Taking a spin around the world of sports

It would not be surprising to see three or four Big East teams in the Elite Eight, and even two or three in the Final Four. Of course, anyone can get hot in March, but the Big East teams have the advantage of having faced the heat all season.

-Brandon Christol, Feb. 23, 2009, from the blog "Wait 'til this Year"


I know, I shouldn't toot my own horn, but it's my blog and I needed to make myself feel good about something after a weekend filled with tragedy and despair.

Louisville had a chance to make it three Big East teams in the Final Four, but the Cardinals--normally a second half team--absolutely folded up their tent in the second half against Michigan State on Sunday. They were outscored 34-25 in the latter half, and shot 10-18 from the free throw line for the game. They shot just 38% from the field and were outrebounded by eight. Not a strong performance by the top overall seed in the tournament. So only two Big East teams will head to Detroit, but still an incredible tournament for the conference.

On the other side of the bracket, I cannot wait to see Villanova's defense go up against UNC's offense. North Carolina has averaged 89 points in their four tourney victories, but Villanova shut down a good Duke team in the regional semifinal and has allowed just 66 points per game in the tourney. They play great team defense, but UNC has numerous weapons. Should be fun.

One reason I'm left with zero (that's right: zip, zilch, nada) Final Four teams in my bracket is because of those all-important free throws. Here are the free throw numbers for my Final Four teams in the games in which they were eliminated:

Memphis: 18-32 (56%)
Pitt: 21-29 (72%)
Louisville: 10-18 (55%)
Oklahoma: 10-16 (62%)

That's 62% overall. My teams just kept shooting themselves in the foot when they stepped up to the charity stripe. Oh well, you live and you learn. I learned that a bracket can go downhill faster than Bode Miller: I had 14 of 16 Sweet Sixteen teams, yet none of my Final Four picks are booking hotels in Motown.

The Tiger and the O'Hair

Tiger's back, baby. He trailed by five strokes entering the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but he stormed back to tie it and nailed a 15-footer for birdie on the 72nd hole to win by one. You gotta love it. Tiger's been solid but not quite Tigerish since returning from injury, and then he puts it all together in his final tournament prior to the Masters, which starts April 9. Tiger is now in 12th place in the 2009 FedEx Cup standings despite playing just three tournaments while everyone else in the top 30 has played at least twice that many.

Gregg to close for Cubs

In one of the few decisions that remained for Lou Piniella this spring, Kevin Gregg was named the Cubs closer Sunday, while Carlos Marmol will be the primary set-up man. Gregg has more experience closing (29 saves last year, 32 in 2007) and has not allowed a run in 8.1 innings this spring. I've always thought the closer position is overrated (since the game is often decided in the 7th or 8th inning rather than the 9th), so I'm not too worked up about this decision. It will be nice to have someone with Marmol's stuff to bring on in the late innings, as was the case last year when Marmol put out many a fire. And if Gregg struggles or gets hurt, Marmol should be able to fill in nicely.

Yes, there was snow on the ground today in Chicago, but have no fear--baseball season is just a week away.