The 16-under final was a close game throughout, with Team Scan leading the B.C. Eagles for most of the game. Down 40-35 late, the B.C. Eagles finished the game on an 8-1 run for a 43-41 win. Calvin Crawford (6’7″ Jr. SF, Montgomery (NY) Valley Central HS) led the Eagles with a game-high 15 points and was their only player in double figures. Chris McCullough (6’9″ So. PF, White Plains (NY) Salisbury Prep) led Team Scan with 13 points and Conrad Chambers (6’1″ So. SG, Chester (PA) Friends Central HS) added 11.

The 17-under final was a close one throughout as well. Middlesex Magic trailed for a good portion of the game, but rallied to take the lead well into the second half. Late in the game, Brookwood Elite made the shots and got the stops to hang on for a 58-53 win over Middlesex Magic. Mamadou Gueye (6’7″ Jr. SF-PF, Laval (Que.) Ste-Foy) led Brookwood Elite with 17 points. Chris Braley (6’4″ Jr. SG, Newport (ME) Philips Exeter Academy) led Middlesex Magic with a game-high 21 points in the losing effort.

Now, here’s a look at some of the players in action this weekend.

Jordan Aquino (5’10″ Fr. PG, Dollard (Que.) PCHS) A baby physically, he didn’t stand out much on his well-balanced team but might be their best prospect. He showed that he can get out in transition and finished, but his best asset might be his shooting, which was highlighted by three three-pointers in one game en route to the championship.

De’Von Barnett (6’4″ Sr. SF, Waldorf (MD) Riverdale Baptist HS) Athletic and well-built wing was very aggressive, and that was a big reason he played well. He scored in double digits in a couple of games, looking like much more of a scorer than a shooter, and his body looks like it can still mature more.

Marlon Beck II (5’11″ Jr. PG, Mitchellville (MD) Maret School) Tough floor leader has a body that’s not there yet, but he battled every second he was on the court. He scored well, reaching double digits a couple of times, showing a little touch from mid-range in addition to getting some baskets near the hoop.

Larry Beckett (6’7″ Jr. PF, New York (NY) Satellite Academy) A tough player to project, he doesn’t appear to have a position in a halfcourt game but was one of the most effective players because he simply competes. His body isn’t there yet, and he doesn’t have a lot of go-to scoring tools, but he put up good scoring numbers that included games of 24 and 23 points by finishing in transition, filling on the break for a dunk, finishing even if he was fouled, and hitting the occasional mid-range jumper. He also rebounded well and was simply in a lot of plays.

Henry Bolton (6’1″ So. PG, Portsmouth (RI) St. Andrew’s School) Athletic guard has a good body and is still transitioning into playing the point. On his team here, he actually played more off the ball and had a nice game on Sunday that included three three-pointers.

Chris Braley (6’4″ Jr. SG, (ME) Philips Exeter Academy) Always known for his shooting, his body is more mature and in better shape, and he had a solid weekend helping his team to the title game. He battled while out there, scored in double digits in most games highlighted by a 23-point outing on Saturday, and he looks more athletic. It wasn’t all good, though, as he fouled out of one game with a blatant push-off to try to get open.

Paschal Chukwu (7’0″ So. C, Westport (CT) Trinity Catholic HS) Very long post player is a baby physically but will be a good prospect as his body and game mature. He used his length well on the glass to be an effective rebounder, doesn’t lack a motor and looks like he can pass out of the post. His stamina might be a question mark at the moment, and his scoring tools will need some development, but there’s a lot to like at this relatively early stage.

Travis Cook (6’3″ So. SG, Middletown (NY) High) A long and lanky guard, he’s a baby physically with nice upside given what he showed here. He has the size to play off the ball in college, but looks like he can handle and pass the ball well enough to play the point in a pinch if a team ever needed him to.

Charles Correa (5’8″ Jr. PG, Pawtucket (RI) St. Raphael’s) Building off his play a week earlier, he looked very much at home at the point, and playing there seems to help you see how well he knows the game. He looked very heady at both ends, scored in several ways including from long range, showed that he can play more than one speed, and showed that he has above-average quickness and athleticism. While he can score in traffic, he had a tendency to force plays that weren’t there, so he’ll need to improve on that, especially given his size.

Calvin Crawford (6’7″ Jr. SF, Montgomery (NY) Valley Central HS) Long and a baby physically, he was probably the most impressive prospect in the 16-under, in part because Chris McCullough was not the factor he can be. Crawford has a very thin upper body and is a plus athlete, and while he looks most adept at finishing he can shoot the ball and the ball skills are good but will need to continue to get better. He scored 20 points in his team’s semifinal win before adding 15 in the title game.

Noah Daoust (6’7″ So. PF, Dorval (Que.) Hotchkiss School) A physical player inside, he has a wide frame and body that doesn’t appear to have all good weight. Offensively, he wasn’t a big factor on his well-balanced team, but he did finish a couple of times including with contact.

Fred Dure (6’4″ Jr. SG, Laval (Que.) Ahuntsic HS) Lefty wing is athletic and can still get better physically, although he looks like he may be done growing. His dribble looked a little shaky, and that is probably what keeps him from being an even better scorer as he was able to get some field goals driving to the basket.

Jake Fay (6’5″ Jr. SG, Lynn (MA) Brimmer & May School) In an early Saturday game, the Fordham commit was hot from long range with 28 points that included six three-pointers. A couple of them came late in the game as his team rallied for a win. Later, he struggled from long range, which can happen with a shooter.

Rony Fernandez (6’1″ Sr. PG-SG, Dorchester (MA) Charlestown HS) Still looking for his college destination, the lefty had a fine showing here as he continues to look more like a point guard. He racked up the assists in an early game and was driving and dishing with success quite often.

Mabor Gabriel (6’8″ Jr. PF-C, Manchester (NH) Trinity HS) A post player with a good motor, he was very active and got a lot of rebounds, including at the offensive end where he turned several into stickbacks. He isn’t lacking skills, including some ball skills, and he willingly screened and boxed out while also scoring in double digits several times, including a 21-point effort in his team’s opener.

Mamadou Gueye (6’7″ Jr. SF, Quebec City (Que.) Ste-Foy HS) He has a good frame and some length, which are noticeable right away, and he showed a little touch shooting the ball to intrigue you further. It’s clear he needs some strength, as a few of his forays to the hoop weren’t as successful.

Malcolme Henderson (6’8″ Jr. PF, Chateauguay (Que.) Vanier Prep) Well-built forward has a good frame and ran the floor well for a post player of his build. His game looks a little rough around the edges, but his body is college-ready although he could get it in a little better condition.

Kuran Iverson (6’8″ Jr. SF, Hartford (CT) Northwest Catholic HS) By now, an observer can predict how this ultra-talented and athletic forward will play based on the shots he opts to take. If he tries to get in the lane, where he’s always been able to finish and is now an improved passer and more adept at drawing fouls, he can be dominant. If he starts off by settling for three-point shots, he could easily put up a single-digit point total and be a non-factor. Here, we saw more of the former, where he handled and passed like a point forward and was adept at using fakes, and at times he made it look easy. Big-time prospect has a lot of potential that simply needs to be unlocked.

Zack Lewis (6’2″ Sr. PG-SG, Windsor (CT) Northwest Catholic HS) Lanky guard didn’t put up big numbers here but still showed an improved game overall. He drove often and showed a little more of a touch shooting the ball than he has before, and despite a slight frame he’ll go inside to try to score or pass off, and he even got a stickback one time. Mid-major prospect may do a post-graduate year.

Jimbo Long (6’2″ Jr. PG, Cliffwood (NJ) St. Joseph’s-Metuchen HS) Although he has a small body and doesn’t look as tall as he’s listed at first glance, he’s a tough floor leader. He ran the team capably into Sunday’s games and used his left (off) hand willingly, and was a key reason his team advanced as far as they did.

Quincy McKnight (6’3″ So. SG, Bridgeport (CT) St. Joseph’s HS) Looking like more of a scorer than a shooter, his body isn’t there yet, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to use it to score. In addition to finishing with contact on drives, he also scored on the post with a defender he felt a matchup advantage with.

Peter Miller (6’9″ Jr. PF-C, Winchester (MA) Northfield Mount Hermon) Improving post player had a nice showing here, as he has a good frame and his body still hasn’t fully matured yet. He showed good fundamentals at the offensive end, scoring on jump hooks, a jumper from the foul line and on stickbacks, and was heady on one play when he tapped out a rebound he knew he couldn’t snag. The one sour note was when he picked up a dumb technical foul by slamming the ball on the court after a dead-ball foul that he thought was called on him.

Shavar Newkirk (6’0″ So. PG, New York (NY) Cardinal Hayes HS) Attacking point guard helps make his team go with his penetration to get shots for himself or teammates. Here, he showed that he could pass on the move often, an important part since he so often tries to get in the lane.

Donchevell Nugent (5’8″ So. PG, Newburgh (NY) Free Academy) His size dictates that he likely plays the point at the next level, but he showed he can score in helping his team to the 16-under title. He had a bloody nose in the championship game, but returned to help his team in the final minutes.

Ryan Quinn (6’3″ Jr. SG, Mountainside (NJ) Roselle Catholic HS) The other key member of his team’s backcourt along with Jimbo Long, his body’s not there yet but he showed some good offensive tools. He’s a plus athlete and finished the break a couple of times, and while he didn’t score a lot of points he showed that he can score with his jumper out to long range.

Harry Rafferty (5’11″ Jr. PG, Durham (NH) Berwick Academy) A key cog in his team’s run to the championship game, the lefty had a big game in the semifinal with 24 points, including six three-pointers. He was deadly from behind the arc when he got a decent look and ran the show well all weekend.

Tom Rivard (6’6″ Jr. SF, Worcester (MA) Academy) He’s always looked like a kid with some potential, but now he’s making himself a factor. He got some offensive boards and was more aggressive offensively, scoring in double figures in one early game.

Harrison Taggart (6’5″ Jr. SF, Concord (NH) St. Paul’s) Continuing a good start to the spring, this solidly skilled wing was aggressive and led a comeback that fell short on Saturday night. He finished with 19 points in the game, including a big three-pointer late, and was attacking for much of the game.

Devin Thomas (5’10″ Jr. PG, Meriden (NH) Kimball Union Academy) A point guard with above-average quickness and athleticism, he drove often to make plays at the offensive end. While he was able to finish, to the tune of 22 points in one game, he looked to pass more on the go, and given his size that’s a good trait to have.

Avery Ugba (6’7″ Sr. PF, Silver Spring (MD) James Hubert Blake HS) Active forward has a good body that can still get better and may be worth a look for a team still trying to fill out a roster for next season. He’s a plus athlete who showed the ability to finish close, including while fouled, and get some rebounds, and he’s not lacking post moves although he’ll need to get more fluid with them.

Linzell Vaughn (6’2″ Jr. SG, New York (NY) Wings Academy) Well-built guard is an aggressive scorer whose athleticism doesn’t stand out because he’ll fearlessly look to score. If he sees a chance to score, he’ll go for it, and besides the driving field goals he hit from mid-range and a couple of times from long range, although that doesn’t appear to be close to his forte.

Majak Wenyin (6’6″ Jr. SF, Manchester (NH) Memorial HS) An intriguing prospect, he’s relatively new to the game and looks it since he’s not the most fluid player. He’s long and lanky and his body has a ways to go, and the skill package has some development needed, but he showed enough to be worth keeping an eye on.

Other players who caught our attention:

Max Joseph (6’1″ So. PG, Montreal (Que.) Ahuntsic HS)
Magnus Richards (6’6″ Sr. PF, Silver Spring (MD) James Hubert Blake HS)
Jonte Rutty (6’5″ Sr. SF-PF, Newburgh (NY) Free Academy)
Kurt Steidl (6’6″ Jr. SG-SF, Ridgefield (CT) High)
Tevon Walker (6’2″ Jr. SG, Montreal (Que.) Vanier Prep)
Nolan Woodward (6’4″ Jr. SF, LaSalle (Que.) Champlain HS)

With that, here are some thoughts on notable players in the event.

Malik Abu (6’8″ So. PF, Marblehead (MA) Kimball Union Academy) The big-bodied forward looked more athletic and appears to be in better shape. Those are nice developments considering what he’s shown already, and it also means he’s addressed the most glaring issue he had entering this school year.

Tom Bajda (6’4″ Jr. SG, Stratford (CT) Winchendon School) In going for 16 points in a blowout win for his team, he looked like someone you shouldn’t leave open. He hit several from long range and also made a nice runner while getting fouled, and his jumpers weren’t from just behind the arc.

K.J. Baptiste (6’4″Jr. SF-PF, Wareham (MA) Brimmer & May School) Playing on the loaded BABC team, he went for 18 points largely by moving well without the ball. He finished well near the basket and on short jumpers, blending in well and playing within the team concept.

Jaylen Brantley (5’8″ Jr. PG, Springfield (MA) Wilbraham & Monson Academy) He didn’t seem like himself, but when you looked up after his team’s first game, he had 22 points with five three-pointers. As he always does, he capably ran the team, and he looked like he got better as the day went along.

Schadrac Casimir (5’9″ Jr. PG, Stamford (CT) Trinity Catholic HS) Simply put, he’s a sparkplug floor leader who makes his team go. He turned 16 not too long ago, so he’s young for his grade, and he competed all the way through a good blowout win for his team.

Charles Correa (5’8″ Jr. PG, Pawtucket (RI) St. Raphael’s) In the past, he’s made his mark as a scorer, but he’s now playing the point and had a good showing. While he’s still a scorer, which he showed by driving and spinning one time and some good shooting out to long range, he looked at home running the team from a ball handling and passing standpoint.

Levy Gillespie (6’2″ So. PG, Hartford (CT) Capital Prep) He didn’t play his best in a game where his team got blown out. In that game, he struggled shooting and didn’t run the team as well as he’s capable of, although he made some fine passes. His body isn’t there yet and he’s not the quickest point guard, but for now he gets a slight pass on this one-game performance as we’ve seen him play very well before.

Kris Hargraves (6’1″ Jr. PG, Teaneck (NJ) Westminster School) In one of the last games of the night, this lefty point guard had another nice showing. After some good showings last year, he scored 19 points on some three-pointers and a few good drives, even finishing with his right hand. He has a thin upper body and can still improve as a playmaker.

Matthew Johnson (Sr. PG, North Burlington (NJ) High) This point guard won’t bowl you over with physical gifts, but he has a good frame and a solid feel for the game. He plays at a good pace and passed really well in traffic, and also finished the break en route to 12 points. Last year he missed time from an apparent heart condition, but he has been cleared and playing again for a while. A post-graduate year at the Lawrenceville School is in his future.

Kaleb Joseph (6’2″ So. PG, Nashua (NH) Cushing Academy) He wasn’t at his best in his team’s first game, but he did score 13 points and do a good job of driving and dishing. His body is also maturing and he’s continuing to improve, albeit not in the quantum leap fashion he did some time ago.

Will Joyce (Jr. SF-PF, Piscataway (NJ) Tech) An active forward with a good body, he looks to have the size for the wing but plays inside on his team as one of their tallest players. He rebounded well, something that would be an asset if he’s able to play on the wing.

Joseph Kuo (6’8″ Jr. PF, Byfield (MA) Governor’s Academy) A fundamentally sound post player, he looks awkward in how he moves and isn’t the most polished with his post moves but managed to contribute. He has a little length, which helps him finish well near the basket, and he looks like he can be a better rebounder than he has shown including here.

Davey McMillan (6’6″ Jr. SF-PF, Waterbury (CT) Kaynor Tech) A lanky forward with a little length, he had some good moments in a loss for his team on Saturday night and looks like he can be a nice prospect. His body isn’t there yet, and he doesn’t have the most clearly defined game, but he kept his team in the game with 11 points and some other plays.

Jeremy Miller (6’9″ Fr. PF-C, Milton (MA) New Hampton Prep) Still a baby physically, he has a good frame and some good length but needs to figure the game out. Here, he was often playing on the perimeter, and he struggled with his jumper, a sign that he might have been better off going inside to score a few baskets before trying his hand away from the basket.

Sean Obi (6’9″ Jr. PF-C, Green Farms (CT) Academy) Thick post player has a good frame and isn’t lacking mobility. He had some foul trouble in a blowout loss by his team and was never a factor in the game.

Garland Owens (6’5″ Sr. SF, Rockville (MD) Magruder HS) Well-built athlete showed that he can make plays at both ends using his athleticism. He’s quick off his feet and will go for offensive boards, and while he only scored 10 points in one game he was a bigger factor than that might first lead one to believe.

John Stevens (6’4″ Jr. SG-SF, Winsted (CT) Northwestern Regional HS) A versatile wing, his team asks him to do a lot of things and he did that in a losing effort on Saturday night. The lanky wing rebounded well for the position, scored once a nice runner on the baseline and did his part to keep his team in the game.

Shawn Strickland (5’10″ Jr. PG, Middletown (CT) High) A point guard with a slight frame, he showed some good scoring ability with 18 points in a losing effort. A lot of his points came via jumpers from all ranges, as well as a nice runner on one play, and he also got back on defense one time for a nice block. Next year, he will attend the Taft School.

Noah Vonleh (6’7″ So. SF-PF, Georgetown (MA) New Hampton Prep) In one stretch late in the first half of a game, he took over the game and was, as he should have been, clearly the best player on the floor. He’s always been able to rebound and show hints of his skill package, but at the offensive end he’s never quite put it all together just yet to be a dominant player. He showed some of that potential here, and his body still isn’t there yet.

Chris Walters (6’4″ SG-SF, Stamford (CT) Westhill HS) One of the more impressive wing prospects here, he went for 20 points to lead a blowout of a very good team. Long and athletic, as well as quick off his feet, he drove assertively and finished well, including with his left (off) hand and while being fouled. He also made a few good passes and hit from long range, although the latter doesn’t appear to be his forte, and there’s some good upside still his body has a little ways to go.

Jared Wilson-Frame (6’4″ Fr. SG-SF, Windsor (CT) High) The well-built wing looked to shoot more than drive to score, and while had 15 points in a loss for his team, one had the sense he could have been more effective. One shot he hit was from well behind the arc, and if he gets the jump shot going on a consistent basis, he’ll be that much tougher to guard.

Other players who caught our attention:

Remi Ferrall (6’6″ Jr. PF-C, Woodbridge (CT) Amity Regional HS)
Chris Jenkins (Jr. SG-SF, Hillside (NJ) High)
Jalen Myrie (6’0″ Jr. PG, Groton (MA) Lawrence Academy)
Daquan Sampson (6’7″ Jr. SF-PF, Groton (MA) Lawrence Academy)
Rob Ukawuba (Jr. SF-PF, East Brunswick (NJ) High)
Travis Whitfield (6’4″ Sr. SG-SF, Manhasset (NY) St. Mary’s HS)

Let’s stop saying he’s just a great recruiter.

Let’s stop saying he’s just a great salesman.

Let’s stop saying he wins games just because of the talent he has, as if he just rolls out the balls and his kids play.

All of it needs to go. We’ve seen that he can coach before, and this season drove that home.

Sure, Calipari has an outsized personality to go with the outsized expectations of the rabid fan base in Lexington. That’s why he’s a perfect fit, and perhaps few other coaches would fit that job so well. He plays to the fan base perfectly, and did after Monday’s game was over. But that’s beside the point.

So, too, is his past. Yes, he has taken two schools to the Final Four and seen both of them vacated by the NCAA because of violations that occurred on his watch. You can think what you will of him as a person; the purpose here isn’t to defend his past or excoriate him for it. The focus is John Calipari as a coach.

This Kentucky team had a target on its back pretty much as soon as the balls were tossed up back in November. The talent on this team was already well-known, although one wondered if the lack of experience might at some point be a hindrance. That’s a big reason why Darius Miller became so important to this team, besides the fact that he’s simply a good player. But there was no question this team had the talent to win it all, and after an early win over North Carolina that was thought to be the case even more so.

Much was expected of this team, and they delivered. To be favored to win and then win it all is harder than anyone outside of sports realizes. It means that every game is the opponent’s big game, their Super Bowl, their championship game. For many, it would make their season to topple the favorites, even if they don’t win a game the rest of the way.

All this team did was go 38-2 against those teams. They were the best defensive team in the country, evidenced not only by their national-best field goal percentage defense, but also by how they won games by scoring 57, 60 and 62 points much like they won each of the many times they topped 80 points. They were also 12^th in the country in rebounding margin.

The Wildcats had good chemistry. For a young team to mesh this well both in terms of how everyone plays and personalities says a lot about the job Calipari did. While it’s true there’s a lot of talent, and not all of this can be put on the coach, the coach has a lot to do with it. This is the same challenge many prep school coaches have, as they have many of their players for just a year or two. That leaves little time to create any kind of chemistry and feel for each other, as opposed to a traditional high school where a core group might play together for three or all four years and grow together.

Kentucky had the most talent, but it had to be melded together into a team that could win. Countless times over the years, we’ve seen the most talented team not win the championship for one reason or another. Coaching is not always the reason such teams don’t win it all, but sometimes it is. When a team like this wins, there’s a tendency to not give the coach any credit, as if the staff just rolled out the balls and the players won just by virtue of being more talented than their opponents.

John Calipari coached this team to a national championship. Now we have to realize that he’s not just a great recruiter. He’s not just a great salesman. He’s not just an outsized personality that fits the program he leads perfectly. He doesn’t just have the most talent. He’s a pretty good coach, and that played an important part in the Wildcats winning this season.

On Monday night, Kentucky completed its return to national supremacy by winning the program’s first championship since 1998. The title run marked the Wildcats’ second consecutive Final Four under coach John Calipari, who figures to make Kentucky a national championship contender pretty much every season that he’s on the sidelines.

Even though many people figured the Wildcats would cut down the nets in New Orleans, Kentucky exceeded expectations from a statistical perspective as soon as the Wildcats beat Baylor to reach the Final Four. Based on seed expectations, the typical No. 1 seed wins 3.32 games. So reaching the Elite Eight isn’t much to crow about for No. 1 seeds.

With Kentucky’s six wins in the tournament, the Wildcats helped the SEC become the best-performing conference in this year’s NCAA tournament. Besides Kentucky, Florida also delivered a strong performance, reaching the Elite Eight as a No. 7 seed. Given that seed, the Gators were expected to win 0.85 games. They won three. That’s a nice hefty boost to add to the Wildcats’ contributions. In sum, the SEC won 10 tournament games, which is nearly 70 percent more than expected based on the teams’ seeds.

Outside the SEC, most of the other major conferences pretty much did what they were supposed to do. The Big 12 and Atlantic 10 delivered about 15-20 percent more wins than expected, while the Big East and Big Ten were pretty much right on schedule. For the Big 12, Kansas’ run to the championship game helped overcome the one-and-done letdown of No. 2 Missouri.

The ACC and Pac-12 had the roughest tournaments among the Power Six conferences, though you won’t get any argument from me if you’d rather discuss Pac-12 on the same tier as the Missouri Valley or Mountain West conferences. The ACC was particularly disappointing given the Final Four aspirations of North Carolina, Duke and Florida State. The conference came up 33 percent short on its expected win total, primarily because the Blue Devils dropped a shocker in their first game against No. 15 Lehigh, while the Seminoles’ offense sputtered against No. 6 Cincinnati. North Carolina State had a surprising run to the Sweet 16, winning two games as a No. 11 seed, which usually win 0.5 games. But that wasn’t enough to make up the difference.

This tournament marks the fourth time in seven tournaments that no ACC team reached the Final Four. Before 2006, you have to go back to 1980 to find more than four tournaments that didn’t include an ACC team in the Final Four. Since the tournament expanded to include more than just one team from a conference in 1975, there has never been a three-year stretch in which the Final Four hasn’t included an ACC team. The pressure is on for 2013.

The 14-under championship was not a very competitive game, as Team Scan ran out to an early lead and never looked back in an 81-50 rout of Virginia-based New Generation.  They would lead by as many as 21 in the first half and later by 32 in the second half.  Devonte Green (SG-SF, North Babylon (NY)) scored a game-high 20 points to lead five Team Scan players in double figures.  Unique McLean (SG-SF, Brooklyn (NY)) was the tournament MVP, scoring 13 points in the final.

In the 16-under championship game, the host Playaz scored the first basket of the game.  Team Takeover followed by scoring the next 11 points, and they led by double digits for much of the remainder of the half and led 50-34 at the break.  The Playaz would cut the lead into single digits early in the second half, but Team Takeover had an answer and ran away with it, winning 89-67.  Martinas Geben (6’8″ So. PF, Hagerstown (MD) St. Maria Goretti HS) capped a big weekend with 21 points to lead Team Takeover, while Greg Malinowski (6’3″ So. SG, Middleburg (VA) High) added 14 points.  Tournament MVP Tre Campbell (6’1″ So. PG, Washington (DC) St. John’s HS) and Obinna Enechionya (6’8″ So. PF, St. James (MD) High) each added 12 points.  Isiah Briscoe (6’2″ Fr. PG-SG, Newark (NJ) St. Benedict’s) led the Playaz with a game-high 22 points in the losing effort.

Team Takeover won this event last year as a 15-under team, so they have had a nice run of success in this event of late.

Now, we take a look at some of the players who competed this weekend.

Bryce Aikens (SG, Randolph (NJ))     He’s a small guard, but may not be done growing and is athletic.  Most of all, though, he can shoot, and showed it in the 14-under championship game as he scored 13 points on a variety of jumpers out to long range.  One nice play was seeing him take one dribble and hit a shot off the bounce.  He has yet to decide on a high school.

Phil Booth (6’3″ So. SG, Baltimore (MD) Mount St. Joseph HS)     A solid glue guy, he handled the ball often and looks like he has a little bit of combo guard in him.  He won’t wow you with anything, as he’s a plus athlete and doesn’t do any one thing exceedingly well, but he was very effective and did everything in the flow of the game and within the team concept.

Isiah Briscoe (6’2″ Fr. PG-SG, Newark (NJ) St. Benedict’s)     A very talented guard, he has a relatively mature body for his age and used it well to finish with contact all weekend.  He’ll drive all day to the basket, although he showed a little touch from mid-range as well, and made a nice long bounce lead pass through the defense for a layup to demonstrate his passing ability.  In short, he makes things happen on the court.

Noah Brown (6’2″ So. SG, Sparta (NJ) Pope John HS)     A solid two-way player, he has a good body that can get better and is a plus athlete, although none of that will leap out at you.  He drove and finished well, including with contact, handled the ball at times and did show some range on his jumper although that doesn’t look to be his forte.  He also had a chase-down block on one play and showed a willingness to guard a good wing player.

Tre Campbell (6’1″ So. PG, Washington (DC) St. John’s College HS)     The tournament MVP is a baby physically, but he’s very quick and competitive and sets the tone for his team.  He made solid passes and scored in transition, at times beating the other team up the floor, and scored 17 points to help lead his team with the pool on the line.

Chase Daniels (6’7″ Jr. PF, New Haven (CT) Hillhouse HS)     Although he has a little length, he wasn’t quite the factor he looks like he could be.  At the offensive end, he didn’t show a lot of skills just yet, although he later hit a nice jump hook in a 14-point outing.  He’ll be most remembered here for hitting a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer from midcourt early on Saturday.

Adonis Delarosa (6’10″ So. C, Middle Village (NY) Christ the King HS)     Wide-bodied post is a space-eater that has some potential.  Not all of his weight is good weight, and he’s not the best at running the floor, so he’ll need to improve his conditioning.  If he does that, the abilities he showed, like some post scoring ability and decent movement on the low block, will get better and he’ll be an even better prospect.

Obinna Enechionya (6’8″ So. PF, St. James (MD) High)     Lanky post player got off to a nice start in a game on Saturday, but was never the same after two early fouls relegated him to the bench.  He was very active and athletic, showing a touch on his jumper, and save for being too aggressive at times on defense he looks like he has good upside.

Rashard Figures (6’2″ So. SG, Hackensack (NJ) High)     Shifty guard got off to a slow start in the semifinal on Sunday, but was much better in the second half and overtime as he helped his team into the championship game.  He made some acrobatic layups and was quite effective driving, and kept the defense honest with a couple of three-pointers.  Quick off his feet and with a thin upper body right now, he isn’t lacking upside.

Martinas Geben (6’8″ So. PF, Hagerstown (MD) St. Maria Goretti HS)     A consistent presence for his team en route to the championship, he has a good frame and looks like a role player at first but did too much to really be classified as that.  One of the best rebounders here at both ends, he got plenty of stickbacks while also shooting well out to long range off the catch.  He capped off the big weekend with a stellar outing in the title game, which included a steal and breakaway dunk.

Devonte Green (SG-SF, North Babylon (NY))     If his play in the championship game is any indication, he’s certainly capable of putting up points, especially on shots from long range.  The knock on him from this game is that at first glance, his feel for the game will need improvement.  There’s some upside for him, and at this point he has not decided on a high school.

Zach Heeman (6’6″ So. PF, Mount Olive (NJ) High)     Lefty post player doesn’t have the best body but had a good showing in a couple of games.  He doesn’t have all good weight, but he moves and runs the floor better than you would expect and even got some transition chances.  That said, he seemed to struggle against a more athletic post player, but he rebounded, looks fundamentally sound, can face the basket and seems to have good hands, so there’s a lot to like.

Ryan Izzo (So. SG-SF, Sparta (NJ) Pope John HS)     Lefty wing was active and looked like a good complementary player on his team.  He has a thin upper body, so he’ll have to get stronger, but he finished in traffic a couple of times and showed a little range on his jumper, scoring 14 points in a tough loss to start Saturday off.

Corbyn Jackson (6’6″ Jr. PF, Goochland (VA) High)     Thick post player is a better athlete than he looks and used his body well to score inside.  He scored on the post, including while getting fouled, often using his wide frame to get position.  While he moves reasonably well, he could stand to improve there.

Tyrone Johnson (5’8″ So. PG, Brooklyn (NY) South Shore HS)     A baby physically, he impressed with his passing but also looked like he can be a bit of a showman.  Possessing a decent frame, he drove and finished with contact, but really made his mark passing, and on a team with a lot of others who could score that should be his job.

Terry Larrier (6’6″ So. SF-PF, Bronx (NY) Our Savior Lutheran)     An active forward on the glass, he combined with Chris McCullough to help his team have a strong rebounding presence.  He has some length and also showed a touch from mid-range at the offensive end.

Unique McLean (SG, Brooklyn (NY))     Very athletic guard can certainly get up off the ground, and he did that a few times as he got several breakaway dunks and an alley-oop off an inbounds pass.  The 14-under MVP is left-handed and clearly more of a scorer than a shooter, but as athletic as he is right now he doesn’t need to take jumpers to score.  He has yet to decide on a high school.

Chris McCullough (6’8″ So. PF, Bronx (NY) Salisbury School)     One of the top prospects in the class of 2014, he didn’t seem into the game at times but was still effective, especially on the glass.  He’s long and has long strides when running the floor, which he does very well, and he got stronger late in the game en route to 17 points and undoubtedly a double-digit rebound total.  In addition, he’s a good, unselfish passer, and even when his motor didn’t seem to be running he was a presence on the boards.

Shavar Newkirk (5’11″ So. PG, New York (NY) Cardinal Hayes HS)     This floor leader was attacking often, leading to scoring opportunities for himself and teammates.  In going for 19 points in a win on Saturday, he also knocked down a shot from long range and made a couple of nice passes.  The one constant was that he was in attack mode with the ball.

Chris Robinson (6’2″ So. SG, Bronx (NY) Cardinal Hayes HS)     Lanky guard showed some good offensive ability in a losing effort on Saturday, scoring 14 points.  He drove aggressively and will use his left (off) hand both to dribble and try to finish, while showing a decent jump shot from mid-range.

Quadree Smith (6’6″ So. PF, Fairfax (VA) Paul VI Catholic HS)     Undersized post player has a big body that is almost immovable off the low block.  Although he ran the floor reasonably well, he could certainly stand to improve his conditioning, but he was also a good rebounder and made a couple of nice outlet passes.  His offensive game certainly isn’t there yet, as evidenced in part by how he would unnecessarily put the ball on the floor under the basket.

Tom Sweeney (6’7″ So. PF, Ramsey (NJ) Don Bosco HS)     In helping his team to the championship game, he showed that he has some tools to be a nice face-up power forward.  While his body has some maturing to do, especially the upper body, he got some offensive boards and stickbacks while showing a nice touch shooting from mid-range and long range.  He scored 15 points in the semifinal game on a variety of jumpers, some at key junctures of the game.

Naim Thomas (5’11″ So. PG, Poughkeepsie (NY) Stepinac HS)     A solid passer at the point, he let others do the scoring while he was in his fair share of plays.  Not the biggest factor in his team’s win, he nonetheless contributed without showing up much in the box score.

Marcus Townes (6’3″ Jr. SG, (NJ) Cardinal McCarrick HS)     Well-built wing showed that he can handle and pass the ball, which helped since he played alongside a scoring point guard.  He scored 16 points in the semifinal, often scoring on drives with an ability to finish near the basket.

Jesse Warech (So. SG, Montville (NJ) High)     His body has a ways to go, but he shined with his shooting in a couple of Saturday games.  He opened the day with four three-pointers en route to 14 points, and was still a factor in a loss against a better team later in the day.

Mike Williams (6’3″ So. SG, Brooklyn (NY) Bishop Loughlin HS)     A scorer with a pretty good reputation, he did nothing to dispel that with a solid 22-point outing on Saturday.  He used his body at times and also showed a touch from long range with three three-pointers along the way.

Other players who caught our attention:

Raiquan Clark (6’2″ So. SG, New Haven (CT) Hillhouse HS)
Temple Gibbs (Scotch Plains (NJ))
Jaquan Hollingshed (6’5″ So. PF, Brooklyn (NY) Franklin D. Roosevelt HS)
Allante Holston (6’6″ So. SF, Washington (DC) St. John’s College HS)
Eric Long (6’6″ So. SF-PF, Bronx (NY) Cheshire Academy)
Quincy McKnight (6’3″ So. SG, Trumbull (CT) St. Joseph’s HS)
Doudny St. Hillaire (6’3″ So. SG, Brooklyn (NY) South Shore HS)
Alex Thomas (6’7″ So. PF, Hawthorne (NJ) Christian School)
Devyn Wilson (5’11″ So. PG, Brooklyn (NY) Bishop Loughlin HS)

“We have kind of flown under the radar, by Kansas standards of late, which I think has been very healthy for a team that’s just trying to find themselves,” said Self.

This year’s Kansas team didn’t strike the kind of fear into other teams that most Jayhawk teams do. Six of the top eight scorers were gone from last season’s team, and they took about 75 percent of the team’s scoring with them. As if that wasn’t enough, newcomers Ben McLemore, Jamari Traylor and Braeden Anderson were all partial qualifiers and could not play this season. McLemore figured to make an impact right away, while the other two figured to contribute as well, especially with a frontcourt that was unproven behind junior Thomas Robinson.

In short, a lot needed to happen for this to be anything like most seasons in Lawrence. And a lot has in order to get to this point.

Robinson would become one of the country’s best players, with most feeling the national Player of the Year is either him or Kentucky’s Anthony Davis. Tyshawn Taylor not only became an even better player than he already was and got past some of the growing pains he had last season, but he became a leader as well. With that, Elijah Johnson, who had his first career double-double on Saturday, developed into a dependable starter alongside him. Jeff Withey steadily improved from being a relative non-factor to a key man inside, and he blocked an NCAA semifinal-record seven shots on Saturday night. Travis Releford, a highly-touted prospect in high school who averaged less than nine minutes per game in his first two seasons in Lawrence (with a redshirt year sandwiched in between them), became a steady role player with an increased role. And Conner Teahen and Kevin Young have been serviceable backups.

Everyone has improved. In fact, the team’s first loss of the season is something that will be talked about leading up to this game. Kansas and Kentucky met back in November at the Champions Classic in New York. Kentucky won the game 75-65, and they did so going away. The Wildcats were the clearly better team and seemed to wear down the Jayhawks.

That was one more reason early on to think this wasn’t your typical Kansas team. But that changed a little starting with their trip to Maui immediately following that game, as they beat Georgetown and UCLA before a tough loss to Duke. A later loss to Davidson had Self concerned that the team was underachieving and not playing the way they needed to. But they followed that up with ten straight wins to close non-conference play and open the Big 12 slate.

Simply put, this team just got better from the beginning of the season, winning another Big 12 title.

“It don’t feel now like how it felt back then,” Johnson said. “Even being in the huddles, the quick timeouts and everything, it’s a total different team.”

“It’s remarkable to me to see how much these guys have matured, grown, trust each other,” Self said. “It’s been a blast to watch from the sidelines.”

This Jayhawk team isn’t very deep. They’re not as talented as past teams. A talented freshman guard, Naadir Tharpe, has played limited minutes with growing pains, looking like he is not quite ready yet. His limited minutes also speak to what Taylor has done – become an indispensable player they need on the floor. The Jayhawks have had to suspend him in the past, but he’s grown up, and Johnson even alluded to his leadership when talking about how this team has progressed. Now Taylor is helping to lead a team to an improbable run where they just find a way to win games.

“I felt like we were a couple steps away from being just as good as anybody else through the whole year,” said the senior guard. “I felt like we were missing just a couple different things that we had to tighten up and we could compete with everybody.”

On Monday night, they get one more chance to show exactly that, as well as how far this team has come from the start of the season. They weren’t supposed to be in this game, but they are, and Taylor’s feeling may prove to be more accurate than those of everyone else.

Here is a look at this year from train to Garden floor. Granted, it’s a plug for NJ Transit, but they were on time round trip and got me safely to and from both days.

• I arrive at 5:01 p.m. on Tuesday and see the first UMass shirt in the crowd. Right place, set to go.
• On Tuesday about an hour before game time, Steve Lappas, Art Hyland and myself are chatting down on the Garden floor. Steve, a former Villanova and UMass coach, is covering the NIT for Westwood One radio. Art has been the officiating supervisor in the Big East for 33 years. “Art I wasn’t that much of a pain in the ass at Villanova was I?” Lappas asks. ”Steve,” art replies, “you were a big pain in the ass.” Laughter unites the two that formerly “clashed” over officiating when Lappas roamed the ‘Nova sidelines in the latter part of the Nineties.
• Hyland is assigning the officials at the NIT Final Four. He goes on to tell about the Big East in the ‘80s when the coaches were icons. “You had Louie (Carnesecca) at St. John’s,” he recalled, “John Thompson at Georgetown, (Jim) Boeheim at Syracuse, Rollie (Massimino) at Villanova, every night it seemed the officials were working for a coaching legend or two.” A time, those of us fortunate enough to cover the Big East in those days, can look back on as vintage years.
• UMass has brought a huge contingent of fans, band, cheerleaders and two baton twirlers. More schools are having their twirlers perform at basketball games which is a good thing to see. I decide to get more information as my wife Karen is a former high school twirler maintaining an avid interest in it today. Turns out the UMass twirlers perform during timeouts and not at halftime. I ask the inevitable question: do you twirl with fire? “I like to,” says Jackie a sophomore. “It’s neat except sometimes you get a little burn on your arm.” The UMass twirling duo did not have fire at the Garden. But they were very talented.
• Favorite signs among the many UMass fans brought to New York: “Chaz for chancellor” and “Stanford was my safety school”. UMass and Stanford engaged in a competitive contest, one that captivated even fans of the teams in game two.
• After the UMass-Stanford game, a tough setback for the Minutemen, heading to the press room, see the UMass players posing with a gentleman. Asked the cheer coach who it was. “Victor Cruz,” she said. “Holy ‘excrement’ I am a Giants fan,” was my reply. I got a chance to meet with Cruz and speak a few minutes. The ice breaker was that he played in the New Jersey State Football Tournament for Paterson Catholic against my St. Mary’s (Rutherford) alma mater. We briefly discussed his incredible rise from just making the team to stardom. Cruz humbly remarked, “oh man it’s just been a crazy (in a good way) year.”
• A good portion of the crowd seems to exit following the first game. Those staying saw a good one as Minnesota edged Washington in overtime to advance to the finals.
• Thursday after the train ride into Penn Station, I stopped for a newspaper. At the stand, I ran into Mike Roberts, who was one of the officials with the honor of working the championship. We discussed officiating a few minutes before Roberts had to check in for pre-game meeting with his officiating crew.
• The Minnesota dance team limbers up about 40 minutes prior to tip off. On their “off day” they visited Ground Zero, SOHO, Times Square… To their dismay they did miss Tiffany and co. Have to give the team credit for knowing their basketball as they all were aware that coach Tubby Smith’s first name is actually Orlando.
• On the floor before the game, I met Joe Esposito through Fran Fraschilla of ESPN. Esposito is a director of operations on the Minnesota staff. He enjoys working with Tubby Smith but confesses that he wants to be a head coach some day. A Marist grad who roomed with Rik Smits as an undergrad, Esposito adds, “Coaching at Marist would be my dream job.” Dreams are great, but for the present working with Smith and being in an NIT final is not a bad reality.
• The Minnesota band is near me getting on Stanford’s Andrew Zimmerman as he warms up. I mention to one band member how Zimmerman looks like Ashton Kutcher on Two and a Half Men before he shaved his beard. The band member replied that the band members saw Charley Sheen on the Today Show earlier in the morning.
• The band is a nice group with a lot of enthusiasm the band even granted a request of yours truly from their play list. Ok, it was “Gimmee some lovin” a classic hit by the Spencer Davis Group a few decades back.
• Pre-game spoke with Dennis Allocco, the alternate official on the game. Dennis lives nearby, has attended officiating camp with and also assigns a few games to yours truly. “We are probably the only guys not at our (Board 33 officiating) banquet tonight,” Dennis joked. I went on to mention that we are at the only place you would want to be on this evening. Dennis agreed. It is quite an honor to be an alternate on this game, and in Dennis’ case, well-deserved.
• That Minnesota band and their followers were to exit the Garden disappointed. Stanford put on a defensive show in winning 75-51. The Cardinal had a small to modest contingent in numbers – in fact the final attendance was just under 5,500 – but they were heard loud and clear in post game celebrations. Stanford players soaked in the moment posing for pictures, cutting down the nets and simply basking in the moment. They cherished the moment and seemed not to want it to end.

Despite the final result, the Minnesota band enjoyed the NIT experience.

This tournament will do that to you. Especially if you emerge with the championship.

1. Defense. Exhibit a had to be the D. Good old man-to-man with denial and a physical presence in the paint. The Cardinal limited Minnesota to a 37 percent shooting night. Of greater importance was the forcing of the opposition into 22 turnovers. Those errors on the part of Minnesota led Stanford to an excellent 28-7 advantage in points off turnovers. “We saved the best for last,” Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins said. “We have had runs like this before but never in a game like this on this stage.”

The Cardinal led 31-25 at the half. After dominating the first four minutes of the second half, they were ahead by 15 and on their way thanks to that outstanding defense. “We missed, I thought, some easy baskets especially the first half,” Minnesota coach Tubby Smith said. “But we did not take good care of the of the ball at all.” Credit the Cardinal defensive effort for that.

2. Aaron Bright. The 5-11 sophomore guard is a player “who accepts his role,” according to Dawkins. Bright came off the bench in the first half to hit a few perimeter shots and trigger the break as Stanford opened up the lead at the half. Bright tied teammate Chasson Randle for scoring honors with 15 points. He did add 6 assists. For his impact in the 25 minutes on the floor, Bright was selected the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. “He (Bright) brought us a spark,” Dawkins said. “When he enters a game he changes everything because now the defense must react differently with him on the floor.”

3. Supporting cast. Stanford had a strong one, while the young Minnesota team was left wanting. The Cardinal enjoyed a 29-15 edge in bench scoring. Tubby Smith’s leading scorer, Rodney Williams, was defended aggressively. The Minnesota junior forward finished with a team-high 12 points. Williams shot just 4 of 9 and committed 4 turnovers. Andre Hollins and Joe Coleman added 10 points each but no one consistently rose to the occasion as a threat to complement Williams.

Minnesota finished up at 23-15. They played every NIT game away from home, winning at LaSalle, Miami (Fla.) and Middle Tennessee before venturing to New York. Stanford ended the year at 26-11 and played all three games at home prior to heading East. Their early round wins came against Cleveland State, Illinois State in overtime and Nevada.

Aaron Bright of Stanford gave a 25 minute Most Outstanding Player performance in the NIT championship.

“Looking back I can see this team actually started growing last April,” Dawkins said of his club. “We had a great Summer trip to Spain that just got us closer as a team. These guys are champions forever. No one can take that away from them. Anytime they walk into Maples (Pavilion, the Stanford home facility) that NIT championship banner will always be there to remind them about what they accomplished.”

The three points of emphasis:

1. Defense. UMass held Stanford to a 96 offensive efficiency and 36.9% shooting from the floor, On their end, the problem was Stanford was a bit better. The Cardinal limited the Minutemen to an 81 offensive efficiency and 33.8% shooting. A team that enjoys getting out in transition and shooting the three, UMass misfired from beyond the arc, hitting only 5 of 22 (22.7%). Credit the Cardinal defense as wide-open looks were not readily available.

1a. Defense on Chaz Williams. When a player earns game scoring honors (19 points) it may sound ludicrous to say you defended him well. In Williams’ situation, that was the case.  The outstanding UMass sophomore guard was limited to 7 of 18 shooting from the floor. He was 0 for 2 from three, handed out 3 assists and committed 4 turnovers. “We focused our defense to limit his (Williams) penetration and try to keep him out of the paint,” Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins said. The Cardinal did the job and despite Williams’ scoring, did a solid job containing him.

2. Tempo. Coach Derek Kellogg wanted to get Stanford into a faster pace. The mission was accomplished as the game was played at a very brisk 78 possession pace. The opening sequence of each half saw Stanford set up a set resulting in a post move by Josh Owens. Dawkins felt establishing an inside game would be significant in establishing a half court tempo. The Minutemen were still able to force the tempo through full court pressure and forcing 17 Cardinal turnovers. The uptempo pace did not prove as effective for UMass due to the sub par shooting as noted and….

3. Rebounding. Both coaches mentioned the difference being Stanford’s ability to rebound on the offensive end. They pulled down 19 offensive rebounds en route to a 54-45 overall rebounding edge. Those offensive boards kept possessions alive for Stanford, as well as forcing UMass to send more to the boards, thus eliminating some potential transition opportunities.

Stanford was led by Anthony Brown’s 18 points. Four players were in double figures for the Pac-12 representatives. Owens was a force in the paint with 15 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks.  Beside Williams, the only other UMass player in double figures was Freddie Riley with 10 points.

UMASS cheerleaders had a surprise visit from alum and NY Giant favorite, Victor Cruz

The NIT run capped off a very satisfying season for Kellogg and company. “We  were picked 12^th (in the Atlantic 10),” he said. “I knew and our team knew we were better. We played this season as if we wanted to prove something.”

They did just that and in the final contest, left it all on the Garden floor.

The question one has to ask, though, is something else: why would George Mason and VCU leave the CAA for the Atlantic 10?

Yeager spoke to about 50 members of the media about the rumors on Monday, starting off by calling it basically a “non-story”. VCU and George Mason each issued statements from their athletic directors denying the rumors, and Yeager noted that a piece of information of note in the report was not as substantive as it might first appear to the untrained eye.

The CBSSports.com report cited sources saying that VCU’s Board of Visitors has had at least two meetings about it, but Yeager said those meetings are open to the public and regularly covered by assigned media, which is hardly a forum in which such a move would be discussed. If a school is considering a move to another conference, those discussions would be held in a much more private setting.

As many an athletic director has said one thing and then done another regarding conference affiliation in recent times, Yeager admits he can’t know with 100 percent certainly if honesty is going on here. But it’s all he’s got, and Tom O’Connor (George Mason) and Norwood Teague (VCU) have top-notch reputations as athletic directors go.

“I am taking our people at their word,” said Yeager. “We have personal and professional relationships.”

Not only that, but he has to ask the same question about the possibility of the schools leaving for the Atlantic 10: why? Why would they make that move if it were a possibility?

George Mason and VCU are well-positioned to win most years in the CAA. Both schools have finished in the top five in the conference in each of the past five seasons, and each has made a Final Four run in the past seven seasons. Since 2003-04, at least one of them has been in the conference championship game in all but two seasons. With their success, recruiting is only getting better, and that shouldn’t change.

Furthermore, they are Virginia schools in a conference with five schools in that state, with a lot going for them that helps them recruit even aside from the past success. George Mason is a charter member, and in VCU’s case, their campus is right down the road from the site of the conference tournament, although it’s worth noting that during that weekend, the team stays in a hotel about 15-20 minutes away. Leaving the conference simply wouldn’t make sense, unless the Big East or ACC is coming calling.

Yeager alluded to this when he made the analogy of coaches staying at one school instead of jumping for what may be perceived as a better job. Sure, George Mason and VCU could be competitive in the Atlantic 10, which is good but not exactly light years better than the CAA, but is it better to be competitive or to have a chance to win most years?

“Sometimes there are other factors involved that cause people to appreciate where they are,” said Yeager.

The conference is in a good place right now, and it’s hard to see where the Atlantic 10 would have enough to offer them to blow them away. Last season was the CAA’s best ever, and while this season was a step back if one uses solely the number of NCAA Tournament teams as the measuring stick, there’s a lot of young talent in the conference that will start to show soon. In addition, CAA teams have continued to be well-represented in other postseason tournaments, which often gives younger teams more practice and game time and has helped them have greater success when those young players have developed. VCU is one such example, winning the CBI two years ago before the success of the past two seasons, and a year earlier Old Dominion won the CollegeInsider.com Tournament.

In February, the conference reached a major agreement with NBC Sports that will only further grow the conference’s national television exposure in football as well as men’s basketball. Sure, the Atlantic 10 has a national television deal as well, but is it really that much better, especially with 14 schools already (soon to be 13 once Temple departs for the Big East)?

Right now, the CAA is in a very good place. It’s a powerhouse in football and growing in men’s basketball, appears to have stable membership, and because of that there is no real reason for the conference to even seek new members. With the recent success, many teams are seeing benefits in recruiting; George Mason and VCU are among those who are reaping them even more so from their own success. Yeager was asked if the conference had looked into adding new members and said there is no need to.

“We’re in a very good place, and we believe that we could expand if we wanted to, but right now, we’re continuing to work towards getting better next year with the team we’ve got,” said Yeager.

At the rate the conference is going, next year will be better than this year, a trend that should continue. George Mason and VCU have plenty of reason to remain part of it.