Thursday, March 19, 2009

Let the Madness begin!
I love this time of year. Scratch that, I live for this time of year! I'm Andy Gamm, and I am a basketball-aholic. I can't wait for the action to start and to catch every single game via my Directv March Mega Madness package. All in HD. Love it!

I also love that the Big Ten got seven in. I think Penn State got screwed by the likes of Arizona and a Mississippi State run in the SEC, but hey, we can't have everything.

As for my predicted top four seeds per region... I nailed the Midwest, got many of the other teams right but was WAY off on a few. Still fun to play Joe Lunardi once in a while. I also nailed MSU and Michigan, was close on Minnesota and Illinois, even if way off on Wisconsin (holy dangerous 12 Batman) and Ohio State (who got screwed and rewarded all at once).

Before I get into my team by team picks, I will say this - kudos to Buckeye Nation who got 8 of the 10 B10 Tourney games right and correctly had Purdue beating his Bucks in the final. I like what OSU has for the future. MSU and OSU should be battling at the top for the next few years... with a little Purdue sprinkled in!

Michigan State: I hope the Spartans get to Detroit for many, many reasons. The first of which is to shut up the likes of Digger and Dickie V. I do have MSU taking care of business all the way to the Final Four, where they lose to UConn.

Purdue: I like the Boilers to do some damage and it wouldn't shock me to see them pick off UConn. But I have them bowing out in the Sweet 16. Watch out for them next year if they can stay healthy.

Illinois: Illinois got a tricky draw with a Western Kentucky team that pulled an upset from the 12 slot last year, and then there is Gonzaga. If Chester Frazier is able to go in round two, Illinois can advance. If not, it will be a win and a second round exit for the Illini.

Ohio State: As I said above, OSU got screwed and rewarded all at once. This team is better than an 8 seed that has to face a tough mid major in Siena and then if that, play number one overall Louisville. The reward? Home cooking in Dayton. If the Bucks get hot, they can pull off a shocker in round two. But I think they are a season away.

Minnesota: Tough draw for the Gophers, but you know they are happy to be there. I like Texas to do some damage in that bracket, so one and done for Minnesota.

Michigan: Yes, even for a Spartan, I felt good for my U-M friends on Sunday. Clemson is no picnic though, and I think here too it is one and done for the Big Ten.

Wisconsin: Florida State has to be saying things I shouldn't write in a blog to the tournament committee. The Badgers, one of the last teams in? I have them making the Sweet 16.

At the end of the day, the Big Ten shows well and quiets even Bobby Knight, who has been dogging his former conference...

My Final Four is MSU, UConn, Pitt and UNC with UNC beating UConn on Monday night.

Let the Madness ensue!
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5 comments:

Dan Meyer said...

Congrats to the Boilers and Spartans. Good try by Bucky Badger and the Wolverines. The OSU loss HAD to be extremely painful--looked like a game that the Buckeyes could have won 100 different ways. Illinois woke up a minute too late vs. W. Ky. and Minnesota apparently needed this year to know how to handle the NCAAs. P. S.--Good luck to PSU in making the NIT Final Four and perhaps duplicating the Buckeyes win last year.

10:28 PM
Anonymous said...

Congrats to the Spartans and Boilers for making the Sweet 16!
Not to get to far ahead, but next year's Big 10 hoops race should be even better than this year's.

5:01 PM
Dan Meyer said...

Congrats to the Boiler and Buckeye women on making the Sweet 16 with the XX chromosome side of Sparty also playing the Dukettes for a chance to move forward.

Predictions for this week:

Penn State 62 at FLORIDA 74--Nittany Lions unfortunate to run into the probable NIT champs in Round 3. De Chellis and Co. still have a lot to be proud of. [NOTE: Projected NIT Final Four: Auburn, Florida, Notre Dame, San Diego State].

Purdue 63 vs. CONNECTICUT 70--A LOT closer than the pundits are saying--perhaps similar to vs. Florida two years ago. Price and Thabeet make big plays late.

Kansas 64 vs. MICHIGAN STATE 77--Methinks that while the Big 12 as a whole was almost as underrated as the Big 10 that KU may be the exception. Spartans can't quite blow the Jayhawks out in the second half, but should win comfortably as long as they make FTs and avoid silly fouls.

Michigan State 68 at LOUISVILLE 72--A Spartan win would not surprise after Louisville's mediocre first week, but I think that the Cardinal prevail. Projected Final Four: Duke (auggh!), Louisville, Memphis and Oklahoma

9:58 AM
mayo170 said...

Congratulations to the Spartans and Boilers, and all the others that made it to the tournament this year. What a great conference season.

Thanks again to Andy for hosting this blog and the rest of you guys that keep up here. I have no idea how long I've been watching The Final Score, but this crowd is a lot of fun.

Can't wait to see how the "D" puts together the Final Four (REALLY glad it's here and Kwame Kilpatrick isn't!). I also can't wait to read up on the football team scouting reports over the next month or so.

Take care guys!

9:03 PM
Phats said...

I agree thanks to Andy for running this blog!

Congrats to MSU, and of course my Boilers for making the sweet 16, wish I could go out there and watch them. I think it will be a closer game than people think, but we'll see. Congrats to PSU for making it to the final four I believe in the NIT.

Great showing by the Big Ten ladies as well, with OSU, Purdue, and MSU all advancing to the sweet 16 out of 5 teams that made it that's pretty good. With Both Michigan State, and Purdue having to beat better seeds to advance. Keep it rolling big ten!

1:44 AM

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