March Madness 2011: TV Schedule, Announcers & Viewing Gameplan for Thursday NCAA Tournament Games

March 14, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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Some people obviously have a problem with the new 68-team format, but a new feature of the 2011 NCAA Tournament that almost most everyone is in favor of is the fact that every single game will be broadcast nationally in its entirety.

Whereas before games were televised only on CBS, thus putting you at the whims of CBS’ decision-making for what game would be shown in your area, now you can choose whatever game you wish with TNT, TBS, and truTV joining CBS for March Madness TV coverage. Thus, no longer must you sit passively waiting for Greg Gumbel to bring you live look-ins or have your laptop open to March Madness On Demand. Any game will be just a click of the remote away.

But, as great as this sounds, there is an unintended consequence: you must now be your own viewing director. No more passive March Madness consumption. Are you ready for the challenge? It may be more of one than you think.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness, March Madness Viewing Schedule Tagged With: kemba walker, march madness 2011, ncaa tournament, ncaa tournament tv schedule, Rick Pitino

Video: Bob Knight Asleep on Mike Francessa’s TV/Radio Show

March 14, 2011 By 17 Comments
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A hat tip to Jimmy Traina for tweeting this video, which shows the beginnings of what was supposed to be an appearance by Bob Knight on Mike Francessa’s radio/TV show.

Unfortunately, Coach Knight appears to have been up all night working on his brackets, because he appears sound asleep as Francessa tries to introduce him.

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Filed Under: CBB, Funny Tagged With: bob knight, mike francessa

March Madness 2011: 10 Matchups I Hope To See Happen

March 14, 2011 By 1 Comment
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Last night, immediately after the brackets were announced, I went about the process of running through my bracket picking system to figure out my official one-and-only bracket. Now that this is out of the way, I can step back a bit from trying to analyze what I think will happen and take a look at what I hope will happen – independent of if it is what I predicted.

One of the most entertaining activities to engage in with a fresh, new bracket is to see all the possible matchups that could reasonably (or unreasonably) materialize. In this post, I run down 10 matchups that I really hope to see happen, and encourage you to share yours as well.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: Bill Self, bruce weber, fab 5, John Beilein, Kansas Jayhawks, Larry Bird, magic johnson, Michigan Wolverines, mike davis, Purdue Boilermakers, steve fisher

March Madness 2011: 6 Ways To Fill Out Your Bracket

March 14, 2011 By 3 Comments
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In lieu of a links post (because, with Selection Sunday in the books and March Madness hitting full stride, this is the only link most of you will probably be needing) I thought today we’d take a look at the various methods available for you to use when it comes time to fill out that OFFICIAL BRACKET.

You know, the one (and it better be only one!) you’re submitting into that really important pool — which should be MSF’s, if you care to join — the one that will make all your friends hate you because of how uncannily correct you were.

Yeah, that bracket.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness, March Madness Viewing Schedule Tagged With: 2011 ncaa tournament, march madness 2011, march madness picks

5-12 Upset Picks: Which David Will Slay Goliath?

March 13, 2011 By 3 Comments
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When people scramble to fill out their NCAA tournament brackets, one of the first things they consider is what upsets they should pick.  And where better to turn than the 5 vs. 12 matchups, which have a reputation as being a place where the chalk does not stick to the blackboard.

In this post, I analyze the history of the 5-12 upset and then analyze this year’s matchup to see which of the 5-12 matchups are most likely to result in an upset.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 5-12 matchups, 5-12 upsets, march madness 2011, ncaa tournament 2011

March Madness 2011 Bracket Predictions

March 13, 2011 By 74 Comments
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Note: For the second year in a row, we are holding an MSF Bracket Challenge over at ESPN.com. Sign up now and then fill in your brackets after they are announced on Selection Sunday.

As Michael Jackson and his brothers once sang, “Can you feel it? Can you feeeel it? CAN YOU FEEL IT!?” I am speaking, of course, about the 2011 NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament, which is always my favorite time of the sports year.

The excitement gets amped up during the final few weeks of the regular season, kicks into high gear during Championship Week, and then crescendos with three weeks of sports ecstasy once the brackets are announced on Selection Sunday. (Yeah, I’m kind of a college basketball nut.)

And there is nothing I get more ecstatic about during March Madness than making my bracket predictions.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 2011 ncaa men's basketball tournament, bracket predictions, march madness 2011, march madness 2011 bracket, march madness 2011 picks, ncaa tournament picks

March Madness 2011: Brackets Revealed – Seeds, Matchups, “First Four” Teams, Game Dates and Locations

March 13, 2011 By 7 Comments
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Let the Madness begin!

The Selection Show is in full force (or will be shortly, depending on when you read this), the brackets are being revealed, and it’s time to get ready for three incredible weeks of exciting college basketball action.

See everything you need to know below – and the bracket info will be updated as it is revealed on CBS.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 2011 ncaa tournament, march madness 2011, march madness brackets

March Madness: 2011 NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament Bracket Breakdown

March 13, 2011 By 1 Comment
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For the second year in a row, we are holding an MSF Bracket Challenge over at ESPN.com. Sign up now and then fill in your brackets after they are announced on Selection Sunday.

As soon as the Selection Show starts at 6:00 ET on CBS, I’ll be updating the tables at the bottom of this post with the seeds, game dates, and locations.

If you’re planning to go to any tourney games, click here to go to our March Madness 2011 Quick Preview to get a complete breakdown of the tourney sites and discount codes (also below) to save you money on tickets. The quick preview also includes a breakdown of the how the “First Four” will work and how the revamped TV coverage will be broken down.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness, March Madness Viewing Schedule Tagged With: 2011 mens college basketball tournament printable bracket, 2011 mens ncaa basketball tournament announcer assignments, 2011 mens ncaa basketball tournament tv schedule, march madness 2011, march madness bracket, NCAA mens basketball tournament, ncaa tournament bracket

March Madness 2011: Projected Bracket & Seeds for Field of 68

March 13, 2011 By 1 Comment
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This is like the end of the holiday shopping season. By 6 PM Eastern all the stores will be closed, the last of the tournament championships would had been played, and the NCAA brackets come out and are digested for two hours.

Then, no more games – nothing but a documentary on the 1991 Michigan Fab Five.

That will be what will have to do to tide college hoops fans until the start of the inaugural ‘First Four’ Tuesday night, and the first full-fledged round of the Big Dance, which I am still debating whether or not to take ‘sick time’ for (although my boss would be all over that).

Here is my ‘final projection’ of the field of 68, along with some early ideas on teams to identify making a surprise run, or crashing out early.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 2011 ncaa tournament, march madness 2011, march madness bracket

March Madness 2011 Cinderella Specials: 3 Double-Digit Seeds Most Likely Bust (or Make) Your Bracket

March 13, 2011 By 1 Comment
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Every year, one of the most exciting and intriguing parts of the NCAA Tournament is seeing which double-digit seeds rise from obscurity to become the Cinderella stories of the tournament’s opening weekend.

The majority of double-digit seeds that win their opening round game end up losing in the next round, so they rarely make it to the Sweet 16, but there are usually one or two that do make it into the tourney’s second weekend. And sometimes, that Cinderella makes it all the way to the Final 4, like George Mason a few years back.

In this post, I highlight three teams likely to be double-digit seeds that I think are most likely to become this year’s Cinderella – the kind of teams that can break (or make) your bracket.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 2011 ncaa tournament, march madness 2011, march madness upset picks, ncaa tournament cinderellas

March Madness 2011: Printable Brackets for NCAA Tournament

March 13, 2011 By 13 Comments
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March Madness is the greatest sports spectacle in America for many reasons: “One Shining Moment”; Gus Johnson; upsets; tradition; stars; angry coaches; I could go on and on.

But let’s be honest. One of the primary reasons – if not the primary reason – that March Madness is so popular is the pure fun of filling out the bracket once it is announced on Selection Sunday.

The purpose of this post is very simple: give you easy access to printable brackets you can use before, during, or after the Selection Show.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness Tagged With: 2011 ncaa tournament, brackets, March Madness, march madness 2011

Join the MSF Bracket Challenge!

March 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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The March Madness 2011 brackets are announced later tonight. You know that as soon as they’re out you’re going to start filling them out, so why not match wits with other like-minded college basketball nuts?

Here is the MSF Bracket Challenge. Join us – all you have to do is create you entry, then you can join the group. The more the merrier.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness

March Madness 2011: Selection Show TV Time and Big Ten, ACC, and SEC Championship Games

March 13, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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It’s here.

Selection Sunday.

If I were to rank all 365 days of the year, I bet this day would come in somewhere in the 20-30 range. I love it. Obviously I’ll love it more the next time Indiana’s name is called out by Greg Gumbel, but I love it even when my beloved Hoosiers are not involved.

But before the Selection Show, there are still some automatic bids to dole out from a few power conferences. Here is the viewing info for both the Selection Show and the final set of conference tournament championship games.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness, March Madness Viewing Schedule Tagged With: march madness 2011

Despite recent surge, Blackhawks’ playoff chances remain shaky

March 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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A winless week for the Blackhawks has brought the team and the fan base down from Cloud Nine and back to the reality of the Western Conference playoff race. The reality is that the eight-game winning streak never put the Blackhawks in a comfortable spot, as some might have assumed.

The ‘Hawks were always just two to four points away from being in a major scuffle, as they are currently a deceiving  5th place in the Western Conference – the eight seed is only two points, or one win, away.

There is almost no room for mistakes or losing streaks, and things are not going to get easier for the ‘Hawks down the stretch.

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Filed Under: NHL Tagged With: chicago, Chicago Blackhawks, hockey, NHL, playoffs

March Madness 2011: Conference Tournament TV Schedule and Automatic Bid Games for Saturday, March 12th

March 12, 2011 By Leave a Comment
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We are down to just two days left in Championship Week, and there are a bevy of intriguing, important matchups over the next 36 hours before Selection Sunday.

In this post, we break down all of the automatic bids that are up for grabs on Saturday, as well as the semifinal schedules in the big conferences.

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Filed Under: CBB, March Madness, March Madness Viewing Schedule Tagged With: march madness 2011
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