Buckeyes and Ducks and Hoops, oh my!

Andy Katz has it right: Oden or not, Ohio State is legit.

Flat out excellent game last night in Chapel Hill and UNC should consider themselves lucky to have pulled out the W. Buckeyes are going to be unreal when Oden returns, but they exposed a true weakness in the Tar Heels defense. Turns out NC is susceptible to dribble penetration in a major way. Mark it down in your memory banks, now. If NC draws a team in March with an aggressive, savvy point guard and deadly outside shooting, you can pencil in the upset then and there. Also, for any Simpsons fans out there, I'd just like to point out that Ohio State has a player with the last name "Terwilliger."

Elsewhere, just want to put it out there, keep an eye on Oregon. Ducks beat Georgetown last night. They've got a 5'6" frosh who you really should have heard of by now named Tajuan Porter who is just blowing up. At the start of the year, I picked Oregon third in the Pac 10. Could well be. This is a tournament team.

Gearing up for Illinois v Arizona on Saturday. I'm expecting a battle, but Wildcats' win nonetheless. This isn't exactly the Illini team we mixed it up with in 2001 or 2005. No, we're looking at a squad that figures to finish 4th or 5th in the Big Ten. I'm sure they're still smarting after Maryland snapped their winning streak at home.

1-seeds, as of today, just because:
1. UCLA
2. Florida
3. North Carolina
4. Ohio State