Random Tournament Thoughts: Vol. II

That was the best weekend of basketball (on any level) that I can ever remember watching. Just after Patrick Sparks knocked down his double pump desperation heave, my sister called to commiserate on the weekend’s events. “I had to wake up Toby (her husband) last night to see the end of the Illinois game because he missed the end of Villanova-UNC and I was going to have to file for divorce if he slept through that game too. I just want this thing to go at least one more OT.” Well, you got your wish Penny. Now if we could only get your husband to stop sleeping so much we’d be in good shape. Actually, I’m not thinking that's very likely. He IS Mexican after all.

- The thing that impressed me the most during Illinois’ comeback was the play of Luther Head. He would not let the Illini lose. We hear announcers talk about guys willing their team to victory alot but it is often just overused hyperbole. Everybody else on Illinois began to hang their head around the four minute mark and seemed to be losing hope. Head, on the other hand, never stopped working on defense and came up with a couple of crucial steals that really got the momentum turning. Head also showed some serious onions (say it like Raftery) by having the courage to take a couple of threes that could’ve ended Ilinois’ run before it even began if he had missed. Which he didn’t, by the way.

- I’m not saying that Sean May isn’t a spectacular college big man, he certainly is. I am not, however, completely sold on his pro potential. It’s a crapshoot when it comes to wide bodied, undersized college big guys. You could get Elton Brand or you could get Marcus Fizer. I must say that a large part of my trepidation is a result of my torrid love affair with the pro prospects of Byron Houston during my early teen years. I think we all know how that turned out.

- If Bill Raftery sold an afternoon with him on Ebay, similar to what Jose Canseco once did, I would probably take out a loan in order to win the auction. That guy just cracks me up.

- Bruce Weber commented that the one player that he could least afford to lose from this Illinois team is Deron Williams. This makes a lot of sense since Williams is the guy who sets everybody else up. Well, Bruce you’d better enjoy him for the next two games because Williams is a lock to enter the NBA Draft after this year. His stock will never be higher than it is right now. He ‘s got a real shot at ending up in the Lottery. All of this got me thinking about Dee Drown and what he’ll do regarding the NBA Draft this summer. As I can tell, there are two distinct schools of thought regarding this decision with the first being (1) Stay for his Senior Season: Brown would undoubtedly be the star and could get a full year of playing the point, thereby alleviating some of the concerns about his ability to handle the responsibilities of running the point in the NBA. If he is able to do that while also helping next year’s Illinois team gain an NCAA tournament berth, then he could end up as a top 15 selection in the Draft. Especially, when you consider how much deeper this year’s point guard class is in comparison to next year. Of course there is another school of thought which says that Brown should (2) Declare for the NBA Draft: Brown will never be as front and center in the minds of NBA scouts as he is right now. Brown has also played very well in this tournament while displaying a full complement of his skills. If Brown were to return to next year’s Illinois team, he would be the focus of every defense in the Big Ten and is likely to see a lot of double teams when you consider the lack of quality young depth on Illinois. A year of lower shooting percentages and higher turnover numbers could drop Brown out of the draft completely. If Brown were to declare, he could attempt to prove his ability to man the point by playing at the pre-draft camp in Chicago over a span of four days instead of over six months where NBA scouts and GMS have a lot more time to pick apart your game. If Brown were able to play well during the aforementioned four days in Chicago he could possibly land a first round guarantee from a team that fell in love with his speed and long range shooting ability. It only takes one team to fall in love with your game in Chicago to get you drafted in the first round. Don’t believe me? Go ask Steven Hunter…and while you're there, punch him in the face for me. Honestly, I can see the sides to both arguments and can’t really fault Brown for whatever decision he makes. Personally, I think that Brown sees what is returning for Illinois (not much) and decides to declare along with his good friend Williams.

- Larry O’ Bannon doesn’t get nearly enough credit for the kind of player he is.


Caution: Pittsnogle Alert

- If I had to draw or describe (because I’m not a very talented artist) what I think the average West Virginia male looks like, it would end up looking exactly like Kevin Pittsnogle.

-I can’t wait to see Kevin Pittsnogle on Dream Job 2021, hosted by Stuart A. SmithScott.

-Kevin Pittsnogle looks like he walked into a tattoo parlor and said something like, “ I have $800 to spend on tattoos but I can’t spend more than $75 on any single one, what can you do for me?”

Entering a Pittsnogle Free Zone


-He hit his free throws yesterday, but there’s something about Raymond Felton’s body language and general demeanor in late game situations that doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.

-If I could go back in time and watch the high school games of college players, the Proviso East games including Shannon and Dee Brown would at the very top of my list.

-Lemonade Gatorade is excellent. I have steadfastly boycotted every single new Gatorade flavor since the introduction of Citrus Cooler. Mostly because I’m a really irrational guy who likes to protest stupid things. With that said, I had to give the Lemonade at least one try. I did and all I can say is…wherever this Gatorade stuff was invented must be a bastion of academic integrity and America’s foremost cradle for bright young minds.

- It is totally inexcuseable for both Lute Olson and Tubby Smith to have designed such unimaginative plays in their respective game ending situations. Times like those are the exact moment when coaches earn their salaries. Substitution patterns are neat and we all get a kick out of Tubby’s crazy eyes routine, but both of these guys dropped the ball in a major way. I’m not saying that they are better coaches but I’d bet that Bob Huggins and Larry Eustachy, if Hoosiers has taught us anything, could’ve gotten their guys a wide open look in the same situation. The sauce is very underrated for these types of things. Who do you think has a better, more original late game play? Lute Olson who goes to bed every night after Wheel of Fortune or Bob Huggins who is doing shots of Jack and scribbling plays onto a cocktail napkin at 1 am in an off-campus dive?

- During the Illinois comeback CBS was showing Bill Murray going crazy and generally embarrassing everybody around him, which was fun. After CBS showed Murray for the fifth time in ten seconds, I noticed that I recognized the man standing behind him. It was none other than former Florida and current Illinois Head Football Coach Ron Zook. As the comeback continued I couldn’t help wondering if, despite his newfound loyalty to Illinois, Zook felt bad for Lute Olson and the Arizona players. Because if anybody knows about blowing huge leads in big games, it is Ron Zook.

- Billy Packer mentioned on Friday night that Paul Davis had 19 blocks on the season. That’s right…19! It is an absolute joke for a fairly athletic seven foot starter in college basketball to have only 19 blocks over the course of a season. Greg Hildebrand could get over 20 blocks in a full college season. Davis has played pretty well in this tournament so far but that stat is embarrassing.

- I am in the running for two separate pools (my sister’s and the grounds crew at our stadium) because I picked UNC, Illinois, and Louisville to make the Final Four . I also picked Michigan State to make the regional final in the grounds crew pool so I'm betting that I'm in real good shape there. In fact, I’m going down to the grounds crew building right now to check on my status because as my grandfather used to say, “never, ever trust a man that cuts grass for a living.” My grandfather also made J. Edgar Hoover look like Rob Deer.