Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

's Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

By Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Jimmer to the rescue

If you weren't already impressed with BYU guard Jimmer Fredette's play before the suspension of teammate Brandon Davies, perhaps you'll begin to admire his game if he can carry BYU in the postseason without Davies. Fredette does it all for BYU — scores, handles, distributes. Now, can he do it on the big stage of the NCAA Tournament?

Now that's progress

Belmont has never won a tournament game, and it's hardly a guarantee this will be the year. But the Bruins have gotten considerably closer in each of their three tournament appearances. In 2006, UCLA throttled them by 34. A year later, Georgetown only beat Belmont by 25. Then in 2008, the Bruins nearly shocked Duke, which went on to win 71-70.

Best first-round matchup

No. 7 UCLA vs. No. 10 Michigan State: This might be a 7 vs. 10 first-round matchup, but with these two brand-name programs colliding in tournament play, it'll probably feel more like games played a couple of weeks from now. The two have 26 Final Four appearances between them and are extremely well-coached. Yeah, Tom Izzo (Michigan State) and Ben Howland (UCLA) know a little something about the NCAA Tournament. Both clubs have something to prove, too. Is Michigan State the team that beat Purdue by 18 or lost to it by 20? UCLA, meanwhile, needs to convince everyone that a 17-point drubbing against Oregon that bounced the Bruins from the Pac-10 tournament can be overcome.

Player to watch Jordan Taylor, G Wisconsin

If Wisconsin is going to make some noise in this tournament, it'll be Jordan Taylor setting the table. Taylor, below, will finish the season with one of the best assist-to-turnover ratios in NCAA history. He enters the tournament with a 4.26-to-1 mark, impressive by any measurement. The Badgers could be headed for a weekend matchup with Kansas State and guard Jacob Pullen, but expect Taylor — a superb defender — to be up to the task.

Upset special

No. 11 seed Gonzaga is always a team to watch this time of year, but the Bulldogs aren't perceived to have as much bite as a few years ago. Don't let that fool you in their matchup with No. 6 St. John's. Gonzaga has a balanced, veteran team that has plenty of experience in March. St. John's has shown susceptibility. The Red Storm finished strong, but don't forget that, not long ago, this club was 11-8 and 4-5 in the Big East.

By the numbers

.500 Season record of UC-Santa Barbara in the Big West Conference this season before upsetting Long Beach State in the conference championship. To say the Gauchos struggled at times is putting it mildly. Before winning the league title and being matched with No. 2 seed Florida, they lost four of five in league play coming down the stretch. Included were three straight losses to Boise State, Cal State-Northridge and Long Beach.

11 Years since St. John's won an NCAA Tournament game. The Red Storm defeated Northern Arizona in the first round in 2000 before going on to lose to Gonzaga — its opening opponent this year. St. John's has been gone a while, but it remains a household name among longtime college basketball fans. The Red Storm has enjoyed 27 tournament appearances and two Final Four berths.

10.4 Not only did Pittsburgh lead the Big East in rebounding, the Panthers outrebounded opponents by this margin. Led by center Gary McGhee, above (7.6 rpg), Pittsburgh has crashed the boards better than most teams in the country — a major reason for its status as a No. 1 seed.

Stephen F. Holder, Times staff writer

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

By Tom Jones, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, March 13, 2011

St. Petersburg Times staff writer Tom Jones looks back at the best and worst from a weekend of televised sports.

Best documentary

Two documentaries about college basketball teams from the past debuted over the weekend: Runnin' Rebels of UNLV, HBO's effort about the UNLV team under controversial coach Jerry Tarkanian, and The Fab Five, ESPN's film about the University of Michigan team of the early 1990s. Just about everything HBO Sports does is first-rate and Runnin' Rebels is a fun trip down memory lane, but there was nothing really new revealed in the documentary. The best part was learning how Las Vegas, America's party host, drew a sense of community from the Rebels. Michigan's Fab Five were known as outstanding basketball players but also for their trash talk, baggy shorts and black socks and shoes. The documentary about this polarizing team was intriguing for showing not only America's view of the Michigan players, but the players' view of America. The most controversial quotes came from former Wolverine Jalen Rose, who revealed his hatred for Duke, which beat Michigan in the 1992 title game. "For me, Duke was personal. I hated Duke, and I hated everything I felt Duke stood for," Rose said in the film. "Schools like Duke didn't recruit players like me. I felt like they only recruited black players that were Uncle Toms." Wow, that's strong. Recently, Rose amplified his comments about Duke and coach Mike Krzyzewski to USA Today: "This is the reality: As a 38-year-old man, I respect the kind of athlete they recruit. They like to recruit well-to-do black guys that come from well-accomplished families that they understand are going to represent their program a certain way. They're not interested necessarily in developing a kid from an urban area to try to teach how to be a young man."

Saddest news

Here's a perfect example of how maniacal college sports fans can be. Kirk Herbstreit, the ESPN college football analyst and former Ohio State quarterback, and his family have moved from central Ohio, where he has lived his whole life, to Nashville. Why? Because of the vocal minority of Buckeyes fans who didn't like his occasional criticism of Ohio State. "Nobody loves Ohio State more than me," Herbstreit told the Columbus Dispatch. "And nobody will do more than I do for the university behind the scenes. But I've got a job to do, and I'm going to continue to be fair and objective. To continue to have to defend myself and my family in regards to my love and devotion to Ohio State is unfair."

Worst sucking up

While ESPN's analysts were creaming the NCAA basketball tournament selection committee for some of its decisions, CBS's Jim Nantz was hosting a lovefest with selection committee chair Gene Smith, above. On camera, Nantz shook hands twice with Smith and congratulated him and the committee for its efforts. What, exactly, is Nantz congratulating Smith for?

Nantz and partner Clark Kellog tossed out a couple of softballs about why Colorado and Alabama were left out, but they didn't follow up with any serious questions. This is pretty much how Nantz handles this interview every year. It has become a waste of air time because Nantz is more interested in patting the committee on the back than pressing it for answers. Really, what's the point?

Meantime, ESPN analysts Jay Bilas, Hubert Davis, Digger Phelps, Dick Vitale and Doug Gottlieb were blasting away at how schools such as Colorado, Virginia Tech and Alabama were left out, while teams such as Clemson and Virginia Commonwealth got in. It was as vicious as the crew has ever been.

Vitale said his wife "doesn't know diddly'' about it but would have done better than the committee. Meantime, Bilas, again, called for more basketball people on the committee and even questioned if some of the members even knew "that a basketball is round."

But, hey, according to Nantz, the committee needs to be congratulated. Let's all go shake their hands.

Three favorite broadcasters of the weekend

1. Jay Bilas. ESPN's analyst has become as good at college basketball analysis as Kirk Herbstreit is with college football analysis. That's to say, there's no one better. And, like Herbstreit, Bilas is equally good in the studio or at a game.

2. Bill Raftery. The CBS and ESPN college hoops analyst isn't as high-profile as Dick Vitale but is as enthusiastic and knowledgeable.

3. Harold Lederman. HBO Boxing's unofficial ringside judge is about 2 percent of HBO's coverage, but 100 percent of what he says is gold.

Three people who need to quiet down

1. Billy Packer. The former CBS announcer has turned into a bitter curmudgeon, and he shot off his mouth last week about how TNT shouldn't be doing NCAA Tournament games. TNT's Charles Barkley did everyone a favor by saying Packer needs to "shut the hell up."

2. Bob Knight. I like Knight on ESPN's basketball coverage, but making excuses and backing Ohio State football coach Jim Tressel on ESPN's Mike and Mike in the Morning radio show made Knight look foolish. Tressel not coming forth with illegal activity of his players is indefensible. An Ohio State alum such as Knight should be more offended than most.

3. I seem to be in the minority on this one, but I'm already dreading listening to CBS's Gus Johnson and his guttural screams every time someone makes a basket. Let's hope he saves his inaudible yelling for the truly thrilling moments.

Three things I liked on TV this weekend

1. ESPN's Bracketology show breaking down the NCAA basketball tournament with news, analysis and interviews was thorough, entertaining and incredibly accomplished television, especially when you realize it was put together on the fly.

2. NBC, as always, deserves an A for its NHL Game of the Week (Caps-Blackhawks) coverage.

3. This is simple and silly, but it's fun to watch college basketball teams jumping up and down when they learn they've made the tournament on CBS's selection show.

Three things I didn't like on TV this weekend

1. It was annoying that Tampa Bay viewers were forced to watch Raycom's coverage of the ACC tournament instead of ESPN's coverage. Raycom is fine, but it's not ESPN.

2. I constantly rave about Charles Barkley, but he had a rough college hoops debut on CBS's selection show. Apparently, he is the only person in the country who doesn't think the Big East is a great conference.

3. I wanted to jump out a window each and every time this weekend that I had to hear that sappy piano music and: "A tradition unlike any other … The Masters."

Three things that popped into my head

1. Something you need to know: No one cares about your NCAA bracket. No one cares which teams you have in the Final Four or who your Cinderella is. Seriously, when you start telling someone about your bracket and you think you're sounding intelligent or cool, the person you're talking to is not listening. Because they don't care!

2. The Lightning can forget about winning the Southeast Division. The Caps have pulled away for good.

3. Speaking of the Lightning, it's annoying it has a game tonight at Toronto and it's not on local television.

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Compiled from Times wires

By Greg Auman, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, March 13, 2011

TAMPA — For elite national programs with huge fan bases, for legendary coaches and sheer star power, it's hard to imagine a more interesting draw than the eight teams that will gather at the St. Pete Times Forum for second- and third-round games in the NCAA Tournament.

Second-seeded Florida has the home-state advantage, but there are two teams from last year's Final Four in West Virginia and Michigan State, another team from last year's Elite Eight in Kentucky and don't forget UCLA, which made the Final Four in 2008.

"Wow. Florida obviously is great for their fans, and Kentucky has the most passionate fans in basketball," ESPN's Dick Vitale said Sunday night. "It's good for the area; it'll get people excited about college basketball, instead of talking football, football, football."

Want Cinderella? Clemson and UAB, among the controversial final at-large teams chosen and the target of much venom from bubble teams spurned, meet in Dayton on Tuesday night for the right to play the Mountaineers. And few teams locked up an NCAA berth in more exciting fashion than Princeton, which beat Harvard on Doug Davis' buzzer-beater to win the Ivy League championship.

To put the field in perspective: The teams playing in Tampa have combined for 22 national championships. UCLA has 11, Kentucky seven and Florida and Michigan State two each, with at least one title from each of those four in the past 15 seasons.

If the last round of games at the Times Forum was historic for the great day of buzzer-beating upsets, this one stands out for the large fan bases that will descend on Tampa in support of some of the biggest powers in college basketball. Kentucky averaged 23,603 fans at Rupp Arena this season, but it's more impressive that the Wildcats averaged 15,222 fans on the road, showing a mobilized, fervent following that often included actor Ashley Judd.

Elite head coaches? Kentucky's John Calipari and UCLA's Ben Howland are past Naismith coach of the year winners, and Michigan State's Tom Izzo has been honored as the Associated Press coach of the year. Florida's Billy Donovan and West Virginia's Bob Huggins are nearing 400 and 700 career wins, respectively.

There are players worth watching, too: Michigan State's Kalin Lucas is one of the nation's top point guards, Florida's Chandler Parsons was the SEC player of the year and Kentucky's Terrence Jones was the league's freshman of the year.

And Tampa will be part of the tournament's new format, as Clemson and UAB will play seeking to reach Tampa in one of four games to pare the field from its new opening count of 68 teams to its traditional 64.

By Gary Shelton, Times Sports Columnist
Sunday, March 13, 2011

If the Florida Gators are going to introduce themselves to the world of college basketball, now seems like a good time.

If they are going to return to the ranks of the programs that matter, here seems like a perfect place.

After all, what else do the Gators have to do this weekend that sounds like more fun?

Frankly, it's about time the Gators were special again. In some ways, it seems as if it has been decades since Florida ruled college basketball. It hasn't been, of course. It was only four tournaments ago since the Gators won their second straight national championship with an athletic, cohesive bunch of athletes who never got tired of running. Or, for that matter, winning.

Since then, however, Florida has been a program unable to measure up to its own success. If you are counting, and it seems that everyone is counting, the Gators haven't won an NCAA Tournament game since beating UCLA for the title back in 2007. For an elite program, and for an elite coach, that's a long time between high-fives.

All of which brings us to this year's players and this year's possibilities.

Once again, the Gators finally have both.

According to NCAA seeding, which has the Gators second in the Southeast, Florida is one of the top eight teams in the country. According to the AP poll, Florida is one of the top 12. According to the SEC tournament, Florida is one of the top two teams in the SEC. According to the SEC regular season, Florida is the best team from its conference.

What that means is this is Billy Donovan's best team since the title years. And, yes, it means the Gators should be able to survive Tampa — a place where they haven't exactly flourished over the years — and make it to at least the Sweet 16.

When you are talking about fair expectations of this Florida team in the NCAA Tournament, that sounds about right. A first- or second-round loss means the Gators have underachieved. A run as far as the Elite Eight or better means they have overachieved.

No, no one is suggesting there is greatness to this Florida team, or that Chandler Parsons should grow a Joakim Noah ponytail at his earliest convenience. The old Gators won two titles; we're talking two games in a row.

With the Gators, there are still too many large, unsettling spaces where the basket location seems like a mystery to them. They could be tougher inside. And, yes, it's hard to forget that Florida found a way to lose to both UCF and Jacksonville this year. (Who knows where the Gators might have been seeded if they had won those games, huh?)

Say this for Donovan. Gathering his team after those embarrassments and finding a way to get his players to mesh down the stretch was one of the fine coaching moments of his career. Admit it: back on Dec. 20, when the Gators lost to Jacksonville three weeks after they lost to UCF, you wouldn't have given 20 cents for the rest of the season, would you?

Lately, however, there has been a lot to like with this Florida team. The Gators run well, the come from behind, they compete. They won 10 of their final 12, with both losses coming against Kentucky.

That said, you know what the players for UC-Santa Barbara are thinking today. They're thinking "UCF?'' They're thinking "Jacksonville?'' They're thinking "Orlando'' as in Orlando Johnson, who has scored 30 points or more six times this year. Most of all, it's thinking upsets. When a team reaches the NCAAs after going 8-8 in the Big West and being 14-13 overall two weeks ago, what else would it be thinking.

Still, it's going to be difficult for the Gauchos to travel across country and upset Florida. If that happens, you may not ever see Billy Donovan in Tampa Bay again.

For Florida, the second round looks testier. Michigan State? UCLA? Not to say those are storied programs, but the Gators have played both in a national championship game. In fact, the last time Florida played Michigan State in an NCAA Tournament game, it was in a second-round game in Tampa when the Gators were a No. 2 seed. Michigan State, seeded 10th back then, too, won that game by 22 points.

This year's Michigan State hasn't been as physical, however. And seventh-seeded UCLA hasn't quite lived up to its history, either. Frankly, both teams should grab their seeds before the NCAA reconsiders its generosity. If Florida deserves its own No. 2 seed, it should be able to get past either.

After that, who knows?

As long as they can avoid playing Jacksonville, maybe these Gators can run for a while.

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011

By Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer
Sunday, March 13, 2011

Upset special

Life can sometimes be frustrating for Florida State fans, but if the Seminoles play the way they're capable, perhaps the team that lost close calls against teams such as North Carolina will shine through. Leonard Hamilton's teams consistently play smothering defense, evidenced by FSU's impressive top rank in ACC defensive field-goal percentage (.364).

That's a trend

No. 1 seed Kansas faces Boston University in its first game, and the odds are the Jayhawks will win handily. After all, they don't lose a whole lot of opening games in the NCAA Tournament. Only twice since 1981 — in 2005 and 2006 — have the Jayhawks not advanced in their first-round games. They're more likely to wind up in the Final Four than lose their first contest. That would not be considered acceptable for a program that has 39 tournament appearances, 13 Final Fours and three national titles.

By the numbers

.514 Kansas' team field-goal percentage, tops in the nation. The Jayhawks pile up the points as a result of their sharp shooting, averaging 82.4 points. That's fifth in the country. Kansas has four players in its rotation who shoot better than 50 percent from the field, and that's going to be hard to beat this time of year.

32 Games in which Purdue's JaJuan Johnson finished in double figures this season. That would be every one of the Boilermakers' games in 2010-11. The 6-foot 10 senior averaged 20.5 points and scored a season-high 31 on Dec. 18 against Indiana State.

2 Consecutive NCAA Tournament losses by Vanderbilt to teams outside of major conferences. The Commodores have lost tournament games to Siena in 2008 and Murray State last year, their past two appearances.

5 Losses by Georgetown in its past six games. The Hoyas have dropped games to UConn (twice), Cincinnati (twice) and Syracuse since Feb. 16. Not exactly a confidence-building run for this 21-10 team.

Stephen F. Holder, Times Staff Writer

Clairvoyant Pitino?

Louisville faces Morehead State in its first game, and coach Rick Pitino appears to know his opponent well. In illustrating a point last week about the lack of rebounding among today's players, Pitino used Morehead's Kenneth Faried as an example. Remember, this was days before the brackets were released on Sunday.

"Today, college kids don't put the backboard numbers on the glass that they used to, they want to shoot jump shots, they don't have the mind-set for that," Pitino said, according to the Louisville Courier-Journal. "If you can recruit somebody like (Faried) from Morehead State … then you've got yourself a gem for a few years."

Faried averages 14.5 rebounds, most in the nation.

Best first-round game

No. 8 UNLV vs. No. 9 Illinois

This game has all kinds of potential to go down to the wire as both have the ability to test opponents. The Rebels started fast this season before falling back. But they're heating up again, winning six of their final seven heading into the tournament. Illinois can claim wins over Michigan State, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Gonzaga. This probably won't be a high-scoring affair. UNLV opponents shoot 40.0 percent; Illinois limits teams to 40.1 shooting accuracy. If one team has an advantage, look for Illinois to rely on its balance — six players averaging double figures. UNLV coach Lon Kruger formerly coached at Illinois.

Player to watch

The Hansbrough name just seems to roll off the tongue this time of year. A few years after his brother enjoyed a dominant March run of his own, Notre Dame guard Ben Hansbrough tries to duplicate former North Carolina star Tyler's efforts in the tournament. Ben shoots with deadly accuracy from the field, nailing 48.6 percent of his shots. He dishes 4.3 assists per game, making him far more than a one-dimensional scorer. Basically, Notre Dame isn't a No. 2 seed without the guy.

Times wires
Sunday, March 13, 2011