AP Photo/Kevin Rivoli

By Paul Casey Gotham

Thumbnail tales: Jimmy V Week

Another week and another made for television basketball event. Eventually, the luster will wear off these extravaganzas. Until then, the best thing to do is ENJOY. And keep in mind the spirit of Jimmy Valvano: “Don’t give up.  Don’t ever give up.”

Memphis vs. Kansas – Legitimacy is there for the taking. Both teams are undefeated. Both teams have claimed spots in early-season rankings. Both teams might be a little hollow.

Kansas ranks number one nationally in field goal percentage (56.9), assists (21.1) and scoring margin (30.4). The three go together like Larry, Moe, and Curley, or something like that. The Jayhawks built those numbers against Longwood (113-75), North Texas (93-60) and Texas A&M Corpus Christi (82-41).   Arizona (87-79-the ‘Cats only loss) and UCLA (77-76 – the Bruins fell to 3-4 with a loss to Montana) slowed Kansas a little.

Memphis has wins over Miami (72-68 on November 12th), LSU (70-61) and most recently Western Kentucky (77-61). Memphis’s field goal percentage defense (36.9) is 19th in the nation, but they turn over the ball 16 times a  game (263rd in the land). At the same time, the Tigers get 11 steals per contest (9th).

How will Memphis fare? Josh Pastner starts three freshmen (Joe Jackson, Will Barton, and Chris Crawford).  The lights of Madison Square Garden tend to burn a little brighter than most. Sometimes the result is a spirited performance. Other times, youngsters experience dehydration.

Get ready for a track meet. Kansas can’t get enough possessions, and Memphis hasn’t valued possession of the ball yet this year.

Michigan State vs. Syracuse – Have the Orange been using some of their nine lives? Syracuse has had narrow escapes vs. William and Mary (63-60), Michigan (53-50), Georgia Tech (80-76), and North Carolina State (65-59). Are those wake-up calls? Or a harbinger of things to come?

The last time out for the Spartans, freshman, Kyrie Irving made senior, Kalin Lucas look like there was more green to him than his jersey. Is Lucas still recovering from his achilles tendon injury? How will this bode for Scoop Jardine? Can Jardine take advantage of Lucas?

SU leads the all-time series 9-7 with the Orange taking the last meeting of the two at the Dome in 2004 – 96-83.  Right now, the Spartans play for more possessions. MSU averages 78.6 per game while surrendering 66.5 SU scores 69.9 while allowing 58.9. The Orange, though,  need to score in transition to beat Michigan State. Don’t be surprised to see a different SU team tonight.

Big East/SEC Invitational

The BE and SEC offer an abbreviated showcase: four games over two nights.

Wednesday at Freedom Hall in Louisville

Notre Dame vs. Kentucky – the veteran Irish put their undefeated record on the line against the young Wildcats. Kentucky is coming off a loss at North Carolina. Notre Dame hasn’t played since November 30th – a victory over Indiana State (81-72).  Notre Dame has been getting some mileage out of the 2-3 zone. Kentucky hits 41 percent from long range. Three ‘Cats (Darius Miller, Doron Lamb, and Brandon Knight) have hit 14 or more from behind the arc. Might be time for a little HANDS UP HARRY!  Plenty of top ten teams squaring off with ranked squads this week. Could be plenty of movement. And Irish win, and ….nah!

Arkansas vs. Seton Hall – The Razorbacks are 5-1 with a victory over Oklahoma, but everyone is beating Oklahoma. Seton Hall is 3-3 with a win Alabama. Kevin Willard is in his first season coaching the Pirates. John Pelphrey is in his third at Arkansas.

Saturday @ The CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh

Tennessee vs. Pittsburgh - A pair of undefeated titans will lock horns. Bruce Pearl will be on the sidelines. So will Jamie Dixon. Ashton Gibbs has hit 46 percent (30-65) of his long-range attempts. The Vols have been stngy from behind the arc.

Rutgers vs. Auburn – Rutgers is 4-2. Auburn is 3-4. Rochester’s Dane Miller averages eight points and four rebounds for the Scarlet Knights.

Rebounds & Putbacks

Rush the Court offers their own break down of tonight’s games here. RTC’s “Morning Five” is always worth the read. BYU’s Jimmer Fredette will get a chance to play in his home town of Glens Falls, New York. But it was not without some jumping through hoops as Andy Katz tells everyone. By the way, Fredette and the Cougars play at the University of Buffalo on December 30th. ALL ABOARD! Ballin’ Is A Habit has a pretty good read on The Strange Recruitment of Adjehi Baru.

It’s not like the Purdue Boilermakers can afford to lose any more foot soldiers. Matt Painter and crew lost Robbie Hummel during the pre-season. Now, John Hart is out for a month.

JayVaughn Pinkston will have to wait another the season to impress. The much bally-hooed freshman has been suspended for the season by Villanova.

Got any college basketball splinters? Post them here.

By Paul Gotham

Setting: It’s a Big Ten showdown as Tom Izzo brings his No. 5 Michigan State Spartans (19-3, 9-0)  to Madison for a tilt with Bo Ryan’s No. 16 Wisconsin Badgers (16-5, 6-3).

Plot: Michigan State could gain a four-game edge on Wisconsin in the Big Ten standings. The Badgers are currently tied for second with Purdue, Ohio State, and Illinois.

Sub-plot: Michigan State is riding an eight-game winning streak including two of the last three on the road. Wisconsin has lost two of  four but won their previous two home games. Wisconsin will be without their second-leading scorer, Jon Leuer, who has an injured wrist.

Flashback: The Spartans beat the Badgers last month, 54-47. Chris Allen scored 16, and Draymond Green contributed 11 off the bench. Michigan State out-rebounded Wisconsin, 38-23. MSU leads the series, 68-58. Wisconsin has won 17 in a row at  the Kohl Center.

The Spartans have made 23 NCAA Tournament appearances including last year’s loss in the National Championship game. Izzo led the Spartans to the title in 2000. Under Izzo the Spartans have advanced to five Final Fours.

Wisconsin has earned 15 NCAA Tournament berths. Last year, the Badgers lost in the second round. Ryan has led Wisconsin to the Sweet Sixteen twice (’03 and ’08) and once to the Elite Eight (’05).

Foreshadowing: Thirty-seven Spartans have earned roster spots in the National Basketball Association, including current players Charlie Bell, Shannon Brown, Paul Davis, Morris Peterson, Zach Randolph, and Jason Richardson.

Twenty Badgers have stepped on the court in the Association. Michael Finley, Devin Harris, Marcus Landry, and Alando Tucker all have current spots on NBA rosters.

Conflict: Michigan State turns the ball over 14 times a game. Wisconsin gets almost six steals per contest. The Spartans have a rebound margin of 9.8 while Wisconsin is limited to a margin of 2.6.

Wisconsin is sixth in the nation limiting opponents to just 57.1 points. With patience, the Badgers can create Spartan mistakes. Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, and Chris Allen are athletic and experienced. Sometimes, the trio of guards hurry when trying to play fast. Wisconsin’s transition defense will need to make the initial stop of the Spartan rush. Then the Badgers will need to play defense inside the arc to limit Lucas and Allen off the dribble.

Trevon Hughes, Jason Bohannon, and and Jordan Taylor will be responsible for slowing down the Spartan back court. The three combine for nearly 36 points and nine assists per game.

Keaton Nankivil will try to make up for the loss of Leuer. Nankivil averages eight points and just under five rebounds.

Lucas, Summers, and Allen combine for 36 points a game. Raymar Morgan and Delvon Roe grab almost twelve rebounds. The front court duo hits over 56 percent of their shots from the field.

Resolution: Earlier this year, Wisconsin created 11 turnovers while committing just four in a defeat of Duke. They will need a similar performance tonight. The Badgers need to execute long possessions that will force Michigan State to work on the defensive end. Bo Ryan needs someone to step up in the absence of Leuer. Look for Rob Wilson or Ryan Evans to fill the void. This is the third of four on the road for the Spartans. They are ripe for an upset. Wisconsin hits 74 percent from the line while MSU finishes 68 percent of the time from the stripe. Wisconsin needs a victory, and the Badgers will win a single-digit affair tonight.

Got any thoughts on the game? Post 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.

Leading up to the 2009 NIT Season Tip Off on November 16th, Pickin’ Splinters will be counting down the top 25 of the college hardwood nation.

’08 – ’09 Results: 31 -7 (15 -3 Big Ten) Lost to UNC in the National Title game, 89 -72.

Coach: Tom Izzo 336 – 137 (14 years at MSU)

Key Returners:

Kalin Lucas – 14.7ppg, 2.1rpg

Chris Allen – 8.4ppg, 2.2rpg

Durrell Summers – 8.6ppg, 3.4rpg

Raymar Morgan – 10.2ppg, 5.3rpg

Delvon Roe – 5.6ppg, 5.2rpg

Notable Non-Conference Tilts: 11/17 vs. Gonzaga, 11/27 vs. Florida, 12/1 at North Carolina, 12/22 at Texas

Stat of Identity: 9.3 rebound margin #1 in the nation

By Paul Gotham

Not much has changed in Lansing, and not much needs to change for the Spartans to be successful.

Few lineup changes will take place, and there is no need for the style of play to change for the Michigan State Spartans.

Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, Raymar Morgan, Delvon Roe, and more were all on hand as the Spartans went down in flames against the North Carolina Tar Heels. They are none much worse for the wear.

Rebound, play defense, and take care of the ball are all staples of the Spartan diet. Last year was as good of an example as there is of this. A Michigan State lineup that lacked star-studded glitter led the nation in rebound margin and had two players with a 2 to 1 assist to turnover ratio. Four starters return from that team; opponents beware.

Lucas is a junior who played with senior savvy a season ago. This year should be only better. He will be joined in the back court by Allen and Summers.  Both hit over 30% from the behind the three-point arc.

Morgan and Roe will benefit from more repetitions of the famous Spartan rebounding exercise called the ‘war drill.’ The two forwards combined for over 10 per boards per game last year.