Cincinnati News, Connecticut News, Connecticut Recruiting, DePaul News, Marquette News, Marquette Recruiting, West Virginia News

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (10/15/2009)

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Today in the news and notes, NBE hits up on stories coming out of Cincinnati where the mood is upbeat heading into the start of practice. The Husky Run festivities took place yesterday in Storrs and UConn is looking forward to another strong season. There are a couple personnel items that are covered in the notes, but the Huskies look ready to go. At Marquette, Buzz Williams has a bit of a rebuilding task ahead this season and the inexperienced team will be tested. The coach is also embarking on a very unique challenge as he keeps a promise to his team. The Golden Eagles also have an impressive visit list expected to be in attendence this weekend for Marquette Madness. Also, West Virginia has expectation at one end of the college basketball spectrum while DePaul is at the other end. And finally, an update on the curious case of Enes Kanter.

Read about all these in the links below…

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We continue the theme from yesterday in our Big East News & Notes that ‘hope springs eternal’ this time of year as the ‘official’ start of college basketball practice is just about upon us. Just like the early days of spring training when pitchers and catchers begin to report, everyone has a sense of optimism as they are in the race for the NCAA Tournament. One team that is definitely looking to accomplish some impressive feats this season in the Big East and nationally is Cincinnati as the Bearcats hope the rebuilding phase under Mick Cronin is complete. UC has not made the NCAA Tournament in the four years since Bob Huggins’ departure and Cronin Says Fans’ Patience is Set to Pay Off (Cincinnati Enquirer) with a season ahead that the coach expects to finish up in the NCAA Tournament.
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It is a festive mood for a few days around the Connecticut program as the Huskies begin their basketball season with the Husky Run on Wednesday and First Night festivities on Friday. The party time will end early on Saturday as the Huskies Will Soon be Running and Gunning (The Day.com) in proactice early Saturday under Hall of Fame coach Jim Calhoun.

So, while the UConn Men are Off to a Running Start (Hartford Courant), not all the Huskies were able to participate. Jerome Dyson sat out the Husky Run as a precaution as trainer James Doran suggested his surgically repaired right knee could do without the pounding. Also, freshman Ater Majok, who is not eligible to compete in games until mid-December, has a stress fracture in his left tibia, diagnosed Friday, and did not participate. He will be out another couple of weeks.

As reported Tuesday night by NBE (UConn on Verge of 2010 Commitment), Michael Bradley, a 6-foot-10 senior from Tyner Academy in Tennessee, verbally committed to UConn. Here is the story from the local Chattanooga Times Free Press on the commitment: Tyner Star Bradley Commits to UConn.

One final UConn note…Jonathan Mandeldove, a senior center, will likely ’sit out’ the first semester as coach Calhoun wants him to get his body right.
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Buzz Williams made a promise to his young team this preseason which has Marquette’s Williams is on the Run (Janesville Gazette) this fall. The Marquette head coach promised his players that after they completed his intense offseason conditioning program, he’d run the 244 mile distance from Milwaukee to Indianapolis, the site of the Final Four, over 40 days.

After completing five more miles yesterday just prior to the MU media day festivities, he is up to 62 miles on his journey and Williams will finish on Friday, November 13th before Marquette takes on Centenary in the season opener.

“I think it’s fair because we run boot camp and he just coaches us around all the time,” junior forward Jimmy Butler told the Gazette. “We get to tell him when he says something smart, ’Shouldn’t you be on the treadmill? Shouldn’t you be running?’”

Williams, ever a player’s coach, gives himself a Critical Job Description (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) as the losses from last season certainly are stuck in his mind.

While Williams is on his runs this fall it is a pretty safe bet that the point guard position of his Golden Eagle club is not far from his mind, as well as the losses from last year. This preseason it will be a Point of Emphasis for MU (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel) as freshman Junior Cadougan’s injury leaves questions for the Golden Eagles who were already looking to replace three senior guards (Dominic James, Wesley Mathews and Jerel McNeal) from last year’s team.

On the recruiting front at MU, with Marquette Madness Upon Us (IWBS Sports), Buzz Williams and his staff have lined up a very impressive visit list for the weekend. Scheduled to make trips include 2010 prospects Tarik Black and Vander Blue on official visits. 2010 verbal commit Jamail Jones is also making his official visit. A pair of elite wings from the 2011 class, Branden Dawson and Keaton Miles, are also expected to attend along with another 2011 prospect, Kyle Anderson, from Newark (IL).

It is the recruitment of Blue that has the attention of most basketball fans in the state of Wisconson. The dynamic 6-foot-3 guard out of Madison (WI) Memorial originally made a verbal commitment to Wisconsin nearly 18 months ago, but reopened his recruitment last spring. Blue is Set to Take Official Visits to Marquette and Wisconson (Wisconsin Sports Net) this month with a trip planned to Wisky October 29-31st. His mother will accompany him on both trips, with the trip to Marquette expected to begin today.
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When native son Bob Huggins returned to his alma mater at West Virginia the WVU faithful had pictures of ruling the Big East in their minds. With a team that is ranked in most preseason top 10’s, their dreams look to be pretty close to being realized this season as Expectations are High for WVU Men (Times West Virginian) as we head towards the official start of practice for the 2009-2010 season.

One area that coach Huggins believes the team will be much improved in will be their ability to compete in the paint as the players have added bulk in the offseason. This year it is a bigger and stronger team as Devin Ebanks is 20 pounds heavier, Kevin Jones 35, Wellington Smith 25 pounds heavier and over a stress fracture in his leg that quietly hampered him last season. In addition, the Mountaineers bring in Danny Jennings who is a legitimate 260-pound brute.

“We were overmatched physically the last couple of years, but that’s about to change,” Huggins told the Times. “Look at the front line Pitt had. We’re going to be like that now.”

Very quickly, Bob Huggins has transformed a very finesse program under John Beilein into a physically imposing squad, ala his former Bearcat squads. Of course, judging from the arrest records of his point guards at WVU…cynics will point out other comparisons as well…but, you can expect a WVU team that will get after it for 40 minutes this season and leave it all on the court. Add in their talent level, and this is a title contender, not just in the Big East, but nationally and Huggins Sees the Potential in the Mountaineers (Charleston Gazette) with their improved depth and ability to score that will go along with the trademark smothering, in-your-face defense that Huggins’ teams are known for.
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Getting away from the preseason optimism for a moment, Gary Parrish of CBS Sports.com has an article of Programs on the Decline and he prominently points out that they are feeling blue at DePaul with the state of their sinking program.
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Not directly Big East related, but Adam Zagoria takes a look at the Curious Case of Enes Kanter (ZagsBlog.com).
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