Thirty-five years ago this week, I attended my first college basketball game. It was a memorable event only in that, for a first-grader, anything beyond phonics and recess is a big deal.
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Stat of the Week
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Dear Billy (Tubbs, that is): When your team scores 99 points and still
loses, it might be time to evaluate the "system." When your team allows
Minnesota to top its season average (82.2 ppg) by almost 25 points,
perhaps the word D-E-F-E-N-S-E should be uttered in the huddle.
TCU sure is entertaining, but you'll have to tell us the last time a shoot-first, guard-later team really won anything. At least not since
Loyola Marymount reached the Elite Eight in 1990.
The best TCU team of the Tubbs' era (1997-98) was a No. 4 seed in the
NCAA Tournament. And it lost in the first round to No. 13 seed (Florida
State) that really had no business being in the field.
In this week of endless litigation, we rest our case.
'00-01 Most Points
(Losing Teams)
TCU 99, Minnesota 107
UCLA 98, Kansas 99
Bradley 92, USC 107
Kentucky 92, UCLA 97 (OT)
Siena 91, TCU 111
Brown 91, Wagner 122
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What I do remember about that night is looking at a roster for the first time. And that the team with the 7-foot-2 starting center got waxed by the one with an undersized pivot -- 6-6, at most -- who I later learned was the
finest player in his school's history.
The moral of the story, like the ongoing premise of this column, is that numbers -- however obvious -- are not always what they seem (just ask the Democrats). We are at 407 box scores and counting through last weekend,
and there is already much to observe.
As for the person who brought me to that first game, he has a milestone (AARP-type) birthday this week. For igniting my passion for college basketball, I say, "Thanks, 'H,' many happy returns!"
All fouled up
Much has been (and will continue to be) written about the increased number of fouls being called in college basketball. While there are no national stats yet available comparing this season with year's past, we can tell you this: The number of free throws being shot is even worse than the number of whistles.
In only eight games to date have there been fewer than 20 combined foul shots. We pick the number 20 because it represents one free throw for every two minutes of action, a low and obviously more than acceptable figure.
Fewest free throws (combined)
8, Robert Morris at East Carolina (Nov. 22)
10, Miami (Ohio) at Xavier (Nov. 18)
16, Oklahoma vs. Oregon State (Nov. 26)
16, Wake Forest at Richmond (Nov. 20)
17, Maryland-Eastern Shore at Northwestern (Nov. 22)
18, Campbell at Wake Forest (Nov. 25)
18, Dartmouth at Marist (Nov. 17)
19, Idaho at Gonzaga (Nov. 25)
Interestingly, the Miami, Ohio-Xavier contest was the first game in Xavier's new Cintas Center. Sounds like it was a pretty good time all around.
At the other end of the spectrum, there have already been five games in which 80 or more free throws were attempted, and 10 additional contests in which more than 70 fouls were shot. We suspect NCAA data later in the year will show these to be huge numbers. The riveting Nov. 26 matchup in Seattle between the Huskies and New Mexico State matchup "broke" this year's high in both combined free throws (87) and personal fouls (64).
Who wants to see a game with a free throw on the average of every 30 seconds? And the assertion from ESPN.com colleague Andy Katz, quoting several coaches, that too many fouls disrupt the offensive flow of the game (especially for better teams) seems to have some merit.
An example: UMass didn't lose to Holy Cross on Nov. 25 because 76 free throws were attempted. The Minutemen lost because high-scoring guards Monty Mack and Shannon Crooks were a combined 5-for-27 from the field. But we're guessing there would be a negative correlation between the number of in-game stoppages and the teams' overall shooting percentages (sounds like a good off-season study, in fact).
Most free throws (combined)
87, New Mexico State vs. Washington (Nov. 25)
84, Quinnipiac vs. Howard (Nov. 25)
81, Duquesne vs. Siena (Nov. 26)
81, Old Dominion at George Washington (Nov. 20)
80, VMI at Virginia Tech (Nov. 18)
A Mount-ain of oddities
Has any team been involved with more early-season statistical anomalies then Mount St. Mary's? Even long-time coach Jim Phelan -- 46 years and counting -- couldn't have seen all of this before:
On Nov. 21, the Mount (19-19) and Manhattan (12-12) combined to
convert all 31 free throws they attempted. The Jaspers' Draddy Gym
likely never had it so good.
Somehow, the Mounties have been involved in one of the highest and lowest scoring games of November. On Nov. 16, they gave up a ton of points in losing at Wake Forest, 108-61. Then, on Nov. 25, they tightened the
defense but still lost to Columbia, 56-44.
Too bad a team can't be credited with assists on free throws. In the Manhattan contest, the Mount recorded the third-lowest number of assists in a game this year. Its ratio of Assists-to-Field Goals wasn't much to brag about, either.
Assists/Assist-to-field goal ratio
.188, 3:16; Tennessee Tech (at S.C. State, Nov. 20)
.190, 4:21; Wisconsin-G.B. (at Gonzaga, Nov. 19)
.200, 4:20; Georgia (vs. Utah, Nov. 24)
.200, 3:15; Jacksonville State (at Kentucky, Nov. 21)
.200, 4:20; Mount St. Mary's (at Manhattan, Nov. 21)
But the real trend for Mount St. Mary's is a potentially great one. The Mounties have already recorded three of the top foul shooting
performances of the year ... and lost all three games.
Taking this to the absurd, imagine a winless team somehow leading the nation in free throw
percentage for an entire season. It won't happen, of course. But the projection is no sillier than saying Mark McGwire is on pace for 648 RBI because he hits a grand slam on opening day (and we read such
projections every April).
Highest free throw percentage
1.000, 4-4; Oklahoma (vs. Oregon State, Nov. 26)
1.000, 2-2; East Carolina (vs. Robert Morris, Nov. 22)
1.000, 8-8; Wake Forest (at Richmond, Nov. 20)
1.000, 5-5; Arkansas State (vs. Dartmouth, Nov. 18)
OK, maybe those aren't fair, but how about these ...
1.000, 19-19; Manhattan (vs. Mount St. Mary's, Nov. 21)
1.000, 12-12; Mount St. Mary's (at Manhattan, Nov. 21)
.947, 18-19; Pepperdine (vs. Pacific, Nov. 25)
.941, 16-17; Coastal Carolina (at Virginia, Nov. 20)
.933, 14-15; Belmont (vs. Furman, Nov. 21)
.929, 13-14; Rhode Island (at Missouri, Nov. 22)
.909, 10-11; Mount St. Mary's (at Columbia, Nov. 25)
.909, 10-11; Northwestern (vs. Maryland-Eastern Shore, Nov. 22)
.900, 9-10; Mount St. Mary's (at Wake Forest, Nov. 16)
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree
Temple coach John Chaney is legendary for emphasizing that his teams take care of the ball. The Owls are always among the national leaders in fewest turnovers per game and have suffered only one losing season -- Chaney's first (1982-83) -- during the Chaney era.
Well, Missouri-Kansas City hit the charts in similar fashion over the weekend. UMKC lost to Providence on Nov. 24, but committed only six turnovers in doing so.
Somewhere, Chaney was smiling.
His long-time assistant, Dean Demopoulos, is the new coach of the Kangaroos (since
when is the kangaroo indigenous to Kansas City, by the way?).
More unclear is what turnovers really have to do with winning. As the
columns below indicate, it is possible to win (and lose) in all kinds of
ways:
| Most Turnovers/Winning Team |
Fewest Turnovers/Winning Team |
37: Ohio State
(vs. Florida St., Nov. 23)
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4: Monmouth
(vs. Princeton, Nov. 25)
(vs. Albany)
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32: Louisiana-Lafayette
(vs. McNeese State, Nov. 21)
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5: Michigan State
(vs. Cornell, Nov. 24)
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29: Portland
(at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Nov. 22)
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5: Temple
(vs. New Mexico, Nov. 15)
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29: Navy
(vs. Northeastern, Nov. 20)
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6: Temple
(vs. Indiana, Nov. 22)
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28: Central Michigan
(at Purdue, Nov. 21)
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6: Long Beach State
(vs. Air Force, Nov. 21)
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28: Hofstra
(at Florida Atlantic, Nov. 21)
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6: George Washington
(vs. Texas A&M, Nov. 18)
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| Fewest Turnovers/Losing Team |
Most Turnovers/Losing Team |
6: Samford
(vs. Belmont, Nov. 25)
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37: Eastern Kentucky
(at Xavier, Nov. 22)
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6: UMKC
(vs. Providence, Nov. 24)
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37: Alabama State
(at TCU, Nov. 20)
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7: New Orleans
(vs. SW Missouri State, Nov. 18)
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36: Louisiana-Monroe
(at Arkansas, Nov. 25)
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8: TCU
(vs. Charleston, Nov. 26)
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36: Brown
(at Wagner, Nov. 17)
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8: Ohio State
(vs. Valparaiso, Nov. 25)
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33: Jacksonville State
(at Kentucky, Nov. 21)
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8: Loyola-Chicago
(at Stephen F. Austin, Nov. 19)
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8: Memphis
(vs. Temple, Nov. 17)
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Media watch
No doubt Sports Illustrated got a good bit of mileage from its college basketball preview edition, especially the section in which players were polled in a number of interesting categories. We were struck by one category, however, that seemed even more subjective (and unnecessary?) than others.
Players in respective conferences were asked, "Opposing coach you'd least like to play for?" Two of the "losers" included:
Gene Keady, Purdue: His hair is peculiar and the on-court grimace
non-stop, but we think Keady did more with less than any Big Ten coach
of the 1990s. There were those three straight conference championships,
after all, none of which was predicted by the media. And the weekend
upset of preseason No. 1 Arizona suggests the Keady era still has a
long way to go.
Jim Calhoun, Connecticut: All this guy has done is convert a tiny New
England program into a national giant, with an entertaining style of
play to boot. For a long time, the Huskies were the only Big East team
to embrace modern basketball. UConn's 1999 NCAA championship, along
with his career record (579-267), are probably enough to send Calhoun to
the Hall of Fame.
Let's not let the facts stand in the way of a good story, huh?
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Box Score Banter
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On Thursday, check out a new feature on ESPN.com called "Box Score Banter." It's the part of this column in which you E-mail thoughts, insights, suggestions, etc. (jlunardi@home.com). It's also your chance to see your name in cyberspace. Some of the early-season responses have been priceless:
"I thought I was a college basketball fan. I love your tournament predictions, but now I think you've got a little too much time on your hands. I've noticed the team with the most points has won every game thus far this season (presidential election notwithstanding)."
-- Stanstin
Stan: Too much time on my hands? There's never enough once the season starts (just don't tell my wife!)
"I like your article on ESPN.com about Behind the Box Scores; it's stuff that's real interesting. Just wanted to add that in the "Lowest Losing Scores" you missed Missouri, who beat Savannah State, 90-49, in the opener."
-- Brad Blake
Brad: To you and others with similar notes, we only track team and individual statistics from contests between two Division I teams. My feeling is, if a score doesn't count toward a team's RPI and tournament selection prospects, neither should any other numbers from that game.
"That Tulane reference (0-10 3PT vs. Nicholls State) is killing me. Admittedly, it's going to be a rough year for the Green Wave. But on the bright side, Perry Clark is finally gone. Enjoy your work, looking forward to this new column, but try and take it easy on Shawn Finney's young team."
-- Jonathan Williams
Will do, Jonathan. In the meantime, tell us how you really feel!
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Perfect players
Think you could win a few games with these early-season performances? Some of the names are expected; others, well, let's just say they are flying below the national radar.
Charlie Bell, Michigan State (vs. Eastern Washington, Nov. 25): 12-13 FG, 3-3 3PT, 4-5 FT, 5 assists, 2 steals, 0 personal fouls, 31 points, 29 minutes.
Hollis Price, Oklahoma (vs. Tulane, Nov. 25): 10-14 FG, 3-5 3PT, 7-9
FT, 6 assists, 4 steals, 30 points, 36 minutes.
Troy Murphy, Notre Dame (vs. Cincinnati, Nov. 25): 9-17 FG, 2-5 3PT, 10-13 FT, 7 rebounds, 6 blocks, 30 points, 38 minutes.
Preston Shumpert, Syracuse (vs. DePaul, Nov. 23): 10-17 FG, 6-8 3PT, 10-11 FT, 1 steal, 36 points, 37 minutes.
Kaspars Kambala, UNLV (vs. Louisville, Nov. 21): 8-10 FG, 21-22 FT, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 37 points, 37 minutes.
Todd Billet, Rutgers (vs. Lafayette, Nov. 21): 10-20 FG, 8-15 3PT, 8-10 FT, 4 assists, 2 rebounds, 36 points, 39 minutes
Marvin O'Connor, St. Joseph's (at Vanderbilt, Nov. 19): 12-16 FG, 2-4
3PT, 6-10 FT, 3 steals, 2 assists, 32 points, 34 minutes.
Troy Bell, Boston College (vs. St. Peter's, Nov. 19): 8-12 FG, 3-5
3PT, 12-14 FT, 8 steals 5 assists, 0 personal fouls, 31 points, 32
minutes.
Adam Fellers, Campbell (at UNC-Asheville, Nov. 18): 10-19 FG, 7-12 3PT,
10-14 FT, 6 assists, 2 steals, 37 points, 40 minutes.
Brandon Williams, Jacksonville (vs. Coastal Carolina, Nov. 18): 12-18
FG, 6-10 3PT, 3-3 FT, 2 assists, 33 points, 32 minutes.
Jason Rozycki, Oakland (vs. Michigan, Nov. 17): 7-14 FG, 6-13 3PT,
12-13 FT, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 32 points, 36 minutes.
Shaun Fein, Georgia Tech (vs. Wofford, Nov. 17): 12-16 FG, 7-11 3PT, 3
steals, 32 points, 22 minutes.
Michael Bradley, Villanova (at Duke, Nov. 17): 12-16 FG, 8 rebounds, 6
assists, 28 points, 35 minutes.
Shane Battier, Duke (vs. Princeton, Nov. 14): 10-14 FG, 9-12 3PT, 6
rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 29 points, 29 minutes.
Joe Forte, North Carolina (vs. Tulsa, Nov. 11): 10-18 FG, 12-13 FT,
6-8 3PT, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 38 points, 40 minutes.
And let's not forget the two weeks worth of work put in by Temple's Lynn
Greer, who has played all 200 minutes through five games.
Imperfect players
These guys will have better days ... probably.
Monty Mack, UMass (at Holy Cross, Nov. 25): 4-17 FG, 3-11 3PT, 4
turnovers, 4 personal fouls, 13 points, 31 minutes.
Quincy Wadley, Temple (vs. Duke, Nov. 24): 2-10 FG, 2-8 3PT, 3-6 FT, 4
turnovers, 9 points, 40 minutes.
Kevin Braswell, Georgetown (at Central Florida, Nov. 24): 2-13 FG, 1-3
3PT, 2-4 FT, 4 turnovers, 7 points, 36 minutes.
Jamel Bradley, South Carolina (vs. Tennessee Tech, Nov. 17): 2-11 FG,
1-9 3PT, 8 points, 34 minutes.
Kevin Braswell, Georgetown (vs. Bethune Cookman, Nov. 17): 0-5 FG, 0-5
3PT, 3 turnovers, 7 points, 40 minutes.
Sean Lampley, California (at Texas, Nov. 15): 2-11 FG, 7 turnovers, 6
points, 30 minutes.
All we can add is, good thing Georgetown wasn't playing a real team.
Joe Lunardi is a regular in-season contributor for ESPN.com. He is also
contributing editor of the Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook,
www.collegebaskets.com. Write to Joe at jlunardi@home.com.
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ALSO SEE
Chat with Joe Lunardi, Friday at 2 p.m. ET
Nov. 30: Email Banter
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