GUS JOHNSON GOT THE KEY

just watched the memphis/texas game and billy packer has ruined yet another game with his arrogance, his repetitive stating of the obvious and his generally overbearing self. he actually made me appreciate jim nantz who had to endure it all. then they sent it back to greg gumbel in the studio...mute button! meanwhile boys have been on the hardwood becoming men. if kansas does what it do against davidson (go Davidson!) then we'll have 4 # 1 seeds goin at it next week. and they are the 4 best teams in the country and the tournament has brought that out. but hey, give it up to davidson and stephen curry (103 points), the slipper fits well. the hoosier state, meanwhile, sucked it up all over the gym. the boilers look to have a bright future while it looks kinda dim for the dogs and the hoosiers. over in the big ten, the badgers and spartans repped the conference sufficiently but not spectacularly. you had to see the badgers loss to davidson comin, the badgers are always the type of team that could hang with the best teams and lose to the worst and never makes the final 4.....so what was with cbs' coverage of the round of 16? 8 games, 2 days. why couldn't they show us all 4 games on both days. instead, they overlapped the games and our basketball viewing was cut in half. i gotcher prime time right here. well, if it aint gonna be davidson, i 'll probably be rootin for the oregon boy, kevin love, even though he plays for uclafaceland (at least they produced reggie miller). well, the kansas/davidson game is starting. gus johnson and len elmore are refreshing voices. gus johnson got the key.
just waiting for 'One Shining Moment'...
Zoo

A New Era?...

Well, I just read on Yahoo, that Donnie Walsh has officially stepped down as GM of your and my Indiana Pacers. I'm not sure how I feel about this one. Donnie is truly one of the great GMs in the league and I hope that he doesn't go to another team and this move bites us in the ass. I do wish him well, whatever he does though. He has always been as classy as they come. That being said, we do need some new blood in that organization. I don't know if Larry's our guy or not, only time will tell, but like we've been harping on all season, they desperatley need to shake things up. Forget that, blow it up. Make all those bandwagon fans show up at the Fieldhouse again. The only way to do that is good basketball combined with likable players. Oh, and by the way, who has a 4 game winning streak and is threatening to mess up my whole offseason plan, that's right the ol' Blue and Gold. Really fellas, what's making the playoffs in the East with a losing record going to prove? It will just stymie us in mediocrity for longer. But as usual, I'll root hard for our boys even in their inevitable first round exit from the playoffs.

the Dude

Bulldogs bitten...

It's the most wonderful time of the year...yeah I know we're a long ways from Christmas, but to any basketball fan it's true. March Madness, it just doesn't get any better than this. 3 1/2 teams from the great state of Indiana and two from Oregon. These two hoop heads will be busy this week. IU, Butler, Purdue, Notre Dame (the afore mentioned 1/2 team), Portland State, and Oregon all in the tourney that mercifully finally begins this Thursday. Time to break out the lucky pen and start filling out brackets, but before I do this let's look at the "home" teams. Purdue gets a well deserved 6 seed and should advance against a resurgent and very game Baylor team, the Hoosiers end up the dreaded 8 seed facing a tough and athletic Arkansas squad, and Notre Dame gets the biggest Cinderella in tournament history, George Mason. Look out Irish. Chicagoans everywhere will mourn their early exit. The Vikings of Portland State are welcomed to their first Dance by 1 seed Kansas. A 16 seed has to win sometime, right? And KU is prone to upsets. Somehow, the Ducks make it as an 9 seed, and could get hot and make a run...or get run, which is more likely by a very good Mississippi State team. And then there are the Butler Bulldogs. This team is 29-3 and winner of both the Horizon League regular season and tournament titles only to get screwed by the committee and end up a 7 seed. Not horrible until you see that they play South Alabama in Birmingham, Alabama. This makes absolutely no sense. The 'Dogs have a great tourney pedigree, matched only by fellow mid-major Gonzaga. Drake, yes the same team Butler beat a month ago is a 5 seed. The 7 seed is bad enough, but to have to play what amounts to an away game, is a travesty. And their reward if they do win, a probable date with 2 seed Tennessee, which by the way, is my sleeper team this year. Well, no use cryin' over spilt milk. A great tournament awaits us, let's hope we are represented well and that the Bulldogs will avenge this snub with a nice little run. So, Boiler Up, Let's Go IU, Go Vikes, Go Ducks, and whatever the hell the Golden Domers say. BRRS!!!

the Dude

BIRD CALLS

The trade deadline has come and gone and the Pacers do nothing. Well, the team is sucking, J.O. is a band-aid and there is even a qoute on the Pacers home page from Larry himself that says "There has got to be changes made and we're going to make them." What? maybe you are what needs to be changed Larry. You acknowledge that there needs to be changes, yet you do not make them. WTF are you gonna do then? How are you gonna change the team? Here's my reccomendation; fire yourself, bench most of the starters then give players like Shawne Williams, Ike Diogu and Danny Granger (the only hope for the future that we have) as many minutes as possible, hope the team tanks and wish for luck in the lottery. Then play the field in the off season and try to get something for J.O. That's what i would do Larry, but hey you're the boss. I guess we'll have to suffer through the rest of the season. Thanks Larry!
Z

Boiler Up

After all the recent talk about the Hoosiers, and rightly so, I think we need to give those kids up there in West Lafayette some love. Not only do they have to deal with living in West Lafayette, but they are the hottest team in the Big Ten. They have won 13 of their last 14 and at this point they lead Northwestern by 4 at the half. And I believe they have got IU, in what will be the most anticipated rivalry game in recent memory, on Tuesday. And they're doing this with four freshman. With all the talk about Sampson, we need to recogize that Matt Painter is doing a helluva job. He's probably already a lock for Big Ten coach of the year. And let's hope to God, he's doing it legit. I tend to think so, but I've been wrong before. This Boiler team, if they can stay healthy, may be around for a while. I love it. I'm so excited about the state of college hoops in Indiana. Let's hope that IU can get everything sorted out, hopefully avoid the dreaded NCAA sanctions, and continue to rebuild that once proud program. Like the saying goes: "In 49 states it's just basketball...but this is Indiana". Zup.

the Dude