Butler advances to its second straight final four by knocking off Florida in overtime

Butler guard Shelvin Mack said, “It’s a lot better than last year. This year, everyone just expected us just to fall off, a lot of people didn’t have faith in us. We went from being on the bubble to winning our conference to being picked to lose every game in the tournament. I would say we shocked the world again.” The Bulldogs are now the second team to reach back to back final fours from a "non-major conference" since UNLV achieved the same feat in 1990 and 1991. The Bulldogs run to the national championship game last season, certainly looked to help them down the stretch against the Gators. Chandler Parsons said, "It's not like it's their first time here. They were in this situation last year, so I think their experience helped them and I think they just came up with big plays when the team needed it."

The Bulldogs are very fortunate to have beaten the Gators because they had a poor shooting night. The team went 27.3 percent from behind the arc, only making 9 of the 33 three pointers they attempted. Butler looked confused at times on the offensive end of the court because of the Gators disguising and constantly changing their defense between man and zone. Shelvin Mack started out the game hot, making two three pointers and a jumper from the elbow. From that point on, Mack struggled going 5 for 17 from the field including 2 for 11 from three but he hit some clutch shots and finished with 27 points. Butler forward Matt Howard said about Mack, "I feel incredibly good for Shelvin. He... carried us. You can't fault him and say you lost us the game because he essentially won us the game. The kid's incredible. He really carries us at times. This is the type of player Shelvin is." The Bulldogs got solid contributions from Howard, who added 14 points, and Florida native Khyle Marshall, who had 10 points and 7 rebounds, all on the offense end of the court, off the bench. 


It is still hard to believe how Butler pulled off the victory over Florida because the Gators dominated down low. Butler had no answer for Alex Tyus and especially Vernon Macklin. Florida made an emphasis to continue to feed the post, and they only shot 9 threes during regulation. On every possession, Macklin got a touch down low and constantly went to his righty jump hook for buckets. Macklin went 11 for 14 from the field and had a season high 25 points. Alex Tyus also played well down low adding 14 points and 10 rebounds. Erving Walker struggled from deep only making 1 of 7 threes and Chandler Parsons looked uncomfortable all game, as the SEC player of the year had only 5 points. Parsons said, "They're tough. They're physical. They have all the characteristics of a good team.”

The game was back and fourth and close throughout. With 1:34 remaining in the second half, Shelvin Mack made two clutch free throws to bring the Bulldogs to within one. A Matt Howard free throw tied the game at 60 with 31 seconds left. Florida didn't look down low, where they had so much success during the game, but put the ball in the hands of their 5-8 point guard Erving Walker. He missed a fade away three point jumper with 2 seconds left and the game went into overtime. In the extra session, Florida totally forgot about looking into the post and settled for 5 three pointers. With 11 seconds remaining in the overtime and Butler up by one point 72 to 71, Shelvin Mack hit two more clutch free throws to extend the lead to 3 points. Erving Walker missed a potential game tying three point jumper with 8 seconds left, which sealed the victory and a final four appearance for the Bulldogs. Donovan said, "Walker was 1 of 10, and he's been such a clutch shooter for us. When you get into those situations where the game is coming down to the wire like that and it's one-possession games, anything can happen."

The Butler Bulldogs make winning plays in tight games. Butler coach Brad Stevens said, "We just kind of stayed together, stayed the course, figured it out, and just played resiliently... I'm incredibly proud of these guys. They carried their coach today in a big way... Our players did a great job, and [they are] just a special group. We're really just lucky they're Butler Bulldogs. I know this, somebody is going to have to beat us because of our will."Florida Coach Billy Donovan acknowledged that by saying, "Their will and their refusal to be denied really stood out." After the game, Ronald Nored, who had 4 points and 4 rebounds screamed, "We're back, baby!"

The Comeback Of Michael Vick

Every football fan is wondering weather or not there will be an NFL season next year. The lockout has had a huge affect on fans and players, some of whom are resorting to boxing like Ravens safety Tom Zbikowski or soccer like Bengels wide receiver Chad Johnson. Everybody wants a football season and I thnk this piece on Michael Vick will remind people of the great stories of the NFL.

After just one season at Virginia Tech in 1999, Michael Vick was already beginning to be called the most electrifying player in college football. He was so impressive on the football field that in the 2000 MLB draft, the Colorado Rockies took a chance and chose Vick in the 30th round despite him not having played baseball in college. Vick led the Hokies to an 11-1 record, with their only loss coming against Florida State in the BCS National Championship game at the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. He finished third in the Heisman Trophy, the highest finish for a freshman since 1980 when Herschel Walker of Georgia achieved the same feat. He returned to Virginia Tech for one more season and led his team to another 11-1 record. He finished sixth in the Heisman Trophy voting that year.

In 2001, the Atlanta Falcons, who owned the fifth overall pick in the NFL draft, became the first team in NFL history to trade up for the first pick. They dealt the fifth overall pick, a third round pick in the 2001 draft, and wide receiver Tim Dwight to acquire Vick. Some people wondered if Vick could succeed in the NFL with his mobile, athletic, and unique style of throwing as well as running. In 2001, Vick made his NFL debut against the San Francisco 49ers and he completed his first touchdown pass against the Carolina Panthers on September 23.

The next year, Vick came onto the NFL scene as a major superstar. The Falcons had 6 wins and a tie from week 6 to week 13 of the NFL season. In week 13, Vick set an NFL record for most rushing yard in a single game with 173. The previous mark was 127 yards, set by the Chiacgo Bears' quarterback Bobby Douglass in 1972. After the game, Vick’s coach Dan Reeves said, "I've never seen anyone turn on the jets like that.'' Vick didn’t throw an interception for 25 straight quarters and 177 straight passes that season. The Falcons made the playoffs with a 9-6-1 record. In Vick’s first NFL playoff game, they immediately scored a major upset on January 4, 2003. The Falcons became the first road team in NFL history to defeat the Green Bay Packers in a playoff game at Lambeau Field. After the game, the Packers coach Mike Sherman said, "Michael Vick's a great player, he made some great plays, we couldn't tackle him.'' Their season ended the next week in Philadelphia as the Eagles won 20–6. Vick had a career high in completions, attempts, and passing yards that season.

In 2003, Vick suffered a fractured right fibula and the Falcons missed the playoffs as Vick only played in 5 games. In 2004, the Falcons were the second seed in the NFC playoffs finishing at 11-5. He became the first quarterback to throw for more than 250 yards and rush for over 100 yards in the same game against the Denver Broncos. Vick’s 902 rushing yards ranked third all-time by an NFL quarterback in one season. Hs 7.5 rushing yards per carry ranked first among all NFL players. Vick took the Falcons to the NFC championship game, but they fell to the Eagles. After the season, Vick signed a 10-year contract worth $130 million with a $37 million signing bonus. This made him the highest paid player in the NFL at the time. Although the 2005 and 2006 seasons were very difficult for the Falcons as they went 8-8 and 7-9 respectively, Vick still put up big numbers. He threw for the most touchdowns in his career with 20 in 2006. Vick also set the record for the most rushing yards in a season with 1,039 and the highest average yards per carry in NFL history with 8.4.

In April of 2007, the sports world was stunned when Vick was reported to have involvement in a dog-fighting scandal. He participated in an illegal interstate dog-fighting ring that had operated for more than five years. One of the members of the group said about Vick, "He's a pit bull fighter. He's one of the people that they call 'the big boys': that's someone who bets a large dollar. I'm talking about large money -- $30,000 to $40,000 -- even higher. He's one of the heavyweights." Aside from dog-fighting, Vick and three others killed the dogs that didn't show enough fighting spirit or that lost matches by shooting, drowning, or hanging them. Prosecutors alleged that on one occasion early 2007, Vick participated in killing eight dogs. In August of 2007, Vick pleaded guilty to a felony charge for his role in the dog-fighting ring. The NFL suspended him indefinitely. At a news conference he made a statement and said, “I offer my deepest apologies to everybody out there in the world who was affected by this whole situation. And if I'm more disappointed with myself than anything it's because of all the young people, young kids that I've let down, who look at Michael Vick as a role model. And to have to go through this and put myself in this situation, you know, I hope that every young kid out there in the world watching this interview right now who's been following the case will use me as an example to using better judgment and making better decisions. So I got a lot of down time, a lot of time to think about my actions and what I've done and how to make Michael Vick a better person.” While in prison, Vick filled for federal bankruptcy protection in July of 2008. He served 21 months in prison and spent two months under home confinement in Hampton, Virginia.

Vick was released by the Falcons and was suspended for two weeks by Roger Goodell. Former Indianapolis Colts head coach, Tony Dungy, began to mentor Vick to get him on the right path. He provided Vick with advice, direction, and support during his rehabilitation process after his release from jail.

On August 14, 2009, Vick signed a two-year contract with the Philadelphia Eagles. The first year of the deal was worth $1.6 million with the second-year option worth $5.2 million. Andy Reid said, “I'm a believer that as long as people go through the right process, they deserve a second chance.” In week 13 against his former team, the Falcons, Vick threw a touchdown and ran for a touchdown. These were his first scores since December 2006. However, Vick only played sparingly as a backup to Donovan McNabb. He had by far his worst NFL season completing only 46.2 percent of his passes and running for more yards than throwing. On April 5, 2010, Donovan McNabb was traded within the NFC East to the Washington Redskins. Although things were beginning to look up for Vick, the Eagles named Kevin Kolb the starter for the beginning of the season. When Kolb suffered a concussion in the first week of the season, Vick came in and threw for 175 yards and one touchdown, and ran for 103 yards in only one half. It became Vick’s seventh 100-yard rushing game, the most ever by a quarterback. Although Kolb was ready to play by week 3, Andy Reid had no chose but to start Vick because he was playing at such a high level. Vick didn’t disappoint his coach one bit during that week, leading the Eagles to a 28-3 win over the Jaguars. He threw for 291 yards and 3 touchdowns, and ran for 30 yards and another touchdown. Andy Reid said, "He played his heart out today, so it's more about him than me or anybody else. It's a tribute to what he's done and how he's handled things."

Vick was back on top of the NFL and was named the NFC offensive player of the month for September. The highlight of the season, and his return as a star in the NFL, came on Monday Night Football on November 15 against the Redskins and McNabb. Vick passed for 333 yards and four touchdowns, while rushing for 80 yards and another two touchdowns. The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio asked Vick for his game jersey to display after Vick became the first player to pass for three touchdowns and rush for two touchdowns in the first half of a game. Last Thursday, Vick and the Eagles beat the Texans 34-24 and Vick once again threw for 300 yards with 2 touchdowns, and ran for 48 yards and a touchdown. After the game, Texans coach Gary Kubiak said of Vick, "This young man is playing as good as anybody I've seen play in the NFL and I've been doing it for a while. He's special and we just tried to contain him, but obviously he still had a big night.” While Vick has always been a fantastic runner, he has been showing some incredible accuracy passing this season. His quarterback rating of 100.2 was fourth in the NFL. He completed 233 of 372 passes for a 62.6 completion percentage, above his carrer average of 55.3. Vick threw for 3,018 yards and 21 touchdowns with only 6 interceptions. He ran for 676 yards and 9 touchdowns. Vick accumulated all of these incredible numbers after missing 4 games due to a rib injury. After leading the Eagles to the NFC East divison crown at a 10-6 record, Vick was named the Comeback player of the year.  Vick's college coach at Virgina Tech Frank Beamer said about Vick's comeback, "... to me he's always been the same, a good person, a good heart, made some bad decisions and now he's trying like heck to work his way back and you've got to appreciate that. He'd be the first to tell you that his judgment wasn't good. I think he's trying like heck to help a lot of young people make good decisions."

Butler advances to the elite eight by topping Wisconsin

Butler just knows how to get it down. They are one game away from reaching the final four for the second year in a row after knocking off the 4th seeded Wisconsin Badgers 61 to 54. Butler center Andrew Smith said, "A lot of people just ignored us and said, Aw, they'll probably lose in the first or second round. Here we are again, trying to prove everybody wrong. We'll try to win three more."

The Bulldogs were led by their first team all conference center Matt Howard. Howard was able to stay out of foul trouble and was on the court for 37 minutes, which allowed him to have a great game with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Shelvin Mack added 13 points although he struggled from the field only making 4 of the 13 shots he attempted.

Butler was very fortunate, as Wisconsin had their worst shooting game of the season. They only went 17 for 56 from the field, which is 30.4 percent and is well below their average of 44.5 percent from the field. The Badgers also went 7 for 29 from behind the arc, which is only 24.1 percent. That includes Jordan Taylor and Jon Leuer, who combined went 4 for 16 from three. Jon Leuer, the Badgers leading scorer at more than 18 points a game, went 1 for 12 from the field and only scored 3 points. Leuer said after the game, "We made plays that were uncharacteristic of us. We tried to force some things, and Butler did some good things defensively... They're just tough kids who are all-around good players, and they play to their strengths." Even though Jordan Taylor had 22 points, he struggled as well, going 6 for 19 from the field. Jordan Taylor said, "It was just kinda one of those nights. The ball just wasn't going through the hoop. It's frustrating. They're scrappy and relentless. I don't know, they're just tough kids. They never quit, and that's what makes them winners."

After an Andrew Smith layup with 11:34 remaining in the second half, Butler took a 20 point lead at 47 to 27 and the Badgers looked to be all but done. With 37 seconds remaining, Jordan Taylor hit a three pointer to bring the Badgers all the way back to a four point deficit. However, four clutch free throws from Matt Howard and two more missed threes from Wisconsin sealed the victory for the Bulldogs. Brad Stevens said about his team nearly losing their lead at the game of the game, "That's human nature, a little bit. I really, in the moment, was disappointed in the way we played, and now I don't care. Let's move on. That's the way I feel about it now... I'm not worried about it."

Butler coach Brad Stevens said, "Obviously, we're thrilled to still be playing. I don't think that this group goes into games not believing, and I don't think that this group came here not believing. And so we're going to see if we can't try to get one on Saturday and move on." The Bulldogs will take on the Florida Gators in the regional finals for the right to go to Houston.

No repeat for Duke as Derrick Williams leads Arizona to the elite eight

With the Duke-Arizona first half coming to an end, Derrick Williams hit a fade away three point jumper to cut the Duke lead to 6 at 44 to 38. The Pac 10 Player of the year Williams kept Arizona in the game in the first half. Williams scored 25 of the Wildcats 38 first half points including hitting 5 of the 6 threes he attempted. Arizona coach Sean Miller said about his star, "I really felt like it was two different games. The first half, Derrick's individual play allowed us to have a chance. I mean he scored 25 points in one half. Made five 3s in one half. We were down 6. We could have had a huge deficit at halftime, but he gave us a chance." Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was also impressed by Williams first half play. He said, "Williams, he's just a superb player. He's as good as anybody we've played, or I should say better than anybody we've played. He kept his team in there in the first half.  I thought we played a little better than the score in the first half, but Williams getting 25 just kept them in." Williams definitely kept the Wildcats in the game, as no other Arizona player had more than four points in the first half.

In the second half, Arizona outscored Duke 55 to 33 and it was the other Wildcat players who stepped up big. The Wildcats came right out of the gate on fire, as they cut the Duke lead to only one point in just 3 minutes of play. After two Lamont Jones free throws with 15:18 remaining in the second half gave Arizona a 55 to 53 lead, they never relinquished it. Duke point guard Kyrie Irving said, "After we lost the lead, I think everyone got a little rattled. We tried to settle down, but by then it was too late." Krzyzewski said, "They just got on a real roll. When you get on a roll, you have more energy than the other guy,"said. "We had no stop for them, and you kind of get overwhelmed there for a little bit. They knocked us back and got that double-digit lead." Lamont Jones scored 14 points in the second half and Solomon Hill added 10 second half points. Jones said, As a team, we came together and willed ourselves to win. Derrick is a great player, but we all contribute." Williams finished the game with 32, a career high, after scoring 7 points in the second half.

For Duke, the loss to the Wildcats is a very disappointing end to a great season. Krzyzewski said, "The tournament is cruel. It's an abrupt end for everybody when you don't win." After missing 26 straight games with a toe injury, Kyrie Irving played significant minutes for the first time. He played 31 minutes for the Blue Devils and had a great game scoring 28 points on 9 of 15 shooting from the field. However, his return looked like it ruined the chemistry of the top seeded Blue Devils. They had played almost the entire season without Irving and had developed a groove and felt comfortable with their roles. With Irving's return, the other guys on the floor looked out of sync. Seth Curry and Mason Plumlee, who had stepped up and played very well in Irving's absence, only combined for 10 points. Nolan Smith, the ACC player of the year, had his worst game of the season. Smith only scored 8 points, about 12 below his average, and was 3 for 14 from the field. The ball was in Kyrie's hands at the end of the game and Irving, not Smith, was directing the offense. The Blue Devils didn't look like the same team who had earned a one seed.

Arizona advances to their first elite eight since 2005 and is looking to head to the schools fifth final four and first since 2001. Derrick Williams said, "Makes me feel great that if we win this game on Saturday we're going to be known as one of the best Arizona teams to play, and, you know, just to have our name up there, this is the fourth Arizona team to have 30 wins and that's a great accomplishment right there... The Elite Eight is great, but we're not looking to stop right there. We're trying to win a national championship one step at a time, and one more game we're in the Final Four. That's what we want to do. That's one of our team goals this season was not only to get in the tournament, but to make a run in the tournament and so far we're doing that."

Jimmer Fredette struggles as Florida advances to the elite eight

BYU and Florida needed two overtimes to decide a winner last year in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Cougars and the Gators met again in the sweet sixteen this year and once again needed an extra period to decide the winner.

Although Jimmer Fredette scored 32 points, he really struggled and was harassed by the Florida defense for the entire game. Fredette went 11 for 29 from the field and shot a career high 15 threes but only made 3 of them. The SEC player of the year Chandler Parsons said about his team making it difficult for Fredette to score, "That's just a credit to our guys on defense especially Kenny Boynton. He stayed with him and made it difficult for him out there." Fredette didn't get a lot of help from his teammates, as no other Cougar was in double figures. BYU shot 37 threes and only hit 10 of them. The Florida head coach Billy Donovan said, "I know there's a lot made of Jimmer Fredette, and he's a great player, but we really felt coming into the game the key was to shut down the other four players on the floor... I think the biggest thing was we were able to hold all their guys under double figure points other than Fredette." Jackson Emery began the game very hot, as he hit his first 3 three pointers and had 9 points. However, Emery had to go to the bench after he picked up his 2nd fouls with 11:41 remaining in the first half. Emery didn't score another point for the rest of the game and missed four three pointers in the second half and overtime. 

Alex Tyus was the difference maker down in the post for the Gators, as the Cougars couldn't guard the big 6-8 forward. He only missed one shot the entire game, going 8 for 9 from the field. Tyus had 19 points and 17 rebounds. When BYU came to double team him down low, Tyus kicked the ball out to Kenny Boynton, Erving Walker, and Chandler Parsons for open threes, which finally began to fall in overtime. Florida coach Billy Donovan said, "The thing about Alex is he never really gets fazed with the moment or with what's going on. One of the things I've tried to pull out of him and get him to see is that when he has a lot of activity and he's flying around the court, because of his athleticism, he's got a great ability to impact a game." BYU really missed their 6-9 forward Brandon Davies, who was suspended because he broke the schools honor code by having sex with his girlfriend. The cougars were forced to constantly double team the post because they had nobody who could guard Tyus down low. 

The game was very close throughout with the score tied at halftime and at the end of regulation. With 48 seconds remaining in the second half, Kyle Collinsworth made one of two free throws to tie the game at 68. Although Kenny Boynton missed a three pointer with 25 seconds left in the game, Erving Walker ran down the ball to give Florida the final shot. Walker said about the play, “It was so big because they could have easily gone the other way. Fredette is so good at drawing fouls and taking a last shot. It would have been game over for us. That was a big rebound.” Fredette also realized the importance of that rebound by saying, “We had a chance, we got a stop, but we had a chance to get a rebound and they got the offensive rebound and put it out. And you never know what could have happened if we got that rebound. But they definitely had fresh legs and they were ready to go in that overtime. Chandler Parsons missed a difficult shot at the buzzer and the game went into overtime. The extra period was all Florida as they outscored the Cougars 15 to 6. Fredette struggled in the overtime missing two three pointers and committing two costly turnovers. Kenny Boynton and Chandler Parsons both hit three to secure the victory and a regional finals appearance.

The win sends Florida into the elite eight and one win away from returning to the final four since they won the second of their back to back championships in 2007. They will play Butler in the regional finals on Saturday, as the Bulldogs beat Wisconsin 61 to 54. Donovan has been very appreciate of his teams performance this season by saying, "It’s been so rewarding for me to see them make the journey they’ve made to this point right now. It’s been very rewarding and fulfilling for me, and I hope in some way I’ve been able to give them as much as they’ve given me."

Kemba Walker and Jeremy Lamb lead UConn into the elite eight over San Diego St.

Over the past 17 days, the Connecticut Huskies played five games in the Big East tournament and three games in the NCAA tournament. Many people questioned weather UConn could continue to play at such a high level because of the fatigue of playing so many games in such a short time span. Kemba Walker answered that question by saying, "The one thing I don't want to beat us is fatigue. Do I get tired? Yeah, after the game. Not during it. I tell myself, I'm not tired … If it's 40 minutes, I might as well play 40 minutes." Walker has backed up what he said by playing 304 of the teams 324 minutes in his last eight games including missing only one minute in the teams last two games. The Huskies needed all 40 of Walker's minutes to beat the San Diego State Aztecs 74 to 67 and advance to the regional finals. 

Walker had another great game by scoring 36 points. He made shots from all different angles and areas on the court going 12 for 25 from the floor. San Deigo St. coach Steve Fisher said after the game, "We were going to vary who guarded him, go with Chase [Tapley] to start with and either fatigue or success by Walker, we had it planned all along that Billy was going to guard him for a good portion of the game. And it didn't matter who was guarding him, he was pretty effective today." Walker was helped by freshman Jeremy Lamb who combined with Walker to score 60 of the teams 74 points. Lamb only missed two shots the entire game and added 24 points. UConn needed all they could from Walker and Lamb because all the other Huskies went 6 for 27 from the field and the bench scored only 2 points. 

The game changing play may have been with more than 9 minutes remaining. After a D.J. Gay layup gave the Aztecs a two point lead, James Franklin stole a sloppy inbound pass from Alex Oriakhi and dished to Billy Whte for a layup. The frustrated Jim Calhoun called a timeout and as the teams were going back to their benches James Franklin picked up a technical foul for bumping Kemba Walker. Walker defended the call by saying, "The contact was definitely enough to go down. That's why I was able to get the free throws. I was on my way to the huddle, and he ran into me." After the technical foul, UConn went on a 16 to 4 run the next 5 minutes and change. During the run, Kemba Walker scored 14 of his 22 second half points. Although San Diego St. cut the UConn lead to one with 2:57 remaining in the game, Jeremy Lamb and Kemba Walker scored UConn's final 9 points to secure the victory. 

The loss is a tough one for the Aztec, who finished the season 34-3. Steve Fisher said, "When your season comes to a screeching halt, like it will for every team with one exception, it hurts. It should hurt, regardless of when, where and how. For our team this year, for what they've accomplished, it hurts exponentially more. I could not be more proud of how we competed, how hard we played, and unfortunately we came up a bit short." San Diego State's leading scorer and rebounder and second team All-American Kawhi Leonard could only play 29 minutes because of foul trouble and finished with 12 points. Leonard shot more threes in the NCAA tournament than free throws, which isn't a stat that Steve Fisher would like to see. He settled for jump shots instead of attacking the lane and using his great athleticism to score. The Aztecs struggled from three only shooting 31.8 percent including Chase Tapley, who went 1 for 7 from behind the arc.

Kemba Walker said, "I'm just trying to do the best I can do. Whether it's scoring, talking, getting their confidence up or giving an assist, I'm just trying to do whatever is possible to enhance this team." If the Huskies continue to play well on defense and ride Kemba on offense, they have a great chance of knocking off the Arizona Wildcats and heading to the final floor. Jim Calhoun said about his team, "I couldn't have asked for a better gift than this team, and then we get this. I don't remember anything quite like this. This is different. This team genuinely believes in themselves and each other."

A Key to San Diego St. vs Uconn

How San Diego St. will defend Kemba Walker: Steve Fisher, the head coach of San Diego St., said about his team having to guard Kemba Walker in the sweet sixteen, "We have some experience guarding top notch players like Kemba. We are going to use the athleticism of Billy White mostly but all our guys sometime will take a shot at him. The one thing you have to do to a player like Kemba is switch off on him and not show him the same defense every time down the court. We had a lot of success doing this against Jimmer Fredette so we hope we can do it against Kemba Walker." In San Diego State's two losses to BYU, Jimmer Fredette scored a combined 68 points and had 9 assists one game. When the Aztecs got their third crack at Fredette, he was stifled and frustrated on the offensive end, going 10 for 25 from the field including 2 for 7 from three. The Aztecs hope that Billy White's size at 6-8 and length complemented by his athleticism will force Kemba Walker into difficult shots much like how Jimmer had to settle for tough jumpers. San Diego St. will try to keep Kemba off the free throw line, where he went 14 for 14 in Uconn's third round win over Cincinnati. It is key that White will not slow down and begin to show fatigue as the game goes along, as he doesn't normally guard players on the perimeter. This is key as Kemba plays nearly every minute of every game, as long as he isn't in foul trouble. White usually only plays about 27 minutes per game but may have to be on the floor for the entire game to make sure that Walker doesn't get hot from the field. San Diego St. may also try to guard Kemba with a quicker guard like Chase Tapley. The Aztecs will have to double Kemba off screens, put some full court pressure on him, and also play some zone to switch up the defenses on Walker. This formula helped contain Fredette and will hopefully for Aztec fans, contain Walker.

A Key to Florida St. vs VCU

Florida State continuing to score on the offensive end: Florida St. scores 69.3 points per game, which ranks 154th in the country. The Seminoles field goal percentage ranks 174th at .436. It isn't a secret that the Seminoles greatly struggle on the offensive end. All season Florida State has been able to defend and stifle teams with their length and athleticism. The Seminoles lead the nation in field goal defense at .360, which is better than last season when they lead the nation at .377. It was even more difficult for the Seminoles to score though when their leading scorer Chris Singleton missed 6 games with a foot fracture. He has only recently returned to play limited minutes in the Seminoles two NCAA tournament games. In their third round game against second seeded Notre Dame, the Seminoles used a balanced attack on the offensive end to score 71 points. As always, their defense was spectacular. Notre Dame only scored 23 points in the first half and 57 in the whole game. The Seminoles frustrated the Big East player of the year Ben Hansbrough the entire night. He only made 4 of the 10 threes he attempted during the game. Thus far in the NCAA tournament, Florida St. has limited Texas A and M and Notre Dame to .310 shooting from the field. Derwin Kitchen, who had 10 points and six rebounds said, "If we can stay consistent on the offensive end, I like our chances. We've just been so up and down and inconsistent on the offensive end, it allowed us to stumble at times and lose a few games. If we can stay consistent and execute on the offensive end, I like our chances because we play so well on the defensive end." The Seminoles should also get a boost in the sweet sixteen because Chris Singleton looks like he will be getting more minutes against the Rams. Leonard Hamilton, the coach of Florida St. said, "He's getting closer to kind of looking like his old self," Hamilton said. "I think it's just taking him a week or so just to gain his confidence back, starting and stopping and changing direction, things of that nature. So I want him being a little bit more involved in this game than he was the other games because I think he's feeling more comfortable."

A Key to Ohio St. vs Kentucky

The Kentucky freshmen against the number one overall seed: In most peoples minds, the Ohio St. Buckeyes have been the most consistent team this season and have everything a team needs to win a national championship. They have scorers on the perimeter with William Buford and David Lightly, a deadly three point shooter with Jon Diebler, and a dominant big men with Jared Sullinger. The question that all Buckeye fans are wondering is how will the Kentucky freshman play in their third NCAA tournament game. Kentucky coach John Calipari has said, "You can't count on freshmen." The three major freshman for Kentucky (Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones, and Doron Lamb) averaged 48 of their teams 77 points during the regular season. However, aside from Knight's third round game against West Virginia, all three have really struggled to get going in the tournament. In Kentucky's second round game against Princeton the three freshmen scored a combined 19 points going 8 for 23 from the field. John Callipari said, "I think they had the jitters at their first NCAA tournament game ever that they've been watching since they're 12 and all of a sudden starting in the NCAA tournament that's on national television." Although Knight had a fantastic third round game against West Virginia, Jones and Lamb looked like they still had some jitters. Jones only had 3 buckets from the field and Lamb only played 14 minutes and had 6 points. Jones and Lamb have ben struggling with their shot in the tournament. Since Kentucky relies so much on their freshman, it will be very difficult for them to advance in the tournament without Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb playing very well.

A Key to Kansas vs Richmond

Justin Harper and Dan Geriot vs the Morris Twins: For nearly every team that the Richmond Spiders have played this season, their opponents have had trouble matching up with Justin Harper and Dan Geriot. These two forwards, who are both 6-10, are the best two shooters on their team from three point land as they both average over 42 percent. They create matchup problems because they can be physical inside but also can step outside and make your big men guard on the perimeter. Many teams have to focus so much on stopping the versatile Harper, that it allows first team Atlantic 10 guard Kevin Anderson to score and penetrate into the line. However, Kansas is happy to guard Harper and Geriot out on the perimeter, as they have two of the most athletic forwards in college basketball with Marcus and his twin brother Markieff Morris. This will allow Kansas's defense to focus on Anderson, as one of the Morris brothers will be able to match up with Harper either on the post or outside. Richmond definitely has a chance to pull the upset on the top seeded Kansas because of their ability to shoot the three ball. Morehead St. guard Demonte Harper said about Richmond after they beat them in the third round of the tourney, "It's kind of difficult to guard them because they have so many good shooters on the floor. Each guy on their team can really shoot the ball." On the other end of the court, Richmond plays a matchup two three zone, which caused both Vanderbilt and Morehead St. havoc in the tournament. Even Chris Mooney admitted though, "Kansas is a different problem because they're so good, so strong, so physical... [The Morris twins] they're aggressive, really talented. Obviously, they're big- time bodies down there. We're up for the challenge. I think if we can just negate their rebounding and make them work for everything." It will be key for the Spiders to locate the Morris twins on defense because not only can they rebound and score inside but they can also shoot from three like the Richmond frontline.

A Key to North Carolina vs Marquette

How Marquette will matchup with the North Carolina frontline: North Carolina leads the nation in rebounding at 42.5 rebounds per game. They grab about 15 offensive rebounds per game. Marquette on the other hand, averages 36.2 rebounds per game, which is 104th in the country. In North Carolina's 35 games this season, they have outrebounded their opponent 27 times. In those game they are 25-2. Marquette head coach Buzz Williams said about North Carolina's rebounding, "Part of that is because they are so far ahead of their opponent, if they miss a shot they can put it back in. So we will have our hands full from the start, but we are thankful to be here." North Carolina's three leading scorers are all forwards and they account for more than half of the Tar Heels points per game. Unlike Marquette, Carolina has the ability to throw the ball into the post to either the 7 foot Tyler Zeller or the 6-10 John Henson, who both shoot over 50 percent from the field. It will be key for Marquette center Chris Otule to stay out of foul trouble because he is Marquette's only player with the size to guard the Carolina big men. This has been a problem for Chris, as he has fouled out of both NCAA tournament games for the Golden Eagles. Marquette will have trouble moving on to the regional finals if Otule can only stay on the floor for 18 minutes like in the second round against Xavier. Otule said, "I've been getting called for a lot of fouls. I have to let the refs see my hands, and try to take up as much space on Zeller as I can, and hopefully it works out for the best." If Otule gets into foul trouble, it will be difficult for the undersize Jae Crowder at 6-6 to guard Zeller and Henson down in the post.

A Key to Wisconsin vs Butler

Matt Howard staying out of foul trouble: After Butler's one point win over number one seed Pittsburgh in the third round, Butler head coach Brad Stevens said, "We're just fortunate to advance because one thing these guys do is they play through the horn, and they'll always play through the horn. And I think that happens because of 54 [the number of Matt Howard]. I think that that's Matt Howard imprint on our program is you're going to give everything you have as long as you're out there every single day." Butler has been able to play very hard and very well for the entire 40 minutes of their first two tournament games because Howard has been able to stay on the floor. Howard has always had a tendency to get into a lot of foul trouble. In 12 games this season, Howard either fouled out or had 4 fouls, which limited his minutes on the court. Obviously, any time a team has to play long stretches without their all conference center, who scores nearly 17 points per game and averages nearly 8 rebounds per game, they struggle on both ends of the court. When Butler lost three games in a row in conference play, Howard fouled out in one of those games and had four fouls in the other two. However, Howard has been able to remain on the floor in Butler's two NCAA tournament games, which has been the key to the Bulldogs two victories. In Butler's first game, Matt had 15 points and 5 rebounds including the game winning tip-in at the buzzer. Howard played 33 minutes and only picked up 3 fouls. In the Bulldogs second game, Matt had 16 points and 6 rebounds including the game winning free throw. Howard played 38 minutes and picked up only 1 foul the entire game. The next challenge for Howard is to stay on the floor for Butler's sweet sixteen game against the Wisconsin Badgers.

A Key to Duke vs Arizona

How Kyrie Irving playing significant minutes will affect his teammates: After Duke's 8th game of the season, the Blue Devils were ranked number one and looked like the best team in the country. Duke's 8th win came at a cost though because their star point guard Kyrie Irving left the game with a toe injury. His first games back were in the second and third round of the NCAA tournament were he only played 20 minutes in each. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said that his star point guard will play "significant minutes" for the first time since the injury against Butler. Krzyzewsk said, "If I wasn't sure that he could play then I wouldn't play him." Irving will not be in the starting lineup however in Duke's sweet sixteen game against Arizona. Kyrie missed 26 straight games before returning in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Although Irving's ability to score and distribute the basketball was greatly missed, other guys like Seth Curry were able to step up and play very well. In Duke's two point third round win over Michigan, Seth Curry only took 3 shots and had 0 points. Mason Plumlee scored four points on only two shot attempts in that game. It will be interesting to see what the confidence of guys like Curry and Plumlee will be as their roles have changed with the addition of Irving on the floor. Curry only played 23 minutes in the third round and forced 3 three pointers. If Curry comes in and feels like he has to score and force shots, he may struggle. Plumlee also saw reduced minutes as he played less than a half at 18 minutes. Mason will be a huge factor if Duke wants to repeat as national champions because they don't have a real post presence if he isn't playing well. Not only will Irving's return affect some of the major role players, but it may change the role of ACC player of the year Nolan Smith. With Kyrie returning at the point guard position, Smith won't be directing the offense on every possession. The ball may not always be in his hands and you have to wonder how Irving's return will affect the Blue Devils chemistry. It is very difficult to determine how much you play a guy after he has been out for so long. Arizona head coach Sean Miller said, "I don't know if there has been another situation where you have almost a No. 1 seed without a player [Kyrie Irving] that many people would say is their best player, and now he's back in the equation."

A Key to Florida vs BYU

How Florida will defend Jimmer Fredette: Before Florida was set to take on BYU in the first round of last years NCAA tournament, Florida coach Billy Donovan said, "Being in the SEC, we had a chance to see a lot of great point guards in John Wall and Devan Downey, and I don't think either one of those two guys impact the college game like Fredette does. He has a totally different effect level on the game." BYU went on to beat Florida by 7 points 99 to 92 in double overtime. In that game, Kenny Boynton guarded Jimmer Fredette for nearly the entire game and Fredette scored 37 points on 13 for 26 shooting from the field. Coming into their sweet sixteen matchup against BYU and Fredette, Donovan said, "I really felt like last year, because of our lack of depth, I thought [Boynton] got worn out as he started to get into that into the first overtime, then second overtime. I just don't think it can be one guy. Now there's going to be some possessions and some plays in the game where whoever's on him, they're going to be on an island by themselves. That's gonna happen." Donovan hopes that Boynton, at 6-2, can use his length and his great athleticism to frustrate Fredette. He said, "What makes [Boynton] good is he has great, great feet and he has great lateral movement, and he can play close enough to people and keep people out of the lane. He can really, really spread himself out and athletically he can really move his feet. He's got great ability." Jimmer has struggled against guys with great length and athleticism this season. When the 6-8 Billy White from San Diego St. guarded Fredette in the Mountain West tournament championship game, Jimmer settled for 7 threes and struggled, going 10 for 25 from the field. Boynton has been resting a sore left ankle all week in preparation to guard the crafty Fredette. Boynton has shown he can defend the best in the country including John Jenkins from Vanderbilt, who went 3 for 15 from the field and only scored 10 points in the SEC tournament semifinals when Boynton was guarding him. Boynton will try to keep Fredette out of the lane and not let him get to the free throw line, where he shoots nearly 90 percent. He will try to make Jimmer settle for deep jump shots and threes, where he is under 27 percent since February 2nd. Although Jimmer will get his points as the ball is constantly in his hands for the Cougars, the key to the game will be how many shots it takes for Jimmer to get his points and if he can get his teammates open for layups and threes.

Top Seeds Going Down in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament

In the last two NCAA tournaments there were only four double digit seeds to reach the sweet sixteen. This year alone there are four double digit seeds in the sweet sixteen including three in the southwest region. When 11th seeded VCU plays 10th seeded Florida St. in the regional semifinals on Thursday, it will be the first time ever that an eleven seed will be playing a ten seed in the tournament. Thus far, there has been a one seed eliminated, a two seed eliminated, and two three seeds eliminated. In not one of the four regions did all of the top four seeds advance to the sweet sixteen.

After Pittsburgh feel to Butler by one point, all the buzz surrounding the game was the bizarre finish that resulted in the first top seed being bounced from the tourney. Even Jim Calhoun couldn't believe the ending to the wacky game. After his teams’ third round win over Cincinnati he commented on the game by saying, "I watched the end of the Pitt game and I haven't ever seen anything like that in 39 years of coaching, both plays." Shelvin Mack had his best game of the season scoring 30 points on 7 of 12 shooting from behind the arc. However, his great game looked to be ruined when he committed an inexplicable foul on Gilbert Brown near midcourt with 1.4 seconds remaining in the game with his team up by one point. Brown also was having a great game with 24 points on 8 of 11 shooting from the field. On the season he was a 79 percent shooter from the line and was 3 for 3 in the game from the strike. Brown made the first free throw but then missed the second one. The game appeared to be going into overtime until the ref blew a whistle for a foul on Nasir Robinson of Pittsburgh. Matt Howard described the play when he said, "I felt his arm come across mine, so I just threw the ball to the rim." With 0.8 seconds left in the game Matt Howard of Butler went to the line and made one of two free throws to secure the upset for Butler. After the game, the focus was obviously on the crazy finish. Robinson said, "I take the blame, man. I take the blame for the loss... I've been playing basketball my whole life and I know I shouldn't have done that. It was a stupid play." The win sets up a Butler-Wisconsin sweet sixteen matchup.

With 5:54 remaining in the first half, VCU guard Brandon Rozzell made a layup to put the Rams up on the Purdue Boilermakers 25 to 24. From that point on in the game, Purdue never took back the lead. All Big-Ten performer E'Twaun Moore struggled from the field only making 5 of his 15 shots and only scoring 10 points. However, the real problem for the Boilermakers was on the defensive end. They couldn't stop the Rams allowing them to shot nearly 57 percent from the field. The 94 points that VCU scored was the most points allowed all season by the Boilermakers. Purdue had difficulty guarding the quick backcourt of the Rams. Joey Rodriguez dished out 11 assists and Bradford Burgess had 23 points and only missed one of the four threes he attempted. The selection committed was ridiculed for their decision to take VCU into the tournament as one of the final four teams. After three wins in the tourney, point guard Joey Rodriguez said, "I'd say to the committee, Thank you for believing in us... Hopefully they'd say something back to us, like, Thank you for proving us right." VCU guard Brandon Rozell said, "I think the committee is sitting back smiling now." VCU will get to continue its magical run in the tourney when they meet 10th seeded Florida St. in the sweet sixteen.

In their only meeting during the season, Marquette beat Syracuse at home by 6 points. Marquette was able to penetrate, so they could get inside of Syracuse's two-three zone and not have to knock down a ton of threes to knock off the Orange. They got the ball behind Syracuse's zone to Jae Crowder, who scored his second highest point total all season with 25. In their third round matchup in the tourney, Marquette used the same formula to knock off the Orange 66 to 62. They only shot 11 threes but were able to get inside of Syracuse's zone. Marquette shot 23 free throws in the game. Jae Crowder alone shot one more free throw than the whole Syracuse team, who took 15 threes and only made five. Marquette was able to get behind the zone and get the ball to Crowder who had 16 points. When they needed a three pointer, Darius Johnson-Odom wasn't afraid to fire. He hit a huge three pointer with 27 seconds left in the game to give Marquette a three point lead. Syracuse had 18 turnovers in the game including a huge one by Dion Waiters with 52 seconds remaining when the game was tied at 59 to give the ball back to the Golden Eagles. Marquette moves on to face the North Carolina Tar Heels in Newark in the regional semifinals.


Nobody has ever denied Florida State's ability to defend and stifle teams when they are on defense. However, their problems during the season has been their inability to score especially since their leading scoring Chris Singleton went out with an injury and has been playing limited minutes in his return during the tourney. Their second leading scoring isn't even averaging 10 points a game. The Seminoles got a balanced attack from their starting five with each of them scoring at least 8 points in the third round game against the Fighting Irish. As always, their defense was spectacular. Notre Dame only scored 23 points in the first half and 57 in the whole game. The Seminoles frustrated the Big East player of the year Ben Hansbrough the entire night. He only made 4 of the 10 threes he attempted during the game. Derwin Kitchen, who had 10 points and six rebounds said, "If we can stay consistent on the offensive end, I like our chances. We've just been so up and down and inconsistent on the offensive end, it allowed us to stumble at times and lose a few games. If we can stay consistent and execute on the offensive end, I like our chances because we play so well on the defensive end." For the Seminole fans, they hope their team will continue to be consistent on the offensive end when they play the 11th seeded VCU Rams in the regional semifinals.

NCAA Tournament Second Round Close Games and Buzzer Beaters

Parody is once again lurking its head in this years NCAA tournament. The second round saw 14 games decided by single digits including 10 of those games being under 5 points.

Last years national runner up Butler beat the Colonial Athletic Association tournament champion Old Dominion 60 to 58 in a southeast region 8-9 matchup. Last year Gordon Hayward's half-court three pointer for the NCAA championship at the buzzer came up short for the Bulldogs. However, this year Butler was on the right side of a buzzer beater. After two made free throws by Kent Bazemore to tie the game with 32 seconds left for Old Dominion, Butler held for the last shot. There was a scramble for a rebound and the ball landed right in Butler forward Matt Howard's hands. He finished the game with a tip-in at the buzzer. Howard said on his game winner, "I was not looking at the clock. I actually assumed there wasn't going to be enough time. I tried to shoot it as quickly as possible. It seemed bang-bang as soon as I shot it. It sounded like the horn was going off, so you never know. Fortunately we had just enough time to get that shot off." The game was incredibly close and highly contested with the largest lead in the game only being at six points. Shelvin Mack once again struggled from behind the arc going 3 for 10 but he had 5 assists and is going to be very important if Butler wants to advance to the sweet sixteen with a win over Pittsburgh.

In the biggest upset of the first round, the 13th seeded Morehead St. beat the 4th seeded Louisville Cardinals 62 to 61 in the southwest region. Kenneth Faried lived up to all the hype surrounding him with his 17 rebound performance including 5 on the offensive end of the court. The surprise of the game was the ineffectiveness of Morehead State's 16 point per game scoring guard Demonte Harper. He was just 2 of 9 from the field including 0 of 5 from three and only had 5 points going into Morehead State's final possession. Elisha Justice of Louisville had just missed a one and one to try and extend Louisville's lead by more than 2 points.  With 24 seconds left on the clock, coach Donnie Tyndall called a timeout. He told his star guard Demonte, "I know exactly who I'm going to. I'm going to put it right in your hands, Demonte. At 6 seconds, I want you to attack and pull up and hit the shot." Demonte pulled up to hit a go ahead three with four seconds remaining in the game. Kenneth Faried blocked a Mike Marra three point shot at the buzzer to secure the upset for the Eagles. Peyton Siva's foul trouble and inability to get going on the offensive end, only making one of his six shots, was key to the Eagles success in the game. The outcome may have been different if all Big-East second team performer Preston Knowles didn't have to leave the game with an ankle injury with 8:51 left in the second half. Following Knowles leaving the game, Morehead St. went on a 13 to 4 run in the next 3 minutes and 35 seconds. The Eagles will face the Richmond Spiders who pulled another upset in the southwest region over Vanderbilt.

In the battle of Pennsylvania schools, Temple knocked off Penn St. 66 to 64 in a west region 7-10 matchup. Penn St. looked to be in trouble when their star forward Jeff Brooks dislocated his shoulder a minute into the second half. However, the play of Taylor Battler kept the Nittany Lions in the game including converting an extremely deep three point jump shot to tie the game at 64 with 16 seconds left on the clock. Although Ramone Moore had went 10 for 16 from the field and had 23 points in the game, Temple coach Fran Dunphy decided to put the ball in the hands on his guard Juan Fernandez. Fernandez capped his season high 23 point game with a game winning shot with 0.4 seconds remaining. Tim Frazier, who was guarding Fernanedez commented on the final shot after the game by saying, "He [Juan] drove, picked up the ball. I closed out high end so he wouldn't be able to shoot over me. He made a great move, pivoted a couple of times and then stepped through. It was a great shot." The win is the first for Fran Dunphy in the tournament as the coach of the Owls. Temple missed out on the tournament in 06 and 07 and lost in the first round the previous three seasons. Dunphy is looking for his second tournament win with a victory over the second seeded San Diego St. Aztecs.

Brandon Knight only had one game all season where he didn't score in double digits. However, in his first game in the NCAA tournament against Princeton, the star point guard was 0 for 7 from the field with 0 points going into Kentucky's final possession. Coach John Callipari of Kentucky had said about Knight, "I have all the faith and confidence in the world in him." Callipari showed it, as he gave his young point guard the ball for Kentucky's last shot with the game tied at 57. Knight didn't disappoint his coach as he hit a running layup with 2 seconds remaining in the game. Callipari said, "He's not afraid to make a play. Guys like him aren't afraid to miss." The production from Darius Miller and Josh Harrellson continues to get better and better as they combined for 32 points and 14 rebounds. Kentucky will have to have a better game from Knight and fellow freshman Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb in order to get by the 5th seeded West Virginia Mountaineers.

On February 19th Arizona beat Washington as the Pac 10 player of the year Derrick Williams blocked Darnell Gant's attempt to win the game for Washington with 2.2 seconds left on the clock. With five seconds left in the Memphis-Arizona second round matchup, Memphis point guard Joe Jackson missed a free throw but Wesley Witherspoon picked up the rebound. However, Williams came out of nowhere to once again save his team with a late game block in the closing seconds of the game to secure the win for the Wildcats. Williams once again played an outstanding game with 22 points including hitting all 9 of his free throws to go along with 10 rebounds. He made all the big plays for Arizona when they were struggling to score in the second half. The two point win for the wildcats helps them advance to a matchup with Texas in the third round. Wildcats coach Sean Miller said,"He just has a way of making big plays and finishing the other team off. He did it here again tonight." Even Memphis's coach Josh Pastner was marveling over the play of Williams. He said, "Derrick's really good. Like I've said, I voted for him for national player of the year. My vote doesn't change after today's performance because he's really good." Williams was helped by the strong game of guard Lamont Jones who scored 18 points and hit two huge free throws with 8 seconds left in the game to extend Arizona's lead to three points.

Louisville vs. Marquette Analysis

Louisville vs Marquette
Star Watch:
Marquette: Darius Johnson-Odom
Louisville: Preston Knowles


Starting Lineup for the three seed Louisville Cardinals: 
PG: Peyton Siva - 1st half: 6 points, 2nd half: 2 points, Total: 8 points, Assists: 9
SG: Preston Knowles - 1st half: 6 points, 2nd half points: 9 points, Total: 15 points, Assists: 7, 
Rebounds: 8
G: Chris Smith - 1st half: 0 points, 2nd Half: 5 points Total: 5 points, Rebounds: 11
G: Kyle Kuric - 1st half: 9 points, 2nd Half: 2 points, Total: 11 (3-10 from three), Rebounds: 7
F: Terrence Jennings - 1st half: 0 points, 2nd Half: 12 points, Total: 12 points
Key Bench Players:
G: Mike Marra - 1st Half: 11 points 2nd Half: 11 points  Total: 22 points (6-10 from three)


Starting Lineup for the eleven seed Marquette Golden Eagles:
G: Darius Johnson-Odom - 1st half: 3 points, 2nd half: 10 points, Total: 13 points (5-14 from the field, 3-7 from the free-throw line)
G: Dwight Buycks - 1st half: 4, 2nd half: 0, Total:4
G-F: Jimmy Butler - 1st half: 7, 2nd half: 7, Total:14
F: Erik Williams - 1st half: 2 points, 2nd half: 0 points, Total: 2 points
C: Chris Otule - 1st half: 0 points, 2nd half: 0 points, Total: 0 points
Key Bench Players:
Jae Crowder 1st Half: 8 points, 2nd Half: 2 points, Total:10 points
Junior Cadougan 1st Half: 5 points, 2nd Half: 2 points, Total: 7 points


1st Half Analysis (- mark is the minute the event occurs at)
Louisville is starting out the game in zone with men principles
Louisville may have trouble in the zone keeping in front of marquette with their ability to shoot the three and get behind the zone with Crowder
Marquette started out the game up 8 to 1 in first the first 3 minutes   -16
Louisville going to have trouble with length of Marquette with their short lineup starting four guards and having the 6-4 Kuric at the four.
Channing Crowder hits two early threes
Peyton Siva can penetrate any defense
Very high tempo game so far   - 15
Marquette up with the score 11 to 5 at the first TV timeout   - 15
Back and forth, shooting a lot of threes
Louisville pressing on most missed shots
Kyle Kuric has really turned up his game recently
Channing Crowder looking good getting to the rim and shooting threes
Louisville 9-0 run in last 2 minutes    -13
Louisville up 14 to 13    -13
Siva is getting in the lane drawing the defenders and dishing
started 0-6 from field but is now 3-4   -13
Marquette is settling for too many threes
Mara is hot and has 3 threes
2 early fouls for Odom could come back to hunt Marquette    - 12
Jae Crowder 2 fouls not good for Buzz    -10
Very quick hands from Stephan Van Treese who has looked active on defense    -10
15-14 Marquette 10 minutes to go     -10
Preston Knowles works to get shot off     - 9
Rick Pitino one of the best developmental skilled coaches, kids get better and better every year
Jimmy Butler has worked on his mid-range game and paid off    -9
Louisville is making some great hustle plays leading to offensive rebounds and easy baskets  -7
22-17  in favor of Louisville   -7   
4-10 from deep for Louisville    -7
Kyle Kuric hotspot are from the corners    -6
Louisville up 6, 25-19    -6
Kyle Kuric very improved
Mike Marra has been good on the defensive and offensive end blocking shots and shooting threes
D.J-O and Jimmy Butler really keeping Marquette in the game.
31-24 Louisville    -4
Louisville is averaging 10 steals in last 5 games. Great hands on defense and forcing Marquette into bad turnovers
Louisville is just working harder than Marquette on both ends   -2
Kyle Kuric getting lots of rebounds, in last 9 game stretch averaging 6 rebounds and no different today with 4 rebounds in the first half.
Louisville has stretched the lead out to 7, 33-26       -2 
Marquette has really slowed down since the first 5 minutes when they jumped out to a quick lead      -2
Everybody is going in the paint after the shot to rebound for both teams      -2
Channing Crowder has slowed down since his early start     -2
Kyle Kuric is hot from three, 3-4 form deep
Junior Cadougan played fantastic against West Virginia with 15 but is struggling right now with only one field goal in the game    -1
36-3, Louisville but Marquette cut the lead to 5 at half


2nd Half (- mark is the minute the event occurs at)
A lot of great plays by the bench for both Louisville and Marquette in the first half
Defensive transition by Louisville is tremendous, and they aren't giving up no easy buckets. Marquette has had to earn every point today.   -18
D.J.O fighting for all his points with his tough layup to bring Marquette to within three points at 36-33 in favor of Louisville    - 17
Mara playing with great confidence with dishing some great passes   - 16
Siva went by the defenders like they were standing still. Great passing to set other guys up including the pass to jennings for the flush    -16
Siva has a great ability to see the floor -16
40-33 Louisville is up     -16
Louisville feel and deal - going in the lane knowing where teammate are and the no look pass for better looks
Notre Dame will get winner of this game tomorrow
Jennings playing very nice in last couple of minutes after a scoreless first half   - 15
Butler is an underrated post up player and works very hard    -15
Marra hits another three. It is just falling down for him as he is now 4-8 from three
Louisville always have their bench scoring a lot of points to compliment the starters
Mike Marra makes another three now 5 for 9 from deep    -14
48-36 Louisville up by 12 on a 12 to 5 run since the 17:38   -14
Marra is a very streaky shooter
Not a lot of penetration from Marquette like they usually do one reason and is one reason they are losing and beginning to have the game slip from their hands   -13
Marra makes another three. That's 6 for 11 from threes, a new carrer high now going   -12
Knowles makes another three has been silent tonight but Marra has stepped up big -12
54-39 for Louisville, their biggest lead of game  -12
Marra could be on Notre Dame right now the way he is nailing threes!
Points in the paint: Louisville has been killing Marquette. Also, 10 for 25 from downtown 40 percent
54-41 Louisville  -10
16-24 from the line for Marquette, only thing keeping them in the game   -10
Louisville is 4-8 from free throw   -10
Marquette coming back as they are only down by 9 due to good defense and dribble penetration   -9
getting behind Louisville's zone   -9
D.J.O has 3 fouls    -9
Unnecessary fouls hurting Marquette's chances of coming back need to pick up momentum and not slow down the game   - 9
Siva again draws in the lane, and kicks to Smith for three. Siva steals and gives to smith for the layup    -8
Marquette hope of coming back are really hurt after 5 quick points from Siva to Smith.     - 8
59-44 in favor of  Louisville   -8
Another transition basket due to great defense and hustling up and down the court for Louisville as they are starting to pull away    -7
Louisville is up 66-48   -6
Marquette has lost all their timeouts with 6 minutes left because of Louisville's latest run   -6
I want to see Notre Dame and Louisville have a team 3 point contest, whose the better shooting team?
Louisville has 22 assists on 26 field goals
Louisville has done what Marquette does drive in the lane and dish   -5
Marquette is settling for threes  -5
Louisville is up 70-48    -5
Louisville is well rested and Marquette looks like they have no gas left     -4
73-50  Louisville   -3
Louisville bench is playing great lead by Marra   -2
Terrence Jennings having a nice 2nd half as well with 12 points  -2
24 to 6 assists is key to Louisville being up on Marquette
79-54  Louisville   -1
Mika Marra career high for threes with 6 was key to their runs in the second half.
81-56 Louisville. They outscored Marquette by 20 in the second half scoring 45 points.
Moving on the play Notre Dame in the semifinals in a highly anticipated matchup

SEC Tournament Teams

Over the last few seasons, the Big East has been the standard of college basketball, while the SEC has been struggling to get teams into the tournament. In the previous three years the SEC has had 13 teams in the big dance, while the Big East eclipsed that number by two teams in only the last two years. Kentucky, Florida, and Vanderbilt have recently been the teams to beat in the SEC. They have done it again all being ranked inside the top 20. With a likely three seed on the line for the SEC tournament winner, there is a lot on the line this week at the Georgia Dome.

Florida came into the season with a lot of hype being ranked in the top 11 in the preseason. With all the expectations of a great season, Billy Donovan, the SEC coach of the year, has his best team since the back to back championships in 2005-2006 and 2006-2007. Florida (24-6, 13-3) clinched their 5th regular season SEC title this season.  They beat Kansas State on a neutral court by 13 and Xavier on the road by four points. They went red hot in conference play. They beat Kentucky once, Vanderbilt twice, Georgia and Tennessee twice, and Alabama. Florida has a veteran lineup with a lot of experience in big games. Erving Walker, a tremendous point guard, leads their team with 14.5 points a game. Kenny Boyton is a knock down shooter on the wing averaging 33 percent from downtown. They have veteran big men in Vernon Macklin and Alex Tyus who work hard on the glass. Most importantly they have a man name Chandler Parsons, who won the SEC player of the year. Chandler hits threes and drives through the lane to score difficult baskets indside. He is very versatile and can score in all ways possible. There was one point in the season he had more than 3 offensive rebounds in 7 straight games in SEC play. Not only is he a fantatic rebounder, but he leads his team in assists. Florida has great size with three guys over 6-9 in Alex Tyus, Vernon Macklin, and the beast, Chandler Parsons. One of my favorite guys in the SEC is Erving Walker. This kid might be 5-8 but be plays much bigger than that on the court. He always plays hard, never quits, and has a huge heart. Walker has unlimited range and shoots at a 37 percent clip from three. They have a tough matchup against an unpredictable Tennessee team in the quarterfinals. They have Vanderbilt on their side of the bracket as well. Florida is going to be a tough team to beat in the Big Dance because of their great leadership in the backcourt and versatility in Parsons.

John Calipari has done it again with his freshman Kentucky (22-8, 10-6) team. They are amongst one of the best teams in the SEC and went 15-0 at home. Their troubles came on the road where they lost six games including to Arkansas and Mississippi. John Calipari has a reputation of getting one and done players. He has an unbelievable ability to recurit the best freshman and this year is no different with Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones (the SEC freshman of the year) and Doron Lamb. After losing 5 players to the first round of the NBA Draft, Kentucky had to rebuild. In Non-Conference play, Kentucky beat Washington, Notre Dame, and Louisville among others. They beat Florida, Vanderbilt, and then Tennessee on the road to finish off their season on a hot note. Together Doron, Brandon, and Terrence average 48 of their teams 77 points. More than half of their production comes from their star freshman. Both Brandon Knight and Terrence Jones average more than 17 points per game and Doron Lamb averages 13 points a game. Doron Lamb is the most underrated of the three star freshamn, as he is a 47 percent three point shooter. That is ridiculous!! For all you sport junkies, Reggie Miller only averaged 39.8 percent from downtown in his NBA carrer. Doron Lamb also has greatly improved his mid range game and has a good floater that he can use in the lane. Brandon Knight has been playing exceptional his last few games. He has been averaging 20 points a game in his last 7 games. He is also an exceptional three point shooter averaging 41 percent from downtown. Although the freshman for Kentucky have been superb, its been Darius Miller and Deandre Liggins keeping this team alive with their tough defense and leadership. Darius Miller has been hot in his last few games. He is averaging 17 points in his last 6 games, which has helped Kentucky go 5-1 during that strech. Liggins always guards the opposing teams best player. He held Scotty Hopson to only 13 points and kept Chandler Parsons to 15 and 17 points in the two games vs Florida. Liggins is 6-6 and can defend guards and forwards because of his extreme athleticism and great length. In order to win the SEC Tourney, Josh Harrellson has to continue his rebounding on the offensive end, where he is averaging four offense rebounds per game. Not only will the freshman have to carry the team but the other role payers will have to step up in order for Kentucky to take the title.

The 2010 SEC sixth man off the year John Jenkins, who averaged 10.5 points per game and made 46.7 percent of his three pointers last season, had to step up in a big way after the loss of All-SEC performers Jermaine Beal and A.J. Ogilvy this season. He has been nothing less than magnificent, as he has improved his scoring by about 10 points to average 19.4 for the season and shoots about 89 percent from the free-throw line. Jenkins along with forward Jeffery Taylor have lead Vanderbilt to a great season with a record of 22-9 and 9-7 in conference play. They have beaten North Carolina on a neutral court at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, Marquette, St. Mary's, and in conference they have wins over Georgia twice and Kentucky. There is no doubt that Vanderbilt can score as they are 30th in the nation in points per game at 76.2 points. A huge part of their offense is the three ball. Besides the obvious outstanding shooter of Jenkins, Jeffery Taylor can step out and hit the three along with guard Brad Tinsley, who both shoot 36 percent from deep. Festus Ezeli is a huge X factor for how far this team will go not only in the SEC tournament but also in the NCAA tournamnet. In their loss to West Virginia he only had 8 points and fouled out. Ezeli had 7 points, while only going two for seven from the field and once again fouled out against South Carolina on the road. This trend continues throughout the season including games on the road at Tennessee and Florida where he had 9 and 5 points respectively. Jenkins will miss Vanderbilt's first round SEC tournament game against LSU with a turf-toe injury. Hopefully, Jenkins will return to Vandy's lineup soon rather than later because he is the engine that keeps the Commodores running.