Delaware (6-6) at JMU (3-9): Hilarious timing. YouDee knocks off the league’s top team at home, and then gets to travel immediately to the CAAs second farthest outpost to play a struggling but game team. I don’t know if Matt Brady gets the credit, or Humpty Hitchens, or both, but JMU could’ve quit two weeks ago and I think they are playing even harder now. They were the skinny kid in high tide waves last night but never backed down from ODU.

Earlier this week I smelled but didn’t predict Delaware to pull off the upset win. We’re going the other way now. Don’t be shocked if JMU wins.

YouDee 71, JMU 66.

***

Georgia State (7-5) at Hofstra (2-10): This is the only matchup of the season for these two. Here’s Georgia State’s preview. And Defiantly Dutch.

Panthers 60, Pride 57.

***

Drexel (10-2) at Towson (1-11): Out of obligation to the facts, I must point out this game was the 60-27 sideshow from early January. Bad news: Drexel is playing better. Good news: So is Towson. The Dragons could really use Chris Fouch to find a rhythm, and personally I want to see McCoy v. Nwankwo battle for missed shots. That matchup is so awesome Chris Cooper will salivate.

Drexel 63, Towson 41.

***

William & Mary (2-10) at UNCW (4-8): This is a game between two teams desperately needing a victory not for position in the standings but rather for sanity between the ears. The Dubmen have lost four in a row and seven of eight, and have been pushed around of late. The Tribe hasn’t been the same since the overtime loss at VCU, followed by the two-point home loss to this UNCW team.

Keep an eye on the adjustments to the adjustments. Tony Shaver doubled Keith Rendleman in the post, btu effective passing allowed UNCW to shoot 56% and make eight threes in the first meeting. Plus, of late UNCW has had a hard time keeping dribblers out of the lane. Brandon Britt is a different player now than two weeks ago.

UNCW 71, William & Mary 64.

***

Northeastern (7-5) at VCU (10-2): The Huskies play better than any CAA team in the Siegel Center. Northeastern won in Richmond in 2009 and 2010, and last year’s nine-point game was close throughout.

Here’s what I’m looking at in this one–NUs veteran guards (Jon Lee, Joel Smith) won’t be fazed by the VCU press. However what happens when they give up the ball will matter. In order for Joel Smith to fire threes–he was 10-12 last year in two games against VCU–he has to get the ball in a position to shoot.

Also, Brad Burgess has scored in double figures once in VCUs last six games. Is it me, or is Burgess due one of those 23-point nights? He had 26 against NU last year.

VCU 65, Northeastern 54.

***

Old Dominion (10-2) at George Mason (10-2): Think there will be any intensity to this one? It will be an old fashioned, new fangled rock fight. Enjoy it.

Ryan Kish over at GMUHoops has the exact correct keys. To me, he is dead on with not being all panicky about turnovers. ODU forces a ton of turnovers but isn’t a runout team. However get killed on the boards and the Monarchs will shoot two-footers all night.

The key for ODU is to resist the urge to get outside itself. Mason will try to speed up the tempo, to make the game a fun-loving frolic for the fans. The number of jacked up threes needs to be a small one.

Mason 61, Old Dominion 59 (OT)

Popular opinion, based on a lousy November, is that CAA is down this year. There’s no way the CAA is worthy of a second bid, right? Today I’m going to show you that the opinion is only partially right.

You see, our Association is certainly having its challenges, but I’m telling you right now that the top four teams in the CAA are not actually having a down year. Not anymore. In fact, they’ve all kicked it into high gear as we cross into February, The Proving Month.

If you want closing speed, I submit four teams already moving fast, and getting faster:

• Drexel has won 10 straight and is 16-1 in its last 17 games. Only seven of the vanquished 16 teams have come within 12 points of the Dragons, and four within seven points.
• VCU, a team of which you’re probably familiar, has won eight in a row (since losing to Drexel) and is 16-2 in its last 18 games. Ten times Rams’ foes haven’t reached 60 points, and six times they haven’t even hit 50 points.
• Mason is 11-2 in its last 13 games–one of those losses is Drexel. They are the deepest team in the league.
• Old Dominion is 7-1 in its last eight games and 8-2 in its last 10 games. Their only losses are to VCU and Mason. Two of Blaine Taylor’s best players became eligible in December and his very best player is finally healthy.

Let me put it this way: these top four teams are 36-4 versus the rest of conference.

So yes, the CAA as a whole is a victim of youth, sketchy scheduling, and transition in the year after three teams made The Dance and two of those teams won games. But the bellwether programs are playing at a Sweet 16 level and you should take note.

Now let me add a little fodder perhaps nobody has noticed: this regular season is beginning to structure very much like the 2005-06 season. You remember that one, right? You trusted the CAA to include George Mason, and look how that paid off. And while we’ve almost forgiven you for not including Hofstra, remember they played ODU in the NIT quarterfinals. We’ve been playing damn good basketball for years.

Here’s the other side. In 2007 you put your faith in Stanford, a fourth-place PAC 10 team who was 18-12 and had lost four of its last five games. You ignored a stumbling finish and bought into the brand. The Cardinal “rewarded” you by falling behind Louisville by more than 20 points inside of 10 minutes of their first round game, by more than 30 points for much of the second half, and fell by a lopsided margin. You know now what we knew then–you should’ve taken Drexel.

Remember, too, that VCU backed up that faith in 2007 by beating Duke. Old Dominion plunked Notre Dame in 2010. Last year must still be fresh in your minds. I think we’ve proven the point that the CAAs best can beat anybody, anytime.

So here’s what I mean by similar structure. In 2005-06 the conference had three distinct tiers. There were four very good teams (final conference victories 15, 15, 14, 13). There were four good-to-middling teams (final conference victories 12, 11, 8, 8). There were four terrible teams (final conference victories 4, 3, 3, 2).

This year the top four have separated themselves in a manner very similar to 2005-06. Each has 10 victories, and the fifth place team is three games back with a 7-5 record. In fact, both Georgia State and Northeastern have seven wins, Delaware is 6-6, and we’ll add the 4-8 Dubmen to get us the middle tier of four teams. The bottom four teams are JMU at 3-9, Hofstra/W&M at 2-10, and Towson at 1-11.

See where I’m going?

It gets more intriguing. At a similar point in 2006 (2/6) we didn’t even have this much separation at the top. Mason (11-2) and UNCW (10-3)–who would eventually tie for the regular season crown at 15-3–led the way. Hofstra followed at 9-3 and then came three teams (ODU, VCU, NU) at 9-4.

Only Wilmington would finish the regular season without losing again. We could be talking an even greater level of dominance this year from the top tier.

Now, I’m certainly not comparing 2006 to this season in a phony attempt to make it look apples-and-apples. I know the CAA RPI numbers that year were astronomically better. I know this year lacks a signature win. My point is that the top tier of the CAA–in any season–is quality basketball that can compete with anyone, and it has very little to do with pre-Thanksgiving action.

My mitigating evidence is that the early season was terrible, for sure, but there was a reason.

Mason was dealing with a whole new coach and system, and lost core elements of its team. VCU lost four seniors from its Final Four team. ODU lost just as many of its weapons, as well as Frank Hassell, who was as valuable for what he provided more than his raw numbers. And Drexel was banged up–no Chris Fouch–and nobody knew who Damion Lee was.

The poor RPI showing is manifested in bad losses–due in part to newness and injury–and not having heavy duty schedules. But each team has improved over two months and flourished of late. Isn’t that exactly the kind of team you want?

Here’s the other side of that. Weren’t Connecticut and Pitt preseason top 10 teams? All I ask is that if you’re going to hold November against the CAA, please hold January against those teams.

Let’s face it–a big part of your business is storytelling anyway, right? Isn’t the CAA a way more exciting story than some humdrum, <insert name here> fifth-place Big Ten team? You do a good job selecting teams, but somebody is going to be unhappy they were left out. They always are. Heck, Seth Greenberg already has his speechwriters scribbling away.

I may be an idiot for several things, like the CAA Hoopsapalooza. But trust me on this one.

• Damion Lee had 25 points and eight rebounds and was the horse down the stretch for Drexel in its win over Northeastern. Quincy Ford played 36 minutes and scored 12 points for NU.
• Kyle Anderson hit 5-7 threes, 8-10 overall, and scored 25 points to lead Delaware past Mason. This was on a night Devon Saddler hit 2-10 field goals and committed seven turnovers.
• VCUs Treveon Graham scored 13 points, hitting a three to ignite a 20-5 first half spurt, and grabbed three rebounds in just 21 minutes in VCUs win over William & Mary.
• Marcus Thornton made 5-6 threes, 10-12 overall, and scored 28 points in the loss.
• An injured Freddie Jackson had five assists and five rebounds in 33 minutes for the Dub in its loss to Georgia State.

Using my best teevee voice: “In other CAA action, Hofstra downed Towson 74-49 behind 28 points from Mike Moore. Nat Lester chipped in with 19 points, crossing the 1,000-point plateau for his career. Erique Gumbs scored 12 points to lead Towson.”

A few interesting items from Delaware’s upset win over Mason. Freshman Jarvis Threatt, who has been playing very well as of late, sprained his ankle and didn’t play in the second half. No word on his status this morning.

In the two games prior to last night, Anderson had not scored and missed all five three point attempts.

***

Let me now state the obvious: If Old Dominion puts down James Madison tonight in The Ted, we have a four-way tie atop the standings. ODU will join VCU, Drexel, and Mason at 10-2.

What’s more those four will be three games clear of fifth place. Thus, barring a temples-bursting collapse in the final six games of the season, those four begin a Willie Shoemaker dance to the end of the regular season.

Coaches are coaches and they are not happy, even in victory:

Shaka Smart: “We certainly didn’t defend the way we wanted to tonight, but in the end we were able to make winning plays.”

It’s also the last month before March, which is a paradox unto itself. March is the greatest four-week stretch on the calendar–the CAA tourney, Selection Sunday, the NCAA tournament, and my birthday. Shaka Smart agrees–last year he literally burned the calendar in anticipation of what March can bring. But once the candles are blown out, it’s over.

Soak up every single day of these next eight weeks. They will be gone before you know it.

***

Mason (10-1) at Delaware (5-6): This is our first Danger, Will Robinson game of the year. Mason blitzed YouDee 89-63 a couple weeks back, but as you all know Delaware is a much stronger home team. What’s more, the Patriots have sorta’ coasted of late–four straight wins since that Delaware game were over teams with a combined 9-35 record. None were dismantled like you’d expect from a first-place team.

The Hens are the complicating factor for Paul Hewitt. Jamelle Hagins and Devon Saddler can be a devastating combo, provided Hagins can stay out of foul trouble and Saddler stops slinging NBA three-point attempts. Jarvis Threatt is coming on as well, making YouDee a dangerous matchup at a dangerous time.

Mason counters with a boatload of scoring talent. Think about the number of different players we’ve mentioned in the tones of “he’s killing it” this year. I count six off the top of my head (Pearson, Morrison, Wright, Gray, Edwards, Allen).

Notable omission–Andre Cornelius. He’s due one of those 6-9 from three games.

Bearded Player 76, Bald Coach 69.

***

Drexel (9-2) at Northeastern (7-4): Game of the night, folks.

In Drexel’s nine-game winning streak, only three teams have come within 16 points of the Dragons. Recently the offense has carried them: Drexel is shooting 48.9% from the floor and 43.9% from three over the past four games. Credit Frantz Massenat, who may not be the CAA player of the year, but in my mind he’s the CAAs most valuable player.

Massenat averaged 14.3ppg and 5.7apg last week and tops the CAA in three point FG% (47.5%). He is leading Drexel in both scoring (12.5ppg) and assists (4.1apg). Here’s the thing–he is also the go-factor for the offense. Massenat requires respect from the arc, but his ability to drive-and-dish is making Samme Givens look awfully good, and has a hand in Dartaye Ruffin’s play over the past week..

Is it me, or is Northeastern channeling its inner Drexel, circa 2010? Bill Coen is winning games by playing conservative but aggressive defense, limiting turnovers and thus possessions, and getting the basketball when it gets to the glass. Sound familiar?

Quincy Ford continues to add to his freshman-of-the-year resume. Ford is getting better while other freshmen are hitting the wall. Ford scored a team-high 18 points at ODU and had 17 points and seven rebounds versus Hofstra. He has seven double-digit scoring efforts in the last nine games and is fifth in the CAA in steals.

That’s important because you know Drexel is going to take Jon Lee and Joel Smith out of their comfort zones. Coen needs Ford to hit mid-teens points on 10 or fewer shots.

This will be one of those games that’s fun to watch because it’s everything we love about CAA basketball.

Colonel Flint 59, Professor Coen 54.

***

Towson (1-10) at Hofstra (1-10): The best part of this game is the thought that in five days–if Towson wins and W&M loses–the Tigers can go from losers of 41 straight to tied for 10th. Check that. The best part of this game is that Pat Skerry told me yesterday that he “took the jackhammer” to his team in Monday’s practice. They aren’t resting on their laurels and I love it.

Oh, the game. The bizarre close-but-no-cigar season for Mo Cassara continues to deepen. The Pride have lost eight of their 10 games by seven or fewer points, but it gets weirder when you look past the final scores. Hofstra has been drilled twice by VCU, but in seven of the other eight games, they were in a one-possession game with three minutes or less to play.

Big Bob Nwankwo will post a 14/14 double double, but Hofstra is too good in the backcourt.

Mo’ Better Blues 67, Courage Under Fire 53.

***

VCU (9-2) at William & Mary (2-9): I fear for the Wrens here. You can bet there were tongue lashings and tape mashings in preparation for this one from Shaka Smart. If you remember, the first time through was a 69-68 overtime win for the Rams in which Marcus Thornton was the havoc-wreaker. Don’t be surprised to see a different Briante Weber tonight, as Smart said something earlier this week most coaches won’t admit–revenge is absolutely a motivating factor.

VCU is allowing CAA opponents to score just 55.5 PPG, and you know their propensity for swipes–fourth nationally with 10 per game. Most importantly—Rob Brandenberg broke out of a season-long slump last week, giving VCU another weapon on offense not named Brad Burgess.

House of Delegates 73, House of Burgesses 56.

***

Georgia State (6-5) at UNCW (4-7): We will see if shirts-and-skins and John Chaney 6am combat works out immediately, because the Dubmen will be tested by a physical Panthers team.

Four of GSUs five CAA losses have been by three points or less, and their defense continues to be strong. GSU has limited its CAA foes to 56.1 PPG and 35.4% FG shooting. UNCW is going to need a game much like its performance against William & Mary earlier this year. The Tribe doubled Keith Rendleman every time he touched the ball, but crisp passing and a couple major league threes from Tanner Milson were keys in that win.

Obviously Georgia State plays that machup zone, but the emphasis is the same–long arms and lots of bodies around Rendleman. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ron Hunter’s pregame speech invoked allowing anybody but Rendleman to beat them.

This is also a neck-up game, as both teams could use a victory right now. We’ve reached the time of year where freshmen hit the wall, and Buzz Peterson is relying on a collection of freshmen he just threw into the wall.

Hunter 65, Gatherer 59.

***

JMU (3-8) at Old Dominion (9-2): Yeah, tomorrow. Sorry.

“Hello, Steve Pikiell.”

“Steve? This is Bill Coen from Northeastern. How’s your summer been?”

“Hey Bill. How are you? Never seems to be enough down time. Family is getting together for the Fourth, but then it’s right back out onto the road.”

<Coen chuckles> “I know. I was just dividing up travel with Jimmy. Hey, I’m calling because we have an open date December 3 this year. It doesn’t matter if we start at home or on the road. You guys interested in a home-and-home?”

<Sound of fingers typing on a keyboard> “Bill, you’ve got everybody back. I don’t know.”

“Tell you what, Steve. We can start at your place next year. Then you can come here the year after Lee and Smith have graduated.”

<PAUSE>

“I’m good with that, Bill, thanks. Only problem is that we have December 3 reserved for Manhattan. Can you do December 10?”

“Yeah, that works for us, Steve. Count on it–two years, we start at your place this year on December 10. I’ll get the paperwork moving.”

Presto, Bracketbusters.

***

Here’s the problem with Bracketbusters: stop trying to fool us into thinking it’s something it isn’t. It’s disruptive to the schedule. It’s painful to the budgets. Nobody likes to step out of conference for what will be–for most teams–a meaningless game.

If you aren’t one of the anointed programs that get a plum teevee assignment or big RPI-boosting game–and those teams number about six and those games about three every year–it’s pointless.

Your Coach can schedule any of those games on his own during the summer. Seriously, I don’t see one game on the CAA Bracketbusters slate that cannot be handled by each institution within its own scheduling principles.

Please don’t get me wrong. I know both Mason and VCU received at large bids largely on the strength of their Brackbusters wins at Wichita State. And I know ESPN is pouring a ton of money into mid majors at a critical juncture in the season.

But it isn’t the basketball bacchanalia it’s purported to be. If you aren’t one of the anointed, it becomes more BudgetBusters and a giant inconvenience than anything. What’s more, for every top 100 RPI win possibility there is a loser in that scenario. (Bless you Andy Glockner for BracketEliminators.)

Bracketbusters absolutely matters, for six teams. And I will say the CAA is in a no-lose position this year, because teams cannot lose. We are–at best–on the fringes of an at large bid. We’re talking the fool’s gold scenario of two teams from VCU, Drexel, and George Mason finishing 16-2 and losing in the conference tourney finals.

That fool’s gold scenario includes a top 100 RPI win in the event. Lose in the event and the nearly-shut door likely closes. We don’t need the sideshow in late February that tries to make us believe it’s anything more than that.

We can still get the marquee games played in November and December. Schedule them, for gosh-sake.

Can’t do it because you need end-season recency? Fine–schedule one game on Wednesday or Thursday between the end of the CAA tournament and Selection Sunday. Heck, you want a made-for-teevee conference challenge? How about the CAA/Valley challenge played in March after both conferences have finished their conference tournament.

My point is this–there are options, and I don’t need to be faked out by the hype. Bracketbusters at 140 teams is ridiculous, and the payoff is not what is promised. It’s time for something different.

You rip up the matchups. I will hope for 12-0 from the golf course.

It’s the same for Your Team. Today, we transition to February. We’ve dabbled in second meetings, but this is where familiarity, scouting, and the stress of goals come together. Slogging is the norm. Fatigue tends to build upon itself, and it’s in full force. Plus, school is back in session.

We’ve reached the next critical phase in the season. Don’t be afraid to do something different–you might have to in order to succeed. We learned one transition this morning–Buzz Peterson has taken away his team’s practice uniforms. The Hawks will practice, at 6am “John Chaney” style, shirts-and-skins. Peterson has also taken away lounge and locker room privileges.

Today you may exhale. The five games in 11 stretch ended with quite a bang–Towson’s win over UNCW. I don’t know if it tells us anything, but here’s everyone’s record during the stretch (and overall):

Mason:  5-0 (10-1)

Drexel: 5-0 (9-2)

VCU:  5-0 (9-2)

Old Dominion: 4-1 (9-2)

Northeastern: 3-2 (7-4)

Georgia State: 1-4 (6-5)

Delaware: 2-3 (5-6)

UNCW:  1-4 (4-7)

James Madison: 2-3 (3-8)

William & Mary: 0-5 (2-9)

Hofstra: 1-4 (1-10)

Towson: 1-4 (1-10)

***

Mark Selig penned a nice piece about the emergence of this year’s freshman class. Clearly they are making an impact.

Here’s one thing I’m wondering, and watching. If you believe in the freshman wall–and let’s face it, barring an anomaly it exists–is it also very reasonable to believe teams relying on freshman may struggle in the next couple weeks?

Khalid Lewis and Kyle Anderson have been struggling mightily as of late for Delaware. Adam Smith is clearly trying to press his way through the wall. Marcus Thornton is as inconsistent as freshmen can get. Ditto Towson’s duo of Deon Jones and Kris Walden.

On the other hand, two freshmen–Northeastern’s Quincy Ford and Delaware’s Jarvis Threatt–played less earlier in the season and have been surprise weapons for their teams. UNCWs Freddie Jackson was in that camp until his knee injury.

Keep an eye on Drexel’s Damion Lee and VCUs Briante Weber to see if they approach the wall and how it may impact those two teams. On the other side, Northeastern’s Reggie Spencer and VCUs Treveon Graham are worth a sitcky note.

The point: coaches are relying on youth this season, and we’ve hit February. Slog season is in full swing, and the least dependable players–freshies–will be depended upon for quality play.

***

Couple non-Towson notes from the weekend:

• ODU scored 46 points in paint and William & Mary scored 44 total points.
• Freshmen Quincy Ford and Reggie Spencer combined to score 30 points and 15 rebounds in NUs win over Hofstra. Northeastern started the second half on a 10-2 run to put Hofstra in a hole for which it could not recover. The Pride missed its first eight field goal attempts coming out of the break.
• Drexel shot 47% from the field, made 19-24 free throws, and didn’t commit a turnover for the game’s first 17 minutes in its win over Delaware. Samme Givens posted a 23/10 double double and Frantz Massenat filled up the boxscore–19 points, five assists, and a big fat bagel in the turnover department. Devon Saddler scored 22 points but made just 7-20 field goals. Jarvis Threatt looked very good, scoring 16 points.
• Mason got a 29/15/3 from Ryan Pearson in leading the Patriots past JMU. Pearson was 11-for-18 from the field and hit a pair of three-point field goals.  His 15 boards were one-third of Mason’s total while outrebounding the Dukes 45-29. Humpty Hitchens led JMU with 27 points.
• Editorial comment: I’m going to miss Pearson and Humpty Hitchens next season.
• Andrey Semenov broke out his Russian Sickle again. An international foul, again. Matt Brady, on Semenov: “Andrei has developed a reputation for dumb fouls. I’d love to say he doesn’t deserve it but he deserves it”
• James Madison has every reason to pack it in, but they play hard every night.
• Vertrail Vaughans looks uncomfortable and lacking confidence. I’m no coach or shot doctor, but he doesn’t look right.
• VCU did not score the final 4:18 of the first half and allowed Georgia State to score the game’s final seven points but held on to win 58-57.
• Big sequence, in many ways: Brad Burgess was not good for most of the game but with two minutes to play, and after a Jihad Ali three cut a double-digit lead to six and the GSU Arena was rocking, Burgess drilled an shot and was fouled. The mark of a leader is doing what’s necessary to win games. This includes having the mindset of a closer.
• Georgia State had its 10-game home winning streak snapped.

Heck, he expects it this year. Skerry and his team expect to win every game. The coach is building a culture, and even if the wins aren’t piling up, how they win is non-negotiable and it’s how they do things right now.

We didn’t make light of Towson’s struggles to get to this point, and we’re not going to patronize Skerry or the Towson program now with an us-against-the-world theme.

Granted, this is the best win of the weekend, and we’re very happy for everyone associated with the program. But in the grand picture it represents nothing more than preparation, dedication, and execution coming together to a successful conclusion.

It almost didn’t happen. The Tigers were up seven points with a minute to play, but alternating UNCW threes and 1-2 trips to the foul line by Towson–followed by a Keith Rendleman layup on a defensive breakdown–saw Towson call timeout with 31 seconds to play, leading 62-61.

“I could see it in their eyes,” Skerry said of the dynamics of the huddle during the timeout. “In light of what we’ve been through guys were yelling and hyped up but in a positive way. So we talked about basics. We talked about how to play ball screens, the possession arrow, timeouts. We reminded them of time and score to keep them focused.”

You know what happened next–a turnover, followed by Keith Rendleman missing two free throws that would’ve given UNCW the lead. On the rebound, Towson pulled off a four-pass press breaker that finished with an Erique Gumbs dunk to essentially seal the game.

Side notable to me: four passes and a dunk, and the only dribble in 94 feet was a single bounce by Gumbs to get comfortably to the rim.

Proving he’s a basketball coach and a leader, Skerry took blame for the near-collapse.

“Some of that is my fault. We need to practice situations more but we haven’t done a lot of that this year,” he said. “We’re at the rudimentary stage, and that’s on me to get the guys been better prepared…running a different press break and that (sort of thing). There were a couple things we didn’t want to do on the fly, different plays or whatever.”

Lost in the end-game chaos and euphoria is the fact that the key part of the game occurred towards the end of the first half. Without it, the end game heroics may have never come.

Winding under the four minute mark of the first half the Tigers trailed by seven and the game was threatening to slip away. UNCW was beginning to take the play to Towson–Rendleman had 14 first half points. But the Tigers rallied and trailed by three at the break. According to Skerry, that seven-point deficit being three and not 13 was critical.

“Very important. We were playing a possession game and we wanted to clog things and I’m proud we did what we did to work back into it,” Skerry said. “We got a couple stops late and that gave us confidence, which was huge. We got to regroup at halftime and make a couple adjustments. Rob played very well in the second half. I wasn’t happy with his effort in practice so we didn’t start him but Pressley picked up three fouls and Rob picked it up in the second half. He really turned it up in the second half and he has that ability.”

Rendleman scored two points after halftime, and Towson did not trail the final 14:19 of the contest. It’s fitting that Gumbs, the only returning letterwinner on the team, got the game-sealing flush.

The Tigers are taking Sunday off and will regroup Monday. So, what do you tell the kids when you get into that first huddle?

“You shouldn’t be surprised at the result. The effort has been great throughout. The story of our year is turnovers, defending and rebounding. We do those things and we will be successful. I like that we only took eight threes. We preach about getting the ball in the paint. Keep doing that.”

Towson outscored UNCW 32-16 in the paint.

***

Here’s a link to several videos created by Towson’s Damon Lewis. There’s the SportsCenter recap (of course). Skerry in the postgame locker room. Interviews with Gumbs, Pressley, and Kris Walden.

My favorite is the postgame presser video. Zip to 1:28 of that one to see the smile emerge on Nwankwo when he realizes he’s talking about a win. Priceless.

Also, Skerry talks about showing his team the Rumble in the Jungle fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman prior to the game. Said Gumbs: “You can take a lot of hits but you definitely get your time to swing back…we may get beat down, but we always knew we had the ability to fight and we’re a team of fighters.”

Towson plays at Hofstra on Wednesday.

Such is life.

As I mentioned the other day, you need to take the scores with a grain of salt. If learned, informed, prepared men like Blaine Taylor or Bill Coen or Matt Brady aren’t sure, how can I be so certain? I can’t.

But I have an approach, and it makes sense. We were all schooled when we catch the ball in the middle of the floor the first thing we should do is to look opposite. It’s the first thing I do when looking at games–of course Old Dominion is going to drill William & Mary tomorrow. But why might the Tribe win?

So the plan begins by trying to figure out why a certain team might win a game. Then, I think about esoteric concepts like momentum, emotion, and recency. What has happened in the past week that may stick in the noggins of everybody directly involved with the game? Then I head to Ken Pomeroy and eat up statistics. It’s a wonderful way to kill time when someone is talking too much in a meeting.

I try to be the setter on our volleyball team. It takes a detached rationality to help freeze the pond that allows your passion to dance, to think about the game and soak it in–not just sit and cheer. The approach, I believe, is the right combination of statistics and what you should look for. It’s about trends and what leads up to the under four media timeout in a two-possession CAA game. Then, it’s execution.

It’s today’s reason why we have it better. Yes the wins and losses are the most important part of the game, but you understand there’s far more going on than tallying baskets. You know there’s stories and strategy; triumph and tragedy. There’s a beauty to rock fighting that exists between stats and storylines and we keep going back to feel the refreshing wind of CAA basketball.

That’s what we try to set up for you–the experience. Enjoy your weekend.

***

This weekend’s theme is “the extra gear.” It hit me last night when a classic CAA rock fight–for 30 minutes there were nine ties and 12 lead changes in the Pugs/Dawgs matchup, and neither team led by more than four points at any juncture–turned into a 59-47 JMU walkaway.

It was ironic that JMU, who has suffered through devastating second half lulls in most every CAA game, stepped on the gas pedal midway through the second half. It turned when Ivan Drago Andrey Semenov became “entagled” with Matt Rum, threw one of his patented elbows–as stealth and lethal as a Sugar Ray Leonard jab–and earned a technical foul. Our Man JMLLL, in street clothes, came off the bench defending Rum and was assessed a technical.

Our friends at the JMU Sports Blog have the best recap:

JMU’s tattooed combo guard/forward had an outstanding game last night. He led all scorers with 15 points and pulled down 8 boards. It was classic Semenov, diving for loose balls, mixing it up with Beasthoven, and pissing off the opposition so much that a player in street clothes got a tech for calling him a punk. Just your typical Andrey Semenov performance. I think the guy might be the most hated player in the CAA, but I love him.

But the gist is that from that critical juncture, JMU found the extra gear. Humpty Hitchens hit back-to-back threes and a 37-34 barnburner was 47-35.

We’ve seen it on many occassions this year. VCU consistently buries opponents in the second half–probably due more to putting their opponents into first gear as opposed to shifting into sixth gear. As we hit this weekend, the finish line for the five-in-10 stretch, keep an eye on who can find that extra gear in the second half.

Remember, that applies globally. Players are dead tired–but we’re into the second half of the season, too. Championships and Friday byes are won with a burst of energy as we move into February.

***

Hofstra (1-9) at Northeastern (6-4): In eight non-VCU conference games, the Pride has been within one possession with less than three minutes to play in every single game. Mo Cassara has got to catch a break at some point, right?

This is a battle of old guards–Jon Lee and Joel Smith against Mike Moore and Nat Lester. So let’s say those guys cancel each other out. What’s left?

Northeastern has a very good freshman duo of Quincy Ford and Reggie Spencer–the latter seems to be recovering from hitting his freshman wall two weeks ago and the former is getting better as the season moves along. That duo matches David Imes and, well, we’re not sure. Dwan McMillan played well earlier in the season, and Steven Mejia had a five helper night against Mason.

But the Pride is a little unstable when you get to the second line of defense (and offense). It isn’t that the guy doesn’t exist; rather, it’s just hard to tell who it is going to be. A short bench wears that guy out. This doesn’t even discuss Alwayne Bigby or Kauri Black.

Too many guys playing too close to their apartment.

Northeastern 64, Hofstra 60

***

UNCW (4-6) at Towson (0-10): Buzz Peterson was the most reent coach to discuss his team’s need for rest, especially Keith Rendleman. The Hawks also avoided pain when Freddie Jackson’s knee was diagnosed as a sprain. There was fear of a tear. Jackson will almost certainly keep his sweats on, if he dresses at all.

I see similar construction to the Delaware game–the beachgoers are nervous for 30 minutes, but eventually pull away behind a tsunami of Adam Smith and Tanner Milson threes.

The Dubmen 71, Towson 55.

***

James Madison (3-7) at George Mason (9-1): Tough to know what to make of the Patriots. And before you people jump on my back, it isn’t a matter of good. Nine and one speaks for itself. It’s a matter how good, which is complicated by the sleepwalking factor. The problem is that I don’t know we wake up Sunday morning knowing anything more than we know right now.

Here’s what I mean: Mason has won its past three games by a grand total of 23 points. HU (55-50), UNCW (67-61), and Towson (72-60). Combined CAA record of those opponents: 5-25. Two of the three were at home, and they needed to score the last seven points of their roadie win. You’d expect an elite team to blastfire someone.

So is it sleepwalking? A good but not great team? You see flashes of greatness, but that’s the question–are they great-coast-great-coast kind of team?

Short of James Madison winning, we will likely type the same words on Monday.

Mason 76, James Madison 58.

***

Delaware (5-5) at Drexel (8-2): The Dragons are going to be loaded for bear Hen. Delaware blitzed Drexel 71-60 back in December, in a game that proved to the “enough is enough” moment for Bruiser Flint. The loss was Drexel’s fourth in five games and dropped the preseason favorites to 2-4 on the season. Clearly it was the lowpoint.

Drexel is 14-1 since that day and the steady ascent has them the best team in the CAA in our eyes. No CAA opponent has scored more than 58 points against Drexel since the new year, and Hofstra is the only CAA squad to hold them to less than 60 points. In the eight games since their only loss in the run (at Georgia State on January 2), Drexel is beating teams by an average of 65-49.

One other item: Frantz Massenat is not the player of the year, but he may be the most valuable player.

Delaware, on the other hand, is in a bad spot. The way they lost to Northeastern is galling, for sure. It was a game they felt they could win and probably should’ve won. At the end of the five-in-ten, that’s a blow.

However I noticed that their shot distribution against the Huskies was more like you’d expect. Devon Saddler took 19 shots, and Jamelle Hagins 17. They need that kind of activity from their two best players–especially in this heated rivalry. Kyle Anderson or Jarvis Threatt firing from deep is a quick way to a 20-point loss.

Drexel 66, Delaware 56

***

VCU (8-2) at Georgia State (6-4): Oh baby, do I want to see Shaka Smart motivate his troops for this one. I can absolutely see Smart running video with VCUs cacophony of bricks in the first matchup between these two teams. VCU executed and missed. And missed. And missed.

Be yourself will be the message. The shots will fall. The Rams also need to keep playing the inspired defense that has led them to six straight wins–four of the six teams have not reached 50 points. Rob Brandenberg’s confidence booster against Towson looms as well.

The Panthers have gone 5/5 at home: five nonconference wins, five conference wins, and zero losses. What’s more, Ron Hunter sent his team home on Thursday and forbade them to come near the gym until Friday evening practice–the coach admitted the players were tired and could use the time away.

VCU 61, Georgia State 55.

***

William & Mary (2-8) at Old Dominion (8-2): I fear for the Tribe here. We mentioned their scattershot offense yesterday, and here’s the problem: playing your fourth game in eight days, you shot 29% against James Madison–including a 3-18 from your two leading scorers. You have one day off and then get Old Dominion’s defense?

The Monarchs aren’t exactly the 1980s Showtime Lakers, but it may not matter. ODU has held three of its last four opponents to less than 50 points. What does that mean? Either William & Mary swishes their way over the ODU zone to the biggest upset of the season, or a rock fight.

ODU 62, William & Mary 52

You see, I’ve been waiting for a midweek home game for James Madison. My plan is perfect–ski all day at Massanutten, grab some food and catch the Dukes at night. The only possible flaw is Duncan telling me it’s going to be a beautiful winter day with temperatures soaring towards 60 degrees.

Now, I’m a warm weather, chase as many pars as possible kind of guy. But when I want to ski, I want to ski. Not happening, so I will take in the Dukes/William & Mary game from home. (Gheorghe–I care. Eight points is a big number.)

As for the game, even though our friends at G: TB are picking on their squad’s offensive ineptitude, their Ken Pomeroy numbers in conference are better than JMU. And Devon Moore is still at least in pain with that sprained wrist.

The Tribe has won 19 of the last 28 games in the series, including a 68-61 decision earlier this year. (Thanks, Bill.) William & Mary also shoots free throws at a first place 75% clip, while JMU allows its opponents to get to teh foul line more than any other CAA team (46.4% free throw rate). Keep an eye there.

The Dukes have a fire-at-will mentality from beyond the arc, and anytime a walk-on is in your rotation because of attrition, that isn’t a good sign–especially playing your third game in five days. JMU is probably running on fumes, short-handed, trying to hoist threes.

It’s a “feel” thing, and William & Mary’s is better. Finally, I’ve been waiting for three months to write this: #Beasthoven should dominate under the basket.

Tribe 65, Dukes 62.

Generally I can keep those organized in my rapidly-aging mind. However sometimes these thoughts need specific numbers behind them. I want to be accurate. But honestly sometimes I don’t trust myself to remember certain things, so I write them down.

Last night, the margin of the latest LLBean catalog sufficed as a notebook. It became very apparent, and quickly, that the toll of the past week was in full force. In short: it was ugly. Very ugly.

• Mason missed 17 of its first 20 shots and trailed Hofstra 17-9 with three minutes left in the first half. Both teams put on a offensive show to finish the half in a 21-20 thriller.
• Northeastern and YouDee had combined to go 9-42 from the field (21.4%) and were locked in a 22-22 tie at the half.
• ODU and UNCW blitzed the rims to the tune of a combined 5-29 from the field (17.2%), 0-9 from three, and 1-4 from the line. The Monarchs led a robust game 11-10 with seven minutes to play in the  first half, which would end 18-17.

It says something for the evening when Drexel, typically known for its ofFENsive output, was the most OFFensive squad in the CAA. But I digress…

***

Drexel was indeed the most impressive CAA squad last night. The Dragons used a mid-game run and Bruiser-mandated re-dedication to defense in the second half to drub Georgia State 68-46. The Panthers shot 43% in the first half but held to 7-28 (25%) in the second half.

The Dragons trailed Georgia State 19-14 with about seven minutes to play in the first half but went on a 37-10 run over the next 16 minutes. The end result was a 51-29 lead with 11 minutes to play in the game. The Panthers scored one point in the first 10 minutes of the second half.

Dartaye Ruffin (9pts/8rebs) played his second consecutive good game, and Samme Givens posted a 12/10 double-double. Chris Fouch shot 4-15 from the field and led the Dragons with 15 points. More on that in a smidge.

Let’s get to the big guys first. Ruffin has scored 27 points and hauled in 16 rebounds in his past two games. We mentioned last week the job Darryl McCoy has been doing of late–about seven points and nine rebounds in the four games prior to Ruffin’s breakout. Flint still loves to work inside-out and it’s paying off. Teams that didn’t worry about overplaying the post now have to, which in turn opens up the perimeter.

Add Samme Givens beginning to dominate–three double-figures games in his last five–plus Chris Fouch hoisting 10 threes last night, and you have a very nice blend of yesterday’s necessities and newfangled weaponry.

Stat notes: Givens is 27-34 since the start of the year from the foul line–huge. Also, Fouch’s 15 shot attempts ties a season high (ironically with the first Georgia State game) and his four three-point makes last night was the same amount he has made COMBINED since the first Georgia State game–a span of seven games.

***

Ed Miller right here and Brian Mull right here have all the angles covered in ODUs 53-48 win over UNCW.

Takeaways: ODUs experience and muscle were the difference. The Monarchs are now 5-1 in the CAA on the road. UNCW freshman Freddie Jackson, who has been playing extremely well of late, injured his knee late in the game and will be evaluated today.

For a lot of reasons I love this quote from Kent Bazemore, as told to Mull:

“They’re hard to guard. The freshman guard, Adam Smith, he’s a player. Got a bright future ahead of him. Guy shoots it from everywhere, knows the game real well, knows how to read screens. He was really one of our focal points for the night, to find him in our zone and our man coverages. They’ve got a really bright future with Morales and the kid that got hurt tonight (Jackson). I wish the best of luck for him. He’s a great player too and Rendleman’s always a monster. They’ve got a pretty good foundation. They’re going to beat a lot of teams.”

***

The CAAHoops Challenge–otherwise known as “pointing out a blatantly obvious statistic and using it in a game preview”–continues to pay dividends for varying schools. Last night it was Joel Smith shutting me up.

Smith, one day after being told by CAAHoops he is “in the middle of a terrible funk,” scored 20 points and hit the game-winning jumper with 1.1 seconds remaining, as Northeastern rallied from five down with 30 seconds to play to beat Delaware, 62-61.

The game was a back-and-forth affair and the ultimate example of today’s cliche: end game execution matters. In those last 30 seconds, NU made all four of its free throws and ran its stuff with a crispness.

Delaware, however, self-destructed, choosing often from the buffet of mistakes. The Hens committed a turnover, allowed an offensive rebound, missed the front end of a one-and-one, and then were unable to fight through a screen. Smith’s winner was a wide open look. A desperation heave with 1.1 seconds to play hit the scoreboard.

***

VCU dropped Towson in the expected manner. The Rams forced 14 steals and 24 turnovers and rolled to victory. No starter played more than 21 minutes, Darius Theus had 10 assists and zero turnovers, and it was the third straight game VCU has held an opponent to less than 50 points.

Most important for VCU was that Rob Brandenberg showed signs of life after what has become a most-of-the-season slump. Brandenberg was the star offensively with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, while also adding four steals and three rebounds.

“I really give all the credit to my teammates and coaches for always encouraging me to keep shooting and keep being aggressive,” Brandenberg said. “I’ve never been in a slump like that in my life and it was great to have them always in my ear to encouraging me all the time.”

***

Mason displayed an impressive bench in its 55-50 victory over Hofstra out on The Island. The subs scored 36 points (two-thirds of their total), hit all 17 free throws, and turned the ball over just four times.

Here’s what makes Mason especially dangerous. Bryon Allen, two days after an impressive overall performance and a career-high 17 points, missed all six field goals and didn’t scratch. Ryan Pearson–he of the dominating 24/12 double-double–scored seven points and committed five turnovers. Sharpshooter Vertail Vaughans only took one shot and it was a two and he missed.

No worries. Jon Arledge had a nice 10/7 game, Sherrod Wright scored 15 points and was fairly unstoppable, and Corey Edwards picked up Allen at the point. I’ve always believed when the going gets tough, having to scout to stop multiple players is far more difficult than scouting and beating a team with one star and a supporting cast. Thats what I see here.

Hofstra led 9-0, but trailed by eight points late in the second half. A David Imes jumper gave the Dutchmen a 50-48 lead, but that was quickly erased by Wright’s three-point play with 1:46 left. The Patriots scored the game’s final seven points.

Nat Lester scored in double figures for the CAA-leading 14th straight game.

Here’s Jerry Beach.

***

STANDINGS, AFTER WEDNESDAY

Mason:  9-1

VCU:  8-2

Drexel:  8-2

ODU:   8-2

Georgia State:  6-4

Northeastern:  6-4

Delaware: 5-5

UNCW:   4-6

William & Mary:  2-7

JMU:    2-7

Hofstra:  1-9

Towson:  0-10