The Game Everyone Was Talking About

No Elvis Mentions Here - #2 Tennessee 66, #1 Memphis 62: The first half looked like two teenagers having sex for the first time - lots of awkward energy, regular timeouts in a vain attempt to maintain control, and utter exhaustion after five minutes.

Thankfully, order was restored by the second half, and awkward apologies and tears were replaced by quality ball. Tennessee played inspired defense down the stretch to hold a slim lead, and proved they can win despite an off day for Chris Lofton. (And an off-day he had - only 7 points on 2-for-11 shooting.) Even in defeat, Memphis showed they haven’t lost too much zip on their fastball despite a steady diet from the Conference USA pupu platter for the last month.

ESPN’s coverage seemed surprisingly understated - which has to be the first time anyone has said that about a game broadcast by Dick Vitale. Too much Priscilla Pressley to be sure, but on the whole, the Mouse did an alright job of presenting the game without too much hype, even with the Gameday team on hand.

Two Games I Liked For No Good Reason

Jeykll and Hide - Ohio 69, George Mason 57: No offense to the Bobcats, but the story of this game is Mason’s utter collapse. After entering the break with a 13-point lead thanks to super-strong defense, the Patriots allowed the home squad to lap them in the second half, 50-25. When your team takes an entire half off … against a middle-of-the-table MAC team with less talent and no hopes of an at-large bid … chances are you aren’t going to look very good against stiffer competition come tournament time. Don’t think the selection committee won’t notice.

Keep the Coach’s Daddy off the Road - Oklahoma State 61, #5 Kansas 60: Milton Friedman would struggle to create a predictive model for Big XII ball this season. Kansas can’t close games despite having more overall talent than anyone. Texas looks hot now, but has a pair of embarrassing double-digit losses to lesser teams in-conference. Kansas State features both the league’s best player and its most inconsistent supporting cast. Oklahoma, Baylor, and A&M can all be described best with a shrug. In a choice between gambling on the Big XII tournament and taking up heroin, grab a syringe – it’s the better economic choice.

Three Games I Probably Should Care About, But Don’t

Bally Contains His Excitement - #18 Drake 71, #8 Butler 64: The picture to the left is the first thing that comes up when you search “drake” on Google Images. The only person we know from Drake is the girlfriend of former roommate and regular EDSBS commenter now_a_hoo. Based on his reports, her attention level is something akin to “mild amusement”. This screams “energized fan base” to us. When they win the Valley, we’ll start learning the players’ names.

Philly Team Wins; Fans Still Boo - Villanova 67, #13 Connecticut 65: In a conference with more teams than many professional leagues, every good team will lose one game they should have won, and every mediocre team will get at least one win over a good team. In a related story, only alums care about Big East regular season basketball now that the conference is supersized.

Ain’t Nothing But a G Thang - Kent State 65, #20 Saint Mary’s 57: This is a great road win for Kent, considering they come from a conference that hasn’t had multiple bids this century, and hasn’t won a game in the tournament since 2003. But with both squads sporting Top 30 RPIs, both the Golden Flashes and Gaels were making the tournament regardless of the result yesterday.

Four Games Worth One Line Apiece

#6 UCLA 75, Oregon 65: Bruins continue to sleepwalk through gimme wins, prove front runner status for “second weekend upset of the year”.

#14 Indiana 85, Northwestern 82: All Hoosier players show up for the game, but leave ability to play basketball in a message on Kelvin Sampson’s voicemail.

Miami (FL) 78, Maryland 63: Canes earn a tough win against a fellow thug team, promise to attempt to play well outside of Coral Gables.

Creighton 65, Oral Roberts 64: Jesuit school pads its resume by outscoring third-base Baptists.

Freakin’ scary.