March 25, 2013

Weekend Roundup: Beaming Edition 3-25-13

March 25, 2013/ The Webmaster

Players develop. They start chubby, winded after a few minutes of going up and down the court. But they grow up, get tougher, drop the Freshman 15. Sometimes it takes four years. Sometimes you think it's never going to happen, and there's 50 cheeseburgers in the way. Sometimes it happens overnight, and it can be really special if that night is the night before the 3rd (2nd dude, c'mon) round of the NCAA tournament.

Mitch McGary has arrived at the perfect time. He's a leader. He's exciting and excitable. He is willing this team to success in ways the strong silent killer that is Trey Burke can't.

I thought I remembered what it was like to make it to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament, but I guess I don't. I would have never thought it was my senior year of high school the last time we made it this far. Nearly 20 years later, and I feel like a kid again. I'm happy to say I couldn't give a shit about my bracket.

Speaking of the brackets, kudos to the group as a whole as only 6 of the 108 participants lost their champion in the first weekend. That's about as good as it gets after the unceremonious removal of 48 of the 64. Congrats to my old buddy Steve Watters who holds a 2 point lead on the field.

A quick roundup of the internets from the weekend:

Michigan Breezes Past VCU - ESPN
Michigan is Going to the Sweet Sixteen - Maize N Brew
UMHoops game recap
Forgot About Trey - MGoBlog
Trey is a Naismith Award Finalist - UMHoops
Hockey Won on Saturday...then lost on Sunday ending a streak that is not likely to be repeated
A somewhat cool reseeding of the sweet sixteen that has Michigan #2 behind Louisville. - ESPN
Tubby Has Been Fired - The Daily Gopher
The Michigan Women's team won on Sunday, and looks to upset #1 Stanford on Tuesday. - Oakland Press

March 22, 2013

Jackrabbits Thwarted, Madness Takes Down 9 Brackets

March 22, 2013/ The Webmaster

A good box-score victory for the Wolverines, and lots of chalk for a day one. The big upset didn't come until it was technically day two (on the East coast). But old friend Tommy Ammaker and his band of tuition paying dorks managed to knock off New Mexico and put a red 'X' a final four team for 9 of the 108 participants in the 2013 UMTailgate.com tournament challenge.

Pretty good day overall though....nobody lost a champion, or even a semi-finalist. That's a very collectively successful first day of the tournament, so kudos to you all.

Note that the following links will work for participants only, but Steve Watters, Patrick Higgins, CJ King, Digger's Green Highlighter, and Allison Kopf are all sitting pretty with 14 points, missing only 2 on day one. Respectable.

On with the madness...

March 20, 2013

2013 UMTailgate.com Tournament Challenge...Less Than 24 Hours Until Tipoff

March 20, 2013/ The Webmaster

You could spend the rest of the day crying in your beer about Jake Ryan and his torn Achilles, or you could just channel your sadness into working on the madness.

There's less than 24-hours until the tourney begins, so get your bracket and your *ahem* donation in soon. The bracket is here.

Don't have the password? Send an email to tourney2k13@umtailgate.com to see if you are worthy.

March 18, 2013

Weekend Roundup, NCAA Tournament Home Game Edition: 3/18/13

March 18, 2013/ The Webmaster

Note: The 13th Annual UMTailgate.com Tournament Challenge is ON. Brackets are here. Don't have the password and think you deserve it? Shoot an email to tourney2k13@umtailgate.com.

For most of the life of this waste of internet space from which I randomly spout snarky bullshit, the Michigan Men's Basketball Team has not been in the conversation for NCAA tournament glory. It would be around this time of year that we would grasp at football spring practice videos, recruiting rankings, and organizing some kind of winter reunion. Not so any more. Michigan is alive and well in the world of college basketball, and has earned the right to not only play in the NCAA tournament, but also host the opening rounds in its backyard. This is fun. It's fun to care. It's fun to really get involved in the tourney, to have a rooting interest beyond your office bracket. Hoping your team won't make an early round exit, dreaming of Atlanta, and rooting for schools that you have never heard of with mascots you can't picture to upset your rivals on the big stage. (Consequently, Go Crusaders!) Going home at lunch on Thursday if only to catch the first moments of the tourney, butterflies in your stomach as you hear the CBS college basketball jingle, quelled only by the desire to punch Buckeye-lover Clark Kellogg in the face.

Ahhhhh...tourney time.

Anyway, here's the weekend that was around the internets that you missed while you were trying to convince yourself that losing early in the conference tournament provides much needed rest for the big dance....

Greg Mattison signed an extension through 2016, and you may safely assume that he continues to be, along with The Waterboy, the highest paid assistant in the B1G.
Northwestern has fired Bill Carmody after 13 years of faithful service.
Michigan fell to Wisconsin on Friday in the Big Ten Tournament, UMHoops recaps.
The football team has pads on and is running into each other and throwing around a football.......SPRING PRACTICE!!!!! Day one video and some analysis by MNBN.
Gophers are an 11 seed and will face UCLA.
Iowa is NIT bound
Purdue is dancing...in the CBI
Wonderful opening week tourney primer from UMHoops.
Black Shoe Diaries lives vicariously through this nice roundup of Big Ten teams in the tourney.
Jake Long has signed with the St. Louis Rams.
Times and dates and announcers for the Thursday / Friday matchups. Of note, we've got Lundquist/Raftery/Nichols this weekend.
Michigan Hockey is still alive after sweeping the Broncos in Kalamazoo, and will head to the Joe for the semis.

March 15, 2013

What's Up This Weekend? Relaxing St. Patrick's Selection Sunday Edition

March 15, 2013/ The Webmaster

Selection Sunday is upon us. And OF COURSE there will be a 13th (!?!?) annual UMTailgate.com Tournament Challenge.

There will be no nail-biting anticipation. There's no question, we're in. But we need to get this whole Big Ten Tournament thing out of the way first, right? I was inclined to vote for tanking it and having the boys enjoy a full week off, but yesterday's second half against The Fighting Sanduskys (classless? yup) made me feel better about the tank-job on Sunday (which I paid about $100 to watch over 3G in Columbia). Maybe the BTT can be used to wipe the poor taste from our mouths left from Sunday, or that other PSU game, or the definitively poor last quarter of the season.

A'ight? A'ight.

Today (3/15/13):

Basketball (26-6, 12-6) vs. Wisconsin (21-10, 12-6): And you thought we wouldn't get to avenge that half-court shot that sent the game to that shitty overtime at the Kohl center. Big Ten Tournament Round Two Action tips off at the United Center at 2:30PM -ESPN.
Baseball (8-7) at Coastal Carolina (7-10): We're heading to the home of the Chanticleers! First pitch in Myrtle Beach at 4pm. Live audio lives here.
Hockey (15-18-3, 9-15-3) at Western Michigan (19-9-8, 15-7-6): CCHA quarterfinals action in Kalamazoo. I wonder if the Godfather is going? I wonder who he will be cheering for? 6:35pm on FSD.
Big Ten Tournament Other Games: Game 5: No. 1 Indiana vs. No. 8 Illinois, 11 a.m., ESPN || Game 7: No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Nebraska, 5:30 p.m., BTN || Game 8: No. 3 Michigan State vs. No. 6 Iowa, 8 p.m.*, BTN

Tomorrow (3/16/13):

Basketball vs. Indiana or Illinois: The Big Ten Tournament continues? 12:40PM CBS
Other BTT Semi-Final: Ohio State or Nebraska vs. Iowa (see what I did there?) 3:00PM CBS
Baseball at Coastal Carolina: 3pm Live Audio
Hockey at Western Michigan: Game 2 of the CCHA quarterfinals 7pm...no coverage?

St. Patrick's Day: