NCAA Tournament:
The Red Raiders have a very tough but very winnable game against the Boston College Eagles. At this point, I don't so much care who Tech is playing, so long as the Red Raiders play. I believed that Tech deserved a spot in the NCAA tournament, but my doubts certainly grew after the Kansas State debacle. That's all bygones as the Red Raiders live to see another day.
Here's what we do know about Thursday's game, the game will be played at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C. Thursday's game time is 11:25 a.m. CDT.
A quick preview of the BC Eagles, they finished 5th in the ACC (20-11, 10-6) and are a difficult matchup for Tech because of their size. Jared Dudley, a 6-8 power forward, was the ACC player of the year, scores 19 points a game and grabs 8.3 boards. Sophomore guard Tyrese Rice scores 17.2 points a game and dishes out 5.5 assists. BC is a more proficient offensive team, 11th in the nation, and on the 92nd team in adjusted efficiency defensively.
You can expect previews galore starting tomorrow, but all of the tables and graphics will depend on the whether or not I'll have enough time (every time that I proof that sentence I can't help but think of Frank the Tank). I'll make it a point to link to as many other blogs in the tournament as possible. As a short aside, I'll admit now that I think Georgetown is my pick to click. They have size and skill players, they have guards who can play, I just love their team. Of course, now that I've gone through my newsreader, it appears that I'm a copycat as BON has already picked Georgetown to win it all.
LAJ's Jeff Walker says the Red Raiders were relieved to have a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Jay Jackson had this to say as he was watching the bracket reveal:
"After the Kansas State loss, I wondered a little bit because we lost so bad. We just had to be patient, though."
DMN's Chip Brown notes that the Big 12 got little credit in the selection of NCAA Tournament teams and I couldn't agree more. Although Chip doesn't mention it, the Big Ten at least one too many invites (look at Purdue's last 4 or 5 opponents).
DMN's Tim MacMahon also breaks down the East Region. The DMN also has previews for the Midwest Region, South Region, and West Region.
DMN also previews the Texas teams in the tournament.
Walker also breaks down some of the similarities between BC and Tech.
SI.com has an early preview of Thursday's game (scroll down, about 2/3's of the page).
ESPN's Andy Glockner is picking Tech as an early upset over BC.
Texas Tech Baseball:
Tech finished the Whataburger College Classic with a 4-1 win over #23 TCU. Senior pitcher, Colt Hynes was outstanding today and he pitched a complete game. Hynes allowed 6 hits, 1 earned run and punched out a career high 11 Horned Frogs . Shortstop Kyle Martin had 2 hits, including a two run home run. Doug Thennis and Geoff Byrns also each added an RBI a piece. The LAJ breaks down the game.
The rivalry continues on Tuesday as the Horned Frogs travel to Dan Law Field at 6:30 p.m. to face the Red Raiders.
Texas Tech Football:
Don't forget to post your community projections for Graham Harrell. The premise is that you provide the stats that you believe a player is going to have at the end of the year. I noticed in the current diary that we've strayed a little off-topic, but it's good-strong, football talk, so who cares. Besides, it's going to be a long off-season and I'm hoping these community projections will help bide our time until August.