NCAA Tournament: Elite 8

Since my last post a lot has changed in the 2011 NCAA tournament. When I wrote my last post the final two games of the Sweet 16 had not been played and Ohio State was considered by most to be the favorite to win it all. However, as I stated in my blog, Kentucky has a young, talented and determined team and they showed it when they pulled off the upset over Ohio State. As for the other game, Kansas easily defeated the lowest seed left in the tournament Richmond. Now to the present (Elite 8), UConn and Arizona, who both have star players, battled it out in a close game. Once again Derrick Williams and Kemba Walker showed that they were both elite players by putting up 20 points each.  Fortunately, Kemba Walker wasn’t doing it himself as teammate Jeremy Lamb put up 19 points to combine with Walkers 20. Arizona had its chance twice in the final seconds to win the game but they missed on two separate three point shots and ended their hopes to make it to the Championship game. Connecticut on the other hand will move on to the Final Four. The other game today was Butler vs. Florida. Florida had an 11 point lead late in the 2^nd half but Butler managed to tie the game and force it to overtime. In the final seconds of overtime Butler went up by three after some free throws and Florida had a chance to tie it with a three. Erving Walker got the last shot but failed to make it and Butler will be moving to the Final Four. Butler has been the underdog throughout the tourney but now people are remembering that they were in the Championship game last year and may be the team to fear. The other two games take place on Saturday and they are: Kentucky vs. North Carolina and Kansas vs. VCU. The Kentucky and North Carolina game will be the game to watch and whoever wins will play UConn in the Final Four. Kansas is favored over VCU but they have been the underdog just like Butler. By the end of Sunday we will have the Final Four set and two games away from the NCAA Championship Game.

New National Champion!!

Derrick Williams and teammates after win

Kemba Walker and teammates after win

  























Once again the NCAA tournament has lived up to its hype. After today it will be down to the Elite 8 and we already know that there will be a new National Champion. This year’s tournament has had its blown calls, upsets, and Cinderella stories like every other year but for a person, like myself, who has only recently joined the college basketball world; this has turned out to be one of the better tourneys. Two number one seeds have already been eliminated (Duke and Pitt) and four teams that are ranked ten or higher are trying to advance into the Elite 8. Three of the top players were in action yesterday and two of them are advancing.  Derrick Williams led his number five seeded Arizona wildcats over the defending champs, Duke, ensuring a Elite 8 birth and a new National Champion. Kemba Walker of Connecticut led his team to a victory over San Diego State and showed why he is in the conversation of the best player of the year. Now they will face each other in the Elite 8 and Wiliams and Walker will try to show that they are the better player and who has the better team. Unfortunately, Jimmer Fredette who has been carrying his BYU throughout the season with his elite scoring ability, seen his team fall to a well-rounded Florida Gators. The favorite to win is still Ohio State in many eyes, but they face a young, talented and determined Kentucky team today. On the other side of the bracket is Kansas (the other number one seed) and they face Richmond, who is the lowest ranked team (ranked 12) left in the tournament. Butler has also advanced to the Elite 8 as they look to follow up on their last year loss in the Championship game with a victory in the National Championship game. 

Tournament Highlights and Recaps

UFC 128

Today was UFC 128 and it featured a fight for the light heavyweight championship belt. The main card consisted of five fights and the preliminary card had seven fights. The two main fights were: Urijah Faber vs. Eddie Wineland and Jon Jones vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. The Faber and Wineland fight was a back and forth fight that went to a judge’s decision. The first round was dominated by Wineland but the second round was dominated by Faber. Going into the third and final round it looked like an even fight but Faber kept the momentum from the second round and dominated Wineland on the floor with several punches. After the three rounds Urijah Faber won the fight by unanimous decision. The main event of the fight was Jones vs. Rua for the light heavyweight championship belt. Rua was going in as the veteran while Jones was rising star and possibly the future of the UFC. The first round of the fight started with Jones leading the charge and by the end of the round it seemed like it was going to be a long night for Rua. In the second round Jones badly hurt Rua with elbows and fists to the face and body of Rua. Entering the third round Rua was tired and bloody but went after Jones early. However, Jones was just too much and earned a TKO (technical knockout) over Rua. This was possibly the beginning of long and successful future in the UFC for Jones while Rua may think about dropping down in weight to stay competitive in this grueling sport. The fight card overall was good with plenty of excitement even though many of the fighters I was rooting for lost.

UFC 128 Results and Analysis

2011 NCAA Tournament

The 2011 NCAA tournament field is set and the four number one seeds are: Ohio State (number one overall), Duke, Pittsburgh, and Kansas. Unfortunately, Long Beach State lost its spot in the tournament when they lost to UC Santa Barbara in the Big West Tourney and now will be in the NIT (National Invitational Tournament). There are 68 teams in the NCAA Tournament and they are divided into four regions. Each region has 16 teams and one of the top seeds in each region. Ohio State is in the East region and in their bracket North Carolina, Syracuse and Kentucky are the top challengers.  The West is headed by Duke and their top competitors are San Diego State, Connecticut, Texas and Arizona. In the Southwest the top seed is Kansas with Purdue, Notre Dame and Louisville being their toughest opponents. Pittsburgh heads the Southeast region and the top challengers are Florida, Wisconsin and Brigham Young. Once there is a winner from each region and the final four is set, the West and East winner will face each other and the Southwest and Southeast will face each other. The winner of each of these games will go to the finals and play for the National Championship. I believe Ohio State will win it all but you can never count out the Duke’s. I think a number one seed will win the tournament but if I was choosing someone other than the number ones it would be San Diego State. 

NCAA Bracket

NFL Lockout

After months of talking and even bringing in a federal mediator, the NFL and NFLPA (National Football League Player Association) could not get a deal done and now starts the lockout.  This is the first lockout since 1987 and it puts the 2011 season in limbo. The NFLPA decertified, which means they are no longer an association and now are suing the NFL for money.  During the lockout the players cannot use the facilities or communicate with any teams. Also, players without contracts cannot even negotiate a contract with any team. If you’re a fan of football, this is devastating knowing that there possibly will be no 2011 season or a late start to the season. Many of the players have stated that if there is no agreement soon that they will pursue some other sport or activity. This can also be a big blow to the fan base of football. The NFL is at an all-time high and yet they could not come up with an agreement in appreciation to the fans. It leaves fans like me thinking that they do not even care about the fans, just about the money.  This has also made me focus more on other sports like the NBA and MLB. While the NFL has locked out its players and NFLPA has decertified, there is still one event that will occur under the last contract. That is the NFL draft, which usually teams use to fill holes in their team but this year could turn out different. Teams usually go for certain players and whatever they do not get, they get through free agency, but this year free agency will not happen until they have a deal in place. This causes the teams to strategize a little differently. Once the draft is done there will be nothing to look for in football except a possible deal that could take a while to occur. So for all those football fans out there, all we can do is hope that there will be some deal done soon.