By Paul M. Banks CHICAGO- 2010 has been perhaps the most exciting NCAA Tournament in recent memory. This March Madness is yet another example of why the college hoops postseason is the best postseason around. It doesn’t need fixing; college football’s pathetic excuse for a postseason does. The run up to this Final Four featured comebacks, upsets and many incredibly close … [Read more...] about Midwest Swing: Final Horn
final 4
Midwest Swing: Title Game Edition
By Paul M. Banks INDIANAPOLIS- Signs inside, outside and all over downtown Indy read "the road ends here." Indeed it did, my four venue, three city college basketball tour ended on this night. As did the championship aspirations of the 64th and final team. I literally teared up as Duke cut down the nets and hoisted the championship trophy because for me, the "Midwest Swing" … [Read more...] about Midwest Swing: Title Game Edition
Midwest Swing: Final Four Edition
By Paul M. Banks INDIANAPOLIS- The brightest lights and the biggest stars come for college basketball’s biggest stage. But the biggest and best photo opp? Blue II, Butler's bulldog mascot. He came into the media room and everyone swooned over him. He's adorable! And the paparazzi were hounding him like 12 year old girls swooning over the Jonas Brothers. And by everyone I … [Read more...] about Midwest Swing: Final Four Edition
Duke-Butler NCAA Title Game Live Blog from Press Row
By Paul M. Banks … [Read more...] about Duke-Butler NCAA Title Game Live Blog from Press Row
NCAA Title Game Preview
By Paul M. Banks INDIANAPOLIS- 2010 has been perhaps the most exciting NCAA Tournament in recent memory. This March madness is yet another example of why the college hoops postseason is the best postseason around. It doesn’t need fixing; college football’s pathetic excuse for a postseason does. The run up to this Final Four featured comebacks, upsets, and many incredibly … [Read more...] about NCAA Title Game Preview
Midwest Swing Elite 8 Edition
Paul M. Banks ST LOUIS-I got one of the best compliments ever following the taking of the picture you see above. Some random dude said something that made me think, "this must be what Justin Timberlake feels like every day." … [Read more...] about Midwest Swing Elite 8 Edition
Bruce Weber’s International Incident
By Paul M. Banks If you’ve ever seen University of Illinois Men’s basketball Head Coach Bruce Weber on television, you might notice what a happy-go-lucky guy he appears to be. In person, he’s just the nicest guy you’ll ever meet. One might even call him “cuddly.” That’s why I was shocked to learn that someone might actually treat him like a potentially dangerous criminal or … [Read more...] about Bruce Weber’s International Incident
Why Michigan St Plays for the Title
By Paul M. Banks Heading into Saturday’s Final Four, much has been made of MSU’s home-court advantage in Detroit, but the “intangible” if you believe in such things as a deciding factor being slightly under-reported is the dark cloud of scandal hanging over the heads of the UConn program. They may just fold up shop, like Indiana did down the stretch last season when the … [Read more...] about Why Michigan St Plays for the Title
Michigan State Now Midwest’s Premier Program
By Paul M. Banks Before it was an environmental clarion call spouted by business and government leaders everywhere, the phrase “go green” was the Michigan State Spartans’ battle cry. For those lucky enough to be in Detroit this weekend (Yes, it’s weird describing Detroit as a coveted destination) you’ll hear lots of “go green” and “go white” as MSU becomes the first team … [Read more...] about Michigan State Now Midwest’s Premier Program