Athletics
What a sad day for your boy Steviepooooo and Duke basketball fans all around the world. The most promising Duke team in at least a decade, fell short in the Final Four late last night. The Blue Devils lost to the more experienced Houston Cougars in one of the most upsetting losses I have ever witnessed.
I was very tired as I watched the game because tip off was not until 9:28 EST. I woke up very early to go for a good luck run yesterday morning. Anyone who knows me knows I am not a morning person. Most people who have lived with me have learned to avoid me for the first thirty minutes after I have awoken from my slumber.
Duke was leading by fourteen points with a little over eight minutes left in the second half. At this point I had begun to somewhat mentally check out and make plans for Mondays National Championship game. The expression “We make plans, and God laughs” comes to mind because of what took place in the final eight minutes of this game. Duke was ice cold for the remainder of the night. They only made one more field goal the entire game. Houston was able to jump at the opportunity and stole the game from the much less experienced Duke team.
It was getting close to midnight when the game ended, and Duke’s epic collapse was complete. Credit to the Houston Cougars for executing down the stretch. There were a few questionable calls, but the bottom line was Duke did not play well enough at the end of the game to win. Houston on the other hand played incredible. That being said I now sports hate them, and I hope that Walter Clayton Jr and Florida embarrass them tomorrow night.
I don’t really hate Houston. I’m just a little bitter about some comments that their head coach Kelvin Sampson made immediately after the game. He said, “I hear what everyone has been saying and it’s Duke this Duke that, but we didn’t go 34-4 playing in the little poodle league.” This was a somewhat disrespectful shot at Duke and the ACC conference as a whole.
Now there was a narrative in the national media that because Duke had played in so few close games this season, people were interested to see if they could handle the pressure if an NCAA tournament game got tight. Sadly, some of Duke’s better players such as Tyrese Proctor, did not handle the pressure very well at all and faltered.
Almost all of Houston’s players on the other hand, J’wan Roberts and LJ Cryer especially, stepped up big to win the game for the Cougars. I only watched Houston play a handful of games before the NCAA tournament. I was thoroughly impressed with how they rolled through the competition in the Big 12 tournament. To me they are the classic type of college basketball team that has succeeded in the tournament the past few seasons.
Houston may not have any NBA quality players on their roster, but they do have a lot of very talented very experienced upperclassmen. Some of their best players are 23 years old. As talented as Duke was, their best players were 18-20 years old. The physical difference between 18 year old and 23 year old men is significant. This was clearly on display with the vast number of rebounds Houston was able to obtain in this game.
Sadly, going forward for Duke they will most likely have an almost entirely new team next season. Flagg, Knueppel and Maluach are almost all certainly gone. Flagg will be drafted first overall in this summer’s NBA draft. Knueppel and Maluach will both almost certainly be top ten selections as well. The real questions are whether Tyrese Proctor will return for his senior season and if freshmen guard Isiah Evans will return for a second season. Both would probably be second round draft picks if they did elect to leave.
If one or both player elects to return to Durham, I will be very optimistic for Duke’s team next season.
The other final four game between Florida and Auburn might have been the best game of the NCAA tournament. It was a back and forth affair with a plethora of explosive plays by both teams.
Florida prevailed in the end. My guy Walter Clayton Jr once again came through in the clutch to lead his team to tomorrow’s national championship game.
I am starting to see Clayton be a major point of discussion amongst NBA media members. One of my favorite NBA journalists, Bill Simmons, recently said on his podcast that he could not believe that Clayton was not getting more serious looks from NBA scouts.
Before the tournament began Clayton was receiving a second-round draft grade from NBA scouts. His age and size are the main concern from scouts. I understand those concerns; however, it is unbelievably obvious that this guy will be a very successful NBA player for a long time. If any playoff team is able to pick him towards the end of the first round they will get a very valuable player.
That is going to be all for me this afternoon. Sorry there will be no entertainment or life sections today. I decided that when a large event in any category takes place, such as the Final Four, that category will be the sole focus of my blast.
A beintot
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