Deadline Decisions: Who were the losers?

Yesterday was the (ridiculously early) end to the testing the waters period for players with college eligibility remaining. Here is the full list of players that have decided to keep their names in or pull their names out of draft contention.

Who were this year's deadline losers?

Texas: The Longhorns were as brutalized as anyone in the past decade by early entry. Jordan Hamilton announced his intentions to remain in the NBA Draft a while back. Speculation about Tristan Thompson having hired an agent as gone on for nearly a month. And now, it is official that Cory Joseph will be headed to the NBA as well. That means that the Longhorns return ... J'Covan Brown and Alexis Wangmene? Texas went from a top five team to potentially missing out on the NCAA Tournament.


Tennessee: Over the weekend, both Tobias Harris and Scotty Hopson confirmed their intentions of remaining in the NBA Draft. For Harris, it wasn't much of a surprise. Most believed he was destined to be a one-and-done player since the time that he was in high school. It was a bit different for Hopson. He has the talent and the potential to be a lottery pick, but he was simply never able to put it (or keep it) all together while at Tennessee. Even with Bruce Pearl gone, Tennessee had a chance to be good with Cuonzo Martin coaching those two. With Harris and Hopson gone, things will be interesting in Knoxville. There are some interesting players -- Renaldo Wooldridge, Jeronne Maymon, Trae Golden, Cam Tatum, etc.

Michigan: The Wolverines suffered a pretty big blow when Darius Morris decided to keep his name in the draft. It looks like a good decision for now; Morris should sneak into the back end of the first round. That said, with Morris back, Michigan had a chance to be a top 10-15 team next season. With the amount of youth on that roster, John Beilein should still have a pretty good team in Ann Arbor. But Morris was one of those players that made everyone around him better. It will be interesting to see just how good players like Jordan Morgan and Tim Hardaway Jr are without him.

Butler: Its tough to say anything negative about Butler in this situation. Shelvin Mack was instrumental in getting the Bulldogs into back to back national title games. Keeping him around for three seasons is a win in this day and age. That said, losing him for next season will hurt. Matt Howard, Shawn Vanzant, and Zack Hahn are also gone, which means that the Bulldogs will be left with a lot of young players. It will be interesting to see how guys like Chase Stigall and Chrishawn Hopkins develop in the back court. If Khyle Marshall lives up to his potential next season, Butler should once again compete for the Horizon league title.

Maryland: Jordan Williams decision to enter the NBA Draft not only left the Terps devoid of any kind of experience (or talent) along their front line, it is also feasible to think that it caused Gary Williams to retire and could cost them a couple of talented recruits in Sterling Gibbs and Nick Faust. This story is far from complete, but its not to think that, when all is said and done, Williams' departure may have the most damaging long-term effects.

Pac-10:

• The decision by Jeremy Green to remain in the NBA Draft seems, on the surface, to be about more than just his draft prospects, because those don't appear to be all that good. Green was put on academic suspension for this summer, and while it didn't effect his eligibility as a player, it may have on his decision to remain in the draft -- he was back home in Austin, TX, the last few weeks. This may actually be a win for Stanford. Led by Dwight Powell and Anthony Brown, they have a talented sophomore class. They weren't going to be a tournament team this season anyway, and Green is a volume shooter that didn't make those around him better. Could this speed up the development of Johnny Dawkins' young talent?


• Washington State had the potential to be a major player in the Pac-10 race next season, but with Klay Thompson finally deciding to follow DeAngelo Casto out the door, the Cougars are left with Faisal Aden and Reggie Moore ... and not much else.

• It is well known what UCLA lost -- Tyler Honeycutt and Malcolm Lee both are gone -- but this is not new news.

Terrence Jennings: Louisville should be fine without Jennings. They are solidly stocked with back court talent, and Gorgui Dieng proved to be a more than capable shot blocker and rebounder in his time as a freshman. Throw in the returns of Rakeem Buckles and Jared Swopshire, and Louisville is going to be a top 10-15 team. Jennings, however, has a ways to go before he is an NBA player. He's got the size, the strength, and the athleticism, but NBA big men needs post moves. Jennings doesn't have a move -- singluar -- let alone moves -- plural.

Boston College: BC was going to be a loser this off-season regardless of what happened with Reggie Jackson. They lost eight seniors to graduation. But with Jackson gone, BC's leading returning scorer is not Danny Rubin, also known as walk-on Danny Rubin.

Minnesota: Minnesota is an interesting case for next season. They've had as much roster turnover as anyone in the country the last two years -- Colton Iverson, Trevor Mbakwe, Royce White, Devoe Joseph, Al Nolen. With Ralph Sampson keeping his name in the draft, they lose a front-court scoring threat and now two-thirds of their massive front line from a year ago. But with Mbakwe, Nolen (whoops, he graduted), Rodney Williams, and Austin Hollins all returning, there is still quite a bit of ability at Tubby Smith's disposal. (UPDATE: He may be returning.)

Notre Dame: The Irish could be in trouble next season. Yes, Mike Brey is staying in South Bend, but with Ben Hansbrough and Ty Nash graduating and now Carleton Scott remaining in the draft, the Irish are going to be left with a very thin roster. Eric Atkins looked promising as a point guard as a freshman, and Tim Abromaitis and Scott Martin return, but there is not much beyond that. Scott's versatility as a shooter, rebounder, and shot blocker will truly be missed.
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POSTERIZED: Cory Joseph goes hard in the paint

Texas is a scary team right now. Tristan Thompson is a beast, Jordan Hamilton is having a spectacular sophomore season and Cory Joseph is doing stuff like this:



I wouldn't mess with Texas if I were you.

But was it as good as one of these?:

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
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12/20 - College Hoops Week in Review: Upsets Galore

Game of the Week: Texas 78, UNC 76

We'll get to Josh Selby and the exciting finish to the Kansas-USC game in a bit. And as terrific as that game was, the Longhorn's win over UNC had an even better finish. Texas used an 18-8 surge in the first half to open up a 28-18 lead over the Heels, punishing them inside despite the fact that Tristan Thompson was out with two fouls. But the Heels didn't fold, attacking the Longhorns off the bounce and using a 15-4 run over the final 7:30 of the half to take a 33-32 lead at the break.


In the second half, both teams came out on fire, but UNC, led by a career-high 18 points from Dexter Strickland, finally found their transition game. On three different occasions, Strickland was able go coast to coast for a layup -- two of which came off of made baskets -- and UNC was able to hold a two possession lead for much of the second half, pushing it to seven three times.

But, as UNC's offense is wont to do, the Heels offense got bogged down for a string of three or four possessions late in the second half, and three straight Texas baskets gave the Horns a 70-69 lead with less than three minutes left. The teams would trade baskets before Thompson -- who was an animal inside over the last four minutes of the game -- got his second dunk in heavy traffic with 45 seconds left for a 74-73 lead. After two free throws from J'Covan Brown, UNC had the ball with 24 second left and down three points. Roy Williams called a time out, drew up a play for Harrison Barnes, and the freshman came off of a screen and drilled a three with 11.7 seconds left to tie the game. It set up this:



With the loss, UNC drops to 7-4 on the season, although the team that took the floor Saturday afternoon looked much improved over the UNC we have seen earlier this season. The win for Texas was important for two reasons. First of all, the Longhorns are entering the most difficult part of their schedule. Their next two games are at Michigan State and at home against UConn before they start Big XII play. But, more importantly, it was a breakout game for freshman point guard Cory Joseph. Joseph had 21 points, and in contrast to the potential game-winner he threw over the back board against Pitt in MSG a month ago, the freshman buried UNC with a tough, turnaround against very good defense. When Joseph, Jordan Hamilton, Tristan Thompson, and J'Covan Brown are all clicking, Texas has a team with a lot of offensive weapons.


This needs mentioning: St. Bonaventure 112, Ohio 107 4OT

Ohio fought back from 10 down with 9:42 left in regulation to force the first overtime on a three from DJ Cooper with 22 seconds left. In the first overtime, the lead changed hands four times before Cooper once again tied the game on a driving layup with 17 seconds on the clock before the Bonnies missed two free throws. The second overtime saw Ohio grab a three point lead, but Michael Davenport once again tied the game with a three pointer. Only four points were scored in the third overtime before St. Bonaventure opened up a five point lead in the fourth OT, making 7-8 free throws (after going 6-18 from the charity stripe in the first three overtimes) to hold on to the win.

The box score read something like a game of NBA 2K11. Cooper had 43 points, 13 assists, 8 steals, and 8 rebounds while shooting 17-41 from the floor. Andrew Nicholson of St. Bonaventure had 44 points, 12 boards, and 5 assists. Five other players reached double figures. Ohio took 101 shots, 40 from three. St. Bonaventure shot 56.7% from the floor. Five players fouled out. Six played more than 50 minutes. Four of them were on St. Bonaventure, with Nicholson logging all 60 minutes of game time. But, perhaps the most incredible stat, the Bonnies only got six points from their bench in 60 minutes of basketball.


Player of the Week: Josh Selby, Kansas

I'm not giving this to him just because he had an impressive performance against USC. Sure, he had 21 points and hit two clutch threes -- including the game-winner with 24 seconds left on the clock -- as the Jayhawks knocked off a scrappy USC team. But if we were rating a player based on their performance alone, Selby probably did not live up to his potential on this night. He was hot from three, there is no question, but Selby's not going to be going 5-8 from three every night. In fact, for a kid known for his slashing ability, Selby did strikingly little inside the arc. Fifteen of this 21 points came on threes, and he hit all three free throws when he was fouled shooting a three. He scored three points and took only three shots doing something other than spotting up while turning the ball over four times. Granted, that was a result of Selby being a good teammate and playing within the Kansas offense, but my point is that the Selby that is playing in the NCAA Tournament will be a different player than the one we saw on Saturday.


No, I'm giving Selby the player of the week in large part because its so damn hard not to feel great for this kid after the performance he had. Kansas was undefeated, but they weren't undefeated in impressive fashion, struggling to beat mediocre teams like Arizona and Memphis. The Jayhawk faithful, after seeing guys like Brandon Knight and Kyrie Irving play great basketball, had sky-high, almost unfair, expectations for the freshman. And, after sitting out nine games, Selby was debuting in a noon tip on a Saturday two hours before the college football bowl games were to start. There were a lot of eyes on this kid.

And not everyone was rooting for him to win. According to the NCAA, Selby is a cheater. He accepted $6,000 worth of illegal benefits and had a personnel relationship with Carmelo Anthony's business manager that the NCAA determined bordered too closely on professional.

Me? I wanted to see this happen. I wanted Selby to succeed. Here's a kid who grew up without the luxuries that many of us grow up with. He spent some time homeless as a kid when his single-mother lost her job. He lived in an area of Baltimore where violence was common. He saw his best-friend get pistol-whipped and had a cousin murdered when he was 15. I fail to see the sense in rooting against a kid that accepted what every recruit accepts and received advisement from a family friend that was illegal because of the job that friend holds.

I may in the minority here, but I want to see Selby succeed. And Hollywood couldn't have scripted a better debut.

The All-they-were-good-too team

• G: Marcus Jordan, Central Florida: Jordan scored 23 points on Saturday in a win over Miami. The win may have been costly, however, as Jordan looked like he injured his ankle at the end of the game.
  
• G: Jon Diebler, Ohio State: Diebler put on one of the most impressive shooting performances of the season, knocking down nine straight threes en route to 29 points in a win over Florida Gulf Coast.
  
• F: Khris Middleton, Texas A&M: Middleton scored a career high 31 points as the Aggies came from behind to knock off Arkansas on Saturday.
• F: Kris Joseph, Syracuse: Joseph had 21 points, 7 boards, and 4 assists to lead the Orange as they held off a scrappy Iona team.
  
• C: Jared Sullinger, Ohio State: The Buckeyes big man has to be considered the favorite to win the Big Ten player of the year award. He had 30 points and 19 rebounds on Saturday as OSU knocked off South Carolina 79-57.
  

Co-Teams of the Week: Florida Gators, UCLA Bruins, Gonzaga Bulldogs

We'll get into it more in a bit, but this week was the week of the upset as seven ranked teams were knocked off by unranked opponents. Florida, UCLA, and Gonzaga were three of the unranked teams to do the knocking off, and while it is still too early in the season to say that anyone needs to "desperately" win a game, it is safe to say that the Gators, the Bruins, and the Zags all really, really, really needed their wins.

• Florida put together one of the most impressive defensive performances of the season in their 57-44 win over Kansas State. The Gators didn't score for the first seven minutes of the game and, with nine minutes left in the half, they found themselves down 20-8. From that point on, K-State managed to score just 24 points, and that included a stretch when the Wildcats missed 23 of 24 field goals, 17 of those misses coming in a row. Perhaps more important, however, was that Kenny Boynton hit three straight threes at the end of the game to put it out of reach. Boynton had been ice cold for about four straight games. The top four in the SEC East are clearly defined, but their order will change on a daily basis.
  

• Talking about a tournament resume for UCLA at this point is a bit silly. Barring a miraculous turnaround, this team is not making the NCAA Tournament. That said, if they are going to make that turnaround, the Bruins, more than anything, seemed like they needed a boost of confidence. After beating BYU 86-79 in Southern California, the Bruins got it. I've said all along, there is talent on this UCLA roster, the issue is figuring out how to use that talent and being able to defend. Their defense was still relatively subpar on Saturday, but Reeves Nelson and Josh Smith dominated the Cougars in the paint offensively, and with Tyler Honeycutt and Zeke Jones hitting jumpers, UCLA was clicking. Can this win be a jumping off point for the Bruins?


• Gonzaga does not have a bad loss of their resume, but regardless of the stretch of your schedule, there's a point where you need to win something. Otherwise, teams like Oakland and Arkansas-Pine Bluff would be getting at-large bids every year. Gonzaga did just that on Saturday, knocking off Baylor 68-64. More impressive, however, was that the Zags did it with Steven Gray missing the entire second half with back spasms and Elias Harris in foul trouble throughout. He fouled out with more than six minutes left and the game tied. On Saturday, it was Robert Sacre (17 points), Marquise Carter (13 points and two big threes), Kelly Olynyk (the go-ahed three with a minute left), and Sam Dower that made the difference. Gonzaga still has Xavier, Oklahoma State, and Memphis in the non-conference. This team can still earn an at-large bid.
  

The Week of the Upset: As I mentioned before, seven ranked teams lost to unranked opponents last week. Considering the limited number of games that took place this week, the percentage of ranked teams that lost to their unranked opponents was incredibly high:

• Tennessee: The Volunteers, coming off of a huge win over Pitt in Pitt, proceeded to blow a 13 point lead and lose to Oakland 89-82 before struggling to find any semblence of an offense in a 49-48 loss at Charlotte. With Bruce Pearl's looming suspension, now is not a good time for Tennessee to be lacking leadership and an identity.


• Louisville: The Cardinals dropped a 52-46 decision to a Drexel team that absolutely dominated them inside. If you can force Louisville to play a half court game, they simply don't have the talent or size on the interior to score or rebound.


• UNLV: The Rebels lost 68-62 to UC Santa Barbara in a game that the Gauchos ran a zone the majority of the time. UNLV shot 29% on the game and just 6-29 from three. That will do it.


• BYU: The Bruins lost to UCLA 86-79 in LA. Am I the only one that think Jimmer Fredette is a bit overrated? I know the kid can blow up for 40 on any given night, but he plays no defense and turns the ball over too much. I'm not saying he isn't an all-american, but putting him in the conversation with guys like Kemba Walker, Jared Sullinger, or (healthy) Kyrie Irving is a stretch to me.


• Kansas State: So when is it time to panic for Kansas State fans? Scoring is a serious issue for this team, as is point guard play and low post play. In fact, about the only thing that this team is going well right now is rebounding and defending.
  


• Baylor: After losing to Gonzaga, the Bears still haven't won a game outside of Waco. This is also the first game that Baylor has played outside of Waco, and it was still in the state of Texas. I like this team, but there are still questions to be answered.


• Illinois: The Illini dropped a 57-54 decision to Illinois-Chicago -- a 4-7 team in the Horizon League -- on Saturday afternoon. Apparently, Illinois is just as inconsistent as they were last season. The Illini better be careful, as this kind of performance against Missouri on Tuesday will result in an embarrassing loss. Isn't it ironic, however, that the kid that was the hero for UIC on Saturday was named Darrin Williams?

Matchups of the Week:

• 12/21 - 7:00 pm: USC @ Tennessee
• 12/21 - 9:00 pm: UNLV vs. Kansas State
• 12/22 - 3:00 pm: Washington State vs. Mississippi State
• 12/22 - 7:00 pm: Dayton @ Seton Hall
  
• 12/22 - 7:00 pm: Texas @ Michigan State
  
• 12/22 - 9:00 pm: Missouri vs. Illinois
  
• 12/22 - 11:00 pm: Kansas @ Cal
• 12/22 - 11:00 pm: Xavier @ Gonzaga
• 12/23 - 8:00 pm: Georgetown @ Memphis
  

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One more high profile recruit selects his school

Part of the reason that Brandon Knight's announcement of where he would be attending college was so important was that it could influence where the rest of the uncommitted players in the class of 2010 would end up.

Knight chose Kentucky. Later that week, Josh Selby settled on Kentucky while Doron Lamb followed Knight to Lexington.

Cory Joseph is headed to Texas.
(photo credit: DeportivoDigital)

The latest piece fell into place on Friday, when Cory Joseph, a consensus top ten recruit, finally decided on Texas.

"Coach [Rick] Barnes and the staff, we have a good relationship," Joseph told Adam Zagoria. "The style of play, they go up and down. I really feel like it can excel my game to the next level there. It was the best fit for me."

Joseph, who led Findlay Prep to their second straight National High School Invitational title, follows in the footsteps of Texas Longhorn Avery Bradley, another former Findlay guard who is currently an early entry candidate in the NBA Draft.

Joseph also joins fellow Candians Tristan Thompson, a teammate at Findlay, and Myck Kabongo, one of the top recruits in the class of 2011, as commits to Rick Barnes.

Joseph is a very important get for Barnes. Assuming Bradley keeps his name in the NBA Draft pool, he joins Damion James, Justin Mason, and Dexter Pittman as key losses for a Texas team that struggled this season despite lofty expectations. One of the biggest issues for the Longhorns this year was point guard play. Bradley and Mason weren't true point guards. Dogus Balbay was an offensive liability. J'Covan Brown couldn't defend a plastic bag.

The 6'3" Joseph is a talented scorer and playmaker that works on the defensive end of the floor. He will have some competition for minutes in the backcourt -- along with Brown and Balbay, Texas also returns Varez Ward and Jai Lucas -- but the freshman may be the best of that group.

Texas likely won't be a preseason Final Four favorite this season, but if Barnes can manage to keep Joseph and Thompson around for a few seasons, the future looks bright in Austin.

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