Big 12 Conference Tournament Preview

By Rob DausterMar 12, 2013, 11:00 AM EDT

This was supposed to be the year where someone could come out of nowhere and knock the Jayhawks off of their pedestal, but that didn’t happen. In fact, if Kansas hadn’t been blown out by Baylor on the last day of the regular season, the Jayhawks would have been the outright Big 12 champs despite losing three games in a row earlier this year.

But the Jayhawks did get blown out by Baylor. And they did lose three games in a row earlier this year, which is why this year’s Big 12 tournament — much like college hoops as a whole — should be as fun and exciting as any tournament in recent memory.

There is no dominant team. There is no team without flaws. And frankly, if TCU can beat Kansas soundly, if Baylor can blow Kansas out when the Jayhawks have an outright regular season title on the line, than anything can happen.

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The Bracket

Where: Kansas City, MO (Sprint Center)

When: March 13 – March 16

Final: March 16, 6 p.m. (ESPN)

Favorite: Kansas

Until someone knocks Kansas down a peg or two, they will forever be the favorite to win any and every title in the Big 12 while Bill Self in their head coach. The Jayhawks have won at least a share of the last nine Big 12 regular season titles, including this season. If they win the Big 12 tournament title this week, it will be the sixth time in the last eight seasons that they have done so. As you can tell, the Jayhawks are owned the Big 12.

Things may actually be a bit more open this season than usual, as the Jayhawks are as good as anyone in the country but they have some exploitable flaws. Jeff Withey’s defense can be nullified with a jump-shooting big man. Elijah Johnson and Naadir Tharpe can be flustered with oppressive on-ball defense. Ben McLemore can struggle when he’s forced to be nothing but a jumpshooter. And despite all of those issues, the Jayhawks are still 26-2 outside of that three-game losing streak where they lost all sense of confidence. Pretty impressive.

And if they lose?: Kansas State

The Wildcats are an intriguing team this season. They still have that toughness and that defense mindset that was ingrained in their heads when Frank Martin was their head coach, but with Bruce Weber running the show, the Wildcat offense has been better. It helps that Angel Rodriguez has blossomed into one of the more underrated playmakers in the Big 12, and Rodney McGruder is still one of the best players in the conference. If Kansas State can avoid getting beaten on the offensive glass and get consistent perimeter shooting out of McGruder and Rodriguez, they’ll have a chance to make a run.

Other contenders: Oklahoma State is probably the most talented team outside of the state of Kansas in the Big 12 this season, as the trio of Marcus Smart, Markel Brown and LeBryan Nash have become one of the most dangerous three-headed monsters in the country. Oklahoma should have a chance to win this thing as well. The Sooners are a tough team to matchup with given the versatility of their bigs, Amath M’Baye and Romero Osby. Plus, Buddy Hield is back. If only the Sooners can erase the pain of an embarrassing loss to TCU out of their minds.

Sleeper: Iowa State

The Cyclones are a very dangerous basketball team thanks to their ability to spread the floor and shoot the ball. Fred Hoiberg’s club is never going to be much defensively and they are going to struggle on the nights their threes aren’t going down, but when they’re hot, they will be able to play with anyone in the country. They are also entertaining to watch, as they push the ball and have athletes up and down their roster.

Deeper sleeper: Baylor

The Bears have the talent to be a top 15 team. That’s inarguable. Pierre Jackson, Isaiah Austin, Cory Jefferson. Their performance this season was disappointing, but that’s what makes them a threat to win this tournament. Look at what happened on Saturday: Baylor beat the Jayhawks by 23 after losing eight of their last 11 games. What happens if the Bears actually try hard this week?

Studs:

– Ben McLemore, Kansas: He could end up being the first pick in the draft, and he’s got a gorgeous jumpshot complimented by the athletic ability to dunk on anyone. Fun player to watch.

– Pierre Jackson, Baylor: Jackson can get out of control at times, but when he’s playing well, the 5-foot-9 Jackson is dominant. He’s as quick as anyone in the country, he can soar, and he’s an excellent playmaker off the dribble.

– Tyrus McGee, Iowa State: ISU’s sixth-man, when he gets in a rhythm, everything he throws up goes in.

CBT Prediction: Like I said, I’m rolling with Kansas until proven otherwise.

You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.

George Mason Final Four star Tony Skinn hired as hoops coach

Associated PressMar 31, 2023, 11:01 AM EDT

Doral Chenoweth/Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK

FAIRFAX, Va. – Tony Skinn, who helped lead 11th-seeded George Mason to the Final Four during March Madness as a player in 2006, was hired Thursday to coach men’s basketball at the school.

Skinn replaces Kim English, who left George Mason for Providence after Ed Cooley departed Providence for Georgetown.

“Tony Skinn is the right man for this moment in Mason’s basketball program,” university President Gregory Washington said in the news release announcing the hiring. “His coaching style will galvanize our student-athletes and his connection to our finest hour on the court is sure to electrify our alumni and fans.”

Skinn was a starting guard for the Patriots 17 years ago when they picked up a series of surprising wins – including against UConn in the regional final in Washington, about 20 miles from campus – to make the semifinals at the NCAA Tournament.

George Mason’s coach at the time, Jim Larrañaga, is now at Miami and has the Hurricanes in this year’s Final Four.

Skinn was most recently an assistant coach at Maryland. He also has worked at Ohio State, Seton Hall and Louisiana Tech.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to step back on campus,” Skinn said. “I’ve had some of my greatest memories here and I’m looking forward to making new ones with our fans and our community.”

Gonzaga’s Timme among five finalists for men’s Wooden Award

Associated PressMar 31, 2023, 12:07 AM EDT

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

LOS ANGELES – Drew Timme of Gonzaga is one of five finalists for the John R. Wooden Award as the men’s college basketball player of the year.

He’s joined by Zach Edey of Purdue, Trayce Jackson-Davis of Indiana, Houston’s Marcus Sasser and Jalen Wilson of Kansas.

Timme took his team farthest in the upset-riddled NCAA Tournament with Gonzaga losing in the Elite Eight. Sasser helped Houston reach the Sweet 16. Purdue lost in the first round, while Indiana and Kansas were beaten in the second round.

The winner will be announced April 4 on ESPN. All five players have been invited to Los Angeles for the 47th annual presentation on April 7.

Also among the top 10 vote getters were: Jaime Jaquez Jr. of UCLA, Brandon Miller of Alabama, Penn State’s Jalen Pickett, Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky and Arizona’s Azuolas Tubelis.

Voting took place from March 13-20.

South Carolina’s Dawn Staley will receive the Legends of Coaching Award during the ceremony at the Los Angeles Athletic Club.

Indiana’s Teri Moren wins AP Coach of the Year

Associated PressMar 31, 2023, 12:05 AM EDT

Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

DALLAS – Teri Moren has led Indiana to some unprecedented heights this season.

The team won its first Big Ten regular season championship in 40 years, rose to No. 2 in The Associated Press women’s basketball poll and earned the school’s first No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Moren was honored Thursday as the AP women’s basketball Coach of the Year, the first time she has won the award. She received 12 votes from the 28-member national media panel that votes on the AP Top 25 each week. South Carolina’s Dawn Staley was second with eight votes. Utah’s Lynne Roberts received five and Virginia Tech’s Kenny Brooks three.

Voting was done before the NCAA Tournament.

“I think a lot of people were like this is going to be a year where Indiana is reloading, rebuilding, they won’t be as good as they had been the year prior. We were picked third in the Big Ten,” Moren said.

Moren was surprised by her team, who told her she won in an elaborate ruse.

“Anytime you can share it with people that made it happen. the staff, the players, the most important people who have been instrumental in the season and this award is special. I was speechless.”

Moren accepted the award at the Final Four, sharing the stage with AP Player of the Year Caitlin Clark to complete a Big Ten sweep.

The team has come a long way from when Moren was a young girl growing up in southern Indiana. She was a diehard fan of the Indiana basketball team. The men’s one that is.

She would attend men’s games with her family when she was a kid and was a big fan of coach Bob Knight. She has a constant reminder of the Hall of Fame coach in her office as a picture of his infamous chair-throwing incident hangs by the door. Moren said it’s the last thing she sees before heading to practice.

As far as the women’s team, they just weren’t very good. Times have changed, as Moren has built the program into a blue-collar team that focuses on defense and is a consistent Top 25 team the last few seasons, appearing in the poll for 75 consecutive weeks starting with the preseason one in 2019-2020. That’s the fourth-longest active streak.

Before that, the Hoosiers had been ranked for a total of six times.

“People still talk to me about living in Bloomington and they couldn’t afford a ticket to the men’s game. Not that they settled, but became women’s basketball fans. At that moment, you could walk in and find any seat you wanted and watch women’s basketball,” Moren said.

“There were 300-400 people in the stands, now to what it is today, it’s an unbelievable thing to watch it grow. Things you dream about to see fans and bodies up in the rafters.”

The Hoosiers had six of the school’s top 10 most attended games this season, including crowds of over 13,000 fans for the first round of the NCAA Tournament and 14,000 for the second round game – a shocking loss to Miami.

“It stings right now, but that last game doesn’t define our season,” Moren said.

AP source: Alabama’s Brandon Miller declares for NBA draft

Associated PressMar 31, 2023, 12:01 AM EDT

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Alabama All-American forward Brandon Miller is heading to the NBA after displaying versatile talent and athleticism in a lone season of college ball that was blemished by revelations he was present at a fatal shooting in January near campus.

ESPN first reported on Miller’s decision, and a person with knowledge of the situation confirmed the report to The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because Miller hadn’t yet made an official declaration for the draft.

The 6-foot-9, 200-pound freshman, who was one of the nation’s top high school recruits, is projected as a potential top 5 draft pick.

Miller displayed his accurate 3-point shooting and athleticism in the most productive season of any freshman in Alabama history. He led the Tide to their first No. 1 ranking in 20 years and first No. 1 NCAA Tournament seed.

Miller averaged 18.8 points and 8.2 rebounds while hitting 38% from 3-point range. But he was scoreless in his first March Madness game, and went 3 of 19 and scored just nine points in a Sweet 16 loss to San Diego State.

Miller was described as a cooperating witness after the Jan. 15 shooting and was never charged with a crime.

But he and the Tide were dogged by off-court questions for the final two months of the season. Former Alabama player Darius Miles and another man were charged with capital murder in the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Jamea Harris, who was killed in early on Jan. 15.

Miller and fellow freshman Jaden Bradley were placed at the scene as well. According to police testimony, Miller brought Miles his gun. Miller’s attorney said the Tide forward was on his way to pick Miles up when Miles texted asking him to bring the weapon, but that Miller never handled the gun and didn’t know any criminal activity was intended.

Miller received threats after the news came out, and was accompanied by a university-provided security guard. “It doesn’t bother me,” Miller said of the threats at the NCAA regional in Birmingham, Alabama, “I send it to the right people and they handle it.”

Alabama finished the season 31-6 and won the Southeastern Conference regular-season and tournament titles.

Iowa’s Caitlin Clark wins AP Player of the Year

Associated PressMar 30, 2023, 3:02 PM EDT

Kirby Lee/USA TODAY Sports

DALLAS — Caitlin Clark has put together one of the greatest individual seasons in NCAA history with eye-popping offensive numbers.

Iowa’s junior guard, though, saved her best performance for the game’s biggest stage, recording the first 40-point triple-double in NCAA history to get Iowa to the Final Four for the first time in 30 years.

Clark was honored Thursday as The Associated Press women’s basketball Player of the Year. She received 20 votes from the 28-member national media panel that votes on the AP Top 25 each week. Voting was done before March Madness began.

“It’s a huge honor,” Clark said. “I picked a place that I perfectly fit into and that’s allowed me to show my skill set. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t mean something. It’s not the reason you play basketball, it’s just something that comes along with getting to do what you love.”

The Iowa coaching staff surprised Clark by sharing that she won the award while they were visiting the Iowa Children’s Hospital – a place near and dear to her. It also has huge ties to the Hawkeyes athletic department.

They put together a video of some of the children in the hospital congratulating Clark on an outstanding season, and in the middle of it, Iowa coach Lisa Bluder popped on the screen to tell her she won.

“I’m there for inspiring the next generation and being there for the people that you know are going through a hard time,” said Clark, who grew up in Iowa. “Being able to give joy to people that watch you play and watch your team play is amazing.”

She averaged 27.0 points, 8.3 assists and 7.5 rebounds during the season to help Iowa go 26-6. Clark has 984 points, the sixth-most in a season by any player in Division I women’s history. She also has over 300 assists.

“She is spectacular. I don’t know how else to describe what she does on the basketball court,” Bluder said.

Next up for the Hawkeyes is undefeated South Carolina in the national semifinals. The Gamecocks are led by Aliyah Boston, last season’s winner of the award. She garnered the other eight votes this season.

“There’s so many great players, more than just me and (Aliyah),” Clark told the AP. “You can go on and on and list the tremendous players. I think that’s really good for our game when there’s a lot of great players. That’s what is going to help this game grow more than anything else.”

Whether it’s hitting deep 3s from the Hawkeye logo at home games, hitting off-balance game-winning shots or throwing pinpoint passes to teammates for easy baskets, Clark has excelled on the court this year to get Iowa to a place it hasn’t been in a long time.

“It’s funny, because the better the opponent, almost the better she plays,” Bluder said. “It’s like she locks in on those, when we’re playing against Top 25 teams. That’s when her statistics even go up even more, against great opponents.”

Clark is the second Iowa player to win the AP award in the past few seasons, joining Megan Gustafson who won it in 2019.