Takes

Michigan was definitively the better team in the National Championship and it never felt like UConn was in danger of winning.

Michigan was the better team. We all saw it. It never felt like [the game] was in danger. Like the only moment that I was like, oh, UConn might have a chance, was when there was like maybe five and a half minutes left and Mullens missed that three to cut it to four.

Michigan was the best team all year — outside of Duke, who would have won the championship by a lot

They were the best team. They were the best team all year outside of Duke. 'Cause that actually was my other big takeaway — Duke just completely, Duke beat this Michigan team a month and a half ago.

The Final Four should always be played in Indianapolis

The Final Four should always be in Indianapolis. It should be its forever home. They make it such a big event. They care about basketball to a level that it's the only thing that's going on. You could feel it. New Orleans and Indianapolis are the only two... when the Final Four is in Indianapolis, that is the thing. It's the perfect place for it.

Duke's failure to use a true point guard the last two years was arrogance — they thought they were better than basketball

The arrogance of Duke the last two years being like, you know what? We don't need a true point guard. We don't need a guy who we can trust, who can get his shot off the dribble, who can bring, who can break a press, who can in those big moments calm down the offense. They thought they could — they were better than basketball.

I kinda like Michigan over Arizona despite betting the Arizona moneyline

Michigan is the best team in the country at rim denial and not letting teams score at the rim. They just don't let you do it — they have the size to stop you at the rim. That's where Arizona wants to eat. It's a true best on best and it's kind of like a gamble of which best is gonna win. And I, I think it's gonna be Michigan's... I don't know.

Duke was the best team in the country and should have easily won the tournament

I said on this show a month ago, Duke was the best team in the country and they should easily win the, the NCAA tournament. They were similar to last year's team... I will be front of the line saying, guys, I fucked up. You got it wrong.

The loss to UConn belongs on the Mount Rushmore of bad Duke losses in the last five years

This choke makes the Mount Rushmore of bad Duke losses in the last five years, but barely... 2022 Final four. They lost in Coach K's retirement game... 2023 fuck they lost in the second round by 13 points... 2024 they lost in the Elite eight to NC State... and this year they lost first one seed to lose by in a game where they led by 19 points.

This Duke choke was the Godfather 2 of Duke losses — the sequel was even better than last year

A lot of times the sequel is not as good as the original. This sequel was so much better. This was Godfather Two. Last year you're like, how could it get better? It got better. Duke, thank you — you somehow made a way to make it even better. And that's almost impossible to do.

Duke losing has the highest universal approval rating of anything in sports

Duke losing is number one on that list across the board. I think Duke losing is number one.

Jon Scheyer should not be allowed to wear the Blue Devil logo until he wins a championship

Scheyer needs to take the D off of his sweatsuit. Off of his chest. He should not be allowed to wear that patch. He's gotta earn it back. Win a championship, then you can wear the Blue Devil logo on your chest.

Duke has been cursed since they beat Wisconsin in the 2015 championship

Is there a chance that that, that Duke has a Wisconsin curse... They haven't won a title since they beat Wisconsin in 2015... I listed all those guys... it feels like it's a brewing of a curse.

Rick Barnes is currently a very underrated coach in college basketball

I actually think that Rick Barnes is, he's proven that he's a great, great coach... I think Rick Barnes, he's, I think he's actually, he's gotten to the point where he's a very underrated coach in college basketball.

It is not a flex for a 23-year-old college player to complain about a freshman guarding them

[Axel] Lindenberg was incredible today... he does do this thing where he like, did you see that after the Bamba game where he was like, I can't believe they put a freshman on me... you're like 24 years old dude. Like, you're gonna have someone younger than you. It's real. It's actually not that much of a flex to be like a 23-year-old playing college basketball player and he'd be like, I can't believe they put this freshman.

Iowa fans are the happiest fan base of any team that lost in the Elite Eight

If you're an Iowa fan, Iowa's gotta be the the happiest fan base that lost in Elite Eight. Right. Of of course. Yeah. 'cause that's a, that's a team that did not have a ton of talent. And Ben McCollum got 'em so far.

Arizona is the best team in the country

Arizona just showing that they are probably the best team in the country because they absolutely whooped Arkansas.

Hating Duke will never fall out of style

Duke needs to be hateable forever. Who is the Athletic? This is bullshit. Don't who wrote this? You want them to be forever. It will never not be cool. It's always been cool.

UNC is one of the true blue blood jobs in college basketball

This is a job that doesn't come open very often. And it is a true blue blood job... It is the logo of a team that's won a ton of national titles and a ton of Final Fours. It is literally one of the blue bloods.

Nate Oats would not be a great fit at UNC

I don't think he'd be a great fit there. Would people be talking about Nate Oats as much for this job if he didn't wear those jackets? They feel like Carolina jackets. It feels like he's been accepting people into anticipating him being the next UNC coach for a while.

I've fallen hard and fast for Ben McCollum - he's a rock star coach

I've fallen hard and fast for Ben McCollum. He just wins everywhere. Ben McCollum always talking about toughness. I've fallen hard. I've read a lot of Ben McCollum this last week after beating Florida. This guy fucking rocks.

Darius Acuff Jr. is currently the best player in the NCAA tournament

To me, the best player in this tournament right now is Darius Acuff Jr. He is ridiculously gifted and just a total stud and his ability to change a game, it's special. He reminds me of [Kemba Walker] with the level he plays.

Great players want to be coached and pushed because they want to be the best

What I don't think people realize, and Magic [Johnson] said this to me once: great players want to be coached and pushed because great players want to be the best players. So they do. You know, it just sometimes in the high school level now, nobody does that because kids will leave.

Kevin Willard's joke about firing his staff was funny and shouldn't have been taken seriously

It was such a clear joke and people, I couldn't believe... There were people who actually thought he was being serious. I thought it was a funny joke. And then we had the people trying to cover for themselves being like, well, even if it was a joke, that's not a joke you make. Imagine if you're an assistant and you hear your boss say that.

The lack of Cinderellas in the tournament isn't due to NIL but because big teams are more efficient and physical

Todd Golden had a very good point... part of the reason why there's less upsets is teams are just getting way more efficient in scoring at the rim and becoming almost like raising their floor and becoming upset proof in the fact that you get really big dudes... and absolutely hammer the boards. And when you do that against smaller schools, you're not gonna like, how do big schools lose the small schools is like three point variance.

Tom Izzo is underrated because modern ring culture ignores how hard it is to consistently reach the Sweet 16

I know we're very ring culture oriented and he's only won one. This tournament is so fucking hard. Every single year they have at least a chance. It's crazy. Like they just go to Sweet Sixteens and then the tournament kind of starts for Izzo... 17 of them is insane. Tom Izzo is somehow underrated I think because the whole entire world has changed.

John Calipari has officially won the breakup with Kentucky

Do we think that there has ever been a bigger 'won the breakup' more than Cal in Kentucky right now? ... Cal is living the best life. He has gone to back-to-back Sweet Sixteens and Kentucky is in a complete crisis with Mark Pope. It couldn't have gone worse in the first two years for this breakup.

Mark Pope is on the hot seat at Kentucky after this tournament performance

Mark Pope on the hot seat. I think he is. I mean, I think they're gonna bring him back. I think he's safe for this year, but I think he's going into next year. Seat is warm.

Every major college coaching opening should start by calling Brad Stevens and making him say no

You gotta make him say no. You gotta call Brad Stevens and make him say no. I will personally never stop saying that. He probably wakes up every morning and says no. Voicemail just says, 'Thank you so much for the consideration, but it's gonna be a no.' It would be shocking if he ever took another college job.

High Point is a very, very good basketball team

I actually think that High Point is a very, very good team. It was no fluke. They're a very good team.

I am done believing in Wisconsin basketball because they always rip my guts out in the tournament

I think the only lesson I've learned is like, I need to just stop believing. Because this has also become a thing where the Badgers haven't been to the Sweet 16 in like nine years... every year that we keep going is another year that I'm just reminded how close I was in 2015. I will never get back there. It just won't happen like every other team.

Greg Gard deserves criticism but should not be fired as Wisconsin's head coach

I trust Greg Gard, but yeah, you have to throw some criticism to him... But I do not think he should be fired. And I don't think making an irrational... I think he does a pretty damn good job with everything that he's given.

Hubert Davis probably needs to be fired after UNC's historic meltdown against VCU

UNC blowing the biggest lead in first round history to VCU... Hubert Davis probably needs to be fired. Hubert's not gonna be a good magically come back next year and be a good coach.

Illinois is the most ethical team in the NCAA tournament because they do not foul or steal

Illinois, the most ethical team in the tournament... They do not foul and they do not steal the ball. That was another wire to wire winner where they, if you're an Illinois fan, that's, that's the Illinois... that's a deep run Illinois.

Never bet an under in a Hawaii game

If Jake's listening, do not bet on any under in a Hawaii game.

The NCAA selection committee was lazy and stupid for putting St. John's and UConn in the same region

I absolutely hate the committee for doing what they did and putting St. John's and Yukon in the same region. There's three big East teams in the, in the whole thing and they put the desk two in the same region. That's just stupid to me. And it seems lazy and I I don't like it. The tournament is not for rematches.

Arkansas freshman Acuff is a more advanced offensive college player than Allen Iverson was at Georgetown

Acuff, I look at him and I, I watch him. He's, he's the best offensive player in the country. And I, I'll say like he's a better college player than Allen Iverson was right now. Freshman year at Georgetown, Iverson, Acuff's more advanced offensively. He's a better shooter... and just athletically his build, he doesn't get knocked around.

Betting first-half unders is the best strategy for the early rounds of the NCAA tournament

I have a theory about the first tournament games... I look at first half unders just because of their in arenas. The crowds aren't great. The shooting backdrops are different... it's been really good, but it's, I wouldn't say like it's been above 65%.

Villanova is a better basketball program than Maryland

Villanova just a better, a better basketball program... People of Villanova do not care about Maryland. Max is your bad. And the people of Maryland are, are obsessed with every single thing that Kevin Willard does.

The selection committee did a great job and correctly left out Oklahoma and Auburn

The selection committee has done their job, by the way, credits to selection committee. There was really no issues whatsoever... the first two out were Oklahoma and Auburn and they deserve to be out. Yeah, the bubble, the bubble sucked this year. Maybe an all time bad bubble.

Duke got screwed with their seeding as the number one overall seed

Duke kind of got fucked a little bit. As the number one overall, none of the best kill everyone. That's what I'm saying. Like if the, if the one knock that you have against the committee is that they kind of fucked over Duke. Like you did a great job committee credit to me.

St. John's deserves a better seed than Kansas

St. John's, the argument could be made that they should have gotten a, a, a better seed than Kansas.

Vandy got screwed by the committee with a 5-seed after winning the SEC

Vandy got screwed. If you wanna say teams that got seeds screwed, Vandy got screwed because Vandy is a very good team... they just won the SEC and got a five seed... I think they're probably a four.

Nebraska should have been dropped from the 4-seed line in favor of Vandy

If you had to [drop a 4-seed out], probably Nebraska... Vandy just did a little bit more in the SEC tournament by beating Florida and Tennessee.

The South Region is the 'Region of Pressure'

This is the region of pressure. Now why is this the region of pressure? There's pressure on Florida to win a national championship... pressure on Nebraska to win an NCAA tournament game for the first time ever.

The West Region is the 'Region of Floor Generals'

The west region is the region of floor generals. And look at the point guards in this region. Jayden Bradley at Arizona, John Blackwell and Nick Boyd... Darius Acuff at Arkansas... Braden Smith at Purdue.

Purdue is facing a 'Final Four or bust' season

It's Purdue's best chance to win a national title. Yeah, it's a final four bust season. I believe in Purdue.

Miami of Ohio 100% deserves to be in the NCAA Tournament despite their first-round loss

I think a hundred percent they should be in. We need to just focus on the fact that there, I believe 31 and one and not do anything about strength of schedule. If you're able to go an entire season without losing a game that's hard to just wake up every day and not stumble once. I wanna see what happens when they play their first quad win one game in the middle of March.

Conference tournaments are bad for top teams because they don't improve your seeding and lead to unnecessary fatigue

I'm kind of done with the conference tournaments. Like they just fuck you. It doesn't make your seed better and you end up being more tired today. If you have to play four games, you're just gonna get screwed.

The ACC tournament belongs in Greensboro and it's not the same anywhere else

I grew up loving the ACC tournament. I don't love it anymore because it's not in Greensboro. The ACC is a North Carolina League. It's a tobacco league. Put it back in Greensboro.

Duke's Cameron Boozer is comparable to Cooper Flagg because of his innate ability to read the game

Cameron, the bigger of the two [twins]... I like to compare him to Cooper Flagg because he never forces the game to come to him. He just has that innate ability to read and it's time to post up, it's time to cut, it's time to make a three.

Miami (Ohio) deserves a tournament bid for finishing 31-0, regardless of schedule

Miami, Ohio is so simple to me in that they should a hundred percent be in now that they've run the table and won. They're 31 and oh and they won every conference game. If you win every game in your conference and your 31 and oh on the last weekend of regular season, you should be in, no matter what happens in the conference tournament.