UNCASVILLE, Conn. – The 2012 Hall of Fame Tip-Off concluded on Sunday with four games. Two champions were crowned in the Springfield and National Brackets, with Loyola (Md.) beating Albany in the former and Ohio State taking home the latter with a win over Washington.
Here are some quick hitters from Sunday’s games.
NEW YORK – Part of the lure and attraction of this great tournament, the NIT, is what happens behind the scenes. It’s New York and never dull.
Here is a look at this year from train to Garden floor. Granted, it’s a plug for NJ Transit, but they were on time round trip and got me safely to and from both days.
Every year, there is a lot of talk about how to make BracketBusters better, or if it should just go away entirely. While teams have undoubtedly benefited from it over the years of its existence, the feelings on it seem a bit mixed, and it’s debatable whether or not it has been good as a whole. Right now, it’s what we have, and on Saturday it was center stage.
Proponents have talked about teams getting an extra national television appearance for people to see them. They have also cited the chance to get an RPI boost. Certainly, some of the teams that have benefited can look back and argue that they would not have made the NCAA Tournament if not for a win in the BracketBusters, including Final Four teams from George Mason and VCU. … Continue Reading
If you’re looking at nothing but overall productivity on the court per 40 minutes, a few big names don’t have the same impressive stats when compared to guys who aren’t receiving as much attention but are legit stat stuffers.
As mentioned in the latest TIQ stats for the ACC, Pac-12 and SEC, I’m taking a look at head-to-head comparisons from each conference. Here’s who’s on tap:
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.
NEW YORK - The Jimmy V Classic, always providing interesting matchups, did not disappoint. The Madison Square Garden doubleheader on Tuesday featured a strong Missouri team followed by an entertaining matchup in the nightcap. The scores:
Missouri 81, Villanova 71
Marquette 79, Washington 77
1. Missouri is good. Very good. The entered the game with a 126 offensive efficiency. Against Villanova, the Tigers put up a very impressive 117. Defensively they allowed a 103 efficiency to Villanova but did force the wildcats into a 22% turnover percentage rate. Frank Haith does not employ a full court pressing defense with this Missouri team. Rather, he’s decided to use a tough man-to-man defense that disrupts offenses an creates turnovers in a half court setting. Offensively he has a solid sharpshooter in Marcus Denmon, a game-high 28 point scorer on 6 of 10 three point shooting. Kim English is a capable guard and scoring threat. At the point Phil Pressey handed out 12 assists while committing just three turnovers in 24 minutes. Inside there is one key player. Ricardo Ratliffe is solid and the 6-8 forward made his presence known against Villanova with a 17 point 11 rebound outing. “Missouri is a tough team,” Villanova coach Jay Wright said. “They are so quick to the ball and rebound very well. They are the type team that can play four guards and be very successful at it.”
The good ol’ days are gone for the Pacific 10 Conference as the league has suffered a plummet in skill level this season that’s gotten them from having six participants in the NCAA Tournament last year to only two in this one: Cal, the regular-season champion, and Washington, the conference tournament champion.
It took 50 years for the Pac-10 to be weak enough for Cal to win a regular-season championship, but it finally happened. Behind the conference Player of the Year, guard Jerome Randle, who averages 18.7 points per game, the Bears are undoubtedly the Pac-10’s cream of the crop. Their reward for being the best of definitely-not-the-best is a game against the South Region’s No. 9 seed, Louisville (20-12, 11-7 Big East).
California knows how to party, and that’s what the eighth-seeded Bears were doing up until running into Washington in the conference tournament final. Winners of nine of its last 10 games coming into the match up against the Huskies, Cal missed on its chance at a first-ever tournament championship in great part due to Randle being in foul trouble. Washington, using surges while Randle was on the bench, won 79-75.
Even with the disappointment of being unable to complete the championship combo, Cal is playing decent enough to give itself a chance against the Cardinals. But this season, in a battle between the Pac-10’s best and the Big East’s sixth-best, one must go with the guys in the proven conference. The Bears will roar loudly at Louisville, but it’s the Cardinals who’ll fly away with the win in crunch time.
Washington Huskies (24-9, 11-7)
There’s two sides to every story, and the Huskies’ side says they would have beaten Cal even if Randle had played all 40 minutes of the tournament final. That may very well be, seeing how Washington had won six games in a row before facing the Bears.
The duo of forward Quincy Pondexter and guard Isaiah Thomas was the Pac-10’s best this season. Thanks to their combined 37 points per game, Washington, seeded No. 11 in the East Region, reached a national-No. 10 ranking at a point. That was before drinking some reality tea and hitting a five-losses-in-seven-games’ stretch. Since, however, the Huskies have been much more respectable, winning 12 of 14 and going from bubble team to the Pac-10’s rightful NCAA Tournament delegate.
On a roll or not, though, Washington will have the same fate as that of its conference comrade, Cal: a first-round loss to a Big Easter, a much-more-tested No. 6 Marquette (22-11, 11-7 Big East). The Pac-10 was just too frail this season, and the NCAA Tournament’s second round is for the big boys.
Better luck next year, Pac-10.
Charlotte naturally had hoped to make the NCAA Tournament, then hoped to make a run in the NIT when it came calling instead. But the 49ers have a season of progress now in the books and should be primed to continue growing next season from what they did this year.
Amidst much talk of whether or not conference tournaments are a good idea, Notre Dame got a boost in New York. They are happy with the tournament and feel more prepared for the NCAA Tournament despite a semifinal loss.
Georgetown vs. Syracuse lives on just a little longer in the context of the Big East. That, and more from Thursday’s quarterfinals, including one team being delayed coming to the press conference because of a special visitor.
The second round of the 2013 Big East Tournament is in the books and the quarterfinal matchups featuring the top four teams are set. Here are some notes from Wednesday’s games at Madison Square Garden.
The first round of the Big East Tournament saw a close overtime game and a blowout, with the former seeing a tournament record tied. We take a look back at the opening night in New York.
As the CAA gets ready to hand out awards, here is a look at how I voted. The biggest award was a tough call, while two other big awards were easy calls to make.
In 2012-13, a couple of consistent powerhouses should remain contenders, including one who lost an NBA lottery pick. In addition, teams with new head coaches are headed for rebuilding years.
