South Orange Juice

Seton Hall Basketball: JP's 5 Thoughts- SHU 73, GU 55

2012-02-22T20:00:25Z

I said after the St. John's game that the Pirates had played perhaps the best game I'd ever seen from them.

Well, after what went down last night at the Rock, I take that back. THAT performance, walloping the Georgetown Hoyas (#9 in the nation) by nearly 20 points, was the best I've seen Seton Hall play.

Here are the 5 Thoughts from a tried and true signature win:

- Basketball Ballet

"Five players on the floor functioning as one single unit. Team, team, team. No one more important than the other"

Coach Norman Dale, Hoosiers

As I watched the game late night on Tuesday after returning to campus, I realized pretty quickly that I was watching art on a basketball court. The Pirates played as One, moved as One, defended as One. It was the most remarkable thing- the unselfishness, the intensity, the flow, the IMMACULATE matchup zone defense... I'm tearing up just thinking about it. Folks, that's about as beautiful as basketball can get. I need a moment....

- Night and Day

I'm referring to the level of effort at the beginning of the Cincinnati game compared to this game. Jordan Theodore and Herb Pope meant business on Tuesday night, and there was never a second that either was on the court that someone could have used to suggest otherwise. That confidence spread to the entire team. We've learned this year that as the Seniors go, so do the Pirates, both good and bad. Sure, Seton Hall had one of those nights where everything dropped for them, but the leadership and effort of the seniors helped in this regard. They established the pace and flow of the game early and never really diverted themselves from that flow.

- Captain of the Ship

You know, I gotta hand it to Jordan Theodore. His first shot was a tough pull-up on the move over a defender right in his face. From that moment on, he was feeling it. He turned in a Man's Game tonight with the performance of his life in terms of shooting the ball. A career-high 29 PTS on just ELEVEN shots from the field, including 5-5 from downtown. Watching him just pull up with confidence whenever the Hoyas made the deadly mistake of leaving him open, it was like watching Deron Williams torch Jeremy Lin for me- pure joy.

- Confidence? Czech!

Coach Willard noticed that Patrik Auda had been playing very well as of late, and moved him back to the starting lineup. Well, ladies and gentlemen, Auda's back. His line of 7 PTS/5 REB/4 AST/2 STL/1 BLK with no turnovers was pretty nice, but Auda showed that his confidence is back by going to the bucket with conviction. Perhaps the surest sign came in the first half, when he caught the ball in the right corner, pump-faked to get Henry Sims in the air, then drove right by Sims with his RIGHT hand to draw a foul at the rim. When was the last time we saw Auda go to his right? His journey back to being a critical rotation player in the last few games has been vastly underrated.

- Resume

Seton Hall had a very "NCAA Bubble" resume of no signature wins alongisde no "bad" losses (I've disagreed with that part of it for some time now, but numbers are numbers...). Well, not anymore. This win is so huge because of the timing of it all- with so little time left in the season, there's virtually no way that this win over the Hoyas will mean any less than it does right now, as has happened with both West Virginia, UConn and Dayton.

With this signature win in hand, if the Pirates take care of business in their final two games, they'll be sitting pretty. Not only that, but two more victories will mean that Seton Hall will be playing in the Big East Tournament with house money. These two games, vs Rutgers and @ DePaul, are by no means easy. But the Pirates are certainly in the driver's seat for a return to the Promised Land. And that's nice. It's been a while.

Seton Hall Basketball: Seton Hall 73, #9 Georgetown 55; Theodore - One Foot on the Dance Floor

2012-02-22T03:03:38Z

The Seton Hall Pirates needed one very big win on their tournament resume before submitting it to the committee for their dancing approval. Tonight, they recorded EXACTLY that, embarrassing the Georgetown Hoyas in Newark by a score of 73-55. Georgetown was outmatched in nearly every aspect of the game as the Pirates jumped on them in the closing minutes of the first half and cruised to a laugher in the second. Led by Jordan Theodore's career high 29 points on 8-of-11 shooting, 5 assists and 4 rebounds, the Hoyas had no answer for the senior-led team that simply needed this one more. Theodore's running mate, Herb Pope, did his part with 12 points and 6 boards, but the evening belonged to Jordan.

Tonight was easily the best I've ever seen Theodore shoot the ball, nailing a PERFECT 5-of-5 from long range, a PERFECT 8-of-8 from the stripe and even peppered a pair of beautiful pull up mid-range jumpers. It was an absolute perfect ball game from the senior who now has one foot squarely on the dance floor. As I mentioned after the loss to Cincinnati, there's no Pirate I trust more to will his team to victory than JT and we saw it again, this evening. In fact, we've seen it in three of the last four Pirate wins -- the St. John's massacre excluded.

Team basketball was on full display for the Pirates from the opening tip. The m/2/m and 2-3 looks that the Pirates threw out early were leagues better than what we saw in Cincinnati. Though a little slow to close out on 3-point attempts in the first half, the Hoyas were just hitting from ridiculous range, shots that clearly had little chance of carrying over into the second. The Hoyas drilled 4 from deep in the first and only one in second, finishing the night 5-of-15 from downtown.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Pirates made 25 buckets from the floor, 18 of which were assisted, an absolutely ridiculous statistic. The most remarkable stretch (other than Theodore turning the lights off) might have been from the 4:36 mark in the first half. Herb Pope picked up his 2nd personal foul and was relegated to the bench for the rest of the first with Seton Hall leading 25-23. Instead of the Pirates allowing Georgetown to take advantage and flip the momentum heading into the break, they buckled down and closed out on a 10-5 run to extend their lead to 7. The team responding to one of their seniors on the bench in foul trouble was the turning point in this one as it allowed the Pirates to ride their confidence straight into the second half.

Though Georgetown shot the ball pretty well over the first 3/4ths of the game, Seton Hall simply had the hotter hand. For every bucket Georgetown made to keep the deficit within reach, Seton Hall would answer with two of their own. The Pirates finished the night a SCORCHING 61% from the floor AND 61% from distance, I'd say those are absolutely two formulas for success.

The BIG EAST's steals leader, Fuquan Edwin chipped in another four swipes to go along with his 10 points and 5 rebounds. Patrik Auda in his regained starting role for Seton Hall was impressive despite a pair of missed layups in the first half. Auda's problem this evening was putting the ball on the floor. He had two clean looks for buckets, but putting the ball on the hardwood allowed his defenders to come in with pressure, altering Auda's layup attempts. This is a happy recap after all, so we'll focus the attention on Auda's strong play, recording 7 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and a block. Talk about well rounded play. This evening was absolutely Auda's most complete game of the season and a welcome sign as the Pirates head towards the postseason.

Despite coming off the bench for the first time in the last seven games, Brandon Mobley was impressive making 5-of-6 with his sole miss coming from behind the arc. Mobley's full offensive arsenal was on display tonight, bringing his defender out to the perimeter (although missing his attempt), a pair of mid-range jumpers and tough athletic finishes around the tin. With Auda and Mobley both playing at a high level, Kevin Willard has a phenomenal problem on his hands of who to start and who to bring off the pine. Fellow freshman, Aaron Cosby had a pair of big buckets early in the second half. First, he hit a long two that extended Seton Hall's lead to it's largest (to that point) at 9. Hollis Thompson answered with a big 3-pointer as Georgetown looked intent to hang around for the evening. Cosby immediately answered with a deep 3-pointer of his own to ensure that instead, the Hoyas would be going away, for good. Following another JT 3-pointer on Seton Hall's next possession, the Hoyas would fail to get closer than 11 in the final 17 minutes as the Pirates cruised to the finish line.

The Pirates have their dancing shoes on. The laces might be untied as of yet, but one foot is planted on the ~~marley~~ hardwood, while the other looks for the courage to bust a move. After watching Theodore lead his team to a crushing defeat of Georgetown this evening, I fully expect to see a repeat performance come Saturday, on senior night, against Rutgers. After that, a date at DePaul stands in the way of the Pirates first berth since 2006. As we've been saying for weeks around these parts, one game at a time. The dance will be waiting.

Live Game Thread - #9 Georgetown Hoyas (20-5, 10-4) @ Seton Hall Pirates (18-9, 7-8) - 7:00PM (SNY)

2012-02-21T22:59:16Z

Game #28
	vs.
(20-5, 10-4)		(18-9, 7-8)
February 21st, 2012
The Prudential Center, Newark, NY
7:00PM
SNY
Probable Starters
Markel Starks	PG	Jordan Theodore
Jason Clark	SG	Aaron Cosby
Nate Lubick	SF	Fuquan Edwin
Hollis Thompson	PF	Brandon Mobley
Henry Sims	C	Herb Pope
Twitter
@SOrangeJuice, @JPGuerette, @robertmanganaro
Opening Line (Georgetown -2)

Despite failing to compete against Cincinnati for the better part of action Saturday, Seton Hall still controls their own NCAA Tournament destiny. In fact, many believe the Pirates can still punch a ticket regardless of what plays out during the Big East Tournament. The catch? They must win out and that begins tonight, at The Rock against the 9th ranked team in the nation, the Georgetown Hoyas.

The Pirates have been a tough out at home this year, only falling twice (ND, LOU) in consecutive losses during their six-game slide. Slow starts have been the Pirates achilles heel in the majority of their losses this season and it goes without saying, that's absolutely not an option tonight. Oh, and Herb Pope got tatted up for the game.

As always, Let's Go Hall!

Seton Hall Basketball: JP's Game Preview- Georgetown Hoyas

2012-02-21T14:09:44Z

Well, folks, this is it. It's the final opportunity of the season for the Pirates to get a signature victory, and this time, we all know that it will stay that way if it happens (unlike the WVU and UConn wins earlier this season).

Here's what you need to know about the Hoyas:

Georgetown

2011-12 record: 20-5

All-time series record: 40-53

Last meeting: 1/18/11 (80-75 SHU L)

Georgetown, by all accounts and purposes, by numbers and the so-called "eye-test," is a very good team. They still run a system involving the Princeton offense and a disciplined defense, and still are one of the best three-point shooting teams in the conference.

Still with Georgetown is Jason Clark, the epitome of Hoyas basketball. He's the leading scorer for this year's club, and he's a very good three-point shooter and defender on the perimeter with veteran smarts. Joining him in the Hoyas' backcourt are Jabril Trawick and Markel Starks. Trawick is a solid guard, while Starks has been a bit of a three-point sniper this season after barely playing last season.

In the Hoya frontcourt is where the strength of the team lies. Henry Sims has had a monumental senior year, showing off some ball skills while being a defensive anchor down low AND leading the team in assists. He's one of the best-passing big men in the nation, and it gives a whole new dimension to the Hoyas' offense. Nate Lubick brings hustle and heart to the lineup.

And then there's two freshmen in Otto Porter and Greg Whittington. Porter has an old-school midrange game, and he's been doing a little of everything this season. Whittington has, rather unexpectedly, become a nice piece off the bench for John Thompson III, giving all he can on defense.

Oh, and don't forget Hollis Thompson. He's the best shooter from beyond the arc in the Big East this year, making a ridiculous 48% from deep this year. Thompson can also get to the rim, making him Georgetown's most dangerous offensive weapon.

Seton Hall will win if:

- They can run offense and make threes. Georgetown is terrific in almost every defensive category- 2nd in the Big East in scoring defense, 3rd in FG% defense, 1st in 3P% defense, 5th in blocks, and 2nd in defensive rebounding percentage. Seton Hall's tough task is to be able to score against the Hoyas, something not many teams have been able to do this year. The opening 5 minutes of the game need to set the tone for the Pirates in this regard.

Georgetown will win if:

- They play at their pace. The Hoyas are a slow-it-down type of team. That's not to say they won't run, but the Princeton offense prides itself on getting easy shots off of precise ball movement and cutting, and that requires taking time off the shot clock to properly run their sets. Seton Hall would like to play faster than this, so if Georgetown can control the tempo on the road, they'll be in great shape.

Seton Hall Basketball: JP's 5 Thoughts- UC 62, SHU 57

2012-02-19T14:00:18Z

Don't be fooled by the final score- this game wasn't that close. The Bearcats jumped on the Pirates early and never relinquished their hold on the game.

Here are the 5 Thoughts from what can only be considered a frustrating loss in Cincinnati:

- Bricklaying

The Pirates made an unreal amount of their shots on Tuesday night. It did not continue into Saturday's contest. The ice-cold shooting doomed the Pirates, especially when you consider they only lost by 5 points. Combined, Jordan Theodore and Herb Pope were 9-32 in this game, and even though Pope somehow finished with a double-double of 10 PTS and 14 REB (my guess: it was magic) and Theodore had 15 PTS, 6 REB and 5 AST, both had subpar games. And that's to say nothing of the fact that Theodore took 21 of those shots. The Pirates didn't make a single three in the second half (0-9), skewering their chances of coming back as the lead fluctuated back and forth from 8-11 points, but was never seriously cut into until it was too late. Some of this was Cincinnati's defense, but open looks and layups were missed Saturday afternoon.

- Effort and Defense

Both were between good and very good all game long. Seton Hall opened up in man-to-man defense to try and cut down on the open looks from beyond the perimeter and to try and make UC run their offense through Yancy Gates (who was extremely quiet in this game). It didn't work, as the Bearcats made their early threes anyway. In fact, at 7-12 from deep in the first half, they made their threes throughout the half. It wasn't for a lack of effort on the Pirates' end- UC just made more shots. That's why it's a frustrating loss to take for Pirate fans. The Pirates held Cincinnati to just 32% shooting in the second half, but they still couldn't take advantage on the offensive end.

Another indication of the effort was the fact that the Pirates, who aren't a very good offensive rebounding team as it is, grabbed 18 O-boards, or nearly half their total. The effort was there. The made shots were not.

- Slow Starts

This really applies to most of both halves, but the Pirates scored a combined total of TWO points between the beginning of both halves and the first media timeout of both halves. COMBINED. That's not exactly sponsored by Red Bull.

In fact, because of the 13-7 run the Pirates went on to conclude the first half, I think the halftime break actually hurt them. They came out with a similar lack of rhythm in the second stanza. Seton Hall's offense has to get going quicker than that, and the responsibility for that happening falls squarely on Theodore. He took three out of the Pirates' first four shots, and that, to put it bluntly, is not a good thing. The SHU offense runs best (and runs at all, period) when Theodore lets his teammates do the talking on offense early in games. By this point in his career, Jordan should have already realized that bad things happen when he tries to do everything himself. I'm not going to over-analyze this any more.

- UC Credit

You gotta give some credit to Cincinnati- they played very good defense, and had their guards step up and play like they needed the W (which they did). Dion Dixon was tremendous on both ends (20 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST), and Cashmere Wright and Jaquon Parker combined for 25 PTS, 9 REB and 5 threes. They also did a good job of challenging the Pirates' perimeter players, barely giving them any room to work with the ball. In other words, Cincinnati is who we thought they were- a good defensive team that augments their defense with the three-point shot to beat you.

- Bubble Trouble

This isn't a death knell to the Pirates' Big Dance hopes, but it really would have helped for the purposes of the standings and because a W would likely have knocked the Bearcats off the bubble themselves. They now face an enormous test against Georgetown, a now-Top 10 team and the Pirates final remaining chance for a great win (their previous wins that we thought would be great are no longer great, or even very good). I maintain that if the Pirates get wins in their final three games, they'll be in. But if they can't beat Georgetown, that puts an enormous amount of pressure on the team to beat both Rutgers (always a toss-up no matter what the venue) and DePaul (who has proven that it can play with anyone at home this season), plus get one win against Team X in the Big East Tournament. I don't know if this team is an NCAA Team yet. Only time will tell. Being back at home will help, but Georgetown is a team that can win, and has won, ugly. Seton Hall has shown time and time again that it cannot do this. A full preview of the game will be up on Tuesday morning.

It seems there will be even more Hazards to 'Zet Forward' from before this year is out.

Seton Hall Basketball: Cincinnati 62, Seton Hall 57; NCAA Picture Clear for Pirates - Win Out

2012-02-18T23:59:52Z

Cincinnati (19-8, 9-5) opened play with ten unanswered points, building a lead that would prove too much for Seton Hall (18-9, 7-8) defeating the Pirates 62-57 on Saturday night. The Pirates played terrible defense around the perimeter and failed to find any flow offensively; essentially a recipe for disaster. Seton Hall shot just 35% as they saw their three game winning streak snapped and their conference record dip below the .500 mark with three games to play.

The Bearcats had their way from the perimeter in the first half, hitting two 3-pointers in the first two minutes en route to SEVEN (to SHU's four) at the intermission, which resulted in the difference as UC led by 9 at the break. Prior to the game, I noted that Pope (10pts/13reb) and Gates (5pts/9reb) should neutralize each other a bit, while the team that shot the better clip from the perimeter would come away victorious. The Bearcats turned in 27-points from downtown (9-of-22), while the Pirates could muster only 12 (4-of-20).

What did Seton Hall plan for defensively? In their last opportunity to record a quality road victory, the Pirates defended like a team that was unaware of what the Bearcats' bread-and-butter was offensively. Against the Big East's top 3-point shooting team (3PM), rotations were late and assignments were blown. Both our m/2/m and 2-3 looks were absolutely torched in the first half. Against a four-guard lineup, why not a switch to some 3-2? Granted, they're surely not as comfortable in the set, but hell, at least make an adjustment. There should have been a focus on making Gates beat them inside, instead of allowing them to bomb away all night from the perimeter. Granted, the Pirates tightened up defensively in the second half, but it would matter little, the damage was already done. Cincinnati kept the Pirates off-balance throughout the evening, answering every Seton Hall run with a big bucket of their own. The Bearcats wanted and needed this game more and found a way to get it done. Hats off to them, they were the better prepared team tonight, no question.

As noted, Seton Hall struggled tremendously in shooting the ball tonight. Only one starter, Fuquan Edwin (15pts 7-of-15), shot it better than 30% from the floor. Theodore (15pts/7reb/6ast/3to, 6-of-22) couldn't find his shot until the game was out of reach, yet once again, found open teammates who continued to miss layups/bunnies and open jumpers. Theodore should have finished with at least 10 assists, despite the fact that he took entirely too many shots. I've touched on this recently, but it bears repeating. Although Theodore should not be taking anywhere close to 20-shots a game, it has to be frustrating for him to find his teammates on nifty (should be) dimes, only to have them miss layups and brick mid-range jumpers. Somebody has to score the points on this team and if his teammates aren't going to do their part by putting the ball in the basket, we can't get on Theodore for shooting too much. He's taken over a ton of games this season and there's no one I trust more to will this team to victory than Theodore. Hell, Pope and Theodore's play in the final ten minutes probably made this game closer than it should have been, as the Pirates closed within 4 on a Theo layup with 30 seconds to play.

Now, the million dollar question is, "where does this loss leaves the Pirates in regards to their NCAA Tournament chances?" The picture just got a lot clearer. At 7-8 and without a quality road victory, Seton Hall will have to win out (vs GTown, vs RU, at DePaul) if they want to lock up a bid before the Big East Tournament. Anything less and the Pirates will need to win at least a game in the Big East Tournament. Yes, history would be on Seton Hall's side if they won two of their last three and finished 9-9 as only 6 teams (of 55) have failed to make the tournament finishing Big East conference play with an even record. Unfortunately, this team would be in the minority of that history book and would need AT LEAST a game in the BET to improve their chances. It all starts with winning against Georgetown at The Rock on Tuesday night. We gotta have it.

Live Game Thread - Seton Hall Pirates (18-8, 7-7) @ Cincinnati Bearcats (18-8, 8-5) 4:00PM (SNY)

2012-02-18T20:00:24Z

Game #27
	vs.
(18-8, 7-7)		(18-8, 8-5)
February 18th, 2012
Fifth Third Arena, Cincinnati, OH
4:00PM
SNY
Probable Starters
Jordan Theodore	PG	Cashmere Wright
Aaron Cosby	SG	Dion Dixon
Fuquan Edwin	SF	Jaquan Parker
Brandon Mobley	PF	Sean Kilpatrick
Herb Pope	C	Yancy Gates
Twitter
@SOrangeJuice, @JPGuerette, @robertmanganaro
Opening Line Cincinnati (-6)

After a season saving win at Rutgers, the Pirates held serve at home with must-have wins over Pittsburgh and St. John's to even their conference record at 7-7 and in doing so, improved their NCAA chances from, 'hopeful' to 'realistic.'

The Pirates and Bearcats are so evenly matched -- on paper. Kenpom currently has Seton Hall at 45th, while Cincinnati holds the 41st ranking. UC holds a 108-103 advantage in adjusted offensive efficiency, while the Pirates have a 3 point (87-90) advantage in adjusted defensive efficiency.

The glaring difference between the two teams is their respective resumes and that currently separates them on opposite side of the bubble, today. Despite holding a two game advantage in the conference, the Bearcats have their share of bad losses this season (vs PRE, vs MRSH, vs SJU, @ RU), however they do hold quality wins @ Georgetown and @ Connecticut (maybe?).

Both teams need this game and it has all the makings for a rememberable one. The Bearcats probably need it more, but the Pirates realize how close their are to their first bid since 2006. I've been hearing a lot of fans calling the tilt, a, "win and in" for the Pirates. That's correct, assuming the Pirates take care of business at home against Rutgers, (which is never easy regardless of time or place), and on the road at DePaul. There really aren't any safe assumptions when it comes to Big East basketball. We'll have plenty of time to analyze Seton Hall's tournament chances later, but for now, it's one game at a time.

As always, Let's Go Hall!

Seton Hall Basketball: Getting to Know You, Feat. JP and Bearcats Blog

2012-02-18T14:03:03Z

Hey guys! So, we here at South Orange Juice want to give you, the fans, the best coverage possible of Seton Hall Basketball.

Sometimes, that includes a visit from our blogger friends from around the Big East, and today, we have a very special visit from Scott of Bearcats Blog, a terrific site for all things Cincinnati athletics. He has graciously agreed to answer some of our questions in advance of the SHU-UC game this afternoon. You can follow Scott on twitter at @BearcatsBlog.

You can also find my answers to his questions here.

Here we go!

SOJ: The Bearcats are a team that prides themselves on their defense. What’s the strategy that Mick Cronin likes to use at that end of the floor? Pressing? Man vs Zone?

BB: Cronin likes to press. When Parker is in the game, they normally press a lot. That's not to say they won't with Jackson in, but Parker is on the press unit. In the halfcourt, UC goes mainly man to man. If you give them enough fits, they might zone. But mainly UC plays man. Dixon will guard the faster point guards instead of Cashmere Wright though. I would look for Dixon on Theodore.

SOJ: Looking at the offensive numbers, Cincinnati chucks even more threes than Seton Hall does. What other dimensions to the UC offense should the Pirates be aware of?

BB: They drive and kick quite a bit. If Wright drives, he'll pass out around the foul line. Kilpatrick and Dixon mainly drive to score. Especially Kilpatrick. Parker is more a spot up shooter. He won't get his own shots. Gates will get some post touches, but he gets his buckets on offensive rebounds. That's how he scores a lot. And he'll dunk and I'll say #GatesDunk on twitter. Follow me. As for Jackson, he goes off of offensive boards, but has started making awkward drives from 8 feet that will make you laugh until he scores.

UC mainly rolls solo on their field goals. Only Wright racks up assists on the reg. Yeah, the reg. That's how Cincinnati bloggers talk.

SOJ: Cincinnati’s leading scorer Sean Kilpatrick is one of the better players that no one seems to talk about. Break down his game, and what he brings to the team.

BB: He brings the scoring threat. If you look at his numbers, you'll notice he's at the top of the Big East leaders in 3s made and attempted. The team took 14 against the team they played the other day, Kilpatrick took 10. Teams have started getting on him a lot tighter, which has made his shooting percentage drop. Kilpatrick has started driving more. He's pretty good when he's going to the basket because he catches people flat footed. He'll get to the line some. Not a lot though. If he is open, he's going to pull the trigger. If he's not, he'll still pull the trigger.

SOJ: Dion Dixon is an intriguing player. He doesn’t shoot the ball well, but seems to do everything else well for a guard. Is he the "glue guy" for this team?

BB: I wouldn't say he's the glue guy. He's definitely a key guy. He plays the off guard. When Wright is on the bench, he runs the point. If Cash isn't getting assists, chances are that Dixon is. Offensively, he's been a wreck from 3 this season. He improved a lot last year but has regressed some this year. He also isn't getting to the line as much as he did last year, which has hurt his offense. When he's got the ball, he goes solo. UC runs a lot of isos with him or high screens. He goes to the paint and makes his old man moves. Every once in a while he'll throw up a dunk. He passes well and plays decent enough defense, even though he's not very fast. Dixon hasn't rebounded very well this year. Before he had 6 rebounds Wednesday, he had 0 the previous 3 games. When he's got the game going, he's a very solid player.

SOJ: Obviously, the brawl with Xavier was a defining moment not only in the seasons of both teams involved but in the college basketball season in general. How has the team responded so well? Did Cronin have a lot to do with it in terms of his stern response? Specifically, how has Yancy Gates responded to the aftermath of the brawl?

BB: The biggest thing that changed with the Bearcats is that they stopped running the offense around Yancy Gates. It wasn't working. People look past the first 8 games, but they played like (redacted). They blew a huge lead to Presbyterian, couldn't put Marshall away and were humiliated by Xavier. Those losses were around uninspiring wins. When the guards became the stars, the offense took off. The opponents got worse, but the guards embraced the leadership role. Getting Parker back helped a lot as well. Mick really got the guys to buy in. It worked very well.

Gates has come back accepting a role as a rebounder and defender of the basket. He cleans up the glass on both ends. He's the only one on the Bearcats who will. I think he would like more touches, who wouldn't, but he gets them the hard way. In a league with few dominating bigs, Gates stands out. He needs to be more consistent offensively though. He gets too cute and doesn't go up strong.

SOJ: With a trio of big games coming up with Louisville, USF and a rematch with Marquette, is there a chance this could be a trap game for the Bearcats?

BB: I don't think so. The motto from Mick has been win the home games. This is a pretty big home game. With the teams in a similar boat, I don't think the Bearcats will be looking past this one. It's too late in the year for trap games. Especially when you are on the bubble.

SOJ: What’s your prediction for the game? Also, who is the player you think will be the "X-factor" for UC tonight?

BB: I expect a tournament style game. Probably Big East tournament. Maybe Maui Invitational. There is a sense of desperation around both teams. If the play isn't sharp, the intensity will be. I'm going to go homer on you and pick the Bearcats in a tight one. I would watch out for Dixon. I think he's going to have an impressive game.