Under The Radar Game of the Day – Tuesday, December 6th

Posted on December 6, 2022 by John Stalica

For our most recent Hoops HD Report podcast – CLICK HERE

For the Puppet’s most recent checkpoint bracket projection – CLICK HERE

High Point (7-1) at Furman (6-2) – 7:00 PM ET (ESPN+)

We head to the Carolinas for today’s UTR matchup between the High Point Panthers and the Furman Paladins. High Point has now won four straight games after losing at UNLV last month. In their 93-88 win against North Florida, Zack Austin led the way with 25 points. This is also the beginning of a 3-game stretch that includes Queens at home and a road game at UNC-Wilmington.

Furman is looking like the team expected to win the SoCon this year; they are also on a 4-game winning streak following losses against Penn State and Old Dominion in the Charleston Classic. Mike Bothwell has scored a combined 39 points in their last two wins – a 65-61 win at Appalachian State and an 88-76 win against South Carolina State.

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The Hoops HD Report – Dec 5th

Posted on December 5, 2022 by David Griggs

We review all of the action from a busy week last week and talk about Marquette’s big win against Baylor and how they followed that up with a close home loss to rival Wisconsin, Purdue’s unbelievably strong start to the season, how Houston was tested by both Kent State and Saint Mary’s but survived, some of Gonzaga’s struggles early this year, the really good start that several Mountain West teams (UNLV, New Mexico, and Utah State) are off to, and how the Atlantic Ten continues to struggle.  We discuss all that, and more…

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

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Hoops HD Bracket Projections (From the Puppet) – Dec 5th

Posted on December 5, 2022 by David Griggs

Before you go any further, I want to make sure everyone knows what they are looking at.  They way I build my bracket is that it is CHECKPOINT of CURRENT MERIT.  This IS NOT a prediction of what I think the Selection Committee will do in March, nor is it a ranking of how good I think the teams actually are.  It’s really just based on the quality of everyone’s CURRENT resume.  If you see things that seem to make no sense, such as North Carolina not being in at all, and Sam Houston being a protected seed, that doesn’t mean I think it’ll end up that way, but at this point in time Sam Houston has won at Utah and at Oklahoma, and North Carolina really hasn’t won anywhere against anyone that’s all that good.

OTHERS CONSIDERED: Nebraska, Saint Mary’s, Memphis, Nevada, Colorado, UAB, North Carolina, Texas Tech, James Madison, Penn State, Saint John’s, NC State, Charlotte, Towson, Butler, Ole Miss, Clemson, UCF, Marshall, San Francisco, Seattle U, Iona

 

COMMENTS FROM DAVID:

-I don’t think Sam Houston will end up as a protected seed in March, but it’s about damn time people started giving them some respect and acknowledge what they’ve done this year.  The first edition of the NET came out today, and they are #7.  They won at Utah, and won at Oklahoma.  Arizona did not only not win at Utah, they were blown off the floor.  So when you look at what they’ve done as far as winning games that are hard to win, 7th really isn’t that far off!

-Houston is probably the best overall team if I’m filling out this bracket as far as who wins and advances, but Houston doesn’t quite have the quality of wins that the teams ahead of them have.

-Northwestern State has the big win at TCU, but they have a smattering of other good wins as well.  They just beat Southern Miss (who was previously unbeaten, and who has some nice wins of their own), so that’s why they’re currently on the #6 line.

-Northwestern not only belongs in the bracket right now, but they are a team that people need to watch out for.  They just won at Michigan State, and they damn near beat Auburn earlier this year.  One good game can be an anomaly, but when you play well on multiple nights, that’s more than just a fluke.  This may be a dangerous team for the rest of the season.

-I love how bracket gurus post their brackets, and then in their notes list who their “Last Four In” were.  I see no need to do that.  Anyone with half a brain can look at any bracket and determine on their own which four teams were the last ones in.

-The other staff members can list any comments below if they’d like.  If they say anything that criticizes or that is in disagreement with anything I have done…THEY ARE WRONG!!!

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News, Notes, and Highlighted Games – Monday, Dec 5th

Posted on December 5, 2022 by David Griggs

-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE

-The NET will be released today for the first time this season.  Also today I’ll be posting my latest Bracket Projections sometime this afternoon, and we will be recording the Hoops HD Report later tonight.

-The biggest head-scratching result from yesterday, and perhaps one of the bigger surprises of the season, was Nebraska’s 63-53 win at Creighton.  Creighton had looked fantastic, and even when they weren’t hitting shots they still managed to stay with Texas earlier in the week, so the idea that they’d lose at home to a Nebraska team that hadn’t looked all that good at any point was sort of shocking.  But, they did, and at no point did the Blue Jays appear to be in control.  As for the Huskers, it w as a really nice road win!  Top ten teams just don’t lose at home all that often.

-North Carolina fell at Virginia Tech 82-70 in the ACC opener for both teams.  VA Tech is pretty good, and won’t lose many at home, so the loss isn’t THAT damaging for UNC in regards to remaining safely inside the bubble, but perhaps it is in regards to earning a protected seed.  The Tarheels have now lost four on the season after being the #1 ranked team in the preseason polls.

-Northwestern!!  6-2 on the year, one of those losses was a VERY close game against a very good Auburn team, and yesterday they won on the road at Michigan State.  That has the makings of an NCAA Tournament caliber resume.  No one expected much out of the Wildcats this season, but they have been producing and it’s time to start taking them seriously.

-Kentucky got a nice 73-69 win against Michigan over in London, which is arguably their best win on paper so far this season.

-Saint John’s suffered their first loss of the season as they fell to Iowa State 71-60.  Iowa State is, again, a very good team and much better than what we were expecting in the preseason, so the loss isn’t all that damaging.

-Utah followed up their big home win against Arizona with a 67-65 road win at Washington State.  Wazzu isn’t the best team 0n the planet, but that’s still a very good week for Utah.  They beat a top five team, they pick up a road win, and are off to a 2-0 start in Pac 12 play.

-Utah State blasted San Francisco on the road 82-64 and is looking like one of the most impressive teams in the Mountain West.  They could give San Diego State a run for their money once league play starts.

-KENT STATE AT GONZAGA.  Kent State has not been shy when it comes to taking on the heavyweights.  While Gonzaga is clearly favored, Kent State is legit.  They went on the road to Houston and were right in the entire time, they have some nice wins on their resume, and while Gonzaga is both the better team and the home team, they don’t want to  just overlook them.

-TROY AT SAN DIEGO STATE.  It’s a buy game, but Troy has shown some signs of life and should make quite a bit of noise in the Sun Belt, so San Diego State can’t just sleepwalk through this one.

-Albany @ UMass – buy game
-UMass Lowell @ Long Island – Lowell can get to 9-1 on the year and pick up their 4th road win
-Simon Fraser (nonD1) @ New Mexico State – buy game
-Ecclesia at Nicholls State – this game is an exhibition!  It doesn’t even count as a buy game!

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In Memoriam: HoopsHD interviews Dan Glines and Carroll Williams about Walt McPherson

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Jon Teitel

We here at HoopsHD cannot stop talking about Tim Miles…but he has a long way to go to catch Walt McPherson for the most wins in San Jose State history. Walt played several sports at San Jose State, then became basketball coach at his alma mater, and retired in 1960 with more than 250 wins. He was elected to the San Jose Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 and passed away in 2013. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with 1 of Walt’s longtime friends (Dan Glines) and 1 of his former players (Carroll Williams) about all of his accomplishments. Walt was born exactly 106 years ago on December 5, 1916, so we take this time to reflect on his life/legacy.

McPherson went to college at San Jose State where he played football/baseball/basketball: which sport was he best at, and which 1 did he enjoy the most? Dan Glines: I think that he enjoyed basketball the most but he coached a bunch of other sports as well. Carroll Williams: He was a very fine football player before my time. Everyone told me that golf/badminton might have been his best sports as he got older. I would play badminton against him during lunchtime and only beat him once in 3 years! He also ran the table against us 1 night at a pool hall…even though he was a very religious guy.

He became basketball coach at his alma mater in the early 1940s but left for a few years during WWII to serve in the Navy: what impact did the war have on him either on and off the court? DG: He was a strong Christian man and a loyal guy who passed those values onto his players. A lot of coaches went to training school but did not head overseas to battle. CW: I never talked to him about the war, but we would never smoke/drink in front of him because we did not want him to think anything bad about us.

He won a national title in 1948 as coach of the school’s golf team: what did it mean to him to win a title? DG: He was such a humble guy that he would never brag about that but he was a really good golfer. CW: I was gone by then, but I know he would not talk much about himself so I am sure that he gave all of the credit to his players.

After retiring from coaching in 1960 he served as athletic director/PE director: how did he like those gigs compared to being a coach? DG: He had enough of coaching by that time in his life since he had to coach many different sports during the year. CW: He was the definition of a “gentleman” and a wonderful person. I went to San Jose State because of him and his personality: he was a guy who I wanted to play for.

He also served as commissioner of the West Coast Athletic Conference: how did the role of conference commissioner back then differ from the same job in today’s era? DG: There was not as much pressure with such a job back then, but it would not have affected him because he was such a mild-mannered guy. San Jose State was a small school until WWII, at which time the student body expanded to about 20,000. CW: He was more of a facilitator. The conference was purely basketball back then so he would assign officials and handle the scheduling: it was more of a part-time job.

In 2003 the school’s basketball floor was renamed Walt McPherson Court: what did it mean to him to receive such an outstanding honor? DG: His worst swear words were “holy tickle!” so he was not concerned with excesses because he was a down-to-earth person, but I am sure it meant a lot to him and he was proud of that. CW: It was an honor that we were all proud of and probably long overdue. He would just smile when people would praise him and was a wonderful family man.

He passed away in 2013: when people look back on his career, how do you think that he should be remembered the most? DG: He was a great coach and a great human being. He was self-conscious about receiving honors because he was such a unique person. I never heard him say a bad word about anybody and was a very forgiving person. CW: He had a model temperament and was a very patient guy, so when he got mad during a timeout he would say, “holy snickeltau!” He influenced me to become a coach. I think that he should be remembered as a wonderful teacher, both of basketball and life experiences. I remember him counseling all of his players on various matters. When I got a coaching offer I told him about it and he told me to consider a variety of factors because he had high aspirations for me. He wanted me to wait because something better would come along…and he was right.

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Under The Radar Game of the Day – Monday, December 5th

Posted on December 5, 2022 by John Stalica

IUPUI (1-7, 0-1 Horizon) at Green Bay (0-7, 0-1 Horizon) – 12:00 PM ET (ESPN+)

There are only 7 games in Division I today that involve exclusively D1 competition and even fewer that involve exclusively UTR teams. With that in mind, we have a top-rate Centenary matchup today with #358 Green Bay hosting #363 IUPUI. The Jaguars of IUPUI do have a non-D1 win to their credit, but in their D1 games have 7 losses and were only really competitive in their 87-84 loss at New Orleans on Thanksgiving Day. More recently, they are coming off of a 74-61 loss at Milwaukee on Saturday night.

Today is also Education Day (aka a Field Trip Day) at Green Bay; they will be looking for their first win of any kind in this afternoon’s game. And if that weren’t bad enough, today is also the first leg of a rare back-to-back for the Phoenix. Tomorrow they also travel to Chicago to take on the Loyola Ramblers. Weirdly enough, their most competitive loss was an 11-point loss against Wisconsin on the road.

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