NEW YORK, NY – Holy Baseball is back, Batman! Yes, we finally have MLB games played in anger again – not this Grapefruit or Cactus stuff! We also HAVE March Madness in full swing, and NBA & NHL Playoffs are right around the corner. Let’s stay focused, though. Here’s what I’m throwing my two cents at: Sweet Sixteen Preview and Predictions, Yankees Big Win
Sweet Sixteen Preview and Predictions
I could go over single teams that are still alive but that would take forever. Instead, let’s talk about some of the teams that (in my eyes), will go into the Elite 8… the Houston Cougars are coming off a thriller against A&M in overtime. The opponent this week? The Duke Blue Devils. The Dukies come off a thrashing of James Madison to give them some momentum. In March, guard play is what drives teams, and although Duke has some good ones, Houston possess GREAT GUARDS. Jamal Shead and LJ Cryer are All-Americans. They will give the B-Devs(tm) more than they can handle, thus sending them to the Elite 8… The most intriguing game, (to this MTM writer at least), is Gonzaga vs Purdue: Two of the most successful programs in the past 5 seasons. Everyone knows what Purdue is good at; get the ball to the big man and let him go to work. The Zags face a daunting task in trying to stop Zach Edey, but if anyone has a shot at Goliath, but I’d take the the Zags. Mark “Phew!” Few is a terrific big-game coach and has had his fair share of big wins…
The last game to bookmark is Creighton and Tennessee. What a match-up this is going to be! Two teams – who if you ask anyone – could win the whole thing. But they must go through one another to make it happen. Creighton’s Bluejays are led by star guards Trey Alexander and Steven Ashworth. The former is a sure-fire lottery pick and has torched my Johnnies on more than one occasion. He will need to put up some big numbers against the Vols, who are led by Dalton Knecht and Long Islander Zakai Zeigler. Knecht transferred from Northern Colorado, and has seen his game go up another level as has the competition.
The verdict for this one?
The Vols by an eyelash. Here’s why: The Jays only go about 8 guys deep, as to where Tennessee goes 11 or 12 in March. Depth is key and I believe the team with more has the edge this time of year.
Yankees Big Win
Unfortunately, the Stanks Yanks came from four down to beat the Astros. The deciding factor in the game came in the form of prized off season acquisition, Juan Soto, who made an immediate impact. Not in the way you think, however. Soto gunned down the would-be tying run at the plate and preserved the Bombers’ lead in the bottom of the 9th. That kept the Yanks in front and secured the victory. Congrats to all. You may not win another game this season.
That’s it for me today, drop your comments below and come back tomorrow for Aristotle “Mugsy” Sakellaridis.
