Game of the Week: Arizona 87, Washington 86
This was about as entertaining as basketball can get. Washington was down by as much as 12 points in the second half, but Isaiah Thomas and Matthew-Bryan Amaning took over in the second half. Thomas finished with 12 points and nine assists with just two turnovers, absolutely shredding the Wildcat's half court defense with a series of gorgeous passes off of a pick and roll. Bryan-Amaning, for the most part, was the guy on the receiving end of those pick and roll passes, as he finished with 18 of his 24 points in the second half while adding nine boards, six blocks, four assists, and three steals.
The ending was just as exciting. Derrick Williams hit a contested three to give Arizona the lead, and after the two teams traded buckets, Washington had the ball on the final possession with a chance to win. Bryan-Amaning was called for a travel, but Arizona turned the ball right back over with 2.2 seconds left. It set up this finish:
Williams finished with 26 points and 11 boards and the game-saving block, but more on him later in this post.
St. John's 60, Pitt 59: The Panthers looked as if they had taken firm control of this game, opening up a 56-51 lead late on St. John's in the Garden. But the Red Storm was not ready to give up. After five free throws tied the game up, Paris Horne grabbed the offensive rebound when Dwight Hardy missed a free throws. He got the ball back to Hardy, who was fouled and knocked down two free throws to give the Johnnies the 58-56 lead. Travon Woodall answered with a three pointer, setting up this final possession:
Now, based on screen caps from the ESPN broadcast using the camera above the back board, it appears as if Dwight Hardy's heels are out of bounds on that last move:
Look at the referee's head in the video. Look at it in the picture. He is staring right at Hardy's feet, standing three feet away. He would have seen if Hardy's heels had touched the baseline. Hardy didn't step out. But he did finish with 19 points and the Johnnies knocked off their fifth top 15 team at home.
Cal 76, UCLA 72 OT: Cal provided another piece of evidence to the folks that believe you should automatically foul when you are up three with under five seconds left. After blowing a 12 point lead in the second half, Cal allowed Malcolm Lee to take a tough, fadeaway three from the top of the key that hit the front of the rim, bounced two feet into the air, and fell through the hoop for the game-tying basket. In overtime it was the Jorge Gutierrez show, however, as he finished with 34 points, six assists, and three steals, including finding Brandon Smith for a three with 14 seconds left that clinched the game.
Players of the Week: Just like last week, there is more than one player deserving of getting credit in this space:
Jacob Pullen, Kansas State: For the first time all season, Jacob Pullen looked like the all-american we expected to see this season. He went for a career-high 38 points in the Wildcat's win over Kansas, a win that thrust Frank Martin's club right back into the NCAA Tournament. Then on Saturday, Pullen had 27 points as K-State knocked off Oklahoma.
Derrick Williams, Arizona: We already talked about the 26 points, 11 boards, and two blocks that Williams had in Zona's win over Washington, but that wasn't his only impressive performance this week. He also went for 26 points and eight boards in a win over Washington State. Throw in UCLA's loss to Cal on Sunday, and Arizona now owns a commanding two game lead in the Pac-10 standings. Williams, to his credit, threw himself into the conversation for the No. 1 overall pick come June.
E'Twaun Moore, Purdue: Moore was good in Purdue's win over Wisconsin, going for 19 points. He was great in their win over Ohio State, however, finishing with 38 points and five assists and 13-18 shooting and 7-10 from deep. More on Purdue and Moore in a bit.
The all they-were-good-too team:
Team of the Week: Purdue Boilermakers
Purdue avenged losses to both Wisconsin and Ohio State when they visited Mackey Arena this week. Against the Badgers, Purdue got 20 points and 10 boards out of JaJuan Johnson, but the star was Lewis Jackson, who outplayed Jordan Taylor with 18 points, five assists, and no turnovers in the win. Against Ohio State, it was the E'Twaun Moore show, as he went for a career-high 38 points.
Purdue did two things this week. They threw themselves right back into the mix for a Big Ten regular season title. They are now just a game behind the Buckeyes. Ohio State has a much easier road down the stretch -- they get three games at home while Purdue has to go on the road three times -- but being one game back with four games left is a much easier task than sitting three games back with four games left.
Purdue also legitimized this argument I made back in the preseason. This is still a team that can make the Final four. They have two all-americans on their roster, Lewis Jackson and Kevan Barlow are both developing into quality role players, and guys like Ryne Smith, DJ Byrd, and Travis Carroll are playing more and more valuable minutes. The Boilermakers aren't going to be able to power through opponents to make a Final Four like the top four or five teams in the country, but with some favorable matchups, this is absolutely a team with the horses to make the Final Four. (Do I even need to make the mention of how nasty this team would be with Robbie Hummel? I dont? Good.)
Teams deserving of a shoutout:
Matchups of the Week:
Monday, February 21, 2011
2/27 - College Hoops Week in Review: Derrick Williams, E'Twaun Moore, and Jacob Pullen shine |
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