March Madness: Old Dominion is Going to the NCAA Tournament
By Jason McIntyre
Conference: CAA (27-6)
Location: Norfolk, VA. The Tidewater region has produced talented (but oft-troubled) athletes such as Plaxico Burress, Allen Iverson and Mike Vick. Two prominent ones without criminal records are Alonzo Mourning and Ronald Curry.
Famous Alum: The Monarchs have produced some NBA players – Cal Bowdler, Chris Gatling, Mark West and Kenny Harris to name a few. ESPN Sportscenter anchor Jay Harris went to ODU.
NCAA History: The last two times the Monarchs have played Big East teams in the opening round, they’ve won (Notre Dame last year, and Villanova in 1995 when the Wildcats were a 3-seed). I fondly remember the Villanova game – my bracket had the Wildcats in the Final Four.
School’s Leading Scorer: Ronnie Valetine, 2,204 (graduated in 1980).
Resume: The Rams have won nine in a row, and 13 of 14, with the only loss being at tourney-bound George Mason. Outside of the CAA, ODU lost to Georgetown in the season opener, then beat Clemson less than two weeks later. They did get stomped by Missouri in late December.
Experience: Their four top players were all part of last year’s 51-50 upset of Notre Dame in the first round:
All-Important Rankings: Ken Pom (48), ESPN RPI (25), Sagarin (36).
Projected Seed: They’ll be a dangerous 9/10 seed. Could even get an 8-seed. If the committee drops them to an 11 seed, pity the 6-seed they’ll play. ODU’s goal will be control tempo, ugly-it-up and keep the game in the 50s or low 60s. They’ll be a sexy pick to win a game or two, especially if they play an offensive team that doesn’t push tempo or is prone to offensive struggles.
Before You Gamble: Three of ODU’s four best scorers shoot under 70% from the line. ODU’s best player, Frank Hassell, is a double-double machine, (he averages 15-9), and shoots 73 percent from the line.
Other teams with a ticket to the Dance