Final Four predictions

#1 Ohio State vs. #2 Georgetown
Although Ohio State is the 1 seed in this game, Georgetown is favored by a point. It's easy to see why with Georgetown having so much more experience than the young Buckeyes. Both teams could be considered teams of destiny, with Ohio State needing miracle escapes against Xavier and Tennesee, and Georgetown needing miracle escapes against Vanderbilt and North Carolina. This clash of teams of destiny should be a great one. Georgetown has the edge in the frontcourt, with 7-2 C Roy Hibbert, 6-9 F Jeff Green, 6-8 F DeJaun Summers, and 6-8 F Patrick Ewing Jr. leading the way. Green is the Big East player of the year this year, and it could be argued that at this point in time Hibbert is as good a big man as Greg Oden. Ohio State will counter with Oden and a front line mixture of 6-10 F Othello Hunter, 6-11 F Matt Teriwilliger, and 6-8 F David Lighty. I think that Lighty will do the best defensive job on Green in this game, and Lighty has been so well on offense lately that he is no longer a liability. While the Hoyas may have the front court advantage, Ohio State's backcourt is well above Georgetown's. While Jessie Sapp and Jonathon Wallace are nice guards, Mike Conley Jr., Jamar Butler, Daequan Cook, and Ron Lewis are much more prolific scorers. I see this game going down to the wire, with both Oden and Hibbert being in a little bit of foul trouble. With that said, I think Ohio State's guards will lead them to a close victory, with Lewis and Conley hitting big shots down the stretch.
Ohio State 70, Georgetown 66

#1 Florida vs. #2 UCLA
This championship game rematch promises to be much close than the game last year. Florida is hell-bent on pulling off back-to-back national titles, but UCLA wants revenge from last year. Although they played a slow-down, defensive style for most of the year, UCLA showed that they can play with an athletic, fast-paced team when they best Kansas in the regional final. UCLA is led by guards Darren Collison, Arron Afflalo, and Josh Shipp. Florida has the definite frontcourt advantage with Al Horford, Joakim Noah, and Chris Richard. UCLA counters that frontcourt with Lorenzo Mata, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, and Alfred Aboya. While UCLA's guards will keep them in the game until the end, I think that Florida's will and determination, along with their frontcourt advantage, will lead them to the victory.
Florida 78, UCLA 70

Ohio State Basketball: Final Four Bound

When Ohio State signed this incredible freshman class, no one really knew what to expect. Obviously, the Buckeyes would be talented, but would they have enough experience to really go far in the tournament? How would the new freshmen mesh with the upperclassman? How much of an impact would Greg Oden have after his wrist injury? As Bob Hunter discusses in his column in the Dispatch today, with the win over Memphis on Saturday, this Ohio State team has fully lived up to the hype, and it will be remembered for a long time.

Throughout the season, the Buckeyes have been building up to this point, when everyone on the team has a role and everyone plays that role to perfection. Oden is a dominant presence inside, but he is probably not even the team's MVP. His high school teammate Mike Conley has been amazing all year, and the Buckeyes would be lost without him. In addition to those two, Ron Lewis has really found his game lately and he always seems to step up big in crunch time. Jamar Butler is a good ballhandler and a three point gunner from the outside. Ivan Harris can come off the bench at any moment and nail some long shots. David Lighty is a defensive stopper with athleticism who can step up on offense. Daequan Cook can shoot the ball from inside or outside, even though he's been cold lately. Hell, even Matt Teriwilliger has came up with some big free throws and offensive rebounds in the Tennesee game.

No matter what happens in the Final Four this weekend, this Ohio State team will be remembered for a long time. Players who contributed to the tournament will be beloved by Ohio State fans for the rest of their lives. Ron Lewis will still be getting thanked by random people on the street for hitting his three pointer to send the Xavier game to overtime when he is 50 years old. While I think this is only the beginning for Ohio State as a basketball powerhouse, this team will always be thought of fondly by anyone who followed them this season. And if the Buckeyes can bring home the national title, especially if they get revenge on Florida in the process, they may even be able to steal away some of the spotlight from the football team.

Spring Break

Sam's sports thoughts will be on a short hiatus because of a spring break vacation. It will return the weekend of March 24 with some NCAA tournament thoughts and an MLB preview.

Bracket Breakdown

East Regional
Best first round game: #8 Marquette vs. #9 Michigan State
Most likely first round upset: #12 Arkansas over #5 USC
Best chance for a big upset: #14 Oral Roberts vs. #3 Washington State
Best potential second round game: #1 North Carolina vs. #8 Marquette
Best potential Sweet 16 game: #1 North Carolina vs. #4 Texas
Best potential Elite 8 game: #1 North Carolina vs. #2 Georgetown
Realistic Final Four contenders: #1 North Carolina, #2 Georgetown, #4 Texas
My picks: Sweet 16: #4 Texas over #1 North Carolina, #2 Georgetown over #6 Vanderbilt. Elite 8: #4 Texas over #1 North Carolina

South Regional
Best first round game: #6 Louisville vs. #11 Stanford
Most likely first round upset: #10 Creighton over #7 Nevada
Best chance for a big upset: #13 Albany vs. #4 Virginia
Best potential second round game: #3 Texas A&M vs. #6 Louisville
Best potential Sweet 16 game: #2 Memphis vs. #3 Texas A&M
Best potential Elite 8 game: #1 Ohio State vs. #3 Texas A&M
My picks: Sweet 16: #1 Ohio State over #5 Tennesee, #3 Texas A&M over #2 Memphis. Elite 8: #1 Ohio State over #3 Texas A&M

Midwest Regional
Best first round game: #6 Notre Dame vs. #11 Winthrop
Most likely first round upset: #12 Old Dominion over #5 Butler
Best chance for a big upset: #13 Davidson over #4 Maryland
Best potential second round game: #3 Oregon vs. #6 Notre Dame
Best potential Sweet 16 game: #1 Florida vs. #4 Maryland
Best potential Elite 8 game: #1 Florida vs. #2 Wisconsin
My picks: Sweet 16: #1 Florida over #12 Old Dominion, #6 Notre Dame over #7 UNLV. Elite 8: #1 Florida over #6 Notre Dame.

West Regional
Best first round game: #6 Duke vs. #11 VCU
Most likely first round upset: #11 VCU over #6 Duke
Best chance for a big upset: #14 Wright State vs. #3 Pittsburgh
Best potential second round game: #1 Kansas vs. #8 Kentucky
Best potential Sweet 16 game: #2 UCLA vs. #3 Pittsburgh
Best potential Elite 8 game: #1 Kansas vs. #2 UCLA
My picks: #1 Kansas over #13 Holy Cross, #2 UCLA over #11 VCU. Elite 8: #1 Kansas over #2 UCLA.

Selection Sunday Review

Some initial thoughts following the release of the NCAA tournament bracket:

#1 seeds
No surprise in who the four #1 seeds were as they were the 4 contenders that won their conference tournaments. UCLA losing in the first round of the Pac-10 tourney really hurt them. One thing that was surprising to me was Ohio State getting the 3rd overall seed in the tournament. I thought that if they could win the Big Ten tourney, then they would be the overall #1 seed. I think that the two main things that stopped that from happening was the fact that OSU lost to both Florida and North Carolina (the two teams seeded above them) early in the season and the fact that the Big Ten title game ended too late for the commitee to consider it.

Midwest Regional
--Upset alert: #5 Butler vs. #12 Old Dominion, #4 Maryland vs. #13 Davidson, and #11 Winthrop vs. #6 Notre Dame.
--#1 Florida seems to have the easiest road of any 1 seed to the Final Four as both #2 Wisconsin and #3 Pittsburgh are coming off rough ends to the season.
--Watch out for the winner of the #7 UNLV/#10 Georgia Tech game to have a serious shot against #2 Wisconsin.

West Regional
--#1 Kansas and #2 UCLA are an extremely strong 1-2 punch out of this region.
--Upset alert: #4 Southern Illinois vs. #13 Holy Cross, #6 Duke vs. #11 VCU
--Ben Howland may face his old team, #3 Pittsburgh, in the Sweet 16.

East Regional
--The top half of this bracket is absolutely loaded with #1 North Carolina and #4 Texas as a potential Sweet 16 game.
--Upset alert: #7 Boston College vs. #10 Texas Tech, #5 USC vs. #12 Arkansas
--Georgetown has a very easy road to the Elite 8 on the the bottom half of this bracket.
--The winner of the game between #8 Marquette and #9 Michigan State will give North Carolina a run in the second round.

South Regional
--#1 Ohio State should have a fairly easy road to the Elite 8 with a weak top half of the bracket.
--Upset alert: #7 Nevada vs. #10 Creighton, #4 Virginia vs. #13 Albany
--#2 Memphis vs. #3 Texas A&M and the winner of that game against Ohio State should both be great games.

Bubble Teams
I think that Drexel and Syracuse were the two teams left out that should have been in. Drexel took advantage of every opprutunity they had to play a major conference opponent by winning at Syracuse, at Villanova and at Creighton. Arkansas was a ridiculous addition in my opinion, as they got in after going 7-9 in the SEC West, a terrible division. Illinois is another team that I don't think deserved to get in as they only had to play Ohio State and Wisconsin one time each in Big Ten play. Two other teams with legitimate at-large claims that got left out were Florida State and Kansas State.

Ohio State-Michigan Outlook

After meeting less than a week ago in Ann Arbor, the Buckeyes face the Wolverines again, this time in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten tournament. Michigan's entire season is riding on this game, as they need a win to even have a shot at getting at at-large bid. Ohio State, on the other hand, has most likely already clinched a #1 seed and as we have seen a few times late in this season, teams that don't have much to play for can be susceptible to an upset (Florida, UCLA, North Carolina). With all that being said though, after how badly Ohio State played last time, if Michigan can't win with OSU playing like that and the game being in Ann Arbor, I just can't see them beating the Buckeyes on a neutral court. I think that OSU will play much better than it did last time, especially having 4 days off in between games, and will beat Michigan fairly handily, keeping alive the streak of not losing to Michigan in football or basketball since February 29, 2004.

Prediction: Ohio State 67, Michigan 55

Major Conference Tournament Preview: Part 2

ACC
Dates: Thursday to Sunday
Regular season champ(s): #1 North Carolina (11-5, 25-6, RPI 3), #2 Virginia (11-5, 20-9, 40)
NCAA locks: North Carolina, Virginia, #3 Virginia tech (10-6, 20-10, 27), #4 Boston College (10-6, 19-10, 30), #5 Maryland (10-6, 24-7, 12), #7 Duke (8-8, 22-9, 14)
NCAA bubble teams: #6 Georgia Tech (8-8, 20-10, 34), #8 Clemson (7-9, 21-9, 36) #9 Florida State (7-9, 19-11, 47)
Most likely early upset: #7 Duke over #2 Virginia, #6 Georgia Tech over #3 Virginia Tech
Best first round matchup: #8 Clemson vs. #9 Florida StateBest potential quarterfinal: #4 Boston College vs. #5 Maryland
Best potential semifinal: #1 North Carolina vs. #5 Maryland
Best potential final: #1 North Carolina vs. #7 Duke
Predictions: #6 Georgia Tech likely needs only a win over #11 Wake Forest to solidify its spot in the NCAA tournament. I think that not only will Georgia Tech win that game, but they will also upset #3 Virginia Tech in the semi-finals. Another early upset I see happening is #7 Duke over #2 Virginia in the semi-finals. That would set up an intriguing pair of semi-finals of Duke vs. Georgia Tech and #1 North Carolina vs. #5 Maryland. I think that UNC and Duke both win to set up a very interesting final. North Carolina gets revenge for Gerald Henderson's hit on Tyler Hansbrough and UNC wins the ACC tourney to clinch a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.

Big 12
Dates: Thursday to SundayRegular season champ(s): #1 Kansas (14-2, 27-4, 15)
NCAA locks: Kansas, #2 Texas A&M (13-3, 25-5, 16), #3 Texas (12-4, 22-8, 29)
NCAA bubble teams: #5 Texas Tech (9-7, 20-11, 44), #4 Kansas State (10-6, 21-10, 60), #7 Oklahoma State (6-10, 19-11, 58)
Most likely early upset: #10 Nebraska over #7 Oklahoma State
Best first round matchup: #7 Oklahoma State vs. #10 Nebraska
Best potential quarterfinal: #4 Kansas State vs. #5 Texas Tech
Best potential semifinal: #2 Texas A&M vs. #3 Texas
Best potential final: #1 Kansas vs. #2 Texas A&M
Predictions: This is probably the best conference tournament out of any of them because of how interesting a semi-final between #2 Texas A&M and #3 Texas and the final between of that game and #1 Kansas could be. Other than those games, the quarterfinal between #4 Kansas State and #5 Texas Tech is also a very good game. Neither team will be a lock for the NCAA tournament by that point, so both teams will have to treat it as a do-or-die game. I think that Texas Tech wins that game to clinch its NCAA status and sent the Wildcats to the NIT. I see Texas A&M winning the rematch with Texas in the semi-finals, and then Kansas taking them out in a close game in the final.

Big 10
Dates: Thursday to Sunday
Regular season champ(s): #1 Ohio State (15-1, 27-3, 2)
NCAA locks: Ohio State, #2 Wisconsin (13-3, 27-4, 4), #3 Indiana (10-6, 20-9, 24)
NCAA bubble teams: #7 Michigan State (8-8, 21-10, 22), #6 Illinois (9-7, 21-10, 35), #5 Purdue (9-7, 20-10, 46), #8 Michigan (8-8, 20-11, 52)
Most likely early upset: #7 Michigan State over #2 Wisconsin
Best first round matchup: #7 Michigan State vs. #10 Northwestern
Best potential quarterfinal: #2 Wisconsin vs. #7 Michigan State
Best potential semifinal: #2 Wisconsin vs. #3 Indiana
Best potential final: #1 Ohio State vs. #2 Wisconsin
Predictions: There will most likely be a few intriguing quarterfinal matchups in this conference. #8 Michigan's NCAA hopes will hinge on its game against #1 Ohio State. #3 Indiana and #6 Illinois face off for the 3rd time this season after the Eric Gordon recruiting saga. Illinois' hopes likely also hinge on this game. #7 Michigan State will most likely be a lock by the quarterfinals, but they have shown that they can play with #2 Wisconsin and it should be a great game between those two teams. I think that Ohio State, Indiana, and Wisconsin will win those games, and the seedings will hold true to form as Ohio States faces off against Wisconsin for the third time in the final. OSU pulls out another close game and makes its case for getting the #1 overall seed.

Major Conference Tournament Preview: Part 1

Now that the most of the mid-majors have finishd up their tournaments, it's time for the big boys to get started. Over the next two days, I will profile each of the 6 major conference's tournaments. Today's conferences are the Big East, Pac-10 and SEC. In the parentheses are the team's conference record, overall record, and RPI according to ESPN Daily RPI.

Big East Tournament
Dates: Wednesday-Saturday
Regular season champ(s): #1 Georgetown (13-3, 23-6, RPI 17)
NCAA locks: Georgetown, #2 Louisville (12-4, 22-8, 43), #3 Pittsburgh (12-4, 25-6, 5), #4 Notre Dame (11-5, 23-6, 33), #6 Marquette (10-6, 23-8, 23), #9 Villanova (9-7, 21-9, 18)
NCAA bubble teams: #5 Syracuse (10-6, 21-9, 49), #7 West Virginia (9-7, 21-8, 58), #8 DePaul (9-7, 18-12, 59)
Most likely early upset: #7 West Virginia over #2 Louisville, #6 Marquette over #3 Pittsburgh
Best first-round match-up: #8 DePaul vs. #9 Villanova
Best potential quarterfinal: #3 Pittsburgh vs. #6 Marquette
Best potential semi-final: #1 Georgetown vs. #4 Notre Dame
Best potential final: #1 Georgetown vs. #6 Marquette
Predictions: DePaul and West Virginia both likely need two wins in this tournament to get an at-large bid. I think that will motivate DePaul enough to beat Villanova in the first round, and then they will give Georgetown a tough game before barely losing. West Virginia, on the other hand, will get the win they need with an upset over #2 Louisville in the second round. #6 Marquette will beat #3 Pittsburgh again to set up a semi-final matchup between the #6 and #7 seeds. The other side of the bracket will hold true to form as #1 Georgetown will face #4 Notre Dame. West Virginia and Syracuse will do enough to gain at-large bids but DePaul will fall one victory short.

Pac-10
Dates: Wednesday to Saturday
Regular season champ(s): #1 seed UCLA (15-3, 26-4, 1)
NCAA locks: UCLA, #2 Washington State (13-5, 24-6, 26), #3 USC (11-7, 21-10, 54), #4 Oregon (11-7, 23-7, 27), #5 Arizona (11-7, 20-9, 13)
NCAA bubble teams: #6 Stanford (10-8, 18-11, 57), #7 Washington (8-10, 18-12, 74)
Most likely early upset: #7 Washington over #2 Washington State
Best quarterfinal match-up: #4 Oregon vs. #5 Arizona
Best potential semifinal matchup: #1 UCLA vs. #4 Oregon
Best potential final match-up: #1 UCLA vs. #3 USC
Predictions: I think that #3 USC will beat #6 Stanford in the quarterfinals, which will put the Cardinal right on the bubble for the NCAA tournament. The semi-finals will hold true to seedings and be #1 UCLA vs. #4 Oregon and #2 Washington State vs. #3 USC. USC will upset Washington State, setting up a final matchup between cross-town rivals UCLA and USC. USC gets revenge for its two close losses to UCLA during the regular season by upsetting the #1 seed in the final, possibly taking away UCLA's chances of getting the overall #1 seed in the NCAA tournament and propelling USC to a high seed on Selection Sunday. Stanford will barely get into the tournament based off of it's winning record in the best conference in the country.

SEC
Dates: Thursday to Sunday
Regular season champ(s): #1E Florida
NCAA locks: Florida (13-3, 26-5, 9), #2E Vanderbilt (10-6, 20-10, 37), #3E Tennesee (10-6, 22-9, 7), #4E Kentucky (9-7, 20-10, 12)
NCAA bubble teams: #1W Mississippi State (8-8, 17-12, 64), #2W Mississippi (8-8, 19-11, 62), #3W Arkansas (7-9, 18-12, 49), #5W Alabama (7-9, 20-10, 45), #5E Georgia (8-8, 17-12, 63)
Most likely early upset: #1W Mississippi State over #4E Kentucky
Best first round matchup: #3E Tennesee vs. #6W LSU
Best potential quarterfinal: #2W Mississippi vs. #3E Tennesee
Best potential semifinal: #1E Florida vs. #3E Tennesee
Best potential final: #1E Florida vs. #2E Vanderbilt
Predictions: All five of the bubble teams in the SEC need a deep run in the conference tournament, to the semifinal at least and probably to the final, to have a chance at getting an at-large bid. There is a very good chance that not a single team from the SEC West will get into the NCAA tournament. I see only one of the bubble teams making it to the semifinal, #1W Mississippi State upsetting #4E Kentucky in the second round, and none of them making to the final. I think that #1E Florida will get it's game back together for the tournament and will avenge earlier losses to #2E Vanderbilt and #3E Tennesee on it's way to the SEC tournament championship. None of the bubble teams will do enough to get in, and the SEC West will be held without an NCAA team.

Power 16: Championship Week Edition

Here is my pre-conference tournament Power 16 poll, ranking the teams that should comprise the top 4 seeds in the NCAA tournament:

1. Ohio State
2. UCLA
3. Kansas
4. Texas A&M
5. Wisconsin
6. North Carolina
7. Florida
8. Georgetown
9. Memphis
10. Texas
11. Nevada
12. Louisville
13. Washington State
14. Maryland
15. Southern Illinois
16. Marquette

Following UCLA's loss at Washington in their regular season finale, Ohio State moves up to the #1 spot after squeaking past Michigan. Kansas has been on a roll lately, and won the Big 12 conference title outright by beating Texas at home. With that win, the Jayhawks were able to avoid playing either Texas A&M or Texas until the Big 12 final. Even though UCLA lost to Washington, they still had a big win earlier in the week at Washington State and they won the Pac-10 conference by 2 games. I don't think that Texas A&M should be penalized too much for losing a double overtime thriller to Texas, especially when Florida and North Carolina lost also. North Carolina fell to Georgia Tech and Florida lost to Tennesee, both of them in games that weren't especially close. Wisconsin was able to squeeze past Michigan State, after Kamroon Taylor hit a game-winning 3 with 4 seconds left.

Following that top tier of seven teams, the rest of the field is really wide-open. Even with the loss at Syracuse, Georgetown has still been playing great basketball lately. Memphis and Nevada have astounding records, but they both play in extremely weak conferences. Texas won at Texas A&M and almost at Kansas also, and they are really hitting their stride at the right time. Louisville has won 6 games in a row, and 10 of their lost 12, and the Cardinals are the #2 seed in the Big East tournament this week. Washington State bounced back from the tough loss to UCLA with a close win over USC, and they came in 2nd place in the Pac-10. Maryland is playing really well lately, and they won seven straight ACC games to end the regular season. Southern Illinois fell in the MVC tournament final to #2 seed Creighton, but still will get at least a 4 seed. Marquette's win over Pittsburgh was enough to push the Golden Eagles into the 16th slot.

Ohio State: Building a Basketball Powerhouse

The Ohio State University has always been known as a football school. On fall Saturdays, everywhere you look, there are scarlet and gray jerseys and shirts on everyone from baby girls to elderly grandparents. Sure, Ohio State has some basketball history, mainly from the days of Fred Taylor, Jerry Lucas, and John Havlicek, but basketball never came close to threatening football in popularity or success. However, nowadays it seems like Thad Matta is ushering in a golden age of Ohio State basketball, with almost unlimited potential for how high this program can grow.

Already, Matta has brought a winning mentality to Ohio State that hasn't been here since the days of Jimmy Jackson. In the last two years, Ohio State has won back-to-back outright Big Ten championships, something that hasn't happened since Ohio State won three titles in a row from 1959-1962. In fact, Ohio State only won one outright Big Ten title (1991-1992) from 1971 to 2005. That means that Matta has won more outright Big Ten titles already than Ohio State did in the 34 years preceding him. Last year Matta won the title with a bunch of players that simply bought into his system and believed in what he was teaching. This year, Matta won the title with the help of freshmen from the best recruiting class Ohio State has ever seen. And that's what truly makes Matta and this growing Ohio State program special: recruiting.

Consider these facts. In a four year span from 2002 to 2005, Ohio State recruited just ten players, which included zero 5-star prospects and 5 four-star prospects. Only five of those ten players even stayed with Ohio State, as the other five either dropped out or transferred. That means that 0% of Ohio State's recruits were 5-star prospects and 50% were 4-star prospects. Thad Matta has recruited three full classes for Ohio State in his time here (class of 2006, 2007, and 2008). In those three classes, the Buckeyes have signed an astounding 8 (8!) 5-star recruits, and 7 4-star recruits. They have signed 15 players total. That means that 100% of Ohio State's recruits three seasons in a row are at least four-star recruits, and more than half of them are 5-star recruits. The Buckeyes have gone from getting no 5-star recruits to averaging almost three 5-star's a year in the blink of an eye.

The way that Matta is doing all of this is even more incredible. He is telling these kids that if they go to Ohio State, they will win championships. And even better, they are doing just that and actually winning championships. Obviously, the 2006 class was Matta's absolute best job recruiting. To immediately step into a new job, and recruit 3 5-star players, including the player who was considered the best high school big man since Bill Walton, was remarkable. He completely sold those players on his belief. The players could have gone anywhere in the country, but they chose to go to a football school like Ohio State because the coach was able to convince them of his vision.

Things haven't slowed down since that 2006 class. The 2007 class is a top ten class also (#9 on Scout, #6 on Rivals) and includes McDonald's All-American 7-2 center Kosta Koufos. In addition to Koufos, Matta signed four 4-star players, all of whom are 6-5 or taller, and all of whom have the ability to contribute immediately. Even though signing day isn't until November (over 8 months away) Matta has already managed to sign a complete 2008 recruiting class that could potentially be as good or even better than the 2006 class. Four members of the 2008 class are 5-star players that are ranked in the top 25 recruits in the country. Included in that group are the #2 center in the country, BJ Mullens, the #3 shooting guard in the country, William Buford, the #3 point guard in the country, Anthony Crater, and the #10 power forward (and #20 overall prospect), Luke Babbit.

At this point, the only thing that could potentially sidetrack Ohio State is that they almost have an excess of amazing talent. Every single player they recruit now has the ability to play right away, but that just won't be able to happen. Nonetheless, the Buckeyes will be supremely talented for a long, long time. Even if (when) Oden leaves after this season, Ohio State definitely won't need to panic. When you get the top 7-foot center in the country three years in a row, as Ohio State has done, there's not much to worry about at that position. Just imagine the potential lineups for the next two years. Next season: Starting lineup: Mike Conley, Jamar Butler, Dequan Cook, Othello Hunter, Kosta Koufos. Bench: David Lighty, Matt Terwilliger, Dallas Lauderale, Jon Diebler, Evan Turner, Eric Wallace. That team goes 11-deep with talented players. Then consider what the roster will look like two years from now (even if Cook leaves to go to the NBA after two seasons): Conley, Koufos, Lighty, Lauderale, Diebler, Turner, Wallace, Mullens, Buford, Crater, Babbit, and Walter Offutt. That's 12 players on one roster that were either 4 or 5-star recruits coming out of high school. That is simply a ridiculous statistic. If these players continue to grow as players and Matta recruits half as well as he's been recruiting, the Buckeyes can be a serious Big Ten and national title contender for many years to come.

As you can see, the Ohio State basketball program is on the rise as much as any program in the country and Ohio State is on the verge of becoming the next college basketball powerhouse. Ten years from now, people could be talking about Ohio State is the same context as Duke, UCLA, North Carolina, Kentucky, etc. As long as Matta, possibly the best college basketball recruiter ever, is the head coach, I don't see anything stopping this program from reaching that level. So enjoy this golden age of Ohio State basketball, as it may be something that you one day tell your grandchildren about.

College Basketball Weekly Look-Back/Weekend Look-Ahead

College Basketball Weekly Look-Back
Syracuse 72, #8 Georgetown 58
Syracuse likely clinched an NCAA tourney bid with this win, and Georgetown slowed down the number of people jumping on their bandwagon. Syracuse was able to get the marquee win they needed. However, I'm not too worried about Georgetown's loss in this game. Their two top scorers, Jeff Green and Roy Hibbert, combined for just 15 points, but as long that doesn't happen again, they are still a final four-caliber team.

Tennesee 86, #4 Florida 76
What has happened to Florida lately? Florida has gone from being the consensus favorite to win the national championship to having almost no chance at a #1 seed in a span of ten days. During those ten days Florida lost to Vanderbilt, LSU, and Tennesee, all by more than ten points. None of these games were even close, and that had to be the most worrying aspect for Florida fans.

Maryland 85, #14 Duke 77
Maryland has really come on strong lately, and they are a team that is capable of making run in March. The Terrapins are now 23-7 overall and have won six games in a row, including two wins over Duke and one over North Carolina. Maryland has three good scorers in D.J. Strawberry, Mike Jones, and Ekene Ibekwe, and they have a stud freshman point guard in Greivis Vasquez.

# 15 Texas 98, #6 Texas A&M 96, 2 OT
This game is probably just behind the Texas-Oklahoma State triple overtime thriller in the race for game of the year in college basketball. The back and forth battle between (should be) first team All-Americans Kevin Durant and Acie Law IV was outstanding to watch. Texas had the game won twice, in regulation and in the first overtime, but Law hit three pointers to tie it up both times. Law's shot at the end of regulation might be the best shot in college basketball this year. Both of these teams are headed for deep runs in March and Texas A&M is a legitimate national title contender. One advantage they have over everyone else is that they have the most clutch player in basketball this year in Law.

Georgia Tech 84, #8 North Carolina 77
The Tar Heels have now lost 5 games during this ACC season and as long as Virginia can take care of business against Wake Forest, UNC won't even have a shot at sharing the ACC title. They are an extremely talented team, but they need to get some things figured out fast if they plan on winning a national championship this season.

#2 UCLA, #13 Washington State
UCLA clinched the Pac-10 title with this win, and if they beat Washington on Saturday, then the Bruins will win the conference by three games. That is an incredible feat for a conference that is probably the best in the country this year. If UCLA wins the Pac-10 they should, and will, be the #1 overall seed in the NCAA tournament. Washington State has a chance to win a few games in the NCAA tournament, but it will be difficult for them to make it past the sweet 16 because of their lack of talented and athletic players. However, if they can get opposing teams to play their style, they can stay close with anyone.

Weekend Look-Ahead
#15 Texas at #3 Kansas, 12 pm Saturday CBS
If Texas wins this game, they would be the #1 seed in the Big 12 tournament, which would be an incredible accomplishment for such a young team. Unfortunately I don't know if Kevin Durant can lead his team to a win in Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas 75, Texas 69.

#12 Pittsburgh at #20 Marquette, 9 pm Saturday ESPN
Marquette will try to stop a skid of losing 4 out of its last 5 with a home game against a Pittsburgh team they beat in overtime earlier this year. The Golden Eagles have had nine days to prepare for this game, and Dominic James and the rest of the team is hungry for a win. Marquette 71, Pitt 59.

Kentucky at #4 Florida, 12 pm Sunday, CBS
Florida tries to right the ship against a Kentucky team that is in search of a marquee win to hang their hat on. The Gators just barely get a win that will hopefully put them back on track. Florida 68, Kentucky 67.

#14 Duke at #8 North Carolina, 4 pm Sunday, CBS
Even though neither of these teams are living up the expectations this year, it's still Duke-North Carolina and it will an extremely intense atmosphere and game. North Carolina bounces back from a few recent losses and beats a Duke team they are much more talented than. North Carolina 77, Duke 65.

Missouri Valley Conference, 2 pm Sunday
Last year's mid-major darling conference is at it again this year, with three NCAA bids almost a sure thing and four a possibilty. The semi-finals likely will pit Southern Illinois vs. Bradley and Creighton vs. Missouri State. Bradley is the team most in need of a win for an NCAA bid. I predict that Southern Illinois faces off against Missouri State in the final. Southern Illinois 65, Missouri State 58.

Conference Tournament Preview: Mid-Majors

Now that the calender has turned to March, it's officially college basketball's month to shine. Starting this weekend, bids for the NCAA tournament will begin to be handed out. There are a few mid-major tournament that start within the next few days that could have lasting ramifications on the NCAA tournament.

Colonial Athletic Association
Dates of Tournament: Friday to Monday
Regular Season Champ: Virginia Commonwealth (24-6, 16-2, RPI 60)
Possible NCAA At-larges: VCU, Old Dominion (23-7, 15-3, 34), Hofstra (22-8, 14-4, 67), Drexel (22-7, 13-5, 42)
Low-down: The CAA is one of the best mid-major conferences this year, with four teams having realistic dreams of an at-large NCAA berth. All of the teams are on the bubble, with Hofstra being the likely odd team out if they don't win the conference tournament because of their low RPI and weak schedule. If Old Dominion or Drexel make it to the final of the tournament they should be in the tournament, and probably will be in with only a semi-final berth. VCU would really be on the bubble if they didn't win the tournament, as they ran through the conference but have absolutely no big wins out of conference.
Prediction for conference tournament: #4 Drexel over #1 VCU and #3 Hofstra over #2 Old Dominion in an extremely intense set of semi-finals. #3 Hofstra over #4 Drexel in the final as Hofstra pulls off the conference title to cement it's NCAA status. Hofstra, Drexel, and Old Dominion all get NCAA bids, while VCU's bubble bursts.

Missouri Valley Conference
Dates of Tournament: Thursday to Sunday
Regular Season Champ: Southern Illinois (15-3, 25-5, 5)
Possible NCAA At-larges: Southern Illinois, Creighton (19-10, 13-5, 29), Missouri State (20-9, 12-6, 36), Bradley (19-11, 10-8, 46)
Low-down: Southern Illinois is an absolute lock for the NCAA tournament with an RPI of 5, and if they win the conference tournament they will probably get a 3 seed in the NCAA tourney. Creighton is probably in as well, and if Missouri State can get to the semi-finals of the conference tournament, that should be enough for them to get in. Missouri State does have a tough quarterfinal game to get past against former top 10 team Wichita State. Bradley probably needs to get to the final of the conference tourney to even have a shot at an at large bid. For the Braves to do that, they will need to beat a Northern Iowa team that beat them twice in the regular season and then beat Southern Illinois in the semi's.
Predictions: #1 Southern Illinois over #5 Northern Iowa, #3 Missouri State over #2 Creighton in a good pair of semi-finals. #1 Southern Illinois over #3 Missouri State in the final. Southern Illinois, Creighton and Missouri State make it to the NCAA tournament.

Southern Conference
Dates: Wednesday to Saturday
Low-down: Both regular season champ Davidson (17-1, 27-4, 61) and runner-up Appalachian State (15-3, 24-6, 53) have at-large aspriations. Both are unlikely at-large teams but they are possibilites. The biggest thing hurting both of them is strength of schedule. Davidson's SOS is 224, and Appalachian State's is 144. Appalachian State has a stronger at-large case than Davidson because Appalachian State has quality wins over Wichita State, Virginia, Vanderbilt, and VCU. Davidson, on the other hand, has no quality wins out of conference but has won 23 of their last 24 games. The teams only played once during the season and Appalachian State won at Davidson.
Predictions: Appalachian State and Davidson face each other in a final that matches teams that will have combined for 54 wins. Appalachian State beats Davidson in a nail biter and Davidson sweats out Selection Sunday to no avail, as their strength of schedule dooms them to the NIT.

West Coast Conference
Dates: Friday to Monday
Low-down: For the first time in a few years, Gonzaga (11-3, 21-10, 68) will not be guarenteed an NCAA tournament bid if they do not win the WCC tournament. Their biggest obstacle is Santa Clara (10-4, 20-9), who would have won the WCC regular season title if they hadn't lost their last two games of the season. Santa Clara's coach is retiring at the end of the season, and the players will want to send him off with an NCAA tournament bid. Other teams with a shot at unseating Gonzaga are San Fransisco (8-6, 13-17) and Saint Mary's (8-6, 16-14).
Predictions: Santa Clara upsets Gonzaga to earn the automatic NCAA bid. Gonzaga's bubble burts and they miss the NCAA tournament.

Other low mid-majors that could be a factor in March Madness:
Winthrop (Big South)
Marist (MAAC)
Holy Cross (Patriot)

Western Conference Part 2

These three teams are a clear cut above the rest of the Western Conference and it will be very surprising if someone besides these three wins the conference. In reverse order again:

3. San Antonio Spurs (39-18)
Right now the Spurs are only one game ahead of Utah for the 3rd playoff spot, but I think everyone would agree that they are a much better team than the Jazz and will be able to hold them (and any other contenders) off. San Antonio is a veteran team who has been though this time of year plenty of times. At this point they know that they have a very small chance of getting one of the top two seeds, and so they can rest their players somewhat and make sure that everyone on the team is fully healthy going into the playoffs. One of the most dangerous things about the Spurs is that they almost for sure will be playing their best basketball of the year in the playoffs. The Spurs are playing very well lately too, as they are currently on a six game winning streak. Throughout the year, the Spurs have put together a number of short winning streak of four or five games (six of those streaks in total), and they have only lost three games in a row once all year. This shows that San Antonio is very consistent with the ability to win a number of games in a row. Not surprisingly, the Spurs are led by Tim Duncan, who is averaging 20 and 11 this year. Helping Duncan out on offense are Tony Parker with 19 PPG and Manu Ginobli with 17. The Spurs have been a fantastic three point shooting team this year, led by Breant Barry (45%), Parker (44%), Ginobli (40%), and Bruce Bowen (38%). They also have Robert Horry and Micharl Finley who don't have amazing numbers this year, but have been 3-point shooters throughout their careers. Another aspect of the Spurs to like is the fact that Bruce Bowen, while he has gotten slighty older and slower, is still one of the best defensive players in the league. While San Antonio will be the third best team entering the playoffs, it would come as absolutely no shock if they were to win the West.

2. Dallas Mavericks (48-9)
Dallas has the best record in the NBA, and their record is even more impressive when you consider the fact that they started out the season 0-4. That means that since the first four games of the season, Dallas has been 48-5, which is 9.6 wins per every loss. That stat basically means that the Mavericks have just been absolutely unbeatable this regular season. They have had winning streaks of 12 and 13 games, and are currently on another 13 game winning streak. Dallas is led by probably the leading MVP candidate, Dirk Nowitzki, who it putting up 25.4 PPG and 9.6 RPG. Josh Howard is having a career year, scoring 19.2 a game. Jerry Stackhouse is a great scorer off the bench as 6th man, either Jason Terry or Devin Harris can bring up the court and they are the starting backcourt, and Erick Dampier and DeSagana Diop are both inside presences that rotate at the center position. It will be very, very tough for any team in the league to beat the Mavs in a seven game series, but there's one team that I think can do it...

1. Phoenix Suns (44-14)
I think this is the year that the Suns get over the Western conference championship hump and win the conference. In my opinion, Steve Nash is having an even better season than he had the last two years, and his supporting cast is stepping it up also. It seems like Amare Stoudamire is finally coming back into his own after his knee surgery, and if he is 100% for the playoffs, he will be a force. Even without Amare being completely healthy this season, he is still leading the team in points, and he is putting up 20.8 and 9.9 a game. Nash and Amare run the pick and roll so beautifully and it is almost impossible to defend. In addition to Amare's almost 21 and 10 a night, Nash is putting up 19 PPG and 12 APG a night. Shawn Marion, although he is only 6-7, leads the team in rebounds with 10.2 a game. In addition to that rebounding, Marion is also scoring 18.4 PPG. The Suns top six players are all in double figures, with Leandro Barbosa scoring 17 a game, Raja Bell scoring 15 a game, and Boris Diaw scoring 10 a game. I think that the Suns not only have best trio of players in the league, but they also have the best top six players combination in the league. The one thing that could derail this team is the fact that all six players play over 32 minutes per game and they could be tired by the time the playoffs roll around. Barring that though, I think that this team will take down any team in a seven game series, even the Mavericks.

Western Conference playoff predictions:
Dallas Mavericks over Houston Rockets in 6
Phoenix Suns over San Antonio Spurs in 7

Phoenix Suns over Dallas Mavericks in 7

NBA Notebook: Western Conference

After discussing each of the Eastern Conference contenders yesterday, over the next two days, I will talk about the Western Conference. The West is better than the East by leaps and bounds, and any of these Western teams would have an excellent shot at winning the East title. I see there being seven teams in the West that can legitimately make a deep run in the postseason. Although there is a clear cut-off after the top 3 teams, the other 4 are all very talented and could be tough to handle for one of the top teams. In reverse order this time:

7. Utah Jazz (37-19)
The Jazz are currently fourth in the Western conference standings, but I cannot see them making a deep run in the postseason. Utah started off the season incredibly hot, starting out 21-5, but then cooled off quickly, going just 8-12 in their next twenty games. Although they have regained some momentum lately with an 8-2 run in their last ten games, I don't think Utah has enough weapons to win a playoff series in the Western conference. Even if Carlos Boozer (21.5 PPG), Mehmet Okur (18.2), and Deron Williams (17.3 and 9.3 APG) were to keep up their career years for the rest of the season, I don't think that trio would be able to beat a team led by Carmelo/Iverson, Kobe/Odom, or McGrady/Yao, let alone one of the top three teams. Utah is 22-7 at home this season, so if they end up holding onto the 4 seed (which I don't see happening), they could possibly win a first round series. However, I think that the Rockets and the Lakers will surpass them, and Utah will lose quickly to San Antonio in the first round.

6. Denver Nuggets (27-28)
The Nuggets are an extremely tough team to figure out. On one hand, they have two of the best scorers in the entire league in Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson. On the other hand, they are just 27-28 this season, and Carmelo and AI are having some trouble learning how to play with each other, as they have gone just 6-11 with both scorers in the line-up. The reason that I still ranked them 6th in the conference is pretty much just off of potential. Iverson wants to do anything to win a championship, including defering to Carmelo on this team. If those two guys can figure out how to play together, and George Karl can figure out how to use them well together, this team can give a top 3 seed trouble. The Nuggets biggest weakness is that they have almost no inside prescence. An inside rotation of Marcus Camby, Nene, Eduardo Najera, and Reggie Evans will not get it done. At this point the Nuggets look as if they will be the #7 seed and play either Phoenix or Dallas, with either one being an extremely tough match-up. At the very least, it will be fun to watch Iverson (the most competitive player in the league) do everything he can to try to lead his team to a title.

5. LA Lakers (33-25)
The Lakers have been pretty consistent all year, mixing up wins and losses fairly evenly, with their recent 6 game losing streak being their longest streak either way all year. Even though the role players have gotten better this year, and Kobe has learned to play with them, this team will still go as far in the playoffs as Kobe takes them. If Kobe is able to find a balance of shooting all the time (two years ago) and deferring to his teammates (last year's Suns series) then the Lakers can challenge any team in the West in a seven game series. Kobe is putting up 29.0 PPG this year, but he also leads the team in assists. Behind Kobe, Lamar Odom (16.2), Smush Parker (11.8) and Luke Walton (11.7) are all in double digits, with Odom almost averaging a double-double a night as he leads the team with 9.4 rebounds per game. Behind these top four, the role players are very balanced in their scoring. Five players are averaging between 7 and 9 PPG, including the center combo of Kwame Brown and Andrew Bynum. Bynum in particular has really stepped up this year, starting 41 of the 58 games this season. The Lakers have the potential to upset a top team in the playoffs, but they will need a lot of breaks for it to happen. As Kobe goes, so do the Lakers.

4. Houston Rockets (35-21)
Ever since the Rockets acquired Tracy McGrady from Orlando to team with Yao Ming, Houston has been expected to take the leap and contend for an NBA championship. Anytime you have two of the top ten most dominating players in the league, a championship should be the expectation, not just a hope. While this year may not be the year they seriously contend, this team definitely has the potential to make a run for the title. The Rockets are 5th in the West, only two games behind 4th, even with Yao playing less than half the games so far because of injuries. Yao plans to return to games in early March, and it will be very interesting see how Houston does at the end of season with both Yao and McGrady fully healthy and playing together. Yao and McGrady obviously lead the team in offense, combining for 50.5 points per game. That duo has gotten a lot of help this year however, from players like 3 point shooter Luther Head (11.1 PPG, 43% 3 pointers), point guard Rafer Alston (13.7), and forwards Juwan Howard (10.1) and Shane Battier (10.3). Battier in particular was an excellent signing in the offseason as he adds not only some scoring and outside shooting, but intangibles like hustle, leadership, and a will to win. With Yao being out so much, Dikembe Mutombo has stepped up nicely in his place and held down the center position. Houston will not break into the top 3 of the conference seeding-wise, but they should be able to overtake Utah and get the 4 seed and home court advantage in the first round. Houston against LA would be a very interesting and entertaining first round series. We will learn much more about Houston in the next couple of months as Yao gets healthy, but they are a very talented team that could potentailly lose in the first round to the Lakers or Jazz or beat the Mavs and make to the conference finals.

Top 3 teams coming tomorrow...

NBA Notebook: Eastern Conference

Over the next few days, I will offer my personal list of the teams in each conference of the NBA and rank those teams in order of their likelihood of reaching the NBA finals out of that conference. Starting out today will be the Eastern Conference, with only five legitimate title contenders, and in the next couple days will be the Western Conference, with seven teams I will profile.

#1 Detroit Pistons
Not only do the Pistons have the best record in the Eastern Conference right now by 4.5 games, but they have also spent the year pretty much injury-free and are currently playing their best basketball of the year, having won 12 of their last 13 games. This season is extremely different than last season was for the Pistons. Last season, Detroit was considered easily the top team in the East, if not the whole NBA, all year long, with people even saying that they had a chance at winning 70 games. Anything less than a championship last season would have been considered incredibly disappointing. Unfortunately for Detroit, they let problems with chemistry and Flip Saunders deteriorate their season, along with a little help from Dwyane Wade. This year, it seems as if Detroit has almost flown under the radar with the East being down, and Lebron, D-Wade, and Gilbert Arenas getting most of the attention in that conference. With the exception of Ben Wallace, the Pistons return the same core of players from a team that was a few breaks away from winning three NBA championships in a row. They were also able to add Chris Webber mid-season, and even though Webber has been slowing down lately, he still adds another interior prescence. Detroit also has much more depth than they have had any of the last three years, with 12 players averaging more than 10 minutes a game. They have 3 solid big men on the bench in Antonio McDyess, Nazr Mohammed, and Jason Maxiell, and also 3 solid back-up guards in Flip Murray, Carlos Delfino, and Lindsey Hunter. The Pistons have to be the odds-on favorite in an extremely weak Eastern Conference, even if Wade and the Heat were fully healthy.

#2 Miami Heat*
This entry is made with an asterisk because the Heat will only stay in this spot if Dwyane Wade can come back fully healthy from his shoulder injury. Even without Wade, I think that the Heat would make the playoffs in such a weak conference, but they would be absolutely no threat to win the conference without their superstar. It might be a surprise to see a team with a sub .500 record and with their best player out indefinitely ranked this high, but if Wade is healthy for the postseason then they have as good a chance as any team of making it to the finals. Even though it seems as if the Heat are taking this season easy and thinking that they can just turn it on later, maybe they will be able to do just that. They did basically the same thing last year, and it worked out fine for them then. The biggest difference between this year and last year besides the Wade injury is the fact that last year the Heat was filled with a bunch of veteran players that had never won a title like Gary Payton, Jason Williams, and Antoine Walker, and these players were more than willing to give up inidividual stats for the sake of the team. This year, those players already have their title, and they may not be quite as willing to sit on the bench or be told not to shoot as much. This team is the biggest wild card in the whole league, but with a healthy Dwyane Wade, they can beat anybody.

#3 Washington Wizards
The Wizards have cooled off a bit in last few weeks, going just 4-6 in their last ten, but I still see them as having a decent chance at winning the Eastern title. The Wizards are obviously led by Agent Zero, Gilbert Arenas, who, in addition to being the NBA's best player-blogger, is scoring 29.2 points this season and seems to always save his best for late in the game. Agent Zero is helped by having two other teammates who are scoring around 20 points a game in addition to his 29. Caron Butler is averaging 20.3 PPG and Antawn Jamison is scoring 19.3 a game. Besides just scoring, Arenas is averaging 6 assists a game, Butler is averaging 4 assists and 7.6 rebounds a games, and Jamison is averaging around 8 boards a game. Almost the entire Wizards offense is revolved around these weapons, but they are also helped out in the starting line-up by sharpshooter DeShawn Stevenson, who is shooting 47% from 3-point range this season, and starting center Brendan Haywood. Deciding between the Wizards and the Cavs for the #3 spot on this list was very tough but when I thought about which team I would pick if they played each other in a 7 game series, I had to go with the Wizards. I just think that Washington is playing better and with more chemistry than Cleveland this season, and I don't think Agent Zero will let the Wizards fall to the Cavs for the second year in a row.

#4 Cleveland Cavaliers
Although right now Cleveland is tied with Washington for 2nd place in the Eastern conference, the team just doesn't seem to be playing very well lately, and LeBron has seemingly been off all year. I know that he has been putting up 26.5, 7 and 6 this year, but he just doesn't seem comfortable playing in the offense or with his team. I think that this is equal parts frustration with the coach, frustration with his teammates, and frustration with how the season is playing out. If you watch a Cavs game, it seems like his teammates drop a number of easy baskets every game, but that still doesn't mean that LeBron should go to his "dribble around for 10 seconds and force up a jump shot" offensive strategy. Now, I would not be surprised at all if LeBron were to completely turn it on at the end of the year and the playoffs, but right now I just cannot see that happening. In all of this talk about LeBron, I cannot understate how poorly his teammates have been playing this year. Besides Larry Hughes, not a single other teammate averages more than 28 minutes per game. That means that besides LeBron and Hughes, no one else on the team can even manage to get on the court for more than 58% of the game. There is only one outside gunner on the team, and it seems as if half the time Damon Jones cares about how good he looks than the basketball game at hand. Even Eric Snow averages 25 minutes a game on this team! The Cavs are an incredibly perplexing team, and it will be interesting to see how they do in the postseason.

#5 Chicago Bulls
The Bulls started out the season as one of the favorites from the Eastern conference to make it to the NBA finals, and after their opening night thrashing of the Heat, those predicitions seemed prophetic. However, now that more than half of the season has been played out, Chicago has shown to be a team with a number of weaknesses, and now that the trading deadline has passed without a big deal, those weaknesses look like they will be enough to doom the Bulls in the playoffs. Chicago has absolutely no low post scoring, and they will not be able to win in the playoffs with that fact being true. Ben Wallace is still one of the better defensive players in the league, but he doesn't do very much on offense at all (6.2 PPG) and he has even slowed down a bit on the defensive end. Chicago has balanced scoring on the offensive end, with four players averaging between 15 and 21 points per game. Unfortunately those four players are either guards (Ben Gordon and Kirk Hinrich) or small forwards (Luol Deng and Andres Nocioni). The Bulls have a good, young core to their team, but they won't go very far in the postseason without that low post offensive option. People have been saying that the Bulls are a good, young team for three years now, and it's time for that "good, young team" to take the next step and become an elite level team. Unfortunately for the Bulls, that most likely won't happen this year.

Twins Spring Training Analysis: Starting Pitchers

A lot of Twins fans feel as if the starting rotation is one of the areas of the team that is mostly undecided, but I feel as if the rotation is more or less set already. However, just because most of the rotation is already set, doesn't mean that there isn't a lot to say about it. This is one of the most unpredictable areas for the Twins this year, yet it is also easily the area with the brightest future for the organization.

#1 Starter
Well, this one's easy enough. Johan Santana has been hands-down the best pitcher in the league the last three seasons, especially after the all-star break, when he was been absolutely dominating. Minnesota will need for him to have as good as a season as he's had the last three years, and there's no reason to believe that he won't repeat those performances this year. In the last three seasons, Santana has averaged 18.3 wins, 249.3 strikeouts, a 2.75 ERA, and a .963 WHIP, all while averaging about 7 innings a start. Those numbers are simply astounding. It is even feasible that he will have even better numbers this year, if he can start the season off better than he has in previous years. Even with how dominating he has been lately, he has started off slowly every season and if he can get off to a quick start this year, Sanatana has the potential to put up historic numbers.

#2 Starter
This is the point where the rotation picture starts to get a little bit hazy. My personal opinion is that the pitcher who will start out as the #2 starter this year is Boof Bonser, who is coming off a very promising first year in the big leagues. Bonser joined the club after starting out the season in the minor leagues, but he was invaluable in the late season when injuries struck Fransisco Liriano and Brad Radke. Bonser stepped up at the end of the season as the Twins #2 pitcher and helped lead them to the division title. In Bonser's seven games before the all-star break, he was a pedestrian 2-2 with a 5.30 ERA, but then in his eleven starts in the second half of the season, he went 5-4 with a sparkling 3.52 ERA. Starting on August 12, Bonser went 10 straight outings, leading to the end of the season, without giving up more than 3 runs a single time. This shows that he was incredibly consistent once he got used to the major leagues. Bonser is only 25 years old, and I think he will be a good fit as the #2 pitcher this year as we wait for Liriano to get healthy and Matt Garza (more on him later) to gain more experience.

#3 Starter
After giving him a hefty 1 year, $4.3 million contract this offseason, Carlos Silva seems the obvious choice to step into the role of #3 starter for the Twins. Although I am not exactly the biggest Carlos Silva fan, I was an advocate of the Twins re-signing him to a 1 year deal after the injury to Liriano. The Twins needed a pitcher and there weren't any better options out there, so why not take a chance that he might revert to his 2005 form. After a stellar year in 2005, where Silva wound up with a 3.44 ERA and a 1.73 WHIP, he dropped way down last year, throwing a disappointing 5.94 ERA with an 11-15 record. While I don't expect Silva to revert back to his old form, or even come that close, I also do not think he will have as bad a year as last year. I think that he will have some extra motivation this season after being criticized so much last year, and that might be enough to push him at least a little bit. While I'm hopeful that one of the young pitchers will progress to the point where he can take over the #3 spot, for now Silva is a viable option.

#4 Starter
Pretty much by default, the #4 starter position falls to free agent acquisition Ramon Ortiz. The Twins gave Ortiz a 1 year, $3.1 million contract this offseason, and with that pretty much comes a guarantee of a spot in the rotation. I am withholding judgment for now on this decision, because I want to be an optimist and at least think that there is some possibility that this signing works out. I am not completely without hope, for a four year span earlier in his career (2001-2004) Ortiz had numbers with the Angels that would be fine for a #4 starter. However, the last two years of his career have not been very promising at all. He pitched in the severly inferior National League for both of those seasons, and combined to go 20-27 with a 5.46 average ERA. While Ortiz has expressed happiness to be back in the American League, I cannot possibly fathom how being in the AL will help him. Even though he might be slightly more familiar with the hitters and ballparks, the teams and players will be of such higher quality than those in the NL that he may have a tough time adjusting to quality of play.

#5 Starter
This is where the argument really gets interesting. There are a number of players with a chance at winning the #5 starter job, such as Sidney Ponson, Matt Garza, Glen Perkins, Scott Baker, and Kevin Slowey. Ponson seems to be the favorite to win this job out of spring training, but to be honest I just can't see it. While I didn't object to the Twins signing Ponson to a minor league contract this offseason, I would strongly object to them giving Ponson a starting job just because he has more experience. If he is the best pitcher out of those five, then give him the job. But if not, trust it with the younger guys. After a career year in 2003, Ponson has done absolutely nothing since then, and even if he wins the starting in spring training, I cannot see him holding onto it for the full year. Both Garza and Perkins got some big league experience late last season. Garza absolutely tore through the minor leagues last year because reaching the majors and struggling a little bit in his first few starts. However, after he got those first jitters out, he settled down and pitched much better at the end of the year. In fact, after allowing 7 runs in 3 innings in his first big league start, Garza pitched between 5 and 8 innings and allowed an average of a little less than 3 runs per game. Perkins also had some success in the big leagues after he got promoted, however he only pitched in four games and all of those were as a reliever. One person that a lot of people seem to be forgetting about is Scott Baker. He was a starter for last year's team even before Liriano was moved up and although he hit a few rough spots and didn't have a great year, he is only 25 years old and has more big league experience than the rest of the young pitchers. I think that Garza will win the job coming out of spring training and Ponson will not make many, if any at all, appearences with the team all year. I'm hopeful that Garza, Baker, and Perkins all get a chance to start a decent amount of games so that they can get a feel for the major leagues, and I think that Garza has the potential to have the talent of a #1 pitcher in a couple years. Slowey also is a future big league arm but with all of the potential starting pitchers on this year's squad, I wouldn't mind seeing him spend a year in AAA getting more experience.

In conclusion, the Twins have a lot of question marks on the rotation, but it also has the potential to be an extremely solid lineup. Obviously it all starts with Santana, who will most likely be consistently magnificent all year long. Bonser could be a question mark, but he should at least be a good option to turn to. Both Silva and Ortiz are veterans with chances to turn good years into big contracts, and hopefully they will take advantage of the opportunity. The Twins have plenty of young arms that they could toss out there if the veterans don't perform well, so at the very least this season should be good experience for the young guys to set up one of the most potent rotations in baseball the next few years as Liriano comes back from injury.

Power 16: Week of February 26

In the spirit of espn.com's weekly Power 16 college basketball rankings, I thought that I would take a stab at ranking the top 16 teams in college basketball this week, with only two weeks of basketball left until Selection Sunday.

1. UCLA
2. Ohio State
3. Texas A&M
4. Kansas
5. Florida
6. North Carolina
7. Wisconsin
8. Georgetown
9. Memphis
10. Washington State
11. Nevada
12. Southern Illinois
13. Pittsburgh
14. Texas
15. Louisville
16. Oregon

Although I am a huge Ohio State fan, when I look at the top teams objectively, I think that UCLA deserves to be the #1 team in the country right now. Both of these teams have three losses, but the fact that UCLA plays in the Pac-10 (in my opinion the best conference in the country) lifts them up to the #1 spot. Ohio State has played 2 really tough league games (Wisconsin), 4 possibly troublesome games (Michigan State, Indiana, Illinois), and the rest have pretty much been against scrubs. Whereas, UCLA has five NCAA tournament teams in their league besides themselves, and two other extremely dangerous teams in Washington and California. In addition to that, the Pac 10 is the only conference with a round-robin regular season conference schedule so that they crown a true champion, so they have had to play every other team in the league once at home and once away, unlike Ohio State who got to skip playing at Indiana and home against Illinois, two potentially troublesome games. If UCLA can finish the regular season with only 3 losses overall, 2 of them in league play, and win the best conference in the country going away (if they beat Washington State and Washington, then UCLA will win the conference by 3 games) then they deserve to be the #1 team in the country.

My number 3 and 4 teams might be a little bit of a surprise, with both team coming from the Big 12. However, I simply couldn't justify ranking a Florida team who has lost 2 of its last 3, or a North Carolina team that has recently lost to NC State, Virginia Tech, and Maryland ahead of either team. Most people have Texas A&M ranked much lower than I have them, and almost everyone has them ranked behind Kansas, but I simply don't understand the reasoning for this. They both have the same amount of losses, both in conference and out of conference, but Texas A&M beat Kansas at Kansas. Texas A&M and Kansas have pretty much the same profiles but Texas A&M won in their only match-up at Allen Fieldhouse, considered by many to be the toughest place in the country to win a basketball game. I don't understand how anyone can rank Kansas ahead of Texas A&M with these facts, but I think that this might be a case ranking a team off of its potential and talent level. Kansas started the season with such high expectations, and such a high preseason ranking, that people feel compelled to rank them higher than they deserve. Sure Kansas has the ability to win the NCAA tournament, but so do a number of other teams.

I ranked Georgetown ahead of Memphis and Nevada even though the Hoyas have as many losses as those two teams combined because of how well they have been playing lately and also how much better their competition is. I know that Memphis and Nevada can't help it that they're in weaker leagues, but I just can't stomach the thought of ranking a team whose best win came against Gonzaga (as is the case for both teams) as highly as their gaudy record might suggest. I also put Washington State ahead of Nevada because of the superior play they faced in the Pac-10 and the type of results and big wins they have had this season.

It was very tough coming up with the final three teams in the rankings because of how many medicore teams there are in the country. We will learn a lot more about Texas in the next week as their next two games are against Texas A&M and Kansas. Louisville has been on a real hot streak lately, and they are becoming more and more impressive. Oregon seems to have righted the ship after some mid-season struggles.

Ohio State 49, Wisconsin 48

Not the prettiest game of all time, but it had an ending that, at least for me and other OSU fans, made up for the rest of the relatively sloppy game. Overall, the game turned out pretty much how I expected it to, with Ohio State gaining a slight lead early, Wisconsin coming back late to overtake the Buckeyes, and then the Bucks pulling out a close one in the end. The one aspect of the game that I totally didn't expect was how low scoring it was. Some people will say that this was an ugly game, like Gregg Doyel over at cbs.sportsline.com, while most Big Ten fans will argue that it was simply a hard-nosed, physical, defensive battle. Personally, I'm somewhere in between these two. While I don't think either team played their best, or even played very well, it was still an overall exciting game between two obviously very talented teams. Right now, neither team is the best team in the country, but with a hot streak and a little luck, both teams have the potential to cut down the nets in Atlanta. Oden was very unimpressive in this game, and in a way it showed that he will not be completely ready for the NBA next season. If he can be pushed around and defended physically by no-name post players on Wisconsin, he will not be able to dominate the centers and power forwards in the NBA. Also, Dequan Cook's silence lately has become a little alarming, as he was one of the Buckeyes most reliable scorers early in the season. Ivan Harris showed again why he's called "The Microwave", Mike Conley showed again why he could be next Chris Paul in college basketball, and Ron Lewis finally got back to his game of driving to the hoop and drawing fouls, as opposed to shooting deep fadaway three-pointers. Overall, a very good win, especially for the four players on the team who can now say that they were a part of the first Ohio State basketball teams to win back-to-back outright Big Ten titles since 1962.

This game should aid the Buckeye in their quest for a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, and I think that simply getting to the finals of the Big Ten tournament should be enough to clinch a top seed. Not only that, but with North Carolina and Florida falling this weekend, OSU has a chance to the top seed in the whole tournament. The two biggest factors in Ohio State's case to be seeded higher than those two teams are that they head into the postseason on a big winning streak, and OSU's losses (at Florida, at UNC, at Wisconsin) are much higher quality losses than some of North Carolina's (at NC State, at Virginia Tech, home against Virginia Tech, at Maryland) and Florida's (at Florida State, at Vandy, at LSU). Right now, I think that the only team that would be seeded ahead of the Buckeyes is UCLA, and UCLA still has away games at Washington State (a very tough place to play this season) and Washington and then the tough Pac-10 tournament to get through. If UCLA slips up at any point and Ohio State wins the Big Ten tourney, I think OSU will get that top seed. This is extremely important because, in my opinion, there are seven teams (Ohio State, UCLA, Florida, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Kansas, and Texas A&M) that are head and shoulders above the rest of the country. I would much, much rather face Memphis or Washington State in the Elite 8 than Florida, Kansas, or Texas A&M.

Tottenham Hotspur 4, Bolton Wanderers 1

I am a relatively new fan of English Premier League soccer, turned onto it after becoming infatuated with this summer's World Cup, and have been following Tottenham Hotspur all year long. After a little losing streak, Spurs seem to have righted themselves in the past week. They played 3 matches this week: 4-0 over Fulham, 2-1 over Everton, and now 4-1 over Bolton. Today's game was especially impressive for a few reasons. First of all, the way they came out of the gate in the beginning of the match was amazing. Three goals in the first 22 minutes, all set up beautifully, and they could have had one or two more. And then they way that they came back from Robbie Keane's red card and subsequent penalty kick really showed the team's resiliancy. The pairing up top of Keane and Dimitar Berbatov seem to be Spurs best option at the moment, and the midfield that has played together the last two games of Lennon, Zokora, Jenas, and Tainio seem to be working really well together. Once Spurs get the leader of their defense back in Ledley King, I think they will start taking their play to the next level. Although I have pretty much given up hope of reaching the top 4 of the league table and securing a champions league berth, I am very optimistic about finishing in the top 8 and making a return trip to the UEFA Cup. With West Ham coming up next, Spurs should be able to gain three more points in their push up the table.

Bring on Chelsea in the FA Cup!

Ohio State-Wisconsin Preview

#1 Ohio State vs. #2 Wisconsin Preview
This is the most-hyped regular season Ohio State basketball game in recent memory. Although Wisconsin took a little bit of the hype away with their loss at Michigan State on Tuesday, tickets to the game are still going for $125 for the worst seats in the house. It could even be argued that now the game has more even importance to the teams than it did before. Now that Wisconsin has two losses in league play, they know that one more loss will take away any chance they had for even a split Big Ten title. And Ohio State will be just as motivated, partly for the revenge factor, partly for the Big Ten title, and partly because with The Schott rocking the way it's going to be, it will be impossible for them not to be motivated.

In the first game between these two teams, Wisconsin thoroughly outplayed Ohio State, and a flurry of three pointers in the final minutes made the 72-69 score seem much closer than the game actually was. Wisconsin effectively took Greg Oden out of the game, and the peremiter players weren't able to make the Badgers pay for it. I think that two factors in particular will push this game into the Buckeyes favor if Wisconsin plays them the same ways they did last time. First of all, Oden has so much more game experience under his belt now that I simply cannot fathom him being held down the way he was last game. Also, the way the Badgers defended Mike Conley the first time around was that they played off of him, let him shoot the three pointer if he wanted to, and tried to stop the drive as much as possible. Even though he was absolutely no threat from three-point range in that game, to me it was one of Conley's most impressive games of the season, as he was still able to get to the basket almost at will even with the defenders playing him only against the drive. Lately, Conley has become much more confident in his outside shooting, and his shooting been much improved. I think that if they play off him the same way this game, Conley will be able to look for his deep shot and also be able to hit it. If he starts making threes and defenders have to step up to guard him, getting to the basket will be even easier.

The toughest match-up for Ohio State in this game will obviously be Alando Tucker. He will most likely be guarded by an assortment of Ohio State players throughout the game, as Thad Matta will try to always keep a fresh defender on him. While the Bucks won't be able to completely stop Tucker, I believe they can, and will, contain him. However, the Badgers have other weapons such as Kammron Taylor, Brian Butch, Michael Flowers, and Marcus Landry. Ohio State cannot fall into the trap of focusing so much on stopping Tucker that they leave the other guys on the team open. Taylor and Butch in particular have the ability to have a big games. Another thing the Badgers have is their coach, Bo Ryan. Ryan knows how important this game is, and you can bet that he has done all he can to prepare himself and his team for the game. He wants to win a Big Ten title so badly for his senior class of players and knows he'll have to win in Columbus for it to happen.

Here is how I see the game going: I think it will be fairly even in the beginning and both teams settle into the rhythm of the game and the crowd gets warmed up. The Buckeyes will make a little surge in the middle of the first half and go into halftime with a lead. They will have another surge early in the second half and push the lead into double digits as they crowd threatens to blow the roff off The Schott. The Bucks will have a balanced scoring attack led by Oden and Conley, with Ron Lewis, Ivan Harris, Jamar Butler, and Dequan Cook also having solid games. However, Wisconsin's veteren players will not be fazed and they will slowly chip away at the lead. Tucker will be held to around 15 points, but Taylor, Butch and the rest of the supporting cast will make some big shots to keep Wisconsin in the game. Wisconsin takes the lead with a little under 2 minutes left in the games, but the Bucks battle back and re-take the lead under a minute. The young Buckeyes keep their composure down the stretch and pull out the victory with a final score of 74-70. And everyone in the country hopes for a re-match in the Big Ten tourney final.

Saturday College Basketball Look-Back

Notre Dame 85, #16 Marquette 73
Big win for Notre Dame, and another step in the wrong direction for Marquette. Notre Dame clinched it's tournament bid with this win, if they hadn't already. Not only that, but with a 22-6 record overall, a 10-5 record in the Big East (and a game coming up against 10-18 Rutgers) the Fighting Irish could be in line for a higher seed than many people imagined, especially since every other medicore team in the country seems to be trying to do all it can to slip down the rankings. Marquette, on the other hand, came into the game ranked 16th in the country, but they are heading the wrong way fast. After winning eight Big East games in a row, they have now lost 4 of their last 5 in conference play, and with their final regular season coming up against Pittsburgh, they could easily head into tourney play having lost 5 of 6.

#12 Georgetown 61, #10 Pittsburgh 53
This was a fairly ugly game, however Georgetown was able to pull out a big win over a top ten team and take over sole possession of first place in the Big East. The Hoyas have now won 11 straight games after starting out Big East play 1-2. Leading Georgetown on this recent surge have been 7-2 center Roy Hibbert and 6-9 forward Jeff Green. Green has been playing so well lately that you could make an argument for him being Big East player of the year. However, the biggest thing for the Hoyas lately has been how their role players have stepped up. Young players such as Jessie Sapp and DaJuan Summers have really been playing well lately. I have considered Pittsburgh to be a little overrated all year long, and although they put up a good fight today, this game did nothing to change my opinion. Aaron Gray seems like he can be frustrated easily, and I just don't see how they can beat one of the top tier teams in the country unless their outside shooting is on fire. I think Pitt will be seeded too high when the bracket comes out, and could easily see a second round upset keeping them out of the Sweet 16.

LSU 66, #3 Florida 56
Not exactly the kind of performance you'd like to see out of the most talented team in the country, especially coming off a recent loss to Vanderbilt. While it's hard to tell if this a sign of Florida's weaknesses or simply slight boredom on Florida's part with the SEC title already in hand, Billy Donovan has to be slightly worried about his team. Florida will most likely still go into March Madness as the consensus pick to win it all, but all it takes is one performance like the ones against LSU and Vandy (or like the Florida State game earlier this year) for the season to end early.

Auburn 86, # 25 Alabama 77. Texas Tech 59, Oklahoma State 57
I grouped these two games together because Alabama and Oklahoma State were easily the two most disappointing teams of the day. It is mind boggling to me how Alabama is still ranked in the top 25, but this loss should finally be enough to put them out of it. With only a 6-8 record in an extremely weak SEC West division, I think that Alabama's bubble may have burst today. You simply cannot lose at home to a team like Auburn when fighting for your tournament life. Oklahoma State, on the other hand, has completely self-combusted after going 14-1 in non-conference play. The Cowboys don't have a single conference win on the road, and that fact is going to kill them on Selection Sunday. This game would have been huge for them not only because it would have taken them to 6-7 in conference play (as opposed to where they are now at 5-8) but it also would have been a road win, as the game was at Texas Tech. However, they failed to come through, and now may be stuck in the NIT this postseason. And by the way, what was Mario Boggan thinking on that last possession when he pulled out for the three?

#6 Kansas 89, Iowa State 52
With six vicories in a row by an average of 27 points, Kansas sure seems to be living up to pre-season expectations and hitting their stride at the right time of the year.

#19 Texas 68, Oklahoma 58
Kevin Durant: 32 points and 10 rebounds. Wow. Player of the year in college basketball this season.