Bracket, heart busted

I'm done with watching the NCAA tournament. OK, not really, but my heart's not going to be in it anymore. Not after watching USC pull an epic tank job against Kansas St. in their first round game yesterday. I guess for all the hype about OJ Mayo vs. Michael Beasley, USC forgot that Bill Walker is, in fact, a pretty good player as well. If only there was someone on the Trojans who was familiar with Walker and could have helped create a good scouting report to stop him.

Oh wait...

Actually, I don't blame OJ Mayo - he basically single-handedly lead the team back in the second-half from a double digit deficit to a brief lead. The problem is that, at least on offense, he had no help. Dwight Lewis made a couple of big shots, but other than that...nothing. I guess that is what happens when all three of your big men wind up playing most of the second half with four fouls. Although fouls or not, Taj Gibson was a mess yesterday - passes getting fumbled out of his hands and out of bounds, missed free throws, blown shots from two feet away...and always with the whining to the refs after every call or non-call. He's done that since he came to USC two years ago, and it needs to stop - it's embarrassing to watch.

Here's the bottom line - instead of being a Great, Program-Changing Season, this year's team simply turned out to be good, but not as good as last year's team. Even with someone as talented as OJ Mayo, there just wasn't enough scoring options and (ultimately) team cohesion to match what last season's team brought to the table. And with anywhere from one to three starters leaving after this season (Mayo, Gibson and Davon Jefferson could all declare early for the NBA draft), next year's team is going to have the same issues with coming together as a young team.

But hey, at least Lil' Romeo's going to be there next season, right? Maybe I can get him to autograph my bag of "BBQing with my Honey" flavored Rap Snacks...

Posted by The Duke of Everything at 9:28 AM 0 comments  

Quick Hits

• Former USC, Arizona and Missouri head coach Larry Smith died today in Tucson after a lengthy illness. He was 68. At least he lived long enough to see someone come along who would ensure that he wasn't remembered as the worst coach in modern USC history.
• Speaking of USC, I don't know if you got a chance to watch the game against Oregon on Saturday, but it was a doozy. USC "blew" a 14-point lead against the Ducks (and I put "blew" in quotes just because USC didn't play that mad down the stretch - Oregon was just unconscious from beyond the arc in the final three minutes), but still got off the deck to win in overtime. OJ Mayo scored 25 while dealing with persistent leg cramps (and having briefly been declared ineligible by the NCAA and then made eligible again after the whole free ticket mess), while Daniel Hackett and Dwight Lewis each had career-highs with 26 and 24 points each.
• Speaking of Oregon...coach Ernie Kent had to go out before the USC game and implore the student section to behave in an appropriate manner. This was on the heels of the game against UCLA on Thursday, which was the homecoming for Kevin Love. Needless to say, when Ben Howland uses the terms "vile," "inappropriate" and "disgusting" to describe the fans, it's pretty bad:

"One fan brandished a homemade placard alluding to the cocaine use of Love's cousin, Brian Wilson, of the Beach Boys. Others waved signs displaying the digits of Love's cell phone number or questioning his sexual orientation. And at one point, the entire sea of yellow-shirted Oregon students showered Love with profane taunts and screams of delight when he left the game after being poked in the eye."

I'm sure a lot of it was inappropriate and borderline awful...but referencing a coked-to-the-tits Brian Wilson? That's just funny. And terrible. But funny.

• And by "the luck of the draw," Premiership leaders Manchester United and Arsenal will face each other in the Round 16 of the FA Cup. It seems about as "random" as Triple H and John Cena drawing the Nos. 29 and 30 pills at the Royal Rumble last night - who knew Mr. McMahon was a soccer fan, much less ran the English FA?
  

Posted by The Duke of Everything at 3:25 PM 0 comments  

NCAA: Mayo's Free Clippers Tickets "Worthless"

LOS ANGELES - The NCAA today ruled that free tickets received by freshman
OJ Mayo to a Nuggets vs. Clippers game on Monday from Denver star Carmelo Anthony were "essentially worthless," and therefore not a violation of NCAA rules prohibiting athletes from receiving additional benefits.

"In order for a benefit to be categorized as 'improper' it must be something that is of value," said the NCAA in a statement released today. "Because of the team's lack of stars, poor record and inconsistent fan base, the NCAA has determined that Clippers tickets are without value, and therefore accepting free tickets is not against NCAA rules."

Mayo expressed relief in the decision.

"I mean, I didn't even go to the game to watch basketball," said Mayo. "Mainly, I wanted to check out the Clipper cheerleaders and get some nachos. Man, I love nachos. Besides, it was kind of sad in the front row. The only celebrity I saw was that short, bald guy that used to host the Oscars. And some old broad I didn't know."

The statement from the NCAA did warn that if Mayo or any athlete accepted free tickets to "a Lakers game, or any other real NBA franchise," they would be subject to NCAA penalties. WNBA games, however, are exempt.

Posted by The Duke of Everything at 3:02 PM 3 comments