I Miss Maui!

Sunset Sail
Originally uploaded by pete4ducks.

Well haven't posted here in awhile but in the last month a lot has happened. The Patriots blew the Superbowl and the Oregon Ducks went n the tank and are on life support for the NCAA Tournament. In much more significant news Emily and I got married on February 9th in Maui. We had an amazing wedding and a generally great time in Maui. The only problem was coming back home. I miss the sound of the waves gently crashing against the shore while I fall asleep, I miss the warm weather, I miss the laid-back lifestyle of Maui, I miss being able go swimming in the ocean, I miss the beach, I miss looking out my window and seeing whales, Lana'i and Molokia, I miss hanging out at Maui Brewing Company but most of all I miss not dealing with the daily grind of life on the mainland.

My Daughter is Pretty Dang Cute . . .

Evangeline
Originally uploaded by pete4ducks.

So we are off to Maui soon . . . the cab picks us up in 6 hours, the packing is done and we are ready for our next adventure as a family.

Off to Maui soon!

Close-up
Originally uploaded by pete4ducks.

Emily and I are off to Maui on Tuesday for our wedding. We are so excited to have so many of our good friends and our family at the event. We are also very excited to enjoy some great weather which is not something you get to experience during an Oregon winner as well as having a long vacation from the daily grind of working life. I may not be able to get my blog out the next two weeks but then again maybe I will be able to write some sitting by the pool or beach in Kahana. I plan to take a zillion pictures so stay tuned and wish us the best of luck as we take another step on our journey together.

Big Buddha

Big Buddha
Originally uploaded by pete4ducks.

Pac 10 Power Poll

Well barring a 7-3 or better finish which includes road trips to all the California schools or winning the Pac 10 Tournament I think you can safely say that Oregon has joined Cal as teams I will say as this point are NIT bound and can forget about sweating out Selection Sunday. As of right now I see the Pac 10 with a lock on five bids (UCLA, Arizona, Stanford, WSU and a streaking USC squad). People seem to be putting ASU in the tournament but to me they have awful computer numbers and will face what is likely the third hardest schedule down the chute the rest of the season to the Oregon schools. The Devils do have 2 top 25 RPI wins but both were at home and under difficult circumstances for the road team (Xavier traveling cross country after a bitterly tough game versus cross city foe Cinci and then Zona facing ASU wihout Jerryd Bayless). ASU will need to win another road game against someone other than Oregon State if they hope to go to the tournament. With their sad computer numbers having Cal as your only true road win of the year won't cut it. I actually think that Washington may have a better shot at getting that final possible bid but in the end the Pac 10 will be a five bid conference this year.

1. UCLA - (2) The Bruins survived a scare at Oregon and should be healthy again for the Arizona schools. (RPI 12 SOS 32) NCAA Lock
2. WSU (1) - Didn't look good in the loss in Tucson but Arizona was actually favorted so dispite what the polls say this wasn't an upset. The Cougs gutted out a win in Tempe that really put a hurt on ASU's chances for a bid. The Cougars could still be in play for a 2 seed but need a sweep this weekend hosting the Bay Area schools and to beat UCLA when they play up their later in the year. Due to the poor OOC slate I feel more comforatable giving WSU a 3 seed. (RPI 10 SOS 77) NCAA Lock
3. Stanford - Since Brook Lopez's return the Trees have been a team worth of a top 5 seed in the NCAA's but they still need to get a few road wins to seal that up. The Siena loss is still a major blight on the OOC schedule, that along with a generally weak OOC slate, is dragging down their RPI numers. (RPI 29 SOS 110) NCAA Lock
4. Arizona (7) - Back on track with Bayless back in the lineup. However the Cats have a very tough road trip this week and could use a split. (RPI 7 SOS 1). NCAA Lock
5. USC (6) - The hottest team in the league almost threw away the Oregon game but shot perfect in overtime to destroy the Ducks season. As I expected USC is coming on later in the year, no surprise with the young talent they have. (RPI 38 SOS 22) NCAA Lock
6. ASU (4) - Getting swept at home by the Washington schools might be the straw that breaks the camels back. With a high likelihood of getting swept in LA this week I think it will be all but imposssible for the Devils to get 10 pac wins. Despite the very high RPI number of the conference ASU will get no favors from the commitee and only have 4 home games remaining. (RPI 90 SOS 151).
7. UW (8) - The win at ASU gives them faint hope for a bid and they have a very favorable schedule down the stretch but don't have many wins that stand out with the best being a win over #52 RPI Oregon. A shame for the Dawgs that they couldn't beat Pitt way back in early December. (RPI 88 SOS 62) NIT
8. UO (4) - What an unfortunate weekend for the Ducks who could have gotten a sweep and jumped to the top of the Pac 10 and now find themselves in 8th place with a miniscule chance of anything better than the NIT. The Ducks have dropped almost 30 points in RPI in two weeks. (RPI 52 SOS 14)
9. Cal (9) - Could this be the last year of the Ben Braun era. He is now the dean of Pac 10 coaches unless Lute Olson comes back next year. Pity poor Ryan Andeson who is playing his heart out on a team that just doesn't have the horses this year. (RPI 92 SOS 42). NIT
10. OSU (10) - I give the Beavs credit for playing two strong first halves in the games versus USC and UCLA. Kevin Mouton and the Beavs will have their one shot for a win this Saturday versus the Ducks who have to be in the complete dumps mentally. (RPI 235 SOS 139)

Evie

Evie
Originally uploaded by pete4ducks.

Pac 10 Power Poll

The Jay John era ended with a loss in Seattle and the coach found himself the victim of an unusual mid-season firing the likes which have not been seen in the Pac 10 since Dr Evil aka Henry Bibby was canned in favor of Jim Scia. In a somewhat shocking result UCLA was bounced convincingly at home by the very inconsistent but talented USC. Now UCLA will have to go up to Mac Court on Thursday night to face an Oregon team in desperate need of a win with the service of Mata and Btah Mute. I think the Ducks will get the upset but they need to make sure they beat USC as well or their slipping tourney chances will take a hit. Jon Brockman played great all week for the Huskies who got two wins and salvaged their season. Pity the Cal Bears who have a possible Pac 10POY candidate in Ryan Anderson but lost all realistic shot at anything better than the NIT with the home sweep by the Arizona schools. This week the LA schools go to Oregon, the Washington schools go to Arizona and Stanford goes across the Bay to Haas to play Cal.

1. WSU (2) -Broke the streak and the unexpected home loss by UCLA puts WSU in the drivers seat to win the conference if they can beat UCLA at Friel Court (RPI 18 SOS 138). NCAA Lock
2. UCLA (1) - A shocking home loss along with injuries has to raise some questions on the national level. If the tournament started today they would be a 2 seed (RPI 13 SOS 20). NCAA Lock
3. Stanford (4) - Solid home sweep of the Arizona schools including a 4 point win over the Wildcats who have had Stanford's number in Maples lately. Obviously having Brook Lopez back in the swing of things has made this team much better (RPI 27 SOS 82). NCAA Lock
4. ASU (5) - Nice double OT win in Berkeley gives them their first legit road win of the season (RPI 68 SOS 208). NCAA Bubble
5. UO (3) - The Ducks poor shooting at the end of the WSU game was quite costly, a win there and they are looking at a top 5 seed a loss takes them back to sitting on the bubble again. A sweep of the LA schools would get the Ducks right back where they need to be (RPI 33 SOS 27). NCAA Bubble
6. USC (8) - An enigma of a team all came together in getting a very rare road win on the home court of a Ben Howland coached team. A road sweep in Oregon will put them on the good side of the bubble again (RPI 46 SOS 16). NCAA Bubble
7. UA (7) - The Cats split in the Bay Area but the level of improvement with the return of Bayless wasn't what I would have expected. The computer numbers are so high for this team all they really need to do is win 9 conference games and they are okay but the 24 year NCAA streak is in jeopardy a bit (RPI 9 SOS 1) NCAA Bubble
8. UW (9) - Jon Brockman tooled Oregon and Oregon State on the boards. The Huskies would need to win 9 of 13 to have a chance of getting to the NCAAs with the poor computer numbers (RPI 106 SOS 68). NIT
9. Cal (7) - After being swept at home I think you can safely say that Cal can't do anything better than the NIT this year. I can see some pressure mounting on Ben Braun. (RPI 91 SOS 56) NIT
10. OSU (10) - Bob Decarrolis mercifully took Jay John out of his misery. At this point things can only go up and the Beavs need an impact hire which will be hard with the worst facilities in the conference and tons of fan apathy (RPI 236 SOS 178).