Cincinnati Bearcats (9-3)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, W 79-49
This week:
Dec. 29 at Memphis
Jan. 4 at Marquette
The Bearcats had four players reach double figures in scoring, three with 14, in the victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Yancy Gates, Deonta Vaughn and Steve Toyloy all had 14 points, while Dion Dixon chipped in 11.
The Bearcats allowed APB to shoot only 31 percent from the field, including 23 in the first half, and forced 24 turnovers. Cincinnati jumped out to a 43-16 first half lead.
This week, the Bearcats, who have won four of their past five games, have a tough non-conference game against Memphis before starting their Big East portion of the schedule at Marquette.
Cincinnati is third in the league in field goal percentage defense at 36.8. Ahead of the Bearcats are Georgetown (34.3) and Pittsburgh (36.2). The Bearcats also lead the league in rebounding at 42.5 per game.
Famed TV analyst Bill Raftery spoke with the Cincinnati Enquirer on Monday, saying he likes what Cincinnati is doing this season, and believes they could make a run in the postseason.
“I like the way their big men pass it, and I like the way they rebound it,” he told the newspaper.
DePaul Blue Demons (8-5)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Saint Louis, W 65-61, Las Vegas Classic
Dec. 23 vs. Creighton, L 83-75, Las Vegas Classic
Dec. 28 vs. Alcorn State, W 90-67
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. Notre Dame
Jan. 3 at Providence
Against Saint Louis, the Blue Demons overcame a 32 percent shooting performance in the second half to hold off the Billikens.
Mac Koshwal led the way for DePaul, scoring 17 points. Jabari Currie, Dar Tucker and Will Walker also scored in double figures with 12, 11 and 10, respectively. Koshwal also added 11 rebounds.
Against Creighton, Tucker and Koshwal had career nights. Tucker scored 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting, and Koshwal scored 13 points, but grabbed 22 rebounds, including 16 on the defensive end. The 22 boards were a season-best in the league.
Creighton’s Booker Woodfox had 26 points.
Both teams shot better than 45 percent. DePaul shot 49 percent, including 54 percent in the first half. Walker added 12 points, and Currie added 10.
And against Alcorn State in the non-conference finale, Tucker had another big night with 25 points. Koshwal added 19 points and 13 rebounds. For the week, Koshwal averaged 16.3 points per game, while Tucker averaged 22.7.
Tucker, who played the Alcorn State game despite having the flu, is fourth in the league in scoring at 19.8 per game. Koshwal is third in the league in rebounding at 11.3.
This week, the Blue Demons start Big East play with a home game against Notre Dame on New Year’s Eve before traveling to Providence.
Alcorn State coach Larry Smith told the Chicago Tribune after the game he likes DePaul’s length upfront with Koshwal at 6-10, Devin Hill at 6-9 and Tucker at 6-5.
“Their length is tremendous,” said Smith, a former NBA star in his first season coaching his alma mater. “They’ve got a lot of athletes out there. They do a good job of crashing the boards, and they give themselves second-chance points, which is huge.”
Louisville Cardinals (8-2)
Last week:
Dec. 27 vs. UAB, W 82-62
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. UNLV
Jan. 4 vs. Kentucky
Terrence Williams scored 21 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out seven assists and blocked three shots to help the Cardinals down UAB.
The Cardinals also got a double-double from Samardo Samuels, scoring 17 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Andre McGee and Earl Clark were also in double figures off the bench with 13 and 12 points, respectively.
The Cardinals shot 50 percent for the game, including 57 percent in the second half, to blow open a nine-point halftime lead.
This week, the Cardinals continue their non-conference schedule with UNLV and the always-entertaining rivalry game with Kentucky.
According to the Louisville Courier-Journal, coach Rick Pitino has offered Derrick Caracter a chance to sit out this season but return to the team for the 2009-10 season – if he fulfills certain requirements.
Caracter, according to the paper, said he is willing to meet those conditions.
“He’s going to have to get a job that I’m going to have to approve, he’s going to have to pay his own way to school, he’s going to have to get his own apartment,” Pitino said. “We’d be willing to work him out, but he’s not going to practice with our basketball team or be part of it. He’s going to have to get in shape and get himself on the right track academically.”
Caracter, a 6-9 forward out of Fanwood, N.J., averaged 8.3 points and 4.5 rebounds as a sophomore last season. He decided to bypass his final two years of college and entered the NBA draft, but he changed his mind and has been looking for reinstatement from Pitino.
Caracter was ruled academically ineligble in May, the paper said, and has been “a major thorn in my side,” Pitino said in April.
In his first two seasons, Caracter has had numerous problems, multiple team rule violations and was held out of games for his failure to meet a target weight.
Marquette Golden Eagles (11-2)
Last week:
Dec. 22 at North Carolina State, W 68-65
Dec. 28 vs. Presbyterian, W 84-45
This week:
Jan. 1 vs. Villanova
Jan. 4 vs. Cincinnati
The Golden Eagles picked up a huge road victory against North Carolina State using tough defense and protecting the basketball.
Despite being outshot (51 to 48 percent) and out-rebounded (29-25), Marquette committed just 10 turnovers, compared to NC State’s 18, to help pick up the victory.
Jerel McNeal lead the Golden Eagles with 20 points on 9-of-18 shooting. Dominic James added 18 points with six assists, and Lazar Hayward had 16 points.
Against Presbyterian, Hayward had game highs of 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Wesley Matthews added 21 as the Golden Eagles led 40-18 at halftime.
This week, the Golden Eagles have a pair of Big East games against Villanova and Cincinnati. Last year against Villanova, the Golden Eagles shot 50 percent from the field and forced 23 turnovers in an 85-75 victory.
Marquette coach Buzz Williams told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, “I want to be peaking, beginning the rise on Jan. 1 and continuing the rise hopefully to about Valentine’s Day. And when we get to Valentine’s Day, I hope we’re rolling pretty good.”
Marquette hosts St. John’s on Valentine’s Day. After that, the Golden Eagles have a brutal schedule, hosting Seton Hall on Feb. 17, at Georgetown on Feb. 21, hosting Connecticut on Feb. 25, at Louisville on March 1, at Pittsburgh on March 4 and finish hosting Syracuse on March 7.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (9-2)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Savannah State, W 81-49
This week:
Dec. 31 at DePaul
Jan. 3 at St. John’s
Notre Dame had little trouble in its final tuneup before the Big East schedule.
Luke Harangody scored 23 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, including eight offensively, and shot 13-of-14 from the free-throw line. Tory Jackson and Ryan Ayers each added 10 points for the Irish, who have won three straight after losing to Ohio State on Dec. 6.
All 11 players who played for the Irish scored at least one point.
Harangody has scored at least 20 points in seven of the nine games he’s played in this season, and the Irish are second in the nation in fewest turnovers per game at 9.2 (Houston turns it over 9.1 times per game). Harangody also ranks six in the country in rebounding (11.9).
Teammate Kyle McAlarney is second in the nation in three-point field goals made at 4.07 per game (David Holston, Chicago State, 5.2).
This week, the Irish have a pair of road games to begin Big East play. Up first is at DePaul, who the Irish beat twice last season, and they will be at St. John’s to end the week.
The Irish are still tinkering with their zone defense, according to the South Bend Tribune. Before the DePaul game, the Irish are working in a training camp mentality to fill the holes in their zone defense.
“We need to be able to be confident in our zone,” coach Mike Brey said. “We need to be able to change gears.”
The Irish use zone to try and get their opponent out of their comfort zone, the paper said.
Pittsburgh Panthers (12-0)
Last week:
No games
This week:
Dec. 31 at Rutgers
Jan. 3 at Georgetown
The Panthers didn’t have a game last week, but will begin Big East play with a possible trap game against Rutgers on New Year’s Eve. After that, they will play at Georgetown in what will be a big early statement game in the conference slate.
DeJuan Blair ranks second in the country in rebounding at 13.0 per game, behind Oklahoma’s Blake Griffin at 14.4. The Panthers are also fourth in the nation in scoring differential at plus 20.8. Fellow league member Connecticut is third (21.2).
The Panthers know there’s still much to prove, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Seven teams are ranked in The Associated Press top 25.
“I’ve said all along it’s going to be the best conference in the history of basketball,” coach Jamie Dixon said told the paper. “I can’t go back on that. It’s not a surprise and I think it’s going to continue to grow.”
Providence Friars (8-4)
Last week:
Dec. 22 vs. Bryant, W 91-64
This week:
Dec. 31 vs. St. John’s
Jan. 3 vs. DePaul
Four players were in double figures for Providence, led by Marshon Brooks’ 18 off the bench, against Bryant. Geoff McDermott, Sharaud Curry and Weyinmi Efejuku were the others with 17, 16 and 15 points, respectively. Brooks played in just 18 minutes of the game.
The Friars shot 55 percent from the field, including a sizzling 80 percent (16-of-20) in the second half. In addition, the Friars shot 39 percent from three-point range, a category they rank last in the Big East in (27.6).
The Friars, who are 7-1 at home with the lone loss coming in the season opener Nov. 15 against Northeastern, will begin the Big East portion of their schedule with a pair of home games this week.
St. John’s has won the past two meetings after Providence won the previous 10 in the series.
Seton Hall Pirates (9-3)
Last week:
Dec. 22 at James Madison, L 70-64
Dec. 27 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson, W 101-70
This week:
Dec. 30 at Syracuse
Jan. 3 vs. West Virginia
The Pirates shot 52 percent from the field in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome an 18-point halftime deficit.
Seton Hall outscored James Madison, 42-30 in the second half, but the key was being outrebounded 41-30, including James Madison having 11 offensive rebounds.
Robert Mitchell led Seton Hall with 23 points and nine rebounds. Eugene Harvey added 14 points, along with Jeremy Hazell and Paul Gause each having 12.
Against Fairleigh Dickinson, the Pirates matched a season high in points in a 31-point victory.
Hazell and Mitchell each had big nights with Hazell scoring 35 points, tied for the fourth most by a Big East player in a game this season, and Mitchell adding 24 and grabbing 10 rebounds. Harvey added 15 points and six assists, and Jordan Theodore scored 11 off the bench.
Hazell shot 15-of-26 from the field, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range. It was also the best scoring performance by a SHU player under third-year coach Bobby Gonzalez.
Fairleigh Dickinson’s Sean Baptiste scored 31 points.
The Pirates get ready for two tough league games this week at Syracuse and hosting West Virginia.
Syracuse has won seven of the past nine meetings.
