Hoops HD BRACKET RUNDOWN: January 23rd

Posted on January 23, 2020 by David Griggs

This show was recorded at 9:30pm, est, on Thursday, January 23rd.  All games that went final after that, most notably USC vs Oregon, were not considered

Chad, David, John, and Jon build this week’s seedlist line by line, and debate, assess, and discuss each team as they go.  There are six teams that have strong cases for #1 seeds, and teams like Penn State and Creighton have made strong cases for protected seeds after a couple of big wins.  We also discuss whether or not teams like Liberty and East Tennessee State belong in the field if they end up losing in their conference tournaments.

Below is the bracketed seedlist, but do not look at it until you’ve watched the show!!

 

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

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Rivalry renewed: HoopsHD interviews Tennessee legend Chamique Holdsclaw

Posted on January 23, 2020 by Jon Teitel

Tennessee-UConn used to be known as the greatest rivalry in women’s college basketball. You like coaches? It featured 8-time NCAA champ Pat Summitt vs. 11-time NCAA champ Geno Auriemma. You like superstar players? Rebecca Lobo, Diana Taurasi, Chamique Holdsclaw, Candace Parker: the list is endless. You like important games? They met in the NCAA title game 4 times from 1995-2004…with the Huskies winning all 4 of the matchups. The series stopped in 2007 but is back on tonight as the Volunteers head north to Storrs to face their old foes. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Hall of Famer Chamique Holdsclaw about playing for Pat and renewing the rivalry.

Growing up in Queens you often played basketball against boys: what was it like facing off against a young Ron Artest? We were just young kids playing the sport that we loved so those games were really competitive. There were a lot of kids better than us who did not get a chance to play pro basketball: we just traveled around to compete against kids from different projects/cities.

You played for Coach Pat Summitt at Tennessee: what made her such a great coach, and what was the most important thing that you ever learned from her? Aside from the Xs and Os, which I think she was the best to ever do, she could adapt and motivate us as individuals. I was the quiet 1 so she did not have to yell at me that much: it was a gift for her to understand all of our different personalities. Once you cross the line it is business and you have to be focused. As soon as practice ended she was back to normal and would hug/kiss us and ask us what we wanted for dinner. She taught me that tough times do not last but tough people do. Everyone has adversity and difficult times but it is just about working smart…and nobody could outwork her.

After winning a junior high school national championship, followed by 4 Class A state championships at Christ the King High School, you won 3 straight NCAA titles from 1996-1998: what is the key to being a winner? 1 of the keys is just doing the work when nobody is looking. You need discipline to be successful: you have to sacrifice playing with your friends to stay on the court for a couple of hours.

In 1998 you finished 39-0: where does that team rank among the best in the history of the sport? I would definitely say top-2. We had so much athleticism with 3 versatile players who could do a little of everything. When you add in great defense and Kellie Jolly running the train, we brought a lot of excitement to the game.

You had a 4-2 record in 6 games vs. UConn: how do you explain the rivalry to people who have never seen it, and how excited were you to learn that the 2 schools will be renewing their rivalry in 2020 after not facing each other since 2007? It was an intense rivalry. I think that Pat/Geno had respect for each other. I did not hate UConn but I knew that they were a competitive team and as an East Coast kid I wanted to dominate them. We took it up a notch when we played them and really REALLY took our scouting reports seriously. Pat said that to be the best you have to play against the best. The rivalry should never have went away and it needs to happen again: it is good for the game.

You remain the all-time leading scorer (470 PTS) and rebounder (197 REB) in NCAA women’s tourney history: how were you able to play your best when it mattered the most? That is when it all matters after building up to the highest stakes at the end of the season. As a team we were able to really focus and pay attention to our scouting reports and communicate a little more. I had a leader in Coach Summitt and teammates who were very unselfish and helped me understand the game even better.

You were a 4-time All-American/2-time national POY/1998 Sullivan Award winner as the top amateur athlete in the US: what did it mean to you to receive such outstanding honors? It was very rewarding but you do not think about it so much as a player because you still have to go to class! Everything really hit when I retired and I realized: damn, I was pretty good! I hope that my prior success inspires the youth of today.

In 1999 you were selected 1st overall by the Mystics, voted in as a starter for the 1st-ever WNBA All-Star Game, and finished that season by being named ROY: how were you able to make such a smooth transition from college to the pros? Coach Summitt put a system in place during college where we played the toughest schedule in the country and I knew how to prepare mentally. It is hard to come in as a rookie against established players with a wide disparity in ages: you are not just playing against teenagers any more. You also have to adjust to the different personalities but I had some great vets around me.

You played for team USA at the 2000 Olympics: what did it mean to represent your country, and what did it mean to win a gold medal? It was such an awesome experience! It is 1 thing to be all-state or all-conference…but to stand on a podium as the best team in the world was surreal. When they placed the medal around my neck I felt like I was the best in the world.

You wrote in your autobiography that you suffered from depression during your pro career and you currently work as a mental health advocate: how has your own life experience shaped your ability to help others? It has helped me become more empathetic to others who struggle with mental health issues. Mental health does not discriminate, which helped me understand that we are all in this together. We need to be kind to each other: every day that I get to help kids is part of my passion and it has been the most impactful part of my life.

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News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Thursday, Jan 23rd

Posted on January 23, 2020 by David Griggs

NEWS AND NOTES

-For our latest UNDER THE RADAR Video Podcast – CLICK HERE

-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day between Belmont and Murray State – CLICK HERE

-Iowa and Rutgers seesawed back and forth last night, but Iowa was able to pick up the 85-80 win.  The Hawkeyes didn’t get control of the game until the final seconds, so it was another game to where Rutgers was close to picking up a huge road win, but came up just short.

-DePaul did not come up just short last night.  Creighton pretty much blew them off the floor in an impressive road win for the Bluejays.

-Memphis did not come up just short either.  They lost by 40 to Tulsa. Tulsa never showed a lot of promise, especially when they went through that stretch of losing five out of seven, but they haven’t lost since then, they just blew Memphis to the moon, and they are starting to piece together a resume that will get the attention of the committee if they keep it up.

-Penn State got a nice road win at Michigan, which puts them back on a bit of a roll.  Michigan is digressing somewhat.  They’ve now lost six of their last nine, so the game this Saturday against Illinois is pretty huge.

-Arkansas could have really used the road win at Mississippi State last night.  It’s not that a win would have boosted their resume so much as that this is the kind of road game that you expect tournament caliber teams to be able to win, and they came up short.

-Duquesne looked pretty good in the first half at Rhode Island and I was ready to buy into the fact that the Dukes might have a case for the NCAAs.  Then the second half started.  By the time it was over, they had been blown off the court 77-55.

-Syracuse picked up their fourth straight win as they held on to beat Notre Dame 84-82.  Three of those four wins have come on the road, so the Orange have really improved and are starting to make a case for themselves.

-Northern Iowa, which is a UTR team that we’ve been putting inside our bubble, fell on the road to Southern Illinois last night, which is a huge anvil that has fallen on their toes.  They fell behind by as much as 16, cut it down to 2 and had a chance to win in the final minute, but couldn’t quite get it done.  I still think they can land inside the bubble and get a bid without winning their conference tournament, but they pretty much need to win out.

-Virginia Tech needed two overtimes, but picked up the win against North Carolina after trailing for much of the game.

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-MINNESOTA AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten).  Minnesota is still looking for their first road win, and while there are some good things on their resume, it still needs work.  Ohio State is trying to pull themselves out of a tailspin.  They’ve lost five out of their last six and need to take advantage of what should be a winnable game tonight.

-LIBERTY AT NORTH FLORIDA (Atlantic Sun).  Same story as always with Liberty.  If they win out, they will get a look.  This is probably their toughest remaining game.

-WASHINGTON AT UTAH (Pac 12).  Washington has lost three out of their last four since losing their starting PG.  They’ve been playing better than what the final results indicate, but it is still a struggle.  Utah is an average team that’s played well on occasion, so this is a winnable road game for the Huskies and it’s one that they really need.

-MICHIGAN STATE AT INDIANA (Big Ten).  Michigan State has won nine of their last ten and are once again playing like a solid protected seed.  Winning at Indiana won’t be easy, though.  The Hoosiers are home court heroes that could use this win to help shore up their tournament resume.

-UCONN AT HOUSTON (American).  Houston keeps improving as the season goes along, and they should be able to hold serve and win this one tonight.  They’re on pace to land in the top half of the bracket.

-WASHINGTON STATE AT COLORADO (Pac 12).  The Bufffs are having a good year, and this is simply a winnable conference game where they need to hold serve.  Wazzu has won two in a row, and is better this year than what they typically are, but Colorado should still be able to win this one.

-PEPPERDINE AT SANTA CLARA (West Coast).  Santa Clara can continue to bloat out their record, but they’ll need a couple of wins over the NCAA Tournament caliber teams in the conference to get the attention of the committee.  That being said, they’ll also need to hold serve tonight.

-BYU AT PACIFIC (West Coast).  This is a winnable road game for the Cougars, so they should be able to hold serve and put another road in on their resume.

-SAN FRANCISCO AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast).  SMC should be able to pick this one up at home without too much trouble, but the Dons have been playing a little better lately so they don’t want to overlook them.

-USC AT OREGON (Pac 12).  USC is coming off a big win against Stanford, that convinced many they were an NCAA Tournament team.  Oregon has had a few stumbles, but they are still looking like a protected seed, so if USC could somehow win this one, they will pretty much convince everyone that they are a first ballot caliber team.

-UCLA AT OREGON STATE (Pac 12).  Oregon State continues to hover around outside our bubble, so they need to hold serve tonight against UCLA to keep themselves within reach of making the field.

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Under the Radar Game of the Day – Thursday, January 23rd

Posted on January 23, 2020 by John Stalica

For last night’s edition of the Hoops HD Under The Radar podcast – CLICK HERE

Belmont (14-5, 5-1) at Murray State (13-5, 6-0) – 7:00 PM EST (ESPN2)

Tonight’s UTR Game of the Day takes us to Murray, Kentucky for the OVC’s signature rivalry in recent years – the hometown Racers of Murray State will host the Belmont Bruins in a matchup of two of the top three teams in the conference. Belmont has had an up and down season with wins at Boston College and at Western Kentucky, yet has had a couple of baffling losses at Illinois State and at home against SIU-Edwardsville to open conference play. The loss to SIU-E appears to be a blip on the radar in conference play as the Bruins have now won five straight games, including a home sweep of Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky last week. Adam Kunkel (16.9 PPG, 40.4% 3-PT) and Nick Muszynski (15.8 PPG/6.8 RPG) provide a nice inside/outside combo.

Murray State also had a slow start with a sixth place finish in the Gulf Coast Showcase with losses against La Salle and Drake and also had a loss at Missouri State before beginning a stretch of winning nine out of their last ten games. That one loss was at Evansville – that was a game that would turn out to be Walter McCarty’s last victory at Evansville before his leave of absence and subsequent firing. Tevin Brown averages 17.7 points a game for the Racers and is also shooting a hot 43.4% from 3-point range.

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Under the Radar: January 22nd

Posted on January 23, 2020 by David Griggs

Tonight’s feature conference is the Big South, where we look at Winthrop’s eight game win streak and their big win at Radford earlier this week, which puts them in the driver’s seat.  Presbyterian is also having a surprisingly good run in the first half of conference play.

After that, we run through the other 21 UTR conferences and discuss some surprising upsets in the America East, how sluggish the Big Sky and Big West have been, Liberty’s continued dominance over the Atlantic Sun and how they could end up inside the bubble, a rough week for Akron and Kent State in the MAC, the parity of the Colonial, the strength of the SoCon and how good East Tennessee State is, Northern Iowa’s tournament chances and continued close calls (which came up short) tonight, and more.  And as we do every week, we close with this week’s UTR Top Ten.

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

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Still Hanging with the Hoyas: Part 8

Posted on January 22, 2020 by Jon Teitel

HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel has spent the past few months covering several Georgetown basketball home games, with a very special reward coming in March. You can find Parts 1-7 at:

https://hoopshd.com/2019/11/09/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-1
https://hoopshd.com/2019/11/20/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-2
https://hoopshd.com/2019/12/15/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-3
https://hoopshd.com/2019/12/20/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-4
https://hoopshd.com/2019/12/29/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-5
https://hoopshd.com/2020/01/09/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-6
https://hoopshd.com/2020/01/17/still-hanging-with-the-hoyas-part-7

He concludes his series with Part 8 featuring the Hoyas’ matchup last Saturday afternoon against Marquette:

Pregame meal was perfectly average: sandwiches/pasta salad/cookies. There were so many things going on besides the game itself that it was hard to keep up. Georgetown hosted a “gray out” so my blue shirt was easily visible in a sea of gray (for those of you wondering whether I actually attend these games!):

 (photo credit: Peter Rhoads)

In honor of Martin Luther King Day both teams wore “We Cannot Walk Alone” warmup shirts:

As if that was not enough, the Hoyas wore pink sneakers in support of Men Against Breast Cancer:

Let’s tip things off:

Speaking of clothing, I have heard that horizontal stripes are not very slimming…but when Marquette breaks out its gorgeous powder-blue uniforms they are quite a sight to behold:

The Golden Eagles emulate the personality of their coach (Steve Wojciechowski) so you know that they will play hard for 40 minutes. Sacar Anim made a trio of threes in the 1st half but showed his strength on a tough layup: after getting bumped in the air and falling to the ground he skidded for a few feet and ended up knocking part of the baseline signage loose!  It is always a newsworthy event when the nation’s leading scorer visits the nation’s capital. In November of 2018 Campbell’s Chris Clemons exploded for 45 PTS/9-19 3PM in this very arena so the crowd was intrigued to see if Markus Howard could match that effort. He may not be efficient but he does not disappoint: he took 12 shots in the 1st 12 minutes but after making 4 shots from behind the arc he got some well-deserved rest with 14 PTS in 14 minutes of action:

Georgetown’s Mac McClung did not make a single 3 of his own in the opening stanza but did a little of everything from 2-PT range: a pull-up jumper, a layup, a runner in the lane after splitting 2 defenders, and even a floater off the glass to finish the half with 9 PTS.

The surprise 3-PT shooter for the Hoyas was 7-footer Omer Yurtseven. Despite entering the game with only a single made 3 all season, he opened the game with a bomb from the top of the circle, then made a couple of dunks before nailing another 3 to prove that his 1st 1 was not a fluke. The Golden Eagles double-teamed him on several possessions after he received entry passes into the post but he still made the most of his opportunities with 14 PTS/5-6 FG despite battling opposing big man Theo John all day:

Marquette did not attempt a single FT in the 1st half but made a sufficient # of shots from the field to take a 42-36 halftime lead. The biggest ovation of the 2nd half was for the Georgetown men’s soccer team, who won their 1st national championship last month and enjoyed some VIP-quality seats in return:

After a turnover just 3 minutes into the 2nd half Howard noticed a wet spot on the floor, grabbed a towel from the bench, and then started drying off the floor…for 60 seconds! It appeared that the Golden Eagles might choke the game away by converting only 1-5 FTs through the 1st 30 minutes of the game but then they got their act together and drained 8 FTs in a row over the following 5 minutes.  Yurtseven kept dominating in the paint and on the baseline, finishing with his 10th double-double of the season (22 PTS/11 REB/0 TO).  Marquette had the lead for most of the half thanks to, of course, their superstar. Coach Ewing kept yelling out instructions but most of them failed to work:

Howard is not just a long-range gunner: he made jump shots, runners/floaters in the lane, and time and again would split a Georgetown double-team to either give himself a good look at the basket or find a teammate for an open shot.

Hoyas G Jahvon Blair did not make a single FG all afternoon but his 1st/only PTS of the game was a timely trio of FTs to tie the game at 76 with 1:34 left:

Coach Wojo called a TO as the crowd erupted with the loudest “Hoya/Saxa” chant I have heard all year:

McClung had a huge 2nd half with 15 PTS/0 TO and was fouled with 10.3 seconds left and his team trailing 80-78. He started the season simply perfect by making all 17 of his FT attempts during his 1st 4 games so I assumed we were headed for overtime…until he missed his 1st FT, and that was all she wrote:

Howard scored 28 PTS in the final 20 minutes and ended up with exactly ½ of his team’s total scoring output in an 84-80 win as Marquette improved to 13-5. At the postgame press conference I asked Coach Ewing if he feared that his team might be running out of steam due its short rotation. He said that while he is always worried about having a short rotation, there is not much he can do because “the cavalry is not coming over the hill”.  He liked that his team played hard but they were just not good enough to get the job done:

Rather than wait for his coach to join him, Howard came to the microphone by himself. I know that wins are the most important thing but I wondered what it would mean to him to be the best player in the US. He answered that it would not mean that much to him because he just wants to be known as a winner. He plays his game and appreciates the fact that his coaches/teammates have confidence in him:

Coach Wojciechowski responded to someone else’s inquiry by stating that the Big East is “the best conference in the country, period”. I followed that up with “Is Markus the best player in the country, period?” He smiled and said that he knows that he is biased but he thinks Markus is the best:

That’s a wrap, I might make it back to Capital 1 Arena later this season but if not then feel free to check back in March.

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