44 elimination games in just 4 days, and that's not even counting the NIT and CBI tournaments, has been a lot of basketball. Saturday we saw a top seed eliminated with less than a second left, a double overtime game, the march of the Spyders, and more. There are 8 more games today, including the biggest games yet for the two top teams from the PAC-10. What more can happen?
Washington (24-10), the Pac-10 Tournament Champions for the second consecutive season, better be over their west to east travel adjustment, because the Huskies take on the East Regional second seed North Carolina (27-7) at 9:15 AM this morning(!) PDT. To stack the deck even more, the Tar Heels are essentially playing a home game, in Charlotte, NC. The game is on CBS.
Isaiah Thomas led the Huskies, making 7 of 7 from the line on his way to 19 points, as Washington had a relatively whopping (compared to UCLA and Arizona's first win margins) three point 68-65 win over Georgia Friday night. The Huskies had to overcome poor shooting early, and a Bulldog rally in the last minutes, to earn the win and the assignment to take on Carolina in Carolina.
Arizona (28-7), the regular season Conference Champions, takes on Texas (28-7), the fourth seed in the West Region at 3:10 this afternoon PDT in Tulsa, which will be a much easier body clock experience for the Wildcats. The Longhorns' duo of Tristan Thompson and Jordan Hamilton won't be as easy of a challenge for Arizona's Derrick Williams and LaMont "Momo" Jones though. TNT has the coverage of what should be a dynamite game.
Williams led everyone with 22 points and 10 rebounds in the Wildcats' 77-75 win over Memphis, and came up with the game saving block of what would have been a tieing shot with 3 seconds left.
CBS has the afternoon games (East Coast), and will turn over to TNT, TBS, and TruTV (abandon) the tournament in prime time on the east coast.
Here's the complete broadcast schedule for the day (all times adjusted to be PDT):
| THIRD ROUND GAMES SUNDAY, MARCH 20 | |||||
| Tip | Network | Site | Game | Play-by-Play/Analyst//Reporter | |
| 9:15 AM (I) |
CBS | Charlotte | UNC vs. Washington | Jim Nantz/Clark Kellogg//Tracy Wolfson | |
| 30 min, after conc. I | CBS | Charlotte | Duke vs. Michigan | Nantz/Kellogg//Wolfson | |
| 2:15PM (II) |
CBS | Cleveland | Ohio St. vs. George Mason | Gus Johnson/Len Elmore//Marty Snider | |
| 3:10PM (III) |
TNT | Tulsa | Texas vs. Arizona | Marv Albert/Steve Kerr//Craig Sager | |
| 4:10PM (IV) |
TBS | Chicago | Purdue vs. VCU | Spero Dedes/Bob Wenzel//Jamie Maggio | |
| 30 min. after conc. II | truTV | Cleveland | Syracuse vs. Marquette | Johnson/Elmore//Snider | |
| 30 min. after after conc. III | TNT | Tulsa | Kansas vs. Illinois | Albert/Kerr//Sager | |
| 30 min. after after conc. IV | TBS | Chicago | Notre Dame vs. Florida St. | Dedes/Wenzel//Maggio | |
Jump in with your thoughts on how the Pac-10 is doing in the "Big Dance", who looks good going into the Sweet 16, or why you didn't rely on Connor's Picks to fill out (revise) your bracket.
Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com