BYU

Non-BCS Top 25: Valpo Replaces BYU

Shawn Siegel — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 16:22:57 -0800

The Non-BCS Top 25 is a CollegeHoops.net original, copied by multiple major outlets. As a weekly companion to our popular CHN Top 50 ranking, it takes an in-depth look into the underrated universe of teams outside of the big six. The original Non-BCS ranking.

Non-BCS Top 25: March 3rd

by Shawn Siegel: Collegehoops.net Editor

	Team	Record	Last
1	Gonzaga	29-2	1
2	New Mexico	25-4	2
3	VCU	23-6	5
4	Saint Louis	23-5	11
5	MTSU	27-4	8
6	Memphis	25-4*	3
7	UNLV	22-7	9
8	Butler	22-7*	6
9	Colorado St	22-7*	7
10	Creighton	24-7	13
11	Wichita St	24-7**	4
12	St. Mary's	26-5	12
13	San Diego St	20-8*	10
14	Temple	21-8	15
15	Belmont	24-6	14
16	Louisiana Tech	26-3	19
17	La Salle	20-7	18
18	Akron	23-5*	16
19	Bucknell	25-5	17

Not in CHN Top 50 Ranking

	Team	Record	Last
20	Boise St	20-8	20
21	Stephen F Austin	24-3	21
22	Southern Miss	22-7	23
23	Davidson	23-7	24
24	Valparaiso	24-7	NA
25	Ohio	21-8*	25

last = last week's ranking

* = Losses this week

Next 5: Stony Brook (23-6), Denver (19-8), BYU (21-10*), UMASS (18-9), Weber St (22-5)

Further 5: Xavier (16-12*), Air Force (16-11*), North Dakota St (22-4), Evansville (18-13), Eastern Kentucky (23-8)

Out of Top 25: BYU

Agree/Disagree? Post your thoughts below or join us @collegehoopsnet

Check out last week's Non-BCS Top 25 Ranking

Early 2012-13 Ranking: Teams 46 to 60

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 08:05:33 -0700

Continuing with the Early 2012-13 Ranking, here are teams 46 to 60.

Its worth repeating that I had to make many assumptions about the NBA Draft in compiling the following list, and I've noted which assumptions I've made. This ranking will be updated later in the summer once players have made their official draft decisions. Also uncertain is where some remaining unsigned recruits will end up, and how the coaching carousel will take form. I purposely made no assumptions about where unsigned prospects will end up. (All prospect rankings are according to the Rivals 150 ranking.)

Early 2012-13 Ranking: Teams 45-60

46 Miami Another year under Jim Larranaga should find the Hurricanes on the inside of the NCAA Tournament bubble. Malcolm Grant departs but he did not have a terribly good season anyways.

47 Butler After a down year, Butler should once again be the class of the Horizon League. Transfer Rotnei Clarke gives them a scoring-punch that was severely lacking this year. Three solid guards enter as freshmen, who should help with depth.

48 Colorado Carlon Brown and Austin Dufault are not small loses, but the hope is that Andre Roberson blossoms into a Pac-12 Player of the Year candidate. The Buffs recruiting haul is easily their best of the last decade.

49 BYU The Cougars lose veterans Hartsock and Abouo but should still settle into their usual bubble-bound slot. Another year of improvement from Matt Carlino should help.

50 Pittsburgh Coming off of a disastrous season, Pittsburgh has no where to go but up. Although Gibbs and Robinson depart, the Panthers welcome 4th ranked recruit Steven Adams, one of their best-ever recruits. A healthy Tray Woodall would certainly help as well.

51 UCF After being a fringe-bubble team that last two years, UCF will once again be hoping to make the tourney. Although PG AJ Rompza graduates, the team returns solid All-CUSA caliber players in Keith Clanton, Marcus Jordan, and Isaiah Sykes.

52 Temple The Owls should take a step back with key senior losses, including leader Ramone Moore, but expect them to still be competitive in the A10. Khalif Wyatt could score 20 ppg now that the team is fully in his hands. The recruiting haul might be Temple's best since 2007.

53 Xavier Besides leader Tu Holloway, they also loses Kenny Frease and Andre Walker. Role players like Travis Taylor and Jeff Robinson will really need to step it up if Xavier wants to makes its 8th tourney in a row. 4-star recruit Semaj Christon is capable of contributing at PG from day one.

54 UCONN Jeremy Lamb and Andre Drummond will presumably go pro, and the roster looks pretty thin without them. Last year's shock tourney run covers up what has been 3 years in a row of .500 or worse basketball in Big East play. Add in the potential sanctions and Calhoun's health, and you have yourself a lot of questions.

55 Belmont Seniors Drew Hanlen, Mick Hedgepeth, and Scott Saunders depart, but Kerron Johnson and Ian Clark are still two of the A-Sun's top players. Incoming PG Craig Bradshaw is one of Belmont's better pickups and should fit right into the program.

56 South Florida Three seniors that played over 25 minutes per game depart, but South Florida shouldn't expect too much of a drop-off. USF's 4-person recruiting class is solid for their standards, but still mediocre as far as the Big East goes.

57 Mississippi St With Dee Bost a senior and Arnett Moultrie presumably going pro, Mississippi St loses its leading scorer, passer, rebounder, and defender. Although an underrated 5-person recruiting class was set to come in, Rick Stanbury's retirement does open some questions.

58 West Virginia For a team that often struggled to score the ball, it will be interesting to see how they'll manage without Kevin Jones and Darryl Bryant. Those two scored almost 50% of the Mountaineers points. Aaric Murray and Juwan Staten are solid transfers who will help.

59 Southern Miss USM was never as good as their gaudy RPI suggested.. Graduations will put a major dent into their major strength, which was depth, but their top two scorers do return.

60 Iowa St The key for Iowa St is whether Royce White decides to go pro. I'm assuming here that he does, which would mean the Cyclones lose their 3 leading scorers. A pair of solid transfers enter the mix, as well as their best recruiting class in a few years.

Also Under Consideration (alphabetical order)

Akron

California

Harvard

Illinois St

Minnesota

Nevada

Ole Miss

Oregon

Providence

Vanderbilt

Virginia

<< Return to 2012-13 Ranking: Teams 1 to 45

Wild Comebacks Kick Off the NCAA Tournament

Raphielle Johnson — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 01:56:49 -0700

For all the talk about how unwatchable the First Four games in Dayton would be, how it's not "part of the tournament', Tuesday turned out to be an exciting and historical day. Both games featured thrilling comebacks, with Western Kentucky and BYU now headed to Louisville for games against Kentucky and Marquette respectively. In attendance for some of the action were President Barack Obama and David Cameron, who as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was the president's guest in Dayton.

They didn't leave Blackburn Arena disappointed either, as the first game was capped by the largest comeback in the firal five minutes of a game in NCAA tournament history. Mississippi Valley State led the Hilltoppers 53-37 with 5:06 remaining following a Cor-J Cox layup, and at that point it seemed as if the Delta Devils would advance to face the alma mater of head coach Sean Woods. But as they've done under head coach Ray Harper, who took over for the fired Ken McDonald in January, the young Hilltoppers refused to quit.

What ensued was one of the most frenzied five-minute stretches college basketball fans have ever seen, with WKU's pressure forcing five turnovers and holding MVSU to just two field goals over the final 5:06. Both of those field goals came in the final 12 seconds as WKU won 59-58 in front of a stunned crowd.

Derrick Gordon and T.J. Price led WKU offensively with 11 points apiece and the other three starters scored nine points each. But it was their defense that got WKU not only back into the game but on to the next round.

"We were too much one?on?one," said Harper of his team's play before the comeback. "We weren't making extra passes. Panicked against some of their pressure. But the one thing we never did was quit. And we just kept playing. And I'm just happy that we're going to move on, play another basketball game."

Kevin Burwell led the Delta Devils with 20 points and Cox combined with William Pugh to score 21 off the bench. As a team MVSU, who makes eight 3-pointers per game (attempting 23), shot 4-of-22 from beyond the arc to go along with 17 turnovers.

But that turnover count was nowhere near WKU's, who found a way to win despite turning the ball over a staggering 27 times. Yes, 27. However just three of those turnovers came in the final 5:06, and that allowed them to come back.

The second game produced the team more likely to win its next contest, and for a little more than 15 minutes it looked as if Iona was going to be able to call the final score. But Dave Rice made a couple of strategic moves that, in addition to the Cougars playing better on both ends of the floor, won the game for BYU.

The first move was to go to an active 2-3 zone, and with Iona lacking both the height and the player necessary to take advantage of the high post area they struggled.

The Gaels would go scoreless the final four and a half minutes of the first half, taking a 55-40 lead into the half that was nowhere near as safe as it appeared. The other move of Rose's that paid off was to go with Craig Cusick and Damarcus Harrison for much of the second half in the backcourt.

Matt Carlino seemed convinced that he had to match Scott Machado play for play in the first half and the end result was a 25-point deficit. With Cusick and Harrison in the game both Brandon Davies and Noah Hartsock got better looks (combining for 41 points and 20 rebounds; 15 by Davies) and Harrison finished with 12 points.

"I told you all along he's a really good player and I think his confidence really grew tonight," said Rose of Harrison, who according to the coach had a good week of preparation as well. "But he stepped up in a really big?time atmosphere and had a great game, and a lot of that has to do with preparation."

Iona managed to score just 17 points in the second half, with the looks from three that came so easy in the first half non-existent (1-of-18 in the second half). The 25-point comeback is the largest in NCAA tournament history, and the key now will be for the Cougars to get as much rest as they can in advance of Thursday afternoon's game against Marquette.

With the Golden Eagles lacking size in the paint both Davies and Hartsock can make some things happen. But even with the play of guys such as Cusick, Harrison and Brock Zylstra, BYU needs a better Matt Carlino in order to advance. And after tonight, they're well aware of the fact that anything can happen.

Player of the Night: BYU forward Brandon Davies (18 points, 15 rebounds)

Shocking Stat: Western Kentucky turned the ball over 27 times and still won.

Coaching Move of the Night: Dave Rose switching to a zone defense to slow down Iona's offensive attack.

Marquette vs BYU: Prediction

Greg Mengelt — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 22:23:12 -0700

(4) Marquette vs. (13) Brigham Young: West Region

Records

Marquette 25-7, 14-4 Big East (At large)

BYU 26-8, 12-4 WCC (At large)

Time: 2:45 p.m. Thursday

TV: CBS

Location: KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky.

Winner will face: (6) Murray State or (11) Colorado State, Saturday

Rankings

Marquette No. 11 AP; No. 11 ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll

RPI Ratings

Marquette 8

BYU 46

Players to Watch

Marquette: F Jae Crowder, 6-6 Sr. (17.4 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 2.4 spg); G Darius Johnson-Odom, 6-2 Sr. (18.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.8 apg); G Junior Cadougan, 6-1 Jr. (6.5 ppg, 5.5 apg, 1.2 spg). Crowder and Johnson-Odom were the only teammates to make the All-Big Ten first team. In the Eagles’ most recent outing – an 84-71 loss to Louisville in the Big East Tournament – DJO went for 23 points, six rebounds and three assists, while Crowder had a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

BYU: F Noah Hartsock, 6-8 Sr. (16.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 56.5% FG); F Brandon Davies, 6-9 Jr. (15 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 51.6% FG); G Charles Abouo, 6-5 Sr. (11.5 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.6 apg). As they have been all season, Hartsock and Davies were brilliant in Tuesday’s win over Iona. They combined for 41 points – on 18-of-28 shooting – 20 rebounds, four blocks and four steals in the comeback victory.

Why Each Team is Dangerous

Marquette: Marquette has a great 1-2 punch in seniors Johnson-Odom and Crowder, who combine to score 47 percent of the team’s points and grab 32 percent of the Eagles’ rebounds. Quality 1-2 connections have often led to deep runs in the NCAA Tournament. Marquette led the Big East in scoring at 75.9 points per game. The Eagles are excellent at getting to the foul line and shoot 72 percent while there. Only 10 teams nationally had more assists than Marquette. Cadougan is a very good floor leader and distributor.

BYU: After Tuesday’s win, it’s clear that the Cougars are very well coached. Iona scored 55 points in the first 15 minutes and then held the nation’s highest-scoring team to just 17 in the final 25 minutes. Much of that came after Rose’s adjustments. All season, the Cougars have shown great poise and Tuesday was no different. With Hartsock and Davies, BYU is big, strong and diverse. The Cougars have held opponents to 41.2 percent from the field and 31.1 from the 3-point line this season and they force 15.8 turnovers per game.

Why Each Team is Vulnerable

Marquette: With injuries to Chris Otule, who is done for the season, and Davante Gardner, who returned for the team’s last two games and was basically ineffective, Marquette has almost no size. That could hurt against a big, strong BYU squad. Over the season, the Eagles had one more rebound than their opponents and they were out-rebounded by Big East opponents by 18.

BYU: It was obvious early in Tuesday’s win that the Cougars have trouble with quicker, fast-paced teams. The Eagles will likely pose some matchup problems with their athleticism at several positions. BYU isn’t a great perimeter shooting team, particularly from behind the 3-point line (34.2 percent).

The Bottom Line: This will be a matter of which team is able for force its will upon the other. In what should be such a close game, my advice is always take the team (against the spread) that has already played a game.

The Pick: Marquette 77, BYU 76

Greg Against the Spread This Season: 198-150-6 (Through Tuesday, March 14)

Top 10 Sweet Sixteen Picks: 2012 Tournament

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 11:20:13 -0700

Top 10 Sexy Sweet Sixteen Picks

Its one thing to pick a few first round upsets (here are 10 likely ones), its a whole other thing picking cinderella sweet sixteen teams. Every good bracket has at least one surprise sweet sixteen team (if not two), so here are the 10 best ones to choose from:

10 #12 VCU

Can last year's Cinderella team do it again? In a different spot, I'd think they'd have a much better chance to make a run, but Wichita St might be the best of the 5 seeds. VCU arguably deserved to be a 10 seed considering their top 40 RPI and strong finish. If VCU can get past Wichita St, then Indiana in the 2nd round might actually be an easier game.

9 #14 BYU/Iona

The odds of either of these teams advancing to the Sweet Sixteen is obviously hurt by the fact they'd need to win an extra game. But these teams are really 11 or 12 seeds that got knocked down to 14 because of scheduling issues. Both of these teams run high-octane, high-tempo offenses and thus should fare well against a Marquette team that plays a similar style.

8 #11 Texas

While Cincinnati had a good run in the Big East tournament, they're more than capable of flaming out early in the Big Dance. Texas has a lot of losses, but most of them are to Top 30 teams, and the computer rankings say that Cincinnati is not a Top 30 team. The biggest thing holding Texas back is a lack of 3-pt shooting.. if they happen to find a hot streak and J'Covan Brown is on his A game, the Sweet Sixteen is easily possible

7 #12 Harvard

With wins over Florida St and St. Joseph's, Harvard has shown ability to beat post-season quality teams. Facing Vanderbilt in the first round is not a bad draw for Harvard, considering Kevin Stalling's teams have been known to fizzle out in the NCAA Tournament. A potential second round matchup with Wisconsin seems favorable as the Badgers tempo plays right into Harvard's style.

6 #12 Long Beach St

Long Beach St lost to Top 5 teams North Carolina and Kansas by just 6 and 8 points in true road games. That shows you how dangerous the 49ers are. Point guard Casper Ware was hot in the Big West tournament, and he has the ability to dominate a game. If Long Beach St could somehow top New Mexico, they might even be favored in the next match against Louisville or Davidson.

5 #13 Ohio

Two years ago, Ohio won a first round game against Georgetown, and their opening game against Michigan seems quite similar. Guard DJ Cooper has star potential, but his scoring ability is highly eratic. When he's on, Ohio can be extremely dangeorus.

4 #11 NC State

Appropriately seeded in the 11 range, NC St takes on San Diego St to start things off. According to KenPom.com and other similar computer ratings, NC State is actually ranked higher than the Aztecs. In a sense, the ratings suggest this is really a battle between two 11 seeds, exemplified by the game's 1 point spread. Lurking beyond San Diego St is Georgetown, arguably the weakest of the 3 seeds.

3 #14 Belmont

Many thought Belmont had an outside shot at the Top 25 this year, but they lost a couple close games early before finding their groove late in the season. The A-Sun champs are feared due to their highly efficient offense. Georgetown rarely loses to lesser teams, but their zone could play into Belmont's hands. The winner of this game faces San Diego St or NC State.. Las Vegas could easily favor Belmont against either of those two.

2 #13 Davidson

Davidson faces West #4 seed Louisville to open things up. Louisville used stifling defense to win the Big East tournament, but yet somehow they seem vulnerable. The Cardinals tend to play a lot of close games, and although they tend to win those game, it always keeps the door open for a potential upset. If Davidson manages to squeeze by, they'd face the winner of Long Beach St and New Mexico.

1 #14 Saint Bonaventure

The Bonnies, led by star Andrew Nicholson, face East Region #3 FSU to start things off. Despite winning the ACC title, FSU has shown a willingness to play down to opponents, and Leonard Hamilton teams have lost in the first round two of the last three years. A potential second round matchup with either Cincinnati or Texas looms, but neither of those teams strike fear into anybody.

More Bracket Tips. Plus Top 10 Potential First Round Upsets

BYU vs Iona: First Four Prediction

Greg Mengelt — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 23:48:59 -0700

(14) IONA vs. (14) BRIGHAM YOUNG

Records

Iona 25-7, 15-3 MAAC (Regular-Season Conference Champions; At large)

BYU 25-8, 12-4 WCC (At large)

Time: 9 p.m., Tuesday

TV: TruTV

Location: University of Dayton Arena in Dayton, Ohio

RPI Ratings

Iona 47

BYU 46

Line: BYU -2 (O/U TBA)

Players to Watch

Iona: G Scott Machado, 6-1 Sr. (13.6 ppg, 9.9 apg, 5 rpg); F Michael Gover, 6-7 Sr. (18.5 ppg, 9 rpg, 64.4% FG); G Lamont “Momo” Jones, 6-0 Jr. (16 ppg, 3 apg, 1.2 spg). Jones starred for Arizona on last year’s Arizona Elite 8 team. Jones adapted well to returning to the East Coast, scoring in double-figures in 29 of the Gaels’ 32 games, including a 43-point performance in a 105-86 win over Canisius.

BYU: F Noah Hartsock, 6-8 Sr. (16.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 56.5% FG); F Brandon Davies, 6-9 Jr. (15 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 51.6% FG); G Matt Carlino, 6-2 Fr. (12.7 ppg, 4.7 apg, 3.1 rpg). Davies, who had seven double-doubles this season, will be looking to redeem himself after being suspended from last year’s Cougar Sweet 16 team.

Why They're Dangerous

Iona: Iona can score as well as any team in the country. The Gaels led the nation in points per game (83.2) and were second in field goal percentage (50.4). Behind Machado, who was second in the nation in assists, the Gaels led the country with 19.3 assists per contest and they were third in assist-to-turnover ratio at 1.56-to-1. Iona gets a lot of steals and forces a lot of turnovers.

BYU: The Cougars are tough in the middle with Hartsock and Davies, out-rebounding opponents by over four per game. That could be a big factor against a less-physical Iona squad. BYU also won’t mind the Gaels’ fast-pace after averaging 78.2 points per game and ranking 12^th in the nation in offensive possessions per game. BYU also protects the basketball, which will be important against the Gaels’ pressure defense. The BYU defense allowed just 41 percent from the field and 31.2 percent from the 3-point line this season.

Why They're Vulnerable

Iona: Defense is a serious issue. The Gaels gave up 45 percent from the floor and 35.4 from the 3-point line. They are an average rebounding team and they have almost no defensive presence in the lane.

BYU: The Cougars aren’t very athletic and not nearly as quick as the Gaels. They have also struggled to shoot from deep. They prefer to shoot from inside and mid-range, which is fine unless they get behind early. The Cougars don’t get to the foul line much.

The Bottom Line: Another one that could go either way. Expect Iona to push the pace and be successful doing so. That will be the difference.

The Pick: Iona 93, BYU 88

(Winner would face Marquette, #3 in the West)

Greg Against the Spread This Season: 198-148-6

Bracketology Poll: Who is the Worst At-Large Team?

Shawn Siegel — Sun, 11 Mar 2012 20:29:03 -0700

Semifinals Predictions: Horion, MVC, Patriot, WCC

Greg Mengelt — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 10:16:07 -0800

Our g ame prediction guru Greg Mengelt has been on fire this year. He'll be picking every conference tournament game over the next 2 weeks. Read more about Championship Week at CollegeHoops.net.

HORIZON LEAGUE SEMIFINALS: AT VALPARAISO, IND.

(2) Cleveland State (22-9, 12-6) vs. (3) Detroit (20-13, 11-7)

Tipoff: 6 p.m. TV: ESPN3. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 3 – Cleveland State 66-61*; Feb. 23 – Cleveland State 77-64. RPI: Cleveland State 82, Detroit 157. Analysis: With D’Aundray Brown expected to make his return tonight, stay away from this one. He may light up the Titans and he may cause a rift in chemistry – as newly returning players often do for a game or two. Line: Cleveland State -1. Pick: Cleveland State 64, Detroit 62.

(1) Valparaiso (21-10, 14-4) vs. (5) Butler (20-13, 11-7)

Tipoff: 8:30 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 3 – Valparaiso 77-71 (OT)*; Feb. 24 – Valparaiso 71-59. RPI: Valparaiso 95, 112. Analysis: Oh-oh! Butler’s getting hot again at the right time. The Bulldogs haven’t lost a game in March since 2009. Still, tough to take them in Valpo. Line: Even. Pick: Valparaiso 60, Butler 52.

MISSOURI VALLEY SEMIFINALS: AT ST. LOUIS

(1) Wichita State (27-4, 16-2) vs. (4) Illinois State (19-12, 9-9)

Tipoff: 2:30 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Midwest/MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 10 – Wichita State 65-62; Feb. 22 – Wichita State 68-55*. RPI: Wichita State 12, Illinois State 124. Analysis: Illinois State wins with toughness, rebounding and defense. Guess what. The Shockers are tough, they rebound and play defense – and much, much more. Line: Wichita State -12. Pick: Wichita State 68, Illinois State 52.

(2) Creighton (26-5, 14-4) vs. (3) Evansville (16-14, 9-9)

Tipoff: 5 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Midwest/MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Feb. 7 – Evansville 65-57; Feb. 21 – Creighton 93-92 (OT). RPI: Creighton 25, Evansville 135. Analysis: Creighton will use a little better shot selection than Missouri State did against the Aces and pull away in the second half. Line: Creighton -6. Pick: Creighton 80, Evansville 71.

PATRIOT LEAGUE SEMIFINALS: AT CAMPUS SITES

(3) American (20-10, 10-4) at (2) Lehigh (24-7, 11-3)

Tipoff: 2 p.m. TV: CBS Sports Network. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 11 – Lehigh 71-60; Feb. 9 – American 71-62. RPI: Lehigh 117, American 150. Analysis: It is games like this in which Hawk star C.J. McCollum takes over, but the line seems way too high. Line: Lehigh -9½. Pick: Lehigh 64, American 58.

(5) Lafayette (13-17, 7-7) at (1) Bucknell (23-8, 12-2)

Tipoff: 4:30 p.m. TV: CBS Sports Network. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 14 – Bucknell 79-65*; Feb. 11 – Bucknell 90-78. RPI: Bucknell 92, Lafayette 199. Analysis: Bucknell’s Mike Muscala has scored 51 points against the Leopards in two outings. He’ll do it again on Saturday. Line: Bucknell -11½. Pick: Bucknell 83, Lafayette 65.

WCC SEMIFINALS: AT LAS VEGAS

(1) Saint Mary’s (25-5, 14-2) vs. (5) San Francisco (20-12, 8-8)

Tipoff: 9 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 9 – Saint Mary’s 87-72; Feb. 25 – Saint Mary’s 67-60*. RPI: Saint Mary’s 37, San Francisco 142. Analysis: The Dons are playing well, including a 7-point loss at Saint Mary’s just a week ago. And the Gaels are still a little banged up, so USF should keep it close. Line: Saint Mary’s -7½. Pick: Saint Mary’s 71, San Francisco 66.

(2) Gonzaga (24-5, 13-3) vs. (3) BYU (24-7, 12-4)

Tipoff: 11 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Feb. 2 – BYU 83-78; Feb. 23 – Gonzaga 74-63. RPI: Gonzaga 24, BYU 52. Analysis: Interesting matchup featuring strong front lines and good shooters, but the Bulldogs have the better overall talent. Line: Gonzaga -1½. Pick: Gonzaga 69, BYU 62.

Greg Against the Spread This Season: 100-69-2

BYU Avoids a Crippling Defeat: Friday's Quick Hitters

Raphielle Johnson — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 05:30:13 -0800

1. BYU survived a pesky San Diego squad to advance to the WCC semifinals.
A win over San Diego wasn't going to do a whole lot for BYU from a resume standpoint. Sure the Cougars would pick up a 25th win on the season, but a loss would have had a much larger impact on their NCAA tournament hopes than a win. That's what made the return of Noah Hartsock so important, given how much the Cougars struggled with the pesky Toreros.

Hartsock, who played just seven minutes at Gonzaga and sat out the Portland game with a knee injury, returned to give BYU 19 points and five rebounds in 27 minutes of action as the Cougars beat San Diego 73-68 in a WCC quarterfinal. The win moves BYU to 25-7 and sets up a third meeting with Gonzaga, but most importantly the Cougars avoid a damaging loss and likely avoid any of the selection committee hijinks that could have sprung up with a loss.

"I knew my knee wouldn't be 100 percent, but the trainers did a great job of helping me rehab and get stronger," said Hartsock. "I was able to come out tonight and really produce. It started to feel, as the game went on, that the adrenaline and blood started pumping."

San Diego's small, quick guards gave the Cougars fits for much of the night, especially point guard Matt Carlino. Carlino, who knocked down two important three-pointers in the second half, had his hands full with Christopher Anderson all night long. Carlino finished with eight points and seven assist but he also turned the ball over nine times. Anderson finished with 14 points and six assists while Dennis Kramer led the Toreros with 17 points and nine rebounds, but unfortunately for them Johnny Dee made just three of his eleven shots after scoring 30 on Thursday night.

BYU gets another shot at Gonzaga, who beat the Cougars by eleven last Thursday, and having a relatively healthy Hartsock is a dimension they were missing in Spokane. The senior went off for 24 points and 14 rebounds in BYU's 83-73 win over Gonzaga in Provo, and there's no doubt that his presence alongside Brandon Davies (16 points, five rebounds against USD) is a key factor in BYU's success. BYU isn't a "bubble" team but a loss to the Toreros could have added some doubt to the situation. Thanks to Hartsock that won't be an issue.

2. The top two seeds advance in the OVC while FGCU upsets host Mercer in the A-Sun semis.
The semifinals of the OVC tournament went according to form on Friday night as the top two seeds, Murray State and Tennessee State, advanced to Saturday's title game. Kevin Murphy scored 31 points to lead Tennessee Tech but with Jud Dillard (3-9 FG, eight points) struggling offensively the Golden Eagles were unable to keep up with the Racers, who went on to win

78-58. Donte Poole scored 25 points and grabbed seven boards and Isaiah Canaan added 18 to set up a rubber match with Tennessee State, who beat Morehead State 59-52. Robert Covington scored 14 points for the Tigers, who also received 13 points apiece from Patrick Miller and reserve Jordan Cyphers. The road team won both regular season meetings between the Racers and Tigers, which should make for an interesting tiebreaker in Nashville.

As for the Atlantic Sun semifinals, for the second straight season a team in its first year of eligibility for an NCAA bid advanced to the title game. Sherwood Brown scored 14 points and Christophe Varidel added 13 off the bench to help lead Florida Gulf Coast past two-seed (and host) Mercer 62-58 in the second semifinal of the night. Jakob Gollon scored 17 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Langston Hall added 16 to lead the Bears but they went cold at the wrong time, failing to score a field goal over the final 6:18 of the game.

The opponent for the Eagles in Saturday's title game will be top-seed Belmont, who blew out upstart North Florida in last season's title game. The Bruins beat ETSU 69-61 thanks in part to 19 points, four rebounds and four assists from Ian Clark, who made five of their twelve three-pointers. The 24-point disparity in points from beyond the arc made up for Belmont's poor free throw shooting, as they finished the night 13-for-25 from the charity stripe.

3. Butler dominates the second half to advance to the Horizon League semifinals.
Regardless of what happens in the regular season games that lead into March, Brad Stevens' Bulldogs have been a very tough team to beat in the month of March. Khyle Marshall and Roosevelt Jones scored 17 points apiece (Marshall also grabbed ten rebounds) to help lead Butler past Milwaukee 71-49 to set up a semifinal meeting with top-seed Valparaiso on Saturday.

Beginning with a Marshall dunk with 48 seconds remaining in the first half Butler went on an 11-0 run to push their lead out to 31-18, and another Marshall bucket (with 7:15 remaining) started a 25-5 run that put the Panthers away. Butler was efficient offensively as they shot 50% from the field but they were even better on the other end of the floor. Milwaukee shot just 31% from the field, which included a cold 6-for-23 night from three, and Butler out-rebounded the Panthers 42-23.

Also advancing to the semifinals was Detroit, who shot 60% from the field and had five players score 11 points or more in their 93-76 win over Youngstown State. Ray McCallum Jr. scored 22 points to lead the Titans, who will take on two-seed Cleveland State in the other semifinal on Saturday. Youngstown State did manage to shoot 55% from the field but there were just 6-for-20 from three, and for a team that relies so much on the shot that didn't bode well for the Penguins.

Quick Hitters

1. The higher seeded teams held serve for the second straight day at Arch Madness, which featured Wichita State's dominant performance against Indiana State. The Sycamores weren't helped by the fact that point guard Jake Odum was dealing with plantar fasciitis and a stress fracture in his foot, but to be honest that didn't have much of an impact in the Shockers' 72-48 win. Toure' Murry and Joe Ragland led a balanced attack with 14 points apiece, and the Shockers will take on four-seed Illinois State on Saturday.

2. In the night session Creighton made the plays they needed to make late in order to survive Drake, beating the Bulldogs 68-61. Doug McDermott, who won the Larry Bird Trophy as MVC Player of the Year, scored 26 points and grabbed ten rebounds to lead the Bluejays, who also received valuable contributions from Antoine Young (16 points) and Gregory Echenique (ten points, five rebounds). Next up for Creighton is three-seed Evansville, who received 20 points and eight rebounds from Kenneth Harris to go along with 19 from Colt Ryan.

3. BYU may have avoided a loss to a lower seeded team in Las Vegas but the same can't be said for Loyola Marymount, who dropped a 67-60 decision to San Francisco. The game changed for LMU when point guard Anthony Ireland injured his groin on a collision with the basket support in the second half, but to be fair the Lions were having trouble guarding the Dons for much of the night. Michael Williams scored 19 points and Cody Doolin 16 to lead San Francisco, who gets another shot at regular season champ Saint Mary's in Saturday's semifinals.

4. It was a good day for the five seeds in the Southern Conference tournament as both Appalachian State and Furman advanced to the quarterfinals. The Mountaineers shot 53% from both the field and from three in their 93-81 win over College of Charleston, with Mike Neal leading five starters in double figures with 21 points. As for the Paladins, Bobby Austin and Charlie Reddick scored 15 points apiece to lead them to a 75-66 win over Samford.

5. Three of the four games at the CAA tournament in Richmond went according to form, with the lone exception being UNC Wilmington's 70-59 win over James Madison in the 8/9 game. The Seahawks, who were led by Cedrick Williams' 22 points and eight rebounds, shot just 39.6% from the field but unlike the Dukes (13-23 FT) Buzz Peterson's team took advantage of the foul line (26-32).

6. #19 Notre Dame attempted just ten three-pointers in their 75-69 win over Providence to lock up a double-bye in next week's Big East Championship, and Jack Cooley's play was a big reason why. Cooley scored 27 points and grabbed 17 boards for the Irish, who attempted fifteen more free throws (26-11) than the Friars while also having five players reach double figures.

7. Kyle Casey scored 19 points to lead Harvard past Columbia 77-70 in overtime on Friday night, keeping the Crimson a half-game ahead of Penn in the Ivy League race. Harvard closes their regular season with a game at Cornell on Saturday night while the Quakers, who beat Brown 54-43 on Friday, closes out with games against Yale and rival Princeton. Should the two teams finish tied atop the standings there will be a one-game playoff.

8. One day after their season ended with a loss to Indiana State in the first round of the MVC tournament Southern Illinois decided to fire head coach Chris Lowery. Lowery, who led the Salukis to three NCAA appearances in his eight seasons in Carbondale, struggled the last couple of years culminating in an 8-23 mark this season. Some have already suggested that SIU may be interested in talking to Bruce Weber, who was the head coach at SIU before moving on to Illinois.

9. No surprises in the first round of the MAAC tournament on Friday night as Marist and Niagara advanced to the quarterfinals with two of the conference's best freshmen playing well. Chavaughn Lewis led the Red Foxes to a 64-57 win over Saint Peter's with 17 points and seven rebounds, and MAAC Rookie of the Year Juan'ya Green scored a team-high 20 in the Purple Eagles' 80-70 win over rival Canisius.

Three Notable Performances

1. F Jack Cooley (Notre Dame)
27 points and 17 rebounds in the Fighting Irish's 75-69 win over Providence.

2. G Eric Ferguson (Georgia Southern)
26 points, eight rebounds and three steals in the Eagles' 76-70 win over Chattanooga.

3. G Donte Poole (Murray State)
25 points, seven rebounds and four assists in the Racers' 78-58 win over Tennessee Tech.

Friday Tournament Predictions: Horizon, OVC, MVC, WCC

Greg Mengelt — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 07:55:14 -0800

Our g ame prediction guru Greg Mengelt has been on fire this year. He'll be picking every conference tournament game over the next 2 weeks. Read more about Championship Week at CollegeHoops.net.

ATLANTIC SUN SEMIFINALS: AT MACON, GA.

Belmont (25-7, 16-2) vs. East Tennessee State (17-13, 10-8)

Tipoff: 6 p.m. TV: Comcast Sports. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 23 – Belmont 82-70; Feb. 18 – Belmont 80-58. RPI: Belmont 63, East Tennessee State 180. Analysis: Belmont beat the Buccaneers by a combined 34 points in two meetings this year. Can’t find a reason why the Bruins won’t blow them out again. Line: Belmont -12. Pick: Belmont 88, East Tennessee State 66.

Mercer (22-10, 13-5) vs. Florida Gulf Coast (14-16, 8-10)

Tipoff: Approx. 8:30 p.m. TV: Comcast Sports. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 2 – Mercer 76-54; Feb. 20 – Mercer 75-66. RPI: Mercer 126, Florida Gulf Coast 238. Analysis: Mercer looked better in its win over Lipscomb, but the Bears probably aren’t playing well enough yet to take them against the spread. Line: Mercer -9.5. Pick: Mercer 71, Florida Gulf Coast 67.

HORIZON LEAGUE QUARETRFINALS: AT VALPARAISO, IND.

(3) Detroit (19-13, 11-7) vs. (6) Youngstown State (16-14, 10-8)

Tipoff: 6 p.m. TV: Horizon League Network/ESPN3. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 1 – Youngstown 64-61*; Feb. 25 – Detroit 76-74*. RPI: Detroit 158, Youngstown State 166. Analysis: Detroit’s underachieving roller coaster season comes to an end. Line: Detroit -6. Pick: Youngstown State 68, Detroit 65.

(4) Milwaukee (20-12, 11-7) vs. (5) Butler (19-13, 11-7)

Tipoff: Approx. 8:30 p.m. TV: Horizon League Network/ESPN3. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 31 – Butler 54-50; Jan. 26 – Milwaukee 53-42. RPI: Milwaukee 124, Butler 112. Analysis: The Butler magic lives on – for one more day. Line: Butler -1. Pick: Butler 66, Milwaukee 61.

MISSOURI VALLEY QUARTERFINALS: AT ST. LOUIS

(1) Wichita State (26-4, 16-2) vs. (8) Indiana State (17-13, 8-10)

Tipoff: 1 p.m. TV: MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 15 – Wichita State 75-65*; Feb. 4 – Wichita State 71-66. RPI: Wichita State 12, Indiana State 130. Analysis: This isn’t a typical 1/8 matchup with the Sycamores finishing a game behind third place. Indiana State is closer to the team that won last year’s tournament than to the one that struggled during the middle of this season. Line: Wichita St -10. Pick: Wichita State 70, Indiana State 62.

(4) Illinois State (18-12, 9-9) vs. (5) Northern Iowa (19-12, 9-9)

Tipoff: Approx. 3:30 p.m. TV: MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 29 – Illinois State 65-61; Feb. 11 – Northern Iowa 78-63. RPI: Illinois State 125, Northern Iowa 62. Analysis: This game could go either way, so take the team with more post-season experience. Line: Northern Iowa -2. Line: Northern Iowa -2. Pick: Northern Iowa 70, Illinois State 67.

(2) Creighton (25-5, 14-4) vs. (7) Drake (16-14, 9-9)

Tipoff: 7 p.m. TV: MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 3 – Creighton 76-59; Jan. 25 – Creighton 77-69. RPI: Creighton 25, Drake 127. Analysis: Except for a late push against Long Beach State, the Blue Jays just aren’t playing as well as they were earlier this season. It would be tough to take them by more than a handful of points. Line: Creighton -8. Pick: Creighton 69, Drake 65.

(3) Evansville (15-14, 9-9) vs. (6) Missouri State (16-15, 9-9)

Tipoff: Approx. 9:30 p.m. TV: MVC TV. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 15 – Evansville 87-82 (OT)*; Feb. 25 – Evansville 75-70 (OT). RPI: Evansville 138, Missouri State 108. Analysis: Missouri State senior Kyle Weems will find a way to shine in his final week, and the Bear defense will clamp down on Ace star Colt Ryan. Line: Missouri State -2. Pick: Missouri State 77, Evansville 70.

OHIO VALLEY SEMIFINALS: AT NASHVILLE

(1) Murray State (28-1, 15-1) vs. (4) Tennessee Tech (19-12, 9-7)

Tipoff: 6 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 14 – Murray State 82-74; Feb. 25 – Murray State 69-64*. RPI: Murray State 31, Tennessee Tech 151. Analysis: Tennessee Tech found a way to keep both regular-season meetings close, and Kevin Murphy and the Eagles will push the Racers again. Line: Murray St -8. Pick: Murray State 70, Tennessee Tech 64.

(2) Tennessee State (19-11, 11-5) vs. (3) Morehead State (18-14, 10-6)

Tipoff: Approx. 8 p.m. TV: ESPN3. Regular-season meetings: Jan. 11 – Tennessee State 77-72. RPI: Tennessee State 131, Morehead State 173. Analysis: With an extra day of rest, Tennessee State will pull away from the Eagles early in the second half. Line: Tennessee St -4. Pick: Tennessee State 81, Morehead State 69.

WCC QUARTERFINALS: AT LAS VEGAS

(4) Loyola Marymount (19-11, 11-5) vs. (5) San Francisco (19-12, 8-8)

Tipoff: 9 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 31 – Loyola Marymount 77-76 (OT)*; Feb. 4 – Loyola Marymount 90-88. RPI: Loyola Marymount 119, San Francisco 147. Analysis: Vegas is begging you to take LMU, don't fall for it. Line: San Francisco -1.5. Pick: Loyola Marymount 78, San Francisco 75.

(3) BYU (24-7, 12-4) vs. (6) San Diego (12-17, 9-7)

Tipoff: Approx. 11 p.m. TV: ESPNU. Regular-season meetings: Dec. 31 – BYU 88-52; Jan. 16 – BYU 82-63*. RPI: BYU 50, San Diego 193. Analysis: BYU will control the boards and its defensive end en route to an easy win. Line: BYU -13. Pick: BYU 78, San Diego 55.

*Road win

Greg Against the Spread This Season: 95-62-2