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Quick Stickin'

In theory, I should be talking about the Syracuse men's lacrosse team's opening victory of the NCAA tournament right now. Mentioning how their second-round opponent looks tough but beatable. Giving you reasons why we'll win and advance one step closer to yet another Final Four.

Alas... Even without the Orange in the tourney, there's still lots to discuss.
You want upsets? You got'm. Delaware stunned the defending champs, Virginia, 14-8, ending the game on a 7-1 run. Then, in a case of little brother beating big brother, UMBC defeated Maryland 13-9. Princeton also fell to Georgetown, meaning that four of the "Big 5" (Cuse, Maryland, UVA, Princeton, JHU) are out. Only Hopkins remains (you can see the bracket here) in a wide-open tournament.

Syracuse-loyalty aside, this is fantastic for men's lacrosse. Finally, some new blood at the top. Purists may cry foul and elitists may whine but with a Final Four that will include the winner of Delaware-UMBC, it's great for the sport that some new teams and new fans will be able to experience the Final Four atmosphere. The major crime of the seeding though is that undefeated Cornell will face two-loss Albany in the next round. Those two teams shouldn't have been meeting until the Final Four, at least.

Far be it from me to deny the ladies some very deserving accolades as well. The Syracuse women's lacrosse team
won its first-ever NCAA Tournament game, beating Vanderbilt 16-10. The Orange will now face two-time defending national champion and top-seeded Northwestern in the NCAA Quarterfinals on Saturday. It's a battle of win streaks, Cuse at 13 and Northwestern at 18. The Orange's last loss? To Northwestern, 10-7.