Courtside Post

By A.J. Puzzo

The World Cup Quarterfinal match between the Netherlands and tournament favorites Brazil ended with an unexpected 2:1 victory to the Dutch, as they battled back from an early 1:0 deficit. The Dutch, having conceded an early goal to Manchester City’s Robinho in the 10th minute, rallied to progress as the wind ran quickly out of Brazil’s sails.

By A.J. Puzzo

In the United Kingdom it’s called football and it powers a premier world economy through a nation’s fervor and love of the game. In Italy it is known as “calcio” and is defined by battle scars and broken limbs. But here in the States, where we refer to the beautiful game as soccer, it has been the Achilles’ heel of American sport for nearly a century. Soccer is the world’s game, and yet the United States, one of the world’s most formidably athletic and competitive nations, has never truly adopted it as one of its major pastimes.

by A.J. Puzzo

“Right now the NCAA is building over 400,000 future professionals, and most of us will go pro in something other than sports.”

Yes, we’ve all seen the NCAA’s latest TV spot run during this year’s men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. And yes, we all understand the purpose of the ad. But what about those gifted NCAA athletes that do go pro in the sport of their expertise? What about the ones that roll the dice on a dream that more than likely will die by age 30? Are they doomed to burn their peak earning years as foolish kids in their early twenties?

by A.J. Puzzo

That’s some good advice the NCAA should heed when discussing the current men’s basketball tournament format. Recent talks have got the sports world wondering what the big wigs in collegiate hoops are thinking when taunting the public with threats to expand the tournament by 31 teams. There are a few basic facts that work against the logic of expansion. Let’s start with four incredible stories that have happened in this year’s tournament already.