NCAAs Day 1: Jogging Commentary
It's not a running
commentary. It's a jogging commentary. I'll scatter my updates
throughout the day, listed from newest at the top to oldest at the
bottom. As games finish, look for more posts. If the games are duds, my
posts will be slim to West Virginia (that is, nil). The only way to tell
if I've posted again - refresh your browser!
Off we go with the greatest weekend in sports!
Relive last year's First Round:
Day 1
Day 2
----------------------------------------------------------
11:40 - What? You still here? Yeah, me too. Still hoping for that classic upset or buzzer beater moment. Colorado is beating UNLV by nine at half, and I'm thinking the Rebels have a run in them, but you're excused if you want to head to bed early. All in all, not a particularly memorable opening day. Besides the SU game, the most exciting game of the day was the upset, VCU over Wichita State. Some of the other games were fun to watch for a while before the underdog faded: Colorado State, Davidson, The Beach. Hopefully tomorrow will be madder, and hopefully the lack of upsets this round will make for a more interesting Saturday. Except for Syracuse. A less interesting Saturday would make everyone feel a lot better. C'mon guys, is that too much to ask?
9:47 - UConn is playing, which means its time for my annual rant against pulling for teams just because they're in the same conference as you. Yes, I will take some satisfaction if the Big East does well overall. But that doesn't mean I should compromise my passionate hatred of UConn and West Virginia just because it will somehow, in some incredibly indirect way, benefit Syracuse. I think that benefit of conference prestige is negligible. And the Big East will look fine tomorrow even without West Virginia and, hopefully, UConn. The only brightside of a UConn win is I think they are more talented than Iowa State and more likely to have a chance against Kentucky, another team I hate. But the bottom line is, if you hate a team, hate them no matter what!
9:25 - See what I mean? It's not the same when Wichita State loses to bust your bracket as it would be if, say, Vanderbilt or Louisville lost. Shaka Smart, though. Wow. VCU looks good again. Now attention turns to the Jackrabbits and the Bears...
9:17 - In any event, this is a fantastic game. Big shots both ways. They just traded threes, as VCU reclaims its first lost lead of the second half.
9:14 - I'm a little uncertain who to pull for in the Wichita St - VCU game. They're both mid-majors. Theoretically the pull for the underdog rule should come into effect, but I think Wichita State is a very good team that can create problems for a lot of big teams in the bracket. It'd be nice if they stuck around. Yeah, I'm pulling for the Shockers to not be shocked.
9:13 - And we're back! I needed an extended break after that experience. I've calmed down, spent some time outside, eaten some Five Guys, and now I'm back in front of the TV.
7:30 - No upsets. Lame. And surprising. I thought, given the lack of dominating teams, there might be more chaos this year. Still the evening session and all of tomorrow for the Madness to kick in.
5:47 - Bring on Kansas State! They won't be as tough as the Bulldogs...
5:44 - Notable lines: James Southerland - 15 pts, 7 rbs, 3-5 threes. Rakeem Christmas - 7 rbs. Kris Joseph - 12 pts, 6-7 FTs, 0-5 threes, 8 rbs. Scoop Jardine - 11 pts, 7 ast, 2 stl, 4-4 FTs.
5:42 - Hats off to UNC-Asheville. You deserved a higher seed.
5:38 - Triche to the line up by three, 2 shots. And my dad is leaving the building. He's got a 5:45 dinner reservation, what can I say? Estonians are a punctual people.
5:31 - "I'll make 'em when it matters." -Scoop Jardine on free throw shooting. He forgot to add that he'll miss the first but get it back after a lane violation.
5:29 - GF Taylor points out, "This is the first time all year they haven't talked about how much weight Fab has lost." Another silver lining! SU by four with the ball, 1:30 to go. I'll take it!
5:27 - Valid. "@hyatt8 At YMCA during halftime 8 yr old says "SU is losing because Fab Melo doesn't go to SCHOOL!" Well said my man. Well said."
5:20 - Great steal by Southerland, leaving his man to make the play. Then he hits a three at the other end off a nice penetrate and dish by Dion. SU by eight. Stat of the day: I went thirty-four minutes without breathing.
5:18 - Horrible three from Scoop there, but SU gets the rebound on the other end. Asheville is cold.
5:13 - I take it back. I'd trade anyone on Syracuse for Crowder and DJO, except Kris Joseph. Love that man. SU by four with KJ heading to the line for one.
5:08 - I almost wrote, "At least Scoop is having a good game," but I didn't want to jinx it.
5:06 - James Southerland disagrees with us. Big shot. SU by two, 9:20 to play.
5:01 - What the heck happened to our vaunted 2-3 zone? How is UNC-Asheville scoring this many points? Who will provide the answers to my questions? I think we need to give up all but the most open three-point shots. We need to pound it to the basket where our height and athleticism can dominate, and get our points in the paint and from the free throw line. @erik_rome agrees with me.
4:52 - Harvard-Vanderbilt tipping off. I always say, Syracuse is the Harvard of Syracuse.
4:51 - Couple Scoop layups and Syracuse has the lead. Can we get some Asheville panic, please?
4:48 - Dad on that missed goal tend followed by 1-2 from the line. "That's the break we needed. Game over."
4:37 - I would trade anyone on Syracuse for Jae Crowder or Dennis Johnson-Odom right now. Gamers.
4:33 - Larry Anderson in the lineup for The Beach! Look out New Mexico... I predict that will be the first upset of the day. THE FIRST UPSET OF THE DAY.
4:23 - Trust in Jim. Adjustments will be made. The run will come. The run will come.
4:18 - Brandon Triche is a great rebounding guard. He's got to shave a few milliseconds off his lay-up release though.
4:15 - Free Throw shooting.
4:09 - Bruce Hornsby's son plays for Asheville?!? We're screwed. Also, 15 fouls called already in this game. Keita, KJ, and CJ each have two.
4:06 - Tough series there after the head-scratcher goal tend. Southerland draws a phantom foul preventing him from making a wide open layup. He misses the front of a 1-and-1. Christmas misses the front end of a 1-and-1. Dion misses a jumper leading to an easy fast break for the Bulldogs. Asheville by 5.
3:58 - Goal tending?! Keita blocked him at the release! Sir! Can we see that again please, sir!
3:53 - Don't shoot CJ! Give it back to Dion... Lots of momentum for the Bulldogs, but it evaporates quickly; no sign of panic from the Orange. The same can't be said of their fans... This is one of those cases where it might be better that this game isn't being played in the dome. SU by 1.
3:50 - And Keita loping down the floor to make a nice block on a breakaway dunk attempt, fouling hard. Then on the other end a catch and bucket. Baye came to play!
3:48 - Beautiful passing by the Orange, including Baye Keita. Incidentally, Baye Moussa Keita, literally translated, means "able replacement for ineligible starter."
3:37 - From the Sports Sauna: SU will only lose "if the refs call the game extremely tight, sending UNC-Asheville to the line where their excellent shooting percentage will help them and their lack of a player over 6'5" won't hurt them." Uh oh.
3:35 - According to CBS's UNC-Asheville bio, the mascot bulldog has undergone three name changes and is currently named, "Rocky." What do you think the first two names were? I'm betting something offensive, like "Darkie" or "Big Balls."
3:31 - Cook the bulldogs.
3:30 - I like to imagine that somewhere there is an SU fan who had a really busy week. "Wait... how come Melo isn't starting?" (Listening.) "WhaaaAAAAAH??? OH NO!!!!"
3:28 - No surprises so far. Let's hope that continues for a little while longer.
3:20 - This Davidson-Louisville game is a classic missed opportunity snoozer. Davidson hit their first 2 threes and missed their next 13. Louisville is not playing great but lead by 12.
2:59 - Marquette is playing! I love watching Marquette. For some reason I don't hold their tournament win over the Orange last year against them. Very happy that they aren't in SU's region so I can root for them all-out this year.
2:54 - Our first key blown call of the tournament! Down four with under six seconds to go, Southern Miss forced a turnover on the baseline, but the referee standing right there called it out on the Golden Eagles. Tough call. Kansas State awaits Syracuse if the Orange make the second round.
2:48 - Wisconsin's Ryan Evans has a fantastic haircut.
2:36 - It's an annual Round 1, first day tradition: my hunt through the house for a green or blue highlighter to mark correct picks on my brackets with. I have to do it by hand, because its satisfying. And the colors have to be blue or green for correct, and pink for incorrect, because it looks best. Had to settle for a weird green gel stick to mark the Murray State result. I'm not happy about it. But now I'm committed to use it the rest of the way. Another rule is you stick with the same marker throughout the tournament.
2:08 - Prediction! Rodney McGruder will have the ball late with the Wildcats trailing, but the clock will expire before he gets the shot off. Here's why.
2:05 - Murray State is in control as Colorado State can't hit a bucket to catch up. Now I'm watching Southern Miss-Kansas State. Like most Orange fans, I'm much more afraid of K-State with their supposed rebounding ability. Also, I think Southern Miss is garbage. But if K-State can't control this game, maybe they, too, are garbage? Meanwhile, Davidson, Alma Mater of Steph Curry and friend of the Sauna, Davs, is leading Louisville right now midway through the first half. I would love Kyle Kuric's college career to come to an end today.
1:50 - I'm enjoying Shane Ryan's live blog over on Grantland. He's funnier and a better writer than me. But only one of us has a direct link on Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician!
1:45 - For my dream round 1 viewing experience, I'd watch the games with Dick Vitale, Chuck Klosterman, Bill Simmons, Barack Obama, and my buddy and oldest tournament-watching mate, Dr. Paul. Also, around 2:30 the two guys from the Sonic commercial would show up with a bunch of food.
1:30 - A Racer just got walloped on the schnoz - second player to be bloodied in the game. Rafferty thinks the new rules demand a flagrant, but thankfully the refs decide you don't get a foul if your elbow is run into by another dude's nose.
1:27 - My twitter feed is blowing up with the news that Mario Williams signed with the Bills. Good times! Hmmm...I wonder if he could play the 5 in the 2-3 zone... Can Ralph Wilson loan him his chopper to fly down to Pittsburgh?
1:00 - 10 assists on 11 made shots in the Colorado St-Murray St game. This is great basketball. Rams by 1 at the half.
12:42 - Len Elmore (calling So. Miss-K-State), on the other hand, is my least favorite color commentator in the bracket. It always feels like everything he says is a negative point. And, goody, he's calling the SU game! I'm sure he'll have some thoughts on the program's current state. Fortunately Reggie Miller is in the booth with him so he'll only talk half as much as he normally would.
12:36 - Good game so far! Pierce Hornung rebounding! Racers passing beautifully to guys cutting to the three-point line! Rafferty in fine form!
12:26 - I love the black paint, or decals, or whatever they do to "neutralize" the courts with that black border. I think it looks really cool. I hope they keep doing it every year so we all develop an unconscious pleasurable reaction when we see the shiny blackness with the blue court name and city name at the baselines.
12:15 - Bill Raferty and Gentle Verne Lundquist tip us off in Louisville for Murray St-Colorado St. Since the Racers are a mid-major, I'll be rooting for them over the upset. My rooting interests in non-SU games: 1.) That the game is close, 2.) That the mid-majors win, and 3.) That the underdogs win.
Speaking of Raf, with Gus Johnson leaving CBS this year, Bill Rafferty is the only destination commentator left in the bracket. If no games are close, I'll listen to his game. Verne is classic, too.
12:14pm - Just flipped to TruTV, which has some sort of rival pre-game show. And there is HAAAAAAAK! Somewhere Michael Lee is muttering to himself, "I woulda made that shot..."
noon - Sing it with me... "Bah-bah bah bah bum BAAAAHHH bah-bah bum. BAHHHHHHH! BAH-BAH-BAH!"
11:27am - I just found out I was totally wrong on my thinking about the Melo loss! Turns out we DON'T have to play 4-on-5 throughout the tournament! This is MUCH less of a problem than I thought!
Off we go with the greatest weekend in sports!
Relive last year's First Round:
Day 1
Day 2
----------------------------------------------------------
11:40 - What? You still here? Yeah, me too. Still hoping for that classic upset or buzzer beater moment. Colorado is beating UNLV by nine at half, and I'm thinking the Rebels have a run in them, but you're excused if you want to head to bed early. All in all, not a particularly memorable opening day. Besides the SU game, the most exciting game of the day was the upset, VCU over Wichita State. Some of the other games were fun to watch for a while before the underdog faded: Colorado State, Davidson, The Beach. Hopefully tomorrow will be madder, and hopefully the lack of upsets this round will make for a more interesting Saturday. Except for Syracuse. A less interesting Saturday would make everyone feel a lot better. C'mon guys, is that too much to ask?
9:47 - UConn is playing, which means its time for my annual rant against pulling for teams just because they're in the same conference as you. Yes, I will take some satisfaction if the Big East does well overall. But that doesn't mean I should compromise my passionate hatred of UConn and West Virginia just because it will somehow, in some incredibly indirect way, benefit Syracuse. I think that benefit of conference prestige is negligible. And the Big East will look fine tomorrow even without West Virginia and, hopefully, UConn. The only brightside of a UConn win is I think they are more talented than Iowa State and more likely to have a chance against Kentucky, another team I hate. But the bottom line is, if you hate a team, hate them no matter what!
9:25 - See what I mean? It's not the same when Wichita State loses to bust your bracket as it would be if, say, Vanderbilt or Louisville lost. Shaka Smart, though. Wow. VCU looks good again. Now attention turns to the Jackrabbits and the Bears...
9:17 - In any event, this is a fantastic game. Big shots both ways. They just traded threes, as VCU reclaims its first lost lead of the second half.
9:14 - I'm a little uncertain who to pull for in the Wichita St - VCU game. They're both mid-majors. Theoretically the pull for the underdog rule should come into effect, but I think Wichita State is a very good team that can create problems for a lot of big teams in the bracket. It'd be nice if they stuck around. Yeah, I'm pulling for the Shockers to not be shocked.
9:13 - And we're back! I needed an extended break after that experience. I've calmed down, spent some time outside, eaten some Five Guys, and now I'm back in front of the TV.
7:30 - No upsets. Lame. And surprising. I thought, given the lack of dominating teams, there might be more chaos this year. Still the evening session and all of tomorrow for the Madness to kick in.
5:47 - Bring on Kansas State! They won't be as tough as the Bulldogs...
5:44 - Notable lines: James Southerland - 15 pts, 7 rbs, 3-5 threes. Rakeem Christmas - 7 rbs. Kris Joseph - 12 pts, 6-7 FTs, 0-5 threes, 8 rbs. Scoop Jardine - 11 pts, 7 ast, 2 stl, 4-4 FTs.
5:42 - Hats off to UNC-Asheville. You deserved a higher seed.
5:38 - Triche to the line up by three, 2 shots. And my dad is leaving the building. He's got a 5:45 dinner reservation, what can I say? Estonians are a punctual people.
5:31 - "I'll make 'em when it matters." -Scoop Jardine on free throw shooting. He forgot to add that he'll miss the first but get it back after a lane violation.
5:29 - GF Taylor points out, "This is the first time all year they haven't talked about how much weight Fab has lost." Another silver lining! SU by four with the ball, 1:30 to go. I'll take it!
5:27 - Valid. "@hyatt8 At YMCA during halftime 8 yr old says "SU is losing because Fab Melo doesn't go to SCHOOL!" Well said my man. Well said."
5:20 - Great steal by Southerland, leaving his man to make the play. Then he hits a three at the other end off a nice penetrate and dish by Dion. SU by eight. Stat of the day: I went thirty-four minutes without breathing.
5:18 - Horrible three from Scoop there, but SU gets the rebound on the other end. Asheville is cold.
5:13 - I take it back. I'd trade anyone on Syracuse for Crowder and DJO, except Kris Joseph. Love that man. SU by four with KJ heading to the line for one.
5:08 - I almost wrote, "At least Scoop is having a good game," but I didn't want to jinx it.
5:06 - James Southerland disagrees with us. Big shot. SU by two, 9:20 to play.
5:01 - What the heck happened to our vaunted 2-3 zone? How is UNC-Asheville scoring this many points? Who will provide the answers to my questions? I think we need to give up all but the most open three-point shots. We need to pound it to the basket where our height and athleticism can dominate, and get our points in the paint and from the free throw line. @erik_rome agrees with me.
4:52 - Harvard-Vanderbilt tipping off. I always say, Syracuse is the Harvard of Syracuse.
4:51 - Couple Scoop layups and Syracuse has the lead. Can we get some Asheville panic, please?
4:48 - Dad on that missed goal tend followed by 1-2 from the line. "That's the break we needed. Game over."
4:37 - I would trade anyone on Syracuse for Jae Crowder or Dennis Johnson-Odom right now. Gamers.
4:33 - Larry Anderson in the lineup for The Beach! Look out New Mexico... I predict that will be the first upset of the day. THE FIRST UPSET OF THE DAY.
4:23 - Trust in Jim. Adjustments will be made. The run will come. The run will come.
4:18 - Brandon Triche is a great rebounding guard. He's got to shave a few milliseconds off his lay-up release though.
4:15 - Free Throw shooting.
4:09 - Bruce Hornsby's son plays for Asheville?!? We're screwed. Also, 15 fouls called already in this game. Keita, KJ, and CJ each have two.
4:06 - Tough series there after the head-scratcher goal tend. Southerland draws a phantom foul preventing him from making a wide open layup. He misses the front of a 1-and-1. Christmas misses the front end of a 1-and-1. Dion misses a jumper leading to an easy fast break for the Bulldogs. Asheville by 5.
3:58 - Goal tending?! Keita blocked him at the release! Sir! Can we see that again please, sir!
3:53 - Don't shoot CJ! Give it back to Dion... Lots of momentum for the Bulldogs, but it evaporates quickly; no sign of panic from the Orange. The same can't be said of their fans... This is one of those cases where it might be better that this game isn't being played in the dome. SU by 1.
3:50 - And Keita loping down the floor to make a nice block on a breakaway dunk attempt, fouling hard. Then on the other end a catch and bucket. Baye came to play!
3:48 - Beautiful passing by the Orange, including Baye Keita. Incidentally, Baye Moussa Keita, literally translated, means "able replacement for ineligible starter."
3:37 - From the Sports Sauna: SU will only lose "if the refs call the game extremely tight, sending UNC-Asheville to the line where their excellent shooting percentage will help them and their lack of a player over 6'5" won't hurt them." Uh oh.
3:35 - According to CBS's UNC-Asheville bio, the mascot bulldog has undergone three name changes and is currently named, "Rocky." What do you think the first two names were? I'm betting something offensive, like "Darkie" or "Big Balls."
3:31 - Cook the bulldogs.
3:30 - I like to imagine that somewhere there is an SU fan who had a really busy week. "Wait... how come Melo isn't starting?" (Listening.) "WhaaaAAAAAH??? OH NO!!!!"
3:28 - No surprises so far. Let's hope that continues for a little while longer.
3:20 - This Davidson-Louisville game is a classic missed opportunity snoozer. Davidson hit their first 2 threes and missed their next 13. Louisville is not playing great but lead by 12.
2:59 - Marquette is playing! I love watching Marquette. For some reason I don't hold their tournament win over the Orange last year against them. Very happy that they aren't in SU's region so I can root for them all-out this year.
2:54 - Our first key blown call of the tournament! Down four with under six seconds to go, Southern Miss forced a turnover on the baseline, but the referee standing right there called it out on the Golden Eagles. Tough call. Kansas State awaits Syracuse if the Orange make the second round.
2:48 - Wisconsin's Ryan Evans has a fantastic haircut.
2:36 - It's an annual Round 1, first day tradition: my hunt through the house for a green or blue highlighter to mark correct picks on my brackets with. I have to do it by hand, because its satisfying. And the colors have to be blue or green for correct, and pink for incorrect, because it looks best. Had to settle for a weird green gel stick to mark the Murray State result. I'm not happy about it. But now I'm committed to use it the rest of the way. Another rule is you stick with the same marker throughout the tournament.
2:08 - Prediction! Rodney McGruder will have the ball late with the Wildcats trailing, but the clock will expire before he gets the shot off. Here's why.
2:05 - Murray State is in control as Colorado State can't hit a bucket to catch up. Now I'm watching Southern Miss-Kansas State. Like most Orange fans, I'm much more afraid of K-State with their supposed rebounding ability. Also, I think Southern Miss is garbage. But if K-State can't control this game, maybe they, too, are garbage? Meanwhile, Davidson, Alma Mater of Steph Curry and friend of the Sauna, Davs, is leading Louisville right now midway through the first half. I would love Kyle Kuric's college career to come to an end today.
1:50 - I'm enjoying Shane Ryan's live blog over on Grantland. He's funnier and a better writer than me. But only one of us has a direct link on Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician!
1:45 - For my dream round 1 viewing experience, I'd watch the games with Dick Vitale, Chuck Klosterman, Bill Simmons, Barack Obama, and my buddy and oldest tournament-watching mate, Dr. Paul. Also, around 2:30 the two guys from the Sonic commercial would show up with a bunch of food.
1:30 - A Racer just got walloped on the schnoz - second player to be bloodied in the game. Rafferty thinks the new rules demand a flagrant, but thankfully the refs decide you don't get a foul if your elbow is run into by another dude's nose.
1:27 - My twitter feed is blowing up with the news that Mario Williams signed with the Bills. Good times! Hmmm...I wonder if he could play the 5 in the 2-3 zone... Can Ralph Wilson loan him his chopper to fly down to Pittsburgh?
1:00 - 10 assists on 11 made shots in the Colorado St-Murray St game. This is great basketball. Rams by 1 at the half.
12:42 - Len Elmore (calling So. Miss-K-State), on the other hand, is my least favorite color commentator in the bracket. It always feels like everything he says is a negative point. And, goody, he's calling the SU game! I'm sure he'll have some thoughts on the program's current state. Fortunately Reggie Miller is in the booth with him so he'll only talk half as much as he normally would.
12:36 - Good game so far! Pierce Hornung rebounding! Racers passing beautifully to guys cutting to the three-point line! Rafferty in fine form!
12:26 - I love the black paint, or decals, or whatever they do to "neutralize" the courts with that black border. I think it looks really cool. I hope they keep doing it every year so we all develop an unconscious pleasurable reaction when we see the shiny blackness with the blue court name and city name at the baselines.
12:15 - Bill Raferty and Gentle Verne Lundquist tip us off in Louisville for Murray St-Colorado St. Since the Racers are a mid-major, I'll be rooting for them over the upset. My rooting interests in non-SU games: 1.) That the game is close, 2.) That the mid-majors win, and 3.) That the underdogs win.
Speaking of Raf, with Gus Johnson leaving CBS this year, Bill Rafferty is the only destination commentator left in the bracket. If no games are close, I'll listen to his game. Verne is classic, too.
12:14pm - Just flipped to TruTV, which has some sort of rival pre-game show. And there is HAAAAAAAK! Somewhere Michael Lee is muttering to himself, "I woulda made that shot..."
noon - Sing it with me... "Bah-bah bah bah bum BAAAAHHH bah-bah bum. BAHHHHHHH! BAH-BAH-BAH!"
11:27am - I just found out I was totally wrong on my thinking about the Melo loss! Turns out we DON'T have to play 4-on-5 throughout the tournament! This is MUCH less of a problem than I thought!
posted by Prof. A at 10:29 AM
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