Let the Madness Begin!

AAAAAHHHHH YES, it's that time again. Grap your lucky Number 2 Pencil, your lucky pair of underwear, and your official copy of the NCAA TOurnament 2011 Bracket, because it's time for some good ol' March Madness...

As defending champ, it'd be wise to take my advise, but I'm not here to give you guys my bracket, but rather just a bit of insight into the genius that is my brain... But all kidding aside, I've gotten the past few national champions right, and usually I am right, but I'll be honest, what I say isn't gold, and will probably be wrong, but let's just have some fun, shall we?

Before I start telling you guys my favorites, sleepers, and frauds, let's take a gander at the field... and who didn't get invited to the party.

Right off the bat, UAB and VCU have no business being in, and leaving out Va Tech, Colorado, and St. Mary's are all unforgivable crimes of snubbery. UAB, VCU and USC should not be in, and the three mentioned above should. It's a no brainer. I want to be on the selection committee because I want to know how they decide these things. I listen to the experts, look at all the resumes, look at quality wins, road wins, SOS, RPI, all that good stuff... and yet the last teams in and the teams that are snubbed never make any sense to me... Those three teams got shafted, no doubt about it.

But let's look at who's actually in. BEfore we do that, actually I want to point out that MY prediction of the four one seeds was right and Lanardi's was WRONG. Check it, there's proof on my Facebook AND Twitter of my prediction. Lanardi had Notre Dame, and so did almost every other "expert." Chalk one up for the Bearded Fellow...

But that's enough tomfoolery, let's get down to the niddy-griddy... I'm not going to go game-by-game, but I will give some predictions, upset specials, and some other insights of the bracket... I haven't filled out a bracket yet, so no, I won't tell you my Natty Title Favorite, but I will probably Wednesday.

Predictions:
Big Ten will go 7-0 in round one.
I like everyone's match up in round one. State got a great draw of UCLA, Penn State has winnable matchup verse Temple, Michigan can easily beat Tennessee. Tennessee is short and relies on the three, perfect match up for them. Illinois also got a good draw playing UNLV. The other 3 are all favored, so it will be a good round for the Big Ten.

Upset Specials:
Oakland vs Texas
I loved Oakland no matter who they were playing, but Texas is a bad draw for them... having said that, Oakland can still definitely win this. Keith Benson is the best player you've never heard of, and he can dominate a game in the paint. Don't be surprised when the Golden Grizzles surprise the Longhorns.
Missouri vs Cincinnati
Cinci is one of those 11 teams in from the Big East, so that means they're good right? Wrong. Well Wrong to an extent, they're solid, you have to be to finish with a good record in that conference, but they are very beatable in this matchup with Missouri. If you're looking for an upset, this could be one.
Kansas State vs Utah State
If there is any game in this field that screams upset, it's this one. Kansas State underachieved, then overachieved. They are a one man team, and they live and die with Jacob Pullen, a recipe for disaster. Utah State is better than their seed, they will win this game, calling it right now.

Toughest Region: East Region
Ohio State, North Carolina, Syracuse, Kentucky... Enough said right?

Easiest Road to the Final Four: Pittsburgh
Pitt is in the weakest region, the Southeast Region. Pitt is the one, and the two seed, what's supposed to be their toughest competition... Florida... HOW IS FLORIDA A TWO??? Kentucky destroyed them in the SEC tournament and Florida is a two... that makes sense. BYU and Wisconsin are the next highest seeds, so yeah, Pitt is in the Final Four.

Sleepers:
Michigan State: They benefit from an easy draw with UCLA, then probably Florida, tehy could surprise a few people and bust some brackets, like Doug Gottlieb's (He has Florida in the Final Four, EW)
Duke: They're a one seed, but I don't hear anyone talking about them. Two great seniors, one great coach, and a deep team that is very versatile. They will make a run.
UCONN: They will go as far as Kemba will take them, and Kemba can take them far, he is a great player, and the team is solid around him.

Avoid at All Cost:
Notre Dame: FRAUDS! I've been saying it all year. THey take bad shots, and rely on Ben Hansborough, who takes way too many bad threes. But what will really be their downfall is their 7 man rotation.
BYU: Come on, do I really need to put this team on here? Jimmer will not take them to the promise land, they're too weak, especially without Davies.

A Different Kind of Consequence of Sex

We all know the risks of sex right? STDs, babies, awkward encounters for the rest of your life, maybe she lied about her age, blah blah more witty answers. But how about getting kicked off a team? You're probably thinking, "Oh, must have slept with the coaches daughter..." Well I guess he may have, if the coaches daughter is also his girlfriend.

Brandon Davies, a sophomore forward at Brigham Young University, has been dismissed from the team for having sex with his girlfriend. I can't make this stuff up people.

And it's not like Davies is a scrub, he's arguably their second best player, and on Wednesday New Mexico proved that they need more than just Jimmer to win, beating BYU 82-64. BYU was in the driver's seat for a one-seed, one that this blogger feels they did NOT deserve.

But how can a school or a team kick a player off for having sex, you ask? We have freedoms, right? Well right off the bat, BYU is a private school, so no on the freedoms. Trust me, 12 years of private school have taught me that.

But BYU can kick him off the team because by having premarital sex violated the schools Honor Code. Yes, BYU has an honor code that all students must comply with. This honor code, which you can check out, includes such gems as no profanity, no use of alcohol or tobacco, living a chaste and virtuous life, and my favorite a dress code.

Coincidentally, I learned by reading this honor code that I am in violation of BYU's code. "Men are expected to be clean-shaven; beards are not acceptable." Oh darn...

Well, I guess I have to give credit to BYU for sticking to their guns. With so many programs allowing their players get away with pretty much anything and still allowing them to play, it's refreshing to see a university implement rules and actually enforce them, as absurd as the honro code may be, at least they're sticking to it.

Bearded Bracketology

As selection Sunday nears, everyone is asking the same questions, who's in and who's out. But quite frankly I find none of Lanardi's last four in and last four out to matter because they change literally everyday. But since some of you want to know and have asked for my take on things, it's time for some Bearded Bracketology. Let's do this...

Teams In: Three teams that went from my bubble or even out of the dance that have played their ways in the tournament and pretty much can't play their ways out:
Georgia: 19-9 (8-6) 35 RPI, 27 SOS, 3-9 vs RPI top 50
They are a team that seem to be randomly having a good year, but with a good season and some pretty good resume numbers, Georgia will be dancing.

Kansas State: 21-9 (9-6) 22 RPI, 6 SOS, 3-6 vs top 50
The way they were struggling I thought they were going to be a huge disappointment with high preseason expectations, but with recent huge wins over Kansas and Texas and the Wildcats taking care of business verse bad teams, they find themselves safely in the tournament.

Michigan State: 16-12 (8-8) 40 RPI, 5 SOS, 2-8 vs top 50
I said a few weeks ago I didn't think they'd make it, because I honestly thought any tough game they'd lose and they were playing so poorly it looked as though the team has given up. But now they're playing witha purpose and look like a dangerous team.

Last Four In:
Michigan 18-12 (8-9) 57 RPI 23 SOS 2-8 vs RPI top 50
I feel like they have some more work to do, make some noise in the Big Ten Tournament, but if selection day was today, the Wolverines would be in. A team that had zero expectations to start this season, the fact they are even on the bubble is a testamant to John Beilein's great coachign job this year.

Memphis: 21-8 (9-5) 34 RPI 42 SOS 5-4 vs top 50
Sure, they play in a weak conference that they aren't going to win, but those numbers are good, and if it were an ACC team with those numbers, then they'd be in for sure. Memphis gets the nod.

Colorado: 18-11 (7-7) 77 RPI 82 SOS 5-6 vs top 50
Those numbers aren't spectacular, but the 5-6 vs the top 50 is impressive. They are in right now, but I think the winner of the season finale between Colorado and Nebraska determines which of these two will go to the dance.

Richmond: 22-7 (11-3) 62 RPI 170 SOS 1-3 vs top 50
I love the RIchmond Spiders, the SOS is weak but I feel that they are a solid team deserving of a NCAA bid.

First Four Out:
Alabama: 19-10 (11-4) 87 RPI 156 SOS 2-3 vs top 50
Ignore the record and look at strength of schedule. With an SOS that weak you cannot afford to be in "bubble talk" because you won't get in. Bama does not deserve a bid, they can help themselves by beating Georgia, but they should not be dancing.

Nebraska: 19-10 (7-8) 72 RPI 59 SOS 3-6 vs top 50
They are a win over Colorado away from dancing, this was a tough cut but right now, I have them out.

Baylor: 18-11 (7-8) 78 RPI, 48 SOS, 2-5 vs top 50
Beat Texas and you'll be in, but honestly, nothing about Baylor has impressed me this year. No dance for you!

Clemson: 19-9 (8-6) 69 RPI 108 SOS 2-4 vs top 50.
That SOS is very weak, but they are a win over Duke away from playing themselves into the tournament. But otherwise, they haven't impressed me enough to get into the big dance.

NHL Trade Deadline WInners and Losers.

The NHL trade deadline has come and gone, and quite frankly, it was kinda boring. No big deals and no deals made here in Detroit. Rumors were out there of a deal with the Atlanta Thrashers that would send us Zach Bogosian for Jiri Hudler, Jonathan Eriksson or Jakub Kindl and a 1st rounder. Personally, I would have done this deal, but I can never honestly say that Ken Holland made a mistake; I'm not sure if I can ever question him. He's been right so often.

But other teams were wheelin and dealin at the deadling, let's take a look at the Trade Deadline: WInners and Losers

WInners:
Los Angelas Kings:
Picking up Dustin Penner is a great move. Penner will bring a little extra to an already good team and perhaps give them an extra push as they try to win the division and get home ice in the first round. I really like the extra offensive threat Penner brings and am curious to see where LA puts him

Washington Capitals:
Picking up Jason Arnott as a pig forward that can run a point on the powerplay will really help for the Caps as they push for a cup. Washington's powerplay ranks 25th this season, and I imagine with the addition of Arnott, Ovechkin will no longer be running a point on the powerplay. They also need some production from the second line center, and they think Arnott is their guy. We'll see. I also like the acquisition of defenseman Dennis Wideman from Florida, should help solidify the blue line.

Pittsburgh Penguins:
The deals they made leading to the deadline for Alexi Kovelev, James Neal, and Matt Niskanen will go a long way to improving the injury-ravaged Penguins.

Aaaand the Losers:
New York Rangers:
They banked on Brad Richards, didn't get him. On top of that, Marty Biron broke his collarbone... big who cares right? Well Piere thinks that's a big deal... Anyways, they didn't improve and didn't get Richards. Losers.

Minnesota Wild:
They are in a logjam playoff race in the Western Conference and they sit on their hands. This could be a very costly mistake and I think it will be. With Kovu out for a while, they needed to try to pick up some scoring and instead they did nothign while teams chasing them improved, big mistake.

Montreal Canadiens.
WIth all the injuries to their blue line, they needed to make moves to add blue line depth. Brent Sopel isn't going to cut it.