March Madness 2009 Opening Rounds Review
Top Seeds Survive First Weekend of NCAA Tournament
Mar 23, 2009 Sebastian Egerton-Read
Parity is a word commonly used to describe the current state of College Basketball and it was justified over the course of the first two rounds of this year’s NCAA tournament with 16 games being decided by a margin of just 8 points or fewer. Its final three matches encapsulated the excitement of the weekend, Michigan State edged Southern California, Missouri came from behind against Marquette and Louisville held off Siena all in gripping finishes.
Top Seeds Survive First Weekend
March Madness always produces its fair share of shocks and upsets; however in 2009 all teams seeded #1- #3 made it past the first weekend, albeit with varying degrees of ease. Connecticut and Memphis made impressive statements in their second round matchups putting on dominant performances winning 92-66 and 89-70 respectively; further increasing the already high expectations for an exciting Elite 8 matchup. Villanova over-turned a 10-point deficit in the second half against American to avoid a first round upset, before completely dominating UCLA in the second round to announce their presence in the tournament.
Not all of the top seeds advanced so convincingly including the the #1 ranked team in the tournament Louisville, who had a jittery start against Morehead State in the opening round before closing out that game and were then forced to battle off a valiant Siena in the second round. No matches are easy in March Madness, however Louisville will need to pick up their play and particularly their poor free throw shooting, which was exposed against Siena as they went 6-13 from the line. The Pittsburgh Panthers have also endured their fair share of troubles; East Tennessee State almost became the first #16 seed to win a game in tournament history with the Panthers superior talent showing through only just in time. Round two didn’t prove much easier, Pittsburgh played better basketball but never looked in control as they only just defeated Oklahoma State.
Arizona Pick of the Upsets: Watch out Louisville
While none of the #1- #3 seeds were defeated, the opening weekend still enjoyed its fair share of upsets as three #12 seeds advanced along with one #11 and one #13. Western Kentucky once again enjoyed first round success defeating Illinois in one of the most anticipated upsets; they came close to repeating last year’s Sweet 16 performance only just losing 83-81 to Gonzaga in an exciting offensive exchange. Cleveland State produced the most surprising result as they easily defeated highly fancied Wake Forest 84-69.
Whether or not Arizona’s performance can be classed as an ‘upset’ or not is debatable, however impressive victories over Utah and Cleveland State have helped justify the decision to include them and with Chase Budinger, Nic Wise and Jordan Hill firing on all cylinders they have the potential to beat anyone including their next opponent Louisville.
Blake Griffin Dominant: Oklahoma Contenders
Blake Griffin is unmatched in College Basketball in his ability to control games and almost single-handedly win them for his Oklahoma team. 61 points and 30 rebounds over the course of the first weekend has erased any doubts over his fitness and with Griffin in impressive form Oklahoma bolt from shaky #2 seeds to very being a contender in the tournament.
In reality the higher seeds just want to get through the first weekend, convincing performances are desired but not always necessary, as the real competition starts next weekend with the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 rounds. Next weekend’s matchups could very well make it even more exciting with every single contest expected to be tight.
March Madness 2009
|
What do you think about this article?
Latest Articles