2014 NCAA First Round: Walking Commentary
It's not a running commentary. It's not even 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 UConn (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
And the 2012 First Round:
Day 1
Day 2
And the 2011 First and Second Rounds:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
--------------------------------------------------------------
2:08 - We begin with an Aaron Craft intentional foul! Good call, especially since I don't want to see him against the Orange ever again. Come on Dayton!
2:21 - One game, one great finish, one upset. I love this tournament! I think SU's zone can clamp down on these slashy Flyers and get the Orange to the 2nd weekend.
2:31 - Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is LITERALLY wiping the floor with Colorado. I was shocked the Panthers were on the bubble heading into the ACC tournament. I know Jamie Dixon has put up some bad results in the NCAAs, and this isn't his strongest team in recent years, but they can still defend. Says here Pittsburgh could cause Florida a lot of trouble in the next round. I agree.
2:50 - Does rooting for a Harvard upset make you more or less of an elitist? If it was Yale...it'd be different obviously. But Harvard is right on the edge.
2:53 - A shot of the Western Michigan lockeroom as head coach Steve Hawkins gives what is apparently supposed to be a motivational speech. The most alarming thing about that shot...Steve Hawkins sounds a lot like Steven Hawkings!
2:54 - Slight delay as I pause the game. Normally, no pausing during March Madness but this is my first married March and I'm waiting for my wife to get home to watch.
In the meantime, let's take note of the stakes for this game for the Orange. First and foremost, if SU survives the opening weekend, that means everyone in town is in a good mood all week long, regardless of the weather. A nice March run through the tourney is always good for morale as Central New York deals with the last few gasps of winter. (Yes, it snowed a bit today.)
A win today avoid embarrassment, pure and simple. A first round exit would sure leave a bad taste in the mouth from the CJ Fair era, wouldn't it? That would be a shame, since the guy was never meant to be the best player on a team. He's a wonderful 2nd or third option. Not a superstar. Incidentally, that's ultimately what is going to stop the Orange in this tournament.
Finally, Jerami Grant is gone. The rumblings around SU are that he refused acupuncture treatment for his sore back because he didn't want to mess around with anything heading into the NBA draft. Tyler Ennis, despite being a higher projected pick, is still slightly less of a lock to leave. I think he's gone too, but an early exit could prompt him to take one more go around. So there's the silver lining if things go awry here.
3:12 - We're underway in the Arras Apartment. My brother-in-law's (AKA Pookie) bracket pool is called "Cooneypleasehita3." And Cooney does, after Boeheim yells at him to, "just shoot the ball!" Good sign.
3:17 - Don't waste those threes, Cooney! They come in limited quantities.
3:22 - Conversation after Rak got called for goaltending:
Taylor-When did the goaltending rule first start?
Me-I dunno, a long time ago...when black guys started playing.
3:25 - The tourney is one time when I have no mercy on an opponent. (UConn games used to be the other...) I'm already muttering, "Bury these guys!" under my breath. Not until we're up by 50 will I be comfortable.
3:38 - SU's killing these guys...but CJ's shooting touch is still not there. It should come back, but we'll see if the Orange can survive until that happens.
3:46 - Switched over to the Haaahvahd-Cincy game during SU's halftime. Listening to Doug Gottlieb commentate is the exact opposite of listening to Bill Raferty, in every single way.
5:00 - Good work by SU. Survive and advance. Play like that against Dayton, and they'll win again. Still, doesn't yet feel like they can beat a top seed.
5:35 - Love it when a 16-seed hangs around. And, as I have said in the past, I think the first 16-seed is going to win by coming out of the play-in game. Helps them build some momentum, get right into the flow of the tourney. Come on Albany! Nuke the brackets!
5:55 - And right on cue, Albany starts to crumble...
11:54 - What? You're still here? As well you should be! What an opening day! Do not take today for granted; this has been above average. Multiple overtimes. Multiple games coming down to the wire. Multiple upsets. Great stuff.The beauty of March is that it feels like days like this happen every year. They do happen a lot, but it is not this good every year. Fun times!
12:00 - And at the stroke of midnight, a buzzer-beater! Fantastic! What a phenomenal job by the Longhorn big fella to scoop up that ball from the ground and pop it in the hoop. Brutal break for Arizona State. The commentators nailed it- that three-point shot was so bad it turned into an easier rebound for Texas.
12:03 - Meanwhile, Manhattan takes their first lead of the night a few minutes into the second half against Louisville. I would love to see the Cardinals go down. How annoying is Rick Pitino griping about his match-up with Manhattan? And the general outrage over Louisville's seed went a little too far. They played a fairly weak slate this year, compared to days of Big East yore. They're always dangerous, but I think they're Sweet 16 and out.
Off we go with the greatest weekend in sports!
Relive last year's First Round:
Day 1
And the 2012 First Round:
Day 1
Day 2
And the 2011 First and Second Rounds:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
--------------------------------------------------------------
2:08 - We begin with an Aaron Craft intentional foul! Good call, especially since I don't want to see him against the Orange ever again. Come on Dayton!
2:21 - One game, one great finish, one upset. I love this tournament! I think SU's zone can clamp down on these slashy Flyers and get the Orange to the 2nd weekend.
2:31 - Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is LITERALLY wiping the floor with Colorado. I was shocked the Panthers were on the bubble heading into the ACC tournament. I know Jamie Dixon has put up some bad results in the NCAAs, and this isn't his strongest team in recent years, but they can still defend. Says here Pittsburgh could cause Florida a lot of trouble in the next round. I agree.
2:50 - Does rooting for a Harvard upset make you more or less of an elitist? If it was Yale...it'd be different obviously. But Harvard is right on the edge.
2:53 - A shot of the Western Michigan lockeroom as head coach Steve Hawkins gives what is apparently supposed to be a motivational speech. The most alarming thing about that shot...Steve Hawkins sounds a lot like Steven Hawkings!
2:54 - Slight delay as I pause the game. Normally, no pausing during March Madness but this is my first married March and I'm waiting for my wife to get home to watch.
In the meantime, let's take note of the stakes for this game for the Orange. First and foremost, if SU survives the opening weekend, that means everyone in town is in a good mood all week long, regardless of the weather. A nice March run through the tourney is always good for morale as Central New York deals with the last few gasps of winter. (Yes, it snowed a bit today.)
A win today avoid embarrassment, pure and simple. A first round exit would sure leave a bad taste in the mouth from the CJ Fair era, wouldn't it? That would be a shame, since the guy was never meant to be the best player on a team. He's a wonderful 2nd or third option. Not a superstar. Incidentally, that's ultimately what is going to stop the Orange in this tournament.
Finally, Jerami Grant is gone. The rumblings around SU are that he refused acupuncture treatment for his sore back because he didn't want to mess around with anything heading into the NBA draft. Tyler Ennis, despite being a higher projected pick, is still slightly less of a lock to leave. I think he's gone too, but an early exit could prompt him to take one more go around. So there's the silver lining if things go awry here.
3:12 - We're underway in the Arras Apartment. My brother-in-law's (AKA Pookie) bracket pool is called "Cooneypleasehita3." And Cooney does, after Boeheim yells at him to, "just shoot the ball!" Good sign.
3:17 - Don't waste those threes, Cooney! They come in limited quantities.
3:22 - Conversation after Rak got called for goaltending:
Taylor-When did the goaltending rule first start?
Me-I dunno, a long time ago...when black guys started playing.
3:25 - The tourney is one time when I have no mercy on an opponent. (UConn games used to be the other...) I'm already muttering, "Bury these guys!" under my breath. Not until we're up by 50 will I be comfortable.
3:38 - SU's killing these guys...but CJ's shooting touch is still not there. It should come back, but we'll see if the Orange can survive until that happens.
3:46 - Switched over to the Haaahvahd-Cincy game during SU's halftime. Listening to Doug Gottlieb commentate is the exact opposite of listening to Bill Raferty, in every single way.
5:00 - Good work by SU. Survive and advance. Play like that against Dayton, and they'll win again. Still, doesn't yet feel like they can beat a top seed.
5:35 - Love it when a 16-seed hangs around. And, as I have said in the past, I think the first 16-seed is going to win by coming out of the play-in game. Helps them build some momentum, get right into the flow of the tourney. Come on Albany! Nuke the brackets!
5:55 - And right on cue, Albany starts to crumble...
11:54 - What? You're still here? As well you should be! What an opening day! Do not take today for granted; this has been above average. Multiple overtimes. Multiple games coming down to the wire. Multiple upsets. Great stuff.The beauty of March is that it feels like days like this happen every year. They do happen a lot, but it is not this good every year. Fun times!
12:00 - And at the stroke of midnight, a buzzer-beater! Fantastic! What a phenomenal job by the Longhorn big fella to scoop up that ball from the ground and pop it in the hoop. Brutal break for Arizona State. The commentators nailed it- that three-point shot was so bad it turned into an easier rebound for Texas.
12:03 - Meanwhile, Manhattan takes their first lead of the night a few minutes into the second half against Louisville. I would love to see the Cardinals go down. How annoying is Rick Pitino griping about his match-up with Manhattan? And the general outrage over Louisville's seed went a little too far. They played a fairly weak slate this year, compared to days of Big East yore. They're always dangerous, but I think they're Sweet 16 and out.
posted by Prof. A at 1:10 PM
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