NCAA Basketball FanHouse

Vaccaro: adidas Wrong With MJ's Son

Tim Povtak — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:15:00 EST

Filed under: Conference USA, Coaches, UCF

Take it from the pioneer who started this idea of cozy, contractual relationships between the shoe giants and the NCAA schools: adidas has screwed up this time.

Sonny Vaccaro speaks from experience.

"What a PR nightmare for adidas. This should have been a no-brainer,'' Vaccaro said. "It's nothing but a personal thing against Michael Jordan.''

At issue is the recent decision by adidas to severe its relationship with the University of Central Florida, which has a contract that requires all of its athletes and coaches to wear adidas products.

In the midst of negotiating a new six-year, estimated $3 million contract, adidas officials notified the school this week that its longtime relationship was ending because of the athletic department's decision to allow freshman basketball player Marcus Jordan -- Michael's son -- to wear the family's Jordan Brand (Nike) shoes.

"Adidas never would have done this to a bigger school, but they figured they could pick on a lesser known like UCF,'' Vaccaro said. "They wouldn't have tried this at the University of Florida. It's just not right what they have done. These contracts always have some wiggle room for exceptions like this.''

Vaccaro, through the years, has worked for Nike, adidas and Reebok, serving as the go-between for schools and the shoe companies. He orchestrated the first school/shoes/apparel contract in 1987. It was between Nike and the University of Miami. It started a trend that has benefited schools for many years. He also did many of the same contracts for adidas.

Vaccaro, 70, is best known as the founder of the first national high school all-star basketball game -- the Dapper Dan Roundball Classic. He is retired and living in California.

"Any of the shoe contracts that I ever did always allowed for exceptions,'' he said. "It's absolutely the wrong fight at the wrong time. Look, I don't have any allegiance to any of the shoes now. In fact, this case (with Jordan) reminds me of when Nike tried to hide that video of someone dunking on LeBron James. They should all use some common sense.''

Vaccaro: adidas Wrong With MJ's Son originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Marcus Jordan's Choice Costs UCF Deal

FanHouse Newswire — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:30:00 EST

Filed under: Conference USA

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- A fight over the shoes Michael Jordan's son will wear at the University of Central Florida has cost the school any future sponsorship with adidas.

"The University of Central Florida has chosen not to deliver on their contractual commitment to adidas," adidas spokeswoman Andrea Corso wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press. "As a result we have chosen not to continue our relationship with them moving forward."

Freshman guard Marcus Jordan wore a pair of white Air Jordans during UCF's 84-65 win in an exhibition game against Saint Leo on Wednesday night, the Orlando Sentinel reported on its Web site. Jordan has said he will only wear his father's Nike Air Jordan shoes because they hold special meaning to his family.

UCF is in the final year of a five-year contract with adidas that requires coaches and athletes to use the company's apparel and equipment.

"We are disappointed to learn that adidas has chosen to discontinue its relationship with UCF Athletics," the school said in a statement Wednesday night released by spokesman Joe Hornstein. "Once we receive official notice we will be able to further respond."

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

Marcus Jordan's Choice Costs UCF Deal originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Memphis Files Appeal of Stiff Sanctions

Terrance Harris — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 22:01:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA

The punishment never seemed to fit the crime when the NCAA decided to erase Memphis' entire 2007-08 Final Four season because star point guard Derrick Rose allegedly committed academic fraud by not taking the SAT college admission test himself.

Even with no solid proof Rose didn't take the exam and certainly no evidence Memphis played any part in the alleged fraud, the NCAA still took away all 38 of the Tigers' wins.

On Thursday, Memphis filed an appeal of the sanctions according to a story in the Memphis Commercial Appeal.

The school is taking exception with the constant use of the "strict liability" standard used throughout the NCAA's findings this summer. The school paid, while former coach John Calipari, who moved this past offseason to Kentucky, received a slap on the wrist and Rose is enjoying the riches of an NBA career after spending just one season with the Tigers.

According to the newspaper, the law firm Bond, Shoeneck & King filed a 45-page brief as outside counsel on behalf of Memphis on Thursday. The school declares the penalties and the reasoning are unprecedented and improper.

Apparently when looking through past NCAA sanctions, the firm found "strict liability" used often in the case of Kelvin Sampson at Indiana. That would make sense considering that pretty much the same excessive phone call penalties that ultimately got Sampson fired at IU were the same type of penalties he committed at Oklahoma before leaving for Bloomington.

The Hoosiers were dumb for taking on Sampson and his baggage and rightfully paid for it.

"In each case, the institution was held responsible for having allowed the student-athlete to compete, but the consequences of that participation were clearly mitigated by an evaluation of the facts, including the determination that the institution had relied on the NCAA certification and that it did not have a reason to withhold the student-athlete at the time he competed," the appeal states.

Calipari may give the impression of being a little slimy, but he's never been found guilty of committing severe NCAA violations as a head coach anywhere. Sure, UMass got into trouble while Calipari was there but it was due to Marcus Camby dealing with an agent while still using college eligibility. There was no gain for Calipari there.

Furthermore, this case is bothersome because Rose was initially cleared to play through the NCAA Clearinghouse. It was only after the Educational Testing Service invalidated Rose' test score in May 2008 did the NCAA then step in and retroactively declare him ineligible.

Question: Should Memphis have done its own investigation after the NCAA conducted its probe?

As one Conference USA coach told me shortly after the NCAA sanctions were handed down to Memphis, if coaches start going around not trusting their recruits, that's a sure way to sour that relationship very quickly.

The point here is, say Rose's test score was really fraudulent -- then what responsibility should the NCAA take in declaring him ineligible after the governing body's investigators gave him and Memphis the approval the first time?

Memphis Files Appeal of Stiff Sanctions originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 10 Oct 2009 22:01:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Final Four, Not Josh Pastner's Optimism, Vacated in Memphis

Terrance Harris — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:21:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA, FanHouse Exclusive, NCAA Tournament

New Memphis basketball coach Josh Pastner was bracing for anything, but hoping for the worst as he, along with all the Tigers faithful, awaited Thursday's NCAA ruling on a two major infractions.

Pastner was able to let loose a sigh of relief Thursday afternoon once the NCAA Committee on Infractions ruling was official. The Memphis Tigers program was ordered to vacate its 38-win Final Four season under John Calipari and the team is on three years probation, but the silver-lining in it all for Pastner was there are no sanctions for the current or future teams, meaning there is no postseason ban or reduction in scholarships.

"You hate to see anything like this happen in the sport you love to student-athletes, coaches, university officials, that's no fun for anybody," Pastner told FanHouse Thursday. "But for us, the current and future of the program, there are so many positives to look forward to. Nothing inhibits us from competing at the highest level and having an opportunity to win at the highest level and compete for the best student-athletes in the country."

The extent of the penalties was uncertain before Thursday. But the primary culprit, one-and-done point guard Derrick Rose, who the NCAA found had a substitute take his SAT exam, and whose brother, Reggie, was illegally allowed to travel on the team plane, is gone. Rose became an NBA lottery pick after leading the Tigers to the championship game of the Final Four in 2008 in what was a magical season for the Tigers.

Calipari, meanwhile, left this offseason to take over at Kentucky. Pastner, who spent only last season as Calipari's assistant, became Memphis 17th head coach this past spring. It wasn't long after his promotion news of an NCAA investigation into Rose began to come out.

Pastner, who did has not lost any results as a result of the investigation, said the NCAA ruling lifted a cloud from over the program and its current players.

"Anytime you put a final ending to it, now everyone can move on and move forward," said Pastner, a former player and long-time assistant under Lute Olson at the University of Arizona. "I think that just helps give a relief anytime we are talking to any future prospects. It won't affect the current or future of the program.

"I think everyone was ready for it to have a final decision so everyone could move on and move forward."

But a real final decision could still be months away. Conference USA assistant commissioner for public affairs Courtney Archer confirmed to FanHouse Thursday evening that Memphis is filing an appeal on the NCAA's decision to vacate the Final Four season. Because of that, C-USA is withholding comment, and a decision on the Tigers 58-game winning streak in conference and the three straight league titles.

"We are continuing to monitor the situation, but we won't have comment until the issue is fully resolved," Archer said.

But as far as Pastner is concerned, he is more than ready to move on. A naturally upbeat guy, Pastner is focused on the positives, instead of dwelling on the mess Calipari left behind and the second Final Four Memphis has been forced to vacate.

"Anytime you are taking some wins away or vacating a Final Four, that's not fun for anybody," Pastner said. "But I don't think there is any black-eye. It's looking to the present and the future and keeping very positives , looking at the glass as overflowing. That's what we are focusing on."

Some believe Calipari should face sanctions at Kentucky for what went wrong at Memphis. But it's unlikely he will since he wasn't named in the NCAA report.

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Latest College Basketball Photos

Former Memphis basketball coach and current Kentucky coach John Calipari, right, enjoys a laugh with Gov. Steve Beshear as they served food on the opening day of the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Latest College Basketball Images

Former Memphis basketball coach and current Kentucky coach John Calipari, center, enjoys a laugh with former Kentucky player and current state Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer, left, and Gov. Steve Beshear during the opening day of the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009. Memphis will be forced to vacate the record 38 victories from its Final Four season of 2007-08, according to a report by the Memphis Commercial Appeal. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Former Memphis basketball coach and current Kentucky coach John Calipari listens to a question as he attends the opening day of the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009. Memphis will be forced to vacate the record 38 victories from its Final Four season of 2007-08, according to a report by the Memphis Commercial Appeal. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Former Memphis basketball coach and current Kentucky coach John Calipari listens to a question as he attends the first day of the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009. Memphis will be forced to vacate the record 38 victories from its Final Four season of 2007-08, according to a report by the Memphis Commercial Appeal. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Former Memphis basketball coach and current Kentucky coach John Calipari, right, answers questions while former Kentucky player and current state Agriculture Commisioner Richie Farmer listens during the opening day of the Kentucky State Fair in Louisville, Ky., Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

University of Pittsburgh head basketball coach Jamie Dixon throws a ceremonial first pitch before the Pittsburgh Pirates take on the Milwaukee Brewers in the baseball game in Pittsburgh, on Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino makes a public apology concerning his involvement in a scandal in Louisville, Ky., Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009. Pitino's comments were the first since news broke Tuesday that he told police that he and Karen Sypher had sex on a table at a Louisville restaurant six years ago. Catholics attending Mass Sunday morning said the high-profile coach, a self-professed Roman Catholic, should be given another chance. (AP Photo/Garry Jones)

Judge Hugh Smith Haynie looks on at right as Karen Sypher testifies in her divorce proceeding with Tim Sypher in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Aug. 14, 2009. Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino has admitted to a sexual encounter with Karen Sypher. Sypher is accused of trying to extort as much as $10 million from Pitino. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

University of Louisville basketball equipment manager Tim Sypher listens to Karen Sypher's testimony during their divorce trial in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Aug. 14, 2009. Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino has admitted to a sexual encounter with Karen Sypher. Mrs. Sypher is accused of trying to extort as much as $10 million from Pitino. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

Karen Sypher waits for court to begin in her divorce proceeding with Tim Sypher in Louisville, Ky., Friday, Aug. 14, 2009. Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino has admitted to a sexual encounter with Karen Sypher. Sypher is accused of trying to extort as much as $10 million from Pitino. (AP Photo/Ed Reinke)

This is the second time, however, that a program has had a Final Four season wiped out under Calipari's watch. UMass lost its 1996 Final Four after the NCAA found improper contact between Marcus Camby and two sports agents.

But none of those issues changes the mind of Pastner on Calipari, who gave him an opportunity last offseason.

"All I can speak on is my feelings on Coach Calipari," Pastner said. "I think the guy is one of the best coaches in the game today of any level. I think he is a future Hall of Famer.

"He's a guy who has been very good to me. I learned a tremendous amount from Coach Calipari from a year under him. I think he is one of the very very best coaches at any level. And in my opinion, without question he's going into the Hall of Fame."

All the same, Pastner seems anxious to move forward with his program.

"We've kept a real positive attitude and the only thing we focused on is the current and future of the program, highlighting what we have in front of us, the vision we have," he said. "You can sit there and dwell on the negativity, I call it living in fear, then you start stressing about `What if? What if?' We took the nature of being faith based and focused on the present and the future and went from there."

Information from the Associated Press contributed to this article.

Final Four, Not Josh Pastner's Optimism, Vacated in Memphis originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:21:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NCAA Tells Memphis 2008 Was Just Like 1985: It Never Happened

Chas Rich — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 00:51:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Coaches, Media Watch

For the second time in his career, John Calipari may again be the best coach never to have been to a Final Four, at least according to the NCAA.

According to sources that leaked it to most major sports media and the Memphis Commercial Appeal, the Memphis Tigers will be forced to vacate their 2008 Final Four appearance and the 38 wins they had in the 2007-08 season. That, at least will be the decision of the NCAA Rules and Infractions Committee.

This, of course, will be the second Final Four appearance by a Calipari coached team to be vacated due to player eligibility issues -- something that is singularly unique to Calipari, and not accomplished by any other coach. Not in a way, though, that will enhance his resume. The odds are that the basketball Hall of Fame will not be calling on him soon.

The 1996 UMass squad had their appearance also vacated because of the eligibility of Marcus Camby. His eligibility had been compromised for accepting cash and gifts from a street agent. Like the UMass affair, John Calipari was not found to be at fault, and had already left for a bigger contract.

This is also the second time Memphis has had a Final Four appearance vacated. Its 1985 appearance in the Final Four under Dana Kirk was also vacated due to numerous NCAA violations.

The only good news for Memphis is that there do not appear to be any penalties going forward on the program. Memphis and new coach Josh Pastner can attempt to rebuild from the rubble of a Calipari departure and NCAA investigation without a postseason ban or loss of scholarships.

John Calipari, of course, is ensconced safely in Kentucky with a top-10 preseason team and a huge new contract. Derrick Rose is happily playing in the NBA with his hometown Chicago Bulls.

NCAA Tells Memphis 2008 Was Just Like 1985: It Never Happened originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 20 Aug 2009 00:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Latavious Williams to Play Basketball in China, Not Memphis

Matt Snyder — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:45:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA, NBA Prospects, Recruiting

Before the NBA enacted its minimum age requirement, people were worried about kids forgoing a collegiate education to jump straight to the NBA. The still relatively new rule is instead having an effect its supporters may not have considered: Kids are going overseas to play basketball for money just out of high school.

The newest member of the now three-man club (joining Jeremy Tyler -- who is actually skipping his senior year of high school -- and Brandon Jennings) is Latavious Williams, who had previously committed to Josh Pastner's Memphis Tigers. Every story is unique, but Williams is a complete 180 from the cases of Tyler and Jennings.

Tyler is likely to be a lottery pick whenever the NBA decides he's old enough to join them. Jennings wanted to attend Arizona but didn't academically qualify, but he's such a big-time prospect he's made more than $1 million to play in Italy. Last month in the NBA draft, he was selected 10th overall and should easily make over $1 million a year to play in the NBA.

Williams hasn't yet been ruled academically eligible to play for Memphis, but Pastner told Fox Sports he thought there was a 50 percent chance of that still happening.

Williams also is not a big-time NBA prospect. He was ranked as high as 17 by some recruiting websites for the incoming class, which means he would need to polish his skills at the collegiate level before being a sure-fire NBA prospect ready to make millions. According to who Fox Sports calls Williams' "mentor/advisor," Trey Godfrey, Williams felt a financial burden.

"He made the decision when taking into account his family situation," said Godfrey, who is a certified agent who maintains there is no agreement in place with Williams. "He wants to put himself in a situation where he can help out and he saw this as a good opportunity."

Considering the fact that Williams may never be a strong enough basketball player to make it in the NBA, this is not as much a minimum age issue as it is a somewhat isolated case of a young man wanting to help his family monetarily. If they could have survived a few more years in their current situation, it's still more an issue of him wanting an immediate payday instead of the minimum age requirement, because Williams would not have been drafted this past June by any team in the NBA.

There will be those who judge him for not trying to get an education, but he's going to make a lot of money as an 18-year-old. Our time would be better spent worrying about kids without the means to make money who can't get into schools after graduating high school.

Still, if nothing else, it's a bit odd to see 18-year-old kids going to China or Europe to make money playing hoops when they aren't allowed to do so here.

Latavious Williams to Play Basketball in China, Not Memphis originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lance Stephenson Has Really Limited Choices

Chas Rich — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:52:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA, Mid-Majors, Campus, Recruiting, Rumors

Lance Stephenson is one of the top high school players in the country. He was a McDonald's All-American. He is also just about the only major recruit not running screaming from the rubble of USC that is without a college destination.

Where once he seemed headed for Kansas, that door has closed. Arizona opted against wanting him. Now Maryland has decided they are not interested any longer.

At this point, the only programs that still seem to be pursuing him have nearly as many warts as he does. The choices for Stephenson have dwindled to a school under a major NCAA cloud and one that toils in obscurity, but with a new "name" coach.

Memphis needs talent and recruits. As the Tigers wait to find out what the NCAA has in store for them, they see no risk at this point in taking a player that will certainly draw heavy scrutiny from the NCAA for his academics and the Born Ready web documentary of Stephenson.

The other is regular Sun Belt Conference cellar dweller, Florida International now being coached by Isiah Thomas. Thomas tried to get Stephenson interested right after being hired, but it seemed to go nowhere. Now Pete Vecsey is reporting (for whatever that is actually worth) that Stephenson may be reconsidering the Miami school.

While in Orlando, an on-campus source informed me the Lincoln HS whiz had a sleepover a couple of weeks ago at Florida International University in Miami.

It is more rumor than anything else -- but what do you expect with a Vecsey story. Still considering Stephenson came from the same high school as Stephon Marbury, and Thomas' own history with Marbury the storyline seems too juicy to resist (or make up?).

In all the scenarios Lance Stephenson considered coming out of his senior year of high school, this definitely was not one of them.

Lance Stephenson Has Really Limited Choices originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:52:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Memphis Is Not Trying to Be Funny, Really

Chas Rich — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 10:44:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA, Media Watch

Great timing, Memphis. Pay a visit to the Tigers' Athletic Compliance page and you'll see that it is "temporarily under construction" (hat tip to Gary Parrish at CBS Sports).

I'm sure Memphis' athletic department has a lot on its plate in preparation for tomorrow's hearing before the NCAA Rules and Infractions Committee, but they might want to get on this.

Memphis Is Not Trying to Be Funny, Really originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 05 Jun 2009 10:44:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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College Basketball's Top 25 Coaches

Matt Snyder — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: WCC, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Mid-Majors, MVC, Pac-10, SEC, WAC, Coaches

In an effort to talk about something college basketball-related other than scandals in the summer, let's talk best current coaches. We'll attempt to order the top 25 current coaches in the nation. This is about the present and the future, not the distant past. What a guy did in the mid-90s doesn't matter near as much as the direction his program is currently headed. Past pedigree also matters, to an extent. For the perfect mix of past accomplishments with present achievement and a paved road for future success, look no further than the man atop the list.

The Untouchables

1. Roy Williams, North Carolina -- There are plenty of guys who could out X-and-O him during a game. Of course, he pretty much always has incredibly superior talent on the court, rendering that part of the coaching skill-set less meaningful. Recruiting is part of the job in college basketball, and he's done it well enough to amass two NCAA championships, three Final Fours and four 30-plus win seasons in the past five years. Until someone starts outdoing him on the recruiting trail and keeping those guys in school for more than a year, he'll stay here for a while.

2. Tom Izzo, Michigan State -- He reached his fifth Final Four last season, finishing as the runner-up to Roy's Tar Heels. In 2010, Izzo's Spartans will be cutting down the nets (yes, an incredibly early prediction). He's mixing youth with experience every single year, and that's why this program won't leave the national spotlight as long as he's around.

3. Mike Krzyzewski, Duke -- If this was any year from 1990 to 2001, he'd be the obvious choice for the best coach in the entire nation. In the past eight seasons, however, he's been slightly mortal -- advancing past the Sweet 16 just once. Of course, when we're talking about a guy going to the Sweet 16 six times and the Final Four once in an eight-year span -- and talking about how it hurts his overall resume -- that shows you what kind of bar he set for himself. He's still a legend, he's just being outperformed on Tobacco Road right now.

4. John Calipari, Kentucky -- There will be plenty of naysayers for the foreseeable future when it comes to "Coach Cal" and his "recruiting practices" -- especially in light of recent events. There's a sort of stigma following him around because he's arguably the best recruiter in the nation, but he's never been personally charged with anything concrete. The bottom line is that he's getting the job done and now his national platform is even bigger at one of the NCAA's marquee basketball programs. He's still looking for that elusive first national championship, but the smart money is on that drought ending rather quickly in Lexington (assuming he keeps his nose clean).

5. Bill Self, Kansas -- He's taken three different schools (including Tulsa) to the Elite Eight. He did so in his first year at Kansas. After a decent 2004-2005 season, Self built the team as his own, steadily improving over the next four seasons. Things culminated in 2008 when he did what Williams couldn't do at Kansas, which is win the National Championship. After significant losses to graduation and the NBA, the Jayhawks were in rebuilding mode last season, but it turned out to be reloading. A three-seed and Sweet 16 berth later, and Kansas is set up for another Final Four run. Expect that to be an annual statement about Self's Kansas squad for the foreseeable future.

6. Jim Calhoun, Connecticut -- He's got plenty of longevity, but he's likely not going anywhere, if his health and a possible NCAA inquiry allow, and neither are his Huskies. Though they're only losing Hasheem Thabeet and A.J. Price from a Final Four team, they have enough to pick up the pieces and make another deep run in March (if they make it, it will be Calhoun's ninth trip to the Elite Eight). Calhoun always does.

7. Rick Pitino, Louisville -- A Final Four and two Elite Eights in the past five years for Pitino, but he doesn't seem to have the national championship magic in Louisville. Plus, the addition of Calipari to UK will greatly cramp Pitino's recruiting within the basketball rich State of Kentucky. Don't get me wrong, though, Pitino is still ranked seventh on this list and in the prestigious "untouchables" category. He belongs.

Quasi-Elite

8. Billy Donovan, Florida -- He's lost tons of ground in the past two years. In fact, had we built this list after the two consecutive championships, he probably would have been ranked as the top overall coach in the nation. That doesn't just go away after two NCAA tournament-less seasons, but he's got something to prove now. Can he actually sustain success, or is everything dependent on landing one special recruiting class?

9. Ben Howland, UCLA -- Three straight Final Four appearances for the Bruins didn't yield a championship, though, and he took a step backward in 2009. If you look at his resume, though, there's no reason to doubt the direction of college basketball's most championship-laden program. Howland made Pitt into a powerhouse by his third season and built UCLA back into one -- making the Final Four in his third season. They'll be back.

10. Jim Boeheim, Syracuse -- The 14 Sweet 16 appearances, three national championship games and the one championship are all part of his incredibly lofty standing among historical collegiate coaching greats. Presently, he did take his 2009 group to the Sweet 16 after back-to-back trips to the NIT. He's enduring massive losses to graduation and the draft, though, so he'll have yet another reloading task in front of him. His name is keeping him here and he's likely to continue falling down the list as some of the younger talent trumps him. See the next guy on the list ...

Solid As a Rock

11. Jay Wright, Villanova -- After taking Hofstra to two consecutive NCAA tournament berths, Wright took his talents to Philly at age 40. He built the program for three years and it's been coming to fruition for the past five seasons. He's taken the Wildcats to four Sweet 16s in the past five years, and made a Final Four trip last season. It was the first for 'Nova since the magical 1985 run. They won't have to wait long for another one, because they'll be there again in 2010.

12. Tubby Smith, Minnesota -- He's gone to the Sweet 16 with three different schools and it's soon to be four [edit: originally said four and five, we regret the error] when he completes his rescue of the Gophers from the abyss. Six Sweet 16 appearances and a national championship in 10 years at Kentucky wasn't good enough for the die-hards in Lexington, but I'm pretty sure they'd deal with it in the Twin Cities. It would be awfully tough to win it all from up there, but the Gophers are on track to becoming a team who can occasionally visit the Sweet 16 and perhaps more.

13. Rick Barnes, Texas -- Texas will always be a football school, but Barnes does a heck of a job keeping the Longhorn faithful interested in hoops as well. The 2003 Final Four was nice, and they've been in the Elite Eight twice in the past four years. Heading into this year, they have some serious horses. Look for them to linger around the top 10.

14. Matt Painter, Purdue -- In my view, he's the most likely to jump up a level from this group in the next few years. I also expect this pick to receive the most scrutiny. So, here goes: Purdue has Final Four talent as they head into the 2009-2010 season. Should they make it, his resume will be as impressive as almost anyone at such a young age (he's only 38). In just four years he's transformed Purdue from a Big Ten doormat (3-13 in conference play his first season) to a legitimate national power. Maybe people outside Indiana (the State) don't realize what a joke Purdue basketball had become until he came in and played the role of savior. As beloved as Gene Keady was in Purdue, he never made it past the Elite Eight. Painter will get there before the age of 40. He's the most underrated coach in college basketball. His only other head coaching experience? A single season of domination in the Missouri Valley Conference (17-1 in 2004 conference play for Southern Illinois). [Then again, maybe I'm trying some reverse-jinxing action -- being an Indiana grad.]

15. Gary Williams, Maryland -- It's tough to argue with his past accolades, but I'm seeing three NIT appearances and two second-round exits from the Big Dance in the last five years. This is a list of coaching in the present, not the past. He'll continue to slide from what was once probably a top-5 rank if he doesn't show more potential with the future of the Maryland program.

16. Thad Matta, Ohio State -- He's a much better recruiter than on-court coach, but, again, recruiting is part of coaching in college basketball. He took Ohio State to the national title game in only his third season, yet they've been a tad bit disappointing since. Next year's Buckeyes do look to be very dangerous, especially with the return of David Lighty from injury. His worst season in three different stops still netted 20 wins overall wins.

17. Jamie Dixon, Pittsburgh -- The big knock on Dixon has been his lack of tournament success. He did make the Elite Eight this year, but the Panthers never really got on track against inferior competition from their number one seed and eventually lost to a three seed. He's only 43, though, and has built a maintained a solid program after the departure of Howland. There's upward mobility here should he get over the hump in the next few years.

18. Bo Ryan, Wisconsin -- His regular season resume is impressive enough to land him higher on the list, but he hasn't had any serious tournament runs and it doesn't appear that's changing anytime soon. One thing I love hearing about him is how he gets so much out of limited talent. Well, first of all, he's had some talent. Secondly, recruiting talent is part of your job in collegiate sports. This isn't the NBA where he's saddled with an awful general manager. All that being said, he's a great coach and deserves a top-20 spot. He just seems a bit overrated to me at times in the eyes of the national media.

19. Bruce Weber, Illinois -- Built Southern Illinois' program into a regular Big Dance attendee before steering the Illini to a National Championship game appearance. After a drastic step-back (losing overall record in 2007-2008, which single-handedly knocked him down several ranking slots here), Weber coached an unheralded team to an impressive 24-10 campaign last season. The 2005 National Coach of the Year looks to continue building his reputation with a solid nucleus in place -- along with talented newcomers -- moving into the 2009-2010 season.

Rounding It Out

20. Bob Huggins, West Virginia -- We have to include him, because he wins games everywhere he goes -- and he wins immediately. He's not higher on the list, though, because there seems to be a glass ceiling in place at this point. His only trip to the Final Four was the last time Bob Knight made a trip and he doesn't appear to be in position to crack the top 5 in the Big East anytime soon. Still, he's going to win 20 and visit the NCAAs. That's clockwork.

21. Mark Few, Gonzaga -- He absolutely owns the WCC -- nine straight conference titles -- and has had decent-to-good success in the NCAA Tournament. At some point, though, the four Sweet 16s in 10 seasons need to turn into something more. Otherwise Few's just a very good coach dominating a sub-par conference. He actually may need to take his show elsewhere to shed that label, but the question is: Why would he? He's set up nicely there and won't get fired.

22. Bruce Pearl, Tennessee -- After making UW-Milwaukee relevant, Pearl took the Tennessee job and immediately thrust them into national prominence. The Vols took a step backward in 2009 after a 31-win season and two straight Sweet 16 appearances. Should Tyler Smith decide to come back -- he's filed paperwork for the NBA draft but not hired an agent and will also consider playing overseas -- they'll be headed back that way in 2010. If not, they still return everyone else and will still be in the NCAA Tourney mix as usual.

23. John Beilein, Michigan -- Talking about working your way through the ranks. He's been to Erie Community College, Nazareth College, Le Moyne College, Canisius, Richmond, West Virginia and now Michigan. After just one bad season in Ann Arbor, Beilein gave Wolverines hope they could once again cheer for a respectable basketball program. Considering DeShawn Sims and Manny Harris are coming back, the Wolverines have a nice shot at a Sweet 16 this year, which would be the third in the past six seasons for the late-blooming Beilein.

24. Lon Kruger, UNLV -- While Kruger's successors have had more success than he has (Donovan at Florida, Self and Weber at Illinois), he's still pretty adept at building winning programs. He took UNLV to the Sweet 16 in his third season and has been to the NCAA Tournament two of the past three years with the Runnin' Rebels. If he wants one, he'll probably get a crack at another major job soon.

25. Al Skinner, Boston College -- It's gotta be awfully tough to keep Boston College competitive in ACC basketball when measuring up against Duke, North Carolina, Maryland and others. BC is a football school, after all. Skinner's had his Eagles in the NCAA Tourney seven of the last nine seasons. Despite the loss of Tyrese Rice to graduation, they'll look to improve next season with the rest of the young nucleus returning.

Up-and-Comers

Here are some guys who might possibly be better coaches than several currently on the list. Some of them will need to prove it for a few more years, and others have circumstances they'll need to fight through in order to stick (Crean's Indiana mess, Bennett moving to the ACC from Pac-10, Capel needing to show he can win without Griffin, etc.).

[ordered alphabetically]

Mike Anderson, Missouri -- After winning 20-plus games all four seasons at UAB, Anderson undertook the massive task of cleaning up the Quin Snyder fiasco for Mizzou. Last season, just his third at the helm for the Tigers, saw Anderson lead his team to the Elite Eight. If things continue on this path, they'll have themselves quite the program.

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Pall bearers prepare to unload the casket of Wayman Tisdale during his funeral, Thursday, May 21, 2009, in Tulsa, Okla. The former University of Oklahoma basketball star and popular jazz musician died last week after a long battle with cancer. He was 44. (AP Photo/Tom Gilbert)

The hearse carrying the casket of Wayman Tisdale moves through Tulsa, Thursday, May 21, 2009, in Tulsa, Okla. The former University of Oklahoma basketball star and popular jazz musician died last week after a long battle with cancer. He was 44. (AP Photo/Shane Bevel)

John Wall, flanked by his sister Tonya Pulley and Dr. Frank Summerfield, formally announced during a press conference on Wednesday, May 20, 2009, that he would attend the University of Kentucky next fall to play basketball. (Ethan Hyman/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT)

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John Wall formally announced during a press conference on Wednesday, May 20, 2009, that he would attend the University of Kentucky next fall to play basketball. (Ethan Hyman/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT)

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John Wall laughs with his sister Tonya Pulley during a press conference on Wednesday, May 20, 2009, where he announced he would attend the University of Kentucky next fall to play basketball. (Ethan Hyman/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT)

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Word of God Christian Academy's point guard John Wall discusses his decision to commit to playing basketball at Kentucky during a news conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Word of God Christian Academy's point guard John Wall, center, discusses his decision to commit to playing basketball at Kentucky during a news conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 20, 2009. At left is Word of God Christian Academy's Dr. Frank Summerfield and at right is Wall's sister Tonya Pulley. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Word of God Christian Academy's point guard John Wall, right, and Dr. Frank Summerfield discuss Wall's decision to commit to playing college basketball at Kentucky during a news conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Word of God Christian Academy's point guard John Wall discusses his decision to commit to playing college basketball at Kentucky during a news conference in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, May 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Tony Bennett, Virginia -- Moving from the Pac-10 to the ACC is no simple task. Plus, he's now going to be also competing with the Big East for regional recruits.

Jeff Capel, Oklahoma -- As mentioned above, it's entirely possible he's not a great coach and just was fortunate enough to land the beast that was Blake Griffin. It's also possible he keeps landing beasts due to great recruiting, which would qualify him for the above rankings. Time will tell, but it appears Oklahoma has a quality coach.

Tom Crean, Indiana -- Had he stayed at Marquette he'd easily qualify for the rankings above Skinner and Beilein (at least), but what he's able to carve out at Indiana from this point forward will make or break his legacy. Thus, it's not really fair to put him near the same level as Big Ten counterparts like Ryan or Weber just yet. It's possible he gets all the way up to the top of this list, but it's also possible he's never able to overcome the significant hole dug by Kelvin Sampson -- in which case he'd fall off this list completely.

Keno Davis, Providence -- One stellar year at Drake was followed by a pretty solid season at Providence in the uber-competitive Big East. At age 37, he's a true rising star in the coaching business.

Travis Ford, Oklahoma State -- From Campbellsville to Eastern Kentucky to UMass to Oklahoma State, the former Kentucky point guard has risen through the coaching ranks from the bottom up. His first season as head coach of the Cowboys yielded a 23-12 record and an appearance in the second round of the NCAA Tourney.

Anthony Grant, Alabama -- Two NCAA appearances in three years at Virginia Commonwealth got this rising star the exposure needed to land the head coaching job for the Crimson Tide.

Trent Johnson, LSU -- After making Nevada relevant, he built Stanford as his own team in four years -- making a Sweet 16 in Year 4 -- and won the SEC in his first year in Baton Rouge. If this is his destination job, the Tigers have a program on the rise.

Chris Lowery, Southern Illinois -- His first three seasons were a cakewalk. Three Big Dances, two times advancing past the first round and one Sweet 16. The Salukies regressed to the 18-15 next season and all the way down to 13-17 last season. Did Lowery simply enjoy success due to the foundation built by Bruce Weber and Matt Painter, or is he suffering through a simple down-cycle that will be reversed in the near-future?

Sean Miller, Arizona -- It's time for the 40-year-old coaching phenom to take the next step. In five seasons at Xavier, Miller put together a 120-47 record with two Sweet 16s and one Elite Eight trip. Now, he's moving to a "power" conference across the nation. Fans will expect he maintain a top-10 program, so we'll see if he can meet expectations.

Mike Montgomery, California -- Wait, what? He's like a thousand years old, so how is he here? Because he hadn't coached in the college ranks since 2004 until last season. He had a good re-entry into the coaching ranks, but we need to see it sustained. It's not like he had a John Wooden-like resume before getting back into the swing of things.

Brad Stevens, Butler -- The 32-year-old Stevens learned the Butler ropes under both Thad Matta and Todd Lickliter. Since grabbing the head job, he's gone 56-10 in two seasons -- qualifying for the NCAA tournament both times. The Bulldogs should be even better this season than they were in 2008-2009, too.

***

It's tough to really hammer out a list with specific criteria and stick with it. For example, you could argue Roy Williams isn't as good a coach as Self because he couldn't win in Kansas while Self could. Then you could follow that up with Weber going to the Final Four at the helm for Illinois when Self couldn't get past the Sweet 16 round for the Illini. Weber, though, went 16-19 in 2007-2008 and Huggins hasn't had a losing record since 1985. All in all, there will always be reasons to say one coach is better than another.

This was simply meant to be a summer topic for arguing about college hoops while we wait out the offseason. You should also be able to find my early early early Final Four picks for 2010, though that's a different topic for a different day.

College Basketball's Top 25 Coaches originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 03 Jun 2009 18:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Memphis Determines Its Innocence

Chas Rich — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:07:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Coaches, Police Blotter

What a bombshell from the University of Memphis. It has exhaustively determined that it has found nothing to suggest Derrick Rose did not take his own SAT test. Just for good measure it has also concluded that even if -- somehow -- it did turn out that someone other than Derrick Rose took the SAT there was no way the school could have known. Therefore, in Memphis' humble opinion, there should be no punishment of Memphis.

The main thrust of the document (PDF) seems to be to make it clear that Memphis knew nothing. This should not be surprising since it will be a document that Memphis plans to submit to the NCAA as part of its defense.

Sure the Memphis Athletic Department was alerted by the NCAA as early as last May that the SAT score in Rose's name had been invalidated. And sure, the Tigers were actually informed about the potential grade changing issues back in 2007.

They looked closely at that. Specifically, they asked Derrick Rose about it, and he said he knew nothing about it. That was apparently good enough for everyone.

In any event, Memphis claims in its current response to the NCAA it was "in no position to know of a problem" at the time of Rose's participation because he had been certified on behalf of the NCAA. Memphis claims to have exercised "due diligence" in the fall of 2007 and took all "reasonable steps" to confirm that Rose was eligible.

In other words, Memphis had deniability of knowing anything was wrong and, with the NCAA certifying Rose's transcript, it was no longer their problem.

Memphis Determines Its Innocence originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:07:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Update: Memphis Knew About Allegations For Over a Year

Matt Snyder — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:00:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Coaches

When initial reports surfaced of the allegations against the University of Memphis when it came to an anonymous freshman's contested SAT results, most assumed the University learned of the charges on January 16, 2009 when they received a letter of discovery from the NCAA. According to an ESPN report by Andy Katz, that isn't exactly true.

The University of Memphis actually found out about the nefarious testing allegations via email, and they found out just one month after their April 7, 2008 NCAA Championship appearance. Public assumptions -- due to the logistics of the allegations -- point to then-freshman superstar Derrick Rose, who now plays for the NBA's Chicago Bulls.

According to Sheri Lipman, legal counsel for Memphis, the school began looking into the matter immediately with the NCAA.

Still, this doesn't appear to be getting any worse from Memphis' end. Rose is long gone, as is the coach from that season -- John Calipari has departed to Kentucky. Katz wrote that Calipari was "floored that Rose could have been ineligible." Presently, though, he's had more than one calendar year to come to grips with the revelation.

Memphis will still likely be facing nothing more than vacating the accolades of the 2007-2008 season. Josh Pastner will be able to move the program forward and attempt to wash the university's hands of the incident. Calipari appears to be in the clear and won't be receiving punishment while he pursues his new coaching job in Lexington.

Update: Memphis Knew About Allegations For Over a Year originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Memphis, Kentucky Athletic Directors Bungle John Calipari Situation

Clay Travis — Fri, 29 May 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Campus, Coaches, Fans

Lost amid the kerfuffle overtaking John Calipari, Memphis, and Kentucky is the question that everyone should be asking: Is your average athletic director smart enough to handle their job given the intense pressure and attention that now descends upon the position?

Most are old jocks who've risen to prominence through equal parts glad-handing and reminiscing about the good ole days. They aren't particularly skilled in the black arts of modern-day communications or even, necessarily, at managing multi-million dollar businesses. I've wondered about this for a while, but the ham-handed way that R.C. Johnson of Memphis and Mitch Barnhart of Kentucky have dealt with the John Calipari imbroglio, has convinced me that neither of these guys are up to the job with which they've been entrusted.

Let's begin with Memphis' Johnson. He has his master's degree in P.E. from Northern Iowa. I'm sure there are all sorts of brilliant people in charge of multi-million dollar businesses who chose to pursue graduate studies in P.E., but I can't think of any. His actions at Memphis confirm this opinion. First, he allowed Calipari to insert language into the letters of intent that his players were signing that allowed the players out of the deal if Calipari wasn't there any longer; this is unheard of. Secondly, he waged a war to keep Calipari at Memphis without firing the shot that would have ended Kentucky's pursuit of Calipari immediately, releasing the NCAA letter of inquiry.

It absolutely boggles my mind that Johnson didn't leak this letter when Calipari began flirting with Kentucky. Memphis received the NCAA's letter in January. Did they really think they were going to appear before the NCAA infractions committee and no one was ever going to find out? All Johnson had to do was leak the letter in the week after the basketball season ended and Calipari would have been at Memphis for another five years. It would have taken that long for this mess to blow over. What did Johnson have to lose by doing this? Calipari wouldn't have left for Kentucky -- the Wildcats likely wouldn't have taken him -- he might have lost some recruits but given Coach Cal's abilities as a snake-oil salesman, he probably still could have convinced the recruits to come to Memphis.

Instead Johnson rounded up the boosters, increased his financial package, engaged in a futile pursuit of Calipari, and ended up settling on a young replacement who is most famous for sitting next to Miles Simon on the bench at Arizona.

Swing and a colossal miss.

If he didn't want to leak the letter because he believed it violated his moral code, he could have called Coach Cal into his office and said, "Here's the deal, we'll increase your salary by $500,000 and I won't release this letter to the press. We'll stand by you through the investigation. You can sign right here. Or you can get on the plane to Lexington and before you land, it will be on the front page of the Lexington Herald-Leader Web site. They'll drop their pursuit of you and we won't give you the raise, but we'll still be happy to have you as coach."

Instead, the Memphis athletic department is on the hook for everything that Calipari has ever done at Memphis and the coach gets away with merely a dark cloud chasing him to Lexington.

Does this make any sense? R.C. Johnson couldn't have bungled this situation worse if he'd been intentionally attempting to sabotage his own program. But, and this is key, Kentucky's Mitch Barnhart makes R.C. Johnson's masters in P.E. look like a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford.

Barnhart raises incompetence to a whole new level.

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First, let's be clear, whether you think Billy Clyde Gillispie is an uncouth idiot or not, his memorandum of understanding is valid. Kentucky's going to have to pay him a large percentage of the $6 million he's sued for before all is said and done. Don't let lawyers who have a dog in the fight try and convince you that this isn't a contract; lawyers will argue for whoever pays them the most. Right now both sides of the lawsuit are playing the media to convince non-lawyers that the other side is full of crap. That's normal. But, trust me, as an impartial observer, Gillispie has the much better position in this lawsuit. There's an offer, there's an acceptance, and adherence to the terms of the deal for two years. That memorandum is a functional contract. Everything else is just noise.

But what the hell is Barnhart thinking anyway? Who signs a coaching deal with someone and then refuses to expand upon a two-page memorandum because they want to be able to get out of the contract? Seriously, that's unbelievable. If you have that many reservations about a coach, how in the world is he your top choice? Making a decision like this convinced me that Barnhart was in over his head.

The subsequent interviews Barnhart gave this season convinced me of that even more. Barnhart was borderline unintelligible. Tubby Smith bailed out Barnhart by bolting for Minnesota, otherwise, Barnhart would have found a way to deed Rupp Arena to Smith and his representatives before that contract buyout was finalized.

Now, Barnhart and crew signed Big John even though they supposedly knew about the looming NCAA investigation. I know, I know, they claim that they cleared it with the NCAA. (Which, by the way, isn't permissible). They claim that Calipari assured them he had nothing to do with it, (Calipari: "Well, that depends on what the meaning of the word "know" is.") Really, when you get right down to it, Barnhart was so desperate to sign a big name to replace Billy G., he wouldn't have cared if Calipari had a side business smuggling Cambodians to Mexico. That's fine, but if you're a Kentucky fan don't you think you deserved the right to know that Coach Cal was on his way to ending up with two Final Four banners being stripped? I think so. The fact that they signed Cal without ever disclosing the investigation is a sham. They acted under the cover of night, because they likely believed they wouldn't be able to sign Calipari otherwise.

There's no doubt Coach Cal is smart, but he looks much smarter because he's playing three-dimensional chess against such weak bosses. That's how he managed to skip clean at UMass and Memphis while the programs crumbled in his wake. It's high time fans start paying more attention to the heads of their athletic departments, and demand something more than mere competence. They need someone smart enough to match wits with the smartest of coaches.

I can name 15 diehard Kentucky fans right now who would do a better job as athletic director than Mitch Barnhart. Same with Memphis. If you have any reasonably intelligent friends who happen to be fans of either program, you can probably do the same. With all the attention paid to coaches, and all the power they're accruing in today's collegiate game, isn't it more imperative than ever before that the man who is their ostensible boss have some semblance of ability? Gone are the days when athletic directors could be back slappers and good joke tellers, it's time for a new generation of athletic directors to take the reins. Guys who can do something more than negotiate great deals on tetherballs.

Memphis, Kentucky Athletic Directors Bungle John Calipari Situation originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 29 May 2009 18:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kentucky Knew of Memphis Allegations Before Hiring John Calipari

Matt Snyder — Thu, 28 May 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Coaches

When the news of the NCAA investigation of the University of Memphis broke, the first thing that came to mind was that Kentucky is heading down the same road as Indiana -- having hired a coach who recently came under fire by the NCAA. The situation does seem a bit different, though, because the allegations at Memphis are allegedly not personally tied to John Calipari.

On the other hand, Kentucky knew the allegations were coming to a head and would be made public prior to the June 6 hearing. UK officials have released a statement that says as much.

First and foremost, there are no NCAA allegations against UK Head Men's Basketball Coach John Calipari. Coach Calipari was forthcoming with the University of Kentucky during the hiring process about any issues under investigation at the University of Memphis at that time.

It is normal procedure for the NCAA to ask a former coach to participate in a hearing. Therefore, Coach Calipari will participate as requested.

Coach John Calipari has received a letter from the NCAA stating that he is not at risk of being charged with any NCAA violations in this case.

Well, of course nothing will happen with Calipari. He fled the scene of the crime, just like he did at UMass. You say what you want about Calipari's likely shady recruiting practices, but he gets the players he needs to succeed and he's slick enough to avoid punishment. He's never been personally punished by the NCAA, yet it now appears two schools will have been punished in the wake of his voluntary exit.

At some point, that just can't be a coincidence anymore, can it? Just like it can't continue to be someone else's fault when phone violations were committed by schools with Kelvin Sampson at the helm or myriad infractions committed by Jim Harrick's schools. Infractions and violations don't just follow coaches around haphazardly. There's a reason Mike Krzyzewski, Tom Izzo and a bevy of other highly successful coaches are never questioned: They aren't dirty.

It would appear Calipari is, as long as you can add two plus two. The clock is ticking, Kentucky. Hopefully getting your man was worth it. Remember, administration knew of the allegations and still pushed hard for him. He might be able to land a national championship for the Wildcats before it happens, but eventually, they're going down. It's already happened twice, and strike three is in the future -- even if it's the distant future.

I guess you reap what you sow.

Chest-bump: E at The Dagger

Kentucky Knew of Memphis Allegations Before Hiring John Calipari originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 28 May 2009 13:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Memphis Having a Little Deja UMass

Chas Rich — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:08:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Campus, Coaches, Police Blotter

It is a coincidence.

Besides nothing ever was proven or even suggested by the NCAA that John Calipari even knew what Marcus Camby was up to at UMass. Just like there is nothing at this point to indicate that Calipari was aware of the things the NCAA is now accusing Memphis.

The NCAA is accusing the Memphis Tigers with failure to monitor with regards to actions relating to the 2007-08 season in which the Tigers went to the Final Four. While the name of the key player has been redacted the letter from the NCAA indicates that the player, "subsequently competed during the 2007-08 season and specifically the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship." In other words, Derrick Rose.

The general attitude of Kentucky fans, you can expect, will be that John Calipari is not being accused of anything. Of even knowing anything. That this is on Memphis and their athletic department and their oversight. Sure, the NCAA wants Calipari at the hearing, but that is only because he was the head coach at the time. What happened in Memphis stays in Memphis.

Memphis fans might take some grim satisfaction in that rhetoric from Kentucky fans. After all, it was very much the same thing they said when Calipari came to Memphis. The UMass stuff may have happened on Calipari's watch, but it was not his doing.

They passionately defended and protected Calipari when he was there. He was just the best recruiter. Rumors and unverified accusations of malfeasance against Calipari were from jealous fans and coaches from other programs. Nothing more. Nothing proven.

Ultimately next to nothing will likely happen to Calipari from the NCAA. Rose is denying any wrong-doing, and much like O.J. Mayo with USC, has little incentive to cooperate with the NCAA investigation beyond proclaiming his innocence. Plenty of deniability for Calipari.

Memphis will take the hit, just as UMass did. Like Rhode Island and then Georgia later paid the price for grabbing Jim Harrick. They all took their chances and rationalized things since at the times of the hires, there was nothing actually incriminating sticking to Harrick. Just rumors and veiled accusations.

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Memphis Having a Little Deja UMass originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Thu, 28 May 2009 10:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Memphis Under Investigation for Major Violations During Calipari's Tenure

Matt Snyder — Wed, 27 May 2009 22:40:00 EST

Filed under: Kentucky, Memphis, Conference USA, SEC, Coaches

This has to be the absolute last thing on Earth the Kentucky administration and fans wanted to hear. Less than two months after one of the nation's most prestigious basketball programs snatched John Calipari from the University of Memphis, it has now been revealed that Memphis is under investigation by the NCAA for major violations. Obviously, these allegations took place during Calipari's tenure at Memphis.

The infractions at hand involve some possibly nefarious practices during an SAT exam for an unnamed player and that the university provided $2,260 worth of travel expenses for an "associate" of a player. Both of these allegations occurred during the 2007-08 season.

As the Commercial Appeal notes, the only player who played for the Tigers in the 2007-2008 season was Derrick Rose. Thus, it's pretty likely he was the team member in question, as the university allegedly committed "knowing fraudulence or misconduct" in concerns to his SAT test. Because of this, the team could be forced to vacate the 2008 national championship appearance, not to mention the NCAA-record 38 regular season wins.

As for Calipari, he may have dodged (another) bullet for now. He has not been named in the report of findings by the NCAA offices, though his attendance at Memphis' June 6 hearing with the NCAA Committee on Infractions has been requested.

It's still far too early in the process to make a legitimate comparison, but it almost seems eerily similar to the situation at Indiana with Kelvin Sampson. The Wildcats took a chance on a guy who has the reputation to be slick enough to get around rules from time to time, and they may end up paying dearly for it in the long run.

A major difference, however, is that Sampson had already been publicly handled by the NCAA before Indiana even hired him. Still, when a storied program goes after someone without a squeaky-clean record, they know they are gambling. We know Calipari left the University of Massachusetts with some allegations of wrong-doing when it came to Marcus Camby. He escaped any personal punishment, but the stigma lingered. It will be tough to shake said stigma in the wake of these charges, even if he really didn't have anything to do with the incidents.

As for Memphis, current head coach Josh Pastner was not on staff for any of the charges, thus, he'll come away from the incident unscathed personally. Professionally, though, he could be handcuffed in future recruiting, depending on how the NCAA finds the university.

Stay tuned, there is certainly much more to come on this story.

Report: Memphis Under Investigation for Major Violations During Calipari's Tenure originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 27 May 2009 22:40:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Bracketology Busters: Memphis Blues

Jacob Wheatley-Schaller — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:20:00 EST

Filed under: Memphis, Conference USA

Each week, ESPN's Joe Lunardi predicts the NCAA tournament field if the season ended today. While he's good at this, Lunardi only focuses on past performance, and wins and losses. Bracketology Busters looks at which teams should be expected to perform significantly better or worse than their projected seeds.

This week in Bracketology Busters we'll look at a couple teams that are both currently projected to be No. 2 seeds, but are going in dramatically different directions at this stage of the year. Today, it's a team that was front and center a year ago, but has been largely ignored this season despite performing at a similarly high level.

Memphis | Current Seed: 2 | Status: Underrated

You don't have to look too hard to figure out why the Tigers have flown under the radar for much of this season. After coming within inches of the national championship last year they lost their three best players, Derrick Rose, Chris Douglas-Roberts, and Joey Dorsey.

But even more important to their perception -- they were ranked 13th in the preseason AP poll -- was their performance over the first two months of the season. Since they don't play in a prominent conference, Memphis has to be impressive enough in their early season non-conference games to keep the hype machine rolling when Conference USA play gets underway in January.

Last season, of course, that's exactly what happened. The Tigers were 13-0 heading into conference play, with wins over Oklahoma, Connecticut, USC, Georgetown, and Arizona. Their dominance continued until late February, when they lost to Tennessee in one of the most anticipated games of the regular season.

This season couldn't have been more different. Memphis failed to notch any notable wins in their non-conference schedule, losing to Xavier, Georgetown, and Syracuse. The Tigers even fell out of the AP poll altogether after that third loss, and were faced with the prospect of entering C-USA play in relative obscurity.

Well, that didn't happen. After the Syracuse loss, coach John Calipari decided to move freshman Tyreke Evans over to point guard. It'd be hard to prove the causation, but the correlation between the move and the team's success is indisputable; the Tigers haven't lost in the last two months, winning 18 straight contests.

It hasn't just been the fact that they keep emerging victorious, but rather the fashion in which they've done it.

The most impressive performance was a dominant 68-50 road win over a very solid Gonzaga team. Memphis' stellar defense -- which has risen to first in the country in Ken Pomeroy's ratings, and by a pretty substantial margin -- was on display against the Zags, limiting them to just 50 points over 62 possessions.

And the Tigers' dominance certainly hasn't been limited to that one performance.

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Miami guard Jack McClinton reacts after scoring during an NCAA college basketball game against Wake Forest Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2009, in Coral Gables, Fla. McClinton's maniacal practice habits have helped to make him one of the best guards in the country. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Miami guard Jack McClinton, left, looks for an open teammate around Wake Forest guard Harvey Hale during an NCAA college basketball game Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2009, in Coral Gables, Fla. McClinton's maniacal practice habits have helped to make him one of the best guards in the country. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

Brigham Young's Noah Hartsock, center, and Chris Miles, right, double team San Diego State's Tim Shelton during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009 in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

Brigham Young's Jimmer Fredette (32) celebrates as time runs out during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against San Diego State Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009 in San Diego. Fredette scored 28 points in BYU's 69-59 win. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

Texas A&M coach Mark Turgeon grabs his head in the closing minutes of an NCAA college basketball game against Nebraska, in Lincoln, Neb., Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009. Texas A&M beat Nebraska 57-55.(AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Texas A&M's Josh Carter (23), drives past Nebraska's Ade Dagunduro, with Texas A&M's Bryan Davis, left, in the second half of their NCAA college basketball game in Lincoln, Neb., Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009. Texas A&M beat Nebraska 57-55.(AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Nebraska coach Doc Sadler instructs his players against Texas A&M in an NCAA college basketball game in Lincoln, Neb., Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009. Texas A&M defeated Nebraska 57-55. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Nebraska's Steve Harley reacts after Texas A&M's Josh Carter (not pictured) hits a 3-pointer in the final seconds to beat Nebraska 57-55 in an NCAA college basketball game in Lincoln, Neb., Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Brigham Young's Jimmer Fredette (32) shoots as San Diego State's Richie Williams (3) looks on during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2009 in San Diego. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

It's easy to gloss over that 12-0 C-USA record, but doing that ignores two important aspects of the streak. First, while none of their conference opponents are big time programs, Conference USA is hardly a slouch of a conference. UAB, Houston, Tulsa, and UTEP may not be particularly intimidating teams, but neither are Maryland, Providence, and Arkansas. Still, that didn't stop the latter three teams from beating North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and a full-strength Oklahoma, respectively. Even when you don't face premium talent every night, it's tough to not slip up even once, and that's what Memphis has managed to do.

The other impressive part of the Tigers' performance in conference play has been the margin of their victories. After 12 conference games, they've outscored their C-USA foes by an average of 18.5 points per game. That's slightly worse than last season's mark of 20.3, but when you consider their performance in non-conference games in 2009 -- the previously referenced Gonzaga win, and winning at Tennessee by two -- and compare it to last year, when they split two home games against those same opponents, Memphis has been just as impressive in early 2009 as it was over the first couple months of '08.

The Tigers visit C-USA's second place team, UAB, Thursday night in what should be an excellent matchup. That'll be a good barometer of just how good they are, but regardless of the result, Memphis definitely isn't a team the Tar Heels, Panthers, or any other No. 1 seed would want to see across from them on Selection Sunday.

Bracketology Busters: Memphis Blues originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:20:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On-Court Obsession: Busted Busters

Chas Rich — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 13:08:00 EST

Filed under: A-10, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Mid-Majors, MVC, MWC, Pac-10, SEC, Media Watch

Saturday is a busy day for college basketball. On any Saturday during the season, there can be well over 40 games on TV. Unfortunately, many are completely unwatchable. Every Friday, FanHouse puts together a handy guide of the best options for how to spend your Saturday on the couch watching college hoops.

There's no avoiding it: the Bracket Busters format is in a down year. It's not down because the games will be boring, or because no team will provide some foreshadowing of what it might be capable of in the NCAA Tournament.

Bracket Busters is down because there are just not that many teams in the mid-majors that have been that good this season. The number of teams capable of earning at-large bids from mid-major conferences is on the very low side.

That means these games do not mean much one way or the other for the teams. For almost all the teams taking part in this event, it will still come down to winning the conference tournaments to get into the NCAA Tournament.

Still, there's plenty to watch, so let's get to the top choices:

11 AM ET
Northeastern-Wright State, ESPN2: Things start early. Northeastern is one of three teams from the Colonial that seems most likely to be headed to the NCAA Tournament; Wright State, less so, but it was there not too long ago and has a great fan base.

Liberty-Old Dominion, ESPNU: Seth Curry is almost as much fun to watch as his older brother.

12 PM ET
Butler-Davidson, ESPN: The highlight game of Bracket Busters is much less inspiring with both teams coming off of losses. Add in Steph Curry's uncertain status and this may turn out to be a big disappointment from an entertainment perspective. For Davidson, more than Butler, though, this is a must-win game if it wants to make a better case for an at-large bid.

Notre Dame-Providence, Full Court, MASN or SNY: This is essentially a bubble elimination game for both teams. Notre Dame has only one conference road win. If it doesn't get this one, its only other shot would be at UConn. Providence needs every win possible with their schedule.

Boston College-Miami, FoxSports Florida and South, CSN, or NESN: Miami has to win out if it hopes to keep a glimmer of hope to make the NCAA. BC has been streaky all season.

1PM ET
Buffalo-Vermont, ESPN2: Buffalo sits atop the MAC while Vermont rules America East. Neither team, though, is making the NCAA without winning its conference tournament.

Tennessee-Kentucky, CBS: Someone has to win the SEC East division. Right?

Baylor-Oklahoma State, Full Court and Big 12 affiliates: Baylor is off the bubble (in a bad way), but Oklahoma State still has a chance. Baylor could put a wrench in that.

2 PM ET
Marquette-Georgetown, ESPN: This is the only remaining game for Marquette against a Big East team that's in the lower-eight portion of the conference standings. Georgetown has to win at home to keep whatever slim hopes remain based on its strong computer numbers.

Louisville-Cincinnati, Full Court, Fox Sports Ohio and Cincinnati, MASN and MSG: Louisville is playing for seed, while Cincy really needs a win against a Big East team that will finish above .500 in the conference.

3PM ET
Northern Iowa-Siena, ESPN2: Siena is one of the few mid-major teams that has an argument to get an at-large bid. Northern Iowa is tied at the top of the Missouri Valley Conference. This is one of the few games that can actually impact the chances for either team.

San Diego State-New Mexico, Versus: Neither team is going to win the Mountain West Conference, but get to know them as either could end up as the rep after the conference tournament takes place.

4 PM ET
Utah State-St. Mary's, ESPN2: The "what if" game. What if Patty Mills was healthy? What if Utah State had not lost last week to Boise State? This would have been the game of Bracket Busters. It is still a big game that both teams probably feel they absolutely need to make their case for an at-large bid. It just had the potential to be bigger.

Wisconsin-Green Bay-Long Beach State, ESPNU: Green Bay just knocked off Butler and is only one game back in the Horizon League. LBS is tied at the top of the Big West. Neither team is going the NCAA Tournament without winning its conference. Still, this should be a good game.

6 PM ET
Boise State-Portland State, ESPNU: Okay, this is a stretch, so maybe it is time to go have some dinner. Still, Boise beat Utah State last week and is third in the WAC. The same place where Portland State resides in the Big Sky. Plus, the Vikings did beat Gonzaga this year.

7 PM ET
Washington-USC, Fox Sports Prime Ticket, Northwest and Arizona: USC still has a chance to make an at-large claim. The Trojans need more big wins as they are only 1-4 against RPI top-25 teams. Washington is trying to rebound after losing to UCLA on Thursday.

8 PM ET
Florida State-Virginia Tech, Sun Sports, Fox Sports South and CSN alternative: Virginia Tech seems to live on the bubble. It has the opportunities with the four of the top five teams in the conference on the schedule. This is at home, so it is almost a must-win game.

9 PM ET
Oklahoma-Texas, ESPN: ESPN's primetime game is a rivalry game and a must-win for the home team. The lack of a true point guard has made life difficult for the Longhorns -- that and inconsistent effort all-around. Still, you know that Texas would love to be the team to end Oklahoma's perfect run through the Big 12.

9:30 PM ET
George Mason-Creighton, ESPNU: Two teams that have made their reputations by shocking people in the NCAA Tournament, and each is at or near the top of its conferences. Creighton really could use this game to give it a chance for an at-large bid.

11 PM ET
BYU-UNLV, CBS Sports Channel: A late-night treat from the Mountain West to end things. UNLV has disappointed, but it is dangerous. BYU is trying to catch Utah for the top of the conference.

On-Court Obsession: Busted Busters originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 20 Feb 2009 13:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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On-Court Obsession: Love the Game

Chas Rich — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:51:00 EST

Filed under: WCC, A-10, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Mid-Majors, MVC, MWC, Pac-10, SEC, Media Watch

Saturday is a busy day for college basketball. On any Saturday during the season, there can be well over 40 games on your TV. Unfortunately, many are completely unwatchable. Every Friday, FanHouse puts together a handy guide of the best choices on how to spend your Saturday on the couch watching college basketball.

This is when you find out how much your significant other cares about you. Just how much time will you get to watch college basketball when Valentine's Day falls on a Saturday?

Those without a partner or even a date, can take solace in the money not spent on gifts and dinner. In addition, you can to spend over 12 hours watching hoops.

12 PM ET
Georgetown-Syracuse, ESPN: Classic Big East rivalry. Neither side likes the other. Both teams really need this game to move to the right side of the bubble.

Northeastern-George Mason, CSN, CSNE: There will be only one from the Colonial Athletic Association. These are two of the three most likely teams to represent the CAA.

1 PM ET
UCLA-Arizona, CBS: Just as UCLA looked like the best in the west, they lose to Arizona State. Arizona has shown more grit and toughness than anyone would have thought, with a win over USC on Thursday they are positioned to make the NCAA Tourney once more and keep their streak of NCAA Tournament appearances going.

1:30 PM ET
Nebraska-Missouri, Big 12 Network Affiliates, Full Court: Missouri lost the first time they played, one of their few blemishes in conference play. Nebraska has won three straight Big 12 games and still believes it can get to the bubble.

2 PM ET
VCU-Old Dominion, CSN, CSNE: VCU is the other likely representative from the CAA. They are tied with Northeastern at the top of the conference standings.

3:30 PM ET
Kansas-Kansas State, ABC, Full Court: Outside of Oklahoma, K-State is the hottest team in the Big 12. They have won six straight including wins over Mizzou and at Texas. Kansas is coming off a last second loss in the Border War really does not want to lose another rivalry game.

4 PM ET
Cincinnati-Pitt, ESPN: Cinci has surged into the bubble discussion with a strong defense and adequate offense. They upset Pitt once last year, and they could catch the Panthers past them to the Big Monday game at UConn.

Florida State-Wake Forest, Raycom Affiliates, Full Court: Florida State plays defense first and can struggle on offense. Wake has stopped playing defense and is only relying on the offense. FSU has won four of their last five games. Wake has dropped three straight. Wonder which approach is working better?

Davidson-Furman, MASN: Don't you need your weekly Steph Curry fix?

5 PM ET
Stanford-California, FoxSports: One of the underrated rivalries. Stanford took the first game at Gampel Pavilion. Cal, though, has the better conference record.

6 PM ET
Texas A&M-Baylor, Fox Sports Southwest, Full Court: Two disappointing teams trying desperately to stay near the bubble.

Ole Miss-LSU, Fox Sports Florida, Fox Sports South, Full Court: LSU has been the biggest positive surprise in the SEC this year. Their weak schedule, though, means they need to keep winning. Ole Miss has suffered injuries, their coach being arrested and the video of the arrest being released. Hopefully the LSU fans can come up with something creative to address Ole Miss Andy Kennedy's situation.

8 PM ET
UC-Riverside-Cal State Northridge, Fox Sports Prime Ticket: It's not all about the East Coast and the big conferences. The Big West is a fun place and Northridge has taken the top spot in the conference.

9 PM ET
Ohio State-Wisconsin, ESPN: The bad news, ESPN has skipped hyping this primetime Saturday night game in favor of Monday's Pitt-UConn game. The good news, the game is actually relevant. Wisconsin has resurrected itself in the last week. Ohio State has very quietly put itself in third place in the Big Ten.

10 PM ET
Portland-St. Mary's, Comcast Sportsnet California: St. Mary's may not be the same team without Patty Mills, but after nearly taking out the Zags on Thursday, they are still a very good team. Portland is up one game on the Gaels in the WCC, so this should be a very good battle.

12 AM ET
Nevada-Hawaii, Comcast Sportsnet California: No great reason to watch this WAC match, other than to lay claim to having watched in excess of 12 straight hours of college basketball.

On-Court Obsession: Love the Game originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:51:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ranking the Rankings: Stagnance

Will Brinson — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: A-10, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, Conference USA, Pac-10, Fans, Media Watch

Ranking the rankings criticizes the critics when the polls come out.

Headlining: Connecticut tops the charts ... again. This isn't surprising, because they didn't lose. The fact that they didn't lose -- something that's happened to a lot of No. 1 teams -- is what's mildly shocking, especially considering they had a Monday headliner with Louisville, which they won easily behind the oh-so-strong play of Hasheem Thabeet. Good times, though, when we're not sure that anyone can really hold onto the top spot, no?

Also holding strong at No. 2 were Blake Griffin and the Oklahoma Sooners, who actually used the week to gain a little ground on UConn, for whatever that's worth. After that, though, things get a little shaky: North Carolina, Pittsburgh, UCLA, Louisville, Duke, Wake Forest, Memphis, Michigan State and Marquette are all top-10 teams in one poll (and one order) or another. Parity, baby. Parity.

Freefallin': Texas (15-7). When you lose twice -- coughing up a game to Missouri is fine, but Nebraska, not so much -- in one week and you were already kind of hitting the skids at No. 15, well, you're probably not going to be hanging around the standings very long. Purdue (17-6). After moving as high as No. 12 in the AP poll last week, the Boilermakers coughed up an overtime loss at Ohio State and summarily got blown out by Illinois on the road. I realize both places are tough to play, and the Boilermakers were without star Robbie Hummel, but that's not the kind of week you want if you're trying to either win the Big Ten or manage to stay ranked.

You Gotta Rise Up: Florida State (18-5). The 'Noles crept into the standings on the heels of a huge ~~choke by~~ win over Clemson, which was preceded by a narrow loss to Carolina and a squeaker over Georgia Tech, not to mention senior Toney Douglas scoring 20-plus points in seven straight games.

Hyped: The Seminoles come to mind immediately. It's not that I don't think they're good, or that they'll end up in the NCAA tournament, but after what should be an easy win against Virginia this week, they play at Wake, against Miami, at Virginia Tech, at Boston College, against Clemson, at Duke, and close with a home game against Virginia Tech. Holy. Guh. Give Leonard Hamilton credit for getting them this far, but, man, if they can close out 4-3 in that stretch, I'll be impressed.

Bunked: Missouri's win over Kansas made me rethink this choice. Originally (and at about halftime last night) I had the Jayhawks pegged as underrated. I still think they might be, though, considering only one of their five losses, to UMass, is remotely embarrassing. But man, you gotta give credit to Mizzou for stepping up, and the Tigers look dangerous as hell. They're talented as all get out and play tenacious defense. But Mizzou shoots free throws very poorly, which scares me, as does blowout losses at Kansas State and a 51-point effort against Nebraska. The good news is we'll find out if the Tigers are for real by March 5 -- back-to-back games at Kansas and against Oklahoma kind of dictate that.

WTF? Eight. Yes, the number. Because it appears to be how many ACC teams are going to make the tournament this year. And while the Big East has performed such a feat (in 2006 and 2008), the ACC only has 12 teams. Dios mio. I see it difficult to leave out any of North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, Clemson, Florida State, Virginia Tech or Boston College. Add in a few more teams like Georgetown and Notre Dame collapsing and a strong run by Maryland or Miami and it could happen. Eight of 12 would be ridiculous.

People Who Vote Are Smart (Brought to you by Pollspeak.com): Dave Jones, The Patriot-News. I'm going to be a little persnickity with Mr. Jones here re: his ACC action. See, he's got North Carolina (No. 3), Wake Forest (5), Clemson (10) and Duke (11). I respect rewarding the transitive property and all, but, um, Duke's not 11th overall. They're just not. Michigan State also seems, ahem, a touch skeptical at No. 17. Kudos to Jones though, for rolling Mizzou up there high -- clearly they deserved that.

Ranking the Rankings: Stagnance originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 10 Feb 2009 15:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Best Recruit for 2009 Will Not Be a Hamburger All-Star

Chas Rich — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 23:22:00 EST

Filed under: Kansas, Memphis, Big 12, Conference USA, Recruiting

John Wall is the top high-school senior in the country according to both major recruiting sites. He has yet to make a decision, and likely will not until the spring signing period. At that time, it will be either Memphis, Kansas or Baylor.

Despite being considered the best player in high school, Wall will not be able to claim to be a McDonald's High School All-American. According to Jeff Goodman at FOX Sports, Wall is out because he has been classified as a fifth-year senior. There are -- apparently -- standards.

As much as fans and athletic departments like to pump up their recruits by pointing to that honor, this will have zero impact on Wall's recruiting. He is a future NBA point guard that programs have fallen over themselves to recruit.

Best Recruit for 2009 Will Not Be a Hamburger All-Star originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 03 Feb 2009 23:22:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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