Midwest Monday

Kansas

KU AD: Videos/transcripts Coach Self and players NCAA selection press conference


Best Printable Bracket (Times, locations, team records)


Opening Rounds Game Times, Announcing Crews


Temperatures this week in Omaha are expected to top 70 degrees. But if you're coming downtown for the NCAA tournament, bring your earmuffs.

Kansas and Missouri are headed this way. Their fans will be hurling insults across 10th Street.

Both KU and Missouri will have a few thousand fans in Omaha on Friday. Both will also have a few thousand enemies.
Omaha World Herald


Of course, there was controversy on Selection Sunday.

For Kansas, it came compliments of live television. Cameras were not trained on the Jayhawks at the right time.

So it appeared as if they were prodded into politely applauding their No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament as if Tiger Woods just putted out for his par.

“When we actually heard it on TV, our guys were all excited,” KU coach Bill Self maintained. “But it was all fluff until then. ... The timing was off. What they showed, the bracket hadn’t even come up yet, so it’s hard to be excited when you don’t know.”

So no, KU was not disappointed over missing out on a No. 1 seed.
TCJ


Kansas University basketball coach Bill Self on Sunday told his players to not expect a No. 1 seed in the 2012 NCAA Tournament.

“We blew that by not performing better in Kansas City,” Self said of his pre-barbecue dinner message to the Jayhawks (27-6).

“We were on the 1 line, all that stuff. We needed to play better against Baylor, and we didn’t,” added Self, whose Jayhawks fell to the Bears, 81-72, in Friday’s Big 12 tourney semifinals in Kansas City, Mo.

Calling himself a “numbers guy,” Self correctly pegged KU’s position in the NCAAs.

“I knew we’d be a No. 2-seed. I just didn’t know where,” he said, not shocked a bit when announcer Greg Gumbel revealed on the CBS-TV Selection Sunday show that KU had landed a 2 in the Midwest Regional.

…KU was the highest-rated of the No. 2s, followed by Duke, Ohio State and Missouri.

…KU senior Tyshawn Taylor said the Jayhawks wanted a No. 1 seed but are OK with 2.

In fact, the only reason the Jayhawks appeared to be somber when the announcement was made on CBS was that there was an eight-second delay on the TV feed.

In reality, KU’s players did cheer after the announcement was made.

“We are excited, man,” Taylor said. “This is a chance everybody (in the country) doesn’t get. We won’t take it for granted at all. We’ll enjoy this time.”

…The Jayhawks will drive to Omaha sometime Wednesday in advance of Thursday’s open practice, set for 5:10 to 5:50 p.m. in CenturyLink Center, formerly known as Qwest Center.
LJW


Throughout the years, very few opposing coaches who faced Kansas University in the NCAA Tournament have gotten the kind of look at KU’s program that University of Detroit Mercy coach Ray McCallum received a little more than two years ago.

McCallum, now in his fourth season at Detroit, which will face KU at 8:57 p.m. Friday in a second-round NCAA Tournament game in Omaha, Neb., found himself locked in a unique recruiting battle for one of the top guards in the country. On one side were perennial powers such as Kansas, Florida and UCLA. On the other was McCallum and his rebuilding Horizon League program. The object of their affection was a young man named Ray McCallum Jr., the Detroit head coach’s son, and because of that, McCallum operated as part-father and part-recruiter throughout his son’s final year of high school.

…“He had a visit out there that he’ll never forget,” said McCallum by telephone, recalling his son’s recruiting trip to KU. “He actually mentioned that the other day. He went out for (Late Night), and they got their (2008) national championship rings that night, and I know that made a big-time impression on him.”

“He wanted to look at the very best programs, and I know he was flattered that KU looked at him,” McCallum said. “I think it was important that he go through the process and visit with the very best schools that were interested in him. Once Kansas made their decision that they were set on their guards, I think the decision was easy. I really got to know the (Kansas) coaches through that recruiting process, and they do things right. First-class all the way. And it was good to be able to go through that with him.”

…“You look at our numbers, you look at the way we finished the (Horizon League) tournament and how competitive we’ve been against high-major teams … I expect for us to lace ’em up tight and go out and compete,” he said.
LJW


Back when Kelvin Sampson was in the throes of a calling-recruits-on-his-cell-phone addiction and was fired for it, Holman was a Hoosier. Players were leaving at such a rapid rate new coach Tom Crean must have been fantasizing about what life would have been like with the ball in Tyshawn Taylor’s hands had the coach not left Marquette. Crean tried to convince Holman to stay. Eli told the coach he needed to transfer to a school closer to his home in Richmond, Calif. Holman lost it and reportedly hurled a potted plant. A coach phoned campus police because, Crean later said, he viewed him as “a danger to himself.”

Crean has the Hoosiers back in the same tournament in which Taylor, Holman and Marquette are partaking.
Eli transferred to Detroit, putting him a mere 2,400 miles from home, 140 miles farther than when he was a Hoosier. Holman averaged 11.8 points and 8.9 rebounds for Detroit as a sophomore and had similar statistics as a junior (11.8, 9.6) and was a big reason Detroit was expected to win the Horizon League until news broke in September that he had gone on an indefinite absence to attend to personal matters. The school newspaper, The Varsity News, then broke a story in which a frat boy said Holman broke his nose in two places and chipped two of his teeth at a fraternity party. Those zany, zany frat parties.

Without Holman, Detroit started the season 4-6. The Titans head into the tournament on a 10-1 run. Holman plays so much football when he plays basketball that he tends toward foul trouble. That explains why he averages just 23 minutes a game, time enough to average 10.8 points and 6.9 rebounds.

Oh well, at least nobody has to worry about how motivated Thomas Robinson will be for the tourney opener.
Holman took care of that Sunday night.

“Robinson?” Holman said to the Detroit News. “I can handle Robinson. He has to handle me.”

So much trash will spill out of the players’ mouths in this one extra ballboys will be needed to sweep the floor during every timeout.
LJW Keegan


Three regions had been announced for the 2012 NCAA tournament field, and still no matchup had been revealed for the Detroit Titans, the Horizon League Champions.

The team leaned so far forward in their chairs, it looked like gravity was winning a game of tug-of-war. And then, finally, CBS announced the Midwest region.

"I knew it was going to be Kansas," sophomore point guard Ray McCallum Jr. said. "Once Missouri and Ohio State went, I just knew it had to be Kansas because I was pretty sure we'd play a two seed."

"You know, we're going against one of the best programs in the country," head coach Ray McCallum said. "They're coached by one of the best coaches in the country, and they were almost a No. 1 seed.

"It’s going to be a real challenge. And on top of that, they have the (potential) player of the year in Thomas Robinson."

Kansas is one of the most-storied college basketball programs around and has played in 23 straight tournaments.

The man who will likely be tasked with slowing down Robinson is Eli Holman, and he isn’t shaking either.

“I’m not scared of him,” said Holman, the only Titans player on the roster with NCAA tournament experience (while at Indiana). “I don’t think he is scared of me either.  

"But he is a very, very talented player, and he deserves all the respect he gets.”

…“We are a lockdown defensive team when we have tried to be one,” McCallum Jr. said. “And guys like Chase (Simon), Donovan (Foster) and Evan (Bruinsma) can make all the difference in games like this as shutdown guys.”

A bench presence might be a key for the Titans.

Kansas uses essentially a six-man rotation. They sometimes work in a seventh (forward Kevin Young, averaging 10.8 minutes), but if the tournament has proven one thing, it's that benches can be shortened with machete-like efficiency.

If Kansas ends up using a six-man rotation, look for the Titans to see an exposed jawline at some point during the game. They use nine players more than 10 minutes a game, and all nine make major contributions.

“You know, we made it here, but that isn’t good enough for us,” said Simon, a senior who grew up in Detroit. “We want to win a few while were here, you know?”

The last time these two teams met, in December 2006, Kansas won 63-43.
FS Detroit


Scouting Kansas: Bill Self replaced the guts of last year's No. 1-seeded team and delivered KU's eighth consecutive regular-season Big 12 title. The Jayhawks have a terrific starting five, beginning with potential national player of the year Thomas Robinson and point guard Tyshawn Taylor.

Perry Farrell's pick: Kansas 87, UDM 75.

Detroit Mercy star Ray McCallum will answer your questions in a live chat at 4:30 p.m. Monday at freep.com/sports.
Detroit Free Press


The ohhhs and ahhhs reverberated throughout Calihan Hall as the Detroit Mercy Titans learned Sunday that if they want to make a statement, they'll have to beat one of the most storied programs in the country, Kansas.

"We see them on television all the time," UDM coach Ray McCallum said of Kansas. "We've been watching them all year long."

"They have quality bigs and guards," said Holman, who is third in scoring among regular UDM players at 10.9 points per game. "It'll be a good challenge for us. It comes down to playing with heart and pride. That's what we have to do, and that's what we're going to do. We're going to hang our hats on defense. We're going to play our defense.

"I'm excited. I'm looking forward to the challenge. I wanted a big team, and we got a big team who probably should have gotten a No. 1 seed. It's going to be fun. We're going to work hard and do what we need to do. I know people were mentioning Michigan and Michigan State, but I'm looking forward to the challenge."

…McCallum, Holman, Simon and Jason Calliste are capable of scoring 20 points in a game. When the Titans' offense is at its best, the ball is moving quickly, and four to five players usually are in double figures.

"Whoever we play, they're going to have a hard time getting us out," coach McCallum said to the gathering before the Selection Show.
Detroit Free Press


LJW: Detroit's strengths, weaknesses and players to watch


LJW Photos: NCAA Selection Show Press Conference


The Tigers and Jayhawks - acrimonious rivals, to say the least - will see each other in Omaha. Missouri is the No. 2 seed in the West Region and opens against Norfolk State.

"If you remember us in '08, us and K-State were up there together. That's one time our league really kind of bonded, and we cheered together," Kansas coach Bill Self said. "Can't really see that happening. Two different leagues now, I guess."

The Tigers are off to the SEC after the win over Baylor in the Big 12 title game.

"I'm sure they're looking forward to sharing a venue with us," Self said with a grin.
AP


When the final buzzer sounded, there was only silence and tears.

“Nothing had to be said,” former KU center Scot Pollard says. “We all knew.”

The day was March 21, 1997, and the Sweet 16 opponent was Arizona, a team that had finished fifth in the Pac-10 that year. Meanwhile, No. 1 seed Kansas entered the day 34-1, with six future NBA players on the roster.

They were a team of destiny, Pollard says, a group that should have gone down as one of the greats. Instead, the Jayhawks fell 85-82 to the eventual national champions in Birmingham, Ala., a heartbreaker that still stands, perhaps, as the most devastating March collapse in KU history.

“I think if we played them 10 more times,” Pollard says, “we’d beat them 10 out of 10. But on that particular night, they were better than we were.”

The next year, with two All-Americans and another No. 1 seed, the Jayhawks again bowed out early, this time against Rhode Island in the second round. The story, former KU guard Ryan Robertson says, was the same. Kansas played tight. And Rhode Island’s guards played free.

“It’s not just Kansas,” Robertson says. “It’s the reason No. 1 seeds get beat in the Sweet 16 and the second round all the time. It’ll happen this year. It’ll happen down the road.”

Sometimes, you come across a team that can’t miss. Sometimes the higher seed tightens up. Sometimes a star player going for 43 points isn’t enough.

In some ways, KU’s Pollard says, the secret to winning in March is understanding that there is no secret. Only preparation and luck — and the hope that a player from Northern Iowa or VCU or Arizona doesn’t play the game of his life when your team walks on the floor.

“It’s not a seven-game series,” Pollard says. “It’s one-and-done. And if you’re not there every single night for six nights in a row in the NCAA Tournament …”

Pollard’s voice trails off. He knows what comes next. And so do today’s players from Kansas and Missouri. One team carries the weight of a history of Final Fours and championships — and early-round exits. One carries the burden of having never played on college basketball’s biggest stage. And now, the madness.

“Last year was the worst feeling,” KU’s Taylor says. “We weren’t focused (against VCU). You better come out focused every time you play from now on … or it’s over.”
KC Star: KU, MU know agony of defeats in NCAA Tourney


LJW: Jayhawks in the NBA


Rapper Drake recently sold his Miami condos to Miami Heat point guard Mario Chalmers.
The two side-by-side apartments sold for $2.4 million, almost $100,000 less than the original asking price.
According to the listing agent, Jill Ebert, Mario Chalmers got a great deal in for the luxury apartments which are located in the prestigious Marquis Residences.
Link


1. University of Mississippi: 182 plates sold on first day

2. Mississippi State University: 127

3. University of Kansas: 117
First-Day License-Plates Sales in Texas

Big 12/College News

ESPN "Experts" Final Four Picks

Check out how each coach voted in this years ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll


kenpom log5 analysis


North Carolina has two questions entering the Midwest Regional:

How is star forward John Henson's wrist?

And why might the No. 1 Tar Heels have to play second-seeded Kansas so close to Kansas' campus?

The second question could prove to be irrelevant, seeing how the Tar Heels and Jayhawks have to win three games each to set up a 1 vs. 2 matchup in the regional final. But if they win those three games -- and both teams will be favored in those games, duh -- North Carolina would face Kansas in a game within a four-drive the campus of the higher-seeded Jayhawks.

And Kansas fans travel.

In other words, if Kansas and UNC meet in the region final, UNC fans will have the tickets allotted to their program ... and Kansas fans will pretty much have the rest.

… For his father's 51st birthday, Detroit guard Ray McCallum Jr. scored 21 points to lead the Titans past Valparaiso for the Horizon League championship and a berth in the NCAA field. Ray Jr. was one of the top guards in the country coming out of high school, but he turned down bigger schools to play for his father at Detroit. So he's the gift that gives the whole year 'round. Like the Jelly of the Month Club, only better.

…Midwest Regional Picks Who will win: I'm not sure about John Henson's wrist. The Tar Heels act like he'll play in the NCAA tourney, and maybe he will. But I'm not sure. And because I'm not sure, I'm going with Kansas -- which is good enough to win whether Henson is there or not. So it says right here that Kansas, with the best player in this regional in Thomas Robinson, advances to New Orleans.

…Dark horse pick: I don't like any of the true "dark horses" in this regional -- Belmont, Creighton, St. Mary's ... not for me. So I'm going with the palest dark horse pick of all time, the 11th-seeded Wolfpack from, um, North Carolina State. From the ACC. With two national titles in its history. But they're the only double-digit seed I see advancing to the Round of 16, so shaddup!

…Best post player: OK, I take that back. This is the easiest category in the regional. Kansas' Thomas Robinson is the second-best player, any position, in the country (behind only Kentucky's Anthony Davis ... don't get mad, Kansas fans; I called T-Rob second best in the whole damn country!). Robinson is second nationally in rebounding, by the way, at 11.8 boards per game.

Best coach: Roy Williams and Bill Self have national titles, and so does Steve Fisher (kind of), but if I needed one coach in this regional to draw up one play to win one game, the guy holding the grease board would be Michigan's John Beilein. And I wouldn't think twice about it.

Best reputation: Troll alert! Whatever I say, someone gets angry. North Carolina, or Kansas. Kansas, or North Carolina. Well, I probably should use Wilt Chamberlain as the trump card, and so I will: Since North Carolina managed to beat Kansas in 1957 even though Kansas had Wilt Chamberlain, the edge goes to the Tar Heels. But barely.
CBS Doyel


Man, is there some basketball royalty in the Midwest region: North Carolina, Kansas, Georgetown, Michigan — that’s talkin’ national titles.

The Tar Heels really shouldn’t have any trouble getting to the Sweet 16. Playing in Greensboro is home sweet home, although Creighton, led by forward Doug McDermott, will not go quietly.

The Jayhawks should also benefit from home cookin’ in Omaha and potentially St. Louis in the regional final.

Best Player: Kansas F Thomas Robinson — Puts the power in power forward
CHAMPION: In an epic final, the Tar Heels outlast Kansas by the slimmest of margins.
New York Post


Kansas Jayhawks
In each of the past two seasons, the Big 12's coaches have assumed Kansas was finally ready for a down season. Each of the past two seasons, Bill Self's team has done what Bill Self teams do: win Big 12 regular-season titles. In 2011-12, Kansas, led by national player of the year candidate Thomas Robinson, captured its eighth straight Big 12 crown. Which, when you think about it, is just sort of silly. Despite Friday's Big 12 tourney loss to Baylor, the Jayhawks remain a very real threat to the national title, a complete team from positions 1 through 5. The only flaw: depth. If the Jayhawks avoid foul trouble, injuries and Ali Farokhmanesh (which should be easy, because Northern Iowa isn't in the field and Farokhmanesh graduated in 2010), the Jayhawks could very well cut down the nets in April.
ESPN Brennan


Kentucky’s South Region contains five of the composite top 13, but is it truly “loaded” when it has the worst No. 2 seed in the bracket? Duke is statistically weaker than two four seeds, a five (Wichita State) and an eight (Memphis), due to the Blue Devils’ struggles on defense. From top to bottom, yes, the South is stacked, but if you’re a No. 1 seed, would you rather face Ohio State, Kansas or Missouri in the Elite Eight instead? No way.

…Missouri is the team that matters most here, and it’s worth considering that their high-octane offense could run into two excellent defenses in Marquette and Michigan State, should all of them make it to Phoenix. The Tigers pass the eye test and have the backcourt experience that’s usually required to make a deep tourney run, but their profile raises a red flag.

…Toughest Path for a No. 1 seed: Syracuse. I know this goes against all the South-is-Loaded chatter on Twitter, but I’m basing this on who the No. 1 seeds might actually have to play, not how top-to-bottom stacked their region is. The Orange get a pass in the third round with Kansas State, but in Boston, they could face a Vanderbilt team with more NBA talent and a lot of end-of-season momentum, and then either Ohio State or Florida State, who have two of the best defenses in the nation. That’s no easy road to New Orleans.

Weakest Path for a No. 1 seed: Kentucky. What?!? Hear me out: I have no belief in UConn as a third-round threat, even with its wealth of talent; Indiana just lost its senior point guard with an ACL tear; and while Wichita State is strong, would you rather play the Shockers or Vandy in the Sweet 16? The likely Elite Eight matchups for the Wildcats — Baylor or Duke — are not exactly threatening. I don’t see anyone stopping the Wildcats.
Midwest: Kansas. North Carolina will make it to the Elite Eight, where Tyshawn Taylor will play the game of his life and lead the shorthanded Jayhawks to the Final Four.

Champ: Kentucky over Kansas. When they met in the Champion’s Classic at Madison Square Garden in November, the Wildcats won by 10 and shut down Robinson. This one will be closer — Jeff Withey’s emergence will prevent T-Rob from getting double-teamed on every possession — but UK will prevail. To answer the question I posed earlier: I believe in the Wildcats.
SI Luke Winn


While the Kansas-Detroit matchup on paper may look like just another chance for a two seed to beat up on a lowly 15 seed, this could very well turn into an interesting contest with legit NBA draft implications. Detroit is led by former McDonald's All-American point guard Ray McCollum, a sophomore who could have gone to virtually any school in the country. Their frontcourt features two extremely athletic, 6'10 big men inEli Holmanand LaMarcus Low. Both are seniors and are more than capable of putting a body onThomas RobinsonandJeff Withey. While it may not necessarily be realistic to expect Detroit to win this game, it's not out of the realm of possibility that they at least give Kansas a scare.
Draft Express First Round NBA Prospect Breakdown


USA Today Bracket Tips


Midwest: This is the only region where I feel comfortable writing there are only two schools that can reasonably expect to make the Final Four -- No. 1 seed North Carolina and No. 2 seed Kansas. Everybody else is playing for a Sweet 16 or Elite Eight, at best.

Seven teams I could see winning it all

1. Kentucky
 2. North Carolina 
3. Ohio State
 4. Marquette 
5. Michigan State
 6. Syracuse
 7. Kansas
CBS Sports Parrish Bracket Overview


The number one seed in this region should be Kansas, if only because the Jayhawks didn’t lose twice to Florida State (a team that did lose to Harvard and Princeton). Still, if this were a beauty contest, North Carolina would win long before the swimsuit competition. At their best, the Tar Heels are spectacular to see.

Forget the vaunted trio up front of Tyler Zeller, John Henson and Harrison Barnes. Okay, don’t forget them. But start the conversation with Kendall Marshall, who is the best point guard in the country — period. When someone asked Coach Roy Williams last week who the one player he couldn’t afford to lose was, he said, “Oh, without any doubt it’s Kendall.”

…If the Hoyas make it to St. Louis, they are almost certain to play Kansas. The Jayhawks aren’t losing to Detroit, one of two teams (Creighton is the other) with a father-son coach/star tandem (Ray McCallum/Ray McCallum Jr.). And they aren’t losing to the St. Mary’s-Purdue winner either. (Go with the Big Ten in toss-ups this year.)

And they probably aren’t losing to Georgetown unless the Hoyas make a lot of threes, which they can do at times. Thomas Robinson is the second-best player in the country behind Kentucky’s Anthony Davis and, their loss to Baylor in the Big 12 tournament notwithstanding, the Jayhawks have probably improved more start-to-finish than any team in the country. This Kansas team is a lot better than the one Georgetown lost to in Hawaii in November.

…Carolina-Kansas? The only thing that is pretty much guaranteed is that Ol’ Roy sheds a tear regardless of who advances to New Orleans. No doubt he still has his Jayhawk sticker handy if he needs it.
Washington Post



Bound for the Final Four: Kansas

Selection committee conspiracy theorists could see the potential UNC-Kansas Elite Eight game coming ever since the Jayhawks lost to Baylor in the Big 12 tournament. Roy Williams first faced his former team in the tournament in the 2008 Final Four. The Heels were embarrassed on that night in an 18-point Kansas rout. A rematch in the midwest regional final should be a closer affair. Carolina has more weapons in Tyler Zeller, Harrison Barnes, John Henson and Kendall Marshall, but Thomas Robinson and the Jayhawks play a steadier game, provided Tyshawn Taylor minimizes his mistakes.

This midwest regional is in St. Louis, a straight shot on I-70 away from Lawrence. With a partisan crowd on it side, Kansas should rock, chalk its way back to the Final Four.
Yahoo


The Jayhawks under coach Bill Self are the greatest of all March underachievers, having lost to No. 11 Virginia Commonwealth last year and No. 9 Northern Iowa two years ago.

TheGaels have the patience and the perimeter moxie to hang with Kansas deep into the second half, at which point memories of past tournament collapses could cause the Jayhawks to implode.

Saint Mary's has a better chance of reaching the Sweet 16 by going through Kansas than it would any of the other No. 2 seeds.
Jon Wilner Mercury News AP Voter


Iowa State's first NCAA tournament game in seven years will be against the defending national champions. Should the Cyclones win, they'll probably have to face the top overall seed, Kentucky, in the Wildcats' home state.

If the Cyclones can make it out of Louisville, they'll certainly have earned it.

Iowa State (22-10) earned a No. 8 seed for the NCAA tournament Sunday and will play ninth-seeded Connecticut (20-13) for the first time, on Thursday in the second round of the South Regional. The winner of that game would likely face the top-seeded Wildcats on Saturday.

"It's a tough draw. But hey, we're up for the challenge," Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg said.

It's the first NCAA tournament bid since 2005 for the Cyclones (22-10), who earned an at-large selection after being knocked out of the Big 12 tournament by Texas.

Iowa State celebrated its selection to the tournament with a watch party at Hilton Coliseum. A crowd of roughly 1,500 cheered wildly when the Cyclones' seed was shown on the scoreboard hanging over center court.
AP


Pete Thamel, The New York Times college basketball reporter, offers his predictions on the men’s N.C.A.A. tournament Final Four.

Semifinals: March 31
Kentucky Over Missouri
This would be a fan’s delight. Two talented teams with up-tempo styles would make for one of the best games of the N.C.A.A. tournament. Could Missouri’s pace negate Kentucky’s size advantage?

Syracuse Over Kansas
The Orange can ride a home crowd in Boston to New Orleans. The Orange’s interior defense, their strength all season, should slow Thomas Robinson enough to advance to the national title game.

Final: April 2
Kentucky Over Syracuse

This is a conventional prediction, but also counterintuitively risky, if only because the best teams never end up playing in the title game. Kentucky got a jolt with a loss in the Southeastern Conference title game. So look for the Wildcats to grind out a win to help John Calipari get his first national title, and kick off a blue party on Bourbon Street.
NY Times


After a cataclysmic collapse, a first-round exit from the Big Ten tournament and the firing of coach Bruce Weber, Illinois basketball received one final kick in the gut.

A snub from the NIT.

"Any time the University of Illinois is not involved in postseason play it hurts, so we're disappointed," interim coach Jerrance Howard said in a news release. "For our returning players, this should serve as motivation heading into the offseason so we don't feel this way next year on Selection Sunday."

…It was the third time in four seasons that the Illini did not receive an NCAA tournament invitation. They advanced to the NIT quarterfinals in 2010 and did not participate in a postseason tournament in 2008.

The Illini's pitiful ending this season even sparked some Twitter rumors, begun by former player Mike Davis who said the team would not accept an NIT bid. Illinois officials and Thomas said Illinois would have played in the tournament if invited.
WGN


Parmley said he informed Wojcik of his decision Sunday afternoon, then met with the team before a public announcement at a news conference held an hour before the NCAA tournament selection show.

"I don't think he agreed with the decision, but I think he handled it in a first-class, very professional way, which with Doug you knew you'd get," Parmley said. "I didn't expect him to agree with it, but he is a first-class person and a good individual."

Wojcik did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment from The Associated Press.

When Wojcik was hired in 2005, he took over a program that was coming off consecutive losing seasons but not far removed from a run of postseason success. Tulsa made the NCAA tournament eight times between 1994 and 2003 and won the 2001 NIT.

In 2000, the Golden Hurricane made it to the round of eight in the NCAAs.

During that winning stretch, the program was used as a stepping stone by coaches Bill Self and Tubby Smith, who would go on to win national championships elsewhere.

Wojcik brought in a strong pedigree as a former assistant to Michigan State's Tom Izzo. Wojcik was the point guard when David Robinson played at the U.S. Naval Academy.

Earlier this season, he passed Clarence Iba -- one of only two men to be Tulsa's coach for more than seven seasons -- to break the school record for wins.

But the victories still weren't enough and not on stages big enough to earn Wojcik more time.

"As head coach, Doug Wojcik represented the university and our men's basketball program with great integrity, and we are grateful for his many contributions to TU," university President Steadman Upham said. "As we move in a new direction with this program, we do so wishing Doug every success."
ABC


They booed in Columbia. This should’ve been a happy moment, of course, a celebration for a terrific basketball team that can make the first Final Four in Missouri history even if it plays no better than it did this past week in Kansas City.

Instead, with confetti falling at the watch party, they booed. It was an awkward moment, but some fans are upset because the number next to Mizzou on the brackets being filled out in office pools today is a “2” instead of a “1.”

This is silly, but you heard it everywhere. And because this is an instant-reaction thing in an instant-reaction world, Twitter might be the best place to see the silliness. It came from the media, Mizzou players and loads of fans.

…Moral of the story schedule tough non conference games lose em get a high seed
Marcus Denmon via Twitter

…Complaining about seeding is among the most predictable and tired traditions in sports. Of course the selection committee makes mistakes. Its members are in charge of determining 37 at-large bids and 68 teams overall, so there is no way to avoid disagreement here. But to spend any energy worrying about the seeds is a waste of time.
KC Star Mellinger

SEC-ond again. LOL.

Recruiting

“I’m really proud of Clayton,” Fritz said. “Clayton proved tonight what I’ve been telling people all along — that he’s the best player in Kansas City.”

After helping them to their second straight 23-2 season, Custer certainly provides a building block for the Huskies. His classmates, Kyle Harrison, Ben Richardson and Vince Fritz, also logged important minutes this season. Junior Andrew Martin also started for BV Northwest.

The future wasn’t immediately on Custer’s mind after Saturday’s loss.

“I feel for our seniors,” he said. “Brad Luebbert, Jonny (Giess), Ryan (Pottinger), Garrett (Fugate), everybody. They played their hearts out.”

For Auer, who experienced the pain of losing in the 1998 6A championship game, part of the satisfaction of Heights’ current title run came from withstanding the Huskies’ effort to knock his team off its perch.

“That’s part of our story,” Heights coach Joe Auer said. “In 2009, we had to beat Wichita Southeast three times to win a title. This year, we had to play Wichita East for a fourth time just to get to state.

“Really, it’s kind of fitting for us to have that kind of challenge (in the championship games). To beat three terrific (BV Northwest) teams like that in three years, it’s really a testament to how tough our kids are.”
TCJ


The last St. John's player drafted into the NBA was Omar Cook in 2001, and the only current St. John's player in the NBA is Ron Artest, who changed his name to Meta World Peace.

If Harkless leaves, it would mean that only five players from Lavin's original nine-man recruiting class in 2011 remain. One player who decommitted when he failed to qualify academically, 6-8 JaKarr Sampson, remains interested. However, the Red Storm has heavy competition from Kansas, Baylor, Florida and Providence.

St. John's also is in the hunt for 6-9 Chris Obekpa from Our Savior New American in Centereach and for 6-8 Orlando Sanchez at Monroe College in the Bronx.
Newsday


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