Wilbur's Home Page

Friday, March 31, 2006

Big Dance to get bigger?

College coaches are working on a plan to make the field of 65 into a field of 70 or more. That'll make sitting on the proverbial Bubble a little easier, eh? A better solution would be for those marginal teams to try a little harder instead of watering down the field.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Fake Chicago University scored Final Four Tickets

One way to get tickets to the Final Four is to start a fake university and ask the NCAA for your allotment of tickets to the Big Dance. Now accepting applications to Wilbur U.

Saturday, March 25, 2006

East Coast Bias lives on

Thanks to the refs in the UW/UConn game last night, we see that the West Coast still gets little respect. Congratulations to Romar and his team for handling the loss with class.

Friday, March 24, 2006

And you thought your coach was tough....

This from Texas:

A Conroe school district coach is on leave while officials investigate
claims that he forced a student athlete to defecate into a bag and
urinate into a cup, KPRC Local 2 reported.

That was one long bus ride for everyone.

Who's your daddy....the Pac 10

from the News Observer

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Lute not taking it easy on next year's schedule

Even though Washington scheduled 10 of its first 11 games at home (losing number 11 to AZ, btw) and got a higher seed than the Wildcats, Lute is still sticking to his time-proven plan of scheduling tough pre-season opponents. Heck, he doesn't even care if they're on the road. He is second-guessing the committee on their seedings, though, and wondering if maybe he shouldn't schedule Our Sisters of the Prickly Pear and Budweiser State to inflate the record come tourney time. Nahhhhh....

But Olson's core philosophy in scheduling remains, so the Wildcats will host North Carolina, Memphis, Houston, UNLV and possibly Iona at McKale, while facing Illinois in Phoenix next season, according to UA administrative aide Jack Murphy. On the road, Murphy said, Arizona will face Virginia, San Diego State and possibly Villanova.

One thing's for sure. Ticket sales shouldn't drop off. And don't forget that team bonding trip to Europe planned for late May.

O is for Over, which is the condition of Florida's streak of failures.
The Gators, entering this tournament, had lost on the opening weekend
to lower-seeded teams for five straight years. That is a record of
futility they now share with Illinois (1986-90) and Arizona (1989-93). Welcome to the club, Donovan.
Shakur, Williams might evaluate draft status. Think Jason Gardner....Jason Terry.....Chris Rodgers...(well, 2 out of 3 ain't bad)
Just watched that cat that fell 80 feet and got right up again. Gives hope for next season.

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Cats Save Their Finest for Philly

In the end, it came down to 3-pointers. Arizona matched Nova basket for basket (28), freethrow for freethrow (17), but Villanova made 4 more 3-point shots. Just enough to give the Nova Cats a win over the Zona Cats. We did get a glimpse of the potential of what should have been this year, and got hope for next season. And we did beat the spread, which was 6-1/2 points going in. I hope Lute's got a shooter in next year's class.

Perennial powers Kentucky and Arizona exit this year's tourney.
But so do North Carolina, Ohio State (goodbye "Big" 10), and Pittsburgh.
On Fire: Arizona. The Wildcats lost, but you won't find many fans upset with coach Lute Olson or his talented team.
A look at parity in college ball. I'm a believer now.
We kicked their butts in the stats. Except those 3-pointers.

Well done, Cats.

Saturday, March 18, 2006

Cancel the autopsy. Arizona isn't dead yet.

Cats find right mix
UA puts together complete game vs. Wisconsin

I just keep finding great articles about The Cats' rise from the ashes, Pheonix(sic) style

When Wildcats show up, they can beat anyone

Some folks have noticed that the Cats have turned the corner......or a corner, anyway.

Come out, come out wherever you are. Arizona fans can finally be proud
of this year's edition of the Wildcats and once again show their faces
in public.

Git R Done!

Cats get ready for Nova Cats

The Cats (the Arizona Wildcats, that is) look forward to tomorrow's matchup against the #1 seed Villanova. Maybe this team just hates being a favorite and loves being the underdog. We'll see.

Did you make your picks based on mascots? Here's the inside scoop....
Stoops (remember football?) loses 4 scholarships for next season. Now that's a difficult choice.
Wildcat Women win in NCAA Women's tourney....whaaat??
Shakur proves you can go home again.
These Cats are dogs. I think he means that it a nice way.
Tourney notebook.

Philadelphia Kid

Mustafa Shakur went from playground rat to Point Guard U. Read the story here.

Friday, March 17, 2006

No March Sadness for Cats

Who the heck were those guys with the UA jerseys on today? This was the type of game we've been starved for all year. Smiling, laughing, and running away from the Badgers, the Wildcats finally started enjoying the game and playing like there IS a tomorrow. Even Billy Packer had good things to say about Zona as they hit the ground running and never looked back, leaving the Cheeseheads in their dust. Ahhh - Philadelphia freedom at last.

"Our fans came here with expectations," `Nova forward Will Sheridan said. "Their fans came here with hope. It's a lot more fun when you're just hoping your team does well." Yep, and underdog fans throughout the brackets are feeling the love this tourney. Great match-ups, NCAA, no matter what Nance and Packer have to say.
"(Shakur) reached back for those first moments on the playground at 10th and Olney and pulled out the spin move that so many of his friends remember him by." Classic move, classy guy that Staph. I'll bet he knows a good cheesesteak when he sees one, too.
"The thing we didn't want to happen happened," UW coach Bo Ryan said. "You can't play from behind. It's very difficult. . . . That was our worst nightmare." As a Cat fan, it was a dream!
"Don't tell Nova it was an ugly win." Okay....we'll let them in our little secret on Sunday. But how many of us picked the AZCats to advance to the Sweet 16, or even into the Round of 32?
"At long last, talented Arizona plays up to its potential." And gives Lute yet another 20-win season.
Check it out.....Wilbur made it to the big time world of blogshares and trading. Stock is rising, IPO to be announced soon.
Standings after first round games in the Family Bracket Pool:

Wilbur and Swister Meeney tied for first
Three ringers from Wilbur's workplace take next 3 spots
Sparky running a strong 6th.

'Nova fails to cover spread (20 points? Get real) and loses fans against Monmouth. Monmouth?

What A Tourney!!!

Day 1 and Done

And what a day it was. 4 underdogs pulled off the first-round upsets, with 12-seed Montana and Texas A&M leading the way. Some fantastic comebacks by the big boys (Tennessee, Gonzaga, BC) had Wilma pacing around the pad here all day. She'll need her sleep to make it through today.
OOh! Wilbur and Mike's bracket picks lead the way after the first day of play. And, no, I didn't revise any picks as the games went on. Just dumb luck carried me through the day.

Follow Bob Barker's Bracket here, along with some other celebs here.
News from the Cheeseheads. Some Philly first-round tidbits, including Lute not getting his car.
Shedding labels and Hassan Adams.

Good luck, everyone.

Cats expecting fewer calls to be made in the "let 'em play" tourney.
Best and worst case scenarios for tourney teams. Check out Villanova's: "Scud-shooting Villanova is booted before it ever gets to leave Philadelphia by season-long underachiever Arizona. Home crowd does what it does best, booing 'Nova off the floor."
Badgers? We don't need to steenking Badgers! UA and the cheeseheads stumble into the tourney, almost mirror images of each other. Tony Bennett chimes in here.
Ouch! This guy really knows how to hurt someone. (1/2 way down page - Minn. bracket)
Now this guy thinks we can make some noise. If we show up, that is. "Another traditional power that has struggled this year, Lute Olson's bunch is seeded eighth in Minneapolis. While there's been little to indicate Arizona can put together a sustained run, the return to action of wing Hassan Adams -- who was suspended for the Pac-10 tournament -- gives the Wildcats a chance to push Villanova in the second round; that is, if Arizona manages to get by the more local Wisconsin Badgers in Round One."
Cats accused of living in the past. Make that 1997, please.

Let's get busy.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Sampson's past will keep him away from Tempe

Violations likely to keep Sampson away from ASU, like they thought they had a chance. Silly Sun Devils.

Can't make up your mind who to pick?

Here's a random bracket generator. This way you can blame it on someone else when your team goes down in flames!