Baltimore's wish list: An NCAA basketball subregional

Here in Buffalo we might covet an exciting and vibrant downtown core - something like Baltimore's Inner Harbor, but over in Baltimore, they covet something that WE have (and no I'm not referring to Willis McGahee and his progeny). They would love to be in the rotation for an NCAA basketball event, and as Baltimore Sun columnist David Steele points out in his column, Baltimore does not have the facility to support a tournament of this magnitude. The 45 year old First Mariner Arena in downtown Baltimore was once the home of the NBA Baltimore Bullets, but that was a lifetime ago.

One quote from the column:
"This time, Maryland and seven other schools traveled to drab, bone-chilling Buffalo, thin on top-notch hotels and nearby amenities...."

Ouch!

No amenities? Perhaps next time we need to get the good Mr. Steele up to Fort Erie and a visit to the Canadian Ballet. Or maybe he was in a surly mood because his Terrapins got themselves a good whoopin'!

Is it over with.....already???

Sigh.....

The anticipation of an NCAA Subregional coming to your town builds for weeks, months, even years. Then the time comes, fans have a blast, wild times ensue on and off the court...then it's all over before you know it and fans are left thinking along the lines of "three years til the next one....". Count me in with that line of thinking.

Saturday's doubleheader was another classic day of hoops with game one featuring ACC power Maryland versus midmajor darling Butler. Butler's slow paced style of play was a throwback to another era from the days before the existence of a shot clock.

How many times did Butler toss the ball around spending a minimum of 25 seconds before calmly, and I do stress that word, putting up a good shot. Many teams constantly panic when faced with taking a shot in the dying seconds of the shot clock. Not these guys...I could almost see Butler coach Lickliter playing the role of Norman Dale in "Hoosiers" telling his players: "I want FOUR passes before any shot!!! FOUR PASSES!!"

I don't know what it was about Maryland that I didn't like. Were they the anti-Butler because Butler's skills were that good, or was it just that the Terps were'nt that sound in general and only had the advantage in talent. Either way, Butler managed to hold off the Terps to go to their second sweet 16 in five seasons.

Game two featured Cinderella VCU against Big East powerhouse Pitt....Pitt's inside game v. VCU's guardplay. For the first thirty minutes it was all Pitt as they held a commanding double digit lead....then VCU put on the full court press....and god did things change....

Pitt was incapable of handling the pressure committing turnover after turnover while the Rams closed the gap, and with it the gap narrowed and the crowd began to buzz.
By the time the game was knotted, HSBC Arena had become Richmond North..booing lustily over the lame foul call in the dying seconds of regulation(justice was served when Pitt missed both free throws).

But like Ohio St./Xavier, the extra frame gave the favorite new life and Pitt would go on to win and reach the sweet 16.

For fans in the building that night and on Thursday, it was money well spent and a time well spent. Thanks to the eight clubs and their fans for livening up our city for a weekend...

1093 days(give or take a couple) till it happens again here...yes I'm counting.

Kansas 107, Niagara 67

History would not be made on this night.

There would be no upset, not even a scare.

The eyes of a nation would not be focused on the United Center late in the second half.

In truth, it was just your basic 1 v. 16 (mis)matchup as the (much)taller and (far more)talented Kansas Jayhawks steamrolled the Purple Eagles in a game that was no longer in doubt after about the midway point of the first half. Kansas was not only the better club, but it looked and played the part of a power conference club that had been eliminated in the first round the past two years running by a 13 and a 14 seed and sure as hell wasn't gonna have that happen again.

The score was tied at 12 then the Jayhawks opened that up to a ten point, then twenty point lead prior to halftime and the urge to switch to another game was on.

I caught a glimpse of Danny Manning on the bench for the Jayhawks. Apparently he's serving in an assistant coach's role or something. Perhaps that's an omen for Kansas as he led, no wait, carried the Jayhawks on his back to the NCAA title in 1988. You just may see them do it this spring in Atlanta.

Niagara has nothing to bow their heads about regardless as they've come a long way from the difficulties of the early season with all of the suspensions to come back and play in the Big Dance. They've become the premier Big 4 program in recent years and well deserved.

Other notes....

For being such a knowledgeable hoops analyst, did Billy Packer spend more than thirty seconds looking at the scouting report for Niagara? Packer constantly harped on the notion that the Purple Eagles should play a slowdown game to beat Kansas. Maybe so, but Billy was probably clueless to the fact that the up tempo style of play is how Niagara does things. That's inexcusable for being CBS's top analyst and shows a lack of preparation that I'd expect from a Billy Jo Hobert before Packer.
Heh, heh, another reason not to like Packer....

Peter's report on NCAA Buffalo - Round 1 Thursday

Yep, an NCAA Subregional is about the best sporting event one can attend in their lifetime. I mean where else can one spend a day witnessing four games in one day spanning a twelve hour period of time and still leave the venue feeling as if they didn't get enough?

This is my fourth subregional attended and third one in Buffalo and the action of yesterday may have been the best first round I've ever attended. You had your "mid major scares power club before fading" game (DAV/MAR), your "dull and boring yet competitive" game (BUT/OLD), your "complete mismatch high seed v low seed" game (PIT/WRI), and your "memorable upset" game (DUK/VIR).

It was a memorable outing, and cheers to Buffalo as they seemed to correct the crying need to feed its patrons during the between sessions break with food stands just across the street, at Dunn Tire Park and with the help of an army of local volunteers to aid out of town fans in finding refreshments and such to cure their hunger pangs. And props go to the cops for coming to their senses and putting off the sniffles for another day.

And by the way are you puzzled by the acroynms above identifying the teams? Yep, such is what it's like to attempt to read the out of town scoreboard at the HSBC Arena. Unlike other difficulties from past NCAA events that have been tweaked and solved, this anomaly remains. The acronyms were difficult in '04, downright impossible during the '05 MAAC tournament(those who attended had to chuckle at the sight of scores of games featuring TEX against TEX and SOU vs. SOU). And this season fans were treated to the sight of EAS v. NOR...isn't it obvious to anyone that that is the acronyms for Eastern Kentucky v. North Carolina? That BYU is actually BRI? UNC is really NOR?

Heck, headlines across America this morning tooted the horn of giant killer VCU, yet if that game was in any other building but ours that scoreboard would have said "VIR". Can't you hear those students now....V! I! R!! V! I! R!!

This really shouldn't bug me, except that it has been an ongoing situation at the arena with no real attempt to fix despite numerous comments from media in the past. Perhaps with a brand new videoboard over center court/ice we'll get some new out of town boards with acroynms that are universally understood(outside of said venue).

In other news, had we been the type to actually gamble on this type of thing then I would have collected quite a pile in going four for four in picking Thursday's games. But since we're playing "for entertainment purposes only"...snicker, snicker.

Little over an hour until the greatest upset in tournament history commences, and roughly 21 hours until tipoff downtown.

Andrew's report on NCAA Buffalo - Round 1 Thursday

Check out this billboard along the Kensington Expressway, which was along the travel route for the Wright State Raiders from their headquarters hotel at the Holiday Inn-Airport.


Some very buxom revelers greeted our group at the door to Fat Bob's as we made our way inside for barbecue and libations between the two sessions.


Check out the packed house of almost 19,000 fans. Many were on their feet cheering as the VCU celebration unfolds down on the court.

I had the time of my life.

What can be better than getting together with a group of good friends, a bunch of true sports guys, and sharing a full day of NCAA basketball? That was the case yesterday at HSBC Arena, as the sub-regionals came back to Buffalo for the first time since 2004.

Participating in our gang was myself and Peter; Peter's brother and dad John Sr and John Jr; Our buddies Bill Zilliox and Chris Mach; and the Toronto group - Alan Bossin, Ephraim Fiksel and Harold Cares. We managed to organize some great club seats, got ourselves a dinner reservation at Fab Bob's in Allentown for between sessions, Pete organized the pools. It was all good.

The highlight of the four games we saw, and making national headlines, was Duke's upset loss at the hands of Virginia Commonwealth. Now granted, the Blue Devils aren't the force they were when guys like Boozer, Duhon, Battier and Redick held sway. But they are still a force, and when you play them, you're playing against a mystique.

It all came down to the final minute, and a sophomore guard for VCU named Eric Maynor was absolutely filthy, taking the ball down the court himself and nailing clutch buckets. When Duke tied it with 8 seconds left, Maynor waved off any thoughts of a time out, running down the court and hitting a 17 foot jumper with 1.8 seconds to go. The crowd went wild! And this time, Kryzooski didn't have any horseshoes left up his ass. Final score VCU 79, Duke 77.

Off the court - Much of the problem from 2004 centered around the difficulty fans had finding restaurants, eateries, bars or other places to hang out between sessions. Well this time Buffalo was ready! Metro rail and shuttle busses were lined up outside the front door to ferry people throughout downtown. Many restauranteurs were promoting their establishments, and Organizing Committee volunteers were passing out maps and offering directions. We ended up taking the Metro rail to Allentown and enjoying dinner at Fat Bob's on Virginia Place. Reservation for 11 and our table was waiting! And after dinner we just walked back to the arena... yeah it's almost 2 miles but it was a nice day and we had the stamina and a chance to walk off some the big meal we had just enjoyed.

It was great seeing all the people on the streets of downtown Buffalo. Great but also sad. For a shining few days, we get to feel and experience what a bustling and electric city should feel like. Come Monday it will be back to silent echoes down the vehicle-less Main street, and tumbleweeds bouncing down the light rail tracks.

As the night wore on and the finale of the evening became more and more of a laugher (Pitt v Wright State), one by one the group bailed - first the Toronto guys, then John and John Jr (all had long rides to their comfy beds), then Billy Z. But Peter, Chris and I made it to the bitter end.

As we left the already much empty arena, we bid the security guy at the door a good night and said "see you tomorrow". He replied "you mean Saturday". Yes... but tomorrow is Saturday... the clock read 12:20 AM and it was Friday morning; we had been at the arena and around downtown for 13 hours.

And best of all, we do it all again Saturday - two games starting at 3:20PM; we should be out by 8PM and an evening of St. Patty's Day revelry then awaits.

Yes, the time of my life!

Sights and sounds from HSBC Arena - on the eve of the NCAA's

The Pitt Panthers had their big contingent in the stands to watch their boys practice Wednesday night


Yep we did score one credential and parking pass, thanks to our affiliation with Sports and Leisure Magazine. Full press access at our disposal!


Coach Mike Krzyzewski spent the entire Duke practice time along the sidelines, talking to the fans and signing autographs

Man oh man Buffalo is hopping! It is buzzing! And you can feel it in the streets, at the arena, the excitement is all over the TV and the other media.

I got down to the arena late this afternoon to pick up my credential and check out the lay of the land. It is amazing how totally organized and well put together the entire function is. The bowels of the arena have been transformed into a small city... the media dining/work room is now just a giant "hospitality room" with food service going seemingly all the time. Then of course all four auxiliary locker rooms are in use for the teams; the afternoon teams will have to clear out so the evening guys can come in. That ground floor windowed open space fronting Main Street is the media center, with hundreds of tabled positions for writers. Immediately adjacent is the postgame interview room. CBS has their own "hospitality suite" and they get their own cool media credential, to separate them from us grunts I guess. Then there are lounge areas and dressing areas for the bands and the cheerleaders. Directional signage is posted all over the place. It is all very impressive.

I did chow down a bit (beef on weck and wings on the menu yummy!) and headed out onto the court, to find Duke doing their practice, and Coach K was nowhere near his players. Instead he was along the boards, signing autographs and greeting fans, and of course the throng of media was eating all that up. Very nice!

I caught up with Kevin Sylvester, who we all know as Sabres studio host but also handles marketing for the NCAA events, one of the many hats he wears. He was beaming from ear to ear... everything going good so far Kev! I also ran into Ron Bertovich, former Exec VP for the Sabres during the Adelphia years; he is now Deputy Commissioner for the Colonial Athletic Association. Ron was an integral part of the USRT success when we were at it at full throttle, so always props to him.

Also props to our good friend and colleague Mike Harrington, who is doing a great job blogging on the News' College Hoopla site. Mike is with the Purple Eagles, went to Dayton and is now on his way to Chicago for the Friday subregional there and we have also been emailing with Mike back and forth to get the latest scoop on things. We will miss seeing him on the sidelines tomorrow... if Niagara loses, he'll be here for Saturday's sessions. So let's say this right now... have fun in Chicago for Niagara's Round 2 game Sunday Mike!

So it all starts tomorrow... the long awaited day long marathon of basketball; sharing with our group of good friends all the magical moments, feeling the energy of the students, the colorful pageantry, the electricity on the streets of downtown... it's like Christmas, your birthday, the 4th of July and the feast at the end of Ramadan all rolled into one!

Niagara 77, Florida A+M 69

OK.....NOW they're in the Big Dance!

And thanks in part to A+M's inability to outdo your average hoops playing ten year old at the free throw line.

Niagara raced out to a 20-7 lead early, but the Rattlers hung around, even taking a 31-29 lead late in the first half, but NU quickly regained the lead to head to the break 35-31.

NU was able to keep some separation between themselves and A+M, their guard play was the key with their quickness that allowed them to penetrate to the hoop and their ability to knock down some 3's.

But man oh man, A+M had chances late to close the gap....apparently these guys attended the prestigious free throw shooting school known as Chamberlain, O'Neal, and Dudley. At one point they were 2-12 from the charity stripe....all this while they were keeping the game within single digits.

So Niagara advances to take on mighty Kansas in the first(next???) round. Does Niagara have a shot? Not really, but as the late Jimmy V stated prior to the '83 NCAA Final:"We have a better chance than all the teams that aren't here." and frankly, Kansas does have this history of postseason "success". We do remember Bucknell, don't we??

Either way, it should be interesting.

Some thoughts on this whole "play-in" concept. Or, "If Peter was running the NCAA, this is how he'd do the opening round."

Some say it should be eliminated and the field returned to 64, I say hogwash! First off, eliminate automatic bids from the play in game. They have earned the right to be in and experience the true tournament experience of the eight team subregional. Only at-large teams would be in the play in round.

Next, expand the play in round to two, or perhaps four games. A few years back, the NFL came up with the idea of opening the season on the Thursday prior to Sunday. The NCAA should do the same with an opening round double header featuring four bubble teams fighting to make the field. Since they are at large teams it's highly likely that the clubs will be power conference schools with name recognition and produce better ratings for television.

Sure, it wouldn't end the argument of who should be in and who doesn't. But there is an added excitement to that opening night. Hey Jimmy B....and Bob Huggins you want in? Syracuse v Stanford followed by Kansas State v Illinois on ESPN's Opening Night Doubleheader live from Dayton!

Sounds like a plan to me! Any thoughts?

Times now set for Buffalo subregional......

12:20 Maryland/Davidson to be followed by Butler/Old Dominion

7:10 Duke/Virginia Commonwealth to be followed by Pittsburgh/Wright State

Saturday's doubleheader will begin at 3:20 pm.

In each case, the second game of each doubleheader will begin approximately thirty minutes after the conclusion of the first game.

We've had our first major shocker! Duke is slotted to play in prime time!!! That statement was dripping heavily with sarcasm.

And then off to Niagara.....

Above - Shock and disappointment spread quickly in a packed Gallagher Center, and the crowd ended the party early.


After we dropped off the NYC guys at Ricoh Coliseum in Toronto it was off to Niagara University to catch the revealing of the NCAA field of 65.

Unfortunately we were severely delayed at the Lewiston/Queenston border crossing (about an hour's wait) and by the time we had reached the Gallagher Center it was already known that Niagara would be seeded in the dreaded "play-in" game against Florida A+M.

What a robbery, the Purple Eagles had won eleven games in a row to finish with a 22-11 record. And no reputable news source had these guys slotted in the play in game.

If they do survive, then they head to Chicago to take on Kansas. If Niagara really wants to show the world that they were disrespected, then a good game against Kansas would be needed.

Other thoughts about Selection Sunday:

Teams that were hosed - Syracuse....the only team to beat red hot Georgetown down the stretch. They also had a 10-6 conference record, which in the Big East should have gotten them a bit. Possibly playing their traditional weak early season schedule may have doomed them.

Drexel...a mid major school that follows the protocol to get in to a T and still do not get in. Drexel goes to Syracuse....walks out with a W, goes to Villanova....walks out with a W....goes to Creighton....walks out with a W. They won 23 games in a respectable Colonial Athletic Association and had some great road victories, but in the end the committee took a mediocre club from a power conference such as Arkansas.

The matchups are set for the Buffalo sub regional (times not yet set) with seedings:

#3 Pittsburgh v. #14 Wright State
#4 Maryland v. #13 Davidson
#6 Duke v. #11 Virginia Commonwealth
#5 Butler v. #12 Old Dominion

First thought, how the hell do five teams from south of the Mason Dixon line get sent to play in Buffalo when there are plenty of tournament teams in the northeast to choose from? Buffalo is the only site in the northeast, yet only one Big East team (Pitt) is coming here with no schools from smaller conferences in the region either. I thought the whole concept of "pods" was to make travel easier for the schools involved.

The inclusion of Duke gives me an automatic villain to cheer against, a close second being Maryland as both are member of the ACC...again, why the committee sent two ACC clubs and three mid major southern schools up north while plenty of other Big East schools and small conference champions such as Albany and Central Connecticut were available is beyond my comprehension.

Still can't wait.....Thursday is just around the corner.

Shall we dance? Niagara is IN!

It took Niagara 35 years to make it back to the NCAA tournament when they downed Rider in an emotional win at HSBC Arena two years ago. Now two years later they are going dancing again... beating Siena 83-79 in the MAAC finals in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Freshman Tyrone Lewis picked the team's biggest game to come up with his biggest performance, netting 24 points and earning game MVP. In the hours leading up to the game, much was made about Siena's two regular season wins over Niagara, then aided by Niagara's shortened bench. But after the offensive clinic the Purple Eagles put on in the semi's, you knew this was going to be a different type of game.

This Sunday we will find out who Niagara's opponent will be in the NCAA's. In 2005 they went in as a 14th seed, but all the bracket watchers and pundits are listing them as a 15 or 16 this year.

Congrats to Joe Mihalich and his boys... we are all proud of you!

March Madness is underway......

The Madness has begun locally, for one school it has already ended, and for another there will be no madness...a quick rundown of our "Big 4" Division I basketball schools:

Canisius: eliminated from the MAAC tourney quarters by Marist.

UB: heading to Cleveland for the MAC tournament for its first round game against Central Michigan. For the first time the entire tournament will be in one location.

Bona: Heh heh heh.....don't ask, let's just say they're almost pining for the days of Jan Van Breda Kolff..

Then there is Niagara....as the second seeded Purple Eagles are headed to the MAAC tournament championship for the fourth time in six seasons tonight with a matchup agianst fourth seeded Siena tonight on ESPN2.

Despite losing both regular season contests to the Saints the Purple Eagles come into tonights game flying high(pun intended) as they've won their last ten games and twelve of their last thirteen. They've been a different club since they began playing with a full roster following the suspensions of six players.

A win sends them to the "Big Dance" for the second time in three years....it was a thirty five year wait between appearances prior to that(1970-2005).

Nationally, the Big East gets it's tourney underway later this week....I got six teams in from that conference now, with West Virginia and Syracuse possibly needing some work.

St. John's has finally made it back to the conference tournament. The fact that this is considered a positive step for them shows just how far one of the mighty programs of college hoops has fallen. This blogger will be pulling for them though.

UConn....the twelfth and final seed??? That has to be a misprint right?

Duke....a seventh seed in the ACC?? Actually, maybe they should knock 'em down a notch for the cheap shot that Henderson put on Hansborough....cheap shots to the face are for hockey, not hoops!

Gotta go.....George Mason v. VCU coming up in the Colonial finals!

Random hoops ramblings.....

DID THE ORANGE GET THEIR TICKET PUNCHED FOR BUFFALO LAST NIGHT??

Last night was Senior night in the Carrier Dome and in front of a national tv audience the Orange stunned Big East leader Georgetown by a 72-58 count. The win gives them 21 for the season and at 10-5 in the conference these guys may have gotten the big win they needed to vault them into the Big Dance.

With teams being sent to venues close to home....don't be surprised if the Orange head down the Thruway for the second time this season in a couple of weeks.

MARCH MADNESS SET TO BEGIN FOR TWO AREA CLUBS IN BRIDGEPORT.

MAAC Tournament to get underway in Bridgeport Friday with Canisius taking on St. Peter's in a prequarterfinal game.....Niagara gets the winner of the Rider/Iona game.....Iona has one conference win all season, over Rider of course.

Hoops note for the night.....

A year ago tonight, Jason McElwain entered a high school hoops game in Greece. I just saw the highlights of those final four minutes and change.....I still tear up inside, even now....