Attention Buffet Readers

Obviously I look forward to joining teh waiting line after the New Year. Until then, you can read my musings on Xavier basketball, why the BCS has nothing to do with college basketball, and Gary Parrish's fauxhawk on this site:

http://afansnotes.tumblr.com (now with comments).

Thanks

DS (the Cincinnati Branch)

Gut Instinct, Man.

Remember the old saying, "Go with your gut instinct"? The Buffet could use to heed that advice ... for 2 of the last 3 days, the Buffet has made the prognosticator's version of famous last words:

“From conference rankings (SWAC: 31 and last; OVC: 22); to the potential dominance of Kenneth Faried, to common sense dictating that Morehead State ought to win this game” -- but then go on to pick Alabama State, who, with the help of Chief Kickingstiff and his 0 points and 2 rebounds, were wiped out 58-43.

And, everyone remembers this gem, “in the Buffet's eyes, Arizona belongs in this field” then proceeded to leave them out of the final Buffetology.

Time to weigh-in in the comments section, which teams seeded 12 or above are most likely to pull the upset?

Time for the *$&#@*# P.I.G. (a.k.a. no one cares what they think, so lets appease the BCS schools and take a bid away from a deserving small school.)

Alabama State Hornets (20-9, 19-2 SWAC, 179 RPI, 340 SOS, 4-1 neutral ct, 8-7 road)
vs
Morehead State Eagles (17-15, 15-6 OVC, 141 RPI, 189 SOS, 3-2 neutral ct, 4-12 road)

Line: Morehead State -3

Play-In Game. Just as its name suggests, this game is not Kosher to the Buffet. The only thing in sports nearly as infuriating as the bowl championship series, two teams play an entire regular season schedule and win their conference tournament, only to get placed in a glorified NIT game so one extra team that went .500 in their conference, won 1-2 road games, and lost in the 1^st round of their conference tournament (and have zero chance at contending for the title) can get a tournament bid.

Instead, once again, the Buffet will tout the idea it has had for years – how about let ALL teams that actually earn a berth, i.e. win their conference tournament and garner an automatic bid to the tournament, play in the tournament they earned their way into, and instead, open up the final two at-large bids, as in the two places in the tournament that are awarded via subjective criteria and not actually earning anything, to the play-in game.

For instance, based on seeding, Arizona & Wisconsin were the final two teams given invites to the tournament … so take the first two teams out, say Penn State and Saint Mary’s, and have the four teams play in Dayton, placing the winners in 2 open at-large spots (a 10, 11, 12 or 13 seed) to play on Friday. How much more compelling would a Arizona/Saint Mary’s and Wisconsin/San Diego State be, than Alabama St & Morehead St, that people barely even get on their radar, if for no other reason than winning the right to be Louisville’s sacrificial lamb isn’t exactly compelling television.

In any event, the play-in game is happening, and it does not involved Waiting Line teams, so let’s take a look.

Alabama State won 19 of their 21 SWAC game, and had average win margin of 17 points (which is slightly skewed by wins over 44 & 37 in the middle of their conference season), now they were tested on occasion, but they always answered – beating Southern at home 64-60, and then turning around and winning by 37 on Southern’s home floor.

Chief Kickingstallionsims

You know the Buffet, we want to love this kid with all of our heart – there is nothing more important than names – problem is, The Chief is 7’1, 265 pounds – and he’s not even the leading rebounder on his team. I mean, come on. In a conference where the next tallest guy who plays 10 minutes or more on any other team is 6’9”, it is unconscionable that he does not dominate the glass. But, yes, Alabama State does have a player who is 7’1, 265 pounds.

More importantly, they have Wesley Jones. Not the team’s leading scorer, only 9.4 per game, but he averages 7 rebounds, shoots 36% from three (for a power forward), and was a major difference in the lineup after sitting out all of non-conference play due to transfer rules (came from Ole Miss) – the 6’7, 210 Junior forward from Beatrice, Alabama makes this team better.

Statistically, the team is powered by two players;

• Stat sheet filler, Brandon Brooks (13.8 pts, 4.1 rebs, 6.8 assists, 1.3 steals and a 40% three-point shooter) – he is heavy on the turnover (3.2 per game) – but when he goes, so do the Hornets – his near triple-double versus Illinois State (MVC tourney runners up) in Dallas – 21 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists had the Hornets (minus Wesley Jones) – down just 2 points with 26 seconds left (after a furious comeback took a 21 point deficit all the way down to 2 – 39-19 run over the course of 14 minutes).
• 6’2 Senior Guard from Dallas is the teams heart and soul His backcourt mate – tall, lanky Andrew Hayles, a 6’6, 196 lb senior guard from Mobile – chips in 13.6 points and 3.4 rebounds,

The impressive part about Alabama State is that they play about 9 deep – 6 guys average 20+ minutes per game, with 4 others ranging from 12 minutes to 19.

The other impressive part, they’ve found two different ways to spell and already oddly spelled name – or as Leif Diva Beaver would say – “common spelling”” – in Tremayne Moorer a 6’6 sophomore from Mosses, Alabama and Tramaine Butler, a 6’3 freshman well out of his comfort zone from Detroit, Michigan.

The rotation also includes:

Roland Fitch, 6’7, F, Soph – Livingston, AL - 19.1 minutes, 9.8 points, 3.6 rebounds

Rashad Provitt, 6’7, Sr G-F from Montgomery, AL – 25.8 minutes, 6.0 pts, 5.5 rebs – but this kid, a 38% field goal shooter and 52% FT shooter should never move a basketball near a basket.

Tramaine Butler, 6’3, Fr G from Detroit – 15.3 minutes, 4.7 points, 2.5 rebounds, and a horrific 39% ft shooter.

Ivory White, 6’4 Freshman G from Greensboro, AL – 22.3 minutes, 4.7 pts, 3.9 rebs

Menji Mundadi, 6’3 Jr. G from Chicago, IL – 11.6 minutes, 3.6 pts, 2.0 rebs, 29.9% fg shooter

Another factor consider, is that Alabama State plays this season with a heavy heart, as the approach the one year anniversary of the tragic & shocking collapse and death of DeShean Porchea, a sophomore from Rochester, NY, collapsed during a pick-up basketball last April and never regained consciousness.

Essential stats: A bit limited in our available analysis of Alabama State – but, instructive games include:

77-71 loss to Illinois State on a neutral court
56-51 loss at SMU
76-67 loss at SEC tourney champs Mississippi St
85-81 loss at Ole Miss (which Wesley Jones had to watch from the sidelines in streets)
77-72 loss at Auburn (10-6 in the SEC)

Long and short of it, other than a blowout loss at Nebraska and a 13 point loss at Southern Miss, this team has been competitive in every non-conference game they played this season, and we know already what they did in conference play.

Morehead State finished exactly where the OVC coaches thought they would – fourth in the OVC, and it took an untimely 3 game conference losing streak (4 overall, after losing @ Kent St on BracketBusters) to accomplish that – they peaked at the right time, rattling off 3 wins in the conference tourney, including taking out OVC #1 seed the Skyhawks of Tennessee-Martin and OVC standout Lester Hudson.

12-6 in conference (12-3 until they sputtered towards the end), followed a solid but generally unsuccessful non-conference schedule, that included blowout losses at Drake (16), Louisville (38), and Vanderbilt (26).

The Eagles are led in scoring by 6’5 senior forward Leon Buchanan (Albany, GA) averaging 15.1 ppg to to go with 6.3 rpg and shooting 52.4 FG%, 80.3 FT%)

But the difference in Morehead St in the OVC tourney was the emergence of F/C Kenneth Faried, a 6-8 Soph from Newark, New Jersey who averaged 13.9 ppg, 12.8 rpg, and 2 blocks per game on the season (to go with a 56.6 FG%) and turned that up to 17 points and 15 rebounds per game in the OVC tourney (this kid has games of 24-17, 1-11, 14-14, 19-11, 23-19, 14-20, 20-18, 16-13, 22-15, 17-12, 22-17 and 27-24) – long and shot, he is a force – although, buyer beward – he did pull a disappearing act in three of their higher profile games; 4-7 against Vanderbilt, 11-6 versus Drake, and 6-11 versus Louisville … which speaks more to the potential first round rematch than tonights game. The Chief is going to have his hands full.

Other starters include:

G Demonte Harper, 6-4, Soph from Nasheville – 10.8 ppg, 3.4 apg, 35.7 3FG%, 77.5 FT%, 1.2 spg

G Maze Stallworth, 6-4, Jr. from Elizabethtown, NJ – 12.1 ppg, 37.7 3FG%, 78.2 FT%

G Brandon Shingles, 6-3, Jr. from Albany, Georgia (high school teammate of Leon Buchanan) and 5.0 pts, 3.9 assists, smooth shooting: 50.6 FG%, 77.5 FT%.

Off the Bench:

G Robert Murry, 5-10, Jr. from Cleveland, Georgia (does Georgia name cities itself, or just steal them from everywhere else?) 8.3 ppg, 75.5 FT%

G Terrance Hill, 6-1, Fr. from Columbus (you guessed it), Georgia - 4.0 ppg, 1.6 rpg)

Essential Statistics:
ATS Overall: 18-12
ATS as a Favorite: 6-6
ATS on Neutral Courts: 3-1
ATS in March: 3-0
ATS against Teams with Winning Records: 12-3

Key games:
L @ UL-Monroe: 56-54
L @ Vanderbilt: 74-48
L @ Louisville: 79-41
L vs. FAMU: 79-74
L vs. Grambling: 72-71
W v. UCF: 71-65
L @ Illinois State (*common opponent alert*): 76-70
L H James Madison 74-62

Buffet Bottom Line:
From conference rankings (SWAC: 31 and last; OVC: 22); to the potential dominance of Kenneth Faried, to common sense dictating that Morehead State ought to win this game … the number of tough games that Alabama State played against top quality competition that we’re in for a big game from Brandon Brooks & Wesley Jones. They are a better team with Jones, who wasn’t there for their high volume of close games early in the season.

Buffet says: Take the Hornets and the points, and while you do so, please enjoy more fun from the CHIEF.

Final Buffetology

The ball is tipped, and there you are...
you're running for your life, you're a shooting star
And all the years, no one knows
just how hard you worked, but now it shows...
(in) ONE SHINING MOMENT, IT'S ALL ON THE LINE
ONE SHINING MOMENT, THERE FROZEN IN TIME

But time is short, and the road is long
in the blinking of an eye, ah that moment's gone
And when it's done, win or lose
you always did your best, cuz inside you knew...
(that) ONE SHINING MOMENT, YOU REACHED DEEP INSIDE
ONE SHINING MOMENT, YOU KNEW YOU WERE ALIVE

Feel the beat of your heart, feel the wind in your face
it's more than a contest
it's more than a race...

And when it's done, win or lose
you always did your best, cuz inside you knew...
(that) ONE SHINING MOMENT, YOU REACHED FOR THE SKY
ONE SHINING MOMENT, YOU KNEW
ONE SHINING MOMENT, YOU WERE WILLING TO TRY
ONE SHINING MOMENT....

Time to sit back, relax, gripe, scream, throw things at the televsion, and curse the name of Mike Slive... Here's the Buffet's final Buffetology ...
*Disclaimer -- in the Buffet's eyes, Arizona belongs in this field ahead of Creighton, St. Mary's, Dayton & San Diego St, but given how selections are made, what factors are included and So California's win to give the P10, 5 bids, the Buffet ended up leaving them out*

Boston Regional

		Pittsburgh	1
		CS-Northridge	16
Dayton
		Butler	8
		BYU	9
		Illinois	5
		Temple	12
Portland
		Florida St	4
		Western Kentucky	13
		Arizona St	6
		St. Mary's	11
Philadelphia
		Villanova	3
		American	14
		Utah	7
		Minnesota	10
Kansas City
		Oklahoma	2
		Radford	15

Memphis Regional

		Louisville	1
		Morehead St	16
Dayton
		Oklahoma St	8
		Boston College	9
		Gonzaga	5
		Cleveland St	12
Miami
		Washington	4
		VCU	13
		Tennessee	6
		Utah St	11
Miami
		Wake Forest	3
		Stephen F. Austin	14
		Texas	7
		Dayton	10
Minneapolis
		Michigan St	2
		Cornell	15

Glendale Regional

1	Duke
16	East Tennessee St
Greensboro
8	Marquette
9	LSU
5	Xavier
12	Southern California
Portland
4	Purdue
13	Akron
6	West Virginia
11	Siena
Boise
3	Missouri
14	North Dakota St
7	Michigan
10	Maryland
Kansas City
2	Memphis
15	Morgan St

Indianapolis Region:

1	North Carolina
16	Alabama St
Greensboro
8	California
9	Texas A&M
5	Ohio State
12	Northern Iowa
Boise
4	Syracuse
13	Portland St
6	UCLA
11	Mississippi St
Minneapolis
3	Kansas
14	Binghamton
7	Clemson
10	Wisconsin
Philadelphia
2	Connecticut
15	Robert Morris

Last Four In:
St. Mary's (last in)
Dayton
Maryland
Wisconsin

Last Four Out:
Creighton (last out)
San Diego St
Arizona
Penn State

Next Four Out:
New Mexico
Auburn
Florida
UNLV

The Clock is Ticking...

As we starting counting down the minutes ... some Buffet bracketing notes:

The first two #1 seeds feel pretty much set: North Carolina, Louisville

The second two are very fluid -- Pitt, Memphis, Duke are really the contenders. On merit, it should be Pitt & Connecticut (not listed), but the Buffet is starting to get the feeling that 4 teams from EST won't get #1s, and Memphis going to sneak in, and Duke's top ranked average RPI of wins, plus their overall resume together with the ACC championship make the Buffet feel they get one.

Not ready to call Memphis over Pitt just yet, but putting that on the radar.

Also, it is looking like Penn St, Dayton & San Diego St (with one spot lost if Miss St wins) are batting Arizona, Creighton & St. Mary's for the final 3 at-large spots ...

stay tuned for further Buffet analysis, but based on resumes and top wins, Buffet feels that grouping should be Arizona, San Diego St & St. Mary's (provided we can guarantee Patty Mills' health)

Also, a mailbag within a mailbag, to answer #3 on Paper but #1 in Your Hearts' question -- both the Buffet's Editor and this guy choose to shoot FTs left-handed:

Sadness....and the Final Four!

And the dream is over.

Keli Ward and the York College women lost Friday night to Scranton, 50-46, ending their scintillating run to national prominence.

The Spartans jumped out to an early 14-5 lead and led 27-25 at the half, but the Royals really ratcheted up the defense in the second twenty, forcing 25 turnovers for the game and holding YCP to their lowest point total of the season. Ward hit a layup to cut the lead to 48-46 with 33 seconds left, but, after the teams traded traveling violations, the refs apparently didn't call the fouls that the York was trying to give, and Scranton hit an uncontested layup in the closing seconds for the final margin.

Should the refs have called palming here?

Still, a great season for York: 27-3 overall record, 16-0 regular season in the Capital Athletic Conference, a 25-game winning streak, their highest-ever national ranking (#8), and a trip to the their first-ever trip to the NCAA tournament culminating in a trip to the national octavofinals. Congratulations, Spartans, and congratulations especially to the six seniors (Keli Ward, Chanel Perez, Amanda Andrews, Amy Fry, Donna Figenshu, and Jackie Garlock), who led York to their best season ever and, in their careers, compiled the best four-year mark of any Spartan class: 79-32, 18 more wins than any other four-year class in Spartan history.

But just a short wagon ride over the Susquehanna, a happier ending, as Franklin & Marshall rolled past DeSales 70-60 to earn their fifth trip to the Division III Final Four and their first since 2000 in front of 1,879 raucous fans at the Mayser Center in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Freshman Georgio Milligan paced the Diplomats with 21 points, including 8 in the final five minutes as DeSales tried to rally. James McNally added 16 on, impressively, 7-8 shooting from the field and pulled down 8 rebounds, Mike Baker grabbed 10 boards of his own, and Clay Scovill chipped in with 10 points.


The D3 Final Four tips off next weekend in, as usual, the tidewater and cigarette bastion of Salem, Virginia. Richard Stockton, Guilford, and Washington U. await the Dips. Stay tuned for a preview in this spot sometime later in the week.

And speaking of semifinals, the York (PA) Suburban boys basketballers continued their deepest run ever into the state tournament, cruising past Crestwood, 47-35, to reach the Class AAA round of four. The Trojans jumped out to a 16-2 lead and didn't look back, leading by as many as 19 and never letting Crestwood cut the deficit to single figures. Mitch Kemp opened the game with a three-pointer and again led YS with 17 points, and Tom McInerney added 16. The Trojans outrebounded Crestwood 28-18 and held the Comets to a dismal 14-35 shooting night. District XII third-place finisher Archbishop Carroll, who upset Neumann-Goretti, 70-65, awaits the Trojans on, I think, Tuesday night, at a place and time to be announced. Stay tuned for more details, and until then, go Matadors!

Were They Full, or Just Couldn't Handle What the Buffet Was Offering?

Here we sit, one day away from tourney selection, time for teams to sit at the Buffet and get their fill for as long as they can survive ... But who couldn't handle the pressure?

The Buffet presents, the First Annual, All-Buffet Waiting Line Choke Team -- with a poll for all of the Buffet's followers to decide who is the Waiting Line Choker of the year.

A compilation of team leaders who came up less than empty when his team needed him most, in a potential Waiting Line Elimination Game:

Chase Budinger, Arizona: 3-15, 1-9 from 3pt range, 3 turnovers: 8 pts
in a potentially season crushing loss to Arizona State, 68-56.


















Perhaps I should've done less of this...

and more of this...

Or just stuck to doing this...

So Arizona State couldn't do the symbolic equivalent of this:


Nick Calathes, Florida: 3-13, 1-6 from 3pt line, 4 turnovers: 7 points
in their potentially invitation busting 61-58 loss to Auburn


I didn't carpe a thing but missed shots,
Oh yes, that's me on the right.

Did I mention I could dance?

Denis Clemente, Kansas State: 4-20, 2-8 from 3pt line: 10 pts
in a tourney hopes ending 61-58 loss to Texas, who still has Connor Atchley on their team.


The Buffet feels similarly about your performance. Roberto, you are not


This picture is ironic, read on to find out why...

This:


Plus This:


Plus This:


Equals This:


Devan Downey, South Carolina: 5-20, 1-7 from 3pt line: 11 points.
in a PEACE OUT 82-68 loss to Mississippi State


Guess what didn't happen on Friday evening... this reaction.


Downey was so ineffective last night, he disappeared to the point he couldn't get arrested:
very much unlike May 5, 2008



Jack McClinton, Miami (Fl) - 4-11, 1-6 from 3pt, 7 turnovers: 9 pts
in a Waiting Line Elimination dud versus Virginia Tech (65-47)


Remember me? Yes, the irony is revealed...


If you are going to be uninteresting, I am just going to put up pictures of hot Israelis


Jodie Meeks, 3-9, 0-3 from 3pt line, 5 TOs: 8 pts.
in a chokingly bad show 67-58 against LSU, and his first single-digit game all year.


Wait, Coach Billy Clyde -- where's that basket again?


Again, bland backstories = pictures of attractive ping pong players in your place


Get Your Votes In, the All-Buffet Awards Ceremony takes place in the days leading up to Thursday Tip-Off, and After the Harrick...

In 1829, a German immigrant to the United States opened up a small brewery in the anthracite country of central Pennsylvania. Since then, the fortunate among us have managed to make the pilgrimage to the small brick brewery nestled among the seven hills of Pottsville to witness the creation of, and perhaps quaff some pints of, Yuengling Traditional Lager, known in some parts as "Vitamin Y" and unquestionably the greatest beverage the world has ever known.

And tonight, there will be another to journey to Pottsville--although this one, because it features high school kids, will likely not include a trip to the brewery...That's right! It's time for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Class AAA boys' basketball quarterfinals!

Specifically, we have District III champion York Suburban (24-5) taking on District II champion Crestwood (26-3). York Suburban, as has been documented in this space, won their first district championship two weekends ago on Mitch Kemp's last-second three-pointer against Wyomissing and then knocked off Abington Heights and Strath Haven to reach the round of eight. Kemp, leading the team with 15.7 points per game, has stayed consistent, scoring 16 in each of those two state-tournament games. The Trojans have averaged a robust 66.75 points per game this season but have needed (and scored) far less than that for much of this postseason, advancing on the strengths of their offensive efficiency and their defense, which has held opponents to a paltry 40.6 points per game over the last five games.

And the defense will certainly have its collective hands full with Crestwood star Adam Fazzini, a 6'5" forward averaging 17.5 points per game for the Comets. And unlike Suburban, playing in their first state tournament in recent memory, Crestwood is an old hand at this, having won five of the last six Class AAA District II championships. The Comets have rolled through the competition this year, winning their postseason games by an average of 14 points, including an impressive 54-42 win over Eastern York, alma mater of former Penn State and Pittsburgh Steeler fullback Jon Whitman and former Drexel hoops star John Raab, known in some circles as "Mr. Sue Dellinger" or "Stoooooooooor's brother-in-law."

Tip-off in Martz Hall tonight is at 7:30. Go Trojans!

But enough about the PIAA Class AAA boys' basketball quarterfinals. Let's talk college hoops! That's right....the NCAA Division III men's and women's octavofinals are tonight! And two schools from south-central still have teams playing! Has the fertile Susquehanna Valley ever seen such an exciting night?


First things first: the NCAA doesn't got to neutral sites for Division III until the national semifinals, and so a coven of presumed dark arts experts are heading south--hoping, most likely, to get to Burkittsville but being sidetracked in Lancaster for a game at Mayser Center against the Franklin & Marshall men's hoopsters.

Salem State head coach Chris Harvey calls a play.

Salem State reached the round of 16 by cruising past Rochester Institute of Technology, 83-71, and then eking out a 69-67 thriller at Widener. Dylan Holmes was the star for the Vikings (how can a team from Salem, Massachusetts not be called the "Witches"? This is an outrage!) in the second-round game, pacing the team with 19 points and 11 rebounds. Holmes, the Massachusetts State College Athletic Conference (MASCAC) player of the year, has been the star all season, leading the Vikings with 18.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. But the Vikings are balanced: three others (Nick Lenear, Ricky Obgoin, and Stevie ["Stevie"? Really?] Celestin average in double figures (13.1, 10.7, and 10.2, respectively) and three others chip in with at least 6 per game. The Vikings are a deep team, too, with nine players averaging at least 13 minutes per game as the team has rolled to a 23-6 record and the MASCAC regular-season and tournament championships.

However, apparently the simple folk of Salem are still scared of witches, because nobody goes to their games: average attendance for home games has been a paltry 154 people. So will they be ready for the raucous Mayser Center crowd? Will the keg-throwing meatheads from Pi Lam storm the court, hogtie the visitors, and haul them off to throw them into the broad and majestic Conestoga River to see if they float? And if there's a game, what can I tell Buffet readers about the team they'll be facing?

Not much, really, except that the F&M men's cross country team finished nineteenth in the country in Division III in 1995, and so by reaching the round of sixteen, this year's basketball team has already done better. Damn.

The Diplomats are actually in their twelfth D3 sweet 16, although their first since 2004. Much like Salem State, they crushed their first opponent of the tournament (Wesley, 93-69) before holding off a late charge from Brandeis, 65-63, to get to this point. The Brandeis game was the twenty-fourth win of the year for F&M, against just five losses--although three of those losses came in the four games before the NCAA tournament, as the Dips closed out the regular season with losses to hated Little 3 rivals Gettysburg and Dickinson and then lost to Gettysburg again in the Centennial Conference tournament finals. (Gettysburg went on to lose to Wooster in the first round of the NCAAs.)

Much like Salem State, F&M is a balanced offensive team, with all five starters averaging in double figures, paced by the 16.3 from sophomore forward James McNally, who also leads the team with 7.4 rebounds. The Dips also get 5.5 assists per game from freshman point guard Georgio Milligan. F&M only goes 7 deep, so we'll see if fatigue plays a roll in this game.

The winner will go on to play the winner of the opening game at Mayser Center tonight, UMass-Dartmouth versus DeSales. Tip-off for that game is at 6 p.m., with the Salem/F&M game following 30 minutes after. Live video of the game is available for those of you with personal computers and internet access. Which, presumably, describes all of you.

In other F&M news, senior Jen Pritchard has been named the Nike/Inside Lacrosse Division III player of the week for the third-ranked women's lacrosse team, who were national runners-up last year after winning the national title (just the second in school history, after the 1985 women's cross country team) the year before. Pritchard tallied seven goals--to move within 15 of the 222 she needs to become the the school's all-time leader--an an assist in the Dips' season-opening wins over Cabrini and seventh-ranked Washington & Lee. Go Dips!

The fertile and bucolic Susquehanna River Valley.

And finally, of course, we have one more game of interest tonight, as the York (PA) College women's basketballers make the drive up US Highway 15, trying to avoid nuclear meltdowns on the way, traversing the famed folded Appalachians by cutting through a couple of minor water gaps, heading past the ballfields of Williamsport and the glass factories of Corning, avoiding the Finger Lakes and any associated gorges and dorky trumpeters, and winding up in possibly the only place worse than Syracuse to spend a late-winter weekend: cold, windy, and film-strewn Rochester, New York, where the Spartans will square off against the University of Scranton Royals.

And talk about the noveau-riche versus the blue-bloods. This is Scranton's seventeenth appearance in the round of 16; they won the national title in 1985 (the same year as the F&M women's xc team!) under coach Mike Strong, who has over 700 career wins--many of them coming on the way to the Royals' seven other final four appearances since the national championship.

The Royals--reputedly the favorite D3 women's team of George Brett but not Dan Quisenberry, who has avidly followed YCP since an appearance at an Orioles' off-season charity basketball game on the campus of Penn State-York in 1980--are led by Megan Kopecki, a 5'9" sophomore guard out of Millington, New Jersey averaging 16.9 points per game. It seems like if you can stop Kopecki, you might be able to stop the Royals; nobody else averages more than 7.3 points per game. The player charged with getting the ball to Kopecki is point guard Ryan Mooney, allegedly no relation to famed Brophy Prep and University of Arizona alumnus Ryan Mooney, a.k.a. Moons over my Hammy. Odd, though, that a University of Scranton guard stole MoonDogg's name, not unlike ex-Baylor shortstops now trying to work their way through the minor leagues from the pitching mound. Mooney (the Scranton hoopster, not the cheerful Brophy grad), the only Royal other than Kopecki averaging more than 30 minutes per game, has a stellar 2:1 assist:turnover ratio.

And Scranton, by the way, is 24-3, 13-1 in the Landmark Conference (the "Landmark Conference"?), and both regular-season and tournament champs. They demolished Keuka, 73-42, and then Iba-balled their way past central New York's Cortland State Dragons, 51-45, to reach the regional semifinals.

And now we're on to the party-crashers--not because they haven't had a great season, because they have, but because they've never made it here before. And by "here," I don't mean the D3 octavofinals; I mean the NCAA D3 tournament: this is the first appearance ever by the York College women's team. But led by six seniors (three of whom start), the Spartans have rolled to a 27-2 record, including a perfect 16-0 regular season in the Capital Athletic Conference (although they did lose to Mary Washington in the conference tournament finals). All-American candidate and nursing major Keli Ward has, as documented in this space before, has just straight filled up the stat sheet, averaging 16.7 points (and shooting over 50% from the field, even though she's a guard, and 40% on three-pointers), 7.9 rebounds, 7.2 assists (to just 2.4 turnovers), and 2.9 steals per game.

Giving Chanel Perez some pub, just because Keli Ward gets most of the ink around here. Although why anybody would ever want to shoot left-handed is something I still can't figure out. Could anything possibly look more awkward?

Amanda Andrews and Chanel Perez are the other two senior starters for the Spartans. Andrews, an elementary ed major, averages 10.9 points per game, and Perez, a nursing major with a part-time job at York Hospital (the same hospital at which was born noted non-stripper Jasmine, not to mention bluegrass greats Ronnie and Rob McCoury, Susquehannock High School alumni who play mandolin and banjo, respectively, for their father in the legendary Del McCoury Band). Rounding out the starting five for coach Betsy Whitman (who played collegiately for James Madison; no word on whether she was there when Lefty Driesell drew up and former Terp Steve Hood and his teammates executed to perfection the "picket fence" to send the Dukes dancing in, I think, 1990) are sophomores April Sparkman (15.9 points and 5.9 rebounds per game) and Jaimie Sapp (7.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game).

Tip-off tonight at the Louis Alexander Palestra is at 6 p.m., and the game will be followed by the College of New Jersey (formerly Trenton State; alma mater of Illfelters' daughter's grandmother) taking on host Rochester. Both games can be watched or listened to online. Go Spartans! Until then, enjoy the Del.

Thursday Night Carnage

(Even though Bubble can be a 4-letter word around here, for entertainment purposes, please replace the word "Weasel" with "Bubble" and Enjoy the Music While Your Party is Reached -- it's 1991, son.)

A Breakfast Buffet dedicated to the Waiting Line...

Last night cleared up the Waiting Line some, and made it extremely difficult for several teams to ever get to eat in the Buffet

Because Waiting Line Ejection Came For: Miami (fl), Northwestern, New Mexico, UNLV, Rhode Island, Cincinnati, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Kansas State,

Punch Goes the Ticket For: Minnesota, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Ohio State, Wisconsin

One Step Closer to the Turnstile: SD State, Penn St, Virginia Tech, Dayton, Boston College, Texas A&M (despite the loss),

Still Sold Out, but might get tickets on eBay (in order of resume strength): BYU, Arizona, Florida, Maryland, Creighton, Southern California, St. Mary's, Florida, Temple, Auburn, So Carolina

Even eBay tickets might be cost prohibitive: Providence, Utah St (if they lose their conference tourney), Kentucky, Davidson

Unless Southern Cal, Alabama, Baylor, Wyoming, Tulsa/UAB/Houston, Kentucky or Auburn (in the waiting line, but towards the back of the line), and MAYBE Nevada in WAC win their conference tournament, the numbers seem to look like this:

31 autobids, plus (including the teams above) 33 teams already invited, 9 of which could become conference champs -- leaving 25 already invited, so 10 spots remain beween the "One Step Closer" group, the "Still Sold Out, but" group, and the "Even eBay tickets" group ... the first two groups have 17 teams

San Diego St: A win over BYU might do it and would be a berth in the MWC final

Penn State: Virtually in, a good showing versus Purdue even in a loss is likely all they need

Virginia Tech: Win over UNC clinches, a close loss and the Hard Luck Hokies could be good to go

Dayton: Hard to see them out at this point

Boston College: See: Flyers, Dayton

BYU: Win over SD State is likely all they need

Texas A&M: back in Line, but had already started eating, so would need some major work for those teams who have never been in in order not to get back in.

Arizona: No conference tourney surprises, and losses today from several teams to clinch it

Maryland: Win over Wake Forest and they get a signature win late, which is gold this time of year

Creighton: Need more help than UofA

Southern California: Beat UCLA to start, but this is all in LA, even a 3-OT loss to Washington or Ariz St in the Final might not be enough

Saint Mary's: Must beat Eastern Washington by 20 or more, and prove a Patty Mills' Gaels team is not the team that lost by 300 to Gonzaga on Monday

Florida: Their resume compares poorly to other teams, but a win or two on the way to a SEC championship game loss would put some serious shine on it

Temple: Down on the list, but beating Xavier is signature like Maryland over Wake ... so they might not need much more than that

Auburn: Anything short of SEC title game berth won't be enough, but no hotter team out there right now. Auburn looks and feels like a tourney team, now they need a couple wins to let their candidacy on paper reflect that

So Carolina: Still just 1 top 50 win, and zero versus a team more likely than not to make the tourney

Providence: too many teams above them, can't do anything else to help themselves

Utah St: A loss against a WAC team would be deadly (except MAYBE Nevada (the tourney is in Reno) in a WAC final

Kentucky: Must get to SEC final, then their outlook might appear differently, but still a long, long shot.

Davidson: Needs Friday's carnage to make Thursday look peaceful, then a lot of Stephen Curry Sympathy in the Committee room.

The 4th Annual Buffet Live Blog coming today...

Enjoy your Breakfast Buffet, Buffetology coming tonight before Championship Games hit this weekend.

In The Waiting Line...

Please enjoy a very appropriate Buffet Music Offering as you consume the Waiting Line:



In the Waiting Line…

The DMV. Southwest Airlines boarding gate. Einstein’s Bagels on Friday bagel day. The betting window at the Mandalay 5 minutes before tip time of a game pod. A 21 year old Scottsdale girl wanting to gain entrance into the Buffet’s HQ.

What do all these locations have in common? All famous for having long, competitive lines… where else?

The NCAA Tournament. As the regular season draws to its final week, what work is left for teams to do? Who needs a deep run in their conference tourney? Who need to avoid being the team to give DePaul or Air Force its first conference win, or give Arkansas, Indiana, Georgia Tech or Colorado its second …

Let’s take a number, watch Oklahoma, Xavier, Pitt and UConn get their second helpings at the Buffet as we take a step into the Waiting Line…

Who’s Enjoying the Buffet Already, Not Automatically:

ACC: Clemson, Duke, Florida State, North Carolina Wake Forest (5)

Atlantic 10: Xavier (1)

Big East: Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia (7)

Big Ten: Michigan State, Illinois (2)

Big 12: Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas (4)

Horizon: Butler (1)

Mountain West: Utah (1)

Pacific 10: Arizona State, California, UCLA, Washington (4)

Southeastern Conference: LSU, Tennessee (2)

West Coast Conference: Gonzaga (1) (auto-qualifier)

Who’s Waiting in Line:
ACC: Boston College, Maryland, Miami (FL), Virginia Tech (4)
Atlantic 10: Dayton, Rhode Island, Temple (3)
Big East: Cincinnati, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Providence (4)
Big Ten: Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin (6)
Big Twelve: Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M (3)
Missouri Valley: Creighton (1)
Mountain West: BYU, San Diego St, UNLV (3)
Pacific 10: Arizona, Southern California (2)
SEC: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina (3)
Southern: Davidson (1)
WAC: Utah State (1)
WCC: St. Mary’s (1)


Automatic Qualifiers: 31
Invitees: 28 (with a possible 9 becoming autoqualifiers)
Teams Waiting in Line: 32
Available Spots (assuming all 9 auto-spots taken by current invitee): 15

America East:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Championship: Binghamtom Bearcats vs. UMBC Retrievers

Atlantic Coast Conference:
Enjoying the Buffet: North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, Florida St, Clemson,

In the Waiting Line…: Boston College, Maryland, Miami (FL), Virginia Tech

Boston College Eagles: 21-10 (9-7 (ACC); 57 RPI, 59 SOS (211 NC); 3-3 vs. top 25, 4-5 vs. top 50, 7-7 vs top 100 – 5-5 on the road, 8-5 in last 12 (Began 5-0, then went 3-4)

The good: wins over Duke (RPI 2); @UNC (road win over RPI 3); Florida State (RPI 16); and vs. UAB (44 – and fellow line waiter); wins @ Maryland (67 rpi – fellow line sitter); Va Tech (63 – fellow line sitter); Providence (71, ditto); 8-4 L12

The Bad: Loss @Saint Louis (113); Loss @ NC State; 12 point home loss to Harvard (72 hours after beating UNC in Chapel Hill, taking some shine off that win); plummeting RPI & SOS, and a weak 3-4 in last 7

The Outlook: Hard to imagine with wins over UNC, Duke, and 20+ wins plus a winning record in a tough conference record, they won’t make it. Getting swept by Miami, who is also in Line… BC needs to help itself, and that starts today versus Virginia, who isn’t a tournament sealing win but could be a deal-breaker of a loss – then they get Duke, a win, and obviously they’d be in, a close loss would probably do the same, a blowout wouldn’t be as damaging as losing to UVA, but it would make the sweat begin…

Maryland Terrapins: 18-12 (7-9 ACC); 67 RPI; 26 SOS (125 NC); 2-6 vs. Top 25; 3-7 vs. Top 50; 7-10 vs. top 100 – 2-6 on the road; 5-7 in last 10.

The Good: wins over UNC (3 RPI); vs. Michigan State (18 point win on neutral court – 6 RPI); Michigan (42 RPI, fellow line waiter, and with each Michigan win the Maryland victory looks better than better); Miami (FL) (52, fellow line waiter); Virginia Tech (63 & fellow line waiter); 3 top 50 wins (7 top 100)

The Bad: That finish – to lose to Wake, especially by only 2 is ok, to follow it up with a disastrous loss at Virginia – the Buffet does not care how well UVA has played at home recently (which couldn’t be more overtouted) – below.500 in conference, road record; last 12 games; loss to Morgan St (at home – 135); 3-4 versus Line… waiters (losses to Georgetown, Miami (split home and home); Boston College and @Florida State.

The Outlook: Maryland is plummeting – that recent win over North Carolina was big time, they gave Duke a fight, and it would have been real nice to have gotten that game – the road win @ North Carolina State was real helpful, … the blow-out loss on a neutral court to Georgetown is troubling, considering where G’Town is, but under closer inspection, that did start off a 7-game Hoya winning streak including wins over Memphis (potential 2-3 seed) and UConn (likely 1-seed) – Maryland has Wake on March 3 and @Virginia.

After losing to Virginia and Wake – a deep ACC run is all that Maryland can use to go Buffet’ing

Miami (Fl) Hurricanes: 17-11 (7-9 ACC); 52 RPI; 23 SOS (204 NC); 2-6 vs. top 25, 2-7 vs. top 50; 6-9 vs. top 100 – 6-7 on the road, 5-7 in L12

The Good: Strength of Schedule; wins over Wake Forest (RPI 10); Florida State (RPI 16); Swept Boston College (RPI 57 and fellow waiting liner; and beat both Maryland (67) and Kentucky (79) – both (somewhat) in the Waiting Line…

The Bad: 5-7 in last 10; sub .500 conference record; losses to waiting liners Virginia Tech; Ohio State & Florida State … no strong NC win; losing at Ga Tech and beating NC St actually hurt, because it gave them 2 RPI 100+ losses

The Outlook: Miami is a tough case – a couple nice top 25 wins, but almost no non-conference work (Kentucky barely counts), and they are under .500 in the ACC – what works in their favor is how difficult their ACC schedule was (2 games vs. UNC, 2 vs. Maryland, 2 vs. Boston College – they jump in SOS from NC to conference demonstrates this) … after that Ga Tech loss, Miami cannot afford to slip up and seems to need at least 2 ACC wins, and that means beating UNC, but on the bright side beating UNC would like up a bid fo’ sho’

Currently being down 51-37 to Va Tech with 9:00 minutes left isn’t all that helpful.

Virginia Tech: 17-13 (7-9 ACC); RPI 63; SOS 24 (159 NC); 2-7 vs. Top 25; 2-8 vs. Top 50; 5-11 vs. top 100 – 5-6 on road; 4-8 in L12

The Good: Top 3 wins all on road -- @Clemson, @Wake; @Miami; SOS … that isn’t a lot of good.

The Bad: Average RPI; zero non-conference work; sub .500 in last 12; 2 @Virginia by 14 points (109); and at Georgia by one (186); losses to Waiting Liners Wisconsin, @Maryland, Boston College – an under .500 record against RPI Top 200.

The Outlook: Head scratcher of a team – can’t win @ Virginia, on a neutral vs. Seton or beat Wisconsin at home – but can beat both Wake Forest & Clemson on the road? That road work is compelling, and helps keep Va Tech in the discussion. but having lost 4/5, if they lose both remaining games and can win’t twice in ACC – sayanora. But that means beating UNC.

On the flip side of that Miami score – 57-37 with 7:02 left, which really bodes well for them.

Atlantic Ten:
Enjoying the Buffet: Xavier

At the front of the Waiting Line…: Dayton

In the Waiting Line…: Rhode Island, Temple

Dayton: 25-6 (11-5 A10); RPI 23; 95 SOS (129 NC); 1-1 v. Top 25; 3-2 v. Top 50; 8-3 vs. Top 100 – 5-6 on the Road; 8-4 in L12 (all road losses)
The Good: RPI; Conference record; wins over Xavier (11); Marquette (with D.James, 30 now); and Temple (40); 8-4 in last 10; Road/Neutral record;

The Bad: Losses @: St. Louis (113); Massachussetts (166) & Charlotte (210 – how does Bobby Lutz still have a job) – relatively light on Top 50 wins (just 3); SOS has come down which helps, but it is still hovering around 100.

The Outlook: Hard to see how they won’t – beat Temple and Duquense to take care of business (no shame in losing on road @Xavier, especially having taken the first of two) … Dayton should get in … a win over Richmond would virtually seal it, although the Cmte can get funny with weaker RPI conference teams …

Rhode Island: 22-9 (11-5 A10); RPI 65, 124SOS (120); 1-4 v. top 25; 3-5 v. top 50; 6-6 v. top 100 – 9-5 on road; 10-2 in L12
The Good: wins over fellow conference waiting liners Dayton & Temple, and CAA champ VCU (50); #2 seed in A10 (ahead of likely tourney team Dayton); won 10 of 12 -- competitive in virtually every game this season (lost by 3 at Duke, 2 v. Xavier; 14 vs. Okla St, 6 vs. Temple and the crushing heartbreaking loss to end season v. Massachusetts); Road Record is strong; 5 point NC win versus Waiting Liner Penn State

The Bad: SOS; mediocre RPI; 11-9 vs. top 200; loss to RPI #127 Richmond; #102 St. Joe’s & at home to end season versus #147 UMass; outside of Penn State, nothing of note in NC;

The Outlook: Nothing quite like being hot at the right time, a 6 game winning streak late in the season and of 12 in January/February/March is genius – prior to that UMass loss, URI was trending perfectly – now, it seems they must beat Dayton in the A10 tourney but advancing to the final should be enough (even if Dayton/Temple lose early) or a semifinal could be enough depending how other Waiting Liners… break)

Temple: 19-11 (11-5 A10); RPI 40; SOS 48 (NC 24); 1-5 v. Top 25; 1-5 v. Top 50; 4-8 v. Top 100 – 9-8 road; 8-4 in L12

The Good: SOS (NC of 24 is real strong); road record; win over Tennessee (22 RPI and a likely 5-7 seed); splitting with URI; @Penn St (Waiting Liner…)

The Bad: 1-5 record versus RPI top 50; 3 losses 101-200 (La Salle (113); @Long Beach (155); @UMass (147); failure to get marquee wins despite several opportunities (losses @Kanass (by 12); Xavier (9); Clemson (4); Villanova (17) and Dayton (5)

The Outlook: Temple’s pair of non-conference Waiting Line… wins are nice – but their resume (outside of a split w/ URI) sort of stops there, even though they’ve won 5 of 7 and 8 of 11, anything short of an A10 final berth (unless they get Xavier prior and beat them in quarters or something) and they’re NIB (Not In Buffet)

Atlantic Sun:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament Champion: East Tennessee State Bucs

Big East:
Enjoying the Buffet: Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Marquette, Syracuse, Villanova, West Virginia

In the Waiting Line…: Cincinnati, Georgetown Notre Dame, Providence

Cincinnati Bearcats: 17-14 (8-11 BE); 83 RPI; 41 SOS (83 NC) 0-8 v. top 25; 2-9 v. top 50; 7-12 v. top 100 – 4-7 on Road; 5-7 in L12

The Good: SOS; win over West Virginia; sweeping G’Town; wins over fellow Line Waiters… UAB, @UNLV and Notre Dame; 7-4 vs. teams 26-100

The Bad: Not competitive versus top echelon (losses @Pitt, home v. UConn, @Memphis, Louisville, Xavier, @Villanova, vs. Fla St, Syracuse); blown out by Syracuse in late Waiting Line game (87-63); swept by fellow Line Waiters… Providence;. 4 game losing streak to end the season, a loss when they couldn’t afford it to #99 Seton Hall.

The Outlook: No.

Georgetown Hoyas: 16-14 (7-12 BE); 59 RPI; SOS #4 (10 NC) – 3-8 on Road; 4-5 v. Top 25; 4-8 v. Top 50; 7-12 vs. Top 100; 8-12 in Last 12

The Good: Oh the SOS. 4 wins versus top 25 (including at UConn & Villanova); and against Waiting Liners… Syracuse (split); Maryland by 27, Providence; only 1 loss against a RPI 100+ (road BE game to Seton Hall)

The Bad: At 15-14, it is one thing to play a tough schedule, it is another to barely be above .500 against them. Struggling badly up until and after the Villanova win …

The Outlook: . What a strange team, 4-6 versus top 25 might be a losing record, but 4 wins, 2 on the road, and a couple of great NC feathers (at Memphis and a 27 point win against Maryland on a neutral court) … but then they can’t win against 25-100 (3-5) where you should be chomping people up. They will not be invited in the Buffet

Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 17-14 (9-11 BE); RPI 74; SOS 39 (216 NC); 1-7 v. top 25; 2-12 v. top 50; 5-13 v. top 100 – 3-8 on road; 6-6 L12.

The Good: Demolition of Louisville with season on the line, vs. Texas in Maui; wins over Waiting Liners Providence & G’Town. Strong SOS.

The Bad: The rest of their season – sub .500 conference record, only 2 games over .500 overall, double-digit losses to Pitt; UNC; Louisville, W.Virginia, Syracuse, UCLA, & Cincy. Loss to St. John’s (147 RPI); and the barely bothering to appear at MSG for the BET.

The Outlook: No

Providence Friars: 19-12 (11-8 Big East); 71 RPI; 55 SOS (162 NC); 2-4 v. top 25; 2-7 v. top 50; 6-12 v. top 100 – 4-6 on the road; 6-6 L12

The Good: Resume popping win over then #1 (and RPI #1) Pittsburgh, win v. Syracuse (17); wins over Waiting Liners: Cincy (sweep) and Rhode Island (53); over .500 v. Big East

The Bad: 2-7 versus top 50; low RPI; losing road record; loses to lots of Waiting Liners: G’Town, Boston College, vs. St. Mary’s, and vs. Baylor (are they even a waiting liner?); Notre Dame (same question applies); 3-7 versus 26-50 (typical Waiting Line rankings)

The Outlook: Providence is a classic Waiting Liner – each win & loss pushes them from in line to watching the line – only regular season game left is @Villanova, which will be hard pressed not to be a loss. Win opening round BET game, and either their second game as well or at least a competitive `2nd round game, and the Pride of Maris Laksa rides again…

Update: 18 point loss against Louisville pretty much dooms Providence to the NIT – resume is just too lightweight to survive a loss like that.

Big Sky:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament Champion: Portland State Vikings

Big South:
Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Conference Tournament (& Reg Season) Champs:
Radford Highlanders

Big Ten:
Enjoying the Buffet: Michigan State, Purdue, Illinois

In the Waiting Line…: Michigan, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin

Michigan Wolverines: 19-12 (9-9); RPI 42; SOS 10 (59 NC); 2-4 v. top 25; 6-9 v. top 50; 10-11 v. top 100 – 3-8 on road; 6-6 in L12

The Good: Great NC wins (Duke & UCLA); a pretty impressive 6 wins versus top 50 (Illinois, Minnesota twice & Purdue in conference); strong SOS; win at Northwestern and Minnesota when Home Court Hero label was getting attached. Win 2 of 3 down the stretch

The Bad: loss at Iowa (105 rpi); Waiting Line losses to Wisconsin (swept); Ohio St (swept); Maryland and @ Penn St (split home and home thought); Home Court Hero (3-8 on the road); just average 4-5 against teams 26-50.

The Outlook: Michigan was on the edge, their Duke, Illinois, UCLA & Purdue wins held up nicely – but they couldn’t close out Wisconsin or Connecticut on the road to really solidify a berth. To really feel safe.

The road win at Minnesota was season defining, the blowout win to open B10 tourney gets them in.

Minnesota Golden Gophers: 21-9 (10-9 B10); RPI 37; SOS 37 (NC 165); 2-3 v. top 25; 5-7 v. top 50; 9-9 v. top 100 – 4-6 on road; 6-6 in L12

The Good: non-conference win versus Louisville (10) on neutral court; win over Illinois (18); Waiting Line sweep over @Wisconsin (40); Ohio State 38– split); Penn State (66 – split) and Northwestern (72– won 2 of 3); top 50 SOS; no bad losses

The Bad: only 1 major road win, loss to Michigan at home in reg season finale; only one major road scalp (losses to Michigan St, Illinois, Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Northwestern); middling record versus top 50;

The Outlook: Buffet prescribed a least win one of last two and then first BET game. They got that – they are in

Northwestern Wildcats: 17-13 (8-10 B10); RPI 72; 40 SOS (NC 213); 2-3 v. top 25; 6-10 v. top 50; 6-9 v. top 100 – 4-8 on the road; 6-6 in last 12

The Good: Wins at Michigan St, (6) vs. Florida St (16), at Purdue (33) wins over Waiting Liners… Wisconsin (40), Ohio State (38) and Mnnesota (37).

The Bad: Overall record (just 17 wins), sub .500 versus B10; RPI (72), losses at Stanford (110) and Iowa (112); Lost 2 straight to close season

The Outlook: Can’t. Too many bad losses, not enough good wins to overcome their consistent losses to top 50 teams, even with that nice resume building win over Purdue. It was cool for the smart kids and Bill Carmody to give it a shot, and it may not have been fair to demand wins at Ohio St & versus Minnesota, but they didn’t do either, and now they can play in the NIT.

Ohio State Buckeyes: 20-9 (10-8 Big 10); 38 RPI; 32 SOS (133 NC); 1-5 v. top 25; 5-8 v. top 50; 9-9 v. top 100 – 4-6 on the road; 7-5 L12

The Good: Wins over Butler (20); and a bunch of waiting liners; Minnesota (37 - split); Purdue (33 – split); swept Michigan (42 – which is KEY and looking better and better with how Michigan is playing); @Miami (FL) (63); Penn State (66) and N’Western when the Wildcats absolutely needed it to make the tourney. No bad losses. Nice 8-4 record versus teams ranked 26-50.

The Bood: Consistently lost to top competition (swept by Michigan St, Illinois and lost to West Virginia badly at home); sub .500 road record,

The Outlook: Hard to see a scenario where Ohio St gets left out, answered a slump (losing 4 of 5) with 2 straight wins, including a tough one at Iowa. They beat several teams gasping for an invitation (Michigan, Miami (FL), Penn St, Notre Dame – with splits against Purdue and Minnesota). From a Waiting Line... standpoint, I wish they had shown better in some of their losses, but it shouldn’t matter too much. They are in

Penn State Nittany Lions: 21-9 (10-8 B10); 66 RPI; 81 SOS (308 NC); 3-1 v. top 25; 6-8 v. top 50; 7-9 v. top 100 – 5-6 on the road; 7-5 in last 12

The Good: Their record, finished above in B10; sparkling record versus RPI Top 25 and 7 top 100 wins overall; great road wins at Illinois (no matter how gross that game was) & Michigan St. Waiting Line wins over Northwestern, Minnesota, & Michigan. Picked great time to win 4 of 6.

The Bad; 3-7 versus top 26-50 means they can’t handle competition on their own level all too well; low RPI (66); that NC Strength of Schdeule, is ugly – best non-conference win is Mount Saint Mary’s (at 116) – which means they did nothing out of conference.

The Outlook: ITBO, they got in when the finished off the sweep of Illinois, but to be safe, they finish off Indiana (up 42-28) – but, after finishing off Indiana, they need a good showing against Purdue, who may notice wasn’t listed among “The Good” – this is because when they beat them at home – but who came there without Chris Kramer and Robbie Hummel – which makes it less of a great win.

Wisconsin Badgers: 18-11 (10-8 B10); 40 RPI; 11 SOS (34); 1-3 v. top 25; 4-9 v. top 50; 9-10 v. top 100 – on road 4-7, 7-5 L12.

The Good: Wins over Illinois, Ohio State, swept Michigan, at Virginia Tech & Penn State (swept them); Likely to have 18-20 wins versus #11 schedule; solid work on road (Va Tech, Penn St, Michigan).

The Bad: loss at Iowa (116); not a lot done out of conference despite the schedule (@Va Tech is only non-conference win that enhances their result).

The Outlook: Keep on keeping on, they’re pretty much in, but they should play tough against Ohio St to be safe. After that dreadful 6 game losing streak, was impressive to see them bounce back with 5 straight, including wins over Illinois, @Penn State; Ohio State, but they’ve come back to earth a bit, going .500 the rest of the way, but they are still 10-8 in conference … and strong enough schedule, enough good wins to overcome a lack of NC work.

Big Twelve:
Enjoying the Buffet: Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, Texas

In the Waiting Line…: Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M

Close, But Not in the Waiting Line…: Baylor

This is why the Buffet doesn’t even consult or read Lunardi/ESPN Prognosticators when preparing for Buffetology – the Buffet’s Editor-in-Chief attended Texas, there’s no hiding that fact, so a bit of homerism is involved whenever they come up in discussion. However, there is no way a team with 20 wins, top 35 RPI, over .500 record versus top 50 (including 2-1 versus top 25); non-conference wins versus Villanova (in NYC, 15); UCLA (23), and @Wisconsin (31) – not to mention wins over #4 Oklahoma, #25 Oklahoma St, Texas A&M (35), and sweeping then-Waiting Liner Baylor, is not included, so Texas has been invited in. Catcalls of “HOMER” can begin now.

Kansas State Wildcats: 20-11 (9-8 B12); RPI 80; 95 SOS (305NC); 1-5 v. top 25; 3-6 vs. top 50; 5-9 v. top 100 – 5-5 on the road; 8-4 L12

The Good: 20 wins; strong road record, and were as hot as they come -- 9-3 going into B12 tourney; have a legit superstar in Denis Clemente; road wins at Texas A&M (35) and Texas (36) and 16 point win at home versus Missouri (11)

The Bad: Oh that NC SOS, and RPI, to be honest. Also, zero non-conference work (@Cleveland St is best win). Swept by Kansas, lost to Oklahona, losses to Waiting Liners… Oklahoma St, Nebraska, Kentucky. Losses to Oregon (162) and Iowa (116). Lost 2 of 3 (albeit both were tough road games.

The Outlook: The resume is just too light, despite the 8-4L12 and pair of Lone Star state road wins. Needed to beat Texas in B12, did not, and now they will not Buffet.

Oklahoma State: 21-10 (10-7 B12); RPI 21, SOS 9 (38 NC); 1-6 v. Top 25; 3-9 v. Top 50; 8-10 v. Top 100 – 4-6 on Road, 8-4 in L12.

The Good: Wins over Texas, A&M (waiting liner), vs. Rhode Island (waiting liner), and Kansas St. (former waiting liner); not to mentioned RPI #18 Siena. Got hot in February (winning 8 of 12 and six straight before a tough loss at Oklahoma). The RPI and the gorgeous SOS.

The Bad: They cannot beat good teams, 1-6 v. top 25, and 2-3 v. RPI 26-50, no significant road wins (Nebraska & Texas Tech are their best), and lost every big NC game they played (Mich St, Washington, Gonzaga).

How Can They Get Their Fil: Their hot march, waiting line wins, 21+ wins versus the 9th best schedule – Okla St.

Texas A&M: 22-9 (9-8); RPI 35; 44 (153); 2-4 v. top 25, 4-5 v. top 50, 8-8 v. top 100 – road 5-5; 8-4 L12.

The Good: Wins over Missou, Texas and then SEC ChampLSU on a neutral court. Beat Waiting Liners Okla St and Arizona. .500 on Road, solid RPI & SOS

The Bad: Not enough great wins, and a terrible terrible loss to #115 Tech

How Do They Get Their Fill?: Texas A&M was in, and they probably still are, but you blow a 19 pt halftime lead like that, especially when it costs the Buffet real money. A&M is still probably safe, but that loss sits attached to them like a scarlet letter.


Big West:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Tonight’s Quarterfinals:

UC Davis v. Pacific (just the 3 seed and 157 in RPI, Christian Maaraker, where have you gone?


Colonial Athletic Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Close, but no Waiting Line… number issued: George Mason

Conference Tournament Champ: Virginia Commonwealth Rams

Conference USA:

Enjoying the Buffet: Memphis

Close, but no Waiting Line… number issued: Houston, Tulsa, UAB

Horizon League:

Enjoying the Buffet: Butler

Conference Tourney Champ: Cleveland St.

Ivy League:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Regular Season Conference Champs: Cornell Big Red

Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:

Conference Tourney Champion: Siena Saints

Mid-American Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Tourney Matchups:

Left to go tonight:
Ohio (9 seed) v. Bowling Green (1 seed)
Akron (5 seed) v. Miami (OH) (4 seed)

Tomorrow: Semi-finals: Ball St v. Buffalo
Ohio/Bowling Green v. Akron/Miami

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Morgan St. Bears


Missouri Valley Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Northern Iowa Panthers

In the Waiting Line…: Creighton

Close, but no Waiting Line number issued: Illinois State

Creighton Bluejays: 26-7 (15-5 MVC); 41 RPI, SOS 106 (141); 1-0 v. top 25; 2-2 v. top 50; 9-5 v. top 100 – 8-4 road; 11-1 L12

The Good: 26 wins, and dominant conference record. Great road record and hot as can be going into that Illinois St tourney disaster. Wins over Waiting Liners Dayton, New Mexico, and MVC champ Northern Iowa (on the road)

The Bad: That loss to Illinois State leaves a terrible impression, also bad, that many good things can be said

The Outlook: It’s hard to imagine this weak of a resume can do it, but if any year was the year – here we are. Nothing left to do but hope more teams pull a G’Town, Arizona, Providence, Miami, etc.

Mountain West Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Utah

In the Waiting Line…: BYU, San Diego State, UNLV

Close, but no Waiting Line Number Issued: New Mexico (Danny Granger, come back)

Brigham Young Cougars: 24-6 (13-4 MWC); RPI 22; SOS 71 (71); 1-2 v. top 25; 4-3 v. top 50; 6-6 v. top 100 – 9-3 on the road; 10-2 L12

The Good: Wins over Utah (12); vs. WAC champ Utah St (68-53); swept waiting liner SD St; win @ would-be Waiting Liner Tulsa. MWC Regular Season Co-Champ

The Bad: That I can’t say anything better about them – 24 wins are nice, especially against the #71 schedule – but who did they beat? 4 nice conference wins, a win over a team many consider has an inflated RPI and a win over Tulsa in a key spot. BYU should be safe, especially after handling a pesky Air Force team … but one more MWC tourney win would be helpful.

San Diego State Aztecs: 19-8 (11-5 MWC); RPI 43; SOS 64 (110 NC); 1-3 v. top 25; 1-5 v. top 50; 4-7 v. top 100 – 5-5 on the road; 8-4 L12

The Good: Strong season record and record in a solid conference, with a chance to get to 20+; good road record, hot at the right time – sweep of Waiting Liner UNLV and win over RPI 12 – Utah.

The Bad: Just one win versus top 50 (could have used either the or both of the St. Mary’s or Arizona games; just not much on this resume to really hold on to – 0 non-conference work, 1 real road win of note…


The Outlook: If they make a deep MWC run, I think they’ll turn into locks. Which ITBO would make them one of the more fraudulent resume invites ever – what have they done not in their conference? Not to mention that they lost to Arizona and St. Mary’s – two teams waiting for an invite. But, that said, beat UNLV on their home floor in the tourney and win a second game, and they should be good to go.

Northeast Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Robert Morris Colonials

Ohio Valley Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Morehead State

Pacific Ten Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Washington, Arizona State; UCLA, California

In the Waiting Line…: Arizona, Southern California

Close, but no Waiting Line… Number Issued: Washington State

Arizona Wildcats: 19-13 (9-10 P10); RPI 59; SOS 29 (70); 2-1 v. top 25; 5-9 v. top 50; 9-13 v. top 100 – 2-9 on Road. 7-5 L12.

The Good: NC wins versus B12 champ Kansas (9) and WCC Champ Gonzaga (27); conference versus P10 champ Washington (14) and UCLA (29), plus wins over waiting liners SD St, Southern California, and would-be Wler Washington State. 2-1 v. top 25, 0 bad losses

The Bad: If there was ever the definition of Home Court Hero designation – Arizona gets it. Zero good wins outside the state of Arizona, and that hurts. The 2-1 record v. top 25 is nice, but they could have used to pull out that Washington win that they had, the game at A&M or the meltdown Timeout II game versus So California. Also, losing to WLer UAB on Jamelle Horn’s idiocy hurts too … what will really kill them more than anything is losing 5 of 6 down the stretch, which really makes their 7-5 in the L12 a fallacy.

The Outlook: This has been a major source of contention – the Buffet looks at Arizona’s resume and says, that looks like a tourney team – 19-13 record plus 2 of the better NC that you will find, but they way they finished the season, the fact that they didn’t win outside of the 520/480/602/623 is going to kill them. They are 3-4 games they wish they could have back, but they can’t, but maybe the Georgetown/Arizona NIT game will be good … Arizona has put themselves in the horrible position of having to hope no one among the last 8-12 out coming into the 12 Days of Conference Tourneys makes a run, or wins too many games

Southern California Trojans: 18-12 (9-9 P10); RPI 61; SOS 30 (60); 0-4 v. top 25, 2-8 v. top 50; 7-11 v. top 100. – 2-8 on road; 6-6 L12

The Good: Home wins versus Ariz St & California, as well as Waiting Liner Arizona, good SOS, and 7 top 100 wins.

The Bad: No resume defining win, the Home Court Hero label applies here too, and lost 6 of 7 against the Pac 10 elite (UCLA, Arizona, Arizona St, Washington, Cal, and Stanford – beating only non-Waiting Liner Wash St in that stretch

The Outlook: Picked a terrible time to tank, couldn’t win away from home, and since the tourney is in LA, wins won’t be as helpful as they could be … a P10 championship game berth is pretty much all they can do to get back in the discussion (not the Buffet), winning P10 might be the only way in

Patriot League:

Championship Game on March 13.

Southeastern Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet: Louisiana State, Tennessee

In the Waiting Line…: Auburn, Florida, South Carolina

Close, but not Waiting Line… Number Issued: Vanderbilt; Mississippi State

Auburn Tigers: 20-10 (10-6 SEC); RPI 65; SOS 67 (200 NC); 1-2 v. top 25; 2-5 v. top 50, 5-9 v. top 100 – 5-5 on road; 9-3 L12

The Good: Could a team be any hotter? Won 8 of 9, including against SEC champ LSU (36) and Tennessee (20) – 3 road wins, and rocketed up the SEC standings. 20 wins, 10 conference wins, decent SOS and .500 on road.

The Bad: sub .500 record versus top 100, loss to Mercer, yes, Mercer (181), and absolutely nothing against non-conference teams – best win is @Virginia (and no matter what Dick Vitale & Jay Bilas try to tell you, just because they won a game or two at home, Virginia on the road is NOT a good win). Close losses fill their schedule (7 @Xavier, 1 in OT vs. Dayton, 7 @ LSU, 6 vs. No.Iowa) – but close doesn’t cut it.

The Outlook: This is a team that’s easy to like, but like and Buffet-worthy don’t always count, or else the Buffet would make Siena, UAB circa 2002, the High Point Highs, and whatever local YMCA team the Mad Bomb Jack Leisure was currently playing on as one seeds. Auburn, if they want ANY prayer of a non-automatic invite (which shouldn’t be ruled out, they are as hot as they come) needs to get to the SEC final at a minimum.

Florida Gators: 22-9 (9-7 SEC); RPI 48; SOS 85 (240); 1-4 v. top 25; 2-6 v. top 50; 8-8 v. top 100 – 2-7 on road; 6-6 L12

The Good: 22 wins, over .500 in SEC, solid RPI for at-large team, NC neutral court versus P10 champ Washington, wins over waiting liners So Carolina, @Auburn, and Kentucky.

The Bad: The 2-6 record versus RPI top 50; too many losses in key opportunities; weak NC RPI; lost 3 of 4 down the stretch, including what many thought was a playoff game versus Tennessee; loss at Georgia (190).

The Outlook: Florida is a team compared to Arizona a lot – and this is where the Buffet has a problem … explain how Florida is ranked higher. Only 3 more wins versus a schedule ranked 60 spots lower, a higher RPI, but less wins versus top 25 and top 50 … same amount of road inaction, and Florida’s best win (Washington) is Arizona’s 2nd best, and one of 4 good wins. Florida needs to make some SEC tourney hay – it starts with Arkansas, and then Auburn … win both, and they are likely in, because they’ll have done more at the right time than some other Waiting Liners.

South Carolina Gamecocks: 21-8 (10-6 SEC); RPI 49; SOS 94 (281); 0-2 v. top 25; 1-5 v. top 50; 7-7 v. top 100 – 5-6 on road; 8-4 L12

The Good: 1 point win over Florida, wins over Waiting Liner Auburn, RPI is nice as is 21 wins and 10-6 conference record, got hot at the right time, when people were looking at the SEC and wondering who was coming, and So Carolina got red hot. 6-2 record versus 51-100 distinguishes them from teams not invited.

The Bad: Just nothing on the resume between 1-50, a one point home win versus Florida looks like a fluke amongst the balance of that resume. Scheduled poorly, no big road games – except Baylor (which again was a 1 point win and didn’t look like a particularly good one until Baylor went bonkers in the B12 tournament) … this team needs a deep SEC run – as no team has ever made the tournament with 0 top 50 wins or a win against a team in the field (So Carolina has a win over #48 only) which puts them in a precarious position – unless they get 1-2 good wins, they can go play NIT.

Southwestern Athletic Conference:

Enjoying the Buffet/In the Waiting Line…: None

Regular Season Conference Champs: Alabama State Hornets

Southern Conference:

In the Waiting Line…: Davidson (hanging by a thin thin West Virginia thread)

Conference Tourney Champs: UT-Chattanooga Mocs

Davidson Wildcats: 25-7 (19-3 SoCon); RPI 69; SOS 163 (NC 13); 1-3 v. top 25; 1-4 v. top 50; 2-4 v. top 100 – 10-2 on road; 8-4 L12.

The Good: Resume propping-up win versus West Virginia; win over NC State (for whatever it’s worth) – close loss at Oklahoma (imagine if Curry didn’t shoot 8-4000 in that game); nice road record SoCon reg season championship;

The Bad: 3 100+ losses, including an inexcusable loss pre-tourney final (losing to Chattanooga at home would have been better pill to swallow than semis to neutral courting Charleston); lack of top 100 work; and had their chances (@Duke, @Oklahoma, home versus Butler, and neutral court v. Purdue) and they couldn’t do it – there’s just not a lot on this resume to really tout them on.

The Outlook: If they can point to the West Virginia win, their conference dominance and get a Stephen Curry sympathy vote based on his magic last year, they’ve got a shot, but it’s not a good one, basically blindfolded in the dark against a moving target

Southland Conference

Regular Season Conference Champs: Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks

Summit Conference (formerly Mid-Continent)

Conferemce Tourney Champs: North Dakota St Bison

Western Athletic Conference:

In the Waiting Line…: Utah State (hanging by a thread)

Regular Season Champs: Utah State Aggies

Utah State Aggies: 26-4 (14-2 WAC); RPI 28; SOS 138 (192 NC); 1-1 v. top 25, 1-2 v. top 50; 2-3 v. top 100 – 10-3 on road; 9-3 L12

The Good: lots and lots of wins, WAC regular championship, win over Utah (12); and hot in last 12. great road record

The Bad: Where are the resume wins – this is a lot of hope being pinned to a win over Utah – which isn’t like beating UNC, Pitt or UConn. Got beat up big time by Nevada in Reno – where the WAC tourney is being played. 1 win v. top 25, and only 2 v. top 50 (the Nevada team that just blew them out) Nothing in non-conference and no strong road wins in the 10-3 record

The Outlook: It is hard to see a team with all those wins and high RPI get left out – but what did they run those numbers up against? Not very much. Must make the WAC final and hope a Nevada is their opponent, anything else would be a bad loss at the wrong time.


West Coast Conference:

Conference Tourney Champs: Gonzaga Bulldogs

In the Waiting Line…: St. Mary’s

Saint Mary’s Gaels: 23-6 (11-5 WCC); RPI 46; SOS 145 (82); 0-0 v. top 25; 2-3 v. top 50; 3-4 v. top 100, 7-5 L12

The Good: win v. Utah St (29 – and short-handed without Patrick Mills); win v. Waiting Liner SD State on a neutral court, same versus Providence on NC. All those wins, and while they didn’t play anyone in top 25 the jump from 82 to 145 in SOS means they played some strong NC teams (can’t help Oregon, Kent St, and So Illinois were not good). Except for the bad loss to Portland (which should be tossed out because it was the first game AP (After Patty), they held the line nicely without him so that probably won’t play a role either way.

The Bad: Neutral court wins are nice, no big road wins, swept by Gonzaga with diminishing returns (83-58 WCC final on a neutral court); losses to Portland (120) and Santa Clara (196) shows their road weakness. No wins (no games!) versus top 25, only 2 versus top 50 and only 3 versus top 100.

The Outlook: They have the rare opportunity to erase the WCC memories with a random game tomorrow night versus Eastern Washington, a terrible team, but if they can win 80-50 or something like that, they might show what full strength can do. St. Mary’s needs a 12 Days of Conf Tourneys miracle, and hope no long runs among the teams Last 4 In/Out in order to get in.