NCAA Tournament Tidbits: 03.30.11
Posted by Brian Goodman on March 30th, 2011Throughout the NCAA Tournament, we’ll be providing you with the daily chatter from around the webosphere relating to what’s going on with the teams still playing.
Butler
- An interesting read about whether head coach Brad Stevens and VCU head coach Shaka Smart should stay at their respective schools or leave for a more lucrative offer. We believe that they both should stay put and continue to build on the runs their teams have gone on this season.
- Following his squad’s loss to Youngstown State on February 3, Brad Stevens received encouragement from many different people around the country. His favorite piece of encouragement came from his college coach at DePauw, Bill Fenlon.
- After missing their son’s games last weekend in New Orleans, Matt Howard‘s parents will be attending the Final Four in Houston. This was made possible by the people of their hometown, Connersville, Indiana, who graciously pitched in to help pay for the trip.
- Guard Shelvin Mack has a knack for making big plays in big games. This bodes well for the Bulldogs, as Saturday will be their biggest game of the year.
- Senior captain Zach Hahn took charge when things were not going well for the Bulldogs early in the conference season. Since then, Hahn’s leadership has led Butler both on and off the court.
Connecticut
- Jim Calhoun warns that the shine will eventually wear off of prodigious coaches like Shaka Smart and Brad Stevens. One element both coaches will have to consider in potential moves to higher-profile schools down the line is whether they want to take on the balance of increased scrutiny and higher expectations.
- The Huskies returned to campus for a couple days to recharge their batteries, but passers-by on campus are still as excited as they were on Saturday. The team arrives in Houston Wednesday night, and its rock star status can’t go to the players’ heads if they want to succeed.
- Patrick Sellers, a former UConn assistant, left the staff in the wake of the NCAA’s investigation of the program last May. Now coaching in China, Sellers remains pumped for his former employer, and, cleared by the NCAA, can seek work at the Division-I level if he wishes.
- Calhoun believes there are no great teams in college basketball this season, with which we agree, but gives a reason with which we disagree. Calhoun insists that the transience of college basketball’s top players hurts the game, but without those players, even if they only stay one season, the game would be far less interesting.
