Three-point play (and-one): NCAA Tournament first day

*Exhales*

1. The Big Least

The conference widely regarded as the nation’s most powerful was a late Villanova miracle away from losing all four teams that played Thursday. The Wildcats were the only team from the Big East to win on the tournament’s first day when they beat 15-seeded Robert Morris in overtime. Scottie Reynolds waited until the extra period before he hit his second shot of the game. He finished with 20 points, but 15 of them came from the foul line.

If anyone thought the Wildcats’ near loss was embarrassing, it was nothing compared to Georgetown’s blowout defeat at the hands of Ohio. Ohio finished the season with a 7-9 record in the Mid-American Conference, and had to win four straight games in the conference tournament to even make the big dance. The Bobcats shot 13-for-23 from behind the three-point line, and Georgetown couldn’t keep control of the ball. A week after knocking off Syracuse in the Big East Tournament, the Hoyas turned it over 18 times in a 97-83 loss.

Marquette blew a 15-point second half lead against Washington to lose by two points to the Huskies. Quincy Pondexter’s runner with 1.7 seconds left gave the Huskies the 80-78 win. Washington was hardly an underdog in this game. Marquette won most of its games by fewer than 10 points, and Washington is playing its best basketball of the season.

Notre Dame provided one of the best finishes of the day. Carleton Scott’s three-pointer as time wound down found its way halfway through the net before rattling out, and Luke Harangody’s put back made no difference as the Irish still lost to Old Dominion 50-49. The Irish were in relative control most of the game, but went ice cold from the field late. As they continued to miss from behind the arc possession after possession, it was clear the Irish were going to live and die by the three no matter how long they stayed in the tournament. ODU was able to score just enough to edge Harangody and company, sending them home packing after a strong finish to the season landed the Irish in the dance in the first place.

2. Murray State didn’t waste any time giving us this year’s “One Shining Moment”

With one Danero Thomas 15-footer, Murray State went from virtual unknown to America’s favorite Cinderella. Thomas’ shot at the buzzer lifted the Racers over Vanderbilt for the tournament’s first major upset, 66-65.

What’s not to love about the Racers? They play an uptempo style that makes for entertaining basketball, and just won their first tournament game in 22 years.

They led virtually the entire game over the fourth-seed Commodores, who lost for the second time in three years as a no. 4 in the first round; they also lost to Siena in 2007.

Butler handled UTEP in the second game of the pod, setting up a mid-major showdown in round two, at least on the surface. Both teams hail from small conferences, but Butler is a perennial top-level team, while the Racers are anything but. It will be another contrast of styles when those two teams meet, as Butler loves to rely on breaking its opponent down in the halfcourt and hitting power forward Matt Howard in the post.

The Racers, meanwhile, will force the issue by pushing the ball on every possession, looking to get fouled as much as possible and hopefully hit three’s in transition. It’s not out of the question to say the Racers could pull off a second upset. Definitely tune in for that game.

3. Jimmer Freddette steps up for BYU

Many of you know Freddette as the player who has stolen my heart with his sweet shooting stroke and remarkable shot selection. He strongly reminds me of Steve Nash, and he scored 37 points today in the Cougars’ double-overtime win over Florida.

The man I profoundly proclaimed to be this year’s Stephen Curry didn’t disappoint. After scoring only eight points in the first half, Fredette kept BYU in the game after the Gators stormed back from a double-digit deficit in the second half.

He got some much needed help from reserve guard Michael Loyd Jr., who scored 26 points. Loyd hit several runners in the lane and also pulled off some magical spin moves to get to the rim.

BYU has the makings of a bona fide Cinderella. With a player like Fredette and a plethora of deadly outside shooters, the Cougars could make a deep run in the dance.

And one! 4. March madness hits the ground running

The insanity got started early, when all three of the initial games came down to the wire within minutes of one another. Between two CBS channels and my laptop, I feverishly tried to watch Villanova come back against Robert Morris, BYU escape Florida, and ODU stun Notre Dame. Two of those three went into overtime, while the Notre Dame game was decided at the buzzer.

The optimist in me hoped that the early going was a sign of things to come, while the realist in me wasn’t so sure.

It was a good day to be an optimist. In the second wave of games, Murray State pulled off the unthinkable with the heart-pounding win over Vanderbilt.

Just a short while later, Northern Iowa and UNLV went down to the wire as well. Ali Farokhmanesh nailed a three-pointer longer than his last name to put the Panthers ahead 69-66 with four seconds to play. It held on to be the game-winner, and Northern Iowa helped in carrying on the chaos.

In the night session, it was crazier still. Ohio, which less than one percent of America picked to win on ESPN.com, dominated Georgetown, who beat the Big East regular season champions exactly a week ago.

Meanwhile, Washington came back from a 15-point deficit with 13 minutes to play to beat Marquette 80-78. The Huskies moved on after Quincy Pondexter nailed a runner on the left-hand side of the lane with just less than two seconds left.

The final wave of games may have been the best of the day.

Tennessee emerged from a deadlocked battle with San Diego State with some clutch free throw shooting in the final minute. The Volunteers escaped to move on and face Ohio in the second round. Once a team in turmoil with three players kicked off mid-season, the Vols now sit in prime position to make a Sweet Sixteen appearance.

As the final seconds were ticking down ever so slowly in that game, Texas and Wake Forest were also headed to a memorable finish. After Texas tied the game with a late three-pointer, the Horns took an eight point lead right off the bat in overtime. Wake came storming back, and after Gary Johnson missed two free throws with ten seconds left, Wake rebounded the ball down by only a point. Ishmael Smith dribbled coast to coast before he pulled up from 16 feet to bury the game-winner.

It was the third overtime game of the day. In 2009, only two games went to extra minutes throughout the entire tournament.

On the west coast, New Mexico was holding on for dear life against 14-seed Montana. I’ll admit, I nearly picked the Grizzlies to pull off the stunner. The Lobos made all but two free throws in the final 90 seconds, which proved to be vital in their 62-57 win.

At the end of the day, more double-digit seeds advanced today than in 20 years in the tournament’s opening session.

I’m no longer listening to that realist side of my conscience…I’m playing the fool and hoping for an equally thrilling Friday.

Three-point play: March 1, 2010

1. Don’t sleep on the Mountain West

On Saturday, BYU lost a heartbreaker to New Mexico in one of the best games this season. The game pitted nos. 11 and 12 against each other in a display of the Mountain West’s two best teams.

The Lobos’ 83-81 win moved them to 13-2 in conference play and put them in the discussion as a third seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Head coach Steve Alford, who did an underwhelming job at Iowa, has won more games in his first three seasons than any coach in Lobo history.  New Mexico has won 13 games in a row, and is one of the hottest teams in the country.

BYU, which fell by two points to the Lobos on its senior night, still have a great opportunity to be on the fifth seed line or better. The Cougars’ out of conference schedule is pretty weak, with their best two wins coming at Arizona and at home against Arizona State. Still, at 26-4 they have a case for a respectable seed.

The rest of the conference is nothing to be ashamed of either. UNLV and San Diego State each have at least 20 wins this season. UNLV has beaten Louisville, New Mexico on the road, and BYU at home. The Rebels could play spoiler in the conference tournament; if they run the table and win the tournament championship even they could find themselves on that five or six line.

2.    Biggest “What If” Scenario in 2010? Jonny Flynn still at Syracuse

The Orange screamed to the country on Saturday night that the Big East was their territory, and nobody could do a damn thing to prove otherwise. In an inspired second half, Syracuse swallowed Villanova in front of over 35,000 faithful fans in the Carrier Dome.

It was the perfect weekend for the Orange program. Kansas, Kentucky and Purdue all lost, meaning Syracuse will undoubtedly be the top-ranked team when the polls come out this afternoon.

Now, I stand by my case last week that the Jayhawks will ultimately win the national championship (this is a preliminary choice – don’t bitch at me if I change it later), but Syracuse is missing one key component that would make them the unquestionable favorites, and that is Jonny Flynn.

Flynn is the unflappable point guard from last year’s team that delivered a memorable performance against Connecticut in six overtimes during the Big East Tournament. After playing his way to a seven-figure pay day in the NBA, he ineveitably skipped his final two seasons of eligibility to become a lottery pick with the Minnesota Timberwolves.

His departure left Jim Boeheim’s program with no options at point guard. Brandon Triche has surprised everyone with his steady play and ability to distribute the ball to stars Wesley Johnson, Andy Rautins and Rick Jackson.

With all due respect to Triche, if Flynn was still around the Orange may very well be unbeaten. Flynn was the face of the program and had emerged as the best point guard in America by the end of last year. He caused no locker room problems, and would have given Syracuse the most experienced team with so much talent it would not have even been fair.

If it’s and but’s were candy and nuts…

3.    If you are anywhere nearby, go to the Big South Tournament

Tuesday night marks the tip-off of the Big South Conference Tournament, and the defending champion Radford Highlanders earned the second seed. The Highlanders face Charleston Southern at 7:00 p.m. at home.

After a mid-season struggle, Radford ended the regular season by winning seven of eight games, with the only loss coming by one point to regular season champion Coastal Carolina.

Radford is a fun team to watch play, mainly because of their star duo in the post of Joey Lynch-Flohr and Art Parakhouski. Parakhouski has a good chance to be taken in June’s NBA draft, with his 6’11, 260-pound frame he is a natural NBA-type center.

Brad Greenberg has done a tremendous job rebuilding the program in three seasons, but with Lynch-Flohr, Parakhouski, Amir Johnson and Philip Martin all graduating, this is as good a chance as Greenberg will have to get back to the NCAA Tournament for a couple of years.

If the Highlanders win on Tuesday, they will travel to Coastal Carolina for the semifinals, where they will face either Winthrop or Liberty on Thursday.

The championship game will be at the site of the highest remaining seed, meaning it will either be at Coastal or Radford if the Highlanders make it that far.

For tickets to tomorrow’s game against Charleston Southern, visit http://www.radfordathletics.com/news/2010/2/24/MBB_0224104605.aspx?ATCLID=204799295&SPSID=25346&SPID=1987&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=4800

 

Three-point play: February 26, 2010

 1.  Why Kansas is the odds-on favorite to win it all

It has been more than a decade since college basketball crowned a champion that did not have an experienced point guard. Every team in the last ten years had one. Ty Lawson, Mario Chalmers, Taurean Green, Raymond Felton, Ben Gordon, Keith Duany, Steve Blake, Jason Williams, Mateen Cleaves.

You can bet on it every year, the last team standing will have a quality veteran point guard leading his team. That’s what separates the Kansas Jayhawks from the rest of the top teams in the country this season.

Sherron Collins has been magnificent in 2009-10, leading the Jayhawks in scoring, assists, and free throw percentage. On a supremely talented team with more depth than anyone else in America, Collins has shined above the rest.

The rest of the favorites to make the Final Four all have talented point guards, but they are all inexperienced. John Wall at Kentucky is at the forefront of this argument, but also Brandon Triche at Syracuse, and Truck Bryant at West Virginia.

Some of the top teams with veteran point guards are Duke (Jon Scheyer) – see previous posts for why they won’t make it all the way – Villanova (Scottie Reynolds/Corey Fisher), and Kansas State (Jacob Pullen).

None of those teams are as talented as the Jayhawks are across the board, which is why I’m starting to lean towards Kansas as my early championship pick.

2.    Purdue is royally screwed

When Robbie Hummel went tumbling to the floor in the first half Purdue’s win over Minnesota Wednesday night, so did any hope of a Final Four run for the Boilermakers.

All five of Purdue’s starters average at least 27 minutes per game.

The bench player with the most playing time is Kelsey Barlow with 15.9 minutes per game.

The Boilermakers have no depth whatsoever, and they surely couldn’t afford to lose its best player for the season. Of course, no team wants to lose its star, but when head coach Matt Painter clearly has no solid options to go to off the bench, Purdue is in trouble.

With Hummel in the lineup, the Boilermakers had a good shot at making a run to the Elite Eight, or even the Final Four. Without him, I’ll be shocked if they make it to the Sweet 16.

3.    Game to watch Saturday: (8) Villanova at (4) Syracuse

The Orange need a win Saturday and one more to clinch an outright Big East championship. As if they needed any more motivation in a top-ten conference battle at home in prime time on national television.

Syracuse has won two straight games after its surprising loss to Louisville on Valentine’s Day.

Villanova enters the game in a much bigger rut than the Orange. After starting the Big East season 9-0, the Wildcats are 3-3 since, including consecutive losses last week to Connecticut and at Pittsburgh.

If the ‘Cuse pull off this win tomorrow night, it would be their sixth against a team ranked in the top 15 at the time of the game this season.

This is a pivotal game for Villanova, because its final two games are not easy. The Wildcats travel to Cincinnati and host West Virginia next week.

This could also be one final bout for conference player of the year honors. There are several players in the Big East vying for the honor, but the two favorites have to be Wesley Johnson from Syracuse and Scottie Reynolds at ‘Nova. Johnson averages 16 points and nine rebounds this season to lead the Orange, while Reynolds has put an outstanding cap on an illustrious career, scoring 19 points per game for the Wildcats.

If the Orange win, it could go a long way in making their case for a number one seed in the NCAA Tournament. If the Wildcats win, it will ease the pain of their recent struggles, and give them some momentum heading into the difficult final week of their regular season.

Three-point play: February 10, 2010

1. The Big Ten could put five teams in the Sweet Sixteen

A little more than a week ago, the Big Ten Conference appeared to be a race for second place. Michigan State was unbeaten in conference play and the class of the league. Fast-forward to today, and the Spartans are in the midst of a three-game losing streak and a tie for first place in the conference.

Illinois (17-8, 9-3) is surging, after beating the Spartans over the weekend then Wisconsin on the road Tuesday night. Purdue and Ohio State (8-3 in the Big 10) are both a half game behind the Illini and Spartans for the league’s best record. Wisconsin, at 8-4, is in fifth place but only a game behind the leaders.

Every one of those five teams has played a quality out of conference schedule and proven they can win on the nation’s biggest stage. Of those five teams, all are likely to be top five seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

2. The Big East could put four teams in the Elite 8

While not as deep as it was last year, the Big East has four of the nation’s best teams this season, and they are all playing like it right now. Georgetown has recovered from earlier struggles and sit in fourth place. This past Saturday, they were most impressive in beating conference leader Villanova at home.

Despite the loss by the Wildcats, they still look very strong and are easily the deepest team Jay Wright has had with the program. Scottie Reynolds has developed into a real leader for this team, rather than just the most talented player.

Syracuse is also extremely dangerous. They are tied atop the standings with Villanova at 10-1. The biggest concern for the Orange involving the tournament is inexperience at point guard. Brandon Triche has surprised everyone with his steady play as a freshman (9.5 ppg, 3.1 apg,), but history tells us it’s near impossible to win a championship with a rookie at that position.

The Orange also shoot 65% from the foul line as a team…not the most comforting of statistics for Syracuse fans. Still, it’s hard to argue that at 23-1, the Orange are not one of the best three or four teams in America.

West Virginia will also make a strong push in March. The Mountaineers are one of the more lengthy teams in the country, although they lack physicality inside. De’Sean Butler, Kevin Jones, and Devin Ebanks are all stars on the wing, and fit in perfectly with Coach Bob Huggins’ trapping defensive schemes. West Virginia traditionally plays very well during the postseason, and this is the most talented team the program has had in years.

3. Cinderella Alert: Siena, Butler, Northern Iowa

The Siena Saints, who knocked off Ohio State in the first round of last year’s NCAA Tournament, are riding high again this season. The Saints are 21-4 and 14-0 on the season. In the non-conference schedule, they faced both Georgia Tech and Temple on the road. Those types of games will prepare them well for the tournament.

When they make the big dance, you’ll be sure to hear about the Saints’ reserve player, Just-in’love Smith. He’s only played in four games, but that’s too cool of a name to keep off the air.

They’ll be known as a Cinderella, but if Northern Iowa makes it deep into March, it would not be that much of a surprise. The Panthers are 12-1 and in first place in the Missouri Valley Conference, which has produced several bracket busters this decade.

The Panthers are ranked no. 18 in the AP poll, so they have been recognized for their strong play thus far. They beat Boston College earlier this season on a neutral court, and they should easily earn an at-large bid should they falter in the conference tournament.

Butler also falls under a similar category as Northern Iowa. The Bulldogs were ranked in the top 20 of every preseason poll you could get your hands on. Now ranked 15^th in the country, Brad Stevens’ team has recovered from a few disappointing early-season losses to be 21-4 and 14-0 in the Horizon League. Their best win so far this season came against Ohio State in December, but the Buckeyes were without Evan Turner.

All three of these programs hail from little-known conferences, but they have been on cruise control over the past month and a half and could make serious noise during March Madness.

Three-point play: February 7, 2010

Saturday was filled with statement games by some teams looking to earn respect on the national scene. It was a great day of basketball, and here are some thoughts for the day:

1. The loss to South Florida was a blessing in disguise for Georgetown

We all saw, or at least heard about, Georgetown’s thumping of Duke last Saturday in front of President Barack Obama. The 89-77 win against the Blue Devils was a statement win for both the Hoyas and for the Big East Conference.

Four days later, the lowly South Florida Bulls came into the nation’s capital and sent Georgetown a big fat wake-up call. By beating the Hoyas 72-64, it kept Georgetown’s egos in check, and sent the team a message that no opponent will lay down for them.

So all the Hoyas did was come out Saturday and embarrass the 2^nd-ranked Villanova Wildcats 103-90. Backcourt mates Austin Freeman and Jason Clark combined for 49 points in the win.

That makes it two Saturdays in a row where Georgetown has looked like a Final Four team. The upset loss on Wednesday night enabled John Thompson’s club to re-focus and understand just how big the target on their backs really is.

Look for the Hoyas to make the Big East a three-headed monster, including the Wildcats and Syracuse, down the stretch.

2. The Mountain West and the Atlantic 10 should get eight NCAA bids between them

Saturday was a banner day for the unknown teams in both the Atlantic 10 and Mountain West Conference. Dayton, UNLV and Richmond all hosted conference powers, and all three enjoyed convincing upset victories.

The Spiders (18-6, 7-2), who have already knocked off Mississippi State, Missouri and Florida this season, hosted No. 17 Temple and blew them away 71-54. Kevin Anderson, a junior guard from Duluth, Ga. is the engine for that team, averaging 18 points per game while only leaving the floor for three minutes per game.

Dayton took on Xavier as losers in three of its last five games. It was a virtual must-win game for the Flyers to keep their at-large hopes alive, and they destroyed the Musketeers 90-65, avenging a loss earlier in the season on the road. The Flyers need a strong finish down the stretch still; their only quality win out of conference was against Georgia Tech.

UNLV hosted 12^th ranked BYU and used a 56 point first half to cruise to victory. The Rebels (19-4, 7-2) are now in a three-way tie for first place in the Mountain West, and after a mid-season slump have rebounded to win seven of their last eight games.

3. Winning on the road is harder than getting Taylor Swift to sing well

In the AP Top 25 alone, seven underdogs won at home. The field of elite teams this year is diluted more than usual, and there are so many teams that could beat anyone.

The balanced standings in so many conferences will make for an interesting week of conference tournaments in early March. While so many of the highest ranked teams are dropping like flies when they hit the road, who knows what will happen when games move to neutral sites?

Fan bases for college basketball are as strong as ever, which makes for entertaining games. The emerging parity across the multiple-bid conferences are going to make this year’s conference tournaments some of the most intriguing ever. Enjoy the upsets while we can …only in college basketball…