Previews & Polls

Mernagh: Gibbs Will Return

No shock to anyone who understands how this works and how a kid like Gibbs ticks. He was in it 100% because that’s how he does everything — that doesn’t mean he would ever make a decision that wasn’t sound (he’s too smart to do that). Here’s the full release from Pitt’s Greg Hotchkiss but the most important thing to understand is Pitt will have their sniper back and everybody can re-adjust those stupid April top-25′s everyone seems to think they have to post.

PITTSBURGH—Junior guard Ashton Gibbs announced Saturday that he will withdraw from the 2011 NBA Draft and return to the University of Pittsburgh for his senior season. Since he did not sign with an agent, Gibbs retained the option to withdraw from the draft per NCAA rules. The NBA Draft Early Entry withdrawal deadline is on Sunday, May 8.

“I am extremely excited that Ashton will return to the court for us next year,” Pitt Head Coach Jamie Dixon said. “We encouraged and supported Ashton in his pursuit of NBA Draft possibilities. Ashton and I had numerous discussions dating back to last year and during the process. Anytime you are an All-Big East First Team player, the professional field is something we encourage our players to look into. Ashton is a tremendous representative for the University of Pittsburgh. He embodies everything you want in a student-athlete and has always made decisions for the right reasons. This is just another example.”

“In discussing my options the last couple of weeks with my family and Coach Dixon, I feel that it is in my best interest to return to Pitt for my senior season,” Gibbs said. “The NBA can wait a year. I look forward to continuing the success that we’ve established here at Pitt and finish my collegiate career with all of my teammates and fellow senior Nasir Robinson. It will also be extra special to earn my degree.”

As one of the nation’s top shooters and scorers in 2010-11, Gibbs earned AP All-America honorable mention, USBWA and NABC All-District honors while becoming just the ninth player in school history to be selected to the All-Big East First Team. He ranked third among NCAA Division I leaders in 3-point field goal percentage (49.0 percent), fifth in 3-point field goals made per game (3.3) and 18th in free throw percentage (88.9 percent). He also led the Panthers in scoring for the second straight season (16.8 ppg.) and also set a Pitt season record for 3-point field goals made (102).

On the year, Gibbs scored 20 or more points 12 times, reached double figure scoring in 26 of his 31 games played and converted three or more 3-pointers in 20 contests. As a sophomore in 2009-10, Gibbs was named the Big East Most Improved Player, earned Second Team All-Big East honors and was a Bob Cousy Award finalist.

A two-time Big East Academic All-Star, Gibbs enters his senior season ranked among Pitt’s career leaders in scoring (1,207 points, 23rd), 3-point field goals made (216, 4th), 3-point field goal percentage (44.1 percent, 2nd) and free throw percentage (87.9 percent, 2nd). In 100 career games played and 64 starts, he has averaged 12.1 points, scored 20 or more points 23 times and converted at least three 3-pointers in 43 games.

Pitt returns two starters (Gibbs and Robinson) and seven of its top-10 letterwinners from a squad that won the Big East regular season title outright with a 15-3 record, finished 28-6 overall, earned a No. 1 seed upon entering the NCAA Tournament and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 10th consecutive season.

MERNAGH: GILBERT BROWN IS BALLIN’

Panthers’ 5th year senior playing well heading into top 25 showdown at Georgetown Wednesday night

Gilbert Brown is playing fantastic for Pittsburgh.

In the last two games he’s averaged 17 and 6 while shooting 10-14 in back-to-back wins.

He’s scoring off open looks from the three-point line, getting to the rim when it’s there and doing his usually very good-to great job defensively.

Brown is a strong and long athlete who has found a comfort zone in the last few weeks that Pitt fans hope he can carry through the rest of his senior season.

I’d say the biggest thing with Brown uptick in play has been his confidence on the floor. “Confidence is big for any player,” Brown told me, “when you’re confident on the floor it makes everything much easier.”

Brown has always appeared to play with and carry himself off-the-floor with a confident ease, but at times he would pass up shots when wide open, then take shots when not open and kind of play just a step off for whole games at a time. He’d have a good game, then disappear, then play okay etc. This season, especially with the start of Big East action, Brown has a more consistent look about him.

He’s a very engaging young man to talk to and kind of different than some because…after sometimes trying real hard to carry the company line, he can’t help but tell you the truth.

If it seems like I’m diminishing Brown’s contributions to the Pitt program over the last four years I’m not — he’s been a big part of things. He played incredibly well when he was on the floor in the Elite Eight game against ‘Nova. He’s had flashes of absolute brilliance. It’s just that his total package always kind of teased folks with the possibility of more, like he was ready to bust out and be something greater than the consistent defender, screener and passer that earned him most of his minutes.

Well, that time might be now.

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ADIDAS INVITATIONAL PLAYER EVALUATIONS & RECRUITING UPDATES (PART B)

by RAY MERNAGH

The Adidas Invitational threatened to turn into the New Heights Invitational — that will happen when a team full of tough, NYC-area ballers takes out a juggernaut full of “high-major” prospects like New Heights did to Indiana Elite/Team Indiana in the quarterfinals early Thursday morning. New Heights then repeated the performance in the semifinals, where it fought back from a double digit deficit to defeat the New England Playaz. Alas, the run ended in the final when New Heights lost to the LeBryan Nash-led Dallas Mustangs 69-58. It was an impressive run by a New Heights squad not expected to challenge for the title this week and plenty of college coaches were here to witness it.

Earlier in our Adidas Invitational Day One Standouts article we went into (long) detail on the impressive performance of Shabazz Muhammad, who was the talk of the event Tuesday and plenty of top coaches were watching his EVERY move, as well as our thoughts and updates on Wannah Bail, Cody Zeller, Gabe York, recent UC-verbal Ge-Lawn Guyn and more that stood out on Tuesday and in Part A of the Final Adidas Invitational Player Evals & Recruiting Notes the past two days (wed/Thurs) of action we looked at Winston Shepard, Lebryan Nash, Jermaine Sanders, Jeremiah Davis, Kenny Kaminsky and more…

To wrap up our coverage we spend time this afternoon taking a look at some new faces to NBE, like Dylan Ennis, BJ Van Loo and some familiar ones like Naadir Tharpe, Alex Murphy and some additional looks of the players of the Dallas Mustangs and New Heights as those teams went all the way to the ‘chip. Also a note or two on favorites like Quincy Miller and Yogi Ferrell can be found as well.

You can log-in or sign up for NBE Premium access by SUBSCRIBING (HERE) for as low as $2.08 a month with our annual introductory membership to read more of our coverage from Indianapolis and the Adidas Invitational. Also, any of our Premium Content Articles & Event Coverage is available to subscribers.

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PITTSBURGH JAM FEST: CHANE BEHANAN IMPRESSES

Recruiting picking up for 2011 man-child of Ohio Basketball Club

By Ray Mernagh

This edition features a premier power player in the 2011 class (and one time Cincinnati verbal).

Chane Behanan 6’7″ 225 Ohio Basketball Club

Behanan is all of that physical package his height and weight listed above indicate he is. He’s a man playing with boys, stronger than anyone he comes up against and also athletic and quick in the post. He runs the floor and finishes with the hammer quite often. Simply stated Behanan is a power player and was a big reason the Ohio Basketball Club played deep into Sunday at the Pittsburgh Jam Fest..

You can log-in or sign up for NBE Premium access by SUBSCRIBING (HERE) for as low as $2.08 a month with our annual introductory membership to read more on the performance of Chane Behanan at the Pittsburgh Jam Fest on Saturday…

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SNY TOP 10 ALL-TIME BEASTS OF THE BIG EAST; BRANDEN FRAZIER PICKS HOFSTRA

Last night SNY had a special where they took a look at the Top 10 All-Time players of the Big East. It was an entertaining hour program with in-studio commentary by the coverage crew at SNY, including former Big East Player of the Year and Pitt Panther Charles Smith, former Big East head coach Tim Welsh, Lenn Robbins of the NY Post and SNY college basketball expert Brandon Tierney and hosted by Gary Apple.

Nine of their top 10 were also included in the top 10 of NBE’s All-Time Top 50 Big East players of all-time that we released in the fall of 2008.

Here is SNY’s Top 10 with the NBE ranking in parenthesis:

10) Kerry Kittles (9)
9) Richard Hamilton (7)
8] Walter Berry (5)
7) Alonzo Mourning (14)
6) Allen Iverson (3)
5) Pearl Washington (6)
4) Ray Allen (8)
3) Derrick Coleman (4)
2) Chris Mullin (2)
1) Patrick Ewing (1)

The show included some passionate debate, especially in regards to players who played just a year or two in college compared to their four-year counterparts and the weight a national championship carried in their consideration.

Brandon Tierney agreed that Alonzo Mourning was placed too high in the SNY rankings. Another Hoya, Eric ‘Sleepy’ Floyd was the only from the NBE top 10 not to make the SNY top 10.

Always good debate when looking at all-time lists…
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Branden Frazier, the 6’3″ shooting guard from Bishop Laughlin (2010) and New Heights just committed to Hofstra. Frazier can get buckets in a hurry from deep and also possesses a step-back J and penetration game that should make him a very good player at the next level. Frazier chose Hofstra over a who’s who of mid major powers according to Kimani Young, the New Heights AD.

“Branden picked Hofstra over Kent State, Southern Illinois and La Salle,” said Young over the phone just this morning.

Big East programs such as St. John’s, Rutgers and a few others also evaluated Frazier at times last summer. Frazier was very impressive in last year’s Primetime Shootout (2009) and here is an NBE evaluation by Brian Crownover from the event:

This lanky guard exploded onto the scene for the Lions. Branden had a stellar afternoon as he used a smooth stroke to bury 6 three pointers en route to a 36 point performance. Branden hit from deep both off the dribble, as well as the catch and shoot variety. He ran the floor well too and converted on several lay-ups. Branden threw a nice pass and blocked a shot. His ball handling looked okay, but he didn’t attack much in this contest. Not surprisingly, he was named Player of the Game for his team in the victory. Branden will definitely be a player worth keeping an eye on this summer.

NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (2/16/2010)

Just when you thought you had things figured out in the Big East this season, a week like what we just saw comes along. Louisville and Connecticut seemed to be frittering away their NCAA Tournament chances and then they go on the road and upset top five teams. Rutgers beats Georgetown, Pittsburgh rallies late and hangs on in three overtimes to beat West Virginia, etc.

The top four teams in the Big East have lost five games over the last week. They still hold on to their spots in the power poll in the upper 1/3 of the conference, but this league will not get any easier to navigate through as we head down the stretch with so many teams fighting for NCAA Tournament positions. The 2010 Big East Tournament looks to be one for the ages…don’t miss it!

Here is this week’s Power Poll voting results (including last night’s game), as always, 1st place votes are in parenthesis:

1) Villanova (5): 140 points.
2) Syracuse (4): 139 points.
3) West Virginia: 123 points.
4) Pittsburgh: 115 points.
5) Georgetown: 113 points.
6) Marquette: 96 points.
7) Louisville: 93 points.
8} Cincinnati: 78 points.
9) Connecticut: 65 points.
10) South Florida: 64 points.
11) Notre Dame: 52 points.
tie) Seton Hall: 52 points.
13) St. John’s: 35 points.
14) Providence: 26 points.
15) Rutgers: 24 points.
16) DePaul: 9 points.

NBE’s Big East Player of the Week: Scottie Reynolds, Villanova

NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week: Dane Miller, Rutgers

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It might another month away, but our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page has the links needed for Big East basketball fans to purchase tickets to any or all of the 2010 Big East Tournament sessions. The Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden is an event Big east fans must experience when they have the opportunity and here is your chance to get your tickets early before they become harder, and more expensive, to find. Stub Hub and the Big East conference have teamed up to provide fans with quality tickets and you can get tickets to ANY Big East conference or non-league game by following this link: StubHub.com – The Safe Way to Buy & Sell Tickets Online
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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (2/1/2010)

The top four in the conference seem to be getting clearer and cleared while the bottom three have come into focus, the other nine teams continue to jockey for position and fight for the final handful of NCAA Tournament bids that will hopefully come from the Big East this season.

Once again, NBE writers and contributors took the time to submit their votes for this week’s Big East Power poll, as well as vote for a Player of the Week and a Freshman of the Week in the conference based on last week’s performances. Below is the results of the voting, with first place votes in parenthesis:

1) Villanova (8): 173 points.
2) Syracuse (3): 168 points.
3) West Virginia: 149 points.
4) Georgetown: 148 points.
5) Pittsburgh: 129 points.
6) Cincinnati: 113 points.
7) Louisville: 112 points.
8} Marquette: 98 points.
9) South Florida: 82 points.
10) Connecticut: 78 points.
11) Notre Dame: 73 points.
12) Seton Hall: 54 points.
13) Providence: 51 points.
14) St. John’s: 35 points.
15) DePaul: 18 points.
16) Rutgers: 15 points.

NBE’s Big East Player of the Week: Dominique Jones, South Florida

NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week: Cashmere Wright, Cincinnati

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It might be two months away, but our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page has the links needed for Big East basketball fans to purchase tickets to any or all of the 2010 Big East Tournament sessions. The Big East Tournament at Madison Square Garden is an event Big east fans must experience when they have the opportunity and here is your chance to get your tickets early before they become harder, and more expensive, to find. Stub Hub and the Big East conference have teamed up to provide fans with quality tickets and you can get tickets to ANY Big East conference or non-league game by following this link: StubHub.com – The Safe Way to Buy & Sell Tickets Online
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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (1/25/2010) AND NOTEBOOK

The Big East Conference, Basketball’s Best (ESPN.com) according to Dickie V. Of course, we all knew that and that is why we are here, trying to keep up on everything that is happening in this conference that NEVER has a dull moment.

With all the stories on the site since Friday, mostly covering the weekend’s Primetime Shootout in Morgantown, it made sense to combine this week’s Power Poll with today’s version of the Big East News & Notes.

Here is this week’s Big East Power Poll results (1st Place Votes in Parenthesis):

1) Villanova (11): 176 points.
2) Syracuse: 165 points.
3) West Virginia: 149 points.
4) Georgetown: 146 points.
5) Pittsburgh: 127 points.
6) Connecticut: 123 points.
7) Notre Dame: 105 points.
8} Seton Hall: 98 points.
9) Louisville: 97 points.
10) Cincinnati: 77 points.
11) St. John’s: 56 points.
12) Marquette: 55 points.
13) South Florida: 45 points.
14) Providence: 44 points.
15) DePaul: 20 points.
16) Rutgers: 13 points.

NBE’s Big East Player of the Week: Dominique Jones, South Florida

NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week: Vincent Council, Providence

Read on below for today’s News & Notes in the Big East as we review Sunday’s action as well as the links previewing tonight’s Big Monday match-up…

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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (1/18/2010)

It was a busy Monday at the NBE Basketball Report with the coverage of the Hoophall Classic, Big Apple Basketball High School Invitational and also going through other notes from the weekend that included coverage of the BABC prep school event in Boston. NBE writers and contributors took a timeout and submitted their votes for our Big East Power Poll on Monday afternoon, before Big Monday’s match-up between Syracuse and Notre Dame.

We are about 1/3 of our way through the Big East schedule and the standings have began to separate at the top and bottom with still about half the league jumbled in the middle of the pack. It is another busy week and a few big non-conference games highlight the week’s schedule when West Virginia hosts No. 21 Ohio State and Connecticut entertains No. 1 Texas on Saturday. Within the conference Wednesday’s Pitt-Georgetown match-up highlights the Big East slate this week.

Here is how the votes shaped up for the week (1st place votes in parenthesis):

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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (1/11/2010)

It has been a busy day at the NBE Basketball Report and things are just warming up (although, not too much outside) as the Big East season begins to get into the meat of its schedule. The official beginning of Big Monday tips off tonight with Louisville hosting Villanova.

Much of the spotlight and talk today has centered around Jerry Wainwright and his dismissal from DePaul. The Blue Demons continue to hold down the bottom spot in our weekly power poll…here is how the rest of the league fared in the voting (1st place votes in parenthesis):

1) Villanova (5), 110 points.
2) Syracuse (2), 105 points.
3) West Virginia, 92 points.
4) Georgetown, 89 points.
5) Pittsburgh, 86 points.
6) Connecticut, 75 points.
7) Louisville, 70 points.
8} Notre Dame, 67 points.
9) Seton Hall, 53 points.
10) Cincinnati, 51 points.
11) Marquette, 48 points.
12) Providence, 33 points.
13) St. John’s, 30 points.
14) South Florida, 22 points.
15) Rutgers, 14 points.
16) DePaul, 7 points.

NBE’s Big East Player of the Week: Austin Freeman, Georgetown

NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week: Dane Miller, Rutgers

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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (1/4/2010)

Happy New Year Big East fans!!

Winter is here with a fury on the east coast sending temperatures plunging from the deep south of the Big East to the northern most areas. The cold weather looks to have kept some of our contributors and writers inside and unable to participate in this week’s poll, but here are the weekly results (first place votes in parenthesis):

1) Villanova (3), 77 points.
2) West Virginia (2), 74 points.
3) Syracuse, 71 points.
4) Georgetown, 65 points.
5) Connecticut, 57 points.
6) Cincinnati, 56 points.
7) Pittsburgh, 53 points.
8} Notre Dame, 41 points.
9) Louisville, 38 points.
10) St. John’s, 34 points.
11) Seton Hall, 32 points.
12) Marquette, 31 points.
13) South Florida, 18 points.
14) Providence, 15 points.
15) Rutgers, 13 points.
16) DePaul, 5 points.

NBE’s Big East Player of the Week: Ashton Gibbs, Pittsburgh

NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week: Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati

Also, it might be two months away, but our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page has the links needed for Big East basketball fans to purchase tickets to any or all of the 2010 Big East Tournament sessions. Any Big East fan should experience the excitment that the Big East Tournament at the Garden brings. Stub Hub and the Big East conference have teamed up to provide fans with quality tickets and you can get tickets to any Big East conference or non-league game by following this link: StubHub.com – The Safe Way to Buy & Sell Tickets Online

NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (12/28/2009)

Happy Holidays to all NBE readers, Big East and college basketball fans!!

My, my how time flies, it is our last weekly power poll of 2009 and Big East play is upon us. Once again our Big East writers and contributors came together and cast their votes for the Big East power poll. Below are the results from this week’s voting. With a full week ahead of Big East action, things will certainly get very interesting quickly…

1) Syracuse (8), 158 points.
2) West Virginia (2), 150 points.
3) Villanova, 140 points.
4) Connecticut, 128 points.
5) Georgetown, 123 points.
6) Seton Hall, 100 points.
7) St. John’s, 90 points.
8} Cincinnati, 82 points.
9) Pittsburgh, 80 points.
10) Louisville, 73 points.
11) Notre Dame, 68 points.
12) Marquette, 57 points.
13) South Florida, 46 points.
14) Rutgers, 31 points.
15) Providence, 24 points.
16) DePaul, 10 points.

While Jeremy Hazell of Seton Hall and Chris Wright of Georgetown were both recognized by voters for their big individual performances this week, Devin Ebanks of West Virginia earned NBE’s Big East Player of the Week honors. Ebanks averaged 18 points, 15 rebounds and 5.5 assists in wins over No. 15 Ole Miss and Seton Hall.

Brandon Triche’s 27-point, 4-rebound, 4-assist performance in a 92-60 Syracuse win over Oakland last week led to the Orange frosh picking up nine of the 10 nominations for NBE’s Big East Freshman of the Week.

Also just wanted to take a moment to wish all of our readers a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year!

NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (12/21/2009)

Happy Holidays to all of our loyal NBE Basketball Report readers! Here is to a happy and prosperous New Year to all of you and your loved ones!!

The holidays also means that Big East conference play is right around the corner. This year we will be ringing in the New Year with a full slate of Big East games that get under way this coming weekend. But first, there is some movement on the Big East power poll as Syracuse solidifies their hold on the #1 spot, claiming 75% of this week’s 1st place votes. Georgetown’s first loss of the season knocks them down a few slots as does Seton Hall’s first loss of the year.

With conference play ahead, we will get a better look at who is a pretender and who is a contender this season. For now, with several of our contributors doing their last minute holiday shopping, here is how the eight participants in this week’s poll voted (1st place votes in parenthesis):

1) Syracuse (6): 125 points.
2) West Virginia (2): 119 points.
3) Villanova: 114 points.
4) Connecticut: 103 points.
5) Georgetown: 94 points.
6) St. John’s: 77 points.
7) Cincinnati: 76 points.
8} Seton Hall: 74 points.
9) Notre Dame: 60 points.
10) Pittsburgh: 58 points.
11) Louisville: 52 points.
12) Marquette: 50 points.
13) South Florida: 37 points.
14) Rutgers: 21 points.
15) Providence: 17 points.
16: DePaul: 11 points.

NBE Big East Player of the Week: Dominique Jones, South Florida
NBE Freshman of the Week: Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati

This week’s voters:

NBE Blogger
Matt Whitfield
Nathan Wollack
Alex Schwartz
Dough Ferguson
Raphielle Johnson
Chris Dokish
Ron Bailey

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It might be three months away, but our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page has the links needed for Big East basketball fans to purchase tickets to any or all of the 2010 Big East Tournament sessions. With all the excitement recently at Madison Square Garden, Big East Tournament tickets could make a great holiday gift for any Big East fan on your shopping list. Stub Hub and the Big East conference have teamed up to provide fans with quality tickets and you can get tickets to any Big East conference or non-league game by following this link: StubHub.com – The Safe Way to Buy & Sell Tickets Online
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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (12/14/2009) & NOTES

It was a very up and down week for the Big East conference last week. While Syracuse and West Virginia continue to roll, Georgetown also proved they will be a force to be reckoned with this year. Seton Hall remained undefeated, but outside of those four, the results were very mixed for the rest of the conference. Villanova, Cincinnati and Marquette lost to local rivals, Pittsburgh, UConn and DePaul lost in made-for-tv match-ups, Louisville, Providence, Notre Dame and South Florida lost head-scratchers at home while St. John’s continues to play solid ball and Rutgers came out of the week unscathed in wins and losses, but suffered a big loss in personnel due to injury.

Eleven NBE writers and contributors tried to sort everything out and with two weeks left until conference play begins, here is the latest Big East Power Poll, along with some team updates from links found this morning on the internet…

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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (12/7/2009)

For the third consecutive poll, the team with the most 1st place votes does not finish in the top spot. Actually, West Virginia, with the most 1st place votes, finishes third in this week’s poll. Villanova returns to the top spot after their win over Maryland last night in the BB&T Classic in DC. Syracuse also slips in front of WVU as all three teams are neck and neck. Louisville gets hammered as they lost at home by 22 points with three of their top four guards missing against UNC-C because of injuries. Seton Hall also creeps up in this week’s voting.

Here are the poll results (1st place votes in parenthesis):

1) Villanova (3), 151 points.
2) Syracuse (3), 149 points.
3) West Virginia (4), 148 points.
4) Connecticut, 120 points.
5) Georgetown, 117 points.
6) Cincinnati, 112 points.
7) Seton Hall, 85 points.
8] Notre Dame, 82 points.
9) St. John’s, 74 points.
10) Pittsburgh, 72 points.
11) Louisville, 71 points.
12) Marquette, 63 points.
13) South Florida, 52 points.
14) DePaul, 26 points.
15) Providence, 22 points.
16) Rutgers, 16 points.

Player of the Week: Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

co-Freshman of the Week: Dane Miller, Rutgers & Brandon Triche, Syracuse

Here are the poll voters:

NBE Blogger
Chris Dokish, Contributing editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Ron Bailey, Publisher of i95ballerz.com
Jeff Borzello, NBE Senior Basketball Analyst and Publisher of March Madness All Season
Raphielle Johnson, NBE contributor and CollegeHoopsNet.com writer
Alex Schwartz, President of Northstar Basketball
Ray Balter, NBE contributor
Doug Ferguson, NBE Midwest Editor and lead writer at the NBE Association Report
Alex Jesswein, NBE Contributor/Milwaukee correspondent
John Sessions, sports reporter for The Cowl.

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IVERSON DID THIS — NOBODY ELSE

by RAY MERNAGH

First of all I need each and every one of you to understand something — I never wanted to write this column.

I was riding with Allen Iverson until the end, ready to debate/yell at anyone — including friends and family — with the audacity to knock the best small guard since Zeke.

Why?

Because you, his critics, didn’t understand.

You couldn’t get past the noise around him. The press conference performances and sound bites that, classic as they were, covered up the only sound that ever should have mattered when it came to AI’s game: The squeak his sneakers made when he stepped on the hardwood to ball. Distinct and different, Iverson’s wheels were Perelli’s in a race with Sears and Roebucks. Each time I saw Iverson play in person I kept waiting for his shoes to blow out, that’s how violent the dude’s cuts and stops sounded.

Read rest of article HERE!

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NBE BIG EAST POWER POLL (11/30/2009)

Just like the preseason poll, the team with the most 1st place votes finishes second in the first weekly Big East Power Poll, but this time the results are reversed as West Virginia, fresh off their 76 Classic Championship last night, edges out Villanova. Syracuse surges up the poll right behind the top two and the Orange are poised to move up if anyone falters. The rest of the poll stays pretty consistent, with Marquette making the biggest jump, but apparently many are still taking a wait and see approach on the young Golden Eagles. Seton Hall had the widest range of votes, being pegged as high as fifth and as low as 14th. The Pirates have yet to really play anyone, but expect them to creep up the rankings as others ahead of them lose from time to time.

Here are the poll results (1st place votes in parenthesis):

1) West Virginia (4), 179 points.
2) Villanova (5), 177 points.
3) Syracuse (3), 174 points.
4) Connecticut, 151 points.
5) Cincinnati, 141 points.
6) Georgetown, 128 points.
7) Louisville, 118 points.
8] Marquette, 115 points.
9) Pittsburgh, 93 points.
10) Seton Hall, 78 points.
11) Notre Dame, 74 points.
12) St. John’s, 72 points.
13) South Florida, 46 points.
14) DePaul, 37 points.
15) Providence, 32 points.
16) Rutgers, 17 points.

Player of the Week: Wesley Johnson, Syracuse

Freshman of the Week: Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati

Here are the poll voters:

NBE Blogger
Ray Mernagh, NBE Senior Columnist & College Basketball Editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Chris Dokish, Contributing editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Ron Bailey, Publisher of i95ballerz.com
Jeff Borzello, NBE Senior Basketball Analyst and Publisher of March Madness All Season
Raphielle Johnson, NBE contributor and CollegeHoopsNet.com writer
Alex Schwartz, President of Northstar Basketball
Ray Balter, NBE contributor
Nathan Wollack, Publisher of Blue Demons Nation
Doug Ferguson, NBE Midwest Editor and lead writer at the NBE Association Report
Alex Jesswein, NBE Contributor/Milwaukee correspondent
John Sessions, sports reporter for The Cowl.

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NBE PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST AWARDS

The majority of the Big East teams tip off their seasons tonight and just in time for the real action to begin in earnest, here are the preseason NBE All-Big East awards, as voted on by NBE writers and contributors…

NBE Big East Preseason Player of the Year:
–Luke Harangody, Notre Dame

NBE Preseason All-Big East 1st Team:
–Da’Sean Butler, West Virginia
–Scottie Reynolds, Villanova
–Greg Monroe, Georgetown
–Devin Ebanks, West Virginia
–Lazar Hayward, Marquette

NBE Preseason All-Big East 2nd Team:
–Deonta Vaughn, Cincinnati
–Kemba Walker, Connecticut
–Jerome Dyson, Connecticut
–Dominique Jones, South Florida
–Samardo Samuels, Louisville

NBE Preseason All-Big East 3rd Team:
–Jeremy Hazell, Seton Hall
–Wesley Johnson, Syracuse
–Mike Rosario, Rutgers
–Stanley Robinson, Connecticut
–Mac Koshwal, Depaul

NBE Preseason All-Big East 4th Team:
–Arinze Onuaku, Syracuse
–Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati
–Yancy Gates, Cincinnati
–Andy Rautins, Syracuse
–Marshon Brooks, Providence

NBE Preseason All-Big East Honorable Mention:
–Jerry Smith, Louisville
–Edgar Sosa, Louisville
–Chris Wright, Georgetown
–Corey Fisher, Villanova
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NBE Preseason Big East Freshman of the Year:
–Lance Stephenson, Cincinnati

NBE Preseason Big East All-Freshman 1st Team:
–Dante Taylor, Pittsburgh
–Alex Oriakhi, Connecticut
–Peyton Siva, Louisville
–Mouphtau Yarou, Villanova
–Dominic Cheek, Villanova

NBE Preseason Big East All-Freshman 2nd Team:
–Malik Wayns, Villanova
–Brandon Triche, Syracuse
–Hollis Thompson, Georgetown
–Jeronne Maymon, Marquette
–Omari Lawrence, St. John’s

NBE Preseason Big East All-Freshman 3rd Team:
–Jamal Coombs-McDaniel, Connecticut
–Dane Miller, Rutgers
–Johnny Lacy, Providence
–Danny Jennings, West Virginia
–Darius Smith, Connecticut

NBE Preseason Big East All-Freshman Honorable Mention:
–Joey Brooks, Notre Dame
–Brian Okam, Rutgers
–Isaiah Armwood, Villanova
–Erik Williams, Marquette
–Rakeem Buckles, Louisville
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NBE Preseason Big East All-Transfer Impact 1st Team:
–Wesley Johnson, Syracuse
–Herb Pope, Seton Hall
–Jarrid Famous, South Florida
–Dwight Buycks, Marquette
–Casey Mitchell, West Virginia

NBE Preseason Big East All-Transfer Impact Honorable Mention:
–Dwight Hardy, St. John’s
–Ben Hansbrough, Notre Dame
–James Beatty, Rutgers

Here were the preseason poll voters:

NBE Blogger
Chris Dokish, Contributing editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Ron Bailey, Publisher of i95ballerz.com
Jeff Borzello, NBE Senior Basketball Analyst and Publisher of March Madness All Season
Raphielle Johnson, NBE contributor and CollegeHoopsNet.com writer
Bill San Antonio, sports editor of the Torch
Alex Schwartz, President of Northstar Basketball
Ray Balter, NBE contributor
Nathan Wollack, Publisher of Blue Demons Nation
Zach Smart, NBE contributor and Publisher of ZSmart’s Sports Blog
Doug Ferguson, NBE Midwest Editor and lead writer at the NBE Association Report
Alex Jesswein, NBE Contributor/Milwaukee correspondent

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NBE PRESEASON BIG EAST POWER POLL

You know the college basketball season is upon us when it is time for the NBE writers and contributors to cast their votes for a power poll. Over the last several days the votes have been submitted. Most of the votes were cast prior to Syracuse opening up their season on Monday and before the Keon Lawrence news hit the wires, so for the most part, none of the events of the week influenced any of our esteemed voters.

It was one of the closest votes for the top spot ever and the team receiving the majority of the first place votes actually ended up coming in second in our voting. The top three teams seemed to be pretty consistent with our voters with the second trio also bunched up. There was a noticeable drop to #7 and then another big gap before #8, #9 and #10 placed in the voting.

Here are the poll results (1st place votes in parenthesis):

1) Villanova (6), 200 points.
2) West Virginia (7), 198 points.
3) Connecticut, 181 points.
4) Louisville, 156 points.
5) Georgetown, 150 points.
6) Cincinnati, 146 points.
7) Syracuse, 131 points.
8] Notre Dame, 108 points.
9) Pittsburgh, 106 points.
10) Seton Hall, 104 points.
11) St. John’s, 81 points.
12) Marquette, 65 points.
13) South Florida, 51 points.
14) Rutgers, 38 points.
15) Providence, 37 points.
16) DePaul, 16 points.

Up tomorrow will be our preseason awards and all-league teams, so be sure to check that out.

Here were the preseason poll voters:

NBE Blogger
Ray Mernagh, NBE Senior Columnist & College Basketball Editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Chris Dokish, Contributing editor of Pittsburgh Sports Report
Ron Bailey, Publisher of i95ballerz.com
Jeff Borzello, NBE Senior Basketball Analyst and Publisher of March Madness All Season
Raphielle Johnson, NBE contributor and CollegeHoopsNet.com writer
Bill San Antonio, sports editor of the Torch
Alex Schwartz, President of Northstar Basketball
Ray Balter, NBE contributor
Nathan Wollack, Publisher of Blue Demons Nation
Zach Smart, NBE contributor and Publisher of ZSmart’s Sports Blog
Doug Ferguson, NBE Midwest Editor and lead writer at the NBE Association Report
Alex Jesswein, NBE Contributor/Milwaukee correspondent

*********Follow NBE Sports on Twitter: http://twitter.com/NBESports*****

2009-2010 BIG EAST PREVIEW: 12) RUTGERS

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There was a lot of hemming and hawing done when crafting this season’s Big East preseason countdown of the 16 teams. One perplexing team was the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and when the Big East coaches poll was released placing Fred Hill’s squad 15th, I really began wondering if I had this team too high.

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