Piaad 3 Basketball

At least one team will come out of the Big South Conference and enter the NCAA Tournament this season, and the experts are starting to try to predict which team it will be. Who will win the Big South Tournament and move on to The Dance for a chance at winning the National Championship?  Will it be one of the front runners?  Will an underdog come from out of nowhere to take home this league’s crown?  No matter which Big South team makes it to the NCAA Tournament, you should get some NCAA Tournament tickets at StubHub.com to see them in action in March Madness. Now, let’s take a look at a few of the favorites in the Big South.

Coastal Carolina – Coastal Carolina’s Chanticleers have the best record in the Big South Conference, and they look as though they’re bound for an NCAA Tournament berth. Besides the mascot of this team, there are several other reasons to pick the CCU Chanticleers to move on into the second round of the NCAA Tournament. For one, they’ve played some tough competition.  Their second game of the season was against Duke, a team you might have heard about. While Duke wiped the floor with Coastal Carolina, we suspect the Chanticleers learned from valuable lessons, because after the Duke loss they went on a 15-1 tear. Later on in the season they tore through most of their conference foes, earning a 13-3 league record as of Feb. 21, 2010. With just two games remaining on the home game schedule—against Liberty and VMI, two teams they should beat—we like CC’s chances in March.

Winthrop – The Winthrop Eagles might just steal the limelight from Coastal Carolina this year, as they’re the No. 2 team in the Big South right now. Winthrop and CC split their season series this year, so they’re pretty evenly matched. Winthrop is a good defensive team, and they’ve played Clemson and Cincinnati this year, although both of those games ended in losses. Winthrop’s program has seen the NCAA Tournament before, and their fans would love a return to the March Madness action in 2010.

Radford – Radford’s winning conference (11-5) and overall records (16-11) give them some credibility, even though they’re currently behind the Chanticleers and Eagles in the standings.  Radford does not shoot the ball well—in fact they’re one of the worst teams in Division I NCAA basketball at three-point shooting and free throw shooting. But what they lack in finesse they make up for in brute strength and inside game. Artsiom Parakhouski Radford’s 6-foot-11 post presence, and Lazar Trifunovic is 6-foot-8 but plays like he’s three inches taller. This duo will give any opponent fits in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, provided Radford cam get an invitation to dance.

You can see the Big South Men’s Basketball Championship by getting some tickets at StubHub.com. The games will take place between March 2 and March 6.  This tournament should prove to be a fitting prelude to the action taking place all over the country when the NCAA Tournament begins.

Watch Cavs VS Wizards Highlights

Former Eastern rivals, the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Washington Wizards, revisit their rivalry this season. Last year, the Wizards finished one of the worst record in the league, and were playing most of the season without Gilbert Arenas. This year, Cavs vs Wizards play the second game of their season series. LeBron James and the Cavs defeated the Wizards last Nov 3rd (102-90). Will the Cavs make it 2-0 tonight vs the Wizards? On the other hand, the Wizards are trying to avoid a seven game losing streak, and an impressive win vs the Cavs tonight would definitely get the Wizards back on track.

Watch Cleveland Cavaliers VS Washington Wizards LIVE from the Verizon Center in Washington, DC. The Cavs vs Wizards NBA game tips off at exactly 7 PM ET. Don’t miss the full live coverage of Cavs vs Wizards from local TV channels FSO and CSN-W, and through ESPN live NBA streaming.

Damon Jones’ only field-goal attempt, a baseline jumper with 4.8 seconds left in overtime, gave the Cavaliers a 114-113 win and a 4-2 series victory over the Wizards on Friday. Fellow reserves Flip Murray and Donyell Marshall were instrumental in getting the game to the extra period, scoring 11 points apiece in the fourth quarter to help Cleveland build a three-point lead in the final seconds. Gilbert Arenas nailed a long 3-pointer with 2.3 ticks left in regulation to force OT and finished with 36 points and 11 assists, but missed a pair of free throws just prior to Jones’ heroics. LeBron James tallied 32 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, Marshall scored 28 and Murray 21 for the Cavs, while Antonio Daniels had 22 points and Caron Butler added 18 with a career-high 20 boards for Washington. Cleveland’s second-round series will start in Detroit on Sunday (3:30 ET, ABC).