UNC/Duke and Other Assorted College Thoughts.

We got Brian Zoubek y'all!

It's upon us.The month that ensures that even less work is done in offices around the world.The Duke/UNC game being confirmation that March is indeed and will indeed be madness.The game itself was entertaining if unspectacular with a few things of note going down.Even ESPN managed a gargantuan task of being bearable for the night.It became bearable due to some odd choices of features which ESPN decided to run,this lead me to think copious amounts of odd and profound thoughts on my part.Luckily many of those thoughts have long since been forgotten.But I will divulge those I did remember.Digger Phelps upped his fashion game wearing a spectacular hat,putting the bland attire of the rest of the analysts to shame.On Gameday; we were forcefully it must be said also re-introduced to one named: "Speedo Guy".If I'm being honest,I, at first thought I didn't need to be re-introduced,my brain allowed me to live in a state of blissful ignorance ever since the game that was both his debut and his swan song.I had forgotten about him and if things had stayed that way,I would have been happy but Gameday does need to last an hour and I didn't want to hear Jay Bilas talk more,this did seem the lesser of two evils,although it did seem evil.The idea of doing a nationally televised feature on a guy in a speedo didn't sit well with me,though I must admit I was enthralled.The more I learned about "Speedo Guy the less I cared,he's a pastor(those last few words should really be their own reward,I don't need to go any further),he's married,he has a kid,his wife is plan but not unattractive,he's not actually all that crazy et.c.I was dangerously close to switching over to late night re-runs of "Arrested Development" which I enjoy because I'm white.But then,Coach K appeared on screen which immediately sparked my interest,an interest based on contempt and hope of a Coach K screw-up.He was unimpressed by "Speedo Guy",he did not see the humor in a post graduate student gyrating wearing only a piece of material that if there were a god should have been longer.This got me thinking of how Coach K is a college basketball brand and how he should be appropriately publicized.I feel he's not being sufficiently propagandized as it is.Any totalitarian dictator(which coach K is) worth his commercial money knows they need to set up the Cult of Personality.He has done this pretty well so far but does not inspire quite enough fear as of yet.This can be easily remedied.Example:"Technicolor" used to bill themselves as "Glorious Technicolor",Coach K should also use a similar type of self-selling-slogan to properly reflect his personality.I'm thinking something like:"This Duke Performance was brought to you by "Surly and Evil Krzyzewski"".To be honest,I'm not sure why Coach K has such a problem with "Speedo Guy".To me "Speedo Guy" embodies everything that Duke basketball stands for-bad sportsmanship and white people.

There was the usual electric atmosphere in Cameron Indoor that you would come to expect from this game but also included a moment of silence for the UNC student body president who was murdered recently,some players were visibly moved and wore her name on their jerseys as a tribute.The game got off to a nice early pace with UNC quickly establishing an early lead with quick passing and tough inside play.In the opening two minutes Tyler Hansbrough missed two shots,grabbed two offensive rebounds and pulled down four rebounds in total.This would go on to become a trend in the game."Tireless" would be an insulting adjective in describing, Hansbrough,there has yet to have been a word to enter the popular vernacular to appropriately describe Hansbrough's work rate.UNC went on to a 20-9 lead in the middle of the first half.Duke,a team who this year have lived and died by the three pointer were cold not getting any open looks due to UNC's. perimeter defense.Kyle Singler did show some nice toughness inside against Hansbrough,impressively brushing him off for a strong defensive rebound.He is an impossibly sound fundamental player who is destined to annoy many wearing that Duke uniform before his college career is over.Peyton and Eli Manning are in the building.Peyton looking like his normal kidnapped from the TV show "Dallas" self and if Eli's hair is anything to go by he is auditioning to be the bass player for a post punk indie band.Ty Lawson became Carolina'a spark plug,almost everything good that happened for UNC went through Lawson.A mention should also go to Lawson's back up Quentin Thomas who was also playing well.If it weren't for a barrage of Greg Paulus three's at the end of the first half,the game might have gotten out of reach.It ended 42-31 to UNC and things were looking pretty good.

The second half saw Duke chiseling into Carolina's lead.Things became sloppy and it was all down to hustle.The opening ten minutes of the second half were less attractive than Eva Longoria.Though Duke did impress,some unexpected toughness from Jon Scheyer was shown.Although he still does look like a fourteen year old ,he has an impressive offensive game.The idea of seeing him in the Lig one day will be an interesting prospect for those of you who would be interested in seeing Earl Boykins and Vitali Klitschko going blow for blow for 12 rounds.Duke eventually clawed back to tie things and make them interesting at 62-62.Things went back and forth for a few minutes culminating in a 68-68 deadlock.This is where the game ceased as a competition.Duke didn't score a basket in the final 3 minutes.A brace of made Danny Green lay-ups(who was immense in this game btw) helped Carolina to sail away to victory,the game eventually ending 76-68.

Though this was a tough loss for Duke,they can definitely take some positives away from it.They played some tough defense and managed to keep Tyler Hansbrough down to a comparatively dull roar of 16points 15rebounds,shooting 8-21 from the field and even more impressively,kept him completely away from the foul line(although he was fouled-a lot).Greg Paulus has turned into a great college guard,he made shots when he needed to make shots,he organized his team with all the ability of a former QB,he was the shining light for Duke in the game.The biggest letdown for Duke and possibly the reason Duke lost was the no-show of DeMarcus Nelson on his senior night.Although hated,Duke are definitely not a team to be slept on when making out your brackets.

For UNC,this can be seen as the game in which they proved that 1)they actually can play defense when they need to and 2)their bench can put them over the top and win game.We already knew they could run it and gun it more convincing was needed and was given..To win a championship,a team needs to be able to play more than offense,in preventing any open looks for Duke's shooters and dominating the glass inside proved that they can be easily considered as favorites going into March.First and foremost,Danny Green WAS the reason Carolina won this game,his 18pts 8rbds and 7blocks pretty much speak for themselves but are even more impressive considering he was only 0-10 from the field in previous games against Duke.Hansbrough did what he does,put up big numbers while being beat up in the process and amazingly shooting no free throws.Ty Lawson is back to 100% although he's still not starting most likely as a ruse to put off the opposition.His ability to create off the dribble and control the game only strengthens UNC's case for a national championship.Would I go as far to say that I now think that UNC will be this year's NCAA Champions?Yes,yes I would.

To address the opening sentence:I have been accused of being mean to Brian Zoubek in the past.I would disagree,I don't think what I have said was mean.If I were to say that"Brian Zoubek is a stumbling oaf whose main life achievement is his verticality and cannot play basketball very well",I would accept that what I have said was mean,but I would never say that.I remain optimistic on his future.If you look at the early college career stats of the legendary Ben Handlogten,they're not a million miles away from Zoubek's.If he can muster an impressive senior year,Brian Zoubek will be in the NBA people,look out Jerome James.

-This weekend,Kevin Love has made a clutch three pointer,averaged over 20 points and almost 10 rebounds in two games that went down to the wire,he blocked two shots in each game,he made 90% of his free throws and averaged 4 assists a game.This year,Kevin Love has averaged 17 points and 10 rebounds,leading a team with only two loses for the season and real title winning ambitions.I don't want this to came across as complaining but how is it that people are failing to see his worth?Sure he may not be All-Star game material but any GM who fails to see what he can bring to a team is either stupid or..well they're just stupid.What I believe the word intangible to mean in a basketball sense is something maybe a skill a player possesses that cannot be taught.Kevin Love has what can't be taught,as a big man his passing ability is peerless,he has toughness and a desire to win. If I'm a GM,I can see the sense in trying to teach a player the skills that can be taught instead of drafting players and trying to teach them those that can't be taught.Sadly I am not a GM and current GM's seem comfortable with taking uncalculated risks with draft picks to appease fans who are screaming for the next prospect with a high ceiling and promises of possibles All-Star appearances and titles on the back of a player's jumping ability.Love is the example of the safe bet,you know what you are getting and this seems to bore GM's.Draft day buzz and excitement seems to hold more value to GM's than the contributions a player can bring to your team.Why not draft a player who already has what can't be taught and try and teach him skills that can be easily coached?I mean,can you imagine what he could be like if he was introduced to a weight room?I don't know,maybe I'm just cranky.