Led by head coach Steve Fisher,the maestro of the famed Fab Five, the San Diego Aztecs are back in the NCAA Tournament. This is their fourth consecutive tournament bid and the sixth of Fisher’s tenure. So what should you know about this squad? 1. Jamaal Franklin is a monster and a half. He leads the Aztecs in scoring, rebounds, assists and steals. Franklin is the type of player that shines come March Madness. 2. During the course of the season, San Diego defeated
For the second consecutive season, head coach Fred Hoiberg has led the Iowa State Cyclones to the NCAA Tournament. This is the first time since 1997 that Iowa State has made consecutive appearances in the big dance. So what should you know about the Cyclones? 1. Iowa State is one of the most exciting teams in the nation. Four players average double-figures and six post at least 9.0 points per contest. As a result, the Cyclones are fourth in the nation in
I will be rooting for the Boston Celtics against the Miami Heat tonight. Having been a Philadelphia 76ers fan for nearly four decades, that’s a pretty big deal. Usually there are only three circumstances that can get me to throw my allegiance behind a team I have despised for as long as I’ve watched the NBA. 1. By winning, the Celtics would beat a team whose loss would help the 76ers. 2. By winning, the Celtics would get a tougher playoff opponent. 3. By winning, the
While the more popular in-state New Mexico Lobos receive more praise, the New Mexico State Aggies are not a team to sleep on. At 24-10 they are the champions of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and are one of the hottest teams in the country entering the tournament. [Read more…]
The Oklahoma Sooners are the fifth and final team from the Big 12 in the NCAA Tournament. They finished fifth in the conference, with an 11-7 conference record, and lost to Iowa State in the Big 12 tournament. Here’s five things you need to know about the 10-seeded Sooners: They go nine deep. The Sooners don’t have a real superstar, but they have a lot of pretty good players. Nobody plays more than 30 minutes per game, and nine guys get
This is the second in a five-part series on The History of the San Antonio Spurs (© Whitman Publishing, LLC), which was recently released and is written by Sheridanhoops.com columnist Jan Hubbard (twitter: @whyhub). In this excerpt, the roots of the Spurs franchise are traced back to the first six colorful, but largely futile years the franchise spent as the Dallas Chaparrals. (You can order the book here.) The Chaps managed to last six seasons in North Texas but never generated excitement.
Mississippi is back in the Big Dance for the first time since since 2002 after winning the SEC championship by defeating Florida on Sunday afternoon. Here are five things you need to know about the Rebels: 1. Marshall Henderson is their heart and soul. He’s crazy, outspoken and brash, but Henderson’s tongue-wagging enthusiasm is what makes the Rebels tick. He averages 20.1 points per game and virtually carried Ole Miss to the SEC title. 2. They score a lot of points. The
After being upset by 15 seed Norfolk State in last year’s tournament, the Missouri Tigers are back, though seeded seven spots lower, at #9. They had a moderately successful first season in the SEC after winning the Big 12 tournament championship a year ago. They’ll be taking on Colorado State in the first round. Frank Haith won the AP’s Coach of the Year award last year in his first season at Mizzou, a sharp turnaround from his tenure at Miami, where