The Best Tourney Ever?

As we came to the conclusion of the 2010 NCAA Tournament one should wonder, is this the best tournament we have ever seen?
Looking back, to the first and second rounds, we witnessed numerous overtime games, memorable buzzer beaters and UNI upsetting the number 1 overall seed (Kansas) in the tournament. Two number five seeds reached the final four in Indy, and Duke was the only number 1 seed to survive through all the turmoil leading up to the final four. Butler was America's team in the final four and also became the first mid major school to make it to the championship game since the NCAA went to the 65 team tournament. Not only that, but they were able to make it to Indianapolis where their campus was just 6 miles from where the games were played. Butler's semi final game against Michigan St. was a thriller as it went down to the wire. Michigan St. came up short as their hopes for returning to the championship game for the second strait year were broken by Butler's cinderella run. Going into the their game against Duke, Butler had won 25 strait games, the longest winning streak going into the championship in history. As for the championship game itself, it couldn't have gotten much better, as their were numerous lead changes, and the largest lead held in the game was 6 points by Duke early in the first half. Duke held off the Bulldogs in Lucas Oil Stadium for their 4th National Title. I don't want to take anything away from Duke, their win was well deserved as they continuously got better as the tournament went on, and were most definitely the best team left in the tournament when the final four began, but the real story belongs to Butler. Many made "Hoosier" comparisons to the Bulldogs improbable run. Butler's home gym is where the legendary "Hoosiers" won their Indiana State Championship. The majority of people didn't give Butler a chance to make it to the finals, but when you watched them play, you knew each player on that Butler team knew they belonged. They were one possession away from winning the National Title, one shot away from making history, and even though they lost, you can't take anything away from what those players and coaches endured. Imagine the story lines if sophomore Gordon Hayward would have hit that half court shot at the buzzer. And though it didn't have a story book ending, Butler accomplished something special and the 2009-2010 Bulldogs will never be forgotten for what they overcame.
This was the year of the underdog as teams such as Cornell, St. Mary's, Northern Iowa and of course Butler showed that they can run with the best of them. As a result we were able to witness in my opinion one of the best, if not the best tournament for many years to come. Again, this is why I call it the best time of the year.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

March Madness is finally here. Time for people to spend way to many hours evaluating each game in each region, as they fill out way too many brackets. Looking for potential sleeper teams to see who has the chance to make a cinderella run is only half the fun. Sitting on the couch or in your favorite sports bar watching game after game, either cheering because your team won or crying because the team you had going to the elite 8 got knocked out in the first round. This is the roller coaster we like to call the NCAA Mens Basketball tourney. "It's the most wonderful time of the year", indeed it is.

A few questions, and my answers.

Who will be in the final four?
Answer: Kansas, West Virginia, Kansas St., Duke: as of right now, this my prediction for the final four.

Potential Sleepers in each Region?
Answer: west=Butler...midwest=Tennessee...east=Temple...south=Notre Dame
these are teams that I believe can make a legitimate run in the tournament. They may not be your cinderella teams like George Mason a few years ago, but they can definitely spoil some brackets.

Cinderella Teams?
Answer: Siena from the south region is one of my cinderella picks. Their first round game is against a Purdue team that was playing way better during the middle season than at the end, not to mention their best player is out with a torn ACL. Siena is a team with senior leadership, which has proven to be a key aspect in small schools success in the tournament. I can see Siena making a run on their side of the bracket.
Another cinderella team in my opinion is Minnesota. Inconsistent during the season, but loaded with talent. They also made an unexpected run at the Big 10 title but came up short in the championship against Ohio St. If Minnesota can get passed Xavier, they have a chance to make some noise in the BIG DANCE.

National Champion?
Answer: Kansas Jayhawks. I picked the Jayhawks to win the tournament mid way through the season, and I'm sticking with it. Even though they are the overall #1 seed in the tourney, they may have the toughest road to the final four with teams like Ohio St.(2), Georgetown(3), Maryland(4), and even Michigan St. with the 5 seed. Despite this, I believe Kansas will roll into Indianapolis this year and cut down the nets.

NBA Update

The NBA season has entered the home stretch as there are only 20 more games, for most teams, left to be played before the NBA playoffs begin.
As of right now, the top three teams in conference stand like this.
EASTERN CONFERENCE
1. Cleveland Cavaliers
2. Orlando Magic
3. Boston Celtics

WESTERN CONFERENCE
1. LA Lakers
2. Dallas Mavericks
3. Denver Nuggets

Now the question is, will these standings of the top three positions change before the regular season is finished.

As for the eastern conference I see the Cavaliers holding on to the number one spot for the remainder of the season, Lebron is just too good plain and simple. Orlando in my opinion has established themselves as the second best team in the east behind the cavs. The three and four spot is where things may change. The Celtics and Atlanta Hawks are pretty even record wise, I can definitely see the Hawks sneaking into that number 3 spot over the Celtics during the remainder of the season.

In the West the Lakers will keep the number one spot. Kobe and the troops are ready to make another championship run, and they definitely want that home court advantage during the playoffs. Now comes the tricky part, as of right now the mavs hold a one game lead over the nuggets. I believe the Denver Nuggets are the only team to have a chance at beating the Lakers in the playoffs, so in that case, they will have to make a late run during the season to steal the number 2 spot from the mavs. The other team that could cause trouble for the top tier teams in the west would be the Utah Jazz, who many believe are the second best in the west as well. We'll see, only time will tell.

PLAYOFF PREDICTIONS
Semi finals= Cavaliers vs Magic, a rematch from a year ago
= Lakers vs Nuggets, another rematch from a year ago

Sleeper team in each conference

Atlanta Hawks and the Oklahoma City Thunder. These two teams are very similar in the fact that they can play with the best do to the fact that they are both very talented at every position but also play good team basketball. Wouldn't be surprised to see either team make a run and knock off a heavyweight in the playoffs.

-Sink