IRenko – Rush The Court

Rushed Reactions: #1 Indiana 58, #9 Temple 52

IRenko — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 22:10:49 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after Sunday’s Third Round game between #1 Indiana and #9 Temple. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Victor Oladipo Did What NPOY Candidates Do…

Victor Oladipo Won This Game — The stat sheet won’t tell you what Victor Oladipo means to Indiana, because it offers no metrics, advanced or otherwise, for heart and soul. Oladipo took this game over down the stretch at both ends of the floor. Indiana had used a number of defenders to try to slow Khalif Wyatt (more on him later), but it [...]

Rushed Reactions: #2 Ohio State 78, #10 Iowa State 75

IRenko — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 19:42:34 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after Sunday’s Third Round game between #2 Ohio State and #7 Iowa State. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Aaron Craft’s Trey Sent OSU Into the Sweet Sixteen (Joe Robbins/Getty Images)

Craft in the Clutch — Aaron Craft’s performance over the final five minutes of this game illustrated his broader tendency to be inconsistent while, at the same time, coming up big at key moments. Craft has alternated all year between high and low scoring games, but in the final few weeks of the season, he put together several [...]

Rushed Reactions: #3 Marquette 74, #6 Butler 72

IRenko — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 03:45:10 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Saturday’s Third Round game between #3 Marquette and #6 Butler. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Buzz Williams Got It Done For the Second Time in the NCAAs (AP)

Survive and Advance — In a pod full of mid-majors with Cinderella history, it was the Big East power who emerged at the end of the day, but not before being pushed to its limits. This was more of a see-saw affair than Marquette’s great escape against Davidson, and they seemed to take control of the game mid-way [...]

Rushed Reactions: #1 Louisville 82, #8 Colorado State 56

IRenko — Sun, 24 Mar 2013 00:08:38 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Saturday’s Third Round game between #1 Louisville and #8 Colorado State. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

A Strange Sight at Rupp Arena, Indeed

Welcome to Louisville Basketball — Colorado State normally does a very good job of taking care of the ball, but they normally play Mountain West teams, none of whom could have prepared them for Louisville’s pressure defense. The Cardinals rank second in the country in forcing turnovers, and the MWC has only one team, Wyoming, inside the top 190. The Rams were [...]

Rushed Reactions: #10 Iowa State 76, #7 Notre Dame 58

IRenko — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 04:08:51 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after the Second Round NCAA Tournament game between Notre Dame and Iowa State. You can follow him on Twitter at @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Brey’s Team Self-Destructed Tonight

Notre Dame Self-Destructed on Offense in the First Half … — The most turnovers Notre Dame had committed this year was 18 — and that was in a game against Louisville that lasted for 65 minutes. Apart from that, they hadn’t committed more than 16 turnovers in any contest, yet by halftime tonight, they had coughed up the ball 14 times. [...]

Rushed Reactions: #2 Ohio State 95, #15 Iona 70

IRenko — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 02:09:29 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report after the Round of 64 NCAA Tournament game between #2 Ohio State and #15 Iona. You can follow him on Twitter at @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Ohio State Won at Iona’s Pace — Ohio State ordinarily plays at a fairly slow pace, while the Gaels like to race up and down the court, using their quickness to hide their lack of size inside. Iona managed to get the kind of uptempo game with which they’re typically comfortable, as each team had a whopping 78 possessions and combined for 136 field goal attempts and 46 free [...]

Rushed Reactions: #1 Indiana 83, #16 James Madison 62

IRenko — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 22:53:11 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report after the Round of 64 NCAA Tournament game between #1 Indiana and #16 James Madison. You can follow him on Twitter at @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

In Case You Were Wondering, Indiana Can Score — The best offense in the country unleashed its full arsenal this afternoon, bombarding James Madison with drives, post feeds, threes, and pull-up jumpers. Getting to play their first non-Big Ten defense in 20 games seemed to release a pressure valve for the Hoosiers, and the scoring came pouring forth. The rub is that their defense remains a step behind [...]

Rushed Reactions: #9 Temple 76, #8 North Carolina State 72

IRenko — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 20:19:51 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after Friday’s Second Round game between #8 North Carolina State and #9 Temple. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

NC State Finishes Off a Disappointing Season

A Microcosm of N.C. State’s Season — There was some reasonable talk that an 8 seed was a bit low for N.C. State, but this game proved to be a microcosm of N.C. State’s inconsistent and, ultimately, underachieving season. The Wolfpack came out flat, with the offense looked tentative and sluggish, and the defense indifferent, en route to a 38-22 halftime [...]

Rushed Reactions: #8 Colorado State 84, #9 Missouri 72

IRenko — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 05:09:22 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between #8 Colorado State and #9 Missouri. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

The Kid is Alright — Colorado State point guard Dorian Green had one ineffective game against UNLV after injuring his ankle in the Mountain West tournament, so heading into tonight, his ability to perform at his usual level was an open question. Yesterday, coach Larry Eustachy said that Green wasn’t a hundred percent, but that he needed to play like it, because he’s the quarterback of the team. Well, Green [...]

Rushed Reactions: #1 Louisville 79, #16 North Carolina A&T 48

IRenko — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 01:37:32 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between Louisville and North Carolina A&T. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Peyton Siva and Company Rolled On…

Louisville Went for the Knockout Punch Early — The Cardinals didn’t waste any time tonight, unleashing their full-court press early and often. By the 10-minute mark of the first half, they’d forced eight turnovers and led 25-7. That was all the margin that Louisville would need, as NC A&T never got any closer than 14 points the rest of the way. All told, Louisville’s [...]

Rushed Reactions: #3 Marquette 59, #14 Davidson 58

IRenko — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 22:38:18 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between Marquette and Davidson. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Marquette Saved Its Best for Last, and Davidson Saved Its Worst — After trailing for almost the entire second half and staring at a seven-point deficit with under two minutes to play, Marquette found the wherewithal to stage a March-worthy comeback. Through 38 minutes and 57 seconds, Marquette had shot 1-of-11 from three-point range, but they managed to drain three straight contested threes in the final 63 seconds, the last of which pulled them [...]

Rushed Reactions: #6 Butler 68, #11 Bucknell 56

IRenko — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 19:06:42 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Lexington after Thursday’s Second Round game between Butler and Bucknell. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Mike Muscala Could Not Get It Going — All eyes were on Bucknell’s Mike Muscala this afternoon, and the big man shrunk under the spotlight. He got off to a poor start, scoring just two points in the first half on 1-of-9 FG shooting. He started to find the net a bit in the second half, as the Bison climbed back from a double-digit deficit to make it a competitive game. But he [...]

Rushed Reactions: #13 La Salle 80, #13 Boise State 71

IRenko — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 03:34:41 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after Wednesday’s play-in game between La Salle and Boise State. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

Boise and La Salle Finished Off the First Four

La Salle Executed Its Offense to Perfection — The Explorers feature a four-guard attack that runs something of a dribble-drive offense. They try to space the floor, drive, kick, and reverse the ball until they get a good shot, either off the dribble in the lane or from behind the three-point arc, where they shoot a healthy 37.1 percent. Tonight they executed this [...]

Rushed Reactions: #16 James Madison 68, #16 Long Island 55

IRenko — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 01:23:02 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC correspondent. He filed this report from Dayton after Wednesday’s play-in game between Long Island and James Madison. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

Three Key Takeaways:

LIU Was Never Able to Get Its Offense Going Tonight (credit: G. Shamus/Getty)

JMU Won the Tempo Battle — Long Island likes to play at a breakneck pace, ranking in the top 30 in the country in tempo and routinely scoring in the 80s or 90s. At yesterday’s pregame press conference, James Madison coach Matt Brady emphasized the importance of slowing the game, and the Dukes largely succeeded. LIU scored just [...]

The Other 26: Bracket-Busting, East and Midwest Edition

IRenko — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 21:11:01 +0000

I. Renko is an RTC columnist and the author of the weekly column, The Other 26. Follow him on Twitter @IRenkoHoops.

This is part two of our TO26 bracket analysis, focusing on the 17 non-power-conference teams that populate the East and Midwest regions. The teams are grouped into five rough categories, and, within each category, they are ordered by their likelihood of advancing. For our analysis of the South and West regions, see here.

Regional Threats

These are the teams that have a credible chance of dancing all the way to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond.

St. Louis (#4 Midwest) — The Bilikens are flying [...]