It’s 12:20 and it’s tipoff for Georgia/Xavier. Did anyone give the Dawgs credit after their tornado-laden surprise run in the SEC tournament in Atlanta last week? I certainly didn’t. Xavier’s solid. But who knows?

Will the Heels roll? They shouldn’t have any problem with Mt. St. Mary’s, but Indiana, Washington State, Tennessee, and Oklahoma are pretty stout roadblocks on the way to San Antonio.

danny-greens-dunk.jpgThe real question is, ‘When will Dook fall?’ West Virginia? (My pick). Xavier? UCLA? Or will they mount an ugly run to the finals, only for Greg Paulus to get reacquainted with Danny Green’s nethers?

The spirit of sportsmanship is rarely better conveyed than in the joining together of every other Division 1 team in a mutual hatred of Dook.

Slate.com explains the nation’s disgust for the Blue Devils well …


If history is our guide, 64 teams in the 2008 NCAA Tournament believe the fans, critics, and concessionaires aren’t giving them enough respect. There’s one team, though, that thinks the exact opposite. In recent years, coach Mike Krzyzewski, guard-poet J.J. Redick, and forward-faux businessman Christian Laettner have confessed to reporters the terrible burden that the Blue Devils must bear: Duke always gets the other team’s best shot. Complaining that you get too much respect, that the NCAA’s junior associates have the gall to try to beat you, is the quintessence of Duke basketball. I believe psychologists refer to this as narcissistic personality disorder.Sure, every team and every hoops fan wants to see Coach Leadership and Ethics bite it. But that’s not because Duke is on top of the basketball world—George Mason has reached as many Final Fours over the last six years. No, America’s hatred of Duke grows ever-stronger because the program derives so much of its ample self-regard from being hated. It’s a vicious cycle of annoyance: J.J. Redick says then-pre-frosh Greg Paulus will be “hated as much as me,” an arrogant prediction that makes both Redick and Paulus instantly more loathsome. The most frustrating thing about hating Duke, then, is knowing the program would wither and die if you could just stop paying attention. After all, Duke doesn’t play on national television 800 times a year because people want to see Greg Paulus win.

Click on the Slate link above for their links that backup the references.

Or maybe Dook hatred is because they’re apparently taught to fall down and draw fouls, without necessarily even being looked at, let alone touched. Proof?

Paulus’ contactless foul

Here’s J.J. Redick demonstrating the rare offensive flop

And some evidence (as if smoking them in the ACC tourney wasn’t enough) that Clemson should have been the #2 seed in the conference tournament

My favorite - Who is better at falling down? Dook, or goats?

Want some more laughs? Here’s J.J. Redick picking his nose. Or try Josh McRoberts being a complete crybaby during a UNC game.

As CCP intern Josh Eboch just put it, they’re “incredible douchebags.”

GO HEELS!