2009 college hoops - Where the f**k did this glass slipper come from?

I thought we could use a new 2009 thread instead of re-using the 2008 thread.

All I can say about 2009 so far is that both Oregon Pac-10 teams are dismal so far, and not likely to get a lot better. Also, now that the NBA cherry-picks every decent freshman player, college b-ball has become a sadder place, turned completely upside down every year. No continuity at all, except the powerhouse programs still attract the blue-chip recruits.

My 2009 wish is that the team that wins the NCAA title have at least three senior starters and no freshman starters. I am growing weary of teams led by sensational freshmen into the Final Four. This is not The Way God Meant It To Be.

Mike Montgomery has made a pretty good team out of a Cal roster that was supposed to be one of the Pac-10's worst.

I don't really pay attention to college ball until the conference tourneys.

thabeet just put up 25 pts / 20 rebs / 9 blks

uconn will miss dyson a lot tho...avg'd almost 2 steals a game & defended on the perimeter well. also if beet + adrien dont score they'll need robinson or austrie/walker to be a threat

out of the top 10 i think msu + memphis are real threats imo

dejuan blair = manchild

22 points, 23 boards against thabeet, who had 5 and 4. plus he almost broke thabeet's arm when he reached in for a rebound

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/clip?id=3950134&categoryid=2459792

^ syracuse highlights are ridic

Morehead State is going dancing!

uconn will not beat pitt if they see them again. i am hoping it is like the yr syracuse won it all where uconn totally had their # in the reg season and syracuse lucked out and didnt have to play uconn in the ncaas

big least seems a bunch of clowns beating up on each other (altho I have a weird boner for Marquette as a dark horse, who seem flighty but can really amp it up when they try), i am sad to say it really does look like ACC will steamroll in the tourney. hope i am wrong, but planning wagers accordingly

(wakes up, notices it is March, checks watch, it's still March)

Holy shit! It would appear that colleges still have b-ball teams after all. I must investigate this queer phenomenon more closely.

weird season

http://www.friendsofjohnmccain.com/bball09/

rock chalk lolhawk

jesus this fukkin syr/uconn game is finally ovr

im supposed to go out tonight and i kept going "well no way it's gonna make it past this overtime" and by 3 i already felt committed

fuckin insane

<3 u bill raftery

raft is so great as is that whole croo.. <3'd so much mcdonough reading a promo for acc tourney coverage tomorrow and saying they may be subject to blackouts..."that's something u know a little abt, bill" lol; also bilas brings better analysis than 90% of ex-coaches

ILH pool, anyone?

This year's tourney appears to be more wide open than usual. The NBA has cherry-picked the very best college-aged talent for a decade now and no one in this year's freshman class seems to have the shoulders to carry their team to the final four. The result: broad parity.

P.S. Should be fun to watch.

The Pac-10 somehow got six teams into the tourney, very surprising.

Michigan!

terps too!

This year's tourney appears to be more wide open than usual. The NBA has cherry-picked the very best college-aged talent for a decade now and no one in this year's freshman class seems to have the shoulders to carry their team to the final four. The result: broad parity.

Vegas would love us to think this, but the parity issue has been overstated in recent years. Though more younger players have been leaving for the draft, the power conferences still get the best recruits. According to Wiki, these have been the most successful low seeds since seeding was started:

Lowest seeds to reach each round since expansion to 64 teams in 1985:

* Second Round: #15 seed (4 times)
o Richmond in 1991
o Santa Clara in 1993
o Coppin State in 1997
o Hampton in 2001
* Regional Semifinals (Sweet Sixteen): #13 seed (4 times), #14 seed (2 times):
o Cleveland State in 1986
o Chattanooga in 1997
* Regional Finals (Elite Eight): #12 & #10 seeds:
o Dayton in 1984
o Temple in 1991
o Providence in 1997
o Missouri in 2002
o Kent State in 2002
o Davidson in 2008
* National Semifinals (Final Four): #11 seed:
o LSU in 1986
o George Mason in 2006
* National Finals (Championship Game): #8 seed:
o UCLA in 1980
o Villanova in 1985 - won championship

When all is said and done, outside of a one or two aberrations it's the power conferences and big time programs that make it to the final four and thus win the tournament.

Go Terps!

I almost always root for the Terps on some level because I have family in Maryland, but not this time. Go Cal!

lol @ "knowing your bracket" brought to you by Knowing in theaters March 20th

excuse me u seem to have misspelled KN0W1NG

the #s will be the exact scores of every game do u see?

I love the first four days of the NCAA tournament. From 64 teams down to 16 in two quick sorts. It's the true madness in March Madness. After that it just simmers along and loses that lovely insane quality of the first rounds.

The president doesn't want to touch the field of 65, so you won't find him pushing for expansion. He relishes this format and doesn't want any sort of change, unlike his publicized stance on the need for a college football playoff system.

"This is it," Obama said pointing to the bracket. "This is it. You know, you don't want to start … letting it be like the NBA. People who are sub-.500 get into the playoffs. There's something wrong with that."