Apparently "Ready to Rumble" means Devendorf has made a deal with Beelzebub, just take a look at ESPN's homepage. The kid looks possessed and hes been playing like it.
At the half, the boys in Orange are looking sloppy, but are coming around late. Nichols is beginning to find his rhythm and it is a 2 point game. Not bad for having to play the entire first half without our starting lineup, due to Jim Burr calling the game.
Devo is playing with a fire under him again, and has 15 on 7-10 shooting. Dyson is his counterpart with 12, 2-2 from behind the arc. On the boards it is all tied up 16-16, so that is a promising statistic. It seems like we've been getting out boarded when we lose. Good to see we're hanging with them, even with their 7'2" Thabeet in there.
Now to the 2nd half...
Showing posts with label BET. Show all posts
Showing posts with label BET. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Round Three?!?!
Looks like the boys in Orange are getting to face off against our favorite foes, the UConvicts for a third time this year. In recent history we are 2-2 over the past two years in booting them from the conference tourney. I'd say play the numbers and make it a three-peat on that account (Hope Pat Riley doesn't come after me for that). Oh yeah, and if you didn't remember, we are the two time defending Big East tournament champions, courtesy of our favorite Scrantonian.
As for the task at hand, we've seen it before. Its a really young Connecticut team, with a solid shooter in Jerome Dyson, and a big body down low in Thabeet. Hasheem Thabeet seems to be a defensive minded player for the sheer fact that he looks absolutely lost on the offensive end of the court. Mookie can dominate this kid, and will. Jeff Adrien also has the potential to make some noise against the Orange.
Adrien was the only All-League selection for the Huskies, while both Dyson and Thabeet made the All-Rookie squad along with our boy "Do-It-All Paul." He was a consistent scorer and rebounder with 15 double-doubles on the year and averages 13.4 and 9.7. Consistent but not dominant. Dyson has been dominant in his last six, averaging 19.6ppg.
It is going to be a matter of stopping Dyson from the arc. Price seems to still be off stealing laptops, as he hasn't shown up to play basketball this year. (On a side note, I think he, along with Doug Gottleib and Marcus Williams may be up for the Big East All-Thievery First Team)
As for the task at hand, we've seen it before. Its a really young Connecticut team, with a solid shooter in Jerome Dyson, and a big body down low in Thabeet. Hasheem Thabeet seems to be a defensive minded player for the sheer fact that he looks absolutely lost on the offensive end of the court. Mookie can dominate this kid, and will. Jeff Adrien also has the potential to make some noise against the Orange.
Adrien was the only All-League selection for the Huskies, while both Dyson and Thabeet made the All-Rookie squad along with our boy "Do-It-All Paul." He was a consistent scorer and rebounder with 15 double-doubles on the year and averages 13.4 and 9.7. Consistent but not dominant. Dyson has been dominant in his last six, averaging 19.6ppg.
It is going to be a matter of stopping Dyson from the arc. Price seems to still be off stealing laptops, as he hasn't shown up to play basketball this year. (On a side note, I think he, along with Doug Gottleib and Marcus Williams may be up for the Big East All-Thievery First Team)
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Update: Big East Roundup
Well, after the beauty that was last night, It seems we are mathematically still eligible for a bye in the BET. At the same time, this is banking on the fact that Cuse can take Nova on the road Saturday, and that Quincy Douby decides to find new eligibility and singlehandedly beat Notre Dame. The Irish seem a lock for the 4 spot if they can beat a Rutgers team that is only scoring 59.9ppg, and is 3-12 in conference and in 2nd to last place in the BE. The only thing the Scarlet Knights have going for them is they are playing in the RAC. All in all this doesn't look too promising for the Cuse, and they will most likely not get the bye.
The battle for fifth place is then where the Orange look to be heading. The only contenders at the moment seem to be SU, Marquette, and West Virginia. The Golden Eagles are 9-6 with a game against Pitt on Saturday. The Mountaineers are 8-6 with Pitt tonight and @ Cincinatti on Saturday:
5. Syracuse (10-5) @ Nova
6. Marquette (9-6) vs. Pitt
7. West Virginia (8-6) @ Pitt, vs. Cinci
If Cuse wins out, they own sole possession of 5th place in the conference. We own the tiebreaker with the head to head win at Marquette, so at worst we can finish in sixth with a loss at Nova. If WVU wins out against Pitt and Cinci they will also be at 10-6, and the tiebreaker would be more complicated.
Games against common opponents: WVU 6-6 (2 left), SU 10-4 (1 Left)
Head to Head against Georgetown WVU L, SU W
Head to Head against Pittsburgh WVU 0-1 1 Left, SU 0-1
If WVU loses to Pitt tonight, we can guarantee the 5th place lock, as seeding for a tiebreaker between teams that haven't met goes to a head to head comparison of concurrent opponents, starting from the top down until a distinct advantage is shown to one team. And if this fails and I am completely misunderstanding the tiebreaker it goes to a coinflip. I'm not kidding, its right in the PDF. As of right now it seems solid to say we are looking at a 5 seed in the Garden this year...
The battle for fifth place is then where the Orange look to be heading. The only contenders at the moment seem to be SU, Marquette, and West Virginia. The Golden Eagles are 9-6 with a game against Pitt on Saturday. The Mountaineers are 8-6 with Pitt tonight and @ Cincinatti on Saturday:
5. Syracuse (10-5) @ Nova
6. Marquette (9-6) vs. Pitt
7. West Virginia (8-6) @ Pitt, vs. Cinci
If Cuse wins out, they own sole possession of 5th place in the conference. We own the tiebreaker with the head to head win at Marquette, so at worst we can finish in sixth with a loss at Nova. If WVU wins out against Pitt and Cinci they will also be at 10-6, and the tiebreaker would be more complicated.
Games against common opponents: WVU 6-6 (2 left), SU 10-4 (1 Left)
Head to Head against Georgetown WVU L, SU W
Head to Head against Pittsburgh WVU 0-1 1 Left, SU 0-1
If WVU loses to Pitt tonight, we can guarantee the 5th place lock, as seeding for a tiebreaker between teams that haven't met goes to a head to head comparison of concurrent opponents, starting from the top down until a distinct advantage is shown to one team. And if this fails and I am completely misunderstanding the tiebreaker it goes to a coinflip. I'm not kidding, its right in the PDF. As of right now it seems solid to say we are looking at a 5 seed in the Garden this year...
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Big Weekend
Of course the one weekend of the year I'm not around the area is the Cuse vs. UConn extravaganza Rd. 2. While I was up freezing away and having a blast on Lake McRorie, the trusty Orange have again outdone themselves. With the dismantling of UConn, we are in a position to make a first round bye in the BET. Now I know as much as the next person that there is a good deal of if's and but's that need to occur in order for this to happen, but lets look at the possibilities:
Tied for 4th: #23 Notre Dame and #16 Marquette (9-5 in conference)
The irony being that come Saturday one of these teams will be knocked out as the two squads play each other. My personal feelings are that Marquette takes this one, though they have been slipping as of late, losing 3 of their last 4. If McNiel and James play a solid game, they can take this one. McNiel's defense is absolutely lock-down, and can handle Carter or Falls easily. At the same time, if Harangody has a game, I don't see any counter on the Golden Eagles to handle him.
Both teams have 2 remaining, with ND finishing at Rutgers and Marquette home vs. #8 Pitt. Therefore, ND will finish at 11-5, or 10-6 (assuming a W at Rutgers), and Marquette is looking at the same. For standings sake, we'll use my earlier prediction of Marquette winning and beating Pitt at home, putting MU at 11-5 and ND at 10-6.
3rd : Louisville (9-4)
I'm not gonna harp on the Cuse-LU debacle, due to the fact that I don't need an aneurysm, but the Cardinals are sitting quietly in 3rd with solid wins @ MU and @ Pitt. To top it off, they finish the season vs. St. Johns, @ UConn, and vs. Seton Hall. All three games should be winnable for the team, as that is the bottom of the Big East in a nutshell, without Rutgers and USF. The Cards have been hot as of late, and will win at least 2 out of their remaining. SJU or @UConn, which is always dangerous, being their one loss, with a final record of 11-4 in conference.
2nd : #12 Georgetown (10-2)
4 remaining games, @ Cincy, vs. Pitt, @ the Dome, and vs. UConn. I say the Hoyas split it. They've been hot as of late, and maybe I'm a Homer, but the Cuse has a chance if Mookie can neutralize Hibbert. So losses at Pitt and Cuse put them at 12-4.
1st : #8 Pittsburgh (11-2)
WIth 3 games left, 2 on the road, and all against ranked teams, @Gtown, vs. WVU, and @Marquette, I think the Panthers will still be able to take 2 and finish at 13-3, with the loss coming @ MU. In Gray they have a dominant big man, and play true team ball. Also if Fields gets hot from outside like he did against us, they could win out.
Potential Standings:
1. Pittsburgh (13-3)
2. Georgetown (12-4)
3. Louisville (11-4)
4. Marquette (11-5)
5. Notre Dame (10-6)
Where does that leave the Orange?
Syracuse (8-5)
Games Remaining: @ Providence (7-6), vs. GTown, @ Nova (6-7)
Winning all three would put us at 11-5, tied for 4th with Marquette, who we own the tiebreaker over. This is best case scenario, as we have a tough road ahead. Providence isn't a bad team by any stretch, GTown is a damn good team, and playing at Nova is never an easy thing to do. All in all I'm not at liberty to make a prediction, as there seems to be no rhyme or reason as to how the team plays on a given night, but I'd like to think that being on the bubble, we are starting to get a little fire under us and hopefully making a run... In order for a bye, we need to win out, or have alot of bricks fall into place.
Tied for 4th: #23 Notre Dame and #16 Marquette (9-5 in conference)
The irony being that come Saturday one of these teams will be knocked out as the two squads play each other. My personal feelings are that Marquette takes this one, though they have been slipping as of late, losing 3 of their last 4. If McNiel and James play a solid game, they can take this one. McNiel's defense is absolutely lock-down, and can handle Carter or Falls easily. At the same time, if Harangody has a game, I don't see any counter on the Golden Eagles to handle him.
Both teams have 2 remaining, with ND finishing at Rutgers and Marquette home vs. #8 Pitt. Therefore, ND will finish at 11-5, or 10-6 (assuming a W at Rutgers), and Marquette is looking at the same. For standings sake, we'll use my earlier prediction of Marquette winning and beating Pitt at home, putting MU at 11-5 and ND at 10-6.
3rd : Louisville (9-4)
I'm not gonna harp on the Cuse-LU debacle, due to the fact that I don't need an aneurysm, but the Cardinals are sitting quietly in 3rd with solid wins @ MU and @ Pitt. To top it off, they finish the season vs. St. Johns, @ UConn, and vs. Seton Hall. All three games should be winnable for the team, as that is the bottom of the Big East in a nutshell, without Rutgers and USF. The Cards have been hot as of late, and will win at least 2 out of their remaining. SJU or @UConn, which is always dangerous, being their one loss, with a final record of 11-4 in conference.
2nd : #12 Georgetown (10-2)
4 remaining games, @ Cincy, vs. Pitt, @ the Dome, and vs. UConn. I say the Hoyas split it. They've been hot as of late, and maybe I'm a Homer, but the Cuse has a chance if Mookie can neutralize Hibbert. So losses at Pitt and Cuse put them at 12-4.
1st : #8 Pittsburgh (11-2)
WIth 3 games left, 2 on the road, and all against ranked teams, @Gtown, vs. WVU, and @Marquette, I think the Panthers will still be able to take 2 and finish at 13-3, with the loss coming @ MU. In Gray they have a dominant big man, and play true team ball. Also if Fields gets hot from outside like he did against us, they could win out.
Potential Standings:
1. Pittsburgh (13-3)
2. Georgetown (12-4)
3. Louisville (11-4)
4. Marquette (11-5)
5. Notre Dame (10-6)
Where does that leave the Orange?
Syracuse (8-5)
Games Remaining: @ Providence (7-6), vs. GTown, @ Nova (6-7)
Winning all three would put us at 11-5, tied for 4th with Marquette, who we own the tiebreaker over. This is best case scenario, as we have a tough road ahead. Providence isn't a bad team by any stretch, GTown is a damn good team, and playing at Nova is never an easy thing to do. All in all I'm not at liberty to make a prediction, as there seems to be no rhyme or reason as to how the team plays on a given night, but I'd like to think that being on the bubble, we are starting to get a little fire under us and hopefully making a run... In order for a bye, we need to win out, or have alot of bricks fall into place.
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