Cuse Blow up with Fab Melo / Week 13 Huge Implications!!

NFL Week 5 - Spla-dow!!

$20 and Wear a Dress Angier!!

Angier Credentials in Question...

The Latest NFL News - Seattle... What a Mess!

Post Fantasy Football Draft - Glenn Morley Interview (Skancrew V - 2010)

NCAA Tournament Dreams Made

     In an always exciting but more importantly an incredibly unpredictable 2010 Mens NCAA Basketball Tournament, the only Number 1 seed remaining in the field is the Duke Blue Devils out of the Atlantic Coast Conference at (32-5) overall.  The Number 1 overall seed in the tournament, the Kansas Jayhawks out of the Big 12 Conference, were ousted in the 2nd round by the Northern Iowa Panthers in a game in which the Panthers controlled throughout and simply handed it to the heavily favored Jayhawks.  Most notably, Northern Iowa Senior Guard Ali Farokhmanesh went from a no namer to the biggest name in college basketball overnight, as he hit the best shot of his career by nailing a shot from distance with 30 seconds left in the game to push the Panthers lead to 4.  Kansas couldn't recover after that.  The win was also enough to have Northern Iowa provide Head Coach Ben Jacobsen to a 10 year contract extension.  That moment in the tournament completely carved up everyone's brackets, except for maybe those Northern Iowa faithful. 

          The Northern Iowa win over Kansas would have been the biggest story of the tournament if it weren't for the recent success of the Butler Bulldogs, a 5 seed that has made their first NCAA Tournament Final Four in school history.  Butler (32-4), out of the Horizon League, has overcome the likes of the Number 1 seeded Syracuse Orange in the Sweet Sixteen and the Number 2 seeded Kansas State Wildcats in the Elite 8.  Butler stand out forward Gordon Hayward has played like a star throughout March Madness and has spelled trouble for each opponent he's faced, scoring 17 points against Syracuse and 22 points versus Kansas State.  Hayward is averaging 15 points and over 8 rebounds on the year, however, his 6'9'' frame, toughness, and quickness has provided him with the tools necessary to play all positions on the floor.  His transition defense and aggressiveness on the offensive end has been the main reason Butler has looked to him during clutch times in the game.  Even though he has a baby face, opponents don't want to step up to Gordo, as he'll either drive around you or shoot well over the top.  Butlers approach towards team defense feeds their offense and has propelled them towards a legitimate shot at the National Championship game.

      The West Virginia Moutaineers are the Number 2 seeded team in the East bracket and won the Big East Championship in New York City this year.  However, their biggest win so far being their huge victory over the Number 1 seeded Kentucky Wildcats 73 to 66 in the Elite 8.  The West Virginia alum and Head Coach Bobby Huggins has led West Virginia to it's first Final Four appearance since 1959 when they were led by Hall of Famer Jerry West.  Nonetheless, the biggest story of this Elite 8 matchup between the only Top 2 seeds to make it to the Elite 8 for their region, is the fact that backup Guard Joe Mazzulla scored 17 points and started the game due to the injury of starting Guard Darryl Bryant.  Mazzulla had not attempted a three point field goal this year until the game against Kentucky, when he drained a 3 pointer in the first half.  Mazzulla continued his attack of the Wildcats defense, as he made defenders pay dearly for leaving driving lanes open while Kentucky defenders attempted to fall into a help defense position against more notable scorers such as Da'Sean Butler and Devin Ebanks.  The second huge factor in the game was the fact that the Wildcats couldn't hit the broadside of a barn from three point land, as they shot a hurrendous 4 of 32, which is an abismal 12% from beyond the arc.  It was evident throughout the game that Kentucky's inexperience played a role in the overall outcome of the game, however, I don't think it played as much of a role as people might think.  Kentucky's aggressiveness and raw talent had allowed them to steamrole through their conference schedule and the first three rounds of the NCAA tournament, however, the experienced, long, and athletic Mountaineers front line disrupted the scoring attack and outside shooters of the Wildcats.  Ultimately, allowing the Moutaineers to grind out the game and play their style of play.  The transition game of the Wildcats was not able to play a role in the outcome, as the West Virginia defense was suffocating. 

      There is no doubt that this NCAA Tournament has been flipped upside down, and has allowed the lower seeds to have a phenomenal shot at a National Championship.  The Number 6 seeded Tennesee Volunteers and the injury ridden 5th seeded Michigan State Spartans will play for a shot at a Final Four appearance, while Duke will attempt to continue a shot at Coach K's 4th National Championship if they can advance against the Number 3 seeded Baylor Bears from the Big 12 Conference.  If the trend continues, Baylor will eliminate the 4th Number 1 seed from the tournament, however, we will see if the tournament shockers continue.  I must say, all of these upsets definitely provide evidence of the large expanse of talent across America.  Those trends are great for the game of Basketball and certainly for March Madness in years to come.

March Madness at it's Best!! Cuse Rolls over the Zags

Sunday Scores:

-Duke Bull Dozes Cal: 68 to 53 

-West Virginia outlasts Missouri: 68 to 59

-Ohio State beats Georgia Tech: 75 to 66

-Purdue huge OT win over Texas A&M: 63 to 61 because of end of game layup by Chris Kramer (he had 17 to lead Purdue)

*The CUSE over Gonzaga: 87 to 65  (SU 54% from the field, Gonzaga 14% from 3 point land on the game) (Wesley Johnson player of the game with 31 points and 14 rebounds / Andy Rautins had 24 points and made some clutch 3 point field goals.  Rautins was 5 of 9 from distance)

-Michigan State beats Maryland: 85 to 83 with last second 3 pointer by Korie Lucious
(**HUGE News: Kalin Lucas injured in game and questionable for Sweet 16 Game this week, ankle injury)

-Xavier barely holds off Pittsburgh:  71 to 68

**Cornell shocks Wisconsin: 87 to 69 with a barage of 3 pointers from Wittman (Big Time Sweet 16 matchup against a young Kentucky Wildcats squad that just beat Wake Forest by 30 points)  Can Cornell continue their season and move past the Wildcats?  I think they can....

Remaining Field Breakdown:  Sweet Sixteen Games played Thursday and Friday, March 25th and 26th

Midwest:

Northern Iowa(9) vs. Michigan State(5)
Ohio State(2) vs. Tennessee(6)

West:

Syracuse(1) vs. Butler(5)
Kansas State(2) vs. Xavier(6)

East:

Kentucky(1) vs. Cornell(12)
Washington(11) vs. West Virginia(2)

South:

Duke(1) vs. Purdue(4)
Baylor(3) vs. Saint Mary's(10)

Final Four Predictions:

Kentucky(1)
Ohio State(2)
Syracuse(1)
Baylor(3)

NCAA Tourney Begins - Herb Pope Blast to Midsection - Onuaku Out - Tiger Woods to play in The Masters

2010 Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament Bracket - Sleepers??

MIDWEST REGIONAL

Sleeper Picks: Oklahoma State(7) beat Kansas earlier this year

Northern Iowa(9) was nationally ranked nearly all of this year and could pose problems for Kansas in the 2nd round.

_______________________________________________________________

WEST REGIONAL

Sleeper Picks:  Murray State(13) is 30-4 on the year and has the size and athleticism to create serious match up problems for Vanderbilt(4)

Xavier(6) should be a formidable opponent in the 2nd round for Pittsburgh and has played very well over the last month in the A-10

Gonzaga(8) has been ranked in the top 25 for most of the year and has the size down low to get offensive rebounds against Syracuse without Center Arinze Onuaku.

__________________________________________________________________

EAST REGIONAL

Sleeper Picks: Missouri(10) is 22-10 on the year and was 10-6 in conference play in the very tough Big 12

Texas(8) should be a very interesting matchup in the 2nd round against a young Kentucky squad that will be evenly matched in athleticism by the Longhorns.

Marquette(6) has played the best of the best in the Big East tough all year and will need the leadership of Lazar Hayward and Jimmy Butler to make a run towards a Sweet 16 matchup against conference rival West Virginia

_______________________________________________________________

SOUTH REGIONAL

Sleeper Picks: Siena(13) should pose serious problems for a depleted Purdue team that is lost with Robbie Hummel

Louisville(9) with two huge wins over Syracuse this year could disrupt and pressure the Blue Devils in the second round, as Rick Pitino will have his boys ready for a big upset.

Old Dominion(11) won the CAA Conference Championship and has held opponents to an average of 57 points per game this year.  This should be a close game between ODU and Notre Dame and could come down to the last shot.

What are your thoughts?  What other sleepers do you see out there?

Big East Tourney - Thursday Surprises??

UPDATES:

Notre Dame upsets Pittsburgh:  50 to 45

Georgetown upsets Syracuse: 91 to 84

Marquette upsets Villanova: 80 to 76

Prediction:

Cincinnati will lose to West Virginia: 62 to 54

Louisville Ousts Syracuse / Big East Tournament 2010 Preview (Video)

2009 Big East Tournament (Let's hope we get another game like this in the 2010 tourney)




Louisville Ousts Syracuse (First Road loss for SU this year...wow!)



Big East Tournament Bracket 2010

FIBA 2010 Big East Conference Tournament Schedule


In Madison Square Garden in New York, NY

2010 Big East Conference first round of the tournament games

Tuesday 9 March

Game 1: No. 9 South Florida vs. No. 16 DePaul at noon

Game 2: No. 12 v. Connecticut, No. 13 San Juan, 2 pm

Game 3: No. 10 Seton Hall vs. No. 15 Rutgers 7 pm

Game 4: No. 11 Cincinnati vs. No. 14 Providence, 9 pm

2010 Big East Tournament First Round Games

Wednesday 10 March

Game 5: No. 8 Georgetown vs. Winner Game 1, Club World, noon

Game 6: No. 5 Marquette vs. Winner Game 2, ESPN, 2 pm

Game 7: No. 7 Notre Dame vs. Winner Game 3, ESPN, 7 pm

Game 8: No. 6 Louisville vs. Winner Game 4, ESPN, 9 pm

2010 Big East Tournament Quarterfinals

Thursday 11 March

Game 9: 1 Winner Game 5 vs. Syracuse, ESPN, noon

Match 10: 4th Winner Game 6 vs. Villanova, ESPN, 2 pm

Game 11: No. 2 Pittsburgh vs. Winner Game 7, ESPN, 7 pm

Match 12: 3rd West Virginia winner cons 8 Thu, ESPN 9 hours

2010 Big East Tournament semifinals

Friday 12 March

Game 13: Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 10, ESPN, 7 pm

Thu 14: Fri 11 pm against the winner of Game 12 winner, ESPN, 9

2010 Big East Conference Tournament Championship Game

Saturday 13 March

Game 15: Game 13 Winner Game 14 Winner, ESPN, 9 pm


Picture of the 2010 Big East Regular Season Champs (Style Pic)

Syracuse Orange (28-3) Overall / (15-3) in Big East

Response to SJ Regarding The Cuse

Thanks for the input SJ

The Orange Punish the Red Storm on Senior Night (Video)

Next Up:  SU at Louisville Saturday at 2pm

Syracuse Blasts Villanova out of the Dome (Video Blog)

Syracuse to become new Number 1 team in the country on Monday due to the upsets against Kentucky and Kansas today.
            
7 Villanova 36 41Total = 77


4 Syracuse 46 49 Total = 95


UP NEXT: Senior Night at the Dome against St. Johns Tuesday at 7pm

Syracuse Orange Oust Providence Friars on the Road (Video Blog)

NEXT UP:  SYRACUSE VS. VILLANOVA SATURDAY NIGHT AT 9PM

Syracuse vs. Georgetown Video Blog

Sorry about the first image, but it gets better!



SYRACUSE ORANGE

STARTERS  PTS


Wesley Johnson, F  16  (4 fouls) (Played all 40 minutes, but didn't do much in 2nd half)


Arinze Onuaku, C  2   (Fouled Out) (Foul trouble took him out of the game, not a factor offensively)


Rick Jackson, F  12  (Fouled Out) (played well down low, hit some huge shots throughout)


Andy Rautins, G  26 (4 fouls)  (5 of 9 from three point land)


Brandon Triche, G  8 (played tentative, but hit some big shots)



BENCH PTS


Scoop Jardine, G  0
Kris Joseph, F  11 (once again played well off the bench, especially late)
DaShonte Riley, F  0


TOTAL: 75




GEORGETOWN HOYAS
STARTERS  PTS


Julian Vaughn, F  0


Greg Monroe, C 20 (Monster numbers late in the game)


Chris Wright, G  20 (proved me wrong, played well and took it to the Cuse, made Rautins work)


Austin Freeman, G  21 (Huge in the second half, nothing in the first half)


Jason Clark, G 8  (Big miss from 3 with under a minute left)



BENCH PTS


Hollis Thompson, F 0
Vee Sanford, G  0
Jerrelle Benimon, F  0
Henry Sims, C 2



TOTAL: 71





Technicals: 2 GTOWN ( C Wright 1 ) SYRACUSE ( A Rautins 1 )
Officials: James Breeding ,Jim Burr ,Jamie Luckey
Attendance: 19,976

Louisville Stuns Syracuse at the Carrier Dome

          In front of a massive crowd of 31,053 fans at the Carrier Dome, which happened to be the largest SU crowd so far this year, the Louisville Cardinal (7-5 Big East / 16-9 overall) shocked the No.2 ranked Syracuse Orange (11-2 Big East / 24-2 overall) to win 66-60.  This win was absolutely huge for Louisville, a team which desperately needed a solid Big East road win for their NCAA tournament resume, as they came into the game today on the NCAA Bubble according to "bracketologist" Joe Lunardi....joke.  Moreover, Louisville came into Sunday’s Syracuse game lugging a 1-4 Big East road record, which is very unlike the stellar road teams that Louisville Coach Rick Pitino has fielded in years past. The Cardinals’ latest defeat happened in New York, where St. John’s absolutely owned them 74-55 on Thursday.  Louisville, a No. 1 seed in last year’s NCAA Tournament, has resided on the tournament bubble for the past couple weeks. The Cardinals had lost five of their last eight games before beating Syracuse.

       “We’ve played very good basketball this year. We’ve gotten bad breaks,” Pitino said. “I thought we had the West Virginia game. I thought we had the Pitt game. We were right there to win both games, and we wouldn’t be worried about a road victory to get yourself on the bubble if things would have gone our way.”

 However, the luck and certainly the calls seemed to all go in the Cardinal's favor today in the Dome, as Syracuse couldn't buy a call in the last 10 minutes of the game.  The one major questionable call that I'm sure left every SU fan fuming in their seats was the intentional foul call on Kris Joseph. 
       Syracuse’s Kris Joseph was whistled for an intentional foul with 17.8 seconds left in Sunday’s game, as the call came after Wes Johnson drove the baseline and missed horribly a twisting lay-up that was blocked by the under side of the backboard, however, could've been a call against Louisville, as I don't know many times Wesley Johnson gets rejected by the backboard without any foul coming into play. Anyway, Louisville’s Jerry Smith corralled the rebound and Smith turned his back on Joseph to protect the ball.  Joseph then pulled back Smith's shoulder to either immediately foul or strip away the ball and was called by Tim Higgins to be an intentional foul.  Neither SU coach Jim Boeheim nor Joseph understood the intentional aspect of the foul. Louisville had reached the double bonus, so Smith would have been awarded two free throws anyway. But the intentional foul allowed Louisville to retain possession. Smith sank both of his free throws to cushion Louisville’s lead to 64-60.

     “It was right in front of me. He hit him right on the shoulder,” Boeheim said. “He went for the ball and hit him. He didn’t grab him. I don’t know where (it was) intentional. It probably doesn’t matter. The kid makes the two free throws.”

     “I didn’t foul him that hard. There definitely was some acting involved,” Joseph said. “I just tried to go for the ball to get him to go to the line and shoot the double bonus. But the refs saw it differently. He’s just doing his job that he gets paid to do, so I’m not going to argue with the call.  “The ball was by his shoulder,” Joseph continued. “I just tried to reach over his shoulder, and he made it seem like I pulled him or pushed him or whatever the case may be. And the ref called it intentional.”

Game Analysis/Thoughts:

    Overall, SU's lack of defensive and offensive intensity and aggressiveness has definitely shown itself these last fews games.  Hopefully, SU is simply hitting a mid season slump and will use this defeat as a means of pushing and motivating themselves going forward.  The major factor in this game was the total lack of effectiveness of SU's offense, as Wesley Johnson scored 14 points, yet went 5 for 20 from the field.  Overall, SU shot 41% on 24 of 58, with 26% from downtown with 5 of 19 shooting.  These numbers will have to improve against Georgetown on Thursday, or SU has no chance of victory.  Syracuse needs to push the ball up the floor more often and take advantage of their length and height down low.  Most importantly, Syracuse needs to get back that killer edge mentality that has brought them to top 5 in the country.  They have tremendous talent and experience and were simply outplayed at the end of this game.  Their defense needs to sure up against the 3, as they gave up some costly three pointers with only minutes left in the game. 

Game Stats:

LOUISVILLE CARDINALS


STARTERS  PTS

Terrence Jennings, F  4

Samardo Samuels, F  8

Edgar Sosa, G  12

Jerry Smith, G  2

Preston Knowles, G  10

BENCH PTS

Kyle Kuric, G 0

Jared Swopshire, F 10

Peyton Siva, G  0

Rakeem Buckles, F  8

Mike Marra, G 12

TOTALS = 66


SYRACUSE ORANGE

STARTERS  PTS

Wesley Johnson, F  14

Rick Jackson, F  6

Arinze Onuaku, C 12

Andy Rautins, G 12

Brandon Triche, G  0

BENCH  PTS

Scoop Jardine, G 6

Mookie Jones, F 0

Kris Joseph, F 10

TOTALS = 60


Technicals: None

Officials: Tim Clougherty ,Tim Higgins ,Bob Donato

Attendance: 31,053


BIG EAST STANDINGS:

Standings Conference - Overall


Big East Wins : Losses - (Games Back) - % -  Overall Wins : Losses - %

Villanova 11 1 - .917 - 22 2 .917

Syracuse 11 2 (½) .846 - 24 2 .923

West Virginia 8 4 (3) .667 - 19 5 .792

Pittsburgh 8 4 (3) .667 - 19 6 .760

Georgetown 8 5 (3½) .615 - 18 6 .750

Marquette 7 5 (4) .583 16 8 .667

Louisville 7 5 (4) .583 - 16 9 .640

Cincinnati 6 6 (5) .500 - 15 9 .625

Notre Dame 6 7 (5½) .462 - 17 9 .654

South Florida 5 7 (6) .417 - 15 9 .625

Seton Hall 5 7 (6) .410 - 14 9 .609

Connecticut 4 8 (7) .333 - 14 11 .560

St. John's 4 8 (7) .33 - 14 10 .583

Providence 4 9 (7½) .308 - 12 13 .480

Rutgers 3 9 (8) .250 - 13 12 .520

DePaul 1 11 (10) .083 - 8 16 .333

Syracuse Pulls Out a Nail-Biter Against UConn

      With 24,847 people shaking in their boots in the Carrier Dome, the now No.2 Syracuse University Orange improved to a school best (24-1) overall, as they barely escaped with a win against conference rival UConn 72 to 67.  Syracuse leap frogged the Kentucky Wildcats to move to No.2 in the country in the AP Poll, however, they continue to be No.3 in the Coaches Poll.  Overall, SU played like the No.2 ranked team in the country for most of the game, but couldn't put the finishing touches on the Huskies when they needed to in order to blow out UConn.  However, SU did respond positively when it counted most in order to shoot an incredible 82% from the line to clinch the victory in the closing seconds of this Big East Battle.

        This game was much tighter than what it should have been, as The Cuse squandered a 16 point lead in the second half, as their defensive intensity waivered to allow Uconn Guards Jerome Dyson and Kimba Walker to slice into the Cuse 2-3 zone and create solid scoring opportunities for themselves and others.  Walker's not known for his shooting ability, yet made 3 teardrop shots with under 8 minutes left in the game to keep the Huskies cutting into the SU lead.  Walker ended up with 14 points on the day, while Dyson added 19 points.  Dyson went 0 for his first 4 from downtown, but then hit two huge three pointers with under 4 minutes left in the game.

       With under a minute left in the game, Uconn and The Orange were tied at 65 to 65.  UConn had the ball and was looking to take the lead.....Kimba Walker brought the ball down the floor and to no one's surprise, Jerome Dyson pulled the trigger on a 3 pointer that would have put some serious pressure on Syracuse to do the same.  For the Cuse faithful, luckily Dyson was slightly off on his shot, as Kris Joseph got the rebound.  After a timeout, Syracuse Guard Andy Rautins rushed and missed a contested 3 off an inbounds pass, but Syracuse Center Rick Jackson rebounded to give SU the ball back.  However, at that moment Scoop Jardine drove to the bucket, unsure of what to do, and missed a layup that was blocked.  Somehow, Orange coach Jim Boeheim called a timeout with 36.6 seconds left and 32 on the shot clock, which apparently was before Jardine's bad attempt at a layup.  Overall, with SU regaining the ball it put them in the drivers seat to scrape out a victory, Johnson was fouled by Robinson as soon as play resumed and sank both free throws to give Syracuse a 67-65 lead with 30.4 seconds left.  Kris Joseph then followed with two more free throws with 11.5 seconds to go to make it a two possession game. Walker hit a layup to cut the lead back to a basket, but Joseph sealed it with two more free throws after he was intentionally fouled by Majok on a breakaway with 5.8 seconds left. 

**Analysis:

Solid win for the Cuse, but definitely showed that they're vulnerable to strong guard play from up top and around the foul line area.  Too many holes were exposed late, The Cuse weren't pumped up to play tonight.  They were expecting to win, but didn't want to put the nail in the coffin.  Nothing's easy in the Big East and that was proven tonight.

STATS:

Connecticut

Player Position **(Minutes- Points)

S Robinson F 36 -16

A Majok F 11 - 2

A Oriakhi C 13 - 0

K Walker G 38 - 14

J Dyson G 34 - 19

G Edwards 37 - 12

C Okwandu 19 - 2

J Coombs-McDaniel 8 - 2

Total = 67


Syracuse

Player Position **(Minutes - Points)

W Johnson F 40 - 13

R Jackson F 28 - 15

A Onuaku C 21 - 7

A Rautins G 33 - 8

B Triche G 26 - 8

K Joseph 31 - 14

S Jardine 21 - 7

Total = 72

 

The Saints Stun the Colts in Super Bowl XLIV

       The New Orleans Saints played and won their first Super Bowl title last night, as they shocked Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts 31 to 17 in a game most thought they wouldn't win.  Quite possibly this thinking was due to the fact that it was "Peyton Manning and Dwight Freeney Week" the entire week before the game.  No one could go anywhere or turn on their TV without hearing about how Dwight Freeney had a torn ligament in his ankle and was "QUESTIONABLE" to play.  In addition, even with Dwight Freeney's injury being the forefront of all discussions, and with the Saints just beating the likes of the Cardinals and Vikings, the Saints remained 5 point underdogs.  Furthermore, there was so much love and admiration for Peyton Manning and his play calling ability that I felt like he was going to run for President.  Nonetheless, I must say that the New Orleans Saints must have benefited, at least a little bit, from this lack of press, as the Colts stole the show when it came to press leading up to gametime.  However, all this talk didn't have a thing to do with the overall outcome of the game.

     Led by Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees, who went 32 of 39 for 288 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no INT's, the Saints made history and took control of their destiny to take chances and make gutsy calls that ultimately brought them their first World Championship.  Nonetheless, even with those huge numbers, the Saints trailed 17-16 with under 6 minutes left in the 4th quarter.  The game soon changed, as the Saints marched right down the field and capped it off with a 3 yard TD pass to Tight End Jeremy Shockey, as Shockey could now back up all that trash talk we're used to hearing from him.  His ring during the Giants Super Bowl run he could never justify due to the injury, but this win by the Saints he can definitely take to the bank...and maybe get another tattoo also .

     Think about this...The Saints, who lost their final three regular-season games, are the first team to take a three-game losing streak into the playoffs and win the Super Bowl.  Some interesting stats:   With the loss by the Colts, the last five regular-season MVPs to reach the Super Bowl have lost the game.  The Saints' Garrett Hartley became the first kicker in Super Bowl history to make three field goals from 40-plus yards (46, 44 and 47).  Saints Running Back Pierre Thomas, who had 85 total yards, is the third running back in NFL history to have a receiving touchdown in both a conference title game and the Super Bowl....surprising.  Colts Kicker Matt Stover, who was 1-for-2 on field goal attempts, became the oldest player in a Super Bowl at 42 years, 11 days.  Indianapolis' 96-yard touchdown drive in the first quarter tied the 1985 Bears (Super Bowl XX) for the longest in Super Bowl history. 

      We all knew the game was over, even for Peyton Manning, when Saints Cornerback Tracy Porter ran in front of Reggie Wayne, intercepted Peyton Manning's pass and returned it 74 yards for a touchdown to give New Orleans a 31-17 lead with 3:12 remaining in the game. To the surprise of many, the Colts were completely unable to rally in the final minutes, giving the Saints their first Super Bowl championship.  The interesting fact being that Porter also had a huge interception against Brett Favre in the NFC championship game that ultimately led his team to victory....twice this postseason.  Watch it again:

A Saturday of College BBall Upsets - Huge Monday Matchups

No.2 Villanova was dominated by No.8 Georgetown 90 to 103
      *This was the first conference loss for Villanova this year, and only 2nd overall loss


No.5 Michigan State loses to unranked Illinois 73 to 78
      *Michigan State 2nd straight loss in Big Ten play, first time since 2008(no Kalin Lucas however)

No.10 Texas falls to unranked Oklahoma 71 to 80
     *Since becoming No.1 two weeks ago, Texas has lost 4 of it's last 6 games

No.12 Brigham Young loses to unranked UNLV 88 to 74
     *BYU was down 22 at halftime and gave up an NBA like 56 points in the first half

No.17 Temple gets dominated by unranked Richmond 54 to 71
     *Although unranked, Richmond's win brings them to a 7-2 conference record tie with Temple

No.20 Vanderbilt gets ousted by unranked Georgia 58 to 72
     *Georgia has a losing overall record so far this year at 10-11, yet dominated the ranked Vandy squad by double digits....ouch Vandy!!

No.24 Baylor loses to unranked Texas A&M 71 to 78
      *Baylor led by 12 at one point, made almost double the three pointers that the Aggies made, shot a better field goal percentage from the floor, yet lost the game by 7

*Big Monday Matchups:  College Basketball fans, it doesn't get any better than this!

No.2 Villanova vs. No.6 West Virginia 7pm ET - ESPN

No.1 Kansas vs. No.10 Texas 9pm ET - ESPN

 

 

 

Georgetown Takes Down No.2 Villanova in D.C.

      After a shocking home loss on Wednesday to the University of South Florida, the No.8 Georgetown Hoyas(17-5) defended their home court amidst a monster snow storm  outside to oust the No.2 Villanova Wildcats(20-2) 103 to 90.  This was the first Big East conference loss for the Wildcats so far this year and only their second loss of the season, however, many analysts have pointed out how the week schedule of Villanova had up until this game kept them at the top of the national rankings.  Nonetheless, that soft Wildcat schedule is about to heat up, as Villanova now moves on to play No.6 West Virginia on Monday to start Rivalry Week.  Georgetown improved to 7-4 in Big East play and a tie for 4th place with Pittsburgh in the conference standings, while Villanova fell into a tie for first place in the conference with the Syracuse Orange at 9-1.

         This game was the definition of a tough fought Big East battle between two power houses, as fouls played a huge role in the final turnout of the game.  Georgetown shot an incredible 39 of 50 from the charity strike, while Villanova made 17 of 23 from the line.  Overall, 73 free throws were attempted in the game, as the physicality of the Hoyas was simply too much for Villanova's undersized forwards and guards to handle.  Hoyas Guard Austin Freeman was dynamite, as he shot 8 of 12 from the floor, and made 7 of 10 free throws to lead the Hoyas with 25 points, while Sophomore star Center Greg Monroe added 19 points and made 11 of 14 free throws.  The complete lack of a bench didn't negatively influence the Hoyas offensive production today, as the Hoyas scored at ease and put up a season high 103 points against Villanova's undersized defense.  This was a statement game for both teams, as Villanova sought to put a huge conference road win on their tournament resume, while Georgetown sought to possibly move up in the ranks even though they had lost to South Florida earlier this week.  Overall, the home court crowd propelled the Hoyas past the Wildcats this day, however, it'll be up to the pollsters to see how far Nova will fall in the ranks and whether G-Town's victory over Nova was worthy of them moving up.

Star Watch:  Scottie Reynolds had 24 points on a lackluster 6 of 17 from the floor, however, he was 9 of 11 from the line.  He had 6 assists with 6 turnovers

The Cuse Crush Providence Without Johnson

       In front of 20,205 fans at the Carrier Dome, the No.4 Syracuse Orange pounded an undersized Providence Friars squad in the second half to win by 17, with an 85 to 68 final score.  This is the best start in Syracuse Men's Basketball history, as The Cuse improved to 22-1 on the year and 9-1 in the tough Big East.  Nonetheless, The Orange still trail the No.2 Villanova Wildcats in the Big East rankings, as Nova remains undefeated in Big East play at 9 and 0. 

       This SU win came mostly without the services of star Forward Wesley Johnson, as he crashed hard to the court after being flipped over Providence Forward Brian McKenzie while trying to convert an alley-oop midway through the first half.  Johnson remained on the ground a minute or two, but was able to then finish the half, but played only three minutes in the second half.  At halftime the score was 37-34, as the Cuse went cold to end the first half, as Providence put together a run to get back into the game. 
        Overall, Johnson's injury didn't make a bit of difference in this game, as The Orange exploded in the second half to completely dominate the Friars on both ends of the floor.  Syracuse shot a phenomenal 57% from the field in this game, as Syracuse Center Arinze Onuaku and Strong Forward Rick Jackson each exerted their force.  Onuaku recorded 4 huge blocks, while Jackson put another two in the stands next to former SU star Gerry McNamara.  SU recorded 8 blocks on the day, which was monumental compared to the Friars 0.  Jackson led SU with 7 assists, while Onuaku threw down 20 points to lead the Orange to a strong victory. 

         The big story in this game was the play of Sophomore Forward Kris Joseph, as he definitely was the MVP of the game, scoring a career high 23 points on 9 of 11 from the floor and 5 of 5 from the line.  Joseph played out of his mind and seemed to dunk after dunk after dunk on the Friars soft defense.....oh yeah, another dunk.  Syracuse proved they have what it takes to protect their home court, and also to overcome adversity, as Johnson's injury, although minor, showed that other guys could step up to the plate and get the job done.  Brandon Triche was a perfect example, as he shot well from the floor scoring 15 points and had some crafty drives to the bucket that kept the momentum all on SU's side in the second half.  Syracuse was running down hill throughout the last 20 minutes and left Providence simply trying to catch up.  There are some very tough games coming up for Villanova, as they play the likes of West Virginia and Georgetown, so it remains to be seen whether Nova can continue their undefeated Big East record.  The Cuse are right on their heels, so another strong performance against Cincinnati on Sunday could spell first place for the Orange if all goes as planned.   

Syracuse Barely Holds Off Depaul While Georgetown Dominates Duke

     It was a very stressful day for Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim and the rest of the Syracuse faithful, as the No.4 ranked Syracuse Orange (21-1) barely improved to 8-1 in the Big East by holding off the last place DePaul Blue Demons (8-13) 59 to 57 in Chicago, Illinois, Saturday afternoon.  The Blue Demons came out of the gates on fire, as they were shooting over 70% early on in the contest.  Clutch three point shooting and a barrage of dribble drives completely exposed the holes in the Orange two-three zone defense that had up to this point in the year completely confused the rest of the Syracuse opponents. 
        DePaul was led by Guard Will Walker who shot 5 of 12 from downtown and ended up with 21 points on the day.  Walker's sidekick, DePaul forward Mike Stovall also added 9 points to help bust out the DePaul lead to 18 points over the stunned Syracuse Orange that obviously had underestimated their opponent.  However, The Cuse shouldn't have overlooked the Blue Demons, even though their record is below .500, earlier this month they had beaten a tough Marquette Golden Eagles squad that just beat UConn and has played almost everyone tough so far this year.  Nonetheless, the Blue Demons 18 point lead in the first half was brought down to only 4 points at half time, as Kris Joseph came off the bench and once again played like a star, as he kept the crowd out of it for a while, as he dunked over Blue Demon defenders and had a number of layups that DePaul had no answer for on defense.  Iowa State transfer sensation Wesley Johnson also kept the Orange in it, as he put up 16 points on 7 of 15 from the field, and also dished off 7 assists to lead everyone. 

        Even though the SU scoring attack was somewhat balanced, the Orange only ended up with 59 points on the day, a drastic difference from their over 80 point average up until this game.  However, the most important factor in this game was that DePaul couldn't put away the struggling Orange, as SU scratched and clawed to stay within 9 points of the Blue Demons with under 7 minutes left to play.  At that point in the game, the Cuse went on their final run.  Trailing 52-43 with under seven minutes left, Joseph hit a 3-pointer to start the go-ahead run.  Andy Rautins then connected from the outside after DePaul's Michael Bizoukas threw the ball away and then a surprising shot in transition came, as Scoop Jardine buried another 3-pointer, and Johnson tied it at 54 with a one-handed fastbreak dunk over Stovall to completely silence the Chicago crowd.  Jardine then gave the Orange their first lead of the day with a layup that made it 56-54 with 3:37 left, and Joseph converted a layup and hit a free throw to make it 59-54.  The Cuse then played tough defense and continued to pressure the ball in order to squeak out a victory on the road, as Will Walker missed a contested three pointer at the buzzer that would have inevitably caused the stands to be cleared out onto the court.  Nonetheless, it wasn't meant to be, as DePaul hung their heads after a tough game they certainly should have won.

      In a much different manner than Syracuse had, the No.7 Georgetown Hoyas (16-4) used homecourt advantage and even United States President Barack Obama's support in order to completely dominate and embarrass the No.8 Duke Blue Devils that were never really in striking distance of the Hoyas.  The Hoyas won 89 to 77, as the size, strength, and length of the Hoyas was simply too much for the Blue Devils to handle.  This was evident on the offensive end, as the Dukies shot an unimpressive 37% from the field and only 31% from beyond the arc.  However, President Obama must have been overjoyed by the Georgetown effort, as the Hoyas shot an insane 71% from the floor and 46% from downtown to totally control the game and kept all the momentum throughout the entire showing. 

Greg Monroe, Chris Wright, and Austin Freemen were a three headed beast for Georgetown, as they each put up over 20 points and played monster minutes, as between the three players, they played all but 2 minutes on the game.  The lack of depth from the Hoyas played no part in influencing the Hoyas effectiveness, as Duke simply had no answer for Georgetown's Big East style of play.  Nevertheless, a surprising stat was the fact that Duke had 12 offensive rebounds to Georgtown's 1, but it made no difference, as Georgetown shot lights out and really didn't need the offensive rebounds anyway.  Duke also didn't do much with their extra opportunities, as the Duke trio of Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith, and Jon Scheyer each put up 17 or more points, yet their field goal percentage was disappointing and not nearly enough to keep the Blue Devils in the game.  The Hoyas tough loss to the Syracuse Orange last week definitely played a role in this game, as the Hoyas came out with a sense of urgency and wanted to put a huge non-conference W on their tournament resume at home.  It's clear that the Big East has put itself at the top of the Power Conference rankings in Men's college basketball, as wins such as this one against highly touted opponents like Duke shows that the depth of the Big East is plentiful and getting stronger year after year.    

 It was a big thumbs up from President Obama and Vice President Biden to the Hoyas, as they proved they have what it takes to remain a top 10 team in the National Rankings.

 Big East Standings

      *Conference Record / Overall Record

1. 3 Villanova 8-0 / 19-1
2. 4 Syracuse 8-1 / 21-1
3. 9 West Virginia 6-2 / 17-3 
4. 17 Pittsburgh 6-2 / 16-4
5. 7 Georgetown 6-3 / 16-4
6. Cincinnati 5-4 / 14-7
7. Louisville 4-4 / 13-8  
8. Notre Dame 4-5 / 15-7
9. Marquette 4-5 / 13-8  
10. Providence 4-5 / 12-9
11. South Florida 3-5 / 13-7
12. Seton Hall 3-5 / 12-7  
13. 19 Connecticut 3-5 / 13-8
14. St. John's 2-6 / 12-8
15. Rutgers 1-8 / 10-11 
16. DePaul 1-8 / 8-13

Kentucky Gets No.1 Disease and Falls to Gamecocks

         What a day for the new No.1 ranked team in the AP and Coaches Poll, as the unranked South Carolina Gamecocks(12-8) shocked the new No.1 Kentucky Wildcats(19-1) to hand the Wildcats their first loss of the season by a score of 68 to 62.  This was the first time in school history the South Carolina Gamecocks have beaten a number 1 ranked team, and it couldn't have come at a better time.  South Carolina was led by Senior Guard Devan Downey who scored 30 points on 9 of 29 shooting from the floor, as he fearlessly attacked the rim again and again against John Wall and company.  There was no doubt that Wall knew he had his hands full with Downey, as Wall played off the ball more in order to allow space and not get beat.  However, Wall needed help in this game, as Calipari pulled up his big men to double team Downey out on the perimeter.  This game was a defensive battle, as both teams defensive strategies were extremely successful, causing each squad to shoot under 40% from the field.  Furthermore, turnovers played a role, as the Wildcats coughed it up 15 times in this one, providing Downey ample opportunities to push the ball up the floor and create fast breaks.  The Cats were kept on their heels, as the Gamecocks used the crowd to further pump themselves up, and further deplete the fight in the new AP No.1 team. 

         It's been the wierdest thing so far this year, but I think Kansas, Texas, and now Kentucky would all tell you that having that number 1 stamp on your back isn't at all easy to defend.  In prior years, the number 1 ranked teams have rolled to victory over unranked opponents, however, this year has been different, as each number 1 team noted above has had it's share of close calls and now Kentucky see's itself defeated.  The pressure of being number 1 may have played a role tonight, as Kentucky's talent is unquestionable, yet their leaders are all Freshman, as Guard John Wall, Forward DeMarcus Cousins, and Guard Erik Bledsoe are each in their first year and don't any experience playing in tough environments on the road.  It will be interesting to see how Kentucky responds in their next matchup against Vanderbilt on January 30th, however, that game will be at home.  It's clear that men's college basketball is wide open this year, as anyone can get beat by a team that puts on the pressure and plays tough defense.  Nice showing from the Gamecocks, and if they keep it up, then they may even get a NCAA tournament bid out of this.

Men's NCAA Top 5 Basketball Teams - Star Videos

AP Top 25  - Videos


1. Kentucky (65) 19-0  - John Wall



2. Kansas 19-1  - Sherron Collins



3. Villanova 18-1  - Scotty Reynolds



4. Syracuse 20-1  - Wesley Johnson



5. Michigan State 18-3  - Kalin Lucas



6. Texas 17-2 

7. Georgetown 15-4

8. Duke 16-3 

9. West Virginia 15-3 

10. Purdue 16-3

11. Kansas State 16-3

12. Brigham Young 20-1 

13. Gonzaga 16-3

14. Tennessee 15-3

15. Temple 17-3 

16. Wisconsin 16-4

17. Pittsburgh 15-4

18. Mississippi 15-4

19. Connecticut 13-6 

20. Ohio State 14-6

21. Vanderbilt 15-3

22. Georgia Tech 14-5

23. New Mexico 18-3

24. Baylor 15-3

25. UAB 17-2

Others Receiving Votes

Florida State 111, Northern Iowa 106, Clemson 103, Wake Forest 98, Butler 69, Mississippi State 42, Texas A&M 29, Oklahoma State 25, Missouri 24, Maryland 22, Cornell 16, Old Dominion 11, Xavier 11, UNLV 6, Northwestern 5, Siena 3, Virginia 3, Saint Mary's 2, Louisiana Tech 2, California 2, Coastal Carolina 1, Harvard 1.

Dropped From Rankings

Clemson 17, Northern Iowa 20, Mississippi State 23.

The Orange Destroy the Hoyas at Home

   The now No.4 ranked Syracuse Orange improved to 7-1 in the Big East and 20-1 overall, as they picked up another solid victory by beating their arch rival No.7 Georgetown Hoyas(15-4) 73 to 56.  This was the tale of two games, as the Hoyas silenced the crowd immediately as they opened the game with a 14 to 0 lead over the hometown Orange.  The 26,508 in the seats must have been extremely surprised to see Georgetown open the game shooting 5 of 6 from the field, as Georgetown Guard Austin Freemen was putting on a show, as he drained 3 shots from beyond the arc in the first 3 minutes of play.  However, this game was just getting started, as The Orange then began to play and were led by their bench in order to fight their way back into the game.  Once again, The Cuse bench was led by Kris Joseph and Scooooop Jardine, as both players shot a combined 9 of 11 from the floor for the game, and put up 24 points.  Joseph and Jardine have continued to impress all year, however, Joseph has really shown how he's becoming a Big East threat in every game.  Joseph's nose for the bucket, strong ball handling, and driving ability is what helped SU cut into the 14 point early Hoyas lead.  Jardine went 4 of 4 from the field, most of which was on fast breaks, as he pushed the ball down the floor and put pressure on the slower Hoyas defense to get back on D and make plays.  The momentum rather quickly began to turn in the Orange's favor, as the fans got into the game and the Orange players were feeding off of the emotion built from the comeback.

          So what allowed for such a turnaround after the first 3 minutes of the game....DEFENSE DEFENSE DEFENSE!  Fifth year Senior Guard and leader Andy Rautins was huge in this game for The Cuse, as he played incredible defense and even had 6 steals to help create fast break opportunities for SU.  Defense has been a staple for The Orange all year and has led them to where they are in the Big East and National standings.  How's this for some defense, Wesley Johnson had 4 blocks and 3 steals, Kris Joseph had a block and 3 steals, Rautins had 6 steals, and Rick Jackson had 3 blocks and even gobbled up a steal.  Another huge factor was the fact that SU completely took Georgetown Sophomore Forward Greg Monroe out of the game, as foul trouble wasn't an issue for the rest of the Hoyas, but Monroe continued to pick up the ticky tack fouls that always go unnoticed.  However, with much of the game left in the second half, Monroe fouled out with an unnecessary screen foul at the top of the arc on Andy Rautins.  It was a nice acting job by Rautins, but still a foul.  Rautins came up with big plays all game, and needed to, as they showed his Dad Leo Rautins in the stands almost as much as they showed Andy.  After not recording a point against Marquette, Rautins scored 15 against the Hoyas and shot 9 of 10 from the free throw line.  This was an incredibly balanced scoring attack from The Cuse tonight, and was no coincidence that SU pulled out a W because of it.  Georgetown simply had no bench and no spark after the first 3 minutes of play.  Georgetown's lack of balance and no clear leader never allowed them to truly scare The Orange, as once the tide started to turn, the Hoyas simply couldn't keep up.