Thanksgiving Hangover

By Mark Buckets


It’s great to be back in the fold following Thanksgiving and all that it entails - I’ll take some Alka-Selzter with a side of Pepto - along with the usual gathering of family and friends. And you also know what Thanksgiving means - LOTS and LOTS of college basketball. Ever since the NCAA abolished the hideous “2-in-4” rule - where teams were allowed to compete in only 2 exempted tournaments every 4 years - there has been an explosion of holiday events. Tournaments such as the Maui Invitational, Great Alaska Shootout (which has lost it’s luster of late) and the NIT Season Tip-off are the hallmark events of the Thanksgiving season.

Those three tournaments have blazed the trail for new tournaments to emerge. One of the newest events - and perhaps the most competitive of the young season - has been the Old Spice Classic. Don’t let the location (The Disney Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, FL) or the arena (It’s called the Milk House for heaven’s sake) fool you. And despite low attendance, top-level basketball has been played over the past four days. The nation was introduced to a pair of prolific freshmen Michael Beasley and J.J. Hickson. How can anyone forget about Villanova and star guard Scottie Reynolds? Yes, Jay Wright ditched the Armani suits for a classic polo shirt, disappointing legions of admiring women across the country. Next year’s field is also stacked, so this tournament figures to have some staying power.

The season is progressing nicely - we all know of the bulk of early upsets - and should provide fans with more moments to remember. The kind folks at Kay Jewelers are calling and want their slogan back. I don’t feel like being sued, so I’ll give them the credit. Until we meet again…..

EDIT: (11/25/07)

Trashtalk Superstar adds:

In his most recent posts, Mark Buckets has criticized Marquette coach Tom Crean and Villanova coach Jay Price's fashion choices. Drive and Dish's editorial board has, apparently, decided to branch out beyond just talking about basketball. That's OK -- I probably should have seen the changes coming after this blog attracted national attention when I posted a couple items about college football. And, in fairness, the recent fashion talk has sparked a fair amount activity in the D&D's comments section.

So now that Mark Buckets has been promoted from basketball analyst/pundit to basketball analyst/pundit/fashion critic, I thought I'd join the party and weigh in with my two cents (and hope that maybe the editorial board will see fit to throw a promotion - and pay raise - my way, as well).

Tom Crean's windbreaker at the Maui tournament may have been questionable, but at least he didn't wear a Hawaiian shirt, as coaches always used to do at the Maui tournament. My main criticism of Crean's windbreaker is not that he wore a windbreaker, but that he didn't wear a cool enough windbreaker. A vintage 80's style Members Only windbreaker would have been hellasweet!! For future reference, if Tom Crean -- or anyone else, for that matter -- is having trouble finding a sweet 80's Members Only windbreaker, look no further: Sweet 80's Members Only Windbreaker.

But, even better than a vintage 80's style Members Only windbreaker, Tom Crean could have rocked a vintage David Hasselhoff Knight Rider windbreaker.

Better yet, if Crean had wanted to look extra cool, he'd have done well to have stayed with the Hasselhoff Knight Rider motif, but to have bypassed the windbreaker altogether-- and just gone for the full Hasselhoff Knight Rider ensemble: replete with boots, unbuttoned shirt and bitchin' leather jacket.

However, if Tom Crean had truly wanted to make a STATEMENT, he should have gone for the kick-ass Hasselhoff Knight Rider ensemble - sans the boots, pants and open shirt. Now THAT would've been SWEET!

Duke Wins the ... Duke Invitational

By Mark Buckets

Chalk another Maui Invitational Title up for the Duke Blue Devils. As most of you already know, this was the fourth title for Duke in the 25 year history of this prestigious event. Kyle Singler - who was lauded for his tenacious offensive rebounding by yours truly - was named the tournament MVP.

The the title game was, frankly, a bore. Both teams combined for 43 personal fouls - of which 27 were assessed to the Golden Eagles. The vultures are circling around Ed Hightower after this one - and, after watching this one, rightly so. I'll be the first to say - and I mean the first - that the anti-Duke sentiment is undeserved. How can you bash a program that hasn't even entered the NCAA infractions committee's area code under a coach that has done it "the right way"? Sure, much of the vile is self-inflicted - perpetual ACC pusher Dick Vitale doesn't assist in improving Duke's public image - but is also unnecessary.

There I go again, going off on a tangent.

Back to the game, Mark.

Some brief observations (hello SI's Stuart Mandel) from tonight's game:

-As I've stated in previous posts, Sean McDonough needs to pipe down when it comes to analysis. But we needn't go down that path now.

-Tom Crean has put on some serious poundage. You know a coach is in denial when he reaches for a diet pepsi during a stoppage in play - as Crean did tonight - conveniently placed on the scorers table.

-On the subject of Mr.Crean, how many basketball coaches do you know use a laminated play-chart? Remember, these kids aren't football players. Remembering to tuck in jerseys is considered a mental chore.

-Yet another Tom Crean observation that ties into the weight loss issue. Do you really need to wear a windbreaker in a gym where temperatures routinely hover around 90 degrees. Besides, losing water weight won't help him shed that belly fat.

-DeMarcus Nelson is an absolute bull. Despite all of his shooting and ball-handling issues, he continues to gather garbage points through sheer athleticism. Hence, Coach K will utilize him more around the basket than ever before. That's saying something, considering his penchant for rebounding throughout his career.

-You have to be impressed with the babysitting job that Bill Raftery and Jay Bilas do with Sean Mickee. When given the chance to speak - and break the game down - they are second to none. Too bad that CBS has them on separate broadcast teams during the NCAA Tournament (Bilas is paired with Dick Enberg and Raftrey with Verne Lundquist.)

-And finally, if I'm a Marquette fan - which I am not - I wouldn't be too concerned with tonight's result. Sure, it would have been an NCAA tournament-booster - when it comes to seeding, of course - but it is not a death knell. In significant foul trouble most of the game, the Eagles keep Duke within striking distance. Not a bad result considering the situation.