The Final Four is set after blowouts, surprises (The Associated Press)
ATLANTA (AP) — An inspired Louisville squad vs. the surprising Shockers. A new group of Fab Wolverines vs. the stingiest zone defense in college basketball. After a weekend of blowouts and another upset, the Final Four is set. Top overall seed Louisville will face Wichita State at the Georgia Dome next Saturday, while Michigan takes on Syracuse in the other national semifinal. The winners advance to the April 8 championship. On Sunday, the Cardinals drew inspiration from a gruesome injury to guard Kevin Ware and cruised past Duke 85-63 in the Midwest Regional. Michigan led from the opening tip, routing Florida 79-59 in the South. A day earlier, Syracuse shut down Marquette 55-39 to win the East. Wichita State punched its Final Four ticket with a 70-66 upset of Ohio State out West. In the final year of the Big East before it splits into two new conferences, Louisville and Syracuse provided a fitting send-off to a league that quickly became a basketball powerhouse after it was founded in 1979. Before it goes, this version of the Big East has a …
Marquette-Syracuse means Big East in Final Four (The Associated Press)
WASHINGTON (AP) — When two teams from the same conference meet with a Final Four berth at stake, fans think it’s great from a rivalry and bragging rights perspective. Conference administrators hear cash registers ringing as NCAA shares are earned. But coaches? Not a chance. Saturday’s Marquette-Syracuse game will be the ninth time since the field expanded to 64 teams that two schools from the same conference played in the regional final. The first of those nine times was in 1987. Georgetown, a No. 1 seed just four years from winning a national championship, met Providence, an up-and-coming program under up-and-coming coach Rick Pitino, in the South Regional final. Georgetown coach John Thompson was asked Friday about playing a team from the same conference with such a big prize at stake. Three times, he colorfully said that it was a pain in the posterior. ”They know you and you know them. There’s no surprise. No coach wants to get somebody from within your…
Mighty Big Ten has 4 standing with shot at Final 4 (The Associated Press)
EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) — The Big Ten has a nation-high four teams still in the NCAA tournament, bolstering its season-long boast that its conference is the best in college basketball. The Big Ten has combined to win 10 games so far, its best showing through the round of 32 – ever. And, it could get even better. An All-Big Ten Final Four is possible because top-seeded Indiana, second-seeded Ohio State, third-seeded Michigan State and fourth-seeded Michigan will compete this week in different regions. ”The fact that there are four teams advancing shows that this conference prepares you for any type of team or game,” Hoosiers coach Tom Crean wrote in a text message Monday morning while preparing to play fourth-seeded Syracuse in the East Regional semifinals. ”You develop possession by possession appreciation.” Indiana played grind-it-out, low-scoring games during the Big Ten – going 0-3 when held to fewer than 60 points – and had to rally late in some other games to win. The experiences paid off when the…
Another wave of upsets leaves NCAA field up in air (The Associated Press)
Another round of upsets capped a wild regular season, casting uncertainty over the coveted top seeds for the NCAA tournament and leaving defending champion Kentucky facing the very real chance of being left out of the 68-team field. The selection committee was set to unveil its brackets Sunday evening. A year ago, the process was far less complicated, with the Wildcats, North Carolina and Syracuse all clear No. 1s. Committee chairman Mike Bobinski, the athletic director at Xavier, said a few days ago he considered as many as seven teams to be in the running for the top line of the four regional brackets. Gonzaga, which is No. 1 in The Associated Press rankings for the first time, will be making its 15th straight NCAA appearance after winning the West Coast Conference. The Zags are expected to land the top seed…
Combine math makes overachievers of Northwestern, Mississippi (Yahoo! Sports)
Ratings for every FBS team: Sagarin rank Combine participation rank Difference 1. Alabama T3 Plus-2 2. Oregon T16 Plus-14 3. Texas A&M T9 Plus-6 4. Georgia T3 Minus-1 5. Notre Dame 6 Plus-1 6. S. Carolina T7 Plus-1 7. Florida 5 Minus-2 8. Kansas State T16 Plus-8 9. Stanford T22 Plus-13 10. LSU T1 Minus-9 11. Fla. State T1 Minus-10 12. Oklahoma T9 Minus-3 13. Ohio State T7 Minus-6 14. Clemson T33 Plus-19 15. Oregon St. T45 Plus-30 16. Texas T33 Plus-17 17. Ok State T45 Plus-28 18. Baylor T45 Plus-27 19. Utah State T45 Plus-26 20. Michigan T64 Plus-44 21. N’western T90 Plus-69 22. Wisconsin T22 Even 23. Nebraska T33 Plus-10 24. Ole Miss T90 Plus-66 25. Vanderbilt T64 Plus-39 26. BYU T45 Plus-19 27. Louisville T64 Plus-47 28. Arizona St. T33 Plus-5 29. SJSU T45 Plus-16 30. Penn State T22 Minus-8 31. UCLA T9 Minus-22 32. TCU T33 Plus-1 33. USC T9 Minus-24 34. Mich. St. T22 Minus-12 35. Cincinnati T22 Minus-14 36. Texas Tech T90 Plus-53 37. Syracuse T22 Minus-16 38. N. Illinois T90 Plus-51 39. Missouri T33 Minus-7 40. Boise State T45 Plus-4 41. Miss State T33 Minus-9 42. UNC T9 Minus-34 43. Arizona T64 Plus-20 44. UCF T90 Plus-45 45. Ga Tech T45 Minus-1 46. Tulsa T90 Plus-43 47. W. Virginia T22 Minus-26 48. Miami T45 Minus…
Breakfast Buffet: Four-year-old YouTube star announces Syracuse’s starting lineup (The Dagger: College Basketball Blog)
Breakfast Buffet: Four-year-old YouTube star announces Syracuse’s starting lineup (The Dagger: College Basketball Blog)
Posted by feed on February 5, 2013 in Basketball (M) · 0 Comments · Edit entry
The four-year-old boy who became a YouTube sensation last month when his parents posted video of him screaming Syracuse’s starting lineup in their living room got to perform on slightly bigger stage. Here’s video of him announcing Syracuse’s starters at the Carrier Dome before Monday night’s matchup against Notre Dame.
QB Ulmer has another scholarship offer
Another day, another scholarship offer for junior quarterback Will Ulmer (Washington/St. Johns College High School). Ulmer’s latest offer came from Southern Miss. The dual-threat signal caller picked up an offer from Nebraska on Tuesday. Ulmer also has offers from Boston College, Maryland, North Carolina and Syracuse. The 6-foot-1, 194-pound junior has expressed strong interest in Ohio State. He visited there last fall and often compares himself to Buckeyes quarterback Braxton Miller.
What to watch for on opening weekend: Three games on ships and Kentucky’s freshmen debut
Unlike most years when college basketball begins with a trickle of mediocre games leading into the 24-hour marathon, this season’s opening weekend actually has some intrigue and panache.
Weekend rewind: Big Ten
Well, that wasn’t a great week and it was a terrible nonconference season. Let’s rewind Week 4 and then start looking forward to conference play. Team of the week: Minnesota. The Golden Gophers…
Minnesota 4-0 after holding off Syracuse
Look out for Minnesota. The Gophers are 4-0 for the first time since 2008 after an impressive 17-10 victory over Syracuse at home. Here’s how it happened: It was over when: Minnesota recovered…
