Predictions for rest of NCAA Tournament

More predictions for the rest of the tournament.

Elite 8:

Duke Blue Devils vs. Louisville Cardinals--I picked Duke to lose in the last match up against Michigan State but they proved to be dominant winning by 10.  Seth Curry lit it up with 29 and they shutdown the Spartans. The Cardinals won by 8 in their Sweet 16 matchup against Oregon a 12 seed.  They proved to be good but not dominant unlike Duke was against a 3 seed in Michigan State.  Another classic coaching match up is in place with Coach K against Rick Pitino and this one is going to be a treat.  VERDICT: Duke by 7

Michigan Wolverines vs. Florida Gators--Adrenaline.  That is the key to this game.  Michigan has too much behind them and in the last game, the Gators played sloppy against, luckily, a sloppier Florida Gulf Coast team.  Trey Burke will put his team on his back and solidify his case for POY.  VERDICT: Michigan by 11

Final 4:

Wichita State Shockers vs. Duke Blue Devils--Coach K is going to prepare for this game like his life depends on it.  (He will do this for the National Championship too but that is besides the point.)  This is going to be exciting in the first half as the Shockers will lead early but Duke will complete what Ohio State was so close to doing.  VERDICT: Duke by 5

Syracuse Orange vs. Michigan Wolverines--Syracuse is going to play incredible defense.  We all know that. The question is whether Michigan can shoot on their zone and not put up numbers like Marquette.  This I am shaky about and I think that Syracuse will score early with Brandon Triche getting hot and then their defense will prevail for the rest of the way to put the Orange in the National Championship game.  VERDICT: Syracuse by 9

National Championship:

Syracuse Orange vs. Duke Blue Devils--For the 3rd time in 4 games, Mike Krzyzewski will be in a classic coaching match up.  Duke won't be able to go inside to Mason Plumlee all game, and they will result to they will start shooting.  I can easily see Duke getting cold and therefore the athleticism of Syracuse will prove too much for Duke.  VERDICT: Syracuse by 4


NATIONAL CHAMPIONS: SYRACUSE ORANGE

Predictions for NCAA Tournament

   I am taking a bend off of DC sports and making my predictions for the Sweet 16 games in the Indianapolis and Texas region as well as the Elite 8 in the Los Angeles and Washington DC regions.

SWEET 16:

Louisville vs. Oregon--Oregon has made a great run up to this point, upsetting Oklahoma State and Saint Louis.  They have convincingly beaten those 2 teams.  However, Louisville has been steam rolling as well beating North Carolina A&T and Colorado State by a combined 57 points.  I don't see Louisville dropping this one either.  VERDICT: Louisville by 12

Duke vs. Michigan State--Duke are back in Indianapolis where they have won 2 National Championships in the past.  Probably the best coaching match-up so far in the NCAA Tournament with Mike Krzyzewski and Tom Izzo.  Michigan State has a great offensive rebounding team, a team which Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly are going to have a hard time containing.  I take Michigan State with Plumlee and Kelly getting into foul trouble early.  VERDICT: Michigan Sate by 7

Kansas vs Michigan--Michigan had a hard time towards the end of the season, dropping to a 4 seed when they were expected to be a 1 or 2 throughout.  Kansas has played relentlessly in their comeback win vs North Carolina and Michigan blew by VCU in the round of 32.  They both have extremely solid teams but I think Jeff Withey is going to take over in this one and Kansas will slip by.  VERDICT: Kansas by 4

Florida vs Florida Gulf Coast--No one expected FGCU to be in this situation in the sweet 16.  Just about every one's brackets have been busted.  FGCU, is making it look like they are a top 5 seed.  They have been winning rwally well, winning by 10 vs Georgetown and San Diego State.  Florida has had considerably easy games and they have blown by them.  I think Florida is going to take an early lead and the clock is going to strike 12 on FGCU.  VERDICT: Florida by 13

Elite 8:

Ohio State vs. Wichita State--The Shockers are looking great.  They have blown by Pittsburgh and La Salle and they beat Gonzaga by 6.  They are playing great.  On the other hand, Ohio State has beaten both Iowa State and Arizona on final second shots, with both games almost going to the opponent.  Ohio State has a great will to win and they are the better team but watch out for the Shockers as they are a win away from the Final Four.  VERDICT: Wichita State by 2

Marquette vs Syracuse--The Golden Eagles slipped by Davidson and Butler but they convincingly beat Miami and they have finally hit their stride at  the perfect time.  Syracuse has been dominant throughout.  They beat Montana by 47, and they beat California by 6.  Then they beat a favorite, Indiana by 11.  That was a good score for Indiana.  Syracuse dominated from the start and they are looking way too strong.  VERDICT: Syracuse by 9

Redskins in FA

     There are some big name free agents out there that could help the Washington Redskins and they are known for luring in the big fish to DC.  The Skins need help in the secondary? There are names like Darrelle Revis and Nnamdi Asomugha.  The Redskins need O-Line help? There is Jake Long available.  So what are they doing lazing around?  Unlike people might think, they don't have much money to spend on free agency as they are cutting it close to the cap.  They have restructured Santana Moss's contract so that is a plus but they still don't have the money necessary to sign the big fish.  So, they will have to stick with their current roster and a couple of 2nd-7th round picks this year or maybe a couple of small free agents.  But as of right now, they are in no shape to sign the big fish.  And just to let you Skins fans know, the Cowboys are in the same situation so they won't be hurting us this season again.

World Series or Bust. Does DC have it in them?

      The talk in the MLB world about the Washington Nationals has been simple.  World Series or Bust.  For the first time in Washington Nationals history, they are considered a playoff team during spring training forget the world series.  They have a roster boasting 4 2012 all-stars, 1 2012 gold glove winner, 3 2012 silver sluggers, the NL Rookie of the Year, and the NL Manager of the year.  That list includes Gio Gonzalez, Stephen Strasburg twice, Ian Desmond twice, Bryce Harper twice, Adam LaRoche twice, and Davey Johnson.  A star-studded lineup s obviously in place for 2013 so this season the Nationals will most definitely win the World Series.  Right?
      
        The Nationals are ready for anything. They have a star-studded rotation and starting lineup adding Dan Haren to the starting rotation, a 12 game winner, and adding Denard Span to their lineup a .342 OBP compared to Michael Morse's .321 OBP whom they have lost from last year's lineup.  The Nats also added Rafael Soriano a 42 save closer to add to their bullpen.  So what can possibly go wrong?  They have experience after last year's heartbreaking first round exit to the St. Louis Cardinals, they have the stats, they have the chemistry, and they have the talent.  But is the city right?  This is an interesting way to look at this situation but you have to stop and think.  Every year when it is DC's year entering the playoffs, when was the last time it was DC's year exiting the playoffs?

          An interesting take on the Nationals can only be described as true.  The last time a DC hockey, basketball, football, or baseball, team won a championship was in 1992 when the Redskins took home the Lombardi Trophy.  Since then, DC sports haven't been too good but we have had our chances.  The Washington Capitals have been at the top of hockey (not including this year) in the past 5 years.  They have never even made it past the 1st round.  The Washington Redskins have never exactly been at the top of the league, but they have made the playoffs 5 times since the '92 season and they haven't gotten past the Divisional Round.  The Washington Wizards have made the playoffs 5 times since '92 and haven't made it past the conference semifinals.  In fact they are 6-15 in the first rounds since '92 and 0-4 in 2nd round games.  The Washington Nationals made it to the playoffs for the first time since moving baseball back to DC in 2005 and had a 1st round exit.  See what I mean?

          On paper, all signs point to World Series or bust for the Washington Nationals.  Looking at history however, is it fair to put so much pressure on a DC sports team?  I would love if this worked out in the Nationals' favor and in November we are celebrating a World Series for the Nats, but is it realistic?  I am not at all worried if the Nationals are ready to be World Champions.  I am questioning if DC is ready.