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Thursday, February 7, 2008
Duke
I think this is some of the best basketball stuff I have seen all season:
http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/02/07/duke-brings-phoenix-suns-sans-shaq-baskeball-to-college-and-ma/#cont
What's more, I watched UNC-Duke and Duke torched them. What Duke did--and what that post points out--is spread the floor, use a lot of high picks, pass, hit open threes, and play good, if not, passive defense. They were also so good at doing that--with more or less 6-7 interchangeable pieces who hit threes--they reminded me more of the 07 Golden State Warriors?
I actually think that this Duke team is for real. I know it's early and the brackets make it hard to predict a Final Four, but I would pick these four:
1. Duke
2. Stanford
3. Indiana
4. Memphis
Given all of that, isn't it funny that I (and every talking head) have dismissed Duke so quickly? What about Indiana, a team I felt VERY strongly about in early February, and Memphis, by some measure, the best team in 07-08?
It's also important to note that Indiana and Duke, two of the most successful College Basketball programs, don't qualify as typical sleepers. But this year they do--nobody is picking them, Indiana is an 8-seed, and Duke has lost 2 outta 3...
1 Duke
Well first of all, Duke isn't getting much hype because they lost UNC-Duke Round 2 and bowed out of the ACC Tourney in the Semi's. If they win both of those, aren't they a 1-seed, and the "Hottest Team" (not Pitt)?
At first I was very skeptical about Duke if only because they are small. As the above post points out, they have 6-7 guys who play very similarly--hit 3's, pass well, and defend more or less anybody. A lot like the 07 Golden State Warriors. I'm not one to compare NCAA to the NBA, but it works in this situation. Especially in the tournament where bizarre and rare match-ups happens (see below). Therefore versatility, like Duke has, is primo. With that said, I'm still skeptical. They don't have the classic ice-cold Duke player.
Paulus? Nope. Singler? Not yet. Henderson? c'mon! Nelson? Not quite.
So I'm gonna stay put with them outside of San Antonio. Getting to UCLA is definitely within reach.
2 Indiana
On February 7, 2008, Kelvim Sampson coached the Hoosiers. I thought he pushed them over the top. Really did. Now they are without him and have the hang-over of his scandal. Double Wammy. Brutal. They have played very poorly since his departure and they crumbled to a mediocre Minnesota team (yes it was on a last-second shot, but there are no cinderella's, right?). So on March 19, 2008, I think they're a Second Round team that plays UNC close. High scoring game in the 80s. UNC wins because of Roy Williams. Indiana loses because of Kelvim Sampson.
More than anybody though. Anybody. They have that elusive, rare inside-outside combo that can devastate. No other team has a more dangerous, more scary, more complete 1-2 punch than Indiana's Eric Gordon-DJ White. They make me nervous.
3 Memphis
Memphis has always confused me. They hammer Georgetown. Barely beat UAB. Lose to Tennessee. Hammer UAB. They don't run an offense. It's all improv. They have the most talented bunch in the country. Very similar to UNLV 91. And ultimately I think they fall, just like UNLV 91. Not for the same reasons, but similarly in that they are/were both freakishly talented and so dominant up to the final loss. I think Memphis comes up short (either against Pitt or Stanford) because they will not execute. That's my gut on these guys. They will get there and they will fly and flash, but I think they will come up just short. Lose by a possession, in a possession-for-possession game.
When the games comes to a close, the best plan wins. I'm going with Stanford who has a very simple plan: on the block to Brook Lopez.
Now with all that said, I would not be surprised to see this National Title game:
Indiana 80, Duke 76
But I'm sticking with Kansas over Stanford.
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