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Sports Outside the Beltway

2010 NCAA Men’s Basketball predictions

Here are my selections-

2010 predictions1

2010 predictions2

So you heard it here first. Duke and Ohio State in the finals.

Note- Starting tomorrow I will have a sticky post at the top of the blog featuring that day’s results. Feel free to make your own predictions in the comment.

 

Oregon fires Coach Ernie Kent

He twice led the Ducks to the elite eight. From AP-

Ernie Kent, the winningest coach in Oregon history, was dismissed Tuesday after 13 seasons with his alma mater.

“You may find a better basketball coach, but I don’t think you’ll find anybody that has the passion and love that I have for this university,” said Kent, who had to pause for several moments to fight back his emotions.

Oregon went 16-16 overall and 7-11 in the Pac-10 this past season, finishing with a 90-74 quarterfinal loss to California in the conference tournament.

Kent, 55, leaves Oregon with a 235-173 overall record.

Oregon had two poor seasons in a row but Kent had made the Ducks into a respectable program. The firing is tough luck for him, but I think Kent will find another head coaching job soon.Ernie Kent

 

Directv and Versus settle their dispute

Now I won’t get a discount on Directv this fall. From AP-

DirecTV and Versus have reached a deal after more than six months to return the sports network to the satellite television service.

DirecTV dropped Versus after their contract concluded at the end of August and the two sides were not able to reach an agreement. They said Monday that Versus will be available as part of the same packages as before.

So the long, dumb dispute is over. I’ll be surprised if any details about the settlement are ever disclosed. All parties involved, including the NHL, have much to be embarrassed about. Fans got screwed and we’re not happy.

 

2010 NCAA Women’s Tournament Bracket

Here it is-

2010 Women's bracket

Like with the Men’s tournament, I’ll take a shot at making some guesses predictions in the women’s also.

 

Central Florida fires Basketball coach Kirk Speraw

The Knights last made the NCAA tournament in 2005. From AP-

Kirk Speraw is out after 17 years as Central Florida’s coach.Kirk Speraw

UCF announced Monday that Speraw would not be retained after a disappointing 15-17 season, ending one of the longest active tenures in the nation. Associate head coach Mike Jaskulski will serve as interim coach.

UCF athletics director Keith Tribble said in a statement that it “was not an easy decision, but one we felt will serve in the best interest of our program’s direction.”

Speraw finished as the school’s winningest coach with a 279-233 record.

UCF has always been a lesser college basketball in Florida. If the goal of the school is to upgrade the basketball program, the firing of Speraw makes sense. I just don’t think the Knights will be more than the 4th best school in the states for at least a few more years.

 

2010 NCAA Basketball Tournament Bracket

Well here it is-

2010 bracket

I don’t have to say. Later in the week, I’ll take a shot at predicting the outcome.

 

Quinnipiac wins longest hockey game in NCAA history

Rumors say fans were frozen to their seats when the game was over. From AP-

It took five overtimes and nearly six hours, but Quinnipiac managed to edge out Union College 3-2 early Saturday in the longest hockey game in college history.

Greg Holt of the Bobcats scored with 10:22 remaining in the fifth overtime to give Quinnipiac the win in the ECAC best-of-three quarterfinal series.

At 150 minutes and 22 seconds, it was the longest game in college hockey history. The previous record was set in 2006, when Yale beat Union College 3-2 in a game that was 141 minutes and 35 seconds long.

Union scored two goals in the first period, while Quinnipiac scored a goal each in the first and second periods.

As you see Union College lost the previous record holding game also. Will they go for three in a row some where down the line?

 

No return- Georgia Tech beats North Carolina 62-58

Just two more days before the brackets come out. From Media General-

Start fast, stumble to the finish. The preceding sentence perfectly summed up both North Carolina’s basketball season and its 62-58 first-round ACC tournament loss to Georgia Tech on Thursday evening.NC-GA Tech

The Tar Heels led by 10 at halftime. (The Tar Heels started the season 8-2 and were ranked as high as No. 6 in the Associated Press poll.) Carolina couldn’t handle that success, and hit an early-second half swoon, allowing Georgia Tech to score the first seven points after halftime. (Just past the midway point of the season, Carolina lost eight of 10 games, sending the Heels’ season into a spiral.)

See the trend here?

Down the stretch Thursday, just as it has been all season, Carolina was plagued with ball handling issues and poor shooting, and the Yellow Jackets took advantage. They outscored the Heels 38-24 after halftime. In the last 5:13, Carolina missed all eight of its field-goal attempts and turned it over twice, and Georgia Tech pulled away for a win that likely seals an NCAA tournament berth for the Yellow Jackets (20-11).

“It’s extremely disappointing, to say the least,” UNC coach Roy Williams said.

Disappointing don’t do justice to North Carolina’s 2009-10 basketball season. Only a year ago they were National Champions, now they are hoping the NIT throws them a scrap bone tournament invitation. Should a team that finished 16-16 be playing in the post season?

 

Oregon QB Jeremiah Masoli charged with one count of burglary

He is accused of stealing two laptop computers and a guitar. From ESPN-

Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli, who helped lead the Ducks to the Pac-10 Conference title and a Rose Bowl berth last season, faces a burglary charge in connection with a theft at a campus fraternity house in late January.Jeremiah Masoli

The Lane Country district attorney’s office says Masoli and former Oregon receiver Garrett Embry were each charged Wednesday with one count of burglary in the second degree.

Masoli and Embry were scheduled to be arraigned in Lane County Circuit Court on Friday afternoon.

*****

A fraternity member reported that Masoli and Embry stole two computers and a guitar from the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house on Jan. 25.

Police were tight-lipped about the alleged theft, claiming it was under investigation.

Embry has been dismissed from the program for volating rules not related to the burglary.

Since playing in the Rose Bowl, Oregon has been hit by scandal after scandal. Players have been in a brawl, been accused of sexual assault, and more. I’m not going to pass judgment on these people, but will say if Oregon Duck coach Chip Kelly could find his job in jeopardy, Rose Bowl or no Rose Bowl, because of his out of control players. Oregon is a state school and University officials are accountable to the citizens of the state.

 

Former NFL MVP Merlin Olsen dead at 69

The 1974 League MVP was a great player and not a shabby actor either. RIP.

Merlin Olsen, a Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman who was part of the Los Angeles Rams’ “Fearsome Foursome” line of the 1960s, has died after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 69.Merlin Olsen

Olsen, who was diagnosed with mesothelioma last year and had been undergoing chemotherapy, died Wednesday night, Utah State assistant athletic media relations director Zach Fisher said.

The burley giant from northern Utah joined Deacon Jones, Lamar Lundy and Rosey Grier on the Rams’ storied “Fearsome Foursome” defensive line known for either stopping or knocking backward whatever offenses it faced. The Rams set an NFL record for the fewest yards allowed during a 14-game season in 1968.

Olsen was rookie of the year for the Rams in 1962 and is still the Rams’ all-time leader in career tackles with 915. He was named to 14 consecutive Pro Bowls, a string that started his rookie year, and was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1982.

Olsen was also an established television actor with a role on “Little House on the Prairie,” then starring in his own series, “Father Murphy,” from 1981 to 1983 and the short-lived “Aaron’s Way” in 1988.

Olsen was a consensus All-American at Utah State and won the 1961 Outland Trophy as the nation’s best interior lineman. The Rams drafted Olsen third overall in 1962 and he spent the next 15 years with the team before retiring in 1976.

Utah State honored Olsen in December by naming the football field at Romney Stadium “Merlin Olsen Field.” Because of his illness, Olsen’s alma mater didn’t want to wait until football season and made the announcement during halftime of a basketball game.

 
 


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