POSTERIZED: Murder He Wrote(n)

Did. He. Just. Do. That?

Yup.

He did.

Washington's Tony Wroten Jr. is still working out the freshman kinks, but there is no denying that this kid is going to be a star.

In some professions, they call this "Sweet Chin Music"



UW Men's Basketball on WhoSay

What he did to that poor Arizona State defender is just mean. It's bad enough that the Sun Devils are down-right atrocious. Now they have to go out and get humiliated.


But was it as good as these?

Ronald Roberts, St. Joseph's vs. Dayton, 1/25
Markel Brown, Oklahoma State vs. Missouri, 1/25
Larry Nance Jr., Wyoming vs. San Diego State, 1/24
Dion Dixon, Cincinnati vs. Syracuse, 1/23
Victor Rudd Jr., South Florida vs. St. John's, 1/17 (DotY Candidate)
C.J. Fair, Syracuse vs. Pittsburgh, 1/16
TrayVonn Wright, North Dakota State vs. South Dakota, 1/14
Bandja Sy, New Mexico State vs. Utah State, 1/12
Kenny Hall, Tennessee vs. Mississippi State, 1/12
Dezmine Wells, Xavier vs. Duquesne, 1/11
Kadeem Batts, Providence vs. Louisville, 1/10
Karam Mashour, UNLV vs. CS-Bakersfield, 1/6
Tony Snell, New Mexico vs. Houston Baptist, 1/3
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Georgia Tech, 1/3
Trevis Simpson, UNC-Greensboro vs. Miami, 1/2
Orion Outerbridge, Rhode Island vs. Boston College, 1/2
Sam Thompson, Ohio State vs. Indiana, 12/31
DeShon Minnis, Texas Tech vs. Southeastern Louisiana, 12/30
Keith Gabriel, VMI vs. Old Dominion, 12/22
Eric Etherly, Loyola (Md.) vs. Kentucky, 12/22
Chris Evans, Kent State vs. Texas-Arlington, 12/21
P.J. Hairston, North Carolina vs. Texas, 12/21
Robbie Hummel, Purdue vs. IPFW, 12/20
Robert Brown, Virginia Tech vs. North Florida, 12/19
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Kansas State, 12/17
Torye Pelham, Southern Mississippi vs. Ole Miss, 12/17
Quincy Diggs, Akron vs. Florida A&M, 12/17
Anthony Davis, Kentucky vs. Chattanooga, 12/17
Langston Galloway/C.J. Aiken/Ronald Roberts, St. Joseph's vs. Villanova, 12/17
Terrence Ross, Washington vs. UC-Santa Barbara, 12/16
Jared Cunningham, Oregon State vs. Howard, 12/15
Raheem Appleby, Louisiana Tech vs. McNeese State, 12/14
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Detroit, 12/12
Vander Blue, Marquette vs. UW-Green Bay, 12/11
Ronald Roberts, St. Joseph's vs. Creighton, 12/10
Dion Waiters, Syracuse vs. George Washington, 12/10 (DotY Candidate)
Victor Oladipo, Indiana vs. Kentucky, 12/10
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Georgia vs. Georgia Tech, 12/10
Vander Blue, Marquette vs. Washington, 12/6
Terrence Ross, Washington vs. Marquette, 12/6
Deville Smith, Mississippi State vs. West Virginia, 12/3
Terrence Jones, Kentucky vs. North Carolina, 12/3
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Georgetown, 12/1
Anthony Marshall, UNLV vs. UNC, 11/26
Michael Kidd-Glichrist, Kentucky vs. Portland, 11/26/11 (DotY Candidate)
Markel Brown, Oklahoma State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/25
Rodney Williams, Minnesota vs. DePaul, 11/24
Thomas Robinson, Kansas vs. Duke, 11/23
Stan Okoye, VMI vs. Ohio State, 11/23
Kyisean Reed, Utah State vs. Southern Utah, 11/19
Ra'Shad James, Iona vs. Western Michigan, 11/18
Alandise Harris, Houston vs. Arkansas, 11/18
Sam Thompson, Ohio State vs. Jackson State, 11/18
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Wichita State, 11/18
Eric Griffin, Campbell vs. North Carolina A&T, 11/18 (DotY Candidate)
Olek Czyz, Nevada vs. Pacific, 11/17
Chris Watson, Pikeville vs. Mountain State, 11/16
Ray Willis, North Carolina Central vs. Wagner, 11/16
Mike James, Lamar vs. Ohio, 11/15 (DotY Candidate)
Quincy Acy, Baylor vs. San Diego State, 11/15
Deniz Kilicli, West Virginia vs. Kent State, 11/15
Chris Evans, Kent State vs. West Virginia, 11/15
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Oakland, 11/14
Isaiah Brown, East Tennessee State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/12
Michael Lyons, Air Force vs. Army, 11/11
Dezmine Wells, Xavier vs. Morgan State, 11/11
Jeremy Lamb, UConn vs. Columbia, 11/11 (DotY Candidate)
Andre Drummond, UConn vs. CW Post, 11/4
Moe Harkless, St. John's vs. CW Post, 10/26


Continue reading...

POSTERIZED: Terrence Ross Duplicate Dunk

I don't think I've ever seen somebody duplicate a tandem dunk as perfectly as Terrence Ross did on Friday night.

First, watch the following video. It's from 11 days ago when Washington played Marquette in the Jimmy-V Classic. You've probably already seen it, but do me a favor and watch it again.




Awesome, right?

Well, on Friday night, Terrence Ross did the exact same thing.



Which one was better? Marquette or UC-Santa Barabara?

What are the chances that Ross is able to pull this off again?



But was it as good as these?

C.J. Aiken, St. Joseph's vs. Villanova, 12/17
Jared Cunningham, Oregon State vs. Howard, 12/15
Raheem Appleby, Louisiana Tech vs. McNeese State, 12/14
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Detroit, 12/12
Vander Blue, Marquette vs. UW-Green Bay, 12/11
Ronald Roberts, St. Joseph's vs. Creighton, 12/10
Dion Waiters, Syracuse vs. George Washington, 12/10 (DotY Candidate)
Victor Oladipo, Indiana vs. Kentucky, 12/10
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Georgia vs. Georgia Tech, 12/10
Vander Blue, Marquette vs. Washington, 12/6
Terrence Ross, Washington vs. Marquette, 12/6
Deville Smith, Mississippi State vs. West Virginia, 12/3
Terrence Jones, Kentucky vs. North Carolina, 12/3
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Georgetown, 12/1
Anthony Marshall, UNLV vs. UNC, 11/26
Michael Kidd-Glichrist, Kentucky vs. Portland, 11/26/11 (DotY Candidate)
Markel Brown, Oklahoma State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/25
Rodney Williams, Minnesota vs. DePaul, 11/24
Thomas Robinson, Kansas vs. Duke, 11/23
Stan Okoye, VMI vs. Ohio State, 11/23
Kyisean Reed, Utah State vs. Southern Utah, 11/19
Ra'Shad James, Iona vs. Western Michigan, 11/18
Alandise Harris, Houston vs. Arkansas, 11/18
Sam Thompson, Ohio State vs. Jackson State, 11/18
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Wichita State, 11/18
Eric Griffin, Campbell vs. North Carolina A&T, 11/18 (DotY Candidate)
Olek Czyz, Nevada vs. Pacific, 11/17
Chris Watson, Pikeville vs. Mountain State, 11/16
Ray Willis, North Carolina Central vs. Wagner, 11/16
Mike James, Lamar vs. Ohio, 11/15 (DotY Candidate)
Quincy Acy, Baylor vs. San Diego State, 11/15
Deniz Kilicli, West Virginia vs. Kent State, 11/15
Chris Evans, Kent State vs. West Virginia, 11/15
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Oakland, 11/14
Isaiah Brown, East Tennessee State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/12
Michael Lyons, Air Force vs. Army, 11/11
Dezmine Wells, Xavier vs. Morgan State, 11/11
Jeremy Lamb, UConn vs. Columbia, 11/11 (DotY Candidate)
Andre Drummond, UConn vs. CW Post, 11/4
Moe Harkless, St. John's vs. CW Post, 10/26



























































Continue reading...

Tony Wroten is Washington's most important piece

There are a myriad of reasons for Washington's struggles early in the season.

They don't rebound the ball well, they don't force turnovers, they're mediocre defensively, they have no low-post presence.

But perhaps the biggest reason for their struggles early in the season is arguably the most important player on their roster: Tony Wroten, Jr.

The reason for that is Wroten's unbelievably high usage rate. When he is on the floor -- which is for more than 24 mpg -- the possession ends with Wroten 35.7% of the time. That's the third-highest number in the country. The problem? Wroten's efficiency is absolutely horrendous. His offensive rating is just 89.9, well below the efficiency numbers of players like Terrence Ross, CJ Wilcox and Abdul Gaddy.


The get an idea of what that means, the two players with higher-usage rates that Wroten are Josh Watkins of Utah and Chase Plummer of UMBC. Both Watkins and Plummer have similar efficiency numbers to Wroten. Utah and UMBC have combined for two wins on the season. When you have one player using such a high-volume of possessions, and that player is getting minimal results from the possessions that he uses, its very difficult to win basketball games.

So the question that must be asked of Washington is whether or not this is a permanent thing. Can Wroten turn it around? And, frankly, based on the way that he was played the past couple of games, I'd lean towards to affirmative. Wroten had 13 points, six boards and three assists against Marquette at MSG, following that up with 23 points -- but five turnovers and zero assists -- in a loss to Duke. He brought Washington back from 19 down late in the game to make things interesting.

There are two reasons why Wroten's efficiency is so low: he turns the ball over at an ungodly rate and he cannot make free throws despite living at the foul line.

Wroten is fourth on the team in minutes played, but he has more than double the number of turnovers this season of anyone else on the roster. With averages of 4.4 t/o's and 24 mpg, Wroten is turning the ball over once every five-and-a-half minutes. There are players that would be happy if they scored that often. Wroten's also made more free throws than anyone else on his team has taken despite making just 51.9% -- 27-52 -- from the charity stripe. There is no way that those numbers don't improve.

(It also should be noted here that Aziz N'Diaye, who is by far the least efficient player in Lorenzo Romar's rotation, has the third-highest usage rate. The guys that are the most ineffective are making the most plays right now. Not a good combination.)

Wroten is only a freshman. He's also a high-risk player. Like Isaiah Thomas last season, Wroten is the kind of guy that is always in attack mode, but he's still learning how to harness his immense ability and utilize it as effectively as possible. He has to learn how to better delineate what is a good shot or what is a bad pass. He's capable of the spectacular, but he has to learn when and where to pick his spots; when the spectacular fails, Wroten looks reckless and selfish.

"As long as he's not trying to make the fancy play every time and is just being a solid point guard, he's going to be really good," CJ Wilcox said after Saturday's loss to Duke at the Garden.

Those turnovers are even more costly for a team like Washington. The Huskies have quite a bit of offensive firepower on their perimeter with the likes of Terrence Ross, Wilcox and Gaddy joining Wroten on the perimeter. Throwing the ball away not only costs them the opportunity to put points on the board, but it takes away from their ability to get into a rhythm. The best way to slow down a shooter that is in a zone is to have a point guard that doesn't get him the ball.

I believe Wroten will put it all together before the season is over. I don't think he will ever protect the ball like Jordan Taylor, but I do think that he will make better decisions as time goes on. Freshman are on a learning curve, and Wroten is no different.

There's a quicker way for him to improve as well.

Start hitting your damn free throws.
Continue reading...

Its past time for Washington to take solace in moral victories

NEW YORK - Lorenzo Romar said a lot in the 10 or so minutes that he was in front of the microphones after his Washington team lost to Marquette 79-77 on Tuesday in the Jimmy V Classic, but there was one quote in particular that stood out:

"Tonight, we didn't finish, but I thought we played a pretty good game. If we do that, we will win our fair share."

For a team that has been nothing more than a borderline top 25 program over the last few years, winning their "fair share" is not a bad thing. Moral victories like hanging with a talented Marquette team on national television in Madison Square Garden is a positive, a beacon sent out to east coasters that says 'Hey, we may play late at night and on weird TV stations, but we still have some kids that can hoop'.


And frankly, this Husky program has not been anything special of late. After losing to Marquette, Washington is now 4-3 on the season, having dropped road dates against St. Louis and Nevada. Last season, the Huskies finished third in a thoroughly mediocre Pac-10 and ended the year with a 24-11 record. The season before that, in 2009-2010, Washington again struggled their way through the regular season, needing to win seven games in a row at the end of the year -- three of which came in the Pac-10 Tournament -- just to earn an at-large bid.

The problem is that Lorenzo Romar consistently stocks his roster with as much raw talent as anyone in the country. This year, its guys like Terrence Ross, CJ Wilcox and Tony Wroten that are taking the reins. Last year, Isaiah Thomas, Justin Holiday and Matthew Bryan-Amaning were on the roster. The year before that Quincy Pondexter was.

Washington is too good to be saying we'll win games eventually if we continue to play like that.

Its past time for them to start actually winning these close games.

Because if the Huskies settle for another moral victory against Duke on Saturday at the Garden, there is a real chance that Washington could end up on the outside looking in on Selection Sunday. Don't believe me? Take a look at their non-conference schedule. Their best win right now is against Portland. After Duke, the Huskies host UC-Santa Barbara and South Dakota State, as well as Cal St. Northridge. And while both UCSB and SDSU will have a chance to compete in their respective conferences, they are far from what you would consider a resume victory. (In fact, they are just good enough that U-Dub will need to be on serious upset alert.)

After that, we get into league play, and the Pac-12 has been anything but impressive this year. Right now Cal appears to be the best team -- and the only team that deserves any top 25 consideration -- in the league, and they have a 39 point loss to Missouri on their resume. And if Washington's schedule wasn't already weak enough, they only get one shot at Cal in league play this year.

So you can see why so much is being made out of Saturday's game.

"We're aware of that," Romar said of the importance of getting a win on Saturday. But, in typical coach speak, he also tried to downplay it. "When you go out and play, you have to concentrate on being your best. We don't tack on 'Oh, by the way, we gotta win this - extra' because of what's at stake."

Its a fair point.

He's avoiding having to put extra pressure on a team that has not proven the ability to handle adversity or a road environment the past two-plus seasons is probably not a good idea.

But maybe this Washington team needs a wake-up call. Maybe they need a dose of perspective. Maybe they need Tony Wroten to understand the consequences of playing so reckless and aggressive. Maybe they need Terrence Ross to understand why he's being asked to become a dominant presence. Maybe they need to learn that you aren't going to go far at this level playing lackadaisical defense and making poor decisions on offense.

More than anything, Washington, and Romar in particular, needs to start taking advantage of the talent on their roster.

Settling for moral victories, taking solace in the we-played-well-enough-to-win-but-didn't theory, is no longer acceptable for this Washington program.
Continue reading...

POSTERIZED: Terrence Ross lives up to the hype

Terrence Ross' name appeared on nearly every preseason preview for "breakout stars". The Washington sophomore was a highly-touted recruit with great athleticism and scoring ability. With the departure of Isaiah Thomas and Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Ross' was thought to be the team's new superstar.

Although the Huskies have struggled early on, dropping games to St. Louis and Nevada, Ross is certainly showing why many members of the media pegged him as a "breakout star".

Through seven games he is averaging a team-high 16.6ppg and chips in with 7rpg as well.

If you need any more evidence of Ross' potential, just check out the 180 alley-oop slam he threw down at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night against Marquette.



Not every POSTERIZED dunk is going to feature a defender getting mean-mugged. Some dunks are great because of the sheer athleticism used to finish the play, and Ross' dunk was just that.


But was it as good as these?

Deville Smith, Mississippi State vs. West Virginia, 12/3
Terrence Jones, Kentucky vs. North Carolina, 12/3
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Georgetown, 12/1
Anthony Marshall, UNLV vs. UNC, 11/26
Michael Kidd-Glichrist, Kentucky vs. Portland, 11/26/11 (DotY Candidate)
Markel Brown, Oklahoma State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/25
Rodney Williams, Minnesota vs. DePaul, 11/24
Thomas Robinson, Kansas vs. Duke, 11/23
Stan Okoye, VMI vs. Ohio State, 11/23
Kyisean Reed, Utah State vs. Southern Utah, 11/19
Ra'Shad James, Iona vs. Western Michigan, 11/18
Alandise Harris, Houston vs. Arkansas, 11/18
Sam Thompson, Ohio State vs. Jackson State, 11/18
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Wichita State, 11/18
Eric Griffin, Campbell vs. North Carolina A&T, 11/18 (DotY Candidate)
Olek Czyz, Nevada vs. Pacific, 11/17
Chris Watson, Pikeville vs. Mountain State, 11/16
Ray Willis, North Carolina Central vs. Wagner, 11/16
Mike James, Lamar vs. Ohio, 11/15 (DotY Candidate)
Quincy Acy, Baylor vs. San Diego State, 11/15
Deniz Kilicli, West Virginia vs. Kent State, 11/15
Chris Evans, Kent State vs. West Virginia, 11/15
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Oakland, 11/14
Isaiah Brown, East Tennessee State vs. Virginia Tech, 11/12
Michael Lyons, Air Force vs. Army, 11/11
Dezmine Wells, Xavier vs. Morgan State, 11/11
Jeremy Lamb, UConn vs. Columbia, 11/11 (DotY Candidate)
Andre Drummond, UConn vs. CW Post, 11/4
Moe Harkless, St. John's vs. CW Post, 10/26




Continue reading...

2011-2012 Top 50 Countdown: Nos. 35-31

Over the coming weeks, we will be counting down our Top 50 teams in the country. Teams 26-50 will be posted in groups of five, while we will count backwards from No. 25 to the No. 1 team in the country. You can find a complete schedule of our 2011-2012 Season Preview coverage here. To browse through the rest of the Top 50, click here.


35. Illinois Fighting Illini:

Last Season: 20-14, 9-9 (Big Ten)

Head Coach: Bruce Weber

Key Losses: Demetri McCamey, Mike Davis, Mike Tisdale, Jereme Richmond, Bill Cole

New Additions: Nnanna Egwu, Tracy Abrams, Mike Shaw, Mychael Henry, Devin Langford, Ibrahima Djimde, Sam Maniscalco, Jereme Richmond?

Projected Lineup:

- G: Sam Maniscalco, Sr.
- G: Brandon Paul, Jr.
- G: DJ Richardson, Jr.
- F: Tyler Griffey, Jr.
- C: Meyers Leonard, So.
- Bench: Crandall Head, So.; Tracy Abrams, Fr.; Mike Shaw, Fr.; Myke Henry, Fr.; Devin Langford, Fr.



Outlook: Illinois is in an interesting position this season. On the one hand, they are losing four starters and a key reserve. On the other hand, they are losing Demetri McCamey and Jereme Richmond, two talented head cases that may end up being an addition by subtraction. So while Bruce Weber's team is losing 56.5 percent of their minutes and 59.2 pecent of their scoring, the team chemistry -- which is so valuable and so underrated -- stands to increase without the fights Richmond may or may not have been involved in and the professional career McCamey may or may not have been preparing for. So what's left? Its going to start on the perimeter for the Illini. Juniors DJ Richardson and Brandon Paul should become the first and second options with the ball-dominating McCamey gone. Bradley transfer Sam Maniscalco -- who is legit -- should slide into the point guard role for a year while freshman Tracy Abrams gets used to the Big Ten. Sophomore Meyers Leonard should be able to provide some solid interior defense and rebounding if he can keep his fouls down while Tyler Griffey gives Weber a face-up four with a dangerous jump shot. Throw in a couple youngsters off the bench -- Crandall Head, Joseph Bertrand, Mike Shaw, Myke Henry, Devin Langford, Nnanna Egwu -- and Illinois has a bright future.


34. Washington Huskies:

Last Season: 24-11, 11-7 (Pac-10)

Head Coach: Lorenzo Romar

Key Losses: Isaiah Thomas, Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday, Venoy Overton

New Additions: Tony Wroten Jr, Shawn Kemp Jr, Hikeem Stewart, Jernard Jarreau, Martin Breunig, Andrew Andrews

Projected Lineup:

- G: Abdul Gaddy, Jr.
- G: Tony Wroten Jr, Fr.
- F: Terrence Ross, So.
- F: Darnell Gant, Sr.
- C: Aziz N'Diaye, Jr.
- Bench: CJ Wilcox, So.; Scott Suggs, Sr.; Shawn Kemp Jr, Fr.; Hikeem Stewart, Fr.; Jernard Jarreau, Fr.


Outlook: Washington is going to have a lot of important pieces to replace next season. Its starts with the most obvious -- Isaiah Thomas -- but with Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday and Venoy Overton also graduating, Lorenzo Romar is going to have quite a few minutes to replace. He certainly will have talent at his disposal, however, especially on the perimeter. It starts with Abdul Gaddy, who should be healthy after tearing his acl a third of the way through last season, and stud point guard recruit Tony Wroten Jr, who is the kind of playmaker that can fill the role Thomas vacated. CJ Wilcox and Scott Suggs should be able to provide an offensive pop off the bench. The x-factor, however, will be Terrence Ross. The sophomore wing has had quite a bit of hype throughout the off-season and could end up being a first-team all-conference performer if he lives up to those expectations. The front court will be a bit of a question mark. Aziz N'Diaye is seven-foot shotblocker, but he doesn't provide much offensive pop. Darnell Gant can stretch the floor with his ability to shoot, but he's not much of a banger. Four freshmen -- Shawn Kemp Jr, Desmond Simmons, Martin Breunig and Jernard Jarreau -- will be competing for front court bench minutes, and Washington is going to need one or two of that group to become impact contributors.


33. Michigan State Spartans:

Last Season: 19-15, 9-9 (Big Ten)

Head Coach: Tom Izzo

Key Losses: Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, Garrick Sherman, Korie Lucious, Mike Kebler

New Additions: Branden Dawson, Brandon Kearney, Travis Trice, Brandon Wood

Projected Lineup:

- G: Keith Appling, So.
- G: Brandon Wood, Sr.
- F: Branden Dawson, Fr.
- F: Draymond Green, Sr.
- C: Delvon Roe, Sr.
- Bench: Adreian Payne, So.; Derrick Nix, Jr.; Austin Thornton, Sr.; Brandon Kearney, Fr.; Russell Byrd, Fr.


Outlook: Last season was, frankly, a disaster for the Spartans. After being picked as a consensus top five team heading into the season, Michigan State never found that rhythm. There were chemistry issues, Kalin Lucas couldn't get healthy, Durrell Summers couldn't get a shot to fall and Michigan State found themselves knocked out in the first round of the tournament after failing to crack the 20 win barrier. Next season will be an interesting mix. The strength of this group will be the front court. Draymond Green and Delvon Roe (Ed. Note: Only hours after we posted this, news of Roe announced his retirement) are senior leaders that have been through quite a few battles in their careers. Adreian Payne and Derrick Nix both have some question marks -- Payne needs Nix to donate him about 30 pounds, among other things -- but if they can put it together, both have the potential to be impact players in the Big Ten this year. Freshman small forward Branden Dawson has drawn comparisons to Raymar Morgan and should fit well with this team. The back court is a bigger question. Sophomore Keith Appling is going to be asked to take over a much more prominent role while senior Valpo transfer -- who, like Maniscalco at Illinois, is legit -- will be counted on to provide some back court experience. Austin Thornton will see minutes, as will Brandon Kearney and Russell Byrd (if he can get healthy), but the only natural point guard on the roster is freshman Travis Trice. Tom Izzo is going to need to turn this group into an old-school, beat-em-up Spartan team.


32. Wichita State Shockers:

Last Season: 29-8, 14-4 (MVC)

Head Coach: Gregg Marshall

Key Losses: JT Durley, Graham Hatch, Gabe Blair, Aaron Ellis

New Additions: Jake White, Evan Wessel, Tekele Cotton, Ron Baker, Carl Hall, Ede Egharevba

Projected Lineup:

- G: Joe Ragland, Sr.
- G: David Kyles, Sr.
- F: Toure' Murry, Sr.
- F: Ben Smith, Sr.
- C: Garrett Stutz, Sr.
- Bench: Carl Hall, Jr.; Demetric Williams, Jr.; Jake White, Fr.


Outlook: The Shockers had some rough luck during the regular season, taking a couple of tough losses that cost them the MVC regular season title and a trip to the tournament. That said, they did make a run to the NIT championship. Wichita State should be able to compete for an MVC title this season based on their back court alone. Its headlined by a trio of talented and unselfish seniors that buy into what Gregg Marshall is selling. Joe Ragland is the point guard, David Kyles is the shooter, and Toure' Murry is the play-maker and the slasher. All three are capable of producing big games, but they also all understand their role within the team. Junior Demetric Williams showed flashes of promise last season, but he will be battling for bench minutes with freshmen Evan Wessel and Tekele Cotton. Where the Shockers have question marks is along their front line. Garrett Stutz, their seven-foot senior center, returns. He is going to need to increase his productivity to make up for JT Durley's scoring and Gabe Blair's rebounding and physicality inside. The undersized Ben Smith will be back, although he tends to spend more on his time on the perimeter. Beyond that, Marshall is going to have a lot of fresh faces manning the paint, but the most interesting are two newcomers. Jake White is a face-up four that had some legitimate high-major interest and Carl Hall is a JuCo transfer that has some hype coming into the program.


31. UNLV Runnin' Rebels:

Last Season: 24-9, 11-5 (MWC)

Head Coach: Dave Rice

Key Losses: Tre'Von Willis, Derrick Jasper, Lon Kruger

New Additions: Mike Moser, Dave Rice

Projected Lineup:

- G: Oscar Bellfield, Sr.
- G: Anthony Marshall, Jr.
- G: Justin Hawkins, Jr.
- F: Chace Stanback, Sr.
- C: Quintrel Thomas, Jr.
- Bench: Mike Moser, So.; Carlos Lopez, So.; Kendall Wallace, Sr., Brice Massamba, Sr.; Reggie Smith, So.


Outlook: UNLV is going to be going through a regime change as the Mountain West goes through a membership change, but there is plenty of talent on this roster to compete with New Mexico in the two-horse race to win the MWC. Oscar Bellfield and Anthony Marshall are going to share ball-handling and playmaking duties. Bellfield is a better shooter and creator than Marshall, but Marshall is the kind of player coaches love. He does seemingly everything well and can be a lock-down defensive presence. Defensive stopper Justin Hawkins and three-point sniper Kendall Wallace, who is coming off of an acl tear, will both be back as well. Don't be surprised is Marquette transfer Reggie Smith works his way into the lineup when he gets eligible in December. Up front, Rice figures to continue the three-man rotation that Kruger had last season. Quintrel Thomas, Brice Massamba and Carlos Lopez are all big and strong and do enough well to get on the court but don't do enough to earn a permanent starting spot. UCLA transfer Mike Moser will also see time in the front court, which would allow Chace Stanback to slide over and play some three. The x-factor is going to be Stanback. With much of the MWC's star power gone from last season, he has a real shot at being the Player of the Year in the conference. A 6'8" wing, he can do a lot of different things on the floor -- shoot from deep, score, rebound, defend multiple positions -- but is he ready to become "the man"? Will he take that next step towards being a star? If he does, UNLV has a very good chance of winning the MWC.


Continue reading...

POSTERIZED: Tony Wroten Jr. delivers the goods

Much has been said about incoming Washington freshman Tony Wroten Jr. He may or may not have gotten a "C" in a fictitious Spanish class that he never attended nor knew about. When Wroten made his college announcement, a ceremony featuring a full marching band and decision hats, he donned a red and black flannel shirt and a red vest, possibly signaling his intentions to sign with Louisville. But Wroten spurned the Cardinals in favor of his home-state Huskies.

But despite his somewhat-narcissistic flare for the dramatic, the kid can ball.

Just check out the nasty posterization he served up on Monday at the Seattle Summer League:



That's Seattle forward Clarence Trent on the recieving end of Wroten's summer league poster-dunk. Trent played his freshman year at U-Dub before transfering out in 2010. I imagine he wishes he was still a Husky (Or at the least, Wroten's teammate on Monday).


Continue reading...

Venoy Overton is an actual pimp ... SMDH?

How about this for a head scratcher.

Venoy Overton, who graduated on Saturday from the University of Washington with a degree in American Ethnic studies, is currently sitting in a jail cell in Kent Corrections Center outside Seattle after being arrested for a second degree Promoting Prostition charge. Promiting Prostitution is defined by the Washington State Legislature as profiting off of or advancing prostitution, with the second degree charge being a Class C felony punishable up to five years in prison.

In other words, Venoy Overton was arrested for being a pimp. Not a pimp in the high school sense of the word, making out with all of the popular girls. He was allegedly dropping girls off on the street and forcing them to perform sex acts for money:

In May, Kent Police contacted an 18-year-old woman on Pacific Highway South for prostitution, detectives said. She told them she was there because her boyfriend dropped her off and told her to perform sex acts for money. She said he had dropped her off there twice before, and said her boyfriend was Venoy Overton.

Detectives said the woman continued, telling them she had specific instructions on how much to charge, and what acts to perform. She said she gave some of the money she earned to Overton.

Come on, dude.

I mean, really?

You just graduated! You are still dealing with the accusations from back in January that you raped two 16 year old girls! If you have forgotten, Overton was never charged with rape, instead he plead out to a charge of supplying alcohol to minors; a charge he wouldn't have had to face if he was able to keep himself out of trouble for a year.

And now this.

I wonder if it is too late for the prosecutor's to hit him with that rape charge again.

UPDATE: Lorenzo Romar has released a statement on Overton: "I have been informed of the arrest of Venoy Overton and I am extremely disappointed. My staff and I spent an extraordinary amount of time and energy attempting to mentor Venoy prior to his recent graduation, so this news is especially troubling."
Continue reading...

NBA Draft Profiles: Isaiah Thomas, Washington

Bjorn Zetterberg of SwishScout.com will be helping us out with all of our NBA Draft Profiles this year. You can follow him on twitter @swishscout.

To browse through the latest prospect profiles, click here. To see a complete list of the players we have profiled, click here.

Stats: 16.8 ppg, 6.1 apg, 3.0 t/o's, 34.9% 3PT

Age: 22, junior

Size:

• Listed: 5'10", 190 lb
• Official: 5'9" (no shoes), 5'10.5" (with shoes), 6'1.5" (wingspan), 7'8.5" (reach), 187 lb

Strengths: Thomas has what I like to call football player athleticism -- he's quick, he's explosive, he's strong, and he knows how to use that quickness, that strength, and that explosion. He's got a nice, tight handle and excels at using his dribble to get into the paint and create. In the lane, Thomas has the body control and the compact build to bounce off of defenders, as well as the finesse game to score inside with a series of floaters and layups. As his junior season progressed, Thomas developed into a very, very dangerous player in the pick-and-roll. He's not a great shooter -- either off of the catch or the dribble -- but he has a bit of a reputation for hitting some clutch shots. The biggest factor (which we will get into in a bit) is that Thomas showed the ability to play the point after Abdul Gaddy went down with a torn acl.

Weaknesses: He's tiny. He's 5'10" on a good day, and it just is not easy to make a career out of this sport at that height. It doesn't help that Thomas is at his best when he has the ball in his hands and he is creating. Is he quick enough to get by NBA point guards that have six inches on him? Can he finish in the paint when every team has two guys pushing seven feet with length and hops defending the rim? Can he become a consistent enough three point shooter to make himself a real threat? At 6'2", Thomas is a serious point guard prospect. With a skill set like Ty Lawson's, Thomas is a first-round lock. But shot-first, 5'10" combo-guards aren't exactly what NBA GM's are looking for.

Comparisons:

• Best Case Scenario: Nate Robinson. The obvious comparison, given both went to UW, are sub-six foot, have crazy athleticism, and appear to be natural scorers. Robinson is a spark of energy off the bench in the NBA and can bring instant scoring, which Thomas is easily capable of doing with his talents-and even demonstrated a nice passing dimension this past season. If Thomas can continue to develop his point guard game, JJ Barea may be an even better comparison. Barea was a big-time scorer in college that has become a sparkplug and a back up to Jason Kidd in Dallas.


• Worst Case Scenario: Pooh Jeter. One of the more underrated players in the league, Jeter killed it in the NBDL but got shafted most of his professional career because of his size. Great quickness and natural scorer who’s finally getting a shot with the Kings, and making the most of it. Similar type scenario might strike if Thomas doesn’t make an impact off the bat in his career, but not a bad 'worst case scenario' at all.

Outlook: There is, simply put, one single issue that will determine whether or not Thomas becomes an NBA player -- was this past season a fluke? Washington's starting point guard Abdul Gaddy went down with a season ending knee injury early in Pac-10 play, forcing Thomas -- who, up until that point in his career, has been considered an off-guard -- into the role of primary point guard. And he flourished. He finished the season averaging 6.1 apg, a number that was bumped to 7.2 apg in the last 22 games of the season. Thomas proved to be sensational in the pick-and-roll, whether he was attacking with the dribble or setting up a teammate. If he can become that kind of instant-offense spark off the bench, someone will find a spot for him. But if he can't embrace playing the role of back-up point-guard, Thomas won't be long for the NBA.

Draft Range: Mid-to-late 2nd Round.

And the experts say...

• Chad Ford: "Thomas remains an enigma to me. He is one of the smallest players in the draft -- which is normally a really bad sign (he measured 5-foot-9 in socks, and even that seems tall for him). But he's built like a linebacker, is an explosive athlete (he measured a 39.5-inch vertical in New Jersey) and is very tough physically. I was really impressed, in 3-on-3 action, with his ability to finish in traffic. He can take a lot of contact and still get the ball in the hoop, a la Derrick Rose. He also proved this season that, unlike Nate Robinson, he has some legitimate point guard skills. He made a number of good reads in the competitive 3-on-3 games I saw, and he played very unselfishly."


• Draft Express: "Looking at his point guard abilities, Thomas has matured substantially since we last profiled him, showing much better instincts and outstanding court vision. This 180 degree change in production and mentality as a playmaker makes all the difference in evaluating his draft stock, as it was nearly impossible to envision him making it in the NBA as a 5-9 shoot-first combo guard."


• Swish Scout: “Natural scoring guard with a compact build, explosive athleticism, and playmaking ability with the ball in his hands. While Thomas was a clutch shooter who flashed some nice potential to play the PG position, he’s very undersized for a guard and a 'shoot first' player, but could have a similar type NBA career as his fellow UW predecessor Nate Robinson."

Highlights:


Continue reading...

So maybe Venoy Overton didn't commit that sexual assault...

I think we all owe Venoy Overton an apology.

If you remember, back in January, news broke that a member of the Washington basketball team was being accused of sexual assault by a 16 year old girl he met on Facebook. Eventually, the news leaked that the anonymous basketball player was then-23 year old Overton.

But nothing ever came of the sexual assault charge. In March, Overton was charged with providing alcohol to a minor and suspended for the Pac-10 Tournament before returning to the team for the NCAA Tournament.


At the time, it appeared as if this was just another example of a prominent athlete living above the law. That, however, may not actually be the case. The Seattle Weekly obtained the police report from the incident and it paints a very different picture. I'm not going to get into the graphic details -- you can read the entire 227 page police report here, as well as a terrific summary of the events -- but based on the interviews with Overton, the other man in the room, the accuser, and the accuser's friend, it appears as if the sexual acts that occurred were consensual. And while its a bit unsettling that the 23 year old Overton would get involved with a 16 year old girl, 16 is the age of consent in Washington.

The issue when prosecuting sexual assault cases is that too often it becomes a case of he-said, she-said. Do you believe the accuser or the man being accused? Do you think the act was consensual or forced? I, like many of the other folks around the country, immediately believed that Overton was guilty. That he seduced, took advantage of, and sexually assaulted a 16 year old girl.

But after reading that police report, I'm not sure. It doesn't sound like Overton deserves to be called a rapist. If we've learned anything from this encounter, its that we should wait until all of the facts are on the table we take shots at a person being accused of such a crime.

There are plenty of men out there that commit sexual assaults, but there are also women out there that are spiteful, bitter, and looking for revenge or ashamed of what they participated and are trying to pin the blame elsewhere. Every time news breaks that someone was falsely accused of sexual assault, it makes it all the more difficult to believe the next allegation.

That is completely unfair to the men and women that are actually dealing with being assaulted.

Complaints are rightfully made when the police cannot or will not charge a person with sexual assault, even when it appears that an assault occurred, because of their fear of being unable to convict on the charge.

And its because of cases like the one involving Overton that police can be hesitant to charge the accused of a crime.
Continue reading...

Don't blame the refs unless you throw some blame at Washington as well

We got exactly what we expected out of North Carolina's 86-83 win over Washington.

Two teams that love to get out and run the floor got out and ran the floor, scoring in bunches in transition on open threes and fast break dunks. There were great passes, there were big-time shots made by big-time players, and there were several moments that you can expect to see on Sportscenter tonight.

It was as entertaining as any game played in this tournament.

But unfortunately, it, too, was stained by some questionable officiating down the stretch.


With 5.0 seconds left, Venoy Overton fired up a prayer from half court. The shot was off target and John Henson tried to catch it. But the ball went through his hands and landed out of bounds. There were still 0.5 seconds left on the clock, but replays showed that there could have been as much as 1.4 seconds remaining.

This is when it gets ugly.

The referees didn't appear to go back and check the monitor to see if the time was correct, something they are allowed to do and have done roughly 6,934 times this month by my estimate. In his postgame interview on CBS, however, Lorenzo Romar said that he asked the refs to check the time and that they said they already had. That means one of three things -- either Romar is lying, the refs are lying, or the refs simply blew the call.

None of those three outcomes are ideal.

But the truth is actually irrelevant.

Because if Washington had executed down the stretch, the game wouldn't have come down to the call of an official.

With two minutes left, after a 13-4 UNC run left Washington down 82-78, freshman Terrence Ross -- who scored 19 points in the game -- was ripped in the open floor by Harrison Barnes which led to a layup from Dexter Strickland. Two possessions later, Ross missed another ill-advised shot in the lane.

After Scott Suggs hit a three to cut the lead to 84-83, Kendall Marshall missed the front end of a one-and-one. The ball ended up in Venoy Overton's hand, and the Husky senior went the length of the floor and shot a difficult, off balance layup instead of giving the ball up. On the ensuing inbounds play with 7.4 seconds left, Justin Holiday had his pass deflected by John Henson. Strickland would hit two free throws at the other end.

UNC called a timeout, and the play that Romar drew up put the ball in Overton's hands. Overton took three dribbles and fired up a 45 footer from the sideline with a good three seconds still on the clock. It looked like he was trying to draw a foul.

On Washington's two most important possessions of the game, the ball was not put into Isaiah Thomas' hands, which is a mind-boggling decision.

Thomas is your best creator. He's your best scorer. He's the guy that isn't afraid to take and make the big shot, and he proved it exactly eight days ago when he won the Pac-10 Tournament with a buzzer-beating jumper against Arizona.

Overton is a defensive specialist.

That kind of decision making is what has plagued Washington the past couple of seasons. This is a team with as much raw talent as anyone in the country. Their decision making, late-game execution, and coaching has been what is missing.

I like Lorenzo Romar a lot.

But its tough not to question whether this program has a ceiling with him at the helm.
Continue reading...

Washington beat Arizona in overtime at the buzzer, Gus Johnson on the call

I'll update this post when I get the chance (I'm at the Garden for this UConn-Louisville game), but I had to get this up as soon as I could.

Gus Johnson was on the call tonight as Washington played Arizona. The game went into overtime when Washington hit three threes in the final minute. The in overtime, Arizona tied the game at 75 with 20 seconds left, setting up a call you will no doubt hear over and over again.



Gus Jeezy. "COLD. BLOODED."

(h/t TBL and Jose3030)
Continue reading...

USC and Washington set up an interesting game Saturday

USC swept the Arizona schools at home this weekend, thanks in very large part to the play of Nikola Vucevic inside. The Trojan big man averaged 22.5 ppg and 11.0 rpg for the week. That's impressive, especially when you consider he went for 25 points and 12 boards while holding Derrick Williams to all of eight points on Thursday night.

Washington's weekend was a bit more disappointing. The Huskies got smoked at home by rival Washington State, putting them into a bit of a troubling situation. They are now 10-6 in the Pac-10 and two games off of the pace for the Pac-10 lead while their road struggles have now spread to their home court.

It sets up an interesting situation next Saturday when USC visits Washington in the regular season finale.


Not a lot of mention has been made about USC as a potential tournament team. Rightfully so. They are 17-12 on the season with an RPI of 80. At best, they will finish at 11-7 in the Pac-10, which includes three losses to the Oregon schools. But they also own wins over Texas, Tennessee, UCLA, and now Arizona. And while the Trojans also lost to Bradley, Rider, and TCU, those losses all came prior to Jio Fontan joining the team. Not quite as bad as you thought, is it?

Now, Washington is on the other end of that spectrum. Despite being ranked in the top 25 for much of the season, this Washington team will be in serious trouble if they lose out this weekend. Their RPI is 43rd, but they have half the number of top 50 wins that USC does (just UCLA and Arizona) and the same number of ugly losses, dropping games at Stanford and both of the Oregon schools.

Imagine this scenario -- USC wins at Washington State on Thursday while Washington loses to UCLA. Both the Huskies and the Trojans would be heading into their showdown on Saturday with a 10-7 record in league play. If USC wins, they finish a game in front of Washington in the Pac-10 standings, having beaten the Huskies to cap off a six game winning streak to end the season, with more than double to number of top 50 wins on their resume.

That would be an interesting situation, wouldn't it?

How much credit do you give to the end of the season, when Washington lost four of five? How much do you factor in the addition of Fontan? Or the loss of Abdul Gaddy?

When you also consider that Arizona just blew a two game lead in the conference standings in the span of three days, tying them with UCLA for first, I think its safe to say we are headed to a wild finish in Pac-10 play.
Continue reading...

Arizona knocks off Washington thanks to the block of the year

With one ferocious block, Derrick Williams simultaneously put Arizona into a commanding position atop the Pac-10 standings while casting a shadow of doubt on Washington's tournament resume.

Arizona was up as much as twelve points in the second half, but Isaiah Thomas (12 points, nine assists, two turnovers) and Matthew Bryan-Amaning (26 points, nine rebounds, six blocks, four assists, three steals) led the Huskies all the way back. After Solomon Hill scored to give Arizona the lead back with 22 seconds left, Bryan-Amaning traveled with three seconds left. But Arizona gave Washington the ball right back when Hill threw an inbounds pass off of Momo Jones' foot.

Washington got the ball back with 2.2 seconds left, but Darnell Gant's seemingly open layup was thrown into the student section by Williams with 0.2 seconds left and Arizona escaped with an 87-86 win.


Williams finished with 26 points, 11 boards, and two blocks. He hit threes, he scored in the post, and he penetrated from the perimeter all the way to the rim. He did everything you could ask for from a combo-forward, and had people like Chad Ford tweeting that the sophomore could end up going as high as No. 1 in this June's draft.

That's a helluva night.

With the win, Arizona move three games ahead of Washington and remained a game in front of UCLA in the Pac-10 standings with a trip left to Pauley Pavilion. The Wildcats can all but assure themselves a Pac-10 regular season title by winning that game next weekend.

As far as Washington is concerned, they are in bigger trouble in regards to the bubble than you think. The Huskies are now in third place in the Pac-10 (if you want an idea of what the Pac-10 is like this season, Oregon is sitting directly behind Washington in the league standings) and just 18-8 on the season. They have only two top 80 wins and two losses to sub-100 teams. They've also lost four of their last five road games, with the one win coming at Arizona State.

The Huskies close out their season with three straight home games, including against UCLA. They would be wise to win all three.
Continue reading...

POSTERIZED: Terrence Ross cleans up

I'm not sure what this dunk qualifies as. At first glance it looked like a tip-dunk. But upon second inspection it appears as though M.B.A (Matthew Bryan-Amaning) air-balls his shot, which would make Ross' dunk considered an alley-oop.

Either way, it's a pretty nice slam.

Take a gander:



It's nice to see a young buck get after the ball like that.

But was it as good as one of these?:

POSTERIZED - Justin Tubbs, East Tennessee State
POSTERIZED - Harrison Barnes, North Carolina
POSTERIZED - Andre Roberson, Colorado
POSTERIZED - Durrell Summers, Michigan State
POSTERIZED - Phillip McDonald, New Mexico
POSTERIZED - Kyle Kuric, Louisville
POSTERIZED - Anthony Nelson, Niagara
POSTERIZED - Cory Joseph, Texas
POSTERIZED - Will Sheehey, Indiana
POSTERIZED - Tom Pritchard, Indiana
POSTERIZED - Shay Shine, High Point
POSTERIZED - John Holland, Boston
POSTERIZED - Keith Gabriel, VMI
POSTERIZED - Travis McKie, Wake Forest
POSTERIZED - Jefferson Mason, Minnesota State (D-II)
POSTERIZED - Tyler Johnson, Fresno State
POSTERIZED - Justin Williams, UNC-Ashville
POSTERIZED - Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Hollis Thompson, Georgetown
POSTERIZED - Darnell Wilks, Cincinnati
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette
POSTERIZED - Darrius Garrett, Richmond
POSTERIZED - Travis Cohn, Jacksonville
POSTERIZED - Ramon Galloway, South Carolina
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Justin Tubbs, East Tennessee State
POSTERIZED - John Williams, UNC-Ashville
POSTERIZED - Kevin Smith, Richmond
POSTERIZED - Mitchell Watt, Buffalo
POSTERIZED - Chandler Parsons, Florida
POSTERIZED - Kenny Gabriel, Auburn
POSTERIZED - Paris Horne, St. John's
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Laurence Bowers, Missouri
POSTERIZED - Drew Gordon, New Mexico
POSTERIZED - Tony Mitchell, Alabama
POSTERIZED - Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt
POSTERIZED - LaMarcus Reed, UT-Arlington
POSTERIZED - Marcus Morris, Kansas
POSTERIZED - Jared Cunningham, Oregon State
POSTERIZED - Langston Morris-Walker
POSTERIZED - Chris Wright and Juwan Staten, Dayton
POSTERIZED - D.J Stephens, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Reeves Nelson, UCLA
POSTERIZED - Kendall Marshall and John Henson, UNC
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Joe Jackson, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Shay Shine, High Point
POSTERIZED - Harrison Barnes, North Carolina
POSTERIZED - Kent Bazemore, Old Dominion
POSTERIZED - CJ Fair, Syracuse
POSTERIZED - LeBryan Nash
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Marcus Jordan, Central Florida
POSTERIZED - Lorenzo Brown, NC State
POSTERIZED - Tai Wesley, Utah State
POSTERIZED - Trent Lockett, Arizona State, and Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Brandon Paul, Illinois
POSTERIZED - Jordan Hamilton, Texas
Continue reading...

Is Washington on the bubble?

Washington has now lost three straight games in the Pac-10.

All three of those games have come on the road. Washington also lost earlier in the season to Stanford on the road, has a loss at Texas A&M, and lost two games in Maui to Kentucky and Michigan State.

They are now in third place in a mediocre Pac-10 and two full games behind Arizona.

That will make it tough for the Huskies to win the Pac-10 regular season title outright, but conference standings mean nothing in regards to the NCAA Tournament. Talent-wise, Washington would be a shoo-in for an at-large. But talent doesn't equal wins, and right now, the question needs to be asked -- is Washington on the bubble?

Their RPI before today's 81-76 loss at Oregon was 32. That is going to drop with a loss to the 143rd ranked team in the country. In fact, Washington now has three losses to teams ranked outside the RPI top 140, including Oregon State, who is sitting pretty at 220th. They do have five top 100 wins, but only two -- Arizona (18th) and UCLA (44th) -- came against the top 50.

So I ask you this -- can Washington feel safe?

Top 40 RPI, one borderline marquee win, four good wins, and three terrible losses?

The Huskies better get this turned around soon.
Continue reading...

1/24 - College Hoops Week in Review: Buzzer Beaters galore

Game of the Week: UConn 61, Villanova 59

This week was rife with buzzer beaters, but perhaps the most significant one came from UConn's all-everything point guard Kemba Walker. Villanova's Corey Fisher had tied the game at 59 with 22 seconds left on the clock, and after a UConn timeout, Walker sent the Wildcats back to Philly with a loss thanks to this shot:



Villanova looked like they were pulling away when an Antonio Pena jumper pushed the Wildcat lead to 45-48 at the nine minute mark, but UConn came back. It was a 14-3 run, sparked on the defensive end and capped by a Jeremy Lamb layup with just over three minutes left, that got the Huskies back in the lead. They were up 59-54 with 48 seconds left after two Walker free throws, but Corey Fisher scored five straight points to tie the game and set up the final possession.

Memphis and Indiana State's exciting weeks: Like I said, there were numerous significant buzzer beaters this week -- JaJuan Johnson and Brian Williams can attest to that -- but the games that Indiana State and Memphis played probably resulted in the most chewed finger nails per fan of any program in the country this week.

Indiana State: For the Sycamores, it started with a Tuesday night visit from conference-leading Missouri State. It was a back and forth contest for 40 minutes, but with 4.9 seconds left on the clock, Indiana State had the ball down 69-67. It was inbounded to Jake Kelly, who has battled injuries the past two seasons, and he drove and scored with 0.6 seconds left. Kelly also drew a foul and calmly knocked down the free throw for the 70-69 win:



And that might not have been their wildest game of the week. On Saturday, the Sycamores went into Charles Koch Arena to take on Wichita State, who was a game behind both Missouri State and Indiana State for first in the MVC standings. ISU over came a 10 point second half deficit to take a two point left, but JT Durley tied the game with seven seconds left to force OT. In the first OT, ISU was down eight points, but managed to force a second overtime on a Kelly layup with 24.5 seconds left. Toure' Murry forced the third overtime with a free throw with 8.8 seconds left. In the final OT, a Ben Smith three game WSU a 84-83 lead, and the Shockers would score the next nine points to win 93-83 in triple OT.



Memphis: The Tigers had their own wild week. Still playing without Wesley Witherspoon (one game he was suspended, the other he was injured), the Tigers went 2-0 this week with a couple of fantastic finishes. On Wednesday night, Memphis dug themselves an 18 point hole against Southern Miss. The Tigers fought their way back into the game, and even took a 71-66 lead at one point. The Golden Eagles responded with an 8-2 run, setting up this ending:



Against UAB on Saturday, the Tigers pulled out an exciting overtime game that had a wild last two minutes of regulation. UAB took a 64-62 lead with 1:55 left, but a Tarik Black three point play gave Memphis the lead back. Jamarr Sanders answered with a strong drive and finish, but Will Barton buried a three with 55 seconds left as the Tigers went ahead 68-66. After UAB tied the game up, Barton banked in an off-balance thirty-footer, but he was called for a travel before he got the shot off. In the OT, Memphis didn't allow UAB to score until there were 37 seconds left, but some horrific free throw shooting down the stretch allowed the Blazers two shots to tie on their final possession:



Four OT Madness -- Utah Valley outlasts North Dakota: This one was wild.


Players of the Week: Isaiah Thomas and Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Washington

The Huskies have long been considered the favorite to win the Pac-10, but this week they erased any doubt that their slip-up at Stanford created. U-Dub took care of Arizona and Arizona State at home this week, largely due to the play of these two young men. Thomas has been the best point guard in the country in the month of January. He's averaging 20.2 ppg, 9.2 apg, and 4.2 rpg while gathering 11 steals and posting an assist-to-turnovers ratio of 3:1. That time frame also happens to coincide with the loss of Abdul Gaddy to an acl injury. Thomas has always been a streaky player, but his talent has never really been questioned. Maybe the move to the point and more time with the ball in his hands is what he needed to jump start his season. For the week, he averaged 20.5 ppg, 9.0 apg, and 6.0 rpg.


MBA has developed into a monster in the paint, and showed why this week. Against Arizona and Derrick Williams, he had 18 points, seven boards, and three blocks, and while Williams outplayed him on the stat sheet -- 22 points, 11 boards -- the fact that MBA was able to get Arizona's all-american into foul trouble down the stretch was a big reason Washington pulled away late. On Saturday against Arizona State, MBA had a career-high 30 points and was, again, instrumental in the Huskie's late surge to hold on for the win.

Both MBA and Thomas are not only both playing as well as they have all season, but they seem to have developed a nice connection on the court. Thomas is looking for MBA when he drives, and MBA is getting open and finishing the passes he receives. The more I watch Washington, the more I believe this is a team capable of making a deep tournament run. With Thomas, MBA, and the bevy of wing players on this Washington roster, Lorenzo Romar has plenty of weapons on this team.

The All-they-were-good-too team:

• G: Kevin Foster, Santa Clara: The Broncs had a terrific week, beating both Gonzaga and Portland, but Foster was the star. He had 36 points and six assists against the Zags, following that up with 19 points in the win over Portland.
  
• G: Jordan Hamilton/J'Covan Brown, Texas: The two Longhorn guards combined to averaged 37.5 ppg as Texas knocked off two top ten teams this week. Brown sparked the comeback against Kansas, while Hamilton's second half put away Texas A&M.
  
• G: Cam Long, George Mason: Long led Mason to a important 2-0 week as the Patriots knocked off both Drexel and James Madison to create some space at the top of the CAA standings. Long had 14 points and seven rebounds in the win against Drexel, but it was the 30 points, five assists, and four boards he had against JMU that got him on this team. He did it on 8-9 shooting from the floor, including 4-4 from three.
  
• F: Justin Harper, Richmond: Its about time you start paying attention to this kid. An athletic, 6'10" power forward that shoots 50% from three? He's averaging 18.2 ppg and 6.7 rpg on the season, 25.5 ppg and 7.4 rpg with 11 blocks over the last five, and went had 51 points and 18 boards in two wins this week against George Washington and UMass, who entered the week a combined 6-1 in the A-10.
  
• C: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State: Sullinger was an absolute monster against Illinois on Saturday. He had 27 points, 16 boards, and three blocks, and almost single-handedly got the Illini's entire front line in foul trouble.
  
• Bench: Jimmer Fredette, BYU (42 points at Colorado State); Josh Gasser, Wisconsin (1o points, 12 boards, 10 assists vs. Northwestern); Ben Hansbrough (averaged 20.5 ppg and 5.5 apg in wins over Cincy and Marquette); Kore White, Florida Atlantic (22 points and 11 boards as FAU moved to 7-0 in the Sun Belt); Lazeric Jones, UCLA (205 ppg in 2-0 week); Tu Holloway, Xavier (21.5 ppg, 5.0 apg, four steals in wins over St. Bonaventure and Temple)
  

Team of the Week: Texas Longhorns

The Longhorns firmly entrenched themselves in the debate for the best team in the Big XII, and as a Final Four favorite, with their two wins over top ten opponents this week. On Wednesday, the 'Horns hosted Texas A&M and blew them out of the water, opening up an early 20-5 lead and never seriously getting challenged after that. Then on Saturday, Texas went into Phog Allen Fieldhouse, a place that Kansas had not lost in 69 games, and came back from 15 down in the first half to beat the Jayhawks.


What makes Texas so good this season is their defense. Jordan Hamilton and J'Covan Brown are not exactly elite defenders just yet, but they are much improved over last season. Cory Joseph is long for a point guard and not afraid to get out and pressure on the perimeter, while Dogus Balbay is one of the best on the ball defenders in the country. Combine that with big guys like Tristan Thomspon and Alexis Wangmene to protect the rim and Gary Johnson to clean up the misses, and Rick Barnes crew has settled into a nice defensive rhythm. More important, however, is that this season, in stark contrast to last year, everyone on this Texas team has a clearly defined role. The fact that their best offensive lineup is able to lock up defensively is another big change from last season. Believe it. These 'Horns are for real.

Who had a good week:

• UConn Huskies: The Huskies beat both Villanova and Tennessee this week at home in close games. The wins were nice, but more importantly the Huskies role players are playing great basketball right now. Alex Oriakhi seems to have worked through his midseason slump. Jeremy Lamb sparked the comeback against Villanova and had a career high 16 points against Tennessee. Roscoe Smith and Shabazz Napier can make plays on both ends of the floor. Kemba Walker did not play great this week, but with defenses focusing on slowing him down, UConn's role players have been what is keeping the Huskies in the top 10.

• Washington: I've already talked plenty about these Huskies in this post, so I'll only add this -- the past few seasons Washington has struggled on the road. Six of their next eight games are roadies, including trips to Pullman for Wazzu and Tucson for Arizona. Win those, and maybe the pollsters will start agreeing with Kenpom.
• George Mason, Hofstra, and VCU: There doesn't appear to be one great team in the CAA this season, but the top of this league is tough and balanced. These three teams look like they are starting to separate themselves from the pack. Hofstra, who rode Charles Jenkins to wins over UNC-Wilmington and William & Mary, and VCU, who knocked off Georgia State before going into Richmond to beat Old Dominion, are tied atop the league at 7-1 while GMU picked up wins against Drexel and James Madison to find themselves alone just one game back.
• Xavier Musketeers: Once again, Xavier seems like they are primed to prove the doubters wrong. After a ho-hum non-conference schedule, the Muskies have won their first five games in A-10 play, capped by an 88-77 victory over Temple on Saturday. Don't write off their win at St. Bonaventure, either. The Bonnies are improved this season, and Xavier fought back from an early double digit deficit.
• Memphis Tigers: As we mentioned earlier, the Tigers picked up two huge wins this week, beating C-USA contenders Southern Miss and UAB in exciting fashion on the road without Wesley Witherspoon. Memphis has now won three games in a row, and they are finally starting to look like the team we all expected in the preseason. Memphis is young, but they now appear to be playing not only with effort and intensity, but with more smarts. There have been fewer bad shots and much more defense the last three games.
  

Who struggled this week:

• Seton Hall Pirates: It would have been one of the great storylines of the season if Seton Hall was able to turn things around with Jeremy Hazell's return, but an 0-2 week -- including a loss to Rutgers -- means SHU has now lost eight of ten overall and six of seven in Big East play.
• Colorado Buffaloes: So much for this team being a sleeper in the Big XII. After impressive wins over Kansas State and Missouri, Colorado proceeded to lose to Nebraska and Oklahoma this week.
• Gonzaga Bulldogs: The Zags lost to both Santa Clara and San Francisco this week, dropping them to 3-2 in the conference and setting up an enormous game against St. Mary's on Thursday. If they lose that one, the Zag's stranglehold on the WCC may officially be over.
• Northwestern Wildcats: Northwestern desperately needed to pick up a win against Wisconsin at home on Sunday if they truly wanted to be considered a threat for an at-large bid. Instead, they lost by 32 points.
  
• The MWC: The talk of the MWC in the preseason was that the league had the potential to earn four -- maybe even five -- bids to the NCAA Tournament this season. They may be lucky to get three this year. UNLV got blitzed by Colorado State. The Rams proceeded to lose to BYU at home -- a win they needed if they wanted a real shot at an at-large bid -- while UNLV picked up an ugly win against New Mexico. The Lobos are in real trouble, as they are now just 1-4 in conference play and have lost six of nine. Is Drew Gordon a chemistry killer? The Lobos are just 5-6 since he got eligible.
• St. John's Red Storm: Like Seton Hall, the Johnnies had a chance at being one of the great stories of college hoops this season, but after starting off 3-0 in Big East play, they have now lost four of five. Getting smacked by 25 at Louisville was bad, but losing at home to fellow bubble-dweller Cincinnati at home might have been worse.
• Morehead State: With Austin Peay and Murray State losing a couple of games this week, Morehead had a chance to swoop in an climb their way up the OVC's standings. Instead, they lost their second straight game, this time to Eartern Kentucky, to fall to 5-4 in league play.
  

Matchups of the Week:

• 1/24 - 7:00 pm: Notre Dame @ Pitt
• 1/25 - 9:00 pm: Purdue @ Ohio State
• 1/26 - 10:00 pm: SDSU @ BYU
• 1/27 - 7:00 pm: Hofstra @ VCU
  
• 1/27 - 11:00 pm: St. Mary's @ Gonzaga
• 1/29 - 12:00 pm: Georgetown @ Villanova
• 1/29 - 12:00 pm: Louisville @ UConn
• 1/29 - 12:00 pm: Xavier @ Richmond
  
• 1/29 - 1:00 pm: Minnesota @ Purdue
• 1/29 - 7:00 pm: Kansas State @ Kansas
• 1/29 - 9:00 pm: Missouri @ Texas
  

Continue reading...