By Paul Gotham

That shook the bushes

Whew! What do you get when you mix four overtime games, with three double-digit seeds advancing to the Sweet 16, and 10 games decided by three points or less? Oh wait…I forgot to add in there -  11 different conferences represented in the Regional Semi-finals.

What do you get? The greatest show on earth, that’s what you get.

The NCAA Tournament, especially the first two rounds, never disappoints, and this past weekend might be the best in recent memory. I am still a little dazed from all the action. If someone can think of a better weekend from The Dance, please chime in.

Is it a verb or a noun?

After all the dust has settled, we have a new moniker. How will it be used? When a player hits a shot, that has everyone saying: “No, no…Yes!” Which one will it be? He did a “Farook?” Or, he “Farooked” them?

It really doesn’t matter. With one shot, Ali Farokhmanesh put himself into history. Yeah, it was his fourth trifecta of the night. Of course, he was 0-4 up to that point in the second half, but shooters shoot. And shoot is what “Farook” did. Clinging to a one-point lead and too much time on the clock, Farokhmanesh let it fly. It was great to hear the comments during the post-game press conference.  Adam Koch: “If you know Ali, you know that shot is going up.”  Head Coach Ben Jacobson: “Ali isn’t one for paying attention to time and score.”

A little confusing

Many have been touting the Panthers as the first Missouri Valley tournament champion to advance to the Sweet 16. If you are like me, you are scratching your head and thinking – what about Southern Illinois? Yeah, three years ago today the Salukis lost to Kansas, 61-58 in the Regional Semi-final. The difference is that Southern Illinois earned an at-large bid to the tournament.

It’s only been 31 years

Yes, we are getting ahead of ourselves, or better yet, I am getting ahead of myself, but it has been more than three decades since a representative from the Missouri Valley Conference and the Ivy League advanced to the Final Four. Penn and Indiana State punched tickets to Salt Lake City for the 1979 Final Four. I suppose it’s wishful thinking. Can you blame a guy for dreaming? We can count on a sea of red (that will clash with the orange seat backs) at the Carrier Dome this Thursday as Cornell (about a 90 minute drive from Syracuse) takes on the Kentucky Wildcats.

That sound you hear is tickets being scarfed up on Stub Hub and other ticket broker sites.

Bombs away

Speaking of Cornell, the Big Red represent a number of teams using the three-pointer to score 25 percent or more of their points. Cornell hit nine threes (27 points) to beat Temple, 78-65. The denizens of Ithaca followed with 24 of 87 points from long range against Wisconsin. Kansas State scored 33 of 84 beating BYU. The Wildcats opened the tourney scoring 21 of 82 from long range against North Texas.  St. Mary’s scored 24 of 80 and 21 of 75 this weekend. Northern Iowa had carbon copies with 27 of 69 points in both of their wins. For the weekend, Syracuse scored 66 of 166 from behind the arc.

Begs the question: Which is the cart and which is the horse? All of those teams have a scorer in the paint. Are opponents more concerned with points in the pain? Or points from long range?

Conference call

Conference        W                L                Pct.

Horizon                      2                0                   1.000

Ivy                               2                 0                  1.000

Miss Valley                2                 0                  1.000

Big Ten                          7                  2                   .777

Pac 10                             3                  1                   .750

West Coast                     3                   1                  .750

SEC                                     4                   2                 .667

Big 12                                  7                   5                .583

Big East                              6                    6                 .500

ACC                                      5                     5                .500

A10                                       2                     2                .500

Other conferences getting wins – Colonial, Mid-American, Ohio Valley, Southwestern Athletic, and the Mountain West.

Who would have thought the Big Ten would have the most teams remaining with three? The Big East lies somewhere between the “best conference by far” and “The Big Least.”

Matt Painter – coach of the weekend

Count me among the number who dismissed the Boilermakers. Did they show us? Purdue has way too much pride in that locker room to fold.  Matt Painter has his kids believing, and the Boilermakers will be a tough out. With Robbie Hummel on the sidelines, the scouting report has changed. Opponents will need to adjust…quickly.

Not so “mid” any more

Peter Thamel’s piece on New York Times brings up a topic I have considered for a while: the “mid-major” title might fall into the category of archaic. Jim Boeheim praised Cornell endlessly after the Orange won an early-season game against the Big Red, 88-73. A month and a half later, the eventual Ivy League champ had Kansas on the ropes at the Allen Fieldhouse. KU won 71-66. But the message was clear – The Big Red was not to be overlooked.

Cornell is not the only team that should NOT be a surprise. Butler has played UCLA, Minnesota, Northwestern, Clemson, Georgetown, and Ohio State to name a few. Anyone surprised by Xavier is just not paying attention. The Musketeers have made it to the Sweet 16 three years in a row.

Cornell pulled no punches. Neither did St. Mary’s or Xavier. They took their opponents’ best punch and stayed standing.

Call it what you want. Northern Iowa versus Kansas comes down to intrinsic motivation versus extrinsic motivation. How many kids on the Northern Iowa stand a chance of making an NBA roster? Probably none. Where as many of the Jayhawks are evaluating their draft status. Kansas is a stepping stone to them. Northern Iowa kids are playing for the here and now. It’s a beautiful thing. Undoubtedly, the student-athletes in the MVC, Ivy, Horizon, etc. love the game of basketball. Why else would the put in the endless hours? One and done kids? Do they love the game? Or the status? Or the adulation? Or the pot o’ cash at the end of the rainbow?

Game of the weekend

Paring it down to ONE game could be fruitless, but the Maryland – Michigan State game was amazing. The Terrapins and Spartans exchanged leads FOUR times in the final :31. Four times! The last came at the horn. Greivis Vasquez put Maryland ahead 83-82 with seven ticks on the Timex to go. Without a timeout, the Spartans took the inbound and Draymond Green dished to Korie Lucious for the winner.

The Spartans go forward unsure of Kalin Lucas’s status.

Sympathy for Siena

Much has been made of the injuries of Robbie Hummel, Arinze Onuaku, and Lucas. Few know the Siena Saints had a hole in their lineup Friday. Clarence Jackson watched from the bench as Siena fell to Purdue 72-64. Jackson sprained his ankle during practice earlier in the week. He averages 13 points and two rebounds for Fran McCaffery’s crew. I had the chance to watch the Siena – Purdue tilt in a restaurant about four miles from the Albany campus. Great atmosphere indeed.

Got any college basketball splinters? Please, share them here.

By Paul Gotham

Don’t sweat the small stuff…

…unless you lose a conference game in overtime, at home.

Preparation for a basketball game does not get much more basic than free throw box outs. Defensive players wait for the shooter’s release, step in front of the opponent, and maintain contact. Easy. Right?

Saturday night, that concept cost Kansas State a win over Kansas. On two occasions late in the second half, Kansas State players committed free throw lane violations. One to no consequence. The other resulted in a point for Kansas.

Remember, the game went into overtime.

The Wildcats misfortunes in the lane did not stop there. Twice, the Jay Hawks rebounded their own missed free throws. One time, with two minutes remaining in regualtion, Brady Morningstar grabbed a Cole Aldrich miss and reset the offense. Eventually, Tyshawn Taylor hit two free throws and Kansas led 69-66.

In overtime, Aldrich grabbed a Sherron Collins missed free throw. Again, the Jay Hawks reset the offense, and the Wildcats committed a foul.

How much rebounding work do you think the Wildcats did the next day in practice?

Cornell in the Top 25

It took 59 years, but the Cornell Big Red made the rankings. This week’s ESPN/USA Today poll had Cornell ranked 25th. The Big Red just missed earning a spot in the AP poll.

Princeton’s ’97-’98 team was the last Ivy League school that earned a spot. The Tigers finished eighth in the final poll of that season.

Cornell spent some weeks in the rankings during the 1950-51 campaign.

Cornell currently ranks 36th in the RPI.

It’s official; Carolina is rebuilding

Over the weekend Carolina lost to Virginia, 75-60. With the defeat, the Tar Heels have dropped four of five and have fallen to 13-8 overall. Any chance last week’s snub from the rankings provided motivation proved futile. The Heels continue to struggle. That’s what happens when you lose a boat load of first round picks.

Things don’t get better any time soon for Roy Williams and his Heels. UNC plays their next two on the road – tomorrow at Virginia Tech and Sunday at Maryland.

This can not be good though. It only means one thing. The biggest game(s) of the season for the Heels will come on February 10th and March 6th when they play Duke. The Heels can erase a mediocre season by spanking their Tobacco Road rival.

Who says you can’t go home?

With a conference record of 1-8 and an overall mark of 8-13, it’s hard to imagine that the DePaul Blue Demons once had a proud basketball tradition. From 1976 to 1989 the Blue Demons missed the NCAA Tournament just twice. Keep in mind, ‘The Dance’ consisted of just 32 teams through the 1978 season. DePaul reached the Elite Eight in ’78, the National Semis in ’79 and made Sweet Sixteen appearances in ’84, ’86, and ’87.

Since 1992, the Blue Demons have made just two appearances: 2000 and 2004.

As a freshman, Mark Aguirre led DePaul to the National Semi-Finals in 1979.  They lost 76-74 to Larry Bird and the Indiana State Sycamores. Aguirre knows a thing or two about DePaul hoops.

According to Chicago Breaking News, the former NBA all-star and current assistant for the New York Knicks is interested in the job.

It would be nice to see DePaul return to prominence. Is Aguirre the man for the job?

How valuable is a coach?

Sometimes, it is easy to overlook the wisdom of the guy on the sidelines.

UConn’s recent struggles should serve as a reminder that a coach has value.

The Huskies won’t take Jim Calhoun for granted. With the hall of fame coached sidelined for medical reasons, the Huskies have dropped their last three games. With a record of 13-9, UConn’s chances for the NCAA Tournament are starting to look bleak.

Niagara’s Tyrone Lewis

ESPN’s Dana O’Neill did a great story on Tyrone Lewis from Niagara University. When you get a chance, click here to give it a read.

1st Team All Casey

PG Scottie Reynolds – Villanova

SG Jeremy Hazell – Seton Hall

SF Wesley Johnson – Syracuse

PF Al-Farouq Aminu – Wake Forest

C Cole Aldrich – Kansas

2nd Team All Casey

PG – Sherron Collins – Kansas

SG  Jordan Crawford – Xavier

SF  Evan Turner – Ohio State

PF  DeSean Butler – West Virginia

C Greg Monroe – Georgetown

Got any college basketball splinters? Share them here.

By Paul Gotham

Tough week for the Jayhawks

Seven days ago Bill Self’s Kansas Jayhawks looked like an unstoppable force. One week later, the Jayhawks’ staff might want to spend some time reading the tea leaves.

Without a doubt, the Jayhawks will have some say in who wins this year’s national title. The degree to which they have that say will depend upon how Self’s crew reacts to their games against Cornell and Tennessee.

The Jayhawks can not ignore how their shot frequency and shot selection were dictated to them by the Big Red and the Vols.

Kansas beat Cornell 71-66 – a game where the Jayhawks trailed at home with 4:00 remaining. Cornell’s strategy was simple: limit the number of shots by Kansas. The Jayhawks took 49 shots against Cornell. In comparison, Kansas took 63 shots versus UCLA, 60 against Cal, and 61 vs. LaSalle. It sounds simple because it is. Limit your opponents shots and you will limit their chances to score.

Cornell played patiently on the offensive end. Kansas was unaccustomed to the change in speed and they struggled to get any rhythm in their offense.

Tennessee dictated WHERE Kansas would take their shots. The undermanned Vols put on a defensive transition clinic.  The Vols demonstrated an understanding of priority in defensive transition – ball, block, and first pass. That is, Tennessee got back in the paint and organized themselves quickly.  From there,  Tennessee played zone and made the Jayhawks shoot over them. The Kansas starting front court of Cole Aldrich and Marcus Morris attempted a combined 10 shots all night. That was shot attempts. Kansas took 61 shots. Tennessee dictated where they would take those shots.

The Jayhawks can expect to see these strategies in the future.

Ivy League thinking at large

Cornell’s performance at the Phog Allen Fieldhouse was no fluke. The Big Red has already beaten Alabama and St. John’s.

Cornell had another close call with Seton Hall. They have earned an RPI ranking of 34. For the last two years the Big Red have represented the Ivy League in the NCAA tournament. The Big Red packs plenty of experience.

Cornell is not the only Ivy team making noise. Harvard has an RPI of 49.

The Crimson have wins over Boston College and George Washington to go with a close loss to Georgetown.

Xavier playing truth or consequences

The Atlantic 10 has worked their way into the top five of conference RPI. With the likes of Temple, Dayton, Richmond, Charlotte, and Rhode Island either earning spots or votes in the Top 25, the A10 has vaulted ahead of the SEC and Pac 10.

What’s missing is the Xavier Musketeers who have made two Elite Eight appearances and one Sweet Sixteen appearance in the last decade. The next four games could go a long way in proving whether the X-Men will earn an NCAA bid this year. Xavier hosts Charlotte tonight and Dayton Saturday before visiting Temple next Wednesday and hosting Rhode Island a week from Saturday.

Keep Michigan State on the radar

The Spartans returned three starters from last year’s national final team which created high expectations. With three losses it is easy to overlook the Spartans.

But don’t forget Tom Izzo still roams the sidelines for the Spartans. So while everyone talks about the undefeated teams, John Wall, and the daily hype, Izzo coaches. The three losses can be deceiving. Izzo has used nine different starting lineups. One can only imagine how many finishing lineups he has used – and the lineup at the end of the game is the one that matters.

Part of that shuffling included taking Kalin Lucas out of the starting five. Many coaches give in to their stars. Not Izzo. Actually, Izzo does not coach stars. Examine that lineup closely; you won’t find any McDonald’s All-Americans.  Izzo teaches team play, and that takes time. The results speak for themselves: 12 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, 5 Final Fours, and one National Title.

First team All-Casey

PG Sherron Collins – Kansas

SG Jeremy Hazell – Seton Hall

SF Wesley Johnson – Syracuse

PF Al-Farouq Aminu – Wake Forest

C Dexter Pittman – Texas

2nd Team All Casey

PG – Jon Scheyer – Duke

SG  Matt Bouldin – Gonzaga

SF  Robbie Hummel – Purdue

PF  Patrick Patterson – Kentucky

C Jason Love – Xavier

Got any college basketball splinters? Share them here.