11/23 - College Hoops Week in Review

What we learned this week: We'll get to Syracuse and their performance, and we have already touched on the Big East's success early in the season, so lets talk about the Pac-10?

Coming into the season, no one was saying that the Pac-10 was going to be the best league in the country. Outside of Cal and Washington, it seemed like everyone was in the midst of a rebuilding year, with the the term "re"-building (as opposed to simply building) being used loosely.

The Pac-10 conference has struggled early in the season.
(photo credit: Pac-10)

Just take a look at the numbers. The league has just four unbeaten teams (the Arizona schools and the Washington schools), and the overall record is 23-10, just a .697 winning percentage. That's far less than any other power conference (the lowest is the Big Ten, believe it or not, with a 27-9 record and a .750 winning percentage), and just a fraction better than the A-10, which is 26-12 with a .684 winning percentage.

And it isn't like the Pac-10 is losing to good teams, either. Stanford, who is 2-2, has lost to San Diego and Oral Roberts. UCLA lost to Cal St. Fullerton. USC was beaten by Loyola Marymount. Oregon State has already lost three games, to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Texas Tech, and Sacramento State, a team coming off of a two win season.

At least Oregon (at Portland) and Cal (Syracuse and Ohio State in MSG) lost to potential tournament teams.

You don't even want to ask about their best win. Arizona State over TCU? Oregon over Colorado State? Cal over Murray State? The way things are going, it won't be long until you start to hear serious talk of the Pac-10 getting just one team (Washington) into the tournament. With so many bad losses, and so few good wins, in out of conference play, the Pac-10's RPI will be in the toilet in this keeps up.

Is it too late for the Pac-10?

Not yet. Arizona State still has a trip to MSG for the Pre-season NIT, Arizona will be in Maui starting tomorrow to play in the Maui Invitational, and there is still the Pac-10-Big XII challenge. With a good performance in those three events, and a couple of wins in marquee out of conference match-ups (Washington vs. Georgetown, Washington State vs. Gonzaga, Oregon vs. St. Mary's, UCLA and Cal vs. Kansas), and maybe some doubters will be silenced.

Until then, expect the Pac-10 to be compared to last year's SEC.


GAME OF THE WEEK: Villanova 69, George Mason 68

George Mason asserted their control on this game early. Pressuring Villanova's guards all over the court, the Patriots were able to open up a 13 point first half lead. The Wildcats made a couple runs during the first 20 minutes, but Mason eventually went into the half up 37-28. A 15-5 run by the Wildcats early in the second half tied the game, and set off an exciting 13 minutes of basketball down the stretch.

Mason would build the lead back up to five on multiple occasions before Villanova finally came all the way back, going up 56-54 on a Scottie Reynolds lay-up. After back-to-back Patriot buckets, Taylor King buried a three with four and a half minutes left to give the Wildcats the lead. Once again, Mason would go on a run, scoring six straight point to build a 64-59 lead. But the Patriots couldn't seal this one as they hit just four of eight free throws down the stretch, leaving the door open for Villanova. Down 67-63 with under a minute left, freshman Maalik Wayns buried a three. After Sherrod Wright hit 1-2 from the line, another freshman, Isaiah Armwood, hit the first shot of his career, a three with just 17 seconds left on the clock. It ended up being the game-winner, as the Patriots couldn't get a shot off at the end of the game.



Also good this week:

• Louisiana-Monroe 74, Morehead State 73: Kenneth Faried had 24 points and 12 boards, but Tony Hooper hit a jumper at the buzzer to end an exciting back-and-forth game.
• Michigan State 75, Gonzaga 71: The Zags were up big in the first half, but a second half rally, sparked by the hot shooting of Durrell Summers, carried the Spartans to the four point win.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Jon Scheyer, Duke

Scheyer has played as well as anyone in the country during the first two weeks of the season. In a 3-0 week for Duke, Scheyer averaged 16.0 ppg and 5.7 apg, while hitting 9-16 from deep. Impressive numbers, yes, but the most impressive stat is that Scheyer did not have a turnover in the three games. In fact, Scheyer has played 131 minutes in four games this season (32.8 mpg), and has yet to turn the basketball over. With the limited depth in Duke's back court, being able to rely on Scheyer to play well for a lot of minutes will be a key to the Blue Devil's success this season.

Also good this week:

• Shelvin Mack, Butler: Butler had a 2-0 week, winning both games on the road, and Mack's performance was a huge reason why. He averaged 16.0 ppg, 5.5 apg, and 4.0 rpg in the two wins.
• James Anderson, Oklahoma State: Could Anderson be better than he was last season? In two games last week, he averaged 27.5 ppg and 9.5 rpg while hitting 20-37 shots from the field in two Cowboy wins.
• Quincy Pondexter, Washington: Pondexter came into the week averaging 22 ppg and 11 rpg, but he had his best game of the season on Friday as he posted 30 points (on 10-18 from the field) and 15 boards.
  

TEAM OF THE WEEK: Syracuse Orange

I mean, was there any other choice? The Orange looked like a team that may not reach the tournament after losing an exhibition game to Le Moyne. But after taking MSG by storm this week, the Orange are a trendy pick to make it to the Final Four. Syracuse ran roughshod over Cal and UNC on Thursday and Friday. Against Cal, it was a big first half run that opened up an insurrmountable lead. In the UNC game, the Orange used a 22-1 run to open the second half to put that game away. And while Syracuse is making these big runs and putting up impressive offensive numbers, the reason the Orange are so good this season is their defense. Their length creates turnovers, while the talent in their backcourt and the willingness of their front line to run the floor creates points off of those turnovers.

As good as Andy Rautins has been, as promising as their front line has played on both ends, and and as much of a stud as Wesley Johnson is, the most impressive part of this team has been the play of Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche. Jardine and Triche are two different styles of point guards. Both are excellent defenders that can get into the passing lanes, but Triche seems to be a better player in the half court offensively, while Jardine is more of a dynamic, open court player that can score in transition. Excellent complimentary players, it has been their stellar early season play that has been the most pleasant surprise for the Orange.

Also good this week:

• Villanova Wildcats: Villanova improved to 5-0 while winning the Puerto Rico Tip-off this week. They knocked off George Mason, Dayton, and Ole Miss along the way. While the Wildcats are still trying to find their stride and a while away from being at full strength (Reggie Redding, Mouphtaou Yarou), this was a talented field that Jay Wright's club just ran through.
• Tennessee Volunteers: The Vols went 3-0 on the week, including two games where they git triple figures. While Bruce Pearl's club did struggle a bit with DePaul, when the athlete the Vols have get going in the full court, they are a tough team to slow down.
  
• Virginia Commonwealth Rams: The Rams were just 1-1 on the week, but the win came in impressive fashion against Oklahoma.
  

For match-ups of the week, check back for the daily Pregame Beat's, as most of the big games this week come during tournament play.