SoCon Tournament Coming to Charlotte

The Southern Conference tournament is headed to the home of the conference's most notable school: Charlotte, NC.

The SoCon tournament will be held next March 4th through 8th in the Queen City. The first two days will be played at Bojangles Arena ... formerly known as the original Charlotte Coliseum. The final two days will be played at Time Warner Cable Arena.

TWC Arena will be scaled-down to hide about 12,000 of the arena's 20,000 seats.

Charlotte is an ideal city to hold the conference tournament as eight of the 12 schools are within 200 miles. With the economy the way it is, having a site that is accessible a great number of fans is desired. It is also the "home" city of Davidson, the most popular team in the SoCon.

Guess What? Another Cincinnati Bengal Arrested

The Cincinnati Bengals may as well just come out and say it: they just don't care. Yesterday, they sign Tank Johnson. Today, they see Leon Hall arrested.

Hall was arrested for drunk driving. His blood alcohol level was .149, nearly twice the legal limit.

"Where's Dook?"

Here are former UNC Tar Heels Vince Carter, Antawn Jamison, Julius Peppers and Maktar Ndiaye at the NCAA Championship game on Monday night. Ndiaye is holding a sign that just endears itself to every Carolina fan.

Including me.

Why Is Cincinnati Hating On Sean Miller?

Here in Cincinnati, all the sports talk has been about former Xavier head coach Sean Miller. Miller is leaving the Muskies for the Arizona gig which reportedly will pay him $2M a season.

Most of the sports talk guys and the callers to their shows are ripping Miller. How could he leave Xavier? Doesn't he know that this team will be really good next year? Some have even called him a liar.

Excuse me, but you do know you are Xavier ... right?

I know people hate feeling like they've been used. It happens in sports ... especially college sports ... that a coach will bolt a program that he has put back on the map for a cherry job at an elite school or one in an elite conference. It is a right of passage at this time of year. For Xavier to forget who they were is sad.

Memphis played for a national title last year. But John Calipari bolted for the luxury of Kentucky. How can you fault Miller leaving a program that has never sniffed the Final Four for one that currently owns the longest active streak of NCAA Tournament appearances?

It's not like Xavier hasn't seen this before. Pete Gillen left for Providence (and then Virginia). Skip Prosser who then leave for Wake Forest. Thad Matta left for Ohio State. Now Miller is leaving for Arizona.

Those honks around the Nati can't believe it.

No offense at all to Xavier. This is a great school that plays in the best basketball arena in the city. The fact that Xavier has had so many sought after coaches shows the kind of program they have built there. There are a lot of schools that would trade with Xavier right now.

But how can these people complain on the radio and TV about Miller leaving? Despite their success, Xavier is a second class citizen in this town. During the season, there were probably ten times the discussion on the University of Cincinnati than there was on Xavier. Heck, Ohio State and Kentucky got more run than the Muskies.

The local FOX station will move around primetime programming in order to show Cincinnati basketball. You'd be hard pressed to see Xavier anywhere on the tube. I live here and I only remember seeing two of their games this season: the Crosstown Shootout against Cincinnati and their terrible loss to Duke.

The point is that the city doesn't give Xavier the respect it deserves. Now when the coach leaves, they wonder why he'd want to go to a place where the program is the top dog.

Hey, Cincinnati. Xavier is your only good team. The Reds have enjoyed eight straight losing seasons. The Bengals continue to be a punchline. The Bearcats haven't recovered from the Bob Huggins firing. If you want somebody to stick around town, you may want to think about showing him some love.

Tar Heels Beat Michigan State For National Championship!!!

Yesterday, I took a look back at the last two UNC national championships and where I was and what I was feeling during that time. I will look back on the 2009 UNC title very fondly, but this one had a much different feel to it.

Understand that the Heels have five championships now. The first four were won in close tight battles.

1957-UNC beat Kansas in a triple-overtime game.
1982-UNC beat Georgetown by one when Michael Jordan hit the game winner
1993-UNC beat Michigan in a nip and tuck contest that is best remembered for Chris Webber's timeout
2005-UNC beat Illinois in the closing minutes. The game was tied 70-70 with two minutes left. The Heels scored the last five points.

This 2009 championship was far from close. UNC jumped all over Michigan State early and never looked back. It got as close as 13 in the second half but the outcome of this game was never ... NEVER ... in doubt. It was an amazing performance by a team that was expected to win this thing all year long. That's difficult.

I will always remember this, obviously, but I may not remember this actual game as much just because it was such a blowout. I will remember the 72,000 fans that filled Ford Field. I will remember how people felt that the fact that most of that crowd would be wearing Michigan State green would affect the outcome of this game. I will remember the rout.

Most of all, I will remember this team. This is one of the most successful teams in North Carolina's storied history. Not only did they win the title, but they dominated this tournament. But it is both the journey and the players that will endure.

Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, Wayne Ellington and Danny Green all came back to North Carolina for this. Hansbrough has been an All-American, National Player of the Year, ACC Player of the Year, all-time leading scorer in the ACC, NCAA record for most made free throws, fifth all-time in NCAA Tournament scoring and, now, national champion.

Despite the ease of this tournament, this wasn't the smoothest ride. Remember that all four of those guys toyed with the idea of leaving early for the NBA. All came back. Then you had Tyler Hansbrough's stress fracture that many people felt would affect him for a huge hunk of the season. He missed several games but it was a non-issue pretty quick.

There was the injury to Tyler Zeller in the second game of the season. He broke his wrist and missed most of the year. Instead of redshirting this season, he came back late in the year so he could be part of this title team.

Marcus Ginyard missed virtually all of the season with a broken foot. He was the glue of this team and best defender. Of course there was all the drama about Ty Lawson's toe.

Congrats to the Heels!!! And look out co-workers tomorrow!!!!

NCAA Championship Beats MLB's Opening Day For Me

One of the arguments that come up every year at this time is which is a bigger event: baseball's opening day or the NCAA men's basketball championship.

I honestly respect the stance that people who choose Opening Day take, but I emphatically say the NCAA title.

Not just because my beloved Tar Heels are playing tonight. That just makes it a no-brainer this year. I just think a championship game means more than the first game of a 162-game season. For each team that loses today, there is still plenty of wins left to grab. For the two playing in Detroit tonight, this is it. This determines whether you go the rest of your life as a champion.

This isn't to say that I don't love Opening Day. It is a great day of sports and does have the feel of a new year. But I think people put too much emphasis on it. If your team wins today, you have this feeling like this is going to be a special season even though it is 0.6% of the year. Not to dismiss the feeling, but a win today is just as important as a win on July 26th.

For college basketball, there is no more important day as today.

Also, I'm not big on this whole "Opening Day brings the feeling of spring". Um, I'm here in Cincinnati where it is freezing cold and rainy. That rain is supposed to turn into snow. It would be tough to see a football game like this, let alone sit in a baseball stadium.

The Royals-White Sox game was already postponed due to snow. I'm one of those people who thinks the first week of games should be played in warm weather cities or domed stadiums.

Also, is this Opening Day or Opening Week? The Braves and Phillies met last night for the official opening of the season. The rest of the league starts play either today or tomorrow. So this isn't an opening day for a team that doesn't play today.

Again, I respect the opinion of those who prefer the baseball slate today. To me, it is the appetizer to the main course this evening.

Jordan, Stockton and Admiral in the Hall Of Fame? I Feel Old!!!

Michael Jordan, David Robinson and John Stockton were elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame. I think I'm ready to go through my mid-life crisis.

Sports help measure your life. When you are a kid, athletes are gods and heroes. When you are in high school, lot of these guys are just a few years older than you. As a young adult, these guys are your age. Around 30, most of the guys you remember their rookie seasons are now retiring. Now in my mid-30s, those guys are getting into Halls of Fame.

Jordan, Robinson and Stockton were three of the greatest players of my teenage-to-adult life. I remember when people didn't think Jordan was team oriented enough to win a title (he won six). I remember when the Admiral was drafted but the Spurs had to wait two years before they could actually use him. I remember when Stockton-to-Malone was all the rage.

I remember when Jordan wore gold chains while playing. I remember Robinson's flat top. John Stockton may be the last player to wear the short shorts.

I remember those commercials for Coke, McDonald's, Nike and Gatorade that Jordan did. Remember those "Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood" ads? Okay, I don't think Stockton did any.

I also remember when this "Dream Team" thing happened. That Kobe-Wade-LeBron team of 2008 was quite a squad, but it didn't catch the imagination of that original Dream Team of 1992. Jordan, Robinson and Stockton were all members of that team.

Remember how loud Chicago Stadium got? Or the Salt Palace? Both Hemisfair Arena and the Alamodome were tough places to play. Now all three have nice newish arenas that NBA Finals (and championships for two of them) were played.

There are still great players out there today ... but it feels different because they are younger than me. The guys my age or older are creaking out the door and I will soon be everyone's elder.

My NBA era was 1985-1998. I still love it now, but that was back when I lived for it. Jordan, Robinson and Stockton dominated that era. Congrats on getting into the Hall

Tar Heels: Let's Me Reminisce Over You

I must admit that I'm a nervous wreck. Tonight is the NCAA championship game where North Carolina will take on Michigan State. My beloved Heels will be looking for their fifth title and second in five years.

These are the times where I reminisce about the other big games I watched the Heels play in. UNC's first title over Kansas happened 18 years before I was born. I've seen the 1982 title game over Georgetown many times, but I don't remember watching it happen (I was only six).

It makes me think of 1993 and 2005. Those Heels teams, like the one that will play tonight, were favorites to win the title all year long. They weren't the only ones, mind you, but fans and players expected to be there.

This year feels a lot like the 1993 team. Carolina went and lost in the 1991 Final Four and lost to Ohio State in the 1992 Sweet 16. And how about this: the Heels went into the ACC Tournament with three losses but had an injured point guard (Derrick Phelps) and didn't win it. UNC tore through the tournament (with a scare against Cincinnati thrown in) and beat Michigan for the title.

I remember that season and that team vividly. I was a senior in high school in Charlotte. I had just watch hated Duke win the last two championships and had to hear about it. So when the Heels won, I remember sitting in my bedroom cheering and just itching to go to school the next day.

The 2005 team was expected to have a shot to win it all. But unlike the 1982 and 1993 teams, they hadn't really been on that national stage in a couple years. While the 1982 team had played in the previous season's title game and the 1993 team was in the 1991 Final Four, the 2005 team hadn't gotten past the second round of the tournament. 2001 saw the Heels lose in the second round to Penn State; 2002 saw the Heels go 8-20; 2003 saw them in the N.I.T.; 2004 saw them losing to Texas in the second round. This wasn't a team that had really sniffed too much success.

The interesting thing about '05 was that Illinois was also playing at an elite level. It is very rare that the top two teams actually square off for the title, but UNC and Illinois did so. A great game with a lot of NBAers running around out there, the Heels squeaked out a 75-70 victory.

I watched the game in my Sportz Room feeling about as nervous as I am right now. My wife came down with about a minute left in the game. When the seconds ticked off to the title, I tackled my wife with a huge hug and celebrated. The next day, I went to work waving my Carolina flag.

Both the 1993 and 2005 teams had a center who was from Indiana (Eric Montross, Sean May). Both teams started the tournament in North Carolina (Winston-Salem, Charlotte). Both teams beat a Big Ten team to win the title.

This 2009 team has a center from Indiana (Tyler Zeller) and started the tournament in North Carolina (Greensboro). They will be taking on a Big Ten team for the title.

I'm hoping that tonight will bring a memory like that again.

Wake's James Johnson to Go to the NBA

In what could be a max exodus of ACC players to the NBA, the first underclassman has officially left for the draft.

Wake Forest's James Johnson will leave the school for the NBA. He will hire an agent, ending his college eligibility. Jeff Teague (sophomore) and Al-Farouq Aminu (freshman) still haven't made up their minds if they are coming back.

Again, the ACC could lose a ton of talent. NC State's Brandon Costner has already declared for the draft. North Carolina could see as many as five guys leave for the NBA. Tyler Hansbrough and Danny Green will graduate; Ty Lawson will most likely bolt; Wayne Ellington could be right behind him; Ed Davis isn't ready yet but NBA scouts love him. Duke could lose Gerald Henderson and/or Kyle Singler. Georgia Tech could lose Gani Lawal.

Guys like Toney Douglas (FSU), Jack McClinton (Miami), A.D. Vassallo (Va Tech) and Tyrese Rice (Boston College) are already done with their eligibility.

My Mis-Informed Major League Baseball Predictions

Living in Cincinnati means that today is a holiday. Opening Day starts every year with a parade followed by the Reds playing a home game against another NL team. Tomorrow, that team will be the New York Mets.

So I guess I must put up some sort of predicitions for the upcoming season:

NL EAST
1-Phillies
2-Mets
3-Marlins
4-Braves
5-Nationals

I like the Mets -- I do -- but I cannot shake the memory of the past two Septembers. Philly seems to be the mentally stronger team. I love the Marlins as a darkhorse in this race. I love the way the franchise is run and kinda hope the Reds would work it the same way.

NL CENTRAL
1-Cubs
2-Cardinals
3-Brewers
4-Reds
5-Astros
6-Pirates

I don't think this race will be close again. Chicago is easily the best of the bunch. The Cardinals always show up; Milwaukee still has nice offensive weapons but lost a lot of pitching. The Reds are everyone's darkhorse team in this division, but I think they are a year away from that. My darkhorse is Houston just because no one seems to expect anything from them.

NL WEST
1-Dodgers
2-Diamondbacks
3-Giants
4-Rockies
5-Padres

Getting Manny Ramirez back clinches the division for the Dodgers. They really aren't a great team, but this division blows. Arizona should challenge for the division title and/or a wildcard spot. The darkhorse team is the Giants. The only reason anyone will pay attention to San Diego is because of the eventual trade of Jake Peavy.

AL EAST
1-Yankees
2-Red Sox
3-Rays
4-Blue Jays
5-Orioles

I hate the Yankees, but this team did what it had to in order to get back to the World Series. They have built an outstanding pitching staff and have plenty of offense to supplement it. Boston is hard-nosed and will be right there until the end. I'm not one of those people who think Tampa will fall off the face of the Earth, but they didn't improve the way that the Yankees and Red Sox did.

AL CENTRAL
1-Indians
2-Twins
3-Tigers
4-White Sox
5-Royals

This Cleveland team has so many weapons and has a great shot to get to the World Series. No matter what, I never underestimate the Twins, so I have them in the hunt. Maybe this is the year the Tigers meet expectations?

AL WEST
1-Angels
2-Athletics
3-Rangers
4-Mariners

The Angels remain the class of this division. I expect both Oakland and Texas to make a run at LA of A for the crown, but the Angels just have too much.

Historically, There Is a Home Court Advantage For Michigan State

Michigan State will be playing North Carolina in the National Championship game in Detroit. The Spartans are the first team to play a title game in their own state since Duke in 1994.

That year, Duke lost to Arkansas in Charlotte. That is the only time a team lost an NCAA Tournament championship game in their home state.

UCLA won three of its titles (1968, 1972, 1975) while playing in California. Two of those titles were won at the LA Sports Arena ... which was UCLA's home court. The 1975 title was won down the road at San Diego. NC State won the 1974 tournament in Greensboro.

So the team playing in its home state is 4-1 in title games.

A Nice History Between North Carolina and Michigan State

North Carolina and Michigan State will meet for the fifth time in the NCAA Tournament (UNC won the previous four). That doesn't seem like a ton of meetings, but these two will meet again on a huge stage.

This will be the third time in five years they will have met in the NCAA Tournament. In 2005, the Heels beat the Spartans in the Final Four and go on to win the National Championship. In 2007, North Carolina beat Michigan State in the second round of the tournament. Now they meet again in the 2009 championship game.

Heck, these two would have met in 2006 if George Mason hadn't upset Michigan State in the first round that year. George Mason would play UNC in the second round and upset them too.

Until tonight, the biggest meeting these two had was way back in 1957. The two met in the Final Four with the Tar Heels winning in triple overtime. UNC would go on to beat Kansas ... again in triple overtime ... the very next day.

If you want more Carolina karma, remember that the Heels beat Michigan (sans the State) in the 1993 national championship game.

Previewing the Final Four

NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS

ROLLING INTO DETROIT: North Carolina has won each of their tournament games by at least 12 points. Aside from a second half deficit against LSU in the second round, the Tar Heels really haven't been threatened.

THE BAGGAGE: The Tar Heels have had very bad outs the last three NCAA Tournaments. In 2006, George Mason bit them in the second round. In 2007, they let a late double-digit lead over Georgetown get away in the Elite Eight after a monumental meltdown. Last year, Kansas jumped all over them with a 40-12 lead in the Final Four.

THE ENGINE: Ty Lawson has been the best player of the tournament. He makes the Heels go and it is a must that he has a great game against Villanova.

THE EXTRA FEATURE: Danny Green. Green is a stat sheet stuffer. He is the one Tar Heel that can be as deadly at the three-point arc as he is around the basket. He blocks shots, dishes out assists and dives after loose balls.

OUTLOOK: The Tar Heels are the favorites ... but they've been in this position before and come up short. I think the amount of talent these Heels have is just too much to overcome.

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VILLANOVA WILDCATS

ROLLING INTO DETROIT: Nova is the de-facto Cinderella in this Final Four. They are reliving the glory of their last Final Four appearance in 1985. Scottie Reynolds' shot to beat Pitt in the East Regional Finals has many Wildcat fans believing they are a team of destiny again.

THE BAGGAGE: This is by far the least experienced team in the Final Four. Jay Wright is a great coach but this is his first trip this far. Roy Williams and Tom Izzo have made a habit of getting here while Jim Calhoun has never lost a Final Four game. The other three have championships already.

THE ENGINE: Scotty Reynolds must be able to neutralize Ty Lawson if Nova has any shot at beating North Carolina. UNC has had difficulties shutting down penetrating guards and Reynolds can bring it.

THE EXTRA FEATURE: Dante Cunningham has been one of the most improved players in the nation. He'll be so important against a formidable Tar Heel front line.

OUTLOOK: Nova has had a great run but that front line for the Tar Heels will be just too much for the Wildcats to overcome.

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UCONN HUSKIES

ROLLING INTO DETROIT: The Huskies were the tournament's biggest bullies for the first half of the dance. This team is athletic, deep and strong.

THE BAGGAGE: UConn has gotten a reputation of being a little soft. Pitt pushed them around twice and there are times when Hasheem Thabeet hasn't looked like he was all there. Michigan State will bang with the best of them and it will interesting to see how the Huskies fight back. Also, these recruiting violations have put a damper on this run.

THE ENGINE: Hasheem Thabeet is the star of this team. No one left can match the defensive presence he brings every game. Thabeet will need to shine in Detroit as he will be facing a hot Goran Suton tonight and could face that vaunted Carolina frontline on Monday.

THE EXTRA FEATURE: A.J. Price is the glue. He is their most consistent perimeter player and he will be counted on to speed the game up. He has a big skill set that will cause problems for whomever they play.

OUTLOOK: Expect UConn to be in a fight with Michigan State. The battle between Suton and Thabeet will define this game.

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MICHIGAN STATE SPARTANS

ROLLING INTO DETROIT: Not only is Michigan State the first Final Four team to play in state since 1994, they are the only school anywhere close to the Motor City. The Spartans have also become folk heroes who are keeping up the spirits during a bad time in Michigan.

THE BAGGAGE: How good is a home court advantage when the last time you played here was when you were beaten by 35 points? The other teams in the Final Four have elite point guards and come from the perceived best conferences in America.

THE ENGINE: Goran Suton didn't play in that earlier game at Ford Field. He was the difference in State's win over Louisville last weekend. He is a big man who is great at hitting a perimeter shot as well as finding the open man. If he can bring Thabeet away from the basket, it just opens up all kinds of opportunities for the other Spartans.

THE EXTRA FEATURE: Travis Walton is the least known of the lead guards. He will be asked to deal with A.J. Price tonight and then (if they advance) either Ty Lawson or Scottie Reynolds on Monday. He is a physical guy who harrasses opponents to knock them off their games.

OUTLOOK: Michigan State is the type of team that gives UConn troubles. This should be a great game but I am leaning towards the Huskies. That being said, it wouldn't surprise me at all to see the Spartans winning the whole thing.

A.I.: Another Joe Dumars Mistake

Apparently Allen Iverson doesn't want to come off the bench anymore. He tried it for a second and didn't like it. Now he is saying that he would rather retire than do this anymore (you just have a couple of weeks left, A.I.). Today, the Pistons decided to shut down The Answer for the rest of the season ... essentially ending his time in Detroit.

What a great trade the Pistons made, huh? GM Joe Dumars sent the heart and soul of the team (Chauncey Billups) to the Nuggets for Iverson. We all had doubts that this was a smart move and now we've seen those doubts realized.

One thing I've been saying for years is that Joe Dumars is a bit overrated. He has been given this pedastal of a Jerry West-like personnel guy. Yeah, he has made a few nice moves and did deliver a championship to Detroit. But there is a reason this team is in a huge funk.

You can trace much of it to 2003. In that draft, the already good Pistons had the No. 2 pick in the draft due to a trade. After LeBron James was selected, Detroit could have had any of the number of great players on the board. Guys like Dwayne Wade, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh (by the way, Mo Williams, Josh Howard and David West were also in that draft). So the Pistons decided to take Darko Milicic. Of those top five picks, he is the only one that hasn't been to an All Star game.

Okay, it is easy to rip Dumars for that and one bad move shouldn't tarnish the man's career ... even if it set his franchise back a decade.

This wasn't his first draft screw-up. In 2001, he used the No. 9 pick in the draft on Rodney White. He did get a good kid in the second round -- Mehmet Okur -- but watched him walk out the door before he came into his own. Tayshawn Prince and Rodney Stuckey are great picks but they aren't D-Wade or Melo.

I also don't like the way the coaches have been moved around in Detroit during the last decade.

While the Billups-for-Iverson trade was more forward thinking, it really looks like a mistake. It's not just because Iverson is done for the year. Iverson has an expiring contract and probably wasn't going to be with Detroit beyond this season anyway. But it completely disorganized this franchise. Billups was the leader of that team and when he left, the soul of the team left with him.

We will all get to see how great a GM Dumars really is. With Iverson and Rasheed Wallace's contracts expiring, this franchise is back in a rebuilding mode. Rip Hamilton will be in his final contracted season next year. All this will open up a ton of money to maybe make a splash in the Great Free Agency Summer Of 2010.

How Dumars handles the transition will say a lot about his legacy.

Rating the Final Four Games

1-UConn vs Michigan State: This is an interesting game with an interesting twist. UConn has been one of the elite teams all season long but this game will be played in Detroit, Michigan. Of all of the Final Four teams, the Huskies are the only one to have not played in Ford Field (UNC and Michigan State met there earlier this season; Villanova played there in the Midwest Regional semifinals last year). Can Goran Suton pull Hasheem Thabeet away from the basket? Can the Spartans drag UConn into a street fight? Will UConn hit their free throws? Pick: UConn.

2-North Carolina vs Villanova: The favorite versus the team with nothing to lose. While Nova has dreams of being in this Final Four, they were the one school of the four that wasn't expected to be here. For North Carolina, the pressure is on. This is why everyone came back to school. During the last four years, Carolina has steadily improved by getting to the second round ... then Elite Eight ... then Final Four. This year, it is about cutting down the nets. Nothing less will do. Pick: North Carolina.