Made of Gold

Jim Prisching/AP Marquette's Jae Crowder (32) celebrates a basket against Cincinnati during a game on Feb. 11 in Milwaukee. Marquette won 95-78.

Marquette was expected to be among the favorites in the Big East, but I’m not sure many people thought the Golden Eagles would be this good.  Their currently second in the conference with a 13-3 league record losing just one of their last 13 games.

Marquette doesn’t have a lot of size, but have two outstanding players in Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom.  These are two players that can carry the Golden Eagles in March.  Johnson-Odom, the Tobacco Road-native, is one of the best shooters in the Big East as he makes over 40 percent of his three-pointers.  Crowder is a matchup nightmare who’s physical enough to score in the paint, but can also step outside and show range on his jumper.

This team may not rebound the ball well and may be unconventional, but it’s going to play hard and defend to the best of its ability.  When you can do that with two all-Big East caliber players, you can make some noise.

No Stock Report this week as we preview some mid-major conference tournaments.

BIG SOUTH: This is pretty simple.  UNC-Asheville is the most experienced and clearly the best team in this conference.  The Bulldogs finished four games better than it’s next closest rival, Coastal Carolina.  Throw in the fact that all games would be played in Asheville and it will be extremely difficult to unseat the Bulldogs as Big South champions.

HORIZON LEAGUE: This figures to be one of the more competitive tournaments in all of college basketball.  Valparaiso won the conference outright with a 14-4 record, but showed some kinks in the armor down the stretch.  The Crusaders along with Cleveland St will be protected seeds getting byes until the semifinals, but I’m not sure that’s going to protect them.  I’m picking the Detroit Titans to find a way to dance.

OHIO VALLEY: In the games leading up to its loss to Tennessee St, Murray St did not look like an at-large candidate.  Since that loss, they’ve been playing like a team possessed.  The Racers have their mojo and motivation back and is out to prove a point.  They’ll be going dancing.

ATLANTIC SUN: At one point this season, the race for the regular season title was heated.  That was before Mercer lost three of its last four games to hand Belmont the league title.  There’s good news for Mercer though, it’s hosting the conference tournament and had Belmont on the ropes in the regular season finale.  It’s hard to beat a team three times in a season.  I don’t think Belmont can do it.  Mercer is going dancing for the first time in 27 years.

This Week’s Bracket Projections:

Last Four In: Dayton, Northwestern, Miami(FL), Texas
Last Four Out: St. Joseph’s, Colorado St, Arizona, UCF

Good for Games through 2/26

SOUTH

1.Kentucky16.Stony Brook/Savannah St Louisville

8.Memphis9.Washington

5.Indiana12.West Virginia Louisville

4.Gonzaga13.Texas/Dayton

6.Murray St11.Connecticut Albuquerque

3.Baylor14.Akron

7.Florida St10.Cincinnati Pittsburgh

2.Ohio St15.Belmont

WEST

1.Michigan St16.UNC-Asheville/Mississippi Valley St Columbus

8.Iowa St9.Saint Louis

5.Notre Dame12.Long Beach St Portland

4.Wichita St13.Drexel

6.Florida11.Miami(FL)/Northwestern Nashville

3.Georgetown14.Davidson

7.New Mexico10.California Omaha

2.Kansas15.Valparaiso

MIDWEST

1.Duke16.Bucknell Greensboro

8.Alabama9.Kansas St

5.Louisville12.Xavier Nashville

4.Wisconsin13.Iona

6.San Diego St11.Harvard Albuquerque

3.Marquette14.Nevada

7.St. Mary’s10.Virginia Omaha

2.Missouri15.UT-Arlington

EAST

1.Syracuse16.Long Island Pittsburgh

8.Purdue9.BYU

5.Temple12.Mississippi St Portland

4.UNLV13.Oral Roberts

6.Vanderbilt11.Seton Hall Columbus

3.Michigan14.Middle Tennessee St

7.Creighton10.Southern Mississippi Greensboro

2.North Carolina15.Weber St

In Graphical Form

Steamin’ towards March

Purdue F JaJuan Johnson has been outstanding this season

Last month, it looked like Ohio St was going to win the Big Ten championship in a landslide. Now the Purdue Boilermakers are making their claim for a piece of that title.

Some wrote the Boilermakers off after Robbie Hummel suffered another torn ACL. However, there was still plenty of talent left in the cupboard in West Lafayette, Ind.

JaJuan Johnson and E’Twaun Moore have been outstanding for the Boilermakers averaging 20.4 and 18.5 points per game respectively. They have more than picked up the slack for Hummel and look like they’re positioning themselves for a deep run this March.

The Boilers are ending the season with two very winnable games at home against Illinois and on the road at Iowa. If Wisconsin can manage to upset Ohio St on Sunday, they can possibly claim a share of the Big Ten title and an outstanding chance for a No. 1 seed.

No Stock Report this week as we preview some mid-major conference tournaments.

BIG SOUTH: This one is hard to call. Coastal Carolina was cruising before an injury to Kierre Greenwood and a suspension to Desmond Holloway derailed its dreams. Now head coach Cliff Ellis is hiring lawyers in response to media reports about the state of his program. It doesn’t smell like a team ready to claim a NCAA bid. It’s sad to see, but I don’t see Coastal getting past the semi-finals. In the Chanticleers place will be the Liberty Flames.

OHIO VALLEY: Anybody who doesn’t want to see Murray St and Morehead St duke it out one more time doesn’t like college basketball. Murray St is a squad that I thought would be in position for an at-large bid this season, but the Racers struggled against their ramped up schedule. Meanwhile, Morehead St has one of the best players in the nation in Kenneth Faried, the NCAA all-time rebounding leader. I expect the two to meet again in the finals with Murray St coming out on top.

ATLANTIC SUN: Belmont has been in complete control of the Atlantic Sun the entire year. The Bruins have lost four games all year and only one of those came in league play. This team has been one of the dominant programs in the Atlantic Sun since it joined the league and this year reinforced that. There’s nothing indicating any team other than Belmont has a chance. The Bruins are going dancing.

HORIZON LEAGUE: This will be one of the more competitive conference tournaments in all of college basketball. Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Butler and Cleveland St tied for the league title at 13-5 with Valparaiso finishing in fourth at 12-6. In fact, only 3 games separate first and sixth place. This is pretty much a toss up, but you have to go with the experience of the underachieving Butler Bulldogs to return to the NCAA tournament.

This Week’s Bracket Projections:

Last Four In: Washington St, Baylor, Richmond, Alabama
Last Four Out: Memphis, Butler, Penn St, California

Good for Games through 2/27

SOUTHWEST
1.Kansas16.McNeese St/Texas Southern Tulsa
8.Tennessee9.Gonzaga
5.Xavier12.Missouri St Tucson
4.Connecticut13.Princeton
6.Villanova11.Washington Washington, D.C.
3.Wisconsin14.Bucknell
7.Missouri10.Virginia Tech Chicago
2.Notre Dame15.Murray St
SOUTHEAST
1.Purdue16.Long Island Chicago
8.Utah St9.Marquette
5.Georgetown12.Colorado Tampa
4.Florida13.Belmont
6.Texas A&M11.Alabama/Washington St Washington, D.C.
3.Syracuse14.Wisconsin-Milwaukee
7.UNLV10.Michigan St Charlotte
2.Duke15.Vermont
WEST
1.BYU16.Coastal Carolina Denver
8.Temple9.Old Dominion
5.Vanderbilt12.UAB Tampa
4.St. John’s13.Oakland
6.Kansas St11.St. Mary’s Charlotte
3.North Carolina14.Fairfield
7.UCLA10.Georgia Cleveland
2.Pittsburgh15.Long Beach St
EAST
1.Ohio St16.Northern Colorado/Bethune-Cookman Cleveland
8.West Virginia9.Florida St
5.Kentucky12.Richmond/Baylor Tucson
4.San Diego St13.Charleston
6.Arizona11.Illinois Denver
3.Louisville14.Kent St
7.George Mason10.Cincinnati Tulsa
2.Texas15.Florida Atlantic

In Graphical Form

Heroes in a Half Shell

Jordan Williams in the paint makes Maryland a tough out this March

The Maryland Terrapins, who welcome Duke on Wednesday, are one of the hottest teams in the nation. They’ve won five in-a-row and 11 of 13.

Everyone knows about the guard ACC fans love to hate, Greivis Vasquez, but the revelation for the Terps has been freshman post player, Jordan Williams. Williams is averaging nine points-per-game, but what’s more impressive is the 8.4 rebounds a game. He gives the Terrapins a legitimate presence in the paint that they can rely on in a half-court game.

Gary Williams has been criticized a lot in the Washington, D.C. media and by Terrapin fans, but now is the time for folks to be quiet and give Gary Williams a round of applause for the job he continues to do in College Park. This team is playing hard and playing well and people should thank Gary for that.

We’re forgo the Stock Report this week for conference tournament previews.

BIG SOUTH: For some reason, this might be my favorite low-major conference. Whenever I watch a Big South game, it’s always entertaining. I expect more of the same from the tournament. I killed Coastal Carolina earlier this season for not beating Radford at home. Well, Coastal went traveled to Radford on Valentine’s eve and shut me. At 26-5, it’s Coastal Carolina’s year. Expect the Chanticleers to go dancing for the first time in 17 years.

OHIO VALLEY: On Bracketbuster Saturday, I finally got a glimpse of Murray St and boy was I impressed. They were running through the OVC and took a pretty good Morgan St team apart down the stretch. Then the Racers paid a trip to Morehead St to play the Eagles and had their quest of a perfect league record eliminated. After a disapointing loss in the the OVC semi-finals and the recent loss to Morehead St, expect to see a very motivated Murray St team this week. Motivated for a trip to the Big Dance.

ATLANTIC SUN: It’s hard to find words to describe this season in the Atlantic Sun. The first place team changed weekly it seemed so it was only fitting that there was a four-way tie for first. Lipscomb, Belmont, Jacksonville and Campbell finished with identical 14-6 conference records while East Tennessee St was just a game back at 13-7. No program in the Atlantic Sun knows how to navigate this tournament like Belmont. It had a down year last year but it’s back this season and will make a return to the NCAA Tournament.

HORIZON LEAGUE: Butler completely dominated the Horizon this season. It was the only team to finish with an undefeated league record in conference. The Bulldogs are six games ahead of their closest competitors. There is no reason to believe that someone is going to be able to beat them at home this weekend. Butler will win the Horizon League tournament and make a bubble team somewhere very happy.

This week’s bracket projections:

Last Four In: San Diego St, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Connecticut
Last Four Out: Mississippi St, Virginia Tech, Mississippi, Rhode Island

NCAA Projected Bracket

Let the Tournaments Begin

For the next couple of days, I’ll be giving previews/prediction of mid-major conference tournaments.  Today we’re going to begin with the big South, Ohio Valley, Horizon League, and the Atlantic Sun.

Liberty G Seth Curry

Big South: This is a conference that I’ve been watching all season long.  There’s VMI whom opened the season with a win at Kentucky and then led the country in scoring.  Watching how perennial Big South powerhouse Winthrop handled a rebuilding year.  Then there’s Seth Curry at Liberty who can score just like his big brother.  With that in mind, how did Radford win the regular season crown?  The Highlanders were consistent throughout league play and were far and away the best team in the league.  I expect the Highlanders to cruise to the finals next Saturday where they’ll play Liberty.  Unfortunately for Radford, I’m not betting against a Curry in a tournament setting.  Seth can put the Flames on his back just as Stephen can.  Liberty is going back to the Big Dance.

Tennessee-Martin G Lester Hudson

Ohio Valley: Austin Peay, Eastern Kentucky, and Murray St are knocking on the door.  That should come as no surprise as these three schools have collected all of the OVC’s automatic bids since 2001.  These teams all have a win over the OVC’s regular season champion, Tennessee-Martin.  The Skyhawks’ Lester Hudson is among the nation’s leaders in scoring and is a leading candidate for OVC Player of the Year.  Can he lead them to a trip to the NCAA Tournament.  I believe he will and he’ll do it in spectacular fashion.

Horizon League: They’re praying in College Station, TX.  They’re praying in Ann Arbor, MI.  They’re praying in Providence, RI.  They’re praying that Butler cuts the nets down in Indianapolis next Tuesday.  The Bulldogs nowhere near untouchable.  They’ve lost three games in conference and have been pushed to the limit twice by Cleveland State.  I expect to see Butler in the finals along with Wisconsin-Green Bay, a team that caused one of the three conference losses Butler has suffered.  The Phoenix will have the Bulldogs un-divided attention and Butler will repeat as conference tournament champs.

Atlantic Sun: Jacksonville wins the Atlantic Sun regular season crown and it’s reward in the semi-finals of the A-Sun tournament could be Lipscomb, the tournament’s host.  Such is life for the Dolphins, but I guarantee you they’ll take the situation they’re in right now.  I think it’s going to be very difficult for Jacksonville to navigate through a tournament, played in Nashville, when the 2-4 seeds are all from the state of Tennessee.  The #3 seed, Belmont has been here and has done this.  The Bruins will do it again.  They’ll be a dangerous #16 seed in the tournament too.

This week’s Bracket Projections:

Last Four In: Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Miami(FL)

Last Four Out: Florida, St. Mary’s, Virginia Tech, Providence

EAST

1.Connecticut16.Cal St Northridge Philadelphia, PA

8.Tennessee9.Texas A&M

5.Clemson12.Utah St Portland, OR

4.Xavier13.Siena

6.Marquette11.Michigan Philadelphia, PA

3.Wake Forest14.American

7.BYU10.Arizona Kansas City, MO

2.Memphis15.Bowling Green

WEST

1.Oklahoma16.Cornell Kansas City, MO

8.Boston College9.South Carolina

5.Illinois12.Davidson Miami, FL

4.Villanova13.Binghampton

6.Gonzaga11.Penn St Portland, OR

3.Washington14.Weber St

7.West Virginia10.Dayton Greensboro, NC

2.Duke15.Radford

SOUTH

1.Pittsburgh16.Tenn-Martin/Alabama St Dayton, OH

8.Wisconsin9.Creighton

5.Utah12.Maryland Boise, ID

4.Missouri13.Virginia Commonwealth

6.California11.Miami(FL) Miami, FL

3.LSU14.Stephen F. Austin

7.Butler10.Oklahoma St Minneapolis, MN

2.Michigan St15.Morgan St

MIDWEST

1.North Carolina16.Jacksonville Greensboro, NC

8.Syracuse9.Texas

5.UCLA12.Kentucky Boise, ID

4.Purdue13.Western Kentucky

6.Florida St11.UNLV Minneapolis, MN

3.Kansas14.North Dakota St

7.Arizona St10.Ohio St Dayton, OH

2.Louisville15.Robert Morris

Just When You Thought It was Safe to Go to the Desert

The Arizona Wildcats and Arizona St Sun Devils are staking claim to being two of the best teams in the West.  This is shaping to be the best year of college basketball in that state since 1995 when Arizona St earned a #5 seed and made it to the Sweet 16 and Arizona received a #4.

The Sun Devils, led by James Harden and Jeff Pendergraph, have only lost only once this season and despite a lackluster performance Sunday against IUPUI, has looked very impressive in the early-going. Harden and Pendergraph are the kinds of players that can take this team on a long tournament run.

I didn’t expect much out of the Wildcats after the retirement of long-time coach, Lute Olson, but they have really impressed me. Their two losses are by a total of two points and they have some serious firepower on that team in Nic Wise, Chase Budinger, and Jordan Hill.  While Sunday’s win versus Gonzaga is considered an upset, there was nothing fluke about it.  This Arizona team has the chops to play with anybody.

Stock Up: Niagara.  I watched much of the Purple Eagles 15-point win over South Florida on Sunday.  Here we had a mid-major taking on a Big East school on said school’s homecourt and that Big East school did not belong on the court with the Purple Eagles.  They have the atheticism to just lock teams down.  I expect to see this team in March.

Stock Down: Pennsylvania and Prinecton.  For twenty years, these two schools held the Ivy League in a chokehold.  It now seems as if both programs have fallen on hardtimes due to the departures of former head coaches, Fran Dunphy (Temple) and John Thompson III (Georgetown).  These were two teams that not only dominated Ivy League competition, they also won their fare share of non-conference games as well.  Now they can’t beat Maine.

Stock Up: Xavier.  This is the most underrated program in the country.  There aren’t many teams that share the success that the Musketeers have recently.  After pushing Ohio St to the brink in the second round in 2007, Xavier made it all the way to the Elite 8 last year.  The Musketeers are loaded again and is a legitimate Final Four contender.

Stock Down: DePaul.  God Bless Jerry Wainwright, but that seat is warming up.  Losing to a 4-6 Morgan St team at home is unacceptable.  The Blue Demons have lost four in a row and have Seth Curry coming to town tomorrow.  With the Big East being the monster of a conference it is, it could be a long season in Chicago.

Stock Up: Horizon League.  Currently ranked in the top half of Division I conferences ahead of the WAC and MAC, the Horizon League is currently making a play to be a three-bid league.  Yes, that’s right, THREE.  Butler, Illinois-Chicago, and Cleveland St are winning big-time games on the road.  It will be a great year for the Horizon League.

Stock Down: Kansas.  The defending National Champions losing to UMass is shameful.  They have one solid win versus Washington, but they better fix whatever’s ailing them in hurry.  Four of their next six are against Temple, Arizona, Tennessee, and Michigan St.  Ouch.

This Week’s Bracket Projections:

SOUTH

1.North Carolina16.Quinnipiac Greensboro, NC

8.Villanova9.Illinois

5.Bayor12.West Virginia Boise, ID

4.Tennessee13.Niagara

6.Florida St11.Missouri Minneapolis, MN

3.Purdue14.Eastern Washington

7.Arizona St10.Dayton Kansas City, MO

2.Louisville15.Mercer

WEST

1.Oklahoma16.Hampton Kansas City, MO

8.Wisconsin9.BYU

5.Wake Forest12.Miami(OH) Miami, FL

4.Georgetown13.Western Kentucky

6.Michigan11.Texas A&M Philadelphia, PA

3.Syracuse14.VMI

7.Arizona10.Florida Portland, OR

2.Gonzaga15.UC-Santa Barbara

MIDWEST

1.Pittsburgh16.ND St/Ark-Pine Bluff Dayton, OH

8.Northwestern9.St. Mary’s

5.Clemson12.Illinois St Boise, ID

4.UCLA13.Jacksonville St

6.Memphis11.Temple Minneapolis, MN

3.Notre Dame14.Utah St

7.Michigan St10.Seton Hall Greensboro, NC

2.Duke15.Navy

EAST

1.Connecticut16.Cornell Philadelphia, PA

8.Kansas9.California

5.Davidson12.Maryland Portland, OR

4.Ohio St13.George Mason

6.Marquette11.Butler Miami, FL

3.Texas14.Lamar

7.Miami(FL)10.Minnesota Dayton, OH

2.Xavier15.Vermont