The ACC Bubble Watch
Filed under: ACC, NCAA Tournament, college basketball, sports
If you haven’t been living under a rock, you know that the month of March signals the beginning of March Madness. I will definitely be keeping track of things all month long, from the small conference tournaments through the national championship game. But before we get to that final destination, we still have a few days until one of the great holy days on the sports calendar: Selection Sunday. Between now and then, teams will play their way into, or out of, the NCAA tournament. Those teams who inclusion in the tournament seems in doubt are often said to be “on the bubble.” The first of many posts about March Madness will take a look at those teams considered to be on the bubble in the ACC.
Depending on where you look, the ACC as of this writing has three or four safe teams, or locks, and three or four teams on the bubble. For the purposes of this exercise, Duke, Maryland and Clemson will be considered in the tournament. Wake Forest is close to being a lock, and according to several sites is in the safe zone as of today. I will say that Wake isn’t exactly finishing strong, having lost three in a row with two difficult games on tap to close out the regular season-a road game against Florida State and a home game against Clemson. The Florida State game may amount to a play-in game, with both teams needing a win to shore up their body of work. With a couple more wins, Wake may play their way off the bubble.
That leaves three remaining teams to discuss: Florida State, Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech. It appears that the Seminoles (RPI 54) have the best upside of the three, with some great numbers and wins in their favor (wins over Marquette, and a 3-0 record against Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech). However, the non-conference strength of schedule is weak, and they have a 6-7 record against the RPI top 100 which includes a loss to a Florida team also on the bubble. The one bad loss is to NC State. The Seminoles should get in, but a loss to Miami in the regular season finale will cause some doubts.
Virginia Tech (RPI 52) has been a surprise in the conference, but their national profile is suspect . The non-conference strength of schedule is even weaker than Florida State’s, they are on a three-game losing streak and their record is 5-5 against the RPI top 100. They also have losses to Boston College and Miami. Tonight’s game against NC State is a must win, and the finale against Georgia Tech is another potential bubble buster. Virginia Tech needs to win at least two games; if they split their final two regular season contests they will definitely need to win a game in the ACC tournament. No matter what, the Hokies cannot afford to lose to the Wolfpack. Even if they win those two games, there’s a good chance they will be on pins and needles again on Selection Sunday (as it seems they are almost every year).
While Georgia Tech has some great stats in their favor (high strength of schedule, and RPI of 35), they also have some demerits. Even though they have some of the best wins of the three teams on the bubble (Duke, Siena, Wake Forest, Clemson, Charlotte) they are 7-8 against teams in the RPI top 100 and also have two bad losses to Miami and Virginia. They also have a loss to Dayton (also on the bubble) on the resume, and were swept by Florida State. The regular season finale against the Hokies is a key game to watch for both teams, as the winner may go dancing and the loser may be headed to the N.I.T.
Stay tuned over the next ten days to see what happens.
Maryland Terrapins: Time To Pay Attention
Filed under: ACC, NCAA, basketball, college basketball, following the locals, sports
With football about to go on hiatus (the games, not the business), the time has come for me to begin paying attention to college and pro hoops. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been kinda keeping an eye on both of them (the NBA due to the Arenas mess and the fantasy basketball league I’m in), but this post will be about ACC hoops in general and the Maryland Terrapins in particular.
Almost every year without fail, the ACC is generally acknowledged as one of, if not the best, college hoops conference. Football in the ACC is a secondary thought-the joke is that the ACC is a basketball conference that dabbles in football. That perception is primarily borne on the success of the two unquestioned powerhouses in conference-Duke and North Carolina. Year after year, these two programs are the marquee features in the league, with successful season after successful season. Their success is often a given in the league-almost every year one or the other is expected to win the league and claim its automatic berth in the NCAA tournament. This year was expected to be no different. However, this year the conference race is wide open. Duke, while still good, is still beatable with the same flaws that have shown up in recent years. North Carolina is suffering a hangover no one really expected, as their young players haven’t quite gotten up to speed with life in the ACC. Everyone else is up and down depending on the opponent.
As it stands right now, Duke is in front, with a one game lead over a surprising Maryland Terrapins squad that is tied with Duke in the loss column. If the Terps can beat North Carolina today, they will finish the first half of their conference schedule with a 6-2 record, which actually wouldn’t be too shabby. The two conference games the Terps lost could hardly be considered shocking: a 2-point overtime loss to an athletic Wake Forest team and a loss to Clemson, both on the road. The Clemson loss may represent the worst game the Terps have played in conference so far. The second half of their conference schedule features two games with Duke and Virginia, the conference’s other surprise team, as well as dates with Clemson, Virginia Tech, NC State and Georgia Tech. A 5-4 finish would get the Terps to 20 wins with 10 losses, and a 10-6 conference record. Granted, as a fan of the Terps you would want them to do better than that down the stretch, but that finish coupled with one win in the ACC tournament should be enough to get the Terps into the NCAA tournament for a second consecutive season. This time last year, Gary Williams was coming under fire for losing games and clashing with the administration, and yet this year, I’ve heard nothing about coaching, or problems.
So from this point forward, I’ll be giving college hoops greater attention between now and the NCAA championship game.
Good Greivis, Bad Greivis
Filed under: ACC, NCAA, basketball, college basketball, following the locals, sports
At his best, he is his team’s most versatile player. He is able to score, rebound and pass with skill and make the players around him better.
At his worst, he is a ball hog and an erratic shooter. A turnover-prone player who can come up small in the biggest moments.
Terrapins fans know that this is what you get with Greivis Vasquez. At times throughout his career at Maryland he has been capable of greatness (for example, the upset of #1 North Carolina last season). At times, he has been guilty of wretchedness (too many examples to name). When the Terps play on the road, it is Vasquez who is the focus of ire from the stands. Admittedly, he plays to the crowd and he loves to shut up opposing fanbases with good play. Yet when he messes up, he draws the scorn of those same fans, who love nothing more than to see him flop.
Even Terp fans are split on Greivis’s appeal. Some realize that he is willing to step up in the game’s biggest moments and have seen him make plays when it mattered. Others hate his style, say he tries to do too much and often plays out of control. He has also been one of Gary Williams’ biggest backers. When Coach Williams was getting repeatedly peppered with questions about his coaching and whether or not the team would make the NCAA tournament last season, it was Vasquez who was in the coach’s corner and rallied the team to the NCAA tournament, getting as far as the second round in a loss to Memphis.
This season has been the typical Vasquez rollercoaster. Early in the season, he was shooting poorly though he contributed with assists and rebounds. Now that he is scoring a bit better his confidence is high, even if his shooting percentage isn’t. A case in point is the Wake Forest game last Tuesday. Vasquez led the team in scoring with 30 points (on 9-27 shooting from the field) as the Terps fought from behind in the second half to get to overtime. But when Maryland needed a quality shot to try to extend or win the game, there was Vasquez with a crazy shot from the corner that hit the side of the backboard and a contested 3-pointer that was not close. There certainly was time in both instances to find a better shot.
On the other hand, yesterday’s win over Boston College showed how good Vasquez can be if he plays under control. While he scored only 17 points, those points were scored on better than 50% shooting (7 makes out of 13 attempts). He also added 9 assists, 5 rebounds and two steals, with only two turnovers for the game.
This Dr. Jeckyll-Mr. Hyde act is about to come to a close, with this being Vasquez’s senior season. So what are your feelings about Vasquez? Potentially great player if he knows his role and plays under control? Or a player with erratic skills who thinks he is a better player than he really is?
ACC: Looking Like Georgia Tech and Clemson
Filed under: ACC, NCAA Football, college football, football, sports
With the ACC football season coming down to its final weeks, we can say with certainty that the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets have emerged as the best team in the conference. With a spot in the ACC championship game clinched by Saturday’s blowout of Duke, the Yellow Jackets have a chance to play for a spot in the BCS, likely in the Orange Bowl. With only one loss in conference to a Miami Hurricanes team that has fallen from its somewhat lofty perch from earlier in the season, there can be little doubt that they have been the ACC’s best team. With only the annual rivalry game left on the schedule against Georgia following a bye week, the Yellow Jackets can get ready for the conference championship game, while waiting to see who their opponent will be.
That opponent looks to be the Clemson Tigers. The Tigers, aside from a victory over Miami in overtime, have been quietly going about their business ever since the loss to Maryland. With a win over fading Virginia on Saturday, Clemson will clinch a spot in the conference championship game to face the Yellow Jackets. Clemson did what they needed to do in a victory over N.C. State. The matchup will be a rematch of an exciting game that took place way back in week 2 on a Thursday night in Atlanta. In a back and forth affair, Tech edged Clemson by 3 with a late field goal being the difference. If the championship game is as exciting as that game was (provided Clemson makes it there), fans will not be disappointed.
Elsewhere, the conference has four other bowl-eligible teams: Boston College, Virginia Tech, Miami and North Carolina. Florida State and Duke have chances to become bowl eligible with one more win. The road appears to be easier for the Seminoles than it does for the Blue Devils. Florida State has a date with Maryland before ending the season in the annual matchup with the #1 Florida Gators. Duke has a trip to Miami followed by a home date with Wake Forest. Neither game appears to be easy; Miami despite its recent inconsistency, has plenty of talent on both sides of the ball, and the Demon Deacons will be plenty motivated to finish their season on a high note.
ACC: Onward…Clemson?!?
Filed under: ACC, NCAA Football, college football, following the locals, football, sports
Last week in my weekly ACC post, I pointed out that if the conference championship game were to be played at the time of writing, that game would feature Boston College and Virginia. In yet another season where anyone can almost beat anyone else in the ACC, you just knew that the status of those two teams as division frontrunners was not going to last very long. So of course, it lasted for one week. Though the Eagles have no blame for what happened on Saturday (BC played Notre Dame and lost in an out of conference game), the Cavaliers were not as fortunate. Georgia Tech, which may be at the moment the conference’s best team, beat Virginia in Charlottesville 34-9. The win put Georgia Tech at the top of the Coastal Division standings with two conference games against Wake Forest and Duke standing between it and the conference championship game. If the Yellow Jackets can win those games, they are in, without any shadow of a doubt. But of course, this is the ACC. Anything can happen between now and the end of the conference season.
In the Atlantic Division where it seems no one wants to lead, this week’s leader is…Clemson? Yes, Clemson. The Tigers had the biggest win of their season on Saturday, beating the Miami Hurricanes on the road in overtime, 40-37. That win put Clemson in the driver’s seat in the Atlantic Division. Although currently tied with Boston College in wins and losses (both are 3-2 in conference), Clemson holds the head-to-head tiebreaker by virture of beating BC earlier in the season. Both teams cling to a slim half-game lead over Wake Forest, but Clemson holds the edge over the Demon Deacons as well by virture of a 38-3 victory ten days ago. However, Clemson has three conference games remaining-and lest anyone forget, the Tigers did lose to Maryland-so I wouldn’t celebrate just yet. They get the suddenly off the mat Florida State Seminoles at home, as well as the Cavaliers, and have to make a trip to North Carolina State, who along with North Carolina are the only winless teams in conference play.
In other game news, the Seminoles finally won a conference game, roaring from behind to beat North Carolina last Thursday night. It remains to be seen if this is the win that jump-starts Florida State’s season. With four conference games remaining, certainly the Seminoles can make some noise as to who does what in conference. They certainly can put a dent in Clemson’s title hopes on November 7th. Wake Forest went up to Annapolis and lost to a Navy team that did not throw a single pass the entire game. Navy seems to have one game a year where they don’t throw the ball and still come out on top. This makes the second time in three games in two years that the Midshipmen have beaten the Demon Deacons. Maryland suffered yet another loss, this time at the hands of the Duke Blue Devils. It has to be abundantly clear now that Duke is no longer the worst team in the ACC. Maryland just might be. The Terps must now win out to have any shot at a bowl game. Anyone willing to take that bet?
So write it in-Clemson vs. Georgia Tech-but in pencil only.
ACC: Playing For Bobby
Filed under: ACC, NCAA Football, college football, football
The big story in ACC football last week had nothing to do with any of the games played on Saturday. The week’s big story concerned the dean of coaches in the conference, Bobby Bowden at Florida State. Thanks to Jim Smith, the chairman of the university’s board of trustees, this quote made Bowden the center of attention all last week:
“My hope is frankly that we’ll go ahead, and if we have to, let the world know that this year will be the end of the Bowden era… I do appreciate what he’s done for us, what he’s done for the program, what he’s done really for the state of Florida.
“I think the record will show that the Seminole Nation has been more than patient. We have been in a decline not for a year or two or three but I think we’re coming up on seven or eight. I think enough is enough.”
With that quote about Bowden, whether it was whether or not he should resign, whether Jimbo Fisher (the coach-in-waiting), was ready to assume the mantle, how much money it would take to get Fisher signed, or to release him if Bowden is kept on past 2010, overshadowed any discussion of the upcoming game against Georgia Tech. While there are still fans who support Bowden, media and a now more vocal contingent is beginning to believe that it is time for the man who put Florida State football on the map to ride off into the sunset. Bowden will turn 80 years old on November 8, and for some time now, folks believe that age, and a fall from the standard he set in building the program prove that it’s time for a different voice as football coach.
Those that would criticize Bowden are using this season as an example. Except for a through domination of BYU in the third game of the season, Florida State has not lived up to expectations. An opening game near-miss against Miami was followed by a sleepwalking victory against Jacksonville State. Following the BYU game, the Seminoles have lost three consecutive games; two of those at home. First to South Florida starting a freshman at quarterback at home; then to Boston College on the road, to a team that in games against Clemson and Virginia Tech, had offensive troubles. Despite the crowd’s support for Bowden, and his players playing for him, the team came up short on Saturday. With Saturday’s loss to Georgia Tech 49-44, the Seminoles now have a three game losing streak, and are still looking for their first conference win. The Seminoles are in a place that they are not accustomed to being in: the bottom of the conference’s Atlantic Division standings. At 0-3 in conference, and 2-4 overall at the halfway point of the season, everyone is looking for the team to pick it up, and soon. A big game looms on October 22 against North Carolina, also winless in conference play. If Florida State loses that game, the cries for Bowden to leave will grow even louder.
Elsewhere in the conference, Virginia Tech is proving to be the class of the conference, and with a few breaks, may establish itself as a national championship contender. With only the loss against Alabama on the ledger, if the Hokies continue to win through the ACC championship game, and the teams above it suffer losses, who knows? Miami continued its winning ways, establishing itself as the second-best team in the conference and Georgia Tech’s win over Florida State would make it a solid third choice. Tech’s defensive issues though, may catch up with them before long. Everyone else, did what they did. Maryland fell back to earth after the Clemson win by getting drilled by Wake Forest. Virginia, once left for dead at the beginning of the season, now has won two games in a row with a 40-point win over Indiana of the Big Ten. Thaddeus Lewis threw for 459 yards in a Duke (Duke?) win over N.C. State. Finally North Carolina got a win over Georgia Southern.
ACC: Ain’t No Tellin’
Filed under: ACC, NCAA Football, SEC, college football, football, sports
Another college football weekend in the books, another unpredictable set of games for ACC conference teams. Like the title says, ain’t no tellin’ what you’re gonna get from week to week.
Start with what, until Saturday, were universally assumed to be the conference doormats. Virginia, which hadn’t won a game all season, and had lost its opening game against William & Mary, went down to North Carolina and beat the Tar Heels, giving them their second conference loss in a row. That win puts the Cavaliers at 1-0 in conference, making them and Virginia Tech unbeaten in the conference’s Coastal Division. And Maryland, giving away games faster than people give out Halloween candy, held on with a defensive effort not seen all season to beat Clemson 24-21. Can’t believe anyone could have seen that one coming (I know I didn’t). That win makes Maryland the only unbeaten team in the conference’s Atlantic division. How is this possible? Ain’t no tellin’.
Follow that up witih Miami’s Hurricanes, last seen being overmatched in the rain against the Hokies, bouncing back to beat Oklahoma, 21-20. Say what you want about the Sooners missing Sam Bradford, Jermaine Gresham and Ryan Broyles, Miami scored their points against the Sooner defense, which to my knowledge is still acknowledged as a pretty talented group of players. I’m not sure if that win brings Miami back into the national championship conversation, but anything can happen in college football, and the ‘Canes, just like the Hokies, only have one loss. If Florida, Texas and Alabama suffer losses in the coming weeks, do those two teams get back in the conversation? Ain’t no tellin’.
Elsewhere, Florida State…which team is this? Played Miami down to the wire, came out flat against Jacksonville State, destroyed BYU (which beat Oklahoma) in Utah, now losing to South Florida and Boston College (which lost to Clemson). Saturday’s loss to the Eagles means that the Seminoles are now 0-2 in conference, but you can’t really count them out of the Atlantic Division. I don’t think Maryland sitting on top of the division is any reason to panic, but the Seminoles have got to start playing better ball if they want to be a part of that conversation. Virginia Tech, which looked like world-beaters against Miami last week, held on to defeat Duke, and Wake Forest defeated a N.C. State team that just hung a loss on Pittsburgh of the Big East last week. Georgia Tech stepped out of conference and beat Mississippi State of the SEC, giving them a two-game winning streak. So, it looks like another conference season where the teams will beat up on each other…or will there be a “big dog” with a shot at, at this time, an unlikely national championship?
You got it: ain’t no tellin’.
Not A Great Weekend For ACC Football
Filed under: ACC, BCS, NCAA Football, college football, following the locals, football, sports
This year, the ACC wanted-no, needed-to get some national respect. Ever since the raid on the Big East that added Virginia Tech, Miami and Boston College to the conference, the ACC has been on the hunt for national respect as a football conference. Since that time, along with the decline of Florida State and Miami, the plan hasn’t worked out quite as hoped. On this opening weekend of the college football season, there were some opportunities for some of the conference’s teams to start to earn themselves, and the conference some of that respect that it so craves.
Then the games began.
Thursday, a North Carolina State squad hoping to get off to a fast start seemed mired in quicksand against South Carolina’s defense in a 7-3 loss. While State’s defense played well, the Gamecocks defense was better. Saturday brought some victories, albeit against FCS schools. Boston College, Georgia Tech, Clemson and North Carolina all were winners and seemed to have no trouble with their foes. Too bad their other conference compatriots couldn’t say the same, in a Saturday that may have actually reduced the perception of the ACC as a legitimate football conference.
Two other ACC schools had games against FCS foes, and both were beaten at home. Virginia and Duke suffered losses at the hands of William & Mary and Richmond, respectively. Perhaps they should have scheduled Towson, another CAA school who played an FBS team and was drilled by Northwestern’s Wildcats. Those may have been the most embarrassing losses for the conference, on a day where ACC teams had chances to gain respect by beating schools from other BCS conferences, but couldn’t get the job done. Virginia Tech went down to the Georgia Dome to face Alabama, and while they showed better than Clemson did in the same game the year before, still went down to defeat to the Tide 34-24. Tech played well in stretches, but also made costly mistakes. Alabama was not perfect either, by any stretch, but did just enough to get the victory. That game could have given the ACC a national title contender right out of the gate. Now, it remains to be seen if any ACC team will get into the national championship picture this season.
Elsewhere, Wake Forest lost at home to Baylor of the Big 12 and Maryland was drilled by California in a game that looked as if the Terps were still asleep from the start. When the dust settled, the conference went 0-4 against BCS foes and 4-2 against FCS schools. It may get better, but certainly this wasn’t a good start to gaining national respect. I haven’t forgotten tomorrow’s Miama-Florida State game, but its effect on the conference’s national perception will be minimal. Folks watching that game will get more out of whether or not either team is ready to get back to being a factor on the national scene again, as well as a return to their fomer status.
Midshipmen Can’t Bring It Home
Filed under: NCAA Football, college football, following the locals, football, sports
Just like that, it slipped away (AP Photo via the Baltimore Sun)
One hundred forty-three seconds remained in what could have gone down as one of the most shocking upsets in college football recent history. Navy’s Midshipmen, a twenty-one point underdog, were two yards from tying the game with the Ohio State Buckeyes, in a game that I thought would have long been decided. In fact, Navy was down 20-7 at the half ; with 11:30 left in the game, Ohio State had a 29-14 lead after a 6-yard touchdown run by Buckeye RB Daniel Herron. On the ensuing possession, Navy QB Ricky Dobbs threw an interception, and the Buckeyes drove down the field to the Navy 15, where they faced a fourth down with two yards to go. Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, sensing the momentum was in the Buckeyes favor, decided to go for it. Navy made the stop, keeping Herron short of the first down. At that point, 6:15 remained in the game, Navy was down 15 points, with 85 yards in front of the Middies.
In four offensive plays, sandwiched around an interception of a Terrelle Pryor pass that was returned to the Ohio State 33-yard line, Navy cut the lead to two points on two quick touchdowns. On the first play after the fourth-down stop, Dobbs hit Marcus Curry in stride for an 85-yard touchdown pass. Then, three plays after Pryor’s interception, Dobbs ran the quarterback draw up the middle twenty-five yards for another TD. The crowd at Ohio Stadium was in shock. You could almost hear a pin drop in the “Horseshoe” as the Buckeyes, reeling from this quick turn of events, called a timeout, with the one hundred forty-three seconds on the clock noted above.
The Midshipmen went for the tie…lined up in a spread formation…and the pass for the tying points was intercepted by Brian Rolle. Rolle ran the ball back the other way for two points for the Buckeyes. A four-point swing. Following a failed onside kick, Ohio State simply ran out the clock. Game over. Upset averted.
Perhaps the opening sentence of the post is overstating the magnitude of what would have happened if Navy were to have pulled off the upset. After all, Navy has had success on the football field. They have had recent winning seasons, under Paul Johnson and now under Ken Niumatalolo and have been to bowl games. They have beaten Notre Dame, Wake Forest, Pittsburgh and Rutgers in the last few seasons. And of course, no matter the score, they always play hard. I am confident that when these players step on the field, no matter the fact that they may be undermanned in terms of talent and size when matched up against the big boys of the college gridiron, they expect to win. As for Ohio State, who knows if they were looking ahead to the return matchup with USC next week. Maybe they didn’t think Navy would be so tough. The Big Ten conference would have heard the snickers and jokes again if Navy had come through against OSU at home; it’s flagship program losing to an independent, three-touchdown underdog in its own house. And, to be fair, the two-point conversion was for the tie; it would not have necessarily sent Navy to victory.
However, dreams of the upset were dashed; no condemnation rained down on Ohio State or the Big Ten. Goliath won the day; and while David was not crushed; he won’t be consoled with a moral victory. On this day, the Middies just couldn’t bring it home.
Thoughts About the Tournament
Filed under: NCAA Tournament, basketball, college basketball, sports
As for my bracket-it’s not too shabby. 41 up, 7 down. Good enough to win a prize in our contest. I could go on about how smart I was in making my picks this year, but it’s really not necessary. The fact of the matter is, I’m concerned about certain folks who are finding this year’s tournament “boring,” or too “chalky.” It’s true that the brackets have pretty much gone according to seed, and there is no real Cinderella in this year’s tournament. You can’t really count Arizona, despite its 12 seed, as a Cinderella. They are expected to make the tournament every year and they have no shortage of players with NBA capable talent. Gonzaga has long since been considered a Cinderella also, as they are expected to make the tournament year after year. Yes they play in a “mid-major” conference, but that is not a mid-major type team. Xavier also doesn’t fit the glass slipper either. They are also regulars in the Big Dance.
That’s not to say there haven’t been upsets-Siena, Western Kentucky and Cleveland State provided the upsets that the tournament is known for, but a sustainable run was not in the cards. Cleveland State had the misfortune of running into the Arizona Wildcats, whose players no doubt played their two weekend games with a chip on their collective shoulders. They also ran into a team with significantly better talent, though that didn’t stop them in the crushing of Wake Forest. Come to think of it, based on the level of play, it’s hard to say that Western Kentucky’s victory over Illinois was an upset; it was clear the Hilltoppers were the better team on the floor. Siena played two entertaining games; its double overtime win over Ohio State may have been the most entertaining game of the entire weekend. And they certainly gave Louisville all they wanted before finally bowing out.
If there is no real Cinderella left in the tournament, you can’t say there are aren’t any good matchups in store, either actual or potential. What basketball fan wouldn’t want to see what Memphis can do with Missouri’s fastest 40 minutes in basketball? What about Blake Griffin and Oklahoma taking on Syracuse’s famous matchup zone? What will Duke be able to do with the Villanova team that thoroughly dominated UCLA from the opening tip? These and many other questions remain and picking winners in those games may be just as hard if not harder than the opening round games.
In the MDBirdLover great 8 event, I’ve got two teams left, and wouldn’t you know, they play each other. Oklahoma and Syracuse meet on Friday for a spot in the elite 8 and a date against the winner of the North Carolina-Gonzaga matchup. I don’t know that either of them will get past UNC, though, but they are both certainly capable of getting to the Final Four. Whichever team survives, I have to hope they can go all the way (even though my own bracket has Memphis winning it all).
Enjoy the games.
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