?

Would we look at coaches and players in sports differently if their individual sports had catchy names for their semifinal games like the NCAA does? If Izzo's team had advanced to the Final Four and lost instead of throwing up all over themselves in their first game it would have been hailed as an achievement and mentioned every time Izzo's bio was discussed. Dantonio won't get that kind of credit for making it to the football "Final Four" and losing. The same thing is true in the NFL, just ask the Buffalo Bills how much credit they get for winning AFC Championships. Peyton Manning could chime in on the subject too. Even Tom Brady could comment on the idea that going 4-0 in the Super Bowl is somehow better than making it to 6 Super Bowls and losing 2. Are we just dumb about this kind of thing?

?

How do you feel about professional athletes from a region showing up at tourney games and rooting for local college teams that they didn't play for? Say, for instance, Aaron Rodgers being a big Badgers supporter or Matthew Stafford at MSU's game last night? As a Spartan I'm happy to have the Lions QB support the team, but as they beat the Bulldogs in the first game of this run I'm not sure I'd be quite so cool with it if I was a Georgia alum.

March Madness

The 2013 Monkies Tourney Pick 'Em group is available now at Yahoo. The group ID is 1416 and you all know the password.

UPDATE: You should also be able to sign up by clicking here.

RE: ? (that probably doesn't narrow it down)

From Stack: "Is it just me, or is the NCAA tourney 50% commercials this year?"

I noticed college basketball has decided to get into the "timeout" era where every other sport (basically footall) has a graphic that shows how many timeouts a team has. Because in basketball, especially the tournament, one would easily think each team has 20...per half. But it's only FIVE total. I know, that's impossible. Here's the deal. They have scheduled media timeouts at the 16:00, 12:00, 8:00, and 4:00 marks from what I've noticed or can tell. I'm 100% sure on the 16:00 and 12:00. I may have seen a TO at the 10:00 yesterday, but you get the point.

I always love it when they just come back from a media TO and one of the teams goes on a mini-run in about a 2-minute period. So, one team calls TO to stay in the game. They come back from commercials and play for two more minutes and...another media TO. It feels like three separate 4-minute commercial breaks. Four minutes of action, 12 minutes of cars/beer/insurance. So, yeah, it does feel like the NCAA tourney is 50% commercials this year.

?

Is it just me, or is the NCAA tourney 50% commercials this year?

Here We Go Again

Despite my current total lack of enthusiasm for college basketball, I've renewed the Cass City Monkie Tournament Pick 'em Group at Yahoo. You can sign up here.

RE: Must Be Tough

A few thoughts:

1. It might be an "easy" path, but Kansas, Syracuse, Ohio State, Kansas State, Georgetown, and Pittsburgh couldn't manage it. Can't blame the Spartans for that.

2. I admit that I don't think MSU would still be in it if the sequence had been New Mexico - Maryland - Kansas - Ohio State instead of New Mexico - Maryland - UNI - Tennessee.

3. This is actually one of my problems with the Tourney. MSU could make it to the final game without playing a team seeded higher than fifth in their region. If they were to win I expect you would hear lots of squawking from Duke/West Virginia that it wasn't fair. But fairness has nothing to do with it.

4. This is also why I'm not a fan of a football playoff. People accept a 5 vs. 5 semifinal in basketball, it would cause a riot in football. And people wouldn't watch.

Knuckle Down

I really like this article by Bob Wojnowski in today's Detroit News.

March Madness

Yahoo! Sports College Basketball Tournament Pick 'Em is live today. You probably already have an email in your inbox, but if not the group number is 6376 and the password is monkie. There's extra options for scoring and number of brackets this year, so take a look and make suggestions if you want anything changed.

Spartan Spirit

I know I'm biased, but I thought this was really cool:


Way to go, Detroit News.

UPDATE: Okay, the Freep ain't bad either:

"We'll see you Monday night."

That was one of the best games I've ever seen. The emphatic Summers slam over the UConn defender was just awesome. And the unexpected scoring contribution from the "Dancing Bear"? That was great. I went from covering my eyes to running around the room cheering. Go Green!

I Agree

Apparently the Spartans are likable. My favorite criterion from Pat Forde's Likability Index:

If your coach once lobbied to become the school's football coach -- somewhat seriously, according to his athletic director -- add four points.

That's why we love Izzo.

Disrespected?

After reading Ump's comment, I did some number crunching. From 1999-2009, the following teams have made it to the Final Four the amount of times listed:

Michigan State: 5
North Carolina: 4
Duke: 3
UConn: 3
Kansas: 3
UCLA: 3
Florida: 3
Maryland: 2
Ohio State: 2
Villanova: 1
Memphis: 1
Georgetown: 1
George Mason: 1
LSU: 1
Illinois: 1
Louisville: 1
Georgia Tech: 1
Oklahoma State: 1
Syracuse: 1
Marquette: 1
Texas: 1
Indiana: 1
Oklahoma: 1
Arizona: 1
Wisconsin: 1

Notice who's at the top of the list? Now, I listen to PTI today and the conversation is how completely unbelievable it is that MSU smashed Louisville and how they have no chance against UConn. People seem to be talking about MSU like they're Villanova, Marquette, GT, so some team like that, not one of the elite programs in the nation. UConn is a great team and the safe bet is that they'll win the game. But show a little respect.

Final Four baby!

Bring on UConn!

Magic vs. Bird

On PTI yesterday they pointed out it was the 30th anniversary of the 1979 NCAA Championship game played between MSU and Indiana State, the highest-rated basketball game ever. One quarter of the televisions in the US were tuned to this game.

Seriously

Has Wilbon lost his mind on this whole mid-major thing? He's coming unhinged.

Orange?

When did Syracuse change their mascot to the "Orange"? That seems kind of lame. Not even something like the Fightin' Orange, the Mighty Orange, the Tangy Orange, or the Orange Terror. Just Orange. It also looks pretty silly written on the front of a white jersey.

Watch Live

I think the ability to watch all of the NCAA Tournament games live online is possibly the greatest sports innovation on the internet. Being able to watch MSU as they're pounding on Robert Morris (the team, not the one guy) without having to pay for DirecTV is awesome.

Presidential Bracket

Well, I have to admit, I dislike the president a little less since he picked MSU to make it to the Elite 8. I know some are going to give him grief about doing this, what with the financial crisis and socialist takeover of America, but I kind of like (the brackets, not the socialist stuff). Of course if Bush had published his brackets he would have been ripped apart in the media...

Forty Minutes

So, is anyone giving MSU a shot against Memphis? Well, besides Bob Wojnowski? This is the kind of game MSU lives for. That doesn't guarantee a win, but it suggest it could be quite a game. Just don't call it an upset. Also, is anyone really rooting for Memphis? Calipari and his team have been bugging me since mid-February, and I barely followed college basketball. Am I alone here?