We Need to Put the Other Guys Away

NC State played at Miami last night. Won in double overtime.

The game never should have gone into overtime in the first place. State had a 15 point lead in the second half. Credit Miami to switching to a 4 guard quick lineup to make their comeback. State is not that fast. Defense is NC State’s strongest game, but we're slow and can’t play a full court press defense. Unbelievably good free throw shooting kept NC State in the game, but Miami forced the overtime. Then, Miami made a desperation shot at the buzzer to send the game into double overtime. Finally State put ‘em away 11 to 2 in the second overtime.

Whew!

NC State seems to thrive on close, close games. It goes back further than that, but staying in there in close games really seems to have started with the NC State at Duke game. NC State was in the game to the very end. Free throw shooting in the final minute lead to the Duke win, but State felt like they could have, possibly should have, won that game.

Ever since, NC State had been confident in close games, knowing they can win every time they go on the court.

(We’ll just pretend the Seton Hall game never happened.)

With a 15 point lead, I wish the Wolfpack could have put away Miami. On the other hand, State has been down by double digits (e.g. Maryland) and come back to win.

ACC basketball is a blast to watch. Duke is head and shoulders the best in the league. NC State is the solid second place team. But then you have Boston College, Miami, North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia and Florida State all contending for third place!

It’s any team’s opportunity to finish strong for third place (or second if State stumbles). Or, that same team could just as easily finish in eighth place.

Here’s the hard part. There is no way the NCAA will take 8 teams from the ACC. That means 1 or, more likely, 2 very very good ACC teams will be left out.

On the other hand, while the ACC only has 1 standout team (Duke) as opposed to the usual 2 or 3, the parity this year should be a compelling argument for taking 8 very solid teams.

We’ll just have to wait and see.

Olympics

My favorite sports to watch are college football and basketball. Well behind college sports, I like to watch professional football and NASCAR. I really don’t care for professional basketball or baseball (although I really like attending minor league baseball – go figure.). Nothing wrong with pro sports, I’d just prefer to see the kids play where coaching and teaching is a huge factor.

Despite continuous discussions about how college revenue sports (i.e. football and basketball) are the farm teams for the pros, for the overwhelming part, the games are played by student athletes. For example; on a college football team, there may be 1 or 2 or even a few more players who are selected to play in the pros. But that leaves 85+ kids who earn their degrees and go on to regular lives and jobs. I really enjoy watching these kids having their chance to play a game for the fun of it. Not for the potential money.

I think that may be the same sort of preference when it comes to the Olympics. While there are some sports (ice hockey / basketball) and individual Olympic athletes (figure skating / skiing) who are high dollar professionals, for the (again) overwhelming part, the games are played by amateurs (relatively speaking).

I’m really looking forward to the Winter Olympics starting this weekend. Not just the US athletes, but watching all of the games and participants. I have noticed over the years that I prefer the Winter Games over the Summer Games. Possibly because there are fewer Winter Games events, thus I can actually keep up with what’s going on over the course of the fortnight.

Vacuum

Tuesday I ordered the Hoover bag less canister (S3765-040) from VacDepot.com. I decided I was too concerned with the 2 local merchant’s repair reports. The original model (S3755) may have had some bugs / problems when it first came out – but I figure by now, Hoover has those issues resolved with the updated model. And if it breaks – that’s what the warranty is for.

Much ado about nothing.

Besides – dirt is accumulating. I’ve got to vacuum the frickin’ house.

And Finally

Watched The Dangerous Lives of Alter Boys and Victim. DLofAB was a pleasant surprise. Much better than I expected. Victim was also decent, if you keep in mind it’s a “message” movie from 1962 England. Dialogue / script is a bit stilted, but ahead of it’s time for 1962.