Gavinski Award, Week 12

clock February 4, 2010 05:20 by author Tyler

 

The Gavinski Award is a weekly award given to the team with the worst performance in college basketball over the past seven days.  It is presented in honor of J.P. Gavinski, the most useless player in Division 1 basketball.

 NCAA

With unconfirmed reports that the NCAA Tournament will be expanding to 96 teams as soon as next year, the NCAA has caught quite a bit of hell this week.  They deserve every bit of criticism.  Is the current 64 (I refuse to acknowledge the BS play-in game) team tournament perfect?  No, but it is by far the best postseason in sports.  There is an old adage that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" but this goes far beyond that.  This isnt tinkering, it is a guaranteed dilution and devaluation of a wildly successful franchise.  This is only about money, and it is so transparent that it becomes almost sad.  Our biggest argument is with the setup of the tournament.  Right now, other than telling the #64 and #65 teams to bend over and take it, every team has to win the same number of games in order to win the national championship.  A 96 team field would introduce byes into the tournament, and only very stupid people will think that the decision on who gets the byes will be fair.  And even though a larger overall number of mid majors will get into the tournament, the percentage of the tournament they make up isnt necessarily going to go up, and they will still get hosed by even worse BCS conference teams than before.  Introducing another round of BS into the selection and seeding process will ruin the game.  Hopefully this is just a trial balloon that will be shot down by public outcry, much like leaks of terrible government policy ideas that never see the official light of day.

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Bracketbusters and other random thoughts

clock February 2, 2010 14:00 by author Jon

Ahhhhh yes, it's that time of year again, when the mid-majors get their 15 minutes on the Ocho. As mid-majors seemingly grow ever stronger, this years Bracketbuster is sure to highlight some of the better teams college basketball has to offer. Two spotlight games feature the top teams from their respected conferences, but also, 4 of the top teams in the country. While those are certainly the marquee match-ups, there are some other very intriguing games that could end up having a big impact come Selection Sunday. Without further ado, here is Tourneybubble.com's preview of the Bracketbuster games scheduled this year. 

The Marquee Match-ups: 

Siena Saints at Butler Bulldogs

  What a game this will be, two of the best mid-majors in the country, going at it in historic Hinkle Field house in front of a national TV audience. Butler is a lock for the tournament, everyone knows that, what is not a lock is their seed however, as several times in the past few years Butler has been royally screwed by the Selection Committee in terms of its seeding. With several good OOC marquee wins already on their resume, Butler is surely a top 6 seed. But running the table in their conference, beating a very good Siena squad on national TV and then running through their conference tourney could get Butler anywhere between a 3 and 5. One thing is for sure, Butler will be a tough out in the NCAA tourney this year. 

On the flip side of the coin, Siena is a team that lacks a signature win. They went 0-4 in their attempts at an OOC marquee win, dropping games to Temple, St. John's, Georgia Tech and Northern Iowa, the latter of which they lost by 17 points. Those are, however, their only losses of the season and they have handled business against everyone else in putting up a 19-4 record. Right now their best wins are against Northeastern at home and on the road at Iona. Not exactly bubble-worthy wins, but all that can change thanks to the Bracketbusters. Siena will get 1 more shot at a big time OOC win to help secure a spot for them in the NCAA tourney. Hinkle Field house, on ESPN2, against an extremely solid Butler team and a sold out crowd of rabid Bulldog fans would be the perfect place for the Saints to finally get that marquee OOC win they so desperately need. This has game of the year potential all over it, a close game, in an amazing atmosphere on national TV between two great teams. Alex Franklin and Edwin Ubiles vs. Gordon Hayward and Matt Howard has the makings of an NCAA tourney battle where teams go shot for shot, blow for blow down to the last possession. Miss this game at your own peril.   

Old Dominion Monarchs at Northern Iowa Panthers   

For those who don't know, I am an ODU alum, so I'll try to present this match-up as unbiased as I possibly can, but forgive me if I get a little overexcited about this game. ODU fans have been waiting for a game like this for sometime, a high-profile Bracketbuster match-up against the top team from the Missouri Valley on National TV. After watching our CAA brethren take on the likes of Creighton and Wichita State the last several years in high profile MVC-CAA games, ODU has had several less interesting match-ups against teams like Marist, Toledo, Bucknell and Liberty. While all were fun games to watch, games which broke the monotony of 18 conference games in a row, none were all that meaningful outside of the Toledo game which helped ODU secure an at-large in 06-07. But finally, ODU has the game they have been looking for, a top-level opponent, on their home court, with all the marbles on the line. ODU needs this win badly to help wrap up and at-large bid. Northern Iowa can secure their spot in the tourney and really help improve their seeding in the tournament with another marquee win. Regardless, the winner of this game will not only help themselves secure a big for the NCAA tourney, but also might be the key RPI boost needed to help their respective conferences become multi-bid leagues.  

There are many subplots to this game, whether it be the match-up of two of the top teams in the top mid-major leagues or the match-up of the number 2 defensive team in the country, Northern Iowa, against the number 3 rated defense in the country of the ODU Monarchs. Both teams can be lights out on defense, as both can employ devastating zone defenses which are capable of sending teams on long scoring droughts that can affect the outcome of the game. Another subplot to this game will be the running battle that will occur between Northern Iowa's 7 footer Jordan Eglseder and ODU's 6-10 big man, Gerald Lee. Both are capable of filling up a stat sheet, but Eglseder is more of a banger inside while Lee, who can bang, is a more polished European big man who can step outside and knock down a J. It will be interesting to see how these 2 big men are able to handle one another's presence in the paint and to see how they impact each others games. The other key match-ups will be how well Northern Iowa's guards are able to shoot the ball over ODU's long-armed, tall guards and how well they are able to rebound against one of the best rebounding teams in the country. If ODU can control the boards, they can win this game. However, if Northern Iowa's also very stout big men can clean the glass effectively against the Monarchs, they will take away one of ODU's main strengths (offensive rebounding) and limit the number of shots they get from the field. In what should surely be a very close game, that type of thing could end up being huge. ODU doesn't shoot that well from the 3, so if they are given extra opportunities to knock some down, it could end up being the difference in the game. 

Regardless, this match-up has all the makings of a Bracketbuster Classic. Much like when Drexel went into Creighton and picked up a hard fought road win or when George Mason helped secure their first at-large bid in school history by winning at Wichita State, this game has all the makings of another CAA-MVC barn burner. The winner should be in the NCAA tourney, the loser will still have some work to do. Regardless, it will be a heck of a game to watch between two of the best defensive teams in the country and another game that should go down to the wire. 

The Best of the Rest:  

College of Charleston Cougars at George Mason Patriots

   The Patriots of George Mason can owe pretty much ALL of their recent success to the bracketbusters, as it was their amazing road at Wichita State in 2005-06 that spurred them on to reach the Final 4 and establish themselves as one of the premier mid-major college basketball teams in the country. This year might be considered a "down year" for them, but believe it or not, they are in first place right now in the rugged CAA despite having one of the youngest teams in the nation. GMU fans, however, understand that this overachieving bunch has benefited from an easy early CAA schedule to achieve this accomplishment, but don't be surprised if they are still near the top of the standings at the end of the season. This should surely be a great test for them OOC to see how they stack up against a very solid Charleston team. 

The Cougars pulled off a huge upset earlier this season, knocking off the defending NCAA Champion North Carolina Tar Heels earlier this season. While UNC certainly isn't the same team as they were last year, it was still a very good win for this Cougars teams an a win that could serve them well if they manage to win their conference tourney and make the NCAA tourney this year. While they are not an at-large team, a win for them against the CAA's first place team would definitely help their case for a better seed come NCAA tourney time were they to win their conference tourney or at the very least, would help them lock up an NIT bid. Should be another great Bracketbuster game as GMU is very tough to beat in the Patriot Center.  

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs at Northeastern Huskies    

In what should surely be a "dogfight", the Bulldogs of La. Tech travel to Boston to take on the Northeastern Huskies in a crucial OOC match-up for both the CAA and for La Tech. On one hand, Northeastern is pretty much out of contention for an at-large, but a victory over a very good La Tech squad would only further bolster the CAA's claim for multi-bids this year. Teams like Old Dominion, William and Mary and VCU would all benefit greatly from Northeastern taking down one of the best teams from the WAC. On the other hand, the Bulldogs are looking for a good solid road win over a top 60 RPI team that currently sits in second place in the CAA and has good wins over Utah State, VCU and ODU.

Louisiana Tech is another team that much like Siena, lacks a marquee OOC victory. They didn't play a very challenging OOC schedule this year, with their two toughest games both resulting in losses against New Mexico and Arizona. A win over Northeastern could really help bolster their claim for an at-large bid by giving them a road victory in a place that is very tough for opposing teams to play. Their 18-4 record looks very good and they have good in conference victories over Nevada and Utah State, but this game would definitely help them to secure a spot in the NCAA tourney. Matt Janning vs. Kyle Gibson should be a great duel of mid-major gunners who can shoot the lights out of the gym. Another fine match-up put together by ESPN.  

Wichita State Shockers at Utah State Aggies   

Another great game between two solid mids, the Shockers and Aggies have both been two of the better mid-majors in college basketball in recent years. The Shockers made the Sweet 16 in 05-06 and Utah State came within a hair of knocking off Marquette in last years tourney. Wichita State is a bubble worthy team with wins over Texas Tech, Iowa and Northern Illinois, but a good solid OOC win against Utah State would do wonders for their at-large potential. Likewise, Utah State is also just hanging on to a bubble worthy resume, with their win over BYU looking better and better by the day. They have 3 more shots at big time wins with games against Nevada, Wichita State and La Tech all on the horizon and all at home, games which could help push them into the NCAA tourney. Right now they are on the outside looking in, but Stu Morrow is a great mid-major coach and could very well get his boys into the tourney were they to win all 3 games. 

Regardless, the match-up of Jared Quayle vs. J.T. Durley should be a 3 point shooting contest on par with any you will find in the country. Should be a great watch as the Smith Spectrum is an incredibly tough place to play, with a great home atmosphere in which USU has lost only once this year to a very good St. Mary's squad.  

A few other comments....  

William and Mary really got shafted this year as did VCU, both barely bubble teams who were looking for high profile games in the Bracketbuster to improve their resumes and help them move up the ladder, but who instead got high rpi teams in Akron and Iona that will do little for both in terms of helping their resumes. Both are winnable games for the two CAA squads, but you can't help but think both would rather have played a Murray State (who also got shafted by getting Morgan State) or Nevada/MVC team to really help boost their profile. VCU-Murray State would have been an amazing match-up, as would William and Mary/Nevada. I guess they can't all be winners though, so we'll just have to enjoy ODU-UNI and Butler-Siena.

 

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Bubble Watch 2/1/10 - Dreaming the Impossible Dream

clock February 1, 2010 10:51 by author Tyler

We are just six weeks away from one of the most unprecedented events in modern college sports.  It is possible that on Selection Sunday March 13, 2010, we will have just one representative from the Pac-10 conference in the NCAA Tournament.  As much as I don't want to jinx it, the feeling most real college hoops fans will experience that day has to be similar to seeing a third bid from a mid-major conference - thrilling, unbelievable and inducing a jump off of the couch capped off with a hammerdown fist-pump. In other words, I cannot wait until March 13th.  The Pac-10 sucks, and as the numbers continue to roll in it is becoming obvious that only California deserves a bid to the Dance.  Of course, we are now faced with the very real possibility that Arizona will be granted the opportunity to have seven men on the floor in the Pac-10 Tournament Championship game against Cal, or perhaps the Pac-10 commissioner will jump out onto the floor to intercept a late Golden Bears outlet pass to ensure a second bid for his terrible conference.  But as long as the OK-to-bad teams in the conference continue to knock each other off, it can happen.  A one bid BCS conference (followed by a slew of A-10 at-larges) will be the worst nightmare of both Jay Bilas and Billy Packer, which would mean one of my wildest dreams would come true.

On a side note, the Bubble Watch will move to twice a week as conference action heats up, and in case Roy Williams throws up another epic stink bomb.

ACC

Locks:   

Near Locks: Florida State (16-5, 4-3 RPI 30);

Bubble: Clemson (16-6, 4-4 RPI 37); North Carolina (13-8, 2-4 RPI 76); Virginia Tech (16-4, 3-3 RPI 70); Maryland (13-6, 4-2 RPI 50); Virginia (13-6, 4-2 RPI 90)

Treading Water: None


Atlantic 10

Locks:

Near Locks: Rhode Island (17-3, 5-2 RPI 11)

Bubble: Xavier (15-6, 7-1 RPI 22); Richmond (16-6, 5-2 RPI 39); Dayton (15-6, 4-3 RPI 40); Charlotte (16-5, 6-1 RPI 42)

Treading Water: None

Big East

Locks:      


Near Locks: Pittsburgh (16-5, 6-3 RPI 20)

Bubble: Louisville (13-8, 4-4 RPI 47); Cincinnati (14-7, 5-4 RPI 49); Notre Dame (15-7, 4-5 RPI 71); Connecticut (13-8, 3-5 RPI 44); South Florida (14-7, 4-5 RPI 54); Marquette (13-8, 4-5 RPI 58) 

Treading Water: Seton Hall (12-7, 3-5 RPI 59); Providence (12-9, 4-5 RPI 98)

Big Ten

Locks:    

Near Locks: None

Bubble: Minnesota (13-8, 4-5 RPI 57); Illinois (14-8, 6-3 RPI 80)

Treading Water: Northwestern (14-7, 3-6 RPI 63)

Big 12

Locks:   

Near Locks: Oklahoma State (16-5, 4-3 RPI 28); Baylor (14-3, 2-2 RPI 26)

Bubble: Texas A&M (14-6, 4-3 RPI 31); Missouri (16-5, 4-2 RPI 32)

Treading Water: Texas Tech (14-7, 2-5 RPI 38); Oklahoma (12-9; 3-4 RPI 83)

Conference USA

Locks: None

Near Locks: UAB (18-3, 6-1 RPI 27)

Bubble: Tulsa (16-4, 6-1 RPI 62); UTEP (15-5, 6-1 RPI 75)   

Treading Water: Memphis (15-6, 5-2 RPI 79); Marshall (13-6, 4-3 RPI 81)

Missouri Valley

Locks:

Near Locks: None

Bubble: Wichita State (18-4, 8-3 RPI 48)

Treading Water: None

Mountain West

Locks: 

Near Locks: None

Bubble: UNLV (16-4, 5-2 RPI 41); San Diego State (13-6, 4-3 RPI 36)

Treading Water: None

Pac 10

Locks: None

Near Locks: None

Bubble: California (13-6, 5-2 RPI 26); Arizona State (15-7, 5-4 RPI 87); Washington (14-7, 4-5 RPI 64)

Treading Water: Arizona (12-9, 6-3 RPI 59)

SEC

Locks:  

Near Locks: None

Bubble: Florida (15-6, 4-3 RPI 52); Mississippi State (16-5, 4-2 RPI 65); South Carolina (13-8, 4-3 RPI 88); Mississippi (16-5, 4-3 RPI 45)

Treading Water: Alabama (13-8, 3-4 RPI 97)

West Coast

Locks:

Near Locks: None

Bubble: St. Mary’s (18-3, 6-1 RPI 35)

Treading Water: Portland (13-7, 5-2 RPI 91)

Others

Locks:

Near Locks: None

Bubble: William & Mary (14-6, 7-4 RPI 51-CAA); Cornell (16-3, 4-0 RPI 34-Ivy); Old Dominion (17-6, 9-2 RPI 46-CAA); Siena (19-4, 12-0 RPI 43-MAAC); Utah State (15-6, 6-2 RPI 55-WAC);

Treading Water: Louisiana Tech (18-4, 6-2 RPI 74-WAC); Harvard (13-4, 3-1 RPI 60-Ivy); VCU (15-5, 7-4 RPI 60-CAA); Murray State (18-3, 11-0 RPI 93-OVC); Western Carolina (14-5, 7-3 RPI 73-SoCon); Northeastern (14-8, 9-2 RPI 56-CAA)

 

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Daily Bubble 1-28-10

clock January 28, 2010 06:15 by author Tyler

Winners

Charlotte got a huge home win over Temple, a marquee win that puts them right in the at-large mix.  Similarly, Providence beat up-and-down UConn to get back into the discussion.

Losers

The at-large chances CAA contenders William & Mary and Northeastern took major hits last night, as The College lost at JMU and Northeastern was stymied at home by Drexel.  The Tribe is in serious danger of falling out of what was once an at-large certainty.

Missed Chances

Notre Dame played a great first half, and then a terrible second half in a loss at Villanova.  Texas Tech had the misfortune of catching an angry Texas team in Austin.

TCOB

Oklahoma State won a Bubble Battle with Texas A&M, Wichita State outlasted Illinois State, Oklahoma beat Iowa State, VCU sweated out a 59-point win over Towson and Alabama stifled LSU.

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Gavinski Award, Week 11

clock January 27, 2010 04:44 by author Tyler

 

The Gavinski Award is a weekly award given to the team with the worst performance in college basketball over the past seven days.  It is presented in honor of J.P. Gavinski, the most useless player in Division 1 basketball.

Gary Williams

Another year, another whine from Gary Williams.  The insecure, combative - yet somehow beloved by the national sports media - coach of the perenially overrated Maryland Terrapins complained this week that the regular season champion of the ACC should be considered the "ACC Champion" and get an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.  Conveniantly, the Terps are in first place in the ACC right now.  Gary wouldn't be saying this if his team was in its usual place in the bottom half of the ACC, since "elite" Maryland has had exactly one winning ACC record in the last six years.

We hate Maryland for many, many reasons.  And one of those reasons is that Gary bitches about something every year, in an effort to excuse his team's performance. Whether it be complaining that his overrated 2006 team didn't get into the NCAA Tournament over more deserving Missouri Valley teams, or crying that the BB&T used to be a national tournament after his team got housed by George Washington for a second straight year, Gary is always good for a couple sniveling, contempt-filled quotes.  Williams has proven over the years that he is a classless, whining punk of a coach who is too afraid to play mid-majors and thinks his program has joined the UNC-Kansas-Kentucky elite college basketball fraternity after a flash in the pan run of success they had at the beginning of the decade.  This Gavinski's for you, Gary. 

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Daily Bubble 1-22-10

clock January 22, 2010 06:06 by author Tyler

A very light bubble day saw only a few major conference games.  And for the record, the Pac 10 is not a major conference. 

Winners

Florida won at Arkansas and Seton Hall survived a late rally by Louisville - while these aren't exactly newsworthy accomplishments, these are games fringe bubble teams have to win to stay alive.

Losers

Western Kentucky's slim at-large hopes took a major hit after a loss at Troy.

TCOB

Siena slipped past Loyola (MD) 67-61, Cal crushed Oregon, and Saint Mary's dispatched San Diego at home.

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Daily Bubble 1-21-10

clock January 21, 2010 04:55 by author Tyler

Winners

NC State revived their NCAA tournament chances by racing past Duke 88-74.  While they are only 2-3 in the ACC, the Wolfpack now have a marquee win and a potential at-large deal-maker if they finish 8-8 or 9-7 in the conference.

VCU also got back on the Bubble with a 81-59 thumping of William & Mary.  After a slow 1-3 start in the CAA, the Rams have won four in a row and now have another quality win to add to their resume. 

Loser

North Carolina, even with their marquee name, are in serious trouble after losing another home ACC game - 82-69 vs. Wake Forest.  1-3 in the league was not expected, especially when three of the first four were at home in Chapel Hill.  Erratic guard play and the general growing pains of being young are plaguing the Tar Heels in a deep (but not great) league.

Missed Chances

Xavier came close at Temple, falling 77-72 and Baylor pushed Kansas to the limit at Allen Fieldhouse before falling 81-75.

TCOB

UConn beat St. John's 75-59, Old Dominion eased past Delaware, UAB escaped Southern Miss at home 57-56, Rhode Island got past Duquesne, and Mississippi picked up a good win over fellow bubbler South Carolina.

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Gavinski Award, Week 10

clock January 21, 2010 04:48 by author Tyler

 

The Gavinski Award is a weekly award given to the team with the worst performance in college basketball over the past seven days.  It is presented in honor of J.P. Gavinski, the most useless player in Division 1 basketball.

  Buffalo

Buffalo's ride on the outskirts of the Bubble came to a crashing halt on Wednesday night with a resounding 89-54 loss at Kent State.  While the Golden Flashes are no slouches, they sent Buffalo (and the MAC's) at-large chances straight down the toilet.  A dominant second half (it was only 34-24 at halftime) saw Kent State lead by as many as 39 points.  Whomever wins the MAC won't be looking at a very good seed in the tournament.

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Daily Bubble 1-20

clock January 20, 2010 05:10 by author Tyler

A big day on the Bubble saw one team take a huge step towards being a legit at-large contender and a few teams drop damaging games.

 

Winner

Wichita State’s
win over Northern Iowa was huge simply because the Missouri Valley will not afford the Shockers many opportunities for big-time wins.  Outside of a good Bracket Buster matchup, Wichita State would have been relying on a so-so nonconference win over Texas Tech to make their case for an at-large.  Providing they take care of business up until a return date with Northern Iowa, they should be right in the mix.

Loser

One short week ago, Miami was ranked and looking good for an at-large bid.  After a home loss to Boston College, the Hurricanes are 1-4 in the ACC and in serious trouble.  They need to turn things around quickly to have a chance at an at-large.

Missed Chances

Alabama dropped a home contest to Tennessee, and Illinois couldn’t extend Purdue’s losing streak to four.  Both of these teams may regret not taking care of home games against vulnerable top-25 teams.

TCOB

Maryland blasted Longwood, Texas A&M held off Oklahoma, Ohio State got a resounding win over Northwestern and San Diego State won a close game at Utah to stay on the Bubble.

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Gavinski Award, Week 9

clock January 12, 2010 08:42 by author Tyler
 

 

The Gavinski Award is a weekly award given to the team with the worst performance in college basketball over the past seven days.  It is presented in honor of J.P. Gavinski, the most useless player in Division 1 basketball.

 Oregon State

Congratulations to the Beavers, who receive their second Gavinski of the year with what is sure to be the worst performance of the college basketball season - a vomit-inducing 99-48 home loss to the University of Seattle (yes, the University of Seattle has a basketball team again).  The visiting D-1 Independent Redhawks outrebounded their gracious hosts 47-31 and held Oregon State to 31.7% shooting from the floor, slightly eclipsing their incredible 6-19, 31.6% clip from the line.  No Beaver player scored in double figures.  But only one stat does this abomination justice - that ridiculous final score.  One can only imagine the scoreline if Kentucky or Kansas had met poor Oregon State on this day.  142-39?  110-25?  Guarantee games just are not supposed to turn out like this.

By the way, this Gavinski may as well be for the entire Pac-10 conference since the juggernaut Beavers then went on the road and beat conference-leading Oregon 64-57 on Sunday.

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