By Ryan Dunleavy
It is time to broaden the scope of this thermometer. No longer are we only surveying the temperature of players and teams. The regular season has about five weeks remaining, so it is time to start gauging the performance of coaches and conferences as well. Here is a look at who is getting it done and who is coming up short on the national campus hoops scene with, of course, an eye toward March.
HOT
- Marquette University
Reigning national champion Florida was not even a Top 10 team when last year’s NCAA Tournament began. No. 11 Marquette, which has spent the same number of weeks (one) this season unranked as ranked in the Associated Press’ Top 10, continues to look capable of duplicating Florida’s success. After losing its first two Big East games, Marquette has won seven straight. Three of those victories came against then-ranked opponents, and earlier Texas Tech, Duke and Wisconsin tested the Golden Eagles out-of-conference. Sophomore point guard Dominic James watched as the school retired Dwyane Wade’s uniform this past weekend, and must have been thinking if he can match Wade’s 2003 Final Four run then his No. 1 could float from the rafters, too. James, who is the favorite for Big East Player of the Year and ranks among the league leaders in points, steals and assists per game, is just one of three sophomore guards that should run Marquette deep into March.
- Bob Huggins, Kansas State Coach
Huggins is making the most of his second chance. After being virtually run out of his home state because of personal problems and a terrible player graduation rate, Huggins has rejuvenated basketball in Manhattan, Kansas. The Wildcats have won seven straight, including a one-point victory Saturday over then-No. 22 Texas that started garnering the program the kind of national attention athletic director Tim Weiser imagined when he made the gutsy hire. With 14 consecutive NCAA Tournament berths and nearly a .750 career winning percentage to his name, Huggins’ coaching was never in question. Then again, Jim Harrick’s coaching was never in question either, but he repeated his off-court mistakes time and time again. Good to see Huggins is coaching up a storm and staying clear of the wild Manhattan nightlife.
- A.J. Graves, Butler University
It happened once Nov. 25 against Kent St. and twice Jan. 25 against Loyola Chicago. The junior guard stepped to the free-throw line and … missed. Both games were overtime victories for the Bulldogs, so Graves need not beat himself up over his horrible gaffes. He has made 102-of-105 free throws this season and has become more of a sure thing than flowers and chocolates on Valentine’s Day. Impeccable free-throw shooting and Butler already are synonymous thanks to Darnell Archey’s Division I record steak of 85 straight one-pointers made from 2001-03. Good free-throw shooting teams are typically fundamentally sound all-around, so it is no surprise that the 2002-03 12th-seeded Bulldogs reached the Sweet 16. This year’s team is shooting for a fourth or fifth seed, and it rarely misfires its target.
COLD
- Princeton University
How does the team with the nation’s best scoring defense end up on the “Not” list? When that same team has the nation’s worst scoring offense. It’s an interesting dichotomy, really. Princeton allows just 52.4 points per game – more than two full points less than any other team. That statistic alone should be good enough for a winning record, but the backdoor has been slammed shut on Princeton’s textbook cuts. The Tigers’ 50.7 points per game scored is almost three points less than two-win North Florida and good enough for last among the 336 Division I teams. No players are averaging double figures in scoring, and only the prolific Kyle Koncuz is averaging more than eight points per game. None of the top six individual scorers in the county have posted a single-game point total of less than nine.
- Big Ten Conference
Wisconsin and Ohio St. could land the conference two top seeds, but do not look for many of the schools’ rivals in the tournament field. Indiana is on track for a bid, but Iowa is really messing with the rest of the conference. At 13-10 overall, Iowa’s record is not going get much more than a once-over from the selection committee. The problem is the Hawkeyes sit in fourth place with a 5-4 conference mark. To further complicate the situation, Iowa has defeated Michigan and Michigan St. – two of the three teams squished directly behind them in the middle of the pack – and has a chance to beat Illinois in the regular season finale. Unless one of those four teams gets red hot, it seems likely the Big Ten will duplicate its dubious 2004 feat of just three berths. None of those three teams survived the Sweet 16, but at least Wisconsin and Ohio St. will not allow that to happen again. The other schools can always gun for the league’s second NIT title in four seasons.
- SEC Champions
OK, OK. Florida won the conference tournament and the national title last season and looks like a lock for a long run this March, so what am I talking about? LSU is a defending regional champion and South Carolina has captured consecutive NIT championships, but both schools are occupying the cellar of their respective SEC divisions with a combined 4-13 conference record. After returning to school for his junior season, “Big Baby” Glen Davis has a lot to cry about. He is averaging a double-double, but has little support with former high-flying partner Tyrus Thomas hauling in an important 3.5 points and 2.7 rebounds per game for the Chicago Bulls. Looks like neither guy made the right call here. Meanwhile, South Carolina is squandering late leads because of turnovers and offensive dry spells. A third straight NIT title is nobody’s goal, but a trip back to the real Manhattan probably sounds pretty good to Gamecocks fans right now. It is sure better than any of the alternatives South Carolina is faced with, except maybe the start of spring football.
