Final Four Is Set

The Final Four, which will be held in Ford Field in Detroit, is now set with the four participants. Ford Field is home to the NFL's Detroit Lions. The first team to clinch a berth in the Final Four was Connecticut, with their victory against Missouri. Villanova became the second team to advance to the Final Four, beating their Big East rival Pittsburgh in a thriller. Villanova point guard Scottie Reynolds hit the game winning layup with 0.5 seconds remaining in the game to give them a 78-76 lead and victory.

With two Big East teams making the Final Four already, a Louisville victory against Michigan St. would've given the conference three Final Four teams, which has happened only once before. However, that didn't happen as Michigan St. stunned Louisville, winning in a defensive battle 64-52. North Carolina was the last team to advance to the Final Four, beating Blake Griffin and Oklahoma 72-60.

With the Final Four being set, a lot of predictions are coming in with who will win it all. All four teams are strong teams, but I think Connecticut and North Carolina will meet in the national title game and North Carolina will win it narrowly. Villanova will play North Carolina in the semifinals, while Connecticut plays Michigan St. in the other semifinals game. Michigan St. is strong defensively, but Connecticut is as well and they have an excellent point guard in A.J. Price and a towering center in Hasheem Thabeet. North Carolina's uptempo style cannot be matched by any other team, which gives them an advantage over Villanova and Connecticut in my opinion.

What do you think? Who will win the national championship?

Gillispie Fired After Two Seasons

Billy Gillispie, head coach of the Kentucky Wildcats the past two seasons, has been fired by the program after their NIT loss to Notre Dame. Gillispie went 40-27 in two seasons with the Wildcats. Kentucky went 22-14 this season, tied for the second-most losses in the program's 106-year history, and missed the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1991.

The athletic director for Kentucky said the school did not plan to pay Gillispie a $6 million buyout that was to be part of his never completed seven-year deal. Gillispie never signed the long-term contract, and he said the school would abide by the memorandum of understanding, which he considered a year-to-year contract. Gillispie made $2.3 million annually. Gillispie coached at Texas A&M before arriving at Kentucky. He left Texas A&M for Kentucky so he could turn around an established program that was struggling. It didn't happen and now he's out after two years.

In my opinion, I am not a big fan of schools firing coaches after just two years. It doesn't give the coaches the chance to coach their recruits for all four of their years. Gillispie is not being given a chance to prove that his recruits are solid and can win basketball games. The university said he was only concerned about basketball and not the school itself, but I find that hard to believe. I believe the school is so accustomed to winning and are spoiled rotten by winning. They couldn't get it done the past two seasons. This year, they couldn't even make the NCAA Tournament. I think that was the main reason they fired him and they deserve to struggle in the future.

Schilling Calls It Quits

Curt Schilling, who has been a great pitcher in the majors for most of his baseball career, has decided to retire and not pursue another season. Schilling himself broke the news on his personal blog, saying that he has no regrets about this decision. Schilling has played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Arizona Diamondbacks, and the Boston Red Sox. Schilling won two championship rings with the Red Sox. He also won one, which was his first, with the Diamondbacks.

Schilling has been known to make controversial statements in the past. He has turned people against him, and there are also people who agree with most of the things he has to say. Nevertheless, Schilling has had a good 20 year career. There are doubts as to whether he should be a Hall of Famer because he only has 216 career wins.

I don't necessarily believe Schilling should be in the Hall of Fame. Schilling has had good seasons with the Red Sox and the Diamondbacks, but his career, in my opinion, with the Phillies, was not really impressive. His time spent with the Phillies was more than his time with the Diamondbacks and the Red Sox. He has shown the ability to come through in the playoffs, but he is nowhere close to 300 career wins and he hasn't always been impressive.

NCAA Tournament First Round

The NCAA Tournament first round had exciting games, something that has become the norm in March Madness. All of the #1 seeds won their games, but it was tough on Pittsburgh and Louisville. North Carolina and Connecticut were able to win their first round game by over 40 points each. All of the #2 and #3 seeds won as well, even though second seeded Memphis and third seeded Villanova had a tough time in their games. Kansas, who is a #3 seed, also had a tough time with North Dakota St.

In every tournament, upsets happen. Most people had Virginia Commonwealth beating UCLA in an upset in the first round. It didn't happen. Eric Maynor had a chance to win it but missed the game winning basket, giving UCLA a one-point victory. #12 Western Kentucky beat #5 Illinois, #11 Dayton beat #6 West Virginia, #13 Cleveland State beat #4 Wake Forest, #12 Arizona beat #5 Utah, and #12 Wisconsin beat #5 Florida State.

I don't think any of these upsets were surprising to me. While a lot of people had Wake Forest easily beating Cleveland State, I actually had Cleveland State beating Wake Forest in the only upset on my bracket. People also expected Western Kentucky to beat Illinois, since they were playing without guard Chester Frazier. The most exciting game was the game between #8 Ohio State and #9 Siena. It went into double overtime, with Ronald Moore making the game-winning three pointer to give Siena a 74-72 win.

Which game was the most exciting for you?

NCAA Tournament

The NCAA Tournament teams were revealed on Sunday, which happened to involve a couple of surprises. The four #1 seeds were Louisville, Pittsburgh, Connecticut, and North Carolina. Louisville, Pittsburgh and Connecticut comes from the Big East, which is the first time a conference had three #1 seeds in the tournament. Connecticut got the #1 seed over Memphis, who many felt were deserving of a #1 seed. They got a #2 seed along with Michigan State, Duke, and Oklahoma.

With every tournament, upsets happen. Certain matchups have been predicted to be upsets. Virginia Commonwealth, Temple, and Dayton all are #11 seeds and some have predicted them to move on past the first round in upsets. Virginia Commonwealth plays UCLA, Temple plays Arizona State, and Dayton plays West Virginia. Western Kentucky, who is a #12 seed, is also predicted by some to upset Illinois.

I believe Louisville has the best chance to take it all the way because there are no questions about them. North Carolina is dealing with a banged up Tywon Lawson, who, when 100 percent, can take over any game. Connecticut lost Jerome Dyson for the rest of the season back in February and they haven't been the same since. Pittsburgh has shown inconsistencies, due to foul trouble. However, I like North Carolina to win it all, with the assumption that Lawson will play the entire tournament. A surprise pick to make it far is Syracuse and Kansas. They are both #3 seeds and I think they both have what it takes to go all the way as well.

What do you think? What are some upsets that are on your mind? Who will win the tournament?

Syracuse Tops UConn In Thriller

The Syracuse Orange defeated the Connecticut Huskies 127-117 in six overtimes, to advance to the next game in the Big East Championship tournament. This game took about three hours and 45 minutes, which is the second longest Division I game in college basketball history. There were extraordinary numbers that came from this game. Six players altogether had double doubles, and Syracuse guard Johnnie Flynn played 67 minutes, out of a possible 70.

Eight players altogether were fouled out of the game, and both teams combined for 102 points in the overtime sessions. Also, Syracuse, who ended up winning the game, never led at any point in the overtime sessions until the sixth and final overtime. Both teams came in ranked in the top 25. For Connecticut, this may cost them a #1 seed, even though that is doubtful. For Syracuse, this may bring them from a potential #6 or #5 seed to a #4 seed if they can win the Big East championship.

This was a huge classic. This could probably be the best college basketball game ever. Both teams were exhausted afterwards and rightfully so. Flynn gave the most heroic effort, playing 67 minutes. Syracuse has to play West Virginia in the next game as well, so they may be very tired. I think this could affect them in their game against West Virginia, and they should look to run against them to win the game. Syracuse is still the better team, but West Virginia may play like the better team in their matchup.

Owens Signs with Bills

Wide receiver Terrell Owens has signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills, catching most people by surprise. Owens was recently released by the Dallas Cowboys, who cited his behavior in the locker room and his distractions as the main reason of his release. Owens was in the middle of a contract there but the Cowboys decided to let him go. His signing with the Bills was a surprise because the Bills never showed any interest in a player like Owens in recent history. The suitors initially were the San Francisco 49ers, who he played with earlier in his career for eight seasons, and the Oakland Raiders.

This signing certainly comes as a surprise to me but I think the Bills are happy with it. They get a wide receiver who can certainly open up the offense and they only get him at a one-year contract, which means if they have enough of him, they don't have to retain him. Owens may not be very happy with this because Buffalo is not really an attractive city and he probably feels like there wasn't a lot of suitors. At the end of the day, he was probably forced to go there because that was the best deal he was going to get. The Bills will be better but I don't believe they'll be in the playoffs.

Cowboys Cut Owens and Williams

The Dallas Cowboys released Terrell Owens and Roy Williams the safety, who have been two of their biggest playmakers. The Cowboys released Owens because of his constant media attention and his excessive shots taken at personnel in the Cowboys organization. Owens has long been considered a problem anywhere he went, being run out of San Francisco and Philadelphia. Now Owens has to look for a new team, which may be difficult, if he wants to continue his career. Williams asked for his release from the Cowboys, citing differences, and he was granted his wish.

These are two big moves for the Cowboys. I agree with the release of Roy Williams. He has not been productive defending the pass at all, constantly hampering the team's defense. Williams needs to work on his pass defense if he wants to catch on with another team. I'm sure he'll be playing this upcoming season. The Cowboys made a mistake releasing Owens. Owens is a talented wide receiver, and it'll hurt the Cowboys in the salary cap. They should've gave Owens another year. He was there and productive in the 2007 season when they went 13-3 that regular season. I'm not sure where Owens will land, considering his past, but I believe he'll also be playing this upcoming season.

Warner Re-Signs With Cardinals

Kurt Warner re-signed with the Arizona Cardinals for two years at $23 million. Warner recently met with the San Francisco 49ers and some believed that he was using that visit as leverage for the Cardinals to increase their offer. Warner led the Cardinals to their first ever Super Bowl appearance, where they lost narrowly to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Warner had an MVP-type season, and connected well with receivers Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston. The Cardinals are now looking to satisfy Boldin, who is in the middle of a contract but wants it to be reworked for more money.

The Cardinals were real smart in retaining Warner. The Cardinals have never been as far as the Super Bowl and Warner almost won it for them. If Warner wasn't retained, they would've had to rely on Matt Leinart, who they are currently paying big money to. However, Leinart hasn't shown the ability to get it done at the NFL level. Warner has been to the Super Bowl three times, leading explosive offenses in all three. I believe the Cardinals won't be back in the Super Bowl anytime soon but they'll be back in the playoffs and he'll keep them contenders next year.

Ramirez Re-Signs With Dodgers

Manny Ramirez re-signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for two years, valued at $45 million. That was the deal the Dodgers originally put on the table, but Ramirez thought he could get a bigger contract. About four months after the original offer, he finally settled on the deal. Ramirez was instrumental in leading the Dodgers to the NLCS, where they lost to the eventual World Series champions Philadelphia Phillies. His batting average was over .390 after coming over from the Boston Red Sox and being put into consideration for NL MVP in only two months.

This is a huge deal for the Dodgers. The Dodgers clearly needed Ramirez. Their lineup was horrible offensively before he arrived. This offseason, they lost starting pitchers Derek Lowe and Brad Penny to free agency, making their starting pitching weaker. They are now my pick to win the NL West, but I don't expect Ramirez to be around .390 the entire season. However, he will be productive and he will be on the NL All-Star team for the first time in the summer.

NFL Moves

Since free agency started, there have been many players who have changed teams and signed lucrative deals. The Washington Redskins signed defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth to a 7 year contract worth $100 million. The Redskins also re-signed DeAngelo Hall to a 6 year contract worth $54 million. The Redskins, who has always been looked at as weak talent evaluators and big spenders, have again done just that, committing $154 million to two players.

The New York Jets signed linebacker Bart Scott to a 6 year contract and acquired cornerback Lito Sheppard from the Philadelphia Eagles in a trade. They later gave him a 4 year extension. The New York Giants also made a splash, signing defensive tackle Rocky Bernard, linebacker Michael Boley and defensive end Chris Canty. They also re-signed running back Brandon Jacobs to a 4 year deal.

I believe the Jets and the Giants made good moves in free agency with the players they acquired. They both strengthed their defense in the long run, making themselves playoff contenders in the foreseeable future. The Kansas City Chiefs also made good moves acquiring linebacker Mike Vrabel and quarterback Matt Cassel from the New England Patriots. The Denver Broncos signed Brian Dawkins to a 5 year deal, which I don't think he'll fulfill. The Redskins will regret giving that much money to Haynesworth and Hall because Hall talks too much and is a distraction, and Haynesworth does get injured quite a bit. What other teams made good moves? What teams made the worst moves, or didn't make moves at all?