I have an Bengal buddy engineer friend who is addicted to "the 5o6 board' discussion forum where they natter on about % of NFL market game coverages % composites of all time USA demo records and trends and make predictions ... and also kibbitz political topics, like which sportz media talking heads shine or suck out loud the most. He's always guessing who's an industry insider from some only backstage info scoop they would cite or reveal. Not everyone can be a Charlie Jones or Marv or Kenny Albert. He can't stand this or that guy so we try to sync up with Keels & Lapham watching. He will reminisce over some grudge comment color man Trent Green in broadcast said about the Bengals in 2o18 😆
Reading TML for years, I am amused with Doc's criticism of certain announcers. I tune almost all of them out. They clearly get on his nerves, I wonder why?
Mar 20, 2023·edited Mar 20, 2023Liked by Paul Daugherty
Re; Coach Cal:
One-&-Dunners are not in college to showcase their teamwork skills or grow their game. They're there to impress scouts by having one big year, a freshman year no less, and then signing a big contract. That implies trouble by its very nature. It worked nicely for a while when Cal was loading up on all the best of these guys, but when Duke and Kansas and other big time schools started going after them, suddenly the best of the best aren't at UK anymore. Starting over every year and depending on freshmen takes a huge toll. You gotta coach the mistakes out of them by tournament time. That's hard to begin with: at UK it's a major pressure cooker deal. Cal looks burned out, Seems likely he steps aside soon; he sounds really tired. Like Jay Wright, he won't miss it a bit, either. UK is not a fun place to be head coach. You are King there, yes, but it is a tortuous form of royalty and the peasants call for your head almost every year, even after you've beaten back every foreign and domestic threat year after year. To paraphrase an old Tarzan movie, the natives are perpetually restless.
I was watching XU slay dragons I couldn't help but wonder was any credit being given to Sean Miller's predecessor who I assume recruited this team and was then unceremoniously hustled out of town?
It was noted in some media post that SM had taken charge of the program one year and a day before.
Duke and NC are in coaching transitions right now. They'll be back soon enough hogging the spotlight, in a year or two when the transition is finished.
Finally figured out how to describe Adam Kunkel. He's X's Pete Rose. He's a gritty, scrappy, working class guy with a genius understanding of the game he plays. Just like Pete. Not the quickest, most talented guy out there, but the hardest-working and the hardest-nosed. Never takes a play off. Sees the whole floor better than anybody else on his team. Constantly talking, floor coaching, reminding guys what to do, keeping everybody loose. Quick to smile, quick to react, has fun playing. Guys play their best when they have a guy like that on their team. Pete made everyone around him better wherever he played. AK does the same. You might think I'm prejudiced towards AK because I'm an ex jock from NKy, too, but the truth is, that's how we were taught to play sports growing up over there. Put your head down, grind it out, no quitting, play your hardest, play your best, don't gripe if you lose, instead work harder to get better. Good life lessons, if you ask me.
Good luck to X going forward. They definitely gotta start shooting free throws better. I think the longer they stay in the tourney, the more they'll settle down and be really, really tough. Sean mentioned it after both games, that they need to continue shaking off the jitters. Texas is a tall order, but they can be had. Great tournament so far. I haven't lost a penny yet on the games, either. I locked my wallet in the safe before it started. I may look stupid, but I aint dumb.😀
The Gods are trying to tell me something. When sports betting became legal I joined one of the betting sites and was given $200 in betting money for making a $10 deposit. Three unbelievable episodes of bad luck were to follow.
My team was getting 10.5 points and with those points I was up 12 with 10 seconds and had the ball. My team shoots and misses with about 4 seconds left. There is a scramble for the ball as time is running out. The ref blows his whistle and the buzzer goes off to end the game. The announcers think it is a jump ball but the ref calls a foul on my team. The refs then go over to the monitor to determine if the game is over. Unbelievably they determine that there is 4/10 of a second left. So the guy on the other team goes down to shoot two meaningless free throws and of course makes them both and I lose by 1/2 of a point.
I bet Colby Jones and Nunge, for X, would each score at least 11 points and Souley Boum would score at least 16. Jones and Nunge have their total by half but Boum, Xavier’s leading scorer has no points at the half. In the second half through free throws and making a few shots he has finally gotten to 14 points. Pittsburg is fouling to catch up and just about ever time they throw the ball to Boum, who shoots about 85% from the free throw line, he, for some unknown reason, passes to someone else. On the final play of the game Pittsburg misses, Xavier gets the rebound pitches it over the defense to Boum who streaks over the mid-court line, headed for an uncontested layup and at the last second pulls up and lets the time run out. I lose by a point and a half. (I guess it serves me right being a Bearcat fan and betting on Xavier!)
3. The third is the most painful of all. I’m betting on Gonzaga giving 4 1/2 points. I have this one won. The Zags are up 6 with 7/10 of a second left. TCU rolls the ball up the court as one TCU player follows it. The Gonzaga players are celebrating their win. The ball rolls to the mid-court line and keeps slowly rolling. The clock doesn’t start un till someone touches it. Finally the TCU player picked it up right before he gets to the three point line and shoots it and makes the 3. I lose once again, this time by 1.5 points. I couldn’t make this up.
The Shaw Family and I made our quasi-annual pilgrimage from Swamplandia back to Ohio to visit family/friends over the Shaw Kids' Spring Break.
We stopped in at the XU All For One Store on our way through to buy t-shirts for the kids (because the only shirts available at Meijer and WalMart were UK, Louisville, and the Reds).
Shaw Kid #4 was concerned.
SK4: Shouldn't we get some Reds shirts, too?
SK3: Why?
And that was that.
We pulled into a Chili's in Southern Georgia to watch some of the games and grab some dinner Thursday evening on our way home.
Naturally, the geniuses at Chili's were.playing NCAA Wrestling and, try as they might, could not figure out how to change the channel.
SK2: OK, Boomers.
Chilli's: I'm only 17!
SK2: stil...
We frantically updated the Purdue traveshamockery whike we waited for our food, and quickly made friends with fellow travelers at other tables who, unenthralled with the joys of collegiate wrestling, did the same thing as us.
The room was raucous. It was alive. 15-20 people screaming about a game none of us could see.
When it ended, we all smiled, exclaimed how much we love this time of year, and went our separate ways.
The next day, we all donned our X gear (even though I'm a UC grad) except for SK4, who wore a black t-shirt with "Joy Voto" spelled out in duct tape on the back, and watched the Musketeers hold on against Kennesaw.
We did the same against pit, except the last "O" had falled off SK4's shirt. I'm sure Joy Vot didn't mind.
We're all back at work/school now, but Spring break was fun. The Tournament always makes it fun.
What a great weekend! I'd expect no less, but it is amazing nonetheless.
A major aspect of MM coverage that has not been widely addressed/appreciated is increased staggering of start times that came when it went to a multi-channel format. It wasn't always like that. The first days had slight staggering so you could see the very ends of multiple games in the same general time slot, but overall there was tons of overlap. I assume this is where the ritual of posting up at an establishment with banks of TVs originated. The worst part of the old format was the dreaded break around dinner time for the nightly news between the afternoon and evening sessions. Nothing more heart wrenching than having it to break it to the beer/adrenaline addled hoops junkie that he has to wait 2 hours for the next game to start ::bar clears out::
The brass got wise though--Now it is a continuous stream throughout the day. Games are happening simultaneously, but staggered enough to not just catch the last minute, but to focus on the final 10 minutes without missing much of other games. Brilliant and much appreciated.
I didn't get to see as much of the Madness as I would have liked - isn't it a shame when real life gets in the way of fun? - but what I did see was excellent. Watched XU yesterday at my sister's place with her, my BIL and nephews. At one point she's yelling "C'mon, Brad. Yes!" when Kunkel hit a three. Brad? Are you cheering for Brad ... Redford ... maybe? About a decade late sis, but love where your heart is.
Saw some of the women's tourney Saturday (RIP 12th-seeded Drake Bulldogs, where my cousin's middle child plays; they fell to five-seed Louisville by a bucket). Learned of a pair of twins at Miami (the U, not Oxford) who are already NIL millionaires with clothing and makeup deals because they have ever how many tiktok followers and are "influencers." Pretty sure the only thing they'd influence me to do - off the court - is turn the channel. But good for them. Who would have guessed that even would have been possible 10 years ago?
I said the same thing about Westwood 1's coverage of this past weekend's March Madness...I cannot even tell what happened because the announcers are screaming incoherently!
Mar 20, 2023·edited Mar 20, 2023Liked by Paul Daugherty
March Madness is community theater compared to the World Cup. The only reason I watch the tournament is to play Barkley Ball with lifelong friends. Have you played it?
Barkley Ball involves two pints of beer; one to drink and one in the bullpen. If Charles Barkley says, “They turrible (terrible)” or “(H)ey, (H)ey, (H)ey” during his commentary, you drain the bullpen beer. What day was it that he said one or the other seven different times? The first person to bow out pays the very considerable bar tab.
Drew Timme is one dude who refuses not to live his best life. He wears a t-shirt, pajama pants, and Uggs house shoe slippers to class every day. Anyone own men’s Uggs slippers? No? You should. They are the most comfortable winter house shoes money can buy and often on sale for less than fifty bucks. Would I wear them outside? Hell no…but…inside? Oh, yeah…I’ve had my recent pair for 11 years. Go ahead and make fun of me now but thank me later when you buy a pair to fleece your feet.
4 days of ultimate drama and physicality. At least one player had a cut under his eye- basketball a non contact sport? Ha!
Seems to me more players this year we’re tripping and falling onto the floor. Flopping? Some, but mostly the physicality has been turned up a notch. I’d prefer the players not knocking each other down.
A great 4 days . Now, a few days break from the commercials on a loop.
As a Kentucky fan from cradle to the grave (hopefully later than sooner), I am ready for Coach Cal to retire or do what most coaches do, move on to another gig.
X plays a great brand of ball. They pass better than any other team I saw this weekend. It was a thrill to watch their two games. Even without one of their best players, they looked great. I don't know if they can beat Texas, but I will enjoy watching them play.
The “upsets” bring forth more than their fair share of the Madness. Furman beating VA, Princeton, FDU of course and now FL Atlantic, St. Mary’s.
I have been a fan of Tom Izzo for decades. Your description of him is entertaining and spot on, seemingly a truly humble man that is very good at his trade. Agree on FDU’s coach as well.
Aren't ya'all glad I suggested Purdue? If maybe that got you to turn it on and watch FDU play like a pack of Super Mouse's offspring! What a fun game that was! I need their energy drink, for sure.
Purdue got really lazy and just kept playing the same while they were outscrambled and surrounded at both ends of the arena at once. Just goes to show, you can't just lay back and wait for your big guy to put in all the points for you. Was sorry to see FDU fail the second round, but even then, they never gave up their spark...just got over defensed at the end. I love these games, just to see the best of the best. Three pointers and free shots win the big ones in my estimation. It's definitely a TEAM effort. All guys need to contribute to make it to the final four.
Xavier put themselves in a position to win with stepped-up D and started to make the same baskets they'd missed earlier, while Kennesaw St started to miss the same baskets they'd made earlier. Putting yourself in a position to win - by first coming back from a 16pt deficit - to 'will to win' in the last 3-4 minutes...Xavier WON a game they deserved to win.
I have an Bengal buddy engineer friend who is addicted to "the 5o6 board' discussion forum where they natter on about % of NFL market game coverages % composites of all time USA demo records and trends and make predictions ... and also kibbitz political topics, like which sportz media talking heads shine or suck out loud the most. He's always guessing who's an industry insider from some only backstage info scoop they would cite or reveal. Not everyone can be a Charlie Jones or Marv or Kenny Albert. He can't stand this or that guy so we try to sync up with Keels & Lapham watching. He will reminisce over some grudge comment color man Trent Green in broadcast said about the Bengals in 2o18 😆
Reading TML for years, I am amused with Doc's criticism of certain announcers. I tune almost all of them out. They clearly get on his nerves, I wonder why?
Re; Coach Cal:
One-&-Dunners are not in college to showcase their teamwork skills or grow their game. They're there to impress scouts by having one big year, a freshman year no less, and then signing a big contract. That implies trouble by its very nature. It worked nicely for a while when Cal was loading up on all the best of these guys, but when Duke and Kansas and other big time schools started going after them, suddenly the best of the best aren't at UK anymore. Starting over every year and depending on freshmen takes a huge toll. You gotta coach the mistakes out of them by tournament time. That's hard to begin with: at UK it's a major pressure cooker deal. Cal looks burned out, Seems likely he steps aside soon; he sounds really tired. Like Jay Wright, he won't miss it a bit, either. UK is not a fun place to be head coach. You are King there, yes, but it is a tortuous form of royalty and the peasants call for your head almost every year, even after you've beaten back every foreign and domestic threat year after year. To paraphrase an old Tarzan movie, the natives are perpetually restless.
I was watching XU slay dragons I couldn't help but wonder was any credit being given to Sean Miller's predecessor who I assume recruited this team and was then unceremoniously hustled out of town?
It was noted in some media post that SM had taken charge of the program one year and a day before.
Duke and NC are in coaching transitions right now. They'll be back soon enough hogging the spotlight, in a year or two when the transition is finished.
Finally figured out how to describe Adam Kunkel. He's X's Pete Rose. He's a gritty, scrappy, working class guy with a genius understanding of the game he plays. Just like Pete. Not the quickest, most talented guy out there, but the hardest-working and the hardest-nosed. Never takes a play off. Sees the whole floor better than anybody else on his team. Constantly talking, floor coaching, reminding guys what to do, keeping everybody loose. Quick to smile, quick to react, has fun playing. Guys play their best when they have a guy like that on their team. Pete made everyone around him better wherever he played. AK does the same. You might think I'm prejudiced towards AK because I'm an ex jock from NKy, too, but the truth is, that's how we were taught to play sports growing up over there. Put your head down, grind it out, no quitting, play your hardest, play your best, don't gripe if you lose, instead work harder to get better. Good life lessons, if you ask me.
Good luck to X going forward. They definitely gotta start shooting free throws better. I think the longer they stay in the tourney, the more they'll settle down and be really, really tough. Sean mentioned it after both games, that they need to continue shaking off the jitters. Texas is a tall order, but they can be had. Great tournament so far. I haven't lost a penny yet on the games, either. I locked my wallet in the safe before it started. I may look stupid, but I aint dumb.😀
The Gods are trying to tell me something. When sports betting became legal I joined one of the betting sites and was given $200 in betting money for making a $10 deposit. Three unbelievable episodes of bad luck were to follow.
My team was getting 10.5 points and with those points I was up 12 with 10 seconds and had the ball. My team shoots and misses with about 4 seconds left. There is a scramble for the ball as time is running out. The ref blows his whistle and the buzzer goes off to end the game. The announcers think it is a jump ball but the ref calls a foul on my team. The refs then go over to the monitor to determine if the game is over. Unbelievably they determine that there is 4/10 of a second left. So the guy on the other team goes down to shoot two meaningless free throws and of course makes them both and I lose by 1/2 of a point.
I bet Colby Jones and Nunge, for X, would each score at least 11 points and Souley Boum would score at least 16. Jones and Nunge have their total by half but Boum, Xavier’s leading scorer has no points at the half. In the second half through free throws and making a few shots he has finally gotten to 14 points. Pittsburg is fouling to catch up and just about ever time they throw the ball to Boum, who shoots about 85% from the free throw line, he, for some unknown reason, passes to someone else. On the final play of the game Pittsburg misses, Xavier gets the rebound pitches it over the defense to Boum who streaks over the mid-court line, headed for an uncontested layup and at the last second pulls up and lets the time run out. I lose by a point and a half. (I guess it serves me right being a Bearcat fan and betting on Xavier!)
3. The third is the most painful of all. I’m betting on Gonzaga giving 4 1/2 points. I have this one won. The Zags are up 6 with 7/10 of a second left. TCU rolls the ball up the court as one TCU player follows it. The Gonzaga players are celebrating their win. The ball rolls to the mid-court line and keeps slowly rolling. The clock doesn’t start un till someone touches it. Finally the TCU player picked it up right before he gets to the three point line and shoots it and makes the 3. I lose once again, this time by 1.5 points. I couldn’t make this up.
The Shaw Family and I made our quasi-annual pilgrimage from Swamplandia back to Ohio to visit family/friends over the Shaw Kids' Spring Break.
We stopped in at the XU All For One Store on our way through to buy t-shirts for the kids (because the only shirts available at Meijer and WalMart were UK, Louisville, and the Reds).
Shaw Kid #4 was concerned.
SK4: Shouldn't we get some Reds shirts, too?
SK3: Why?
And that was that.
We pulled into a Chili's in Southern Georgia to watch some of the games and grab some dinner Thursday evening on our way home.
Naturally, the geniuses at Chili's were.playing NCAA Wrestling and, try as they might, could not figure out how to change the channel.
SK2: OK, Boomers.
Chilli's: I'm only 17!
SK2: stil...
We frantically updated the Purdue traveshamockery whike we waited for our food, and quickly made friends with fellow travelers at other tables who, unenthralled with the joys of collegiate wrestling, did the same thing as us.
The room was raucous. It was alive. 15-20 people screaming about a game none of us could see.
When it ended, we all smiled, exclaimed how much we love this time of year, and went our separate ways.
The next day, we all donned our X gear (even though I'm a UC grad) except for SK4, who wore a black t-shirt with "Joy Voto" spelled out in duct tape on the back, and watched the Musketeers hold on against Kennesaw.
We did the same against pit, except the last "O" had falled off SK4's shirt. I'm sure Joy Vot didn't mind.
We're all back at work/school now, but Spring break was fun. The Tournament always makes it fun.
We love this time of year!
What a great weekend! I'd expect no less, but it is amazing nonetheless.
A major aspect of MM coverage that has not been widely addressed/appreciated is increased staggering of start times that came when it went to a multi-channel format. It wasn't always like that. The first days had slight staggering so you could see the very ends of multiple games in the same general time slot, but overall there was tons of overlap. I assume this is where the ritual of posting up at an establishment with banks of TVs originated. The worst part of the old format was the dreaded break around dinner time for the nightly news between the afternoon and evening sessions. Nothing more heart wrenching than having it to break it to the beer/adrenaline addled hoops junkie that he has to wait 2 hours for the next game to start ::bar clears out::
The brass got wise though--Now it is a continuous stream throughout the day. Games are happening simultaneously, but staggered enough to not just catch the last minute, but to focus on the final 10 minutes without missing much of other games. Brilliant and much appreciated.
I didn't get to see as much of the Madness as I would have liked - isn't it a shame when real life gets in the way of fun? - but what I did see was excellent. Watched XU yesterday at my sister's place with her, my BIL and nephews. At one point she's yelling "C'mon, Brad. Yes!" when Kunkel hit a three. Brad? Are you cheering for Brad ... Redford ... maybe? About a decade late sis, but love where your heart is.
Saw some of the women's tourney Saturday (RIP 12th-seeded Drake Bulldogs, where my cousin's middle child plays; they fell to five-seed Louisville by a bucket). Learned of a pair of twins at Miami (the U, not Oxford) who are already NIL millionaires with clothing and makeup deals because they have ever how many tiktok followers and are "influencers." Pretty sure the only thing they'd influence me to do - off the court - is turn the channel. But good for them. Who would have guessed that even would have been possible 10 years ago?
I said the same thing about Westwood 1's coverage of this past weekend's March Madness...I cannot even tell what happened because the announcers are screaming incoherently!
March Madness is community theater compared to the World Cup. The only reason I watch the tournament is to play Barkley Ball with lifelong friends. Have you played it?
Barkley Ball involves two pints of beer; one to drink and one in the bullpen. If Charles Barkley says, “They turrible (terrible)” or “(H)ey, (H)ey, (H)ey” during his commentary, you drain the bullpen beer. What day was it that he said one or the other seven different times? The first person to bow out pays the very considerable bar tab.
Drew Timme is one dude who refuses not to live his best life. He wears a t-shirt, pajama pants, and Uggs house shoe slippers to class every day. Anyone own men’s Uggs slippers? No? You should. They are the most comfortable winter house shoes money can buy and often on sale for less than fifty bucks. Would I wear them outside? Hell no…but…inside? Oh, yeah…I’ve had my recent pair for 11 years. Go ahead and make fun of me now but thank me later when you buy a pair to fleece your feet.
4 days of ultimate drama and physicality. At least one player had a cut under his eye- basketball a non contact sport? Ha!
Seems to me more players this year we’re tripping and falling onto the floor. Flopping? Some, but mostly the physicality has been turned up a notch. I’d prefer the players not knocking each other down.
A great 4 days . Now, a few days break from the commercials on a loop.
As a Kentucky fan from cradle to the grave (hopefully later than sooner), I am ready for Coach Cal to retire or do what most coaches do, move on to another gig.
X plays a great brand of ball. They pass better than any other team I saw this weekend. It was a thrill to watch their two games. Even without one of their best players, they looked great. I don't know if they can beat Texas, but I will enjoy watching them play.
The “upsets” bring forth more than their fair share of the Madness. Furman beating VA, Princeton, FDU of course and now FL Atlantic, St. Mary’s.
I have been a fan of Tom Izzo for decades. Your description of him is entertaining and spot on, seemingly a truly humble man that is very good at his trade. Agree on FDU’s coach as well.
Aren't ya'all glad I suggested Purdue? If maybe that got you to turn it on and watch FDU play like a pack of Super Mouse's offspring! What a fun game that was! I need their energy drink, for sure.
Purdue got really lazy and just kept playing the same while they were outscrambled and surrounded at both ends of the arena at once. Just goes to show, you can't just lay back and wait for your big guy to put in all the points for you. Was sorry to see FDU fail the second round, but even then, they never gave up their spark...just got over defensed at the end. I love these games, just to see the best of the best. Three pointers and free shots win the big ones in my estimation. It's definitely a TEAM effort. All guys need to contribute to make it to the final four.
Xavier put themselves in a position to win with stepped-up D and started to make the same baskets they'd missed earlier, while Kennesaw St started to miss the same baskets they'd made earlier. Putting yourself in a position to win - by first coming back from a 16pt deficit - to 'will to win' in the last 3-4 minutes...Xavier WON a game they deserved to win.