NCAA: An Apology to Wisconsin's Alando Tucker

By Dustin Hockensmith

Dearest Alando,

Congratulations on your win over second-ranked Pittsburgh. We, the national media, were watching and, quite frankly, felt a little guilty. We have been gallivanting around town with Tyler Hansbrough, Greg Oden and others and did not notice that you too wanted to be considered for national Player of the Year. We still don't truly believe that you can win it, but your 32 points in a nationally televised win over No. 2 Pitt have definitely caught our attention.

The game even appeared on ESPN, the network handcrafted by angels to broadcast divine inspiration and unadulterated joy. Dick Vitale yelled about Tucker on more than a handful of occasions, so that had to mean something, too.

First, you showed your post game, which we all knew that you had. You're only 6-6, but you had the presence of mind and footwork to be good down low. But where did you get that jump shot? You looked to be nearly impossible to guard because you punished bigger, smaller, slower and faster defenders in different ways.

You scored 20 points in the first half, which played a big part in igniting that capacity crowd. Brian Butch started hitting everything, so your scoring dipped in the start of the second, but you found it in time to deliver the final blows to a Pitt team that admirably hung around.

If you can keep shooting the 3 like that AND scoring points inside, you and the Badgers won't be easy to beat. Hey, we might even see you guys in the Final Four this year. If you dominate your home court and Ohio State slips up, you could win the Big Ten and be one of the top four seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

Good luck the rest of the season. We'll be watching, and judging, you.

Sincerely,

National Media