College basketball

[O Really]

At least the Arkansas players got a trip to Hawaii out of it. Worse if they'd been drubbed at home. Unless your favourite players were bench-warmers, why were they still playing in the fourth quarter - especially hard enough to get injured. Hope they'll recover quickly.

[O Really]

Not following them, but I see that 6-5 North Carolina - 1 game away from .500 - lost to 7 Florida 11-0, 90-84.

Some Carolina teams have seemed to dog it a bit until March, but this looks baaaaad so far. They've always selected coaches from the "Dean Smith Tree" and hit it big with Williams - Davis not so much. Does Coach K have a "tree"?

[Vrede too]

Not following them, but I see that 6-5 North Carolina - 1 game away from .500 - lost to 7 Florida 11-0, 90-84.

Some Carolina teams have seemed to dog it a bit until March, but this looks baaaaad so far....

They're flirting with not even getting an MM bid. NIT?

[O Really]

Heels might not be dead yet. Good comeback today.

[Vrede too]

Heels might not be dead yet. Good comeback today.

Vs now #22 UCLA 76-74!
(37) , ahead of Clemson

AP Top 25

1 Tennessee (41) 11-0
2 Auburn (21) 11-1 GobillyGo
3 Iowa State 10-1. Strong program for both genders
4 Duke 10-2 up1
5 Alabama 10-2 up1
6 Florida 12-0 up1
7 Kansas 9-2 up1
8 Marquette 11-2 up1
9 Oregon 11-1 up1
10 Kentucky 10-2 down6, cool

14 Gonzaga 9-3 down1 GoO FamGo

20 San Diego State 8-2 up3 GoO ReallyGo!
21Purdue 8-4 down5 Hah!
22 UCLA 10-2 down4
23 Arkansas 10-2 down3
24 Illinois 8-3 up2 GOGoCubsGoGO

Others receiving votes:
(26) Maryland, knockin' on the door
(37) North Carolina
(38) Clemson Hah!

Dropped from rankings: ... 25 Clemson Hah!

[Vrede too]

Iowa State women's record 3-point streak ends at 945 games

For the first time in nearly 30 years, Iowa State's women's basketball team did not make a shot from beyond the arc Tuesday. It ended the Cyclones' 945-game NCAA-record streak for having at least one 3-pointer in a game.

Iowa State still beat Texas Tech 71-58 at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, but went 0 for 7 from long range. The streak dated to Feb. 19, 1995, at Colorado. That was in the Cyclones' final season under coach Theresa Becker, when Iowa State was still in the Big Eight.

Coach Bill Fennelly took over the next season and has led the program to 22 NCAA tournament appearances and three Big 12 tournament titles, the most recent in 2023. Fennelly always has championed the 3-pointer as a staple of his offense, and under his guidance the Cyclones never played a game without making at least one -- until Tuesday.

To put the streak in a women's basketball historical perspective, the last time Iowa State didn't make a 3-pointer, the WNBA didn't exist (launched in 1997), UConn had not won any of its 11 NCAA titles (the first came later in 1995) and Team USA's streak of eight consecutive Olympic gold medals had not started (began in 1996)....

x 945

[O Really]

They won by 13. It wasn't close - I disagree with the coach "not trying" even if their record maybe won't ever be broken.

[Vrede too]

They won by 13. It wasn't close - I disagree with the coach "not trying" even if their record maybe won't ever be broken.

They could have attempted a few more 3s down the stretch.


billy.pilgrim and Vrede ftw:

Auburn now unanimous No. 1; Duke moves to No. 2

1. Auburn 17-1
2. Duke 16-2
3. Iowa St. 15-2
4. Alabama 15-3
5. Florida 16-2
6. Tennessee 16-2
7. Houston 14-3
8. Michigan St. 16-2
9. Kentucky 14-4
10. Marquette 15-3

15. Oregon 15-3

17. Illinois 13-5 GOGoCubsGoGO


UNC (no votes) and 6 Tennessee in the news, but not in a good way:

Siblings Jaylen and Mikayla Blakes score game winners 24 hours apart

Hitting a winning shot in basketball is a special experience. But hitting one 24 hours after your sibling achieved the same feat? That's where special meets improbable.

On Saturday, Stanford senior guard Jaylen Blakes scored 20 points and the winning basket with less than a second remaining in a key ACC road win against North Carolina.

Stanford also has no votes.

On Sunday, one state over in Nashville, Tennessee, Jaylen's younger sister, Mikayla Blakes, repeated the feat for Vanderbilt.

17 Tennessee, (29) Vanderbilt

Mikayla Blakes' Commodores trailed in-state rival Tennessee by one point and had a chance to win the game on their last possession. She grabbed an offensive rebound after a missed layup, and her putback moved the Commodores ahead by one with 0.4 seconds remaining.

After the game, their father was unsurprisingly fired up.

Jaylen is hoping for an O Really college sweep:

Jaylen will be back in action Wednesday, when Stanford takes on Miami. Mikayla will return to the court Thursday, when Vanderbilt hosts Arkansas.

Also no votes for Miami or Arkansas.

[Vrede too]

Men's College Basketball Rankings
AP Top 25

1 Auburn (62) 18-1 Gobilly's ghostGo
2 Duke 17-2
3 Iowa State 17-2
4 Alabama 17-3
5 Florida 18-2
6 Houston 16-3 up1
7 Michigan State 17-2 up1
8 Tennessee 17-3 down2
9 Marquette 17-3 up1
10 Purdue 16-5 up1

16 Oregon 16-4 down1
17 Wisconsin 16-4 up1
18 Illinois 14-6 down1 GOGoCubsGoGO

Others receiving votes: (27) Maryland 116 votes, huge jump from 1 vote the week before

0 votes: Miami, Montana , Northwestern, UCSD, UNC


Women's College Basketball Rankings
AP Top 25

1 UCLA (31) 20-0!
2 South Carolina (1) 19-1
3 Notre Dame 17-2
4 USC 18-1
5 Texas 20-2 up2
6 UConn 19-2
7 LSU 21-1 down2
8 Ohio State 19-1 up4
9 TCU 20-2
10 Duke 17-4 up4

14 Maryland 16-4 down6
15 North Carolina 18-4 down2

19 California 18-3 up3
20 Georgia Tech 17-4 down2

0 votes: Miami, Montana , Northwestern, UCSD

[O Really]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

[Jasmine]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

Do you think Hubert Davis is cutting it as a head coach?

[O Really]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

Do you think Hubert Davis is cutting it as a head coach?

That would be "no"

[Jasmine]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

Do you think Hubert Davis is cutting it as a head coach?

That would be "no"

I think a big problem is that the UNC coaching job comes with such huge expectations. Dean Smith and Roy Williams were such legends, and their replacements simply never could live up to those standards. Maybe it’s time the program look for a young coach who isn’t necessarily a part of the Tar Heel family tree?

[Vrede too]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

Duke, NC State and Bowl-losing 6-7 UNC football is "big time"?
https://www.espn.com/college-football/t ... eason/2024

UNC cagers did beat @Hawaii by 18, though.

Losing to WF by a point has gotta hurt, too. Then, there's being swept by the state of Alabama, ugh.
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-baske ... e/_/id/153

[O Really]

I don't care what a down season Heels are having or how high Dook is ranked, losing by 17 to Dook is unacceptable and should end their miserable season. Go hang out with the football team and pretend to be a big time team.

Duke, NC State and Bowl-losing 6-7 UNC football is "big time"?

Did you miss the word "pretend"? The football team has been pretending for years.

[O Really]

I think a big problem is that the UNC coaching job comes with such huge expectations. Dean Smith and Roy Williams were such legends, and their replacements simply never could live up to those standards. Maybe it’s time the program look for a young coach who isn’t necessarily a part of the Tar Heel family tree?

Ol' Dean's tree may have run out, but the tradition and expectations are still there. UNC basketball is arguably one of the perennial best programs (along with the other usual suspects) in the country and could probably hire anybody they want. I don't think they should turn over the reins to an unknown no matter how talented. Don't hire somebody from some Liberty-type place just because they had a good record there. Find somebody with a proven winning record at the highest levels, and preferably recently in the shuffle-portal era.