The ACC won twice last night…but God bless ‘em, they didn’t do it in regulation.
No Sweep, But the Next Best Thing?
We were cheering for the Big Ten to sweep this year’s Big Ten/ACC Challenge not because we like the Big Ten, and not because we dislike the ACC, but because it would’ve been really funny. Really, really funny. A sweep? Fourteen games? Against basketball’s traditional “best conference” (hasn’t won an NIT since 2000)? I don’t know. Maybe it’s just me. It’d be funny, right?
It wasn’t to be. Syracuse couldn’t complete its collapse against Indiana. Wake Forest came out ahead against Northwestern. Both games went to overtime (Syracuse and Indiana graced us to double OT), but still…the wrong teams won. The not-funny teams won.
Elsewhere in the NIT-scape, Saint Louis won at The Venue Formerly Known as Taco Bell Arena. Felt like March. Meaning, too much was going on for me to pay this game the attention it deserves and the guilt is lingering today.
I’ve been making the 16-NIT-bid ACC joke, and I’m going to keep making it, but if I’m being serious for a moment, there really are eleven teams or so in the ACC who could believably make this year’s NIT. Wake Forest doesn’t appear to be that good, but they’re 7-1, which helps. Florida State doesn’t appear to be that bad, but they sure haven’t looked competitive against the good teams so far, and they’ve looked a little too competitive against the bad teams. In between those two, you’ve got NIT-relevance stalwarts Virginia Tech, Louisville, Notre Dame, Clemson, Syracuse, NC State, and Georgia Tech, with UNC and UVA also in the mix. I’m pumped. I hope you’re pumped. If you aren’t, is it personal? I hope so. I want to fight each and every one of you. Every last one.
UNC hosts Michigan tonight. Virginia Tech’s at Maryland. Georgia Tech hosts Wisconsin. Louisville’s at Michigan State. NC State hosts Nebraska. If you’re the guessing type, you’re probably guessing correctly: those aboard the NITanic are pulling for each of those teams listed first to lose or to win in overtime. It’d still be funny. No regulation wins would still be funny.
Pac-12, Missouri Valley, Richmond Plays Wofford, Some Other Shit
The Pac-12 is still doing conference games, most notably (for our purposes) Kyle “Moneyball” Smith’s Washington State Cougars visiting Bobby “Oh God I’m gonna lose my job” Hurley’s Arizona State Sun Devils. I’m told Colorado also plays UCLA and Utah plays USC, but I’m told a lot of things. I’m a good listener.
Not to be outdone, the Missouri Valley is playing conference games of its own, and if you missed all the realignment there, don’t worry—I did too, and it looks like it’s the same this year. Something to know about this league is that it sucks way worse than usual. It’s really bad. Ok, I just looked and that isn’t true, but parts of it are true. Northern Iowa and Bradley suck. That’s noteworthy, right? And Southern Illinois still isn’t back despite the faithful clamoring for fourteen years now for them to be back. Bring back Southern Illinois, God!
To be outdone, Richmond’s at Wofford tonight while the Oklahomas host Florida and Wichita State (the pairings are what you’d expect). Looks like we also have UCF visiting Auburn, who I don’t think has a postseason ban right now but is coached by Bruce Pearl so is probably earning their next one, and Texas Tech visiting Providence. I don’t remember who coaches Texas Tech this year and there’s a chance I never find out.
Mar-Cub Stroman?
I need to stop it with these names. Bye-an Kelly should have been my limit. In news news, Marcus Stroman might be signing with the Cubs tonight. He also might not be signing with the Cubs for four or five months. Or ever. They’re trying to get it done before the lockout starts, the lockout’s bearing down, if they don’t get it done there’s no guarantee they ever will, it’s a whole thing.
Anyway, enjoy everyone wanting Marcus Stroman now, because you just know some grumpy old folks are going to turn on him next summer if he does end up on the North Side. It is our collective fate.
Rob Manfred Is a Butthead
Just a reminder. Nothing new on this front.
Burnley Burnleyed
Down two players (thanks to stupid rules that wouldn’t be stupid at all were they helping Burnley), the lads survived today’s trip to Wolverhampton with a scoreless draw. Well done, friends. Well done. Next match Saturday against Newcastle, and it’s…brace yourself…winnable. Cancel your meetings.
The Senators Play Tonight
Starting with the serious stuff: You may or may not have heard, but there was a school shooting in Oxford, Michigan yesterday. The latest count is that four high school kids were killed. It’s awful, and we’re mentioning it here because Josh Norris is from Oxford and spoke about it today. There isn’t much more noteworthy to say on it than that, but it’s a big part of the Sens’ storyline tonight, so wanted to be sure to give it a mention.
In less serious stuff…evidently the Senators didn’t tell Belleville how they want the AHL squad to use Matt Murray. No communication with Murray either. Wacky. This franchise is dysfunctional, I love this dysfunctional franchise, this dysfunctional franchise hosts Vancouver tonight and Vancouver is also a mess, but my indication is that’s mostly on the ice.
Drake Batherson’s back from Covid. He was riding a bike in his house during a long, long quarantine. Some teammates brought it over. Small-town hockey, guys. Presumably the bike was stationary.
Oh Yeah? Well Shaka Smart Won!
Marquette won again last night, against Jackson State (Deion Sanders may have played two sports, but he only coaches one, and it isn’t basketball), but Chris Beard won the narrative by hosting a Coach Beard & Coach Beard conversation on a stage at Texas, which means, for those of you who don’t watch Ted Lasso, that Texas got the actor who plays the assistant coach in that show (Coach Beard) to come talk with the UT basketball head man (also named Coach Beard).
The Texas Coach Beard is really hard not to like (both are hard to dislike, but I’m only trying to dislike one of them), and he’s doing a great job with every possible piece of outreach on campus here in Austin, and I am thankful to come from a family where my parents were and are married, but I feel like this must be what it’s like to have a cool stepdad. I don’t want to like him. But he keeps doing these fun things.
***
That’s it, no Joe Kelly news for you right now. Viewing schedule tonight is (all times Texas time)…
- Louisville/Michigan State – 6:15 PM, ESPN (You should’ve been mine, Izzo)
- Wisconsin/Georgia Tech – 8:15 PM, ESPN2 (I’ll always love you, Josh Pastner – also, Blooper’s gonna be there)
- Utah/USC – 10:30 PM, Pac-12 Network (I will always loathe you, Andy Enfield)
- Shooting off anti-Manfred fireworks – 11:00 PM, outside my home (happy lockout to you and yours)
