Rock... Chalk... Jayhawk... KU!

[Cameron]

In the end, it just wasn't meant to be for lovable little Davidson. The Good Lord above hates Carolina and has sent Dr. Naismith's golden son in search of retribution.

Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it.

Isaiah 13:9

(In other words, you're cooked, Roy)

Who's along for the ride?

[dukemsu]

Isaiah 13:9

(In other words, you're cooked, Roy)

Who's along for the ride?

I'm in. I was at Ford Field today. After the Jayhawks survived, I was exchanging high fives and smiles with KU fans. How did they know I was rooting for them? I was wearing my GTHC shirt.

Get it done, Jayhawks.

[Cameron]

Well the Jawyhawks need all the support they can get, so thanks.

I was just thinking the other day, after Hansbrough grabbed and hacked his way to another win, just how awful it truly would be to see Carolina--worse, its fans--take home another title. I know that thought has been run into the ground around here recently, so it's certainly not a new revelation, but, seriously, I wouldn't be able to take it. I'm convinced that there is nothing more pretentious than a UNC fan, and I just wouldn't be able to deal with it. I offer no exaggerations that I would rather die or have my head buzz-sawed with an industrial tree trimmer. I just don't want to see them win. That's it.

The good thing about this Final Four is that it's loaded. We have three legitimate shots to win this thing. Better yet, we have a 75 percent chance. I like those odds.

Bring it home, Kansas.

[eddiehaskell]

Shouldn't Kansas match up well with UNC?

They have:
-tournament experience
-4 of their starters are juniors(2) and seniors(2) with one soph.
-comparable size/length/athleticism
-two good point guards (Sheron Collins/Russell Robinson) to chase Lawson around and a pretty good ~7 footer in Kaun. Darnell Jackson is also 250 lbs.
-motivation with the whole Roy promising to stay and then leaving thing

I noticed in the Washington St. game that Hanbrough had trouble inside against Baynes. With his size, Baynes was able to stand straight up and absorb Hansbrough's contact without flopping around and creating the illusion of a foul.

[BlueDevilJay]

KU should match up with UNC better than any of the other F4 teams IMO. Eddie pointed out all the main reasons that I think they will take the Holes down (which would win me my office pool too, so COME ON KU!!). I arrived at work at 7:30 this morning, and already have Hole fans parading by my desk touting their F4 appearance. Did they beat Duke again this weekend and I missed it?? God I HATE UNC and their pretentious fans!!! (Believe it or not, they DO have a few good ones). GTHC GTH!!! 9F 9F 9F!

[Troublemaker]

I offer no exaggerations that I would rather die or have my head buzz-sawed with an industrial tree trimmer. I just don't want to see them win. That's it.

LOL! Awesome. You're one of my favorites, Cameron.

I think you also qualify for my unsolicited advice on how to find a silver lining if Carolina wins the championship. The first thing you do is figure out how much money you would pay to see UNC lose. Spend a lot of time thinking about this to get the amount just right. For many people, especially if you live in North Carolina, this amount might be surprisingly high. Let's say $10,000, hypothetically.

Now, the second step is easy. BET on UNC to win the championship! As of today, UNC winning the NC would pay about 1.8 to 1 (which is actually kinda low, since they're the prohibitive favorite at this point. Before this past weekend, you could've gotten much better odds). So, let's say next Monday night, UNC is celebrating a 5th national championship. Then the silver lining would be that you're $18,000 richer. And if UNC loses, then you're out $10K but that's fine, too, because it'll be like you paid for them to lose! That's why you have to spend a lot of time thinking about the proper amount.

[Cameron]

I think you also qualify for my unsolicited advice on how to find a silver lining if Carolina wins the championship. The first thing you do is figure out how much money you would pay to see UNC lose. Spend a lot of time thinking about this to get the amount just right. For many people, especially if you live in North Carolina, this amount might be surprisingly high. Let's say $10,000, hypothetically.

Now, the second step is easy. BET on UNC to win the championship! As of today, UNC winning the NC would pay about 1.8 to 1 (which is actually kinda low, since they're the prohibitive favorite at this point. Before this past weekend, you could've gotten much better odds). So, let's say next Monday night, UNC is celebrating a 5th national championship. Then the silver lining would be that you're $18,000 richer. And if UNC loses, then that's fine, too, because it'll be like you paid for them to lose! That's why you have to spend a lot of time thinking about the proper amount.

Haha! Now that's some funny stuff, and very ingenious. If I were HE Pennypacker, I'd bet the house, a nice, cool million

In the words of Doc Holliday, very cosmopolitan!

[barjwr]

Shouldn't Kansas match up well with UNC?

. . .

I noticed in the Washington St. game that Hanbrough had trouble inside against Baynes. With his size, Baynes was able to stand straight up and absorb Hansbrough's contact without flopping around and creating the illusion of a foul.

I agree. The starting frontcourt for KU is formidable, and they've got two near-seven-footers on the bench (Kaun and Aldrich). For all the harping on how quick Ty Lawson is with the ball, I haven't seen anything to make me think that Sherron Collins is any slower--they may as well be twin brothers, though one made a terrible choice in UNC (think Cain and Abel).

There's an interesting side to the Ol' Roy story. None of the KU players (except 5th-year reserve Jeremy Case) have any connection to him, so (to paraphrase the Lord of Frick) they could give a s#!t about him and UNC and the whole sordid tale. It will be nice for Roy to have a week of Hamlet moments while Bill Self and the Jayhawks can actually concentrate on ramming the ball down Hansbrough's throat.

RAHHHHHHHHHHHK CHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHK
JAAAAAAAAAAAAY HAWWWWWWWWWWWK
KAAAAAAAAAAAAY YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU

[moonpie23]

rock chalk jayhawk !

[Devilsfan]

Sadly, if Carolina brings their A game, no one stacks up to them, imo. Rush did a great job guarding Curry, arguably one of the two or three best players in the tournament. He "held" him to ONLY 20+. I doubt if he or anyone can keep up with Lawson's speed, Ellington's shooting, Ginyard's defense and Hanstravels' tenacity. I simply hate it when Carolina has all the pieces of the puzzle. In conclusion, Self has accomplished his personal goal and made it to the final four and his team probably shouldn't even show up. That said I have Louisville playing Kansas in my bracket, oh well, I guess I can dream, can't I?

[Saratoga2]

Shouldn't Kansas match up well with UNC?

They have:
-tournament experience
-4 of their starters are juniors(2) and seniors(2) with one soph.
-comparable size/length/athleticism
-two good point guards (Sheron Collins/Russell Robinson) to chase Lawson around and a pretty good ~7 footer in Kaun. Darnell Jackson is also 250 lbs.
-motivation with the whole Roy promising to stay and then leaving thing

I noticed in the Washington St. game that Hanbrough had trouble inside against Baynes. With his size, Baynes was able to stand straight up and absorb Hansbrough's contact without flopping around and creating the illusion of a foul.

Kansas plays at a fast pace and makes a lot of turnovers. Give UNC a slight advantage like that and they win.

[eddiehaskell]

There's an interesting side to the Ol' Roy story. None of the KU players (except 5th-year reserve Jeremy Case) have any connection to him, so (to paraphrase the Lord of Frick) they could give a s#!t about him and UNC and the whole sordid tale. It will be nice for Roy to have a week of Hamlet moments while Bill Self and the Jayhawks can actually concentrate on ramming the ball down Hansbrough's throat.

Yeah, they have no direct connection, but their team did lose 2 scholarship players because of incidents that happened while Roy was the coach.

[eddiehaskell]

Kansas plays at a fast pace and makes a lot of turnovers. Give UNC a slight advantage like that and they win.

Compared to other teams that have played UNC close/beat them, Kansas isn't bad when it comes to turning it over.

Average TOs per game:

Kansas - 13.0
Clemson - 14.9 (3 overtimes)
Duke - 13.6 (lost by 11)
Davidson - 11.8 (won by 4)
Virginia Tech - 14.5 (won by 2)
Georgia Tech - 15.3 (won by 1)

Kansas is better than every team above and they average less TOs (save for Davidson).

[BCGroup]

http://blogs.newsobserver.com/accnow...&c=1&tb=1&pb=1

Thank goodness he didn't pick UNC!

[Exiled_Devil]

I agree. The starting frontcourt for KU is formidable, and they've got two near-seven-footers on the bench (Kaun and Aldrich). For all the harping on how quick Ty Lawson is with the ball, I haven't seen anything to make me think that Sherron Collins is any slower--they may as well be twin brothers, though one made a terrible choice in UNC (think Cain and Abel).

There's an interesting side to the Ol' Roy story. None of the KU players (except 5th-year reserve Jeremy Case) have any connection to him, so (to paraphrase the Lord of Frick) they could give a s#!t about him and UNC and the whole sordid tale. It will be nice for Roy to have a week of Hamlet moments while Bill Self and the Jayhawks can actually concentrate on ramming the ball down Hansbrough's throat.

RAHHHHHHHHHHHK CHAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHK
JAAAAAAAAAAAAY HAWWWWWWWWWWWK
KAAAAAAAAAAAAY YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU

Lord of Frick!! ha!

I love it.

[The1Bluedevil]

Shouldn't Kansas match up well with UNC?

They have:
-tournament experience
-4 of their starters are juniors(2) and seniors(2) with one soph.
-comparable size/length/athleticism
-two good point guards (Sheron Collins/Russell Robinson) to chase Lawson around and a pretty good ~7 footer in Kaun. Darnell Jackson is also 250 lbs.
-motivation with the whole Roy promising to stay and then leaving thing

I noticed in the Washington St. game that Hanbrough had trouble inside against Baynes. With his size, Baynes was able to stand straight up and absorb Hansbrough's contact without flopping around and creating the illusion of a foul.

Agreed with everything you said but believe tournament experience is over blown.

[moonpie23]

i give Kansas a 45% chance of beating unc..

i give Ucla a 55% chance of beating unc


i give memphis a 60% chance of beating unc


i give roy a 100% chance of crying should unc go down

[nyr484]

Anyone else remember the 2004 Duke-UNC game? It was Ol' Roy's first as UNC head coach. When the starting lineups were introduced, instead of saying the usual "Hi [carolina player]", we replaced the names with players from that year's Kansas team (thanks to the cheer sheet, it was in unison). Then we were chanting Rock Chalk Jayhawk throughout the first half... Needless to say, Ol' Roy was not happy. He came out after halftime with a big piece of duct tape and taped it over the Duke logo on his chair, and he has continued that practice ever since. Hehe.

Long story short, I have no problem rooting for Kansas on Saturday.

[Son of Mojo]

P-p-p-p-p-p-pleaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaase have KU bring their A++ game Saturday. . . . .I am so sick of hearing these arrogant unc fans spout on and on and on about how great their team is. I work with a guy (good guy past his unfortunate choice in supporting the evil empire) who proclaims that "when (we) win the tournament, Roy will have to be spoken of as being as great as Wooden." I laughed and said he needed some aspirin for his fever or some pencillin to kill whatever he's got in him that's warping his brain that badly, but this has been a sentiment I'm hearing more of. Also, someone give Mark Packer's radio show a listen-to sometime; there's a special brand of idiotic unc fans who call that show. Rarely have I wanted their team to lose as badly as I do now. Given, I always want them to lose but this is about as bad as their fans have been in about 10 years (when Jamison & chest-thumper were there).

[BCGroup]

Anyone else remember the 2004 Duke-UNC game? It was Ol' Roy's first as UNC head coach. When the starting lineups were introduced, instead of saying the usual "Hi [carolina player]", we replaced the names with players from that year's Kansas team (thanks to the cheer sheet, it was in unison). Then we were chanting Rock Chalk Jayhawk throughout the first half... Needless to say, Ol' Roy was not happy. He came out after halftime with a big piece of duct tape and taped it over the Duke logo on his chair, and he has continued that practice ever since. Hehe.

Long story short, I have no problem rooting for Kansas on Saturday.

I have always wondered about the tape..so it's interesting you say that. I was scanning through the old archives (thanks BB for resurrecting them) and I posted asking that question back in 2005!