A sample of some of the best of Quickish from Monday, March 28. New recommendations are added all day (every day!) on Quickish, so pop by anytime for the latest analysis and commentary on the biggest things that are happening.
Unsurprisingly, it was a day heavy on VCU, the greatest Final Four Cinderella in the history of the NCAA Tournament. See the entire Quickish VCU stream here, and today's best here:
We are all VCU fans (via WashPost's Mike Wise): The Rams speak to the beauty of the tournament better than any team this year — the idea that all you really need is a chance to become a special team over three delirious weeks of buzzer-beaters and upsets and routs and dunks and detractors.
Biggest Cinderella ever? (via NYT's Nate Silver): Virginia Commonwealth, in fact, might be the basketball equivalent of Susan Boyle. In a competition famous for its upsets, the Rams having made it to Houston may be the most unlikely occurrence in the history of the tournament.
Don't call 'em Cinderella (via WSJ's Darren Everson): What's fascinating about VCU and Butler isn't the trite "Hoosiers" narrative, but rather how they were able to succeed in the clutch while their opponents faltered.
Playing loose (via SI.com's Michael Rosenberg): If you *almost* get eliminated, two wonderful things can happen. One, you know you can handle the pressure, and you don't worry about it anymore. And two, you feel like it's your destiny to win.
It's a new world (via the NYT's Pete Thamel): The 33-year-old Smart and the 34-year-old Stevens have defied the sport’s conventional wisdom, turning the typical wine-and-cheese Final Four into a keg party — everyone is invited.
How VCU did it (via SI.com's Andy Glockner): While VCU's perimeter marksmanship was searing, Kansas couldn't shoot from anywhere... The deficit from three-point range -- the clear deciding factor in the game -- was an inarguable statement of victory for the Rams' mindset.
How can you NOT be loving this? (via Deadspin's Barry Petchesky) But there are two large reasons that will keep us from abandoning the Tournament format to throw our support behind the BCS. First, too inclusive is better than too exclusive... Second, thanks to teams like VCU or Butler, *one of which will make the title game*, the Tournament is just a hell of a lot more fun.
True (via St. Pete Times' Michael Kruse): The message of college football is: Don't mess up. The message of college basketball is: Don't give up.
All hail VCU (via SBNation's Andrew Sharp): To really appreciate what makes this run so satisfying, what makes this more than just a crazy winning streak, you have to go back two weeks, when VCU lucked into a tournament berth and touched off a firestorm of scorched-earth criticism.
The front page of the Richmond Times-Dispatch: "Houston, here we come"
A really smart, must-read Final Four preview (via SI.com's Luke Winn): Beautiful chaos in the bracket gave us our first all-mid-major semifinal in the history of the expanded tournament, and the highest-seeded final quartet ever. The Wildcats are now the log5 favorite and Vegas’ favorite, which means that, if the tournament holds true to form, they’re doomed.
And the last word, to VCU coach Shaka Smart (via Yahoo's Jason King): Smart waved to the crowd of VCU fans chanting his name and holding signs that read "Shaka Shocker." Speaking into a microphone, his message to them was simple."We’re not done yet," he said.
And, finally, two videos:
First, a replay of yesterday's reaction in Richmond to VCU's success:
And this, the top plays of the 2011 NCAA Tournament so far:
