Running Diary - 2007 Day 1

A few things to know - if I say the game has switched to another or we're switching to another game, it means the channel I'm watching has changed to some other game or highlight. If I say the word flipped, it's because I changed the channel, potentially to avoid me trying to reach through the TV and strangle Jim Nantz.

This is edited from the full version.

1138 - I have a Beaver Buzz going, some pretzels, candy and Red Bull (which may or may not be combined with some vodka later). I can't wait for the massacring of Duke and the upset of overrated Wisconsin (Okay, that one’s tomorrow).

1221 - The first game is Maryland - Davidson. Maryland is heavily favoured, but Davidson is considered a potential bracket buster.

1222 - Two sons of famous athletes in this one - Maryland has DJ Strawberry, son of Darryl and Davidson has Stephan Curry, son of Del. Big advantage for Davidson.

1225 - Apparently, DJ's stick-to-it-iveness (???) is really appreciated by all.

1237 - A Quebec reference, as Archambault makes a 3.

1238 - He makes another and now the game is tied at 17

1243 - Okay, that Jordan/Bacon underwear commercial is just creepy

1244 - Back to Davidson, now up by 3

1245 - I just got a call and the dude was pissed because I didn't know who Gina is.

1246 - Fear the turtle, they are back up by 1.

1246 - Wow! Actual question - do you think the Canadian guys play better because we're close to the border?

1248 - I get about 60 sports channels and none of them are showing the Texas Tech game. Bobby Knight is losing.

1249 - Why is Jordan in Bacon's house?

1251 - Louisville get to play 2 in Kentucky, making the A&M game (assuming they both win) really interesting. Now there's some bracket porn!

1253 - Uh, this Davidson team is pretty good. Wait, they won 29 games this year ... I feel sick.

1255 - The Score switched to the Louisville game, why not show the game we can't see ... you bastards. They're up by 13, not exactly competitive

1257 - Why is Stanford just one Cardinal, instead of Cardinals like Louisville? 10 Turnovers already for Stanford in 11 minutes

1259 - Davidson now up by 2 after a big, big 3 by Jones.

100 - 8-0 run by Maryland, tied at 35 with 4:52 left. TT is down by 4 with 3:05 left (how did that game pass us so quickly, it started later) in the half

102 - The Western feed switched to the Davidson game too. Meaning all 3 networks are covering the same game. AWESOME! TT is down by 1 now.
The clock just said there was 22 minutes left in the half in Louisville (I think there's something wrong there)

104 - Now I'm just mad, TT/BC is tied with 30 seconds to go.
Curry has 16 points already. These guys are quick. Tie game at 41 here with just over 2 minutes left.

108 - Boston College enters the half with a 41 - 39 lead over the Red Raiders. Louisville is crushing Stanford. Yeah, they belonged instead of Syracuse - no question.

109 - Davidson scores 82 a game, yikes.

112 - Andrew Lovedale (of Nigeria) blocked another big shot before the half. 44-43 Maryland at the half.
Davidson has 5 countries represented on the roster.

122 - 46-20 Louisville. I really doubt Pitino is really that worried about Stanford going on a run. They are really terrible. Why is the mascot a tree and the name Cardinal? Does the bird live in the tree?
Maybe a little less shoe painting and a little more basketball there, Lopez? Gus Johnson, who called the UCLA/Gonzaga game and almost soiled himself, must be dying inside just a little.

123 - OMG, we are actually going to get some of the BC game after the break. I feel giddy.

132 - Oh those slimy bastards ... after the longest break ever. We get the Maryland game again. CBS must die

133 - The Score has it, for now at least.

134 - And it's gone ...

137 - Curry is on fire, a great bounce pass and now Davidson is up by 8; 52-44

138 - Flip to BC/Tech, and Bobby Knight is up by 2 with 12 minutes left

139 - The Toronto Argos just got negotiating rights to Joey Harrington - why?

152 - If this game wasn't so amazing, I'd be really pissed about the other networks. But Vazquez, Jones, Curry are giving it their all. Real nice.

155 - Oh hell no. Another Ouuuurrrr Country ad ... kill me

159 - 14 lead changes in this game Maryland up 60-59 with 9:50 to go.

202 - Osby for Maryland has come off the bench and is dominating

217 - Texas Tech loses by 9. My first loss in my bracket.

219 - Curry now has 30 and the lead is 9 for the Terps according to the screen, but it's actually 5 ...

227 - 82-70 final. That was too close.

233 - Oral Roberts - Washington State. I actually have the 14 seed ORU in this one. WSU is a mediocre team from a weak conference.

241 - It's official, Louisville was able to scrape by and beat Stanford 78-58 in Pitino's return to Lexington

257 - Belmont has an early 5 point lead on Georgetown, but that won't last. ORU still has a 4 point lead. Not so shocking to me ...

259 - 11-4 now for Belmont. Patrick Ewing is now in the game... Ah, if only it was 1984.

309 - In case you didn't know Ewing won the Natl championship in '84 with Georgetown with John Thompson II as coach. Patrick Ewing, son, now plays at Georgetown for John Thompson III.

310 - Butler and Old Dominion are tied at 7 after 6:20. Not exactly the pace of Maryland/Davidson. Butler, of course, was where Hoosiers was filmed.

313 - Ooooh ... hot triplets on CSI:Miami, what a shocker - they're blonde.

315 - I was about to say how ORU is too strong on the ball for Wazzou, but then they scored 4 points in the last 2 seconds (on a steal by Weaver) to end the half 28-26 ORU.

317 - Flip to the ODU game and it's still 7-7 ...

321 - Wow ... Dickie V in that Hooter's commercial ... I'm speechless. Looked like a 3 year old lost in an amusement park.

323 - Georgetown is pulling away now. 24-15 with 7 minutes left
Does G'Town not have any white unis? They're wearing Grey, what's the away uniform? Darker Grey?

325 - Flip to A&M Vs Penn. Finally one of the players I really wanted to see (no offence to Hibbert or Green) - Acie Law IV. I have them going really deep, as in Final 4.

327 - ODU is leading in the dreaded 12 vs. 5 game. I picked Long Beach as my 12 to upset. Which was tough, because I love Bruce Pearl, or any coach willing to take off his gear and paint himself orange.

331 - Oral's leading scorers - King & Tutt ... I'm not clever enough to make this up. That is awesome!

339 - Wait, what happened to the A&M game? Dammit. I guess I'll have to wait 'til the next round to see the Law come out and dominate.

342 - The half ends with ODU leading 20-19 over Butler. Less that half the points from the previous game on this same court. Ouch.

351 - Yippee, a switch to the A&M game.

352 - Penn is missing open lay-ups, not exactly a recipe for success.

355 - A&M leads 31-18 at the half

406 - Clark and Rochestie are now in control. WSU can do no wrong. 60-47. Clark has 5 blocked shots.

408 - A 4 point play for ORU, who, I have to admit, I thought would play a whitewash. But it's the complete opposite. I wonder if Roberts if freaking out. Is he still alive?

410 - Flipped to ODU. Actual comment: The game is picking up it's pace. It's 27-24 ODU 5 minutes into the second half. What's the record for lowest ever score?

417 - WSU is much better than I expected, but one and done should be the case. GW/Vandy should be interesting...

419 - 70-54 is your final. Cougars advance. Switch to ODU/Butler. A whopping 32-29 score with 11:30 left.

430 - Campbell his another 3 for Butler. 12 Straight points now for Butler.

433 - Switch to G'Town. 60-38 Hoyas. Ouch.

437 - Switch to A&M ... what the Hell. Penn is up by 2!!!! Sweet fancy Moses!
Wow - those entourage guys (Turtle, especially) are really bad actors.

440 - Tied at 39 with 11:00 to play

445 - Canadian content - Pompey of the Aggies is from TO, born in Trinidad.

458 - Switch to ODU. 44 seconds left. Butler up 55 - 46.

500 - Butler advances to face the Turtles. Is a Terrapin a turtle? Why are they called the turtles?

506 - Zoller is on fire with 16 in the second half. But Penn is finally running out of time, down 59-47 with 2:15 to play.

513 - Once again they mention Jones, "intestinal" issues. Is this really necessary?

535 - Vandy is destroying my pick GW. 43-15, GW just made 1st basket in over 11 minutes

537 - CBS East actually switched to the News???

539 - 45-20 at the half. I need a Red Bull.

545 - We learn that the 1st half score of ODU/Butler was the 8th lowest of all time.

550 - WSU's Clarks's 5 blocks -> all against Green of ORU. Ouch.

600 - Okay ... so the Western feed has switched to the news now, instead of the second half of this game. Uh? So why broadcast it, if no one is listening? I'm actually happy to be here now.

636 - I'm numb of course, with a 71-40 Vandy lead. A whupping. Both 6-11 games so far have been blowouts. Maybe I shouldn't have picked 3 11 seeds (I did have Louisville though)

645 - David Rodriguez for Vandy (the only guy without his name on his back) scores for the first time all year, on his second free throw attempt to end the game. 77-44.

710 - We finally get a first look at a #1 - Ohio State and the Man Child. He's a freshman but looks about 45 years old (really 19).

711 - Blackwood - Central Connecticut's best player is from Toronto

715 - Oden already has 4 rebounds in less than 5 minutes. Plus he scores.

716 - Oooo ... flip to Duke / VCU. I got VCU like many others

732 - Duke is up by 11 ... I'm sad.

735 - Flip to UCLA/Weber State. We learn that the higher seeds are 8-0 and the smallest margin of victory is 9 points. I chose the wrong day for a diary ...
Where's Cinderella?

739 - Weber State is up, I refuse to get excited ...

742 - I actually have the choice of 3 games .. .I'm almost giddy

743 - Switch to Mizzou/Marquette 10 minutes in and Marquette finally scores to make it 14-3. Yikes, giving the ODU game a run for it's money. Maybe a lower seed will finally win, even if it is just a 9 over an 8.

751 - Flip to VCU and they're down by 3 with 4:50 left in the half. Okay we get it, Paulus is fatigued. Maybe HE needs a Red Bull.

753 - So Duke is not the team they usually have, blah blah blah. They did return a few starters though. Doesn't every team lose a few starters (Florida excepted)? Maybe they just suck this year. This love of Duke is unbelievable.

757 - Apparently White men can jump as Pocius slams it down on the fast break for Duke.

802 - Ohio State is up by 21 at the half (38-17) ... No upset there. Of course a number 1 has never lost in the first round.

807 - VCU is given a most bogus foul with 2.8 seconds left, a 3 point foul at that. I hate Duke so much ...
Paulus made 2 of 3 and at the half it's Duke 40-38

820 - Michigan State is up by 12 at the half, making it the best bet for our first upset. The lamest of upsets of course.

821 - Naismith Finalist ad for Hansborough, if anyone votes for him they need to have their credentials revoked.
And UCLA is up 37-19 at the half.

822 - Just lost power ... Awesome ...

823 - It's back but now everything needs to boot up (TV and Digital Box) ... Ugh . I guess this is the best time since OSU is the only game not at the half and they're up 27 early in the second half.

825 - Still no picture ... C'mon Rogers. Don't piss me off.

826 - Time for a drink. Beaver Buzz and Russian Vodka. Hmmmm ... tasty.

827 - Fuck - Power went off and on again. We have to restart.

828 - Uh, hello?

829 - This can't be happening right now. Am I missing any recordings too? I hate this place.

830 - And we're back ...
Oh Come on. It happened again...

832 - And we're back. VCU is up by 1. Oh Baby! Ohio State is only up by 16 now.

834 - We're only 3 minutes into the second half and already Duke is tired. And this is the youngest team ever for coach K. But now after 3 3s they are up by 6.

836 - Maynor has been terrorizing Paulus and just stole it from him for an easy 2

843 - Twice we're told how McRoberts is one of only 2 players in the country with his set of stats. Both times, there's no mention of who the other guy is. Great job guys!

846 - Laettner is in the stands, and we're reminded how he was on the dream team. Yes. That's right. Magic, Jordan, Bird, Barkley, Ewing, Pippen, Robinson, Malone, Stockton, Drexler, Mullin & Laettner. One of these is not like the other.

854 - Mizzou is still up by 14. But they were favoured, even as a worst seed, because of injuries to Marquette. So it's not really an upset.

857 - VCU / Duke is getting chippy as Paulus wanted a piece of Maynor.

900 - Duke went on a 9-0 run and led by 11. Now it's 61-52 with 10:27 to play

902 - VCU is shooting under 40%. If a team can shoot accurately and play the full court press, Duke could lose by more than 20.

904 - Oh. OSU won by 21 (78-57), and no one noticed the game was over.

908 - So VCU has someone named B.A. and there's no A-Team jokes? Where's the justice?

915 - 5:59 left and VCU just went up by 1. I'm officially excited now.

918 - Could the refs be more in Duke's pocket. Paulus hits someone and Pellot-Rosa is called for the foul. Karma intervenes and Paulus had missed 3 straight from the stripe and is 6/11 overall. Duke up by 2 with 4:21 left.

923 - So Arrested Development never got a chance and 2 and a half men is still on? Are Americans that dumb?

924 - VCU has tied the game with 3:40 left

925 - I had to switch to Canadian TV to find out that VCU has missed 13 lay-ups (thanks coach of the Bearcats). That's analysis we can use.

928 - VCU leads with less than 2 minutes left ... oh baby.

931 - UCLA won by 28, no one cared. Game is tied at 72 with 1:30 left ....

932 - Sheyer is the 4th player to leave the game because of bleeding. VCU up by 2. 1:20 left

934 - 21 seconds left. VCU up by 2. Foul on McRoberts.

935 - 16 seconds VCU by 1. Foul on Pellot-Rosa. A Senior shooting over 80% from the charity stripe.
He makes one. Nelson ties it at 77. 10 seconds left

936 - Maynor with 1.8 seconds left. WHAT A SHOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

937 - Anyone notice how Laettner looks like Doogie Howser now?

938 - Maynor is soooo Money.
VCU wins, VCU wins.... Finally a legit upset!!!

940 - Lost in the Madness is Mizzou's win by 12 over Marquette.

944 - BYU / Xavier with BYU up by 4. Danny Ainge's son is playing for BYU. I have Xavier to squeak by in this one.

1000 - Indiana is up by 3 in what could be a good battle with the Zags. I have the 10 seed Gonzaga here.

1008 - X-Men are now up by 2 over the Mormons. Ainge also has his son in the stands.

1025 - Some interesting games. Gonzaga down by 3 with 3 minutes left in the half.
BYU 38-32 at the half.

1028 - After taking a peak at Simmons' diary for today I know why this one is boring. You need to have other people involved. At thanksgiving I had Big Steve going back and forth with the e-mail. I need to move to a more sports-friendly city. Boston?

1034 - Indy takes a 34-29 lead into the half.

1037 - Wright State has come back from a 13-0 deficit and now are down 17-22.

1038 - And now it's tied at 22!

1044 - Apparently because VCU won, Wright State now has an advantage. How does that work? Bob was silent on that one.

1046 - Brown tried to remove the 7 footer Gray's head with a little Macho Man Savage move.

1100 - Pitt goes into the half 43-30 ... oh well.

1120 - Eastern Ky is now within 4 of UNC. That's right. Not that it matters. A 16 has never won, and maybe never will (barring multiple major injuries)

1127 - UNC up by 9 ... I thought so. Switching to BYU, down by 3 with 3 minutes left.

1130 - Duke had 9 straight Sweet 16s.

1134 - Lavender gets a 2 then a great rebound by Camard. 75 all with 35 seconds.

1137 - BYU had 2 chances. Foul on Lavender. 11.2 seconds left. 79-75. 17 for Lavender 15 in the second half.

1139 - Ainge screws up and Xavier wins 79-77. Thad Motta of OSU gets to go against his best friend Miller of Xavier.

1147 - Uh, Pardo has his name shaved into his head. Was he afraid to forget it? Who does that? Wow, holy Tyson zone Batman!

1148 - His team is down by 13 with 1:12 left to Indiana.
Okay, so an 80 year old couple gets together and this is news? Because they're still alive? Or they recognize each other? I hate Katie Couric, what happened to real reporting? Cronkite is spinning in his grave.

1150 - Indiana wins 70-57. They get to be crushed by UCLA next.

1157 - So UNC ends up crushing E Ky 86-65. And Pitt is cruising too. So no midnight drama for me.

1202 - So only one upset today. The madness has never been so tame. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Unbelievable. He said Stick-to-it-iveness again. Thank god we get Raftery tomorrow.

1207 - Pitt takes it 79-58 to end the day 12 hours after it started ... But why was Pitt running up and down with 20 seconds left, up by 20? I'd be pissed if I was Bonwell.
Even with 3 seconds left they tried for a basket...
Why didn't Harlan mention this?