College Hoops Thread '09-'10

[kelmac07]

How 'bout them Butler Bulldogs? Always pull for the underdog.

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by kelmac07

How 'bout them Butler Bulldogs? Always pull for the underdog.

Especially if you're a Met fan, right Mac?

So, in case you missed it:

Butler 52 - Michigan State 50 = Congratulations to the Butler Bulldogs, and to the Horizon for reaching this zenith. I wish them the best of luck tonight (and I suspect they'll need some), and I hope their center Matt Howard has recovered enough from the concussion he received Saturday evening to be able to play. According to Coach Brad Stevens, he was cleared by the doctor after the shootaround, but would NOT play if there is any question as to his health and well-being. Good for coach. It may be a national championship game, but once you remove all the adjectives from that one thing is clear - it is a game. As for that game Saturday - well, meaning no disrespect to either team, but I cannot remember ever seeing an uglier Final Four contest in my entire life. You can "credit", if that's the proper word, some of that to the tight defense of both squads, and some to the fact that the zebras seemed to get involved with nearly every play to disrupt any possibility for either team to establish or maintain any sort of flow. But much of my disappointment (hey, I had no dog in the hunt, and merely wanted a good game) lay in the fact that neither team could shoot as well as your average high-school kids. Butler did play hard enough to win the game (as did the Spartans, most of the time) and their 12 steals and 7 more made FTs were the key to their victory. The Bulldogs have now attained a 25-game winning streak, with their last loss being that 10-point one at UAB just before Christmas. Can they make it 26? Well, in order to do so, they'll have to get past:

Duke 78 - West Virginia 57 = I suspect that, if you are a Mountaineer fan, you might claim that this was an ugly game also, and you'd be right - on their side of the court, that is. But at the other basket, Dook finally showed the nation that complaints about how over-rated they are are themselves over-rated. Much like WVA did against Kentucky, the Blue Devils grabbed control of the contest with the outstanding shooting which had abandoned them for much of the tournament. This, coupled with an effective defense (which, wisely, did not overplay and gamble as much as they did against Baylor, thus preventing some of those backdoor cuts and layups which hurt them in that game) led to what amounted to a fairly easy victory. And though I was as saddened as anyone to see Da'Sean Butler go down with that torn ACL at the 8:59 mark, I don't want to hear that the Mountaineers would have come back with him on the court, nor do I want to hear that it was Zoubek's fault, nor even that it should have been his 5th foul on a block instead of the charge as was called. (And remember, this is from a Tar Heel who's still p!$$ed that Gerald Henderson broke Tyler Hansborogh's nose in a game which was already over!) But most of all, I don't want to hear from Huggins again until next year at the earliest, as his complaint to the refs regarding Duke that "They don't foul!" was just silly. What game was he watching? At that point of the game, the only thing that was keeping the Mountaineers within shouting distance was the disparity of calls going AGAINST the Blue Devils. Duke ended the game 7-9 from the charity stripe, while WVA was 14-19. Yeah, right - the refs were totally calling the game Coach K's way. But that's enough of that $#!+. Congratulations to Duke, and best of luck tonight against the hometown favorites (in all but the money-line, that is). Let's see if you can quiet the crowd as quickly as did my Heels in Detroit last year.


So, what's my pick? Well, as I hinted above, the line is 7 in favor of the Blue Devils. Three possessions? Yeah, that's fair. These are two very similar teams, but Duke has the edge in talent and focus, whereas Butler may have the emotion and will have the crowd. But even if Howard can play effectively, Dook has Zoubek and the Plumlee trees down low. So, even if the shots aren't falling for Singler, Scheyer, and Smith, the offensive rebounds and second-chance buckets will be too much for the Bulldogs to overcome. Their streak ends tonight, and Duke hangs a fourth banner.

Right or wrong on that, I am right on one thing: This will be you last chance this season, so ENJOY!

[The Poet]

Oh, and speaking of Duke:

After nine years as coach of St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, where he amassed a 223-21 record, Dan Hurley was named the new head coach of Wagner today. And also today his father, the legendary Bob Hurley of St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, was informed he will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this summer.

As for brother Bobby Jr., I don't know if he'll show up in Indy tonight for the game. That may depend on whether or not his motorcycle gets him there in time.

[BryanB]

Lets go DUKE!!!!!!!!

Exciting game to watch, congrats to Duke.

[Mark]

From one of the great columns in Daily Tar Heel history...

"Now I realize that school spirit is a pretty goofy thing to some people, but I'll tell you something: I hate Duke with an infernal passion undying. I hate every leaf of every tree on that sickening campus. I hate every fake cherub Gothic piece of crap that litters the buildings like hemorrhoidal testaments to imagined superiority."

Well Butler had a good run and almost pulled it out in the end!

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by Mark

From one of the great columns in Daily Tar Heel history...

"Now I realize that school spirit is a pretty goofy thing to some people, but I'll tell you something: I hate Duke with an infernal passion undying. I hate every leaf of every tree on that sickening campus. I hate every fake cherub Gothic piece of crap that litters the buildings like hemorrhoidal testaments to imagined superiority."

OK, fine, but I don't. Shoot, I had a lot of fun on that campus back inna day, and spent many an enjoyable evening watching great rockers in Cameron.

Or at least I think I did. Sometimes it's hard to remember what was real and what was - uh, "imagined".

Originally Posted by NeverEnoughStick

Well Butler had a good run and almost pulled it out in the end!

Yes indeed.

[The Poet]

Just in case your wife made you watch "Idol" or "Dancing" or some other horse$#!+ last night:

Duke 61 - Butler 59 = Congratulations to the DUKE BLUE DEVILS for winning the 2010 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship. Best wishes to the players, coaches, staff, students, alumni, fans, sycophants, and buttboys. Thank you for keeping the banner where it belongs - in the ACC and the state of North Carolina. And although said banner would look better hanging in that state-of-the-art facility a few miles east, it will certainly flutter more in that drafty old firetrap of Cameron. Just so you know, I rightfully celebrated your victory today, first by wearing my Tar Heel cap, and second by smoking a cigar sent to me by our resident Wolfpack fan Jerry (Col. Kurtz).

Now as to the game itself:

Congratulations are also due to the BUTLER BULLDOGS, not only for making it into the game at all, but for doing their part to make the game about as close as it could be. Despite all their protestations to the contrary, Butler was channelling "Hoosiers" in at least one sense - they wanted one shot to win it for all the little guys who never get that chance. And they got that shot too, albeit a 45-foot prayer just before the horn, which maybe missed by a full inch of banging home. Had it done so, it would have been the single biggest shot in the NCAA final since Lorenzo Charles stuck in that layup of Derek Wittenberg's "pass" back in 1983. Although it didn't, the Bulldog faithful have no reason to feel bad today, as the entire nation (with the possible exception of Durham) views you with nothing but respect.

Now, as for Duke - well, in a nutshell, had they truly wanted to give Butler the crown in the last five minutes, they should have tried just a little bit harder. Even at that, they came razor-close to doing so regardless. On the defensive end they made the same mistakes they did against Purdue and Baylor, gambling with double-teams and traps 30 feet from the hoop. That is fine and good if your players are quick enough to recover or rotate in the help, but Dook's are not that fast. (True, Singler got that one block after he'd been beaten, but if the shooter'd taken it strong to the tin instead of stopping and faking for the short leaner the result would have been, in Kelloggic, the "hoop and harm".) But their errors on the offensive side were even more egregious. Remember, the line was 7 points, and the Devils had a 5-point bulge plus the ball several times, with Butler on its heels and Dook's offense clicking, and the opportunity to take the fight out of the Bulldogs and the crowd out of the mix. And what did they do? They took the air out of the ball instead, and thus deflated their own chances. (Yeah, I hear you snickering - "A Tar Heel's saying this?" Just wait a second.) With only a two-possession lead, and five minutes to kill, and with what you have been doing working so far, you don't do that in this shot-clock era. However, if you DO decide to do so, you run your delay offense the right way. And are you gonna tell me that Coach K did not see the likes of George Karl, Phil Ford, Kenny Smith, or Steve Hale run it often enough to know precisely how to do it? You have to spread the offense, which not only spreads the defenders but splits their attention between their assignment and the ball. Plus, you don't run it from the wing, which ameliorates both those defensive problems - you run it from the center circle. And you don't let the clock get down to single digits either, but rather go with about 12 seconds, giving yourself a chance to either pull it out and start again if it's not there the first time or to make the extra pass or two to hit the open cutter. Now, I don't know why Coach K did not have his guys do this, but were I to guess, knowing what I know of him, I'd have to surmise he'd rather risk losing the game than do anything which looks like something Dean Smith would have done. Hey, tell me if I'm wrong.

Well, all that's beside the main point, and is not meant to detract from Duke's victory. It's just my worthless opinion anyway, as has been the vast majority of this entire thread, and based solely upon my half-century of enjoying the lovely game that is college hoops at its best. This has been some work for me over the previous few months, but I have enjoyed every second of it. Yeah, I wish my boys had done better, but so it goes. I hope you too have found some enjoyment and distraction here, and I thank you for your attention and for your input also. And for those of you I cheesed off here and there, if "sorry"'s not enough for you, then . I may be back from time to time if any news of interest pops up, but for the main . . . we're done here.

See you next year? Hey, you tell me!

[jcruse64]

Originally Posted by The Poet

See you next year? Hey, you tell me!

Definitely!!! Hopefully celebrating another Murray State tourney win!

Great, great thread, Poet. Enjoyed reading your take on the games and the game. It will be interesting to see if we end up with a format change for next year...stay tuned.

[The Poet]

Thanks, Joe. I don't know how Murray State will shape up for you next year, but I can tell you this: Duke has had a full day to celebrate before Rivals.com knocked them off their perch by predicting Kentucky as next year's #1 - assuming that all undeclared underclassmen remain in their respective schools. Following them, the Top Ten in order are: Ohio State, Duke, Michigan State, Butler (??? really???), Syracuse, Purdue, Georgetown, Kansas State, and Pittsburgh. If we toss out the Horizon League pick as being a product of lingering emotion rather than logic, we note that, as has become normal, this list is dominated by Big Ten and Big East teams, whereas the conference which has produced the last two National Championships is - as always - dissed.

To give the first, and last, nod on this thread to the distaff side, I'll report that the Lady Huskies of U. Conn won their 7th title last night by defeating Stanford. No, not by 40 points, nor even by 20, but by the "Butler-esque" score of 53-47. Those of you who are not in this local area may not know this, but Coach Geno Auriemma and Coach Jim Calhoun are NOT exactly bosom buddies. In fact, it's more like each other's name is atop the list to NOT receive a Christmas card each year. I suspect this victory, coupled with the disappointing season Jim's men had this season, won't improve their mutual relationship.

[The Poet]

Wake Forest is in the process - at this very moment - of firing head coach Dino Gaudio. He was hired in 2007 after Skip Prosser died of a heart attack, and went a more-than-respectable 61-31 in his 3 seasons there, but his 1-5 postseason record was not good enough to suit the suits at Wake. Thus it appears the Demon got the better of the Deacons in this case.

Xavier Henry has announced he will indeed become Kansas University's first "one-and-done" player, and will enter the NBA Draft. His loss to a team already losing Sherron Collins to graduation, plus junior center Cole Aldrich to the draft, means KU may not face the prospect of again being the first #1-seed in next year's NCAA Tourney to go home. Hey, if you're not a #1-seed, you can't be embarrassed in this way.

[The Poet]

Evan Turner is skipping his senior year at Ohio State to enter the NBA Draft. This is one with which I have no argument. He gave the Buckeyes three great seasons, and won a shelfload of POY awards. His stock and game will get no higher in Columbus.

[The Poet]

Patrick Patterson, the junior forward who helped lead Kentucky back to national prominence this season with their 35-3 record, has declared himself eligible for the upcoming NBA Draft.



Oh, yeah, and freshmen John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Eric Bledsoe, and Daniel Orton have done so also. Once again, forgive my Schadenfreude, but !!!


Hey, Cal . . . strike one!

[The Poet]

Butler coach Brad Stevens has signed a new 12-year contract through 2022 with the school, thus ending rumors he might accept millions to go to Oregon, Wake Forest, or Clemson. Financial details have yet to be released, but his total compensation this year was $750,000.

Man, did they get their money's worth!

[The Poet]

Bobby Gonzalez has filed suit today in a Newark federal court against Seton Hall University for his recent firing as head basketball coach. His record over four seasons was 66-59 overall, 29-45 in Big East play. He was seldom with his team other than some practices and most games, and probably had as many technical fouls as wins during his tenure there. The day before he was fired, one of his players sucker-punched an opponent during the Pirates' opening-round NIT loss, and in that same week two of his former players were arrested and charged with armed robbery.

Yeah, he's got one hell of a case.

[The Poet]

After previously winning both the AP and the Naismith POY awards, Evan Turner of Ohio State completed the trifecta last night by receiving the John R. Wooden Award. He is the first Buckeye to win this honor.

Congratulations to him for this well-deserved award. Not only did he have an outstanding season, he broke is back - quite literally! - for his team and university.

[The Poet]

UNC sophomore forward Ed Davis has just announced he will enter the NBA Draft. Considering the number of other early entries, the way his stock dropped during the season's course, and the question regarding how his broken wrist has healed, he may be making a mistake, as he has possibly slipped from a lottery pick to a late-first/early-second round selection. But he did give Carolina nearly two good seasons, and helped them win a National Championship, plus it is his life and decision. He says he will continue to pursue his degree at Chapel Hill. Best of luck to him, in his professional, academic, and personal life.

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by The Poet

Oh, and speaking of Duke:

After nine years as coach of St. Benedict's Prep in Newark, where he amassed a 223-21 record, Dan Hurley was named the new head coach of Wagner today. And also today his father, the legendary Bob Hurley of St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, was informed he will be inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this summer.

As for brother Bobby Jr., I don't know if he'll show up in Indy tonight for the game. That may depend on whether or not his motorcycle gets him there in time.

Well, I still don't know if Bobby's bike made it to Indy, but it did apparently make it to Staten Island. Brother Dan has hired Jr. as his assistant at Wagner. I guess that's apt, being an assistant . . . after all, Bobby's still the all-time assist leader for Dook.

[The Poet]

Oh, and speaking of assistants, Rod Strickland is trying his best to keep the "ass" first in that position. The Kentucky assistant was arrested just before 3 AM Sunday morning for DUI after running a red light in Lexington. As it is only his 4th such offense, no doubt the Wildcat faithful will forgive him.