It’s Easter weekend, and the Jesuits still haven’t stopped partying. (Pope joke). A win today by Marquette might make ’em party through the night and tell jokes in both Latin and Greek. It’s the second-most most important weekend in college sports, the weekend in which the Final Four is decided. I’ve got Louisville, Michigan, Marquette, and Ohio State. Two of them were in my original Final Four. On the other hand, I picked three of the eight teams remaining to go
As the Miami Heat’s 27-game winning streak finally came to an end last night, the basketball world can now give its full attention to the Sweet Sixteen, which begins tonight. The 12 games between now and Sunday will narrow down the field of 68 to the Final Four who will meet in Atlanta next weekend for a shot at the national title. [Read more…]
The first weekend of the NCAA Tournament is pure mayhem; games begin and end simultaneously, buzzers sound from TV’s, iPads, iPhones, and computers, celebrations are loud … and defeat is inevitable for more than three-quarters of the field… Which brings us to these next four days of college basketball: Games are fewer than the week before, but the stakes continue to rise as the Sweet Sixteen turns into the Elite Eight, and, eventually the Final Four. [Read more…]
The first week of the NCAA Tournament is in the books, and one thing is clear — the draft stock of many of the top players did not improve. In fact, Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel’s stock was probably helped the most of any top prospect — and he was unable to play in the NIT because of a torn ACL. But there were certainly others who helped themselves. [Read more…]
It’s March, and that means it’s almost tournament time, and the NBA Draft is less than four months away. As die-hard college basketball fans and casual observers alike watch game after game and see countless numbers of prospects showcase their abilities, NBA scouts are putting the finishing touches on their scouting reports. Every March some prospects play themselves into or out of the first round, but for many others their stock has been cemented. [Read more…]
March Madness is right around the corner, so it’s time to circle the wagons and look ahead to the NBA draft after breaking down each position the past five Saturdays. Since the last Big Board, draft stocks have soared or tanked based on performances, injuries, and inconsistencies. As the NCAA Tournament approaches, the lives of NBA scouts will be consumed by the names on this list as they dissect every wrinkle or wart of each prospect. [Read more…]
Just four days ago, the 2013 NBA draft was turned upside down when Kentucky freshman Nerlens Noel suffered a devastating knee injury. Over the past month, Noel has separated himself from the pack to be projected as the top pick in June’s draft. Instantly, Twitter blew up with reaction from fans and journalists ranging from the injury to the gruesome images to his draft stock. In the days following it was revealed that Noel suffered a torn ACL and is expected to have
It is not often that we devote serious attention to regular season NCAA games, but this weekend is different. We’ve got Zeller 2.0 plus the sons of former NBA stars Glenn Robinson and Tim Hardaway all on the same court when the No. 1 Michigan Wolverines play the No. 3 Indiana Hoosiers in Bloomington, Indiana. If I predicted this would happen, say, three years ago, the only people who might have agreed that they could see this coming would have been John Beilein,