STORMINSPANK'S HAWKEYE RAMBLINGS

OT: I Got Pwned Last Week

2008-05-15T13:13:00.003-05:00

I took this picture on my Blackberry. It's pretty easy to hold it straight out in front of you and drive at the same time when you are doing 10 under the speed limit because of these three gentlemen driving down Hwy 52 in Rochester. As you can see, there was no one else around me. Trust me, I can multi-task while driving, esp. in this circumstance. Cripes.

But that's not the point... the point is... I got nuthin'.

OT: New Browser - Flock

2008-05-08T21:33:00.003-05:00

Ok, I might be a little late to the party, but I just discovered "Flock", the Social Web Browser.

Very cool little browser. Currently I run Firefox as my main browser (which also happens to be the fundamental core of Flock), as well as IE7, Opera, and Safari. I've only played around with the browser for a few minutes, but I have to say that it does wonders for the Social Networking niche.

Click on the button below to get started...

NFL: Bears Fans Rejoice!! Adam Archuleta Has Been Released!!

2008-05-06T22:17:00.004-05:00

ADAM ARCHULETA HAS BEEN RELEASED BY THE CHICAGO BEARS!

More Information HERE.

Strike up the Band!

Hallelujah!!

MEN'S BB: Tony Freeman is No Longer a Hawkeye

2008-05-02T23:15:00.003-05:00

There are several stories out of Iowa City explaining what happened today. Bottom line is that Tony Freeman will be transferring from Iowa. Rumors of this move have been circulating since March, and have now been confirmed. The rumors of Tony's departure really picked up steam after a recent I-Club outing where the captains of the 08-09 team were announced and Tony wasn't one of them. Randy Peterson's article in the Des Moines Register gives us Tony's side of the story.

Jon Miller, founder of Hawkeyenation.com, has a terrific analysis of the situation. Read about it HERE.

Say what you will about Tony's on the court freestyling ways, losing a player of his caliber is never a good thing. He will be missed sorely, and it most certainly will lower expectations for next year's squad.

If anything good came out of this situation, it would be that it looks like Jeff Peterson is going to be sticking around.

Good luck to Tony wherever he ends up. He is no longer a Hawkeye. Just as the case with Tyler Smith, he will never be thought of as a Hawkeye again. That's a shame, in my opinion.

FOOTBALL: Here's What Frustrates Me The Most About Iowa Football Right Now

2008-04-29T19:27:00.004-05:00

This blog entry could end up very lengthy, so I am going to try to approach it will the understanding that I am going to cut myself off after so many words.

Think back 3 or 4 years ago...

At the time everyone was talking about the recruiting classes coming in, the cupcake schedule, and the perfect coach at the helm. For all intents and purposes, it looked like the years between or 07-09 were going to be a cakewalk for the Iowa Football program. I mean, let's face it, Iowa had been spitting out 10 win seasons against decent competition. Now in those years ahead, Iowa was going to be able to get through the Big Ten season without facing Michigan OR Ohio State. HOLY COW! How does THAT happen? The toughest games on the schedule? Wisconsin (a team Iowa absolutely owned the past few decades) and Purdue/MSU. Add in a fairly posh non-conference schedule, and Iowa was pretty much guaranteed a BCS game.

Ouch.

Think about that, though. I know expectations change, however these couple years were supposed to be the years where Iowa gets the break in the schedule and shouldn't have issues winning football games. Not only did Iowa not get to a BCS game last year, they didn't even get A Bowl game. Iowa was dealt one of the easiest schedule since I have been born and they can't even muster a winning record. Just sad.

If it didn't happen in 07, it SURELY would happen in 08 with the famed recruiting class in its junior year and having the system down pat. However, expectations are fairly low around most of the Iowa fanbase, as well as across the national scene.

It's frustrating to me to see a program that once had a chip on its shoulder, once had a sense of moxy, once had pride and respect, to end up looking like a program that doesn't know what to do next... almost like a kid lost in the grocery store. Kirk Ferentz has remained steadfast through it all with his normal demeanor and normal attitude towards it all. He is a rock, and for that I applaud him. That said, I want to see results from this program. Enough of the off-the-field events. Enough of the deer in the headlights looks from the players. Enough following instead of leading. It's time to get that chip back on the shoulder and go out and punch someone in the mouth. I, for one, am tired of looking at our team and seeing a 16 year trying to hit on supermodel.

The time is now. This Hawkeye team needs to step up to the plate and do something. Now.

All I am asking is to see some fire from this Iowa program. I don't think that is too much to ask.

"The Catch" was the beginning of the end.

Last year's results were nothing like the results of the '04 season, even though both situations are comparable.

First year QB, 4th string starting RB, Starting TE wasn't even in the 2 deeps to start the year, First Year Kicker. Gallery Gone. Kaeding Gone. Freddie Gone. Mo Brown Gone. Hodges, Clauss, Steen, Sanders All Gone. The offense replaced EIGHT starters, the defense replaced SEVEN starters. The injury bug struck hard that season too.

Last year's team arguably had more coming back that the 04 team did.

2004: 10-2 - Cap One Champs
2007: 6-6 - Sitting Home Eating Nachos

What's the common denominator? I don't know. I honestly don't know what the hell happened to the Iowa program. There wasn't much turnover as far as personnel goes in the program. Coordinators stayed the same. Schemes stayed the same. Did the coaches forget how to coach? Did the players forget how to play? Very doubtful.

The ONLY thing I can think of is attitude. Love or Hate Drew Tate's "attitude", that guy had HEART. He had FIRE. He had the INTANGIBLES. Something that we have been SORELY missing from this Iowa team the past three years.

We can sit here and make excuses... injuries, talent, coaching, etc... But when it comes down to it, if our guys don't have the attitude, the passion, the gumption, the want to, then we will NEVER get back to where we were 3 years ago.

Why was 2004 so different? Iowa won 10 games that year without a ton of superstars. Yes, that team had Roth, Greenway, Hodge, and Paschal... all NFL players, but what about the offense? How was Drew Tate able to become the BT POY as a first year starter? Senior WRs, sure. But zero running game.

Remember the OSU game? That Iowa team went out and beat the piss out of a team made up of Troy Smith, Antonio Pittman, Teddy Ginn Jr, Santonio Holmes, Vernon Gholston, Nick Mangold, Schlegel, Carpenter, Dustin Fox, Donte Whitner... The List goes ON and ON and ON.

How DID Iowa beat the Buckeyes that year? Can you tell me Iowa had more talent? Had more NFL prospects? Surely, that dog don't hunt. Iowa had those 10 wins seasons because our players played their tails off, they played within themselves, and our coaching staff had them believe in themselves.

We Need Some Moxy.

OT: Nerds Rejoice! Guillermo del Toro Signs on to Direct the New Hobbit Films

2008-04-25T08:51:00.002-05:00

Guillermo del Toro the dude that rocked the dojo in Pan's Labyrinth has officially signed on to direct the next two chapters in the Lord of the Rings series. Ok, wait, not the next two, the first two chapters... well, you know what I am talking about.

del Toro is going to move to New Zealand for the next four years, and with Peter Jackson, are going to give birth to an epic duo of movies.

New Line is expected to release the movies sometime between 2010 and 2012.

FOOTBALL: Tate Forcier Posts Offers on Website, Bielema is Cool

2008-04-17T21:32:00.003-05:00

For the past half year, various forums on the Internet have discussed the presence of several offer sheets posted online. A QB from California has his offers scanned and posted on a website. It gives an insight as to what the different programs preach to their recruits. Iowa happened to be one of colleges that offered Forcier. SI columnist, Andy Staples, recently wrote an article on it entitled, "A closer look at the small and LARGE print of recruiting letters".

The link to the different Forcier offers has been passed around the various Hawkeye message boards the past few months, as well. Here is the link everyone is talking about: http://www.qbforce.com/tate/offers/Offers.htm

My favorite? Besides Iowa? It has to be Wisconsin. If you didn't notice, check out the P.S. at the bottom of the letter from Bielema. I have posted it below for your convenience.

(CLICKABLE FOR BIGGER, JUICIER IMAGE)

Bret = Cool.

OT: I'm Not Dead. I Feel Happy! I Feel Happy!

2008-04-17T21:22:00.001-05:00

Truth be told there isn't a whole hell of a lot going on in the Hawkeye Nation. Sure, the spring game is coming up and Lickliter officially signed two more recruits (Fuller and Bawinkel), but nothing to get all hip hip hippity about. The North Iowa I-Club is coming up next week, where Lickliter and Brands will be talking.

But, really, I'm mean, there's not a lot going on. I supposed I could hit up the BTN and watch some Big Ten baseball? Maybe?

So, alas, I'm not dead... I actually think I'll go for a walk.

Cheers.

MEN'S BB: Stanley Pringle Found Impersonating Richard Hayden

2008-04-03T10:19:00.005-05:00

One of Penn State's main ball handlers was caught, well, handling his balls. Stanley Pringle, JUCO transfer, was allegedly masturbating in a library on the Penn State campus. The library? Pattee Library. It looks like the police department has their hands on the situation. Insert palming joke here. Yeah, yeah, the puns could go on forever, so I'll just make my joke with a fark.

Perhaps Warren can help explain the situation.

MEN'S BB: Anthony Tucker and the Minnetonka Skippers go for the State Championship Tonight

2008-03-29T11:03:00.003-05:00

Minnesota Boys Basketball AAAA State Championship

Listen to the Minnetonka vs. Henry Sibley.

Anthony Tucker and the #1 seed Skippers play at 8 PM.
MSBN Channel 1 is broadcasting.

http://www.mnsportsnetwork.com/#msbnchannel1

The game will be televised on Channel 45 in the cities.

If you are outside of the viewing area, you can pay $10 and watch the game online hosted by B2TV.com

Watch Online Here

Good luck to Iowa Hawkeye recruit, Anthony Tucker, and the Skippers of Minnetonka.

On a side note, I think I forgot to mention Tucker was awarded the Metro Player of the Year a few days ago.

Photo courtesy of the Star Tribune.

Tucker has the inside track to the state's Mr. Basketball, given out at the end of April. The metro players will all weigh heavily in the competition, however don't count out Cody Schilling from Ellsworth. Cody just broke the state record for most points by a prep in the state of Minnesota, a record that will likely fall again in a few years to Kevin Noreen (a sophomore from Transitions high school, who has over 1,800 points in just his sophomore year). Cody and Kevin square off at noon in the Class A championship game.

MEN'S BB: Listen Live - Minnetonka Opening Game of 4A Basketball State Tournament

2008-03-26T09:56:00.003-05:00

Listen to the Minnetonka vs. B/K.

Anthony Tucker and the #1 seed Skippers play at 10AM.
MSBN Channel 1 is broadcasting.

http://www.mnsportsnetwork.com/#msbnchannel1

If you can't stream, there is a live score ticker at the top of the page.

Go Skippers!

MEN'S BB: Apparently ESPN thinks a 10 Seed Beating a 7 Seed is an Upset

2008-03-18T17:15:00.004-05:00

Wha????

(Image is clickable)

MEN'S BB: Can a Triscuit Cracker Box Do Better than Me in the 2008 NCAA Basketball Tournament Challenge? The secret to filling out your bracket.

2008-03-17T23:22:00.009-05:00

So just how much luck goes into filling out your bracket come March Madness? Could a monkey do better than most people? Perhaps. How about a Triscuit Cracker Box? (We're talking Original flavor, not that hoidy-toidy, prima donna Crack Pepper and Olive Oil flavor, mind you.) We shall find out.

I wrote the 64 teams on scrap paper (by scrap paper, I mean the torn up envelopes of junk mail sent out by companies wasting their time and money) and then loaded them into the Triscuit Cracker Box.

After the applicable shaking of the box, I blindly chose the 32 winners of the first round.

ADVANCING TO THE SECOND ROUND:

Ouch. UNC out, beaten by the always tough, "Play in Game Winner." Memphis takes it on the chin from the scrappy UT-Arlington team. The only 2 seed to survive the first round was Tennessee. Even more odd was three of the 8 seeds winning, which we know never happens.

Shaking of the box occurred again, at the same point I am sure I shook, as well.

ADVANCING TO THE SWEET SIXTEEN:

That UT-Arlington sure has one hell of a story going on right now. Cinderella story, Outta nowhere. A former sixteen seed, now, about to become the regional champion. It looks like a mirac... It's in the hole! It's in the hole! It's in the hole! The highest seed on the table is Tennesee, as UCLA and KU go down.

Time to shake again.

ADVANCING TO THE ELITE EIGHT:

Well, there went Tennessee. Damn. Good thing UT-Arlington is still around, though. Phew.

Queue 311, time to get the box all mixed up. Get it? All Mixed Up? Ah, forget it.

ADVANCING TO THE FINAL FOUR:

For the first time in the history of the NCAA Tourney, we have a 13, 12, 8, and 3 seed in the Final Four. How this "luck" thing working out? Hmmmmmmm........

Shaking the box, shaking the box, shaking the box....

ADVANCING TO THE FINALS:

Sun Belt and Mountain West representing! Should be a barnburner in San Antonio.

AND YOUR 2008 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPION PICKED BY THE ONE AND ONLY TRISCUIT CRACKER BOX:

GO CRAZY, HILLTOPPER COUNTRY!!

The rest of the field can only stand by and think what might have been.

Here's the comparison of the brackets (images are clickable for higher resolution):

TRISCUIT

STORMINSPANK (Umm... did I take Cornell over Stanford solely because of Andy Bernard? Not solely, but it had a lot to do with it.)

Other than that, GO VOLS!!! Bruce Pearl for President.

MEN'S BB: A Look at the 2008 NCAA Tournament and My Bubble Team Analysis (RESULTS)

2008-03-16T18:53:00.004-05:00

Seeing that Oregon was my last team, they would have been bumped for the SEC Tourney Champs, Georgia. That would have sunk the Bubble Teams to 10, eliminating Oregon.

Looking at my predictions, I went 64/65 in my picks.

ONE INCORRECT PICK: Illinois State was OUT, and Oregon was IN.

Here are my 4 year totals: 255/260 (.981)

MEN'S BB: A Look at the 2008 NCAA Tournament and My Bubble Team Analysis (Final Prediction)

2008-03-16T14:41:00.004-05:00

STORMINSPANK'S BRACKETOLOGY

Big Movers this Update -
UP: Arkansas, St. Joe's, Virginia Tech, Temple
DOWN: Ohio State, UMASS

Changes: Ohio State and UMASS are OUT. St. Joe's is IN. Temple winning the A-10 snags another at-large bid.

Updated Look at Bubble Teams for 2008 and Projecting the NCAA Tourney Field

NOTE: IF ILLINOIS WINS THE BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP, OREGON IS OUT.

TEAMS THAT I THINK ARE LOCKS/AUTOBIDS (parenthesis contain total number of bids for the conference; the first number is the locks and the second number is the total bids the conference will get as of right now)

LOCKS

NUMBER ONE SEEDS: NORTH CAROLINA, MEMPHIS, UCLA, TENNESSEE

Am East (1/1) - UMBC
ACC (3/4) - UNC, Duke, Clemson
A. Sun (1/1) - BELMONT
A-10 (2/3) - TEMPLE, Xavier
Big East (7/8) - PITTSBURGH, Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame, UCONN, Marquette, West Virginia
Big Sky (1/1) - PORTLAND STATE
Big South (1/1) - WINTHROP
Big Ten (4/4) - Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan State
Big 12 (5/6) - Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Baylor
Big West (1/1) - CAL STATE FULLERTON
CAA (1/1) - GEORGE MASON
CUSA (1/1) - MEMPHIS
Horizon (1/1) - BUTLER
Ivy (1/1) - CORNELL
MAAC (1/1) - SIENNA
MAC (1/1) - KENT STATE
MEAC (1/1) - COPPIN STATE
MVC (1/2) - DRAKE
MWC (2/2) - UNLV, BYU
NEC (1/1) - MOUNT SAINT MARY'S
OVC (1/1) - AUSTIN PEAY
Patriot (1/1) - AMERICAN
Pac-10 (4/6) - UCLA, Washington St., Stanford, USC
SEC (3/5) - Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State
Southern (1/1) - DAVIDSON
Southland (1/1) - UT ARLINGTON
Summit (1/1) - ORAL ROBERTS
SWAC (1/1) - MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE
Sun Belt (1/2) - WESTERN KENTUCKY
WCC (2/3) - SAN DIEGO, Gonzaga
WAC (1/1) - BOISE STATE

CAP/BOLD TEAMS WON THEIR CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT

BUBBLE TEAMS

So here's who I have on the Bubble...

11 spots are up for grabs

Those teams IN are noted with an asterisk (*).

BUBBLE TEAMS BY CONFERENCE:

ACC:
Miami *
Maryland
Virginia Tech
Florida State

A10:
UMass
Dayton
St. Joe's *
Rhode Island

BIG EAST:
Syracuse
Villanova *

BIG TEN:
Ohio State

BIG XII:
Texas A&M *

CAA:
VCU

C-USA:
UAB

HORIZON:
Cleveland State

MVC:
Illinois State *
Creighton
S. Illinois

MWC:
New Mexico

PAC-10:
Arizona *
Arizona State
Oregon *

SEC:
Arkansas*
Kentucky *
Mississippi
Florida

SUN BELT:
South Alabama *

WCC:
St. Mary's *

RANKING OF BUBBLE TEAMS:

Ranking of the Bubble Teams (As of 3/16/2008)

New Rank	Prev. Rank	+/-	Team	Overall	Conf	RPI	SOS	L10	Top 50 Record	Prev RPI	RPI Diiff
1	3	0	Arkansas*	22-10	9-7	26	20	5-5	6-4	41	-15
2	1	0	Miami *	21-1	8-8	34	41	7-3	3-3	26	8
3	4	0	Texas A&M *	23-10	8-8	41	51	4-6	5-7	44	-3
4	2	0	Kentucky *	18-12	12-4	57	22	7-3	4-6	47	10
5	6	1	Illinois State *	23-9	13-5	33	73	8-2	2-5	33	0
6	6	0	St. Mary's *	24-6	12-2	36	136	7-3	2-3	36	0
7	7	0	South Alabama *	24-6	16-2	37	127	8-2	3-2	34	3
8	16	8	St. Joe's *	21-12	9-7	45	53	5-5	5-6	50	-5
9	10	1	Villanova *	20-12	9-9	51	48	6-4	4-7	51	0
10	11	1	Arizona *	18-14	8-10	38	2	4-6	5-8	39	-1
11	12	0	Oregon *	18-13	9-9	58	37	5-5	4-9	56	2
12	25	12	Virginia Tech	19-13	9-7	53	38	6-4	1-7	59	-6
13	5	-6	Ohio State	19-13	10-8	49	17	4-6	2-10	46	3
14	9	-5	UMass	21-10	10-6	43	71	7-3	1-5	43	0
15	13	-2	Dayton	21-10	8-8	32	34	5-5	4-4	32	0
16	14	-2	Syracuse	19-13	9-9	55	9	4-6	3-8	52	3
17	15	-2	Arizona State	19-12	9-9	83	77	5-5	5-7	81	2
18	17	-1	Florida State	19-14	7-9	59	15	6-4	3-6	62	-3
19	19	0	Creighton	20-10	10-8	47	66	6-4	1-6	49	-2
20	22	2	Mississippi	21-10	7-9	46	64	5-5	5-3	48	-2
21	21	0	VCU	24-7	15-3	54	160	8-2	0-2	55	-1
22	20	-2	S. Illinois	17-14	11-7	62	16	6-4	5-7	61	1
23	23	0	UAB	22-10	12-4	56	95	7-3	1-2	54	2
24	24	0	Florida	21-11	8-8	72	87	3-7	2-7	72	0
25	26	1	New Mexico	24-8	11-5	58	159	8-2	1-4	58	0
26	27	1	Cleveland State	19-12	12-6	64	88	7-3	1-4	64	0

Devan Bawinkel Commits to the Iowa Hawkeyes

2008-03-15T12:39:00.005-05:00

It was reported last night in The Clubhouse on Hawkeyenation.com that Devan Bawinkel had committed to the Iowa Hawkeyes. Today, other sources are confirming the commitment.

(photo courtesy of Scout.com)

Devan Bawinkel - Winnebago, IL (played at Highland CC in Freeport, IL last season and was a three year all-stater at Winnebago) - 6'5", 185 lbs. He boasted a 4.0 GPA in high school to boot.

With the commitment, Todd Lickliter has bolstered the roster with another versatile wing with a great shooting touch.

Bawinkel was a top player in the state of Illinois in the Class of 2006, and finished 4th in the state's Mr. Basketball. Steve Alford recruited Devan, had him in for an unofficial visit and offered him a ride to play for the Hawks at the time. After receiving interests from other schools such as Georgetown, West Virginia, Michigan State, DePaul, Ohio State, Wisconsin, North Carolina State, Butler, Notre Dame, Miami, and plenty more, Bawinkel decided to sign on with John Beilein at West Virginia. Midway into his freshman season, Devan sustained an injury that cost him a substantial amount of time on the court. Fast forward to the end of the season, Beilein heads to Michigan, (t)Huggins comes into West Virginia. To say the new staff and Bawinkel didn't click is an understatement, and Bawinkle decided to go the JUCO route.

Devan just finished up an MVP campaign at Highland Community College (click on the link for a short vid, as well). He has what has been described as a "lightning quick release". He is a very versatile player with a sound knowledge of the game. Here's a look at the company Bawinkel kept in 2005.

He will have two years of eligibility at Iowa.

A recap of this year's recuits:
Matt Gatens - 4 star SG out of Iowa City, IA; #13 SG in the nation (will play 2-3 for Iowa)
Anthony Tucker - 3 star PG/SG out of Minnetonka, MN; #35 PG in the nation (will play 1-3 for Iowa, has shot Mr. Basketball in state of MN and becoming a 4 star)
Andrew Brommer - 2 star PF/C out of Rosemount, MN (will play the 4-5)
Jermain Davis - 3 star SG JUCO out of Plymouth, MN (two years eligibility)
Aaron Fuller - 2 star PF out of Mesa, AZ (under the radar, better than his star ranking)
Devan Bawinkle - 3 star SG JUCO out of Winnebago, IL (two year eligibility)

Iowa still has over a month to sign additional recruits, and I would not be surprised to see Lick and Co. get one more guy into the system... preferably a JUCO big.

MEN'S BB: A Look at the 2008 NCAA Tournament and My Bubble Team Analysis (Friday Update)

2008-03-14T09:50:00.006-05:00

STORMINSPANK'S BRACKETOLOGY

Well, Bubble Teams didn't help themselves last night.

Villanova, Dayton, UAB, Arizona State, Arizona, Houston, Florida, Oregon, UMass, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas Tech, Nevada, Rhode Island all lost.

Big Movers this Update -
UP: Florida State, Temple, St. Joe's, Utah State, Villanova
DOWN: Syracuse, UAB, Florida, New Mexico, UMass, Arizona, Oregon, Mississippi, Rhode Island, Maryland, Texas Tech

At the time of the update, though, only two teams have swapped places. Syracuse is out, Villanova is in. Western Kentucky moves off the bubble and into the locks by winning their conf. tourney.

Updated Look at Bubble Teams for 2008 and Projecting the NCAA Tourney Field

TEAMS THAT I THINK ARE LOCKS/AUTOBIDS (parenthesis contain total number of bids for the conference; the first number is the locks and the second number is the total bids the conference will get as of right now)

LOCKS

NUMBER ONE SEEDS: TENNESSEE, NORTH CAROLINA, MEMPHIS, DUKE

Am East (1/1) - UMBC/Hartford
ACC (3/4) - UNC, Duke, Clemson
A. Sun (1/1) - BELMONT
A-10 (1/2) - Xavier
Big East (7/8) - Georgetown, Louisville, Notre Dame, UCONN, Marquette, West Virginia, Pittsburgh
Big Sky (1/1) - PORTLAND STATE
Big South (1/1) - WINTHROP
Big Ten (4/5) - Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan State
Big 12 (5/6) - Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas State, Baylor
Big West (1/1) - CONF WINNER
CAA (1/1) - GEORGE MASON
CUSA (1/1) - Memphis
Horizon (1/1) - BUTLER
Ivy (1/1) - CORNELL
MAAC (1/1) - SIENNA
MAC (1/1) - CONF WINNER (If Kent St loses, they will be added to the Bubble)
MEAC (1/1) - CONF WINNER
MVC (1/2) - DRAKE
MWC (2/2) - UNLV, BYU
NEC (1/1) - MOUNT SAINT MARY'S
OVC (1/1) - AUSTIN PEAY
Patriot (1/1) - CONF WINNER
Pac-10 (4/6) - UCLA, Washington St., Stanford, USC
SEC (3/5) - Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State
Southern (1/1) - DAVIDSON
Southland (1/1) - CONF WINNER
Summit (1/1) - ORAL ROBERTS
SWAC (1/1) - CONF WINNER
Sun Belt (1/2) - WESTERN KENTUCKY
WCC (2/3) - SAN DIEGO, Gonzaga
WAC (1/1) - CONF WINNER

CAP/BOLD TEAMS WON THEIR CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT

BUBBLE TEAMS

So here's who I have on the Bubble...

12 spots are up for grabs

Those teams IN are noted with an asterisk (*).

BUBBLE TEAMS BY CONFERENCE:

ACC:
Miami *
Maryland
Virginia Tech
Florida State

A10:
UMass *
Dayton
Temple
St. Joe's
Rhode Island

BIG EAST:
Syracuse
Villanova *

BIG TEN:
Ohio State *

BIG XII:
Texas A&M *
Texas Tech

CAA:
VCU

C-USA:
UAB
Houston

HORIZON:
Cleveland State

MVC:
Illinois State *
Creighton
S. Illinois

MWC:
New Mexico

PAC-10:
Arizona *
Arizona State
Oregon *

SEC:
Arkansas*
Kentucky *
Mississippi
Florida

SUN BELT:
South Alabama *

WCC:
St. Mary's *

WAC:
Utah State
Nevada

RANKING OF BUBBLE TEAMS:

Ranking of the Bubble Teams (As of 3/14/2008)

New Rank	Prev. Rank	+/-	Team	Overall	Conf	RPI	SOS	L10	Top 50 Record	Prev RPI	RPI Diiff
1	1	0	Miami *	21-9	8-8	26	32	7-3	3-3	27	-1
2	2	0	Kentucky *	18-11	12-4	47	13	8-2	4-7	48	-1
3	3	0	Arkansas*	20-10	9-7	41	42	5-5	4-5	42	-1
4	6	2	Texas A&M *	22-9	8-8	44	58	5-5	4-6	47	-3
5	7	2	Ohio State *	19-12	10-8	46	17	4-6	2-9	49	-3
6	9	3	Illinois State *	23-9	13-5	33	72	8-2	2-5	35	-2
7	11	4	St. Mary's *	24-6	12-2	36	139	7-3	2-3	38	-2
8	12	4	South Alabama *	24-6	16-2	34	125	8-2	3-2	37	-3
9	4	-5	UMass *	21-10	10-6	43	64	7-3	1-4	40	3
10	13	3	Villanova *	20-12	9-9	51	43	6-4	3-7	56	-5
11	5	-6	Arizona *	18-14	8-10	39	2	4-6	5-8	29	10
12	8	-4	Oregon *	18-13	9-9	56	22	5-5	4-9	53	3
13	14	1	Dayton	21-10	8-8	32	29	5-5	3-4	34	-2
14	10	-4	Syracuse	19-13	9-9	52	9	4-6	3-8	46	6
15	15	0	Arizona State	19-12	9-9	81	71	5-5	5-7	76	5
16	22	6	St. Joe's	20-11	9-7	50	62	5-5	3-4	55	-5
17	27	10	Florida State	19-13	7-9	62	23	6-4	3-5	64	-2
18	25	7	Temple	19-12	11-5	60	51	8-2	3-4	60	0
19	18	-1	Creighton	20-10	10-8	49	69	6-4	1-6	51	-2
20	20	0	S. Illinois	17-14	11-7	61	12	6-4	5-7	62	-1
21	24	3	VCU	24-7	15-3	55	159	8-2	0-2	54	1
22	17	-5	Mississippi	21-10	7-9	48	65	5-5	5-4	43	5
23	19	-4	UAB	22-10	12-4	54	92	7-3	1-2	50	4
24	21	-3	Florida	21-11	8-8	72	86	3-7	2-8	65	7
25	26	1	Virginia Tech	18-12	9-7	59	52	6-4	0-6	57	2
26	23	-3	New Mexico	24-8	11-5	58	159	8-2	1-4	52	6
27	31	4	Cleveland State	19-12	12-6	64	88	7-3	1-4	71	-7
28	33	5	Utah State	23-9	12-4	67	177	7-3	0-1	72	-5
29	34	5	Nevada	20-10	12-4	71	143	8-2	0-2	77	-6
30	32	2	Houston	22-9	11-5	78	137	5-5	1-4	66	12
31	30	-1	Rhode Island	21-11	7-9	77	104	2-8	1-5	67	10
32	29	-3	Maryland	18-14	8-8	82	25	4-6	1-5	69	13
33	28	-5	Texas Tech	15-15	7-9	65	4	4-6	4-9	59	6

All the losses that happened yesterday really help teams like S. Alabama, St. Mary's, VCU, and Illinois St. They moved up without even playing.

JAKE KELLY: #1 All-Time Freshman 3-pt Shooter in Iowa History

2008-03-13T13:52:00.003-05:00

Jake Kelly stands #1 in the All-Time Iowa Freshman Record Book in regards to 3 pt %

3-Point Field Goal Percentage (1 att/game)*
1. .434 (30-69) JAKE KELLY, 2007-08
2. .396 (19-48) Ryan Luehrsmann, 1996-97
3. .381 (16-42) Jess Settles, 1993-94
4. .373 (47-126) Brody Boyd, 2000-01
5. .359 (14-39) Kevin Smith, 1990-91
6. .321 (44-137) Chris Kingsbury, 1993-94

I am looking forward to 3 more seasons with Jake in the Old Gold and Black.

Men's BB: Iowa Hawkeyes vs. Michigan Wolverines - Rubber Match in the Big Ten Tournament

2008-03-13T08:56:00.003-05:00

VS.

GAME INFO: Thu., March 13th, 2008 - 11:05 A.M. CST - Conseco Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, IN
IOWA: 13-18 (6-12); RPI: 184 / Michigan: 9-21 (5-13); RPI: 181

TV COVERAGE: Big Ten Network - DirecTV (Ch. 206) / DISH Network (Ch. 140) - Wayne Larrivee and Shon Morris will call the action.
OFFICIAL GAME NOTES - VIEW HERE
LINE - Iowa is a 1.5 point favorite at the neutral site; 112.5 is the over/under.

Three weeks ago Michigan was the team "nobody wanted to face in the Big Ten Tournament" per the boys at the Big Ten Network studios. Since that analysis, Michigan has lost 4 out of 5 (including 3 in a row). Losses were to Northwestern at home, at Minnesota, at Penn State, and Purdue at home.

Iowa can't puff its check out, however, as the Hawks have lost 6 out of their last 8, with the only wins coming against Northwestern.

But, hell, scrap all that junk. This is the Big Ten Tournament, at one point almost renamed the Steve Alford Tournament, Iowa has done well in this tournament. They'd need to win 4 in 4 days to have any sort of postseason hopes. It's been done before... by Iowa. Let's not fool ourselves, though, this team doesn't look anything like the team that gave Steve Alford his infamous extension with Iowa. There's no Recker. There's no Evans. And that run in the tournament was done in the United Center, not the Conseco Fieldhouse. Yeah, but besides Illinois, Iowa is the team that has had the most success in the Big Ten Tournament. What does this all mean? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Coach Lickliter says, "We're planning on winning it," in regards to the Big Ten Tournament. Why not? I believe him. It starts with Michigan.

KEYS TO THE GAME:
1.) Somehow, someway get more than one player "on" during a game. Freeman, Kelly, Tate, Johnson, Gorney all have had great games during the season. I have a had time remembering when 2 or more of them did it in the same game. I'd like to see that.
2.) Extend the defense. Don't let DeShaun Sims and Anthony friggin' Wright hit treys on you all night. Pressure D on Manny Harris, as well. Iowa hasn't played good D in awhile, hence the losses.
3.) Hit the gaps, find the open man, work the clock on offense. And for God sakes, when Tate is posting up down low, get him the damn ball.
4.) Control the tempo.
5.) Attitude goes a long way with this team. The Hawks need the right one today.

PREDICTION:
Iowa - 64
Michigan - 59

MEN'S BB: 2008 Big Ten Tournament Prediction

2008-03-13T08:53:00.000-05:00

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IOWA beats Michigan
PENN ST beats Illinois
MINNESOTA beats Northwestern

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IOWA beats Wisconsin
OHIO STATE beats Michigan State
PURDUE beats Penn State
INDIANA beats Minnesota

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OHIO STATE beats Iowa
INDIANA beats Purdue

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OHIO STATE over Indiana

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