South Region

[Quin]

FGCU is just having the time of their lives. I love it.

[Buehrle>Wood]

FGCU is perhaps the funnest team I've ever watched. They are so loose. I swear they are on drugs.

[Buehrle>Wood]

FGCU is perhaps the funnest team I've ever watched. They are so loose. I swear they are on drugs.

[Quin]

THAT DUNK

[Quin]

I love this team.

[southsider2k5]

So who had Kansas-Michigan and Florida-Florida Gulf Coast in their bracket?

[caulfield12]

Now he had a program of his own, although he was hamstrung by NCAA restrictions that prevented him from hiring assistant coaches until April 17. There was a small core of returning players, most of them unaccomplished. Enfield needed more. Hence, on April 8 of that year, he was in a room at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, talking to Eric McKnight, a freshman at Iowa State University who had just received his formal permission to transfer. Enfield was in a hospital because his wife was about to deliver their third child.

 

The wife breathed. The coach recruited. "At one point, Amanda said, 'Put the phone down, we're about to have a baby,''' recalled Enfield before his team's practice at the Wells Fargo Center on Saturday afternoon.

 

He stopped. Marcum was born, the couple's third child, after daughters Aila and Lily. Soon after the baby was delivered and transported to the nursery, Enfield fired up his cell phone again. As he recalls it, this time the obstetric nurse was changing his wife's IV when Amanda began questioning his sanity. "Amanda said 'Will you please be quiet? The nurse is trying to change my IV and I can't even hear.' I left the room. And I kept my recruiting call going.'' This time he wandered the hall until he found an empty birthing room, plopped onto the bed and continued talking to McKnight. At one point another nurse walked in and said, "Are you having a baby?''

 

Enfield shrugged sheepishly at the telling. McKnight, a willowy 6-foot-10 forward from Raleigh, N.C., signed with the Eagles and after sitting out a year, has started 31 games in this historic season. (Told on Saturday about the circumstances of his recruiting call, McKnight said, "Really? He was in the hospital? That makes me feel pretty honored that coach Enfield would do that.'').

 

It is one story among countless stories surrounding the Eagles, who have hijacked a giant slab of March Madness and made it their own. (Harvard, too, took a mighty piece of the bracket into Saturday's game against Arizona, after shocking New Mexico in the opening round, but imploded against the Wildcats).

 

There is the story of the school: Florida Gulf Coast University has 13,468 students, which already makes it among the largest universities in the U.S. Yet its recognition among college basketball fans was minimal. On Friday, the school's homepage received 432 percent more views than it had on the previous day, a phenomenon that mirrors the sudden recognition brought to Butler University when the Bulldogs first improbably reached the Final Four in 2010 (and then did it again in 2011). Yet it's not even clear FGCU needs the push; according to a school spokesman, the glistening campus, with its own sprawling lake, is already growing by 800-1,000 students each year. Yet the age of the college and the suddenness of its rise (FGCU began playing in Division I only in 2006-'07), lend an air of shock to everything the Eagles achieve.

 

There is the story of the coach. Unless one of his peers has a well-kept secret, Enfield is the only startup entrepreneur in the Division I coaching ranks, having co-founded a software contract management company in the health care industry called TractManager in 2000, along with partner Tom Rizk, who had previously been the CEO of a publicly traded company. "My partner is a genius, I can say that for certain,'' Enfield said, yet he is palpably uncomfortable in discussing other aspects of his ongoing association with TractManager, which at one point was valued at more than $100 million. "I retain a part of company, but I'm not involved any way in management,'' Enfield said. He declined to provide the size of his stake, "because it's a private company.''

 

In 2003, while working in New York both with TractManager and his basketball consulting business (focusing on skills development), Enfield was introduced to Amanda Marcum, an Oklahoma native (and Oklahoma sports fan) with a thriving career as a fashion model. Their first date was arranged by a mutual friend, and Enfield said that upon first seeing Marcum, "As soon as I saw Amanda get in the car, I knew it would be a good trip.'' He took a fashion model to a game at St. John's and ate Taco Bell at the student union beforehand because nothing else was open. "I figured if she still likes me after Taco Bell and a basketball game...'' Enfield said.

 

They were married in 2004. Two years later, Enfield took his career, and his wife, to Tallahassee. "What a sacrifice she has made to give up ... from flying all over the world to doing fashion shoots to moving to Tallahassee, which is a nice place, but it's not New York and it's not Milan and it's not Sydney and it's not Paris.''

 

 

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/-college-.../#ixzz2OWkZ4WjD

[caulfield12]

By SCOTT CACCIOLA

Published: March 24, 2013

PHILADELPHIA — After pregame player introductions, Florida Gulf Coast’s Sherwood Brown began to dance as his teammates, their arms interlocked, spun in a circle around him, their speed building and building until they broke apart and scattered.

 

Tournament Bracket and Forecast

Nate Silver is calculating each team’s chance of advancing to any given stage of the N.C.A.A. tournament. View his bracket and keep tabs on the latest results.

 

In a sense, that was how the Eagles hoped to play against San Diego State on Sunday night at Wells Fargo Center: fast and exciting and borderline reckless, a bunch of grown children coloring outside the lines. Why not have some fun?

 

Florida Gulf Coast officially turned the N.C.A.A. tournament into its own big celebration, romping to an 81-71 victory over San Diego State in the Round of 32. In the process, the upstart Eagles became the first No. 15 seed in tournament history to advance to the regional semifinals.

 

“As everyone’s seen, we’re doing something special out here,” Brown said.

 

On Friday, Florida Gulf Coast will face Florida, the No. 3 seed in the South Region, for a spot in the Round of 8. Yes, you read that correctly.

 

Brown, the Atlantic Sun Conference’s player of the year, pushed his way through foul trouble to score 8 points in a late 17-0 run that blew apart a tight game. There were 3-pointers and dunks, fast-break layups and defensive stops. In other words, business as usual for the Eagles.

 

It was such compelling theater that many Duke fans — awaiting their team’s late game against Creighton — stood and cheered for the Eagles when they returned to their bench for a second-half timeout. Brown, who finished with 17 points, waved his arms, urging them on.

 

Bernard Thompson scored a game-high 23 points for Florida Gulf Coast (26-10), which shot 55.9 percent from the field. Brett Comer, the team’s sure-handed point guard, finished with 10 points and 14 assists. And Christophe Varidel, a sharpshooting guard, had three 3-pointers off the bench.

 

“We just want to make history,” Thompson said. “We live for moments like this.”

 

San Diego State Coach Steve Fisher, who has a condominium in Fort Myers Beach, Fla., not far from Florida Gulf Coast’s campus, said he was familiar with Coach Andy Enfield’s program, perhaps as familiar as any coach in the country could have been. It did little good.

 

“They play with a swagger, and they have a right to do that,” Fisher said.

 

Jamaal Franklin scored 20 points for San Diego State (23-11), which committed 17 turnovers after being sucked into Florida Gulf Coast’s vortex.

 

“I don’t like to slow our style down,” Enfield said. “I like to let our guys play.”

 

In just its second season as a tournament-eligible Division I program, Florida Gulf Coast has suddenly gone from one of the country’s most unknown teams to perhaps its most celebrated. On Friday, the Eagles pulled off the Round of 64’s most remarkable upset, knocking off second-seeded Georgetown. In the wake of that win, Enfield said he received 450 text messages, e-mails and voice mails.

 

But such was life in the spotlight, not that his team was going to change. After all, these were the same players who, just before taking the court for their Atlantic Sun tournament final earlier this month, opted to keep loose by partaking in a locker-room round of freeze tag. The players refer to Fort Myers as Dunk City — for good reason, based on the evidence they have provided.

 

“We don’t take ourselves too seriously,” Enfield said.

 

At the same time, Brown said he and his teammates were not satisfied with one win, with one upset. They wanted more. It might have sounded brash, considering the team played in Division II as recently as 2006 (and in the N.A.I.A. before that). Did they care? No.

 

The Eagles were amped from the start. When San Diego State’s Chase Tapley pump-faked on a 3-pointer on his team’s opening possession, Brown barreled into him like a bulldozer. At the other end, San Diego State’s aggressive defense continually forced Florida Gulf Coast into using the entire shot clock. This was not the Eagles’ preference. They wanted to leak out in transition and score easy baskets.

 

Still, Florida Gulf Coast looked to be easing into its familiar rhythm midway through the half when Comer found Eric McKnight for an alley-oop dunk — a play reminiscent of the team’s high-flying acrobatics against Georgetown. It spoke to the team’s carefree, go-for-broke style.

 

“We’re going to be in full attack mode the whole entire game,” Comer said.

 

The Eagles dealt with adversity against San Diego State. Brown picked up his third foul early in the second half, but his teammates took up the slack. Comer got into the lane for a runner, and Varidel hit a 3-pointer. By the time Chase Fieler raced in for a fast-break layup, Florida Gulf Coast was ahead, 52-46, and Fisher was desperately calling for a timeout. Brown hit another 3-pointer for a 58-52 advantage, and the lead grew from there.

 

“It’s hard when we keep going and going and going at you,” Comer said.

 

Nobody has been able to slow Florida Gulf Coast. Not Georgetown. Not San Diego State. The team’s next stop is Arlington, Tex., though Enfield did not seem entirely sure of the destination. “Where are we going?” he asked.

 

His players knew: Dunk City was headed where no No. 15 had been before. “Everybody be ready,” Thompson said.

 

www.nytimes.com

[zenryan]

I wonder if Chris Sale had FGCU going to the Sweet 16.

[caulfield12]

There have been several entertaining story lines in the men’s NCAA basketball tournament thus far: Harvard achieving its first win ever over three-seed University of New Mexico; nine-seed Wichita State defeating the West Region’s top team, Gonzaga, and Ohio State’s Aaron Craft hitting a three-point buzzer-beater on Sunday to defeat the scrappy Iowa State Cyclones.

 

But the story of the week has to be the South region’s fifteen-seed Florida Gulf Coast University Eagles, who on Friday and Sunday defeated, respectively, No. 2-seed Georgetown and No. 7-seed San Diego State. It is another first for the tournament: a 15-seed has never advanced to the “Sweet Sixteen.” In fact, in the entire history of the men’s NCAA tournament, only seven 15-seeds had even won a single game.

 

It is not unusual for teams – the great and not-so-great – to endure a “let down” after a physically and emotionally draining win. But in the case of the Fort Myers, Fla.-based Eagles, they seemed to respond in the opposite manner. They dropped 81 points on the Aztecs Sunday night, whose wheels effectively fell off after a 17-0 run against them in the middle of a second half that was marked by numerous uncharacteristic turnovers.

 

RECOMMENDED: March Madness basketball quiz: memorable players and feats

 

After the game, Florida Gulf Coast’s coach Andy Enfield was asked about their next opponent, the perennially powerful, No. 3 seed University of Florida. He said that he had called the Gators before the beginning of the season, trying to get a scrimmage on the schedule, but that it was not to be. He won’t need Florida’s coach Billy Donovan to take his call this time.

 

Witnessing this team on the sidelines or in the locker room, it is obvious these guys are having great fun, and they appear to very close knit. This has enabled them to play with an unusual brand of abandon, and it was more than evident in the second half last night.

 

With point guard Brett Comer doing his best Jason Kidd imitation from the top of the key and center Chase Fieler’s dunks seemingly channeling Blake Griffin (minus the car), the Eagles were the more athletic team, effortlessly siphoning off the enthusiasm of the Aztecs. San Diego’s coach Steve Fisher (himself owner of a Fort Myers residence) was complimentary – even if he mistakenly referred to Florida Gulf Coast as Florida State University. Understandable – as most of America is just getting to know this remarkable team, which has defeated its first two opponents by a combined 20 points.

 

The Eagles' captain and motivational leader is senior Sherwood Brown, who routinely speaks to the team during half-time intermissions. But following Sunday night's victory, Brown himself got a boost from San Diego State star Jamaal Franklin, who exhibited the true essence of sportsmanship when he sought out Brown, embraced him and told the Eagles' forward that they played a great game and to keep the dream going. In fact, Franklin stayed on the court, long after his teammates had left, to witness the excitement.

 

www.yahoo.com/sports

[southsider2k5]

Florida is going to run FGCU out of the gym. I am seeing them get up double digits pretty early, and then beat them by 20+ in a laugher. FGCU has athletes, but nothing like the Gators have. The Gator kids are that good, and they are much more of a finished product.

[iamshack]

Florida is going to run FGCU out of the gym. I am seeing them get up double digits pretty early, and then beat them by 20+ in a laugher. FGCU has athletes, but nothing like the Gators have. The Gator kids are that good, and they are much more of a finished product.

I dunno if they are going to win by that sort of margin...FGCU has some pretty outstanding athletes as well, but obviously they are missing the polish that the Gator players have. I'd expect it to be a 10 point game or so...It is a tremendous advantage to be able to spend 3 days breaking down their film as opposed to 1 day, however.

 

I am really excited for the Michigan/Kansas game...you want to talk about athletes...

[southsider2k5]

I dunno if they are going to win by that sort of margin...FGCU has some pretty outstanding athletes as well, but obviously they are missing the polish that the Gator players have. I'd expect it to be a 10 point game or so...It is a tremendous advantage to be able to spend 3 days breaking down their film as opposed to 1 day, however.

 

I am really excited for the Michigan/Kansas game...you want to talk about athletes...

 

I like Michigan to match up well with Kansas. Not many guys have the ability to nuetralize Withy, the Wolverines have two. Plus UM might be more athletic than the Jayhawks. It should be a good one. Michigan just has to defend better than they have and they should win it.

[Jenksismyhero]

I like Michigan to match up well with Kansas. Not many guys have the ability to nuetralize Withy, the Wolverines have two. Plus UM might be more athletic than the Jayhawks. It should be a good one. Michigan just has to defend better than they have and they should win it.

 

Who?

[iamshack]

I like Michigan to match up well with Kansas. Not many guys have the ability to nuetralize Withy, the Wolverines have two. Plus UM might be more athletic than the Jayhawks. It should be a good one. Michigan just has to defend better than they have and they should win it.

I hate Withey...and I need Michigan to win for my bracket pool...not just if they are consistent enough to play as well as they need to for the third consecutive game...

[LittleHurt05]

I like Michigan to match up well with Kansas. Not many guys have the ability to nuetralize Withy, the Wolverines have two. Plus UM might be more athletic than the Jayhawks. It should be a good one. Michigan just has to defend better than they have and they should win it.

 

Kansas got the short end of the stick when it comes to 4 seeds. Michigan's late losing streak weakened their profile down to a 4, but they were in the running for a 1 seed a month or so ago. They definitely look more like a 2 or 3.

[witesoxfan]

I still think Louisville and Michigan are the two most dangerous teams remaining. There are obviously only (pretty) good teams left, but Louisville's all around intensity and Michigan's inside-outside game are very tough right now. I'd be more surprised if Michigan doesn't win their next 2.

 

Kind of crazy to think that it is not out of the realm of possibility to still have an all B1G Final Four. Michigan State has the toughest road, but that's still a very good team capable of beating anyone in the country.

[iamshack]

I still think Louisville and Michigan are the two most dangerous teams remaining. There are obviously only (pretty) good teams left, but Louisville's all around intensity and Michigan's inside-outside game are very tough right now. I'd be more surprised if Michigan doesn't win their next 2.

 

Kind of crazy to think that it is not out of the realm of possibility to still have an all B1G Final Four. Michigan State has the toughest road, but that's still a very good team capable of beating anyone in the country.

At the same time, Michigan is as capable as anyone of going out and laying a big fat smelly turd on the court...

[witesoxfan]

Very true, which is why they're a 4 seed rather than a 2 seed.

[southsider2k5]

At the same time, Michigan is as capable as anyone of going out and laying a big fat smelly turd on the court...

 

YOu can tell it is a team loaded with Freshmen and Sophomores.

[caulfield12]

Not sure about two that can neutralize Withey, McGary is the name that comes to mind obviously....but Withey's true value always has been more on the defensive end.

 

I'm much more interested to see how Withey's presence affects McGary than the other way around.

 

 

For KS to win, Elijah Johnson and especially McLemore have to show up and play like they're capable of...and Perry Ellis is the other wild card in that Jayhawk line-up,, their own version of McGary.

 

 

[Rex Hudler]

I think UF handles FGCU. Told my gf who is a Gator they would win by 14 or more. FGCU has to come back to earth at some point. If they beat Florida, I don't see any way they beat Michigan and probably not Kansas.

 

I like Michigan in the Kansas game IF they can get production out of the middle. McGary has played well, but if Kansas is smart, they'll go right at him with Withey. Right now, they have no confidence in Jordan Morgan and Horford is limited. If McGary picks up some quick fouls, I don't think Horford can give them big minutes. Morgan will have to wake up and step up big or Kansas will eat them alive. I said early in the season I thought Morgan was the key to a deep run for them. If he can step in and make a big contribution, I'll be right and Michigan will win. If he stays 3rd string, my prediction falls flat on its face and their hopes rely too much on McGary. They have to get rebounds, some points and interior defense from that position.

[southsider2k5]

I think UF handles FGCU. Told my gf who is a Gator they would win by 14 or more. FGCU has to come back to earth at some point. If they beat Florida, I don't see any way they beat Michigan and probably not Kansas.

 

I like Michigan in the Kansas game IF they can get production out of the middle. McGary has played well, but if Kansas is smart, they'll go right at him with Withey. Right now, they have no confidence in Jordan Morgan and Horford is limited. If McGary picks up some quick fouls, I don't think Horford can give them big minutes. Morgan will have to wake up and step up big or Kansas will eat them alive. I said early in the season I thought Morgan was the key to a deep run for them. If he can step in and make a big contribution, I'll be right and Michigan will win. If he stays 3rd string, my prediction falls flat on its face and their hopes rely too much on McGary. They have to get rebounds, some points and interior defense from that position.

 

The thing is McGary means that Withey doesn't get to play centerfield on the backline against the guards. They like to use the bigs in the pick and roll out top, and move him out of the lane. That will open stuff up for the guards and GRIII.

[Soxbadger]

I just think Michigan has more talent.

 

They definitely can lose this game, but they have a lot of talent and Im not sure if Kansas has the "Self" control to slow down the tempo and see who can grind out a win.

 

Michigan running up and down the court is a recipe for a Michigan win.

[southsider2k5]

I just think Michigan has more talent.

 

They definitely can lose this game, but they have a lot of talent and Im not sure if Kansas has the "Self" control to slow down the tempo and see who can grind out a win.

 

Michigan running up and down the court is a recipe for a Michigan win.

UM can lose this game for sure. They have got to defend better as individuals than they have for most of the season. They can't let Mclemore go crazy for sure.