SB Nation - Arkansas Razorbacks

UK Basketball: A Statistical Look at the SEC

Ken Howlett — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:41:16 -0000

Kentucky coach John Calipari asks, where do my 'Cats stand statistically within the SEC?

Ten games into the season, and the Kentucky Wildcats are sporting a pristine 10-0 record, with two wins against top-15 competition. OK, so you already knew that, but do you know how UK stands within the conference in the many statistical categories? If not, prepare yourself for an onslaught of SEC stats, standings, as well as enough conference information to make one forget about Bob Knight and his "unamusing" musings.

After the jump comes ... the rest of the story.

Conference Standings

East West

1. Kentucky - 10-0 1. Mississippi - 9-1

t2. Tennessee - 8-1 2. Mississippi State - 8-2

t2. Florida - 8-1 3. LSU - 7-2

4. South Carolina - 7-2 4. Alabama - 7-3

5. Vanderbilt - 6-3 t5. Arkansas - 5-5

6. Georgia - 4-4 t5. Auburn - 5-5

Scoring Offense -- 1. Tennessee (84.1) 2. Mississippi (83.1) 3. Kentucky (80.3) 4. Arkansas (80.2) 5. South Carolina (78.1) 6. Mississippi State (76.2) 7. Florida (75.4) 8. Vanderbilt (74.4) 9. Auburn (72.2) 10. Alabama (70.7) 11. LSU (66.1) 12. Georgia (63.5).

Arkansas is averaging over 80 points per game, but is still only 5-5?

Scoring Defense -- 1. Mississippi State (59.5) 2. Tennessee (60.2) 3. Florida (60.9) 4. LSU (62.1) 5. Alabama (63.2) 6. Georgia (63.6) 7. Kentucky (65.5) 8. Auburn (67.7) 9. South Carolina (68.2) t10. Mississippi (68.3) t10. Vanderbilt (68.3) 12. Arkansas (72.6).

Tennessee and Florida, both weak defensively last season, have so far shown a tremendous defensive turnaround. John Pelphrey, on the other hand, needs to instill some of the defensive tenacity at Arkansas he employed while playing for the 'Cats.

Scoring Margin -- 1. Tennessee (+23.9) 2. Mississippi State (+16.7) t3. Mississippi (+14.8) t3. Kentucky (+14.8) 5. Florida (+14.6) 6. South Carolina (+9.9) 7. Arkansas (+7.6) 8. Alabama (+7.5) 9. Vanderbilt (+6.1) 10. Auburn (+4.5) 11. LSU (+4.0) 12. Georgia (-.1).

It looks as if Bruce Pearl has finally reigned in his talented UT squad ... as of now, that is.

Field Goal % -- 1. Tennessee (50.4) 2. Kentucky (49.7) 3. Arkansas (49.0) 4. Mississippi State (47.5) t5. Florida (46.3) t5. Mississippi (46.3) 7. Vanderbilt (46.1) 8. Alabama (45.4) 9. South Carolina (43.9) 10. LSU (43.4) 11. Georgia (42.9) 12. Auburn (42.7).

South Carolina must shoot the ball better if they wish to atone for last year's NCAA Tournament slight. Arkansas, shooting 49% and standing at 5-5? I sense a trend developing.

Field Goal % Defense -- 1. Mississippi State (36.8) 2. Tennessee (37.8) 3. Kentucky (38.6) 4. Arkansas (40.1) 5. Florida (40.3) 6. LSU (41.5) 7. Mississippi (41.6) 8. Auburn (41.8) 9. Georgia (42.0) 10. Vanderbilt (42.1) 11. Alabama (42.2) 12. South Carolina (42.3).

Tennessee once again surprises. What once was holding UT back from fulfilling their promise, may now become the strength of their team ... if they can keep up D-heat.

Three-Point % -- 1. Mississippi State (41.9) 2. Tennessee (40.6) 3. Arkansas (39.3) 4. Kentucky (38.0) 5. Mississippi (36.2) 6. Alabama (34.8) 7. Florida (33.0) 8. Georgia (32.3) 9. South Carolina (32.1) 10. Vanderbilt (31.9) 11. LSU (30.5) 12. Auburn (30.4).

Shooters, shooters, needed in middle Tennessee, Louisiana, and Alabama.

Three-Point % Defense -- 1. Florida (21.5) 2. Tennessee (27.5) 3. Mississippi (31.3) 4. Auburn (34.0) 5. Alabama (34.1) 6. South Carolina (34.8) 7. Mississippi State (35.1) 8. Vanderbilt (35.2) 9. LSU (35.4) 10. Kentucky (36.1) 11. Georgia (36.4) 12. Arkansas (38.4).

Allowing 38.4% shooting from beyond the three-point line isn't defense, it's indifferent defense, and also the reason Arkansas may have a new head coach next year. UT and Florida continue to impress.

Free Throw % -- 1. Mississippi State (70.7) 2. Georgia (70.6) 3. Florida (70.1) 4. Tennessee (69.6) 5. Alabama (69.2) 6. Vanderbilt (67.4) 7. LSU (67.4) 8. South Carolina (67.0) 9. Mississippi (66.9) 10. Kentucky (66.0) 11. Arkansas (64.6) 12. Auburn (62.1).

The relative weak conference free throw shooting may render UK's poor average inconsequential.

Rebound Average -- 1. Kentucky (42.1) 2. Mississippi State (40.6) 3. Mississippi (39.6) 4. LSU (39.4) 5. South Carolina (38.0) 6. Florida (37.8) 7. Tennessee (37.1) 8. Vanderbilt (36.7) 9. Auburn (36.6) 10. Georgia (34.5) 11. Alabama (34.3) 12. Arkansas (34.1).

Kentucky should win a number of SEC games based strictly on their ability to hit the boards with a vengeance.

Rebounding Defense -- 1. LSU (30.9) 2. Kentucky (31.5) 3. Georgia (32.2) t4. Tennessee (32.6) t4. Mississippi State (32.6) 6. Alabama (34.1) t7. Florida (36.0) t7. Arkansas (36.0) 9. Auburn (36.2) 10. Vanderbilt (37.8) 11. Mississippi (39.1) South Carolina (39.6).

Rebounding Margin -- 1. Kentucky (+10.6) 2. LSU (+8.6) 3. Mississippi State (+8.0) 4. Tennessee (+4.6) 5. Georgia (+2.2) 6. Florida (+1.8) 7. Mississippi (+.5) 8. Auburn (+.4) 9. Alabama (+.2) 10. Vanderbilt (-1.1) 11. South Carolina (-1.6) 12. Arkansas (-1.9).

Offensive Rebounds -- 1. Kentucky (15.4) 2. South Carolina (14.7) 3. LSU (14.6) 4. Mississippi (13.8) 5. Auburn (13.6) 6. Florida (13.3) 7. Alabama (12.6) 8. Vanderbilt (11.8) 9. Tennessee (11.7) 10. Georgia (11.6) 11. Mississippi State (10.4) 12. Arkansas (10.0).

Offensive rebounds equals a gained possession, something UK has been lacking in to a great degree the last four years.

Offensive Rebound % -- 1. Kentucky (44.8) 2. LSU (40.8) 3. Florida (37.5) 4. Alabama (37.0) 5. South Carolina (36.6) 6. Mississippi (35.8) 7. Auburn (35.4) 8. Georgia (34.7) 9. Tennessee (34.5) 10. Vanderbilt (33.2) 11. Mississippi State (32.2) 12. Arkansas (29.9).

Surprisingly low number for Mississippi State. UK at nearly 45.0% is remarkable.

Defensive Rebounds -- 1. Mississippi State (30.2) 2. Kentucky (26.7) 3. Mississippi (25.8) 4. Tennessee (25.4) t5. Vanderbilt (24.9) t5. LSU (24.9) 7. Florida (24.4) 8. Arkansas (24.1) 9. South Carolina (23.3) 10. Auburn (23.0) 11. Georgia (22.9) 12. Alabama (21.7)

Defensive Rebound % -- 1. Mississippi State (73.8) 2. LSU (71.8) 3. Tennessee (70.9) 4. Georgia (68.8) 5. Kentucky (68.1) 6. Auburn (66.9) 7. Arkansas (65.8) 8. Mississippi (64.2) 9. Florida (64.0) 10. Vanderbilt (63.8) 11. Alabama (63.3) 12. South Carolina (62.3).

How can MSU be so strong on the defensive boards, and so bad on the offensive glass?

Blocked Shots -- 1. Mississippi State (8.6) 2. Kentucky (8.1) 3. South Carolina (7.8) 4. Mississippi (6.0) 5. Georgia (5.6) 6. Vanderbilt (5.0) 7. Alabama (4.6) 8. Arkansas (4.1) t9. Tennessee (3.2) t9. LSU (3.2) t11. Florida (3.0) t11. Auburn (3.0).

Raise your hand if you think John Calipari will have his players drive directly into the path of MSU's Jarvis Varnado, continuing an unpleasant Billy Gillespie tradition, which resulted in nearly 30 blocked shots in two games.

Assists -- 1. Tennessee (18.2) 2. Arkansas (16.3) 3. Kentucky (15.6) 4. Florida (15.4) 5. Mississippi (14.3) 6. Alabama (14.1) 7. Mississippi State (13.6) 8. Auburn (13.1) 9. LSU (12.4) 10. Georgia (12.3) 11. Vanderbilt (11.2) 12. South Carolina (10.7).

I expect UK's assist numbers to rise, as the team continues to gel. Does UT's 18 dimes per game signal an end to the alleged chemistry issues which plagued the team last season?

Steals -- 1. Auburn (9.5) 2. South Carolina (9.1) 3. Tennessee (8.9) 4. Alabama (8.4) 5. Mississippi (8.3) 6. Florida (7.8) 7. Georgia (7.7) 8. Kentucky (7.6) 9. Vanderbilt (6.7) 10. Arkansas (6.5) 11. LSU (5.8) 12. Mississippi State (5.3).

Strong numbers at the top the conference.

Turnover Margin -- 1. Tennessee (+6.9) 2. South Carolina (+5.1) 3. Mississippi (+4.7) 4. Alabama (+3.6) 5. Florida (+2.3) 6. Auburn (+2.0) 7. Arkansas (+1.6) 8. Vanderbilt (-.33) 9. LSU (-.56) 10. Georgia (-1.4) 11. Kentucky (-1.9) 12. Mississippi State (-2.6).

If UK hopes to race to Indianapolis as a Final Four participant, this number has to improve.

Assist/Turnover Ratio -- 1. Tennessee (1.4) 2. Arkansas (1.2) 3. Alabama (1.2) 4. Mississippi (1.1) t5. Florida (1.0) t5. Mississippi State (1.0) 7. LSU (.96) 8. Kentucky (.93) 9. Auburn (.86) 10. Georgia (.84) 11. Vanderbilt (.75) 12. South Carolina (.74).

Top Individual SEC Performers

Scoring -- 1. Rotnei Clarke (ARK) - 21.1 2. Chris Warren (UM) - 19.2 3. John Wall (UK) - 18.1 4. Tasmin Mitchell (LSU) - 18.0 5. Devan Downey (SC) - 17.7 6. Patrick Patterson (UK) - 16.8.

Now we see why Clarke was a hard target recruit for Billy Gillespie.

Rebounding -- 1. Storm Warren (LSU) - 11.4 2. Jarvis Varnado (MSU) - 10.1 3. Patrick Patterson (UK) - 9.6 4. Tasmin Mitchell (LSU) - 8.4 5. DeMarcus Cousins (UK) - 8.3.

Field Goal % -- 1. Jarvis Varnado (MSU) - 67.5 2. Storm Warren (LSU) - 64.3 3. Patrick Patterson (UK) - 62.5 4. Murphy Holloway (UM) - 59.5 5. Ravern Johnson (MSU) - 56.0.

Coming in at No. 7 is UK's John Wall at 54.0%, and at No. 8 UK's DeMarcus Cousins (52.9%).

Three-Point FG % (min. 2.5 made per game) -- 1. Rotnei Clarke (ARK) - 53.9 2. Ravern Johnson (MSU) - 50.0 3. Frankie Sullivan (AU) - 41.3 4. Chris Warren (UM) - 39.8.

Somebody get a hand in Clarke's face.

Assists Per Game -- 1. John Wall (UK) - 7.1 2. Mikhail Torrance (UA) - 5.5 t3. Dee Bost (MSU) - 5.4 t3. Julysses Nobles (ARK) - 5.4 5. Erving Walker (UF) - 5.1.

Steals Per Game -- 1. John Wall (UK) - 2.8 2. Devan Downey (SC) - 2.4 3. Ricky McPhee (UGA) - 2.1 4. DeWayne Reed (AU) - 2.0 5. Eniel Polynice (UM) - 1.9.

Free Throw % (min. 2.5 made per game) -- 1. Frankie Sullivan (AU) - 93.3 2. Mikhail Torrance (UA) - 90.9 3. Kodi Augustus (MSU) - 87.1 t4. Dustin Ware (UGA) - 82.8 t4. Trey Thompkins (UGA) - 82.8.

UK's John Wall checks in at No. 8, making 78.7% of his free throws.

Blocked Shots -- 1. Jarvis Varnado (MSU) - 5.3 2. Sam Muldrow (SC) - 3.3 3. Reginald Buckner (UM) - 2.4 4. JaMychal Green (UA) - 2.3 5. DeMarcus Cousins (UK) - 2.2.

Cousins is averaging less than 20 minutes per game!

Offensive Rebounds -- 1. Storm Warren (LSU) - 5.1 2. Patrick Patterson (UK) - 4.2 3. DeMarcus Cousins (UK) - 3.6 4. Murphy Holloway (UM) - 3.3 t5. JaMychal Green (UA) - 3.0 t5. Jarvis Varnado (MSU) - 3.0.

Patterson and Cousins average nearly as many offensive boards per game as the entire South Carolina team. Paying attention, Darren Horn?

Defensive Rebounds -- 1. Jarvis Varnado (MSU) - 7.1 2. Tasmin Mitchell (LSU) - 6.4 3. Storm Warren (LSU) - 6.3 4. Lucas Hargrove (AU) - 5.6 5. Patrick Patterson (UK) - 5.4.

UK's DeMarcus Cousins comes in at No. 8 with 4.7 defensive rebounds per game.

Assist/TO Ratio -- 1. Tyler Smith (UT) - 4.1 2. Chris Bass (LSU) - 2.9 3. Kenny Boynton (UF) - 2.3 4. Bobby Maze (UT) - 2.3 5. Erving Walker (UF) - 2.2.

John Wall is ranked No. 10 at 1.6. Very impressive number for Tyler Smith, and it may be indicative of the focus he has this season.

Bad Conference Losses -- Alabama (Cornell), Arkansas (Morgan State, East Tennessee State, and South Alabama), Auburn (Missouri State, Central Florida, and Troy), Georgia (Wofford and UAB), Mississippi State (Rider and Richmond), Vanderbilt (Western Kentucky).

Good Conference Wins -- Alabama (Michigan), Auburn (Virginia), Florida (Michigan State), Kentucky (Stanford, North Carolina, and UConn), Mississippi State (UCLA ... kind of), Mississippi (Kansas State), Vanderbilt (Arizona and Missouri).

Individual and Team Points of Interest

Rotnei Clarke scored 51 points versus Alcorn State ... In that game he made 13 three-point shots ... Clarke made 10 threes in a game versus East Tennessee State ... Devan Downey dropped 34 points on Jacksonville ... DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson and Tasmin Mitchell have all corralled 18 rebounds in a game this year ... John Wall dished out 14 dimes against UNC Asheville, and 11 versus Rider ... Dee Bost and Julysses Nobles each handed out 11 assists in games this year ... Jarvis Varnado has twice blocked eight shots this season ... Arkansas scored 130 points against Alcorn State ... Tennessee scored 124 points against UNC Asheville ... Arkansas shot 65.9% from the field against Delaware State ... Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi State have all made 16 three-pointers in games this year ... Arkansas made 35-45 free throws against Morgan State and still lost ... Auburn pulled down 52 rebounds versus Alabama A&M ... Florida and Vanderbilt both have games where they recorded 51 rebounds ... Tennessee dished out an astounding 34 assists in their contest with UNC Asheville ... UK handed out 28 dimes versus the same club ... Mississippi and Tennessee have both recorded 17 steals in games this year.

Thanks for reading, and Go 'Cats!

RPI WATCH: 12/03/09

BracketCat — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 20:00:37 -0000

by Charlie Riedel - AP

Kansas State's RPI and strength of schedule are rising like Jam Sam going up for a dunk — despite the Wildcats' poor play of late. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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The majority of our opponents, both past and future, were in action last night — including our three opponents from Puerto Rico, three of our four immediately upcoming opponents and seven of the Big 12 teams.

And what a crazy night it was. There were overtime games, upsets, the Big Ten winning the Challenge against the ACC (one of the signs of the impending apocalypse), you name it.

To see how everyone fared, click the jump.

If for some reason you absolutely need to know up-to-date numbers, I get them here.

Current Kansas State RPI = 15

Current Kansas State SOS = 20

Great Wins (RPI 1-50) = Loyola, Dayton

Solid Wins (RPI 51-100) = IUPUI

Bad Losses (RPI 100 or greater) = none

Loyola (4-1) | RPI = 27
Western Illinois (3-3) | RPI = 207
Boston (2-6) | RPI = 162: Loss at Connecticut (92-64)
Ole Miss (6-1) | RPI = 39: Win at Arkansas State (79-57)
Dayton (4-2) | RPI = 46: Win at Miami University (65-58)
IUPUI (5-2) | RPI = 84
FHSU (4-1)
Washington State (6-1) | RPI = 112: Loss at No. 17 Gonzaga (74-69)
Xavier (4-2) | RPI = 114
No. 24 UNLV (6-0) | RPI = 5: Win at Arizona (74-72 in double overtime)
Alabama (5-2) | RPI = 52: Win over North Florida (73-51)
UAPB (0-5) | RPI = 229
Cleveland State (3-4) | RPI = 191
South Dakota (5-3) | RPI = 143: Win over Dakota State (111-59)
Missouri (4-2) | RPI = 107: Loss at Vanderbilt (89-83)
No. 19 Texas A&M (6-1) | RPI = 8: Win over PVAMU (84-59)
Colorado (5-2) | RPI = 181
No. 3 Texas (5-0) | RPI = 3
Oklahoma State (6-1) | RPI = 18: Loss at Tulsa (86-65)
Baylor (6-1) | RPI = 160
No. 1 Kansas (6-0) | RPI = 38: Win over Alcorn State (98-31)
Nebraska (5-1) | RPI = 81: Win over UTPA (81-53)
Iowa State (6-2) | RPI = 148: Loss to Northern Iowa (63-60)
Oklahoma (4-3) | RPI = 206: Win over Arkansas (67-47)
Texas Tech (7-0) | RPI = 48

Ewwwe Pig Shewee – Crocker Powers Sooners Past Arkansas

ccmachine — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:28:03 -0000

More photos » by ALONZO ADAMS - AP

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If you thought that Oklahoma's basketball team had troubles heading into Wednesday night's game against Arkansas then perhaps you should consider the woes of the Razorbacks. They are 4-20 over their last 24 games and their 67-47 loss to the Sooners was their fourth consecutive defeat. However, early on it was the Sooners who were struggling by getting out hustled, out rebounded and out scored. That was until the 3:37 mark of the first half when someone somewhere somehow turned on a switch causing three point shots to fall.

Trailing 22-14 Tommy Mason-Griffin hit a three point that would be the first of six made by the Sooners over the last three-and-a-half minutes allowing OU to end on a 20-6 run. Oklahoma carried that momentum into the second half by starting with a 5-1 run and outscoring the Hogs by 13 points to complete the rout. With Oklahoma struggling to get points from the big men it was the guards who took over the game by scoring 57 of the team's 67 points.

Willie Warren was 4-4 from the floor but struggled from the charity stripe going 5-11. Tommy Mason-Griffin was 3-4 from three-point range and Cade Davis was 3-5 but it was Tony Crocker playing the role of the unlikely hero. Crocker scored a game high 16 points while also grabbing 16 boards to record his first career double-double as a Sooner. In the much anticipated debut of Crocker's senior leadership it couldn't have come at a better time and he couldn't have been a better example of hustle to his young teammates.

Just as important as Crocker's 16 and 16 was the defensive effort put forth by Cade Davis who scored 11 points as well. Arkansas guard Rotnei Clarke is going to have nightmares of Davis shadowing and stalking him for a while. Clarke entered the game scoring 26.7 points per game and shooting 57.4% from three-point range. He left Lloyd Noble 5-13 from the floor and 1-6 from beyond the arch thanks to a stellar defensive outing by Davis.

I wouldn't classify this as a complete game performance because the Sooners really struggled for the first 15 minutes but after they got things cranking it was a thing of beauty.

Here's what the other guys are saying...

Arkansas-Oklahoma Preview: The Game Without Defense

dishingoutdimes — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 16:44:59 -0000

At 7PM tonight, the Oklahoma Sooners (3-3) try to build a winning streak after winning their last time out against Nichols State. The Sooners are a perfect 2-0 at home so far, and have averaged a 17.5 point victory in the Lloyd Noble Center. They will be hosting the Arkansas Razorbacks (2-4) who have yet to play a true road game, and who are coming off three straight losses at home to mediocre opponents - Morgan State, East Tennessee State, and Alabama State.

Arkansas' Projected Starters
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Year	2009-10 Stats / Notes
F	00	Michael Washington	6-9	239	Sr.	14.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 47.9 FG%
F	2	Jemal Farmer	6-5	213	Jr.	13.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 48.1 FG%
F	33	Marshawn Powell	6-7	220	Fr.	14.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 48.6 FG%
G	15	Rotnei Clarke	6-0	184	So.	26.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 57.4 3FG%
G	23	Julysses Nobles	6-1	170	Fr.	8.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 6.7 apg

Oklahoma's Projected Starters
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Year	2008-09 Stats / Notes
F	24	Tiny Gallon	6-9	290	Fr.	12.3 ppg, 10.5 rpg, 60.4 FG%
G	5	Tony Crocker	6-6	209	Sr.	10.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 40.0 3FG%
G	11	Tommy Mason-Griffin	5-11	203	Fr.	8.8 ppg, 5.2 apg, 41.2 3FG%
G	13	Willie Warren	6-4	203	So.	20.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 6.0 apg
G	34	Cade Davis	6-5	199	Jr.	7.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 1.8 spg

From indications in interviews, it seems as though Willie Warren will manage to crack the lineup again, after he was either in the doghouse or ill the last time out against Nichols State. More of the preview, after the jump.

Obviously, one of the guys the Sooners need to focus on locking down is Rotnei Clark, a 6-0 shooting guard who scores a lot for the Razorbacks. From the OU Athletics website:

He has made 35 3-pointers (5.8 per game) and is shooting .574 from behind the arc. Clarke hit an SEC-record 13 treys against Alcorn State and scored a school-record 51 points.

According to Statsheet.com, Clarke plays about 93% of the minutes for his team and he is the most efficient offensive player in the country at 1.43 points per possession (PPP). He is also number one nationally in effective field goal percentage, field goals made, 3-point field goals made, points per game, and 3-point field goal percentage. He doesn't just shoot well, but he gets a high volume of shots. If the Sooners are going to succeed tonight, they may well need to double team Clarke and make the rest of the team beat them.

To the right, Clarke is "on fire" this season...

Of course, this game will be lacking defense overall, as both teams enter the game with woeful defensive resumes. Arkansas yields about 1.098 PPP good for a rank of 288, or 60th worst nationally. Oklahoma is actually worse, giving up 1.115 PPP, good for a ranke of 301, or 47th worst nationally.

Arkansas has a very high defensive FTA/FGA ratio, which basically means they give up an extraordinarily high amount of free throws for every field goal attempt by the other team. Usually this occurs with teams that play leaky defense, and allow guys to get to the rim fairly easily.

This makes Willie Warren vital in this matchup. Willie needs to put the ball on the floor and attack the rim, and get their guys in foul trouble. He's really the only guy on the team that can do that with ease. Crocker does an okay job, but the burden will mainly fall on Willie's shoulders. Cade is a jump shooter. Pledger so far has shown no inclination to be anything but a jump shooter.

The KenPom analysis page for the Razorbacks says they play mostly man. While they allow opponents to shoot a high percentage from 3-point range, they tend to keep opponents from shooting from 3-point range often. This tells me that they probably play a somewhat aggressive defense, but can get beat on dribble-drive penetration. Tommy Mason-Griffin and Willie Warren will need to attack the basket and hang on to the ball, and then possibly kick it out to shooters.

The other place the Razorbacks can be beat is on the offensive glass. They are, quite frankly, not adept at getting offensive rebounds when they are on offense, and they yield a pretty high percentage to the other team. With some talented scorers playing for Arkansas, OU will need to make sure they limit second chance points.

This is a game the Sooners should not lose. Arkansas has lost 4 of their last 5, even with Clarke lighting it up, and they lost their last three in a row! At home! Time for the Sooners to lock it down on defense and get some momentum into the Arizona game.

Round Ball Round Up 11.25.09

Year2 — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:58:41 -0000

More photos » by Eugene Tanner - AP

29 days ago: Chaminade guard Steven Bennett (5) attempts a shot while being defended by Vanderbilt forward Andre Walker (24) and A.J. Ogilvy during the first half Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2009 at the Maui Invitational NCAA college basketball game in Lahaina, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Eugene Tanner)

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LAST NIGHT

No. 5 Kentucky waltzed past one of last year's tournament darlings in defeating Cleveland State 73-49. The game was played in a ballroom in Cancun, Mexico, and the Cats certainly weren't taxed on their vacation. Only John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins made it into double figures for UK, with 15 and 14 respectively, but ten different Wildcats scored. Patrick Patterson sustained a slight ankle sprain and missed much of the second half. A Sea of Blue has full coverage.

In a different slice of paradise, No. 24 Vanderbilt picked up an easy win in the Maui Invitational, beating Chaminade 68-41. As with UK, only two Vanderbilt players made it into double figures: John Jenkins with 14 and Jermaine Beal with 10. The Commodores one upped the Wildcats though by having eleven players score. It was close for a while, but Vandy put the game away with a 24-0 second half run.

The SEC picked up a win over the ACC with Florida's 68-52 win over FSU. A trio of Gators—Kenny Boynton, Alex Tyus, and Erving Walker—scored 13 apiece, and four more had at least six points to comprise the scoring effort. Tyus and Chandler Parsons tied for the team lead in rebounds with eight. Florida's defense was the story of the night, shutting down FSU for about 30 of the 40 minutes in the game. The Seminoles made a run to begin the second half, but Florida pulled away late to seal it.

Over in the West, Mississippi State cruised to a 75-50 win over Texas Pan-Am. Jarvis Varnado continued his reign of terror with 12 points, 15 rebounds, and eight blocks, while three other Bulldogs made it into double digits. MSU's defense held the—let's see here, the Broncs, not the Broncos—to under 30% shooting on the night. Big runs to start each half largely carried the day in Starkville.

Another team getting a comfortable win was Georgia, who routed UNC-Asheville 79-58. Ricky McPhee led the way with 20 points for the red and black Bulldogs, who had four scorers in double figures while holding the blue and white Bulldogs to just 37% shooting. Four different UGA men also had at least five rebounds, and both McPhee and Dustin Ware led the team with four assists apiece. A hot start propelled the Athens folk, as they busted out of the gates to a 16-2 lead.

It was not so kind a night for Arkansas as the Razorbacks fell to Morgan State 97-94. Rotnei Clarke's 26 and Michael Washington's 21 led the way for the Hogs, but they allowed Bear guard Reggie Holmes to go for 34. Jemal Farmer contributed eight rebounds for Arkansas, while Julysses Nobles chipped in six assists. Clarke missed a three at the buzzer that would have tied it. The Razorbacks led 53-47 at the half, but they couldn't make it stick. Arkansas Expats has a few thoughts here.

MONDAY

Then-No. 9 Tennessee lost a heartbreaker 73-72 to No. 6 Purdue in the final game of the Paradise Jam. Wayne Chism paced the Vols with 24 points, but he missed a shot with two seconds to go that sealed the team's fate on that night. Chism also led UT with six boards and two blocks. Bobby Maze put in 13, and Tyler Smith score 10 for the orange. Rocky Top Talk is gracious in the loss but notes that officiating was overbearing on both ends.

Vanderbilt also had a bad evening, dropping one to the Big East's Cincinnati 67-58. Four Commodores made it into double figures, led by Jermain Beal's 16, but the rest of the squad managed just seven points among them. Neither team shot well, with Cincinnati making just 39.7% of field goals and Vandy managing just 27.5% shooting. The Bearcats went on a stunning 18-2 first half run, and VU wasn't able to make up all of the difference the rest of the way.

Round Ball Round Up 11.21.09

Year2 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 15:33:33 -0000

More photos » by Brennan Linsley - AP

Bruce Pearl's Vols rolled in the Paradise Jam.

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LAST NIGHT

The No. 11 Tennessee Vols continued to act like a superpower as they blasted ECU 105-66. Scotty Hopson once again led the way for the orange, putting in 25 points. Bobby Maze and Tyler Smith contributed 15 and 13 points apiece. Both teams actually shot the ball well; Tennessee hit on 58% of shots while ECU connected on 52.6% of field goals. The difference in the game came from the shots attempted differential: UT attempted 69, while ECU had just 38. How does that work? The Vols forced a stunning 34 turnovers (including 17 steals) while giving it back just 13 times. Rocky Top Talk has some quick thoughts.

Staying in the East, Florida had no trouble shutting down Troy 80-58. Kenny Boynton led the Gators with 23 points, and all five starters had at least five rebounds. Erving Walker had the most complete line of the night with 13 points, six boards, and seven assists. The Gators' defense stole the show again, holding the Trojans to just 35.5% shooting, but they also woke up from three finally, hitting 12 of 32 treys on the night.

Shifting divisions, Ole Miss pulled away in the second half to defeat Kansas State 86-74. The Rebel starters put on quite a show, as Chris Warren had 27 points, Terrico White had 25 points, Eniel Polynice had 13 points, and Murphy Holloway had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Hot shooting carried the day, as the Mississippi boys shot 56% from the field.

Alabama got a win over the Big East with their 84-75 come from behind victory against Providence. The Tide trailed by four at the half, but they pulled away in foul-to-stop-the-clock territory, going from a 76-75 lead with a little over a minute to go to the nine point final margin. Mikhail Torrance hit three critical free throws during that stretch, and he led the team with 26 points overall. Alabama's starting forwards also put up double-doubles, as JaMychal Green had 15 and 12 while Justin Knox put up 13 and 10.

Speaking of nine point wins, Arkansas needed overtime to do it but pulled out an 81-72 win over Appalachian State. Marshawn Powell had a career night, pouring in 29 points on the night. Michael Washington had a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards. The Hogs only got two bench points the whole game. Arkansas Expats took a deep breath after the game.

Back East, South Carolina pulled out a 69-66 win over South Florida to reach the finals of the Charleston Classic. The Gamecocks will play Miami tomorrow for the title. The Bulls had an early 10 point lead, but South Carolina took the lead five minutes into the second half and never gave it up (though it was close throughout). Devan Downey led the team with 17 points.

Out on the West Coast, Vanderbilt pulled out a 72-70 win over perennial tournament contender St. Mary's. Three Commodore starters made it into double digits, led by Jeffery Taylor's 19. A.J. Ogilvy didn't have a great night, contributing just two points, but he did lead the team with two blocks and tied for team high with seven rebounds. Vandy's bench also contributed 19 points.

It was another tough night for Auburn as they fell to UCF 84-74. Frankie Sullivan put up 22 points, including a perfect 10 of 10 from the free throw line, and DeWayne Reed had 15 points and a team-high five assists. The difference in the game can be seen at the line, as Auburn's 11 to 3 advantage from three was nullified by UCF's 31-11 edge in free throws made.

No, Sparty, No!

Kevin HD — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:15:08 -0000

Mark Dantonio, looking at the scoreboard to make sure he has no timeouts remaining. (AP Photo)

Nothing hurts more than the truth, and nothing says truth like charts.

Something I was interested in: just how true is the Spartan Slide? Sure they've blown monster leads against mediocre teams and lost to MAC schools, but that's early season stuff. How did John L. Smith earn such a fantastic reputation for late season collapse?

Winning percentage by month at Michigan State:

Isn't that awesome? Obligatory:

Slappy eventually slid off the bottom of that thing all the way to being the special teams coach for the Arkansas Razorbacks. Wait, what?! Special teams coach?

(This right after a blocked FG was returned for a touchdown, for
those of you who may have forgot, which is none of you.)

So, forced to pick up the pieces, the Spartans poached one of the nation's finest from Cincinnati, Mark Dantonio. I mean you're never going to get a guy better than 18-17 at a just barely Big East school, right?

Cincinnati has been devastated by this; all they've been able to manage since Dantonio's departure is a BCS bid and total control of the Big East so far this season.

I'm disappointed to report, however, that with an admittedly limited sample size, there has been a bit of a culture shift in ~~Left~~ Directional Lansing:

Mediocrity has a way of making trends less interesting, but these are the trade-offs we're forced to pick between when onside kick bliss double-timeout lameness are on the table.

[/HATEHATEHATE]

Early Round Ball Season Round Up

Year2 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:25:53 -0000

More photos » by Wade Payne - AP

Tennessee's Scotty Hopson.

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LAST NIGHT

As we mentioned in Sprints this morning, points were raining down in Knoxville as No. 11 Tennessee set a school scoring record in its 124-49 pummeling of UNC-Asheville. Scotty Hopson led the Vols with 25 points. Rocky Top Talk has a wrap up of the romp.

Meanwhile in Baton Rouge, a Tiger set a career high as Bo Spencer's 28 points led LSU to a 71-60 win over Western Kentucky. Storm Warren also had a great night with 20 points and 11 rebounds, his third straight double-double. And the Valley Shook has game coverage and a look ahead at LSU's upcoming games in Madison Square Garden.

Staying in the SEC West, Alabama picked up the first win of the Anthony Grant era with an 86-69 laugher over Jackson State. Four Tide ballers went into double figures, with freshman Tony Mitchell setting the standard with 23 and Mikhail Torrance distributing eight assists with his 13 points.

It was not as nice a night in Athens for new coach Mark Fox as Georgia fell to 1-1 on the season with a 60-57 loss to Wofford. Trey Thompkins registered a double-double for the Bulldogs with 14 points and a manly 16 rebounds, while Travis Leslie led the team with 17 points.

It was an even rougher night in Papa John City for John Pelphrey's Arkansas squad as they were overmatched and overpowered by No. 22 Louisville, 96-66. Marshawn Powell got a double-double with 15 points and 11 boards, and Rotnei Clarke paced the Hogs with 16 points. Arkansas Expats says it was about what they expected, but the goal of finding a way into the NIT is still on the table.

MONDAY

The No. 5 Kentucky Wildcats needed a last-second jumper from freshman John Wall to pull out a 72-70 squeaker over Miami University. Wall had 19 points on the game, and both Patrick Patterson (17 and 10) and DeMarcus Cousins (10 and 10) put up double-doubles for the Cats. A Sea of Blue of course has an excellent wrap up of the night's action.

Ole Miss had no such trouble in putting away Alabama State to the tune of 90-53. Four Rebels broke into double digits in scoring. Terrico White had the most points with 19, but Eniel Polynice had the best line of the night with 17 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists. Polynice was one of three Ole Miss players with eight or more boards. Red Cup Rebellion had some quick thoughts about the game.

Also hitting the 90 point mark was South Carolina, as the Gamecocks blew out Georgia Southern 90-66. Dominque Archie was the man of the night for Carolina, scoring 18 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, while stud Devan Downey chipped in 14 points and a team-high six assists. The Gamecocks put the game away by scoring the final five points of the first half and opening the second half with a 16-0 run, a combined 21 unanswered points.

Not to be outdone, the Vanderbilt Commodores went for 95 while holding Lipscomb to just 73 in their season opener. Star center A.J. Ogilvy came off the bench for the 'Dores thanks to a concussion sustained in practice last month, but that didn't stop him from scoring 13 points and leading the team with nine boards and three blocks. Jeffery Taylor led the way with 20 points.

On the other end of the spectrum, LSU eeked out a 55-45 win over Indiana State in the first round of the Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Tipoff. Despite the low scoring output, three Tigers went into double digits. And the Valley Shook was impressed by the defense, but was decidedly underwhelmed by LSU's shooting.

Still in the West, Auburn ended up with a disappointing 73-62 loss to the MVC's Missouri State. You can't blame the Tigers' Lucas Hargrove, who put up 24 points and tied for the team lead with six rebounds. Unfortunately the effort was in vain as his only teammate to break into double digits was DeWayne Reed with 12. Auburn got a paltry five points off the bench in the game.

SUNDAY

The Florida Gators got off to a rousing start with a 74-46 start over in-state foe Stetson. The 46 that the Hatters scored is the lowest point total any opponent has scored in the Billy Donovan era. The Gators nearly snapped a streak though, waiting until the final minute of the game to make a three point shot to extend the school's record of 579 games with at least one trey made. Chandler Parsons, author of the one made three, led the team with 14 points, Alex Tyus put in 12 while snaring 13 rebounds, and hyped freshman Kenny Boynton scored 12 though only on 5-11 shooting. Alligator Army hopes for a return to toughness out of the team.

Louisville smokes Arkansas 96-66 in season-opener

Mike Rutherford — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:22:49 -0000

The Louisville basketball team has played one game and their margin of victory in that contest - played against an SEC opponent away from home - is more than double the combined margin of victory of their football counterpart's three D-1 victories. Scoring lots of points and winning by lots of points is fun, and I remember that now.

The ball is bouncing once again in the Derby City.

So I'm not sure who started at the four for Louisville last night. He looked like Jared Swopshire, he even wore his number, but he didn't play anything like the Swop we've seen for the past 12 months.

Maybe it was playing in front of friends and family in St. Louis, but Swop looked about 20 times more confident than he ever has at any point in his brief Cardinal career. He made smart and bold decisions with the ball in his hands, knocked down open shots and came down with contested rebounds over some pretty big boys.

I've stated on here multiple times that Swop is at least a year away from being a solid Big East forward, and while I still doubt his ability to do a lot of what he did last night against the likes of Connecticut and West Virginia, if he can play at the level he displayed then he absolutely deserves a spot in the starting lineup.

A friend I took in the game with summed things up quite well at one point in the second half: "Swop just looks...cooler."

Reggie Delk again confirmed his status as the least predictable Louisville basketball player of all-time by burying 4-of-5 treys and scoring 20 points. He also did a tremendous job when he was assigned to Rotnei Clarke.

I thought before the season that Delk's performance would be a huge factor in how the season turned out, and while I don't feel nearly as strongly about that statement as I once did, it's an enormous lift when he's knocking down open shots, snatching rebounds and doing all of the other little things that players with his athleticism can do.

Pitino has talked about Delk being a guy whose performance is dictated largely by his confidence level, and if that's the case then last night may have been even more important than it appeared on the surface.

He didn't shoot the ball particularly well but I thought Edgar Sosa put together a nice game. He made a couple of poor decisions early but still finished with a team-high seven assists and turned it over only twice.

Sosa is this team's point guard and he will be for the entire season.

Even with Delk's big night, I love the three-guard starting lineup. Sosa, Knowles and Smith look extremely comfortable on the floor together and produced an assist-to-turnover ratio of 18:4 last night. I still wouldn't be surprised if Jennings replaces Swop in the starting five at some point, but I think the three-guard lineup is here to stay. As it should be.

The Big East is 29-0 right now. That's quite ridiculous.

What do you think the odds are of the entire league being without a loss come Selection Sunday? It's gonna be tough, but I think we've got a shot.

This will be the 9,674th time someone has said this in the past calendar year, but Samardo Samuels has simply got to turn himself into a better rebounder. Last night he was consistently out of position, he was out-muscled and he bobbled multiple boards he should have come up with cleanly. Granted, he was going up against a future first round NBA Draft pick, but without T-Will and Earl Clark, four boards simply isn't going to cut it.

No token photo. Get off your ass, AP photogs.

Apparently there were some network-wide problems that made CC impossible to access for a period during the game last night. In order to make amends, I'm going to go ahead and make all of our content free and open to the public.

You're welcome.

Jerry's excited about the season.

Seriously, can one guy be cooler?

Peyton Siva's and-one was highlight worthy, but he appeared a bit overanxious when the ball was in his hands and struggled to keep his man in front of him on defense. Still, he's a high school All-American with ridiculous potential who doesn't mind waiting his turn as long as his team is winning.

We love you, Peyton. We love you a lot .

A Big East football win and a 30-point victory over an SEC opponent in the basketball season-opener in the span of four days. It's safe to say Cardwear Sporting Dog is legit.

When Preston buried the no-hesitation three on the first possession of the season, the urge I had to take my pants off was at a March '09 level.

Anyone else have an extremely strong desire to chug Bud Light and pound Reese's Cups after watching that game? I wonder what that was all about.

Rotnei Clarke is really good and we did an outstanding job on him last night. He has as pure a stroke as there is in college basketball and is actually much better at creating his own shot than I thought he was. Kudos to Knowles and Delk for keeping him under 20.

How pissed do you think the two Razorbacks on the end of the bench are that the guy from the golf team plays more than them?

On a related note, I have a friend - who shall again remain anonymous in order to protect him from becoming Louisville's biggest social pariah - who had the gumption to yell "fore" when the golfer missed a free-throw. If that wasn't bad enough, he later admitted that he'd been waiting to use the joke for the better part of the night.

Robert Daniel Sinnard of St. Matthews, the world weeps for you and all you come in contact with.

Mike Marra really needs to make a shot. Just one.

Keep shooting, my man.

How about Chris Brickley's take? That was insanely confident and well-executed.

It was equally awesome to see Sosa, his roommate, going nuts on the bench.

It's really cool to watch how much these guys genuinely like each other.

Ninety-six points, 15 threes, 25 assists, 16 turnovers forced, 30-point win, basketball season.

I'm crying because I'm happy.

Alright, so the SEC might be a mess

SFBE.NF — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:09:36 -0000

Kentucky and Tennessee aside, it could be another sad year for the SEC. A season removed from going just 1-3 in the tournament (LSU was the lone team to advance to the second round), the sort of resurgence we expected ain't really materializing here in the early going.

Not only has Mississippi State laid an egg, at home, to Rider, we witnessed a dud debut from Anthony Grant and his Crimson Tide, and Auburn looked sadly disinterested against Missouri State last night, resulting in an 11-point loss. That alone would be cause for concern, but tonight just to confirm what we all had been thinking Arkansas continues to unravel at the seams with suspensions and a 30-point loss to Louisville, along with Georgia, who loses to Wofford. Sure, they may return five starters and put a scare into Pitt last week, but its still sound-a-dog-makes Wofford.

In our conference primer, we bulleted five key non-conference games against top-caliber teams. At this point, we would just like to see South Carolina hold court against Richmond, or Vandy lay a beatdown on Depaul to ensure that this conference has some semblance of pride that extends beyond the gridiron.