I Bleed Blue and White

You may have already seen this on ESPN, but the network did a great job of putting together a bevy of things to remember from college basketball in the last 10 years.  Brings back some great memories.

-Top Games

-Fondest Memories

-Witnessing the Classics

-Headlines

-Best Teams/Programs

-Best Players/Coaches

So hard to choose my #1 favorite memory of the decade.  For college basketball as a whole, it would either be George Mason’s run in 2006 or Stephen Curry’s heroics in 2008.  In terms of best Villanova basketball memory, the experience of a Final Four last year and seeing it in person is something I will never forget.  A close second is storming the court after beating UConn at the Wachovia Center. 

Well, that’s in there at the end. But these are the full game highlights from RFC of Villanova’s opening win in Puerto Rico over George Mason. Enjoy!

Each week throughout the college basketball season, ESPN provides an in-depth analysis of the most recent top players and teams, key games to look forward to in the respective week, and much more.  In the latest edition, Andy Katz mentions Villanova in a couple of different spots.  Katz gives “shout-outs” to Miami (Malcolm Grant is noted), Seattle, and the Wildcats of Villanova.  Katz says about Nova:

The Wildcats won the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic.  They were tested quite a bit in three days and came through to show they can be an elite team.  Those wins against Dayton and Ole Miss — maybe even the tight one versus George Mason — will look just fine in March.

Although Villanova did gut it out to post an impressive championship in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic, it was another Big East team that stood as the “team of the week.”  As you may have guessed, it was Syracuse, who demolished California and North Carolina at Madison Square Garden in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.  Indeed, the Orange did look good in NYC, but it is too early to start crowing them Big East champions, which I have heard from some people. 

The Cats get a nice break this week, with 5 full days of no games.  Their next game is against an improved LaSalle team on Saturday at the Pavilion.  Katz points this game out as one of his “headline destinations.”  LaSalle would love nothing more than to give Villanova a blip on their current Big 5 dominance.  Katz says about the matchup:   

La Salle is supposed to be a sleeper team in the A-10.  Villanova is off to a solid start after escaping against George Mason.  If La Salle wants to be taken seriously in the Big Five this season, knocking off Nova would suffice.  If the Explorers get smacked, it will be hard to take them too seriously.

I agree with Katz’s assessment that the Villanova victories in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic will be resume builders come tournament time.  George Mason shoud contend for the CAA title, just like Dayton will be a threat in the A-10, and Ole Miss will be solid if they can improve their rebounding.  This will probably be my last post until after Thanksgiving, so I hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday. 

Enjoy these!

I’ll freely admit it. As I watched Scottie Reynolds drive into triple-coverage, only to kick out to Isaiah Armwood who promptly jacked up a 3, I yelled the title of this post to nobody. As I texted with friends that our two best sharp shooters (King and Stokes) had both fouled out, the last person I expected to be taking what would be the game-winning shot was a guy who has been surrounded with redshirt questions.

A quiet game from Stokes couldn't derail 'Nova.

Let me just say, I was NOT a person advocating a redshirt for him. I love his athleticism and think he’ll be useful this year the way Dante Cunningham and Shane Clark were their freshman years. But I will admit I was not happy as I watched our wiry 6′8″ freshman launch a trey-ball. But I was ECSTATIC when he buried it. And for that Isaiah, I apologize. I doubted you for the slightest of moments, and you turned around and put the double-bird to my face. I love it.

The bigger story, in my opinion, is the resiliency that the team showed today. Corey Fisher was 1-14 from the field, yet 14-18 from the foul line. Scottie Reynolds had 8 turnovers in the 1st half, yet let the team in scoring and in my opinion led the team well down the stretch. We lost Corey Stokes, Taylor King, Antonio Peña and Maurice Sutton to fouls, yet still battled til the end to erase what felt like a 20-point deficit at times. We went 23-39 (59%) from the FT line and somehow won.

And we did all this without Mouphtaou Yarou, who was sent home hours before the game for an infection. Our lineup that end the game was Reynolds, Fisher, Maalik Wayns, Dominic Cheek, and Armwood. Think about that for a second.

(I just had a wow moment. We had 4 legitimate shooters on the floor, and Armwood. Armwood took the 3. And made it. His balls are the size of planets.)

Some more random thoughts from today:

• Jay Wright, you better suit-the-f*ck-up next game. No more of this untucked Polo crap. I don’t like it, and neither does anyone else. Stick with what works.
• If I’m ever going to criticize Jay, it’s going to be now. Yeah, I know we won, but I think he mismanaged an already thin frontcourt. He basically let his entire frontcourt foul out before inserting Armwood. It worked out, but give the kid some burn instead of letting everyone rack up the fouls.
• Maalik Wayns woke the team up in the first half. We were about to get run out of the gym until he came in. I love the kid. He is a serious, serious player. Jay wasn’t kidding when he said Wayns was ready to play.
• Maurice Sutton stepped up big. As soon as Yarou was out, Sutton’s # was called, and he answered. All over the place on the glass and the defensive end. The offensive game will come, but for now, he’s doing exactly what we need him to do.
• The refs were brutal, and I’m glad we overcame them. It wasn’t the amount of calls (which was excessive) but more the amount of ticky-tack stuff that was called, especially on us. I thought Jay was going to have a stroke. If Pat Chambers were still on the staff, I’m pretty sure he would have bitten a refs ear off.
• Fran Fraschilla has briefly replaced Andy Katz as my most hated ESPN Hoops personality. He may as well have come out and root for George Mason. It was sickening and a disgrace to his profession. Fran, go home.

All in all, a great win to have. George Mason are a scrappy bunch, and they’ll make noise this year. They’re pretty good. If you hadn’t heard, Dayton blew a 9-point lead only to come back and stave off Georgia Tech in the early game today, so we’ve got the Flyers tomorrow at 3 p.m. I’ve got a Q&A coming up with a Dayton blogger, so stay tuned!

A note to everyone on Twitter – I had a great time chatting with you during the game today and hopefully we can do it again in the near future. I’m just happy that I didn’t get a 24-hour ban for over-Tweeting like Brian of VUHoops!

UPDATE: Apparently Brian has been reinstated. No word on what sexual acts he had to perform.

It certainly wasn’t pretty, but Villanova edged out George Mason by 1 in the 1st round of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off. Amidst news that Mouphtaou Yarou was sent home for a viral infection, the Wildcats were outplayed and appeared asleep for much of the game. 8 1st half turnover by Scottie Reynolds led to a 9-point deficit at halftime, and it appeared that Villanova was going to go down.

But even with the referees continuing to punish ‘Nova (4 players fouled out, and Corey Fisher finished with 4 fouls) the Cats fought back and kept it close til the end. Finally, and unlikely hero arose. Freshman Isaiah Armwood, the least used player through the first 2 games, stepped up and hit a 3-pointer to give Villanova a 1 point lead with 13 seconds left.

From there, the ‘Nova defense finally arrived, not even allowing a final shot by the Patriots. We’ll have more on this game shortly, as well as a …Keep Your Enemies Closer with Dayton blogger James O’Brien as the Cats face the Flyers tomorrow at 3!

Some links:

• Box Score
• Highlights of the crazy finish

Here is a brief rundown of the rules for anyone that wants to play and missed the first game. I encourage people to keep joining. You’ll join the 0-1 ranks, but then again you’ll be joining myself, Brian, and a host of others who stupidly picked against the Cats in the 1st game.

• On Game Day, I will post the official line we will be using for the game.
• In that thread, post your pick against-the-spread for the game that night.
• Make sure you use the same username for every pick (I know some of you are registered, if you aren’t this is a good reason to do so to make it easier). Also, make sure you provide your email so that I can contact the winner at the end of the year.
• Anonymous entries will not count.
• Entries posted after the game starts will not count.
• If you do not provide a pick for the game, it will be marked as a loss in the standings.
• If you are away and can’t make a pick in the thread, you can email me your pick. Email me at clane2787@gmail.com and I will try to email you back ASAP with the line (again, it must be emailed before the start of the game).
• The winner at the end of the year will win a prize (TBD) and I promise it will be something good. I’m not going to be lame like that. I’m searching eBay for cool Villanova stuff as we speak.
• In the event of a tie, the poster with the best BIG EAST record (regular season) wins. If still tied, the best Big 5 record wins. If still tied, the best OOC record wins. If still tied, we may have to do multiple prizes.

The official line we will be using today is Villanova -14.5. Please post your pick ATS in the comments below, and if you really want to, a score choice as well.

Good luck everyone!

The Game: #5 Villanova (2-0) vs. George Mason (2-0)

Location: The Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Puerto Rico

Time: 2:00 p.m. ET

Broadcast: ESPNU

Brief Rundown: After struggling for a half against Fairleigh Dickinson, ‘Nova beat the brakes off of city-rival Penn for the full 40 minutes. It was one of the best games that I’ve ever seen a Villanova team play. All the shots were falling, the defense was superb, and even when the bench was emptied, the reserves continued to build the lead. Things will not come that easy against George Mason, and the team needs to be wary of that.

Like ‘Nova, George Mason is off to a 2-0 start to their season after a close win against Liberty and a more comfortable win against Dartmouth.  Also like ‘Nova, the Patriots are very young and have 7 new players on their roster this fall. Louis Birdsong is the lone senior, but is not expected to make his mark on this game. Junior Cam Long is the most heralded, but he’ll receive plenty of help from Ryan Pearson (leading scorer against Dartmouth) as well as Andre Cornelius. George Mason likes to play high pressure defense, so the ‘Nova guards need to come prepared.

What I Want To See: I want to see how for real we are. George Mason is a mid-major, but also a well-coached team that is always hungry for an upset. This may prove to be a game where the 4-guard lineup is used quite often. George Mason has some size inside but isn’t the biggest team in the world, and their high pressure defense may be best countered with a lot of ball handlers. Maalik Wayns and Dominic Cheek may be relied upon to make smart decisions. Hopefully the young guns are up to the task.

Links:

• …Keep Your Enemies Closer (Chat with GMUHoops)
• George Mason highlights
• VUHoops
  

Stealing this one out of Ryan at GMUHoops’ playbook. Here are highlights from George Mason’s first two games of the season. The first was a 76-72 win over Liberty and the second was a 60-44 win over Dartmouth (my brother’s alma mater).

…They certainly like to play up-tempo and high-pressure defense…thankfully I think we have the guard-play to handle that…

I’m pretty sure our blogger exchanges were pretty popular last year, especially for some of the teams that we didn’t know that much about. Although I could just be making that up, and you all hated them. But we’re going to move forward as if you really, really liked them. And so, this year (with a new title!) we bring you the return of our blogger exchanges.

I wasn’t expecting to get this going until the Maryland game, but a George Mason blogger found me on Twitter today (+1 for Twitter being a good thing). Ryan from GMUHoops.com and I decided to get this thing going for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, which begins on Thursday.

Below are my questions to Ryan, with his answers. Get to know the enemy a little bit better and take a look.

Chris (IBBW): The George Mason team that knocked off UConn was scrappy and undersized. At first glance this year’s squad seems to have a big more height inside to go with your usual stellar guard play. Who does Nova’s young frontcourt have to look out for on Thursday?

Ryan (GMH): This is the first time in a long time that I can remember this team actually having some height in the front court. Ryan Pearson, despite being 6′6″ has been a very consistent low post scorer while playing more of a small forward role this season and has been the team’s best offensive rebounder. Mike Morrison is typically the man in the middle you see the most of in the front court. He, like Pearson, is a sophomore and loaded with potential. Runs the floor well but struggles with free-throw shooting and staying out of foul trouble. He could have a big game or he could be a non-factor if some early fouls force him to sit. Redshirt-freshman Kevin Foster plays at a couple different spots and he will be in the thick of things in the front court. Freshman Johnny Williams has the most size up front but we have only seen a little out of him so far. He did not play against Liberty but picked up 7 points against Dartmouth in 11 minutes. However, I doubt we will see much of him on Thursday.

Chris (IBBW): And I thought we were in for a treat with 6 new faces this year. Am I reading this right? You have 7 new players (6 true freshman, 1 redshirt)? Any of these guys expected to be big contributors this year?

Ryan (GMH): Yes you are reading that correct. The coaching staff did a hell of a job the past few off-seasons and some people are saying it’s the best recruiting class of any non-BCS school. It gives us high hopes for the future but a lot of questions for this season. Luke Hancock has stood out already and seems to be this year’s 6th man. He prepped an extra year and it’s really showing already. Kevin Foster redshirted so he at least knows Coach Larranaga’s defensive schemes, which in the past has taken younger players a while to adjust to. Foster might contribute teh most this year because of his versatility. Guard Sherrod Wright is probably the best scorer of the group but needs to work on his defense to be more of a factor this year.

Chris (IBBW): Cam Long is obviously the go-to-guy, but who are the next options after him?

Ryan (GMH): Typically it’s rare we have one go-to-guy the whole season, often it will be Cam but it will also be Ryan Pearson, or Andre Cornelius and so on. Coach Larranaga runs a a very balanced offense, never runs through just one guy. Cornelius uses his speed to create scoring opportunities and has the ability to hit from behind the arc. Ryan Pearson has been very consistent in scoring both outside and inside.

Chris (IBBW): Just finished reading about your first two wins of the year. Seems like in both games it was a different cast of characters leading the way to victory. That is something Villanova prides itself on. When one guy isn’t having a great night, his teammates will pick him up. Same thing for Mason?

Ryan (GMH): Very true for Mason as well. It makes our team unpredicatable at times and I think that really plays a part in how a team schemes against you. This team has a lot of unselfish players. You won’t find any ball-hogs here and more than a few guys will finish in double digits.

Chris (IBBW): Besides having an awesome name, Louis Birdsong is the lone senior on your team. We are in a similar situation right now with only Scottie Reynolds (Reggie Redding is suspended). How much are you worried that George Mason will be lacking leadership this season?

Ryan (GMH): Unlike Scottie Reynolds, Louis Birdsong won’t be much of a factor in this game. Birdsong is kind of the odd man out with the new influx of talent the team got in the off-season. He used to play power forward but has now been asked to move outside more. That being said I do worry about this team lacking leadership. There are going to be times this season where it really shows and it may very well start Thursday. Senior leadership has always been a key to this program’s success and without it I  would not be surprised to endure a roller-coaster season.

Chris (IBBW): I’m ashamed to say I don’t follow your league that much.  What are the expectations? What would constitute a ‘great’ year and what would have to happen for this year to be a disappointment?

Ryan (GMH): After Mason’s run in 2006 and Eric Maynor/VCU (now Utah Jazz 1st round pick) taking down Duke in 2007, just playing in the NCAA Tournament is no more considered a successful season. The CAA strives to get multi-bids every season now but hasn’t had much luck of late. Some of the teams in the league such as ODU and Northeastern have a chance to get some national recognition but they gotta win those out-of-conference games. And despite Mason being young, they want to continue to reach the CAA Tournament Finals as they have the past 3 years. No one expects a run to the Final Four but each year the team hopes to reach the post-season and leave their mark.

Chris (IBBW): Give me a prediction for Thursday’s game.

Ryan (GMH): Last season I could have told you exactly how this game would have went with our squad but this year I really have difficulty speculating the outcome. Some of these young guys could be up for the challenge but keep in mind that more than half the team has never played in a Division 1 game outside of our home arena. At times, our Coach’s attacking style of defense will look great and create opportunities but we will also see a slot of assignment miscues that will lead to some open three-pointers and easy scores for you guys. If our young guys try to run and gun with your guards, I would expect a rout on your part. But if we play smart while being aggressive on defense I could see them slowing down the game’s pace and giving us a chance.

Score: ‘Nova 83 Mason 68

Thanks to Ryan for doing this! Make sure you check out GMUHoops.com for all your George Mason coverage. Unfortunately, I hope we stomp the crap out of Mason on Thursday, but good luck the rest of the season Ryan!

Make sure to check out my responses to Ryan’s question at GMUHoops!