Sunday, March 25, 2012

Final Four: Kentucky, Louisville, Ohio State, Kansas


The Final Four is set. Kansas, Kentucky, Ohio State and Louisville won their Regionals and advance to next weekend's Final Four in New Orleans. Unlike 2010 and 2011, when mid-major "Cinderellas" Butler and Virginia Commonwealth shocked the world and advanced to the Final Four, the 2012 Final Four field is comprised entirely of the usual suspects.

Louisville competes in the Big East Conference, but geographically, the East Coast is entirely shut out. Three of the four teams come from schools within 100 miles of Cincinnati, Ohio. The fourth, Kansas, comes from the heart of the heartland. It's an entirely Midwestern and Mid South Final Four.

Syracuse was the top-seeded team in the Tournament, but Syracuse alumni who work in the national sports media (in other words, most of the national sports media) will have to content themselves by pulling for Louisville to defend the Big East's honor. Casual fans who've enjoyed rooting for Cinderella "Davids" (i.e., Butler) to knock off college basketball "blue blood" "Goliaths" (i.e., Duke and Connecticut) in the last two NCAA Championship games will be faced with the likelihood of watching "blue blood" Kentucky play "blue blood" Kansas for the right to hand yet another NCAA Championship banner in the rafters.

On a more personal level, Drive and Dish editors will be stuck at a wedding in south Georgia while Saturday's games are being played. But if we get the chance, we may try to hit Interstate 10 on Sunday morning and see if we can get to New Orleans by evening. If so, we'll be hanging around the Final Four for Monday's Championship game.

19 comments:

i can't get enuff said...

Parlay Larry is gay!

Lincoln Railsplitter Illini said...

who teh hell is parlay larry???? come to think of it, i guess the better question is can he coach basketball???? we need a coach real bad. rite now well take just about anybody.....it don't matter what side of the fence he swings on. (not thet theres anything wrong with that).

Lincoln Railsplitter Illini said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Lincoln Railsplitter Illini said...

come to think of it, if this parlay larry person is gay, that prolly counts as a positive for the hole diversity/affirmitave action requirement. if he's black, it just that much better. i wanted brad stevens in teh worst way, but now that he turned us down, we prolly still have to take diversity in to account to keep the board of trustees off our back. hopefully we take a long look at this parlay larry guy. eccspecially if he's a gay black guy.

Wrigleyville Illini said...

We just need a coach, period. But I want Reggie Theus.

The Bard of Boogers said...

Something was preventing me from breathing right

It kept me from falling asleep last night

My nostrils were plugged, and of no use at all

I breathed through my mouth; it felt like a cotton ball

Now you probably can't imagine the conflict that arose

Once I realized that the solution was to start picking my nose

For at my Nose Pickers Anonymous meetings, I'd promised to abstain

Well, that went out the window when the oxygen stopped getting to my brain

So I dug in my nose for the better part of an hour

Not a millimeter of my nostrils would remain unscoured

But like Captain Ahab, I was eluded by a Great White booger foe

And without catching it, there was no chance of restored nasal airflow

What happened next is what I suspect you're probably all itching to hear

You're probably wondering how I eventually got my nose clear

Well, just as I was close to surrendering in defeat

I pulled out a booger that was like a thick slab of red meat

And after admiring it for a moment in utter disbelief

I chowed down on that bad boy as if it were a fine cut of beef!

Sparco Spartan said...

i think parlay larry is a mythical creature or simply just an alien

Wrigleyville Illini said...

OMG!!! I just heard that all the high school studs from Chicago are excited about John Groce because his teams run and gun and let guys do there thing with the ball. I don't want to get too excited but ... I'm starting ... to ... get ... chills. I'm ... starting ... to ... hyperventilate. My ... hands ... are ... shaking ... and ... my ... knees ... are ... turning ... into ... jello. OMG!!!! OMG!!!!

I'm starting ... to ... like ... John Groce ... more ... alot! I'm ... getting ... close ... to ... joining ... the ... Groce ... army!

I'm not in love yet, but I'm ... starting ... to ... get ... butterflies!!!

If Groce starts pulling stud recruits out of Chi Town, I ... will ... jizz ... in ... my ... pants!!!

Wrigleyville Illini said...

Kansas St. just hired Bruce Weber to replace Frank Martin. I can't believe anybody else would hire coach Clown Shoez, let alone another BCS school. Figured if Brucie got another chance it would be back at SIU or at some other mid major school in the Missouri Valley or the MAC. What do ppl see in him??? Don't they see how he ran us into the ground for nine yrs??? KSU is use to NCAA tournaments. Hope they get use to the NIT cuz that's where clown shoes will have em every year (IF there lucky). Can't wait to see Bill Self eat clown shoes's lunch in conference two times every year. Kansas State just lost a kick arse coach and replaced him with a castoff from one of the Dumb and Dumber movies. Srsly, WTF KSU!?!?!?!? Don't say I didn't warn you people!!!!!!!!!!

Wrigleyville Illini said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

everybody loves that dinosaur

Stuck in the 80s Man said...

Anonymous, Dude, check out this bitchin' tunage. Awesome to the max.

coke spoon kelli said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
coke spoon kelli said...

im just hangin out here in the winn-dixie parkin lot off university blvd in jacksonville......chillaxin and walkin up to all the carz that drive up with dudes in em. i need $25 dollerz and a ride to the university.......u want a date???

Parlay Larry said...

Coke spoon Kelli, um, I might be looking for a date, or, um, a massage, or something. How much for, um, a massage with, um, a happy ending???

Parlay Larry said...

I'm back here in Vegas playing a trifecta right now. Just massively over tipped the cocktail waitress Bridgett. OK, I admit it. I'm tryin to get in her pants. LOL. Forget that stuff about picking up coke whores for "massages" with happy endings. I was just drunk and tired. Didin't know what I was writing. LOL. Didn't even see coke spoon kelli was in Jacksonville. I wasn't even anywhere near there, so obviously I wasn't trying to pick up any hookers in grocery store parking lots. Just a big misunderstanding. LOL.

Anonymous said...

Who is Parlay Larry?

Anonymous said...

Can you tell us more about this? I'd care to find out
some additional information.

Also visit my web-site - home improvements diy ()

Anonymous said...

I've been exploring for a little for any high-quality articles
or weblog posts in this sort of area . Exploring in Yahoo I
finally stumbled upon this site. Reading this info So i'm happy to exhibit that I've a very excellent uncanny feeling I discovered just what I needed.
I most undoubtedly will make certain to don?t forget this website and give it a glance regularly.