Wednesday Night Dribbles

A few quick hitters to sum up the night in college basketball:

• Temple and BYU both lost opportunities to strengthen their cases for a protected seed. Kudos to Chris / Craig on calling the Charlotte upset. Though, I still don't think they are or will be a tournament team.

• Anyone who had William & Mary as an at-large team can gently take them out of the discussion. Tonight, they lost to CAA strugglers James Madison. David Schneider has shot 11-for-45 in their last three games - all losses. Ultimately, their demise comes down to their defense (246th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency). Meanwhile, my preseason pick, George Mason, is 9-1 in conference play.

• If no one in the SEC West separates themselves from the pack, Vanderbilt may turn out to be the SEC's 2nd-best team despite a shaky start to the season. They now have wins over Missouri, Tennessee, Florida, South Carolina, Middle Tennessee St., St. Mary's, and Arizona. Not bad for the end of January. After their Rocky Top high, Tennessee is looking like a team without the services of its best player.

• Oklahoma State is starting to normalize with another win at Texas A&M. The margin for error remains small for Travis Ford. Their next four are @ Missouri, v. Texas, @ Texas Tech, v. Oklahoma. So, that's 2 road games, 1 against a top 5 opponent, and another against your in-state rival who hates your guts and has a mental edge from a prior win. We'll know a lot more about this team's heart (Eaton and Harris were huge losses) very soon.

Thursday NCAA Tournament Streaming Updates & Re-Caps

Welcome to our live streaming updates at PHSports, beginning Thursday afternoon and concluding Sunday evening as we go from 64 to a Sweet 16.

Check in throughout the day for score updates, reactions, insights, and potential reactions to an upset or two. (Or so we hope.)

You can find "10 reactions to Opening Thursday" HERE tonight after the final games end.

...Completed Games...

East Region

Mike Brey doesn't wear a tie. He also has a Duke-pedigree.
Translation: His team shoots a TON of threes and flops on defense extremely well.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

#4. Washington State 71
#13. Winthrop 40 [Final Score]
The game was tied at halftime; however, the Cougars annihilated Winthrop in the second-half 42-11. OUCH.

#5. Notre Dame 68
#12. George Mason 50 [Final Score]
Will Thomas was a MAN; however, Notre Dame was extremely prepared for this matchup. Interesting Saturday matchup vs. WASU, indeed for the Irish.

Midwest Region

UNLV's Curtis Terry helped lead the effort against Kent State for the W.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

#1. Kansas 85
#16. Portland State 61 [Final Score]
Rock, Chalk, Jayhawk. Nothing else left to say as the winner of Kent St./UNLV has a nightmarish matchup awaiting them. Good luck to that team!

#8. UNLV 71
#9. Kent State 58 [Final Score]
Kent State's performance (tying a tourney record with only 10 first-half points) is embarassing. I underestimated Coach Kruger a little too much.

#6. USC 67
#11. Kansas State 80 [Final Score]
Beasley wins the scoring battle and earns the W. How again was KSU an 11-seed?

#3. Wisconsin 71
#14. Cal-State Fullerton 55 [Final Score]
Wisconsin didn't exactly put away last year's first-round opponent until late either.

South Region

Jerel McNeal and the Golden Eagles were willing to force Kentucky to milk possessions and take difficult shots at the end of the shot clock.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

#5. Michigan State 72
#12. Temple 61 [Final Score]
When your star player can't buy a bucket...bye bye tourney run. Michigan State vs. Pitt (if they beat Oral Roberts) is an official bracketbuster.

#6. Marquette 74
#11. Kentucky 66 [Final Score]
Crawford (35 points) and Bradley (played with 4 fouls the final 10+minutes) tried their best, but Marquette was the better team - especially on the defensive front - today. No first-round loss for Marquette this season.

#4. Pittsburgh 82
#13. Oral Roberts 63 [Final Score]
Nothing like an 18-0 run first-half run to blow open your first-round matchup. If Field plays like this, Pitt may be Final Four-bound.

#3. Stanford 77
#14. Cornell 53 [Final Score]
Stanford's size will match up quite nicely with Marquette's phenomenal team-speed.

West Region

Henderson's coast-to-coast layup with under 12 seconds to play allowed Duke to escape the MAJOR upset.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

#3. Xavier 73
#14. Georgia 61 [Final Score]
Throughout their SEC Tournament-run, Georgia slipped up in the second-half. They weren't able to survive such a defensive slip-up against the Musketeers, who were lights out, especially at the free throw-line, in the second half rally.

#6. Purdue 90
#11. Baylor 79 [Final Score]
Purdue just squashed any chance of a Baylor-run in the second half. Baylor did not deserve to be in this field. I said it Selection Sunday evening. I meant it.

#2. Duke 71
#15. Belmont 70 [Final Score]
I honestly thought that half-court prayer might fall. If only...

#8. BYU 62
#9. Texas A&M 67 [Final Score]
BYU's can blame themselves for this loss: make your free throws (7-14 FTs)!

#7. West Virginia 75
#10. Arizona 65 [Final Score]
Is there anything better than ANOTHER 1st-round exit for the Wildcats? NO!!!

#1. UCLA 70
#16. Mississippi Valley State 29 [Final Score]
UCLA should allow people in the stands to walk-on and play tonight for them in the second half. (Sorry MVS.)

Arizona & WVU provided some late-game theatrics, at least inbetween the under-8 and under-4 timeouts for insomniacs.
Credit: Yahoo! Sports

Big props to Armin for helping with these posts this afternoon. Amazing work, bro.

Stick with us all day and night Friday, and this weekend, for enhanced updates, analysis, and one-liners!!!!

Note: If you’re feeling a little down in-between games, feel free to check out:
-Players we LOVE in March Madness
-Upsets we LOVE in March Madness
-Games we LOVE in March Madness
-A Dozen Thoughts on the Bracket and Selection Sunday

Until next time...

Four Games We Love

Four Games I Love - Clement Edition

Pay is going to take over the reigns with his own four matchups in an evening post.

Xavier is on tons of media "hot-lists" as a Final Four sleeper.
Question is: are the healthy enough???
Credit: MP3.com

Here we go…

East Region
#7. Butler vs. #10. South Alabama
-It’s only fair to let Pay have Mason vs. Notre Dame. Fortunately, I have tons of interest in this mid-major battle between the WCC’s Zags and the Sun Belt’s Jags. Both teams have strong depth, playmakers at multiple positions and a TON to prove. Even more interesting is that South Alabama wound up in a pod being played in Birmingham (yes, Alabama).

Midwest Region
#6. USC vs. #11. Kansas State
-Mayo v. Beasley. Need I say more? Honestly, I don’t.

South Region
#5. Michigan State vs. #12. Temple
-Nicknamed Team Schizophrenia by several media outlets, Michigan State may be the most difficult team to read in this entire bracket. In years past, they’ve proved doubters wrong, and rode momentum and great coaching to the Final Four (2005 rings a bell). Other years, they’ve folded out early to seemingly lesser competition (2006 rang a bell, at first). Enter the A-10 Tourney champs and this might be the 5/12 matchup that several people are eyeing intently.

West Region
#3. Xavier vs. #14. Georgia
-Everyone is jocking the Musketeers as their "sleeper" team. Yeah, as if a #3 seed is a real sleeper. Nevertheless, if Drew Lavender is healthy, I like Xavier to make a real run in this tournament. The problem is: he isn’t. Suddenly, you enter in that pod the remarkable SEC Tourney Champion Georgia Bulldogs (rest!), the last announced team (Baylor) and another schizophrenic Big Ten team (Purdue). Call me crazy, but Xavier is just as likely to make a legit Elite Eight run as they are to not survive the opening weekend.

Pay will check in shortly with his four...

Four Games I Love - Paymon Edition

East Region
#5 Notre Dame vs. #12 George Mason
- Thanks for letting me tackle the alma mater's battle versus "Da-da-da-da-da ol' Notre Dame". That was for Sum. Since Notre Dame has been consistent this season (great on offense, average on defense), this matchup will come down to how Mason plays defense. Why? That's because Mason will have to stick with what worked in Richmond, and cover the perimeter (ND averages 8.5 made threes per game and shoots 41% from behind the arc). These teams are very similar statistically despite the Irish holding a distinct height advantage, though the Irish are a better perimeter shooting squad. The battle between Will Thomas and Luke Harangody will be intriguing. All of this said, guard play wins this one.

Midwest Region
#8 UNLV vs. #9 Kent State
- The real media will provide you every detail possible on Gonzaga and Davidson (did you know the game was in Raleigh and that Gonzaga may be jet-lagged???). It's like that team has never traveled before. Moving onto this game, if UNLV wins, it will be because of ball security (+4.3 turnover margin and averaging only 10 TOs per contest). Keeping the ball won't be easy, as the Golden Flashes force in excess of 16 turnovers per game. On the opposite of the ball, Haminn Quaintance's long frame presents matchup problems and disrupt the free-flowing Runnin' Rebels. Once again, all eyes are on the guards -- more specifically, Wink Adams versus Al Fisher.

South Region
#6 Marquette vs. #11 Kentucky
- Without a doubt, this is my least favorite region. I hope Billy Gillispie and his assistants have surrounded Rupp Arena with the newspaper and web clippings clamoring over Kentucky's inclusion in the tournament field. For those just joining us, this tournament is about guard play and the last time I checked, Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford were awfully good seniors. Of course, they must be on their 'A' game if they want to progress past the backcourt trio of Jerel McNeal (73 steals), Dominic James (60 steals) and Wesley Matthews, all of whom average double figures in scoring.

West Region
#5 Drake vs. #12 Western Kentucky
- You gotta love it when the tournament selection committee pits one mid-major against another. I don't. According to some experts, Drake is considered the best shooting team in the field. Led by Missouri Valley Conference POY Adam Emmenecker, Drake has four double-digit average scorers (of which Emmenecker is not one) who made at least 40 three-pointers. The latent facts are that "The Drake" has underrated athleticism and has a penchant for playing stiff defense (opponents averaging less than 61 ppg). As for the Hilltoppers of Western Kentucky, Courtney Lee (20.4 ppg in 29.4 mpg!) is the man; however, WKU has ten players who average more than ten minutes of action per game. In its two losses to South Alabama, the Hilltoppers were held to 28.6 and 22.7 percent three-point shooting. Drake knows what it needs to accomplish.

NCAA Tournament Projections - March 16, 2008 (Morning)

Here’s our seeding schedule …

To appease your bubble fix, here is our Last Four In, Last Four Out and the Next Four Out.

Last Four In: Arizona State, Villanova, Illinois State, South Alabama
Last Four Out: VCU, Oregon, Virginia Tech, Ohio State
Next Four Out: Ole Miss, UMass, Syracuse, Stephen F. Austin

Herb Sendek won't be upset with our inclusion of the Sun Devils

Credit: CNN/SI

Tonight, Temple took home the A-14 crown. Speaking of Temple, their surge is part of a prevailing theme at PHSports this year. Be it Temple, Kentucky or staying with George Mason as long as we possibly could, we have been able to spot trends or teams on the rise before everyone else. Not to mention, we had Pittsburgh as the top #4 seed prior to tonight’s home win at the Garden.

Quickly, Arkansas is a #5 seed on the expectation that they defeat Georgia by 15 or more points. That’s ambitious, but legs have to give at some point, no? How many more games can Georgia pull out when their best player (Sundiata Gaines) fouls out?

On the 7th seed line, we know it’s harsh to put Indiana there with a dynamic duo of Gordon and White. If Indiana can get a consistent 3rd guy, then #2 seeds had better start praying. They may be a #6 seed for us tomorrow.

That’s all for now. If you have any questions, comments, or just wish to send a shout, shoot me a line at phashemi@gmail.com.

The UNADULTERATED Seedings
1: North Carolina (ACC), UCLA (PAC-10), Memphis (C-USA), Kansas (Big XII)
2: Texas, Tennessee, Wisconsin (Big Ten), Georgetown
3: Duke, Stanford, Pittsburgh (Big East), Louisville
4: Xavier, Drake (MVC), Michigan State, USC
5: UConn, Arkansas (SEC), Purdue, Butler (Horizon)
6: Vanderbilt, Marquette, Clemson, Notre Dame
7: Washington State, Indiana, Kent State (MAC), Gonzaga
8: BYU, Davidson (Southern), Miami-FL, Texas A&M
9: West Virginia, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Kentucky
10: Mississippi State, St. Mary’s, Arizona, UNLV (MWC)
11: Temple (A-10), Baylor, St. Joseph’s, Arizona State
12: Villanova, Illinois State, South Alabama, George Mason (CAA)
13: Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), Oral Roberts (Summit), San Diego (WCC), Siena (Metro Atlantic)

14: Cornell (Ivy), American (Patriot), Boise State (WAC), Belmont (Atlantic Sun)
15: Cal State Fullerton (Big West), Winthrop (Big South), UM-Baltimore County (America East), Portland State (Big Sky)
16: Austin Peay (Ohio Valley), UT-Arlington (Southland), Mount St. Mary’s (Northeast), Mississippi Valley State (SWAC), Coppin State (MEAC)

IN: Boise State, Coppin State
OUT: New Mexico State, Morgan State


Seeding Summary (Multi-Bid Conferences Only in Order of Percentage)

Pac-10: 6/10
Big East: 8/16
Big XII: 6/12
SEC: 5/12
West Coast: 3/8
Big Ten: 4/11
ACC: 4/12
Mountain West: 2/9
A-10: 3/14
Missouri Valley: 2/10
Sun Belt: 2/12

2008 NCAA Tournament Projections - March 15, 2008

With one more night of basketball, it’s business as usual for the elite teams. Excluding Tennessee, all of the top teams played well en route to victories. In the Big XII, we have projected Kansas to gain retribution for a regular season loss in Austin versus Texas. If Texas sweeps Kansas, then the Longhorns immediately become a #1 seed due to what would be four wins against our current top five teams. Meanwhile, Georgetown is playing its best basketball of the season, especially on the offensive side (they are already #1 in defensive FG%), and that makes them more dangerous than originally perceived. Here are some non-bubble talking points …

• Clement and I had a heated discussion on who should be the #12 overall team. We really want Pittsburgh to show us a little more tomorrow night before we put them there. Mind you, this is the same team that had lost 4 of 7 following the return of Levance Fields prior to the Big East Tournament at Pitt’s home away from home (MSG). We also have not forgotten about Pitt’s home loss to Rutgers.
• In the words of Clement, “We are pulling a ‘Jay Mariotti’” and switching our Mountain West allegiance to BYU (prior to the UNLV/Utah game). UNLV’s utter lack of perimeter defense scares us.

The other theme involved potential bid stealers trying to make their mark. However, they largely fell short. Here are some quick bubble talking points …

• In our humble opinion, the field should just end after the loser of the A-14 championship game.
• Among the successful, St. Joe’s handled Xavier for the second time in two weeks. With that victory, the Red Hawks and their annoying mascot punched their ticket. Meanwhile, they will play Temple, who we project to win the A-14 tournament since Xavier is out. If St. Joe’s takes the automatic bid, we still like Temple (Paymon more than Clement) to make the field.
• How could Arizona State (RPI: 81) and Arizona (19-14, 9-11) be in and Oregon (RPI: 56; 18-13, 9-10) be out of the mix? In evaluating these teams, Arizona State has the best set of wins (versus Stanford, USC, Xavier); Arizona is 3-5 against the top four teams in the conference (won twice versus Washington State and had an away split with USC) and has their standard outstanding non-conference schedule; Oregon is 1-7 against the top four teams with its best wins being versus Stanford and at Kansas State. All things considered, the Arizona schools won more games that mattered.
• Virginia Tech earned its first victory over a RPI Top 50 team on Friday (Miami-FL). Though some are ready to crown them due to the ineptitude of fellow bubble teams, we are not. Keep a close eye on their game with UNC. If they keep it close, they will gain credibility if nothing else, and frankly, that may be enough.
• In C-USA Final tomorrow morning, Tulsa will need a Herculean effort to overcome Memphis, who themselves are clinging onto a #1 seed.
• The MAC Final will be a rematch of last week’s showdown between Kent State and Akron. With Al Fisher’s game-winning shot on the mind, Akron may steal a bid, as Kent State possesses the makings of an at-large bid resume.
• Either Minnesota or Illinois will be in the Big Ten Final. If you’re a shrink, you have a market among our Last Four In and Last Out.

That’s all for now. If you have any questions, comments, or just wish to send a shout, shoot me a line at phashemi@gmail.com.

The Seedings
1: North Carolina (ACC), Tennessee (SEC), UCLA (PAC-10), Memphis (C-USA)
2: Kansas (Big XII), Texas, Georgetown (Big East), Duke
3: Wisconsin (Big Ten), Stanford, Louisville, Drake (MVC)
4: Pittsburgh, Michigan State, USC, Marquette
5: Xavier, UConn, Vanderbilt, Washington State
6: Butler (Horizon), Purdue, Notre Dame, Indiana
7: Gonzaga, Clemson, BYU (MWC), Arkansas
8: Kansas State, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Oklahoma
9: West Virginia, Kent State (MAC), Miami-FL, Davidson (Southern)
10: Texas A&M, Arizona State, St. Mary’s, St. Joseph’s
11: Arizona, Temple (A-10), Baylor, UNLV
12: Villanova, South Alabama, Illinois State, George Mason (CAA)
13: Western Kentucky (Sun Belt), Oral Roberts (Summit), Siena (Metro Atlantic), San Diego (WCC)

14: Cornell (Ivy), American (Patriot), Cal State Fullerton (Big West), New Mexico State (WAC)
15: Belmont (Atlantic Sun), UM-Baltimore County (America East), Winthrop (Big South), Portland State (Big Sky)
16: Austin Peay (Ohio Valley), UT-Arlington (Southland), Mount St. Mary’s (Northeast), Morgan State (MEAC), Mississippi Valley State (SWAC)

Last Four In: UNLV, Villanova, South Alabama, Illinois State
Last Four Out: Oregon, VCU, Ohio State, Virginia Tech
Next Four Out: Ole Miss, Syracuse, Stephen F. Austin, UMass

IN: St. Joseph’s, South Alabama, UT-Arlington, Cal State Fullerton, Mount St. Mary’s, Mississippi Valley State
OUT: Ohio State, VCU, Stephen F. Austin, UC-Santa Barbara, Sacred Heart, Alabama State

Seeding Summary (Multi-Bid Conferences Only in Order of Percentage)
Pac-10: 6/10
Big East: 8/16
Big XII: 6/12
SEC: 5/12
West Coast: 3/8
Big Ten: 4/11
ACC: 4/12
Mountain West: 2/9
A-10: 3/14
Missouri Valley: 2/10
Sun Belt: 2/12

2008 NCAA Projections - March 10, 2008

Christmas: Easily one of Philly's finest

Credit: Fans Only

(Editor's Note: This bracket does not reflect the result of the St. Mary's - San Diego game)

Last week, we held off on putting UNC as the #1 overall seed because they lacked that signature win. On Saturday, they got that win at Cameron Indoor Stadium, spoiling senior night for Duke, and for DaMarcus Nelson in particular. As for UCLA, they remained a #1 seed despite having two games which they probably should have lost. As a result, the gap between overall #4 and #5 teams on the big board has tightened.

In the Big East, Georgetown overcame Louisville to win the Big East regular season championship. Though Clement has a feeling that UConn may take the spoils at MSG, we project that the Hoya faithful will tell us exactly who they are when the clock shows three zeroes.

Moving to the fourth seed line, though we include MVC champ Drake, we really see them as a #5 seed; however, everyone else lost a game that they really should not have. On the seventh seed line, Marquette is a squad that can jump leaps and bounds with a superb showing at MSG, but we just don’t see it happening.

Meanwhile, let’s take a detour to the bubble.

- We have Ohio State as a #10 seed. Are they in? Not quite yet. Why are they so high? Perhaps, it’s because the Selection Committee loves to overrate quality March victories. This seeding may be one that we may need to review after their game against Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament.

- In deciding upon either Baylor or West Virginia for the final #10 seed, Baylor’s ability to the Big East #3 on a neutral court was more valuable than any single win that the Mountaineers had.

- In the PAC 10, we like seven teams as of right now. If Oregon loses by double digits against Washington State, then they will likely be out of the equation. Though Arizona finished 8-10 in conference, their #2 SOS nationally and a season sweep of the Cougars makes them more than viable.

- In the conference otherwise known as the A-14, we see Temple having the best opportunity to be the team that faces (and loses to) Xavier in the final. With their huge win against Xavier, St. Joseph’s claims the 34th at-large bid, outlasting VCU who lost a shocker to William & Mary. Of course, a sweep over UMass and a blowout win over Villanova never hurt. Despite winning both games this week, Dayton is now #8 seed, meaning that if they defeat St. Louis in the 1st round, they will face Xavier in the quarterfinals. Neither Clement nor myself felt brave enough to make that prediction regardless of whether Chris Wright plays.

- As stated for weeks, we expect UNLV to win the Mountain West Tournament on their home court. In doing that, we see them defeating both BYU and New Mexico, which shall help their resume.

- In the ACC, an expected loss for Virginia Tech and an unexpected one for Maryland (although Clement would have never put money on that game) meant doom and 4 seeds for now.

- Lastly, who is the best candidate to be this year’s Arkansas? That would be Ole Miss, who won its last three conference games to finish 7-9. Meanwhile, they are 5-3 against the RPI Top 50, which is a rarity. Additionally, they can avoid Tennessee until the finals.

That’s all for now. If you have any questions, comments, or just wish to send a shout, shoot me a line at phashemi@gmail.com.

The Seedings
1: North Carolina (ACC), Tennessee (SEC), Memphis (C-USA), UCLA (PAC-10)
2: Kansas (Big XII), Texas, Duke, Georgetown (Big East)
3: Wisconsin (Big Ten), Louisville, Xavier (A-10), Stanford
4: UConn, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Drake (MVC)
5: Purdue, USC, Vanderbilt, Washington State
6: Indiana, Gonzaga (WCC), Butler (Horizon), Pittsburgh
7: Marquette, Clemson, Kansas State, Mississippi State
8: Kentucky, St. Mary’s, BYU, Kent State (MAC)
9: Miami-FL, Arizona State, South Alabama (Sun Belt), Oklahoma
10: Arkansas, Ohio State, Baylor, West Virginia
11: Arizona, Davidson (Southern), UNLV (MWC), Illinois State
12: Texas A&M, Villanova, Temple, Oregon
13: St. Joseph’s, George Mason (CAA), Stephen F. Austin (Southland), Oral Roberts (Summit)
14: Cornell (Ivy), Siena (Metro Atlantic), UC Santa Barbara (Big West), New Mexico State (WAC)
15: American (Patriot), UM-Baltimore County (America East), Belmont (Atlantic Sun), Winthrop (Big South)
16: Portland State (Big Sky), Austin Peay (Ohio Valley), Sacred Heart (Northeast), Morgan State (MEAC), Alabama State (SWAC)

Last Four In: Villanova, Temple, Oregon, St. Joseph’s
Last Four Out: VCU, UMass, Syracuse, UAB
Next Four Out: Dayton, Maryland, Florida, Ole Miss

IN: Ohio State, Villanova, Temple, Oregon, St. Joseph’s, George Mason, UC Santa Barbara, Winthrop, Sacred Heart
OUT: VCU, Maryland, UMass, Southern Illinois, Dayton, Florida, Cal State Northridge, UNC-Asheville, Robert Morris

Seeding Summary(Multi-Bid Conferences Only in Order of Percentage)

Pac-10: 7/10
Big XII: 6/12
SEC: 5/12
Big East: 7/16
ACC: 4/12
Big Ten: 5/11

West Coast: 2/8
Mountain West: 2/9
Missouri Valley: 2/10
A-10: 3/14