Win the Tournament to Make THE Tournament

Michigan Hockey and Michigan Basketball have similar goals in the next week.  They both need to win their conference tournaments in order to make the NCAA tournament.  While Michigan Basketball is trying to make it two consecutive trips to the 64-team "dance"...Michigan Hockey is attempting to continue a 19 year tradition of making the much smaller field of 16 (which was only 8 prior to 2003).  The hockey team began the CCHA tournament this weekend with a matchup against LSSU (CCHA tournament bracket here).  They dispatched of the Lakers in dominating fashion, outscoring LSSU 5-2 on Friday, and 6-0 tonight.  Hopefully carrying momentum, Michigan advances to meet Michigan State next weekend in a best of three game series at Munn in East Lansing.

Friday Linkfest

• Fool me once, shame on me.  Fool me twice....  Ben Rothlisberger has been accused of sexual assault on the back end of being sued for rape.


• Wondering where Tuesday's Wolverines were all season?  So is the Ann Arbor news.  Desperately seeking Moxie for this Sunday's game.


• Longing for tailgate food?  Smoke some meat indoors using these instructions from the LA Times.


• This year is kind of a big deal.  Maize and Blue Nation thinks it's the biggest deal ever, and writes a post about his anger with the situation, sharing the blame across regimes.


• Sporting News adds 5 players to watch to the ESPN 100 players to watch...  Denard Robinson is on the list.

Little Brother Shrinking....Big Brother Growing

​Schweet article in the Detroit News chronicles the shrinking pile of crap that is Michigan State University...

The University of Michigan and Michigan State University are separated by 60 miles and a few billion dollars.

See, we own you on the court, on the field, in the classroom, and in money makin'.  OK, 2 out of 4 ain't bad.

A Grand Finale: Michigan 83, Minnesota 55

​It took four months for this team to hit its stride, and now, the sky is the limit for the Michigan Wolverines.

I kid.  I kid.

But it's nice.  It's a nice way to send out Sims, Gibson, and Wright...and each got a chance to contribute.  Some analysts will say that we "match up well" with the Gophers, some will say we were inspired by senior night, but the truth is...our 3's fell (8-19), and there's didn't (3-16).  And in addition to the 15 point swing that the 5 extra 3's provided, it also put Michigan in rhythm.  When those shots start to go in with some kind of regularity, they tend to get back on D a little quicker, tend to rebound a little more.

We truly do live and die by it.

“A couple of shots dropped, and it was contagious,” Michigan coach John Beilein said.

Sure.  I hope it carries over into Sunday...because all we have left is beating Michigan Agricultural College.  By the way, you don't need a .500 record to make the NIT anymore, so were like in it, right?

Another question yet to be answered...was that Manny's last game in Crisler?

Weekend Roundup, Et tu Angel? Edition: March 1,2010

Here's what happened this weekend around the internets just 15 years after they thought the internets were just a fad.

I'm uneasy about this most trendy and oversold community. Visionaries see a future of telecommuting workers, interactive libraries and multimedia classrooms. They speak of electronic town meetings and virtual communities. Commerce and business will shift from offices and malls to networks and modems. And the freedom of digital networks will make government more democratic.

Baloney. Do our computer pundits lack all common sense? The truth in no online database will replace your daily newspaper, no CD-ROM can take the place of a competent teacher and no computer network will change the way government works.

That's funny.

• I'm just a wee bit surprised at this, but it seems Angel wasn't down with the Victors Rally.  She thinks it made Rodriguez out to be bigger than Michigan Football...and took umbrage with this February event.  I just don't think it was that big of a deal.  Why not have a rally?  Hell, if they rented out the Michigan Theater once a month to show old Michigan games, I'd be there.  Anything to get me through this off season.


• How do we fix this?  Let the Sporting News via MSNBC be the next to make the brilliant suggestion to WIN GAMES.


• Just couldn't resist linking the Royal Oak Daily Tribune, which says that all of the accountability lies at the feet of Rich Rodriguez.


• Tomorrow is the last game in Crisler Arena for...OK officially it's the last regular season home game for Zack Gibson, Anthony Wright, and DeShawn Sims.  They be replaced by people from this list, from UMHoops Recruiting Roundup.


• An update on Phil Brabbs's battle with cancer from our favorite embedded tailgate reporter James Dickson on AnnArbor.com.


• Hey!  Remember a few days ago when I talked about that great matchup that those bastards down south secured with Navy in Baltimore where the Ravens play.  Well, the gauntlet has been laid down, and Michigan has answered with.....wait for it.....Florida.  Nope, not that Florida.  Florida Atlantic.  The Owls.  Coming to a Big House near you in 2012.  FML.


• I've done this.


• Rittenburg, who has been writing a series on gameday traditions in the Big Ten,finally gets to the Wolverines.