2011 NCAA Tournament Preview:

Ah, the days of March Madness are here.  The greatest period of time in sports begins with the first four in Dayton, Ohio.  This year we have a lot to talk about, but before I get to a region by region breakdown, allow me to ramble.

In the wise words of Alexi Lalas, "Let's not dwell on this, but that was a disgrace".  I'm looking at you committee and your inclusion of four teams which has dealt me a hard blow, made me doubt your abilities to properly select a tournament field, and worst of all I am agreeing with Doug Gottlieb

The face of all evil

The NCAA committee has a tough job, but unfortunately made a blunder...or well four, and now will be submitted to my never ceasing fury. Four teams who have about as much right to be playing in the tournament as I do are, whilst four teams with much better qualifications are sitting at home.  The four "how the hells?" are in order of most deserving to least, Georgia, Clemson, VCU, and UAB. (It's a bad omen when Georgia is the most deserving team).  Compare these four teams to (same order) Colorado, Virginia Tech, St. Mary's, and Alabama.  Now I know the committee will make mistakes, so maybe keeping Georgia in and omitting Alabama is acceptable...except Bama was 2-0 against Georgia.  Many look at Clemson as a tournament team, they were 9-7 in the ACC, finished with a respectable 21-11 record, and had quality wins against Va-Tech, Florida State, and.....meanwhile, ACC mate Virginia Tech had the same records for both ACC and overall, but they beat Duke, FSU twice, and a tourney team in Penn State.  Continuing, the well deserving VCU Rams finished fourth in the prestigious Colonial Conference...what, never heard of it?  Wames.  But the Rams did have nice wins against George Mason from the very same Colonial.  UAB played some tough games, playing at Duke, where they lost by 21.  It isn't that UAB and VCU are bad teams who don't have good players, but the tournament is supposed to be earned and these two teams simply did not do enough to earn a bid.  UAB's best win is against VCU (A tourney team, right?) and after that it's a 3-point, 3 OT victory against UTEP.  It is probably a bi-product of wanting to keep a relative ratio of Power Conference Teams to Mid-Majors, but if Mid-Majors want to be at-large, non-automatic qualifiers, they need to schedule games against quality (power conference) teams and win.  It is a shame when a team like Colorado is left out after beating Kansas State 3 times, Texas, and Missouri and VCU is in with their best win against George Mason (who themselves didn't play a ranked team all year).  Anyway, let's move onto the region by region breakdown:
East (Newark):
Top Four Seeds: (Ohio State, North Carolina, Syracuse, Kentucky)
Favorite: #1 Ohio State, The Bucks are the number one overall seed, and one of only two teams who look championship worthy.  Many see this region as the toughest in the bracket, but an inexperienced and relatively unproven #2 seed (North Carolina) and an overrated #4 (Kentucky) actually shape this into an easy region for OSU to make it to at least the elite 8, where Syracuse will probably be their toughest opponent.
Dark Horse: #11 Marquette, the Golden Eagles dominated West Virginia (#5 in this region) in the Big East tournament.  They are the type of team you don't want to play in March: athletic and they bomb treys.
Cinderella: #8 George Mason, they are from the Colonial, haven't played a ranked team all year, but George Mason is good enough...but they have the toughest #9 seed in the tournament, and then OSU.
Elite Eight Match-Up: Ohio State versus Syracuse.
Upset to pick: #13 Princeton over #4 Kentucky, youth, expectations, and overrating will plague UK.
Team Coming Out: Ohio State, there is too much talent.  OSU can score from everywhere and they score consistently.

West (Anaheim):
Top Four Seeds: (Duke, San Diego State, Connecticut, Texas)
Favorite: #4 Texas, the Longhorns have the most talent in what I find to be the deepest region.  It wasn't too long ago Texas was looked at as a possible #1 overall seed, and this region has the Longhorns as a #4.  Texas has the talent to win it all, but their inconsistent play makes them highly vulnerable in a win or go home situation.
Dark Horse: #6 Cincinnati, every Big East team is capable, and UC proved they can win against good teams in conference.  It would be a surprise if any team seeded lower than 4 came out of this region, though.
Cinderella: #14 Bucknell, playing in the bottom is better than playing in the top in the west.  If Bucknell beats Connecticut in the first round, there is no reason to believe the Patriot League champs can't get to the Elite Eight.
Upset to pick: #12 Memphis over #5 Arizona, Arizona lacks scorers and Memphis has proven they can score.
Elite Eight Match-up: #4 Texas versus #2 San Diego State
Team Coming Out: #2 San Diego State, they play as a team, and their conservative, patient style will beat out he frenzy that is Texas.

Southwest (San Antonio):
Top Four Seeds: (Kansas, Notre Dame, Purdue, Louisville)
Favorite: #1 Kansas, the other of the two championship quality teams, if the Jayhawks or formerly mentioned Ohio State don't win the title it'll be a disappointment, but it is March Madness.
Dark Horse: #6 Georgetown, people have lost faith in the once top-10 team, but Chris Wright should be back and their first two rounds are favorable match-ups.
Cinderella: #12 Richmond, the Spiders are the only team ranked 11-16 who are capable of winning their first round game.
Upset to Pick: #6 Georgetown over #2 Notre Dame (round 4), the Hoyas are dangerous, watch 'em.
Elite Eight match-up: #1 Kansas versus #2 Notre Dame, our first 1-2 match-up, if the Irish play as well as they can, they can take down the mighty Jayhawks, but they'll need to be flawless and force the thrifty Kansas team into turnovers.
Team Coming out: #1 Kansas, Rock, Chalk (I hate that) to the Final Four, Kansas's complete team should be too much for anyone else.

Southeast (New Orleans):
Top Four Seeds: (Pittsburgh, Florida, BYU, Wisconsin)
Favorite: #1 Pittsburgh, the Panthers are the only viable Final Four team in this whole region. Florida had a worse record, finish in the conference tournament, and ranking in the AP poll than Texas, but garnered a #2 and BYU is bad now.
Dark Horse: #8 Butler, the Bulldogs made the Championship last year, and this year their region in horrible
Cinderella: #10 Michigan State, Sparty was #2 in the preseason and the "experts" don't often make too egregious of mistakes.  They could be very dangerous.
Upset to pick: #11 Gonzaga over #6 St. John, the Red Storm are streaking and the Zags have a very solid all around game and a point guard in Stockton who can make plays, a dangerous thing in March.
Elite Eight Match-up: #2 Florida versus #1 Pittsburgh
Team Coming Out: #1 Pittsburgh, in a horrible region where none of the teams are worthy of a Final Four, the Panthers are the only team which can make a case as the winners of the fantastic Big East.

Tournament Showdown

Selection Sunday is tomorrow, and anyone interested in joining the 1st annual Macier Ross bracket challenge is welcome to do so.

7 types of Tourney Teams

The NCAA tournament is hyped for the teams which live to become legendary whether that be through a title, an appearance, or a Cinderella run.  Many people look at the tournament as a mockery of competition where only ten or so teams actually have the opportunity to win the title, but honestly whilst the champion is the one who is remembered forever, teams all over have goals which make the tournament a special time of year.  Some teams can make an impact and be a team which completely alters the tournament...even before it begins.


#6 The Favorites:
2010 examples: Kansas, Duke, West Virginia
We can pretty much make this list up easily.  A 1 or 2 seed takes up most of these roles, but sometimes a 3 seed can be a favorite to dance deep...and win.  An example of that would be Stanford in 2008 when they had the Lopez twins and were looked at as a top tier title team.  These are the teams whose years are complete failures should they not breech the elite eight and by the time this happens every fan feels their respective favorite has become the best team around and should they fail to bring home the championship they are failures.  Everything revolves around that championship and getting to put a net around your neck and hold up a shiny trophy.

Or for the bold, putting the net around the trophy

#5 The At-Large Bid:
2010 examples: Tennessee, Michigan State, Clemson
This seems a little confusing since at-large bids can be used to describe a plethora of teams, but it is really simple once I tell you how it is supposed to work.

Similarly

A team which gets the Macier Ross billing of an At-Large Bid is a team which grabs a 4-8 seed and some 3 seeds (or nines, I mean it is relatively wide open, but let's just keep it 4-8) and does not win its conference tournament (hence "at-large bid").  These teams can be counted on to do one thing, get upset in the early rounds.  We love our At-larges because they are the ones who lose to our lower seeded teams, I mean without them March Madness would be less part mad and more part March (which honestly no one wants).  The only other reason we appreciate these At-Large teams is they make games against the favorites and can take them down.  Despite my cynical comments about how worthless these teams end up being, it should be mentioned they are usually top 32 teams in the country and deserve recognition since they make the tournament based only on their solid body of work in the regular season and failures in the conference tournament.

 #4 The Cinderellas
2010 examples: St. Mary's, Washington, Butler
Some people will look at this and think "Butler was a five seed?" and to that I say, they are from the Horizon League and thus making the NCAA Championship Game is worthy of earning the title, "Cinderella".  Beyond this, their race ratio was way under that of the average NCAA tournament and I have just decided to say last season's NCAA title game had the most white men in it since basketball discovered black dominance in the sport...and that's not racist, it's a compliment, and a fact.  A Cinderella is a team seeded around 9-14 who manages to make a run into the Sweet Sixteen or beyond in the tournament because it usually involves beating two teams ranked higher...including one ranked significantly higher.  These are the teams who beat up on the formerly mentioned At-Large Bids and then slide by a #'s 1-5 seed in the second round to saunter into the Sweet Sixteen.  However, this type of tourney team only qualifies if they make a run.  What happens if the don't?


#3 The Punching Bags
2010 examples (anyone seeded 15, or 16, among others)
These teams are often Conference champions from mid-majors or even conference which hardly deserve such recognition such as the Big Sky.

Worth the 96-49 loss?  Probably

 Many of these teams will lose by more than 20 points and honestly are just here because the NCAA decided they wanted to give everyone a reason to play during the regular season and try in the conference tournament...unlike the BCS

What's a Fiesta Bowl?...Sugar? Rose? Orange?...they sound unimportant.

#3 The Loser of the Play-In Game
2010 Example: Winthrop
I am well aware that only one team can gain this role each year, but doesn't that make it the second most prestigious of the teams?  I mean only the National Champion can claim such a uniqueness; however, it would be a drastic exaggeration to say they should be proud, I mean this makes them literally the 65th team and the least favorite of every NIT team.  You will forever be called "worthless" and "Bane of March Madness".  It is because of teams like you we don't get to have 65 teams worthy of a tourney bid,  but stay stalwart, my lovely #16...ummm, #17 seed.  You will forever be remembered as the team randomly picked by many because your game rarely carries weight in the picking of a bracket anyway, but ye of little meaning have something no other tournament team can claim...You never entered the body of the bracket.

#2 The Bubble Team (The Crawler):
2010 example (Utah State, Missouri, Florida)
The ones everyone watches before the tourney begins.  These are the ones who limp into the tournament (although I prefer crawl) because they have to rely on the mercy of the tournament committee to pick them over another team which the committee determines isn't quite as worthy.  The Crawlers have the most to prove because they are picked by the committee because they feel these teams could make a difference in the tournament or else they would've selected another team which had as good or maybe even a better resume.  The pressure is on to win at least the first game of the tournament.  Anything else makes everyone wonder, "What if they had taken these guys, or those guys, or another team from the Big Sky?".  I love the bubble teams because they are the mysteries, the teams which are hard to figure if you should pick them.  They usually are the 7-10 teams and have to play other Crawlers in the first round, making a good 'ol fashion coin toss an effective method.  Finally, these teams hate our #1's.
 
#1 The Bid Stealer:
2010 example (New Mexico State)
My favorite and the most important teams in all of the NCAA tournament.  These bid stealers change the way a the bracket it put together.  They literally steal a bid from an At-Large or Hobbler, hence the name.  A bid stealer wins their conference tournament (usually a mid-major, but recall Georgia in 2008 from the SEC) when they would usually have absolutely no business being in the NCAA tournament.  Everyone loves these teams because they typify the true tenacity and heart it takes to succeed in March in the NCAA.  They usually don't make a difference come tournament time, but there is no other team which can make an impact before the shindig gets going.  Only a bid-stealer can look a Bubble Team in the eye and say, "You aren't making the tournament".  Everyone loves these guys, they are the best.

I'm still gonna have to take the Dukies and Coach K!

Montezuma's Revenge

Many a folk would have struggled to place the San Diego State Aztecs in the preseason top 25...much less the preseason top 6.  Well, ma, looks at them spry Aztecs now!  They have literally shed the role of being a dark horse and have stepped full force into the spotlight of the college basketball macrocosm.  They are 27-1.  Now they have come to possibly the most important game of the season for possibly any team so far.  They play high ranked Mountain West brother BYU at home on the 26th of February with a Mountain West title and a possible #1 ranking come Selection Sunday on the line.

I say give all 4 #1's to Mike Krzyzewski and the Dukies!

The Jimmer's managed to take my darling Aztecs during the first meeting at home, but the Cougars are yet to experience the true tenacity of San Diego, but we fans of SDSU must pray we have seen Jimmer at full force with his 43 in round one.  The Fighting Fredettes lost a stunner to New Mexico just a couple of days (approximately 3) after defeating the much beloved Aztecs.  Now, it appears that San Diego State comes in with all the momentum, and a #4 ranking in the much hyped, but hopefully worthless ESPN/USA Today Poll.  Should the Aztecs falter at home, I cannot imagine the downward spiral San Diego State will incur with the failure to defeat the most (only) prominent team other than themselves in the Mountain West Conference, but should it happen there is only one thing that will soothe and assuage the pain which erupt inside of my heart: the fact that Jimmer Fredette learned how to play basketball with inmates.

Much like Adam Sandler and Football

Yes, and so therefore...in conclusion: San Diego State has a must win should they keep their miracle season alive and not fold and hand the trophy of greatest cinderella ever in the history of college basketball to BYU and the other Fighting Fredettes.

Nine Players You Forgot Were Picked #1 Overall (since 1969):

The NFL Draft is approaching swiftly, even without the collective bargaining agreement being settled, it's time to rouse Mel Kiper and bring him out for his one evening of fame.  It is a night when people choose to watch something that is about as exciting on television as Scrubs after J.D. left.

I'm just happy to be mentioned

 However, there are a few people who you've probably forgotten were #1 Overall selections...but how?  The NFL Draft is such a big deal.  We had Bradford and Stafford and....oh shit:

#9 Ki-Jana Carter, RB Penn State, 1995:
Mostly famous for having the name Ki-Jana, Kenneth Leonard Carter was taken first overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1995.  He left college after his junior year because Coach Joe Paterno told him he had too bright of a future in the NFL to stay in college any longer.  He rushed for nearly 1,600 yards that junior year.  He was signed by the Bengals at the highest contract ever for a rookie and was expected to became the next Barry Sanders, who was still active at the time, but nonetheless.
What Happened?:
On his third carry from scrimmage in his first NFL PRESEASON game, Ka-Jana tore his ACL....yeah.  He never recovered from the injury and racked up less rushing yards in his career than that junior year of college.  It is a sad story for Ka-Jana, but a reminder to all athletes and everyone that even when you are supposed to be the surest of things, God may decide you are better off as an entrepreneur and tear you ACL, ruining your career...or may be it was just by chance.


#8 O.J. Simpson, RB USC, 1969:
The more elderly of my millions of readers probably recognize O.J. Simpson for being a number one overall pick, but everyone born after 1980 remembers him only for his illegal escapes (allegedly).  However, Simpson was at one time thought to be perhaps the greatest running back of both the college and pro games.  He made differences, carrying the ball for the USC Trojans and Buffalo Bills.
What Happened?:
Often getting arrested for murder doesn't help your public image; although, Simpson was never found guilty.  The people have never forgotten this, and the book released by Mike Gilbert entitled "How I Helped O.J. Get Away with Murder: The Shocking Inside Story of Violence, Loyalty, Regret and Remorse" probably didn't help that.  Nor, however, did the other trials, including the latest one involving a robbery in Las Vegas in which Simpson was found guilty.   He is now serving his sentence as Nevada Department of Corrections's inmate #1027820 at the Lovelock Correctional Center.

#7 Jake Long, OT Michigan, 2008:
The oft forgotten 2008 #1 overall pick was one of the best #1 overalls in the 2000's.  He has completely anchored the Dolphins defensive line after they took him #1.  Long made back-to-back Pro Bowls in 2010 and this season.  As a linemen, that's about all you can hang your hat on since the NFL fails to reward them in anyway.  I mean they'll never win the Heisman, but at least College Football has the common decency to create the Rimington and Best OL awards.
What Happened?:
It's pretty basic, he's a linemen.  Jake Long didn't get accused of murder or tear his ACL, he simply plays at a position that doesn't get any hype.  He is playing maybe the most important position in football since it is his job to keep a Quarterback healthy and on his feet (see the movie The Blindside opening scene).  Long will probably end up being the best #1 overall pick of the 2000's, but also maybe the most forgettable.

#6 Ed "Too-Tall" Jones, DT Tennessee State, 1974
Let's just get this out of the way for you people...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW4jsfqx7fE.  Yes, that Ed "Too-Tall" Jones.  He is officially 6'9" and unofficially had 109 career sacks since sacks weren't an official stat until 1982.  He played 15 solid years for the Dallas Cowboys and made a living being "too tall".  Unfortunately today he is more renowned for his Geico commercial than his being the #1 overall pick or even being a professional football player.  I'll admit, when I first saw the Geico commercial I said, "Is he a basketball player?"  Luckily I rebounded and remembered (Googled) who Ed Jones really was.
What Happened?:
Perhaps the biggest mystery on this list is Ed "Too-Tall" Jones.  He had a solid NFL career, but is never remembered for being the #1 overall pick.  In fact, he didn't even get a picture on his Wikipedia page.  Ed Jones just seemed to fade into nothingness, perhaps it was the fact that he was too tall, but that is circumstantial to say the least.  It might having something to due with the Geico guy's hair.  We'll never know, for now, we'll blame it on the fact that Ed "Too-Tall" Jones was simply just too tall.
 
#5 Drew Bledsoe, QB Washington State, 1993:
Drew Bledsoe was a #1 overall pick?  Hells to the nah, he was mediocre at best in the NFL....but he he had a record setting career at Washington State.  He might be the best Quarterback ever to come out of Pullman, in fact he definitely was.  He made the Cougars relevant which is something that fewer people can say than, "Look at my Super Bowl Ring!".
What Happened?:
Have you ever heard of Tom Brady? Tony Romo? Bill Parcels?  Well you are probably thinking that these three men were the bane of Bledsoe, but hold the phone, someone else actually was the ending of Bledsoe's stardom in New England, ushered in the Brady era, brought home a Pats Dynasty, and turned Bill Belichick into a genius....enter Mo Lewis.  Lewis hit Bledsoe in 2001 and injured his shoulder.  A greenhorn at the time, Tom Brady was forced to fill the role.  So New England, if you want a hero, don't look at Brady or Belichick because they never did as much for the Patriots as Mo Lewis and his decimation of Bledsoe's $103 million dollar 10-year contract.

You're welcome, Boston

#4 Mario Williams, DE NC State, 2006:
It is nice when a team makes the experts look absolutely ridiculous.  Do you remember who else was considered to be great during the 2006 draft?  Reggie Bush, Vince Young, Matt Leinart, and Jay Cutler were all supposed to compete for the #1 overall selection.  ESPN slobbered over Reggie Bush like David Letterman does with a new co-worker, yet here we are four seasons later and it is none other than Mario Williams who has been arguably the most prized pick of the 2006 first round, only truly competing with A.J. Hawk, Haloti Ngata, and D'Brickashaw (yeah, I know) Ferguson.  Williams is a 2-time pro bowler and has 48 sacks in 5 seasons.
What Happened?:
Simply overshadowed by other players at the beginning, Williams was always expected to be a bust at number one so he slowly but surely moved out of the public eye as Vince Young won Rookie of the Year, Reggie Bush flopped at #2, Matt Leinart never received any playing time, and Jay Cutler took to crying.  Williams was simply never a big deal in the media and thus didn't get the recognition of other #1's, but maybe even more significantly, he never flopped and so he kept away from negative publicity.  He wen along and took care of business and the other names around his carried more weight and star power, so he was ignored proving being ignored is sometimes better than being Reggie Bush.

#3 Bo Jackson, RB Auburn, 1986: 
Considered by many to be the closest thing the world will ever come to a real life Superman, Bo Jackson was both a Football and Baseball star at Auburn.  Most people recognize him as a player for the Oakland Raiders, his only ever NFL team, but Jackson actually was drafted twice and your mind just exploded.  Jackson joined the Raiders as a seventh round draft pick in 1987.  He had already signed a baseball contract with the Kansas City Royals, but owner Al Davis being the keen and always frugal owner basically said, "F**k Baseball" thinking Jackson wouldn't be able to resist the limelight of the NFL.  He was an all-star in the MLB and a pro bowler in the NFL which is okay.
What Happened?:
If you haven't found out in the first segment of the Bo Jackson section of this article, Bo liked baseball.  He liked it enough to figuratively hold up a middle finger to being the #1 overall pick in the NFL draft to play some college ball.  Also contributing was the fact he never played a down or even signed a contract as the #1 overall pick and is better known as being a seventh rounder a year later...go figure.

#2 David Carr, QB Fresno State, 2002:
Who?  No one really remembers David Carr.  He played at a relatively irrelevant college and was drafted by an extremely irrelevant expansion team and had an irrelevant NFL career.  Carr was a standout college Quarterback, throwing for 4,830 yards and 46 touchdowns his senior year at Fresno.  He is mediocre height at 6'3" and has average arm strength.  He had an average NFL career, having his best year in 2004 with the Texans.
What Happened?:
If I had to describe David Carr's career, it would be "Sacked".  He was sacked 76 times in his rookie year and never recovered.  The constant battering of Carr never helped his cause, but neither did the role of being a first QB for an expansion team.  The Texans were starting out with zilch and Carr was expected to be some sort of hero.  He never even had a chance.  Don't call him a bust, call him a victim.

Although he was on Sports Illustrated's cover

#1 Michael Vick, QB Virginia Tech, 2001
Michael Vick is the best running QB ever.  He has eclipsed 1,000 yards and was the toast of Atlanta whilst he piloted the Falcons.  Now he is the toast of Philadelphia as he pilots the Eagles, who knew Michael Vick would be doing so much piloting?  Essentially Vick has regained all the fame and ability that had once escaped him.  He became a MVP candidate until Tom Brady went Super-Saiyan, but I mean he wasn't really taken #1 overall was he?  Seeing as how the basis for this article has been about #1 overall picks I have decided not to mindfuck you on the last player, he was indeed taken #1 overall in 2001 .  This is more of a people had forgotten than they still forget.  I mean Vick went to prison, everyone knows that.  He misses about two years of NFL season and everyone figured he would come back and be some like that old guy from the Snicker's commercial...the one after Betty White who says, "That hurt!"...alrighty.
What Happened?:
Vick was arrested in April 2007 for having dogs fight.  He was sent to jail for 2 years and in that span Donte Stallworth killed a guy driving drunk and was arrested, convicted, and released.  However, on the note of Vick, he attempted to make a comeback to the NFL, but two years away made everyone forget he was a #1 overall pick, except apparently Andy Reid and Philly who decided to give him a chance.  I think it worked out.  Let's all clap for Andy Reid.

CYO Preview: St. Antoninus versus Our Lady of Lourdes

Week 10...the climax to an exciting CYO season, ripe with upsets and surprises, including our #2 team in following the release of Week 9 rankings, the Lourdes Tigers who have risen from mediocrity last season to being the a top tier junior team.  Now, the Tigers can step up to primetime as they take on #1 St. Antoninus, the Crimson Sals.  The Sals come off a victory over previously and currently ranked #3 St. Jude; however, the Sals may be without Alec "Softie" Niehauser and Matthew "Honors12" Murphy as they take the all important ACT Test this Saturday morning.  It looks promising that they will make it in time, but if not it will be the duties of Ethan "Finish" Jackson and Nathan "Sally" Walwroth to lead the scoring against a powerful Lourdes team led by Ian Gunn and Micheal Balzano (pronounced Salzano).  Also, look for the Tigers biggest three point threat, Meat Erhart.  The Tensing Center will be alive as the top two teams meet for what is sure to be one of the most exciting contests of the year.  The Jags stingy man to man defense was well broken by the Bulldogs inside force last week; however, a smaller and more slashing Lourdes team will struggle to find a rhythm from if Gunn and Balzano struggle to drive against Murphy and Niehauser, but if the two renowned Jags fail to show, beware, the Tigers can put points up as well as any team.  It will be interesting to see which will prevail, the Jags stingy defense or the Tigers potent offense.  The key match-up will be Niehauser guarding Gunn.  The Lourdes team runs through Gunn and without a strong performance from him, the Jags would seem to have the advantage at every other spot.  The line stands at the Sals giving 6 points.

Roll Sal

Behind Murphy's 21, Jags top #3 Bulldogs 51-45...prepare for #1 Lourdes
It will be forever remembered, like the bloody sock of Curt Schilling.  Matthew Murphy stepped up to the free throw line with the Jags up by four with thirteen seconds left, blood covering the front of his jersey after busting his thumb nail.  Murphy hit both free throws to put the Jags up 51-45 which was how the most anticipated match-up of the CYO season ended.  Murphy led all scorers with 21 points, including a run of three straight treys in the third quarter which put the Jags up eleven, a lead they would take and never look back.  Jags big man Jack Marcheschi said of Murphy's performance, "Murph was wet from all angles, as usual."  The Dawgs led after one 12-7 and the halftime score was 27-26 in favor of the Jags following a buzzer three by Eric Deuber.  Murphy's explosive third really put the Jags ahead by as much as 11, but the Bulldogs had no quit and came within 4 in the fourth quarter behind a team high 10 points from Adam Bross.  The Dawgs' strength was on the boards and they dominated the rebounding category which kept them in the game.  I asked Ethan Jackson if the Dawgs dominating rebounding revealed a kink in the Sals' armor and he said, "Definitely, I was worried coming into today's game.  We didn't rebound well, but we got enough boards to hold on."  Jackson had netted his best performance all year, hitting for 10 points including a 3 with a minute and half left after Bross almost stole the ball away which was when the game was won, putting the Sals up 47-41.  It was Antoninus's only field goal in the 4th quarter.  The Jags hit four free throws and Adam Bross had two buckets which gave us our final of 51-45.  Vince Kampel, a spectator and known fan of both teams, said, "I'm really, really ugly and choose not to comment on the game."  Bulldogs' coach Ted Bross said after the game, "It was fun, we played well.  If we had executed our defensive strategy of disallowing Murphy and Niehauser from shooting throughout as we did in the final frame, our chances to win would have been exponentially higher."  Co-Captain for the Dawgs Zac Reid was asked to comment but he was so downtrodden after the excruciating loss.  Coach Mark Jackson of the Jags couldn't be reached for comment.