Two Days After HRC Didn't Fold...

Wow. Talk about storming back. Just when loss after loss started to pile up. When the early returns didn't look so good, and it originally looked like the night was starting out the same way the last few results have gone...

Ohio State rises up and get a big time OT win over Purdue and keeps themselves involved in an at-large discussion for the NCAA tournament. Down by 6 with 9 minutes to go, and then 5 with four minutes to go, Jamar Butler and Evan Turner scored 18 of the Buckeyes last 27 points, to give OSU the marquee win they took just about all season to get. Now, Sparty comes a calling, but at 2-5 in road games in conference, Michigan St gives Ohio State another opportunity for a resume-stocking win just before tournament time.

Grab your plates folks.... because: ON THE SECOND & THIRD DAY OF CONFERENCE TOURNEYS, THE BUFFET GAVE TO ME:

Fun in the A-Sun, A fitting Patriot prediction, Tightening up your Sun Belt, Getting ARCH-tastic, a Northeasterly tussle, and a thriller down in the O. V. C.

While the first night was not filled with shockers or surprises, it was an excellent kick-off to Conference Tourney mayhem. Let's get to it...

Last night in...
...the Big South
The top two seeds had no trouble:

NC-Asheville used 22 points from Bryan Smithson, 18 from Vincent James, and 35 combined from K.J. Garland, Reid Augst and John Williams, to propel the Bulldogs to a 87-63 win over Charleston Southern. Not that there was much doubt, it was the 13th consecutive road loss for the Bucs (who have lost 16 consecutive road games in two seasons in the Big South) -- Omar Carter had 18 and Jamarco Warren chipped in 14 in the loss.

Michael Jenkins played 10 minutes. Taj McCullough logged 8, and Winthrop turned a 9-0 start into a 76-45 victory over Radford. The Eagles were paced off the bench by Antown Harris' 14 points, with twelve apiece from freshman Byron Faison (playing his most extended minutes of the season, and extending Winthrop's record to 9-3 when he plays 10 or minutes more) and Chris Gaynor. And really, you cannot shoot 24.6% and get a total of 9 points from your 3 leading scorers and hope to accomplish anything in a conference tournament.

Apparently VMI slept on themselves, as the greatest show got cancelled, 103-88 by Liberty -- who watched 4 starters hit double-figures, led by 30 points and 10 rebounds from Anthony Smith, 21 points from Kyle Ohman, and 13 points and 13 rebounds from Alex McLean. The only starter not to? PG TeeJay Bannister, who was content to do his best Steve Nash, dishing out 14 assists, taking only 4 shots, and orchestrating the 103 point effort. Reggie Williams put up 30 points, 9 rebounds, The Holmes twins had 45 (Chavis with 26, Travis with 19), but it just wasn't enough...

Big South Game of the Night: As predicted, the Mad Bomber and the A.Z. put on a show ... with Leasure Suit Jack, living up to his first name, hoisting up 12 threes (sinking 4), and AZ Reid doing everything within his power (20 points, 11 rebounds (6 offensive)). High Point jumped out to a 7-0 lead, that was cut to 7-5 after a Coastal timeout. High Point led for most of the first half, until the Mad Bomber unleashed a pair of threes, and help guide the Chanticleers to a 6 point lead, a pair of AZ Reid buckets helped cut the deficit to 33-31 at halftime.

The second half was similar, but then, at the 11:32 mark, the Coast froze following a Mario Sisinni layup (making it 45-43 Coastal Carolina), and the Chanticleers did not score for five minutes, and allowed High Point to get out on an 11-2 run, that put them up 54-47 with 6:13 left. But Coastal flexed, hitting a 7-2 run, that pulled them within 1 with 3:35 left ... neither team scored a point, until CCU's Logan Johnson followed an Anthony Breeze miss with a layup with 29 seconds left, putting Coastal up 56-55. Following a time out, Mike Jefferson missed a wide open jumper, but the rebound was gobbled up by A. Z. Reid, and Arizona followed with a short jumper of his own, and the lead for good, in what ended up as a 59-56 thrilling win for High Point.

Up next:
Thursday March 6 @ Justice Center in Asheville, NC
Winthrop v. High Point, 6 pm, ESPNU -- could be a very very good one on a neutral floor

Liberty @ UNC-Asheville, 8 pm, ESPNU -- Burgeoning Buffet favorite Liberty -- very well-rounded, and a PG who spells out his initialed name (TeeJay) tries to pull the monumental upset

...the Horizon League
Playing like an angry 3-seed, Wright Seed smacked around Detroit. It truly is a feat to score 6 points in the first 2 minutes 30 seconds (going up 6-0), and then only 31 for the next 37 minutes ... but that's what happened at Brad Brownell's Raiders played some serious defense, and with leading scorer Jon Goode sidelined since February 20th, the Titans didn't have a chance. Then, following the game, making like Dick Bennett after beating the Maryland Terrapins in 2001, Perry Watson (who had left the team on January, 7 for Lute Olson Reasons), resigned as head basketball coach after 15 years. Wright State used 15 points and 9 rebounds, and 12 points from Vaughn Duggins, and a second-half defense that allowed 13 points (despite a career-high 18 points from sophomore Eulis Stephens), to coast to a 60-37 opening round win.

A 26-12 start that never got closer than 9 points made Illinois-Chicago's victory over Youngstown State relatively stress-free. Robert Bush had 14 points, Josh Mayo added 13, and Scott Vandermeer chipped in 7 points and 13 rebounds, to finish off the Penguins 70-59, Byron Davis had 22 points for Youngstown and John Barber put up 12 points and 8 rebound in a losing effort.

A strange season that saw one of the Horizon's more experienced teams never get on track, came to a close when conference newcomer, Valparaiso knocked off Wisconsin-Green Bay, 75-67. Valpo got 16 points and 7 rebounds from Shawn Huff, 13 points from Jarryd Loyd, and All-Buffet Name Contender, and Urule Igbavboa chipped in 14 points and 10 rebounds. The Crusaders won their 5th straight, and 6 of 7 since freshman Brian Bouchie was inserted into the starting lineup to replaced the mononucleosis-sidelined Samuel Haanpaa. In the losing effort, Mike Schachtner had 14 points, Ryan Tillema had 13 (these names familiar yet?) and Randy Berry gave the Phoenix 10 points and 13 rebounds

Horizon League Game of the Night: In a bit of a stunner, Loyola (Chicago), who were beaten by 15 points just five nights ago by the same team, on the same floor, used 23 points from J.R. Blount to upset the conference #5, Wisconsin-Milwaukee Panthers 57-51. Ricky Franklin, nearly doubled his season average, putting up 17 points and 4 rebounds, but Paige Paulsen, no doubt confused by the fact that very few men are actually named Paige, was shut down by the Ramblers into a 3-13 shooting day.

Up Next:
Friday, March 7 @ Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN
Wright St. v. Valparaiso, time TBA -- Defending conference tourney champs try to keep it rolling against the hottest team in the conference

Illinois-Chicago v. Loyola (Chicago) -- Can Loyola keep the upset streak rolling, can J.R. Blount fill the shoes of Blake Schilb and Brandon Cotton before him, i.e. a opening nighter who carries his team to a couple upsets and subsequently the all-tournament team...

...In the OVC
Adam Leonard tried, but Austin Peay is much better than Eastern Kentucky this year, and a 76-51 game later, Austin Peay is a step closer to the NCAA tournament. Ernest Fields came off the bench to score 15 points and grab 8 rebounds in just 16 minutes of action, meanwhile starts Kyle Duncan and Derek Wright had 13 a piece. Leonard, on 7-13, had 17 points, but he was the only Colonel in double-figures.

In yet another 5 day switcheroo, Morehead St, OVC #3 seed and playing at home, dropped their tournament opener to Tennessee State, 68-61. 22 points & 8 assists from Bruce Price and a stonewalling effort that saw the Eagles take the lead at 4-2 just 2 minutes and 33 seconds in, and never let it go, pushing to a 10-4 finish after Morehead St closed it to a 1 point game with 4:26 to go. Jerrell Houston added 16, and Buffet All-Name Nominee, LaDarious Weaver added 11. Jamyron Steward had 18 for Morehead, and Kenneth Faried added 14 points and 7 rebounds.

In a game that was a lot closer than I'm sure Murray State, and anyone, where legal, who had them as the third (and only failing) leg of a 3-team OVC parlay, would have wanted, the Racers outlasted pesky Tennessee Tech, 77-74. Kevin Thomas & Ray George had 14 points each, pacing the Racers passed the Golden Eagles who got 26 from Anthony Fisher and 17 points/13 rebounds from Daniel Northern.

OVC Game of the Night ... Could be a game of the year candidate ... and especially brilliant for anyone, where legal, who had Tennessee-Martin -5 points and was forced to live through 3 overtimes before the Skyhawks finally put away Samford 101-94 in triple overtime. Free throw shooting did the trick as 6 straight of them made a 95-94 game into the final score. Marquis Weddle had 39 points, while Joe Ross Merritt of Samford kept the pace with 29 of his own, and clutch baskets at the end of regulation and the 2nd overtime. Lester Hudson added 28 points for Tennessee-Martin, who also got 14 each from Djero Reidewald and Gerald Robinson.

On to the tourneys tipping off tonight...
The Sun rises in the Atlantic...

What's the best way to follow-up on a 2007 conference tournament championship and a berth in the 2007 NCAA tournament? Running off 10 straight victories en route to a regular season championship. The Belmont Bruins head into the 2008 Atlantic Suns conference tournament as the tourney top seed. But this wasn't always the inevitable result, the season started with Jacksonville winning its first 6 (and 9 of 10) heading into a February 7 showdown at Belmont with a conference record of 9-1, the Bruins entered the contest at 7-2 ... an 85-78 Bruin victory later erased all memories of losing, and Belmont hasn't done so since. Jacksonville, sputtered a bit to the end, losing their next game by 13, needing overtime to beat two teams who are combined 7-25 in Atlantic Sun play ... and then later dropping a 17 point decision @ Stetson

Belmont. 10 straight wins (11 as of Buffet press time). Wins at Cincinnati & Alabama. A sub-100 RPI in a typically RPI-poor conference. This has been an excellent follow-up season for the Bruins, whose up-tempo style and raucous Curb Event Center in Nashville led them to the #1 seed in the conference tournament. Led by senior Justin Hare (15 points, 3 rebs, 3 assists), and juniors Matthew Dotson (11.1 pts, 3.4 rebs) and Shane Dansby (13.8 pts, 6.2 rebs), Belmont scores more than any Atlantic Sun team (80.7 pts), shares more (17.6 assists) and turns it over less (14.7) than any other A-Sun team.

Jacksonville. Jacksonville. It is unclear if Dolphin head coach Cliff Warren was trying to crush his team spirit or make them tougher, but the non-conference slate featured 8 of 11 on the road, and against UAB, Michigan St, Florida, Georgetown, and South Alabama, predictably, the Dolphins were 3-8 rolling into conference play, and on an 8 game losing streak. A thrilling triple-OT home win over Stetson, the school not the cologne, later, and J-Ville hit their stride, winning their first 6 conference games, and 9 of 10, heading into the February 7th showdown at Belmont. As mentioned above, they sputtered a bit after that loss, although, they were without second leading scorer and team-leading rebounder, Marcus Allen (not the Raider legend, they haven't had him at all this season) for the follow-up 83-70 loss at Lipscomb. Allen, a junior forward, brings them 13.5 pts and 7.2 rebounds per game, and the Dolphins are paced by sophomore mighty mite Ben Smith, 5'10 guard averaging 15.7 points, 4.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and nearly 2 steals per game. Lehmon Colbert (sophomore forward) makes for a fairly potent threesome in Florida, with his 13.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists -- keep your eye on freshman forward Ayron Hardy -- he is a stat filler, with 8 pts, 5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.3 steals and nearly a block per game ... Jacksonville has one senior (Evan Jefferson) on their roster.

East Tenn St: A pair of big-time scorers, well by Atlantic Sun standards, (Courtney Pigram -- the junior guard and his 15.9 points, 3 rebs, and 3.5 assists, and JuCo transfer, Kevin Tiggs -- 15.2 points, 5.5 rebounds). Remember when Dayton was unbeatable? ETSU took them to the limit, on their home floor, on November 10th. And even more impressive, their two wins prior to the A-Sun tournament were done without major scoring from Tiggs or Pigram.

Don't Sleep On: Gardner-Webb. You might remember Gardner-Webb ... this is the team that walked into Lexington, and made Billy Gillespie double-check to see if the ink had dried on his new contract, putting Wildcats down 84-68. Now, other evidence? A February five-game winning streak, a pair of close losses to Belmont, 4-double digit scorers, 3rd best scoring team in the A-Sun, 2nd best rebounding team. If you look beyond some absolutely mind-numbing losses (12 point loss at Lipscomb, 7 point loss at home to Florida Gulf Coast, 2o points at Campbell). Plus, I mean, come on, they're the "Running Bulldogs" -- Do Bulldogs even run? And the baseball team? The Diamond 'Dogs, oh yes. -- The fearsome foursome from Boiling Springs, North Carolina. Col. Thomas Sanders, senior F, 17.9 pts, 11.2 rebs, 3.4 ats, 1.4 steals; Grayson Flittner, sophomore G (Buffet All-Name Nominee) with his 15.4 points, 3.0 rebs, 3.7 asts, and a steal per game; Aaron Linn, junior G, 12.6 pts, 4.8 rebs, 3.4 asts, 1.6 steals -- this team clearly likes to steal the ball -- and Nate Blank, freshman F, 10.4 pts, 3.6 rebs, 1.7 ast.

Who Will Win: The Buffet is limbing it up here. This is Eminem dueted with Eltjon John out there, Chris Rock hosting the Oscars, and Meg Ryan filming a virtual porn (In the Cut, anyone?) -- Gardner-Webb is the Atlantic Sun call,
Others to Watch
Jonathan Rodriguez, Campbell, 6'5 Soph F, 20.9 pts, 10.1 rebs, 2.5 asts, 1.6 steals
James Florence, Mercer, 6'1 Soph Guard, 19.0 pts, 4.1 rebs, 3.0 asts, 1.8 steals
Casey Wohlleb, Fla Gulf Coast, 6'7 Sr G/F, 16.5 pts, 3.8 rebs, 1.9 asts, 1.1 steals
Garfield Blair, Stetson, 6'5 Jr. G, 16.4 pts, 5.9 rebs, 1.9 ast, 1.0 steals
Shaddean Aaron, Mercer, 6'5 Sr G, 16.0 pts, 4.6 rebs, 1.6 ast, 1.3 steals
Eddie Ard, Lipscomb, 6'5 Sr. F., 15.0 pts, 4.5 rebs, 1.9 ast, 1.3 steals

Did You Know?
What's better? That Stetson Junior (transfer from Marshall) is named Collins EMEKA Okafor, but is not related to Emeka Okafor, or that Stetson lists his parents as "Mr. and Mrs. Okafor"

Lipscomb Freshman Forward Brian Wright is the younger brother of current Golden St. Warrior and former UNC star, Brendan Wright

All-Atlantic Sun Awardees
Atlantic Sun Player of the Year: Thomas Sanders, Gardner-Webb
Defensive Player of the Year: Calvin Henry, Mercer
Freshman of the Year: Nate Blank, Gardner-Webb
Coach of the Year: Rick Byrd, Belmont

All-Atlantic Sun First Team
Justin Hare, Sr. Guard, Belmont
Courtney Pigram, Jr. G, East Tennessee St.
Ben Smith, Soph. G, Jacksonville
Jonathan Rodriguez, Soph F, Campbell
Thomas Sanders, Senior F, Gardner-Webb

In the Waiting Line ... not so much

==========

Wrapping a Belt around this Sun...

As usual, the Sun Belt was a two-team horse race ... it just always seems interesting which horses are running. This year it is Waiting Line hopeful South Alabama and perennial Sun Belt favorite Western Kentucky. The teams tied atop the Sun Belt Eastern Division standings, but a pair of regular season victories for USA gives them the outright #1 seed in the conference tournament, for which they will be the host (after tonight's campus sites, first round)

South Alabama rocked a pretty nice season. Wins over Mississippi St, Southern Miss, a sweep of Western Kentucky, and even impressive "losses" - by 3 at Mississippi and by 2, in double-overtime, at Vanderbilt (where Vandy is impossibly tough on opponents) lead the Jaguars to seeking their first tourney invitation that they didn't have to win their conference tourney to get. The Jags are paced by Demetric Bennet's, 6'4 Sr. G, 19.9 pts, 6 rebs and 3 assists, as well as Daon Merrit's, 5'8 Sr. guard, 11.4 points and 5.5 assists and 5'10 Jr. G Dominic Tilford's 13 points. USA is an interesting team, despite giving no player above 6'8" meaningful minutes, they still finished the season, second in the Sun Belt in rebounding ... they find a way to scrap.

Western Kentucky has always found a way, and thanks to head-scratching losses by South Alabama, the Hilltoppers won a share of the regular season conference crown, yet thanks to many conferences funky split divisions, they will have to play out the conference tournament from the #3 seed (since they are in the same division in USA, and the Sun Belt West Division champ always gets one of the top 2nd seeds). Western never got that "signature" win they sought -- despite a nice tournament in Anchorage, they couldn't quite upset Gonzaga (falling 71-74) and their 73-69 win over Michigan hardly qualifies as marquee. They took out Nebraska in OT, lost a tough 6-point game to Tennessee (Bruce Pearl traveling to Bowling Green, Kentucky in the middle of December deserves some credit), and they were swept by South Alabama ... but, to their credit, unlike South Alabama, they swept through the rest of their conference slate. When the Hilltoppers come a-calling, it is 3 seniors and 3 sophomores who come to town. Paced by Courtney Lee (6'5 senior swingman) and his 21 points and 4.5 rebounds and Tyrone Brazelton (6'0 senior guard) (13.1 pts, 2.6 rebs, 3.7 assists), keep an eye out for sophomore AJ Slaughter (6'4, guard), who started to come on, especially at the offensive end, in February/March.

Don't Sleep on: In a conference where the next closest team was 5 games back, the #2 seed can be a sleeper ... Arkansas Little Rock fits that bill. A promising 7-1 start (with wins against @Loyola Marymount, Louisiana Tech, @Rice, Tulsa and Pepperdine) sputtered into 13-10, before a late February run pushed them to 4 straight wins and a 17-10 record, an Sun Belt Western division title -- as well as a bye into the quarterfinals. They also enjoy the dubious distinction of being the only #2 seed in the country without a single player averaging double-digits (sophomore guard Steven More averages 9.6 to "lead" the Trojans). A notoriously difficult home team to play must do their damage in Mobile if they are going to make an upset run to the NCAA tournament.

Others to Watch:
Bo McCalebb, New Orleans, 6'4 senior guard, (a 3-time Buffet player to watch), 23.2 pts, 4.3 rebs, and 3.7 assists

O'Darien Bassett, Troy, 6'2 senior guard, (Buffet All-Name Team Nominee), 20.9 pts

Carlos Monroe, Florida Atlantic, 15.6 pts, 9.3 rebs, 1.1 steals

Tony Hooper, Louisiana-Monroe, 5'11, Jr. guard, 15.4 pts, 2.4 ast, 2.3 reb

Desmond Yates, Middle Tennessee State 15.8

Ryan Wedel, Arkansas State, 5'11, Soph guard, 15.1 pts, 2.6 rebs,

Alex Galindo, 6'6 Forward, Florida International, 13 pts, 6.8 rebs

Otter Watch
Michael Vogler, Troy 2.11 Ast/TO

Daon Merritt, South Alabama 1.93 Ast/TO

Carderro Nwoji, Florida Atlantic 1.53 Ast/TO

Conference Tournament Schedule
Wednesday, March 5 @ Campus sites
#9 Denver (60) @ #8 New Orleans (65)

#13 Louisiana-Monroe (69) @ #4 Middle Tenn St (74)

#12 Troy (70) @ #5 Louisiana-Lafayette (60)

#11 Arkansas State (63) @ #6 North Texas (85)

#10 Florida International (64) @ #7 Florida Atlantic (91)

Sunday, March 9 @ Mitchell Center, Mobile, Alabama
#8 New Orleans @ #1 South Alabama

#4 Middle Tennessee State vs. #12 Troy

#6 North Texas v. No. 3 Western Kentucky

#7 Florida International v. #2 Arkansas-Little Rock

Did You Know?
The Buffet is unsurprised when it finds several players on a roster play a Junior College that, shocker of shockers, an assistant coach of one of the teams used to coach at .... Wes Flanigan from Arkansas-Little Rock, come on down, your the next contestant on, No Surprise Here...

Remember Me? Joe Kliene, assistant at Arkansas-Little Rock is the former Arkansas star, Phoenix Sun, Sacramento King, and ploddingly slow NBA big man.

Remember Me? Denver coach Joe Scott came to Denver U after stops at Princeton (replacing John Thompson III) and Air Force. Which begs the question. Wouldn't Mountain West to Ivy to Sun Belt be considered a step down in prestige EVERY time?

Florida Atlantic Junior Guard Paul Graham III's father, Paul Jr. played for NBA's Atlanta Hawks from 1991-1994

Florida Atlantic Senior Forward Jeff Parmer is the son of Tracy McGrady's aunt.

Remember Me? Florida Atlantic head coach Rex Walters was a star at the University of Kansas in 1991-92 and 1992-1993...

Remember Me? Florida International junior forward Alex Galindo is a transfer from the University of Kansas (which is really his 2nd stop, because he originally signed with Texas-El Paso, let out of his letter of intent when Billy Gillispie left UTEP for Texas A&M)

Remember Me? David Dees, senior guard at Louisiana-Lafayette, is a transfer from Liberty University, he scored 22 points against #1 St. Joe's in the 2004 NCAA tournament, earning "Chevrolet Most Valuable Player" honors for Liberty in the loss ...

Rajun Cajun Sophomore guard Elijah Millsap is the younger brother of Utah Jazz burgeoning star Paul Millsap...

Is it strange to any of the Buffet readers that Louisiana-Monroe freshman Raphelle Turner's favorite athlete is Greg Oden, who is a year older than him, at most? Maybe his cousin, Joe Dumars, taught him about Oden.

Louisiana-Monroe junior forward Afam Nweke is the reason why Chris Tucker has a movie career -- lists as his favorite movies Rush Hour & Rush Hour 2. He is the first competent minded human I have ever heard who believes Rush Hour 2 can be among their favorite movies.

Louisiana-Monroe senior guard Jordan Payne is the son of David Jordan & Marva Payne. Chew on that one.

North Texas freshman Guard Ronald Horne, Jr is the cousin of San Diego Charger superstar LaDanian Tomlinson

North Texas senior forward Quincy Williams is the younger brother of former Duke Blue Devil and current NBA lottery bust Shelden Williams

Remember Me? North Texas senior forward Keith Wooden, from Lawrence, Kansas, is a transfer from Arizona State University...

Remember Me? South Alabama junior forward Daniel Hayles is a transfer from Auburn University

South Alabama Sophomore Forward Charles Tabet is the twin brother of fellow Jaguar forward Phillip Tabet. Together, they are called the Twin Towers. Unfortunately, separately they are not called, Akeem, the African Dream & the Big Bossman.

South Alabama Junior forward Brent Culpepper is the younger brother of NFL QB Daunte Culpepper, http://www.usajaguars.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=38473&SPID=3258&DB_OEM_ID=8300&ATCLID=1212928&Q_SEASON=2007 Troy

Senior swingman Justin Jonus is a transfer from the University of Alabama

Does any line from a movie age worse than when "Lisa" turns to Eddie Murphy's character in Coming to America and says, "Does everyone in Africa talk like you?" Did you really just ask if everyone in a massive continent with millions of people talk like the one singular person you've ever met from a small country in said continent?

Sun Belt All-Conference Awardees
Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year: Courtney Lee, W.Kentucky, Sr. G/F
Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year: Bo McCalebb, New Orleans, Sr. G
Sun Belt Freshman of the Year: Josh White, North Texas, guard
Sun Belt Coach of the Year: Ronnie Arrow, South Alabama
All-Conference First Team
Carlos Monroe, Fla Atlantic, Jr. (1st rebounding, 6th scoring)
Desmond Yates, Mid Tenn St., Soph F (5th scoring, 3rd FG%)
Bo McCalebb, New Orleans, Sr. G (leading scorer and 1st in steals)
Demetric Bennett, South Alabama, Sr. G (3rd in scoring)
Courtney Lee, Western Kentucky, Sr. G/F (2nd scoring, 4th steals)

Waiting Line Impact: South Alabama: The good (28 RPI, 7-4 road record, 12-5 record versus top 200, sweep of Western Kentucky, early season near wins @Mississippi 81-78 and @Vanderbilt 91-88 in 2 overtimes), The bad (losses @ teams ranked 137 & 139, 0 wins versus top 25, 1 win versus RPI top 50). South Alabama is the product of a weak 2008 Waiting Line, but because the Sun Belt might be even weaker after Western Kentucky, with no team under 137 RPI, it is very debatable whether USA could survive a loss to any team other than W.Kentucky and still maintain at-large hopes. Even a loss to the Hilltoppers might prove to be damaging enough, dropping their record versus the RPI top 100 under .500. Buffet says: Win your conference tournament, losing at any point, especially during a home standing tourney could be fatal, and leave this steam out in hunger. At a minimum an appearance in the conference final is required, and may just be enough this year.

Western Kentucky: The good: 22 wins, 9-3 road record, RPI of 55, regular season co-champs of Sun Belt, 6 point loss v. Tennessee, 9 points combined in two losses to South Alabama, 3 point loss vs. Gonzaga ... The bad: Those were all losses, best win versus Nebraska (103 in RPI), zero wins versus RPI top 100. The real bad: No team in NCAA tournament history has ever received an at-large bid without at least 3 top 100 wins, and W.Kentucky has zero. The only to get one would be to defeat South Alabama, and the only way to do that is to win the Sun Belt Conference Tournament championship... Buffet says: There is no at-large buffet in the Hilltoppers' future --

-----------
Dust off your American flags, bust out your best America the Beautiful ... maybe even drop some jingoism ... it's time for the Patriot League Conference Tournament.

Good lord. Lower Seeded Mania! How else to describe the opening round of Patriot League action?

Just another ho-hum #1-#8 match up? Try again. Instead, on the path to exorcizing 4 year old demons, it took an 80% FT shooter to miss 2 free throws and an ensuing three point play to let the #1 survive.

Elsewhere, we saw survival of 17-2 run to finish the game.

Another team needed their leading scorer to be ice water from the FT line after calling upon the Super Bowl XXII MVP to dunk home a capper a run that shaved a 7-point deficit.

And, saving the best for last, a perennial powerhouse, all but dead and packed for home with less than 2 seconds left in a 3rd overtime, heaved home a 40-foot prayer that was answered ...

Just another opening night in the Patriot League.

With four teams left, let's discuss all 4...

American University. They had not defeated arch rival Holy Cross at home in 4 years. Even a season that saw them finish five games ahead in conference still couldn't accomplish that. But, those demons have been erased, on the strength of a 3-point play with 18.3 seconds left, and now American has the rest of the tournament to do what they've never -- get to the NCAA tournament. The Buffet's subscribers no doubt remember December 22. The Editor was still recovering from a 30th birthday hangover. Subscribers everywhere were planning their December 25, and American was upsetting the Maryland Terrapins. The inevitable letdown ensued, and after a 4-4 stretch that included a loss at Brown and a 3-3 start to the conference season, the Eagles ran off 7 of 8, capturing their third Patriot League regular season championship. So long as someone takes out Navy for them (Mids swept American this season) ... A couple of sub-6 foot scorers pace the top seed, Garrison Carr, a 5'11 junior guard from Bellevue, Washington (pretty sure that makes him a total chiller), and his 18 points and 3.4 rebounds. Dereck Mercer fills the rest of the stat sheet, the 5'9 junior backcourt mate of Carr, averages 13 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists

Bucknell. Understanding that Kansas fans may disagree, the Buffet finds the Bison cool. It might be downtime for the heyday -- no more Kevin Bettencourt, Charles Lee, Abe Badmus, Chris McNaughton, and Tarik Viaer-McClymont. But as long as Coach Pat Flannery is running the ship (with incredible coaching discipline, a big-school slaying offense, and cool traditions -- such as having his team stand in honor of the Navy alma mater following games (win or lose)), you don't count out the Bison. Even in #2-#7 matchups. So when John Griffin grabbed an in-bounds pass with 2 seconds left, Bison, Jayhawk and Razorback-nation all collectively knew what would ensue (for those that didn't get to see: http://youtube.com/watch?v=HOLZtLZwT_I -- also if you could please decipher what Bucknell play-by-play guy Doug Birdsong is screaming repeatedly, the Buffet would be much obliged) ... but can they move on? Without the ghosts of Bucknell Successful Past, the Bison can count only a win over Ivy champ Cornell as a solid win, but that came on December 19. Since, they've sputtered, before Wednesday night they had won just 7 of 20, and even including it, they haven't won a game without needing OT to accomplish it since January 26. But there is something oddly scrappy about this team. Maybe, it is team heart and soul John "Corn" Griffin (what movie readers?) -- with his 13.4 pts, 3 rebs, 3 assists -- this little guard shoots only 39% from the field, but he is so scrappy, that when teamed with Justin Castleberry, and his 10.8 points and 3 rebs -- and last holdovers from the KU upset, Bucknell shows a glimmer of 2006. Also interesting, was at crunch time, there were three freshman running the floor for Flannery and Bison -- Darryl Shazier, G.W. Boon, and Todd O'Brien (2 of his 12 were the tying points after Bucknell finished chopping off Navy's 17-point second half lead).

Army Black Knights. They certainly picked the right time to find their longest winning streak of the season. A season marked by more bad losses than anything else (Quinnipiac, Presbyterian, Long Island), Army has found themselves a bit, and did a little payback, knocking out the Leopards of Lehigh in OT, their third consecutive win. Now, the Black Knights get American, and to topple the conference #1 seed, it'll call upon the scoring touch of Jarrell Brown (6'2 Sr. Guard), and more clutch shooting from Josh Miller (6'0 soph. guard). Doug Williams (XXII Super Bowl MVP and 6'7 Junior Forward) must also up his game from under 10 points per game.

Colgate Red Raiders. The Buffet's teeth feels whiter just writing about this school. Talk about finding your stride. After starting the year 4-0 (relax, it was against Monmouth, Canisius (PURPLE EAGLES!), Colgate was much better at losing than winning, until February 20, an 8 point win over Lehigh, followed up by wins over North Carolina Central, @Holy Cross, Navy and then the hold-on-for-dear-life win over Lafayette, and Colgate is on their way to Sunday's round 2. Paced by Kyle Roemer (15.9 pts, 4.5 rebounds and 1.3 steals) and Kendall "I lean like a" Chones (elbows up, side to side, el-elbows up, side to side) and his 12 points, 5.4 rebounds

Who Should & Will Win: Bucknell might be cool, but they aren't that good. American, by Patriot League standards at least, is, and should relatively easily dispatch of the other contenders.

Rest of Schedule March 9, 2008 @ Campus sites
Bucknell @ Colgate, 12:oo PM Buffet Standard (Arizona Mountain)

Army @ American, 12:00 PM B.S.T. Friday

March 14, 2008 @ highest remaining seed
Patriot League Championship, 2:45 PM BST, ESPN2

All-Patriot League Awardees
Player of the Year: Greg Sprink, Sr. Guard, Navy
Defensive Player of the Year: Stephen Tyree, Soph G.,
Bucknell Coach of the Year: Billy Lange, Navy

Patriot League All-Conference First Team
Jarrell Brown, Sr. Army
Garrison Carr, American, Jr.
Tim Clifford, Holy Cross, Sr. C
John Griffin, Bucknell, Sr. Guard
Greg Spring, Navy, Sr. Guard

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It's a NOR'EASTER folks. Emanating from the campus of the Higher Seed ... the Northeastern Conference kicked off Thursday night, with all four higher seeds moving along with varying degrees of ease.

Let's evaluate the 4 teams left:

Robert Morris. This is not your normal NEC fodder. Rob Morris is a legitimately red hot team, who enters the conference tournament with 14 straight wins, and 19 of 20 overall. They won at Boston College, lost by 4 in OT at Seton Hall, and travelled just about everywhere to do it. Their opening rounder with Monmouth got dicey (43-41 with 5:49 to play, but then a 17-3 surge shut the door on the Hawks). The Colonials are led by Jeremy Chappell, 6'3 Jr. G (14.8 pts, 4.9 rebs, 2.5 steals) and A.J. Jackson, 6'6 Sr. Forward(14.0 pts, 5.5 rebs, and 1 steal). But they are LED by Tony Lee, 6'0 Sr. G (13.8 pts, 6.8 rebs, 6.3 ast -- that's about as close to averaging a triple-double you'll find in non-BCS conferences, which go with 2.8 steals per game ... Tony Lee is just plain awesome). It's a "site of higher seed" tournament ... and as long as Rob Morris is alive, the school, not the disposed Indianapolis Colt LB, they will be hosting teams at the Charles L. Sewall Center in Moon Township, Pennsylvania. At home, Rob Morris beat Wagner by 22 and Mt. Saint Mary's by 3 ... but something to watch is their 82-69 loss to Sacred Heart (a potential championship game opponent), but then repaid the favor on the Pioneers February 28, by the identical score. Robert Morris is looking for their second consecutive, and second overall, trip to the NCAA Tournament.

Wagner. For as good as Robert Morris was this season, Wagner was right with them, just not in such consecutive games fashion. Finishing the conference season at 15-3, just 1 game behind the Colonials, the Seahawks have become the masters of overtime, going 5-0 in extra-perioded games this year (including a pair of double-OT wins) ... To the Buffet -- this means they don't get rattled in close games, they are clutch when it counts, they are well-conditioned, and probably that they aren't a whole lot better than their conference opponents. But close games are generally the name of the game in conference tourneys, and Wagner's 2008 OT-madness gives them the edge here. What Wagner does particularly well is defend. It's not that they don't give up points (middle of the NEC), but they give up a league low FG% and then they clear the boards (top defensive rebounding team) and block shots (top shot blockers in NEC) ... these are good tournament formulas. The Seahawks are led by senior guard Mark Porter (16.2 pts, 4.6 rebs, 5.6 assists and nearly 2 steals per game) together with 6'7 senior forward Durell Vinson and his 13.7 points, 11.3 rebounds, 1 steal and 1 block per game ... But Wagner is deep, sending 5 double-digit scores into the game (although, after them only 3 other players play more than 10 minutes) -- Jamal Smith (11 pts, 5.5 rebs for the 6'5 Junior F), Joey Mundweiler (10.6 pts, 6'2 Jr. Guard) and James "Skeet" Ulrich (10 pts, 6.8 rebs for the 6'7 senior forward)

Sacred Heart. The Hospital featured in the NBC Sitcom Scrubs has played some decent basketball this season, and Sunday's tilt should be nice, the follow-up to the February 14th, double-OT 100-92 shootout that the Pioneers fell on the wrong side of the scoreboard on. Sacred Heart shoots the ball (top FG% in conference) and takes care of the ball (top turnover margin in conference), which comes in handy in a 2nd round match up against the leading FG% defense and rebounding team in the conference. Rebounding from a lackluster finish (they lost 2 straight including a 13-point home loss to the same Central Connecticut team they beat by 13 points to open the tourney), Sacred Heart will need a boost in production from Brice Brooks (12.8 pts, 5.5 rebounds, 6'7 Sr. Forward), Drew Shubik (10.9 pts, 5.5 rebs, 5.6 assists, 2.3 steals, 6'4 Senior Guard), and YOU KNOW IT, Buffet All-Nominee (and presumptive favorite) CHAUNCEY Hardy (10.2 pts, 3 assists, and 1.6 steals for the 6'0 sophomore (yes, 2 more years of CHAUNCEY in the NEC, Guard)

Mount Saint Mary's. These aren't the days of Jim Phelan and 2000 Otter-haired guards for the Mountaineers. But a hot stretch run (a 6 of 7 run, including the opening round 10 point win over Quinnipiac), that would have been hotter if they had not faded in OT against OT-champion Wagner the game prior to the 6/7 run, and a team built on defense just may give the top seed some fits on Sunday. But, the Mountaineers issue is scoring ... only two players -- sharpshooter Chris Vann (15.0 points, 3 rebounds, 40% 3pters and 80% FTs) and Jeremy Goode (14.0 pts, 3.3 rebs, 5.6 assists, 2.1 steals) have shown any ability to put the ball in the basket consistently.

Who Will Win? There is just something about that OT-record that is too appealing for the Buffet to pass up. Granted picking against Chauncey is not an admirable position to take, but the Buffet pick here is Wagner.

Others You Could Have Watched if the Buffet Wasn't Getting Paid to Do Something Other than Preview NCAA Div 1 Conference Tournaments:
DeMario Anderson, Quinnipiac, Sr. Guard 21.7 pts (conference leader), 6.5 rebs, 3.2 asists
Manny Ubilla, Fairleigh Dickinson, Sr. Guard, 20.8 pts, 4.9 assists, 4.8 rebs, 1.5 steals
Sean Baptiste, Fairleigh Dickinson, Soph Guard, 18.5 pts, 6.3 rebs, 1.4 assists
Tristan Blackwood, Cen Connecticut St, Sr. Guard, 16.4 pts, 5.2 assists, 2.7 rebs
Jaytornah Wisseh (Buffet All-Name Nom), Long Island, So G, 15.8 pts, 5.1 ats, 4.8 rebs, 1.6 stl
Robert Hines, St. Francis (NY) 6'5 Sr Forward, 15.2 pts, 6.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists

Tournament Schedule:
Sunday March, 9 @ Higher Seed
#4 Mt. Saint Mary's @ #1 Robert Morris (3:00 pm EST)

#3 Sacred Heart @ #2 Wagner (7:00 pm EST)

Wednesday, March 12 @ Highest Remaining Seed
Championship Game -- 7:00 pm EST -- ESPN2

All-NEC Awardees
NEC Player of the Year: Tony Lee, 6'0 Senior Guard - Robert Morris

NEC Rookie of the Year: Shemik Thompson, 6'0 Fr Guard, Cen Connecticut St

NEC Defensive Player of the Year: Tristan Blackwood, 6'0 Sr. Guard, CCSU

NEC Jim Phelan Coach of the Year: Mike Rice, Robert Morris

All-NEC First Team
DeMario Anderson, 6'4 Senior Guard, Quinnipiac
Tristan Blackwood, 6'0 Senior Guard, Cen Connecticut State
Tony Lee, 6'0 Senior Guard, Robert Morris
Mark Porter, 6'2 Senior Guard, Wagner
Durell Vinson, 6'7 Senior Forward, Wagner

Otter Watch
Jeremy Goode, Mount Saint Mary's - 1.65 Ast/TO
Jaytornah Wisseh, Long Island Univ. - 1.58 Ast/TO
Drew Shubik, Sacred Heart Univ. - 1.58 Ast/TO
James Hett, Monmouth Univ - 1.57 Ast/TO
Tony Lee, Robert Morris Univ. - 1.51 Ast/TO