From Mike Lucas. For all of Lucas' work, check out http://mikelucassports.wordpress.com/
The first weekend of the 2013 NCAA Tournament is officially over, and boy was it exciting. We saw upsets galore, history being made, and our first one-seed went down. Here’s my reaction to the third round.
1. FGCU is real: FGCU is the real deal. I’m serious, this team is really really good. Sherwood Brown looks like he could start for any team on the country, sophomore point guard Brett Comer is an assist machine (14 assists last night), and this is the college version of “Lob City”. These guys dunk everything. It’s unbelievable how much more athletic this team is than you would expect. After FGCU beat Georgetown, most people including me said, “Oh what a great win. This team is exciting but they’re not good enough to win another game.” Boy were we wrong. FGCU came out last night and laid a whooping on San Diego State, and proved the country that they deserve to playing in the Sweet Sixteen. If I was a Florida Gators fan, I’d be very nervous about playing these guys on Saturday. They’re for real.
2. Kansas’ good is really good: It was a game of two halves for the Jayhawks last night. Kansas’ play in the first half can be described with these words: atrocious, awful, disgusting, putrid, abysmal, depressing, repulsive, hideous, and horrendous. It was that bad. Honestly, the Jayhawks couldn’t have beaten the local high school team if they played that way. However, Kansas was equally as good as they were bad in the second half. They put on an offensive clinic, even without any sort of offensive contribution from their leading scorer Ben McLemore. If McLemore gives them any sort of offense, and I mean anything (he shot 0-9 from the field and 0-6 from three), the Jayhawks win this game by 35 points. If Kansas can continue to play like they did in the second half of yesterday’s game, they will be a very scary team moving forward.
3. Michigan Looked Good: Just like Kansas in the second half, we saw Michigan’s best in their game against VCU on Saturday. The country learned that when Michigan is on, they will be an extremely tough team to beat moving forward, especially if they get the same contribution from Mitch Mcgary as they did against VCU.
4. Gonzaga Blues: Gonzaga finally got their chance, and they blew it for all the mid-majors out there. Wichita State is a good team, but the reality is that they aren’t THAT good. 
Gonzaga needed to make a deep run in this tournament to establish themselves as a national power and not just a pretty good mid-major program. It all seemed to work out perfectly for the Bulldogs. Wichita State beat Pittsburg, and Gonzaga matched up much better with Wichita State than they did with Pittsburg. It was the one versus nine seed matchup. They would face either the twelfth-seeded Rebels from Ole Miss or the thirteenth-seeded Explorers from La Salle in the Sweet Sixteen, and it seemed like the Yellow Brick Road was being laid down for Gonzaga to reach the Elite Eight. But no, Kelly Olynyk and crew couldn’t get past the Shockers. Wichita State made 14 three pointers in the game, and shot 50% from the floor . Where’s the defense Gonzaga? This was the most important game in your school’s history and you played zero defense! It’s a shame. Gonzaga has ruined their reputation as a national powerhouse, and it will take at least fifteen years for them to regain their status.
Gonzaga needed to make a deep run in this tournament to establish themselves as a national power and not just a pretty good mid-major program. It all seemed to work out perfectly for the Bulldogs. Wichita State beat Pittsburg, and Gonzaga matched up much better with Wichita State than they did with Pittsburg. It was the one versus nine seed matchup. They would face either the twelfth-seeded Rebels from Ole Miss or the thirteenth-seeded Explorers from La Salle in the Sweet Sixteen, and it seemed like the Yellow Brick Road was being laid down for Gonzaga to reach the Elite Eight. But no, Kelly Olynyk and crew couldn’t get past the Shockers. Wichita State made 14 three pointers in the game, and shot 50% from the
5. Aaron Craft Is Tough: Overall, Aaron Craft had a very average performance in the last five minutes of yesterday’s game against Iowa State. Craft missed the front end of a “1 and 1” twice, which would have extended the lead and stopped Iowa 
State’s 13-0 run to tie the game. Craft also turned the ball over twice in the game’s final minutes. On the other hand, Craft drew a charge with 1:31 left on the game clock that ended up being the most important defensive play of the game, and scored Ohio State’s final six points, including the game winning three with 0.5 seconds left. Even after the turnovers and missed free throws, Craft never looked rattled. He took the game winning shot with confidence and knocked it down. That’s what you love to see from your leader. Craft is fearless willed his team to victory. When Ohio State desperately needed a bucket late in the game, Craft delivered. Not many teams have a leader like Craft, and that bodes well for Ohio State moving forward.
State’s 13-0 run to tie the game. Craft also turned the ball over twice in the game’s final minutes. On the other hand, Craft drew a charge with 1:31 left on the game clock that ended up being the most important defensive play of the game, and scored Ohio State’s final six points, including the game winning three with 0.5 seconds left. Even after the turnovers and missed free throws, Craft never looked rattled. He took the game winning shot with confidence and knocked it down. That’s what you love to see from your leader. Craft is fearless willed his team to victory. When Ohio State desperately needed a bucket late in the game, Craft delivered. Not many teams have a leader like Craft, and that bodes well for Ohio State moving forward.
6. Refs Aren’t Perfect: This is in reference to the charge call late in the Ohio State/Iowa State game. Aaron Craft’s right foot was hovering over the restricted area line, not on it, and the ref called a charge on the Iowa State player. This bucket would have put the Cyclones up three with just about a minute and half remaining. Many people disagree with the call, but I happen to agree. If a player’s heel is hovering over the out-of-bounds line, they aren’t out of bounds. I use this same principle with this call. If Craft’s foot was hovering over the restricted circle line, he is outside of the restricted area. People are saying that this call changed the game, but the reality of it is that one call doesn’t make or break a game. Every call throughout the game leads up to the final result. This particular play happened so fast, and it is not a reviewable call, so you have to just accept it. If the ref says charge, it’s a charge. Don’t argue the call for hours, it isn’t going to change. As a college basketball player, I am well aware that refs aren’t perfect, but that’s part of the game. They do the best job they can, and if they suck they usually suck both ways. Deal with it.
7. Welcome Aboard The Khalif Wyatt Bandwagon: I’ve been driving 
this baby alone all season long, and all of a sudden people are jumping on board. All I’m saying is: this bandwagon ride is not free people! It’s a $10 dollars a ticket to get on! I accept cash and check, no cards. Mark out all payments to Michael Lucas. Thank you all very much.
this baby alone all season long, and all of a sudden people are jumping on board. All I’m saying is: this bandwagon ride is not free people! It’s a $10 dollars a ticket to get on! I accept cash and check, no cards. Mark out all payments to Michael Lucas. Thank you all very much.
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