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BIG EAST NEWS & NOTES (11/20/2009)

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The Big East, considered to be down this year, improved their cummulative record last night to 35-0, remaining as the only conference without a loss to date. The most impressive vistory was registered by Syracuse, who demolished nationally ranked Cal in Madison Square Garden 95-73. Tonight, the Orange will definitely put the gaudy Big East record on the line when they meet North Carolina in the finals of the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic. Out of conference opponents early in the year can struggle very much against the SU zone…we shall see what it does to the Tar Heels, who have a lot of new pieces this year.

Another big challenge to the Big East will come this afternoon when a short-handed Villanova squad meets nationally ranked Dayton. The Wildcats needed a late three-pointer by Isaiah Armwood to get past George Mason yesterday in the San Juan Shootout. South Florida will try to put the off court distractions aside, much like they did last night when beating Davidson in the Charleston Classic. Tonight another tough match-up is on deck when they meet South Carolina in Charleston.

Other winners last night included Pittsburgh and Notre Dame. Others in action today include DePaul in the Paradise Jam, Seton Hall visiting Cornell of the Ivy League. Rutgers facing Drexel in the Legends Classic at the RAC and St. John’s hosting Brown to open the Philly Hoops Classic.

In other news, an update on UConn verbal commitment Cleveland Melvin and recruiting updates on 2011 forward Branden Dawson, 2011 guard Donivine Stweart and 2012 guard Omar Calhoun. Tobias Harris oficially announced for the SEC last night and this weekend is the highly anticipated National Prep Showcase and NBE will be there for ALL of the action!

Read all about these and more in today’s News & Notes links below…

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Thursday Night’s Big East Results:

Villanova 69, George Mason 68
–it was not a pretty game, featuring 54 fouls, 76 free throws and 33 turnovers to just 13 assists, but Villanova and George Mason provided plenty of drama and excitement to the end as a Freshman’s Late Trey Lifts Villanova to a Tourney Win (Philadelphia Inquirer), 69-68, in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off.

No, it was Maalik Wayns or Dominic Cheek connecting from beyond the arc, it was Isaiah Armwood who connected on his only shot attempt of the day with 17 second left to give the Wildcats a 69-68 lead. ‘Nova rallied from being down five in the last minute to avoid the upset. George Mason would not get a shot off as time expired.

Scottie Reynolds led Villanova with 18 points and Corey Fisher added 17. ‘Nova is already shorthanded as Reggie Redding serves a semester suspension and the Wildcats were without Mouphtau Yarou who flew back to Philadelphia before the game because of a viral infection. Their depth was further tested as starters Corey Stokes, Taylor King and Antonio Pena fouled out as well as reserve Maurice Sutton, which forced Jay Wright to have Armwood in the game ont he deciding offensive possession.

“He was really the fifth option,” Wright told the Inquirer by telephone. “It was like one of those shots where you go, ‘No, no . . . yes!’ “

Next up for the Wildcats is Dayton this afternoon…
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Pittsburgh 71, Eastern Kentucky 60
–Pittsburgh altered it’s line-up a bit as Small Proves Big for Pitt (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) in a 71-60 win over Eastern Kentucky. With EKU coach Jeff Neubauer, a former WVU assistant under John Beilein, spreading the floor and using the three-point shot as a weapon to draw the Panther big men away from the hoop, Jamie Dixon went with a line-up featuring Pitt’s three smallest players – Chase Adams, Travon Woodall, Ashton Gibbs – on the floor together for the majority of an 11-0 run to close the first half and Pitt was never seriously challenged again.

The Hot-Shooting Gibbs Leads Pitt (Tribune-Review) as the sophomore followed up his career high of 22 points against Binghampton earlier this week with a 20-point performance on Thursday. Nasir Robinson added 15 for the Panthers.

With Pitt head coach Jamie Dixon keying on defense and rebounding leading up to the game, he got exacty that as the Panthers held a 47-25 advantage on the boards and tied a school record by blocking 12 shots. Also, the Bench Helps Pitt Down EKU (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette) as freshmen Lamar Patterson scored 10 points and Dante Taylor added 12 rebounds, along with five points in the win.

Pitt next meets Wichita State (2-0) in the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic in Kansas City on Monday night.
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Syracuse 95, California 73
–If there was going to be a game Thursday night that would end the Big East’s winning streak, it was Syracuse versus Cal. However, this one was never in doubt and the SU 22-point win was the largest margin of victory for the conference on Thursday night!

The Bigger, Tougher Orange Blow Out Bears in the Semifinals (San Francisco Chroncile) of the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic in Madison Square Garden. SU will meet North Carolina in the championship game tonight.

Much of the anticipation leading to the SU/Cal match-up was how would the Orange backcourt deal with the strength of the Bears on the other side. Well, it looks as though Syracuse might be just fine afterall in the backcourt as Antonio ‘Scoop’ Jardine Steps up for the Orange (SI.com) with a 22-point, 6-rebound, 6-assist and 4-steal performance in leading SU to the 95-73 win. Cuse’s Two-Headed PG Duo was Effective Vs. Cal (ESPN.com) as Brandon Triche started and added nine points.

Syracuse Feels at Home in the Garden (NY Times) as they have a long history of playing in the world’s most famous arena. One player that had never stepped foot in MSG before was Iowa State transfer Wesley Johnson. However, Johnson Makes Garden Debut Memorable (Syracuse Post-Standard) by registering a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds. Johnson also registered six blocks as the SU 2-3 zone defense bothered the Bears all game.
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South Florida 65, Davidson 58
–There was a bit of a firestorm brewing around the South Florida program yesterday as an Internet Report Alleges USF Basketball Violations (SI.com) have occured. Putting the distractions aside, South Florida Holds Off Davidson (Charlotte Observer), 65-58, as the Bulls Go To 3-0 With Win (Tampa Tribune).

Dominique Jones and Augustus Gilchrist were two players named in the internet report, Jones for his alleged role in a theft of personal items from two former players and Gilchrist for his relationship with Terrelle Woody, but neither seemed to be distracted last night as Gilchrist and Jones Lead Bulls to the Win (The ledger). Gilchrist scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half and Jones finished with 17 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals.

Next up for USF tonight is South Carolina as the Charleston Classic continues.

As for the theft Jones and other team members Anthony Crater and Justin Leemow are accused of participating in by former USF player Gaby Belardo, Police Investigated the USF Players and the Theft Claims (St. Pete Times), but no charges were filed last spring.
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Notre Dame 82, Long Beach State 62
–Notre Dame expected a tough test against Long Beach State last night and, for a half, that is exactly what they got. After leading by just two at halftime, 37-35, Hard Work Paves the Way Against Long Beach State (South Bend Tribune) and the Irish pull away for an 82-62 win.

Luke Harangody led the effort with 29 points and 12 rebounds and got solid support from fellow senior Tory Jackson, who scored 13, and Mississippi State transfer Ben Hansbrough, who finished with 11 points and 7 assists. Tim Abromaitis (11 points) and Jonathan Peoples (10) also finished in double figures for the Irish.

The Irish Put Away the Win With Big Second Half (Journal Gazette) run of 13-2 in the first four minutes after intermission. After being close at the break, the 2nd Half Was Frustrating for the Ambitious 49ers (Press Telegram) who had hoped to spring an upset over the Big East opponent.
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Friday’s Big East Schedule:

DePaul vs. Northern Iowa, 1:00 PM in the U.S. Virgin Islands Paradise Jam
–Panther Men Meet DePaul in Paradise (Times Republican)
–DePaul Potential Trouble in Paradise for UNI (DesMoines Register
–Friday’s Game vs. DePaul Preview (DesMoines Register)
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Dayton vs. Villanova, 3:00 PM in the Puerto Rico Tip-Off
–Gregory Knows Villanova Will Be Huge Test (Dayton Daily News)
–Flyers Face No. 5 Villanova Next (Dayton Daily News)
–Flyers Big Two Have Been Non-factors So Far (Dayton Daily News)
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North Carolina vs. Syracuse, 7:00 PM in the Coaches Vs. Cancer Classic
–North Carolina – Syracuse (Gadsden Times)
–Carolina, Syracuse Headed for Showdown (ZagsBlog.com)
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Seton Hall @ Cornell, 7:00 PM
–Cornell to Put Home Streak on Line vs. Seton Hall (Ithaca Journal)
–Scouting Seton Hall (Ithaca Journal)
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Brown @ St. John’s, 7:00 PM

St. John’s (2-0) meets Brown (1-2) at Carnesecca Arena in a first-round game of the Philly Hoop Group Classic.
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Drexel @ Rutgers, 7:30 PM
–Rutgers Has Winning Ways (MyCentralJersey.com)
–Legends Classic Kicks off With Drexel (RU Daily Targum)
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Providence @ Alabama, 8:00 PM
–Hoops Preview: Alabama vs. Providence (Birmingham News)
–Grant, Alabama Learning on the Court (Press-Register)
–Capsule Preview: PC at Alabama (Providence Journal)
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South Carolina vs. South Florida, 9:30 PM in the Charleston Classic
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A little update on Connecticut commitment Cleveland Melvin of Notre Dame Prep. The Baltimore native Melvin Verbally Commits to Attend UConn (Hartford Courant), but the 6-foot-8 postgraduate forward missed by one day the deadline to submit an official letter of intent. He must wait until springtime to send the letter.
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Speaking of Melvin, he and his Notre Dame Prep teamates as well as many other Top Prep Basketball Stars are Headed to Albert Magnus (New Haven Register) College for the National Prep Showcase from Friday to Sunday. NBE will have a team in place to keep everyone up to date on all the action and news from the weekend. Here is the weekend’s schedule: National Prep Showcase.
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Big East teams are venturing out to the Midwest to get a look at Gary (IN) standout Brendan Dawson, a 6-foot-6 forward in the class of 2011. Dawson has more than 2,000 recruiting letters at his home, and he’s received scholarship offers from Arizona, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Marquette, Michigan State, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Tennessee, UCLA and Xavier. After sitting and having to watch as a freshman because he was academically ineligble, Dawson has hit the books and now Lew Wallace’s Dawson is a Nationally Ranked Recruit (NWI Times) hoping to follow a path sinilar to Glen ‘Big Dog’ Robinson who also came out of Gary (IN).
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In Dylan Butler’s column at the NY Post, The Butler did It, Butler takes a look at, potentially, the next great Christ the King Regional High School product, class of 2012 guard Omar Calhoun. The 6-foot-4 guard already has offers from Villanova, Pittsburgh, Louisville and St. John’s.
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Although the actual announcement was very anti-climactic as the word was out for a couple days, Tobias Harris to Tennessee (ZagsBlog.com) became official yesterday, much to the chagrin of fans at Syracuse, West Virginia, Louisville, among others. In fact, with the ESPN Zone in Times Square hosting many Orange fans preparing for the SU-Cal match-up last night, Syracuse fans booed his announcment which was broadcast live by ESPNU.
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Class Of 2011 Limestone Star Donivine Stewart is a popular recruiting target, according to ChicagoHoops.com as a host of schools are actively keeping close tabs on him. According to ChicagoHoops, the schools involved include Colorado, Clemson, Miami (FL), Rice, UNLV, Marquette, Alabama, DePaul, Bradley and Notre Dame to name a few.
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