Morning Dish

The Morning Dish – Friday, March 11th

More Favorites Dropping in Big East: Conference tournament continued to churn along yesterday. Find complete coverage at Thirteen Days: Championship Week 2005. A day after an impressive blowout against Providence, West Virginia continued to improve its bubble status with a 78-72 victory against Boston College. Mike Gansey had 21 points and Kevin Pittsnogle contributed 17. Craig Smith led BC with 20.

Villanova continued to roll with an impressive 67-58 dismantling of Pittsburgh. The win was the Wildcats’ eighth straight. Nova used a 16-4 run to close the first half and led 31-19 at the break. The nine-point final margin was as close as the Panthers got in the second half. Randy Foye led Nova with 23, and Carl Krauser had 18 for Pittsburgh. The loss ended a four-year Panther run to the Big East Championship game.

Georgetown tried to state its case but fell just short in a 66-62 loss to Connecticut. The loss probably ended any hopes of a Hoya bid. Ashanti Cook of Georgetown and Rudy Gay of UConn finished with a game-high 17.
Nearing the end of its three-year run, the duo of Gerry McNamara and Hakim Warrick dominated Rutgers in an 81-57 victory. The Orange raced to a 47-22 lead at the half and advanced to a showdown with UConn in the semifinals.

ACC Bubbles Burst: Maryland and Miami both had costly losses to lowly Clemson and Virginia in the ACC Tournament Thursday, while North Carolina State improved its chances for an NCAA berth by advancing.

Maryland shot only 35 percent and lost for the third time this season to the Tigers, 84-72. The loss puts the Terrapins’ 11-year NCAA Tournament streak in jeopardy. Chris McCray had 24 for the Terps, and Shawan Robinson equaled that for Clemson.

Virginia held on to a 66-65 victory after Miami missed a shot at the buzzer. J.R. Reynolds was all the Cavaliers needed, as he scored a career-high 32 points. Guillermo Diaz paced the Hurricanes with 20.

NC State made a strong case for its tournament hopes with a 70-54 win against Florida State The Wolfpack led 33-19 at the half and cruised home for the win. Ilian Evtimov led NC State with 18. Anthony Richardson had 16 for the Seminoles, who shot only 35 percent.

Atlantic 10 Yields Chalk:
The higher seeds all advanced in the Atlantic 10 Tournament, setting up match ups of St. Joseph’s vs. Xavier and Temple vs. George Washington in the semifinals. The Hawks will be out for a measure of revenge after the Musketeers ended St. Joe’s undefeated season last year in the A-10 quarterfinals. It doesn’t get any easier for coach Phil Martelli and company. Last season’s loss was in Dayton, this year’s A-10 tourney is in Cincinnati, Xavier’s home. The Hawks advanced by beating Richmond 63-51. Xavier ended La Salle’s run 83-70. George Washington slammed Fordham 79-63, while Temple closed out the quarterfinals with a 61-51 win against Dayton.

Northwestern, Iowa and Ohio State Advance in Big Ten:
Northwestern held on against Michigan late and advanced with a 58-56 victory to earn the right to play Illinois in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals. Courtney Sims led the Wolverines with 25, and Mohammad Hachad had 17 for the Wildcats.

Purdue coach Gene Keady’s last game was a microcosm of his last season. Iowa took a 10-point lead into halftime and finished strong with a 71-52 win. The loss ended Purdue’s season at 7-21, only Keady’s third losing season at Purdue. The win improved Iowa to 20-10, and their fourth win in a row seemed to put them back on the bubble. They will play Michigan State next in the Big Ten quarterfinals.

Ohio State overcame a 15-point second half-deficit and earned a 72-69 victory against Penn State to advance to a match up with Wisconsin. The other Big Ten quarterfinal will have Indiana and Minnesota hoping to make a statement to the NCAA selection committee.

Big 12 Produces Surprises:
After the morning session that saw favorites Missouri and Iowa State win, the night session produced a pair of upsets in the Big 12. Colorado shocked Texas 81-69, and Kansas State popped Texas A&M’s bubble 68-62. Earlier, the Tigers beat Nebraska 70-67, and Iowa State improved its NCAA Tournament outlook with a 77-57 blowout against Baylor.

Myles’ Triple-Double Sends Louisville to Semis: Ellis Myles had 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to send Louisville to a Conference USA Semifinal meeting with Alabama – Birmingham. The Cardinals crushed TCU 85-61. UAB advanced with a Demario Eddins three-pointer with one second remaining to beat DePaul 59-56. In the night session, South Florida pulled off an upset for the second straight night. This time it was an 80-68 shocker against Cincinnati. Memphis used the home court to its advantage and sent second-seeded Charlotte home with an easy 83-69 victory.

Buffalo, Miami and Ohio Makes Statements in the MAC:
Buffalo, Miami and Ohio all made statement to the NCAA selection committee with important wins in the MAC quarterfinals Thursday night. Miami pounded Bowling Green 85-65, Buffalo defeated Toledo 85-72 and Ohio earned a win over fellow NCAA hopeful Kent State, 62-55. In Friday’s semifinals, Buffalo will play Western Michigan, which knocked out Akron 66-60, and Ohio and Miami will meet.

Washington and Arizona Advance in Pac Ten:
Washington and Arizona took different routes to the Pac-10 semifinals. The Wildcats crushed Cal 88-62, while Washington needed overtime to escape Arizona State 95-90. Channing Frye turned in another stellar performance for the Cats with a 22-point, 10-of-11 performance. Oregon State shocked UCLA, putting the Bruins in the bubble pool with a 79-72 victory. Stanford avoided a bad defeat when Rob Little’s layup with 20 seconds left send the Cardinal to a 60-58 win against Washington State. In Friday’s semifinals, Oregon State will play Arizona, and Washington will square off with Stanford.

Vanderbilt Loss Costly, Ole Miss Wins with a Little Help:
Vanderbilt became another bubble team from a big conference to suffer a costly loss, losing to Auburn 77-73. Mississippi won when an apparent three-pointer by Tre Kelley was changed to a two after a discussion by the referees. The Rebels outlasted South Carolina 53-52. Tennessee soundly beat Arkansas 65-46, and Mississippi State won as expected, 76-65, against Georgia.

San Diego State Provides Mountain West with Only Upset:
For the second year in a row, Air Force lost as a higher seed in the first round of the Mountain West Tournament. After being upset as the top seed a year ago, the third-seeded Falcons lost to sixth-seeded San Diego State 73-68. Utah, New Mexico and UNLV all won as expected. The Utes and Lobos are the only teams remaining in the Mountain West Tournament that had winning records in the conference during the regular season. New Mexico will meet the Aztecs, and Utah will face UNLV in the semifinals.

Wolf Pack Down, Not Necessarily Out:
Boiset State’s Jermaine Blackburn put back a Coby Karl missed free throw to shock top-seeded Nevada 73-72 on the Wolf Pack’s home court in the WAC Tournament quarterfinals Thursday night. The loss may endanger Nevada’s NCAA Tournament bid, but considering the losses by so many other bubble teams, the WAC’s regular-season champ should be safe. Boise State will next meet Fresno State, which slipped by Louisiana Tech 84-81, in the semifinals. UTEP beat Hawaii 80-62 for the rights to play Rice, which beat SMU 63-47, in the other semifinal.

One Step Closer: The Southland Conference was the only tournament to play semifinal games last night. The Southland’s top seeds, Northwestern State and Southeast Louisiana, took care of business to set up the best match up in Sunday’s championship game. Northwester State beat Lamar 90-75, and Southeast Louisiana beat Sam Houston State 71-62.

Meanwhile, in the MEAC, there were no surprises as Coppin State beat Morgan State 60-43, and South Carolina State beat Norfolk State 76-72. Coppin State moves forward to play Hampton today in the semifinals, while South Carolina State has a date with Delaware State in the other semifinal.

Malone Helps Out Louisiana Tech:
Former NBA star Karl Malone has donated $85,000 to Louisiana Tech to help upgrade the weight room and workout area. He helped initiate the upgrade 10 years ago. Malone played 19 years in the NBA and helped lead the Bulldogs to the 1985 Sweet 16. Malone’s donation will help facilitate a major rebuilding of the weight room that will be eventually be renamed for him.

Nebraska to Keep Collier for at Least Another Year:
Nebraska Athletic Director Steve Peterson has announced that coach Barry Collier will remain in Lincoln for at least another year. The Cornhuskers have a 70-77 record in his five seasons but only possess a .362 Big 12 winning percentage. That is Nebraska’s worst in 40 years. If they had let Collier go, Nebraska would have owed Collier almost $1.4 million. Other coaches were not as fortunate as Collier. Learn who’s out among this year’s Coaching Changes .

Canisius Signs Mac Donald to Extension:
Canisius officials announced that they have signed coach Mike Mac Donald to a contract extension. The Golden Griffins had their highest amount of wins in the MAAC in four years and advanced to the conference tournament semifinals for the first time in three years. With four returning starters and two transfers to look forward to, Canisius hopes to improve on an 11-18 record in 2005. Mac Donald has a 99-123 record in eight seasons.

Saia Interested in Position at Cal-Riverside:
Former USC interim coach Jim Saia has expressed an interest in the coaching position at Cal-Riverside. Saia coached USC to a 9-15 record after replacing Henry Bibby four games into the season. Saia plans to contact Riverside’s athletic director and former USC coach, Stan Morrison. The position is open after Morrison relieved Jim Masi of his duties after 25 years in Riverside. Morrison has reportedly already interviewed one candidate. Morrison himself is considered the leading candidate to patrol the Highlander sidelines next season.

Howard Relieves Allen After Five Seasons:
Howard has let go coach Frankie Allen after their worst season in five years. Allen led the Bison to an 18-13 record and trip to the MEAC title game in 2002. He was 52-83 in his five seasons in the nation’s capital. The two seasons prior to Allen’s arrival, Howard had only won three games. Allen had previously coached at Tennessee State and Virginia Tech.

Tonight’s Menu

• The Patriot League hands out the only dance ticket today as Bucknell visits Holy Cross.

• A full slate of conference tournament action includes major bubble battles. Some games to note include North Carolina State vs. Wake Forest, Georgia Tech vs. Virginia Tech, Minnesota vs. Indiana, Miami, Ohio, vs. Ohio and Western Michigan vs. Buffalo.