Random Observations: March Madness Edition

In the words of the great San Francisco Chronicle sports columnist Scott Ostler, here are my deep thoughts, cheap shots, and bon mots:

---The Sweet 16 is set, and it is chalk-heavy. As much as I would have loved to see a Cinderella make it past the opening weekend, the volume of high seeds in the Sweet 16 should translate into excellent basketball.

---Syracuse-Oklahoma, North Carolina-Gonzaga, Villanova-Duke, and Missouri-Memphis will be wildly entertaining games to watch that will come down to the final minutes. The only teams that I expect to cruise into the Elite Eight are Pittsburgh and Louisville, who should make quick work of Xavier and Arizona. Look for the rest of my picks later this week.

---Has there ever been a more frustratingly inconsistent college basketball team than Wake Forest? Even after a roller coaster season, many thought the Demon Deacons would make the Final Four. Instead, they got crushed by a very good Cleveland State team. One day after their shocking defeat, head coach Dino Gaudio announced that his team has changed their nickname from the Demon Deacons to the Jekyll and Hydes.

---I hope all NBA scouts in attendance at the Rose Garden on Saturday night took notice of Western Kentucky's Orlando Mendez-Valdez. Mendez-Valdez drained deep three after deep three in an eventual loss to Gonzaga, displaying the kind of range that rivals the likes of sharp shooters Peja Stojakavic and Hedo Turkoglu.

---Speaking of NBA talent, I know everyone is crazy about Oklahoma's Blake Griffin, and rightfully so. He is a magnificent player who will likely be the number one pick in the NBA Draft. However, lost amid the Griffin hype has been the brilliance of Pittsburgh's DeJuan Blair. Blair is every bit as good as Griffin, and his heroics rescued the Panthers from near-defeats against East Tennessee State and Oklahoma State.

---I love Jim Nantz, but the best play-by-play work over the weekend came from Kevin Harlan. The enthusiasm that he brings to each and every broadcast is tremendously infectious.

---Is there a better coaching story than that of Arizona's Russ Pennell? Pennell spent several years at rival school Arizona State, both as an assistant coach and color analyst. This past year he was tapped as the interim head coach at Arizona following the departure of the great Lute Olson. Pennell has already been told by the school that he will not be named the permanent head coach at the end of the year, but he has led the 12-seeded Wildcats into the Sweet 16. Will he get the job after all?

---I'll leave you with one final thought on the NCAA Tournament. The tourney is much more easy on the ears without the pompous voice of Billy Packer.