The (Mighty) Ducks of Oregon

The Oregon Ducks are quietly one of the best college basketball teams in the nation.  Unlike Florida and UNC, you probably can’t name any of the starting five on the Ducks roster.  Their star player never makes the front page at ESPN.com.  In fact, he probably slipped under the radar of most NCAA Tournament analysts.  He’s 5 foot 6 inches of pure shooter, and his name is Tajuan Porter.  
 

Porter is one of those classic stories of the Rudy, Rocky and Air Bud ilk.  Everybody said he was too small, it would never happen.  Nobody recruited him, nobody thought he would ever amount to anything.  Nobody, that is, except himself and an odd-duck of a coach from Eugene who saw through his physical inadequacies to his limitless potential.
 

    
Said Oregon coach Ernie Kent, “There was this little guy that was just automatic from everywhere on the floor. His coach said a lot of people have been in the gym looking at Malik [Hairston] and everybody saw the same thing you saw. But everybody thought he was too small to play at this level.”
 

Kent took a chance on Porter while recruiting the other Ducks star Malik Hairston, and it has paid of big time.  Porter won the Pac 10 tournament MVP and is averaging over 14 points a game. 
 

Getting NCAA Tournament Tickets at StubHub.com isn’t the same risk as signing a 5’6’’ basketball player, but it might just pay off with the same great return.  If Porter and the Ducks can get past UNLV, then they you can get tickets to see them in the Elite Eight.


 

Permalink - Posted in General on March 21, 2007 - Post a comment

Who to take, G-Town of V-bilt?

In Friday night’s Sweet Sixteen game of the 2007 NCAA Tournament, the No. 2 seeded Georgetown Hoyas will play the #6 Vanderbilt Commodores in the East Rutherford region.  You may or may not have picked this match up in your bracket, as the Commodores weren’t favorites to get this far, but do they have a chance of making it to the Elite Eight?
 

Perhaps the one factor that will most affect Vandy’s success is if they can shoot well from outside.  As John Madden might say if her were writing this, “if Vanderbilt doesn’t score as many points as Georgetown, they will almost certainly lose.”
 

The Commodores rely on their shooters, mainly swingmen Derrick Byars, Shaun Foster, and guard Dan Cage.  If they can get hot, then expect to see Vanderbilt moving on.  However, if the shots aren’t dropping early, you might be looking at a Georgetown blowout. 
 

Don’t bet on the game, of course.  That’s illegal.  You can, however, make a safe investment in some NCAA Tournament tickets by visiting StubHub.com.  I have a feeling Vandy is going to make this an interesting game for any fan lucky enough to get tickets.  

Permalink - Posted in General on March 21, 2007 - Post a comment