Villanova barely beat Robert Morris in overtime, and Temple lost to Cornell. So Villanova still has a shot at the national title, and Temple doesn't.
If Temple played Robert Morris, they would've blown them out. If Villanova played Cornell, they probably would've lost (judging by the Robert Morris result).
Had Temple been a 3 seed in its own bracket, they would've handled Montana better than New Mexico did. If Villanova was a 3 or 4 in their own bracket, the result likely would've been the same.
The NCAA was wrong, but what's done is done, and you have to beat the opponent you're presented with. Villanova did; Temple didn't. Let's see what happens next year.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Comparing the opponents
As I’ve discussed in this blog all week, I differ with the NCAA tournament committee’s decision to seed Villanova higher than Temple in the upcoming tournament. However, regardless of what I believe, it’s going to come down to whichever team goes further. Matchups or not, the best teams usually advance the farthest in the tournament, so now it’s time to turn my attention to the opposition. In the interest of not looking ahead, I’ll only look at the opponents for the first round at this time.
No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 15 Robert Morris
South Region
Thursday, 12:30 p.m.
The Colonials began the season 0-3, and finished 20-11 before winning the Northeast Conference championship. They defeated Quinnipiac, 52-50, in the tournament final. They are making their second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance, and are led by freshmen Karon Abraham, who has 13.4 points per game. They have won just one tournament game, defeating Georgia Southern in 1983.
No. 5 Temple vs. No. 12 Cornell East Region
Friday, 12:30 p.m.
Cornell is the only team in this year’s tournament that legitimately earned its automatic bid, winning the Ivy League, the only conference that determines its champion during the regular season. Cornell was 27-4 this year, one loss less than Temple, and won their third straight conference title. Three of those losses came to Big East teams Seton Hall and Syracuse, and national title favorite Kansas, 71-66. Kansas beat Temple, 84-52.
Senior Ryan Wittman leads the Big Red with 17.5 points per game for a team that is generally recognized as having its best season in team history.
I see no reason Villanova should lose in the first round. There is speculation that Cornell could upset Temple, as always happens with a 5-12 matchup. If it were a regular season game, I’d pick Temple and I’m not going to change my mind now.
No. 2 Villanova vs. No. 15 Robert Morris
South Region
Thursday, 12:30 p.m.
The Colonials began the season 0-3, and finished 20-11 before winning the Northeast Conference championship. They defeated Quinnipiac, 52-50, in the tournament final. They are making their second consecutive NCAA tournament appearance, and are led by freshmen Karon Abraham, who has 13.4 points per game. They have won just one tournament game, defeating Georgia Southern in 1983.
No. 5 Temple vs. No. 12 Cornell East Region
Friday, 12:30 p.m.
Cornell is the only team in this year’s tournament that legitimately earned its automatic bid, winning the Ivy League, the only conference that determines its champion during the regular season. Cornell was 27-4 this year, one loss less than Temple, and won their third straight conference title. Three of those losses came to Big East teams Seton Hall and Syracuse, and national title favorite Kansas, 71-66. Kansas beat Temple, 84-52.
Senior Ryan Wittman leads the Big Red with 17.5 points per game for a team that is generally recognized as having its best season in team history.
I see no reason Villanova should lose in the first round. There is speculation that Cornell could upset Temple, as always happens with a 5-12 matchup. If it were a regular season game, I’d pick Temple and I’m not going to change my mind now.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
This is the last time I'll bring it up
The day was December 13, 2009. Villanova was undefeated and ranked third in the country. Temple was 7-2 and unheralded. It was a typical rivalry game situation between two Big 5 teams, and in typical fashion, the highly-touted team went down at the hands of the team no one was talking about.
Juan Fernandez, possibly the Owls’ breakout star of the year, dropped 33 points and had four assists in Temple’s upset of Villanova, 75-65. Scottie Reynolds led the Wildcats with 23 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
The problem with calling it an upset was that immediately following the game, Villanova coach Jay Wright asked reporters to refrain from calling it an upset. In his mind, Temple always was the better team.
This is a fact that people just won’t believe. After all, it was Villanova that started the season with high hopes a season after advancing to the Final Four. Despite two straight NCAA tournament appearances, Temple was still seeking its first win in the big dance since 2001.
Except that Villanova is a squad that has just three seniors, albeit one of them -Reynolds- is probably the best player in the Big East. They have three talented juniors, and the rest of the team is made up of underclassmen. The Wildcats couldn’t keep their success up all year, and Villanova did indeed hit their wall late in the season.
On the positive side, Villanova was third in the nation in points per game with 82.5, led by Reynolds with 18.5.
Temple is also young, but its most heralded player coming into the season was junior Lavoy Allen, and the Owls play a stingy defense. Allen averaged a double-double with 11.5 points and 10.9 rebounds for the season. This was the year Temple finally did what it should do every year by separating itself from the rest of the Atlantic 10. They also didn’t let up with a higher number of underclassmen on the roster.
Temple had no individual in the national top 10 in any category, nor was it team top 10.
Following its win over Villanova, Temple went undefeated in the city and won the unofficial Big 5 title. Villanova finished with just one loss.
To Temple.
Despite the loss, Villanova was given the higher seed in the national championship tournament.
Juan Fernandez, possibly the Owls’ breakout star of the year, dropped 33 points and had four assists in Temple’s upset of Villanova, 75-65. Scottie Reynolds led the Wildcats with 23 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
The problem with calling it an upset was that immediately following the game, Villanova coach Jay Wright asked reporters to refrain from calling it an upset. In his mind, Temple always was the better team.
This is a fact that people just won’t believe. After all, it was Villanova that started the season with high hopes a season after advancing to the Final Four. Despite two straight NCAA tournament appearances, Temple was still seeking its first win in the big dance since 2001.
Except that Villanova is a squad that has just three seniors, albeit one of them -Reynolds- is probably the best player in the Big East. They have three talented juniors, and the rest of the team is made up of underclassmen. The Wildcats couldn’t keep their success up all year, and Villanova did indeed hit their wall late in the season.
On the positive side, Villanova was third in the nation in points per game with 82.5, led by Reynolds with 18.5.
Temple is also young, but its most heralded player coming into the season was junior Lavoy Allen, and the Owls play a stingy defense. Allen averaged a double-double with 11.5 points and 10.9 rebounds for the season. This was the year Temple finally did what it should do every year by separating itself from the rest of the Atlantic 10. They also didn’t let up with a higher number of underclassmen on the roster.
Temple had no individual in the national top 10 in any category, nor was it team top 10.
Following its win over Villanova, Temple went undefeated in the city and won the unofficial Big 5 title. Villanova finished with just one loss.
To Temple.
Despite the loss, Villanova was given the higher seed in the national championship tournament.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Temple vs. Villanova, common opponents
The second blog in my angry rant about Villanova getting a higher seed than Temple. This one explores the teams’ common opponents. Villanova gets some credit, but the anger is still there.
Georgetown vs. Temple, 46-45 win vs. Villanova, split
St. John’s vs. Temple, 55-48 win vs. Villanova, 81-71 loss
Seton Hall vs. Temple, 71-65 loss vs. Villanova, 81-71 loss
St. Joe’s vs. Temple, lost twice vs. Villanova, 97-89 loss
Penn vs. Temple, 60-45 loss vs. Villanova, 103-65 loss
LaSalle vs. Temple, lost twice vs. Villanova, 81-63 loss
Dayton vs. Temple, 49-41 loss vs. Villanova, 71-65 loss
Fordham vs. Temple, 62-45 loss vs. Villanova, 96-58 loss
Delaware vs. Temple, 76-56 loss vs. Villanova, 97-63 loss
What jumps out to me is why did Villanova play Fordham and Dayton in non-conference games? Two Atlantic 10 teams going up against one of the best teams in the Big East? Shouldn’t the Wildcats be building their resume against superior competition?
Villanova falls into the category of teams that believes its non-conference schedule is so hard, it can relax a little when it comes to non-conference scheduling, and the NCAA tournament committee validated this thinking by seeding them so high. Actually, it’s good to see the Wildcats play teams from a respectable mid-major rather than scheduling Big Sky and MAAC opponents. Clearly, Georgetown, St. John’s and Seton Hall had the same mindset when they scheduled Temple.
As for the results, Temple gave dangerous Georgetown a close game, while Villanova both beat and lost to the Hoyas in conference play. Temple beat no one Villanova couldn’t beat, while Villanova beat both Georgetown and St. John’s.
On paper, Villanova seems to have a slight edge. On the court, Temple beat them.
Georgetown vs. Temple, 46-45 win vs. Villanova, split
St. John’s vs. Temple, 55-48 win vs. Villanova, 81-71 loss
Seton Hall vs. Temple, 71-65 loss vs. Villanova, 81-71 loss
St. Joe’s vs. Temple, lost twice vs. Villanova, 97-89 loss
Penn vs. Temple, 60-45 loss vs. Villanova, 103-65 loss
LaSalle vs. Temple, lost twice vs. Villanova, 81-63 loss
Dayton vs. Temple, 49-41 loss vs. Villanova, 71-65 loss
Fordham vs. Temple, 62-45 loss vs. Villanova, 96-58 loss
Delaware vs. Temple, 76-56 loss vs. Villanova, 97-63 loss
What jumps out to me is why did Villanova play Fordham and Dayton in non-conference games? Two Atlantic 10 teams going up against one of the best teams in the Big East? Shouldn’t the Wildcats be building their resume against superior competition?
Villanova falls into the category of teams that believes its non-conference schedule is so hard, it can relax a little when it comes to non-conference scheduling, and the NCAA tournament committee validated this thinking by seeding them so high. Actually, it’s good to see the Wildcats play teams from a respectable mid-major rather than scheduling Big Sky and MAAC opponents. Clearly, Georgetown, St. John’s and Seton Hall had the same mindset when they scheduled Temple.
As for the results, Temple gave dangerous Georgetown a close game, while Villanova both beat and lost to the Hoyas in conference play. Temple beat no one Villanova couldn’t beat, while Villanova beat both Georgetown and St. John’s.
On paper, Villanova seems to have a slight edge. On the court, Temple beat them.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Apparently, College Basketball Games Don't Matter Either
My favorite college football national championship game debate has always been that of the 1993 season, when Notre Dame defeated Florida State in a regular season game, both teams finished with one loss, and Florida State was given the national title over Notre Dame. It was clear at that point that the regular season games really don't matter, despite what the NCAA would have you believe.
On Sunday night, we learned what the NCAA thinks of regular season college basketball games.
On December 13, 2009, Temple defeated Villanova, 75-65. Temple went on to earn the No. 1 seed in its conference tournament, then won its third consecutive Atlantic 10 championship, including a tough finals win over Richmond. Meanwhile, Villanova would go on to lose four of its final six regular season games, and didn't win a game in its conference tournament. The Big East is undeniably the best conference in the country, and herein lies the problem.
On Sunday, the NCAA revealed its 65-team field to determine this year's national champion. The seedings and matchups were announced, and when it was all said and done, the Owls had to be left scratching their heads. Temple was seeded fifth in its region, behind No. 1 Kentucky, No. 2 West Virginia, No. 3 New Mexico and No. 4 Wisconsin. SEC Champion Kentucky should be considered a favorite to win the national title and West Virginia won the Big East title. Wisconsin was 23-8 in an improved Big 10.
But New Mexico? Come on. New Mexico was good in the Mountain West, an inferior conference to the A-10 in my opinion, and the Lobos failed to win the conference title. But whatever. Let's move on to the next region.
No. 1 Duke. Won the ACC title. Good seeding, despite what some experts believe. No. 2 Villanova.
What?!?
Villanova doesn't deserve a 2 seed at all, but it really doesn't deserve a 2 seed ahead of Temple. And this is where the NCAA tournament committee clearly favored the strength of conference over all else, including the fact that the Wildcats didn't fare particularly well at the end of this tough schedule. This would be annoying if Temple had been downgraded to a 3 seed, but it's outright atrocious considering the Owls are No. 5.
As for the matchups, Temple has a tough Cornell team that won the Ivy League title and had a better record by one game. It's an infamous 5-12 matchup, meaning Temple really needs to be prepared to avoid the easiest upset among seeds in a tournament named March Madness. So a victim of seeding, they may be out after one round.
Villanova has a chance to advance to its second consecutive Final Four, but better beware Richmond in a possible second round game. It might be the most telling game of the tournament. If Villanova easily wins that game, fine. If it struggles or loses, the NCAA needs to rethink its committee and rethink its seedings.
Maybe even consider factoring in results of games played on the court.
On Sunday night, we learned what the NCAA thinks of regular season college basketball games.
On December 13, 2009, Temple defeated Villanova, 75-65. Temple went on to earn the No. 1 seed in its conference tournament, then won its third consecutive Atlantic 10 championship, including a tough finals win over Richmond. Meanwhile, Villanova would go on to lose four of its final six regular season games, and didn't win a game in its conference tournament. The Big East is undeniably the best conference in the country, and herein lies the problem.
On Sunday, the NCAA revealed its 65-team field to determine this year's national champion. The seedings and matchups were announced, and when it was all said and done, the Owls had to be left scratching their heads. Temple was seeded fifth in its region, behind No. 1 Kentucky, No. 2 West Virginia, No. 3 New Mexico and No. 4 Wisconsin. SEC Champion Kentucky should be considered a favorite to win the national title and West Virginia won the Big East title. Wisconsin was 23-8 in an improved Big 10.
But New Mexico? Come on. New Mexico was good in the Mountain West, an inferior conference to the A-10 in my opinion, and the Lobos failed to win the conference title. But whatever. Let's move on to the next region.
No. 1 Duke. Won the ACC title. Good seeding, despite what some experts believe. No. 2 Villanova.
What?!?
Villanova doesn't deserve a 2 seed at all, but it really doesn't deserve a 2 seed ahead of Temple. And this is where the NCAA tournament committee clearly favored the strength of conference over all else, including the fact that the Wildcats didn't fare particularly well at the end of this tough schedule. This would be annoying if Temple had been downgraded to a 3 seed, but it's outright atrocious considering the Owls are No. 5.
As for the matchups, Temple has a tough Cornell team that won the Ivy League title and had a better record by one game. It's an infamous 5-12 matchup, meaning Temple really needs to be prepared to avoid the easiest upset among seeds in a tournament named March Madness. So a victim of seeding, they may be out after one round.
Villanova has a chance to advance to its second consecutive Final Four, but better beware Richmond in a possible second round game. It might be the most telling game of the tournament. If Villanova easily wins that game, fine. If it struggles or loses, the NCAA needs to rethink its committee and rethink its seedings.
Maybe even consider factoring in results of games played on the court.
Let's all have a cup of joe
So the liberals have their answer to the Tea Party, and it's the creatively-named Coffee Party (I never would've thought of that). The objective of the Coffee Party is to bring civility back to politics, something I thought I'd never hear from the liberal left, notorious for violent clashes with authorities during the 1960's. Like the Tea Party, they believe we have a one-party system, although they call that party "corporations" rather than "socialists on the left, socialists on the right." Like the Tea Party, they're concerned about taxes, but unlike the Tea people, they also realize we need some taxes to pay for government services.
They also champion the cause of Campaign Finance Reform, and perhaps the biggest similarity between the two groups is the wide range of beliefs among followers, including Anarchism.
And like the Tea Party, they don't partake in their party name's beverage of choice.
They sprang up with little fanfare over the weekend, with four different gatherings in four states, as opposed to the Tea Party, which had the unrelenting support of Fox News. Come on MSNBC, where's the love? Of course, it goes in with our society's tendency to ignore peaceful movements and focus on the outspoken morons that call the president Hitler.
So I'll do my part to spread the word. So far, I've seen "chapters" on the East and West Coasts, as well as the Midwest.
I personally think the Coffee Party is a good idea, because it actually does bother me how action-packed politics has become. It's supposed to be intellectual discourse, but of course, it's being ruined by the right. (Just kidding conservatives; you know I love you.)
So let's all bring intelligence and civility to politics; let's all have a cup of joe.
Except me. Coffee bothers my esophagus, so I'll be drinking tea.
They also champion the cause of Campaign Finance Reform, and perhaps the biggest similarity between the two groups is the wide range of beliefs among followers, including Anarchism.
And like the Tea Party, they don't partake in their party name's beverage of choice.
They sprang up with little fanfare over the weekend, with four different gatherings in four states, as opposed to the Tea Party, which had the unrelenting support of Fox News. Come on MSNBC, where's the love? Of course, it goes in with our society's tendency to ignore peaceful movements and focus on the outspoken morons that call the president Hitler.
So I'll do my part to spread the word. So far, I've seen "chapters" on the East and West Coasts, as well as the Midwest.
I personally think the Coffee Party is a good idea, because it actually does bother me how action-packed politics has become. It's supposed to be intellectual discourse, but of course, it's being ruined by the right. (Just kidding conservatives; you know I love you.)
So let's all bring intelligence and civility to politics; let's all have a cup of joe.
Except me. Coffee bothers my esophagus, so I'll be drinking tea.
World Cup of Beer
Some of you might already know how I love my contests. Well, I have another idea, and this time the idea is to broaden my horizons when it comes to drinking (something some would call an impossible task). So this summer, or beginning as soon as possible, my plan is to hold a "contest" in which I drink 32 beers, 1 from each representative country in this summer's World Cup. I have some ideas, like Guiness for Ireland, but others are puzzling, like what's a good beer from Slovenia? Suggestions are welcome, and there might be a prize if you suggest the beer that ends up winning.
For those that don't know, the following is a list of all countries that will compete in this summer's World Cup. All suggestions, the more creative the better and as many as possible, are welcome.
Group A
South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France
Group B
Argentina
Nigeria
South Korea
Greece
Group C
England
United States
Algeria
Slovenia
Group D
Germany
Australia
Serbia
Ghana
Group E
Netherlands
Denmark
Japan
Cameroon
Group F
Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia
Group G
Brazil
North Korea
Ivory Coast
Portugal
Group H
Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile
For those that don't know, the following is a list of all countries that will compete in this summer's World Cup. All suggestions, the more creative the better and as many as possible, are welcome.
Group A
South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France
Group B
Argentina
Nigeria
South Korea
Greece
Group C
England
United States
Algeria
Slovenia
Group D
Germany
Australia
Serbia
Ghana
Group E
Netherlands
Denmark
Japan
Cameroon
Group F
Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia
Group G
Brazil
North Korea
Ivory Coast
Portugal
Group H
Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile
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