THE ONLY scores you need to know from the Conference USA tournament are 20-4, 20-3 and 42-11.
THE ONLY scores you need to know from the Conference USA tournament are 20-4, 20-3 and 42-11.
Those were the game-opening leads racked up by Memphis, the three-time champ. The final scores are irrelevant, though Southern Miss did clip the lead to six in the first half of the semifinals. The first and last victims were Tulane and Tulsa, the latter playing its fourth game in four days (two going to overtime, no less).
Now we have an idea what it was like to be in the Pac-8 during UCLA's national dynasty of the 1960s and '70s. But those teams were spared the additional ignominy of getting drilled in a conference tournament.
It says here the Tigers will get smoked by Pitt or Texas, a step or two short of the Final Four. But in Conference USA, is there any hope for anyone to catch them anytime soon? Or ever?
Or will the Tulsas and Marshalls of the world have to wait for (a) Memphis to defect in the next conference shakeup or (b) John Calipari to take another job, which gets more doubtful with each passing season (and seven-figure contract extension)?
It might help, in the short term, if Chris Douglas-Roberts and Derrick Rose depart for the NBA. Especially Rose, a freakish point guard I rank above O.J. Mayo.
If for some reason you were paying attention to the second half of the Memphis-Tulsa game, you saw Rose's ridiculous athleticism.
Tulsa's Brett McDade picked off a Douglas-Roberts pass and had what appeared to be a free ticket to a basket at the other end. But Rose caught up to McDade to reject the layup. When the rebound popped out to Tulsa's Calvin Walls, Rose got in position to take the charge. There was no whistle, but Walls missed the shot.
That's not all. Rose turned around, skied over McDade for the rebound. Then he got the ball to the other end and passed it to Antonio Anderson, who buried a 3-pointer - for a 53-20 lead.
How do you cope up with that?
Well, the best you can. And remember this: This league was still quite young this season, and made big strides in all the mathematical counts. And while just one team made the NCAA tournament, UAB is bound for the NIT and Houston has accepted a bid to the new College Basketball Invitational.
Even if Memphis goes 19-0 again in C-USA, the league's three-year stretch as a one-NCAA bid league should end next year.
Tulsa's run to the finals was impressive. The Golden Hurricane pasted Marshall and Central Florida down the regular-season stretch, then bounced Alabama-Birmingham in the quarterfinals. And 7-footer Jerome Jordan, still a sophomore, blossomed into perhaps the best big man who will return next year.
THE ONLY scores you need to know from the Conference USA tournament are 20-4, 20-3 and 42-11.
Those were the game-opening leads racked up by Memphis, the three-time champ. The final scores are irrelevant, though Southern Miss did clip the lead to six in the first half of the semifinals. The first and last victims were Tulane and Tulsa, the latter playing its fourth game in four days (two going to overtime, no less).
Now we have an idea what it was like to be in the Pac-8 during UCLA's national dynasty of the 1960s and '70s. But those teams were spared the additional ignominy of getting drilled in a conference tournament.
It says here the Tigers will get smoked by Pitt or Texas, a step or two short of the Final Four. But in Conference USA, is there any hope for anyone to catch them anytime soon? Or ever?
Or will the Tulsas and Marshalls of the world have to wait for (a) Memphis to defect in the next conference shakeup or (b) John Calipari to take another job, which gets more doubtful with each passing season (and seven-figure contract extension)?
It might help, in the short term, if Chris Douglas-Roberts and Derrick Rose depart for the NBA. Especially Rose, a freakish point guard I rank above O.J. Mayo.
If for some reason you were paying attention to the second half of the Memphis-Tulsa game, you saw Rose's ridiculous athleticism.
Tulsa's Brett McDade picked off a Douglas-Roberts pass and had what appeared to be a free ticket to a basket at the other end. But Rose caught up to McDade to reject the layup. When the rebound popped out to Tulsa's Calvin Walls, Rose got in position to take the charge. There was no whistle, but Walls missed the shot.
That's not all. Rose turned around, skied over McDade for the rebound. Then he got the ball to the other end and passed it to Antonio Anderson, who buried a 3-pointer - for a 53-20 lead.
How do you cope up with that?
Well, the best you can. And remember this: This league was still quite young this season, and made big strides in all the mathematical counts. And while just one team made the NCAA tournament, UAB is bound for the NIT and Houston has accepted a bid to the new College Basketball Invitational.
Even if Memphis goes 19-0 again in C-USA, the league's three-year stretch as a one-NCAA bid league should end next year.
Tulsa's run to the finals was impressive. The Golden Hurricane pasted Marshall and Central Florida down the regular-season stretch, then bounced Alabama-Birmingham in the quarterfinals. And 7-footer Jerome Jordan, still a sophomore, blossomed into perhaps the best big man who will return next year.
For those who saw Jordan in Huntington, he didn't have a super game. But he was dominant at the tournament, scoring 74 points, yanking 49 rebounds and returning 21 shots to their sender. And he wasn't bad against Memphis, managing a 17-9-4 stat line.
Ben Uzoh returns, and I figure if Tulsa repeats its 10-3 finish next season, coach Doug Wojcik's team will go dancin'.
Alabama-Birmingham and Houston squandered good chances this season. UAB, which nearly beat Memphis at home but fizzled out at season's end, is the better bet to contend in 2008-09. The Cougars lose Robert McKiver and Lanny Smith, among others.
UAB should have Paul Delaney III back after a medical redshirt, and returns shooter Robert Vaden, as well as guard Channing Toney. But how many games will Mike Davis coach the Blazers out of? I thought he did that in the overtime loss to Tulsa in the quarterfinals, not double-teaming Jordan when he got the ball. That helped Jordan rack up a 23-17-5 line.
Texas-El Paso, which lost in overtime to Tulsa in the semifinals, is intriguing under Calipari protégé Tony Barbee. Super-scorer Stefon Jackson returns, as does Memphis native Randy Culpepper. Culpepper, one of two freshmen Barbee lured from Memphis, is a feast-or-famine shooter, scoring 25 points in the first round but fizzling against Tulsa.
And if you're going to compete with Memphis, it might help to have a star or two from that hoops-rich city, even the Calipari "rejects." Next season, Marshall has Brandon Powell, no slouch as a Florida transfer. Put him on the floor with a healthier Markel Humphrey, a stronger Tirrell Baines and a more confident Tyler Wilkerson and the future is as bright as it's been in years.
That makes the Herd an "X" factor, along with Southern Miss. The Golden Eagles lose none of their capable backcourt, but must start faster to get in the NCAA picture.
UCF has Jermaine Taylor back, but might lose a step. Matt Doherty still has much work to do at Southern Methodist, though he has great new practice facilities. East Carolina may or may not change coaches, and Rice is just plain starting over.
Again, the question: Will Memphis ever lose a conference game again?
Yes, somewhere, someday. Maybe even on its home floor.
But patience is advised. Lots of it.
To contact staff writer Doug Smock, send e-mail to dougsm...@wvgazette.com or call 348-5130. His blog can be found at wvgazette.com/smockblog.
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