Colonial

College Hoops Monday: Your Commentary

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 04:11:15 -0500

Northern Iowa became the fifth team to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament, beating Wichita State 67-52 to win their second consecutive Missouri Valley Conference tournament title. Trailing by three at the half, Ben Jacobson's Panthers outscored the Shockers 39-21 in the second half, holding Wichita State to 23.1% shooting in the final twenty minutes. Kwadzo Ahelegbe led the way with 24 points while Jake Koch added 13 off the bench. Koch's performance highlighted a solid effort from the UNI reserves, who helped spark the decisive 23-3 run.

"Our bench stepped up huge for us tonight just like they did the night before," said guard Ali Farokhmanesh. "I think our bench was the biggest difference in that stretch and then probably in the entire game overall." Where will the Panthers be seeded? Many projections have them looking at an eight or nine seed, and while that may be a bit low in regards to UNI's accomplishments no one's exactly lining up to play this team either. Northern Iowa will be a tough out in the NCAA Tournament.

As for Monday four tournament bids will be decided with the game having the most riding on it being the WCC final between Gonzaga and Saint Mary's out in Las Vegas. Mark Few's Bulldogs are safely in the field but a win would help their case in regards to playing the first two rounds at Spokane Arena. But that doesn't compare to the "pressure" that Randy Bennett's Gaels have to deal with. Last year Saint Mary's entered the final in a similar situation, feeling alright about their chances of earning an at-large berth provided Patty Mills be healthy enough to make a difference.

But he struggled and Gonzaga rolled, with the final result being a trip to the NIT instead. No such health concerns this time around although Omar Samhan did tweak his ankle late in the first half of their win over Portland; he played the second half with no trouble. Gonzaga won both regular season meetings and rebounding was a major factor in the first meeting. The Bulldogs out-rebounded the Gaels 45-27, winning 89-82 in Moraga. On a night that saw Robert Sacre grab just six rebounds Steven Gray and Elias Harris combined for 27; the Saint Mary's wings have a hard time rebounding at a rate similar to what these two can produce.

The second contest saw Saint Mary's come unglued to the tune of seventeen turnovers and 37.3% shooting from the field as they fell 80-61 in Spokane. Simply put Gonzaga has a number of weapons both in the starting lineup and on the bench; Saint Mary's will need big night from Samhan and Matthew Dellavedova as well as another player or two if they're to win the crown. At the least Saint Mary's needs to keep this close and play well; with six days between the final and Selection Sunday the worst final statement to make is to be blown out on national television.

As for the other three title games on tap, Siena may be under the most pressure to take care of business. The Saints have won 37 straight on the Times Union Center floor and will take on Fairfield in the MAAC title game, with the Stags having played them tougher than any other MAAC opponent this season. Siena won the second meeting (February 8th) by a 69-67 final as Fairfield outscored them 39-33 in the second half. The difference: turnover margin. The Stags turned the ball over fifteen times to the Saints' ten, and this will be a key Monday night as well.

Freshman point guard Derek Needham was the best rookie in the MAAC but he'll be going up a seasoned veteran in senior Ronald Moore. Fairfield will also need Anthony Johnson to stay out of foul trouble; he picked up three in the first half of their win over Niagara but Ryan Olander stepped up off the bench to keep the Stags afloat. They'll need that and then some in order to win in front of what will be a raucous crowd.

TV GAMES

7p ESPN CAA Final: William & Mary vs. Old Dominion
7p ESPN2 MAAC Final: Fairfield vs. Siena
9p ESPN WCC Final: Saint Mary's vs. Gonzaga
9p ESPN2 SoCon Final: Appalachian St vs. Wofford

OTHER GAMES

7p Summit Semi: IFPW vs. Oakland
9:30p Summit Semi: Oral Roberts vs. IUPUI
7p Sun Belt Semi: Western Kentucky vs. Troy
9:30p Denver vs. North Texas

ONE PREDICTION

Old Dominion over William & Mary: This is an intriguing matchup for the CAA title in Richmond; William & Mary is back playing the way they did early in the season when they beat the likes of Wake Forest and Maryland. But while Tony Shaver's club is playing well they don't have the size inside to match up with ODU's deeper frontcourt. The Monarchs won both meetings, including a 61-42 win at home in early February that saw ODU kill the Tribe on the boards 48-25. Danny Sumner and company can ill-afford for that to happen again if they're to win the battle of the 757. The rebounding discrepancy won't be as extreme but ODU wins by eight.

CAA Basketball Preview: 2009-10

CHN — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:55:26 -0500

With four teams legitimately battling for the CAA title, and top-notch players like Charles Jenkins and Chad Tomko on lesser teams, the CAA season should be one to remember.

Conference Rank: 13th

10 year average: 14th

CAA Conference Page

All-CAA Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Charles Jenkins	Hofstra	Jr
G	Chad Tomko	UNC Wilmington	Sr
G/F	Matt Janning	Northeastern	Sr
F	Gerald Lee	Old Dominion	Sr
F	Larry Sanders	VCU	Jr

Player of the Year - Charles Jenkins Freshman of the Year - Luke Hancock (George Mason)
CHN Award Winners		Leaders
CHN All-Americans Larry Sanders Mid-Major All-Americans Charles Jenkins (2nd Team) Larry Sanders (2nd) Matt Janning Gerald Lee		Best Scorer Charles Jenkins 19.7 Best Rebounder: Larry Sanders Assists: Darius James

CAA Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

48	Old Dominion	Colonial	1	NCAA
66	George Mason	Colonial	2	NIT
83	VCU	Colonial	3	NIT
102	Northeastern	Colonial	4	CBI/CIT
125	James Madison	Colonial	5	CBI/CIT
162	Hofstra	Colonial	6
172	Drexel	Colonial	7
229	Georgia State	Colonial	8
244	William & Mary	Colonial	9
251	Towson	Colonial	10
278	Delaware	Colonial	11
292	UNC Wilmington	Colonial	12

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the CAA?

College Basketball Preview - 348 Team Ranking - Alphabetical Ranks/Previews

Poll: Best Non-BCS Conference in 2009-10?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:05:41 -0500

Poll: Who Will Win the CAA?

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:01:12 -0400

College Basketball: Preseason Conference Ranking

CHN — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:43:04 -0400

After finishing 1st in the RPI the last two years, the ACC should fall back slightly thanks to the big-name departures at UNC & Wake Forest. This should allow one of the Big 12, Big Ten, or even SEC a shot at being #1. The Pac-10 is weak enough that a high-major like the A-10, MVC, or MWC could surpass it.

Chime in with your thoughts below if you agree or disagree with CHN's preseason conference ranking.

2009-10 Conference Ranking

*08-09 is last year's conference RPI. Commentary by Shawn Siegel, ranking by CHN.

	Conference	08-09*
1	Big Ten 9 of 11 teams go into season with ncaa hopes, and as many as 7 may reach that goal	2
2	Big 12 ku is the clear title contender. the bottom few teams are weak though and the middle-tier is hit or miss	3
3	ACC no dominant team like last year, but solid as always.	1
4	SEC rise of uk brings league back to prominence after down year..	6
5	Big East lose tons of big name players, and still held down by likes of depual, rutgers, etc	4
6	Pac-10 conceivable the pac-10 only receives 3 tourney bids.	5
7	Atlantic 10 should get at least 2 invites to the ncaa tournament	8
8	MVC with improvement expected from usual leaders creighton & siu, mvc should be solid all-around	9
9	MWC just about every top team loses a top player, but mwc should be one of the more entertaining leagues	7
10	Conference USA though memphis takes step back, rest of league is better than usual.	10
11	WAC after some down years, wac will once again be compeititve league	11
12	Horizon butler has top 10 hopes, but squads like csu and green bay lose key seniors.	12
13	Colonial while still 1 bid league, likes of odu, n'eastern, gmu, and vcu are all quality	14
14	Sun Belt more then just wku, the entire east division is solid	17
15	MAAC siena, niagara, and rider all have postseason hopes	13
16	WCC gonzaga and smc both worse then season ago	15
17	MAC #'s should be better than last year, but west division still a struggle	21
18	Big West led by up-and-coming long beach state. always finish around this #.	18
19	Summit darling ndsu loses a lot, so usual contenders like oru and oakland should be at forefront again	26
20	Big Sky with exception of sacramento st, this is a solid league top to bottom.	24
21	Southland underrated league always good for some non-conference upsets	19
22	Ivy cornell will be the best the ivy has offered in quite some years	29
23	Southern steph curry's departure opens up door for charleston	20
24	America East decimation of binghamton will hurt league #'s	16
25	Atlantic Sun the league's upper half is as solid as it's been for a few years	27
26	Patriot could use a rebound from former top gun bucknell.	22
27	OVC morehead st continues its improbable rise..	23
28	Big South outside of radford, not much to get excited about here..	25
29	NEC nec hasn't had much going for it in recent years	28
30	MEAC as usual, will battle swac for title of country's worst	30
31	SWAC solid jackson st gives swac hope of surpassing meac	31

College Basketball Preview - 144 Teams in 144 Days - Alphabetical Ranks/Previews

Old Dominion Basketball Preview: #48

Joel Welser — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:36:36 -0400

Overall Rank: #48

Conference Rank: #1 Colonial Athletic Association

2008-09: 25-10, 12-6

2008-09 postseason: CIT

Coach: Blaine Taylor (161-94 at Old Dominion, 303-159 overall)

Eight players started at least nine games for Old Dominion last year and all of them are back. While somebody like Northeastern, George Mason or VCU will step up and give the Monarchs a challenge for the Colonial Athletic Association crown, ODU is the clear favorite heading into the season.

Key Losses: F Jonathan Adams

Key Newcomers:

This team will not need much help from the newcomers with so much talent returning and it is possible that all three newcomers will find themselves on the bench for most of the season, or possibly be redshirted. Shooting guard Josh Hicks is the most likely player to see some minutes this year as an offensive spark off the bench. Redshirt freshman Nick Wright and Denmark native Anton Larsen will have more trouble finding playing time, but both have potential to make an impact in the future.

Backcourt:

The backcourt duo of Darius James and Marsharee Neely did not score too often, but both are important pieces of the puzzle. James is the only major returning contributor who shot under 40 percent from the floor. But that is not a big deal since he does more important things than shoot. James dished out 4.5 assists per game last year and did a great job keeping the turnovers to a minimum. If James can start hitting his outside shot a little more consistently, he will turn into a star. Marsharee Neely will be by his side. Neely is a more consistent long range shooter and should return to his starting role at the two guard spot. With Kent Bazemore available off the bench, the ODU backcourt is gaining experience and should be more productive than they were last season.

Frontcourt:

But the frontcourt might take away a lot of that production since Keyon Carter, Frank Hassell and Gerald Lee are all back. It is Lee who has turned into the star of the team after averaging an impressive 15.5 points and 5.7 rebounds last year. He is even one of the best free-throw shooters on the team and the 6-10 senior will get fouled a lot. Carter started 13 games last year and will probably be relegated to the bench in favor of Hassell again this season. Both are good scorers, but Carter can stretch out the defense with his outside shooting, while Hassell is tougher on the glass.

Who to Watch:

The frontcourt players are all good rebounders, but wing Ben Finney is the best of them all, leading the team with 6.0 per contest during the 2008-2009 campaign. Finney does more than rebound though. He pretty much does everything. He can hit the outside shot, use his 6-5 frame to attack the basket and even pass the ball quite effectively. It is Finney who holds this team together and does what needs to be done during any particular game.

Final Projection:

If Coach Blaine Taylor can avoid injuries and pretty much play with an eight man rotation all season long, this is more than just the team to beat in CAA. This could be a team that will make some noise in March or at least give somebody a big time scare. If Old Dominion plays as well as they did at times last year, they might not even need to win the conference tournament to get to the big dance, but they better win some big games in the non-conference portion of their schedule if they want to keep any at-large hopes alive.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NCAA

Projected Starting Five:

Darius James, Junior, Guard, 6.9 points per game

Marsharee Neely, Senior, Guard, 7.1 points per game

Ben Finney, Junior, Guard, 9.9 points per game

Keyon Carter, Junior, Forward, 7.9 points per game

Gerald Lee, Senior, Forward, 15.5 points per game

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College Basketball Preview - 144 Teams in 144 Days - Alphabetical Ranks/Previews

George Mason Basketball Preview: #66

Joel Welser — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:02:27 -0400

Overall Rank: #66

Conference Rank: #2 Colonial Athletic Association

2008-09: 22-11, 13-5

2008-09 postseason: NIT

Coach: Jim Larranaga (229-142 at George Mason, 427-311 overall)

George Mason continues to have success, although nothing will ever quite live up to their Final Four appearance. Still this is a team that is in the mix for the top spot year in and year out in the Colonial Athletic Association. And they will be again this year even without three of their top four scorers from a year ago.

Key Losses: F Darryl Monroe, G Dre Smith, G John Vaughn

Key Newcomers:

This is one of the best recruiting classes for a so-called mid-major team in the nation. Small forward Paris Bennett could find himself in the starting lineup right away. That is unless shooting guard Sherrod Wright has something to say about it. Wright is a prolific scorer from anywhere on the floor and he will immediately give this team another offensive weapon. Vertrail Vaughns and Rashad Whack will add even more options on the perimeter. Johnny Williams highlights the big guys. The 6-8 power forward averaged a double-double in high school and has the size and strength to battle in the CAA as a freshman. Add Luke Hancock and redshirt freshman Kevin Foster to the mix and the Patriots have a lot of youth to work with.

Backcourt:

The problem is the returning players on the perimeter are pretty young too. Andre Cornelius is just a sophomore and while he showed promise as a freshman, is he really ready to take over this team? By the numbers he committed more turnovers than he had assists and that will have to change if George Mason expects him to be the consistent ball handler that they need. Cam Long can run the point too, but he is also the team’s best scorer. Last season as a sophomore he led the squad with 11.7 points per game. Long is a very consistent outside shooter and the more time he can spend off the ball trying to get open for three-pointers, the better.

Frontcourt:

Like the backcourt, the frontcourt is also bursting with potential. Ryan Pearson, a 6-6 forward, had a very good freshman campaign, averaging 7.0 points and 3.6 rebounds. He only started one game and averaged less than 18 minutes per contest. Without Darryl Monroe on the floor, Pearson is expected to take over a lot of those minutes. Fellow sophomore Mike Morrison will take some of those minutes too. Morrison has more size than Pearson and when Coach Jim Larranaga needs another rebounder on the floor, he will call on Morrison.

Who to Watch:

There is only one senior on the roster and it is 6-6 forward Louis Birdsong. Birdsong let Monroe do most of the scoring under the basket last year, but he will need to become more assertive on the offensive end and join Pearson as an interior scorer. Unlike Pearson, Birdsong is a decent outside shooter and can consistently knock down the mid-range jumper and even occasionally a three-pointer. However, it is on the defensive end where Birdsong does his best work after leading the team with 1.1 blocks per game last season.

Final Projection:

There are a lot of options on this team. If Long needs to run the point, then some of the talented freshmen will step in on the wings and give the Patriots plenty of scoring options. The frontcourt can play small with Pearson and Birdsong or they can go big with Morrison and Williams. Time will tell how the battles for playing time will shake out, but one thing is for sure: this young team will grow up and be very dangerous come March.

Projected Post-season Tournament: NIT

Projected Starting Five:

Andre Cornelius, Sophomore, Guard, 5.5 points per game

Cam Long, Junior, Guard, 11.7 points per game

Paris Bennett, Freshman, Forward, DNP last season

Ryan Pearson, Sophomore, Forward, 7.0 points per game

Louis Birdsong, Senior, Forward, 6.4 points per game

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