BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES
February 27, 2007
Syracuse put a stamp on their NCAA Tournament resume as they are starting to gel as we gear up for the Big East Tournament next week at Madison Square Garden. The Orange won their 5th straight last night as the ended Georgetown’s 11-game winning streak, sending seniors Terrence Roberts, Darryl Watkins, Matt Gorman and Demetris Nichols off as winers in their Carrier Dome finale.
Pittsburgh will look to do the same tonight for seniors Aaron Gray, Antonio Graves, Levon Kendall and Doyle Hudson in their home finale while West Virginia will look to make a statement on their tournament resume. Pittsburgh has lost their last two home finales.
Around the league, Connecticut is still looking to play a complete game, whether it is when they get some offensive life or when their defense is dominating, something tends to come up short. As Rick Pitino is fully aware, that is life with a young team that has expectations set too high by early and unreasonable rankings. Louisville has shown Caracter as freshman Derrick Caracter has come ‘Myles’ wih hard work. Cincinnati is limping him, Marvin Gentry moreso than others. UC senior hopes to have more than a dollar with his dream. Marquette looks to right their ship. Jamar Nutter contemplates his future and a new future home looks to be imminent for Seton Hall.
To read these articles and more, click ‘Read More!‘ below.
Last Night’s Game:
Syracuse 72 Georgetown 58
After 11 cosecutive wins, the Hoyas’ Streak comes to an End (Washington Times) as It’s Carrier Doom for Georgetown (Washington Post) in their 72-58 loss at Syracuse.
It was a Big Dance Step (Syracuse Post-Standard) for Syracuse who pulled away in the last 8 minutes of the game behind a timely barrage of 3-pters from Demetris Nichols (22 points) and Andy Rautins (13 pts) and a basket by Darryl Watkins (9 pts, 8 rebounds) in a 14-0 run to stretch a 47-46 lead into a 61-46 advantage. Eric Devendorf added 11 pts and 11 assists and Paul Harris added 11 points off the bench. Senior Terrence Roberts battled through an injury to post 6 pts and 6 rebounds and Roberts Was Emotional in Dome Finale (Syracuse Post-Standard) as he soaked up the atmopshere after the game as a throng of Syracuse fans stormed the court to celebrate the victory and NCAA clinching win with fellow seniors (Roberts) Nichols, Watkins and Matt Gorman.
With it being senior night at the Dome and Georgetown coming off a similar emotional taxing victory over Pittsburgh on Saturday, it was a perfect set-up to see the 11-game Hoyas win streak end. Kudos to Syracuse for making the plays to take advantage of their opportunity and punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
TONIGHT’S GAME:
Like Syracuse, West Virginia is in desperate mode for a big win. However, the Mountaineers need it worse and will face a tougher task as they need to get the win on the road, at Pittsburgh. It will be senior night at the Peterson Events Center and the Panther faithful will be sending off Aaron Gray, Antonio Graves, Levon Kendall and Doyle Hudson. There is some uncertainty surrounding Gray’s status for the game, but for all the links to the pregame stories and previews, as well as our brief preview and a prediction from the NBE Blogger, please visit either our West Virginia Team Page or our Pittsburgh Team Page.
AROUND THE LEAGUE:
Their 76-69 loss to Louisville on Sunday had a Familiar Refrain for the UConn Huskies (New Haven Register). However, some positives have evolved of late, like Jerome Dyson becoming a consistent scoring threat and the Huskies received more of a complete offensive effort on Sunday, but as soon as the offense seemed to hit a stride, the defense broke down and Louisville scored on every key possession down the stretch…ahhhhh…youth…
Adam Zagoria has an item on his blog where Louisville Shows Caracter, led by the resurgence of Fanwood, NJ native Derrick Caracter. He also links an excellent article from earlier this month in the Louisville Courier-Journal where Caracter talks about his relationship with UL basketball strength coach Ellis Myles and how Caracter is Better by Myles.
Jerry Carino of the Courier News caught up with Jamar Nutter of Seton Hall and learned that Nutter is Undecided About Returning Next Season. Nutter sat out his freshman season due to academic concerns, but is on target to get that season back as he is 21 credits shy of graduation. He is listed as a junior, but has been at SHU for four years. Nutter also gives his thoughts on Seton Hall’s impending move from Continental Airlines Arena to the Prudential Center in downtown Newark.
For more on the possibility of a move by Seton Hall out of Continental Airlines Arena, see Tom Luicci’s article from Saturday: Seton Hall Planning Continental Airlines Departure (Star-Ledger).
Keith Sargeant of the Courier News hands out his Big East player awards for the season in his Big East notebook as Pittsburgh’s Gray, Georgetown’s Green, Hibbert Vie for Big East MVP. I think a case can certainly be made for Demetris Nichols as well, but that is my opinion.
The Cincinnati Bearcats season will come to an end this weekend and Marvin Gentry will undergo surgery next week to fix a bone spur in his right foot. Gentry is Playign Through Pain (Cincinnati Enquirer) and can hardly practice.
As he prepares for his last home game at Cincinnati, Ronald Allen still has a dream as the seldon-used center believes in himself and his chance at a professional career. Allen’s NBA dream Still Alive (Cincinnati Enquirer) despite playing just seven minutes in the last 11 games for the worst team in the conference.
Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel offers his Weekly Golden Eagles Report for slumping Marquette.
Rick Pitino and his young Louisville Cardinals have hit their stride. However, Pitino knows it is not that easy and seeing the struggles at Connecticut are familiar to him and Pitino Knows it is a Class Struggle for UConn (Hartford Courant) and their early rankings definitely made things tougher.