2005-06 Official Big Ten bball Thread

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

yahoo.com

3/4/06

(10) Illinois 75, (25) Michigan St. 68Preview - Box Score - Recap
By LARRY LAGE, AP Sports Writer
March 4, 2006

EAST LANSING, Mich. (AP) -- Dee Brown opened and closed the Big Ten regular season with sensational performances against Michigan State.
Brown scored 16 of his 20 points after halftime and made two 3-pointers during a 12-0 run midway through the second half to lift No. 10 Illinois to a 75-68 victory over the 25th-ranked Spartans on Saturday.

"When I'm playing against them, I get a little more juiced," Brown acknowledged.


The lightning quick point guard scored a career-high 34 points two months ago in the conference-opening victory over Michigan State.

"Dee Brown killed us then, and Dee Brown killed us now," Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said.

The Illini (25-5, 11-5 Big Ten) finished the regular season with five wins in six games and will share the conference title if last-place Purdue upsets Ohio State on the road Sunday.

"Crazy things can happen," Illinois coach Bruce Weber said. "It's our fault we're not in the lead of the league. We didn't take care of business, but we didn't sit back and pout."

Illinois and Duke are the only schools with at least 25 victories the past six seasons.

The Spartans (20-10, 8-8) lost five of their last seven, crumbling down the stretch in a season that started with them ranked fourth in the country and as favorites to win the Big Ten.

"We've shown how good we can be, beating three top-10 teams," point guard Drew Neitzel said. "It's just a consistency thing with us."

Michigan State's Paul Davis had 21 points and 14 rebounds, Shannon Brown scored 20 and Maurice Ager added 15 points.

The Big Ten tournament starts Thursday, with the Spartans playing on the opening day for the first time after its first .500 record in the conference since the 1996-97 season.

"I've got a worn-out team, so the break couldn't come at a better time," Izzo said.

Brown broke a 48-all tie with a 3-pointer with 12:34 left. Teammate Jamar Smith followed with a pair of shots beyond the arc and Brown closed the decisive run with another 3-pointer with 8:47 to go.

"Dee Brown took over," Izzo said. "He's the MVP of the league because he just makes plays.

"Dee Brown is for them what Mateen Cleaves was for us. Some guys just have a will to win."

The Spartans pulled within six points with four-plus minutes to go and again with 2:09 left, but gave up baskets to James Augustine on the ensuing possessions each time.

Rich McBride and Shaun Pruitt each scored 12 for the Illini. Augustine and Smith added 10 points apiece for Illinois, which won its fifth straight against the Spartans.

"Teams are not quite able to just lock in on Dee," Weber said. "We have other guys you have to think about."

Michigan State's top three players were solid, but they didn't get much help with the rest of the team combining for just 12 points.

The Spartans, already reeling in the frontcourt without power forward Matt Trannon because of a broken jaw, missed power forward Marquise Gray, who broke his right foot in the previous victory over Wisconsin.

Michigan State is 111-9 at home since 1998-99 and lost for just the second time at the Breslin Center this season, sending out seniors such as Davis and Ager in a somber mood. "You put everything into a game and it comes out the way it does, that's a real low point," Davis said.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

yahoo.com

3/4/06

(23) Iowa 59, Wisconsin 44Preview - Box Score - Recap

Wisconsin

Iowa
By LUKE MEREDITH, Associated Press Writer
March 4, 2006

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Jeff Horner scored 22 points, Adam Haluska added 16 and Iowa beat Wisconsin 59-44 Saturday, completing the best home season in school history.
The 23rd-ranked Hawkeyes -- who clinched at least a No. 2 seed for the Big Ten tournament -- finished with a school-record 17 home wins and went unbeaten in Iowa City for the first time since 1965-66.

Up four at halftime, Iowa (22-8, 11-5 Big Ten) slowly built its lead to 17 midway through the second half. Haluska scored 10 of Iowa's first 13 points in the second half, and Jeff Horner and Mike Henderson each scored twice during an 10-0 run that helped give the Hawkeyes a 47-30 lead with 9:08 left.


Wisconsin (19-10, 9-7) got within 53-41 as Ray Nixon hit a pair of 3s, but the Hawkeyes took the game out of the Badgers' hands by draining the shot clock on every possession down the stretch.

The win kept alive Iowa's hopes for a share of its first Big Ten title since 1978-79, which will happen if Purdue upsets Big Ten leader Ohio State tomorrow.

Kammron Taylor led the Badgers with 11 points and Alando Tucker added 10. The loss dropped Wisconsin to fourth in the Big Ten, the first time in coach Bo Ryan's five seasons that the Badgers failed to finish in the top three.

Wisconsin's 44 points were a season-low, and marked the sixth time this season Iowa held an opponent under 50.

The news was all positive for Iowa, as senior forward Greg Brunner left the game late in the second half with what appeared to be a right leg injury.

Brunner returned to the court but did not play during the final three minutes.

Wisconsin took its largest lead, 16-7, with an early 11-0 run that was capped by back-to-back 3-pointers from Kammron Taylor and Michael Flowers. The Hawkeyes responded with a 9-0 run to tie the game at 16, then outscored the Badgers 8-2 over the final 2:44 of the first half to take a 24-22 lead at the break.

Wisconsin went 4-of-5 from 3-point range in the opening half but committed 10 turnovers and failed to shoot a free throw. The Badgers finished 2-8 on the road during the regular season

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

yahoo.com

3/4/06

Indiana 69, Michigan 67

Indiana 69, Michigan 67Preview - Box Score - Recap

Indiana
March 4, 2006

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) -- Marco Killingsworth scored 19 points and Robert Vaden and Roderick Wilmont added 13 apiece Saturday to rally Indiana to a 69-67 Big Ten victory over Michigan.
The win assured the Hoosiers (17-10, 9-7) a first-round bye in the Big Ten tournament and was Indiana's 10th consecutive win over Michigan (18-9, 8-8). The Wolverines finished the regular season losing six of their last eight games.

Daniel Horton scored 34 points and Graham Brown added 10 for the Wolverines.

Michigan scored nine of the first 11 points of the second half to open up a 39-29 lead with 16:11 remaining. Indiana followed with a 14-3 run to go in front for the first time, 43-42, with 11:41 left.

The Hoosiers increased the margin to six points, but Dion Harris returned the lead to Michigan on his 3-pointer with 7:26 left.

The teams traded the lead twice before Earl Calloway split a pair of free throws to put Indiana up 65-64 with 30.9 seconds left. Wilmont sealed the win with four free throws in the final 2 seconds. It was the final regular-season game for Indiana head coach Mike Davis, who earlier announced his resignation effective the end of the season.

 

[BB73]

In Ann Arbor today, TSUN led Indiana 10-0 early, and at one point Indiana had 3 points and 9 turnovers. Then in a classic display of TSUN guts, brains, and heart, they allow Indiana to pull out a 69-67 win on senior day for the scUM'ers.

That win puts Indiana in the top half of the big 10 tournament as the #5 seed. Assuming tOSU wins their first tourney game, the second round would be the Wiscy-Indiana winner. It also probably puts Indiana in the NCAA with a 9-7 conference record.

 

[BB73]

Well, the Illinois and Iowa wins mean that tOSU will have to earn the outright Big 10 title on the court during Scarlet Sunday. That's OK with me.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Personally, I would like another shot at Indiana......that loss still leaves a bad taste in my mouth....

 

[BB73]

Personally, I would like another shot at Indiana......that loss still leaves a bad taste in my mouth....

True, but it would once again be a hostile crowd at Conseco.

Brunner got a sprained ankle late in Iowa's victory today. It looked bad enough that it could hamper him in the Big 10 tourney.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ChicagoTimes

3/5/06

Bucks stop at Big Ten awards

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March 5, 2006 BY HERB GOULD STAFF REPORTER

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Next year is supposed to be the start of something big at Ohio State. That's when 7-footer Greg Oden arrives in Columbus at the top of a dangerous recruiting class.

The new Buckeyes will need to be good because they have a tough act to follow.

The Ohio State team this season has seen to that by grabbing a share of the Big Ten title. That puts second-year coach Thad Matta ahead of schedule -- well, ahead of everybody else's schedule.

It also puts Matta at the top of the league. By winning his fourth conference championship in six years, Matta is an easy choice for Big Ten coach of the year. This Big Ten title follows league banners in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference at Butler in 2001 and in the Atlantic 10 at Xavier in 2002 and 2003.

Several Big Ten players are deserving of consideration for player of the year. Buckeyes forward Terence Dials emerges, though, from a crowded field as the most important player on Ohio State's roster.

Joining Dials on the Sun-Times' All-Big Ten first team are Iowa's Greg Brunner, Wisconsin's Alando Tucker, Illinois' Dee Brown and Michigan's Daniel Horton.
Brunner and Tucker, who had outstanding years, easily could have been the Big Ten's top player if their teams had put together enough victories to finish first. Brunner has a chance to average a double-double for the Hawkeyes, who dueled the Buckeyes for most of the Big Ten race. Tucker, who's on the verge of leading the conference in scoring during league play, kept the Badgers in the hunt despite midseason personnel losses.


Brown might not have the flashy shooting numbers he posted last season, when he was Big Ten player of the year. But the all-around job he has done in keeping the Illini near the top of the league, despite the departures of Deron Williams, Luther Head and Roger Powell, goes beyond statistics.

And Horton, who ranks second in the conference in scoring during league play, was the catalyst in bringing the Wolverines to the brink of their first NCAA tournament appearance since 1998.

Conspicuous by their absence on the first team are the enigmatic Michigan State trio of Maurice Ager, Shannon Brown and Paul Davis. While they had big years statistically, those stats haven't translated into a successful regular season for the Spartans.

Some of that can be attributed to the Big Ten's toughest schedule, one that left Michigan State as the only team that played each of the other top six teams twice. But teams need to play the hand they are dealt. In that regard, the Spartans came up short.

That said, Shannon Brown, who had a better all-around year than Ager and Davis, rates a spot on our second team. He is joined by Illinois' James Augustine, Northwestern's Vedran Vukusic, Ohio State's Je'Kel Foster and Minnesota's Vincent Grier.

Augustine is on the verge of becoming the 11th Big Ten player to score 1,000 points and come up with 1,000 rebounds. Vukusic led the league in scoring. Foster emerged as the Big Ten's best three-point shooter. And once Grier got untracked after early-season injuries, he led the Golden Gophers to a late-season charge.

Ager and Davis rate slots on the third team, along with Iowa's Jeff Horner, Wisconsin's Kammron Taylor and Indiana's Marco Killingsworth.

[email protected]





HERB GOULD GRADES THE COACHES



Coach Grade Comment
Thad Matta, Ohio State A+ Molded unheralded squad into a champion
Bruce Weber, Illinois A Kept Illini in hunt despite huge personnel losses
Steve Alford, Iowa A Kept things together in maybe last run at Iowa
Bo Ryan, Wisconsin A- Still tough despite midseason personnel losses
Bill Carmody, NU B+ With limited hand, kept Cats competitive
Ed DeChellis, Penn State B+ Nittany Lions showed surprising signs of life
Tommy Amaker, Michigan B Without injuries, season could have been more
Matt Painter, Purdue B Kept battling despite depleted roster Tom Izzo, Michigan State C Lacked toughness, depth to meet expectations Dan Monson, Minnesota C- Righted ship, but only after messy league start Mike Davis, Indiana C- Had difficult time with some intense pressure

GOULD'S BALLOT


COACH OF THE YEAR
Thad Matta, Ohio State
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Terence Dials, Ohio State
All-BIG TEN First team

Dee Brown, Illinois
Greg Brunner, Iowa
Terence Dials, Ohio State
Daniel Horton, Michigan
Alando Tucker, Wisconsin Second team

James Augustine, Illinois
Shannon Brown, Michigan State
Je'Kel Foster, Ohio State
Vincent Grier,Minnesota
Vedran Vukusic, Northwestern Third team

Maurice Ager, Michigan State
Paul Davis, Michigan State
Jeff Horner, Iowa
Marco Killingsworth, Indiana
Kammron Taylor, Wisconsin

TERENCE DIALS FILE


Team: Ohio State
Class: Senior
Position: Center
Height: 6-9
Weight: 260
Age: 22
Hometown: Youngstown, Ohio
Major: Sociology SEASON AVERAGES

Minutes: 30.1
Points: 15.2
FG%: 57.7
FT%: 64.5
Rebounds: 8.1
Assists: 0.6
Blocks: 1.0

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

3/21/06

ESPN the favorite to retain Big Ten’s TV package

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

Teddy Greenstein
CHICAGO TRIBUNE




Now that its six teams have been bounced from the Big Dance, the Big Ten can focus on its next major event — TV negotiations.

The conference’s deal with ABC/ESPN doesn’t expire until June 2007, but sources say the league would like to determine its next broadcast partner by May 1.

It will be an intriguing race if the Big Ten doesn’t re-sign with the ESPN family, which has exclusive negotiating rights.

Fox Sports would love to seize a Big Ten football package after nailing down rights to four of five Bowl Championship Series games. Fox will break into the college game after the new year by broadcasting the Jan. 1 Fiesta Bowl, followed by the Orange, Sugar and national championship game, which figures to add a title sponsor.

Fox made a run at Notre Dame before the Irish re-signed with NBC in December 2003. And the network wants to join forces with the Big Ten to add a season-long buildup to the BCS games. But ESPN has to be considered the strong favorite to retain its Big Ten rights, in large part because of its continued commitment to college athletics.

Sources say the network is closing in on a landmark six-year extension with the Big East that would put all 128 conference basketball games on one of the ESPN networks, excluding games carried by CBS. This season the ESPN family carried 101 of the 128 league games.

ESPN/ABC already has a similar arrangement with Big Ten football, having televised 42 of the conference’s 44 games last season.

No wonder ESPN likes to brag about its "footprint" — a band of networks that reaches 90 million homes and includes ESPN2, ESPN Classic, ESPNU and ESPN 360, a broadband service available for free by some Internet providers.
Although Fox might offer more money, ESPN would be nearly impossible to top in terms of national exposure.