I missed this Kornheiser article where he makes fun of Lehigh and John Feinstein:

washingtonpost.com: In This Name Game, Only Some Are the Same  @ 11:57 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Here's the Post article about Navy hiring Billy Lange.  @ 10:41 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  GoMidshipmen.com: Billy Lange Named Head Men's Basketball Coach  @ 9:09 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Very Very Good Story About Lehigh

All Dressed Up, but Never Got a Chance to Dance (washingtonpost.com)

Lehigh's locker room is silent following a 72-57 loss to Florida A&M.

Rowland is in tears; freshman Kyle Neptune sits on a chair with his jersey pulled up over his head. The coaches walk through the room, shaking hands with every player.

The game did not go well. Lehigh shot 29.5 percent, committed 17 turnovers and led for less than one minute.

  @ 11:51 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  More DeVoe Drama

Geez, I've been slacking. There are some good articles out there I missed:
Like this Tennessean piece where Don DeVoe wants a job:

''I had a wonderful career there and would welcome the opportunity to help Buzz develop his program,'' DeVoe said. ''I think I could be a credible assistant and would consider coaching wherever it may be and in whatever capacity.''

"''I wouldn't want to be involved in the recruitment of kids today. I would leave that to other people'' said DeVoe, whose disdain for recruiting ultimately led to his ouster at UT following the 1989 season."

The more I read about this guy... ecch.  @ 11:41 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Gladchuk is Pissed

Roundup: Navy denies coaching report

"The story simply is not accurate. I did not extend an offer to this gentleman," Gladchuk said this morning.

Gladchuk added that Navy intends to announce a replacement for the retired Don DeVoe within a few days."

What the hell is going on at the Naval Academy???  @ 11:38 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Annapolis: Still a 'Bama Free Zone

Samford Head Coach Jimmy Tillette will not be coming to the USNA.  @ 11:33 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Andy Katz is reporting JJ is not a finalist for the SMU job.

ESPN.com - NCB - Source: Gillispie ready to take Texas A&M job  @ 11:27 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Jeff Jones Interviewing Multiple Places: James Madison University apparently has narrowed its list of candidates for the men's basketball job to three.
Former University of North Carolina and Notre Dame coach Matt Doherty and N.C. State assistant coach Larry Hunter are believed to be at the top of the list, which also includes former Iowa State coach Larry Eustachy.
Others who have either applied for the position or have been interviewed include Clemson assistant (and former JMU aide) Ron Bradley, American coach Jeff Jones, Georgia Tech assistant Dean Keener, Winthrop coach Gregg Marshall, Arkansas assistant Ronny Thompson

Coach Jones, please stay!!  @ 11:24 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Say it ain't so!

Sources: SMU AD meets with 2 about men's basketball job

02:00 AM CST on Saturday, March 20, 2004

By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News

UNIVERSITY PARK - SMU athletic director Jim Copeland met with Oklahoma State assistant James Dickey and American University coach Jeff Jones about the Mustangs' men's basketball head coaching position, according to university sources.
Copeland is looking to replace Mike Dement, who was fired Feb. 27. Robert Lineburg is the interim coach.
Copeland refused to comment. Dickey and Jones did not return phone calls seeking comment.
A 10-person search committee will meet Monday to go over the list of eight candidates for the position, with the possibility of offering someone the job within the next two weeks, sources said.
Copeland said there is no timetable for a potential hire. He said with certain coaches involved in the NCAA and NIT tournaments, bringing in candidates to the committee would have to be done carefully.
SMU also is considering assistant coaches Frank Haith (Texas), Jimmy Tubbs (Oklahoma), Norm Roberts (Kansas), Doug Wojcik (Michigan State), Eric Reveno (Stanford) and John Treloar (Indiana). "  @ 3:32 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  EMBARRASED

Lehigh got schooled by the FAMU Rattlers tonight, making themselves the 65th best team in the nation. It sucks for everyone.

It sucks for Lehigh, because they worked this hard, only to be shunned so that U Washington could get into the tournament and lose in the first round.

It sucks for the league, because this may set a precedent.

It sucks for you PL blog readers, because the PL season is now over. Hope you enjoyed it.

Before I take a bit of a break from the blog, I'll regale (sp?) you with a few thoughts about the Patriot League title game.

Good things:

-A hell of a game, with plenty of drama and impressive plays. Rodriguez and Rowland were the best guards in this league this year, and they showed it.
-A-Rod was just amazing to watch in the last three minutes, scoring the last 10 points for AU. This from a pass first, pass second, pass third, then if you have to, shoot fourth PG. I thought AU was going to do it when he hit that old fashioned three point play.
-You have to like a freshman stepping up and hitting a shot like Olivero did with 3 seconds left. Despite what Holy Cross fans may tell you, the best days of this league are ahead, with some very slick freshmen and sophomores out there.

Bad stuff:
-Bethlehem, PA is yet another PL city that I thought sucked. Here's a quick rundown on cities with PL teams in them that I've visited, and my thought process when I was there:

Bethlehem: Now I know what all those Bruce Springsteen songs were about.
Hamilton, NY: How did this school get out here in the wilderness? What was the thought process in that meeting, "hey, lets make sure the weather sucks and it's impossible to get to or from"?
Annapolis: Does not suck during the day, but the nightlife is not what the kids call "boppin".
Worcester: Wow, they managed to fit all of New Jersey into one little city. At least I'm not in Hamilton.
Lewisburg: All these strip malls must be convienent for shopping.

Seriously, though, the Lehigh gym is pretty lousy. All the seats are elevated, and there's only one food stand. It's also ridiculously easy to get lost, because for some reason they have three campuses seperated by a friggin MOUNTAIN. "You have to go over the mountain" is not good directions for finding the gym. I now know why they chose a silly mascot like the Mountain Hawk, becuase they went and built their campus on a mountain. Last complaint: there are no girls at this school. None.

As far as the complaints about attendance some have shared are concerned, I suggest you check my archives, as I pointed out that spring break was going to be a real problem for the PL final about six months ago. Another reason I should clearly be running the league (yeah right).

Lehigh did get screwed into the PIG, but they should have beaten FAMU, and they didn't. Since they lost, the argument that they shouldn't have been there doesn't seem to have much merit.

Next, a wrapup of the season, and a preview of next season. In the meantime, get your fantasy baseball leagues together, and fill out your brackets. Pick Duke v. OSU in the final, and you'll do well.  @ 10:01 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  I'm still upset

Lehigh plays Florida A&M tonight. Vegas has Lehigh as a 4.5 point favorite. Until then, here's a really good (sad) article by the Post:

In Another Close One, Eagles Fall Short by Two (washingtonpost.com): "Following the game, Jones was near tears and waited nearly one minute before answering a question about what Rodriguez meant to the team.
'He came in just wanting a chance to be on the basketball team,' Jones said. 'I am very proud to have had him as part of this team.' "  @ 3:48 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  PAGING JIM KELLY

Hell of a game today. Very tired, very disappointed, very proud of AU's seniors. More later in the week, including some talk about Lehigh getting screwed by the tournament committee.  @ 7:52 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

 

TITLE GAME TODAY AT NOON ON ESPN2

My prediction: AU by 7. If AU wins, watch for me and my crew on TV, we will be the overly excited ones rushing the court. If AU loses, watch for me on TV, I'll be the one crying and calling people from Buffalo for tips on what to do with myself.  @ 7:39 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  MY NAME IS RA, LORD OF THE SUN

mcall.com - Tiah has accepted his new role like a real pro  @ 3:46 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  MC PL final pregame report

Andre Williams of the Morning Call is the best beat writer in the PL:
mcall.com - American looms as lofty final hurdle for Lehigh  @ 3:45 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Navy: We don't want to be seen on ESPN

KRT Wire | 03/09/2004 | Basketball game on aircraft carrier scrapped  @ 1:28 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Will PIGs Fly in the Patriot League?

According to Joe Lunardi, ESPN's resident Bracketologist, if Lehigh made the NCAA tournament today, they'd be in the play in game.

The play in game is an evil source of profit for the big conferences. It shoves two teams that will only make the tournament every so often off to the side, leaving one team out of the bracket all together, making their season seem a waste. All so that a team like Maryland, which has a LOSING RECORD in their conference, can make some more $$.

But all is not lost. The Patriot League champ may not be in the PIG. There's a few scenarios that could happen here:

1) The current conference leaders in the smaller divisions like the MCC, Southland, Big South, NEC or SWAC will not all win their divisions. In one of these divisons, a team with a losing or not very good winning record could emerge. That team would automatically go into the play-in game, bumping the PL seed to a 16 (depending on the PL team).
2) All those conference leaders could end up winning, but even then, if Lafayette or AU emerges from the PL tournament, they'll be a 16 seed.

The RPI numbers for the Patriot League look like this:

142 Lafayette
165 American
211 Lehigh
216 Holy Cross
226 Bucknell
250 Colgate

If Navy or Army wins the tournament, they will actually be placed in the D3 bracket.

Here's the RPI of our competitors, so to speak:

264 Coppin State
171 SE Louisiana
163 Valparaiso
193 Liberty
148 E. Washington

Now, in most of those conferences, the teams' RPIs will get worse, since they have to play lousy teams to get to the tournament in the first place. The same is true of the winner of the PL tournament. If AU wins, their RPI will probably decrease, since they played Army for a third time this season.

In sum, we shouldn't give up hope yet. For the good of the league, root against the above non-PL teams to tank in their conference tournaments, and we could be okay.

That said, even if a PL team is in the play in game, we might get our first ever NCAA tournament win--sorta. Never say I'm not optimistic.

  @ 3:31 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Playing on Water

ESPN.com - NCB - Hoops doubleheader on aircraft carrier proposed  @ 11:57 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Jones Leaving?

From today's Daily Word on ESPN.com:

Don't expect a lot of movement on the Jeff Jones candidacy for the SMU job while American is trying to win the Patriot League this week. Jones and SMU athletic director Jim Copeland are friends and were together at Virginia. Copeland isn't going to jeopardize Jones' chances to win the conference by disrupting him. But Jones would likely have interest in talking to Copeland about the opening. Expect Oklahoma assistant Jimmy Tubbs to be in the mix for this job, too.

Say it ain't so, Double J!   @ 11:56 AM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  PL Tournament Predictions

The conference tournament is coming up this weekend, and I don't know about you, but I've never been more excited to spend a weekend in a horse barn outside of DC. In this year's tournament, it seems like anyone could upset anyone.

Consider:
-Navy knocked off a strong Lafayette team IN PENNSYLVANIA, the same team that split a season series with Lehigh. Lehigh has a two game losing streak going into Saturday, while the Mids have their only winning streak of the season going and a coach who is leaving as soon as they lose.
-AU was LOSING at the half to Army one week ago in West Point.
-Holy Cross and Bucknell seem to be as even matched as can be: two young teams who have lost games they probably shouldn't have, and split the season series.
-Colgate and Lafayette both have senior leadership going into the tournament. They also split their season series.

In sum, anyone could win any of these first round games. It probably isn't as likely that we'll see an upset in the service academy games, but it's certainly possible. Moreover, once we hit the second round, the #1 and #2 seeds are anything but safe. Lehigh has lost to Holy Cross and Lehigh this year, and the Eagles have lost to Lafayette and eeked out two last minute victories against the Red Raiders this year. Conceivably, Holy Cross and Colgate could be in the finals, and we could have a home game for the #5 seed.

Despite all that insanity, I'll make my picks. If anyone wants to disagree, feel free, these things are far from certain.

Lehigh vs. Navy
I'd be dumb to pick Navy here, especially since Lehigh is the more talented and experienced team. They'll get over their recent losing streak and win one that oughta be easy. If Rowland finds his shot, all is well for the Mountain Hawks.

Holy Cross v. Bucknell
The guys at Holy Cross know how to win at the Show Place, and I think they'll manifest it here. Bucknell has been in a slide lately, and the tough defense that the Saders have shown in the last few games will be to their advantage. I think they'll win, but only if Lufkin can score 12+ points in the paint, where he will have to battle a tough but young BU front line.

Colgate v. Lafayette
These guys seem to have been fighting it out for 3rd place in the league the last few years. I'm taking Colgate, only because Lafayette has sucked so much lately, and because Linebaugh is the best clutch player in the league. I expect him to do very well here.

AU v. Army
AU ought to win this one, especially since Army has to travel the farthest to get to the Show Place. But don't expect it to be a total blowout: the Eagles are just coming off of finals, and as Andres Rodriguez displayed in the Bucknell away game, he may not be at his best when he's just finished academic pursuits (he took the LSAT just before the BU game).

That gives us.....

Lehigh v. Holy Cross
This is a total tossup. Either of these teams could win. I'll say HC wins, but only if they limit Rowland to under 12.

AU v. Colgate
C'mon you know what I'm going to say here. I'm biased. I think Colgate's perimeter offense can't handle Ingram, Rodriguez, or Lekavicius, so I'll say AU by 10.

Which results in....

HC at AU
A third straight HC/AU tournament final. This is actually the outcome I personally fear most. If HC beats AU AGAIN, I'm not sure I would ever watch another basketball game. For my own personal mental health, let's say AU wins in a laugher and FINALLY makes it to the tournament.

I've been unbiased all season long mostly, so now I am biased. I think AU has as good a shot at winning this thing as anyone. Let me know what you think.

And if you're going to be at the tournament, drop me a line, or just say hi when you see me in the stands. I'm not hard to find, I'll be the curly haired young guy in the AU tshirt.  @ 9:08 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  The 2004 Bloggies: Like the Grammies, but with more credibility

It's time to hand out my yearly awards for the league. We've had an incredibly exciting regular season, and regardless of what happens in the tournament, all the coaches, players, and staff everywhere in the league deserve credit for their hard work thus far. Even Navy and Army, knowing they weren't going to do much this year, played their hearts out and they deserve credit for it. Now that the warm fuzzies are over, here's who gets what.

We start in the two big categories, player of the year and the all-league squad. These aren't easy selections to make, but I'm going to make the tough decisions a lot of folks in the league offices might not.

POY: Austen Rowland. I don't like this guy. I think he's a punk and he plays dirty. But Ric Flair won many a pro-rasslin match playing dirty, and Rowland is lived up to that standard. No one had this guy on their radar coming in, as he sat out the previous year because he transfered from Delaware. An impressive 16 pts/gm, with 18.7/gm in league play. He had a lousy week last week, but that doesn't take away from his quality season. Five assists a game means he can pass some as well, although he'd rather just shoot the ball and then talk trash if he hits it. His best game was dropping 35 at LC.

All League Team:

Austen Rowland, Sr. G, Lehigh - Your Player of the Year
Andres Rodriguez, Sr. G, American - The best point guard in AU history, top five nationwide in assists
Justin DeBerry, Sr. G, Lafayette - Barely makes the first team, he faded at end of league play- Bettencourt almost takes his spot
Jernavis Draughn, Sr. SF, American - Consistent scorer and ferocious rebounder.
Howard Blue, Sr. SF, Colgate - Hard to justify because of his missed games, but his return catapulted them to contender status again

2nd Team:
Jave Meade, Sr. G, HC - A great and classy point guard who deserves all the praise he gets. But is not a scorer, and didn't have anyone to pass to this year, so it was hard for him to do much of anything.
Charles Lee, So. G, Bucknell - Less noticed, but is the most important and consistent player on BU
Kevin Bettencourt, So. G, Bucknell - Inconsistency kept him from the first team, but he is probably going to be there the next two years. May be the best pure shooter in the league.
Winston Davis, Sr. G LC - Not the same explosiveness or quickness as DeBerry, but LC wouldn't have made it without him.
Mark Linebaugh, Sr. G CU - Can take over a game like no one else--but he seems to have had bad luck all four of his years, with every team underperforming.

Freshman of the Year: Andre Ingram. Olivero or McNaughton are runners up, but Ingram was the key to AU's scoring. AU lost two great guards last year in Miles and Stokes, but Ingram picked up the slack nicely. He cemented it with his 30 at Lafayette last weekend.

All-Freshman Team:
G - Andre Ingram, G, AU - his family gets an assist for attending all his game and being nice folks
G - Jose Olivero, G, Lehigh - great shooter, will be more dangerous if he gets better at putting the ball on the floor
F - Chris McNaughton, F, Bucknell - Shouldn't qualify because he's 24, but whatever.
F - Kendall Chones, F, Colgate - Howard Blue's successor, played well while Blue was gone. I'm not sure whether it was him or his brother that does the Clippers "in the zone" head knock thing, but it needs to stop before more people see it and laugh at them.
F - Jason Mbegroff, F, Lehigh - Someone get this beast to try out for the wrestling team.

Coach of the Year - Coach Flannery, Bucknell - Guided a group of freshmen and sophomores through a lousy preseason, only to have them find themselves as a team when it counts.

Best Hair - Justin DeBerry - Goes to the same barber as Steve Nash

Most Quotable Figure - Jim Crews "We just don't do anything well right now" - clearly learned how to deal with the media from Bobby Knight

Biggest surprise - Holy Cross' regular season missteps.

Fan of the year - Norbert T. Knapp from HC. Sent me a tape of last year's AU-HC game in Whoo-Stuh, and seems to be everywhere

Worst prediction - I had Lehigh coming in sixth in my preseason predictions. Damn you, Rowland!

Best PL win - Lafayette beats Princeton in NJ. Princeton looks like the eventual Ivy champs at this point.

Worst PL loss - HC loses to DIII Williams College. You had to know they were in trouble at that point.

Best Home site - Holy Cross continued to have the most motivated fanbase, drawing ~2500 to their home games. Compare that to Colgate, who drew around a sixth of that with 404 per game. Those are high school JV girls numbers.

Weirdest starting rotation - 14 of Army's 19 players started in a game.

Practice Team Award - AU's Brayden Billbe played in two minutes of action this year, with one (defensive) rebound to show for it. Jeff Jones has a very short bench, as there are five other guys that have similar lines.

Strangest stat line - Jarrod Kohl started 9 games for the Eagles, and had 7 shots all season long.

That's all folks. Those of you who won awards can look for them in the mail in 6-8 weeks.

Next: Postseason predictions and PIG problems.  @ 5:29 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard

  Why doesn't AU win any weekly awards?

We're now through the entire regular season and your first place AU Eagles have won exactly ZERO weekly awards. Andre Ingram, the 4th leading scorer in the league, and the leading scorer on his team, has won ZERO freshman of the week awards.

Ingram had 30 points at Lafayette Saturday. He had 17 against Army Thursday. Yet he lost out on Freshman of the week?

AU's sports office has to just not be nominating these guys, otherwise something is screwy in PL-land. After Saturday, Ingram is the clear Freshman of the Year, but apparently not of the week.  @ 4:50 PM 0 HC Alums are angry about this post | Bitch about it on the PL hoops messageboard