Playoff or Playground?

I thought this Denver/Golden State game would be entertaining, but those last three scores before the half: Carmello Anthony's breakaway dunk, the Baron Davis assist from the corner, and AI's fadeaway at the buzzer...well, does it REALLY matter how much is at stake for these guys to play their hardest? They're playing for "next." It's as simple as that. One of these teams is going to keep the court, and the other is going to have to wait a long, long time to play again. So they're pulling out all the stops. It's a thing of beauty. And I NEVER thought I'd hear myself say THAT!!!

Jayhawks Soar

As for the nightcap, I came into tonight's games believing that North Carolina was the best team in the nation, and expecting them to win the entire tournament. But I also was feeling a strong emotional connection and support for Kansas; after all, My Former Wife is a Jayhawk, and this is the 20th anniversary of that exciting Danny Manning/Larry Brown victory over the Oklahoma Sooner Boomers that won her office pool for us when we were still newlyweds and living in West Texas. The intangible emotional impact of a season-ending practice injury for much-beloved Senior Guard Rodrick Stewart also figured into my sentiments, so when the game started out like what appeared would be an opening tip to closing buzzer blow out for the boys from Lawrence I was both astonished and quietly delighted. The fact that the Tar Heels could cut that almost 30 point lead essentially in half before half-time made it a game again, even though it was really just the mirror of the impressive but much more quiet 18-0 run the Jayhawks poured on to build it in the first place. The Kansas players were clearly a little gassed having run up such a margin, and the Tar Heels took advantage to claw back closer.

Kansas came out with a great set play to begin the second half, but the Tar Heels put on two more good runs to get the game down to single digits again. By the time the clock had clicked down to under 10 minutes, the game was competitive again, but the Jayhawks executed better down the stretch to claim their berth on Monday night. Kansas had the better game plan, UNC made the better half-time adjustments, but at the end of the evening KU had the horses to outwork the hardest working player in basketball, and really deserved this victory.

My bracket is technically over now. I picked 45 games correctly, which (depending on how the other players in my approximately 25,000 participant Fox Bracket pool performed tonight) puts me somewhere close to the top 10%. Rock Chock Jay Hawk! Monday should be a barnburner.

Surprising Tigers

My thoughts on the five main reasons the Memphis Tigers beat the UCLA Bruins tonight:

* Improved free throw shooting. From 60-something during the regular season to over 80% tonight. That alone is enough to make the difference in the margin of victory.

* Superior guard play. The Memphis backcourt was a lot longer, a lot quicker, and basically just a lot more effective than the much-praised Bruin guards. Memphis also made much better decisions about what to DO with the ball, while UCLA'a horrid shooting from beyond the arc was like a dagger in their own heart.

* Better defensive energy. It seemed to me that Memphis simply beat the Bruins to the ball at just about every opportunity. UCLA on the other hand made a habit out of making turnovers that were apparently unforced, but were probably mostly the result of haste in response to the presence of Tigers on the hardwood. As for getting the ball in more often to Kevin Love, good luck. This guy was drawing two and a half defenders even WITHOUT the ball. The other guys need to make their lay-ups.

* Better offensive recognition. Not only did the Memphis guards play harder, they also played a lot smarter. Better recognition, better decision making, better shot selection, better, better, better.

* All around better coaching. Congratulations John Calipari! 38 wins is a helluva accomplishment. And maybe on Monday, you'll be able to add a championship to number 39.