Connecticut Recruiting, NCAA Tournament, NIT, Providence Recruiting, Rutgers Recruiting, Seton Hall Recruiting, South Florida Recruiting, Villanova Recruiting

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (3/18/08)

A few more notes on teams preparing for the NCAA Tournament. Syracuse tips off the NIT tonight while Cincinnati tips off the CBI tomorrow. Seton Hall was passed over by the NIT, but they have passed on the NIT…now, we must wonder about the relationship between their head coach and athletic director.

Seton Hall is actively recruiting for some frontcourt help, UConn can use their trip south for the NCAA to work in some recruiting time, too. Devin Ebanks will get a release from his LOI with Miami and St. Anthony’s finishes off their perfect season.

The players at Providence will move forward after Tim welsh’s firing and South Carolina has a big name from the Big East on their coaching search wishlist.

As usual, coaches of the favorites will spend time talking how good of a team their first round match-up. This is not different for Louisville coach Rick Pitino as the Cardinals prepare to tip-off against Boise St on Friday. Boise’s Blitz Worried Pitino (Lexington Herald-Leader) as Pitino, Cards Are Not Overlooking Boise (Courier-Journal), the toughest 1st round match-up Pitino has faced, according to the UL coach.

After watching more of Boise St on film, the Cards Brace for Carbon Copy of BYU (Courier-Journal), a team that beat them earlier this season.
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Mike Brey is hoping star forward Luke Harangody heads back to the player that played with a reckless abandon as he tried to make his mark in the Big East. Hopefully, that type of mindset will give the forward an edge as Irish’s Harangody Hopes top Redeem Himself (Journal Gazette) now that the 2008 NCAA Tournament is ready to get underway Thursday.

The Irish will face George Mason, the 2006 Tournament Darlings in Denver. While there might be some pressure on this version of the Patriots to repeat the success of their predecessors, Jim Larranaga, the George Mason Coach Tells Team to Savor the Moment (Denver Post).
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Most coaches will tell you the best thing about freshmen is they become sophomores. Well, at this point in the season, Villanova’s Freshmen are no Longer so Young (Philly Inquirer) and, especially, the play of Corey Stokes really helped the Wildcats rebound down the stretch and earn a shot in the NCAA Tournament.
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Although there is not a lot of history between Bob Huggins and Arizona, he is quite familiar with Arizona interim head coach Kevin O’Neill from his time as Marquette’s head coach while both were in Conference USA. Although it might not fit the normal Arizona persona, Huggins is preparing his Mountaineers for a rugged team and Bracing for a Scrap (Charleston Gazette) paced on previous encounters with O’Neill.
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Kentucky might have struggled mightily this season, but Marquette Still faces Challenge in Kentucky (Chicago Tribune) including their talented guard duo of Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford.

One big area of help in defending the guard play of Kentucky that the Golden Eagles did not have last year is the presence of Jerel McNeal. The Marquette junior has been Waiting His Turn (Journal-Sentinel) for a year since an injury kept him out of last year’s entire postseason.

For some the new College Basketball Invitational is not worth their time. However, the Cincinnati Bearcats are taking another view of the new tournament as for UC, These 16 are Sweet Enough (Cincinnati Enquirer) as more basketball definitely beats no basketball. The Bearcats will hit the road to meet Bradley Wednesday night and Fox Sports Net-Ohio will carry the action. The Bearcats are Surprised, Excited (Enquirer) about their opportunity to extend their season, despite a record of 13-18.
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Seton Hall took a different approach as the Hall rejects Invitation to New Tourney (Star-Ledger) and heads into the offseason.

However, Seton Hall seems to be embroiled in one drama after another as it seems like head coach Bobby Gonzalez and athletic director Joe Quinlan are at odds on nearly everything, from Gonzo’s driving habits on campus, his participation in a NY Times tournament bracket prediction article, not to mention the sideline antics that Mike Tranghese called embarrassing. Adam Zagoria writes about the Gonzo-Quinlan Rift on ZAGSBLOG as well as Gonzalez’s efforts to land JUCO forward Gary Flowers.
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While the CBI is still struggling to attract team, the NIT remains a viable event in the postseason. However, Syracuse Searches for Motivation (Watertown Daily Times) for their first round game with Robert Morris tonight in the Carrier Dome. It looks as though ’Cuse is Ready for NIT (Syracuse Post-Standard) and is done worrying about the NCAA selection process.
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With the initial shock that Tim Welsh will not coach them in their senior season, the returning Providence players will now be Looking Ahead (Providence Journal) as the Welsh firing impacts Jeff Xavier, Weyinmi Efejuku and the other juniors the most.
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Here is an article on the South Carolina coaching search to replace retiring Dave Odom: No Outsiders Crashing USC’s Coaching Search Party (Courier & Post). One Big East name mentioned: John Thomson III, huh????

Adam Zagoria reports that Devin Ebanks Will Get His Release (Zagsblog) from his letter of intent to Indiana. The three schools most talked about right now are Rutgers, Memphis and Texas, but a fourth school, out of the many trying to get involves, could also be included in the mix.
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To nobody’s surprise, St. Anthony’s Wins the New Jersey Tournament of Champions (zagsblog) to finish the regular season at 32-0 with a 69-36 win over Science Park last night in the Izod Center. Mike Rosario led the Friars with 21 and Tyshawn Taylor added 17 points playing tough in the paint. Playing in front of Rutgers head coach Fred Hill, Seton Hall coach Bobby Gonzalez, Villanova coach Jay Wright and Manhattan coach Barry Rohrssen, the Friars put their stamp on history.

Greg Auman of the St. Petersburg Times takes a look at why the NCAA Draw Could Help UConn Locally as the Huskies have two Tampa-area prospects they’re pursuing, Hillsborough Community College’s Keith Brumbaugh and IMG Academy’s Teeng Akol.

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