3/24/07

Well, we've widdled 64 down to 8, and this has been an upset-lovers worst nightmare. The only top, 2 seed not in the tournament is Wisconsin, despite the fact that we are in the regional finals. Three match-ups are 1 vs. 2, and the third is 1 vs. 3.

The games have been very competitive, however, especially this last round. Georgetown, Memphis, and Ohio State each won their last game by one point, Kansas won by 3, and Oregon won by 4. North Carolina was the only team to win by double-digits (10), and even they faced a 9 point defecit at the half. In fact, except for Oregon and UCLA, each winner faced a defecit at some point in the second half. In the Texas A&M/Memphis game, the largest lead for both teams was 5. So, if the pattern holds, then we'll have four 1 seeds in the Final Four for the first time ever - one year after having zero 1 seeds in the Final Four for the first time ever - but we could have 4 OT times to get to that point. Anyway, here's a preview of this weeken'd regional finals:

Today:

4:40 - Memphis vs. Ohio State - After knocking me out of my bracket pool, John Calipari's Memphis Tigers set their sights on the top seeded Ohio State Buckeyes. All tournament long, I have held that OSU is the top seed most likely to get KO'd, and I stand by that assesment. Greg Oden and company have had above and beyond their fare share of close call wins, and this is by far the best team they will have faced so far. Memphis is putting the strength of their conference (or, should I say, lack thereof) behind them, and proving that you have to look at the team, not the competition they have played. I like the Tigers to make the Final Four.

7:05 - UCLA vs. Kansas - For the third time this tournament, a higher seed has to play a lower seed in the lower seed's home state. The selection comittee has taken a good deal of heat for this, but in the first tow instances, both involving Texas A&M, the higher seed (the Aggies vs. Louisville, and Memphis vs. A&M) overcame the partisan crowd and prevailed. Kansas will try to make it 3-3. UCLA was #1 in the country earlier this year, and probably would have been a 1 seed if they hadn't been knocked out early in the Pac 10 Tourney. I think Kansas is too fast for the Bruins, and will cut down the nets in the West.

Tomorrow:

2:40 - Oregon vs. Florida - The Gators are trying to make history. Already the first school to hold the basketball and football national championships at the same time, now they try to be the first team to win both championships in the same school year, as well as become the first school in quite a while to win back to back NCAA tournaments. They have been sleepwalking through the first few rounds, however, although they have ended up winning by (mostly) convincing scores. Oregon is a team that is red-hot, having won the Pac 10 tournament and now the first 3 games of the NCAAs. But I think Florida will get by the Ducks and move on into the Final Four for the second consecutive year.

5:05 - Georgetown vs. North Carolina - The Hoyas and the Tar Heels were both the regular season and tournament champions of the best two conferences in college basketball, so this could very well be the best match-up of the entire tournament, including the games to come. You guys know my ACC bias, and so you know I'm taking UNC here. But I wouldn't be amazed to see Georgetown come through, either.

Ok, this week, starting Monday, I'll resume my normal schedule through Wednesday, but I'll be doing this blog on Thursday and Saturday again next week as we get through the Championship rounds. Until then...

3/22/07

I'm still unhappy about the way Maryland's season ended, but you can't let it get to you. That's the way it is in college hoops sometimes - you follow a team for five months, and suddenly, they're eliminated because some jackass referee doesn't know that when a defender throws himself in front of a player in the air, the foul is on the defender, not the guy getting blocked.

Anyway, now we're down to the Sweet 16, with 8 games coming over today and tomorrow. A quick preview of each one, starting with tonight's games:

7:10 - Southern Illinois vs. Kansas - The Salukis are the big underdog heading into this match-up, obviously. Kansas has SIU outmanned, and outsized at pretty much every spot on the court. But SIU didn't get this far by accident - they are a really good college team, and in a one-and-done format, they can get by anybody. Kansas should win, but I don't see any blowouts at this stage.

7:27 - Texas A&M vs. Memphis - This 2/3 game is taking place in San Antonio, which should mean a heavily partisan crowd in favor of the Aggies, even though they are the 3 seed. It's kind of fair for them though, seeing as the just had to beat Louisville in Kentucky to get here. It will be an interesting test for Memphis, a team which has dominated all season, but against a weak schedule, and is now trying to show that their gaudy record is for real. I like Texas A&M here, partly because I think they are the best team, partly because they have the best player (Acie Law IV), partly because they have a pseudo-home court, but mostly because I need them to win desperately in order for my bracket to stay competitive in my pool.

9:40 - Pittsburgh vs. UCLA - Pitt and UCLA meet in the so-called Ben Howland Bowl, as coach Howland of UCLA used to be coach Howland of Pittsburgh. The Panthers have to be fired up to play against the coach who recruited and them abandoned them. But UCLA will be ready, and, since the game is in California, will have the majority of the crowd on their side, just like the Aggies in the earlier game. I like the Bruins in this one, but not by much at all.

9:57 - Tennessee vs. Ohio State - These two teams met earleir in the season, with OSU needing a shot at the last second to put away the Vols in Columbus. Now they meet in a neutral court, with both teams having done a lot of growing up in the weeks in between the two match-ups. Greg Oden has turned into the games premeire defensive player, but has yet to emerge as the offensive force he should be, perhaps because of an injured wrist that may not yet have fully healed. I'm taking Tennessee here in my upset special for the round.

Tomorrow's games:

7:10 - Butler vs. Florida - The Gators didn't look too impressive against Purdue last round, but they got it done. That's kind of been Florida's calling card for a while now - never looking too impressive, but when you look at their body of work, they won the SEC regular season, they won the SEC tournament, and they have won both of their first two games of the tourney. Can they keep doing just enough all the way to another national championship? Maybe not, but I do have them beating a Butler team that is just glad to be here (and as well they should be).

7:27 - Vanderbilt vs. Georgetown - Two of the country's more elite private schools meet up in this match-up. Both teams have a good deal of momentum heading into this one, but GTown moreso because they won their conferences tournament. I like to Hoyas to keep rolling - for now.

9:40 - UNLV vs. Oregon - Perhaps the most intriguing match-up of the night, because neither of these teams was supposed to be playing still. Oregon won the Pac10 Tournament, so it's been a while since they've lost any game. UNLV is the lowest seeded team still remaining. I like the Ducks here, but it wouldn't suprise me at all if the Rebels kept their magical run going.

9:57 - USC vs. North Carolina - The Trojans did a number on national sensation Kevin Durant to get to the round of 16, but they have their work cut out for them now. UNC has been on an absolute tear ever since Gerald Henderson broke Tyler Hansbrough's nose with a flying elbow. I don't see the Heels losing here - in fact, I don't see them losing again, period.

Well, that's what we've got on tap. I'll post again Saturday morning, with a recap of this round and a look ahead to the regional finals. Politics tomorrow. Till then...

3/13/07

Well, it's that time of year once again. The NCAA basketball tournament bracket came out on Sunday, and there are brackets being filled up all over the country in anticipation of tip-off.

The first official game of the tournament is tonight at 7:30, when Niagara plays Florida A&M. There is some controversy over this game, specifically Niagara's participation in it. Many think that Niagara had too good of a season to be placed in the play-in game, and that the only reason FAMU isn't playing Jackson State is because the NCAA doesn't want the play-in game between the representatives of the two conferences that are comprised of HBCs. Honestly, I think Niagara should view this game as an opportunity - no 16 seed has ever beaten a 1 seed in the NCAAs so this is really an opportunity for them to get a win when they otherwise would not have a realistic one. But I can understand the other point of view.

But the tournament starts in earnest Thursday at noon. My beloved Terps are actually actually playing in the first game of the First Round (the play-in game is officially known as the "Opening Round", but the First Round keeps its name, even though it comes after the play-in) against Davidson at 12:20, but I'll only be able to see a few minutes of that game up here, as Boston College unfortunately tips off just 5 minutes later.

Much of the talk so far has, as it always does in the immediate aftermath of the brackets being released, centered around the "snubs" - the teams some people feel should have gotten in, but did not. To me, the biggest snub was Florida State, who finished 7-9 in ACC play but got a win in the Conference Tourney and were playing without their best player for a long stretch of the conference season. Others were upset about Drexel, a midmajor with an outstanding non-conference profile but a lowly fourth place finish in conference. The snubs don't mean very much to me. I don't think any of those teams was going to make too much noise in the NCAAs, anyway. Even the last two seasons, when Maryland was among the last teams out, I wasn't too sad to see them not make it.

For the remainder of the tournament, I'm going to switch the weekend sports blog post with the politics blog post, meaning I'l be posting on this blog on Saturday mornings and the politics blog on Fridays, because that better fits the schedule of the tournament, which plays two rounds every weekend, one on Thursdays and Fridays, and another on Saturdays and Sundays, and this way I'll be able to post in between the rounds.

In the Opening and First Rounds, there are 33 games. That's too many to preview here, but I will talk about a handful which I find most interesting.

Thursday, 12:20 - Davidson (13, 29-4) vs. Maryland (4, 24-8) - The opening match-up for my Terps is an intriguing one. They should come out ready to wreak some havoc after their embarassing loss to Miami in the ACC's First Round. But Davidson isn't the type of team to come out and roll over. Historically, the Terrapins have had some trouble with their first-round opponents, and Davidson is one of those upper-tier mid-major programs that give big conference schools looking to roll over their first round opposition trouble. Unfortunately, I'll be stuck watching a crappy Boston College team play an even crappier Texas Tech team while this game is going on.

2:40 - Old Dominion (12, 24-8) vs. Butler (5, 27-6) - Every year for a while at least one 5 seed has gone down in the first round, and if that trend continues, Butler looks like the favorite to get knocked off. They are one of those teams like Gonzaga used to be, without a household name but with the ability to come up big int he underdog role. Recently, the Zags have had a lot of trouble when they have been given a higher seed and made the favorites. Will Butler follow suit?

3:00 - Pennsylvania (14, 22-8) vs. Texas A&M (3, 25-6) - The Aggies are many people's darkhorse Final Four pick, but the Ivy League has produced its fair share of First Round upsets over the years. You know one thing, Penn may be out manned, but they will play smart.

5:00 - George Washington (11, 23-8) vs. Vanderbilt (6, 20-11) - Vandy made big waves beating Florida in the waning days of the regular season. GW is a powerhouse in a strong mid-major conference. This could be a very intriguing match-up. I'm intrigued.

7:10 - Virginia Commonwealth (11, 27-6) vs. Duke (6, 22-10) - VCU should give the Blue Devils, who struggled down the stretch, a run for their money. But Coach K is still Coach K, and the Devils won't go down without a fight.

9:30 - Xavier (9, 24-8) vs. Brigham Young (8, 25-8) - When people talk abot teams that were snubbed, they have to pick a corresponding team that made it that they say their team should replace. Xavier has been a popular whipping boy for this purpose, although not as popular as Arkansas or Illinois. I think that teams tend to play very well after they have been bashed all week. We'll see how Xavier reacts.

9:45 - Gonzaga (10, 23-10) vs. Indiana (7, 20-10) - Both of these schools have had down seasons (well, for them), but these are still two of the bigger names in college hoops, and when you get a match-up like this in the first round, you tend to take notice.

Friday, 12:25 - Georgia Tech (10, 20-11) vs. UNLV (7, 28-6) - This will be an interesting measure of the strength of the ACC. Tech is the lowest seeded ACC team, and they are going against a Running Rebels team that has had a pretty impressive season. If they can beat them, then it could be a big year for the Atlantic Coast Conference in this tournament.

2:35 - Winthrop (11, 28-4) vs. Notre Dame (6, 24-7) - The Irish got a tough draw here. The Big East's 2nd best team is going to have to go against a Winthrop team that put together a very impressive season. This should be very competitive.

Well, that's really it. I'll be back Saturday morning with a recap of round one and a preview of round 2.

3/9/07

It was a wild, wild day all across college basketball in general and in the ACC in particular. Let's review the ACC games...

Florida State 67, Clemson 66 - I'll put aside the question of whether Al Thornton actually was fouled at the end of the game. This was a huge win for the Seminoles, and an equally huge loss for Clemson. Clemson is now done, as far as the NCAA tournament goes - they are NT bound, no question. FSU's fate is still up in the air. A win today over UNC and they are in. A loss, and it will be an interesting Selection Sunday in Tallahassee. As weak as this year's bubble is, I think they would have a fairly good shot.

Miami 67, Maryland 62 - The Terps came into this one obviously thinking that they could just show up and run Miami right out of the gym, but quite the opposite happened. The Hurricanes controlled the tempo pretty much the entire way and walked Maryland out of the gym, at least in the first half. In the last part of the game, Maryland finally got some measure of control, but it was too late for the Terps, who will go into the NCAAs with their pride stung by a second loss to the ACC's worst team. Maryland came into this game sitting at about a 4 seed. If they performed well in this tournament, they could have moved their seeding up to 3 or even 2. With the loss, however, they will be lucky if they don't fall to 5 or 6.

North Carolina State 85, Duke 80 - The only good news for Maryland is that when they lose it is news, but when Duke loses to NC State the same day, everyone forgets about Maryland's loss and starts yammering about the Blue Devils. This is obviously the weakest team Duke has fielded in recent memory, and now they have an agregate 8-9 ACC record.They're still in the tournament, but are probably looking at a 9 or maybe even a 10 seed.

Wake Forest 114, Georgia Tech 112 (2 OT) - Wow. Georgia Tech came into this game with an NCAA berth *probably* wrapped up, and needing only a win over lowly Wake Forest to seal the deal, but look what happened. Does Tech still get into the tournament? Probably. Will they be unnecessarily sweating it out on Selection Sunday? Yeah.

Ok, when I made my last post, 9 teams had locked up their conference's automatic NCA berths. They were: Pennsylvania, Winthrop, Eastern Kentucky, Davidson, Belmont, Creighton, Virginia Commonwealth, Niagara, and Gonzaga.

Since then, 5 other schools have punched their tickets:

Wright State defeated Butler in the Horizon League final on Tuesday.
North Texas defeated Arkansas State on Tuesday to win the Sun Belt Championship.
Central Connecticut State won the Northeast Conference Championship by defeating Sacred Heart on Wednesday.
Weber State topped Northern Arizona on Wednesday to win the Big Sky Conference Championship.
Oral Roberts won the Mid-Continent Conference final over Oakland on Tuesday.

That leaves 17 conference tournaments still going, all to be decided between tonight and Sunday:

The Patriot League final is tonight between Holy Cross and Bucknell.
The America East Conference final is tomorrow between Vermont and Albany.
The MEAC Tournament is down to Florida A&M, North Carolina A&T, Morgan State, and Delaware State. The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The Mountain West Conference Tournament is down to Brigham Young, Wyoming, Nevada Las Vegas, and Colorado State. The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The WAC Tournament is down to Nevada, Utah State, Boise State, and New Mexico State. The semis are tonight, the final is tomorrow.
The Atlantic 10 Tournament is down to Xavier, Rhode Island, Saint Louis, and George Washington. The semis are tonight, the final is tomorrow.
The Big East Tournament is down to Georgetown, Notre Dame, Louisville, and Pittsburgh. The semis are tonight, the final is tomorrow.
The Big West Tournament is down to California Irvine, Long Beach State, California State Fullerton, and California Polytechnic. The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The Conference USA Tournament is down to Rice, Houston, Memphis, and Tulane. The semis are tonight, the final is tomorrow.
The MAC Tournament is down to Toledo, Miami, Akron, and Kent State (yes, that Kent State). The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The Pac 10 Tournament is down to California, Oregon, Washington State, and Southern California. The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The SWAC Tournament is down to Mississippi Valley State, Texas Southern, Jackson State, and Arkansas Pine Bluff. The semis are today, the final is tomorrow.
The ACC Tournament is down to North Carolina, Florida State, Boston College, Miami, Virginia, North Carolina State, Virginia Tech, and Wake Forest. The quarterfinals are today, the semifinals are tomorrow, and the final is on Sunday.
The Big 12 Tournament is down to Kansas, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State, Texas, and Baylor. The quarterfinals are today, the semifinals are tomorrow, and the final is on Sunday.
The Big Ten Tournament is down to Ohio State, Michigan, Iowa, Purdue, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Indiana, and Illinois. The quarterfinals are today, the semifinals are tomorrow, and the final is on Sunday.
The SEC Tournament is down to Mississippi State, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Louisiana State. The quarterfinals are today, the semifinals are tomorrow, and the final is on Sunday.
The Southland Tournament is down to Lamar, Northwestern State, Texas A&M Corpus Christi, and McNeese State. The semifinals are today, and the final is on Sunday.

Next time I post here, the brackets will be all filled out.

Till then...

3/6/07

March Madness is just now starting to pick up some momentum. We'll get to that, but first we'll recap the last regular season games in the ACC.

Florida State 98, Miami 90 (OT) - Well, like Clemson, FSU really wanted to win this game in a more convincing fashion than it did. That being said, a win here sure beat a loss, which would have put the Seminoles out without any chance for redress. Going into the ACC tourney with a 7-9 record puts them into a position to get into the dance, although they will need to win probably two games in the tournament to do that.

Wake Forest 78, Virginia 72 - This is a nice win for Wake, but obviously it doesn't do too much for them. The loss does have implications for UVA, however, which slips to the 2 seed in the ACC tourney. A strong showing in that tournament, however, could make the Selection comittee forget about this loss when it comes to seeding the Cavaliers.

Maryland 79, North Carolina State 59 - The Terps just keep rolling right along. Their 7 game winnning stretch has brought them from 3-6 in conference to 10-6 and the 5 seed in the tournament. They fell just short of a bye in round one, but have to be confident all the same with the way they are playing.

Clemson 75, Virginia Tech 74 - Well, Clemson made the statement they were looking to make, and avoided dropping to 6-10 in conference and out of the NCAA picture entirely. They now enter the ACC tournament with a chance to play their way into the NCAAs, provided they do some damage first - they probably need to win two games. As for the Hokies, this was another in a long line of puzzlers this season. Right now, the Selection comittee has to believe VaTech is too inconsistent to deserve a higher seed. They'll need to do some damage in the ACC tourney themselves, if they are to prove that not to be the case.

Georgia Tech 74, Boston College 60 - The Yellow Jackets have all but played their way into the tournament now, although they would probably need to win their ACC tourney opener to feel completely secure. BC has been in for a while, but their stock has been plummeting recently. Where they are seeded will depend very much on their performance in the ACC tourney.

North Carolina 86, Duke 72 - Undoubtedly everyone has seen what happened to Tyler Hansbrough by now, so there isn't too much reason to go into it, other than that I have no doubt that Gerald Henderson wanted to hit Hansbrough, and hit him hard. Did he mean to break his nose with a WWE-style flying elbow? Maybe, maybe not. But the intent was certainly there to hurt him, if not injure him. Anyway, besides that, UNC reaffirmed in this game - after a couple of tough road losses - that they are the team to beat in the ACC and, indeed, snagged the 1 seed with the victory. If they manage to win the ACC tourney, they can probably still get a 1 seed in the NCAAs. Duke, on the other hand, fell all the way to 7th, and will need a strong showing just to get a 6 seed or so.

The ACC Tournament starts on Thursday - here are the opening round games:

12:00 - Clemson (21-9, 7-9) vs. Florida State (19-11, 7-9) - This is pretty much a knockout game for these two teams. Each comes into this match-up with a 7-9 conference record and probably in need of a couple of wins in the tourney to play themselves into the NCAAs. That being the case, the loser here is almost definately out, while the winner would probably still have to upset 1 seed UNC in round 2. Clemson won both regular season match-ups.

2:00 - Maryland (24-7, 10-6) vs. Miami (4-12, 11-19) - The Terrapins are the hottest team in the conference right now, which is bad news for 12th seeded Miami. Maryland has already played their way into the NCAAs, but the sky seems to be the limit for the Terps, who could earn a 3 or even a 2 seed if they play well enough in this tournament. This is also a revenge opportunity for Maryland, who fell at Miami in the teams' lone regular season match-up. The winner of this game plays 4 seed Boston College in the quarterfinals.

7:00 - Duke (22-9, 8-8) vs. North Carolina State (15-14, 5-11) - The Blue Devils come into this one reeling and suffering from an image problem thanks to the UNC debacle. Having lost 2 in a row and 6 of their last 10, the Devils need a strong showing in the ACC tournament if they want to get a higher seed in the NCAAs. Duke rolled at NC State in the two teams' only meeting during the season. The winner of this game plays 2nd seeded Virginia in the quarters.

9:00 - Georgia Tech (20-10, 8-8) vs. Wake Forest (14-15, 5-11) - The Yellow Jackets might not need this game to get into the NCAAs, but there isn't much sense leaving it up to chance - a win here would certainly secure them an at-large bid. Wake could play themselves into qualifying for the NIT with a couple wins, but the odds against that are long - although with the way the Virginia Tech Hokies, who await the winner of this match-up in round 2, have been playing, it is far from impossible. The teams split their two regular season match-ups, with each holding home court against the other.

Ok, like I said earlier, March Madness is picking up steam now that the regular season has ended for everyone (except for the Ivy League, which has no tournament but has already crowned a champion). 15 of the 30 conference tournaments have already kicked off, with the rest starting sometime this week. 9 teams have already won automatic bids to the NCAA tournament. They are:

Pennsylvania, which secured the Ivy League Championship with a win over Yale last Friday.
Winthrop, who won the Big South Conference Championship over VMI on Saturday.
Eastern Kentucky, who beat Austin Peay for the Ohio Valley Conference Championship on Saturday.
Davidson, who won the Southern Conference Championship by knocking off College of Charleston on Saturday.
Belmont, winners of the Atlantic Sun Championship over East Tennessee State on Saturday.
Creighton, who upset Southern Illinois to win the Missouri Valley Conference Championship on Sunday.
Virginia Commonwealth, Champions of the Colonial Athletic Association by way of their win over last year's suprise Final Four team, George Mason, on Monday.
Niagara, who topped Sienna on Monday to win the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship.
Gonzaga, who won their 8th West Coast Conference Championship in the last 9 years by knocking off Santa Clara Monday night.

7 other conferences have already started their tournaments:

The Horizon League Final is tonight, between Butler and Wright State.
The Patriot League Final, between Holy Cross and Bucknell, will take place on Friday.
The Sun Belt Championship will be decided tonight between North Texas and Arkansas State.
The Northeast Conference Final is tomorrow night between Central Connecticut State and Sacred Heart.
The America East Final will take place next on March 10th between Vermont and Albany.
The Big Sky is down to Montana, Northern Arizona, Portland State, and Weber State; the Semifinals are tonight, while the Final is tomorrow night.
The Mid-Continent Final is tonight between Oral Roberts and Oakland.

Finally, the other 15 conference tournaments will start between now and Thursday:

The Mountain West Conference Tournament and the Western Athletic Conference Tournament start tonight, take tomorrow off, then resume on Thursday and run through the 10th.
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament starts tonight and runs uninterrupted through the 10th.
The Atlantic 10, Big East, Big West, Conference USA, Mid-American Conference, Pacific 10, and SWAC Tournaments start tomorrow and run through the 10th.
The Southland Conference Tournament rounds 1 and 2 are on Thursday and Friday, and the Final takes place on the 11th.
The ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, and SEC Tournaments start Thursday and run uninterrupted through the 11th.

Updates on all of these tournaments Friday. Politics tomorrow. Till then...

3/2/07

Wow, what a week it was in the ACC. Let's dive right in...

Clemson 74, Miami 70 (OT) - Well, at least Clemson won. They really needed this game, but they also needed to make a Statement. By beating the conference's worst team by only 4 points in overtime at home, the only Statement Clemson made was, "we're headed to the NIT, and we know it."

Maryland 85, Duke 77 - Now, this was a statement. Maryland led most of the way, including all of the second half, and look like one of the ACC's elite. With a trip to UNC upcoming, Duke is in danger of finishing the ACC regular season at 8-8. That'll still be good enough for an NCAA berth, but it looks like they'll be seeded no higher than 8th, unless they do some serious damage against UNC and then in the ACC tourney.

Virginia 69, Virginia Tech 56 - Another statement, this time by the Cavaliers, who have quietly won 11 of 13 and grabbed the top spot in the conference. They are looking like a 3 or 4 seed, maybe better, depending on their ACC tourney performance. The Hokies continue their up and down performance. In their last 8 games, they have lost to NC State, been blown out by BC, trounced Virginia, edged out a win at Chapel Hill, then got pantsed by NC State, then blew out BC, spanked Miami, and finally, got trounced by Virginia. Some of those wins are very impressive, but the Hokies are obviously way too inconsistent to grab a protected seed.

Georgia Tech 84, North Carolina 77 - Wow, now this was a statement! By taking care of the Heels, the Jackets have kept hope alive for an 8-8 finish in ACC play and a definite NCAA berth. They have one more tough game remaining, but this was the Big One that they needed. As for the Heels, they appear to be in somewhat of a funk all of a sudden, that could potentially cost them a 1 seed. They'll need to be impressive against Duke and probably have to win the ACC tourney if they want to be a top seed in the Big Dance.

This weekend marks the final game of ACC regular season play. The games...

3/3, 12:00 - Florida State (18-11, 6-9) @ Miami (11-18, 4-11) - For the second straight game, Miami is playing against a team sitting on the bubble with 9 conference losses that needs to beat them, and beat them badly, to make a statement to the NCAA selection comittee. This time, their opponent is Florida State. The Seminoles need to win this game, win big, and then do some serious damage in the ACC tourney. The Selection Comittee do not like taking a team with a below .500 conference record, and even though this is a weak bubble year, FSU needs to make their case emphatically.

1:00 - Virginia (20-8, 11-4) @ Wake Forest (13-15, 4-11) - UVA can clinch the ACC regular season title with a win over Wake. That and a good showing in the ACC tournament - making the finals, for instance - might be a strong enough combination to get them as high as a 2 seed in the NCAAs. They'll need to avoid this potnetial trap game however. Georgia Tech and Clemson can both attest to what Wake Forest can do at home to the unwary opponent.

3:30 - North Carolina State (15-13, 5-10) @ Maryland (23-7, 9-6) - The Terrapins continue to keep right on rolling. Winners of 6 games in a row now, Maryland has probably played its way into a protected seed. But they can still play their way right back out of it if they aren't careful. And losing to NC State would be a really good way to get the Selection Comittee to rethink a top 4 seed for the Terps.

3/4, 1:00 - Clemson (20-9, 6-9) @ Virginia Tech - Clemson gets another opportunity to make a statement, but this one won't be nearly as easy. The Tigers absolutely need to win this game - a 6-10 conference record simply will not get it done. And even with a win here, Clemson would probably need 2 or maybe even 3 wins in the ACC tourney to crash the NCAAs. As for the Hokies, their roller coaster ride has to be as frustrating for them as it will be on the Comittee when they try to evaluate the team that swept North Carolina but got swept by NC State. They would do very well to win this game and at least do something to answer a lot of people's questions about this squad.

3:00 - Boston College (19-9, 10-5) @ Georgia Tech (19-10, 7-8) - This is the most important game of the weekend. The Yellow Jackets shocked the world Thursday with their huge win over the Tar Heels, but the work isn't done yet for Tech; they need one more win to get to the critical 8-8 conference mark. As for BC, despite their win over Clemson last weekend, they have lost 3 of 4 and are in danger of some serious slippage in their NCAA seed. A win on the road against a Desperate Georgia Tech team that just punked the perceived class of the conference under the same circumstances would do a lot to convince everyone that their problem stretch is behind them. A loss here, and they would probably need a strong ACC tourney showing to keep their seed at around 5-6, where it probably is now.

4:00 - Duke (22-8, 8-7) @ North Carolina (24-6, 10-5) - The Greatest Rivalry In Sports renews Sunday afternoon. UNC is trying to hold on to a top four seed and the bye that comes with it, not to mention a #1 seed in the NCAAs, while Duke is trying to avoid an 8-8 conference finish and a corresponding 7 or 8 seed - or worse. That, and all of the baggage that always goes with this rivalry, and you've got another can't miss between the ACC's two royalty programs.

Of course, it isn't just ACC action going on this weekend. Quite a few NCAA tickets are going to be punched between now and my next entry in this blog.

Atlantic Sun - Down to East Tennessee State, Lipscomb, Campbell, and Belmont. Semifinals are this evening, and the finals are tomorrow.

Big South - The final between Winthrop and The Virginia Military Institute is Saturday.

Colonial Athletic - The CAA tournament starts today and will wrap up on Monday.

Ivy - The Ivy League has no tournament. Pennsylvania can wrap up the League title, and the League's automatic NCAA berth, with a win over Yale tonight.

Metro Atlantic Athletic - Same as the CAA - tourney starts today and runs through Monday.

Missouri Valley - Perhaps the country's premiere mid-major, the MVC is down to 8 teams: Southern Illinois, Drake, Bradley, Northern Iowa, Creighton, Indiana State (Larry Bird's alma matter), Missouri State, and Wichita State. The quarterfinals are today, the semifinals are tomorrow, and the final will be on Sunday.

Ohio Valley - Down to Austin Peay, Samford, Eastern Kentucky, and Tennessee Tech. The semifinals are today, with the final coming tomorrow.

Southern - Down to Davidson, Furman, Appalachian State, and College of Charleston. The semifinals are today, the final is tomorrow.

West Coast - Like the CAA and MAAC, the WCC tourney starts today and runs through Monday.

Besides the CAA, MAAC, and WCC, three other conferences are starting tournament play this weekend.

The America East tourney starts today and runs through the 4th, and then goes on break before the final on the 10th (go Retrievers!).

The Big Sky tourney has first round games tomorrow, and the semifinals and finals take place on the 6th and 7th.

The Mid-Continent tournament starts tomorrow and runs through the 6th.

I'll be back here Tuesday with a recap of all this action. This weekend sometime I'll post in the politics blog.

Till we meet again...