NCAA May Expand to 96 teams

According to Jim Delany, the Big Ten Commissioner, the NCAA men's basketball tournament will probably expand to 96 teams. The NCAA will have a meeting on April 29th to discuss this further. The decision to possibly add more teams was mainly based on money. If this goes through, it would likely spell the end for the NIT.

Elite 8 is narrowed down to Final Four

The March Madness teams that played this weekend did not disappoint. For the first time in a while, their were no teams that got blown out this weekend. Every game that was played over the weekend had a close score. The teams that advanced this weekend and will play in the Final Four are Duke, West Virginia, Butler and Michigan State. Any one of these teams have the ability and talent to play in the National Title game on April 5.

The first team that advanced this weekend was Butler. They defeated Kansas State 63- 56. This is Butler's first appearance in the Final Four. Many people consider this team to be mid majors. Whatever people decide to call them, we just have to acknowledge how good this team is. They can score at will against any team. It's no surprise to me that they're on a long game-winning streak. Next Saturday, they play Michigan State. If Butler gets on one of their shooting streaks, Michigan State will be in for a long day.

The next team to advance to the Final Four is West Virgina. They won against Kentucky 73-66. It's was West Virginia's 3 point shooting in the first half that kept them in the game. In fact, all of their made field goals came from behind the arc during the first half of the game. Kentucky didn't make their first three point field goal until late in the game. Also, Kentucky had a hard time defending West Virginia's offense. This was the first team in this tournament that Kentucky didn't dominate. The pressure of trying to win this game may have taken it's toll on this young team. It just seemed like they struggled all game with their offense and defense. Next week West Virginia plays Duke. It could be one of those games in which the team that makes defensive stops wins.

Michigan State was the next team to advance. They beat a very good Tennessee team 70-69. The Spartans have found a way to win despite many of their key players being injured. The Spartans are familiar with being in the Final Four. This will be the second consecutive time they've advance this far. Somehow someway they just keep hanging in there until finally they pull through and win. Next week, they play Butler.

Duke is the last team to advance to the Final Four. They defeated Baylor 78-71. It was the clutch three point shooting of Nolan Smith and John Scheyer that contributed to Duke's victory. Duke also was able to get some offensive rebounds which helped in them getting the win. When this team is on a roll offensively, they're very hard to beat. It's important to note that this team plays great defense too. Time and time again, their defense made crucial stops. Duke had shown us why they are deserving of their number one seed. They will play West Virginia next week.

At this point, it's hard to choose the team will win this weekend. After both Kansas and Kentucky lost, it's been difficult determining which team will become tournament champions. The team that consistently scores and defends the best will likely win the tournament. All four teams are good enough to win. The games being played this weekend are exciting and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens.

Mississippi State Should Be In the Tournament

The NCAA committee should have put Mississippi State in the tournament. This team has a good overall record. On top of that, they twice took Kentucky into overtime. It would have been fun to see this team playing in the field of 65. Hopefully the NIT will invite them to play in their tournament.

NCAA Considering Expanding March Madness

The NCAA is considering expanding the tournament from 65 teams to 96 teams. While some people think this is a good idea, I believe it's a bad idea. I'm a big believer in if it's not broke then don't fix it. The tournament is fine the way it is. The NCAA is probably thinking about doing this because they feel it will bring them more money. While it may generate revenue, it would put teams on the court with average to less than stellar records. I seriously doubt if anyone would watch the games of the teams ranked 66th or lower. Another thing to consider would be the effect it would have on the NIT. If the NCAA were to expand to 96 teams, then the NIT would risk having teams with really bad records playing. This would really hurt their revenue. Everything should be kept the way it is. It's currently a good system that doesn't need to be tinkered with.

Both Kentucky and Kansas lose

Today in college basketball, the number 1 ranked Kansas Jayhawks and the number 2 ranked Kentucky Wildcats lose. This is shocking to say the least. Both of them lost to teams they could have beaten. It looked like Kentucky and Kansas struggled to score at times during their games today, which is surprising since both are loaded with so much talent. I'm certain that each team will bounce back and play better the next time they step on the court. The good thing is that this is only the second loss for each team. Their losses today shouldn't hurt them too much in the polls. Kansas will probably still be number one and Kentucky will probably still be number two. Each team is still ranked at the top in their conferences. There's still a whole lot of basketball left to be played. Both teams are still in the running to be both conference and NCAA champions. Hopefully these teams can recover from their losses and play better from now until the end of the season.

Kentucky beat Mississippi State in Overtime

The Kentucky Wildcats narrowly escaped with an overtime win against the Mississippi State Bulldogs. The final score was 81-75. John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins proved to be big factors in the game with their scoring. Bledsoe also played well towards the end of the game. He scored some crucial points as well. When Kentucky decides to play hard and smart, they are difficult to beat. This team is loaded with so much talent. They will no doubt be a tough team to play against during March Madness.

Credit must be given to Mississippi State. They were not intimidated by this highly talented Kentucky team. For Mississippi to take this team into overtime was impressive. They played well throughout the whole game but lost in the end. Mississippi was also missing one its key players who apparently was suspended by the team for displaying poor behavior. If this key player would have played, it is very possible that the Bulldogs would have beaten Kentucky. Mississippi has proven that they are a good team and if they end up in the NCAA tournament, they can give teams problems.

Big East Basketball Shines Again

The Big East has once again shown why it is one of the best basketball conferences in the nation. There are so many great games played that often go down to the wire. Starting on Friday with Pittsburgh defeating West Virginia in three overtimes, to Rutgers beating Georgetown, this league has shown that it's in the elite category of college basketball. We can't forget about Louisville beating Syracuse in a close game. The level of parody is another factor that keeps us Big East fans glued to the TV each and every week. Right now, no one knows for sure which team Big East team will win the regular season title. I don't think we will be able to declare a regular season champion until the last week of the regular season. We can expect more great things to come during the Big East and NCAA tournaments.

Kentucky Beats Tennesee

Kentucky beat Tennesee last night 73-62. John Wall lead Kentucky with 24 points. It was a very close game at halftime. Tennesee ran a zone defense for most of the game which slowed down Kentucky's offense. In the end, Kentucky found a way to pull through and win. For this team to win the NCAA championship, they're going to need a big contribution for DeMarcus Cousins. He seemed frustrated at times which causes him to play poorly. It's important for him to keep his head in the game. He's a very good player who is unstoppable in the low post. I believe he will bounce back on Tuesday when Kentucky plays Misissippi State.