Rhode Island Hoops Saved

Billy Baron is coming home. Questionable as to whether we have to wait a year to see him play. Elliot Williams was able to transfer from Duke to Memphis and got an NCAA waiver to be with his mom who was allegedly sick. He then one and doned the program so it's unclear how sick she truly was. We can certainly make the agurment that Jim Baron is a bit mentally unstable and needs his son nearby.

"Virginia is a great place, but I want to go home, be with my family and play for my dad," Baron said in a statement released by the university. He's transferring this semester.

Billy Baron, from East Greenwich, R.I., played in 17 games and averaged 3 points. He had a game-high 19 points in Virginia's victory over William & Mary in the season opener and 14 points in a win against USC Upstate in the next game, but has played sparingly since.

"I knew when Billy decided to come to Virginia he had a very hard decision and labored over it," Bennett, who played for his own father, Dick, said in the statement.

"Obviously we're sad to see him go and appreciate his contributions to our program, but the desire to play for your father is very strong, as I can personally attest.

"We'll miss him and wish him well."

- From Boston.com

What the Egyptions Can't Play Smear the Queer Now?

So Anderson Cooper got punched in the head a few times, yawn. I grew up playing smear the queer in elementary school and I don't recall an international backlash. I thought this whole Egypt thing was about freedom and democracy and the right to earn more than 2 dollars a day. How are those poor people going to get any of this if we can't even allow them to play a silly school yard game.

The incident came as pro-Mubarak supporters attacked protesters calling for the Egyptian president to step down. Speaking on “American Morning” after the attack, Cooper said that he and his crew had been trying to go to a neutral zone between the two groups.
“We never got that far,” he said. “We were set upon by pro-Mubarak supporters punching us in the head.” Cooper said that he and the crew tried to escape, but that the crowd only grew: “the crowd kept growing, kept throwing punches, kicks…suddenly a young man would look at you and punch you in the face.”

Memo to AC360, that is generally how the game works.

Brett Favre Croc Cock Shots Coming Tomorrow

So those Brett Favre cock shots discussed on Deadspin back in August will be released tomorrow, in the event you were still curious. I was. Jen Sterger finally agreed to the terms of their release. Excellent timing with the Moss to Minnesota move, The Vikings visiting the Jets on MNF this week, and well, when is it not great timing to see athlete cock? I say never.

I guess its small and stubbly, but not grey.

Will ESPN fianlly have to acknowledge the story? And will all those other blogs and papers that slammed AJ and Deadspin have to come correct and own up with apologies? Should be a fun day, how will we sleep tonight?

Best Sixth Man in the Game? Best Sixth Man in the Game

At what point does Stan Van Gundy tell Vince Carter to take a night off? He is like sand on the skates of the Orlando Magic offense. Hasn't looked comfortable all season but for a few game streaks here and there and has been pretty awful during the playoffs. His bad play was masked by the weak first and second round opponents however it has certainly been exposed in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Now, as the Magic continue to push the Celtics into the record books (first NBA team to blow a 3-0 series lead, in fact this is the first C's team to need a game 6 after going up 3-0 so they are already in the record book for that) the Magic continue to rely on Vince's backup, former Duke stud, JJ Redick. Not only is he playing better than Carter, he might be playing better than anybody on his team outside Dwight Howard and, in games 4 and 5, Jameer Nelson.

Redick's solid play is being rewarded with 25-30 minutes per game and constant stream of compliments from Marc Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy. Many will see the box score and say so what, the guy is averaging 10 points a game, a handful of rebounds and he's turning it over 3 or 4 times. To them I say you are missing the point. Check out JJ's plus/minus. It's OVER 20. Until game 5, he was the only Magic player with a +/- in positive territory. The minute he touched the floor last night the Magic surged to an 8 point lead, eventually pushing it to 11 or 12. The C's make a run to start the 2nd half, guess who's not on the floor? That's right, #7.

This isn't just a solid contribution from a guy told he would never get regular minutes in the NBA. A guy who couldn't play D, was too soft to play the wing, too slow to guard the 2. A guy who couldn't create his own shot, couldn't drive the lane. No this is a career defining performance reframing the way any intelligent fan thinks of JJ Redick from now through the rest of his career.

I would like to say it's something new but it's not. We saw this last year when JJ's limited minutes kept Kobe in check during the Finals. I would even go so far as to say the only thing he was given credit for, his ability to knock down a 3 from anywhere on the court, has actually regressed some since his glory days as a Blue Devil. Instead, it is his defense, ball movement and pass first team work that makes up the bulk of his game today. Ask Ray Allen how fun it has been when JJ's been on him.

So when the Magic come back and send the C's into an imfamy shared with the Bruins and Yankees, Orlando fans can thank their lucky stars on the continued maturation, professionalism and flight to stardom of one JJ Redick.

Also, Dwight Howard being able to swing his elbows with reckless abandon helps too.

So What Now For The Rams

Let me preface this post by saying I absolutely do not believe URI will fire Jim Baron once they are bounced in the 2nd round of the NIT. They simply do not have the balls or the money to blow paying off the rest of his salary. He renegotiated his contract during his first couple seasons in Kingston to a 10 year, 4.5 million dollar deal which does not expire for another three of seasons (after the 2012-2013 season). If he were to be relieved at the end of the current season, URI would be stuck paying him some 1.3 million.

Here’s the problem – the state of Rhode Island is broke. They are too broke to pay someone who’s no longer employed and they are too broke to hire anybody decent at today’s wages. Most D1 coaches are taking home at least $750k/year – far more than Baron is making in his current deal. Add in the money the school and the state would still owe Baron and we are talking about paying over $1 million per year for a basketball coach. Not going to happen in Rhody. In Indiana? Yes. North Carolina? Absolutely. Anywhere in the Northeast? Nope.

Let’s say Baron resigns or by some act of God, Rhode Island actually holds a state employee accountable for sub par performance. Who’s next?

One astute commenter pointed out Ed Cooley, current men’s coach at Fairfield. He’s done a solid job down there by most accounts and he’s got a solid resume as an assistant working for many years under Al Skinner at BC. His current salary is less than Baron at around $250k/year and he’s a Rhode Island native so the hometown discount could come in to play. The biggest drawback – he was also an assistant coach under Jim Harrick at URI and we all know how hard the school has tired to distance itself from that era.

At the end of the day, this is the type of guy Rhody will have to settle for. Somebody relatively unknown that would work for cheap. Our best hope is that they find a diamond in the rough, like Memphis did with Josh Pastner, who can come in and start recruiting right away. There are plenty out there, the trouble is identifying them.

The other option is to take a scandal tarnished coach desperate for a shot to reclaim his reputation. The first name that comes to mind there is Quin Snyder, former head coach at Missouri where he led them to their highest ranking ever and an elite 8 berth in the NCAA tournament. He was dismissed after 3 scandalous seasons with accusations of paying players and forging academic transcripts. He’s currently coaching in the NBA D League where he’s allegedly happy but I’m sure he’d like another crack at the college game.

Outside of that it is anybody’s guess. URI is in a real bind here with no money, a shitty recruiting class (especially with Billy on the way to UVA) and not much to build on. In all likelihood, Jim Baron will finish out his contract before slipping off into the night and the URI basketball program will be set back 15 years. It’s unfortunate but also the standard for state schools in professional sports markets.

Just for kicks, top 5 candidates for the URI job –

Quin Snyder
Tommy Amaker
Chris Collins
Steve Wojciechowski
Nate James

In that order.

The Quarter Poll: QB Power Rankings Through Week 4

We're 25% through the season so it's about time for the latest installment of meaningless lists consisting of 25% effort. Ok fine, 20%.

Team by team power rankings like the lists on ESPN or Peter King's Fine Fifteen are incredibly played out. QB power rankings? Not at all. We've set them up in four tiers here and do keep in mind this considers season to date play only. Last second super bowl drives did not factor into the mix.

Top Tier

Manning/Brees/Favre/Rivers in that order. All four have played incredibly well through the first four games, mistake free and winning games. All are poised to have monster seasons and will absolutely be tossed into the MVP race. When you consider the fact that no running back has broken out yet this season, I might even say these guys are 1-4 in your MVP voting four games in.

Second Tier

Things get a bit more interesting here as this next group is much closer to the bottom feeders than they are to the top guys. In no particular order, Big Ben/Brady/Rodgers/Flacco

Oh fuck finishing this thing. Lists are queer. The point is Manning/Brees/Favre/Rivers are playing on a level that nobody is close to touching and that includes Brady. We knew it would be a slow start for him coming off the knee thing and all but are we even sure it's the knee at this point? Did anybody think he'd be, at best, the 10th or 12th best QB in the league 25% of the way in?

Watch the top four guys play and then watch everyone else. Favre was like a kid out there last night slinging the ball around with such accuracy and touch. In 31 throws he made zero mistakes, not one bad throw all night. Manning, Brees and Rivers can all say the same thing in their first four as well.

Money May Mouths Off, Tiger and LeBron Nod in Agreement

It might take a few more years before we reach that racial equality Teddy Kennedy spent so much time fighting for. At least according to Floyd Mayweather Jr. Ahead of Saturday's fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, Mayweather had this to say about his legacy and fame:

If you're rich, you're a rich nigga," he said. "If you're poor, you're a poor nigga. If you're smart, you're a smart nigga. At the end of the day, they still look at me as a nigga." [Ed Note: At least they won't look at you as a nigger though right Floyd?]

This country needs to be more positive," he said. "We're already at war. We're in a recession, we're at war and we continue to be negative. The fans in the UK showed me more love than in my own country. That's crazy ... Sometimes I'll sit back, I'll be in my theater sometimes, and I'll think: 'Imagine if I was the same fighter that I am, and I was the same person that I am, and I was from another country. Can you just imagine how big I'd be?'

"But I wouldn't change my life for nothing in the world. There's nothing like being young, black and rich. But there are certain things you think about. If Floyd Mayweather was white, I'd be the biggest athlete in America. The biggest, the biggest. I know that for a fact."

This was allegedly in response to the way the media has handled his role in a recent Las Vegas shooting and his IRS problems. Now I'm with him up to this point. But his comments later on in the press conference just cross the line. Larry Merchant don't know nothing about what?

Larry Merchant don't know nothing about boxing," Mayweather said. "What's that other guy's name [at HBO]? [Emanuel Steward]. He's an Uncle Tom.

If he wants us white people to start respecting him, he better start respecting his elders. Emanuel is an Uncle Tom though.

Top 25 Under 25: #1 Jonathan Clay Redick (Maybe Fake)

Better known to most as JJ Redick. Now technically JJ is just over the 25 year old age limit but hey, this feature started when the kid was 24 so we are going to give him a pass here.

So what has Mr. Redick accomplished in his short 25 years of existence? Well, he was a captain of a highly ranked Duke team, set an NCAA record for most three-pointers made, broke Duke's career scoring record, and became the all-time ACC points leader, as well as the leading scorer in ACC Tournament history. He also was the recipient of 13 postseason awards, including the Naismith College Player of the Year and was named an Associated Press First Team All-American.

Oh yeah, and he clowned Kobe in the finals this year, dogging him on defense and virtually shutting him down whenever he was on the court.

Currently in the final year of his contract with the Orlando Magic, Redick has positioned himself to be the biggest free agent available in 2010. Teams are already lining up for his services with talks of a 5 year, 120 million dollar contract being the starting point for any team wanting his services.

His star power is the brightest of them all and will continue to shine for many years to come. Congrats to JJ for being DC's #1 Top 25 under 25

ESPN Can Lick My Balls

As you may or may not have heard, Brett Favre has decided to stay retired today. To me this would count as a non-story. A has-been, over the hill former star (and I use the term very loosely here) retired at the end of last season and has decided to stay retired.

To ESPN, this counts as THE BIGGEST FUCKING STORY OF THE PAST 25 YEARS. 40 minutes of an hour long SportsCenter were dedicated to #4. CNN didn't even give the Michael Jackson death this much coverage. In that 40 minutes, we heard from the following "experts" who just could not wait to opine on a situation they really have no value added knowledge on -

Rachel Nichols (LIVE From Brett's front lawn!)
John Clayton
Ed Werder (Whom Brett decided to offer the breaking story to via email, why couldn't he just walk out and tell Rachel?)
Steve Young
Mark Schlereth
Tony Kornheiser
Mike Wilbon
Trey Wingo
Herman Edwards

40 God forsaken minutes of these morons, on top of the two idiot hosts (ok, I like Brian Kenny but not as much now) blubbering on about how Brett just didn't think he could give it his all and the wear and tear of a full season just being too much for his 40 year old body. Enough Already. Fuck.

Oh and in other news, long time NFL Coach Jim Johnson passed away today after a long battle with cancer. He was 68. Just last season, Johnson served as the Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator, the same job he'd held since the 2000 season.

Where do you think ESPN fit this awful news in during the 6PM live show? We know it wasn't the top story. Favre made sure he got the top story and the next six story slots after that. No, instead, ESPN buried Johnson's passing 20 minutes in and sandwiched it between Michael Phelps getting silver at some event other than the Olympics (who fucking cares) and the Red Sox offering some bullshit insult of a trade package to the Jays for Halladay. Solid work Bristol.

If you didn't care to sit through 19 minutes of Favre knob slobbing you would have missed a the 15 second screen listing some of Johnson's accomplishments. Pretty impressive when you stop to consider the turnover in offensive and defensive coordinators. During his 10 years with Philly, the Eagles were 2nd in sacks and 5th in scoring defense. He helped lead the Eagles to 4 NFC Championship games and saw 26 of his players make it to the Pro Bowl. Not too shabby....unless of course you happen to die on the same day Brett Favre decides to stay retired.

Looks Like Somebody Needed a Better Financial Planner

Remember hometown hero Doug "Grandslam" Mirabelli? Yeah, he's doing well. Living large up in Traverse City, Minnesota. I'm sure it is a very lovely place, where ever the the fuck it is.

Sure, baseball is over but after an 11 year career he must have built up some serious financial security allowing him to lounge about with the wife and kids all day. Right? He played in over 500 games, had more than 1400 at bats and hit 58 home runs. Hell, he was rushed via police escort from Logan to Fenway just to save the Sox against their division rivals. This guy was invaluable.

Over the course of his career he pulled down more than $7 million. He had no damanging late career divorce to dilute 50% of his earnings, unlike his catching counterpart. Surely, Dougie wouldn't need to take full time work after baseball to maintain his standard of living. Well, that is when it hits you. The $7 mil was pre-tax and the tax man can be quite a burden to the wealthy. Perhaps some spot broadcasting assignments on NESN, maybe the occasional autograph show and some paid corporate appearances will supplement the $3.5 mil post tax windfall and allow Doug to keep on living the dream.

Then again, maybe not. Mirabelli is now gainfully employed by Coldwell Banker Schmidt Realtors as a full-time sales associate. He currently has two properties listed (not bad for a down market!) and lists his interests as family, fishing, hunting and fantasy football.

New boss has this to say about his prize associate:

"We're happy to have Doug Mirabelli join our company," said Ken Schmidt, CEO of Coldwell Banker Schmidt Realtors. "He obviously has a drive to succeed and a willingness to work hard to achieve his goals." Schmidt first contacted Mirabelli after he retired from baseball, having noted the success that other professional athletes had achieved working with other Coldwell Banker Brokers around the country.

Let this be a lesson to all you unretired journeyman hacks. Dig a hole in your backyard and start burying it. Or you'll be hocking houses in Shit Town, Wisconsin 6 months into retirement.

NBA Baby's LeBron

Not exactly breaking news but some interesting stats ripped from The Big Lead via Sam Smith on NBA.com -

MJ averaged fewer than two fouls per game only in his last two seasons, and never as few as James’ current 1.72. Among some of the great perimeter players in history, at a time when substantially more perimeter contact was allowed, Larry Bird averaged about 2.5 fouls, Magic Johnson 2.26 and Jerry West and Oscar Robertson well above two per game.

James is averaging 1.72 fouls per game in an average of 37.9 minutes per game. James hasn’t even been in foul trouble one game this season. He never has had more than four fouls called on him in a game, and since March 1 is being called for fewer than 1.3 fouls per game.

In 12 of the 20 games since then, James has been called for one or zero fouls in a game. James had a stretch of five straight games to conclude March averaging 36.8 minutes per game without being called for one foul. Not one in five games! In the last nine games, James has been called for three personal fouls. It’s really amazing given the involvement James has in the action of the game.

How is this even possible? Mikki Moore can't play for more than 10 minutes without fouling out. If an official can find 6 infractions on Moore in such a short time, surely they can find 2 or 3 on Bron Bron over 40+ minutes.

Seeing stats like this is insulting to the fans. It is tacit acknowledgement that the league protects its stars and especially its STAR. I am curious to see what Kobe's foul numbers look like. If I were him and I averaged more than 2 per game, that would not sit well.

Jimmy Baron, Erin Andrews and a Classic Rhody Joke Job

The NCAA D1 Skills Competition was held last night at the Palace at Auburn Hills, an annual tradition held during the week leading up to the Final 4. I have mixed emotions about this event as it excludes some of the best athletes still in the mix for a National Title. At the same time, it is far more entertaining than the NBA's skills competitions since its void of professional egos and money. Most of the competitors in the NCAA version will never play in the NBA and a lot come from schools most people forget exist.

URI sent some representation in the form of Jimmy Baron, a noted 3 point specialist. In the first round, he did not disappoint knocking down 25/30 to lead all competitors. In fact, he had the highest overall single round score, boys or girls, of the whole event. But much like Josh Hamilton in last year's HR Derby, young Jimmy shot his load a little too soon. He was only able to hit 14/30 in the Semi's and lost a tiebreaker to eventual winner Jack Mclintock.

Really, it was a classic representation of JB's 4 years in Kingston, RI. Doing the easy stuff and making the big shots when the pressure was off but failing to deliver down the stretch when he needed to step it up the most. ESPN rolled the highlights of his performance at Cameron Indoor Stadium earlier in the season when he torched the Blue Devils prompting a rare compliment from Coach K. Duke won the game, barley, but it was a low pressure situation for Jimmy and the Rams, on the road in a game nobody thought they would win. When the Rams' needed a Duke like performance out of Baron down the stretch, he couldn't quite deliver and URI slipped from the Bubble to the NIT for what seems like the 25th straight year.

Either way, it was good seeing Baron on the national stage and despite struggling in the Semi's he represented URI and the A10 well. I loved his involvement in the Slam Dunk conference, feeding the runner up with a perfect alley-oop in the video above. He also performed well in his interview with EA.

Awkward moment of the night - EA's interview with the entire Baron clan. Jim Sr. isn't quite as smooth as a Calipari or Pitino when it comes to big time interviews.

Curry a Devil Now

Former NBA Great Dell Curry confirmed that his youngest son has made up his mind on where he will play next. Any guesses on where? It was stated from the beginning he wanted to play in the ACC and he also wanted to stay in North Carolina. Seth Davis, Chad Ford, Andy Katz, Doug Gottlieb all said anywhere but Duke.

Well the joke is on them as Seth Curry will be the next point guard to lead Duke to the promise land. He will have to sit out next season due to NCAA rules regarding transfers but he'll be good to go right when Scheyer and Henderson are graduating.

While I am not sold on how good he'll be in ACC against superior talent, this is a huge recruiting tool Coach K and the staff can take on the road next year. This will help them land their first viable big man since Elton Brand.

Is Vegas On Crack?

It never ceases to amaze me how accurate the odds makers are in any sport really. Everytime the line looks ridiculous, I laugh and then when the game is decided within 5% of said line I thank god I didn't bet my true feelings.

Have a look at the Sweet 16 lines for Thursday and Friday's games. There are a few that are just screaming for you to jump all over them -

Purdue/UConn - (UConn -6.5)
Xavier/Pitt - (Pitt -7)
Mizzou/Memphis - (Memphis -4.5)
Nova/Duke - (Duke -2)

Arizona/Louisville - (Louisville -9)
Cuse/Oklahoma - (Oklahoma -1)
Kansas/MSU - (MSU -1.5)
Gonzaga/UNC - (UNC -8)

Now, most of these appear to be reasonable. No problems with the Pitt, Louisville, MSU or UNC lines. The two that jump right out at me as easy winners are UConn and Villanova. UConn has dismantled its two opponents as if they were playing against high school kids. I know one was a 16 but it doesn't matter, the Huskies are on a mission. AJ Price has been absolutely on fire since the Big East Tourney game and when he's shooting like that UConn is untouchable. The fact they are laying only 6.5 points is unfathomable. I'm looking at them to win by 15 or 20.

As for Nova/Duke, how can Duke even be favored here? I never pick against the Blue Devils but compare the quality of play in the first two rounds and the quality of conferences the two schools hail from. No brainer. Nova is going to win and it shouldn't even be much of a struggle.

You want easy money, double up on UConn and Nova. The Dueling Couches Guarantee says you cannot go wrong.

Your First Round Announcer Pairings

Sure this was supposed to be posted prior to the tip of the first game but getting beers, food and phoning in my early bets were far more important.

Anyways, this kind of stuff is a big deal for me. It determines which games are merely watchable because its the tournament and which ones are must see just in case there is an upset (i.e. any game Gus Johnson calls).

This year, I like what CBS has done with the pairings. Gminksi and Brando are great together. Elmore and Johnson are good too. Lenny seems to stay out of Gus' way just enough. Anything Jay Bilas does is professional so I like him with Dick Enberg. Not sold on Clark Kellogg. I think CBS needs to reevaluate after this year's Final and find a long term solution for the whole created by Billy Packer's "retirement".

THURSDAY

Greensboro, LSU vs. Butler, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Kansas City, Memphis vs. Cal. St. Northridge, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Philadelphia, BYU vs. Texas A&M, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Portland, Purdue vs. Northern Iowa, Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

Greensboro, North Carolina vs. Radford, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Kansas City, California vs. Maryland, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Philadelphia, Connecticut vs. Chattanooga, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Portland, Washington vs. Mississippi St., Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

Greensboro, Texas vs. Minnesota, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Kansas City, Clemson vs. Michigan, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Philadelphia, Villanova vs. American, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Portland, Gonzaga vs. Akron, Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

Greensboro, Duke vs. Binghamton, Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg
Kansas City, Oklahoma vs. Morgan State, Tim Brando/Mike Gminski
Philadelphia, UCLA vs. VCU, Dick Enberg/Jay Bilas
Portland, Illinois vs. Western Kentucky, Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner

FRIDAY

Miami, Syracuse vs. Stephen F. Austin, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Dayton, Oklahoma St. vs. Tennessee, Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Minneapolis, Kansas vs. North Dakota State, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Boise, Marquette vs. Utah State, Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel

Miami, Arizona State vs. Temple, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Dayton, Pittsburgh vs. E. Tennessee St., Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Minneapolis, West Virginia vs. Dayton, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Boise, Missouri vs. Cornell, Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel

Miami, Utah vs. Arizona, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Dayton, Louisville vs. Alabama St./Morehead St., Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Minneapolis, Boston College vs. USC, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Boise, Xavier vs. Portland State, Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel

Miami, Wake Forest vs. Cleveland State, Ian Eagle/Jim Spanarkel
Dayton, Ohio State vs. Siena, Verne Lundquist/Bill Raftery
Minneapolis, Michigan State vs. Robert Morris, Gus Johnson/Len Elmore
Boise, Florida State vs. Wisconsin, Craig Bolerjack/Bob Wenzel

Anybody Hiring?

Tough time to be out on your ass but that is exactly what many local Kentucky media outlets are reporting with regards to Billy Gillespie. The rumor is the next loss will be his last (Kentucky is currently in 2nd Round of the NIT).

I think this is great news if you're fan of the Cats. Then again, KU fans ran the last coach out of town simply because he was black so maybe this is what they deserve. Gillespie rode Acie Law IV to glory, he was always an overrated coach with questionable recruiting.

You know who should join him at the back of the unemployment line? John Thompson III. At least Gillespie got his team out of the 1st Round of the NIT.