Did the Big Ten Ban the Shot Clock Tonight?
No, this is not a typo…
Penn St. really did win a 38-33 thriller in Champaign tonight.
Apparently, with six minutes remaining, the score was 31-24 in favor of the Illini, but PSU made a mad rush to outscore Bruce Weber’s team 14-2 down the stretch (a veritable blitzkrieg) to secure the win. Or, as ESPN’s copy editors put it, Penn St. powered past Illinois.
The two teams combined to shoot 28-96 (.292) from the field and 6-33 (.180) from three, which by any objective measure is also known as an abortion on the court. There were more bricks thrown up in this one than in Modesto and West Palm during the height of the housing bubble. One of our earliest memories of basketball was this crime against hoops-manity which helped inspire the original 45-second shot clock in 1985-86; it’s nice to see that we can count on the Big Ten to set new modern records for offensive futility. The combined total of 71 pts is the lowest output in four years (since Monmouth defeated Princeton 41-21 in 2005). We have no idea how long it’s been for a BCS conference, but this might just be the worst of the shot-clock era. Ugh.
We just saw ESPN break down the NCAA Tourney chances of both of these teams, and we’re disgusted that either of these teams are even in the conversation given the putrid display they each put forth tonight. Oh, it was a defensive battle, right?
This low-scoring stuff is something of an epidemic, and it seems to be getting worse as the years go on (or perhaps I’m just getting crankier). I count 8 games tonight where the final total is under 100.
[...] Penn St. 38, Illinois 33. We already talked about this abomination elsewhere. [...]
It was not the lowest scoring game in 4 years. The AP got it wrong. Does no one remember the epic battle between GW and SLU on January 10th of last year? The final score was GW 49 SLU 20. A combined score of 69! That 20 SLU scored is the lowest scored in the shot clock era. Please, can someone get the facts straight. http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=280100045
Illinois put up 59 points per possession in that game. NJIT scores 74 on average. Wow. That is horrible.
Also – only one guy got into double figures and just barely!
It takes time to climb the ladder and get the ball out of the peach basket in the Big-Ten
[...] most are saying, it certainly appears as if the Big Ten decided shot clocks were optional, and both coaches turned them down, giving us last night’s offensive explosion. No other [...]
[...] Big Ten: all defense, all the time. [...]
Jeff is right. That SLU game was a lower total, but we still haven’t gotten confirmation on whether this is the lowest BCS conference total in the shot-clock era. Does anyone know whether that’s true?
Illinois didn’t attempt a single free throw the WHOLE GAME
[...] • That’s how the Big Ten do: Penn State 38, Illinois 33. Yes, that was a final. No, basketball. [Rush The Court] [...]
[...] Not only was yesterday’s tussle in Champaign the second-lowest scoring Div. I college game in four years, but it took a late offensive barrage by the Nittanys to get the score that high; it was 31-24 Illinois with six minutes remaining. Let’s go to the stats, assisted by Rush the Court: [...]
[...] with 7 or 8 losses, all fighting for their NCAA Tournament lives. Penn State got a big boost from their ugly 38-33 victory at Illinois, then lost a winnable game at Ohio State to rejoin the masses. Penn State now has a 3-2 [...]
[...] Penn State at Ohio State at 7 PM on ESPN and ESPN360.com: This is a pretty big game for both teams. They both are probably in the NCAA tournament if the season ended today, but both could use a little work on their resume to guarantee a bid and move up a seed line or two. Penn State has bounced back to a 3-game losing streak to pick up two solid wins (Minnesota and at Illinois) while Ohio State has struggled recently losing their last 3 games by a combined 10 points. We’ll be watching two potential first team Big Ten members (Evan Turner and Talor Battle) as the winner of that match-up will probably determine the outcome of this game since this game will likely come down to the last few minutes. In any event, we’re just hoping that this game will be slightly more aesthetically pleasing than the last time Penn State took the court. [...]
[...] titles combined with playing in a better conference (the ACC may be down, but you never see an abomination like this come out of the ACC) and NCAA-best 8 trips to the Sweet 16 (versus 6 for the Spartans) are just [...]