The Morning Dish – Tuesday, December 9
This Week At Number One: Like a hot potato, the number one ranking in our Top 25 Hoopville poll has been passed to another team. The 5-0 Florida Gators zing up to the top spot from No. 3 after a good week against in-state mid-majors. Carolina also trampolined considerably, moving from 6 to 2. The biggest jump belongs to the Texas Longhorns, who climb from No. 16 to 8, and the Michigan State Spartans have reeled, falling to No. 20 from the 8th spot. 6-0 Dayton makes its debut at No. 24 and Notre Dame has played itself out of the Top 25 from the 21st spot last week. Pittsburgh is the victim of some gridlock. The Panthers are 6-0 but haven’t moved from the 22nd spot since the beginning of the season.
Tub O’ Wins: Normally a Lamar win over Texas Southern would be buried well under the floorboards of Division I boxscores. But the Cardinals 79-67 win over TSU has significance. Head Coach Billy Tubbs became only the 28th coach in NCAA Division I history to record 600 wins. Dean Smith comfortably sits atop the fraternity with 879 victories. 600 wins was a milestone Tubbs might never have achieved had he not returned to his alma mater as athletic director last season and implemented himself as coach. The Oklahoma native, whose win-loss mark stands at 600-298 in 29 seasons, guided his teams to 12 NCAA tournaments. His 1988 Oklahoma Sooners club, with Stacey King and Mookie Blaylock, went all the way to the Final Four.
Badger Feet Healing: According to Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan, forwards Alando Tucker and Jason Chappell have recovered nicely from their foot injuries and have been cleared to practice. However, in his Monday news conference Ryan also stated that there is no concrete timetable for the two big men to return to intercollegiate action.
Tucker, who led all Big Ten frosh in rebounding last season, has been sidelined eight weeks. Chappell has sat for six.
Memphis and Tennessee Mend Fences: Thanks to an agreement between the athletic directors at Memphis and Tennessee both schools will play an annual home-and-home matchup beginning in 2005. The contract calls for the relationship to continue until 2013. The deal, brokered by Memphis’ RC Johnson and Mike Hamilton of Tennessee, happened over the Hall of Fame dinner for the National Football Foundation this past weekend. An annual football game between the two schools is also part of the pact. There has been a period of animosity between Memphis and UT fueled by Tigers’ head coach John Calipari, who refused to play a home-and-home with the Vols, who recruit actively in Elvistown. Memphis defeated the Vols in the last meeting between the two schools, which occurred in 2001.
Nouha More Waiting: Louisville’s Nouha Diakhite has finally been given the green light to suit up for the Cardinals. The 6-9 JUCO transfer was forced to sit out his first two NCAA games and first two exhibition games due to unpublicized NCAA eligibility issues. With junior forward Otis George nursing a hip pointer, Diakhite’s arrival could prove quite timely. Rick Pitino’s 25th-ranked club is 1-1 and is coming off a 30-point win over Western Kentucky.
Round The Nation: The Hoopville Top 25 had a night off, but here’s a recap of some other local and regional games of note:
• In the feud of two DC teams, it was American besting Howard, 57-53. Matej Cresnick hit 6-of-8 from the floor to lead the Eagles with 14 points.
• Arkansas State (5-1) has been quietly impressive and last night squeaked by Liberty, 64-63. There were 10 lead changes in this game. Tevoris Thompson came off the bench to lead ASU with 24.
• The MAAC is one of the few conferences that has already begun conference play. St. Peter’s pummeled 80-66. The Peacocks overcame a 27-26 halftime deficit to outscore the Greyhounds 54-39 in the second half.
• Texas-El Paso upped their mark to 5-1 with an 88-61 smothering of Houston; In a Hoosier-state clash, Valpo clipped Indiana State, 59-53.
Tonight’s Menu
•It’s a night of great hoops for a good cause. Madison Square Garden is the stage for the Jimmy V Classic, an NCAA hoops tradition that raises money for cancer research. In game one, Illinois faces Providence. Game Two has more of that Game-of-the-Week timbre to it: Arizona and Texas. Both games will be televised nationally on ESPN beginning at 7 PM ET.
•From the Something’s-Gotta-Give Department, the 13th-ranked St. Joe’s Hawks will host Boston College at the Palestra. Both teams are undefeated. Villanova will also face Penn in Big 5 action.
•In-state battles continue tonight: Xavier travels to Miami, OH; Boston U. hosts 0-5 Harvard; Cal State Fullerton takes on Southern Cal; Undefeated Iowa visits Northern Iowa; Buffalo treks to Colgate, and St. Francis of NY challenges beleaguered St. John’s.
