Gopher Basketball
1) it’s been a loooong season watching the Gophers
2) after viewing today’s game, it seems like the Gophers are on an extended college basketball version of spring training
Item #1 will soon be addressed, as there are only three regular season games left for the Gophers, and likely one game in Chicago for the Big Ten tournament. #2 is unfortunate-that in this long season, veterans continue to perform inconsistently and into this vacuum step callow freshman and sophomores to “take their swings”. Facing Wisconsin and Ohio State was akin to Rollins College stepping into the box versus Johan Santana-overmatched by power and guile. At this point, we can only hope that lessons are being learned, whether in practice or in games, and in the areas of both skill and effort.
The Golden Gophers
* It has been assumed throughout this year that the Gophers would go as their three juniors of Lawrence McKenzie Jr., Dan Coleman, and Spencer Tollackson would go. I was not expecting a win from the Gophers today, but I was hopeful for a more competitive effort. My disappointment starts with the effort of Coleman and Tollackson. These two players have been with the program longer than any others, and tasted the most recent bit of success for the program by contributing limited minutes as freshman to the NCAA bound team of 2004-05. That these two veterans were such non-factors today was disheartening and unfortunately, not totally unpredictable. I figured both players, particularly Tollackson, would have a difficult time offensively against Greg Oden and the Buckeyes, but they were not able to contribute anything positive today .
* That brings us to the other junior that high expectations were placed upon-McKenzie, Jr. While he is not a point guard, he is a potent shooting guard who brought his A game today and did not shy away from the challenge presented by the likely #1 Buckeyes. If McKenzie had a competent point guard to handle bringing the ball up the court, I feel he could be shining even more than what he has displayed this season. His fine season is being obscured by arguably the worst Gophers season since. . .well, maybe ever? Hopefully his senior campaign will not be lost in further obscurity.
* Besides McKenzie, the most impressive performance today for a Gopher was by Bryce Webster. He did receive a couple facials from Oden dunks, but for the most part he played Oden very well in the post and was not overwhelmed by Oden. Nice work by the young man, I hope his minutes continue to expand these next few games.
* Ditto for Damien Johnson and Lawrence Westbrook.
* I see this has already been addressed on the chat board, but perhaps my biggest disappointment today was the limited exposure for the ’82 alums. This reunion has been talked about for weeks and the posters and programs certainly alluded to this being something to celebrate-so why were we limited to seeing this bunch of players during a two minute TV timeout? If there were issues with Trent Tucker arriving in time for a halftime celebration, how bout a little ceremony after the game? How bout video highlights of 1982 throughout the game? In an awful season for the fan base to endure, couldn’t this have been done better? I don’t know if this is primarily an athletic department or marketing department function, but it seems that AD Joel Maturi should be looking to bolster our athletic programs beyond new head coaches in the primary sports.
The Big Ten
* Well, it appears the Big Ten will have the #1 and 2 ranked teams in the nation very late in the college basketball season for at least one week. If you concern yourself with conference pride, let’s hope it works out better than the similar set-up the Big 10 had with college football this past fall/winter.
* Wow, how pathetic and disappointing has Penn State’s season been? The Nittany Lions returned everyone from a year ago, which was a year highlighted by ending a long home court winning streak by Illinois. I had them as a potential sleeper in the Big Ten this year and thought at least they would earn a NIT berth and continue an upward ascent. Instead, they are on an 11 game Big Ten losing streak, after having defeated Northwestern in their opening conference game. Forget about any positive momentum in State College for men’s basketball.
The National Scene
* Over the course of the past couple years, the Missouri Valley Conference has garnered a lot of media attention for their ascension as a conference and the controversy that swirled around the four bids they receive in the NCAA tournament last year, in which they acquitted themselves quite well. While I think the accolades are well deserved for the MVC, I’m beginning to think they might have been overshadowing an even better mid-major conference these past couple years, the Colonial Athletic Association. That is the conference that produced the ultimate Cinderella team last spring in George Mason, and it is a league that’s currrent fourth place team in the standings is Drexel, a team that has defeated Villanova, Syracuse, and Creighton on the road this season. While it does not appear their league is as deep as the Missouri Valley, the quartet at the top of Virginia Commonwealth, Old Dominion, Hofstra, and Drexel appears very formidable and capable of creating havoc in the tourney. (Old Dominion beat Georgetown early this season and Hofstra defeated St. Joseph’s and St. John’s in non-conference action). In Selection Sunday’s current “Field of 65”, he has only one team coming out of the CAA, so if you’re looking for an extremely competitive post-season conference tournament with a high level of play, you might want to tune into the semifinals and finals of the CAA.
* I was shovelling dirt on the Louisville Cardinals earlier this season and wondering if Rick Pitino had lost some of his touch, but they are certainly peaking at the right time, highlighted by consecutive road wins against Pitt and Marquette this week. They now appear to be a near lock to make the tournament and Pitino has done this on the backs of some very young talent-there’s only one senior in the rotation. I guess Pitino can still coach ’em up a bit.
* That being said, I’m having a very difficult time reading the Big East this season. They have traditionally been my favorite conference to follow, after the Big Ten, but with Pitt and Marquette faltering down the stretch, I don’t know if you can trust any of these teams come tournament time. Georgetown looks like the class of the league right now, but when I watched them early in the season, their guards were spotty, and that’s being generous. Even though the conference is bound to get many NCAA slots, I’m not feeling too confident in any of these teams making a deep run.
* Speaking of hard to read-I give you the Virginia Tech Hokies! How can a team sweep the most talented squad in the nation (North Carolina) and defeat Duke on their home court, yet get swept by NC State, including a 25 point shellacking today? The Hokies also lost to Marshall, Western Michigan, and George Washington in the preseason. This is a team keyed by veterans too, not some inexperienced squad that you would expect such struggles from. I have a feeling I’m going to hate this team when completing my tournament bracket in about a month.
* Even though they won in overtime at Gonzaga, I continue to be pretty suspicious of Memphis. It stands to reason that a team clipping along so well should have handled the Zags with less effort since Josh Heytveldt chose to go on a long, strange trip, although the trip to Spokane has to be considered. When I saw these guys earlier in the season, they were pretty sloppy and erratic. Playing against the subpar competition in Conference USA would not seem to be the recipe for sharpening a team’s play either.
* How weak is Conference USA? Central Florida is currently sitting in third place in the conference with a 8-4 record. UCF is the team our Golden Gophers defeated by eleven points earlier this season, sandwiched between losses to Arkansas-Little Rock and UNLV.
* Earlier this year, I made the statement that Ernie Kent had likely saved his job with the impressive effort by his Oregon Ducks. Now. . .I’m wondering if he’s getting close to the hot seat again. I wonder because the Ducks have lost five of their last six games and sit at 8-7 in conference play. Those losses have not come against any chumps, but nonetheless, they’ve been losing. One wonders if Oregon has an early exit from the tournament, what sort of pressure may be exerted by Phil Knight and other boosters to find a new coach.
* Arkansas legendary athletic director, Frank Broyles resigned this weekend, in large part to controversy swirling around the football program. I’m guessing that this move doesn’t help Stan Heath’s tenuous hold on the head basketball coaching job. The Razorbacks have been maddeningly inconsistent, dominating teams one night and getting blown out next time out. Right now, they are on the wrong side of the bubble and Heath’s overall record is not too stellar.
* Speaking of SEC teams that have been inconsistent and disappointing, how bout those LSU Tigers? They are in danger of slipping below .500 and being in eligible for the NIT! They are tied for the worst record in the SEC at 3-9 and sit at 14-12 overall. This is a team that went to the Final Four last year, and despite the loss of Tyrus Thomas and Darrell Mitchell, they were returning an All-American candidate in Glen Davis, several other key players from last season, plus two impact transfers. Coach John Brady’s abilities were frequently questioned before LSU’s run last year and I’m guessing some heat is surrounding him this year. That is, if the LSU fanbase can be distracted from spring football practice.
* One question in the mailbag this week, let’s address it:
Coolhand,
Even though NDSU hasn’t done anything significant since winning at Marquette, any chance they can sneak a NIT bid if they win out to finish 20-8?
Freddy Fargo
Well Freddy, I can see you haven’t spoken with your cousin, LakesBison recently, because from his vantage point, even losses for the Bison are significant. Let’s address your question, even though I must admit, breaking down NIT odds is not my forte. As you stated, not much has occurred since the Bison defeated Marquette, with the next most impressive bullet points on their resume being close losses to Texas Tech and Kansas State. At this point, I don’t see them getting a berth-I think there are going to be a lot of quality teams, both in performance and name recognition, when the NIT starts sifting through the NCAA leftovers. However, would there be a fan base more excited about gaining a NIT berth than NDSU? In a tournament that everyone overlooks, the NIT folks might be able to garner considerable excitement and a solid crowd in Fargo. So, perhaps that sways the NIT suits, but I don’t see it happening at this point.
Games of the Week
Monday
Kansas vs. Kansas State-A little over a week ago, K-State was coming off a road win against Texas, thinking about a NCAA berth, and hoping to knock off their biggest rivals. The Jayhawks responded by thumping them by 27 points at home. K-State can advance its tournament hopes greatly by winning at home tonight.
runner-up
Villanova vs. Marquette-Marquette really needs to halt their slide and simultaneously get Dominic James back on track-tonight would be a good time to do so, with Nova also fighting for a NCAA berth.
Tuesday
Air Force vs. UNLV-Both these teams appear solid bets for the NCAA, but Air Force would like to keep pace with BYU in the WAC, and UNLV probably doesn’t want to concede any wins on their home court.
runner-up
High Point vs. Winthrop-Winthrop is many people’s sleeper pick once the NCAA tournament arrives, but High Point looks to be their only legitimate competition in the Big South Conference. While Winthrop is undefeated in conference play, High Point sits at 10-2, one of their losses being a one point defeat at home to Winthrop. I would guess these two teams will meet once again in their post-season tournament finals, but this should be an interesting contest.
Wednesday
Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma State-A&M continues its march towards a Big 12 title with a visit to Gallagher-Iba Arena. The Cowboys can’t win away from home, but are hellcats at home.
runner-up
Boston College vs. Virginia Tech-Who knows what will occur when these two ACC teams hook up? Could be a three overtime classic or one of these teams could win by twenty. They’ve both been wildly unpredictable this season, but each have had moments of high quality.
Thursday
Washington State vs. Oregon-The Ducks will try to sweep the Cougars and get back on a winning track, but Washington State continues to play awfully well. Seems to be a pretty big game for the Ducks.
runner-up
Duke vs. Clemson-Don’t look now, but Clemson of the 17-0 start appears to be nearing the bubble. They can avenge their notorious loss against the Dukies at Cameron tonight and solidify their NCAA resume with a home win.
Friday
A good night to check out the Bob Dylan exhibit at the Weisman or head over to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts for the San Francisco Psychedelic exhibit. At the Minnesota History Center, Baseball is America is in its last week, might want to check that out.
Saturday
Pitt vs. Georgetown-Big East supremacy is at stake in this game. A showdown of capable 7′ footers highlights what should be a tough defensive battle.
runner-up
BYU vs. San Diego State-During the past two Saturdays, San Diego State has defeated BYU’s prime competition in the WAC with convincing home wins (Air Force and UNLV). They will try to complete the trifecta tonight.
Sunday
Wisconsin vs. Ohio State-Big Ten title, #1 ranking, and #1 seed in the tourney are all at stake in this game. Nothing much bigger than this in the regular season.
runner-up
Kentucky vs. Vanderbilt-Former Gopher recruit Kevin Stallings will try to continue Vandy’s new-found dominance over Kentucky with a fourth straight win at home. Funny to say this, but Vandy’s NCAA berth seems more secure than Kentucky’s this year.
* Have a good week ‘Holers and we will see you next Sunday~