Not too much heavy lifting last night. Cal beat Oregon thanks to a Justin Cobbs buzzer-beater. Delaware beat Drexel in double overtime on a controversial no call, and if you get to the bottom, you’ll be rewarded with a hilarious story about a radio broadcaster who doesn’t take no flack from no referee.
Enjoy.
Let’s hit the links.
Friday’s Top games:
7:00 p.m. – Saint Louis @ No. 15 Butler
7:00 p.m. – North Dakota State @ Akron
9:00 p.m. – Stephen F. Austin @ Long Beach State
Top Stories:
CBT Podcast: NCAA Tournament contenders gear up for the stretch run: Rob Dauster joins Troy Machir (That’s me) to discuss the latest news and notes from the college hoops world. It’s called “The best 30 minutes in college basketball” for a reason.
NCAA tournament berth, Pac-12 regular season crown well within California’s reach: A Justin Cobbs’ jumper with 0.7 seconds remaining sealed a victory for the Golden Bears over No. 23 Oregon. Cal has now won six of their last seven and are still in contention for an at-large birth and a Pac-12 Championship.
Delaware’s double overtime win over Drexel features controversial finish: A Frantz Massenat runner in the final seconds of double overtime was blocked by Delaware’s Jamelle Hagins, and it certainly looked as if the officials missed a goaltending violation.
Shabazz Napier, Kevin Ollie angling for Big East postseason hardware: Kevin Ollie is the leading candidate for Big East Coach of the Year, and junior guard Shabazz Napier has to be considered a top contender for the Big East Player of the Year award, all the while unable to participate in postseason play.
Balanced effort in win over Big 5 rival La Salle bodes well for Temple: The Atlantic-10 looks like a four team league, with a handful of teams fighting for that last spot. La Salle could have solidified their resume with a win over Temple, but the Owls prevailed.
Month of February once again problematic for Minnesota: over the last three years Minnesota has amassed a 4-17 record in the month of February. That’s not a good stat. The Gophers are slipping and sliding towards the bubble.
Hoops Housekeeping:
- Former Boston Red Sox Manager Bobby Valentine has been named as the new Athletic Director at Sacred Heart University. Yeah, I’m confused too. (ESPN)
- Two former Miami basketball assistants filed a motion on Thursday to have their infractions cases dismissed because of mistakes made by the NCAA. (ESPN)
- Montana is in first place in the Big Sky Conference with a 15-1 record. But they could be without their leading scorer Mathias Ward for a while due to a foot injury. This is bad news for the Grizzlies and good news for Weber State, who sits in second place at 14-2. (Big Sky BBall)
Michigan State guard Gary Harris is still dealing with shoulder issue. The freshman has been banged up all season and recently had his left shoulder pop out of its socket against Indiana. (College Basketball Talk)
- Syracuse freshman Dajuan Coleman returned to practice for the first time since undergoing knee surgery in late January. Four week to recovery from knee surgery? Impressive. (Syracuse Post-Standard)
Observations & Insight:
- The latest installment of Jeff Goodman’s “Good ‘N Plenty” covers a wide variety of subjects with inside information that only Goodman can get. I think. (Eye on College Basketball)
- Seth Davis debunks a bevy of myths tied to Selection Sunday in his latest “Hoops Thoughts” column. (Sports Illustrated)
- Dick “Hoops” Weiss thinks the NCAA should penalize themselves when they make an error just as a university would if they did something illegal. In principle, this makes sense. The problem is that the solution is not very practical. (New York Daily News)
- The Big Ten is known for such low-scoring affairs that its unofficial motto is “first to fifty”. This study from Mark Bashuk puts some statistics to go with the motto. (The Big Lead)
- Northwestern will not make the tournament this season, thus continuing their streak of NCAA tournament futility. Bill Carmody has been at Northwestern for 13 years, and has been on the hot seat for nearly all of them. Is this the year he finally gets canned? (Lake the Posts)
- Tom Izzo calls the groin-punching incident involving Derrick Nix “ridiculous”. (MLive.com)
- An all-inclusive look at the races for conference championships. (College Hoops Heaven)
- Could Nerlens Noel still win the Freshman of the Year award in the SEC despite missing the final month of the season due to an ACL injury. (Rush The Court)
Odds & Ends
- Bob Ramsey is the radio play-by-play broadcaster for the Saint Louis Billikens. During their big win over VCU on Wednesday, a referee had some issues with what Ramsey had to say during the broadcast. Not only is this incident in its elf absolutely hilarious, but Ramsey’s response is sheer gold. (The Dagger)
Video of the Day:
What you are about to see is the greatest halfcourt shot in the history of Earth. No, I am not joking at all.
Do you like the new Morning Mix? Hate it? Have a suggestion or want something featured? Troy Machir will take all your praise, insults and inquiries via Twitter (@Tro
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Kentucky phenoms choose 2013-14 preparation over other possibilities
May 22, 2013, 10:04 PM EDT
AP
As a recruiting class that has been hailed by some as the best in the history of college basketball, Kentucky’s incoming freshmen will receive a lot of attention throughout the 2013-14 campaign. And with the skills that players such as Julius Randle, Aaron and Andrew Harrison, Dakari Johnson and James Young possess a number of…
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AP
A third player with eligibility remaining will not return to the BYU program next season, as it was reported that 6-8 forward Agustin Ambrosino will not be a member of the basketball program in 2013-14. Ambrosino, who played an average of 6.2 minutes in 31 games last season, joins Raul Delgado (transferring to Metro State)…
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UMKC head coach Kareem Richardson completes coaching staff
May 22, 2013, 7:07 PM EDT
One week ago UMKC announced the addition of a fourth player to the program, as 6-10 forward/center Isaac Kreuer will return to the Kansas City metropolitan area after spending last year at the Impact Basketball Academy in Las Vegas. According to the Kansas City Star, first-year head coach Kareem Richardson has filled out his coaching…
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Report: Elon to officially join Colonial Athletic Association Thursday
May 22, 2013, 5:55 PM EDT
AP
With the loss of four institutions the Colonial Athletic Association has some work to do on the realignment front. Apparently the league has found a new member, as it was reported by the Wilmington Star-News that Elon will officially join the CAA on Thursday. Elon has announced a press conference for 2:00 p.m. EST Thursday…
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Nate Robinson, other Washington greats to play in alumni game June 23
May 22, 2013, 4:44 PM EDT
University of Washington
On Tuesday, the University of Washington announced plans for an alumni basketball game to be held on June 23. Returning for the game will be former Husky stars such as Brandon Roy, Nate Robinson and Jon Brockman among many. Festivities will begin at 1:00 p.m., with there also being three-point and slam dunk competitions for…
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Will Yeguete out four months after another surgery on right knee
May 22, 2013, 3:10 PM EDT
Getty Images
Will Yeguete just cannot get healthy. The Florida forward missed the final nine games of his sophomore season with a broken foot and then had to sit out much of February after arthroscopic surgery on his right knee as a junior. He returned to play the final six games of the season. Yeguete underwent more…
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Is Antonio Barton the answer for any of the four schools chasing him?
May 22, 2013, 2:04 PM EDT
On Monday afternoon, former Memphis big man Tarik Black announced that he would transferring to Kansas where he’ll team up with Andrew Wiggins, Wayne Selden and Joel Embiid to give Bill Self the nation’s best non-Kentucky recruiting class and a shot at a national title. Black, who will be eligible immediately, may never end up…
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USA Basketball has released a list of 24 players that will be attending training camp in Colorado Springs from June 14th-19th to try and earn a spot on Team USA for the U19 championships, which take place in Prague from June 27th-July 7th. While there is some solid talent on that roster, it’s not necessarily…
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AP
It’s all-but official now: Mike Krzyzewski will be returning to coach Team USA in the 2014 World Championships in Madrid and the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro. That’s according to a report from Pete Thamel of SI, who reported over the weekend that Coach K was strongly considering returning to head up the stars…
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Five-Star NC native Theo Pinson commits to North Carolina
May 22, 2013, 12:34 PM EDT
On Wednesday afternoon, five-star small forward Theo Pinson officially announced his intentions to stay in-state and attend North Carolina. The Greensboro, NC, native picked the Tar Heels over Indiana, Louisville, Georgetown and Duke. A 6-foot-6 athlete on the wing, Pinson is known for his ability to get up and down the floor and finish around…
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FBI: San Diego point-shaving scandal netted ‘more than $120,000′
May 22, 2013, 11:52 AM EDT
Getty Images
Back in March, former San Diego Torero Brandon Johnson, the school’s all-time leader in points and assists, was sentenced to six months in federal prison for his role in a point-shaving scheme during the 2009-2010 season back in March. Johnson was lucky; the state wanted to give him a year. He’ll begin serving his sentence…
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Memphis emerging as the leader to host the AAC tournament?
May 22, 2013, 10:38 AM EDT
The last that we had heard about the AAC tournament, Mohegan Sun was planning on cobbling together an offer to get bring the ‘old Big East’ to Connecticut to play out their league championship. That does not look like it’s going to end up happening, however. According to a report from the Memphis Commercial-Appeal’s Kyle…
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Enosch Wolf’s suspension lifted, but no scholarship available at UConn
May 22, 2013, 9:47 AM EDT
AP
Enosch Wolf’s suspension from the UConn basketball team has officially been lifted, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the 7-foot-1 German will be returning to Storrs next season. Wolf was suspended back in February as a result of a domestic dispute where he refused to leave a women’s apartment, pushed her and knocked her glasses…
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Renovations to Hinkle Fieldhouse to cost $34 million dollars
May 21, 2013, 9:52 PM EDT
AP
Butler will begin play in the Big East next season with Hinkle Fieldhouse, its home floor for more than 80 years under renovations that will cost up to $34 million dollars. The university believes the renovations will be complete around November 2014. “The important role our athletic programs have had within Butler’s strategy and national…
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AMHERST, Mass. — In the Class of 2014, one player who should continue making a name for himself is 7-foot-2 center Paschal Chukwu. He is fresh off his junior season at Fairfield College Preparatory School (Conn.), leading the Jesuits to the championship game of the Class LL. Chukwu is currently on the AAU circuit with Connecticut Basketball…
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After spending one year on the coaching staff at LSU, long-time assistant Robert Kirby is once again leaving the SEC, this time to join Josh Pastner and the Memphis Tigers. Jim Kleinpeter of The Times-Picayune reports that the first-year LSU assistant resigned as an assistant coach on Monday night in order to take a similar position…
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Jay-Z gives Skylar Diggins a Mercedes Benz as graduation gift
May 21, 2013, 6:02 PM EDT
Getty Images
Tulsa Shock guard Skylar Diggins wrapped up a great career with the Fighting Irish earlier this spring. Following her graduation from the University Notre Dame on Sunday, her sports agency, Roc Nation Sports — founded by Jay-Z — rewarded her with a Mercedes Benz. Got surprised with a new mercedes! Thanks so muchto Jay and…
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Getty Images
The Connecticut back court was already in good shape with the return of Shabazz Napier, Ryan Boatright and Omar Calhoun. On Tuesday afternoon, Kevin Ollie added to his guard depth with George Washington transfer Lasan Kromah. This news came according to CBSSports.com, who confirmed the transfer through a source. Kromah is graduating from George Washington,…
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Getty Images
The field for the Legends Classic has been announced. Pittsburgh highlights the field and will be joined by Stanford, Houston and Texas Tech. Each of the four teams will host a pair on games on campus prior to going to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for the semifinals and the finals. The final two rounds…
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Montana announced on Tuesday that Washington transfer Martin Breunig would be transferring into the program. “We are very excited about signing Martin Breunig at the University of Montana,” head coach Wayne Tinkle said in a statement. “He’s a strong, athletic post player, and he really adds good size and strength to our front line.” “We…
