The Detroit Free-Press posts an absolutely heartbreaking story about Nolan Smith’s father Derek Smith. Without going into the salient details, let’s just say that the story of Smith’s death at age 34 (when Nolan was eight) chipped away ever so slightly at my coarse hatred for Duke. It also made me rethink my post today, which was going to be My Two Favorite Moments in Duke Basketball History (the ’99 Championship loss to UCONN and Peter Rosenberg’s This Is Why You Suck, respectively).

Prior to having a promising basketball future irreversibly stunted by tragedy, Smith was part of the 1979-80 NCAA Champion Louisville team. He was regarded as the team’s emotional leader, and yes, claims to have invented the high five with his fellow Cardinal players that year.

The claim is recorded in P. Dickson’s Basketball Dictionary

“The origin of the gesture and the term were claimed by Derek Smith of the University of Louisville basketball team, which won the NCAA championship in the 1979-80 season. Smith was quoted [widely] to the effect that he and two fellow Georgians on the Louisville squad, Wiley Brown and Daryl Cleveland … [created the] high five during pre-season practice and introduced [it] to the nation in 1979.”

Nolan Smith had 13 points, four assists and played every second of last night’s Championship Final. He’ll have no less than several thousand opportunities to realize his dad’s vision for the high five over the next couple days – now that’s what I call a legacy.

Despise Duke? Maybe Nolan Smith will change your mind (Freep.com)

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Found just now when I became a fan of Matt Howard’s mustache on Facebook.

The students seen here mimicking the tenacious D that propelled Butler into tonight’s Final identify themselves as Kyle Holsinger and Joshua Burt on Facebook – it’s probable that these two are engaging in heavy amounts of nerd hassling directed at the Duke fanbase in the parking lot of Lucas Oil Stadium as we speak.

In related news, multiple reports say Howard will be on the court tonight after suffering a concussion against MSU.

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Regardless of how demented the NCAA tournament gets played out, one prediction holds true, year in and year out – bad predictions. Thankfully, most of them were spoken in hushed tones – I can’t even seem to track down who Dick Vitale picked.

However, with the Final Four set to tip in two days, the time to come clean is now.

I implore you, let’s hear the worst prediction you made this NCAA tournament. Here’s mine taken from my post: NCAA Tournament: The Regions in 100 Words or Less:

Cornell is not all they’re cracked up to be, and everyone should be considering Temple for the Sweet-16 rather than picking Cornell to upset, because Evan Rodriguez is the real deal and Ryan Wittman is just a garden-variety nerd.

Cornell of course were exactly what they were cracked up to be – many a non-genius picked them to go to the Sweet-16. And that nerd Wittman’s NCAA tourney showing included a 20 point showing in their win over Temple, and 24 in their win over Wisconsin. As for Evan Rodriguez, if you do a search, your more likely to find Chi Chi Rodriguez highlights during tournament week. I’d be lying if I said that prediction was based on more on basketball knowledge, and less on just trying to to be a contrarian.

For all others willing to swallow your pride, and cop to poor NCAA tourney conjectures, leave it in the comments below.

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His bracket was perfect through to the Sweet-16. He was 0-4 with his Final Four picks. Still, I can’t really give Alex Herrmann – the 17-year old autistic kid from Chicago – a hard time, I only got one Final Four pick – and it was Duke coming out of the Cupcake Region.

It’s sad to see it end for Alex, but I think I speak for everyone who went roughly 4 for 16 on the first day when I say you had a good run.

And where’s the other bracket boy’s bracket? The Lunardologist has been awful quiet this tourney season.

Here’s the photo of what was once an amazing bracket.

And now for something completely infuriating…

Photos via NBCChicago.com and ESPN.com

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Momentous day in history. On this date in 1979, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird went head-to-head in the Championship game of the 1979 NCAA Tournament. The game pitted Bird’s Indiana State University Sycamores (33-0) vs. Magic’s MSU Spartans (25-6). Here’s the final minute of the game that Michigan State would win with Magic being named MVP, followed by some other classic Bird vs. Magic moments…

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ESPN.com posted a breakdown of the percentage of people who picked each team to win in each round in their Tournament Challenge. Pretty awesome if you ask me.

Of the 16 teams that advanced to the second week, here were the five teams that ESPN users lacked confidence in the most – because showing you that at least 92% thought that Kentucky would make it to Sweet-16 isn’t even interesting to John Calipari on his most narcissistic day.

Tennessee – 19.8%

Cornell – 11.3%

Washington – 8.8%

St. Mary’s – 3.7%

Northern Iowa – .9%

And just how damaging was that Kansas upset? 42% of ESPN’s brackets had them in the Championship game.

Who Picked Whom (ESPN.com)

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I’m in the Uproxx Pool of Awesome. The Intentional Foul pool. A pool at work. Another pool that a buddy just invited me too. Plus, I refrained from entering two others. Here’s the hitch: one bracket though – only smart way to do it, right?

At 12:20 today – with the tip of BYU vs. Florida – you’re officially out of time. I want to hear how invested everyone got this year. Let me know how many pools you’re in (leave a comment or shoot me an @ reply).

Anyone who entered more than ten pools gets a signed B/W 8 X 10 photo of me eating the bacon explosion – after I win it in the IF pool.

Pictured above, that’s my 2010 NCAA Champ pick.

UPDATE: This might be the worst bracket I have ever filled out. And not going to lie there have been some real dogs in the past. (Friday, Mar. 19 2:41 pm ET)

Photo via

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The NCAA tournament is roughly 50 hours away – viva la rampant speculation!

I personally did 10 minutes for my peers on how Cornell is not all they’re cracked up to be, and everyone should be considering Temple for the Sweet-16 rather than picking Cornell to upset, because Evan Rodriguez is the real deal and Ryan Wittman is just a garden-variety nerd, thus…

It goes on. Nobody had a good time.

Fact is your friends and office mates want to condone your pontificating as much as they want to blow the whistle on the rampant gambling and implicate themselves.

But we can’t go completely silent, can we?

Therefore, I enlisted a few members of the sports blog intelligentsia to breakdown each region, only stipulation: brevity: get to a Final Four pick – and slip in a few madball Sweet-16ers (Notre Dame) – in 100 words or less.

That said…

East (Jameson LaMarca, Steady Burn):

With guys like John Wall & Demarcus Cousins playing out of their minds, I pick Kentucky going to the Elite 8 after knocking off Texas and Wisconsin. Across from them is Big East Champs West Virginia, who will mow through Morgan State, Clemson, and a tough Marquette.

Who’s in the Final Four? Here’s a big hint: it’s not a #1 seed. While Calipari’s boys have had a phenomenal season, I don’t see them playing on April 3rd. Da’Sean Butler is a beast inside and I think will be too much for the Ashley Judd cheering section.

Midwest (A. Isaac, Guyism):

Consider the Midwest one of the hardest brackets in recent NCAA tourney history.   In Kansas you have the overall #1 seed in the tournament and the best team in the country this year.  In Ohio State, Georgetown, and MSU you have 3 teams who have been ranked in the top 10 several times this season.  In Maryland, you have arguably one of the best players in the country in Greivis Vasquez.  Look for Kansas to get to the Final Four, although, a tough rematch of last year’s Sweet 16 looms with MSU and coach Tom Izzo.

West (Steve Melfi, NY Hoosier):

There are three teams with a shot: Syracuse, Pitt, Kansas St.

Kansas St. is just the wrong Kansas.

As for the other two, Syracuse won’t go 1 for 13 from three-point again against Pitt nor commit 19 second-half fouls.

Onuaku’s knee be damned; Syracuse is too good. Syracuse over Pitt.

Side note: Is it just me or have the past two years been really dull for making picks?  I just don’t see any upsets.  The NCAA is making it too easy for people who don’t follow college basketball to have a shot at winning their office pools.

South (Mike Hayes, Steady Burn):

My pick: Duke, sickening, because I’ll watch three Big East teams fall – penance for screaming “You’re a Klingon!” at Singler, heard mostly by a 10-year-old boy – at Madison Square Garden earlier this year.

Duke beats [insert play-in winner], walkover Louisville, then foil Texas A&M, not there yet under Mark Turgeon.

A melee in the Sweet-16 between Villanova and Notre Dame. A beating, but the opposite type Duke handed, for argument’s sake, Winthrop. Victor, throttled.

Prediction: Duke over worn-down Villanova, advances to Indianapolis. Big East fans who loath Huggins wrestle with rooting on West Virginia.

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It’s a different game – a 16-1 match-up – this time around, but here’s what happened the last time UVM faced ‘Cuse in the first round of the tournament.



H/T @maxflipper for posting on Twitter.

Happy Selection Show, everyone! Enjoy staring at a .PDF from ESPN, CBS and/or Facebook for the rest of the night.

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I checked out of last night’s NCAA Championship game about ten minutes in (North Carolina already up by double digits, on pace to score 60 in the first half) and flipped on what would prove to be a lukewarm episode of 24 (only reason we endured that much of the game was so we could rifle through the commercials).

Then, I felt like a timing genius when we tuned back in just in time to see this nonsense in the stands…

I thought seeing HaShades Thabeet making time with his best girl would be the highlight of the show. But, wrong. Should have waited to see this.

Did the In Loving Memory Of guy at the end write this jam? Because I’m gonna feel like a big d if he did after saying this: that song was absurd and preposterous. Preposterousness at it’s finest though. Because I’m sure that made the Hansbrough family weep, and the rest of us cut-up, just like during one of Hansbrough’s E-trade commercials…

Hat’s off to Hansbrough for his tourney performance – you’re a tough mofo who plays an ugly version of basketball that we don’t see too often anymore. But your pro career is going to fledgling, and I’ll never stop making fun of people who have or will inevitably be getting a ton of money they do not deserve.

H/T to Brahsome for first posting this year’s opus One Shining Moment.

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