By Weston Bruner, on March 24th, 2012  Kentucky continue to roll through a suddenly less interesting tournament. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) I thought I would mix things up a bit this year in my bracket. I saw all my family members picking Kentucky or North Carolina to win it all with a couple of lower seeds making it to the Elite Eight. I thought after all the tumult of the last two seasons things in March Madness would start to return to the norm this season. To separate myself from the fans of pure chalk I decided I would go with Missouri as my dark horse to win it all. I say that because my bracket has been dead for so long I think it gives me enough context to say that this has been one of the most mundane tournaments since the all- #1 seed Final Four of 2008, without many more opportunities for teams to make it truly compelling.
Of course there are a lot of ways to consider what is “compelling.” Some would say seeing the “best” teams play in the Final Four is compelling because there is higher quality basketball. Well if we watched sports simply to watch the highest quality of play we would throw our hands up when the Orioles beat the clearly superior Red Sox on the last day of the regular season to knock them out of the postseason. In fact, how do we define quality except by who wins the game? READ MORE >>>
By BSR Staff, on March 15th, 2012  The Fantasy God stops by to give some Fantasy Baseball pointers for the upcoming season. The guys discuss the Matt’s Hangover-esque weekend, the NCAA tournament, Brian Roberts’ chances of playing this season and Jessica Biel’s dazzling magazine cover.
Join Zach, Patrick and Matt for this week’s edition of the best sports podcast in Baltimore, the BSR Podcast.
Here are some of the topics discussed on this week’s show:
Matt Relives The Hangover
- Matt Lund shares the story of the bachelor party he attended this weekend.
- He tells the guys how to change a flat tire on a limo and avoid a brawl in McDonalds at 4 A.M.
- Also daylight savings sucks.
Fantasy Baseball With The Fantasy God
- BSR’s Fantasy God, Mark Brown, joined the guys to help out with upcoming Fantasy Baseball Drafts.
- The Fantasy God gives his studs and duds and predicts the future for the upcoming season.
- The guys pick Mark’s brain about the upcoming Wrestlemania.
- Mark says he still prefers Ke$ha to Rihanna.
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By Tracy Smith, on March 8th, 2012  The title means nothing to North Carolina, Duke or Florida State. The three of them are solid locks for the NCAA tournament as if anyone needs convincing. North Carolina finally looked like the team everyone thought it would be at the beginning of the season in the final game against the Blue Devils. The Tar Heels were the more talented team and they played like it, dominating Duke from the beginning and never letting up.
If that’s the North Carolina team we see from here on out, they will be tough to beat-even by Kentucky or Syracuse. As for Duke and Florida State, their bodies of work are solid enough to merit entry without too much complaint. Few teams can boast the quality of wins the Blue Devils have, and the Seminoles have two huge wins over North Carolina and Duke on their ledger with only two really stinkers of losses. If the Seminoles defend as they are capable and do enough on offense, they should be a tough out in the tournament.
The title makes a better application for Virginia, North Carolina State and Miami. Virginia should still be in, but some shaky play down the stretch may leave some doubt in the minds of the selection committee. However, for the better part of the season the Cavaliers have been solid and if they can keep pushing forward (and certainly a win or two in the ACC tournament wouldn’t hurt), they will hear their name called on Selection Sunday.
For North Carolina State and Miami, there remains work to be done. Both teams should get past their opening round games over Boston College and Georgia Tech respectively. Those presumed wins won’t do much more than add to their win totals, but the following games-where the Wolfpack will meet the Cavaliers and the Hurricanes match up with the Seminoles-wins in those games should raise each team’s profile for an invite to the Big Dance. Of course, should the Wolfpack and Hurricanes somehow get games against the two top seeds-and Miami already has a win over the Blue Devils on its resume-close games, if not wins, might seal the deal for both teams. But then again, it’s not just what they do, it’s what teams all over the country do, as there are many teams fighting for those last open slots for the NCAA tournament.
As for the ACC tournament, just about everyone I talk to expects another Tar Heel-Blue Devil championship game. That may well be the case, but in this tournament, surprises abound. In fact, many of the guesses I made above regarding the Wolfpack and Hurricanes may not come to pass-it could be just as likely they lose their opening round games as they could roll into the semifinals. And with the Blue Devils further weakened by Ryan Kelly’s foot injury, perhaps that championship game pairing may not come to pass either.
By Marco Romanell, on February 10th, 2012  Maryland Terrapins (14-9, 4-5 ACC)
At
#9 Duke Blue Devils (20-4, 7-2 ACC)
Saturday, February 11th, 4:00 pm at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC
Leading scorers: MD: Terrell Stoglin– 22.0ppg Duke: Austin Rivers 15.1ppg
Last game: MD def. Clemson 64-62 Duke def. UNC 85-84
Outlook:
For 39 minutes and 59 seconds, it looked like the Duke Blue Devils would be dead and buried and on their way their second consecutive ACC loss, however Austin Rivers had other plans. Rivers three pointer at the buzzer lifted the Blue Devils to an 85-84 road win over North Carolina, a win that may have changed their season. By no means does the buzzer beater mask the fact that Duke was dominated inside and that they continued to be the worst team in the ACC in field goal percentage, and they continuously get out rebounded. One thing they do well that has always been a staple is their ability to shoot the three, which single handedly won the game against UNC. With their confidence now back after a win against their fiercest rival, Duke should be ready to play against the Terps.
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By Marco Romanell, on January 27th, 2012 Virginia Tech Hokies (12-8, 1-4 ACC) At Maryland Terrapins (12-7, 2-3 ACC)
Saturday 2:30pm Comcast Center, College Park, MD
Leading Scorer: VT- Erick Green 15.8ppg MD: Terrell Stoglin 20.9ppg
Last game: VT- lost to BYU 70-68 MD: lost to Duke 74-61
 Outlook:
Does anyone hear that? Listen closer, we usually hear it around March, it’s the sound of Seth Greenberg pleading his team’s case to be in the NCAA Tournament. Maybe the Hokies have been “snubbed” in the past , but after a 1-4 start in conference play this season, Virginia Tech has a lot of work to do if they want to even be in the conversation come tourney time. Not only have the Hokies lost four games in conference, but they have lost to Boston College and Wake Forest. However, they did beat a good Virginia team in their last ACC game, despite scoring just 47 points. Not many expected the Hokies to be toiling around the cellar of the conference, but things like that don’t happen by accident. It just may be possible that this year’s Virginia Tech team is just not that talented, no matter how much Seth Greenberg wants to dispute the critics. Even after saying all that, it would not surprise anyone if they came into the Comcast Center and left with a win.
I know there is no such thing as a moral victory, and despite what anyone says, the Terps simply collapsed again Wednesday night. Despite leading the game in the second half, Maryland showed their usual ineptitude running the half- court offense, and failed to make shots for 40 minutes. While Duke couldn’t miss at the free throw stripe, MD couldn’t convert, and had noticeable breakdowns on the defensive end the floor. Alex Len is starting to look to like the second coming of Will Bowers, only weaker. And, Nick Faust has yet to show any sort of ability to make a three pointer. The one bright spot has been Ashton Pankey, who is a menace on the glass, and strong enough to play against players who have more size then he does. If I could not see the name on the back of their jersey, I might mistake Pankey for former Terp Byron Mouton, READ MORE >>>
By Gregg Cobert, on January 26th, 2012  There was a lot of emotion in the Comcast Center with the court being named in honor of Gary Williams tonight. The Terps played strong again for 30 minutes and had the lead by 3 points with 8 minutes to play. However, the Terps went through 2 separate cold spells of not having a field goal for over 3 minutes which sealed their fate. They could not help themselves either as they were 3-10 from the line in the 2nd half. Maryland (12-7, 2-3) fell 74-61 to the Blue Devils (17-3, 5-1). The main problem for the Terps was the fact they could not stop Mason Plumlee as he had 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 4 assists. Let’s get to the report card.
Pe’Shon Howard B+
Howard had a very good all around game with 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists. He was aggressive looking for his shot and also looking to find teammates for shots. It might have been his best game since coming back from the broken foot. READ MORE >>>
By Marco Romanell, on January 25th, 2012 
Duke Blue Devils (16-3. 4-1 ACC) at Maryland Terrapins (12-6, 2-2 ACC)
Wed Jan 25th 9pm Comcast Center, College Park, Md
Last game: Duke- lost to FSU 76-73 MD-lost to Temple 73-60
Leading scorer: Duke- Austin Rivers 14.4ppg MD- Terrell Stoglin 21.5ppg
Outlook:
After that, there is likely to be nothing but bad news, as the visiting and sixth ranked Blue Devils come to College Park looking to avenge their first conference loss. No matter what their fans may chant, Duke and Maryland are rivals as the Terps have more success against the Blue Devils then every team in the conference but North Carolina. The crowd is sure to be electric and the crowd is sure to be their loud, taunting selves. The Terrapin faithful is sure to turn the Comcast Center into the home court advantage it has not been all season. Just ask this guy what the Maryland crowd is like. READ MORE >>>
By Zach Wilt, on January 25th, 2012 
I wish I played basketball at Maryland so I could wear cool Under Armour shoes with Gary Williams signature on them.
As Terps fans know, Maryland will honor Gary Williams by naming their court after the legendary coach before tonight’s game against Duke. The University held a ceremony for Williams on Monday that featured such highlights as toasts from Coach K, Roy Williams and Juan Dixon as well as a fist pumping silhouette of the coach projected on to the Comcast Center.
But nothing is as cool as Under Armour’s shoes designed specifically for the Terps players for tonight’s game.
You’ve probably already seen how Under Armour revolutionized college football uniforms with their designs for the Terps 2011 season, but the basketball shoes take UA’s Maryland spirit to the next level. (More pictures after the bump.)
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By Patrick Guthrie, on January 24th, 2012  Courtesy of the Washington Times In my experience, there are two types of under-performing sports teams to root for, and I have the distinct pleasure of having a basketball team in each camp right now. The Maryland Terrapins basketball team is the kind of under-performing that’s ultimately forgivable. They kind of remind me of every round of golf I’ve ever played. Every once in a while, for a streak of 2 or 3 holes, I look like an actual golfer. My drives are straight, my irons are smooth, and when I chip it doesn’t look like I’m trying to butcher a live cat. Things are good.
And then, just as quickly as that blissful oasis appeared, everything crashes back down to earth. My drives develop a wanderlust, my irons go from smooth to chunky, and you couldn’t identify the aforementioned cat by its dental records. But ultimately, I don’t really get that upset about it, and why? Because I know I’m not good enough to adequately correct my mistakes mid-round.
Maryland has the very same issue. In the first halves of the Cornell and Wake Forest games, they played some beautifully cohesive basketball. The ball moved effectively, Stoglin looked like he was playing pop a shot, and Alex Len’s strengths shone brightly. All was right with the world.
But the issue with that “zone” is the same as the one I encounter during golf. They don’t find the zone, they stumble into it. And because they don’t know how they got there, once the slightest thing goes awry, they fight to try to figure out how the hell they found it in the first place. Forced shots and turnovers ensue en masse (see the 21-3 run by Florida State).
The Terps are more than likely not a tournament team this year, but it won’t be because of lack of talent. Any time you have the leading scorer in the conference, there’s always a chance that UNC or Duke have their Buster Douglas moment against Stoglin and company. I am going to suggest three things that Maryland can do to make their swings less violent, and their good play more sustained.
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By BSR Staff, on January 5th, 2012  Get excited. Hot off the presses — or the FTP — it’s a fresh new episode of the BSR Podcast. Our first of 2012.
With Matt Lund off for the week and surrounded by Steelers fans (our thoughts are with him), we welcome back The Boss, Matt Sadler and an old friend, The Colonel, Jeff Pilson with Patrick Guthrie and Zach Wilt.
2012 brings TONS of news so here are some of the topic that the guys discussed on the show.
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By Gregg Cobert, on March 28th, 2011  We have the Final 4 set with the VCU Rams set to play the Butler Bulldogs in one semifinal and in the other we have the Kentucky Wildcats facing the Connecticut Huskies. Random fact for you about the tournament: over 53 million brackets were filled out on ESPN and out of that only 2 had all four Final Four teams correct. We have 1 SEC, 1 Big East, 1 Horizon, and 1 Colonial. It’s the highest seeds ever by quite a large margin with a total of 26 (3, 4, 8, 11). So let’s break down each of the games that got us to this point.
Butler 74, Florida 71
This was the first of the four games to determine the Final Four and it set the stage for the other ones to follow which they did. It was an overtime affair in which Butler came back from an 11 point deficit with just over 9 to play in regulation and hit a late 3 to send it to overtime. Shelvin Mack scored 27 points and hit the go ahead 3 to put Butler up for good at 72-70 with 1:27 to go in overtime. The Bulldogs would not quit and fought and fought like they have done throughout the tournament. Vernon Macklin led the Gators with a career high 25 points and Alex Tyus added 14 points and 10 boards.
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By Zach Wilt, on March 28th, 2011  If there was ever a doubt before, the VCU Rams solidified themselves as this year’s best story of the NCAA tournament with their win over number one seed Kansas on Sunday night. At this point, if your bracket isn’t completely busted, you’re either a compulsive liar or you filled out 263 different brackets.
The number 11 seed Virginia Commonwealth University Rams took a double digit lead into halftime and were able to hold off the hot Kansas Jayhawks second half burst to go on to a 71-61 win in front of a pro-Kansas crowd in San Antonio.
An interesting stat pointed out on ESPN.com was that VCU has hit 12 three pointers versus Georgetown, Florida State and Kansas and has made 32.1 percent from two point range, but 48 percent from three point range. Crazy.
Only two other number eleven seeds have every made the Final Four, LSU in 1986 and VCU’s fellow Colonial Athletic Association team, George Mason in 2006. The Rams are the only of those teams to win by such a high margin, an average of 12 points per game.
VCU’s next stop is Houston, where they face number eight seed Butler who took down Florida 74-71 to win the Southeast. You’ll have to wait ’til April to see how March Madness finishes, but it promises to be well worth the wait.
By Gregg Cobert, on March 26th, 2011 Well hoops picked back up on Thursday and Friday night and by the time VCU held on to win at the last second at 12:24 AM Saturday morning, the field was cut in half from 16 to 8. There was a bit of everything to whet people’s appetite. There were monster performances from individuals, there were buzzer beaters, there were Cinderellas, there were blowouts where you wished there was a running clock, but at the end there was plenty of March Madness. Let’s dive in and take a look.
On Thursday night, Derrick Williams, Jimmer Fredette, and Kemba Walker all had monster performances to help their team. Derrick Williams was a man possessed in the first half against scoring 25 points and finished with 32 points and 13 rebounds to eviscerate Duke, 93-77. In the second half, Arizona outscored the Blue Devils 55-33. Kemba was a steadying force as he led the Huskies over the Aztecs in a pseudo home game for San Diego State. Jimmer scored over 30 points again but it was not enough as his team fell to Florida Gators by 9 in overtime. READ MORE >>>
By Zach Wilt, on March 18th, 2011  As mentioned in last week’s edition of Free Kicks, I will be filling in for Weston “Expatriate” Bruner while he takes some time off and attempting to carry his cornerstone weekly column here at BSR, Free Kicks. I’ve got my work cut out for me, but the news should carry me this week. On Wednesday, I took to BSR as my soap box for continuing to complain about the state of the National Football League and today I’ll give another couple reasons why I continue to think the NFL is pushing fans away. Also on the agenda, we’ve got to mention busted brackets, the Cinderallas are fantastic stories, but those pesky Owls hurt a lot of people’s chances, including my own. And I wanted to mention the tragedy that struck Japan last week and how we as sports fans can help.
Let’s line up for the kick.
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By Gregg Cobert, on March 18th, 2011 Well the first official day of the NCAA Tournament wrapped up yesterday and the afternoon session proved a lot more drama than the evening.
Five of the eight games played in the afternoon came down to the last shot as Morehead State, Richmond, Kentucky, Butler, and Temple all survived and advanced. Morehead State and Richmond were the upsets of the group. The craziest shot was the shot by Matt Howard of Butler at the last second to beat the Old Dominion Monarchs. This is what March Madness is all about. Edge of your seat action the whole afternoon. At one point, I told my buddy, Beas, “Be still my heart.” Other afternoon winners were Pitt, San Diego State, and West Virginia.
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