The NCAA’s $2,000 hot mess

We go coast to coast with other news from the college basketball nation

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.

Crosstown Shootout hurts city of Cincinnati most

There is no doubt that you know what happened in my home city of Cincinnati on Saturday afternoon.

One of the best rivalries in all of sports — not just college basketball — was taking place just a couple of minutes from where I sit writing this. The Crosstown Shootout is something that not many people outside of Cincinnati fully understand.

The best way I can describe it is to make a small correlation to the Civil War. We’ve all heard stories about brothers fighting brothers over their differing beliefs.

That is the case in Cincinnati. I can think of more than a few examples of families that have both die-hard University of Cincinnati supporters and die-hard Xavier University supporters. … Continue Reading

Stepping back to look beyond basketball

This past weekend has reminded us that there are bigger things than basketball. Most teams are off for final exams for some/all of this week, and a major brawl on Saturday also brought out that sentiment. While we’ll have more on the brawl later, right now there’s something else to think about in keeping with the theme.

I’m sure others have said it, but I remember ESPN’s Buster Olney once remarking that when you’re in the media, you become a fan of the game instead of a particular team. It’s very true, and part of that is being a fan of the people involved in the game. This is a people business in every respect, and those who succeed the most in this industry, no matter what capacity they are in, know how to deal with people.

To that end, I give you Ken Dempsey, the associate head coach at New Hampshire. Tuesday is an important day for him.

Dempsey recently shared on the National Coaches’ Diary Series on College Chalktalk that he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer. On Tuesday, he goes for surgery to address it, and will take an undetermined leave of absence from the basketball team. He is not the first and won’t be the last college coach to have to deal with this dreaded disease, but fortunately the outlook is good and there’s some personal significance.

We all have people who have helped us get where we are. Dempsey has helped many people in that respect in 25 years of coaching at several Division I schools, but it isn’t just players who have benefited from knowing him. I have no better friend in basketball than Ken Dempsey.

When I was an undergraduate at Northeastern, Dempsey joined the basketball staff when Dave Leitao took over as the head coach my freshman year. Dempsey was the first coach I met, and after a badly failed attempt to walk on to the team, he didn’t forget me. I would see him around the gym (back then, Cabot Gym was not only where the team practiced, but also the student recreational facility), especially if I was playing basketball before the team came to practice. He sensed that I liked the game, and encouraged me to join them as a manager. I would stop by the office and have conversations with him and Darryl Hilliard, also an assistant there at the time, and the relationship grew from there.

The next year, I became a manager. My experience in doing that was tremendous for a lot of reasons, from being so close to the game that I love to traveling to places I had never been to understanding what goes into a team’s season. There is not enough space to share how much that helped me to get where I am today, and that’s before I mention some of the things external to my role as a manager. Dempsey gave me access to recruiting reports so I could see what they looked like and start having a feel for the next college stars, and introduced me to Bob Gibbons when he visited Northeastern one time. This was back when there weren’t nearly as many people covering recruiting as there are now, as the Internet was still in its infancy in terms of its effects on athletic media.

That was only the beginning. When Dempsey left Northeastern just before I graduated, we made sure to stay in touch, and have done that. After some time away from the northeast, he’s been back for several years now. Interestingly, I covered what proved to be his last game as an assistant coach at UMKC before coming to New Hampshire – a tough loss in the then-Mid-Continent Conference (now the Summit League) Tournament in Tulsa.

Dempsey is optimistic that his leave from the team will be on the order of weeks. He is well-connected and has been in contact with some people who have dealt with this to learn from their experiences, and has had great support from everyone in Durham. And as he goes in for surgery on Tuesday to start the battle against prostate cancer, I know I am one of many people who is praying for a positive result at the end of all of this.

We go coast to coast with other news from the college basketball nation

• About that brawl: Cincinnati and Xavier each suspended four players for their roles in the well-chronicled brawl at the end of Saturday’s meeting between the two teams. Cincinnati suspended Yancy Gates, Cheikh Mbodj and Octavius Ellis for six games each and Ge’Lawn Guyn for one game, while Xavier suspended Dez Wells and Landen Amos for four games each, Mark Lyons for two and Tu Holloway for one.
• Indiana scored a dramatic win over Kentucky with a buzzer-beater on Saturday. It’s the biggest win for the Hoosiers under Tom Crean.
• Murray State knocked off Memphis on Sunday night, which improves the Racers to 10-0. But what has unfortunately received a little more buzz from that game than how good the Racers look is Memphis’ public address announcer announcing John Calipari as the Tigers’ head coach, which was greeted with a round of boos.
• It’s a light week of game action, and Monday night was no exception as the most notable game was probably Oregon’s 79-70 win over Portland State.

Games to watch on Tuesday

• Wisconsin at Milwaukee, 8 pm EST
• Belmont at Middle Tennessee, 8 pm EST

Plenty of great action on the menu this weekend

We’ve got plenty of great games on tap this weekend. Here’s what you can look forward to watching in between shopping online for holiday gifts.

Saturday:

• Kentucky at Indiana
• Ohio State at Kansas
• Long Beach State at North Carolina
• Washington vs. Duke at Madison Square Garden
• Cincinnati at Xavier
• Oklahoma State vs. Pittsburgh at Madison Square Garden
• UNLV at Wisconsin
• Creighton at Saint Joseph’s
• Michigan State at Gonzaga
• Akron at Cleveland State
• Milwaukee at Northern Iowa
• Clemson at Arizona
• Villanova at Temple
• Miami at West Virginia

Sunday:

• Murray State at Memphis
• Iona at Marshall
• Norfolk State at Virginia Tech

We go coast to coast with other news from the college basketball nation

• Before we even get to the games today, there’s intrigue building in Cincinnati with the Bearcats’ Sean Kilpatrick calling out Xavier’s Tu Holloway, writes Myron Medcalf for ESPN’s “College Basketball Nation” blog. Kipatrck told a radio host that Holloway isn’t good enough to start for the Bearcats, which seems laughable considering Holloway is averaging 17.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg and 4.7 apg for one of the top teams in the country. But there you have it. That should make the Skyline Chili Crosstown Shootout extra spicy today.
• Northern Arizona is in the market for a new coach already after Mike Adras resigned unexpectedly Dec. 9, according to the Associated Press. The Lumberjacks are off to a rough start at 2-7, with no Division I wins yet. However, in his previous nine seasons as Northern Arizona’s coach, Adras had only two losing seasons for a 133-131 record at the school.
• Marquette will play without one of its biggest defensive presences after center Chris Otule injured his left ACL in the Golden Eagles’ win against Washington Dec. 8, according to Fox Sports’ Andrew Wagner. Otule has been averaging 5.0 ppg, 4.4 rpg and 1.6 blocks in just less than 18 minutes per game.
• Arizona State won’t get its top recruit this season after the NCAA Eligibility Center ruled Jahii Carson academically ineligible for 2011-12, according to an Associated Press report.
• You also won’t see Washington’s Scott Suggs this season. The senior guard broke his foot in October and had hoped to be ready to go by late December, but coach Lorenzo Romar announced that Suggs will redshirt this season, according to the Associated Press.
• Staying in the Pac-12, UCLA has dismissed embattled junior forward Reeves Nelson, according to the Associated Press. Coach Ben Howland had already suspended Nelson twice this season for conduct detrimental to the team before making the decisions to kick him off the team.
• The last thing we want to report is more molestation charges, but here we go again. ESPN’s “Outside the Lines” reported that two former basketball players are accusing Amateur Athletic Union president Robert “Bobby” Dodd of molesting them more than 20 years ago. The AAU gets plenty of criticism already, but nothing of this caliber. The AAU said that Dodd has colon cancer and will not be returning to his post, according to a CBS Sports report.

Big East dominates SEC-Big East Challenge

We’re still a few weeks shy of the beginning of conference play in the Big East, but this past week gave us some of the best tests these teams will see in the nonconference season with the SEC-Big East Challenge.

These interconference events are great hooks for college basketball fans trying to get out of the malaise of colder weather and bad local football teams. ESPN dreams up match ups that force some teams (cough, cough, Cincinnati) to play at least one decent team before they get into the rough and tumble life of conference play.

This year, the Challenge expanded from its normal eight-team, two-night format to include 24 teams in 12 games over the span of three nights. … Continue Reading

No cause for alarm in the Big East

One of the best parts of the early college basketball season is that, year after year, the big-time programs of the BCS conferences (mostly) load up on cupcake teams from lesser-known conferences to begin their campaigns — and those teams prove to be more substance than fluff.

More often than not, those cupcakes turn out to give some of the more talented squads from conferences such as the Big East a run for their money, even knocking off a few of them along the way.

The Big East has had its fair share of losses in the early going as some of the teams we picked to be contenders for the conference championships are dealing with some early season growing pains. … Continue Reading

Cincinnati Bearcats 2011-12 Preview

Cincinnati Bearcats

Last Year:

26-9 overall, 11-7 Big East (T-6th)

Coach:

Mick Cronin (6th season, 87-77)

Projected starting five:

G: Cashmere Wright, Jr.
G: Dion Dixon, Jr.
G: Sean Kilpatrick, So.
F: Justin Jackson, So.
C: Yancy Gates, Sr.

Important departures:

Rashad Bishop 8.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.7 apg
Ibrahima Thomas 5.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg

Inside the numbers:

66 percent scoring returning
64 percent rebounding returning

Additions:

F: Shaquille Thomas, 6’6”, 165 – Rivals #81
F: Jermaine Sanders 6’4”, 205 – Rivals #131
G: Jeremiah Davis, 6’3”, 195 – ESPNU Pos. #43

Schedule:

Toughest nonconference game: 12/10 at (15) Xavier
Toughest in-conference stretch: 1/18 – 1/23 at (4) Connecticut, at West Virginia, at (5) Syracuse

Prediction:

5th in BE; 25+ wins; Second weekend of NCAA Tournament

What to expect:

A lot of how the Bearcats do this year is dependent on Yancy Gates and his “want-to.” Gates has been hit-or-miss in his time in Cincinnati, playing up to his potential at the end of last season, which has given Bearcat fans the hope that he will continue his upward trend. However, Gates’ midseason dismissal for lack of effort looms in the back of the minds of Cincinnati fans.

Returning four starters from last year should help the Bearcats continue their trend of regaining national prominence. Sean Kilpatrick has a lot of expectations to fulfill this year. The sophomore is touted as UC’s microwave, giving Cincinnati an outside threat to balance Gates on the inside.

Coach Mick Cronin has handled predicament well over the past six years at the helm. Taking some hits along the way, the Cincinnati native has once again brought the Bearcats into the preseason rankings with the belief that 22nd is the lowest they will be ranked all year. A solid starting five and a talented young bench should help the Bearcats build on their second-round dismissal from the NCAA Tournament a year ago.

Next: Connecticut Huskies

Back to Big East preview

Bracket Breakdown: Mock Tournament 6.0

We’re down to the final week before Selection Sunday, and the field is starting to take shape with five teams already in the field: Cornell, East Tennessee State, Murray State, Northern Iowa and Winthrop. While those teams played their way into the field, others appear intent on playing their way out.

For the second consecutive weekend, big losses were rampant throughout the basketball nation. Connecticut’s loss to South Florida gives the Huskies 14 losses, meaning that they would need to become the first at-large team with 15 losses to make the NCAA Tournament unless they find a way to win the Big East tournament this week. Cincinnati finds itself in the same boat after losing its third straight game and fifth in six tries.

In the Big Ten, Illinois paralleled the Bearcats’ poor finish with its third straight defeat Sunday, a 72-57 loss in Champaign to Wisconsin. Illinois has a more compelling case for an at-large bid than Cincinnati does thanks to three wins against the RPI top 25. However, the Illini have 13 losses and an RPI of 73. Illinois will get another crack at the Badgers in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament, and the Illini might need to win that game to avoid getting bounced off the bubble.

Besides the bubble teams, several others lost big games that affect their seeding in the latest version of the Mock Tournament.

• Kansas State drops to a No. 3 seed after inexplicably losing at home in overtime to Iowa State, ranked No. 113 in the RPI.
• Villanova also drops to the No. 3 line after losing at home in overtime. However, these Wildcats shouldn’t be as ashamed to lose because West Virginia is finishing the season strongly.
• Vanderbilt also suffered a home loss — to South Carolina — and falls to the No. 6 line.

Here are the latest brackets and links to previous projections.

• Mock Tournament 5.0
• Mock Tournament 4.0
• Mock Tournament 3.0
• Mock Tournament 2.0
• Mock Tournament 1.0

Teams in bold have won an automatic bid.

The Notebook

TEANECK, N.J. – Earlier this week in a Big East matchup, Syracuse employed a 2-3 zone the entire game. No surprise as Jim Boeheim has been utilizing that signature defense with outstanding success since the days gas was under a dollar a gallon. No, this was actually the Syracuse women’s team who used in in a thorough 79-38 dismantling of Seton Hall at the Pirates’ Walsh Gym.

It seems coach Quentin Hillman, in his fourth year at the Big East school, was observing men’s practice his first year at Syracuse. “I looked up saw that (national championship) banner and thought about (Boeheim’s) years of winning and felt this was the way to go,” Hillman said. “I decided the 2-3 would be our main defense.” Hillman found early on that he has a friend and confidant in Boeheim. “Coach Boeheim has been great helping me with it. He has watched our practices, made suggestions and we both discuss it regularly.”

The women employ the zone in the same manner as then men. The guards and wings contest three-pointers and other perimeter shots. Seton Hall’s fine junior guard Ebonie Williams struggled through a two-point night on one for eight shooting. Williams was frustrated trying to get a decent look anywhere on the perimeter. Inside players like 6-2 Nicole Micheal and 6-4 Kayla Alexander clog the lane and use their length to break up passes in the paint.

The victory at the Hall left Syracuse at 13-1, the lone loss an OT setback at the hands of Georgetown. Life in the Big East conference for the women, as the men, is a succession of challenges and tough teams. Syracuse, with that patented 2-3, is certainly one of them.

Other Notes

• A little confidence goes a long way. Last week Fairleigh Dickinson rallied from 22 down with 12 minutes to play to earn an 88-85 victory over Sacred Heart. A few nights later Bryant got out to a 10-1 lead over the Knights. FDU interim coach Greg Vetrone called time out and saw a team unsure of what lie ahead. The Knights regrouped en route to a 66-50 victory over the Bulldogs.
  Three nights later FDU defeated Central Connecticut State 83-74 , behind Sean Baptiste’s 26 points, to run their conference record to 3-1. FDU ended 2009 with a 1-12 record. The Knights took advantage of a three-game conference swing at home and are very much in the thick of the NEC race.

  “We have a new coach, a new system and new point guard,” Vetrone said. “Some of the teams we played early we were not ready to face. I said it would take time but (the momentum) is definitely coming.”

  Mike Scott scored 16 against Bryant. The junior point guard has been on fire for FDU. In the Sacred Heart and Bryant games, Scott had a combined 18 assists and zero (no misprint) turnovers in 70 minutes.

• Bryant, in their second year of Division I, is in the Northeast Conference but not eligible for post season play. Tim O’Shea’s group has had a murderous schedule. Included were Boston College, Providence, St.John’s, Indiana and an improved Army club. There were two Ivies as well which happened to be Harvard and Cornell. Following the FDU game Bryant was 0-15. To make matters worse, leading scorer (14.5 PPG) Cecil Gresham, a senior swingman, was lost for the year with an injury in late December.
• There is an interesting doubleheader at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. Cincinnati visits St. John’s and Fordham meets Dayton at the “World’s Most Famous Arena.”  Cincinnati faces another team in dire need of a conference win. The Bearcats faced Seton Hall at the Prudential Center and the Pirates took an 83-76 decision. Seton Hall earned their first win after losses in conference to West Virginia (overtime), Syracuse and at UConn.

  St. John’s is also 0-3 and in a must-win situation after having lost a tough one at Georgetown, a home collapse down the stretch to Providence and another road game to Louisville. Highly-touted freshman Lance Stephenson will make his MSG debut in a Bearcat uniform.

  Dayton survived a tough OT victory over Duquesne on Saturday and faces Fordham under interim coach Jared Grasso. The Flyers are the Atlantic 10 Conference favorites in the view of many experts. A pair of forwards, junior Chris Wright and senior Marcus Johnson, have been key players for Brian Gregory’s club.

• Seton Hall sharpshooter Jeremy Hazell had 33 points against Cincinnati, his fifth 30-point scoring game this season.
• The difference, from a tempo-free approach for St. John’s thus far:

              W-L	   OFF EFF	DEF EFF
  Overall	   10-5	     100	  93
  Big East    0-3	      90	  106

  The efficiency is the points per possession multiplied by 100. Offensively, the Red Storm overall average 1.00 points per possession on offense. The defense, at .93 is sound. In the Big East those numbers are reversed. The Storm is struggling overall on offense and a bit generous on defense.

  A reason for the defensive slip, beside better talent in the Big east, is the turnover rate. Overall the Storm are forcing opponents into a 20 percent TO rate – that is, one-fifth of the opposition possessions are turnovers. In the Big East that rate on the defensive end is 16 percent. In conference, St. John’s has found it more difficult to force opponents to turn the ball over.

Providence’s Inside Work Key In Toppling Cincinnati

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Lost in the story that caught everyone’s attention on Saturday night and even Monday night in Providence is a great development on the court.  While the big story is part and parcel of what’s going on, in the long run it’s not as important.

No one expected Friar guard Jeff Xavier to play on Monday night.  Less than 48 hours earlier, his eye was swelled shut after a freak play when he drove to the basket and caught part of Marquette forward Joseph Fulce.  Xavier was on the ground face-down and kicking, which is never a good sign.  How bad was it?

“I thought my eyeball came out for a second.  I thought I was holding my eyeball,” the senior guard said.  “It hurt really bad, and I didn’t know what really happened.  I was kind of in a dazed mode.”

Although it looked like incidental contact, which is how Xavier felt when he got to see the play later, one person didn’t agree.  Xavier’s older brother, Jonathan, walked down from the stands, jumped in between two Friars on the bench and walked onto the court to talk to an official about the play.  Thankfully, the incident didn’t turn into anything remotely serious.

Xavier said he still felt a lot of pain on Sunday, but when he woke up on Monday morning, he knew he would play.  He was cleared later in the day and started the game, and received a huge ovation from the Friar faithful when announced as a starter.  Again, no one expected this.

“I never would have guessed that he would have been able to play tonight for one minute,” said head coach Keno Davis.  “From everything that we had heard yesterday, it was going to be Thursday was doubtful.”

Xavier didn’t have a big game, but there’s no question his presence alone lifted the team.  More importantly, for the second straight game, the Friar offense had a different look and better results.  This time, it led to a victory, as the Friars knocked off Cincinnati 72-50.

For a lot of non-conference play, Providence lived and died by the three-point shot.  They settled for those shots all too often early in a possession, not even working the ball to get a shot in the flow of the offense.  The ball almost never went inside-out.  On occasion, a few players would slash and make things happen, but there was never any consistency to it.

On Saturday, there was clearly an emphasis on getting the ball inside.  That should be just about any team’s plan against Marquette, a team with three terrific perimeter starters but a question mark inside.  The Friars would drive and even make entry passes inside, and they scored 32 of 45 first-half points in the paint for a five-point lead, and kept that going in the second half to build a 13-point lead.  They lost the game largely because of key turnovers down the stretch and an inability to keep their momentum.

Against Cincinnati, the same emphasis on going inside was there.  More often, it came from dribble penetration, and they made several excellent interior passes.  They kept attacking, and when it was all said and done they scored 50 of their 72 points in the paint.  Cincinnati had just 24 in the paint.

In fact, there was a point in the second half where the Friars seemed to be reverting to their old form of settling for three-pointers.  Not surprisingly, it didn’t work for them, and Cincinnati was able to stay within striking distance.  Then Randall Hanke came into the game and became a force inside.

Hanke scored 15 points on 7-7 shooting, as the Friars kept finding him inside and on the break a couple of times.  The senior big man knows how to finish, as he’s converted nearly 68 percent of his shots over his career, so it’s clear that getting the ball to him might be a good idea.

He wasn’t alone.  Jonathan Kale scored 14 points on 5-6 shooting, all but one coming right near the basket.  The emotional leader of the Friars, he’s not a guy they count on for scoring, but if he gets the ball in close, he’s capable of scoring.

Notice a pattern here?  Get the ball inside, and good things can happen.

“I think what we’ve found is that we’ve got an ability to score in different ways and win a ballgame in different ways,” said Davis.  “We can shoot the three, we can rebound, we can go inside, we can drive, we can penetrate.”

Going inside can work for their athletic wings as well.  It’s been well-established that Weyinmi Efejuku, who’s playing with a heavy heart after the recent passing of his father, is more than athletic enough to score on slashes, and Brian McKenzie and emerging Marshon Brooks can do so as well.  If they establish themselves that way, it can only help open up opportunities to shoot it from long range.

The last two games have shown that the Friars can be effective and even win when they get the ball inside to try to score.  As much as it helped to have Xavier back in the lineup after what happened two days earlier, the bigger development is the offensive change.  They got a boost Monday from Xavier’s return, but the new offensive emphasis will boost them as long as they keep that up.

Big East Notebook – Cardinals and Golden Eagles Streaking

Cincinnati Bearcats (12-6, 1-4 Big East)
Last week:
vs. Rutgers, W 71-59
at De Paul, W 59-55
This week:
Jan. 19 at Providence
Jan. 22 at St. John’s

The victory against Rutgers snapped a four-game losing streak for the Bearcats, but it didn’t come without a challenge.
The Bearcats nearly saw a 16-point lead vanish as they led by one with 1:22 left.
Deonta Vaughn scored a game-high 18 points to lead Cincinnati. Mike Williams added 13 points, seven rebounds and three assists.

De Paul Blue Demons (8-10, 0-5)
Last week:
vs. Cincinnati, L 59-55
This week:
Jan. 20 at South Florida
Jan. 24 at Marquette

The Blue Demons have lost five straight and six of their past seven after falling by four to Cincinnati last week. They are 0-5 to start conference play for the first time since starting the 2001-02 season 0-5 while members of Conference USA.
Guard Will Walker scored a team-high 17 points in the loss. He was 4-of-8 from 3-point range, but the rest of the squad was 0-for-8 from 3-point range. Dar Tucker and Mac Koshwal each scored 15 points as well for De Paul.
The Blue Demons will look to avenge an 80-58 loss to South Florida on Jan. 10. It was their first loss to the Bulls since joining the Big East after four straight victories.

Louisville Cardinals (13-3, 4-0)
Last week:
vs. Notre Dame, W 87-73, OT
vs. Pittsburgh, W 69-63
This week:
Jan. 21 at Rutgers
Jan. 25 at Syracuse

The Cardinals have won five straight, including knocking off No. 1 Pittsburgh. They have now won their past three games in the regular season against ranked opponents – Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Villanova.
In addition, Louisville has won three straight against the No. 1 team in the country. The previous two were over Florida on Dec. 13, 2003 and Kentucky on Dec. 27, 2003.
Terrence Williams had a big game with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Earl Clark had 16 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks as well.

Marquette Golden Eagles (16-2, 5-0)
Last week:
at Providence, W 91-82
This week:
Jan. 24 vs. De Paul

Marquette used a 51-37 scoring advantage in the second half to squeeze past Providence on the road. The Golden Eagles have now won eight straight games since a 12-point loss to Tennessee in Nashville, Tenn., on Dec. 16.
Lazar Hayward and Jerel McNeal each scored 25 points for Marquette, while Wesley Matthews added 22. Dominic James scored nine points with six assists and only one turnover in 37 minutes. He has only two turnovers in his past two games.
The Golden Eagles are the only team in the league with three players among the top 12 in scoring average – Matthews (19.1, 3rd), McNeal (18.8, 4th) and Hayward (16.5, 12th).
The chances of extending the win streak to nine looks good when Marquette hosts De Paul, a team its beaten three of four times since both joined the Big East.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (12-5, 3-3)
Last week:
at Louisville, L 87-73, OT
at Syracuse, L 93-74
This week:
Jan. 24 vs. Connecticut

The Irish have lost three of its past five games – all on the road. The most recent was a 19-point rout at the hands of Syracuse. It was also the first time this season Notre Dame has lost consecutive games.
Against Syracuse, Luke Harangody scored 25 points, grabbed 16 rebounds and had six assists. He extended his streak of 20-plus points to 10 games, the school’s longest streak since Adrian Dantley did it in nine straight games. Harangody also has a streak of seven straight double-doubles.
Kyle McAlarney added 24 points, going 7-of-14 from 3-point range. He has hit 74 3-pointers this season, tops in the Big East.
The Irish will have good and bad news this week. The good news is they return home, where they’ve won 45 straight games, dating back to Feb. 25, 2006, and have won 20 straight home conference games. The bad news is the opponent is Connecticut, whose only loss this year was a 74-63 loss to Georgetown at home.
Notre Dame is 5-3 in Big East play at home against Connecticut.

Pittsburgh Panthers (16-1, 4-1)
Last week:
vs. South Florida, W 75-62
at Louisville, L 69-63
This week:
Jan. 19 vs. Syracuse
Jan. 25 at West Virginia

The Panthers, the No. 1 team in the country, suffered their first loss of the season in a great game against Louisville.
The Panthers struggled down the stretch, which likely cost them the game. They hit just one field goal in the final eight minutes of the game, and committed a season-high 20 turnovers.
Jermaine Dixon scored a team-high 19 points, and Sam Young added 18.
They’ll get a chance to get back on track with a matchup against Syracuse. The Panthers have beaten the Orange 10 out of the past 13 meetings. Pittsburgh is also 11-0 at home this season.

Providence Friars (11-6, 3-2)
Last week:
vs. Marquette, L 91-82
This week:
Jan. 19 vs. Cincinnati
Jan. 22 at Seton Hall

The Friars let a five-point halftime lead slip away in a nine-point loss to Marquette, and have now dropped two straight in conference play after a 3-0 start.
For the second straight game, the Friars were led by Marshon Brooks coming off the bench, scoring 21 points. He also had six rebounds, four assists and three blocks. Geoff McDermott had 15 points and grabbed 17 rebounds. Randall Hanke was 4-of-4 from the field for nine points. He is second in the conference in field goal percentage at 68.9 percent.

Seton Hall Pirates (9-8, 0-5)
Last week:
at Connecticut, L 76-61
This week:
Jan. 22 vs. Providence
Jan. 25 vs. Georgetown
The Pirates continue to struggle, having lost five straight and seven of their past eight games after a 15-point setback to the Huskies.
Seton Hall shot just 31.4 percent in the first half, and got just two points off the bench.
Jeremy Hazell scored a team-high 20 points. He ranks second in the league at 22.3 points per game. The Pirates are 0-5 in conference play for the first time since the 1985-86 season.
Seton Hall hopes it will turnaround starting this week. The Pirates will play their next four games at home, beginning with Providence, a team Seton Hall has beaten twice in a row.

Oklahoma State: Thomas Chooses Cincinnati

Former Oklahoma State center Ibrahima Thomas transferred to Cincinnati, where he will be eligible to play after the fall semester. Thomas left the Cowboys after seven games this season. The sophomore averaged 8.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game for Oklahoma State.

Big East Notebook: Pittsburgh Flying High

Cincinnati Bearcats (9-3)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, W 79-49
This week:
Dec. 29 at Memphis
Jan. 4 at Marquette

The Bearcats had four players reach double figures in scoring, three with 14, in the victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Yancy Gates, Deonta Vaughn and Steve Toyloy all had 14 points, while Dion Dixon chipped in 11.
The Bearcats allowed APB to shoot only 31 percent from the field, including 23 in the first half, and forced 24 turnovers. Cincinnati jumped out to a 43-16 first half lead.
This week, the Bearcats, who have won four of their past five games, have a tough non-conference game against Memphis before starting their Big East portion of the schedule at Marquette.
Cincinnati is third in the league in field goal percentage defense at 36.8. Ahead of the Bearcats are Georgetown (34.3) and Pittsburgh (36.2). The Bearcats also lead the league in rebounding at 42.5 per game.
Famed TV analyst Bill Raftery spoke with the Cincinnati Enquirer on Monday, saying he likes what Cincinnati is doing this season, and believes they could make a run in the postseason.
“I like the way their big men pass it, and I like the way they rebound it,” he told the newspaper.

DePaul Blue Demons (8-5)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Saint Louis, W 65-61, Las Vegas Classic
Dec. 23 vs. Creighton, L 83-75, Las Vegas Classic
Dec. 28 vs. Alcorn State, W 90-67
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. Notre Dame
Jan. 3 at Providence

Against Saint Louis, the Blue Demons overcame a 32 percent shooting performance in the second half to hold off the Billikens.
Mac Koshwal led the way for DePaul, scoring 17 points. Jabari Currie, Dar Tucker and Will Walker also scored in double figures with 12, 11 and 10, respectively. Koshwal also added 11 rebounds.
Against Creighton, Tucker and Koshwal had career nights. Tucker scored 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting, and Koshwal scored 13 points, but grabbed 22 rebounds, including 16 on the defensive end. The 22 boards were a season-best in the league.
Creighton’s Booker Woodfox had 26 points.
Both teams shot better than 45 percent. DePaul shot 49 percent, including 54 percent in the first half. Walker added 12 points, and Currie added 10.
And against Alcorn State in the non-conference finale, Tucker had another big night with 25 points. Koshwal added 19 points and 13 rebounds. For the week, Koshwal averaged 16.3 points per game, while Tucker averaged 22.7.
Tucker, who played the Alcorn State game despite having the flu, is fourth in the league in scoring at 19.8 per game. Koshwal is third in the league in rebounding at 11.3.
This week, the Blue Demons start Big East play with a home game against Notre Dame on New Year’s Eve before traveling to Providence.
Alcorn State coach Larry Smith told the Chicago Tribune after the game he likes DePaul’s length upfront with Koshwal at 6-10, Devin Hill at 6-9 and Tucker at 6-5.
“Their length is tremendous,” said Smith, a former NBA star in his first season coaching his alma mater. “They’ve got a lot of athletes out there. They do a good job of crashing the boards, and they give themselves second-chance points, which is huge.”

Louisville Cardinals (8-2)
Last week:
Dec. 27 vs. UAB, W 82-62
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. UNLV
Jan. 4 vs. Kentucky

Terrence Williams scored 21 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out seven assists and blocked three shots to help the Cardinals down UAB.
The Cardinals also got a double-double from Samardo Samuels, scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Andre McGee and Earl Clark were also in double figures off the bench with 13 and 12 points, respectively.
The Cardinals shot 50 percent for the game, including 57 percent in the second half, to blow open a nine-point halftime lead.
This week, the Cardinals continue their non-conference schedule with UNLV and the always-entertaining rivalry game with Kentucky.
According to the Louisville Courier-Journal, coach Rick Pitino has offered Derrick Caracter a chance to sit out this season but return to the team for the 2009-10 season – if he fulfills certain requirements.
Caracter, according to the paper, said he is willing to meet those conditions.
“He’s going to have to get a job that I’m going to have to approve, he’s going to have to pay his own way to school, he’s going to have to get his own apartment,” Pitino said. “We’d be willing to work him out, but he’s not going to practice with our basketball team or be part of it. He’s going to have to get in shape and get himself on the right track academically.”
Caracter, a 6-9 forward out of Fanwood, N.J., averaged 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds as a sophomore last season. He decided to bypass his final two years of college and entered the NBA draft, but he changed his mind and has been looking for reinstatement from Pitino.
Caracter was ruled academically ineligble in May, the paper said, and has been “a major thorn in my side,” Pitino said in April.
In his first two seasons, Caracter has had numerous problems, multiple team rule violations and was held out of games for his failure to meet a target weight.

Marquette Golden Eagles (11-2)
Last week:
Dec. 22 at North Carolina State, W 68-65
Dec. 28 vs. Presbyterian, W 84-45
This week:
Jan. 1 vs. Villanova
Jan. 4 vs. Cincinnati

The Golden Eagles picked up a huge road victory against North Carolina State using tough defense and protecting the basketball.
Despite being outshot (51 to 48 percent) and out-rebounded (29-25), Marquette committed just 10 turnovers, compared to NC State’s 18, to help pick up the victory.
Jerel McNeal lead the Golden Eagles with 20 points on 9-of-18 shooting. Dominic James added 18 points with six assists, and Lazar Hayward had 16 points.
Against Presbyterian, Hayward had game highs of 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Wesley Matthews added 21 as the Golden Eagles led 40-18 at halftime.
This week, the Golden Eagles have a pair of Big East games against Villanova and Cincinnati. Last year against Villanova, the Golden Eagles shot 50 percent from the field and forced 23 turnovers in an 85-75 victory.
Marquette coach Buzz Williams told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, “I want to be peaking, beginning the rise on Jan. 1 and continuing the rise hopefully to about Valentine’s Day. And when we get to Valentine’s Day, I hope we’re rolling pretty good.”
Marquette hosts St. John’s on Valentine’s Day. After that, the Golden Eagles have a brutal schedule, hosting Seton Hall on Feb. 17, at Georgetown on Feb. 21, hosting Connecticut on Feb. 25, at Louisville on March 1, at Pittsburgh on March 4 and finish hosting Syracuse on March 7.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9-2)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Savannah State, W 81-49
This week:
Dec. 31 at DePaul
Jan. 3 at St. John’s

Notre Dame had little trouble in its final tuneup before the Big East schedule.
Luke Harangody scored 23 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, including eight offensively, and shot 13-of-14 from the free-throw line. Tory Jackson and Ryan Ayers each added 10 points for the Irish, who have won three straight after losing to Ohio State on Dec. 6.
All 11 players who played for the Irish scored at least one point.
Harangody has scored at least 20 points in seven of the nine games he’s played in this season, and the Irish are second in the nation in fewest turnovers per game at 9.2 (Houston turns it over 9.1 times per game). Harangody also ranks six in the country in rebounding (11.9).
Teammate Kyle McAlarney is second in the nation in three-point field goals made at 4.07 per game (David Holston, Chicago State, 5.2).
This week, the Irish have a pair of road games to begin Big East play. Up first is at DePaul, who the Irish beat twice last season, and they will be at St. John’s to end the week.
The Irish are still tinkering with their zone defense, according to the South Bend Tribune. Before the DePaul game, the Irish are working in a training camp mentality to fill the holes in their zone defense.
“We need to be able to be confident in our zone,” coach Mike Brey said. “We need to be able to change gears.”
The Irish use zone to try and get their opponent out of their comfort zone, the paper said.

Pittsburgh Panthers (12-0)
Last week:
No games
This week:
Dec. 31 at Rutgers
Jan. 3 at Georgetown

The Panthers didn’t have a game last week, but will begin Big East play with a possible trap game against Rutgers on New Year’s Eve. After that, they will play at Georgetown in what will be a big early statement game in the conference slate.
DeJuan Blair ranks second in the country in rebounding at 13.0 per game, behind Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin at 14.4. The Panthers are also fourth in the nation in scoring differential at plus 20.8. Fellow league member Connecticut is third (21.2).
The Panthers know there’s still much to prove, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Seven teams are ranked in The Associated Press top 25.
“I’ve said all along it’s going to be the best conference in the history of basketball,” coach Jamie Dixon said told the paper. “I can’t go back on that. It’s not a surprise and I think it’s going to continue to grow.”

Providence Friars (8-4)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Bryant, W 91-64
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. St. John’s
Jan. 3 vs. DePaul

Four players were in double figures for Providence, led by Marshon Brooks’ 18 off the bench, against Bryant. Geoff McDermott, Sharaud Curry and Weyinmi Efejuku were the others with 17, 16 and 15 points, respectively. Brooks played in just 18 minutes of the game.
The Friars shot 55 percent from the field, including a sizzling 80 percent (16-of-20) in the second half. In addition, the Friars shot 39 percent from three-point range, a category they rank last in the Big East in (27.6).
The Friars, who are 7-1 at home with the lone loss coming in the season opener Nov. 15 against Northeastern, will begin the Big East portion of their schedule with a pair of home games this week.
St. John’s has won the past two meetings after Providence won the previous 10 in the series.

Seton Hall Pirates (9-3)
Last week:
Dec. 22 at James Madison, L 70-64
Dec. 27 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, W 101-70
This week:
Dec. 30 at Syracuse
Jan. 3 vs. West Virginia

The Pirates shot 52 percent from the field in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome an 18-point halftime deficit.
Seton Hall outscored James Madison, 42-30 in the second half, but the key was being outrebounded 41-30, including James Madison having 11 offensive rebounds.
Robert Mitchell led Seton Hall with 23 points and nine rebounds. Eugene Harvey added 14 points, along with Jeremy Hazell and Paul Gause each having 12.
Against Fairleigh Dickinson, the Pirates matched a season high in points in a 31-point victory.
Hazell and Mitchell each had big nights with Hazell scoring 35 points, tied for the fourth most by a Big East player in a game this season, and Mitchell adding 24 and grabbing 10 rebounds. Harvey added 15 points and six assists, and Jordan Theodore scored 11 off the bench.
Hazell shot 15-of-26 from the field, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range. It was also the best scoring performance by a SHU player under third-year coach Bobby Gonzalez.
Fairleigh Dickinson’s Sean Baptiste scored 31 points.
The Pirates get ready for two tough league games this week at Syracuse and hosting West Virginia.
Syracuse has won seven of the past nine meetings.

Big East Notebook – Blue Demons and Cardinals Streaking in Opposite Directions

Cincinnati Bearcats (6-2 overall)
Last week:
Dec. 13 vs. Xavier, L 76-66
This week:
Dec. 15 vs. Charleston Southern
Dec. 18 vs. Mississippi State, SEC/Big East Invitational
Dec. 20 vs. Eastern Kentucky

The intracity rivalry between Cincinnati and Xavier had everything one could ask for, including five technical fouls. But in the end, it was Xavier coming away with the victory.
The Bearcats were led by Deonta Vaughn with 27 points, hitting five 3-pointers. Dion Dixon and Steve Toyloy each came off the bench to score 11 points for Cincinnati. Vaughn scored 19 of his points in the second half, but the Bearcats’ rally fell short after trailing by 14 at halftime.
Cincinnati shot itself in the foot, turning the ball over 19 times (14 in the first half), and let Xavier shoot 29-of-36 from the free-throw line, giving Xavier 48 points off turnovers or free throws.
It will be a busy week for the Bearcats with three games in six days, including a meeting with Mississippi State. The next victory for coach Mick Cronin will be the 100th of his coaching career.

DePaul Blue Demons (4-4)
Last week:
Dec. 10 vs. Morgan State, L 79-75
Dec. 13 vs. UCLA, L 72-54
This week:
Dec. 17 vs. Liberty at Las Vegas Classic
Dec. 19 vs. Southern at Las Vegas Classic

The Blue Demons went scoreless for seven minutes, and let a 10-point second half lead slip away against Morgan State.
DePaul was led by Dar Tucker with 21 points, followed by 15 points from Mac Koshwal and 14 from Will Walker.
Morgan State had just nine turnovers, and had four players in double figures, led by Reggie Holmes with 29 points.
Then the Blue Demons traveled to the West Coast for the second time in 10 days to face UCLA in the John Wooden Classic, and lost their fourth straight game.
Koshwal scored 12 points and had eight rebounds. Tucker, who didn’t start the game for the first time this season because of “attitude issues,” according to the Chicago Tribune, added 11 points.
UCLA had four players in double figures in scoring, and shot better than 55 percent from the field for the game.

Louisville Cardinals (6-1)
Last week:
Dec. 6 vs. Indiana State, W 83-43
Dec. 7 vs. Ohio, W 91-56
Dec. 8 vs. Lamar, W 78-56
Dec. 13 vs. Austin Peay, W 94-75
This week:
Dec. 18 vs. Mississippi, SEC/Big East Invitational
Dec. 20 vs. Minnesota

Earl Clark had a double-double for the Cardinals with a game-high 16 points and 10 rebounds in their victory over Indiana State. The Sycamores did not get a player in double figures in scoring, while the Cardinals had four. Terrence Williams, Samardo Samuels and Edgar Sosa were also in double figures for the Cardinals with 12, 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Indiana State was held to just 28 percent shooting. Louisville shot 61 percent in the first half en route to a 50-17 halftime lead.
Clark added a second double-double against Ohio with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Samuels led the way for the Cardinals with 19 points, and Jerry Smith added 16. The Cardinals dominated the glass, out-rebounding Ohio 46-26.
The Cardinals shot 52 percent from the field.
Samuels led the Cardinals with 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting in their victory over Lamar. Smith added 12 points as well, and Williams grabbed 13 rebounds.
To wrap up the busy week, the Cardinals had three players score at least 20 points, led by Samuels and Preston Knowles with 21. Williams added 20. Samuels also had 12 rebounds.
Louisville will enter the week having won four straight games.

Marquette Golden Eagles (8-1)
Last week:
Dec. 13 vs. IPFW, W 69-50
This week:
Dec. 16 vs. Tennessee, SEC/Big East Invitational
Dec. 19 vs. Western Carolina

In their lone game of the week, the Golden Eagles had little trouble with Indiana-Purdue-Fort Wayne, thanks to Lazar Hayward.
Hayward scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 18 rebounds, the highest rebound total in Marquette history since Amal McCaskill on Nov. 26, 1995, had 19.
And he wasn’t alone as three others for Marquette scored in double figures – Jerel McNeal (16), Wesley Matthews (13) and Dominic James (10).
The matchup with Tennessee was supposed to be a union of coaches Tom Crean and Bruce Pearl.
When Pearl was at Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he publicly called out to Marquette for the two city schools to play each other. At the time, they hadn’t played since the mid-1990s. Now Crean is at Indiana.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (7-2)
Last week:
Dec. 13 vs. Boston University, W 74-67
This week:
Dec. 20 vs. Delaware State

The conference’s leading scorer was up to his usual self against Boston University.
Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody scored 23 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Irish. Harangody is averaging 23 points per game, putting him slightly ahead of Seton Hall’s Jeremy Hazell (22.4).
It was the 30th double-double of Harangody’s career.
Kyle McAlarney also scored in double figures for the Irish with 16. He was joined in double figures by Zach Hillesland with 11 and Ryan Ayers with 10.
The victory extended the Irish’s home winning streak to 41 games – the nation’s second-longest. But the streak was nearly in jeopardy as the Irish fell behind by 10 early in the game, and trailed by nine early in the second half. The Terriers were held without a field goal over the final 3:26 of the game. The streak began March 4, 2006, against DePaul. The last loss was Feb. 25, 2005, to Marquette.
McAlarney has 980 career points after the BU victory.

Pittsburgh Panthers (10-0)
Last week:
Dec. 13 vs. UMBC, W 91-56
This week:
Dec. 17 vs. Siena

Five players were in double figures for the Panthers against UMBC, led by 19 from Maryland native Sam Young.
Also hitting double figures was Gilbert Brown (13), Ashton Gibbs (13), DeJuan Blair (12) and Levance Fields (11).
The Panthers shot 60 percent from the field in the second half.
Young is third in the Big East in scoring at 20.6 points per game, and Blair is second in the nation behind Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin in rebounding. Blair is averaging 12.8 rebounds per game.
Gibbs, a freshman, was 3-of-4 from 3-point range against UMBC. He is shooting 12-for-20 on the season from 3-point range.
It will be a test this week with Siena, who return all five starters from a team which beat Vanderbilt by 21 points in the first round of last year’s NCAAs.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Young turned his ankle during practice Monday, but it’s not anticipated he will miss any action.

Providence Friars (6-3)
Last week:
No games
This week:
Dec. 17 vs. Jackson State
Dec. 20 at Boston College

After taking time off for finals, the Friars will return with two games, including regional and former Big East rival Boston College.

Seton Hall Pirates (8-1)
Last week:
Dec. 9 vs. California Baptist, W 92-80
Dec. 13 at Saint Peter’s, W 60-46
This week:
Dec. 20 vs. IUPUI

Both California Baptist and Seton Hall shot 53 percent from the field, and nine players between the two teams were in double figures.
But the difference came at the free throw line with Seton Hall going 21-for-26 at the line, while California Baptist went 12-of-16.
Eugene Harvey and Jeremy Hazell each scored 25 points for the Pirates. Robert Mitchell added 18 off the bench, and Paul Gause scored 11.
Seton Hall made more free throws than field goals in the second half (17-15), but still shot 58 percent from the field in the second half.
Unlike against California Baptist, both Saint Peter’s and Seton Hall struggled to shoot the ball.
Saint Peter’s shot 29 percent, and Seton Hall wasn’t much better at 36 percent. But Saint Peter’s was forced into 19 turnovers, while Seton Hall had 11.
Hazell had a game-high 14 points, while Gause and Harvey each had 12.
The Pirates will enter their game against IUPUI on a five-game win streak.

Big East Notebook – Syracuse Back in Action, Panthers Still Undefeated

Forget, for a moment, that Donte Greene stamped his imprint at Syracuse last year, bolting for the L after a one-and-done that few could have envisioned. The quantum leap has certainly proved profitable for Greene.

The 6-foot-10 Baltimore product is averaging just four points in fourteen games for the Sacramento Kings. He saw action in the starting lineup in four of those games. Greene, who many feel left prematurely, proved he belongs in the L during a successful summer in Vegas, one underscored by a 40-point outburst.

The No. 20-ranked Orange have held up just fine without the big neophyte, however, rolling out to an 8-0 start for the first start in recent memory.

Upgraded from a schedule that’s traditionally weak, Syracuse topped No. 18 Florida and No. 23 Florida before stamping a 73-70 win on Virginia. Quite impressive for a squad which tends to never leave the state through during Jim Boeheim’s lax early season slate. Not this year. With Eric Devendorf and Andy Rautins back in the fold after recovering from devastating injuries that relegated them to spectator role last season, the Orange are playing to resurrect a winning program.

You know, the one that hit the mute button on analysts, pundits, and haters alike when Gerry McNamara (don’t tell Boeheim he’s overrated) shot them to a Big East championship as supreme underdogs in 2006?

‘Cuse survived a scare on Wednesday, gutting Ivy League foe Cornell’s upset bid, 88-78. In what’s evolved into the “season of the upset” (no.2 UConn eked out a 68-64 win over Buffalo last night), it wouldn’t be a surprise if the game came down to one final possession.

Ryan Wittman, the gun-toting son of Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Randy Wittman, fired, fired, and fired some more. It was like watching an old, Wild Wild West flick – shooter’s touch.

The 6-foot-6 forward scorched the nets for a game-high 33 points. He managed this on 50 percent shooting, going 9-for-19 from beyond the arc.

The tandem of Paul Harris and super-sophomore Jonny Flynn, the former high school teammates, helped bail out the Orange. Harris, the man-child who could one day entertain NFL draft thoughts, scored 21 points and ripped down eight boards. Flynn scored 24 points, dished out six assists, but committed a season-high six turnovers.

Syracuse’s rapid resurrection has developed a nice sales pitch for 2009 recruits. The Orange already received a verbal commitment from James Southerland, who starred at Cardozo High School before prolonging his career at Notre Dame Prep in Fitchburg, Mass.

He needed the prep year for academic eligibility, as an under-par SAT score debarred him from joining Mookie Jones, Kris Joseph and the 2008 freshman class.

At Cardozo, Southerland was a walking double-double. He cooked opponents to the recipe of 17.6 points and 11.2 boards per game. A plethora of other recruits are being actively pursued. Philly-bred off guard Dion Waiters, Renardo Sidney of California (the 6-9 forward/center plays for the LA Dream Team on the AAU circuit), combination forward Joston Thomas, who’s also getting some love from West Virginia and Georgetown, are just a few in their laundry-list of targets. Waiters has committed early out of the class of 2010.

The Orange showed interest in Karron Johnson, a player familiar with the New York area who looked at St. John’s in the fall. But Johnson, the 6-foot-7 wing averaging 26 points, 14 boards, and four blocks at Mt. Zion Christian (North Carolina) committed to Oklahoma State.

Still, with the influx of talent that could arrive at Cuse, Boeheim’s troops could be a perennial power for the next 10 years.

No longer the walking wounded, Syracuse is back in their old zip code and here to stay.

Pittsburgh 80, Vermont 51: At the Petersen Events Center, Sam Young cooked Vermont to the recipe of 28 points (10-for-21 FG). The No. 3 Panthers improved to 9-0 on the season. Dujuan Blair added a double-double with 13 points and 16 boards and freshman Ashton Gibbs chipped in with 11. Marques Blakely led Vermont with 19 points, 14 boards, five dimes, six steals, and five blocks.

Louisville 91, Ohio 56: At Freedom Hall, Earl Clark had a career day, scoring 17 points, pulling down 14 boards and doling out eight assists to lead the Cardinals in the Marques Maybin Classic. Highly-touted freshman Samardo Samuels scored 19 points and Jerry Smith chipped in with 16. Jerome Tillman led Ohio with 21 points. Louisville has won two straight after being upset by Western Kentucky.

Ohio State 67, Notre Dame 62: At Lucas Oil Stadium, Ohio State pulled off a pulsating upset of the No. 7 Irish in the Hartford Hall Of Fame Showcase at Indiana. The Buckeyes were led by Evan Turner’s 28 points, 10 boards, and five assists. Freshman B.J. Mullens, a 7-foot, 270-pound center, popped off the bench to score 11 points and grab seven boards in 18 minutes. Luke Harangody led Notre Dame with 25 points and sixteen rebounds in his first game back after battling pneumonia. Tory Jackson chipped in with 13 points and five dimes.

Cincinnati 87, UAB 80: At Fifth Third Arena, Deonta Vaughn scored 16 points in a rare role coming off the pine. Junior Mike Williams added 17 points as the Bearcats improved to 6-1. Robert Vaden, Vaughn’s cousin who he remains tight with, scored 23 points to lead UAB. Mick Cronin opted to go with Vaughn off the bench because of the way he practiced prior to the game.

West Virginia 53, Cleveland State 43: At WVU Coliseum in Morgantown, De’Sean Butler poured in a game-high 18 points. Freshman Devin Ebanks added 10 for the 6-1 Mountaineers. Norris Cole led Cleveland State with 12 points.

Georgetown 73, American 43: At the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C., the Hoyas pummeled their neighbors behind local product Chris Wright, who scored a game-high 22 points. Jesse Sapp and DaJuan Summers each scored 14 points and Austin Freeman handed out six assists. Garrison Carr paced American with nine points.

Marquette 61, Wisconsin 58: At the Bradley Center in Milwaukee, Jerel McNeal scored a game-high 26 points as the Golden Eagles topped the No. 22 Badgers. Lazar Hayward added 13 rebounds for 7-1 Marquette. Trevon Hughes led Wisconsin with 14 points. The Golden Eagles clamped down on Marcus Landry, who had been smoking (18 points on 6-for-7 shooting against Virginia Tech). They held him to a season-low five points.

UCF 71, South Florida 63: At UCF Arena in Orlando, Jermaine Taylor and South Florida’s Dominique Jones went eyeball-to-eyeball. Taylor dropped 30 points and Jones erupted for 31, but UCF topped their Big East foe. Tony Davis added 17 points and six steals for the Knights.

Big East Notebook: Orange Turn Heads, Irish Run into a Buzzsaw

STORRS, Conn. – Easy-Going Gavin rapidly morphed into Gung Ho Gavin last night, an aggressive individual UConn fans have rarely seen during the reserve forward’s stay with the Huskies.

The kid from Gilbert, Az., finally got physical, played above the rim, and displayed a sense of urgency, en route to the reserve forward’s career-high 17 points in 16 minutes on 7-of-9 shooting.

“Gavin’s one of the more talented players on the team, at least athletically talented,” said Jim Calhoun, following UConn’s latest 79-49 roasting of marshmallow MEAC native Delaware State.

“He’s got a very high basketball IQ, he makes good passes… he’s got to be more physical. I’m encouraged by what he did tonight and I’m sure he is too.”

For Easy-Going Gavin, life isn’t always that easy. He has to go up against two physical specimens and behemoths in Jeff Adrien and Hasheem Thabeet every practice, is forced to take a backseat to the two larger-than-life bigs when game time rolls around, and is sometimes forced to play out of his nature (“I’m more of a finesse player,” Edwards admits) and play a physically intimidating brand of ball at the four-slot.

So, Easy-Going Gavin’s Monday night coming-out party came with much fanfare and to the delight of his teammates. Edwards established himself early, connecting on a jumper and a layup and then delivering an eye-popping block with 13:28 remaining. The son of former NFL defensive lineman Earl Edwards, who entered the game averaging a meager 3.3 points, continued his sublime showing in the second half.

He came soaring in, finishing a catch-and-run alley-oop from Kemba Walker that pumped the then insurmountable Husky lead to 71-42. He dunked home a Jerome Dyson miss that put an exclamation point on his career night and UConn’s drubbing of another smurf-sized foe.

“I think he got something out of it tonight. I know I got something out of it. Gavin has a chance, he’s got a fight on his hands. The more he fights, the deeper we can go,” explained Calhoun.

That “fight” Calhoun refers to is between 6-foot-9 swingman Stanley “Sticks” Robinson (who will soon be available) and newcomer Ater Majok, a 6-foot-10 recruit via the Sudan. Majok is undergoing the NCAA clearing process right now, but should be eligible to play soon.

On the surface, it looks like Edwards will have to wrestle for burn as the season progresses and Big East play emerges.

Following a resume-building game, however, Edwards is confident he will remain a fixture off the pine.

“Coach said during the Paradise Jam, as cliché as it is, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Still, if Edwards is to continue turning in expectations-slaying performances, as he did against undersized Delaware State, he needs to get more physical.

“It’s definitely something I’m still trying to work on a lot,” said Edwards, adding that “shooting over 6-foot-7 is definitely easier than shooting over 7-foot-3, National Defensive Player of the Year (Thabeet).”

Edwards continued, “From what I hear, Ater is a very good player. I’m taking baby steps, but I’m definitely working on it.”

Pressure?

None. Well, nothing that the mellow, muscled forward hasn’t seen before during his stay at the Big East’s NBA machine. But constructive criticism and words of encouragement are only one long distance call away.

“I get at least one call a week from my Dad on how I need to play stronger. He gives me all the old football stories. I know I have to step it up.”

Flynn Leads Hot Start For Orange

A radio reporter looked into Jonny Flynn’s eyes but received only a pithy stare in return. This was back in October, during Big East Media Day. Coaches, players, TV/Radio stations, and the New York media circus alike came peppering the conference’s key cogs with questions.

The question heaped upon Jonny Flynn however, could only elicit an empty stare from the proven point guard. The man asked if Flynn was ready to take on such a significant role as just a sophomore. If you could read Flynn’s expression, it said “Are you kidding me, or what?”

Flynn has been no joke this season. The kid who erupted for 29 points and nine dimes in his first NCAA game has been the catalyst for a ‘Cuse team looking to mute the detractors and naysayers and bounce back from two underachieving campaigns.

The 19-year-old offense operator is averaging 18.9 points and 5.3 dimes as Syracuse is off to a 7-0 start that includes marquee wins over Florida and defending national champion Kansas.

Flynn was named Big East Player of the Week, as was announced by the conference office, following his villain-slaying showings against Kansas (25 points and a key trifecta with six seconds left that lifted the game into OT) and Virginia (15 points and six assists as the Orange gutted out a 73-70 triumph).

Don’t You Dar Sleep on Him: Dar Tucker, 4-0 DePaul’s 6-foot-5 forward, is having a breakout start to the 2008-09 season. The Michigan native is averaging 20.8 points and 6.5 boards. He hung 26 points and pulled down nine boards in a 75-70 win over Indiana State on 11/29. Tucker and DePaul, one of five Big East teams without a loss, could watch their stock mount this season.

Moving Em’: With the reigning Big East Player of the Year in Luke Harangody, and the 2007 and 2008 Big East Coach of the Year in Mike Brey, the Irish have picked up where they left off. The Irish blitzed South Dakota to the tune of a 26-point blowout Dec. 3, with Ryan Ayers erupting for 35 points on 12-for-20 shooting.

Team Notes

Cincinnati Bearcats (5-1 overall)
The Bearcats suffered their first setback of the season, losing to Florida State, ending a 4-0 start. But against Coastal Carolina earlier in the week, Deonta Vaughn led the Bearcats with 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-8 from three-point range. The Bearcats hit 11 three-pointers in the game. Larry Davis added 14 points, and Anthony McClain added 11 off the bench. The Bearcats shot a solid 53 percent from the field.
Against Florida State in Las Vegas, Mike Williams had a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes. Vaughn led the way once again with 16 points, but had six turnovers, and shot just 5-of-18 from the field. The Bearcats weren’t able to overcome a poor shooting night, shooting just 33 percent from the field, 47 percent from the free throw line and committing 19 turnovers.
Then against UNLV, the Bearcats rebounded with Vaughn and Yancy Gates collecting 16 points each. Gates was 7-of-10 shooting off the bench. Dion Dixon added 13 off the bench as well for the Bearcats.
So far this season, the Bearcats have held their opponents to under 40 percent shooting in each game.

DePaul Blue Demons (4-0)
The Blue Demons maintained their perfect start with two victories last week. They’re 4-0 for the first time since 2002. This week, they will travel outside of the Chicagoland area to play California, before returning to Chicago to play a “road” game against Northwestern.
Last week, Dar Tucker had a big night against Detroit, scoring 22 points on 6-of-12 shooting, including 4-of-7 from three-point range, and was 6-of-6 from the free-throw line. He also grabbed seven rebounds, had four steals and two assists. Mac Koshwal added 18 points as well.
Against Indiana State, Tucker had another big game with 26 points.

Louisville Cardinals (2-1)
The Cardinals’ postseason resume took a hit last week with a 14-point loss to Western Kentucky.
Louisville shot just 27 percent from the field for the game (15-of-56), including an abysmal 21 percent in the second half (6-of-28). The game was tied at 28 at halftime before Western Kentucky scored 40 in the second half, thanks largely to 50 percent field goal shooting, and a 15-of-18 showing at the free-throw line.
Three players were in double figures for the Cardinals. Terrence Williams led the way with 19 points, while Earl Clark and Samardo Samuels each had 11. Clark also had 11 rebounds. But only four other players scored for the Cardinals, who were outrebounded 48-36.

Marquette Golden Eagles (5-1)
The loss to Dayton could loom large at the end of the season. But the Golden Eagles get in-state rival Wisconsin, which will be a statement game for both teams.
Entering the Texas Southern game averaging 100.3 points per game, Marquette didn’t quite measure up to it, but still pulled it out.
Five players were in double figures for first-year coach Buzz Williams’ squad, led by Jerel McNeal’s 20. Lazar Hayward added 18. Texas Southern hung tight, shooting a blistering 64 percent from the field in the second half, and forced Marquette into 19 turnovers, leading to 21 points.
Against Northern Iowa, the Golden Eagles used an early 20-0 run in the first half to seize control of the game, and were never challenged afterwards in the Chicago Invitational Challenge.
Wesley Matthews scored 17 points for Marquette, followed by Haywood’s 15 and McNeal’s 13. Dominic James added eight points and six assists.
Against Dayton, the Golden Eagles couldn’t match the Flyers, who are now off to a 6-0 start. Dayton got a career-high 21 points off the bench from Rob Lowery, and got a double-double from Chris Wright with 13 points and 13 rebounds, and added four assists. Marquette still got a career-high 28 points from Matthews, and 19 points from James, but that wasn’t enough.
Dayton outscored Marquette’s bench 48-5.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-1)
The Irish made a deep run in the Maui Invitational before running into the nation’s No. 1 team – North Carolina.
Five players were in double figures for the Irish against the Hoosiers, led by Tory Jackson’s 21 points. Jackson was 10-of-17 from the field, had five rebounds and six assists. Also in double figures was Kyle McAlarney with 18, Luke Harangody with 14, and Ryan Ayers with 13. Luke Zeller added 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench, providing the Irish a big lift.
Notre Dame shot 51 percent from the field for the game.
In a thriller against the Longhorns, Harangody proved why he is an All-American. The big man scored 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead the Irish.
Against North Carolina, the Tar Heels’ Tyler Hansbrough and Ty Lawson were brilliant.
Hansbrough scored 34 points, and Lawson had 22 points, six rebounds and 11 assists to take the Maui Invitational championship.
Lawson was named the tournament’s most valuable player.
For the Irish, they were led by a masterful game from McAlarney, scoring a career-high 39 points and dished out six assists. He was 10-of-18 from 3-point range, breaking his own school record of nine 3-pointers in game set last season.
This was Notre Dame’s second appearance in Maui. The Irish finished sixth in 1993.

Pittsburgh Panthers (7-0)
Starting with Duquesne, the Panthers will play their next four games at home. During that span, they will play all non-conference foes (Duquesne, Vermont, UMBC and Siena).
Sam Young scored 33 points, despite not making a field goal until the 11-minute mark of the first half to lead the Panthers past Belmont, who nearly upset Duke in last year’s NCAA Tournament.
During a 12-2 run in the second half, Young scored all but two points. And during a run in the first half, he scored 13 of Pittsburgh’s 14 points in a 4½-minute span.
Against Texas Tech, Young scored 24 points, and DeJuan Blair added 15 points and 11 rebounds for the Panthers in the semifinals of the Legends Classic. Young also had eight rebounds and four assists.
Pittsburgh outscored the Red Raiders 40-14 in the paint.
In the championship against Washington State, two of the best defenses in the nation locked horns, and the game was far from pretty. Both teams shot identical 35.4 percent from the field (17-of-48).
Young continued his solid week with a 15-point, eight-rebound effort against the Cougars, who lost their first game of the season. Levance Fields added 14 for Pittsburgh.

Seton Hall Pirates (5-1)
Seton Hall overcame a strong night by Delaware’s Marc Egerson, who scored 20 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Delaware also got a double-double from Jim Ledsome – 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Pirates had four players in double figures, including three starters. Jeremy Hazell had 17 points, but was only successful on 4-of-14 shots. Eugene Harvey added 14 points, and John Garcia had 13. Jordan Theodore added 13 off the bench.
Seton Hall also overcame being dominated on the boards, 40-29.
Delaware led after the first half, shooting 63 percent, but cooled off in the second half to the tune of 32 percent.

Power Rankings

1. Pitt (7-0): Too big, too strong, too many weapons. The pre-season point guard issue that surfaced did nothing to stop the defending champions, as Levance Fields is back in full force. The Panthers could have the upper hand on UConn if they can negate Hasheem Thabeet the way they did Roy Hibbert in last year’s championship game at MSG.
2. UConn (7-0): Thabeet is dominating the smaller opponents, but A.J. Price needs to get back to game-changer form.
3. Notre Dame (6-1): After nearly smoking his way out of school a few years ago, Kyle McAlarney has set the world ablaze with his three-point assault.