First, let's go to the Final Four, and in particular, the NCAA Title game. It's the game that's had Wisconsin fans howling since Monday night and it's all because of the guys in stripes. Let's be real, folks, the refs didn't help Wisconsin in the second half for sure, but the Badgers got calls in the first half and they were tied at intermission. And they had a nine point lead with 13 minutes to go, about to make Duke give it up, and they could not hold that lead.
In the end, it seemed to me that the Badgers had nothing left. They gave it more than 100 percent to beat Kentucky, and then had to ramp it up 48 hours later and play Duke. Even though Wisconsin is a good team, that's awfully tough to do. They tried to pull a 1980 USA Hockey Team (who beat Finland to win the gold two days after the Miracle win against the Soviets), but it's a tough trick to complete.
As far as where do these teams go from here; ironically, the two teams that lost in the semis probably have a better chance to contend for the championship next year than the teams that played in the Finals. I'd say this is especially true if Duke point guard Tyus Jones goes to the NBA. They'll probably lose Quinn Cook, Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow to begin with, so having Tyus Jones will be of supreme importance to Duke.
As for Wisconsin, this year was their one shot to cash it in. They lose Josh Gasser and Traevon Jackson to begin with and Kaminsky and Dekker are likely first round picks. They'll still be good but probably not Final Four good.
Michigan State and Kentucky will be very good, however; Michigan State went to the Final Four in a rebuilding year, and Kentucky is losing seven guys to the draft (just went official, Karl-Anthony Towns, Willy Cauley-Stein, the Harrison twins, Devin Booker, Trey Lyles and Dakari Johnson are all going) but will still be a Final Four team probably; that's just how Coach Cal rolls.
As far as who I might slot as an early favorite to get here to Houston for the 2016 Final Four and win; a lot of things can happen, but one thing I feel I can safely say is that North Carolina will be in the catbird's seat next year to get there. They had an up-and-down year and still got to the Sweet 16 (and had Wisconsin on the ropes).
On The Masters, whether you watch golf or not, this to me marks the beginning of spring. Well, that and the bluebonnets in full bloom here in Texas. It's nice to see some of the older players being able to do some good things throughout the week; Tom Watson shot a one under par for his opening round today, and Jack Nicklaus, he of 18 major wins, hit a hole in one on the par 3 competition yesterday.
One final NFL note, since this is primarily a football blog; LeVeon Bell gets docked three games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. It really is example #4756 of how badly the NFL's enforcement is screwed up. Let me get this straight, Ray Rice can get suspended two games for hitting his then-fiancée, but Bell gets docked for three for weed. Yeah, that makes a lot of sense...not.
Until next time....
No comments:
Post a Comment