St. John's snaps #18 Notre Dame's 9-game winning streak at MSG, 61-58

I knew it would happen. I had a bad feeling when I woke up this morning about the front end of this east coast Big East weekend wrap-around road trip for the Fighting Irish and I should have put my money where my thoughts were. Notre Dame's nine-game winning streak came to a hault on Saturday at New York's Madison Square Garden to the St. John's Red Storm, 61-58.

Notre Dame shot poorly throughout the game and it honestly haunted them and kept the Irish from fully overtaking the Red Storm in the second half. ND reverted to their old style of basketball, living and dying by the three, where they were 4-of-31 (13%) in Saturday's game at Madison Square Garden. St. John's, however, was a little more picky when it came to their three-point shot selection (3-for-11), but still only shot 27% from outside the arc.

The homestanding Red Storm outrebounded Notre Dame 34-29 and capitalized when it needed to down the stretch to keep the Irish from taking the lead and extending their winning streak to ten games. If Notre Dame would have been able to keep up with St. John's in transition and stop them on fast breaks, it could have been the difference and a factor that may have helped Mike Brey's team get a huge road win at MSG. Instead, SJU had 13 fast break points to Notre Dame's 4, an obvious difference in the game's outcome.

A group of five freshmen start and lead the way for St. John's. It's something that's unheard of in college basketball or any sport, for that matter. Moe Harkless (18 points, 9 rebounds), D'Angelo Harrison (15 points), Amir Garrett (11 points), God'sgift Achuiwa (5 points, 6 rebounds, and yes, that's his real first name!) and Sir'Dominic Pointer (4 points, 8 rebounds) are five of the six that contribute to the Red Storm on a normal basis. They don't have much depth at all, one bench player saw the floor today. The win moves them to 13-16 (6-10 Big East) and they also have good program wins over Cincinnati and West Virginia.

Notre Dame was led by both Scott Martin and Jack Cooley, who dropped in 18 points a piece. The two also combined for 17 of the Irish's 29 rebounds and also 16-of-24 from the floor between them. Unfortunately, they didn't received enough help from their teammates to make a difference in their bid for a comeback win. Pat Connaughton, Alex Dragicevich, Eric Atkins, Jerian Grant and Tom Knight produced the other 22 Notre Dame points. The Irish only turned the ball over 7 times, compared to 16 turnover for St. John's. Notre Dame also seemed a little tenative on the offensive end as well. They were only 4-of-7 from the charity stripe, while St. John's was 14-21 from the foul line.

This game was hopefully a wakeup call for Brey and the Irish. They will play Monday at #11 Georgetown (21-6, 11-5 Big East) at 7 p.m. Georgetown might be ranked eleventh, but they are one of the more overrated teams this season in college basketball, to be honest, they usually are. Senior Night for Notre Dame is next Friday vs. Providence (14-15, 3-13 Big East). Those games are a great way to tune up for the upcoming Big East Tournament that will be back at Madison Square Garden.

The Irish (20-9, 12-4 Big East) have themselves in a great spot. They were picked to be 9th in the Big East this year and were pretty much considered a losing team when they lost sharp-shooting Tim Abromaitis in the sixth game of the year. They've proved critics wrong and will continue to do so, as long as the media keeps stacking the deck against them and making them the odds-on underdog.

Irish win school-record 9th Big East game in a row, scorch West Virginia, 71-44

On Wednesday night at the Joyce Center at Purcell Pavilion, the #18 Notre Dame men’s basketball team had one thing in mind. Winning and doing whatever it took to do it. Playing at home, where they’re now 15-1 on the year was a big help.

The Irish led by just two at halftime, 30-28. Mike Brey’s team shot 60% in the 2^nd half and held the Mountaineers in check, outscoring them in the second frame 41-16, for an eventual blowout, 71-44.

Jerian Grant led all scorers with a game-high 20 points, knocking down 4-of-5 from the three-point arc. Scott Martin also lit up the nets, hitting on 3-of-4 treys for 15 points. Jack Cooley was a force that propelled Notre Dame to its first leads in the first half and wound up with 13 points and 6 rebounds. Eric Atkins did his job as the point guard and filled up his line of the stat sheet. The sophomore captain tallied 13 points, 4 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals to his credit. Alex Dragicevich chipped in 8 points in 20 minutes off the bench, drilling a couple 3’s of his own. Pat Connaughton hasn’t been scoring much lately, but that doesn’t really seem to matter, with others picking up his share when defenses keep the freshman from scoring. Connaughton did, however, grab 5 rebounds, dished out 4 assists and had 2 of Notre Dame’s six team steals.

The visiting Mountaineers were stymied by the Irish defense shooting 17-for-54 (31.5%) overall and were even colder from three-point range going 1-11 (9.1%). Seniors Kevin Jones and Darryl “Truck” Bryant were the only two to reach double-figures for WVU. Jones led West Virginia with 15 points and 8 rebounds (5 offensive) and Bryant with 10 points, 3 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals. Those two seniors had very little help elsewhere, with Deniz Kilicli tossing up four of his unorthodox style hook shots for 8 points. The loss dropped Bob Huggins’ squad to 17-11 overall and 7-8 in the Big East.

Things keep looking better for Notre Dame…

Team concept is what this team is doing to keep winning games. It doesn’t matter who leads the Irish in each stat category night in and night out. It matters that they do whatever it takes to win and win at all costs. This Notre Dame team was considered out of any post-season play when leading scorer Tim Abromaitis was sidelined with a torn ACL in the second half of ND’s match-up with Georgia in the consolation game of the Progressive CBE Classic in Kansas City, Missouri. With Abro out for the season in just his second game back from a four-game suspension, Notre Dame was said to be falling to the bottom half of the Big East, with no hope at all. 

Clicking on all cylinders, Notre Dame is now 20-8 overall and 12-3 in Big East play. They’re now tied for second in the Big East with Marquette. If the regular season ended after tonight’s game, Notre Dame would be the #2 seed and have a double-bye in the upcoming Big East Tournament (March 6-10) at New York’s Madison Square Garden. They hold the tiebreaker over Marquette from the Irish’s dominating win in South Bend a couple weeks ago, 76-59 over the Golden Eagles.

Notre Dame has a very good chance at finishing the regular season on a 12-game winning streak, if they can win both games of a wrap-around road trip this coming weekend and next Friday’s final home game of the season against a struggling Providence team.

St. John’s (12-16, 5-10 Big East) could turn into a “trap game” this Saturday at Madison Square Garden. Hopefully the Red Storm doesn’t catch the Irish off-guard. I’m guessing that Notre Dame will show up and win for their tenth in a row in a preparation game for the Big East Tournament in a week and a half.

More than likely, #8 Georgetown (20-6, 10-5 Big East) will drop out of the Top 10. They lost Monday night at Seton Hall, 72-55. Georgetown is the most overrated team in college basketball, not just this season, but most years this is the case. They’re like a “flash in the pan” kind of team. They have two or three players that contribute on a consistent basis, but the Hoyas won’t make any noise in the NCAA Tournament.

Providence College (13-15, 2-13 Big East) has struggled in Big East play for quite some time. This could be looked at as another “trap” game for the Irish. Odds of this happening are probably pretty small, considering that this is the final home game of the season and for fifth-year senior Scott Martin.

Time will tell what Notre Dame’s fate will be for the Big East and NCAA Tournaments. They’ve defied the odds that have been placed against them thus far. What says they can’t keep this pace going? With the way that Mike Brey’s team has been playing, it looks like a great possibility that we could see them shock the college basketball world during the month of March. Brey also won National Coach of the Year honors last season for his third of that award in 11 seasons. At this point in the season, there really isn't another coach in Division I basketball that deserves the award as much as the Irish head coach does. It would be remarkable if he earned his second in a row and fourth in 12 seasons at Notre Dame.

Irish Eyes are Smiling with Roster Additions and a great 2012 outlook!

Four roster additions (below)...
All attention has been directed toward the four newest members of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team, but yet, there are still 15 days until National Signing Day on Thursday, February 2.

ESPNU 150's #2 ranked QB Gunner Kiel (6'4, 220 lbs.) DL Sheldon Day (6'2, 286 lbs.), DB Tee Shepard (6'1, 186 lbs.) and RB Amir Carlisle (5'10, 180 lbs.) have all made early-enrollment committments to the University of Notre Dame to continue their academic and athletic careers.

Gunner Kiel (Columbus, IN/Columbus East), is the more highly touted of the four. He is the 2011 Indiana Mr. Football and Gatorade Indiana Player of the Year. This is all brand new news of Gunner's enrollment on campus in South Bend. Before the start of his senior season in 2011, he had committed to play for new head coach Kevin Wilson at Indiana University, where older brother Dusty started his college career. After de-committing to Indiana, Kiel recently spurned National Runner-Up LSU to enroll at Notre Dame today (Tuesday, January 17).

Sheldon Day (Indianapolis, IN/Warren Central) is a 2nd team All-American as chosen by Sports Illustrated. Was named the Indianapolis Star Super Team Player of the Year and the 2011 Indiana Mr. Football Runner-up to future teammate Gunner Kiel. Day helped Warren Central to a high national ranking and was 11-1, with their only loss coming in the 5A Sectional 9 championship game at eventual 5A State Champion Carmel.

Tee Shepard (Fresno, CA/Washington Union) is rated the 3rd best cornerback by scout.com and the 36-ranked player in the nation by maxpreps.com and scout Tom Lemming. After he transferred high schools, Shepard was required to sit out his senior season.

Amir Carlisle (Santa Clara, CA/Kings Academy/USC) has recently transferred to Notre Dame from the University of Southern California, one of the Irish's biggest rivals. He will be a great addition to the offensive backfield. Carlisle saw spotty playing time in 8 games during the 2011 season for the Trojans, so it is unsure if he'll be eligible for the start of the 2012 season. He came to USC as a Parade magazine and Super Prep All-American, gaining 2,110 and scoring 28 TD's as a senior at Kings Academy in Santa Clara. He finished his Kings Academy with 5,108 rushing yards and 73 rushing TD's in just 28 high school games.

2012 outlook for who the Irish have coming back...
OFFENSE
Quarterback
Tommy Rees (JR)
Andrew Hendrix (SO)
Everett Golson (SO)
Gunner Kiel (FR)

Running Back
Cierre Wood (SR)
Theo Riddick (SR)
George Atkinson III (SO)
Amir Carlisle (FR)
Cam McDaniel (SO)

Wide Receiver (Flanker)
Deontay Greenberry (FR)
John Goodman (5th)

Wide Receiver (Split End)
T.J. Jones (JR)
Daniel Smith (JR)
Luke Massa (JR)

Wide Receiver (Slot)
Robby Toma (SR)
DeVaris Daniels (SO)

Tight End
Tyler Eifert (SR)
Ben Koyack (SO)
Alex Welch (JR)

Left Tackle
Zach Martin (SR)
Nick Martin (SO)

Left Guard
Chris Watt (SR)
Tate Nichols (JR)

Center
Braxton Cave (5th)
Mike Golic, Jr. (5th)

Right Guard
Conor Hanratty (SO)
Brad Carrico (SO)

Right Tackle
Christian Lombard (JR)
Jordan Prestwood (SO)

Punter
Ben Turk (SR)

Kicker
Kyle Brindza - kickoffs (SO)
Nick Tausch - PAT/FG (SR)

Punt Returner
Theo Riddick (SR)

Kick Returner
George Atkinson III (SO)

DEFENSE
Defensive End
Stephon Tuitt (SO)
Kapron Lewis-Moore (5th)

Nose Tackle
Louis Nix III (SO)
Sheldon Day (FR)
Sean Cwyner (SR)

Defensive End
Aaron Lynch (SO)
Kona Schwenke (JR)

Outside Linebacker
Prince Shembo (JR)
Danny Spond (JR)
Troy Niklas (SO)

Inside Linebacker
Manti Te'o (SR)
Kendall Moore (JR)

Inside Linebacker
Carlo Calabrese (SR)
Dan Fox (SR)

Outside Linebacker
Ishaq Williams (SO)
Ben Councell (SO)

Cornerback
Bennett Jackson (JR)
Tee Shepard (FR)
Josh Atkinson (SO)

Strong Safety
Jamoris Slaughter (5th)
Austin Collinsworth (JR)

Free Safety
Zeke Motta (SR)
Dan McCarthy (5th)

Cornerback
Lo Wood (JR)
Jalen Brown (SO)

NFL after Week 15: Wild Cards are up for grabs...

NFC Playoff Picture

The NFC playoff picture is only half-painted as of the end of Week 15. Green Bay, New Orleans and San Francisco, who have won the North, South and West, respectively, are the only three NFC teams that have clinched playoff spots. Atlanta (9-5) and Detroit (9-5) are currently the fifth and sixth seeds, but both must win out to keep themselves in as the Wild Cards in the NFC.

Here is the current NFC playoff picture:
#1 Green Bay 13-1 (NFC North champs)
#2 New Orleans 11-3 (NFC South champs)
#3 San Francisco 11-3 (NFC West champs)
#4 Dallas 8-6
>>Cowboys host  Eagles in Week 16 and are at the Giants in Week 17. If the Cowboys win out, they'll keep the #4 seed with a 10-6 record, knocking both the Eagles and Giants completely out of playoff contention.
#5 Atlanta 9-5 have sealed up the fifth seed with their convincing 41-14 win over the Jaguars last Thursday.
#6 Detroit 9-5
>>The Lions all but have their playoff fate decided. They made a big push toward their first playoff berth since 1999 on Sunday with a comeback win at Oakland, 28-27. It was a much-needed road win for Detroit. Just to be safe, Detroit needs to at least get a Week 16 win over San Diego at home. A Week 17 win at Green Bay isn't fully out of the question, but a loss would give the Lions a 10-6 mark and solidify the #6 seed and a first round playoff matchup at San Francisco.

Others vying for NFC Wild Card playoff spots...
Seattle Seahawks (7-7): The Seahawks helped themselves and hindered the Chicago Bears' chances at a Wild Card with their dominating 38-14 road win at Soldier Field in Chicago. Detroit would have to lose out to the Chargers and Packers to allow Seattle to slip in as the #6 seed. Pete Carroll's club would have to win at home vs. the 49ers this week (Week 16) and a Week 17 win on the road at Arizona. They could upset San Fran this weekend and possibly get a big W at Arizona to close out the regular season.

Chicago Bears (7-7): The last four weeks have really put the Bears in a position where they more than likely will not make the 2011 playoffs. By losing at Oakland (25-20), to Kansas City at home (10-3), at Denver (13-10 in overtime) and to Seattle at home 38-14, Chicago is one of four teams on the outside of the playoff picture, looking in. Jay Cutler's injury to his thumb on his throwing hand, forcing backup Caleb Hanie to start, has really put the Bears in a bind offensively. He's a mediocre backup who could really use Matt Forte not being sidelined with a season-ending injury as well.

New York Giants (7-7): The Giants could be in a good spot or find themselves in the same situation that the Bears are, on the outside looking in. Coughlin's boys are 1-4 in their last five games, losing to Philly, the Saints, Packers, beating the Cowboys on the road and losing Week 16 at home to Washington 23-10. The pressure was sure on New York with Dallas winning on the road at Tampa Bay 38-15 Saturday. Eli Manning has really played his heart out this whole season, but it might be pushed to the wayside and forgotten about if the Giants lose to the Jets at "home" this Sunday and/or win at home over Dallas in Week 17. The only advantage that they have here is that both games are technically at home, since they share Met Life Stadium with the New York Jets, formerly known as The Meadowlands.

Arizona Cardinals (7-7): The Cardinals have snuck up on the Wild Card fight, but might have a tough chance to have a fighting chance. This Saturday, on Christmas Eve, Arizona hits the road for a playoff-type test, playing AFC Wild Card-hopeful Cincinnati. In their final regular season game, they'll try to keep Seattle out of the Wild Card hunt, hosting the Seahawks. The only chance that Arizona has to be the 6-seed in the NFC playoffs is winning their final two regular season games and Detroit, Chicago, Seattle and the Giants all losing their final two games. I just honestly don't see all four of those teams losing out and the Cardinals sneaking in, especially with John Skelton under center, despite him having a 4-1 record as a starter in place of injured Kevin Kolb.

Philadelphia Eagles (6-8): I can't believe that they're even talking about the Eagles' playoff chances, but because of what happened Sunday with the Giants losing, Philadelphia has been thrown into the playoff mix talks. At 6-8, they're more of a far cry, but there are some scenarios that could help bump them into the playoffs, shocking the football world, after the 3-6 start that they've had so far. This week they head to Dallas and will try to steal a game from the Cowboys. Week 17, they'll host the Redskins, who aren't about to allow the Eagles to enter the playoffs in this manner. But, like I said above, it is more than likely not going to happen for Andy Reid's team. Even if they beat Dallas this week and Dallas loses at the Giants, New York would have to lose this Saturday to the Jets.

It can still happen, but chances are looking dim, but time will tell and we'll know this weekend a little better idea of what's going on with the NFC.

How I think the NFC playoff picture will look:
1- Green Bay Packers (15-1)
2- New Orleans Saints (13-3)
3- San Francisco 49ers (13-3)
4- New York Giants (9-7)**
5- Atlanta Falcons (10-6)
6- Dallas Cowboys (9-7)**
**I predict that Dallas will beat the Eagles and Giants will beat the Jets in Week 16 and I also think that the Giants will take the NFC East in Week 17 with a home win over the Cowboys.

The AFC Playoff Picture

It didn't seem like it for most of the season, but New England will most likely finish the regular season at 13-3 and the one-seed in the AFC playoffs. Baltimore just swapped Pittsburgh seeds after the Steelers' Monday Night Football embarassment at San Francisco 20-3 evened both at 10-4. Baltimore holds the tie-breaker over Pittsburgh by sweeping the season series. Houston won its first ever AFC South division title with a 10-4 record. They'll face Indianapolis this Thursday on the road in prime time and host Tennessee in Week 17 to try and finish a perfect 6-0 in the division. Currently, Denver leads the AFC West with an 8-6 record, but that could very well change in the final two weeks of the regular season. That all said, the first five playoff spots are taken and it's going to be a dogfight for the sixth, literally.

Here is the current AFC playoff picture:

#1 New England 13-3 (AFC East champs)

#2 Baltimore Ravens 10-4 (lead AFC North)

#3 Houston Texans 10-4 (AFC South champs)

#4 Denver Broncos 8-6 (lead AFC West)

#5 Pittsburgh Steelers 10-4

#6 New York Jets 8-6 (wins tiebreaker over Bengals, because of better win % in common games)

>>The Jets control their playoff destiny, but that is one of the more cliche` phrases at this time of the year and it is the honest truth. The have a tough home game against the Giants, whom they share their stadium with in New Jersey. It's a game that could go either way. I think they'll lose this game, but win Week 17 at Miami, in what I consider a "trap game" and a tough road test for Rex Ryan's squad. Miami could play the spoiler role and beat the Jets. There's no reason why this can't happen to the Jets. The Dolphins have won three of five, including two wins over Buffalo and a key win over playoff-hopeful Oakland. My take on the Jets: they will back into the playoffs with a 9-7 record, losing this week to the Giants and winning on the road at Miami.

Other vying for AFC  Wild Card playoff spots...

Cincinnati Bengals (8-6): The Bengals would have to beat a surging Arizona Cardinal team this Saturday and AFC North leader Baltimore at home Week 17. This won't be an easy task at all. John Skelton has a record of 4-1 in the Cardinals' last five games. Baltimore is reeling just a little bit with their surprising 34-14 drubbing at upbeat San Diego this past week. The Ravens will probably take out their frustrations on the Browns at home this week and clinch the AFC North for sure Week 17 at Cincinnati, keeping the Bengals out of playoff contention.

Tennessee Titans (7-7): The Titans could have lost out on their chances at at Wild Card spot this past weekend. The Indianapolis Colts shocked the football world by earning their first victory of the season over Tennessee 27-13 Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. They had an outside chance before this loss to the one-win Colts, but now those thoughts are dwindling away. There's a small chance for a Wild Card berth with wins in their final two games vs. Jacksonville and at Houston. The Texans have already clinched the North, but would probably rather keep the Titans out of the playoffs really.

Oakland Raiders (7-7): Oakland could have also played itself out of playoff contention, like the Titans, with their loss at home Sunday to Detroit, 28-27. Like every other team that is trying to make the playoffs, the Raiders are going to be throwing the kitchen sink at their final two opponents of 2011. They head to Kansas City for a big road test this week and host San Diego the following week. The Chiefs spoiled the Green Bay Packers' quest for a perfect season with their 19-14 win at home vs. the World Champion Packers. KC might still have that spoiler mentality this week when Oakland comes to Arrowhead. I honestly seed the Raiders finishing 8-8 and out of the playoffs. Carson Palmer is good, but he came to the team a little too late to totally change the offensive and overall dynamic of the great, late Al Davis' storied franchise.

San Diego Chargers (7-7): Norv Turner is literally coaching for his job every week. His Chargers are 3-2 in the past five games, including winners of three straight at Jacksonville, at home against Buffalo and thwarting the Ravens 34-14 this past Sunday night. It might not be too late to have the playoff push that they're having. Phillip Rivers is the QB of my fantasy football team that will probably win the playoffs for me and the league as a whole. Granted, it has very little to do with Rivers' success trying to guide his team into the postseason, but it was worth giving my fantasy football team a little plug.

Kansas City Chiefs (6-8): The Chiefs are the last team that people expected to end the Green Bay Packers' 19-game winning streak. They didn't care on Sunday and it showed on Sunday with a 19-14 upset of Green Bay and their perfect season. Incoming, are the talks of Kansas City still being in the hunt for the playoffs...WHAT??? There are still some big factors that would have to help the Chiefs stun the NFL and make the playoffs. All they have to do is win at home against Oakland this week and win Week 17 at Denver and AFC West-leading Tim Tebow's Broncos. Tough task? You bet! Will they do it? It's very possible, but it would take a pretty good two game span from newly starting QB Kyle Orton. Orton is new to the Chiefs' system, but not new to winning, as he went 21-12 with the Bears from 2005-08. He waasn't so good in Denver with a 12-21 stint in two-plus season. He's 1-0 in Kansas City and that one win was against the formerly 13-0 Packers...

Here is how I think the AFC playoff picture will look...

1- New England Patriots (13-3)

2- Baltimore Ravens (12-4)**

3- Houston Texans (11-5)

4- Denver Broncos (9-7)

5- Pittsburgh Steelers (12-4)**

6- New York Jets (9-7)

**Baltimore won the season series over Pittsburgh, which propelled them from the fifth to second seed.

As much as I'm not a fan of Tim Tebow, all he has to do is win at Buffalo and at home versus Kansas City. Yes, two tough games, despite those teams' records, but if he can win one of those games, they're in the playoffs and the media treats him more like the hero that he already is to the city of Denver.

Check back to my blog the first week in January for more on the NFL playoffs and how I'll pick those to come out.

Indiana Hoosier basketball fans are fully out of the woodwork...and very well should be

Indiana basketball fans finally decided to come out of the woodwork and be fans of their historic basketball program once again. There are too many proclaimed Indiana fans that haven't really been fans through the tough times the program has been through in recent seasons. It all has come to a complete head this past Saturday night in Bloomington with then-#1 ranked Kentucky in town.

Hoosier basketball fans haven't really been the support group that a program needs in times that they've had, especially the three seasons before this 2011-12 campaign that we're well into now. 

Indiana basketball fans were never a fan of former head coach Mike Davis and how he coached the Hoosiers. That was quite evident during his tenure in Bloomington. Davis made four NCAA Tournament appearances in his six seasons at IU. His biggest highlight at the helm of the Hoosiers was guiding the 2001-02 team to a National Runner-up finish, falling just short to Maryland in the National Championship game, 64-52.  Coach Davis was 114-79, winning just 59% of his games at IU. The one big problem that I, and most IU fans have with that season, is that Davis blazed the NCAA Tournament trail looking like a great coach. What he was doing, was winning games with Bob Knight's recruits. The players that made a difference during that NCAA Tournament run were all brought in by Knight, so Indiana fans really don't give that much credit to Davis. It could go either way really. Knight's players and Davis' coaching both almost added up to Indiana's 6th National Championship in the university's history. It was quite a feat for Davis, who was in his second year as head coach at IU.

After Davis was let go after his 2nd Round NCAA exit to Gonzago (90-80), despite going 19-12, former Oklahoma head coach Kelvin Sampson was brought in to hopefully get the Hoosiers over the hump.

Sampson's hiring was questioned from the get-go by the board of trustees, fans, students and the world of college basketball. He had been reported to have made 611 illegal phone calls to basketball recruits while coaching the Sooners. Those violations were reported to the NCAA and they followed Sampson to Bloomington. Though he was a successful coach in his brief stint coaching the Hoosiers to a 46-19 record, he got no further than the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament in those two seasons. Sampson exits after the 2007-08 season, despite a 25-8 record.

Enter Tom Crean. Most IU fans that I know have actually given Tom Crean a fair shot without criticizing his recruiting too much. Hoosiers are giving Crean a chance to "bring in his players" to help bring Indiana basketball back to the dominance that it once had. Crean came from Marquette University in Milwaukee. His highlighted moment as head coach of the Golden Eagles was leading them to the 2003 NCAA Final Four. Dwyane Wade was the star on that team for Crean.

Crean has done what it takes to start a basketball program over from scratch. Here's a quick look at IU's previous three seasons before this current undefeated start:
2008-09: 6-25
2009-10: 10-21
2010-11: 12-20

Just by looking at the records, his teams have made only slight improvements in his first three years. The administration at Indiana University has been very patient and I think they're figuring out that patience is a virtue and it's starting to pay off for their basketball program.

Let me get this out there. I am not an Indiana fan. I grew up a Notre Dame fan. I'll admit it as a college basketball junkie that I was pretty skeptical about this past Saturday's game against #1 Kentucky. Only a couple minutes into the game, it was obvious that Indiana wasn't going to lose. I give them full credit for continuing their pursuit to defeat #1 and make the college basketball nation realize that these Hoosiers were for real.

Prior to Saturday's upset of #1 Kentucky, Indiana's schedule wasn't highlighted with too many marquee opponents to start the young season. Before the season started, a Sunday night matchup on Thanksgiving weekend with back-to-back defending National Runner-up Butler looked like a much bigger game on the slate. Butler lost two of it's stars, guard Shelvin Mack and forward Matt Howard, to the NBA during the off-season. Their first big road test was at North Carolina State in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, taking down the host Wolfpack, 86-75.

Scheduling teams like Stony Brook, Chattanooga, Evansville, Savannah State, Gardner-Webb,  Stetson, Howard and Maryland-Baltimore County aren't really going to help that much when it comes time to start the Big Ten conference schedule after Christmas. There's nothing like a true road test than heading to East Lansing to play Michigan State at the Breslin Center.

The next test for Indiana shouldn't be that tough. I'm going to be embarassed how badly IU will beat my Notre Dame Fighting Irish this Saturday. The two will play in the second game of the "Close the Gap: Crossroads Classic" at Conseco Fieldhouse. Purdue and Butler square off at 2 p.m., followed by the Hoosiers and Irish at 4:30 p.m.

Indiana is a team that's just deep enough and could get deeper if need be throughout the season. With a starting lineup of guards Jordan Hulls (11.2 pts, 52.9% on 3's), Verdell Jones III (50% on 3's) and Victor Oladipo (12.3 pts), Christian Watford (11.4 pts, 48.1% on 3's) and freshman phenom Cody Zeller (15 pts, 7.4 reb, 65.8 FG's) man the frontcourt. Will Sheehey just might be one of, if not, the best sixth men in the country. Daniel Moore, Derek Elston, Tom Pritchard and Matt Roth also provide plenty of depth.

Crean's squad entered the Top 25 for the first time in quite a while this week at #18 in the Associated Press poll and #20 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll.

Things are on the rise for Indiana basketball. This is a great thing for IU, the Big Ten conference and college basketball as a whole. Such a storied program deserves to be back at the top of its game and be a headline again. Tom Crean is 9-0 here in 2011-12, but began his journey as the IU head coach with a three-year record of 28-66. 

As big of a college basketball fan that I am, I can honestly say that I'm glad to see Indiana back to their winning ways. I wish that Notre Dame could pull off the upset this Saturday at Conseco Fieldhouse, but the odds of that are pretty small. Notre Dame has no one to matchup with Zeller and the Hoosiers' quickness overall might stymie the Irish and turn the game into a straight up blowout, unfortunately. 

To all of my friends that are IU fans and graduates, you all should be proud of what you witnessed Saturday for 40 minutes of basketball. Your hearts were pounding as Verdell Jones III drove just inside the three-point arc and dished to Christian Watford. Watford sails a three from the left wing with 0.7 left, erupting the Assembly Hall. Game, Hoosiers. Indiana 73, #1 Kentucky 72.

Sectional Championship Friday...by the numbers

We're getting an even better idea, during Sectional Championship week, of who will be moving on to the Regional, Semi-State and possibly the State Championship games. It becomes that much harder really, to predict these winners each week. The stakes are higher and it doesn't matter what a team's record is. Every team "started the playoffs 0-0" and it's a whole new season, so to speak. Some consider it quest to keep going what was going right during the first 9 games. Others, treat the playoffs as a way to start anew and regain what they really wanted during the regular season.

So far, predicting the playoffs, my overall record is 196-41 (5A=41-6; 4A=38-9; 3A=41-6; 2A=40-7; 1A=36-11).  

Below are my picks and a little inside the numbers look at each game.

5A Sectional 1
Crown Point (8-3) at 5A #12 Merrillville (8-3)
--Crown Point won 6 of 7; Merrillville won 7 straight and beat Bulldogs 21-20 in Week 3
My pick...MERRILLVILLE
5A Sectional 2
5A #3 Penn (11-0) at Carroll (Allen) (8-3)
--Penn beat 6 ranked opponents; Carroll won 7 of last 9 after starting season 0-2
My pick...PENN
5A Sectional 3
Fort Wayne Snider (7-4) at Kokomo (9-2)
--Snider won 5 of last 7; Kokomo won 9 straight, upset #4 Homestead 44-41 in Sect. Semifinals
My pick...FORT WAYNE SNIDER
5A Sectional 4
Fishers (8-3) at 5A #6 Hamilton Southeastern (10-1)
--Fishers won 6 of 7; HSE won Week 2 at Fishers 28-7, won 8 straight, including 3 shutouts
My pick...HAMILTON SOUTHEASTERN

5A Sectional 5
5A #1 Warren Central (11-0) at 5A #2 Carmel (10-1)
--WC won Week 7 at Lucas Oil, 22-20; Carmel outscoring opponents 498-107, 4 shutouts
My pick...CARMEL
5A Sectional 6
5A #5 Ben Davis (9-2) at 5A #9 Avon (10-1)
--BD won 6 of 7; Avon won 10 straight after losing at HSE 27-17 in Week 1
My pick...AVON
5A Sectional 7
Columbus North (8-3) at Center Grove (7-4)
--CN won 8 of 10 since losing opener 58-17 to Carmel; CG lost 3 straight enter the playoffs
My pick...COLUMBUS NORTH
5A Sectional 8
5A #7 Castle (11-0) at Bedford North Lawrence (8-3)
--Castle outscoring opp. 486-164; BNL has won 7 of their last 9
My pick...CASTLE

4A Sectional 9
Griffith (8-3) at 4A #5 Hammond Morton (10-1)
--Griffth won 6 of 7 after 2-2 start; HM won season opener at Griffith 21-14
My pick...HAMMOND MORTON
4A Sectional 10
Mishawaka (7-4) at 4A #12 South Bend Washington (8-3)
--Cavemen won 6 of 8, started 0-2; Washington only won 4 of last 7 games
My pick...SOUTH BEND WASHINGTON
4A Sectional 11
4A #16 Concord (9-2) at Northwood (8-3)
--Concord won 9 of 10 since Week 1 loss at East Noble; Northwood lost Week 3 at Concord, 9-7
My pick...CONCORD
4A Sectional 12
4A #10 Fort Wayne Dwenger (7-4) at 4A #4 Leo (11-0)
--Dwenger won 4 of 6; Leo won 23 of 25 games dating back to 2010
My pick...FORT WAYNE DWENGER

4A Sectional 13
4A #6 Pendleton Heights (10-1) at 4A #2 New Palestine (11-0)
--PH won 8 straight since loss at New Pal in Week 3, 34-21; NP won 20 of 22 in last 2 years
My pick...NEW PALESTINE
4A Sectional 14
Greenwood (8-3) vs. 4A #1 Indianapolis Cathedral (8-3) at Indianapolis Arlington HS
--Greenwood won 8 of 10; Cathedral won 8 of 9 since starting 0-2.
My pick...CATHEDRAL
4A Sectional 15
Franklin County (9-2) at 4A #3 Columbus East (10-1)
--Frank.Co. won 6 of 7; Columbus East won 9 in a row since Week 2 loss to Columbus North, 45-40
My pick...COLUMBUS EAST
4A Sectional 16
Jasper (7-3) at Evansville Central (6-5)
--Jasper won 4 of 5 after 2 losses; won 5 of 7 since 41-14 loss at 5A #7 Castle in Week 3
My pick...JASPER

3A Sectional 17
3A #5 Mishawaka Marian (9-2) vs. 3A #4 South Bend St. Joe's (9-2) at Clay Field
--Marian won 7 straight since losing to Penn and SB Clay; St. Joe's lost 25-21 at Marian, Week 6
My pick...SOUTH BEND ST. JOE'S
3A Sectional 18
Garrett (9-2) at 3A #8 Jimtown (9-2)
--won 3 straight after losing to S. Adams/Leo; Jimmies won 3 straight since loss to 2A #4 Bremen
My pick...JIMTOWN
3A Sectional 19
Bellmont (5-6) at 3A #12 Western (9-2)
--Bellmont outscored 2 sect. opps. 85-14; Western won 8 of 9 since Week 2 loss at Eastbrook
My pick...WESTERN
3A Sectional 20
3A #3 West Lafayette (10-1) at 3A #11 Hamilton Heights (9-2)
--WL held 9 opponents under 10 points; HH won 3 after losing to Northwestern and Western
My pick...WEST LAFAYETTE

3A Sectional 21
3A #1 Indianapolis Chatard (9-2) at Brebeuf Jesuit (6-5)
--Chatard won 6 of 7 since Week 4 losss to Cathedral; BJ lost to Chatard 31-7 in Week 1
My pick...CHATARD
3A Sectional 22
Greensburg (6-5) at Indian Creek (7-4)
--Greensburg won 4 of 5; Indian Creek won 5 straigh since Week 5 loss at Milan
My pick...INDIAN CREEK
3A Sectional 23
3A #10 Heritage Hills (9-2) at 3A #13 Corydon Central (9-2)
--HH outscored Sect. 23 opps. 114-0; CC avenged only 2 regular season losses in Sectional wins
My pick...HERITAGE HILLS
3A Sectional 24
Evansville Memorial (6-5) at Vincennes Lincoln (5-6)
--EM won 4 of 5, only losing to Castle; VL won 3 straight after losing 3 by combined 139-23
My pick...EVANSVILLE MEMORIAL

2A Sectional 25
2A #13 Wheeler (11-0) at North Newton (6-5)
--Wheeler outscoring opp. 450-55, 5 shutouts; NN won 5 straight after starting 1-5
My pick...WHEELER
2A Sectional 26
Lewis Cass (5-6) at 2A #4 Bremen (11-0)
--LC won 4 of 5, started 1-5; Bremen outscoring opp. 459-133, won 18 of 19 back to last year
My pick...BREMEN
2A Sectional 27
2A #6 Churubusco (11-0) at 2A #1 Fort Wayne Luers (9-1)
--'Busco won 23 of 25 in last 2 years; Luers won 7 of 9 wins scoring 41-plus points
My pick...FORT WAYNE LUERS
2A Sectional 28
Tipton (7-4) at 2A #7 Northwestern (10-1)
--Tipton won 4 straight, has 4-0 road record; NW won 7 in a row since Week 4 loss to Western
My pick...NORTHWESTERN

2A Sectional 29
2A #15 Guerin Catholic (8-3) at 2A #12 Shenandoah (11-0)
--GC won 3 straight since Week 7 loss to Chatard; Shenandoah outscored opp. 433-85
My pick...SHENANDOAH
2A Sectional 30
South Putnam (9-2) at 2A #3 North Putnam (11-0)
--South Putnam won 7 straight since Week 4; North Putnam won regular season matchup 48-6
My pick...NORTH PUTNAM
2A Sectional 31
Paoli (9-2) at Triton Central (6-5)
--Paoli won 4 of 5 since Week 6 loss to Corydon Central; TC won 2 after 3 losses entering playoffs
My pick...TRITON CENTRAL
2A Sectional 32
2A #5 Evansville Mater Dei (10-1) at 2A #14 Southridge (9-2)
--Mater Dei's only loss is to 5A #7 Castle (51-48, 2 ot); Southridge has 2 four-game win streaks
My pick...EVANSVILLE MATER DEI

1A Sectional 33
1A #8 South  Newton (10-1) at Culver (7-4)
--S.Newton won 8 since Week 3 loss at #2 Pioneer, 41-14; Culver outscoring Sectional opp. 68-20
My pick...SOUTH NEWTON
1A Sectional 34
Caston (8-3) at 1A #1 Lafayette Central Catholic (11-0)
--Caston won 4 straight; LCC outscored opp. 488-81, 40 straight wins and back-to-back 1A titles
My pick...LAFAYETTE CENTRAL CATHOLIC
1A Sectional 35
1A #11 North Miami (8-3) at Adams Central (6-5)
--NM won 7 of 9 since Week 2 loss to Northwestern; AC won 4 straight since 2-5 start
My pick...NORTH MIAMI
1A Sectional 36
1A #6 Sheridan (8-3) at 1A #4 Adams Central (10-1)
--Sheridan won 8 of 9, 3-1 road record; South Adams only loss is to 4A #4 Leo, 30-6 in Week 5
My pick...SHERIDAN

1A Sectional 37
Northeastern (6-5) vs. 1A #7 Indianapolis Scecina (8-3) at Key Stadium, University of Indianapolis
--NE only won 4 of last 7; Scecina won 5 of 6 w/ big road wins at Triton Central/Lutheran
My pick...INDIANAPOLIS SCECINA
1A Sectional 38
North Vermillion (6-5) at 1A #10 Rockville (9-2)
--NV lost Week 7 to Rockville 38-7; Rox won 7 of 8, only losses to S. Putnam, Fountain Central
My pick...ROCKVILLE
1A Sectional 39
1A #5 Milan (10-1) at North Decatur (4-6)
--Milan won at N. Decatur 41-28 in Week 5; ND did not win consecutive games all season!
My pick...MILAN
1A Sectional 40
1A #3 Linton-Stockton (11-0) at North Daviess (7-4)
--L-S outscored opp. 627-110 (57 ppg); ND lost Week 6 to Linton-Stockton, 81-20
My pick...LINTON-STOCKTON

Check out my blog next week as I preview the Regional matchups!

IHSAA Sectional Semifinals

We're already at the point in the IHSAA football playoffs that we can start to see how each bracket of the five classes are going to pan out and who will be advancing to next Friday's 40 sectional championships. There are storylines behind a majority of the 80 games slated to kickoff this Friday night around the state of Indiana. Of the 160 teams remaining in the Sectional Semifinals, 58 are ranked in their respective classes. Their are 134 of the 160 (84%) that have a .500 record or better.

More on playoff teams, by the numbers...
-- 13 undefeated teams (5A: Penn, Homestead, Warren Central, Castle; 4A: Leo, New Palestine; 2A: Wheeler, Bremen, Churubusco, Shenandoah, North Putnam; 1A: Lafayette Central Catholic, Linton-Stockton)

-- 25 under .500 teams (5A: Goshen (4-6), Lafayette Jeff (3-7); 4A: South Bend Riley (3-7), Hobart (3-7), Plymouth (3-7), Lebanon (4-6), Connersville (3-7), Evansville Harrison (2-8); 3A: Bellmont (4-6), North Montgomery (4-5), West Vigo (4-6), Salem (2-8), Gibson Southern (4-6); 2A: Manchester (3-7), Lewis Cass (4-6), Delphi (1-9), Park Tudor (3-7), Monrovia (3-7); 1A: North White (4-6), Fremont (3-7), Lapel (2-8), Cloverdale (3-7), North Decatur (3-6), Edinburgh (3-7), Wood Memorial (3-7).

More of the Inside the Numbers next week in my Sectional Championship predictions.

Sectional Semifinals predictions:
CLASS 5A
Sectional 1
Crown Point over Valparaiso
5A #12 Merrillville over Chesterton
Sectional 2
5A #3 Penn over Elkhart Memorial
Carroll (Allen) over Goshen
Sectional 3
Fort Wayne Snider over Fort Wayne North
5A #4 Homestead over Kokomo
Sectional 4
Fishers over Lafayette Jefferson
5A # 6 Hamilton Southeastern over Westfield

Sectional 5
5A #1 Warren Central over Indianapolis Tech
5A #2 Carmel over 5A # 8 Lawrence Central
Sectional 6
5A #5 Ben Davis over 5A #10 Brownsburg
5A # 9 Avon over Pike
Sectional 7
Columbus North over Martinsville
Center Grove over Bloomington North
Sectional 8
5A #7 Castle over Evansville North
5A #13 Floyd Central over Bedford North Lawrence

CLASS 4A
Sectional 9
Griffith over Hammond
4A # 5 Hammond Morton over East Chicago Central
Sectional 10
Mishawaka over South Bend Riley
4A #12 South Bend Washington over Hobart
Sectional 11
4A #16 Concord over East Noble
Northwood over Plymouth
Sectional 12
4A #9 Fort Wayne Dwenger over 4A #10 New Haven
4A #4 Leo over Marion

Sectional 13
4A #2 New Palestine over Delta
4A #6 Pendleton Heights over Greenfield-Central
Sectional 14
Greenwood over Lebanon
4A #1 Indianapolis Cathedral over 4A #8 Indianapolis Roncalli
Sectional 15
Franklin County over Connersville
4A #3 Columbus East over 4A #7 East Central
Sectional 16
4A #11 Jasper over Evansville Harrison
4A #13 Evansville Reitz over Evansville Central

CLASS 3A
Sectional 17
3A #4 South Bend St. Joe's over Culver Academy
3A #5 Mishawaka Marian over John Glenn
Sectional 18
Garrett over Whitko
3A #8 Jimtown over 3A #15 Lakeland
Sectional 19
Yorktown over Bellmont
3A #12 Western over Mississinewa
Sectional 20
3A #11 Hamilton Heights over North Montgomery
3A #3 West Lafayette over Western Boone

Sectional 21
3A #1 Indianapolis Chatard over Danville
Brebeuf Jesuit over West Vigo
Sectional 22
Edgewood over Greensburg
Indian Creek over Brown County
Sectional 23
3A #10 Heritage Hills over Salem
3A #13 Corydon Central over Charlestown
Sectional 24
Evansville Memorial over Washington
Vincennes Lincoln over Gibson Southern

CLASS 2A
Sectional 25
2A #13 Wheeler over Rensselaer Central
River Forest over North Newton
Sectional 26
2A #4 Bremen over Manchester
Rochester over Lewis Cass
Sectional 27
2A #6 Churubusco over Madison-Grant
2A #1 Fort Wayne Luers over Eastside
Sectional 28
2A #7 Northwestern over Delphi
Tipton over Benton Central

Sectional 29
2A #15 Guerin Catholic over Heritage Christian
2A #12 Shenandoah over Centerville
Sectional 30
South Putnam over Park Tudor
2A #3 North Putnam over 2A #11 Indianapolis Cardinal Ritter
Sectional 31
Paoli over Monrovia
Triton Central over Lawrenceburg
Sectional 32
2A #5 Evansville Mater Dei over Sullivan
2A #14 Southridge over South Spencer

CLASS 1A
Sectional 33
1A #8 South Newton over Winamac
Culver over West Central
Sectional 34
1A #15 Clinton Central over Caston
1A #1 Lafayette Central Catholic over North White
Sectional 35
1A #11 North Miami over Northfield
Adams Central over Fremont
Sectional 36
1A #12 Union City over 1A #4 South Adams
1A #6 Sheridan over Lapel

Sectional 37
Cambridge City Lincoln over Northeastern
1A #7 Indianapolis Scecina over Knightstown
Sectional 38
North Vermillion over Cloverdale
1A #10 Rockville over Covington
Sectional 39
North Decatur over Edinburgh
1A #9 Indianapolis Lutheran over  1A #5 Milan
Sectional 40
North Daviess over Wood Memorial
1A #3 Linton-Stockton over Eastern Greene

I would have to say that I was pretty impressed with my record for the Sectional First Round games. Going 128-27 is a pretty good number! Hopefully I can do better this week.