3. So how about Butler? They have now likely set up a game with Florida, similar to the one back in 2000 which I am sure none of us will forget the ending on. Florida rode that victory in the first round to a National Title game appearance. They are "expected" to make another run like that this season. However, with the way Butler is playing, I think little David, albeit with a lot more respect this season, could stop them. This is especially true if Florida suffers from the line like Maryland did against the Bulldogs. Down the stretch was especially painful for the Terrapins. The other area where Butler can force the Gator hand? Turnovers which have been known to get Florida off their mental game. And finally, AJ Graves needs to have another game like on Saturday to take down what should be the heavily favored Florida.

4. I give Boston College a lot of credit. I didn't think they would be able to play at all with Georgetown. They stayed with them very well though. In the end it was Georgetown's significant size advantage that gave them the win. That size advantage should again help them against Vanderbilt, although they will need to come up with some good perimeter defense to stop the Commodores, who seem destined right now.

5. Vanderbilt was the team I said reminded me of West Virginia from the past two years, and they continue to live up to it. They struggled from three for the first half of the game against Washington State, but they picked the right time to get hot against the Cougars. The Commodores just kept knocking them down from the start of the second half, including a 9-0 run at one point to close the gap. And in overtime, it was Vanderbilt looking like Washington State with some tough defense that was the Cougars claim to fame over the season. Give a lot of credit to Derrick Low from Washington State, their leading scorer in the game, who refused to lose and made some key baskets to extend the game. I look forward to seeing this Vandy team take on the tough Georgetown next weekend.

6. I know we all wanted Virginia Commonwealth to be George Mason from last year. This was especially so after they pleased about 98% of the country by beating Duke. But the truth is that while Virginia Commonwealth had a lot of the attributes of the George Mason squad from last year, this was not the balanced team that the Patriots had put on the floor. There is no doubt that they gave Pittsburgh all they could handle. The tough defense that helped them win the turnover battle against Duke was still there, although it came on too late to get them the win. However, what really did them in was the lack of size to bang on the boards. That was something that George Mason was continually able to trot out last season. OF the teams left, do we have a George Mason type team? Maybe Winthrop, but they will need to be hot from long range in order to think that Craig Bradshaw and his size will be the difference.

7. "Psycho T" Tyler Hansbrough lost his mask for the game against Michigan State, and I think Michigan State was hoping later that it would come back. Give Tom Izzo credit. Playing with a team that was in most cases less talented, he game planned well for the big man and the rest of the Tar Heels. Say what you want about Michigan State's record, but this was a quality team that deserved its tournament place, and they performed very well all season. The problem is that they ran into the buzz saw that is North Carolina. I know there are a lot of UNC-haters out there, much like Duke-haters, and that North Carolina was the pick for most to be the first #1 seed to go down, but the computer really likes this team, and despite their youth, they have a chance to make a big story in this tournament. Back to Hansbrough though. You can't fault 33 points and nine boards. His shooting touch look much improved without the big plastic blinder on his head also. Everyone should root for Texas today so that we can see Hansbrough and Kevin Durant on the same floor next Friday in East Rutherford.

That's all for now. If I can come up with something interesting after that very sloppy game between Indiana and UCLA, I will throw that out there later. The only thing that sticks in my mind is that it was very reminiscent of the game between the Bruins and Memphis last season. Thank goodness that this one came a few rounds earlier, and was almost a side note on what was a great day of basketball.

Enjoy the games.

Copyright 2007 by MRISports.com. Ben Miraski writes for MRISports.com and is a featured blogger on FanIQ. Readers can contact Ben at bmiraski@mrisports.com