Kalin Lucas

Blah Blah Blah Tarheels this  Tarheels that. Tyler Hansbrough best center ever blah blah. Ty Lawson awesome yadda yadda yadda. Aren’t all Big Ten fans tired of hearing about the ACC? I was after the freakin’ tipoff special with Dick Vitale basically handing someone in the conference the NCAA championship before it had begun.

There’s only one team standing in the way of the North Carolina Tarheels. And that’s the Michigan State Spartans.

Yes, they are heavy underdogs. Yes the Tarheels have looked fantastic in the tournament overall. But, just like in the UCONN game, you cannot discount MSU at the very least. They CAN beat North Carolina. Here’s how:

1) Aggressive, Aggressive, Aggressive.

The Spartans must be playing tight D and pushing the ball as much as they can. Does this spell a possibility for foul trouble on MSU? Yes, but it also spells a possibility of foul trouble on UNC. This could end up being Michigan State’s biggest ally–or enemy. Either way, gotta play aggressive for 40 minutes if they want to win this game.

2) Extend the game–on both sides.

North Carolina has quite a few players that can stroke the 3, and it proved to be the killer in the Villanova game for the Wildcats. If Michigan State will extend their defense to the arc considerably, they will be able to contend shots and hopefully be able to frustrate the Tarheels. Offensively, that means having Goran Suton out by the perimeter a little more and extending Hansbrough, allowing for a bit more “flexing” of the offense. The Spartans will look to some good three point shooting of their own to keep themselves in a winning position.

3) Stick to the game plan.

One of the things that North Carolina dictates is tempo, but Michigan State is a far cry from the norm that UNC has. If the Spartans can control the rhythm of the game and possibly change it up–pushing the ball for a bit, then settling into a half court and so on and so forth, it can possibly get the talented Tarheels a bit off balance. It certainly paid dividends against UCONN.

4) The bench has to step up.

Let’s face it. The starting five for UNC is incredible, with each guy able to drop 30 on you at any time. Not that Michigan State’s guys are far off, but the X factor will be the play of Luscious Jackson, Draymond Green, Marquise Gray, Chris Allen, and Durrell Summers. These guys again played very well in the Semis against UCONN (Well, Allen really didn’t…) and it proved to be a big difference as to the runaway victory against the Huskies.

5) Tom Izzo

I know I keep on beating this drum loud and proud, but I really think that Izzo is the best coach in the country. He has the heart and soul, the planning, and the familial relationship with his players that make them go that extra mile. Izzo will be certain to have his squad ready, and he will certainly push UNC as hard as he can to get the victory in Motown.

Ohhh, the horror. Wisconsin a 12 seed? Wow. But as anyone can attest, if there’s any place to be in the NCAA tournament as an underdog,

Bo Ryan and Trevon Hughes

it’s the 12 seed–as the history tells us that the 12 seed is actually very successful in terms of upsets. And the Badgers are playing good ball, despite getting beat in their opening round game of the Big 10 tournament.

The first round match up is against Florida State, a basketball team that was able to make it to the ACC Final after upsetting North Carolina who was sans Ty Lawson. They lost to Duke, but in the process, the 25-9 Seminoles were able to garner the 5 seed–but while this is a good seed, some think it should have been higher. Still, this is no cakewalk for the Seminoles, as the tournament-tested Badgers will bring their best Bo Ryan game to Boise in what should be an awesome game overall.

The Seminoles are talented and tall, but not rugged at all. They have streaky shooters and are not all that great defensively, but Wisconsin is not exactly an offensive juggernaut. The key to this game will be if Florida State can hold on to the basketball, as their guards have had a tendency to be sloppy at times. And with Wisconsin continuing to be a solid defensive team, they may be the Achilles heel for the upstart Seminoles.

If the Badgers can make it past the Seminoles, they’ll likely face Xavier in the second round, the 4 seed. The X-men won the regular season title in the Atlantic 10, but the conference overall was not as strong as it normally has been in the past, and overall the only big wins the Musketeers got was over Memphis and LSU. Other than that, Xavier really doesn’t have much to impress me. Still, this is a very athletic who can score in chunks and provide match up issues with the Badgers if they can control the tempo.

Predicted Outlook: The Badgers can certainly beat the Seminoles if they are on their game and Xavier as well. Asking more than that is probably too muchm but if they make it to the Sweet Sixteen, that will be a huge coup for Big Ten fans.

Perhaps the Gods of scheduling should have scheduled Michigan versus Duke in the Big Ten-ACC challenge. Maybe then I would be celebrating the first conference overall win in the series ever. Ah, one can dream.

This is stated because the Wolverines beat up on the Dukies in the second match up versus the ACC heavy of the season, downing the Blue Devils 81-73 in Ann Arbor. DeShawn Sims lead the Maize and Blue with 28 points, a career high. The win was the second of the season of not only a top ten team, but the second #4 team (the first was UCLA).

Looking at the statistics, the Blue Devils basically shot their way out of this game, making 7 threes, but taking 33 of them over the game for a whopping 21%. Michigan also helped themselves, only turning the ball over 11 times total for the game. However, I have already read Duke fans bellyaching that the discrepency at the foul line–22 attempts to 6 for the Blue Devils–was the biggest difference in the game and the catcalls has been of a “homer” refereeing job.

When you consider that over half of the Blue Devil’s shots were threes, which normally don’t have a good chance at getting fouled, I believe such a discrepency is valid–especially considering that Sims had 7 attempts at the line and he is normally an inside player where there IS a better chance of getting to the line. So, Duke fans…stand down. Your team is supposed to be the 4th best team in the country and just beat the heck out of Purdue–this should have been another victory for the Blue Devils on paper.

But give credit to Michigan coach John Beilein, who although he noted that it was just important for MIchigan to keep its head above water, has obviously shown his ability to reign in good talent and make it work in the biggest of games thus far. While some Big Ten teams seem to grasp defeat at the jaws of victory, the Wolverines are already the feel-good team of the year in my opinion.

In what was probably the biggest mismatch on paper for the Big Ten-ACC challenge, #15 Wake Forest was to play the down-and-out Indiana Hoosiers (I guess it wasn’t a mismatch last year on paper, but this year it was a joke). And the game lived up to the anti-hype, as the Demon Deacons remained undefeated in a 83-58 rout of the Hoosiers.

There’s not really a lot you can say about the game, other than it gave valuable experience and minutes to the young Hoosier squad; the team turned the ball over 25 times, shot 37% from the field, 31% from the arc, and 54% from the charity stripe.

Ouch.

Meanwhile, Wake Forest basically scored at will, shooting almost 62% from the field and had 7 blocks compared to Indiana’s zero. While it would be fun to break down the rest of this game, for a Big Ten fan, this was pretty ugly–not quite as ugly as the Purdue and Michigan State losses, but still not something to really delve to deep into; Indiana is struggling and will continue to do so, and Wake Forest is a darn good team. Thanks for reading.

Hey! The Big Ten can actually win close games against the ACC! Ok, Ok, I know Wisconsin defeated Virginia Tech in a close one, but after seeing Iowa and Illinois each fall by two in games that were very winnable, it was a bit of an uplift to see Penn State outlast Georgia Tech 85-83 in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge.

Despite a torrid night by Gani Lawal, who may be one of the ACC’s best shooters, Penn State built a 10 point lead at one point and hung on the for the victory. Lawal scored 34 on 15-20 shooting on the night with 10 boards. The Nittany Lions only played 7 players total and had 4 players in double figures, including Stanley Pringle, who scored 22 on 9-14 sharpshooting and Talor Battle, who scored 18.

The Nittany Lions scorched the nets for almost 51% from the field and 42% behind the arc. You have to give credit to PSU–they definitely did not beat any joe schmoe team–Georgia Tech definitely is a good team overall who can make some noise in the talent-heavy ACC as the season goes along. And I believe that Penn State just made its stake for that same statement–so far, so good for the Nittany Lions, who now stand at 7-1 on the year.

There’s really no other way to put it. When you are the #12 team in the nation and you get beat by 35, it’s an embarrassment. Even if it is at the hands of the #1 team in the country. There shouldn’t be THAT much difference in talent and scoring, especially on a neutral court.

But that’s what happened. Tyler Hansbrough, the All-American Center who seems to have played for North Carolina since Jordan laced up for the Tar Heels, dominated the paint and the Tar Heels shot a scorching 47% from the field in almost topping the century mark against a team like Michigan State that is SUPPOSED to be a decent defensive team.

Not surprisingly, the Tar Heels smoked pretty much every category–the only close one was rebounding, which they edged the Spartans 40-39, but that was probably in due part to the fact that they shot so well and didn’t need as many boards.  They were a picture of perfect execution, and Michigan State didn’t have a prayer the entire game. Raymar Morgan was the only shining star for the Spartans, garnering 21 points and 6 boards in the loss. Kalin Lucas had a horrid game, going 2-10 from the field and only dishing out 5 assists. Not good for a point guard.

Two marquee games, to huge losses by the Big Ten. Every year there is a suspect feeling from the rankings on a national level as to the Big Ten’s place among the elite, and it seems every year that in this so-called “challenge” that the conference goes home with their tails in between their legs, ready to beat up on the Sam Houston States and Prarie View A & Ms of the world, then beat up on each other in conference play, get high seedings, and flub in the NCAAs.

Perhaps I shouldn’t be as hard on the conference…I mean, Michigan State has had recent Final Four teams, Ohio State, Illinois, Indiana. It’s not as if the conference just dies in the NCAAs, but the fact is–just like in the football bowl games–that so many teams get into the big games and the “dance”, and while I understand that it’s all about money, the fact is that overall the conference almost always ends up with a bad record overall. Yes, there’s been some great individual team, but it’s challenges like this that continues to expose the conference as just being mediocre at best.

Even with all of the great teams that Ohio State has had over the past several years, the record was ugly to look at: 1-5. That was the record that the Buckeyes had in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge heading into a showdown with #22 Miami in Florida. Things didn’t look exactly great for the Bucks to improve on that nasty statistic.

And then, with one slap, things changed.

Miami’s do everything player, Jack McClinton was being guarded by Anthony Crater, who had attempted to steal the ball but had swiped at McClinton’s face. Almost instantly McClinton smacked Crater directly in the face in what looked like retaliation for an intentional foul by Crater. However, the officials conferred, and McClinton was flagged for a flagrant foul and kicked out of the game. While the Hurricanes still maintained composure for a bit and even took a 38-24 lead at one point, being without their all star proved costly down the stretch as the Buckeyes pulled out the big victory 73-68.

Sophomore Jon Diebler scored a career-high 20 points along with 6 boards and 4 assists, and Evan Turner had 19 for the Buckeye, who improved to 4-0. Diebler hit 6 threes in the game and Ohio State may have just found the long bomber they need.

Frosh sensation B.J. Mullens had 5 points and 9 rebounds in 18 minutes of action. He still looks a little unsure of himself on offense and only hit 1 of 4 free throws. The Buckeyes also only turned the ball over 10 times to Miami’s 18, certainly a stat that is worth noting in this close of a game overall.

They had gotten the call they wanted.

After a meelee in the closing seconds of their game with Boston College, the ball had floated around for a few seconds and the skrum had given way to a meeting between the referees at half court. Was there a foul? Was there time on the clock?

Yes to both. So then came Andrew Brommer to the line, down 2 and at the line for a 1 and 1.

Clunk.

Not that it was a huge surprise. Brommer, who obviously purchased the Shaquille O’Neal instructional video on Ebay, was 3-14 on the year from the line, and now he’s 3-15. Yep, that’s 20%. Dude, Shaq’s even feeling sorry for you now…

Just like the Purdue-Duke game, the Hawkeyes got beat decisively on the boards (which is normally an Iowa strength) and from the three point line where BC hit 9 to Iowa’s 2. (Basically, what I will surmise from this is that unless the Big Ten can get it together, we’re going to have a lot of stinkers this year where we can’t hit the broadside of a barn or hold onto rebounds.) There was also a big discrepency at the charity stripe, where Boston College shot 22 free throws as compared to Iowa’s 9, including the one at the end. Coincidence? I think not.

I didn’t give Iowa much of a chance in this game, so to lose by two to a decent BC team on the Golden Eagles’ home court is at least something to take with them on the way to Iowa City. Hopefully they can remember that and not Brommer’s brick that even embarrassed me, and I’m not even an Iowa fan!

Duke came in to Mackey Arena without ever having dropped a game in the ACC-Big Ten challenge. (Sorry, I can’t say that last part without laughing a little bit…challenge my ass). This year was going to be different than most, though, as they were facing a hungry Purdue team ranked in the top ten on their home turf.

Well, as most big match ups end up in this “affair”, Duke walked out of Mackey with a ho-hum win. Yeah, it was that bad. In the 76-60 triumph, the Blue Devils were rarely tested and basically cruised from the tip to run their record to 8-0.

So, what’s the story, morning glory? How in the world can a team as good as Purdue get their fannies smacked by a team that is good but supposed to be on the same level as the Boilermakers?

It’s not that simple to dissect, but when you look at the box score, there are two glaring factors–three point shooting and rebounding. The Blue Devils sank 8 trey pieces to Purdue’s 2 (who shot a paltry 15% from the arc) and outrebounded the Boilers 44-26. Those two stats alone can be proven in terms of the score differential.

Likewise, the leadership that Duke has is so much more battle-tested and mature as compared to Purdue, who while are very talented, are still relatively green to the national scene, and with Duke playing so many “big” games comparatively in the ACC where anyone can really win at any time, these types of games are commonplace for grizzled vet Jon Scheyer, who garnered 20 points in the Blue Devil win.

While this summary is nice and all, other people will break it down to one thing: Purdue choked under the pressure. And while you can chalk that up in many ways, I think the main thing that this shows is not necessarily that Purdue is way overrated, it’s just that at this point in the game they aren’t quite ready for the national prominence the media has pushed onto them. I would be willing to bet that if this game was to be replayed in March though, it would be much closer. But that’s the optimist in me.

It wasn’t really that surprising to see North Carolina yet again sitting at the top in the preseason poll. What was surprising, though, was Kansas’ tumble in the polls to start the year, going from national champion to #23. Heck, even cinderella from last year, Davidson, is ranked higher.

As far as the Big Ten goes, Michigan State, with great depth but a very challenging nonconference schedule, starts the season as the 7th ranked team, and the upstart Purdue Boilermakers cracked the top 10, which is a coup considering just a few short years ago this program was in disarray. Wisconsin is the other Big Ten team to be ranked, with Bo Ryan’s squad tied with SoCal for #21. Ohio State got almost enough votes to jump in but sits in 27th currently.

I didn’t expect the Big Ten to place many teams in there–although I am pleasantly surprised to see the Boilermakers given that much respect to start the season. The problem I think the league will have again this year is that top to bottom they aren’t that great, and these three teams are top heavy, which could again spell trouble NCAA tourney time when the degree of competition they’ve faced isn’t comparable to conferences like the Big East and ACC. Still, you can’t be too unhappy with two teams in the top ten to start the season.