Fun at the expense of UFI and Kansas

As much as I love the Fighting Illini, I also love to hate a select few teams. My hate is not irrational or malicious, but I definitely have my reasons for disliking these teams the way I do.

I enjoy watching the Iowa Hawkeyes, Missouri Tigers and Kansas Jayhawks lose - almost as much as I enjoy seeing the Illini win. So Friday was a great day for me, as two of my most hated rivals lost in huge, first round NCAA Tournament upsets on Friday.

The hate for "Freakin' Iowa" (a quote from Boy Wonder Steve Alford himself) started with Bruce Pearl about sixteen years ago. I don't think I need to say much more than that: My memory is very long and I know many other Illini fans feel exactly the same way.

#3-seed UFI got beat at the buzzer by #14-seed Northwestern State, 64-63, in one of the most exciting games I've watched in several years. Much to my dismay, the Hawks led this contest by 17 points with just 8 1/2 minutes to play, and the game appeared to be over. But the Demons from rural northwest Louisiana fought back with tenacious defense and some very timely shooting. After senior Greg Brunner came up short on the second of two free throws, leaving Iowa just two points ahead, Jermaine Wallace buried his desperation three with just 0.5 seconds on the clock to the delight of many in The Palace at Auburn Hills as well as many Illini fans watching on their TVs or PCs. And then seeing Wallace's shot replayed over and over and over again on SportsCenter and College GameNight and the local news just brings a huge smile to my face. Way to go, Demons! Thanks for the memories!!!

Hating Kansas has everything to do with hating carpetbagger Bill Self, who bailed on the Illini just three years ago next month, right when the Illini were knocking on the door of bigger and better things in the college basketball world. Self claimed that he was at Illinois "for the long haul" and that together, he, his staff and the Illini players "had a lot of work to do." Well, we all know how the "long haul" turned out with Self. Some Illini fans are more forgiving of Self, arguing that we should just forgive and forget what he did on his way out. Sorry - I can't do that. What's telltale about this, to me, is Illinois athletic director Ron Guenther's reaction to Self's abrupt departure: Guenther was apparently angry with Self just before and after Self left Illinois: In a press conference held shortly after Self was introduced as KU's new head coach, Guenther talked about loyalty to and from his coaches at Illinois and he called out Self as someone who crossed the line in that regard. What's bad for Ron Guenther - the king of Fighting Illini athletics - is arguably bad for Fighting Illini athletics. Thus, I have a chip on my shoulder where Bill Self is concerned.

Kansas, winners of 15 of 16 games, including the Big XII Tournament Championship, and the #4 seed in the Oakland Regional, struggled mightily all evening with the underrated, extremely athletic Bradley Braves from the Missouri Valley Conference. Bradley held off the desperate Jayhawks, 77-73, in an instant classic. I've gotta give BU a ton of props: They played with a purpose, they played aggressively, they played with poise and they pulled off a fantastic win over an immensely talented team of Jayhawks. KU, which looked unprepared and tentative from the get-go, only led by as many as two points early in the game for just a short spell; Bradley played on the lead for nearly the entire game and truly deserved the W. And let me say this: Bradley not only pulled off an upset last night, they proved what a good team they are with that performance. The Braves could have beaten a bunch of higher-seeded teams last night. This was Bradley's first NCAA victory since a win over UTEP in 1986 - twenty years ago.

Nice game for senior forward Marcellus Sommerville (21 points and 7 rebounds), sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant (8 and 10), sophomore guard Dan Ruffin (11 points and 7 assists) and junior guard Will Franklin (14 points and 6 assists). Looks like this Bradley team is still rather young and this bodes well for the next few years.

And so, the Jayhawks are headed back to Naismith Drive a little earlier than they had planned - again. Kansas has now lost in the first round in back-to-back seasons for the first time in school history. I wonder how that will play amongst the anxious Phog Phaithful for the next several months.