In my college days at San Diego State University, one thing that was drilled into my skull is that less is more. Make your points and move on. While it is true that rambling on for hours upon hours makes you look good if you're getting paid by the word, that practice is pretty much finito. These days, readers want quick explanations so they can get on with their lives.
Insert Twitter, which spread like swine flu. With it, you could find out where your best friend spends their weekend as well as the top stories on the Huffington Post. (Subscribe to their feed. It's amazing. And I'm not just sayin' that because I contribute.)
Since Sunday night, some of the biggest Twitter topics include the NCAA tournament (when Chelsea King or Corey Haim aren't mentioned, of course). Some of the links were to these long drawn out columns where some sports writers went on for way more paragraphs then they needed to. I'm here to help. Breaking down each game in each round during the tournament, Twitter style (140 characters or less) for those that want a quick comment and move on.
(P.S. If you would like to know who is in my bracket to win the whole way, kindly comment, and I will answer.)
MIDWEST
#1 Kansas/#16 Lehigh: Kinda surprised Vermont wasn't the #16 seed in the "Let's screw Kansas as much as possible" bracket. It's only Lehigh, so 'Hawks fans relax.
#8 UNLV/#9 Northern Iowa: N-Iowa's Ahelegbe has had six games with 5 or more turnovers. Me no likey dat stat in the tournament. Willis bounces back & UNLV wins easy.
#5 Michigan St./#12 New Mexico St.: Tom Izzo vs. a guy making his NCAA debut. Need I say more? (By the way, meet Michigan St: 1 of 4 teams in this bracket that can beat Kansas.)
#4 Maryland/#13 Houston: Dear NBA scouts, meet Maryland's Greivis Vasquez, one of the hottest names in the ACC. If he gets hot, enjoy the Maryland/Michigan St. game.
#6 Tennessee/#11 San Diego State: Aztecs are an upset special, but my alma mater has the tourney's worst team FT%. Makes it hard to pick against Tennessee in a close game.
#3 Georgetown/#14 Ohio: If this was Ohio STATE, it'd be a different story. G-town may be too inconsistent to go all the way, but they'll win game 1 vs. the Bobcats.
#7 Oklahoma State/#10 Georgia Tech: Yellow Jackets stinging Cowboys. Oklahoma St. lacks depth, defense and the size down low to contend with Tech's Favors and Lawal.
#2 Ohio State/#15 UC Santa Barbara: Turner reeks of Carmelo Anthony circa 2003. Led O-State in PTS, REBs, ASTs & STLs the last two seasons and is that kind of "take over" talent.
WEST
#1 Syracuse/#16 Vermont: Remember 2005? My fault. Didn't mean to scare Orange fans with the possibility they could lose this game. They won't.
#8 Gonzaga/#9 Florida State: Seminole offense is a question wrapped in a riddle wrapped in an enigma. Gonzaga's offense with Bouldin is not.
#5 Butler/#12 UTEP: Would've loved to see UTEP in the Midwest vs. #5 Mich. State. With Culpepper (18 PPG) and Caracter (13/8), UTEP wins.
#4 Vanderbilt/#13 Murray State: With Ogilvy, Vandy has the kind of big man you need in the half-court sets to slow the Racers down.
#6 Xavier/#11 Minnesota: I'm big on coaching in the tournament (Mack's first trip), but I'm also big on guard play in the tournament which is why Xavier wins with Crawford.
#3 Pittsburgh/#14 Oakland: Thought this was Oakland, CA for a second. Not that it matters. Big East vs. low-level major... Easy choice. Pitt.
#7 BYU/#10 Florida: I really wish I could pick Florida in this game, but I can't. Florida only shoots 32% from 3, and BYU's Fredette does better than that by himself (45%).
#2 Kansas State/#15 North Texas: 5 NTex ball handlers have bad AST/TO ratios. That doesn't bode well when Kansas State is solid defensively.
EAST
#1 Kentucky/#16 East Tennessee St.: John Wall begins his path to becoming the #1 overall pick in April with this tune-up game.
#8 Texas/#9 Wake Forest: As disappointing as Texas has been this year, Wake has lost 5 of 6 including a 21-point blowout loss to Miami in the ACC Tourney.
#5 Temple/#12 Cornell: Brooks & Fernandez are 3PT assassins. That and the #3 defense helps when you're up against the #1 3PT shooting team in the tourney.
#4 Wisconsin/#13 Wofford: Why do I like Wofford? They run 10-deep legitimately, take care of the ball, and they hung close with other Big10 teams (Illinois & M-St).
#6 Marquette/#11 Washington: Marq. is my only Big East pick not winning in the 1st Rd. Eagles have no one over 6'6" and Huskies Pondexter is a double/double threat.
#3 New Mexico/#14 Montana: Hobson needs the tourney to prove to scouts, so he'll play well. UNM's lack of size might scare you, but Montana has no talented bigs.
#7 Clemson/#10 Missouri: How I picked this game? Heads Clem. Tails Mizzou. Landed tails. Honestly, Mizzou has more guys that can get double digit points. That's it.
#2 West Virginia/#15 Morgan St.: Dangerous duo of Butler (17 PPG/6 RPG) and Jones (13 PPG/7 RPG/50% FG) can keep Mountaineers going for a while... starting now.
SOUTH
#1 Duke/#16b Arkansas-PB: A-PB wins ... so they can get blown out by Duke by at least 30. Can I say how much I HATE the play-in game.
#8 California/#9 Louisville: Even if L'ville was 9th best in the Big East, I'd still pick them. Never bet against Rick Pitino. 'Cuse fans did that twice & what happened?
#5 Texas A&M/#12 Utah State: Got upset? A team that shoots 40% from 3 and commits only 11 turnovers/game (Utah St) can be deadly. U-St. loves the #12 seed. Remember '01?
#4 Purdue/#13 Siena: Siena upset Ohio State last year and Vanderbilt two years ago. With Robbie Hummel out for Purdue, make it a three-peat.
#6 Notre Dame/#11 Old Dominion: Notre Dame has a dominant big man AND starting senior guards. Check please!
#3 Baylor/#14 Sam Houston State: The Bears have 21 feet of dude in their front court (Lomers, Jones, Udoh). Neither coach has won a tourney game, but Baylor is just better..
#7 Richmond/#10 Saint Mary's: If defense wins championships, how can I not bet on a team who has 3 guys (Anderson, Gonzalvez and Butler) with 50 steals each this season?
#2 Villanova/#15 Robert Morris: After what Scottie Reynolds did vs. Pitt last year, I will NEVER bet against them again. At least not in the 1st Rd, anyway. Perhaps later.