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Opening Practice

by - Published October 15, 2010 in Full Court Sprints

FULL COURT SPRINTS

BASELINE TO BASELINE

LAST SHOT
Go coast to coast with our roundup of the nation’s top stories.

  1. Connecticut will try to convince NCAA officials that self-imposed sanctions are punishment enough for recruiting violations, writes the Associated Press’ Pat Eaton-Robb. The Huskies will have one fewer scholarships this season and next season, and fewer assistants will place calls to recruits.
  2. Baylor’s top returning Bear, LaceDarius Dunn, can practice but not play during an investigation into allegations that he broke his girlfriend’s jaw, writes the Associated Press’ Schuyler Dixon.
  3. Mississippi is ditching its Confederate-conjuring Colonel Reb in favor of a true rebel…a black bear, the Associated press reports.
  4. The 2011 EA Sports Maui Invitational will expand to 12 teams and feature an utterly confusing format that includes several games not actually in the tropics. But the teams that will play in Maui form a formidable group: Duke, Georgetown, Kansas, Memphis, Michigan, Tennessee and UCLA — in addition to host Chaminade.
  5. UCLA celebrates what would have been John Wooden’s 100th birthday, writes Peter Yoon for ESPN Los Angeles. The iconic Bruins coach died June 4.
  6. With two gigantic video screens, new locker rooms, club seating, more bathrooms, more vendors and wider concourses, New Mexico’s Pit will be even more welcoming for Lobo fans, but probably not for opponents, writes the Associated Press’ Tim Korte.
 We’ll use this section to recap the top results and most fascinating games during the season. So we’ve got nothing for you now

STUDY SESSION

OPENING TIP
Phil Kasiecki covers the New England recruiting trail like no one else does, and he rounds up a busy start to the fall. In addition to recounting some of the top teams and players that are attracting the interest of Division I squads, Phil shares his craziest trip, which featured some unexpected quality time with the Housatonic River. Midnight Madness arrives tonight! And we’re not talking about a Michael J. Fox Disney movie either. No, we’re amped up for the first official practice of the 2010-11 season, an annual rite of fall that surpasses the vernal equinox and Halloween for college basketball fanatics.

The defending champs, Duke, headline ESPNU’s coverage.

Northwestern somehow convinced Snoop Dogg and Kid Cudi to show up for the Wildcats’ midnight madness.

Memphis will woo Adonis Thomas with some Yo Gotti-style madness.

The Hoyas attracted local Washington hip-hop artist Wale — and will thump their chests in the general direction of College Park.

HOME COURT ADVANTAGE
Yes, this news format is different from how we’ve handled news in the past. But we recognize that you don’t come to Hoopville because we have breaking news. You come to us because we’re cool and awesome — and we’d like to think our analysis is on par with any major sports outlet’s experts.

In short, covering the latest news isn’t the primary mission of Hoopville. However, we want to give you a quick rundown of some of the top stories and point you in the right direction if you want more about that story. Same deal with game results.

Hoopville’s sweet spot is covering the recruiting trail and digesting the trends that emerge each season. We’d like to engage our readers as much as possible by offering insights that educate you, make you think and hopefully  inspire you to comment on our work — because you agree with our analysis or think we’re totally off base.

We welcome your feedback on this new format.
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Not a season to remember for Wake Forest

March 8, 2012 by

wakeforest

Although it wasn’t quite as bad as last season, this was hardly one for the books for Wake Forest. After an 82-60 blowout loss against Maryland on Thursday, the Demon Deacons finished 13-18 overall. That doesn’t seem so bad, and a few teams had worse records, but look deeper and you see a team that, quite simply, was not good.

Ron Hunter a wonderful addition to the CAA coaching ranks

March 7, 2012 by

georgiastate

Ron Hunter is a terrific addition to the Colonial Athletic Association coaching ranks. That could have been said before the season given his track record and the impression he made on Media Day in October, but after the CAA Tournament it bears repeating because it was so obvious.

Bruiser Flint won’t be stressing out the next few days

March 6, 2012 by

drexel

In theory, the next six days should be quite stressful for Drexel and head coach Bruiser Flint. As the regular season champions of the CAA, they are guaranteed a bid to the NIT, but naturally hope the NCAA Tournament comes calling. Flint doesn’t seem stressed at all about it, however, and his experience is a key factor in that.

Northeastern has promise next season, but clear room for improvement

March 4, 2012 by

northeastern

Northeastern fought turnovers often this season, and had relatively mixed results with some streaks along the way. The Huskies should be better next season, but there is clear room for improvement and that was evident on Saturday night in the season-ending loss.

Despite the quarterfinal loss, the tournament is a positive ending for UNCW

March 3, 2012 by

uncwilmington

With UNCW’s season over, there’s a look toward a brighter future that was helped by this weekend in Richmond. The young Seahawks had some bright spots during the season in trying to rebuild, and capped it off with something else they can take with them.

James Madison fights the injury bug together and to the end

March 3, 2012 by

jamesmadison

James Madison came into the season as an interesting team to project. There was not a lack of talent, and it wasn’t a young team, but there were intangibles questions. In the end, injuries were the biggest problem, but the Dukes kept fighting right to the end no matter how demoralizing the injuries were.

2012 CAA Tournament – First Round Notes

March 3, 2012 by

colonial

Notes on the first round of the CAA Tournament, where the seeds held to form, the first 20-20 game in tournament history occurred and a team that went bowling to help get ready for the opening game of the day came out on top.

Quick Hitters – March 2, 2012

March 2, 2012 by

author_kasiecki

We check in with some quick hitters on a couple of America East teams, a contrast of freshmen from an earlier game, Georgia Tech’s defense against Boston College and the Missouri Valley.

Kyle Casey deserves a better ending

February 27, 2012 by

harvard

The last decisive play in Harvard’s 55-54 loss to Penn on Saturday night will stay in many people’s minds. For the Crimson player who was involved in it, one hopes the college basketball gods have a better ending in store later on.

Ivy League showdown looms between old rivals

February 18, 2012 by

ivy

The stage is set. Saturday night at Lavietes Pavilion will be a potentially epic battle with first place on the line after Friday night’s results. Old rivals Yale and Harvard will battle for the top, with Harvard hoping for a repeat of the result the last time these two teams met.

Conference Coverage

2011-12 ACC Post-Mortem

May 19, 2012 by

acc

A look back at the 2011-12 season in the ACC, one with good but not great results and a few teams that had unexpected finishes in the NCAA Tournament.

Idaho State makes a decision

March 15, 2012 by

Last Thursday, Idaho State finally made it’s choice, hiring Montana assistant Bill Evans as it’s head coach. So far, reaction has been mixed by at least one of the couple of forum posts dedicated to the decision as well as the local scribe’s feelings. Here’s the traditional “welcome to town” …

The Big Sky Championships: who’s gonna win

March 6, 2012 by

This is what the head honchos wrote on Monday: Big Sky (March 3) Top seed: Montana. The Big Sky regular-season championship came down to the final game, in which the Grizzlies avenged their only loss in Big Sky play by beating Weber State in Missoula. Tournament stakes: Although Weber State …

Playing catch-up: the Big Sky all-conference team & “first-round” analysis

March 5, 2012 by

bigsky

We take a look at the award winners, from the two-time conference Player of the Year to the Newcomer of the Year, as well as a couple of early tournament games.

What Was The Reason Behind Cleveland State’s Five Game Losing Streak?

February 26, 2012 by

clevelandstate

Why did the Cleveland State Vikings recently have a five game losing streak? It’s simple–whenever a team loses their most valuable player, they’re going to suffer. The Cleveland State Vikings have had their fair share of above-average talent on the roster over the past few years. Cedric Jackson played briefly …

Cleveland State Vikings Use Solid Contributions By Freshmen To Defeat Detroit Titans, 77-64

February 24, 2012 by

horizon

The Cleveland State Vikings and Detroit Titans squared off on Thursday evening at the Wolstein Center in a matchup with major ramifications for seeding in the Horizon League Tournament. Both the Vikings and the Titans headed into Thursday’s matchup riding drastically different five-game streaks. Picked by many preseason analysts to …

Much Is At Stake In The Final Week Of Horizon League Play

February 21, 2012 by

horizon

The last week of conference play has arrived in the Horizon League. Over the past few years, the battle for the top seeds in the Horizon League has not been decided until the final game of conference play. This year is no exception, with multiple teams having a legitimate chance …

Cleveland State Loses To Drexel Dragons 69-49 In ESPN BracketBusters Matchup

February 18, 2012 by

horizon

The Cleveland State Vikings and Drexel Dragons squared off on Saturday morning at the Wolstein Center as part of ESPN’s BracketBusters series. Saturday’s contest marks the second straight year in which the Vikings have participated in the BracketBusters series. Last season, the Vikings dropped a hard-fought contest to Old Dominion …

Butler Bulldogs Hang On To Defeat Cleveland State Vikings, 52-49

February 11, 2012 by

horizon

Although the rivalry between the Cleveland State Vikings and Butler Bulldogs may not be as nationally known as the rivalry between Duke and North Carolina, the intensity that is in the air whenever these two Horizon League rivals square off is just as strong. In fact, the animosity between these …

Valparaiso Crusaders Dominate Cleveland State Vikings 59-41

February 9, 2012 by

horizon

The Cleveland State Vikings and Valparaiso Crusaders squared off on Thursday night at the Wolstein Center in one of the most important games of the season for both teams. While the Vikings’ season-opening victory over the Vanderbilt Commodores may have been extremely important with regards to quality wins that are …

Big Sky Conference update – Jan 26, 2012

January 26, 2012 by

bigsky

JUST IN TIME FOR TONIGHT’S GAMES… All the news you ever wanted to know about the Big Sky, the weekly edition. YOUR WEEKLY DAMIAN LILLARD IS A STUD LINK-FEST: A Salt Lake Tribune story on his success. USA Today also jumped in sometime in the last week to talk about …

Cleveland State Vikings Overwhelm Milwaukee Panthers 83-57

January 22, 2012 by

horizon

In a game with major implications for the regular season Horizon League championship and seeding for the Horizon League Tournament, the Cleveland State Vikings dominated the Milwaukee Panthers by a score of 83-57 in a game in which the Panthers never led. The Vikings and Panthers began the day in …

Big Sky Conference update – January 18, 2012

January 18, 2012 by

bigsky

One team stands alone atop the standings for now, with another a little behind them and a logjam near the middle of the pack.

Cleveland State Use Barrages from Outside to Defeat Loyola

January 7, 2012 by

horizon

The Cleveland State Vikings started 2012 off on a winning note with a 69-48 victory at home on Saturday afternoon over the visiting Loyola Ramblers. In his pregame radio comments, Vikings coach Gary Waters stated that the Ramblers’ 5-10 record heading into Saturday’s matchup was deceiving and that the Ramblers were …

Big Sky roundup, week 1

January 5, 2012 by

bigsky

Opening weekend in the Big Sky Eastern Washington Record: 7-7, 1-1 Weekend: 1-1 Major superlatives: Won by 16, lost by 8; 76.5 ppg for, 72.5 against; plus-4 scoring margin; 52-112 FG; 20-53 3pt; 29-43 FT. Summary: One night, the lead stuck. The other, it didn’t. The Eagles made an early …