I'm not sure what's replaced the watercooler as the gathering place in offices of the 21st century but, whatever it is, the buzz around it this morning is the Final Four. For the first time ever all four first seeds have advanced to the final weekend and the biggest beneficiaries are no doubt making themselves known to their co-workers. Maybe it's the receptionist who spends more time discussing her romantic life than studying Pomeroy Ratings or the guy from Accounting who doesn't watch sports but likes to be part of the office hullabaloo but those are the ones counting their winnings right now.
Whether you thought the tournament was boring or scintillating to this point, you'll doubtlessly agree that the top seeds advancing has taken some of the fun out of it. Hopefully it will mean some spectacular basketball on Saturday and Monday but it is antithesis to the surprise and drama that has made March Madness part of the national lexicon.
That surprise was what made us take a chance on Pittsburgh or West Virginia two weeks ago because we've watched for years and knew that it wouldn't come down to the chalk teams. And for that we've been repaid by the heckling of coworkers who wouldn't know Stephen Curry from Eddy Curry. And, worst of all, Clark Kellogg's annual safety dance has finally paid off which ensures another decade of bland picks.
It's pretty incredible that a guy who owns a career winning percentage of .717 and has taken 3 separate schools to a total of 5 regional finals would need any dap, but lets just say that back to back first round losses to Bucknell and Bradley a couple of years ago really put a dent in Bill Self's national reputation as a gameday coach. College basketball fans have pretty much just treated as fact that Self is a coach who won games on the strength of the talent of his squads and in spite of his game planning and bench coaching.
You know what though? I thought Self did a terrific job as a bench coach today in the Jayhawks hard fought win over Davidson to clinch a berth in the Final Four. He had a myriad of defensive schemes that frustrated Stephen Curry as much as anyone has in months - going from a straight man to man to a box and one and back on alternating possessions at one point, never quite letting the quicksilver Davidson guard get comfortable (yes, Curry had 25 points ... but it took him 25 shots to get there). When it became apparent that Russell Robinson was just having a terrible night, he boldly sat the "heart" of the Jayhawks on the bench down the stretch and put the game in Sherron Collins hands - and Collins rewarded him with the 3 pointer that gave Kansas the lead for good as well as fantastic help defense on the final possession that made Curry give up the ball before attempting a game winning shot.
It wasn't pretty for the Jayhawks, in large part because Brandon Rush couldn't throw the ball in the ocean from a rowboat and because Davidson played yet another fantastic game, but Self put his guys in position to make plays and had a terrific defensive game plan. Since we'll probably get a week of Final Four previews all over the national media where the Jayhawks "weaknesses" sections will include potshots at Self's coaching skill, here's a bit of dap from the Fanhouse for Self. Good job today, and enjoy your trip to San Antonio.
The Trustees of Davidson College have agreed to support the cost of several morebuses and more tickets to allow additional students to attend the game against Kansas in Detroit. The game is on Sunday night, March 30, at 5:05 pm. We have five buses and can take approximately 230 students.
{ ... }
This is for a BUS SEAT AND A TICKET. You will not be staying overnight in a hotel.
The available buses will leave Davidson on Sunday morning at approximately 3:00 am. The buses will drive directly to the arena where the game will be played . Tip-off is at 5:05 pm. The buses will leave Detroit to return to Davidson immediately after the game and will probably arive back in Davidson between 7 am and 9 am on Monday morning.
Villanova getting to the Sweet 16 after being one of the last at-large teams to make the NCAA Tournament was a surprise. Getting beaten soundly by Kansas, 72-57, really wasn't.
The Jayhawks took control of the game on both ends early and cruised to the easy win. Villanova was just overmatched. There was never even a threat of a comeback by the Wildcats.
Kansas shot over 50% from the field while holding Villanova to just over 36%. Villanova's quick, but smaller guards, could not get clean looks on the perimeter and Kansas had the athleticism to keep them from penetrating.
The Davidson Wildcats are going to the Elite 8. Yes, I really wrote that.
The small school just outside of Charlotte will face the winner of the Kansas-Villanova game in the Midwest Regional Final on Sunday.
Davidson continued to shoot well ... knocking down 12 three pointers (in 24 attempts) and nearly 50% total from the field. Stephen Curry led the way with 33 points, including dominating an amazing stretch to begin the second half. The Wildcats went on a 33-12 run and blew the game wide open after the break.
Wisconsin also played a poor game. They neglected their biggest advantage -- their size -- and instead took contested jump shots. When they did decide to go inside, Davidson elected to foul the Badgers and force them to convert of the free throw line. They didn't ... going just 14-of-22 from the stripe. They were also turnover prone which led to several easy baskets for Davidson.
Flipping through this week's Sports Illustrated, something caught my eye in the article wrapping up last weekend's NCAA Tournament action. Grant Wahl referred to Kansas head coach Bill Self as the Best Coach Never to Have Reached the Final Four. It makes a certain amount of sense. Four trips to the Elite Eight at three different schools and a .716 winning percentage over his career are laudable accomplishments. Why, then, did it seem like hyperbole in the extreme?
The first thing that came to my mind was the two first-round losses in 2005 and 2006. Kansas got bounced by Bucknell and Bradley, respectively, which is pretty shocking for a school that had last lost their first tourney game in 1978. They'd gone to six Final Fours and won a championship in the interim, which makes it all the more shocking to see such flameouts. Kansas is supposed to go deep in the tournament, that's their history, so those two losses stick out more, to me anyway, than the two Elite Eight trips.
If Kansas wins tonight, it will be Self's fifth time in the final eight, the same number as John Chaney.
Watch the highlights of Davidson's 74-70 victory over Georgetown yesterday, and one player stands out:
Yes, of course, it's Davidson guard Stephen Curry, who is the unquestioned star of the first two rounds of this year's NCAA Tournament, and who may be emerging as the biggest star of college basketball. Curry is the man everyone is talking about this morning.
The only question that still hasn't been answered satisfactorily is how on earth none of the ACC schools Curry wanted to attend picked up on him. It's the same question people were asking at this time last year. The answer, I guess, is just that recruiting is an inexact science, and on this one, the coaches in ACC country screwed up.
One week ago, the Villanova Wildcats were sitting around wondering whether they were going to make it into the NCAA Tournament. Depending on which bracketologist you trusted, they were either one of the last teams in or one of the last teams out.
As it turned out, they were the last team in, getting a 12 seed in the Midwest that made them the lowest-seeded of the at-large teams, earning the enmity of the teams they edged out, including Arizona State, Virginia Tech, Dayton and Illinois State.
But now the Wildcats have shown that they belong, beating 5 seed Clemson on Friday, beating 13 seed Siena today and advancing to the Sweet 16.
It might be an oversimplification to say that the mere fact that Villanova wins two games proves that Villanova was the right choice for the last spot: After all, we can't say for sure that Arizona State or Virginia Tech or Dayton or Illinois State wouldn't have won two games.
But for the Wildcats, the team that was cited in some quarters Monday morning as the example of the Selection Committee's biggest mistake, it feels like vindication.
Round 1 in Tampa was brutal for the higher seed teams. Epic, record-setting even. Two 4-13 games and two 5-12 games. In all four, the double digit seeds won. That has never happened before in the NCAA Tournament.
On Sunday, Tampa will have two 12-13 matchups. UConn, Drake, Vandy and Clemson all tumble to San Diego, Western Kentucky, Siena and Villanova. In fact, there hasn't been a 12-13 game in the second round since 2001 -- Indiana State-Gonzaga. Now there are two at one site.
It just screams statistical anomaly, but everyone is still waiting for that 1-16 upset.
If you have never seen a Clemson Tigers game over the last ... say ... three years, then you captured everything about them in this one game against Villanova.
The Tigers pressed and punched their way to a 36-18 lead with five minutes left in the first half. Then, as it always seems to happen for Clemson, it all fell apart. Nova went on a 46-21 run that spanned both halves and built up a seven point lead with under four minutes remaining.
Clemson helped facilitate this by making bad shot decisions, turning the ball over, not feeding the big dogs down low and playing poor defense. There was the fantastic fouling of a three point shooter as the shot clock expired (by the way, the shot banked in). There was James Mays and Trevor Booker shooting a combined five shots on the day ... and both fouling out. Terrence Oglesby, Cliff Hammonds and KC Rivers went a combined 4-of-25 from three point land.
I'm not sure what's replaced the watercooler as the gathering place in offices of the 21st century but, whatever it is, the buzz around it this morning is the Final Four. For the first time ever all four first seeds have advanced to the final weekend and the biggest beneficiaries are no doubt making themselves known to their co-workers. Maybe it's the receptionist who spends more time discussing her romantic life than studying Pomeroy Ratings or the guy from Accounting who doesn't watch sports but likes to be part of the office hullabaloo but those are the ones counting their winnings right now. 
It's pretty incredible that a guy who owns a career winning percentage of .717 and has taken 3 separate schools to a total of 5 regional finals would need any dap, but lets just say that back to back first round losses to Bucknell and Bradley a couple of years ago really put a dent in Bill Self's national reputation as a gameday coach. College basketball fans have pretty much just treated as fact that Self is a coach who won games on the strength of the talent of his squads and in spite of his game planning and bench coaching.
You may have already heard about 
The Davidson Wildcats are going to the Elite 8. Yes, I really wrote that.
Flipping through this week's 
One week ago, the Villanova Wildcats were sitting around wondering whether they were going to make it into the NCAA Tournament. Depending on which bracketologist you trusted, they were either one of the last teams in or one of the last teams out.
Round 1 in Tampa was brutal for the higher seed teams. Epic, record-setting even. Two 4-13 games and two 5-12 games. In all four, the double digit seeds won. That has never happened before in the NCAA Tournament.
If you have never seen a Clemson Tigers game over the last ... say ... three years, then you captured everything about them in this one game against Villanova.
