SB Nation 2010 NCAA Tournament -- Final Four
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But good holy gracious, Butler is setting back college basketball by about 50 years.
The average score of their five NCAA tournament games has been 62-55. The pace: exactly 62 possessions per game, which can charitably be described as glacial. Basketball is not fun to watch when the winning team can’t score more than a point per possession. It’s even less fun when the game’s slowed down at the same time.
This isn’t to say Butler should stop playing defense or anything insane like that; it’s their calling card, and it’s the way defense is properly (and rarely) played. Keep that up—but for crissakes, maybe hit some jumpers with more regularity at the same time. Even tonight, as mentioned earlier, Butler went over 10 minutes without converting a field goal. That is not what champions usually do; that is what terrible teams who end up firing their coaches do.
And yet here they are, in the national championship game. This is supposed to be awesome. Why can’t this actually be awesome? Or am I too worried about the “how” to appreciate the big picture here?
Tom Izzo's Spartans had six seconds and change to get down the court and erase Butler's three-point lead. As Michigan State picked up the ball after letting it bounce up the court, Izzo claimed that the clock started early. He didn't seem to have much of an argument, but he was well on his way to earning a technical anyway.
Luckily, his sophomore forward, Draymond Green, was there to say, "Knock it off, son."
Green managed to guide Izzo away. Did he help save Izzo a T? And if Izzo had been slapped with a technical, with a handful of seconds remaining and down by three in the Final Four, what percentage of the largely Izzo-friendly American public would have turned on him? It probably would have served as an abrasively overworn talking point headed into the off-season, and if Draymond Green did indeed have a hand in preventing it, we should all write him a thank-you note.
Butler built a 4-to-6-point lead over Michigan State early in the second half, and as of the 3:00 mark, it still has it despite not making a field goal for about ten minutes. How? The Spartans have a significantly better field goal percentage, but they're killing themselves with turnovers and fouls. Butler has 11 steals; Michigan State has three. A couple of MSU players put themselves in foul trouble, too, which doesn't help.
In case you were not aware, Spartans: you should not commit so many turnovers; furthermore, you should not be called for fouls so often. Keep it up and you'll be featured in the next VHS release of Super Duper Basketball Bloopers!
Brief update: Butler's Shelvin Mack has sat out most of the second half with muscle spasms in his thighs. No word yet on when/whether he'll return. This could be critical for the Bulldogs, as Mack has scored 14 points.
Okay, okay, fine. I mostly just wanted to post this so I could write, "it seems as though for the time being, they're shelvin' Mack!" No, no, don't get up. I got a tomato already, I'll just smash it into my face and call it a post.
Coming into the second half, Michigan State’s second-leading scorer Raymar Morgan had three fouls in the first half, and their depth issues mean they don’t really have bodies to keep throwing at Butler. The Spartants clearly needed to control the foul situation.
Well, that hasn’t exactly happened; Michigan State put Butler into the bonus with more than 12 minutes left in the game, and Morgan has already picked up his fourth foul.
Clearly, this means Tom Izzo has failed as a coach and he should resign during the next media time out.
Well, this isn't surprising. We have two teams of an identical seed (five) playing each other; therefore, these two teams are equal in every way. These teams will certainly exit regulation tied at 56, and this game will last countless overtimes. It's like running into a mirror.
Butler's player of the game so far has been Gordon Hayward, what with his hot start and 13 points. Shelvin Mack is close behind with 12 points, including a three in the final minute of the half that provided a significant momentum shift. But outside of these two, the Bulldogs have managed three points.
Meanwhile, Tom Izzo's Spartans have been led by tournament heroes Korie Lucious (8 points) and Durrell Summers (7 points). Raymar Morgan managed to commit three fouls within the game's first ten minutes.
Prediction: There will be no final score; this game will end when the Sun dies in five billion years.
For the 74 glerjillionth time, CBS is airing that insipid Ivan Brothers commercial, where viewers with only a cursory understanding about the game of basketball are invited to a credit card’s website to watch videos about… sigh… vikings who play basketball.
On behalf of viewers across America, we beg thee, Capital One: Stop it. No more. At this point, far past saturation, your commercials work against your best interests. They make us actively less likely to purchase your products. If Capital One wanted to give me a machine that literally prints legal currency, I would turn it down, because “the Ivan Brothers” made me hate watching the NCAA Tournament, and that is awful.
Also, if Capital One sponsors SBN, now or in the future, pretend we said none of that.
Within the first ten minutes of the game, Michigan State's Raymar Morgan has racked up three fouls. Morgan is the Spartans' second-leading scorer, and it looks as though Tom Izzo will probably sit him for the rest of the first half.
Fun fact: if you Google "raymar," the most prominent non-Morgan result is an art supply store. This is appropriate, given Mr. Morgan's predilection toward working in the "paint"! I am charging 50 cents for that joke. Cash or money order only, please.
With eight minutes and change left in the first half, Michigan State leads Butler, 22-17. While we’re not calling this one for Michigan State—that would be stupid—it’s evident early on that the Spartans are ahead because they’re getting easier shots than Butler’s getting.
That’s a function of two things: first, MSU is more athletic than Butler. That’s not coded racism, it’s a fact. MSU can run with anybody in the country. Second, they’re very well-coached. They’re going into this game with solid defensive skills and a solid defensive gameplan. That’s not to say Butler spent the entire week playing with Legos and eating popsicles, but the mental advantage they usually enjoy over opponents is not yet evident in today’s game.
Reason #1. Matt Howard has picked up two fouls in the first five-plus minutes.
Reason #2. Butler didn't get a two-point field goal attempt to even clank off the rim until the 6:15 into the contest. Sure, they tried a couple of times, but Michigan State managed to stuff them in embarrassing fashion.
Also, you can't say "Butler" without saying "butt." More on this breaking story as details emerge.
Hello, ma'am or sir! We understand that you and your friends are planning a "get-together" of sorts to watch the Final Four games tonight, which are slated to begin at 6:07 and 8:47. But hold the phone! Do not pass Go, do not collect $200 (Monopoly joke)! Because tonight, the YES Network is delivering a high-quality broadcast of professional basketball!
Indeed, the New Orleans Hornets are "buzzing" (hornet joke) into Jersey, where they'll contest the erstwhile Nets at 7:30 P.M.! While it may be true that a Google search for "hornets nets" pulls up results for "hornets nest," keep in mind that you can't spell "Hornets" without "Nets"! Take from that what you will!
We are hardly one to begrudge your prerogative to watch a gaggle of twig-armed teen-agers bumble about a basketball court, but know this: tonight's N.B.A. match-up is rife with talent of premium quality. Chris Paul, to take one example, is one of the finest talents on this pale blue dot! Keyon Dooling, to take another example, is a person who exists!
It is with a hearty disposition that we exhort you to "tune in" (television joke) to the YES Network tonight at 7:30, the 19.5th hour of our Lord, to watch an expert display of hoops-man-ship.
Sincerest regards,
John Yes
CEO, YES Network
Forward/center, New Jersey Nets
Michigan State and Butler are set to tip off at 6:07 P.M., and our SB Nation blogs are setting up live game threads. Here's a list of links, which we'll update as more game threads are created. Jump into one of them and chat it up:
The Only Colors (Michigan State)
Blogging the Brackett (all NCAA)
Mountain West Connection (Mountain West Conference)
Sippin' On Purple (Northwestern)
Buckeye Battle Cry (Ohio State)
Addicted to Quack (Oregon)
Rock M Nation (Missouri)
A Sea of Blue (Kentucky)
Bruins Nation (UCLA)
In Saturday night's first Final Four match-up, Butler will tip off against Michigan State at 6:07 P.M. Here's a preview, courtesy of SB Nation's resident college hoops expert, Chris Dobbertean.
Having been in attendance at the 2000 Final Four at the now-demolished building once known as the Hoosier Dome, I can attest that Michigan State will be well supported in the Circle City. But thanks to the presence of the host Bulldogs, the Spartans won't be the local favorite this time around.
But that's enough about geography and fanbases. It's time to talk about the ugly truth.
This will be the third Final Four in Indianapolis since the calendar flipped over to the year 2000. The previous two have each featured a National Semifinal that was completely unwatchable. In 2000, it was a Michigan State-Wisconsin game that put the "nap" in "Naptown." That 53-41 Spartan triumph actually managed to put one my friends to sleep. Six years later, it was the second semifinal between UCLA and LSU, a 59-45 snoozefest that had us rushing for the exits at halftime.
Which brings us to this matchup in 2010, the plucky underdog who is perfectly capable of slowing the game down against a Big Ten team that's frankly used to that style. This is not the formula for exciting basketball or riveting television, but considering both teams can go away from this mold, there's hope. In his game preview, KJ over at our Michigan State blog, The Only Colors, writes that this is a fairly even contest, so intangibles could come into play.
On the Michigan State side:
I don't tend to talk about (or put much weight on) intangibles, but I do think the Final Four is a whole new ballgame. On the Spartan side, you've got a core of players that have been here before and shouldn't be intimated by the setting. (Raymar) Morgan has now played in 15 career NCAA Tournament games, (Chris) Allen and (Durrell) Summers have played in 13, and the team's sophomores ([Draymond] Green/[Korie] Lucious/Delvon Roe) have played in 10.
And for Butler:
On the other side, the Butler players being so close to home could be a double-edged sword, with the pressure of playing in the program's first-ever Final Four in front of so many hometown fans (and media members) creating a little anxiety for the relatively young Bulldog squad (three sophomores in the starting lineup).
(Plus, as noted by LVS last night, [Gordon] Hayward has to go do math on Friday. Hopefully, the topic is the Möbius strip, and Hayward's mental wiring goes haywire trying to wrap his mind around the concept.)
In my mind, this one boils down to one of two things happening. If the Spartans continue playing out of their minds without Kalin Lucas, thanks to that Tom Izzo coaching, they're hard to stop. As KJ points out, a slower pace may help MSU's key contributors stay in longer, increasing their prospects. But on the other hand, if the Bulldogs haven't been distracted by the media spotlight and they keep getting easy baskets and converting from the foul line, they'll advance. After all, they had to beat two teams better than a Lucas-less Spartan club to get here.
In the end, I think Butler may start slow, but the Spartans won't be able to build a big enough lead, and the Bulldogs will get it together just in time.
My pick: Butler by a bucket
Butler Edges Michigan State 52-50, Headed To First-Ever National Championship
For more coverage, be sure to check out our Michigan State blog at The Only Colors.
Indianapolis, IN (Sports Network) - Gordon Hayward scored Butler's only field goal in the final 12-plus minutes and came up with a critical block on Draymond Green in the closing seconds, and the Bulldogs continued their magical run to the 2010 national championship game with a hard-fought 52-50 win over Michigan State at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Butler (33-4), the first team since UCLA in 1972 to play in the Final Four in its hometown, made up for its dreadful 30.6 percent shooting effort by forcing 16 turnovers and outscoring Michigan State, 17-10, at the foul line.
The first Horizon League program to reach the national semis were on top, 50-49, in the final minute when Ronald Nored's contested layup rattled in and out to give the Spartans a chance to go in front.
MSU (28-9), which was playing in its sixth Final Four in 12 years and had won its previous four tourney games by a scant 13 points combined, called timeout after corralling the rebound with 23 seconds to go.
Another narrow win started to fall by the wayside when Hayward challenged Green in the lane and altered his shot, perhaps getting away with a slight brush of Green's arm. Nored picked up the loose ball and was fouled with 6.1 ticks left, hitting both free throws to make it a three-point game.
The Bulldogs fouled Korie Lucious with 2.0 seconds showing, and after making the first, Lucious intentionally missed the second. Hayward soared for the defensive rebound to clinch the game -- the Bulldogs' 25th straight win -- and an unlikely berth to play with Duke or West Virginia for the title on Monday.
Hayward ended with 19 points and nine rebounds, and Shelvin Mack, despite being hindered in the second half with muscle spasms, had 14 points for Butler.
Durrell Summers ended with 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Green and Lucious each scored 12 for the Spartans, who were attempting to make it back to the title game for a second consecutive season.
Apr 03 9:27p by Adam Jacobi - 0 comments