Chicago Region
Illinois -11.5 vs. Wisc. Milwaukee - I love the Panthers high energy . . . they are the Cinderella story of the tournament . . . but now it is pumpkin time . . . the Illini looked good last week . . . Augustine was a force inside . . . Dee Brown must get untracked though - Illinois
Oklahoma State -1 vs Arizona - it is unfortunate that Okie State and Illinois are in the same bracket . . . John Lucas is the man . . . Arizona will battle tough for 35 minutes . . . then the Cowboys prevail - Oklahoma State
Albuquerque RegionLouisville - 1.5 vs. Washington - the selection committee may get egg on their face by making Louisville a four seed . . . Louisville is kicking it right now as they dismantled a very good Georgia Tech team on Sunday . . . nice run by the Huskies, but it ends here . . . go with Rick Pitino - LouisvilleTexas Tech - 2 vs. West Virginia - he's back in the spotlight - Robert Montgomery Knight . . . this is a game that most feel Tech will win . . . not so fast . . . Knight has a habit of losing the tournament games that he is expected to win . . . and the Mountaineers may be one of the hottest teams in the country . . . Jerry West will get a smile on his face - West Virginia
ESPN.com - Andy Katz writes about how each team left in the tournament has survived a scare:
Washington Post - article about steroid use with high school athletes:
N.Y. Daily News - Do you know who is teaching your children?:
Durham Herald - Is Duke vulnerable in the Sweet 16?:
Louisville Courier - The Cards blue collar player
Cleveland Plain Dealer - Livingston's take on new Cavs coach:
Here is my ranking of the 16 teams left in the tournament:1. Illinois - the Illini are playing smooth . . . still the team to beat2. North Carolina - may have finally gotten over the slump of a few weeks ago . . . Iowa State win was impressive3. Kentucky - the Cats handled the pressure put on by Cincinnati . . . if Sparks keeps hitting the 3 ball, Kentucky will win it all4. Louisville - the committee overlooked Pitino's bunch . . . this team may just win it all . . . imagine a Kentucky-Louisville final . . . look how the Cards handled Ga. Tech5. Oklahoma State - I love this team because of Eddie Sutton . . . Sutton is a wiley old coach . . . Lucas is one of the toughest point guards in the nation6. Washington - the Huskies have their work cut out for them against Louisville . . . Washington was impressive when they dismantled Pacific7. Duke - the Devils struggled against Miss St. . . . Sheldon Williams is a force on the inside . . . Devils will lose to Kentucky if they meet8. Wisconsin-Milwaukee - yeh, I'm going with the unknown Panthers at the 8 spot . . . this team plays with so much energy . . . these guys are "ballers"
It's interesting that Bobby Knight has made it back to the Sweet 16 after such a long dry spell . . . the Red Raiders have a good shot at making the Final Four . . . Knight and company should get by West Virginia . . . but waiting for them in the Elite Eight will either be Washington or red-hot LouisvilleThat brings us to the Louisville head coach Rick Pitino . . . the Washington Post's Mike Wilbon had a nice column in today's Post about Rick . . . http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A50273-2005Mar19.html
