Best Opening Round I Can Remember

At least it’s shaping up that way if Sunday delivers.

As disappointed as I was in last year’s opening weekend of March Madness, this one is exceeding all expectations. Putting aside the fact that my bracket now resembles Kabul after the Taliban rolled through in ’96 – a map of ordered failure – and that Texas received a much-needed mercy killing, if you’re a basketball purist, you can’t help but be pleased at the quality of play this weekend. It had everything: dominance, upstarts, Cinderellas, clutchitude, chokiness, and fascinating and obscure mascots.

Some observations:

Guard play continues to cover team blemishes like the make-up counter at Sephora and it’s crystal clear that the skilled guard who can dribble, shoot, and make good decisons but lacks “NBA measurables” is currently the most undervalued commodity in college basketball. Who wants a 6-1 guy that doesn’t immediately project to the Clippers if all he can do is nail open threes like lay-ups, possesses a recognizable basketball IQ, and has a good handle?

Second, if you can’t find skill in the post, have strength, aggression, and effort. The 6-6 260 pound power forward who knows his role and will stick to his knitting frustrates more talented thoroughbreds at the college level in halfcourt. Always has. Always will.

Third, possessing an actual system – whatever it may be – is preferable to rolling out a bunch of athletes and hoping that they cohere. Watching the Wake Forest-Texas game was a painful reminder of that fact, particularly when viewed in contrast Butler/Murray State. But we have lottery players, dood!

Fourth, the mid-range game is dead. Mid-majors have learned that they need only defend the three point line and have enough team defense to step in and take the charge on the drive. Rinse, wash, repeat.

If you can sink an open 12-15 footer consistently off of the bounce, you’re in like Flint. Where have you gone, Andrew Toney and Joe Dumars?

Northern Iowa’s upset of Kansas – the best combination of the observations above – illustrates why basketball is a cool sport. What other game allows fundamental play to equalize pure athleticism more powerfully? Line up the rosters for Northern Iowa and Kansas and have them run a bunch of shooting and dribbling drills, test verticals and speed, and then do a draft. Seven or eight Jayhawks will be selected before the first UNI player.

Never mind that they’re whiter than Greg Gumbel’s squash game – UNI can ball.

So how did KU lose?

Collins and Taylor combining to go 4 of 21 from the field is a good place to start. When Sherron’s shot won’t fall, he won’t settle for being a creator. That’s a problem for a senior point guard.

From the UNI perspective, the recipe is a familiar one and it smacks us upside the head every time Greece routs a Dream Team. Take a bunch of shooters, mix in some hipster beef – UNI’s rotation at 4/5 weighs 245, 255, 255, 280, respectively (including a heavily tattooed lycanthrope Irish wookie named Lucas O’Rear) – that will block out and screen like their lives depend on it, take care of the basketball, make great decisions, and refuse to play the game that And 1 videos tell you that basketball is.

Having an Ali Farokhmanesh with the onions to sink a cold-blooded three pointer doesn’t hurt either.

That game also demonstrated why officiating is crucial. If the Jayhawks had been afforded a Dukeian deference from the zebras, they would have cruised by 10+. The fact that you can still get an honest game of basketball called at the collegiate level is reason enough that it’s a better game than the NBA.

St. Marys over Villanova might have been the least surprising upset to date. It’s pretty clear that Scottie Reynolds checked out weeks ago and his disinterest in playing his last games as a Wildcat is as evident as the fact that he as at least one member in his entourage whose only job being to repeat what Scottie says preceded by the words “My man Scottie say…” followed by ingratiating high fives all around.

Scottie’s 2 game NCAA tournament statline against 15 seed Robert Morris and 10 seed St Marys?

4 of 26 from the field.

For a smooth 15.4% shooting percentage.

He also had two fouls total in two NCAA tournament games. Thanks for the hard-nosed D, team leader. I’ll follow your career in Ukraine with interest.

Continuing on the theme of the Big East’s semi-fraudulence, Ohio’s massacre of Georgetown was a shock to me, though apparently not to some Hoya supporters. Perhaps they could have let me know before I put Georgetown in my Elite 8? The Athenians shot 58% from the field and dropped 97 points on the Hoyas and though Greg Monroe managed 19 points and 13 rebounds…that was paired with 7 TOs. There’s a message there, NBA GMs.

Watching Georgetown’s weirdly unassertive body language and disinterest in defending forced my own Jesuitical inquiry – why are a bunch of guys who play their summer ball on the open run courts in DC such total pussies? Is Anacostia now completely gentrified?

Baylor is learning to win on a big stage. Stop them soon or go ahead and book them in Indy. I love their guard play and the Dunn/Carter combo certainly gets the attention it deserves, but Udoh is what makes them go. Vasherized likens Udoh to a prawn from District 9 and that’s a solid comparison, not just because Scott Drew feeds him cat food and keeps him in a dorm shanty. Old Dominion focused on Udoh after he massacred Sam Houston in the opening round and Josh Lomers made them pay on the weakside with the easiest 14 points and 8 rebounds I’ve ever seen.

Josh Lomers made them pay is a sentence written as frequently as Secretary of State Kim Kardashian found common ground with the Chinese on the subject of Iranian nuclear proliferation so enjoy Halley’s Comet when it burns through the sky.

If Kentucky handles Wiscy and their trip-to-the-dentist style of play, they likely take on West Virginia for the right to make reservations in Indy. Epic basketball. Epic feudin’. There will be skirmishing and musketry on the Kantuck-Wes’ Virginny border – count on it.

Now…Swayze!

I could prattle on – what were your takeaways from the weekend?

Feel free to spare me any references to Texas basketball – that dead horse is beaten.

Article Tags:

College Basketball, First two rounds, Guard play, kansas, Kansas Jayhawks, March Madness, Nuthin But A G Thang, Twitter: @marchtomarch

32 Responses

CrazyJoeDavola said:

March 20th, 2010 at 9:39 pm

Given the fact that Scottie Reynolds has been playing college basketball for something like 15 years now, I think he’s to be forgiven for checking out a little early.

I would add “can hit 70%+ from the FT line” to your teeny guard formula, especially after seeing our “effort” in that area this year. If we get our team free throws up above 65%, we probably win at least two more games this year and go out in the second round as a 6 seed rather than the first as an 8.

Given the glowing reports about our team in their off-season court battles at Gregory, and paragraph point about Georgetown’s prowess on their version, I have to wonder how much stock we can put in any of that stuff. I think guys who feast on the freewheeling nature of such contests really get freaked out when presented with a structured opposition, especially if it’s manned by better-than-average talent.

Can’t wait for UK and WVU, if that’s how it plays out – the Mountaineers have the talent and the brawn to knock the Wildcats off their axis, but I have a suspicion that UK is a lot stronger than people want to give them credit for, probably due to innate revulsion to John Calipari.

And as I said in the open thread, I can’t wait to see how that Baylor/St. Mary’s game goes. Samhain or whatever his name is could be hell on the Bears.
UT_06 said:

March 20th, 2010 at 9:43 pm

There are approximately 3 people in the BC bracket who do not have Kansas winning it all.

One dude picked Texas. I like the optimism.
Brian Hayes said:

March 20th, 2010 at 10:29 pm

I posted earlier about how Collins’ effort just crippled Kansas today, but what amazed me the most was his complete inability to stay in front of his man on defense. UNI got a LOT of good looks out of penetration/pass after one of UNI’s modestly gifted athletes blew right by Sherron. The best run KU made in the 2nd half was with his ass planted on the bench, and it was a real mistake to put him back in there when it was obvious he didn’t have it.

I imagine that MSU or Maryland will learn from KU’s failings, and refuse to let UNI dictate the pace to them with inferior athletes. Happy for the Panthers – certainly making up for the Cyclones’ and Hawkeyes’ feckless efforts this year.

I agree that it is nice to see some attempts at objective tournament officiating, too, and honestly believe there’s been an improvement in that respect this year. In the late 1990s, the refereeing bias for Duke, UNC and some other teams had become so horrific that I mulled phasing out my interest altogether.

Love the Udoh-District 9 reference by Vasherized!
March To March — Blog — Round Two Madness: Northern Iowa Upsets Kansas said:

March 20th, 2010 at 11:10 pm

[...] reminded me why I love this tournament so much. A good friend of mine mentioned to me that college basketball is the great equalizer of all athletic endeavors. At least of the sports we [...]
Box Out said:

March 21st, 2010 at 2:34 am

You can’t be serious with that shot is right.
Ny horn said:

March 21st, 2010 at 6:16 am

Blows my mind that a team that lost two game all season, playing in one of the toughest conferences in college basketball, can meltdown like that.
Vasherized said:

March 21st, 2010 at 7:00 am

Josh Lomers made them pay is a sentence written as frequently as Secretary of State Kim Kardashian found common ground with the Chinese on the subject of Iranian nuclear proliferation so enjoy Halley’s Comet when it burns through the sky.

well done.
Anybody but KY and TN said:

March 21st, 2010 at 7:28 am

Bah. I can’t wait until we get back to the important stuff, like how many schools we’ll take with us to the Pac Ten and how Davis will blow it this year.
Art Vandelay said:

March 21st, 2010 at 8:46 am

Ali Farokhmanesh hitting the biggest shot of the season is the definition of March Madness.

Ali Boma Ye!!!
Bob in Houston said:

March 21st, 2010 at 9:19 am

Heard Doug Gottlieb on ESPN radio this morning nail regarding KU, to wit, horrible defensive game plan. They should have pressured the three-point line and made the runts shoot among their trees. It’s not like UNI killed them BTA (only 9 of 26, although they made at least three when they absolutely had to have them), and they were only 13 of 29 on twos. Maybe they dish to Eglseder and O’Rear, but maybe they can’t, either.

Collins was bad and Taylor was terrible. Aldrich never got the ball enough — that sounds familiar.

IMO, UNI won this game more than KU lost it. They played well, but not great. KU played less than their best, but not horribly. That said, it goes up there in the pantheon of KU second-round tournament folds with UTEP ’92 (Eddie Rivera holla!) and URI ’98 (Cuttino Mobley and Tyson Wheeler holla!).
texoz said:

March 21st, 2010 at 9:38 am

I’m scared to look at my bracket. I have a feeling it’s like a home loan in Las Vegas, upside down.
texoz said:

March 21st, 2010 at 9:42 am

And FYI, there are nearly 1.5 million brackets on yahoo. Currently, best score is 36 of 40.

Wonder if anyone in Vegas is 40 of 40 at this point?
ColoradoAg said:

March 21st, 2010 at 10:22 am

” a heavily tattooed lycanthrope Irish wookie named Lucas O’Rear”

That is just strong command of the English language.

This piece was a nice balm on the hangover.
Neon said:

March 21st, 2010 at 10:25 am

Opening weekend, not opening round. Not that that’s a ton of consolation.
parlin said:

March 21st, 2010 at 11:34 am

I could prattle on

We hope you do. This was money.
Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

March 21st, 2010 at 12:46 pm

“If Kentucky handles Wiscy”

Cornell is making it rain on the cheeseheads, they lead Wiscy by 10 currently.
Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

March 21st, 2010 at 12:47 pm

And as always, great work Scip.
Scipio Tex said:

March 21st, 2010 at 12:48 pm

Cornell is playing phenomenally well. I’d be surprised if Wiscy doesn’t cut into the lead in the 2nd half.

Jay Bilas may end up looking like a genius.
Scipio Tex said:

March 21st, 2010 at 1:17 pm

Scratch that. The Big Red are blowing Wisconsin out.
ransomstoddard said:

March 21st, 2010 at 1:29 pm

It’s incredible how few teams play good, fundamental basketball.
dick said:

March 21st, 2010 at 1:44 pm

Hopefully, yall caught the Maryland Michigan St ending. Freakin’ thrilling. Maryland almost pulled off a comeback for the ages.

officially the best opening weekend ever
Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

March 21st, 2010 at 1:50 pm

Of all the lower seeded teams to be getting upsets Cornell seems to be the least regarded and discussed. I havn’t watched them much but both box scores are blowouts. Time to pay attention to them maybe… I am loving this tournament. Sure, my bracket has been decimated but this is too much fun.
Bob in Houston said:

March 21st, 2010 at 2:31 pm

And nobody melts down like Maryland fans. I can’t even post some of the stuff they have spewed.
Toadvine said:

March 21st, 2010 at 2:33 pm

This really has been a great start. It’s pretty exciting to see dark horse teams winning by playing solid basketball rather than just shooting the lights out. 4 year players are so key.
ursa major said:

March 21st, 2010 at 11:05 pm

I think Udoh is more like Gonzo than a Prawn from District 9 – but tha’ts not bad.
Sailor Ripley said:

March 21st, 2010 at 11:08 pm

Bob – What is the cut of the Maryland fan’s jib? Hanging Gary in effigy? They were robbed?
Bob in Houston said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 6:18 am

SR — mostly poor, poor us, with liberal portions of various combinations of the f word and Gary, players who failed to pick up the ball on the last play, the refs, the state of Michigan, and anything else going badly in their lives.

If you’ve ever heard the Md students at games, you have an idea.
raoulduke said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 8:23 am
Doperbo said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 8:58 am

Great recap- with one minor quibble. Kim Kardashian is a bit meretricious, true, but so was Henry Kissinger when you think about it. I think this idea has legs.
Knowitall said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 9:34 am

It’s actually “in like Flynn,” not “in like flint.” I lost a bet on that once.
dick said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 9:59 am

I can’t believe that UNI got the entire fanbase to come out and welcome them home.
Confused and Dazed said:

March 22nd, 2010 at 10:01 am

It’s Flint if you’re referring to the movie title. Derek Flint was the namesake character.

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32 Responses

CrazyJoeDavola said:

UT_06 said:

Brian Hayes said:

March To March — Blog — Round Two Madness: Northern Iowa Upsets Kansas said:

Box Out said:

Ny horn said:

Vasherized said:

Anybody but KY and TN said:

Art Vandelay said:

Bob in Houston said:

texoz said:

texoz said:

ColoradoAg said:

Neon said:

parlin said:

Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

Scipio Tex said:

Scipio Tex said:

ransomstoddard said:

dick said:

Burnt Orange Wookiee said:

Bob in Houston said:

Toadvine said:

ursa major said:

Sailor Ripley said:

Bob in Houston said:

raoulduke said:

Doperbo said:

Knowitall said:

dick said:

Confused and Dazed said:

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