Posts Tagged ‘duke’
A rock and a hard place
Scott Rich of the Duke Chronicle grew up a Michigan fan, which leaves him unsure which team he should hate more in tonight’s championship game:
Since I received my acceptance letter from this university a year ago, I have bled Duke Blue.
But for the 18 years prior to that day, I bled maize and blue.
So you can probably see that tonight’s National Championship game between North Carolina and Michigan State is the ultimate lose-lose situation for a fan like me (save possibly a North Carolina-Ohio State matchup). Hatred for one of these teams has consumed my life for the past year, while the other was my inner-state rival during my entire childhood.
From the Wire: Monday Links
Today’s best from college newspapers around the country:
No Michigan State player pushed harder to reach the Final Four than Travis Walton — Alex Altman, The State News
ALSO: MSU clinched its fifth Final Four berth in 11 years; Thousands of fans welcomed them home
Pitt isn’t ready to think about whether DeJuan Blair will come back next season — Mike Gladysz, The Pitt News
ALSO: The Panthers are not accustomed to losing close games
Danny Green came up big for North Carolina with Tyler Hansbrough and Wayne Ellington struggling — David Ely, The Daily Tar Heel
ALSO: The Heels have bigger goals than reaching the Final Four
Upsets are great, but top-quality matchups are better — Jonah Braun, The Badger Herald
Oklahoma‘s guards just couldn’t match their UNC counterparts — Joey Helmer, The Oklahoma Daily
ALSO: Mistakes got the Sooners sent home early
From the Wire: Friday Links
Today’s best from college newspapers around the country:
UConn‘s Craig Austrie came up big after slumping recently — Kevin Duffy, The Daily Campus
ALSO: A quick start helped the Huskies go from Sweet to Elite
Duke‘s big three — Gerald Henderson, Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer — had no answers for Villanova
– Sabreena Merchant, The Duke Chronicle
ALSO: Lapsing in all phases of the game, the Blue Devils went out with a thud
Missouri sure knows how to make things exciting
– Lenny Goldman, The Maneater
Memphis, like Kansas, did well to make it this far after so much offseason turnover — Kelly Breckunitch, The University Daily Kansan
Pitt‘s Levance Fields lived up to his “Mr. Big Shot” nickname
– Michael Gladysz, The Pitt News
Analysis: 3 Villanova def. 2 Duke
3 Villanova 77
2 Duke 54
East Region semifinals • TD Banknorth Garden, Boston
By Corey DeMoss
– The quick, interchangeable Villanova defense rotated constantly and kept the Duke guards from getting any open looks. The Blue Devils were regularly unable to get any kind of penetration and on several occasions had to settle for long and difficult shots with the shot clock running down.
Reporter Interview: Ben Cohen on Duke
They’re not all the way back just yet, but the Blue Devils are looking a lot more dangerous than they did the past few years, with Gerald Henderson and Jon Scheyer coming into their own as standouts alongside Kyle Singler.
We got all the details from Ben Cohen, the sports editor at the Duke Chronicle.
From the Wire: Wednesday Links
Today’s best from college newspapers around the country:
All the attention the Blue Devils get, good and bad, is too much for even a Duke-sized brain to absorb — Meredith Shiner, The Duke Chronicle
ALSO: Taylor King is on the other side of Thursday’s matchup after going from Duke to Villanova
Pitt‘s Jamie Dixon is on the cusp of elite status among college basketball coaches
– Mike Gladysz, The Pitt News
ALSO: Pitt campus police are worried about celebratory rioting
North Carolina is somewhat familiar with the Gonzaga squad it’ll face Friday
– David Ely, The Daily Tar Heel
Jonny Flynn has been the center of attention, with a ball in his hand, since well before he arrived at Syracuse — Zach Schonbrun, The Daily Orange
ALSO: SU is the latest team to tackle the problem of Oklahoma‘s Blake Griffin
Screw Cinderella, there’s no reason to give these tiny teams automatic bids — Brett Talley, The Daily Toreador
Their tournament performances prove the Big East was better than the ACC
– Randy Lieberman, The Pitt News
From the Wire: Tuesday Links
Today’s best from college newspapers around the country:
Jim Boeheim’s next win will be his 800th, all at Syracuse
– Michael Bonner, The Daily Orange
Looking good on the court is important for several Memphis players
– Megan Harris, The Daily Helmsman
Xavier has a long “to do” list to get Sean Miller a victory against Pitt, his alma mater
– Doug Tifft, The Xavier Newswire
Refs need to take a look at the pounding Oklahoma‘s Blake Griffin is receiving
– Jono Greco, The Oklahoma Daily
Breaking down the top mascots in the Sweet Sixteen — Marc Gauthier, The Daily Campus
Wrap: Saturday’s second round
One-stop shopping for all the action as 32 became 24 with Saturday’s second-round action. Or look back on the first round from Thursday and Friday.
West Region
1 UConn def. 9 Texas A&M
South Region
1 North Carolina def. 8 LSU
Analysis: 2 Duke def. 7 Texas
2 Duke 74
7 Texas 69
East Region second round • Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.
By Wyndam Makowsky
– Wacky ending to this one: Texas had a number of opportunities to tie the game or take the lead and due to a mistake and some simple bad luck, could not get it done. Damion James had a 3-pointer rim out that would have put Longhorns up one. On the next Texas possession, A.J. Abrams missed a shot and the ensuing rebound seemed destined to go out of bounds, but Jon Scheyer saved it for Duke, flipping the ball behind him about 30 feet in air and down toward the other end of the court.
Racing for the loose ball, Gary Johnson inexplicably fouled Elliot Williams as both players leaped for the sky-high bounce, blatantly and unnecessarily pushing Williams to the floor. Williams missed both free throws to keep the game at a one-possession contest, but with 11 seconds left, Texas could not grab a rebound-turned-loose ball, and the game was effectively over.
From the Wire: Friday Links
Today’s best from college newspapers around the country:
Mike Anderson and Missouri have been through a lot to get here
– William Powell, The Columbia Missourian
Ty Lawson was left watching as North Carolina dismantled Radford — David Ely, The Daily Tar Heel
ALSO: Tyler Hansbrough is now the ACC’s all-time leading scorer; LSU will be a second-round test.
Washington and Jon Brockman won the battle with Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State‘s superb shot blocker — Allen Wagner, The Daily
ALSO: Quincy Pondexter led the way for UW in the first round.
Cole Aldrich and Kansas are well aware how dangerous North Dakota State could be
– Case Keefer, The University Daily Kansan
When the going got tough, Cal gave in — Jack Ross, The Daily Californian
ALSO: Lackluster Bears fall to Maryland
Not afraid to say it: I miss Billy Packer — Sam Davis, The Daily Gamecock
