NCAA Recaps

Well your Final Four is UConn, Kentucky, Butler and VCU (Yea... VCU)

We will start with the UConn/ Arizona game which ended 65-63, I'm not a big UConn or Kemba Walker fan however you can't deny what they have done this tournament. Walker seems to hit every clutch shot and they are playing like a really team on a mission. They have proved to win close games and last game was no different. Arizona could have won the game on a 3 pointer by Jamelle Horne, however it clanked out and UConn advances.

74 Butler, 71 Florida

I'm happy that Florida is out but I'm not thrilled that we are going to see VCU or Butler in the National Championship game. Butler was in the championship last year and lost to Duke and now Brad Stevens and Butler are marching back the final 4. Led by Shelvin Mack with 27 points and some awful late plays from Florida they were able to hang on.

76 Kentucky, 69 UNC
What turned out to be a scary game at the end Kentucky was able to go to the final 4 for the 1st time since 1998. UNC played flat for a majority of the game until Harrsion Barnes got all number 1 pick on everyone and got the game within 2. But it seemed everytime UNC came knocking on the door a well timed 3 by Brandon Knight or anyone else by Kentucky. It was a great win and now Kentucky is taking on UConn, who whooped them earlier this year.

71 VCU, 61 Kansas
Kansas just didn't play well and VCU is advancing to the final 4. What really goes to show you the true grit of this VCU team is when they blew a 15 point lead and were able to right the ship, not get flustered and still pull out the win.

NCAA Recaps

74 UConn, 67 San Diego State University

The refs blew this one for SDSU as they called some bullshit technical on a Kemba Walker flop. Completely changed the momentum in the game and caused SDSU from advancing.

83 Florida, 74 BYU
Jimmer has range but shooting 11-29 and 3 for 15 from beyond the arc didn't help. Total meltdown in overtime.

61 Butler, 54 Wisconsin
Who cares right? I don't like either of these teams.

93 Arizona, 77 Duke
HAHAHAHAHA

Nolan Smith showed his leadership that everyones been clammering about by going 3-14 and Arizona played the game of their lives especially in the 2nd half where they shot 65%. I don't know if you can attribute that to great offense or the lack of defense on Dukes part.

Either way I asked Duke fan and our very own Wilde about his reaction to the game and this is what he had to say:

Nevermind he's busy being gross.

Connecticut wants back in!

UConn 83 - Villanova 75

Coach Calhoun was disgusted with his team after last week's lack-luster effort against Cincinnati in his return to the bench, saying, "I’m really incredibly disappointed with the performance. I’m embarrassed by it, quite frankly.” He would go on to say that it was probably his worst moment in 24 years at UConn, and you could see that he felt like his team quit on him, though he wouldn't admit it.

Surely, he laid into his boys over the weekend and it paid dividends tonight as they scored a huge win over the #3 Villanova Wildcats in Philadelphia.

Villanova, it would seem, took Connecticut a little too lightly and got caught with their pants down, so to speak. Kemba Walker scored 29 to lead the Huskies, while Scottie Reynolds tallied 18 for the Wildcats. This is not a bad Connecticut team, just an underachieving one, and they proved how talented they are tonight in a big upset win. Coming into the season, this game might not have been such a huge upset, but Connecticut and Villanova have been going in opposite directions since December.

Some analysts were writing off UConn (and rightly so) over the weekend, even going as far as to predict an NIT tourney with UNC, UConn and UCLA! Holy shit. In my opinion, UConn can still play their way back in, but it will take a lot. Remaining games are at Rutgers, West Virginia at home, followed by at Notre Dame and at USF. I think they'd have to win out, and wins over WVU and Louisville would be huge when added to quality wins over Texas and Villanova. Of course they could still lose maybe one of those games and make it in with a strong Big East tourney showing. They sit at 5-8 in conference play right now. Yes, the Big East is tough, but that looks real bad. It will be interesting to see how long this fire Calhoun lit under their ass burns. Husky fans sure hope it lasts at least a few more games.

Either way, I'm glad to see Coach Calhoun back on the bench in Storrs. I was beginning to get a bit worried. He does have an extension from UConn on his desk, but has yet to sign it. It should be an interesting story to follow.

Jim Calhoun Takes Medical Leave

Former Dedham High basketball coach and current UConn douchebag, I mean Huskies coach has taken a medical leave for an unknown medical leave. I look at this the same way as I look at the Urban Meyer situation, die or shut the fuck up. I'm tired of these coaches taking medical leave and not knowing whether they are coming back. Frankly, I don't have time for sicknesses, either die so I can write about how good of a coach you were, or retire for good. I don't like being left in limbo. Calhoun has battled with cancer over the past couple of years, but I don't know if that's the reason for leave.

BC Needs a Rival

This was Rivalry Weekend in college football. In-state and border-state rivals faced off in games that fans look forward to all year. UCLA played USC, North Carolina played NC State, Clemson/South Carolina, Mississippi/Mississippi State, Oklahoma State/Oklahoma, Arizona/Arizona State, Florida State/Florida, Virginia Tech/Virginia, Kansas/Missouri, Utah/BYU, Texas Tech/Baylor, Washington State/Washington, Kentucky/Tennessee, Arkansas/LSU, Georgia/Georgia Tech, Rice/Houston, Texas/Texas A&M, Alabama/Auburn, Nebraska/Colorado, and Pittsburgh/West Virginia.

These rivalries often come with trophies held by the winning team, and cool nicknames like Bedlam, Backyard Brawl, Good Old Fashioned Hate, Border War, Egg Bowl, Iron Bowl, and Holy War.

Who did BC play this weekend?

Maryland.

Boston College doesn't have a local rival. They used to until Holy Cross went down to 1AA. Sure, Virginia Tech is a rival (for BS, but not for Tech). And Notre Dame/BC is a rivalry as well, but much more for BC than Notre Dame.



Last year I suggested BC find a new rival, and some BC putz claimed that Syracuse is their rival. Really? Well in football, BC is 10 times better, as is Syracuse in basketball.

Boston College does have a local rival, they just haven't played yet. It's the only other Division 1A team in New England: The University of Connecticut. Storrs is only 80 miles from Chestnut Hill. That's closer than most of those rivalries mentioned above.

It would be Big East vs. ACC (and ex-Big East), public vs. private, secular vs. Catholic, Hartford vs. Boston, and it could claim the average New England sports fans' attention for at least one weekend of the year.

The game could even be played at Gillette Stadium, so fans of both teams could tailgate (very few BC fans can actually tailgate because the campus has such a parking crunch). Tickets can be split between teams to fill the 68,000 seats at Gillette (UConn's Rentschler Field sits 40,000, BC's Alumni Stadium holds 44,500).

We can call it the Blackstone River Shootout.



Or come up with a better name.

It's worth a shot, and both athletic departments should look into it. UConn played Syracuse this weekend, and while that's a big basketball rivalry, it's just not the same in football. As a college football fan, it'd be cool to have a rivalry game to look forward to all season. Everytime Rivalry Weekend comes round, I feel like as a BC fan, I'm missing out.

-The Commodore

Some Sad News For UConn

A Connecticut football player who was an expectant father was stabbed to death early Sunday after an on-campus dance, just hours after helping his team to a homecoming victory.

Jasper Howard, 20, of Miami, and another student were stabbed during a fight after a fire alarm was pulled during a university sanctioned dance at the UConn Student Union just after 12:30 a.m., police said. ESPN

You hate to hear stuff like this happen, it's sickening to say the least.

Calhoun Coming Back To UConn

Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun said Thursday he plans to return for a 24th season at the school. I have to say that I am really surprised about this. I thought that he would use his "health issues" to distance himself from the incoming NCAA investigation. UConn looks like they are going to be in a lot of trouble, and Calhoun has even admitted that some mistakes may have been made. UConn runs a very dirty program and I am happy they are finally getting what is coming to them. I feel like they were overlooked for a long time, because they are really the only formidable Northeast basketball school. Anyways, UConn has to be happy that he is sticking around, and it will be interesting to see what happens with this investigation.

College Basketball Recap

(3) Mizzou 102, (2) Memphis 91

Has anyone else been more impressive this tournament than Mizzou? JT Tiller had a career night for Mizzou as he broke Memphis' 27 fluff game win streak. Tiller finished with 23 points on the night. Mizzou almost blew it as they let up a 24 point lead to 6, but free throws really sealed the deal for them. Freshman point guard Tyreke Evans finished with 33 points for Memphis, but the problem of course (again) was free throws. Memphis only hit 18 of 32 from the line, I guess Calipari should start taking them a little more seriously figuring it has cost them two tournament games.

(1) UConn 72, (5) Purdue 60

After cruising through the first two rounds in the tournament, UConn found itself in a little bit of a challenge yesterday until late in the second quarter. Hasheem Thabeet had his coming out party scoring 15, rebounding 15, and blocking 4 shots. But what the stat line won't show you is his overall defensive dominance. Since Purdue lacked size, it was close to impossible to score from the paint due to Thabeet's size.

(1) Pittsburgh 60, (4)Xavier 55

Does anyone else hate having Pitt as their winner? Levance Fields was star of the game hitting one of the most ill advised three point shots with 50.9 seconds left on the clock and hit it. Pitt was trailed 54-52 before Fields hit that three pointer to put the Panthers up for good. Sam Young led led Pitt with 19 points, Fields had 14 and DeJuan Blair had 10 points and 17 rebounds as they needed it to overcome a 8 point deficit at halftime. Pitt finally got over the sweet 16 hump and is on to the elite for the first time in 8 years.

(3) Villanova 77, (2)Duke 54

Dante Cunningham had 14 points and 11 rebounds and the third seeded Wildcats beat the Blue Devils for the first time in more than 50 years. Villanova took advantage took advantage of Duke's pathetic shooting 27% to advance to the elite eight. Kyle Singler had 15 and Jon Scheyer had 13 but went 3-18 and "star" Gerald Henderson had the worst shooting performance I have seen in my life going 1-14 finishing with 7 points.

Shit Is About To Get Real For UConn

"Connecticut allegedly committed NCAA rules violations in its recruitment of former guard Nate Miles, Yahoo! Sports reported Wednesday.

The Web site reported that, according to multiple sources, Miles, a 6-foot-7 guard from Toledo, Ohio, was provided with lodging, transportation, restaurant meals and representation between 2006 and 2008 by Josh Nochimson, a former UConn student manager who had become a professional sports agent who once represented ex-Huskies star Richard Hamilton. Miles was expelled in fall 2008 and never played for UConn." ESPN

Part of me is happy this is happening to UConn because I hate them, but part of me hates this because I don't want to hear this to be an excuse when UConn chokes. This surprises me a bit if it is true because Jim Calhoun seemed like a pretty stand up guy, but I guess if you want to win and get the recruits you need, you have to break the rules a bit.

Calhoun Released from Hospital

"Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun was released from the hospital Friday morning, a day after missing the Huskies' victory over Chattanooga in the opening round of the NCAA tournament. "He has been given a clean bill of health with no restrictions," UConn sports information director Kyle Muncy said Friday morning (Sportsline)."

Great news for UConn as it is never good to lose a great coach like this during the most important part of their season. I am pumped, because I have UConn in the finals, and after my upsets (VCU, Miss St.) fucked me last night I really need UConn to go deep. Calhoun has already rejoined the team at practice, so there doesn't seem to be any concerns.

Jim Calhoun Will Not Coach UConn Today

"Calhoun will not coach No. 1 seed UConn vs. Chattanooga at about 3 p.m. ET today in the West Regional in Philadelphia because of illness, the school announces (sportsline)."

This really shouldn't affect anything. A 16 seed has never beaten a #1 seed. Hopefully Calhoun is fine. We don't have word yet on what is wrong with him, but I hope he is back soon since I have them in the finals. Other then Memphis i don't see any team having a chance stopping this team from making the final 4.

**UPDATE**

Connecticut coach Jim Calhoun won't coach against Chattanooga and might miss a significant part of the remaining NCAA tournament because of health issues, according to two sources familiar with the situation.

FUCK.....

Jimmy Calhoun - Resident Badass

Seriously, fuck the populist jerkoffs out for blood during this economic downturn.  Jimmy C doesn't have to answer to anybody.  He's got national titles to back it up and his team is consistently ranked in the top 5 year in and out.  Never been a huge fan, mainly because of what UConn did to the Dukies in the final four a few years back, but man was it refreshing to watch him stand up to this cockwallet.  

(4) Pittsburgh 76, (1) UConn 68

This is one of the most physical games I have ever seen be played. The match-up coming into the game was Hasheem Thabeet vs DeJuan Blair and Blair won this match-up pretty dominantly. Blair wasn't afraid of Thabeet's size as he finished with 22 points and 23 rebounds and most importantly got Thabeet in foul trouble and made him a non factor. Thabeet finished with 5 points and 4 rebounds.
Levance Fields who was shut down for a majority of the game, hit one of the biggest plays of the game. He hit a 3 pointer and scored all 10 of his points in the final 3:09. His first 3 gave the Panthers (24-2, 11-2) the lead for good at 64-61 with 3:09 left. His second 3 with 2:21 left made it 67-61, and he added four free throws in the final minute.

Either way it was a hell of a game and it looks like Pittsburgh is my early favorite to win it all.

Dyson Out Indefinitely

Top ranked UConn took a huge blow when junior guard Jerome Dyson was diagnosed with a torn lateral meniscus in his right knee Thursday.

Dyson who is a starter for UConn started and averaged 13 ppg. With Dyson out this makes UConn extremely vulnerable. I hate UConn so this makes me smile.

#1 UConn 68, #7 Louisville 52

Jeff Adrien scored 18 points and grabbed seven boards and UConn celebrated their return to number 1 in the polls for the first time in three years with a 68-51 crushing of the number 7 ranked Louisville. Jerome Dyson had 14 points and A.J. Price had 11 points, eight rebounds and three assists as played great defense against a normally hot handed Cardinals team. The future number 1 pick Hasheem Thabeet dominated as he scored 14 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks.

I hate UConn but you have to give this team some props as they actually deserved the number 1 spot, unlike the Duke and Wake. However, UConn does this all the time. They come out and surprise everyone to jump on the band wagon, then simply don't try come tournament time. Expect a third round loss by Duke in March.

AP Top 25

Seems like every week there is a new #1....

1 Connecticut
2 Oklahoma
3 North Carolina
4 Duke
5 Louisville
6 Pittsburgh
7 Wake Forest
8 Marquette
9 Xavier
10 Clemson
11 Butler
12 Purdue
13 Michigan State
14 Memphis
15 UCLA
16 Texas
17 Villanova
18 Gonzaga
19 Minnesota
20 Syracuse
21 Kansas
22 Washington
23 Illinois
24 Arizona State
25 Utah State

74 Georgetown, 63 UConn

I haven't really started to get into college basketball yet, due to college football, NFL play-offs and MLB free agent signing. With the conference tip offs starting, it's time to pay attention. Yesterday #8 Georgetown visited #2 UConn in a Big East clash. As always UConn is overrated and didn't show up in a big game. Dejuan Summers was the hero for Georgetown scoring 18 points as he led the Hoyas to their seventh straight win. The Hoyas opened the game on an 18-3 run by hitting four of their first five 3-point attempts, then held off Connecticut by making 18 straight free throws in the second half to finish 18-for-21 from the line. Georgetown may be a better team this year than last year even with the departure of DC Endorser Roy Hibbert. I am right back on the Hoyas bandwagon, which probably spells bad luck for them. They are playing another tough game saturday when they take on Pitt.

BC and UConn... Man Up and Play Each Other

One thing that pisses me off about BC's football scheduling is that they don't play UConn. Chestnut Hill is only 80 miles from Storrs. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are 85 miles apart. Michigan and Ohio State are 188 miles apart. Miami and Florida State are nearly 500 miles apart. In college football geography, 80 miles is a stone's throw.

Boston College doesn't have a football rival. Say what you want about Notre Dame, but the Irish don't care. Their rivals are USC, Michigan, and Purdue. The same goes for Miami (actual rivals: Virginia Tech, FSU, Florida), and Virginia Tech (actual rivals: Miami, Virginia).

So, Boston College, UConn, let's make a deal here. Play each other for 6 years and see what develops. Hell, play at Gillette Stadium if you want a neutral location. You can split up the 70,000 seats evenly between schools. BC, you'll get noticed more by the media in Boston. UConn, you'll steal a little attention from your basketball teams. Make up some silly trophy to play for like Paul Revere's Saddle or something. Call it the Blackstone River Shootout brought to you by Carl's Jr.



So instead of playing UMass or URI or Holy Cross or UNH, man up and play each other!

-The Commodore

HA!

I should have gone with my instincts on my bracket and never had Uconn winning a single game in this tournament. I'm still fucking pumped they lost.

Who's Slimier - College BB Coaches or Ticket Scalpers?

Serious question.

Sometimes on the way into the Garden or Fenway Park, I walk by those shady characters in leather jackets and stonewashed jeans hawking overpriced tickets for seats with obstructed views and I feel really dirty. Just being around them leaves me aching for a shower. I'm pretty sure I'd get the same feeling if I spent any quality time with a D1 college basketball coach.

To be fair, I'm not speaking to every coach out there, just 75% of them. I don't want to include the good guys like Coach K, Chris Collins, Johnny Dawkins or Steve Wojciechowski. You know the 75% I'm talking about - Bobby Knight, Eddie Sutton, Jerry Tarkanian, Kelvin Sampson, Quin Snyder, Jim Harrick (Sr and Jr), Bob Huggins, Billy Gillespie, John Calipari, Rick Pitino, etc, etc... Jesus, I think I could go all day naming skeevy coaches.

You know who the shadiest of all is? Braintree, MA's own Jim Calhoun. God I fucking hate this guy. He left his ethics at the door some 36 years ago and hasn't been back to pick them up since. It seems like every two or three years he finds himself in some moral quandary in which he almost always sides with the devil.

UCONN lost a nail biter to struggling Villanova on Saturday. During the game, reserve Curtis Kelly went down with a dislocated elbow and the Huskies found themselves sucking wind down the stretch with limited depth and some foul trouble. UCONN had won their previous ten games and were sitting pretty at 4th in the Big East. With Kelly gone for the season and Marquette nipping at their heels, what better time to reinstate Jerome Dyson who had been suspended for the previous nine games for a failed drug test.

Unbelievable how the rules only apply so long as the player is in no position to help Jimbo's team. This is almost identical to the controversy surrounding Marcus Williams during the 2005/2006 season where he and teammate A.J. Price swiped some laptops from campus dorms. Both were suspended but when it became apparent that UCONN's success depended on their stud point guard, Williams was reinstated while Price was forced to sit out the season. Typical horseshit move by a horseshit coach.