2008-2009 College Basketball Thread......

[RainMaker]

Radford is in the tourney. Could give a 2 seed some trouble with their big Center.

[Dr. Sak]

God damn Iowa not only ruins the football season but now basketball. Rot in hell Hawkeyes!!

[sooner333]

Funny that today's events will set up two potential rematches on Thursday of the Big XII...Texas A&M-Missouri and Oklahoma-Oklahoma St. Baylor-Nebraska will play again on Wednesday.

[Radii]

Maryland's NCAA hopes are likely dashed as they lose to a poor Virginia team to close out the regular season. Anything less than a run to the ACC champioship game and there is no way they get in IMO.

Boston College is presumably in but they are limping in in unimpressive fashion, losing to NC State and now needing a shot in the final seconds to beat a very bad Georgia Tech team at home.


And in other ACC news, Nolan Smith is out for Duke against Carolina tomorrow, Zoubek has a broken nose but will play, and Lance Thomas is questionable. For Carolina, Ty Lawson left practice using a crutch on Friday and it isn't clear whether he'll play.

[Karlifornia]

Originally Posted by Radii

Zoubek has a broken nose but will play,

I hear the doctors that gave him the go ahead went to Carolina.

[Lathum]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Radford is in the tourney. Could give a 2 seed some trouble with their big Center.

I have no knowledge other then what I watched today, but it seems VMI's style and complete lack of rebounding or size made him look better then he is.

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

The ball is in Washington's court. Beat your rival, win the conference outright. Lose, only get a share of the title AND you lose the #1 seed in the Pac 10 tourney.

Go Cougars!

This UW squad keeps proving their mettle. They are talented, but more importantly they are mentally tough and play good team basketball.

Props to the Bruins and their immense talent and three consecutive Final Four appearances, but this season the conference belongs to Washington!

[MizzouRah]

Unreal...

[sooner333]

Originally Posted by MizzouRah

Unreal...

Come on...you couldn't see this coming? Big win over a top 5 team on senior night followed by a road game against a team that is pretty hot. You had to at least see it coming.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by hoopsguy

Nice showing by the Tigers again today.

Agreed. They were down by 24 around halftime and cut it to six with 3 minutes left. Pretty well done considering most would have given up.

Illinois fans have little to discuss when they're putting up sub-40 point games on their own court.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by sooner333

Come on...you couldn't see this coming? Big win over a top 5 team on senior night followed by a road game against a team that is pretty hot. You had to at least see it coming.

Agreed. I expected MU to lose today. It was a brutal situation as you noted.

I noticed that Mizzou plays the winner of the A&M/Tech matchup in the second round. Given what occurred today, I'm guessing that A&M couldn't have had a worse draw if they tried. Playing a pressing MU team with a bye a day after having to play Tech. Toss in the revenge factor after today's game and it's going to be an awfully tough task for A&M.

[Swaggs]

Louisville plays insane, full court defense. I cannot believe they shot as well, from three, as they did tonight and we still had a shot to tie at the final second.

Some pretty questionable calls did not help, either. I usually don't complain on the refs, but they called a pretty iffy foul 17-feet from the basket after we played some great D for 30+ seconds w/ less than a minute less. And, the first foul of the game, they inexplicably gave UofL two shots despite the Cards player not attempting a shot.

Oh well, at least our loss prevented Pitt from winning the Big East.

[hoopsguy]

Originally Posted by Mizzou B-ball fan

Agreed. They were down by 24 around halftime and cut it to six with 3 minutes left. Pretty well done considering most would have given up.

Illinois fans have little to discuss when they're putting up sub-40 point games on their own court.

Given up like you did against Kansas the week before?

I'm not going to argue that it is fun watching a team score 33 (on their home court) but that game was a five point loss. Mizzou lost by more than that today ... heck, you are pleased about cutting a lead to 6 in the second half. Bravo!

It is pretty cute listening to Mizzou fans talk smack when Illini have rolled over them eight straight years.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by dawgfan

This UW squad keeps proving their mettle. They are talented, but more importantly they are mentally tough and play good team basketball.

Props to the Bruins and their immense talent and three consecutive Final Four appearances, but this season the conference belongs to Washington!

Yup, major props to your Huskies, dawgfan. It's a very good team that I think even now is underrated. Assuming at least a run to the semifinals and UW will lock up the #4 seed in the West, with a chance to grab the #3 if they get to the final or win the conference tourney.

Meanwhile, deserved or not, I am calling it now--UCLA will be shipped to either the Midwest or the South. They will, by record, probably deserve a 5, but somehow end up with a 4. Regardless, they will be in line to meet a top seed in the Sweet 16. And whatever bracket they are in will be named the "toughest looking bracket" by a lot of people prior to the start of the tourney, just because it's UCLA.

What does all that mean? Jack squat, of course. The boys have to come to play. That said, I am satisfied that the talent is still here, and so is the senior leadership ability. They're built for a run--if they act like how they look.

Here's a quote from Howland the other day, after being asked why his team is streaky: "We're not streaky. We just don't play good all the time." lol

Even funnier, is that Howland's not funny. Ever. This was a typical chippy response from him.

[Karlifornia]

UCLA is an elite 8 team, and could shockingly make the final four. They will beat somebody they weren't "supposed to".

Washington is a three seed, whereas UCLA is a 4, but I think Washington reeks of sweet 16. I hope U-Dub and UCLA both make the final four, but I would bet my money on UCLA to make it farther. Experienced, talented point guards are very important, and UCLA has that is both, where are Washington has one with half the formula.

Just a guess.

[WSUCougar]

Congrats to the Dawgs on cutting down the Pac-10 nets. The game was a real battle but the better team won. Good luck here on out.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Alabama sends Tennessee to another loss, 70-67, with a running buzzer beating three. Vols failed to appear for the first half, again put themselves in a situation that shouldn't have happened in the first place.

What's becoming very disturbing is the appearance that Pearl can coach other people's players reasonably well, can market the hell out of himself & a program by extension, and recruit athletes with good resumes but can't recruit actual basketball players.

[timmynausea]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Louisville plays insane, full court defense. I cannot believe they shot as well, from three, as they did tonight and we still had a shot to tie at the final second.

Some pretty questionable calls did not help, either. I usually don't complain on the refs, but they called a pretty iffy foul 17-feet from the basket after we played some great D for 30+ seconds w/ less than a minute less. And, the first foul of the game, they inexplicably gave UofL two shots despite the Cards player not attempting a shot.

Oh well, at least our loss prevented Pitt from winning the Big East.

It was disappointing, but I actually don't feel too bad about that one. WVU had a lot of things working against them (Ruoff and Butler continue slumping and Louisville lighting it up from 3) and still almost beat one of the best teams in the country. It just seemed to me like the kind of close loss that will make WVU hungry going into tournament time. Also the way Ebanks and Jones are peaking at just the right time (they combined for 35 points, 18 rebounds and 8 assists last night) reminds me a lot of the way Joe Alexander turned dominant at exactly this time last year.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by timmynausea

It was disappointing, but I actually don't feel too bad about that one. WVU had a lot of things working against them (Ruoff and Butler continue slumping and Louisville lighting it up from 3) and still almost beat one of the best teams in the country. It just seemed to me like the kind of close loss that will make WVU hungry going into tournament time. Also the way Ebanks and Jones are peaking at just the right time (they combined for 35 points, 18 rebounds and 8 assists last night) reminds me a lot of the way Joe Alexander turned dominant at exactly this time last year.

Agreed. I'm not really too disappointed -- was just getting greedy, thinking we might be able to sneak up to a 5 or 4 seed with a win over Louisville and a couple of BE tourney wins. Hopefully, one of Butler or Ruoff (or ideally both) will get hot these next few weeks.

Jones has had a great shot all year -- I'm really impressed with him and Ebanks, although he always looks to be bordering on out of control, is far more skilled than I had expected or first thought. I wish we had the personnel to play Ebanks at the 3 and Jones at the 4. I cannot imagine that there are too many freshmen classes as productive and under the radar as ours this season. I think Ebanks will almost certainly be an NBA player (hopefully he sticks around for 3 or 4 years) and I can see Jones, with his shooting ability and length, being a productive bench guy in the NBA, as well.

Interesting thought on Alexander. I'd love to see Ebanks float around the free throw line hitting those short jumpers and drawing in defenses like Alexander started doing towards the end of last year. Unfortunately, it seems like he likes having the ball in his hands and doesn't move as well without it (on his radio show, Huggins was joking about it and said that Devin takes "great pleasure in dribbling the ball. ).

[DeToxRox]

So how many teams does the Big 10 get this year? Looks like 7 or 8. The BTT will be intense that's for sure.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by DeToxRox

So how many teams does the Big 10 get this year? Looks like 7 or 8. The BTT will be intense that's for sure.

I think that 7 are easily in. Minny and Michigan are a bit bubblish, but I think they are fairly safe, as they likely won't have the chance to lose to a bad team (it would be pretty hard for them to play Iowa or Indiana in the B10 tourney). I think Penn State and Northwestern will each have to win two games in the B10 tourney (and NW needs to win today).

In any case, I think they have seven teams with bids locked up, regardless of whatever else may happen.

[Radii]

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[Swaggs]

Lord, I hate Singler.

Good job, Tarheels.

[hoopsguy]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Lord, I hate Singler.

Good job, Tarheels.

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about Hansborough as he flopped around in the second half on defense while bowling people over on the other end. I'm far from a UNC hater, but I'm looking forward to that guy having to play with an "even" whistle at the next level.

[Dr. Sak]

Originally Posted by hoopsguy

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about Hansborough as he flopped around in the second half on defense while bowling people over on the other end. I'm far from a UNC hater, but I'm looking forward to that guy having to play with an "even" whistle at the next level.

He always has that stupid bug eyed look and when he gets called for a foul he always looks around like "who me".

[Noop]

Originally Posted by hoopsguy

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about Hansborough as he flopped around in the second half on defense while bowling people over on the other end. I'm far from a UNC hater, but I'm looking forward to that guy having to play with an "even" whistle at the next level.

He reminds me of Tebow....

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by hoopsguy

It is pretty cute listening to Mizzou fans talk smack when Illini have rolled over them eight straight years.

Agreed. It's unfortunate that Mizzou laid an egg against an average program like Illinois in an average conference. It's obviously an embarrassing loss.

[Wolfpack]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

Lord, I hate Singler.

Good job, Tarheels.

I say it's still a shame that something can't happen that causes the game to be canceled and result in a richly deserved 0-0 tie.

Anyway, on to Atlanta for the ACC tournament and strangely enough, the bracket sets up for yet another wacky State run to the championship like a couple of years ago. We can beat Maryland (if we remember to guard Vasquez) and we have beaten Wake. If we get lucky and BC can upset Duke on Friday, we have a shot.

Of course this means we'll get blown out by Maryland on Thursday, but I can dream...

[dawgfan]

Originally Posted by WSUCougar

Congrats to the Dawgs on cutting down the Pac-10 nets. The game was a real battle but the better team won. Good luck here on out.

Thanks. The Cougs are going to be a dangerous team to face in the Pac-10 tournament - I'm glad the UW doesn't have to face them in their first game...

[Groundhog]

Patty Mills coming off the bench for St. Mary's today in their conference tourney matchup against Portland. I think he's going to be too rusty to give a major boost to the Gaels, but I'm hoping they at least make it to the finals against Gonzaga and keep it close.

[GoldenEagle]

Memphis got a commit yesterday from DeMarcus Cousins. If we sign John Wall, then we will have signed the #1, #2, and #3 players out of the rivals Top 150.

[Mizzou B-ball fan]

Originally Posted by GoldenEagle

Memphis got a commit yesterday from DeMarcus Cousins. If we sign John Wall, then we will have signed the #1, #2, and #3 players out of the rivals Top 150.

Knowing quite a bit about Cousins and the situations surrounding his recruitment, I'm not sure that getting him is best for your (or any team's) program. While he's obviously very talented, there are some pretty shady dealing littering his recruitment that could come back to bite the program. I know Mizzou decided to steer clear of him for that very reason.

[Groundhog]

So, Davidson. They lose in their conference tourney semi-finals. Do they make it to the tournament with an at-large? Probably not - not this year, anyway, with so many of the big conferences expected to receive multiple at-large invites.

Davidson has an rpi of 69. They have few quality wins and, despite a fairly solid in-conference performance, they lost in the semis of the tournament (second time Charleston had beaten them this season). I just don't see them getting in, which is a shame. I'd rather watch Curry lighting teams up than, say, the 6th best team in the ACC.

[RainMaker]

Davidson has no shot of getting in. Would be interesting to see if Curry stays another year. I'd have to imagine he'll be a lottery pick if he comes out. Another year though at PG could help him a lot. Then again, an injury or another non-appearance in the NCAA and it could hurt.

[Fighter of Foo]

Originally Posted by Swaggs

I think that 7 are easily in. Minny and Michigan are a bit bubblish, but I think they are fairly safe, as they likely won't have the chance to lose to a bad team (it would be pretty hard for them to play Iowa or Indiana in the B10 tourney). I think Penn State and Northwestern will each have to win two games in the B10 tourney (and NW needs to win today).

In any case, I think they have seven teams with bids locked up, regardless of whatever else may happen.

You're talking about the NIT right???

[Groundhog]

Originally Posted by RainMaker

Davidson has no shot of getting in. Would be interesting to see if Curry stays another year. I'd have to imagine he'll be a lottery pick if he comes out. Another year though at PG could help him a lot. Then again, an injury or another non-appearance in the NCAA and it could hurt.

I think Curry is nuts if he stays. I don't think he can improve his stock much at all. He's shown he can play a little PG, and everyone knows he can shoot. I think he'll go anywhere from about the 8th through 20th picks.

Will be interesting to see him in the NBA, when he wont have three defenders all focusing on him. I don't think he's going to be a superstar, but he should be, at the very least, a solid combo-guard off the bench. A rich-man's Eddie House.

[Big Fo]

C of C is struggling in the second half here, down 11 after being tied at the half.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Groundhog

I'd rather watch Curry lighting teams up than, say, the 6th best team in the ACC.

Word

SI

[Karlifornia]

Gonzaga vs. St. Mary's for the WCC Title...should be a fun one.

[Karlifornia]

I guess St. Mary's Omar Samhain dunked in the layup line...which is a technical foul. Gonzaga is up 1-0 before they even tip it. I have never seen that happen.

[sterlingice]

I must have missed that. How is that a technical?

SI

[Groundhog]

Wow. Are you serious? The game hasn't even started, and he got a tech? That doesn't seem right to me.

[MJ4H]

Dunking in pregame warmups is a technical foul, yes.

[Groundhog]

Surprising.

I need to quit look at the live score, just discovered the game is replayed tonight for us folks downunder during primetime.

[Karlifornia]

Yeah, Groundhog...this is one you're gonna wanna watch.

[miami_fan]

I have never seen it called in anything higher than a high school game.

[rjolley]

It's definitely a college rule. Usually, there's an assistant, usually a student coach, around who let's players know when the refs come out to the floor so they don't get a tech.

Someone was asleep at the wheel tonight.

[Karlifornia]

Poor Niagara. They are hanging tough in a hostile environment against the team that is considered the class of the conference. If they can win, it would be something to really be proud of.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by Fighter of Foo

You're talking about the NIT right???

Here is the RPI/SOS/records for the B10 teams:

RPI Rk Big Ten Conf All RPI SOS Rk SOS
6 Michigan St. 15-3 25-5 0.6496 6 0.5944
20 Illinois 11-7 23-8 0.6139 26 0.5755
31 Purdue 11-7 22-9 0.5988 36 0.5694
36 Ohio St. 10-8 20-9 0.5960 30 0.5724
38 Wisconsin 10-8 18-11 0.5927 11 0.5864
41 Minnesota 9-9 20-9 0.5911 40 0.5659
42 Michigan 9-9 18-12 0.5886 10 0.5903
63 Penn St. 10-8 21-10 0.5689 82 0.5389
71 Northwestern 8-10 17-12 0.5616 46 0.5612
112 Iowa 5-13 15-16 0.5284 51 0.5592
211 Indiana 1-17 5-24 0.4752 5 0.5960


I believe 34 at-large teams make it and, obviously, a number of conference champions will be in the top 34 of the RPI. I would be pretty shocked to see any B10 team with .500+ conference record and an RPI under 50ish to not be considered pretty close to a lock.

[Karlifornia]

Wow....Gonzaga looks really good. It's the perfect time to be playing great basketball. Matt Bouldin is gonna piss off some opposing fans with his greasy looking hair and deadly 3-point shooting.