Conference USA Notebook
Banks gone
Sean Banks’ season is over. After starting slow this season and being suspended for one game for a poor attitude, Memphis announced on Sunday that Banks is academically ineligible for the remainder of the season. But head coach John Calipari sounded more like this was the end of Banks’ Memphis career.
According to ESPN.com, Calipari said that he expected Banks would declare for the NBA draft in the spring. Calipari said he wouldn’t rule out taking Banks back if he were eligible for next year. Banks showed remorse for this position and hinted that he could come back to the Tigers next year.
“I’m sorry that I let my teammates, coaches, coach Calipari, the university and the city of Memphis down,” Banks said. “The situation I am in is my own fault. I slacked off at the beginning of last semester and thought I could make it up at the end, but I was unable to do it. I want to thank my teammates and coaches for their support. I am going to take classes somewhere and hopefully get eligible again. I have enjoyed playing basketball at Memphis and will not play for any other college. I also want to continue to work out and keep in playing shape.”
Banks’ stock was extremely high after his freshman season, where he was a First Team All-C-USA Selection, C-USA Freshman of the Year and ESPN’s national Freshman of the Year. But his status started to drop this summer when he decided not to show for tryouts of the U.S. National team, even though the tryouts were a mere minutes away from his home in New Jersey. He came into this season with a poor attitude, according to Calipari, and had been reprimanded to the bench. Calipari expresses that he believes Banks has really lowered his draft status, saying, “He was a Top 15 pick at one point but he has really hurt himself.”
Crowded in the middle
Charlotte is undefeated. East Carolina, Tulane and Southern Miss are stinking up the bottom at 0-4. South Florida and Saint Louis are hanging out at 1-2. The rest? Hanging out in the middle of Conference USA, as the remaining eight teams are all 2-1 or 3-1. With so many teams so close to one another, it’s hard to decipher from the legit teams to the pretenders. This week should help a little bit as many of these teams play each other. Expect more disparity, and probably no more undefeated teams either.
Around C-USA
Charlotte (12-2 overall, 3-0 C-USA) Last week: 2-0
The 49ers find themselves alone at the top of C-USA standings after improving to 3-0 in conference play with a 91-85 win against UAB on Wednesday, before struggling at home against Saint Louis but winning 65-59. But it was not all good news for Charlotte, as Mitchell Baldwin left the Billiken win with a dislocated shoulder near the end of the first half. His status for Wednesday’s important road game against Cincinnati is unknown.
The Niners’ win in Birmingham was huge, as they outplayed the Blazers at their own up-tempo style. They played a great overall game, as Eddie Basden scored 18 points, Baldwin had 17 and Brendan Plavich and Chris Nance each added 16. The Niners overcame an off night from Curtis Withers, who shot 2-of-10 from the field and scored eight points. Charlotte also overcame 22 turnovers by shooting 50.8 percent.
Four players again scored in double figures against the Billikens, despite the team shooting only 34.4 percent. The 49ers were saved by forcing 17 turnovers.
Next week – at Cincinnati (Wednesday), at Marquette (Saturday)
Cincinnati (14-2, 3-1) Last week: 1-1
The Bearcats held commanding first half leads during both of their games last week. Twice they tried to give the game away. East Carolina was unwilling to comply, but Louisville certainly was. Cincinnati defeated the Pirates, 84-78, on Wednesday but lost at home to Louisville, 69-66, on Saturday.
Against the No. 19 Cardinals, the Bearcats took a 25-8 lead early and limited Francisco Garcia to 2-of-13 shooting. But Cincinnati could not stop the Cards on the offensive boards, allowing 19. Nick Williams broke out of a season-long shooting slump, hitting 6-of-8 from the three-point line and scoring 18 points. James White also played his best game of his season, finishing with 15 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
Against East Carolina, Jason Maxiell led Cincinnati with 24 points and eight rebounds. The Bearcats were again weak on the boards, allowing 45 Pirate boards to 31 of their own.
Next week – vs. Charlotte (Wednesday), vs. Wake Forest (Saturday)
DePaul (10-4, 2-1) Last week: 1-0
It was a pretty easy week for the Blue Demons, as all they had to do was win on the road against Tulane. Quemont Greer scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, leading DePaul to that easy 81-63 win on Saturday. Sammy Meija returned to the bench and played well for the first time in four games, finishing with 15 points, five rebounds and four assists. Cliff Clinkscales also came off the bench, dishing out five assists. DePaul forced nine more turnovers than the Green Wave (16-7), attempted 12 more shots (69-57) and made 12 more field goals (34-22). Drake Diener also contributed 15 points.
Next week – vs. Marquette (Thursday), vs. East Carolina (Saturday)
East Carolina (5-11, 0-4) Last week: 0-2
The Pirates look no different than the past few seasons, and their record shows. East Carolina fell to 0-4 in conference after losing 84-78 at home to Cincinnati on Wednesday, and to UAB on Saturday, 76-64. Against the Bearcats, the Pirates showed some fight and came back from a 20-point deficit to get within four points during the final few minutes before Cincinnati pulled away. Corey Rouse led East Carolina with 21 points and 13 rebounds, while Mike Cook dropped in 19, two of four Pirate players to score in double figures.
They repeated the feat against the Blazers, but could not stop their outside shooting. UAB hit six more three-pointers (10-4) and free throws (16-10), which was the difference. Rouse backed up his great game against the Bearcats with 17 points and 14 rebounds.
Next week – at Louisville (Wednesday), at DePaul (Saturday)
Houston (11-6, 2-1) Last week: 2-0
The Cougars continued to impress by winning games they would not have last season. Last week, they won two home games, beating Centenary, 93-82, and Southern Miss, 63-53. Andre Owens and Lanny Smith combined for 38 points against Centenary, while the bench added 30. Houston forced 19 turnovers and overcame poor shooting from outside (9-of-33 from the three-point line) by hitting 24-of-34 free throws.
Brian Lantham was the player of the game against Southern Miss, scoring a team-high 19 points off the bench. The swarming Cougar defense forced 21 turnovers against the Golden Eagles and limited them to only 41 shot attempts and 16 made field goals.
Next week – at TCU (Wednesday), at South Florida (Saturday)
Louisville (14-3, 3-1) Last week: 2-0
The Cardinals scored a huge road win last week, defeating No. 18 Cincinnati 69-66. Taquan Dean kept Louisville in the game during the first half and early in the second half, scoring 22 of his 25 points in the first 25 minutes of the game. During the second half, Louisville out-scored the Bearcats on second chance points 13-1 and out-rebounded them by 10. Larry O’Bannon added 18 points and scored the game-clinching lay-up with eight seconds remaining off a great find by Francisco Garcia. That Cards’ star only scored eight points, but Dean and company picked up his slack. Louisville lost two close games in Cincinnati last season and reacted like a monkey had been lifted off their backs once the final buzzer sounded. The Cardinals dominated their earlier game of the week, beating Southern Miss 107-62 as five players scored in double figures.
Next week – vs. East Carolina (Wednesday), vs. Tennessee (Saturday)
Marquette (14-2, 2-1) Last week: 1-1
A loss on the road to Memphis is not much of a surprise. A loss at home to South Florida would have been shocking. The expected loss to the Tigers came and the Eagles just avoided the shocker the Bulls. The Golden Eagles lost Thursday on national television to Memphis, 78-68, before needing a late three-point play from Todd Townsend to hold off South Florida, 66-64 on Saturday. Freshman forward Ryan Amoroso played the best game of his career against the Tigers, finishing with 16 points and 12 rebounds in 25 minutes. Dameon Mason led the team with 20 points, but Travis Diener went 3-of-12 from the field and finished with 16 points.
Saturday, South Florida led for practically the entire game and by one during the closing moments. Diener penetrated and dished to Townsend underneath, who converted the lay-up and subsequent free throw with five seconds remaining. Diener again struggled from the field, 5-of-15, but hit 11-of-15 free throws and scored 24 points to go with seven assists.
Next week – at DePaul (Thursday), vs. Charlotte (Saturday)
Memphis (9-8, 2-1) Last week: 1-1
How quickly a week can go from positive to negative. Thursday, Memphis defeated a tough Marquette team on national TV by a score of 68-58. Rodney Carney scored 29 points, reminiscent of his play during the first month of the season.
Then came Saturday. The Tigers lost another home game, this time to conference foe TCU, 61-59. Worst yet, they watched the Horned Frogs celebrate wildly on their court; and the game wasn’t even over. Tied at 58, Corey Santee hit a running three-pointer with 0.2 seconds remaining. Because of excessive celebration, TCU earned a technical. Sean Banks one of two three throws, but Memphis could not get a shot off with the limited time remaining. Then came Sunday’s news that Banks was academically ineligible for the remainder of the season. Who knows where the Tigers go from here.
Next week – at South Florida (Wednesday), at UAB (Saturday)
South Florida (8-6, 1-2) Last week: 0-1
The Bulls are so close to breaking through they can smell it. But they’re not quite there yet. South Florida went on the road to Marquette and led for nearly the entire game, but a late three-point play allowed the Eagles to squeak by with a 66-64 win. Terrance Leather led the way with 25 points, going 8-of-11 from the field and 9-of-11 from the free-throw line. The Bulls led by 11 at the half and didn’t relinquish the lead until Travis Diener hit a three-pointer with 4:11 remaining in the game. Unfortunately for South Florida, Leather’s two misses from the line came during the final two minutes. Marlyn Bryant added 12 points and Brian Swift missed a double-double with 10 assists and nine rebounds.
Next week – vs. Memphis (Wednesday), vs. Houston (Saturday)
Southern Miss (9-7, 0-4) Last week: 0-2
Any early season optimism was crushed on Tuesday as the Golden Eagles suffered their worst loss in school history, falling to Louisville 107-62. Southern Miss finished with more turnovers, 23, then field goals, 19. The Eagles shot 35.2 percent from the field, while Louisville shot 56.9 percent and hit 31-of-33 from the free-throw line. Rashaad Carruth was the lone bright spot for the Eagles, scoring a career-high 25 points. Next came a 63-53 loss at Houston on Saturday. Again, the Eagles finished with more turnovers than field goals (21-16). The bright side? This week provides two very winnable games.
Next week – vs. Saint Louis (Wednesday), vs. Tulane (Saturday)
Saint Louis (3-12, 1-2) Last week: 0-1
The Billikens at least have the ability to play a good team tough on the road. That doesn’t mean they can win a road game, though. Saint Louis led for most of the second half but only made three field goals during the final eight minutes and lost to Charlotte, 65-59. Reggie Bryant led the Billikens with 22 points, while Ian Vouyoukas added 10. Izik Ohanon, would had been the team’s go-to guy during the past few weeks, only attempted two shots and scored two points in 18 minutes. Saint Louis’ defense held the high-powered Niner offense to only 34.4 percent but fell apart on the offensive side of the ball.
Next week – at Southern Miss (Wednesday), vs. TCU (Saturday)
TCU (12-5, 2-1) Last week: 2-0
The Horned Frogs celebrated in style on Saturday, even if the game was still going. Corey Santee’s game-winning three-pointer with 0.2 seconds remaining sent TCU to a 61-59 win at Memphis, after the Frogs defeated Tulane earlier in the week, 73-62. Santee’s shot broke a 58-all tie. A technical free throw because of excessive celebration provided the final score. Santee finished with 13 points, while Nile Murry led the team with 17.
Against the Green Wave, Santee led all scores with 23 points and added four assists. The Frogs overcame a two-point halftime deficit by outscoring Tulane 42-29 during the second half.
Next week – vs. Houston (Wednesday), at Saint Louis (Saturday)
Tulane (6-9, 0-4) Last week: 0-2
The Green Wave is the third winless team remaining in Conference USA after it lost handedly twice last week, at TCU on Wednesday, 73-62, and at home against DePaul, 81-63. Marcus Kinzer continued to be more aggressive with his shot, leading the team with 20 points against the Horned Frogs. He also led the team in rebounding (seven) and assists (five) but received little help from the rest of his fellow starters, who shot a combined 8-of-23 from the field. He repeated his feat Saturday, leading the team in scoring (18), rebounding (10), and assists (six). But Tulane had no answer to the Blue Demon offense, allowing 49.3 percent shooting and only forcing seven turnovers.
Next week – vs. UAB (Wednesday), at Southern Miss (Saturday)
UAB (13-4, 3-1) Last week: 1-1
The Blazers lost at their own game Wednesday, falling at home to Charlotte, 91-85. They recovered later in the week, winning on the road against East Carolina, 76-64. Demario Eddins led UAB against Charlotte with 23 points, but it was not enough. Despite 22 turnovers, the Niners shot 50.8 percent from the field, including 9-of-20 from the three-point line. It was not a matter of the Blazers playing poorly, but simply a matter of the 49ers playing better.
That was not the case Saturday, as the Blazers had little difficulty dismantling the Pirates. Marvett McDonald came off the bench to lead the team with 17 points.
Next week – at Tulane (Wednesday), vs. Memphis (Saturday)
Conference USA Player of the Week
Taquan Dean, Louisville
Returned from his back injury to average 19 points in two wins, including a 25-point performance against Cincinnati. He went 7-of-12 from the three-point line and kept the Cardinals alive during the first half.
Games to watch
Memphis at South Florida (Wednesday at 7 p.m.)
In a sudden change of fortune, the Bulls should be favorites in this one. After two narrow defeats, South Florida will be ready to break out. Memphis, on the other hand, appears destined to tank after losing Sean Banks for the season.
Charlotte at Cincinnati (Wednesday at 8 p.m.)
Last season, the 49ers shocked Cincinnati at Fifth Third Arena, their first win there ever. If Mitchell Baldwin cannot play for Charlotte, expect the Bearcats to turn up the defensive pressure. The Bearcats have never lost two straight games at Fifth Third.
Marquette at DePaul (Thursday at 9 p.m.)
These two teams always seem to go down to the wire. This will be the second-to-last meeting between cousins Travis and Drake Diener. Both teams are looking to move out of that giant middle section of the conference.
