First of all: Why the hell was Duke ranked ahead of Syracuse in terms of #1 seeds? But I digress...
Even though Duke may not have deserved to be ahead of Syracuse, they sure took care of business. The Blue Devils whooped on (play-in game winner) in the first round then handled a surging Cal team in the second. Now they travel to Houston to take on Purdue, who shocked the world and did not get upset. Pretty much everyone on earth, except for this kid, had Purdue either bowing out to #13 seed Siena in the first round, or to Big 12 surprise Texas A&M in the second.
No idea who this is.
Well, the Boilermakers squeaked past both of those opponents and now have their hands full with Duke. Without Robbie Hummel and with limited service from point guard Lewis Jackson, Purdue took down two weaker opponents but will they be able to defeat such a solid team in Duke. The only chance Purdue has is if Jon Scheyer plays like he has in the first two rounds. He has been subpar, but the frontcourt carried Duke through the first two rounds. If Duke's guards do not step it up, Purdue will make them pay.
Vintage. Sick.
The first Big East team to go down was Notre Dame, although I thought the Irish might have been a tough tournament team the way they were playing. Unfortunately for them, they ran into perennial powerhouse Old Dominion and Luke Harangody did not show up until there was one minute left. Meanwhile, Baylor beat Sam Houston St. and then continued on vs. Old Dominion to get to the Sweet 16 without even playing a team from a power conference.
Old Dominion's starting five.
The first game of the tournament featured underdog Robert Morris and (overrated) Villanova. Long story short, Robert Morris got robbed. It was literally the worst, most one-sided, officiating I have ever seen in a college game and Villanova still needed overtime to beat the Colonials. Robert Morris legitimately outplayed Villanova on this day and deserved to win, but was robbed of a chance to win by the referees. I would love to see a soundbite of the Colonials' coach Mike Rice after this game, but I am sure he just locked himself in a padded room and just yelled for a few hours to relieve the frustration.
Seriously, Rice almost left the stadium.
In my bracket, I picked Richmond to beat St. Mary's and then take down Villanova in the second round, but I did not realize how shitty Richmond was, or how good St. Mary's was. Omar Samhan ran shit in the first round, totally dominating the Spiders' defense and the Gaels cruised to a comfortable win. When St. Mary's met Villanova in the second round, it was a total mismatch. Even though the Wildcats were a #2 seed, they were one of the coldest teams in the country, and even though the Gaels were a #10 seed, they were one of the hottest. Long story short, Samhan was dominant and the Gaels moved on to the Sweet 16, to meet Baylor in Houston this Friday. Yikes.
Good... Luck... There...
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