Wisconsin, Kentucky, U Conn and Florida in the final four - BLECH!
Stupid MSU/Michigan
I can't believe that program has been to two final fours since our trip in '97. It's beyond time to set things back in the right order.
I can't believe people keep referencing a "trip" that doesn't count.
Question: Will Kentucky ever be penalized by the NCAA for the "one and done pros" it recruits???? Isn't there some rule re graduation rates and scholarships or haven't the 'Cats reached that point?
Kentucky falls into that untouchable group just like Duke, UNC and UCLA. The NCAA will probably hold out as long as they can before handing out any penalties for a program like Kentucky.
Or they'll just penalize Cleveland St. instead.
This has been an outstanding tournament. However, if Kentucky makes the title game, I will have no interest in it. I'll start making the transition to MLB/Twins/Big Ten baseball that night.
Selection....I hope you're not too gun - Ho about the Twins. The boys of summer could lose 100 games.
Huge disappointment for Michigan State this season. They were long considered frontrunners for the Final Four, many experts picked them to win the title when the brackets came out, and they fell short in the Elite 8 in a game that most everyone expected the Spartans to prevail. The thing that makes their loss even worse is this was supposed to be their year to possibly win the title and now they are going to be in a major rebuild mode with the loss of Payne, Appling and quite possibly Harris as well. Izzo's Final Four streak for all of his 4-year players is over, and he collected just his second loss in the Elite 8 in eight games (2003 being his other Elite 8 loss). I thought MSU had a real shot at winning the title - certainly the top teams in college basketball this season are more watered down than normal, and it was timed perfectly with one of MSU's better teams in recent years. Just goes to show you even Izzo has teams that disappoint. When you consider the preseason outlook, this MSU team was never supposed to lose 9 games, they were never supposed to be a #4 seed, they were never supposed to miss out on the Final Four. You can blame injuries for some of that but still to lose to UConn like they did showed they ultimately weren't as good as they were supposed to be.
Huge disappointment for Michigan State this season. They were long considered frontrunners for the Final Four, many experts picked them to win the title when the brackets came out, and they fell short in the Elite 8 in a game that most everyone expected the Spartans to prevail. The thing that makes their loss even worse is this was supposed to be their year to possibly win the title and now they are going to be in a major rebuild mode with the loss of Payne, Appling and quite possibly Harris as well. Izzo's Final Four streak for all of his 4-year players is over, and he collected just his second loss in the Elite 8 in eight games (2003 being his other Elite 8 loss). I thought MSU had a real shot at winning the title - certainly the top teams in college basketball this season are more watered down than normal, and it was timed perfectly with one of MSU's better teams in recent years. Just goes to show you even Izzo has teams that disappoint. When you consider the preseason outlook, this MSU team was never supposed to lose 9 games, they were never supposed to be a #4 seed, they were never supposed to miss out on the Final Four. You can blame injuries for some of that but still to lose to UConn like they did showed they ultimately weren't as good as they were supposed to be.
Ideal results for Final Four:
Wisconsin vs. Kentucky - Meteor crashes into the arena.
UConn vs. Florida - Canceled due to meteor damage.
There is nothing factually incorrect about EG's statement, DPO.
I agree with everything in this post, especially your final point about losing to UConn. The injuries were an issue for Michigan State all season, but all they had to do was beat an ok UConn team to make the final four. Izzo rarely loses games to teams he has more talent than in March, but he did today. I think Izzo will find a way for the Spartans to be solid next year, but their ceiling will be the lowest it has been in recent memory. If he ever were to take a shot at the NBA, you would think now would be the perfect time to do it. I have to wonder about Harris as a pro as he seems a bit undersized for a two guard and disappeared a lot this year.