Sunday, March 20, 2011

Michigan - Duke thoughts

In mid-January you never would have guessed that Michigan would rout Tennessee in the opening round and take Duke to the buzzer in North Carolina in the second.

I thought Duke played too hesitant in the second half not showing their usual killer instinct as Beilein brushed off the 1-3-1 (No, Andy Katz, that isn't what they have been doing). With Smith and Irving, Duke should have been able to eviscerate that with kick and pops but what a great job by Michigan to seal that off. The other key was their ability to hold onto the ball and not give Duke any cheap shots off turnovers.

I think Texas will be a tough game for Duke should the Longhorns win but I think this could have been Duke's toughest game on the road to Houston. Congratulations to Coach Beilein and the Wolverines on a very good season. Picked to finish dead last by nearly everyone, they can hold their heads high. Depending on what happens on any potential early departures, this team comes back nearly intact next season.

EDIT: Duke gets Arizona. I don't think Arizona wins without a strong game from D Williams. It is interesting that Duke as a 1 seed gets to travel across the country along with UConn to take on Zona & SDSU in Anaheim. Sidenote on that is UConn's two title runs came from the West region.

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