Tag: Florida State

Snow + Sweet 16 = Springtime!!

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 1 Comment

Now that’s what I call SPRING!!

The 2nd day of Spring brought the Tri-State Area a care package; A FOOT OF SNOW!!

You won’t find whining and complaining here. I LOVE SNOW!!

Go ahead, call me crazy. You won’t be the first. For those who live in New York (like myself), and have for 10+ years, what do you expect?? 60’s and sunny on March 1st?! That’s not how this works people. The Tri-State Area generally gets hit with a major snow storm every March. If you don’t like it, move to Florida….

Anyway, alongside this beautiful snow day; basketball. Before we get to the basketball on hand this evening, let’s take a look at the amazing feats the NBA provided Wednesday night.

Superman!! 

dwight howard

Self-proclaimed Superman, Dwight Howard, had a historic Wednesday. He posted the 1st 30-30 night in nearly 8 years, and the 2nd in nearly 40 years. Not since Kevin Love in 2010 (and Moses Malone in 1982) has an NBA player hung 30 points and 30 rebounds on an opponent in a single game. The opponent?? The Brooklyn Nets. I know, I know, it’s the Nets. Listen, 30 rebounds is 30 rebounds. That’s some Wilt Chamberlain stuff right there.

The King

lebron 4

Self-proclaimed King, LeBron James, had a historic Wednesday of his own.

35 points, 17 assists, 7 rebounds, 1 steal, and ZERO turnovers.

That’s insane. Playing without Rodney Hood and Larry Nance Jr., LeBron wanted to send a message to the #1 seed, Toronto Raptors. 132-129. MESSAGE SENT. MESSAGE DELIVERED. LeBron, candid as always, said this prior to the game, “I’ll be available, so we got a chance.” Oh, they have a chance alright. With a healthy LeBron James on the floor, expect the Cleveland Cavaliers to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals — again.

March Madness!!

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-First Round-Miami vs Loyola Chicago

The Sweet 16 commences this evening, with 4 games on the schedule:

#11 Loyola-Chicago vs. #7 Nevada (CBS @ 7:07 P.M.)

#7 Texas A&M vs. #3 Michigan (TBS @ 7:37 P.M.)

#9 Kansas State vs. #5 Kentucky (CBS @ 9:37 P.M.)

#9 Florida State vs. #4 Gonzaga (TBS @ 10:07 P.M.)

Loyola-Chicago has won both of their games by a combined 3 points. Nevada is fresh off of a 22-point comeback. Which Cinderella story will prevail??

Score Prediction: 69-68 Loyola-Chicago

Texas A&M manhandled UNC in the 2nd round. With one of the most potent frontlines in college basketball, can Texas A&M do the same to Michigan??

Score Prediction: 70-64 Michigan

Kansas State was given a super early Christmas present when UMBC knocked off Virginia. Their road will get a lot tougher tonight, as they run into a Kentucky team playing as well as anyone in the country.

Score Prediction: 67-60 Kentucky

Florida State took a page out of UMBC’s playbook, knocking out #1 seed, Xavier. Can they continue their strong play against a tournament ready, Gonzaga team??

Score Prediction: 80-72 Gonzaga

 

Who will advance to the Elite 8 tonight?? Post your predictions in the comment section below.

You can now find me on the Radio too. Download the TuneIn Radio App and search OWWR. I’ll be on live every Wednesday from 6:10 P.M. – 8:00 P.M EST. I also broadcast every show on Facebook Live via my DaveTalksSports.com Facebook Page: http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like my page on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. You can also Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading!! Now go tell all your friends!!

The Moment Impossible Becomes Possible!!

~ Dave Ettinger ~ 1 Comment

Best. Tournament. EVER!!

This has been, without a doubt, the best NCAA Tournament in the history of college basketball. It’s had everything; buzzer-beaters, CINDERELLA STORIES, and unreal comebacks. Remember when I said Day 1 would be tough to top?? Let’s just say, if Day 1 was jumping off the high-dive at your local pool, Day 2 was jumping off an 80-foot waterfall without making a splash.

Cinderella

Apparently, the 136th time is the charm. Since the NCAA Tournament expanded from 32 to 64 teams in 1985, a 16-seed had never beaten a 1-seed. Friday night, the UMBC (University of Maryland Baltimore County) Retrievers changed sports’ history, forever. Some of the 135 teams came close with 1-point and overtime losses, but no David’s had ever slain Goliath.

Virginia was the #1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. They won the ACC regular season title and ACC Tournament, and held a record of 31-2 in a conference that sent 9 teams to the NCAA Tournament. UMBC, finished 2nd in the America East Conference.

This is the biggest upset in sports’ history.  

Bigger than Buster Douglas over Mike Tyson. Bigger than the United States over Russia in the 1980 Olympics. Bigger than any other upset you can think of.

And UMBC didn’t just squeak out a victory. They dismantled Virginia, 74-54. Of the six Retrievers to score, four finished in double figures. But this historic win was made possible by senior guard, Jairus Lyles’, 28 point effort. At halftime, the game was tied at 21. UMBC must have had some of “Michael’s Special Stuff”, because they shot out of their locker room like a cannonball and didn’t look back. Allow me to put UMBC’s 53 2nd-half points in perspective. Virginia held 16 of their 34 opponents this season to 53 points or less; FOR AN ENTIRE GAME!! Virginia also didn’t allow 70 points in a game prior to Friday night’s embarrassment.

Now That’s A Weekend

Nevada’s epic comeback. Michigan’s last second buzzer-beater. Loyola-Chicago is in the Sweet 16. Florida State took down Xavier. Syracuse outlasted Michigan State. Texas A&M’s ‘Texas Size’ beat down of UNC.

Did I leave any storylines out?? 

nevada

  • With 10:49 left to play, Nevada trailed 65-43. Thanks to Cody Martin’s 25-points, Nevada completed one of the most epic comebacks in NCAA Tournament history, 75-73. Martin scored 11 points in the final 10:48 and played all 40 minutes. If you missed this game, I feel badly for you.

michigan

  • Michigan Vs. Houston was a close, competitive game throughout. Houston led by as many as 5 points, while Michigan’s biggest lead was 6. A trip to the Sweet 16 came down to a last second 3-pointer by Michigan’s Jordan Poole to capture a 64-63 victory over Houston.

loyola chicago 2

  • 11-seed, Loyola-Chicago, has now beaten Miami and Tennessee to reach the Sweet 16. If only someone had predicted that….

PJ Savoy

  • Saved By The Be..nch. Florida State’s bench outscored it’s starting lineup 46-29. Xavier would fail to score in the final 1:49 of the game. Florida State drilled a late 3-pointer and ended the game on a 7-0 run. That’s the long and the short of it. 75-70.

cuse beats mich state

  • According to many,Syracuse shouldn’t have been in the NCAA Tournament. Now, they’re in the Sweet 16. Honestly, they didn’t deserve to make the tournament, but it proves that parody is real in college basketball. It also proves their pesky zone defense is really freakin’ annoying!! The sounds of brackets ripping filled the nationas the final buzzer sounded. 55-53.

unc

  • Soooo, UNC forgot they had a game yesterday. UNC would jump out to a 20-13 lead, but it was all Texas A&M the rest of the way. A&M would outscore UNC 73 to 45 to capture an 86-65 victory. This isn’t the way Roy Williams’ squad wanted to go out, but someone should have reminded them what time their game started….

I don’t know how this tournament could get any better, but I also said that on Friday morning…..

 

Sit back, relax, and enjoy the best NCAA Tournament EVER!!

Teams will be back in action Thursday night for the start of the Sweet 16.

 

Is UMBC over Virginia the biggest upset in sports’ history?? Tell me if I’m crazy in the comment section below.

You can now find me on the Radio too. Download the TuneIn Radio App and search OWWR. I’ll be on live every Wednesday from 6:10 P.M. – 8:00 P.M EST. I also broadcast every show on Facebook Live via my DaveTalksSports.com Facebook Page: http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports.

Since you enjoy my writing, follow me on twitter @DaveEttinger2 or like my page on Facebook at http://www.Facebook.com/DaveTalksSports. You can also Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: DaveTalksSports. Thanks for reading!! Now go tell all your friends!!