Armadillo Sports
Friday’s 6-pack
National leaders in defensive efficiency:
1) Memphis
2) Loyola Chi
3) Alabama
4) Michigan
5) Tennessee
6) USC
Quote of the Day
“A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.”
Frank Capra
Friday’s quiz
Since 1999, what quarterback started the most games for the Washington Redskins/Commanders?
(Hints: 1) he is retired 2) he played college ball in SEC)
Thursday’s quiz
When Russell Wilson transferred from NC State to Wisconsin, Mike Glennon took his place at NC State. Glennon was the Giants’ backup QB last year.
Wednesday’s quiz
Russell Wilson played football for NC State, Wisconsin.
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Friday’s Den: Wrapping up a very busy day……..
Thursday of Champ Week is always one of my favorite days of the year; this year especially, the first normal March Madness since 2019. Throw in the labor impasse ending in baseball, and this was an excellent day.
13) Big X
— Oklahoma 72, Baylor 67— Since 1985, no team has won the national title after losing their first conference tournament game.
— TCU 65, Texas 60— Texas led this game by 20 just before halftime. Longhorns are 3-5 in their last eight games.
— Bruce Weber is out as Kansas State’s coach; they say he “retired” but they’re paying his salary for next year, so they fired him.
12) SEC
— Texas A&M 83, Florida 80— Underdogs covered the first seven games played Thursday.
— LSU 76, Missouri 68— Tigers led this game 34-9, but they’re erratic.
— Vanderbilt 82, Alabama 76— 48% of Alabama’s shots are 3’s, but they’re shooting only 30.8% on the arc (#307)
— Georgia fired coach Tom Crean, who made the Final Four with Dwyane Wade, Marquette back in 2003.
— Vanderbilt assistant coach Ed Conroy is the nephew of author Pat Conroy, who wrote one of my favorite movies, Prince of Tides.
11) Pac-12
— Arizona 84, Stanford 80— Wildcats’ PG Kriisa sprained his ankle (check status). Stanford lost despite making 11-20 on the arc.
— Colorado 80, Oregon 69— Ducks lost seven of their last nine games.
10) Big 14
— Michigan State 76, Maryland 72— Spartans led by 20 with 13:04 left; Tom Izzo wasn’t happy after game with how MSU damn near blew this game.
— Iowa 112, Northwestern 76— Not a gutty effort by the Wildcats.
— Indiana 74, Michigan 69— Wolverines are 17-14, 4-5 in last nine games. A bubble team.
9) Mountain West
— Wyoming 59, UNLV 56— Cowboys ended an 0-19 skid against the Rebels in Las Vegas.
— Boise State 71, Nevada 69— Boise starts four seniors; they’re a quiet 25-7 team.
— Colorado State 53, Utah State 51— Teams combined to shoot 4-33 on the arc.
— Four Mountain West games Thursday were decided by total of 14 points.
8) ACC
— Duke 88, Syracuse 79— Three SU kids played whole 40:00; they were up 7 in second half, played their hearts out, but still gave up 1.28 ppp. Was this Jim Boeheim’s last game as a coach?
— Miami 71, Boston College 69, OT— Hurricanes shot 64.9% inside arc.
— Virginia Tech 87, Notre Dame 80— Hokies won 11 of their last 13 games.
7) Big East
— Villanova 66, St John’s 65— Red Storm led by 17 early in second half.
— Providence 65, Butler 61— Four of last five Friar wins were by 4 points or in OT.
— Creighton 74, Marquette 63— Bluejays won eight of their last ten games.
6) Mid-American:
— Toledo 72, Central Michigan 71— #1-seed Rockets were favored by 17; they were losing with 0:20 left.
— Akron 70, Buffalo 68— Zips outscored Buffalo 6-1 over final 1:26.
5) AAC
— Tulsa 73, Wichita State 67— Shockers went 6-10 in last 16 games, after a 9-3 start.
— UCF 60, South Florida 58— Knights won despite shooting 30.8% on arc.
4) A-14:
— Fordham 54, George Mason 49— Rams are 16-15; they’ve had one winning season since 2008.
— UMass 99, George Washington 88— UMass made 12-29 on arc, scored 1.27 ppp.
3) Big West
— Long Beach State 72, Bakersfield 61— Beach won 15 of its last 17 games.
— UCSB 78, Cal-Irvine 69— Gauchos won nine of last ten games.
— Hawai’i 68, Cal-Riverside 67— Rainbows won six of last eight games.
2) Conference USA
— Louisiana Tech 59, Western Kentucky 57— Tech survived 20 turnovers (minus-9)
— Middle Tennessee 66, UTEP 59, OT— Blue Raiders outscored UTEP 17-7 on line.
1) Big Sky:
— Montana State 83, Sacramento State 61— Bobcats won 16 of their last 18 games.
— Northern Colorado 68, Eastern Washington 67— Bears led by 17 in 2nd half, hung on for win.
Friday’s games start in eight hours; I better sleep fast
