Arch Madness and Other Conference Tournaments

Some regular seasons winding down, some conference tournaments heating up and finishing... in other words, a fine weekend of college basketball. I'll just focus in the smaller conference tournaments here.

Missouri Valley Conference
This was probably the worst-case scenario for the MVC. Southern Illinois and Creighton, the top 2 seeds and the 2 teams that were probably in regardless of what happened, advanced to the finals. That left the two bubble teams, Bradley and Missouri St. possibly on the outside looking in. But back to the Championship... how good was Creighton? Anthony Tolliver just abused Randal Falker down low, and that was really the difference in the ballgame. Great job by the Bluejays.

Colonial Athletic Association
The George Mason Dream is still alive! After a quarterfinals upset of Hofstra, they put a beating on 2nd seeded Old Dominion. Now on Monday they have a shot to get back to the Championship against top seeded VCU, who has probably already assured themselves of a berth. For Old Dominion and Drexel, they just have to sit and wait for a week to see if their resume will be good enough for a trip to the Big Dance. For Hofstra, well, it's another trip to the NIT.

Atlantic Sun
Belmont won the title game here by 27... in other words, not much to talk about.

Big South
Much to the relief of bubble teams everywhere, Winthrop was able to pull it out, though the Championship was only a 3-point game with VMI. But the important thing is that Winthrop is in, and they have the tools to do some damage. Their talented and athletic, and they showed they can play with the big boys. Depending on matchups, I wouldn't be shocked to see Winthrop in the Sweet 16.

Ohio Valley Conference
Great Championship game here between Eastern Kentucky and Austin Peay, really showing the greatness of what small college basketball is all about. The game was back and forth, especially towards the end... Eastern Kentucky would build up a 8 point lead, and Austin Peay, not wanting to see their season end, would battle back. By the end, Austin Peay had battled back for a 1-point lead, only an Eastern Kentucky floater with about 3 seconds left erased that deficit, gave Eastern Kentucky the 1-point lead, and eventually gave them the autobid. Just a great game showing what Championship Week is all about.

Southern Conference
College of Charleston almost wrecked the party here, beating Appalacian St. in the semis and then giving Davidson all that they wanted in the Finals. But it was Stephen Curry, the son of Dell Curry and 2nd leading freshman scorer in the country (behind one Mr. Durant) who led Davidson to the Title. Curry scored 29 points, grabbed 8 rebounds, and dished out 3 assists en route to leading Davidson to the Tourney. Look out for these guys, because like Winthrop they are a team capable of winning a game and spoiling someone's party.

What did you think of the games?

Weekend Links

No time to write tonight so I'll just point you in the direction of some other stuff you should enjoy over the weekend.

The first part for your Championship Week viewing, with Championship games kicking off today (Saturday). [Just Call Me Juice]

Jake Plummer, the man with the great stache, is retiring. Apparently, the competition from a guy recovering from a spleen injury is too much for him. [Signal to Noise]

A good deal by Matt Millen? Well, even a broken clock is right twice a day. [Sweaty Men Endeavors]

The real tournament to keep an eye on this March. [The Big Picture]

Bubble teams... who's in and who's out? [The Sports Flow]

The next Anna Benson? As WBRS says, at least Carl Pavano's "injuries" are a little easier to understand. [WBRS Sports Blog]

A look at Wide Receivers and Free Agency. [Pacifist Viking]

Some writers still don't like any type of baseballs stats at all. What a shame. [Fire Joe Morgan]

That's what I got... have a good weekend and watch a lot of college basketball.

College Basketball Power Rankings

As always, here's my top 10:

(1) UCLA - Arron Afflalo is the favorite for Pac-10 Player of the Year, but Darren Collison is just as important to the Bruins. In the win over Washington St. (two excellent defensive teams there), Collison scored 7 points, dished out 8 assists, had only 2 turnovers, and was in complete control all game on both ends. He's quick as a jet, a good outside shooter, great passer, and excellent on-the-ball and off-the-ball defender. Love watching him play.

(2) Kansas - Kansas might have established themselves as the team to beat. They've always had the talent, and now they're playing consistently at home and on the road. At the very least, I can guarantee they will not be losing in the first round this year.

(3) Ohio St. - They did what they had to do, but beating Wisconsin without Brian Butch at home by 1 wasn't really enough to convince me they should be higher than UCLA or Kansas. Certainly the talent is there to make a run towards the title, but I'm not sure they're consistent enough offensively.

(4) Wisconsin - You could write something similar here as for OSU. The talent is there if it all comes together, but I really don't think they're quite consistent enough offensively to make it to the Final Four. I'd feel a little more confident if Brian Butch was completely healthy. What a shame that is for the Badgers.

(5) Texas A&M - They're coming off of a loss, but losing in double OT at Texas isn't too bad as far as losses go. Acie Law is a first team All-American, but they also have 3 other guys scoring over 12 points per game. They're balanced, they're tough, and they're good defensively.

(6) Southern Illinois - Great defensive team, and they seem to be playing their best basketball of the season. I am a little concerned that they seem to be inconsistent offensively at times, but you can't argue with the defense.

(7) Memphis - They didn't look that impressive against UTEP, but they still won. They're very deep, very athletic, and very talented. Like last year, I have some concerns about them if they get matched up with a physical defensive team in the tournament, but it's hard to ignore 18 straight wins.

(8) Florida - Like UNC, the talent is there (obviously), but they just seem disinterested. I'm not too worried at this point, but if they lay another egg in the SEC Tourney there could definitely be a reason to have some concern.

(9) Texas - Hard to deny them of the top spot after hanging on to beat A&M. So make that 5 straight wins for the Longhorns, who are definitely peaking at the right time. Showdown with Kansas on Saturday will show a lot, but I can guarantee you nobody wants to see Texas in their portion of the bracket. Oh, and don't look now, but DJ Augustin is 4th in the country in assists as a freshman.

(10) North Carolina - They've still got incredible talent, but they have lost 3 of 5. Georgia Tech just tore them up offensively on Thursday night. They can still make a run at the Title, but something is not right.

What changes would you make?