Wading through the remnants of the 35-game bowl marathon giving 6-6 schools a chance at a trophy... hey, it's the college basketball season! The two month rehearsal for conference play gives the diehards (or fans of schools with not so awesome football teams) a chance to check in from the opening tip... while giving casual or easily distracted fans the opportunity to lazily join the party midway through- with a 10 to 15 game resume.
Georgetown enters today's tilt with West Virginia having won 11 straight... and after being picked by many not to make the top ten of the Big East owns a #9 ranking in the nation. They've won conference games by surprise (at Louisville)... won ugly (Providence) and miraculously (the second half rally against Marquette). While Jason Clark outside and Henry Sims inside remain the axis upon which the offense revolves-- Hollis Thompson has shown the knack for making clutch shots down the stretch. A 3-0 start in an unforgiving league is huge.
Alma Mater Update-- Syracuse is #1 and although nobody finishes the season unbeaten anymore the ride's been pleasant. The team has depth I haven't seen in some time. Unfortunately, there's no SU-Georgetown game in DC this winter. Exhibit A on why I'm not bummed the Orange are moving to the ACC: Syracuse-Georgetown is one of the if not the signature Big East rivalry. They play just once... and haven't squared off in a regular season finale for as long as I can remember. Further proof the people currently in charge of the Big East just don't get it.
Maryland enters ACC play having won seven straight-- although the team has been consistently uneven during the streak. The six game stretch at Comcast has allowed a team still finding its way to solidify and Alex Chen and Pe'Shon Howard to get their feet wet before conference play. The ACC campaign tips off with three games against underbelly schools: North Carolina State and Georgia Tech both have new coaches while Wake Forest is coming off a 1-15 last place finish (and they weren't even that good).
Cruising the Commonwealth-- Virginia's ranked 23rd after wins over the likes of Michigan and LSU... and Mike Scott has recovered well from injury (16 points and 9 rebounds a game). A January 12th date with #3 Duke looms. Virginia Tech's bubble residency is already underway as the Hokies are 11-3 with two wins over Oklahoma State but losses to the other big names on their slate. CBS is already setting up camera positions for Selection Sunday.
George Mason is another school that's 3-0 in conference play; the 11-4 overall start involves two losses in overtime and a defeat at Charlottesville to Virginia. Ryan Pearson has grabbed the headlines averaging 19 points and 9 rebounds while Vertrail Vaughns is the sophomore making the leap from peripheral Patriot to primary contributor. Although I still swear "Vertrail Vaughns" was the name of Theo Huxtable's shirt on the Cosby Show. Tonight the Patriots play Georgia State for first place in the CAA.
George Washington began Atlantic Ten play with a 66-56 loss at St. Bonaventure... the Colonials were actually overachieving under first year coach Mike Lonergan until a seven game losing streak blew up their non-conference slate. The offensively challenged (302nd in scoring) bunch has reached 60 points just twice in the last month... and Tony Taylor is the only player averaging in double figures.
Maryland Womens' Moment-- the Terrapins are 15-0 and 2-0 in ACC play after a thrilling 77-74 win over Georgia Tech. The Yellowjackets have long been a team that's caused problems for Maryland-- and with 17 minutes to play the Terps trailed 56-36. But then sophomore Alyssa Thomas scored the game's next nine points... and a 17-1 run was underway. A tight turnaround has the Terps taking on #25 North Carolina Sunday afternoon-- followed by a trip to #12 Miami.
American finished non-conference play with four straight losses-- two of them to Big East teams Georgetown and Villanova. Charles Hinkle's play has been one of the highlights of the season... but a banged up Troy Brewer gives coach Jeff Jones cause for concern.
Howard has played four ranked teams in the early going... and is 4-12 the first weekend of the new year. Coach Kevin Nickelberry hopes Tulsa transfer Glenn Andrews can make a difference as the Bison get into MEAC play.
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