Weekend Update

As promised, I pretty much spent my entire weekend watching as many sporting events as humanly possible (along with a little Grammy action throw in to mix things up). There are too many opinions floating around in my head to include in just one post so today I am going to limit my thoughts mostly to college basketball. I will save some of my NBA thoughts for the end of the week as they approach their All-Star weekend and have some Penguins and NHL thoughts in-between. Before I get to hoops, however, I do want to touch upon the one big issue both in Pittsburgh and in hockey circles.

The Penguins-Islanders game on Friday night was an absolute disgrace to the sport of hockey. I am a fan of the game. I enjoy watching good hockey, not just the Penguins, and will often find myself watching two Western Conference teams playing when nothing else is on despite hockey coming in a distant fourth in my own sports preference list. I also do not have a problem with fighting and sort of understand its place and history in the game, not to mention enjoy a good fight…BUT what happened on Long Island was not hockey, it wasn’t sports, it wasn’t anything that should be allowed to happen in this country.

The NHL’s response to what happened was an even bigger joke and did nothing to deter similar events from happening in the future. Trying to sucker punch someone from behind, calling up goons for the sole purpose of getting in as many fights as possible and intentionally elbowing someone in the face and then continuing to attack him when injured were just some of the ridiculous antics that took place. These are things that would be illegal and insane at a sanctioned boxing or MMA fight, let alone a hockey game. If the NHL cannot properly handle, punish and stop these events from occurring, maybe it’s time to take fighting out of the game altogether. I will have a little more on this subject, including Mario’s statement, later this week.

Now, on to hoops…

· Pitt continued its Big East run with a second impressive road victory against Villanova on Saturday despite the absence of leading scorer Ashton Gibbs. Many people are beginning to believe that this team is better than the 2009 version featuring Sam Young, DeJuan Blair and Levance Fields. I don't think this team is as good as that team two years ago, but they are close. This version is definitely deeper and more well-rounded but that team had what should have been two first round NBA picks (maybe even two lottery picks based on current NBA production) while this team has zero draft picks at all right now. College basketball, however, isn't nearly as strong as it was two years ago so this Pitt team has a clear opportunity to achieve more than that team. Jamie Dixon’s squad is definitely one of the few favorites to advance to the Final Four in Houston.

· Speaking of the NBA, I had that exact conversation with my Dad heading to the Duquesne game on Sunday. I do not see why Brad Wannamaker and Gilbert Brown couldn't be decent 10th or 11th men in the NBA. They offer flexibility and the ability to defend two different positions well. It will probably come down to Wannamaker’s ability to play some point guard while it will be Brown’s shooting ability that will determine whether they can earn a jersey on the next level.

· Those that watched Kansas State beat up on Kansas last night in their first game as the #1 team saw what had me worried about this Jayhawks team a few weeks back. Despite its talent and depth, Kansas does not play tough enough underneath and has too many lapses on the defensive end. One game on the road in February means little, but for the team I think is the most talented in the nation they need to improve in those areas in a hurry if they want to accomplish a Final Four run.

· While Kansas’s loss showed some of its deficiencies, Ohio State’s loss was pretty meaningless to me. The Buckeyes looked like the best team in the nation for most of the game until Wisconsin got unbelievably hot in the second half. Those things happen in road games, especially to a good team like Wisconsin who is nearly unbeatable at home. Wisconsin did prove themselves as a team that none of the contenders want to see before the regional finals. Their ability to limit possessions, play solid defense and shoot the three-pointer are going to make them an awfully tough out come tournament time.

· The other two top teams I have yet to mention, Texas and Duke, kept plugging along. The Longhorns continue to win impressively and it wouldn’t surprise anyone if they won the remainder of their games before the Big XII tournament. Duke, on the other hand, has looked less and less impressive as the season has moved on. Without star freshman point guard Kyle Irving, the Dukies have relied heavily on Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler to carry the load. Despite some decent performances from their secondary guys the past couple of games, it wouldn’t shock me to see Duke stumble in a game or two before the Big Dance.

· Another team that is coming on strong is Georgetown who, after a little mid-season swoon, has won eight straight games including five over would-be tournament teams. The Hoyas feature one of the best backcourts in America with Chris Wright, Austin Freeman and Jason Clark. Freeman turned his ankle in the Marquette game on Sunday but all indications are that he should be fine. The Hoyas are still lacking in the interior, as being the nation’s 223rd ranked team in rebounding will attest, but we all know that guard play wins come March and nobody has had better backcourt play than Georgetown over the past month.

· I mentioned that I attended the Duquesne Dukes game on Sunday and it was fun to attend a game that meant something for that program for the first time in decades. Sure the Dukes fell to Xavier (a strong sleeper team for your NCAA brackets in about a month if you want some advice) but Coach Ron Everhart has the program headed in the right direction. The game was played in front of a sell-out crowd of over 10,000 people and just goes to show how people in Pittsburgh will get behind a team that has perennially struggled. The game had me thinking: Can you imagine PNC Park in September if the Pirates are even sniffing that magical 81st win? The place would be a sell-out every night.