Initially, I had intended to provide my thoughts after each block of games. As you can tell, that didn't happen. What follows are some highlights of the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament.
Belmont Deserved Better: What a fantastic game. The Bruins (who were playing their third straight NCAA tournament) went toe-to-toe with the Dukies for 40 minutes. If not for the parting of the sea defense against Gerald Henderson and a bad inbounds pass, Belmont might have become just the fifth 15-seed to win a first round game. (A side note: Special thanks to West Virginia for finishing off Coach K's squad in the second round).
Stephen Curry Drinks Your Milkshakes: Curry, who is just the second player in the history of the NCAA tournament to score at least 30 points in his first three NCAA tournament games. Curry had 30 a year ago in a near-upset of Maryland, and followed that up with 40 on Friday against Gonzaga (30 in the second half) and 30 (25 in the second half) against Georgetown on Sunday. Curry, just a sophomore, was the most impressive player of the first two rounds and has many folks wondering if Davidson is this year's George Mason. Can he carry the Wildcats past Wisconsin? Absolutely, but Kansas (should the teams meet in the regional final) will be a much stiffer test.
Upset City: The people at the St. Pete Times Forum sure got their money's worth. For the first time in the history of the tournament, all four lower-seeded teams at one site won their games. Western Kentucky beat Drake 101-99 in an overtime contest that will go down as the game of the tournament. San Diego survived foul trouble to upset Connecticut, while Siena blew out Vanderbilt and Villanova held of Clemson. All told, two 12-seeds and two 13-seeds advanced to the second round in the same building on the same day. That, folks, is why the NCAA tournament is the best sporting event of the year.
Stephen Curry Drinks Your Milkshakes: Curry, who is just the second player in the history of the NCAA tournament to score at least 30 points in his first three NCAA tournament games. Curry had 30 a year ago in a near-upset of Maryland, and followed that up with 40 on Friday against Gonzaga (30 in the second half) and 30 (25 in the second half) against Georgetown on Sunday. Curry, just a sophomore, was the most impressive player of the first two rounds and has many folks wondering if Davidson is this year's George Mason. Can he carry the Wildcats past Wisconsin? Absolutely, but Kansas (should the teams meet in the regional final) will be a much stiffer test.
Upset City: The people at the St. Pete Times Forum sure got their money's worth. For the first time in the history of the tournament, all four lower-seeded teams at one site won their games. Western Kentucky beat Drake 101-99 in an overtime contest that will go down as the game of the tournament. San Diego survived foul trouble to upset Connecticut, while Siena blew out Vanderbilt and Villanova held of Clemson. All told, two 12-seeds and two 13-seeds advanced to the second round in the same building on the same day. That, folks, is why the NCAA tournament is the best sporting event of the year.
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