In the paint

By Marcus Henry
Marcus.henry@newsday.com

Of the six area Division I men’s and women’s basketball teams, just one of them is still playing.

The St. John’s women’s team, making its third post season appearance in four years, topped Iona, 65-59 in a WNIT second-round game at Carnesecca Arena. The Red Storm advances to the third round on Thursday, where they will host Boston College at 7:00 p.m. at Carnesseca Arena.

St. John’s can take a lot from its latest post season game. First and foremost, the Red Storm are still playing. There isn't a team in the area that doesn't wish it were still playing. Seniors Kia Wright and Tiina Sten have earned themselves a chance to play at least one more game. The win had to be especially fitting for Wright, who made the decision to come back for a fifth season, because she didn't want to leave the program on a sour note.

The Red Storm, although probably wishing they were playing in the NCAA Tournament, can take solace in the fact that they have established themselves as a viable Division I program. St. John’s is 67-53 over the last four seasons, including consecutive 20-plus win seasons. Not bad for a team that prior to coach Kim Barnes Arico’s arrival in 2002-03, had seven straight losing seasons.

The highlight of Barnes Arico’s tenure came in 2005-06, when the Red Storm finished with a 22-8 record and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

For all the talk of Antoine Agudio and the Hofstra men’s team and the plight of St. John’s men’s coach Norm Roberts, the Red Storm women are the only squad who can claim a recent NCAA berth.

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Before he started talking about North Carolina's 108-77 pasting of Arkansas in the East Regional, Tar Heels coach Roy Williams went off on the NCAA.

Hitting the nail on the head, Williams called out Big Brother because his players kept slipping. The NCAA is too hands-on as usual, making anyone who has a drink put it in a cup with the NCAA and Dasani logos on it. The arena's usual advertising logos are covered with black sheets. There's even a John Deer tractor in the concourse that was covered with black sheets. Yeah, I know.

The NCAA goes out of its way to promote, well itself, and its buddy-buddy sponsors.

"You guys write a little bittty note in your columns that the NCAA," Williams said, "that can say I can't bring a Coca-Cola cup up here, that can say everything in the world. Stop putting those stupid logos on the floor where kids slip and slide around and somebody is going to get hurt. And I've said that for years, and years, and years. Every coach here at this site said that it's a mistake to have that."

He was asked about it again later.

"Two years from now," Williams said, "we have been asked to play in a tournament and I'm refusing to play in the tournament if we have to put logos on our floor. They are slick. I've said this for five or six years. Somebody is going to get hurt. Lane Kennedy and the people here have done a great job of trying to do everything they could. They washed it with amonia; they wahed it with Wendy's super burger whatever. And they did everything you possibly -- they need to rip the daggum things up. It's just a fact."

You're right Roy. So here's the little bitty note, although this isn't a column. Just for you Roy, my man.

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Lost in all the excitement of North Carolina's pasting of Mount St. Mary's last night was an embarrassing moment for Marcus Ginyard.

Ginyard collected a steal and had a fastbreak all by his lonesome. So he goes up to dunk ... and gets stuck on the rim. He fell to the floor and smirked a bit as he ran downcourt to get back on the defensive end. He knew he was going to hear about that and he sure did.
Here's what he had to say about it today:

"Didn't work out the way it was planned obviously," Ginyard said. "Was feeling a little stiff out there. I told Coach before when I came in, he looked at me and said, 'Are you OK?'"

"I said, 'Yeah I'm all right, a little stiff.'"

"He said, 'You haven't been playing, you have two fouls.'"

"And I said, 'I'm a little stiff staying on the bench and when I'm playing, I'm sore. I don't know what to do.'"

"He said, 'Get out there old man'" and I got out there and next thing I know I'm out on the break things slowed down a little bit, didn't quite feel right. And tried to get my steps together, tried to go up kind of smooth, didn't want to get too much emphasis or anything like that. But I guess my knees just tightened up on me, and I didn't get up quite as high as I needed to, and just didn't come down right. And the worst part about it was falling down on my butt afterwards. So I got a lot of texts last night telling me how my butt was feeling. It's doing fine. Thank you for the concern."

Then he added this: "I'm hoping to get it back and I'm planning to. So just be on the lookout for that."

Now, back in the day when I was growing up, that's what we call a Gumby. He basically rejected himself and his teammates gave him the business.

"He caught a lot for it," Tyler Hansbrough said when I asked him about it. "Just to be honest with you. He was pretty open there and it's definitely embarrassing."

Said Ty Lawson: "Once he missed and came to the bench, we were talking about how he missed it, tell him to ice his shoulder and things like that. Coach said, 'That's probably one of the wosrt dunks that they had as a player.' But it looked pretty bad. We seen it last night on the news. It was terrible."

Yup, Ginyard will never live that one down.

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Earlier today, I asked Davidson coach Bob McKillop about what it's been like over the last week or so. Being a native New York guy (and theater critic, mind you), I was sure more than a few of his old friends tried to get in touch with him.

Here's his response: "It is kind of amazing how players I've coached in 1972, '73, '74 at Holy Trinity or '80, '81, '82, '85 at Long Island Lutheran or teammates from high school in the '60s or guys I played stickball with or stoopball or punch ball with in the streets of South Ozone Park ... they connect.

That tells you what this experience is about and what this event is about -- how it's national in scope and it's something that is embraced by everybody in the country. It's just wonderful for me to be able to talk to someone either by text or e-mail or phone that I haven't talked to in 50 years.

It's funny when you see them and you look a lot shorter than they were when you were younger."

And that, ladies and gents, is what the NCAA Tournament is all about..

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C -- Anyone who says North Carolina doesn't have considerable advantage playing a few miles away from its campus has no idea what they are talking about.I don't think I've ever seen more Tar Heel blue in my life.

With the exception of one section filled with Mount St. Mary's fans, the entire arena was awash in the colors of the Heels. It was quite a sight. Seeing it in TV doesn't even do it complete justice.

UNC pummeled the Mountaineers 113-76. Mount Saint Mary's hung in there for as long as it could but North Carolina had way too many athletes and size that proved too much for The Mount.

The Heels eventually wore Mount down completely and turned things up a notch in the second half after scoring 61 leading into the break.About the only thing that went wrong on the second half was Marcus Ginyard getting stuck on the rim as he tried a right-handed fastbreak stuff. Of course, in the grand scheme of things it didn’t mean a thing since the Mountaineers couldn’t match North Carolina;s firepower.

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Serious apologies ladies and gents. We were having problems with the wireless internet here at the RBC Center. But the arena's tech people got us back in the game.

The first of four games today turned out to be as good a one as I thought it would be. Gonzaga and Davidson played in a tight one and the most of the fans were pulling for Davidson, whose campus is about a 2 1/2 half hour drive south of here on I-85.

"It was a lot of fun," Davidson's Stephen Curry said. "They were in the game and loud the whole time. It's just a benefit of being close to home and that's why were happy to be in Raleigh. It was just kind of a fun game to play in with the atmosphere. It's a pleasure to play in front of our home fans and maybe turn some locals or other tteam's fans in support of us."

Curry threw in threes from all over the court. He was unbelievable and who knows where his team would be if it wasn't for him. He scored 40 points, 30 coming in the second half, and was the best player on the court in No. 10 Davidson's 82-76 win over No. 7 Gonzaga.

Man what a game. Leaves you almost breathless. It's games like these that make the NCAA Tournament what it is.

"That was a great college basketball game," Gonzaga coach Mark Few said.

Tell you what: I was really impressed with Gonzaga freshman Austin Daye. At 6-10, he can pose serious matchup problems. He's still raw and didn't have his best game. He's long and lanky but can still shoot from the perimeter. He didn't play his best down the stretch and missed a big three that could have tied it in the final minute. Few was happy with his aggressiveness, though, and I'm sure is looking forward to working with Daye as much as he's allowed to in the offseason.

But if Daye does work hard at bettering his game and putting on some weight to his 190-pound frame, he can be a real force for Zags over the next couple of seasons.

BY RODERICK BOONE

Just got finished attending the Indiana press conference and I came to scout my courtside seat. I took a look over to my right and who do I see but Billy Packer himself. He's seated with play-by-play man Jim Nantz.

Guess it's not hard to figure out Packer would be at this site considering his North Carolina roots. He did play basketball up the road at Wake Forest you know. And his son, Mark Packer, hosts a show on an all-sports station in Charlotte.

Looks like the elder Packer is feverishly taking notes as the Hoosiers practice at the end of the court I'm sitting at. The Hoosiers must've recognized me and felt they had to put on a show for me.

The arena was loaded with UNC fans just prior to Indiana coming out, but they filtered out pretty quickly. This place is going to be jam-packed tomorrow. I heard an arena official tell someone that the tickets sold out in 10 minutes when they went on sale.

By the way, Indiana coach Dan Dakich just pulled two random young fans out of the stands and put them underneath the basket to rebound during the Hoosiers' shooting drills. So for free admission, not only do they get the chance to go on the court, but they are mere feet away from the players they came to see. What an experience that must be, huh?.

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- I'm waiting on the coaches and players from North Carolina and Indiana to be made available. Still got another hour or so until that happens. But as I wait on that, here's a few thoughts from those players and coaches who've already had their say before taking the court for 40 minutes to practice.

Gonzaga coach Mark Few on playing Davidson, whose campus is about 2 1/2 hours from here: "Obviously, you can't deny we are disappointed we got sent across the country to play in their backyard. But that's just the way it goes. Butler is going through the same thing. But we have to deal with, you know, seeds and this and that. And we tell our guys, 'Control what you can control.' You can't control that. We knew were were going to play a really, really good team because we are not going to be, you know, a No. 1 seed or anything and a prohibitive favorite."

UMBC coach Randy Monroe on guarding Georgetown's 7-foot center Roy Hibbert: "I plan on having all five players cover Hibbert and come off the bench and bite him in the kneecaps. Obviously, he poses a problem to us but we'll come up with a couple of defensive schemes to try to negate him, but I don't think you can stop him from scoring. He's done a tremendous job of conditioning his body and improving his offensive skills. We are going to try to negate him as best we can to negate probably his touches and hopefully he can pass the ball back out to someone else who can make something happen."

Georgetown's Patrick Ewing Jr. on how last year's Final Four run helped the Hoyas prepare for this year: "It let us know the things that we have to do and focus and mindset that we have to have to get to where we want to be. We hopefully will have that throughout this run right here."

Davidson's Jason Richards on playing on one of the most culturally diverse teams in the NCAA: "It's fun, but it's diifferent at times because they will be speaking different languages and we don't know what they are saying. They will say something in French and us Americans don't know what they are saying. It just says a lot about Davidson as a team and as a college that we really are diverse. And I think it helps us out."

BY RODERICK BOONE

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Touched down in Raleigh about 9:30ish this morning and the weather is nice and spring like down here in the heart of Carolina. With all the wind, the takeoff from JFK and landing at RDU wasn't good for those who have weak stomachs. But we made it.

So far, the RBC Center seems like a nice arena. It's kind of in the sticks, not far from the state fairgrounds where I'm sure you can see all the livestock you coulld ever want when it's actually open. It's located next to the football stadium where N.C. State plays its home games. Not a bad little complex they have here.

Anyway, we're set for the day before the games begin at this venue. Davidson is out on the floor practicing now and there are seven other teams to follow. Arkansas will wrap up the practice festivities at about 7:20 or so.

We'll try to post a few updates whenever possible.The NCAA has a strict policy regarding blogging at the NCAA Tournament, so we'll do the best we can.
.
In the meantime, good luck to everyone who filled out their brackets for recreational purposes of course. Let the games begin!

Newsday.com features three college basketball columns today. Check these out:

Barbara Barker's column helps basketball dummies pick the NCAA Tournament. If you don't know who will make it to Final Four, Barker can help.

Rod Boone's column focuses on how there is absolutely no need for another postseason tournament, in this case the College Basketball Invitational.

Erik Boland's column targets the absurdity of the NCAA "play-in" game. This year it's Coppin State against Mount St. Mary's.

BY RODERICK BOONE

Phew. Just got finished breaking down the South Regional for tomorrow's paper and I can't tell you how fun it was to quickly look at the region and offer my take. This is one of the best times of year when everybody suddenly becomes an expert, yet some person who's never watched a college basketball game all season winds up winning the office pool.

Anyway, we're about to get this thing started. The teams are ready to be loaded into the blocks and get going.

Tell you what, that East Region is a beast with North Carolina, Notre Dame, George Mason, Louisville, Butler, and Tennessee. Oklahoma and Winthrop are in that region too. If North Carolina gets out of that one, which is what I predicted, the Tarheels would have earned that baby.

I'm lucky enough to be heading down to Raleigh later this week for the first and second rounds at the RBC Center and I was looking forward to it even before the brackets were released. But after watching the matchups get unveiled, I was pleasantly thrilled to find out who's playing who. And I've got to say that site has to be one of the best. Just look at the matchups: Carolina has a home game against the "play-in" winner and Eric Gordon and Indiana meet up with Arkansas. Gonzaga also takes on Davidson not far from Davidson's campus, and Roy Hibbert and Georgetown matchup up with UMBC. How about that lineup?

What's the toughest region in your mind and what's the site you'd pay good money to go to so you could watch the action in person?

BY RODERICK BOONE

Ok, folks. So the brackets have been officially released and we've heard from those who are in and those who are out.

Now it's time to show the experts you're an expert. Who ya got? I want to see you guys break down the brackets and predict the Final Four and eventual champion.

In Monday's paper, Erik Boland, Arthur Staple, Joe Gergen, and myself will each take a region and give our take on how the tournament will shake out. So don't forget to look out for that.

BY RODERICK BOONE

The anticipating is building, even if there probably aren't as many teams on the dreaded bubble as there has been in the last few years.

Twelve more teams earn automatic berths into the Big Dance today and we're less than 24 hours away from CBS' Selection Sunday show. It's one of the best moments in all of sports. There's nothing like watching the brackets unveiled live and breaking them down immediately afterward as you make your office pool picks for, um, recreational purposes.

It's also interesting to see the reaction of the teams that are forced into the "play-in" game. Too bad we won't have more than one game to watch Tuesday to wet our whistle. I wrote a couple of days ago how I felt it would be a good idea to add three more teams to the current field of 65. What do you guys think? Do you care one way or the other?

BY RODERICK BOONE

As I'm sitting at home authoring a story on the Hofstra men's lacrosse team's huge 8-7 OT win over then-No. 1 Johns Hopkins on Saturday, I had the UCLA-Cal game on. So I hear Brent Musburger and Steve Lavin screaming at the top of their lungs. I turn around and start watching the game and, seconds later, see two blown calls that allowed UCLA to pull off its second unbelievable win in a matter of days.

Josh Shipp's shot definitely went over the backboard. When it dropped in I was stunned and yelled out a "Wow!" I was not only shocked that it went in, but the fact it was allowed. I was having Anthony Carter flashbacks. Remember when he did something similar to that while playing for the Miami Heat in the 2000 playoffs against the Knicks? That was an illegal shot then and so was Shipp's.

On Thursday, the Bruins got the benefit of the doubt as well. I was watching that game live, too. Stanford's Lawrence Hill was whistled for a foul with 2.5 seconds left in regulation despite cleanly blocking a shot by Darren Collison. Collison made two free throws to tie the score and UCLA wound up winning in OT. You didn't need HD to see it (although it was spectacularly obvious in high def) was a clean block and a bad call.

So how do you explain UCLA getting favorable calls twice in three days? Is it March Madness, horrific officiating, or Lady Luck riding on the Bruins' shoulders? Or is a bit of all three of those things?

Gotta love March.

BY RODERICK BOONE

Well that was rather quick, wasn't it?

Hofstra's season ended minutes ago with an eye-hurting 81-66 loss to No. 9 Towson in the first round of the CAA Tournament at Richmond Coliseum in Virginia. The Pride, seeded eighth and the designated home team, was the gang that couldn't shoot straight. It hit 3 of its first 26 shots from the floor and finished with a meager four field goals in the first half.

"First half, we just got off to a slow start and we didn't shoot the ball well, and on top of that we weren't defending," Antoine Agudio said. "That's what got us down in the first half and that hurts a lot."

In typical fashion, Hofstra stormed back to make a game of it and actually cut an 18-point halftime deficit down to 51-48 with just under eight minutes remaining. But Towson, which will meet top-seeded VCU in the quarterfinals at noon Saturday, outscored the Pride 30-18 the rest of the way to close things out.

Agudio scored 25 of his 27 points in the second half and finished his outstanding career as Hofstra's leading scorer with 2,276 career points. There will be no postseason tournament for the senior guard.

"It's ashamed because he is such a quality young man," Hofstra coach Tom Pecora said. "You want it to end like a fairytale for him, but life's not fair. We talk all the time about sports and competing in college is like a microcosm of the real world. Sometimes things don't work out."

Charles Jenkins, fresh of being named the CAA's rookie of the year, had all 14 of his points in the second half.

So Hofstra finishes its disappointing season with a 12-18 record and Pecora vowed a season like this won't become the norm. Whether you want to believe it or not, Hofstra has been the most successful program in the metropolitan area these last few years and don't think Pecora isn't well aware of that.

"I take this very seriously," Pecora said, adding he's about to hit the recruiting trails immediately. "It's part of my legacy. I don't want my legacy to be a 12-17 season and it won't be that way next year."

Here's the boxscore from today's game.

BY RODERICK BOONE

Can't make it down to Richmond this weekend? Well, don't worry. We've got you taken care of. I'm going to give you the blow by blow predictions right here. Just call me Doc Brown.

I've hopped in the DeLorean (photo is courtesy of flickr.com) and motored into next week. But ssshhh. Don't tell anybody. It will be our little secret.

FIRST ROUND
Tomorrow

No. 8 Towson vs. No. 9 Hofstra, noon -- The Tigers and Pride split their regular season meetings, but Towson will have trouble with Antoine (The Scoring Machine) Agudio and Hofstra takes the rubber match and lives to play another day.

No. 5 William & Mary vs. No. 12 Georgia State, 2:30 p.m. -- William & Mary has been one of the biggest surprises in the conference, posting 10 wins. It's the second-highest conference win total for W&M in program history. The feel-good season continues against an overmatched Georgia State team.

No. 7 Delaware vs. No. 10 Drexel, 6 p.m. -- The Dragons have serious problems scoring and that trend won't stop against the Blue Hens. Drexel did beat Delaware by two in the Feb. 16 meeting, but the Dragons have limped down the stretch. Delaware concluded its season with a loss to Towson, but should have no problem beating its rival in this one.

No. 6 Northeastern vs. No. 11 James Madison, 8:30 p.m. -- Both teams have struggled mightily of late, so this isn't exactly an easy one to pick. JMU could pull the upset, but Northeastern won't be taking the Dukes lightly since the Huskies lost to them by three way back on Dec. 1.

QUARTERFINALS
Saturday
No. 8 Hofstra vs. No. 1 VCU, noon -- Agudio's career comes to a halt against the hot Rams. The Pride had serious trouble matching VCU's firepower in their last meeting and playing in what should be a hostile environment among hundreds of VCU fans wont help.

No. 5 William & Mary vs. No. 4 Old Dominion, 2:30 p.m. -- Neither team has the upper hand in this one after splitting the regular-season series. ODU did get the best of W&M last time out and having fresh legs thanks to the first-round bye should spring it over the top.

No. 7 Delaware vs. No. 2 UNC Wilmington, 6 p.m. -- This is my upset special. Every bracket needs one of them, otherwise why would we do this? If things went as planned, we could just give the top seed the automatic bid and move on. Anyway, the Blue Hens are winning this one. Why? You mean besides the fact Delaware beat UNCW by a point in their only meeting this season? Just a gut feeling. I believe of all the high seeds, UNC Wilmington is the one that can be had.

No. 6 Northeastern vs. No. 3 George Mason, 8:30 p.m. -- Northeastern knocked off Mason in the regular-season finale, but don't think a 28-point pasting earlier in the season won't be in the back of the Huskies' heads. No matter, though, because the Patriots roll onto the semis.

SEMIFINALS
Sunday
No. 4 Old Dominion vs. No. 1 VCU, 3 p.m. -- Stop me if you've heard this before: The two teams split their two regular-season meetings. So this could be one of those coin-flip outcomes. But with Eric Maynor likely showcasing why he's the CAA's player of the year, the edge goes to the Rams. He averaged 14 points, 6.5 rebounds, and seven assists per game last week for the Rams and will propel VCU into the title game.

No. 7 Delaware vs. No. 3 George Mason, 5:30 p.m. -- Will Thomas won't be denied a shot at one more NCAA tournament berth. The senior forward is on pace to become the seventh player in school history to average a double-double and he'll pad his stats against the Blue Hens. Delaware's nice run comes to a screeching halt.

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Monday
No. 3 George Mason vs. No. 1 VCU, 7 p.m. -- Thomas and Company go out on top by stunning the Rams and using the same formula that earned them a 63-51 win in their only meeting of the season. So yes, much to the chagrin of Hofstra fans, it will be George Mason cutting down the nets inside Richmond Coliseum sometime around 9:15 or so.

Tune in next week (same bat time, same bat channel) when we break down the Big East.

BY RODERICK BOONE

We interrupt the Brett-Favre-O-Thon and the Brett Favre Love Fest to bring you this special public service announcement.

Flash, we are weeks away from the start of the tournament. No, not the NCAA Tournament silly. I'm talking about the inaugural College Basketball Invitational. Don't act like you haven't heard about it. Ok, so I'm sure many of you haven't.

The College Basketball Invitational will compete with the NIT for teams and will field a 16-team tournament. The bracket will be announced on March 16 and teams are going to be invited based upon their performance and their finish to the regular season. It's going to be a single-elimination style tourney until the championship series, and the games will be played at various campus sites.

Before the semifinals start, the four remaining teams will be re-seeded and the championship series will be contested as a best of three series (home/away/home) with the higher seed getting the first and last (if the game is necessary) home games.

Below is a tentative scheduled they've laid out. Fox College Sports will broadcast most of the games. It will be interesting to see if this flops. If you include the 65 NCAA Tournament teams and 32 in the NIT, we are talking about 111 teams here. What is this college football, where if you have a mediocre 6-5 record you are eligible for a bowl?

Anyway, here is the sked.

March 18th and 19th

- Eight opening round games at campus sites

March 24th

- Four quarterfinal games at campus sites

March 26th

- Two semifinal games at campus sites
- Both games broadcast on Fox College Sports

College Basketball Invitational Championship Series (March 31st, April 2nd & April 4th)

BY RODERICK BOONE

Caught some of that epic game between Kansas and Texas Tech last night. About the only good thing about that one was it was broadcast in HD. And I loves me some HD.

It was the worst beat down in Texas Tech history with the Jayhawks routing the Bob Knight-less Red Raiders 109-51. Every player who wears a Kansas uniform (I think the manager and water boy got to get in, too) played in this nationally televised contest. We know Kansas is good, but that was an embarassment.

"I feel like someone put a meat necklace around my neck and threw me into a lion's den," Tech coach Pat Knight told reporters after the game at Allen Fieldhouse. "They killed us. The thing that upsets me again, just like the A&M game, is that we didn't compete. I had guys that I honestly thought looked scared when they got out there on the court. Not one guy showed up tonight."

As for Kansas, the Jayhawks are a legitimate title contender. The five seniors on their roster have stockpiled a 108-23 record and are shooting for a fourth consecutive Big 12 championship.

But the problem with Kansas is the Jayhawks seem to flame out and underachieve in the NCAA tournament. Will this year be any different?

BY RODERICK BOONE

Now that its disappointing regular season is in the books, Hofstra can turn its attention to the postseason. March Madness is officially upon us and it begins on Friday for the Pride when it takes on Towson in the first round of the Colonial Athletic Association Tournament in Richmond, Va.

Hofstra is the No. 8 seed and Towson is No. 9 in the 12-team tournament. The teams split the regular season series with the Tigers taking the first meeting in Baltimore, 60-51, on Jan. 30. Rocky Coleman had 17 points off the bench and guard C.C. Williams was a catalyst with 10 assists to go along with 10 points. The Pride avenged that win with a 81-67 win Feb. 20. Antoine Agudio dropped in 27 that day.

Of course, the Pride came close to having to play Drexel in the first round and the players are probably glad not to see Bruiser Flint and Company again. Drexel gave Agudio fits. The senior went 8-for-26 from the floor, had 19 total points, and turned the ball over 13 times in their two regular-season meetings. But the Pride's draw still isn't a good one.

If Hofstra gets past the Tigers of Baltimore, next up on Saturday would be a matchup with No. 1 seed VCU. The Rams beat the Pride 59-49 on Jan. 12 and clobbered Hofstra 82-65 Jan. 23 at Mack Sports Complex. With that in mind, some are already saying it's one and done for the Pride.

Are you among that contingent or are you of the belief Hofstra is going to put together a run in the CAA Tournament like Siena did in 2001-02 when it strung together a bevy of upsets on the way to claiming the MAAC Tournament crown with a losing record? Inquiring minds want to know.

MARCUS HENRY

Not a lot has changed, although Ohio State and George Mason are out. George Mason could find itself back in with a nice run in the CAA tourney…The key game this week is Duke against North Carolina. A win by Duke will make it a number one seed. UNC, even with a loss could still be a number one also, which means Tennessee and Memphis are in danger of dropping to a two if they can’t win their tournaments. And it’s not unheard of for two number one seeds to come from one conference…UMass (19-9, 8-6) knocked out St. Joe’s as the second A-10 team. Temple (16-12, 9-5) has won 5 of 7 and is the only A-10 team to beat Xavier. If the Owls win their final two regular season games against Duquesne and La Salle and make a run in the A-10 tourney that means at least 20 wins for them. An Atlantic 10 team with 11 conference wins and 20 overall victories has a chance…One conference that could get squeezed is the Sun Belt. South Alabama and Western Kentucky have 25 and 24 wins, respectively. The Mountain West and Conference USA could also lose a bid. But if the BCS conferences continue to lose bids, which could happen if the Wildcat bunch of Arizona, Villanova and Kansas State continue to struggle, the mid-majors will thrive.

SOUTH - HOUSTON
LITTLE ROCK
1. Memphis – Still a number one seed and possibly the best in the country; poor free throw shooting notwithstanding.
16. Austin Peay (OVC winner)

8. Florida – The loss to Mississippi State hurt, but not that much.
9. Miami – The ‘Canes made up for a loss against Clemson by dispatching Virginia.

TAMPA
5. Marquette – A two-point loss to Georgetown won’t hurt Marquette’s standing.
12. New Mexico – Say hello to the Mountain West’s third team.

4. Purdue – The Boilermakers are rolling.
13. Davidson (Southern Conference winner)

ANAHEIM
6. Gonzaga – Big win over St. Mary’s could move the Zags up soon.
11. Kansas State – The Wildcats have lost four straight and are fading fast.

3. Wisconsin – The Badgers could be as high as a two seed when it’s all said and done.
14. CS Northridge (Big West winner)

BIRMINGHAM
7. Pittsburgh – Pittsburgh kept its seed with wins against Cincy and Syracuse.
10. Houston – The Cougars were awful against East Carolina. That better be their last loss until the C-USA semifinal.

2. Texas – Loss at Texas Tech all but prevents the Horns from a number one seed.
15. UMBC (America East)

MIDWEST - DETROIT
OMAHA
1. Tennesse – A big win over Kentucky keeps the Vols number one.
16. (Play-in teams) – SWAC/SOUTHLAND.

8. Arizona – The Wildcats have to beat Oregon and Oregon State this week. If not, see ya!
9. Massachusetts – Thanks to a four-game winning streak, UMass is the new hot A-10 at-large team. But Temple is right on their heels.

DENVER
5. Notre Dame – A tough loss at Louisville kept the Irish from moving up to a four seed.
12. Western Kentucky – 24 wins justifies keeping the Hilltoppers here.

4. Michigan State – A bad loss at Wisconsin was buoyed by a win against Indiana.
13. Utah State (WAC winner)

OMAHA
6. St. Mary’s - The Gaels’ loss to Gonzaga should effect its seeding.
11. UAB – Yes, C-USA will have three teams in.

3. Indiana – The Hoosiers were a little too giving on defense against Michigan State, but we still think they are a legit three seed.
14. Marist (MAAC winner)

RALEIGH
7. Mississippi State – The Bulldogs are hotter than a firecracker and knocked off Florida to prove it.
10. UNLV – The Runnin’ Rebels success has made the Mountain West a legitimate multi-bid conference.

2. Georgetown – Four straight wins, including a two-point triumph against Marquette keeps the Hoyas at number two.
15. Lafayette (Patriot winner)

WEST - PHOENIX
ANAHEIM
1. UCLA – The Bruins have won five straight since a bad loss to Washington.
16. Jacksonville (Atlantic Sun winner)

8. West Virginia – The Mountaineers loss a critical game against at Connecticut, but they have 20 wins and a 9-7 Big East record.
9. Arkansas – The Razorbacks made up for two straight losses with a win over Vanderbilt.

TAMPA
5. Xavier – The Musketeers have won 11 straight; enough said.
12. Illinois State – A 22-win Missouri Valley Conference team should be a lock.

4. Stanford – The Cardinal solidified themselves by beating Washington State.
13. UNC Asheville (Big South winner)

LITTLE ROCK
6. Drake – The top team in the Missouri Valley Conference is legit.
11. Texas A & M – The Aggies have 21 wins. Another win makes them a lock.

3. Louisville – Georgetown had better watch it or the Cardinals will steal that two seed.
14. Oral Roberts (Summit winner)

WASHINGTON D.C.
7. Vanderbilt – A loss at Arkansas keeps Vanderbilt from rising.
10. Baylor – The Bears, who picked up their 20th win, are back in the hunt

2. Duke – The Blue Devils can still steal a number one seed.
15. Morgan State (MEAC winner)

EAST - CHARLOTTE
RALEIGH
1. North Carolina – The Tar Heels still need to beat Duke in the regular season finale.
16. Wagner (Northeast winner)

8. Villanova – The Wildcats MUST beat South Florida and Providence this week to hold on.
9. USC – The Trojans have won three of four and should be a lock.

DENVER
5. Washington State – The Cougars needed to beat Stanford to move up, but they are still started.
12. Kent State (MAC winner) – Kent should be a lock.

4. Butler – Butler will likely need to make a run to the Horizon semifinal to remain a four.
13. VCU – VCU could grab and at-large bid if they lose in the CAA tournament.

WASHINGTON D.C.
6. Clemson – The Tigers have done enough to stay a six.
11. South Alabama – Tough to keep out a 25-win team that has a win against Mississippi State.

3. Connecticut – The Huskies look like their old selves again.
14. Cornell – The Big Red had the Ivy locked up a long time ago.

BIRMINGHAM
7. BYU – The Cougars loss at San Diego State on February 23 is a distant memory.
10. Virginia Tech – The Hokies three-game winning streak moves them past Maryland.

2. Kansas – Order has been restored in the Big 12 for now.
15. Northern Arizona (Big Sky winner)

Bid by conference: America East (1), Atlantic 10 (2), ACC (5), Atlantic Sun (1), Big East (8), Big 10 (4), Big 12 (5), Big Sky (1), Big South (1), Big West (1), CUSA (3), CAA (1), Horizon (2), Ivy (1), MAAC (1), MAC (1), MEAC (1), Missouri Valley (2), Mountain West (3), Northeast (1), OVC (1), Pac 10 (4), SEC (5), Southern (1), Southland / SWAC (1), Summit (1), Sunbelt (2), WAC (1), West Coast Conference (2).

By Marcus Henry
marcus.henry@newsday.com

There are several routes that can be taken to earn a basketball scholarship. The least popular way is via junior college. But players who pass on playing at the junior college level often miss out on a golden opportunity.

Monet Johnson rising for a jumper. Photo courtesy of Monroe College.

Anyone who witnessed the Monroe College women's team defeat Suffolk CC, 74-53, for its fifth straight Region XV championship on Sunday can attest to how viable an option playing junior college basketball can be.

Monroe College has become the model program in junior college basketball. The Lady Mustangs have won 103 straight games against Region XV opponents and were national champions in 2006. More importantly, many of the women who have suited up for the Mustangs have moved on to the Division I and II level.

Monroe's latest star pupil is 5-11 wing player Monet Johnson. The former Grand Street Campus (Brooklyn) standout, who had 22 points in the game, is arguably the top player on the junior college level and has received interest from Providence, South Carolina, Morgan State and several other Division I schools.

"Most people don't know the about the high level of basketball played in junior college," Monroe coach Seth Goodman said. "The players buy into the system here and they come ot play every day."

Johnson is just one of two dozen players the Mustangs will have sent to the Division I and II level. Fantasia Goodwin, considered one of the all-time great junior college players, is now starring at Syracuse. Goodwin is Monroe's all-time leading scorer with 1,685 points. Angela Pace, who led Monroe to the NJCAA Final Four last year, is playing at Robert Morris.

Marcenia Bellamy (St. Peter's), DeAnna Chestnut (Robert Morris) and Danielle Hubbard (South Carolina State) also ended up at Division I schools. On the men's side its the same deal as the Mustangs have sent 22 players to Division I.

"The players play hard because they know there is a lot at stake," Goodman said. "Championships, rings and scholarships."