Illinois--
Illinois was beaten for the very first time this season. Ohio State beat them by one point in the last regular season game. Illinois is a very good team. They are one of the best in the country, if not the best. Their RPI rank is number 2, with a Strength of Schedule rank of 80. They have had some huge wins this season, 29 of them in fact. They beat Wisconsin twice, in one of them ending Wisconsin's 38 game home win streak. They have defeated Michigan State twice. They defeated both Wake Forest and Gonzaga, two top ten teams. I don't think the national polls mean much, but if they are to mean anything, then the Illini should remain number 1. I think they deserve to remain at the top spot. Ohio State is a good team. They are 19-11 overall, and 8-8 in conference. They RPI rank is 55 with a Strength of Schedule rank of 60. I had thought that if Illinois was to be beaten, it would be by a good team, but not a strong, nationally recognized team. Illinois deserves to be number 1 in both polls, and they deserve to be number 1 overall in the tournament.
Duke and UNC--
What a game last night! Unquestionably the greatest rivalry in any sport. UNC defeated Duke 75-73. I am somewhat upset that Duke lost. I always want to see them win. They did much better than I thought they would do, so that makes me happy. At least they lost at Chapel Hill. Sean May had a monster game, 26 points and 24 rebounds. Redick scored 17 points, and yet he didn't score the last 25 minutes of the game. He did have 6 assists. Sheldon Williams was great with 22 points and 6 blocks. The ACC tournament begins this Thursday, and should be a thriller. I hope Duke does well. I would love to see them win, though it will be difficult for them. I want to see them receive a high seed in the NCAA tourney. I am hoping for at least a 3 seed, which they should get. They have a RPI of 3 with a Strength of Schedule of 11. Those are pretty good numbers. They might even receive a 1 seed if they win the ACC tourney.
BTW: Does anyone know the last time Duke was not ranked in the top ten in the national polls?
John Cheney--
What has happened with John Cheney is a shame. What he did was a shame. I imagine he knows what he did was wrong, and I imagine he feels truly sorry for it. There is no excuse for his actions. A coach has the duty to keep his players and the other team's players safe. I know it is very difficult for a coach to deal with a game that is loosely or tightly officiated. It is very frustrating, and it is easy to retaliate. Coaches should never do this, and they ought to be held accountable when they do. The question is, how much should they be punished? John Cheney is an excellent coach. By the end of the 2003-2004 season, he was number 20 on the all-time win list with 708. He had a win percentage of .714. He has done as much for basketball as any other coach in recent years. He has done so much for his players. He is a mentor and a inspiration. I believe he is a great man. He has made many mistakes. Should those mistakes erase years of quality, honorable leadership? I don't think so. I am a big fan of Bobby Knight. He too has made many mistakes. He should never have done many of the things he did. He too is a mentor and an inspiration. You would be hard pressed to find a player that has been under these coaches that do not admire and respect these men. Most players are better men because of the "life-coaching" of Cheney and Knight. They are not perfect, and we should never gloss over these blemishes. We should look at their lifetime of achievement, and understand all men make mistakes.
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