Archive for March, 2013
Pac-12 Baseball: Ducks Pull into 1st After Series Losses for Beavers and Bruins
With Easter Sunday upon us, teams adjusted the traditional Friday-Sunday schedule to play Thursday-Saturday. Big changes occurred as the top two teams in the league lost twice and the third-place Oregon Ducks swept their opponent at home. The Oregon State Beavers (22-4, 5-1 Pac-12) traveled to San Diego to take on the Toreros (18-10, 4-2 WCC) but the reception for the No. 2 Oregon State team was less than sunny. Sloppy play on Thursday night led to a ...
Big Ten Basketball: Will Big Bad B1G Be Shut Out of 2013 Final Four?
With one prominent exception, almost everyone in the college basketball commentariat took the Big Ten to be this year's best conference.No league had a greater portion of its teams in the first AP poll, or the last. No league earned more top five seeds in the NCAA tournament. And no league had more Sweet 16 entrants.In a season rife with volatility, the Big Ten's preeminence was the one absolute that actually held.Until, of course, it didn't.With its loss to ...
NCAA Tournament 2013 Scores: How Saturday’s Winners Clinched Final Four Berths
Saturday evening played host to two Elite Eight contests in the NCAA tournament, as the Syracuse Orange and Wichita State Shockers punched their tickets to Atlanta for the 2013 Final Four.At times, the action was rather painful to watch, as each winner played smothering defense and were in control for most of the game. If not for a rally by the Ohio State Buckeyes in Los Angeles, college basketball would have been far less entertaining ...
Elite Eight Schedule: What to Watch for in Sunday’s March Madness Action
Syracuse and Wichita State are heading to the Final Four of the 2013 NCAA tournament. Two more teams will join them after Sunday's action.No. 1 seed Louisville will take on No. 2 seed Duke in the Midwest whilst Florida and Michigan will battle in the South for a potential Final Four appearance.And if Saturday's action was anything to go by, then we're set for two thrilling matchups that should provide plenty of talking points and ...
Elite Eight 2013: Recap of Saturday’s Games and Predictions for Sunday’s Action
And then there were six.The Syracuse Orange and Wichita State Shockers both booked their places in the Final Four with wins Saturday in the Elite Eight. Wichita State will be playing the winner of the Louisville Cardinals vs. Duke Blue Devils game on Sunday, with the Orange taking on either the Florida Gators or Michigan Wolverines.Had it not been for Dunk City, the Shockers' Final Four run would get the kind of attention it deserves. ...
NCAA Tournament 2013: Winners, Losers, Heroes and Goats of Day 9
Every Final Four season has its hiccups—those moments where the entire production feels scattered, broken, fated to fail.On March 2nd, Wichita State lost to Creighton, 91-79. It was the Shockers second consecutive defeat, and it dropped their season record to 24-7.On March 9th, Syracuse lost to Georgetown, 61-39. It was the fourth loss in their last five, and it dropped their season record to 23-8.Since then, Syracuse and Wichita State have lost two games combined. ...
Wichita State Basketball: Why Shockers Are Legitimate Threat to Reach Title Game
This has become a pattern this spring: NCAA college basketball analysts count Wichita State out, and the Shockers show up and pull off a stunner over a national power, but somehow we're surprised each time the trend continues. It's understandable, because as a No. 9 seed, the Shockers were supposed to stick to the tried and true script for Cinderella teams: hang around with the contender for a little over 75 percent of the game, and ...
Malcolm Armstead Named West Regional’s Most Outstanding Player
Wichita State is headed to the 2013 Final Four after beating No. 2 Ohio State in the West Regional Final, and it wouldn't have done so without guard Malcolm Armstead's strong play.As such, Armstead as been awarded the West Region's Most Outstanding Player award.Doug Haller reported the news on Twitter, complete with a few of Armstead's teammates that made the region's all-tournament team:Through four tournament games, Armstead averaged 15.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and ...
Ohio State vs. Wichita State: Does Missing Final Four Make OSU’s Season a Bust?
Disappointing. Disheartening. Perplexing. Pick the adjective and that would describe Ohio State’s performance in the first 30 minutes of its 70-66 loss to Wichita State in the Elite Eight. The Buckeyes, who had to be considered formidable favorites heading into a contest with the Shockers of the Missouri Valley Conference, played one of their worst games of the season at the most inopportune time. As a result, a golden opportunity to reach the Final Four ...
Top Highlights from Day 9 of the NCAA Tournament
Syracuse and Wichita State moved on to the 2013 NCAA tournament Final Four in Atlanta on Saturday night. They will soon be joined by the winner of Duke vs. Louisville in the Midwest Region and Michigan vs. Florida in the South Region.Saturday night's games pitted Syracuse against Big East rival Marquette (a team that had already defeated the Orange in the regular season), and Ohio State against Wichita State in a matchup of West region ...