Round 2 Saturday Update
Greetings, Hoopheads!
Another great day of roundball on Saturday, and we have a 6-way tie atop the standings midway through Round 2 of Jabin’s March Madness Charity Pool.
The “Super 6” are Quinn, HooopinMags, The Reverend, Laughing Jay, Whit’s Picks, and Buddy Ryan, all tied at 39 points. We then have 5 folks – Beavis, Nerf Herder, Missing Laettner, quinnminnich, and Going west – all tied at 38 points. Six people are tied at 37 points, and 8 more at 36. Points in Sunday’s second round are worth 2 points each, so look for a lot of movement in the standings Sunday night. Head to the site for complete standings at the end of Round 1.
Saturday’s late game between Creighton and Oregon was a double-overtime thriller (well, the second overtime was all Creighton, and they won by 13), but double OT in these late games is killing me! To quote Kramer in the Kenny Rogers Roasters episode, “I’m on no sleep, Jerry, no sleep!” It looked like the Ducks were going to put them away in regulation, but Creighton found a way. As analyst Steve Lappas said during the second OT, watch out for teams that escape a game like this, because sometimes it starts a run. I’m not saying anything, I’m just sayin’. Creighton-Tennessee on Friday should be a good one.
Sustained success
In the early games on Saturday, Gonzaga downed an overmatched Kansas team and advanced to its 9th-straight Sweet 16. Wow! Just think about how hard that is? Then in the next game, North Carolina advanced to its 31stSweet 16 in school history, an NCAA record. Two very impressive accomplishments, and I have to give it up for them. You have no idea how hard it is for me to praise UNC, but facts are facts.
Wolfpack-Grizzlies Cage Match
How about that NC State-Oakland game on Saturday night? I had no dog, wolf, or bear in this fight, but darned if it wasn’t one of the most entertaining March Madness games I’ve seen in a while (at least since Friday! 😊). Two weeks ago, it looked like NC State looked was cooked with no shot at a ticket to the dance, and there were whispers that Coach Kevin Keatts was on the hot seat. NC State then won 5 games in 5 days to capture the ACC Tournament and automatic bid, and now they’re in the Sweet 16. The one thing you know is that you never know. Oakland, meanwhile, was a great story with its upset of Kentucky, but someone had to lose this game.
Sir Charles gets his blimp on
Fun fact learned during one of the breaks – there actually is a Charles Barkley blimp. Capitol One spares no expense on its March Madness commercials, but this is next-level stuff. The studio crew had fun with this, but I can’t think of anyone better than Sir Charles to be honored with a blimp. Said dirigible is on its way to Arizona, where it will fly over the Final Four. My heart is full.
Commercials
He’s a fine player, but the AT&T commercial featuring Jaden Ivey is one of the dumbest things I’ve ever seen. It’s the one where he’s walking around with a bunch of phones stuck to his jacket so he can follow March Madness, and it catches on to the point that other people start doing it. I get that sponsors want to tie their ads to March Madness, but just no, AT&T, no. Sticking on AT&T for a minute, the Draymond Green spot is nice, where he tells a story about basically learning from his mistakes. This spot would have hit better if he hadn’t been at it again last week. Oops.
What exactly is the takeaway from the Nissan commercial where the guy ordering a smoothie gets blind-sided by the North Carolina mascot? Even though it was a blatant assault, no foul was called on the Tar Heels’ mascot, and smoothie guy was hit with a charging call (oh yea, I went there, it’s an ACC thing). Said mascot then gets into a Nissan Rogue and proceeds to drive around a boxing ring? I have so many questions, none of which are “How do I buy a Nissan?” I would pay cash money to see video of this pitch meeting.
Speaking of pitch meetings gone awry – I’m no Homeric scholar, but I’m pretty sure I don’t remember anything about Oreos being mentioned in the Iliad. You learn so much by watching March Madness commercials.
OK, that’s a wrap for a great Saturday of madness. Talk to you after Sunday’s games, when we will have our Sweet 16.
Yours in hoops,
Jabin