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After one of the more chaotic off seasons in team history, the 2013 Chicago Rush have made it to opening day. And they do so with a new look, new colors, new uniforms, and a new attitude. Today they take on their bitter division rivals, the Iowa Barnstormers. The Barnstormers are coached by former Rush head coach Mike Hohensee, who called the shots at Allstate Arena from 2001-2010.
He was the brains behind the operation that led the Rush to their only Arena Bowl title back in 2006. He is familiar with his counter part, former Rush fullback and current head coach Bob McMillen. McMillen in in his third season as the head coach of the Rush. He was the Rush starting fullback from 2002-2007, then transitioned into coaching from there.
He began as Mike Hohensee’s fullback/linebacker coach and held that position from 2008-2010. When Hohensee departed Chicago in 2011, McMillen took over the head coaching job and still holds the position to this day. There are a lot of new faces on this years roster. But just like Hohensee, Coach McMillen has a nack for finding undiscovered talent.
The Rush led by new over David Staral, made sure to bring in plenty of solid players for this years roster. Aside from Coach Hohensee, Iowa is led by veteran AFL quarterback J.J. Raterink. He is in his third season as their signal caller and would like to get payback from last season’s sweep by the Rush.
Throwing the ball for the Rush is Carson Coffman. He was brought in during the offseason after the retirerment of Russ Michna and the departure of Luke Drone. He will be backed up by Zach Frazer. There are still a few players leftover from last season. Reggie Gray, J.J. Payne, Derek Walker, Darrell Campbell, Kelvin Morris, Vic Hall, Semaj Moody, and Jorrick Calvin still wear Rush jerseys.
But there are some new players ready to come in and make an impact. Wide receiver Nate Forse has been around the block in the Arena Football League. He played with Orlando last season. Defensive lineman Anthony Hoke has played in both the AFL and NFL and he now brings his talents to Chicago.
There is all new offensive line, a few other players mixed in here and there, and a new kicker. Jose Martinez takes over the kicking duties which were held by Mike Salerno in 2012. As the old saying goes, “Out with the old and in with the new.” And that is the approach the Rush will take this season as they try to make the playoffs for the first time since 2011.
Last year was the only year in franchise history in which the Rush did not make the postseason. Their record of 10-8 wasn’t enough to get a playoff spot. This year they will try to change the mistakes from last year that put them in that position. The Rush were only 3-6 on the road last year, that has to change.
They also struggled in Central Division play, this also needs to change. They also need to limit turnovers and perform better on special teams. Here are the starting lineups for both teams today:
Rush:
Offense:
QB: #11 Carson Coffman
FB: #34 J.J. Payne
WR: #1 Reggie Gray
WR: #2 Rodney Wright
WR: #10 Nate Forse
OG: #79 Steve Edwards {Former Chicago Bear}
C: #66 Jeff Maddux
TE: #75 Colin Madison
Defense:
DE: #91 Derek Walker
NT: #92 Darrel Campbell
DE: #12 Anthony Hoke
MLB: #7 Tyus Jackson
JLB: #11 Kelvin Morris
DB: #4 Vic Hall
DB: #14 Jorrick Calvin
DB: #3 Joe Phinisee
Barnstormers:
QB: #11 J.J. Raterink
FB: #41 Kai Brown
WR: #2 Collin Talyor
WR: #3 Marco Thomas
WR: #7 Darius Reynolds
G: #77 Michael Garrity
C: #72 Dace Richardson
TE: #70 Jayson Palmgren
DL: #23 Rodney Gnat
DL: #53 Mike Lewis
DL: #55 Odrick Ray
LB: #57 Darnell Carter
LB: #5 John Mohring
DB: #1 Errick McIntosh
DB: #12 Mike Williams
DB: #6 Jason Simpson
Kickoff will be underway shortly. You can follow me on Twitter for game updates @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports #REDemption
March Madness is in full swing with numerous local teams involved and here is the latest…..
The Illinois Fighting Illini won their first NCAA Tournament game in two years with Friday’s victory over Colorado by the final score of 57-49. The Illini were able to contain Buffaloes star forward Andre Roberson by limiting him to 9 points and 8 rebounds. They also managed to get him to foul out. Nnanna Egwu did an excellent job keeping Robertson under wraps.
John Groce’s team also did well against Colorado’s reserves as they only allowed five points off of the Colorado bench. D.J Richardson, Tracy Abrams, and Brandon Paul all scored in double figures despite the fact that the team only shot 30 percent from the field. The Illini who are the seventh seed in the East Region will take on the second seeded Miami Hurricanes on Sunday.
Miami was one of the best teams in college hoops this year. They won the regular season title of the Atlantic Coast Conference and at one point was ranked the number one team in the country. They are heavily favored this year and the Illini will have quite the task on Sunday. Of course the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame will wish they could play on Sunday, but that will not be the case.
The seventh seeded Irish of the West Region suffered yet another early round NCAA Tournament loss as they were embarrassed by tenth seeded Iowa State with a final of 76-58. Iowa ran away with this one early as Mike Bray’s team looked lost on defense from the get go. Iowa State scored in every way possible. Inside, outside, in transition, and off of turnovers.
Notre Dame’s star guard Jerian Grant was held to just nine points while also committing five turnovers. The Cyclones shot 40 percent from the floor and left Irish fans shaking their heads in disbelief. ISU will play the second seeded Ohio State on Sunday. The Cyclones better enjoy this victory now because the Buckeyes are a Final Four favorite this year and are loaded with talent.
On Thursday night, Bryce Drew’s 14th seeded Valparaiso Crusaders were eliminated by the third seeded Michigan State Spartans 65-54 in the Midwest Region. Perhaps the Bryce Drew game-winning shot clip from 1998 will finally stop airing on television.
The other tournament involving local teams is the College Insider Tournament. After coming off an historic first round victory over Chicago State on Wednesday night, The UIC Flames will hit the road for their second round match up. It was announced on Friday afternoon that the Flames will take on Northern Iowa in the second round of the CIT.
Illinois-Chicago leads the all-time series with UNI 11-10 and they have a lot of talent heading into this one. The Panthers from Cedar Rapids will have their work cut out for them on Saturday night. The Bradley Braves also participated in this year’s CIT. They defeated Wisconsin-Green Bay in Peoria on Wednesday night. They will get another home game this weekend when Tulane makes it’s way to Carver Arena for that second round match up.
Finally, things are almost official for “The Catholic Seven”, or should I say the “new” Big East Conference. You already know that the re-birth of the Big East will take place on July 1st. Here are the newest developments…….
Xavier, Creighton, and Butler have decided to join which will make this a 10-team conference. Also, the league has signed a 12-year television deal with Fox Sports to carry many of the conference games including the new Big East Conference Tournament which will still take place at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
In August, Fox Sports is expected to return with a national network, similar to the one they had from 1997-2005. The Speed Channel will become Fox Sports 1, and Fuel TV will become Fox Sports 2. All of this will take place in August. The future looks bright for all parties involved, hopefully DePaul’s basketball program will start to head in the right direction as well.
Saturday night, I will be covering the Chicago Rush’s 2013 season opener from Allstate Arena. The arch-rival Iowa Barnstormers will be in town with former Rush head coach Mike Hohensee calling the shots. It’s always a bittersweet moment when “Coach Ho” comes back to Rosemont. But that is what makes this rivalry so special.
Kickoff will be at 7pm, and always you can get game updates from me via Twitter @GabeSalgado82. Along with the hashtags #Q101Sports and #REDemption…….
Dan Patrick hit it on the head on AM 1530 WCKG when he said the next team should make good old #54 a player coach. The Bears should have, COULD have, offer Urlacher a role in the organization beyond being a punching bag on the field. They did not.
Too bad. #54 should be a lifetime Bear. Learn from this…
They both made big headlines across Chicago today. First with the major story of the day……
Major news coming out of Halas Hall today that could have a huge effect on the Chicago Bears future. After 13 seasons of wearing the orange and blue, Brian Urlacher has decided to leave the Bears franchise and test the free agent market. Many Bears fans took to Facebook and Twitter expressing their outrage.
While it may be disappointing to the 4th Phase, I had a feeling this move was coming for quite some time. I ask you, the Bears fans to put your anger aside and try to understand what was at play here. The Bears are in salary cap hell right now. They don’t have a whole lot of financial room to work with and because of this, D.J. Moore was not re-signed and Kelvin Hayden was released.
Henry Melton got the franchise tag, and they just signed free agents Martellus Bennett and Jermon Bushrod to moderate contracts. Israel Idonije is still unsigned, Lance Louis is gone, Nick Roach is now in Oakland, Geno Hayes went to Jacksonville, Chris Spencer is hoping to re-join the team as is Amobi Okoye, back up quarterback Jason Campbell is a unrestricted free agent, Kellen Davis and Matt Speath were cut to make room for Bennett {because of their poor play while in a Bears uniform}, Nate Collins was brought back for a smaller price, Turk McBride was signed today, and Josh McCown and Kahlil Bell are also free agents.
So here is the list of 2012 players who are free agents:
DE Israel Idonije
OL Chris Spencer
DT Amobi Okoye
QB Jason Campbell
QB Josh McCown
RB Kahlil Bell
Here’s the dilemma, Idonije wants a big contract and the Bears are not in a great position to do that. They are hoping to re-sign him for less. The Bears may draft an offensive lineman or two or sign a couple from free agency. Chris Spencer had a difficult 2012 season so the Bears could most likely look elsewhere. The jury is still out on Amobi Akoye, Jason Campbell would require a decent price to re-sign, I would not be surprised if Josh McCown goes somewhere else, and how do you spend money on a guy who’s been signed, cut, the re-signed again multiple times? I’m referring to Kahlil Bell of course.
The Bears just don’t have the available funds to bring back all of these players thanks to the salary cap. This is why Brian Urlacher has left town. The Bears offered him a two year contract for $1 million per year with another $1 million guaranteed. Urlacher was looking for a two year deal worth $5 million per year.
Again, taking Urlacher’s proposal mixed with the current salary cap status, this would prevent the Bears from bringing back Idonije or Campbell. Another thing to consider is that Brian Urlacher will be 35 this year. The last couple of seasons saw #54 struggle with numerous injuries, a telling sign that he is getting older.
His speed has also declined slightly, and Urlacher has said that football is starting to take a toll on his body. You put all of that together and it makes bringing him back almost impossible. There is no doubt that Urlacher has made his mark as a hall of famer and a Bears legend. Simply put, it’s time to move on. So now the Bears have to decide what to do with Urlacher’s spot.
Of course they could grab a free agent but how much are the Bears willing and able to spend in that department? The other option would be to draft a new middle linebacker. Could Phil Emery end up taking Notre Dame’s Manti Te’o in April? Only time will tell….
The other story of the night has some historical implications…..
For the first time in school history, the Illinois-Chicago Flames have won a postseason basketball game. Yes you heard me correctly…. Even though they did not get into the NCAA or NIT, they did get into the College Insider Tournament. Tonight they hosted Chicago State at the UIC Pavilion.
CSU had made it’s own history coming into tonight’s game. For the first time in the history of their program, they won their conference tournament, a conference championship, and made their first postseason tournament. But their fun would be short lived as the Flames had way too much talent and depth for Chicago State to handle.
Daniel Barnes got his first career double-double with 22 points and and a career high 10 rebounds. Gary Talton had 12 points with 8 assists, Josh Crittle and Hayden Humes scored a combined 32 points. Quinton Pippen, Matt Ross, and Jamere Dismukes all scored in double figures for the Cougars.
CSU even outscored UIC 39-34 in the second half, but it just wasn’t enough. UIC advances to the second round with an 80-69 win. Their next opponent is still to be announced. Chicago State can still hold their heads high and now they finally have something that they can pitch to high school recruits. And that’s pretty big considering they share the same city as Northwestern, DePaul, and Loyola.
Earlier today I joined the “Cooley and Chivari show” on Sports Town Chicago. Here is the link to that podcast:
This Saturday night, I will be at the Allstate Arena covering the Chicago Rush’s home opener against Iowa. Kickoff is at 7pm and tickets are still available. You can get Rush updates from me on Twitter @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports #REDemption
The new helmet design for the 2013 Chicago Rush.
Today from the Dome at the Ballpark in Rosemont, the 2013 Chicago Rush along with coaches and executives were introduced to the media for the upcoming season. This was an occasion that almost did not happen.
After the suspension of the 2009 season, the original owners of the Rush {business partners of Walter Payton} put the team up for sale. With no potential buyers in sight, the league purchased the team and owned it through the 2012 season. Between 2010 and 2012, the Rush became the largest market franchise in the AFL after the New York Dragons and Los Angeles Avengers folded.
The league wanted to sell to a local owner but nobody wanted to buy. The league did not want to fold the team because the Rush is now the largest franchise in the Arena Football League. After the 2012 season, AFL commissioner Jerry Kurz began aggressively pursuing a buyer for the Chicago Rush.
In November, local businesswoman Julee White had purchased the team for an undisclosed amount of money. Ms. White had said upon the sale that she had big plans for the franchise. Among those plans was to change the color scheme and team logo, give players pay raises, and spoke of a potential move to the United Center.
Unfortunately, Ms. White’s ownership was short-lived for reasons that are still largely unknown. In January ownership of the team was turned back over to the AFL. By this point there were rumors of the team folding without a local owner. Literally in the 11th hour, current owner David Staral purchased the franchise and saved the team from being contracted from the league.
He bought the team in February and has worked tirelessly to make sure that the Rush will be able to play the 2013 AFL season. He organized the team by assembling a roster at the last minute, putting together a new front office, keeping the coaching staff intact, and making sure the finances were in place.
So here we are just five days away from kicking off the 2013 season. Everything seems to be in place, and the fans will be able to cheer for the Rush this year. Some of last years key players are gone. Quarterback Russ Michna and fullback/linebacker Russell Monk have retired from the game.
Also gone are backup quarterback Luke Drone, wide receivers Jared Perry, Terrance Turner, and Marquis Hamilton, offensive lineman T.J. Watkins, and kicker Mike Salerno. They are just some of the many players from last season who departed. The doubt surrounding the offseason played a major role in all of this.
The good news however is that Reggie Gray, Jorrick Calvin, Semaj Moody, J.J. Payne, Derek Walker, and Darrell Campbell are still on board. We were informed at the event that the Rush managed to re-sign defensive back Vic Hall at the last minute. Kelvin Morris has also returned to the team.
During the offseason, Morris had signed with the Orlando Predators. He did this because of the questions regarding the future of the Rush franchise. But once it was revealed that the Rush would be coming back for 2013, both teams managed to workout a deal to bring “K-Mo” back into the fold.
So now that everything is in place, here are some of the new details about the Rush….
For starters the team has changed the color scheme but has kept the original logo. Gone now is the old purple and grey scheme that the team wore from 2001-2012, in it’s place is a collection of red, white, and blue.
Here are what the new uniforms will look like:
The team also hinted at a possible partnership with an NFL franchise but no further details were revealed. There is also a new marketing strategy in place, the Rush will be using the new Twitter hashtag of #REDemption for the 2013 season. This is just the beginning of what the Rush front office has in store.
More details will be revealed throughout the season. The AFL has a new television deal with CBS Sports Network, with the potential to have this year’s Arena Bowl on the main CBS network. The AFL had previously had a deal with the NFL Network from 2010-2012.
The team is also looking to ink both a local television and radio deal to broadcast the games. For now, the Rush will continue to stream the games online via the team’s website. WSCR-AM’s Les Grobstein will once again be the play-by-play man.
After the festivities I spoke with key members of the Rush franchise, starting with new owner David Staral:
I also had a conversation with head coach Bob McMillen:
Then I talked to the returning Kelvin Morris one-on-one:
Of course I couldn’t end the day without talking to fan favorite Reggie Gray:
The Rush will kickoff the 2013 season this Saturday night against the Iowa Barnstormers. The game will take place at Allstate Arena just after 7pm. You can follow on Twitter during that game for updates @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports #REDemption
Ohio State holds up the Big Ten Tournament trophy.
It was a classic defensive battle between two of the Big Ten’s best. It was a low scoring affair but it was still a fun game to watch. The first half was an old-fashioned back and forth battle as both teams traded shots and kept challenging one another. Neither team would be denied as the first half was grind to the finish with Wisconsin taking a 24-23 lead at halftime.
The second half began as more of the same for the most part. There were five ties and six lead changes for the first 14 minutes and 30 seconds. Then with 5:35 remaining, Ohio State took over. DeShaun Thomas, Aaron Craft, and LaQuinton Ross began to drain one shot after another. They took a page out of Wisconsin’s playbook as their defense was the one to step up and lock it down.
They held Wisconsin to just 19 second half points, and just four points in the final seven minutes. They also managed to only allow one Wisconsin player to score in double figures. Badgers guard Traevon Jackson finished the game with 10 points.
Not only did Wisconsin’s defense fail to perform to the level they had been performing since Friday, their offense also fizzled out after scoring a total of 136 points in their first two tournament games. Ohio State takes home the 2013 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship by the final score of 50-43.
Ohio State performing the ceremonial cutting down of the nets after their championship victory. Here is the box score from today’s game:
Ohio State gets the Big Ten’s automatic bid into the 2013 NCAA Tournament, but six other Big Ten teams got at-large bids. Here is the list of Big Ten teams who were selected:
Indiana #1 East Region
Ohio State #2 West Region
Michigan State #3 Midwest Region
Michigan #4 South Region
Wisconsin #5 West Region
Illinois #7 East Region
Minnesota #11 South Region
Minnesota gets in ahead of Iowa despite the fact that they lost their first round game to Illinois. Iowa’s dominating performance over Northwestern, combined with a 21-11 regular season record was not enough to convince the committee to let them in. But I can guarantee that they will be a top five team in the National Invitational Tournament.
Here is the full bracket for the 2013 NCAA Division 1 Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament:
I’d thank to thank the Big Ten Conference for their hospitality these last four days.
The updated bracket for this year’s tournament…..
Today is the day where all parties involved need to give it everything they have. Today is about more than just a tournament victory, it’s about more than just a championship trophy, it’s about an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Wisconsin Badgers and the Ohio State Buckeyes are well aware of what’s at stake here. Ohio State is looking for redemption as they lost last year’s title game to Michigan State, this is their fourth straight tournament championship game appearance. They are 2-2 in that stretch.
As for Wisconsin, this is their first Big Ten Tournament Championship game since 2008, and their fourth in school history. They are also 2-2 in Big Ten title games. Yesterday both teams came off of some thrilling victories. Wisconsin slowed down the #1 seed Indiana Hoosiers and beat them 68-56.
Ohio State put on a clinic in the second half to get past Michigan State 61-58. Wisconsin’s formula for success these last few days has been their defense. But as good as their defense has been, their offense has also stepped up in a big way.
The Badgers have scored 136 points so far in this year’s tournament. Bo Ryan’s team isn’t exactly known for their offense. The Buckeyes have gotten it done in three ways:
1. Back-to-back double digit performances from forward DeShaun Thomas.
2. Production from their bench players.
3. Good second half defense.
Thad Matta has coached his team well and they are fully capable of executing any game plan that is presented before them. And they will need that game plan if they are going to get past the best defense in the Big Ten. Wisconsin must also have a solid game plan, especially when it comes to matching up against DeShaun Thomas.
Another player that the Badgers must account for is Buckeyes guard Aaron Craft. His 20 point explosion against Michigan State yesterday was their main key to victory in the Big Ten semi-finals. But today is a new day and this game will be decided by which defense can make the most stops.
Both teams will wind up getting into the NCAA Tournament regardless of who wins and loses. But whomever gets the automatic bid will more than likely get a top five seed.
Both of these teams have something to prove and something to play for. This nationally televised game will be the talk of the town when this one is all said an done.
You can follow me on Twitter during the game @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports
The Big Ten Tournament Championship Trophy
Today was a very telling story as the semi-finals of the Big Ten Tournament took place at the United Center this afternoon. The top four seeds took center stage, and that is something that doesn’t happen to often in any conference tournament. It was the Big Ten’s best and brightest and neither game disappointed.
First on the schedule was #1 Indiana VS #4 Wisconsin.
Bo Ryan’s defense took the spotlight for the second straight day as they held the Indiana Hoosiers to just 38 percent shooting and forced them to commit 13 turnovers. This was despite a double-double from Hoosiers forward Cody Zeller (13 points, 11 rebounds}, 14 points from forward Christian Watford, and another stellar performance from guard Victor Oladipo (10 points, 4 steals}.
The Badgers were just too much as forward Ryan Evans, center Jared Berggren, and guards Ben Brust and Sam Dekker all finished in double figures {They combined for 50 of Wisconsin’s 68 points}. The Badgers also shot 51 percent from field goal range, and shot 61 percent from the free throw line. During the final three minutes of the game the Badgers drew plenty of fouls which put them at the free-throw line numerous times to seal the deal.
They also out-rebounded the Hoosiers 35-30 and blocked 10 of their shots. Wisconsin moves on with the 68-56 victory. Here is the box score from this game:
As for game two between #2 Ohio State and #3 Michigan State…..
The Spartans brought out the rarely used green and gold uniforms for today’s game. Perhaps it is a St. Patrick’s Day thing. But the luck of the Irish was not on Michigan State’s side this afternoon. Ohio State unleashed their wild card in Aaron Craft, who scored 20 points, and had 9 assists and 4 steals.
18 of his points were scored in the second half. The Spartans found themselves playing catch up through the second half as they only shot 40 percent from the field, 6-14 from three-point range, and turned the ball over 12 times. Not helping matters was the lack of production from their bench. The Spartan reserves only added six points on their end.
Not to be outdone by Aaron Craft, Buckeyes forward DeShaun Thomas scored 16 on his end to go with 2 assists and 7 rebounds. Michigan State did try to rally late in the contest, but Ohio State hung on for a 61-58 victory. After the game Buckeyes guard Lenzelle Smith Jr. had this to say about Craft’s performance:
“Aaron caught fire early. And the way Aaron feels about Michigan State, I knew he was gonna hit some big shots. Next thing you knew he caught fire and hit some big time shots. He made some big plays, he stepped up and our guys just kept giving him the ball.”
When I asked Thomas about what his team needed to against Wisconsin he said, “We have to push the tempo, not let them hit those wide open three’s and we can’t give them second chance points.”
It seems that Ohio State is more concerned with the Badgers offense instead of their defense. But tomorrow will these Buckeyes will be tested as they play their second consecutive Big Ten Tournament championship game. Wisconsin is ready and they have the talent run up and down the floor with The Ohio State University.
Here is the box score from today’s game:
The 2013 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament Championship will begin at 2:30 tomorrow afternoon from the United Center on Chicago’s West Side. You can follow me on twitter during the game @GabeSalgado82 #Q101Sports
Today is day three of the 2013 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament. And that mean’s that the semi-finals are upon us, and we are closer to knowing who will be in the NCAA Tournament. Yesterday the quarterfinals took place and we got a clearer picture of who destined for post season greatness.
The top four seeds advanced to semi-final round yesterday which is something that doesn’t happen often in this tournament. And in the process, some teams NCAA Tournament hopes were dashed. While other teams will now have to wait to see where the Selection Committee puts them.
Here is the schedule for today:
12:40PM: #1 Indiana VS #4 Wisconsin
Approx. 3PM: #2 Ohio State VS #3 Michigan State
Yesterday Indiana managed to get past the Illinois Fighting Illini. Illinois may have won the battle during the regular season, but Indiana won the war when it counted the most. Cody Zeller was a man on a mission yesterday as he scored 24 points and the Illini defense was powerless to stop him.
The Hoosiers will have a tough game today as they will take on the Wisconsin Badgers who will give Indiana all they can handle. The Badgers yesterday had a huge come from behind victory over Michigan yesterday. Bo Ryan’s team not only showcased why they are one of the better defensive teams in college basketball, but they also proved that they can shoot the ball when needed. This game will come down to who can score the most points.
Ohio State pounded Nebraska into elimination to earn their semi-final spot last night. But today will not be so easy as they will take on a very talented Michigan State squad. Tom Izzo coached his team to a narrow three-point win over a very tough Iowa team last night. The Spartans will need to be tough on defense if they are to defeat the Buckeyes today.
In order for Ohio State to win, they need to go all out and take no prisoners against MSU. As for the teams who have been eliminated thus far…..
Illinois must wait to see where or if they will land in the NCAA Tournament. Iowa and Minnesota have an even slimmer chance of getting a tournament bid. Nebraska and Purdue are officially done for the season while Northwestern and Penn State have long offseasons ahead of them.
As for the remaining teams, they are pretty much fighting for NCAA Tournament seeding. The Big Ten Tournament is not over yet so stay tuned….
Teams are finishing their morning shoot around’s and now we wait for the fans to make their way into the United Center this morning. Today is day two of the Big Ten Tournament and that means the quarterfinals are on today’s schedule.
The schedule looks like this:
11am: #1 Indiana VS #8 Illinois
Approx. 1:40pm: #4 Wisconsin VS #5 Michigan
5:30pm: #2 Ohio State VS #10 Nebraska
Approx. 8pm: #3 Michigan State VS #6 Iowa
Indiana received a first round bye yesterday by being the top seed in this year’s tournament. The Hoosiers were ranked #1 in the AP Top 25 three times this year. They are clearly the favorite to win the entire tournament. But the Fighting Illini have other plans. They beat Indiana during the regular season and they are motivated.
Yesterday in the first round, Brandon Paul propelled the Illini into the second round with a last second game winning jump shot against Minnesota. John Groce’s team is motivated and they are looking to sneak into this year’s NCAA Tournament. Indiana would be foolish to underestimate the Illini.
Wisconsin also received a first round bye yesterday, they are another favorite to prosper in this year’s tournament. But they will have their hands full as the Michigan Wolverines are on a mission of their own. The Badgers defeated the Wolverines in a nationally televised overtime game in January.
Michigan learned from that game, and after yesterday’s domination of Penn State in the first round, the boys in the maize and blue will be ready for whatever Wisconsin will bring.
The most lob sided game of the day will be between Ohio State and Nebraska. Being the number two seed, OSU was the third team to receive a first round bye. Nebraska on the other hand squeaked out a two-point victory over Purdue yesterday. While I don’t expect the Cornhuskers to have the same success against the Buckeye’s today, they will give it everything they’ve got.
The most intriguing match up will take place tonight between Michigan State and Iowa. Michigan was the fourth and final team to get a first round bye. Iowa on the other hand, beat Northwestern for the third time this season. The Hawkeyes are a very dangerous team and should not be taken lightly.
The Spartans will need to bring their A game to avoid an upset. Here is a full report on yesterday’s first round schedule. And here is a full recap of yesterday’s games.
Let the games begin……
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