0 comments by Matt Zemek on 3/28/2016
The North Carolina Tar Heels won the East Region, offering the least surprising final outcome of any of the four regions. Oklahoma would likely occupy second place among the four regional champions in terms of meeting the bracket expectations of most fans and pundits, but Carolina clearly rates first. Indiana had no answer for UNC’s […]
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Sweet Jesus — what else is there to say about the Midwest Region after THAT? What’s THAT? Sunday, of course. Easter witnessed a resurrection almost as improbable as Texas A&M’s Palm Sunday escape from Northern Iowa the week before — and in a certain sense, Syracuse’s surge past Virginia was more shocking to the senses. […]
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The practice of re-seeding the Final Four is not being actively discussed. It’s not likely to happen at any point in the near or moderately distant future. We all have our opinions on the matter, but this won’t be an editorial urging one position over another. Simply sit back and contemplate how different the Final […]
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We’ve looked at Final Four appearances solely through the lens of the SEC, but what about the Power 5 conferences in general? The bluebloods and old-money powers are schools you know about. What can be said of the Power 5 schools at the other end of the spectrum? Not a single Final Four school this […]
Hugh Durham coaching Georgia at the 1983 Final Four in Albuquerque.
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See that man in the cover image? That’s Hugh Durham, selected for induction into the College Basketball Hall of Fame last week. We assessed his career, noting one specific statistic which separates him from all his brothers — past and present — in the coaching fraternity. Bundled inside that statistic (go read the piece) is […]
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The Final Four is set, with seeds 2, 2, 10 and 1 headed for Houston. The paths of the various regions offer cause for an update of seeding histories in the Big Dance. Consider this a trip through the NCAA tournament garden over time… The West Region once again featured a 2 seed in the […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 3/27/2016
The West Region, won by Oklahoma over Oregon in Saturday’s final, offered an enduring reminder of a central NCAA tournament bracket truth: A well-placed 2 seed often trumps a 1 seed. A review of the final appears here. Oklahoma could have been a 2 seed in the Midwest with Virginia. It could have been a […]
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The South Region witnessed a ferocious Elite Eight game on Saturday, as Villanova subdued Kansas in a street fight to make the second Final Four of the Jay Wright era. Instant reaction at partner site The Comeback can be found here. An on-site report by Michael Grant of The Comeback can be found here. Those two pieces […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 3/26/2016
After Thursday’s utter absence of drama, Friday’s heavyweights had to be on guard in the Sweet 16. No problem, said Virginia and North Carolina. The Cavaliers and Tar Heels moved within one step of a 1981 Final Four national semifinal reunion. Meanwhile, Notre Dame and Syracuse both scored surprising victories against the run of play […]
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The Sweet 16 on Friday cleared the very low bar set by Thursday’s regional semifinals. Two thrillers accompanied two decisive wins, as the Elite Eight acquired its final, full shape. Four No. 1 seeds are in the Elite Eight for the first time since 2009. Four ACC teams are in the Elite Eight, two of […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 3/25/2016
On a night devoid of Sweet 16 drama, four teams cruised into the Elite Eight. None of them had to face excruciating endgame pressure. None of them had to contemplate their NCAA tournament mortality in the final few minutes of regulation. The fact that four teams stand on relatively equal footing in terms of the […]
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Thursday’s Sweet 16 games did not produce memorable moments or dramatic stories, so a notebook approach is the best way to sum up the night. The winners will get their evaluations, but first, we turn to the losing teams, as the NCAA tournament field shrank from 16 to 12. MARYLAND Of the four losing schools […]
0 comments by Matt Zemek on 3/24/2016
The arrival of the 2016 Sweet 16 means that it’s the silver anniversary of the 1991 Sweet 16, with the anniversary of the 1991 Final Four not that far off. It’s an anniversary which contains a mixture of sweetness and sadness… and also some disgust at what America has become. First, the basketball, which is […]
University of North Carolinas coach Dean Smith, right, reacts to the closing moments of their loss to the University of Arkansas in the NCAA Final Four game, Saturday, April 1, 1995, Seattle, Wash. Arkansas won 75-68 to advance to Mondays championship game. (AP Photo/Eric Draper)
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North Carolina and Virginia certainly aren’t boasting about this reality, but it’s there: The Tar Heels and Cavaliers face more pressure than any other Sweet 16 programs. Yes, that includes Oklahoma. Yes, that even includes Kansas. One could conduct a genuine debate about Virginia versus Kansas — that’s a close call — but ultimately, the […]
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The cover photo above shows Hugh Durham and Adolph Rupp. On the surface, it’s a younger coach talking to one of the greatest coaches in college basketball history. The context surrounding that photo contains a much more fascinating story, one which serves as a portal to Hugh Durham’s taste of basketball immortality. The news broke […]
