Duke vs. Villanova

[jbduke]

Love it. A page of reasonable explanations for the "decline of Duke," something a couple of people actually asked about, and you guys come back with nothing but ad hominem crap.

Whatever.

If anyone wants to actually engage in something substantive, let's rock.

As for the "over-hype," what are you talking about? Name me one national writer/talking-head who has picked Duke to go to the Final Four, pre-season or post-Selection-Sunday, more than one year out of the last five. If your point is that they get too much exposure, well, that's a purely market-based phenomenon. Duke is televised more than anybody else because more people tune in to watch Duke than they do anyone else. And people watch Duke more than any other team because they care more about Duke than any other team. For most of the audience, they care about the opportunity to see Duke lose.

Those of the 'overhype school' usually argue that their dislike is born of over-exposure, but if Duke is over-exposed, it's because they're so hated.

NOBODY hates the Pittsburgh Pirates. And nobody would hate them even if ESPN and Fox both made the dubious decision to include the Pirates in every single one of their regular-season telecasts this season. The overexposure argument is a figleaf.