Nebraska's Yori chosen AP coach of the year
SAN ANTONIO -- Connie Yori is The Associated Press' women's college basketball coach of the year.
Yori received 28 votes from the 40-member national media panel, well ahead of Connecticut's Geno Auriemma, who had 10.
The Cornhuskers, who were picked sixth in the Big 12 preseason poll, won their first 30 games before falling to Texas A&M in the Big 12 tournament semifinals. Yori then guided Nebraska to its first No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and a trip to the regional semifinals before a loss to Kentucky.
Nebraska finished 32-2, a remarkable 17 wins better than last season.
Copyright (c) 2010 The Associated Press
Underdog label doesn't fit big boys at Butler anymoreSALT LAKE CITY -- You're going to read a little about Cinderella. You're going to read a lot about Hoosiers. You're going to read those in reference to Butler, the Horizon League school from Indianapolis that sits one game away from reaching the Final Four in its hometown.
Don't believe it.
Those references are crap.
Butler isn't a Cinderella. Butler is the big bad wolf. Butler isn't Hoosiers. Butler is Jaws.
Butler isn't cute or cuddly. Butler is a killer. A bona fide basketball monster. Butler isn't just happy to be in the West Regional final Saturday against Kansas State, and nor should it be. Butler could win this whole damn tournament, because even with an enrollment of just 4,200 students and the profile of a so-called mid-major, Butler is a bully on the block.
But that's not what you're going to read. You're going to see the analogy to Hoosiers, and when you do, please have mercy on the writers and analysts who do it. There are legitimate reasons for the analogy, remember that. The real-life team from that great 1986 movie, Milan High, won the Indiana boys basketball title in 1954, back when that state had just one classification. Milan was small, Butler is small. Milan took on the big boys, Butler is taking on the big boys, most recently dispatching No. 1 seed Syracuse on Thursday in the Sweet 16.
Cherry on top? Milan won the 1954 state title at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
Butler's home gymnasium? Hinkle Fieldhouse.
There are parallels. I can see that. But those parallels are perpendicular to reality once the game starts, because on the actual basketball court Butler isn't an overachieving little underdog.
"Underdog? Butler's nowhere near that," said Kansas State forward Jamar Samuels. "They're a great team, and they have one of the best players in the country."
His name is Gordon Hayward, and he's 6-feet-9, and ...
"He plays guard," Samuels said. "A 6-9 guard, man. That's something you don't see."
Butler has at least one future NBA player in Hayward, and maybe two others in 6-8 forward Matt Howard and 6-3 guard Shelvin Mack. Butler didn't cobble its roster together from castoffs and overlooked prospects -- Butler stole studs out of other school's backyards. Indiana and Purdue wanted Howard. Purdue and Michigan wanted Hayward. Miami, from the ACC, wanted Mack. So did Vanderbilt from the SEC. Kentucky didn't, and Mack is from Lexington, but that's why Kentucky went downhill the past few years. It screwed up on players like Shelvin Mack.
"Doesn't matter what conference they're in," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said about the Bulldogs before the Sweet 16. "I probably had them in the top 15 all year [on my coaches poll ballot], and the top 10 a lot of the year ... The reason is because they have players that can play anywhere in the country. This is not some senior-oriented team that's come together and gotten better."
Love that comment, because Boeheim is right -- Butler isn't a reprise of Kent State from the 2002 Elite Eight or George Mason from the 2006 Final Four, teams that were led by seniors into the far reaches of the NCAA tournament. Butler's best player and the Horizon League Player of the Year, Hayward, is a sophomore. Mack, a first-team all-league pick who scored 14 points against Syracuse in the first half, is another sophomore. Howard is a junior. Butler's starting point guard, Ronald Nored, is a sophomore. The Bulldogs start just one senior, small forward Willie Veasley, and their first two players off the bench are juniors Zach Hahn and Shawn Vanzant.
Butler is 31-4 and riding a 23-game winning streak, but Butler isn't peaking. That comes next season.
That assumes one thing, and it's a big thing. It assumes Hayward doesn't turn pro after this season, which he might. That's the thing about basketball bullies like the 2009-10 Butler Bulldogs -- they have players who are good enough to enter the NBA Draft as underclassmen. Hayward will have a decision to make, because at his size and with his combination of shooting range, versatility and athleticism, he's the second coming of Mike Dunleavy Jr. Maybe you're not high on Dunleavy, the 6-9 shooting guard for the Indiana Pacers, but he does average 12.2 ppg for his NBA career. And he was the No. 3 overall draft pick in 2002.
Hayward isn't that kind of a prospect, but he could be, and maybe he even should be. As a freshmen he shot 44.8 percent on 3-pointers, remarkable accuracy for a player his size. This season he slumped to 29 percent from behind the arc, and that's the reason he's generally considered a late first-round pick if he enters the 2010 NBA Draft. But if he comes back to school and shoots like he did as a freshman, he would be a top 10 prospect for 2011. No question about it.
Not that I'm rushing Hayward out the door. He comes from a decent background financially, not from a family that's eating Ramen noodles three times a day. Could he get hurt as a junior or senior? Sure he could. It's possible. But how many NBA prospects can you name that saw their future go down the drain because of a college injury? I can think of one: Chris Marcus. He's it. If I'm Hayward, I would like those odds.
The same philosophy should hold true for Butler coach Brad Stevens. He's 33 and he looks 23, but he's Butler basketball in a nutshell: Looks are deceiving. He's not some cute little thing. He's a coaching giant, or he's going to be once he gets enough years under his belt. He ranks fourth all-time for wins by a first-year coach (30), second all-time after two years (56), and first after three years (87 and counting). He's the Mark Few of the Midwest, and he needs to remember that. Few has turned down bigger schools and bigger money to stay at Gonzaga, but he's an emerging legend in Spokane -- and I'm guessing Few has even managed to save a few bucks for his kids' college tuition. That's Stevens' destiny at Butler, if he stays.
If he goes, Stevens could become the next Thad Matta, a superstar at Xavier and now Ohio State. Sure he could. Or, if he leaves for the wrong program at the wrong time, Stevens could become the next Barry Collier, who left Butler for Nebraska in 2000 -- only to return to Butler, humbled and probably months away from being fired, to serve as athletic director. Or Stevens could become the next Todd Lickliter, who left Butler in 2007 for Iowa, which fired him last week with a 38-57 record in three years.
Butler doesn't need to be a steppingstone. Thanks to the work of Collier, Matta, Lickliter and now Stevens, Butler could be -- should be -- a destination.
What it's not is a fairy tale, like those cute little fishies from Finding Nemo. Playing in something as big as the West Regional final against a team as good as second-seed Kansas State means Butler is in deep waters, but don't feel bad for Butler. Who feels bad for the shark?
(c)2010 CBS Interactive
Analyst Bilas sees Cornell's seed sprouting
After the men's NCAA Tournament selection show last Sunday, many of the commentators cited teams they thought were over-seeded and under-seeded.
Some thought West Virginia was a No. 1, not a No. 2, for example. All of the quibbling was about a seeding being at the most two over or two under what the committee had assigned.
So you had to raise your eyebrows when Jay Bilas of ESPN said Cornell was not even close to being a No. 12-seeded team. Bilas insisted that this Ivy League school should have been a No. 5-seeded team.
He was serious enough about his opinion that he put Cornell in his Elite Eight.
So Bilas thinks that not only will Cornell beat Wisconsin on Sunday but also the winner of the Kentucky-Wake Forest game.
So since Wisconsin is a No. 4 seed, Cornell is every bit UW's equal, at least as Bilas sees it.
"Is this a little bit improbable?" Bilas said selection night, referring to his choice of Cornell for the Elite Eight. "Kind of like Davidson, kind of like George Mason. I'm going with Cornell because they have a big guy, Jeff Foote, inside and Ryan Wittman is an outstanding shooter who can knock down three over anybody.
"I'm going with the smart kids in an upset."
Majority rules
Of the 5.4 million brackets filled out on ESPN.com before the NCAA Tournament started, 66.9% of them chose the Badgers to win their second-round game.
Of course, 67% of them thought UW's opponent would be Temple, not Cornell.
In the Milwaukee games, 91.8% thought Ohio State would beat its second-round opponent; 77.2% chose Pittsburgh to win in the second round. Only 22.8% picked Xavier to win in the second round.
UW brands basketball
Wisconsin's football team shows on the radar when pollsters ask fans to name their favorite team. Now the UW basketball team is enjoying the same kind of attention.
Wisconsin finished 10th in a Harris Poll in which respondents were asked to name their favorite college basketball team.
The poll was conducted online from March 1-8 of 2,320 adults.
The order:
1. (tie) North Carolina and Duke
3. Connecticut
4. (tie) Texas and Maryland
6. (tie) Ohio State and Kentucky
8. UCLA
9. Purdue
10. UW
Strong finish
University of Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi was among those in attendance to watch the first round of NCAA games at the Bradley Center.
Maturi was the associate athletic director at Wisconsin from 1987-'96.
Before the game against Xavier, a reporter mentioned to him his Golden Gophers ended the season on a 7-3 run, starting with a victory over Wisconsin.
"We've beaten Wisconsin three times in a row," Maturi said. "That's not easy to do."
Unfortunately for Minnesota, the Gophers could not locate the basket against Xavier and were unable to contain the Musketeers' marvelous sophomore guard, Jordan Crawford.
Making the tough call
A couple of Minnesota fans - these were not casual fans, but industrial strength, my-soul-belongs-to-the-U fans - faced an epic decision after their team lost.
After spending an early afternoon near the Bradley Center court screaming encouragement to Minnesota players, making fun of the looks of some of the Xavier players, repeatedly belting out their school's fight song, imploring Minnesota's mascot Goldy to "spin your head, spin your head, spin your head," they just went eerily silent as their team lost.
Their tournament was over.
But they had some great seats, so they had to decide if they wanted to stay to watch the second game in the afternoon session.
"Let's go back to the hotel and get hammered," said one fan to his buddy, who offered no counterproposal.
High road farewell
Former Packers defensive end Aaron Kampman took out a half-page ad in the Saturday edition of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel thanking Packers fan for their support during his time in Green Bay.
Kampman signed as a free agent with the Jacksonville Jaguars in the off-season.
"I look forward to the day when I'll bring my three boys to Lambeau Field and reminisce about what it was like to be part of the Packer Nation," Kampman says in part in the ad.
(c)2010, Journal Sentinel Inc
Kansas Begins, Ends Regular Season As College Basketball's Top TeamAfter winning it's sixth Big 12 regular season crown in a row, Kansas is back atop the Associated Press' college basketball poll Monday.
For the 14th week this season, the Jayhawks top the list after a dizzying final two months that saw four teams shuffle in and out almost weekly. They received 63 of the 65 first-place votes, and 1,623 total points. It was a fitting cap to a surprisingly stable poll that saw the same 25 teams ranked two-straight weeks for the first time all season.
Kentucky, which has been no. 1 twice this season, moves into the two-spot, and was the only other team to receive first-place votes. Syracuse, no. 1 last week, lost to Louisville in the Freedom Hall au revoir, fell to third and Duke is in at fourth.
Assuming all four no. 1 seeds are essentially already locked in place, the final regular season poll featuring Kansas on top isn't all that significant.
But the Jayhawks return to the pinnacle of college basketball does mean a top ranking at the beginning and end of the season, and provides little doubt that they will earn the top overall seed in the upcoming NCAA Basketball Tournament.
Ohio State, assumed the only other team with a shot at a one-seed, is fifth and could ascend higher with a Big Ten tournament win. The Robbie Hummel-less Purdue Boilermakers have recovered from their nine-point loss to Michigan State, and moved up into sixth, one spot ahead of the big movers, West Virginia.
The Mountaineers jumped from 10th after beating Villanova over the weekend. The Wildcats, who have now lost four of sixth, took West Virginia's spot rounding out the top-ten.
It was a bittersweet week at Kansas State. Head coach Frank Martin was named conference coach of the year by the AP, and signed a fat contract extension. But losing it's last two games of the schedule certainly soured an otherwise terrific season, and the Wildcats fell to ninth behind New Mexico.
Michigan State starts out the next ten, making three Big Ten teams ranked in the top 11 - most of any conference. The Spartans are followed by Horizon League-favorite Butler, Wisconsin, BYU and Tennessee.
The Volunteers have hung around the middle of the polls all year, and are the only team to beat two no. 1s this season.
Pittsburgh, which earned a second-seed in the Big East tournament with a terrific close to the schedule, is 16th, followed by Gonzaga, Maryland and Vanderbilt.
The Terrapins' rise to 19 after beating Duke means the ACC has two in the top-20 for the first time since. Their three-spot jump ties West Virginia and Temple for biggest of the week.
The Big East, considered the strongest conference for the second year in a row, has the most ranked teams (5) heading into conference tournament week, followed by the Big 12 and Big Ten (4).
Copyright (c) 2009 USAplayer.com
Griffins advance to conference title tilt
SALT LAKE CITY -- For the second year in a row, the Westminster Lady Griffins will meet Lewis-Clark State College in the Frontier Conference tournament championship game. But for about 17 minutes in their semifinal battle with Carroll College, the Griffins weren't entirely sure they'd get a chance at the rematch.
It took a rally late in the second half and a period of overtime for the Westminster women to come away with the 89-85 victory over the Saints on Saturday night.
"I think that they didn't want to end their season," said Westminster coach JD Gustin. "We have games that we're still going to play; we're going to go to the national tournament. They knew that they were done. And I give them complete credit."
The Griffins, ranked a school-best No. 9 in the final NAIA poll, captured their largest lead of 15 points with seven minutes remaining in the first half due to strong play in the paint, where Westminster outscored Carroll 22-12 over the first 20 minutes. However, the Saints' guards caught fire in the final minutes of the half, nailing four 3-pointers and opening a 23-14 run to close the gap to just five points at 39-34 at intermission.
The Saints continued their hot streak into the second half as Sara Meyer, a 6-foot-1 forward, scored 11 consecutive points in a span of three minutes to give Carroll a two-point lead with 12 minutes remaining.
"We started to double all post catches with about eight or nine (minutes) to go," Gustin said of how the Griffins adjusted. "Traditionally, we've always done that with Carroll. We kinda went away from it the past two games, and I should know better."
After the defensive change, freshman Nicole Yazzie drained three free throws after being fouled behind the arc and junior Angela Fales converted a four-point play to help swing the game's momentum back toward the Griffins. The teams traded baskets throughout the final 10 minutes before Alex Dunn of Carroll drove coast-to-coast with time running out to tie the score 77-77 and send it into overtime.
The Saints went cold in extra period and the Griffins took advantage, outscoring Carroll 12-8. Dani Evans contributed four of her team-high 22 points in overtime to seal the win for Westminster.
"With Allie Eastman going down with a knee injury, (Dani) has just had to elevate her game," Gustin said. "She's just relished that role. She's a fighter. She doesn't like to lose, and it showed tonight."
Along with Evans, three additional Griffins finished in double figures. McKenzie Jessop shined in the second half to reach 20 points, while Keshia Catten and Yazzie contributed 18 and 13, respectively.
The Saints were led by Dunn's 27 points and Meyer's 19.
The Griffins, who have already won the Frontier Conference title, will host Lewis-Clark State College in the conference tournament championship on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Warriors gave Westminster its only conference loss of the season in January and upset the Griffins on their home court in the championship game last season.
deseretnews.com
Should Syracuse get shot at being No. 1 in AP poll?FOUR QUESTIONS
Should Syracuse finally get its shot at being No. 1 in the AP Poll?
Honestly, is it really that important? Texas had never been ranked No. 1 until its 17-0 start. Now the Longhorns are 22-7 and barely Top 25-worthy. Kansas has been there twice this year - and lost. Kentucky has topped the rankings once - and also lost. The Orange hasn't been No. 1 in the AP Poll since 1990. Why would it matter now, when it's clear this team - 7-0 against ranked opponents this season - is a No. 1 seed? It doesn't.
What's the long-term impact of Robbie Hummel's loss on Purdue?
The Boilermakers had that 1988-89 Seton Hall thing going, where all the pieces just seemed to fit - and removing one means disrupting the entire team balance. That's why Hummel's season-ending loss to a torn ACL goes far beyond the 15.8 points and 7.2 rebounds he averaged. When No. 1-ranked Cincinnati lost National Player of the Year Kenyon Martin to a broken leg in the 2000 Conference USA Tournament, it cost the Bearcats a No. 1 seed. They wound up as a No. 2 and then bowed meekly out of the NCAAs in the second round with a 27-point loss to Tulsa.
What can be expected from the mid-major postseason tournaments that start this week?
Anything and everything. Butler is the only team in the country to make it through conference play unbeaten this year, winning the Horizon League by five games. So almost every league tournament is up for grabs. The results in the obvious one-bid leagues won't have an impact on the NCAA field. But a Butler loss means the Horizon will suddenly get two teams. Then there's the Atlantic 10, Conference-USA, Colonial Athletic Association, Missouri Valley, Mountain West and West Coast Conference. All are potential multiple-bid leagues. How many bids each gets - and which teams go - will be determined during league tournaments.
Is there one thing that has to improve dramatically as college basketball moves toward its big finish?
Hopefully there will be more consistency in the officiating during the postseason - and there should be, if only because the good officials will be working less. It was hard to watch a televised game this year and not see Mike Kitts, one of those good officials, working it. Too many of these guys were on work and travel overload and it was reflected in the way games were officiated. This year, more so than recent seasons, the officiating in general took a turn for the worse. That should change this month, when quality finally surpasses quantity for the striped-shirt set.
ON THE RISE
Notre Dame (19-10)
Welcome back to the bubble. Victories over Pitt and at Georgetown last week - without Luke Harangody - have the Irish thinking NCAAs again.
Mt. St. Mary's (15-14)
The Mountaineers were 5-14 after a Jan. 23 loss. Ten straight wins later, they're the NEC's hottest team - and a threat to win the league tournament.
Baylor (22-6)
After sweeping Texas A&M and Oklahoma last week, Bears have won five of six to equal the school record for Big 12 victories (nine) with two to go.
ON THE DECLINE
Providence (12-16)
Remember the Friars' big upset over UConn on Jan. 27? That was eight straight losses ago for a team now behind Rutgers in the Big East standings.
Pepperdine (7-23)
Waves' 11th consecutive defeat on Saturday was to a San Diego team that had lost six straight. At least there's a great view of the Pacific from campus.
Michigan (13-15)
It's hard to tell now whether the Wolverines are worse in football or basketball. John Beilein takes the hit for this mess in Ann Arbor.
AROUND THE NATION...
The last time California landed even a share of a league basketball title, the Bears were playing in the Athletic Association of Western Universities and Pete Newell was the coach. That was 1960, and the 50-year drought is finally over. Cal earned a share of the Pac-10 title on coach Mike Montgomery's 63rd birthday with Saturday's 62-46 victory over Arizona State. ... Think Marshall freshman Hassan Whiteside enjoys playing Central Florida? The 6-11, 215-pound forward notched his third triple-double of the year during Marshall's 121-115 triple OT victory over UCF, recording 14 points, 11 rebounds and 13 blocks. He had a triple-double (14 points, 14 rebounds, 10 blocks) the first game against the Knights as well. ... Shades of Marco Lokar. Texas State-San Marcos' J.B. Conley, a junior forward, had been averaging 8.4 points entering the Bobcats' game against Northwestern State on Saturday. Then he went for 42 in the 89-75 victory... Wichita State's 76-55 victory over Southern Illinois enabled the Shockers to close out a 17-0 record at home this season. ... Western Michigan's David Kool, with 31 points in a 74-66 loss to Central Michigan, became the 12th player in Mid-American Conference history to surpass the 2,000-point mark. He has 2,012. ... Sharaud Curry is a fifth-year senior, so he should know better. That's why it's hard to believe he cost Providence a game at South Florida on Saturday. The Friars had taken a 93-92 lead with 17 seconds left when the Bulls' Dominique Jones, off a quick outlet, raced downcourt for a layup. Jones made the basket and was fouled by Curry. Upset that he was the only one back on defense, Curry slammed the ball into the court and it caromed into the stands - an automatic technical. Jones made the free throw from the foul, then hit the two free throws from the technical for a five-point play. USF won, 99-93. ... Northern Iowa (25-4) remains a major mid-major threat now that 7-foot center Jordan Eglseder is back from a three-game suspension following his arrest for operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated on Feb. 14. He had 13 points and six rebounds in a 61-55 victory over Illinois State that gave NIU its first unbeaten season at home (11-0) in 46 years.
AROUND THE STATE
After 18 regular-season league games and a split of their two meetings, the season for both St. Peter's and Rider comes down to this: A third meeting in the quarterfinal round of the MAAC Tournament on Saturday at the Times-Union Center in Albany, N.Y.
That game - a 2:30 start that will be televised by MSG - came about after Rider beat Canisius and St. Peter's suffered a one-point home loss to Iona on the final day of the MAAC regular season Sunday.
St. Peter's (16-13 overall, 11-7 MAAC) wound up with the No. 4 seed for the MAAC Tournament with a 49-48 loss to Iona.
Rider nabbed the No. 5 seed thanks to an 86-70 victory over Canisius that gave the Broncs (16-15 overall) a 9-9 league finish, the same as Niagara. But Rider won the tiebreaker with the Purple Eagles on the strength of its regular-season sweep.
St. Peter's was a 77-66 winner at Rider on Jan. 15. The Broncs got their revenge with a 72-66 victory in Jersey City on Feb. 15.
The St. Peter's-Rider winner will likely get regular-season champ Siena...
Though Monmouth and Fairleigh Dickinson qualified for the Northeast Conference Tournament that begins Thursday at the home of the higher seed, the administrations at both schools have tough decisions ahead.
Monmouth (12-18 overall, 8-10 NEC) earned the eighth and final seed and faces regular-season champ Quinnipiac on Thursday night in the quarterfinals.
The Hawks, 68-63 losers at home to Sacred Heart on Saturday, avoided a third straight 20-loss season but not a fourth straight losing one, giving head coach Dave Calloway a 39-83 record for the past four years. Monmouth has not finished higher than eighth in the NEC during that time.
FDU has to determine the fate of interim coach Greg Vetrone after the Knights incurred the school's third straight 20-loss campaign with a 74-65 defeat to Quinnipiac on Saturday. FDU, 11-20 overall (10-8 NEC), earned the fifth seed and plays at fourth-seeded LIU (13-16) on Thursday in the NEC quarterfinals.
FDU is 40-79 the past four years...
Princeton will now set its sights on a possible 20-win season after a weekend split (a loss to Cornell, a victory over Columbia). The Tigers (17-8 overall, 8-3 Ivy League) close with three home games: Dartmouth on Friday, Harvard on Saturday and Penn next week.
(c)2009 New Jersey On-Line LLC
Villanova a tall order for Friars
PHILADELPHIA -- When you're in the midst of a whirlwind of a schedule, staying abreast of everything can become a bit of a challenge. Just ask Providence College basketball coach Keno Davis.
Soon after walking off the floor after a loss to Georgetown on Tuesday, Davis said his thoughts quickly shifted to PC's next opponent. He just wasn't sure who that was. "I actually had to ask who we had next. I had forgotten, or tried to forget," Davis said.
That is certainly understandable. Up next for the Friars is yet another marquee foe, No. 4 Villanova, Saturday afternoon at the Wachovia Center. It's the Friars' third game against a top seven-ranked team in its last four contests. Villanova, which is off to a sterling 21-2 start (10-1 Big East) is ranked fourth in this week's AP poll.
"Villanova is another tough game, a real tough game," said PC guard Marshon Brooks. "But we're in these games. We want to get one of them."
Getting a win at Villanova is a tall order for any team, let alone a Providence group that has lost four games in a row and six of its last seven. The Friars have competed against the elite teams they've run up against of late but have faded with the game on the line. PC trailed No. 2 Syracuse at halftime by three points at the Carrier Dome before being overwhelmed in the second half of a 85-68 loss. After an 82-79, last-second loss to Marquette, the Friars played one of their better games of the season in staying with No. 7 Georgetown. PC led by two points at the half but inexcusable free-throw shooting (21-of-33) and horrid 3-point bombing (7-of-27) ultimately led to a fade in the final six minutes and a 79-70 defeat.
As PC entered the toughest stretch of its schedule, Davis made sure to note that several factors had to fall in his team's favor to secure a marquee upset win. Making 3-pointers - and limiting the opponent's shooting accuracy - is atop his wish list.
"When we've struggled to shoot, we've struggled in the games," said Davis.
The Friars will need to shoot well, and more, to spring the big upset against Villanova. The Wildcats average 85.1 points a game, the most in the Big East. They start four perimeter players, each of whom can shoot, dribble and pass on one end of the floor and defend with quickness on the other.
"As I watch Villanova's team, that's kind of who I'd like to be. I'd like to play like Villanova," said PC's Davis. "I like the uptempo style and they put five guys on the floor who can all play. They don't have guys who are just screeners or rebounders. They can all drive, all shoot and all defend. And they all play very hard."
Davis has spoken openly about his team's talent deficiency in games against the top 10 teams in the country that PC is now facing. While that's an excuse for a loss, he doesn't see it that way.
"We're going to go there with the belief that we can play with anyone in this conference. We're not as good as everyone but we know if we play as hard as we can and get a night where we knock down shots, we're going to have a chance," he said.
Davis says performances of teams like Villanova are proving that the Big East is once again the deepest and best league in the country. That his team is in a rebuilding mode does not bode well when you are in the midst of an eight-game stretch against six ranked opponents, four of which reside in the top seven.
"I don't know if any team has played four of the top seven in the country," he said. "I've never even heard of it. What that shows is the Big East. It's what the Big East is about. We're not in a down year from last year. If anything, the league is better. We may not have three number-one seeds but I don't see why we can't have the same type of success year in and year out."
projo.com
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