Texas’s Highlight From Last Night

After losing at home to division rival Kansas last night, Texas sits in 5th in the Big 12, and if the season ended today wouldn’t even receive a bye in the conference tournament. Quite a fall from the team everyone was calling the best around less than a month ago.

Texas still sits in 12th in the Pomeroy ratings, but the Longhorns cannot score at all, scoring less than a point per possession in 5 of their last 7 games, and suffering through a 22-0 run last night. The problem seems to hinge on guard Dogus Balbay, who seems to be a slightly worse version of  Doug Gottlieb. Defenders can sag off Balbay, knowing he can’t and won’t shoot, which allows them to focus on Damion James and the like.

Of course, Balbay isn’t killing them as much as Jordan Hamilton. The Freshman’s eFG sits under 50%, yet when he is in he takes nearly 30% of the teams shots, highest on the team.

Oh well, at least they’ll always have this .gif of Brady Morningstar.

Big Monday Open Thread

Hello, fellow Beadlemaniacs! Tonight we have a great night as rivalry week officially kicks off. In the first game, Villanova and West Virginia, who practically are neighbors I guess, meet in a marquee Big East matchup.

Villanova and West Virginia are both teams with great offenses and not as good defenses. West Virginia’s defense is still good, ranked 2nd in the Big East, but it is overshadowed by the 4th best offense in the nation. However, due to the pace at which they play I am guessing the number of times you will hear their offense called elite will be less than 1.

Devin Ebanks is the player who gets the most ink for the Mountaineers, but he’s not even the best Sophomore on his team. Kevin Jones has the country’s 12th best O-rating if you include people with >16% of possessions used. Da’sean Butler has been great for the Mountaineers as well. In the end I am going to take the Mountaineers to win by 5-10 pts at home.

In the nightcap, perhaps the best matchup in the Big 12 conference takes place as Kansas visits Texas, where they haven’t won since 2002. The Jayhawks sit fairly comfortably at #1 in the KenPom ratings, due mostly to the #2 offense in the country. But it is their defense that Bill Self harps on. While Kansas has faced good three point shooting teams, their 2 point defense is the best in the country. They have finished in the top 10 every year since 2005, and the top 4 every year since 2006. As we all know, two point defense is more of a skill than 3 point defense, so expect the Jayhawks to trend upwards as the year goes on.

Texas has been hitting the skids lately, and actually sit in a tie for 4th in the Big 12. A loss tonight, and they could struggle to get a bye in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. Damion James is undoubtedly their best player, but there hasn’t been a ton of support behind him. Dexter Pittman gets a lot of pub, but he’s not even playing in half of Texas’s minutes this year. Obviously Texas has struggled with free throw shooting this year (61%, 336th nationally) so in a close game, the advantage goes to their opponents.

The big key to this game will be how Avery Bradley and Dogus Balbay stop Sherron Collins from getting into the lane, and how Cole Aldrich and the Morris twins will matchup against James and Pittman. Austin has been a house of horrors for Kansas lately, and your guess is as good as mine as to how tonight’s game will shake out.

Enjoy the games, folks.

Dominique Jones > [Insert Your Favorite Player Here]

"Y'all come watch Dominique Jones play."

I know, I know: three Dominique Jones posts in less than two weeks. What gives?

Well, I figured if Fetch is allowed to have a man-crush on the whole Kansas team, and Cole Aldrich, complete with a (discontinued) Aldrich double-double tracker, then I should at least be able to write about my favorite player in college basketball this year, DoJo.

In case you missed it last night, DoJo led the Bulls with 29 points — 22 in the second half– 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals en route to an upset over No. 7 Georgetown in D.C.

The win gave USF its fourth-straight Big East win, and second consecutive win over a ranked team. It also gave DoJo 140 points during the Bulls’ run.

DoJo is putting this team on his back and making them respectable in one of the better conferences in

the nation. He has led them to two signature wins in a row, and if they keep it up, maybe even the possibility of an NCAA tournament berth — which would be USF’s third in school history.

And while the stats are eye-popping, and his game is incredibly entertaining to watch, the thing that makes DoJo especially awesome is this:

With a minute to play in perhaps the biggest win in South Florida history, the star player bellowed to the Georgetown crowd: ”Y’all come watch Dominique Jones play!”

You have to appreciate an incredible young talent with that kind of gall, going unranked into the house of the No. 7 team in the nation and telling that hostile crowd that this is his show.

And that’s just what the second half was: The DoJo Show [I'm totally trademarking that, by the way]. His 22-point second half effort rallied his team from a 9 point halftime deficit, and gave USF the biggest basketball win in school history.

And that, my friends, is why Dominique Jones > Your favorite player.

A(nother) Argument For SEC Player Of The Year. And It Isn’t That Guy You Think It Is

Last week Tomas Verde gave a very compelling argument as to why Devan Downey should be the SEC player of the year. Not being a fan of chuckers who don’t make shots, I would like to get on my soapbox for the most underappreciated player in the conference: Kentucky’s Patrick Patterson.

With all of the attention on John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and even Eric Bledsoe, you sometimes forget that Patterson is the best player on the team. It seems that his own coaching staff and teammates have forgotten it as well, as Patterson is 5th on the team in possessions used, and 4th in percentage of shots.

Patterson is the team’s most efficient player, with a 63.9% eFG and TS%, the former of which is 17th in the country. He has by far the lowest TO rate in terms of people who actually play, and he has shown the ability to block some shots, and plays good defense without fouling (1.8 fouls per 40, best on the team).

Patterson is the 2nd best rebounder on the team, which is actually impressive when you consider his increased time spent on the perimeter this season. He’s also shown to be a bit of a threat from three point land, knocking down 42% of his attempts, though he has taken just 31. As referenced by his eFG and TS% being the same, his free throw shooting has been a handicap.

Still, Patterson boasts an offensive rating of 132, which is good for 7th in the country.

He might not get the ink that his teammates do, but if Kentucky figures out that Patterson is their go to guy, they will be a scary team come March.

An Analysis: Bill Self’s Toupee

We felt it was time for a little levity at the old Beadlemaniacs.  I certainly hope the other writers make fun of my coach for being a terrible coach, first and foremost, but also for having a heart issue that is driving recruits to Northern Iowa and Iowa State.  We’re a football and wrestling school.  They should have to play basketball outdoors and only recruit 300 pound men so they have some sort of advantage.

So, in picture form, here is my analysis of Bill Self’s toupee and his “high-low” offense.  For the record, yes… I hate this man.  He screwed over Illinois.  I’m in the process of finding my “Go Fuck yourSelf, Bill” t-shirt, but it’s taking longer than I thought.

Enjoy and have a wonderful evening, fake internet friends.

via

Tuesday Night Open Thread

Sorry this is a half hour or so late, people. God forbid someone other than me do something around here.

Tonight we have a good old fashioned SEC/Big 10 double header. Going on right now is Ole Miss making the trek to Rupp to meet Ashley Judd and the Kentucky Wildcats. Since the SEC is awful and Kentucky is at home I am going to go with the Wildcats.

In the late game we have an appetizing Big 10 dessert as the two most consistent programs in the conference go at it when Michigan State visits the 2nd largest arena in college hockey (yes you read that right) the Kohl Center. It will be interesting to see how the Spartans, who struggle with turnovers on both ends, deal with Wisconsin, who never turn it over but never force any either. It is also a matchup of contrasting styles as Michigan State is traditionally the fastest team in the conference, where as Wisconsin is one of the slowest in the nation. I am going to go with the mini-upset and take the Badgers. When in doubt take the team whose hockey team is better. It’s science.

Beadlemania Top 25

1. Kansas (3)

2. Syracuse

3. West Virginia

4. Kentucky

5. Villanova

6. Texas

7. Georgetown

8. Purdue

9. Michigan State

10. Duke

11. Kansas State

12. BYU

13. Ohio State

14. Wisconsin

15. Temple

16. Tennessee

17. Northern Iowa

18. Baylor

19. Georgia Tech

20. Butler

21. Vanderbilt

22. Gonzaga

23. New Mexico

24. Cornell

25. Florida State

Also receiving: Pitt, Maryland, Ole Miss

West Virginia 3rd surprised even me. I had them ranked high, higher than anyone else, but not 3rd. Can’t really defend that one to be honest.

Get this though: I actually had Kentucky ranked highest. Chew on that one for a second. It’s probably because John Wall has wised up and said he isn’t listening to Calipari. This should make them much better without him slowing them down.

Nothing else too out of the ordinary as far as I can see (maybe Temple as a top 15 team) but then again it’s past 1 in the morning and I am tired as all hell.

Air your grievances here.

Who is Dominique Jones?

Last week, we brought you a post featuring the rarely-mentioned South Florida Bulls and the man-sized performance of one Dominique Jones. Well that was one performance that merely caught our attention, but at the behest of my brother — a USF graduate — yours truly has decided to keep an eye on DoJo as of late.

Sunday, DoJo (yes, that is an awesome nickname) went off again. He scored 37 points while bringing down 8 rebounds and dishing out three dimes in a win over No. 17 Pitt. Not too bad, right?

Well let’s take a look at his last eight games, all of which were Big East conference games. In that span, DoJo has put up 26, 30, 28, 20, 21, 46, 28 and 37 points, respectively. So why haven’t you heard much about DoJo? Well, because he plays for the Bulls, a team that has, historically, not been very good.

USF's Dominique Jones has averaged 29 points over his last 8 games.

Anyways, my brother and I got to talking about DoJo, and tried to figure out who he reminded us of. One of us offered up a comparison of this 6-foot-4, 210-pound combo guard to another Big East* guard of the same build: Dwyane Wade, who balled at Marquette before being a lottery selection for the Heat.

At first, I thought it was a lofty comparison to be making, but then I decided to check out the stats of both players in what was (in Wade’s case) and what likely is (in DoJo’s case) their final college seasons.

How did the two match up? Surprisingly well.

DoJo this season is averaging 22.095 points compared to Wade’s 21.515 in his final season at Marquette. Both shot just about 50 percent from the field, and close to the same from the FT line — Wade shot 77.9 percent to DoJo’s 75 percent. From beyond the arc, DoJo shoots 37 percent to Wade’s 31 percent (an area that many agreed Wade didn’t excel at).

In terms of effective shooting percentage, DoJo shoots 55.7 percent to Wade’s 51.4 percent. DoJo’s true shooting percentage comes in at 60.3 to Wade’s 57.3.

But the shooting realm isn’t the only place where these two combo guards measure up remarkably close. Both average(d) just over six rebounds per game, just over four assists per game, and had nearly identical assist:turnover ratios at 1.5 for DoJo and 1.4 for Wade. Wade also averaged just over two steals per game, while DoJo comes in at just under two per (roughly 1.9). Oh, and Jones also turns it over a tad bit less: 2.8 per game to Wade’s 3.2.

Pretty similar, no? Heck, statistically speaking, DoJo is probably a better player than Wade was.

So do you still think it’s a lofty comparison for DoJo? Take a look at his game the next time you get a chance. It’s very similar to Wade’s in most facets, except DoJo lacks the same explosiveness to finish in the lane that Wade does so well. On a play where Wade will dunk it on a hard drive, DoJo will probably opt for a teardrop floater — a shot that he has added to his repertoire this season, which has become remarkably efficient for him.

If you’re not sold on DoJo, then I would seriously recommend trying to catch a USF game sometime this season, because the kid has improved incredibly since he first arrived at USF as a freshman, and if he keeps up this level of play, his draft stock will continue to raise and come summer time, he could be a steal for some NBA team out there.

*Yes, we are aware Marquette was still in Conference USA when Wade was there.

Australian Open Live Blog: (Hopefully) Not Fucked Up Comments Edition

No idea what happened. Hopefully this picture of Marissa Miller will make it up to you.

3:49 – I think I know what went wrong. Thank god. Anyways, Federer is up a break in the 2nd set, and just looks in control

3:51 – I am planning on going out for breakfast/lunch/brunch later this morning. Any recommendations? Note I would like to spend as little money as possible.

3:56 – Murray digs out of love-40 to get to deuce. Could be a turning point hold if he comes through here.

4:00 – And there is said hold as we near the 90 minute mark.

4:03 – In real news, Obama is apparently cutting back NASA funding. A lot of people on my twitter feed are mad. I say it’s about damn time.

4;06 – Murray with a hold, but Federer now serves for what essentially is the match.

4:10 – And there it is. Federer takes set #2 6-4

4:15 – re. breakfast recommendations: none of our readers can read.

4:16 – It’s crumbling on Murray. He almost looks like he just wants to leave.

4:18 – Uh, now it’s deuce. Sorry, Britain.

4:22 – Comfortable hold by Murray. On serve in the 3rd set.

4:26 – I like Fowler’s work on college gameday, but he seems like a cock face doing tennis.

4:31 – Not gonna lie, I am fading rather fast. No worries though, I’ve done this 2 years in a row, I can do it again.

4:35 – Murray breaks Federer to go up 4-2 in the set.

4:37 – It’s weird that Scottish people are repping the Scottish flag and not the British flag. The shit happened like 700 years ago people. Brits are weirdos. Good thing we won the Revolutionary War.

4:41 – It’s amazing how one English chick can sound so hot, and the next sounds awful.

4:46 – I am really close to calling it a night. I am dying.

4:48 – Federer breaks, and we have a chance to get out of here in 3.

4:59 – Epic game here.

5:04 – Tiebreak. Murray wins the first 2 points.

5:07 – Couple ugly misses by each player, and we are back on serve.

5:09 – Murray up 5-4. Still on serve

5:11 – Murray has 2 set points

5:11 – Murray smashes one into the net and we are back on serve. Great returns by Fed.

5:13 – And Federer bones one to give Murray another set point.

5:14 – Murray had a rather easy put away for the set, and hit it out.

5:15 – And now it’s 8-7 Fed. Match point.

5:16 – Fed almost hit an epic shot for the title.

5:17 – Another set point for Murray.

5:18 – Wow what a drop shot by Federer. He is the master.

5:20 – Holy shit. There aren’t words to describe that point.

5:21 – Another set point for Murray. This tiebreak has woken me up so I don’t even care if he wins anymore.

5:22 – The 3rd match point for Fed

5:22 – 2nd serve: Not good for Murray

5:22 – And there it is. Congrats to Roger Federer for winning the Australian Open. It’s too bad that Murray took so long to get into the match or we might have had a battle on our hands.

Thanks to everyone for stopping by, and a special thanks to Franco and Billy Buckner for sticking until the end.

We’ll be back on Monday with your normal college roundball talk.

Australian Open Live Blog

Good morning everyone! It’s roughly 2:00 here in la casa de Fetch, 3:00 on the East Coast, and for you lucky West Coasters, it’s just 12:00. Tonight we take a break from the wonderful world of college roundball to watch what should be an epic Australian Open final. It has a lot to live up to, as last year Rafael Nadal took out Roger Federer in 5 sets. I also didn’t get to bed until about 7 AM last year, so for selfish reasons I am hoping this match is shorter.

This looks to be an extremely even matchup on paper. Every single time  you count Federer out he does something to make you shake your head, such as a straight set destruction of Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who was on an absolute roll, in the semifinals. The safe money is definitely on Fed.

But Andy Murray is extremely talented in his own right. The 22 year old is perhaps the one who will assume Federer’s title as the best tennis player in the world. Already the highest ranked British player since Fred Perry, Murray is attempting to be the first Brit since Perry himself in 1936 to win a major. Although, unless you’re some kind of a moron who doesn’t think Scottish people are British, you already knew all that.

This is just Murray’s 2nd grand slam final. He no doubt has matured since his last one, a 2008 US Open final loss to Federer, but he is still in relatively unfamiliar territory. Murray no doubt has tons of majors to rack up in his career, but I am going to follow my #1 principle of tennis here: never pick against Roger Federer in a big match. I think he goes 6-4, 6-7, 7-6, 6-3

I’ll update the post after the jump. See you in a half an hour for the official start of the liveblog. Feel free to get acquainted with the thread beforehand