The Morning Dish – Wednesday, March 16th
NCAA Tournament Gets Started: The field of 65 became the field of 64 last night after Oakland knocked of Alabama A&M in the play-in game at Dayton, Ohio. The Grizzlies pulled off the minor upset, 79-69, with a surge early in the second half after leading by three at halftime. Senior forward Cortney Scott helped the Grizzlies dominate in the post, which allowed sophomore guard Rawle Marshall to find plenty of open looks, finishing with 29 points, including 3-of-4 from three-point range. Scott scored 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Grizzlies dominated the glass 38-28. Alabama A&M was led by its star, junior guard Obie Trotter, who scored 24 points, including five three-pointers. But the Bulldogs couldn’t hit enough shots to set up their pressure defense and force turnovers. As a result, Oakland controlled the pace of the game and won the opportunity to play No. 1 North Carolina Friday in Charlotte.
Chaney Returns from Suspension: After serving a mostly self-imposed three-week suspension, Temple coach John Chaney returned to the sidelines last night to coach the Owls against Virginia Tech in the NIT. Chaney had been suspended for the regular season after he ordered Nehemiah Ingram to rough up St. Joseph’s players because he was unhappy with perceived illegal screens. Ingram fouled out in four minutes and broke senior forward John Bryant’s arm. Chaney extended the suspension through the Atlantic 10 Tournament. Now, after losing to the Hokies 60-50, the attention will turn to Chaney’s future at Temple.
As for the game itself, Virginia Tech overcame a bad a shooting performance behind 16 points from sophomore guard Zabian Dowdell, who scored 12 of that total in the second half. Temple’s vaunted zone defense held the Hokies below 33 percent shooting. But the Owls’ offense was equally unproductive, shooting only 32 percent from the floor. Junior guard Mardy Collins led the Owls with 16 points. Chaney’s self-described “goon,” Ingram, played four minutes and scored two points. He picked up no fouls.
Other NIT Action: Although the return of John Chaney dominated the NIT headlines, three other games featured two upsets. Holy Cross beat an unmotivated Notre Dame squad 78-73 in South Bend, Ind. Junior guard Kevin Hamilton led the Crusaders with 26 points against the Fighting Irish, who were still smarting from an NCAA Tournament snub. Meanwhile, the SEC scored a victory against the ACC when South Carolina beat Miami 69-67 in the closing seconds as senior guard Josh Gonner hit the game-winning bucket. And lastly, senior forward Quemont Greer led DePaul, another NCAA Tournament castoff, to a 75-70 at Missouri, which was led by sophomore forward Linas Kleiza with 23 points.
Green Out at Florida Atlantic: Florida Atlantic officials fired coach Sidney Green after the Owls finished 10-17 and failed to qualify for the Atlantic Sun conference tournament. Green finished with a 54-121 record in six seasons at Florida Atlantic, including one NCAA Tournament appearance in 2001. In 10 years as a head coach, Green has a 103-181 record. For more information about the comings and goings of coaches in college basketball, check out Hoopville’s official Coaching Changes site.
Spartans Steal a Bear: San Jose State officials hired George Nessman, an assistant coach at California. The Spartans and former coach Phil Johnson parted ways after the Spartans finished 6-29 and lost to Hawaii in the opening round of the WAC tournament. Nessman was the Bears’ recruiting coordinator and also taught California’s post players. Nessman is a proven winner at the community college level, but this job will be his first Division I head coaching position.
Ritchie Gets Richer: New Mexico coach Ritchie McKay received a three-year contract extension to keep him on the Lobos’ pay roll through 2010. McKay’s Lobos are in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in six years and the first of McKay’s three years at New Mexico. He arrived at New Mexico after coaching Oregon State for several years. At New Mexico, McKay has a 50-38 record, and he has a 133-127 record in nine years as a head coach.
Wooldridge Still in Charge: Ending speculation about the future of Wildcat coach Jim Wooldridge, Kansas State officials announced that they will retain Wooldridge. After reviewing the status of the program, school officials decided Wooldridge has the Wildcats on the rise even though he has only a 68-77 record in five seasons. Kansas State finished 17-12 this past season and beat Texas A&M in the first round of the Big 12 tournament. But the Wildcats were not invited to either the NCAA or NIT tournaments. Wooldridge said he was disappointed that the Wildcats did not earn an NIT invitation.
Dockery Will Play: Duke received some much needed help at the point guard position with the return of junior guard Sean Dockery. After tearing his right MCL last month against Georgia Tech, Dockery practiced with the top-seeded Blue Devils for the first time today. But he only practiced with the teams’ walk-ons and will be closely monitored by team officials. Coach Mike Krzyzewski said he expects Dockery to play at full speed Friday night when the Blue Devils play No. 16 Delaware State in Charlotte. Based on previous years, Duke typically routs first-round opponents, so the game could be a good tune-up for Dockery before Duke plays tougher opponents in subsequent rounds.
Northeastern Punishes Foul Play: Northeastern officials suspended the team’s leading scorer, Jose Juan Barea, for rough play in Northeastern’s America East championship loss to Vermont. He will not play in Northeastern’s NIT game against Memphis. Barea battled several Catamounts for a loose ball early in the game, and replays clearly showed that Barea threw a punch. Without Barea, Northeastern will miss one of the best scorers in college basketball. He averages 22.4 points and 7.3 assists per game.
Tonight’s Menu
• A full slate of NIT action is highlighted by match ups like TCU at Miami, Ohio, Vanderbilt at Indiana, Davidson at VCU, and Clemson at Texas A&M.
