Basketball from a fans perspective
The (true) first day
I know the play in games actually start the tournament however Thursday is actually the first game day. Arkansas-Little Rock beating Purdue and Yale over Baylor certainly upsets. I’m unsure if a Wichita State (11) and Gonzaga (11) beating Arizona (6) and Seton Hall (6) respectively is a true upset. There were three 9’s beating 8’s which I don’t really believe is an upset. The NCAA Tournament is a seeding process and not a guarantee but the results can prove interesting. Lets see what occurs on Friday however the up and down 2015-16 college basketball season continues. It should be of note did you see the Baylor post-game press conference and hear Baylor’s Tauren Prince response to a question.
Reporter: “How does Yale out rebound Baylor?”
Prince: “You go up and grab the ball off the rim when it comes off. And then you grab it with two hands and then you come down with it and that‘s considered a rebound. So they got more of those than we did.”
“The beat goes on”
The above title was a song by the duo Sonny and Cher, released in 1967. How about 2016 and the NCAA Tournament. Day two continued with stunning upsets, Middle Tennessee (15) upset highly favored Michigan State (2). Hawaii (13) pointed the direction of the door to California (4). Oregon State (7) lost to VCU (10) Stephen F. Austin (14) performed a beat down West Virginia (3) while Syracuse (10) was able to overcome Dayton (7). Texas (6) was unable to overcome Northern Iowa (11) and Notre Dame (6) slipped past Michigan (11). .
We have been captivated
We have fallen for “the banana in the tail pipe,” just a reference to the Eddie Murphy line from “Beverly Hills Cop.” We have been so busy gazing on the amazing shooting of Steph Curry and the rest of the Warriors we have “overlooked” the Spurs. The last time the teams met the Warriors blew the Spurs out of the building but it wasn’t at home. As this is written the Spurs are 34-0 at home 58-10 overall. What happens tonight night when the two met again, this time it’s in San Antonio?
The game has changed
I head a columnist discuss an issue which rings true for me. The issue is rivalry whether its teams or players. The statement was made; “Fans of today identify with the player rather than the team. They are willing to follow the player from team to team.” As strange as that sounds I believe with a number of fans this rings true. I have two friends who claimed the Heat as “their” team. Once LeBron left Miami for Cleveland they changed their tune and became Cavs fans. How about teams can you think of any rivals? At one time there was a Celtic-Laker and Bulls-Knicks rivalry but they no longer exist.
It would seem in Texas a natural rivalry would have developed between the Spurs, Mavs and Rockets, I’m unsure if there is one. After years of play particularly in New Jersey the Nets moving into Brooklyn should have created more of a rivalry with the Knicks, has it occurred I don’t know? The Clippers have dominated the Lakers on the court in recent years however they still trail in the all-time won loss record, Lakers 98 Clippers 42. The two teams even share Staples Center but not the same fan base. It’s not just teams it’s the players too, we haven’t any Bird-Jordan or Bird-Magic rivalries anymore?
