Liverpool Advances to CL Quarterfinals; New College Basketball Podcast

As sure as the sun will rise and set every day, a Rafa Benitez-coached team will not give up a 2-0 lead in a Champions League tie. I've criticized Benitez's tactics in the Premier League on many occasions and will continue to do so when the situation calls for it in the future, but this man simply is built for two-legged ties and knows exactly how to get the job done in Europe.

I never once got the feeling today that Liverpool were in danger of losing to Inter Milan, even though Milan had their fair share of near-misses. Once Fernando Torres scored midway through the second half, the tie was, for all intents and purposes, over. Torres has been the best striker in the Premier League this season and without him, I'm not sure where Liverpool would be.

As far as I'm concerned, the Reds are England's best chance to win the Champions League this season; they may not be a better team than Manchester United, Arsenal, or even Chelsea, but as far as in Europe, they have the best manager in Benitez and a team full of players who have a lot of Champions League experience and the same can't be said about those other three teams.

On an unrelated note, I was asked by my good friend Kartik to come on to his Canes Rising podcast again and talk about the college basketball landscape heading into Championship Week and Selection Sunday. We'll be recording tonight and the finished product should be ready for your listening pleasure within the next couple of days, and trust me, if you're a fan of the ACC, you'll want to listen.

Podcast is Available

I know I mentioned this already today, but the most recent episode of the Canes Rising podcast, featuring myself and host Kartik Krishnaiyer, is actually out right now for you to listen to or download.

I didn't think it would be available until Tuesday, but once again, I've been proven wrong.

Head over to canesrising.com to download this episode directly, or go to iTunes and search "Canes Rising" in the Store, where you can subscribe to the podcast and download each show.

We'll be talking more about college basketball in the days to come as conference tournament and NCAA Tournament time is drawing near.

College Basketball Podcasts

Just wanted to let everyone know that if you're interested, a college basketball podcast featuring myself and host Kartik Krishnaiyer (from CSRN and US Soccer Spot) will be available for your listening pleasure within the next few days over at canesrising.com.

I was a guest on the show earlier this month and Kartik and I had a good discussion about the ACC and the Big Ten, particularly the different styles of play in both conferences and some early NCAA Tournament talk.

This weekend we'll be talking more about the ACC and the bubble teams currently making a push for the Big Dance from that conference. We'll have a chat about each of those teams' tournament résumés and examine the stretch run of regular season conference play. The focus, of course, will be on the Miami Hurricanes and their situation on the heels of impressive back-to-back home victories over Duke and Maryland.

Canesrising.com, go check it out and look for the show within the next couple of days.

Also, for more college basketball information you can always check my "Useful CBB Sites" section on the lower left side of the homepage.