The Madness Hasn't Been Kind to the Regular Season Champ

Coastal Carolina Winning 2014 Big South Championship

One thing has become permanently clear in these two weeks coming up to Selection Sunday this season.  If you're the regular season conference champion, chances are you haven't likely fared too well in your conference tournament.    With Louisiana Tech losing to Tulsa last night in the Conference USA championship, that means now twelve mid major level conference regular season champions will have now have an automatic NIT bid because they lost in their conference tournament; Louisiana Tech, Florida Gulf Coast, Boston University, Vermont, Belmont, Robert Morris, UC Irvine, Iona, Green Bay, Utah Valley, High Point and Davidson.  If Georgia State loses in the Sun Belt Conference championship today, it will make it an even Baker's Dozen.

Robert-Morris-LIU 2011 NEC Championship

But it's not been just the mid major conference tournaments where the number #1 seed has gone down.  Villanova and St Louis, both #1 seeds, went down in the quarterfinals in the Big East and A-10 tournaments respectively.  Kansas lost in the semis to Iowa State in the Big 12.  Cincinnati lost in the AAC semifinals to UConn.   Yesterday, San Diego State lost to New Mexico in the Mountain West finals.  Arizona jeopardized a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament by losing to UCLA in the Pac12 finals.

Now for all those regular season championship non mid major level teams that I mentioned in the previous paragraph, the conference tournament didn't mean too much to them, since they were all guaranteed a bid to the NCAA Tournament.  Still, it likely affected several team's seedings in the NCAA Tournament, especially St Louis.

2012 CAA Tournament - George Mason v. VCU

As of this morning, only eight regular season championship teams won their conference tournament and got the automatic NCAA bid; Wichita State (Missouri Valley), Gonzaga (WCC), NC Central (MEAC), Weber State (Big Sky), Southern (SWAC), North Dakota State (Summit), Delaware (CAA) and Western Michigan (MAC).  A ninth team that won the regular season championship, Harvard in the Ivy League, got an automatic bid since the Ivy doesn't have a post conference tournament.

So why has it been so difficult for regular season champions across the board to win their postseason conference tournaments?   Well, there are several reasons.

1. Complacency on the Non Mid Major Level - Let's be honest, it's hard for some Power Conference teams that have a guaranteed spot in the NCAA Tournament to maintain their focus and level of play.   It's also difficult for those teams when playing similarly talented teams on that level.  Case in point, Villanova and St Louis.   Both teams played decent opponents in the quarterfinal rounds of their tournament;Seton Hall and St. Bonaventure. Both the Pirates and the Bonnies needed to run the table to win, so they went all out and caught the Wildcats and Billikens napping.  It happens.
2. Quality of Opponent - On the power conference level, you have ranked teams playing each other in the semifinals, even sometimes in the quarterfinals in the conference tournament.  So there certainly is very little difference between Kansas and Iowa State, Cincinnati and UConn, San Diego State and New Mexico, and Arizona and UCLA.   Cincinnati only received the #1 seed, because they won a coin flip vs. Louisville, who ended up winning the AAC.
   
   This has also been true for some of the smaller conference tournaments.  Florida Gulf Coast, the #1 seed, lost the Atlantic Sun championship game on its home court to Mercer, the #2 seed.   The Bears were returning the favor from a year ago when the Eagles won on Mercer's home court in the A-Sun championship.  Boston U, the #1 seed, lost the Patriot Conference Championship on their home court to the #2 seed, American.  Finally, Iona lost to the #2 seed Manhattan in the MAAC Conference Tournament final, a team they split with during the regular season.
3. "Neutral Site" Tournaments - This is where many of the mid major regular season champions got tripped up.  There are a good number of mid major level tournaments that are hosted on "neutral" sites for likely monetary reasons.   In one case in particular, the America East, the first two rounds conference tournament has been held on one of the conference member sites (the championship has been held on the higher seed's home court).  In this season and last season, it was hosted by Albany.  And in the last two seasons, Albany has knocked off the #1 seed in the semifinals (2013 - Stony Brook, 2014 - Vermont).  The Great Danes have used this momentum in both seasons to win the conference tournament, knocking off Vermont and Stony Brook on those school's respective home courts.
   
   The Big South also has a "neutral site" conference tournament that's hosted by one of its schools, Coastal Carolina, with a little help from the Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce.  High Point lost on a buzzer beater in the quarterfinals to Winthrop, which opened the door for the host Chanticleers to win the Big South Tournament.
   
   Once conference that used to be held in Albany and was moved to a true neutral site, due to concerns about Siena's home court advantage, is the MAAC.  The MAAC Tournament has been held in Springfield, "MAAChusetts" the last couple of seasons, which is where Iona lost to Manhattan in the championship this year.  However, attendance has been so bad in Springfield, the MAAC is considering other sites, including bring the tournament back to Albany.
   
   Other conference tournaments also use true neutral sites.  Asheville hosted the Southern Conference Tournament, where Davidson got knocked off by Western Carolina in the semifinals.  The WAC hosted their tournament at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, which is where Utah Valley lost to Idaho in the conference semifinals.   Finally the Big West was held in Anaheim, California, where Cal Poly used the momentum from knocking off #1 seed UC Irvine to beat CS Northridge in the Big West Championship.
   
   Many people, including myself, don't think neutral site championships are fair on the mid major level. It's one thing where Power Six conferences or next level conferences like the Mountain West and A-10 can hold neutral site tournaments based on crowd attendance (it even works with the Missouri Valley to a lesser extent).  But at the Southern, WAC or Big West levels, a neutral site doesn't really draw a large crowd to justify a neutral site.  And in the case of the skewered America East host school "neutral site" tournament, it certainly doesn't justify that.
   
   To me and others, it doesn't reward all the work that regular season championship teams have done to finish in first and it also often doesn't put the best conference team in the tournament.   That's why I think the Ivy League has no post season tournament.  The regular season champion that was consistently best all season earns the automatic bid.
   
   It's my opinion that mid major conferences either go to an Atlantic Sun/NEC based tournament, where the higher seeds host the conference games throughout the various levels of the tournament or move to a Horizon League Tournament, where the #1 seed hosts the first two rounds of the tournament and the championship is held on the highest remaining seed's court.  Thus teams will be rewarding for a regular season accomplishment.  But...
    
4. Even With Home Court Advantage, Some Schools Can't Stand Prosperity - Even with the home court advantage, four regular season champions fell by the wayside in their conference tournament.  Green Bay, the Horizon League Regular Season Champion, again lost to Milwaukee on its home court in the conference semifinals.  The Phoenix lost at home to the Panthers earlier in the season.   As noted, Florida Gulf Coast lost at home to Mercer in the A-Sun finals.  Finally, Robert Morris lost at home in the NEC finals to Mount St Mary's.

2011 CAA Tournament - VCU v. George Mason

It's been the craziest conference tournament season I can ever remember.  And as a result, a lot of NIT hopefuls will be now scrambling for bids to the CIT and CBI, Defiantly Dutch's favorite tournament.  This season has shown, now more than ever, with rare exceptions, the regular season doesn't mean a thing.

I love conference tournaments, especially considering all the years I have been to the CAA Tournament, let alone NEC and Big South championship games.  Some of my favorite memories have come from sitting in a usually cold Richmond Coliseum, especially the 2011 and 2012 #CAAHoops semifinals.  There's nothing better than a sold out, raucous crowd during a conference tournament.  I will always remember fondly sitting in the Blackbirds' student section during LIU's overtime win over Robert Morris in the 2011 NEC Tournament final.

But sometimes, on the fairness level of conference tournaments and regular season champions, I think the Ivy League knows best.

Miscellaneous Thoughts on Iona/Manhattan, Siena, Wichita State, Duquesne and Fordham

If you're a college basketball fan and you didn't watch Iona/Manhattan on ESPN2 last night, you missed an absolutely terrific game between two long time MAAC rivals.  The Jaspers won in overtime 80-77.  It was exciting, action packed, end to end, three point drilling (on Iona's side), small gym, capacity, loud crowd fun.  You could hear the crowd loud and clear on your TV.

Having been at Draddy for Iona vs. Manhattan previously for a SRO crowd between these two rivals, I can tell you how intense the Gaels-Jaspers rivalry is from a spectator's standpoint. And if you don't think this is a hot ticket, two years ago, tickets for the Iona- Manhattan game were going for $100, which is usually unheard of in NYC mid major basketball.  Jaden Daly of Daly Dose of Hoops was there last night and here's his writeup.

It's quite possible that Iona and Manhattan will face each other again in the MAAC Tournament.  Despite the loss, Iona has clinched the MAAC regular season championship and the #1 seed for the MAAC Tournament.   Manhattan is tied for second with both Quinnipiac and Canisius.  The Jaspers host the Golden Griffiths on Sunday for at least third place. 

Oh, one last thing.  If Iona wins at home over Rider on Sunday, it will be the fourth time in the four seasons Tim Cluess has coached in New Rochelle that the Gaels have won twenty games.  Four years ago, I gave a New York metro college advice on who to take as their head coach.  Iona took the advice instead and two NCAA Tournament later, with a possible third on the horizon, the Gaels must be quite happy with the decision.

Speaking of MAAC coaches, how about the job Jimmy Patsos is doing with Siena.  The Saints are now over .500 in the MAAC at 10-9 and with a win over Monmouth, will be the fifth seed in the MAAC Tournament.   Siena has already won six more games than all of last season and six more games in conference from last season as well.  Not surprising, given Patsos' history of success with Loyola Maryland.

One last MAAC note.  With Cluess, Steve Masiello, Patsos and Jimmy Baron, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference has become a premier coaching conference.  MAACTION!

Wichita State has been getting a lot of flack lately on whether they are a #1 seed for the NCAA Tournament .  Several basketball "pundits" have questioned their non conference schedule (Yes, Jeff Goodman of ESPN, I am talking about you in particular).   Mark Adams, ESPN analyst, put this into excellent perspective on Twitter by stating that the eight power conference teams ranked in the top ten played eighty six percent of their non-conference games at either neutral site or home.   As I pointed out to Mark in a reply, I noted Wichita State only played seven of its twelve non-conference games at home (two were neutral site).  Saint Louis, the other non power conference team in the top ten played only six of its eleven games at home (two were also neutral site).

Furthermore, compare Wichita State's team to the last Missouri Valley team that went so far into the season undefeated, the 1978-79 Indiana State team.  That team of course was led by Larry Bird and went to the NCAA Championship game undefeated vs. Michigan State before losing to Magic Johnson and the Spartans.  

That 78-79 Sycamores team only played one NCAA Tournament team during the regular season, New Mexico State, which Indiana State beat twice in that season in conference.  In fact, the Sycamores had to have a 50 foot shot by Bob Heaton to force overtime on the road vs. the Aggies.  New Mexico State ended up getting an at large bid, losing to Weber State in a first round game.  At that time, only forty teams made the NCAA Tournament.  

Despite their lack of a signature non-conference win, Indiana State received a #1 seed.   Perhaps having Bird helped their chances of getting a #1 seed.  Still, Indiana State justified their seeding by making the NCAA Championship game.

This season, Wichita State has played two definite NCAA Tournament teams in their non conference; BYU and currently #10 Saint Louis.  The neutral site win over the Cougars was the championship game of the CBE classic and the win over SLU came on the Billikens home court.  Until their loss at home to Duquesne this week, Saint Louis had been undefeated in Atlantic-10 play, which is quite impressive considering there is a very good chance that there will be five A-10 teams in the NCAA Tournament (SLU, VCU, UMass, George Washington and St Joseph's).

Wichita State has also won over bubble team Tennessee, along with wins over Davidson, the Southern Conference regular season champion, who knocked off the current #2 team in the SEC, Georgia and NC Central, who won at North Carolina State and who at 22-5 and 13-1 in the MEAC, is the likely MEAC regular season champion (the Eagles have a two game lead over Hampton).  Throw in the fact that with basically the same team from last year's Final Four team, if the Shockers can make it through the rest of the Valley regular season and the MVC Tournament undefeated, they should definitely be a #1 seed and have serious consideration as the #1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Gregg Marshall is my coach of the year (and Jaden Daly, I knew about Marshall for years even before his Winthrop team knocked off Notre Dame).

On Thursday night, I watched on TV two bottom A-10 teams play, Fordham and Duquesne.  Both teams played good first halves against their respective opponents, VCU and St Louis, as I noted, two definite NCAA Tournament teams.    In their respective second halves, only one team maintained their composure and heart.  The road team Dukes withstood the Billikens and gave St Louis their first loss in A-10 play.

Duquesne at one time was tied with Fordham in the A-10 standings.  Yet, Jim Ferry's 12-15 team has not given up and won two of its last four games.   Of their four conference wins, three of those are on the road, including a win over the Rams.  The Dukes have lost fifteen games on the season, nine of those fifteen losses have been by nine points or less, including six A-10 conference games.  Duquesne's scoring margin on the season is - 0.3.  You can certainly say the Dukes have been competitive for the most part this season.

I'm not surprised by Ferry's Dukes playing so hard.  His successful LIU teams were high scoring, yet very gutty.  I was there when the Blackbirds won over Wagner at a hostile, sold out Spiro Center two years ago in what was quite possibly, given the game was on ESPNU on a Saturday night, the biggest regular season game in the history of the NEC (see picture of the game on the left).

Ferry's LIU teams made the NCAA Tournament two years in a row before he took the Duquesne job. Already the Dukes have a four win improvement from last season.   Given his ability to recruit nationally (several of his LIU players came from Texas), Duquesne is in good hands.

Meanwhile, VCU went on an early second half run and Fordham looked like they got run over by a truck.  They looked clueless on defense, showed no fundamentals on boxing out as VCU got offensive rebound after offensive rebound (in fact VCU had twenty four offensive rebounds) and basically showed no heart the last twenty minutes of the game.  VCU scored FIFTY ONE second half points beating Fordham 85-66.   One team looked Ram Tough and another looked Rammed.

Then to top it, Fordham Coach Tom Pecora just torched his team's effort after the loss, as per another great Jaden Daly writeup.   Yet not anywhere in the post game press conference notes does Pecora accept any blame for his team's failures that night.  He even notes that "Teams that win find ways to win, teams that lose, they know how to lose".

Well who's responsibility is for that demeanor and play?  It's the coach. 

I have already written about Fordham's struggles this season, in fact, it's been my most read article of the season, and taken Pecora to task.  So yes, it's like beating a dead horse.  But after his VCU post game press conference comments, the dead horse needs to beaten some more.

Fordham has lost five straight games, all by double digit margins.  In their last nine A-10 conference losses on the season , the Rams have lost each game by double digits and by an average margin of NINETEEN POINTS.  In fact, in Fordham's seventeen losses on the season, thirteen have now come by double digit margins.    

Think about that.  In only four of their seventeen losses was Fordham even close to winning.  

And even the defensive intensity that Pecora's Hofstra teams used to have is now gone.  He now goes with a four guard lineup, yet laments that "You can't let them beat you up on the offensive glass".  The Rams are DEAD LAST in the A-10 in scoring defense, allowing seventy nine points per game.  They are also dead last in field goal percentage defense, allowing teams to shoot forty six percent from the field.  The Rams also allow teams to score fifty two percent of their two point field goal attempts.

I think this last quote about Pecora when there is a question about his team's effort sums it up best  

"Oh, without a doubt, and I think that's been an issue for us throughout the season. There's been two major issues in my mind: One is getting that kind of team effort for 40 minutes consistently..." 

That comes down to one person and one person only.  The coach.

The Things I Miss This Time of Season

"Halleujah. Noel.  Be it Heaven or Hell.
The Christmas we get, we deserve." 

"I Believe in Father Christmas" By Greg Lake

For the longest time, I truly believed in those words in "I Believe in Father Christmas" (kind of also helped that I am a huge ELP fan).   There were a couple of years in the early Nineties where I spent Christmas alone, due to what I now wrongly believed was what I deserved for mistakes of the heart.

Now married for seventeen wonderful years with two adorable boys, this time of season is special in many ways for me, from a family standpoint as well as a college basketball standpoint. For forty five years, I spent Christmas as a New York resident.  For as long as I can remember, I had the time between Christmas Eve and New Year's Day off from work, when I worked for Hofstra.  I still do, now working for the University of South Carolina.   It's one of the perks working for an academic institution.

And around the holiday season is a great time to see college basketball games in New York.  There's the annual Holiday Festival at MSG, the new tradition, the Barclays Center Brooklyn Hoops Winter Festival and a good number of local New York teams that are home during the holiday season break.

But this time of year also reminds me of what I miss about the rest of the college basketball season now that I am a resident of Columbia, South Carolina.

First, I miss the close proximity of local New York Division I colleges.  Stony Brook, St John's, Fordham, Iona, Wagner, Manhattan, LIU and of course Hofstra were schools whose games I went to with quite regularity.  They were all within an hour's drive.  Then you had Madison Square Garden, which was an hour train ride into the city. Writing for Mid Majority in 2011-12 as part of the 800 Games Project, from a commuting standpoint, it was relatively easy and quick to get to a college basketball game (well except parking at Manhattan College).  It helped greatly in my coverage of fifty nine Division I men's basketball games that season.

Now, outside of the University South of Carolina, which is the same distance and time for me as it was traveling to Hofstra games, there are only two other schools that are an hour away; Winthrop and Presbyterian and due to scheduling, I haven't seen a game yet at either school.   The other schools I have been to locally; Wofford, Coastal Carolina, Davidson, Charlotte and College of Charleston are at least ninety minutes away from me.  So, unlike a quick evening jaunt to Iona or Stony Brook, those schools I have to catch on a weekend.

But it's more than just the proximity of local teams I miss.  It's the camaraderie that is lacking.  Thankfully, I have my color analyst, aka my older son Matthew to now go to games with here in South Carolina.  That helps a good deal.  But it doesn't make up for not seeing my friends on a regular basis.

First, Hofstra home games were something out of "Cheers".  After twenty four years of being an administrator on campus, I knew a good number of people at Hofstra who I would see on a regular basis there; my former boss and longtime friend Howard Graves, my good friend at the University Computer Center, Marty Gross, my colleagues and friends from the Plant department, Paul Romano and Kenny Tyler, and many others.  I even got to know former Hofstra coach Mo Cassara, one of the true good guys in the coaching profession, who was always kind enough to see if I needed a ticket for a road game.  Glad he is doing well as analyst for ESPN.

University of Delaware Concessions Barbeque. YUM!

Then there was my good friend Defiantly Dutch, Jerry Beach, who I got to know from Hofstra basketball.  I make fun of his age on Twitter and Facebook.  But truth be told, I am older than him by a long shot and this will be the last time I make fun of his age, though I still think I am younger than him mentally.  Beach is also a terrific writer, far better than me.  He has a wonderful wife, Michelle, who I have become friends with (all great women are named "Michelle", ask my wife) and they have the cutest daughter on the planet, Molly.  Finally, he is also a hilarious travel companion, the John Candy to my Steve Martin.

Through Beach, I have got to know several other Hofstra folks like Lee Warner and the lovely Missy Van Brocklin, who I hope will make baked goods again for us when I am there on December 30.  There's Bob, a season ticket holder who I used to sit across from (and my friends still do, since I still have Hofstra season tickets) and we would trade travel stories and betting lines for other games during the Hofstra game.  And of course, there is nothing like rival blogger trash talk with Beach during a Hofstra game.

Also, due to my friendship with Jerry and my coverage for the Mid Majority and local NY hoops, I have become friends with many NYC college basketball beat writers like the omnipresent Jaden Daly of Daly Dose of Hoops, Ray Curren, the one man force that is the Mid Majority this season,  the stat machine Jon Templon, founder of Big Apple Buckets and the dynamic Iona Women's basketball broadcast duo of Nick Guerriero and John Stanko (Nick is now at Dartmouth).

But what I miss most about not being at the Hofstra games is not seeing my dear friends Tony Terentieff and Mal Galletta.  We sat together for years in Section 111, Row D and before that in Section 102.  The banter between the three of us was often truly hysterical.    And from our vantage point in Section 111, we could pick things up being across from the player benches.  You knew when Tom Pecora, former Hofstra Head Coach, was going to put someone in his doghouse or when Bruiser Flint would go off on his players or referees when Drexel visited Hempstead.

One of my all time favorite Hofstra memories is from the 2004-05 season, when I was still sitting in Section 102 ( We moved to Section 111 after the 2005-06 season).   There was an older gentleman who sat by us who use to occasionally fly off the handle, often at the expense of Pecora.  Adrian Uter was in his first season with Hofstra, after two years of JUCO and came off the bench for the Pride, er Flying Dutchmen (sorry, Jer).   In one game, during one particular stretch, Uter was blocking every shot in sight and tearing down rebounds with authority.  Inexplicably, Pecora took him out of the game.   This older gentleman blurts out  loud "PECORA, WHY ARE YOU TAKING UTER OUT?  HE'S AN ANIMAL!"  Our whole section burst out laughing to the point of tears.

Eight years later, it still sticks out in my mind.  That's what you get in a mid major game, fans making comments like that you will always remember.  Mind you, Frank Martin makes up for some of that in Gamecocks' games, because you can often hear him as clear as a bell.  But it's still not the same.

Then there is my good friend Tony Bozzella.  Over the years, Tieff, Mal and I have gone to so many Iona Women's home games sitting with Tony's wife Maria, his very funny daughter Samantha, and the brains behind Bo's fantasy baseball team, his son Joseph.  So many times, we sat in Bo's office after the game talking with Bo and the awesome Lauren DeFalco, going over the game highlights.  We even traveled to Marist to see them play in a gym right out of Hoosiers.  So many memories.

But it's not just the Hofstra or Iona home games I miss with Tieff and Mal.  It's the countless road trips to Delaware (complete with Delaware Concessions Barbeque!), Towson, Drexel, Iona, the train rides into MSG, the long annual trips down to Richmond to the CAA Tournament, including one year going to Atlantic City before the CAA Tournament ("DO YOU THINK I PLAY CRAP HANDS!" - only Mal and Tieff will understand that one) and heck even our trip to Raleigh to see the now famous Stephen Curry Show at the NCAA Regional in 2008.

When Mal and Tieff came down for a sports weekend this November to see our good friend Bo's Seton Hall Women's team play South Carolina, as well as take in a College of Charleston game and the Florida-USC football game, it was like the three amigos were back in business, albeit for one weekend.  Those are things that I miss most about being down here in South Carolina.

Perhaps someday, I will have that camaraderie here at South Carolina.  The road trips to Davidson, Wofford and Charleston are fun, but it's not the same. Plus now that I am a Little League Baseball coach, so the college basketball season seems shorter to me now.

The good thing is that I will be back in New York for the Holiday season and some college basketball.  I hope to be at Stony Brook on December 22.  On December 28, I will be at the Seton Hall- St John's women's basketball game, then at the Barclays Center for the nightcap of the tripleheader as Boston  College takes on VCU.   Then December 30 it's back to Hofstra for a Pride home game.

But this holiday season though has some sadness.  My sister in law's husband, a great guy, lost his mom last week due to cancer.  Only a few months prior, he lost his dad to cancer as well.   It will be good to see my sister in law and him and hopefully my family will bring them some much needed cheer to their Christmas.

Also on Tuesday night around midnight, I woke up to the sound of fire trucks.  My neighbor's house across the street was on fire.  My neighbor, Richard, an older gentleman who's on disability, happened to be in the hospital for heart surgery, for a stroke he suffered only a few weeks back.  His daughter thankfully was not hurt.   But their house seems to be either a total loss or at least needs major work.  They won't be able to spend Christmas at home this year.

Over the past several years, the above "I Believe in Father Christmas" lyrics have not rung as true for me.  I have learned that people often do not get the Christmas they deserve. These two above examples remind me of that.

In my case, I am just happy that I will be back in New York for the holidays with my family, to bring warmth and consolation to loved ones, to spend time with friends I haven't seen in a while and see some college basketball with good friends that I miss.  It will be good to be back in a "New York State of Mind", albeit for a brief time.

To everyone, as Greg Lake was so correct in singing - "I wish you a joyful Christmas.  I wish you a brave New Year.  All anguish, pain and sadness leave your heart and let your road be clear".

And if you can, catch a live college basketball game.  No better sport to watch live.

Happy Holidays from The College Hardwood!

Fouls, Free Throws and Jaspers - Oh My! (Recap of Manhattan vs. South Carolina)

A lot has been made of the new NCAA rules concerning fouls now being called on hand checks as well as the change in what is a charge as opposed to a block.  Fouls are up considerably in Division I basketball.  As of today, one hundred and seventy four teams are averaging twenty fouls or more per game.  Last season, only twenty nine teams averaged twenty fouls per game or more.  That's a difference of ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY FIVE teams.

I had noted this in a previous article two weeks ago.  The number of teams that are averaging twenty or more fouls per game has not changed.  Most teams on average have now played ten games, which is nearly one third of the season.  So the idea that teams will adjust to the new rules (see Jay Bilas), well, that's not happened yet.  Not by a Dominick Mejia three point attempt (that one was for Dan Crain).

One of those coaches struggling to adapt to the rules is Manhattan coach Steve Masiello.  He was quoted recently as agreeing with Michigan State Coach Tom Izzo about the "three yards and a cloud of dust" offense Izzo believes his Spartans should play now;

"Tom Izzo said it best. I believe his quote, I don't want to misquote him, but he said after the Barclays Center games that he's going to just tell his players to drive in, create contact, throw the basketball up and worry about foul shooting, because it's taking away defensive advantages for schemes and scouting purposes. I have to learn the rules better and try to do a better job, and I'll do that. If you ask me how I feel, just take Tom Izzo's article, whatever he said, I agree. Steve Masiello agrees with Coach Izzo."

Manhattan averages five more fouls per game than they did last season; twenty six fouls this season compared to twenty one last season.  Yet the Jaspers have so far overcome the new rules/additional fouls and entered last night's game vs. South Carolina with a 7-2 record.  A lot of that has to do with the return of redshirt senior guard George Beamon, who came into the game averaging 20.7 points per game.   Beamon received a medical redshirt for his fifth season after he was injured for most of last season.

Meanwhile, the Gamecocks had not played a game in eleven days since their twenty seven point drubbing on the road at the hands of Oklahoma State.   What made matters worse for Coach Frank Martin is that his young team, which consists of seven freshmen and three sophomores, had only played five games so far this season, the second fewest in Division I basketball.

The Gamecocks came out strong as they jumped out to an early 10-4 lead, as Bruce Ellington scored five quick points for South Carolina.  The Gamecocks didn't seem rusty at all at the beginning of the game, hitting four of their first five shots.

But the Jaspers responded with an 8-0 spurt, due in large part to forcing three Gamecocks' turnovers in that span. Rich Williams and Michael Alvarado each had three point plays to help put Manhattan up 12-10.  The Jaspers would extend the lead to four, 18-14 with about twelve and a half minutes left in the first half.

The Gamecocks would respond with a 7-0 run as guard Tyrone Johnson would score five of those points, including a free throw after an intentional foul was called on Emmy Andujar.  The Gamecocks would go up 21-18.   After Beamon tied the game with a three pointer, Johnson hit another two free throws to put South Carolina back up 23-21.

During this time, the fouls were mounting up for Manhattan.  In the first seven and a half minutes, the Jaspers already had eight fouls.  Rich Williams would pick up three fouls in the first half alone.  And with seven minutes left in the half, Beamon picked up his second foul and went to the bench with the game tied at twenty eight.

Just when Gamecock fans thought their team could take advantage of Beamon's absence on the court, the foul situation turned in favor of the Jaspers.   Manhattan would score their next eight points all on free throws; four from Donovan Kates and four from Alvarado.  Shane Richards would then bury a three pointer and Alvarado put the icing on a 11-2 run with a dunk to put the Jaspers up 41-30 with three and a half minutes left.

During this three and a half minute period, South Carolina went ice cold from the field as well as from the free throw line.  The Gamecocks only hit one of six field goal attempts and missed on three straight free throws before Tyrone Johnson hit the second of two free throws to cut the lead to ten 41-31.

Manhattan would actually extend the lead to thirteen before taking an eleven point lead into halftime, 45-34.  Alvarado picked up the scoring burden for the Jaspers with fourteen points, as well as adding three assists in the first half.  The Jaspers outscored the Gamecocks 17-6 over the last seven minutes of the first half with Beamon on the bench during that time.  Twelve of those seventeen Manhattan points came courtesy of the free throw line.

Rich Williams started the second half with a layup to put Manhattan up thirteen, 47-34.  South Carolina responded by scoring seven straight points to cut the lead to six, 47-41.  After Alvarado hit one of two free throws, Sindarius Thornwell hit two free throws to cut the deficit to five, 48-43.  The  Jaspers continued to be plagued by fouls, committing six in the first four and a half minutes into the second half, with Williams picking up his fourth foul during this time.  It looked like the Gamecocks were going to rally all the way back with help from the charity stripe.

But Manhattan was undeterred by their foul situation.  The Jaspers would score the next seven straight points as Alvarado buried a three, Andujar would add two free throws and an assist on Beamon's layup.  Masiello's club was back up twelve, 55-43 with 13:46 left.

South Carolina would not quit as Carrera and Thornwell combined to score all of South Carolina's points in a Gamecock 10-3 spurt to cut the deficit to five again, 58-53 with eleven and half minutes left in the game.  Carrera (10 points second half) and Thornwell (14 points second half) both came on strong in the second half after a quiet first half for each of them (Carrera and Thornwell combined for three points in the first half).

But two free throws by Kates and a three by Beamon put Manhattan back up by double digits, 63-53.  South Carolina would get within eight twice, the second time 65-57 with nine and a half minutes left in the game on a jumper by Carrera.

But what Carrera gave the Gamecocks, he would take away on the next possession, fouling Beamon on a three point field goal attempt.  Beamon calmly sank all three free throws to put the Jaspers back up by double digits, 68-57.  South Carolina would get no closer the rest of the contest, or more appropriately, the foul fest, as Manhattan won going away 86-68.

There were FIFTY THREE fouls called in the game, thirty on Manhattan, twenty three on South Carolina.  Two players fouled out; Ashton Pankey for the Jaspers, Mindaugas Kacinas for the Gamecocks.  A combined six other players on both sides had four fouls each.   Much of the eighteen point margin came from the free throw line.  Manhattan only had one more free throw attempt than South Carolina, 39 to 38.  But the Jaspers shot an excellent 34 of 39 from the line (eighty seven percent) while the Gamecocks were only 22 of 38 from the charity stripe (fifty eight percent).

The Jaspers excelled on the defensive end with eleven steals and nine blocks.  Beamon had four steals and Pankey and Rhamel Brown each had four blocks for Manhattan.  What helped the Jaspers deal with the fouls was their bench strength, as nine players were on the floor for at least eleven minutes.  In fact, starter Rich Williams only played seven minutes due to foul trouble.  He made the most of those seven minutes with nine points.

Beamon led all scorers with twenty five points.  He had eighteen points in the second half, two of which came on a really sweet floater that would have made Loren Stokes proud.  Beamon also had five rebounds to go with his twenty five points and four steals.  Alvarado made a great Pippen to Beamon's Jordan with twenty points and six assists.

Thornwell led the Gamecocks with seventeen points.  Johnson added twelve points, eleven of which came in the first half.  Carrera added ten points for South Carolina.  Brenton Williams, the team's leading scorer from last season, only played six minutes and was held scoreless.

Manhattan plays one more non conference game this Saturday vs. Buffalo at the Barclays Center before going back into MAAC conference play.  Meanwhile, South Carolina has a quick turnaround with a 4:00 PM game at home on Thursday at home before traveling to Hawaii to play three games in the Diamond Head Classic, with their first game against St Mary's on December 22.

Here's hoping that both teams start adjusting more to the free throw rules.  Fifty three fouls and fifty six points on free throws are two numbers that you don't often see in a basketball game.   And that's just too much stoppage in play for a game that prides itself on end to end action.

Conference Realignment - Careful For What You Wish For

The 2013-14 season promises to be a very interesting season as far as teams in new conference homes.  Due in most part to the power of football TV money, many schools switched conferences.  In fact, due to a dislike in the power of football TV money, the Big East broke off from the football schools to become basically a basketball conference.  This left the other schools, UConn, Louisville (in its last season before joining the ACC), Temple and Cincinnati to fend for themselves in the new AAC.

But conference realignment didn't spare the smaller conferences either.  The Atlantic Ten lost three schools; Xavier and Butler to the newly formed Big East and Charlotte to Conference USA.  As a result, the A-10 plucked two mid major program gems, Davidson and George Mason from their respective conferences (George Mason joined the A-10 immediately. Davidson will join in the 2014-15 season).  The CAA reeling from the loss of Mason, as well as Old Dominion (Conference USA) and Georgia State (Sun Belt), took the Southern Conference's other well known basketball program, College of Charleston.

But wait, there's more!  The Patriot gained two schools.  First Boston University left the confines of the America East to join what it believes is a better fit in academics.  Second, Loyola, Maryland interestingly left the stronger MAAC conference for the land of the Last Amateurs.  However, the MAAC retained Loyola's former coach, Jimmy Patsos, as he took the Siena job.  The MAAC in turn went out and plucked two NEC schools, Monmouth and Quinnipiac.   America East restocked with UMass Lowell jumping up into the Division I foray.

The Missouri Valley lost one of their most highly regarded schools in Creighton as the Bluejays joined their fellow catholic brethren in the Big East.  To fill the void, the Valley took Loyola Chicago away from the Horizon.  Conference USA not only plucked ODU, but took Florida Atlantic and Florida International away from the Sun Belt.   The WAC only has two member schools remaining from last season, New Mexico State and Idaho.

There are even more schools that either switched conferences or became Division I schools (check out the WAC when you get a chance) that's it just too many to count.  So let's highlight three schools, all with recent mid major success, that moved to a new conference;

Butler - In two seasons, the Bulldogs moved from the Horizon to the Atlantic Ten to the Big East.   Comparatively speaking, that's like an A ball player moving up and being successful in the majors in two seasons.  Yes, there are players that made that move like Bryce Harper, but they are few and far between.

To Butler's credit, their first season in the A-10 was a very successful one.  The Bulldogs went 11-5 in conference, 27-9 overall and won their second round NCAA Tournament game before losing to Marquette.  Now they will get to see the Golden Eagles twice a season in the Big East, albeit without former coach Brad Stevens, who decided to make the biggest move of all and jump to the NBA as coach of the Boston Celtics.

The Bulldogs lost leading scorers Rotnei Clarke and Andrew Smith to graduation.  Then Butler lost their leading returning scorer from last season, Roosevelt Jones, for the season with torn ligaments.  That leaves Khyle Marshall, Kameron Woods and Kellen Dunham to fill the scoring void.  It's asking a lot to make up for the loss of thirty eight points, fourteen rebounds and nearly eight assists per game.

Butler's non conference schedule seems light this season, with a home game vs. Vanderbilt and a neutral site game vs. Purdue as the two big games on their schedule.   The Bulldogs are predicted to finish middle of the pack in the Big East.   That might be generous given the loss of Jones.

Creighton -  At least the Bulldogs took a mid step in their jump from the Horizon to the Big East in two seasons.  Their fellow Big East brethren Bluejays are taking a one season, herculean leap from the Missouri Valley to the land of catholic basketball.  And Creighton was a really nice catch for the Big East, with their long standing, successful basketball program and a home game attendance that's regularly 18,000 plus.  The Bulldogs won twenty eight games last season and knocked off Cincinnati in the second round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Duke.

But unlike Butler, Creighton is returning its leading scorer, All American Doug McDermott, plus the return of third leading scorer Grant Gibbs and his nearly six assists per game.  Throw in returning players Ethan Wragge and Austin Chatman, the fourth and fifth leading scorers from last season's team and it's no wonder that the Bluejays are picked to finish first in the Big East.  However, in a deep Big East, the Bluejays won't have cupcakes like Missouri State (11-22) to play twice a year.  Well okay, there is DePaul.

Creighton will find out early how good they are based on their non conference schedule.  The Bluejays play at St Joseph's, have a neutral site game vs. Arizona State, host Nebraska in their annual interstate feud and play host to Cal a little more than a week before the start of Big East conference season.

George Mason - The loss of Xavier, Temple and Charlotte forced the A-10 to restock with the Patriots and next season the Wildcats of Davidson.  Mason was a logical choice being basically a basketball only school that has made the NCAA Tournament three times since 2006, including their Final Four run in 2006.

Since their last NCAA tournament appearance in 2011, the Patriots have won forty six games overall with two twenty plus win seasons (24-9 in 2011-12, 22-16 in 2012-13).   But Mason struggled in the CAA barely finishing above .500 in conference, finishing fourth at 10-8 and losing to Northeastern in the CAA semifinal 69-67 after being up 28-4 fifteen minutes into the first half.  The Patriots finished the season playing in the CBI, Defiantly Dutch's favorite postseason tournament, losing in the CBI championship series to Santa Clara.

The Patriots return nine of their top ten players in minutes, including their top five leading scorers; Sherrod Wright, Jonathan Arledge, Byron Allen, Erik Copes and Johnny Williams.  So scoring will not be an issue for Mason.  Unfortunately, Copes has been suspended for the first six games of the season, so their depth will be tested early on in their schedule.

Mason has been picked as low as tenth in at least one preseason poll, which seems low to me considering the experience they are returning this season.  Non conference road games at Iona, a neutral site game vs. Oklahoma and a home game vs. Iowa State should give the Patriots a chance to show they are better than their preseason standing in the A-10.  Plus an early season conference game with #14 VCU should shed some light on where the Patriots rank in the Atlantic 10.  But there won't be any UNC Wilmingtons to feast on in the A-10.  Mason will have to bring every it night in conference.

Iona Rebounds With Dominating Win Over St Peter's in MAAC Women's Basketball

Tony Bozzella's Gaels started the MAAC women's basketball season with a 3-0 start. All three wins were by double digits, including two wins on their Buffalo road trip over Canisius and Niagara, two teams picked in the top four in the preseason MAAC poll. The Gaels then dominated Manhattan at home, winning by thirty, 76-46.

But within the span of five days, the Gaels lost two in a row. First, Iona lost to Marist for the twenty seventh time in a row, a fourteen point defeat at the McCann Center. Then at home last Friday, the Gaels battled the Stags of Fairfield. Iona got within one point with four minutes left in the game, but couldn't get any closer as Fairfield won 60-54.

This is typical of a young team that has only one senior now that Haley D'Angelo has been granted another year of eligibility. Young teams are streaky, especially ones that start two juniors, one sophomore and two freshman with their sixth man being another sophomore. They look terrific for one stretch of time, then struggle for another stretch.

Their opponent last Sunday at the Hynes Center, St Peter's, had lost their first fifteen games, including five in conference. But three of their five MAAC losses were by single digits. Iona may have been expected to win. But having lost two in a row, the question was how would the Gaels respond in a game that some team might take lightly.


For the first two minutes of the game, Iona seemed in a fog. St Peter's was the more aggressive team and jumped out to an early 7-5 lead on a jumper by Jesika Holmes.

But the light switch turned on for the Gaels. They went on a 14-0 run which featured five straight points by an aggressive Sabrina Jeridore. Iona was up 19-7 after a Jiya Dorces-Eya layup.

The Peacocks were able to cut the deficit to ten, 22-12 with eleven minutes left in the half. But again the Gaels responded with another huge run. Iona outscored St Peter's 17-2 over the next four and a half minutes. Aleesha Powell, playing with confidence and in control, scored five straight points during that spurt. D'Angelo's layup capped the run and the Gaels were up 39-14 with six and half minutes remaining in the first half.

Iona entered the locker room up 48-25 at halftime. They had forced twelve St Peter's turnovers while only committing five themselves. The Gaels showed really good ball movement and were aggressive on the offensive glass. They had as many assists, eleven as they had offensive rebounds.

Powell and Damika Martinez already were in double figures scoring, each with eleven points. My color analyst, aka my son Matthew, who has attended many Iona women's games over the past three seasons noted "That's the most points I ever saw Iona (the women's team) score in a half." I had to concur.

Now with the game seemingly in hand, there's a tendency for teams to back off in the second half and not be as focused. Sure enough, St Peter's came out as the aggressor in the start of the second half. The Peacocks cut the lead to under twenty for the first time since eight minutes left in the first half. An Aziza May three pointer made the score 50-31.

Coach Bozzella could have called timeout here to get his team re-focused. Instead, he let his team refocus on their own. The Gaels responded with a 9-2 spurt as Joy Adams hit a three point play and then Martinez scored four straight points. Iona was up 59-33 with sixteen and a half minutes left in the game.

St Peter's though had one last run in them. The Peacocks outscored the Gaels 12-4. Kristal Edwards' jumper made the score 63-45.

But Iona also had one more run in them. Once again, the Gaels outscored the Peacocks 17-2, this time over an eight minute span. Adams and Powell combined for twelve of those points. Diana Hubbard capped the run with a three pointer, one of three on the day for her, to put Iona up 80-47 with less than five minutes remaining in the game.

Iona had as large as a thirty four point lead before winning by thirty two, 93-61. Bozzella extensively used his bench the entire game, with twelve players getting eleven or more minutes. The Gaels shot nearly fifty five percent in the second half and forty nine percent for the game. They had twice as many assists, twenty, as turnovers, ten.

Martinez led all scorers with nineteen points. Powell had a very strong game with fifteen points and five assists. Adams added fourteen points and nine rebounds. Jeridore had seven points, seven rebounds and four blocks. All eleven Iona players scored at least two points on the game. The Iona bench outscored the Iona starters 47-46.

Edwards led St Peter's with fifteen points. May added fourteen and Holmes chipped in with twelve points. The Peacocks were held to 37.5 percent from the field.

The Gaels have a very important battle for third place at home coming up against Niagara this evening, with a chance to sweep the season series from the Purple Eagles. They needed momentum going into the game and they got it on Sunday.

Perhaps it's the start of another successful stretch for this young team.

One Last Game in 2012 (Recap of Iona vs. Stony Brook Women's Basketball Game)

Sunday was going to be the last day that I would see a basketball game in calendar year 2012.  It was also likely the last game I would see in the New York metropolitan area until at least February, perhaps longer.  I was heading back to South Carolina New Year's Day morning.

So if I was going to be at any basketball game on Sunday, it only made sense that I was at the Iona-Stony Brook women's basketball game.  Two of my favorite three local New York schools (Hofstra obviously being the third of the trifecta) and more importantly seeing my dear friend Tony Bozzella, head coach of the Iona women's team, as well as seeing his wonderful family - wife Maria, daughter Samantha and son, Joseph.

It was a good crowd for a Sunday women's game with 320 in attendance.  Stony Brook entered the game at 7-4, with three more wins than they had all of last season.  Iona entered the game at 5-5 and looked to end their non conference slate by going over .500.  

The first half was a defensive struggle.  Iona jumped out to a 13-7 lead after an Aleesha Powell basket, her only field goal of the game.  Stony Brook would respond with a 6-0 spurt with Sabre Proctor scoring the last two points on a layup to tie the game at thirteen.  We would hear Proctor's name often on Sunday.

The Gaels responded with a 14-4 run over the next several minutes.  Damika Martinez and Aaliyah Robinson would hit back to back three pointers.  Then Shonice Hawkins hit an old fashioned three point play to put Iona up 27-17.   But the Seawolves would score six of the last eight points of the half to cut the lead to six, 29-23 entering the half.

The start of the second half saw Stony Brook start out on an 8-0 run.  Jessica Previlon scored two baskets inside, which would be a common theme for her in the last twenty minutes of the game.   The Seawolves had their first lead of the game since a little less than sixteen minutes left in the first half. 

The Gaels would come back to tie the game twice in the next couple of minutes.  However, Stony Brook would slowly inch out to a six point as Proctor, Previlon and Teasha Harris (sister of  former Tennessee men's player Tobias Harris now with the Milwaukee Bucks) led the way for the Seawolves, who were up 47-41 with about eight and a half minutes left.

During this time, the Stony Brook dance team went into the crowd asking kids if they wanted to be a part of the Cotton Eyed Joe dance at the under eight minute media timeout with the Seawolves' mascot Wolfie.  Matthew didn't want to go, but reluctantly went when Jonathan wanted to go.  

When the kids went out on the dance floor at the U8 media timeout, Matthew and Jonathan were at the far end of the court opposite me. Matthew danced away but Jonathan started crying.  The dance team member who recruited him picked him up and brought a teary Jonathan to me.  He told me he was "scared".  

Iona responded with an 8-0 spurt over the next two minutes.  Cassidee Ranger hit a three pointer, then two free throws and Robinson hit another three pointer to put the Gaels up 49-47 with six and a half minutes left.  Robinson's basket brought the contingent of fans behind the Iona bench up to their feet.

But the Seawolves responded by scoring seven straight points.  A Harris jumper tied the game at 49.  Then Previlon scored on a three point play and then later added two more free throws as the Gaels had no answer for her in the second half.  Stony Brook was up 54-49 with a little more than five minutes left.

Iona would get within two points twice over the next two minutes.  A Ranger three pointer made the score 59-57 Stony Brook with three minutes left.  The Gaels were down 65-62 with forty nine seconds left and had a chance to cut the lead to one.  But Robinson's layup attempt wouldn't fall down.  Stony Brook would end up winning the game 70-64.

It was Stony Brook's eighth win of the season, which was double the number of wins from a season ago.  Previlon, Harris and Proctor scored forty one of the Seawolves' forty seven second half points.  Harris scored eleven of her fifteen points on free throws.  Previlon had a double double with seventeen points and eleven rebounds while Proctor had a game high twenty five points and added eight rebounds. Stony Brook shot 27 of 34 from the free throw line.

Martinez led the Gaels with eighteen points, twelve of which were scored in the second half.  Adams added another double-double for the season with twelve points and ten rebounds.  Ranger and Robinson came off the bench and each scored eleven points.  Iona was 9 of 19 from beyond the arc and 15 of 18 from the line.

After the game, I waited around a few minutes but then had to leave.  I said goodbye to Maria, Joey and Sammy and wished them a Happy New year.   It was good to hang out with them.  Another fine day of college basketball and great friends.  A good way to end 2012.

An Arena Grows in Brooklyn Part 2 (Recap of South Carolina vs. Manhattan)

Four months ago, I left my position at Hofstra for the University of South Carolina.  For twenty eight years of my life, I had spent most of my days on the campus located in Hempstead, New York.   Now I spend my work days on the campus located in Columbia, South Carolina.  I went from a mid major basketball school to the heart of the SEC, home of big time college football.  So it was ironic that on Saturday, I would be attending a tripleheader where my two worlds collided.  

In the first game, I proudly wore my Hofstra Basketball sweatshirt. My alma mater had played well for twenty minutes, only to see it be on the receiving end of a 20-0 run at the start of the second half before losing to Tulane.  But right before the tip-off of South Carolina vs. Manhattan, I took off my sweatshirt as I was wearing underneath a Gamecocks Basketball T-shirt.  I wasn't the only one in the Northeast CAA contingent wearing Garnet.  Mike Brodsky was proudly wearing USC athletic wear to support his friends at South Carolina.

Both Manhattan and South Carolina were missing their best players for the game.  The Jaspers' George Beamon has been battling injuries all season and sat out the game as Coach Steve Masiello wanted to get him ready for MAAC conference play. Meanwhile, Gamecocks' guard Bruce Ellington didn't make the trip as he was preparing with his fellow football teammates for the Outback Bowl on New Year's Day. 

Once again, I was sitting with Tieff, Mike Brodsky, Victoria Rossi and Alex Faust for this second game.  I was joined by Ray Curren, who was covering the third of four games for the Mid Majority on the day.  We were going to see a much closer game than the first game of the tripleheader.

South Carolina came out strong.  As I had seen already several times this season, other than Ellington, the Gamecocks' two other best players are Michael Carrera and Brenton Williams.  Williams nailed two three pointers, while Carrera added a three pointer and a layup as well. They combined for all of South Carolina's points early as the Gamecocks went up 11-3.  

But also as I had seen several times this season, the Gamecocks allow their opponents to stay in the game. The Jaspers responded with 18-7 run over the next six minutes.  Shane Richards hit his second of six three pointers on the day to put Manhattan up 21-18 with 10:19 left in the half.

Neither team would score for nearly three minutes until Lakeem Jackson hit a layup to bring South Carolina within a point, 21-20.  It would be part of a Gamecocks' 9-2 spurt capped by a layup by Carrera to put USC up 27-23.  After Manhattan rallied to tie the game at 27, the Gamecocks had another spurt as Brian Richardson nailed two three pointers and Carrera added a free throw to put South Carolina up 34-27.  They would enter the half up six, 36-30.

Carrera was already impressing our group as he had twelve points and six rebounds, which helped South Carolina to a 23-9 rebounding edge at halftime.  He is undersized as far as SEC forwards at six foot five inches.  But Carrera plays with the heart of a six foot nine kid and has a high basketball IQ.   

Someone at the Barclays Center has a twisted sense of humor.  At halftime, they posted the score but listed it with Hofstra and Tulane instead of South Carolina and Manhattan.  The scoreboard folks were rubbing salt into a fresh wound for Pride fans like me.

The second half saw South Carolina extend its lead to seven points, 38-31 on a Jackson layup.  But Manhattan responded with a 10-0 run.  Again, Richards was in the mix, nailing another three pointer.  The Jaspers led 41-38 with fourteen minutes left.

But the Gamecocks came back with a 10-0 run of their own.  South Carolina forced five Manhattan turnovers over a four minute span. Richardson scored five of those ten points and the Gamecocks were up 48-41 with ten and a half minutes left. 

The next several minutes became the Brenton Williams show.  Williams scored eight straight points, the last of which was a three pointer that gave the Gamecocks their first double digit lead of the game.  South Carolina was up 58-47 with five minutes left in the game.

The Gamecocks would go scoreless for the next two and a half minutes.  But Manhattan only managed four points during that span.  Williams assisted on a Jackson jumper and South Carolina was back up nine, 60-51 with just under two and a half minutes left in the game.

But Manhattan refused to quit.  Mohamed Koita and Richards each hit a three pointer and the lead was down to three, 60-57 with 1:21 left.  The Jaspers got the crowd back in the game. 

However the Jaspers turned the ball over on each of their next two possessions and would not score again. Richardson, Williams and Carrera, the three leading scorers on the day for the Gamecocks, would each hit one of two free throws.  It wasn't pretty, but it was effective for South Carolina, as they won 62-57.

Williams led South Carolina with seventeen points.  Carrera, whose only point in the second half came on that free throw, still had thirteen points and Richardson added twelve points.  Jackson just missed a double double with nine points and eleven rebounds.

Richards led all scorers with eighteen points on six of twelve shooting from beyond the arc.  Rhamel Brown just missed a double double with ten points and nine rebounds.  He would have easily had more points if he was better than two of ten from the free throw line. Donovan Kates, however, had a good day at the line as he was eight of ten, which helped him score thirteen points for the game.

It was the eighth win on the season for Head Coach Frank Martin, who at times on the sideline looked like he needed some Pepto Bismol.  His team gave him reason for an upset stomach with nineteen turnovers, but they still won.  In fact, they are only two wins away from matching last year's win total, ten.  The Gamecocks didn't win their tenth game last season until my birthday, February 15.  

And despite how fiery Martin is, it wasn't him that got the technical foul call.  Manhattan's Masiello got a technical in the second half, which contributed to that game changing 10-0 South Carolina run.  As for Masiello, he has to hope that George Beamon is ready for conference play.  Manhattan, the preseason favorite to win the MAAC, is only 3-7 so far this season.

I said my goodbyes to the Northeast CAA gang and Ray Curren, who was staying for the Seton Hall - LIU Brooklyn game for his canasta of hoops on the day.  Tieff and I made our way back to Atlantic Terminal, then said goodbye at Jamaica station as we each had separate trains to Bellmore and Hicksville respectively. 

I know what you're saying.  How could I pass up a third game of a basketball tripleheader?  After spending the rest of the evening looking at Christmas lights with my wife and two boys, I hope the picture to the left answers your question.  

Plus, the basketball season is still young.  I still had a game to see on Sunday with Iona hosting Norfolk State and there are plenty of more games left to see.  And oh yes, I am making plans to be at Barclays again in March for the Atlantic 10 Tournament. 

Also, after seeing your alma mater in the first game and then your new home team play the second game, that was a fitting end to my basketball day. Anything more would have been anticlimactic.

Besides, two is a nice even number, in basketball and in life.