Louisville News

NCAA TOURNAMENT AT A GLANCE FOR BIG EAST

NCAA Tournament pairings information and ticket resources for Big East teams

The tournament selection committee has set the field of 65 and now the action of March Madness truly gets underway beginning on Tuesday with the play-in game and Thursday and Friday with the first round of the 2010 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.

Once again the Big East led all conferences with eight teams selected including the No. 1 seed in the West Region, Syracuse. The Orange open their quest for Jim Boeheim’s fourth Final Four appearance in Buffalo on Friday against 16th seed Vermont. Of course there is some NCAA Tournament history between the two schools as the Catamounts upset the No. 4 seed Orange in an opening round game in overtime back in 2005.

Read more

2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT COVERAGE: DAY TWO RECAP

by RAY FLORIANI and MATT WHITFIELD

NEW YORK CITY – Day two at the 2010 Big East Tournament is complete and one thing is definitely certain, we will have a new champion.

The scores:

Georgetown 69, South Florida 49

Marquette 57, St. John’s 55

Notre Dame 68, Seton Hall 56

Cincinnati 69, Louisville 66

Ray’s ten points of emphasis from Wednesday…

1. Georgetown did it the old fashioned way. They defended the heck out of South Florida. Dominique Jones of USF had 21 points to lead all scorers but the Bulls outstanding junior talent had no one to lend a helping hand. Credit the Hoya defense that forced South Florida into a 29% afternoon from the field.

Read more

BIG EAST TOURNAMENT COVERAGE: MERNAGH’S THOUGHTS ON DAY I

by RAY MERNAGH

USF 58 DePaul 49

A lot is being made about South Florida winning without scoring from outside a few feet and I’ll concede it’s one of the more stranger things I’ve seen in a long time.

But it also points to the control that Stan Heath has over this squad. The Bulls finished 0-8 from three but only took two of those in the second half.

Why? Because they didn’t have to make three’s or a lot of jump shots to beat DePaul. Heat told them that and they executed their game plan of getting to the rim.

Today against Georgetown they’ll have to hit some J’s, but because they realized they didn’t need to yesterday they got to today.

It’s all about advancing folks.

Read more

2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT COVERAGE: WEDNESDAY PRIMER

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

After a thrilling doubleheader Tuesday to close the first day of action of the 2010 Big East Tournament, we roll on into Wednesday with four more games as the action will continue to heat up into the weekend at Madison Square Garden.

Here is Wednesday’s schedule (and your chance to get tickets to the games):

9) South Florida vs. 8] Georgetown, Noon.
13) St. John’s vs. 5) Marquette, 2 PM.

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 3 March 10 2010 (USF vs GTown & SJU vs. MU)

10) Seton Hall vs. 7) Notre Dame, 7 PM.
11) Cincinnati vs. 6) Louisville, 9 PM.

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 4 March 10 2010 (SHU vs. ND & UC vs. UL)

The rest of the schedule this week (and your chance to buy tickets to see the action live at MSG):

QUARTERFINALS: THURSDAY, MARCH 11th:

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 5 March 11 2010

1) Syracuse vs. GTown/USF, 12 noon.
4) Villanova vs. MU/SJU, 2 PM.

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 6 March 11 2010

2) Pittsburgh vs. ND/SHU, 7 PM.
3) West Virginia vs. UL/UC, 9 PM.

Semifinals, Firday March 12th:

Session 7:

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 7 (Semifinals) March 12 2010

Championship, Saturday March 13th:

Session 8:

Big East Basketball Tournament Tickets – Session 8 (Championship) March 13 2010

Read more

NBE POST-SEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAMS & AWARDS

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

The regular season is complete and the Big East Tournament tips off Tuesday so be sure to visit our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page for the full tournament schedule and the links needed for Big East basketball fans to purchase tickets to any or all of the 2010 Big East Tournament sessions.

Throughout the day the majority of NBE writers and contributors contemplated, debated and discussed our post-season awards for the Big East conference. Its been another great season with 16 teams battling it out for 18 games each through the 71 days of Big East action from December 26th through this past Saturday. After much deliberation…here are the NBE Big East 2009-2010 season awards:

NBE Big East Player of the Year: Scottie Reynolds, Villanova

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (3/8/2010)

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

The regular season is complete and the Big East Tournament tips off tomorrow so be sure to visit our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page for the full tournament schedule and 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. They still have plenty of seats, and inexpensive options, for the early sessions as well as the entire tournament.

Stub Hub and the Big East conference have teamed up to provide fans with quality tickets and your tickets are guaranteed to be in hand before the game, even when purchasing for the early sessions of the BET: StubHub.com – The Safe Way to Buy & Sell Tickets Online.

Before we dive into the stories of the Big East Tournament and the post season awards and the latest on this coach’s future and who doesn’t like this coach, which is all below, we urge everyone to check out Keith Sargeant’s blog post at Scarlet Scuttlebutt titled Caring for Brayden and see the stories he wrote on Rutgers men’s basketball recruiting coordinator Jim Carr. His son, Brayden, has been battling epilepsy for most of his 18-month old life and the efforts of the Carr family and those close to them and young Brayden to find a cure.

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE & TICKETS

Madison Square Garden in New York City is the place to be beginning next Tuesday

After 18, hard fought regular season contests all 16 teams head to New York City and Madison Square Garden for the 2010 Big East Tournament as this year’s ‘Garden Party’ tips off at high noon, Tuesday, March 9th.

There is a lot at stake once again in MSG as teams fight for NCAA Tournament seeding and a few fight for their postseason lives. This year’s conference tournament promises to be as wide open as any in recent memory. Below we map out the week’s schedule and offer fans links to buy tickets through StubHub.com and your tickets are guaranteed to be in your hand prior to the games with StubHub’s guarantees.

Enjoy the week…March Madness is here!

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (3/5/2010)

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

Here is a quick Happy Hour fix of the news and notes around the Big East as we take a quick glance back at last night’s action and preview the first game of the weekend tonight that kicks off the final games of the Big East regular season. Also in the news today is the visit list for tomorrow’s Freedom Hall finale as the host cards look to stamp that NCAA Tournament resume. The season has not gone quite as well as planned for Mick Cronin and Cincinnati, but the UC coach can expect to give it at least another try next year with the Bearcats. South Florida and Notre Dame enter this last weekend with hopes remaining of NCAA Tournament bids.

Speaking of tournaments this time of year, a good luck shout out goes to the girls team at Northwest HS in Wichita, Kansas as they play in the sub-state final tonight. Good luck to the Grizzlies in their quest to earn a spot in the state tournament.

It is now less than a week away, so be sure to visit our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page for 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT PROJECTED SEEDS/SCHEDULE

The last days of the 2009-2010 regular season are here as we prepare for the conference tournament

All 16 Big East teams will conclude their regular season with a conference game beginning tonight and finishing on Saturday We go through the scenarios and break down the seed possibilities for the 2010 Big East Tournament as this year’s ‘Garden Party’ tips off at high noon, March 9th, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. There will be a lot riding on these final regular season games, but the real action will begin next week a teams will be fighting for their collective seasons and trying to make their final cases in impressive the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. Selection Sunday is just nine days away…are you ready?

Below we break down the scenarios and lay out the Big East Tournament seeding landscape in the conference. Also, we provide links for fans to secure tickets to all the action, closing the regular season and opportunities to buy 2010 Big East Tournament Tickets. This year’s tournament promises to be wide-open and exciting, secure your seats today!

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (3/3/2010)

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

Four games were on last night’s Big East schedule and Marquette made quite a statement, and it was loud and clear. The Golden Eagles are GOOD! MU ran Louisville out of the Bradley Center and the loss puts the Cards back onto the bubble, at least according to Rick Pitino who believes they need a win this weekend to give them enough breathing room before NYC. In other action, South Florida kept their postseason dreams alive while Cincinnati’s looks to be just about shattered. In the process, DePaul gets closer to commencing their job search full steam ahead, but one of their top candidates looks to be off the board. Villanova held on to, at least temporarily, right their ship while Syracuse had a laugher in the Carrier Dome over St. John’s allowing the Orange to celebrate their outright regular season Big East championship.

Tonight is a big game as Notre Dame and UConn put their NCAA Tournament hopes on the line in South Bend. No Luke Harangody again for the Irish…

In other news, Dane Miller is drawing comparisons to another former Big East star from his home area and Jermaine Dixon looks to reach a milestone of his own in his Pitt career. Also, more talk on the Big 10 expansion heats up after the initial report comissions by the conference says it is a feasible plan to move ahead…

Also, it is now less than a week away, so be sure to visit our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page for 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (3/2/2010)

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

Da’Sean Butler went out as a winner in his West Virginia final home game as the Mountaineers dealt slumping Goergetown another loss. The Hoyas were without Austin Freeman, who is battling an illness, and their lack of depth makes it very tough to overcome.

Tonight on the Big East schedule is four games. Deonta Vaughn hopes to go out as a winner in his final regular season home game at Cincinnati and the Bearcats hopes to finish strong while Villanova, losers of three of their last four, hope to make some short-order repairs in time for the post-season. Syracuse hopes to wrap-up the regular season conference title outright with a win over St. John’s as the Carrier Dome crowd gets to cheer 5th year seniors Andy Rautins and Arinze Onuaku one last time. South Florida looks to keep their hopes for a .500 Big East season alive when they visit DePaul and Louisville and Marquette have an intriguing nightcap with several post-season implicatons tied to the outcome.

In other news, Lenn Robbins gives it to a couple Big East coaches following their weekend losses. Notre Dame is likely without Luke Harangody at least one more time as UConn and the Irish battle tomorrow in a game that has very big post-season ramifications. Carleton Scott has given ND a lift during ‘Gody’s absence. Pitt coach Jamie Dixon is a candidate for coaching awards as the Panthers look to sew up a double-bye in the Big East Tournament in their last two games this year.

Also, it just a week away, so be sure to visit our 2010 Big East Tournament & Tickets page for 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

EVERYDAY MESSAGE RESONATES FOR MARQUETTE

Latest evidence is in Golden Eagles overtime win over Seton Hall on Sunday afternoon

by RAY MERNAGH

A simple message can have amazing results. Especially when that message never changes or wavers –circumstances be damned.

“The message is always the same to our guys,” said Buzz Williams, in response to my query of whether he changes his approach depending on situations, in this particular case I was asking about overtimes.

“Whether it’s at halftime, the day before a game or the first day of individual workouts, it’s the same,” said Williams.

On February 18th, Marquette lost 58-51 to Pitt in Milwaukee. The loss ended a five-game winning streak by the Golden Eagles. It made them 7-6 in the Big East and facing a three-game road trip to Cincinnati (a desperate team hoping to stay alive), St. John’s (a team starting to win some games) and Seton Hall (see Cincinnati).

Back to that message.

“This is not for everyone, we need everyone but we don’t need anyone,” said Williams. “We are going to be everyday tough, not just game tough, not fake tough, not rivalry tough, we are going to be everyday tough.”

Read more

SOSA’S LATE SCORE LIFTS LOUISVILLE TO BIG WIN

UL senior Edgar Sosa helps Cards steal one in Storrs to help NCAA Tournament chances

by MATT WHITFIELD

If you wanted to, you could make a scrap book with quotes from college coaches on how tough the Big East is. Sunday’s game between Connecticut and Louisville proved to be just another dog fight as the stakes were high with both teams fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives. The Huskies and Cardinals were both #1 seeds last year and now both entered Gampel Pavilion on Sunday just hoping their names would be called on Selection Sunday in two weeks.

Early in the game all signs pointed to a UConn win as Jim Calhoun’s club came out with a lot of energy and emotion trying to send off their three scholarship seniors, Jerome Dyson, Stanley Robinson and Gavin Edwards, as winners in their final regular season home game. The Huskies raced to an 11-2 lead out of the gates and pushed the lead to as much as twelve points, 28-16, on a three-pointer by point guard Kemba Walker with 8:29 left in the first half.

The Huskies began the game dominating the boards, outrebounding the Cards 18-7, including six on the offensive glass, in the opening eleven and a half minutes.

Read more

UPDATED 2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SEEDING SCENARIOS

Calendar flips to March and the last week of the regular season is upon us as teams jockey for position

All 16 Big East teams were in action with eight highly competitive conference match-ups this past weekend. This year’s conference tournament is shaping up to be as wide-open and as important as ever with NCAA Tournament seeding and bids on the line for several teams. We go through the scenarios and break down the seed possibilities for the 2010 Big East Tournament as this year’s ‘Garden Party’ tips off at high noon, March 9th, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Between tonight’s Big Monday contest (3/1) and next Saturday (3/6), everyone in the Big East will close their regular season with two conference games. Everyone is jockeying for position with conference tournament seeding up for grabs, NCAA Tournament bids and NCAA Tournament seeding riding on the outcomes of these games.

Below, we break down the scenarios and lay out the Big East Tournament seeding landscape in the conference. Also, we provide links for fans to secure tickets to all the action, closing the regular season and opportunities to buy 2010 Big East Tournament Tickets. Later today we will do the same with the NCAA Tournament and how the Big East teams are shaping up for their shot at making, or earning a top seed, in the Big Dance.

Read more

BIG EAST TEAMS JOCKEYING FOR NCAA TOURNAMENT SEEDING & BIDS DOWN THE STRETCH

Many key games will highlight the last eight days of the Big East regular season with NCAA implications

Earlier today we took a look at how the 2010 Big East Tournament Seeding is shaping out and how the last three games for each team in the regular season can still determine quite a bit of the match-ups for Madison Square Garden beginning March 9th.

Now, we take a look at the bigger picture and how the last week will impact the Big East and the NCAA Tournament. At this point, everyone is pretty much agreed that five teams are locks from the Big East to earn NCAA bids: Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia, Georgetown and Pittsburgh.

Over the course of the next eight days, beginning tomorrow, six other Big East teams will have the opportunity to play themselves into (or out of) the NCAA Tournament or onto (or off of) the infamous tournanent bubble. An argument could be made that a seventh team could make a case for themselves if they run the table this last week as well. Below we will go over some of the key scenarios yet to play out in the final days of the Big East regular season before all 16 teams hit NYC for one last shot and the 2010 Big East Tournament.

Read more

2010 BIG EAST TOURNAMENT SEEDING AT A GLANCE

Plenty left to play for in the Big East over the final eight days of the regular season beginning tomorrow

A rare two-day break from conference action allows us to go in-depth and analyze where everyone stands with three regular season games left before the postseason gets underway. We go through the scenarios and break down the seed possibilities for the 2010 Big East Tournament, which promises to be as exciting and as wide-open as a game of online roulette. This year’s ‘Garden Party’ tips off at high noon, March 9th, at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Between tomorrow (2/27) and next Saturday (3/6), everyone in the Big East will close their regular season with three conference games. Everyone is jockeying for position with conference tournament seeding up for grabs, NCAA Tournament bids and NCAA Tournament seeding riding on the outcomes of the games.

Below, we break down the scenarios and lay out the postseason landscape in the Big East. Also, we provide links for fans to secure tickets to all the action, closing the regular season and opportunities to buy 2010 Big East Tournament Tickets. Later today we will do the same with the NCAA Tournament and how the Big East teams are shaping up for their shot at making, or earning a top seed, in the Big Dance.

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (2/24/2010)

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

Its a busy week as the stretch run in college basketball is fully underway. The Big East had a trio of games last night and four more tonight and we recap/preview all the action below.

Also, Providence has a player leave their team with just three weeks left in the season, Lance Stephenson announces his intentions, as of now, for next season and a former city rival coach takes a shot at Mick Cronin from afar…interesting…

Also, it might still be another few weeks 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (2/23/2010)

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

Here come’s UConn! Jim Calhoun has directed the Huskies to three straight wins just as it looked like they were headed towards missing ghe NCAA Tournament. Now last year’s Final Four participant and #1 seed is right in the mix of the bubble talk. Work is still needed, but suddenly a season left for dead just 9 days ago after an ‘embarassment’ is very much alive with a team that could be very dangerous in March.

Three games on the Big East schedule tonight with the battle of Jersey bewteen SHU and RU taking palce at the ROC. A very big game on the conference schedule features Louisville and Georgetown as the two teams have been heading in opposite directions in recent weeks, but the Hoyas are still possessing a lofty national rank and the Cards are hoping to get off the bubble, even though it is Georgetown looking up at UL in the league standings. Syracuse looks to avoid looking ahead to ‘Nova this weekend when they travel to Providence, who has been run through the wringer of the Big East schedule.

In other news, Notre Dame has to go deeper on the bench that Mike Brey might be comfortable with whil Luke Harangody has been out. Now, it looks like Harangody will be out longer than anticpated. The heat is rising against Mick Cronin as UC stumbles again down the stetch. With four years left on his contract, it has the Cincinnati athletic department in a tough spot. Of course, making a few free throws and this situation could be looking MUCH better. Buzz Williams is back to his aerodynamic hair style after growing out a little fuzz during a five-game winning streak. Mouphtau Yarous is adjusting to life on the Philly Main Line and hopes to make the impact he had hoped before this season is done.

In recruiting, Maurice Walker and Gorgui Dieng are 2010 uncomitted big men that Big East schools are actively recruiting into the spring signing period.

Also, it might still be another few weeks 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (2/18/2010)

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

Three games last night on the Big East schedule with Notre Dame putting up a big fight at Louisville without injured star Luke Harangody. However, Samardo Samuels was too much inside for the Irish to handle. west Virginia bounced back from a pair of losses to keep Providence on their slide and Seton Hall won their first road game since Novmember by getting past ice-cold St. John’s. The bad news for SHU is they might miss Jeremy Hazell for up to a week after he suffered a gash on his hand in last night’s win.

Tonight an ESPN Big East doubleheader with long-time rivals Georgetown and Syracuse reuniting at the Verizon Center and new rivals Pitt and Marquette battling in Milwaukee.

In other conference notes, recruiting updates on Josh Selby, Durand Johnson and CJ Leslie can be found as well as a look at the successful freshman campaign of Dane Miller of Rutgers.

Also, it might be 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (2/17/2010)

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

It was a damaging loss for Cincinnati last night on the road against South Florida as once again Dominique Jones makes the difference for his team in a win. Rutgers continues to be on the upswing and comes back from a large deficit on the road to beat DePaul.

Three games on the schedule tonight highlighted by Seton Hall and St. John’s at Carnesecca Arena in Queens. West Virginia will look to snap a two-game losing streak when they visit Providence and tonight’s action is rounded out with Notre Dame and Louisville doing battle in Freedom Hall where one team expects a starter to be back from injury and in the starting line-up while the other has an injured starter making a gametime decision if he will go or not.

Elsewhere, Lance Stephenson might be ‘Born Read’, but he is still a work in progress for UC. Michael haynes is getting some Big East interest as a spring signing period addition and resilient Pitt prepares for surging Marquette this week.

Also, it might be 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

Now, onto today’s News & Notes around the Big East…

Read more

Next Page »