The Weekend that Was

All they do is Win: As in THE Ohio State University, who is the only remaining unbeaten team in the land and sneaked by Northwestern, 58-57, in the high school gym that is Welsh Ryan Arena in Evanston. Daily Onions jumped on the bandwagon along time ago, and probably isn't getting off OSU until Houston in early April. The thing with the Bucks has been they've found ways to win regardless the situation.  Big game at home (Purdue - win easily), road game that is tough to get up for (Iowa, Northwestern - win by the slimmest of margins), ranked team on the road (Illinois, win). The common theme, Ws. However, three of the next five are on the road for the Bucks, including at Minnesota, at Wisconsin and at Purdue (all ranked opponents).  Highly doubt they come out of that stretch perfect, but as we mentioned in our Final Four projection, a loss here or there is fine.

You'd make this face if you lost four in a row, too. (Post Standard)

We're Goin' Streaking: In a bad way. Syracuse has lost four straight games.  The last time that happened was 2005-06, a season in which Gerry McNamara put the team on his back and led them to a four-day magical run to the Big East Championship. Gerry McNamara ain't walking through that door this season. Well, technically he is, because he is an assistant coach, but you get what I mean. With Daily Onions in attendance against Marquette, the Orange once again started slow and before you knew it, the score was 10-3. Sure, the Golden Eagles shot 53% from the field and 46% from 3-point land (10% higher than their season average). But you can't keep saying, "Well, the other team just shot the heck out of the ball.." (see: Pitt, Villanova, Seton Hall, Marquette). At some point you need to make it uncomfortable for the other team, and Syracuse's defense just isn't doing that in the last two weeks. Offensively, Syracuse wasn't even THAT bad on Saturday.  It was just another case of getting in a hole early, and not being able to overcome that down that stretch (Syracuse tied the game with 8 minutes left, but never took the lead). The worst past of the 4 game losing streak is that it could become five pretty quickly, as the Cuse heads to UConn on Wednesday night. Take it easy on us, Kemba.

Big Beast: It was an interesting weekend in the Big East to say the least. St. John's ended their month from h - e - double hockey sticks with a huge out of conference win over the Dukies, 93-78 (and it wasn't even that close). Pitt was lucky to pull out a 3 point win at Rutgers, while road dogs Louisville and Georgetown took down UConn and Villanova, respectively.

Jimmer Watch: After taking the college hoops world by storm on Wednesday night, Jimmer and the Cougs had a bit of a letdown on Saturday, losing at New Mexico 86-77. Jimmer dropped 32, and also added 7 assists (he can pass!), 5 rebounds and 3 steals (one of his more complete games of the season). The Cougs will get an easier test come Wednesday against Wyoming, who got spanked by 40 by San Diego State. The Aztecs were coming off their first loss of the season to the Jimmers.

Bad Basketball: Some have called Auburn the worst basketball team in a BCS conference this year. If that is the case, what is South Carolina? Auburn got their first conference win on the road at SC, by 15 points!

Gimme Jimmer

Jimmer mania is sweeping the college basketball nation. Daily Onions has only seen his highlights on Sportscenter, so we were pumped to watch the #9 BYU Jimmers host still unbeaten #4 San Diego State. In honor of the joyous occasion, which was being shown on CBS College Sports Network, I decided to keep a running diary of all the action - to help those of you that don't get CBSCSN, or those of you that fall asleep before 10 pm EST/9 pm CST (usually me). This post is inspired by the numerous running diaries by the Sports Guy, Bill Simmons that we've all enjoyed reading over the years. Here it goes (time listed is the time left in the half/game):

I am Jimmer, see me score.

Ted Robinson and Steve Lappas on the call tonight for CBSCSN. Lappas doesn’t know he has a microphone and is yelling uncontrollably. 

18:50 Jimmer misses his first shot, a runner in the lane.

18:37 SDSU's D.J Gay fouled on a 3 pointer. Lappas discusses why you need to get out on shooters – “When a guys is on that kind of fire….you need to close out on him" Never knew there was more than one kind of fire.

18:20 2 on 1 break for BYU – Jimmer keeps it ans is on the board with a layup….

17:55  Jimmer drives to the lane, gets blocked. SDSU didn't get memo that you are NOT allowed to block Jimmer like that…

Nothing important happens in the game, so I realize that Lappas's Bronx accent is out of control. He sounds like he is announcing a boxing match and yelling everytime Robinson stops talking. No way he lasts the entire game at this pace.

14:08 Our first TV timeout, SDSU up 8-6. During the break, I Google Lappas 30 tweets pop up asking why Lappas is yelling so much.

12:15 Jimmer hits his first three pointer. 12-11 SDSU leads.

11:25 Brandon Davies scores again for BYU. Has 8 of their 13. Thinks the 24 NBA Scouts in attendance are there for him. 

10:14 SDSU calls timeout with the score tied at 15. Very quick pace thus far. Jimmer has 5 points.

9:50 Jimmer threads the needle on a ¾ court pass…teammate blows the layup. Jimmer decides he won't pass the ball again.

8:58 Jimmer drives, takes on contact from big man and gets the layup. Has 7 of BYU's 17 points. That drive reminded me of seeing Jameer Nelson(St. Joseph's) at MSG against Gonzaga back in 2003 (the same night my roommate fell in love with Alabama's Chuck Davis). Jimmer says he compares himself to Deron Williams (strength) and Mark Price (shooter/PG)

8:08 Shotclock down to 8, Jimmer hits a 17 ft pull up jumper on the baseline. Has 9 of BYU's 19 points

7:21 Official timeout. Actually the under 12, score tied at 19. Out of the timeout, Jimmer not on the floor, 70 percent of audience changes channel.

6:44 Under 8 timeout. I’m going to be pissed if Jimmer is on the court when the game returns

6:43 Jimmer returns. Then proceeds to jump in the air with nowhere to go and turns it over. Bad Jimmer.

5:14 ANOTHER Foul called. That's 2 fouls in the last 2 minutes. There were 2 fouls in the first 13 minutes. Clean it up guys, you are cutting into Jimmer time.

5:10 Steve Lappas makes a "chopped liver" reference. 

4:41 Jimmer pumps, takes a dribble and nails a 3…has 12 of 22….on the way back down court tells Lappas to stop talking

3:34 Someone just fouled Jimmer, which takes us to under 4 timeout. SDSU leads 24-22 SDSU.

3:12 My first holy sh*t, Jimmer is the man moment. Nasty crossover and drains the three. Has 15 of 25 BYU points.

2:35 Jimmer drives, pulls up..cash 17 points.

1:50 Jimmer drives, draws foul. Makes 1 of 2, BYU is up 28-26. Jimmer has 18.

1:25 Jimmer with the blow by and the layup. 30-26 BYU. Jimmer with 20 points.

:05 SDSU's Kawhi Leonard, who has the flu, drains a three to put SDSU up 31-30 at the half. Jimmer scored the final 15 for BYU, has 20 of team's 30 points.

State of the Onions Address

(From L-R) Raftery, Daily Onions, Johnson

Mr. Raftery, Mr. Johnson, Members of the College basketball community, distinguished guests, and fellow hoop fans:

Today I want to begin by congratulating the men of THE Ohio State University basketball team, as well as your stud freshman Jared Sullinger, for remaining undefeated with a dominating performance over Purdue last night. You truly showed us that you deserve to be ranked number 1 at this point in the season.

It's no secret that those of us reading this today are disappointed in Syracuse's performance last night. The debates over whether or not the Cuse is overrated have been contentious; Daily Onions has fought fiercely for our beliefs that Syracuse is a top tier team. And that's a good thing. That's what a robust fan base does.

But there's a reason Syracuse's three game losing streak has given us pause. Amid all the noise and passions of what team is the best in the Big East, Seton Hall reminded us that no matter who steps on the court on any given night, if you shoot over 60% from behind the arc, the Syracuse zone is in trouble. If your team comes out and sleepwalks through the first 20 minutes of the game, odds are you won't be victorious. Whether or not the Orange can break out of this funk will be back on display this Saturday in Milwaukee. At that point in time, with backs against the wall, we shall see what kind of resolve Coach Boeheim and his boys have.

At stake right now is not who wins the next game — after all, we have games every night. At stake is whether new teams in the top 5, like San Diego State and previously unknown players like Jimmer, make long runs in this upcoming March Madness. It's whether the hard work of mid-majors like Cleveland State, St. Mary's and Utah State is rewarded. It's whether we sustain the leadership from players that have stayed in school for four years, to make sure their school is not just a place on a map, but a team to be reckoned with come March.

That basketball world has changed. And for many, the change has been painful. Kansas State was once ranked in the top 5, and now they are a few games under .500 in Big 12 play. Michigan State has struggled all season, and just dismissed one of their best players from their team. Two other teams from last year's Final Four aren't even ranked right now. We've heard about this in the frustrations of fans who've seen their wins dwindle or their team pride disappear.

The idea of the college basketball season endures. Our destiny remains those three weeks in March. And today, more than five weeks away from Selection Sunday, it's because of our love for the game of basketball and our favorite teams, that our future is hopeful, our journey of a season goes forward, and the state of Daily Onions is strong.

Thank you. God bless you, and may God bless the next two months of the college basketball season. (Applause.)

The Weekend that Was

I promise to make it through this entire post.....unless an undetectable injury forces me to stop halfway through, and even if you see my standing around, walking around, disinterested, riding a stationary bike, I promise you, I am really hurt.

Road Warriors: Playing away from home on Saturday wasn't that big of a deal, as a couple of road dogs pulled off impressive wins early in the day.  Ohio State remained unbeaten and even had to come from behind in the second half to put away Illinois. Daily Onions favorite Jared Sullinger had a ho-hum day at the office with 27 points, 16 rebounds and 3 blocks.

KU messed w/ Texas, and lost.

Despite starting the game on an 18-3 run at home, a place where they've won 69 straight games, #2 Kansas loss for the first time this season to #11 Texas. One concern for the Jayhawks is the inconsistent play of freshman standout Josh Selby. Over the last 6 games, he alternates between scoring right around 15 points, or under 5 points. They'll need him to step it up down the stretch, the Morris brothers can't do it all.

Villanova shot lights out from behind the arc in the first half, which led them to a victory at Syracuse. The Wildcats were 8-13 from 3 in the first 20 minutes of the game and shredded the Cuse zone to own a double-digit lead at the half. The Orange threatened a few times in the second half, but never tied or took the lead. This game brought up the question, what is Jim Boeheim's tipping point to get out of the zone? If shooting 62% and building a 13 point lead doesn't do it, not sure what does. While Nova cooled off from outside in the second half, Syracuse's D still couldn't "stop a nose bleed". Another concern for the Orange had to be the play of Scoop Jardine, who had just 2 points on 1-8 shooting, and looked out of it all game. Despite losing two in a row, Daily Onions doesn't think its time to panic in Boeheimburg. Losing to Pitt and Nova happens in the Big East. Cuse needs to make sure it takes care of business at home against the Hall, and then puts on a show for Daily Onions in person at Marquette next Saturday.

The Jimmer Update: Ninth-ranked BYU won at Colorado State and The Jimmer put up his second 40 point game of the year, dropping 42 on the Rams. Jimmer's 42 consisted of 4 3 pointers, and going 16-17 from the free throw line. Daily Onions "can't wait" to see Wednesday's game when the Cougs host unbeaten and soon to be top 5 team, San Diego State. Now if we only knew what channel CBS College Sports Network was...check your local listings.

Two out of three ain't bad: You can't spell Northwestern without an N or a T, and I guess we'll have to find the I somewhere else. The Wildcats quest for a first-ever NCAA tournament berth has been knocked off track. N'western is already 3-5 in conference play (including a 78-46 loss to Wisconsin yesterday) and has Minnesota, Ohio State and Illinois as its next three. Ouch.

Coaches Gone....

Daily Onions has been watching lots of hoops lately (obviously), and it seems like the last few days we've seen more and more coaches absolutely BLOW UP on their players on the sideline. We're talkin' in your face, dropping F-bombs, dirty looks...ya know, what you would do to someone that did something unlawful...not make a mistake on the basketball court. With all the coaches gone wild incidents lately, it got us thinking, what else are coaches doing this year?

Coaches Gone....

....Wild The leaders in the clubhouse for this one are John Calipari at Kentucky, who had to apologize publicly for cursing out (view the video from 4:45 - 5:00) freshman Terrence Jones in the final minutes of UK's loss on Tuesday at Alabama. Mike Rice of Rutgers doesn't care if you are one of his players or an official, he's going to give you EVERYTHING he's got, for pretty much the entire game.  Not sure how that guy (or his players, for that matter) survives. K-State's Frank Martin can get you two ways, with his screaming and with his scowl. If you had a nickel for every time Frank Martin looked like the scariest man on earth, you'd be rich.

Huggins' casual look helps him get low (Reuters)

....Casual Bob Huggins of West Virginia has perfected the black pants with the black pullover windbreaker look over the last few years. Um, you know West Virginia's colors are Blue and Gold, right? Ok, just checking. Meanwhile, Pat Knight at Texas Texas goes with just a polo shirt, or spruces things up with the polo shirt/sweater vest combo.  I guess when you father is known for his sweater, you need to come up with your own thing.

....Young During Big E Hoops weekend, we saw Bob Morris's Andy Toole (30) roam the sidelines as the youngest coach in Division 1 Basketball. More well-known coaches include Josh Pastner (31) at Memphis, Brad Stevens (34) at Butler, and Jeff Chapel (of Duke fame) at Oklahoma (35). For those of you scoring at home, Jim Boeheim is a spring chicken at 66 years young.

....Lazy This tends to happen at the end of games and more so in the NBA then in the college game. Tie game, 10 seconds left, coach calls timeout to draw up a play.  The play consists of getting the ball to your scorer, clearing out and letting them take a few dribbles, pull up from 15 feet and shoot a fall away jumper with a hand in their face. That's the best you could come up with?? At least give me a ball screen.

Dress for success Jay Wright (Getty)

.....Fancy Which goes to the best dressed man in college basketball, Jay Wright. What is Jay Wright better at doing - recruiting or picking out suits? I say toss-up. Known to have top recruiting classes each season, Wright consistently gets talent from NYC, Philadelphia and NJ. He also consistently rocks three-piece suits and pocket squares. The one of the more unbelievable things about Wright's suits/coaching, is that he never loses the jacket, heck, he never unbuttons the thing. That is impressive. Let's hope the 30,000 plus in the Carrier Dome tomorrow afternoon make things a bit uncomfortable for Mr. Wright, and maybe he has to loosen the tie. Don't bet on it (the tie loosening, that is).

I Got Five On It

Pop quiz, hotshot. There's a basketball game about to start and you need to compile a team from this year's group of college kids. Make sure you fill each position and you might as well pick a coach as well. What do you do? What do you do!? Here's what I do:

C - Jared Sullinger (Freshman, Ohio State): Best player on the best team in the country right now. Sure, I'll take him on my squad. A dominant force in the low post and a good rebounder, also provides some bulk inside to make up for any smaller forwards.

Johnson (center) would be celebrating a lot with this team.

PF - JaJuan Johnson (Senior, Purdue): He's 6-10 and just 225 lbs. He's long and can score from anywhere on the floor. He's developed a nice turn around jump shot, and has shown he can make the big one when needed (hit the game winner against Penn State last night, after leading Purdue with 26 points against WVU on Sunday). On the defensive side of the ball, he can lurk on the weak side and provide a nice shot blocking presence.

SG - Jimmer Fredette (Senior, BYU): Jimmer fever is sweeping the nation, and he leads the entire NCAA Division 1 in scoring. It's a shame the majority of the country doesn't get to see him on a daily basis, but make sure you do some Jimmer homework before the tournament starts, as he will be sure to be a human highlight come March. Let's just hope Gus Johnson or Bill Raftery is announcing his games because we are guaranteed a couple of "From the parking lot" and "Whews" when Jimmer steps on the court.

PG - Kemba Walker (Junior, UConn): Daily Onions hasn't always been the nicest to Kemba Walker. We've acknowledged the good and the bad, but the more and more we watch him we realize that he's got "it". Like when he hit the game winner last weekend at Texas, and then did it again on Monday against Villanova. We still think he shoots a little too much, and might get a little out of control, but he can make it when it matters.

I struggled finding a SF, so I am going to play it safe and go with Kyle Singler (Senior, Duke): He's won a national championship, he's a hard worker, and he'll do anything on the court to win the game.  I can see him taking a back seat to Kemba, Jimmer and Sullinger getting a lot of the shots, and not complaining/worrying about it. Always good to have a do-it-all, unselfish player on your squad.

I'm a little worried about playing with only one basketball, and that's why I am taking Coach K to lead this team.  You have to be impressed with what he's done with USA Basketball over the last 3 years. Getting all those superstars to buy in and play together. We'd need that same game plan with this team.

Who's got next?

Survive and Advance - Big E Hoops Weekend Recap

That title is normally saved for post season tournament play in college basketball, where all that matters is that you survive the game and move on to the next one. Well, I think the same can be said for Big E Hoops Weekend. In a long, run-on sentence, here is a recap of the weekend: We came, we saw, we conquered, we watched hoops, we watched football, we danced, we ate, we drank, we dougied, we won, we lost, we played some hoops of our own, we stimulated the mind at a museum, we acted as if we were in college again, we laughed, we cried, and we dominated. In the words of the late Jim Valvano, "If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something special." Well we did that for 4 straight days, and it was really something special.

Now a quick look back at the three college basketball games we caught live.

Brandi with Bob Morris

Bob Morris 60, The Mouth 57 - Due to (thanks to?) the Steelers playoff victory win against the Ravens, we arrived for the second half of this NEC matchup. Cost of admission was free, and approximately 150 people were placed throughout the stands. Highlights of this game included sitting two rows behind the Monmouth bench, catching some flack from the "Colonial Crazies," seeing the looks of shock on the Monmouth coaches and players when they realized they had a 9-person cheering section (as well as two signs - "The Mouth is in the House" and "Take it to the Mouth"), a successful alley-oop completed by Monmouth, and the purchase of 4 soft pretzels and 3 boxes of popcorn for only $10.50. Despite the Mouth falling by 3, it was an exciting start to the hoops start of the weekend.

Welcome to WVU - good luck finding your seats

West Virginia 68, Purdue 64 - In a semi-gold rush filled concrete jungle, aka The Coliseum (where it takes you 20 minutes to figure out their seating sections), the Mountaineers outlasted the 8th ranked Boilermakers from Purdue. When John Flowers and Kevin Jones are each knocking down a couple of threes in the final ten minutes of the game, you know things are going  WVU's way (not to mention the Turkish Hook from Deniz Kilicli). Purdue's JaJuan Johnson was fun to watch, as he put up 26 points and 7 rebounds. One downfall to the game included the fact that Gus Johnson was broadcasting the game for CBS, and we were not able to hear his calls first hand. The West Virginia home crowd was great down the stretch of the game, which was close the whole way. Purdue had a great look at a 3, which would have tied it with about 5 seconds left. We were a little disappointed to see the WVU student section "storm" the court after the victory. If you are 9 months removed from the Final Four, I don't think you should storm, especially when you are actually favored (ya know, that whole gambling/lines thing) by 3.5 points. Granted Purdue was ranked #8, but they had lost their previous game on the road in Minnesota. Bottom line, act like you've won games like that before. Overall, our trip to Morgantown was a success, as we even toured the campus, watched the Pats get dismantled by the Jets at a local bar after the game, and ended the night with a DP Dough.

The Peterson Events Center is a pretty damn tough place to play.

Pitt 74, Cuse 66 - I've seen a lot of basketball games in my life, whether it be as a player, coach, broadcaster, fan, spectator, whatever it might be, BUT I have never seen a half of basketball like what we saw at the sold-out Peterson Events Center Monday night. (12,995 was a record sell-out for them, aka the lower bowl of the Carrier Dome). Saying 4th ranked Pitt jumped on 3rd ranked Cuse early is an understatement. They opened the game 19-0, and Jim Boeheim had to burn two timeouts within the first five minutes.  I didn't think Cuse was going to score. With every missed Syracuse shot and Pitt make, the Oakland Zoo and Co. (including Pitt alum Larry Fitzgerald) got louder and louder. Without their leading scorer Kris Joseph (concussion), Syracuse looked scared from the start. Finally, Scoop Jardine hit a three pointer eight minutes into the game.  Cuse was on the board, and they didn't stop there. The Orange countered the Pitt 19-0 run, with a 17-0 run of their own. Then Pitt went on a 7-0 run to answer....then Cuse went on a 7-0 run. So with 1 minute left in the half, the score was 26 - 24, all scored in runs. Trading baskets didn't start happening until the final minute of the half, as Pitt grabbed the 31-27 lead.

Syracuse came out much better in the second half, and finally tied the game with about 13 minutes to play in the game. That tie only lasted a few seconds as Pitt answered right back with a 3. Syracuse would cut it to 1 point again a few seconds later, but from there it never got closer than 4 points down the stretch.  A little run by the Panthers (which included a few questionable calls against the Cuse) would push the lead up to 10. No more runs left for the Orange. With that said, if you are a college basketball fan, the Peterson Events Center is a great place to see a game, especially a Big East matchup of top-ranked teams. The Oakland Zoo student section is very good, despite their uneducated, "Overrated" chant in the final few minutes (the worst chant in sports).

On the positive side of things, Syracuse got great games from two of their freshman CJ Fair and Dion Waiters - probably their toughest game as a college player thus far. That will definitely help Cuse as the season progresses, but they clearly missed Joseph.  His status for this weekend's game with Villanova is still unknown.

And with that, Big E Hoops weekend came to a close. All the "local" home teams won, and Daily Onions was 2 for 3 on our predictions. We are hoping the basketball scheduling gods help us out again next year, as it looks like this is a weekend we'd definitely like to repeat.

Big E Hoops Weekend Preview: Game 3 - Syracuse University vs. University of Pittsburgh

We've finally reached previewing the final game of Big E Hoops Weekend. Not sure if we'll still be standing, but if you can't get excited for this match up, you don't deserve to be a college hoops fan. Added bonus, Bill Raftery, the inspiration for this blog might be in the house calling the game on Monday. I'll take that lingerie on the deck anytime.

'Cuse is In the House, Oh My God

Official Name: Syracuse University

Daily Onions Name: 'Cuse

Location: The CNY

Conference: Big East

Mascot: Orange (Orangemen)

Famous non-sports alumni: Joe Biden, Vice President of the United States (Law School); Bob Costas, Sean McDonough, Mike Tirico, Dick Stockton - sports broadcasters; Dick Clark, TV personality; Actor/Model Taye Diggs; former Miss America and Actress Vanessa Williams; Aaron Sorkin, TV writer.

Famous sports alumni: Carmelo Anthony, Denver Nuggets (?); Donovan McNabb, Washington Redskins (?); Jim Brown, Greatest Athlete Ever; Ernie Davis, first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy.

You might know them because….they have a fluffy orange guy named Otto running around on the sideline as their mascot, or because they play their basketball games in the Carrier Dome, which seats 34,000 plus, or because they are a pretty damn good basketball team year in and year out.  Head Coach Jim Boeheim has been there since the Declaration of Independence was signed and has close to 850 victories all-time. He also completely out-kicked his coverage with his wife, Juli.

This year’s team: After losing 3 of the starters from last year's Sweet 16 season, "experts" said the Orange would be a top 5 team in the Big East and ranked in the teens of the top 25. Well, the Orange are currently ranked #4 in the country and are one of four remaining undefeated teams in the country. They are led by "I'm Sorry" Rick Jackson, who rolls out of bed into a double-double. Scoop Jardine and Kris Joseph carry a lot of the load on offense for the Cuse, as well as sophomore guard Brandon Triche.

Roster Check:Triche's uncle, Howard, played for Boeheim in the 80s. Howard was the guy that Keith Smart was shooting over to give Indiana the national title in 1987. Freshman center Fab Melo is from Brazil, and despite a lot of hype coming into the season, he's been less than Fab thus far.

Best Player: Rick Jackson has been a beast so far this season and does a lot down low for the Orange. However, if the Cuse wants to make a deep run in March, Kris Joseph (last year's 6th man of the year) needs to be the go to guy and make big shots.

Pitt Happens

Official Name: University of Pittsburgh

Daily Onions Name:Eat Sh*t Pitt

Location: Steel City, USA

Conference: Big East

Mascot: Panthers

Famous non-sports alumni: Actor Gene Kelly; Orrin Hatch, US Senator; Wangari Maathai, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize.

Famous sports alumni: Da Coach, Mike Ditka; Dan Marino, NFL Quarterback; Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks.

You might know them because….they've battled for the Big East championship over the past several years....they are known for their physical play and well-respected coach, Jamie Dixon....their home court, The Petereson Events Center has been sold out since it opening during the 2002-03 season, and features the Oakland Zoo student section.

This year’s team: Ranked #5 in the country, the Panthers are 16-1, with their lone loss coming to Tennessee (ya know, when Tennessee was "good" earlier this season). The Panthers are led by the three-headed monster of Ashton Gibbs (17ppg), Brad Wanamaker (13ppg), and Gilbert Brown (12 ppg). Pitt likes to put 'em on the glass, as they are 6th in the nation in team rebounding (back to the playing physical point), and they also like to share, as they lead the nation in assists per game.

Roster Check:The Panthers have two J.J's on their team, and 60% of the roster comes from the NY/NJ/PA area.

Best Player: While Gibbs might be the Panthers leading scorer, Wanamaker has a better all around game. With that said, these two as well as Brown can all shoot from outside, and will look to find holes in the Cuse's 2-3 zone, with the big men cleaning up the mess inside.

Daily Onions Prediction:Syracuse won in NYC on Wednesday, then traveled back to Syracuse to play Cincy tomorrow, before then heading to Pittsburgh for the Big Monday matchup. Pitt won at G'town on Wednesday, and hosts Seton Hall on Saturday. Pitt should be better rested, and have a definite home court advantage. Another thing they have though, is Ramy Nammour in attendance. Ramy, the Monmouth Man (its like a "Michigan Man") on this trip, is a Pitt killer. He's seen three Pitt games live, and Pitt has lost all three of them (Pitt at WVU in Football in 2003, Pitt at Cuse in basketball in 2003, and Tennessee vs. Pitt in basketball earlier this year). With that in mind, we are going Syracuse 65 - Pittsburgh 62 in a good one.

Back to the WVU-Purdue game prediction. WVU dropped a bomb on Providence last night and Purdue lost at Minnesota.  We are riding the momentum here, WVU 61 - Purdue 56.

Be sure to check back over the weekend as we chronicle all the highs and lows of Big E Hoops Weekend!

Be Our Guest.....Blogger

Daily Onions aims to please its audience and we like to invite reader participation. With that in mind, it is my distinct honor and pleasure to introduce our first ever guest blogger, Brady Smith. As the Director of Player Personnel for Big E Hoops Weekend, Brady breaks down everything you need to about this weekend's roster. Without further adieu, Mr. Brady Smith...

WHEW!! Let’s get this thing started already.

In the most anticipated January weekend since snow was invented, the Big East Hoops Weekend WHEW Crew will take on the Steel City in a most unlikely of scenarios. Say it with me now

…Three games, three alma maters, lots of balls, one dream.

I certainly never thought that my beloved Mountaineers, the Mouth-hawks, and the Orange people would ever play three random games … against three separate teams … within an hour of each other … on the same damn weekend … AND the majority of our friends can make it.

The third best part about this weekend is that it breaks up an otherwise dreadful winter month of snow, slush and that God-dammit-there’s-street-salt-everywhere feeling. The second best part is the awesome sweat-ball  that we’ll see, obviously. (Editors note: you haven’t truly seen sweat ball unless you have witnessed a pick-up hoops game in Brady’s driveway)

But easily the number one best part of this weekend is the incredible people involved: the Big E Hoops Weekend Whew Crew. 

Mr. Daily Onions has done a phuh-nominal ahh-rugala job of summarizing the event and giving us some strong game previews.

So you’ve heard and will hear plenty about the actual basketball teams. Now here’s a couple tidbits about OUR starting lineup, in alphabetical order:

Still Perfect After All These Games

We'll return to our regularly scheduled Big E Hoops Weekend preview later, but we couldn't let last night's jam-packed Top 25 slate pass without any comments.

It's Storm Season in College Basketball, as seen in Tallahassee last night (AP)

-The big news going into last night's games was that the five remaining unbeaten teams were all in action (#1 Duke, #2 Ohio State, #3 Kansas, #4 Syracuse and #6 San Diego State). Most people thought UNLV over San Diego State or St. Johns over Syracuse would mark one of the undefeated's going down. Instead, it was the top-ranked Blue Devils that fell on the road to Florida State.  Big deal? I don't think so. There was no way Duke was going unbeaten this year. A loss on the road in ACC play won't hurt them that much and puts to rest all the hype of a possible undefeated season. Duke is usually always good for a road loss in conference play to a Florida State or a Virginia Tech, etc. In fact, I see the Blue Devils losing another game or two in conference play, even if they are the ONLY ACC team ranked in the Top 25. We all know Duke isn't the same team without Kyrie Irving, but they are still a top 3 team and I'd be surprised if they weren't in Houston come early April (Daily Onions Final Four Projection??). Breathe easy, Dick Vitale, your boys in blue will be just fine.

-With Duke losing, THE Ohio State University will take over the #1 position after their four point win at Michigan. OSU is 4-0 in the Big Ten, but three of those four games have been decided by 5 points or less. The Buckeyes host red-hot Penn State on Saturday.  The Nittany Lions are coming off back to back home wins against Michigan State and Illinois.  Can they make it three in a row over top 25 teams? In a word, No.

-Kansas was able to hold off the Mayor Fred Hoiberg and his Iowa State Cyclones, 84-79 in Ames. Don't sleep on the Cyclones. Hoiberg has them playing good basketball and while I don't think they'll make the tournament this year, they won't be a cake walk in the Big 12.

-Syracuse does what it does best, wins at Madison Square Garden, beating St. John's, 76-59. For the first time in a long time though, Syracuse has some company from another basketball squad in orange and blue that is playing well at the Garden (Knicks are 22-16, currently 6th in the Eastern Conference).

-A hundred percent of the time, San Diego State wins every time this season. The Aztecs kept its 18 game winning streak alive with a win over UNLV. They now own the longest active win streak in Division 1 basketball (and they ate a whole wheel of cheese). Stay classy, San Diego...State.

More Big E Hoops Weekend news coming later.

Big E Hoops Weekend Preview: Game 2 - Purdue University vs. West Virginia University

As you can see, the quality of the games increase as Big E Hoops Weekend goes on, and we shift from the NEC to a Big Ten - Big East match up on Sunday afternoon.

Boiler Up

Official Name: Purdue University

Daily Onions Name: Purdon’t

Location: About 130 miles from Chicago, Indiana

Conference: The Big 10/11/12 or Legend/Leader?

Mascot: Boilermakers

Famous non-sports alumni: Neil Armstrong, astronaut; Seven Nobel Prize winners; Founder and CEO of C-Span, Brian Lamb.

Famous sports alumni: John Wooden, greatest coach ever; The Big Dog, Glenn Robinson; Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints Quarterback.

You might know them because….A perennial Top 25 team, the Boiler Makers used to be coached by Gene Keady, who had quite the hair situation going on, on top of his head. The clever student section even called themselves the Gene Pool. The past two seasons, Purdue has lost their best player Robbie Hummel to ACL injuries.

This year’s team: Coached by highly respected Matt Painter, in his 6th year, Purdue is currently ranked #8 in the country. The Boilermakers are at Minnesota on Thursday night before making the trip to WVU. To date, they are 15-1, 4-0 in conference, however they have not played anyone in the Top 25. The next two games should be great tests on the road.

Roster Check:Purdue depends on their two seniors to do much of the heavy lifting. Guard E'Twuan Moore averages 19ppg, 6rpg, 3apg, while forward JaJuan Johnson is a 19ppg and 8 rpg guy that shots close to 50% from the field. Keep your eye on Ryne Smith, a 6-3 guard that can hit from anywhere.

Best Player: JaJuan Johnson is pretty fun to watch. The 6-10, 221 lb string bean forward is one of the most versatile players in the college ranks. He can pretty much score from anywhere on the court, gets to the free throw line 6.5 times per game, and also blocks 2.5 shots per game on the defensive side of the floor. If the Mountaineers don't control Johnson, they'll have a tough time winning.

Almost Heaven

Official Name: West By God Virginia University

Daily Onions Name: WVU - Dub-V

Location: Dirty, West Virginia

Conference: Big East

Mascot: Mountaineers

Famous non-sports alumni: Emmy Award winner, Don Knotts; Lady Gaga's mom; John Chambers, President and CEO of Cisco Systems.

Famous sports alumni: Jerry West (NBA Logo); Pac-Man Jones, NFL cornerback and someone that likeded da scrip club; Andrew Luck’s Dad, Oliver (current WVU AD); Rod Thorn, President of Philadelphia 76ers.

You might know them because….you got Pittsnogled a few years ago in the NCAA tournament. Or you followed the Mountaineers run to the Final Four last year, led by senior Da'Sean Butler. Unfortunately Butler was injured in the semi-final game against Duke, and we all had to witness one of the more awkward moments in college basketball between Bob Huggins and Butler. Or you've hugged the person next to you in a bar while singing John Denver's Country Roads.

This year's team: After losing Butler and underachieving Devin Ebanks from last year's Final Four team, it was hard to tell what the Mountaineers would be this year. They struggled at times and have lost to Minnesota, Miami, St. Johns and Marquette - all games they very well could have won. Their biggest win of the season came on Saturday, when they went to Georgetown and out-grinded the Hoyas, winning by 6. Bottom line for the 'Eers, they lack the go to guy that they had the last two years with Butler. Kevin Jones was their top returning player, but he is the perfect #2 or #3 option on a team, not necessarily the #1 option. Luckily, they've had senior guard Casey Mitchell step up to take on most of the scoring (averages 17.6ppg), and he can shoot it from behind the arc.

Roster check: Senior guard Johnnie West is the son of WVU legend and NBA Hall of Famer, Jerry West. Guard Joe Mazzula is still on the team, even though it seems like he's been there for 8 years. Starting point guard Darryl Bryant, goes by "Truck".

Best player: From a pure scoring, take the shot at the end of the game standpoint, I think you go Mitchell.  From an all-around standpoint, a guy that you want on the court for all 40 minutes to do anything you need him to do, give me Kevin Jones.

Daily Onions Prediction: We are going to hold off on the actual game prediction until Friday, as we want to see how WVU and Purdue fair in their games tomorrow night. Some things that we can guarantee: Coach Huggins will be in his black pull over jacket and black pants, and if the Mountaineers do indeed win, there is a good chance we'll be having a few drinks with Hugs at a local watering hole after the game.

Coming Thursday/Friday: Preview of the main event - Syracuse vs. Pitt, and a guest blogger joins Daily Onions.

Big E Hoops Weekend Preview: Game 1 - Monmouth vs. Robert Morris

We are in the final days of preparation for Big E Hoops Weekend. To make sure every one is completely up to date with who plays when, and what person went where, we are going to breakdown each of the games we'll see in person this weekend, with everything you need to know to get through the hoops overload.

What About Bob?
Official Name: Robert Morris University (not to be confused with Robert Morris University in Chicago)
Daily Onions Name: Bob Morris

Location: Near Pittsburgh, PA

Conference: Northeast Conference (NEC)

Mascot: Colonials

Famous non-sports alum: Robin Sanders, US Ambassador to Nigeria.

Famous sports alum: Kevin Colbert, GM of Pittsburgh Steelers; Hank Fraley, NFL offensive lineman

You might know them because... Bob Morris was a 15 seed in the NCAA tournament last year, and gave Villanova everything it could handle in the first round game, losing by 3 in OT. Last year’s coach, Mike Rice, is now the head coach at Rutgers.

This year’s team: First year head coach Andy Toole, 30, is the youngest head coach in D-1 basketball and looks like he could be the youngest person on the roster. Daily Onions worked a few basketball camps with Toole (good guy) a few years back during his time with Hoop Group. Thus far this season, Bob Morris is 6-9 overall, 2-2 in the NEC (winning by 1, losing by 2, losing by 5 in OT, and winning by 3). They play FDU on Thursday as their last tune-up before Saturday night.

Roster Check: Bob Morris might be a simple name, but their roster includes Karon, Coron, Yann, Velton, Treadwell, Lijah and Deion.
Best Player: Russel Johnson averages 13 ppg and 7 rpg.


Watch Your 'Mouth
Official Name: Monmouth University
Daily Onions Name: The Mouth

Location: Bruce Springsteen, New Jersey

Conference: Northeast Conference (NEC)

Mascot: Hawks

Famous non-sports alumni: Anthony Beltempo, creator of MTV’s Jersey Shore; two contestants on Survivor; Jack Lawless (attended for a semester) before joining the Jonas Brothers as their drummer.

Famous sports alumni: Miles Austin, Dallas Cowboys WR (and one of Kim Kardashian’s former flings); Christie Rampone, US Women’s National Soccer Team captain

You might know them because…they actually have won a game in the NCAA tournament – the play-in game vs. Hampton in 2006. Head coach Dave Calloway was a counselor at a basketball camp I attended when I was just a little onion. He’s been at Monmouth for 14 years and has gotten them to the NCAA tournament 3 times.

This year’s team: 5-11 overall and 1-3 in the NEC.  They hosted Villanova on Dec. 22 and lost by 40.

Roster Check: The Hawks have a Phil Wait (from England) and an Ed Waite (from Florida) on this year’s team.

Best Player: Ed Waite averages 10 ppg and 6 rpg.

Daily Onions Prediction: Despite having distinguished alum Ramy Nammour, and his guests, in attendance, the Hawks can't overcome the Colonials experience and depth. Bob wins 68-61, making this the second most important sports victory in the city Saturday night (see: Steelers, Pittsburgh).

Coming Wednesday: Preview of Sunday afternoon's West Virginia vs. Purdue game.

The Weekend that Was

Kemba was kept in check for only so long. (AP)

-Kemba Walker reads Daily Onions! Or at least that's what I am telling myself, after he went out and willed UConn to a win on the road at Texas. Using my post last week as bulletin board material, Kemba was 8-27 shooting and he scored 22 points, including this ridiculous shot as the shot clock was expiring at the end of the game. He also hit the game winner in overtime and grabbed 9 rebounds. Big time win for the Huskies, and they get Rutgers and DePaul next.

-Georgetown continues to baffle me. I want to like the Hoyas and possibly pick them as a team to go deep into the tournament, but late game situations have been killing them of late.  Despite having an experienced PG in Chris Wright, the Hoyas turned it over on their final four possessions of the game against West Virginia. For the game, Wright had 5 turnovers and 2 assists...not really what you are looking for from your floor general. G'town drops to 1-3 in the Big East and now has to host Pittsburgh on Wednesday night. On the flip side, huge with a capital U, win for the Mountaineers. Exactly what they needed after dropping two of their first three conference games.

-University of Kentucky fans took out their frustration on the Enes Kanter decision on a New York Times writer, and then watched their team lose on the road to Georgia, 77-70. Hey UK fans, your team might be young and immature, doesn't mean you have to be.

-As predicted on Friday, Villanova knocked Cincinnati from the unbeaten list. Other notable results from the weekend: Penn State knocked off Michigan State, Colorado beat 8th ranked Missouri, Notre Dame beat St. Johns, Kansas needed overtime to win in Ann Arbor, and UCF dropped their first game of the season at Houston.

-Coming tomorrow: Daily Onions starts to breakdown the games that are a part of the upcoming Big E Hoops Weekend.

'Nati Light

There are seven undefeated teams left in major D-1 basketball right now. Thus far, Daily Onions has at least mentioned six of them in this space: Duke, Ohio State, Kansas, Syracuse, San Diego State, and UCF. Time to give some love to the other remaining perfect team, the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Ranked for the first time this week, Cincy was catching some flack for their strength of schedule.  Sure they were undefeated, but who'd they beat. Talk a look at their schedule and the answer is no one. That is unless you consider Utah Valley, Savannah State, Dayton, and Toledo quality wins.

Gates was up, and good last night vs. X (AP)

Well last night, the Bearcats faced their toughest test to date - one of the more underrated rivalries in college basketball - a matchup with cross-town rival Xavier (although X hasn't been that great this season). If this game was meant to be a test to see if Cincy was legit (not sure if you can say that yet), then they passed with flying colors. Led by 6-9, 260lb forward Yancy Gates, the Bearcats dominated. Gates had 22 points, 14 boards and 2 blocks, and looked like a man amongst boys inside, on both sides of the floor.

Next up for 'Nati is the true measuring stick, a Sunday afternoon play date at Villanova. If Gates dominates, then Cincy has a chance since Nova is a little thin up front. With that said, I think guard play from the two Corey's (Fisher and Stokes, not Haim and Feldman) will be too much for the Bearcats to handle, especially at the Pavillion. After Nova, Cincy hosts USF, then goes to Syracuse, ND and St. Johns. They are 15-0 right now, and Daily Onions predicts they'll be 17-3 after that stretch.

With what they've done, I'm fine with Cincinnati being ranked in the Top 25. But as we have discussed this week, things will only get tougher for the Bearcats as they go through the gauntlet that is the Big East schedule. Am I betting heavy on Cincy being one of the top 5 teams in the Big East? Nah, I'll bet light.

The Sunshine State....Gorgeous

Name the hottest school in college sports located in Florida. Ready, Go. Florida State? No, hoops team  lost to Auburn on Monday night. Miami? Ehh, 11-4 thus far, nothing special...and their football team got trounced by Notre Dame in the Sun Bowl. Florida? Maybe getting a little warmer; they've been in and out of the Top 25 this season. How bout Central Florida? Who?

The University of Central Florida. The basketball team that is 14-0, ranked 18th in the country, and has already taken down in-state rivals South Florida, Miami and Florida. The Knights are the early favorite to win Conference USA, a league that has been dominated by Memphis and UAB in years past (the Knights first meeting with the Tigers is in Memphis on January 26th, followed by a game with UAB 3 days later). Oh, and their football team beat Georgia in the Liberty Bowl for their first ever postseason victory.

So where'd this hoops success come from? Well, first year head coach Donnie Jones knows a thing or two about winning basketball games in Florida.  He was an assistant at the University of Florida for 11 years, helping them win back-to-back titles in 2006-2007.

Marcus's trademark is his specs, and not a wagging tongue (AP Photos)

On the court, the Knights are led by sophomore Marcus Jordan....yep, THAT Jordan. Don't worry, no need to place "the next MJ" tag on this Jordan, but he's been all-around solid in just his second collegiate season. The younger, left-handed Jordan leads the team in scoring, is second in assists, and is shooting 51/47% from the field/3-pt, respectively. Marcus's older brother, Jeff, who played three seasons at Illinois, also is on the Knights roster after transferring in the summer (he'll need to sit out this season due to transfer rules).

One other reason the Knights might be playing so well this year, the shoes. "It's gotta be the shoes." During Jordan's freshman year, UCF was an Adidas school.  A Jordan in Adidas? That doesn't make sense. So, Marcus stubbornly (like father, like son) wore his Nike's and cost the school their deal with Adidas. No worries, I think UCF had a connection at Nike. What do you know, the Knights are now rockin' the swoosh and are undefeated. As Marcus would probably tell you, father knows best.

You Can Get With This...

Or you can get with that. Not sure what's up with the song-themed titles this week, but hopefully this one is more enjoyable to have stuck in your head today. A few random thoughts from the sports world to get you through this hump day.

-For those of you that saw the movie The Fighter (which we highly recommend), it looks like Tony Allen opted for "head, face, head, face" instead of "head, body, head, body" in an altercation with OJ Mayo. Really? You both make a crap load of money playing basketball for a living, but you feel it necessary to get in a fight over a card game on a team flight. You guys are teammates, remember? Really? Grow up.

Sidney, left, looks like he's done this before (AP Photos)

-In other teammates fighting news, Renardo Sidney of Mississippi State was reinstated to the team after a altercation in the stands with team captain Elgin Bailey last month at the Diamond Head Classic tournament in Hawaii (Seriously, who fights in Hawaii?). Sidney is the same kid that was a high school All-American, but then had to sit out all of last season due to NCAA eligibility issues. He had played in just two games this season prior to the fight, scoring 31 points total. So the high school All-American is back with the team, and the junior captain who averaged 5 ppg, 4 rrpg so far this season is.....transferring. Oh, ok. Makes sense.

-I'm not sold on Kemba Walker. I said it when UConn lost to Pitt last week, and now I will say it again after they lost to Notre Dame last night. Not sure exactly why, just a gut feeling. In his first two years on campus, he was an erratic point guard/2-guard that was an atrocious shooter from the outside. He's improved that part of his game and has been great this year. Its pretty tough to find flaws in his game, especially when looking at his stats this season (26.7 ppg, 5 rpg, 3.8 apg, 2 spg, 2 topg, 48% FG, 84% FT). The fact the Huskies next leading scorer only averages 10 ppg, worries me a bit (or makes me smile, as a Syracuse fan). Maybe its my anti-UConn bias that can't give Kemba the credit he deserves, but I don't think the shoot-first PG will bring the Huskies a Big East title, or a deep run in the tournament. He was unstoppable early on when UConn beat Kentucky and Michigan State.  Now as the season progresses and the tough get going in Big East play, UConn has dropped its last two.

-Pittsburgh finally played its first "true road game" last night and squeaked out a 4 point win at Providence. The Panthers could be 17-1, when Syracuse comes to town for the finale of Big E Hoops weekend.

-It was awesome seeing Andrew Luck dominate on Monday night in the Orange Bowl - kid is the real deal. Then last night, another exciting BCS Bowl game as Ohio State held off Arkansas in the Sugar Bowl. Let's keep the momentum going and watch the National Championship game between Auburn and Oregon tonight, or even tomorrow night. But no, we'll wait another 5 days until that game (Monday, January 10th). Come on BCS, if you aren't giving us a playoff, at least give us a favorable viewing schedule.

Say it Ain't 'Sota: The Conference Schedule is Here (Updated w/ Video!)

Just last Monday, Minnesota was ranked 14th (AP poll) in the country, with an 11-1 record. Then the Big Ten Conference schedule started. Loss at Wisconsin, loss at Michigan State. In this week's poll, the 11-3 Gophers aren't ranked. Ahh, welcome to conference play everyone. Granted, losing on the road to the Badgers and Spartans isn't anything to get too worked up about, but it is a reminder that this is the time questionable out of conference schedules get sniffed out. Luckily, Minnesota has a shot to get back on the winning track tonight against a rebuilding Indiana Hoosier team.

We don't have to leave the Big Ten to look at another team suffering from early Conference-itis. Northwestern, a team that has never made the NCAA tournament....ever, started this season 9-1. Two games into conference play, two losses (at #12 Purdue, #18 Michigan State). Again, nothing to be ashamed of, but at some point, you need to beat some good teams for your tournament resume.

Lavin's LA Looks in NYC (NY Daily News)

And with that, we head to the Big East. Don't look now (seriously, don't...because their upcoming schedule is brutal and I'm worried the curse of Daily Onions will take over), but St. John's is 3-0 in the Big East. Steve Lavin and his gel have the Johnnies playing good basketball with road victories at West Virginia and Providence, as well as an exciting 3-point win at the Garden last night against 13th ranked Georgetown (who is now 1-2 in the Big East, by the way). How exciting was it? Well, on one of the final plays of the game, Bill Raftery got so excited about a crossover he couldn't even complete his patented "lingerie on the deck" call. Instead it came out like this, "Oh my goodness.....Lingerie...!" As we mentioned on our Christmas List, we want St. John's to be important again, and they are definitely on their way (even if their next 7 games are against teams currently ranked in the Top 25...Lavin's gonna need some more hair gel to survive that stretch).

With conference play upon us, some teams will look for the quality wins to get them into the field of 68, while others will look to just survive, aka The Big East.  Currently with 7 teams in the top 25, the Big East tends to beat up each other during the regular season and the conference post-season tournament only to fizzle in the Big Dance. Last year, 8 teams from the Big East made the tourney and only 2 (Syracuse and WVU) made it to the Sweet 16. So for everyone that is giving 4th-ranked Syracuse a hard time for not playing a "true road game" yet this season, maybe Jimmy B knows what he is doing. After all, its much more fun to travel in March and early April then it is in November and December.

Since We've Been Gone

Happy New Year from the Daily Onions! It's been quite some time since we last spoke (Daily Onions was on winter break - hey, if we are writing about college hoops, we should get a winter break as well).

 Marrone and the Orange looked good in Pinstripe. (NJ Star Ledger)

Over the the last 10 days or so, Daily Onions spent time a lot of time with the family (a good thing), spent a few days snowed in, ate a lot of food, got acquainted with a new iPad, watched a lot of sports (prompting the First Lady of Daily Onions to ask, "how are there so many sports in the world?" - I don't know, but we should be thankful), attended and watched (and saluted) the Syracuse Football team become Pinstripe Bowl Champions (first postseason victory since 2001), and last but not least, thought about what the new year has in store for Daily Onions.

Since we've been gone (hopefully Kelly Clarkson is in your head for the rest of the day), the college basketball conference schedule has started, already separating contenders and pretenders.  We'll dive in to some early learnings from the conference schedule later today.

We are just 12 days away from the Big E Hoops Weekend so we'll start taking a closer look at those festivities over the next two weeks, and you'll know all you've ever wanted to about Bob Morris, Bob Huggins and The Mouth.

With that said, welcome back. We'll be back later today with a look at some of the major news and happenings over the last two weeks (Syracuse is still undefeated, Tennessee has gotten the worst of Daily Onions curse, etc). For now, its time to dig out of my inbox.