Louisville Recruiting, Seton Hall Recruiting, Villanova Recruiting

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (12/6/2007)

December 6, 2007

It was a very good night for the Big East last night. The conference swept the two games of the Big East/SEC Challenge on the schedule on ‘neutral floors’ deep in SEC country. Three other teams picked up solid road wins, including Syracuse who ventured to Virginia. Rutgers also earned a high-scoring win over a solid Patriot League squad.

Tonight, the SEC/Big East Challenge continues with Providence looking to put the URI disaster behind them and Villanova welcomes LSU to the City of Brotherly Love.

Connecticut is still looking for team leaders to take ownership of the team’s performance and improved defense. Jim Calhoun will like to see those two things happen tonight as they host Northeastern.

Freedom Hall is the site of a quality high school event this weekend the Louisville will look to sway a couple of the top players in the Class of 2008 and 2009 while they are in town. Also, a couple players already committed to UL will showcase their skills. Updates on Lance Stephenson, Tyreke Evans, Dominic Cheek and Dexter Strickland are available as well.

Check back later today for a recruiting update on Brian Oliver, courtesy of Brian Crownover and Ray Floriani takes a look at Notre Dame from their Jimmy V Classic performance.

You can read these stories and more, by clicking READ MORE below!

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Crunch Time Was All Georgetown (Huntsville Times) as the Hoyas finish off Alabama with a 14-3 run to close the game, handing the Tide a Tough One to Swallow (Press-Register), 70-60 in the inaugural Big East-SEC Invitational in the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center.

it wasn’t a thing of beauty for the Hoyas who struggled offensively the first 36 minutes of the contest, but the Hoyas Eventually Surge Past the Tide (Washington Times) with their game-finishing run, ignited by DaJuan Summers’ (18 pts, 9 rebounds) 3-pt basket to put Georgetown ahead for good, 59-57.

Roy Hibbert added 14 pts and 9 rebounds and Jesse Sapp contributed 12 pts and 8 rebounds as Georgetown held a rebounding edge of 45-29. Jonathan Wallace struggled in his return to his home state, shooting just 3-9 from the floor and committing four turnovers (against 2 assists) on the evening.
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It was not supposed to be this easy fro West Virginia as the Mountaineers Pound Auburn (Huntsville Times) in the inaugural Big East-SEC Invitational in the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center, 88-59. WVU Torches Tigers (Birmingham News) by shooting 61% from the floor, collecting 24 assists (with just 6 turnovers) on 36 made field goals and forcing Auburn into 20 turnovers.

How bad was Auburn…they could only connect on ONE free throw in eight tries.

But it really did not matter how Auburn played because the Mountaineers were At the Top of Their Game (Charleston Gazette) in front of a predominantly Auburn crowd at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center. WVU got a career-high 28 points from Alex Ruoff, who was 10-12 from the floor (including 6-8 on 3′s) and another gifted performance from Joe Alexander with 17 pts and 4 assists.
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It was a Sick Feeling for the Cavs (Daily Press) of Virginia as star Sean Singletary Battles Flu-Like Symptoms (Lynchburg News-Advance) while shooting 3-14 from the field and an unfathomable 2-8 from the FOUL line, Singletary is a career 84% free throw shooter, as the Syracuse Orange Sneak By (Roanoke Times) with a 70-68 road win. The Cavaliers lost for only the second time in 22 games at their two-year home.

Donte Greene (20 pts, 10 rebounds), Jonny Flynn (18 pts), Eric Devendorf (16 pts, 6 assists) and Paul Harris (10 pts, 14 rebounds) scored 64 of Syracuse’s 70 points in the contest. Syracuse had to rally from seven points down at the break for the win. On a Rare Road Trip, Syracuse Snares Big Win (Syracuse Post-Standard) at the wire as freshmen Green and Flynn scored the last four points in big spots. Syracuse grabbed a 54-46 lead in the 2nd half, only to see Virginia rally for a 61-58 lead. After back-t0-back 3′s by Devendorf and Greene, SU was back up 66-61 and held on for the victory.
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For the first 11 minutes of the contest, it looked like many previous renditions of the annual Pittsburgh City Game as the Panthers roared out to a 23-6 lead over Duquesne. However, this is not the same Duquesne teams of seasons’ past and this City Game Lived Up to Its Billing (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) as Pitt Holds Off Duquesne in Wild City Game (Tribune-Review), 73-68 at a packed A.J. Palumbo Center on the Duquesne campus.

Playing in front of only the second sell-out at Duquesne in 13 years, the Dukes nearly came all the way back from the early hole, but Pitt never relinquished the lead and Sam Young scored 22 points, including a huge 3 late in the game to stem a Duquesne rally.

The Panthers Were Tested, but Get Past Dukes (Washington Observer) and now move on to Seatlle to meet Washington. After that is a home date with Oklahoma State and trip to Madison Square Garden to meet Duke and then a road trip to Dayton. So, the City Game was a very good experience for the Panthers as the schedule begins to ratchet up a few notches prior to the Big East.
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USF freshman Dominique Jones is quickly establishing himself as a prolific scorer in his initial college season. Jones Gets His 2nd Straight 30-pt Performance (Tampa Tribune) as the Bulls rally from a 1st half defecit to beat Richmond, 79-65 Wednesday night at the Robins Center on the Richmond Campus.

Jones Gets Another 30 as Bulls Stay Hot (St. Petersburg Times), winning their sixth straight after an 0-3 start.

Chris Howard added 16 pts, 6 assists and 6 rebounds. USF leading scorer Kentrell Gransberry was held to nine points while played 20 minutes because of foul trouble.
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JR Inman scored 26 points and grabbed 9 rebounds and Corey Chandler found a new role as Chandler Gives Rutgers a Spark Off the Bench (Star-Ledger) with 19 pts as the Scarlet Knights Skin the Leopards (Courier News) of Lafayette, 90-79.

Rutgers also got scoring from Mike Coburn (15 pts, 7 turnovers, 1 assist), Anthony Farmer (14 pts) and Jaron Griffin (11 pts).

It was Chandler who came up big in the end, despite not starting the game for the first time this season. With Rutgers clinging to a five-point lead in the final five minutes, Chandler tracked down his own missed free throw, drove the baseline and banked in an acrobatic reverse.

Moments later he slashed to the rim for another layup, stoking the crowd of 3,285 and providing some breathing room for the Scarlet Knights, who improved to 6-2. He made those plays despite having four fouls.
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The Big East/SEC Challenge for 2007 wraps up tonight in Philadelphia as the SEC looks to recover from a pair of double-digit losses in night one. LSU’s Brady Bunch faces Villanova (NewsStar.com) tonight without star Tasmin Mitchell.

LSU lost the 6-foot-7 Mitchell to an ankle injury for the season just over a week ago. Brady may be looking up and down his bench for Mitchell tonight when the Tigers (5-2) play No. 25 Villanova (5-1) at 8:30 on ESPN in the Pizza Hut Big East/SEC Invitational tournament in Philadelphia.

For Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds, he gets a glimpse of what could have been as he visited LSU during the recruiting process and the Wildcats’ Reynolds Awaits Friendly Foe (Philly Inquirer) in the form of the Tigers.

Last season Casseim Drummond lacked consistency and, worse, his immaturity prevented him from gaining his coach’s trust and confidence. Drummond wiled away his time in Jay Wright’s doghouse, a nudge who intentionally did things he knew he shouldn’t simply to get attention. However, instead of packing it in, Drummond grew up. Now, as a sophomore, the 6’10, 276 lb big man has found his niche in the Villanova starting line-up. Villanova & Drummond are Now a Good Fit (Philadelphia Daily News) and he brings needed size to the Wildcat line-up.

Providence needs to bounce back from Tuesday’s loss at Rhode Island in a hurry. However, the Road Gets No Easier for Frustrated Friars (Providence Journal) as they meet the South Carolina Gamecocks in the inaugural Big East/SEC Invitational at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia tonight.

PC has been away from the Dunkin’ Donuts Center for five of its first seven games and met mixed results at every turn. The 5-2 friars continue to play without star guard Sharaud Curry and that definitely caught up to them in their 77-60 loss to Rhode Island.

2005-2006 all-freshman Big East guard Devan Downey is a member of the South Carolina backcourt. Downey originally played as a freshman for Cincinnati.
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After late game miscues contrinuted to their loss to Gonzaga last weekend, Jim Calhoun wants to see his players take some of the onus of acocuntability amongst themselves. Calhoun is Looking for UConn to Take Charge (Hartford Courant) of themselves with ‘ownership’ and ‘leadership’, two traits he feels is missing from the team, once again.

Coach Calhoun would also like to see better defense as Defense Has Been Promary Problem for UConn (Connecticut Post) in the early going. Tonight, the Huskies host 3-4 Northeastern in the Gampel Pavilion and they will get to put their defense to the test and see if they have leaders step up and take ownership of the team’s play.
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Dominic Cheek and Dexter Strickland are among the top players in the country in the class of 2009 and likely the top two in New Jersey in he class. However, it looks like they will be leaving the area and most likely the Big East all together as Carolina Looking Real Good for Check & Strickland (zagsblog).

UNC is also looking at Lance Stephenson of Lincoln HS in NYC. Stephenson is taking an unofficial visit this weekend to Louisville He has already been to Indiana, Seton Hall and Southern California and plans to visit North Carolina during the Bojangles Shootout in North Carolina in December.
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Strange story about University of Louisville men’s basketball assistant strength coach, and former player, Ellis Myles. Apparently Jeffersontown High School football coach Scott Carmony has accused Myles of making some “very ugly, inappropriate and borderline threatening comments” toward him during a playoff loss to Oldham County on Nov. 9. Myles Has Tried to Apologize to the coach (Louisville Courier-Journal), but Carmony wants nothing of it.

Myles, whose brother is a J’town senior football player, said he got into a halftime argument with Carmony over his sibling’s lack of playing time. He admitted that he used profanity.

Myles, who was in Israel for 10 days on business before returning Friday, he has not attended a regular-season U of L basketball game this season and said he has not spoken with coach Rick Pitino in two or three weeks, leaving his status with the program in doubt.
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Most Louisville fans still are unfamiliar with 2008 signee Jared Swopshire. The St. Louis native is playing his second year at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, and the 6′foot-7 swingman’s skills have really improved since his arrival in the Sunshine State. U of L Signee Swopshire is Blooming at the Right Time (Louisville Courier-Journal) and coach Rick Pitino swooped in quickly during his recruitment for the commitment. IMG will play Aston (Pa.) American Christian — which is led by Tyreke Evans and junior U of L commitment Lamont Jones — tomorrow night in the All-American Shootout at Freedom Hall, so Louisville fans can get to learn more about one of their future players.

Tyreke Evans is Ready for the ‘Ville (Courier-Journal) and is excited to play in Freedom Hall. Evans is still considering Louisville, Memphis, Villanova, Connecticut, Texas and Seton Hall. He has visited each of those schools except Memphis and the player said the plan is to head there sometime in late January or February with a decision soon afterwards.
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