Review of the 2011 CAA Men's Basketball Tournament

The 2011 CAA Tournament lived up to its billing.  There were close games, major upsets, buzzer beaters, end to end action, raucous crowds and of course, bad officiating.  And what was at first a blowout in the championship game turned out to be an exciting finish and an opportunity for three bids for the conference.

When heading to Richmond Coliseum last Friday had anyone said to me that I would see four first round games that day where the margin of victory would be six points or less, I would have replied "Unlikely, but I will take it."  It's very rare that you see that many close games in a tournament.  But that's what you had on Friday.

I thought Georgia State would be deflated after their coach Rod Barnes was fired on Sunday.  And it sure looked like it after the Seahawks went out to a 16-8 lead.  But the Panthers responded with a 16-1 run over a six and a half minutes to go up 24-17 with six plus minutes left in the half.  Georgia State went into the half up 28-26.   They eventually won 58-52 in what was a very ugly game with a lack of scoring. 

UNCW was held to 29.5 percent shooting from the field.  Chad Tomko reverted to the Tomko pre 2010-11.  He struggled at the end missing five of his last six shots with three turnovers.  Tomko shot an ugly 7 of 21 for the game.

In the second game, twelve seeded Towson was looking for its first win in conference all season vs the fifth seeded Drexel Dragons.  And as I wrote in article for Defiantly Dutch, the three fans who came out to support their team got to see the Tigers play valiantly against the Dragons.  Unfortunately, Towson's late rally was not enough to get their first win in conference as Drexel moved on with a 75-69 win.  For more details, please click here for my article.

In the evening session, Northeastern came out smoking from the outside, shooting 8 of 16 including five three pointers, two by Chaisson Allen, to jump out to a 25-14 lead.  But Jawan Carter and his twelve first half points would lead the Blue Hens back as they outscored the Huskies 13-4 the rest of half as Delaware was down only two, 29-27 at the half.  In the second half, Delaware forced Northeastern to keep shooting from the outside and the Huskies only shot 32 percent while shooting 51 percent in a 60-58 win.  Chaisson Allen struggled in his final game for Northeastern as he only went 3 of 12 from the field.

In the last game of the day on Friday, #6 seed James Madison took on #11 William and Mary.  When the Dukes came out from the tunnel, they just walked on the court.  There was no sense of urgency, which was strange given the Tribe had defeated the Dukes at Harrisonburg.   The game was tied 34 at the half, yet when the Dukes came out of the tunnel early and sat on their bench while their dance team finished one routine and then did their final routine.   It was amazing how much it seemed that Madison didn't care.  Immediately I turned to Tieff and said, "They are going to lose. Mark my words."

The game was close throughout and one of the most bizarre moments in CAA Tournament history took place with W&M ahead 65-63 .  JMU  had two chances to tie or take the lead.  After missing the second opportunity, JMU Coach Matt Brady must have said something really bad to the official as he was running down the court on a W&M fast break.  The official stopped play right there and called a technical foul on Brady.  Quinn McDowell buried two free throws  and the Tribe were back out ahead 67-63.

JMU rallied and took the lead 68-67 on a Devon Moore layup with 1:21 left. But two Britt free throws gave W&M the lead back.   JMU couldn't score the rest of the way and the Tribe won, upsetting the Dukes 72-68.  Quinn McDowell was unreal that night.  He scored a tournament record 35 points on 10 of 12 shooting, including 5 of 6 from beyond the arc and 10 of 11 from the line.   He missed his last free throw attempt.

What was really strange in that game was that Denzel Bowles had zero points at the half and only five for the game.  W&M played a soft double team on him the entire night and took him out of the game.  He eventually took himself out of the game with five fouls and his body language all night was just bad.  There were many NBA scouts there that night sitting a few rows ahead of us.  I am pretty sure he didn't endear himself to them.

It was on to the quarterfinals where in three of the four games, the lower seed came out and took a substantial lead, only to have the higher seed comeback and win convincingly.   In the first game, Georgia State went out to an impressive 27-16 lead over George Mason with seven minutes left in the first half.  However the Patriots went on a 42-9 run over the two halves as they simply clamped down on the Panthers with incredible defense.

George Mason forced 21 Georgia State turnovers and the Panthers lack of a go to scorer killed them in the second half.  The Patriots went on to win the game 68-45.  Ten Mason players contributed points in the win.  And while Ryan Pearson had nine free throw attempts (hitting seven of them), it seemed like he was there even more than that.

Then you had the second game of the day, Drexel and VCU.  It was a classic Bruiser Flint game - low scoring for the most part, physical defense, lots of rebounds, lots of fouls and at times, damn ugly to watch.   And the crowd LOVED it.   The score was tied 23 at the half and what looked like was going to be a score in the fifties.  After the first fifty one minutes, the teams combined for only eighty points as the score was 41-39 VCU.

Yet somehow the teams managed to score forty two points in the last ten minutes of what turned out to be a very exciting game.  And a very badly officiated game.   First the foul differential was  unreal.  Drexel was called for 27 fouls while VCU had 19.  Second in free throw attempts, Drexel had 17 (only making 10 of them), while VCU had 37 (making 26 of them).

The coup de gras moment was with 4:12 left, Samme Givens hit a layup and went into Joey Rodriguez who was LITERALLY underneath the basket.  The referee called a charge on Givens which sent the non VCU fans howling and Bruiser Flint into a tizzy.   Bruiser literally walked to the corner of the court by the baseline so he could vent there by himself.   Meanwhile the officials gathered and in attempt to make it up, counted the basket yet kept the foul on Givens, which was his fourth.   Rodriguez hit two foul shots.  So instead of 51-50 VCU, it was now 53-50 VCU and Givens had four fouls and would eventually foul out.

The game looked over with the Rams up five 57-52 with 1:07 left.  But Drexel rallied as Chris Fouch hit two threes and a layup in the span of thirty four seconds while VCU missed three free throws, including two by Rodriguez.  The game was tied at 60.  But Jamie Skeen, who had been a horse all day with 24 points and 8 rebounds, hit a layup as time expired and the Rams won 62-60.   It was exciting but damn ugly.  Forty Six fouls, thirty one turnovers (seven by Rodriguez who had a horrid game) and eighteen missed free throws.  Typical Drexel-VCU game.

In the evening session, which was totally sold out, Delaware, who had split the regular season series with ODU, went out to a 17-8 lead.  ODU rallied and went into the half up 27-25.   The game remained close for the first ten minutes of the second half as Devon Saddler buried a three pointer to tie up the game at 35 with just about ten minutes left in the game.   But the Monarchs clamped down on Saddler and Jawan Carter while Frank Hassell and friends went to work.

ODU went on a 15-4 run over the span of a little more than five minutes to go up 50-39.   Delaware  would never get closer than six points the rest of the way as Old Dominion won 59-50. Hassell was his usual self, scoring 24 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and shooting 9 of 13 from the field. The Monarchs would shoot 48 percent from the field, which would be a trend for the team that was at the bottom end in the CAA in FG percentage.

In the last game of the quarterfinals, Hofstra was facing William and Mary for the third time. The Pride had swept the season series but both were very close games.    W&M went out to a 9-0 lead. But Hofstra rallied and using a suffocating defense and a strong second half surge, the Pride would defeat the Tribe 72-56.  For more on this game, click here.

So it was on to the semifinals, a capacity crowd at the Richmond Coliseum and a rocking atmosphere. There was the battle of the pep bands as George Mason's band took turns with VCU's band as they tried to one up each other. The funniest moment was after Mason did a rocking version of Thriller.  The VCU band started doing a few bars of their own version of Thriller which got the Mason band and student section howling.  The VCU band pranked them as they kicked into another song. The VCU band had Mason's band's number and soon the Rams would have the Patriots' number as well.

George Mason came into the game with a 16 game winning streak while VCU had the majority of the crowd in their favor. And Jamie Skeen ignited the crowd with two threes as the Rams went up 16-8 early.  The Patriots would come back and a Cam Long three point play put the Patriots up 20-18 ten minutes into the first half.  Mason Nation, most of which was sitting by us in our section, was quite pleased with GMU's 12-2 run. 

But Ed Nixon put the Rams back up 21-20 with a three pointer,  And it was the beginning of a monster 21-2 run by VCU as they would hit five three point bombs during the eight and a half minute span.  Long's layup before the half would cut the deficit to fourteen as the Rams entered the locker room with a fourteen point lead, 39-25.  VCU had nine threes at the half, three by Skeen.

The two questions starting the second half was one, whether VCU could keep up their torrid shooting and two, how would Mason respond starting the second half.   The Patriots quickly responded by working the ball inside for layups and they cut the Rams' lead in half, 44-37 not even four minutes into the second half.

But Jamie Skeen buried his fourth three of the game and the lead was back to ten, 47-37.  The Patriots would never get closer than ten points the rest of the way.  Mason couldn't stop VCU and they looked out of sync on offense.  Mike Morrison quickly fouled out in the second half and Long had more than a third of his team's points with 20.  The rest of his team scored 46 points.  Skeen and Burgess combined for 37 points, 17 rebounds and seven three pointers as VCU stunned the number one seeded Mason 72-56.  

The question for many fans was could Hofstra knock off Old Dominion and perhaps give CAA fans the strong possibility of three CAA teams making the NCAA Tournament (or as the tweet hashtag would say #3BidsForCAA).  The VCU fans stuck around to see if that possibility could be a reality while the Mason fans headed for the exits.

Both teams came out smoking from the field.  Hofstra hit eight of their first eleven field goal attempts while Old Dominion hit six of their first nine field goal attempts.  Barely ten minutes into the first half and the score was ODU 22 Hofstra 21. 

About one minute later, Hofstra's Greg Washington who had been a major part of the Pride's offense with seven points, most of which came on cuts to the basket off screens, picked up his second foul.  When Washington left the game, the Pride offense struggled for over five minutes shooting 2 of 9.  The Monarchs took advantage stretching their lead to eight, 33-25.  The Pride cut the lead back to three, 33-30 on a three pointer by Brad Kelleher and a jumper by Charles Jenkins, who had eight points and four assists in the first half.  But ODU would get the lead back to seven, 41-34 at halftime.

The question would be whether both teams could keep up such a high scoring pace, especially an ODU team that was for a good part of the season till recently towards the bottom in FG percentage , yet was first in scoring defense.  The answer turned out to be yes, much to the chagrin of the Hofstra faithful.

The Pride could not make up any ground on the Monarchs over the first few minutes.  In fact, ODU actually extended their lead to 52-41 on a Darius James' three as the Monarchs hit three of their first four FG attempts and also added four free throws as as well. 

Hofstra though came back and cut the deficit in half to 56-50 on a Jenkins three, his fourth with 12 minutes left.  The Pride had two chances to cut the deficit even further on their next two possessions as Kelleher got a five second inbounds call against him (only their fourth turnover of the game) and Jenkins missed on a layup attempt (yes, a definite rarity). 

The Pride would never get closer the rest of the way, though they did their best to hang around.  They just couldn't stop the Monarchs on the defensive end, especially Frank Hassell.  Hassell had 22 points on 6 of 9 shooting from the field and 10 of 12 from the line.  And while Hofstra did a really good job of holding their own against the best rebounding team in the nation (ODU only outrebounded Hofstra 29-26), the Monarchs as a whole shot a scolding 57 percent from the field.  So while Hofstra did a good job of scoring 69 points against the best scoring defense in the CAA (ODU only gives up 58 points per game), ODU scored 77 points. 

So while the final was set with the CAA's biggest rivalry VCU vs. ODU, Tieff and I made our way back up to New York on a very rainy Sunday evening.  As everyone knows, in the championship game, ODU went out to an eighteen point second half lead only to see VCU rally to cut the deficit to one.  The Monarchs held on for a 70-65 win in front of perhaps the loudest televised CAA crowd I can ever remember.

VCU has gained ground swelling support for an at large bid while George Mason seems assured of another at large bid, while ODU waits to see what seed they will get.   Sound familiar?  It should.  Just like I said in my CAA Tournament preview, it's 2006 all over again.  The question is, will VCU play the part of Hofstra this time?

WhiteOut in Brooklyn as LIU Defeats Robert Morris in Overtime To Win NEC Championship

Today was one of those days.  I got into work early to get some projects done.  As busy as the morning was, my day came to a screeching halt around 11:45 AM when I saw a familiar extension as my phone rang.  It was the Hofstra Day Care number and I knew there couldn't be good news.  As I answered the phone, I found out my younger son, Jonathan, had a 101.2 fever.  I called my wife, told her news and that I was going to pick him up and take him home.

I got to the day care to see my son being held.  He was quite warm and quite mushy.  I took him home, then gave him Tylenol.  Then I spent the afternoon between playing with him and his seemingly thousands of matchbox cars while trying to keep up with my work e-mail.

Around  5:00 PM, I picked up older son Matthew from his afterschool program.  Shortly thereafter my wife got home and I ran out of the house.  I had plans.  My friends Mal, Tieff and I were meeting up in Brooklyn to see the NEC Championship game between Robert Morris and LIU-Brooklyn.

Now this game had some interesting subplots, well as far as I was concerned.  First, you had Long Island, where I live, playing Robert Morris, which is in Pittsburgh, where my family is from.  Second, my familiarity with LIU stems from my good friend Tony Bozzella being the former coach of the Lady Blackbirds before he went to Iona.  In his first season at LIU Brooklyn in 2001, the Lady Blackbirds won the NEC Championship.  It was the only time in history that LIU Brooklyn went to the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament.   They ended up traveling to Storrs and faced and lost to top seeded UConn.  It would also be one of the most memorable and hilarious road trips I ever took.

Finally, it was ten years ago this week that I saw Hofstra defeat Delaware at the Mack Center to win the America East Championship for the second year in a row (and before they headed to the CAA, much to the chagrin of Defiantly Dutch).  It was the last time I saw a team win a D1 mid major conference tournament championship.  I knew I was going to see one this night.  You had the defending NEC champion Colonials taking on the current regular season champion Blackbirds.  And it lived up to the billing and then some.

We got to the Wellness Recreation Athletic Center a couple of minutes into the game with Robert Morris ahead 9-7.  The WRAC, as it's known, is a 3,000 seat arena/gym that was built in 2005.  It has suites, an electronic scoreboard and it holds sound well.  Really well.  When we got there, the place was rocking.  And it was so packed that we were one of the last allowed in to the arena.  So even if you had tickets, you weren't getting in.

The only section available to us was the student section behnd the Robert Morris basket.  In fact we were sitting right next to the RMU pep band,   In the one section of seats was the pep band and Colonials' supporters (and RMU also had the entire section behind the RMU bench.  The rest of the seats on this end were entirely filled with Blackbirds' supporters.

So there was Mal, Tieff and I standing with the LIU students. most of them clad in white for "The Whiteout".  And we joined in on the cheering for the Blackbirds and heckling of the RMU players, especially at the free throw line.   In all the years of going to college basketball games, I never acted like a student (that's me in the green sweater), till  this game.  It was different and it was fun.

The game was a nip and tuck affair for the entire 45 minutes.  Robert Morris led most of the first half. Russell Johnson buried several threes in the first half for the Colonials.  But Jamal Olasewere kept the Blackbirds close with seventeen first half points. Olasewere actually had a chance to tie the game at the half, but only hit one of two free throws.  LIU struggled from the line at the first half shooting 6 of 13 from the charity stripe.   Instead of being up by a few points at the half, the Blackbirds trailed the Colonials 33-32.

The second half saw LIU finally take a substantial lead as the Blackbirds outscored the Colonials 18-8 over the first six minutes.  They were led by Jason Brickman, who reminded the three of us of Joey Rodriguez on VCU, only a little more disciplined.  Brickman nailed two three pointers, two free throws and assisted on a layup to put LIU 50-41 with 14:08 left.

But the Colonials would not go away. Robert Morris responded with a 8-1 spurt over a nearly two and half minute period.  Lijah Thompson would score five points and add an assist to make the score 51-49 LIU with 11:46 left.    The pace though was definitely in the favor of LIU.  And the Blackbirds would again go on a spurt, this time a 8-2 spurt as Brickman assisted on two more baskets as LIU went up  59-51.  The lead would still be eight,72-64 with 2:29 left. It looked like LIU was going to win the game.

But Robert Morris wouldn't quit.  The Colonials battled for two offensive rebounds on their next possession and scored a basket.  RMU pressed, forced a steal  and that would lead to a three pointer which cut the deficit to three.  After the teams traded baskets, with 55 seconds left and the ball, LIU tried to run the clock down instead of running their offense.  Towards the end of the possession, the Blackbirds tried to force a play and it ended up in the hands of Thompson.  The Colonials found Johnson for an open three point look and he buried it to tie the game at 74.  LIU missed a shot at the buzzer and it was only fitting that we had overtime.

The momentum appeared to be on Robert Morris' side and the Colonials scored the first basket in overtime to go up two.  The teams traded points and RMU was still up 80-78 with 2:29 left.  Then Olasewere made a jumper to tie the game and Robert Morris turned the ball over on their next possession.  Again, Olasewere scored and the Blackbirds were up two.

One of the key factors on the night was that both teams struggled at the free throw line and in the next three possessions,  three free throws were missed.   Johnson missed one, then Olasewere, then Johnson again.  Neither team could seemingly capitalize on the charity stripe.  The lead was only one, 83-82 with 44 seconds left and LIU had the ball.  The Robert Morris fans chanted DE-FENSE while the LIU fans were in a frenzy.

Again, one of the most prolific offenses in the NCAA decided to run the clock down instead of running their offense and fired up a three with only a few second s left on the shot clock. Fortunately for the Blackbirds, they grabbed not one but two offensive rebounds and Brickman was fouled with seven seconds left.  The Joey Rodriguez clone sank both free throws and Robert Morris called timeout after a long pass with six seconds left and the chance to tie.



The above video that I took at the end of the game tells the final part of the story.  But for those of you who don't want to sit through the video, Robert Morris had two semi open three point attempt looks but missed both and time expired with the LIU fans storming the court having won an 85-82 thriller in overtime.  Mr. Mid Majority himself, Kyle Whelliston was at the game in his suit and a very sweet bow tie.   Bally was by his side at courtside. But when the fans stormed, so did Bally and Kyle.  Their video is here (Notice Bally about ten seconds in).

Instead of storming the court, Mal, Tieff and I viewed the festivities for a couple of minutes and then left through a back door.  Thanks to some LIU fans at the parking garage, instead of driving back down Myrtle Avenue which took forever for us to get to the WRAC, we took Flatbush Avenue (where we saw the construction started for the new Nets Arena) then headed to the BQE and home.  We all agreed we had to go back to the WRAC to see more games as we were impressed with LIU's relatively new arena.

When I got home, my older son Matthew was on his little chair bed in the living room, his best friend by his side.   I don't if he was having visions of championships and court stormings in his head but he seemed content.  I brought him upstairs and tucked him in.

Someday, perhaps he too will be seeing a championship game with a court storming.   Perhaps I will be there with him too.  It's something you have to see, and I was glad to see one again, ten years later.

The Blog Swap Is On

Just got home from the CAA Tournament.  Yes, Hofstra lost, much to my chagrin.  But they played well and just happened to run into a very good ODU team.  More on that tomorrow.   Since sleep is needed, I just wanted to let you know that I have an article on Defiantly Dutch's website concerning three loyal Towson fans and their Tigers team playing Drexel in the first round of the CAA Tournament.   Click here to read the article.   Hope you like it.

Hofstra Advances To CAA Semifinals By Knocking off William and Mary

Since the CAA went to twelve teams in the 2005-06 season, this was the third time Hofstra had a bye in the first round.  And it was also the third time the Pride was the third seed, which meant they played the last game on Saturday night.  As much as I love watching basketball, when your team is playing its first game as the eighth game on the second day of the CAA Tournament, you get nervous and a little impatient.  I was chomping at the bit waiting for Hofstra's first game.

After watching the other three top seeds hold serve in one fashion or another, Hofstra fans like me were prepared for the last game of the CAA Quarterfinals against #11 seed William and Mary last night.  The Pride faithful had to be concerned as several us had watched the Tribe played a spirited game in knocking off  #6 James Madison on Friday night.  Quinn McDowell, who scored 28 points in his last game against Hofstra, scored a tournament record 35 points vs. the Dukes.  And also there were the two close games Hofstra played against W&M, both wins.  The second win was of course the classic comeback against the Tribe that cemented Charles Jenkins legend in Hofstra basketball lore.

So the question was could Hofstra sweep William and Mary or would they fall victim to the old adage that you can't beat a team three times in a season? Then there was McDowell, who perhaps might be the hottest player in the CAA going into the game.  Then throw in a terrific game manager of a coach in Tony Shaver, and you had to be nervous.

Finally, a little after 8:30 PM, the game started and William and Mary picked up right where they left off the night before.  The Tribe jumped out to a 9-0 lead not even four minutes into the game.  Early on, Hofstra looked out of sync, settling for jumpers and Charles Jenkins missed two free throws to boot.  Meanwhile, W&M had worked it inside for layups by Marcus Kitts and Kendrix Brown.  And of course there was a McDowell three.

But the Pride found their stride and scored the next eleven points.  Jenkins hit a layup, then assisted on a three pointer by Brad Kelleher.  Six more points later and Hofstra was up 11-9 with 13 minutes left.   The teams would struggle to score for the next few minutes and the game would be tied at 15 with seven and a half minutes left in the first half.

But again, W&M would go on another run.  The Tribe would outscore the Pride 8-2 as Brandon Britt and McDowell contributed with two threes and W&M was up 23-17 with four minutes left.  But the Pride would rally with their own 8-2 run as Mike Moore's jumper tied the game at 25.   Two Marcus Kitts free throws on what seemed to be a phantom foul would end the half with William and Mary up 27-25.  

If you were one of the many Hofstra students that made the trip from Hempstead down to Richmond, you had to be happy that your team was only down two points at the half, despite Charles Jenkins only having five points in the first 20 minutes.  You knew The Man would have one of his patented second half runs.  It was only a matter of time.

The second half started with the Mary maintaining a small lead, 32-29 barely three minutes into the second half.  Then Hofstra started taking over with a balanced attack. Moore buried a three to tie the game at 32.  Then Jenkins hit a layup to put Hofstra up for good 34-32.   Jenkins, Kelleher and Moore would combine for another eleven points and the Pride lead swelled to 45-36.

W&M would briefly cut the lead to six, 47-41 with 10:15 left.  Then Hofstra used suffocating defense to force three William and Mary turnovers to ignite a 15-0 run over the next four minutes.  Jenkins three pointer started the run and two Jenkins free throws ended the run.  The Pride was up 62-41 with six minutes left and the Tribe was exhausted, having spent a lot of their energy beating JMU the night before.   Now Hofstra had pressured them to the point of expiration.

After scoring a CAA Tournmament record 35 points vs. James Madison, McDowell was hounded by Hofstra all night, whether it was David Imes, Moore, Yves Jules or Jenkins guarding him.  He was only 2 of 6 from the field.  Also, after shooting 10 of 11 free throws Friday night, McDowell didn't have a single free throw attempt against the Pride.   With their best scorer held to six points, the Tribe were done.  Hofstra would win their third game against W&M this season, this time winning easily 72-56.

Having seen Hofstra all season, I honestly think it might have been their best defensive performance, especially the last 20 minutes.  The Pride forced fifteen Tribe turnovers while only committing two turnovers themselves.  Hofstra also had great balance.  Jenkins had 20 points of course, but Kelleher added 12, Moore 11 and Imes had 10 points and 8 rebounds. Shemiye McLendon again was a great spark off the bench with 9 points.  The Pride are now 19-1 when three or more players score in double figures.  Hofstra was also 19 of 22 from the line.   Finally, Coach Mo Cassara's game plan to take McDowell out of the game worked perfectly.

As the team celebrated with their fans after the game, the Pride know they have a quick turnaround later today with #2 seed Old Dominion.  If Hofstra can continue the suffocating defense they had vs. the Tribe and limit the Monarchs on the offensive glass like they did vs W&M (only four offensive boards), then they have an excellent chance to move to the finals.

This time, I won't have to wait nearly two days to see this next game.

Greetings from Richmond! It's CAA Tournament Time

Greetings from Richmond!  We got into our hotel room at 4:00 am this morning.  But not before we had a late night dinner at Waffle House.  OK, a late night breakfast.

Before I head out to the Friday afternoon session, I wanted to let you know that Defiantly Dutch, aka Mr. Jerry Beach, and I will be doing our annual blog swap just in time for the CAA Tournament.   Both of our stories are hush hush. However, I will say that my article for his blog will be based on an idea he gave me.

The trip to Richmond last night/this morning was quite interesting.  I had met up with Tieff in New York City where he works.  He already had my luggage from the night before, so we attempted to go from midtown Manhattan to the Prudential Center, AKA, the Rock.  Seton Hall was hosting St John's last night and as you may know, the Pirates upset the Johnnies 82-70.   That will be for a later article.

We only got to the arena a little before halftime due to a nasty accident in the Lincoln Tunnel which forced a lot of traffic to go to the Holland Tunnel where we went instead.  After an exciting game with a very wild ending where St John's coach Steve Lavin and St John's forward Justin Burrell were both ejected in separate incidents, we tried to head to a restaurant in Hoboken (Arthur's Steak Tavern).  

We never made it there due to their closing at 11:00, but we got to learn about the backstreets of Newark.  Let me tell you, there were so many potholes on those roads, it looked like the streets of Dresden after World War II.  Yes, it was that bad.   We got back to the Turnpike and hit a Waffle House off exit 109A on I-95 in Maryland.

Today is the first round of the CAA Tournament.  The afternoon session starts at noon, the evening session at 6:00 PM.  I may not be able to tweet updates, but I will write about today's action later this evening.  Follow along on CAASports.com for all the action.

It's 2006 All Over Again - The 2011 CAA Tournament Preview

Before I start with my CAA Tournament preview, I just wanted to chime in about the firing of Georgia State's Rod Barnes.  Couldn't Georgia State AD Cheryl Levick wait until after the CAA Tournament was done to let Barnes go?  I mean we are talking about not even ten days.  Yes, the Panthers lost 79 games during Barnes' four years as coach.  But you are not going to start the hiring process until after the CAA Tournament anyway.    They could have let Barnes finish the season with his dignity.  Just sends the wrong message to everyone, especially any potential candidates for the job.

This is my sixth time writing a preview for the CAA Tournament.  It all started with what many CAA men's basketball fans think is the most glorious season for the conference - 2005-06.  Yes there was the at large George Mason Patriots going to the Final Four.  There was also UNC Wilmington winning the CAA Tournament defeating in the finals a Hofstra team that would be snubbed out of the NCAA Tournament six days later.  There was the combined 9-4 record of the CAA teams in the NCAA and NIT that postseason.  March 2006 was truly a special time for the CAA.

Five years later, here we are in March 2011.  Again there is talk of a multi-bid CAA contingent in the Big Dance, just like 2006.  Again George Mason is in the thick of the talk, along with Old Dominion as both teams sport RPIs in the 20's.  But in 2011, there are other similarities to 2006 that make it even more incredible.

2006

UNCW 15-3 , 25-8
George Mason 15-3, 27-8
Hofstra 14-4, 26-7
ODU 13-5, 24-10
Northeastern 12-6, 19-11
VCU 11-7, 19-10

2011

George Mason 16-2, 25-5
Old Dominion 14-4, 24-6
Hofstra 14-4, 20-10
VCU 12-6, 21-10
Drexel 11-7, 20-9
James Madison 10-8, 21-10

In 2006, you had four teams with 20 or more wins and two teams that just missed 20 wins. In 2011, six teams have 20 or more wins.

RPI 2006 - George Mason 15, Hofstra 30, UNCW 31, Old Dominion 52, VCU 80, Northeastern 88
RPI 2011 - George Mason 24, Old Dominion 27, Drexel 64, VCU 66, James Madison 74, Hofstra 81

In 2006, six teams were in the top 100 of the RPI ratings.  Likewise, six teams in 2011 are in the top 100 of the RPI ratings.

Wilmington Star News UNCW beat writer Brian Mull correctly noted in a reply tweet to me that similar to 2006, 2011's top players are senior laden.  In 2006 you had  Jose Juan Barea, Lamar Butler, Jai Lewis, Tony Skinn,  John Goldsberry, Vladimir Kuljanin, Alex Loughton, Isaiah Hunter, Aurimas Kieza, Adrian Uter and Nick George among others.  In 2010-11, you have Charles Jenkins, Cam Long, Frank Hassell, Ben Finney, Jamie Skeen, Joey Rodriguez, Denzel Bowles, Chad Tomko, Chaisson Allen and Jawan Carter among others.

So before I go into what's going to happen in the CAA Tournament, here's my two all CAA Teams, my All CAA Favorites and my choice for CAA First Team.


College Hardwood's All CAA Favorites

Charles Jenkins
Quinn McDowell
Frank Hassell
Jamie Skeen
Keith Rendleman

College Hardwood's CAA First Team

Charles Jenkins - Player of the Year
Cam Long
Frank Hassell
Chaisson Allen
Denzel Bowles

My favorites team and my All CAA first team have two similarities - Jenkins and Hassell.  Jenkins and Hassell are both in the top ten of John Hollinger's Player Efficiency Ratings.  Jenkins has improved every year he has been at Hofstra and is definitely NBA material.  Think about the fourth leading scorer in the country shooting 53 percent from the field.  Unreal.

Everyone I think by now knows how great Jenkins is, but Hassell also deserves a lot of love.  ODU is 14-0 when Hassell has a double double.  And Hassell is nearly averaging a double double, scoring 14 points and averaging 9.8 rebounds per game. As Brian Mull so aptly puts it, Hassell "drives their train".  The Hollinger efficiency ratings prove how important Hassell is to the Monarchs.

As for the rest of my favorites, well first, I love Quinn McDowell.  Kid can bury the three, drive to the basket and is just fundamentally sound.   Jamie Skeen impressed the hell out of me during the two Preseason NIT Tipoff games at MSG.  Sound inside, knows how to get to the free throw line and can even shoot the three.  Works real hard too.  And finally, I love the energy Keith Rendleman brings to the game. He can jump out of the building, has a nice touch around the basket and will only get better.

As for the First Team All CAA, Jenkins and Hassell are no brainers.   So is Denzel Bowles, who is such a load inside and has developed a nice touch from the outside.  Cam Long has improved a lot from last season.  He is very deserving of first team all CAA this season.  The last spot comes down to Allen, Skeen and Ryan Pearson.  Pearson's a junior so he has another season to get his first team All CAA.  Skeen tailed off at the end.  Allen scored 20 or more points in seven of his last ten games and he also averages six rebounds per game.  Give Allen the last spot.

Since the CAA expanded to twelve teams in the 2005-06 season, no team that hasn't had a first round bye has won the tournament.  In fact, in eight of the last nine tournaments, the team that was the number one seed has gone on to with the CAA Tournament.  In 2008, #1 VCU was upset by #5 William and Mary in the semifinals.

So based on that, I am going to discuss how the top teams in the CAA Tournament need to play to win the tournament.  And even though I think Drexel and JMU are long shots since they have to win four games in four days to win the tournament, since both teams have 20 wins and RPIs in the 60's and 70's, I will include them in as well.

George Mason - The Patriots win because on offense they are balanced as they have four players who average in double figures led by Long and Pearson.  But it has been better defense that has propelled the Patriots to their fifteen game winning streak.  If Mason gives up 69 or more points, they are 3-5.  When they give up less than 69 points - 22-0.  Mason will continue to roll if they have Luke Hancock, Andre Cornelius, Long and Pearson all average double figures and they play D as a whole.  Key Stat -  In five of their last seven games, Mason has held their opponents under 39 percent shooting.

Old Dominion - The Monarchs, the Ground and Pound of College Basketball, lead the nation in rebounding margin.  And a lot of that is due to their work on the offensive glass.  ODU leads the CAA in offensive rebounds with 475, averaging nearly 16 per game.  When they lose, it's because the rebounding margin isn't that great and the Monarchs are ninth in the CAA in FG percentage at 43 percent.  For ODU, it's just shoot well enough, clean up on the offensive glass, hold opponent under 60. Win. Key Stat - Again, when Hassell gets a double double, ODU is 14-0.

Hofstra - The Pride are one of the better offensive teams in the CAA, fourth in scoring offense, first in free throw percentage and third in assist to turnover ratio.  When they lose, it's due to their very weak rebounding and the inability to keep opponents off the offensive glass.  Hofstra is next to last in the CAA in defensive rebound percentage.   But their ability to win close games (9-3 in games decided by seven points or less) will be important for the tournament.  For the Pride to be successful - be balanced on offense, get to the line and keep the rebounding deficit reasonable.  Key Stat - When Hofstra has three or more players in double figures they are 18-1.

VCU - The Rams were in the hunt for an at large bid when they were first in the CAA at 10-1 and 18-5 overall.  But the Rams lost five of their last eight and in the three games they won, one was in overtime and the combined margin of victory in the other two games was a total of five points.  VCU is successful when they force turnovers as they are first in the CAA in steals, turnover margin and assists to turnover ratio.  VCU's game plan - shoot well from the outside, get Skeen involved and force the opponent to turn the ball over.  Make the game high scoring.  Key Stat - Rams are 12-1 when scoring more than 73 points in a game.

Drexel - The Dragons were 7-1 after they upset Louisville at the Yum Center.  Then they went 4-5 over their next nine games and were 3-4 in conference.  Drexel rallied to win 9 out of their last 12 to finish fifth.  They win due to defense, first in CAA in FG percentage defense, and their rebounding (ninth in the country).   They lose when they don't have enough defense and rebounding to overcome their next to last standing in the CAA in FG percentage.  Drexel wants to keep the game in the 60's at most, rebound and play defense.  Must stay out of foul trouble as well.  Key Stat - Seven players average more than 23 minutes.  Only one other player averages more than 5 minutes.

James Madison - The Dukes were the chic pick to finish in the top four of the CAA (hey, I had them finishing third).  On January 15, they were 15-3 overall and 5-1 in conference.  JMU went 6-7 the rest of the way and finished 10-8 in conference.  And what's strange is that they are in the top part of the CAA in most offensive categories and not really at the bottom of any defensive categories.  They just seem to find unique ways to lose games.  Dukes like a high tempo game with lots of points scored.  Madison 11-2 when they score 74 or more points in a game.  Key Stat - The Dukes have played 17 games decided by seven points or less (10-7 record).

Can other teams do well in the CAA Tournament?  Well, Delaware did give ODU fits and their two guards, Jawan Carter and Devon Saddler are very good.  Northeastern played very well the second half of the season and with Allen, Jonathan Lee and Joel Smith, they can score.  Interesting matchup there between the Huskies and the Blue Hens.  William and Mary beat James Madison on the Dukes' home court and have been very tough lately, so it won't be an easy game for the Dukes.   UNCW has the duo of Chad Tomko and Rendleman, so they could be a handful.   Georgia State likes low scoring games but the firing of Rod Barnes won't help.  And Towson, well, they had several offensive chances late against Drexel and could have had their first win in conference.

Of the bottom six teams, I think Delaware has the best chance to do damage.  They match up well with ODU for some reason, perhaps because their guards cause matchup problems for teams.

Now it's time for predicting the tournament.  At the beginning of the season, I predicted ODU to win the CAA Tournament.  They haven't disappointed with their second seed, their impressive non conference wins and of course they have Hassell.   There is of course George Mason, winners of fifteen straight, the Top 25 ranking and the #24 RPI.

Now if you know your CAA tournament history, the last two times the CAA had an at large, 2006 and 2007, the at large team did NOT make the CAA Finals.  In 2006, George Mason lost to Hofstra.  In 2007, Old Dominion lost to George Mason.   Both 2006 George Mason AND 2007 Old Dominion were #2 seeds.  And to make matters more interesting, in 2006, George Mason had to rally to force overtime  before beating Georgia State in the quarterfinals.  In 2007, Old Dominion barely held off Towson 58-55 in the CAA quarterfinals.

So that doesn't bode well for #2 seeded ODU.  And in fact, potentially staring the Monarchs in the face in the quarterfinals is #7 Delaware, who split with ODU during the regular season.  The Blue Hens won at Newark and barely lost to the Monarchs at the Ted.

So how do I think it goes?  Here's what I think happens;

First Round

UNC Wilmington defeats Georgia State (Tomko and Rendleman combine to beat a deflated Panthers team)
Drexel defeats Towson (but Dragons will struggle due to cold shooting)
Delaware defeats Northeastern (Blue Hens sweep Huskies on the season thanks to Saddler and Carter)
James Madison defeats William and Mary (in a very close game)

Quarterfinals

George Mason defeats UNC Wilmington (handily...too much balance by the Patriots)
VCU defeats Drexel (The Dragons again are cold from the field and the home Richmond crowd spurs the Rams to victory in a game where neither team breaks sixty)
ODU defeats Delaware (barely in the rubber match.  Hassell hits a late layup to give Monarchs the lead)
Hofstra defeats JMU   (Pride take the lead early and hold on barely as Jenkins goes for 32 points and 9 assists in another high scoring affair.)

Semifinals

George Mason defeats VCU as the Rams porous defense can't stop the Patriots from the field. 
Hoftra upsets ODU as the #2 at large jinx continues.  Hofstra rallies in the 2nd half as ODU goes cold from the field (similar to their losses to Drexel and VCU).  Monarchs though get an at large and go to the Sweet 16.

And that brings us to the finals.  C'mon, in a season that is so hauntingly familiar to 2006, where someone high up in the CAA administrative offices (Tom Yeager?) had the sense of humor to sit the Patriots' fans next to the Pride fans, you have to have Hofstra vs. George Mason in the CAA final.  It's the team that got snubbed from the dance but swept the Patriots in 2006 vs. the team that got one of the last at large bids and had the magical run in 2006.

So how will this play out?  Conventional wisdom would say George Mason will win based on their stunning 15 game winning streak.  However, being a history buff, let me throw this one out at you.  Until this season, George Mason was ranked in the Top 25 in the regular season (before the NCAA Tournament) only one other time.  Yup, 2006.  The team to knock George Mason out of the Top 25 in 2006.  Yup, the Hofstra Pride.  And why not, Hofstra is only one of two teams that beat George Mason in conference all season.

And a lot of the CAA Twitter feeds I saw for a week or so before VCU melted away their at large bid hopes had the hashtag #3BidsForCAA.   And as I stated in a tweet, the NCAA has the chance to right a wrong from 2006.  Three CAA teams in the tournament.  That's what it should have been in 2006.  The five year anniversary seems about the time to have this happen.

Hofstra upsets George Mason.   Hofstra, Mason and ODU all go to the dance.  You heard it here first.  And if I am wrong, like I have been with most of my CAA Tournament predictions, hey what else is new.

But history has a tendency to repeat itself.

The Baker's Dozen, The Wannabe Ten and Mid Major Tournament Notes

I heard Mike Greenberg from Mike and Mike say this morning that March Madness is two weeks away.  Bull.  March Madness starts today with conference tournaments as the Horizon and Big South get underway.  Later in the week, the Southern, Missouri Valley, Ohio Valley, West Coast and most importantly here, the CAA tournaments all get started.  So a little business needs to be taken care of before we can discuss some of the tournaments.

It's been a while since the last tasty countdown, but here are the thirteen tastiest mid major teams in the country as of February 28.  And remember, no A-10 or Conference USA fillers here at the College Hardwood.  They, along with the Mountain West, otherwise known as the WAC Pillagers Conference, are part of the Wannabes.  They get their own countdown later on in this article.

Mid Majors Baker's Dozen

1) George Mason
2) Old Dominion
3) Utah State
4) Belmont
5) Butler
6) St Mary's
7) Gonzaga
8) Harvard
9) Missouri State
10) Oakland
11) Princeton
12) Charleston
13) Tie Cleveland State and Wichita State

Mason has been the most dominant mid major team the past month having won fifteen in a row and are now ranked in the Top 25.  However their best non conference wins are over Harvard at home and at Northern Iowa.  The Patriots need to get to at least the CAA semifinals (which they should, as they face the winner of the #8-#9 game in the CAA quarterfinals) to further lock down an at large bid.

ODU, though second in the CAA, has a better case for an at large bid than Mason.  The Monarchs have neutral site wins over Xavier (a lock for NCAA), Clemson (a bubble team) and home wins over Richmond (most sites have as in the tournament) and Cleveland State (good RPI).  But ODU needs to make sure to make at least the CAA semis as well.

Utah State looks to be a solid pick for an at large after impressively beating St Mary's at Moraga.  However, the Aggies have two road games at New Mexico State and Louisiana Tech before the WAC Tournament starts next week.  Utah State can't afford any upsets before the tournament and definitely needs to make the tournament final to seriously garner at large support.

After the top three teams in the countdown, things get dicey for at large bids.  Though Belmont has been terrific in the Atlantic Sun, they don't have a signature non conference win despite playing Vanderbilt and Tennessee (twice) very tough.  The Bruins need to win the A-Sun to get in the dance.

Butler won the Diamond Head Classic tournament and beat Florida State (lock as of now) as well as Washington State (now off the bubble and out of NCAA contention).   However a bad loss to Youngstown State and five losses in the Horizon have the Bulldogs squarely on the bubble.  Butler definitely has to make the Horizon final and perhaps need to win the championship as well.

Two West Coast Conference teams, Gonzaga and St Mary's, are in the same boat.  One of those teams should win the WCC tournament but the other will be squarely on the bubble.  The Zags have a neutral site wins over Marquette (currently in), Baylor (bubble) and a home win over Xavier (lock).  Meanwhile, the Gaels only have a win over St John's (lock) on their non conference resume.  The two teams split their regular season series, each winning on the road.  Both will receive consideration for an at large if they make the WCC final.  The Gaels need to win the tournament, because I don't think they will get in as an at large. I think the Zags could if they lose the WCC final.  Anything less for both and they are both out.

Harvard and Princeton will face each other March 5th.  Due to the loss to Yale, Harvard must now defeat Princeton to force a one game playoff for the Ivy Title.  If the Tigers win at home over the Crimson, then Princeton wins the Ivy outright.  I have ranked Harvard higher than Princeton in my countdown due to the wins over Colorado and Boston College.

As for the rest of the teams in the countdown, they all have to win their conference tournaments to make the NCAA Tournament.  Each of them however has a good chance to win a first round NCAA Tournament game because I don't think any of them would be lower than a 13 seed.  Of all the teams, I like Oakland the best to pull off an upset due to that killer non conference schedule they played the beginning of the season.  Cleveland State with Norris Cole could be a tough out if they win the Horizon.  But I think Butler beats them for a third time in the Horizon semis.

Wannabe Ten

1) BYU
2) San Diego State
3) Xavier
4) Temple
5) UNLV
6) Richmond
7) UAB
8) Memphis
9) Colorado State
10) UTEP

Of the ten teams, the first five are locks.  BYU leads the MWC, swept San Diego State, beat St Mary's neutral site and crushed Arizona at a neutral site.  Jimmer and company are in.  Likewise, so are the Aztecs.  Kawhi Leonard and company have beaten Gonzaga, Saint Mary's and twice beat UNLV.

Xavier is definitely in with a 13-1 A-10 record with wins over Butler, at Georgia, Temple and at Richmond.  Temple is in as well with wins over Georgetown, Georgia (neutral site) and Richmond.  The Owls should finish the A-10 with only two losses, which should certainly give them a decent seed come NCAA Tourney time.

Then there is the tale of two Mountain West teams.  BYU and San Diego State get all the attention, but UNLV deserves a spot in the dance as well.  Home win over Wisconsin, a neutral site win over Virginia Tech and a road win over Kansas State play well with the NCAA selection committee. As long as they get to the MWC semifinals, the Runnin Rebels should be just fine.  Colorado State on the other hand is on the outside looking in.  First, they are a game behind UNLV, fourth in the MWC.  Second, they have no signature non conference wins (unlike UNLV).  Best non-conference win is over Southern Miss.  Not going to get it done.  A road win over San Diego State would help their cause.

Richmond appears to be on the right side of the bubble right now.  The neutral site win over Purdue (a lock) is huge right now.  A win over VCU certainly helps.  However, they can''t afford any more losses.  An appearance in the A-10 semifinals appears to be a must too and a win over Temple in the A-10 semis (if both get that far) would cinch things. 

Three Conference USA teams fill three out of the last four spots.  Pretty sure only one of them is going to the dance.  UAB is in first in C-USA, but there are two other teams that are vying for contention, Memphis and UTEP.  Of the three, Memphis probably has the best at large resume with the win over Gonzaga on a neutral court site though UTEP's win over Michigan isn't far behind (UAB only has a home win over VCU).  Other than that, not much else.

Mid Major Tournament Notes - The Horizon League Tournament starts tomorrow night with first round matches at higher seed sites.  The best first round matchup pits #6 Wright State vs. #7 Green Bay.  Then it's on to the U.S. Cellular Arena in Milwaukee as Wisconsin Milwaukee, the #1 seed is the host for the next two rounds. Then the championship is at the highest remaining seed's home court.  As for a prediction,  I think Valpo stuns Wisconsin-Milwaukee while Butler pulls the trifecta on Cleveland State.  And once again, Butler wins the Horizon at Hinkle beating Homer Drew and the Crusaders.

The Big South Tournament starts tomorrow as well with the first round starting on the higher seeds' home sites.  Then the quarterfinals and semifinals will be held on Coastal Carolina's home court.  The finals will be held at the highest remaining seeds' site.

The Chanticleers are under investigation by the NCAA for recruiting violations.  Their best player, Desmond Holloway has been suspended while he is being investigated for receiving improper benefits.  This is basically Binghamton, part deux.   In fact, the same writer that broke the story for the Binghamton article, New York Times writer Pete Thamel, wrote the article about Coastal Carolina.  The stories are eerily similar.  Taking second chances on players with questionable backgrounds and seemingly a win at all costs philosophy at a small mid major school.  It didn't end happily at Binghamton, and it won't end happily here.

As for the Big South Tournament, the Chanticleers are down to seven players and have lost three games in a row.  Without their best player, Coastal Carolina won't get past the semifinals.  I like UNC Asheville to knock off Liberty and win the tournament.

My next post will be my CAA Tournament preview.