College Hoops Thread '09-'10

[The Poet]

Wisconsin 73 - Purdue 66, for their 1st loss. The clock's still running, but it's over in the Texas and South Carolina games also. Duke and Ole Miss getting all they can handle, and maybe even more.

[The Poet]

South Carolina 80 - Auburn 71. Duke and Kansas State both down 3, and Marquette coming back, only down four. Plenty of time left in these games.

[The Poet]

Texas 103 - Colorado 86; Miss. St. 80 - Ole Miss 75. Duke down 2 with 4:15 left, 'Nova and K-State with "meh" leads now.

[The Poet]

Villanova 78 - Marquette 76 = Blue Demons furious comeback falls just short.
Georgia Tech 71 - Duke 67 = Blue Devils never recover from crappy opening of 2nd half.

The K-State/Missou and Ohio State/Minnesota games still wars - one late, the other early. As for UK/Ga., UNLV/NM, and Tx A&M/Huskers - well, not so much.

[The Poet]

Missouri 74 - Kansas State 66 = Still another ranked team fails today. Will there be more? Tune in next week.

[The Poet]

Well, you can say what you will, but you cannot say it wasn't an interesting weekend. Aside from the scores - and upsets - already mentioned on Saturday, we had:

Notre Dame 70 - West Virginia 68 = Hey, didn't some people think WVA the best team in the country a few weeks ago? The Irish went 14-20 from the line, and the Mountaineers shot 2 of 4; some home-cooking in South Bend? Still, the potential winner rimmed out at the buzzer. I'm sorry I missed this game.

UNLV 74 - New Mexico 62 = The Lobos have lost 3 of their last 5, while the Rebels bounce between good and lousy.

Miami 67 - Wake Forest 66 - The Deacs missed 2 of 4 FTs in closing minute and 1/2, and could not pull this off. Miami is now 15-1 for the season, for the first time since the '59-'60 campaign.

Kentucky 76 - Georgia 68 = The 'Dawgs hung tough, but couldn't quite make it to the end of this game. If the Wildcats dodge any more bullets, they should consider starting a circus act.

Baylor 91 - Oklahoma 60 = What a whuppin' that was. Baylor's now 13-1, and ranked #22 as of today.

Clemson 72 - Boston College 56 = And the Tigers find themselves back in the Top 25 too.

California 67 - USC 59 = It's getting to the point that Pac-10 fans don't even care anymore.

Stanford 70 - UCLA 59 = Bruins are 7-9 so far, and showing no signs of life.

Dayton 78 - Duquesne 72 (OT) = OK, now here's one we could enjoy.

Tulsa 86 - Houston 80 = And that's not too bad either.

Michigan State 71 - Iowa 53 = But this one, not so much. As I predicted, no contest.

Illinois 66 - Indiana 60 = The Hoosiers were outscored by 17 from the charity stripe, blew a 15-point lead, and are now 7-8. They and UCLA should begin a "Lost Glory" series.

Oklahoma State 81 - Texas Tech 52 = Wasn't there a Texas Tech in the rankings earlier this season? I wonder if they are related.

Gonzaga 81 - Portland 78 = A really nice matchup between West Coast mid-majors. And since the Pac-10 sucks so badly, it's also nice the Lefters have someone to cheer.

Seton Hall 83 - Cincinnati 76 = Well, whaddaya know? The Pirates finally get one of these in the W column.

Memphis 59 - Southern Mississippi 57 = Seems like yesterday that 59 points by the Tigers was their halftime tally, doesn't it?

BYU 83 - UTEP 77 = OMG. (No offense to my Mormon brethern here.)

And if all of that wasn't enough excitement for you, we had a couple of games on Sunday that were kinda fun also:

Tennessee 76 - Kansas 68 = Sheesh. The Jayhawks had the advantages of momentum, talent, depth, and experience. The Vols had a few athletes who could compete head-to-head, and had the advantages of a big man who can shoot from outside, the homecourt, and the focus gained from all their problems. This should have been a walkover, but give the Vols credit - they outplayed the Jayhawks, and Pearl outcoached Self.

Maryland 77 - Florida State 68 = OK, not nearly the upset as above, especially in College Park, and no shock to ACC fans at all.

UNC 78 - Virginia Tech 64 = The Heels keep their home streak alive, and actually played fairly well most of the game . . . for a change. Hopefully, that's a permanent change for the better.

Temple 68 - Rhode Island 64 (OT) = I'm telling you, this Owl team is another one I just can't figure out. This gets classed under my infamous "bad win" category.

Syracuse 82 - South Florida 65 = Shoot, ain't it a little late for a scrimmage like this one?

Northwestern 68 - Michigan 62 = Northwesten gets the much-needed win, while John Beilein gets the contract extension from UM through 2016. Hell, what can I tell you?

Xavier 76 - George Washington 69 = Like I said, it's time for the yo-yo X-men to win again.

Butler 64 - Detroit 62 (OT) = And like I said, this one was a war, down to the end and beyond.

Arizona 87 - Washington 70 = And like I said, the Pac-10 has no pop.

Arizona State 71 - Washington State 46 = And like I said, Herb Sendek is one of the most underrated coaches in America.

As for action tonight - well, there ain't one whole hell of a lot. There will likely be a number of close games between mid-level and cellar teams, but contests of any note altogether only include:

Villanova vs. Louisville = Depending upon which Cardinal team shows up, this could come down to who wants it more down the stretch.

Oklahoma State vs. Oklahoma = It's in Norman, but State's been playing better.

Enjoy, or at least try to.

[The Poet]

Yes indeedy, there were a number of really good contests between the "also-rans" last night, but who truly cares if Alabama State and Grambling State won in OT, or that St. Peter's beat Niagara in 2OT, or that Bethune-Cookman edged N.C. A&T by one? I don't, but if you do, then props to your boys, no matter which side the final score fell. The two games of national note last night were also good games:

Villanova 92 - Louisville 84 = And Louisville did show up, as this one was closer than the final may indicate. The Cardinals squandered a 17-point first-half lead, and Scottie Reynolds scored 16 in the final 6 minutes to pull 'Nova in front. Even with that, Louisville had two chances to tie it late with 3-pointers, but missed them both. A nice game, and a nice W for the boys from Philly.

Oklahoma 62 - Oklahoma State 57 (OT) = The Sooners tried to leave the court sooner than they should, and wasted a 5-point lead with 30 ticks left, letting the Cowboys tie it up to force the extra session. But then it was the 'Boys who got poked, scoring only 3 stinkin' points in five minutes.

There are not a slew of games tonight either, yet there are more marquee matchups than last evening gave to us:

Kentucky vs. Florida = I see this as the same as the 'Nova/Louisville one . . . if the Gators show up, they could put the umpteenth scare into the Wildcats.

Purdue vs. Ohio State = The Boilermakers no longer have that "undefeated" pressure on them, and the Buckeyes still haven't figured out how to play without Turner. This should be over sooner rather than later.

Kansas State vs. Texas A&M = Either team is capable of winning, and neither is dominant. Should be tons of fun.

Florida State vs. N.C. State = The Seminoles have gotten more respect, but Lowe has his guys playing better than others expected, plus the Wolfpack needs the W more. I predict a close one.

Maryland vs. Wake Forest = If you know the ACC, 'nuff said.

Illinois vs. Penn State = The Illini are 3-0 in conference, and the Lions 0-3. These percentages will not change.

Baylor vs. Colorado = The Bears have the better team. However, they are not accustomed to playing as a ranked team, so they might stumble early. They should prevail though.

Enjoy.

[The Poet]

Say what you will, what few games there were last night sure gave us some sizzle:

Kentucky 89 - Florida 77 = And once again, this was a lot closer than the final, It was tied at 72 with 5 minutes left, but UK ducked yet another slug. Hey, if they keep this up, they will never lose another game - ever, ad infinitum, ad nauseum.

Ohio State 70 - Purdue 66 = I guess having Turner back at 50% is sufficient, as he scored about that same percentage of the Buckeyes points (46%). Either that, or the Boilermakers enjoyed their first loss so much they decided to continue.

Kansas State 88 - Texas A&M 65 = I normally ignore spankings, even those involving ranked squads, but I thought this of note due to A&M's complete and utter collapse. But maybe I should not be to shocked . . . after all, this was in Manhattan (KS, not NY), and so far this year the Big 12 is a sick 113-1 on their home courts.

Colorado 78 - Baylor 71 = Like I just said, as this was in Boulder. And like I also said yesterday, Baylor is not accustomed to playing as a ranked team. That should not worry them next week.

N. C. State 88 - Florida State 81 = Did I not tell you the boys from Moo U have been playing some decent ball? Had that 75-footer in OT not gone in for the Gators a few games back, the Pack might be getting some respect from someone besides me.

Illinois 54 - Penn State 53 = OK, I know the Illini do not have a great team this year, but Penn State purely sucks. There's no excuse for this "bad" win.

Wake Forest 85 - Maryland 83 (OT) = 'Nuff said. Yeah, I'm repeating myself, but what else can you say?

Tonight's action promises to give us even more of the same, especially with the conference matchups:

Texas vs. Iowa State = Or maybe not.

Kansas vs. Nebraska = Or maybe not again. You can expect that Big 12 113-1 home margin to change by tomorrow.

Michigan State vs. Minnesota = OK, now this might be a game, at least for a while, if the Gophers can slow the Spartans down enough.

Miami vs. Virginia Tech = And this too should go down to the end.

Temple vs. Pennsylvania = And this too . . . wait, Penn? Nevermind. This Big 5 contest isn't one.

Cincinnati vs. St. John's = The Johnnies have yet to get a conference win, and Cincy may be too much to expect one to come tonight . . . even in MSG. But at least there will be some basketball played there this evening.

West Virginia vs. South Florida = The Mountaineers need to spank somebody soon to prove the earlier hype was more than just that. I predict a W, but not a whuppin'.

Duke vs. Boston College = The Eagles are not flying too high this year, and this is at that asylum in Durham. The Devils rebound from their loss Saturday, and big.

Georgia Tech vs. Virginia = The Cavs are tied atop the ACC at the moment . . . at 1-0. That ends all to soon for the Charlottesville faithful.

UNC vs. Clemson = And here's the team they're tied with, playing against the Tigers. It has sometimes been a struggle for the Tar Heels in Littlejohn, yet they almost always prevail. If the Heels show up tonight, they shall again.

U. Conn vs. Pittsburgh = You want your war? Well, here's your war. Neither team got much respect before the season started, particularly the Panthers, but they have both played good ball and are a nice matchup.

Syracuse vs. Rutgers = You want another war? Well, look elsewhere, because this ain't one.

BYU vs. Air Force = Nope, keep looking.

Mississippi vs. Georgia = Ehhhhh, maybe, if the Bulldogs bring what they learned against Kentucky to the court.

Wisconsin vs. Northwestern = Ehhhhh, OK, maybe again . . . though I truly have no abiding faith in either team.

Missouri vs. Texas Tech = Ehhhhh, I think this has a better shot at a shoot-out.

Vanderbilt vs. Alabama = Yeah, and quite possibly this one too.

We'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out for sure, so until then . . . enjoy.

[The Poet]

Hey, I just ran across an interesting factoid for you guys to ponder. In this week's AP Top 25 voting, perennial powerhouse Harvard received one vote. So did mighty Missouri State, as well as the less-surprising mid-major force, Siena. Do you know how many Pac-10 teams received any votes at all? None. Zip. Zero. Null set.

Did you ever think you'd see the day? Not me.

[JaKaacH]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1o2l...layer_embedded

[The Poet]

Yeah, Jeff. I saw that already. And if they can do it when it matters it would actually mean something.

Speaking of KU, they beat Nebraska last night 84-72, which is respectable but not the dominance I expected. If you wanted some dominance, you needed look no further than:

Clemson 83 - UNC 64 = The Tigers beat the Heels for the first time since 2004, and they sure made it convincing. I know it's hard to play in Littlejohn, but there's only one excuse for this . . . my boys stink.

You want less dominance? Then I give you:

Texas 90 - Iowa State 83 = OK, it's a win, yet that's about all you can say.

Mississippi 80 - Georgia 76 = Another tough loss for the 'Dawgs.

Michigan State 60 - Minnesota 53 = Well, the Gophers slowed MSU down, sure enough. Problem is, they apparently slowed themselves down even more.

Virginia 82 - Georgia Tech 75 = Nobody knows better than I what a minefield the ACC can be. However, how the hell the Jackets can beat Dook then drop this to the Cavs . . . well, as I said, it's the ACC.

Virginia Tech 81 - Miami 66 = What he said.

Pittsburgh 67 - U. Conn 57 = And that's the Big East, though we knew from the start this could go either way.

St. John's 52 - Cincinnati 50 = Well, this one snuck up on me. I know that the Johnnies have been playing better than in the recent past (like ten or twelve years, really), yet I did not expect them to get their first conference win last night. It makes me wonder what they are putting in the water out in Cincy though . . . not only have both Xavier and the Bearcats been all over the map, but Bearcats football ruled the Big East, only to get crushed in their BCS contest. And what about the Bengals? Or the Reds, for that matter?

Vanderbilt 65 - Alabama 64 = This is one nice win for the Commodores . . . and they'll need every one of these they can get to stay respectable in the SEC.

There are a ton of games tonight, but most of them involve the also-rans of Division 1, so I'll limit myself to some that may matter:

Georgetown vs. Seton Hall = The Hoyas need to prove they can compete for the Big East lead, and the Pirates need to prove they can win and not just compete. It may be closer than you think . . . the Hall hasn't played dead yet.

Tennessee vs. Auburn = Judging by the way the NCAA's been going so far, the Vols will follow their good win and their great one with a loss. Hey, stranger things seem to happen every night.

Indiana vs. Michigan = These two both want to stay in the Big 10 hunt for a while. Should be a fight, though I'd expect the Logans to prevail.

Gonzaga vs. St. Mary's = Hey, this might just be the best game of the night, if not the week.

Finally, there are a slew of games in what has become the most competitive conference in the nation . . the Pac-10. Yeah, they all pretty much suck, but they all pretty much suck equally, which means any given team could finish either first or last in the league. Tonight we have:

Arizona State vs. Oregon = Sendek tries to extend his rule over the Great Northwest squads.

Arizona vs. Oregon State = If Arizona doesn't get on some kind of roll, their streak of NCAA appearances will end at 25.

California vs. Washington State = I got nuttin' here.

Stanford vs. Washington = I got damn little here, save to note that one of these teams was once in the ranks, and is still rank.

Enjoy.

[WildBlueSooner]

I love this thread, especially seeing that every UK game within 15 points is "closer than the score" and that they keep "dodging bullets." I have watched every game and they have outclassed every opponent...In most cases they should have won by more.

Oh well though...still undefeated! Go CATS!

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by WildBlueSooner

I love this thread, especially seeing that every UK game within 15 points is "closer than the score" and that they keep "dodging bullets." I have watched every game and they have outclassed every opponent...In most cases they should have won by more.

And that's sort of my point there, brother - though not all those wins were dodged slugs. Yet if you have truly watched every game, and can honestly tell me that you did not have some anxious moments late in some of those contests - well then, I'd like a few of those chill pills you've been popping.

Oh, and thanks bunches for the left-handed compliment - I'm having fun on this thread myself . . . most of the time.

As I thought, there were a bunch of close ones amongst the mid-pack programs, but there were only a few scores (discounting the blow-outs) that interest me:

Georgetown 85 - Seton Hall 73 = Pirates still have only one conference win, but they did play a better team tough on the road.

Gonzaga 89 - St. Mary's 82 = Not only was this a 4-point game with under a minute to play, but the Gaels got the ball back on a missed front-end 1&1, then missed their 3-ball that would have cut it to one. I knew this would be a good 'un.

Oregon State 67 - Arizona 64 = These "other" Wildcats are under .500, in conference and overall. Keep that streak mentioned above in mind as you watch their season progess - if it ever does.

Mississippi State 82 - Arkansas 80 = A really exciting game in a conference that actually does matter.

There really ain't nuttin' but crap on tap tonight. Well, that St. Peter's/Rider game may be OK, but Marist/Loyola, or Yale/Brown? Pleeze. But as usual there is gobs on Saturday. Most will follow on my early afternoon post tomorrow, but I'll get you started with a few that tip-off at noon:

Syracuse vs. West Virginia = Two of maybe five teams hoping to be the Beast of The East.

Pittsburgh vs. Louisville = And here's another one of them . . . yes, I said "one of them."

Clemson vs. N. C. State = Not traditional ACC powers, but both teams have played good ball. Plus, those traditional powers haven't exactly been dazzling, so this game may have more meaning than in previous campaigns.

Dayton vs. Xavier = Going by my prior established logic, the X-Men will lose again. But either way, I expect this one to be a battle.

Talk to you more tomorrow. Until then, enjoy.

[The Poet]

Nothing much to note about the games already in progress, except that the Dayton/Xavier one was a 3-point war at the half, just like I expected. All the others are too soon to mention, so I'll get into the rest of today's action, listed roughly by start-times:

Missouri vs. Oklahoma = Both are decent squads, so should be a close one.

Tennessee vs. Mississippi State = Yeah, here too.

Kansas vs. Texas Tech = Maybe not so much here, though Tech has played good enough to have the chance to give the Jayhawks their second rough Saturday. I don't predict that, but I didn't predict last week's shocker either.

UNC vs. Georgia Tech = The Tar Heels are without Zeller for a while, yet they have enough help down low to compensate. Their problem has been inconsistent play outside and poor judgement, coupled with lackluster attitude. They have not yet lost in Chapel Hill, and need this trend to continue to remain respectable in the ACC . . . not to mention nationally.

Temple vs. U. Mass. = In the past this has been one hell of a matchup. I can't see this Mass team playing with the Owls however, but stranger things do happen.

California vs. Washington = The Bears sit atop the Pac-10 (for what that's worth), and the Huskies are the team that supposed to be there. Should be a nice contest.

Mississippi State vs. Georgia = The Bulldogs have problems getting over the hump at times, so I'd go with the Delta boys here.

Michigan State vs. Illinois = The Spartans have gotten more hype, but both these teams are 4-0 in conference play. I'm going with MSU to change that, to their benefit.

Maryland vs. Boston College = The Terps have had some better wins, but this can go either way.

Siena vs. Fairfield = Hey, I know a lot of you guys pay little attention to these mid-majors, but games like this are tons of fun.

Notre Dame vs. Cincinnati = Mid-pack conference teams that both need the win. If both show up, this is a fight to the finish . . . with the Irish having the slight edge.

Kentucky vs. Auburn = And if this isn't over by halftime, it certainly should be by the middle of the second stanza.

Baylor vs. Oklahoma State = The Bears got into the rankings, then promptly lost. Don't be shocked if the Cowboys do it to them again.

Kansas State vs. Colorado = K-State has the better team, and should win by double-digits. But they ain't as good as some believe, so who knows? Hey, that's why they play the games.

Arizona vs. Oregon = As you may have noticed, I'm finding this story developing out in the desert to be fascinating. To think that 'Zona and UCLA are crappy . . . well, it's just weird to an old fart like me.

Stanford vs. Washington State = Hell, this whole Pac-10 collapse it worth noting. It seems possible that, out of the nine (remember, USC put themselves on probation for the postseason), only the eventual conference champ may get an NCAA bid. No at-large for the Pac-10? Un-freakin'-believable!

Purdue vs. Northwestern = I had no faith in Northwestern back when they snuck into the ranked, and I have none here. The Boilermakers will own them.

BYU vs. Colorado State = I can't see this as being much of a contest either.

Florida State vs. Virginia Tech = Now we're talking! This could go down to the last minute.

Texas vs. Texas A&M = Early on a lot of people were anticipating this game, big-time. And who knows? If that earlier A&M team makes it to Austin, this could be closer than the 'Horns would prefer. I give them the edge, but with in-state conference games it's often who decides to play, not who has the better talent.

Vanderbilt vs. South Carolina = Nobody talks about these SEC squads much, but they are both 2-0 in conference play. That's gonna change today, no doubt.

Arizona State vs. Oregon State = Herb Sendek has pretty much owned the Great Northwest this season. If he keeps this up, the Sun Devils can really thumb their noses at those other desert rats . . . uh, I mean " 'cats."

Wisconsin vs. Ohio State = With Turner's back back, the Buckeyes may be also. If nothing else, they shall badger the Badgers.

Miami vs. Virginia = The Cavs have already surprised me once this week, so I'm not about to call this one.

LSU vs. Florida = The Tigers are not a factor in the SEC, and the early joy the Gators felt has tarnished much too much to suit them. In the greater scheme of things, this matchup doesn't mean much, but it should be fun regardless.

Gonzaga vs. San Diego = If Few's boys win by fewer than 10, he should make them walk home.

Portland vs. St. Mary's = Portland crept into the rankings for a couple of seconds early on, and St. Mary's maybe should have too. Nobody much cares, but here's another good game.


Now for the Sunday action, there is not nearly as much going on. However, there are several key games scheduled:

Georgetown vs. Villanova = Do I really need to say any more than that? Hoyas vs. 'Nova. Oh baby!

U. Conn vs. Michigan = The boys from Storrs should own this one, since the Wolverines are merely "meh" this year. But be warned . . . U. Conn is not the U. Conn you've come to expect.

St. John's vs. DePaul = This is interesting to me more due to the coaches than the teams. Here we have one program whose coach just got fired going up against one whose coach has been embattled for years. If you're not in the NYC area, you likely have no idea how often, and how loudly, the Johnnie fans have called for Norm Robert's head.

Providence vs. Marquette = Not the marquee teams in the Big East, but two decent ones who should give us a good game.

Indiana vs. Minnesota = The Hoosiers are still just a shadow of their past glory, and can't match the muscle of Minnesota.

Duke vs. Wake Forest = This is in Cameron, and the Blue Devils have the advantage in talent and experience. But this is Dook/Deaks we're talkin' about here, so don't bet the farm on it, either direction.

I'm gonna go check on the action now, and update you on that. Enjoy.

[The Poet]

Xavier two possessions up over Dayton with a minute-plus left. Louisville has slim edge over Pitt early in 2nd, as does WVA over Syracuse. Clemson kicking NCSU's butt.

[The Poet]

Xavier 78 - Dayton 74 = I keep telling you guys to watch these mid-majors to get your thrills. 'Cuse has cut into WVA's lead, and the other contest's about the same as before.

[The Poet]

Louisville trying to close out Pitt. Syracuse up ten over WVA, and State has made a huge comebact to trail by a deuce.

[The Poet]

Whoa. Louisville misses FTs, Pitt hits 'em - going into OT. Syracuse 7 ticks from topping WVA, Clemson up 3 with 39 ticks left. Missou up 5 over Sooners at half, Ole Miss up 9 over Vols, and KU owning TT.

[The Poet]

Clemson 73 - N. C. State 70, and the 'Pack's comebact too little too late. Syracuse 72 - WVA 71, and pretty much the same for the Mountaineers. Pitt jumped out early in OT, but Cards come back to within one. TT hanging tough lately against KU, down 2 possessions, and Ga. Tech kicking Heel butt early.

[The Poet]

Pitt 82 - Louisville 77 (OT). Give the Cardinals props. Though they choked at the end of regulation, they should not have been in this roadgame at all.

Oklahoma and Tennessee coming back into it, and Kansas starting to dominate Texas Tech. Heels still having their lunch handed to them by the Jackets.