Must See Sports - First Week of March 2011

Spring is in the air! The NCAA Men’s Basketball regular season is drawing to a close. Conference Championship Week is just around the corner. Major League Baseball Spring Training is in full swing. The NBA regular season is heading into its final month. There is plenty to see! The Daily Hat Trick, as always, picks out the cream of this week’s crop.


Thursday, March 3, 2011

Orlando Magic at Miami Heat

The Magic chalked up a couple of confidence building victories in the past week, with wins over the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New York Knicks. Orlando continues to pursue the Southeast Division leading Miami Heat. The Heat are a game and a half back of the Eastern Conference leading Boston Celtics. Miami has also played well of late and beat the Magic in their most recent meeting in early February.

Gilbert Arenas is expected to return to the Magic from injury. Both teams are in the midst of a playoff push. The Heat are at home and I will defer to home court advantage for picking a team with the edge for tonight’s matchup.

Advantage: Heat

Time for Dwight Howard to find a phone booth. 1

Friday, March 4, 2011

Miami Heat at San Antonio Spurs

The Heat Index is sky high for some hot matchups this week. Miami and their big three travel to San Antonio to face the Spurs, with the NBA’s best record. The Spurs, apparently, are human after all, losing three of their last ten games to the Memphis Grizzlies, Chicago Bulls, and Philadelphia 76ers. The Heat are in the midst of as difficult of a six game stretch as any team in the league has to face (Knicks, Magic, Spurs, Bulls, Portland Trailblazers, Los Angeles Lakers). What does not kill the Heat will make them stronger, but beating San Antonio on their home court is a very tough task, even for the Heat.

Advantage: Spurs


Saturday, March 5, 2011

Duke Blue Devils (4) at North Carolina Tar Heels (13)

Five words: ACC Game of the Year! The passion never waned in this rivalry but, last season, some of the relevance did. It is back. The winner takes the ACC regular season title. Carolina gave Duke all it could handle in their earlier meeting in Cameron indoor arena. The Tar Heels would benefit from a big game from “Diaper Dandy” Harrison Barnes, who put up a pedestrian 9 points in the last game against Duke.

Electricity will be in the air for this rare CBS prime time regular season broadcast. Carolina let the last meeting slip from its grasp, blowing a 16 point lead. Playing at Chapel Hill, I expect no such late comeback should Duke fall behind. Carolina has improved throughout the season and I like their chances at home in this return match for all of the ACC marbles.

Advantage: North Carolina

Duke vs Carolina: It's like that. 2

Villanova Wildcats (19) at Pittsburgh Panthers (5)

The Villanova Wildcats: ranked 19th in the country, but in 10th place in the Big East. Nova coach Jay Wright’s team is slumping at the worst time and I do not think a meeting with the Pitt Panthers, a likely #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, is what the doctor ordered. Reeling off of three consecutive conference losses to Syracuse, St. John’s, and Notre Dame, the Wildcats have effectively played themselves on to the NCAA Tournament bubble. Nova’s Corey Fisher, after his monstrous 34 point effort against DePaul, went ice cold, scoring a combined 10 points in his next two games before recovering his form with 22 points in the Notre Dame loss. Fisher has to be at his best for the Wildcats to have a reasonable shot at beating Pitt.

Pittsburgh can clinch the regular season Big East title with a win. Panthers guard Ashton Gibbs has played big in big games and I expect no less from him in the finale. Pitt is also at home in this regular season finale on CBS.

Advantage: Pittsburgh


Kansas Jayhawks (2) at Missouri Tigers (24)

The Jayhawks and their Morris twins should lock up a #1 tournament seed with a win on the road against Mizzou. Missouri is attempting to stay off of the NCAA bubble in light of a resurgent Kansas State team and two straight conference losses.

Advantage: Kansas


Sunday, March 6, 2011

Los Angeles Lakers at San Antonio Spurs

The two-time defending champion Lakers, in third place in the Western Conference, are essentially fighting the Dallas Mavericks for second place. The Spurs are 7.5 games ahead of the Lakers. The Lakers have won five straight and appear to be on yet another “up” swing of their roller coaster season. The Spurs have been consistent and have been almost impossible to beat in the AT&T Center. Spurs guard Tony Parker will not be in action (calf) and that is the only reason I think the Lakers have a shot at a minor upset. The Lake Show may be without forward Matt Barnes, who has missed some recent games with a knee injury.

Advantage: Spurs

I wonder what hurts Tony Parker more: his strained calf muscle or knowing that he blew it with ex-wife Eva Longoria. 3 

Wisconsin Badgers (10) at Ohio State Buckeyes (1)

Jared Sullinger and the Buckeyes look to avenge an earlier loss to Wisconsin, one that ended OSU’s unbeaten season. Jordan Taylor stepped his game up to a new level that afternoon with 27 points and 7 assists. It may take an equally Herculean effort from Taylor to pull off an encore on the road in what likely will be Sullinger’s last regular season home game at Ohio State.

Advantage: Ohio State

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1) Image from counterkicks.com
2) Image from washingtonpost.com
3) Image from tandlesachin21.onsugar.com