Postseason Preview: Part Two - Minnesota (Updated 2/28)

On the bubble and bubble-busters

While the Big Ten will safely send Michigan State, Illinois, Purdue, and Ohio State to the NCAA tournament, there are teams fighting for their right to party postseason style: Michigan, Minnesota, Penn State, and Wisconsin.

Current standings through Feb. 28:

Big Ten, Conf, All, RPI

(9) Michigan State, 12-3, 22-5, 5
(20) Illinois, 11-5, 23-6, 16
(16) Purdue, 10-5, 21-7, 23
Ohio St., 8-7, 18-8, 43
Penn St., 8-7, 19-9, 62
Wisconsin, 8-7, 17-10, 27
Minnesota, 8-8, 20-8, 37
Michigan, 8-8, 18-11, 56
Northwestern, 6-9, 15-11, 78
Iowa, 4-11, 14-14, 103
Indiana, 1-14, 6-21, 194

In part two of this blog we're going to take a look at the Big Ten's bubble teams. Today we will look at the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

Minnesota: Big Ten (8-8), Overall (20-8), RPI (37).

• Key wins: Louisville, Ohio State, and Illinois.
• 3-4 against top 25 teams at the time and 3-6 on the road in the Big Ten.
• Strength of schedule: 52
• Minnesota hasn't won on the road since they beat Indiana on Jan. 25.
• The Golden Gophers are just 4-6 against teams with a top 50 RPI

Remaining Schedule:

Wed, Mar 4 - Wisconsin, 8:30 pm
Sun, Mar 8 - Michigan, TBA

The Golden Gophers went 12-0 in non-conference games, including a win over (9) Louisville, but have fallen off the map in the Big Ten. Tubby Smith has certainly turned the face of Minnesota basketball around, but after starting 16-1, his crew has has lost its touch. The NCAA tournament committee heavily bases a teams resume off the last 12 games. With two games left, the Gophers are 5-7 in their last 12. That leaves a chance for Smith's squad to potentially finish 4-8. What Minnesota has going for them is a fairly strong RPI and a eight-loss record. However, Without the win against Louisville, Minnesota doesn't have a standout win on the road.

In or Out: Out

Its great that Tubby Smith has led Minnesota to their first back-to-back 20 win seasons in the teams history. It's also the 16th consecutive season his team has won 20+ games. However, I just don't see them winning their final two conference contests. Unless Minnesota wins their final two at home against Wisconsin and Michigan, and at least 1 game in the Big Ten tournament, the Golden Gophers won't be going dancing. More importantly - game by game - Minnesota needs scoring. When Minnesota started 16-1 they scored about 72.5 ppg, but are since just putting up 59.8 per game.

Who can send the Golden Gophers dancing: Lawrence Westbrook

• Westbrook averages just 8.8 ppg, but Minnesota is 9-1 when he leads the team in scoring this season. When Westbrook scores 10 or more points, the Golden Gophers are 16-4.

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*Source for RPI and SOS: CollegeRPI.com (released Feb. 22).

What Just Happened?!?!?!

Candice Parker and Lisa Leslie...take a seat.

The Little Giants got "the icebox." Can Brittney Griner not go to Baylor and join the Iowa men's basketball squad? Girl knows how to throw down!



Remarkable...

Now check out my brother, not dunking, although I am the only one in the family that can dunk.



Legit. Any Opinions?

Postseason Preview: Part Two - Penn State (Updated 2/23)

On the bubble and bubble-busters

While the Big Ten will safely send Michigan State, Illinois, Purdue, and Ohio State to the NCAA tournament, there are teams fighting for their right to party postseason style: Michigan, Minnesota, Penn State, and Wisconsin.

Current standings through Feb. 22:

Big Ten, Conf, All, RPI
(9) Michigan State, 11-3, 21-5, 5
(16) Purdue, 9-4, 20-6, 23
(20) Illinois, 10-5, 22-6, 16
Penn St., 8-6, 19-8, 62
Ohio St., 7-7, 17-8, 43
Minnesota, 8-7, 20-7, 37
Wisconsin, 8-7, 17-10, 27
Michigan, 7-8, 17-11, 56
Northwestern, 5-9, 14-11, 78
Iowa, 4-10, 14-13, 103
Indiana, 1-12, 6-19, 194

In part two of this blog we're going to take a look at the Big Ten's bubble teams. Today we will look at the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Penn State: Big Ten (8-6), Overall (19-8), RPI (62).

• Key wins: Purdue, Michigan State, Illinois
  
• 3-3 against teams ranked in top 25 at the time.
• Strength of schedule: 85
  

Remaining Schedule:

Tue, Feb 24 - at Ohio St., 7:00 p.m.
Sat, Feb 28 - Indiana, 6:00 p.m.
Thu, Mar 5 - (20) Illinois, 9:00 p.m.
Sat, Mar 7 - at Iowa, 2:05 p.m.

Penn State is the most difficult choice to pick for whether they'll squeeze into the NCAA tournament. First and foremost, Penn State doesn't have a great RPI and their SOS is awful. They played the weakest non-conference schedule in the Big Ten, going 11-2 (losses to Rhode Island and Temple at home). The combined record between their non-conference opponents as of Feb 22 is 138-349 (a .0395 winning percentage). Only four of those 13 non-conference teams boast winning records.

The Nittany Lion's ugly win, in what I call the worst basketball game in the history of the world (hyperbolic?), was essential for boosting their RPI from 70 to 62 this week, and gave them a third quality win. That being said, they MUST beat Ohio State on the Buckeyes' home court if they want to earn an NCAA bid.

In or Out: Out

You can't spell Nittany Lions without NIT. An awful SOS and RPI, along with their non-conference schedule will keep Penn State out of the NCAA tournament again. I believe that they would have to beat Ohio State on the road AND Illinois at home to earn the bid, and I don't think they can. Not to mention, Iowa very may very well be more than a handful for Penn State when they finish the conference schedule in Iowa City. However, don't be shocked if they earn a bid by winning the Big Ten tournament.

Who can help lead them into the NCAA tournament field: Stanley Pringle

• Pringle is shooting 37.1 percent from the floor in Big Ten play. When Pringle shoots better than his average, Penn State is 6-2 in conference play, and when he shoots under his average, the Nittany lions are just . When Pringle is on top of his game, it takes pressure off of potential Big Ten player of the year, Talor Battle, and Jamelle Cornley, making Penn State a dangerous team.
  
  

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*Source for RPI and SOS: CollegeRPI.com (released Feb. 22).

Kelly Earns First-time Honors

As my thoughts on Jake Kelly have been reformulating as of late, he posted multiple career-highs against Michigan on Sunday (23 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds), leading him to be named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week.

From Hawkeyereport.com:

IOWA CITY, IA—Iowa guard Jake Kelly has been named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week for his efforts in Iowa’s 70-60 overtime win over Michigan on Sunday, the only game of the week for the Hawkeyes.

Kelly, a 6-6 sophomore from Carmel, IN, contributed career-bests in points (23), rebounds (8), assists (9) and minutes played (45) as Iowa earned a season split with the Wolverines. Kelly also played a key role defensively, holding Michigan’s Manny Harris to nine points. The Wolverine sophomore entered the game as Michigan’s leading scorer and the second leading scorer in the Big Ten Conference.

Kelly connected on 8-17 field goals and all four free throws against Michigan and scored nine of Iowa’s 14 points in the overtime period. He gave Iowa the lead for good with a short jumper to begin the extra session. He added a three-point basket, a lay-up and finally two free throws for the final Iowa points of the game. Kelly also had two steals and was guilty of just two turnovers.

Forced by injuries to take over the point guard position in Iowa’s last two games, Kelly also scored 19 points in a Feb. 14 loss to Purdue. He scored 17 points in a loss at Wisconsin to give him a 19.7 average in Iowa’s last three games.

“This is a deserving honor for Jake,” said Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter. “Offensively, We’ve been pleased with his decision making. Defensively, he has guarded our opponent’s most aggressive perimeter player and has really taken that responsibility to heart. He’s got great length and I think he’s a terrific defender.”

Kelly is averaging 10.3 points for the season and 11 points in Big Ten play. He is shooting 44.6% from the field, 35.1% from three-point range and 82.5% from the free throw line.

The Big Ten Player of the Week honor is the first for Kelly and the first for an Iowa player this season.

The Hawkeyes return to action Wednesday at Michigan State (7:35 p.m. CT, BTN) and travel to Northwestern Saturday (1:05 p.m., BTN).

Postseason Preview: Part Two - Michigan (Updated 2/22)

On the bubble and bubble-busters

While the Big Ten will safely send Michigan State, Illinois, Purdue, and Ohio State to the NCAA tournament, there are teams fighting for their right to party postseason style: Michigan, Minnesota, Penn State, and Wisconsin.

Current standings through Feb. 22:

Big Ten, Conf, All, RPI
(6) Michigan State, 11-3, 21-5, 6
(18) Illinois, 10-5, 22-6, 15
(19) Purdue, 9-4, 20-6, 28
Ohio St., 7-7, 17-8, 26
Minnesota, 8-7, 20-7, 36
Penn St., 8-6, 19-8, 70
Wisconsin, 8-7, 17-10, 29
Michigan, 7-8, 17-11, 53
Northwestern, 5-9, 14-11, 82
Iowa, 4-10, 14-13, 107
Indiana, 1-12, 6-19, 184

In part two of this blog we're going to take a look at the Big Ten's bubble teams. Today we will look at the Michigan Wolverines.

Michigan: Big Ten (7-8), Overall (17-11), RPI (53).

• Key wins: (3) UCLA, (6) Duke, (18) Illinois
• 2-4 against teams ranked in top 25 at the time.

Remaining Schedule:

Sun, Feb 22 - at Iowa, L - Michigan 60, Iowa 70
Thu, Feb 26 - (19) Purdue, 9:00 pm
Sun, Mar 1 - at Wisconsin, 1:00 pm
Sun, Mar 8 - at Minnesota, TBA

Michigan's strength of schedule is ranked 14 in the nation, and that is a factor that should help a struggling team get through to the NCAA tournament. However, after Michigan failed to show up in Iowa City on Sunday, they are now just 4-8 in their last 12 games. What would keep the Wolverines out of the tournament would be losing all three of their remaining road games, a feat that started today. I don't see the Wolverines beating Purdue at home or Wisconsin on the road.

In or Out: Out

You could see it in Michigan's play at Iowa on Sunday. Manny Harris sat the entire overtime period after scoring only 9 points (3-13 shooting). If the tournament started yesterday, I believe Michigan would have snuck into the tournament. But, with two of the last three on the road, and a home contest against Purdue, the Wolverines have a tough stretch of basketball to play. To get into the tournament, the Wolverines are going to have to make a run for the Big Ten tournament championship.

Who can help lead them into the NCAA tournament field: DeShawn Sims

• Sim's production has tapered off, averaging just under 10 points a game (9.8), and Manny Harris has had to carry the Wolverines' load too much lately. If Sims can give Michigan a second scoring presence alongside Harris, also opening up the arc for a team that can drain the 3-ball, Michigan may have a chance of finally getting back into the NCAA tournament as an at-large bid.

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*Source for RPI and SOS: CollegeRPI.com (released Feb. 15).

Orange Krushed

Penn State 38, (18) Illinois 33

Following Purdue's 18 point route of Michigan State on Tuesday, the Illini held high hopes for winning at least a share of the Big Ten conference title.

Coming into the game the Illini brought in a 10 game home win streak, and Penn State came into Assembly Hall looking for their third straight win in Champaign.

Both teams needed a feeling out process as they combined to miss their first 10 shots before Mike Davis hit a jumper at the 15:57 mark to put the Illini up 2-0. Both teams shot .300 or less in the game, Penn State shooting 13-46 (.283%) and Illinois going 15-50 (.300%) from the field.

To make an ugly and long story short, this win is a big one for Penn State. Talor Battle led all scorers with 11 points, while Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale combined for just 10 points for the Illini.

While Illinois' hope for being conference champions were most likely shattered, Penn State may have solidified a spot in the NCAA tournament field.

*Fact: The teams’ combined 71 points was the lowest total in Division I men’s basketball since Monmouth beat Princeton 41-21 in 2005.

This game was just awful in every aspect, so I decided to relive this Illinois basketball miracle and the greatest game I'll most likely ever see. When the Illini went down 15 I wanted to take back my years and years of fanhood, put it in a bag, and incinerate it.

Postseason preview: part one

The Big Ten is looking at the possibility of sending 5-8 teams to the NCAA tournament. This is part one of three in which I'll look at locks for the NCAA tournament, who is on the bubble (part two), and my predictions for the Big Ten tournament (part three).

Current standings through Feb. 17:

Big Ten, Conf, All, RPI

Michigan St. (6), 10-2, 20-4, 6
Illinois (18), 9-4, 21-5, 15
Purdue (19), 8-4, 19-6, 28
Ohio St., 7-5, 17-6, 26

Minnesota, 7-6, 19-6, 36
Penn St., 7-6, 18-8, 71
Wisconsin, 7-6, 16-9, 29
Michigan, 6-7, 16-10, 52
Northwestern, 4-8, 13-10, 84
Iowa, 3-10, 13-13, 107
Indiana, 1-11, 6-18, 182

For those who are unaware, the RPI is derived from three component factors: Div. I winning percentage (25)%, schedule strength (50)%; and opponent's schedule strength (25)%. Games against non-Division I opponents are not used in calculating the RPI.

Locks: Michigan State, Illinois, Purdue, and Ohio State.

Michigan State:

• Although the Spartans stumbled early in the season against ACC teams (Maryland and No. 3 North Carolina), and at home against Northwestern and Penn State, they are the Big Ten's best bet for an NCAA tournament run. Tom Izzo's crew isn't blemished by these losses as they have key wins over Texas and Minnesota, as well as a four game stretch of wins against Ohio State, (15) Kansas (RPI 11), Penn State, and Illinois during mid season. Those four teams have compiled a .760 winning percentage (76-24).
  
  
• What tests remain before the Big Ten tournament: The Spartans will have two heated battles with Purdue, a trip to Champaign to face Illinois, and will also host Wisconsin, who has recovered from a six game losing streak to beat Illinois, Penn State, Iowa, and Ohio State.
  

Illinois:

• Two guys named Mike – both sophomores, Davis standing at 6'9'' and Tisdale at 7'1'' – are what keeps the Fighting Illini pushing for a Big Ten title. Of their five losses, two have come at the hands of teams with RPI's in the top ten (Michigan State and Clemson [RPI 10]), four in the top 40 (Minnesota and Wisconsin) and all five within the top 60 (Michigan). Coach Bruce Weber may have taken some heat after making an NCAA title run with what many called "Bill Self's team," but he has brought the Illini back into Big Ten title contention.
  


• Key wins: (11) Missouri, Purdue (twice), and Ohio State.
  
  
• What tests remain before the Big Ten tournament: Every game the Illini have left will be the next big thing: Two matchups with Penn State, a trip to Columbus to face Ohio State, and Weber's squad will host Minnesota and Michigan State.
  

Purdue:

• The Boilermakers have played beaten up all season and recently saw sophomore star Robbie Hummel step back onto the Hardwood after missing three games due to a lower back injury. In Hummel's absence the team went 1-2, losing to Ohio State and Illinois on the road, and defeating Penn State at home. In Purdue's six losses, all of them have come in back-to-back matchups: (2) Oklahoma and (9) Duke early in the season, Illinois and Penn State at mid season, and just two weeks ago at the hands of Ohio State and Illinois. In Hummel's return, the Boilermakers played sloppy ball and let a struggling Iowa team stay in the game until the final two minutes, finishing them off 49-45.
  
  
• Picked by many to win the Big Ten title this year, the Boilermakers don't have any stand-out wins. They won a non-conference game against Davidson and have conference wins over Michigan, Minnesota, and Penn State.
  
  
• What tests remain before the Big Ten tournament: Two tests against Michigan State, a trip to Ann Arbor, and Ohio State at home.

Ohio State:

• Behind the dazzling play of sophomore guard Evan Turner, the Buckeyes hold the forth best record in the conference and are 4-4 against Top-25 ranked teams. Thad Matta's squad pulled an impressive three-game winning streak over then-No. 21 Miami (Fl.), then-No. 7 Notre Dame, and (21) Butler prior to Big Ten play (each by no more than five points). The Buckeyes have also handed Minnesota and Purdue losses, but have fallen to West Virginia, Illinois, Minnesota, twice to Michigan State, and Saturday to Wisconsin.
  
  
• What tests remain before the Big Ten tournament: The Buckeyes host Illinois and Penn State back-to-back and travel to Purdue.
  
  

In other non-Big Ten basketball related news, my brother's band Fallbrooke (Los Angeles) released their CD on iTUNES today. If none of you make it to iTUNES to check them out, at least watch the video for their single "Losin' It" starring Miley Cyrus' best friend Mandy Jiroux. Even if you don't care for their sound, you're guaranteed to enjoy the video. And no, they aren't just some local band.

"Losin'" It" Official Video from Fallbrooke