How Sweet It Is!

I am Orso'Grande.

Forty-nine of the 65 teams are gone. And the Sweet Sixteen is full of surprises. Bradley? George Mason? And some college in Kansas that isn’t even Kansas? To some, the presence of the Georgetown Hoyas is shocking, but we’re not among the shocked. (There will be no commentary on what a “Hoya” might be, just as there will be no inquiry into what a “Shocker” is.)

(And we certainly will not discuss the fact that the Gentleman Farmer actually did “bet the farm” on the Pitt game against Bradley, and so has been reduced to the “Gentleman Renter.”)

So here's how it goes, sports fans:

(1)Duke vs. (4)LSU – Duke wins. They’re Duke, after all. I know, I said last week that George Washington would upset them. But LSU is an inside team, and the Blue Devils have The Landlord and McRoberts to handle those Big Tigers. Duke is now focused as only a Coach K team can be. We’ll see them in the Regional Final.

(6)West Virginia vs. (2)Texas – While the kids are all in bed, let’s be frank. The college basketball stereotype is that the white boys are only mediocre athletes, and stand around out at the 3-point line and lob shots. Meanwhile, the black players are very athletic, have lots of up, and can fly to the hoop from at least the foul line. Well, boys and girls, that’s this game. The Mountaineers run a slow-moving offense but shoot the lights out, while the Longhorns have the most athletic team in the nation with Aldridge, Tucker, and Gibson. West Virginia can’t keep up.

(1) Memphis vs. (13) Bradley – Where were Pitt and the real Kansas when we needed them? I’ve heard that lightning doesn’t strike twice in the same place, and I’m dead sure it doesn’t strike three times. Carney and Washington, Jr. run the Braves back to Peoria.

(3) Gonzaga vs. (2) UCLA – The best from the west square off. In the West. This is the second-best of the eight games to be played in this round. UCLA breezed through the regular season and Pac-10 tournament. They had an easy first-round game against unknown Belmont. But when they faced a respectable Alabama squad in the second round, they struggled, winning by 3. Gonzaga, on the other hand, spent their conference tournament winning close game after close game, being rescued again and again by Adam Morrison. And their first game at the big dance was no different: They struggled and Morrison carried them to a win over a tough Xavier team. But in the second round I was impressed: Morrison played his worst game of the season (5-17 shooting including 4-7 at the line) but the ‘Zags still managed to win by double digits. Look for the Bulldogs to upset the Bruins.

(1) UConn vs. (5) Washington – The Huskies (Washington) have one of the least known potential high draft picks in the country in Brandon Roy: He’s big for a shooting guard, can drive, rebound and seldom misses the bottom of the basket. Unfortunately, if you were to clone Roy and double his skill, you’d have the projected #1 overall pick in the NBA draft, The Huskies’ (Connecticut) Rudy Gay. The best Washington can hope for is that they fight each other to a standstill, and turn this game into a battle amongst the supporting casts: But Anderson, Marcus Williams and Brown are too dynamic for Washington. The Huskies win.

(11) George Mason vs. (7) Wichita State – If this were Sports Illustrated (or PTI) I’d pretend to have all sorts of knowledge about both teams, and also explain that I used to date Jai Lewis’ girlfriend. But that wouldn’t be true. (Except the last part.) So here’s where I’m at: Mason plays 30 miles from home, and Wichita ain’t in Kansas anymore.

(3) Flordia vs. (7) Georgetown – Georgetown is the best #7 seed EVER. I know, Florida is underrated, but the Hoyas have proved they can compete on this big stage, and they embarrassed the Buckeyes by 18! During the regular season they beat Duke, and went to the wire with Uconn in Stoors. So here’s another upset, Georgetown advances to the Elite Eight.

(1) Villanova vs. (4) Boston College – This is the best game of the Sweet Sixteen. Talk about story lines! The Eagles from Chestnut Hill were denied the ACC tournament title by Coach K’s refs. Meanwhile, Villanova tied UConn for the regular season title, but settle for second place because Connecticut had beaten West Virginia, while the Big East’s absurd schedule didn’t let ‘Nova play against them. (No, really! You could look it up!) No team in America dominates inside like Boston College. Dudley and Smith are unstoppable and just plain fun to watch. Both have pulled out gutsy performances to win games that seemed out of reach, and bring within reach games that should have already been lost (ACC title game anyone?). On the other side, we have the best Outside team in America. The tag-team of Foye and Allan Ray is uncanny. I watched Foye and Ray hit 3 after 3 after 3 from NBA range against the Huskies during the season. And they don’t take second place for guts: All season Foye played the 4 position at 6'4". Want more? Your eye gets poked out (and I mean OUT) and you lose your sight for at least 6 hours. Less than a week later, you score 19 in the first round, and then 25 against Arizona. These are two blue-collar teams that exemplify Big East basketball, which the ACC found out this year when BC strayed. So who wins when David goes up, not against Goliath, but against David? Villanova’s four-guard lineup will wear down Smith and Dudley. BC will lead at halftime, but when the smoke clears the ‘Nova guards will be left standing, in what will be the best game of the tournament so far.