As we mentioned yesterday, Kentucky coach John Calipari isn’t one to normally give his team undue praise, and he didn’t change course Thursday at SEC Media Day. “Whoever did that needs to be drug-tested,” Calipari said in response to those who consider his Wildcats the team to beat. “We’re not very good right now. I think we’ll be a good team eventually, hopefully, but right now we’re average.” Calipari won’t ever fall victim to the hype, but he should get used to this line of questioning in the future. When his freshman-dominated team cut down the nets in April, his star-studded squads ceased being the primary example of why the one-and-done strategy isn’t a viable championship method. He’s showing no signs of slowing down in the recruiting arena, meaning that his squads will be perceived as one of the heavy favorites almost every year in the foreseeable future.
Frank Martin believes that Ole Miss is in for a big season. We were hoping for an outrageous quote out of the new South Carolina coach on Media Day, but some respectful optimism will have to do. When asked about Martin’s comments, Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy responded, “The pieces are in place for us to have a good team. I think when you return your top nine, four starters, and you have the most experienced top line in the SEC, it’s not a bad place to start.” Unfortunately, that experience he’s referencing has only done enough to become an NIT fixture. Each of Kennedy’s teams in Oxford has finished with between seven and nine wins in conference play, and because of another weak non-conference schedule, that number will need to increase for the Rebels to have a chance to go dancing.
Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy wants you to forget about last year. “I’ve learned a lot about myself and [I’m] really excited about the opportunity to be at Texas A&M and represent a great school and a great league,” the coach told assembled media in Hoover, Alabama, “It’s going to be a lot more fun, I promise you.” The Aggies’ first season after Mark Turgeon bolted for Maryland was disastrous. The projected Tourney team suffered from a rash of injuries and underachievement. The offseason wasn’t much better, with Khris Middleton bolting for the NBA and several contributors graduating or transferring. The cupboard isn’t completely bare, however, as the Turners (Ray and Elston, mistakenly identified in the link as twins) will be expected to provide leadership in addition to on-court production. Says Kennedy: “For us to be good, they have to have great years – not just average years, they’ve got to have great years”.
Arkansas received some disappointing news last night when the NCAA denied a transfer waiver for forward Alandise Harris. The Little Rock native was hoping to receive immediate eligibility after leaving Houston for family reasons. Harris played two years for the Cougars and averaged 13.3 points and 6.4 boards last season. This development leaves second-year coach Mike Anderson with a depth problem in the frontcourt. Marshawn Powell is the unit’s primary scoring threat, but he’s coming off a season lost to injury. Hunter Mickleson is a defensive specialist hoping that his offensive game will improve. Beyond that exists only unproven commodities. With his high-energy defensive schemes, Anderson has to be worried about fatigue for his thin frontcourt.
In an entirely unsurprising development, Huntington Prep forward Andrew Wiggins announced his intention to reclassify to his original 2013 recruiting class. The 2014 top prospect immediately unseats Jabari Parker and Julius Randle as the top available talent atop both ESPN’s and Rivals’ rankings. The battle to land Wiggins’ signature on a letter of intent will be fierce, and John Calipari will surely be involved. With top 10 commitments from Andrew Harrison, Aaron Harrison, and James Young (not to mention five-star Marcus Lee) already signed on, landing the swingman would give the Kentucky coach the most highly touted recruiting class in recent memory.
Rice Upsets Texas A&M; Kazemi Records 36th Career Double-Double: The conference had arguably its best night of the season on Thursday, posting a 6-2 overall record, which was highlighted by Rice’s 65-58 upset victory over Texas A&M at College Station. Junior forward Arsalan Kazemi led Rice with 10 points and 13 rebounds, recording his ninth double-double of the season and 36th of his career, as the Owls snapped the Aggies’ 80-game regular season, non-conference home win streak. Kazemi is now six double-doubles shy of the conference record. The junior carried the scoring load in his sophomore season, but has found help this season from fellow junior Tamir Jackson and senior Lucas Kuipers.
Tulane Drops Second Game, Falling to Syracuse: The conference’s only losses Thursday night came against ranked competition. Tulane took on #1 Syracuse, losing 80-61 in a lopsided contest. However, the team’s trio of top scorers KendallTimmons, Jordan Callahan and Ricky Tarrant were not shut out, combining for 41 points. Timmons was the top performer, scoring 16 points and grabbing eight rebounds.
Memphis’ Continues To Tumble: The high-powered Memphis Tiger offense was contained and exposed on Thursday night when it faced the #16 Georgetown Hoyas, falling 70-59. Despite averaging 80 points a contest, Memphis was held in check throughout the game, which has become a trend when the Tigers take on tougher competition. Sophomore guard Will Barton continued his fantastic play, contributing a double-double in the losing effort. Barton finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds, but fellow sophomore Chris Crawford led the team with 17 points. Barton currently leads the conference in scoring with an average of 19.9 points per game, which is more than two points higher than UCF’s Marcus Jordan, who is second in scoring.
UTEP Builds Mo’ In Hawaii: In the first game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, UTEP had a chance to make a statement and did, dominating Clemson. The Miners walked away with a 61-48 victory, following a 23-8 run during the game’s final 13 minutes. The Tigers recorded a lone field goal during that span. With the win, UTEP improves to .500 for the first time this season. Though they fell to the streaking Wildcats in the semifinal game, UTEP bounced back in the consolation round, holding off Auburn 83-76. The Miners are streaking at the right time, winners of four of their last five. Sophomore guard Michael Perez is finally filling the void left by Randy Culpepper, as he averaged over 17 points per game in the Diamond Head Classic.
Marcus Jordan Is Second In Conference USA In Scoring And The Knights Boast Two Of The League's Top Five Point-Scorers (Credit: Chris Schubert).
Power Rankings
Tulane (11-2): The Green Wave suffered its second loss of the season on Thursday night, but they take a lot of experience away from facing the top-ranked team in the country. Tulane is the best defensive team in conference, allowing only 55.1 points a night. In comparison, the league’s worst defensive team, Memphis, allows 74.3 points per night. Kendall Timmons has found a long-term running partner in freshman Ricky Tarrant, who has blossomed into a star in the early part of this season.
Southern Miss (10-2): It’s hard to pick nits on a team that has won six in a row. Southern Miss has emerged as one of the best teams in conference because they play complete team basketball. Lacking a consistent top performer, the Golden Eagles have relied on several players to make plays. A lot of credit goes to the Golden Eagles seniors such as Darnell Dodson and Maurice Bolden, who each recorded a double-double in Thursday night’s win over South Florida. Read the rest of this entry »
Memphis Drops From Top 25: Memphis is unranked following the program’s 76-72 loss to Murray State last week. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Memphis and catapulted the Racers into the Top 25. The Tigers received 13 votes in the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 Coaches poll along with 27 votes in the Associated Press poll, neither number being high enough to keep Memphis in the rankings with a mediocre 5-3 start. The Tigers have a chance at redemption this Saturday when they travel to No. 4 Louisville for a pivotal non-conference game. Following that contest, they travel to No. 17 Georgetown on December 22, where they will look to avenge an early season overtime loss to the Hoyas.
Once Again, Memphis Has No Shortage Of Mental Miscues To Iron Out
Tulane Gains Votes, Syracuse Looms: Before losing its first contest of the season last week, the Tulane Green Wave were marching to the beat of an undefeated drum. And the national media took notice. In the December 5 USA Today Top 25 Coaches Poll, the Green Wave received some votes following a 9-0 start. Although the team didn’t receive any votes in Monday’s poll, they have a chance to prove themselves against top-ranked Syracuse on Dec. 22.
Washburn Gets Dap: UTEP freshman swingman Julian Washburn claimed his first C-USA Freshman of the Week Award on Monday, following a career-best performance in the Miners’ 73-69 win over non-conference rival New Mexico State. In the contest, Washburn recorded a career-high 16 points, three rebounds, four assists and a block. The win snapped a three game losing skid for the Miners and avenged an early season road loss to the Aggies on Nov. 19. Next up for UTEP is UNLV tonight at 10 PM ET. The Runnin’ Rebels are off to a 9-2 start, including a win over then-top ranked UNC. The Miners are statistically one of the worst offenses in the NCAA, ranking #320 overall. UNLV has had no problems offensively so far this season, averaging over 80 points a game, which is good for 24th in the nation.
Tarrant Gathers Accolades: Tulane freshman guard Ricky Tarrant chose a good time to deliver the best performance of his young career, gashing the Georgia Tech defense for 24 points, 20 of which were scored before halftime, en route to a 57-52 upset victory. Tarrant’s performance, which included a seven rebound effort, was good enough for him to take home both Conference USA Player and Freshman of the Week honors on December 5. It was Tarrant’s second consecutive Freshman of the Week honor, winning his first honor just a week earlier. The sweep marks the first time a freshman took home both weekly awards since 2008. In addition to the win over Georgia Tech, Tarrant helped the surging Green Wave past Southern earlier in the week.
Conference USA Player of the Week Alandise Harris had the throwdown of the week with this dunk in a win over Arkansas that earned the top spot on ESPN’s Top Plays.
The Week That Was
Memphis Falls In Maui, Picks Itself Up: The 13th ranked Memphis Tigers have had an up-and-down beginning of their season, finishing with a total of 196 points in their two victories, while shooting a miserable 33 percent from the field in their lone loss to No. 15-ranked Michigan. The Tigers failed to find an offensive spark against the Wolverines, losing 73-61 in the opening round of the Maui Invitational on Monday. Senior Charles Carmouche was the only Memphis player to shoot 50% in the game making six of his 12 attempted shots and finishing with a team-high 14 points. On Tuesday night, the Tigers redeemed themselves, holding on to narrowly defeat in-state foe Tennessee 99-97 in double overtime. Memphis was in control most of the way, but blew its ten-point halftime lead as the Volunteers surged late behind a stellar performance from junior Jeronne Maymon, who hit a game-tying shot in the closing second of regulation. He finished with 32 points and 20 rebounds while guard Will Barton had 25 points and 11 rebounds. Sophomores Antonio Barton and freshman Adonis Thomas helped the Tigers, providing a spark off the bench and finishing with 21 and 19 points, respectively. Antonio, the little brother of Will, hit a crucial jump shot in the second overtime with a little over a minute remaining.
Rice, Marshall, Tulane Off To Hot Starts: While the conference’s current leaders—Rice, Marhsall, Tulane (all 4-0)—will see tougher competition in weeks to come, the three teams have gotten to the top of the conference standings by throttling weaker competition. Junior swingman Arsalan Kazemi has the Owls started in the right direction, averaging a double-double through the first four contests. Similarly, junior swingman Kendall Timmons has been an integral part of the Green Wave’s early season surge out of the conference cellar. Timmons is shooting a pristine 66.7% from the field while averaging 18.7 points a game for Tulane. The Thundering Herd are the least shocking of the unbeatens remaining in conference; however, they’ve taken advantage of a weak early schedule. Marshall can prove themselves in weeks to come when they play a pair of Big East giants—Cincinnati and Syracuse—on the road. Read the rest of this entry »
Stephen Coulter is the RTC correspondent for Conference USA.
A Look Back
So. Miss Clobbers No. 22 UCF: After a 14-0 start, Central Florida has now lost back-to-back games and fell out of the national rankings after a 86-69 loss to Southern Mississippi. For the Golden Eagles, it was the program’s first win over a ranked opponent since 2004 and the first time at home since 1986. In the second half, USM outscored UCF 50-34 behind a strong performance from R.L. Horton, who scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds.
Houston Nips SMU 70-68: Only days after tripping up preseason favorite Memphis, SMU fell short of Houston on the road. Adam Brown led the Cougars with 22 points. After the win, Houston has now taken four of its last five. AlandiseHarris finished with a double-double, dropping 19 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. Darian Thibodeaux scored 17 points. There were nine lead changes the final 12 minutes.
Memphis, UTEP and Tulsa Cruise: Saturday brought in a slew of blowout victories for Memphis, UTEP and Tulsa. The Tigers followed up an upsetting road defeat to SMU with a big win at home over surging Marshall. The Herd went into the game winning nine of their last eleven and walked away with a 77-61 spanking. Meanwhile, UTEP handled Rice 66-43 at home, notching their 12th straight home victory. Tulsa knocked off UAB 78-62, beating the Blazers 43-34 in the second half.
Stone Breaks Conference Assist Record: UTEP senior PG Julyan Stone broke the Conference USA assist record last Saturday after he recorded five assists in UTEP’s win over Rice. Stone has 633 assists for his career, passing USF’s Reggie Kohn as the career assist leader in the conference. Stone finished with ten rebounds and four points in the game.
Shawn Williams Transferring To SMU: Dallas-native and one-time Texas Longhorn Shawn Williams announced last week that he was transferring to SMU. On January 11, Williams enrolled in classes, but will have to sit out until next fall. He will have three years of eligibility remaining when he returns. Williams left the Longhorns in November, playing in eight games before suffering an ankle injury. He didn’t play in any games this season.
Memphis Fills in Holes With New Faces: Don’t look now, but Memphis seems to have found some stability after weeks of upheaval that included injuries, transfers and inconsistent play on the court. Senior forward WillColeman finished with a double-double in Saturday’s win over Marshall. Coleman scored 19 points while grabbing 11 rebounds. In addition to Coleman’s emergence, the Tigers bench torched Marshall, scoring 30 of the team’s 77 points. Tarik Black notched 12 points and nine rebounds, while junior transfer Charles Carmouche added 15 points.
East Carolina Cruising At Home. The Pirates are 7-1 at home this season following their 76-67 win over Tulane last Saturday. Jontae Sherrod had a huge day for ECU, scoring 24 points. For the Green Wave, Kendall Timmons barely reached 10 points, however he did finish in double digits for the 15th consecutive game.
Power Rankings
UTEP (15-4, 3-1) – It’s hard to pick a top dog in the conference with team’s losing all around the conference. However, UTEP is the conference’s first 15-win club and have won 12 of their last 14. In addition, their only loss is a triple overtime defeat at UAB. Also, senior guard Randy Culpepper, who was just named conference player of the week once again, is averaging more than 19 points a game.
Southern Miss (14-3, 3-1) – The Golden Eagles get another opportunity to prove itself this week when they host Memphis at the Reed Green Coliseum. USM prides itself on crashing the glass, averaging 40.5 team rebounds a game, which is 24th in the nation. A blowout loss to Marshall and an overtime win over Rice keeps them out of the No. 1 spot for now.
Memphis (13-4, 2-1) – After a bad road loss to SMU, the Tigers rebounded with a big win over Marshall. Their next three conference games are at USM, at UAB and at home against Central Florida. Combined record of those opponents: 43-9.
Central Florida (14-2, 1-2) – Two bad losses drop UCF from the top spot. Right now, it needs to regain control of the season with a pair of easy home games this week against ECU and Rice. Marcus Jordan and Keith Clanton give this team stability on both sides of the court.
UAB (11-4, 1-1) – Three games this week present quite the challenge for the Blazers, who are coming off a bad loss at Tulsa. UAB needs to shore up its defense if it wants to be successful; the Blazers have given up 75 or more points in the last three games.
Tulane (12-5, 2-2). After winning six in a row, Tulane struggled last week losing a pair of games. They have a mid-week bye and then play Tulsa at home on Saturday. Maybe the time off will help.
Marshall (12-5, 1-2). Freshman DeAndre Kane is making a blantant case for Freshman of the Year after a dynamic week for the Herd last week. Kane is currently second in the team in scoring and first in assists. Everybody else needs to step up in order for Marshall to hit the 20-win mark.
Houston (10-6, 2-1). A pair of close wins has kept Houston in good position early in conference play. The team is still, but freshman Alandise Harris is developing into a strong player for the Cougars. Harris had 33 points in the two wins last week.
Tulsa (9-8, 2-1) – Although they fell in out of conference play to Arizona State, the Golden Hurricane made a statement last Saturday beating UAB handily at home. Senior Justin Hurtt will be a conference first teamer without a doubt.
Southern Methodist (10-7, 1-2) – The program scored an epic-sized win when they topped Memphis, however, the Mustangs came up short at home against Houston and now must take on UAB and UM this week. Papa Dia is averaging 17.6 points and 8.8 rebounds.
East Carolina (9-7, 1-1) – Senior Jontae Sherrod has been a consistent scorer for the Pirates this season, hitting a season-high mark in last week’s win over Tulane when he finished with 24 points.
Rice (8-10, 0-4) – The Owls offense did not show up against UTEP and the team paid the price. Ironically enough, the worst loss of the season followed the best loss of the season—an overtime defeat at the hands of a hot Southern Miss team. Sophomore Arsalan Kazemi has been carrying this team on his back the last month.
A Look Ahead
Marshall duels with WVU in Chesapeake Energy Classic. The Thundering Herd will be heading up to Charleston, W.V., on Wednesday night to take on the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Chesapeake Energy Classic. The in-state rivals both need a win to regain momentum at this crucial part of the season.
Memphis travels to USM for Matchup of Conference Heavyweights. The current No. 2 and No. 3 teams in the power rankings take the same court this week when Memphis travels to Southern Miss on Wednesday night. Both teams have one loss in C-USA play, however the Golden Eagles have the better conference record at 3-1. Gary Flowers versus Will Coleman makes for an intriguing storyline.
Struggling UCF Takes On Bottom-Dwellers. The Knights of Central Florida are 1-2 in conference and 13-0 in out of conference play. They will have an attempt to boost that conference record when they take on East Carolina and Rice this week. The Pirates and the Owls have struggled this season, especially on the road, and are two of just three teams in the conference that have failed to reach the ten win mark.
