1. 1 year ago 

   The Offseason Hoops Project

   While I’ve moved the basketball blog posts to BleacherReport, I have a special plan for this site here on tumblr. I have recently come across a girl, let’s call her Lisa, that doesn’t know a single thing about basketball. I mean nothing. Well wanting to spread the good news that is college hoops, I have decided to spend the next several months leading up to the 2010-2011 basketball season teaching Lisa about basketball. 

   This is going to be a lot of trial and a whole lot of error, but I’m going to chronicle this expedition and see how it goes. I have enlisted the help of a friend who is going to help me design the course curriculum, and if this turns out well we’re going to co-write the book version. 

   So far we’ve decided to set it up in 3 sections:

   Part 1: An Intro to Basketball

   - A brief history of the game itself

   - Historic teams, coaches, and locations that everyone needs to know

   - Trends in the games, and basic empirical things you should be watching for to impress your friends. (Example: “No way Steve, A&M is never going to win shooting less than 30% from 3.)

   Part 2: Talkin’ Hoops

   - An intro to trash talk, and what sort of trash talking separates the elite from the commoners

   - How to properly criticize officials (hint: no footlocker or buffalo wild wings references)

   - College basketball people, teams, and historic players that you have to have an opinion on (and what your options of those opinions are)

   - A usable guide for things you can and can not say when attending a live basketball game. 

   Part 3: Advanced Basketball; Parts of the game you should have an opinion on

   - Zone defense: how to identify it’s various types and how to decide if you like it or hate it. (another hint: if your team runs it, you should like it.)

   - Various Offenses: Special attention payed to motions, “dribble drives,” and isos

   - Basic Strategy: When to foul (or not), what shots you should shoot when, and why you can always blame everything on free throws. 

   So there’s our basic outline for the course. We’ll roll out more details as we get started. Be on the lookout for Lesson 1 - Peachbaskets. 

2. Notes: 13 / 1 year ago 

   The Lone Star Hate

   It breeds NBA stars, boasts some of the nations best high school basketball, and as of right now Joe Lunardi is predicting 6 teams from within its borders to the NCAA Tournament. What is this roundball crazy locale? North Carolina? Kentucky?

   Try Texas.

   While Texas basketball isn’t a secret nationwide, it remains widely unappreciated even within its own borders. But not this week. On Wednesday, Texas plays host to one of the Big 12’s most consistently entertaining series in Oklahoma State vs Texas, and Saturday on ESPN the entire nation will get to see Texas’ oldest rivalry as the Aggies and Longhorns square off for the 217th time. But the “Lone Star Showdown” has been a bore fest the last six years with a few exceptions. The real rivalry to watch in the state of Texas is the one that takes place tomorrow in Waco. Grab your beverage of choice and be in front of your TV tuned into ESPNU at 8:00 tomorrow and get ready, you’re about to witness one of the nations fastest growing rivalry games.

   The 201st Battle of the Brazos

   The schools are separated by about an hours drive, but just six or seven years ago this rivalry was to basketball what Duke/Wake Forest was to football,and the only conference wins these two schools could hope for were against each other. But not anymore. In 2010, they’re both ranked, they’re both on their way to the NCAA Tournament, and, best of all, they both HATE each other.

   A&M and Baylor have always had a semi-rivalry just because of their close proximity, but it was a rivalry in the same way that you have a rivalry with your neighbors about who’s yard looks better. Not really that important, and not really that hostile. But this neighborly spat started to turn south in the spring of 2007.

   The genesis of the modern era of hate was probably a perceived “cheap shot” by Bear center Josh Lomers to Aggie forward Marlon Pompey at a 2007 game in college station. But that was merely the first spark on the fire. The rivalry took an epic turn in January 2008 with Baylor winning a 5 overtime game in College Station. Then this thing hit full on hate inferno in Waco in March, 2008. With both teams fighting for their NCAA tournament lives and desperate for a win, the refs let the game get to far too physical. Fans, coaches, and players were already pissed off at each other and the officials, and then this happened. Bottles were hurled from the stands, Aggie coaches and  Baylor players were about to get into it, while the crowd was as close to a riot as Baylor fans have ever been. But it wasn’t over… Aggie guard Donald Sloan took it upon himself to put an exclamation point on this game with a dunk that A&M fans know as “The Baptism” and that Baylor fans barely speak about.

   Game 1 this season was no disappointment as the two teams battled in front of a sold out crowd at Reed Arena. That game ended up 78-71 in favor of the Aggies, prompting the Reed Rowdies to remind Baylor of the Sloan dunk with a giant sign hung from the student section. Tomorrow the Bear Pit has their turn, and if this game is anything like the last few, you won’t want to miss it.

3. 1 year ago 

   Are you watching closely?

   I’m finally starting to get settled into my new city and my new job, so I’m back into the blogosphere. Over the last three weeks we’ve seen the rise of the Aggies and the dominance of the Jayhawks. We’ve seen the Big East (or to the casual Big 12 fan, “The other good conference”) become a bubblicious battle involving somewhere around 23 teams at last count. And we’ve seen the Big Ten continue to show their combined genius by orchestrating a beautifully elaborate series of upsets in an effort to get as many teams in as possible. (expect Minnesota to win out.) However the best story of college hoops of the last few weeks is one I haven’t mentioned yet, and it’s the focus of this week’s blog:

   In “The Prestige” Christopher Nolan taught us the parts to a great magic trick. It starts with the pledge, showing the audience something normal, something everyday, something… familiar. Then comes the turn, in which the object becomes supernatural. It does something unfamiliar. The audience is unsure if they believe what they are seeing, and in some cases, we’re not really sure we want to…

   We were all there for the pledge, and of course it was ordinary. The Texas Longhorns were dunking, defending, and destroying everything in their path. We’ve seen it before. Texas is one of the great programs in college basketball. The team was so deep that at times it looked like you could form another top ten team out of their bench. We were told that they were the best in the country, and we believed it.

   Then came the turn. Texas fell at Kansas State. The once unbeatable juggernaut had been cut. But hey, this is basketball, everyone loses. A few days later the ‘Horns came out firing and led Uconn by 8 at the half, and all seemed right in the world again. But then it happened. Where once stood an unstoppable offensive giant we saw an awkward and confused half court turnover machine. Uconn blitzed Texas in the second half and went on to win by 14. Texas was able to rebound at home against Texas Tech, but they followed up that win with a loss that two weeks prior would have been completely inconceivable. A loss, at home, to Baylor. Texas was then fortunate enough to get one of the most inconsistent teams in the country in Oklahoma State, and was able to pull out a win. But again, they followed up that win with a loss against one of the conferences worst teams at Oklahoma. And so they went into Big Monday, a game that just a few short weeks ago was billed as maybe the biggest game in Big 12 history, no longer the nation’s best, no longer the conference’s best, and maybe not even the state’s best. And that’s what we’re not used to seeing. We’re not accustomed to seeing Texas struggle. And struggle is exactly what we saw. They looked disorganized. They looked apathetic. They looked… well… terrible.

   But here’s where the magic really happens. In the film we learn that the third and final part of a magic trick is the most important. “The prestige” is where the magician makes sense of all. We’re brought back full circle to where we started, and left unsure of what we have just gone through. This is the challenge Rick Barnes is facing, and this is where one of the best stories of the closing weeks will take place.

   Depth was once considered a strength of the Longhorns, but now appears a weakness. They don’t have a “go to” lineup. Half the team likes to run, but doing so leaves one of their biggest offensive weapons, Dexter Pittman, gasping for air and unable to play many minutes. Slowing down in the half court exposes their lack of a point guard. Rick Barnes is stuck between a point guard that can’t score in Dogus Balbay, and one that can’t pass in J’Covan Brown. The only consistent thing Texas has going for them is Damion James, who did his best to keep the Longhorns from getting completely blown out Monday night. Avery Bradley has seemingly hit a wall and Jordan Hamilton has forgotten how to do anything besides shoot threes. To bring the audience back in, Texas is going to need to change their approach. They need to play fewer players for more minutes, and they can’t rely as much on Damion James. I have a feeling that as bad as Texas looks right now, we’re going to hear from them again before the 3rd weekend in March rolls around. If there was a time to start the ascension back to the top, it’s tomorrow. The ‘Horns play Nebraska before heading on the road for huge challenges in Missouri and Texas Tech.

   Texas has two paths. They can accept their fall into mediocrity and limp their way into the NCAA tournament and an early exit, or they can get back up and make a run to close the season. They can decide to take the problems they’ve faced and be better for it. Whichever way they decide to go, we’ll all be watching.

   “Don’t Blow It” Watch - I’m looking at you Texas A&M. If the Aggies can win tomorrow in Lubbock it will set up a huge battle for Monday night in College Station when the #1 Jayhawks come to town.

4. 2 years ago 

   Big 12 Weekend #2 - Miz!! z-OU!!

   So the “Scott Drew doesn’t know what the hell he’s doing between the whistles” argument has a new feather in it’s cap. The Bears managed to lose to Colorado on Tuesday. I say “managed” because losing to Colorado is a feat that takes a lot of effort. In fact, in doing so, Baylor joined an elite group of Iowa State, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, and Oklahoma as the only teams to lose to Colorado in the last FOUR YEARS of Big 12 play. So hats off to the Bears.

   Yes, yes, I know the Aggies got obliterated in Manhattan. But what else is new. Of the last five times that A&M has gone to K-State, the game has only been close once, and the Aggies have never (in the history of history) won at Kansas State.

   The other big talk of the week was the Big 12 record of 112-1 at home going into Wednesday’s games. Of course, the record now stands at 112-4 as Texas, Kansas, and Missouri all won. However, Nebraska and Iowa State played better than anyone could have predicted, and Tech took Missouri to overtime before falling. So there’s your week one rundown. So where do we stand now?

   Who won this week?

   Missouri was the clear winner this week. A Big 12 North team winning at a South team is going to be a rare occurrence this season, and Mizzou just did it. Coming off of their huge win in Manhattan on Saturday, the Tigers have put themselves in great position in the Big 12.

   Who lost this week?

   This answer is also simple. Baylor’s loss to Colorado is a potentially crippling loss. In a NCAA bid fight that might include as many as 7 teams, Baylor just put themselves behind the 8 ball. When looking at conference records of Mizzou, A&M, Oklahoma State, and Kansas State you might as well put Baylor at a game behind because of this loss. They’re going to have to pick up an unexpected win now.

   __________________________________________________________

   What are we watching in weekend #2?

   This weekends game feature a few bore-fests, but there are a couple of decent games

   Oklahoma State at Baylor - 3:00 - Big 12 Network

   So it’s hard to call a 3rd conference game a must-win, but that’s what this might be for Baylor. With their loss to Colorado, the Bears can’t afford to drop a home game against another wolfpack team. (If you haven’t caught on yet, the wolfpack are the teams that are fighting for NCAA tournament bids.) Also, this game should be really fun to watch. These two teams like to play uptempo, and neither one of them is gun shy from deep. In close games I always go with the team with the best player, and in this case, that’s Ekpe Udoh. I’m gonna give the Bears the advantage tomorrow.

   UPSET ALERT - Missouri at Oklahoma - 12:00 - ESPN2

   That’s right, I said it. Why? I don’t know. Have you ever just felt an upset? Well I’m feeling this one. I can’t explain it, I know OU sucks and without James Anderson getting hurt they’d have gotten rolled on Monday. They also got absolutely killed last week in Waco. But I don’t care, I’m feeling it, so I’m picking it.

   Anything Else?

   Kansas is going to roll Texas Tech and put the Raiders at 0-3, and the Longhorns shouldn’t have much trouble with the Aggies. Colorado goes for two in a row against the Wildcats, which will fail big time, and let’s be honest, will anybody be watching the Iowa State ~ Nebraska game?

5. 2 years ago 

   Big 12 Gameday #1 - 3 games to watch

   Alright people, we’re finally here! Your football first friends are still crying over getting screwed out of a “legit national title game” because Colt McCoy got hurt. (Which is pretty stupid in the first place since three undefeated teams had no chance to win it… whatever, the set up of college football makes me sad. Sorry, back on topic.) So the football crowd is in their post-season grief stages which starts with catching up on what has happened in the NFL, but what then? Where do they turn when they’re sitting at home on a Monday night and the Big Bang Theory is over? You got it. You know they’re coming so get prepared. (I can’t wait to get my first round of text messages proclaiming Baylor crushing Oklahoma an upset.) But not you my friends.You’ve been here all season, and you are the people that this is written for. You already know that Texas and Kansas have been putting on a show for three months, and you’ve seen Texas Tech rise and fall in the rankings already. So here’s what you, my basketball friends, need to watch for on Big 12 gameday #1.

   It’s all about the Tigers

   Kansas State at Missouri - 1:00 Big 12 Time (central) - ESPN2
   

   Without looking, where do you think Kansas State is ranked? Top 25? Top 20? WRONG. The Wildcats find themselves NUMBER TEN this week in the coaches poll. Yeah, I didn’t realize it either. But todays game isn’t really about Kansas State. Because of the ridiculously stupid way the Big 12 scheduling works, the Wildcats should cruise to at least ten wins without even trying so they aren’t really a story yet (if they knock of Kansas then they might be.) Today’s game is more about Missouri. Are the Tigers good enough to be considered part of the Big 12 wolfpack? If they have NCAA aspirations, the Tigers need today’s game in the worst way to start conference play. Missouri is probably going to get 9 wins in conference play, but being in the “north” division, quality wins are going to be hard to come by. It’s also going to be hard for Mike Anderson to make a case for them to get in when they’re biggest non-con win is over Illinois and they have losses to Richmond, Oral Roberts, and Vandy.

   __________________________________________________
   

   Expect a beatdown, and convince your friends it isn’t a big deal

   Oklahoma at Baylor - 5:00 B12T - ESPN360

   Not too much to say here, but this is only a big game because when people hear the name “Oklahoma” they think of Blake Griffin and Willie Warren putting on a show. What they probably don’t think of is this years craptacular version of the Sooners that got absolutely embarrassed on national TV by UTEP (who is good, but still.) Meanwhile Drew’s Bears have been slowly sneaking toward the top 25. And hell, why not, Butler is still ranked somehow. Baylor has been living on the zone defense, and OU has some shooters. Baylor hasn’t played a real tough schedule, and OU will come in desperate for this win. Put that together and you have the recipe for… ha, you thought I was actually going to say that OU might win this. Actually, to be fair, none of us would be that shocked if OU does win only because Baylor has an amazing ability to do awesomely horrible things. If the Sooners do win, it will be because Baylor sucked it up.

   _________________________________________________________

   Big 12 Game of the Week - Guns up and pistols firing!

   Texas Tech at Oklahoma State - 7:00 B12T - ESPN360

   If you’ve been watching basketball all year, you’ve already witnessed the meteoric rise and near disastrous fall (beating McNeese by 1? really?) of Texas Tech. Pat Knight will take the Red Raiders on the road to start conference play to face off against the Big 12’s biggest mystery, Oklahoma State. The last time we saw the Cowboys, they lost to Rhode Island. They also got obliterated by Tulsa earlier this season, so you could write off the Cowboys but their ability to shoot the 3 is going to keep them in games they shouldn’t be in. They also have the experience of being in the Big 12 wolfpack, which Tech doesn’t have. (more important as the season goes along than it is today though.) This game is going to be absolutely crucial if either of these teams are going to push A&M, Kansas State, Baylor, and potentially Missouri for an NCAA bid.

   Elsewhere in the Big 12

   If you get a chance, check out the Rolandless Aggies take on Nebraska. I called OSU the conference’s biggest mystery team, but in reality it might be Texas A&M. They’ve played two high school JV’s since Derrick Roland went down so this game could be interesting.

   The 5th and final conference game today (Iowa State is out of conference today and Kansas takes on Bruce Pearls pistol team tomorrow on CBS) is Colorado at Texas. Poor poor Colorado…

6. Notes: 1 / 2 years ago 
7. 2 years ago 

   Horns and Hawks Roll, Raiders Fall

   In a weekend that had several college basketball story lines, here’s what you need to know moving forward:

   The Texas Longhorns are very, very good.

   I’m not sure what was the most interesting part of this game, but let’s start with the stadium. I’m not sure how, but they managed to turn that 800 billion square foot gigantodome into a decent looking basketball setup. Sure some of the seats are about 1.7 miles from the court, but it looked like you still had a decent view of the action, and even if you didn’t you could look up at the worlds largest HD TV and see what you missed.Also, by having field level suites in the football set up, it allowed them to have a decent angle to the bottom level of seats as opposed to the usual “first 20 rows on the same level” setup we usually see in football stadiums.

   How about North Carolina’s defense? I mean, what a disaster. Allowing 103 points is really really hard to do in college hoops. The Tarheels were also outrebounded 60-41 and Dexter Pittman (side note: the weight loss thing has really gotten to a ridiculous level, seriously we get it, he used to be fat) absolutely abused everyone around him in this game.

   Texas looked every part of their #2 ranking, and let’s be honest, North Carolina was lucky that this wasn’t a complete blowout. Avery Bradley and J’Covan Brown were extremely impressive alongside the veterans in Pittman and James. Kansas looked good in their win over Michigan (really good) but if I had a vote in the top 25, I’d have a hard time not putting Texas at #1 after watching them dominate on the big stage Saturday.

   The Xavier vs Butler officials were out of their minds… but they were right.

   In what has to be one of the bravest calls of all time, the officials in the Butler - Xavier matchup had to make a ruling that could have resulted in either a riot, a coach on official homicide, or some combination of the two. The ruling they made was absolutely insane. They pulled out a stopwatch and figured that had the clock guy not messed up, that the shot would have gotten off with .4 seconds left and that the clock would have hit all zeroes as the ball fell through the hoop and Xavier wouldn’t have gotten the chance to call a timeout. So they pulled the coaches together, and announced that the game was over. No really, that’s what they decided. Right there in front of the Xavier coach, they told him that if the Butler timekeeper wouldn’t have messed up, they would have ran out of time and they ENDED THE GAME without giving Xavier a chance to shoot the ball. This decision was crazy, unheard of, and absolutely and 100% correct. (video posted above)

   The Coaches Poll is an absolute joke

   So this is the Big 12 Hoops Blog, and I focus and try to defend our 12 schools because I don’t think that the conference ever gets the credit it deserves outside of the Longhorns and Jayhawks. However, we all knew Tech wasn’t the 16th best team in the country. To prove it, they decided to go ahead and lose at Wichita State. So what do the coaches do? They drop Tech completely out of the top 25, which is completely deserved. However, sitting just 5 points above Texas Tech, and outside of the top 25, is Texas A&M. A team who’s two losses are by single digits to #6 West Virginia and #12 New Mexico.

   For those of you not paying attention, which at this point seems to be most of the people that vote in this poll, let’s recap what has happened this season. #22 Georgia Tech has two losses, one to Dayton and one (at home) to Florida State. Their best win is probably over Siena. #24 Gonzaga has a couple impressive wins, including Cincinnati and Wisconsin, but has three losses including a 35 point neutral court MURDER this weekend at the hands of Duke. Then there’s #23 Clemson. Now you see these little “#’s” by each team that I’ve been using? This means that people have (supposedly) watched these teams play and typed out that they are the Xth best team in the country. Including #23 Clemson. Clemson has two losses this season which includes one to an unranked Illinois team at home. Their best win is over #16 (which is another story altogether) Butler. But here’s the real kicker here. In that same tournament that they beat Butler, THEY LOST TO TEXAS A&M. The same Texas A&M that has also defeated Minnesota, and who’s only defeats (as previously mentioned) are against top 15 teams. Okay, rant over, the Aggies will get their chance tomorrow in a road game at #19 Washington.

8. 2 years ago 

   Big 12 / Mountain West Saturday Showdown

   Well, as expected, the Big 12/Pac 10 hardwood series has been about as entertaining as watching “Gone with the Wind” with your grandparents, and currently sits at a lopsided 8-2 in favor of the Big 12. However, there is a series of games this weekend that could give a much better indication of where the Big 12 stands. So, while this is not an official “showdown” series, I give you the breakdown for…

   The Big 12/Mountain West Three Game Throwdown

   
   Don’t hate, the Mountain West has several legit teams, and would probably obliterate the Pac 10 in a full conference showdown. In fact, one of the worst in the MWC beat one of the worst in the Big 12 (Colorado State over Colorado) just last night.

   Game #1 - Oklahoma at Utah - 3:00 PM

   Both of these teams have had up and down seasons thus far. OU might as well have stayed on the plane instead of going to the Great Alaska Shootout, and Utah followed up a mild upset of Illinois by getting obliterated at the hands of Oklahoma State. Following their three game losing streak, the Sooners have played much better as of late. They have won their last four games by at least 14 points, but one of them was against one of the worst teams in Division 1 (Nichols St) and the other three came at home. While Utah isn’t exactly awesome, this would be a decent road win for the Sooners. Oklahoma relies on Willie Warren more than Transformers 2 relied on how hot Megan Fox is while Utah has been just north of bad in every game this season except for their second half comeback against Illinois. I mean there was practically no reason to pay attention to them. But miracles never cease, and the Utes took down once top 15 team Michigan by 16 points on Wednesday. So, is Utah getting better? Has Oklahoma found their game? Why doesn’t Capel tweet anymore? Hopefully these questions start to get answered tomorrow. I look for this game to be close for a while, but for the Sooners to pull away late.

   Prediction: Oklahoma 74 - Utah 65

   Game #2 (16/18) Texas A&M vs (RV) New Mexico - 5:00 - TV on Fox Sports SW

   What a big game for both of these teams, but especially for New Mexico. A win would put the Lobos into the top 25, while a loss most likely wouldn’t knock A&M out of it. However, it’s still hard to tell how good (or not) the Aggies really are. This game features two teams with good backcourts and average frontcourts. I expect this one to be decided by who can limit their mistakes with the ball, and who can control the boards on the defensive end. These teams both pride themselves on defense, but like to play at a pretty quick pace. I’m looking for the scoring to come in streaks. An “off the paper” factor in this game might the crowd at the Toyota Center in Houston. Will the Aggie fans show up? This game should be a close one and could really go either way. If this game were being held in Reed Arena I’d go with the Aggies, and if it were in The Pit I’d go with New Mexico. As it is, when the game is close and nothing stands out, I always pick the team with the best player. In this case (with props to Darington Hobson), that’s Donald Sloan.

   Prediction: A&M - 75 New Mexico - 72

   Game #3 - Kansas State at (18/17) UNLV - 6:00 - ESPN360

   UNLV is still a bit of a mystery. They have a good win against Louisville (side note: I’m sure the UNLV faithful were thinking “Charlotte?!? Really?!”) and decent wins against Nevada and at Arizona. Kansas State has struggled a bit at times but continue to win after being picked to be in the top half of the Big 12 in preseason. Pullen and Clemente continue to put up big numbers consistently, but thus far Wally Judge hasn’t been overly impressive. This would be a huge win on a mostly uninspiring non-conference schedule for the Wildcats, but it’s going to be a tough one. I’m looking for this game to be played at a frantic (read: ridiculous) pace, but I think Kansas State is gong to find that that pace favors UNLV. Both of these teams have been impressive on the defensive end, and despite how fast I expect this game to be played, I think they will both struggle to score. Score one here for the Mountain West.

   Prediction: UNLV - 69 Kansas State - 60

9. 2 years ago 

   Enough Complaining, Let’s Look at the Games…

   Alright Big 12, last night wasn’t a good night, Iowa State and Oklahoma State go down to in-state opponents (thought to be fair, Tulsa isn’t bad,) and Missouri goes down to Vandy. All is not lost! It’s a long season. But if the Big 12 is going to act like the nation’s premiere conference, it’s time they show it. The Big 12 cannot afford to lose this “challenge” because the perception is that the Pac 10 is terrible. Which is true. So let’s look at the matchups of the (remaining) games.

   2009 BIG 12 / PAC-10 HARDWOOD SERIES Part 1
   
   Sunday, November 29
   Nebraska at USC Nebraska already won this - Big 12 up 1-0
   
   Today, Thursday, December 3

   
   Washington at Texas Tech - 6:00 - ESPN2

   yikes. It’s the Pac 10’s #1 against the Big 12’s #11…Well, Tech is undefeated and wants a chance to prove that they belong in the conversation with the rest of the conference. Good luck with that. Tech has some talented players and are improved over last season, but Washington is just too good. Washington wins.

   USC at Texas - 8:00 - ESPN2

   another great game… Texas has more talent in their freshman class than USC has on the roster. This game is probably going to be a blowout, the only good news for USC is that sometimes young teams play like young teams. And with games against North Carolina and Michigan State on the horizon, could the young ‘Horns look past the Trojans? Not likely. Texas by at least 15.

   
   Baylor at Arizona State - 9:30 pm - FSN

   Now this is what I’m talking about. Finally a halfway decent game. The Bears continue to be a here one day gone the next type team, but they played great defense in their last game in Orlando against Xavier. The Sun Devils only loss this season is at Duke, and they have a win over LSU. This could be one of the best games in this years Big 12 / Pac 10 Series. In a game with so many variables, I’m going with the home team. Arizona State in a close one.

   
   Friday, December 4

   Colorado at Oregon State

   Who cares? Just kidding… kinda. Colorado had a decent showing in Maui, but left without any wins to show for it. Oregon State is just north of being completely crappy. So yeah, I’m brave enough, I’ll call it, Colorado gets the road win.

   
   I’ll preview the remaining games in the coming days:

   
   Saturday, December 5
   Oregon at Missouri
   Iowa State at California
   Washington State at Kansas State
   
   Sunday, December 6
   Kansas at UCLA
   Arizona at Oklahoma
   
   Wednesday, December 16
   Oklahoma State at Stanford
   
   Tuesday, December 22
   Texas A&M at Washington

10. 2 years ago 

    Big 12 / Pac 10 Hardwood Series

    

    Can you feel the excitement? It’s almost tangible. It’s finally the day we’ve all been waiting for. The Big 12/Pac 10 hardwood series is here!!! Okay, so it actually started the other day, but today is the day! ESPN will have the cameras cranked up for this 48 hour battle for conference supremacy! What? It’s on ESPN2? Well that’s pretty good, basic cable baby!! Que? It’s not over a 48 hour span? It actually goes until December 22nd making it a virtual certainty that fans will not only not care any more, but will have even forgotten that game is part of the challenge? Well who cares, it’s not like that game is going to matter really, it’s all about today and Saturday! What’s that? Yes, yes, and Sunday. Nobody in Big 12/Pac 10 country watches pro football anyway, and who cares if the Pac 10 is a down league, they still have perennial powerhouse teams like USC and UCLA that will be squaring off with the Big 12’s best! Who? San Diego? AND Cal State Fullerton? Crap, well so what if Kansas plays UCLA. At least Texas gets to face off with USC and their talent laden squad. What’s that? Loyola-Marymount has a team? And they’ve already lost to Nebraska in the series? Well that makes sense. Of course. So who DOES the Pac 10 have? Okay, Cal and Washington, I can get on board with that. And no, I don’t care that Cal lost to New Mexico last night and is about to drop out of the rankings. So Washington, the Pac-10’s best team and a top 15 team in the country, that’ll be a headline game at least right? ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! THEY PLAY TEXAS TECH!?!

    That’s the conversation I had with myself trying to sit down and write about this craptacular disaster that these two conferences have put together. Let’s run down a quick list of the problems.

    #1 - This one is simple, there are more teams in the Big 12 than there are in the Pac 10. Okay, well there’s more in the ACC than in the Big 10(11), so if you suck in the ACC you have to sit out. That seems pretty simple. Dear Colora… err… “worst two Big 12 teams in a given year,” you don’t get to play, sorry, play better. Instead two Pac-10 teams get/have to play twice. This year it’s USC and Washington.

    #2 - Why do it over two days when you can stretch this thing out to damn near Christmas? What would get Pac 10 and Big 12 fans more into this thing than leaving the grand finale (which this years A&M-Washington game clearly is, it’s the only matchup of ranked teams) for about three weeks after the rest of it.

    #3 - Home and Home no matter what. Each team in the Big 12 and Pac 10 should have to keep two dates open for this tournament, but they don’t know their opponent until one month before the season. Then one month before the season you run down and match the teams up. We’re stuck with these same crap matchups for another year.

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    So you’re thinking, okay Mr. Big 12 Hoops Blog, you sure can complain, how would you fix it?

    Well first off, I don’t think anyone who reads this doesn’t already know me, so why you’d call me “Mr. Big 12 Hoops Blog” instead of Aubrey is just weird, so stop.

    Second, here’s how this thing should work.

    Rule #1: If you stink, you don’t get to play. Sorry Colorado and Texas Tech, you’re out. We want a 10 vs 10 bloodbath.

    Rule #2: Matchups are set one or two months before the season based on the previous years finish and where you played the year before. (if you were away, you’re at home, vice versa.) That way we don’t end up with the Best team in the country playing a team that can barely field a squad right now.

    Rule #3: All 10 games take place within 48 hours.This four week thing is just stupid. If USC can play Nebraska and Texas in the same week, then Washington can play Tech and A&M in the same week.

    Rule #4: NO TIES. For the 6 people that do pay attention to this dumb setup, you’re probably still upset that last years ended in a tie. Before the series starts, have the coaches vote on which matchup is the biggest. This years would clearly be the A&M/Washington game. If the series is tied at 6-6 (or 5-5) after the twelve games, the winner of the “marquee matchup” wins the series.

    Those are the four basic rules, but do you think I’m done? Of course not.
    

    I think we can all agree that the Big 12/Pac 10 is football country. And that most of our friends don’t even fully realize basketball season has started. So how about this to get more fans to these games and increase the excitement level. Have multiple games in central locations. make sure that Texas, A&M, and Baylor are all home at the same time and play in Houston or Dallas or even in Austin on ONE EPIC DAY OF BASKETBALL. Put UCLA and USC at Staples, Arizona and Arizona state in Phoenix, Oregon and Oregon State in Portland, you get the idea. How much fun would that be? Then the fans can show up, cheer on their teams, and IT WOULD BE LIKE A REAL LIFE SHOWDOWN.

Big 12 Basketball news, stories, and opinions from the fans perspective. If you like sarcasm, and no holds barred commentary, then you're in the right place.

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