- Stephon Curry is the best 12-year-old basketball player I’ve ever seen. I understand now why the big schools missed out on him. They didn’t think to scout the middle school courts at recess.
- Maryland fell asleep defensively in the first half, maybe not respecting Curry’s babyface, but did what they needed to do in the second. Davidson pu up 43 points in the first half and only 27 in the second. That’s promising for the Terps.
- I didn’t see the game, but BC won pretty much how I thought they would. They kept banging and chipping and eventually pulled ahead. They have a perfect win-your-first-round-game team.
- Don’t get too caught up in Carolina’s mid-game struggles. That’s extremely common for talented 1 seeds and not always a bad sign. That team needs constant reminders to stay focused. Michigan State will be no slouch tomorrow though. They put a pounding on Marquette. I’m not sure the Spartans can score enough to upset the Heels though.
- Remember early this season when I said that this Duke team reminded me of the 1995 team that collapsed? Some thought I was crazy. Well, I might have been off by one. This team was really a lot like 1996, the last Duke team to be upset in the first round by a mid-major with quick guards. In ’96, Duke went 8-8 in the ACC, lost in the first round of the ACC tournament and again in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Sound familiar? The one key difference is that expectations were fairly low in ’96. In that regard, this team was more like ’95 in that they were supposed to be good, but the pieces just didn’t fit together properly.
- As for the game itself, Duke would have done better if anyone other than Paulus had stepped up. McRoberts tried (at times), but just has no idea AT ALL how to assert his will on a game. DeMarcus Nelson was damn near invisible and Jon Scheyer simply can’t score against a good defender.
- Paulus has a little punk in him. That little “accidental” bump last night that nearly started a fracas was not the first time I’ve seen him do that this year. When guys play him tight, he tries to get physical with them like that. I actually respect him for being scrappy though. He was the one Blue Devil who seemed determined to not lose. Unfortunately for him and Duke, he was outmatched by Eric Maynor.
- I went 15-1 in my picks yesterday, missing only that Duke game. That’s the best first day I’ve had in memory!
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