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Thursday's surprise gem was Bulldog-ish

Print | Comments () Posted by Staff March 18, 2011 01:48 PM

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By Bob Ryan, Globe Columnist

CLEVELAND — In case anyone was wondering, Thursday afternoon is why some of us get a bit unhinged when NCAA Tourney time rolls around.

I doubt I can add anything to what you may have seen for yourself, or read about. Butler ... Morehead State ... Temple ... Richmond ... even mighty Kentucky. They all needed dramatic endings in a truly sensational opening round (and it is the opening round, no matter what the NCAA is trying to feed us). But what I will add is that there was no doubt which team was the best, at least on Thursday, March 17, 2011.

The Gonzaga Bulldogs. Oh my God!

I mean, they folded, spindled and totally mutilated a good St. John's team. They did EVERYTHING better. They shot better, rebounded better, defended better, passed better, thought better and competed better. They hit St. John's with inside stuff, outside stuff, clever stuff, inexplicable stuff and stuff-stuff.

They are on a roll, and their game with BYU on Saturday is absolute must-see TV. Even if they lose, which is doubtful, they will almost surely be able to say when the tournament is over that nobody played better than we did back on March 17.