The Morning Dish – Wednesday, February 23trd
Chaos Atop the Big XII: After Kansas faltered Monday night against Oklahoma, Oklahoma State appeared poised to stake its claim atop the Big XII standings. Then the Cowboys laid an egg at Nebraska, falling back into a tie with the Jayhawks at 10-3 in the conference. Freshman guard Joe McCray led the Cornhuskers’ 42-point second half with 17 points. He finished with a total of 25 points to fuel the 74-67 upset. Nebraska went on a 12-0 run to open the second half after the teams battled to a 32-32 stalemate in the first half. Senior guard John Lucas led the Cowboys with 20 points, but the Cornhuskers’ stymied the Cowboys throughout the game. Oklahoma State failed to reach at least 70 points for only the fourth time this season.
More Than McCants: North Carolina junior swingman Rashad McCants missed last night’s rivalry game at North Carolina State because of an intestinal disorder. Team officials have not offered a timetable for getting McCants back, but if the Tar Heels play as well as they did last night, they’ll be ok without him. Senior guard Melvin Scott started in McCants’ place and hit four three pointers in the Tar Heels’ 81-71 win. The present – senior guard Julius Hodge – and the future – freshman forward Andrew Brackman – helped keep the Wolfpack close in the second half as Hodge scored 20 in the game and Brackman had eight points in a minute. But the Tar Heels answered the run, led by junior point guard Raymond Felton, who led the team with 21 points.
Texas Tech Hooks Horns: Texas Tech moved to a game behind Oklahoma State and Kansas for first place in the Big XII after dispatching Texas 69-65. Sophomore guard Jarrius Jackson gave the Red Raiders the lead for good in the final minutes of play on a three pointer from the corner. Freshman guard Daniel Gibson continued to be the Longhorns’ most reliable threat and hit a three pointer to pull the game within three points before Texas Tech extended the lead in the waning moments of the game. The loss drops Texas to a tie for fifth with Iowa State.
Tigers Want to Dance: LSU strengthened its case for an at-large NCAA Tournament invitation by beating Alabama 61-59, thanks to Ross Kneltner’s game-winning tip-in as time expired. The Crimson Tide erased LSU’s seven-point lead by holding the Tigers without a field goal for nearly seven minutes. Kennedy Winston completed the comeback by banking home a three pointer to tie the score at 59 with a little more than 10 seconds remaining. The Tigers’ Brandon Bass attempted to win the game on his own, finding a crack in Alabama’s defense but missing the shot. Kneltner tipped the garbage through the basket to post another upset on LSU’s increasingly impressive resume, which would likely earn the Tigers a trip to the Big Dance if it started today.
No Brotherly Love in Philly: Atlantic 10 brethren Temple and St. Joseph’s met in a game that turned ugly when Owls’ coach John Chaney took issue with what he perceived to be illegal screens set by the Hawks. Chaney had complained to conference officials in a conference call earlier in the week, claiming that St. Joe’s got away with illegal screens. When his complaints appeared to be fulfilled, he sent in Nehemiah Ingram, a 6-8, 250-pounder, to throw illegal screens for Temple. Ingram clocked St. Joe’s center Dwayne Jones in the chin and fouled out in only four minutes. Chaney was livid throughout the game, receiving a technical in the second half and berating the conference commissioner after the game. He said he never wanted to see the game officials again and wanted officials from the ACC or Big Ten. Oh yeah, St. Joe’s won 63-56 to clinch at least a share of the Atlantic 10 regular season title.
Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble: Several teams needed strong performances last night to impress NCAA Tournament selection committee members during these finals week of the regular season. Miami, Fla., delivered with a 65-49 win at Florida State, led by sophomore guard Guillermo Diaz’s 19 points and the defense that held the Seminoles to 28 percent shooting from the field. The Hurricanes moved into a tie with Maryland for fifth in the ACC after the Terrapins inexplicably lost at home to Clemson. Senior forward Sharrod Ford led Clemson with 24 points and 10 rebounds in the 97-93 victory. Drake Diener and DePaul handled business at home, beating South Florida 76-69 as Diener led the team with 19 points. And Texas A&M hurt Iowa State’s chances with a 75-59 blowout led by Antonie Wright’s 21 points.
Pirate Coach Walks the Plank: East Carolina coach Bill Herrion will soon be the Pirates’ former coach. School officials asked Herrion to step down at the conclusion of this season, which will likely be in about two weeks. Herrion’s Pirates are struggling this season at 8-17, the sixth consecutive losing season during Herrion’s six-year tenure. Pirate officials said they timed the conversation to reduce the game-to-game pressure for Herrion. They said Herrion will be offered another position within the athletics department, hinting that the relationship ends on good terms.
Senior Leadership: Washington State coach Dick Bennett said he’ll stick around another season to lead the Cougars through a challenging rebirth. Bennett, now in his early 60s, said earlier this season that he would consider retiring after this season ends. His Cougars have emerged from the Pac-10 cellar this season, including a potentially program-shaking upset at Arizona. Bennett has helped end the days of futility by dedicating his team to defense. Whenever he retires, he’d like his son Tony Bennett to be his successor.
Illinois Backcourt Nearing End of Road Together: With Deron Williams, Dee Brown and Luther Head, no one can argue that Illinois has the most talented backcourt in the country. But Head is a graduating senior, and Williams is a junior who appears destined to be in this year’s NBA Draft. Williams said he will most likely leave the Illini if he’s a first-round pick in the draft. Coach Bruce Weber indicated he would easily understand Williams’ decision if he appears destined to be a lottery pick, meaning that he’d be one of the top 14 picks in the first round of the two-round draft. Weber would like Williams to consider staying if he falls further than that, but Williams indicated he’d be happy with any placement in the first round. For now, this talented backcourt has an opportunity to repeat history set by Indiana in 1976. Illinois remains undefeated entering the final couple of weeks of the regular season. Coach Bob Knight’s Hoosiers were the last team to win the NCAA championship with an undefeated record.
For Better or Worse: The marriage of the Big Ten and ACC will continue for the next six years through the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The two conferences and ESPN reached an agreement to keep the interconference competition going through 2010. The only major change from the previous seven challenges will be an expansion to 11 games, meaning that every Big Ten team will compete and one ACC team will sit out once Boston College joins the ACC next season. ESPN’s new channel, ESPNU, will air the two additional games while the cable network’s flagship, ESPN, and primary descendant, ESPN2, will continue to feature the other nine games.
