"That was probably as pathetic an effort defensively as we've had in a long time," Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said after his team lost to the Cavaliers Monday.
Tubby almost had me there. I almost believed he was going to break a golden media relations rule - I almost believed he was going to forget to praise the winner.
"But a lot of credit has to go to Virginia," he added. Phew, good save.
Virginia did deserve credit. When the Cavaliers took down No. 15 Minnesota, they shot 10-for-13 from behind the arc - an astounding 76.9 percent. That is difficult for any defense - pathetic or not - to stop.
Virginia deserved credit, but I guarantee that is not what Tubby thought as he made his way off the court. He probably thought, "How the hell did a team that scored 58 total points against Wichita State score 58 points in 20 minutes against us?" And he almost did something that very few coaches do: He almost said what he was thinking.
In "Bull Durham," veteran minor leaguer Crash Davis tells rising prospect Ebby "Nuke" LaLoosh, "You're gonna have to learn your clich