NCAA BASKETBALL WEEKEND WRAP UP
I was stuck in the snow all weekend, but I was so blessed to have my electricity to watch some great college basketball. Why would I want to see the Pro Bowl, while there are kids who put it all out there on the basketball court to get a chance to go to the dance. Now that it’s February, Things are getting ready to heat up as every conference game gets more important and bubble teams treat every game like an NCAA Tournament game. Here’s a look at a great weekend of college basketball.
SHERRON COLLINS brings KANSAS back to the TOP OF COLLEGE BASKETBALL!!!
There’s nothing like in-state rivalries in college basketball and the Kansas Jayhawks visit to Manhattan, Kansas to face the Kansas State Wildcats proved just that. Sherron Collins was dealing with back spasms all night and believe me an injury or pain in your back will affect your body. When Sherron hit the floor hard and went to the bench with 2:44 left in overtime, I had a feeling he would return to finish an important game. After Denis Clemente missed a three-pointer, with less than 45 seconds left down 77-76, I was surprised the Wildcats didn’t foul the Jayhawks while 29 seconds was off the clock and called timeout. Sherron came back in the game with 16 seconds left. Then he took it upon himself to drive it in and made a though lay-in and was fouled by Wally Judge. Sherron’s heart and toughness has brought the Jayhawks back to the number one spot in college basketball and I don’t think they’ll lose this spot this week. They visit Colorado and host Nebraska until the big showdown against Texas next Monday.
GEORGETOWN entertains PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA over DUKE!!!!
When Barack Obama shows up to your game, you have to play your best basketball. The Georgetown Hoyas host the Duke Blue Devils in a Big East/ACC showdown and thank you Hoyas for proving that the Big East is better than the ACC. I’ve never in all my years seen a Blue Devil team led by Mike Krzyzewski would ever allow a team to shoot 71.7% from the field (33 of 46). The Hoyas shooting percentage tied the best percentage this season with Northern Iowa faced Portland State on January 17. It was unbelievable how easy it was for the Hoyas Greg Monroe, Austin Freeman, and Chris Wright to score in the paint and forced the Blue Devils to commit15 turnovers, five of them in a two-minute span. Georgetown is 3-0 against ranked non-conference teams this season. This lost for Duke on the other had is just a bad sign of things to come for the ACC in the NCAA Tournament this year.
Are the TEXAS LONGHORNS OVERRATED?????
I thought head coach Rick Barnes and the Texas Longhorns were the one of the top two teams in college basketball, but losing to the Baylor Bears at home was the last straw for me. The Longhorns were down 77-75 with 20 seconds left in overtime. The Bears freshman A.J. Walton fouled junior Gary Johnson and head to the free throw line. Gary Johnson makes one of two free throws to cut the lead to one. Then after A.J. Walton was fouled and made one of two free throws to put the Bears up by two, the Bears Tweety Carter fouls senior Justin Mason. With 13 seconds left down 78-76, all he had to do was make both free throws to tie the game. What do you know, another Longhorn makes only one of two of his free throws and they only cut the lead to one. After A.J was fouled by and made both of his free throws to extend the Bears lead to three, the Longhorns had 10 seconds left to send this game to a second OT. Then J’Covan Brown misses his three-point jumper then they grabbed an offensive rebound and called a timeout. Then with less than two seconds left, freshman Avery Bradley had a chance to extend the game with a 3-pointer, but misses and Baylor beats Texas in a regular-season game for the first time since 1998 and for the second straight time after ending a 24-game losing streak against Texas in the Big XII tournament last year. The Longhorns have now three out of four since starting the season 17-0. They visit Oklahoma State and Oklahoma before they face Kansas next week, they better get together or else they may not get one of top four seeds in the tournament.
DEMARCUS COUSINS is the 2ND MOST IMPORTANT PLAYER in KENTUCKY!!!!
You can’t expect the young Kentucky Wildcats to be number one all season, but I can’t believe they lost to South Carolina last week. I’m happy they redeemed themselves over the Vanderbilt Commodores this past Saturday. I was impressed with a freshman on the Wildcats but his name wasn’t John Wall. DeMarcus Cousins has been a force in the paint for the Cats. DeMarcus has averaged 24.0 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in the last two games. NBADraft.net’s mock draft has him as an eighth pick in the NBA Draft. John Calipari better enjoy both DeMarcus and John while he can but after this season, you can kiss both of them goodbye.
OTHER THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS WEEKEND!!!!!
When the Villanova Wildcats beat Seton Hall, they visit Georgetown and West Virginia. Scottie Reynolds and the Cats better be ready for a war to stay in the Top 5.
Syracuse Orange almost lose to the DePaul Blue Demons 59-57, are you serious? but I will say holding DePaul to three points in the last 5:30 left in the game is impressive.
Michigan State Spartans is 9-0 in the Big Ten but they won by 10 points or less in seven of eight games in the month of January. A win is a win but it’s time to get more aggressive.
Great comeback by the West Virginia Mountaineers over Louisville. Da’Sean Butler scored a season-high 27 points and lead the Mountaineers to a 12 point comeback win 78-75 with less than 7:00 left in the game. Morgantown is not a danger zone for road teams.
UConn Huskies are the most inconsistent team in college basketball. You blowout Texas and then lose to Providence and Marquette and now out of the Top 25.
When Duke, Maryland, and Virginia are the Top 3 teams in the ACC, there’s a big problem with this conference.
North Carolina Tar Heels look more and more NIT-bound every day. They are 2-4 in the ACC and lost four out of their last five games, including three of those loses at home to Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and now Virginia. I know they lost a lot of last year’s starters and dealing with injuries but Roy Williams can’t allow the Tar Heels to go to the NIT.
Gonzaga can’t lose games to teams like San Francisco (3-4 in the West Coast Conference). They will make it to the tourney, but how will they get respect after losing a weak West Coast Conference team.
I can’t believe the Atlantic 10 is more entertaining than the Pac 10.
#25 Cornell Big Red is the first Ivy League team in the Top 25 since 1997-1998 Princeton. This is the school’s first ranking in men’s basketball history. They won at Alabama, St. John’s, Drexel, La Salle, and UMass. I was more impressed when they almost won at Kansas. Fear this team as a possible Cinderella team in March.
Georgia Tech faced Kentucky State and NC State faced North Carolina Central on Saturday. I have no respect for anyone who schedules cupcakes in late January.
Much respect for Richmond, VCU, and George Mason for playing their home games while a big snow storm was falling all over Virginia.
BIGGEST GAMES THIS WEEK!!!!!
(2) Villanova at (8) Georgetown (Saturday)-What a great backcourt matchup between Scottie Reynolds & Corey Fisher against Austin Freeman and Chris Wright. But who will stop Greg Monroe?
(5) Michigan State at (16) Wisconsin (Tuesday) and Illinois (Saturday)- The Spartans take their undefeated Big Ten record to the Kohl Center, where the Badgers have not lost this season, and then they go to Assembly Hall to face the Fighting Illini. Kalin Lucas and the Spartans better do Tom Izzo proud this week.
(6) Texas at Oklahoma State (Monday)- Damien James, Dexter Pittman, and Avery Bradley where are you at? It’s time to get it going, but it won’t be easy at Stillwater. The Cowboys will do anything for a quality win and tonight would be a great start. Watch for the Cowboys James Anderson, the Big XII’s leading scorer with 22.5 ppg.
(19) Georgia Tech at (9) Duke- Duke has a lot of problems on the road, but at least they’ll be at home against Georgia Tech. The Blue Devils lost to the Yellow Jackets a few weeks ago in Atlanta and Jackets would love nothing more than to sting the Blue Devils again.
Ole Miss at (3) Kentucky- John Wall and the Kentucky Wildcats better get ready for one of the Top 2 teams in the SEC West. The Rebels need all the quality wins they can get.
By Ronald Carthen
