That's why they call it Madness
Posted: Thursday, March 19, 2009 by Travis Cody in
#15 seed CS Northridge gave #2 seed Memphis everything it could handle. The Matadors went toe to toe with the Tigers and answered every possible challenge. It took a man off the bench, sophomore Roburt Sallie, to keep Memphis in the game early.
But Northridge would not back down and played with confidence. And incredibly, with about 10 minutes to play in the second half, the Matadors opened a 5 point lead! Memphis looked rattled and nothing like the team that has gone undefeated in Conference USA for the past two seasons, and Coach John Calipari had to use his times out to settle his team down.
And Northridge just kept right on coming.
Finally, the bigger Tigers started to take control in the paint and dominate the offensive glass. And Northridge started to miss some shots. The Matadors played like a team with nothing to lose, and the Tigers were tight for the majority of the game.
Memphis may have thought of itself as a snubbed #1 seed. But if you don't take the opponent in front of you seriously, they'll bite you in this tournament. The Tigers only just avoided becoming the 5th #2 seed to lose in the first round. The final score is going to make it look like an easier win that it was.
But without Sallie, who ended the game with 35 points, Memphis is on the bus home.
In other early action, #8 seed LSU outlasted #9 seed Butler and #9 seed Texas A&M cruised past #8 seed BYU.
My bracket won't be perfect. I had Butler winning in the first round. But at least it didn't get totally busted, because I have Memphis getting to the third round.
yeah...butler went off the board for me also...I got A&M and Memphis correct though!