Okay, let's make no mistake here -- that was a terrible shot selection by Ali Farokmanesh of Northern Iowa. That was the kind of shot Boilerdowd used to take at the co-rec (from the same 25-30 feet) and his teammates would go "Oh, no no no -- okay, yeah, yeah, nice shot..."
I loved the radio call I heard on an update on Fox Sports Radio this morning... the radio guy said Farokmanesh "gets it at the elbow..." The elbow? Yeah, I'll say.
Anyway, that was pretty amazing yesterday. And it's got everyone saying this is the BEST TOURNEY EVAH! But is it? Or were we just starved for an awesome first day? As you may recall, last year was the chalkiest tournament in many years, with practically no upsets, few close games in the first round, and all four #1 seeds making the Final Four.
I also saw some chatter that this kind of "ensures" we're going to see expansion. And to that I say, you don't know that. One could argue this proves how perfect things are right now. But as I've said before, and I should take my own advice, it's not about what's perfect -- it's about making money.
BS Bracket Extravaganza
In the BS Bracket Blowout (which, yeah readers, only 300+ entries?), I absolutely love that after day 1, the guy alone in first place (entry "Hummel's ACL Destroyed Me") has Purdue winning it all. Warms the cockles of my cold, dark, cynical heart.
As for my own bracket, I'm not that bothered by Georgetown or Florida losing, even though I had them going a couple rounds in. No, I'm more mad at myself for picking Texas and Notre Dame, two programs I knew better than to take but for some reason allowed myself to click on. Seriously, I normally would pick against ND out of spite, yet I didn't in our bracket? Hope I did in another one elsewhere.
T-Mill has Syracuse winning the entire thing. Man, they really got to you, eh, Travis?
As always, lots of great entry names.... some faves:
The Epitome of Unpleasant (nice pull)
The three Smooges (this makes me giggle out loud)
Porter Robers (a nice throwback from Timmy)
RyneSmithScholarshipHow? (an op-ed piece and a name, all in one)
DoinThisforBS1 (we're honored)
1932 National Champs (and don't forget it!)
Juan Moore Run 4 Kramer (nicely done)
Herb Dove Love (another throwback)
According Twomey 1 (I see a clever name for a national newspaper column)
Gene's Used Comb
Tom Crean Is Ugly (simple, yet accurate)
Only Irish Fan to Read BS (I'd go further... only Irish fan who can read? Hey-yo!)
Total Hummeliation (simply fantastic, and I plan to steal this)
Boilergal, are you aware that there's an entry out there called Cougar4Kramer? So between yours (Kramer's Cougar) and hers, there seems to be a line forming for ole Chris.
Nice Showing, Big East!
What I am a little bugged at Georgetown for is paving the road to at least the Elite 8 for Ohio State. Seriously, unless Thad Matta coaches them out of the tourney, they should barely break a sweat getting that far, where Kansas should be waiting to show the Bucks the folly of only playing six guys.
As we noted yesterday, Notre Dame also did what Notre Dame does. And really, nice job showing up Harangody. Four points? All in the final minute? Nice putback at the buzzer when your team was down three, by the way. Worked perfectly with your trademark, mouth-breathing, dumbass expression that immediately followed.
Marquette also continued to show that the Big East was overseeded like the women of Boilerdowd's skirt-chasing days. Seriously, Marquette was a 6-seed? They weren't good all year, then made a decent run in the Big East tourney and then we give them a 6? While everyone was bashing the Pac Ten, Washington took their 11 seed and, with much the same team as last year's, took down Marquette.
And then, of course, Villanova, who did their best to lose to 15-seed Bob Morris. And if not for some horrible, pro-nova calls down the stretch, RMU probably would have pulled it off. Up 8 with about 4 minutes left? Nova finished 4-6 down the stretch and bowed early from their conf tourney... yet steals a two-seed? Come on.
As I said to Katz on Twitter, I fully expect to see lots of articles at the start of next year about how "down" the Big East is after this performance -- you know, the articles that would be written about the Big Ten if they performed this way after being overseeded. It won't happen, but let's not forget that it should have. Or that the Big Ten had its way with Big East teams this season (5-2).
On We Go
It's time for Day 2. I had that bleary-eyed but happy feeling late last night that I get on these opening days every year. 12 straight hours of hoops overload. And on those occasions when CBS is doing it right, you see the final five minutes of game after game after game. The typical lull is at dinner hour, when they pitch you to your local news and then come back for the start of a game in your region. Which makes loads of sense, CBS -- just as everyone's coming home from work, turn your coverage into a snoozer. Awesome!
Oh, and on that subject of local teams. I get that you think people in Texas want to see all of the Texas game. However, I'm willing to bet that the vast -- vast -- majority of viewers are like me. Yes, I want to see my team, but if another game is in the final minutes and it's close, I would be willing to forgo hearing Verne Lunquist's opening ramble and a panning shot of my team in their warmups doing a shootaround in order to see the end of the close game. Seriously, who watches the tourney but only wants to see their team? Is this sort of thing that hard to figure out?
Judging by CBS, yes it is.
