Sunday?s 6-pack
NCAA betting props and how they?re making out:
? OVC 1.5 wins: Murray State/Belmont both won a game. OVER
? Pac-12 1.5 wins: Oregon won twice, ASU/Washington one each. OVER
? SEC 10.5 wins: Sitting at 11 wins, OVER
? WCC 3.5 wins: Gonzaga won three, Saint Mary?s lost in 1st round. UNDER
? #1 seeds 13 wins: Sitting at 12, with Duke/Virginia still alive.
? #2 seeds 10 wins: Sitting at 10, with Kentucky, Michigan State alive.
Quote of the Day
?We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights??..?
Declaration of Independence
Sunday?s quiz
Tony Bennett?s father Dick Bennett got to the 2000 Final Four coaching what team?
Saturday?s quiz
Colts were based in Baltimore before moving to Indianapolis.
Friday?s quiz
Joey Gallo was a Little League teammate of Bryce Harper in Las Vegas.
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Sunday?s List of 13: Wrapping up a sports Saturday??
13) Texas Tech 75, Gonzaga 69? Red Raiders make their first-ever trip to the Final Four. Gonzaga was in Elite 8 for third time in five years; they?re 1-2 in Elite 8 games.
It is easy to sit here and say that Texas Tech was toughened up by playing in a better league than Gonzaga plays in? Zags thrash everyone in their league every year. Not sure thats why Tech won this game, but they?re athletic as hell and they play very good defense.
Red Raiders also lost five of their top seven players from last year?s team; to make the Final Four with that much turnover on your roster is very impressive.
12) This trend has legs, but I?m not sure why. Over the last 22 years, underdogs are now 18-4 vs spread in the final of the West Region, 13-9 SU.
11) Virginia 80, Purdue 75 OT? Tremendous game. Damn shame someone had to lose.
Purdue?s Carsen Edwards scored 42 points, with no assists; not sure why he passed the ball on their last possession, but he threw the ball away. Amazing shooting performance.
Over the last 40 years, Purdue has had only two basketball coaches, Gene Keady, Matt Painter; Drake and Siena have had three coaches the last three years.
Solid lookalike submitted by The Professor: Matt Painter and WWE?s Shane McMahon.
10) Auburn F Chuma Okeke tore his ACL, is having surgery Tuesday, very bad news for Auburn?s hopes of going to the Final Four.
9) When the 3-point shot became a thing in the NBA for the 1979-80 season, there were players in the NBA who believed that 3-pointers should only be allowed in the 4th quarter, and kind of a come-from-behind gimmick.
Was funny reading that this week, seeing how prominent 3-pointers have become in both pro and college basketball.
8) Regional finals with teams from same league, last 10 years:2017: South Carolina (+3) 77, Florida 70
2016: North Carolina (-6.5) 88, Notre Dame 74
Syracuse (+6.5) 68, Virginia 62
2013: Syracuse (-2.5) 55, Providence 39
Auburn-Kentucky play in a regional final today.
7) Nebraska hired Fred Hoiberg as basketball coach, will pay him $3.57M a year, thats 3rd-highest salary in Big 14, 11th-highest in country.
6) Lakers will sit Lebron James down for the last six games of what has been a forgettable 34-42 season.
LA Clippers are 12-2 in March, the NBA?s best record this month.
5) Detroit Tigers lost 3-0 Saturday; they?ve lost two of their first three games, with only runs they?ve scored so far this week in 10th inning Thursday. So in three games, Detroit hasn?t scored yet in innings 1-9. Oy.
4) There is a gambling thing in Las Vegas that is a little weird; in NCAA tourney games, you can bet on which team will get to 15 points first. Random wager to create more action.
I was at the MGM Grand for the 2010 NCAA?s, and I?m watching Northern Iowa, and some kid makes a basket- the three young guys next to me start jumping up and down and hugging each other. I actually asked them if the kid that scored was their brother.
They explained that they won their ?first to 15? bet. Had never heard of it before. If you had a lot of extra time, you could research all that, but not even I would enjoy researching all that.
3) When Jacob deGrom/Max Scherzer both struck out 10+ guys Thursday, it was only the second time EVER that both starters struck out 10+ on Opening Day.
Back in 1970 in an Orioles-Indians opener, Dave McNally and Sam McDowell both struck out 10+, and McNally wasn?t a big strikeout guy.
2) Crowds at Rockies-Marlins in Miami? 6,503 Friday, 7,642 Saturday.
Colorado?s Daniel Murphy broke a finger on his left hand Friday, is going on the DL.
1) Diamondbacks 5, Dodgers 4 (13)? This Friday night game lasted until 4:13am Saturday morning; at one point, the home plate ump got drilled in the mask by a pitch that totally crossed up the catcher- he left the game couple innings later, after the 11th inning.
This was longest regular season game, in terms of time, in Dodger Stadium history.