The Day After

Just a few minutes before Friday’s media briefings with UK and West Virginia, a few thoughts:

• UK could have lost last night. Up to this point in the tournament, UK looked bulletproof. Through 20 minutes against Cornell, that held true. But in a fashion becoming typical for the Cats, they let up. Cornell wasn’t playing great at any stretch, but the Cats fell off the map for about 15 minutes, at which point the Big Red had to resort to fouling. All that said, I never thought the game was in doubt for UK from start to finish. But looking back, those dominant 20 minutes (and they were as dominating as any team has played this year anywhere in college basketball) saved the Cats from a Sweet 16 exit.

• West Virginia could have lost last night. Only thing is, Washington wasn’t playing any better. Neither team was hitting shots and neither team could hold on to the ball. Put together, the teams committed 44 turnovers, but neither team could find a way to score in transition until West Virginia broke free just enough in the second half.

• Either way, the team that wants to represent the East region in the Final Four needs to play a better game Saturday than it did Thursday to advance.

• Thursday, why did Salt Lake City get all the action? Butler won a close game against Syracuse, Kansas State topped Xavier in an epic two-overtime thriller, and Gus Johnson called both. Here in Syracuse, we got one boring game followed by another.

• Personal highlight in the Carrier Dome on Sweet 16 Night: Washington’s pep band. The Husky Band, as many T-shirts read, didn’t stick with the pep band classics I’ve grown so tired of hearing covering hoops the past two years. Cornell and UK even had several songs in common, even arranged in the same keys. The Husky Band played some Gnarls Barkley, some Nirvana (a nod back home to Seattle, I suppose) and several fairly recent pop songs. They did play one ’80s song (Take on Me), but at least it’s a good one not overplayed by the nation’s pep bands. And best of all: no Bon Jovi.

UK presser will start at 1:50. West Virginia’s is at 2:50 if everything goes according to schedule. Quotes to follow.