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Marquette Golden Eagles – Vander Blue Focuses on Start Instead of Finish
In the previous two wins for Marquette in the NCAA tournament, Vander Blue was there for them in the close finishes. This time, dominating right from the get go, their star player gave his best efforts early on, to create enough separation from Miami, while teammate Jamil Wilson took over in the second half to make sure they make it into the Elite Eight.
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Sweet Sixteen – Syracuse vs Indiana Predictions
No team plays the zone-defense as well as Syracuse does, on a good day, and there isn’t anyone as good, in the entire nation, on offense and as a team in general, like Indiana, when they’re clicking on all cylinders.
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Sweet Sixteen – La Salle vs Wichita State Predictions
The surprise matchup on the first evening of Sweet Sixteen stage in the 2013 NCAA tournament, with La Salle needing two very close wins to make it this far, while Wichita State have been surprisingly dominant in both their wins over highly favored opponents.
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Sweet Sixteen – Arizona vs Ohio State Predictions
For Arizona, who didn’t get to collect any silverware in the Pac-12 this season, it’s been an easy road in the NCAA tournament so far. Ohio State, the Big Ten tournament champions, needed a bit of luck to get by their third round opponents, making it to their fourth consecutive Sweet Sixteen.
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Sweet Sixteen – Marquette vs Miami Predictions
In what should be the most physical game of the Sweet Sixteen round in the 2013 NCAA Tournament, Marquette will try and get past the stage for the first time since the days of Dwyane Wade over a decade ago, while Miami are hoping that the absence of their starting center won’t be too much of a crippling issue.
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Houston Rockets – Jeremy Lin & James Harden Taught a Lesson by the Indiana Pacers
If recent wins suggested that the Houston Rockets are going to be more than just a 7 seed no one is really afraid of in the Western Conference, the ongoing slump of Jeremy Lin on the offensive end and a demonstration by the Indiana Pacers in how to stop James Harden, it’s quite clear that they are still a fair distance away from becoming a postseason force to be reckoned with.
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Los Angeles Lakers – Kobe Bryant Cheats His Way to Victory
Ricky Rubio was right to claim he was fouled by Kobe Bryant on the final play. The Los Angeles Lakers almost let another one get away from them with some more horrendous defending, but their star player, along with a dominant performance from the rest of the “stars” – Dwight Howard, Steve Nash and yes, even Pau Gasol, helped them escape with a win and a playoff ticket still in hand.
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San Antonio Spurs – Tim Duncan Makes Sure the West Stays Beneath
It’s about making sure teams know who the best team around is with the playoffs so close. Tim Duncan knew it was on him, with the Denver Nuggets focusing so strongly on Tony Parker. So he came up with another impressive, almost vintage-like performance on both ends of the floor to keep the San Antonio Spurs on top of the Western conference.
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New York Knicks – J.R. Smith Stealing the Spotlight From Carmelo Anthony
The New York Knicks began the season with unselfish ball movement, unstoppable three point shooting and excellent defense. It was too good to last for a very long time, and are once again at the mercy of individual performances – usually those of Carmelo Anthony, but for a second straight game, J.R. Smith coming off the bench is the one who steals the show.
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Boston Celtics – The Losing Had to Stop at Some Point
If the Boston Celtics are going to get anywhere this season, which means beyond a first round berth in the NBA playoffs, it’s going to be up to guys like Jeff Green and Brandon Bass to start playing like NBA stars or close to that, instead of hoping Paul Pierce plays like it’s five years ago while Kevin Garnett somehow miraculously heals from his injury problems and most of all, old age.