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Matt Norlander

@norlander.bsky.social

20K followers 200 following 3.1K posts

Senior Writer and talking head for CBS Sports. Music obsessive 🎸 Ski lover ⛷️

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · Jul 24

I wrote nearly 8,000 words on the people, moments, stories and scandals that have defined men's college basketball over the past 25 years.

A labor of love. Let's hop in the time machine!

The Top 25 (And 1) biggest stories in men's college basketball since 2000

The players, coaches, games, moments and off-the-court stories that had the greatest impact in college hoops in the past 25 years

www.cbssports.com

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 3h

My preseason Top 101 won't publish for a week-plus, but I'll semi-spoil just a few things b/w my ranx and Ken's:

—Thought I would be the highest out there on Illinois, but nope
—Only two teams with identical rankings in the top 40
—Notable disagreements: Zona, Oklahoma, Kansas, USC, Marq, UVa

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 3h

SUNDAY AM BULLETIN: @kenpom.com's preseason rankings have gone LIVE. Here's a look at the top 80.

College hoops season is 22 days away!

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 13h

Ah, there it is.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 15h

Fully rested and ready to feel baseball pain once more.

It’s me and one of my brothers. Guessing this is 1989.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 16h

It took Gonzaga 15-plus years to get to this tier. I'm interested to see if there's a swath of backlash and gatekeeping against the Hoosiers the way the Zags had this weird militia of skeptics for a real long time (and in some ways, still do, stupidly).

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 16h

Indiana being this good in football is if like Northwestern suddenly became confident, convincing 1-seed material in men's hoops. Basically inconceivable.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 1d

Jet lag inducing me to fall asleep by 10:15 last night has brought on a heavy bout of Sports Regret this morning.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 1d

And: Who was the best coaching hire in 2025? There is a clear top-three, with six coaches receiving 89% of the vote.

I went back into the archives to see how many times coaches have actually picked the right guy, so beware that the popular pick is usually not the correct one.

Candid Coaches: Which school made the best college basketball coaching hire in 2025?

There were 14 high-major job swaps this year and the Big Ten has three of the top six vote-getters in our poll

www.cbssports.com

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 1d

Published while I was away, our Candid Coaches survey question: Who will be the next first-time national champion head coach?

I expect to have one in 2026.

Candid Coaches: Which college basketball coach will be next to win their first NCAA Tournament title?

After Todd Golden won his first natty last season, who gets it done next, and does it come in 2026?

www.cbssports.com

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Reposted by Matt Norlander

Dan Wolken @danwolken.bsky.social · 2d

Last night we lost one of the unique characters who made March Madness what it is. As administrators look to reshape the NCAA Tournament, let’s hope they act like Sister Jean will always be watching. sports.yahoo.com/mens-college...

Sister Jean's life is why the NCAA tournament needs to be protected

Without the NCAA tournament giving schools like Loyola a fair shot, there’s no Sister Jean story to captivate America.

sports.yahoo.com

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 1d

Paris: A bike-and-boat combo tour is an EXCELLENT way to spend five hours. I'll do it again if/when I go back. Also: walking food tour in Montmarte was great.

Amsterdam: Van Gogh musuem is a must and doable in two hours. Renting a bike and perusing around the outskirts was safe and uplifting.

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 1d

Wanted to squeeze in a day, but just couldn't quite do it! Hopefully eventually.

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Also: my regular reminder to go on a total social media (and rotation of podcasts, etc.) blackout when you have the opportunity to go on vacation. A guaranteed way to enhance the vacation experience. Just ... exist!

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Settling back in after nine-day jaunt over to Europe: Paris and Amsterdam. Had a blast. If you’re planning on going and want any recs, happy to oblige 🇫🇷🇳🇱

View from the second floor of the Eiffel Tower

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Robby, I'm sitting in my living room right now.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

We did Van Gogh and it was elite.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

We did a lot of this! (No Anne Frank; missed the window). Thanks for the tips!

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

We got a Louvre guide and did the tour in 2.5 hours, then another 40 mins on our own. Was worth it. Heard mixed reviews on whether or not to do the Louvre on a first trip, but ultimately glad we opted in, even if it was our fourth-favorite museum overall on the trip.

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

We did d'Orsay and it was fantastic. Also did a food tour in Montmartre and that was a top-five experience of the trip. Thanks for the tips!

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

You were the first to rec this. I noted it, looked it up, got other recs for that group and we did it. Got a great guide (24 y/o) who was born and raised in Amsterdam, and he finished the tour with a rec to a place with elite apple pie (not the super popular one most go to). Just terrific. Thanks!

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Tried to go to Artis, and it was just about closing! Did Van Gogh in two hours, Rijks in 2.5 (they literally had to kick us out, we stayed until the very last minute).

Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Wound up hitting both of these and they were great. Biked through a lot of Jordaan and the outskirts, really cool.

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

Settling back in after nine-day jaunt over to Europe: Paris and Amsterdam. Had a blast. If you’re planning on going and want any recs, happy to oblige 🇫🇷🇳🇱

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

When Sister Jean was born:

Price of gas: Under 30 cents/gallon
Eggs: 61 cents/dozen
Woodrow Wilson was president (No. 28; we're up to 47)
WWI had been over for >1 year
Things not yet invented: TV, air travel, air conditioning, Penicillin, movies, vacuum, traffic light, cheeseburger, sliced bread

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 2d

That Final Four press conference brought in an army of cameras—literally hundreds. You'd have thought it was Beyoncé, T. Swift or Tom Cruise.

But no, it was for a nonagenarian, wheelchair-bound team chaplain.

Here's the CBS Sports obituary on Sister Jean, gone at the beautiful age of 106.

Sister Jean dies at 106: Legendary Loyola basketball chaplain and March Madness icon passes away

Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt gained national attention during the men's team run to the 2018 Final Four

www.cbssports.com

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Matt Norlander @norlander.bsky.social · 12d

Six? No way. But at least four, yes.