You know I couldn't stay away. But I have to make this quick and bland (no media embeds) for the wife might start to wonder why I keep laughing at the computer screen instead of spending time with her familia...
Oregon loses 62-68 to OAKLAND!?!?
Damn, I hope the blogpoll punishes them for that.
And yeah, just like I thought, SDSU blows another critical RPI test. And Zona has another weapon.
Here is the official consensus top 25 blogpoll -
1) North Carolina
2) Memphis
3) Texas
4) Kansas
5) Duke
6) Washington St.
7) Georgetown
8) UCLA
9) Michigan St.
10) Marquette
11) Indiana
12) Texas A&M
13) Tennessee
14) Butler
15) Pittsburgh
16) Clemson
17) Vanderbilt
18) Miami (FL)
19) Arizona
20) Gonzaga
21) Rhode Island
22) Oregon
23) West Virginia
24) Xavier
25) BYU
Everyone's vote can be found here.
No comments this week outside of *sigh* BYU. Have a happy holiday season and I'll see you January 7th.
Yes, it is true. I will be out of the country until January 6th, so this blog will be dark. I owe you two more things though. Your Moment of Zen and the final Blogpoll for this week. For the next two weeks, the Blogpoll will be hosted by Vegas Watch for December 26th and then by Storming The Court for January 2nd. Thanks guys!
And here ya go...
Dickie V is out until February 2008!
Dick Vitale, the voice of college basketball for almost three decades, had vocal cord surgery Tuesday and is expected to be off the air until at least February.
Excuse me for a second...
(HT: EDSBS)
Aaaaahhhhh, ok. Woooooo... *dabs tear of joy from eye*
Next up, Arizona's interim coach Kevin O'Neill to succeed Lute Olson when he croaksretires.
"It's an unbelievable honor to follow Lute Olson," O'Neill said in a statement. "I'm thrilled to get the opportunity and will work to continue the superb tradition of Arizona basketball when Lute is done."
But wait, didn't Coach O'Neill say "This is not my team" last week?! Change of heart, coach?
Eh, whatever.
It is called "scheduling". The Rams made sure to make it count.
Believe that.
How many times can Tyler Hansbrough get hurt like this?!
Is he a target or does he just play hard? You decide.
Oregon and Xavier goes down to the likes of Nebraska and ASU.
Not as spectacular as if some top 5 teams went down, but unexpected.
Kentucky. What has happened to Kentucky? Losing 76 - 79 to UAB? A Sea Of Blue? Wildcats Thunder Blog? Anyone? Bueller?
Vaden was hot. Kentucky was clueless as to how to stop him. Hint: Bigger Defender, not that it would have mattered considering Kentucky played like lost sheep. Tubby Smith does better with less talent so had he been in Lexington ring a W up for UK. Kentucky fans you reaped this season and many more to come. Enjoy March without UK in the Big Dance.
- Mr.Midnight
But how can the Wildcats have that sharp of a dropoff with Tubby's recruits just one year into the new guy's tenure?
And Kentucky fans are starting to sound like this...
I've been drunk before. I've (thank goodness) blacked out in my car thinking I was OK to drive home from a club when in my 20s. Yeah, save your comments, I'm sure Karma has already sent me a bill that I paid in full.
But never EVER have I been this drunk. Not even when drowning my sorrows after yet another SDSU loss where they really had to win (reference Cal and St. Mary's this year).
And I'm assuming this person was drunk. You may have another explanation. I'd like to hear it.
(HT: EDSBS)
UPDATE: The vid title says that the driver was old and he lost his glasses. Don't buy it. If his actions only happened once, then maybe..
Two Georgetown Tigers players start fight club, arrested.
A former and a current Georgetown College basketball player are facing charges after being arrested outside a Lexington bar.
Police say officers were called to the bar early Thursday and found about 100 people outside with at least two men fighting.
Awwww..... How could such a nice campus with pretty people...
Devolve into this?
Rule number one...
Eh, they are only NAIA. Now if that was Georgetown University, then we would have something.
File this under "Well fuck you then!":
"This is not my team," (Arizona interim coach Kevin) O'Neill said Thursday.
"...That is the way I would look at Arizona basketball, either short term or long term."
How does that make players feel when they are giving their all and they look over to see Mr. "Not My Team"?
What-EVER. Just keep dribbling or something.
To be honest I know he was saying that Lute was still in change as the head coach, but I would have chosen my words better.
Reporter: Is this your team?
O'Neill: This is my team as well as Lute's. Lute is still the man in charge until he says otherwise, but as of right now I am just concentrating on leading these fine men on the court.
Reporter: Good job!
O'Neill: Thanks, you wanna get a drink later?
(the above was only for illustrative purposes)
Happy Friday.
So I was sitting here ready for a post update and all of a sudden...
Work hit me HARD. I couldn't get up, let alone breathe. Now here I am unable to get back those 9 hours of shit storm punishment.
Onwards...
Iowa Mr. Basketball 2007 decides he hates playing for a suck ass team and bails.
AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State freshman forward Clayton Vette is leaving the Cyclones for personal reasons.
Coach Greg McDermott said Thursday he doesn't anticipate Vette returning to the program.
Don't forget they had another guy leave this year too. Being 4 - 4 kinda blows.
Please, don't leave me!
UPDATE: At least the ineligible German kid will stay.
Alabama pleased as punch that their players graduate.
Alabama coach Mark Gottfried takes great pride in his record -- of graduating players.
"It's easy for some people to forget that these guys are student-athletes," Gottfried said. "That's why they are here, to get their degrees."
Kinda sad when we're rejoicing that the kids finish school, ya know?
Judge feels that Kansas will win March Madness and postpones Brandon Rush's court date until after the tournament.
On Wednesday, a judge granted a postponement until April 11. The NCAA men's basketball championship is April 7 in San Antonio.
Lets tally this up, shall we?
1) Caught for driving on the wrong side of the road and having no proof of insurance.
2) Failed to appear in court.
3) License was subsequently suspended.
4) Caught speeding and driving with a suspended license.
5) Failed to appear in court again.
6) Warrant was issued for his arrest.
7) Was finally picked up, arrested, booked and release.
But no no, don't fuck with Kansas' chances by throwing their leading scorer in jail!
WWJJD?
Here is the official consensus top 25 blogpoll -
1) North Carolina
2) Memphis
3) Texas
4) Kansas
5) Duke
6) UCLA
7) Georgetown
8) Washington St.
9) Michigan St.
10) Marquette
11) Texas A&M
12) Indiana
13) Tennessee
14) Butler
15) Oregon
16) Xavier
17) Pittsburgh
18) Clemson
19) Vanderbilt
20) Louisville
21) Gonzaga
22) Miami (FL)
23) St. Mary's
24) Arizona
25) BYU
Everyone's vote can be found here.
Comments - Why oh why on God's green earth is BYU still there? No one right now in the MWC is worthy of a top 25 ranking. No one. Am I wrong? Please show me the error of my ways.
PWND!!!11!! Louisville gets one of these:
And now the Cardinals has no Caracter? Oh dear indeed.
If Duke keeps on winning like they are, I think they will make it to the top three now. They might even have a great shot at beating the Tar Heels. Am I willing to say they will go deep in the Madness? Not quite yet.
Arizona is maddening. They come out and play like circa 1992 Michigan, then the fucking very next game they come out and play like circa 2002 Michigan.
Georgetown is starting to scare me...
The beating will continue until play improves: I dropped Louisville from 10 to 16 because of that Spartan like ass-kicking from Dayton.
The were who we thought they were!: BYU is slipping back out of the polls, folks. And remember, I never had them ranked.
Yes, I am a self-loathing MWC grad.
And until Memphis, UNC, Texas or Kansas lose we will be trapped near the inner circle of thought.
I'm about ready to leapfrog Duke into this group too. The horror.
It's hard to support your school on the road. Especially when they get shellacked 70 to 51.
PWND!!!11!
A 69 to 77 loss to Cal.
A 64 to 69 loss to St. Mary's.
San Diego State can't seem to close the important games. I can't give us an Always Be Closing award because we've never lead by a great deal in these games. We just can't seem to stop making the ticky tack penalties that puts the other team at the free throw line!
From the North County Times -
The free throw prowess exhibited by the San Diego State men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon was hardly worthy of the Wizard of Westwood. And it sure was costly.
"You've just got to knock down shots when it counts," lamented junior wing Lorrenzo Wade.
In the end, San Diego State missed not only a chance to post a new best record in the program's Division I era through 10 games, but to earn a solid nonconference, neutral-site victory for their NCAA tournament resume.
Geez Louise that says it all. Fuckity.
Oh, and Steve Fisher? The season has officially started over now. We are 0-0 at this point, ranked 331st. Pick these kids up and start teaching fundamentals. FUNDAMENTALS! Or else Arizona will OWN us in two weeks!!!
May be slow posts for today/tomorrow because of work/blogpolling. The usual crap...
My preseason choices to make it to San Antonio... a deep and talented Louisville... It has size and experience in center David Padgett. And no one is more equipped to get a great year out of enigmatic Derrick Caracter than Pitino, a master motivator. Talk about Mr. Po (potential). Add point guard Edgar Sosa, and you can see why I am so high on the Louisville Cardinals.
- Dick Vitale in USA Today
Louisville just lost to Dayton, 65 to 70.
And Dayton, you get the This is Sparta!!! award for simply manhandling the Cardinals. We know that score is deceptively close.
A simple token of earth and water...
Arizona's Lute Olson says "Adios, motherfuckers!" to the Wildcats for all of 2007 - 2008...
"I plan to return to coach the University of Arizona next year," (Olson) said. "In the meantime, my heart will be with the team, the coaches and the staff."
No snarky comment, just wondering what the hell is going on?
UPDATE: Lute Olson took a freaking year off from coaching because he is getting a divorce?!?!?!
"There are personal issues within my family that need to be addressed and I must devote my full energy to that," Olson said in the statement.
What the hell is she doing, taking Lute for everything he's got?
In April 2003, Olson married Christine Jack Toretti - a prominent, politically active Pennsylvania businesswoman who is 22 years his junior.
Well, maybe so.... Nothing says love like HALF!!!
(Major HT: Storming The Floor)
Dickie V. can now see into the future...
My preseason choices to make it to San Antonio — site of the Final Four — are Roy Williams' North Carolina Tar Heels, high-flying Memphis, deep and talented Louisville and defensively tough UCLA.
Welp, you can now cross out all of those teams from making it to the Sweet 16. We should now start knocking them out of the blogpoll, just for spite. The real funny part is that he picks Louisville, then proceeds to bash the crap out of them.
...This guy (Derrick Caracter) is going to be a superstar or a bust... The only thing that could stop this team is injuries... Juan Palacios is out for four to six weeks.
Oh, he also picks UNC to win it all, so obviously they won't. Sorry Tar Heels fans.
You can file this under the gift that keeps on giving. Greg Oden may cause Ohio State to lose scholarships.
Oden was one of three Buckeyes to leave for the NBA after their freshman seasons, along with Mike Conley Jr. and Daequan Cook, but only Oden withdrew from school after starting spring quarter.
...questions remain over his academic status when he left school.
Translation: He dropped out without completing a single quarter credit to get that big money. Further translation: He wasn't a full time student.
Thanks asshole.
Sincerely,
Thad Matta and tOSU Basketball Team
Finally, did you know that the NCAA has a mascot for men's basketball? Mr. J.J. Jumper.
Seriously!
Happy Friday everyone.
Emporia State coach David Moe hurls a water cooler like a mad man, protesting his ejection from Wednesday's game against Newman.
Coach Moe apologized later saying he was an "idiot," but the school didn't buy it and suspended him for one game.
Coach Moe's idol...
First coach's technical I have read so far.
First...
What... The... Fuck... Socks.
Matt Leinert is in the bastard making business. He's even knocking up chicks on the USC women's basketball team! Then promptly leaves to fuck someone else.
Cameron cried when she told her parents and again when she told Leinert ("We both cried," (Brynn Cameron) said)
Dickie V. more loquacious than usual...
During BYU's closer-than-the-final-score-looked 73-63 loss to No. 1 North Carolina a week ago in Las Vegas, ESPN's loud and loquacious color commentator, Dick Vitale, practically turned the broadcast into a two-hour Trent Plaisted infomercial...
Geez, I can just imagine how that went...
Dickie V.: "Ohhhhh, he's amazing! He's incredible! He's stupendous! BYU's Plaisted is soooo talented!"
Mike Patrick: "Yep, he can play."
Dickie V.: "He can play? He can better than play! He's a diaper dandy! A dipsy doer! Ohhhhhh, just look at him glide across that floor! Look at those eyes!"
Mike Patrick: "He does have determination in his eyes."
Dickie V.: "Huh? What? Determi... No, I mean look at those eyes! They're beautiful! And those strong legs! Perfect form, Mike!"
Mike Patrick: "Yes, ummmmm.... Turnover, North Carolina's ball."
Dickie V.: "And Trent Plaisted is turning ME over! He's amazing! He's incredible! He's stupendous!"
Mike Patrick: "Ummmm, you just said that."
Dickie V.: "Ohhhhh, that young man is so mesmerizing! I could suck his cock all day long while he drains threes, and then he can drain his snake on me!"
Mike Patrick: "What did you just say?!?!?!?"
Dickie V.: "What? I was saying what a diaper dandy Trent Plaisted was!"
Mike Patrick: "No you didn't! I... I... Ummm, ladies and gentlemen in our viewing audience I apologize for that outburst, it was unintended."
Studio Producer yelling into Patrick's earbud: "GO TO BREAK NOW! GO TO BREAK NOW!!!"
Detroit Mercy coach Perry Watson thinks Butler should be in the top 10, DAMNIT!
"I don't know of another team in the country that starts five seniors, and they got to the Sweet 16 last year," Watson said Wednesday.
Couldn't agree more...
I have some great posts coming, I promise. For now work is kicking my ass.
Ms. Campbell loves college hoops. Really.
Here is the official consensus top 25 blogpoll -
1) Memphis
2) North Carolina
3) Texas
4) Kansas
5) UCLA
6) Duke
7) Georgetown
8) Washington St.
9) Butler
10) Louisville
11) Texas A&M
12) Tennessee
13) Michigan St.
14) Indiana
15) Marquette
16) Oregon
17) Gonzaga
18) Clemson
19) Pittsburgh
20) Xavier
21) BYU
22) Miami (FL)
23) Vanderbilt
24) USC
25) Villanova
Everyone's vote can be found here.
Comments - The Bruins fall out of the top three, but what amazed me is that they received a first place vote!
St. Mary's gets no love. Like I said previously, I was only hoping St. Mary's would be ranked for selfish reasons (i.e. IF San Diego State beat a ranked team...).
Texas/Kansas controversy! Who is the true #3?
I'm loving this Butler team. I hope they keep on scrapping their way to the top 5.
We would have looked foolish had Memphis lost to USC last night, only because people have been saying the Tigers are weak.
Texas A&M just lost in a stunning collapse. Things don't seem right in the world. Your eyes are welling up. You have that knot in your throat. That pain that makes it hurt to swallow.
And all you have is an empty bucket of popcorn, fingers still moist from butter and saliva. And you just stare at it, sitting in the bleachers feeling so alone. Wondering what you can do to ease this pain you feel.
March To Madness is here to help, friend...
That's it. And again. As many times as it takes.
No way Mark Turgeon!
40 to 28 at the half, and your Aggies got outplayed nearly 2 to 1 in the second half to get beat 67 to 78 by the Wildcats?!
ALWAYS BE CLOSING!
Hey A&M, I'm on an errand of mercy.
So I think everyone who reads this blog knows that I am a huge college football fan also. And yesterday's BCS pile of crap they served up as "premier" games made me choke on my beer. The only game that will be interesting is Hawaii/Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. I'm not even watching the fucking BCS "National Championship" Bowl.
Why am I wasting space here on a college hoops blog. Only to say this makes me even more thankful for NCAA basketball and March Madness. Amen.
I'm not asking for a playoff, but...
Onward...
Texas 63, UCLA 61 caused some major fucking with my blogpoll ballot. I had to completely rearrange my top 10. Arizona 78, Texas A&M 67 caused sporadic damage to other portions of my ballot. Because of all this here are some quick hits of what I will be submitting -
* UCLA now ranked at #6
* Arizona back at #25
* Teams ranked #13 to #22 did not MOVE. At ALL! I couldn't do it while using rational thought.
* St. Mary's introduced at #24
Speaking of St. Mary's, they play SDSU on December 8th. Sweet Mary Jane I would like to liveblog this but even if I could find a TV that is showing it, I have prior commitments. Stupid holiday parties.
If SDSU wins? Well, if St. Mary's makes it on this week's final blogpoll then I would seriously think about ranking the Aztecs at #35 or something...
Someone gave me a question that rocked my very soul and rendered me into a quivering ball in the corner of my room for an hour.
Would I rather -
1) Watch a basketball game being called Bill Raftery AND Dickie V.?
UNC 86, Kentucky 77.
During the game Dickie V. just said 4 times in a row "I wanted to see Ashley, where is Ashley?"
Calm down fucking old man horn dog!
It was amazing how Kentucky was surging before the half and was so close at halftime only to...
Well, they just... You know, this video will explain what happened to the Wildcats better than I can...
Happy Saturday everyone.
A friend recently pointed out UCLA forward Chace Stanback "now private" MySpace page.
Still there is this wonderful gem of a line...
""I'm so far ahead of my time I'm bout 2 start another life....look behind u I'm bout 2 past u twice".....UCLA BOUND"
Solid! Give that man a job as the American Poet Laureate after his college career! ONE HUNDRED COCKTAILS TO YOU, SIR...
Next, Louisville coaches certainly know how to treat their players! This from the Las Vegas Review Journal:
Our sources say (first-year assistant coach Walter) McCarty and (Louisville player Juan) Palacios were in the LAX nightclub's VIP section early Thursday with several male friends, including a young white man who appeared to be a seven-footer. Palacios, 22, is injured and has not played this year.
A bottle of $400 Patron was charged to... (director of basketball operations) Eric Scott's credit card, I'm told, and a bottle of Veuve Clicquot, which goes for about $300, was paid for in cash.
A spokesman for the University of Louisville's basketball team has demanded a retraction for an item printed here that stated team members were night-clubbing.
Kenny Klein, the school's sports information director, called it a "completely erroneous report"...
Hmmmm, retraction huh? Completely erroneous, huh?
Juan Palacios
Well just who IS that Black man?
I feel there will be some disciplinary actions coming even though everyone was of age. Something along the lines of conduct unbecoming to the image of the program crap.
(HT: HCAA BB FanHouse)
Like I need another reason to bash the NBA, but I'll do it anyway!
Denver was playing LA and Carmelo Anthony just CHOKES Sasha Vujacic because he was just getting the better of him on a possible pick play. Now if that would happen in college, besides being ejected, Carmelo would have been suspended or EXPELLED from school!
But I'll bet he'll just get a slap on the wrist and a small fine.
Don't you long for the days of Syracuse, Carmelo?
The NBA. It's FAN-TASTIC!
(HT: Basketball Forum)
Georgia's basketball team a fucking "slow motion train wreck".
And that was a direct quote from the Student-Athletic Academic Achievement Center director in discussing the situation with UGA's senior associate AD.
The failure of the Bulldogs to keep academics in mind has cost them 5 players in the past two months. Two months!
"I am losing sleep while I stress over these problems..."
- UGA coach Dennis Felton
Apparently the senior associate AD is like 'talk to the hand' with comments like...
"I believe the real problem remains the players' non-compliance with not only your academic expectations, but also those of the Athletic Association."
You don't need a cypher to translate that one...
"Your players don't give a shit about skool."
Even better is that coach Felton had his assistants walking the players to academic appointments! Now that is service!
Hey, as long as you keep on winning big guy...
Funny crazy story out of Cleavland about a local TV station being sued because of news room fights, anti-Semitic comments and college basketball.
(former managing editor David) Eden didn't complain about (co-worker Ryan) Minnaugh's anti-Semitic remark until after the two newsmen clashed in the control room before a noon newscast. When Minnaugh proposed airing promotional graphics for the NCAA basketball tournament, Eden pushed him out of the room, slammed the door and wouldn't let Minnaugh back in.
Wow, remind me to keep my fucking mouth shut the next time I get invited to a Seder.
Hey, did you guys see Wisconsin's epic collapse against Duuu...
Here is the official consensus top 25 blogpoll -
1) Memphis
2) UCLA
3) North Carolina
4) Kansas
5) Georgetown
6) Duke
7) Washington St.
8) Texas
9) Texas A&M
10) Louisville
11) Butler
12) Tennessee
13) Michigan St.
14) Marquette
15) Indiana
16) Oregon
17) Pittsburgh
18) Clemson
19) Gonzaga
20) BYU
21) Xavier
22) Miami (FL)
23) Southern Ill.
24) Villanova
25) USC
Everyone's vote can be found here.
Comments - Welcome back, USC. I guess we were a little rough on JesusO.J. Mayo.
The love for Butler grows! Six point jump in the polls.
BYU?!? Where the fuck did they come from?! Trust me, I know this conference. They will not be around for long. Everyone who voted for them will be proven WRONG. Go Aztecs... Please?
Indiana, that loss cost you 6 points in the downward direction! You did it to yourself. That's why it really hurts.
Arizona coach Lute Olsen to see if he really wants to coach the Wildcats against Fullerton.
"It was nice to be back," Olson, 73, said through the sports information office after practice. "It was a good practice."
When asked about if he will help his team against the Titans, Olsen said...
"...we'll have to wait and see."
When pleaded with by the media and his team, stating that they are 3 and 2 and desperately needed him back, Olsen shrugged and muttered...
"I don't know."
And we STILL don't know why he bailed on Arizona for three weeks! Must be nice to have a job like that.
(HT: NCAA BB FanHouse)
Hey, did you know that Texas-San Antonio is 3 and 1 so far? Well hell, they were 7 and 22 last year. So lets celebrate!
I'll have what they're having.
San Diego State still not up to the challenge in playing with the big boys.
And if we got bitch slapped by Cal, we will get ass RAPED by Arizona in four weeks. I don't care how low the Wildcats are on the blogpoll at that point.
You sure got a pretty mouth... You like to play basketball? Come over here, boy.
Wow, there were more teams than I first realized that I ruthlessly punished for their lack of effort...
Louisville, Tennessee (c'mon guys!), Indiana, Oregon, Marquette, Michigan State (I'm having less and less faith in them), Gonzaga, Southern Illinois, Kansas State (I should have dropped them out completely because they are in hell) and Syracuse (dropped out completely).
Texas A&M and Butler got major rewards and moved up big time in my ballot.
There was a moment where I wanted to bump Kansas down, but hey a win is a win and doing what they did in overtime gives them props.
Official consensus blogpoll to be released tonight! Maybe.
Dickie V gives us some sage advice on how to win the 2008 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship...
"To win an national championship, you better be able to play on the defensive side of the floor.
If you want to win a national title... get your players to buy into playing defense as a team."
Words of wisdom, that stuff is GOLD! Coaches need to make note of this!
Maryland fan dreams of March Madness meeting with USC...
Says Terp fan: "Their senior Forward Bambale Osby, 6-8 250 will go right over O.J. Mayo. No chance."
You know you're in for a long season when you say ANYTHING close to "They got a couple of good freshmen"...
Hope y'all are having a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
We'll be back on Sunday with our liveblogging Arizona vs. Kansas (unless something shocking happens before then). In the meantime, chill with some turkey and the D.R.E.
San Diego State Aztecs at Cal-Berkeley - November 24th, 3 pm PST
By the numbers:
SDSU
Cal
SDSU
Cal
Spain (SDSU)
Christopher (Cal)
Davis (SDSU)
Hardin (Cal)
Wade (SDSU)
Christopher (Cal)
Spain (SDSU)
Anderson (Cal)
Jeff Sagarin rankings -
SDSU #45
Cal #100
Yes, it looks like we dominate on paper in almost every major category. We will need to shut down Christopher to have any type of advantage. SDSU has a history of withering like a postcoital penis at away games, so it's one of those situations that you need to really not look at the numbers (the numbers had us winning vs. Indiana at March Madness a few years back too).
I'm gonna try to catch this game at a bar this weekend.
GO AZTECS!
Note: The formatting of this post seems to work best when viewed by Mozilla Firefox and NOT Internet Explorer. And no, I'm not going to figure out what code works best for both. Sorry. =(
Drew Drew Drew... Michigan State led UCLA by 11 points at the half!
How could you let Mbah a Moute take over the game like that?! UCLA ends up winning 68 to 63.
Ummmm, insert your own comment here...
Sparties, you guys get the first Always Be Closing award. Aren't you proud.
Put that Gatorade DOWN! Gatorade's for CLOSERS!
Next!
Oregon... That was simply embarrassing. St. Mary's came out and fucking bitch slapped you 99 to 87!
Gaels (whatever the hell those are), you receive our The Is Sparta!!! award for laying the lumber to the Ducks. Methinks there may be a missing persons report for Oregon on next week's blogpoll.
Spartans, prepare for glory!
Here is the official consensus top 25 blogpoll -
1) Memphis
2) UCLA
3) North Carolina
4) Kansas
5) Georgetown
6) Louisville
7) Tennessee
8) Washington St.
9) Indiana
10) Duke
11) Oregon
12) Marquette
13) Texas
14) Michigan St.
15) Gonzaga
16) Texas A&M
17) Butler
18) Southern Ill.
19) Kansas State
20) Pittsburgh
21) Davidson
22) Syracuse
23) Virginia
24) Clemson
25) Villanova
Everyone's individual vote can be found here.
Comments - Looks like I wasn't the only one who ruthlessly punished Arkansas and Stanford. From a ranking of 17 and 16 to completely assed out of the poll.
If a tree falls and no one is around...
Miami and Florida is starting to creep into the poll. I can support Florida if they get a few quality wins. But Miami? Well, they might fall into my football/basketball rule. If you suck at football you should rock at basketball. And Miami SUCKS at football right now.
And people are starting to get pretty tired of UNC's lackluster wins.
Great article from The Bible about Todd Bozeman's return and how he could be the most effective coach in all of Division I basketball.
In case you forgot, he was accused of making $30,000 in payments to the parents of Jelani Gardner and also cited for denying the NCAA violations and providing false and misleading information during the initial investigation. The NCAA sanctioned him for eight damn years!
George Mason vs. Kansas State looks to be the game of the week.
Both undefeated with GMU looking pretty damn good. And hey, if George Mason sinks up the joint, it IS the Old Spice Classic...
Maybe Bruce can bring the Patriots a chainsaw.
Sometimes Luke Winn can be a little off. He lists the hottest rivalries ...
Illinois/Indiana? Check. Memphis/Tennessee? Yeah. Louisville/Marquette? Ok. Texas/Texas A&M? Sure. Florida/Kentucky? Of course! UCLA/USC? Naturally.
Georgetown/Syracuse???? I understand back when Public Enemy were gods of the rap world this was a big game. But Syracuse is no match for Georgetown now. Melo is gone gone gone. Just my opinion....
John Thompson Jr. may have to call 911 after that game.
I have dropped out Stanford and Arizona for those sad sad losses. I dropped Arkansas down to 25 because after they got that beat down from Providence they turn right around and slap VCU (who I have also dropped out of the poll).
I moved up everyone after Texas A&M because they just keep on winning.
On hold are Marquett, UCLA, Duke and Michigan State (playing today).
First...
Siena beats Stanford 67 to 79.
Major changes to my blogpoll ballot because as Sunday Morning QB said, "reward big wins and ruthlessly punish mediocrity..."
Update: Sitting here now with soberclear eyes, I still think that was fun live blogging last night. The software that I used was fantastic and easy. Tech support was cool (I accidentally included their comments on the live blog).
Reading through it now, it looked like a train wreck with my spelling/grammer but WTF you know? It's not suppose to be perfect. I'm doing that in real time, not like these posts when I can edit stuff. I will definitely be doing it again.
And when y'all are reading it, seriously check out the link to the UofA gals I put in the second half of the game.
Sound the victory horn! The Terps will face a depleted UCLA squad on Monday!
...Maryland learned today that it won’t be facing the full contingent of Bruins in the opening semifinal of the CBE Classic on Monday night in Kansas City.
UCLA coach Ben Howland said junior guard Darren Collison, the team’s best player, won’t play in the tournament because of continued soreness in his left knee. His status had been uncertain.
Also out, Howland said, is junior guard/forward Michael Roll, who ruptured his plantar fascia earlier this month.
"We’re not going to rush him back. We have a long season ahead of us," Howland told reporters today in a conference call.
Ummm, I hate to burst your bubble (HA! I said "bubble" as in "bubble team" in March Madness which they probably will be! I'm clever)...
Apologies. Anyhoo Maryland, it doesn't matter if UCLA put all their bench warmers in the starting lineup, they will PWND you. But if you want to continue to believe in magical unicorn ponies, keep singing the "depleted" song.
Awwww, So depleted and pretty.... I believe.
Maybe the MWC is not getting enough credit. I know we are still early in the season, but man! San Diego State, Air Force, UNLV, Brigham Young and New Mexico is tearing through their non-conference schedule, Utah took former #1 seed Washington to the wire (although they fucking gift wrapped that game to the Huskies with those ticky tack fouls). I mean geez louise, you let your three best scorers foul out at the same time?!
"You've got to give them credit — they played well down the stretch," said (Utah coach Jim) Boylen. "But you can't let a team shoot 37 free throws on the road and expect to win."
No, you can't expect to win when you keep your three best players in the game with foul trouble! Have you heard of quick rotation, Jim?
So the talking heads are saying that the Tar Heels were lackluster , sluggish and unfocused.
How about Davidson being that GOOD?! The blogpoll has them ranked at 20 this week. So it makes me yawn that the score was so close.
"I told the guys in one of the huddles, 'You may not believe this right now, but I love this,'" (UNC coach Roy) Williams said. "This is great for us."
Take that in for a sec. The coach is telling his team "Hey, this is fantastic we are about to get beat!"
Yeah, next time my wife is counseling a domestic violence victim she should say to her "Hey you know, that was good for you."
Uhhhhh, yer not suppose to do that. We're number one!
Here it is!
1) Memphis
2) North Carolina
3) UCLA
4) Kansas
5) Georgetown
6) Tennessee
7) Louisville
8) Washington St.
9) Oregon
10) Indiana
11) Duke
12) Marquette
13) Michigan St.
14) Texas
15) Gonzaga
16) Stanford
17) Arkansas
18) Texas A&M
19) Arizona
20) Davidson
21) VA Commonwealth
22) Butler
23) N.C. St.
24) Southern Ill.
25) Mississippi St.
To see everyone's vote, click here.
Comments - No, no, no. No Gardner-Webb. Great job guys, but lets see you win some more games first.
Buh-bye USC. We'll call ya. Promise.
Kentucky, you'll be back.
Michigan State is way too low for my taste.
I'm neutral about N.C. State and Southern Illinois. I didn't rank them, but I think it's not a crime that the other bloggers have them as a bottom 25 ranking.
And as always, if you are a blogger who is interested in joining, e-mail me your blog information.
From NCAABB FanHouse:
It's silly to vote for either Mercer or Gardner-Webb in the Top 25. There is absolutely no way that either of these two teams is one of the 25 best in the country. It's not possible. It's highly unlikely that either team is even one of the 100 best teams in the country, although Jeff Sagarin currently has Gardner-Webb at No. 93. (Mercer is No. 165.)
So why rank them in the Top 25? I assume it's just that some of the AP voters realize how silly it is to vote on a Top 25 in November and want to do something to shake things up. Even in March the polls mean absolutely nothing in college basketball, but in November they mean less than nothing, so in that respect I can kind of see why someone might want to vote for a team like Mercer or Gardner-Webb.
That actually sums up my view of it, and it was very interesting to see some of the blogpollers putting Gardner-Webb at #25. But for the most part what everyone in the blogpoll is saying is that "Hey, it's only November. This is pretty meaningless at this stage anyways."
But that doesn't stop people from arguing about them.
Work surrounds me and blogpollers want to know why Gardner-Webb is not getting more love.
The Week One Blogpoll will be released by Wednesday AM.
Hey, the Vols think they are who they thought they were!
Improved depth should enable Pearl to dole out minutes based on defensive intensity, which players peg as the reason they blew a 17-point halftime lead in an NCAA regional semifinal against Ohio State.
"We’re fixing that now," (Wayne) Chism said of the team’s defense. "Our biggest key is improving our defense and stopping the other team’s top players. If you don’t go hard, you don’t play."
Always. Be. Closing. They would have won that award if I had it last season. What a meltdown against Oden and the Buckeyes.
Wow, Marquette is cutting this game close while Oregon and UCLA have yet to play tonight.
Once those games are done I will have my blogpoll ballot done. I have completely dropped out USC and Kentucky. Then I have moved up those who were below.
That is a rough sketch of my thinking anyways. Also, just because of the compacted timeline (the bloggers discuss the top 25 teams on Tuesday and the final consensus is released on Wednesday) I will not release my ballot. When the final blogpoll is released there will always be a link to everyone's vote.
I will start live blogging this week with a couple of games. I plan to anyways. Don't hold me to it.
UPDATE: Marquette is up by 10 now... If they can make a strong finish I probably won't drop them down a few spots. And I'm seriously thinking about moving Duke up. We will see.
UPDATE 2: Well, enter Pittsburgh and Clemson (since I have dropped out Kentucky and USC) at 24 and 25. I'm still looking to penalizing Marquette for that close game versus Utah Valley State. Those last 10 points were in garbage time. But I need to see what Oregon does (so far it is 14 to 22 against Western Michigan).
I don't know about you but my feeling is that if you beat a weaker opponent by 65 points, you don't act like you won against the reigning champs or something.
Bunch of douchebags the Blue Devils are.
But first, SDSU has won 3 games!
It's the little things. One game at a time.
Tennessee Tech loses against Florida 93-65 -
Mike Sutton: DAMN, that was a fuck you in the ass type loss!
Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez and Dir. of Basketball Stephen Sauers -
Wait wait wait wait WAIT! Beware of the T!
Blogpolling and work will take up the next two days, so expect light or no posts.
