Thought on a side bet...

Since Mullet wants to go big in the betting, I was thinking about one bet which I like.

Remember Alando Tucker? The Wisconsin swingman who made me look really really good when he hit 25 against UNC when the over was 16 points? I was reading the ESPN article on Alford's take on the final four games. He's comparing Alando Tucker with Alan Anderson for Michigan State. They are both senior swingmen who are their team's leading scorer (actually, Anderson is second on Mich St. by 0.1 points per game) who can rebound. Lets look at the stats

Tucker - Minutes per game: 31.7, Points Avg: 15.2, Rebounds: 6.1
Anderson - Minutes per game: 26.8, Points Avg: 13.7, Rebounds: 5.6

Against UNC:

Tucker - Minutes: 33, Points: 25, Rebounds: 2
Anderson - ???

Now what about how Anderson plays in the Mich St offense this tourney? Against the tough competition? He's increased his minutes every game (Avg: 30 min) and is averaging 14 points and 7 rebounds. He swamped Duke with 17 and 8 - UNC is nowhere near the defensive team Duke is.

Same reasoning goes: Michigan State is going to be forced to play outside and a swingman who can hit the mid-range jumper is going to get alot of points. With his increased minutes in the tourney and his FT shooting percentage (87.7%), he'll get his chances.

What's the bet, you ask? Over Points + Rebounds (21).

I'd take that bet.

How to pick brackets

Dammit, now why the hell didn't I use THIS system?

Go strong, or don't go at all...

Well, here we are. Almost recovered from Duke's loss, and ready for the Final Four. It's interesting... I would give my left nut for UNC to not be there without us. However, it makes it easier to pick who to root for. I'm on the Illini bandwagon. That's right... the Illini. Here's my personal reasoning...

1. I hate UNC. There really isn't anymore needed here, but let me elaborate. I hate UNC. I hate McCunts. I hate Raymond (note to Dick Vitale: I do NOT love Raymond, therefore everybody does NOT loves Raymond... so by the transistive property of shut the fuck up... SHUT THE FUCK UP about Felton!). Jawad is my sworn enemy having gone to my rival high school and now UNC. And while my respect for May has grown with his spectacular play as of late, I still hate CreamPuff, and would buy him a burrito if it would keep him from St. Louis!

2. Rick Pitino once refused to take a drink that I bought him. 2001, NCAA first round, Dayton, OH. The Kid and I are in Dayton for St. Patty's Day in Flanagan's Pub, where I used to bartend, and in walks Pitino who is doing commentary for CBS at the time. My buddy Ian and I buy him a beer and he refuses. It's the middle of the NCAA tourney, DUMBASS! If you don't want to be bothered, don't go to a bar packed with 20-somethings watching the tourney! Plus Fransico Garcia is a little whiny bitch! (You owe us money, you fouled out dickweed!)

3. Michigan State... it is impossible to root for a man with as much penis envy as Tom Izzo. I think he'd blow Coach K if he got the chance. (Quick... someone post a comment about how I'd blow K if I got the chance... predictable bitches!) I understand wanting to model yourself after a great program, but its starting to border on obsessive. Also, if Izzo wins another title, people will start mentioning him in the same breath as K, Knight, Wooden, et al, and seriously... who thinks that's appropriate?

4. So that leaves us with Illinois... a great, senior laden team that is inferior inside, but, as we saw against Arizona, has great guard play, and guys who won't let them lose. What's really nice is that they can win it, have everyone graduate, and then fade back into oblivion like after thier 1989 FF run. I can live with this.

Essentially, Illinois winning it is the most non-offensive outcome to me. Michigan State winning would make me throw up in my mouth a little.. although, at least I would know that we lost to the eventual Champs. Louisville winning would suck simply because Pitino sucks... on may levels. This would make me toss my cookies a bit as well. UNC winning is the worst possible outcome, and would result in projectile vomiting.

GO ILLINI!

Now... to the betting. We're ahead... which is nice. And we did nicely last weekend with the overs (minus the drunken overs on Friday night) and I enjoyed betting bigger on a few good bets instead of small on tons of shit we couldn't keep track of. That said...

2-team parlay UL/UI over 146, MSU/UNC over 157... big bet. Only bet. Big payout.

Think about it.... BUCKETS!!!!

Devine's... Saturday... Final Four... Buckets. Who's in?

announcing my presence upon the blogosphere

Well, here I am. What do I do now?

I'm guessing that I post something like this link!...

I Hunger, Therefore I Live: the philosophy of Sinistar

Then I get to comment on it, like so....

This is a very funny link. We can all learn something from it. And that something is probably that there are a lot of bright people in this world who have a lot of free time on their hands. Or, more specifically, there is a very small number (possibly one) of bright people in the world who get philosophy degrees and play a lot of early-1980's video games have a lot of time on their hands. These are the sort of people who post mindless drivel on the internet perhaps for no other reason than their own self amuse.

Good thing that everyone here is above that sort of behavior.

And just to interject some basketball discussion into this post, let me just say that RickMajerus is fat.

An Ode to Rondo

A Rondo Haiku -

Oh, Rajon Rondo!
Why did you miss that last shot?
It would have been money.


A Rondo Limerick -

There once was a player named Rondo.
Who played basketball with much gusto.
10 bones we did bet,
2 overtimes we did fret,
But his 16 point over was a no-go!


A Rondo Acrostic -

R is for Rebounds, which he needed one more
O is for Out for the first half with 2 fouls
N is for Neitzel, who guarded him well
D is for Dunk, which he missed in the final seconds
O is for Over, which the dunk would given us


Sigh...Why Rondo! Why?
At least I don't have to write an Ode to Paul Davis now too.

Funny link

So, I just got this link from someone we all know and love. A person who gave us the idea that Sheldon Williams moustache is tight...so tight, that Denzel can't even get his nearly as tight.

Anyway, check it out and let me know what you think. I think it is pretty hilarious!!

Here it is...go here!

Bets, Bets, Bets...sweet Bets.

Wow, after another night of Parlaaaaaaaay, I think we need some more bets. Sweet bets.

As you know, I hate betting in Wisconsin games. They muck up everything with their ultra-slow style of play. But here are the first game bets I like:

1) May over rebounds (11) - He's done this 10 out of the past 13 games, many by a VERY large margin. Teams that come inside on him (i.e. Wisconsin) will give him the opportunity to take in the boards. UNC's game is to go inside over the last half of the season. Everyone going inside is going to be a big game for May.

2) McCants UNDER Points + Rebounds + Assists (23) - Did I just say UNDER?!? Yup. Everyone is going to play inside this game. It's going to be a slow down slogfest. Even against teams who decided to try and run with UNC, McCants hasn't even come close to this number. In fact, he hasn't broken 23 P+R+A since early February against a horrible UVA team. I think his sickness forced UNC to change their style away from relying on McCants so much. Plus, you never bet that people score on Wisconsin.

3) Tucker over Points (16) - He's done this 16 times this season against good teams. Plus, someone has to score for Wisconsin and its most likely a scoring swingman who can shoot the mid-range jumper without going inside against May. He also plays alot (35+) of minutes for the Badgers which will give him opportunities to score. The only downside is his free throw shooting (68%)

Here's where I want to lay the moneys -

1) May over rebounds (11)
2) Tucker over points (16)
3) McCants under points + rebounds + assists (23)


That's pretty much it for the first game - I don't like any of the other UNC bets. Wisconsin just fouls up offenses. Haven't seen the props for the second game, but I like the over total points. Buckets, baby. Buckets.

The Morning After

Lola: What did you guys bet on last night?
Mullet: I have no idea what we bet on, but I don't think it went too well.

And thus begins the morning after.

So clearly we're dissapointed, and a bit sad, but if we're a bit reflective about all this we can see what an amazing year this team had. Duke was chosen to finish somewhere around 5th or 6th in the ACC. They finished 3rd in the regular season and won the ACC Championship. They were 3rd in the final AP ranking and won 27 games in a year where no one gave them a chance to do squat. We beat UNC. We beat Wake. Those games were AWESOME! And think about the personalities... Daniel, the quiet leader; Shelden, his shit is so tight; JJ, the sharp shooter with swagger; Dockery, BLUUUUE!; Lee--eeeeeee, the kid from PA with the wit and mouth; Reggie, the back-up who gives you everyhting he's got for his few minutes; Shav, the guy with star potential who pisses you off one minute and then makes you jump up with excitement the next; DeMarcus, the freshman phenom; Davidson, the man, the myth, the legend; Matthew Laurence, our favorite fund-raising, grad-student proponent, ex-TV-oral surgeon... shit, the list goes on an on.

What a fun year... what a fun fucking year. And not just on the court, but off it too, with the group of friends we formed this year. Fantastic! Simply fantastic!

Now... what did we learn last night?

1. Ice cream sa'wiches are good.
2. Don't bet angry.
3. Lola gets lonely when she's drunk and people take the garbage out.
4. Drunk people shouldn't be allowed access to a blog.

I love this team... they will always be "our" team. That's it. Nothing left to say. LET'S GO DUKE!

alone

Mullet walked you all to your cars. I am all alone.....
I miss you all aready.
I just wanted to say that I think you guys are "awesome" and there is nobody in the world that I would rather have spent such a horribly sad night with. Thank for the fun, and the shots of isopropanol.... my tummy hurts..... By the way, Colgate also lost tonight in the first round of the NCAA hockey tourney.... No final four, no Frozen four, booooo. Anyway, thanks for an awesome fourventeenth.... I love you all....
Moose - please do not be in trouble. I wish that Patti could have been here with us.....
See you on the morrow.

Ice Cream Sa'wiches

I know our season may be over. But, at least we have ice cream sa'wiches.

Seriously, even though I am drinking and blogging (is there a law against that?), I am not afriad to say that it has been a good season and they're no other people I'd rather watch games with.

p.s. UNC fans are dirty. Go New Xav!

The bets we lost..the bet we win

Well, it has not been a good night so far. Mostly because Duke lost, but also because we lost 2 of the 3 bets we made, which is, in fact, the gayest!!!

Anyway, go points in the second games. Over 154 for Xavier-UNC and over 123 for Kent-Utah...and go Kent -4.

The triple parlay was put in in haste, so hopefully the lack of thinking will play out for us. Thinking is overrated anyway. And, so is typing when you are drunk. Especially on a keyboard that is too small for its own good.

Anyway, Lou just said that it is you that are the ball-lickers!!!

Anyway, let's see how many paragraphs that I can start with the word anyway.

Also, fuck McCants...perhaps the free 10 dollar bet we put on Redick will come through...and then again, perhaps monkeys wil fly out of my asshole!!!

PS I love Rafferty and I wish he announced our game instead of stupid ass Packer, who coincedentally likes it in the ass!

Moose's expert anaylsis and my own thoughts!

So, I just spent about 20 minutes typing an email on tonight's games and what I like. I might as well put it out there for all of us to see and comment on. Now, I will not be providing the expert anaylsis that Moose has provided, but more so just gut instinct on what I like (i.e. I am too lazy to look up all the stats...perhaps this is why I am not really good at gambling....)

Anyway, here is my rundown:

D-Ew over 20 pts + assists---this bet is Heart and a little bit of Head, but mostly heart as I want the Dukies to pull it out and I think D-Ew has to lead them...but I also like Shelden over 26.5 pts + rebounds...call it a hunch or perhaps my moustache is affecting my thinking, but I think he is going to have a monster game...he is just so much stronger than Davis, but it depends on how the game is called (the same goes for Daniel)

NC State -2.....perhaps parlayed with the over in that game just to make it interesting....lucky sevens anyone??? Just kidding...

Evtimov 16.5 pts + rebounds over....but I also kind of like the Atsur over 9.5 pts...seems achievable

As far as the late games....

Sean May over 29.5 pts + rebounds....perhaps with Sumpter out, he will destroy Xavier (not entirely convinced of this, but could be if early bets go well)

Over 153.5 pts for the UNC-Nova line...I think that UNC will once again come out firing, and the only way Nova has a shot, which I think they still do, is if they hit the 3....

Total 3's at 14.5 for UNC-Nova and 10.5 for Kentucky-Utah...I like the over in both games...especially the UNC-Nova if we are rooting the points over (it is easier to root for threes then)

Last but not least..I like Kentucky -4....I think they shut down Bogut and the rest of that team...kentucky is a much better defensive team than Utah and I just think they will win....and adding the over for a parlay would make it fun too (depending on how the earlier games go)

All I know is this....lucky sevens are neither lucky nor seven....discuss amongst yourselves....

Friday Night Lights...I mean, Bets.

So here's the breakdown -

1) UNC/Nova over on 3pters (14.5) - I could go either way. UNC has allowed both Oakland and Iowa St. to hit their averages on 3pters made (Oakland - 6; Iowa St - 4). On the other hand, Nova has been WAY below their three point average in the tourney. They average 7, but have hit 3 and 4 in the past two games. If you just add up the UNC/Nova averages, it comes out to exactly 14.5. So with Sumpter out, you'd expect Nova to try more outside shooting. I'd put this one as a 2rd or 3th bet.

2) Daniel Ewing over on points/assists (20.5) - For some reason, I like this bet. For D-Ew to hit his points, they must allow him to take the 3's. He went 2-4 and 4-7 in the tourney from behind the arc. Michigan St. has allowed 7-3pters in each tourney game. Last time these teams met, Daniel went off for 29 points, 5-7 from behind the arc. Daniel's tourney averages are 17 pts, 3 assists. When he scores above 17pts, expect around 3 to 4 assists, as he isn't dishing it to JJ or Shelden. I'd put this as our 1st bet.

3) Evtimov over on points/rebounds (16.5) - I can see two sides to this bet. 1) Evtimov is the D-Ew of NCST. He's gotta hit his 3pters to score big. He averages 9.9 points this season, 11.5 tourney. Wisconsin does not give up the three point shot (tourney average - 0.281). In other slog-type games, Evtimov has been horrid (0pts, vs St. John; 3pts, vs VaTech; 3pts, vs UVA). Wisconsin also plays inside for the most part, meaning lots of close in rebounds. Evtimov won't get to those. 2) Evtimov is the glue to the NCST team, which is playing unreasonably well as of late. He's averaging 13.5 points, 4.3 rebounds over the last 10 games - those same games where NCST started to come into its own. Wisconsin may key on Hodge and leave Evtimov open. This is actually what they did against Bucknell (leading scorer Bettencourt - 3pts, second leading scorer - 22pts). I don't like this bet just because it's against Wisconsin, who totally fouls up opposing offenses. I'd take this bet 3rd or 4th.

5) NCST (-2) over Wisconsin - Wisconsin slogs the game down and you don't really know what type of offense is going to come out of NCST. This game is just a mystery because I can either team winning and winning ugly. I don't think the points will matter here, so if we were to take something, I'd go straight up. I just want to stay as far away from this game as possible. Last bet, only if we had a gun to our heads.

So here's the ranks:

1) Daniel over 20.5 points/assists (take it)
2) UNC/Nova over 14.5 3pters (take it)
3) Some over total points (I likey the buckets)
4) Evtimov over 16.5 points/rebounds (don't take it)
5) NCST (-2) to win (don't take it)

Thursday Final

Way to go Snogs!!!

Mountainiers are through... now, so is Arizona. Farewell to Eddie Sutton... a great coach who never quite got the brass ring.

Somewhere Moose is crying, "Why OKST!?!?! WHY!?!?!?"

A good gambling day (4/5), and a great primer for tomorrow.

LET'S GO DUKE!!

The Kid is upset... he hates The 'Zona. We all love us some OKST around here.

Lou-Dog needs some sleep... as do we all.

Peace.

The second half...

So I've been told what our bets are this set of games. Gansey and Pittsnogle, points. Over Zona/OKST. I'm rooting. This is what I'd be saying if I were at the Fourventeenth tonight. It's a sad sad day.

11:31 - first Coach K commercial. I'm counting. And buying a Chevy. With my AMEX. And eating a tendercrisp. No, wait. That's Hootie. He's the black Coach K. And coach of sucking instead of basketball.

11:33- Even if it is Stoudamire, we need points. Is 2/5 really better than JJ. Really? REALLY?

11:34 - Pitts misses a baby hook for our win. Nice.

11:35 - He makes one. 10 bones, baby! Now its time for Gansey to get over his tummy ache and score some points.

11:38 - Coach K commercial #2 (different channel, AMEX commercial). Makes me wish for more spring break shark attack. Those were the days...

11:42 - Bobby Knight's eyebrows scare me.

11:43 - Texas Tech makes every one of its points by either a steal or turnover. Not a single good half court set. Maybe if WV would just stop dribbling off their knees. Fuckos.

11:46 - If Joe Herber looks at you really hard, is that a Herber Stare? Its funnier if you know how to pronouce Herber.

11:47 - Coach K commercial #3 (Chevy) This is getting redunkulous!

11:50 - Pittsnogle is really making you guys look good. 20 pts, 8 reb. Now if Gansey would stop clutching his puss...I mean, stomach and get on the damn court!

11:54 - Back to back shot clock violations by WVU. They need somebody to just fuckin score. And not turn the ball over for a TT layup. Oh wait. They just did that again too. Fuckos. I'm getting mad. 30 seconds left. WVU by 2.

11:56 - Beilein's foot was out. Should be Tech ball. Now the fouling happens...I called it. Unintentional. It's over.

11:59 - Just looked up at Zona/OKST game. Buckets, baby. 5 minutes left, 133 total. Nice.

12:01 - I wonder if Gansey was points and rebounds....hmmm. Probably not. We can't go 5-0 in a night.

12:02 - WVU continues on. Wow. No one thought that. BTW, good luck with Louisville. Switchin to the OKST game (pronounced Oh-Kah-St).

12:06 - Stoudamire. Buckets. Bones in the bag, baby. 4-1.

12:07 - George Washington (the president, not the school) just called a timeout. Under a minute, OKST down by 1. BTW, what's the oldest combined age of two opposing coaches? Lute and Sutton must be close to the top.

12:10 - Joey Graham just elbows his way into the lane for a layup. No whistle. Should have been one. OKST up by 1, 13.1 ticks left. What is it? Madness!

12:12 - Looking back at my 11:33 comment. Maybe I shouldn't have been trash talking. He's pretty good. Zona up by 1, 2.8 ticks left.

12:15 - Wow. 79-78. Zona looks good. Illinois better watch out. Lucas's shot just rimmed out. Madness. Can't use more than. Five words per sentence. Wow.

Okay, barring anothe Coach K commercial in the next few minutes. I'm going to bed. Hope the Duke game blog turns out a little better.

Between Time (thursday)

OK, well, the first #1 seed bit it... big suprise, it was Washington. Wow... the reporter just asked Fat Hewitt if this was emotional. Wouldn't it be great if just once, the loosing coach said something like, "Of course it is, you dumb b***h!" and then just stormed off?

We, on the otherhand, did not bite it in the evening's first set of games. Thank you to Joah Tucker! Way to have a career high! Whatcha think about that, eh Moose? Oh right... Moose isn't here. Oh well. We'll keep betting your money, and maybe we'll give you the pay out.

Second set of games coming up. OSU-Arizona should be a barn burner. Kid picks UofA, and I'm on the Comwboy band wagon. Let's root for more buckets!

Now, we love West Virginia, so let's go 'Snoggle!!! Here we go 'Snogs!

First Bets of the Sweet 16...

We're rootin' for buckets in the UL-UW game, and let's hope that Joah Tucker has a good game against the Illini.

Go Panthers!

As I write this... BUCKETS!

March Madness Pool - What it says about us.

Alright, here's my first post. Let's see how it goes.

So I've been running the Duke Graduate School March Madness Basketball Pool for two years now and I have to say its been great. Walls covered with printed out brackets. Up to the minute score updates. Tiny 13 inch TVs stuffed away in the back of a lab just to catch the first few minutes of a game before I go and watch with the boys (and girls, this year).

Now, I'm a scientist - both at once the most painful and most joyful job in the world. I've been taught to be critical of whatever I observe. On the other hand, I'm a college basketball fanatic. Especially in March, if you take every game critically, your head explodes. Or one of you buddies goes, "Fuck you, Moose. I'm putting 10 bones on New Mexico." This is what I have to deal with during the Fourventeenth.

So in order to meld the scientist and fanatic in me, let's just look at the Pool and see what it has to say about the scientist and fanatic in us all. 174 brackets each handed in by 174 Duke Bio-Sci grad students (give or take a few sig. others):

1) People are lucky f*#@^ - I deem Zach Schafer the Leprechaun. He's riding his rainbow of green clovers and purple horseshoes all the way to number 1. A total of 4 people picked over 24 upsets - 3 are ranked 100th or lower. Zach is ranked #1. Now before you counter that his picks must have been calculated let me show you his upsets in the first round: UW-Mil, LSU, Pitt, GW, Iowa St, NCST, Miss St, Vermont, UTEP. Not so bad you say? Second Round: UW-Mil, LSU, Pitt, WV, NCST, Vermont. When you pick all the possible upsets to go two rounds, you're gonna get a few right. As of now, there is VERY little chance he winds up in first place, but he should feel great about his picks while he can. Heart wins.

2) Everyone loves the underdog - No, not the bad Hong Kong Fuey cartoon knockoff which made a comeback in the HORRID new superhero Capitol One commercial (it's sad that I know both Capitol One and Hong Kong Feuy - at least its not bacon cheddar ranch). The average number of upsets picked per bracket was 14.6 out of 48 games. The number of upsets CORRECTLY picked per bracket was 4.2! Now in your best Jon Stewart voice - Whaaaaa?!? People pick on average 10 more upsets than they get right. Heart wins.

3) Everyone roots for their Alma Mater... - Even when they know they shouldn't. Take ESPN's Pool. Out of the top 50 brackets this year, a total of THREE picked Duke to win - 6%. Duke Bio-Sci Pool? 40 of 174 - 23%. Do twenty three percent of Duke scientists really think Duke is going to win it all? Heart wins.

4) ...But knows they are going to lose - 0 (1st), 4 (2st), 33 (SS), 31 (EE), 40 (FF), 25 (Finals). These are the numbers of people who think Duke will LOSE in each round. Good luck for Duke on Friday - there was a huge spike in "Duke Losers" picking that round. Again, another spike in the Final Four - mostly against a UNC powerhouse. If they get to the finals, more people think that Duke will win than lose (again, see #3). Even though more people think Duke will win, most people can see past blind fandom. Head wins.

Conclusions - the science of pool picking goes out the window when making your brackets. Even though I try a more scientific approach to brackets (which usually does me well in March and April - BTW, thanks for the 90 bucks last year, Kid), its a win-win situation. Mind wins, brackets win, cash money in the pockets. Heart wins, brackets lose, Duke has another banner in Cameron. That may be more sweet than the $340 for this year's pot.

Yeah, it is. Heart wins.

Daniel Ewing

So there's a changing face in college basketball. Actually there are hundreds of changing faces in college basketball. Early entry, guys coming to school for a year or two... whatever. Its weird, whereas you used to get to see kids grow up and become great players, now they stick around for a couple of years and jump to the NBA on potential and upside.

In reality, though, the majority of kids don't actually make the jump early. You don't hear too much about those kids because, well, they aren't the ones the media is trying to latch onto to make a buck. Hey, Chris Paul is an all-american, and is gonna be a great NBA player. So what. He's been in school for two years, is probably gonna go pro, hasn't improved his game a bit, and didn't win a damn thing. You sure do hear a lot about him though, don't you?

What about a kid who stayed for 4 years, did whatever he needed to do for his team, was a member of 3 ACC tournament champion teams, is the NCAA active career wins leader with 115 wins, went to a Final Four and has struggled with his own personal crisis without telling anyone or calling attention to himself? That's Daniel Ewing, and that's what a young man is supposed to be.

http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/2005ncaa/story/2246901p-8627171c.html

The Kid and I started calling players on the Duke team "Our Guy" during our first year at Duke. I took Shane Battier as I'd worshiped the guy before I got here, and Kid, being the rookie he was at the time, took Casey Sanders. Now the colonel was an integral part of the National Championship team of 2001, but he certainley wasn't a star. When Shane graduated, I needed a new guy.

Enter Daniel Ewing as a freshman in the fall of 2001. He was so silky smooth to watch play, and just looked so at ease on the court. Watch a Duke game sometime... do you ever actually see Daniel sweat? No.

So I took the D-Ew as my guy, and he did not disappoint. He was a money sharpshooter as a freshman as the team won another ACC title. As a sophmore he started a number of games and played great all year. He became a much better defender as the season wore on, and eventually tore up the ACC tourney and took home MVP honors. He carried the team to that title. It was awesome. His junior season, Daniel was to Chris Duhon what Chris Duhon had been to Jason Williams. He was a go-to marksman that was always in the right place at the right time. An amazing season that ended in the Final Four, but you could see that Daniel had made such strides, and most importantly, was the kind of guy who would win you games.

Then came the final season for Daniel... what a lot of guys don't stay for in college anymore... a fourth year. He is finishing his degree in African-American Studies, and at the same time is a star for the Blue Devils who does anything that is asked. When the season started, and I was finally able to purchase a #5 jersey in the Duke bookstore, it was apparent that Daniel was going to have a new role this year. With Sean Dockery being our only true point guard, Daniel was going to need to handle the ball, and run some offense as Dockery (The Kid's guy, now, by the way) couldn't do it alone. Of course, what none of us were prepared for was Dock's knee injury that forced Daniel to be the primary point guard for a good month of the season. Did Daniel complain? No... that's not Daniel. He let his scoring go down a bit, but took the reigns and played the point. That's not to say that Daniel didn't hit HUGE shots against Wake, UNC, and in the ACC Tourney, but he had a different role and he went with it. In his final home game, on Senior Night, against Miami, Daniel recorded his first career triple double with 14 and 10. My eyes teared up as he walked off the Cameron floor for the last time into the arms of Coach K.

That performance speaks volumes about Daniel's 4 years at Duke... always doing what needed to be done, always performing in the clutch. Now he's making one last NCAA tourney run, and wouldn't you know... there he was in the second round dropping in 22 and carrying the Devils into the Sweet 16. Now Luci Chavez has written a story in the N&O that tells us that Daniel's mom has been in ill health for most of his career here. He never told anyone. He never used it as an excuse. He was true to himself and his family and his faith. And now he's got a chance to carry Duke back to one more Final Four. One more shot at the Title.

Did I mention he'll be in his home state for the Austin Regional... just 2 hours from home?

I'm not saying that Duke will make the Final Four, but I wouldn't bet against Daniel Ewing after four years of growing up at Duke on the court and in the classroom.

I wouldn't bet against Daniel Ewing in a basketball game.

Or in life.

And Daniel... if you ever see this... there's a #5 jersey that has a frame waiting for it. I won't be wearing it after this season. All it needs now is your signature... then it goes on my wall, so someday I can tell my kids about my favorite Duke player of all time.

All Tournament Teams

Every year all kinds of people go about naming all-everything teams. For God's sake, this year Dick Vitale name 6 All-Rolls-Royce teams! SIX!

That's absurd.

We here at The Fourventeenth, put a bit of a different spin on things. Here are our All-Tournament teams, as of The Sweet Sixteen:

All-Molester team:
Marko Mihailovic (Pacific)
Andrew Bogut (Utah)
Shane Power (Miss St)
Chris Paul (Wake)
Jason Cain (UVa... I know they weren't in the tourney, but he inspired the whole team!)


All-Name team:
Kevin Pittsnoggggggle (WVA)
Guillaume Yango (Pacific)
Mo Charlo (Nevada)
Carldell 'Squea Johnson (UAB)
Germain Mopa Njila (Vermont)

All-Date Rape Team:
Ed Nelson (UConn)
Kevin Bookout (Oklahoma)
Taylor Coppenrath (Vermont)
Matt Walsh (Florida)
David Noel (UNC)

Now that, my friends, is how you name some all tournament teams!

I am obsessed with Villaneuva

Is there any way that you can get the before and after with that Villaneuva picture?

In case any one is interested..... go here!

Villaneuva

You know, looking more closely at Villaneuva, I realize that Ed needs to work a little more on the hair to make it look less fake.

Recap

OK, so there are a couple of things that we need to recap. First, we now know that we should bet big money on a few games instead of small money on lots of games.

Second, we knokw what Charlie Villanueva looks like with hair... http://www.duke.edu/~epv/images/VillanuevaWithHair.jpg

Third, there are two great songs to remember from the first weekend of games:
1. TenderCrisp Bacon Cheddar Ranch (Hootie and the Burger King)
2. Whoo Hoo Woo Hoo Hoo! (5,6,7,8s)

We've got all-star teams galore to post at a later time... excellent.

Best name from the first weekend that paid off with a winning bet: Guiallme YANGO!

Quote of the first weekend: "Well, as you can tell we've been drinking. Now, we're ready to gamble. I'm sure that works out well for your company." - The Kid

Duke made it through two tough games, but dammit... we're back in the Sweet 16 bay-bee!

Now, on to this weekend, and lots of drinky-drinks.

More later!

The first post

That's right bitches...we are up and running....look out fourventeenth because now we have a blog...and apparently I am a blogger....and that makes you bloggees or something like that...now we can record our every thought and statement and it will be saved on the internet forever.....ever!!!