Big East

Daily Dribble: 2009 NCAA Tournament Projection

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 10:25:35 -0700

We're only one day beyond the 2008 National Championship Game.. but its never too early to start thinking about next year's Tournament. Here's an early projection of the 2009 NCAA Tournament field:

Multi-Bid Leagues (46)
Big East (9) - UCONN - (Georgetown, Louisville, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia)
ACC (6) - Duke - (Clemson, Miami, UNC, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest)
Pac-10 (5) - UCLA - (Arizona, Arizona State, Stanford, USC)
Big 12 (5) - Kansas - (Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M)
SEC (5) - Florida (Kentucky, Mississippi, Mississippi State, Tennessee)
Big Ten (4) - Purdue - (Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin)
Mountain West (2) - BYU - (UNLV)
A-10 (2) - Xavier - (Dayton)
Missouri Valley (2) - Creighton - (Drake)
Conference USA (2) - Memphis - (UAB)
WCC (2) - Gonzaga - (Saint Mary's)
WAC (2) - Nevada - (New Mexico State)

One-Bid Leagues (19)
America East - Vermont
Atlantic Sun - Belmont
Big Sky - Portland State
Big South - Winthrop
Big West - Pacific
CAA - VCU
Horizon - Wright State
Ivy - Cornell
MAAC - Siena
MAC - Kent State
MEAC - Morgan State
Northeast - Robert Morris
Ohio Valley - Murray State
Patriot - American
Southern - Davidson
Southland - Stephen F Austin
SWAC - Alabama State
Summit - IUPUI
Sun Belt - MTSU

Next In Line: Washington State, Washington, San Diego State, San Diego

Note: I'll be doing an updated projection later on in the summer once decisions about the NBA Draft are made. Let me know in the comments section if you agree or disagree with the selections.

Also: Check out last year's projection which had some good, bad, and ugly picks.

And Then There Were 16.. Weekend Review

Jason Brubaker — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 06:56:22 -0700

What a weekend in college basketball. A plethora of close games. A few Cinderellas trying on their dancing shoes. Buzzer-beaters. Fired-up coaches. Chest-thumping players. And at the end of it all, 48 teams have been sent packing, their championship hopes dashed. The final 16 teams includes two 12 seeds, as well as a 10 and 7 seed...who would've thought? Here's a look back at four days of Madness

- How in the world did every major school miss on Stephen Curry? The sharp-shooting Davidson sophomore averaged 35 points per game in leading the Wildcats to wins over Gonzaga and Georgetown on their way to the Sweet Sixteen. Lightly-recruited by bigger schools, Curry has proven time and time again he has no problem match-up up against elite players. He nailed 13 shots from beyond the arc in the first two rounds, using textbook form and a lightning-quick release. The Wildcats will again be giving up size when they face Wisconsin next round, but with Curry on the floor, you can't count them out.

- UCLA and Stanford occupied most of the spotlight in the Pac-10 this year, but don't forget about Washington State. The Cougars had as impressive of a weekend as anyone, pounding upstart Winthrop 71-40, and then shutting down Notre Dame in a 61-41 victory, holding them to an average of 27% shooting from the field. The Cougars calling card all season has been their defense, and they proved why, engulfing Big East POY Luke Harangody and holding him to just 10 points. Their defense will be tested in the next round however, by North Carolina, who has scored over 100 in each of their first two games.

- The RPI aside, most people would agree that the Pac-10 and Big East were the nation's toughest conferences this year, and the remaining teams are proof. Both conferences have three teams still standing, while the ACC and SEC each only have one. However, while the Pac-10 teams (UCLA, Stanford, Washington State) were somewhat expected, the three Big East might be a little surprising. No Georgetown, no Notre Dame and no Connecticut...replaced by West Virginia (5th in the conference) and Villanova (8th in the conference). Madness indeed.

- Out of the six mid-major at large teams, five lost in the first round, including ugly losses by Kent State and South Alabama. However, Xavier is still very much alive, having grinded out tough wins over a hot Georgia team and a scrappy Purdue squad. The Muskies have an incredibly balanced attack, and really get after teams defensively, denying passing lanes and just generally frustrating opponents. Diminutive point guard Drew Lavender, the heart and soul of the team, is a joy to watch as he speeds by defenders, while fellow seniors Stanley Burrell and Josh Duncan are as tough-minded as they come. Guards CJ Anderson and BJ Raymond are versatile players, while forward Derrick Brown has NBA-athleticism. If Jason Love continues to produce down low, Xavier should be able to knock off West Virginia in the next round, setting up a potentially interesting game with UCLA with a Final Four berth on the line.

- Duke haters can rejoice again after another tournament sees the Devils fail to make it past the first weekend. Last year, it was VCU shocking the Devils; this year West Virginia did the deed, exposing Duke's over-dependency on three-point shooting and lack of inside presence. Thought to be the weakest of the 2-seeds in the field, Duke did nothing to disprove that, barely escaping Belmont in the first round before bowing out to the Mountaineers. A severe lack of athleticism outside of Gerald Henderson once again doomed the Devils, who couldn't stay in front of anyone on defense. Another early exit next year, and the over-rated chants will be louder than ever.

- In other over-rated news, how does a team with Arizona's talent keep getting bounced early? The Wildcats boast two probably future lottery picks in Jerryd Bayless and Chase Budinger, along with future NBA player Jordan Hill, yet they won't see the second round of the tournament for the second straight year. It was a trying year to be sure, with the Lute Olson distractions and nagging injuries, but at some point, you'd like to see them start playing up to their potential.

- Indiana concluded their bizarre season by mailing in most of the game against Arkansas in bowing out in the first round. When Kelvin Sampson was replaced as head coach on Feb. 22 following an investigation into NCAA violations, the Hoosiers spiraled downwards, going 3-4 under interim coach Dan Dakich. Star freshman guard Eric Gordon struggled against Arkansas, going 3-15, and many of the Hoosiers appeared uninterested in playing defense. Indiana is too proud of a program to let this bog them down for too long, but there's no doubt this was not the same team that entered February at 17-3.

- Thanks for stopping by Michael Beasley and OJ Mayo. The two superstar freshmen, both likely headed to the NBA, saw their seasons over the weekend. Beasley showed why he's up for POY honors as he led the Wildcats to a first-round victory over USC and Mayo, totaling 23 points and 11 rebounds. The Wildcats then ran into an experienced Wisconsin team in the second round, bowing out despite another good effort from Beasley (23 and 13). But both kids should hold their heads high. They entered the season with enormous expectations and lived up to them, not an easy task for a young kid.

- It's hard to pin down the best game over the weekend, but there were a few that stood out. Western Kentucky and Drake put on a shoot-out for the ages in the first round, with WKU winning in OT on a Ty Rogers' 30-foot heave at the buzzer. Following that, San Diego stunned UConn, getting giant performances from Brandon Johnson and Gyno Pomare, plus a buzzer-beater of their own by De'Jon Jackson. UCLA needed late-game heroics from Darren Collison to hold off Texas A&M on Saturday, while Stanford got a baseline shot from Brook Lopez with one second left to knock off Marquette in overtime. Then, Tennessee needed late free throws to hold off a gritty Butler team in overtime on Sunday, while Memphis grinded out a three-point win over a tough Mississippi State squad. All in all, even though my brackets are destroyed (Siena anyone??), it was a great weekend for hoops.

- Similarly, it's hard to put out a list of the best individual performances of the weekend, since there was so many. But a few that simply can't be ignored: Davidson's Stephen Curry (40 pts vs. Gonzaga, 30 pts vs. Georgetown), Kentucky's Joe Crawford (35 pts vs. Marquette), Marquette's Jerel McNeal (30 pts vs. Stanford), West Virginia's Joe Mazzulla (13 pts, 11 reb, 8 ast off the bench vs. Duke), Arkansas' Sonny Weems (31 pts vs. Indiana), Miami's Jack McClinton (38 pts vs. St. Mary's), Stanford's Brook Lopez (30 pts vs. Marquette), WKU's Tyrone Brazelton (33 pts. vs. Drake), Xavier’s Drew Lavender (18 pts, 9 ast vs. Purdue), Duke's Gerald Henderson (21 pts, 7 reb, 5 stl vs. Belmont) and Villanova's Scottie Reynolds (25 pts, 8 reb, 5 ast vs. Siena).

Welser Wonders: Big East Bids?

Joel Welser — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 06:55:59 -0800

What I’m really wondering right now is why I tivoed 30 hours of the NFL Combine in high definition. Naturally, I record anything in HD if it is available, but boy was that a mistake. The only thing worse than watching a 350 pound guy running the 40 in 5.82 seconds is watching a 350 pound guy running the 40 in 5.82 seconds in high definition. Don’t worry, everything else has to do with college basketball in this week’s “Welser Wonders…”

…who benefited the most from BracketBusters Saturday?

The answer is an easy one. Kent State went from an outside the bubble team to a Top 25 group that has a legitimate chance at an at-large bid. The Golden Flashes traveled to Moraga, California and knocked off St. Mary’s 66-57.

The rest of Coach Jim Christian’s schedule is pretty difficult with games at Bowling Green and Akron and a senior night hosting Miami (Ohio). Assuming Kent State can win those three, which might be a little too much to assume, the Flashes will head into the conference tournament with a 26-5 record. Those five losses were against Detroit on the opening day of the season, against Xavier, at North Carolina, at Ohio and a heartbreaker at Toledo. That’s not too shabby and certainly deserving to be on the bubble.

…who else was a big winner on BracketBusters Saturday?

They would get an at-large bid either way, but the Drake Bulldogs suddenly became a legitimate Sweet Sixteen contender…or even more [Ed: Note that Drake lost to Missouri State shortly after this article was submitted]. After a home loss to Bradley, the Bulldogs went to Butler and played extremely well, winning the battle of the Bulldogs 71-64.

The issue that remains is how they well they can play against a team with a more traditional big man. Against Butler, it was really a battle on the perimeter. Would Drake’s style of play work as well against a team that was not so much like their own? At the least, I’m one step closer to being sold on Drake as a Sweet Sixteen team than I was last week.

…when the ACC will sort itself out?

After North Carolina and Duke, the Atlantic Coast Conference remains jumbled. Clemson, Maryland, Virginia Tech, Miami and Wake Forest are all at least .500 in conference, but the ACC is not going to get seven teams into the NCAA Tournament. With four games left for most teams, there are plenty of opportunities left for separation to occur, but the way things have been going, it won’t happen. Amazingly, none of those five teams play Duke or North Carolina the rest of the regular season. That leaves a ton of great games against the other teams fighting for an at-large berth.

…whether the Big East could end up as a five bid league?

Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame, Connecticut and Marquette are all virtual locks. West Virginia, Pittsburgh, Villanova and Syracuse are pretty much on the bubble.

West Virginia is 8-6 in conference with a 19-8 overall record. Not too shabby, but there is not a big win on the schedule right now besides beating Marquette at home. The Mountaineers travel to Connecticut and host Pittsburgh in March and they need to win at least one of those games to feel good heading into the Big East Tournament.

Pittsburgh is 19-8 overall and 7-7 in conference. What hurts the Panthers the most is their three game losing streak. All those games were against better teams, but they need to turn it around this week when they host Cincinnati and take a trip to Syracuse.

Villanova started out strong, but are just 7-8 in conference. The win over Connecticut on Saturday was big, but beating Louisville on the road on Sunday would be even bigger.

Like Pitt, Syracuse is on a tough losing streak. Somehow they lost to South Florida a few days before beating Georgetown. With Pittsburgh and Marquette coming to town and a trip to Seton Hall remaining on the schedule, it will not be easy for Syracuse to end up with a .500 conference record. Sometimes that would be enough, but the Orange non-conference losses to Ohio State, Massachusetts and Rhode Island do not sound as impressive as they did a month ago.

Daily Poll: Who is The Best Big Man in the Big East?

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 21:54:56 -0800

Poll: Who Will Win the Big East?

Shawn Siegel — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 09:09:24 -0800

Big East: All-January

Jeff Fox — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 08:36:34 -0800

The names on CHN’s monthly All-Big East lists have been turning over like a drunken point guard running the fast break. The only return member from the All-November team is Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody, who had another Haran-good-y month.

Guard – A.J. Price – Connecticut – JR
14.6ppg, 6.0apg, 4.1rpg
Best game – Jan 8th – St. John’s – 25 points, seven assists, four boards

After his collegiate career almost ended before it even started, the highly-touted A.J. Price is coming into his own in his junior season. He led the surging Huskies to a 6-3 record in January putting up 16 points, five boards and six assists a game.

Guard/Forward – Geoff McDermott – Providence – JR
10.5ppg, 8.3rpg, 4.7apg
Best game – Jan 17th – Connecticut – 12 points, 11 boards, six assists, four steals

How can the fifth leading scorer on a mediocre Friars squad make this list? Because a player’s scoring totals is almost always overrated at the expense of more important statistics. Any coach in the country would take the 10 points, 10 boards, five assists and two steals McDermott averaged in January.

Forward – Sam Young – Pittsburgh – JR
17.7ppg, 6.8rpg, 1.0bpg
Best game – Jan 12th – Seton Hall – 28 points, eight boards, three assists

This was supposed to be a rebuilding year in Pittsburgh – CHN predicted they’d come in ninth in the Big East. Instead Jamie Dixon’s squad is nationally ranked and in the upper-echelon of the conference. After all the injuries and graduation of the team’s top players, Sam Young has emerged as the team’s go-to guy, and January was no different when he put up 19 points and six boards.

Forward – Luke Harangody – Notre Dame – SO
20.4ppg, 10.1rpg
Best game – Jan 31st – Providence – 31 points, 14 boards, two steals

Picked by CHN as the sixth best team in the Big East going into this season, Notre Dame finds itself battling with Georgetown for the top slot in the league. Much of the surprising results are due to Harangody, who averaged 24 points and 11 rebounds in January.

Center – Kentrell Gransberry – South Florida – SR
16.5ppg, 10.7rpg, 1.4bpg
Best game – Jan 9th – Pittsburgh – 26 points, 11 boards, three assists, two blocks

Kentrell Gransberry has been a bright light in another tough season down in Tampa for the Bulls. The cellar-dwelling USF only managed one win in January despite Gransberry’s six 20-plus point games and six double-digit rebounding games.

Next up – Pac-10

Daily Dribble: BCS Power Ranking

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 03:06:36 -0800

Following last week's High-Major & Mid-Major rankings, here is the complete 73 team BCS Power Ranking. Obviously a lot of potential NCAA Tournament teams in here, perhaps everyone in the Top 50 has a chance. The SEC is off to a very odd start, no one playing Top 10 basketball, yet its worst teams seem substantially better than the worst of the other leagues.

1. UNC 8-0 (ACC)

2. Kansas 9-0 (Big 12)

3. Texas 9-0 (Big 12)

4. Duke 9-0 (ACC)

5. UCLA 8-1 (Pac-10)

6. Georgetown 7-0 (Big East)

7. Washington State 9-0 (Pac-10)

8. Michigan State 8-1 (Big Ten)

9. Indiana 8-1 (Big Ten)

10. Marquette 6-1 (Big East)

11. Texas A&M 8-1 (Big 12)

12. Tennessee 8-1 (SEC)

13. Oregon 7-1 (Pac-10)

14. Pittsburgh 9-0 (Big East)

15. Clemson 8-0 (ACC)

16. Villanova 7-1 (Big East)

17. Vanderbilt 9-0 (SEC)

18. Notre Dame 7-2 (Big East)

19. Virginia 7-2 (ACC)

20. Arizona 6-2 (Pac-10)

21. Arkansas 7-1 (SEC)

22. Louisville 5-2 (Big East)

23. Connecticut 6-2 (Big East)

24. USC 6-3 (Pac-10)

25. Stanford 8-1 (Pac-10)

26. Baylor 6-1 (Big 12)

27. Miami 8-0 (ACC)

28. Kansas State 6-3 (Big 12)

29. West Virginia 7-1 (Big East)

30. Syracuse 6-3 (Big East)

31. Wisconsin 6-2 (Big Ten)

32. California 6-1 (Pac-10)

33. Missouri 6-3 (Big 12)

34. Ohio State 4-3 (Big Ten)

35. Boston College 7-1 (ACC)

36. Illinois 5-3 (Big Ten)

37. Florida 9-1 (SEC)

38. Purdue 5-2 (Big Ten)

39. Mississippi 7-0 (SEC)

40. Florida State 9-2 (ACC)

41. Oklahoma State 5-3 (Big 12)

42. Providence 6-3 (Big East)

43. Oklahoma 7-3 (Big 12)

44. NC State 4-3 (ACC)

45. Kentucky 4-3 (SEC)

46. Texas Tech 6-3 (Big 12)

47. South Carolina 5-4 (SEC)

48. Maryland 6-4 (ACC)

49. Washington 4-4 (Pac-10)

50. Seton Hall 7-2 (Big East)

51. Nebraska 6-2 (Big 12)

52. Alabama 5-3 (SEC)

53. Mississippi State 5-3 (SEC)

54. Georgia Tech 4-4 (ACC)

55. Georgia 6-1 (SEC)

56. Minnesota 6-1 (Big Ten)

57. Virginia Tech 5-3 (ACC)

58. LSU 5-3 (SEC)

59. Penn State 4-4 (Big Ten)

60. Arizona State 6-2 (Pac-10)

61. Auburn 4-2 (SEC)

62. Colorado 5-4 (Big 12)

63. South Florida 7-3 (Big East)

64. Michigan 3-6 (Big Ten)

65. St. John's 4-1 (Big East)

66. Wake Forest 5-3 (ACC)

67. DePaul 2-3 (Big East)

68. Iowa 6-5 (Big Ten)

69. Rutgers 6-3 (Big East)

70. Iowa State 4-4 (Big 12)

71. Cincinnati 4-4 (Big East)

72. Oregon State 4-3 (Pac-10)

73. Northwestern 4-4 (Big Ten)

NYC Metro Preview & Ranking

Raphielle Johnson — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 01:02:32 -0800

No one follows the team in the NYC Metropolitan area more than Raphielle Johnson. He previews the 19 local teams and ranks them throughout the season.

Click each link for a full preview.

1. Seton Hall

2. Fordham

3. Marist

4. Yale

5. Hofstra

6. Columbia

7. Fairfield

8. Wagner

9. Army

10. Manhattan

11. St Francis (NY)

12. St. John's

13. Iona

14. Sacred Heart

15. Stony Brook

16. St Peter's

17. FDU

18. LIU

19. New Jersey Tech

Big East: All-November

Jeff Fox — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 08:45:13 -0800

The Big East is loaded in the early going, with five top-25 teams in the coaches’ poll. Not surprisingly it is also loaded with talent. He’s the crème de la crème in the early going.

Guard – Jerel McNeal – Marquette - JR

16.0ppg, 4.8rpg, 3.5apg, 2.0spg

Best game – Nov 30^th – 16 points, 10 assists, 5 boards

Backcourt mate Dominic James might get more publicity, but McNeal has proven to be a better all-around performer in the early going this season. His stellar play in leading the Golden Eagles to the Maui Invitational finals got him a spot on the All-Tournament team.

Guard/Forward – Brian Laing – Seton Hall - SR

20.9ppg, 9.1rpg, 2.0spg

Best game – Nov 23^rd – Navy – 27 points, 9 boards, 4 steals

It’s a nice luxury to have a 6’5” swingman average over nine boards a game for you. Laing has put up three double-doubles so far in helping the Pirates to a 6-1 record.

Forward – Earl Clark – Louisville – SO

14.0ppg, 11.8rpg, 2.2bpg

Best game – Nov 18^th – Jackson St – 20 points, 14 boards, 7 assists

With big men David Padgett and Juan Palacios banged up once again, Clark has been carrying the load for the Cardinals. After a very quiet rookie campaign, he looks primed to break out this year.

Forward – Sam Young – Pittsburgh – JR

18.0ppg, 9.0rpg, 1.7spg

Best game – Nov 10^th – North Carolina A&T – 24 points, 11 boards, 4 steals

Despite losing significant talent to graduation, the Panthers find themselves at #9 in the coaches’ poll. Young has led the way so far, completely annihilating his stats from last season. What happens when they stop playing patsies and start playing Big East teams?

Forward – Donte Greene – Syracuse – FR

18.9ppg, 8.7rpg, 2.4bpg

Best game – Nov 23^rd – Washington – 25 points, 10 boards, 3 blocks

The second coming of Melo? Might be a bit early to say that, but Greene has been sensational so far for the ‘Cuse. Case in point – in back-to-back games he put up 21 points 10 boards and 25 points and 10 boards on Ohio State and Washington respectively.

ACC: All-November

Big 12: All-November

- Big Ten Tomorrow -

Daily Poll: Who Will Win the Big East?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 06:56:23 -0700