It wasn't pretty ...

[Mick Fan]

But Maryland is the deserving NCAA champion, even though last night's game was one of the worst played championship games I've ever seen.

Thankfully, there is no "artistic presentation" category.

[Abducens]

Darn right it was ugly. It should have been Maryland in a blowout. I had flashbacks of the Super Bowl empathizing with Maryland fans.

What kind of Mickey Mouse team does that much better shooting 3's than shooting free throws? PTI should be good today: hear Tony & Mike taunt the IU fans.

[3rookie]

THE MIGHTY TERPS!! Defense wins championships in Basketball, too. The offense may not have been there, but Maryland's Defense completely prevented Indiana from running their offense.

It was Mouton and Holden once again doing the little things it takes to win, while Blake had a horrible game on offense.

Can you say REPEAT? They'll still be a Top 20 team next year, and will be a contender again in March 2003.

[WWSituation]

PTI is good every day! I used to never watch TV, but I just have to hear them rant!

[PK]

My daughter never watches basketball, but last night, with nothing better to do, she sat down. The score was 25 - 16, Maryland. After 5 minutes had clicked off the game clock, with the score still 25-16, she asked, "Aren't the scores usually higher than this? Aren't they supposed to actually score baskets?"

My son arrived and I told him that his sister had watched 5 minutes of basketball without either team scoring. His question? "You mean clock time and not game time, don't you?"

IU put in a bucket making it 25 - 18, but it was over 6 (game time) minutes before MD scored higher than 25.

Embarrassing, to say the least.

Then again, not bad for a Patriot League Soccer coach.

P

[Abducens]

>>PTI is good every day! I used to never watch TV, but I just have to hear them rant!

Yeah, I'm addicted. My wife is truly convinced I will watch anything sports now.

To the group: Was it just me or did one of the announcers sound ridiculously pro-IU? The old guy. It seems he could not say anything good about Maryland and most everything he said was in terms of Indiana. I think he could hear his heart breaking on every IU missed free throw. Maybe it's just me.

[Han Solo]

Originally Posted by 3rookie

Can you say REPEAT? They'll still be a Top 20 team next year, and will be a contender again in March 2003.

I'm not so sure about repeating. Sure, they'll be good, definately tourney material, maybe even top 20, but it's going to be tough to make up for the loss of Dixon, Baxter, and Mouton. And say nothing of the fact that Wilcox is considering coming out early.

[vito]

Billy Packer was hyper-critical of both teams. True, both offenses were sloppy, but some of that was due to 2 excellent defensive teams.

I guess I don't think it's appropriate for the announcers to constantly berate 18-21 year-old amatuers. I finally turned down the sound. Imagine a Maryland player, 30 years from now, popping in a tape to show his grandkids. Packer's non-stop drivel would ruin the fun.

To make matters worse, I think Packer offers little valuable insight and is often dead-wrong in his analysis. One simple example: Packer heaped praise on Gary Williams for putting on a full-court press when Coverdale was out of the game. This particular instance was after a made free-throw. Packer should have known that Williams (somewhat of a Dr. Tom Davis disciple) almost always puts on the press after made free throws.

[quentin cassidy]

Packer's getting senile, almost as bad as Dookie V (did anyone see Vitale in that ridiculous MD cap - when Gary W. saw him, he asked "Finally took off the Duke hat?").

Packer also thinks that a teams offensive strategy should be ENTIRELY based on who on the other team is in foul trouble. Shut up already, we know Jeffries has 3 fouls, but you don't give the ball to Baxter/Wilcox every single time downcourt when you've got an all-american guard in Dixon. He actually had the audacity to question Dixon's shot selection at one point.

[Mick Fan]

Originally Posted by vito

To make matters worse, I think Packer offers little valuable insight and is often dead-wrong in his analysis.

Shut up, Billy. I've said it so much during the Final Four and the championship that I can't stop!