Conference Catch-ups: The Big Ten

Over the course of this week, we will spend a few minutes catching you up on how some of the best conferences in the country currently look. With conference play starting up, its time to get into the basketball spirit.

You can find the rest of the Conference Catch-ups here.

Favorite: Ohio State

This pick will be as much of a consensus as any league in country with one, absolutely crucial technicality: Jared Sullinger stays healthy. I love Aaron Craft and his ability to control a game without being a scorer. William Buford may be the best wing in the country. DeShaun Thomas can score with the best of them. Hell, even Lenzelle Smith and Evan Ravenel have been impressive at times this season. But without a healthy Jared Sullinger, Ohio State is a different team. His is the single most dominant force in the paint in the country, and his presence makes it so much easier for his teammates to operate.

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The Emery Board: Featuring Chane Benhanan

This weekly column is in honor of BYU's Jackson Emery, who, for two straight seasons, claimed his squad would go undefeated and win the National Championship. Unfortunate for Jackson, his statements never really panned out. In 2009-2010, BYU went 30-6 and lost to Kansas State in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. In 2010-2011, they finished 32-5, and lost to Florida in the Sweet-16. So, in those two years, BYU lost 11 games compared to Emery's projected total of zero, won zero National Championships, and in fact, didn't even win the the Mountain West Conference Tournament.

We were going to put the Emery Board to sleep this season. But thanks to Louisville freshman Chane Behanhan, this post has been giving new life.

If you remember correctly, about a week ago, the freshman forward stated that the Cardinals would not lose a single game this season, and that his team is the best in the country.

College basketball has not seen a team go undefeated since Bobby Knight's Indiana Hoosiers went 32-0 in 1975-1976. The closest we have seen since then was a Jameer Nelson-led St. Joseph's team that went 27-0 in the 2003-2004 season before losing to Xavier in the Atlantic-10 tournament. Every season a team flirts with the notion of an undefeated season, but every season that notion slowly fades as January turns to February and February turns to March.

The Emery Board: 5th Edition
Marquette dropped off the Emery Board thanks to a shaky performance at LSU. Louisville barely made it through the week undefeated, as they were given stern tests from Charleston and Western Kentucky. As conference play heats up, the Emery Board will get smaller and smaller. This week is loaded with a couple of very important games featuring undefeated teams. Will any of them suffer from the post-Holiday hangover?

No.1 Syracuse (13-0)
Next game: 12/28 vs. Seton Hall (11-1)
First realistic loss: 12/28 vs. Seton Hall (11-1)

Syracuse continues to play steady ball, easily handling Bucknell and Tulane this past week. Their game against Seton Hall should be a dandy. The Pirates have played much better than anybody expected, and have been flying way below the radar. The match-up between Herb Pope and whoever the Orange throw at him will be very interesting. I can see Fab Melo, James Southerland and Rakeem Christmas all taking shots at Pope, but I'm not sure which of the group will be able to shut him down. That being said, the Pirates don't have nearly as many weapons as the Orange, so conventional wisdom suggests that the 'Cuse should win. But this is a Big East game, so you never know what may happen.



No.4 Louisville (10-0)
Next game: 12/28 vs. No.12 Georgetown (10-1)
First realistic loss: 12/28 vs. No.12 Georgetown (10-1)

If anybody on Louisville going to make a bonehead statement, it makes sense that it was the freshman Benhanan. After all, he has yet to play a single Big East conference game. And wouldn't you know, the Cardinals get a top-15 opponent in their first conference game of the year. See Chane, this is what the Big East is like, and if your team struggled with Charleston and Western Kentucky, Georgetown might be the team to make you eat your words. But lets say Louisville does beat Georgetown, which they more then capable of doing, they get No.3 Kentucky on New Year's Ever in the only rivalry game in the country as tumultuous as the Crosstown Shootout. With what we saw from Louisville last week, I just can't put a lot of faith in them to enter the New Year with a "goose egg" in the loss column.



No.6 Baylor (12-0)
Next game: 12/28 vs. No.14 Mississippi State (12-1)
First realistic loss: 12/28 vs. No.14 Mississippi State (12-1)

The Bears are in the toughest portion of their non-conference schedule. They haven't looked uber-dominant, but they were able to beat a game BYU team in Provo, and beat Saint Mary's and West Virginia on a neutral court. Now comes their toughest test of the season: No.14 Mississippi State. The Bulldogs feature a front-court with enough size to give the bears some struggles, and back-court play could be the difference-maker in this game. If Pierre Jackson can come up large, as he did against BYU (game-clinching block) and WVU (game-winning shot), the Bears should squeak by with a victory.



No.8 Missouri (12-0)
Next game: 12/30 at Old Dominion (6-6)
First realistic loss: 12/30 at Old Dominion (6-6)

Realistically, Missouri should run through Old Dominion on New Year's Eve. But Blaine Taylor's squad is seasoned and tested. The Monarchs aren't nearly as good as they were two years ago, but this setting has all the makings of a trap game. The Tigers just defeated their "Border War" rivals Illinois last week, they had the holiday weekend off, and they start Big-XII play next week. If there was ever a time to catch Mizzou sleeping, it would be now. But let's say Missouri wins, which I expect them to do. It's possible that the Tigers are the last undefeated team standing. They start Big-XII play against Oklahoma, Kansas State, Iowa State and Texas. While that's not exactly an easy start, it's not a murder's row either. This team has showed very few weaknesses thus far, and I could totally see the Tigers being undefeated heading in to their 12/21 showdown with Baylor in Waco.



No.13 Indiana (12-0)
Next game: 12/28 at No.17 Michigan State (11-2)
First realistic loss: 12/28 at No.17 Michigan State (11-2)

The Hoosier's had cupcakes for Christmas, as they faced Howard (4-9) and UMBC (1-10). Indiana waxed the east coast teams by a combined score of 196-97. But the non-conference schedule is over, and the Hoosiers begin Big-Ten play with a murder's row: at No.17 Michigan State, No.2 Ohio State on New Year's Eve, and No.16 Michigan. The Hoosiers have been a pleasant surprise thus far, but I'm 100% confident that they will lose one of their next three games.



No.22 Murray State (13-0)
Next game: 12/30 at Eastern Illinois (6-5)
First realistic loss: 12/30 at Eastern Illinois (6-5)

So here we are. Murray State has finished their non-conference schedule and still has not been defeated, they are clearly the best team in the Ohio Valley Conference and will be the favorites in every game they play. But, like I said last week, they will be getting the best shot from every team they play. They will get more TV coverage, more publicity, more everything. I think Murray State will lose a game this year. In fact, I'm nearly sure of it. But I have exactly no idea which game it will be.



Bottom of the Barrel


Run The Floor did a good job breaking down the teams that have yet to notch a victory this year. I suggest you give their site a good-read, but not before you read our stuff first.


Binghamton (0-10)
Next game: 12/28 at Canisius (2-9)
First real chance to win: 12/28 at Canisius (2-9)

Chicago State (0-13)
Next game: 12/31 at Ball State (6-4)
First real chance to win: 1/15 vs. St. Francis (Ill) (Non-DI)

Grambling State (0-9)
Next game: 12/29 at LSU (9-3)
First real chance to win: 1/3 vs. Alabama State (2-9)

Hartford (0-11)
Next game: 12/31 at LaSalle (8-4)
First real chance to win: 1/15 at Binghamton (0-10)

Northern Illinois (0-11)
Next game: 1/2 vs. Roosevelt (Non-DI)
First real chance to win: 1/2 vs. Roosevelt (Non-DI)

Towson (0-12)
Next game: 12/30 vs. No.24 Virginia (10-1)
First real chance to win: 1/2 vs. Northeastern (3-7)

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Conference Catch-ups: The Big East

Over the course of this week, we will spend a few minutes catching you up on how some of the best conferences in the country currently look. With conference play starting up, its time to get into the basketball spirit.

You can find the rest of the Conference Catch-ups here.

Favorite: Syracuse

There is a reason that the Orange are currently sitting at the top of both national polls right now. Heading into Big East play, this group is still undefeated and has as deep of a roster as we have seen in Upstate NY in a long time. Their back court is absolutely lethal with Dion Waiters coming off the bench behind Scoop Jardine and Brandon Triche. Their front court is loaded with size and versatility. If this team can stay focused with everything surrounding the allegations against Bernie Fine, Jim Boeheim has a group capable of winning a national title.

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College Hoops Week in Review: Doug McDermott and Kansas State

Player of the Week: Doug McDermott, Creighton

Doug McDermott shouldn't have been a secret coming into the season, but if you didn't know about him back in October you certainly should by now. If the season ended today, he'd be a first-team all-american. Arguing that he should be the National Player of the Year would actually have some merit. In fact, he's been so good as a sophomore that its fair to say that Harrison Barnes played on McDermott's high school team. Not the other way around.

Considering how well McDermott has played this season, its a difficult task taking him into consideration for Player of the Week simply because it takes so much for him to do something that is more than just par for the course. But that is exactly what he did this week. In an overpowering win at Tulsa, McDermott showcased his back-to-the-basket game, scoring 35 points while shooting 16-23 from the floor. The majority of those shots came on post-ups, and McDermott only went to the line once. That should tell you something about how fundamentally sound he is inside.
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Tuesday Morning Dump

Hope everybody had a solid holiday weekend. We are still trying to get out of a food/drink-induced haze, so forgive us if we seem slow today.

_ There was very little movement at the top of the rankings this week, but that could/should all change by this weekend

- Jeff Brozello provides a solid conference reset for the Big East (But sweet god, that head-shot is hideous. Did you photoshop that yourself?)

- Jeff Goodman (whose head-shot looks significantly less photoshop'd) resets us on the Big-Ten Conference and provides an interesting statement about NCAA Tournament potential of the conference as a whole

- It seems like everybody has been going gaga over Iona during the non-conference months. But as John Templon points out, they haven't won the MAAC yet, and their at-large fate isn't exactly crystal clear

- Speaking of the MAAC, don't count out Loyola's chances of threatening Iona's place at atop the conference.

- Pittsburgh's issue this year is that they haven't been playing the stifling, air-tight brand of defense that has become accustomed to Jamie Dixon-coached teams. John Gasaway provides further explanation (Insiders Only)

- Digital Hoops Blast is the only site of it's kind, and should be read as much as possible. There isn't a place on the web that analyzes internet media and college basketball as well as Digital Hoops Blast does

- Mac Irvin, the "Godfather of Chicago Hoops" and founder of the famous "Mac Irvin Fire" AAU program passed away over the weekend

- Hoopniks provides a top-ten list of the best books about college basketball. (Solid list. I'm certainly not a bibliophile, but even I own 3 of the 10 books on here)

- Mike Miller drops some great knowledge on why Long Beach State is more equipped this year to win the Big West tournament than in previous years, when the fell short to UC-Santa Barbara in the finals

- Gary Parrish tells the fans to dial back some of the Josh Pastner-hate. Oh yeah, since it's Tuesday, you also get his Poll Attacks (Always a Tuesday must-read)

- Andy Katz lists the ten teams that impressed him the most this past week

- Curtis Kitchen gives us the five major reasons why Kansas State won the Diamondhead Classic (Note that "Not having to play Xavier" was omitted from this list)

- You probably aren't too familiar with Charlotte freshman Pierria Henry, but luckily for us, Ken Cross does a great job dropping some knowledge about the first-year guards stellar non-conference play

- I certainly did not foresee Cincinnati and Xavier heading in the directions they are in following the Crosstown Brawl

- Florida guard Mike Rosario is doubtful to play in the Gators' match-up with Rutgers, his former school

- A mid-season look at the Big Sky predictions

- I know you all probably don't give a you-know-what about Arkansas-Little Rock or the Sun Belt Conference, but if you were inclined to do so, I'd highly recommend checking out Burn The Horse. Not many low-major schools have fans dedicated enough to create a team-specific-blog. But the good people at B.T.H certainly represent their school well and run a good operation over there

- Your weekly reminder that the Pac-12 is like, really really really really bad this year

- I guess maybe Billy Clyde Gillispie isn't as much of a punk as we all make him out to be

- Don't mess with Dickie-V on Twitter. The Ambassador of College Hoops doesn't take kindly to low-brow trolling


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POSTERIZED: The Torye Pelham 1-2-3

Pelham 123 was a crappy remake of a 40's action movie. Even Denzell Washington and John Travolta couldn't make this train-wreck of a movie watchable.

Luckily, Southern Mississippi's Torye Pelham is no train-wreck. But if you try to get in his way, he'll turn you into one.

Peep the video.



Not one, not two, but three #POSTERIZED dunks from the senior forward.

The Golden Eagles are currently 10-2 and their only losses are to a hot Denver team and the currently undefeated Racers of Murray State. I wouldn't be surprised if we start hearing more about this team as C-USA play picks up. And I wouldn't be surprised if we start seeing more highlight-reel dunks from Pelham if guys keep trying to get in his way.

(H/T @Sam1NEWski)


But was it as good as these?

Keith Gabriel, VMI vs. Old Dominion, 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
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



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POSTERIZED: Keith Gabriel wishes you a merry Dunk-mas

In the interest of political correctness, we will not wish you a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanuka, Happy Kwanzaa, Riotous Ramadan, or Tomeful Tet.

Happy Holidays is all you get.

Well, it's not ALL you get. You also get video of a pretty vicious dunk delivered by VMI's Keith Gabriel.

We've seen Keith Gabriel do this before. It's been awhile since we've seen him go up-up-and-away, but the guy is more than capable to throwing it down with relative ease.



Old Dominion may have won the game, but this nasty poster-dunk is a nice consolation prize.

This entry is a further indicator that B.I.A.H #POSTERIZED is spreading like wild-fire. If you witness a #POSTERIZED-worthy dunk, hit us up and let us know. We'll take care of the rest. (H/T @D3Bill)


But was it as good as these?

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
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
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Christmas Wish List: What Duke wants and needs

For the next five days, Beyond the Arc will detail what some teams need. Hey, we’re in a giving mood.

Mike Krzyzewski already gotten his 903rd win. He's got another Maui Invitational trophy sitting on his mantle. And while his Blue Devils got waxed by Ohio State, they are sitting pretty at 10-1 with a stable of quality wins this season.

So what do you get the coach that's already gotten his gifts?:
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Jarnell Stokes headlines this year's mid-season additions

Every year, we have a group of players that, for whatever reason, are forced to join their team at the midway point of the season.

The cause varies. Some are academically ineligible for the first semester. Others transferred midway through the previous season and cannot suit up until they sit out for a full year. Some players are coming off of injury. Some are international players serving suspensions for games that they have played with professional players.

The most unique mid-season addition this year is Jarnell Stokes.
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B.I.A.H. Presents: Road Trippin' is a Habit

B.I.A.H has grown a lot in the three years it's been in operation. Viewership has gone up, media attention has gone up, and the growing fan support has been tremendous.

Heading in to this season, we wanted to do something big, something that said "we've arrived", something that would test our journalism skills, professionalism and mental toughness.

See, we're from the East Coast, so a good basketball game is never too far away. But America is a big place. It's filled with great college towns and famous arenas that we may never have the opportunity to visit.
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Friday Morning Dump

- Luke Winn's Power Rankings aka the must-read of all must-reads

- Ken Pomeroy provides arguably the most interesting-read of the day, and doesn't even use advanced statistics or anything! He details us on Scobey, Montana. Where's Scobey? Oh, just further away from a D-I arena than any town in the country

- Jeff Eisenberg compiled a list of famous/infamous college hoops holiday videos

- Seton Hall is finally starting to gain some respect. Jeff Goodman explains why the family-style attitude has helped the Pirates get out to a hot start. Is Seton Hall for real? Jeff Eisenberg ponders this thought

- West Virginia's Aaric Murray, who transferred from LaSalle after last season, was arrested for marijuana possession

- Of course Bruce Pearl used a smoking-hot blond to help land a recruit. Man, I wish I was a high-level college recruit. They certainly don't do that for low-major non-revenue sport recruits....

- Mike DeCourcy thinks the basketball-only Big East schools would be foolish to start their own league

- Is it really that hard for Jim Calhoun to talk about scholarship issues to the press? Calhoun got testy with reporters after his team's 79-71 win over Fairfield, and clearly, the press has some issues with Calhoun's staunch defense

- Torian Graham continues to toy with NC-State's emotions. This time, the highly-touted recruit has recommitted to the Wolfpack

- Austin Rivers enjoyed the lockout because it gave him time to spend with his dad, Boston Celtics head coach Doc Rivers

- Jarnell Stokes made his college decision today, and chose Tennessee over schools like Memphis, Florida and Arkansas

- Jeff Brozello provides his updated Freshman of the Year standings

- Jeremy Lundblad provides the stats your need to see

- Rock Chalk Talk takes a look at the most painful NCAA Tournament exits in Kansas history

- Rock Chalk Talk also does a good job of explaining how the quality of Kansas' opponents affects their pace of play

- Erin Andrews is single again? So you're saying there's a chance?


Patric Young blocked this shot with some serious "old-man strength"

(H/T The Mock Session)
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Friday's Shootaround: A busy night in college hoops

No. 15 Georgetown 70, Memphis 59: See here.

No. 8 Missouri 78, No. 24 Illinois 74: Missouri blew a 13 point lead with just 13 minutes left in the game, allowing the Illini to come all the way back and take the lead, but the Tigers had just enough left in the tank to pull out the victory late. Illinois led 70-68 after DJ Richardson hit two free throws at the two minute mark, but the Tigers responded with seven straight points to take control of the game.

Phil Pressey, who wasn't named a Cousy Award finalist, had 18 points and five assists for Mizzou. Joseph Bertrand came off the bench to score 19 points for the Illini -- on 9-9 shooting no less -- and Meyers Leonard added 14 points, 13 boards and five assists. Illinois deserves a ton of credit for the comeback that they made on the road, and while the loss will no doubt sting, they have no reason to hang their head after this one.
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What's plaguing Memphis, and why they needed a two hours team meeting after losing to Georgetown

The final buzzer sounded at just past 9 pm ET as No. 15 Georgetown put the finishing touches on a 70-59 victory over Memphis at the Verizon center, wrapping up what was a crisp, two-hour basketball game.

It wasn't until 10:45 pm, however, that Memphis head coach Josh Pastner finally emerged from his team's locker room in the bowels of the Verizon Center. For the second time in the span of 10 days, the Tigers had a team meeting in an effort to cure what ails them, this one lasting just 15 minutes less than the game itself.

"We just had a team meeting and needed to air a few things out," Memphis head coach Josh Pastner said after the game. "It was the right thing before we got to Christmas break. It was a good open discussion. I love those guys, no one in there is happy to be 6-5. Have we played a tough schedule? Darn right. But we're too good to be sitting at 6-5."
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POSTERIZED: Chris Evans is not to be stopped

I think it's about time we add Kent State's Chris Evans to the list of "Best Dunkers in the Country".

Why?

Well, if you've followed this series at all (which you all should be doing), then you may remember that way back in early-November,  a certain forward for the Golden Flashes getting all kinds of nasty over West Virginia's Gary Browne,.

After that SportCenter "Top Play", some of you probably thought that would be the last time we heard from C-Evans.

You were wrong.

Way wrong.



It's funny. In both of Evans' posterizations this season, the defenders made the decision of trying to go up and thwart Evan's dunk attempt. In both cases, C-Evans made them look like fools.

So, for all you MAC basketball players out there, take note: Do not attempt to stand in the flight path of Chris Evans. It will not be pretty.

And to think, this dunk almost went unnoticed. If you look at the clip again, you'll notice that a) the game is being played at Utah State and b) there are literally no fans there. Let this be your warning. If Chris Evans is playing in a basketball game, let's make sure we provide him a big crowd to dunk in front of.

Oh, and according to Evans' bio on the Kent State athletics page, his favorite food is Chipotle. I think we've found ourselves a winner, folks.

I love me some Chiptole.

(H/T @tvatter1_SID)


But was it as good as these?

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
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





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Thursday's Pregame Beat: Braggin' Rights game highlights a packed schedule

Its a truly great night of hoops, as we get 96 games, including 18 games involving teams ranked in the top 25.

Game of the night: No. 24 Illinois @ No. 8 Missouri

The Braggin' Rights game. Believe it or not, this is as big of a rivalry as either of these two programs have, and tonight we should be a dandy.

The media loves Missouri. They spread the floor, they're putting up huge offensive numbers, they have a bevy of talented shooters and they have the single most media-savvy player in the country in Kim English. That said, they also have a schedule with the strength of a wet paper towel (CVS brand, not even Bounty, the quicker picker-upper). Can Phil Pressey get in the lane at will against a high-major back court? Will Marcus Denmon and Kim English be able to hit threes at such a high-rate with 6'6" wings flying at them instead of 6'1" wings? Can Ricardo Ratliffe and Steve Moore handle holding down the paint against a real front line?
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Christmas Wish List: What does Florida want and need?

For the next five days, Beyond the Arc will detail what some teams need. Hey, we’re in a giving mood.

Billy Donovan has already gotten an early Christmas gift, as Erik Murphy's knee injury wasn't all that serious. He also has plenty of presents (read: rings) from Christmas' past that he can play with if he has too.

But its a new year and a new holiday season, which is why Santa will have no problem taking a peak at what Billy the Kid wants:
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The maturation of Henry Sims

One of college basketball's most well-known cliches goes like this: "The best thing about freshmen? They become sophomores."

The trend of the one-and-done era aside, that cliche generally rings true. The biggest jump that a college player makes is usually during his sophomore season. The reasons why it happens vary -- he spent the entire summer in the weight room, he finally got a feel for the system, he spent the offseason working on his weaknesses -- but the results rarely lie. In situations where playing time and a clogged depth chart come into play, you'll sometimes see that breakout postponed until a player's junior season.

What's rare, however, is to see a kid become a star after spending three seasons as a role player.
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Thursday's Shootaround: UNC rolls

No. 6 UNC 82, Texas 63: Texas barely had a chance to get their legs under them before the Tar Heels put this thing away. UNC used a 13-1 run midway through the first half to break the game open and never looked back. Myck Kabongo was a no show on Wednesday night, finishing with one point and one assists to go along with four turnovers in 15 minutes. Jonathon Holmes and Sheldon McClellan both played well, but it wasn't enough for the 'Horns, who shot an abysmal 34.9% from the floor.

This game was less about Texas, however, than it was about UNC. The Tar Heels looked determined. This is a team that has fallen out of the national consciousness following losses to UNLV and Kentucky, seeing their name dropped behind the likes of Ohio State and Syracuse when discussing national title contenders. Roy Williams' club played like they wanted to make a statement.
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Thursday Morning Dump

- The Missouri Valley Conference is going to get more NCAA tournament bids than the Pac-12. I know that's not saying much, but still, this league is really good

- Now this is an expansionocalypse idea I might be able to get behind

- You'd be wise to read this interview with BYU's Matt Carlino. The dude is a stud

- The UConn administration is taking a proactive approach to revising policy on abuse claims

- A good-read on the job Frank Haith is doing in re-stocking his current graduating classes

- Screengrab breakdowns have become all the rage amongst bloggers and other internet hoop-heads. Personally, I think they're stupid. My microscopic attention-span cannot handle them. If you want to diagram something for me, use a god-damn chalkboard. Matt Norlander tried his best to poke fun at this trend, and well, he was about as successful as the trend itself. Maybe it's my fault for not finding it funny. I was at a car repair shop when I read it, and posts like these don't read well on the Iphone. It took me five minutes to get half-way through it, and by that point, I was more frustrated than I was amused. But then Searching for Billy Edelin attempted to break down the breakdowns, and well, nothing was really accomplished. See, jokes about real things can be funny, but jokes about jokes about real things are never funny. I like the spunk, enthusiasm and panache, but let's not make this a trend or anything, OK? Great.

- The Pac-12 tournament needs to move to Las Vegas. I mean, can anyone give a me a reason as to why it shouldn't be played there? Yeah, didn't think so

- Speaking of the Pac-12, if you were thinking that statistics might help you rationalize that the Pac-12 isn't that bad, well, you thought wrong. Stats don't lie. The Pac-12 sucks

- Indiana sophomore Will Sheehey suffered a lower leg injury during practice yesterday and will miss the Hoosiers game against UMBC. Elston Turner has a broken nose and he too will miss the UMBC game

- When the Oakland Grizzlies are hitting their shots, they are a tough out. The Summit League race is going to be very interesting this season, as Oakland, Oral Roberts and South Dakota State have provided some strong showings during non-conference play

- If Towson loses their next game, they will have gone all of 2011 without a win

- I know you probably don't pay attention to MAC basketball, but if you were to do so, you should keep a close eye on Ohio. The Bobcats are legit

- The NYC Power Poll is the only poll in America that features Seton Hall with a No.1 next to the name

- I've been waiting for a Xavier person to ask this question since the Crosstown donnybrook cleared up, and well, since the X-men got drubbed by Oral Roberts at home.



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POSTERIZED: P.J. Hairston is a bad, bad man (w/ bonus dunk)

If you are reading this, it's very likely that you aren't watching the North Carolina vs. Texas game on ESPN. And since you're probably not watching the game, you probably didn't get to see P.J. Hairston's spectacu-large poster-dunk on Julian Lewis.

But thanks to B.I.A.H. POSTERIZED, you'll be able to see this monster jam well before the 11PM SportsCenter puts it in "Top Plays".



The post-dunk freeze frame that Hairston does it equally impressive. That right there is one of the best moments in college hoops. When others would strut, scream, and get loud, Hairston just takes it all in, like a cold-blooded assassin.

And as if things weren't good enough for Julian Lewis, he's currently 0-5 from the field and has two fouls.


As usual, @Bubbaprog is the first on the scene with an epic .gif of the encounter.

Yowsers!

(H/T MockSession)

But wait, there's more!!!

Dexter Strickland had a filthy dunk even before Hairston took flight.



Yeah, it was pretty nasty too.

But was it as good as these?

Robbie Hummel, Purdue vs. IPFW, 12/20
Robert Brown, Virginia Tech vs. North Florida, 12/19
Tony Mitchell, Alabama vs. Kansas State, 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

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