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March Through Madness

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Devin Gordon

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Though it's March Madness, We Know April is the Coolest Month

1:17 PM, April 1, 2008 | Comments (0)
March gets all the ink, and the fancy "Madness" nickname, but as a top-to-bottom sports fan, I'm finding myself much more partial to April. We get the Final Four and the national title game, then the Masters just a few days later. And wrapped all around...

The Ivies Muscle Up

4:12 PM, March 28, 2008 | Comments (0)

Teams to Root for--and Against

11:11 AM, March 27, 2008 | Comments (0)

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Posted Tuesday, April 01, 2008 1:17 PM

Though it's March Madness, We Know April is the Coolest Month

Devin Gordon
March gets all the ink, and the fancy "Madness" nickname, but as a top-to-bottom sports fan, I'm finding myself much more partial to April. We get the Final Four and the national title game, then the Masters just a few days later. And wrapped all around this month is a new season of baseball. I imagine the afterglow of Sunday's nailbiter was still bright for Coatney... but for Starr and I, Monday was all about baseball, and will be until Saturday, when the remarkable "All Four One" mini-tourney commences. Thank God it's April. Speaking purely as a Duke fan, it couldn't have come soon enough.

The only thing that can ruin this month for me is a North Carolina national championship, and despite the fact that they'll have to plow through two loaded No. 1 seeds to pull it off, I fear that Tar Heel title is, if not inevitable, then at least looking likely. In assessing Carolina's dominance thus far, everybody talks about Tyler Hansbrough, as well they should, but the real reason I'm so pessimistic about someone knocking off the Heels is another guy: Ty Lawson. Hobbled by an ankle injury for much of the season--which is a bit like making Tiger Woods swing a club with one hand--Lawson is only now reminding us of what he can do. And when he's healthy, Carolina goes from very good to dominant. The other guy who makes Carolina so dangerous is Marcus Ginyard, who is the team's one-man answer to the complaint that the Heels don't play enough defense to win the title. I think Carolina's defensive questions are more a pace-of-play issue than anything else. And when absolutely necessary--just ask Louisville--they can lock down on anyone.

Sorry, Coatney: I know that nothing would be sweeter than sticking it to Roy Williams at the moment when it would hurt most. But the Davidson game left me wondering whether Kansas can score enough to keep up with Carolina. Davidson's backcourt is actually a nice approximation of what Kansas will face against the Heels--Wayne Ellington is nearly as smooth a scorer as Stephen Curry, if not as prolific, and Lawson is even faster. And down low, let's just say I don't expect Kansas's workmanlike bigs to have nearly as much success against Hansbrough and the always-overlooked Danny Green.

By the way, how good is this weekend looking when UCLA plays a team loaded with NBA players--a team that has only lost ONCE this season--and that game is the undercard? Wow. My one correct call if this entire darn tournament was Memphis coming back strong against Michigan State, showing up when the lights started shining brightly on all that talent. Now we know for sure that Memphis isn't overrated. I've gotta disagree, Coatney: I am a believer in Memphis... but not in all aspects. The lingering question about Memphis coming off this weekend is how they'll perform in a close game, where that free throw liability can kill. Especially since I don't know anyone who believes Memphis can romp through UCLA and then Carolina or Kansas. One or both of these games will be close, for sure. Heck, the UCLA game seems guaranteed to be close, and I much prefer the Bruins chances in that scenario.

UCLA vs Carolina in the title game? Should be a doozy. But the best part: I don't see any outcome Saturday that doesn't give us a fascinating game on Monday. Baseball this week, then back to college hoops. I love April.
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