I hope the skeptics are happy now. The usual suspects have been replaced.
Kentucky — gone.
Duke — gone.
Indiana — gone.
UCLA — gone.
There will be a new sheriff in town when the new NCAA Basketball champion is crowned this year.
I honestly can’t remember as many one-point basketball games in one NCAA tournament as I did this season. The current recruiting process seems to be working perfectly, creating parity among then major colleges and universities in the country.
I don’t think, however, the best team in the country is in the Final Four.
Duke had a shot but got beat on a bad day, one unfortunately that all four starters couldn’t get the job done.
It goes like that sometime.
When it does, coaches and teams just have to, as Hank Stram used to say, “Pull the shade on this one” and move on.
And that is what John Calipari, Coach K and the other losing coaches in the NCAA elite eight will do before starting over and pointing toward next year.
Of course, they could be fired before next year.
Or they just find a new university to coach.
Or they could go pro.
But, more than likely, they will just stay where they are and continue to coach their current team.
I hope that is indeed what they all do. Continue to coach their current team for at least one more season.
That makes more sense than changing universities or leaving for the pro circuit.
Don’t you think?
Kentucky made it easy for Coach John Calipari, offering him a contract extension worth enough money and perks to last “a lifetime,” according to reports. The offer came after UCLA made some noise about hiring him away from the Wildcats. John, a practical man, signed the new contract without fanfare.
When he was coaching at Memphis, John established a restaurant housed inside a national brand motel chain located on Popular Avenue in the Bluff City. My late wife, Martha, wanted to check it out and we went there once.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t there the night we went. I would have loved the opportunity to chat with him. But the meal we enjoyed didn’t need his presence as it was wonderful and served professionally by a white-gloved wait staff. Not something you expect at a motel restaurant. The name of the restaurant was, of course, Calipari’s, and offered a first class menu and atmosphere. Atmosphere is not something that attracts my attention at restaurants.
Duke hasn’t as yet offered Coach Mike Krzysewski a contract extension as yet, so far as it known. But, they should, especially if another university comes calling. He always has the Blue Devils in the hunt for the Final Four.
Now, who is the favorite to win the Final Four?
Of the teams still playing for the national title — Virginia, Michigan State, Texas Tech and Auburn — only one is a pure-bred basketball school. That is Virginia, while the other three are better known as football schools. That doesn’t mean they can’t play basketball, it just isn’t the norm.
I couldn’t give you the name of the head coach of one of the final four teams other than Auburn’s Bruce Pearl and that is only because Auburn is a Southeastern Conference team and Ole Miss beat them twice during the regular season. I would love for Auburn to win it all to highlight the SEC as the best conference in the country in basketball as well as football.
However, my pick to win the final four is the basketball school, Virginia. Their defense has been so good, especially, in the paint that it will take an outstanding offensive performance to outscore. And I don’t think any of the other three teams in the hunt can do it.
It should be worth watching, though.
