The jarring indictment NCAA Tournament hands the Big East

[Halldan1]

Jalen Lindsey, D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera and D'Angelo Harrison

Now that Villanova has been unceremoniously dismissed from the NCAA Tournament, don't expect to see the Big Least dancing at the Final Four in Indianapolis.

Thirty years ago, when the Big East was the beast of college basketball, it boasted three teams in the Final Four in Lexington, Ky.: St. John's vs. Georgetown in the semifinals, then Villanova upsetting the Hoyas for one forever shining moment.

Now? Now Chris Mack and Xavier, conquerors of Georgia State, are left to carry the tattered banner of Big East basketball into the Sweet 16. With their rich two-year Big East tradition.

Even though St. John's returned to the Big Dance and the conference was buoyed by having six representatives, no one was under any illusions anyone but Villanova was a Final Four contender.

But 'Nova failing again to get over its Sweet 16 hump as a No. 1 seed in the East Region against N.C. State was a blow to the self-esteem of a conference still reeling former standard-bearer members leaving for the greener football pastures.

Fox Sports 1, which holds Big East broadcasting rights, will be keeping its fingers crossed for a sustained St. John's renaissance that is critical to its long-term commitment to the Big East Conference, which didn't get a single team to the Sweet 16 a year ago. If the university thinks it can do better than Steve Lavin, it better identify the next young, can't-miss rising star. A vote for Lavin would be a sensible vote for stability. Until the Red Storm rises and stays risen, the network might want to show "UFC Fight Night" clips at halftime of the games.

St. John's had little chance once Chris Obekpa was suspended. Weed it and weep indeed.

Providence College had the misfortune of playing against Dayton in the not-so-neutral site of Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio, which sounded much more like Daytonwide Arena. The suspect technical against head coach Ed Cooley didn't help. Neither did a stinker from LaDontae Henton. More impactful was the Flyers shooting 39 free throws and the Friars shooting seven. It doesn't excuse a 13-point loss.

Butler was gritty and game, only to lose an overtime death struggle to Notre Dame. And Brad Stevens coaches the Celtics these days.

Georgetown made strides this season, but losing in the third round to Utah makes guy wonder whether the Hoyas require the opposing coach to guarantee victory, à la Eastern Washington's Jim Hayworth.

It was nice having a marquee coach and program such as Rick Pitino and Louisville for a decade.

And gone are the days when Lou Carnesecca, Big John Thompson, Jim Calhoun, Jim Boeheim and Rollie Massimino - five Hall of Fame coaches - roamed the Big East sidelines.

John Beilein made West Virginia into a national power during the Mountaineers' Big East tenure, and there's never a dull moment with Bob Huggins, who reached his eighth Sweet 16 berth Sunday night as West Virginia stopped Maryland.

And it figures Mike Brey finally gets to a Sweet 16 after a 12-year absence with a likable Irish team that now calls the ACC home.

Ditto Kevin Ollie and the UConn Huskies of the American Athletic Conference winning the 2014 national championship.

"We go back to being a basketball-centric … league going forward," Providence College president Rev. Brian Shanley said two years ago at a press conference announcing the launch of the new Big East. " I think [founder] Dave [Gavitt] is smiling down right now on what it is that we're doing."

Perhaps Mr. Gavitt will smile again tomorrow. But today we have been served a reminder that a smile is just a frown turned upside down.

http://nypost.com/2015/03/23/the-harsh-indictment-ncaa-tournament-hands-the-big-east/

 

[Halldan1]

Winners and losers from the wildest of weeks in March Madness

Clockwise from top left, Ron and his son R.J. Hunter from Georgia State, Kentucky's Karl-Anthony Towns, Maryland freshman Melo Trimble and Michigan State coach Tom Izzo represented the high and lows of the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Photo: AP (3); Getty Images

A serious case of the Mondays is coming.

This weekend was one of the best beginnings to an NCAA Tournament in recent memory, filled with upsets and comebacks and buzzer-beaters. Over and over, everyone became Jack Buck, not believing what they just saw.

Sixteen teams are still standing, still hoping to achieve their season-long goal of getting to the Final Four, but before moving forward, here's a look at the winners and losers from the first week of the NCAA Tournament:

Winner: America. We are so spoiled. For 30 years - since the field expanded to 64 teams - there has been no better week in all of sports. Even with scoring down and players less recognizable than ever, the country can't get enough. The NCAA announced the first three days of the tournament set new TV ratings records for the current format.

Loser: Americans. Before Saturday's games were even completed, none of 11.5 million brackets filled out on ESPN.com were perfect.

Winner: Kentucky. The Wildcats became the first team to start a season 36-0 and are just four wins from the first perfect season in 39 years.

Loser: Kentucky. The Wildcats had long stretches of offensive inconsistency, while Cincinnati outworked and outmuscled their imposing frontline. Kentucky is still the favorite, but a championship isn't a foregone conclusion.

Winner: North Carolina. N.C. State, UNC and Duke are in the Sweet 16 in the same season for the first time in a decade.

Loser: New York City. Once the center of college basketball, the city's teams continue to struggle on the big stage. Losses by St. John's and Manhattan leave the city without a tournament win since 2004.

R.J. Hunter had his One Shining Moment when he hit the game-winning shot in Georgia State's upset of Iowa State.Photo: Getty Images

Winner: Fathers and sons. Georgia State's R.J. Hunter hit a game-winning 3-pointer to upset No. 3 Baylor, knocking father/coach, Ron, off his chair. Their embrace - and Ron's press conference - after the loss to Xavier were Field of Dreams moments. At UCLA, Steve Alford watched his heavily criticized son, Bryce, hit nine 3-pointers in an upset of SMU.

Loser: Families divided. The committee surely created tension in houses in Kansas and Indiana, with rare, in-state matchups of Kansas-Wichita State and Notre Dame-Butler.

Winner: UCLA. The Bruins have taken advantage of their unexpected selection, advancing to the Sweet 16 for the second straight year.

Loser: Texas and Indiana. Both power programs fell in their first games, leaving mid-major teams that may have been more deserving, like Colorado State, forever wondering what they could have done with the same chance.

Winner: Young coaches. Manhattan coach Steve Masiello and Buffalo coach Bobby Hurley exited early, but it only allows more time for bigger schools to swoop in with offers.

Loser: Former rising stars. St. John's coach Steve Lavin and Indiana coach Tom Crean both hold uncertain futures after another early end to the season.

Winner: 14 seeds and 8 seeds. All four 8 seeds reached the Round of 32 for the first time in 13 years, while Georgia State and UAB became the sixth and seventh 14 seeds to win a game this century.

Loser: 12 seeds and 16 seeds. A 12 seed did not defeat a 5 seed for only the third time in the past 27 years, while more predictably, no 16 seed came close to ending their forever losing streak to 1 seeds.

UAB guards Denzell Watts (left) and Robert Brown.Photo: AP

Winner: Tom Izzo. With the upset of No. 2 Virginia, Michigan State's coach is now 13-1 in the Round of 32, making the Sweet 16 for the seventh time in the past eight years.

Loser: Jay Wright. Villanova has not reached the Sweet 16 since 2009, falling short three times as a 1 or 2 seed. Also, the Wildcats coach looked bad against 16th-seeded Lafayette, leaving his starters in late in the blowout.

Winner: Jahlil Okafor. The freshmen phenom has been better than advertised in his first - and likely only - tournament, averaging 23.5 points on 77.8 percent shooting.

Loser: Kris Dunn. The co-Big East Player of the Year missed his chance to have a Shabazz Napier-like run, scoring 11 points in a foul-plagued loss to Dayton.

Winner: New Big East teams. Xavier is in the Sweet 16 for the second time in four years, while Butler fell one shot shy of the second week, after a ninth-place conference finish last year.

Loser: Old Big East teams. The second-week drought continues for the members who once made the upstart league the best in the nation - St. John's (1999), Villanova (2009), Georgetown (2007) and Providence (1997).

Winner: Players who didn't do drugs before the tournament. They were allowed to play, helping their teams.

Loser: Players who were suspended for reportedly smoking pot. With defensive centerpiece Chris Obekpa out, St. John's got beat up inside against San Diego State and was bounced Friday night.

Winner: ACC. The conference is 11-1, with six teams in the Sweet 16.

Loser: Big 12. The conference tied the Big Ten with the most selections (seven) - which included a 2 seed and three 3 seeds - but only has two teams left (Oklahoma and West Virginia).

 

[anon_4htvdezyfe7k9]

Seems kind of harsh, but not unfair IMO. When you look at the size and athleticism of a lot of these other football conference teams it's not at all unsurprising. I had Providence going much deeper but the only reason have I have an outside shot at finishing in the $ in the pool I'm in is because I got the Nova and most of the other BE early exits right. I wonder how this will impact the bubble Big East teams next season.

 

[Pirate6711]

Villanova hasn't made the second weekend since 2009 and Georgetown hasn't made it since 2007. A lot of swings and misses considering how often those two make the NCAA Tournament.

Of course we only wish we had a program good enough to consistently make the NCAA Tournament.

 

[Bobbie Solo]

who was criticizing Bryce Alford? Must've missed that. He's one of their best players and is lights out from deep.

 

[sportsfantatic44]

no chance the Big East gets 6 teams in the dance next year. They have taken it on the chin in the tourney the last 2 years. The committee can tell you all they want that prior year's results don't matter but until this league does something meaningful in late March, I don't see the new Big East getting the benefit of the doubt going forward.

 

[TrueBlue1989]

If bids were predicated on prior year ncaa performance then the BE would not have received 6 bids this year.

 

[Section112]

So if this is a jarring indictment of the Big East what does that make Seton Hall?

 

[Hall91]

Nova fans must be pissed. Seems like some of their more promising teams with the exception of the '85 team and the one year that Nova go to the final 4 several years back, have all disappointed in the NCAA tourney. One has to say right now that this year's team was overrated as far as National rankings go.

I continue to say that Ryan Archidiacano was not that good. Good floor general, but my guess is that his FG% was suboptimal. Not enough quality bigs after Ochefku. To win and go deep in the NCAAs you either have to get the right match ups, be able to shoot the lights out or be big and athletic.

 

[Pirate6711]

Originally posted by Hall91:
Nova fans must be pissed. Seems like some of their more promising teams with the exception of the '85 team and the one year that Nova go to the final 4 several years back, have all disappointed in the NCAA tourney. One has to say right now that this year's team was overrated as far as National rankings go.

I continue to say that Ryan Archidiacano was not that good. Good floor general, but my guess is that his FG% was suboptimal. Not enough quality bigs after Ochefku. To win and go deep in the NCAAs you either have to get the right match ups, be able to shoot the lights out or be big and athletic.

The best player in the Big East has not had a good stretch since being given that title. His only good game since the postseason awards were announced was against a 16-seed.

 

[anon_4htvdezyfe7k9]

Originally posted by Pirate6711:

Originally posted by Hall91:
Nova fans must be pissed. Seems like some of their more promising teams with the exception of the '85 team and the one year that Nova go to the final 4 several years back, have all disappointed in the NCAA tourney. One has to say right now that this year's team was overrated as far as National rankings go.

I continue to say that Ryan Archidiacano was not that good. Good floor general, but my guess is that his FG% was suboptimal. Not enough quality bigs after Ochefku. To win and go deep in the NCAAs you either have to get the right match ups, be able to shoot the lights out or be big and athletic.

The best player in the Big East has not had a good stretch since being given that title. His only good game since the postseason awards were announced was against a 16-seed.

I hate to harp on it but it's as valid a point as everything else the collective board has been harping on, but the fact that he was voted co-POY is a complete joke. Maybe these awards don't really mean much to us, but I'm sure they mean something to the handful of players that were much more deserving than he was.

 

[catholicman]

5 out of 7 Big 12 teams were bounced from the tournament. Does that make the Big 12, purportedly the best conference, a fraud too? Why attack the Big East and not the Big 12?

 

[JIMSOULS]

Originally posted by catholicman:
5 out of 7 Big 12 teams were bounced from the tournament. Does that make the Big 12, purportedly the best conference, a fraud too? Why attack the Big East and not the Big 12?

The Big 12 can afford an off-year. The Big East can't. Below are the number of Sweet 16 appearances per conference for the last two years. The time period coincides with conference realignment and the birth of the new Big East. The football conferences have 26 of the 32 appearances (and the money that goes with them). Six other conferences have one appearance apiece. I've listed the football conferences first, followed by the one-appearance leagues. The Big East is in the middle. Tell me which of the two groups the Big East will ultimately be part of, and state the reason for your answer?

ACC -- 7
Pac 12 -- 6
Big 10 -- 5
Big 12 -- 4
SEC -- 4

Big East -- 1

AAC -- 1
A10 -- 1
MVC -- 1
MWC -- 1
WCC -- 1

 

[Piratz]

Originally posted by catholicman:
5 out of 7 Big 12 teams were bounced from the tournament. Does that make the Big 12, purportedly the best conference, a fraud too? Why attack the Big East and not the Big 12?

I think it's because the Big East has a national perception problem right now.

Now, the schools are getting their outstanding TV deal money and national exposure from FOX (even though nobody watches FOX right now). They're coming off a great regular season by any measure:

**They were 2nd in conference RPI and 2nd or 3rd in KenPom's conference ratings.
**They had 8 of 10 programs nationally ranked during the season.
**They had 5 programs earn at-large berths to the NCAA Tournament and a total of 6/10 league programs in the field.

HOWEVER because of what transpired with the "old" Big East falling apart and national brands like Syracuse, Connecticut, and even Pittsburgh to a lesser degree moving on, well, everyone seems to think we're deserving entry into the Little Sisters of the Poor (pardon the reference, but pun intended given the Catholic-7 heritage of the league).

Fair or not, that's the perception. You make your bones in March. And the Big East has had 1 of 10 teams advance past the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament in these first two seasons of the "new" Big East. That's terrible for perception, especially when the storyline is that we're a shell of what we used to be. Pundits hammer that all night long.

The Big 12 had a bad Tournament. But they're not trying to change perception.

 

[Piratz]

Originally posted by Hall91:
Nova fans must be pissed. Seems like some of their more promising teams with the exception of the '85 team and the one year that Nova go to the final 4 several years back, have all disappointed in the NCAA tourney. One has to say right now that this year's team was overrated as far as National rankings go.

On one hand, even in their best years Villanova was not pulling off 16-2 years in the old Big East and now they've done it twice in the new Big East. Coincidence? No. Everyone knows the conference isn't as strong as it once was (no shame in that as it's still excellent) and that's obvious, but my point is it may be inflating Villanova a bit. Creighton was bad last year, too and they were a #3.

But on the other, they were having trouble in the Tournament in the old Big East. They did the same exact thing as a #2 in 2010.

They're just not a good Tournament team for whatever reason. The past two have been especially bad. It has to be one of the worst two-year runs ever. Terrible. As bad as you can get when you're out there with a #2 seed in 2014 and #1 seed in 2015.


This post was edited on 3/23 8:32 PM by Piratz