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NCAA Basketball News | March 15, 2010
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Midwest Regional Primer: Overall No. 1 Kansas will be tested
Associated Press
March 15, 2010
STATE OF THE NO. 1: Kansas
Kansas is the best team in the country and a strong favorite to make it to Indianapolis. Beyond the obvious -- the 32-2 record, the convincing Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles, the depth, talent and experience -- the Jayhawks are extremely strong in every statistical category Final Four teams usually excel in.
According to kenpom.com, KU is in the top five in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency, is 24th in two-point field goal percentage and second in two-point defensive percentage. The Jayhawks also hit the offensive glass extremely well and are flexible style-wise, as comfortable in a game with possessions in the low 60s as they are in the high 70s.
Kansas also is very difficult to slow down because its offensive attack is so balanced. Sherron Collins is the key ballhandler and clutch-time scorer, but every major rotation player for Kansas uses between 20 and 23 percent of the team's possessions while on the floor.
Simply put, they are a dominant, balanced, experienced team that will be very difficult to derail before Indianapolis. That said, the committee didn't do the Jayhawks any favors as the overall No. 1 seed.
KU should handle either UNLV or Northern Iowa in a second-round matchup, although UNI's slow-down style might make for a more uncomfortable game than a matchup with the Rebels, who likely don't have the firepower to stay with the Jayhawks for 40 minutes. After that, though, it could get tough.
KU could face either a hot Maryland or a talented-albeit-inconsistent Michigan State team in the Sweet 16, and neither 2 seed Ohio State nor 3 seed Georgetown would be any bargain in a regional final. Throw in No. 6 seed Tennessee and No. 7 seed Oklahoma State, which accounted for KU's two losses, and this is by far the most loaded bracket of the four.
BRACKETBUSTER: San Diego State
No. 11 seed San Diego State is coming off a Mountain West tournament title, beating UNLV on its home floor after taking down New Mexico for the second time this season in the semis. SDSU has the athletes to make life very difficult for both Tennessee and likely second-round opponent Georgetown.
The Aztecs actually had the same scoring margin (+0.11 points per possession) as the Lobos in league play. Billy White is a very efficient scorer and freshman Kawhi Leonard is a rebounding savant. They are top-40ish nationally in both efficiency categories, hit the offensive glass like fiends and both shoot and defend well inside the arc. Just don't let the game come down to free throws ...
SUSPECT TEAM: N/A
There really isn't a badly overseeded team in the top half of this bracket. Michigan State may be a tad high as a 5 seed, but not really, especially if you get them on the right night. This region also has a 2 that had an outside chance for a 1, a 3 that easily could have been a 2 and a 4 that tied for the conference title with the No. 3 overall seed.
JUICIEST MATCHUP: Tennessee vs. San Diego State
It should be a full-court, up-tempo, entertaining game that could very well end in a late-night upset in Providence. Kenpom.com projects a one-point Tennessee win. West Coast teams usually struggle coming all the way East, but the estimated 9:45 p.m. start time basically replicates a normal game time for the Aztecs. They should be ready.
If seeds hold, there could be a monster Sweet 16 showdown between Ohio State and Georgetown.
GAME BREAKER: Evan Turner, Ohio State
There's no final answer other than Turner, but this region is utterly loaded with star power. In addition to Turner, you have 2010 conference players of the year in Maryland's Greivis Vasquez, Oklahoma State's James Anderson and Northern Iowa's Adam Koch, as well as UC Santa Barbara's Orlando Johnson and Lehigh's C.J. McCollum. (Also, Michigan State's Kalin Lucas won last season's Big Ten honor.) Then add in stars like KU's Collins and Cole Aldrich, Georgia Tech's Derrick Favors and UNLV's Tre'von Willis, plus Ohio's Armon Bassett (an Indiana transfer) and the guy coming up in the next category, and there is a lot to watch.
BEST PLAYER YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF: Aubrey Coleman, Houston
Coleman made news last season for stomping on the face of Arizona's Chase Budinger, but the news this year is his scoring prowess. Coleman is leading the nation at a robust 25.6 points per game and he fired up almost 700 field-goal attempts along with over 300 free throws this season. Coleman is the fifth-highest usage player in Division I, with over 34 percent of Houston's possessions while he's on the floor (which is almost always) ending with some act from him. With Maryland's preferred tempo, watch Coleman squeeze off a ton of shots in the 4-13 game in Spokane.
THE PRESSURE'S ON: Greg Monroe, Georgetown
Monroe passed up the NBA draft last year after an up-and-down freshman season and it seems to have been the right choice. The Hoyas' big man has shown a smooth, multifaceted skill set on his way to 16.1 points and 9.5 rebounds a game, while acting as the sweet-passing post man in the Hoyas' Princeton-style offense. Now he will have the national stage to burnish his rep (and draft stock), and he's the best big man in Georgetown's side of the region. The scoring of Austin Freeman and (especially) Chris Wright is a huge component to how Georgetown fares, but if Monroe's right, the Hoyas could make it to Indy.
NUMBERS TO PONDER: 21, 9.1 and 12.6
High-major category: 21. That's the number of years since the last time Georgetown played a first-round NCAA tournament game in Providence. The game? The legendary 50-49 escape over No. 16 seed Princeton.
Mid-major category: 9.1 and 12.6. That's Houston's number of turnovers per game and percentage of possessions on which they commit a turnover. The latter rate leads Division I and is remarkable given the Cougars play at the 20th fastest tempo in the country at over 72 possessions per game.
THE PICK: Kansas
The regional's best team plus the easier side of the draw should equal Indy.
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UConn, Tennessee, Nebraska, Stanford earn No. 1 seeds
Associated Press
March 15, 2010
New York, NY — Connecticut's path to another perfect season could include a renewal of the most heated rivalry in women's college basketball.
The undefeated Huskies earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA women's basketball tournament Monday night and will open against Southern in Norfolk, Va. Geno Auriemma's Huskies have won an NCAA record 72 straight games, but none of them have come against Pat Summitt's Lady Vols. The two pre-eminent teams in the sport broke off their annual matchup in 2007 in a testy split.
The two teams could meet in the national semifinals in San Antonio if both come through their regions.
"I'm not surprised that they would line us up with Connecticut if we both come out," said Summitt, whose team earned a record 20th No. 1 seed. "They want to see that matchup. We're a long way from thinking about that matchup."
Auriemma isn't focusing on that game -- yet.
"I would venture to say that after that game is over, if we are fortunate enough to win it, I think there will be a lot of coaches and players on our team that will be smiling a little bit," Auriemma said.
Ten teams have entered the NCAA tournament unbeaten; only five have emerged victorious. UConn and Auriemma have done it three times, including last season.
Stanford and Nebraska earned the other No. 1 seeds.
The Cardinal, the last team to beat Connecticut, earned their first No. 1 seed since 1998. Tennessee earned the No. 1 seed a year after getting bounced from the tournament in the first round. And Nebraska has its first No. 1 seed in school history after winning its first 30 games this season. The Cornhuskers lost their only game of the season in the Big 12 tournament semifinals.
The Huskies (33-0), too, have run through their opponents this season, winning by an average of 35 points. In search of its seventh national championship, UConn is looking to become the fifth team to win consecutive titles. Tennessee last did it in 2007 and 2008.
Awaiting the Huskies in the second round could be former assistant Tonya Cardoza and the Temple Owls. They face James Madison in the first round.
Other first-round games in the Dayton region are: No. 5 Virginia vs. No. 12 Green Bay; No. 4 Iowa State vs. No. 13 Lehigh; No. 6 St. John's vs. No. 11 Princeton; No. 3 Florida State vs. No. 14 Louisiana Tech; No. 7 Mississippi State vs. No. 10 Middle Tennessee; and No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 15 St. Francis (Pa.).
While other teams look to make history in the tournament, the Lady Vols had enough of that last year. Tennessee, a No. 5 seed last season, lost in the first round to Ball State, marking the first time in the program's history that the team didn't advance out of the opening weekend.
Tennessee will open up at home against Austin Peay in the Memphis region. The Lady Govs (15-17) are the eighth team in NCAA history to make the tournament with a losing record. They upset Eastern Illinois to win the Ohio Valley tournament.
Fifth-seeded Georgetown plays MAAC conference champion Marist, and No. 4 Baylor will face Fresno State in Berkeley. West Virginia, the runner-up in the Big East tournament, earned a No. 3 seed and will play Southland champion Lamar.
ACC champion Duke earned a No. 2 seed and will host the first two rounds. The Blue Devils will play Mid-Eastern champion Hampton in the opener. LSU meets Hartford in the other game at Cameron.
Other first-round games in the Memphis region are: No. 6 Texas vs. No. 11 San Diego State; No. 7 LSU vs. No. 10 Hartford; and No. 8 Dayton vs. No. 9 TCU.
Dayton is one of five teams making their debut -- Princeton, Arkansas-Little Rock, Portland State, Northern Iowa, and Dayton.
Baylor freshman Brittney Griner, too, will get her first taste of the NCAA tournament. The Lady Bears earned a No. 4 seed and will play Fresno State in the first round. Griner, who drew national attention coming into college as a dunking phenom, made headlines again on March 3 after throwing a punch in a game against Texas Tech. She was suspended for two games by the school for her actions.
In the Kansas City region, Nebraska will open against Northern Iowa. UCLA and North Carolina State will face off in the eight-nine game. Other first-round matchups in the region include No. 5 Michigan State against Mid-American champion Bowling Green. No. 4 Kentucky will face Big South champion Liberty. In the other half of the region, sixth-seed Georgia Tech faces Arkansas-Little Rock, which is making its first tournament appearance. No. 3 Oklahoma faces South Dakota State.
Second-seed Notre Dame will host Cleveland State in its opener. Wisconsin plays America East winner Vermont in the other matchup.
But it all comes back to UConn.
The Cardinal (31-1) were the last team to beat the Huskies -- in the semifinals of the 2008 NCAA tournament. Stanford will open this year's tournament hosting UC Riverside in the Sacramento region.
Other first-round games in the Sacramento region are: No. 8 Iowa vs. No. 9 Rutgers; No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 12 Tulane; No. 4 Oklahoma State vs. No. 13 Chattanooga; No. 6 Vanderbilt vs. No. 11 DePaul; No. 3 Xavier vs. No. 14 East Tennessee State; No. 7 Gonzaga vs. No. 10 North Carolina; and No. 2 Texas A&M vs. No. 15 Portland State.
Louisville became just the third team to play in the national championship game and not make the tournament the next season. The Cardinals are one of seven schools that are hosting first- and second-round games that won't be playing in the NCAA tournament.
The Big East and Big 12 each garnered seven bids. The ACC had six. In all, 12 conferences received multiple bids -- the highest number since 2001.
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