[The Poet]

So, after . . . what, 5 or 6 thousand games? . . . it's down to only 3 more left:

Butler vs. Michigan State = When you have a pair of 5-seeds going up against each other, who the hell you gonna pick? Both teams are good, in their own way, yet neither is a dominating force. The Spartans have played well with Lucious taking over the point for the injured Lucas, but are not as good with him starting there, and are turned over more easily. As for the Bulldogs, they are capable of doing just that very thing, they have some nice offensive options themselves (hey, when you have a big who can shoot like Hayward, it's hard to stop them scoring), and play a team game which does not depend upon one or two superior athletes to carry the group to victory. Plus, they have the same home-court "advantage" the Spartans held last year, without the added pressure they had to face: Nobody is expecting Butler to rescue Indiana from its economic woes in the way some put that burden re Michigan's problems back then. Yes, that was silly, but you cannot say for certain it was not in the back of some Spartans' minds. On the other hand, this is entirely virgin territory for the Bulldogs, and they have doubtless faced more hype and attention in the last few days than they have ever ever seen. This goes for their coaches as well as the players. The oddsmakers have MSU the slightest of favorites, and for this final point alone I will agree. When the buzzer sounds, Izzo and the Spartans will get another shot on Monday night.

West Virginia vs. Duke = This one is much more of the matchup one might expect, as it pits a 1 against a 2-seed. The contrast between these two teams could hardly be more glaring. Da'Sean Butler wears No. 1 on his jersey, and fittingly so: He is far and away the best athlete on either team. In fact, the entire Mountaineer team can be said to be the same, as Duke has been characterized (not by me, but I see the point) as "spectacularly unathletic". On the other hand, and likely because of this, the Blue Devils do play better together as a team, since they have to to succeed. And though their scorers are not as flashy and touted as were Carolina's last year, they do have as many different options, which means if you are able to stop one of them two others can hurt you instead. Furthermore, consider this: If you could pick your coach to win a big game, which one would you choose, Huggins or K? Even the most fervent WVA fanatic must admit that's a no-brainer. Yet the X-factor in all this is the unfortunate loss of Bryant to injury a week back. So far Mazzulla has done well enough to advance the Mountaineers. But anyone who watched the last few minutes of their victory over Kentucky knows that WVA is having trouble against intense defensive pressure. That, my friends, is Duke's game and, unlike the Wildcats, they won't wait until the game is over before they try to turn up the heat. According to the odds, the Mountaineers are the smart bet. This I believe is because the oddsmakers look at NBA-caliber talent, which would make them correct. Me, I look at college-level team ability. Horns and all, Duke, by a bucket or so.