That loud whoosh of air you might have heard was the relief USA players felt after Mexico demolished Canada. The second whoosh you heard was the sound of baseballs leaving the park with stunning freqency. However, that was not a surprise as South Africa was given a slot in the WBC to merely fill out the fourth in a group. So, the semi-finals are set, and the US is set to play Japan in the first game of the championship round. Interesting in that Japan has become a strong baseball league in its own right. Interesting that baseball in Japan has grown in its own way, insulated from the influence of the Americas. Interesting that the US has to play a team that will certainly be technically sound. But if you want my overall opinion, every team in the finals are capable of winning it all. Every team has amazing players, and every team is showing a huge desire to win, and win big. It should be fun, and I'm thinking that most baseball fans in America - where the interest had been only tepid at best - is warming to the tournament. In the Americas, the fans are going absolutely wild; this means bragging rights to them. Baseball is played here at the highest level in the world on a consistent basis - while the big stars of each team are merely components of their overall team, in this tournament they are the stars for their country. It means something - and the games are proving that. Naysayers should sit back and watch a game or two. They might be surprised at the quality of play, and the ferocious desire to win. The BIG EAST In the 1980s, there was Villanova, Syracuse, and Georgetown that ruled the roost for the most part. UConn didn't achieve its dominance until the 90s and 00s, and teams like Pittsburgh were up in the 80s but down significantly in the 90s. In 2006, it looked like old-school Big East, boy - a semi-final round consisting of Georgetown versus Syracuse, and Pitt versus Villanova. When the Big East expanded to its current 16-team superconference level, many observers of basketball figured that the Big East would rise to be the preeminent conference in the nation. The ACC is a true basketball conference first, but until they get consistently beyond Duke and Carolina as the key teams, the conference will always sag in terms of national power. Prominence isn't an issue for the ACC - any conference with long-time and hated rivals Duke and North Carolina are going to get heavy coverage. Despite Kentucky's usually great presence, the SEC is still a football-first conference. The Big 12 is the same way, even though Texas is a great team. The PAC-10 has had some great basketball teams - UCLA and Arizona immediately come to mind. But no conference in the country has the depth, quality of teams and sheer ferocity like the Big East. For whatever reason, the Big East has always been a physical basketball conference. Back when John Thompson roamed the sidelines, Georgetown won just as often on their talent as they did on their physical presence. The same is true today - perhaps even more so - as the Big East welcomed 4 Conference USA teams into the mix this year. Those teams finished in the middle of the pack towards to top (Marquette), but in the end they weren't able to overcome the typical Big East play. When you are tying to get a spot in the NCAA tournament, what ends up mattering the most is your conference record, and the results of your conference tourney. Syracuse - a bubble team before the tourney stared - is a prime example of what happens if you set the world on fire in the tourney. They are now a virtual shoe-in for the tourney, and if they beat Pitt for the title, they're obviously guaranteed. But, the point I'm trying to make here is that winning in your conference is the most critical factor in the season. And since the Big East is getting more physical by the moment, it forces other teams to adopt that style of play and body-type in order to remain competitive. Coaches like Rick Pitino, whos teams live and die by the 3-point shot, prefer quick, athletic types that can break down defenses with their speed and agility. But when you're playing a big, physical team, and that team starts pushing you around... You get the picture - the smaller, agile types start taking lumps, and their quickness is negated because they're just too beat up. What this means in the big picture is that the Big East is going to be fully represented in the NCAA tournament. Most people are predicting anywhere from 7 to 9 teams will make the field, and that's truly amazing considering the number of teams in the conference. It speaks of the depth and talent in the conference as a whole, and how competitive it is. And trust me - there's no team in the country that wants to start out facing a Big East titan to move on. You have to play extraordinary games to beat the physical Big East teams. You have to be willing to outmuscle them before you can set your game plan; if you let a Big East team set its tempo and feel, you're probably doomed to a loss. It's just that way - when a Big East team senses weakness, it unleashes its "beast" within on the opponent. There are a myriad of excellent teams in the country. I'm not saying that the Final Four will consist of four Big East teams. It's possible, but tremendously unlikely. Maybe place a small bet on it, for the hell of it. The odds might end up playing for you, and you could walk away with some serious cash. But, I wouldn't. Duke and North Carolina, Texas and Memphis are all great teams, and all of them are probably capable of winning it all. Cinderella won't have a chance in hell of staying out past midnight if they face a tough Big East team. I'm rooting for Pittsburgh, of course, but I usually end up rooting for all Big East teams in general. Come tomorrow, we'll know the field, and debate the odds. It should be a fun NCAA tournament!