lafayette – Rush The Court

Rushed Reactions: #1 Villanova 93, #16 Lafayette 52

Tommy Lemoine — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 02:27:00 +0000

Rush the Court will be providing wall-to-wall coverage of each of the NCAA Tournament from each of the 13 sites this year. Follow our NCAA Tourney specific Twitter accounts at @RTCeastregion, @RTCMWregion,@RTCsouthregion and @RTCwestregion.

Three Key Takeaways.

Villanova dominated Lafayette from start to finish. (Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports)

Villanova was not messing around. Villanova was all business right from the outset, taking a quick 11-2 lead and never letting off the pedal throughout the game. Its ball movement was sharp, energy was high, and shots were falling. Despite a massive early lead, Jay Wright wasted no time calling a quick timeout [...]

NCAA Game Analysis: Second Round, Thursday Evening

RTC Staff — Thu, 19 Mar 2015 21:01:32 +0000

And here we are. For those of us who grew up from around 1985 to 2001, the mathebracketal beauty of a 64-team field is what the NCAA Tournament is all about. Today and tomorrow are a mixture of so many highs and lows that it’s impossible to keep track of it all. We won’t be able to do that, but we can at least get you ready. Here’s a preview on each of today’s evening games. Enjoy the Madness.

#1 Villanova vs. #16 Lafayette — East Region Second Round (at Pittsburgh, PA) — 6:50 PM ET on TBS.

Villanova should take care of [...]

Bracket Prep: Lafayette

Tommy Lemoine — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 18:01:07 +0000

As we move through Championship Week, we’ll continue to bring you short reviews of each of the automatic qualifiers to help you fill out your bracket next week. Here’s what you need to know about the most recent bid winners.

Lafayette

Lafayette clinched its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2000. (Austin Drucker / Lafayette Student News)

Patriot League Champion (20-12, 9-9) RPI/Pomeroy/Sagarin = #127/#197/#175 Adjusted Scoring Margin = -0.2 Likely NCAA Seed: #16

Strength: Lafayette is one of the best shooting teams in college basketball, ranking among the top-15 nationally in three-point percentage (41%), effective field goal percentage (55.8%) and free throw shooting (76.5%). In [...]

Circle of March: Vol. XI

rtmsf — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 16:01:40 +0000

The bloodbath has begun. We entered yesterday with 203 teams still eligible for the 2015 National Championship; we ended the night with 170. A single-day total of 33 teams fell off the Circle of March and we’re all better people for it. Today could be even worse with over 60 games involving a whole bunch of bad and mediocre teams playing in 18 different tournaments. We have to get to 68 over the next 80 hours somehow. On the automatic qualifier front, there was only one champion crowned last night — congratulations to the Patriot League’s Lafayette — but today and tomorrow are [...]

Conference Tourney Primers: Patriot League

Tommy Lemoine — Tue, 03 Mar 2015 15:01:37 +0000

It’s the start of Championship Fortnight, so let’s gear up for the next 13 days of games by breaking down each of the Other 26’s conference tournaments as they get under way – starting with tonight’s action.

Patriot League Tournament

Dates: March 3, 5, 8, 11

Site: Campus sites (higher-seeded teams host)

What to expect: Close games. The Patriot League delivered close games all season long and that trend should only continue this week. Six different teams finished within two games of each other in the final standings and nearly every other contest felt like a barnburner, including Bucknell’s narrow victory over American to [...]

Mid-Makeovers: Which O26 Units are Poised for a Turnaround?

Tommy Lemoine — Wed, 12 Nov 2014 16:31:18 +0000

With the season now only a few days away, let’s look at five teams in great position to improve considerably this year – and in some cases, even compete for a conference crown.

Detroit – Horizon League – 2013-14 record: 13-18 (6-10). After finishing eighth in the Horizon League standings in 2013-14 (out of nine teams) and graduating its top rebounder and second-leading scorer, Evan Bruinsma, Detroit was picked third in this year’s preseason poll. Why such high expectations? The simple answer is twofold: Juwan Howard Jr. is back, and a wave of talent joins him. Howard, a 6’5’’ senior who led the Titans in [...]

O26 Buzz: This Week’s Top Storylines

Nicholas Patrick — Fri, 13 Dec 2013 20:05:24 +0000

Every Friday throughout the rest of the season, the Other 26 Microsite will dig into some of the top storylines featuring those leagues from the previous week.

1. O26 Teams Make Statements Against Power Conference Teams

George Washington’s Joe McDonald and Maurice Creek turned heads with a buzzer-beating win at Maryland (washingtontimes.com)

Saturday: New Mexico cruises at home, handing Cincinnati its first loss, 63-54; Green Bay’s Greg Mays and Keifer Sykes each contribute 20+ points to defeat Virginia, 75-72 Sunday: Maurice Creek’s buzzer-beater lifts George Washington to a big win at Maryland, 77-75

Tuesday: After trailing nearly the entire game, Gonzaga surged ahead [...]

RTC Big East Microsite Week in Review

Dan Lyons — Tue, 19 Nov 2013 00:45:44 +0000

The 2013-14 college basketball season is off and running, and it was a really interesting week for the Big East conference, which saw a number of teams compete in big non-conference games. Only half of the teams in the league remain unscathed, so there may be some shuffling in our power rankings this week.

Few players in the entire nation have had the start that Doug McDemott has this season.

Week One Power Rankings

10.) DePaul (2-1), Last Week (10): The Blue Demons very nearly knocked off a Southern Miss team that many expect to be among the top squads [...]

Previewing the Patriot League’s Postseason Prospects

Brian Goodman — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 14:31:29 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Bucknell Earns A #11 Seed

Bucknell earned the Patriot League’s automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament after a 28-5 season that included three wins in the conference tournament. After weeks of projecting as a #12 or #13 seed, the Bison were treated favorably by the Selection Committee and given a #11 seed in the East Regional. The Bison will play Butler in famed Rupp Arena in Lexington. Eleven is the best [...]

Championship Previews: Patriot League Tournament

Brian Goodman — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 20:59:17 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. Follow him on Twitter (@mitchgoldich) for live updates throughout the Patriot League Tournament.

Top Storylines

Bucknell Locks Up Home Court Advantage: The Bison made history this season, becoming the first Patriot League team ever to win three consecutive outright regular season titles. Their 12-2 conference record gives them the top seed in the tournament, ensuring that all of their games will be played in Sojka Pavilion. Their success in Sojka is one of the key reasons they’ve been so great over the last few years, and is a big reason they’ll be [...]

CIO… the Patriot League

Brian Goodman — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 17:27:09 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Looking Back

Bucknell Wins Lehigh Rematch: The Bison and Mountain Hawks have spent the majority of this season tied atop the league standings, and they stayed that way when both teams lost last Saturday. While their losses may have hurt both teams’ overall resumes, they did nothing to diminish the importance of the game between two 8-2 opponents. The rematch was critically important to both teams, but more so to Bucknell because [...]

CIO… the Patriot League

Brian Goodman — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 19:04:39 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Looking Back

Lafayette Separates From The Pack: For much of the season, it’s been Lehigh and Bucknell trading places at the top of the Patriot League power rankings, with nobody else staking a firm claim to the third spot. Two weeks ago I put Lafayette in the three-hole, in what was easily the most difficult call to make. The Leopards immediately justified that ranking with a blowout win at Lehigh the [...]

CIO… the Patriot League

Brian Goodman — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 22:50:39 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Top Storylines

Lehigh Upsets Bucknell: The Lehigh Mountain Hawks traveled to Lewisburg on Wednesday and did more than just upset league favorite Bucknell. With their 65-62 win inside a rabid Sojka Pavilion, they reignited the fervor around what had previously been the most anticipated season in Patriot League history.

The Patriot League doesn’t typically receive much national media coverage. Most years, college basketball fans don’t pay attention until March rolls around and [...]

CIO…the Patriot League

Brian Goodman — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 20:01:12 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Looking Back

Lehigh Loses McCollum: Lehigh’s Pre-Season All-America guard, CJ McCollum, suffered a broken fifth metatarsal in his foot during Saturday’s nationally televised game at VCU. More than 30 NBA scouts came to watch him in person, but he went down midway through the first half. This injury is a real shame, not just for Lehigh but for the whole league. The Patriot League has received unprecedented levels of press so [...]

CIO… the Patriot League

Brian Goodman — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 17:58:26 +0000

Mitch Goldich is the RTC correspondent for the Patriot League. You can find more of his work online at The Huffington Post. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchgoldich for more updates.

Looking Back

Bucknell’s At-Large Hopes Take a Hit: Bucknell and Lehigh both entered the season with a chance to earn a trip to the NCAA Tournament with an at-large bid. To do so, each needed to be nearly flawless against the weaker foes in the non-conference schedule, and pick up a couple signature wins along the way. Lehigh’s chances looked bleak after early losses to Baylor and Pitt, but Bucknell kept [...]