What a weekend! As the seasons are winding down, the men’s teams are fighting for conference tourney seedings while the women’s teams renew old rivalries to serve some cold dishes of revenge. And if you are Hannah Hidalgo, you are serving it with a spork! Here is a recap of the weekend.

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Many favored teams did their job this weekend, but some lost ground. Here are some highlights.

ACC WBB: They had their chances:

• #21 North Carolina 74 - #12 Duke 69: Leading the ACC at 16-1, the Duke Blue Devils went into Carmichael Thunderdome for an old fashioned Tobacco Road grudge match, but could not close the door on the Tar Heels, who were seeking revenge (and maybe a top 16 seed with home court advantage on the line.) They had their chances at the end but strong free throws in the final minute kept the game out of reach. If they meet in the ACC tournament, it will be in the final. Let’s hope it happens!

  

• Notre Dame 65 - #10 Louisville 62: It is known. These programs are rivals. They don’t like each other. With a Duke loss earlier in the day, the Cardinals now had a chance to take a share of the regular season title away from the Blue Devils. But Hannah Hidalgo said, “Hold my Guinness” and took over a tough fought battle against the home team. There were lead changes. Hannah was even in foul trouble, earning her 4th with 8:32 left. She sat for 2.5 minutes and the small Irish lead vanished to a four-point deficit by the time she returned. However, even with four fouls, she managed to ‘spork’ a steal with 14 seconds left to run the clock down and put the game out of reach. Hannah’s final line was 30 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 steals — her third game this season with 30+ points, 5+ rebounds, 5+ assists, and 5+ steals. She is the only player in the country to have done that. More on Hannah in CoB Saturday School below.

MBB: The Saints Come Marching In:

• Saint Mary's 70 - #9 Gonzaga 59: In what could be the last regular season meeting of these hated WCC rivals, the Gaels Gone Wild from behind the arc as Mikey Lewis scored 21 of his 31 total points from behind the arc to capture the win and part of the regular season crown from said rivals. If the Zags had won, they would have won the conference outright, but with a loss, they have to share the title. It must be weird for both teams to get trophies after the game and neither of them were just participation trophies.

• #15 Saint John’s 89- Villanova 57: As expected, St. Giovani's Red Sauce head coach Rick Pitino had his squad ready to rumble in the Garden against Philly's Future Knicks. The shellacking the Johnnies took at UConn last week was going to be an anomaly. All week was speculation on whether or not Pitino would wear his white suit for the white out at MSG…which he did. Meanwhile, Pope Leo's private secretary, Villanova coach Kevin Willard, made it very clear that his new papal boss is much better than his old boss, saying working for Pitino was a "miserable experience."

• #23 Saint Louis 91 - Duquesne 76: This game is not much of a story. At 16-13, the other Dukies are really more in the Magnolia Cupcake league for a team like Saint Louis. After all, the Atlantic 10's team with the most googled mascot has been ripping through opponents all season. But after a late surge from VCU, they are only leading the conference by one game. Both teams have 2 games left in their regular seasons with both playing George Mason. However, the Billikens does welcome basement-dwelling Loyola Chicago to end the season, so unless they take a massive stumble, the conference championship is all but clinched.

Big XII MBB: Lastly, there is a true pecking order in the Big XII after a gauntlet of ranked teams all battled. First it was #2 Houston who lost to #4 Arizona and then #14 Kansas. But then Kansas in turn fell to now #2 Arizona, raising the Wildcats back to the top of the standings. Meanwhile, #4 Iowa State was minding their own business until they were Raided by #16 Texas Tech on Saturday, losing 82-73. That's ok, because the Cyclones have a redemption game on Big Monday at…#2 Arizona. (sigh). Needless to say, that didn't end well. Iowa State is now 3-3 in their last 6. Such is life in the Big XII.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: Miami of OH is just 2 games away from going to Disneyworld!

• #21 Miami of Ohio! (29-0 overall, 16-0 MAC!): Bye weekend

  • Next: Tuesday 3/3 at Toledo of Ohio (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn did it and ran undefeated through the regular season.

• #1 UConn Huskies (31-0 overall, 20-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Sunday: UConn 85 - St. John’s 49

  • Next: Saturday 3/7 at TBD - Big East Tournament (12p, Peacock)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 87 - D3 NCAA Tourney starts Thursday and the Violets are the #1 overall seed … of course! Here comes the 3-peat!!

• #1 New York University Violets (87-0 overall, 25-0 this season, 14-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Saturday: NYU 80 - Brandeis University 58

  • Next: Friday 3/6 vs. UMaine-Farmington (7:45p) First Round!!

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violets’ Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

Hannah Hidalgo is not burdened. She is auditioning.

Ok, I need to bring this back in a bit. I know I write a lot about Hannah Hidalgo in this publication, but I just find her game so inspiring as an absolute fan of the game. She is the type of player whose games get circled on my calendar. And, this season, it got hard to watch at times. Not because if her performance - her numbers are all up - but because I was spoiled with the last two seasons with the team that surrounded her. After many graduations and transfers, I didn’t expect a lot from this team this season, so I just sat back and enjoyed the Hannah show.

After the win at Louisville on Sunday, I have swapped my rose-colored glasses for ones in Notre Dame gold.

Back in January, I wrote that Hannah Hidalgo looked tired. Worn down by a brutal season where she had to step up and be the complete engine. Let me be clear, I don’t want to criticize this roster — it’s a good roster. It’s just not the Miles, Citron, King, Westbeld, Hidalgo roster. She needed to play way more minutes than usual. She needed to be both the defensive leader -and- the offensive leader. As expected, she came for the challenge, but it looked to be wearing her out at times.

I saw this as a problem. This was not sustainable and how long would Hannah want to burden this pressure. Notre Dame isn’t winning the title this year — of course I can’t predict the future, but I’m pretty certain of that. And while next year’s team has a loaded incoming freshman class worth getting excited about, a title then feels unlikely too as freshmen need to adapt to the next level. My logic had me wondering the dreaded question: will Hannah Hidalgo say “I want a championship” and jump headfirst into the portal? There is not a team out there that wouldn’t try to get her.

Let’s be honest — I don’t want her to go. If she did, she would break no more ND program records. She would not rise her name into the rafters next to her coach Niele Ivey. She would no longer be a legend for this historic program. All would be reset. She might break national records elsewhere, but when you move, you reset all metrics to zero. I get the lure of a title with one year left. But to walk away from that legacy is a steep price.

However, Cassie Chantel (aka Coach C.) completely gave me a new point of view. In her Instagram post today, Coach reframed it entirely, and she’s right: the lesser roster isn’t a burden. It’s an audition. An audition for the next level. It’s an opportunity to shine under adversity. She gets to look at the people who make draft picks and say, “See? I got this.” It’s the feature, not the bug.

Down four on the road with foul trouble? Got it. Banked a three at the buzzer? Got it. Need a steal to stop the No. 10 ranked Cardinals from tying the game? You bet! Open layup with 14 seconds left, chose to run clock instead? Naturally.

That’s not a tired player. That’s a leader who understands this game with high-Q. That’s a player building her case, one impossible situation at a time. I misread the locker room. Hannah Hidalgo knew exactly what she was doing.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

The final week of the men’s season wraps this week, while the conference tournaments start up for the majors on the women’s side.

MBB:

• Tuesday - 7p: Clemson at #17 North Carolina (ESPN)

• Tuesday - 7p: Toledo at #19 Miami of OH (ESPN+I Infoulable Watch!!

• Tuesday - 7p: George Mason at VCU (CBSSN)

• Tuesday - 7p: Kentucky at Texas A&M (ESPN2)

• Tuesday - 9p: BYU at Cincinnati (ESPN2)

• Thursday - 8p: #3 Michigan at Iowa (Peacock)

• Friday - 9p: #19 Miami of OH at Ohio of OH (ESPN2) Infoulable Watch 2!

WBB: Mostly conference tourneys this week. Please check conference schedule for specifics.

• Thursday - 11a: Clemson at Virginia (ACCN)

• Thursday - 12p: USC at Washington (B1G)

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! March is HERE!

• 12 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 16 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 32 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…and the end of the regular season for the women’s game! This will be fun!!

It’s finally upon us. We are making that last turn out of March Eve and into March proper — well, the month of March, that is. We all know that for the faithful of the Church of Bracketology, March is a state of mind. But for the rest of the world, it’s the 3rd entry on the Gregorian calendar.

Regardless of how you look at it, this is the time where the season really pumps up the volume. We watch the contenders separate from the pretenders, all while eating chicken tenders... that’s how we practice.

Stories are being constructed into predictions by pundits all around the media world on who falls into each category. Many of these picks tend to be cold takes — nobody wants to be the wrong one come Selection Sunday.

One of those stories emerged this week after #15 St. John’s traveled to a sold-out PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford to take on long-time conference rival #6 UConn on Wednesday night.

By the score, you would not have known this was a top-15 men’s game. With a gap this large, you might have thought this was the UConn Women’s score. The Huskies weathered the Red Storm with a final of 72-40. That is correct — a 32-point spread.

The day after, pundits hit the roundtables to declare UConn unstoppable. After all, they dismantled the #15 team in the country, their only real competition in an already thin Big East.

But when you look at the numbers, was this a scene of UConn dominance — or St. John’s not catching the correct bus to the game?

Let’s start with UConn. Going into Wednesday night, the Huskies were averaging 79.2 points per game and shooting 48.4% from the field. Against the Johnnies? They scored 72 and shot 47.5%. In both categories, that is below their season average. UConn was ordinary. St. John’s just happened to be worse.

Meanwhile, the Red Storm shot just 19.6% from the field — and after Zuby Ejiofor’s layup 2 minutes and 32 seconds into the second half, St. John’s didn’t make another field goal for the remaining 17 and a half minutes of the game.

So maybe it was UConn’s suffocating defense — let’s look: Turnovers were low on both sides — UConn with 5, St. John’s with 8. Rebounds were nearly even at 41-37. This wasn’t a defensive stranglehold. It was simply the Johnnies being unable to put the ball in the basket. And that is what I witnessed — a team who could make moves, but laid bricks like they were in a brotherhood of masons.

Not to take anything away from the Huskies. They were ready, they did the work, and they showed up when it mattered. But this was not a coronation. This was St. John’s not coming to play. If we know anything about Rick Pitino’s work, they will come out Saturday against Villanova ready to prove this was an anomaly.

The point is, it’s easy to look at a box score and make a lazy assessment. But if you want to be ready for some serious bracket banter this March, it’s just as important for us to watch the games as it is for them to play them.

Go Defense!

3 for 3 for the 3rd Month

Long before we started Saturday Services, we had Saturday morning cartoons. They were fun, crazy, and educational. For those who remember, it was Schoolhouse Rock that taught us that 3 is the magic number. Then it was De La Soul that sampled it and turned it into scripture.

On the eve of the 3rd month of the year, let’s look at 3 stories related to the number 3 currently happening in the world of hoops:

Fun: Illinois’ 3-point perfection:

In Thursday's game against #9 Iowa, the Fighting Illini women's team went a perfect 8-8 from behind the arc in the second half of the contest. It was actually 9-9 going back to the end of the first. Illinois would have been outmatched by the favored Hawkeyes in the sold out nest of Carver-Hawkeye Arena if the Heiden-Stuelke Show didn't bring in 46 of Iowa's 82 total points. Incidentally, it was Hannah Stuelke stepping up to make the free throw that sealed the victory. And did it with … wait for it … 3 seconds left. Abracadabra!

Crazy: Mikayla Blakes - three times a phenom:

By now, you would need to be living in a football only zone to not know about Vanderbilt’s sophomore sensation Mikayla Blakes. She is one of the major reasons that the ‘Ivy of I-40’ had all 3 major sports ranked this season: football, men’s and women’s hoops.

If you have not been watching her, you need to start, post haste. Through her remarkable scoring, she has led the Commodores in points in all but 4 of the 29 games of the season so far. Check out these 3 scoring highlights on this season:

1. In her last 3 games, she has scored 105 total points (35 vs. #24 Alabama, 35 vs. #16 Kentucky, 27 at Georgia).

2. Blakes has scored 30+ points in her last 5 games against ranked opponents, which eclipses Caitlin Clark’s 4 game streak.

3. Lastly, Blakes has scored 30+ points in 11 games this season. Think about that for a moment or 3.

Yes, she is once, twice, three times a phenom.

Educational: Duke needs to lose at NC State to win the National Title!

I admit, this isn’t mine, but I wish that it was. This is making the rounds through the hoopcasts with assists from the socials. Here is the premise. Since 1991, there have been 3 occasions when the Duke Men’s team won the national title in years where the Final Four is played in Indianapolis: 1991, 2010, 2015. Ok, but what is really the common thread here? In all 3 of those years, the Blue Devils lost at NC State during the regular season before marching their way through Bracketville. Fun, right? However, this year the Final Four is back in Indy. And…checks schedule…Duke travels to Raleigh next weekend. So, does that mean I have to root for Duke if I don’t want them to win a title….no, don’t make me a Faustian casualty.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: The RedHawks had a close call on Friday against Western Michigan after being down for 74% of the game, but managed to steal it on a made layup with .4 to go. Two more to go!

• #21 Miami of Ohio! (29-0 overall, 16-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami 74 - Eastern Michigan of Michigan 64

  • ✅ Friday: Miami 69 - Western Michigan of Michigan 67

  • Next: Tuesday 3/2 at Toledo of Ohio (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander! There is only one. And now, there is only one game left (in the regular season)

• #1 UConn Huskies (30-0 overall, 19-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Sunday: UConn 84 - Georgetown 52

  • Next: Sunday 3/1 at St. Johns (7:30p, TNT)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 86 - RECORD GROWING! One more to go!! No conference tournament for the UAA. NCAA Tourney starts next week!

• #1 New York University Violets (86-0 overall, 24-0 this season, 13-0 UAA):

  • Next: Saturday 2/28 vs. Brandeis Univ. (3p, FloSports) Reg. Season Finale!!

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violets’ Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

The Weekend Litany for the devoted Bracketologist

Games of The Service:

MBB: #1 Duke vs. #11 Virginia (Saturday 12p, ESPN) Virginia coach Ryan Odom has performed a miraculous turnaround in his first year in Charlottesville. Losing to newly #1 ranked team won’t hurt them come Selection Sunday, but if you remember 2018, Odom loves an upset and doesn’t want to wait until first weekend to upset this projected #1. Duke, meanwhile, won’t want to lose two in a row (see above). Or, 3 if I have my way.

WBB: #12 Duke at #21 North Carolina (Sunday 12p, ESPN) Last week we got to see Clemson’s Hannah Kohn break the hearts of Blue Devils around with her dagger piercing three to seal victory for the Tigers and snap Duke’s unblemished ACC record. Duke did something similar the week before with a late steal to take a win from their Tobacco Road foe North Carolina and breaking their 7-game win streak. Now, the Blue Devils come to Chapel Hill to end the season on a revenge game. This will go to the wire.

MBB: #2 Arizona vs. #14 Kansas (Saturday 4p, ESPN): Now that the Wildcats and Jayhawks got Houston out of the way, they can truly fight for conference dominance. Kansas has more to prove here, but it’s a home game for the Jayhawks so they have wind beneath their wings.

WBB: #13 Ohio State at #15 Michigan State (Sunday 12p, BTN) The final stretch of the B1G road is paved with ‘little numbers’ which have given both the Buckeyes and Spartans some problems as of late. Both squads match up well and will fight for that signature win to end the season. This should be back and forth until the end.

Other Bracketology Offerings:

MBB: An amazing slate of games with conference championships on the line!

• Saturday - Noon: #11 Virginia at #1 Duke (ESPN)

• Saturday - 2p: #24 Louisville at Clemson (ESPN2)

• Saturday - 2p: #25 Vanderbilt at Kentucky (ESPN)

• Saturday - 4p: #14 Kansas at #2 Arizona (ESPN)

• Saturday - 4p: #16 Texas Tech at #4 Iowa State (CBS)

• Saturday - 4p: #12 Nebraska at USC (BTN)

• Saturday - 5:30p: #19 BYU at West Virginia (FOX)

• Saturday - 6p: #17 Alabama at #22 Tennessee (ESPN)

• Saturday - 8p: Villanova at #15 St. John’s (FOX)

• Saturday - 8p: Duquesne at #23 Saint Louis (ESPN+)

• Saturday - 8p: Oregon State at Santa Clara (CBSSN)

• Saturday - 8:30p: #20 Arkansas at #7 Florida (ESPN)

• Saturday - 8:30p: Virginia Tech at #18 North Carolina (ESPN2)

• Saturday - 10p: Grand Canyon at Utah State (FS1)

• Saturday - 10:30p: #9 Gonzaga at Saint Mary’s (ESPN)

• Sunday - 1:30p: #8 Purdue at Ohio State (CBS)

• Sunday - 3:45p: #13 Michigan State at Indiana (CBS)

WBB: Regular Season ends this weekend!!! Conference Tournament seedings are on the line. Get ready for some good grudge matches as rivals get revenge games!!

• Saturday - 2:30p: #14 Maryland at #8 Michigan (FOX)

• Sunday - Noon: #4 Texas at #24 Alabama (SEC)

• Sunday - Noon: #12 Duke at #21 North Carolina (ESPN)

• Sunday - Noon: #13 Ohio State at #15 Michigan State (BTN)

• Sunday - Noon: Virginia Tech at Virginia (ACCN)

• Sunday - 2p: #3 South Carolina at #16 Kentucky (SEC)

• Sunday - 2p: #5 Vanderbilt at Tennessee (ESPN)

• Sunday - 2p: Cincinnati at #17 West Virginia (ESPN+)

• Sunday - 2p: #22 Minnesota at Illinois (BTN)

• Sunday - 3p: #9 Iowa at Wisconsin (B1G+)

• Sunday - 3p: Texas A&M at #19 Ole Miss (SEC)

• Sunday - 3p: Arizona State at #20 Texas Tech (ESPN+)

• Sunday - 3p: Florida at #23 Georgia (SEC)

• Sunday - 4p: #6 LSU at Mississippi State (SEC)

• Sunday - 4p: #7 Oklahoma at Missouri (SEC+)

• Sunday - 4p: Notre Dame at #10 Louisville (ESPN2)

• Sunday - 4p: #18 Baylor at #11 TCU (ESPN)

• Sunday - 6p: #2 UCLA at USC (FS1)

• Sunday - 7:30p: #1 UConn at St. John’s (TNT)

The Magnolia Bakery Invitational: We all love our desserts.

• WBB: George Mason at Duquesne: The Duchesses have fallen on hard times since the 1-2 Pittsburgh punch of Megan McConnell and Tess Myers. They can look at VCU below them in the standings and say, “what happened to us?” Mason, on the other hand, was an up-and-comer who has arrived. On their third consecutive 20-win season, they are currently tied with Rhode Island atop the Atlantic 10. They can’t afford to lose this one if they want a shot at separation. Expect them to roll.

Battle of Who Could Care Less: This one may require some No Doz.

• MBB: Rutgers at Maryland: Maryland surprised us with a horrendous first season under Buzz Williams. Rutgers constantly surprises us by staying in the Big Ten. The two teams that make the B1G bi-coastal experiment cover little ground and carry little interest in their region and none everywhere else.

• WBB: Penn State at Indiana: It’s been a long time since the Lady Lions have climbed out of The Valley. Dancing regularly in the 1990s, Penn State has racked up twice as many losing seasons as 20-win seasons since then. Indiana, usually a single digit seed in the NCAA tournament, is having one to forget this season. In like a Lady Lion, out with a whimper.

The Indeed.com Classic: Lose this one and you might need to revise your resume.

• MBB: Utah at Arizona State: Like someone adjusting the office thermostat, the temperature of Sun Devils’ coach Bobby Hurley’s seat has been a constant up and down. It seems to be back up again so losing the team in the basement of the conference at home should make it scorching. At least it’s a dry heat.

Bracketology Apologies go out to the Saint Francis University Red Flash, both Men’s and Women’s hoops squad who will both be playing Central Connecticut for the last time as these are their last games as a Division 1 program. All SFU athletics will be moving all programs down to Division 3 starting next year. And just like how FBS football control everything because of money, keeping a sustaining D1 athletic department also costs money. In today’s game - lots of it - and without it, you are gone in a … flash.

Final Seconds!

Just look at the women’s slate and see all the rivals getting revenge games! What an amazing way to wrap up a regular season! Will UConn and NYU finish the season undefeated?? Get thee to a TV, laptop, bar, or a live game and find out!!

• 16 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 20 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 36 days until Final Four (April 4)

Coming soon to Church of Bracketology:

• Deep looks at the new ‘Redickous’ eligibility changes

• Look at bracket expansion…again.

• Travelogue of “CoB Pilgrimage 2026”

• New online CoB Swag Store - powered by RAYGUN - with NIL shirts and fun to support this publication and some of the players we love.

Until then, stay safe, play hard, go defense!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

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Wow, that was fun! And, we have been waiting for it.

Every season at some point, the Gods align to give you a powerhouse weekend that will challenge even Jon Rothstein's perfect memory. We can look at the schedules and guess, but we won’t really know until we get there because it’s everything that led us to this point that makes this weekend special.

On the men’s side, we had all 4 top teams going head to head in a power double header. Duke and Michigan met for the 31st time in program history, but the first since 2013. Lots of 90's feels cutting through like Tyus Edney. This was alongside many upsets to bring late season debates of bracket worthiness and seedings.

Meanwhile, on the women's side, you needed a multiview to watch South Carolina's shellacking of conference foe Ole Miss, who happened to be the #17 team in the country. While, on the second screen, we had #6 Michigan at #13 Iowa to settle who truly gets to settle into second place in the B1G standings, all through the misty eyes of Hannah Stuelke, celebrated on Senior Day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. (I might have used my Hannah jersey to wipe my eyes…might have.)

In fact, it was a fantastic Sunday if you happen to be a Hannah. So good, I had to report for the first time in a bit. You might be surprised at which Hannah had the best day - hint, she wears orange. Yup! She’s back.

Ok, this is getting out late because there was a lot to write about. But, this is the best kind of late March Eve weekend we could ask for! March (the month) is just 6 days away. Let's jump into it.

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

The Super Saturday Service didn’t disappoint. Two huge games and many other upsets. Crazy!

MBB: #4 Arizona 73 - #2 Houston 66: Game 1 of our Super Saturday pitted former #1 Arizona against in-conference rival Houston. The Wildcats ran out of the desert with full mercury, bringing the dry heat straight into the Fertitta Center's humidity and taking a 10-point lead late in the second half. The Cougars tried to steam them out — getting within 4 with time running out — but Anthony Dell'Orso's 22 points, along with, Arizona scratching out 16 points on 12 Houston turnovers made it too much to overcome. It's Houston's 2nd consecutive loss. Will the Cougars find redemption in the next one? Well, it's rarely found at Kansas where the Jayhawks need some as well. More below.

MBB: #3 Duke 68 - #1 Michigan 63: If that wasn’t fun enough, Game 2 of Super Saturday brought us the clash of the titans. A rare non-conference battle in deep February between two teams with a serious history. Duke led the series 22-8 all time and with the Wolverines as the newly minted #1 team, they had something to prove.

With so much excitement to get this series back - and so late in the season - seats were reportedly selling in the high-hundreds on the secondary market. Someone who had no problem getting a ticket was former Duke star Carlos Boozer (1999-2001), who assumed the ‘Sabretooth’ role against the Wolverines, playing in this series three times, winning all of them.

The Blue Devils didn’t need him as the good luck charm, since they had his two sons on the roster. And Cameron Boozer reminded Michigan faithful just what they feared two decades earlier, as he hit a major 3 with 1:55 left, shoving the trident through the hearts of those lost in the maize. In total, Cam Boozer put up 18 points while pulling down 10 rebounds. Michigan didn’t help themselves shooting 6-of-25 from three while also getting out rebounded 41-28.

This win has Bracketologists projecting Duke as the top seeded team for the Dance. Let’s not forget, they still have another date with that ‘other’ blue team down the road before it’s all done.

WBB: Virginia 74 - #8 Louisville 72: Consider this your bubble watch bulletin. The Hoos have had their challenges this season, but they are a talented bunch who will swashbuckle the win right from underneath you if you are not careful. And Louisville found that out the hard way. Romi Levy's clutch 3-pointer with 13 seconds left clipped the Cardinals' wings, and when Louisville's buzzer-beater rimmed out, Virginia had their 11th ACC win for the first time since winning the regular season title in 1999-2000. These Cavaliers stole the win and were not polite about it. Now the Creme is rising.

WBB: #3 South Carolina 85 - #17 Ole Miss 48: ESPN GameDay was in Columbia. A'ja Wilson was courtside. And unfortunately for #17 Ole Miss, the Gamecocks put on a show worthy of both — after all, when is Dawn Staley ever frightened by little numbers? The Empire of the South completely suffocated the Rebellion, limiting SEC Red Leader Cotie McMahon to just 2 points on 0-of-9 shooting. Madina Okot mastered the force to lead with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 4 blocks. This win clinched a share of the SEC regular season title for the 5th straight year. All with the Queen in the house. When all my dime dancin' is through, I run to you.

MBB: Upsets! Upsets! Upsets!

• Cincinnati 84 - #8 Kansas 68: Will the real Cincinnati team please stand up? Actually, that also goes for the Jayhawks too. In what should have been a blowout, the Bearcats had no problem seeing in the Phog. Moustapha Thiam dropped a career-high 28 points and Cincinnati shot 12-of-21 from three while Kansas went a woeful 4-of-18. This is Kansas' first double-digit home loss to an unranked opponent since 1993 and the worst in Bill Self's tenure. Redemption on the menu tonight. More above. (Update: The Jayhawks were redeemed!)

• #23 BYU 79 - #6 Iowa State 69: Iowa State hasn't stumbled much this season, but with AJ Dybantsa putting up 29 points, 10 rebounds, and 9 assists, BYU had the Cyclones spinning the wrong way in the paint and on the glass. Incidentally, the Cyclones had also just been named a #1 seed in the committee's Top 16 reveal earlier that day. The old saying goes, the Bracket Gods must be crazy. That's why they play the games.

• UCLA 95 - #10 Illinois 94 (OT): Remember that 90's flashback we were talking about with Duke/Michigan? We did not expect it also in the UCLA game Saturday. But it happened. The Bruins were down 23 in the first half before clawing all the way to force OT. Then Donovan Dent showed the new B1G what going coast-to-coast really means, doing his best Tyus Edney imitation for a layup with 1 second left to capture the upset for a true Wooden Watch.

• Tennessee 69 - #19 Vanderbilt 65: The Volunteer State. In the time of NIL, who is really doing it for free? Well, Rick Barnes got a good bang for his buck. This was not an interstate love song. The back-and-forth SEC battle saw 20 lead changes, the most in any game this season. The civil war was finally settled by Nate Ament's go-ahead turnaround jumper with under a minute left leaving the #19-ranked Commodores to go down with the ship.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: Four more games left in the regular season to go.

• #22 Miami of Ohio! (27-0 overall, 14-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 91 - Bowling Green 77

  • Next: Tuesday 2/24 at Eastern Michigan (6:30p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander! There is only one.

• #1 UConn Huskies (29-0 overall, 18-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Sunday: UConn 81 - Providence 38

  • Next: Thursday 2/26 at Georgetown 7p, (TNT/truTV)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 82 - RECORD BROKEN!!!

• #1 New York University Violets (86-0 overall, 24-0 this season, 13-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Sunday: NYU 57 - University of Chicago 52

  • Next: Saturday 2/28 vs. Brandeis University (3p)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violet’s Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

Keeping up with The Hannahs: Special Edition!

We haven’t reported on the Hannahs recently, but Sunday was a big day for Hannahs…and not just the ones we keep up with…so we just couldn’t wait until the next Post to report on it!

Happy Birthday Hannah Hidalgo (Junior / Guard / Notre Dame)!

Sunday saw a new milestone for Notre Dame’s Energizer Bunny. But this time it was off the court. Sunday was her 21st birthday! Do you remember turning 21? You shouldn’t if you did it right. But, this Hannah won’t forget this night. The Irish rolled over SMU 88-63 for their 3rd win in a row (and 5th in their last 6th). But, as usual, Hannah led the team with 31 points, 11 steals and 9 rebounds before calling it night. This is her 71st game scoring over 20 points and continues her streak of scoring in double digits for every game of her college career. Wow. Now, go celebrate!

Hannah Kohn (Junior / Guard / Clemson): HUGE 3 for #5 (and the upset)!!

Remember Hannah Kohn? I highlighted her in the Higher Post from December 21, 2024:

Suddenly, a player comes on to the floor and starts running all about with a ton of energy, getting open and then hit back-to-back 3’s when she did.

Hmm, sounds like my kind of player. Then, her name popped on screen and got to see her name was Hannah. That makes too much sense.

Well, she is back in the highlights. Still coming off the bench as Shawn Poppie’s sharpshooter at Clemson, she did what she does best against Duke on Sunday, capping a 14 point comeback against the #9 ranked Blue Devils. Coming out of a timeout, Kohn caught a pass at the top of the arc and with a quick release buried the 3 to put her Tigers on top by 2 with 3.1s left. Ironically, she had been 0-4 from behind the arc so far. That one shot was all they needed to break Duke’s 17-game winning streak and stick a blemish on the Blue Devils’ ACC record.

Hannah Stuelke (Senior / Forward / Iowa): Senior Day at Carver-Hawkeye!! (Yes, there were tissues.)

One reason I have become a fan of Hannah Stuelke is her story. Born and raised in Cedar Rapids, just 30 mins from Iowa City, she grew up an Iowa fan. She got the attention of Coaches Lisa Bluder and Jan Jensen going to youth camps and was offered a scholarship her sophomore year of high school. She not only gets to play for her childhood team, but has become their star. It’s a touching story and one that has stuck with me the more I watch her play.

Whether you played sports as a kid or not, we all had that dream of being the hometown hero, but she got to do it. Wherever she goes from here, this dream has come true.

Coming back to Sunday for a huge game against #6 Michigan. Both teams fighting for 2nd place in the B1G. Michigan came out strong at the start to hold a small lead in the first, but the physical play of the Hawkeye bigs, Stuelke and center Ava Heiden, were just too much for the smaller Wolverine squad. Hannah played all but 2 mins, exiting the game with hugs, cheers and tears - and not just hers. (I admit, I’m a big old softy)

I’m excited to see Hannah’s future, be it in the W, where it is hard to stay on a roster, or oversees. Wherever she goes, she’s got a fan with me.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

WBB: Solid in conference battles!

• Wednesday - 8p: #8 Michigan at #13 Ohio State (Peacock)

• Thursday - 6p: Tennessee at #6 LSU (ESPN)

• Thursday - 7p: Georgetown at #1 UConn (TNT/truTV) Infoulable Watch!

• Thursday - 7p: #21 North Carolina at Virginia (ACCX)

• Thursday - 7p: Syracuse at Notre Dame (ACCX)

• Thursday - 7:30p: #24 Alabama at #5 Vanderbilt (SEC)

• Thursday - 10p: #23 Georgia at #4 Texas (SEC)

MBB:

• Tuesday- 6:30p: #21 Miami (OH) at Eastern Michigan (ESPN+) Infoulable Watch!

• Tuesday - 7p: NC State at #11 Virginia (ACCN)

• Tuesday - 7p: #23 Saint Louis at Dayton (ESPN+)

• Wednesday - 7p: #15 St. John’s at #6 UConn (Peacock/NBCSN)

• Wednesday - 9p: Portland at #9 Gonzaga (ESPN+) Revenge game!

• Wednesday - 11p: Santa Clara at Saint Mary’s (CBSSN)

• Thursday - 8p: #13 Michigan State at #8 Purdue (Peacock)

• Thursday - 8p: #3 Michigan at #10 Illinois (FOX)

• Friday - 6p: #21 Miami (OH) at Western Michigan (CBSSN) Infoulable Watch!

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! March is coming!

• 21 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 25 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 41 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…wait, it’s still March Eve??

It always seems the Basketball Gods have some tricks up their sleeves. Many times over the year I have been talking about this large amount of cupcakes that have been served over the season. It’s been a trend that is growing and growing because of over-bloated power conferences and the NET Ranking giving them the ‘pre-sale codes’ for tickets to the March Dance-offs. And, no I won’t go there again, except to say that all this sugar has made us quite hungry for real calories and the Gods have answered with a spectacular weekend featuring all four of the top-ranked teams going head to head in a wild and serendipitous doubleheader!

MBB: #4 Arizona at #2 Houston (Saturday, 3p EST, ABC):

Last week, the Zonacats showed their Foulability by traveling to Kansas, showing us the real man behind the curtain. They enjoyed it so much they brought that feeling home a few nights later against #16 Texas Tech. They were able to right the hot air balloon against a struggling BYU team just a few days ago.

In the Bracketology version of ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’ featuring sports felines, the ‘wildcat’ usually beats ‘cougar’ but can Arizona take two Packs in a row? Cougars are solitary creatures on offense, but these Cougs attack as a team. This is a pivotal catfight for the Wildcats to show dominance in the ruthless Big XII. This is why the Gods make the schedules! Wooooboy!

MBB: #1 Michigan vs. #3 Duke (6:30p ESPN):

Flashing back to the 90’s is vogue with the kids these days. Just look at the Nickelback memes and the Fighting Szczerbiaks of Miami of Ohio.

So let’s go back to December 5, 1992, specifically. Coincidentally, it was also a day where all top 4 teams were playing each other on the same day. And, one of these matchups was also #4 Duke vs. #1 Michigan. It also happened to be a rematch of the 1992 championship game where Duke rolled The Fab Five by 20 points to snag their second consecutive title. Just 243 days later, they met again.

Some called it a revenge game. The Fab Five did. The Blue Devils didn’t. While Duke no longer had Christian Laettner to do the pushing around, Bobby Hurley and Thomas Hill didn’t get lost in the Maize.

And that is just 2 of 30 meetings between these two.

Today’s Michigan team is the newly minted #1 team in the country and have not bested Duke in the last 3 attempts — 20 years to be exact. They want to show they belong at the top. The Blue Devils want a bit more of ‘been there, done that.’ It is unusual to have such a non-conference matchup of this caliber this late in the season. Another reason to get out and practice at the local sports bar. Can I get a “GO DEFENSE!”?

And that is just Saturday!

If Saturday is the protein portion of the feast, Sunday has all the nutrients to round out a perfect buffet for a feast before the feast. It’s not an appetizer, it’s first breakfast.

There is an amazing slate on the women’s side in just the SEC and B1G games! March is just 8 days away. It’s crunch time for conference tourney seedings and getting dance tickets punched.

More in “We’ve Got Next” below!

Ballin’ and Brawlin’!

Is it me or has there been a bit more brawlin’ this season? I feel as if each weekend, there is a story about a fight that breaks out during or after a game.

Last night, there was a dust up at the end of the VCU/Saint Louis game as the Billikens were trying to dribble out the ball. There was a little shove on VCU’s Nyk Lewis prompting him to reach in and steal the ball. Then came the bench clearing, with everyone pushing and shoving. Even the refs got shoved around a bit.

It is no secret that these A10 foes don’t like each other but they used to keep the fighting contained to the stands.

It was just last week when Providence committed some extra-curricular activities on-court against the St. Giovani’s Red Sauce, resulting in a 20-minute delay of game and 6 players ejected.

That situation didn’t end there as a second incident saw a 7th player enjoy the rest of the game from the locker room.

This is not contained in the men’s game. Just a couple of weeks ago, a hard foul and shove from Kansas State’s Jenessa Cotton on Houston’s Amirah Abdur-Rahim gave both benches a chance for a jog on-court.

This game is a physical one and seems to be getting more physical by the day. Is this just a more common occurrence to be expected in the game or is there an actual change in how the game is called that is allowing more of these hard physical situations causing players to lose control? I don’t mind the physical play, but when it results in ejections and (god forbid) injuries — Coaches need to coach and refs need to ref because we don’t need no hateration, holleration, in this dancery.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: If you had lil Miami as the last one standing, please meet me in Vegas!

• #22 Miami of Ohio! (27-0 overall, 14-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami (of Ohio) 86 - Massachusetts (of MA) 77

  • ✅ Friday: Miami (of Ohio) 91 - Bowling Green (of Orange & Brown) 77

  • Next: Tuesday 2/24 at Eastern Michigan (8:30p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander! There is only one.

• #1 UConn Huskies (28-0 overall, 17-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Wednesday: UConn 83 - Villanova 69

  • Next: Sunday 2/22 at Providence 12p, (FS1)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 85 - RECORD BROKEN, STREAK CONTINUES!

The Violets are still blooming even in the cold weather of this frozen winter. Friday, they bested longtime rival #13 WashU in the annual R. Norman Rose Classic. As the previous winning streak record holders, there is nothing these Bears wanted more than to stop NYU’s streak. Not today! With this win, the Violets clinched their 5th consecutive UAA Conference title and with it the automatic bid to the D3 dance.

• #1 New York University Violets (85-0 overall, 23-0 this season, 12-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Friday NYU 82 - WashU 62

  • Next: Sunday 2/22: vs. University of Chicago (11a)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violets Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

The Weekend Litany for the devoted Bracketologist

Games of The Service:

MBB: Forget the cupcakes, let’s dish out the main course!

#4 Arizona at #2 Houston (3p, ABC); and #1 Michigan vs. #3 Duke (6:30p, ESPN) This is obvious. It’s the main course. All four of the top-ranked teams going head to head on the same night? That’s a choice we wouldn’t even make Sophie choose. The good news, no one has to. They are back to back on the schedule. It’s a rare occasion for late season out of conference play. Make sure it’s a comfy seat because you ain’t moving.

WBB: #6 Michigan at #13 Iowa (12p, FOX): In a full day of big hoops, the Basketball Gods are not even waiting for the coffee to take hold before throwing us in the B1G fire for this Battle of the B1G Silver. We have seen what this young Michigan squad can do, just wrapping up a season sweep of cross-state rival Michigan State. Iowa, meanwhile, is not all Chit-Chat. They have steadied after a tough west coast trip that had them drop 3 in a row. The question is will Hannah Stuelke be back after sitting out due to injury after a hard fall in the game with Nebraska. She is listed day-to-day and if there was a day, this is the one.

WBB: #17 Ole Miss at #3 South Carolina (12p, ESPN): Coach Yo has been in the social feeds recently for her jarring with LSU (and former Ole’ Miss) football coach Lane Kiffin. While Dawn Staley has been seen earning her samaritan badge helping strangers parallel park.

Ok, sure I could talk about this match up, but it speaks for itself. This game will be tough, hard fought and one Ole Miss has circled on the calendar as a must not lose!

Other Bracketology Offerings:

MBB:

• Saturday - 2p: Tennessee at #19 Vanderbilt (ESPN) — Yup, that little number is usually on the orange team, but this is a new SEC.

• Saturday - 10:30p: #6 Iowa State at #23 BYU (ESPN) — Once Infoulable, BYU is now 4-6 in their last 10. A top-10 team shouldn’t be sweating a trip to Provo right now. And yet… we thank the Gods for March Eve!

WBB:

• Sunday - 12p: Virginia at #8 Louisville (CW) — The Hoos are squaring the bubble. They need this one.

• Sunday - 2p: USC at #10 Ohio State (FS1) — It’s been a tough season for the Trojans. Losing Jazzy Davidson this week gave them a scare. She is day-to-day and they need her…and this win.

• Sunday - 2p: #21 Tennessee at #11 Oklahoma (ESPN) — It’s Rocky at the Top. The Lady Vols are the shampoo of women’s ball: Big win, big loss, repeat.

• Sunday - 2p: Syracuse at NC State (CW) — Don’t turn your back on either of these teams. Cuse is going up. State has been less than usual, but still solid. This will be one to enjoy.

• Sunday - 4p: #16 Kentucky at #5 Vanderbilt (ESPN2) — Classic SEC revenge game. The Commodores took the first one. Can Mikayla Blakes-Gilgeous-Alexander* lead her team to a sweep (* that one is all Kay. I take no credit!)

• Sunday - 6p: #18 Michigan State at #23 Minnesota (FS1) — The Golden Gophers have been the upset queens. If Michigan State loses this it will be their 5th in their last 7 games.

The Magnolia Bakery Invitational: We all love our desserts.

• WBB: Providence at #1 UConn (Sunday 12p, FS1): Again, an easy pick. Providence, who is 7-10 in the Big East, travel to Storrs for a good shellacking. Maybe they will get some of that ‘not as good as Brooklyn’ pizza at least.

Battle of Who Could Care Less: This one may require some No Doz.

• MBB: California at Stanford (Saturday 6p, FS1): The new ACC Annual Science Fair brings a rivalry of teams that are neither on the Atlantic Coast nor above water in conference. I blame climate change, not coaching. Definitely not coaching.

The Indeed.com Classic: Lose this one and you might need to revise your resume.

• MBB: UAB at Memphis (Sunday 12p, ESPN2): While the penny is no longer being produced, this Penny is no longer producing. If the 12-14 Tigers lose to a mediocre UAB team at home, this Penny will lose even more value. Just my two cents.

Final Seconds!

Wow, what a weekend for hoops! I had so much more to write about but only so much room. I need to quit so I can watch some games myself!

It’s the homestretch so get some hoopsin’ in this weekend, be it with friends, strangers, fans, alums, at a bar, or at home. Just Watch It!

• 22 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 26 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 42 days until Final Four (April 4)

Coming soon to Church of Bracketology:

• Deep looks at the new ‘Redickous’ eligibility changes

• Look at bracket expansion…again.

• Travelogue of “CoB Pilgrimage 2026”

• New online CoB Swag Store - powered by RAYGUN - with NIL shirts and fun to support this publication and some of the players we love.

Until then, stay safe, play hard, go defense!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

…and take a moment to let cupid shoot you with a 3-point arrow right through your net!

It’s the Rev. here reporting live from Amherst, Massachusetts for a little women’s #MACtion as my UMass Minutewomen (17-5 Overall, 9-2 MAC) against conference leader Miami of Ohio, who is still undefeated in conference as we round the last bend on the road to March. And, this Valentine’s Day is a perfect backdrop for the revenge game for a Minutewomen squad that succumbed to the RedHawks in Oxford 72-60. It was the Minutewomen’s first loss in their new conference and a surprise at the time considering that Miami was only 9-4 at the time. However, they have run the table since, creating a natural pecking order in the MAC with Miami at 11-0, Ball State (11-1) and UMass (9-2). You can guess where those losses came from.

This battle of the ‘M’s in Red’ is taking place on Jack Leaman’s Court at the Mullins Center to tip off a perfect Valentine’s Day Weekend filled with love.

However, like any perfect pairing - the yin needs the yang, the sweet needs the sour, like Chit Chat to Stuelke, the love of Valentine’s Day also comes with a little hate. To be fair, this is not real hate (Yes, I actually mean it UConn MBB). This is the hate of the colors and name on the jerseys coming from the other locker room. The hate you love to hate.

Welcome to Valentine’s Day hoops! #GoDefense.

Past Loves

This season, our special day of love is actually falling on a Saturday, our day of service. This happens every few years and it always makes the day more special. However, we’ve been doing this a long time.

It’s easy to reminisce about players like Kevin Love, once a UCLA Bruin, now the silver fox of the ‘Senior Tour’

Then from the east, there was Caleb Love who spent 3 seasons as a Tar Heel causing this reverend to yell the great mystery of the Tobacco Triangle… “Where’s the Love, man???” Once he transferred to Arizona, it was lost Love. Buried in mountains of west coast tip times.

Up here in the East region, we watched another Wildcat named Josh Hart win a title in Philly. He now gives the love to the 5 boroughs of NYC as a member of the NY Knicks. Last season, he shared a locker room with Isaiah Hartenstein, which is what you get if Rammstein scored Hallmark movies.

Which brings me to the Valentines. We all remember Denzel Valentine from his time at Michigan State, but it’s his brother Drew who needs love in a rough season as the head coach of Loyola Chicago. This year, the Ramblers are without their chaplain, Sister Jean, who passed away last fall. On the sidelines since 1994, no one loved the Ramblers more than the great Sister Jean.

There are a few Valentines on rosters in college hoops this season, including UMBC junior Ace Valentine, no relation. UMBC was no one’s valentine when they upset Virginia in 2018 to be the first #16 seed to upset a #1. Ironically, UMBC’s head coach at that time was Ryan Odom, who is actually now in his first season as the head coach of the Hoos! That is like hating your friend's girlfriend because she gets in the way of your friendship but then you end up marrying her anyway.

Meanwhile…

No Love’s Lost

With all this love, the Basketball Gods need to give us games. And, with games, there are rivals. There are conference foes. Sometimes, there is just no love lost. This weekend, we are getting:

Saturday: It’s Play4Kay so at least some of these not-so-love birds will be in Power Fuchsia!

• MBB: #9 Kansas at #5 Iowa State (1pm, ABC): On Monday, the Jayhawks did see a puddy-tat from Arizona, swooped in and stole the undefeated record. And, they did it without Darryn Peterson. Now, we get to see if they can steal another game from a ranked foe. There is a love here, as in, Cyclones fans would love to throw Dorothy’s house to Oz.

• MBB: #25 Kentucky at #14 Florida (3pm, ABC): There was never any love lost between these SEC powerhouses going back to the Billy Donovan days. Florida is peaking at the right time on their road for a second consecutive championship for the second time in school history. Kentucky has come back from the dead and risen once again. The Wildcats need this more but the Gators are hungry in Gainesville.

• WBB: #3 South Carolina at #6 LSU (8:30pm, ABC): The only love seen here will be the hearts on Kim Mulkey’s fit. Two top teams. Conference foes. And one MiLaysia Fulwiley, once a Gamecock and now a Tiger. Oh, and College GameDay will be there to bring the love.

Sunday —after the wine wears off:

• WBB: #21 UNC at #11 Duke (1pm, ABC) And speaking of LSU, that was the last game Kara Lawson’s Blue Devils lost. And that was just after Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, Tar Heel head coach Courtney Banghart was feeling the love Thursday night as the Tar Heels beat SMU to give coach her 400th career win. Both teams are rolling. But this is the home stretch, and there is never any love lost between Duke and UNC.

• WBB: #4 Texas at #22 Tennessee (3pm, ABC): On a weekend where red is the color, we are going all orange for this in-conference throwdown. And while it was Tennessee who was smoked by South Carolina for the worst loss in program history, it is the Longhorns whose orange is burnt. The Lady Vols need a bounce back game and would love to give Vic Schaefer something to complain about.

  

• WBB: #13 Michigan State at #7 Michigan (4pm, FS1): It was just 2 weeks ago that these far-from-kissing-cousins of the lower glove met for an overtime thriller that was inches away from a Spartan victory. That one went to overtime but was mere inches from not. Now they are going to Ann Arbor to do it all again.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: If you had lil Miami as the last one standing, please meet me in Vegas!

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (23-1 overall, 10-1 Big XII):

  • ❌ Monday: Kansas 82 - Arizona 78: let’s just say that Tuesday’s flight home was a bit Phoggy.

• #23 Miami of Ohio! (25-0 overall, 12-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Friday: Miami (of Ohio) 90 - Ohio (of Ohio) 74

  • Next: Tuesday 2/17 at My UMass Minutemen (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander! There is only one.

• #1 UConn Huskies (26-0 overall, 15-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Wednesday: UConn 94 - Creighton 44

  • Next: Saturday 2/14 at Marquette 1p, (FS1)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 83 - RECORD BROKEN!!!

Ok, they broke the record last weekend, and of course, as the saying goes, you break it, you own it! Now the pressure is off so let’s see how they respond.

Next in sight is John Wooden’s classic UCLA record of 88. Only 6 more to go to break it.

• #1 New York University Violets (83-0 overall, 21-0 this season, 10-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Friday: NYU 78 - University of Rochester 51

  • Next: Sunday 2/15 at Emory University (7:30)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violets Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

The Weekend Litany for the devoted Bracketologist

Games of Gospel:

• WBB: #3 South Carolina at #6 LSU (8:30pm, ABC): This is easy. When you have two Top-6 teams in-conference, two fiery and passionate coaches, and a lot on the line, this is the mustn’t miss game. But really, we just want to see what Kim Mulkey wears on Valentine’s Day.

• MBB: #9 Kansas at #5 Iowa State (1pm, ABC): Kansas is showing excitement, passion, and the ability to peak at the most important time. The BigXII is brutal and Bill Self is showing why he is a Hall of Famer. Will there be a letdown after Arizona? Tune in and find out.

• WBB: #13 Michigan State at #7 Michigan (4pm, FS1): The first installment of this rivalry was so much fun to watch. I cannot wait to see this match up a second time.

Other Bracketology Offerings:

• MBB:

  • Saturday - 12p: #20 Clemson / #4 Duke (ESPN)

  • Saturday - 1p: Texas A&M / #19 Vanderbilt (SECN)

  • Saturday - 6p: VCU / Richmond (CBSSN) These teams are on opposite ends of the standings, but this is always a hated crosstown and in-conference rivalry.

  • Saturday - 6:30p: #16 Texas Tech / #1 Arizona (ESPN)

• WBB:

  • Saturday - 1p: #1 UConn / Marquette (FS1) Should be clear sledding from here to March.

  • Saturday - 1p: Miami (OH) / Massachusetts (of MA) (ESPN+)

  • Sunday - 2p: #20 Maryland / #8 Ohio State (FS1)

  • Sunday - 2p: #14 Ole Miss / #18 Kentucky (SECN)

  • Sunday - 4p: #10 Oklahoma / #22 Alabama (SECN)

  • Sunday - 8p: #19 West Virginia / #17 TCU (FS1)

The Magnolia Bakery Invitational: We all love our desserts.

• MBB: Kansas State at #3 Houston - Saturday 4p (Peacock) I feel for Jerome Tang. His hiring made sense. Coming from Scott Drew’s Baylor program, he started with some instant success with the Wildcats. But this season has a conference reciprocal record as their opponent (10-1 vs 1-10) and should be one not to remember. Houston is already looking ahead to #5 Iowa State on Monday.

Battle of Who Could Care Less: This one may require some No Doz.

• MBB: California at Boston College - Saturday 12p (ACCN): Losing records…coast to coast. Will Berkeley’s students get up on a Saturday morning for a game at 9a? Will Boston College’s students get up at noon for … brunch?

The Indeed.com Classic: Lose this one and you might need to revise your resume.

• WBB: NC State at Notre Dame - Sunday 4p (ESPN): I admit, this could be in the Confessional because I’m a little worried about Irish coach Niele Ivey. She is a legend in South Bend. She won a national title as a player. She has her name in the rafters. But after last season’s late fall and another sweet 16 exit (4 in a row) the natives were getting restless. Then, many transfers and not much new talent coming in the dark cloud over the rainbow leading to that pot o’gold at the end of the Final Four. It was clear this was going to be a tough season, but just knowing that does nothing to quiet the voices in the shire of northern Indiana. Enter NC State, who has not had a bad season, but a little down from normal. If Notre Dame lets this home game slide, that might be where we point to when we wonder when the AD decided to change things. (Personal Note: Ivey has a solid class coming in so they should give her a chance to continue and regroup. It’s always hard with a legendary program. This is where I love being wrong. And, will likely be. But there is a lot of chatter…)

The Confessional: I confess. I can’t wait for this one.

• WBB: Richmond vs. George Mason - Saturday 3p (ESPN+) I miss the Atlantic 10. The lil conference that does never lets me down when it comes to quality hoops. Those who know, know. Currently, there is a logjam at the top of the conference standings. Rhode Island is having a phenomenal season so far going 22-2 on the year and undefeated in conference (13-0). However, both Richmond and George Mason are right behind them with only 1 loss each. A Mason win would provide the much loved chaos late in the season.

Final Seconds!

There is a lot of tough stuff happening right now outside of the hoops world. On this Valentine’s Day, make sure you tell someone that you love them today, be it your partner, a family member, a close friend, just someone in the neighborhood, or your friendly local mascot (where is Ellie these days?) It’s important to share that.

We’re coming down the homestretch of the season. March Eve is already half over. If you are just starting your season, get out there and do some hoopsin! Or, put up the multiview and get the Olympics on one side. This is a great time for good sports. I gotta run and get my Power Fuchsia ready for today’s game (yes, we Play4Kay in Amherst today!) Make it social. Make friends. And keep it hoopsy!

• 29 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 33 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 49 days until Final Four (April 4)

Coming soon to Church of Bracketology:

• Deep looks at the new ‘Redickous’ eligibility changes

• Travelogue of “CoB Pilgrimage 2026”

• New online CoB Swag Store - powered by RAYGUN - with NIL shirts and fun to support this publication and some of the players we love.

Until then, stay safe, play hard, go defense!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

I was confused.

Today is the big day! I was ready. I had my drinks and snacks lined up. No time to build a snack stadium, but I did my best. Brewed fresh coffee - nothing gets me ready for the BIG game like coffee.

Then, we’re off! The ball goes back and forth, strong action from both sides. History on the line. The good guys hold a slim lead at half, but last time these two teams met with everything at stake, it went down to the final seconds. No chance to relax. But that’s fine - we’re about to see Bad Bunny perform...

...but he didn’t. He was nowhere to be seen. Just a scoreboard. Dead air. No pyrotechnics, no dancers, no Bad Bunny. Nothing. I was confused. I thought this was the BIG game.

I phoned a friend who knows about these things. “What happened to the Bad Bunny halftime show?” She was confused too. As far as she knew, nothing changed. “Wait... he should be coming on soon, right?” That’s when she told me his show was for some American football game on tonight and that’s where he was playing. He was not going to be at the NYU Women’s basketball game at Carnegie Mellon University.

I mean, I guess that makes sense. I couldn’t believe 1.) he’d play such a small arena, but also 2.) why would Carnegie Mellon throw a massive halftime celebration for their opponent? We’re celebrating the Violets breaking the D3 winning record - and to do that, they’d have to beat Carnegie Mellon. What if they didn’t? Would he still play? That would be the greatest display of sportswomenship we’d ever see. Nope, that makes no sense.

Yup, I had the wrong BIG game.

But back in ‘Bracketville’, the Violets did it! They beat the all-time win streak record for D3 Women’s Basketball and are now 82-0 going back to the start of the 2023 season. They’re in the history books... and so is UNC guard Seth Trimble, but more on that below.

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Many favored teams did their job this weekend, but some lost ground. Here are some highlights.

MBB: #4 Duke 68 - #14 North Carolina 71: Two households, both alike in dignity, in the fair ACC is where we lay our scene. From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, two old foes fight for dominance of 94 feet of hardwood real estate. I said this would be the ‘Game of the Gospel’ and it didn’t disappoint. Duke bust out to an early lead before Caleb Wilson said, hold my blue cup.

Duke’s lead went up and down until 0.4s left when until UNC senior guard Seth Trimble hit a the loudest 3 signal to the masses, it was time to invade Franklin Street! The revenge game at Cameron Indoor Thunderdome on Saturday March 7 to end the regular season.

WBB: #2 UCLA 69 - #8 Michigan 66:

The two top programs currently in the B1G went head-to-head in a Sunday Showdown for the ages. These teams don’t match up on size, but Michigan is the Scrappy Doo who can solve the case if Scooby is too busy looking for snacks. They brought both UConn and Vanderbilt to one-possession games before falling at the buzzer

This one just seems like a mismatch at times with UCLA getting off to a double-digit lead in the second. But in the final minutes, the Olsen-Swords show got medieval and swashbuckled their way back to within 3 in final seconds but they weren’t able to close out the full comeback. This is the Wolverines’ 4th loss of the season (#1 UConn, #2UCLA, #5 Vanderbilt, and Washington who have entered the Top-25 conference call). They get a break this week with N’Western before ending the regular season as Ann Arbor’s Tribute in the B1G Hunger Games: #12 Michigan State, #10 Iowa, #9 Ohio State, and #22 Maryland.

MBB: Oklahoma 92 - #15 Vanderbilt 91:

Well, Sooner or later you gotta win one, right? Going into Saturday’s game at #15 Vanderbilt, Oklahoma was on a 9-game losing streak. They were only 1-9 in conference play (poor Ole Miss). So, you can see why we’re all surprised to see them take command over the Commodores. Frankly, the score does not show the true pace of the game. For most of the game, the Sooners led by double-digits - even as high as 21pts twice. The Commodores are not an 8-bit team though and hacked their way back to get within 6 in the final minutes. That’s when Oklahoma remembered who they were and through a series of fouls, missed free throws, and bad defense, they let the #15-ranked team get from 9 down to 1 down in the last minute of play. Honestly, they were lucky to hold that victory.

WBB: #19 Tennessee 50 - #3 South Carolina 93:

Not just a conference matchup, this is a clash of titans across the women’s basketball landscape. In Kim Caldwell’s short tenure as the steward of Rocky Top, she has installed a chaotic defensive strategy that flusters and frustrates opponents time and time again. But, this time, Dawn Staley has seen it multiple times and is ready for it… and that showed on Sunday as her squad from the lower Carolina was able to exploit it and throw the Summiters off their game. The Lady Vols relied mostly on the 3, which was not friendly to them. They only shot 23% from 3, but shot a total of 44 3’s. Meanwhile, South Carolina shot 50% from 3, but only shot 10 total because they rebounded and scored in the paint, thanks to senior center Madina Okot pulling down 16 boards (13 of those were defensive). When you can shut down the paint and make the #19 team in the country rely on shooting 3’s they can’t hit, you are in their heads.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: Two still on the board and showing no signs of falling back to Earth.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (23-0 overall, 10-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Arizona 84 - Oklahoma State 47

  • Next: Monday 2/9 vs. #11 Kansas (9p, ESPN)

• #23 Miami of Ohio! (24-0 overall, 10-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 90 - Marshall 74

  • Next: Friday 2/13 at Ohio (9p, ESPN)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander! There is only one.

• #1 UConn Huskies (25-0 overall, 14-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Saturday: UConn 80 - Butler 48

  • Next: Wednesday 2/11 at Creighton 6p, (Peacock)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 82 - RECORD BROKEN!!!

They did it! Think about this for a moment. How hard is it to go undefeated for an entire season. Then do it again the next season. And while we’re at it, keep on going. That is what the NYU Violets did…excuse me, ARE DOING! Today was just one milestone to get to the record, but every win from here is just another record. No reason to stop. The pressure is off.

One of the fun stories from this run is their coach Meg Barber. She is an NYU alum and played for the women’s team at the time when the previous record holder, Washington University in St. Louis, broke the previous record. One that held for 25 years until today. Great job, Meg! I look forward to seeing you in the neighborhood and having you join us for a celebratory shot…ahem, free throw, with the Congregation. #GoViolets!

Speaking of WashU, I'm really looking forward to 2/20 when the Bears come to the Village for the annual R. Norman Rose Classic. The Congregation will be there in attendance decked out in violet ready for the fight. If you're in the area, come find us - we should be easy to find - we'll be the ones losing our minds every time NYU extends the streak.

• #1 New York University Violets (82-0 overall, 20-0 this season, 9-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Sunday: NYU 69 - Carnegie Mellon 59 (RECORD IS BROKEN!)

  • Next: Friday 2/13 at University of Rochester (7:30)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Let’s follow The Violet’s Stairway to the Rafters

  • ✅ Women’s D3 Record!! (Nov, 2023 - current)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

Bluegrass Cats Pounce Late: It's not usual for us to say, watch out for those Kentucky Wildcats, because we are very used to them being front and center, rolling through a tough SEC at this time of year. However, this has been an up and down year for the Lexington Felines. They started with much promise but lost a few crucial games, all against ranked teams (Louisville, Michigan State, UNC, Gonzaga) before conference play. All those were Quad 1 opportunities they let slip.

However, they are now 8-3 in conference play but their MO is not just winning, it's coming from behind to do it. In both meetings with Tennessee this season, Mark Pope got his team to rally back from double-digit deficits to steal a win. These types of wins are not only special to watch, they are big morale boosters and give players the faith in themselves to not quit. This is how a team who goes 11-6 can then take 7 of their next 8. This type of confidence is something to watch when the Wildcats go down early. It's not over until after the rally.

These Gators can turn fast: Staying in the SEC for a moment. Remember when the reigning national champions the Florida Gators started the season at #3? That was a long time ago. They built a tough non-con schedule and got roughed up as a result, dropping games to #13 Arizona, TCU, #4 Duke, #5 UConn. Other than TCU, these are understandable, but unfortunate. The Gators then dropped to #22 after dropping one to Mizzou to start conference play. This was before the comeback. Since then they have gone 8-1, and like the heat in Gainesville, they rose to the top of the standings. The SEC is not a chump conference but having chomped on most of the tough meat already, the remaining courses will be lighter and less filling. Expect the hungry hungry Gators to keep feeding all the way through March.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

MBB: Big game in the Phog on Monday!

• Monday - 9p: #1 Arizona at #11 Kansas (ESPN) Infoulable Watch!

• Tuesday - 7p: NC State at #24 Louisville (ESPN) Will Wade needs a big one.

• Tuesday - 7p: #12 Purdue at #9 Nebraska (FS1)

• Tuesday - 7p: George Mason at Richmond (ESPN+) Bubble Watch!

• Tuesday - 8p: Wisconsin at #5 Illinois (Peacock) Bubble Watch!

• Wednesday - 7p: #17 Florida at Georgia (ESPN2) Mr. White in the arena with the bulldog.

• Friday - 9p: Ohio at #23 Miami (OH) (ESPN) Infoulable Watch!

WBB: UCLA going for two for the glove

• Monday - 7:30p: #16 Kentucky at #4 Texas (SECN) ooh. that’s it.

• Monday - 9p: #11 Oklahoma at #7 Vanderbilt (ESPN2) Blakes vs. Beers

• Wednesday - 6p: Creighton at #1 UConn (Peacock) Infoulable Watch

• Wednesday - 7:30p: #24 Washington at #10 Iowa (B1G+)

• Wednesday - 8p: #2 UCLA at #12 Michigan St (Peacock) Gloves come in pairs

• Thursday - 7p: #14 TCU at #15 Baylor (ESPN)

• Thursday - 7:30p: #4 Texas at #7 Vanderbilt (SECN)

• Friday - 6p: #23 Princeton at Columbia (ESPNU) 1 vs 2 in the Ivy

• Friday - 6p: Harvard at Yale (ESPN+) The GAME.

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! March is coming!

• 34 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 38 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 54 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…and take a moment before the ultra sports weekend begins!

I want to take a moment to start off with something more serious.

There is something I struggle with as a content creator: when to speak out on issues, and when not to.

On one hand, I have a platform I use for a specific purpose—to celebrate the fandom of college basketball and everything that brings us joy in the world of hoops. I work to keep things positive because so much of the sports content space is negative or toxic.

On the other hand, when you have a platform, there’s a strong argument to use it when you need to speak out on issues.

Anyone who knows me personally knows I have a strong political and social conscience, and the current state of affairs in our country is hard to watch. In fact, it makes me angry on a regular basis. The amount of racism, sexism, homophobia etc. we have allowed to become commonplace is absolutely appalling.

And there lies the conundrum—I aim for this platform to be an escape from all the darkness by promoting the fun of this game that so many of us love. And, if you are not a fan yet, I hope to make you one. If I can provide relief from the darkness by offering something of positive value, I feel I have hit one before the buzzer.

But we are in a weird time. Sometimes writing about basketball while so many people are being downright mistreated by an administration that only cares about power—an administration acting with pure racist, sexist, and homophobic intent—makes what I do feel superficial. I have to remind myself why I do it.

Athletes and entertainers are criticized for either speaking up or not speaking up, depending entirely on which side of the issue you’re on. From the right, athletes like LeBron James are told to “shut up and dribble” by conservative pundits like Laura Ingraham when speaking out against actions from this administration. From the left, LeBron also gets criticized for not using his platform enough.

I want to make two points on this.

First, regarding not using your platform: that is a right, and I will defend it. Do I like to see platforms used effectively? Yes. But it’s a choice, and I respect that. As I said, that’s my conundrum—I have a lot to say, but I try to keep this a bright space in the darkness. My decision is not out of fear, but a choice to offer a time out.

Second, and in contrast: American athletes, entertainers, and celebrities are Americans—full stop. Being an athlete, entertainer, or celebrity does not diminish anyone’s right to speak as a citizen. As citizens, we should all be invested in our communities and speak up when we see something wrong. Don’t discredit someone for being ‘just an athlete.’

But let’s be honest: this isn’t really about credentials or expertise. It’s racism and sexism disguised as political commentary. Ingraham said it herself:

‘If pro athletes and entertainers want to freelance as political pundits, then they should not be surprised when they’re called out for insulting politicians.’

But that’s just it. They’re not trying to be ‘political pundits’—they’re acting as concerned citizens. And bravo to that. It is you, Laura, that keeps it superficial by not addressing what it really is. Then again, you need this in order to convert their vocal outrage into nightly fodder content to fill your hour of air.

Paige Bueckers, from Minnesota, is using her platform to speak out against ICE raids tearing families apart in her home state. She is not speaking as a basketball player, but as a concerned citizen for her community—while recognizing that her fame gives her the platform to do so. Of course, she’s taking the venom of internet trolls as expected (who I won’t give attention to here). She showed support for her community when they needed her. She showed that they are not alone. For that, I applaud her. I thank her. I will promote her message because I agree with her. My platform is a mere electron in comparison to her galaxy, but if there’s a way to push the message while also keeping the positivity of my central content mission, I will find a way to do so.

Sometimes keeping this a positive space means calling out the darkness trying to dim the lights.

#GoMinnesota. #ICEOUT #GoDefense.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: And then there were two.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (22-0 overall, 9-0 Big XII): Bye week

  • Next: Saturday 2/7 vs. Oklahoma State (4p, ESPN2)

• #23 Miami of Ohio! (23-0 overall, 11-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami 73 - Buffalo 71

  • Next: Saturday 2/7 at Marshall (4p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander!

• #1 UConn Huskies (24-0 overall, 13-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Wednesday: UConn 86 - DePaul 40

  • Next: Saturday 2/7 at Butler (Noon, FS1)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 81!

The Violets have tied the record! This Sunday they have the chance to break it!

• #1 New York University Violets (18-0 overall, 7-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Friday: NYU 73 - Case Western Reserve University 65

  • Next: Sunday 2/8 at Carnegie Mellon (Noon, FloSport Streaming)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Lets follow The Violet’s Stairway to the Rafters

  • [Tied!] Women’s D3 Record: 81 - WashU (St. Louis) (Feb 20, 1998 - Jan 12, 2001)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

Rivalry Week!!

Ok, on with the fun stuff. We are currently in the middle of Rivalry Week! Rivalry Week was always a special week on the calendar because it was when…well, all the good rivalries happen. It’s taken a different look these past few years due to conference realignment moving teams around. However, the most sacred of all rivalries is still intact: Duke/UNC!

Yes, this Saturday is the 154th installment of Duke/North Carolina. In the Pantheon of Sports Rivalries, there are only a few that matter as much as this one: Red Sox/Yankees, Auburn/Alabama, Michigan/THEE Ohio State, etc. This game is always Must See BB. North Carolina leads the series 85-69, but Duke is currently on a 3 game winning streak. It will be a battle of alum coaches, neither of which a loss is acceptable. However, someone will have a bad press conference.

• Saturday 2/7 - 6:30p: #4 Duke at #14 North Carolina (ESPN)

Other Highlights for Rivalry Week:

• MBB: Saturday - 4p: Alabama / Auburn (ESPN2) The Tigers were on a 4-game win streak before running in a Tennessee Volunteer team, who don’t actually do it for free. They would love to take out their revenge on their in-state rival from Tuscaloosa.

• MBB: Sunday - 1p: #2 Michigan / Ohio State (CBS) Sure, the Wolverines are one of the first teams in and THEE Buckeyes are projected as the last team in. THEE Ohio State would love a nice signature win to mount on the wall in Columbus.

• WBB: Sunday - 3p: #19 Tennessee / #3 South Carolina (ABC) Two titans enter, only one exits. The Lady Vols have had quite a week with a brutal game against UConn last Sunday as the lead up to this matchup against Dawn Staley and her Gamecocks. Tennessee coach Kim Caldwell will have them ready, but is there enough?

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

The Weekend Litany for the devoted Bracketologist

Games of Gospel:

• WBB: #1 NYU at Carnegie Mellon - Sunday 12p (FloSport Streaming) You might have heard, there is a BIG GAME is this Sunday! You know what I’m talking about! Of course, I mean, the NYU Violets team who will be going for the D3 win record of 82 games! (Did you think I was talking about the Super Bowl?? Are ya new around here?) The record they just tied was previously held exclusively by Washington University in St. Louis, which is considered NYU’s top rival. Like watching UNC beat Duke in the 2022 Final Four to end Coach K’s career, it always feels good to take on from a rival.

• MBB: #4 Duke at #14 North Carolina - Saturday 6:30p. (ESPN) This goes without saying. This game is amazing even when one team is down. But this year, its power freshmen Cameron Boozer vs. Caleb Wilson. Both players lead their teams in almost all major categories. And let’s face it, no one wants to be remembered to be on the losing end of this game.

• WBB: #2 UCLA at #8 Michigan - Sunday 3p. (FOX) UCLA is a force. Good guard play. Power forwards that cut in. And let’s not forget the Sherman Williams down low running the paint in Lauren Betts. However, this Michigan team is the only team to take UConn to the buzzer. They were 2 points away from giving Vanderbilt their first loss. They ran over Michigan State just last week. Iowa was not able to take down the Bruins, but the Wolverines might have the blades to slice through them.

Other Bracketology Offerings:

• MBB:

  • Saturday - 8:30p: #17 Florida / Texas A&M (SECN)

  • Saturday - 8:30p: #25 Tennessee / Kentucky (ESPN)

  • Saturday - 8p: #5 Illinois / #10 Michigan State (Fox)

  • Saturday - 10:30p: #8 Houston / #16 BYU (ESPN)

• WBB:

  • Sunday - 12p: #6 Louisville / Syracuse (CW)

  • Sunday - 12p: USC / Illinois (B1G+)

  • Sunday - 3p: #19 Tennessee / #3 South Carolina (ABC)

The Magnolia Bakery Invitational: We all love our deserts.

• WBB: Butler at #1 UConn - Sunday Noon (FS1) In their last meeting at the start off Big East play, the visiting Huskies beat the 7-7 Bulldogs by 47. Butler has played 9 games since then and lost 7 of them. Now the dogfight moves to frozen tundra of Storrs, CT. and remember, Huskies love the cold.

Battle of Who Could Care Less: This one may require some No Doz.

• MBB: Florida State at Notre Dame - Saturday 4p (CW): Poor CW. They were not Charmed when they got this on their schedule. The lil’ network was in 7th Heaven to add ACC games to their docket, but this Smallville matchup on week where Duke/UNC is playing is not one that Carrie will write about in her diary.

The Indeed.com Classic: Lose this one and you might need to revise your resume.

• MBB: Georgia at LSU - Saturday 6p (SECN) Things are not looking good for LSU coach Matt McMahon since coming to Baton Rouge. It’s hard to follow the successes of Will Wade, a coach who won through the use of ‘under the court’ money, when now all of these tactics are legal. Sure, this is the first season he has a winning record, but still cannot make it in conference (2-7). If they give one to the 4-5 Georgia Bulldogs at home, this might be one that makes him geaux packing.

The Confessional: I confess. I can’t wait for this one.

• WBB: James Madison vs. Massachusetts - Sunday Noon (CBSSN) Yes, I’m biased because UMass is my team. But, I don’t plug for plug sake. Plus, this one is going to be fun. This is a non-con matchup and part of the MAC/Sun Belt challenge. Both teams are fun, fast, and feisty, and they both beat Boston College…well, who hasn’t right? CBS knows this will be game and scheduled it as their national game. It will be worth your watch.

Final Seconds!

There is a lot happening right now outside the sports world. It sometimes feels like the games don’t matter, but they can bring us together. They connect us. This is a HUGE sports weekend with the Super Bowl, The Olympics, and all the hoops happening at once. Get some game time in. Make it social. Make friends. And keep it hoopsy!

• 36 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 40 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 56 days until Final Four (April 4)

Coming soon to Church of Bracketology:

• Deep looks at the new ‘Redickous’ eligibility changes

• Travelogue of “CoB Pilgrimage 2026”

• New online CoB Swag Store - powered by RAYGUN - with NIL shirts and fun to support this publication and some of the players we love.

Until then, stay safe, play hard, go defense!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

We have officially crossed the Rubicon into February, or as we call it, March Eve. Why is it March Eve? Is it just because it’s right before March? Nope. It’s that last stretch before Madness. It’s when the hoops stop being polite and start getting real. The regular season’s final lap, where every game could be the difference between being a chosen one or complaining on ESPN about strength of schedule metrics. This is the stretch where pretenders go back to Ohio, and contenders prove they belong in the after-season.

This weekend didn’t let us down. It was the agent of chaos with a smile. Everything we expect from a February weekend. In like a Wolverine and out like a Wildcat.

Undefeated teams started facing their toughest tests yet, conference races turned into dodgeball derbies, especially in the B1G—a conference sitting pretty with the most projected bids on both sides. But history will remind everyone that having 11-12 teams in the dance doesn’t mean any of them know how to win it all.

Let’s get into what happened while you were complaining about the return of the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl. Let’s tip this off!

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

A little heavy on the women’s side this week, but did you look at that brutal schedule on Sunday??

WBB: #1 UConn 96 - #15 Tennessee 66: Old titans battled it out Sunday in the Huskies’ last regular season speed bump on the Road to the Final Four. The Lady Vols made a game of it…for the first half. Entering the second half tied at 42 all, the UConn outscored the Summiters by 30 in the second. For those scoring at home, UConn has now demolished the other 3 teams participating in the Women’s Champions Classic:

• 11/4: 79-66 over #7 Louisville

• 12/20: 90-64 over #8 Iowa (at the Champions Classic)

• 2/1: 96-66 over #15 Tennessee

MBB: #9 Illinois 78 - #5 Nebraska 69: And suddenly the Cornhuskers are 20-2. For the second time this week, the Fighting Hoibergs of Nebraska fall to an in-conference team ranked in the Top-10. I don’t think it’s time to panic in Lincoln, but while the first loss went to the wire against #3 Michigan in Ann Arbor without freshman forward Branden Frager, this second loss was more defined and at home.

WBB: #9 Michigan 94 - #13 Michigan State 94: The Breslin Center should have a parquet floor because Sunday’s game between tight in-state and conference rivals felt like a chess match. Full back and forth all the way to an overtime session that saw the Wolverines with an 7pt lead with under a minute to go and Mich St. still made it a 3 point game. Spartan center Inés Sotelo almost ended it at regulation with a half court Hail Helena that bounced between the rim and a hard place.

WBB: #2 UCLA 88 - #8 Iowa 65: Maybe the Hawkeyes just miss the cold as their west coast trip was not a happy one with back to back losses to USC and UCLA this week. Iowa started B1G play winning their first 9 before hitting the California drought. Despite foul trouble on both sides down low, the Bruins were not missing shots, going 57.8% from the field as a team, including 6-12 (50%) from 3.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: And then there were two.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (22-0 overall, 9-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Arizona 87 - Arizona State 74

  • Next: Saturday 2/7 vs. Oklahoma State (4p, ESPN2)

• #24 Miami of Ohio! (23-0 overall, 10-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 85 - Northern Illinois 61

  • Next: Tuesday 2/3 at Buffalo (6:30p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander!

• #1 UConn Huskies (22-0 overall, 12-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Sunday: UConn 96 - #15 Tennessee 66

  • Next: Wednesday 2/4 at DePaul (8p, truTV)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 80!

The Violets had a close call today at home against Carnegie Mellon, taking the victory by 1pt. This is the only single digit victory for season so far, with the other closest being 12pts over Chicago and 13 pts over rival WashU. The largest margin was 80 (114-34) over John Jay(cob Jingleheimer Schmidt.) The Violets go on the road for the next 4 and if they beat Case Western on Friday, they could break the WBB D3 record next Sunday, which would be the revenge game at Carnegie Mellon. Drama! You can stream that on FloSports. (and you should!)

• #1 New York University Violets (18-0 overall, 7-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Sunday: NYU 58 - Carnegie Mellon 57

  • Next: Sunday 2/8 at Case Western Reserve University (Noon, FloSport Streaming)

• NYU’s Path To Infoulability: Lets follow The Violet’s Stairway to the Rafters

  • Women’s D3 Record: 81 - WashU (St. Louis) (Feb 20, 1998 - Jan 12, 2001)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

UConn WBB passed the Midterm: Ok, as referenced above, the UConn Huskies have passed their midterms in their game against the #15 Tennessee Lady Vols. And they crushed them by 30. As the Huskies sit at the dining table for a second round on the Big FEast, you have to ask yourselves, who can stop them. Sure, it’s always possible, but with games against all teams in the conference except Seton Hall and Xavier, I would put my money on UConn running the table to The Dance. Villanova is the 2nd best team with a NET ranking of 40. The Wildcats are the only other team from the Big East projected to make The Dance according to Charlie Creme as well. If anyone knows how to navigate the dog days of March Eve, it’s the Huskies.

It’s maybe B1G country, but they are renting it: As we get into the last month of the regular season, it’s the B1G that seems to be rising up. According to both ESPN’s resident Bracketologists, the B1G have the most projected bids in both the men’s (11) and the women’s (12) sides. Just looking at the week’s schedule is like trying to run through a mine field in steel-toed Doc Martens. That said, don’t forget that the B1G doesn’t always fare well in March. The last time the B1G won titles were:

• WBB: 1999 - Purdue

• MBB: 2000 - Michigan

Seriously, it’s like the B1G was hit with the actual Y2K virus. That said, I’m a lifelong Red Sox fan so streaks or droughts are meant to be broken. So, Michigan sweep? Nah, UConn will never let that happen.

Nebraska will be fine! After all, Nebraska is a basketball school, right? That is how balance was brought back to the universe after Indiana ran the field for an undefeated championship run in .. football?!?. Yes, Indiana is now a football school, so it only makes sense that Nebraska is a basketball school.

Ok, all joking aside, the Huskers made it through a great 20-game win streak but have now dropped two in a row. This is a Fred Hoiberg coached team. They are going to be fine. Besides, there is no better way to have a proper harvest than against Rutgers, who they play next. Expect them to get a couple more dings along the way to the B1G tourney (#12 Purdue is coming after Rutgers) but with two against Iowa, and one against Northwestern, Maryland, and Penn State, you don’t need Clarence Beeks to give you evidence of a good crop report coming.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

MBB: Infoulable Watch in Buffalo!

• Tuesday - 6:30p: #23 Miami (OH) at Buffalo (ESPN+) The ultimate revenge game.

• Wednesday - 7p: UCF at #8 Houston (FS1) Johnny Dawkins’ Knights are the upset kings this season.

• Wednesday - 7p: Texas A&M at Alabama (SECn) Yes, the Aggies are atop the SEC.

• Friday - 8p: #3 UConn at #22 St. John’s (FOX) A Friday night gem.

WBB: Make no plans for Thursday!

• Wednesday - 6:30p: #22 Maryland at #12 Michigan State (B1G+) The Spartans need a strong comeback after this weekend’s loss.

• Thursday - 6:30p: Georgia at #19 Tennessee (SECN+) …same for Tennessee.

• Thursday - 7p: #17 Duke at #6 Louisville (ESPN) Just another Girl in the ACC.

• Thursday - 7p: #7 Vanderbilt at #16 Kentucky (SECN) I have been waiting for this one.

• Thursday - 9p: #5 LSU at #4 Texas (ESPN) A schedule only Vic Schaffer could complain about.

• Thursday - 9p: #9 Ohio State at #24 Washington (Peacock) Every day in the B1G!

• Thursday - 9p: #13 Ole Miss at #21 Alabama (SECN) Codie with a Rebel Yell. I want mo-mo-mo.

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! March is coming!

• 40 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 44 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 60 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…because, boy, it’s cold out and we need to get the blood moving!

Recently, I focused The Higher Post on exposing the myth that NIL is killing the Cinderella in March. (Higher Post: The Modern Cinderella Story, published January 17, 2026)

Church of Bracketology

Higher Post: The Modern Cinderella Story

Congregation, please stand up…

Read more

3 months ago · 1 like · 1 comment · MJ Raycroft

In that post, I argued that it was the NET ranking that is having that effect, which is by design from the NCAA to put the thumb on the scale for the power conference schools.

However, the area where NIL and the Transfer Portal is having its effect is on the Blue Blood programs. This was something no one was talking about but had run through my mind the past couple of seasons as I have seen a change in program success with blue bloods, as well as, seeing top players like an AJ Dybantsa go to non-traditional power schools like BYU, or Olivia Miles foregoing the WNBA draft where she was projected as the #2 pick to head to TCU. Those along with the rise of both Vanderbilt’s hoops programs, have shown the landscape is changing.

The more I looked, the more it seemed obvious, yet no one was talking about it.

That is until Jon Rothstein did a video about it. And, of course it had to be Jon Rothstein, who called it out. Rothstein is the consummate student of the game and does the research, unlike many other analysts, and is not afraid to point out what is hiding in plain sight.

I won’t rehash all of what Rothstein said, other than to say he is absolutely right that NIL is having an effect on the traditional blue blood programs.

So, who are the Blue Bloods in today’s game?

History has listed Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, Kansas, UCLA (and sometimes Indiana) as the traditional blue bloods programs. In pre-NIL seasons, they would be able to retain top coaches, could recruit on prestige, but they also have high operational budgets that power their recruiting organizations. Coaches like Kansas’s Bill Self, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina’s Roy Williams, could sit in a living room and promise opportunity, but not playing time (and technically, no money.) They had tradition, history, and alums in the NBA to sell.

However, with NIL, programs lower on the prestige totem pole can now go all in and ‘invest’ in a top player, like an AJ Dybantsa, while promising playing time and a stage to be the shining star. This is directly having an effect on recruiting.

Rothstein argues (an opinion I share) that Duke, North Carolina and Kentucky have been able to pivot into this new world, with Duke being the strongest as Coach K reshaped his program for the future before handing it to Jon Scheyer. I would argue that pivoting to recruiting one-and-done’s helped Duke make this longer term transition by adopting the future trends where beneficial.

We can also add UConn to the blue blood list as they not only won 6 titles since the late 90’s, but have managed to sustain that success into modern times.

But when you look at Kansas, UCLA and Indiana, they are all behind those top programs in terms of NIL. The highest tier of NIL budgets (over $10M) are the following: Arkansas, BYU, Duke, Kentucky, Louisville, Michigan, North Carolina, St. John’s and Texas Tech. (UNC, Duke and Kentucky’s NIL budgets have even been listed as high as $22M but I cannot verify this claim at this point.)

With Kansas, Indiana, and UCLA hovering at $8M or lower, you can see the disparity. If a program like BYU can get the NIL budget to go for a Dybansta, getting that one player might not get them a championship, but is an investment for relevancy that brings a strong return on investment in terms of media deals, media coverages, merch sales, ticket sales and donations - all of which will help more recruiting, as well.

Unlike a Kansas or UCLA, the pressure is not on championships, so they don’t need to pay for a team of top players. One will do, so they go all in to lure a Dybansta to Provo. That is a game changer for BYU. And, once that kid is off market, he is off market for all other teams.

Rothstein also pulls the exact example I use when making this argument, which is about UCLA. For so long, they were considered the gold standard because of John Wooden, but the Wooden era expired 50 years ago. Since then, the Bruins program has gone to 4 other Final Fours, with only one title. That is diminished returns for a historic program that still has blue blood expectations from an aging fanbase.

The way to compete is with money. And as long as the NCAA continues removing all restrictions on NIL and recruiting, programs that refuse to adapt will follow the Bruins into irrelevance - once the gold standard, now a cautionary tale of what happens when blue blood expectations meet modern reality without modern investment.

In closing, I do think Kansas will be fine. They are adjusting and major injuries have slowed this season down, but the trend started before this season. On the other hand, UCLA and Indiana have been pushed aside for more forward thinking programs like Texas Tech, Michigan, St. John’s and Vanderbilt, who have seen the future and properly invested in their programs where they need to be invested.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: And then there were two.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (20-0 overall, 7-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Monday: Arizona 86 - # 13 BYU 83

  • Next: Saturday 1/31 vs. Arizona State (2p, TNT)

• #24 Miami of Ohio! (21-0 overall, 9-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami 86 - Massachusetts 84

  • Next: Saturday 1/31 vs. Northern Illinois (3:30p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander!

• #1 UConn Huskies (22-0 overall, 12-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Wednesday: UConn 97 - Xavier 39

  • Next: Sunday vs. #15 Tennessee (Noon, Fox)

NYU Women’s Undefeated Streak: 79!

The NYU Women’s team are on an extraordinary undefeated streak, so we want to follow them here. They are not the only undefeated in Women’s D3. There are 5 total: #1 NYU (17-0), #2 Scranton (18-0), #3 UW-Oshkosh (19-0), #4 John Hopkins (16-0) and #5 Washington & Lee (18-0). But, the NYU ‘Sisterhood’ is the only program that can boast being a 2-time defending champion.

A few of us got to meet Violet Head Coach Meg Barber in a neighborhood bar just after the winning the first title. We then brought a laptop to the same bar the following March to watch that title game. Spoiler…they won.

We are not going to just track their winning here, but also any upcoming records they are close to topping. Here we go!! Go Violets!

• #1 New York University Violets (17-0 overall, 6-0 UAA):

  • ✅ Friday: NYU 93 - Case Western Reserve University 64

  • Next: Sunday vs. Carnegie Mellon University (Noon, FloSport Streaming)

• Path To Infoulability: Lets follow The Violet’s Stairway to the Rafters

  • Women’s D3 Record: 81 - WashU (St. Louis) (Feb 20, 1998 - Jan 12, 2001)

  • Men’s Record (all division): 88 - UCLA (Jan 30, 1971 - Jan 17, 1974)

  • Overall Record: 111 games - UConn WBB (Nov 23, 2014 - March 31, 2017)

It’s Time to Play4Kay: Warm up that Power Fuchsia!

Ok, in many parts of the country, it’s frigidly cold this weekend. I’m talking clutch free throw shooting from a John Calipari-coached team, kind of cold.

However, this weekend we officially open Power Fuchsia Season with the flagship Play4Kay Game this Monday at NC State against in-state rival UNC.

• North Carolina at North Carolina State - 6p (EST) ESPN2

Kay Yow was a legendary coach for NC State who publicly battled breast cancer for 22 years before passing away in 2009.

In 2006, Yow started the first Play4Kay game to raise both awareness for the fight against women’s cancers, with proceeds and donations going to the Kay Yow Cancer Fund.

This game has not only been played every year since then, but has also started a movement with over 1,300 schools at all levels from D1 to high school now holding their own Play4Kay games. Teams put away their usual uniforms in exchange for pink ones, while also encouraging all attendees to do the same.

This is not only a fantastic cause with an obvious visual element, but also gives coaches an opportunity to show off some fantastic courtside fits.

Yup, we see you Kim Mulkey. This is your stage.

@lsuwbkb

LSU Women's Basketball on Instagram: "Support The Cause 💕

Bid…

And, these fits have inspired us at the Church of Bracketology to adopt 'Power Fuchsia' as an official CoB color - right alongside our traditional Bracketology Blue. Consider it your February uniform. I’ll be breaking out my special kicks for these games.

So this Sunday, it’s time to break out that Power Fuchsia and warm things up for a good cause!

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

Many great match ups this weekend!!!

MBB: Conference leaders face off!

• Saturday - 1p: San Diego State / Utah State (CBS) These 2 top the Mountain West standings.

• Saturday - 2p: #2 UConn / Creighton (FOX) The Bluejays are sneaky and the Huskies are due for an upset.

• Saturday - 2p: SMU / #20 Louisville (ESPN)

• Saturday - 3:30p: Northern Illinois / #24 Miami (OH) (ESPN+) Infoulability?

• Saturday - 4:30p: #13 BYU / #14 Kansas (ESPN)

• Saturday - 6:30p: Kentucky / #15 Arkansas (ESPN) WWJCD (what would John Calipari do?

• Saturday - 7p: Harvard / Yale (ESPN+) Not just a fierce rivalry, but also 1 & 2 in the Ivy standings.

• Sunday - 1p: #23 Alabama / #19 Florida (ABC)

• Sunday - 4p: #9 Illinois / #5 Nebraska (FS1) How will the Huskers respond after their first loss? Well, they get the #9 team next! Yikes!

WBB: Its brutal in the B1G and BigXII. Plus, UConn’s final big test before March.

• Sunday - 12p: #15 Tennessee / #1 UConn (FOX) A classic on all fronts.

• Sunday - 12p: #24 Alabama / #6 LSU (SECN)

• Sunday - 12p: #9 Michigan / #13 Michigan State (FS1) This will be amazing. Both teams are really fun. Now, just add the in-state rivalry part. Wow.

• Sunday - 1p: #14 Baylor / #22 West Virginia (ESPN)

• Sunday - 2p: #12 TCU / #21 Texas Tech (FS1)

• Sunday - 4p: #8 Iowa / #2 UCLA (FOX) Heiden vs. Betts. Chit Chatin’ be happenin’ on that court.

• Sunday - 3p: #10 Oklahoma / #4 Texas (ABC)

• Monday - 6p: North Carolina / NC State (ESPN)

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. A Diss from a Rose: Derrick Rose on idea of Bulls statue: ‘No knock, D-Wade. I saw that statue. I’m good’ (ok, it wasn’t really a personal diss, but I couldn’t resist s Seal reference.)

2. "What's going on is not OK. We hope and pray there's a change in direction from where this is heading.": Wings guard, women’s hoops superstar, and Minnesota native, Paige Bueckers gets emotional as she speaks out on what is happening in her home state with ICE, the killings and the protests. This brought out the trolls as usual (not posting here), but also inspired others to speak up to support her bravery. Go Paige! Keep going!

3. Michigan’s Dusty May feels the ‘love’ from State before the game: Teams and coaches are always looking for an edge before a big game. Some teams even sleep in hotels before home games so all games feel like a road game. Michigan’s Head Coach Dusty May explains why he entered the Breslin Center early to hear the razzing from the Spartan student section. It’s funny, and it was an accident. Love the sportsmanship.

4. How do you rehearse for a live game?: How NBC’s Cris Collinsworth, Mike Tirico prepare for Super Bowl 60 broadcast - The Athletic goes inside NBC's Super Bowl prep process. Very interesting.

5. Lastly, this is not a story, but I need to say it. What is happening in Minnesota is gross. This is not about law enforcement. It's about power. Power of a so-called 'leader' over its people. It's about racism. It's about sexism. It's about cruelty. It's a distraction for the issues they don't want to talk about. It’s anything but law enforcement. Don't fall for it. This is just the first stage and if we let it pass it will continue. Don't wait for Election Day to make change. The walls are cracking because the people are pushing on them. We stand by you Minnesota. Get out and fight.

   Here is a page with resources to help Minnesotans. #ICEOUT

Final Seconds!

There is a lot happening right now outside the sports world. It sometimes feels like the games don’t matter, but they can bring us together. They connect us. They give us an escape. But, most of the games are archived on streamers now, so while I always write to encourage people to watch, it’s ok not to watch. Go out and get with the masses! The games will be there when you need that escape!

Coming soon to Church of Bracketology:

• Deep looks at the new ‘Redickous’ eligibility changes

• Travelogue of “CoB Pilgrimage 2026”

• New online CoB Swag Store - powered by RAYGUN - with NIL shirts and fun to support this publication and some of the players we love.

Until then, stay safe, play hard, go defense!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

It’s the Rev. here reporting live from Iowa City where …no, now I’m at O’Hare Airport as I prep to board….no, I’m actually now at O’Hare baggage claim since my flight was cancelled…no, now at a nearby hotel at 2am trying to finish this…no, now back at baggage claim…no, now reporting live from seat 23E en route to LGA after the grand Pilgrimage 2026. I am barely hanging on to the weak inflight wifi and trying to finish this off before the person in 22E decides to lower their seat back making it impossible to type…aaaaand there they go… so, never mind, I’m home.

As you might have guessed, I have been on the road for CoB Pilgrimage 2026, a 5-day, 4-game road trip through Indiana, Illinois and Iowa, which might explain why it’s been a bit quiet from me as I was driving and still learning how to write in the car through dictation. I can do it. I’m just not very good at getting flow without accidentally ordering some Sabrina Carpenter through my sound system thanks to a confused digital assistant. So, my apologies for getting this one out late as I have been working on it in pieces, but I promise it’s up to date (big news tonight!)

Regarding the Pilgrimage, the trip was fantastic other than the drama to get home, but what fouls us just makes us stronger so life’s full-court press won’t detract from the great experiences in the Hoops Heartland of our fantastic landscape.

I will be writing all about the trip as soon as I get home and post those in a new section and link it in the Higher Post.

Until then, here is what has been going down…

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Basically, here is a quick review of the weekend events in case you missed it.

Infoulable no longer! Nebraska Men and Vanderbilt Women go down: It was only a matter of time for our undefeated friends. Not because they didn’t have drive or talent to go all the way. It’s just so hard to run the table. Also, opponents were catching up to them giving them some close calls.

The Commodores also hit #3 South Carolina squad coming off a loss to #16 Oklahoma. Coach Staley very rarely drops two in a row. The time was right to give Vandy the crooked number.

Meanwhile in Ann Arbor, #5 Nebraska's undefeated run came to an end Tuesday night in a heartbreaker against #3 Michigan, 75-72. The Cornhuskers led most of the way in an extremely physical game, but the Wolverines had just too much grit and determination to let this one go.

MBB: Rick Pitino gets his 900th win. And just to prove the Basketball gods love chaos, he did it against Xavier, who is coached by his son - Richard Pitino! Yup, that is how the timeline laid out. Think about it. It’s not much of a surprise because they are both coaching in the Big East, but who would have guessed this when Ricky Senior got his first win 5 years before Ricky Junior was even born.

WBB: Big Week For Hannahs!

• Hannah Hidalgo hits two milestones: It’s been and up and down season for Irish this year. Many players from last season top-ranked team were lost to graduation or transfer, making the season a struggle at times. This is still a good squad but it’s not the same depth that we’ve seen the past few seasons. However, one constant is Hannah Hidalgo, who reached two separate milestones in one game this week. In the Irish’s win over Miami, Hannah achieved:

  • 2000 Career Points

  • Notre Dame All-time Steals Leader - Passing ND legend Skylar Diggins.

• Hannah Stuelke’s Honor Roll! As Iowa rolls on to a 9-0 start in the B1G, 18-2 overall, Hannah has very much been the anchor of this success. She is coming into her own in her role at the 4 and putting up great numbers. Over the last 4 games, which include: Oregon, #15 Michigan State #15 Maryland, and #12 Ohio State, Hannah has averaged a double-double: 17.5 pts, 10.75 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. From there, she received the following:

  • AP Player of the Week

  • Naismith National Player of the Week

  • USWBB Player of the Week

  • Iowa Player of the Month

  • B1G Player of the Week.

Congratulations Hannahs!

MBB: 3 teams are 20-0 (Arizona, Nebraska, and Lil Miami) - which has not happened since the 1948-49 season. More on that below.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: And then there were two. Nebraska's undefeated season ended Tuesday night, falling 75-72 to #3 Michigan. Miami of Ohio survived another close call, escaping UMass 86-84.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (20-0 overall, 7-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Arizona 77 - Cincinnati 51

  • ✅ Saturday: Arizona 88 - West Virgina 53

  • Next: Monday 1/26 vs. BYU (8p, ESPN)

• #5 Nebraska Cornhuskers (20-1 overall, 10-1 B1G):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Nebraska 76 - Washington 66

  • ✅ Saturday: Nebraska 76 - Minnesota 57

  • ❌ Tuesday: Nebraska 72 - #3 Michigan 75

  #24 Miami of Ohio! (21-0 overall, 9-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 107 - Kent State 101 (OT)

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami 86 - Massachusetts 84

  • Next: Saturday 2/1 vs. Buffalo (2p, ESPN+)

WBB: UConn is The Highlander!

• #1 UConn Huskies (21-0 overall, 11-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Thursday: UConn 83 - Georgetown 42

  • ✅ Saturday: UConn 92 - Seton Hall 52

  • Next: Wednesday vs. Xavier (7p, Peacock)

• #5 Vanderbilt Commodores (18-1 overall, 5-1 SEC):

  • ✅ Thursday: Vandy 81 - South Carolina 53

  • ❌ Sunday: Vandy 74 - South Carolina 103

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

Balanced Teams usually have a long March: One thing I have noticed while watching this season’s Iowa team is their balance. When Caitlin Clark was there, there was a lot of power. Power of the shot, power of the pass. If Caitlin didn’t shoot it, she passed inside. There is a new CC at the point now. She too hits Redickulous 3s, but with Chit Chat Wright, it’s not about being from the logo, but her fast catch-and-release that makes them special. The emergence of sophomore center Ava Heiden has allowed Hannah Stuelke to move out of the paint to cause more havoc. Now Coach Jan Jensen’s Hawkeyes have options: Outside, midrange, down low.

By contrast, this season’s Notre Dame team’s struggles partially come from lack of balance. Last season’s Irish squad was special, but there were lots of options. Liatu King down low, Hannah in and out, Soni Citron from the perimeter, and PG Olivia Miles, who could just bullet pass to any of them. This season, it’s all about Hannah and it’s not enough. Even UConn Coach Geno Auriemma said this week that his game plan against ND was to take focus solely on Hannah and take her out of the game, because he knew the Irish’s options were limited. Without balance, you don’t have options. Without options, you get shut down that much easier.

You can see the first loss coming! One of the interesting things about tracking The Infoulable is seeing the first loss getting close. Sure, we can dissect matchups, offensive and defensive strategies, etc, but at the end of the day, some teams just run out of ways to pull it off. The more teams play, the bigger the sample size is for coaches to review when scouting. There are teams like UConn women who just roll opponents because they have too many weapons. But, teams like Vanderbilt are centered on a Mikayla Blakes, who usually cannot drive the full road to the Final Four without changing a flat. In this case, Vandy was just pushing others off the road. Then Miss State gave them a 5pt scare. Followed by #7 Michigan, who got within 3 of dethroning the Commodores. Then along came Dawn Staley, coming off a loss, to do the homework. This was also true with Texas Tech and then Michigan on the Mens side. The one who is still playing with fire is Miami of Ohio mens who have just survived 2 overtime games back-to-back. Let’s see what happens when they rematch with Buffalo who was one of those teams to go to OT before succumbing to continued perfection.

The PAC is Back! ESPN Resident Bracketologist (and CoB’s unofficial but honorary Godfather) Joe Lunardi predicts the new PAC-12 will challenge the power conferences: The landscape of power conferences completely overhauled with the break up of the PAC-12. Oregon, Washington, UCLA and USC went to the B1G, while Arizona, Arizona State, Utah and Colorado headed to the BigXII, leaving just Oregon State and Washington State for scapes. Both those schools were able to retain the name and started the rebuild pulling in major programs including Gonzaga, along with San Diego State, Colorado State, Texas State, and Utah State, who have all been consistently dancing in March. It may feel like a mid-major, but there is a lot of strength here.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

MBB: Keep your eyes on lil’ Miami!

• Tuesday - 7p: #5 Nebraska at #3 Michigan (Peacock)

• Tuesday - 9p: Kentucky at #18 Vanderbilt (ESPN)

• Tuesday - 9p: Massachusetts at #24 Miami (OH) (ESPNu)

• Thursday - 9p: #8 Maryland at #21 USC (Peacock)

WBB: Get the multi view out for Weds!

• Wednesday - 7p: #2 UCLA at Illinois (B1G+)

• Wednesday - 7p: #25 Washington at #16 Maryland (B1G+)

• Wednesday - 6p: Iowa State at #21 Texas Tech (ESPN+)

• Thursday - 6:30p: #24 Alabama at #23 Georgia (SECn)

• Thursday - 8:00p: #7 Louisville at Stanford (ESPN)

• Thursday - 9:00p: #7 Iowa at USC (Peacock)

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! The Jumbotron is off for now!

• 47 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 51 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 67 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…because its time to challenge the myth of the modern era.

There is something that has been running through my head recently regarding NIL and the transfer portal. Going around the horn of hoops shows, analysts, podcasters and such and you hear the same message.

“NIL and the Transfer Portal are killing the Cinderella”

That has been sticking with me because it didn’t make sense.

The thinking is that the power programs that have a higher level of resources to dangle money in front of upcoming stars and pull them into transferring over to their programs. You can see on the surface why that might be the understanding, after all, there are fewer mid-majors in the tourney, year after year.

But, that is not the effect. That is the plan.

For many years, there has been chatter of the power conferences breaking off the NCAA to start their own national tournament. Basically, the Georgetowns of the world were tired of losing to upstarts like FGCU in the first round. And, Naismith forbid a ‘VCU’ make it to the Final Four.

To solve this issue, the NET ranking was born as the way to put the thumb on the scale for the power conferences. It allows a team to craft a non-con schedule full of Quad 3 and 4 cupcakes for blowout wins (scores matter in the NET), inflating their records going into conference play. As a result, most power conference schools land in the top (or Quad 1) part of the ranking because of their inflated record and point differentials. Just because you beat up on teams ranked in the 300s, does not mean you are necessarily one of the top teams in basketball. But, the NET ranking says you are.

A secondary side effect is that strong mid-majors would fall to Quad 2 or lower. This is not because they are lower quality teams, it’s because it’s a ranking, not a rating. If it was a rating, you would evaluate each team independently. A ranking means the top quarter of the list is the Quad 1, so if the formula is weighted for power teams, smaller teams drop to Quad 2, meaning in conference play, these teams would not have any more opportunities to strengthen their resumes because of the lack of Quad 1 opponents. It’s that simple.

This has never been more clear than the “Little Conference That Does” the Atlantic 10. They have been consistently a multi-bid conference, but have fallen off since the start of the NET ranking. The fan thinking is that the conference has fallen. That is not true as the top teams have challenged anyone willing to play them. The issue is their ability to schedule quality non-conference games because power conferences don’t want the risk. If they win, it will not push up their ranking and, in contrast, a loss hurts more because of the lower NET ranking.

UMass head coach Frank Martin confirmed this in his “Just Being Frank” podcast saying that during his time at South Carolina, the SEC urged member schools not to schedule the Atlantic 10 because of high risk with little reward.

That is not about quality of the conference. It’s the integrity of the NET ranking.

Which is why, when the ACC wanted to move their conference tourney to the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, where the A10 was scheduled to play, A10 Commissioner Bernadette McGlade, didn’t ask for money. She asked for games. That is the currency you need to get tickets punched for March.

From 2010-2018, the A10 have averaged 3.62 bids in the Dance. However, since the NET ranking has been introduced in 2018, they averages 1.86 bids, with two years as a single-bid entity. This is a clear sign of fewer opportunities for quality wins.

This has also backfired in some ways, because more power conference teams also means teams with conference records under .500 making The Dance, while the strongest mid-majors - the ones who earned their auto-bids - are rising up to upset these teams in the first round. This opened the door for a Saint Peter’s team to make an Elite 8 run on an automatic bid, proving they deserved to be there more than the power conference teams they dismantled in the early rounds.

So, how do we fix this - well, no one wants to hear this, but we need to abolish the NET ranking. Yup, that will never happen.

However, there is some push from analysts to call for other requirements, such as, having a conference record at .500 or higher. If you are under water, you don’t get an at-large bid.

I will also add that if we get expansion (which is likely to happen at some point) the committee should award automatic bids to both the conference tourney winners AND the regular season winners, if those are different. If not, then that opens up another at-large bid. For many of the lower conferences, those winners will be the same so there is plenty of room for the power conferences. This would allow a diversity of teams in The Dance and test the field for a true champion.

Will this happen? Well, a fan can pray.

For now, don’t worry Hoyas, Dunk City ain’t coming back anytime soon!

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: Just like the women, we are down to three. And Lil Miami is still there!!!

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (16-0 overall, 3-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Arizona 89 - Arizona State 82

  • Next: Saturday 1/17 vs. UCF (4p, ESPN)

• #2 Iowa State Cyclones (16-1 overall, 3-1 Big XII):

  • ❌ Tuesday: Knasas 84 - Iowa State 63

• #8 Nebraska Cornhuskers (17-0 overall, 6-0 B1G):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Nebraska 95 - Oregon 55

  • Next: Saturday 1/17 vs. Northwestern (4p, BTN)

• #10 Vanderbilt Commodores (16-1 overall, 3-1 SEC):

  • ❌ Wednesday: Texas 80 - Vandy 64

• NR…but getting votes - Miami of Ohio! (18-0 overall, 6-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 100 - Central Michigan 61

  • Next: Saturday 1/17 vs. Buffalo (1p, ESPN+)

WBB: …Miss State got close on those Commodores.

• #1 UConn Huskies (18-0 overall, 9-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Thursday: UConn 99 - Villanova 50

  • Next: Monday vs. #23 Notre Dame (5p, FOX)

• #5 Vanderbilt Commodores (18-0 overall, 5-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Thursday: Vandy 89 - Mississippi State 84:

  • Next: Monday 1/9 vs #8 Michigan (2:30p, FOX)

• #17 Texas Tech Lady Raiders (19-0 overall, 6-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Texas Tech 71 - Houston 59

  • Next: Saturday 1/17 at Kansas State (2p, ESPN+)

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

Conference Play is flying high!

MBB:

• Saturday - 12:00 PM: #16 Virginia / SMU (ESPN2)

• Saturday - 12:00 PM: Kentucky / #24 Tennessee (ESPN)

• Saturday - 2:00 PM: #19 Florida / #10 Vanderbilt (ESPN)

• Saturday - 4:00 PM: #1 Arizona / UCF (ESPN)

• Saturday - 4:00 PM: #8 Nebraska / Northwestern (BTN)

• Saturday - 4:00 PM: #17 Arkansas / #21 Georgia (ESPN2)

• Saturday - 8:00 PM: #11 BYU / #15 Texas Tech (ESPN)

WBB: Amazing Triple-Header on Monday!

• Sunday - 2p: #20 Tennessee / #21 Alabama (SEC)

• Sunday - 2p: Stanford / Syracuse (ACCN)

• Sunday - 3p: #6 LSU / #13 Oklahoma (ESPN2)

• Sunday - 4p: #12 Maryland / #3 UCLA (NBC)

• Sunday - 8p: #15 Michigan State / #11 Iowa (BTN)

• Monday - Noon: #14 Ohio State / #10 TCU (FOX)

• Monday - 2:30p: #8 Michigan / #5 Vanderbilt (FOX)

• Monday - #23 Notre Dame / #1 UConn (FOX)

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. High School Kid scores 100…in 3 quarters! Maryville High School senior guard Adrian Stubbs had a night scoring 70 in the first half, and being pulled in the 3rd after scoring 100. He broke a decades-long Arizona high school record of 75 that was set in the 60’s

2. Harvard Understood the Assignment: Harvard WBB gave fans jerseys that say “NERDS 26” on them in proper colors and typeset. They went further with their warmups that said, “Nerds Can Hoop Too” which are also available for sale for the general public.

   @espnw

   

   espnW on Instagram: "Harvard women’s basketball is letting ever…

3. New Transfer Rules: In an attempt to make it look like they are doing something, the NCAA changed the transfer window to start after the national title game while also shortening the window to 15days. Honestly, this needed to happen. The season ends when it ends, not when they allow kids to transfer.

4. Always Looking Up to the NBA: Holy Point Shaving! The same confederates behind the NBA betting scandals have also worked their way down into the college game. This is what happens when you align with sports betting while depriving players of fair financial opportunities. Amazingly that this has not affected the WNBA to be honest.

5. 2026 is the new 2016! Remember when trends urged people to actually do things like pour a bucket of ice over your head, or take a spoon of cinnamon? Now it’s just to post pics from 10 years ago. Well, ok. What was I doing 10 years ago? Watching A10 at bars or arenas. The only thing that changes are the teams on the court.

Final Seconds!

Ok, that is it for this week’s Higher Post. Go enjoy the games !

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

Well, I didn’t see this coming. Sometimes I get to say “I told you so.” other times, I am so far off. That is the thing with analyzing and prediction games, you only go with what you see, which is why the expression “that’s why they play the games” really means something.

Honestly, the times I have see analysts say ‘this could the greatest team ever’ and then lose on the third Thursday of March, or ‘they might go undefeated’ and then lose the next game, is too high to count.

That is why I don’t care much for predictions. With the exception of The Godfather himself, Joe Lunardi, who’s job is not to guess winners or losers, but how the committee would fair if the season ended today, most of those predictions are garbage. Just fun to keep you entertained.

That said, if you are in this game, you can’t help but make a few. And this week was a doozy for me. Places I was wrong:

1. LSU is not an elite SEC team: Well, they certainly showed me taking down #2 Texas was impressive. As stated in Friday’s Higher Post:

Do I think LSU will be ok, yeah. They are talented and well coached. Do I think they are a premier team in the SEC, no. Not with Kentucky, Vandy, South Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Tennessee are around the corner. This schedule did not prepare them for this and they will blow a few flats on the road to the Final Four.

Now, I still stand by them blowing a few flats because SEC season is long and rough, but they might be more of the nail in everyone else’s tires.

2. Michigan won’t have a real test until Michigan State: I mean, the Wolverines have been blowing out Top-10 teams. Now, I didn’t expect them to go undefeated to a championship. Not even to the Dance. The B1G is too good for that. But, I didn’t see Wisconsin being the one to get Michigan to commit the ultimate sin of losing. As I said in Jan 3’s Higher Post:

Numbers say that they won’t have a real test until visiting Lansing on 1/30. The eye test agrees.

This is the joy of conference play. Coaches know each other. There is a lot of video to scout. To be fair, we should have seen this coming when Michigan struggled at Penn State for a 2pt win. The fuse was getting short. Wisconsin badgered the Wolverines like a good conference foe. Congrats to them! Now we see how they react as they face Washington on Wednesday.

3. Hannah Hidalgo is not that tired: Well, I’m just throwing this out there for good measure. In the Duke game, she was tired, but this concerned me because I had never seen that in Hannah before. In last week’s Weekly Reflection, I stated:

Hannah looks tired. Visibly tired. Like I have never seen before …[ ]… She might just be getting worn out. The timing is not ideal as ACC play has begun. Don’t tell me that opposing coaches are not telling their teams to make her run around .. a lot.

#23 North Carolina marched in to South Bend on Sunday and were treated to all the lucky charms. Hannah Hidalgo led with the usual 31 pts, with 7 steals. Cassandre Prosper also got 17 pts of her own to go with 14 rebounds. On the night where the Irish celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 2001 National Championship (featuring one Niele Ivey) the team took control of the floor while the Tar Heels stuck to it.

Maybe Hannah needed a few days off. Or maybe she just needed to fuel up on the BC Buffet as the Eagles came to town for the annual turkey shoot. Trust me, when you see Boston College on the menu, your stomach growls.

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Basically, here is a quick review of the weekend events in case you missed it.

MBB: Wisconsin 91 - #2 Michigan: Wisconsin ‘badgers’ the Wolverines to their first loss. The first of the #2's to go down was on the men’s side as the Badgers of Wisconsin pestered the undefeated Wolverines, clawing their way back from 17 point deficit thanks to 48 total points from John Blackwell (26pts) and Nick Boyd (22). The game was not without controversy as Michigan’s Aday Mara made a game-tying basket with 35.2 secs left, only to have it called off for basket interference. Video review confirmed the call in the end.

WBB: #12 LSU 70 - #2 Texas 65: I wonder if Kim Mulkey read Saturday’s Higher Post. Heyyyyy… It was a bad weekend for teams ranked second, as one day after #2 Michigan lost (see above) #12 LSU took down conference foe and undefeated #2 Texas. Now, I don’t know for a fact that LSU’s coach Kim Mulkey read Friday’s ‘Higher Post’ but if she did, you’re welcome for the motivation. Clearly I was wrong about LSU’s non-con schedule having the effect it did on conference play. Or maybe I should have just picked a different example because…

WBB: West Virginia 83 - #11 Iowa State 70: What was I just saying about non-conference strength of schedules? The Cyclones of Ames tore through their non-conference schedule and entered Big XII play with the same gusty velocity with two wins over teams on the bottom of the standings. However, the Cyclones are not playing Kansas anymore dropping 3 straight over #22 Baylor, Cincinnati and West Virginia. Ok, so I was wrong about LSU, but ISU’s non-con schedule is ranked much higher than LSU’s at 301. ISU has plenty of time to right the ship, but it does not get much easier in the Big XII from here.

MBB: It's a fun weekend to be from Auburn. There is a thing about sports, especially for fans of teams with massive rivals. Sox/Yanks. Duke/UNC, THEE Ohio State/Michigan, you know the deal. It does not get any bigger than Auburn/Alabama. This rivalry runs so deep, people have done time for their passionate shortcomings.

Well, this weekend Auburn fans were treated to the ‘Pearl’ of an upset doubleheader as the Tigers beat #15 Arkansas at home, but were also treated to seeing #13 Alabama drop one on their floor to unranked Texas. Some will tell you that second one is even more sweet.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: I didn’t see Michigan going down first. Lil Miami still going!

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (15-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Arizona 86 - TCU 73

  • Next: Weds 1/14 vs. Arizona State (10:30p, FS1)

• #2 Michigan Wolverines (13-1 overall, 3-1 B1G):

  • ❌ Saturday: Wisconsin 91 - Michigan 88

• #3 Iowa State Cyclones (16-0 overall, 3-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Iowa State 83 - Oklahoma State 71

  • Next: Tuesday 1/13 at Kansas (9p, ESPN)

• #11 Vanderbilt Commodores (16-0 overall, 3-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Saturday: Vandy 84 - LSU 73

  • Next: Weds 1/14 vs. Texas (9p, ESPN2)

• #13 Nebraska Cornhuskers (16-0 overall, 5-0 B1G):

  • ✅ Saturday: Nebraska 83 - Indiana 77

  • Next: Tuesday 1/13 vs. Oregon (9p, BTN)

• NR…but getting votes - Miami of Ohio! (17-0 overall, 5-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 87 - Toledo 73

  • Next: Tues 1/13 vs. Central Michigan (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: …and then there were 3.

• #1 UConn Huskies (16-0 overall, 8-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Sunday: UConn 95 - Seton Hall 54: The Huskies are #1 in both polls, but also the NET ranking and Non-Con SOS. They have done the work. It will be hard to stop them.

  • Next: Thursday vs. Villanova (7p, FS1)

• #2 Texas Longhorns (18-1 overall, 2-1 SEC): Kim Mulkey read this week’s Higher Post and said, “hold my French 75.”

  • ❌ Sunday: LSU 70 - #2 Texas 65

• #7 Vanderbilt Commodores (17-0 overall, 4-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Sunday: Vandy 91 - Texas A&M 51: At one point the lead was 40pts which is when Shea Ralph decided to pull the starters.

  • Next: Thurs 1/15 at Mississippi State (6:30p, SECNet)

• #21 Texas Tech Lady Raiders (18-0 overall, 5-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Sunday: Texas Tech 71 - Cincinnati 60

  • Next: Tuesday 1/13 at West Virginia (7p, ESPN+)

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

Commodores Greatest: And, then there was Vanderbilt. The Commodores are the last school to have both their men’s (16-0) and women’s (17-0) teams still undefeated. It’s an amazing accomplishment since it’s not easy like a Sunday morning to get this far in the season without a blemish on the record. But to having both programs there is amazing. Then realizing its Vandy makes it all the more special, since the Nashville school is more known for being the GPA of the SEC and not the ones bringing titles home. Congrats to both squads! Lots of season left, but an amazing feat regardless.

Upsets! Get Your Upsets here!

As expected in conference play, there were plenty of them this weekend - mostly in women’s game.

While the Men’s side saw Wisconsin over Michigan, we also witnessed:

• Texas over #13 Alabama

• Auburn over #15 Arkansas

• Florida over #21 Tennessee

• West Virginia over #22 Kansas

Just showing that nothing is safe in the SEC. But it also means that all the SEC teams are meeting adversity early in conference play which is great prep for March.

On the women’s side, we saw:

• Notre Dame over #23 North Carolina

• #12 LSU over #2 Texas

• West Virginia over #11 Iowa State

• Minnesota over #21 USC

• Purdue over #23 Washington

A good cross section of conferences there which just means more fun for UConn and Vandy who just keep on rolling!

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

WBB:

• Thursday - 6p: #10 Louisville at Notre Dame (ACCN)

• Thursday - 7p: #2 Texas at #3 South Carolina (ESPN2)

• Thursday - 7p: Illinois at #9 Michigan (Peacock)

• Thursday - 7p: #25 Nebraska at #15 Michigan State (BTN)

• Thursday - 9p: #8 Maryland at #21 USC (Peacock)

MBB:

• Tuesday - 7p: #23 Virginia at #20 Louisville (ESPN2)

• Tuesday - 9p: #3 Iowa State at #22 Kansas (ESPN)

• Wednesday - 9p: #19 Iowa at #5 Purdue (BTN)

• Wednesday - 9p: #17 North Carolina at Stanford (ACCN)

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! The Jumbotron is off for now!

• 62 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 69 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 82 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…because in conference play, the cream rises to the top!

There has been a lot of talk recently about strength of schedule. It was interesting because sometimes there is not enough talking about it.

As we head into conference play, there will be a lot of excitement about teams who are rolling, but when you dig deeper, how padded is that resume?

This is one of the most interesting things in college basketball. Since the first half of the season is the non-conference schedule, it gives coaches a chance to build their programs up before against opponents they are not familiar with before heading down the usual and familiar slate of usual conference foes.

Two Philosophies for Scheduling:

There are two major scheduling philosophies that coaches employ. Both have their own set of pros and cons.

Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime: This is the John Calipari at UMass approach where a team loads a schedule with as many strong opponents as possible to run through the ringer before settling into conference play.

This helps more with either teams in non-power conferences or when you are making a legitimate championship run and need as many tests as possible. There are usually a few cupcakes peppered in between so the team can get a bit of a rest throughout.

The risks with this approach are:

• Wearing your team out (peaking early)

• You lose a few games that actually hurt team confidence going into conference play.

• You lose too many games ultimately keeping your dancing shoes in your locker.

Two: Dessert before Dinner: This approach schedules a sweet round of cupcakes as the appetizer before heading to the dinner table for the main course.

This approach is designed to take some of the pressure off a team early in the season. New and young teammates can have time to gel without too much pressure. Meanwhile, coaches have low-risk opportunities to experiment with lineups, matchups, offense plays and defensive formations. It can also build confidence in a squad as they enter conference play with only 1-2 losses at most.

The risks here are big:

• Tough unexpected losses: If you lose a couple of bad games, it could kill your March hopes early. Example is this season’s Pittsburgh women’s team who scheduled D3 Scranton as the 4th game of the season only to lose that game at home. To be fair, the Lady Royals are ranked #2 in D3, but if you are a D1 team from a power conference, you need to win this game.

  

• Fake confidence going into conference play: While this approach will build your team’s confidence, it can also be ‘fake confidence’ as there are not many true challenges to test your squad. This is happening in real time with Kim Mulkey’s LSU Tiger squad.

I will argue that this approach also leads to some really dull games (see: Notre Dame’s lopsided win over Bellermine). We have seen a lot of this season as referenced in previous posts.

The Case Study: Duke vs. LSU

So, let’s look at two contrasting women’s teams for a moment: LSU and Duke because they contrast these philosophies but also played each other during the non conference schedule.

Duke Blue Devils (10-6, 5-0 ACC / NET: 24 / SOS: 4 / Non-Con SOS: 5):

Kara Lawson takes the ‘Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime’ approach to scheduling. She has a young team, anchored by sophomore phenom forward Toby Fournier, who excelled more than expected last season by taking home the ACC championship, literally from a Notre Dame team who dominated the conference for most of the the season. This season, she wanted to take her team up a level too, not to just repeat as conference champs, but go for Final Four glory. As a result she scheduled the 5th hardest non-con schedule, taking quite a few lumps along that way. They entered ACC play at 5-6 with losses to #2 South Carolina, #3 UCLA, #5 LSU and #16 Baylor. Meanwhile, when stopping for dessert, they got the sugar rush blowouts over Holy Cross, Norfolk State and South Dakota State.

It was a strange up and down year so far for the Blue Devils, but are so far 5-0 in ACC play; including a 51pt blowout win over lowly 4-12 Boston College, followed with a strong confident 14pt win over #18 Notre Dame. Following the win over the Irish, Fournier said in the interview that Coach Lawson designed the schedule for these moments.

LSU: (15-2, 1-2 SEC / NET: 5 / SOS: 214 / Non-Con SOS: 339)

In contrast is LSU, who rode their #339-ranked non-con schedule (out of 363) through many blowout wins over schools like Houston Christian (108-55), SE Louisiana (115-26), Alcorn State (112-49), Alabama State (109-41) and UT Arlington (110-45) to name a few. They entered SEC play 14-0, scoring over 100 in 11 of the 14 wins.

Their only real challenge in non-con was at Duke on 12/4 (thanks to the mandatory ACC/SEC Challenge) where they did win convincingly 93-77.

But, the SEC is a different beast. The 'Embuscade of Baton Rouge' fell into an ambush of their own making, getting pounced by #11 Kentucky and #12 Vanderbilt. It was the game against Vandy that showed the world that Mikayla Blakes is worth the watch, but also why Duke’s coach Kara Lawson gave her considerable more playing time than LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson during the summer’s Americup when coaching them for Team USA. Lawson clearly saw something only a few of us had up to this point.

This led to LSU coach Kim Mulkey getting ambushed herself in the post-game presser about her scheduling philosophy.

Do I think LSU will be ok, yeah. They are talented and well coached. Do I think they are a premier team in the SEC, no. Not with Kentucky, Vandy, South Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Tennessee are around the corner. This schedule did not prepare them for this and they will blow a few flats on the road to the Final Four.

That said, as both Mulkey and Lawson have shown, it’s not just how you schedule, but it’s how you coach it. And, that is why they play the games. As conference play continues, keep an eye on those teams who were challenged and who were not. My eye test has shown me that those who were not only tested, but who passed those tests, usually go far come bracket time. Those are your office pool picks.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin... losing.

No movement in The Infoulable circle this week

MBB: All teams made it to the other side…even lil Miami (twice).

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (15-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Arizona 101 - Utah 76: Two Wildcats enter, only one exits.

  • Next: Saturday 1/10 vs. TCU (4p, ESPN)

• #2 Michigan Wolverines (14-0 overall, 4-0 B1G):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Michigan 74 - Penn State 72: The Wolverines survive a scare.

  • Next: Saturday 1/10 at Wisconsin (1p, CBS)

• #3 Iowa State Cyclones (15-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Iowa State 70 - Baylor 60

  • Next: Saturday 1/10 at Oklahoma State (4p, ESPN2)

• #11 Vanderbilt Commodores (15-0 overall, 2-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Wednesday: Vandy 96 - Alabama 90:

  • Next: Saturday 1/10 vs. LSU (1p, SEC)

• #13 Nebraska Cornhuskers (15-0 overall, 4-0 B1G):

  • ✅ Monday: Nebraska 72 - THEE Ohio State 69

  • Next: Mon 1/12 at Indiana (Noon, BTN)

• NR…but getting votes - Miami of Ohio! (17-0 overall, 5-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Tuesday: Miami 87 - Western Michigan 76

  • ✅ Friday: Miami 87 - Toledo 73

  • Next: Tuesday 1/17 vs. Central Michigan (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: Only 4 teams remain with Vandy still undefeated in both Men’s and Women’s.

• #1 UConn Huskies (16-0 overall, 7-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Wednesday: UConn 88 - St. John’s 43

  • Next: Sunday vs. Creighton (2p, TruTv)

• #2 Texas Longhorns (18-0 overall, 3-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Thursday: Texas 97 - Auburn 36

  • Next: Sunday 1/11 vs. #12 LSU (3p, ESPN)

• #7 Vanderbilt Commodores (15-0 overall, 1-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Thursday: Vandy 99 - Missou 68

  • Next: Sunday 1/11 at Texas A&M (3p, SEC)

• #17 Texas Tech Lady Raiders (17-0 overall, 4-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ West Virginia: Texas Tech 71 - Arizona 66

  • Next: Saturday 1/10 at Cincinnati (2p, ESPN+)

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

Conference Play is flying high! Many Unfoulables in action as well.

MBB:

• Saturday - Noon: #21 Tennessee / Florida (ESPN)

• Saturday - 1p: LSU / #11 Vanderbilt (SEC) Infoulable Watch!

• Saturday - 1p: Wisconsin / #2 Michigan (CBS) Could Michigan go all the way?

• Saturday - 2p: #24 SMU / #6 Duke (ESPN)

• Sunday - Noon: #16 Illinois / #19 Iowa

WBB:

• Saturday - 2p: Cincinnati / #17 Texas Tech (ESPN+) Cinci took down ISU, can they knock off another of the Infoulable?

• Sunday - Noon: #22 North Carolina / Notre Dame (ESPN) Both in need of a big win.

• Sunday - 3p: #2 Texas / #12 LSU (ESPN)

• Sunday - 3p: #7 Vanderbilt / #Texas A&M (ESPN+)

• Sunday - 3p: #5 Oklahoma / #6 Kentucky (SEC)

• Sunday - 5p: #19 Ohio State / #5 Maryland (Peacock)

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. Go Violets! Don’t look now, but D3 defending champ NYU women’s basketball team is currently riding a 73-game win streak! This includes two back-to-back championships. Head coach Meg Barber has the Violets playing on a different level.

2. Geaux Rebelles!! Did you know that LSU’s new football coach (and former Ole Miss coach) Lane Kiffin worked in his new contract to get paid for Ole’ Miss’s playoff wins? Kiffin requested of his new bosses, that he finish the Rebels’ season for their historic playoff run. LSU said no. So, he worked it into his contract to get his bonuses from them. C’est génial!

3. WNBA Players Association “ain’t playin” around! The union has officially changed their Instagram profile pic to an hourglass. Wow.

   

4. Every Point Counts: We haven’t even gotten to a talk about the new Top-25 where the #1 Arizona Wildcats literally got one more first place point in the Top-25 voting to keep them at the top over #2 Michigan. The Russian judge still picked Moscow State, which hasn’t come close to charting.

5. Catfight In Houston: Lastly, we end on an old fashioned ball brawl this week between the Houston Cougars and the K-State Wildcats. But, it was the women’s game. Four players were ejected from the game with 6mins to go in the game. K-State took the win in the battle of the mediocres.

Final Seconds!

Ok, that is it for this week’s Higher Post. Go enjoy the games !

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

The heat was up this weekend, whether it be upsets, scoring, tempers or just over all exhaustion. Welcome to conference play! As the weekend comes to a close and we must shut off our Vespers Jumbotron and get back to work after a wonderful holiday season, let’s reflect the recent action!

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Basically, here is a quick review of the weekend events in case you missed it.

WBB: Vanderbilt 65 - #5 LSU 61: Blakes cooks while Mulkey gets grilled.

Mikayla Blakes scores 32 points but it was freshman Aubrey Galvan who hit the 3 that pushed the Commodores ahead of LSU with 2mins to go. LSU coach Kim Mulkey has been criticized recently for her weak non-con schedule and when asked about in the postgame presser, she said, “…cuz, if we played anything tougher, we might be sitting here with a lotta losses.”

MBB: #21 Virginia 76 - NC State 61: Look ‘Hoos’ back!

Both Virginia and NC State have new coaches this season, but it’s Ryan Odom’s Cavalier squad who are off to a 12-2 start on the season. They started ACC play dropping one to their cross state rival, Virginia Tech…ahem, that would be cross conference rival. Cross state would be VCU since Virginia is technically a commonwealth. The Hoos have not played a particularly tough schedule on the year so far, but have had some wins against Texas, Maryland, Dayton and now NC State. Last season, they didn’t have their 12th win until mid February when they were able to beat Georgia Tech to reach .500. Ryan Odom is showing he can win wherever he calls home.

WBB: #4 UCLA 80 - #17 USC 46: Always Betts on the state school!

2 for 20. That is the stat line. No, not the stat for poor shooting, but the number of Betts sisters it takes to score 20! Actually, that is not fair. Lauren Betts scored 18 of the 20 but was on the floor for double the time. The elder Betts also pulled down 12 boards for the 34 point shellacking of their cross town rival.

…and then there were 4

3 of the remaining 7 undefeated WBB teams were upset this weekend. Strangely, they were all from the same conference - the Big XII. More info in The Infoulable below.

The Infoulable!

Tracking the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing.

MBB: Three teams made it to the other side…even lil Miami.

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (14-0 overall, 1-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Arizona 97 - Utah 78: Wildcat offense spread evenly as 5 players reach double-digits to secure the win over Utah.

  • Next: Weds 1/7 vs. K-State (9p, FS1)

• #2 Michigan Wolverines (13-0 overall, 3-0 B1G):

  • Next: Tuesday 1/6 at Penn State (7p, FS1)

• #3 Iowa State Cyclones (13-0 overall, 1-0 Big XII):

  • Next: Weds 1/7 at Baylor (8p, Peacock)

• #11 Vanderbilt Commodores (14-0 overall, 1-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Saturday: Vandy 83 - South Carolina 71: Tyler Tanner’s 19 pts/14 assists carry the Commodores over the lower-Carolina to keep perfection.

  • Next: Weds 1/7 vs. #14 Alabama (9p, ESPN2)

• #13 Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-0 overall, 3-0 B1G):

  • Next: Mon 1/5 at THEE Ohio State (6:30p, FS1)

• NR…but getting votes - Miami of Ohio! (15-0 overall, 3-0 MAC!):

  • ✅ Saturday: Miami 76 - Akron 73: The RedHawks pass their MAC midterm.

  • Next: Tues 1/6 vs. Western Michigan (7p, ESPN+)

WBB: There was some shake up this weekend as three teams from the Big XII were voted off Infoulable Island.

• #1 UConn Huskies (15-0 overall, 6-0 Big East):

  • ✅ Saturday: UConn 84 - Seton Hall 48: The Kids in the Hall had no answers for the Strong-Fudd Show as UConn rolls to a reciprocal score.

  • Next: Weds vs. St. Johns (7:30p, TruTv)

• #2 Texas Longhorns (17-0 overall, 2-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Sunday: Texas 67 - #15 Ole Miss 64: Cotie McMahon’s 12 in the 4th just not enough for the comeback.

  • Next: Thurs 1/8 vs. Auburn (8p, SECN+)

• #8 TCU Horned Frogs (14-1 overall, 2-1 Big XII):

  • ❌ Saturday: Utah 87 - TCU 77: It took extra minutes to do it - and 25 pts from Lani White - but the Utes pulled off the upset.

• #10 Iowa State Cyclones (14-1 overall, 2-1 Big XII):

  • ❌Sunday: #22 Baylor 72 - Iowa State 70: Baylor needed that one.

• #12 Vanderbilt Commodores (15-0 overall, 1-0 SEC):

  • ✅ Sunday: Vandy 65 - #5 LSU 61: The Mulk is spilled. No use crying.

  • Next: Thurs 1/8 vs. Mizzou (7:30p, SEC+)

• #21 Texas Tech Lady Raiders (16-0 overall, 3-0 Big XII):

  • ✅ Saturday: Texas Tech 80 - Arizona 49: Tech raided 3pt-land with 73% shooting

  • Next: Weds 1/7 at West Virginia (7p, ESPN+)

• NR - Arizona State Sun Devils (15-1 overall, 2-1 Big XII):

  • ❌ Saturday: BYU 71 - Arizona State 62: This sets up for a fun TCU matchup

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool?

Kansas Needs Peterson!

Jayhawk freshman, and #2 recruit in last year’s class, guard Darryn Peterson is the real deal. When he is on the floor, he is shooting just over 50% from the floor, just under 50% from 3 and averaging 20.6 ppg. The problem is that he is not on the floor due to various injuries. He has only played in 5 games this season, including Saturday’s loss to UCF. Peterson scored 23 of his 26 pts in the first half before getting benched due to a minutes limitation. This Jayhawks team can win without him, but looking up at the top part of the BigXII will be a challenge without him down the stretch as his production will need to fall on others. If he can’t get steady, don’t expect Kansas to make a long run in March.

Hannah Hidalgo is tired!

And speaking of resting, Hannah looks tired. Visibly tired. Like I have never seen before (and you know I watch a lot of Hannah games). In Sunday’s game against Duke, during the timeout between the 3rd and 4th qtrs, she bent right over to pound the floor in frustration as she was trying to psych herself up for the stretch. Hannah has averaged 35 minutes per game as coach Niele Ivey has relied on her ‘energizer bunny’ to be the majority of the offense all season with a depleted squad. And, she has produced 332 total points out of the team total of 1121 (just under 30%). However, she also leads the nation in steals, which if you have seen her play, brings a certain level of pesty determination. She might just be getting worn out. The timing is not ideal as ACC play has begun. Don’t tell me that opposing coaches are not telling their teams to make her run around .. a lot.

Turn it down, gentlemen!

Is the pressure of modern day college hoops getting to coaches? There were two incidents of coaches going after other coaches or even refs??

1. Quinnipiac’s Tom Pecora charged at Manhattan’s John Gallagher after a hard foul was committed on one of his players. Gallagher said something that teed off Pecora and the refs had to get in the middle. Pecora said no one from his team went to check on his player after going down, so he had to say something. He also clearly forgot that Manhattan College is actually in Da Boogie Down Bronx so he should watch his step.

   

2. Notre Dame’s Micah Shrewsberry showed he is a true ‘fighting Irish’ as he charged a ref after a late foul put California guard Dai Dai Ames at the line for a free throw that sealed a 1pt win for the Golden Bears. Shrewsberry was reprimanded by the ACC and apologized for his actions. You see something new everyday in the world of college hoops.

   

Ok, gentlemen - time for a little 30 For 30 and chill!

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

Lots of fun action this week, including all the Infoulables. See key games below:

WBB:

• Wednesday - 7p: #19 THEE Ohio State at Illinois (B1G+)

• Wednesday - 7p: #21 Texas Tech at West Virginia (ESPN+)

• Thursday - 7p: #15 Ole Miss at #8 Oklahoma (SECN)

• Thursday - 7p: #11 Kentucky at Alabama (SECN+)

MBB:

• Monday - 9:30p: #24 USC at #9 Michigan State (FS1)

• Tuesday - 7p: #2 Duke at #16 Louisville (ESPN)

• Tuesday - 7p: #23 Georgia at #22 Florida (SECN)

• Tuesday - 9p: #15 Texas Tech at #8 Houston (FS1)

• Wednesday - 9p: #14 Alabama at #11 Vanderbilt (ESPN)

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! The Jumbotron is off for now!

• 69 days until Selection Sunday (March 15)

• 76 days until First Round (March 19-20)

• 89 days until Final Four (April 4)

And remember, to do these three things: Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…because with a new year, comes a new season: Conference Play!!

First off, HAPPY (EVERYONE ELSE’S) NEW YEAR!!

As the Church of Bracketology officially celebrates our New Years on the first Monday in November (you know, when the games actually start) it’s not our official holiday. However, any chance we have for new beginnings is always a reason to celebrate.

In the olden days of conferences with names that described their actual size, January was the start of conference play; when official records would practically reset to “zero-zero” as this was when it really mattered. The non-conference schedule was a good testing ground, but in conference play, even the worst teams know how to knock you off ruining dreams of Dancing through the confetti!

These days, with the big bloated Uberconferences, we enter the new year with some conference games under our belt already. With those early tests, the start of January gives us a peak into how ‘infoulable’ teams really are.

With that, we start a new segment here on the CoB newsletters: The Infoulable!

This is our look at the remaining teams who have yet to commit the ultimate sin...of losing. As conference play heats up, let’s track who’s still standing. Right off the tip, we see that Vanderbilt and Iowa State are killing it on both the men’s and women’s games with a collective 27-0 apiece! They are the last two to represent both sides for their schools.

Introducing: The Infoulable!

Here is a look at who is still standing as of January 2:

MBB:

• #1 Arizona Wildcats (13-0 overall, 0-0 Big XII): Tommy Lloyd’s squad going into the new season with #1 ranking, #2 NET ranking, and wins over then #3 Florida, #15 UCLA, #3 UConn, #20 Auburn, #12 Alabama, and San Diego State - who is never a pushover. 7 of these wins a Quad 4, but none of the unranked teams scared them.

• #2 Michigan Wolverines (13-0 overall, 3-0 B1G): Currently, ranked #1 in NET, KenPom and BPI, the Wolverines have sliced through 8 total Quad 1 & 2 opponents with a scoring margin of over 30 (including a 40pt blowout of Gonzaga!) That is insane. Numbers say that they won’t have a real test until visiting Lansing on 1/30. The eye test agrees.

• #3 Iowa State Cyclones (13-0 overall, 1-0 Big XII): The Cyclones are picking up where they left off last season. Not as tested as their conference mates from the desert, but blowing out a #1 team (Purdue) by 23pts on the road is a major confidence booster.

• #11 Vanderbilt Commodores (13-0 overall, 0-0 SEC): If you told me that the SEC would be the topped ranked conference in the NET, I would believe you. If you told me it would be led by undefeated Commodore team, I would go off on how amazing Mikayla Blakes is. Then, you would reminded me that we are talking men’s Commodores here! Vandy has 4 Quad 1 wins over Wake Forest, SMU, Saint Mary’s and UCF, which is the weakest Q1 slate of the teams listed here. They will be challenged as SEC play starts today.

• #13 Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-0 overall, 3-0 B1G): Nebraska is Huskin’ through the conference with B1G wins over Wisconsin, #13 Illinois, and #9 Michigan State (which produced a court storming!) This is Fred Hoiberg’s best harvest yet, but the dog days of conference play has brought blight to his record over past years. Maybe that will change this season.

• NR…but getting votes - Miami of Ohio! (14-0 overall, 2-0 MAC!): The Little Miami That Could is steaming through opponents. Unfortunately, their schedule is ranked as one of the lowest in all of D1 with zero Quad 1 games and only 2 Quad 2s. The rest are either Quad 4 or Non-D1 where they are 12-0. They will get their first real MACtion today against conference NET leader Akron.

WBB:

• #1 UConn Huskies (14-0 overall, 5-0 Big East): The Huskies are racing through an early Big East schedule with 5 wins already. Add to that, convincing wins (if not, absolute blowouts) over then #22 Louisville, Ohio State, #16 USC, #11 Iowa, and #6 Michigan, who gave them the only scare after the Wolverines came back from a 17 pt deficit midway through the 3rd. They don’t really face much heavy competition in conference but will have the usual games against rivals Notre Dame and Tennessee coming up. If only they had a date with…

• #2 Texas Longhorns (16-0 overall, 1-0 SEC): Would a UConn/Texas game be the ultimate final this season? The Horns stampeded through their loaded non-con schedule that included a sweep of both Carolinas, as well as, then #24 Richmond, #3 UCLA, #13 Baylor and James Madison (don’t sleep on the Duchesses). This is Madison Booker’s year to shine and she is acing my eye test.

• #8 TCU Horned Frogs (14-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII): Given the state of the WNBA (and NIL, really), it was not shocking that Olivia Miles passed on the draft to stay in school for her redshirt season, despite being projected as the #2 pick. What was shocking was Liv’s jump in the portal to end up at TCU. However, she can now remind the world what she can do without sharing the spotlight with Hannah Hidalgo. I miss these two together, but wow. TCU has won all 14 games by double-digits with Miles accruing 4 triple-doubles in her last 5 games. The Horns early season win at NC State made us look and we can’t stop watching.

• #10 Iowa State Cyclones (14-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII): Cyclones’ center Audi Crooks is stealing the hearts of the faithful hoops congregation, but not stealing victories. She is earning every single one. The 6’3” junior leads the nation in scoring. She averages just under 30ppg (29.4) which is a full 4pts greater than Hannah Hidalgo, who is second, and happens to do it in less than 27mins per game. That is a 1.1 point per minute average. WAT?!? But, the Cyclones are not a one trick pony. Along side Crooks is junior forward Addy Brown, who is averaging just under a double-double of her own (13.9 ppg / 9.2 rpg).

• #12 Vanderbilt Commodores (14-0 overall, 1-0 SEC): Live from Nashville, it’s the Mikayla Blakes show! The sophomore guard is shooting just under 50% for the season, averaging 24.7 ppg in 31mins of play. She just keeps getting better and better. However, like their siblings on the men’s side, they haven’t been tested much with the strongest opponents being ACC teams California and Virginia. Major midterm tomorrow as they welcome #5 LSU Tigers. Things could get a little Mulkey.

• #21 Texas Tech Lady Raiders (15-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII): The Lady Raiders are on the rise behind the power of their 3-headed guard monster of seniors Snudda Collins, Bailey Maupin and junior Jaylnn Bristow. All 3 are averaging just over 14ppg in less than 30mins on court. If one is down, there are two more. That is a nightmare for opposing defenses to cover. Not a lot of challenges on the schedule so far, but a pre-Christmas win at #15 Baylor gives confidence down the stretch. January, they face the bottom half of the conference, but wait for end of the month when #10 Iowa State and #8 TCU come to Lubbock.

• NR - Arizona State Sun Devils (15-0 overall, 2-0 Big XII): Lastly, the team last in the rankings, but first in the standings, the Sun Devils from Arizona State. So, how could a team who is undefeated halfway through the season not be ranked? Easy, their schedule is not one to write home about. Current NET ranking of 41, zero Quad 1 opportunities and 70 in Quad 4. The quality wins are just not there. But, to be fair, they are winning all those games. That builds confidence going into Big XII play, but this is a tough league. They are 2-0 against middle of the pack, Colorado and Utah. They go to BYU today, which is not easy, and then to TCU next week. Let’s see where they come out and reassess.

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

There is still a bunch of bowl games happening so we are getting a weird slate of games this Saturday, but some solid match ups in the SEC. On the women’s side, there is a usual slate of gems.

MBB:

• Saturday - Noon: Kentucky / #14 Alabama (ESPN) UK is back but needs this.

• Saturday - 1p: Auburn / #23 Georgia (SEC) Mike White has the ‘dogs barking

• Saturday - 3p: #19 Tennessee / #18 Arkansas (ESPN2) Cal vs. Barnes.

• Saturday - 6p: UCLA / #25 Iowa (Peacock) Look out, here comes Iowa?

• Sunday - Noon: Creighton / Seton Hall A solid BE challenge

WBB:

• Saturday - 2p: #25 Princeton / UPenn (ESPN+) Two top teams in the Ivy battle

• Saturday - 8p: #17 USC / #4 UCLA (Peacock) No notes necessary

• Sunday - Noon: Illinois / #24 Michigan State (BTN) Illinois is top the B1G…for now

• Sunday - 3p: #15 Ole’ Miss / #2 Texas (ESPN2) Cotie vs. Madison. #nufsed

• Sunday - 3p: #22 Baylor / #10 Iowa State (ESPN) Baylor looks to rebalance.

• Sunday - 5p: #5 LSU / #12 Vanderbilt (ESPN) I love me some spilt Mulk.

Keeping up with the Hannahs 2, Electric Hannahloo

When we last left our heroes, we were heading into Feast Week. A lot has happened since then. Let’s keep up.

Hannah Stuelke (Senior / Forward / Iowa):

The emergence of sophomore Ava Heiden down low has really freed up Hannah to move more into the 4. This has given Jan Jensen more options with her rotation. As a result, all of her major stats are up from last year. I will argue that this team is stronger than last season as the addition of Chit-Chat Wright at the point has given this team strong balance between the front and back courts as Wright, Heiden and Stuelke share a high majority of scoring so far.

They were not enough to hold back Audi Crooks, Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd, but to be far, no one else has either. Those losses against Iowa State and UConn are the only blemishes on this Hawkeye squad so far.

In each case, these Hawkeyes have bounced back strong (34pt win over Lindenwood, 23pt win over Penn State, respectively). At this time last season, Iowa (12-2, 2-0) started a 5 game losing streak to start B1G play at 2-6. Most of those losses were close and avoidable, including a home loss to Nebraska in OT. On New Years, a stronger and ranked Nebraska squad entered Carver-Hawkeye to repeat but Hannah and her sisters persisted and defended their nest. Upcoming is a stretch of middle table teams to help, but nothing is easy in this new B1G.

What has been fun this season is more aggression, leadership, and just overall energy from Hannah Stuelke, who still needs work on diversifying her skillset to stick to a WNBA roster. Given the state of the W right now (lockout or strike?) she might just get that best chance to take one more grad year to keep working on those skills. If she does, she should think about transferring just to take advantage of a different style of coaching for diversity sake. I can’t imagine she would not be welcome in most top programs (with amazing NIL opps too. See: Olivia Miles)

Up Next (all times EST):

• Monday 1/5 - #14 Iowa at N’western (8:30p, BTN)

• Sunday 1/11 - #14 Iowa at Indiana (5p, BTN)

• Thursday 1/15 - Oregon at #14 Iowa (9p, FS1)

• Sunday 1/18 - #24 Michigan State at #14 Iowa (8p, BTN)

  

Hannah Hidalgo (Junior / Guard / Notre Dame):

Meanwhile, in South Bend, the Irish continue to roll behind Hannah Hidalgo. She is clearly the gold in the pot. Hannah is second in the country in scoring (25.5) trailing only Audi Crooks. But, while Crooks steals the points, Hannah steals the ball 6.1 times a game, which is almost a full 2 steals above THEE Ohio State’s Kennedy Cambridge.

After the USC game, Notre Dame has gone 6-2 with blowout 5 of those wins, including 72pt cursing of Bellarmine. The two losses were close ones at #13 Ole’ Miss and Georgia Tech, both of which the Irish were leading but could not close out.

Hannah, meanwhile in this time, has scored over 30 twice (vs. Bellermine / Pitt) with double-doubles and one triple-double. She also passed her coach Niele Ivey on the Notre Dame all-time steals list. Next in her sights is Skylar Diggins (381) and is only 23 behind.

While Cassandre Prosper has build presence inside, and Vanessa de Jesus has exploded from 3, this is still very much Hannah’s team. The Michigan loss was an ‘embarrassment’ according to Hannah, but this Michigan team is legit. The loss to Ole’ Miss is regrettable, but respectable. The lost to Georgia Tech was avoidable. This Irish team is not the same talent level as last season, but Olivia Miles, Sonia Citron, Liatu King and Maddie Westbeld brought leadership that is hard to replace. This team is still very very good and finding their way. We will see what they are made of as they enter the belly of the ACC beast with games against Duke (who they embarrassed last season) followed by #16 UNC, #13 Louisville and #1 UConn, all of whom the Irish beat last season. They will be ready for revenge. I’m looking forward to seeing Hannah be their pest.

Up Next (all times EST):

• Sunday 1/4 - #18 Notre Dame at Duke (Noon, ACCNet)

• Thursday 1/8 - Boston College at #18 Notre Dame (6p, ACCextra)

• Sunday 1/11 - #16 North Carolina at #18 Notre Dame (1p, ESPN)

• Thursday 1/15 - #13 Louisville at #18 Notre Dame (6p, ACCNet)

• Monday 1/19 - #18 Notre Dame at #1 UConn (5p, FOX)

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. Nebraska Court Storming has mixed reviews - and not what you think: Friday night, #13 Nebraska beat #9 Michigan State at home and the fans did the old fashioned court storm! The funny thing happened afterwards. In their respective pressers, Nebraska forward Rienk Mast and guard Jamarques Lawrence asked the fans not to rush the court. While, Mich St. coach Tom Izzo said to go ahead and enjoy the win.

2. What exactly are we doing here, part 1? Arkansas coach John Calipari rails on the NCAA for their changes for eligibility and transfer rules after Baylor signs a player from the G-league. He doesn’t just rip on the issue, he proposes solutions, but no one (not even Ellen, his wife) is listening. Is he wrong?

3. What exactly are we doing here, part 2? Meanwhile, St. John’s coach (and John Calipari nemesis -and- benefactor) Rick Pitino have called out the NCAA the opposite way, saying this game ‘no longer exists’ and we should call it what it really is - professional basketball.

4. So, is this what we are doing here??? In response to the above, NCAA head Charlie Baker releases statement to clarify that players who have signed NBA contracts are not eligible to play in college. But what about if you were drafted?? Did I miss this?

5. Ok, lets end on a good knot: Congrats to National Treasures Sam Kerr (Australia) and Kristi Mewis (Massachusetts) have officially tied that knot!! Congrats you two!!

   @thegistusa

   

   The GIST USA on Instagram: "Our royal wedding. 😌⁣⁣
   ⁣⁣
   Matildas…

Final Seconds

There is a lot of chaos in the NCAA for eligibility and transfer rules right now. I will unpack a bunch in the next few weeks. For now, just go and enjoy the games as we have them because at the end of this is a bunch of kids just trying to win some games. And we love that! Enjoy them!

Remember to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

…the holidays are here and its always good to call a TO.

As has had been tradition for many years, here is my rendition of the classic ‘A Visit From St. Nicholas’ rewritten from a hoops fan’s point of view. Not many changes this season but have some fun ideas to work in for the future. For now, please enjoy your time with friends and family and buckle up because conference play is here!

Happy holidays to all! - The Rev.

’Twas the Night Before Christmas: A Bracketologist’s Tale

‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the ‘Dome’,
Not a student was present since they all had gone home,
The Banners all hung from the rafters with care,
To remind us of stars who used to play there,

The coaches were gone, recruiting they say,
To find the next future stars of the day,
It’s so peaceful outside, such a beautiful sight,
But to visit history inside makes a perfect night,
 
I snuck past the guard and in the back door,
I just want to feel what is like on that floor,
But suddenly, I felt a chill to the bone,
As quickly I realized that I wasn’t alone,
 
With thumps getting louder, I thought, ‘Who is this creature?’
Fearing my life, I hid under the bleacher,
But, an image did finally come into my view,
Of a little white man, all dressed in blue,
 
I said to myself, I can’t believe what I see,
But, the man I fear most, Coach Mike Krzyzewski, 
He dribbled the rock out to half court, 
Spun and shot for a three that was five feet too short.
 
With a humble chuckle, he yelled out with cheer,
‘Come on in guys, it's all clear in here,’
Just like that, the room had a-rumbled,
As through the team doors, many old players stumbled,
 
There was Manning, and Walton, and Pat Ewing too,
Pistol Pete ran in, just to rep’ LSU,
Coach K took one bench, and Dean Smith took the other, 
Jeff Capel was there, but no sign of his brother,
 
Two squads formed quickly and the tip-off began,
There was no dribble-drive, old school was the plan,
It was my ‘Field Of Dreams’, for which they all came, 
I didn’t need a program, because I knew them by name, 

There was, Magic to Jordan, who proved he still flies,
That night, Tim Duncan was just one of the guys,
There was Hurley to Laettner, like we’re all seen before,
Bryce Drew hit his three but no one cared anymore,

They slammed-jam-bammed, dipsey-doo-dunk-a-rooed,
This was an event that which no fan could boo,
The best of March past all came down for the fight,
Gene Keady even threw a chair at Bob Knight,
 
Then, Coach K said to me, “You have nothing to fear, 
It is your love for the game that brought us all here.
There won’t be a day where you again see this attraction,  
so, join us out here and be near the action.”
 
I climbed out of my hole, took a seat near Coach Dean,
Saying, “No offense Coach, but Argyle’s my scene.”
Boeheim preached zone, while Shaka raised ‘Havoc’,
Somehow, Tyus Edney still cut through that traffic,

Wooden was there, still anxious to teach,
George Raveling was remembered with a halftime speech.
Red Panda stacked bowls with no use of her hands,
After, Kelsey Plum threw some shirts in the stands,

When the second half started, LeBron crashed the fun, 
He wasn’t invited, so he was Bronnie’s plus 1.
Bill Self arrived late, riding in on his hog,
After all, it’s a long way from the Phog. 
 
Kareem still dazzled, while his jersey not wrong,
‘Alcinder’ is what he used all along,
He still had game and vision through that goggle,
Hey, anyone seen Kevin Pittsnogle??

Jon Rothstein broke news, we heard again and again,
Starting next year, both teams will join The Big Ten. 
Take a break, Jon, you’ve been working all day,
It’s only December, said Jon, ‘and we sleep in May’.

When the buzzer sounded, the players cleared the deck,
Paige, Juju and Hannah walked in and yelled, “WE GOT NEXT!”
Chris Webber called TO and the refs, they did shrug, 
While Jimmy V. still looked for someone to hug.

I checked the scoreboard, but no tallies were present,
There were no winners or losers, that’s not what this meant,
To spend the holidays with friends is what this is about,
To share passion and fun is what we found out,
 
As the bus fired up and the guys packed to travel,
I never would have guessed how this night would unravel,
As they drove out of sight, all I heard was Dickie V,
“Merry Christmas to all, its Awesome, Baby!!

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Please remember these 3 things and 3 things only: Always Like, Share and Subscribe.

If you do those three things, you’ll have a full day. Enjoy your time and see you again in the New Year.

Share

The Reverend here with a brand new shiny newsletter. We are trying something new here. Since the Higher Post is made to look at upcoming weekends, this is meant to reflect on the action from that weekend. As much as we try, we can’t watch all the games, so here are some highlights. Hope you enjoy! And if you do, please share with others.

In Case You Didn’t Witness:

Basically, here is a quick review of the weekend events in case you missed it.

WBB: #1 UConn 90 - #11 Iowa 64: The Huskies start Strong, but end with a Fudd!

This was truly a Tale of Two Halves at the Women’s Champions Classic, as #1-ranked UConn rolled over #11 Iowa. Sophomore sensation Sarah Strong was too much for the Hawkeyes in the first half, racking up 20pts/5stls. Even when Hannah Stuelke and Ava Heiden were able to stop Strong inside, she just punched out a few 3’s. Not much you can do about that.

While Strong dominated, the rest of her team was quiet, keeping Iowa in the game. But, it was the second half where senior guard Azzi Fudd took over scoring, bringing in 27pts of her own.

For Iowa, it was Hannah (high scorer at 17pts) and Chazadi ‘Chit-Chat’ Wright (16pts) who made all the noise, dropping 33 of Hawkeye’s total points (51%). The Hawkeyes have lost 2 of their last 3, but when those 2 are #10 Iowa State and #1 UConn, with neither game at Carver-Hawkeye, there is no shame in that game.

MBB: #23 St. John’s 66 - Kentucky 78: The Master has been slain!

The lead up this game had a real ‘A New Hope‘ feeling to it. Kentucky in desperate need a solid win after starting the year 7-4 and 0-4 against ranked teams. With Sith Lord Rick Pitino coming to town that was not going to be easy. And it wasn’t. But the Boys in Blue got a boost from sophomore Jayden Quaintance who made his season debut, providing 10pts and 8 rebs on 17mins of play. Mark was once the student, but now he is the master.

WBB: #10 Iowa State 79 - Kansas 76: The Cyclones don’t need their Crooks to steal one from Kansas and win by a Hare!

No sleepers at this Hilton. Final 5.4 secs on the clock with both teams level at 76. All eyes on the nation’s points leader, Iowa State sophomore center, Audi Crooks. But, Audi didn’t touch the ball. As the Cyclones inbounded the ball, the pass went to Addy Brown, who pushed right over to junior guard Kenzie Hare who got the corner 3 off just in time. This team is really fun. If you have not had a chance to watch them, you need to.

MBB: #12 North Carolina 71 - THEE Ohio State 70: The Tar Heals have defenses ‘Trimbling’

Seth Trimble, senior guard, made his return to the Argyle Arena for the first time since November 9, when a training accident fractured his left forearm. His defensive assignment was against Buckeye star, senior guard Bruce Thornton. Going into Saturday, Thornton was shooting 60% from the field. Trimble held Thornton to 16 points while he scored 17 himself, proving once again that every point makes the difference.

Meanwhile, the Buckeyes were caught looking ahead on the schedule to their New Year’s Eve match up with The U… in football.

TECHnically Underdogs: Both Texas Tech teams pulled off ‘come from behind, 1-point upsets over the weekend!

First, the men’s team taking down #3 Duke 82-81. Duke led from the start until the 1:13 mark in the second when The Red Raiders got their first lead. But it was the Christian Anderson’s game winning free throws with 3.4 seconds left to steal it.

Then, on Sunday, The Lady Raiders also got game winning free throws, this time from Bailey Maupin, to snap a 31-game losing streak to #15 Baylor 61-60. Well done!

Please do not through objects into the stands…Looking at you Ed Cooley.

Georgetown head coach Ed Cooley was suspended for one game after he threw his water bottle into the stands following a buzzer beating loss to Xavier (80-77). Cooley’s bottle struck a child. Not … cool? #SorryNotSorry

CoB Saturday School!

What did we learn from the weekend that will help us win the office pool:

#1 UConn is really really scary good.

Ok, I almost said they are ‘super Strong’, but I already made that joke. However, the sentiment is the same. After watching them dismantle then-#16 USC and following it up with a 26-point win over #11 Iowa, you really see where they are the favorite on the season so far. The microcosm of the Iowa game really saw Strong and Fudd as the main stars of the show. But, its really an ensemble cast when you add in the power of forwards Bianca Quiñonez and (Brooklyn’s own) Serah Williams, along with the shooting of Ashlynn Shade and KK Arnold (and a dash of ‘Heckeling’) they could run havoc up the Northeast Corridor all the way to March.

Blowouts! Blowouts! Blowouts!

Over the weekend, there were quite a few buzzer beaters. More than usual. We are also noticing a bothering trend of lopsided blowouts as well.

Just looking at the Top-25 teams in action - on the men’s side, there were 18 match ups with 6 of them ending with a point difference of 30 points or more. This included the 52 point win of Michigan over LaSalle (102-50)

On the Women’s side, its even worse - of the 19 Top-25 games, 10 of them ended in blowouts, including 6 of those being by 50 or more. That is literally 60% of the all the ‘blowouts’ (30pts or more) are by 50. The worst being the 82-point victory for #20 Notre Dame over Bellarmine.

Now, readers will know that I’m a fan of this Notre Dame program, but that will not hold me back from using the example, especially because I know this team well. They are a good team, but they are not your Senior roommate’s Irish; and these lopsided wins are not because of these team’s incredible power (ND is #20, not #2 and are 1-2 against other ranked teams so far) but to just weak, weak scheduling.

There is a common scheduling philosophy to schedule some cupcakes to pad your record. This provides confidence in your squad, but also skews the NET rankings. This is by design.

There is also a popular argument that the Transfer Portal is killing Cinderella team in March, but that is not fully true. For as many R.J. Luis jr’s going from mid-major to power conference schools, there are Megan Olbrys’s going from power to mid-major and for a chance to use her talents to grow a diverse skill set, while lifting those programs up.

But the NET ranking is there to put the thumb on the scale for the power conferences come Selection Sunday.

I will have more on this in a later post, but for this purpose, the take away is to beware of power conference teams with padded records since they usually lack the experience of non-conference major opponents and are easy upset picks in the office. These are the power schools with the 21-10 records, get seeded under 5 and match up with that slappy Atlantic 10 school no one believed had it in them. Well, I do and will always pick them in bracket challenges.

We Got Next: Games to watch this week! (all times EST)

This is a shorter week due to holidays, so many of the players are home on winter break, but if you like your cupcakes, there are plenty. I’m not listing potential blowouts. Just the fun games to watch when the Premier League games are over on Boxing Day.

MBB:

• Tuesday - 7p: Villanova / Seton Hall (Peacock) An old Big East grudge match (one the an old coach is coming home as the rival coach.)

WBB:

• Sunday - 2p: #4 UCLA / #19 THEE Ohio State (BTN) Yup, B1G has started

• Sunday - 4p: Penn State / #14 Iowa (BTN) Two seasons ago, The Lady Lions came to Carver-Hawkeye and a young Hannah Stuelke left the game with the entire crowd chanting her name after she dropped 47pts on them. It was beautiful. The Hawkeye’s could use a solid win, so expect them to go Lion hunting.

• Sunday - 4p: Duke / Syracuse (ACCn) One program is trending down and the other is trending up. Which ones? Well, the only hint I will give you is, think of where Devils come from. Kara Lawson’s team has a weird year and could use a win. In contrast, the “Lady Orange” are 11-1 and fighting for a top spot in the ACC standings. This will be fun.

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! Time to move on. I would love to hear your thoughts on the new newsletter. Is it fun? Informative? Useless? Please send me your thoughts.

And remember, to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

…because Sunday is International Basketball Day!

Yes, it’s true. This Sunday is International Basketball Day! And, while some of these official days are just bs (looking at you “Public Sleeping Day” day) International Basketball Day was declared as such in Resolution A/RES/77/324 by the United Nations on August 25, 2023. Yup, it’s a thing!

And, this being the holiday season in which many major religions (and a few mid-major ones) celebrate significant holidays around this time, it only makes sense for the faithful roster of the Church of Bracketology do the same with our own. Seriously, like Northwestern getting its first tourney bid in 2016, it’s just nice to get recognized.

As faithful Bracketologists, it’s important to go out and celebrate our special holiday. It’s perfect day to call out of work for your “Senior Skip Day” but it’s already the weekend so there is a good chance you are off already. Plus, it’s good to save a few of those days for the holy month of March. You’re gonna need them one way or another.

Get off the bench and go support your favorite team, whether it be local and in-person, or on tv, in a bar, or just at home, but share time definitely with friends and family. That is exactly what I intend to do today because …

The Women’s Champions Classic is back, baby!

In 2011, the first men’s Champions Classic tipped at Madison Square Garden, starting an amazing annual event between blue bloods: Duke, Kansas, Kentucky and Michigan State.

Honestly, North Carolina should have been in that mix (arguably over MSU) since the Tar Heels rank 3rd all-time with 6 national titles, which is more than Duke (5), Kansas (4) and Michigan State (2), but it’s wise to not have two teams from the same conference, especially such hated rivals as Duke/UNC are. As the Spartans rank 6th on the all-time NCAA Tourney wins list, I feel their inclusion is valid.

However, shifting to the women’s game, last season introduced a Women’s Champions Classic with a rotation including UConn, Tennessee, Louisville and Iowa, and this year’s event tips Saturday at 11a!

First up, #16 Louisville vs #17 Tennessee (11a - Fox Sports)

Last season, Lady Vols coach Kim Caldwell showed us a new direction for her Tennessee program in her first year on Rocky Top. Focused around the use of a havoc-style defense to produce offense, they produced an exciting style of play that frustrated opponents all season on route to a 22-10 season. Oh, and In the middle, she took a couple of games off to have a baby. Just that.

They take on a tough Louisville Cardinal squad who has been challenged early with games against #1 UConn, #3 South Carolina, #12 North Carolina and #20 Kentucky. They lost the first 2, but took victories against the second 2. You can’t tell me that Jeff Walz won’t have his team prepared. This will be fun, uptempo and chaotic. I expect the Lady Vols to wear the Cardinals down to reach the Summit when the clock buzzes all zeros.

Second, #11 Iowa vs. #1 UConn (1:30p - Fox Sports)

Yes, there’s a Hannah in town and this time she’s going head-to-head with national player of the year candidate Sarah Strong.

As there tends to be a lot of Hannah chatter here on the Higher Post (see, almost every other post) you can imagine my excitement when one of the Hannahs comes to play in my fair city. Especially, against the #1 team in the country! Needless to say, I have loaded up on my necessary NIL-sponsored accoutrements.

Frankly, I am a little worried about this one. UConn (11-0) is just that good. Think they are down without the WNBA Rookie of the Year, Paige Bueckers? Think again. UConn never rebuilds, they reload, and have been taking down quality opponents easily all season, including last week’s demolishing of #16 USC.

There are 4 (count ‘em) Huskies on the Wooden Watch List: Seniors Azzi Fudd (G) and Serah Williams (F), as well as sophomores Sarah Strong (F) and Kayleigh Heckel (G). That’s 3 more than Iowa, who’s freshman Addie Deal was also made the list.

However, Iowa plays a fun sharpshooting style of B1G ball with strong interior defense from Hannah and Eva Heiden, complemented with big 3s from their long range experts, Chit-Chat Wright, Taylor McCabe, and Kylie Feuerbach.

Unlike USC, Iowa has more height down low. Heiden will defend under the hoop, but as Stuelke and Strong are the same height, if Hannah does become The Incredible Stuelk, Strong will have her work cut out for her. Hannah might not be the offensive threat we’re hoping she becomes in order to move to the next level, but defensively she has stood ground against Lauren Betts and Kamilla Cardoso and won both, so you might be surprised how well they match up.

Expect the Huskies to stay undefeated and keep the #1 ranking, but not without a fight.

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

The CBS Sports Classic is also on Saturday with fantastic pairing of mentor/mentee matchup as former Kentucky coach Rick Pitino takes his #22 St. Johnnies to challenge former Wildcat player and now Kentucky coach Mark Pope! Don’t forget these two won a title together in Lexington.

• Saturday - 12:30p: #22 St. John’s at Kentucky (CBS)

This is just the top-half of a fantastic double-header for Saturday. The second bottom half has #12 North Carolina hosting THE Ohio State at 3p!

The Tar Heels (10-1) are off to strong start so far, absorbing some of the heat off of Hubert Davis’ seat a bit (well, for now) behind the McDonalds All-American forward Caleb Wilson. Elliot Cadeau may have transferred, but Wilson has taken over the offense beautifully hitting double-digits in all games on the season so far. Also, we can expect to see the return of senior guard Seth Trimble, who has been out most of the season with an injury. I’m excited to see these two in rhythm as conference tips off.

Meanwhile in Columbus, it’s still football season.

• Saturday - 3:00p: Ohio State / #12 North Carolina (CBS)

Here are some other highlights of the weekend:

MBB:

• Saturday - 5:30p: #8 Houston / #14 Arkansas (CBS) Classic red-on-red violence.

• Saturday - 6p: Maryland / #23 Virginia (ESPN) The Buzz is back in College Park.

• Saturday - 6:30p: #21 Auburn / #6 Purdue (Peacock) Purdue needs more Iron.

• Saturday - 8p: #3 Duke / #19 Texas Tech (ESPN) Boozin’ in Lubbock

WBB:

• Saturday - 5p: Kansas State / #9 TCU (ESPN+) Can Miles get 4 triples in a row?

• Sunday - 2:30p: Penn State / Richmond (ESPN+) The Spiders are getting votes!

• Sunday - 8:30p: #19 USC / California (ESPN) USC to rebound but The UC’s hungry

The Full Day

In the essence of Jimmy V. Let’s have ourselves a full day!

Laugh: That’s Patheticut!

Ok, there is beef. And I usually leave it in the locker room, but I’m not letting this one go.

As a born and raised “Masshole” that has now migrated south of the DiMaggio-Williams Line, there is a special contempt for that small yacht club of a state that cannot make up its mind if it wants to be New England or Westchester County.

That said, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont forced my hand with his new “Welcome to” signs lining various borders.

The ones on the Massachusetts border say:

“Welcome to Connecticut - Home of the Basketball Capitol of the World.”

Oh, and these signs literally face Springfield, MA, the birthplace of our holy game and home of the Naismith Hall of Fame. Literally THE Basketball Capital of the World.

Yes, we know that UConn has a total of 18 titles between mens and women’s, which to be fair, is an amazing achievement. But that is as many as the Boston Celtics have too, so your claim is down right laughable.

But honestly, that is not even the best one. At least there is hoops achievements to build your gym on. But, the signs that face my adopted home of New York say:

“Welcome to Connecticut - Home of the Pizza Capital of the World.”

Wait, what??

I assume you are talking about the apizza from New Haven (which is good stuff), but are you seriously saying that to New York City? Hey Ned, Brooklyn wants a word and they are holding on line 2.

Think: Miles Stones Hit

We know Olivia Miles is one of the best out there. She is one of my all-time favorite players in both men’s and women’s ball. At the end of last season, she shocked the hoops world by forgoing the WNBA draft to stay in school, but also transferring from Notre Dame, where she played for 4 years, to TCU.

This move has given a new spark to the already superstar in the making, as Miles this week tied an NCAA record of 3 consecutive triple-doubles. Once she got that 10th rebound, the whistle was blown, she stopped and then broke into tears. Its was extremely moving.

If you have not watched Olivia play, please stop what you are doing and go watch her. You will thank me later.

@tcuwbb

TCU Women's Basketball on Instagram: "THREE STRAIGHT TRIPLE-DOU…

Cry: Miami forward Marcus Allen to miss the rest of the season after cancer diagnosis.

The University of Miami announced on Friday that sophomore forward Marcus Allen will have to miss the rest of the season to go through treatments for non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Allen, a 4-star recruit coming out of high school, started his career at Mizzou before transferring back home to Miami. You never want to see anyone go through this, but it always feels different when it's a kid. We’re praying for you Marcus.

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. Martha Stewart reveals Jalen Brunson accidentally broke her toe during playoff game: Maybe she can hit up Snoop for some ‘painkillers’

2. Of course it was a dunk: Florida big man, 7’9” Oliver Rioux cuts and dunks to score his first collegiate career points. He barely has to jump to do it. The crowd went crazy like he scored the 67th point.

3. Blake Griffin, Candace Parker, Bruce Pearl, Mark Few, Elena Delle Donne are amongst the list of first-timers nominated for the Naismith Hall of Fame induction ballot. Finalists will be announced during the NBA All-Star weekend sometime between the WNBA player pickets and the animations explaining the new all-star game format.

4. Speaking of 67: This has been the craz blowing up arenas all over the country. Many of us know about the 6-7 trend, but NO ONE actually knows what it means. Well, many programs have youth days where local schools or youth leagues are invited to day games, exposing them to the amazing world of college hoops. At many of these games, if a team (especially the home team) hits exactly 67 points, pandemonium breaks with kids all doing the 6-7 ‘thing’. I gotta say, as a GenX’er, I never understood that kind of hysteria for events like “The Beatles on Ed Sullivan” and I miss it here too. But I will say, the energy is fun! Especially when coaches get in on the action.

   @sportscenter

   

   SportsCenter on Instagram: "Coach knew what was coming 😭🔥"

5. Finally, the WNBAPA has officially voted to strike ‘when necessary’. We have been saying this fight will get ugly and it’s happening. It's very possible we don’t have a season - or a shortened one, which would be a shame since there is so much excitement and growth in the game these past few years. When a strike happens, the fan base usually just blames players for getting greedy - and I expect all these fans who walked into fandom through the Indiana door will do just that - but that is not the case here. The league (especially Commissioner Cathy Engelbert) has made a mess of this. More to come.

   ---

Ok, friends! That is it for this week! Get out and watch some hoops!

And remember, to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

…to cancer - Jimmy V. Week is in the books!!

The buzzer has sounded for another Jimmy V. Week!

I feel like it always sneaks up on us because it comes right after thanksgiving, and well, it’s spread over two weeks all leading to a climatic ending at the annual men’s and women’s Jimmy V. Classic games. And, this year’s installment was nothing short of ‘awesome, baby!’

The first ever Jimmy V. Classic tipped 30 years ago with double-header featuring two rivals, then from the Atlantic 10, with Temple vs. #1 Kansas followed by #2 UMass vs. #21 Georgia Tech. Both A10 schools won the fight, with the Owls handing the Jayhawks their first loss of the season (7-0 previous) and the #1 ranking to their hated conference rival after the Minutemen knocked off the Yellow Jackets just 3 hours later.

In 2002, a Women’s Jimmy V. Classic was added with #1 Duke beating #2 Tennessee, and #6 UConn besting NC State on the Wolfpack’s home court. Three years later, the women’s Classic was trimmed to just one game, and unlike the men’s Classic that takes place in a neutral site (Meadowlands, MSG) the women’s game is played on a home campus.

This year we were treated to 3 close games, with one ending in a buzzer beater.

#10 BYU 67 - Clemson 64: First up, a classic catfight between the BYU Cougars (8-1) against the Clemson Tigers (7-3). It was truly a ‘tail’ of two halves as Clemson built a 22pt lead heading into the locker room at the half. But, in the second half, the Tigers started chasing its own tail, allowing Cougar forward AJ Dybantsa to score 22 of his season high 28pts and leading to the final buzzer beater 3 from Robert Wright III to seal it.

Sneaking through two defenders wasn’t the only thing that snuck out from Robert Wright III, as he also let out a few ‘choice’ words in the postgame interview. I can’t tell what those words were since they were bleeped out, but I can guess. Whoops!

#5 UConn 77 - #18 Florida 73: Then, in the nightcap, UConn (9-1) frustrated #HuskieHaters all over with a grueling win over the defending national champions. Florida guard, Xaivian Lee led scoring for the Gators (5-4) with 19 points, but was only 1-7 from outside the arc.

3pt shooting was the difference as Florida only shot 27% (4-15) while the Huskies shot 44% (8-18), with all other major stats being fairly equal. Unfortunately, this was another big game that the Gators let get away.

#10 Iowa State 74 - #11 Iowa 69: We were treated to a gem in this year’s “CyHawk Rivalry” game between the in-state rivals. The nation’s leading scorer, Audi Crooks, tore up the paint for 30pts, while both Ava Heiden and Hannah Stuelke played limited minutes due to foul trouble.

Crooks has been a star throughout her career, but she has taken a big leap this season averaging 27.8 ppg and just making life difficult for anyone showing up for work in the paint.

Hawkeye fans were treated to another stellar performance with the return of sophomore guard Chazadi “Chit Chat” Wright who was hitting far 3’s as if she was shooting them from Carver-Hawkeye.

The Georgia Tech transfer has brought some real fun to this Iowa team this season, and if she stays, there is a lot to get excited for after the last of the coach Lisa Bluder’s players move on.

All three games were filled with talent, amazing plays, flip-flopping leads and comeback stories, all encompassing those famous words, “Don’t give up. Don’t ever give up!”

I can’t count the number of times I have watched the famous Jimmy V. ESPY speech, but every time I do, I get emotional. Jimmy said if we laugh, think and cry everyday, you have a full day. I do all 3 of those just watching his speech. If you have never seen it, please watch. And if you can find it in your heart to donate to the V Foundation, you should. I’m proud to be a month giver and have met some folks who work for the foundation. They are wonderful and are really doing great work. Thank you.

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

There is a great event happening tonight! Two icons in the world of basketball (and broadcasting) are joining forces to call a game together. Yes, I’m talking about Dickie V. and Sir Charles Barkley together for the Indiana / Kentucky game at 7:30 (ESPN)

Here are some other highlights of the weekend:

WBB:

• Saturday - 4p: #9 Oklahoma at #23 Oklahoma State (ESPNu)

• Saturday - 5:30p: #1 UConn / #16 USC (FOX)

• Sunday - 1p: #13 Baylor / #2 Texas (ABC)

• Sunday - 4p: #22 Louisville / #12 North Carolina (ACCn)

MBB:

• Saturday - noon: #17 Arkansas / #16 Texas Tech (ESPN)

• Saturday - 4p: #23 Nebraska / #13 Illinois (Peacock)

• Saturday - 9:30p: #1 Arizona / #12 Alabama (ESPN)

• Saturday - 11:30p: #25 UCLA / #8 Gonzaga (ESPN)

The Full Day

In the essence of Jimmy V. Let’s have ourselves a full day!

Laugh: You like-ah the juice?

It’s been a while since we asked the question, “Did you happen to catch the Syracuse game last night?”

It is true that team in Orange has taken a tumble in relevancy these past few years, but this year’s team has shown some juice in the short season so far.

The Orange started the season feasting on tasty treats of the mid majors, before hitting a sugar low against some heavy weights. There is no shame in losing to Houston, Kansas and Iowa State. But, when they followed the 4 wins by those 3 losses, fans started to feel they got the last drop. Then, came #13 Tennessee in the ACC/SEC Challenge, where the Cardiac Cusers squeezed out a 2pt upset, causing the students to storm the court. I mean, when was the last time Carrier Court stormed?

Well, that got us thinking…

Syracuse last made the Final Four in 2016, since then, they only made The Dance three times, never going past the Sweet 16. (and not since 2021). That means this year’s freshman were only 9 years old when the Orange last made a relevant tourney run. Wow. I’m going to have to go listen to some Ra Ra Riot and relive the good times.

Think: In a UMass Minute(s)

It’s been a minute since my UMass Minutemen, then led by Marcus Camby and coached by then Ralph Macchio-lookalike John Calipari, won the first Jimmy V. Classic.

It’s actually been about 15,765,033 minutes, but who’s counting?

However, this season has seen a special achievement as well. UMass basketball, counting both men’s and women’s programs, are a total 8-0 over other schools from the Bay State (MBB: 3-0 / WBB 5-0) This includes wins over in-state ‘rival’ UNewton Boston College and Harvard for both programs. The Minutewomen (7-1) have conquered Holy Cross. UMass men still have one to go over D3 UMass-Boston. I expect that one to be a W, so let’s hope I didn't just give them the Scranton Curse.

Cry: Wait, we all don’t make it?

Ok, usually when I drop the letters ND on a Higher Post, it’s usually about women’s hoops. But we are not going to Ivey’s Poison Garden today. Yes, I’m actually referencing the world of college football as the CFP bracket dropped this week, which excluded the Irish - a surprise to many, especially ND’s AD Pete Bevacqua. Bevacqua called out the ACC for promoting the inclusion of football member school Miami (of Coral Gables) over their Irish, saying the predictions all season led them to believe they would be in and that there is ‘permanent damage’ to the relationship between the conference and school, who is a member in most sports, just not football.

This is going to be ugly for a while.

I’m not going to give my opinion on whether or not the Irish should be in, because that is not my pot-of-gold. But, I love me some post Selection Sunday complaining.

We, the college hoops fans of the world, see this every year on ‘Selection Monday’. At the end of the day, I will say the same thing I say every year, “Want to be selected for the post-season? Win more. That’s the formula”

Welcome to the post-bracket complaining party, college football!

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. It was only a matter of time: UNLV becomes the first college to approve jersey-patch sponsorship

2. Vanderbilt - the Brains and the Brawn: Don’t look now, but the Commodores of Vanderbilt are ranked in MBB (15), WBB (14) and football (13). Let’s make lots of money.

3. A Grand Achievement: And speaking of Vanderbilt, Commodore wunder-guard Mikayla Blakes becomes the fastest player to reach 1000 points in program history. She also became only the 9th women’s player in NCAA history to do it in 42 games or less. She knows where her towel is.

4. A Few Good Wins: And speaking of achievements, Gonzaga beat North Florida this week, giving head coach Mark Few his 750th career win, which he did in 904 games. Few is the second fastest to reach that milestone, only trailing Adolph Rupp, who did it in 902 games.

5. Cathy Engelbert is losing her grip: Introducing Granny Hoops! The new women’s league that has actually been around for a long time.

Final Seconds

Ok, friends! That is it for this week! Get out and watch some hoops!

And remember, to do these three things: - Like, Share and Subscribe.

Always live One Shining Moment at a time. Never be boring.

Share

…because we got a lot to be grateful for!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

Yes, the time is now upon us to get the Higher Post fired up for the season….and yes, I‘m a couple of weeks late on that. This year, I had some complications that got in the way of starting the season with Higher Posts. That’s on me. That said, we are here and ready for some hoopses.

This particular time of year is fascinating as it is when we switch from ‘The Magnolia Bakery Season’ to ‘Feast Week’. I know, the rule is, no dessert before dinner, but when you are a power conference, you need your cupcakes.

The switch to Feast Week also means Thanksgiving is here. Growing up, Thanksgiving sports was always about football, and to each their own, but I’m breaking out that second screen, to catch up with the best college hoops time outside of March.

However, we also need to take that time to turn inside and give gratitude for things we are blessed to have in our lives.

Some things I am thankful for:

• My UMass Minutewomen for their current undefeated start to the season (6-0) and one step away from a Bay State sweep! This team is fun!

• NIL - while I don’t like how the NCAA is handling it, it’s important to allow student athletes to earn money by just being themselves.

• Argyle on jerseys…yes, you know who I mean. Its glorious.

• Olivia Miles…nuff said.

• Any sports bar who doesn’t flinch when I ask for a women’s game, regardless of how much football is happening at the time - (looking at you Field Day Brewing (North Liberty, IA) and The Commissioner (Brooklyn, NY).

• The Congregation of the CoB for 20 years of ‘shining moments and madness’

• Red Panda - Without you, halftime is just a timeout that is too long.

• And of course, this little invention of James Naismith that just keeps bringing the Madness!

While I enjoy many sports, it is this 6 months of fun that really brings me joy every day. But, it’s not just the game. It’s the world around it. The community you build just sitting next to someone at a bar cheering for your team. I have met many of my close friends through the Madness. In this time of extreme division, sometimes it’s just fun to lean over and chat with a stranger about something you both love.

I give thanks for that daily.

Keeping up with the…Season

This next segment is brought to you by Magnolia Bakery, since you gotta get your cupcakes in before conference play!

This young season has indeed given us a series of blowouts, but there are also some good early gems and upsets. Here is a quick run around the court to catch up on the action so far.

• 3’s the Magic Number - for Arizona: Pop quiz hot shot, how many #3’s have the Arizona Wildcats taken down this season? The answer would be 2 (then #3 Florida on 11/3; then #3 UConn on 11/19). However, they also beat #15 UCLA to make wins over 3 ranked teams into a 6-0 record to start the season. Those wins have Arizona racing up from #13 to #2 nationally.

• We’re not on Tobacco Road anymore… The Kansas Jayhawks have had an up and down start to their season so far, but in fairness, they have one of the hardest non-con schedules of any team. They are currently 6-2 with their only losses being against arch rivals Duke and North Carolina. So the enemy of my enemy is still an enemy. They are 3-0 against Orange teams though (Syracuse, Tennessee and Princeton)

• Maybe they thought it was UNC? - NC State’s women’s season (3-3) has really been ‘one for me, one for you’ as they have mixed losses at home to #18 USC, #17 TCU between wins against #8 Tennessee, Maine, and Coastal Carolina. However, the one that caught them by surprise was a loss to an upstart Rhode Island team. If you have never watched the Rams before, you will notice that they are really UNC junior. They have the same colors, same mascot and even the same fight song. If the Wolfpack scheduled Rhody as pre-conference practice for a fight with their in-state sister program - 1.) That’s genius! and 2.) they will be in for a big surprise on February 2 when the real UNC squad comes rammin’ in.

• Michigan is BACK! Both Michigan squads are looking strong in the early going. On the Women’s side, The ‘Angelines’ are 6-1 with dominating performances averaging 45.5 point wins; including a 93-54 domination over Notre Dame (more below). Their only loss is to UConn by 3. They are the team to watch in the B1G. Meanwhile, the Men’s side is 7-0 with wins over San Diego State, #21 Auburn (by 30) and a 40pt win over #12 Gonzaga. Get your Zingerman’s to-go, Ann Arbor! You have hoops to watch!

• There have been amazing blowouts! And I’m defining blowouts here with both teams hitting major CoB markers - the winners score 100+ while the losing squad scores 50 or less. Here are just a few:

  • WBB:

    • #5 LSU over SE Louisiana: 115-26 (26?!?)

    • #10 Maryland over Loyola Maryland: 80-26 (26 again ?!?)

    • #22 Ok State over New Orleans: 109-48

    • #13 Michigan over Canisus: 100-40

    • #23 Michigan State over Mercyhurst: 125-39

    • #24 Kentucky over Monmouth: 104-46

    • #2 South Carolina over Bowling Green: 114-47

    • #21 Iowa over Evansville: 119-43

  • MBB:

    • #11 Louisville over South Carolina State: 104-45

    • #17 Illinois over Jackson State: 113-55

    • #4 UConn over UMass-Lowell: 110-45

    • #13 Gonzaga over Southern Utah 122-50

We Got Next: Games to watch this weekend! (all times EST)

This is a tough week for scheduling since the week consists of mini-tourneys all over the country (and some tropical resorts!) For the most up-to-date action, its best to check in on the updated schedules on sites like CBSsports.com or ESPN.com

That said, here are some games of choice to check out when your ‘druncel’ passes out and you can pry the remote away from the football games…

MBB:

• Thanksgiving - 4:30p: #16 North Carolina / #11 Michigan State (FOX)

• Thanksgiving - 8p: #4 Duke / #22 Arkansas (CBS)

• Friday - 12:30p: #5 UConn / #13 Illinois (FOX)

WBB:

• Thanksgiving - 8p: #4 Texas / #2 South Carolina (truTV)

• Thanksgiving - 9p: Richmond / #8 TCU (FloCollege)

• Thanksgiving - 10:30p: Duke / #3 UCLA (truTV)

• Sunday - 4:30p: #14 Tennessee / #3 UCLA (FS1)

Keeping up with the Hannahs 2, Electric Hannahloo

Two of my favorite players are not only incredibly fun to watch…but are both named Hannah! I dedicate this section to them.

Ok, I was going to conclude this segment at the end of last season. But, a couple of things happened. One, it’s a new season and therefore, new Hannah stories. And, two, the feedback I got from folks was that they really liked this segment and apparently there are some new #Hannahfans out there now. That makes me happy.

In the interest of keeping things fresh, I will continue this, but it might not be weekly like before. Also, I’m debating just making this its own page on the site to write about the games as they go because I have seen some new excitements in this short season already.

Hannah Stuelke (Senior / Forward / Iowa):

Hannah Stuelke enters this year as the anchor of a young Hawkeye squad in head coach Jan Jensen’s second year in charge. Over the past season, we saw Hannah grow as a post player without the assistance of Caitlin Clark on the point. Hannah needed to come into her own and develop the perimeter game at the 4 (even the 3) to have a good shot at making a roster spot in the W. She is a bit small to play center in the W, but has the drive and talent to make it if she can expand her skill set. However, at times last season, she looked uncomfortable coming out of her office in the paint. It was clear when she would have to transition back to the paint which is where we would see the ‘Incredible Stuelk’ come alive.

Then came the summer, where she was selected by coach Kara Lawson as a reserve for Team USA in the Americup tournament, which also brought her and Hannah Hidalgo together on one team. (Bless Naismith!)

However, Coach Lawson saw in Hannah what fans like us see and was able to unlock something that gave the 6’2” Hannah considerable minutes in that tourney, culminating to a championship showdown against 6’7” WNBA star Kamilla Cardoso, where she reminded everyone that the paint is her office and she is boss. USA takes gold with Hannah contributing over 22mins off the bench! She is a plug and play player who is able to roll up to the 4 and back to the 5 when needed at either.

And from there something has awoken in Hannahland as Stuelke seems to have a new fire burning inside her. She is taking more of a leadership position and with the emergence of Ava Heiden down low, Hannah has been able to move out to the perimeter with confidence, both offensively and defensively. She has been close to double-doubles in all games and shooting almost as many 3s already this season as all of last season. She has not hit many yet, but showing more confidence in her shot, so you know it’s only a matter of time before they really start falling.

Defensively, she is showing more aggression at the perimeter, similar to when she is in the paint. On the night after Hannah Hidalgo broke an NCAA single game record with 16 steals, Hannah Stuelke said, “Hold my Busch Light” and bullied this lil’Drake for all her Cakes.

Remember, don’t make her angry. You wouldn’t like her when she’s angry.

Last season’s Iowa team was in transition, with Jensen developing her style with a young and talented recruiting class. While there were some major departures like Lucy Olsen, Sydney Affoltrer (graduation) and Aaliyah Guyton (transfer to Illinois), newcomers Addie Deal and “Chit Chat” Wright are showing their talent already. Not to forget, the return of sophomore Taylor Stremlow, senior Taylor McCabe and super-senior Kylie Feuerbach, this Iowa squad has shown resilience, but mostly that they just play a fun game of hoops.

Up Next (all times EST):

• Sunday 11/30 - Fairfield at #11 Iowa (1p, BiG Net)

• Saturday 12/6 - #11 Iowa at Rutgers (6p, FS1)

  

Hannah Hidalgo (Junior / Guard / Notre Dame):

Meanwhile, over in South Bend, a new Irish team has taken court. Gone are mainstays Sonia Citron, Maddie Westbeld, Liatu King, Liza Karlin, and yes, Sarah Cernugel, to graduation. Transferring out were Kate Koval (LSU) , Emma Risch (Florida State), Kylee Watson (Villanova), and most notably, Olivia Miles, who decided to forgo the WNBA draft, where she was predicted to go 2nd, to stay in school but transfer to TCU.

The news of Miles transfer hit the portal with a thud. Its says a lot about the state of NIL in the college game versus the current pay structure in the ‘W’. (More to come on this in later posts)

While last season brought the question “Will Hannah Hidalgo and Olivia Miles be able to coexist together on this roster?” This season brings the question, “How will Notre Dame do without Miles on the floor?” For most of the year, the Hannah-Liv show was must see TV, including this gem against then #4 Texas (which was basically on loop in my home all season long):

With that depletion of talent, Coach Niele “Pick your Poison” Ivey went portal shopping to reload. This is not the same team as last year, but it’s clearly Hannah’s team now, with Ivey pushing her to be the leader.

And, so far these Irish have feasted on a cupcake buffet with blowout wins over FDU (98-52), Chicago State (116-58), Central Michigan (83-51) and Akron (85-58).

It was this win over Akron where Hannah has the game of her career breaking 3 records in just 27mins of play:

• Most Points in a Single Game (ND): 44

  • (Previously Held: Ruth Riley (1999 vs. Providence) and Jewell Loyd (2014 vs. DePaul) -both 41pts

• Most Steals in a Single Game (ND): 16

  • Previous Held: Hannah Hidalgo - 12

• Most Steals in a Single Game (NCAA): 16

  • Previously Held: Tied by 7 players - 14

Following that performance, ND had their first major test of the season on a ‘neutral’ court against then #14 Michigan at Wayne State Fieldhouse in Detroit. The Wolverines pounced out to an early lead and the Irish had no answers. Hannah Hidalgo was quoted as being “embarrassed” by the outing, which caused my bartender friend to start the Irish wake at the half by sliding us good ole’ fashioned Jameson shots.

Expectations into the season we met with skepticism about how this Irish team really was. Did the real Irish just stand up? Well, just one week later, they would take on their old foe Southern Cal at home and we were treated to a gem, with a HH game winning shot…

…followed by Cassandre Prosper blocking the inbounds pass in the final second to secure the win.

Hannah led the team scoring 22pts with 5stls, 7rebs. This is a great sign of resiliency for this Irish team as they find their path going into conference play.

Up Next (all times EST):

Notre Dame is on break until after the holiday (PTSD from last year’s 2-loss holiday tourney?) The are back in action on 12/3

• Thursday 12/4 - #19 Notre Dame at #13 Ole Miss (9p, ESPN2)

• Sunday 12/7 - #19 Notre Dame at Florida State (2p, ACCN)

Five Touches: Passing around the sports world

1. How did the USC Marching Band get on a Fleetwood Mac song? A great story about a recording process that changed music forever.

2. ‘Underdog my ass!’… said Gotham FC forward Jaden Shaw after beating a KC team that dominated the NWSL all through the regular season. But, last team in the playoffs, are still in the playoffs and Gotham rode that opportunity all the way to a second championship in 3 years. I am excited to get that new kit with the updated “2-star” crest!

3. Not just good ‘on paper’: Nationally ranked as the #2 team in Division 3, the Lady Royals’ of the University of Scranton traveled to Pittsburgh to give the D1 opponent the ‘Royal treatment’ taking the win 69-63. Naismith bless the ACC Digital Network for posting the ‘highlights’. I hope we get to see them against #1 NYU in the final! If it happens, might it be the first all-purple final in NCAA history? (I know NYU are the Violets, but I’m talking hues. Purple is the hue, while violet is a color. #ColorTheory101)

4. Meet Jayden Bailey: The Athletic posted an amazing and inspiring story about a 16yo who had his arm amputated due to cancer, but is still ballin’. What a story.

5. Pazzi in Dallas? One can dream right? The Dallas Wings have secured the #1 pick in the upcoming WNBA draft once again. While almost all mock drafts assume Dallas will go for someone down low, since that is what they need to complement Paige Bueckers, so many of us just want them to pick Azzi Fudd and get that reunion (and romance) together again!

Final Seconds

Lastly, I will be ending on a somber note. Over the summer, the Congregation lost someone close to us. Our dear friend Chris Winters, who passed away this past August.

I met Chris close to 20 years ago at our original sports bar temple in the East Village of NYC. A strong and passionate Kansas alum, we shared many great March times together, including watching his Jayhawks win two National Championships (2008, 2012). We got to see the second in-person after the Jayhawks overcame a historic 16pt halftime deficit to beat my UNC Tar Heels. As, much as I wanted to see UNC win, we were driving 5hrs to Houston the next day, and I’m not an alum, while he is. It was going to be a much easier ride if he was happy! Plus, the Tar Heels ‘retired’ Coach K. two days previous, so I was ok with letting the big game go. I’m so grateful we got to experience that together.

Chris, we miss you. We are blessed to have you as part of our crazy gang of hoopsters!

RIP Sweet Jayhawk and Rock Chalk! I love you, my friend.

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