Monday, March 12, 2007

Our first Big Ten Tournament title, and the Quest For 36 begins.

I've gotta admit, that was not the game I expected.

For starters, I expected SO much more out of Alondo Tucker. Ten points? 4-13 shooting? That's it? What happened to the Big Ten Player Of The Year anyway?

Anyway, it was nice to see Ohio State take the lead on a Top 3 team and never give it up. THAT was the way they need to play if they're going to win it all. And don't kid yourself, there's maybe three teams in the NCAA better than Wisconsin (and we're one of them)...this was a major victory.

The next stop is on Thursday at 710pm, against Central Connecticut State. Who are they, you might ask? Don't bother asking, you'll barely remember them by 10pm Thursday night.

The Blue Devils started the year 3-9. Yes, you read that right. They were once 3-9. They also lost to Michigan by 20 points, so you know what to expect. But here's the best part.....

CCSU does not have a starter over 6-7. Yes, you read that right too. They do NOT start a center, instead choosing to play 3 guards and two forwards. Hello? Greg Oden must be licking his chops right about now. He's going to have a MONSTER day scoring. They do have a player who is 6-11, but he averages 8 minutes a game (as a senior, no less) and only 1 point per game, so you get the idea that he's not very good. CCSU shoots a LOT of three-pointers, so Oden might not get a lot of blocked shots, but expect a double-double, maybe even by halftime.

Tristan Blackwood (17 ppg), Javier Mojica (16 ppg), and Joe Seymour (7 ppg) have launched a total of 641 3-pointers combined, and they connect on a surprising 38 percent of them. That's nearly 20 attempts per game, and expect that number to go up against Ohio State. That's the Blue Devils only prayer of staying in this game.

So on Thursday night, the Quest for 36 begins. I find it amazing that this team made it to 30 before the tournament, and I am very excited to see how they handle the biggest tournament appearance of their lives.

Go tear 'em up, Buckeyes.

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