Against The Grain
I find myself in the uncomfortable position of defending John Calipari. With the long week before the National Semifinals, columnists around the country have been laying into Calipari, saying if Kentucky wins the National Championship with their Rent-A-Star system, it’s going to somehow destroy college basketball. I don’t get it. What is Calipari doing that every coach of an elite…
The Cherry
KU’s Midwest Regional championship was the cherry on top of both the basketball season and our trip to Kansas City. Oddly enough I never felt nervous Sunday. Not before the game, not during the game. I was at peace with the season and satisfied with how far the team had advanced in the tournament. I was just hoping they would…
Some Quick Follow-Up
A couple more notes I forgot to include in Monday’s post. A couple people asked if I watched with any of my Purdue friends. I did not. The late start on a Sunday made it difficult to get people together. My closest Purdue buddy had another obligation that night, but we did send a few texts back-and-forth during the game.…
The Thinnest Of Margins
There was a moment, late in Sunday’s KU-Purdue game, when I admitted that it had been a terrific game and I could live with a loss. It certainly helped that KU was the better team for the last three minutes of the game, but I have a feeling I would still feel that way today had Purdue been able to…
NCAA Quick Thoughts
It’s mid-March, which means I should be sharing some NCAA tournament thoughts, right? This has, of course, not been a normal basketball season for me. So I honestly don’t have a whole lot to say. I’m pleased KU got a #2 seed. That seems right. I’m pleased they get to start in Omaha, and should they be fortunate enough to…
The Last, Greatest Game
And thus, it ends. This isn’t going to be another post rehashing the hows and whys of the end of the Kansas-Missouri rivalry. I’m not going to advocate for the continuation of it, nor argue who is more at fault for its demise. No, this post is about that special feeling you get each year when the schedule comes out…
The Good Life
Yes, I’m biased, but I love Nick Collison. He’s pushing ten years in the NBA and, while he was a great college player, I’m not sure anyone expected that kind of pro career for him. And I’ve always enjoyed his thoughtful take on things. He is blogging for GQ magazine on what life is like for a role-player in the…
Whatever It Takes
There was a common theme to the basketball games I cared about over the weekend. Friday the team I covered won their game by 35 points. In an amazing comeback over the past three weeks, my teams are now up to a +7 TMF. I get to cover the #2 team in class 2A this week, so hopefully that improves…
Friday Grab Bag
This week kind of went off the rails yesterday, so I’m going to throw some bits-and-pieces that could have turned into longer, individual posts into a single grab bag to end the week. The biggest obstacle we faced this week came Thursday morning at approximately 3:30 am. I woke to hear the smoke alarms and cable backup box chirping and…
I’m Not The Fan I Used To Be
Some posts are a form of therapy for me. This is one of those. Below, I’ll explain why I didn’t watch the Kansas-Missouri game Saturday, which will also explain the why I’ve hardly watched any KU games this year. Basically, I’ve become an old man and can’t handle the highs and lows of basketball the way I used to. I…