UCLA vs Michigan State

It's no secret that we have fallen behind on our game critic updates, so now that we have found a window in time, we will attempt to push a few of them out your way :)

Kevin Love must have felt like one of the 300 (two-disc special edition for $7) when he faced hoardes of Michigan State forwards ready and eager to foul him. Xerxes-Izzo was sending them in waves and waves at Kevin Love. But despite the aches and bruises, Kevin "Gerard Butler" Love and the Bruins avoided a loss and ended up winning the game despite being down and down.

If Mark Few was watching this game, it may have made him feel a little bit better. As you may recall from the 2006 NCAA tournament, his GoneZaga team had an epic meltdown against UCLA, surrendering a big deal and losing the team. This is what happened to Izzo State at the CBE/Guardians Classic final at a smaller scale, so Izzo should be calling Mark Few to join his support group.

I had my reservations about Michigan State, and more specifically on Drew Neitzel being yet another overrated player who earns his reputation because of where he plays, not how well he plays. Perhaps it was no coincidence that Michigan State actually took the lead when they were playing without Neitzel. After watching this game, I am now considering Michigan State to be a top 25 team, but a marginal one. The tricky thing with the Top 25 is that you have to pick 25 teams, regardless of how bad the teams may look :)

UCLA once again showed how they win games, by sticking to it regardless of the score and situation. Clearly this is emerging as a "coach/team skill", because very few teams are able to do this on a consistent basis. This increases UCLA's chances for another Final Four run, although the numbers may be against them as Tom Brennan mentioned: the only team to make the Final Four three times in a row in the modern era were the Duke Pukies of the early 90s. Well, I would asterisk that however and mention that Pitino's Wildcats did so three times in a row, with Tubby "TimberGopher" Smith coaching the 3rd one. ESPN Research Department, how did this escape you? :)