Published: January 2, 2009
West Virginia head coach Bob Huggins wouldn’t come right out and say how much he loved it, but there was little doubt that he did. Huggins’ West Virginia Mountaineers stomped into Columbus a couple of days after Christmas and hung a 28-point smack down on the 13th-ranked Buckeyes on OSU’s home court.
The colorful Huggins spent time as an assistant under Eldon Miller at Ohio State. After turning Cincinnati into a national power, Huggins was turned down twice for the Buckeyes’ lead job.
He may not openly admit it, but throttling Thad Motta’s club in such convincing fashion has to be an especially sweet Christmas present for “Hugs,” who showcased his coaching prowess to those who turned him down a few years ago.
Remembering the Patriots
Just two years removed from one of the most memorable Final Four runs in NCAA Tournament history, The Colonial Athletic Association’s George Mason University has been all but forgotten. Coming off a tough loss to 12-1 Dayton, the Patriots are 8-3 and have a nice blend of senior leadership and solid underclassmen. Cam Long and John Vaughn make up a very fine backcourt, and the Patriots have seven players averaging 7 points or better, and ten players are averaging 10 or more minutes of PT per game. Maybe it’s just wishful thinking, but this looks like a George Mason team that may have yet another exciting tournament journey in it.
Is Clemson up to its old deception?
Two seasons ago, Clemson sprinted out of the blocks, pummeling one opponent after another en route to a top 20 ranking before ACC play. Then, the Tigers had to face North Carolina, Duke, NC State and the like and the losses piled up quickly. This season’s Clemson team looks like a mirror image of the 2006 edition. The Tigers are 13-0 and ranked 16th.
Careful scrutiny of Clemson’s resume, however, reveals wins over Presbyterian, Savannah State, Liberty, Northern Florida and every national power’s favorite, Wofford. And let’s not forget a 1-point victory over 5-6 Charlotte. Just two weeks into the New Year, Clemson faces 6th-ranked Wake Forest and Top-ranked North Carolina. Only then will the truth about the Tigers be told.
Bracketology
Every college basketball nut loves bracketology – predictions of how 65 teams will be placed into the four brackets of the NCAA Tournament. Sure, March Madness is over three months away, but bracketology makes for stimulating water cooler chat. ESPN’s Joe Lunardi is one of many so-called expert bracketologists, and his early-season bracket predictions are posted at ESPN.com.
In perusing his most recent bracket, here’s a note to Mr. Lunardi: as Shakespeare wrote, past is prologue. In other words, Joe, experience should tell you that Pittsburgh is not a worthy number 1 seed and will likely be jettisoned from the NCAA Tournament prior to the Elite Eight. Recall the 2006 tournament, when 5th-seeded Pittsburgh was upset in the second round. As a 3 seed in 2007, the Panthers lost to UCLA in the round of 16. Last year, Pittsburgh, a 4 seed, was again upset, this time by Michigan State.
Like most seasons, Pittsburgh starts fast (the Panthers are currently 13-0) and enter March with an impressive record. The Big East is certainly one of the best conferences in the nation, giving further merit to a high NCAA Tourney seed, but recent history is not in the Panthers’ favor.
So, regardless of Pittsburgh’s record and current ranking, when filling in your next imaginary NCAA bracket, remember, Joe, past is prologue.
Over-under on Indiana’s Big Ten record
First, let’s be very clear that this is in no way a knock on new IU coach Tom Crean. One of the NCAA’s good guys, Crean has taken over a complete train wreck of a program, which is rather ironic, considering that Indiana was such a squeaky clean team for decades under Bob Knight. That was, of course, prior to the arrival of Kelvin Sampson, who upended the school’s excellent record with illegal recruiting violations and allegations of rampant drug use by players. Sampson was ousted last year and most of IU’s remaining players and recruits couldn’t get out of Bloomington fast enough.
Now, Crean has a rather monumental task. His team returned one scholarship player – Kyle Tabor, a guy who played about as often as the IU ball boys last season. The Hoosiers are 5-7, including a recent loss to 4-6 Libscomb, but have yet to play a Big Ten game. In a conference filled with rivals that traditionally beat each other black and blue, there may not be many wins for Crean’s new team.
The over-under on Big Ten victories for Indiana can’t be much more than 4. My, how fast and how far the mighty have fallen.
From the Department of Quirky Statistics
* Ten teams in the Southwestern Athletic Conference have a combined overall record of 15-101. Prairie View A&M is on top at 4-9. And, yes, this conference does have an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament. Can anyone say, “Welcome to the play-in game?”
* First-year Stanford Coach Johnny Dawkins has his Cardinal team off to a 10-0 start, including a 45-point drubbing of Texas Tech.
* Hofstra leads the nation in team rebounding at 45.3 per game. The Pride is off to a 9-3 start.
* Mississippi State’s Jarvis Varnado leads the nation in blocks at 6 per game. He’s had 8 or more three times. Varnado is only 6-9.
* Chicago State’s David Holston has converted 73 3-point shots – 18 more than the second-best marksman.
Photo Credit: ICON Sports Media
