During my junior year of high school, I had a one-on-one sit down with my varsity coach who told me he didn’t think I was ready to play Division I college basketball. He claimed I’d have a much better collegiate career at a Division II or Division III school – especially if I was trying to obtain an athletic scholarship. Who tells their best player that? To be honest though, I’ve always admired the fact that he “kept it real” with me. But for as “real” as he kept it, I recall throwing in the towel. Read More »

All week long, it seemed the media was trying its hardest to will Cornell to an upset win over Kentucky. But by the end of the first night of Sweet Sixteen action, Butler was the underdog stealing the headlines. While Cornell had a good 3-4 minutes of magic in their pocket before John Wall and the Army of Blueness proceeded to trample them, Butler neutralized No. 1 seed Syracuse’s athletic advantage and picked apart the infamous 2-3 zone in a monumental upset … Isn’t Gordon Hayward (17 pts, 5 rebs, 2 stls) overdue for the “next Larry Bird” hype that guys like Keith Van Horn, Wally Szczerbiak and Adam Morrison typically get around this time? Read More »

“We’ve played teams like Kentucky before,” Jeff Foote said after beating Wisconsin yesterday. “We’re very experienced and very confident in ourselves.” The teams he’s referring to? Syracuse and Kansas, two No. 1 seeds heading into the tournament. In only their fourth game of the season, Cornell trailed then ninth-ranked Syracuse 42-36 at the half before losing by 15. Still, it gave Foote, Ryan Wittman and Louis Dale valuable experience for taking on more “real” teams than their Ivy League counterparts. Read More »

*Dime’s NCAA Tournament Day 2 coverage*

Jordan Crawford just made himself a lot of money. Projected as a late first-round NBA Draft pick in 2011, the Xavier junior two-guard put on the whole f’n show today against Minnesota: dropping 28 points, five boards, five assists and handful of blocks and steals. Always known as a sick athlete who can score, Crawford showed he can shoot — he buried a dagger three with 38 seconds that put Xavier up nine — and play solid defense to go along with his scoring ability. I’d compare him to J.R. Smith without the knuckleheaded-ness. Read More »