The Final Verdict On C.L. Smooth

After a week of turmoil surrounding this whole Corey Lowe situation, it looks as though the truth has finally come to light in a very good article in today's Daily Free Press:

http://www.dailyfreepress.com/sports/judgment-call-1.2204615

Just looks like a sticky situation all around in which people were looking out for their best intentions and own self-interests

Corey wants to make a living playing basketball professionally overseas because, quite frankly, he's good enough to do so. He wants to be assured by someone that this can indeed happen and have someone guide him through a process that would seem crazy and convoluted to practically any of us.

Chambers is a brand new head coach looking to start up a successful mid-major program that wins, but equally as important, plays by the rules. Playing Lowe could have possibly gotten BU into some hot water with the NCAA, since his "meeting" with an agent made him ineligable, and he is looking out for the well being of the program and (as the face of the program) himself.

A sad, bizarre situation all around, but I know I can say with absolute certainty that I will never let this incident tarnish my opinion of Corey Lowe: he's always been one of my favorite BU basketball players and he will continue to be, without a doubt in my mind.

The Off-Season Coaching Carousel

With the Final Four now on the horizon for Butler and Brad "Baby Coach" Stevens and West Virginia (Huzzah!), another reality of this time of year is approaching for college basketball- coaches getting canned, and coaches subsequently getting hired to fill in those vacancies. Something we all like to call the coaching carousel.



It's a domino effect process to be sure and speculation runs rampant with it. As BU fans, we went through it last year after Dennis Wolff got canned, and a month of hearing names like Richard Pitino and Tony Jones led us to Pat Chambers being named the BU head coach.



Don't ask me why, but I've always been infatuated with this whole process, naming people who I think would work best for these jobs. Think of it like my inner-AD since I know I'll never get any sort of job like that ever in my life.



Anyhow, I'll go through some of the more prominent head coaching vacancies and name who I think would be the best person for each position. Here goes nothing:

DePaul

May be stating the obvious here, but DePaul basketball's fallen on some hard times. While it was certainly a coup for this program and school to make the move from Conference USA to the Big East, they've been absolutely terrible since they changed conferences, highlighted by the fact that they've only won one regular season conference game in the past two years.

Was all of this because DePaul's simply not ready to be in a conference like the Big East or is it because of the shortcomings of former coach Jerry Wainwright?

This is a question that the DePaul administration is hoping to answer, having just canned Wainwright a few months back. I sit on the optimistic side of this: DePaul's not what I would call a "sleeping giant" (that's a bold claim), but they're certainly a program that should be able to do a hell of a lot better than they are right now.

Most of this comes from their location in Chicago. The Second City, in my opinion, has produced more NBA talent than any other city in this country over the past fifteen years. But where do all these kids go? Duke, Memphis, Louisville, Illinois, Marquette- basically, anywhere but DePaul.

Because of the small sizes of programs like Loyola and Illinois-Chicago and the academic restrictions of a school like Northwestern, DePaul can be considered the main program in Chicago to land these kids. What they need is the right coach, along with a new, on-campus arena, but that's a different matter.

You hear a lot of names floating out there for this job, because the school is supposedly looking for a big name get. I've seen Billy Gillispie, but he was deemed to be a bad fit in Kentucky, so how in the hell would he fit in better in Chicago? You see a lot of mid-major coaches like Brad Brownell (Wright State), Gregg Marshall (Witchita State), and John Groce (Ohio U), but I think they need a bigger name to potentially lure in these recruits.

Seen Chicago guys like Chris Lowery (S. Illinois coach) mentioned, but his success at Southern Illinois has been spotty. Brian Gregory from Dayton's been mentioned, but I don't see Gregory taking that job- having gone to that Dayton game, they get insane support from a great fanbase who largely adore him. Besides, if he buys his time a little more, he can land a more stable job than DePaul. Also seen former UCLA coach and ESPN analyst Steve Lavin brought up, and that's certainly a possibility, but I've got a name in mind: Reggie Theus.



Sure, he didn't do well with the Sacramento Kings, but that was not a good situation for him being so new as a head coach. Besides, we've seen this story so many times- successful college coach can't make it in the NBA. Gonna hold that against him too much? No way, especially since he did such a good job at New Mexico State. The man can recruit, he's still pretty young and charismatic, and he played for the Bulls for a little while.

Big enough name who will deliver the Chicago-area players that this program so desperately needs. If worse comes to worse, he can even sell his soul and start working with Worldwide Wes to get some of these guys.


Houston




Tom Penders may have been able to lead the Cougars on a nice run to the Conference USA Tournament title and an NCAA Tourney berth, but it wasn't enough for him to hold onto his job after years of mediocrity.

Houston's obviously a program in a nice location for recruiting and they've certainly had past success with Phi Slamma Jamma and what not, but they haven't been good for awhile. I mean a long while.

Again, not really a "sleeping giant" sort of situation, but you can clearly win at Houston and these past fifteen years have been more of an indication of underachieving rather than a flaw in this program. This is a school that should be among the top five in Conference USA year in and year out.

For me, Houston's got the obvious candidate here- the aforementioned Billy Gillispie.



Now that UTEP's opened up with Tony Barbee's departure, he's been rumored there too, but I'm not sure he'd want to go back to somewhere like that where he's already coached. Besides, location has to be taken into account- would you rather have your school's recruiting base be in Houston or El Paso?

If his past work at UTEP and Texas A&M isn't enough of an indication, Gillispie's a master of building something out of nothing. Sure, he didn't succeed at Kentucky, but I think at this point we can all acknowledge that he was just a bad fit there. In fact, John Calipari's kind of a rarity- a lot of people aren't great fits in Lexington. Tubby Smith certainly wasn't, but that may have been more due to the fact he was a black man coaching at the program that Adolph Rupp built. Nevermind, I'm going down a road I really shouldn't.

All in all, Gillispie's a Texas guy who can build success from scratch. He's looking for a chance for redemption, and in a league like C-USA where Larry Eustachy, Matt Doherty, and Mike Davis coach, where could a better fit be?


Oregon




One of the Pac-10's most successful programs over the past ten years, the Ducks opted to part ways with long-time coach Ernie Kent after two less-than-stellar seasons.

While a lot of us may not think of Oregon as a sort of basketball mecca, it's a great basketball program that's had a lot of past success, and for the sake of being totally honest, there are two words that make this job stand out: Phil Knight.

The Nike founder/owner is an Oregon native and The Swoosh is based out of Portland. Knight has invested a lot in Oregon athletics, even ponying up the dough for a new arena that Oregon's moving into next year.

Expect this to potentially be the marquee job available this off-season. There's a lot of names mentioned around this job, so I'll just run down the list:

-PJ Carlesimo: hasn't coached college in forever, not really sure that's a chance I'd want to take. Besides, I'm always someone who's been weary of bringing an NBA coach into the college ranks, even if they've been there before.

-Mark Few: he's turned them down before, and overall he seems pretty content at Gonzaga. Who can blame him, really?

-Mike Dunlap: if they can't get the guy I'm going to suggest, Dunlap would be who I'd hire. He was brought in to be an extremely highly paid assistant for Kent and some saw it as a possible replacement should Kent be fired. I don't see a program of Oregon's resources going for him as a first choice, but he's certainly a viable one.

-Steve Alford: he's undoubtedly done good work at both Iowa and New Mexico, but for whatever reason, Alford teams have always had trouble in the NCAA Tournament. Don't know why, but I could certainly see the Oregon faithful getting a little restless after repeatedly getting ousted early in the Big Dance.

-Randy Bennett- St. Mary's has certainly been an elite mid-major program these past few years, but that seems like a pretty big jump.

-Rick Adelman: Would he even consider this?

-Jamie Dixon: A west coast guy, but he's turned down bigger jobs than this to stay at Pitt. He seems to be really happy there and it looks like that's where he wants to spend his coaching career, continuing to make Pitt into a regular Big East power

-Jay Wright: Same thing as Dixon, except he has no ties to the left coast. He's a Pennsylvania guy, married to a former Villanova cheerleader and he's a hero there, coaching in a city with elite basketball talent in a much better conference.

So who do I think should be offered the job? Look no further than someone taking place in the Elite Eight today- Baylor coach Scott Drew.



He's rebuilt that program from failure and horrific tragedy and turned them into what they are today, a Big 12 power who's a game away from the Final Four.

May not be the likes of Wright or Dixon, but you really can't do too much better than a young, successful head coach who truly knows how to build a program.


Seton Hall




The program that Carlesimo helped lead to prominence back in the late eighties is now in the search of looking for a head coach after getting rid of Bobby Gonzalez.

Gonzo was a fiery personality to say the least and he wasn't exactly fired for his inability to lead the team to wins, seeing as the team improved each year he was there, but his temper and some questionable players that he brought in ultimately did him in.

Seton Hall's not in a bad position: they've won in the past, they play in the Big East, and they have a good location for recruiting purposes. The task is now to get a coach who will get them out of mediocrity in the Big East and do it in a classy, semi-respectable way. No Gonzo, Part II here.

New York/New Jersey connections are going to be almost a pre-req for whoever's in the running for this job. Fran McCaffrey would have been an ideal fit here, but he just took the Iowa job earlier today. Chris Mooney, the Richmond coach, was floated out there, but it looks like his deal's going to get restructured there. Besides, has anyone ever seen the Richmond campus before? Would you want to leave that for South Orange, New Jersey?

Dan and Bob Hurley, two local high school coaches, have been rumored, but it's not worth the risk to go with a Gerry Faust-esque hiring of a high school coach. Kevin Willard's a Pitino protege, but I'm not sure he's had the success at Iona to warrant this kind of a promotion.

For me, the perfect fit here's Cornell coach Steve Donahue.



He coaches at a New York school, he's had a great run of success that's about to end (temporarily at least) with the graduation of a talent-laden senior class, and most importantly for Seton Hall, he wins with class and integrity.


St. John's




Putting aside any sort of "Oh, how the mighty have fallen" analogies, St. John's certainly isn't where it was back in the eighties. Chris Mullin, Mark Jackson, Ron Artest? To channel Rick Pitino, they're not walking through that door.

And quite frankly, no top players from the Mecca of Basketball (NYC) are walking through the doors of the St. John's campus. The Red Storm are the top program in the New York metro area, but they've fallen far behind the likes of UConn and Syracuse when it comes to getting the Big Apple's top players.

Part of this can certainly be attributed to the fact that St. John's can no longer offer housing stipends that used to entice a lot of local guys to the program, but this is still a program that can compete in the Big East. It's just going to take a lot of work.

Norm Roberts didn't win a whole lot, but he did exactly what he needed to do: he came in and cleaned up a program that was in disrepair. Word is that local AAU coaches complained that Roberts almost made St. John's "too clean", which is something you certainly have to admire in this day and age.

But what St. John's needs now is a man who can win. McCaffery, again, is no longer an option here. The Red Storm are now reportedly in talks with BC coach Al Skinner, but I'm not totally sure I see Skinner leaving The Heights to rebuild a down-trodden program. If he does, that's a great hire, just don't see it happening.

Again, don't see the allure of Willard. Fran Dunphy's been mentioned, but he went from Penn to Temple and has spent the last thirty something years in The City of Brotherly Love. He's a Philly guy, don't see that changing now.

Both Paul Hewitt and Seth Greenberg have already turned the job down, so where do they turn now?

I think the guy here's another Ivy League coach, Harvard's Tommy Amaker.



Amaker's already had success coaching a NY-area school (at Seton Hall) in the Big East no less, and while he flopped at Michigan, his successor, John Beilein, hasn't been doing too well either, so maybe Amaker wasn't entirely to blame for the shortcomings of that program.

He's done an astounding job making Harvard an elite team in the Ivy and he can recruit, even for Harvard, he's luring in top guys. Young, charismatic, and clean when it comes to the NCAA. Seems like a good fit to me.


Wagner


A final New York school looking for a head coach, I'm gonna cut the BS and just give my choice here: none other than former BU coach Dennis Wolff.



Some might argue that the Wolff-man got a raw deal here in the very end and while people have been kicking him while he's down here on campus, the man is a good coach who runs a clean program.

Might as well Wagner, you need a coach, this qualified man needs a job, make it happen.

End of the Line? : The Virginia Commonwealth Preview

With a thrilling 91-89 victory over Morehead State in the second round of the CBI, one that was rather bittersweet considering the departure of Corey Lowe from the program (see post below), BU has now earned the right to play in the Final Four...of the CBI, but granted it still is a final four.

And as Teddy likes to routinely point out, BU's season has now officially lasted longer than these traditional powerhouse programs: UCLA, Louisville, Kansas, Georgetown, Villanova, and UConn among others. A flawed argument, probably, but take it for what it's worth. I mean after all, the kid has been kicking my ass on these postseason picks.

Tonight, BU will square off against undoubtedly one of their tougher foes of the season, the Rams of Virginia Commonwealth University.

VCU finished their season with a 24-9 record, good enough for fifth in the competitive Colonial Athletic Association. The Ken Pomeroy rankings have them in the mid fifties (BU's about No. 110 on the list just for reference), and based on who's left in this tournament, the Rams look to be the best team left standing.

Throw in the fact that in their last 33 games at home at the Stuart C. Siegel Center, VCU's gone a total of 31-2, with each of those losses coming at the hands of Northeastern. It's obvious that BU's going to be going up against a team that has a phenomenal home court advantage there in Richmond, but the Terriers are also going to be going up against a very talented team, led by big man Larry Sanders.

Sanders stands at 6'11" and is averaging an impressive 14 points and nine rebounds a game, and some sites even have him slotted as a first round NBA Draft pick (NBADraft.net's got him down as the 16th overall pick). BU did an effective job on double teaming and limiting Kenneth Faried to 19 and 11 on Monday night (good sign for a guy like Faried to be double teamed and still put up those numbers), but Sanders is a whole different animal here, not even just because he's got a few inches on Faried, he's just a better overall player.

VCU has been a nice ground for producing coaches here in the past few years, with Jeff Capel (now at Oklahoma) and Anthony Grant, who just departed Richmond last year to become the head man at Alabama. Shaka Smart, a Florida assistant last year, is now the head coach of the team, and by most accounts and considerations, he's gone a pretty good job thus far. Maybe he'll even be next in line to get a cushier job, although you wonder when someone may just stay at VCU and really build the program into something even better than it is now, which is really saying something considering the Rams have consistently been one of the nation's elite mid-majors for the past decade.

BU's entering the game as a 12.5 point underdog and for all I can see, the Terriers really have nothing to lose here. Their play in this tournament has been phenomenal so far and it really seems to have been a positive experience for these guys to get the extra playing time, whether it be the underclassmen to prepare further for next year, or for the seniors who have been given the chance to extend their collegiate careers for just that much longer.

It's going to take a lot to knock off VCU on the road tonight, but I think virtually any BU basketball fan can sit back, take a look at this season, evaluate the state of the program, and be completely satisfied with it all. In the face of injuries and adversity this team has played through it all and they have come out as a better group of players from it all.

The future for this program certainly looks bright, with a talented core of players returning, along with a highly-touted recruiting class, with it all being led by the man who it truly appears was the right man for this job, the right man to build this program, not necessarily into the Gonzaga or Xavier of the East, but certainly something special and something for this school and community to be proud of.

Tonight may be the end of the line for this season and the end of some admirable careers, but it's all been an enjoyable ride. Savor the present and always, always keep an eye towards the future and what lies ahead.



Teddy's Prediction

Virginia Commonwealth 77 BU 69



Craig's Prediction

Virginia Commonwealth 81 BU 70

It Is What It Is: A Fittingly Bizarre Ending

In the minutes leading up to the Boston University men’s basketball team’s game against Morehead State University last night, something seemed conspicuously absent. Things appeared to be in order in Case Gymnasium: the Terriers were out on the court going through their pregame routine, the band was warming up, the student section was filling in (a lot quicker than normal) and Morehead State forward Kenneth Faried was throwing down emphatic windmill dunks.

As the teams lined up for the national anthem, however, it became painfully obvious to me what was missing in all of this: It was none other than BU’s star senior guard, Corey Lowe.

Whispers and conjecture echoed throughout the rafters of The Roof—fans trying their best to guess where Lowe might be, but the consensus opinion seemed to boil down to this much: he was off the team for good, no coming back, nothing.

All of this became official with BU coach Patrick Chambers’ announcement that Lowe expressed a desire to “move on to the next chapter of his life,” what many think will be an attempt at landing a professional contract overseas or in a developmental league here in the U.S.

Reportedly, Lowe informed Chambers of his plans to leave the team after BU’s win last week over Oregon State University in the first round of the College Basketball Invitational.

What Lowe leaves behind here at BU is certainly a successful legacy—he stands as the program’s third all-time leading scorer and the all-time leader in assists, 3-pointers made and minutes played.

His recent decision to depart will certainly upset and anger many here on campus (those who follow the basketball team, at least), but it leaves me with really more questions than I have answers.

Part of me is unmistakably dismayed, disappointed and even outraged. Almost every one of us has been taught from a young age that it’s important to stick to our commitments, to be loyal, and perhaps most importantly, to never abandon those we care about, especially in times of need.

At this moment, Lowe’s decision feels a lot like abandonment, abandonment to all of us who have cheered him on in his time here at BU and abandonment to his teammates, particularly his fellow seniors who he’s played with for four years. You don’t see guards Carlos Strong or Tyler Morris, two seniors who have a fighting chance of playing professionally somewhere, ditching their team with just a few games left on the docket, do you?

I know that Lowe, his teammates and coaches would have much rather gotten a spot in the NCAA Tournament or even the NIT, but is the CBI that worthless that you’re willing to turn your back on all these people this far into your season and career?

All of these thoughts and emotions are undoubtedly coming from my heart, my inner fan who longs to see things work out exactly as he desires them to and as he believes they should.

But another part of me can’t go along with all of this ridicule and banter.
I know that it’s my job with The Daily Free Press to stand on the soap box and give my opinion on everything BU Athletics, but it’s hard for me to stand on that box with a strong opinion when everything hasn’t exactly come to light yet with this Lowe situation.

Expecting someone to give a strong, unabashed opinion when you don’t have all the facts is like asking DeMarcus Cousins to explain Einstein’s Theory of Relativity: You’re probably not going to get too much and it may be a way of asking for trouble. It can always get you a job on sports radio, though.

As much as I feel that Lowe’s decision comes off as an act of selfishness and betrayal, we really don’t know enough right now.

For me at the very least, it feels wrong to label Lowe as a traitor after all of the years of hard work and stellar play that he gave to BU basketball, especially since Corey seems by almost all accounts to be an upstanding guy.

Information surrounding these matters usually has its way of gradually emerging and putting to rest varied speculation over time, so while we think we may know everything now, the fact is that we rarely ever do.

Amidst all of this, maybe the one word that seems most fitting to describe Lowe’s decision and its repercussions is bizarre. And quite frankly, while I far from expected Lowe’s career as a Terrier to end this way, it seems all too fitting given the way that his time here at BU has unfolded.

This is the same person who came to BU as a highly touted guard that many thought was almost over-qualified for the program with which he signed (after his commitment to Providence College fell through).

This is the same person who was the very definition of a gunner—someone who could bury 3-pointers and win his team the game from deep just as quickly as he could shoot them out of it, something that has been a source of frustration for many of us that follow the program.

Almost above all, this is the same guy who was not only a mercurial player but was also someone who made me question my judgment toward college athletes when I saw him walking off the court crying after his late turnover all but sealed BU’s loss to the University of Vermont last month.

As much as I maybe wanted to yell and shout at him for his mistake, I could realize that the situation embodied the fact that Corey Lowe, like all student-athletes, is just a kid.

And like all kids, he’s prone to mistakes.

At this point, I don’t agree with Lowe’s decision, but I certainly respect it and wish him the best, and until all of the facts come out, it may be the best thing for us all to save our judgment and accept this for what it is now: a perplexing decision that epitomizes a similarly unpredictable career.

Postseason Basketball at The Roof: The Morehead State Preview

Well, I guess it turns out I thought Oregon State was way better than they really were, if our 18 point road against them in Corvallis wasn't evidence enough. The team fired on all cylinders and Oregon State (not sure if this is common for them) couldn't seem to hit a thing. A very nice win overall, not to mention it was the first postseason win for BU since their victory in the Sweet Sixteen in 1959.

After that win, the Terriers went on to lose to Jerry West and West Virginia in the Elite Eight. While the likes of The Logo won't be making their way to Case Gym tomorrow night, BU's going to square off against a very tough opponent in Morehead State.

A lot of questions remained to be answered here for BU basketball fans (all twelve of us out there). First of all, since a lot of people don't bother to take the time to look up where a lot of these smaller schools are, where is Morehead State?



Just so happens that Morehead State's located in Morehead, KY, in the eastern part of the state. Being from Louisville, I've always been a big supporter of Kentucky college basketball schools not named Kentucky (WKU, EKU, Murray State, Morehead), but rest assured, I won't let my hometown's proximity to the opponent go against my rooting/school allegiances. Go BU.

Also, let's not be ignorant here folks. Yes, Morehead's located in Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky, Appalachia no less. I'm hoping that please, for the love of God, our student section that pulls out "The Wheels on Your House" chant on schools like Maine and UNH doesn't pull it out against a team from a region that's probably more prone to these sorts of taunts.

I mean it's hilarious to just blindly assume that all people from rural Appalachia (and rural America period) are toothless rednecks who live in trailers and feed Mountain Dew to their babies in a bottle (note the sarcasm here), but let's not. Please. And if I hear someone doing this and this chant gains some steam at the game, I'm literally going to crack a skull, or as Charlie Kelly would so brilliantly put it:



Unfortunately, the immortal "I will smash your face into a jelly" line could not be found on YouTube.

Again with the chant, this will happen. No joke. I've got a lot of friends who go to Morehead and I see that as you insulting them even though they're really good people. I got my ass chewed out for writing about the chant in my FreeP column, but I'm willing to get kicked out of a basketball game if I hear someone belittiling my region of the country. I don't do it to New York, Connecticut, or Mass, so let's refrain from doing it to me. You just look stupid. Thank you.

Away from the occasional stupidity of BU fans, this is a really interesting game that's going to play out on the court.

From the BU side of things, all is well. The team responded admirably from their most crushing defeat of the season with an absolute schelacking of a major conference school. The boys didn't hang their heads and pretty much asserted their will upon the game, forcing the half-court Beavers into a fast-paced shootout. And it worked pretty damn well to their advantage.

John Holland recovered from his funk that lasted throughout the America East Tournament and came out the John Holland that we all know and love here: the guy who puts up 20+ points a game, works his ass off offensively and defensively, throws down, and electrifies this team.

Los, Morris, Lowe, O'Brien....hell everyone played well that game. Considering the opponent and all that, last week's game may have been the team's best of the season. Then again, that 80-70 loss to a Kansas State team that's a 2 seed and has a legit shot at the national championship looks pretty damn good right now.

The Terriers look exactly how you want a team to look at the very end of the year: hitting on all cylinders, executing plays almost to perfection, and most importantly, connecting and playing like a team. Adjusting to Chambers' offense certainly was not easy for these guys, but they seem to be getting it down pat (no pun intended) at a great time of the year.

For Morehead State? People who may not know where Morehead is should know that this team is pretty darn good, and I mean that. BU's going to be facing off against a team that, just like us, finished a game short of the NCAA Tournament, although they lost to a Murray State team that would probably take UVM to the cleaners. That same Murray team that beat them in the championship, the same team that was a few seconds away from a Sweet Sixteen appearance this year? Morehead beat them this year at home; in fact, Morehead hasn't lost at home since Novemeber (even if this game is on the road for them, that's an impressive stat to say the least).

For what it's worth, Morehead, with virtually the same roster as this year, gave my boys from Louisville a fit in the first round of the NCAA Tournament last year in the 1 v 16 game, even if the final 20 point margin wasn't indicative of it.

BU may have a high-powered offense, but Morehead averages just as many points as us a game (about 71) and gives up fewer points per game on the defensive end. Again, all signs are pointing to an even game here.

Perhaps the biggest reason of concern comes in the form of Morehead's dynamic forward Kenneth Faried.



A shot of him pulling down a board over the disappointment known as Samardo Samuels in the NCAA game last year.

If you haven't heard of him, be on notice: this dude's a beast. Think of him in the same way that you do Marqus Blakely. The guy dominates the low post, he's a constant rebounding and scoring threat and he always has the potential to take over the game on the offensive and defensive ends. He may not be close to the passer that Blakely is, but he's actually a much better rebounder and he's more athletic/explosive overall.

Faried leads the Eagles in scoring (16.3 PPG) and rebounding (13 RPG), so the key to really beating this team is to shut down or at the very least neutralize Faried. But why is this such a scary prospect? Because as I said, this dude's a near carbon copy of Blakely. What could BU hardly ever do (if ever)? Beat Blakely and UVM. So how are they going to do it against a guy who's considerably better than Marqus Blakely.

Got not clue, but hey this is what Chambers and the coaching staff get paid for so they can draw up a plan for something I'm getting nightmares about: having JOB and The Junkyard Dog try to contain this guy.

Morehead's got a pair of guys who each average 12 PPG, so don't be under the impression that this is a one man team.

Also for me, although he isn't a guy to focus on, I graduated from high school with Morehead point guard Aaron Williams, so there will officially be two proud graduates of Louisville duPont Manual Public High School in The Roof tomorrow night.



Aaron redshirted last year and is seeing limited action this year, only averaging 0.5 points per game, but if he does get into the game, I for one can vouch that he tore it up pretty well back in high school from the point. Without violating my BU allegiances, I'll be happy with anything that he does well, unless of course it's some sort of last second three to win the game for the Eagles.

On an unrelated note, Teddy also happened to stumble upon this video of the Morehead mascot faceplanting on his way running into the arena hoisting the school's flag:



I don't care if this makes me a bad BU fan- if that ever happened to Rhett, I'd be laughing hysterically.

All signs are pointing to a very close game tomorrow night, and BU's doing it's best to get people out to Case to attend what (I think) is the first home postseason game in the history of the program by offering out $5 vouchers for Rhett's and Jamba Juice.

If there weren't an Alicia Keys concert a block away on the same night, I'd think the game would be a little more crowded, but seeing as I have so little faith in the BU student body's ability to support the basketball team, I'm guessing about 1,000-1,200 people in attendance. If it's triple digits tomorrow, that's humiliating and quite frankly a slap in the face to this team, especially this group of seniors.

Hopefully, I'm proven wrong and behind a rocking Case, BU can pull out a win and extend their season just that much longer.

Teddy's Prediction

BU 82 Morehead State 80

Craig's Prediction

Morehead State 74 BU 71

RIP Hockey

And another team close to me fell tonight: our own Boston University men's ice hockey team. Unfairly, we don't cover BU's headlining sport enough on this blog because when Teddy and I started this, we planned on him doing the hockey portion of the blog, while I did the basketball. But, alas, Vinegar more often than not is MIA.

A tough season, especially when you're rebuilding in a sense and you're handed such high, lofty, and frankly unattainable expectations.

Thanks for the years, seniors, and hey, there's always next year, can't win em all.

An Open Letter

Dear Cal,

You're normally a team and program that I like. You're a first-rate academic institution in a beautiful region of the country with an idealic campus. And you gave my Eagles the gift of DeSean Jackson. Overall, we're on good terms, you and me, one that even extends beyond apathy and crosses into the realm of respect.

However, tonight I hate you. I hate that you shot 53.3% from 3-point range. Mind you, I'm very impressed by that, but I hate that it happened against my team. Couldn't you all have saved that for Washington in the Pac-10 championship last week?

I don't like Max Zhang and his 7'3"ness. It sucks losing to a team with a 7 foot Asian not named Yao Ming. Really sucks.

Can't say I'm a fan of Jorge Gutierrez either. Dude tore us up and I couldn't get over his "from a distance resemblence" to Namond from "The Wire".





Actually, upon closer examination, they really look almost nothing alike. Just the hair I guess.

Not as long of a rant as I thought, because as much as I hate Jerome Randall and Patrick Christopher for their ability to bury treys, I'm almost more amazed by the shooting exhibition than anything.

I'm rooting for you guys in the next round against Duke, but please Mike Montgomery, get someone on your team like Zhang to punch Kyle Singler in the face.



Also just came to the realization just now that BU finished this season with a better record against the Pac-10 (1-0) than Louisville did (0-1). Great for me as a BU fan, but pretty embarassing for me as a Louisville fan.

Always next year boys. Got the nicest, most state-of-the-art arena in college basketball opening, you're still loaded with talent, and you're led by a man who despite all the "sex in restaurants jokes" is one of the best (if not the best) in the business.

And besides, only six more months until Charlie Strong's domination of the Big East begins.



Smile on, Chuck, smile on.

H & V's Bracket Face-Off

While we may primarily focus on BU sports on our blog, all of this gets thrown aside for what I consider to be the best postseason in all of sports: the NCAA Tournament. Forget all of those out there that say that the tournament field needs to expand to 96 teams- why change something that's already perfect?

College basketball enthusiasts and clueless office secretaries alike get into the Big Dance to a point because of March's time-honored tradition: filling out brackets.

Alas, Teddy and I are not immune to this, so we'll give our best shots at probably one of the most inexact sciences out there.


Teddy's Bracket



First Round


Midwest Region

Kansas over Lehigh
Northern Iowa over UNLV
Michigan State over New Mexico State
Maryland over Houston
Tennessee over San Diego State
Georgetown over Ohio
Georgia Tech over Oklahoma State
Ohio State over UC Santa Barbara


West Region

Syracuse over Vermont
Gonzaga over Florida State
UTEP over Butler
Vanderbilt over Murray State
Xavier over Minnesota
Pittsburgh over Oakland
BYU over Florida
Kansas State over North Texas


East Region

Kentucky over East Tennessee State
Wake Forest over Texas
Temple over Cornell
Wisconsin over Wofford
Marquette over Washington
New Mexico over Montana
Missouri over Clemson
West Virginia over Morgan State


South Region

Duke over Arkansas Pine Bluff
California over Louisville
Texas A & M over Utah State
Siena over Purdue
Notre Dame over Old Dominion
Baylor over Sam Houston State
St. Mary's over Richmond
Villanova over Robert Morris


Second Round

Midwest Region

Kansas over Northern Iowa
Michigan State over Maryland
Georgetown over Tennessee
Ohio State over Georgia Tech


West Region

Syracuse over Gonzaga
UTEP over Vanderbilt
Pittsburgh over Xavier
Kansas State over BYU


East Region

Kentucky over Wake Forest
Temple over Wisconsin
New Mexico over Marquette
West Virginia over Missouri


South Region

Duke over California
Texas A & M over Siena
Baylor over Notre Dame
Villanova over St. Mary's


Sweet Sixteen

Midwest Region

Kansas over Michigan State
Ohio State over Georgetown


West Region

Syracuse over Vanderbilt
Kansas State over Pittsburgh


East Region

Kentucky over Temple
West Virginia over New Mexico


South Region

Duke over Texas A & M
Baylor over Villanova


Elite Eight

Midwest Region

Kansas over Ohio State


West Region

Syracuse over Kansas State


East Region

Kentucky over West Virginia


South Region

Baylor over Duke


Final Four

Kansas over Syracuse
Kentucky over Baylor


National Championship

Kansas 85 Kentucky 83




Craig's Bracket


First Round

Midwest Region

Kansas over Lehigh
UNLV over Northern Iowa
Michigan State over New Mexico State
Maryland over Houston
Tennessee over San Diego State
Georgetown over Ohio
Oklahoma State over Georgia Tech


West Region

Syracuse over Vermont
Gonzaga over Florida State
Butler over UTEP (I don't trust Derrick Caracter to save my life)
Murray State over Vanderbilt
Xavier over Minnesota
Pittsburgh over Oakland
BYU over Florida
Kansas State over North Texas


East Region

Kentucky over East Tennessee State
Texas over Wake Forest
Temple over Cornell
Wisconsin over Wofford
Washington over Marquette
New Mexico over Montana
Missouri over Clemson
West Virginia over Morgan State


South Region

Duke over Arkansas Pine Bluff
Louisville over California
Texas A & M over Utah State
Siena over Purdue
Old Dominion over Notre Dame
Baylor over Sam Houston State
St. Mary's over Richmond
Villanova over Robert Morris


Second Round

Midwest Region

Kansas over UNLV
Michigan State over Maryland
Georgetown over Tennessee
Ohio State over Oklahoma State


West Region

Syracuse over Gonzaga
Butler over Murray State
Xavier over Pittsburgh
Kansas State over BYU


East Region

Kentucky over Texas
Temple over Wisconsin
Washington over New Mexico
West Virginia over Missouri


South Region

Duke over Louisville
Texas A & M over Siena
Baylor over Old Dominion
Villanova over St. Mary's


Sweet Sixteen

Midwest Region

Kansas over Michigan State
Georgetown over Ohio State


West Region

Syracuse over Butler
Kansas State over Xavier


East Region

Kentucky over Temple
West Virginia over Washington


South Region

Duke over Texas A & M
Baylor over Villanova



Elite Eight

Midwest Region

Kansas over Georgetown


West Region

Syracuse over Kansas State


East Region

West Virginia over Kentucky


South Region

Baylor over Duke



Final Four

Kansas over Syracuse
West Virginia over Baylor


National Championship

Kansas 81 West Virginia 68


There you have it: Teddy and I may have disagreed on a lot of the early picks, but going along with most of the country, including our very own Commander-in-Chief, we're going with (Rock) Chalk and going with the Jayhawks to be the team to cut down the nets in Indianapolis in early April.

The FBILOTUS: The Oregon State CBI Preview

Widely documented as it has been, I regret to inform anyone reading this that BU did not make the NCAA Tournament because of their loss in the America East Championship game. Teddy happens to think that BU got screwed out of an at-large bid, but I think when a 23-8 Virginia Tech team that went 10-6 in the ACC gets left out, there's no room to complain. Besides, I'd be a little concered about the mental sanity of the NCAA Selection Committee if they gave one of the final, coveted at-large bids to a 19-13 team out of America East.

Anyhow, the season's not yet over for this BU team as they prepare to take on Oregon State in the third annual College Basketball Invitational tournament.



Between the Beavers and Ducks, Oregon may have their shit together more than any other state when it comes to college mascots. It's also gotta be clarified here that the Oregon State football program to its credit doesn't feature a cast of players who among them have sucker-punched a Boise State player (although does anyone else think that he may have had it coming to him, talking a lotta trash for there to be no repurcussion) and one who more recently charged with burgulary for breaking into a campus frat house.

Jeremiah Masoli pleads guilty to burglary

It's fair to think of the CBI as a third on the totem pole of postseason tournaments, behind the NCAA and the NIT, probably tied with the College Insider Tournament at the bottom.

Some out there may dismiss this as nothing more than an empty pat on the back to a desperate mid-major team looking for some extra games, but I'm personally a big fan of it too. And since he writes for the blog about as often as DeMarcus Cousins reads Tolstoy (or reads anything for that matter), I decided to quote him on this.

"Hey, it's better than nothing"

Eloquent in it's brevity, what a champ.

Sure, it's not the Big Dance or even the NIT, but for a program like BU that has struggled on the court at times and struggled to gather a large student following all the time, this can't hurt. Vermont played in it last year and got a few extra games under their belt. On the America East message board, virtually every Vermont fan saw the teams' participation in the CBI as beneficial at the very least.

Seeing as next year's looking like a two-horse race between BU and Stony Brook, those extra games could end up meaning something(although the Sea Wolves are also playing postseason ball, in the NIT).

BU's making the cross-country trip to Corvallis, Oregon to face off against the Beavers, the defending CBI champions. Oregon State followed that up this season with 14-17 overall record and an 8-10 record in a weak, albeit very competitive, Pac-10 Conference. Take that record for what it's worth because I'm positive that the Beavers would rack up at least 20-22 wins if they played in America East.

They're led in scoring by guard Calvin Haynes and it looks like they have a solid presence down low from Roeland Schaftenaar, as well as a versatile threat in Seth Tarver, who it looks like may match up well with John Holland. To be totally frank, though, I haven't watched Oregon State play really at all this year, just as I should be safe to assume that most Beaver fans out there haven't seen much of BU. Should mean both parties (fan wise) may end up equally surprised by the time the final buzzer sounds tomorrow night.

Oregon State's also a low-scoring team, half-court team, so brace yourself for a grind-it-out, defensively-oriented battle.

This game also gives BU the unqiue chance to play against the team coached by none other than the First-Brother-in-Law of the United States (FBILOTUS), Craig Robinson.



This Craig Robinson, not Craig Robinson the actor, aka Daryll from "The Office".



Robinson's currently in his second year in Corvallis and has by in large done (from what I can tell) a good job for a team in a conference routinely dominated by the likes of UCLA and Arizona. I guess he's done a better job than his predecessor, Jay John, the dyslexic-named version of Founding Father John Jay.



Hey, it may not be the NCAA Tournament, but it's an opportunity for BU to face off against a power conference school, and a final chance for us to watch this group of seniors and the team altogether until November (if we don't win).

Sounds to me like a good deal, and honestly, we're BU Basketball fans- how can we be too high and mighty to play some postseason ball? Last time I checked, UNC and UConn are playing in the NIT.

Tip-off's at 10; let's extend this season a bit more....





Teddy's Prediction

BU 69 Oregon State 64



Craig's Prediction

Oregon State 63 BU 59

It's Official: BU in the CBI

The things that we heard in the aftermath of BU's loss to Vermont a few days ago in the America East Championship game are true; BU may not have snagged that coveted spot in the Big Dance, nor found themselves in the NIT, but the Terriers have officially accepted a bid to play in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI).

For its opening game, BU has drawn defending CBI champion Oregon State, a program guided by none other than the First Brother-In-Law, Craig Robinson. The Pac-10 had a rough go this year, but it's still a major conference, and I'm about 99.8% sure that even the Pac-10's worst year imaginable is still a hell of a lot better than America East's best season ever. Playing out on the West Coast in Corvallis may be tough on this group of guys, but it's another chance for the seniors to suit up before they finish up their collegiate careers, and the extra game(s) are always helpful to a team, especially one like BU that's playing in a new system under a first year coach.

A link to the complete CBI bracket is below:

http://www.gazellegroup.com/events/cbi/cbi10_bracket.pdf

Vermont played in this tournament last year (actually bowing out to the Beavers in their second game) and look where they ended up the following year. Some people may scoff at post-season basketball that's not the NCAA Tournament, but for a program like BU that's looking to build itself up, any post-season basketball's good in my book.

Post-Season Ball?

BU may have come up short in the America East Championship, but word is that they're going to be offered and likely accepting a bid to play in the CBI, the tournament that's kind of a notch below the NIT, but for a program like BU this is a very nice opportunity.

More likely than not, the games are going to be on the road, and we'll keep it posted based on what we hear as the days go on.

This Is It: Vermont Part III, The America East Championship

I wrote a big, long preview, philosophical, thought-provoking, tear-inducing preview for this, but my computer fucked up and alas, it's all lost.

We all know what this game means, for all of us who have followed this team for months, who know that all of these keystrokes, all of these seconds of going to games, all of these minutes of analysis and frustration have led to this one moment, a forty minute stretch of time in a small gym in northern New England.

This run by this BU team has been absolutely remarkable, keyed by a group of guys like Corey Lowe, Carlos Strong, Tyler Morris, and John Holland who have been unfairly labeled as underachievers and losers for most of this year, and in some cases for a majority of their respective BU careers.

BU doesn't need a win tomorrow to validate the careers of these young men, for they have put the years of hard work and preparation into making this moment possible. Same can be said for Pat Chambers who quickly went from program savior to embattled in the eyes of some, but he has proven so far that he can do what Dennis Wolff couldn't: win postseason games and take BU to where this program should be in a conference like America East: on the threshold of something special.

Major conference fans of the Big East, ACC and Big 12 can scoff and dismiss these mid-major schools as their BCS teams play for seeding purposes while the smaller schools battle it out for a double digit seed that will be occupied by only a single team from the conference. But that's what makes all of this so special: tomorrow is everything for these teams, everything for every soul involved in this game.

Seeing as this is a conference championship game with a bid to the NCAA Tournament at stake, you can find much more well-informed analysis on places like espn.com so I'll keep this part short and sweet.

Neutralize marqus Blakely to the best of your abilities. Without him, UVM's just an average team, but as BU's found out this year, that's a proposition that's far easier said than done.

Guys like Lowe, Strong and Morris have to stay hot for this team to prevail. We're not going to win the battle down low, so best to hope that we stay hot from beyond the arc. Holland's been held to 12 and 10 scoring in the first two games of the tournament, so you can reasonably assume that he's due for a game in which he puts up 20+ on the scoreboard. Gotta like that as a BU fan.

Can't be overwhelmed by the environment at Patrick Gym. Does BU win there about as often as the Harlem Globetrotters lose to the Washington Generals? Absolutely. Is the crowd of 3,000+ going to be 98% UVM fans doing their best to will the Catamounts to victory? Believe it, but BU has to stay in control of their actions, execution, and emotions, because if they can't, there's no hope of escaping with a W. This is where the will of men is measured and tested. Believe that.

Unfortunately, I haven't been able to make it to any of these postseason games because seeing as it is Spring Break, I thought it would be best to come home to spend time with my family, most notably my mom who just finished her eight month bout with cancer. I'd love to go up to Burlington, but believe it or not, it's pretty damn hard and pretty damn costly to change pre-arranged plane tickets out of Kentucky on such short notice.

Teddy, however, will be there in full force for the team, which, if you know Teddy, is kind of a scary proposition seeing as this is the same kid who unleashes anger by kicking chairs for things like a tie by the women's hockey team.



He texted me the other day to tell me that he's investing in a red wig, which I hope given his Kelly Clarkson fandom means a red afro wig. Otherwise it's kinda weird. It may all be made up for by some signs he's made in support of the team and the one that he promised to make that advertises the blog. Solid.

Even our freshman proteges are getting in on the action, making some signs of their own, including the one below which, even though it's honoring a Hoosier, is pretty freakin sweet.



The hours and months of support have now all been compartmentalized into this singular moment, a moment that will define not only this season, but also the careers of a respective group of players who have devoted a good majority of their lives to their love for this game.

The 1980 Louisville basketball team played under the motto "This Is It" on their run in the NCAA Tournament that year and the same applies to BU men's basketball tomorrow, given it being on a smaller stage, but it's why I titled the post what I did nonetheless. How did it all turn out for that team, the heralded Doctors of Dunk?



Here's to hoping the same result awaits the Terriers. The opportunity for a brief, shining moment of greatness has presented itself. Now the time has come for this team to take advantage of it. Let's get em boys.

Championship Preview Tonight, But a Thought For Now

Alas, the H & V championship blowout preview will be posted tonight, but for the meantime, I went to a source of entertainment for myself on espn.com: the conversation tab for a college basketball game. Honestly no better place to find crazies than one of these, except maybe on the comments section for espn.com articles and comments for YouTube videos.

A BU basketball game usually doesn't draw too much attention unless of course it's against a top-flight opponent, but tomorrow's looming conference title game against Vermont has drawn total of nine (!) comments between BU and UVM fans waxing poetic on who they believe will emerge victorious as the AE Champ on Saturday afternoon.

One comment in particlar, from a guy (or girl, who knows a few females out there dig some AE hoops) named Bazzani09, struck me. The comment read:

"BU will win. Pat Chambers is one of the best coaches in America. Why do you think Nova is not living up to their expectations? Because Chambers is not there any more. Boston wins 86-75."

Love the optimism and while I hope he meant Chambers is one of the best young coaches in America, it's an interesting notion to think that Villanova's late-season downfall has been partially attributable to Chambers' absence. Don't agree with it necessarily, but I do think Chambers is a great, up and coming coach, and yes, I love seeing Nova fall apart here. No offense to you Nova people out there, and call me a sour grape, but I'll never forgive you guys chanting "N-I-T" at Louisville during a rebuilding year.

Keeping that Chambers thought in mind, look for the preview to be up tonight. This is what this has all come down to, and I for one, could not be more excited.

One Half of the Blog's National CBB Awards

On a monumental day for this blogger in which BU throttled Hartford and my Louisville Cardinals closed out Freedom Hall in the best way possible, by knocking off the nation's No. 1 team and guaranteeing themselves of an NCAA Tourney bid in the process, it's gotten me to thinking about the end of the regular season.

Since, Teddy and I have given out our AE End of Year Awards, I'm going to give my picks for the national awards. Maybe even Teddy will shed some insight on the matter here in the coming days. Don't hold your breath though.

Second Team All-America

Sherron Collins, G, Kansas

Jon Scheyer, G/F, Duke

Da'Sean Butler, F, West Virginia

Luke Harangody, F/C, Notre Dame

Cole Aldrich, F/C, Kansas

A few of these guys in any other year could have very well been on the first team, but this year's got a loaded field talent-wise. Collins gets the edge over some other fantastic point guards from this year like Villanova's Scottie Reynolds and Michigan State's Kaelin Lucas, and if it weren't for one John Wall, Collins would have been a shoe-in for the top five. Butler doesn't get nearly enough attention, maybe because people don't consider him to be the same kind of NBA Prospect that his teammate Devin Ebanks is, but without a doubt, Butler's been a big reason why Bob Huggins has achieved such success so quickly at his alma mater. Harangody may be a bit of a surprise pick seeing as he's been out a Notre Dame's past five or so games, but he's more than deserving of this honor. He would have been a surefire first teamer if it weren't for his time off.

First Team All-America

John Wall, G, Kentucky

Grevis Vasquez, G, Maryland

Evan Turner, F, Ohio State

Wesley Johnson, F, Syracuse

DeMarcus "Elbows" Cousins, F/C, Kentucky

This was a pretty clear cut call for me here. Vasquez would have been a bit of a surprise to me about a month and a half ago, but the way that he's put this Maryland team on his back and led them to a share of the ACC regular season title is absolutely admirable and impressive. I love the way he plays, it's a mixture of tenacity and passion that you don't see today anymore, unless of course it involves some sort of swagger or showboating. Cousins may cause some disagreement, but the guy's averaged 15 and 10 this year, and has also accumulated 18 double-doubles as well. As much as I don't like the kid, I can't deny him the honor. Turner's a stud who's largely responsible for where Ohio State is right now. Would they even be an NCAA Tournament team without him? Johnson's been a revelation for Syracuse this year. Jim Boeheim's only taken in four transfers in his thirty something years in upstate New York, and you can see he truly has an eye for talent with it. And Wall's become an internet sensation and icon here in Kentucky all in the span of a year.

National Coach of the Year

5. (Tie) Frank Martin, Kansas State

Bill Self, Kansas

4. Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh

3. Steve Alford, New Mexico

2. John Calipari, Kentucky

1. Jim Boeheim, Syracuse

This was a really tough call for me here. Self's quieted a lot of doubters in his time at Lawrence and may very well have a team this year that would allow him to capture a second title in three years with the Jayhawks. Frank Martin's continued the work that Bob Huggins started in Manhattan (KS) and has made it that much better, leading the Wildcats to a top five ranking this year. Dixon took a rebuilding team that was picked to finish ninth in the Big East and has taken them to the point where they're in line for a three or even a two seed in the Big Dance. Alford was essentially exiled from Iowa for a lack of postseason success a few years back, and has gone down to New Mexico where he's turned the Lobos into a top ten team this year. And Iowa? They're in the Big Ten cellar. Nice move. For me, it came down to Calipari and Boeheim.

A lot of people believe it's Calipari's rightful prize and as a Louisville fan, all 2 of the H & V readers out there may see this as a homer pick. Not quite. The work that Calipari's done at Kentucky has been nothing short of remarkable. He took a fractured NIT team and an uber-passionate fanbase that still had a distinctly bitter and downright disgusted taste in their mouths after the disaster that was the Billy Gillispie era. He's brought in top-notch talent and has returned UK to the glory which they are so accustomed to, a nothced No. 1 seed in the tourney and a very good chance at hoisting a national title.

While recruting certainly is an important part of coaching, I can't give out an award like this to a guy who's won just because he's had the best players. Any other year I may, but not this one. After all, this award is about coaching, and in all honesty, I haven't seen the kind of coaching job that Jim Boeheim has put forth in years. Boeheim's Orange team lost three starters from last year in Johny Flynn, Paul Harris, and Eric Devendorf; they were picked to finish sixth in the Big East at the beginning of the year, but Boeheim's taken them to the height of college basketball with a No. 1 ranking in the polls and a certain No. 1 seed in the tournament. Perhaps the most impressive thing is that in this age of one-and-dones that the likes of Calipari build their success around, Boeheim doesn't have a single McDonald's All-American on his team. There's honestly not enough that could be said about the job turned in this year by one of the game's all-time great coaches.

National Player of the Year

5. Grevis Vasquez, Maryland

4. Sherron Collins, Kansas

3. Wesley Johnson, Syracuse

2. Evan Turner, Ohio State

1. John Wall, Kentucky

As tough as it was to decide Coach of the Year, this one was that much harder because there's really no wrong choice this year in my opinion. Vasquez has been the heart, soul and talent behind a spirited run by a very good Maryland team. Collins has been the conductor and dominant backcourt presence for a team that has been atop the polls for most of the season. I've never seen a transfer have the other-wordly impact on his team that Johnson has for Syracuse this year.

For me, though, this is a two horse race. Most pundits and experts seem to have Turner pegged as their POY, and he's likely going to be the eventual winner, which I have no problem with. Turner's an excellent player who's probably more statistically well-rounded than anyone else in the country, he's been easily the biggest reason why Ohio State finds themselves in the top fifteen right now, and he should go on to have a very good NBA career.

He's just up for the award in the wrong year, because as someone who's watched a lot of college basketball in his time, John Wall is still unreal to me. It's not because of his highlight reel quality play. It's not because of the hype around him coming into this season. And no way is it because of that dumb dance of his that Kentucky fans have seemed to embrace.

It's because of the impact that he's had on his team and on college basketball this season. John Calipari has without a doubt done a rebuilding job of amazing proportions at Kentucky with his dribble drive offense, but that offense only works so well if you have the guys to run it; Calipari's produced his fair share of phenomenal point guards here in the past few years, but I can say with confidence that Wall's been a better college player than Derrick Rose and Tyreke Evans were.

Calipari's been very important in leading Kentucky back to prominence, but Wall's been the central figure. He's orchestrated a complicated offense to a T and has dropped his fair share of dropped jaws in the process. No way in hell Kentucky gets 30 wins without him. Maybe not even 25. Turner's had a fantastic season, no denying it, and he probably will win this award when it's all said and done, but when I look back on the 2009-2010 season of college basketball, removing all Louisville and BU players, the first guy that will come to mind is John Wall.

And, after all, I resisted the urge to give this to Kyle Kuric. Farewell to you Freedom Hall- so many fond memories from there, I can honestly say that this is where my love of college basketball started. The Cards may be moving downtown next year, but my childhood memories never will leave. No better way to have finished those 54 years off, truly a perfect ending.

The Difference

BU's 87-46 absolute demolition of the host Hartford Hawks today in the quarterfinals of the America East Tournament is an indication of how well this team has been playing and what exactly they're capable of as we move on here.



John Holland's skill is attested to by the fact that I consider a 12 point performance disappointing, but hats off to Jake O'Brien and Corey Lowe, who had 28 and 26 points, respectively.



The matchup is now against the regular season champs and top-seeded Stony Brook Sea Wolves, and although I predicted it differently, I think BU's going to pull this off. Stony Brook looked a little shaky today against the ninth-seeded Albany Great Danes, and I think I've got to be honest here when I say that if I were John Holland, I'd be absolutely incensed and determined to go out there and prove what a joke it is that Muhammad El-Amin won Conference POY. Even if the Wolves advance, I'd expect equally outraged Marqus Blakely and his Vermont team to win it all.

Anyhow, what I'm getting at here is that BU finished their regular season this year with a 17-12 record overall and a 11-5 record in America East play. Last year, BU finished with the same record and Dennis Wolff got fired for that, right? No, in fact he didn't. Dennis Wolff got fired after 15 years because of his ability to put out impressive regular season teams, but his inability to lead his teams to postseason success year after year.

This is why Pat Chambers was brought in, for days like today. At the risk of hyperbole here, all of those people griping about Chambers and the identical record are going to eat those words. We'll ignore the obvious fact that BU had a much tougher out of conference schedule this year, and although Chambers inherited some very good players from the previous regime (Holland, Lowe, O'Brien, Los, and Morris), he also took on guys who are somehow DI scholarship players that have been a big reason why this team is so thin (Sherrod Smith, Valdas Sirutis).

Next year, Chambers is going to bring in a top recruiting class and the success in picking up quality players looks as though it will continue into the future.

Sure, I think Chambers was going for effect and was exaggerating a bit when he said that he wanted to make this program in the mold of a Gonzaga or a Xavier, but perhaps he's the kind of difference that this program needed to get where it wants to go.

America East End of the Year Awards

With the America East Awards Banquet taking place in Hartford tomorrow, Teddy and I dish out some hardware of our own to the guys who we feel should win some of the major awards this year in what has been a very interesting season for the conference.


Coach of the Year


Teddy's Picks

1. Steve Pikiell, Stony Brook
2. Ted Woodward, Maine
3. Mark Macon, Binghamton

Craig's Picks

1. Steve Pikiell, Stony Brook
2. Mark Macon, Binghamton
3. Ted Woodward, Maine


First Team All-Conference


Teddy's Picks

John Holland, BU
Marqus Blakely, Vermont
Muhammad El-Amin, Stony Brook
Greer Wright, Binghamton
Tommy Brenton, Stony Brook


Craig's Picks

John Holland, BU
Marqus Blakely, Vermont
Muhammad El-Amin, Stony Brook
Greer Wright, Binghamton
Gerald McLemore, Maine


Conference Player of the Year


Teddy's Picks

1. Marqus Blakely, Vermont
2. John Holland, BU
3. Muhammad El-Amin, Stony Brook

Craig's Picks

1. John Holland, BU
2. Marqus Blakely, Vermont
3. Muhammad El-Amin, Stony Brook

It Is What It Is: The Conference Quagmire

A few months back, news broke out that the Big Ten Conference was going to explore options for possibly expanding its league by adding a 12th school, a move that could threaten what has been a five or six year period in which the alignment of the Division I conferences has remained extremely stable.

When that announcement came out, it probably didn’t really resonate with many Boston University fans out there. After all, how does the mere possibility of expanding a prominent Bowl Championship Series qualified conference, let alone one that’s based in the Midwest, affect us here on Commonwealth Avenue?

If the dominoes fall the right way, it may be time for Boston University to think about the current state of its athletic department and its respective place in the America East Conference. In the wake of this Big Ten speculation, rumors have been swirling around campus that BU may be in line for a conference upgrade. Granted we’re dealing with more than a few “ifs” here, but it’s still a worthwhile discussion nonetheless.

Let me say this much: I have no serious problems with America East. I think it is a group of schools that are respectable academically, athletically (for the level on which they’re playing) and morally, aside from the whole Binghamton University basketball fiasco from the past year. All in all, it’s been a good home for BU ever since it became a charter member in the league’s 1979 inception.

That being said, though, it has to be assessed as to whether this is still a good fit, whether the marriage of BU and the AE is one that should still exist even if greener pastures present themselves.

My answer to this, at the very least, is an uncertain one. I don’t want to necessarily be the person leading the charge to effectively ditch a conference that we helped lay the groundwork for over 30 years ago, but I also can’t ignore the sizable and discernable differences that exist between BU and its America East counterparts.

For starters, it’s a private school in a major metropolitan area, but it is in a conference of public schools that are more often than not situated off the proverbial beaten path.

Differences between schools in a conference can certainly be overlooked sometimes (see Northwestern University in the Big Ten and Vanderbilt University in the Southeastern Conference), but what cannot be disregarded is the disproportionate success of the Terrier’s teams compared to other teams in the conference.

This in-conference success for BU Athletics can be best quantified in the fact that the Terriers have captured seven of the past eight AE Commissioner’s Cups, the award presented annually to the strongest athletic program in the conference.

So if not AE, then where would be some possible destinations for BU if, or when, conference realignment takes place?

Seeing as conferences are usually created taking into account the size of a school, the quality of its athletic department and its geographic location, I think a few possibilities emerge from the rest.

Anyone who continually comes up with the laughable notion of BU in the Big East or the Atlantic Coast Conference can just stop right now in order to preserve the sanity of themselves and anyone who may be listening - it’s never going to happen.

The closest thing to a pipe dream conference-wise for BU may be the Atlantic-10, a conference that is predominantly made up of schools with similar profiles to BU: private, East Coast schools like George Washington University, Fordham University, St. Joseph’s University and La Salle University, which are situated in large cities. The A-10 could very well be a picked-over entity if conference realignment gets underway, but the problem for BU is that there are more attractive replacements out there for the A-10 to choose from, most notably schools with better basketball programs like Butler University, Siena College and Virginia Commonwealth University among others.

Another possibility could be in the Patriot League, a conference widely considered to be comparable to the Ivy League (maybe more like a “poor man’s Ivy”) that features the likes of the College of the Holy Cross and Bucknell University. A move here would likely be for academic reasons above all else, seeing as athletically, it’s pretty much a lateral move from AE.

A final suitor would be the Colonial Athletic Association, a league with strong basketball that could elevate the status of BU’s program if they joined. If Agganis Arena couldn’t sell out for home games against teams like George Mason University and Virginia Commonwealth, we don’t deserve anything more than what we’ve got right now. However, travel costs may get somewhat exorbitant if BU was in a league whose members are as far away as Atlanta, and the attractiveness of the Boston media market that BU offers is diminished by the fact that crosstown rival Northeastern University already calls the CAA home.

So where exactly does that leave Boston University and its athletic community, as of now? As it has always been, there’s really not too much a school can do when it comes to conference shifts, other than sitting back and waiting for the dominoes to fall, if they even do at all.
But there is one proactive step that can be taken by BU administration and students alike - make themselves into a more attractive candidate in the mean time, with student attendance at games (especially basketball) being a high priority of improvement.

A front-running and rather apathetic, albeit common, mentality of not wanting to see BU square off against AE opponents will never help circumstances.

The academic reputation of BU, the modern athletic facilities and the allure of the Boston media market are all undoubtedly important, but no conference like the A-10 or Colonial is going to want a school that sometimes can’t even draw four figures for attendance for basketball games.

So I guess it could be said that it may take something of a collective effort from us all if we want the status of BU Athletics to ever improve. Otherwise, we’ll just be stuck in neutral for the foreseeable future, in the same conference quandary we find ourselves in right now.

Tourney Time! H& V's America East Tournament Picks

It's America East Tournament time, meaning that the regular season that we analyzed and looked into for months and months now essentially amounts to squat. Unless an AE teams goes on some unprecedented undefeated run a la '04 St. Joe's, no team from this conference is ever going to get an at-large bid.

The tournament is what matters here: win and you're in the tournament. Lose and well...peace.

With these relatively high stakes of mid-major basketball up for grabs right now, it's time for Teddy and I both to go through our first series of brackets and pick the perpetual crapshoot commonlt known as the America East Tournament.

(No word on whether we get a free Newman's Own Pizza for doing this)



RIP Paul, you're still gravely missed.


Teddy's Picks

First Round:

(1) Stony Brook over (8) Albany
(4) BU over (5) Hartford
(6) New Hampshire over (3) Maine
(2) Vermont over (7) UMBC

Semifinals:

(4) BU over (1) Stony Brook
(2) Vermont over (6) New Hampshire

Championship:

(2) Vermont over (4) BU


Craig's Picks

First Round:

(1) Stony Brook over (8) Albany
(4) BU over (5) Hartford
(3) Maine over (6) New Hampshire
(2) Vermont over (7) UMBC

Semifinals:

(1) Stony Brook over (4) BU
(3) Maine over (2) Vermont

Championship:

(1) Stony Brook over (3) Maine


Judge these for what they are worth and stay tuned as in the next few days Teddy and I will be giving out the hardware for conference POY and COY, as well as First Team All-Conference.

Teddy says he'll put out his picks for the women's tournament, and if Louisville keeps laying eggs like they did tonight, you'll be seeing me doing an NIT Bracket here in a week or so