NCAA Tournament Takedown

Oklahoma might have won the game easily, but Morgan State had the play of the game...

Morgan State player Ameer Ali takes down Oklahoma's Blake Griffin

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BYU Loses Again to Texas A&M: Another Early Exit

BYU loses again, nothing new...


Texas A&M 79 BYU 66, no big surprise.

It seems to be like day light savings. Set your clock ahead, watch BYU choke in the conference tournament, and then watch them exit in the first round of the NCAA tournament. BYU hasn't gotten a "good" draw for many years; however, that isn't an excuse. Other teams are able to overcome a bad seed, poor play location, or even hostile crowds. Yet, BYU isn't able to overcome. The brighter the lights the quicker that BYU falters.

This year, BYU never got their game going. BYU went down early, and didn't seem to fight back. Sure Texas A&M were hitting big shots, but BYU wasn't doing anything to disrupt the streak of Texas A&M's shotting. How many free throws did A&M shot in the first half? Four, with two of those in the first nineteen minutes. That is it. If a team is on fire, "let see how many shots they can make on their back?" In a tournament teams just can't play soft, but that is BYU's M.O.

It wouldn't be a big deal for BYU if this year was something out of the ordinary. Nope, BYU has played the same type of game every year. Texas A&M came out of the gate last year and went up 11, and BYU couldn't overcome. Xavier couldn't miss from the outside, and BYU didn't do anything to slow them down. BYU actually got off to a big lead against Syracuse before Gerry McNamara caught fire and lead his team to a victory.

From the start of the season it was obvious that the BYU system of basketball is a hit or miss business. If BYU's outside shot is falling they can hang with anyone in the country. This can be seen in both the Arizona State and Wake Forest games this season. BYU had a lead, but couldn't maintain the lead once the shots stopped falling.

BYU system of offense seems to be almost at the level of a gimmick. The gimmick that is used by BYU ensures that they can compete year in year out in the Mountain West Conference. BYU can plug in your standard BYU player and succeed, but have trouble when it comes to any tournament.

1993, 1993 looms large in BYU's basketball fans minds. 1993 was the last time that BYU won a tournament game. That date will have to be burned into the mind of every BYU fan for another year at least for BYU to get another shot at erasing the date.

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NCAA Tournament Seeding for Utah Teams

A look at Utah teams and their tournament hopes...

Utah State - If you are a fan of the Aggies it was a shot to the gut to see USU get an 11 seed. Yet, another example of how few teams outside of the "Major Conferences" got any respect. It also meant that if the Aggies didn't win their conference tournament they would have been on the outside looking into the tournament. With that in mind, the Aggies need to be smiling when they view where and who they are playing. The Aggies drew an injured Marquette team that didn't finish the season well, and they are playing at Boise. The closest that the Aggies could get to playing a home game. Then to look out a little further on the bracket, the Aggies potential second round opponent would be Missouri. The weakest of all the three seeds in the tournament. The Aggies might have drawn a low seed, but the table is set for them to march into the sweet sixteen and prove that they were underrated.

Utah - A five seed! I still can't get over the surprise of when I heard that the Utes gained a five seed in the tournament. Utah didn't finish the season well. They were in the driver seat for the conference and ended up with a three way tie for the regular season title. The Utes then barely got by TCU, and played San Diego State to the buzzer to win the conference tournament (Which also makes San Diego State's omission from the field that much more insulting to the "Mid-Major" Conferences). Yet, the committee thought that the play of the Utes earned them merit, and they ended up with a five seed. Or in other words the committee believes that Utah is one of the twenty best teams in all of college basketball...huh? The Utes did have a high RPI, but I think what helped them most was having their AD on the selection committee. It helps to have friends in high places. The location of the play for Utah is not good. The Utes must travel to Miami to play their games. An insult to any five seed that they must travel across the country. Especially when a higher seed normally means that they get a location closer to their university to play. Utah is a two point underdog to Arizona, another slap in the face of a five seed. The Utes should beat 'Zons, but face a stiff second round challenge playing Wake Forest back east in the second round.

BYU - Another year, another terrible draw for BYU. Once again BYU is playing on the East Coast. They are playing in the early contests, meaning that BYU will be playing at 10:30am local time. BYU is also in a rematch with last year's opponent Texas A&M. A&M's seeding is interesting, and would be hard to explain (as many of the selection committee's decisions are equally perplexing). The Aggies were the fourth best team in the Big 12, but they are seed lower than both Texas and Oklahoma State, both teams that finished below them in the regular season. The Aggies have quick guards that give have given BYU trouble guarding in the past. Also even if the Cougars were to win their first tournament game of the new millennium, BYU would have to face UConn in UConn's backyard. If BYU's shots are falling they can beat anyone, and they will need those shots to fall if they want to win any tournament games this season.

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