The Morning Dish – Monday, November 24th
Moving On: The Baylor Bears started their season Saturday night after a painful offseason that included the death of teammate Patrick Dennehy and the impending trial of teammate Carlton Dotson. The Bears remembered Dennehy with black stripes on their uniforms. Dennehy would have been proud of his teammates Saturday night – Baylor trounced Texas Southern 72-59.
Texas Justice: On the subject of Dotson’s trial, Dotson opted to keep the lawyers assigned to him by the Texas court rather than accept the services of three lawyers seeking to work the case. Because Dotson signed an oath claiming that he has no money for a lawyer, Russ Hunt and Abel Reyna were assigned to represent Dotson. According to Reyna, the two lawyers have forged a relationship with Dotson and his family that may have encouraged this decision.
Bulldog Market?: Freshman forward Corey Gibbs apparently needs more cash for his expenses at Georgia. Gibbs exceeded his limit of books and supplies from Georgia’s bookstore, then sold the items. Gibbs violated the NCAA regulations for receiving benefits and will serve a nine-game suspension. Georgia dealt with a scandal last season that ended a promising season with a self-imposed postseason ban and the removal of former coach Jim Harrick.
More Suspension News:With the approach of Thanksgiving, the college basketball season starts anew. And apparently the suspension season hits its peak as well. This time the news is not good for Kansas State, which loses junior forward Dramane Diarra indefinitely. The NCAA suspended Diarra for potentially playing in a professional league in Europe. And where there’s one suspension, there’s another waiting right around the corner. In this case, at the same school. Freshman forward Cartier Martin must sit for three games because of possible recruitment infractions.
Finding A Way To Lose:Although none of our Top 25 were in action Sunday, there were several games played. Georgetown visited Penn State, and the Nittany Lions seemed in control of the game after taking the lead when Brandon Cameron made one of two free throws with 2.2 seconds left in the game. But Cameron fouled Ashanti Cook on the inbounds play, and Cook drained both free throws to give Georgetown a 79-78 win. Some teams just have a knack for snatching a defeat out of the jaws of victory.
Tonight’s Menu:
• A smattering of our Top 25 plays tonight, including No. 3 Arizona against Northern Arizona, No. 8 North Carolina against Davidson, No. 11 Texas against Sam Houstain State and No. 12 Gonzaga against Denver. Also the Maui Invitational begins today and the Guardians Classic continues play from Kansas City, Mo.
