The 49ers loaded up their nonconference slate with the likes of Kansas, North Carolina, San Diego State, Louisville and Xavier. The team struggled through many of those games, ending up with a 7-6 record heading into Big West play.

But don’t be fooled. The 49ers were more than competitive against the big boys, with single-digit losses on the road at San Diego State, Kansas and North Carolina. Plus, the 49ers beat Pittsburgh, Xavier and Auburn. None of those are particularly outstanding — the Xavier win came during the Musketeers’ tailspin following the brawl against Cincinnati. But in short, Dan Monson’s team learned how to win and how to believe in itself.

This team has taken that lesson and applied it well through the first seven games of Big West play. Long Beach State sits atop the conference standings with a 7-0 record, and only Cal Poly stayed within 10 points of the 49ers.

If Long Beach State can continue to plow through the Big West and claim an automatic to the NCAA Tournament, the 49ers should be a popular first-round upset pick. Their lack of hefty wins will prevent the team from earning a seed much higher than a No. 12 or 13 spot. But that just makes this team a sound pick to upset any No. 4 or 5 seed from a major conference on a neutral court.

The benefits of such a tough schedule might not show up in the win-loss columns immediately. But if Long Beach State goes 1-1 or 2-0 during the first weekend of March, that tournament success will be partially due to the team’s preparation early in the season.

We take you coast to coast with news from around the college basketball nation.

Murray State will get back leading rebounder Ivan Aska, who grabs 6.0 rpg and scores 12.6 ppg, for the team’s game against Eastern Illinois Saturday, according to the Associated Press.

Michigan could have big Jon Horford back for the Wolverines’ game against Purdue Tuesday, coach John Beilein told Wolverine Nation’s Chantel Jennings for ESPN.com. Horford has been out with a stress fracture since early December.

Arguably the most intense and spite-filled rivalry in the ACC, Maryland and Duke will clash for the first time this season Wednesday night in College Park. And the Terrapins will likely have freshman 7-footer Alex Len, even though he twisted his ankle during the Terps’ loss at Temple last weekend, according to the Washington Post’s Liz Clarke.

Of course, that’s no disrespect to the North Carolina vs. Duke rivalry. And this year, coach Roy Williams won’t have his best defender, Dexter Strickland, who tore his ACL in the team’s win against Virginia Tech Thursday, according ESPN.com’s Robbi Pickeral.

Arkansas coach Mike Anderson is considering adding a hometown hero to the Razorbacks squad, according to the Associated Press. Former Oklahoma State guard Fred Gulley has enrolled at Arkansas and plans to play for Anderson as a walk-on or scholarship player. He was a star high school basketball player in Arkansas before leaving the state to play for the Cowboys.

Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan railed against the rule that allows graduated players to transfer and play immediately during a news conference Monday, writes Benjamin Worgull for Badger Nation.com.

Friday:

• Creighton at Illinois State
• Cleveland State at Butler
• Missouri State at Northern Iowa
• Seton Hall at South Florida

Saturday:

• UNLV at San Diego State
• Alabama at Mississippi State
• New Mexico at Wyoming
• Kentucky at Tennessee
• North Carolina at Florida State
• Rutgers at West Virginia
• Texas at Missouri
• Colorado at Stanford
• St. Bonaventure at Xavier
• Connecticut at Notre Dame
• Kansas State at Oklahoma
• NC State at Wake Forest
• Oregon at Arizona
• Ohio at Akron
• UCF at Marshall
• La Salle at Dayton

Sunday:

• Indiana at Ohio State
• Cleveland State at Valparaiso
• Youngstown State at Butler
• Loyola (Md.) at Iona
• Georgia Tech at Maryland
• Washington State at Washington

We go coast to coast with news from around the college basketball nation.

In case you missed it earlier this week, Pitt kinda struggled against Rutgers. And by kinda, we mean the Panthers totally stunk. According to ESPN.com’s “College Basketball Nationg” blog, the Panthers had their worst home performance in more than 60 years, scoring only 39 points in the 23-point embarrassment against the Scarlet Knights.

Texas Tech’s Terran Petteway will miss tomorrow’s game against Texas A&M because coach Billy Gillispie suspended Petteway for elbowing Kansas’ Connor Teahan, earning himself an ejection, according to an Associated Press report.

Chairs, beware. Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said he has no regrets for slamming a chair on the court to motivate the Hawkeyes during a 28-point beatdown at Michigan State, according to an Associated Press report.

Fresh off a national championship in football, Alabama fans got to stick it to LSU once again Wednesday night when the Tigers came to Tuscaloosa. One of the more creative Bama fans brought a sign that mocked the Tigers football team’s struggle in getting past midfield in the BCS Championship Game, writes USA Today’s Nicol Auerbach. Check out the Tide fan’s cheeky taunts here.

Former Clemson guard Cory Stanton hopes he’s found a basketball home in Knoxville after walking on to the Volunteers, according to an Associated Press report. Stanton arrives at Tennessee via Lipscomb after playing one season at Clemson.

As of Jan. 9, the Orange look an awful lot like the best team in the country. But considering that it’s still early January, that’s not terribly surprising. The question is whether Syracuse will still look like the best team in college hoops in another two months as the NCAA Tournament approaches.

Since the Orange won the championship in 2003, Syracuse has made a habit of starting hot, building a record at least nine games better than .500 each season. In half of those seasons, the Orange have had a record as gaudy as at least 15 games better than .500.

But each season, the team has fallen apart for one reason or another. In some cases, it’s a lack of leadership to handle adversity when the team inevitably drops a tough Big East game or two. In other cases, the downfall has been rifts in team chemistry, sometimes leading to suspensions or poor play. And injuries have factored into a few of the collapses.

In sum, Syracuse has not finished a season better than three games above .500 after the Orange’s struggles creep into the picture. Why would this team be any different?

To start, this team has fantastic depth. Ten players average at least 12 minutes per game. Seven players contribute at least seven ppg, but no one scores more than 14.1 ppg, and that’s senior swingman Kris Joseph. In addition, the Orange have superior height than nearly any other team in Division I, with nine players who stand 6’4” or taller.

Coach Jim Boeheim has helped this team navigate through the tumultuous Bernie Fine affair without any semblance of a disturbance on the court. Compared to the off court drama, Boeheim must be happy dealing with any complaints about playing time that come from his talented players — if there have been any at all. Only two players are averaging more than 25 minutes per game, but as far as we can tell, everyone has embraced his role on the team. And that is leading to win after win.

At some point, the Orange will likely drop a game or two in Big East play. Road games against Cincinnati, St. John’s, Louisville, Rutgers and Connecticut are potential land mines. But unlike in recent years, this team seems built to overcome the struggles of one night. Boeheim has the Orange playing their best basketball in eight years, according to Ken Pomeroy’s efficiency stats. If Syracuse can maintain its 1.202 points per possession on offense and 0.883 points per possession on defense, both those numbers will be the best marks for offensive and defensive efficiency for the years that Pomeroy has data available (since 2003).

In a season filled with talented teams, Syracuse has earned its No. 1 ranking, and the Orange should remain near the top from wire to wire. And for Syracuse fans, a strong finish to bookend a strong start would be a refreshing change of pace.

We go coast to coast with news from around the college basketball nation.

Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman is in the thick of serious allegations after several people at the Bears’ game at South Carolina State said the coach punched Morgan State senior Larry Bastfield during the game, according to ESPN.com news services. The school has indefinitely suspended Bozeman while looking into the accusations. Bozeman and Bastfield say the news is much ado about nothing — with that nothing being an accidental bump during the game, as Bastfield described it.

Xavier coach Chris Mack made his point, then paid the price. Mack missed the past couple of days after tearing a tendon in his left knee while dunking to re-energize the struggling Musketeers, who are 2-5 in the past few weeks, writes USA Today’s Marlen Garcia.

Arizona State coach Herb Sendek has accepted the departure of leading scorer Keala King, who left a few days after Sendek suspended him for unacceptable conduct, according to a CBS Sports.com wire report. King’s departure is a massive loss for a pretty bad Sun Devils team. King averaged 13.7 ppg, 4.9 rpg and 3.3 apg.

St. John’s scored a talented point guard when former Texas A&M sophomore Jamal Branch decided to transfer to the Red Storm, writes the New York Daily News’ Roger Rubin. Branch averaged 4.2 ppg and 2.5 apg for the Aggies, and he chose St. John’s over several other suitors.

Michael Jordan’s son Jeff has decided to leave Central Florida, according to an Associated Press report. His brother, Marcus, remains with the Golden Knights, as Jeff cited personal reasons for his decision.

The NCAA is entering new levels of ridiculous mismanagement. The Associated Press reports that the NCAA might reconsider giving new scholarship student-athletes a $2,000 stipend, though it would have to allow players who have already signed letters of intent to receive the extra cash while banning those who sign later.

Ohio State superstar Jared Sullinger is still hurting from recurring back spasms, and coach Thad Matta didn’t want to say when Sullinger will be back in the lineup for the Buckeyes, according to a CBS Sports.com wire report. But Sullinger answered that question Wednesday night when the Buckeyes beat down USC Upstate 82-58 and Sullinger played 24 minutes and got 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Nobody will face criminal charges in the Xavier/Cincinnati brawl, the Associated Press reports. Joe Deters, a Hamilton County, Ohio, prosecutor, looked into the matter, deciding not to pursue charges against anyone. One of the factors was Xavier center Kenny Frease’s satisfaction with an apology from Cincinnati’s Yancy Gates, who decked Frease in the head during the debacle.

Seton Hall will gain some more depth this weekend with the return of freshman Brandon Mobley, who had been out with a dislocated shoulder and torn labrum since the summer, according to the Associated Press.

Don’t skip your court appearances. Nothing good can happen. Just ask Kansas’ Ben McLemore. The freshman is under arrest after skipping a Dec. 6 court appearance for a citation related to underage alcohol possession, according to a CBS Sports.com wire report.

Also on the list of bad behavior is taunting fans by grabbing your crotch. New Mexico State sophomore Christian Kabongo did that, and now he’s suspended, writes Diamond Leung for ESPN.com’s “College Basketball Nation” blog.

Syracuse still has Melo — Fab Melo that is. If you thought I was talking about Carmelo Anthony, well, I kinda was. The NBA star who led the Cuse to a championship is convinced that Melo 2.0 and the rest of the crew have the talent to win another championship for the first time since 2003.

I’m not gonna lie — I love the fan experience. And if you tell me that a team in California’s tradition is to throw tortillas when a victory is in hand, I find it amusing. I mean, a flying tortilla — presumably uncooked soft tortilla — won’t hurt anyone. Except when your team is only up two and the officials consider giving the home crowd a technical. Yep, that’s how UC-Santa Barbara’s 65-61 win against San Diego went down, writes Diamond Leung for ESPN.com. When the fans started tossing tortillas, the officials considered tossing out a T. They opted to go with a public announcement that any more thrown items would produce two free throws for the Toreros. The fans settled down, and the Gauchos won.

We’re talking about two top 10 teams there, with NBA-caliber talent on the roster. The Bears’ Perry Jones III has been a beast since becoming eligible, and the Tigers’ Marcus Denmon, Phil Pressey and Ricardo Ratliffe are playing out of their minds.

That’s all true, but we’re going in a different direction: Oklahoma’s Steven Pledger.

Really?

The stats don’t lie for Lon Kruger’s top player, who has helped the Sooners get out to a 7-1 start. That includes some decent wins against Arkansas and Washington State. I love Missouri and think the Tigers are a Final Four-caliber squad, but they need to prove it against teams better than Navy, Binghamton and Niagara. Yes, they have respectable wins against Villanova and California, but overall, the strength of schedule is abysmal. Plus a team filled with talent can cause all sorts of match up problems, which benefits everyone on the roster. Oklahoma has far fewer options, yet Pledger remains ridiculously productive. Let’s take a closer look.

Based on Hoopville’s Total Impact Quotient player rating system, Pledger had a mediocre TIQ of 18.1 points per 40 minutes last season. The junior guard has nearly doubled that to 34.7 points per 40 minutes this season despite playing nearly an identical number of minutes per game.

For Pledger, it starts behind the arc, where he’s shooting a phenomenal 17-of-36, or 47.2 percent. That’s in comparison to a pedestrian 35.0 percent last season. But Pledger didn’t stop his improvement there. He’s shooting an amazing 57.7 percent from the field overall, 66.7 percent inside the arc. For a guy that shot worse than 40 percent from the field in his first two seasons, that improvement is utterly astounding.

We’ll see if Pledger can maintain this shooting streak, especially when the Sooners open the Big 12 schedule with back-to-back games against Missouri and Kansas. But he’s doing more than just scoring for Kruger. Pledger also averages 3.0 rpg and 2.1 apg. His defense is also significantly better, with 11 steals on the season. He only got 11 steals in his entire freshman season.

Several other Big 12 players have made significant strides since last season.

• Baylor’s Perry Jones III: 35.9 TIQ this season; 24.4 TIQ last season (+11.5)
• Missouri’s Marcus Denmon: 37.1 TIQ this season; 27.8 TIQ last season (+9.3)
• Oklahoma’s Cameron Clark: 26.2 TIQ this season; 17.1 TIQ last season (+9.1)
• Texas A&M’s Ray Turner: 30.1 TIQ this season; 21.1 TIQ last season (+9.0)
• Oklahoma’s C.J. Washington: 27.3 TIQ this season; 18.4 TIQ last season (+8.9)
• Missouri’s Ricardo Ratliffe: 35.1 TIQ this season; 26.8 TIQ last season (+8.3)
• Iowa State’s Bubu Palo: 25.1 TIQ this season; 17.1 TIQ last season (+8.0)
• Texas’ J’Covan Brown: 35.7 TIQ this season; 27.8 TIQ last season (+7.7)

If the average Total Impact Quotient means anything, the Big 12 and Big Ten have a slight edge over the Big East. Our player rating system credits players for all the various contributions they make during a game, such as points scored, assists, blocks, steals, etc. The Big 12 and Big Ten players average 24.1 points per game, with the Big East not far behind at 23.9 points per game. All three conferences are a cut above the ACC, Pac-12 and SEC, which we critiqued last week.

Although the Big 12 and Big Ten have the slight edge, the Big East has the most productive player of any power conference team. Pittsburgh’s Travon Woodall has been in beast mode all season, at least until a groin injury and abdominal tear forced Woodall to the sidelines for one month. That’s about the only thing that’s been able to stop Woodall, who is shooting 52 percent from the field, 46 percent from 3-point range and 85 percent from the free throw line.

In addition to scoring at a very efficient rate, Woodall has been one of the best floor leaders in Division I thus far, averaging 8.3 apg. The cherry on top is Woodall’s 3.4 rpg. He’s got four double-doubles already this season, coming three rebounds short of a triple-double in the Panthers’ 86-78 win against Rider in the second game of the season.

Let’s take a look at the top 10 most productive players for each conference, ranked by TIQ per 40 minutes. Here are the conference averages.

Big 12 = 24.1
Big East = 23.9
Big Ten = 24.1

Big 12

Big East

Big Ten

Now that’s take a closer look at production based on playing time. For this, we’re labeling players who play at least 80 percent of his team’s possible minutes as Heavy Usage guys. Players who log 60-80 percent of their team’s minutes are in the Major Contributors category, while everyone else qualifies for In the Rotation.

Big 12

Big East

Big Ten

And here’s the full TIQ player ratings for the Big 12, Big East and Big Ten. The TIQ listings are sorted by team and Real TIQ per Game.

Big 12

Big East

Big Ten

1. Tempo Free gives us a better look. Following the victory over Stanford, Jim Boeheim said his Syracuse team played 35 minutes of “horrendous offense” and five (in the stretch) of good. A tempo free look shows the Orange had 72 possessions and a 96 offensive efficiency (points per possession times 100). The 96 is a bit below average. Boeheim lamented that his offense needed work and thankfully the defense was good both days.

Against Virginia Tech in the semifinals, a 69-58 Syracuse victory, the Orange had 61 possessions for a 113 offensive efficiency, which is quite impressive.  So the offense for the two games could be considered a bit above average overall – excellent against Virignia Tech and and subpar in the Stanford game. Those first 35 minutes of the championship game were on the Syracuse coaching staff’s concern while tempo free numbers tell us the Orange did not have that poor a showing looking at their two contests at the Garden. The two games combined saw Syracuse with 138 points over 133 possessions, a 104 offensive efficiency. Over 100 is considered above average.

2. The defense was good. Syracuse held Virginia Tech to a 95 efficiency and Stanford a 91. Both marks are considered well above average defensive efficiencies. Boeheim was right on the money praising his defense as solid both days. Tempo free numbers bear him out on this.

3. The consolation game was fun. Exciting and down to the final possession. Virginia Tech edged Oklahoma State 59-57. The Cowboys got out to a fast 8-0 lead over the game’s opening four minutes. Virginia Tech did not panic and rebounded, literally and figuratively. The Hokies pounded the glass, getting second chance opportunities which spelled conversions and/or frequent trips to the charity stripe. Sophomore guard Markel Brown, a game-high 19 point scorer, provided an offensive spark for Oklahoma State.  But it was not enough. As coach Travis Ford pointed out, his Oklahoma state club allowing 21 offensive rebounds and 30 free throw attempts was too much to overcome.

4. Melo was a stuffer and other tempo free items . This had nothing to do with leftovers from Thursday’s feast. Fab Melo, Syracuse’s seven-foot sophomore center, had a “stat stuffing” game against Stanford. Melo scored six points on 3 of 6 shooting. He added nine rebounds while blocking three shots and coming up with three steals. His Manley efficiency number was 16, the game’s second-highest only trailing MOP  Kris Joseph. Melo did not get All-Tournament honors but his play drew the praise of Boeheim and his Syracuse teammates.

Notes

• A big factor in Virginia Tech’s consolation win was dictating pace. Oklahoma State entered the game a speedy 72 possession per game team. Virginia Tech forced them into a pedestrian 56 possession tempo. In addition, the Cowboys scored only two transition points. Another factor was freshman forward Dorian Finney-Smith’s 10-point, 14-rebound (8 offensive) performance.
• Stanford had an outstanding 50% offensive rebound percentage in the final. Syracuse, though, was on their heels with a 47% mark. Both rates are outstanding. Melo (5) and Joseph (4) combined for nine of Syracuse’s 16 offensive boards.
• Syracuse actually had an eFG percentage of 51% in the final. The sore spot which brought Boeheim’s concerns of offensive improvement was an alarmingly high 29% TO rate on 21 turnovers. Stanford, thanks to a solid Syracuse defense, was actually worse at 35% (24 turnovers). Stanford coach Johnny Dawkins made reference to how long the Syracuse defenders are and how they disrupt the passing lanes , thus creating turnovers.
• Preparing for Syracuse’s zone, especially if you never faced it is tough. You can break it down on tape but simulating it in practice is very difficult. It’s an active zone with, as Dawkins noted, long defenders that take away options and shots usually available in other 2-3 alignments.
• Stanford shot almost as well from three 7 of 18 (39%) as from two point range 17-38 (45%).
• The Cardinal were also hurt by Josh Owens, a double-digit scorer, putting up only 4 points on 2 of 7 shooting.

The Honors:

Most Outstanding Player: Kris Joseph, Syracuse

All-Tournament:

C.J. Fair, Syracuse

Dion Waiters, Syracuse

Aaron Bright, Stanford

Erick Green, Virginia Tech.

For the main course, we’re serving a few turkeys that have crept up in the college basketball nation. These conferences, teams, players and — in one case — an entire city’s judicial/law enforcement institution just aren’t getting the job done for one reason or another.

Some of these look tastier than others, but all will be heading to the chopping block if they don’t shape up soon. Some much-needed improvement could save these proverbial turkeys from the fate awaiting their avian namesakes across the country.

After the entrees, we’ve got a delicious spread of all-American winners that are worth saving room for — just like that pumpkin or apple pie. In the Protos household, my mother has added a German chocolate pie to the mix that is as mouth-watering as its more traditionally American pastries. Perhaps we need a new name for the pie. Or maybe not, as one of the coaches that we name has a distinctly Central European flavor.

Let’s get to the tryptophan-inducers first.

J’Covan Brown

How can someone putting up more than 26 ppg be on a list of turkeys? Well, when you get kicked out of a game for swearing and your young teammates subsequently choke up a double-digit lead in a few minutes, you become a turkey. Brown is absolutely essentially to a Longhorns team dominated by freshmen. After picking up a fourth foul midway through the second half against NC State, Brown protested the call with a vulgarity en route to his bench during a timeout. The referee took offense and gave Brown at technical and fifth personal, thus ending his night and beginning the Wolfpack’s comeback.

Colonial Athletic Association

The CAA isn’t exactly off to a great start, just months removed from sending VCU to the Final Four. The conference’s preseason favorite, Drexel, dropped a game to Norfolk State and then scored only 35 points in a loss to Virginia. George Mason has two overtime losses already, to Florida International and Florida Atlantic. Every team except Northeastern has at least two losses already, and five teams haven’t won more than one game.

UCLA

It’s messy out in Westwood. Heading into tonight’s game against Michigan, the Bruins are still looking for their first win against a Division I team after losing to Kansas in Maui and Loyola Marymount and Middle Tennessee State — by 20 — at home. The team can’t hit anything right now, and Reeves Nelson earned a suspension for sulking during the team’s opening loss to Loyola Marymount. There’s time to turn it around, but if they don’t, Howland might take much of the blame for this sloppiness.

The Syracuse edition of law & order

There’s no bigger turkey in college basketball right now than the attorneys and police officials in Syracuse, N.Y. They’re not even related to Orange basketball, but they have been thrust into the spotlight by accusations that Syracuse assistant coach Bernie Fine molested two ball boys over a span of more than a decade. The sordid story has devolved into people calling one another liars, and we need a functional investigation to get even close to realizing justice and revealing the truth. But the Syracuse district attorney’s office and police chief are too busy blaming each other for bungling the original investigation last decade. The DA has accused the police chief of hiding information while the police officers are calling the attorneys incompetent and unresponsive.

And now let’s enjoy some good stuff.

Coastal Carolina

The Chanticleers are back in business after injuries and suspensions derailed a promising season last February. Coastal Carolina already has knocked off power conferences foes LSU and Clemson — with the victory against the Tigers coming on the road. Besides a road game at East Carolina and a home date with Charleston, the Chanticleers look setup to post another gaudy record, which could earn this team an at-large bid if needed. That’d be a major accomplishment for the Big South.

Cleveland State

It’s certainly far more common for the Horizon League to get some extra love in the NCAA Tournament than the Big South, and the conference is certainly on the basketball nation’s radar after Butler made two consecutive trips to the title game. But with Norris Cole gone this season, the Vikings didn’t appear to be the team to beat in the conference. They certainly are playing the part after taking out Vanderbilt and Kent State on the road and a strong St. Bonaventure team at home by Lake Erie.

The cream of the crop

The top teams in the country have looked strong thus far, as North Carolina, Kentucky, Ohio State, Syracuse, Connecticut and Duke have performed well against some stiff competition. As mentioned plenty of times, the top teams are returning an unusual amount of top talent, thanks in large part to the NBA lockout. We should be in store for a fantastic season with plenty of epic match ups, especially come March and April.

Coach K

Speaking of Duke, coach Mike Krzyzewski notched one of the sweetest accomplishments in sports in 2011 by surpassing his mentor, Bob Knight, for the most Division I wins in NCAA coaching history. Coach K has Duke in contention for ACC and NCAA titles nearly every season, a testament to his ability to adapt to a changing game and remain in the forefront for multiple generations of ballers.

Missouri Valley

The MVC might be the new CAA, which had been the new MVC anyways. Creighton, Wichita State, Indiana State, Northern Iowa and even Missouri State look like they could be in NCAA Tournament contention by the end of the regular season. Creighton annihilated Iowa on in Des Moines, while Wichita State dispatched Colorado and looked strong against Alabama and Temple.

Norfolk State

A week after losing to Marquette by 31 points, the Spartans regrouped to win three straight — including games against Drexel and TCU — before taking Marquette to the final possession in a rematch in the Paradise Jam title game in the Virgin Islands.

Results:

• Consolation: NC State 77, Texas 74
• Championship: Vanderbilt 64, Oregon State 62

 1. Resiliency

This word has been used frequently as a number of teams have shown the admirable trait of coming from behind, especially in the face of second-half deficits. In the consolation game, NC State battled back from an 18-point deficit to defeat Texas 77-74. As several Wolfpack players noted, coming off Saturday’s loss to Vanderbilt, it would have been easy to pack it in faced with a long road back in the consolation.

In the final, Oregon State fell behind by nine early in the second half. Vanderbilt seemed to be in control with momentum. Regardless, the Pac-12′s representative never quit and remained in the game down to the final possession.

It is early, so you could say teams are in a better mindset and more willing to battle back. That is part of the story, and there’s also a rationale for crediting comebacks to coaches who are working to establish a good attitude. By instilling that concept, teams will know it’s not time to hit the panic button when staring at a double-digit deficit.

2. Players should not use profanity, especially when you can be heard.

With just more than eight minutes to play in the consolation game, Texas’ J’Covan Brown was whistled for his fourth foul. As coach Rick Barnes was substituting, Brown walked to the bench, remarking that the call was BS. Brown did not use those initials. He was hit with a technical, which spelled a fifth foul and disqualification. Minus their main offensive threat, Texas eventually gave up a 12-point lead and lost to NC State.

Officials are instructed to use game management techniques. For instance, if Brown made that remark so that only he and the official heard it, the official might have just warned Brown to watch his language and that another outburst could hurt his team. Brown made the remark so that it was audible on press row and probably by a few front row patrons. The official, Earl Walton, had no choice but to call a T. Even coach Rick Barnes said it was the right call, adding that Brown “is a veteran and should be more aware that something like that hurts your team.”

3. Tempo free.

Texas posted a 117 offensive efficiency against Oregon State in the semifinals and 111 in the consolation game against NC State. Those figures should get you two wins, but not when you allow a 127 and 113 against your respective opposition. Clearly, there is some defensive work needed for these young Longhorns.

Vanderbilt survived a 32 percent turnover rate in the final against Oregon State. Vanderbilt coach Kevin Stallings was quick to credit Oregon State’s tough defense but did note his club needed to care for the ball a lot better. Although Vanderbilt committed 22 turnovers, Oregon State had 17 of their own for another high 24 percent turnover rate.

Vanderbilt — and specifically Jeff  Taylor — did a nice job holding Oregon State’s Jared Cunningham, a 26 ppg scorer, to nine points. OSU coach Craig Robinson said Cunningham will see a lot of defensive pressure but can impact the game in other ways. The senior guard did just that with seven steals in the championship.

The Manley efficiency formula shows MVP John Jenkins had only a 6 for the championship game against Oregon State. That was not a problem for the Commodores as he scored 14 points and hit a big 3-pointer late in the game.

Former St. Anthony’s High School product Devon Collier led all scorers with 19 in the final. The Oregon State sophomore forward had an outstanding Manley efficiency of 25.

Honors:

MVP: John Jenkins, Vanderbilt

All-Tournament:

• C.J. Leslie, NC State
• Sheldon McClellan, Texas
• Jared Cunningham, Oregon State
• Jeff Taylor, Vanderbilt

That said, we’ve got some fairly expected results here in addition to the unexpected. For example, who would guessed that after about a week, Kansas’ Kevin Young would have the biggest impact per 40 minutes of any Jayhawk? But that’s the kind of TIQ that a player can post when he shoots 6-of-8 from the field in 16 minutes — and grabs nine rebounds while committing only one turnover. Of course, there’s no guarantee that Young, who averages eight minutes per game, would really have that much of an impact if given more playing time.

That’s where the Real TIQ per Game comes into play. For that measure, we basically multiply a players TIQ per 40 Minutes by the percent playing time he actually logs.

So sticking with the Big 12 analysis, Texas’ J’Covan Brown is by far the most productive player in the conference through the first week and change. He’s putting up 47.3 points per game in Real TIQ. That’s nearly 14 points better than the No. 2 player in the conference, Iowa State’s Royce White with 33.9 points per game.

Brown has been the dominant veteran on a really young Longhorns team. In three games, he’s got 88 points, 23 assists, 16 rebounds, six steals, 28-of-55 shooting from the field and 13-of-27 from 3-point range. Brown has put up those numbers against Boston University, Rhode Island and Oregon State, which aren’t the most challenging teams in the world, but they’re not exactly cream puffs either.

Let’s get into the TIQ charts, which are presented in descending order of TIQ per 40 minutes. If someone looks unusually high on the list for a team, check out his percent playing time. Then ask whether you think that player would continue to produce with more playing time. The answer is usually probably not.

Average TIQ per 40 Minutes = 26.3 points

Average Real TIQ per Game = 14.3 points

BIG 12

BIG EAST

BIG TEN