Super Bowl review and thoughts from College Hoops

Well, it certainly wasn’t one of the best played Super Bowl games of all time. Key penalties, sloppy plays and jaw-dropping turnovers marred the annual event. Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck put up much better numbers (26-for-49 for 273 yards) than his counterpart Ben Roethlisberger (9-for-21, 123 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions), who finally looked like a 23-year-old. then a brilliant postseason. But it was Big Ben’s team that got the win, and the money, in a convincing 21-10 win.

Look at it this way: The Steelers played as poorly as they could, with dropped passes, two interceptions from their quarterback, and even lost the 2-1 turnover battle. Yet despite all that, they still won the game. by two digits. This is a well-coached team with a truly superb defense under imaginative coordinator Dick LeBeau. Once they got the lead, their run defense and zone bombing wreaked havoc on Seattle, just as they had in the last three games with the Bengals, Colts and Broncos.

Seattle had close to 400 total yards, but in the end all they could muster was 10 points. Like the Eagles last season, the underdog Seahawks had countless first-half chances and great field position to pressure the Steelers. They could have been up 10-0 or even 14-0, but they couldn’t capitalize. And in the blink of an eye, Pittsburgh was 7-3 at the half. You knew the Steelers wouldn’t play too bad in the second half, so Seattle missed their chance. From then on, they played a desperate game to catch up, especially after Willie Parker’s electrifying TD run made Pittsburgh make it 14-3. The Steelers are not a team you want to catch up on.

Pittsburgh’s coaching staff has made tricky plays throughout the playoffs, and Antwaan Randle El’s 43-yard touchdown pass to Hines Ward clinched Pittsburgh’s 21-10 win. Congratulations also to Bill Cowher, one of the best coaches in the NFL for a long time. It was nice to see a guy pay his fair share and get a ring. He and the City of Steel deserve it.

Now that the football season is behind us, it’s time to delve into college and professional basketball. Here are some stats to chew on in college basketball. Georgetown is 8-1 SU, 5-3 ATS at home as it makes some noise with a dynamite offense. Injury-plagued Cincinnati may have won 11 of their first 14 home games, but they’ve been a money burn at 3-8 ATS.

Understand that some teams are worth looking above or below the total for important reasons. Louisville started 13-3 under the total in large part due to injuries and a young offense. They just got Taquan Dean back though, so maybe the offense could start to improve. But coach Rick Pitino has admitted all season that they’re too young, which explains why they’ve been overrated at 5-13 ATS.

A couple of teams still have solid plays under the total because they play brilliant, stifling, slow defense. Southern Illinois of the Missouri Valley Conference is 15-8 short of the total. They had a recent streak of 12 consecutive games under the total! This team prides itself on beating their opponents and notes that they are 9-1 under on home total. Northwestern also plays a slow style that allows 59 points per game. The Wildcats are 11-5 short on total.

Also, as conference play heats up, we’re getting closer to tournament time. Over the next few weeks, you’ll find a lot of teams having bad seasons that don’t care anymore. Here are some chew money burners you may be packing: James Madison is a poor 2-9 SU, 3-7 ATS at home, St. Bonnie is 1-8 SU, 3-9 ATS on the road allowing 80 ppg, Western Michigan is 2-8 SU, 3-7 ATS on the road. And Utah continues to be overrated based on its longstanding reputation as a great program under Rick Majerus. Rick is long gone and the Utes are a poor 2-7 SU/ATS down the road, though they covered us at home last night. Good luck as always… Al McMordie.