Did you miss me?

Opening thoughts: So much for a relaxing 3-day weekend. I was either doing schoolwork or other things that had to be done, such as getting my car e-checked and new license plates. Sunday, we traveled to the Jeffersonville Outlet malls. If you'd like to know, my favorite places to shop are: Nike, Polo, Eddie Bauer, Brooks Brothers, and Le Gourmet Chef (so many free samples, so delicious). It was also my mom's birthday. Today, before coming back, the grandparents came over for barbecued chicken (yummy). Now, a very busy and stressful 3 weeks awaits until we reach Spring Break.

We have a lot of hoops to talk about, so let's start with Saturday:

• Miami 65, Wichita St. 58. It was just a normal home game for Miami. The Hawks ran out to a big lead, let it slip away, but made the plays down the stretch to win. Danny Horace was the best player on the floor, scoring 24 and grabbing 9 rebounds. Nate VanderSluis was the difference for Miami, scoring 8 points and playing by far his best game in a Miami uniform. The Shockers' two leading scorers combined for just 3 points, and overall, WSU wasn't too impressive. 3 straight losses have the Shockers in bubble trouble. Miami can clinch the MAC East with a win at Akron on Wed. night.
• Illinois 75, Iowa 65. The Hawkeyes wouldn't go away, but Illinois was too much in the end. Dee Brown and Deron Williams took their respective games to another level in the 2nd half when they needed it. Both guys looked for their shot more and controlled Iowa defensively.
  
• Iowa St. 63, Kansas 61, OT. Curtis Stinson scored all 7 Cyclone points in overtime and had 29 for the game, dissecting KU's zone all by himself. 7 straight wins have them in the NCAAs right now and Stinson is making a late run for Big 12 player of the year. More on Kansas's woes later.
• Nevada 74, Vermont 64. Nevada may be the most improved team in the nation this year. At the beginning of the year, they got served, big-time, at Kansas. Now, they have the makings of another Sweet 16 run, I was that impressed. Nick Fazekas fre-zekeed Vermont, scoring 31 and grabbing 14 boards, dominating at the offensive end, and by far outplaying V's Taylor Coppenrath. The America East finals may not be enough for Vermont to get in the NCAAs. They're a gritty team, but they still lack a quality win.
• LSU 77, Florida 73. The Tigers had one of the better weeks of any team in the nation, playing their way into the NCAAs right now. Brandon Bass has stepped up for LSU, scoring 27 to lead the way in this one.
  
• Alabama 87, South Carolina 68. Thanks for playing Gamecocks, you now enjoy one-hit wonder status. The Tide hit 13/27 3s in the win. Bama has games with LSU, UK, and Mississippi St. left. They have a chance to end up with as high as a 2 seed if they finish strong.
• Oklahoma St. 85, Texas Tech 56. You don't want to play the Cowboys right now, they're rolling. They are much better offensively, and surprisingly defensively with JamesOn Curry in the starting lineup. He frees up everyone else to play their game. This was one of the worst offensive games I've seen a Bob Knight-coached team play. They struggled coming off their win vs. KU.
  
• Cincinnati 72, UAB 69. UAB is in real trouble now, falling to 6-6 in CUSA. The Bearcats still aren't getting consistent point guard play, which will be their eventual downfall, but they made enough plays inside to win the game.
• Minnesota 52, Ohio St. 50. The Gophers cling to the bubble after pulling this one out at home. 9-7 in the Big 10 I don't think is good enough to warrant a bid, so the Gophers need to win out to finish 10-6 in the league.
• Boston College 65, Syracuse 60. The Eagles needed this win for their confidence after everyone has told them they're overrated since losing at Notre Dame. Syracuse is the one that's overrated. I could camp out at the foul line in the middle of that zone and score 10 points. You can't play zone defense with your hands by your sides. Take advantage of your long arms and athleticism, play with your hands up Orange. It will lead to deflections and turnovers and make it hard for teams to score and move the ball around. The game was won up front by BC. Smith and Dudley combined for 37 points and 20 boards, and the Eagles won the glass 37-28, 16-8 on the offensive glass.
  
• Kentucky 94, Mississippi St. 78. You know you've played bad defense if Kentucky scores 94 on you. The Bulldogs had no fight in them whatsoever in this game. By the end, it was a laugher, and I was watching the NBA Slam Dunk contest, that in itself should tell you something. The Bulldogs are 6-6 in the SEC and need help to get in the NCAAs.
• Pacific 73, UTEP 66. Pacific showed they're worthy of a Top 20 national ranking beating a very game UTEP team. UTEP showed that if they make it to the WAC finals, I think they should get in. Omar Thomas is a quality inside player who can hang with anyone, as he went for 21 and 12 against a strong Pacific front line. UP is very efficient on offense, shooting 48% in this game and they can do it inside and outside.

Sunday:

• Georgia Tech 76, Florida St. 75. Ironically, it was B.J. Elder's 2 free throws with less than a second left that kept Tech in the NCAAs for now. Elder led the way with 22 as they avoided the trap that is Tallahassee. Tech is 6-6 in the ACC with Duke coming to their house this week.
  
• Villanova 80, Pittsburgh 72. Nova showed why they're dangerous, dictating tempo with their shot-making, forcing the Panthers to play offense, which isn't their forte. The Cats shot 47% from the floor, outstanding against a usually stout Pitt defense. Nova was 12/23 from 3, simply outstanding.
• Stanford 78, UCLA 65. The 3rd bid from the Pac10 is Stanford's to lose, now that they have swept UCLA, their closest challenger. Even more impressive, they did it without leading scorer Dan Grunfeld, who is out with a knee injury. However, Chris Hernandez had 37 for Stanford. Can he keep that kind of play up the rest of the year?
• Indiana 70, Michigan 63. I can't believe I'm saying this, but the Hoosiers are still alive for the NCAAs. Now 7-5 in the Big10 and with Bracey Wright back, if they can finish 10-6 and win a game in the Big 10 tourney, they'll probably get in. To do that, they'll have to beat Purdue and Northwestern at home, and either Michigan St. at home or win at Wisconsin.
• Duke 102, Wake Forest 92. This game is why Wake seems incapable of winning a national championship. PLAY DEFENSE!!!! They have not proven they can play defense away from home. Duke repeatedly drove through the Wake defense as if the Red Sea had just parted. This was a Coach K kind of game. This was a throw everything and the kitchen sink into the game, we aren't going to lose. Starting 3 walk-ons, he sent the message, "Get in their face, be physical, send a message." 5 seconds, a hard foul on Chris Paul. Later in the possession, another hard foul. Coach K gets upset, yelling at the officials to call it both ways. The crowd then really got into it, the starters came in for Duke, and it was over. The tone was set, and J.J. Redick was, en fuego.
  

And, tonight:

• UConn 88, Notre Dame 74. UConn is young, but they are going to be awfully good. Marcus Williams, the sophomore point guard, had 17 points, 12 assists, and 9 boards. Wow. If he and Charlie Villaneuva can keep this kind of play up, you never know. Then again, they did this against Notre Dame, not the greatest of defensive teams. But, the progress UConn has shown, especially in the last month has them on track for some kind of March run.
• New Mexico 65, Utah 54. If you don't bring your A game to The Pit, you will lose, which was what happened to the Utes. This is what worries me about Utah in the Tourney. Andrew Bogut had 15 points and 13 rebounds, but no one else stepped up. The supporting cast of Utah is lacking, which is why I think they'll go out in the 1st round. New Mexico is 20-6, and their coach said they deserve to be on the bubble if they won tonight. Well, they won, so let's give them a look. They're 7-4 in the MWC and did beat Tennessee, but they're a bottom-feeder in the SEC. Nothing really stands out, but 20 wins I think does put them at least on the bubble.
• Oklahoma 71, Kansas 63. The Jayhawks have lost 3 straight for the first time since 1994. They didn't show up at all in the 1st half, came back in the 2nd half, but the Sooners were too much, and frankly deserved to win this game. For a team with 3 senior starters, I'm asking this question too much: Where's the sense of urgency???? That, and I don't think Kansas is that outstanding. They're not a good perimeter shooting team, they have trouble creating their own shots, and like tonight, they get outrebounded too often. You look at the stats and I see they shot 53% from the floor, but most of that was in the 2nd half. KU has made the Big 12 wide open and now must play one of the hottest teams in the country this weekend in Oklahoma St.

As mentioned earlier, I watched some of the Slam Dunk contest, and came away impressed with the creativity shown by Amare Stoudamire and the winner J.R. Smith. When Smith jumped over Kenyon Martin, took his pass and windmilled it home was impressive. But All-Star weekend was at its best when Michael Jordan was in the Slam Dunk, and Larry Bird was in the 3 point shootout. I'll never forget Bird's last Shootout championship. He needed to make his last 5 shots to win. After making the first 4, he shot the 5th, turned, put his finger in the air (#1) and started walking away, knowing the shot was going in, and it did.

1 week until the beginning of March, less than 2 weeks until Championship Week, and less than 3 until Selection Sunday. Yesssssss!!!!!