Temple over #5 Michigan State: Can anybody get a read on the Spartans? I wouldn't be surprised to see them lose here, or make the Elite 8. With this matchup, and the Spartans late struggles away from East Lansing, I'm taking the Owls here. The Spartans road record in the Big Ten was 3-7, which included losses at Iowa and Penn State - but not at Minnesota, of course not). This game is in Denver, not East Lansing, which can only hurt MSU. Both teams play a slow pace, which helps Temple. The game should stay close, where the new found confidence of the Owls after winning the A-10 will put them over the top.

#4 Pitt over #13 Oral Roberts: Over the last few years Oral Roberts (O, R U?) has been a threat to knock off their first round opponents, but the scoring punch of Ken Tutt and Caleb Green has graduated and, despite having rolled through the Summit, I see no more threat here.

#6 Marquette over #11 Kentucky: It seems a lot of people are picking the Wildcats in an upset here, and those people are dead wrong. Sure, Kentucky was hot to end the season, but that was mostly adrenaline after the loss of Patrick Patterson. Look back, during that run they only beat one tournament caliber team, and that was Arkansas. It's a cliche that guard play is the key in March, but it's a cliche because it's true, and the Golden Eagles sport three great ones in Dominic James, Wes Matthews, and Jerel McNeal. Plus, look for former Minnesota boy Trevor Mbakwe to get some time.

#3 Stanford over #14 Cornell: I have no idea how Cornell is going to have a prayer against the twin giants, Brook and Robin Lopez. They do have one decent seven footer, but Stanford has two, and one is a star. Cornell will have to pray the threes are falling, and they do shoot 41% as a team, so there's an outside chance at a miracle - but Stanford is pretty solid defending the three.

#10 St Mary's vs. #7 Miami: Never believed in Miami all year, and don't think they're very good. St. Mary's, on the other hand, is good offensively, defensively, on the perimeter, and in the paint. In case you think I'm crazy, the Gaels rank better than the Hurricanes in both offensive and defensive efficiency. So there.

#2 Texas vs. #15 Austin Peay: The Longhorns do seem to have a tendency to let teams hang around, so Peay might have a decent first half. Once Texas wakes up, however, this one won't be close.

SECOND ROUND

#1 Memphis over #8 Mississippi State: Remember all that good stuff I wrote up there about MSU's defense? Well, Memphis is better. And much, much better offensively.

#4 Pitt over #12 Temple: Too of the hottest teams heading into the tournament. Pitt was basically a final four contender earlier in the year before Fields got hurt. Now he's back, and they're rolling. No reason for that to stop, not against Temple at least.

#6 Marquette over #3 Stanford: Maybe the most interesting game of the tournament, and a game I almost wrote how I hoped it happened before the bracket even came out. Marquette has maybe the best group of guards in the tournament, but their big men are pretty average. Stanford has the towering twosome of twins, but their perimeter guys mostly suck. Quite a clash here, but I'm giving the edge to the guards.

#2 Texas over #10 St Marys: I mentioned earlier that St Mary's was a solid, balanced team - and they are, but the Longhorns are even better. They aren't very deep, but they, like Marquette, sport three quality guards, and DJ Augustine is one of the best in the country.

REGIONAL SEMIFINALS

#4 Pitt over #1 Memphis: This is the game I've flip flopped on most in the whole tournament. I like Memphis, hell, I love Memphis, but their miserable free throw shooting and mediocre three point shooting are going to catch up to them at some point, and this seems like it. A tough, physical Pitt team who is on fire right now will turn this game into a grinding slugfest. Neither team turns it over much, so odds are it turns into a halfcourt game. These combinations of factors lead me to believe the Panthers will have the Tigers number.

#2 Texas over #6 Marquette: Buckle up. The three Marquette guards against the three Texas guards will be one for the ages. Texas has a slight advantage in the paint, while Marquette has more depth. Should be a great, great game, but in the end I see Augustine and company being just too good for the Golden Eagles.

REGIONAL FINAL

#2 Texas over #4 Pitt: Pitts style that will work so well against Memphis is very similar to how Texas plays, and will work to the Longhorns advantage. I don't see anybody on Pitt who can keep up with Augustine, and when he drives he'll suck the defense in, leaving Abrams and company open all game long, as the Longhorns head to the Final Four.

Midwest Region
East Region
West Region

Here's What's Going to Happen: West Region

FIRST ROUND

#1 UCLA over #16 Mississippi Valley State: MV State would have been in the play-in opening round game if Coppin State hadn't managed to win the MEAC despite 20 losses on the season. And they're greeted by UCLA, who has no trouble blowing teams out - which they'll do here.

#8 BYU over #9 Texas A&M: It is really hard to stop dwelling on Texas A&M's horrid game against Oklahoma where they scored a total of 37 points, which I watched at the Knight Cap, which is probably where I'll be again before the Maryland/Gopher game because I and my family are alcoholics. Where was I? Oh yeah, BYU wins in a toughie, as both teams rank in the top 20 in defensive efficiency.

#12 Western Kentucky over #5 Drake: Both teams are very good both offensively and defensively. Both teams rely on guards to do almost all their scoring and are very small all the way around. The difference will lie in WKU's athleticism, where they hold a big advantage over Drake. Because Drake is full of white guys.

#4 UCONN over #13 San Diego: San Diego (means "Whale's Vagina") pretty much topped out beating St. Mary's and Gonzaga back-to-back to win the West Coast Conference Tournament. As impressive as that is, it was also on their home court. San Diego is not a very good offensive team, whereas UCONN is terrific defensively. Brandon Johnson of USD might be good enough to give AJ Price some trouble, but the Toreros have no answer to the size UCONN brings, as well as the athleticism of the other guards.

#6 Purdue over #11 Baylor: Baylor could easily win this game, but I just don't see how they can handle the bigger Boilermakers. Baylor is another team that relies on it's guards for almost everything, with Kevin Rogers the only major contributor over 6-4. Purdue counters with a lot more size, and still have the quickness to handle the guards of Baylor. An interesting matchup, as Purdue is great defensively and mediocre on offense, while Baylor is stellar with the ball, but mediocre at best on the defensive end. The Bears have a couple seven footers who don't play a ton, but they could be the key if Baylor wants to win. Expect Purdue to win the rebounding battle, and the game.

#3 Xavier over #14 Georgia: I think the ride ends for Georgia here, as they run into an absolutely stellar Xavier squad. The Musketeers are balanced (6 players average double-digit points), can shoot (four players over 40% three pointers), and are senior led (3 senior starters have been to the tournament three straight years). Expect a deep run.

#10 Arizona over #7 West Virginia: I fully expect this to be a popular pick, since Arizona was one of the toughest teams in the country when fully healthy - guards Jerryd Bayless and Nic Wise missed quite a few games. But I can't go against it. West Virginia is basically a mirage of a team, going 3-8 against the top 50. Assuming Arizona can handle Joe Alexander, and I think they can, they should be able to knock off WVU.

#2 Duke over #15 Belmont: Belmont has wins at both Alabama and Cincinnati this year, and rolled through the Atlantic Sun, so they're pretty solid for a fifteen seed. Unfortunately for the Bruins, Duke ranks in the top ten in both offensive and defensive efficiency, and can come out and blitz teams in a hurry. Belmont is pretty poor defensively, and won't be able to keep up with the Blue Devils.

SECOND ROUND

#1 UCLA over #8 BYU: BYU is an excellent defensive team, but UCLA is better. UCLA is also a top offensive team, while the Cougars are not. BYU is solid along the frontline and bring a lot of size, but the Bruins can counter with Love (assuming the back is ok), Dragovic, Mata-Real, Aboya, Mbah a Moute (assuming he's not hurt), and even Keefe. And the Cougars have absolutely nobody who can even come close to thinking about being able to handle Westbrook or Collison.

#4 UCONN over #13 Western Kentucky: My first instinct was actually to pick WKU here, if you can't tell, I'm a fan, but after some reflection, UCONN is clearly the pick here. As I mentioned, the Hilltoppers are very guard oriented, and the Huskies can counter with AJ Price, Doug Wiggins, Jerome Dyson, and Craig Austrie. Plus, the Huskies have the size of Hasheem Thabeet, Jeff Adrien, and Stanley Robinson, for whom WKU has no answer.

#3 Xavier over #6 Purdue: Xavier is really, really good. Purdue only made it to round two because they caught a fortunate matchup against Baylor. Both teams are solid defensively, and deep, but the Musketeers are better offensively and much, much, much, much, much more talented. Plus, CJ Anderson is the freakin' man.

#10 Arizona over #2 Duke: I very fortunate matchup if you're an Arizona fan. If you're going to face one of the 2 seeds, you want the Blue Devils. Arizona is not a very good team down low, which is fine here, because Duke has no inside presence at all - Jordan Hill, Arizona's center, will destroy the Devils in the paint. Duke's strength is their perimeter shooting, but the Wildcats have enough quickness to close out on Duke's shooters. If that's not enough, Duke has struggled all year against quick guards, and Bayless is as quick as you'll find.

REGIONAL SEMIFINALS:

#1 UCLA over #4 UCONN: Sorry UCONN. Although I think they are a stellar team, UCLA can counter their height, and outquick their guards. One of the Huskies biggest advantages is rebounding, and they rank 16th in rebounding margin this season. Bad news for them, UCLA ranks third.

#3 Xavier over #10 Arizona: Both teams play a patient style, and both excel on both ends of the floor so this should be an excellent game. Xavier guards Drew Lavender and Stanley Burrell matchup very well against Wise and Bayless, and can take away a lot of Arizona's offensive options, as Budinger and Hill will struggle to get going if the guards can't get it started. Xavier has plenty of options to score against the Wildcats.

REGIONAL FINAL

#1 UCLA over #3 Xavier: The Musketeers finally run into a team they can't handle with the Bruins. Although Burrell will give Westbrook fits, I don't think Lavender can handle Collison and that will open things up for all the other Bruin options. ON defense, I don't see a single matchup where Xavier will have an advantage against UCLA, and the Bruins are much deeper.

Midwest Region
East Region

Here's What's Going to Happen: Midwest Region

FIRST ROUND

#1 Kansas over #16 Portland State: PSU has a good little guard in Jeremiah Dominguez, but Kansas has an assload of good guards to go along with a plethora of good big men. Plus, they've blown out bad teams all year. This one won't be even close to being close.

#9 Kent State over #8 UNLV: Yes, UNLV won the MWC tournament, but it was on their home floor. Yes, UNLV went to the sweet sixteen last year, but four of the five top guys from that team aren't back. Kent State is one of the top defensive teams in the country, and have a great inside/outside balance that the Rebels won't be able to handle.

#5 Clemson over #12 Villanova: Villanova shouldn't even be here, but since they are, you can watch one of the most overrated guards in the country in Scottie Reynolds. He shoots 40% from the field, 36% from three, and a 1.1 Assist/Turnover ratio. Yet, people want to make out with him, give me a break. Oh, and Clemson is really good.

#13 Siena over #4 Vanderbilt: Call me crazy, but I do not believe in Vandy this year. They started out 15-0, but finished 11-7, including 2-7 on the road. Well guess what? They aren't playing this game at Vandy Arena or whatever it's called. Siena is an excellent offensive team, and really take care of the basketball. The Saints matchup well with Vandy, and against their leading scorer Shan Foster. As long as they can control 6-11 freshman center A.J. Ogilvy, and I think they can, Siena can win this game.

#2 Georgetown over #15 UM-Baltimore County: UMBC had a very good season, but running into to the Hoyas is a very bad thing.

#10 Davidson over #7 Gonzaga: I've been saying all along that Gonzaga is overrated this year, and you'll see that when they take on Stephen Curry and Davidson. This should be a very entertaining matchup that could be in the nineties. Curry will be the difference, as I don't know how can matchup with him. If Pargo can't do it, it will be a long day for the bulldogs.

#3 Wisconsin over #14 CS-Fullerton: Fullerton catches a tough break getting Wisconsin in round 1. The Badgers are the top defensive team in the country, and are also very efficient on the offensive end. Fullerton is good offensively, but is one of the worst defensive teams around and that will make all the difference. Will be an interesting contrast in styles, as the Badgers are one of the slowest teams in the country and the Titans one of the fastest.

#6 USC over #11 Kansas State: I don't know if the committee intentionally creates interesting matchups or not, but this is certainly one of them, with two of the countrys top freshmen squaring off. Beasley is definitely good enough to carry K-State to win, but I don't see it. USC's defense will make the difference. Davon Jefferson and Taj Gibson can handle Beasley (relatively) and Walker, but I'm not sure who K-State has to handle Daniel Gibson, OJ Mayo, and Angelo Johnson.

ROUND TWO

#1 Kansas over #9 Kent State: I wrote earlier that the Golden Flashes were balanced inside and out, and that's what would lift them over UNLV. Well, bad news for Kent State - Kansas is just as balanced, twice as deep, and five times more talented.

#5 Clemson over #13 Siena: Siena moved on in round one mainly due to Vanderbilt's overratedness. Clemson has no such issues. The Tigers have more depth and all-around talent than the Saints, although I expect them to hang around.

#2 Georgetown over #10 Davidson: I love Davidson, and I think Georgetown is a tad overrated, but I don't think the Wildcats have a prayer against the Hoyas - unless Curry is absolutely unconscious. The Hoyas are a top ten defensive team in the country, and hold teams to 40% shooting and 30% three point shooting. Additionally, the Wildcats don't have the size to handle Hibbert, Summers, and Ewing. Sorry Davidson.

#6 USC over #3 Wisconsin: Bad matchup for the Badgers in round two, as USC plays essentially the same style as Wisconsin, but are more talented. I think Wisconsin is better coached, but I don't think that will be enough to get them past the Trojans. The only way I see USC losing this game is if OJ Mayo gets all spastic on the big stage, and starts to force his own shots rather than staying within the Trojans' system.

REGIONAL SEMIFINALS

#1 Kansas over #5 Clemson: Tough matchup for Clemson, and, similar to the Jayhawks' game against Kent State, Clemson is a very balanced squad - but Kansas is just as balanced, deeper, and much more talented. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Kansas is just too good - they rank #1 in the country in offensive efficiency and #3 in defensive efficiency, that's just sick.

#6 USC over #2 Georgetown: In a game that probably won't get out of the fifties, the Trojans knock off the Hoyas. USC has enough size to handle the Hoyas inside, and I think the Trojans have just enough on the outside to put them over the top here. This will be one of the closest games in the tournament.

REGIONAL FINAL

#1 Kansas over #6 USC: The Trojans' great run through the tournament ends when the smack into the juggernaut Jayhawks. Kansas is talented enough and disciplined enough to handle the Trojans tough defense, and are good enough to lock down on Mayo and USC's offense as the Jayhawks head to the Final Four.

East Region

God Does Love Gophers Hockey!

Last nights Gopher game was one of the most exciting games I have watched in several years while also being one of the most frustrating. I have never seen a team that is so inept at scoring goals in all my life. Hopefully after this season it will be another 30 years before I have to see it again.

A special thanks to Dawger for leaving me at the bar last night by myself. It was really much more enjoyable watching the 2nd overtime with the Hispanic cooks and the table full of metro sexual Sioux fans who thought they where king shit because they just knocked off Michigan Tech in 3 games. Note to all metro sexual Sioux fans, hockey jerseys aren’t meant to be tucked into your jeans and the word "Dude" died with pinned jeans.

Alex Kangas is now the greatest goalie in the history of college hockey. If he doesn’t win the Hoby Baker the next three years they should just do away with the award. If Lucia wouldn’t have screwed him out of playing time the first half of the season Kangas most likely would have gone for the grand slam and won the Hoby all four years of his career. Kangas was so good last night that Dawger had a wet spot on his jeans after the third period.

The Gophers also now skate with Lucifer on their side. Lucia obviously sold his soul to make the NCAA tournament this year. How else can you explain all three Gophers (Barriball, White and Lucia) scoring their sixth goal of the season last night? 6-6-6! Looks like it will be foam parties for the all Gophers other than Kangas! Can the Gophers be beat with both Jesus and Lucifer on their side? I don’t know either.

One of the greatest lines ever mumbled on T.V. took place during the Gophers game last night. Incase you missed it, during the first overtime Doug Woog said "everyone in the arena is standing except for the people in wheel chairs." As soon as he said that I pictured Woog wearing Bogarts I Hate Cripples t-shirt. P.S. Real classy shirt Bogart! Get a heart you unsympathetic son of a bitch!

Final Five Preview to come later this week.

Bring on the Terps

The NIT field was announced tonight, and the Gophers will host the Maryland Terrapins on Tuesday. You can find the entire bracket here. As always, it's hard to figure out which teams will treat this as a chance to play well and prove to the world how good they are, and which teams will be pissed and unhappy to be there and mail it in.

The Gophers are seeded fourth in their bracket, which includes Syracuse as the #1. Assuming the Orange get passed Robert Morris, they would take on the winner of the Minnesota/Maryland game, I'm assuming at Syracuse. The other #1 seeds are Ohio State, Virginia Tech, and Arizona State.

Maryland will present a difficult challenge for the Gophers, and despite being seeded below Minnesota they are the superior team. Maryland was on the NCAA bubble for most of the season, a place the Gophers pretty much never even sniffed, until a late season three game losing streak - including a monumental collapse against Clemson - sealed their NIT fate. The Terrapins rank in the top 100 in both offensive and defensive efficiency, and have some players I don't know if the Gophers can handle.

Greivis Vasquez starts things for Maryland. He's from somewhere foreign, and is a very effective point guard when he's on, such as his 13 point, 9 rebound, 15 assist performance against NC State. The good news for Gopher fans is that when he's off, he can be way off. He struggles shooting the ball at times, shooting just 44% on the season and 31% from three. He also can turn the ball over if he's not careful, as he averaged a whopping 4.5 turnovers per game, canceling out his 6.9 assist per game and created a pedestrian 1.5 A/TO ratio. Given the Gophers' propensity for turning the other team over, this could play into their hands. Wake Forest has a very similar ranking in turnovers created, and in the two games against them, Vasquez turned it over an average of 6 times per game.

The guy I'm most worried about is 6-9 forward James Gist, and who the hell is going to guard him. The Gopher guards are good enough to check Vasquez, but outside of Damian Johnson they don't have a player who can matchup on Gist. Gist is a powerful player who can score in the paint, with just enough of an outside shot to be doubly dangerous (31% from three). He is adept at getting to the line (10th in FT attempts in the ACC) and can make them at a 75% clip. He is also an excellent rebounder, pulling in 7.8 per game. If the Gophers want to win this game, Gist is the #1 guy they'll need to control.

The last two guys I'll mention are Maryland's two other double digits scorers, center Bombale Osby (11.2 pts/6.5 rebs) and shooting guard Eric Hayes (10.3 pts/4.4 apg). Osby is going to be a handful for either Tollackson or Williams, and not just because he has the sweetest 'fro since Oscar Gamble. He's a load at 6-8, 250 lbs. and can control the paint on either end. He too is adept at getting to the line (9th in the ACC in attempts) and he and Gist team up to block more than 4 shots per game. Hayes doesn't get the pub Vasquez does, but is a far superior shooter (40% from three).

I'm really don't think the Gophers can win this game, but, of course, you never know who is going to take it seriously. Considering Gist is a senior and the team leader, I'm guessing he'll have the troops fired up and ready to play. I don't think home court advantage will be enough to save the Gophers.

Maryland 70, Minnesota 65.

Here's What's Going to Happen: East Region

FIRST ROUND

#1 North Carolina over #16 Coppin State: After Coppin gets by Mount St. Mary's, they are greeted in Raleigh by the overal number 1 Tar Heels. UNC has had no problem blowing teams out this year, and there's no reason for that to change.

#9 Arkansas over #8 Indiana: Finally for Hoosier fans, this mess of an end of the season comes to an end, as they can't deal with the athleticism the Razorbacks bring, and DJ White's glorious career comes to an end. Of interest to Gopher fans may be Arkansas leading scorer Sonny Weems, a possible preview of what we can hope Devron Bostick is.

#4 Washington State over #13 Winthrop: I really wanted to pick Winthrop here, mostly because I think Washington State is extremely overrated. The problem is, this Winthrop team isn't last year's Winthrop team. That team was a true contender, with wins over Mississippi State and a good Old Dominion team, and near misses against North Carolina, Maryland, and Wisconsin. This year's Winthrop team has nothing on it's resume. Washington State in a squeaker.

#5 Notre Dame over #12 George Mason: GMU is a very, very dangerous 12 seed, and against a different #5 would be strongly considered for the upset. However, not against Notre Dame (more like Notre Lame). Not when they got knocked off in the first round last year by Winthrop. And Mason's top player is power forward Will Thomas. Unfortunately for the Patriots, he'll be matched up against Luke Harangody, one of the top PFs in the country. Advantage: Irish.

#2 Tennessee over #15 American: American was the number one team in the Patriot, so they may give the Vols some trouble. Probably not.

#7 Butler over #10 South Alabama: This was a tough call. South Alabama is an excellent team, and against any other 7 seed I'd pick them, particularly since this game is going to take place in Birmingham. But I think Butler is a really solid team this year, as in they should have been a 4 or a 5 seed, not a 7. South Alabama catches a bad break getting Butler here.

#3 Louisville over #14 Boise State: Boise has the second highest field goal percentage as a team in the country, and they play a fast tempo kind of game. Louisville was one of the hottest teams in the country, having won 9 straight before losing at Georgetown and to Pitt in the Big East tournament. Going into the tourny with two straight losses isn't ideal, and Boise could be interesting, but the Cardinals should handle it.

#11 St Joe's over #6 Oklahoma: The Hawks are playing excellent basketball, having defeated Xavier twice in the past ten days. And Oklahoma sucks. St Joe's has the size to deal with Oklahoma's big guys, and they're just a better team.

ROUND TWO

#1 North Carolina over #9 Arkansas: I fully expect the Razorbacks to give the Tar Heels a game. Arkansas has the athleticism to keep up with the Heels, but don't have the ability or the depth to keep it up for a full game.

#5 Notre Dame over #4 Washington State: As I said before, the Cougars are completely overrated, and the Irish are very good. They have the depth, patience, and offensive game to handle WSU's game.

#3 Louisville over #11 St. Joe's: Watching Pat Calathes go up against David Padgett will be a treat. Two quality big men playing very well right now. I expect this to be a pretty tight game, with Louisville winning out in the end.

#2 Tennessee over #7 Butler: I'll be honest, I stared at this one for a long time, and I may end up changing it at some point, but for now, I think the Vols take it down. An interesting clash of styles, as Tennessee ranks 19th in tempo, and Butler ranks 327th. If Butler can make it a slowdown game, Tennessee could struggle.

REGIONAL SEMIFINALS

#1 North Carolina over #5 Notre Dame: I still think Notre Dame is a very good team, but they just don't have the athleticism to hang with the Tar Heels. I expect Harangody to swarmed by Hansbrough, Deon Thompson, and Danny Green and really struggle, while the Tar Heel offense has a good day.

#3 Louisville over #2 Tennessee: This will be a very fun game. Both teams are very athletic and can score and play defense. The depth and size of the Cardinals will be the difference.

REGIONAL FINAL
#3 Louisville over #1 North Carolina: Roy Williams historically chokes every year with top talent, other than that one year when he actually won, and Pitino historically can get more out of his teams. Louisville is a #1 seed caliber team, but struggled early in the season with injuries and ended up at #3. They're heading to their second final four under Pitino here.


Stay tuned for the other regions.