Required Reading 5-6-13

Required Reading is a weekly summer series on TheBracketBlog, compiling the week's best online reads relating to College Basketball.

CBS' Garry Parrish does something it pains me to do, givez a tip of the cap to Tom Izzo and Bill Self, even it its well deserved.

And Bill Self? Man, he just doesn't care. The KU coach will be without the top five scorers from this season's team, including likely lottery pick Ben McLemore. But he still scheduled awesomely, proof being that his Jayhawks will play Duke, Florida, Colorado, New Mexico, Georgetown and San Diego State in the nonleague portion of their schedule in addition to competing in the Battle 4 Atlantis with Tennessee, Villanova, Iowa, Xavier, USC, Wake Forest and UTEP.

The NCAA is mulling possible rule changes, including a shorter shot clock.  For now, they've approved moving up the start of practice.

Teams can now hold their first practice two weeks earlier than before, following an April rule change that allows teams to have 30 days of practice in the six weeks before the first regular-season game.
Another adopted change eliminates the starting time for the first permissible workouts. Previously, teams are not allowed to begin until 5 p.m. on the Friday closest to Oct. 15. The new rule allows schools to make their own judgment about the starting time when practice begins.

ICYMI, results are mixed.

"I like the Oct. 4 date because it gives you more flexibility in preparing your team." (Ole Miss' Andy Kennedy)
"I love getting more time." (Indiana's Tom Crean) 

"You can ease guys into practice more and give them more than one day off a week." (Oregon State's Craig Robinson) 

"You will have 30 days between Oct. 4 and your first game, so they would be expanding the time to get your 30 workouts in so you can give guys more days off. You can spread it out a little bit better." (Wisconsin's Bo Ryan) 

"I like the early start, but we just may have to be more creative at the start of the season to create more excitement." (LSU's Johnny Jones) 

 Run The Floor looks at Angel Rodriguez to Miami and what it means for the Canes.

The diminutive point guard, who comes from Krop High School in Miami-Dade County, would immediately step in for Shane Larkin. He averaged 11.4 points and 5.2 assists for K-State. His 37.3 assist rate was 2nd best in the Big 12 (and would have led the ACC). He also generated a steal on 3.4% of opponent possessions, which would have tied Shane Larkin for the Miami lead. Just like Larkin, if you're a ballhandler and you don't see Rodriguez, pick up your dribble.

Bracketology 2013: 1/14/13

TheBracketBlog.com 

(Updated January 14th, 2012)

Check back for more info this afternoon...

A couple things to know when reviewing the bracket:

• Teams are seeded based on their body of work to date. 
• Through January, automatic bids will be given to the team KenPom projects will finish first in each conference.  They are denoted in bold in the bracket.

The Bracket: 

* - Seeds denote a team's "True Seed".  In rare instances, a team may be swapped (moved up/down) one line in order to avoid regular season/conference rematches as well as keep teams close to home, when possible.  For more, read the NCAA's Bracket Procedures.

Compare my bracket to the rest - check out The Bracket Project by Brian Phan.

Bracket schedule:

Monday, December 17th

Monday, December 24th

Monday, January 7th

Monday, January 14th

Monday, January 21st

Monday, January 28th

Monday, February 4th

Friday, February 8th

Monday, February 11th

Friday, February 15th

Monday, February 18th

Friday, February 22nd

Monday, February 25th

Friday, March 1st

Monday, March 4th

Friday, March 8th

Monday, March 11th

Tuesday, March 12th

Wednesday, March 13th

Thursday, March 14th

Friday, March 15th

Saturday, March 16th

Sunday, March 17th --- SELECTION SUNDAY

Scoreboard Watching: 1/11/12

In The Books

Oregon 70, Arizona 66: Then there were two.  Michigan and Duke stand alone as college hoops' undefeated teams after the Wildcats fall in Eugene.  They're still the class of the PAC 12, but UCLA is rising fast and the Wildcats string of crazy good luck may be coming to an end.

Michigan State 65, Iowa 62: The Spartans are starting to hone in their turnover woes, but still need some help on the boards.  Iowa is still in search of a much needed signature win.

Xavier 57, Temple 52: The Owls just can't get themselves over the hump, while Xavier staves off what seems like the inevitable.

Miami 68, North Carolina 59: UNC=NIT?  It may not be as far off as you think.  A loss to FSU after a quick turnaround on Saturday will make it nearly impossible to justify keeping them in your field of 68.

Detroit 101, Youngstown State 60: The Penguins had dreams of a Horizon League title chase heading into this game.  Not so much anymore.

UCLA 57, Utah 53: This weekend's road trip is a good barometer for UCLA's ability to challenge for the PAC-12 title.  They passed the first test easily.

Gonzaga 83, St. Mary's 78: One of the few WCC teams with a pulse found themselves down big early, giving the Bulldogs another key win.

Tipping Off This Weekend
Michigan @ Ohio State: Two of the B1G's best square off in Columbus.  In Michigan's two road games this year it looked average and amazing, respectively.  If they can air more on the amazing side of things, they'll remain in position as top dog in the nation's best conference.

Minnesota @ Indiana: Speaking of teams looking to be atop the B1G, both Minnesota and Indiana would like to hang a conference championship banner this year.  Everyone know the Hoosiers had the talent to do it coming in, but how about the job Tubby Smith is doing in Minneapolis?  The Golden Gophers just annihilated Illinois in Champaign and complete their tour of the B1G's dualing Assembly Hall's this weekend.

Missouri @ Mississippi: Ole Miss just picked up a big win over Tennessee and have the possibility to make themselves big winners this week with a home win over Mizzou.  On the flip side, Mizzou has plans on contending for the SEC crown - which certainly requires road wins like these.

Oklahoma State @ Oklahoma: The Sooners have bounced around the bubble for a few weeks now and get the opporutnity to help cement themselves on the good side with a win.  For the Cowboys, the win over NC State is starting to lose its luster.  They need to follow it up with a solid showing in Big 12 play to keep themselves alive for a spot in the Power 16.

UCLA @ Colorado:  Colorado got screwed lost to Arizona in overtime a couple weeks ago which could have but the Buffalo's into uncharted territory: among their conference's favorites.  UCLA

North Carolina @ Florida State:  Both teams need this win badly.  For FSU, they suffered a good bit of damage in non-conference season but started ACC season out with respectable road wins over Clemson and Maryland.  A win over UNC gets them back in the tournament picture.  For the Tar Heels, there's little doubt Roy Williams team has forgotten the 33 point beat down the Seminoles laid upon his team during their last trip to Tallahassee.  They currently rest squarely on the bubble, and could move to the bad side of it with another ACC loss.

Duke @ NC State:  A road win by the Blue Devils puts them in comfortably in the driver's seat just over a week into the conference season.  With no other ACC teams looking like they have the consistency to challenge Duke's path to #1, winning in Raleigh clear's the way for yet another banner on Cameron Indoor's rafters.

BYU @ Santa Clara: Simply put: BYU needs this win in a bad way.  It's hard to see them getting in the tournament with more than one loss to teams not named Gonzaga the rest of the way.

St. Louis @ Temple:  The Billikins win over New Mexico is starting to look really nice.  If they can knock off an A10 big boy like Temple they may put themselves back in conference contention after all

Illinois @ Wisconsin:  After a red-hot start, the Illini have been amazingly inconsistent over the past couple weeks.   Their offense has barely gotten started in losses to Purdue and Minnesota, while they punked Ohio State last weekend by 22.  The result of this may depend entirely on what Illinois team comes to play.

UConn @ Notre Dame:  The Domers are making their case for a top four seed.  A win over a good Husky  team will keep them moving in the right direction.

Texas @ Iowa State: If Texas hopes to have tournament dreams when they get Myck Kabongo back next month, they'll need to pick up some key Big 12 wins.  This would be one, over what's looking like a fellow bubble team no less.

Maryland @ Miami:  Maryland nearly pulled of an impressive comeback again st Florida State Wednesday night, but fell short for the second time this year.  Miami

Scoreboard Watching 1/10/13

In The Books
New Mexico 65, UNLV 60: This one had the look and feel of a UFC cage fight in The PIT.  New Mexico's unique home court advantage is a great equalizer in what's going to be an awesome Mountain West season.

Minnesota 84, Illinois 67: The Gophers have it all clicking and right on time.  After running the Illini out of their own gym - just days after Illinois did same to Ohio State in Champaign - they'll prove just how "for real" they are against Indiana and Michigan int he next seven days.  Don't be surprised if they at least split the series.

Illinois-Chicago, Valparaiso : The Horizon is up for grabs, but Valpo does their part to gain the early upper hand.

Florida State 65, Maryland 62: The Seminoles needed this win badly after a non-conference season that was more damaging than anything.  A Saturday tilt with North Carolina - who comes in on short rest - could be what they need to catapult themselves back into the bubble conversation.

Mississippi 92, Tennessee 74: A dominant road win for the rebels surely moves them up the board a bit.  Tennessee meanwhile has now dropped two in a row and it may be time to start worrying about the Vols staying power as SEC season rolls on.

Boise State 63, Wyoming 61: A big win for the Broncos, who can now move safely onto the good side of the bubble having beating Creighton previously and now handing the Cowboys their first loss of the season.

Michigan 62, Nebraska 47: The difference between tis year's elite Michigan team and Beilein's past Wolverine teams?  A 3-17 night from three would have been pure doom for the Maize and Blue.  This team has the capability to find ways to win even when the offense isn't clicking, which makes them scary good.

Butler 72, St. Joe's 66: The Bulldogs pass a key road test while St. Joe's misses a chance to get themselves back into the bubble conversation.

Kansas 97, Iowa State 89 (OT): The Cyclones nearly pull off the signature win they need so badly, but fall in overtime.  The Jayhawks stay in the conversation for a #1 seed, while Iowa State hopes they won't be regretting this missed opportunity on Selection Sunday.

Boston College 85, Virginia Tech 75: What has happened to the Hokies?  They were once as high as a projected #4 seed.  Now, they're out of the picture entirely.

Tipping Off Tonight
Arizona @ Oregon: The Ducks hope to challenge the Wildcats for the top spot in the conference.  Getting Sean Miller's team in Eugene is a prime opportunity to prove that point.

Miami @ UNC: It's a good test for Miami as they adjust to life without Reggie Johnson, even if it's just temporary.  Meanwhile, the Tar Heels are sliding ever closer to the bubble and need to beat these mid-level ACC foes. 

Michigan State @ Iowa: The last time they were at home, the Hawkeyes have Indiana a run for their money.  Meanwhile, Sparty has struggled away from home and still needs to solve it's rebounding and turnover troubles - typically strong points for Tom Izzo's teams.

Temple @ Xavier: The Musketeers need a big win to get themselves back in bubble contention, while Temple needs to win games like this to stay in the mix with fellow A10 favorites Butler and VCU.

UCLA @ Utah: The Buins seem to have found their game while at Pauly Pavilion, but can they take it with them on the road?

St. Mary's @ Gonzaga: One of the Zags few tests in WCC play.

Detroit @ Youngstown State: Two of the Horizon League favorites square off.

Bracketology 2013: 1/7/13

TheBracketBlog.com 

(Updated January 7th, 2012)

I'll get more into the whos, whats and whys tomorrow, but here's this week's bracket.  Note to North Carolina: stop sucking.

A couple things to know when reviewing the bracket:

• Teams are seeded based on their body of work to date. 
• Through January, automatic bids will be given to the team KenPom projects will finish first in each conference.  They are denoted in bold in the bracket.

Bracket Breakdown

Last Four In:  Ole Miss, Iowa, St. Louis, Miami

First Four Out: Colorado State, Iowa State, BYU, UMass

Seeds*

1 Seeds: Duke, Michigan, Louisville, Kansas

2 Seeds: Syracuse, Gonzaga, Indiana, Arizona
3 Seeds: Florida, Missouri, Creighton, Minnesota

4 Seeds: San Diego State, Kansas State, Georgetown, Butler

5 Seeds: New Mexico, NC State, UNLV, Illinois

6 Seeds: Ohio State, Cincinnati, VCU, Notre Dame

7 Seeds: Oklahoma State, Michigan State, Wyoming, Memphis

8 Seeds: Wisconsin, UCLA, Temple, Oregon

9 Seeds: Colorado, Baylor, Maryland, Marquette

10 Seeds: Tennessee, Kentucky, Pitt, Oklahoma

11 Seeds: Virginia, Wichita State, North Carolina, Boise State

12 Seeds: (Ole Miss/Miami), (Iowa, St. Louis), Belmont, Akron

13 Seeds: Middle Tennessee, Bucknell, North Dakota St. Stony Brook

14 Seeds: Florida Gulf Coast, Stephen F. Austin, Harvard, George Mason

15 Seeds: Valparaiso, Davidson, Louisiana Tech, Weber State
16 Seeds: NC Asheveille, Canisius, (Cal State Fullerton/Southern), (Bryant/NC Central)
The Bracket: 

* - Seeds denote a team's "True Seed".  In rare instances, a team may be swapped (moved up/down) one line in order to avoid regular season/conference rematches as well as keep teams close to home, when possible.  For more, read the NCAA's Bracket Procedures.

Compare my bracket to the rest - check out The Bracket Project by Brian Phan.

Bracket schedule:

Monday, December 17th

Monday, December 24th

Monday, January 7th

Monday, January 14th

Monday, January 21st

Monday, January 28th

Monday, February 4th

Friday, February 8th

Monday, February 11th

Friday, February 15th

Monday, February 18th

Friday, February 22nd

Monday, February 25th

Friday, March 1st

Monday, March 4th

Friday, March 8th

Monday, March 11th

Tuesday, March 12th

Wednesday, March 13th

Thursday, March 14th

Friday, March 15th

Saturday, March 16th

Sunday, March 17th --- SELECTION SUNDAY

The Power 16: 1/4/13

Privileged are the teams who occupy college basketball's top sixteen spots come Selection Sunday.  While Top 25 polls may be the accepted norm, there's a cataclysmic shift in the advantage between being a 4 seed and a 5 seed.

The first reason is the most obvious: avoiding the dreaded 5/12 upset.  No matter who you talk to, there's always one rule when filling out your bracket - make sure to include the 5/12 upset.  Why?  because among the top 6 seeds, no upset is more common than the 5/12.  Statistically, a 5 seed is about 33% more likely to be knocked off in the first round than a 4 seed, over twice as likely as a 3 seed and even 5% more likely to be knocked off than a 6 seed, despite the more favorable match-up.

Then, there's the simple bracketing advantages given to the top four seeds.  Want to play close to home in the tournament?  You better be in this elite group.  NCAA Bracketing Procedures prohibit a top-4 seed from playing at a "home-court disadvantage" to start the tournament.  After that, you're on your own.  Being a top-4 seed can be the difference between playing in front of a building packed with your fans, or playing in a hostile road-like atmosphere.

With that, we present the Power 16, a weekly feature during college basketball's regular season.

TheBracketBlog.com's Power 16 Rankings                                           January 4th, 2013
1	Duke	The Blue Devils have no shortage of outside weapons and one the nation's best big men in Mason Plumlee.  They're the class of the ACC and heavy favorites to end the season as the #1 overall seed
2	Michigan	Trey Burke is unstoppable, but the Wolverines are far from a one man team.  With Tim Hardaway Jr. and freshmen Nick Stauskas and Glenn Robinson III all-B1G caliber scorers, the Wolverines have the ability to play with anyone in the country.
3	Louisville	Russ Smith is turning into a star and possible National POY contender.  The Big East will be tough once again, but the Cardinals are built for the long haul.
4	Kansas	Aside from their early season loss to Michigan State, the Jayhawks have cruised through their non-conference season.  They looked especially impressive in their road win at Ohio State and once again enter Big 12 season as heavy conference favorites.
5	Arizona	The Wildcats are undefeated, but haven't exactly been dominant.  Wins over Florida, Colorado and San Diego State all went down to the wire - but somehow they find a way to win.  UCLA is coming on strong and could challenge the 'Zona atop the Pac-12, but right now this is still their conference to lose.
6	Indiana	The Hoosiers are still many people's pick to win the B1G, and for good reason.  IU posts the nation's second most efficient offense while the defense ranks in the top 10 as well.
7	Gonzaga	The Bulldogs return to the top 10 after winning their New Year's Eve weekend showdowns with Baylor and Oklahoma State.
8	Syracuse	Michael Carter Williams is an elite point guard - something the 'Cuse will most definitely need if they hope to walk away with the Big East crown.
9	Florida	Still the class of the the SEC, but the gap is closing.
10	Minnesota	The Gophers opened up B1G play with a solid home win over Michigan State.  They're quietly lurking as dark horse and are primed to give favorites Michigan and Indiana a run for their money.
11	Georgetown	The Hoyas defense is going to give Big East opponents fits.
12	Missouri	The loss to UCLA does move the Tigers down a couple spots, but it's far from devastating.  They'll battle Florida and Kentucky for the SEC crown.
13	Ohio State	No signature wins yet for the Buckeyes, but they'll likely pick up a few in Big Ten season.  First road test of the year comes tomorrow at Assembly Hall - Illini style.
14	Cincinnati	After falling to New Mexico, the Bearcats bounced back with a big win over Pitt to open Big East play.  Like the Hoyas, their defense will be relied upon to pick up wins in the tough Big East.
15	Butler	The Xavier loss looks worse and worse as the Musketeers continue to slide, but wins over North Carolina and Indiana are a whole lot more than most teams can say.
16	Creighton	The loss to Boise State is behind them - and the Jays look ready to dominate the Missouri Valley.  This week's win over Illinois State was a good start.

First Four Out: Kansas State, VCU, North Carolina State, San Diego State

Check out the Archive HERE

Follow me on Twitter @mikefahmie

Scoreboard Watching - 1/4/13

In The Books

Arizona 92, Colorado 83 (OT): There's little doubt that Colorado got hosed, but at the end of the day, their inability to overcome that adversity in overtime cost them a great opportunity at a signature win to open Pac-12 play.  Arizona stays undefeated - fighting to keep their spot atop the #1 seed line.

Michigan 94, Northwestern 66: Trey Burke and the Wolverines made a statement Thursday night in Evanston; they enter the B1G season as the conference's top ranked team, and they intend to close it out in the same fashion.  Michigan's offense worked with incredible efficiency - to the tune of 1.34ppp.  Burke was video-game like from the tip, posting 13 points only 5 minutes into the game.  Meanwhile, injuries have beset the Wildcats offense - who have little firepower left in their offense.  Their dreams of ending their tournament drought are fading fast.

Arkansas State 66, Middle Tennessee 60 (OT): Just days after disposing of Sun Belt adversary North Texas, the Blue Raiders fall at another conference title contender.  The league still looks like Middle Tennessee's to lose, but it may be a tighter race than most expected.

USC 71, Stanford 69: Bad loss for a Stanford team that had battled themselves back to bubble contention to what can only be called a sub-par Southern Cal team.

UCLA 79, Cal 65: After a nightmarish start to the season, UCLA has put together a couple solid weeks and finds themselves well to the safe side of the bubble.  The Golden Bears meanwhile continue to fall short of another opportunity to turn committee members' heads.

Tipping-off This Weekend
Memphis @ Tennessee: The Vols have played themselves onto the good side of the bubble and would solidify their spot there with a home win.  Meanwhile, Memphis should win Conference USA easily, but has failed in each of it's marquee match-ups so far.

Oklahoma State @ Kansas State: Each of these teams have dreams of ending Kansas' reign atop the Big 12.  Winning this early-season conference showdown will go a long way toward keeping that hope alive.

Ohio State @ Illinois: Illinois is sliding hard after having moved into the Top 10 just weeks ago.  A loss to B1G title contender Ohio State would make it 3 out of 4 in the loss column, with the only win being a squeaker over lowly Auburn.  The Buckeyes failed to grab a marquee win in non-conference season, but should post a solid showing in conference play to make up for it.  Assembly Hall should prove to be a good test of their ability to battle for the B1G crown.

Miami (FL) @ Georgia Tech: The 'Canes are without Reggie Johnson for a couple months - and they've looked pretty poor without him.  They'll need to limit the damage while the big man is on the bench, which means avoiding an upset loss in Atlanta this weekend.

Georgetown @ Marquette: Georgetown's defense looks like it could be an X-factor in the Big East title race.  This road trip to Marquette provides the opportunity to see if that's true.

Gonzaga @ Santa Clara: The Zags won't be tested much in WCC play, but this road trip may be one of those times.

Bucknell @ Missouri: The Ohio Valley favorites are begging for to pull off an upset like this, while Mizzou has been hot as of late and looks to keep that momentum rolling into their inaugural SEC season.

Stanford @ UCLA: After falling to USC, this becomes a big game for the Cardinal as a loss would take them out of the bubble conversation for the foreseeable future.  The Bruins have looked great as of late - and Shabazz Muhammad is turning into the star everyone thought he would be.

Texas @ Baylor: The Longhorns need every win they can get, while Baylor has been one of college hoops' most inconsistent teams.

Oklahoma @ West Virginia: The Sooners are firmly on the bubble.  This road test will determine whether they're in or out of Monday's edition of Bracketology 2013.

Florida State @ Clemson: After falling to Auburn, the Seminoles need every win they can get - but victories have been few and far between at Little John Arena for FSU under Leonard Hamilton.

North Carolina @ Virginia: If the Cavs can control the pace of the game, they're defense has the ability to give UNC fits.  The Tar Heels picked up a win over UNLV after what was a disappointing non-conference schedule - something they hope can be turned around in conference play.

Temple @ Kansas: The Jayhawks are fighting for a #1 seed, while Temple has already slayed one giant in Syracuse.  A win here would greatly improve their chances of earning an at-large birth should they falter in A10 play.

Iowa @ Michigan: The Hawkeyes have looked like a tournament team, while Michigan has looked Final Four good.  The opportunity exists for the Hawkeyes to pull of a much needed signature win, but they'll have to shut down Michigan's multiple weapons to have a chance at the win.