UCONN 82 Missouri 75:
- Kemba Walker is explosive. The young freshman had 23 points, 5 boards, and 5 assists to lead the Huskies into the National Semi-final next Saturday. He was extremely quick and could finish amongst the trees once he got deep into the lane. I was thoroughly impressed with the young man. I just wonder where he got so tough?? Where is Jay Bilas when we need answers like this? "He has that New York City toughness that he obtained while growing up playing in the playground". Oh thanks Jay, I'm glad you didn't mention it multiple times on the broadcast. But I digress..
- Missouri plays fast and wreaks havoc on it's opponents. Just ask Hasheem Thabeet. While Hasheem has never been a true offensive threat in my opinion, he still averages 13.5 ppg on the year. But Saturday night he looked lost and didn't belong anywhere near that court. Thabeet had 5 points on just 4 field goal attempts and didn't block a single shot. To be fair, I must point out that he had 13 boards, but Mizzou's rotation doesn't include a single player over 6'9" so to say I was unimpressed with Thabeet would be an understatement. Let's just say if I was an NBA GM with a late lottery pick and Thabeet's name was still on the board I would have a tough time pulling the trigger. But that's why they are there and I'm writing a blog that no one reads. Moving on...
Villanova 78 Pitt 76:
- What in the world was Reggie Redding thinking?? With 10 seconds to play and Nova up by two, he ignored the wide open Corey Fisher in the corner and launched a deep pass down court to Dante Cunningham. Except there was one problem: Cunningham had a Pitt defender draped all over him. After an incredible play to keep the ball in bounds by Cunningham, Pitt advanced the ball down court where eventually Lavance Fields drew a blocking foul on the Nova defender and proceeded to tie the game from the line with 5.5 seconds to play. That was a very questionable decision by Redding and by questionable I mean dumb.
- Luckily for Villanova, Pitt was in an equally giving mood. Despite there being 5.5 seconds remaining, Jamie Dixon had his team press following Fields' free throws. After Cunningham caught the inbounds pass a few feet above the three point line he immediately threw the ball to Scottie Reynolds who was streaking up the sideline. Reynolds navigated his way up the court and straight to the rim where he finished the play to give Nova the win. You just can't make it that easy for Nova. If there were 2 or 3 seconds to play, the press would have been a decent decision because there will only be enough time for a desperation jumper. But with slightly more than 5 seconds to play, there is a world of time for the offensive player to get all the way to the hoop. And that's what Reynolds did. If Pitt had their defense extended to half court only instead of full court, they would have had some defenders in the key to challenge Reynolds' layup. Instead, they are going home and Nova is advancing. Such is the way of March Madness.
- Quick side note: What a calendar year for Philadelphia sports. First the Phillies win the World Series, then the Eagles make the NFC Championship in a game they should have won, the Flyers are the fourth seed in the East, and Nova is going to the Final Four. Even the Sixers are playing suprisingly well despite not possessing a single player with an outside jump shot. Let's see if our Philly brethern lose their bitter edge.. Thought about it, it's not happening. But seriously it's been quite a year for sports fans in the City of Brotherly Love. Now if only LA can have it's turn this year...
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