Puppet Ramblings – First Four, NIT, Selection Committee, and More…

Posted on March 18, 2025 by David Griggs

-For starters, if you’d like to enter the BEAT THE PUPPET BRACKET CHALLENGE that Chad Sherwood has cooked up….don’t bother!! You won’t beat me!! It’s not even worth trying!! The only way anyone can beat me is if they cheat!!

SELECTIONS AND SEEDINGS:

-We shared our thoughts on the selections and seedings and then collectively filled out a bracket last night. You can watch us do that on the latest HOOPS HD REPORT – NCAA TOURNAMENT PREVIEW

-In terms of the Selection Committee, it seems as though every year there is a controversial selection and/or omission that has people screaming and yelling and taking to the streets in protest. This year’s selection of North Carolina looks particularly sketch considering that Bubba Cunningham was the committee chairman and is also the Athletic Director at UNC. I’m not going to deny that I don’t understand why the optics of that are questionable.

Having said that, though…

While very few “experts” were projecting UNC to get in, almost all of them had them within the next four teams of making it. Or…first four out. Or…last four out. Or…however they phrase it. They were the next in line!!! As I understand it, a bracketologist who gets a team correct and gets them within one of the actual seedline considers that good for their “score.” Well, had it been a 72 team tournament, all would have had UNC in the field and within one of their actual seedline, and no one would have been complaining. So, it wasn’t as if they selected Seton Hall, or South Carolina, or someone that was so far away from the bubble that they needed a telescope to see it.

Also…

The selection committee has 12 members on it and has a broad range of ties. Conspiracy theorists will always be able to find a conspiracy. The Big Ten had someone on the committee. The Big 12 had someone on the committee. The Big East had someone on the committee. Every team that was on the bubble, whether they were in our out, had ties to someone that was on the committee that would have personally benefited from their selection. So, EVERY YEAR we have these “A HA!!!” moments among the conspiracy theorists. THAT’S why UNC got in and West Virginia didn’t!!!

Something that I think gets lost in all of this is that the selection committee is just that. It’s a COMMITTEE. I think a lot of bracketologists get caught up in looking at team-sheets, and thinking of them as scorecards, and adding up all the different things on there to determine the value of that scorecard, and then ranking the teams that way. I love what bracketologists do. I think they make the sport a lot more exciting for fans and that they make the season a lot easier to put into context as it plays out than it otherwise would be without them. But what they do and how they do it is procedurally not the same as what the committee does. If you’ve ever been on any sort of a committee, be it a hiring committee, a rules committee, a party planning committee, or whatever, you know that committees are not unanimous in their decisions and that no one ever agrees with everything. The Selection Committee really isn’t any different.

And, it’s also worth noting that there are multiple NCAA Staffers in the room throughout the process. I’m not saying they are monitored for 96 straight hours throughout the whole week, but a committee member just can’t brazenly say “Hey! Do me a solid! Select my team!”

After all that, let me say this. I DID NOT agree with all of the selections and seedings. I never do. I thought the inclusion of North Carolina and Texas were a little ridiculous and that West Virginia clearly appeared to have a better team sheet and be better on the court than both of those teams.

I also feel that UC Irvine was/is both better and more deserving than all four teams in the First Four. I didn’t think they’d actually get selected, but had I been on the committee I would have absolutely argued for them. They won 14 true road games and a total of 18 away from home, and while almost none of those were ‘tier 1’ some of them were still games that were very hard to win. I don’t think any of the four bubble teams would have had as good of a record against UC Irvine’s schedule as UC Irvine did.

And, seeding Drake and UC San Diego as low as they did was wrong. Those teams played a lot of games away from home that were not easy to win and should have been seeded better. In fact, for seemingly the 20th straight year, I’m looking at the 12-line and thinking all of these 12 seeds would beat all the teams on the 9, 10, and 11 lines! Sucks for the 5 seeds, I guess! But, those are just my personal thoughts. Someone else who is just as informed may see it entirely differently.

We at Hoops HD replicate the process every year in our mock committee. The final bracket can be seen HERE. I didn’t agree with all of our selections and seedings either. I never do. No one from Hoops HD who participated agreed with everything. They never do. I mean…have you WATCHED our shows?? We start evaluating teams on the first night of the season and have two to three weekly shows throughout the season. We are unanimous on almost nothing!! And neither is the real committee. Almost no type of committee on the planet ever is.

But…

Just because I don’t agree with everything the committee did does not necessarily mean I think they were dishonest or uninformed. Quite frankly, as often as they meet, and as much as they go over, it is impossible for them to not be informed. They are far more informed than most of the media. The media spends well over 90 percent of their time covering less than 10 percent of the teams. The committee literally watches everyone. And I think suggesting that bracketologists take over the process is a silly suggestion. As much as I love what they do, they grade themselves on how close they come to guessing the real committee. Replacing the real committee with a group of people who gauge their success based on how accurate their guesses are is just illogical. It’s like suggesting court room reporters replace the juries. It’s the kind of thing I would suggest as a joke. I love what bracketologists do, but am totally against turning them into administrators.

As far as whether or not the committee is the fairest way to do it?? It’s a fair question. I’m open to other ideas and suggestions. And I totally get how frustrating it can be that the committee changes from year to year, and as the committee changes the points of emphasis change right along with that. Having said that, 31 teams get in via auto-bid. At least another 31 are absolute no brainers. They’d be in regardless of who is on the committee or what the points of emphasis are. That’s 62 out of 68 teams. Every single team, ESPECIALLY those from the nine mutli-bid leagues, has the chance to play their way into being one of those 62 teams. So, while I don’t agree with North Carolina and Texas getting in, I don’t feel THAT sorry for the teams that were left out either. They had chances to be one of the 62 no-brainers.

NIT:

-A lot of fun games tonight! If these games were regular season games we’d be highlighting pretty much all of them. Arkansas State had a great year and gets to host Saint Louis, Cal State Northridge was good in the Big West and gets to go to Stanford, UC Riverside v Santa Clara is another really fun game, Chattanooga was the 1st place team in the SoCon and was really playing well down the stretch and it will be fun to see them play against a Middle Tennessee tea that was also good down the stretch. All the games tonight are good!

NCAA FIRST FOUR:

-Saint Francis and Alabama State finished down the standings in weak conferences, but got hot in the conference tournaments and won the auto-bids. Saint Francis’s win at Central Connecticut in the NEC final may have been one of the biggest upsets during all of championship week. Alabama State finished just 4th in the SWAC, but they were really good in the latter part of the season and that momentum carried over into the SWAC Tournament. I’m actually looking forward to this one!

-San Diego State also squares off against North Carolina, who we now know was the last team into the field and would not have made it at all had UAB beaten Memphis. It could be that in 13 hours this horribly selected team is out of the field!

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The Hoops HD Report – NCAA Tournament Preview

Posted on March 17, 2025 by David Griggs

It’s the evening after the Selection Show and Chad is joined by a full panel as they go through the selections and seedings and talk about what the committee got right, what they got wrong, and who the biggest snubs were. After that we took a look at the bracket and fill it out on the air as we go through each matchup and preview each team. We also take a quick look at all of the other postseason tournaments, and we close by revealing this year’s AC8 field!!

And, for all you radio lovers, below is an audio only version of the show…

And here is the bracket we filled out on the show:

Posted in Bracket Rundown, Bracketology, Hoops HD Report, Podcasts, Videocasts | 1 Comment

All-Access at the A-10 Tournament in DC: Championship Sunday

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Jon Teitel

Conference tournaments are about basketball but also so much more: the fans, parents, bands, cheerleaders, etc. The A-10 Tournament is taking place this week in Washington, DC, and we could not be more excited to be there in person! HoopsHD is covering all the angles so you can look forward to an abundance of access today. Jon Teitel continues our coverage from DC with a recap of the title game on Sunday.

After 3 straight days of chicken tenders/fries it was nice to finally mix things up with a birria bowl/chicken tinga street taco. They brought out a full-court-size American flag for the anthem, and GMU SR F Jalen Haynes sure looked locked in:

The fans for both teams showed up in full force (reminiscent of their 3 CAA tourney title game battles during a 6-year span from 2004-2009), and the mascots were ready to rock:

The 2 coaches were squarely on the bubble and did not want to let the decision of whether this is a 2-bid league come down to the Selection Committee that evening:

Let’s tip it off to see who takes home the trophy, with Kevin Harlan/Dan Bonner on the call for the CBS national broadcast:

GEORGE MASON-VCU
Haynes started strong with a layup and a 3 from the top of the key, while his teammate Brayden O’Connor made a 3 and a pull-up J…which is about what I would expect from a guy named O’Connor who is wearing a green jersey on the day before St. Patrick’s Day:

VCU SR F Jack Clark was the best player on the court during the 1st 20 minutes with 13 PTS on a pair of threes, an old-fashioned 3-PT play, and 5-5 FT shooting:

His teammate Phillip Russell was unimpressed with a boring old 3-PT play so he decided to make a super-fancy 4-PT play instead:

SR G Max Shulga scored 22 PTS/4-7 3PM in the Rams’ 70-54 win over GMU 3 weeks ago in Richmond. He did not repeat his 3-PT performance (0-2 in the 1st half), but he did have a huge momentum play after a teammate tipped a REB to him and he was able to make a layup to beat the halftime buzzer and give VCU a 36-28 halftime lead:

I did not have many celebrity sightings at the CAA tourney last weekend, but during halftime I spotted Indianapolis Colts TE Mo-Alie Cox sitting behind the Rams bench. Saturday was the 10-year anniversary of his 13-PT/6-6 FG performance in a 6-PT win over Dayton in the 2015 A-10 tourney title game…but I still think he made the correct career choice:

The tide started to turn in the 2nd half as VCU started turning the ball over and Zach Anderson/Darius Maddox made multiple shots from behind the arc for the Patriots:

However, VCU G Joe Bamisile helped save the day with back-to-back 3-PT plays and finished with 17 PTS in 28 minutes:

Shulga made a couple of threes in the 2nd stanza, Anderson missed a 3-PT shot with 4 seconds left, and that was all she wrote as the Rams hung on for a 68-63 win and an auto-bid to the NCAA tourney. Anderson collapsed to the court right in front of me after the buzzer, but his teammates hustled right over to literally give him the support he needed and show everyone that they had his back:

No postgame press conference but check back tomorrow for my best photos from the postgame celebration…and see below for a sneak preview:

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Vanderbilt SR PG Jordyn Oliver

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Jon Teitel

Vanderbilt lost to South Carolina 84-63 in the SEC women’s tourney quarterfinals but still earned an at-large bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Commodores missed the NCAA tourney for 9 straight years from 2015-2023, but have now won 22+ games and made the NCAA tourney for the 2nd year in a row. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Vanderbilt SR PG Jordyn Oliver about playing for a trio of terrific coaches and making the NCAA tourney.

In the 2017 FIBA Americas U16 Championship you played for Team USA: what did it mean to you to represent your country, and what did it mean to you to win a gold medal? It was a blessing. When I was in high school my dad had me make a list of things I wanted to accomplish, and that was on my bucket list.

In 2019 you were named a McDonald’s All-American: could you tell at the time that your fellow honoree Aliyah Boston was going to become a star? Yes: you could tell right then and there. We knew that she would be great, and even as a freshman at South Carolina her skills did not decline at all.

You spent your 1st few years of college at Baylor/Duke: why did you decide to transfer, and what made you choose Vanderbilt? I had 2 great coaches at my previous schools and made some lifelong friends, but I wanted to find the perfect fit…and thanks to Coach Shea Ralph I did.

You have played for 3 amazing coaches in Kim Mulkey/Kara Lawson/Shea Ralph: what is the most important thing that you learned from any of them? I learned a lot from each of them. Coach Mulkey is in the Hall of Fame and the other 2 are right behind her. The most important thing I learned is that the work you do now will show itself later.

Last month your teammate Mikayla Blakes set a D-1 freshman record with 55 PTS in a 10-PT OT win over Auburn: where does that rank among the most amazing performances that you have ever seen? That is #1. You rarely see a freshman drop 50 PTS twice in a season. She is a great player and a great person.

The SEC received a record 14 bids to this year’s men’s tourney, which further establishes it as the greatest conference in the history of the sport: where does the women’s side of the conference rank among the best in the nation? We are #1 for sure! I have played in 3 conferences now and taken the lay of the land, and I can tell you that the SEC is the best.

During the past few years, you have made the NCAA tourney with 3 different schools and won at least 1 tourney game every single year: what is the key to winning games in March? Just having a sense of urgency. You can be an underdog or a top-4 seed, but you must play with urgency during the entire month.

Your uncle LaTroy Hawkins played in MLB for 21 seasons and your cousin Jared Cunningham played in the NBA: who is the best athlete in the family? If you asked them they would probably say themselves. We are a pretty competitive family…but I would say me!

How do you feel about being a #7 seed, and what do you know about Oregon? I am excited to be a 7-seed and we are grateful to be back in the NCAA tourney. I do not know too much about Oregon but I am VERY familiar with Deja Kelly: we both grew up in the Texas area, and we faced each other in ACC play when she was at UNC and I was at Duke.

If you end up beating the Ducks, then you might have to face your old Blue Devils team: how exciting/weird/fun would that be? It would be fun: I still have a few friends left on the team. I graduated from Duke with a degree in sociology so it is exciting to be going back to Cameron Indoor Stadium…but if we end up playing them it will be my team vs. their team: I will not make it “JO vs. Duke”.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews VCU director of student-athlete development Bradford Burgess

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Jon Teitel

On Selection Sunday VCU beat George Mason 68-63 in the A-10 tourney title game to earn an automatic bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Rams missed the NCAA tourney in each of the past 4 even-numbered years but have now made it a ridiculous 10 odd-numbered years in a row since 2007. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with VCU director of student-athlete development Bradford Burgess about making the Final 4 as a player and making the NCAA tourney again this week.

You grew up in Midlothian, VA: what made you choose VCU for college? In the beginning of my recruitment I envisioned myself getting away from home, but as I took more time to know the local coaching staffs I decided to stay in town. It came down to Richmond or VCU, and after VCU beat Duke in the 2007 NCAA tourney I thought it would be exciting to come in as a freshman and play with a future NBA player like Eric Maynor. I thought it was the best fit because VCU has a history of success with local guys.

Take me through the magical 2011 NCAA tourney as a player at VCU:
You scored 26 PTS including the game-winning shot in a 1-PT OT win over Florida State in the Sweet 16: how did that shot change your life (if at all)? People still asked me about it last weekend at the A-10 tourney, and hopefully the Rams have some more success this time around. Being successful in March is where legends are made! It can provide opportunities for people who want to play at the next level. It also gave me opportunities in coaching and helped me get my job here. It was huge for me to have things come full-circle.

You scored 15 PTS in an 8-PT loss to Butler in the Final 4: how close did you get to making it to the title game? Not close enough! It was a weird game: some of the shots we had been making all month were not falling, be it tip-ins or wide-open shots. We did not have the same feeling that we had in the games prior, but it was still an amazing experience. Butler has an amazing program and they were ready for the moment so I do not know if we could have done anything different in Houston.

You finished your career with a D-1 record 146 consecutive starts: what is the secret to being an “iron man”? I did not know the exact # but my life has always been about accountability. My parents stressed the importance of being there for my teammates/coaches. I did not want to let anyone down so I let everyone know that I was trying my hardest while keeping the team in mind first and foremost.

After retiring as a player, you spent several years working in the NBA: what was the best part? Just being around all the legendary talent in the pros. Sometimes the older players would recognize me for what VCU did in the NCAA tourney. In Chicago I got to work with Nikola Vucevic, who played at USC when we beat them in the 1st 4 in 2011, and we would joke around about it. I also got to work with Hall of Fame coaches like Billy Donovan/Maurice Cheeks,w hich helped me fine-tune my own coaching craft. It was an invaluable experience to learn a lot and travel like the pros do: it was such a blessing.

You work for Coach Ryan Odom: what makes him such a good coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? As great a coach as he is, he is an even better man. He is high-level in every sense of the word and makes it so easy to work for him. He is so understanding/personable and allows you to be you. You want to do everything you can to help him be the best version of himself. He has won everywhere he has been and knows how to get the best out of guys so that we want to win for him.

What does a director of student-athlete development do? The easiest way to explain it is that I teach the team different ways to make plays and the ins/outs of the game. I also share my knowledge of how things were done from when I was a player and how things have changed. I want them to be successful and show them how to do things at the next level. I played pro for a few years after college so I have been around the world and seen a lot. I want the next generation of Rams to do great things both at and after VCU.

Last December you had back-to-back games against a pair of tourney teams from the MWC in Colorado State/New Mexico: which of them impressed you the most? I will start with the New Mexico game because their PG Donovan Dent scored 40 PTS against us! He got in the paint at will and everything he shot was going in. Nique Clifford at Colorado State is also very talented: he did not have the best game against us but I have kept my eye on him from afar because he is so gifted. They are the keys to their teams.

On Selection Sunday your team had a 5-PT win over GMU to win the A-10 tourney title game: what did it mean to you to win a title? I won 2 conference titles as a player in the CAA. I am well-versed in playing George Mason and it was so great to make it back to the title game again after losing to Duquesne last March. The arena in DC was filled with loud fans from both schools and reminiscent of our games from my era.

How do you feel about being a #11 seed, and what do you know about BYU? They can score and shoot the 3-ball very well. I am excited to experience the tourney again and hopefully we can make some noise again in March so I am looking forward to it.

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Tourney Talk: HoopsHD interviews Tennessee assistant coach Gregg Polinsky

Posted on March 17, 2025 by Jon Teitel

On Selection Sunday Tennessee lost to Florida 86-77 in the SEC tourney title game, but still earned an at-large bid to this week’s NCAA tournament. The Volunteers made the Sweet 16 in 2023, the Elite 8 in 2024, and hope to make an even deeper run in 2025. Earlier today HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to speak with Tennessee assistant coach Gregg Polinsky about his team’s great defense and facing Wofford on Thursday in Lexington.

You played PG at New Mexico/NAU: how good a player were you back in the day? Not very! My joke is that I practiced a lot on a very good team at New Mexico. I lost a year of eligibility at NAU after playing 9 minutes against the Cuban national team. I was an average college player.

How did you 1st get into coaching? I was close to my high school coach and thought that was what I wanted to do, so it remained a constant theme in my mind. I love the game and love teaching and the connection/competition. I got hired at a junior college and eventually made it to D-1.

You spent 4 years as head coach at Georgia Southern: how did being a head coach compare to being an assistant coach? That was a great experience. I wish I would have had a few more years with a guy like Rick Barnes. My joke is that the other coaches in the league were playing chess while I was playing checkers, but I learned a lot and still have some close friends from that time. Now that I am 67, when I look back on it I think it was well worth it.

You spent more than 2 decades in the NBA in various scouting/player personnel roles: has the gap between the NCAA and NBA been closing recently due to NIL or other factors? The positive aspect is that players absolutely should participate in the revenue sharing of college athletics. Like any other career path, the question is whether it is too much too early. I struggle with the idea of high school kids in some states getting paid, which is the challenging side of it. The good aspect is for kids who are investing their money early on so they can have some later in life: thank goodness that most of our guys have parents who give them an allowance and then put the rest of the way until their career is done. In our conference, the level of play has been spectacular. What has surprised me is to see the guys competing now that they are getting money, but the SEC tourney was simply…wow! Did it look like any of those kids cared about money or about competing at the highest level: the latter. To think that the talent level in college is even close to the NBA is silly: as good as our league is, our best teams would not stand a chance against any NBA team. The college game is still tremendous. We might have the best AD in the country, and Danny White feels there must be a collective bargaining agreement…but it cannot be the same as in the NBA.

On Selection Sunday the SEC received a record 14 bids: what is it like to be part of the greatest conference in the history of the sport? I think it will sink in if I still have all my faculties maybe 10 years from now. Someone on the radio yesterday mentioned the # of Quad 1 games that some of our teams played. I am pulling for every team in our league and I respect all the coaches/assistants/programs. My concern is whether we have cannibalized ourselves, so I am curious to see how we perform in the NCAA. They say that “iron sharpens iron” so I think we will perform well, but it has been such a gauntlet to get here. I think that every team can point to what they did to make the NCAA tourney, and the leadership in our league cares so much.

What makes Barnes such a great coach, and what is the most important thing that you have learned from him so far? #1: he is brilliant. Sometimes I tell him to slow down when he starts telling me about a play because I am a visual person. I would attend 20-30 college practices/year when I was in the NBA, and the level of accountability with Rick is what separates him. He does not want “great”, but rather “excellence”: he is somewhere between perfection and progress. He never pats himself on the back and I could not have more admiration for the man because it is 100% about the players. He wants them to have an opportunity to reach their goals in basketball and life: all he needs is to see them excel.

2 weeks ago Jahmai Mashack made a 3 at the buzzer to beat Alabama (www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbtYN1Wvf84): where does that rank among the most clutch shots that you have ever seen in person? Yes! If you know Jahmai and the role he has accepted here, it still gives me goosebumps. He could guard players in the NBA today. He plays in a more limited role for us, but somebody smart will invest in him. The satisfaction I felt for him/his tremendous family was great: we have won a lot of games and never been unranked during his time here. We appreciate all our terrific transfers like Chaz Lanier/Igor Milicic/etc., but how many kids would stay in Jahmai’s shoes for 4 years to play that role? He already has the corner 3, but it is hard to find someone who plays defense like that.

Your team’s 27.8 3P% allowed is #1 in the country: what is the key to playing great perimeter defense? It starts with Coach. Mike Schwartz (now the head coach at ECU) laid the groundwork, and Justin Gainey has taken over the reins as our spectacular defensive coordinator: someone needs to grab him as a head coach. All our coaches understand the game and are all head coach material. Each players who leaves here passes the torch onto the next guy: Coach lets our leaders coach the team because they have their own style. When your players take ownership and feel that sense of pride: you got something.

You made the Sweet 16 in 2023 and the Elite 8 in 2024: what will it take to make an even deeper run in 2025? I was talking to former Bullets GM Bob Ferry once about the draft: he said that at the end of the day you are never quite sure about the guys you draft so you need a little bit of luck. You also need to make some shots/clutch plays. We will run a good offense but there are key times in the game when you need to convert your open looks to build some momentum. The biggest facet for us is to rebound like we did for ¾ of the year: we need to get that back because Florida did a # on us yesterday (39-25 REB advantage). When we beat them here handily during the year we outrebounded them. All the teams will be prepared analytically but when we defend/rebound we have a chance to beat anybody. We are humble about what it takes to win.

How do you feel about being a #2 seed, and what do you know about Wofford? We are proud of being a #2 seed and do not feel disrespected. It is a tough task deciding who is who so the seeding does not matter to us, although we have never been a #1 seed so it matters to some of our fans. We are thrilled to be in Lexington so that our fans can travel here in under 3 hours: we will have a nice crowd. Wofford had a good year and has a great tradition. We respect every opponent and we will have to play well: they will not give us the game.

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