2011 NCAA Tournament: The Final Four - Evil Versus Good

You ever hear the term Good Versus Evil and wonder, why does good get top billing? Of course you don't. Because it's good, right?

The lines are blurring though. More and more people think that Good Versus Evil is an archaic notion. Anybody that would believe in such a thing surely is some 'right wing, tea bagging, Christian Fanatic!' Right? Shots Heard believes in such a notion. And never in our three and a half years online have we ever pimped the Republican party, discussed the national debt or touted religion.

But today's Final Four is just that, Evil Versus Good. And just like real life, Evil has the upper hand and top billing.

The Evil - Kentucky And A University In Connecticut (Formerly known as UCONN)

Kentucky's John Calipari committed 'major violations' at UMASS and Memphis. The schools were 'punished' and what is Calipari's reward? Only arguably the 'best coaching job' in the nation. In the NCAA, cheaters do prosper.

A University In Connecticut's coach, John Calhoun was found guilty of major cheating. His punishment? He misses three games, NEXT YEAR. It's a laugher, we know. The NCAA truly is a joke. And when a company like the NCAA has no real ethics, then they have no idea just how pathetic they look. There's no seeing the forest for the trees.

Kentucky and A University In Connecticut represent 'The Power Six' conferences. They represent the group that has an unethical strangle hold, not only on college basketball, but college sports in general (See BCS). These are the 'money makers.'

These teams represent the NCAA's win at all costs attitude. These teams represent the millions of dollars of greedy executives. These teams represent the transition from pure sport to pure evil. If you ask Jim Calhoun if he is overpaid he will only take it as an insult. Money is not only the bottom line, it's the core value at these evil institutions.

The Good - Butler And VCU

Butler is just a little school that humbly does the right things. Coach Brad Stevens once remarked, "the greatest compliment I can receive is when a professor tells me I didn't know that student was on the basketball team until I turned on the television set and saw him in the game." Student athletes at Butler are not receiving improper benefits and special treatment.

That is a far cry from Calipari's Mempis, where Derick Rose cheated on the SAT to be a part of his win at all costs program.

VCU meanwhile is a the 'everyday man on the streets.' Maybe they are good, maybe they are a little bad. But they are not the real problem in college sports. We root for VCU because we root for 'the little guy.' Certainly their run in the tournament has been inspiring and epic. They show us that anybody can live the American dream.

But VCU represents the current bitter sweet taste of the American dream. They represent the affirmative action instituted by the Evil that runs the system. VCU got into the tournament ahead of 15 to 20 more qualified teams. 

It divides. How dare we say VCU has not earned everything it got, right? Wrong. But certainly we do not blame VCU. They did nothing wrong. They just played ball with honor.

Just like real life, affirmative action is Evil's way of handpicking pawns and disregarding actual merit and accomplishment. There were more than fifteen teams that were more qualified than VCU to be in the tournament. But the committee wanted somebody that they thought would be one and done (like real life). And they wanted to look benevolent for throwing some crumbs on to the floor for 'the little guy.'

But we don't care about 'the little guy.' Honestly. The only one that ever truly cares about 'the little guy' is the little guy. In fact, we are not rooting for 'the little guy' more than we are rooting against AIG's and Bank Of America's of the world that are keeping the 'have nots' down.

What we care about is fairness. We don't care about affirmative action. Affirmative action is a means to give unfair benefits and divide 'the have nots' while Evil swims in their riches.

Are we really rooting for VCU or are we just rooting for an F U to the system? Shots Heard suggest the ladder.

Of course, in Butler's case, they are easy to root for. They have earned everything that they got (and then some). They have received lower seeds than they deserved and still beat against the system.

So...

So as you watch this Final Four, ask yourself. Are you for Evil or for Good? Perhaps it's time to pick up your cross and carry it.

Picture: Butler does it the right way, 'The Butler Way.' It's all blood, sweat and tears. It's an honest day's work for an honest day's pay.

'The Butler Way' And The VCU Way - Hogging in on the media whores and NCAA Committee whores gravy

Some readers of Shots Heard might think we are crazy to suggest the greedy corruption among the media whores and the NCAA Tournament Committee whores. The rest of you have common sense.

This video details this estimate; the Butler gained $639 million dollars worth of publicity from last year's tournament run. That does not include a total for their back-to-back Final Four appearance!

Ask yourself; if you were a 'major' school president that had control over who gets into the tournament and what teams and conferences get those millions then might you systematically limit and disparage the Butlers of the world? 

And if you're a media whore and you received many more millions from UCLA making a Final Four than say a Butler, then might you play down the success of the 'lesser thans' and pimp those big market schools and subtly (or overtly) dismiss the small market schools? (Shout out to Doug Gottlieb on that one).

This year was no exception. The mutual systematic corruption of the media whores and NCAA Committee whores was primed and running as smoothly as ever when they locked out Harvard RPI 35 (Tied first place in The Ivy League), Cleveland State RPI 40 (a team that tied Butler for first place in the Horizon League), Missouri State RPI 41 (First place in MVC).

It was more important that the whores get their 18-13 USC Trojans and their eleven Big East teams into the tournament. There were millions of dollars on the line after all.

One would even ask; how did the fourth place Colonial League team, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) RPI 68, get into the tournament ahead of those clearly qualified teams? And you heard correctly; VCU was the fourth place team in that weak conference. One would never know that because the media whores have been careful not to touch that. Instead, they have mentioned 'three Colonial Conference teams making the tournament.' (It's a Jedi Mind Trick).

VCU coach, Shaka was living in a common sense field (if not 'reality') when he did not have his team engage in a selection party. We heard one media whore pimp that point when he stated that the coach was being sensitive to his seniors and not wanting them to have the rejection as their final basketball memory. 

Hello! There is a little tournament called the NIT that they would have been invited to attend. Also, there is no shame in accepting the reality that more qualified teams were chosen to be in the tournament. (Freaking media whores.)

To repeat the question, why VCU? Why not the clearly more qualified Harvard, Cleveland State or Missouri State? For that matter (to name other more qualified teams), why not Colorado State, Witchita State, St. Mary's, Marshall, Southern Miss or New Mexico. All of those teams better RPIs and resumes than VCU. None of those teams were given an at-large bid though.

The answer is so simple. Money. 

The committee whores gave USC an unearned eleven seed play-in game in the hopes that it would boost ratings in the coveted Los Angeles market (the second biggest national market). But the gravy train would end before it began if USC lost. So instead of putting a team like Harvard into the mix, why not throw in VC Who? 

Besides, a team like Harvard could have knocked off USC and then devastated some of the 'major' teams as well. We all saw how their equal nemesis Princeton almost finished off Kentucky (a Final Four team) in the first round of a virtual Kentucky home game. The committee whores don't really want the 'underdog' taking their gravy (Despite what they say).

So yea, just throw VCU into the mix and let them get beat by 15 or 20. Que the tears of a small school dreaming large in the first round.

Except it did not happen that way. Ya'll know the story, VCU beat anybody and everybody from about every conference on their way to a Final Four.

And even though, CBS and ESPN will be touting the 'underdog angle' with vigor. Do not fall for that window dressing. They are crying in their milk. Millions of dollars have been lost.

Be happy. VCU and Butler have held up their middle fingers to the system. And one of them is going to keep holding it high as they enter the championship game. But lament the fact that their runs will not appear to do anything to spurn real fairness in the near future.