Archive
Wednesday, January 30th, 2008
Again: Teams in the top 25 of the AP or ESPN/USA Today poll won't be counted, though I will mention them at the end.
1. Rhode Island – Atlantic 10 (17-3, 3-2), (#20, #5 MM, LW #7 MM)
Two games against A-10 bottom feeders pushed the Rams back up in the rankings, but its two games this week with a Richmond team that has some good wins and a slumping Dayton side that’s lost 3 straight will give them a big chance to step into the Atlantic 10 elite.
Last week: W v. #228 George Washington 81-70, W @ #272 St. Bonaventure 89-77
This week: W v. #155 Richmond, S v. #66 Dayton
2. South Alabama – Sun Belt (17-3, 9-0), (#22, #6 MM, LW #9 MM)
South Alabama look like they have a real chance of going undefeated, as they won’t play a really tough game until the end of next month, when they travel to Western Kentucky.
Last week: W v. #164 Louisiana Lafayette 66-60, W v. #207 Denver 71-33
This week: R @ #174 North Texas, S @ #263 Louisiana Monroe
3. Gonzaga – West Coast (16-5, 5-0), (#27, #7 MM, LW #6 MM)
The loss to Memphis wasn’t really surprising, and the Zags rebounded by just destroying a hapless Portland team. They have two road games against top-4 conference teams this week in Santa Clara and St. Mary’s
Last week: L @ #3 Memphis 73-81, W v. #287 Portland 79-41
This week: S @ #157 Santa Clara, M @ #41 St. Mary’s
4. Davidson – Southern (13-6, 11-0), (#32, #8 MM, LW #15 MM)
Another undefeated conference team is on an impressive 3 game road winning streak, but will face a tough challenge this week when they travel to the second placed SoCon team, Chattanooga. If they can survive this, they should be a good bet to go through perfectly.
Last week: W @ #336 The Citadel 87-70, W @ #224 College of Charleston 70-58
This week: W v. #188 Wofford, S @ #114 Chattanooga
5. Kent St. – Mid-American (16-4, 5-1), (#33, #9 MM, LW #16 MM)
The Flashes did a great job to beat Akron, placing them atop the MAC. Western Michigan were a good win too, while their two road games this week are against some lower level MAC opponents.
Last week: W v. #63 Akron 75-69, W v. #124 Western Michigan 67-58
This week: W @ #218 Eastern Michigan, S @ #248 Toledo
6. Saint Joseph’s – Atlantic 10 (12-5, 4-1), (#35, #10 MM, LW #19 MM)
After a relatively poor non-conference performance, the Hawks have been off to a great start in the A10, and sit just a half game back from conference leaders Xavier. They should stay at the top this week with games at GW and against Fordham, and a game against Big 5 opponent Villanova.
Last week: W v. #58 Massachusetts 81-77, W @ #127 Temple 68-67
This week: W @ #228 George Washington, S v. #175 Fordham, M v. #86 Villanova
7. Western Kentucky – Sun Belt (16-5, 8-1), (#36, #11 MM, LW NR)
The second best team in the Sun Belt have lost only at South Alabama, and had two pretty decisive wins this week. They host the #3 team in the conference, Arkansas Little Rock, this week, but with a pretty heavy home schedule for the next few weeks, they should be able to keep the pressure on USA.
Last week: W @ #163 New Orleans 73-55, W v. #232 Arkansas St. 77-68
This week: R v. #131 Arkansas Little Rock, S v. #207 Denver
8. Virginia Commonwealth – Colonial (15-5, 8-2), (#37, #12 MM, LW #10 MM)
VCU took a loss at George Mason, but that’s hardly a bad showing, given the Colonials’ performance so far this year. They should rebound in their only game this week against Towson.
Last week: W v. #275 Drexel 76-62, L @ #45 George Mason 51-63
This week: S v. #233 Towson
9. Nevada Las Vegas – Mountain West (15-4, 4-1), (#39, #13 MM, LW #18 MM)
UNLV put together a really solid win in San Diego to move to the top of the conference, and ha have two tough games against TCU and UNM this week that would solidify them as the MWC leaders.
Last week: W v. #258 Wyoming 78-71, W @ #72 San Diego St.72-69
This week: W @ #138 Texas Christian, S v. #52 New Mexico
10. Oral Roberts – Summit (14-5, 9-0), (#43, #15 MM, LW NR)
Yet another undefeated conference team, the Golden Eagles had two road wins against some bottom level competition this week, and should cruise at least until their trip to IUPUI in the middle of February.
Last week: W @ #280 Missouri Kansas City 75-47, W @ #290 Southern Utah 80-75
This week: S v. #255 Centenary, R v. #178 Oakland
11. George Mason – Colonial (15-6, 7-3), (#45, #16 MM, LW #23 MM)
12. Houston – Conference USA (15-3, 4-0), (#46, #17 MM, LW #25 MM)
13. Illinois St. – Missouri Valley (15-5, 7-2), (#47, #18 MM, LW #13 MM)
14. Boise St. – Western Athletic (15-5, 6-2), (#49, #19 MM, LW NR)
15. Brigham Young – Mountain West (15-5, 4-1), (#50, #20 MM, LW NR)
16. Duquesne – Atlantic 10 (13-5, 3-2), (#51, #21 MM, LW NR)
17. New Mexico – Mountain West (16-5, 3-3), (#52, #22 MM, LW #12 MM)
18. NC Asheville – Big South (17-4, 6-0), (#55, #23 MM, LW NR)
19. Ohio – Mid-American (14-6, 5-2), (#56, #24 MM, LW NR)
20. Stephen F. Austin – Southland (15-3, 3-2), (#57, #25 MM, LW #17 MM)
Not included because in polls:
Memphis – Conference USA (19-0, 5-0), (#3, #1 MM (LW #1 MM), #1 AP/ESPN)
Drake – Missouri Valley (18-1, 9-0), (#5, #2 MM (LW #2 MM), #16 AP, #17 ESPN)
Xavier – Atlantic 10 (17-4, 5-1), (#9, #3 MM (LW #4 MM), #15 AP/ESPN)
Butler – Horizon (19-2, 8-2), (#10, #4 MM (LW #3 MM), #12 AP/ESPN)
St. Mary’s – West Coast (17-3, 4-1), (#41, #14 MM (LW #8 MM), #21 AP, #20 ESPN)
Dropped out: Massachusetts (13-6, 2-3), Akron (14-5, 4-2), San Diego St. (15-6, 5-2), UC Santa Barbara (15-5, 4-3), Creighton (14-5, 5-4), Utah St. (15-6, 5-1)
Sunday, January 27th, 2008
Connecticut 68, Indiana 63 @ Bloomington, IN
Connecticut got a great win in travelling to a top 10 poll ranked team and edging out the Hoosiers. The Huskies’ defence had been beaten pretty solidly in the first part of the Big East schedule, but it bounced back strongly in this game, holding Indiana to just 37%. The Hoosiers did light it up from behind the arc, going 11-20, but the Huskies’ advantages getting to the line (26 times v. 8), and large rebounding advantage was enough to see them through with the win.
Player of the Game: IN SO F Stanley Robinson, 3-12 FG, 4-5 FT, 11 Rbs, 11 Pts
Top 25:
#1 Kansas 84, Nebraska 49 @ Lawrence, KS
#3 Memphis 81, #25 Gonzaga 73 @ Memphis, TN
#5 Drake 58, Northern Iowa 54 @ Des Moines, IA
Purdue 60, #6 Wisconsin 56 @ West Lafayette, IN
#8 UCLA 85, Oregon St. 62 @ Corvallis, IR
#9 Butler 73, Illinois Chicago 57 @ Indianapolis, IN
Connecticut 68, #10 Indiana 63 @ Bloomington, IN
#11 Georgetown 58, #15 West Virginia 57 @ Huntington, WV
#12 Washington St. 56, Arizona St. 55 @ Tempe, AZ
#13 Tennessee 85, Georgia 69 @ Knoxville, TN
Rutgers 77, #16 Pittsburgh 64 @ Pittsburgh, PA
#17 Stanford 82, California 77 @ Berkeley, CA
Oklahoma 77, #19 Baylor 71 @ Waco, TX
#20 Mississippi St 88, #21 Mississippi 68 @ Starkville, MS
#22 Virginia Commonwealth 76, Drexel 62 @ Richmond, VA
#23 Louisville 67, St. John's 57 @ Louisville, KY
#24 Rhode Island 89, St. Bonaventure 77 @ St. Bonaventure, NY
With 20 of the top 25 teams in action, there was a lot of potential for upsets, and we saw a few, with the largest being perhaps the most shocking being Rutgers win in Pittsburgh. Baylor will be disappointed with a home loss to Oklahoma, and Mississippi just got crushed by their in-state rivals.
In some other games, USC beat Oregon, Richmond dealt Dayton another loss, Southern Illinois moved to .500 in conference play by beating Creighton, Arizona held off Washington, Notre Dame got a good win in Philadelphia against Villanova and Brigham Young beat New Mexico.
Friday, January 25th, 2008
#14 (23): Xavier (16-4, 4-1), 2229.8
A crushing win over Dayton moved Xavier well back up into the upper half of the rankings, and this week they have a tough game against a speedy UMass team that could easily drop them right back out, as the Musketeers have shown very weak road form.
Last week: W @ #219 George Washington 74-66, W v. #39 Dayton 69-43
This week: U @ #40 Massachusetts
#13 (7): Tennessee (16-2, 3-1), 2233.3
The Vols suffered a loss at a Kentucky team that has come on strong in conference play. They should beat Alabama this week, but their game against Georgia will be an interesting one, though they should still win.
Last week: W v. #57 Ohio St. 74-69, T @ #150 Kentucky 66-72
This week: S v. #95 Georgia, T @ #146 Alabama
#12 (6): Washington St. (16-2, 4-2), 2237.7
The Cougars put together a solid win against Oregon, but got beaten pretty solidly in Arizona. They could easily pick up a second loss against Arizona St., and a game against Cal won’t be easy either.
Last week: W v. #81 Oregon 69-60, L @ #32 Arizona 64-76
This week: S @ #52 Arizona St., R v. #116 California
#11 (15): Georgetown (12-1, 5-1), 2240.5
Georgetown recovered from their loss at Pitt by beating Notre Dame handily and just edging past Syracuse. They’ll have to hit the road again this week, though, with trips to West Virginia and St. John’s.
Last week: W v. #46 Notre Dame 84-65, W v. #96 Syracuse
This week: S @ #15 West Virginia, W @ #214 St. John’s
#10 (11): Indiana (17-1, 6-0), 2242.7
Indiana sit tied atop the Big Ten, as they are off to a solid 6-0 start, though they have yet to play another winning Big Ten team. On Saturday they have a non-conference game with UConn, and then a huge trip to Wisconsin on Thursday.
Last week: W v. #156 Penn St. 81-65, W v. #178 Iowa 65-43
This week: S v. #41 Connecticut, R @ #6 Wisconsin.
#9 (9): Butler (18-2, 7-2), 2247.4
Butler pulled off two solid wins against lower-tier conference teams to hold their position, this week they’ll have a challenging trip to Valpo that could easily send them to their third conference defeat.
Last week: W @ #275 Youngstown St. 78-69, W v. #295 Loyola Chicago 63-50
This week: S v. #180 Illinois Chicago, T @ #84 Valparaiso
#8 (4): UCLA (17-2, 5-1), 2248.4
USC played a spectacular game to beat UCLA and bring them out of the top 5. They recovered by handling Oregon pretty easily. They have an interesting game with Arizona St. this week, but should win it.
Last week: L v. #45 Southern California 63-72, W @ #81 Oregon 80-75
This week: S @ #280 Oregon St., R v. #52 Arizona St.
#7 (14): Michigan St. (17-2, 5-1), 2249.2
The Spartans recovered from their Iowa loss with two decent road wins, and have two pretty weak teams coming into Lansing that should allow them to move to 7-1.
Last week: W @ #66 Minnesota 78-73, W @ #223 Northwestern 78-62
This week: U v. #283 Michigan, W v. #175 Illinois
#6 (8): Wisconsin (16-2, 6-0), 2251.4
Wisconsin is the nation’s highest ranked multi-loss team, though that was at severe risk when they held to beat Michigan by only 3 points. The game with Indiana is an obvious highlight, but they can’t afford to look past their trip to Purdue.
Last week: W v. #223 Northwestern 62-50, W v. #283 Michigan 64-61
This week: S @ #42 Purdue, R v. #10 Indiana
#5 (13): Drake (17-1, 8-0), 2256.6
The Bulldogs officially pulled into a two game lead in the Valley, beating their two closest competitors in Illinois St. and Indiana. A rematch with Creighton will be a challenge, and Northern Iowa are also a decent team that could cause some trouble.
Last week: W v. #48 Illinois St. 79-73, W @ #53 Creighton 68-60
This week: S v. #121 Northern Iowa, W v. #53 Creighton
#4 (5): Duke (16-1, 4-0), 2302.4
Duke are heavily separated from the teams beneath them, with good wins over Clemson and Virginia Tech moving them into the ACC lead. Maryland are a difficult team to classify, while NC St. have had some big wins, and both could be the first ACC team to beat Duke.
Last week: W v. #29 Clemson 93-80, W @ #105 Virginia Tech 81-64
This week: U @ #70 Maryland, R v. #114 North Carolina St.
#3 (3): Memphis (18-0, 5-0), 2317.5
Memphis stays number 3, but just can’t get enough momentum against CUSA teams to overtake the teams ahead of them, barring losses from them. They have two games that might actually be losses this week, with Gonzaga coming in and then a trip to Houston.
Last week: W v. #186 Southern Mississippi 83-47, W @ #117 Tulsa 56-41
This week: S v. #25 Gonzaga, W @ #51 Houston
#2 (1): North Carolina (19-1, 4-1), 2338.6
Maryland pulled a big upset against the Tar Heels with a 2 point win in Chapel Hill, but got revenge on a Miami team that they just ran off the court. Boston College are solid opposition, but you wouldn’t expect them to beat UNC.
Last week: L v. #70 Maryland 80-82, W @ #71 Miami FL 98-82
This week: R v. #91 Boston College
#1 (2): Kansas (19-0, 4-0), 2342.2
Kansas won against their two opponents, neither of whom were particularly strong, but their tests will be a little tougher this week with a trip to Kansas St. on the cards.
Last week: W @ #103 Missouri 76-70, W v. #118 Iowa St. 83-59
This week: S v. #104 Nebraska, W @ #31 Kansas St.
Friday, January 25th, 2008
#25 (NR): Gonzaga (15-4, 4-0), 2189.2
The Zags come back into the rankings for the first time since mid-December, but with a tough game at Memphis coming up, they may not stay there long.
Last week: W v. #205 San Diego 80-70, W v. #294 San Francisco 72-64
This week: S @ #3 Memphis. M v. #301 Portland
#24 (14): Rhode Island (16-3, 2-2), 2193.7
The win over George Washington basically held them in the same place, and they shouldn’t have too much trouble this week with two of the league’s weaker teams up.
Last week: W v. #219 George Washington 81-70
This week: S @ #261 St. Bonaventure, W v. #182 Richmond
#23 (19): Louisville (14-5, 4-2), 2194.6
The Big East is nuts, as Seton Hall had a great week that included winning their game with the Cardinals. Louisville bounced back by crushing South Florida, and should at least beat St. John’s before a tough game in Connecticut.
Last week: L @ #60 Seton Hall 82-92, W @ #171 South Florida 80-60
This week: S v. #214 St. John’s, M @ #41 Connecticut
#22 (NR): Virginia Commonwealth (14-4, 7-1), 2195.9
The Rams make their first appearance on the list after two dominating road wins in conference play. Their trip this week to George Mason will be a little more troublesome.
Last week: W @ #188 Old Dominion 78-68, W @ #266 Hofstra 82-65
This week: S v. #272 Drexel, T @ #43 George Mason
#21 (12): Mississippi (15-2, 2-2), 2197.3
They had a good win over Florida, but a bad road loss to Auburn put them at .500 in conference play. Their trip to Mississippi St. this week will be huge to prevent them from falling below .500.
Last week: W v. #18 Florida 89-87, L @ #98 Auburn 77-80
This week: S @ #20 Mississippi St., W v. #30 Vanderbilt
#20 (NR): Mississippi St. (13-5, 4-0), 2201.6
The SEC leaders, and only undefeated team in the SEC, beat two of the lower echelon teams last week, but will a tough time when they host Mississippi this week, though they should win in Arkansas.
Last week: W v. #150 Kentucky 69-64, W @ #146 Alabama 66-56
This week: S v. #21 Mississippi, W @ #78 Arkansas
#19 (NR): Baylor (16-2, 4-0), 2210.8
The Bears had been quietly putting up a good season, but are no longer quiet, considering their 5 overtime win over Texas A&M. They have a very tough game with Oklahoma coming up this week.
Last week: W @ #104 Nebraska 72-70, W @ #67 Texas A&M 116-110
This week: S v. #36 Oklahoma
#18 (18): Florida (17-3, 4-1), 2215.2
Florida handled their two games this week fairly easily, and has an interesting game coming up with Vandy.
Last week: W v. #150 Kentucky 81-70, W @ #152 South Carolina 73-71
This week: U v. #30 Vanderbilt
#17 (17): Stanford (15-3, 4-2), 2221.6
Stanford is again #17, but they held this spot by picking up a very good win against Arizona St. They start a three game road trip this week against Cal and Washington; two teams that near the bottom of the league, but still good enough to cause them a lot of trouble.
Last week: W v. #52 Arizona St. 67-52
This week: S @ #116 California, R @ #80 Washington
#16 (10): Pittsburgh (16-3, 4-2), 2223.1
A loss to Cincinnati dropped the Panthers out of the top 10, but they hope to rebound with two home games against Rutgers and Villanova.
Last week: L @ #149 Cincinnati 59-62, W @ #214 St. John’s 81-57
This week: S v. #213 Rutgers, W v. #64 Villanova
#15 (20): West Virginia (15-4, 4-2), 2211.6
The Mountaineers have moved right to the top of the Big East after a four-game winning streak, but facing Georgetown will have the potential to drop them right back down.
Last week: W @ #171 South Florida 69-52, W v. #159 Marshall 66-64
This week: S v. #11 Georgetown, W v. #149 Cincinnati
Friday, January 25th, 2008
Arizona 74, Washington St. 64 @ Tucson, AZ
The Cougars suffered their second conference loss in Tucson, as their typically strong defence was beaten, just as it was in the loss to UCLA. Arizona shot 55% from the floor and 12-21 from behind the arc, and was also excellent from the line making 87% of their foul shots. This was enough to make up for their disadvantage in turnovers and their poor offensive rebounding.
Player of the Game: AZ FR G Jerryd Bayless, 6-12 FG, 8-8 FT, 6 Asts, 23 Pts
Top 25:
#4 Duke 81, Virginia Tech 74 @ Blacksburg, VA
Arizona 76, #5 Washington St. 64 @ Tucson, AZ
#8 Butler 63, Loyola Chicago 50 @ Chicago, IL
#11 Michigan St. 78, Northwestern 62 @ Evanston, IL
#13 UCLA 80, Oregon 75 @ Eugene, OR
#20 Xavier 69, #25 Dayton 43 @ Cincinnati, OH
Duke solidified their top 4 spot with a solid road win, while Xavier crushed Dayton in another one of those see-saw A10 battles. In other games, Washington moved to .500 in Pac-10 play by beating Arizona St., and Seton Hall beat Providence to make the middle of the Big East even more confusing.
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008
Unfortunately, it's been one of those week where real life takes it's ugly tool on my basketball watching and writing. Hopefully I'll be able to return to regulary scheduled service on Friday.
Again: Teams in the top 25 of the AP or ESPN/USA Today poll won't be counted, though I will mention them at the end.
1. Gonzaga – West Coast (15-4, 4-0), (#22, #6 MM, LW #7 MM)
They won pretty easily last week, but their game at Memphis is a huge diagnostic to where this team sits.
Last week: W v. #208 San Diego 80-70, W v. #299 San Francisco 72-64
This week: S @ #3 Memphis, M v. #300 Portland
2. Rhode Island – Atlantic 10 (15-3, 1-2), (#25, #7 MM, LW #5 MM)
A disappointing loss against St. Louis sees them drop back here, but they should rebound with two games against some of the weaker sisters in the conference.
Last week: L v. #180 St. Louis 61-68
This week: W v. #219 George Washington, S @ #255 St. Bonaventure
3. South Alabama – Sun Belt (15-3, 7-0), (#29, #9 MM, LW #11 MM)
USA pulled off a really solid win at Arkansas-Little Rock to move into the top 3, and with two home games against fairly decent conference teams, they should be able to hold on, if not move up.
Last week: W v. #279 Florida International 85-73, W @ #145 Arkansas Little Rock 72-65
This week: R v. #198 Louisiana Lafayette, U v. #184 Denver
4. Virginia Commonwealth – Colonial (13-4, 6-1), (#31, #10 MM, LW #17 MM)
The Rams moved up solidly by getting a decisive road win over a decent ODU team, but they’ll have their toughest conference test this week with a trip to George Mason.
Last week: W v. #169 Delaware 60-39, W @ #175 Old Dominion 78-68
This week: W @ #252 Hofstra, S v. #261 Drexel, T @ #55 George Mason
5. Massachusetts – Atlantic 10 (13-4, 2-1), (#32, #11 MM, LW #25 MM)
As the merry-go-round of the A10 schedule continued, UMass moved up with a great win at Dayton, but could go straight back down with games at St. Joe’s and against Xavier.
Last week: W @ #21 Dayton 82-71, W v. #95 Charlotte 86-79
This week: W @ #46 Saint Joseph’s, U v. #18 Xavier
6. New Mexico – Mountain West (13-3, 5-0), (#33, #12 MM, LW #16 MM)
The Lobos bounce back from two conference losses with two wins at home against decent opposition, and will get a chance to solidify their position with a game at BYU this week.
Last week: W v. #141 Air Force 59-44, W v. #120 Utah 77-67
This week: S @ #72 Brigham Young
7. Illinois St. – Missouri Valley (14-4, 6-1), (#34, #13 MM, LW #9 MM)
A loss to Drake was enough to give them a modest drop, but they’ve done enough to stay pretty high in the rankings. They should be able to beat Bradley, while Indiana St. should prove an interesting test.
Last week: W v. #195 Wichita St. 72-51, L @ #6 Drake 73-79
This week: W @ #193 Bradley, U v. #158 Indiana St.
8. Akron – Mid-American (14-3, 4-0), (#37, #14 MM, LW #18 MM)
Beating Ohio was a fairly solid scalp, but their perfect record could easily come to an end at Kent St. tonight.
Last week: W v. #76 Ohio 55-54, W v. #216 Bowling Green 80-44
This week: W @ #42 Kent St., S @ #235 Central Michigan
9. Davidson – Southern (11-6, 9-0), (#41, #15 MM, LW NR)
After their horrible 3-6 non-conference record, which did include mostly pretty good losses, the Wildcats have pulled it together in conference play. Three wins last week, including two road wins, were enough to pull them into these rankings. A fairly tough trip to Charleston awaits this week, but they should win easily
Last week: W @ #318 Furman 73-51, W v. #129 Chattanooga 85-58, W @ #294 Western Carolina 82-67
This week: R @ #334 The Citadel, S @ #167 College of Charleston
10. Kent St. – Mid-American (14-4, 3-1), (#42, #16 MM, LW #10 MM)
The other side of tonight’s big MAC battle wrap up the rankings. They suffered a decisive loss at Ohio, but have a chance to redeem themselves with Akron in town. Don’t overlook a good starting Western Michigan team on Sunday, though.
Last week: W @ #189 Miami OH 74-62, L @ #76 Ohio 59-71
This week: W v. #37 Akron, U v. #126 Western Michigan
11. Stephen F. Austin – Southland (14-2, 2-1), (#44, #17 MM, LW #22 MM)
12. Nevada Las Vegas – Mountain West (13-4, 2-1), (#45, #18 MM, LW #14 MM)
13. Saint Joseph’s – Atlantic 10 (10-5, 2-1), (#46, #19 MM, LW #19 MM)
14. San Diego St. – Mountain West (14-4, 4-0), (#48, #20 MM, LW NR)
15. UC Santa Barbara – Big West (14-4, 3-2), (#50, #21 MM, LW #24 MM)
16. Creighton – Missouri Valley (14-4, 5-3), (#51, #22 MM, LW #12 MM)
17. George Mason – Colonial (13-5, 5-2), (#55, #23 MM, LW NR)
18. Utah St. – WAC (14-5, 4-0), (#57, #24 MM, LW NR)
19. Houston – Conference USA (13-3, 2-0), (#58, #25 MM, LW NR)
Not included because in polls:
Memphis – Conference USA (17-0, 4-0), (#3, #1 MM (LW #1 MM), #2 AP/ESPN)
Drake – Missouri Valley (17-1, 8-0), (#6, #2 MM (LW #6 MM), #22 AP, #23 ESPN)
Butler – Horizon (17-2, 6-2), (#8, #3 MM (LW #2 MM), #15 AP, #14 ESPN)
Xavier – Atlantic 10 (15-4, 3-1), (#18, #4 MM (LW #3 MM), #23 AP, #22 ESPN)
Dayton – Atlantic 10 (14-2, 2-1), (#21, #5 MM (LW #4 MM), #16 AP, #19 ESPN)
St. Mary’s – West Coast (15-2, 2-0), (#26, #8 MM (LW #8 MM), #24 ESPN)
Dropped out: Duquesne (11-5, 1-2), Cal St. Northridge (13-4, 5-0), IUPUI (13-5, 5-2), UAB (12-6, 2-1), Niagara (11-6, 5-3)
Friday, January 18th, 2008
#14 (7): Michigan St. (15-2, 3-1), 2213.6
The shocking loss to Iowa took them down significantly, though they did recover with a win against Ohio St. The Spartans haven’t had their road form tested much, so two road games this week could potentially cause them some trouble.
Last week: L @ #197 Iowa 36-43, W v. #48 Ohio St. 66-60
This week: U @ #49 Minnesota, R @ #209 Northwestern
#13 (20): Drake (15-1, 6-0), 2218.8
Drake racked up two more wins in their dream start to the MVC season. Anyone who predicted the battle between the top two Valley teams would be Drake-Illinois St. would have been laughed at before the season, but that’s what it’s shaping up to be. A game with Creighton later in the week is a further chance for Drake to slip up.
Last week: W v. #112 Missouri St. 65-54, W @ #201 Bradley 69-68
This week: S v. #25 Illinois St., T @ #41 Creighton
#12 (17): Mississippi (15-1, 2-1), 2219.0
A close win against Florida, and another over LSU were good signs of a rebound from the Rebels, and their good road performance at Tennessee bodes well for trips to Auburn and Starkville coming up in the next couple of weeks.
Last week: W v. #242 Louisiana St. 74-71, W v. #18 Florida 89-87
This week: S @ #117 Auburn
#11 (25): Indiana (15-1, 4-0), 2222.0
Indiana set themselves up to the top of the Big Ten with two close wins over Illinois and Minnesota, and should move to 6-0 as they have two fairly easy home games this week.
Last week: W v. #161 Illinois 62-58, W @ #49 Minnesota 65-60
This week: U v. #105 Penn St., W v. #197 Iowa
#10 (NR): Pittsburgh (12-1, 3-1), 2224.3
Pitt made a big splash to get back into the top 25 by beating Georgetown at home. They have two road games coming up against Cincy and St. John’s both of which should be wins.
Last week: W v. #103 Seton Hall 84-70, W v. #15 Georgetown 69-60
This week: S @ #159 Cincinnati, W @ #195 St. John’s
#9 (6): Butler (16-2, 5-2), 2235.2
The Bulldogs lost their second road conference game, but it was a close game against the conference leader, Cleveland St. Their road trip this week to Youngstown St. is nowhere near as daunting, and they shouldn’t have any trouble the rest of the month.
Last week: W v. #141 Wisconsin Milwaukee 72-56, L @ #77 Cleveland St. 52-56
This week: S @ #264 Youngstown St., R v. #291 Loyola Chicago
#8 (13): Wisconsin (14-2, 4-0), 2243.6
A great win at Penn St. solidified the Badgers spot atop the conference, and they should cruise to a 6-0 record with two easy home wins.
Last week: W v. #161 Illinois 70-60, W @ #105 Penn St. 80-55
This week: S v. #209 Northwestern, T v. #265 Michigan
#7 (16): Tennessee (15-1, 3-0), 2254.8
The Vols cruised through games in South Carolina and at home to Vanderbilt, and look very much like the class of the SEC. They have a non-conference game against Ohio St. and a road game at Kentucky, both of which they should be favoured for.
Last week: W @ #140 South Carolina 80-56, R v. #32 Vanderbilt 80-60
This week: S v. #48 Ohio St., T @ #168 Kentucky
#6 (3): Washington St. (15-1, 3-1), 2255.4
They lost to UCLA fairly decisively, but recovered by taking out a hapless Oregon St. They do have a couple of really testy games this week with Oregon and Arizona coming up, which will be a major test.
Last week: L @ #4 UCLA 74-81, W v. #254 Oregon St. 69-46
This week: U v. #52 Oregon, R @ #63 Arizona
#5 (10): Duke (14-1, 2-0), 2264.4
The Blue Devils made a dynamite start to ACC play, obliterating both Virginia and Florida St. Clemson will be a sterner test, but at Cameron Indoor Duke should be heavily favoured.
Last week: W v. #104 Virginia 87-65, W @ #78 Florida St. 70-57
This week: S v. #22 Clemson, R @ #60 Virginia Tech
#4 (5): UCLA (16-1, 4-0), 2267.8
Two solid wins over the two Washington teams moved the Bruins into the top 4, and they’ll have a couple of tough games to stay there with a cross-town game against USC and a game in Oregon.
Last week: W v. #109 Washington 69-55, W v. #6 Washington St. 81-74
This week: S v. #83 Southern California, R @ #52 Oregon
#3 (4): Memphis (16-0, 3-0), 2290.8
The three undefeated teams are a mile clear of their nearest pursuers, with Memphis bringing up the bottom. Their two conference games weren’t close at all, and I wouldn’t expect another close game until they face Gonzaga.
Last week: W @ #169 Marshall 68-45, W @ #312 Rice 77-50
This week: S v. #181 Southern Mississippi, W @ #101 Tulsa
#2 (2): Kansas (17-0, 2-0), 2319.9
Kansas look like the only team with a reasonable chance of catching North Carolina, barring a big Tar Heels loss, as they crushed two solid opponents in Nebraska and Oklahoma. Their next tough game will likely be at Kansas St. at the end of the month.
Last week: W @ #85 Nebraska 79-58, W v. #40 Oklahoma 85-55
This week: S @ #75 Missouri, W v. #116 Iowa St.
#1 (1): North Carolina (18-0, 3-0), 2345.6
North Carolina showed some chinks in their armour in barely beating a fairly weak Georgia Tech team, but should continue their perfect record against Maryland and Miami this week, though a Hurricane win wouldn’t be shocking.
Last week: W v. #100 North Carolina St. 93-62, W @ #156 Georgia Tech 83-82
This week: S v. #86 Maryland, W @ #39 Miami FL
Friday, January 18th, 2008
Top 25 - 25-15
#25 (NR): Illinois St. (14-3, 6-0), 2184.1
The joint leaders of the Missouri Valley make their appearance on the list after two decisive home wins, but with tough trips to Drake and Bradley coming up, they’ll be hard pressed to stay in the top 25.
Last week: W v. #280 Evansville 74-66, W v. #174 Wichita St. 72-51
This week: S @ #13 Drake, W @ #201 Bradley
#24 (14): Rhode Island (15-3, 1-2), 2187.1
A good win at Duquesne moved them up, but a surprising loss at St. Louis almost sent them all the out of the top 25. They are near the bottom of the A10 standings, but sould be able to rise up with two fairly easy games coming up.
Last week: W v. #42 Duquesne 80-78, L @ #162 St. Louis 61-68
This week: W v. #208 George Washington, S @ #263 St. Bonaventure
#23 (8): Xavier (14-4, 2-1), 2187.4
A shocking lost to temple sent the Musketeeers plummeting through the rankings, and they’ll have to get a good win against Dayton this week to move back upwards.
Last week: W v. #182 Fordham 68-50, L @ #126 Temple 59-78
This week: S @ #208 George Washington, R v. #21 Dayton
#22 (NR): Clemson (14-3, 2-1), 2187.7
After dropping two games last week, Clemson come back on with two wins this week, though both were home games. They still need a marquee win, and are hoping that the game at Duke will be it.
Last week: W v. #78 Florida St. 97-85, W v. #100 North Carolina St. 70-54
This week: S @ #5 Duke, T v. #96 Wake Forest
#21 (12): Dayton (14-2, 2-1), 2190.0
A third A10 team dropping after a loss, the Flyers got run off their home floor by UMass. They’ll have to pull things together for a trip to Xavier in their only game this week.
Last week: W @ #162 St. Louis 68-57, L v. #36 Massachusetts 71-82
This week: R @ #23 Xavier
#20 (NR): West Virginia (13-4, 3-2), 2191.7
As the revolving door that is the Big East continued to shift wildly, West Virginia picked up a big win over Syracuse to move into the top 25 again. They should win their two games this week fairly handily, but you never know.
Last week: W v. #62 Syracuse 81-61, W v. #195 St. John’s 73-64
This week: U @ #123 South Florida, W v. #169 Marshall
#19 (NR): Louisville (13-4, 3-1), 2193.6
Two easy double-digit wins put Louisville back on track after a rough start to Big East play. They have two road games this week, but neither is particularly strong.
Last week: W @ #247 Rutgers 64-49, W v. #33 Marquette 71-51
This week: S @ #103 Seton Hall, W @ #123 South Florida
#18 (23): Florida (15-3, 2-1), 2194.4
A good win over Auburn is enough to get them to move up, as a close road win against a good Mississippi team is not something that really hurts them. They should get a couple more wins this week, as they continue a solid start to SEC play.
Last week: W v. #117 Auburn 72-56, L @ #12 Mississippi 87-89
This week: S v. #168 Kentucky, W @ #140 South Carolina
#17 (15): Stanford (14-3, 3-2), 2199.1
Stanford is the highest ranked 3-loss team, having suffered that third loss at Oregon, but bounced back with a win against Arizona. A game against Arizona St. this week should be a lot of fun.
Last week: L @ #52 Oregon 66-71, W v. #63 Arizona 56-52
This week: S v. #16 Arizona St.
#16 (NR): Arizona St. (14-2, 4-0), 2207.7
The Sun Devils make their first appearance on the top 25 after a spectacular 4-0 start to conference play that has them tied with UCLA. Wins over Cal and Arizona this week really moved them up, but games at Stanford and against Washington this week will be further good tests.
Last week: W v. #63 Arizona 64-59, W @ #92 California 99-90
This week: S @ #17 Stanford, R v. #109 Washington
#15 (11): Georgetown (13-2, 3-1), 2211.6
A loss at Pitt moved them down after their win over Connecticut, but coming out of a four game road trip in-conference at 3-1 is a very solid showing. They should recover in two games at home this week, but a slip up is still very much possible.
Last week: W @ #70 Connecticut 72-69, L @ #10 Pittsburgh 60-69
This week: S v. #29 Notre Dame, M v. #62 Syracuse
Friday, January 18th, 2008
Louisville 71, Marquette 51 @ Louisville, KY
Louisville weren’t particularly strong on the offensive end, but Marquette was just toxic on their offense, shooting only 30% from the field and going 0-12 from behind the arc. The only reason they even cracked 40 was that they got to the line very well and made their shots. The Golden Eagles have shown pretty poor form on the road in conference, while Louisville have had a really solid run of four straight wins.
Player of the Game: LOUV F David Padgett, 8-9, 10 Rbs, 2 Asts, 17 Pts
Top 25:
Cleveland St. 56, #6 Butler 52 @ Cleveland, OH
#7 Wasshington St. 69, Oregon St. 46 @ Pullman, WA
#9 Tennessee 80, #18 Vanderbilt 60 @ Knoxville, TN
St. Louis 68, #13 Rhode Island 61 @ St. Louis, MO
Louisville 71, #16 Marquette 51 @ Lousiville, KY
#17 Indiana 65, Minnesota 60 @ Minneapolis, MN
#22 Stanford 56, Arizona 52 @ Stanford, CA
#24 West Virginia 73, St. John's 64 @ Morgantown, WV
Cleveland St. maintained their perfect conference record by beating Butler in a close game. Rhode Island dropped to 1-2 in conference by falling in St. Louis, while Vandy are looking more and more like a flash in the pan after getting soundly beaten by Tennessee.
In other games, Arizona St. beat Cal, Providence won in Connecticut, Oregon fell to Washington, Akron beat Ohio to stay perfect in the MAC, Oral Roberts beat IUPUI to move into solo lead in the Summit and Utah St. beat Boise St. to sit atop the WAC.
Wednesday, January 16th, 2008
Again: Teams in the top 25 of the AP or ESPN/USA Today poll won't be counted, though I will mention them at the end.
1. Drake – Missouri Valley (14-1, 5-0), (#17, #6 MM, LW #7 MM)
The Bulldogs continued their great run with two pretty comfortable wins at home, but face games at traditional powerhouses Creighton and Bradley, as well as a game against undefeated Illinois St.
Last week: W v. #141 Indiana St. 75-50, W v. #112 Missouri St. 65-54
This week: W @ #186 Bradley, S v. #31 Illinois St., T @ #42 Creighton
2. Gonzaga – West Coast (13-4, 2-0), (#28, #7 MM, LW #15 MM)
Opening conference play with two road demolitions of opponents is a good way to push your rankning up. They should cruise through two home games as their showdown at Memphis looms.
Last week: W @ #330 Loyola Marymount 91-68, W @ #249 Pepperdine 92-57
This week: S v. #224 San Diego, M v. #314 San Francisco
3. St. Mary’s – West Coast (14-2, 1-0), (#30, #8 MM, LW #9 MM)
They easily handelled their only opposition this week, and should really cruise for at least 5 more games until their matchup with Gonzaga.
Last week: W v. #181 Santa Clara 76-45
This week: S v. #249 Pepperdine, M v. #330 Loyola Marymount
4. Illinois St. – Missouri Valley (13-3, 5-0), (#31, #9 MM, LW #8 MM)
Two solid home wins move the Redbirds into a tie with Drake atop the conference, and their game at Drake on Saturday will be the game of the year so far in the Valley.
Last week: W v. #151 Northern Iowa 51-46, W v. #282 Evansville 74-66
This week: W v. #158 Wichita St., S @ #17 Drake
5. Kent St. – Mid-American (13-3, 2-0), (#38, #10 MM, LW #14 MM)
Losses in front of them and two easy wins over fairly weak competition saw the Golden Flashes take a big leap up. Two really tough road games against Miami and Ohio, followed by a home game against Akron, will severly test them, though. If they can come through 5-0, running the table will not be out of the question.
Last week: W v. #306 Texas A&M Corpus Christi 61-50, W v. #221 Bowling Green 63-49
This week: R @ #175 Miami OH, S @ #89 Ohio
6. South Alabama – Sun Belt (13-3, 5-0), (#41, #11 MM, LW #17 MM)
A good win at New Orleans kept the Jaguars atop the conference, but their trip to Little Rock this week is a pretty stiff challenge.
Last week: W @ #157 New Orleans 97-88
This week: W v. #266 Florida International, S @ #128 Arkansas Little Rock
7. Creighton – Missouri Valley (13-3, 4-2), (#42, #12 MM, LW NR)
They’ve officially recovered from their poor start, racking up a pair of solid road wins, but the test will come this week when they host two of their fellow teams in the top half of the conference. A couple of wins will put the Jays right back at the top.
Last week: W v. #282 Evansville 77-59, W @ #158 Wichita St. 68-65, W @ #151 Northern Iowa 68-59
This week: S v. #141 Indiana St., T v. #17 Drake
8. Duquesne – Atlantic 10 (11-4, 1-1), (#43, #13 MM, LW #10 MM)
A near win at Rhode Island doesn’t drop them too far in rating, and their ranking drop is mostly due to a congested mid-major race. They should right the ship at Fordham this week.
Last week: W v. #204 Fordham 74-62, L @ #13 Rhode Island 78-80
This week: S @ #204 Fordham
9. Nevada Las Vegas – Mountain West (13-4, 2-1), (#45, #14 MM, LW #13 MM)
A loss at Air Force moved them down, but destroying BYU gained them a good portion of that back. They have no games this week, so they could easily slide back down from this ranking.
Last week: L @ #149 Air Force 53-65, W v. #86 Brigham Young 70-41
This week: None
10. Cal St. Northridge – Big West (12-3, 4-0), (#46, #15 MM, LW NR)
The Matadors lead the Big West as the only undefeated team, having racked up a solid win against Pacific. They have a good looking record, but it’s pretty thin, with no good wins at all. They won’t add to that this week, playing two very weak teams on the road.
Last week: W v. #291 UC Davis 82-47, W v. #107 Pacific 78-61
This week: W @ #230 UC Riverside, T @ #285 Chicago St.
11. New Mexico – Mountain West (14-4, 1-2), (#47, #16 MM, LW #5 MM)
12. Virginia Commonwealth – Colonial (11-4, 4-1), (#48, #17 MM, LW #19 MM)
13. Akron– Mid-American (12-3, 2-0), (#50, #18 MM, LW #22 MM)
14. Saint Joseph’s – Atlantic 10 (9-4, 2-0), (#51, #19 MM, LW NR)
15. IUPUI – Summit (13-3, 5-0), (#52, #20 MM, LW NR)
16. UAB – Conference USA (11-5, 1-0), (#54, #21 MM, LW #25 MM)
17. Stephen F. Austin – Southland (13-2, 1-1), (#55, #22 MM, LW #16 MM)
18. Niagara – MAAC (11-4, 5-1), (#56, #23 MM, LW #12 MM)
19. UC Santa Barbara – Big West (13-4, 2-2), (#57, #24 MM, LW #24 MM)
20. Massachusetts – Atlantic 10 (11-4, 0-1), (#60, #25 MM, LW #11 MM)
Not included because in polls:
Memphis – Conference USA (15-0, 2-0), (#3, #1 MM (LW #1 MM), #2 AP/ESPN)
Butler – Horizon (16-1, 5-1), (#5, #2 MM (LW #2 MM), #12 AP/ESPN)
Xavier – Atlantic 10 (14-3, 2-0), (#9, #3 MM (LW #4 MM), #20 AP/ESPN)
Dayton – Atlantic 10 (14-1, 2-0), (#11, #4 MM (LW #6 MM), #14 AP, #18 ESPN)
Rhode Island – Atlantic 10 (15-2, 1-1), (#13, #5 MM (LW #3 MM), #23 AP, #21 ESPN)
Dropped out: Boise St. (12-4, 3-1), Houston (11-3), San Diego St. (12-4, 2-0), Robert Morris (12-6, 3-2)
Wednesday, January 16th, 2008
Wisconsin 80, Penn St. 55 @ State College, PA
The Nittany Lions got off to a great start in Big 10 play, starting with two road wins, but Wisconsin really put them in their place by demolishing them at home. The Badgers shot 10-18 from behind the arc, and 60% overall, while holding Penn St. under 40%. This level of offensive futility at home is pretty absurd, and bodes quite badly for Penn St. as their season continues.
Player of the Game: WISC SR G Michael Flowers, 9-12, 5-6 3P, 6 Rbs, 5 Asts, 23 Pts
Game of the Night:
Michigan St. led the whole way in this one, but it ended up a closely contested battle despite the Spartans surging out to a 20 point lead in the first half. They struggled with their inside shooting 38%, and were poor at the line (9-17), but their offensive rebounding was as good as usual, and was really key to them getting the advantage on the Buckeyes. Ohio St.’s shooting was a little better, but they struggled from behind the arc (27%), and were unable to be good enough to make up for Michigan St.’s rebounding advantage.
Goran Suton had a decent, but unspectacular game for Michigan St. He shot only 3-9, but made some of that up by getting 9 rebounds and three assists. Kosta Koufos had one of his worst games on the other end, shooting only 2-7, and while he did get 3 blocks, only four rebounds is a bit of an embarrassment for a 7-0 player, especially when things are going so poor offensively.
Drew Naymick ended up being the key guy inside for the Spartans, going 5-6 with 4 rebounds and 2 blocks.
Top 25:
#16 Wisconsin 80, Penn St. 55 @ Madison, WI
#19 Michigan St. 66, Ohio St. 60 @ Lansing, MI
Other games saw Miami get beaten by Boston College, Maryland beat Wake, Missouri St. send Indiana St. on a two-game losing streak, and a couple of big Mountain West games, as UNLV destroyed BYU and TCU beat New Mexico.
Tuesday, January 15th, 2008
Tonight’s game of the day is a battle of one-loss Big Ten teams as #42 Ohio St. travel to face #19 Michigan St. Ohio St. are 12-4, but had an eight game winning streak snapped with a road loss to Purdue on Saturday. Michigan St. are 14-2, but also come in off a loss, as their offense was absolutely anemic in losing to Iowa 43-36.
The Spartans are a solid offensive team, despite their hiccup against the Hawkeyes. They are excellent offensive rebounders, and play primarily inside (341st 3PA/FGA), which is their strength in shooting (44th) and allows them to get to the line (84th), though neither of these worked out in their loss. Ohio St. are powered by a top-quality defence that prevents opponents from getting to the line (2nd) and shuts them down from outside (10th d3FG %), as well playing well inside (35th). They are used to playing inside heavy teams, so I don’t think they’ll hesitate at the Spartans’ challenge. The Buckeyes’ offense is merely average, and they don’t have any real strengths, though they are decent shooters from inside (72nd), but struggle getting to the line (283rd). This isn’t a great matchup for them as Michigan St. are excellent interior defenders (21st), and don’t allow many free throws (63rd).
Having talked twice about Michigan St. already, tonight I’ll talk about junior centre Goran Suton. Suton has not really improved as much as Tom Izzo must have hoped, though he has looked better since conference play began. He’s about a 53% shooter, and has significantly improved his free throws, where he’s up to 71%, but he is still not getting there often enough. He is a very solid offensive rebounder, and his ability to pull down misses is critical for the Spartan’s chances. He also averages over a steal and a block per game, and has stepped up his defensive performance. A little more consistency would be nice to see, though. Freshman forward Kosta Koufos should match up well with Suton, as he has been a real force for the Buckeyes in his first year, though how well he’ll manage to play against top quality opposition is yet to be seen. He’s a 50% shooter, and an excellent rebounder, getting 7 a game. At 7-0, he is also capable of altering his opponent’s attack, something he does with nearly two blocks a game.
I think Ohio St. are too young to be able to handle Michigan St. in Lansing. The return game in the season finale might be a closer affair.
Tuesday, January 15th, 2008
Gonzaga 92, Pepperdine 57 @ Malibu, CA
Ok, so this was expected to be an easy win for Gonzaga, but a 35 points road win is always going to be one of the most significant results of the day. Gonzaga just dominated every facet of the game, and utterly embarrassed the Waves off the court. Gonzaga shot 59% from the field, and pulled down almost half of their misses, but their real domination was defensive, as they not only held Pepperdine to 37%, but allowed them to get to the line only 4 times all game, and dominated the defensive glass. Gonzaga have finally moved back ahead of St. Mary’s in the rankings thanks to this win.
Player of the Game: GONZ FR F Austin Daye, 7-8 FG, 6 Rbs, 4 Asts, 2 Blks, 19 Pts
Top 25:
#2 Kansas 85, Oklahoma 55 @ Lawrence, KS
#18 Pittsburgh 69, #10 Georgetown 60 @ Pittsburgh, PA
Kansas’ obliteration of Oklahoma was not that significant in these ratings, because Kansas were already so far ahead. It finally looks like someone may actually be able to pass UNC sometime soon, if the Jayhawks stay on a roll. Pitt looked really solid in defending their home court, and with 5 teams tied at 3-1, and another two at 2-1, the Big East is looking extremely hairy.
Alright, this isn’t really directly about college basketball, I want to talk about the big NCAA decision that came down today, even though American readers probably won’t have heard about it at all. The NCAA voted 97% (if anyone knows where I can find the names of the 9 schools that voted against, I’d love to see it) in favour of allowing Canadian schools to apply for membership in the NCAA, a decision that will not register on American radar while completely changing the nature of Canadian university sport. Canadian teams playing in American college sports are not a new endeavour. One of the likely applicants, UBC play 7 varsity sports in the American National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and Simon Fraser in BC were well known for playing four-down football in NAIA up until just a few years ago, when they joined the CIS and switched to three-down football.
UBC have a number of rationales for doing this. NCAA scholarship rules are much less restrictive than CIS rules, allowing much more money to go to student-athletes. UBC is a rich university that already has a significant amount of scholarship money that could be redistributed towards athletes under NCAA membership. This move isn’t surprising, as the larger Western schools, including UBC and Alberta, have often favoured more money to scholarships, something typically opposed by the larger Central Canadian schools, like U of T.
UBC and other schools would be permitted 1 men’s and women’s Division 1 sport each, and I’m not really sure what approach they’ll take. While hockey seems the obvious choice (especially at the women’s level), there is a serious problem with men’s hockey being the program. Since CIS rules allow former CHL players to play university hockey, but NCAA rules do not (it’s considered being paid to play), almost the entire UBC men’s roster would be ineligible next year, which hardly seems fair to those guys who need the scholarships they currently have to get through school. I’m personally interested if they’d look at making the sport in D1 basketball, though I think that it’s probably unlikely. I assume this move will also entail the switch to four-down football, which would be very disappointing. However UBC are not a national power in hockey, football or men’s basketball, so they would not be sacrificing any really great tradition.
This is potentially a very interesting situation to watch. If UBC, Simon Fraser and UAlberta, the three schools most talked about, were to join Division II, they would instantly become three of the division’s five largest schools, and could substantially change the sporting environment in these divisions. The conferences being talked about are the Great Northwest, which has two schools from Alaska, a and a couple of directional Washington schools as its largest right now, and the Pacific West, which has 4 teams in Hawaii, and only two small public schools. Honestly, I have a difficult time believing that joining DII would be anything but a stepping stone to potential full DI membership. That’s where the questions really start. Will people be more interested in watching UBC sports against US D1 schools than against Canadian schools? Will it benefit UBC to be a more middle-of-the-road school in the NCAA, rather than one of the largest in the CIS? How much benefit will potential Canadian Olympians see from the increased scholarship money given to them? How well will UBC be able to draw recruits from not only BC, but across Canada and the US? Will this ultimately spell the beginning of the end for the CIS, or will it continue unaffected? There are a lot of really interesting things to watch, and it should start next year when UBC applies for provisional membership.
Monday, January 14th, 2008
West Virginia 81, Syracuse 61 @ Morgantown, WV
It’s not really surprising to see a team like Syracuse that are so young struggling on the road, as they drop to 2-2 in conference play. West Virginia also moves to 2-2 in Big East play, and also has two home wins and road losses. The game was reasonably close for about the first 15 minutes, but then settled into a 15-20 point margin for most of the rest of the game.
Syracuse shot just 42% from the field, and while they were very good on the offensive boards, they committed enough turnovers to lose this advantage. West Virginia shot somewhat better, especially from three, where they hit 9-24, which was substantially better than the Orange. They also did solidly on the offensive glass, and held on to the ball well enough to cruise to an easy win.
Player of the Game: WVU SR G Darris Nichols, 7-10, 6 Asts, 17 Pts
Top 25:
#11 Duke 87, Virginia 65 @ Durham, NC
#16 Rhode Island 80, Duquesne 78 @ Kingston, RI
Oregon 71, #18 Stanford 66 @ Eugene, OR
#23 Indiana 62, Illinois 58 @ Bloomington, IN
Rhode Island and Indiana just barely held on to keep themselves alive, while Oregon defended its home court quite well against Stanford, as the Pac-10 seems like it’ll be living up to its billing as an entertaining, competitive league.
Sunday, January 13th, 2008
Marquette 92, Notre Dame 66 @ Milwaukee, WI
Notre Dame really struggled in their first Big East road game, getting dominated by a Marquette team that moved to 3-1 in conference play. They committed 24 turnovers to just 12 for the Golden Eagles, and really struggled with their shooting, only 40% from the field and 21% from behind the arc. They did manage to do well on the offensive glass, but there were simply too many misses for Notre Dame to have any chance.
Player of the Game: MARQ SO F Lazar Hayward, 6-11, 11 Rbs, 4 Stls, 17 Pts
Game of the Night:
Georgetown just did enough to hold off the Huskies in DC, with Roy Hibbert’s huge three-pointer enough to seal the win. This was a pretty close game the whole way, but the Hoyas closed with an 11-2 run. Georgetown didn’t shoot spectacularly, but managed to still play like a pretty elite offense, as they had spectacular control of turnovers, committing only 8, and did solid jobs getting to the line and on the offensive glass. Connecticut was also pretty effective offensively, but just not good enough. They shot only 5-16 from behind the arc, and were abysmal on the offensive boards, where they usually do well, getting only 4 in a near-season-worst performance.
DaJuan Summers had a solid game for the Hoyas, though not a great one. His shooting was off, as he went only 3-9, and he wasn’t all that effective in other parts of the game, getting 5 boards and a couple of assists. Hasheem Thabeet had a good game defensively with 5 blocks, but didn’t assert himself enough offensively with only 7 points, and only got two boards, a season low.
Top 25:
#1 North Carolina 93, North Carolina St. 62 @ Chapel Hill, NC
#2 Kansas 79, Nebraska 58 @ Lincoln, NE
#5 UCLA 81, #3 Washington St. 74 @ Los Angeles, CA
#4 Memphis 68, Marshall 45 @ Huntington, WV
#6 Butler 72, Wisconsin Milwaukee 56 @ Indianapolis, IN
Iowa 43, #7 Michigan St. 36 @ Iowa City, IA
#8 Xavier 68, Fordham 50 @ Cincinnati, OH
Kentucky 79, #9 Vanderbilt 73 @ Lexington, KY
#11 Georgetown 72, Connecticut 69 @ Washington, DC
#12 Dayton 68, St. Louis 57 @ St. Louis, MO
#16 Tennessee 80, South Carolina 56 @ Columbia, SC
#17 Mississippi 74, LSU 71 @ Oxford, MS
#18 Texas A&M 86, Colorado 69 @ College Station, TX
Kansas St. 84, #19 Oklahoma 82 @ Norman, OK
#20 Drake 65, Missouri St. 54 @ Des Moines, IA
Marquette 92, #21 Notre Dame 66 @ Milwaukee, WI
Missouri 97, #22 Texas 84 @ Columbia, MO
#23 Florida 72, Auburn 56 @ Gainesville, FL
San Diego St. 72, #24 New Mexico 67 @ Albuquerque, NM
Undefeated Washington St. and Vanderbilt both lost, though it took Kentucky 2 OTs to beat the Commodores. Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Michigan St. all also lost, with the Iowa win being the most shocking, as they have been terrible up to this point. In other games, BC handled Wake Forest easily, Cincinnati edged Villanova and Air Force took out UNLV fairly definitively.
Saturday, January 12th, 2008
Tonight’s game of the day is a huge Big East battle as #11 Georgetown travel to face #33 Connecticut. Georgetown is 12-1, with their only loss at Memphis but no really strong wins. Connecticut is 11-3, with losses to Memphis, Gonzaga and Notre Dame, and no really good wins either.
This will be a great pace battle with glacial Georgetown facing off against the very speedy Huskies. Georgetown is a nationally elite offense, and perhaps the best shooters in the nation, nearly 60% from inside the arc and 61% eFG. They are also very solid at holding on to the ball (51st). It will be interesting to see how Connecticut defends Georgetown inside, as the Huskies are one of best teams in the nations at defending inside (3rd d2P%). However, they likely won’t force the ball from the Hoyas much (307th turnovers), which is surprising considering how fast they play. Connecticut are about an average team in the conference offensively, not great shooters, but good at getting offensive boards (18th) and getting to the line (7th), even if they don’t finish shot wells (231st). They have an offensive focus that is almost entirely inside (333rd 3PA/FGA), so Georgetown won’t have to defend from outside much. The Hoyas are spectacular defenders in terms of shooting, especially inside (4th), so they will likely cause the Huskies loads of trouble. They are also poor at forcing turnovers (320th), so I wouldn’t expect many today.
As good as Roy Hibbert is, sophomore forward DaJuan Summers is also a really important piece for the Hoyas, as he shoots 48% from the field and averages 12 points, while also chipping in with five-and-a-half rebounds, almost all of them defensive, and a steal a game. Despite his struggles, sophomore Hasheem Thabeet is the core of the Huskies, While Thabeet is still working on getting more consistency in his game, is a 58% shooter, and a 68% free throw shooter who gets to the line extremely well. He averages eight boards a game and four blocks a game as well, making him one of the nation’s elite shot blockers.
I think Georgetown will be able to grind out a win at home in this one.
Saturday, January 12th, 2008
Siena 94, Niagara 84 @ Niagara, NY
Siena moved themselves into a tie for the MAAC league with a very good road win over the Purple Eagles. Siena shot absurdly, 53% from the field and 12-19 from behind the arc, as Niagara’s perimeter defence was completely ineffective. The Saints also managed to control their turnovers well enough to win the turnover battle, which was huge considering their shooting advantage. For their part, Niagara did show their offensive rebounding talent, getting 20 offensive boards, and got to the line solidly, but shot just 39% from the field, struggling mightily from outside, where they shot only 6-27.
National leading scorer Charron Fisher had one of his highest outputs of the year, getting 13 on 9-21 shooting. However, he had one of his worst games of the year in terms of turnovers, committing 5. Siena’s Kenny Hasbrouck really struggled, shooting only 2-9 from the field, though he did have 2 steals and 6 assists.
Player of the Game: SIE SO F Edwin Ubiles, 11-14 FG, 4-6 3P, 4 Rbs, 28 Pts
Friday, January 11th, 2008
#14 (3): Rhode Island (14-2, 0-1), 2206.8
Rhode Island stumbled in their first conference game, falling in Dayton, and they’ll have another difficult game against Duquesne, and a road game at St. Louis.
Last week: L @ #12 Dayton, 83-92
This week: U v. #32 Duquesne, R @ #120 St. Louis
#13 (14): Wisconsin (13-2, 3-0), 2207.4
Iowa and Illinois were both handelled pretty easily by Wisconsin, as the Big Ten seems to be clearly dividing into haves and have-nots. Penn St. have had a really good start to the year, and will get a chance to make a huge splash when the Badgers head to State College.
Last week: W v. #212 Iowa 64-51, W v. #167 Illinois 70-60
This week: T @ #62 Penn St., S v. #203 Northwestern
#12 (13): Dayton (13-1, 1-0), 2211.9
As mentioned, Dayton took out a top 5 ranked team in Rhode Island, and now turn their attention to a struggling St. Louis team and a major challenge with Massachusetts, who are one of the teams that need a good conference record to boost their resume.
Last week: W v. #14 Rhode Island 92-83
This week: S @ #170 St. Louis, W v. #58 Massachusetts
#11 (23): Georgetown (12-1, 2-0), 2220.0
The Hoyas won their first two conference road games, but have two sterner road tests coming up in the forms of UConn and Pitt. Two wins in those buildings would likely solidify Georgetown as Big East favourites, but even splitting them would be a reasonable result.
Last week: W @ #211 Rutgers 58-46, W @ #168 DePaul 76-60
This week: S @ #33 Connecticut, M @ #26 Pittsburgh
#10 (12): Duke (12-1), 2222.9
Duke got their season back going after wins over Cornell and Temple, and will now start into ACC play against a couple of mid-level opponents in Virginia and Florida St.
Last week: W v. #144 Cornell 81-67, W @ #153 Temple 74-64
This week: U v. #74 Virginia, W @ #43 Florida St.
#9 (11): Vanderbilt (16-0, 1-0), 2225.6
After building up a strong record on fairly weak opponents, Vandy stepped up against a good UMass team and a solid win over South Carolina. They should easily take out Kentucky this weekend, even at Rupp Arena, but winning in Tennessee will be a thornier problem.
Last week: W v. #58 Massachusetts 97-88, W v. #139 South Carolina 80-73
This week: S @ #190 Kentucky, R @ #16 Tennessee
#8 (19): Xavier (13-3, 1-0), 2225.9
Xavier’s crushing destruction of Auburn and St. Bonaventure, and should cruise in A-10 play for a while, with two pretty easy games this week.
Last week: W @ #121 Auburn 80-57, W v. #220 St. Bonaventure 83-68
This week: S v. #194 Fordham, W @ #153 Temple
#7 (9): Michigan St. (14-1, 2-0), 2232.9
The Spartans started with a pair of solid conference wins, though both were at home. They have what should be a gimme game against Iowa, but then play an Ohio St. team that is undefeated in the Big Ten also.
Last week: W v. #45 Minnesota 65-59, W v. #97 Purdue 78-75
This week: S @ #212 Iowa, T v. #28 Ohio St.
#6 (6): Butler (15-1, 4-1), 2249.7
Butler put up three conference wins, placing themselves back to the top of the Horizon. The win over Valpo was the best of the week, but Wisconsin Green Bay are a pretty solid team too. This week, they play Wisconsin-Milwaukee and undefeated conference leaders Cleveland St.
Last week: W v. #90 Valparaiso 73-65, W @ #298 Loyola Chicago 66-55, W v. #115 Wisconsin Green Bay 74-65
This week: S v. #131 Wisconsin Milwaukee, R @ #106 Cleveland St.
#5 (8): UCLA (15-1, 3-0), 2250.7
The Bruins are off to a great Pac-10 start, handily taking out both Cal and Washington. They play only one game this week, but it’s more than enough as they have the best game of the weekend against Washington St.
Last week: W @ #83 California 70-58, W v. #111 Washington 69-55
This week: S v. #3 Washington St.
#4 (2): Memphis (14-0, 1-0), 2257.4
Two really easy wins for the Tigers, including their conference opener, and they should have little problem booking two more this week, even on the road.
Last week: W v. #187 Pepperdine 90-53, W v. #243 East Carolina 99-58
This week: S @ #122 Marshall, W @ #306 Rice
#3 (4): Washington St. (14-0, 2-0), 2266.8
Finally Washington St. got back to playing some good teams, and took advantage by winning their in-state rivalry game and just crushing USC in Los Angeles. Like UCLA, they play only that single game this week, but again, it’s more than enough.
Last week: W v. #111 Washington 56-52, W @ #91 Southern California 73-58
This week: S @ #5 UCLA
#2 (5): Kansas (15-0), 2269.3
The Jayhawks really proved themselves to be in the national elite by destroying Boston College in Boston, and will start conference play with a couple of very interesting games with Nebraska and Oklahoma.
Last week: W @ #114 Boston College 85-60, W v. #219 Loyola MD 90-60
This week: S @ #48 Nebraska, M v. #19 Oklahoma
#1 (1): North Carolina (16-0, 1-0), 2327.0
North Carolina continue to have a huge lead over any other team in the nation, despite their near loss at Clemson. Neither NC St. nor Georgia Tech should cause too much trouble for the Tar Heels this week.
Last week: W @ #39 Clemson 90-88, W v. #107 NC Asheville 93-81
This week: S v. #72 North Carolina St., W @ #136 Georgia Tech
Friday, January 11th, 2008
#25 (21): Indiana (13-1, 2-0), 2193.2
The Hoosiers moved their Big Ten record to 2-0 with another road win, but unfortunately for them they’ve played the weakest part of the schedule already. This week they have a tough trip to Minnesota coming up, but they should be able to win there.
Last week: W @ #288 Michigan 78-64
This week: U v. #167 Illinois, R @ #45 Minnesota
#24 (20): New Mexico (14-2, 1-0), 2193.3
The Lobos opened conference play with a win over Wyoming, but have a solid test coming up against San Diego St. as they get more into the meat of their conference schedule.
Last week: W @ #236 Wyoming 99-92
This week: S v. #81 San Diego St., T @ #164 Texas Christian
#23 (NR): Florida (14-2, 1-0), 2195.0
They got smoked by Ohio St. a few weeks ago, but rebounded well with a great win at Alabama to open the SEC season. They should be able to beat Auburn this week, but a trip to Mississippi will be more troublesome.
Last week: W @ #99 Alabama 90-83
This week: S v. #121 Auburn, W @ #17 Mississippi
#22 (NR): Texas (13-2), 2195.3
A solid win over St. Mary’s catapulted the Longhorns back into the top 25, and open conference play this week with a trip to Missouri, which should be a tough challenge for them.
Last week: W v. #35 St. Mary’s 81-62
This week: S @ #73 Missouri
#21 (18): Notre Dame (12-2, 2-0), 2197.8
The Irish beat Connecicut in South Bend, but they make their first trip for a road game of the season (they have played 5 neutral games), and it’s a tough one, as they must go to Marquette.
Last week: W v. #33 Connecticut 73-67
This week: S @ #30 Marquette, T v. #160 Cincinnati
#20 (NR): Drake (13-1, 4-0), 2199.5
The Bulldogs continued their great start to Valley play by beating Evansville and Indiana St. Missouri St. should be a challenging opponent, while a trip to a struggling Bradley team should result in a Drake win.
Last week: W @ #256 Evansville 71-68, W v. #129 Indiana St. 75-50
This week: S v. #130 Missouri St., W @ #218 Bradley
#19 (17): Oklahoma (12-3), 2201.3
The Sooners closed their non-conference schedule with a solid 5 game winning streak, and now move to conference play, which they start with games against the two Kansas teams, giving us some pretty immediate input as to their ability to compete in the Big 12.
Last week: W v. #306 Rice 61-49, W v. #192 Mount St. Mary’s 81-57
This week: S v. #75 Kansas St., M @ #2 Kansas
#18 (16): Texas A&M (14-1), 2201.9
A&M won their only game of the week with SEC bottom-feeders Louisiana St., and now move on to conference play with games against Colorado and Texas Tech, both of which they should win.
Last week: W v. #215 Louisiana St. 79-53
This week: S v. #151 Colorado, W @ #96 Texas Tech
#17 (7): Mississippi (13-1, 0-1), 2201.9
Mississippi lost their first game of the year, which happened to be their conference opener at Tennessee, but they acquitted themselves very well, not looking out of place against the Vols. They will play home games against LSU and Florida this week, with the Florida game especially being very interesting.
Last week: L @ #16 Tennessee 83-85
This week: S v. #215 Louisiana St., W v. #23 Florida
#16 (15): Tennessee (13-1, 1-0), 2204.7
The Rebels’ vanquishers moved down as they played only the single game this week, and it was only a close home win. They should win at South Carolina on the weekend, but have a marquee game with Vanderbilt coming up.
Last week: W v. #17 Mississippi 85-83
This week: S @ #139 South Carolina, R v. #9 Vanderbilt
#15 (25): Stanford (13-2, 2-1), 2205.7
Stanford recovered from their loss to UCLA with a big win over USC, and beat Oregon St. handily. They have two solid, tournament-level opponents coming up this week in Oregon and Arizona.
Last week: W v. #91 Southern California 52-46, W @ #237 Oregon St. 66-46
This week: S @ #46 Oregon, R v. #76 Arizona
Friday, January 11th, 2008
Tonight’s game of the day features #118 Siena travelling to #38 Niagara. Siena are 8-6, with notable wins over Stanford and Holy Cross, and losses to Cornell and to Fairfield in their last conference game. Niagara are 10-3, and 4-0 in conference play, with a power conference win at St. John’s. Their three losses are all on the road, and their record away from the Gallagher Centre is 5-3 overall.
Siena are one of the MAAC’s better offensive teams, maintaining a low turnover rate (17th), and being excellent shooters from behind the arc (30th), though perhaps they should shoot more from there (221st 3PA/FGA). The Purple Eagles defend decently, especially on the perimeter (41st), where they will likely cause trouble for Siena. Niagara also has one of the leagues’ better offenses, despite really struggling to score from inside (294th 2P%). They are one of the nation’s best teams at getting to the line and making shots once they get there (6th), and also are solid at preventing turnovers (57th) and pulling down offensive board (65th). Siena has a number of areas of serious concern defensively that the Eagles may be able to take advantage of. They are good at keeping opponents away from the line (17th), and forcing turnovers (63rd), but Niagara will likely take merciless advantage of Siena’s struggles in defending the perimeter (321st) and in defensive rebounding (322nd).
Niagara’s senior guard Charron Fisher is the leading scorer in the nation, and has one of the highest percentages of his team’s shots in the nation. He isn’t a terribly accurate shooter, hitting around 39% from both the field and behind the line, but also gets to the line well and hits 79% of his foul shots. Fisher is also an excellent rebounder, considering he is only 6-4, as he averages nine-and-a-half rebounds per game. He also comes up with a steal-and-a-half a game, but must stay out of foul trouble, as in two of the Eagles’ three losses he has had at least 4 fouls. Junior guard Kenny Hasbrouck is one of the nations’ best player at forcing steals, at nearly three a game, and he will need to come up with a few to give Siena a good chance. He shoots 47% from the field and 40% from behind the arc. He also averages two-and-half rebounds and assists a game.
Niagara have got to be favoured for this home game, as Siena’s defence is just too weak in the matchups that Niagara will take advantage of.
Friday, January 11th, 2008
Washington St. 73, Southern California 58 @ Los Angeles, CA
USC shot better than the Cougars from the field, 54% to 47%, but looking at the eFG% numbers gives us much more insight into why the Cougars won, as this number was nearly identical at 56% for each team. Washington St. made it up by shooting 10-19 from three, compared to USC shooting just 2-9 from behind the arc. USC also got to the line just 4 times, while the Cougars got there 18 times. Washington St. also held on to the ball extraordinarily well, and did a good job on the offensive boards, all of which combined to make USC’s shooting advantage useless.
Player of the Game: WAST JR F Devan Harmeling, 7-10 FG, 5-7 3P, 2 Rbs
Top 25:
#4 Washington St. 73, Southern California 58 @ Los Angeles, CA
#5 Butler 74, Wisconsin Green Bay 65 @ Indianapolis, IN
#6 UCLA 69, Washington 55 @ Los Angeles, CA
#18 Wisconsin 70, Illinois 60 @ Madison, WI
The four ranked teams didn’t have much problem winning. An interesting Big East game saw Louisville defeat West Virginia.
Wednesday, January 9th, 2008
I don't have time for Game of the Day or Wrapup today, getting back to school has been hectic. I'll be back on Friday, though.
Again: Teams in the top 25 of the AP or ESPN/USA Today poll won't be counted, though I will mention them at the end.
1. New Mexico – Mountain West (14-2, 1-0), (#20, #5 MM, LW #6 MM)
Won their two games on the week, including opening conference play with a road win. TCU isn’t too bad a road game, but the Aztecs could cause some trouble on their trip to Albuquerque.
Last week: W @ #89 Texas El Paso 86-85, W @ #242 Wyoming 99-92
This week: S v. #57 San Diego St., T @ #162 Texas Christian
2. Drake – Missouri Valley (12-1, 3-0), (#27, #7 MM, LW #7 MM)
Drake are off to a dream start in MVC play, with two road wins already, and this week they’ll get a shot against undefeated conference team Indiana St., which should be a really interesting game.
Last week: W v. #149 Southern Illinois 61-51, W @ #249 Evansville 71-68
This week: W v. #110 Indiana St., S v. #127 Missouri St.
3. Illinois St. – Missouri Valley (12-3, 4-0), (#31, #8 MM, LW #12 MM)
The Redbirds are surprise MVC leaders at 4-0, with really good wins over Creighton, SIU and Northern Iowa. They have league bottom-feeder Evansville in their only game this week.
Last week: W v. #149 Southern Illinois 56-47, W v. #104 Northern Iowa 51-46
This week: S v. #249 Evansville
4. St. Mary’s – West Coast (13-2), (#36, #9 MM, LW #5 MM)
They took a huge loss at Texas to drop them out of the rankings, but got a nice win at Fresno St. to restore their ranking somewhat. The WCC will finally kick off play this week with St. Mary’s starting against Santa Clara.
Last week: L @ #18 Texas 62-81, W @ #160 Frenso St. 77-68
This week: S v. #168 Santa Clara
5. Duquesne – Atlantic 10 (10-3), (#37, #10 MM, LW #16 MM)
The Dukes took their only game of the week, easily winning at Bowling Green, and now start conference play, with the game against Rhode Island on the weekend a huge highlight.
Last week: W @ #211 Bowling Green 96-78
This week: W v. #183 Fordham, U @ #8 Rhode Island
6. Massachusetts – Atlantic 10 (11-3), (#38, #11 MM, LW #9 MM)
7. Niagara – Metro Atlantic (10-3, 3-0), (#39, #12 MM, LW #24 MM)
8. Nevada Las Vegas – Mountain West (12-3, 1-0), (#41, #13 MM, LW #14 MM)
9. Kent St. – Mid-American (11-3, 1-0), (#43, #14 MM, LW #8 MM)
10. Gonzaga – West Coast (11-4), (#47, #15 MM, LW #18 MM)
11. Stephen F. Austin – Southland (12-1), (#48, #16 MM, LW #13 MM)
12. South Alabama – Sun Belt (12-3, 4-0), (#49, #17 MM, LW NR)
13. Boise St. – West Coast (11-3, 2-0), (#51, #18 MM, LW NR)
14. Virginia Commonwealth – Colonial (9-4, 2-1), (#52, #19 MM, LW #19 MM)
15. Houston – Conference USA (11-2), (#55, #20 MM, LW #11 MM)
16. San Diego St. – Western Athletic (11-3, 1-0), (#57, #21 MM, LW #22 MM)
17. Akron – Mid-American (11-3, 1-0), (#59, #22 MM, LW #20 MM)
18. Robert Morris – Summit (11-5, 2-1), (#62, #23 MM, LW NR)
19. UC Santa Barbara – Big West (12-3, 1-1), (#63, #24 MM, LW #15 MM)
20. UAB – Conference USA (10-5), (#64, #25 MM, LW NR)
Not included because in polls:
Memphis – Conference USA (13-0), (#3, #1 MM (LW #2 MM), #2 AP/ESPN)
Butler – Horizon (14-1, 3-1), (#5, #2 MM (LW #1 MM), #14 AP/ESPN)
Rhode Island – Atlantic 10 (14-1), (#8, #3 MM (LW #3 MM), #22 AP, #20 ESPN)
Xavier – Atlantic 10 (12-3), (#10, #4 MM (LW #10 MM), #24 AP, #25 ESPN)
Dayton – Atlantic 10 (12-1), (#22, #6 MM (LW #4 MM), #17 AP, #22 ESPN)
Dropped out: Brigham Young (11-4), Creighton (10-3, 1-2), Valparaiso (11-4, 2-1), Texas El Paso (9-4)
Tuesday, January 8th, 2008
SEC play begins and brings us the best game of the day, as #27 Florida travel to face #86 Alabama to open the conference schedule. 13-2 Florida have a couple of significant losses, to Florida St. at home and at Ohio St., and have yet to get a road win, but 11-4 Alabama haven’t picked up any significant wins either, and did suffer a home loss to Belmont in mid-November, and got crushed at home by Clemson last week.
Florida still has a very solid offense, especially when it comes to shooting, where they are 3rd in eFG% and 5th from inside the arc. They commit few turnovers (29th), and offensively rebound quite solidly (35th). Alabama’s defence has been one of the weakest in the SEC so far, as they have serious trouble forcing turnovers (267th), and are poor perimeter defenders (204th d3P%). The Crimson Tide have a similar offense to Florida, as good at preventing turnovers (18th) and getting offensive boards (33rd), while shooting solidly (50th eFG%). They shoot much more inside than Florida (270th 3PA/FGA), but struggle at the line, one of the worst in the nation (60.8%). Florida have not been seriously tested enough by quality offenses, but have performed well defensively to date, weak at forcing turnovers (233rd), but strong defensive rebounders (14th).
Florida sophomore forward Marreese Speights is a fascinating looking player statistically, as he is the Gators’ second best scorer despite playing only 21 minutes per game. I have no idea why he’s playing so little, but presumably it’s a fitness issue, as he is a great scorer and inside shooter, 64% from the field, and averages seven-and-a-half rebounds a game, and is one of the best in the nation in rebounding rates. Speights’ block-and-a-half per game also is one of the best in the nation in terms of rate. Junior guard Richard Hendrix is the clear leader for Alabama. He averages a double-double with 19 points and a conference high 10 rebounds. He shoots 63% from the field, and also averages 2 blocks a game. He also commits relatively few turnovers for a big man.
I think that Florida’s record are better than they are, and that their lack of road experience will hurt them in this game.
Tuesday, January 8th, 2008
Robert Morris 57, Boston College 51 @ Chesnut Hill, MA
Boston College seemed like they were indeed looking ahead to the ACC season, especially when it came to the offensive side of the ball. The Eagles were totally thrown off by Robert Morris’ pressure defence, committing a turnover on 30% of their possessions, while they were unable to force anywhere as near as many turnovers from the Colonials. Boston College shot only 41%, but this was still better than Robert Morris, who shot only 37% from the field and 53% from the line. However, the shooting was close enough that the turnover advantage managed to completly nullivgy any BC advantage, allowing the Colonials to grab a big upset win.
Colonials guard Jeremy Chappell had a really weak shooting night, as did much of his team. He shot just 3-7 from indie the arc, well below his normal percentage. He did come up with three steals, and while I didn’t see the game I find it likely that he was important at creting the pressure that dorced turnovers. Tyrese Rice scored 10 for Boston College, but his shooting was only 4-11 and he committed four turnovers.
Player of the Game: RM SR G Tony Lee, 5-11, 8 Rbs, 3 Stls, 12 Pts
Top 25:
#6 Butler 66, Loyola Chicago 55 @ Chicago, IL
#22 Oklahoma 81, Mount St. Mary's 57 @ Norman, OK
The two ranked teams won fairly easily last night.
Monday, January 7th, 2008
#89 Boston College will try to rebound from a serious home loss to Kansas with a game against #80 Robert Morris. BC is 10-3, while Robert Morris is 10-5. The Colonials high ranking is primarily due to their 6-3 road record, and though they lack significant top-flight wins, they have a number of large-margin wins.
The Eagles’ offense has strong offensive rebounders (43rd) and good at getting to the line (18th), while also maintaining ball movement (45th A/FGM). Robert Morris’ defence has done well against weak opposition, especially in forcing turnovers (25th), but they struggle with interior defence (238th d2P%). The Colonials have a very good shooting team (37th eFG%), with excellent ball movement as well (23rd A/FGM), but commit far too many turnovers (294th) and struggle to get to the line (286th). BC is poor at forcing turnovers (276th), and are weak defensive rebounders (230th), but rarely foul their opponents (10th).
Junior guard Jeremy Chappell is one of the most effective shooters in the nation, and is the Colonials top scorer. He doesn’t do this the way one would expect from a 6-3 guard, with a high 3P percentage, but shoots and absurd 73% from inside the arc. He shoots better from two than from the line, which is a little strange from a high scoring guard. He chips in 5 rebounds and 2 assists as well, but his biggest peripheral contribution is his ability to get two-and-a-half steals a game. Tyrese Rice is the Eagles’ most important player. He’s not terribly effective, but takes enough shots to lead the team in scoring, and sits second in the ACC. He’s only a 42% shooter, but is an 88% free throw shooter, so the ability is there. He gets 3 rebounds and a couple of steals a game, but his real key is in moving the ball in the offense, with 5 assists a game.
Boston College should be able to do enough, but if they’re caught looking ahead to ACC play; they could find themselves in trouble.
Monday, January 7th, 2008
Xavier 80, Auburn 57 @ Auburn, AL
Xavier reached a four-game winning streak by destroying Auburn, who have a nice looking record, but will likely be taken out big-time in conference play, as their only power conference games so far have been huge losses. Xavier turned the ball over a lot, and produced only three offensive boards, but this may be due to the fact that they missed only 19 shots all game. They put up an absurd 76% eFG%, shooting almost 60% from the field and over 60% from behind the arc.
Player of the Game: XAV JR G B.J. Raymond, 6-8 3P, 3 Rbs, 2 Asts, 18 Pts
Top 25:
#1 North Carolina 90, #11 Clemson 88 @ Clemson, SC
#17 Duke 81, Cornell 67 @ Durham, NC
#23 Xavier 80, Auburn 57 @ Auburn, AL
West Virginia 79, #25 Marquette 64 @ Morgantown, WV
North Carolina only barely survived their first defeat of the year, while West Virginia bounced back from a defeat at Notre Dame to move themselves back to the top 25. In other games, Villanova moved in to the top 25 with a narrow win over Pitt, and Penn St. won a seventh straight game, and a second Big Ten road game, beating Illinois by 4.
Sunday, January 6th, 2008
Kansas 85, Boston College 60 @ Chestnut Hill, MA
Kansas moved to 14-0 with perhaps their most impressive win of the year, as the Eagles held it close during the first part of the first half, but fell apart as the pressure of Kansas’ skill and athleticism broke them down. The Jayhawks shot 53% from the floor and 57% from the field, and had their best performance of the season on the offensive boards, pulling down half of their misses. BC shot only 42% from the field, and just never had the firepower to be able to stand toe-to-toe with Kansas.
Player of the Game: KS SO F Darrell Arthur, 10-12, 7 Rbs, 2 Blks, 22 Pts
Game of the Night:
Texas actually trailed this game at the 7 minute mark of the first half, but went on a 59-35 run from there to easily seal the home win. I talked about the Gaels’ being able to stop the three point shot and ball movement, and they accomplished both things, holding Texas to just 4-16 from three, and only 8 assists. Unfortunately, they couldn’t stop any other aspects of the Longhorns’ attack. They forced only 4 turnovers all game, and allowed Texas to shoot 68% from inside the arc. In the other matchup I highlighted, Texas allowed St. Mary’s to the line 17 times, but they made only 7, an abysmal performance. They also shot only 35% overall and only 39% from inside, well below their normal average. This game did some fair damage to St. Mary’s resume, which has no strong road performances at all. They’ll have two more chances for a decent road win at Fresno St. and Gonzaga, but I wouldn’t count on them winning either.
Damion Jones was very solid for the Longhorns, despite hitting just one of eight free throw attempts. He shot 6-9 from the field, pulled down 8 rebounds and put together a great defensive game with 4 blocks and 2 steals. Diamon Simpson really struggled for the Gaels. He also shot poorly from the line, but compounded that with poor shooting from the field, only 4-10. He did get 7 boards, but made limited defensive impact, with no blocks or steals. The game’s best player was clearly DJ Augustin, who shot 11-22 for a game high 30 points.
Top 25:
#2 Memphis 90, Pepperdine 53 @ Memphis, TN
#4 Washington St. 56, Washington 52 @ Seattle, WA
#5 Kansas 85, Boston College 60 @ Boston, MA
#6 Butler 73, Valparaiso 65 @ Indianapolis, IN
#8 UCLA 70, California 58 @ Berkeley, CA
#9 Michigan St. 65, Minnesota 59 @ Lansing, MI
#11 Vanderbilt 97, Massachusetts 88 @ Nashville, TN
#14 Wisconsin 64, Iowa 51 @ Madison, WI
#16 Texas A&M 79, Louisiana St. 53 @ College Station, TX
#17 Oklahoma 61, Rice 49 @ Norman, OK
#18 Notre Dame 73, Connecticut 67 @ South Bend, IN
#20 New Mexico 99, Wyoming 92 @ Casper, WY
#23 Georgetown 58, Rutgers 46 @ Piscataway, NJ
#25 Stanford 52, Southern California 46 @ Stanford, CA
All the top 25 teams won, most fairly handily. Other interesting power conference games saw Oregon win in Arizona, DePaul beat Providence to move to a surprising 2-0 in conference play, Syracuse handily beat South Florida to drop their ranking significantly, and Arkansas pick up a good win against Baylor (is the Pac-10/Big 12 Hardwood Series over yet?) . Some other results saw Indiana St. move to a surprise 3-0 by handing Northern Iowa their first conference loss, Cal St. Northridge win in Santa Barbara to drop the Gauchos, who were moving steadily up in the rankings, and Northwestern St., who are in the bottom 40 teams in the country, beat Texas Arlington, who were profiled here after an 8-0 start.
Saturday, January 5th, 2008
14 of the top 25 teams are inaction today, but the game of the day features two teams that are not currently ranked, though one was quite recently. #32 St. Mary’s are seeking a break into the top 25 when they travel to #28 Texas. Texas beat TCU on Wednesday to snap the two game losing streak they found themselves on. St. Mary’s only loss was at Southern Illinois, though that was also their only true road trip until now. They have decent wins over Oregon, Drake, Seton Hall and SDSU.
Texas still are among the nation’s elite offensive teams, with excellent shooting (35th eFG%), especially from three, and are the best team in the nation at holding onto the ball. St. Mary’s may be able to cause havoc for the Longhorns’ perimeter attack, as the Gaels are spectacular 3-point defenders (5th), and also do a spectacular job of interfering with opponent’s ball movement (1st A/FGM). Considering Texas doesn’t move the ball a lot against other opposition, there is a good chance that they may really struggle with assists against St. Mary’s. The Gaels are a team that gets to the line well (42nd), and shoots very well inside (14th), despite taking a fair amount of threes (58th 3PA/FGA). This will play right in to Texas’ defence, however, since they are excellent at stopping teams from getting to the line (24th) and stopping interior scoring (30th).
Texas sophomore guard Damion James is one of a number of great Texas players who have stepped up to fill Kevin Durant’s shoes. James isn’t a great shooter, only 48% from the field and 62% from the line, but makes up for it by being one of the nation’s best rebounders, averaging 11, along with a block, per game. He seems to have picked it up of late, as he has had double-doubles in 7 of his last 9 games after not having one in his first five. As much talk as there is about Patrick Mills for the Gaels, and deservingly so, the guy who is the driving force for the team may very well be junior centre Diamon Simpson. Simpson is a 57% shooter, and is greatly responsible for the Gael’s ability to score inside. He is also a very solid rebounder, at almost 10 a game, and shows very well in the defensive metrics, averaging a steal and two blocks a game.
I think that St. Mary’s record may be a product of their very intimidating home court as much as their system and talent. Their only road game saw them fold pretty easily to SIU, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see them crumble against Texas.
Other good games will see 1-0 Big East teams Notre Dame and UConn clash, South Florida trying to earn some credibility in the Carrier Dome, Vandy testing their undefeated record against UMass, and Minnesota travelling to Lansing to face the Spartans.
Saturday, January 5th, 2008
Marist 81, Rider 80 @ Lawrenceville, NJ
Rider came in at 8-5, including a couple of power conference wins against Penn St. and Rutgers, while Marist entered at 7-6, with no really good wins but mostly respectable losses. The two teams had identical efficiencies, with Rider’s better turnover control offset by better free-throw and three-point shooting from the Red Foxes. In the end, is was the significant advantage from the line and a slight advantage on the glass that barely allowed Marist to come up with the win and move to 2-0 in conference play.
Player of the Game: RIDR SR G Jason Thompson, 11-21, 4-5 FT, 11 Rbs, 4 Asts, 26 Pts
Game of the Night:
The last time I featured Brown, they lost by 19 at Providence, but their rebound tonight clearly proves that I am not a curse for the Bears. The game was slow, but not extremely so, which surprised me a little. For all I talked about both teams being good three-point shooters and poor defenders, the opposite was present in this game, as both teams had below average nights from behind the arc. The only area of the game American won was on the glass, as they were very solid on both ends. Brown, however, are quite used to losing the rebounding battle, and countered by winning turnover margin by 6, which is quite large in a slow game. The game was ultimately won, though, at the free-throw line, as the Bears got to the line three times more than American, and made four times more shot. The difference in free-throw points more than covered the game’s final margin.
Brown’s Chris Skrelja had a really great game, despite scoring only 5 points. He pulled down 11 rebounds, a career-high, and also added 8 assists and 4 steals, while committing only 2 turnovers himself. Derek Mercer played 40 minutes for American, but had one of his worst games of the year, shooting only 4-14 and only 2-5 from the line. He did get 6 boards, but his large number of shots and poor percentage caused a lot of trouble for the Eagles.
Friday, January 4th, 2008
#14 (22): Wisconsin (11-2, 1-0), 2191.6
The Badgers take up the mantle of highest ranked multiple-loss team after they move into Texas’ place thanks to a tight road win over the Longhorns. They also opened their conference season with an easy win at Michigan, and should breeze through the next week with two home games.
Last week: W @ #28 Texas 67-66, W @ #267 Michigan 11-2
This week: S v. #195 Iowa, R v. #146 Illinois
#13 (NR): Dayton (12-1), 2192.1
The Flyers made a huge splash by beating Pittsburgh, and got a win over a good Akron team to wrap up an at-large worthy non-conference schedule before embarking on Atlantic 10 play with a tough game hosting Rhode Island.
Last week: W v. #24 Pittsburgh 80-55, W v. #65 Akron 83-81
This week: W v. #3 Rhode Island
#12 (10): Duke (10-1), 2194.3
They still haven’t played since the Pitt game, but they’ll get restarted with what will likely be two easy wins this week.
Last week: None
This week: U v. #132 Cornell, W @ #143 Temple
#11 (15): Vanderbilt (14-0), 2202.6
The Commodores played and won three easy home games this week, but may play their most difficult game of the year to date when they host UMass this week. Either way, conference play is coming, and it’s there where the Commodores will be truly judged.
Last week: W v. #277 Tennessee Martin 92-85, W v. #215 Iona 97-73, W v. #285 Rice 76-58
This week: S v. #30 Massachusetts, W v. #107 South Carolina
#10 (25): Clemson (12-1), 2208.2
A huge win on the road at Alabama pushed them way up, but it may not be good enough preparation for the home game with the top team in the country this weekend. Clemson are desperate to avoid being ‘this year’s Clemson’, and a win would be a huge scalp.
Last week: W v. #210 Samford 78-45, W @ #92 Alabama 87-61
This week: U v. #1 North Carolina, W v. #109 Charlotte
#9 (7): Michigan St. (12-1), 2213.8
Got an easy home win, but their opening games of conference play this week are both tricky. Not so hard that the Spartans shouldn’t be clearly favoured, but hard enough that an unexpected result could easily come.
Last week: W v. #116 Wisconsin Green Bay 93-75
This week: S v. #37 Minnesota, v. #99 Purdue
#8 (16): UCLA (13-1, 1-0), 2213.9
After a huge win over Stanford, the Bruins move up into Stanford’s former spot in the rankings. They get a difficult trip into Cal this weekend, and in this tight conference will surely take some losses, but have finally moved into the upper echelon where the polls have had them.
Last week: W v. #268 UC Davis 76-48, W @ #25 Stanford 76-67
This week: S @ #51 California, R v. #93 Washington
#7 (9): Mississippi (13-0), 2215.7
The Rebels had a couple of pretty straightforward home games to close out non-conference play, but the going is suddenly going to get much tougher when they open conference play at Tennessee. If they survive that test, they’ll prove they belong up at this lofty ranking position.
Last week: W v. #151 Southern Mississippi 78-58, W v. #284 Alabama A&M 86-50
This week: S v. #119 Wisconsin Green Bay
#6 (5): Butler (12-1, 1-1), 2221.8
A last gasp, heart-breaking win over Southern Illinois was enough to keep the Bulldogs in the top 10, and they will get a great challenge as they open their conference schedule against new Horizon League team Valpo.
Last week: W @ #160 Southern Illinois 57-55
This week: S v. #62 Valparaiso, M @ #281 Loyola Chicago, R v. #116 Wisconsin Green Bay
#5 (3): Kansas (13-0), 2225.1
Kansas easily won their only game, and still has a challenge at Boston College standing between them and the start of conference play next weekend.
Last week: W v. #209 Yale 86-53
This week: S @ #57 Boston College, T v. #208 Loyola MD
#4 (2): Washington St. (12-0), 2226.4
Washington St. hasn’t started their conference schedule yet, but will start this weekend with an in-state rivalry game. This is followed by two tough trips to USC and UCLA, so don’t be surprised if the Cougars are no longer perfect by next Sunday.
Last week: W v. #280 North Carolina A&T 67-34
This week: S v. #93 Washington, R @ #61 Southern California
#3 (13): Rhode Island (14-1), 2226.6
The Rams won three games this week, including two neutral games, and are now tied with UNC and Vandy for the most wins in the nation with 14. They have a really tough trip to Dayton to start conference play this week, in what could be the most interesting game of the week, regardless of conference.
Last week: W v. #242 Eastern Michigan(N) 92-75, W v. #130 Georgia Southern(N) 85-80, W v. #216 Fairleigh Dickinson 94-63
This week: W @ #13 Dayton
#2 (6): Memphis (12-0), 2239.3
My rankings finally agree with the national polls by the Tigers moving up into the elite of college basketball. The win over Arizona is responsible for much of that, but crushing Siena was also a really positive result. The conference season starts this week, but the real question is whether they’ll lose at all in conference play.
Last week: W v. #41 Arizona 76-63, W v. #105 Siena 102-58
This week: S v. #184 Pepperdine, W v. #243 East Carolina
#1 (1): North Carolina (14-0), 2304.1
Two great wins over bubble-level opponents in Valpo and Kent St, but the real test will be in the ACC, and that begins with a trip to Clemson this weekend.
Last week: W v. #62 Valparaiso 90-58, W v. #45 Kent St. 90-61
This week: U @ #10 Clemson, W v. #121 NC Asheville
Friday, January 4th, 2008
#25 (8): Stanford (11-2, 0-1), 2173.1
Stanford took a big drop after opening Pac-10 play with a home loss, but didn’t fall all the way out of the rankings. They’ll have to rebound when USC come to town on Saturday, before starting a road trip to Oregon next week.
Last week: W v. #122 Fresno St. 55-48, L v. #8 UCLA 67-76
This week: S v. #61 Southern California, R @ #206 Oregon St.
#24 (12): Pittsburgh (12-1), 2176.3
Pitt took a disastrous loss at Dayton earlier in the week, and though they did have a rebou