March 28, 2024

Crimsonsanity sets in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament

With No. 14-seeded Harvard's 68-62 upset win over No. 3-seeded New Mexico in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, Crimsonsanity is starting to set in.

So, is Crimsonsanity? NBA fans and media all know the "Linsanity" that went on last season when Lin was a player with the New York Knicks. Harvard is the alma mater of Houston Rockets guard Jeremy Lin. It is also Harvard's first NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament victory ever. Add to that Jeremy Lin's tweet after the Harvard win, "YYYYYEEEEESSSSSSSSS!!! HARVARD winssss!!! hahahahhah i told you," and now we have "Crimsonsanity".

Not surprisingly, already there are Harvard Crimson Upset City t-shirts available. Capitalism does rule.

Meanwhile here at What's The 411, despite the upset, our sports reporters' NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four picks remain intact.

Here's a quick reference for you:

Kalise McKnight's NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Picks

Kalise likes Duke to take it all.

But, before we get there, in the Final Four, Kalise likes:

• Duke
• Wisconsin
• Kansas
• Miami

He expects that Duke and Kansas will "duke it out" (pun intended) in the championship round in Atlanta.

He believes Duke has the confidence from being battle-tested through a tough out-of-conference schedule. Duke has beaten a lot of NCAA tourney teams VCU, Minnesota, Davidson, Temple, and Louisville. Duke also beat Kentucky, last year's champion. Its ACC foes: Miami, UNC, and NC State, which are also in the NCAA tourney, no problem.

Moreover, Kalise strongly believes that you can't overlook how a team is coached.

"Coach K is one of the best coaches in basketball, period," he said emphatically. "He just coached the USA Men's Basketball team to a gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics and he has multiple NCAA titles at Duke."

"The team has shooters; the point guards play at the NBA level, the big men and defense post D. The only flaw is that athletic wing players or tough hard-nose teams usually give Duke problems. The teams that could prevent a Duke final four appearance are Memphis and Michigan State, but I'm sticking with Duke," Kalise continued.

Crystal Lynn's NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Picks

As for Crystal Lynn, her Final Four picks are:
• Notre Dame
• Memphis
• Michigan
• Butler

She has Memphis and Butler in the Championship game, with Butler winning it all.

T.A. Moreland's NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Picks

T.A. thinks Georgetown will win it all.

• Indiana
• Georgetown
• Michigan State
• Kansas State

"I like Kansas State as my sleeper," T.A. said. "Michigan State just always seems to be ready to play come tournament time. I have to have some love for my alma mater: Indiana. But, ultimately, it's the Georgetown Hoyas who have gone 14-2 in their last 16 games including an 11-game winning streak who will win it all."

Andrew Rosario's NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four Picks

Andrew's picks for the Final Four are:
• Louisville
• Memphis
• Wisconsin
• Arizona

Andrew picks Louisville and Wisconsin for the Final 2, with Louisville winning it all.

Interestingly, no one picked Gonzaga to make it to the Final Four; no NC State, UNC, Iona, or L.I.U.-Brooklyn.
Well, L.I.U.-Brooklyn got bumped out of contention altogether by James Madison University before the Round of 64 got started. Wishful thinking on my part, as Iona and L.I.U. were real long shots, but hey, I gotta root for the home teams!

As for What's The 411's hot shot sports reporters, time will tell who's right, if at all.

The National Championship game is on April 8.

Who are your picks? Hit us up on Facebook at WhatIsThe411 or on Twitter @WhatsThe411TV.

Could Preston's decision to leave the University of Kansas and turn pro in Europe lead others to do the same?

Billy Preston, a student on the University of Kansas basketball team, decided to take a page out of the Big Baller Brand playbook and has now signed with a professional team in Bosnia, according to rivals.com.

KU looked into a car accident on campus involving Preston and later sent its findings to the NCAA. Eighteen games later and with no decision from the NCAA, Preston said adios to the Jayhawks and signed with the team in Bosnia.

 

 

VIDEO: NCAA goes on the Bench for allowing racism to persist in collegiate basketball

In view of the Brooklyn Nets guard, Jeremy Lin’s, story about the racism that he encountered in college, Keisha puts the NCAA and the NCAA referees on the bench for allowing known racism to persist on the court and within the association.

When referees and coaches know that someone is being racially profiled, they have a responsibility to quash the activity.

VIDEO Discussion: Racism at the collegiate level is more prevalent than in the NBA, according to Brooklyn Nets guard Jeremy Lin

Jeremy Lin, the Nets guard, made some headlines recently when he mentioned that the racial slurs he heard in college were much worse than what he has had to deal with while playing in the NBA.

New York Yankees’ retires Derek Jeter’s No. 2 in style, James Harden and the Houston Rockets exit the NBA Playoffs, Jeremy racism experiences in basketball

NBA Playoffs Update

What happened to James Harden?

We are into the Conference Finals round of the NBA Playoffs, and before we talk about where we are right now, let's step back a minute and ask what happened to Houston Rockets guard James Harden. The MVP candidate gave an atrocious effort in Game 6 and an elimination game against the Spurs. Are we being too hard on Harden or is all of the criticism warranted?

NBA Playoffs Final Four

The NBA playoffs are now down to four teams. What can we expect in the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Finals?

Big Ballin’

The three shoe giants, Nike, Adidas, and Under Armour, did not offer a shoe deal to NBA prospect Lonzo Ball. Ball's father, LaVar Ball, vowed to have a Lonzo Ball sneaker made. He succeeded and the ZO2 Primer hit the open market to the tune of $495. While some balked at the price, LaVar tweeted “If you can’t afford the ZO2s, you’re NOT a BIG BALLER!

Will the shoe be a flop? Will people be on the LaVar train if his son Lonzo Ball turns out to be a “Bog Baller” in the NBA?

Rapper Future’s Fans Start a Mother’s Day Squabble

This past week was Mother’s Day and Seattle Seahawks quarterback, Russell Wilson, posted a sweet Mother’s Day note on Instagram to his wife, Ciara, and rapper Future’s fans came for Wilson’s head and fans of Wilson and Ciara clapped back. Here’s what the note said:

“Nothing better than spending time with you. You are an amazing mom & I'm so grateful I get to spend the rest of my life with you & raising our kids. I love you! #HappyMothersDay Weekend my love. @Ciara

People objected to Wilson saying “our kids.” Should Wilson have not said, “our”? Are those who objected to Wilson stating “our kids” out of line?

Volkswagen at the New York International Auto Show

Nikolai Jackson from our social media team delivered another new car video from the New York International Auto Show and this time it’s from Volkswagen.

New York Sports Report

New York Yankees

The Yankees retired future Baseball Hall of Famer shortstop Derek Jeter’s No. 2.

New York Mets

The Matt Harvey apology tour was in full effect this past week.

As if things couldn't get any worse for the NY Mets' pitching staff, the club announced that closer Jeurys Familia would be out of the lineup due to an anterior blood clot in his right shoulder.

Doctors say that Familia should be able to throw again in six weeks with a return to competition in about 3-4 months.

Brooklyn Nets' Jeremy Lin on Racism in Basketball

Jeremy Lin, the Nets guard, made some headlines recently when he mentioned that the racial slurs he heard in college were much worse than what he has had to deal with while playing in the NBA.

On The Bench

In view of the Brooklyn Nets guard, Jeremy Lin’s, story about the racism that he encountered in college, I am putting the NCAA and the NCAA's referees on the bench for allowing known racism to persist on the court and within the association.

When referees and coaches know that someone is being racially profiled, they have a responsibility to quash the activity.

NY Jets win a game against the Baltimore Ravens, but Geno Smith is out with torn ACL; NCAA puts Rick Pitino on the hot seat

The panel of Keisha Wilson, Mike McDonald, and Sydney Wayman are talking about:

What's Poppin

  • The NY Giants, NFL, and Josh Brown Domestic Violence Issue/Dilemma
  • Sam Bradford and the Minnesota Vikings lose their first game of the season at the hand of Mychal Kendricks and the Philadelphia Eagles
  • The NY Jets manage to win a game against the Baltimore Ravens with Geno Smith as quarterback along with Ryan Fitzpatrick who came in when Geno suffered a torn ACL. However, Fitzpatrick’s postgame comments raised lots of eyebrows because he took a swipe at head coach Todd Bowles and the rest of the NY Jets organization sounding like he was benched after winning all season, which could be further from the truth.
  • Is Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis enabling bad behavior from Vontaze Burfict

Under The Radar

  • University of Louisville men's basketball head coach Rick Pitino comes under fire from the NCAA after reports of a brothel-like atmosphere occurred for the pleasure of Louisville basketball players and recruits

On The Bench

  • New York Knicks guard Derrick Rose and the jurors of his civil rape case are on the bench for posing for photos after the jurors found Rose not liable

 

US Women’s Soccer Filed Suit Against US Soccer Federation; Warriors Lose to Celtics But Still Want 73 Wins, 2016 Basketball Hall of Fame Class Named

In this episode, the What’s The 411Sports team of Keisha Wilson and Mike McDonald are talking about and asking lots of question about recent sports news and events.

Congratulations to the Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2016:  Allen Iverson, Shaquille O’Neal, Sheryl Swoopes, John McClendon, Darell Garretson, Tom Izzo, Zelmo Beaty, Yao Ming, Jerry Reinsdorf, and Cumberland Posey.

Five members of the US women’s national soccer team including notable names like Hope Solo and Alex Morgan have filed a wage discrimination action against the US Soccer Federation. The action was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) claiming that while the women’s team generated approximately $20 million more in revenue than the men’s team, the women were paid about 25% less than their male counterparts.

San Francisco 49er’s quarterback Colin Kaepernick met with John Elway, executive vice president of football operations and general manager of the Denver Broncos, signaling that Kaepernick could be headed to Denver. Would this be a good move for Colin Kaepernick?

After a 54-regular-home-game win streak, the bubble burst and Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors lost at home to the Boston Celtics 109-106 on Friday, April 1 (no April Fools joke).

NCAA Men’s Basketball tournament definitely put the “madness” in March Madness; at the buzzer, Villanova beat UNC 77-74.

Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin returns to lineup as the Clippers face the Washington Wizards at the Staples Center. It will be the first time that Griffin will play since Christmas after a tearing his quadriceps. His absence was further extended after a hand injury due to an altercation with the team’s assistant equipment manager which garnered a four-game suspension. And, Griffin’s quadriceps isn’t completely healed. Is this a good move for Griffin to play before complete healing?

Who on the current Brooklyn Nets team will be back next season? Both Keisha and Mike would like to see the return of Brook Lopez, Thaddeus Young, and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. However, Keisha would also like to see newcomer Sean Kilpatrick in a Brooklyn Nets uniform next season.

The YES Network and Comcast are at war.

Can the New York Mets get back to the World Series, and do the New York Yankees have a chance to win the AL East?

New York Mets pitcher Matt Harvey is on the bench for his childish behavior towards the New York sports media following the New York daily newspapers' reports on his urinary tract issues.

In this video Dr. Riley Williams III, Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Surgeon at the Hospital for Special Surgery, and Brooklyn Nets Medical Director and Team Doctor said that although basketball and sports were not a priority while he was a student a Yale, but he is excited that his alma mater made it into the NCAA tournament. He also reminded us that Jeremy Lin went to Harvard and he is still playing in the NBA, so although Harvard and Yale are Ivy League schools, there is still good basketball played at those institutions.

Video game manufacturers must pay $60 million settlement for NCAA-branded video games that used athletes’ likeness

 

U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE CLAUDIA WILKEN has verbally approved a combined $60 million settlement that paves the way for thousands of football and men’s basketball players to be paid for their past appearances in NCAA-branded video games.

Video game manufacturer Electronic Arts, Collegiate Licensing Company and the NCAA are the parties in the class action lawsuit initiated by former player Ed O’Bannon over the use of players’ names, images and likenesses in video games without compensation and without their permission.

The maximum amount a player will be able to receive from the settlement is around $7,200.  More than 20,000 claims have been filed and the deadline for former or current players to seek payment has been extended to July 31, 2015.

The NCAA is also allowing current collegiate football and men’s basketball players who played during the period the games existed to receive their payments without losing their NCAA eligibility.

 

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