Houston

College Hoops Friday Recap: Bulldogs Win 2K Sports Classic

Raphielle Johnson — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 05:10:48 -0500

Just over a week ago there were many questions about the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the aftermath of their loss to defending MAC Tournament champion Akron, one that featured listless play from their big men and uneven play from their guards. But just as Rick Stansbury's team can be a bit maddening in one week they can be just as productive the next, which is what happened in New York this week. Led by 2K Sports Classic MVP Arnett Moultrie (19 points, 10 rebounds) the Bulldogs never trailed as they beat Arizona 67-57 in the championship game.

Defensively the Bulldogs performed well, limiting Arizona to 40.4% shooting from the field and finishing a plus-4 on the glass. Offensively it wasn't a pretty game for either team, with Jesse Perry (11 points, 10 rebounds) and Solomon Hill (12 points, nine rebounds) leading the way for the Wildcats, but when it came time for the "tough" plays to be made more times than not it was a Bulldog getting it done.

"This game was about effort and toughness," said Stansbury. "If you look at the stat sheet, you see who the tougher team was on that floor tonight. We hustled, played hard and made all of the effort plays you need to make to win a championship."

Point guard Dee Bost didn't have his best shooting performance as he made just three of twelve shots from the field, but he did dish out six assists and grab five rebounds to make up for the lack of scoring. Renardo Sidney, who still has a way to go from a stamina standpoint, scored eight points hand had his moments during his 20 minutes on the floor.

While Perry is a frontcourt player who can score inside as well as step out to 15 feet and beyond, Arizona doesn't have another interior scoring threat and that cost them against Mississippi State. Kyle Fogg and Jordin Mayes were quiet offensively and outside of a few flashes freshmen Nick Johnson and Josiah Turner didn't provide much more off the bench.

These games were good tests for both teams, but it can be argued that the Bulldogs needed the title a little more given their start to the season. The question now is whether or not Mississippi State can use the title as a springboard to bigger and better things. They have the potential to, but whether or not the job is done depends entirely on them.

Other Notable Happenings

1. Rough day for the CAA as both Drexel and VCU fall.
The Colonial Athletic Association has done a very good job in recent years of earning at-large bids, with league contenders getting the job done in non-conference play and then going on to stage a riveting league race. And while that may still happen, losses by Drexel and VCU on Friday won't help matters. VCU's loss to Georgia Tech, with Glen Rice Jr.'s second half shooting sparking a Yellow Jacket rally, isn't one that will boggle the mind. Shaka Smart's team is trying to adjust to new roles and that will be a work in progress.

But for Drexel to follow up their impressive performance at Rider with a loss in the Paradise Jam to Norfolk State isn't what was expected of Bruiser Flint's team. After being nearly unstoppable on Tuesday, Samme Givens scored just seven points and point guard Frantz Massenat finished with seven turnovers. As a result of these defeats VCU finds themselves needing a win on Sunday to avoid an 0-3 Charleston Classic and Drexel somewhat lucks out with a game against Virginia. Both teams will need to be better offensively if they're to be successful.

2. Houston scores 52 points in the second half and beats Arkansas in Little Rock.
This wasn't a true home game for Mike Anderson's Razorbacks, so that may have taken a little away from the vigor of the crowd. But to give up 52 points in a half has to be something that the Hogs' head coach will focus on in their next practice. Kirk Van Slyke scored 19 points off the bench to lead five Houston players in double figures in an 87-78 win over Arkansas on Friday night as James Dickey's team moved to 3-0 on the season.

Houston shot 52.5% from the field, and while their offensive efficiency (114.5) was lower than their season average (118.8) the Cougars were able to execute at a similar level against stiffer competition. However, Houston needs to improve on their ball security if they're to make a push in Conference USA as they turned the ball over 23 times. If Coach Dickey's team can shore things up in that regard, it may not take waiting for their very good 2012 recruiting class to arrive in order to have an impact.

3. Kendall Williams rebounds from a brutal performance to help lead New Mexico to a win at Arizona State.
After going a combined 0-for-13 from the field in the Lobos' loss to New Mexico State earlier this week usual starters Kendall Williams and Drew Gordon came off the bench on Friday. And both bounced back, with Williams scoing 16 points while also grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out seven assists while Gordon accounted for 13 points and nine rebounds in a 76-71 win at Arizona State.

Four Lobos finished in double figures, and the play of freshman guard Hugh Greenwood was also something to take note of. Greenwood made just two of ten shots from the field but he dished out five assists without a turnover, and the season wears on the Australian will most likely get the bulk of the minutes at the point. Steve Alford's team needed a positive result heading into next week's 76 Classic, and they got one.

Quick Hitters

1. Robbie Hummel will be the focal point for Purdue but senior point guard Lewis Jackson will be just as important. Jackson scored a game-high 26 points to go along with three assists in the Boilermakers' 85-77 win over Temple in a Puerto Rico Tipoff semifinal.

2. Virginia put forth a poor performance in their 57-55 loss to TCU at the Paradise Jam, with Joe Harris' game-winning three pointer falling just short as time expired. Not the best way for Tony Bennett's team to go about showing that they could be the fourth-best team in the ACC.

3. To say the least it's going to be a tough year for Boston College, but this was expected given their personnel losses combined with the need to rely on their young players. But to loss 86-64 to Holy Cross isn't the best way to go about that.

4. Gary Waters' defense was at it again as Cleveland State beat St. Bonaventure 67-64 due in large part to the 23 turnovers they forced. Trevon Harmon led three CSU starters in double figures with 20 points while D'Aundray Brown and Jeremy Montgomery scored 12 apiece.

5. Keith Dambrot's Akron team fell to Valparaiso 62-59 with Kevin Van Wijk scoring 21 points and grabbing ten rebounds on the night, with the foul line proving to be the deciding factor. Valpo attempted 38 free throws to Akron's seven.

Three Notable Performances

1. G Scott Machado (Iona)
17 points and 15 assists in Iona's 94-88 win over Western Michigan in a consolation bracket game in the Puerto Rico Tipoff

2. G Carl Jones (Saint Joseph's)
38 points (a tournament record), four rebounds, four assists and three steals in the Hawks' 78-70 loss to Seton Hall in a Charleston Classic semifinal.

3. G T.J. McConnell (Duquesne)
15 points, 11 assists and ten rebounds in the Dukes' 97-81 win over District of Columbia.

College Basketball Coaching Changes 2010

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 14:19:42 -0400

We'll track coaching changes as they occur. If there's any missing on here, or if you have contract info to add (including salaries), please mention it in the comments section.

Latest 8/20: UIC tabs Wisconsin assistant to replace Collins

BCS Conferences

Auburn
Was: Jeff Lebo
Is: Tony Barbee (UTEP)

Boston College
Was: Al Skinner
Is: Steve Donahue (Cornell)

Clemson
Was: Oliver Purnell
Is: Brad Brownell (Wright State)

Colorado
Was: Jeff Bzdelik
Is: Tad Boyle (Northern Colorado)

DePaul
Was: Jerry Wainwright
Interim: Tracy Webster
Is: Oliver Purnell

Iowa
Was: Todd Lickliter
Is: Fran McCaffery (Siena)

Iowa State
Was: Greg McDermott
Is: Fred Hoiberg (VP of Basketball Operations, Minnesota Timberwolves)

Oregon
Was: Ernie Kent
Is: Dana Altman (Creighton)

Rutgers
Was: Fred Hill Jr.
Is: Mike Rice (Robert Morris)

Seton Hall
Was: Bobby Gonzalez
Is: Kevin Willard (Iona)

St. John's
Was: Norm Roberts
Is: Steve Lavin (not coaching)

Wake Forest
Was: Dino Gaudio
Is: Jeff Bzdelik (Colorado)

High-Majors

Boise St
Was: Greg Graham
Is: Leon Rice (Gonzaga Asst)

Central Florida
Was: Kirk Speraw
Is: Donnie Jones (Marshall)

Charlotte
Was: Bobby Lutz
Is: Alan Major (Ohio State Asst)

Creighton
Was: Dana Altman
Is: Greg McDermott (Iowa State)

East Carolina
Was: Mark McCarthy
Is: Jeff Lebo (Auburn)

Fordham
Was: Dereck Whittenburg
Interim: Jared Grasso (Interim)
Is: Tom Pecora (Hofstra)

Hawaii
Was: Bob Nash
Is: Gib Arnold (USC Asst)

Hofstra
Was: Tom Pecora
Was: Tim Welsh
Is:Mo Cassara (Hofstra Asst)

Houston
Was: Tom Penders
Is: James Dickey (not coaching)

Indiana State
Was: Kevin McKenna (Oregon assistant)
Is: Greg Lansing (Indiana State assistant)

Marshall
Was: Donnie Jones
Is: Bill Herrion (Pittsburgh Asst)

Tulane
Was: Dave Dickerson
Is: Ed Conroy (Citadel)

UNCW
Was: Benny Moss
Interim: Brooks Lee
Is: Buzz Peterson (Appalachian State)

UTEP
Was: Tony Barbee
Is: Tim Floyd (not coaching)

Mid-Majors

Columbia
Was: Joe Jones
Is: Kyle Smith (Saint Mary's assistant)

Cornell
Was: Steve Donahue
Is: Bill Courtney (Virginia Tech Assistant)

Dartmouth
Was: Terry Dunn
Interim: Mark Gaupe (Interim)
Is: Paul Cormier (scout; Golden State Warriors)

Illinois-Chicago
Was: Jimmy Collins (retiring effective August 31st)
Is: Howard Moore (Wisconsin assistant)

Iona
Was: Kevin Willard
Is: Tim Cluess (CW Post)

Louisiana-Lafayette
Was: Robert Lee
Is: Bob Marlin (Sam Houston St)

Louisiana-Monroe
Was: Orlando Early
Is: Keith Richard (LSU assistant)

Penn
Was: Glen Miller
Interim: Jerome Allen
In: Jerome Allen (Interim)

Siena
Was: Fran McCaffery
Is: Mitch Buonaguro (Siena Asst)

Toledo
Was: Gene Cross
Is: Tod Kowalczyk (UWGB)

UC-Irvine
Was: Pat Douglass
Is: Russell Turner (Golden State Warriors assistant)

UWGB
Was: Tod Kowalczyk
Is: Brian Wardle (UWGB Asst)

Wright State
Was: Brad Brownell
Is: Billy Donlon (Wright State Associate head coach)

Low-Majors

Appalachian State
Was: Buzz Peterson
Is: Jason Capel (Appalachian State assistant)

Central Arkansas
Was: Rand Chappell
Is: Corlis Williamson (Arkansas Baptist)

Chicago State
Was: Benjy Taylor
Is: Tracy Dildy (UIC assistant)

Citadel
Was: Ed Conroy
Is: Chuck Driesell (Maryland assistant)

Gardner-Webb
Was: Ricky Scruggs
Is: Chris Holtmann (Ohio Asst)

Hartford
Was: Dan Leibovitz
Is: Joe Gallagher (Boston College Asst)

Holy Cross
Was: Sean Kearney
Is: Milan Brown (Mount St. Mary's)

Howard
Was: Gil Jackson
Is: Kevin Nickleberry (DePaul assistant)

Mount St. Mary's
Was: Milan Brown
Is: Robert Burke (American assistant)

Northern Colorado
Was: Tad Boyle
Is: B.J. Hill (Northern Colorado assistant)

Robert Morris
Was: Mike Rice
Is: Andrew Toole (Robert Morris assistant)

Sam Houson St
Was: Bob Marlin
Is: James Hooten (Asst)

St. Francis (NY)
Was: Brian Nash
Is: Glenn Braica (St. John's assistant)

Wagner
Was: Mike Deane
Is: Danny Hurley (St. Benedict's HS)

Midwest Region Preview & Predictions

Raphielle Johnson — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:58:56 -0400

It’s come to be expected that when a team is named the top overall seed for the NCAA Tournament they’ll receive a favorable draw in regards to the other seeds in their region. No such luck for the Big 12 Champion Kansas Jayhawks, who will begin their run at a second national title in three years against Lehigh. At least Bill Self’s team was taken care of in regards to travel; should open in Oklahoma City, and would head to St Louis should they reach the Sweet Sixteen.

But due to seeding issues the S-curve wasn’t truly followed, meaning that next in the Midwest are the Big Ten champion (Ohio St) and the Big East Tournament runner-up (Georgetown) that boasts a Top 10 RPI and one of the nation’s best schedules in regards to strength. Both teams have significant question marks going into the Tournament; the Buckeyes go no more than six players deep in their rotation, meaning that early foul trouble or an injury could be a concern. But they do feature super-star Evan Turne, named CollegeHoops.net's National Player of the Year. As for Georgetown, their concern will be having a consistent scorer to supplement the trio of Greg Monroe, Chris Wright and Austin Freeman. Jason Clark could have a lot to say about their tourney hopes, as he did in their conference tournament run.

The region also includes a pair of conference tournament champions who needed the automatic bids in order to get in, and they’ve both got the ability to wreak havoc now that they’re in the Field of 65. New Mexico St has been working towards the WAC Tournament since they regained the services of Troy Gillenwater in early February; the ability to bring a player of his caliber and size off the bench (14 ppg & 6 rpg) is something that many teams can’t match. They face perennial power Michigan St in the 5-12 game, a team that's reached the Sweet Sixteen 8 times in the last 12 years.

And San Diego St, who would have been a close shave to say the least without the Mountain West’s automatic bid, has a talented nucleus that will test Tennessee in the first round. D.J. Gay at the point can more than hold his own with Bobby Maze (if not win that individual battle) and the frontcourt is stocked with the likes of Billy White, Malcolm Thomas and freshman Kawhi Leonard just to name three contributors.

This is a very good region and don’t be surprised if there are a few “upsets” in regards to seeding. Houston, led by scoring-machine Aubrey Coleman could be a tough out for Greivis Vasquez and 4th seed Maryland. Other potential seed upsets could include the aforementioned Aztecs of SDSU and ACC finalist Georgia Tech playing against Oklahoma St. That game features multiple NBA prospects including Big 12 Player of the Year James Anderson and Tech's Gani Lawal & Derrick Favors.

Kansas will be the prohibitive favorite to get to Indianapolis (they're also CollegeHoops.net's official National Champion pick) but they certainly aren’t going to simply roll through the region.

Predictions

Midwest Region Champ: Kansas

Sweet 16: Michigan State, Georgetown and Ohio State

Best 1st Round Game: #9 Northern Iowa vs. #8 UNLV

1st Round Upset Possibility: #11 San Diego State vs. #6 Tennessee

Scary Underachiever: #10 Georgia Tech

Sweet 16 “Crasher”: Georgia Tech

Players who can shoot their team to an upset:

G Aubrey Coleman (Houston), G Armon Bassett (Ohio), G Kwadzo Ahelegbe (Northern Iowa), G Tre’Von Willis (UNLV)

All-Midwest “Team”:

G Sherron Collins (Kansas), G Greivis Vasquez (Maryland), G/F Evan Turner (Ohio State), F Wayne Chism (Tennessee), C Greg Monroe (Georgetown)

Poll: Most Likely 13 or Below Upset?

Shawn Siegel — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 02:23:01 -0400

Houston 2010 NCAA Tournament Capsule

Joel Welser — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 11:24:40 -0400

Houston Cougars

Conference USA (19-15, 7-9)

Big Wins: 2/24 Memphis (92-75), 3/11 vs Memphis (66-65), 3/13 vs UTEP (81-73)

Bad Losses: 11/27 vs San Diego (65-72), 2/27 at SMU (83-94), 3/6 at Tulane (76-79)

Last NCAA Appearance: 1992, First Round loss to Georgia Tech

Coach: Tom Penders (12-10 in 10 NCAA appearance)

Why They Can Surprise:

Houston wins games by taking care of the ball and most of that credit goes to a trio of great starting guards. Desmond Wade runs the show and dishes out about five assists per game. Wade is not much of a scorer, but he can keep the defense honest with his outside shooting. More importantly, Wade keeps this team under control while they run up and down the floor. Kelvin Lewis does not handle the ball too often, but he does create turnovers with his stellar defense. Lewis is also a superb outside shooter and can score 20 points on any given day.

Yet, it is Aubrey Coleman who is the star of this team. Averaging nearly 26 points per game, Coleman is one of the most dynamic scorers in the nation. Not only can he knock down the long ball with consistency, but he does an amazing job using his 6-4 frame to attack the basket. Coleman gets to the free-throw line nine times per game and that is a huge number for a guard. You can bet when Houston needs a big bucket, Coleman will be taking the shot.

Why They Can Disappoint:

Coleman and Lewis are forced to do their part on the glass due to lack of other options. Maurice McNeil, Kendrick Washington and Sean Coleman have all started in the frontcourt, but this is one of the worst rebounding teams in the nation. McNeil has turned into a relatively consistent interior scorer and is easily the frontcourt’s best rebounder. Yet, he has not even been starting late in the year. That has put a lot of pressure on Washington and Sean Coleman. Washington is just a freshman and his best days are yet to come. Sean Coleman is more of a shooter than a true forward and he does not even average two rebounds per game.

Who To Watch:

As long as the Cougars create turnovers and do not turn the ball over themselves, they can overcome their awful rebounding margin and win games. It has worked all season long, or at least for four games in March. That means Coach Tom Penders’ squad needs to score in bunches if they hope to pull off another upset in the NCAA Tournament and bench players Adam Brown and Zamal Nixon will have to play a big role. Brown is the shooter off the bench and can provide a nice offensive spark. Nixon is a solid backup point guard and will spell Wade, or even join him on occasion if the team feels they need yet another ball handler on the floor.

Probable Starters:

Desmond Wade, Sophomore, Guard, 5.9 ppg, 4.9 apg

Aubrey Coleman, Senior, Guard, 25.6 ppg, 2.6 apg, 7.4 rpg

Kelvin Lewis, Senior, Guard, 15.3 ppg, 1.2 apg, 4.0 rpg

Kendrick Washington, Freshman, Forward, 4.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg

Sean Coleman, Senior, Forward, 3.9 ppg, 1.8 rpg

Key Roleplayers:

Adam Brown, Junior, Guard, 7.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg

Maurice McNeil, Junior, Forward, 8.3 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.2 bpg

Zamal Nixon, Junior, Guard, 5.8 ppg, 1.8 apg

By the Numbers:

Scoring Offense: 78.7 (20^th in nation, 2^nd in conference)

Scoring Defense: 75.0 (305, 12)

Field-Goal Percentage: 41.9 (245, 10)

Field-Goal Defense: 46.1 (304, 12)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 8.2 (23, 2)

Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.3 (112, 4)

Free-Throw Percentage: 71.1 (102, 2)

Rebound Margin: -8.7 (331, 12)

Assists Per Game: 12.4 (215, 6)

Turnovers Per Game: 9.4 (2, 1)

Follow Joel Welser's Postseason Capsules & College Basketball Previews on Twitter @Joel_Welser and on his Facebook page. Joel will be back in June for his annual Top 144 Teams in 144 Days preview on CollegeHoops.net

+ NCAA Basketball Tournament

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• NIT Capsules

• NCAA Tournament Schedule

• Venue Info & Tickets

• Bracketology

College Hoops Saturday Recap: Houston and New Mexico State Steal Bids

Raphielle Johnson — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 00:48:05 -0500

It's the worry of nearly every team on the bubble this time of the year: the bid thief. The team that had little or no chance of getting into the NCAA Tournament makes a run in its conference tournament, grabbing the automatic bid and possibly snatching a chair at the table from another team in college basketball's answer to "musical chairs". Houston (Conference USA) and New Mexico State (WAC) were the two teams to do that on Saturday, and the question now is which at-large candidates will be headed to the NIT as a result of these outcomes.

Tom Penders' Cougars completed a run of four wins in four days in Tulsa with an 81-73 victory over regular season champ UTEP, who's no shoo-in when it comes to an at-large berth, and that was with the nation's leading scorer struggling from the field. Aubrey Coleman, who averages 26.0 points per game, shot 4-for-20 from the field and scored thirteen points to go along with nine rebounds. But Kelvin Lewis more than made up for it, making eleven of his fifteen field goal attempts in scoring a game-high 28 points. Now 19-15 on the season, the Cougars were nowhere near the bubble before this weekend and there was talk that this would be Penders' last go-round at UH. But that's all on the backburner for the newly-crowned champs, and with the combo of Coleman and Lewis this is a team that could shoot its way to an upset next week.

As for the New Mexico State Aggies, they took out Utah State 69-63 in Reno to win the WAC Tournament title. Jared Quayle led Utah State with 25 points but it wasn't enough to make up for two starters (Tyler Newbold and Pooh Williams) going scoreless and Tai Wesley shooting 5-for-13 from the field. Jahmar Young led New Mexico State with 19 points while Troy Gillenwater, a player who rejoined the team in early February and was thought to be a key cog in their stretch run, added 15 off the bench. Utah State, which had its' 17-game win streak snapped, should be an at-large team but there's no better feeling than to know that you're definitely in. They'll join the likes of UTEP, Illinois and Virginia Tech (among many others) in sweating out these final hours.

Three Key Happenings

1. Washington wins the Pac-10 title; what does this do to Cal? Neither team playing in the Pac-10 final was a shoo-in to go dancing without the league's automatic bid, and the team that was in worse shape going into the game ended up with the crown. Washington won 79-75 in Los Angeles, sealing the game on a pair of Venoy Overton free throws with 2.1 seconds remaining. Winners of their second consecutive conference tournament title, the Huskies can look forward to their seeding and who they could play (as well as where) next week. The wait isn't so easy for the Golden Bears, who have the misfortune of winning their first regular season title in 50 years in a year that's been historically bad for the Pac-10.

They've got the top non-conference strength of schedule ranking in America but they also lost all of their toughest games than built that ranking. Theo Robertson was out for much of the non-conference slate due to injury, but while that helps explain losses to the likes of Syracuse, Ohio State and Kansas it doesn't explain how they lost five Pac-10 games with him in the lineup. They're the one team on the bubble that could be hurt the most by the perception of their league; the Pac-10's taken an absolute beating all year long and that likely won' t change on Selection Sunday. Will they get in? This will make for an interesting case.

2. Minnesota whips Purdue and can now win the Big Ten title. Tubby Smith's Golden Gophers took one more step towards an NCAA Tournament bid by taking full advantage of a brutal offensive performance by Purdue, winning 69-42 in the Big Ten semis. Up next for Minnesota is Ohio State and depending upon who you ask they may have done enough to get into the Big Dance without a win on Sunday. But you never know, meaning that they'd be best served to win that game and earn the automatic bid. Ralph Sampson III led the Golden Gophers with 13 points and Minnesota won the rebounding battle 45-20 as Purdue shot 27.6% from the field.

What helps Minnesota in regards to their resume is four RPI Top 50 wins; the non-conference strength of schedule ranking of 61st isn't bad either. But you can never be sure, especially when you're a team that was barely on the radar as recently as two weeks ago. E'Twaun Moore shot 1-for-14 from the field for Purdue, who hasn't looked good in either of their two biggest games since losing Robbie Hummel to a torn ACL (Michigan State, Minnesota). The loss could drop them at least a full seed line (if not two) on the bracket and you have to wonder about their Final Four hopes if they can't find a third scorer to pick up the slack if Moore or Ja'Juan Johnson goes cold.

3. Kansas beats Kansas State for the third time this season. There was talk going into the Big 12 title game that Frank Martin's Wildcats could make a run at a one-seed with a win over the Jayhawks in Kansas City. No such luck as they fell to Kansas for the third time this season, this one by the final of 72-64. Marcus Morris led all scorers (and four Jayhawks in double figures) with 18 points while also grabbing eight rebounds, and the Jayhawks made up for shooting 44.2% from the field by attempting thirty-one foul shots (making 24) on the night. Denis Clemente and Jacob Puller combined to score 30 points but the other three Wildcat starters scored eleven and that was essentially the difference. Bill Self's team likely locked up the top overall seed while K-State likely finds itself on the two line (or possibly the three) depending upon what happens with Ohio State and Duke on Sunday.

Big East Title Game Recap

Top Three Games

1. West Virginia 60, Georgetown 58 (Big East final) Under ten seconds...Da'Sean Butler...you should know the rest. If not, check the Big East final recap link above.

2. Ohio State 88, Illinois 81 (2OT) (Big Ten semifinal) This one went back and forth in Indianapolis, but late-game execution cost the Illini at the both the end of regulation and the first overtime. And now they have to worry as to whether or not those issues cost them an at-large bid as well. Evan Turner finished with 31 points, 10 rebounds and six assists while Demetri McCamey led the Illini with 22 points and five assists.

3. Richmond 89, Xavier 85 (OT) (Atlantic 10 semifinal) Kevin Anderson and David Gonzalvez combined to score 63 points as the Spiders advanced to a meeting with Temple for the Atlantic 10 Tournament title.

Three Notable Performances

1. F Marqus Blakely (Vermont) 24 points, 18 rebounds, five assists and an absolutely filthy dunk in the Catamounts' 83-70 win over Boston University to win the America East Tournament title.

2. G/F Evan Turner (Ohio State) 31 points, 10 rebounds and six assists in the Buckeyes' 88-81 double-overtime win over Illinois.

3. G Kelvin Lewis (Houston) On a day in which leading scorer Aubrey Coleman struggled from the field the senior came up big, scoring 28 points on 11-for-15 shooting to lead the Cougars to an 81-73 win over UTEP to win the Conference USA Tournament title.

2010 CollegeHoops.net High-Major All-Americans

CHN — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 11:41:56 -0500

Talk about making an impact. Darington Hobson's first season of D1 basketball was certainly a memorable one. The CollegeHoops.net High-Major Player of the Year led New Mexico to an MWC title by averaging 16.2 ppg, 9.3 rpg, and 4.5 apg. He's joined on the High-Major First Team by guards Jordan Crawford, Jimmer Fredette, and Randy Culpepper, as well as WAC Player of the Year Luke Babbitt.

There are very few seniors on this year's High-Major All-America teams, meaning we should be in for a treat next year. Teams with multiple All-Americans include Gonzaga (Matt Bouldin & Elias Harris), New Mexico (Hobson & Roman Martinez), and UTEP (Culpepper & Derrick Caracter.)

CollegeHoops.net High-Major Player of the Year:

Darington Hobson, New Mexico, Jr

CollegeHoops.net First-Team High-Major All-America
G Jordan Crawford, Xavier, So
G Jimmer Fredette, BYU, Jr

G Randy Culpepper, UTEP, Jr
F Darington Hobson, New Mexico, Jr
F Luke Babbitt, Nevada, So

Second-Team High-Major All-America
G Matt Bouldin, Gonzaga, Sr
G Elliot Williams, Memphis, So
G Kevin Anderson, Richmond, Jr
F Aubrey Coleman, Houston, Sr

F Omar Samhan, Saint Mary's, Sr

Third-Team High-Major All-America
G Juan Fernandez, Temple, So
G Tre'von Willis, UNLV, Jr
G Jahmar Young, NMSU, Jr
F Derrick Caracter, UTEP, Jr
F Chris Wright, Dayton, Jr

Fourth-Team High-Major All-America
G Adrian Oliver, San Jose St, Jr
G Roman Martinez, New Mexico, Sr
F Elias Harris, Gonzaga, Fr
F Tai Wesley, Utah St, Jr

F Hassan Whiteside, Marshall, Fr

Honorable Mention

TJ Campbell, Portland
Osiris Eldridge, Illinois St
Jackson Emery, BYU
Dairese Gary, New Mexico

Paul George, Fresno St

Kyle Gibson, Louisiana Tech
David Gonzalvez, Richmond
Rodney Green, La Salle
Adam Koch, Northern Iowa

Jerome Jordan, Tulsa
Kawhi Leonard, San Diego St

Dior Lowhorn, San Francisco

Mickey McConnell, Saint Mary's

Elijah Millsap, UAB
Dinma Odiakosa, Illinois St

Jared Quayle, Utah St
Damian Saunders, Duquesne

Ben Uzoh, Tulsa

Check back tomorrow for our Mid-Major All-America Teams.

Also: National All-Americans

Poll: Who Will Win the CUSA Tournament?

Shawn Siegel — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 10:26:04 -0500

Conference USA: All-Conference Teams

Press Release — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 10:02:00 -0500

IRVING, Texas - Players from five different schools are represented on the 2010 All-Conference USA men's basketball first-team, featuring three repeat all-conference selections and two newcomers. Seniors Aubrey Coleman of Houston and Ben Uzoh of Tulsa are joined by juniors Elijah Millsap of UAB and Randy Culpepper of UTEP, along with sophomore Elliot Williams of Memphis. All five players are guards. Voting on the awards was done by the C-USA head coaches and media members in each conference city.

Coleman is a repeat first-team selection and has been the nation's leading scorer this season, averaging 26.0 points per game. The guard from Houston, Texas, scored 420 points during the conference regular season, the second-highest total in league history. Coleman, who has led UH in scoring in all but one game this season, enters this week's GMC Sierra C-USA Men's Basketball Championship with 1,400 points during his two years at UH. He was named C-USA Player of the Week five times this season.

Uzoh, a two-time second-team all-conference selection, leads Tulsa in scoring this season at 15.4 points per game, while adding 4.7 rebounds per game and 45 three-pointers made. He has moved into the top 10 in C-USA history in scoring, ranking seventh with 1,895 points. Uzoh is just the sixth player in Tulsa to history to score at least 400 points in three consecutive seasons.

Culpepper made the jump from the all-conference third team to the first team as he helped guide UTEP to its first C-USA title with a 15-1 league record. The junior from Memphis, Tenn., enters the C-USA Championship ranked third in C-USA in scoring at 18.1 points per game. Culpepper has led the Miners in scoring 14 times this season and has moved up fourth place in scoring all-time at UTEP with 1,597 points. He has topped the 30-point mark three times this year, including 45 points against East Carolina on Feb. 13, the most by any C-USA player this season and tied for second-most in league history.

Millsap burst onto the scene for UAB this season, averaging 16.0 points per game (fifth in C-USA), while leading the league in rebounding (9.3) from his guard position. He is one of only two guards to rank among the top 40 players in rebounding in Division I. Millsap, the brother of Utah Jazz star Paul Millsap, tops the conference in double-doubles with 15 (second-most in UAB history).

Williams has scored in double figures in 29 of 31 games this season and is currently averaging 18.5 points per game. He has topped the 20-point mark on 16 occasions, the fourth-highest single-season total in Tiger history. Williams also ranks in C-USA's top 10 in assists per game (3.8) and three-point field goals made (56).

The second team is comprised completely of forwards and centers. Marshall senior Tyler Wilkerson and freshman Hassan Whiteside (the only freshman all-conference selection) are joined by Southern Miss junior Gary Flowers, UTEP junior Derrick Caracter and Tulsa senior Jerome Jordan on the second unit.

SMU placed two student-athletes on the all-conference third team in junior forward Papa Dia and senior guard Derek Williams. The pair was joined by Memphis sophomore swingman Wesley Witherspoon and junior guards Brock Young of East Carolina and Aaron Johnson of UAB.

These 15 All-Conference players will be in action at this week's GMC Sierra C-USA Men's Basketball Championship, March 10-13 at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Okla.

2009-10 ALL-CONFERENCE USA FIRST TEAM
Aubrey Coleman, Houston, G, 6-4, 200, Sr., Houston, Texas
Randy Culpepper, UTEP, G, Jr., 6-0, 165, Jr., Memphis, Tenn.
Elijah Millsap, UAB, G, Jr., 6-6, 211, Grambling, La.
Ben Uzoh, Tulsa, G, 6-3, 200, Sr., San Antonio, Texas
Elliot Williams, Memphis, G, 6-5, 180, So., Memphis, Tenn.

2009-10 ALL-CONFERENCE USA SECOND TEAM
Derrick Caracter, UTEP, F, 6-9, 275, Jr., Fanwood, N.J.
Gary Flowers, Southern Miss, F, 6-8, 214, Jr., Dallas, Texas
Jerome Jordan, Tulsa, C, 7-0, 245, Sr., Kingston, Jamaica
Hassan Whiteside, Marshall, F, 6-11, 235, Fr., Gastonia, N.C.
Tyler Wilkerson, Marshall, F, 6-8, 240, Sr., Lexington, Ky.

2009-10 ALL-CONFERENCE USA THIRD TEAM
Papa Dia, SMU, F, 6-9, 235, Jr., St. Louis, Senegal
Aaron Johnson, UAB, G, 5-8, 175, Jr., Chicago, Ill.
Derek Williams, SMU, G, 6-1, 170, Sr., Jamaica, N.Y.
Wesley Witherspoon, Memphis, F/G, 6-9, 210, So., Atlanta, Ga.
Brock Young, East Carolina, G, 5-11, 175, Jr., Raleigh, N.C.

College Hoops Tuesday Recap: Mountaineers Survive Marquette

Raphielle Johnson — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:10:50 -0500

Sandwiched in between an instant classic of a league opener at Seton Hall and a showdown on New Year's Day at Purdue maybe a letdown of sorts was expected from West Virginia. Not to mention the presence of an underdog in Marquette looking to serve notice that they'll be better than the 12th-place spot predicted by the Big East's coaches and it wouldn't have been a huge shock if the Mountaineers fell. But these are the kinds of games that teams aspiring for bigger things in March (and April) find a way to win, and WVU did exactly that by the final score of 63-62 thanks to Devin Ebanks, Da'Sean Butler and some poor late-game foul shooting.

Butler knocked down a contested 20-footer (I don't know how much better that shot could have been defended without fouling) with two seconds remaining to cap a comeback from five down with less than a minute left in the game. Missed free throws from Darius Johnson-Odom and Jimmy Butler set the stage for the amazing comeback, and Butler played lights out over the final twelve minutes, scoring eight points and leaving his fingerprints on the final stages of the game. In fact West Virginia's "big three" (Butler, Ebanks and Kevin Jones) scored 54 of their 63 points, shooting 24-38 from the field while the other Mountaineers were a combined 4-17.

Lazar Hayward led all scorers with twenty-four points for the Golden Eagles, who essentially handed away a game that they had well within their grasp. But while the senior received scoring help from Johnson-Odom (14 points) Marquette didn't have much of an answer for Ebanks, who led WVU with nineteen (8-12 FG) and changed the tone of halftime with a three pointer as time expired, cutting the Golden Eagle lead down from seven to four (37-33). But as good as the win feels for the Mountaineers there's little rest to be had: two days (in addition to travel) sits between them and #4 Purdue in West Lafayette.

Three Key Happenings

1. Xavier handles LSU in Cincinnati. It may be a stretch to say that this was a "must-win" for both teams but it may have been for the Tigers, who remain without a road/neutral win this season as a result of the 89-65 defeat. Terrell Holloway led the Musketeers from the point with 20 points and Kenny Frease celebrated his first start with twelve rebounds as Xavier outrebounded LSU 53-37 in a dominant performance. The Tigers shot just 34.9% from the field (1-14 3PT) and watched Tasmin Mitchell and Bo Spencer shoot a combined 12-36 from the field. Xavier proved to be deeper as well, with Jamel McLean leading the reserves with ten points and ten rebounds. At the least LSU could have used a close loss on the road, but the Atlantic 10 contenders were in no mood to cooperate.

2. Creighton may be in serious trouble and they've only played one league game. It's not as if the Blue Jays lost to a bad team; Ben Jacobson's Northern Iowa Panthers are a very good basketball team (now 10-1, 1-0 MVC). But something's been amiss with Dana Altman's team for seemingly the entire season; they're a team with more talent than their 5-7 record may suggest. In a game matching the top two picks in the Valley's preseason media poll, Creighton managed just eighteen first-half points in their 60-52 loss to the preseason favorite. Ali Farokhmanesh and Kwadzo Ahelegbe combined to score 27 points in the win while Cavel Witter led the Blue Jays with fourteen.

Witter and Wayne Runnells were two of the three players to make more than one field goal and they both come off the bench. Antoine Young was the lone starter to do so, making four while the other starters combined for just three field goals. When Kenny Lawson Jr. and P'Allen Stinnett combine to shoot 2-for-12 you're not winning and those are two guys that Creighton needs going in order to be a factor in the MVC race. In Creighton's seven losses Stinnett, who at one point last year was a Valley Player of the Year candidate, has shot under fifty percent from the field in six of them. The Blue Jays have looked out of sync offensively for a good portion of the season thus far and if they don't get it corrected soon things can head downhill quickly in a much-improved league.

3. Guess Houston needs a refresher on how important defense is. Either that or they'd like to be an NIT team in March. The Cougars fell to Louisiana Tech 99-94 at home thanks to the Bulldogs shooting 51.4% from the field and finishing a +12 in points from the foul line. Tom Penders' team plays an entertaining brand of basketball and can score with most of the teams in America. But when you lack the ability to get a crucial stop or two at the end of games more often than not you're going to lose games like these. And given how close Houston, UTEP, Memphis, UAB and Tulsa are at the top of Conference USA that could be all the difference between having a shot at an at-large going into the conference tournament and needing to run the table.

Louisiana Tech turned the ball over twenty times but made up for that with a 48-30 edge on the board and double-doubles from Magnum Rolle (29 points, 10 rebounds) and Olu Ashaolu (17 points, 21 rebounds) to go with 28 points from Kyle Gibson. Houston ranks dead last in both field goal percentage and rebounding margin, and outside of Memphis being eighth in rebounding margin the other four teams listed above rank in the top half of Conference USA in both categories. That simply will not get it done for Houston.

Top Three Games

1. West Virginia 63, Marquette 62 See above.

2. Rhode Island 80, Drexel 79 Keith Cothran scored four points to cut a 79-74 Drexel lead down to one within 23 seconds and Lamonte Ulmer tapped in his missed jumper with 1.7 seconds remaining to give the Rams the victory. Cothran led all scorers with 28 points while Chris Fouch led the Dragons with 23.

3. Cornell 78, La Salle 75 Ryan Wittman scored a career-high 34 points and became the school's all-time leading scorer as the Big Red moved their win streak to eight. Rodney Green led the Explorers with nineteen points.

Three Notable Performances

1. F Wesley Johnson (Syracuse) Johnson scored 20 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and blocked five shots in the Orange's 80-73 win at Seton Hall.

2. C Olu Ashaolu (Louisiana Tech) and Herb Pope (Seton Hall) Both accomplished double-doubles in which they had more rebounds than points. Ashaolu went for 17 points and 21 rebounds in the Bulldogs' 99-94 win at Houston while Pope scored 15 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in the Pirates' loss to Syracuse.

3. G John Wall (Kentucky) Wall may have scored just nine points but he also set the school record for assists in a game with sixteen in the Wildcats' 104-61 win over Hartford.

Random Fact: Two career scoring records fell on Tuesday. Ryan Wittman (Cornell) and James Florence (Mercer) both took over the top spot in their school's record book.