I spoke with Butler players Gordon Hayward, Matt Howard and Ronald Nored after their loss to Duke in the NCAA Championship. They touched on the loss and the future. Gordon Hayward talks about his NBA decision as well.
Tonight, Butler plays for the NCAA Championship against the “Evil Empire” that is Duke. Most experts are predicting a Duke win (some calling for a blowout.) IF Butler is to have a chance, here are 5 things that need to happen.
5.) Matt Howard must play and play WELL: -Last game, Matt Howard had a nightmare game. Foul trouble, missed layups and a concussion. Not what you would call a “marquee” day for the big man from Connersville. Tonight, being Butler’s only true “big,” he HAS to play, score and rebound. If Matt doesn’t play well, it could get real ugly for the ‘Dawgs. If Matt can escape the first half without getting into foul trouble, that would be a huge boost for Butler. They need him tonight more than ever.
4.) Rebounding Difference: -I am not saying that Butler HAS to beat Duke on the boards, but they have to limit the damage. Duke is the biggest team Butler will see all year and rebounding isn’t a real strong attribute for Butler. If they can limit the rebound difference by around 6-7, consider that a win for Butler.
3.) Turnovers: -This is where Butler can really take advantage of Duke. Nobody does a better job of forcing turnovers on defense than Butler. The second half of each game in the tournament has been dominated by Butler’s defense. Nobody has done a better job of getting his team amped up defensively and making adjustments this postseason than Brad Stevens. For Butler to win, they need to win the turnover battle by at least 5 (maybe more.)
2.) First 5 Minutes: -The first 5 minutes will be key for Butler. In their upset wins over Syracuse and Kansas State, the Bulldogs clicked on all cylinders and got out to huge leads. Their emotions will be running wild tonight and the energy provided from a hometown crown (90% Butler Fans tonight) will carry them. However, Duke loves being the bad guy and loves these situations. Butler HAS to have a good first 5 minutes to build confidence and let the Dukies know the game is on!!
1.) Great Individual Matchups: -NORED vs SCHEYER: Aside from Purdue’s Chris Kramer, NOBODY is a better on the ball defender than Butler’s Ronald Nored. His confidence, moxy and quickness has helped him shut down some of the nations best for over 2 years now. This is the same Ronald Nored who completely shut down Stephon Curry a year ago. He will most likely get Jon Scheyer tonight. Scheyer is a player who often gets better as the game goes on and is seasoned at playing big in big games. He can get hot in a hurry. Ask Purdue about Jon Scheyer’s ability to get hot and carry a team when they need him.
-HAYWARD vs SINGLER: Perhaps this is the Indiana bias in me, but I have often stated that that Kyle Singler was one of the most overrated players in college basketball. If Robbie Hummel of Purdue or Gordon Hayward of Butler had the word “DUKE” across their chest, they would have been household names a long time ago. I think BOTH are better players. For Butler to win, Hayward needs to own Kyle Singler on BOTH ends of the floor tonight. Hayward needs to make Singler work on defense. I also want to see Gordon Hayward play a little more selfish at times. Butler sometimes hits a drought and I think Gordon is the guy who get things rolling again. I want to see Gordon being aggressive again tonight like he was against Michigan State. A great performance by Hayward tonight could not only land him in the NBA Lottery, but could cap off an amazing story for the small school on the north side of Indianapolis.
I caught up with Butler Coach Brad Stevens and players Gordon Hayward and Zach Hahn after Butler defeated Michigan State 52-50 to advance to the NCAA Championship Game.
Since most people nationally will be comparing Butler to the movie ‘Hoosiers’, why fight it? Check out this “Hoosiers/Butler” remix I made. Game audio from Fox News/Talk 1430 WXNT.
On paper it shapes up to be a blowout. A #1 seed from the Big East and a #5 from the Horizon League. One coach has a national title in 3 appearances and the other is a young man in his 3rd year. That being said, Butler can beat Syracuse. Here are 5 reasons why.
#5.) Syracuse is a TURNOVER MACHINE:
-Through 2 NCAA Tournament games, the Orange have 29 turnovers. 16 against Vermont and 13 against Gonzaga. Butler has 16 total turnovers. Not many teams play better team defense than Butler does. They force turnovers and take care of the ball. For an underdog to pull off the upset, they have to win the turnover battle.
#4.) Syracuse still with Onuaku:
-It’s looking more and more likely that Syracuse will once again be without dominating big man Arinze Onuaku. This is key for a Butler team that only has one legit big man (Matt Howard) and one of the smaller front lines in all of the Sweet 16. If Butler can get Matt Howard to stay out of foul trouble and play the ‘Cuse bigs to equal, Butler can win this game with their guard play and versitaility.
#3.) Crowd Factor: -Clearly, Syracuse has a much larger following nationally than Butler does, but the NCAA Tournament has a great way of evening things out. With the game being played in Salt Lake City, it’s doubtful that Syracuse will have a HUGE crowd advantage. Also, with Butler playing the first game of 2, all the other fans in the arena will be pulling for the underdog and if Butler can make it close, it turns into a road game atmosphere for Syracuse.
#2.) Butler has to slow the game down:
-If early on, the tempo is up and down, it could be a long night for the ‘Dawgs. That being said, the game is 40 minutes and so far Brad Stevens has done an EXCELLENT job of making adjustments at halftime of both NCAA Games. Butler trailed to both UTEP and Murray State at the half, but found a way to slow the game down and win despite being out-rebounded and out-shot in terms of field goal percentage. Butler needs to hit open shots, get contibutions from ALL their guards and slow things down.
#1.) Gordon Hayward:
-I think 5 years from now, we will look back on this game and see the verstaile kid from Brownsburg as the best player that was in this game. Butler can’t wait for that. The ‘Dawgs need Godon to be the best player on the floor Thursday Night. So far, his offensive game has been limited this tournament due to constant double teams and poor shooting, but he seems ready and needs to be ready for a break-out and career defining game. That is a lot of pressure on a true Sophomore, but Gordon is one of the toughest mental kids you will find and seems up to the task.
Here are my picks for the 2010 NCAA Tournament. Feel free to laugh and mock me later.
MIDWEST: Round 1:
Kansas over Lehigh
N.Iowa over UNLV
Mich St. over New Mexico St
Maryland over Houston
Tennessee over San Diego St
Georgetown over Ohio
Georgia Tech over OK St
Ohio St over UC Santa Barbara
WEST: Round 1:
Syracuse over Vermont
Gonzaga over Florida State
Butler over UTEP
Vanderbilt over Murray State
Xavier over Minnesota
Pitt over Oakland
BYU over Fla St
Kansas St over N. Texas
EAST: Round 1:
Kentucky over E. Tenn St
Texas over Wake Forest
Cornell over Temple
Wisconsin over Woffard
Washington over Marquette
New Mexico over Montana
Clemson over Missouri
West Virginia over Morgan State
SOUTH: Round 1:
Duke over play-in winner
Louisville over Cal
Texas AM over Utah St
Purdue over Sienna
Notre Dame over Old Dominion
Baylor over Sam Houston
Richmond over St. Mary’s
Villanova over Robert Morris
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MIDWEST: Round 2:
Kansas over N. Iowa
Mich State over Maryland
Georgetown over Tennessee
Ohio St over Georgia Tech
WEST: Round 2:
Syracuse over Gonzaga
Butler over Vandy
Pitt over Xavier
Kansas St over BYU
EAST: Round 2:
Kentucky over Texas
Wisconsin over Cornell
New Mexico over Washington
West Virginia over Clemson
SOUTH: Round 2:
Duke over Louisville
Texas AM over Purdue
Notre Dame over Baylor
Villanova over Richmond
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MIDWEST: Sweet 16:
Kansas over Mich St
Georgetown over Ohio St
WEST: Sweet 16:
Syracuse over Butler
Kansas St over Pitt
EAST: Sweet 16:
Kentucky over Wisconsin
West Virginia over New Mexico
SOUTH: Sweet 16:
Duke over Texas AM
Villanova over Notre Dame
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Here is a little something to get you in the mood for the upcoming “Madness!”
Listen to the NCAA Tournament Selection Show with Jason Hammer and Nick Gardner LIVE this Sunday on Fox News/Talk 1430 WXNT. Players, coaches and predictions. SUNDAY from 5-8pm
As we get ready to wrap-up the annual NFL Scouting Combine downtown, I am reminded how little this event really means and how hyped it is. Over 600 media credentials were requested for this years event. The NFL Network has 22 air personalities and producers here and I have been on the phone all week long doing interviews for radio stations all over the country. All that for no real news regarding these players.
If Tim Tebow, Colt McCoy or Sam Bradford don’t throw (which they didn’t) will that effect their draft status? If Sue or McCoy have slower 40 yard dash times or lift a little less than expected, will they slip? Of course not. Bill Parcells said it best when he said “I need football players, not Olympians.”
This is not 1977 anymore. Coaches and scouts don’t need to look at a guy to evaluate his talent. This is 2010 and EVERYONE has tape and advanced scouting. If you are a star and speedy wide receiver at Hanover College or USC, someone will see you. This is a great time for technology and information. If you have the game, someone will see you. A workout doing the shuttle run and cone drill won’t matter much.
The ONLY vital parts of the NFL Combine are the medical tests and interviews. If a player makes an ass of himself (Ryan Leaf) and a player dazzles (Peyton Manning) in the interview process, it can mean the difference between getting picked one spot or the other or one round or the other. I wish the NFL Network would televise THAT!
There is no more overrated and over hyped event like the NFL Combine. Aside from the previously mentioned items and the meetings and schmoozing done by the agents and GM’s, this is awful to watch and cover. While it does serve a purpose, is 24 hour coverage really necessary? I don’t care of Jimmy Clausen has a great vertical. I do care if he is on tape breaking down a 3-4 defense in a pro-style offense. Aside from the medical and interviews, the combine can only hurt a player of potentially decent ability. A late round guy can work his way up, but the blue-chippers can only fall if they work out and THEN they will still be drafted in front of those “workout warriors.”
Perhaps I am alone here, but I am not buying MOST of what Tiger Woods was selling. If this makes me a bad guy, that’s fine. I am a big boy with strong shoulders that can carry the burden of what I believe. I didn’t believe 80% of Tiger. Nobody’s perfect and I am willing to give him a second chance, but before I do, I need to get some things off my chest. 80% of that press conference was just trying to save his “brand.”
First of all, how dare Tiger to blame the media for his family being in a bad position. I know that on paper it seems to be a horrible thing for someones kids and wife to be followed by paparazzi. That being said, let’s be 100% honest here and admit that this IS the world we live in. Right or wrong, nobody would be following his family around if Tiger wasn’t banging whores from coast to coast. Tiger put them in that position with his poor decisions. even as the most famous athlete in the world, his family wasn’t bothered until he made his poor decisions. Again, I am not saying it’s right, but it IS the world we live in and Tiger put them in that position.
I also find it odd that in his “heartfelt” apology that was written for him by the best PR people in the world, that he took time to VEHEMENTLY deny that Elin beat the crap out of him. Did anyone else find that odd? What did that have to do with anything? The only thing saying that does is help save his image and “brand.”
I would have more respect for Tiger if he didn’t even hold a press conference and just went back to playing golf. A lot of people in America are buying that poor excuse of a press conference (which only had his buddies in it) but not me. A real man answers questions, a real man SHOWS he is sorry in addition to saying it. Repentance is an action, not something you just say. Don’t try to pull the wool over my eyes to save your image. Take advice from your sponsor and “Just Do It.”
I do feel that Tiger is sorry for the pain he has caused to his family. I do feel he wishes this never happened. I do feel that Americans will forgive his acts. We are a country that loves to throw the term “second chance” around like it’s noody’s business. Tiger deserves a second chance, but I am not feeling sorry for him at all. To me, I am having a hard time coping with the argument that he can’t help himself and needs TONS of therapy for his “issue.”. Really? Be honest, the only difference in Tiger Woods and Derek Jeter or AROD is that Tiger is married. So let’s all stop with this sex addiction/disease talk. He can stop anytime he wants to. He just got caught. That is all this is about.
I have been around enough pro athletes to know that this happens all the time. He just got caught. No therapy is needed, just apologize and get your rear end out and do what you do best….play golf. If Tiger wins a few majors and doesn’t act like a complete jackass, he will be fine. The proof is in the doing, not just the saying. No more phony pressers with prepared scripts. Face the music and get back out there. Clinton and Letterman have shown the blueprint to beat this. Did we ever see those guys holding press conferences ranting about Buddhism, denying that they got beat-up and blaming the media? These media savvy guys know better than that. Again, I will forgive, but I need to see some proof that he is trying to be better, not just hearing it.
