I Bleed Blue and White

When it comes to the non-conference schedule, the drama and buzz aren’t always present, but tournaments early in the season can create some excitement.  David Fox, college basketball staff writer for Rivals, listed and analyzed the important November/December tourneys for the upcoming hoops season.  The O’Reilly Auto Parts Puerto Rico Tip-Off, which will be played November 19th, 20th, and 22nd, was featured on Fox’s list.  With Georgia Tech, Dayton, Boston University, George Mason, Mississippi, Indiana, Kansas State, and Villanova representing the 8 participants, the matchup Fox wants to see in this bracket is Georgia Tech and Villanova in the 2nd round.  Fox’s analysis of the tip-off is as follows:

The early rounds are loaded with juicy matchups.  A first-round game matches Dayton, the A-10 favorite, and Georgia Tech, a potential top-25 team.  The Yellow Jackets won only two ACC games last season, but should be a league contender with center Derrick Favors, the No. 3 prospect in the 2009 class, joining forward Gani Lawal and guard Iman Shumpert.

The Flyers have a star of their own in 6-8 junior Chris Wright. A strong defensive team, Dayton is poised for a breakout season. … A Final Four team a year ago, Villanova could draw either of those teams in the second round.  Whether the Wildcats face Georgia Tech or Dayton, their frontcourt will need to answer for the loss of leading scorer Dante Cunningham.

Like Villanova, Ole Miss is a backcourt-heavy team when a healthy Chris Warren teams with Terrico White. … Indiana will have a chance to show how well Tom Crean’s rebuilding project is going.  Ole Miss should contend in the SEC West, but the Rebels are hardly an NCAA tournament lock.

We’ll see if Georgetown transfer Jeremiah Rivers and a standout signing class led by forward Christian Watford can compete with Ole Miss. … Thanks to the guard tandem of Denis Clemente and Jacob Pullen, Kansas State could be a sleeper in this field.  The Wildcats didn’t play an NCAA tournament team in their non-conference schedule last season.  That could change if K-State wins a game or two in this tourney.

While Georgia Tech has had a rough go of it in recent years, look for them to be better this year with the addition of the highly touted Derrick Favors.  Winning this tournament could prove to be huge down the stretch for the Wildcats.

Lots of good tourneys leading up to conference play.  Which ones intrigue you the most?

Before we talk about Dwayne Anderson, I wanted to wrap-up talking about Dante Cunningham’s first game in the NBA Summer League.  Obviously, Dante had a very good game in terms of statistics, but the most important thing is what the Portland Trailblazers coaching staff thinks.  The Portland Trailblazers game recap relayed some important quotes about their game last night.   Head coach of the Trailblazers summer team, Joe Prunty, discussed Dante’s play:

He looked very comfortable.  I thought he did a really nice job setting screens, slipping screens, separating after he set screens.  I thought he did a really nice job of going after boards.  He got a few of what I like to refer to as ‘dirty rebounds,’ where they’re out of your area, you hustle after them.  They’re not the ones that sort of fall into your lap.  So I really appreciated the effort he gave. 

Additionally, the Portland Trailblazers official blog, called Center Court, written by Casey Holdahl, provided some discussion about the game and postgame audio from the players, including Cunningham. 

One more thing before we get to Dwyane.  Just a quick update on former Villanova coach Patrick Chambers.  It seems like he is doing well at Boston University.  Little did I know that he named former Villanova walk-on, Ross Condon, as one of his assistant coaches awhile back.  I found this out in his blog, seeing a picture from one of his older posts. 

Chambers also has a Twitter account, which he regularly updates, keeping fans in the loop regarding the BU basketball team.  

Finally, on to Dwayne Anderson.  Undoubtedly, many wondered how Anderson would perform in live NBA game action, as he was supposed to take the court tonight for the Washington Wizards summer team.  After checking the box score, Dwayne’s name was not to be found, which left some questions to be answered.   I checked around a little bit, and it looks like Dwayne was cut from the Washington Wizards yesterday, along with a slew of other players.  I did not see any reasoning behind the decision, but my guess is only a certain number of players can attend the Summer League, meaning the Wizards had to cut down their roster, and unfortunately, Dwayne was one of many to lose a spot.

No news regarding Scottie Reynolds yet, but New Mexico University assistant Chris Walker has been hired to fill the void left by the Patrick Chambers departure to Boston University.  Jay Wright on Walker,

We are thrilled to have another Wildcat alumnus join our staff.  Chris was an outstanding point guard while I was an assistant here and was one of the hardest working and committed players on our team.  He has had an outstanding coaching career since his graduation and we are very fortunate to have him here as a teacher and mentor for our student-athletes.

Really no surprise here, as rumors have been swirling for weeks about Walker joining Wright’s staff.  Great to see another former Wildcat come back and coach though.  Look forward to seeing Walker’s impact in the near future.

Added by Chris:

Love the addition, and excited about it even though this has been rumored pretty much since the end of the season. It’s always good to bring in someone who knows the school well, because it makes selling the program that much easier.

Walker also has some great ties into Texas, and as Villanova becomes a more national program (we hope) it will make it easier to start recruiting around the country. Texas always produces some great talent, so Walker will hopefully reap some benefits there in the future.

Welcome back, Chris.

ESPN’s Andy Katz breaks down the 17 players who will try out for the 12 spots on the U-19 National Team.  Tryouts are June 16th-18th in Colorado Springs, and as Chris mentioned in the previous post, Dominic Cheek will be trying out.  Katz on Cheek,

He is a part of a heralded freshmen class entering the Main Line campus. If the ‘Cats are to win the Big East — and they will be favored to do just that — Cheek will likely be a key element.

Additionally, Katz believes that New Mexico assistant and former Villanova player Chris Walker will be the replacement for Patrick Chambers as assistant coach.  Katz on Walker,

Expect Jay Wright to announce Villanova graduate and current New Mexico assistant Chris Walker as his new assistant coach in the near future. Though the deal isn’t finished yet, a source told ESPN.com that Walker will be hired to replace Pat Chambers, who left Villanova last month to become the head coach at Boston University.  A former point guard for Rollie Massimino, Walker led the Wildcats in assists for three seasons and made three postseason berths in his collegiate career.

ESPN has been covering the college basketball programs with new head coaches.  Today, an article has been posted about Boston University, entitled “BU Seeks The Wright Stuff.”  With the hiring of former Villanova assistant Patrick Chambers, there is a different atmosphere surrounding the Boston University basketball program.  The atmosphere closely resembles the one established on the Main Line, which has been one of Chamber’s goals since taking over.  As Chambers puts it,

Thanks. That’s my goal — to make this a mini-Villanova, at least at our level.

Jay Wright has certainly rubbed off on Chambers a great deal, which is displayed in the article over and over.  Don’t be surprised to see Boston U. enduring lots of success in the years to come.

A couple of interesting items to point out from the last week or so. First, the Nova Notebook, written by Villanova’s director of media relations Mike Sheridan, has returned with a piece on Dante Cunningham. The entry discusses Cunningham’s excitement in working out for NBA scouts, but also his continuing role in helping out the younger Villanova basketball players.

Next, the field for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Tipoff, a tournament to be held in Puerto Rico next season, has been announced.  The tipoff takes place Novemeber 19th-November 22nd, and the 8 teams in this mini-tournament include Boston University, Dayton, George Mason, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas State, Ole Miss and Villanova.

Lastly, with the departure of Patrick Chambers to Boston University, there is a coaching vacancy on the Villanova staff.  It looks like University of New Mexico assistant coach Chris Walker, a former basketball player at Nova, is a leading candidate. He interviewed for the position this past Monday, but declined to comment if he is actually considering the opening.

These mini-tournaments early in the year have become a staple on Villanova’s schedule.  While the teams in the field may not seem all that impressive, these games are very important, as you never know which team will end up having a great year.  Nonconference wins, such as these, provide big opportunities early in the season to build the foundation for your NCAA tournament resume.

Also, if you notice, Boston U. is in this field.  Wouldn’t it be interesting to see Chambers vs. Villanova?  In terms of the coaching vacancy, I don’t know much about Chris Walker, but from what I read in the posted article, it sounds like he is a great recruiter, which can never hurt.  I know Jay will pick a solid guy to fill the Chambers vacancy.