The Saint Mary's Gaels had won 15 straight games before going to face the perennial WCC powerhouse Gonzaga in Spokane. Gonzaga has had a roller coaster season with two wins over Tennessee and Maryland and looking like a true national title contender but also dropping games to Portland State and resembling a WCC cellar dweller. Last night for the first half the Zags showed no signs of resurgence, giving up a 39-33 lead in the first half. But in the second half, Jeremy Pargo and Austin Daye ratcheted up the intensity after St. Mary's superstar Patty Mills went out with an ankle injury. Mills had 18 points in the first half and the Zags had no answer for him, proving that when healthy maybe St. mary's is the best team out west. Matt Bouldin led Zaga with 17 points, but it was a true team effort in the second half especially. Gonzaga had four players in double figures and took care of the ball, only surrendering seven turnovers while shooting 46%. Diamon Simpson had 17 points for the Gaels in all 40 minutes; he was a perfect 7-7 from the field. Gonzaga now has the lead in the West Coast by a game but still has to travel to St. Mary's where a healthy Patty Mills could spell trouble. Gonzaga has lost down there in consecutive seasons.
Shoot-Around
- Clemson overcame a 15-point second half deficit in Blacksburg to come back and beat Virginia Tech. A huge road win for the Tigers which they desperately needed after getting crushed in Chapel Hill last week. K.C. Rivers went off for 29 and seven triples leading an 18-0 run in the last ten minutes to win the game. Virginia Tech's Malcolm Delaney had a career high 37 points, but it was not enough in the losing effort. The Hokies really need more balanced scoring. If its not Delaney its Vassallo but rarely do both step up on the same night. The more balanced they can become they more dangerous Tech can be in the ACC.
- The hype started to develop for Washington and was quickly extinguished when they got beat 106-97 at Arizona. Arizona needed a win over a top Pac-10 team, and this was certainly it to get back on track. Washington now is in real trouble as they shuffle over to Tempe to face an Arizona State team that just got beat at home to Washington State. I maintain Arizona State is the best team in the Pac 10 but there is no excuse for shooting 37% from the field against arguably the worst team in the conference. Look for Zona State to rebound against Washington.
- How would you like to play a four overtime hundred point thriller? Utah Valley State guard Ryan Toolson obviously doesn't mind. Utah Valley State traveled to Chicago State for what was expected to be a regular run of the mill independent game and it turned into an epic. Toolson had 63 points on 20 of 21 from the free throw line as Utah Valley won 123-121. David Holston from Chicago State had 41 but it pailed in comparison to Toolson's performance. Toolson played all 60 minutes and hit seven threes and grabbed 12 rebounds. Gives Jodie Meeks a run for performance of the season thus far.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
The Daily Gus: January 29th
Would anybody in this great college basketball landscape like to be ranked number one? Duke is the fourth number one team this season (UNC, Pittsburgh, Wake Forest) and they are the fourth one to lose thier stranglehold in the polls. Last night Duke went TO Winston-Salem to play Wake and had the same result as Carolina. The Blue Devils could not handle the explosive size of the Demon Deacons and suffered a road loss to the team that may truly be the best in the country right now. Take away the little blip Wake has at home against Tech and they have been unstoppable. You had to figure they could not keep up the intensity of knocking off (at) BYU, UNC, (at) Clemson and (at) BC all consecutively. I'll forgive them for losing to a Tech team that is vastly improved since the non con if they can now continue their showcase of shear athleticism and talent. When you take a gander at the stat sheet for this game, nothing jumps out as to why Wake prevailed. In fact, they allowed Kyle Singler to go for 22 and 12 and Gerald Henderson to go for 20 and 8. On top of that, Jeff teague had only 11 points on a 4-14 night. They won the game with team defense; forcing 15 Duke turnovers and holding them to 4 of 22 from behind the arc. Duke shot poorly, a far cry from the show they put on Saturday against Maryland at Cameron Indoor.
Shoot-Around
- Note to the Big East: When you go on the road, don't even expect to win. Georgetown dropped its fourth straight at Cincinnati Big East contest to give them their SEVENTH loss of the year and fifth in the conference. Syracuse goes on the road, doesn't even bother to play defense, gives up 100 points and loses to Providence. It's okay though Jonny Flynn got his, he had 30plus. Last college basketball game ever played at the Philadelphia Spectrum. Villanova snags a huge win over Pittsburgh 67-57 to get themselves back into the Big East mix. The Spec closes after a long run of college basketball greatness. The site of Christian Laettner's shot against Kentucky in the Elite Eight, multiple Atlantic 10 tournaments and NCAA regionals. The Spec will certainly be missed.
- Around the CAA: Big win for Old Dominion to rebound from a couple bad losses to VCU and Northeastern. Winning at JMU has been tough this season, but now the Dukes have lost two straight at the Convo Center. Speaking of winning at JMU, Hofstra did it Saturday and then went down to UNC-Wilmington and got a win there. The Pride are getting better and better and don't be surprised if they are a-lurking and waiting for the second place VCU Rams to come into the nest in Staten Island Saturday.
- Florida is starting to gain more and more confidence as the season progresses. Although not truly tested, the Baby Gators won at Vanderbilt on Sunday by 30 and then go on the road and spank Georgia all night by 26. Now, Georgia is no juggernaut team by any stretch, but Nick Calathes went for a triple double, 20 points, 13 boards, 10 assists in 33 minutes on 7-11 shooting. Efficiency. Vanderbilt has tanked their season away. With AJ Ogilvy injured and sick and whatever the Commodores have lost four in a row and five of six. Ogilvy scored just three points on 0-3 shooting in 21 minutes. Problems in Nashville.
- Kansas rallies from a 13 point deficit and overcomes 21 TURNOVERS(!) to win at Nebraska. The Jayhwaks have yet to face any stern Big 12 challenges but all the while are 5-0 and trucking along nicely now capturing road wins at Iowa State, at Colorado and now at Nebraska. The Jayhawks have won eight of nine and could be 12-0 in the league heading into an undefeated showdown against Oklahoma on Big Monday at the end of February.
Shoot-Around
- Note to the Big East: When you go on the road, don't even expect to win. Georgetown dropped its fourth straight at Cincinnati Big East contest to give them their SEVENTH loss of the year and fifth in the conference. Syracuse goes on the road, doesn't even bother to play defense, gives up 100 points and loses to Providence. It's okay though Jonny Flynn got his, he had 30plus. Last college basketball game ever played at the Philadelphia Spectrum. Villanova snags a huge win over Pittsburgh 67-57 to get themselves back into the Big East mix. The Spec closes after a long run of college basketball greatness. The site of Christian Laettner's shot against Kentucky in the Elite Eight, multiple Atlantic 10 tournaments and NCAA regionals. The Spec will certainly be missed.
- Around the CAA: Big win for Old Dominion to rebound from a couple bad losses to VCU and Northeastern. Winning at JMU has been tough this season, but now the Dukes have lost two straight at the Convo Center. Speaking of winning at JMU, Hofstra did it Saturday and then went down to UNC-Wilmington and got a win there. The Pride are getting better and better and don't be surprised if they are a-lurking and waiting for the second place VCU Rams to come into the nest in Staten Island Saturday.
- Florida is starting to gain more and more confidence as the season progresses. Although not truly tested, the Baby Gators won at Vanderbilt on Sunday by 30 and then go on the road and spank Georgia all night by 26. Now, Georgia is no juggernaut team by any stretch, but Nick Calathes went for a triple double, 20 points, 13 boards, 10 assists in 33 minutes on 7-11 shooting. Efficiency. Vanderbilt has tanked their season away. With AJ Ogilvy injured and sick and whatever the Commodores have lost four in a row and five of six. Ogilvy scored just three points on 0-3 shooting in 21 minutes. Problems in Nashville.
- Kansas rallies from a 13 point deficit and overcomes 21 TURNOVERS(!) to win at Nebraska. The Jayhwaks have yet to face any stern Big 12 challenges but all the while are 5-0 and trucking along nicely now capturing road wins at Iowa State, at Colorado and now at Nebraska. The Jayhawks have won eight of nine and could be 12-0 in the league heading into an undefeated showdown against Oklahoma on Big Monday at the end of February.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Return of MTM
Sometimes the lights are shining on me and other times I can barely see. -The Grateful Dead
Nearly a month and a half has gone by since the last posting at MTM. This has not been an accident. Over the course of these days, I have taken a back seat to college basketball, unable to identify with the fervor and passion I once took to every night and every game that I took the privilege to view. Maybe due to my involvement with college athletics, I have become desensitized to the sport which captivated my young soul and transformed me into a martyr for college basketball. When I now look out onto the court I do not share the same joy and excitement for every game as I did when I was just a boy sitting in the stands. An interesting thing happened as I sat courtside for the VCU vs. George Mason game on Saturday January 24th though. My love for the game began to spark back; I heard a roaring crowd, watched two fantastic teams battle out for first place in a mid-major league all the while not even thinking about national exposure or anything else in life. The world stopped for two hours. When you are able to lose yourself in something as trivial as college basketball, we all become kids again. It proves an escape to all that we know may be wrong and gives us hope for all that we wish to be right. With the season continuing, I have found what college hoops means to me, and hopefully you, again.
Nearly a month and a half has gone by since the last posting at MTM. This has not been an accident. Over the course of these days, I have taken a back seat to college basketball, unable to identify with the fervor and passion I once took to every night and every game that I took the privilege to view. Maybe due to my involvement with college athletics, I have become desensitized to the sport which captivated my young soul and transformed me into a martyr for college basketball. When I now look out onto the court I do not share the same joy and excitement for every game as I did when I was just a boy sitting in the stands. An interesting thing happened as I sat courtside for the VCU vs. George Mason game on Saturday January 24th though. My love for the game began to spark back; I heard a roaring crowd, watched two fantastic teams battle out for first place in a mid-major league all the while not even thinking about national exposure or anything else in life. The world stopped for two hours. When you are able to lose yourself in something as trivial as college basketball, we all become kids again. It proves an escape to all that we know may be wrong and gives us hope for all that we wish to be right. With the season continuing, I have found what college hoops means to me, and hopefully you, again.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
The Daily Gus: December 10th
The Jimmy V Classic took place last night at Madison Square Garden, an annual event featuring four of the nation's top teams and celebrating one of the most recognized personalities of college basketball history. Jim Valvano created the Jimmy V Foundation, an organization dedicated to cancer research after a historic speech at the 1993 ESPY Awards in New York. Valvano coached at Iona, Johns Hopkins, Bucknell and most famously at NC State where he won a 1983 national title with the "Cardiac Kids." Valvano is famous for his reaction after the Derek Whittenburg buzzer beater where he was sprinting around Albuquerque's The Pit arena, just looking for someone to hug. Valvano later became an analyst for ESPN while it was growing as a national television power, and gave a historically inspirational speech after being diagnosed with cancer. "Don't give up, don't ever give up" is the foundation's mantra, and epitomizes Jim Valvano's life. He died two months after the speech, but his presence remains in the foundation and college basketball even 15 years later.
In the Jimmy V first game, Davidson played West Virginia. Stephen Curry goes 4-16 from three and has eight turnovers, quick what happens to Davidson? Assumed answer would be the Wildcats get killed against some real competition like West Va, but Curry got his points at the most crucial times and finished with 27 and 10 assists. Curry played all 40 minutes and only six Davidson players scored, and Curry looked frustrated for much of the game even though Bob McKillop's squad led nearly the whole way. Not often will Curry have an off night, and this was a precious opportunity for someone to beat the 'Cats, but West Va couldn't take advantage of their 58-32 rebounding edge which included 29 offensive boards. Da'Sean Butler was mighty impressive for the Mountaineers as he went for 24 and 14, but the spotlight belonged to Curry, who kept shooting and playing through his cold slump and managed to connect in the end, scoring 13 of Davidson's last 15 points. This game just proved to show Curry is the elite scoring guard in the nation, regardless of what conference he plays in. And until further notice, Davidson has a shot to beat anyone until they can solve a way to stop Curry.
The second Jimmy V contest featured an untested Villanova team close to home playing an already tested, experienced Texas team. This was Texas' third game against a top-15 opponent (losses to Notre Dame in Maui and a victory over UCLA at home last Thursday) and it showed as Texas grabbed a 67-58 win that they led throughout. Texas held Scottie Reynolds to 2-7 shooting and made big man Dante Cunningham beat them. Although Cunningham went for 23 and 12, the Cats could not slow down A.J. Abrams. Abrams shoots early and often and last night was no different. An 8-18 night where he hit four three pointers, helped Abrams with yet another 20+ output game, his fourth of the season. Abrams also had four assists combined with an impressive zero turnovers, as the Longhorns used their swarming defense to slow down 'Nova. Seven Texas blocks and eight team rebounds to Villanova's one was the determining factor in the game. Texas continues to not receive respect when all they do is contend in every game they play. As the season goes on and the supporting cast improves, Texas looks to become more and more dangerous.
Shoot-Around
- Wisconsin almost blows yet another game at home to a middling mid-major. Idaho State went into the Kohl Center 2-5 and the only optimistic thing on their resume represents a win over Utah. They escaped with a 60-58 win in a game Travon Hughes had eight points on 1-4 shooting and five free throws. The Badgers shot fourteen more free throws than Idaho State, a major reason they could overcome shooting 37% to the Bengals' 52%. It was Wisconsin's third home game (out of 4) which have been decided by less than 10 points. The badgers have yet to play a team with a projected under 200 RPI.
- There was a time when Ames, Iowa was hell for everyone in the nation to come through. Nobody could win there during the Jamaal Tinsley and Marcus Fizer era, but those days are long gone. Drake went into Hilton Coliseum and captured their second victory in as many trips and third overall in the series after a 66-63 win. Drake moved to a transparent 7-2 where they have looked anything but impressive, and Iowa State dropped to 6-2, forgoing a 24 point output by guard Lucca Staiger. Staiger hit all 24 points on eight three balls, but allowed Drake to snag its first lead with under two minutes to play at 64-62. The Bulldogs held on for another win,and another home Iowa State loss.
- Georgia moved to 6-3 after beating Virginia Tech 67-66 and recovered from a lambasting in Champagne over the weekend when they got beat 76-42 at the hands of Illinois. Really an absolute pathetic display of basketball was on display in Athens last night; A.D. Vassallo looked to be the only player from both teams that deserved to have a jersey on. Vassallo went for 23 in 37 minutes, but the rest of the Hokie squad went 16 of 41 from the field, including 2 of 14 from three. Georgia wasn't much better, shooting 5 of 14 from three and 10-21 from the charity stripe. This contest proved neither team will be much of a factor in either of their major conferences.
In the Jimmy V first game, Davidson played West Virginia. Stephen Curry goes 4-16 from three and has eight turnovers, quick what happens to Davidson? Assumed answer would be the Wildcats get killed against some real competition like West Va, but Curry got his points at the most crucial times and finished with 27 and 10 assists. Curry played all 40 minutes and only six Davidson players scored, and Curry looked frustrated for much of the game even though Bob McKillop's squad led nearly the whole way. Not often will Curry have an off night, and this was a precious opportunity for someone to beat the 'Cats, but West Va couldn't take advantage of their 58-32 rebounding edge which included 29 offensive boards. Da'Sean Butler was mighty impressive for the Mountaineers as he went for 24 and 14, but the spotlight belonged to Curry, who kept shooting and playing through his cold slump and managed to connect in the end, scoring 13 of Davidson's last 15 points. This game just proved to show Curry is the elite scoring guard in the nation, regardless of what conference he plays in. And until further notice, Davidson has a shot to beat anyone until they can solve a way to stop Curry.
The second Jimmy V contest featured an untested Villanova team close to home playing an already tested, experienced Texas team. This was Texas' third game against a top-15 opponent (losses to Notre Dame in Maui and a victory over UCLA at home last Thursday) and it showed as Texas grabbed a 67-58 win that they led throughout. Texas held Scottie Reynolds to 2-7 shooting and made big man Dante Cunningham beat them. Although Cunningham went for 23 and 12, the Cats could not slow down A.J. Abrams. Abrams shoots early and often and last night was no different. An 8-18 night where he hit four three pointers, helped Abrams with yet another 20+ output game, his fourth of the season. Abrams also had four assists combined with an impressive zero turnovers, as the Longhorns used their swarming defense to slow down 'Nova. Seven Texas blocks and eight team rebounds to Villanova's one was the determining factor in the game. Texas continues to not receive respect when all they do is contend in every game they play. As the season goes on and the supporting cast improves, Texas looks to become more and more dangerous.
Shoot-Around
- Wisconsin almost blows yet another game at home to a middling mid-major. Idaho State went into the Kohl Center 2-5 and the only optimistic thing on their resume represents a win over Utah. They escaped with a 60-58 win in a game Travon Hughes had eight points on 1-4 shooting and five free throws. The Badgers shot fourteen more free throws than Idaho State, a major reason they could overcome shooting 37% to the Bengals' 52%. It was Wisconsin's third home game (out of 4) which have been decided by less than 10 points. The badgers have yet to play a team with a projected under 200 RPI.
- There was a time when Ames, Iowa was hell for everyone in the nation to come through. Nobody could win there during the Jamaal Tinsley and Marcus Fizer era, but those days are long gone. Drake went into Hilton Coliseum and captured their second victory in as many trips and third overall in the series after a 66-63 win. Drake moved to a transparent 7-2 where they have looked anything but impressive, and Iowa State dropped to 6-2, forgoing a 24 point output by guard Lucca Staiger. Staiger hit all 24 points on eight three balls, but allowed Drake to snag its first lead with under two minutes to play at 64-62. The Bulldogs held on for another win,and another home Iowa State loss.
- Georgia moved to 6-3 after beating Virginia Tech 67-66 and recovered from a lambasting in Champagne over the weekend when they got beat 76-42 at the hands of Illinois. Really an absolute pathetic display of basketball was on display in Athens last night; A.D. Vassallo looked to be the only player from both teams that deserved to have a jersey on. Vassallo went for 23 in 37 minutes, but the rest of the Hokie squad went 16 of 41 from the field, including 2 of 14 from three. Georgia wasn't much better, shooting 5 of 14 from three and 10-21 from the charity stripe. This contest proved neither team will be much of a factor in either of their major conferences.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
The Daily Gus: December 7th
A mini-upset Saturday was brewed across the national landscape, and two Big Ten rivals led the way to do so. Ohio State and Michigan both faced top 10 squads who the nation loves, Notre Dame and Duke respectively. Ohio State got Notre Dame on a neutral court and Michigan got the Blue Devils in the friendly confines of Ann Arbor. As called right here on MTM, the Buckeyes would prevail in Luke Harangody's first game back from sickness. Ohio State got the win, 67-62 led strongly by a career day from OSU forward Evan Turner. Turner had 28 on 11-16 from the field to go along with ten rebounds and five assists. He did it all and Ohio State capped off an incredible week, beating Miami and then ND, to certainly garner some national respect. Surprising to this columnist, Harangody played fantastic in his comeback, he had 25 and 16, but it was the Buckeye press and smothering defense that was their benchmark. Ohio State got up by as many as ten, forcing the Irish guards to really struggle with the pressure and as a result their jumpers fell short. Irish guards Kyle McAlarney and Tory Jackson combined for just a 7-22 performance and only 19 of the 62 Dame points. Ohio State now does not leave Columbus until the Big Ten season kicks off on January 3rd, so it is a distinct possibility we could be seeing a 12-0, highly ranked Buckeye team taking on Michigan State in early 2009. Michigan got beat at Maryland by five on Wednesday after defeating lowly Savannah State by two last weekend. The Wolverines got up for Duke just as they did for UCLA and shocked the blue Devils led by DeShawn Sims' 28 points and 12 rebounds. John Beilein captures another giant killer win to his resume that just keeps on growing, and all of a sudden Michigan could be a Big Ten contender. Duke shot 48%, placed four players in double figures and equally rebounded and turned over with Michigan. Why the loss? 33 three point attempts. Kyle Singler and Jon Scheyer went 2-14 from three, and the entire team did not even try to get the ball inside to post Singler, as Michigan was able to exercise its identity and slow down the game, getting easy buckets in transition and open looks from three. The telling statistic is at the free throw line, where *gasp* Michigan shot SIXTEEN more free throws than Duke. Last time that will ever happen, I promise. This however had nothing to do with the zebras, and everything to do with Duke's lack of desire to go inside. They could not utilize their size advantage and as a result take a real tough road loss to Michigan.
Shoot-Around
- Illinois moved to 7-1 after a 76-42 rout of Georgia on Saturday. Dennis Felton's UGA club has bounced right back to mediocrity after that miraculous run in the SEC tournament in March. They are 5-3, but have yet to get a 300+ RPI win, and have looked anything but stellar.
- Battle of Boston went to Boston College as Tyrese Rice had 21 for the Eagles as they dropped UMass to 1-6. The Minutemen led by three at the break, but down the stretch and in overtime no one could score except for Ricky Harris. Harris had 35 in the loss.
- UNLV is starting to get on track, they moved to 7-2 after a 64-57 win at in-state rival Nevada-Reno. Not only getting on track, but the Rebs seem to be a bit deeper than at first glance. Rene Rougeau had 19 and 13 for UNLV and TreVon Willis had 11 to go along with the regular contribution of Wink Adams' 11. UNLV leads the rivalry series 51-19!
- Dwight O'Neill hits a fadeaway jumper as time expires to give Fresno State a 66-64 victory over Pacific. The Spanos Center at UOP is one of the toughest venues on the west coast, so a great victory for Fresno. Paul George had 23 for Fresno who has been incredibly disappointing checking in at 3-4 with losses in all of their opportunity games; St. Mary, San Diego State, UNLV and Nevada. Maybe this can springboard them; the next eight are a piece of cake with a date at Creighton sandwiched in.
- Forget figuring out Charlotte. The Niners can't buy a home win, and then go into one of the toughest venues in the nation in Carbondale and squeak out a victory 66-64. Ian Andersen hit six treys for Charlotte as they moved to 2-6. Southern Illinois is certainly not as strong as past years, but a win in the doghouse is tough to come by.
- Curtis Jerrells struggled from the field (3/10) but Baylor got a win at Washington State 58-52. Wazzu is in a rebuilding mode, and is an overrated 6-2, but they only lost one game last season in Pullman to UCLA. Baylor moved to 7-1 and has looked mighty professional, just finding ways to win. If Jerrells continues to struggle though, those wins could become harder to come by.
Shoot-Around
- Illinois moved to 7-1 after a 76-42 rout of Georgia on Saturday. Dennis Felton's UGA club has bounced right back to mediocrity after that miraculous run in the SEC tournament in March. They are 5-3, but have yet to get a 300+ RPI win, and have looked anything but stellar.
- Battle of Boston went to Boston College as Tyrese Rice had 21 for the Eagles as they dropped UMass to 1-6. The Minutemen led by three at the break, but down the stretch and in overtime no one could score except for Ricky Harris. Harris had 35 in the loss.
- UNLV is starting to get on track, they moved to 7-2 after a 64-57 win at in-state rival Nevada-Reno. Not only getting on track, but the Rebs seem to be a bit deeper than at first glance. Rene Rougeau had 19 and 13 for UNLV and TreVon Willis had 11 to go along with the regular contribution of Wink Adams' 11. UNLV leads the rivalry series 51-19!
- Dwight O'Neill hits a fadeaway jumper as time expires to give Fresno State a 66-64 victory over Pacific. The Spanos Center at UOP is one of the toughest venues on the west coast, so a great victory for Fresno. Paul George had 23 for Fresno who has been incredibly disappointing checking in at 3-4 with losses in all of their opportunity games; St. Mary, San Diego State, UNLV and Nevada. Maybe this can springboard them; the next eight are a piece of cake with a date at Creighton sandwiched in.
- Forget figuring out Charlotte. The Niners can't buy a home win, and then go into one of the toughest venues in the nation in Carbondale and squeak out a victory 66-64. Ian Andersen hit six treys for Charlotte as they moved to 2-6. Southern Illinois is certainly not as strong as past years, but a win in the doghouse is tough to come by.
- Curtis Jerrells struggled from the field (3/10) but Baylor got a win at Washington State 58-52. Wazzu is in a rebuilding mode, and is an overrated 6-2, but they only lost one game last season in Pullman to UCLA. Baylor moved to 7-1 and has looked mighty professional, just finding ways to win. If Jerrells continues to struggle though, those wins could become harder to come by.
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