NCAA Basketball FanHouse

Arkansas Suspends Fortson, Four Others

FanHouse Newswire — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:39:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) -The University of Arkansas suspended five players Tuesday, including three athletes identified in a rape complaint that did not result in charges, for violating unspecified team rules.

Coach John Pelphrey said guards Courtney Fortson, the top returning scorer, and starter Stefan Welsh were suspended indefinitely. Guard Marcus Britt was suspended for six games, forward Glenn Bryant two games, and walk-on guard Nick Mason will not dress for games during the fall semester.

The school did not provide specific reasons for the suspensions, which will keep all players out of Friday night's season opener.

An 18-year-old freshman accused three basketball players of raping her Aug. 27 at a fraternity house party. The police report identified the players as Britt, Bryant and Mason. The prosecutor in the case, John Threet, said there was insufficient evidence to file charges, but the case is now before a special prosecutor at the request of the woman and her attorney.

Threet didn't oppose the request, though he has said he stands by his decision not to file charges The woman's attorney, John Bass, has suggested there was a conflict of interest because Threet is the son-in-law of former Arkansas athletic director Frank Broyles and the brother-in-law of an athletic department spokesman.
Bass said he wouldn't comment on the suspensions.

Pelphrey said in September that although his players were cleared of criminal wrongdoing, he expected them to "adhere to a higher standard and code of conduct," and added suspensions would be forthcoming.

After the players were accused, Fortson posted a crude message on Twitter that referenced the incident.
Athletic department spokesman Phil Pierce said the incident at the fraternity house was not the sole cause of Tuesday's discipline.

"All of the suspensions are not related to that incident," Pierce said.

A woman identifying herself as Bryant's mother answered at a number listed for the freshman, but said she had no comment. Britt did not respond to an e-mail seeking comment late Tuesday, and a number for him appeared to be disconnected.

Mason did not immediately return phone messages left by The Associated Press. It was not clear whether the three players have attorneys.

A number for Welsh also appeared to be disconnected, and a person who answered a call for Fortson said it was the wrong number.

"This collection of suspensions is not yesterday, day before. This dates back," Pelphrey said. "As a college basketball coach, the biggest hammer we have is taking away playing time, taking away game time. We feel like some of these issues merited having those things taken away."

The suspensions will be served concurrently, so with forward Michael Sanchez injured, Arkansas could be missing six players for Friday's game against Alcorn State.

"When I took this job I said it was my dream job, and I meant it," said Pelphrey, entering his third season as Razorbacks coach. "We are working, and we are making progress."

The Arkansas men's basketball program has been plagued by several off-the-court issues recently. Britt was arrested during the offseason on suspicion of driving while intoxicated. And earlier this year, the program was put on notice by the NCAA about its low academic-progress rate.

Pierce said he wasn't aware of any additional suspensions.

"Like anything, if something new is to pop up, I'm sure that coach would reserve the right to add to what he has already done," he said.

Arkansas Suspends Fortson, Four Others originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:39:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas Basketball Players Face New Inquiry Into Rape Allegations

Chas Rich — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:43:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, SEC, Campus, Police Blotter

A serious situation at the University of Arkansas seemed to resolve itself last month when it was determined that there was insufficient evidence to file rape charges against three unnamed Arkansas Razorback basketball players. For a program that has had numerous off-the-court distractions and dysfunctional coaching searches, this was a small relief not to have it hanging over its head when the season got underway.

So much for that plan. Questions quickly arose surrounding the prosecutor that determined there was insufficient evidence. Now the Razorbacks are looking at a case that's being reopened by a special prosecutor appointed by the state, just as the season opener looms.

John Threet is not only the Washington County prosecutor who found insufficient evidence, but he is the son-in-law of Frank Broyles, the legendary and now retired Arkansas athletic director. Not to mention he has a brother-in-law that is an athletic department spokesperson. A couple of rather close ties to the Razorback athletic department that could definitely raise conflict-of-interest issues.

Sure enough, the attorney for the woman making the accusations found them troubling enough to petition a county judge to appoint a special prosecutor. Prosecutor Threet filed his own motion in support of a special prosecutor and the judge issued the order the same day.

The attorney for the alleged victim claims that there is new physical evidence that supports his client's claim. The problem with the case, according to the prosecutor's office, remains the same. A lack of evidence showing force or a lack of consent. Witnesses are not forthcoming.

The special prosecutor, ultimately, may be limited to finding the process flawed, but not the determination.

Arkansas Basketball Players Face New Inquiry Into Rape Allegations originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 03 Nov 2009 14:43:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas Players Not Charged With Rape

Chas Rich — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:04:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, SEC, Police Blotter

You know it has not been the best couple years for a program when the best news these days is that three unnamed Arkansas players will not face charges after being accused of rape. The players were never named, but speculation was rampant as you would expect.

A woman filed charges with the University of Arkansas Police Department, in which she alleged that she was raped at a fraternity party on August 27. The subsequent investigation found inconsistent evidence from witness and the alleged victim herself. Couple that with alcohol being involved, and it was not terribly surprising that the prosecutor declined to pursue the case.

Arkansas has not been the smoothest program since the firing of Stan Heath. There was the failed attempt to hire Billy Gillispie. Repeated rejections from other candidates. The acceptance of the job by Dana Altman, only to have him flee back to Creighton less than 24 hours later, before finally hiring John Pelphrey from South Alabama.

Since then, Pelphrey has had to suspend and dismiss several players. One former player, Patrick Beverley dismissed after the 2008 season, made allegations this spring that others did his school work. Another player, Jason Henry was suspended just before the SEC Tournament and subsequently left the team. This summer the Razorback program also received notice from the NCAA of poor performance on their Academic Progress Report (APR), which only partially relates to the recent turnover of players from the program.

Arkansas Players Not Charged With Rape originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:04:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas Remains 0-for-SEC

Chas Rich — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 15:42:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, SEC

Was it really only two-and-a-half weeks ago that Arkansas looked like one of the hottest teams, and some foolish blogger declared that the homecourt advantage of Arkansas was restored? Er, not so much. Since that heady finish to the non-conference schedule where they knocked off Oklahoma and Texas, the Razorbacks have been winless in conference play. The latest, a 73-51 loss to Auburn in Fayetteville.

This was the fourth straight loss for Arkansas since the big wins over the best of the Big 12. Not only have the Razorbacks lost their first four conference games, but two of the losses have been home losses with big second-half collapses.

The consistent feature in all of their conference losses has been the inability to score. In the non-conference portion of the schedule, Arkansas scored less than 67 points only once (they averaged over 81 points per game). They have not cracked 65 points in SEC action, averaging only 59.25 points per game.

Arkansas has won this season when they can outscore opponents. They are a young team, and their defensive effort has been spotty at best. When the offense is working, they are more active on defense. With the offense struggling, it is having an effect on the defensive effort. More frustration and dumb fouls.

This game was typical of Arkansas's struggles. A perpetually rebuilding Auburn team was able to get the ball inside, or just kick it out for open looks on the perimeter. The Tigers did not have to worry about turnovers and merely had to move the ball just a little to find a good shot.

Where once Arkansas seemed to be an early lock to be in the NCAA Tournament, they are now looking outside of the bubble. The SEC is way down, and Arkansas still has yet to win a game in the conference. They still have games with Tennessee, LSU (twice) and Kentucky. They are going to have to finish at least 10-2 the rest of the way in conference just to finish 10-6 and get back in the conversation.

Latest College Basketball Photos

North Carolina State's Tracy Smith (23) tries to pass Boston College's Rakim Sanders in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Boston. Boston College won 79-68. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Butler forward Willie Veasley (21) puts up a shot against Wisconsin-Milwaukee guard Deonte Roberts, left, and forward James Eayrs during the second half of an college basketball game in Indianapolis, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. Butler won 78-48. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Boston College's Tyrese Rice, center, goes up to shoot between North Carolina State's Dennis Horner, left, and Farnold Degand (12) in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Boston. Boston College won 79-68. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

Butler guard Shawn Vanzant, right, puts up a shot over Wisconsin-Milwaukee forward Burleigh Porte during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game in Indianapolis, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. Butler won 78-48. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Kansas' Sherron Collins, left, talks with Iowa State's Craig Brackins after this NCAA college basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Ames, Iowa. Collins scored 26 points as Kansas won 82-67. Brackins scored 42 for Iowa State in the loss. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

Texas Tech's Robert Lewandowski, top, dunks the ball over Missouri's DeMarre Carroll, left, and Kim English, right, for two of his team high 16 points during the second half of an NCAA basketball game Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Columbia, Mo. Missouri won the game 97-86. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

Missouri's DeMarre Carroll laughs after he was fouled while shooting during the first half of an NCAA basketball game against Texas Tech, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Columbia, Mo. Carroll had a game high 27 points in Missouri's 97-86 victory. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

Texas Tech head coach Pat Knight, right, argues a call with a referee during the second half of an NCAA basketball game against Missouri, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009, in Columbia, Mo. Missouri won the game 97-86. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

Arkansas coach John Pelphrey, center, talks to player Courtney Fortson, right, as the team looks on during a timeout late in the second half against Auburn in an NCAA college basketball game in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. Arkansas lost to Auburn 73-51 and dropped to 0-4 in Southeastern Conference play. (AP Photo/April L. Brown)

Auburn coach Jeff Lebo questions a call during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Arkansas in Fayetteville, Ark., Saturday, Jan. 24, 2009. Auburn won 73-51. (AP Photo/April L. Brown)

Arkansas Remains 0-for-SEC originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 24 Jan 2009 15:42:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas Forgets the Defense

Chas Rich — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 22:53:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, Mississippi State, SEC

The presumption was that Arkansas was a lock to be in the top-25 this week, after upsets of Oklahoma and Texas in the past couple weeks. That took a hit as the Razorbacks got stunned in the second half by Mississippi State in a 70-56 loss. Arkansas only trailed by two at the half, but let the Bulldogs shoot over 50% in the second half. The loss snapped a seventeen game home winning streak dating back to last year.

Most will see that the Razorbacks shot 3-for-22 on threes, and 23-for-64 overall as the main reason for the loss. Not so much. Arkansas was 1-for-11 in the first half on threes, and only trailed by two points. There's no question that Arkansas shot poorly. Their star freshman guard Courtney Fortson went only 2-for-13 and point guard Stefan Walsh was 4-for-16. Two of the top scorers for the Hogs were lousy. In the second half, Arkansas had two stretches of four and five minutes of going without a score.
The problem was that their frustration on offense led to a lot of breakdowns on defense in the second half. The Bulldogs did not have a significantly better field goal percentage in the first half (40% versus 39%), except on the perimeter. In the second half, Arkansas even came out and took a four-point lead with sixteen minutes remaining.

Then Arkansas went cold and Mississippi State started getting more open looks. Mississippi State scored fifteen points on the fast break, as Arkansas just did not get back on defense. Hanging their heads and slow to respond after another miss. It only made it easier for the Bulldogs to score. The Razorbacks became more desperate and less composed on offense.

It is not uncommon for a young team like Arkansas to slack on defense as their frustration on offense mounted. Now the Razorbacks not only have to bounce back from a loss like this, they have to go out on the road for their next two games. Their first road games since late-November.

Arkansas Forgets the Defense originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 10 Jan 2009 22:53:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas Restores Home Hog Advantage

Chas Rich — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:33:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, Texas, Big 12, SEC

Arkansas knocked off a Big 12 team ranked in the top-10 for the second time in eight days. This time they beat Texas 67-61. The Razorbacks completely shut down A.J. Abrams and the Longhorns got very little from the other guards.

It has been nearly a year since Arkansas lost at Bud Walton Arena, running their home winning streak to seventeen. They have also run their record this season to 12-1 with the help of 11 home games in the non-conference slate.

This was supposed to be a major rebuilding year for Arkansas with six seniors gone along with Patrick Beverley was kicked off the team for academic problems -- mainly not bothering with the academics.

While this team had incoming talent, it has been a pleasant surprise to see how quickly they have gelled from the start of the season until now. Coach John Pelphrey may not have been the first choice of Arkansas (or even their third or fourth), but he has managed to clear a lot of problems from the Stan Heath era, along with excellent recruiting and even better coaching. Plus, he and the young Hogs have made Fayetteville a feared road game for opponents once more.

The big question is how they will fair on the road. They haven't left Fayetteville since late November. It's very common for a young team like Arkansas to struggle away from home.

Arkansas Restores Home Hog Advantage originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Curse Of No. 4 Ranking Strikes Again: Oklahoma Falls to Arkansas

Shiloh Carder — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:26:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, Oklahoma, Big 12, SEC

Being the No. 4 ranked team in the country has turned into quite a curse. For the fourth time in this young season, the No. 4 ranked team has been beaten by a non-ranked team.

First it was No. 4 UCLA losing to Michigan. Then Michigan popped No. 4 Duke. Two weeks ago, No. 4 Gonzaga lost to Arizona. Now it is No. 4 Oklahoma losing to Arkansas, 96-88.

This game wasn't that close. The Razorbacks never trailed and once had a 25-point lead over the Sooners. Oklahoma would then go on a 16-0 run to close the gap but ran out of gas.

For the first time this season, there will seemingly be some major happenings at the top of the rankings. No. 2 UConn lost to Georgetown last night and now this Oklahoma loss. No. 9 Purdue was beaten at home by Illinois tonight as well.

By the way, No. 3 Pittsburgh visits No. 11 Georgetown on Saturday.

This curse looks bad to either Duke or Wake Forest -- the most likely heirs to the No. 4 ranking.

Curse Of No. 4 Ranking Strikes Again: Oklahoma Falls to Arkansas originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:26:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas To Honor Nolan Richardson and 1994 Championship Team

Shiloh Carder — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:39:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, SEC, Fans

Arkansas is planning to honor the 1994 NCAA Championship team in a ceremony before the Razorbacks' game against Georgia March 1. It will be 15 years since Scotty Thurman and the Razorbacks beat Duke for the title.

This is quite a development since former coach Nolan Richardson will be there. If you remember, Richardson was fired in 2002 after 17 seasons as head coach. He filed -- and lost -- a discrimination lawsuit against the school and there has been some bad blood between the two sides.

Interestingly, the ceremony will take place seven years to the day that the school announced they were buying out Richardson.

The AD at the time, Frank Broyles, stepped down at the end of last year and was replaced by Jeff Long. While there are still some hard feelings, it seems that Richardson and the school have put that aside so the students, alumni and players can celebrate the pinnacle moment of Razorback basketball.

On a personal note, I remember the '94 Final Four pretty well. It was held in my hometown, Charlotte. I was attending UNC-Charlotte, which was the host school for the Final Four. Anyone who has had the pleasure of having your city host the Final Four knows the kind of atmosphere it brings. It's especially cool when the President of the United States flies in to watch his state's school.

My favorite memory was walking along uptown Charlotte and seeing Maryland's Gary Williams and Syracuse's Jim Boeheim chatting in a booth at a Subway sandwich shop.

Arkansas To Honor Nolan Richardson and 1994 Championship Team originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:39:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Will Arkansas Have Anyone Who Can Score?

Chas Rich — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 23:58:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas, SEC, NCAA Basketball Gossip

Some interesting timing in announcements for the Razorbacks. After announcing a raise and one year extension for basketball coach John Pelphrey, Arkansas also announced the raising of ticket prices and the creation of 34 super-premium seats that cost $12,000 per year and are only available to those fans who donate at least $10,000 per year to the athletic department.

All well and good, but will there be anything worth watching at Bud Walton Arena? The team was already trying to rebuild and had lost four of its five leading scorers from the past year to graduation. Now the team's second leading scorer and leading rebounder is also gone for the upcoming season.

Late Friday afternoon the UA sports information department issued a two-sentence press release stating: "Junior guard Patrick Beverley will not compete for the Razorbacks in the 2008-2009 basketball season. The University of Arkansas, including its administration and coaches, will have no further comment due to student privacy laws."

By all reports, Beverley is academically ineligible. Not simply, one or two classes he has to make-up and could be ready by December academically ineligible. Apparently this is, worse. To the point, where it isn't even clear that Beverley will bother staying in Fayetteville. Instead he may be looking to go pro overseas.

The top returning scorers -- Stefan Walsh and Michael Washington -- didn't combine to average 10 points per game last season. The Razorbacks have only ten scholarship players including five true freshmen, a redshirt freshman and a junior college transfer. Not much of a doubt that Pelphrey will be earning his salary this coming season.

Will Arkansas Have Anyone Who Can Score? originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Mon, 11 Aug 2008 23:58:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Georgetown's Patrick Ewing Jr. Throws Down a Ridiculous Dunk

Michael David Smith — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 16:59:00 EST

Filed under: Georgetown Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, NCAA Basketball Video

Here's Georgetown's Patrick Ewing Jr. at Thursday night's college basketball dunk contest in San Antonio:

Amazingly, that behind-the-back dunk didn't even get Ewing past the first round of the competition, as his first dunk was incredibly weak. Arkansas senior Sonny Weems won the title. You can see Weems' between-the-legs dunk (which in my view isn't nearly as good as Ewing's) after the jump.

Georgetown's Patrick Ewing Jr. Throws Down a Ridiculous Dunk originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 05 Apr 2008 16:59:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Ho-tels, Mo-tels, Holiday Inn! Not Just the Teams Get Seeded in the NCAA Tournament

Shiloh Carder — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:59:00 EST

Filed under: UNC Basketball, Georgetown Basketball, Gonzaga Basketball, Indiana Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, March Madness, Carolina, Davidson Basketball, East, Midwest

When the seedings were announced for the NCAA tournament on Sunday, there was a scramble for the next level of seedings. No, not the N.I.T. or College Basketball Invitational ... but the hotels which will host each of the eight teams in the site.

Take Raleigh, for example, which hosts games of Friday and Sunday. The East's top seed North Carolina gets to stay at the Embassy Suites in nearby Cary, NC (by the way, it is just a 20-mile ride from UNC's campus to the game). Georgetown, the #2 seed in the Midwest will be at a Sheraton in Raleigh.

#16 seed Mount St. Mary's gets a Holiday Inn near the NC State campus. #15 seed Maryland-Baltimore County gets a Holiday Inn near a mall.

The director of sales and marketing for the Holiday Inn Brownstone has no problem with his hotel's low-seeded status.

"We know our place in the community," Kevin Johnson said. "We're not a four-star hotel, but there were probably 20 hotels who put in for this. So we look at it as a 'glass half-full' situation."

I guess.

While you may thing the seeding deal is one thing, at least the NCAA is trying to get these kids into decent accomodations. In year's past, that hasn't been the case.

But the NCAA was not always so rigorous in its hotel screening. Southern Illinois assistant coach Brad Korn told The Washington Post last year how his team reached the tournament's regional semifinals as a No. 11 seed in 2002, only to be assigned to a rundown Syracuse hotel with moldy showers, unkempt beds and filthy curtains. The Salukis head coach, Chris Lowery, an assistant at the time, suffered an allergic reaction and missed a practice when his face erupted in hives. The team blamed the food and the hotel's cleanliness.

The NCAA requires that the hotels have a full service resteraunt and conference rooms that can be used for team meetings. They've also starting viewing the rooms, showers and overall cleanliness before giving them the okay. Still, there may be some things that are more important,

UMBC sophomore forward Justin Fry did not begrudge Georgetown its more luxurious hotel, nor did he gripe about his Holiday Inn, which was close enough to the Angus Barn steakhouse for a Wednesday night team dinner.

"They deserve it," Fry said of Georgetown and its place in the hotel pecking order. "I mean, it's not really a slap in the face. We're just here to play ball."

Ho-tels, Mo-tels, Holiday Inn! Not Just the Teams Get Seeded in the NCAA Tournament originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 21 Mar 2008 12:59:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Georgia Beats Arkansas, Advances to Big Dance With SEC Tournament Title

Michael David Smith — Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:33:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas Basketball, SEC Basketball

Georgia wrote the most improbable of endings to its stunning run through the SEC Tournament today, winning its third game in 30 hours to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

The Bulldogs improved their overall record to 16-16, but they sure haven't looked like a .500 team lately. After an SEC season in which they won four games and lost 12, they've completed an SEC Tournament in which they won four games and lost none.

The first two of those wins were in overtime, and thanks to a tornado damaging the Georgia Dome, the final three wins had to happen over the course of just two days, with Georgia winning an almost unprecedented two games on Saturday before winning the title today.

Georgia coach Dennis Felton, who was on the hottest of seats entering this Tournament, now appears to be safe in his job. It would be hard to justify firing the coach whose team is the best story in college basketball, and that's just what Felton's team has become.

Previously on FanHouse:
Dennis Felton Thinks His Team Has Been Eliminated From the SEC Tournament
Dennis Felton Leads Georgia to Two Wins in One Day, Drawing Praise From Bob Knight
Georgia Beats Arkansas, Advances to Big Dance With SEC Tournament Title

Georgia Beats Arkansas, Advances to Big Dance With SEC Tournament Title originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sun, 16 Mar 2008 17:33:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SEC Moves Tournament to Georgia Tech

Shiloh Carder — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 05:45:00 EST

Filed under: Tennessee Basketball, Kentucky Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, Atlanta

With the damage suffered to the Georgia Dome by severe weather during the end of the Alabama-Mississippi State game last night, the Southeastern Conference has decided to move the tournament to Georgia Tech's Alexander Memorial Coliseum.

Early Saturday morning, SEC director of communications, DeWayne Peevy, told ESPN.com by phone from Atlanta that Georgia and Kentucky would play at noon Saturday in a makeup of the postponed quarterfinal on the campus of Georgia Tech at the Alexander Memorial Coliseum, instead of the storm-damaged Georgia Dome. The first semifinal pitting Tennessee and Arkansas would take place at 6 p.m. while the second semifinal between the winner of Kentucky-Georgia and Mississippi State will tip at approximately 8:30 p.m.

Alexander Memorial Coliseum holds just over 9,000 people so the league is limiting attendance to just the players' families, cheeleaders, bands and the normal credentialed people. There will be refunds for people who held tickets to the semifinals and beyond.

Word is that the SEC wanted to just name co-champions by having the Kentucky-Georgia game on Saturday and both semifinals on Sunday. However, the NCAA told the conference that not having a conference championship game would force the committee to take away its automatic qualifier.

Obviously, this sucks for the conference. Either Kentucky or Georgia will be forced to play twice today. Also, going from an attendance of 40,000 to under 10,000 hurts the bottom line. Add into the fact that the postponed game (Georgia-Kentucky) featured the host state's school against the conference's best traveling team and it does sting. Money isn't everything ... but the SEC holds their tournament in domes for a reason.

In the light of everything that's gone on, this seems to be the right thing to do. If the Georgia Dome poses any danger to people, they need to move somewhere else. If you are familiar with the Atlanta area, you'd have heard that there was a lot of storm damage to the CNN Center and the adjacent Phillips Arena ... where the NBA's Atlanta Hawks play. The Arena was already booked with the Winter Jam Tour Spectacular anyway.

SEC Moves Tournament to Georgia Tech originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 15 Mar 2008 05:45:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ESPN's Joe Lunardi: 'The Bubble Is Bad'

Michael David Smith — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Florida Basketball, Syracuse Basketball, Maryland Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, March Madness, ESPN, Virginia Tech Basketball, Arizona State Basketball

It's early march, which means it's time for us to hang on every word spoken by Joe Lunardi, the ESPN bracketologist who has carved out his own niche as the world's foremost authority on which teams are getting into the NCAA Tournament and which teams will be left out.

Lunardi is the guru of the Bubble, so what Lunardi said on ESPN Radio today was particularly interesting. Explaining why he wouldn't want to expand the Tournament field beyond 65 teams, Lunardi said, "The bubble is pretty bad."

Lunardi hasn't updated his bracket with the weekend's action, but going into the weekend he listed Arkansas, Arizona State, Virginia Tech and Maryland as the last four teams in, with Florida, Syracuse, Saint Joseph's and Western Kentucky as the last four out.

Fans of those eight teams won't want to hear that the bubble is bad, but Lunardi is basically right: The bubble teams aren't particularly good basketball teams, certainly not good enough that it's realistic to think they could win six straight games to win the title. So while the bubble teams are the ones that garner the most attention at this time of year, the bubble really isn't very good. And expanding the field would just make the bubble worse.

ESPN's Joe Lunardi: 'The Bubble Is Bad' originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Mon, 10 Mar 2008 10:02:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CBS Readying NCAA Tournament Coverage

Charles Rich — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 22:08:00 EST

Filed under: Duke Basketball, Kentucky Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, SEC Basketball, NCAA Basketball Media Watch

CBS has complete control over the games in the NCAA Tournament. What games are shown. Where they are shown, and most importantly -- when they will choose to switch them over to another game. Let's just say that the people at CBS Sports did nothing to inspire confidence today.

A double-header of basketball on CBS featured Arkansas at Kentucky to lead things off. The game was tight the entire way. Kentucky had a lead with just under a minute left. Patrick Patterson went to the free throw line with 51 seconds left. Patterson sank the first one to give Kentucky a 58-55 lead. Before he could shoot the second some brilliant mind switched coverage to the opening tip of 10-15 St. John's and 22-3 Duke.

They didn't just switch over in New York and North Carolina. They did it in Kentucky, Ohio, Florida and just about everywhere.

Who made that call? A tight conference game that means something, and they switch to the opening tip of a game that was expected to be and was a complete blowout?

Perhaps this was subtle CBS marketing to get people to sign up for their March Madness package. "Don't trust us to stick with the game you want to see, buy the pay package rather than take that chance."

Solid marketing tactic.

CBS Readying NCAA Tournament Coverage originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 23 Feb 2008 22:08:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Arkansas is Coming On Strong in the SEC

Ryan Ferguson — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 09:11:00 EST

Filed under: Florida Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, SEC Basketball

Arkansas blew the baby Gators out of the water on Saturday, leading by as many as 28 points and settling for a 19-point margin at the final buzzer for an 80-61 victory in Fayetteville.

John Pelphrey is proving he can flat out coach and his senior-laden squad is showing they can ball with the best of them. When the Razorbacks play the way they did against Florida, they stand a good chance of beating any team they face. They're big, powerful, fast and athletic. Their forwards and center range from 6' 9" to 7' 0". They have one of the SEC's best point guards in Patrick Beverley. As a team they're in sync and clicking on all cylinders right now.

The Hogs could be the best team in the west. Mississippi State just dropped their second game in a row, this time against the conference-leading Volunteers, but as my colleague Andy Katzer noted, the Bulldogs could have taken the game if not for poor free throw shooting. And Ole Miss seems to be in a bit of a slump; they lost to South Carolina at home on Saturday night.

The Razorbacks are now 5-2 and tied for second overall in the SEC with Florida and Mississippi State.

Arkansas is Coming On Strong in the SEC originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sun, 03 Feb 2008 09:11:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Baylor Dies by the Three

Charles Rich — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 23:10:00 EST

Filed under: Arkansas Basketball, Big 12 Basketball, SEC Basketball

The Bears have lived off of the three-point shot this season with 40% accuracy. Tonight in Dallas, Baylor could never find the range against Arkanas. A lot of the credit should go to the Razorback defense that really fought through screens and really came out on Baylor to contest many of the shots. It did open a lot of things inside for Baylor, so that they led through most of the game. Late in the game, though, Baylor found itself reverting to what it had done best despite the success inside. They kept trying to hoist threes with minimal success, finishing a dismal 3-20.

Arkansas really tightened up their defense in the second half, and continued consistent offensive output. Sonny Weems came up big late in the game. He shot 7-11 including 3-4 on threes, but most importantly he sank 4 free throws in the final 20 seconds when Baylor had twice closed to within three, to keep it a two possession game.

Arkansas came away with a vital 85-78 win at a road, semi-neutral site. It was their best non-conference win of the season for the Razorbacks. Arkansas hadn't really done anything to distinguish itself in the non-con portion of the season until this win. Their best win to this point had been at home against an inconsistent Missouri team.

Baylor Dies by the Three originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sat, 05 Jan 2008 23:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Eastern Round Up: Proud to Be American

Josh Alper — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 11:14:00 EST

Filed under: Maryland Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, Mid-Majors Basketball, Butler Basketball, Wichita State Basketball

When Maryland beat Morgan State on December 6, it was Gary Williams' 131st nonconference home win in 134 tries. When Maryland hosts Delaware on Friday, he'll take his third whack at number 132. After losing to Ohio, Williams and the Terps got beat in College Park again yesterday by their neighbors from American. That's a pretty rare occurance in the 80 year history between the two schools. The only other Eagles win was in their first meeting, sometime in the 1926-27 season. The exact date has escaped memory, something that's unlikely to happen with yesterday's 67-59 win.

Derrick Mercer won't soon forget his 18 points, for example, and Bryce Simon will always remember his career-high 17. None of the Eagles will forget holding the Terps to five first half baskets nor will they need reminders of the way they outhustled, outrebounded and outdefended their more heralded opponents. For a team that's lost to Fairfield and Loyola (MD), this win came out of left field and will have Williams pulling out his hair in search of answers.

Greivis Vasquez had 28 points and the other guard Eric Hayes had 16 but the rest of the Terps only made four baskets. Maryland was so flat and lifeless, though, that its pretty clear the problems go well beyond shooting. Williams benched Braxton Dupree and Landon Milbourne in the second half, probably the first of many changes in what's looking like a long season.

Elsewhere on the mid major hardcourts:

Appalachian State 74, Arkansas 67 - The year of upsets continues for the Mountaineers. Donald Sims had 24 points off the bench and ASU shot a ridiculous 66.7% from the field to pull off the win. That shooting overcame 22 turnovers but the biggest factor may have been the court. The Razorbacks are 9-38 away from home over the last five years and even though the Fayetteville court was in state, it wasn't technically a home game.

Butler 78, Florida Gulf Coast 66 - The Bulldogs had a tougher time than expected against the Atlantic Sun's Eagles but won on the back of free throw shooting. They made 26-of-28 from the line, 14 in the final six minutes, while FGC only converted 17 of their 28 tries.

Louisiana-Lafayette 82, East Tennesse State 80 (OT) - A trip to Hawaii that started with a bang when they beat Georgia ended with a thud for the Buccaneers. Chris Gradingo had 21 points and Randell Daigle nailed a big three in overtime to help the Rajin Cajuns take third in the Rainbow Classic.

Virginia Commonwealth 79, Bradley 64 - Bradley led by nine in the first half but after Daniel Ruffin left with an injury and Eric Maynor went off it was all Rams. Maynor finished with 30 points and Larry Sanders had six blocks to send Bradley to their worst home loss in three years.

Southern Illinois 88, Western Kentucky 78 - See what making shots can do for you, Salukis? SIU made 56.5% of their shots, Wesley Clemmons had 24 points off the bench and the Salukis ended a two-game skid with a quality win against a good Hilltoppers squad. Courtney Lee, the could-be Sun Belt player of the year, had 30 for WKU but with Randal Falker and Matt Shaw joining Clemmons as 20-point scorers there was no stopping the home side.

Wichita State 61, UAB 52 - The Shockers pulled off a second straight win against a major conference foe thanks to Phil Thomasson's 15 points and seven rebounds. Robert Vaden had another hot one for the Blazers with 23 points but he fouled out after cutting the deficit to three and UAB faded out of view.

Eastern Round Up: Proud to Be American originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Sun, 23 Dec 2007 11:14:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SEC Basketball: Maybe Not That Bad

Andy Katzer — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:30:00 EST

Filed under: Florida Basketball, Tennessee Basketball, Kentucky Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, SEC Basketball

You'll have to excuse my FanHouse mate Ryan Ferguson. He's a diehard Florida fan, which means in the last couple of years he's seen two basketball championships, a football championship, and a Heisman trophy winner. If what is placed before him isn't shiny and unblemished, he naturally recoils just a bit.

Maybe that's what happened when he declared the SEC college basketball's whipping boy for 2008. Sure, he since reneged on that stance a little, talking Kentucky fans (and himself, maybe) off the ledge. But while the SEC basketball season hasn't gone exactly the way anybody expected, there's at least a couple of metrics that say SEC basketball isn't all that bad.

Take Jeff Sagarin's computer rankings, which has the SEC ranked as the fourth best conference in the country. Of course, any fan of the conference would like to see the SEC at the top, but it's still ahead of two other major conference and well ahead of any mid-majors. Two-thirds of the SEC are in Sagarin's top 64, also, and all but one (Auburn) is in the top 100.

Ken Pomeroy's ratings show similar numbers, with the SEC rated fifth-best but still in the thick of major conferences. Like with Sagarin, most of the SEC is in the top 64 of Pomeroy's rankings, and all but one is in the top 100. That top-100 thing might not sound like much, but the only other conference that can claim the distinction is the Pac-10 -- and it's got two fewer teams. The bad news from Pomeroy's system: no SEC teams in the top 25.

One more thought, with defending champs Florida being young (good, but young), and with traditional power Kentucky and preseason fave Tennessee looking for footing, keep an eye on Vanderbilt (with Shan Foster and freshman AJ Oilvy) and Arkansas (with Jon Pelphrey making things fun again in Fayetteville) to make noise in the SEC.

SEC Basketball: Maybe Not That Bad originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Tue, 11 Dec 2007 21:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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SEC Basketball: Hot? Not So Much

Ryan Ferguson — Fri, 07 Dec 2007 06:58:00 EST

Filed under: Florida Basketball, Alabama Basketball, Tennessee Basketball, Kentucky Basketball, Arkansas Basketball, SEC Basketball

The SEC is trying to get going... trying and trying... and there's just not much there.

So far this season, the SEC has managed the following:

Alabama loses to Belmont
Pre-season fave Tennessee has 30 points hung on them by the Texas Longhorns
Georgia loses to Wisconsin by 19 points
Georgetown beats Alabama in SEC territory
Arkansas gets dominated by Providence
Florida shies away from contact against a less-than-impressive ACC rival (FSU)
Kentucky's pride withers after getting blown out by Gardner-Webb... at home
Kentucky can't hang with UNC, which isn't exactly embarassing, but it's getting embarassingly routine
Auburn loses to Tulane by 15 points
Mississippi State loses to Miami/Ohio

By far, the worst of these is the Wildcats' mindbending loss to Gardner-Webb and Alabama getting their tires slashed by Belmont, but none of it looks particularly good.

Alabama is without Ronald Steele for the year (what else is new?) and gave Georgetown everything they could handle in a 70-60 loss, but when the stadium is filled with crimson and you lead at the half, you've just gotta win those games, baby.

Florida's filled with skinny freshmen who can shoot, but don't really know how to play physical yet.

Georgia's suspended or dismissed practically everyone on the team.

Kentucky's just a mess. Alex Legion is transferring -- no wait, he's staying! -- no wait, he's going again, Billy Gillispie can't understand why the university is objecting to morals clause issues in his contract despite the fact he's dating a 19-year old, and half the team is injured.

There's just not much to be proud of yet, and if Tennessee can't get their act together it's going to be a long season.

SEC Basketball: Hot? Not So Much originally appeared on NCAA Basketball FanHouse on Fri, 07 Dec 2007 06:58:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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