The Legacy of Coach Nolan (ch2k8)

[nolan887]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deuce2223

Congrats on the Conference Title win. #4 Seed is solid. Can't believe Kansas is a #12 though either way you got a tough game in Round 2. Very happy to see the Pac-10 playing well and the A-10. Wow. On par with the power conferences..

Thanks. I'm going to just do my game updates until (if) I lose, and then update the whole brackets. I think it would be too much to go round by round like I did for the conference tournament.

[nolan887]

UCF HOLDS ON TO ADVANCE TO ROUND 2

#4 UCF Knights (30-3) vs. #12 Southern Utah Thunderbirds (25-7)
Cox Arena
San Diego, CA
March 20, 2014

San Diego, CA - The UCF Knights struggled the keep Southern Utah's two 7'-2" big men under control, but managed to hang on for a win in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Knights were able to keep the big men out for most of the first half and went into the half up sixteen points. However, the Thunderbirds came out hot and almost fought back in the second half. The Knights turned in a total team effort and spread the ball around all game. Seniors Kody Kleinzweig and Dominik Hill led the Knights in scoring with 13 and 12 points respectively. Since senior night in Orlando, both players have had the hot hand from the floor.

"It is always great to win in the post season," Coach Nolan commented. "Southern Utah had a great season and came in hot off their Summit League conference tournament win. I can't believe they have two guys down low that are both 7'-2" tall and we haven't heard about them all season! They were definitely a match-up nightmare for us. Mainly the reason Kody could only get 13 points today, which is way down from his season average. We look forward to finding out who we get in round two which is either Texas A&M or Kansas."

The Texas A&M Aggies are coming into the tournament hot off of their Big 12 conference tournament win. The Aggies also cracked the top 25 for the first time after their tournament win. At the end of the season, the Aggies were ranked #22 in the nation. Kansas on the other hand sputtered down the stretch and ended up as a bubble team and one of the last five teams in. The Jayhawks are rated higher than the Aggies, but A&M is ranked as a 5 seed and Kansas is a 12. 12-5 match ups are prone to upsets in the tournament, but UCF would likely have an easier game if the Aggies pulled through. Either way, the Knights' next game will be held on Saturday, March 22.

Southern Utah at Central Florida
March 20, 2014 1 2 F #13 Southern Utah 24 35 59 #4 Central Florida 40 26 66 Top Performers Southern Utah - Stats Pete Clement - 13 Pts, 2 Reb, 1 Stl Cliffone Welch - 10 Pts, 9 reb, 2 Ast, 2 Blk Central Florida - Stats Kody Kleinzweig - 13 Pts, 7 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl Dominik Hill - 12 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast	Team Stat Comparison SUU UCF FG Made-Attempted 22-51 22-59 3P Made-Attempted 5-14 0-5 FT Made-Attempted 10-12 22-33 Rebounds 32 36 Assists 16 12 Steals 2 10 Blocks 3 1 Turnovers 14 3

[nolan887]

ROUND 1 UPDATE: SO FAR, SO GOOD

March 21, 2014

The opening round concluded today and the Round 2 games will be held tomorrow, Saturday, March 22 and Sunday, March 23. The top four seeds from each region escaped upsets and the highest seed to lose their first game was #5 Texas A&M who lost to #12 Kentucky. Kentucky, who went cold down the stretch of the regular season made it into the tournament with an at large bid. Their match up in round two is against a hot UCF team who has not lost a game since January 15th. During their hot streak, they have twice knocked off the Memphis Tigers, ranked #9 in the nation and a #3 seed in the tournament. Kansas will have to contain Kody Kleinzweig, UCF's 7'-0" big man down low who has been a dominant force all year for the Knights.

[nolan887]

UCF'S MIRACLE SEASON COMES TO A CRASHING HALT

#4 UCF Knights 30-4 at #12 Kansas Jayhawks 24-12
Cox Arena
San Diego, CA
March 22, 2014

San Diego, CA - The Kansas Jayhawks were simply too much for the UCF Knights to handle tonight. Coach Nolan coached the Knights to his first ever 30 win season this year, and took the Knights from the bottom to the top of the conference in his first season as head coach, but was helpless against a hot Kansas team on this night. Kansas jumped out to a quick 12-2 lead before the Knights spurred a 13-0 run making the score 15-12. After this point, the Knights would not see the lead for the rest of the game. Fouls plagued the entire starting lineup and forced J.J. Bone, Dominik Hill, and Pearson Shannon to sit almost ten minutes of the first half. The Knights went on a run to close out the first half and cut the lead from as much as 18 points to just 8 going into the break. Coming out of the half, the Knights were playing inspired basketball with their starters back in, but costly foul mistakes took them right back out of the game. UCF would struggle to stay in the game at all and went on a run at the end of the game to make the final score only a ten point loss. Although the only lost by ten points, the Knights were outplayed and out-coached the entire length of the game. Coach Nolan, who only signed a one year deal with the club, will likely be offered a contract extension in the near future.

"I'm not even thinking about next year right now," a disappointed and angry Nolan commented. "We played like absolute garbage today. I tell them not to foul, they foul. I tell them to play smart, they foul. I tell them to sit down on the bench, they foul. It is such a shame that our great season ended so poorly. The team that played today in our uniforms was not the team I have been coaching all season. Yea, it is great to just make the tournament, but this group of guys had enough potential to make a deep run in the tournament, but just cashed it in. I am very disappointed in our play today. It's a shame that Kody in his last game was the only one who showed up to play, if I were him I would have a few things to say to my teammates in the locker room after the game."

The Jayhawk full court press was on all game and the UCF guards struggled to break it all game long. The Knights turned the ball over eighteen times, on top of that, the Jayhawks recorded seventeen steals. Many of the Jayhawks points came off of easy layups caused by steals and turnovers. Another issue for the Knights was their free throw shooting. They made it to the line for 40 shots, but were only able to convert 26 times. Also, when the Knights were fouled they did not make the basket once, so there was never an opportunity for a three point play on any of the Kansas fouls. A ray of light in an otherwise dark loss was the Knights' defense of Jelenic. The Jayhawk's senior guard Jonas Jelenic is projected to be a top pick in the upcoming NBA draft, but the Knights managed to hold him to 1-6 from the floor and 0-2 from deep. Jelenic did however cash in from the stripe shooting 8-9 from the line, ending with 10 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, and 4 steals.

Central Florida at Kansas
March 22, 2014 1 2 F #4 Central Florida 36 34 70 #12 Kansas 44 36 80 Top Performers Central Florida - Stats Kody Kleinzweig - 25 Pts, 3 Reb, 1 Ast, 2 Stl, 3 Blk Nicholas Simmons - 12 Pts, 4 Ast, 2 Stl Kansas - Stats Harold Haywood - 19 Pts, 10 Reb, 1 Stl, 1 Blk Neill Crosswhite - 11 Pts, 6 Reb, 1 Ast, 1 Stl	Team Stat Comparison UCF KU FG Made-Attempted 22-54 28-59 3P Made-Attempted 0-6 3-13 FT Made-Attempted 26-40 21-31 Rebounds 25 36 Assists 11 15 Steals 15 17 Blocks 3 3 Turnovers 18 23

[nolan887]

ROUND 2 UPDATE: TICKETS PUNCHED TO SWEET SIXTEEN
March 23, 2014

The second round of the NCAA tournament concluded today. The Sweeet Sixteen games will be held next Thursday and Friday, March 27 & 28 and the Elite Eight games will follow on Saturday and Sunday, March 29 & 30. This year's tournament is somewhat bland as there were not many upsets in the first weekend. The lowest seeds continuing on to the Sweet Sixteen are the #12 Kansas Jayhawks, #10 Seton Hall Pirates, #10 Oregon Ducks, and #7 Georgetown Hoyas. Although these teams have lower seeds, they are still very powerful programs. It is interesting to note that the only mid-major team taking it's trip to the Sweet Sixteen this year is the Nevada Wolf Pack. The Wolf Pack ended the season with a conference tournament win and a #25 AP Ranking. The Wolf Pack also finished #2 in the top 25 Mid-Major poll, trailing only the Gonzaga Bulldogs, who have been eliminated. Conference USA seemed to be stepping it's game up this year with three teams making the tournament, but Houston and UCF fell off early and only the Memphis Tigers fight on to the second week of play.

[nolan887]

ROUND 3: HOW SWEET IT IS

March 28, 2014

College basketball fans around the nation are somewhat disappointed with this year's tournament. The top seeds are still dominating play, and the only low seed left fighting in the Elite Eight are the Georgetown Hoyas. All four #1 seeds are still left standing, and all four of them look to have a good chance to make the Final Four. Fans of Michigan State, USC, Arizona, and Florida may be happy, but fans of the other 343 DI basketball schools are surely bored with the tournament. The Elite Eight games will be held on Saturday and Sunday, March 29 & 30. Winners of these games will advance to the Final Four next week in hopes to play for the National Championship.

[nolan887]

ROUND 4: A ROAD SELDOM TRAVELLED, THE ROAD TO THE FINAL FOUR
March 30, 2014

Elite Eight play wrapped up this evening with all four #1 seeds advancing to the Final Four. The USC vs California game was the only game this weekend that wasnt a total blowout, but USC still acchived the eight point win in the end. A lack of buzzer beaters and upsets has many college hoops fans distrought and already looking forward to the 2015 NCAA tourney. The company secretaries and college hoops numbskulls who picked all #1 seeds in the Final Four will definately have the last laugh this year as this move is looked down upon by almost any avid hoops fan. The Final Four games will be held Saturday, April 5, and the Championship game will be held Monday Night, April 7. Can Michigan State, the overall #1 seed take home the crown? Can Florida, the SEC conference winner pull it out? Will the PAC-10 co-champion Arizona Wildcats claw their way to victory? Or will the USC Trojans slash everyone's hopes and dreams to claim the title for themselves? All of these questions will be answered next week, at the Final Four.

[nolan887]

FINAL FOUR: "UPSET" SPECIAL
April 5, 2014

The top four seeds in the tournament, in order, were (1) #1 Michigan State, (2) #1 Arizona, (3) #1 USC, and (4) #1 Florida. All four number one seeds made it into the final four games this weekend, but only two made it out. Although all teams were ranked #1, Michigan State held the edge over USC, and Arizona held the edge over Florida. In this case, both teams were "upset" in a way. The Championship game is now set in stone and the Trojans of South California will battle against the Gators of Florida. As per the normal outcomes this tournament, USC and Florida both won their games by double digit margins and for the average viewer, the games were not very exciting. Monday, April 7th will be the last game of the season, and one can only hope that the game comes down to the wire.