Rush The Court

If you are interested in participating in our ATB2 feature, send in your submissions to rushthecourt@gmail.com. We will add to this post throughout the day as the submissions come in so keep on sending them.

Pre-Game Analysis

• #3 Kansas at Nebraska: “While the faces have remained the same, some things have in fact changed about Nebraska since the first meeting in Lawrence. Or perhaps it’s more a matter of Nebraska has actually shown the ability to win a few games and be who they claimed to be on paper prior to the Big 12 season beginning. The Huskers are now 15-6 overall and 3-4 in the conference. Are they the most difficult matchup for the Jayhawks, hardly. What they do though is ugly it up and play defense. A few have circled this one as a potential stumbling block. “(Rock Chalk Talk)
• Colorado at #11 Missouri: Previewing the rematch of a Big 12 game that the Buffs won earlier this year by 13 points. (Rock M Nation)
• West Virginia at #12 Villanova: A big game for both teams as the short-handed Mountaineers try to stay on the top half of the Big East and the Wildcats try to keep pace with Pittsburgh atop the conference. (Villanova by the Numbers)
• Providence at #17 Georgetown: Breaking down a big game for the Hoyas if they hope to keep pace with the rest of the contenders in the Big East against a Providence team that has racked up some big wins over the years. (Casual Hoya)
• #19 Syracuse at USF: The Orange are coming off a big win at UConn, but will need to win another game on the road to build momentum if they want to move back up the Big East standings. (Troy Nunes is an Absolute Magician)
• #24 Illinois at Northwestern: “I have braced myself for an upset loss to Northwestern on Saturday. Not because I don;t think the Illini are better than Northwestern, they showed that last month, but because the trends of this season all point toward the Illini playing poorly against lesser talented teams away from the Assembly Hall. The Illini are 3-6 in games played outside of Champaign Illinois, with the three wins coming against Gonzaga in Seattle, Maryland in New York, and at Iowa. The Illini have lost every road game since Iowa, and have been held below their season scoring average in every game. Its no coincidence we have also caught every team in absolute desperation mode, where the teams have absolutely needed a win to keep their season from going completely off the rails, we have caught teams on their biggest promoted home games of the year, and are viewed as a big enough name to rush the court on, but a vulnerable enough opponent to have it happen to us three times.” (Hail to the Orange)
• St. John’s at UCLA: Previewing Steve Lavin’s return to Los Angeles and a big game for both teams. (Bruins Nation or Rumble in the Garden: Part 1 or Part 2)
• Wake Forest at Maryland: After their loss at home against Duke the Terrapins look to rebound against a significantly weaker opponent. (Testudo Times: Part 1 and Part 2)
• Alabama at Tennessee: “The biggest opportunity of Tennessee’s season will unfold over the next eight days:  today’s home date with league leading Alabama, followed by road trips to Lexington and Gainesville.  It’s not make-or-break – recall that last year the Vols went to Lexington and Nashville in the same week and lost by a combined 30 points.  That dropped us from 6-2 to 6-4,  but the Vols followed up by winning five of their last six and then made the Elite Eight.  The season won’t be over if things go poorly in the next eight days, but if Tennessee wants to win the SEC, there’s no bigger opportunity than beating the league leader and winning on the road in Rivalry Week. We thought Alabama would be the final turn of a four game victory lap against the SEC West, but they’ve become the beginning of a much longer and much more difficult home stretch.” (Rocky Top Talk)
• Michigan at Penn State: Previewing the Wolverines trip to play the Nittany Lions. (UM Hoops)

News/Analysis

• Rapid Reaction to Larry Drew Leaving: “When I first saw the ESPN article this morning by Pat Forde reporting that Larry Drew was immediately leaving the Tar Heels I was floored.  I was in class so I wasn’t able to consistently check up on the situation but by around 1:00 PM it became apparent that Drew was indeed bolting.  After watching Roy Williams’ press conference and letting things sink in I’ve come to a couple conclusions concerning this whole mess.” (View From the Student Section)
• Larry Drew Abruptly Leaves the UNC Team: “In a sudden announcement, Roy Williams and Larry Drew have announced that the latter is leaving the basketball team, effective immediately. It’s a huge blow to a team that has just hit its stride in recent weeks. Drew, of course, lost the starting job to Kendall Marshall after the Georgia Tech game, but was still playing roughly the same number of minutes as before. His game had improved after the lineup change, and Williams seems to be at a loss as to why this is happening.” (Carolina March)
• Can Dexter Strickland Be the Backup Point Guard (Again)?: “Now that Larry Drew has ridden off into the sunset, life is going to change for at least two Carolina players. Kendall Marshall, of course, is going to see his playing time ratcheted up. But Marshall’s not going to be expected to go forty minutes, which means barring any hidden talents for the position Reggie Bullock might have, Dexter Strickland is going to be back at the point.” (Carolina March)
• Why We Hate Steve Lavin: “Lavin’s defenders say: He went to all those sweet sixteens. He’s a gregarious guy. He is gone from UCLA now, get over it.  He had cool hair. Okay, the last one is not something his defenders say, but the fact is it is important to understand that the feelings of UCLA basketball fans feel toward Lavin are not irrational and moreover it is important that they are not forgotten. I will briefly layout five reasons.” (Bruins Nation)
• Kansas And Texas Are The Big 12 Contenders: Breaking down the differences between the two favorites in the Big 12. (Rock Chalk Talk)
• A Q&A With Andre Hollins: “I reached out to Minnesota commit Andre Hollins and asked him if he’d do a Q&A with us. Andre was kind enough to share some of his why he committed to Minnesota, his role on his high school team and what position he wants to play when he suits up in maroon and gold next season.” (The Daily Gopher)
• NIT Bubble Bracket: While most of the nation focuses on the NCAA Tournament bubble some have been tacked the NIT bubble as well. (Chicago Now)
• Kentucky Wildcats Basketball: Thoughts About The Penultimate Possession At Ole Miss: “A lot of people have roundly criticized Darius Miller for the next-to-last play against the Mississippi Rebels in Oxford earlier this week. Miller famously declined a wide-open three-point look with six seconds left on the game clock that could have been the difference-maker. Miller later apologized in a tweet to the Big Blue Nation for the way he played that game. I won’t be defending Miller’s overall play, which I agree was not his best effort. But I think I have an explanation for why Miller didn’t take that three point shot that even he might not even realize, or be willing to explain.” (A Sea of Blue)
• Conference Differentials, Part 11/02/04: Breaking down the Big East with some advanced metrics. (Villanova by the Numbers)