UC-Riverside

Thursday Recap: Badgers Hold Off Indiana

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 21:28:45 -0800

The game between #17 Indiana and #25 Wisconsin proved to be every bit as competitive as expected with the largest margin either team held being seven points with two seconds remaining. In the end it was the little things that made the difference in the Badgers' 57-50 victory, as Bo Ryan's team shot 12-for-12 from the foul line in the second half and grabbed the final seven rebounds of the game. That rebound stretch was over the final 3:38 of the contest, with their offensive rebounds leading to four of their nine second-chance points. Wisconsin's offensive rebounding percentage in the second half was 33.3% after finishing the first half with a percentage of 22.2%, and that allowed them to shut the door late.

"It's our first game holding a team under 30 percent on the field, but they got a couple of really big rebounds at the end of the game at crucial times," remarked Indiana head coach Tom Crean. "We put ourselves in position to win, we just didn't finish it off."

Jordan Taylor didn't shoot particularly well, missing all five of his three-point attempts while scoring 12 points but there were other contributors to the win for Wisconsin. Ben Brust made three of his six shots from deep and scored 13 points off the bench while Mike Bruesewitz (ten points) and Ryan Evans (12 points, nine rebounds) reached double figures as well. The foul line was also critical on a night in which Wisconsin, who scores 35.4% of their points on threes, made just four or seventeen shots from distance. Wisconsin made 15 of 19 from the charity stripe, outscoring the Hoosiers by ten as Indiana made just half of their ten free throws.

"I've never tried to over-analyze free throws other than guys get their routine, they get comfortable, they get their elbow lift, they get their rotation, they get their target sights- some guys look to the front, some guys look to the back," said Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan. "And in every drill we do, you've got to be 80 percent or better. So, I think that's helped us over the years. We were close tonight."

Christian Watford and Verdell Jones III led the way for Indiana with 12 points apiece but Cody Zeller and a quiet night and Wisconsin's Jared Berggren was a big reason why. Zeller shot 2-for-7 from the field and scored seven points while grabbing just three rebounds in 19 minutes of action, and while the foul trouble was problematic having to deal with Berggren while he was on the floor didn't help matters. Berggren may not have done much offensively with just four points but he blocked five shots, helping limit the number of quality looks Indiana was able to get near the basket.

"I think he was in a help position and maybe got there a little late and tried to make sure that he didn't foul and waited until Zeller made his move, noted Ryan. "He was fairly effective with it, but Zeller's a good player- he got his offensive opportunities, he's the real deal inside and fortunately we got some fouls on him and that helped us."

With the win Wisconsin remains a game in the loss column behind the three teams atop the Big Ten, and despite their struggles earlier in league play the Badgers gave another reminder that it isn't wise to count Bo Ryan's team out of the title race.

Other Notable Happenings

1. North Carolina whips NC State in impressive fashion to move into a tie for first in the ACC.
Thursday night provided a good test for NC State in regards to how much staying power the Wolfpack could possibly have in the ACC race. Unfortunately for them North Carolina was ready to make a statement of their own, leading by as many as 29 points on their way to a 74-55 victory. Tyler Zeller (21 points, 17 rebounds) and John Henson (nine points, ten rebounds and five blocks) proved to be too much for the Wolfpack inside, and on the perimeter the Tar Heels performed well in their first game without starter Dexter Strickland.

Kendall Marshall dished out 11 assists to just three turnovers while both Harrison Barnes (15 points) and Reggie Bullock (11 points, five rebounds) reached double figures. Scott Wood led the Wolfpack with 11 points but they lost by 19 despite making nine three-pointers due to their struggles inside. NC State shot 32.4% from two as the Tar Heels outscored them 52-24 in that department, and the 46-28 rebounding discrepancy (UNC: 15 offensive rebounds) didn't help matters either. NC State is a bright future under Mark Gottfried with a talented recruiting class on the way and the current bunch is definitely capable of reaching the NCAA Tournament. But Thursday night showed that they may not be ready to think ACC title right now.

2. Robert Morris wins the guard battle and beats LIU Brooklyn to close the gap in the NEC.
LIU Brooklyn had a great opportunity to put even more distance between themselves and the pack in the Northeast Conference race, but winning at Robert Morris is a very difficult task. And in a rematch of last year's NEC Tournament title game, the Colonials went on two runs in the first half to establish a 34-26 halftime lead and led by as many as 15 in the second half of a 75-66 win. Julian Boyd and Jamal Olasewere did their part for the visitors as they combined for 43 points and Boyd grabbed 12 rebounds to go along with his 25 points. But their guards had a tough night and Robert Morris took advantage as Velton Jones scored 23 points, Coron Williams 13 and Lucky Jones ten.

Velton also dished out seven assists on the night, while LIU's perimeter trio of Jason Brickman, Michael Culpo and C.J. Garner combined to score 16 points on 5-for-24 shooting (Culpo shot 0-for-10). LIU shot 3-for-16 from three on the night and without the balance they normally enjoy offensively (24% of their points come from deep on the average) the Blackbirds were unable to beat the Colonials. RMU and surprising St. Francis (NY) are now a game back (and they play each other on Saturday) in the standings, and a race that could have been out of reach is now back on.

3. Milwaukee slows Butler to a crawl and moves to 7-3 in the Horizon League.
The matchup between the Panthers and Bulldogs was the defensive-minded slugfest that many expected going into the contest, with Butler taking a 25-24 lead into the half. But the Bulldogs went cold in the second half, shooting 5-for-25 from the field and scoring just 17 points in what would become a 53-42 loss. Milwaukee shot 48% in the second half and did a much better job of setting up good looks than they did in the first, assisting on ten of their 12 made baskets. Neither team finished with great efficiency numbers but Butler's were startling, as their offensive efficiency (67.7) and effective field goal percentage (28.9%) were season lows.

James Haarmsma (12 points) and Ryan Allen (11 points) led the way scoring-wise while Kaylon Williams made up for a rough shooting night by dishing out 11 assists and grabbing seven rebounds. Milwaukee remains a game behind Cleveland State in the loss column while Butler falls two games back, and they're also tied with Valparaiso in second place (the Crusaders lost to Green Bay). By no means is anything decided in the Horizon League, but Milwaukee took an important step with their win.

Quick Hitters

1. It's been a rough season for USC to say the least, but their injury issues reached a new low in their 74-50 loss to Colorado. Center Dwayne Dedmon was lost early in the game with a sprained knee (MRI scheduled for Friday) and late in the second half his replacement, James Blasczyk, went down with a lower leg injury. That left USC with just five healthy scholarship players, and at 0-8 in the Pac-12 things don't look good for the Trojans.

2. One player the nation needs to become more familiar with is UC Riverside guard Phil Martin. Martin nearly led the Highlanders past first-place Long Beach State with 31 points and seven rebounds but it wasn't enough as the 49ers strengthened their grip on first place with a 77-70 overtime win. All five starters for The Beach reached double figures with Casper Ware's 18 leading the way.

3. On Saturday, Arizona made just three of twenty shots from beyond the arc in a one-point loss at Colorado. Against Washington State on Thursday night the Wildcats made 15 of 26 in their 85-61 win over the Cougars, who also lost reigning Pac-12 Player of the Week Faisal Aden late in the first half with a left knee injury. Losing their most explosive scorer for an extended period time would be a terrible blow to take for the Cougars.

4. Interim head coach Wes Miller has done a good job of turning things around at UNC Greensboro, and the Spartans won their fifth straight 77-73 over Appalachian State in overtime. Derrell Armstrong scored 27 points and grabbed eight rebounds off the bench and Trevis Simpson added 24 for UNCG, who is now 5-4 in Southern Conference play (half-game behind Elon for first in the North Division).

5. Nevada was able to separate themselves from the pack in the WAC with a 68-60 win at New Mexico State, moving two games ahead of the Aggies in the standings. Deonte Burton scored 17 points and Dario Hunt added 15 and eight rebounds for the Wolf Pack, who also received some help in the form of Utah State's 77-72 win over Hawai'i.

6. Idaho State won a thriller at home, beating Northern Colorado 99-94 in double overtime. But even more important for the Bengals is that they're now a game ahead of both UNC and Eastern Washington in the standings at 4-4, and in the Big Sky only the top six teams qualify for the conference tournament. Chase Grabau led the way with 30 points on 11-for-15 shooting and Melvin Morgan added 22 and five assists for the Bengals.

7. Saint Mary's remained undefeated in WCC play with a 71-64 win at Loyola Marymount, remaining a game ahead of Gonzaga and two ahead of BYU with a trip to Provo next on the schedule (Saturday). Stephen Holt scored 19 points, Matthew Dellavedova 13 and Rob Jones 11 and 15 rebounds. But Brad Waldow's been a key contributor of late as well, scoring ten points following a 14-point, 16-rebound performance at Santa Clara.

Three Notable Performers

1. G Travis Bader (Oakland) and G Nate Wolters (South Dakota State)
Wolters posted a very good line of 21 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds, but it wasn't enough as Bader led the Golden Grizzlies to the 92-87 win with a record-setting night. Bader shot 10-for-14 from three on his way to 37 points off the bench.

2. G J.P. Primm (UNC Asheville)
30 points, five assists, five steals and four rebounds in the Bulldogs' 90-70 win over High Point.

3. G Kevin Murphy (Tennessee Tech)
34 points, six rebounds and three assists in the Golden Eagles' 82-65 win at Eastern Kentucky.

Thursday Recap: Virginia Falls Short at Duke

Raphielle Johnson — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 23:04:24 -0800

Thursday was a big night for the Virginia Cavaliers as they were looking for their first win at Duke since 1995, and a victory over the sixth-ranked Blue Devils would raise their ceiling even higher.

Despite shooting 0-for-11 from three in the second half Tony Bennett's team still had two chances to send the game into overtime, but neither fell and the Blue Devils hung on to win 61-58. On a night that Duke shot 5-for-20 from three against the ACC's best when it comes to defending the bonus shot the Blue Devils needed a group effort to move their home win streak to 44 games.

Mason Plumlee scored 12 points to lead four players in double figures, and he could have scored more if not for a 2-for-10 outing at the foul line. Duke finished the game with a field goal percentage of 52.2%, as making 73.0% of their two-point attempts made up for the poor perimeter shooting. With their outside shots not falling Duke needed to clamp down on defense, and they did just that as two Virginia starters (Jontel Evans and Sammy Zeglinski) failed to score a single point.

"I also thought it was by far the best defensive game that Andre Dawkins has ever played," said Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski of his junior guard's defensive contribution. "Everyone talks about his shooting, but he really played well defensively. And we did a good job against Zeglinski and Harris...we were able to at least limit Harris and we were fortunate we shut down Zeglinski."

The one player Duke didn't have an answer for was forward Mike Scott, who scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a losing effort. Virginia had the pace they preferred, playing a 59-possession game on the road against an opponent that averages 70 possessions/game, and they did a good job of limiting the open looks for Duke's prolific shooters.

That's definitely something the Cavaliers can build on in the days leading up to their game at Georgia Tech next Thursday. Coach Bennett and his team certainly shouldn't be in the business of claiming moral victories but if anything Virginia showed that, in addition to their own growth as a program, there's a sizeable gap between the top three and the rest of the ACC.

"Tonight, it could have been the same situation, and I thought they got a little tougher and stingier defensively," said Bennett when asked to compare this season's meeting to last year's (76-60 Duke win). "That got us back on track. Then we made some baskets. That is why we at least had some chances at the end to send it into overtime."

Other Notable Happenings

1. Wisconsin jumps out to a big lead and picks up a much-needed win at Purdue.
Slow starts had been a problem in recent games for Bo Ryan's team leading up to their game in West Lafayette, and with a 1-3 record in Big Ten play Wisconsin needed to figure out a solution. Instead of the usual methodical pace the Badgers found (and made) quick looks from beyond the arc in their swing offense to take control of the game, scoring 22 of the first 26 points before holding on in the second half to win 67-62. Five players reached double figures for the Badgers but the biggest surprise had to be senior Mike Bruesewitz, a glue guy who knocked down all four of this three-point attempts and scored 12 points.

Terone Johnson led Purdue with 16 points off the bench and Robbie Hummel added 13, but with Lewis Jackson not 100% physically and other options struggling from the field the Boilermakers didn't have enough to overcome the hole they dug for themselves early. As a team Purdue made just 35.1% of their two-point shots, a far cry from their mark for the season (49.4%), and that's a testament to Wisconsin's defense and not just Purdue's inability to make shots. In order to get back on track Wisconsin looked for scoring opportunities earlier in their sets to start the game, and that proved to be the difference.

"We gave them respect and talked about not giving them 'rhythm shots' and I think they got too many 'rhythm shots' and got their head up early," remarked Purdue head coach Matt Painter after the game.

2. Saint Mary's whips Gonzaga to go 2-0 against the other WCC contenders at home.
Saint Mary's early WCC schedule can be summed up by using the title of Jay-Z's "Blueprint 2" album. "The Gift" was getting to host both BYU and Gonzaga early in league play. The key for Randy Bennett's team is to make sure that having to play both teams on the road in the second half of the season season doesn't turn out to be "The Curse". The Gaels controlled the Bulldogs in the second half on Thursday night, pushing their lead out to as many as 24 after leading 37-32 just over a minute into the half. Saint Mary's won 83-62 despite forward Rob Jones not scoring until 1:39 remaining in the game, but he made up for the lack of scoring by grabbing 11 rebounds and racking up eight assists.

A big reason why Saint Mary's was able to pull away in spite of Jones' lack of scoring was the play of forward Brad Waldow, who posted his first career double-double with 17 points and ten rebounds. And with Gonzaga's Robert Sacre making just one of seven shots and scoring four points, the visitors from Spokane couldn't take advantage. Matthew Dellavedova, who like Seton Hall's Jordan Theodore continues to make the Cousy Award selection committee look siily for leaving him off the finalists list, scored a game-high 26 points and dished out six assists while Stephen Holt added 15 and six assists. But essentially the Gaels held serve in the three-team race for the WCC crown with the two home wins. Whether or not Saint Mary's can take this show on the road will determine whether or not they end up on top at the end of the season.

3. Drexel ends George Mason's 18-game regular season conference win streak.
After wins over Old Dominion and Georgia State, Paul Hewitt's Patriots entered Thursday's matchup with Drexel full of confidence and rightfully so as George Mason had won 18 straight regular season CAA games. But thanks in large part to a freshman who had made five of his last fifteen field goals, the Dragons snapped Mason's streak and forced a three-way tie for first place in the CAA. Damion Lee made eight of his fourteen shots and scored a game-high 21 points (16 in the second half), picking up the slack for Drexel as fellow starters Frantz Massenat (4-18 FG, 12 points) and Derrick Thomas (2-9 FG, eight points) struggled from the field.

What also helped Drexel was their effort on the defensive end, as they harassed Ryan Pearson and Vertail Vaughns into a combined 2-for-16 night from the field. What also didn't help George Mason were their turnovers, more specifically Drexel's ability to take advantage of the Patriots' miscues. George Mason turned the ball over just ten times (Drexel finished with nine turnovers), but the Dragons scored 16 points off of those turnovers compared to six for the visitors. Drexel also won the battle on the boards (41-30), grabbing 18 offensive rebounds and while they didn't cash those in at a great clip (11 second-chance points) those extra shots can make the difference when shooting just 36.2%. Lee's second half will stick out however and rightfully so, as his outburst not only tightened things up at the top of the CAA but kept Drexel in the discussion.

Quick Hitters

1. Virginia wasn't the only team to show well on the road in defeat. Colorado did the same, and their 57-50 loss at California was closer than the final margin would indicate. Tad Boyle's team leads the Pac-12 in scoring defense, and Carlon Brown has done a much better job of picking his spots over the last month. And in forward Andre Roberson, who leads the conference in rebounding and accounted for 11 points and 14 rebounds on Thursday, Colorado's got one of the nation's most underrated players.

2. Minnesota picked up their first Big Ten win of the season at Indiana of all places, beating the Hoosiers 77-74. Austin Hollins led the Golden Gophers with 18 points, and they did just enough late to hold off an Indiana team that refused to quit. Indiana's problem: they made just four of eighteen shots from three on the night, a far cry from their percentage for the season (45.9%).

3. Saturday's showdown in the Big Sky will feature teams undefeated in league play as Montana (4-0) and Weber State (5-0) took care of business against Northern Arizona and Montana State respectively. Scott Bamforth scored 20 points in Weber State's 63-49 win over Montana State while Kareem Jamar led three Montana starters in double figures with 15 points (and seven rebounds) in the Grizzlies' 78-53 win at NAU.

4. It was a struggle but Oral Roberts found a way to remain undefeated in Summit League play, moving to 7-0 with a 71-70 double overtime win at Western Illinois. Dominique Morrison played all 50 minutes and scored a game-high 27 points and Steven Roundtree added 12 off the bench for the Golden Eagles.

5. UNC Asheville came back from a 12-point halftime deficit at Campbell to beat the Camels 89-82 and move to 6-0 in the Big South. Jeremy Atkinson was the catalyst as he scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half. Matt Dickey chipped in with 19 points and ten rebounds, J.P. Primm scored 18 and sixth man Jaron Lane added 13 off the bench.

6. The comeback of the day, and possibly of the season to date, happened in New Rochelle as Manhattan stormed back from 17 down with less than eight minutes remaining to beat rival Iona 75-72. Emmy Andujar's turnaround three as time expired was the difference, but don't discount the effort of Rhamel Brown (17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks) either. Steve Masiello's surprising Jaspers are now just a game out of first place in the MAAC, and this result also makes Friday's game between Loyola (MD) and Fairfield even more important.

7. Quinnipiac picked up a much-needed win as they beat Robert Morris in Moon Township 78-76 to move to 2-3 in the NEC. With just the top eight teams qualifying for the conference tournament Tom Moore's team needed a win, and thanks to 22 points from James Johnson and 18 from Dave Johnson (no relation) the mission was accomplished.

8. Yes things got heated during overtime in Arizona's 91-83 win over Oregon State, with OSU's Joe Burton and Arizona's Kyryl Natyazhko being ejected for leaving their respective bench areas. But no punches were thrown during an interaction that featured more jawing than anything else thanks to quick-acting coaches and officials. Instead the focus should be on the fact that Craig Robinson's team dropped to 1-4 in conference play, and anything less than a split of the weekend (they visit Arizona State on Saturday) would be the end of the Beavers' title hopes despite the wide-open nature of the conference.

Three Notable Performances

1. G Phil Martin (UC Riverside)
Long Beach State has sole possession of first place in the Big West and Martin's a big reason why. Martin scored 33 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Highlanders' 79-70 overtime win over UCSB.

2. C Vander Joaquim (Hawaii)
23 points (9-11 FG), 16 rebounds and three blocked shots in the Warriors' 74-68 overtime win at Fresno State.

3. C John Fraley (Austin Peay)
25 points (10-12 FG) and 12 rebounds in the Governors' 80-65 win over Eastern Kentucky.

Who Will Win the 2011-12 Big WestTitle?

Shawn Siegel — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 08:50:19 -0800

Poll: Who Will Win the Big West?

Shawn Siegel — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 06:46:14 -0700

Big West Basketball Preview: 08-09

Shawn Siegel — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 04:25:09 -0800

Conference Rank: 19th

Conference Page

All-BIG WEST Team
Pos.	Player	Team	Yr.

G	Josh Jenkins	Northridge	Sr
G	Josh Akognon	Fullerton	Sr
G	Donovan Morris	LBSU	Sr
F	Chris Devine	UCSB	Sr
F	Tremaine Townsend	Northridge	Sr
CHN Award Winners		Returning Leaders
Mid-Major All-Americans Josh Akognon Donovan Morris		Points: Josh Akognon 20.2 Rebounds: Tremaine Townsend 9.8 Assists: Josh Jenkins 6.4

BIG WEST Standings
Nat'l	Team	League	Tourney

98	Pacific	Big West	1	NCAA
115	CS Northridge	Big West	2
138	UC Santa Barbara	Big West	3
166	CS Fullerton**	Big West	4
182	Cal Poly	Big West	5
210	Long Beach St	Big West	6
259	UC Irvine	Big West	7
281	UC Riverside	Big West	8
311	UC Davis	Big West	9

*Click on links for full Top 144 team preview

** returning conference champion

Note: A lot of changes have occurred at Pacific in the months since this preview was written. They would almost certainly not be our #1 choice as of today.

Poll: Who Do You Think Will Win the Big West?

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Rise & Fall: Big West

State of '08: California