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| SI.com's Luke Winn gives his daily forecast of the NCAA tournament. |
| Thursday, March 27 |
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7:10 p.m. ET
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No. 1 Kentucky vs. No. 5 Wisconsin
Wildcat superfan Ashley Judd eschewed the Oscars for at least part of Sunday night to watch Tubby-led UK knock out tubby-led Utah, and figures to be in attendance for this one as well. Judd provides a positive celebrity presence for her team, unlike that guy from the Counting Crows, who obviously jinxed Cal in the second round.
Wildcats 76, Badgers 65
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7:27 p.m. ET
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No. 1 Arizona vs. No. 5 Notre Dame
The Fighting Irish -- including the glossy domed Chris Thomas and the lightly buzzed Danny Miller -- have their heads shaved as a sign of solidarity. Arizona's Rick Anderson, meanwhile, is staying with the Eddie Munster look as sign of ... something.
Wildcats 91, Fighting Irish 87 |
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9:40 p.m. ET
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No. 2 Pittsburgh vs. No. 3 Marquette
This Web site has already exceeded its recommended quota of Travis Diener headlines -- see Diener Party and Diener Time, among others. Will we self-destruct if Marquette's "baby Mark Price" starts raining 3s again in the tournament? Wait and see.
Golden Eagles 68, Panthers 67 |
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9:57 p.m. ET
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No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 3 Duke
After being inundated with Cingular ads -- particularly the "wassup-wassup-wassup plan" -- on tournament TV, I long for the days of Mazda's "zoom-zoom-zoom" campaign and its endearing, young spokesperson. Can you believe how quickly Kirk Hinrich has grown up, and what great things he's doing on the basketball court?
Jayhawks 80, Blue Devils 76 |
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| Friday, March 28 |
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7:10 p.m. ET
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No. 1 Oklahoma vs. No. 12 Butler
Cinderella Butler is drawing its share of Hoosiers comparisons. The Bulldogs play in the gym where scenes from the quintessential hoop flick were filmed, and they sport crewcuts to boot. Expect a low-scoring game, due to Butler's insistence on passing four times before taking a shot, and pray that some well-meaning, yet belligerent drunk doesn't run onto the court and get the Bulldogs T'ed up.
Sooners 75, Bulldogs 68 |
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7:27 p.m. ET
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No. 1 Texas vs. No. 5 Connecticut
Naismith Award winner T.J. Ford has obviously watched the Mateen Cleaves: How to Play Hoops like a Grinning Fool instructional video many times over. Too bad he won't get a chance to imitate Cleaves' famous "skip-like-a-little-child exhibition" from after the 2000 title game.
Huskies 79, Longhorns 77, OT |
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9:40 p.m. ET
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No. 3 Syracuse vs. No. 10 Auburn
The Orangemen are comeback specialists who often take the first half off, to sit and ponder questions like, "How did Lawrence Moten play with his socks up so high?" Gerry McNamara thought about it for so long against Oklahoma State, his head started bleeding.
Orangemen 83, Tigers 69 |
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9:57 p.m. ET
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No. 6 Maryland vs. No. 7 Michigan State
Michigan State's surprising run has prompted a few
overzealous Sparties to dub frontcourt tandem Paul
Davis and Erazem Lorbek (who, for the record, don't
appear in the starting lineup together) the "Twin
Towers." Remember, these are the same folks who
included Jeff Smoker in a nickname duo at the outset
of football season.
Terrapins 80, Spartans 71
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Results:
First round: 23-9. Second round: 12-4. Overall: 35-13.
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