Monday, February 08, 2010
Terps Stomp Tar Heels; Carolina 2-6 in ACC Play
College Hoops Player of the Day for DAY, Month, 2010
Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints on winning Super Bowl XLIV, 31-17, over the Indianapolis Colts. But, while the pre-game festivities were taking place in South Florida, some developments on the basketball court were noteworthy.
#3 Syracuse (sure to move up in this week's poll) turned a close game into a rout with a late, second half run, dumping the Cincinnati Bearcats, 71-54. The 'Cuse now has the best record in the nation, at an impressive 23-1, and is 1/2 game to the good over Villanova in the Big East standings. The 9-1 Wildcats suffered their first conference loss of the season Saturday at Georgetown. SU is 10-1 in the conference.
With the Big East looking to send 7 or 8 teams to the NCAA tournament, one of the ACC standard-bearers has fallen on very lean times. On Sunday, the North Carolina Tar Heels suffered their 6th loss in 8 conference games, this time to a heady bunch from Maryland, who whipped North Carolina, 92-71. The 21-point margin was the worst of the season for the Tar Heels, but should propel Maryland (16-6, 6-2) - encamped in second place in the ACC - into the ranks of the Top 25.
The Terps took a 7-6 lead early in the game and never again trailed, widening their lead at various points of the game. Greivis Vasquez, who had 35 against the Tar Heels when the Terps beat them last season, proved Heel-killer again, scoring 26 points, including 6 of 11 3-pointers, and dished 11 assists. A talented senior guard who should be playing pro ball this time next year, Vasquez leads the Terrapins in both scoring and assists.
Currently, the ACC only shows two teams in the Top 25: #10 Duke and #21 Georgia Tech, but, while the Blue Devils lead the ACC at 7-2, the Yellow Jackets are tied for 6th place in the conference at 5-4.
As for the Tar Heels, don't look for them in the NCAA Tournament this year. The Maryland loss was their 10th of the season, against just 13 wins, and other teams in the conference are hungry to get at them. Having dominated the conference for so long, this Tar Heel squad enters conference games with targets on their backs. Other teams know their weaknesses - particularly on defense, and aren't opposed to exploiting them. North Carolina simply don't guard well individually and don't work well together, a recipe for disaster in any competitive environment.
Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints on winning Super Bowl XLIV, 31-17, over the Indianapolis Colts. But, while the pre-game festivities were taking place in South Florida, some developments on the basketball court were noteworthy.#3 Syracuse (sure to move up in this week's poll) turned a close game into a rout with a late, second half run, dumping the Cincinnati Bearcats, 71-54. The 'Cuse now has the best record in the nation, at an impressive 23-1, and is 1/2 game to the good over Villanova in the Big East standings. The 9-1 Wildcats suffered their first conference loss of the season Saturday at Georgetown. SU is 10-1 in the conference.
With the Big East looking to send 7 or 8 teams to the NCAA tournament, one of the ACC standard-bearers has fallen on very lean times. On Sunday, the North Carolina Tar Heels suffered their 6th loss in 8 conference games, this time to a heady bunch from Maryland, who whipped North Carolina, 92-71. The 21-point margin was the worst of the season for the Tar Heels, but should propel Maryland (16-6, 6-2) - encamped in second place in the ACC - into the ranks of the Top 25.
The Terps took a 7-6 lead early in the game and never again trailed, widening their lead at various points of the game. Greivis Vasquez, who had 35 against the Tar Heels when the Terps beat them last season, proved Heel-killer again, scoring 26 points, including 6 of 11 3-pointers, and dished 11 assists. A talented senior guard who should be playing pro ball this time next year, Vasquez leads the Terrapins in both scoring and assists.
Currently, the ACC only shows two teams in the Top 25: #10 Duke and #21 Georgia Tech, but, while the Blue Devils lead the ACC at 7-2, the Yellow Jackets are tied for 6th place in the conference at 5-4.
As for the Tar Heels, don't look for them in the NCAA Tournament this year. The Maryland loss was their 10th of the season, against just 13 wins, and other teams in the conference are hungry to get at them. Having dominated the conference for so long, this Tar Heel squad enters conference games with targets on their backs. Other teams know their weaknesses - particularly on defense, and aren't opposed to exploiting them. North Carolina simply don't guard well individually and don't work well together, a recipe for disaster in any competitive environment.
Labels: Greivis Vasquez, Maryland Terrapins
Sunday, February 07, 2010
Willis Hits Career-High 33 as UNLV Bombs BYU
College Hoops Player of the Day for DAY, Month, 2010
Tre'Von Willis, a transfer from Memphis who sat out the 2007-08 season, scored a career-high 33 points as the UNLV Runnin' Rebels smacked down BYU, 88-74, putting the Mountain West conference up for grabs. The Rebels, BYU and New Mexico each hold a share of the lead at 7-2, though UNLV holds a slight edge with a win and a loss to BYU, and a win over New Mexico, who beat San Diego St. on Saturday, 88-86, in OT.
Willis, a junior guard, knocked down 11 of 20 shots, including 4 of 7 from three-point range. He also converted 7 of 9 free throws, adding 5 rebounds and 8 assists. willis leads the Rebels with 18 points per game and also is 85% accurate from the foul line, a valuable commodity come crunch time. The Rebels took control of the game in the early moments, establishing a 56-34 half time lead, and coasted to an impressive win.
Notable: 23 of the Top 25 teams in the nation were in action on Saturday, and in the 22 games which didn't include two Top 25 teams, there were 14 winners and 8 losers. The only game involving two Top 25 teams was in the Big East, where #7 Georgetown shot the lights out, thumping #2 Villanova, 103-90.
These results indicate that no team or rating in the Top 25 is sacrosanct, that on a given day, almost any team can be beaten, either by an unranked conference opponent or a lower-ranked team. How that will shape things coming into March remains to be seen, though Villanova's loss surely puts a #1 tournament seeding in jeopardy. Another team suffering free-fall is Texas, which lost for the 4th time in two weeks, immediately following their #1 national ranking. The Longhorns were nearly run off the court in the first half of an 80-71 loss at Oklahoma.
Continuing to be noticeably absent, the PAC-10 still doesn't have a single team in the Top 25.
Tre'Von Willis, a transfer from Memphis who sat out the 2007-08 season, scored a career-high 33 points as the UNLV Runnin' Rebels smacked down BYU, 88-74, putting the Mountain West conference up for grabs. The Rebels, BYU and New Mexico each hold a share of the lead at 7-2, though UNLV holds a slight edge with a win and a loss to BYU, and a win over New Mexico, who beat San Diego St. on Saturday, 88-86, in OT.Willis, a junior guard, knocked down 11 of 20 shots, including 4 of 7 from three-point range. He also converted 7 of 9 free throws, adding 5 rebounds and 8 assists. willis leads the Rebels with 18 points per game and also is 85% accurate from the foul line, a valuable commodity come crunch time. The Rebels took control of the game in the early moments, establishing a 56-34 half time lead, and coasted to an impressive win.
Notable: 23 of the Top 25 teams in the nation were in action on Saturday, and in the 22 games which didn't include two Top 25 teams, there were 14 winners and 8 losers. The only game involving two Top 25 teams was in the Big East, where #7 Georgetown shot the lights out, thumping #2 Villanova, 103-90.
These results indicate that no team or rating in the Top 25 is sacrosanct, that on a given day, almost any team can be beaten, either by an unranked conference opponent or a lower-ranked team. How that will shape things coming into March remains to be seen, though Villanova's loss surely puts a #1 tournament seeding in jeopardy. Another team suffering free-fall is Texas, which lost for the 4th time in two weeks, immediately following their #1 national ranking. The Longhorns were nearly run off the court in the first half of an 80-71 loss at Oklahoma.
Continuing to be noticeably absent, the PAC-10 still doesn't have a single team in the Top 25.
Labels: Tre'Von Willis, UNLV Runnin' Rebels
Saturday, February 06, 2010
Big Red Continues to Stomp Through Ivy
College Hoops Player of the Day for Friday, February 5, 2010
After dispatching with previously-perfect in conference Harvard in a very unfriendly manner last Saturday (86-50), Cornell's Big Red continued their domination of lesser Ivy league foes by thrashing Yale, 90-71, with 7-foot senior center Jeff Foote having another big game.
Foote hit 7 of 11 shots from the field for 15 points and pulled down 13 rebounds for his 7th double-double of the season. Unranked Cornell sports one of the better records in the nation at 19-3 are 5-0 in the Ivy League. Their remaining major test comes next Saturday (Feb. 13), when they travel to face Princeton (12-5, 3-0). The two teams have a return date at Cornell on the 26th of February. Those two games should decide the Ivy League champion, though Cornell currently appears unbeatable.
After dispatching with previously-perfect in conference Harvard in a very unfriendly manner last Saturday (86-50), Cornell's Big Red continued their domination of lesser Ivy league foes by thrashing Yale, 90-71, with 7-foot senior center Jeff Foote having another big game.Foote hit 7 of 11 shots from the field for 15 points and pulled down 13 rebounds for his 7th double-double of the season. Unranked Cornell sports one of the better records in the nation at 19-3 are 5-0 in the Ivy League. Their remaining major test comes next Saturday (Feb. 13), when they travel to face Princeton (12-5, 3-0). The two teams have a return date at Cornell on the 26th of February. Those two games should decide the Ivy League champion, though Cornell currently appears unbeatable.
Labels: Cornell Big Red, Jeff Foote
Friday, February 05, 2010
Singler Guides Duke Past Georgia Tech; Devils Top ACC
College Hoops Player of the Day for DAY, Month, 2010
With Georgia Tech's big men - Gani Lawal and Derrick Favors - both in foul trouble from just about the very start of the game (Lawal picked up 2 personals in the first 33 seconds and Favors had three before the game was even 7 minutes old), one would have thought the Blue Devils would take the ball in deep for scoring opportunities. Instead, just the opposite occurred as Kyle Singler roamed free on the perimeter, hitting 8 of 10 3-pointers for a career-high 30 points. As Singler was pouring them in from long range, and the Yellow jacket insiders on the bench, #10 Duke (18-4, 6-2) easily sped past #21 Georgia Tech (16-6, 4-4), 86-67, to remain 1/2 game ahead of 5-2 maryland and Virginia in the ACC.
Singler hit only one of seven shots that wasn't from three-point range, but he added 4-of-5 from the foul line and pulled down 5 rebounds. The game was decided within the first ten minutes of play, as Duke took a lead and went ahead to stay. Singler canned one of his threes just before intermission, giving the Blue Devils a 45-33 lead. After that they were never threatened.
NOTABLE: Keep an eye on the Butler Bulldogs, who are about to wrap up the Horizon league regular season title. They are 12-0 in the conference, on Thursday knocking off Detroit, 63-58, following four consecutive wins on the road. Gordon Hayward scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds, continuing to lead Butler in both departments. The Bulldogs are a perennial upset-maker in the NCAA tourney and appear poised for a deep run this year. 19-4 Butler is ranked #23 in the most-recent AP poll.
With Georgia Tech's big men - Gani Lawal and Derrick Favors - both in foul trouble from just about the very start of the game (Lawal picked up 2 personals in the first 33 seconds and Favors had three before the game was even 7 minutes old), one would have thought the Blue Devils would take the ball in deep for scoring opportunities. Instead, just the opposite occurred as Kyle Singler roamed free on the perimeter, hitting 8 of 10 3-pointers for a career-high 30 points. As Singler was pouring them in from long range, and the Yellow jacket insiders on the bench, #10 Duke (18-4, 6-2) easily sped past #21 Georgia Tech (16-6, 4-4), 86-67, to remain 1/2 game ahead of 5-2 maryland and Virginia in the ACC.Singler hit only one of seven shots that wasn't from three-point range, but he added 4-of-5 from the foul line and pulled down 5 rebounds. The game was decided within the first ten minutes of play, as Duke took a lead and went ahead to stay. Singler canned one of his threes just before intermission, giving the Blue Devils a 45-33 lead. After that they were never threatened.
NOTABLE: Keep an eye on the Butler Bulldogs, who are about to wrap up the Horizon league regular season title. They are 12-0 in the conference, on Thursday knocking off Detroit, 63-58, following four consecutive wins on the road. Gordon Hayward scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds, continuing to lead Butler in both departments. The Bulldogs are a perennial upset-maker in the NCAA tourney and appear poised for a deep run this year. 19-4 Butler is ranked #23 in the most-recent AP poll.
Labels: Duke Blue Devils, Kyle Singler
Thursday, February 04, 2010
Buckeyes Bounding Into Tourney Contender
College Hoops Player of the Day for Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Ever since Evan Turner returned from injury to the Ohio State starting lineup, the Buckeyes have become a force to reckon with in the Big Ten, winning 7 of 9 games and vaulting into the national Top 25.
Turner proved his value once again on Wednesday, as the Buckeyes hammered Penn State, 75-62, winning their 12th straight home game since a 77-73 setback to North Carolina on November 19. Turner led all scorers with 27 points, his second-highest point total of the season (he had a career-high 32 points in a 70-66 win over Purdue on January 12), to go with 10 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Turner played all 40 minutes of the game and, at 6'7", 210 pounds, is truly one of the most feared offensive players in the nation. He has the ability to can jumpers from the perimeter but can also take opponents off the dribble and is a great finisher near the hoop. He averages 50% from the field, 35.9 from 3-point land and is a 73.8 free throw shooter. He leads the Buckeyes in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals.
Ohio State, ranked #13 in the most recent poll, has improved to 17-6 and is in a 3-way tie for second place in the Big Ten at 7-3 with Wisconsin and Illinois. Everyone in the conference is chasing 9-1 Michigan State.
Notable: dominique Jones only scored 29 points, but the South Florida Bulls won their school-record 4th straight Big East contest by downing the Georgetown Hoyas, 72-64, at Georgetown.
The Bulls continue to get outlandish scoring from Jones, the leading Big East scorer at 22.4 points per game. Over the 4-game win streak, he's averaged 35 points.
Ever since Evan Turner returned from injury to the Ohio State starting lineup, the Buckeyes have become a force to reckon with in the Big Ten, winning 7 of 9 games and vaulting into the national Top 25. Turner proved his value once again on Wednesday, as the Buckeyes hammered Penn State, 75-62, winning their 12th straight home game since a 77-73 setback to North Carolina on November 19. Turner led all scorers with 27 points, his second-highest point total of the season (he had a career-high 32 points in a 70-66 win over Purdue on January 12), to go with 10 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Turner played all 40 minutes of the game and, at 6'7", 210 pounds, is truly one of the most feared offensive players in the nation. He has the ability to can jumpers from the perimeter but can also take opponents off the dribble and is a great finisher near the hoop. He averages 50% from the field, 35.9 from 3-point land and is a 73.8 free throw shooter. He leads the Buckeyes in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals.
Ohio State, ranked #13 in the most recent poll, has improved to 17-6 and is in a 3-way tie for second place in the Big Ten at 7-3 with Wisconsin and Illinois. Everyone in the conference is chasing 9-1 Michigan State.
Notable: dominique Jones only scored 29 points, but the South Florida Bulls won their school-record 4th straight Big East contest by downing the Georgetown Hoyas, 72-64, at Georgetown.
The Bulls continue to get outlandish scoring from Jones, the leading Big East scorer at 22.4 points per game. Over the 4-game win streak, he's averaged 35 points.
Labels: Evan Turner, Ohio State Buckeyes
Wednesday, February 03, 2010
Onuaku Polices the Lane as SU Goes to 22-1
College Hoops Player of the Day for Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Arinze Onuaku, the 6'9" center for the Syracuse Orangemen, probably doesn't get enough credit for his work in the lane because of SU's reliance on Jim Boehiem's remarkably-effective 2-3 zone defense, but the big man in the middle does have a way of taking up space and discouraging traffic near the hoop.
In Tuesday's encounter with Providence, Onuaku delivered on both ends of the floor, scoring a season-high 20 points on 10-for-12 shooting, while keeping the Friars out of the lane defensively with 4 blocks and 7 rebounds, 3 offensive. Consequently, the #3 Orangemen turned a 3-point half time advantage into an 85-68 home win, improving to 22-1 overall and 9-1 in the conference, 1/2 game behind Villanova (9-0). Syracuse suffered its only loss of the season at home against Pitt, but that was a month ago, and the Orange have run off 9 straight wins while the Panthers have gone just 4-3 over the same span.
Syracuse will likely enter the NCAA's March Madness as a #1 or #2 seed, as their only remaining stiff challenges are at Georgetown (Feb. 18) and on February 27, when they host Villanova, a game that may decide the regular season Big East champion.
Notable: The selection committee for the NCAA tournament may have an easy time picking #1 seeds for this year's field of 65. Four teams: Kansas (20-1), Villanova (20-1), Syracuse (22-1) and Kentucky (20-1) have pulled away from the pack and are ranked 1-4 in the AP Poll. After them, only two teams in division 1 have two losses - BYU and Northern Iowa - though their conferences are not nearly the caliber of the Big 12, SEC or the Big East.
Arinze Onuaku, the 6'9" center for the Syracuse Orangemen, probably doesn't get enough credit for his work in the lane because of SU's reliance on Jim Boehiem's remarkably-effective 2-3 zone defense, but the big man in the middle does have a way of taking up space and discouraging traffic near the hoop.In Tuesday's encounter with Providence, Onuaku delivered on both ends of the floor, scoring a season-high 20 points on 10-for-12 shooting, while keeping the Friars out of the lane defensively with 4 blocks and 7 rebounds, 3 offensive. Consequently, the #3 Orangemen turned a 3-point half time advantage into an 85-68 home win, improving to 22-1 overall and 9-1 in the conference, 1/2 game behind Villanova (9-0). Syracuse suffered its only loss of the season at home against Pitt, but that was a month ago, and the Orange have run off 9 straight wins while the Panthers have gone just 4-3 over the same span.
Syracuse will likely enter the NCAA's March Madness as a #1 or #2 seed, as their only remaining stiff challenges are at Georgetown (Feb. 18) and on February 27, when they host Villanova, a game that may decide the regular season Big East champion.
Notable: The selection committee for the NCAA tournament may have an easy time picking #1 seeds for this year's field of 65. Four teams: Kansas (20-1), Villanova (20-1), Syracuse (22-1) and Kentucky (20-1) have pulled away from the pack and are ranked 1-4 in the AP Poll. After them, only two teams in division 1 have two losses - BYU and Northern Iowa - though their conferences are not nearly the caliber of the Big 12, SEC or the Big East.
Labels: Arinze Onuaku, Syracuse Orangemen
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Hamilton's 27 Saves Texas
College Hoops Player of the Day for Monday, February 1, 2010
With Jordan Hamilton slicing through the Oklahoma State defense for a career-high 27 points, the obvious question is, "Where have they been hiding this guy?"
The Texas Longhorns overpowered Oklahoma State with a 40-24 second half, cruising to their 19th win against 3 losses, 72-60.
A freshman out of Dominguez High in Los Angeles, Hamilton played just 19 minutes, but put on a dazzling show of offensive skills, hitting 11 of 16 shots, including drives, dunks, jumpers and treys. He was 5 of 8 from beyond the arc and was generally unstoppable in the second half as Texas pulled away from the Cowboys after trailing 36-32 at intermission.
Hamilton's previous high was 17 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. After Monday night's performance, expect him to receive a lot more playing time and more attention from opposing defenses.
Texas, in desperate need of a win after dropping 3 of their previous four games, got a real lift from the frosh, whose exploits couldn't have come at a more-needed time. Adding him to the offensive arsenal will open things up inside for Damion James and slumping Dexter Pittman, who's averaged just over 6 points per game in his last 8 games.
With Jordan Hamilton slicing through the Oklahoma State defense for a career-high 27 points, the obvious question is, "Where have they been hiding this guy?"The Texas Longhorns overpowered Oklahoma State with a 40-24 second half, cruising to their 19th win against 3 losses, 72-60.
A freshman out of Dominguez High in Los Angeles, Hamilton played just 19 minutes, but put on a dazzling show of offensive skills, hitting 11 of 16 shots, including drives, dunks, jumpers and treys. He was 5 of 8 from beyond the arc and was generally unstoppable in the second half as Texas pulled away from the Cowboys after trailing 36-32 at intermission.
Hamilton's previous high was 17 against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. After Monday night's performance, expect him to receive a lot more playing time and more attention from opposing defenses.
Texas, in desperate need of a win after dropping 3 of their previous four games, got a real lift from the frosh, whose exploits couldn't have come at a more-needed time. Adding him to the offensive arsenal will open things up inside for Damion James and slumping Dexter Pittman, who's averaged just over 6 points per game in his last 8 games.
Labels: Jordan Hamilton, Texas Longhorns
