Mark Emmert Defenses The Indefensible

((HT: ESPN))

It appears that Mark Emmert, the head of the NCAA, decided to go go Bristol this morning to do some kind of media tour dressed in Casual Friday fashion...

And, as the gentleman that has to defend the presidential stances of the NCAA, he has to tow the party line- no matter how silly the presidential party line is...

Like this run on the new meal standing even invoking Shabazz Napier by name


The #askemmert hashtag the "Mike and Mike" show used made for some interesting fodder...
Search the Twitter machine on your own for amusement- it would take us too long to post the great questions...
But Awful Announcing has a great recap
As does Deadspin...

And when stuff like this gets re-tweeted, you know it was another bad idea:

From Jay Bilas: NCAA President says athletes are "taking seats from a paying student." Wow.
ESPN actually put this out on their own: "If I can hire someone to play football for me why would I hire an 18 year old? Why not someone who plays in the CFL?" Emmert on unions

Here's the interview in full with Golic and Sedano

Someone DID tell Emmert he didn't have to do this, right...???

Shabazz Napier Tells NCAA To Suck It

((HT: Lost Lettermen/JWeber238 via Instagram))

This is a reporter's worst nightmare... an athlete during a celebration who wants to tell you something...

Just ask Shabazz Napier


What he's referring to is the ban given to UConn by the NCAA for their low APR grades...

And the irony given that Mark Emmert was the one handing out the trophy is not lost on folks...

Louisville Affiliate Goes Old School To Show Highlights

((HT: Awful Announcing/WDRB-TV))

The Fox affiliate in Louisville knew they couldn't show CBS highlights before a certain window opened up of UConn and Florida going off the air... there's a lot of television speak that the HQ could go into but it would take entirely too long to describe...

So, as an awesome way to show something but not...

They went all Double Dribble on us...
WDRB 41 Louisville News

How 'bout that...???

ICYMI: UConn vs. Kentucky Is Your NCAA Tournament Finals Matchup

So, outside of the UConn and Kentucky fans reading this, who actually picked these two teams to face off for the NCAA Basketball Tournament Championship?

Be honest.

Yeah, thought so.

Semi-Final Saturday provided some good drama and some pretty good (for the most part) basketball in the largest venue ever to host the tournament.

The first game was a slugfest.

Connecticut outslugged the top seeded team in the tournament, Florida 63-53. The game featured two teams known for their defense and that was a reason the game was so low scoring.

Four Huskies, lead by DeAndre Daniels with 20, scored in double figures as UConn led a good portion of the game. The Gators couldn't get closer than 6 points down the stretch and in the end, the Huskies pulled away.

Oddly enough, UConn a #7 seed, was seeded higher than the team they'll face Monday night in Jerry World, the Kentucky Wildcats.

Your Connecticut/Florida Highlights from CBSSports.com:



And your other finalist, Kentucky.

Nobody is sure why the Wildcats were a #8 seed with all the talent on the court other than the fact they underachieved during the regular season.

But when it counted in March, they were good. Very good.

UK got all they wanted and more against a game Wisconsin team but in the end, it was a Harrison twin that was the difference.

The most clutch guy on the team did what he's done all month long, hit game winning 3-pointers.

This time, with 5.7 seconds left and a hand squarely in his face, Aaron Harrison got a swing pass from brother Andrew and drilled a 3-pointer giving Kentucky a 74-73 win.

All we will say from here is Monday night should be quite the spectacle as two unlikely teams square off for College Basketball's biggest title.

Your Kentucky/Wisconsin highlights from CBSSports.com:

Brackets Continue Implosion With UConn and Dayton

((HT: WSYR-TV Syracuse))

Tyler Ennis' jumper with time running out didn't go in for a change and Dayton's run in the March tournament continued with a 55-53 win over 3rd-seed Syracuse in Round 3...

It was the first game since the Big East Tournament in 1995 that Syracuse failed to make a three-pointer as the Flyers packed it in the paint defensively and dared the Orange to make a shot from outside.

Three of Syracuse's last four losses were by five points or less.

By the way, if the math escaped you temporarily, Syracuse lost six of their last nine. All that after being ranked number one in the country at one point in the season and winning their first 25 in a row before losing to Georgia Tech in ACC play to start the down slide that ended in their second game of the tournament...

Here's the look from Syracuse...


"That thing was on line and he went for the win," Dayton head coach Archie Miller said postgame. "The thing that went through my head was the game at Pitt, when I saw that highlight 7,000 times when he banged the 3. I thought he was going to go to the basket. When I saw him raise up, I didn't feel good about it. But Buffalo's been good to us these last couple of days on the buzzer shots."

The 11-seed now moves on to play the winner of Kansas-Memphis...

The other big win Saturday came from UConn over former Big East counterpart Villanova... a 7-seed knocking off a 2...

Nova had a lead early in the game, but hit a stretch of 11:24 without hitting a shot from the field before sinking a three near the end of the first half to go in trailing 25-24. But, for the second game in a row, UConn's Shabazz Napier carried the Huskies- even with a bruised shin that kept him on the sidelines for a while late in the game.

Napier had 21 in the second half and 25 in the game...

The Huskies play the winner of North Carolina and Iowa State in New York City...
Here's a part of their second half of success...
((HT: NCAA March Madness))

Mick Cronin Goes Nuts on TV Ted Valentine

Wow!

College Basketball coaches--and coaches in general can be somewhat testy when they don't like calls in ball games.

But rarely do they get so mad that they have to be restrained...and then start pushing away the people restraining them.

Yet that's what happened today to the University of Cincinnati's Mick Cronin after he disagreed with a call by everyone's least favorite basketball ref, TV Teddy Valentine.

Cronin flys off the bench, but gets intercepted by his players and an assistant coach who tries to pull him away. Cronin shoves the coach and walks away.

By the way, Cincinnati lost a potential conference American Athletic Conference title clinching game vs. UConn 51-45.

And Kevin Ollie Was Hot, Too...???

((HT: ESPN))

UConn head coach Kevin Ollie wasn't too long for the floor in the second half tonight in the game against Louisville...

Here's the outburst...


The technicals were way quick...
And, apparently, Ollie went all big-eyed over the quickness and had to be restrained...

Should be interesting if Ollie gets really suspended over this one...

Delta Bumps Passengers For Gators Hoops...

((HT: First Coast News))

Morgan Watkins over at The Gainesville Sun reported the Gators basketball team's charter was grounded by maintenance issues as the team was heading to UConn for their game Monday night.

From Watkins:

The airplane originally meant for the basketball team required maintenance, he wrote, and, "due to operational need and aircraft routing requirements as a result of the busy travel holiday," Delta decided to use the other airplane and cancel the commercial flight for which it had been initially scheduled.

"Delta apologizes to those customers on Delta Connection flight 5059, operated by ExpressJet, who were impacted by the resulting cancellation of their flight," he stated.

Gainesville Airport spokesperson Laura Aguiar told the Sun that passengers were either given vouchers for later flights or were re-routed to other flights out of the city. Some of those Sunday passengers, however, didn't leave Gainesville until Monday.

Gators team spokesman Denver Parler told the newspaper he wasn't aware passengers were displaced.

Of course...

Here was the end result for the Gators in Storrs...
((HT: GatorZone))

But Watkins seems to stumble on passengers who were initially told that the Delta plane the Gators eventually boarded had "mechanical problems," and then (magically) the Gators basketball team started boarding the flight...

Not a surprise...

DEVELOPING: UConn Fires Pasqualoni

Paul Pasqualoni has been fired as UConn football coach, as well as associate head coach and offensive line head coach George DeLeone in a busy day in Storrs...

Two weeks ago, the Huskies were within a play here or there of upsetting a completely unmotivated Michigan team at Renschler Field. But when you lose to Buffalo in the spectacular fashion in which UConn did Saturday, 41-12, this seemed more of an inevitability...
((HT: UConn Athletics))


“I am making this change in our football coaching staff now as we approach the conference season to see an improved performance from our football program,” UConn AD Warde Manuel said in a statement. “I am disappointed in the record of our team thus far, but I am confident that our coaching staff and student-athletes will continue to work hard to improve and that will be reflected on the field of play as we start our American Athletic Conference season.”

The school is holding a press conference this afternoon t name an interim coach...

Looks like it's going to be offensive coordinator T.J. Weist, defensive coordinator Hank Hughes or tight ends coach Mike Foley will assume the role.

Pasqualoni will receive a $750,000 buyout after a 10-18 record- which includes a loss to I-AA Towson...

Is Division I Football Sure About This Whole UConn Thing...???

((HT: AKM Sports Media))

Especially after Towson beat an NCAA division I team for the first time as UConn lost 33-18 at home to the Tigers...

There was certainly a great deal of optimism with opening night...
((HT: WTNH-TV))


But that was squashed for most of the evening at Rentschler Field as Terrance West ran for 156 yards and two touchdowns- both in the fourth quarter. QB Peter Athens threw for 192 yards and another score. Running back Sterlin Phifer caught a 23-yard touchdown and ran for another.

The Huskies had not lost to an FCS team since 2001, when they were making the transition from Division I-AA to Division I.

Here's your Towson postgame with Towson head football coach Rob Ambrose, West and defensive lineman Jon Desir


UConn now gets Maryland and Michigan before a game against Buffalo. If the win doesn't happen there, it may not happen until the season finale against Memphis.

So Much For The Big East Being Worth Something

There was the prevailing idea that Louisville and Rutgers would be making some kind of statement: what that statement is... the HQ has no real clue... but some kind of statement about their place in the Bee-Cee-Ess...

So much for that idea- on both fronts...and Charlie Strong's viability during Silly Season may have taken a hit...

First, Teddy Bridgewater played with a broken bone in his wrist... which the HQ gives him due props for... But UConn beat Louisville in overtime- which will send the Cardinals plummeting in the rankings...
((HT: ESPN))


And, then, Pitt scored 21 unanswered in the second on their way to a 27-6 upset of Rutgers- who was ranked 21st at the time of the opening kickoff...

Pitt, still left in some shambles from the Hurricane Todd Graham era, had to have Paul Chryst pick up some pieces... the Panthers, behind Ray Graham, are now 5-6...
((HT: ESPN))

DEVELOPING: Calhoun Retiring From UConn

Not that this is a surprise or anything...

The HQ anticipated this happening for quite some time... it just came down to the time where UConn men's hoops coach Jim Calhoun decided that enough was enough and he had to focus on fighting his health battles first and leaving the program he built to others...

Calhoun, elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005, is a three-time cancer survivor (prostate once and skin cancer twice). He missed eight games last season while suffering from a spinal condition. He also returned four days after having back surgery to coach UConn for the last game of the regular-season and the postseason- which included a tournament loss to Iowa State.

Kevin Ollie is supposed to be named his successor...

Calhoun also served a three-game suspension at the start of the Big East Conference season last winter for "failing to maintain an atmosphere of compliance in his program," violations that went back to 2008 before the investigation was finalized.

Here's John Anderson and Andy Katz discussing...
((HT: ESPN))

TWTW Thursday: South Carolina, Vandy, UConn, UMass

Here's your Thursday recap...

South Carolina just got out of Vanderbilt alive 17-13
Here's the OBC talking about survival and Connor Shaw got out alive- although he gets a lot of bonus points for being a tough SOB...
((HT: ABCColumbia))
UConn welcomed UMass to Division I with a 37-0 shutout at Renschler Field. It was the first time the two schools played each other since 1999, when both schools were Division I-AA... it wasn't even close... ((HT: WTNH-TV))

UConn beats UMass 37-0 in renewal of rivalry

UNLV lost to Minnesota in three overtimes 30-27, the highlights are here fron 13 Action News/KTNV-TV
Other winners include Central Michigan (sorry, Wilkie), UCLA, and Utah
More fun tonight...

Shabazz Napier finishes crazy 10 seconds of UConn/Villanova game

If there was ever a 10-second span that encapsulated a game...this might be it.

UConn and Villanova went to overtime Monday night in Philadelphia and with 10-seconds left, it was 70-68 Huskies.

In the ensuing 10-seconds, Villanova gets a driving layup to tie it with 5-seconds left.

And from there, UConn's Shabazz Napier took over. From 30-plus feet, with about 1-second left.

Nothing but net.

UConn wins 73-70.

Video courtesy: UConnHuskies/YouTube--

Calhoun Back On Medical Leave For Spinal Stenosis

((HT: ESPN))

UConn head coach Jim Calhoun is back on the shelf indefinitely and George Blaney will be taking over in the interim as Calhoun addresses more health issues...

Stenosis is a narrowing of the spine, normally associated with aging and sometimes with arthritis. If physical therapy and medicines do not fix the issue, it could lead to surgery- which may or may not work...

Here's Andy Katz discussing with Lindsay Czarniak


Calhoun has had three bouts with cancer in the last ten years, and had to sit out for seven games in 2010 for stress-related issues.

More when we know more...