The Agony of Defeat.......

Madness....sheer madness...or will I get sued for use of the word "madness"? Has the NCAA copyrighted use of the word? I see a lot of "mayhem" and "big tournament" this year....much like Super Bowl time, where now it's "the big game". Anyway...

What a night of college hoop last night. Throw out Memphis-Bradley,which was according to script....a "pesky" Bradley hangs tight with Memphis, until Memphis wakes up and turns on the jets (see: Albany-UConn, 17 March 2006). The other three games are why college basketball is unrivaled in delivering bang for your buck......as yourself, when has college sports ever UNDER - delivered? Never....the storylines are great. Start with LSU-Duke, a game which the casual observer would have given to the boys from Raleigh, since most of the country didn't know much about LSU. This game was never as close as the score indicated. Once it became apparent that JJ Redick was on an off-night (3-18, 11 points), the game was over. Sure, Shelden Williams finished a nice career off with 23 and 13, but this team is all about Redick. All season, they lived and died by his smooth touch, and last night proved to be a demising one. Credit to LSU coach John Brady for taking Redick out of his game all night, and preventing him from having any shot at all. Perhaps by next year Kryzewski will learn how to use all those McDonald's All-Americans on his bench.....

That leads into the biggest shocker of the night....UCLA/Gonzaga, the game that was going to put the Bulldogs on the west coast map, so to say. They started off like a bat out of hell, up 17 late in the first half.....and up a baker's dozen at the break. However, unlike a more experienced team (and a team ready to take the jump), Mark Few's team never stepped on the throat of the Bruins, who slowly crept back into the game. Down to 10, now 8, now 5, etc......UCLA simply played its game, and even down 5 with a minute to go, never panicked. Scoring the last 11 of the game, UCLA won a shocker.....leaving Adam Morrison in a heap on the floor, needing physical assistance to get off the court. I felt badly for the kid, I really did.....he's played all year like a possessed man, taking more punishment driving the lane than Allen Iverson. I dont know where he stands as an NBA player, i really dont. I hear the comparisons to Larry Bird, but I think those are racially motivated. Hes a good college scorer with a better than average jump shot, but his game never really impressed me. All of a sudden he would have 23 points, and I'd scratch my head, asking, "where the hell did those points come from?" His game might work against teams from the WCC, but I see some problems come time to play the Pistons or Spurs.

Finally, the ending of the night.....fast forward to the last 10 seconds of the WVU/Texas game. Longhorns up 71-68, with Kevin "Thanks for showing my wife and kids AGAIN, CBS" Pittsnogle trying to stop his bleeding nose any way he could, received from earlier contact. Shoving whatever he could to stop the bleeding, he stepped up and hit a game-tying three......only to have Texas NOT call a timeout, dribble down, and have their own Kenton Paulino hit a three at the buzzer to win. Unreal basketball....I was exhausted by the time the games were over.

Other than the Memphis/Bradley game, the night was filled with thrills and amazing finishes...and the best part is we get to do the whole thing all over again tonight.....and Saturday....and Sunday....