Tragedy on the Courts

What more could I say? The Big Ten is out of the NCAA Tourney.

For about a month, this was a hot debate in the heartland: Is the Big Ten full of really good teams that knocked each other off repeatedly or rampant mediocrity?

Now we know the answer.

The immensely disappointing Big Ten is out of the NCAA Tournament after one weekend. That hasn't happened in a decade. For this year, at least, the Missouri Valley Conference is the boss of the Midwest.

Ohio State (No. 2 seed), Iowa (No. 3), Illinois (No. 4) and Michigan State (No. 6) all lost to lower seeds. Wisconsin (No. 9) was buried in round one. At least Indiana (No. 6) gave Gonzaga a tussle before succumbing in the second round.

The bright spot in all of this is that Ohio State had their head's handed to them on a platter against Georgetown. I can't complain when the Buckeyes lose. Sadly, though:

Of the six, Michigan State is the biggest disappointment. The Spartans began the year in every top five and were considered a solid national championship alternative to the two popular choices, Connecticut and Duke. Instead, this turned out to be the softest Tom Izzo team in years -- not enough defense, not enough mental toughness.

While a die-hard U of Michigan fan/alum, I love Spartan basketball and I think Coach Tom Izzo is the best thing to happen to sports in the state of Michigan in a long, long time. Plus, even though they are Michigan State, they could never recede to the evil status of Ohio State.

I guess if there is another bright spot in the sad story, it is that the Michigan Wolverines are still playing basketball... even if it is in the NIT. Sure, it is the junior varsity-quality tournament, but at least we out-survived the six teams in our league better than us.

NCAA Tournament