Charlotte wanted more but feels like they accomplished something

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Just minutes after a season ends, it’s not easy to sum up a season in an instant analysis style. Ask Alan Major about this season right now, however, and there’s a clear theme from the Charlotte head coach: pride in how his team handled so much that was thrown at them in the 2012-13 season and a feeling the program is on its way to where he hopes it will be.

Charlotte’s final record this season is 21-12. It’s a good record, although plenty of teams will sport better ones come April 9. They also started off 9-0, so one might wonder what’s impressive about going 12-12 to end the season. Let’s just say that none of it came easily, and along the way this team developed an identity as a team with the chemistry and belief in one another that they can get through anything.

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Despite semifinal loss, Notre Dame feels better leaving New York than when they entered

NEW YORK – Let the debate about the value of conference tournaments rage on. You’ll find a few willing supporters of them in New York, including Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, even after his team was eliminated by Louisville 69-57 in the semifinal on Friday night. There was plenty of value for him and his team here, and it wasn’t just sentimental, although there was a little of that.

“I can’t say enough about the Big East, man,” said Brey. “I don’t think it’s really hit me yet saying bye to (associate commissioner Tom Odjakjian) and John (Paquette) and some of the other people, and the Big East has kind of made me.”

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John Dunne sad the season is over for St. Peter’s

John Dunne is sad that his team’s season is over. You might wonder if that would be the case for a team like his, a St. Peter’s team that went 9-21 on the season. But you can believe Dunne when he says it, much as you can believe he would like the results to be a little different.

This year was not a memorable one for the Peacocks on the bottom line, although it started with promise as they won their first three games. Friday night’s 54-47 loss to Fairfield finished a season where they were 3-15 in the MAAC in as competitive a year as the conference has seen. They were 6-6 when MAAC play began in earnest, but started 2013 with eight straight losses in January and never recovered. After the season-opening three-game winning streak, they never won consecutive games again.

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For Cincinnati, offense will be the key

NEW YORK – Cincinnati tried to play smaller and faster, which Mick Cronin felt was the way to go for this team. It worked like a charm on Wednesday, but Cronin knew it would be a tall order against Georgetown on Thursday. He was right, and while he seems to have found a way to play that works, the Bearcats will have to wait to go with it again after falling 62-43 in the quarterfinals of the Big East Tournament.

Cincinnati got off to a nice start on the season in winning their first 12 games. Since losing a tough one to New Mexico at home, they haven’t put together a winning streak longer than three in a row, although they started Big East play with a win at Pittsburgh. In February they lost five of six at one point after winning five of six. They should be in the NCAA Tournament, as they have the wins without any bad losses.

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Providence needs to keep growing to win more in New York

NEW YORK – Providence head coach Ed Cooley talked a lot about his program making progress but still having work to do. Whether or not more of that work will come this season in another game will have to wait a few days, as Providence bowed out of the Big East Tournament on Wednesday with a 61-44 loss to Cincinnati in which they didn’t play well, especially at the offensive end.

At this point, it’s a given that Providence won’t be in the NCAA Tournament. The Friars needed to make a run in New York for any chance, especially since a win on Wednesday would have given them a great opportunity for a quality win as Georgetown would be next. Instead, the Friars’ difficulties winning in New York continued as Wednesday’s loss was their fifth straight in the Big East Tournament. For that matter, their last win broke another five-game losing streak in the tournament.

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Turnovers hurt Siena right to the end

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – When Siena looks back on this season, one possible theme could be “if only we took better care of the ball.” Although turnovers were a season-long problem for the Saints, and far from their only one, it was particularly acute on Saturday in their season-ending 74-62 loss to Niagara in the MAAC Tournament.

Siena turned the ball over nearly 15 times a game this season, while forcing less than 11 per game. In Saturday’s loss, they gave it away 20 times to Niagara, a team that thrives on forcing turnovers, with ten each half. Niagara turned them into 32 points, but that was only half the story. The other half is what the lost possessions meant on Siena’s end.

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Butler bounces back from blowout loss, look more like themselves

AMHERST, Mass. – Butler was much more like themselves on Thursday night, a game after a decidedly un-Butler-like performance at VCU. In between, there was some reflection and focused practices, and the end result was a 73-62 win at UMass where the Bulldogs were solid all around and for most of the game.

The 84-52 loss at VCU caught everyone by surprise. Butler may lose games, and they have been blown out before, but it is very rare. Games like that just don’t happen. So it’s not surprising that after the game, it was a little unusual.

“You question yourself a little bit when you get beat in the way we got beat on Saturday, and these guys deserve to enjoy this one,” said head coach Brad Stevens.

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Virginia can’t turn win over Duke into a momentum builder

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Like Maryland before them, Virginia scored a big win over Duke at home. Then they had to go on the road at Boston College, a team near the bottom of the ACC but one that isn’t far from being in the middle of the pack. Maryland couldn’t avoid a letdown and lost at The Heights, and Virginia came close to a better result but couldn’t put away the Eagles, who took home an emotional 53-52 win to likewise put the Cavaliers in a tight spot for the NCAA Tournament.

Like Maryland, Virginia also has some youth, although they have three upperclassmen who start. The Cavaliers have been a tough team to fully figure out on the bottom line, as they went 0-3 against CAA schools in non-conference but won every other game. They should be able to run the table at home in ACC play with one game still left, but have only knocked off Virginia Tech and Maryland away from Charlottesville. That ability to win on the road is a big one, and it was something head coach Tony Bennett was talking about after the game with regard to how it got away.

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In a tough loss, Connecticut shows tremendous heart

STORRS, Conn. – Kevin Ollie wanted to make sure those covering Wednesday night’s game do at least one thing above all else.

“I hope y’all write that we’ve got heart – at the end of your articles, this team has got heart,” said the UConn head coach.

He’s right.  This team has heart.  It was fully on display Wednesday night in a game they had no business even getting to overtime, let alone a second overtime where they led 78-71 with just over two minutes left.

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Lalanne could be the missing piece for UMass

AMHERST, Mass. – Cady Lalanne just might be the missing link for UMass.  His play of late seems to indicate as much, and on Saturday, he was a difference-maker in the Minutemen’s 76-66 win over Dayton.  He showed what they’ve needed from him all year in a season that has been hampered by things outside of performance on the court.

Lalanne scored 22 points and grabbed 14 rebounds on Saturday to help the Minuteman out-rebound a Dayton team that is pretty good on the glass.  The Flyers entered the day with the fourth-best rebounding margin in the Atlantic 10, while the Minutemen held the slightest of edges on the season.  But the Minutemen had a 36-27 edge on the glass on the afternoon, including 13 rebounds, and that made a big difference.

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