A humble request

Would every Appalachian fan please restrain yourself? Appalachian is not in the NCAAs yet. They don't even have an inside track. They are currently on the bubble. If they don't at least win out and make it to the Southern Conference final, I don't like their chances. They are a quality team but it may be too hard for two Southern Conference teams to get in. In my opinion, there are a lot of teams still ahead of them. So calm down. In the words of Winston Wolf "Let's not start (bleeping) each other's (bleeps) yet."

I love that line.

Speaking of Appalachian, they have a road game against Western Carolina tonight. They should be able to beat them pretty easily. Or will there be a letdown? I'll tell you one thing. If App loses to Western, UNC-G, or Elon in these next three games, I don't think they get in without winning the SoCon Tourney. Just my humble estimation.

Looks like we'll have a #1vs #2 matchup this Sunday. #1 Ohio State vs #2 Wisconsin. Both have done well and look to be prime candidates for Jeb's List of 8 once the NCAAs start. In fact that was Ohio State's last loss in early January to the Badgers. I think this time the Buckeyes will get revenge. But I'm getting ahead of myself. Ohio State plays Penn State Wednesday (should be a laugher) while Wisconsin has a tough one on the road against an underrated Michigan State team. I'm sensing two losses for the Badgers this week. They only have two losses. They're due to sputter.

Kansas plays Kansas State tonight. Kansas has been absolutely killing since their loss to Texas A&M. 97-70 on Kansas State. 92-74 on Missouri. 75-46 on Colorado. 92-39 on Nebraska. Starting to look scary are the Jayhawks.

Well in honor of BracketBusters weekend that has just passed, which teams do I think have the best chance of pulling a George Mason? Well personally, I don't think any really do. That may have been a fluke or a culmination of great mid-major play. And there's too many good teams this year that I don't think one could make it through the gauntlet. Of course, we said the same thing last year. So which mid-majors will be the toughest to beat in the NCAAs? Here's my current top 5. I'm only picking teams from the conferences included in the College Insider Mid-Major poll.

#5 Gonzaga 18-10- This may be the year that Gonzaga's NCAA streak comes to an end. But if they get in, they'll be one of the most dangerous mid-majors. Wins against Carolina, Stanford, Texas and Washington bolster my point. Lots of competitive losses to good teams as well such as Butler, Washington State, Duke, Nevada, and Memphis in overtime. But will the losses "mushroom" without Heytvelt? Couldn't resist the pun.

#4 Creighton 18-9- The loss to Drexel hurt. But this is the best non-BCS conference in the country. And Creighton is 2nd in the league. Surely they're in. Wins include George Mason, Xavier, Houston and lots of quality conference wins.

#3 Missouri State 19-9- Their position is much more unstable than Creighton's as they're a distant third in the Missouri Valley. #2 Wisconsin has only two losses. One to Indiana. One to Missouri State. Need I say more?

#2 Southern Illinois 23-5- Looks like the Salukis are going to get a good seed for March Madness. They've beaten Virginia Tech and Butler and are currently leading the Missouri Valley.

#1 Butler 24-4- They've lost two of their last three with one against Southern Illinois? So why are they #1? They have beaten Notre Dame, Indiana, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Kent State, and Purdue. Somehow they aren't even first in the conference! How good is the Horizon. If Butler isn't first, there must be some quality competition in it (Wright State and Loyola). With the right seed, they could be a near lock for the Sweet 16. With some great matchups and some luck, they could make the Final Four.


XM Satellite Radio and Sirius have decided to merge. According to Yahoo Finance, Xm has lost nearly $739 million in the last twelve months. Sirius has lost more than $1.17 BILLION in the last twelve months. I think this is the definition of two drunks on the sidewalk trying to prop each other up.

Oh, I just noticed Wisconsin is #1 in the AP poll. That must have been the Coaches Poll I saw. So it's a #1 vs #2 matchup. With both positions reversed in each poll. Kind of odd though. Honestly if the season ended today would Ohio State even be a #1 seed let alone the #1 team in the land? I say no. Not that they aren't good. They are. Very. But who would they pass? Obviously not Wisconsin yet. Because Wisconsin beat them, has less losses and is tied with them for first in the Big 10. Advantage Badgers. Probably not Florida either. Florida has the same record as them and killed them in their only meeting. So the Gators and Badgers are ahead. And probably Carolina too. Hard not to put an ACC team with 4 total losses that beat Ohio State when they played. And I've not even mentioned UCLA yet. So Ohio State is very good and still has a great chance of getting a #1 seed (beating Wisconsin on Sunday would certainly help.) But the high ranking may be just a tad premature.