8/26 - Some Links, Some News

-Remember last week when I wrote about Anthony DiLoretto, the 7 footer that robbed a bank? Well, I think I found someone to top that idiocy. The leading scorer for the University of Buffalo was suspended for the first three games of the season after he posted on Facebook's marketplace application that he would pay $40 or more for someone to write a term paper for him. Really, you post that on the internet? I mean, I don't really condone cheating, but is that really the best way to get away with it? He couldn't just pay someone on his hall or in the class to do it for him?

-Blake Griffin has had what I believe is his first run-in with the law - for peeing on a bush. Apparently, he was waiting for a ride and really had to go. He received a citation for "outraging public decency" (that doesn't sound right to me, shouldn't it be "outraging public indecency" or "disrespecting public decency" or something along those lines).If this is the worst thing that Griffin has done in his Sooner tenure, then I don't think Jeff Capel has much to worry about.

-Kentucky's chances of making the NCAA tournament again just got a huge boost as point guards DeAndre Liggins and Kevin Galloway were deemed eligible. After losing Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford to graduation, and Derrick Jasper to UNLV, Billy Gillespie had a huge hole in his back court that needed to be filled. With Liggins and Galloway (both 6'6", Liggins is more of a point guard while Galloway is more of a scorer) teaming up with Perry Stevenson, the (finally) healthy Jodie Meeks, and arguably the best player in the SEC in Patrick Patterson, UK has a starting five that can match-up with anyone in the country. Their biggest question will be depth, especially if Mark Coury (a starter last year) decides to transfer to a school where he can get a scholarship.

-The preseason NIT bracket has been announced:

• Boston College will host the East Region where they will play Loyola, MD, and Cornell will face-off with St. John's.
• Purdue hosts the North Region where they will play Eastern Michigan and Georgia will face Loyola, IL (how many Loyola's are there).
• Oklahoma hosts the South Region where they take on Mississippi Valley State and Davidson will play James Madison.
• Arizona hosts the West Region and they will play Florida Atlantic whil UAB takes on Santa Clara.

The first and second round games will be played Nov. 17th and 18th, with the winners advancing to Madison Square Garden where the semis will be held Nov. 26th and the finals the 28th.

-Some noteworthy roster shake-ups: A couple of big recruits have not met eligibility requirements: Mark McLaughlin, committed to Nevada (now it looks like he will go to prep school), and J'Covan Brown of Texas. Oklahoma State has reinstated Terrell Harris, their third leading scorer from last season. He was suspended in April for violation of team rules. Former USC point guard Angelo Johnson, who left school after he wasn't guaranteed the starting point guard position, has decided to attend Southern Mississippi. Alabama recruit Tony Mitchell was finally cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse as he attended classes this week, making him eligible for the basketball team. Continue reading...

Basketball scholarship in California or prison in Wisconsin? I'll take prison

This has been quite a week for college basketball players, specifically those that enjoy the company of law enforcement agents, as noted in the last BIAH Some Links, Some News post. First, it was Dominic Tilford of South Alabama (cocaine possession). Next, it was Markieff Morris not quite of Kansas (underage drinking and assault for shooting a woman in the arm with a BB gun from his dorm room window; this is the third time I've written about the incident and I still can't figure out why anyone, even after about 12 beers, would think this is a good idea. I'm no stranger to doing dumb things, but c'mon, are you kidding me? Why does he even have a BB gun in a dorm?). Both facing charges and possible suspensions.

But now news is coming out of Minnesota that 7'1" Cal Poly San Luis Obispo recruit Anthony DiLoreto was arrested in his parents home just one short month before he left for CPSLO on a full ride. What was he arrested for? Robbing a bank. Yea, that's smart. A 7'1" basketball star deciding to rob a bank. At least he was smart enough to rob a bank far from his home - he committed the crime in Wisconsin. He also, apparently, was seen driving away from a gas station without paying right before he robbed the bank. Maybe that's why he robbed it.

But there is more to this story, which is where it gets crazy. At the same time that DiLoretto was robbing the bank, some guy across the street killed himself when he crashed his ATV and another guy in the area was having a heart attack. What the hell is going on up there?

Back to the point, by all accounts DiLoreto was a pretty good kid with no previous record. What would motivate someone to risk a scholarship to a school in California for the couple hundred bucks you get out of a bank robbery? I have no idea, but I do know that regardless of where CPSLO is in Cali, it is a hell of a lot better than anywhere in Wisconsin during the winter - especially prison. Continue reading...