LIVE: Michigan Basketball v. Indiana

LISTEN LIVE at 6:30 as Michigan looks to stay unbeaten at Crisler Center against the upstart Indiana Hoosiers.

USTREAM LINK

Andrew Goddeeris, Jack Warner, Steve Cook, and Everett Cook on the call.

LIVE: Michigan Basketball v. Michigan State

LISTEN LIVE as ranked rivals clash in Ann Arbor! #19 Michigan looks to stay perfect at home against #9 Michigan State.

USTREAM LINK

Andrew Goddeeris, Adam Brewster, and Ryan Krasnoo on the call.

Gotta Beat the Badgers to Get to March Madness

Like many Michigan basketball fans, I have begun to shuffle through different scenarios in my head regarding potential ways that the Michigan Wolverines can make it to March Madness. Before I get going, here's Michigan's remaining schedule for reference:

CURRENT RECORD: 16-10 (6-7 conf.)

02/16 (Tonight) @ Illiniois
02/19 @ Iowa
02/23 #10 Wisconsin
02/26 @ Minnesota
03/05 Michigan State

In the Big Ten, Michigan is currently ranked 6th.

Now, down to the nitty gritty:

Now, I'm not Joe Lunardi, but I do know a few things about how teams generally qualify for the the NCAA tournament. These things are:
- 20 wins is generally a must.
-Winning your conference tournament gets you an automatic bid.
-Strength of schedule helps.
-You need marquee wins.
- Joe Lunardi, the real guy for ESPN, is basically never wrong when it comes to predicting brackets.
- Joe Lunardi does not think that Michigan is currently a March Madness team.

This all taken into consideration, you will see that below I have plowed through a few realistic scenarios that could decide the season. In regards of Big Ten Tourney play, I have made the (dangerous) assumption that Michigan will win the games in which it will be the higher seed:

Scenario 1: Michigan wins the games that it will be favored in.
This means victories at Iowa and at home against Michigan State. It also means that Michigan will win one game in the Big Ten tournament, where they will likely face one of the two worst teams in the Big Ten.
Result: 19-14 OUT of March Madness

Scenario 2: Michigan wins every game except for the Wisconsin game.
While the idea of Michigan winning every game against non-ranked teams looks good on paper, when you dive into the numbers, the outcome is not as favorable as one would think. If Michigan won every game except for the Wisconsin game, they would be flirting with danger by not getting a marquee win and by capturing a seed in the Big Ten Tournament that would force them into a bye in the first round of the tournament, and then pit them against a 4-6 seed in the second round. A one and done in the Big Ten Tournament, therefore, would be very likely.
Result: 21-12 IN/OUT (With no marquee wins it depends on who they beat in the second round of the tourney... this is dicey) or 20-12 OUT

Scenario 3: Michigan beats the Badgers and wins two other games.
if Michigan beats the Badgers their tournament resume is greatly improved. By beating Wisconsin and 2 other teams (preferably Illinois, MSU, or Minnesota), Michigan would improve its record to 19-12 entering the Big Ten Tournament. Once again, Michigan would likely get a bye in the first round of the Big Ten Tourney and would run into a 4-6 seed.
Result: 20-13 IN (good strength of schedule & Marquee win) or 19-13 OUT

Scenario 4: Michigan beats 2 0f MSU, ILLINOIS, MINNESOTA and beats Iowa.
If Michigan wins three out of their next five games, but does not beat Wisconsin, it will put them in a very tough spot. The Wolverines will improve their record to 19-12, but they will probably capture a 5 or 6 seed in the BTT, which, once again, will give them a bye and force them to play a tough 3 or 4 seed in round 2.
Result: 20-13 OUT (Unless their win in the tournament is against #3 seed likely to be Wisconsin) or 19-13 OUT


Since I realize the above scenarios are chaotic, let me summarize what they mean:
- If Michigan beats the Wisconsin Badgers in the regular season they greatly improve their chances of making the tournament, and could keep their tournament hopes alive by only winning 2 other games in the regular season.
- If Michigan does not beat the Wisconsin Badgers (but beats every other team) in the regular season they will put themselves in a position where they have 20 wins, but no marquee wins. In the second round of the tournament (after a first round bye), they may get a shot at a marquee win, but the standings indicate that it will probably be against Wisconsin.
- Michigan can put themselves in a really crappy scenario by getting a 5 or 6 seed in the tournament by beating 3 teams not named Wisconsin. Not only would the Wolverines only have 19 wins going into the tournament, but they would once again score a first round bye in the BTT, and, if they were extremely lucky, would get a crack at the 3 seed (probably Wisconsin). A 20th victory against a team like current 4 seed Illinois really wouldn't do the trick for getting Michigan in the big dance.

The wild card in all of this is the performance of the #11 Purdue Boilermakers. Michigan does not play Purdue, but there is a distinct possibility that if Michigan wins 3 or more regular season games from here on out , they will play, and have to beat, the Boilermakers in their first game (in the second round) of the BT tournament. Unless, of course, Michigan beats Wisconsin on February 23...

LISTEN: Basketball v. #2 That School Down South

LISTEN LIVE at 6:30 as Michigan takes on the Buckeyes at Crisler.

Andrew Goddeeris, Everett Cook, Ryan Krasnoo, and Jordan Rochelson on the call.

LISTEN: Basketball v. Kansas

LISTEN LIVE at 4:30 as Michigan looks to take down the #3 Kansas Jayhawks at Crisler!

Andrew Goddeeris, Tyler Bruens, and Matt Bernstein on the call.

LIVEBLOG: Basketball v. Purdue

LISTEN LIVE: Basketball v. Oakland

LISTEN LIVE at noon as the Michigan basketball team takes on the Oakland Grizzlies from Crisler!

Jack Warner and Andrew Goddeeris on the call.

LISTEN LIVE: Basketball v. Utah

LISTEN LIVE tonight at 6:30 as the Michigan Wolverines look to continue their winning streak against the Utah Utes in a rematch from last season's ugly defeat.

Jack Warner and Adam Wilensky on the call.

Is Amir Williams really about to Terrelle Pryor us?

Brace yourself, because what you're about to hear won't be good.

Multiple sources have begun to report that Detroit Country Day basketball standout Amir Williams, despite some late, promising visits to Ann Arbor, will be choosing between Ohio State and Florida for his commitment this Wednesday. It sounds like Michigan is going to take the bronze in the recruiting race for the 6'9" center... which means they will take nothing.

Is it just me, or is this history repeating itself to a sickening degree? Wolverine fans remember when current Ohio State QB Terrelle Pryor teased the Wolverines for a few months before converting to the dark side, and now, my gut tells me, Amir Williams will do the same. The factor that makes this one even worse? Amir is from Detroit! Our backyard, our talent, and he is choosing to be a hairless nut for the next four years instead of becoming one of the leaders and best.

But not all hope for a decent future is lost.

As we have had to do multiple times in the last 5 years, Michigan fans now turn to Florida to turn a negative into a neutral. Remember 2007? The gators managed to beat the Buckeyes for the NCAA championship in both football and basketball.

Here's to hoping for one more triumph for Florida... goooo gators!

Something to note this weekend: the Dom Pointer decision

In the heart of Michigan football season, it's unlikely that many people are thinking about basketball, so if you've taken a break from Wolverines basketball (after a season to forget) let me brighten your day with a nugget of information:

With any sort of luck, by next Tuesday, the University of Michigan mens basketball program may land their biggest recruit since Manny Harris: enter Dom "Ziggy" Pointer.

Pointer, a Roseville, MI native who has been going to high school in Winston, North Carolina, is ranked by michigan.scout.com as the #82 prospect in the country (regardless of position), and the #18 Small Forward. Pointer, a 6'5" slasher with good inside touch, will be in Ann Arbor this weekend for his last official visit, and, by all accounts, should make a decision within days of his visit.

While Ziggy has not been very vocal about which way he is leaning between Michigan, St. Johns, and West Virginia, Pointer's parents, who still reside in Michigan, have been open about wanting their son to go to school close to home.

I have an admitted bias as the author of this article, but based on Pointer's parents' quotes, I would put big money on Michigan for this kid.

Manny Harris Suspension Rumor Mill

Michigan basketball star guard Manny Harris was reinstated today by Coach John Beilein after serving a one-game suspension for an unnamed offense that occurred during practice on Friday. While Harris has officially rejoined his teammates for their showdown with Michigan State at Crisler tomorrow evening - sparing Wolverine fans from what would have been utter humiliation - there has been no official word on what Manny L'Adorable Harris did to deserve sitting out the team's brutal loss to Purdue. WCBN Sports offers their best guesses:

• Harris, enraged when Michael Rosenberg interrogated him about the length of Coach Beilein's practices, punched the hack Free Press "journalist" squarely in the face. Beilein, while impressed by Harris' defense of his honor, was forced to suspend Harris, much to the pleasure of Rosenberg, whose vendetta against all things West Virginia continues to destroy everything beautiful about Michigan.

• Freshman walk-on and Club Trillion member Josh Bartelstein showed up to practice Friday and Manny Harris promptly delivered a roundhouse kick to his face, apparently, for existing. Coach Beilein was overhead laughing, and was seen high-fiving Harris, but out of the fear that Bartelstein's father would pull the $500,000 contribution he made to the program to secure Josh's spot, he decided to suspend Harris for one game.

What a clown.

Beilein applauds Manny doing what everyone else wanted to do.

Got other theories? Post them in the comments. WCBN Sports will continue to follow this breaking story and bring you updated rumors as they develop.

The Mixer: March Edition

A night before an interview important enough where I can't go out with friends to GTC or The Peak? Sounds like the perfect time to grind out an overdue edition of The Mixer. It's been a while, but like Andy and Red at the end of Shawshank, you just wanna embrace it and pick up where you left off.

(Sidenote: Every time I quote Shawshank, or relate something back to the movie, I feel I should be paying Bill Simmons a right's fee. It's sad because this really was one of my favorite movies and now Simmons has conered the market with this movie and all its analogies. Dammit!)

Anyways, let's get to it!

What to do with the eight dollars you earned this week: Go see Adventureland. I just got back from the advanced screening here on campus and it exceeded my expectations. It's a little bit like Superbad (same director and Bill Hader has a small role), but with pieces of Good Will Hunting and Animal House mixed into the story. I also saw the new Fast & Furious this week, and Adventureland was more enjoyable by far. Seeing it on the big screen in a cramped auditorium with half the audience totally blazed was priceless...even if I saw it for free. Definitely worth the money for a second time, though. Here is the trailer:



NBA's MVP: If you haven't seen this yet, you will definitely hear about it on Monday morning. LeBron James does 60 Minutes and hits a ridiculous shot while filming his interview. This is a shot Jordan could only hit in McDonald's commercials:



More Mascot Fun: I got this video from the Club Trillion blog done by OSU backup Mark Titus. This is how I always explain Titus' position to Michigan Bball fans:

Michigan Fan: Who is Mark Titus?

Me: Bench-warmer for OSU with his own blog

Michigan Fan: Wait, who?

Me: The OSU eqivalent to Eric Puls

Michigan Fan: Ooooooooh! Totally got it now.

(Pause)

Michigan Fan: Dude, Puls should have his own blog!!!

Me: I couldn't agree more.

Anyways, I highly recommend the Club Trillion Blog (give it time; it grows on you) and here is the video:


Take your Medicine, Maize Ragers: I loved this 2009 Basketball season. It gave me everything I wanted and more for my last year in Ann Arbor as a student. But I'm not close to being satisfied, and neither should you. So, as bulletin board material for next year, I give you the video that the 2010 squad should be watching from now till opening tip in November:



Michigan Baseball...kinda: Throughout our broadcasts, I've noticed that fans and students have been calling super-sophomore Ryan LaMarre "Heddley." Now, most guys my age probably have no idea where this nickname came from. I'm guessing "Blazing Saddles," but I could be wrong. Anyways, in honor of Ryan's inspired play of late, I give you the "Pledge to Hedley Lemarr."



The first line of the pledge could easily be edited to be used following a LaMarre highlight catch. I'm talking to you, Michigan Media Relations Department.

Hope the Mixer was as good for you as it was for me. Look for baseball posts and a Lacrosse story later in the week.

Sims and Harris 50-50? Don't count on it

I've been slacking on my posting for a few reasons. UM Baseball has kept me pretty busy, while NCAA basketball owned my previous weekend before last. I'm working on a story right now that is some of my best stuff, so look for that in Mid-April as I still need to attend one event before finishing the column. I'm trying to finish a paper right now, so thanks for your patience (again, my apologies) and here is something small to read:

A few days ago, ESPN's Chad Ford put out his newly minted Draft Board for the 2009 NBA Draft. Ford divided up the names into underclassmen who were locks to jump, probables, 50-50 guys, and guys who have already said they are coming back. Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims both made the board...as 50-50 guys.

The deadline to declare isn't for a while, so both these guys have some time. And I'm sure I'll put up another post about in the next few weeks. But I think it'd be a huge mistake to make that jump this year. As I've said before, it'd be the worst move since Randolph Morris decided to jump from Kentucky. This program could make the Sweet Sixteen next year (more on that later), so why ruin both that run and your chances at a first round pick in 2010? Doesn't make sense. But like I said, we got time.

Interesting Notes:

• Evan Turner says he will be a Buckeye next year: I think this is a solid move. Turner can get to the hoop better than anyone in the Big Ten, and he's solid from 17 ft and closer. One more year, and he is a lotto pick and could be similar to Gerald Henderson this year. If Mullens stays, this is a pre-season top-10 team.
  

• Jonny Flynn stays at 'Cuse: I'm not holding my breathe on this pick. Flynn has been flying up draft boards since February, and was projected as a late first rounder this year. If the Orange make the Final Four, or he has a strong showing in the Elite Eight, I think the pull of pro ball would be too great, and Flynn gets drafted at around 14 or 15 in the first round.
• Vasquez declares: Couldn't figure out if he was declaring for the Euro League or the NBA Draft. This is a terrible move for the junior Terrapin. Good thing he hasn't hired an agent, or else he'd be handing Goran Suton water when both play for Maccabi Tel-Aviv in 2009. Anyways, NBA Draft.net doesn't have him on the board and neither do I.

OK, time to get back to the paper. Baseball, Basketball, and maybe some Lacrosse by the weekend.

NCAA Tournament 2nd Round: #2 Oklahoma-#10 Michigan

WCBN will return to the Sprint Center in Kansas City tonight and have LIVE coverage of Michigan's 2nd Round NCAA Tournament game. It won't be easy as the Wolverines will have to deal with Blake Griffin and one of the best teams in the country. Tip-off is slated for 5:50pm or 30 minutes following the conclusion of Memphis-Maryland. A spot in the Sweet 16 awaits the winner... it's #2 Oklahoma vs. #10 Michigan.  LISTEN LIVE ON THE WCBN SPORTS STREAM!!!

NCAA Tournament 1st Round: #7 Clemson-#10 Michigan

We have made our way down to the Sprint Center in Kansas City. We have great seats, right behind the scorers table at mid-court and look forward to watching the Memphis-Cal State Northridge and Maryland-Cal games early today. Join WCBN for LIVE coverage of Michigan's 1st NCAA Tournament game in 11 years tonight versus Clemson. Coverage begins at 7pm with the opening tip slated for 7:10pm. It's #7 Clemson vs #10 Michigan... LISTEN LIVE ON THE WCBN SPORTS STREAM!!!

******************************************************************************************

On To the Round of 32!!! Click below to re-live Michigan-Clemson in its entirety...

FIRST HALF

SECOND HALF

Tickets? Anyone Got Tickets?

Michigan has made the tournament for the first time in eleven years. This fact has been well documented by most news outlets and media people around the area for the past couple weeks. This is a big story: A once prominent basketball powerhouse escapes the hole they dug themselves with NCAA sanctions and are now back to basketball prominence. Every Michigan fans loves this story and loves the coverage it gets.

Here’s the problem: Up until Greg Gumbel called Michigan’s name and number on Sunday, a lot of people didn’t care. The Basketball dept. had to make student tickets free for over 60% of home games, and then bribe students with free pizza just to get them in the building. So, to reward the few fans that actually did buy season tickets this year, only season ticket holders are eligible to receive tournament tickets from the athletic department.

This effectively stalled ANY momentum the program had after holding a great Selection Show party Sunday night.

Let me explain: Michigan is given an allotment of tickets following their placement in the tournament (Let’s say Michigan is given 1,500 tickets for fans). Now, if Michigan only sold a couple hundred student season tickets, and those kids agreed to shell out the 73 bucks it will cost for a single ticket, that leaves about 1300 of tickets left over for the alumni season ticket holders in the “Blue Seats” at Crisler. The drive to Kansas City (Michigan’s first round site) is about 12 hours from Ann Arbor. Do you honestly believe alumni (and most students) will travel 12 hours to KC for a game we aren’t favored to win? And, in the event we do win, are faced with George Mason-like odds to beat Oklahoma? I mean, these are the same people Maize Ragers have to yell at in order for them to “stand up and applaud” during basketball games!

The scenario I have just presented is probably more unstable than the Tommy Amaker era. I get that. But here’s something else to keep in mind: Most of the students that bought season tickets this year are freshmen. The athletic dept. doesn’t release these stats, but you can tell by how many kids only have the current season’s Maize Rage T-Shirt as game-day attire. Upper classmen don’t buy tickets because the Juniors and Seniors in Ann Arbor are still trying to get over losing 4 straight games in ’07 to miss the tournament, and are still trying to forget about how badly Amaker butchered the career of Courtney Sims (aka the D-League MVP). These kids paid 120 dollars a season to watch Brent Petway practice for his future as a D-League Slam Dunk Champion.

The reasons they had to stop buying tickets were valid. The marketing department had to cater to a group that didn’t know any better (i.e. the 2012 class). But then how do you expect your freshman fan base to get to KC when most of them have nowhere to park a car on Michigan’s campus?!?!?

The worst part about this is that most Wolverine students didn’t buy season tickets at the beginning of the year because the tickets were FREE for all but three or four home games. That means you could have been a huge supporter of U of M Basketball, attended 13 home games this season, and not been eligible for a NCAA ticket. Yet, the student who bought the season tickets, and didn’t use/scalped his tickets, is now eligible for a trip to Kansas City.

The athletic department had to beg, plead, and even bribe students to attend these basketball games this year. Most times students were allowed in for free, and would be eligible for free M-Den goodies just for swiping their M-Cards. And, now that these students are willing to pay big bucks and travel 12 hours to see this team, the athletic department is telling them “No?” Awesome! There is 7 months of hard work in promotions and marketing down the drain.

Here is my solution: Allow the students that attended these games for free to have a crack at these tickets. If you are a student and attended a game, your M-Card was swiped for “reward points” purposes. They have these records lying around somewhere. Go back, find these numbers, and allow the kids who attended 11 of the 13 home games to be eligible for these tickets. This would open up the ticket base to those elder classmen, who actually cared enough about the program to brave the cold to walk to Crisler in the winter. These future alumni are the ones the Athletic Department should worry about winning over.

Michigan threw one hell of a party on Sunday. Crisler looked like it had electricity that hadn’t been there since Duke was handed their first loss in December. Some student fans were newer than others at the party. But they all wanted to be there to support Michigan Basketball.

I say we let them put their money where their mouth is.

2 Hours and Counting Til Selection Show

Michigan is IN the field of 65 and are likely to be either a #9 or #10 seed. Now the question is over where they will play on either Thursday or Friday.  Below are my odds:

Kansas City 3/1

Minneapolis 5/1

Greensboro 7/1

Dayton 12/1

Philadelphia 15/1

Miami 25/1

Boise 40/1

Portland 100/1

Now some Selection Sunday predictions:

#1 seeds: Louisville, Pitt, UNC, Memphis

Last 4 Teams IN: Dayton, Maryland, Minnesota, Creighton (Last Team IN)

Last 4 Teams OUT: Penn State (Last Team OUT), St. Mary's, Arizona, San Diego State

Michigan: #9 seed playing #8 LSU in Dayton (#1 Louisville looming in 2nd round)

Michigan/Illinois Hoops Archive

1st Half 

2nd Half

Running Diary: Illinois/UM from Friday

Night number two of our Live Blogging here on M&B. Again, apparently Canseco Fieldhouse has the worst internet server to ever be created. So we did this running diary during the game and edited it early this morning. Thanks for the patience.

Alllllllllright!!!! Back for Round Two! Between now and when we finished last nights game, here’s what happened:

• Rob and Stu were forced to share a bed after I won odds/evens throw-down to win the single.

• We saw LeBron make a case for defensive player of the year with his block on Jason Richardson.

• UConn/Syracuse played the game that never ended.

• Talked to Gus Johnson over beers.

• Drunk Iowa BTN intern spit all over Stu while trying to start a conversation with us and WOLV-TV

• I attended a job fair that didn’t take resumes

OK! Good times. Now on to the game…

Crowd has filled in nicely to the Fieldhouse. The fans are 80-20 in favor of Illinois. This feels like a UI home game.

“Queme los barcos”: The UM team comes out of the locker room wearing shirts with this phrase on the back. It means “Burn the ships” and was the message Cortes told his troops before storming the New World. Basically, it was a “leave it on the court” metaphor.

(By the end of the game, I was calling for the team to burn the shirts along with the ship they traveled in).

GAMETIME: Like the show 24, events occur in real time,

17:54 Douglass puts it on the floor and gets called for a 5 second. At least he put it on the floor as opposed to the picking up of his dribble. Of all the players on this team, Douglass has the biggest identity crisis. Scores 20 against UConn, and then disappears down the stretch in the B10 schedule. He plays great defense, and then we don’t hear from him for three straight games. I give up trying to figure this kid out.

16:33 Zack Novak hits the deck and is bleeding. The official tells Beilein “He’s bleeding again.” I swear Novak loses more blood a week than any other player in any sport I’ve ever seen. They really should set up some sort of charity deal with the Red Cross where U of M will donate 100 dollars for every time Novak loses blood on the court. This would be the biggest charitable donation in U of M history. Guaranteed.

15:14 McCamey for three. 7-4 Illini. Anthony Wright into the game for the Wolverines. He attempts his first three and it’s way off. Over/Under Anthony Wright taking 2.5 shots on the next three possessions…or until he feels better about himself.

13:28 Davis with another turnaround over Novak. He is getting whatever he wants off the low block. I’m feeling Déjà vu from last time we saw him, where we made him look like Antonio McDyess 11-9 Illini.

11:40 Douglass for three!!!! Davis answers with a jumper. He looks like Sims last night. This could get ugly real fast.

This is a good time to mention that Michigan is going to be in trouble during the tourney if they face a team with a big front line that can pass (See Memphis or MSU). Right now, they have Novak playing the 4-spot. I know he’s a great shooter, but they NEEEEEEEEED Jevohn Shepherd to be ready come next Thursday. Hell, I’ll take Wright, too. But if they insist on starting four guards against a frontline that all hovers over 6’8, I would suggest everyone save their money and not even book a hotel room for the first round.

10:00 Coach Beilein just called the Illini “not a good rebounding team.” Irony?

9:10 Novak takes a charge underneath the hoop. I’ve seen this call go either way 6 times today in the previous two games played here today. The rule change that needs to happen most is the charge under the hoop. If this happened, Manny Harris would set the record for foul shots in a month.

7:33 Mike Davis has ten points. Anthony Wright back into the game as Merrit knocks down a three. Wright puts a bigger body on Davis. I like this match-up. Maybe not as much as with Jevohn Shepherd, but we are up 22-18. I’m going with it.

5:28 Zack Gibson with his second reverse in as many possessions. Good thing Illinois doesn’t watch film, or else they’d know this is all he does on the low block.

4:22 Heat-check 3 by Gibson. Way long. CJ Lee just said “Don’t leave McCamey! Leave Jordan” in the huddle. Stu said “That’s the first time any one has ever said ‘Don’t help on Jordan!’ in a basketball huddle.”

3:49 Timeout on the floor.

I need to mention quickly that Larry Fitzgerald Sr. is here covering the tournament for his Minnesota newspaper. Fitzgerald Sr. was the subject of a ton of coverage for the super bowl because his son (Larry Jr.) was playing. He said he refused to cheer in the press box if they he scored, in order to not appear biased.

Good to see Larry Sr. holding his journalistic integrity to the highest degree.

…However, it hasn’t stopped him from wearing a Cardinal’s No.11 jersey this whole weekend. Each day. At least it was easy to tell who he was.

2:36 Wright. Shepherd. Lee. Sims. Harris. Lineup combo 102098756 for Coach Beilein this year.

1:19 Meachem on Harris. I’m thinking mismatch. Michigan thinks otherwise and settles for a Novak fade-away three that lands way short.

23.5 Manny with an incredibly awkward looking three point. He shot that as if he was walking a tightrope with one foot in front of the next. Something is not right with this team…

0.00 Illinois misfires at the end of the half, but keeps a one point lead. 25-24 Illini. I’m trying to figure out whether I should be looking for a hotel, or drinking more coffee for the ride home.

HALFTIME:

Stu has nothing to add. Terrible shooting half. This team almost looks like they won the first game vs. Iowa, and then collectively thought “Uhhh so… what do we do now?” They just look a step slow.

Here is our Halftime exchange with Rob:

Rob: We are playing well!

Stu: Is that sarcasm?

Rob: No, it wasn’t Iowa yesterday but if they play that was in the 2^nd half they win.

Stu: They are shooting 9-30!

Rob: Relax. It will work out.

10 minute pause….

Rob: Alright. Well, these stats are worse than I thought.

SECONG HALF:

19:22 Tisdale hits the Illgauskas-patented 16 footer off the high screen and roll. Sims answers with a deuce of his own. 27-26 Illini

16:56 Davis with the full court reception and bucket…Then the steal….and then the dunk. Partisan crowd roars with approval. Bruce Weber is one of those coaches that likes to run the wacky schemes that have you pass up open shot, but also wants to run when he can. Well, they are definitely running. Timeout Michigan. 33-26 Illini.

14:13 Douglass has a two-on-one with Harris cutting to the hoop. Here is my thought process:

“GO! Nice steal! He's got Manny on the wing. Take it- wait…

What’s he doing? He’s slowing… He’s not going to sho- NO! #@$%!!!!!!!!!!!

(Missed three)

Uhhhhhh, OK. Five steps more and he’s got Harris on the low block. Wide open.

5 seconds later...

Coach Beilein: "Five more steps for the wide open lay-up!"

See? Me and Coach see eye-to-eye on plenty of stuff.

12:26 Meachem with a dagger three. Manny with the runner that goes too long. Crowd is roaring behind us. It looks as if Illini was the only team to buy second session tickets.

Bill Martin just used his phone to cancel his hotel reservation for tonight.

10:27 Sims with a steal and the forced foul at the other end. Splits the pair. Just notced Jeffrey Jordan has a “Jumpman” tattoo on his entire right shoulder. Jeff, your dad is Michael Jordan. Everyone knows this! This might be the worst tattoo decision I’ve seen in a long time.

9:20 Sims walks after getting good low post presence. Mich looks a step slow and every three is landing short. That’s a sign of tired legs. See Iowa/Mich live blog below.

7:08 Davis has 20 pts and ten boards. I don’t know what they thought was going to happen defensively here, but he can’t miss. This is just unbelievable. If they send Wright out there to guard Davis, Tisdale runs the pick-and-pop with McCamey. They just don’t have the weapons and strength to guard UI at this point.

4:12 Sims for 3 from 19 feet… even though Rob had the call and said it was a 30 footer! Like Belushi giving his speech in Animal House, Rob was in the moment and we are letting it slide. Momentum is starting to swing slightly at this point.

3:29 Sims on the lay-up. Down by 7. UI controls. Here we go.

2:55 Davis squashes that run with the turnaround. Novak tosses it off Sims’ hands and into the back court. Over and Back. This is the basketball equivalent of “blue balls.”

UM Band plays “Living on a Prayer.” Cliché and not necessary.

1:06 Someone just yelled out “What are you doing Hightower?” That’d be great except… Eddie did the first game at noon. Valentine (the ref from this game) probably gets this a lot, but looks nothing like Ed, except for the fact that they are both black. For future reference, Hightower has hair… Valentine has very little of it left.

0.00 Terrible finish. 60-50 Mich loses. Interesting towards the end, but I’m not really happy with how things went. Michigan shot terribly and got very little from both Sims and Harris. We all know how what happens if both those things occur. Leaving the game tonight to head back, as are the kids from WOLV and the Daily.

Best Moment of the Weekend: We have a tie! Getting to meet Gus Johnson over beers at the BTN media party, or getting to say “hello” to Erin Andrews. Media Relations director Bruce Madej got a hug from EA, so this trumps anything WCBN achieved this weekend. Although I got to give props to Gus for taking a couple minutes to chat and let us ask some questions.

We’ll be back next week, hopefully with a full broadcast. Hope you enjoyed the blog, and we’ll have a tourney preview (with a special guest) hopefully later this week.

Until then…

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT: #7 MICHIGAN-#2 ILLINOIS LIVE AT 6:30PM ON WCBN

Game 2 for Michigan and our second attempt at broadcasting.  Join WCBN LIVE at 6:30 tonight for the Big Ten Quarterfinals.

Coverage begins on YouCastr on 6:30pm and continues on WCBN at 7pm.