Wanna win an easy bet? Challenge a friend to a pick-the-games-in-the-WNIT contest. And while they spend hours analyzing the various matchups, take about five minutes and pick every home team.
Then cut us in on your winnings.
The home court has historically been a wildly accurate predictor of final results in the WNIT, which this year will include 63 games and no neutral sites. The trend is particularly striking in the early rounds. Last year, for example, home teams went 14-2 in the first round, 15-1 in the second. Two years ago, host schools were 27-5 through the opening two rounds. In 2007, they went 28-4.
Overall, home teams won 81 percent of all WNIT games in 2008 and 2009. In 2007, home teams prevailed at an 85-percent clip.
This is great news for Old Dominion, which will enjoy the cozy confines of the Constant Center tonight against American. And it points out how the deck is stacked against Richmond, which visits Delaware Thursday, and VCU, which will travel to St. Joseph's the same day.
This isn't to say the Spiders and Rams can't win. But when it comes to having success in the WNIT, if you're playing on your home court, you can pretty much bet on it.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Bizarre JMU-UConn connection
Did James Madison help UConn land Rebecca Lobo? Not exactly. But in his latest blog entry, Mel Greenberg recounts how JMU's historic upset of No. 1 Penn State in the 1991 NCAA Tournament paved the way for a Huskies run that got them in tight with the eventual national player of the year.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
ODU vs. American in WNIT tipoff
The goal all season has been to open the postseason at home, but this isn't what Old Dominion had in mind - a first-round WNIT encounter with American University Wednesday night at the Constant Center. Meanwhile, the role ODU really wanted, participating hosts of two rounds of NCAA Tournament action at the Ted this weekend, will be assumed by James Madison.
The Lady Monarchs still have plenty to play for, though. And if they can approach WNIT play with the same zeal and mindset they would have brought to an NCAA appearance, they might find themselves still chasing a title long after most of the NCAA-bound teams have finished for the winter.
American (22-9) at Old Dominion (18-13), 7 p.m.
Local connection: Game will provide a homecoming of sorts for American sophomore point guard Raven Harris, a former star at juggernaut Princess Anne High in Virginia Beach.
Meaningless stat: ODU is 22-1 lifetime against American, a one-time CAA member now playing out of the Patriot League. But the teams haven't met in nearly a decade, so none of these players have anything to do with it.
Home sweet home?: The Lady Monarchs are just 2-3 in their last five games at the Constant Center.
At stake: The winner will meet Thursday's Providence at Boston University winner in the second round, date and site to be determined.
About the matchup: The biggest thing about American is they don't beat themselves. Led by Patriot League Player of the Year Michelle Kirk, they make their free throws, don't turn the ball over and hold their own on the boards. If a team like this gets comfortable, it'll carve you up. The Eagles aren't a great offensive team, though, and we feel as though Old Dominion's defense, led by guards Jasmine Parker and Kquanise Bryd, can disrupt a lot of what American wants to run. Too often, however, the Lady Monarchs offset their nice work at one end of the floor with a sloppy turnover at the other. At this stage of the season, it seems clear that this ODU team is simply going to have to live with more giveaways than optimal. What they can control is re-asserting themselves on the boards, something they've struggled with of late. If the Lady Monarchs defend with passion and take care the glass, their turnovers probably won't kill them. Oh, and a return to offensive form by Shadasia Green would help, too. Green is pretty central to what ODU wants to do but has seen her shot desert her the last four games.
Key to the game: Who really wants to play? Both teams fell one conference championship loss short of qualifying for the NCAA Tournament - American on Saturday, ODU on Sunday - and apparently the Lady Monarchs went into Monday still holding out faint hopes for an at-large bid. Everyone is saying the right things about laying it on the line Wednesday night, but often teams simply can't - or won't - perform in the WNIT with their usual conviction. We're not saying this will be the case for either of these teams. But given how much both had their hearts set on playing in the NCAAs, it's a fair question.
The Lady Monarchs still have plenty to play for, though. And if they can approach WNIT play with the same zeal and mindset they would have brought to an NCAA appearance, they might find themselves still chasing a title long after most of the NCAA-bound teams have finished for the winter.
American (22-9) at Old Dominion (18-13), 7 p.m.
Local connection: Game will provide a homecoming of sorts for American sophomore point guard Raven Harris, a former star at juggernaut Princess Anne High in Virginia Beach.
Meaningless stat: ODU is 22-1 lifetime against American, a one-time CAA member now playing out of the Patriot League. But the teams haven't met in nearly a decade, so none of these players have anything to do with it.
Home sweet home?: The Lady Monarchs are just 2-3 in their last five games at the Constant Center.
At stake: The winner will meet Thursday's Providence at Boston University winner in the second round, date and site to be determined.
About the matchup: The biggest thing about American is they don't beat themselves. Led by Patriot League Player of the Year Michelle Kirk, they make their free throws, don't turn the ball over and hold their own on the boards. If a team like this gets comfortable, it'll carve you up. The Eagles aren't a great offensive team, though, and we feel as though Old Dominion's defense, led by guards Jasmine Parker and Kquanise Bryd, can disrupt a lot of what American wants to run. Too often, however, the Lady Monarchs offset their nice work at one end of the floor with a sloppy turnover at the other. At this stage of the season, it seems clear that this ODU team is simply going to have to live with more giveaways than optimal. What they can control is re-asserting themselves on the boards, something they've struggled with of late. If the Lady Monarchs defend with passion and take care the glass, their turnovers probably won't kill them. Oh, and a return to offensive form by Shadasia Green would help, too. Green is pretty central to what ODU wants to do but has seen her shot desert her the last four games.
Key to the game: Who really wants to play? Both teams fell one conference championship loss short of qualifying for the NCAA Tournament - American on Saturday, ODU on Sunday - and apparently the Lady Monarchs went into Monday still holding out faint hopes for an at-large bid. Everyone is saying the right things about laying it on the line Wednesday night, but often teams simply can't - or won't - perform in the WNIT with their usual conviction. We're not saying this will be the case for either of these teams. But given how much both had their hearts set on playing in the NCAAs, it's a fair question.
Postseason patter
Random thoughts as we gear up for the biggest postseason in NCAA women's basketball history:
- With 144 postseason spots to fill (64 NCAA, 64 WNIT and 16 WBI), clearly you don't have to be great, or even very good, to get an invitation somewhere. Basically, if you're in the top 130 of the RPI and have a .500 or better record - and in a couple of cases, even if you don't - you're still playing.
- Besides Virginia Tech, Southern California (RPI: 36) and Boston College (48) are on record as declining WNIT bids. BC senior and former American Idol contestant Ayla Brown used Twitter to voice her disagreement:
"coach declined our invitation to play in the wnit. As a sr it wouldve been nice to kno this earlier that it was my last game. I'm disgusted."
- Hey, Elena, the WNIT record for points in a game is 45 by ex-Memphis star - and cousin of my best friend in college -Tamika Whitmore. I'm just saying....
- Disappointing to see the WBI sacrifice its credibility by inviting Louisville with its 14-17 record and 11th-place finish in the Big East. It's not like the Cardinals finished strong, either, as they dropped three of their last four and ended with a 37-point loss to Notre Dame. And the invitation didn't come because the WBI couldn't find anyone else. Louisville announced it was WBI-bound last week, three days before the rest of the field was unveiled. And worst of all, Louisville will open WBI with a home game.
- The WNIT may start off as a series of off-Broadway productions compared to the glitzy, nationally televised NCAA games, and a lot of people probably still don't even know the WBI exists. But history has shown teams that can make deep runs often find their fans turning the late-round contests into really big deals. Last year, Kansas drew a program-record 16,113 for its title-game loss to South Florida. And three years ago, eventual champion Wyoming drew three crowds in excess of 11,000 for the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, with 15,462 showing up for the championship game.
- With 144 postseason spots to fill (64 NCAA, 64 WNIT and 16 WBI), clearly you don't have to be great, or even very good, to get an invitation somewhere. Basically, if you're in the top 130 of the RPI and have a .500 or better record - and in a couple of cases, even if you don't - you're still playing.
- Besides Virginia Tech, Southern California (RPI: 36) and Boston College (48) are on record as declining WNIT bids. BC senior and former American Idol contestant Ayla Brown used Twitter to voice her disagreement:
"coach declined our invitation to play in the wnit. As a sr it wouldve been nice to kno this earlier that it was my last game. I'm disgusted."
- Hey, Elena, the WNIT record for points in a game is 45 by ex-Memphis star - and cousin of my best friend in college -Tamika Whitmore. I'm just saying....
- Disappointing to see the WBI sacrifice its credibility by inviting Louisville with its 14-17 record and 11th-place finish in the Big East. It's not like the Cardinals finished strong, either, as they dropped three of their last four and ended with a 37-point loss to Notre Dame. And the invitation didn't come because the WBI couldn't find anyone else. Louisville announced it was WBI-bound last week, three days before the rest of the field was unveiled. And worst of all, Louisville will open WBI with a home game.
- The WNIT may start off as a series of off-Broadway productions compared to the glitzy, nationally televised NCAA games, and a lot of people probably still don't even know the WBI exists. But history has shown teams that can make deep runs often find their fans turning the late-round contests into really big deals. Last year, Kansas drew a program-record 16,113 for its title-game loss to South Florida. And three years ago, eventual champion Wyoming drew three crowds in excess of 11,000 for the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, with 15,462 showing up for the championship game.
The magnificent seven
Seven CAA teams involved in postseason play? What is this, the Big 12?
Well not exactly, since only one team (James Madison) is headed to the NCAA Tournament. Five teams (ODU, Drexel, VCU, Hofstra, Delaware) will play in the WNIT. Now Towson has learned it has won a trip to Fairfield (the other Connecticut team) for a WBI game on Thursday. WBI is an upstart tournament relative to the CBI, a third-tier men's tournament (ODU men got to the quarters in that two years ago).
Well not exactly, since only one team (James Madison) is headed to the NCAA Tournament. Five teams (ODU, Drexel, VCU, Hofstra, Delaware) will play in the WNIT. Now Towson has learned it has won a trip to Fairfield (the other Connecticut team) for a WBI game on Thursday. WBI is an upstart tournament relative to the CBI, a third-tier men's tournament (ODU men got to the quarters in that two years ago).
Monday, March 15, 2010
Richmond, VCU to play in WNIT
More WNIT news.....
Thursday
Richmond at Delaware
VCU at St. Joseph's
Hofstra at Penn State
Friday
East Carolina at Drexel
And as we mentioned earlier, American at ODU on Wednesday
Thursday
Richmond at Delaware
VCU at St. Joseph's
Hofstra at Penn State
Friday
East Carolina at Drexel
And as we mentioned earlier, American at ODU on Wednesday
ODU gets at least one more
Old Dominion isn't done yet. The Lady Monarchs (18-13) will host Patriot League Tournament runner-up American (22-9) on Wednesday at the Constant Center in the first round of the WNIT. Those old CAA sparring partners used to play twice a year until the Eagles moved to the Patriot league in 2001. ODU holds a 22-1 record in the series. ODU has never played in the WNIT.
We're waiting on the rest of the bracket.
We're waiting on the rest of the bracket.
Santa Claus, I mean UConn, headed to Norfolk
Is that the Constant Center folks we hear tap dancing on the tables? No, ODU did not miraculously make it to the NCAA tournament, but it's the next best thing. No. 1 No. 1 seed UConn and its boatload of fans are Norfolk bound for a first-round date with Southern on Sunday. And waiting in the wings, either No. 9 James Madison or No. 8 Temple. (Kenny Brooks said in an earlier Twitter he wanted to play in Norfolk.)
Virginia, a 5 seed, has Green Bay in the first round, but a win means the Cavs would likely go against Iowa State on its home floor. The Cyclones meet Lehigh in the first round.
And lucky Liberty. Even if the 13th-ranked Lady Flames don't beat Kentucky, at least they get to enjoy the beautiful scenery in Berkeley.
No surprises for MEAC champ Hampton. The 15th-seeded Lady Pirates get second-seed Duke in Durham. By the way, major props to Hampton's administration for wasting no time in rewarding coach David Six by removing his interim tag and inking him to a three-year deal.
Check out the full 64-team bracket and stay tuned. We'll have WNIT pairings and WBI info later Monday night.
Virginia, a 5 seed, has Green Bay in the first round, but a win means the Cavs would likely go against Iowa State on its home floor. The Cyclones meet Lehigh in the first round.
And lucky Liberty. Even if the 13th-ranked Lady Flames don't beat Kentucky, at least they get to enjoy the beautiful scenery in Berkeley.
No surprises for MEAC champ Hampton. The 15th-seeded Lady Pirates get second-seed Duke in Durham. By the way, major props to Hampton's administration for wasting no time in rewarding coach David Six by removing his interim tag and inking him to a three-year deal.
Check out the full 64-team bracket and stay tuned. We'll have WNIT pairings and WBI info later Monday night.
JMU, Liberty, Hampton, Virginia find out their dancing partners tonight at 7
They might have been seeded No. 2, but they finished No. 1.
The state's three Division I conference champions - JMU (CAA), Liberty (Big South) and Hampton (MEAC) were all seeded No. 2 in their tournaments. Both the Dukes and the Lady Flames beat No. 1 seeds in the title game.- Virginia is a lock to make it four Commonwealth teams when the field is announced tonight at 7 p.m. (ESPN).
Take a look at ESPN's final Bracketology if you want an educated guess on how the pairings will line up. Liberty vs. Baylor? Hmmm....And did we speak to soon about the Huskies coming. Charlie Creme has them going to Pitt and projects Oklahoma State (we compare Andrea Riley to Iverson), Michigan, Lehigh and Georgetown (Sugar, sugar would get to play in front of friends and family.
Three other state teams, Old Dominion, Richmond and VCU, should have the opportunity to continue their seasons in either the WNIT (most likely) or the new, 16-team Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI). Both of those fields will be announced after the NCAA does its business later tonight.- It will be interesting to see which teams opt for the new WBI. Louisville has already accepted one invitational; the Big East's Cardinals reached the NCAA title game last season but went just 14-17 in 2009-10. We're guessing you couldn't find 10 folks who know what the WBI is.
The state's three Division I conference champions - JMU (CAA), Liberty (Big South) and Hampton (MEAC) were all seeded No. 2 in their tournaments. Both the Dukes and the Lady Flames beat No. 1 seeds in the title game.- Virginia is a lock to make it four Commonwealth teams when the field is announced tonight at 7 p.m. (ESPN).
Take a look at ESPN's final Bracketology if you want an educated guess on how the pairings will line up. Liberty vs. Baylor? Hmmm....And did we speak to soon about the Huskies coming. Charlie Creme has them going to Pitt and projects Oklahoma State (we compare Andrea Riley to Iverson), Michigan, Lehigh and Georgetown (Sugar, sugar would get to play in front of friends and family.
Three other state teams, Old Dominion, Richmond and VCU, should have the opportunity to continue their seasons in either the WNIT (most likely) or the new, 16-team Women's Basketball Invitational (WBI). Both of those fields will be announced after the NCAA does its business later tonight.- It will be interesting to see which teams opt for the new WBI. Louisville has already accepted one invitational; the Big East's Cardinals reached the NCAA title game last season but went just 14-17 in 2009-10. We're guessing you couldn't find 10 folks who know what the WBI is.
Looking back at the CAA Tournament
Last December, we asked several players for their New Year's resolutions. The responses included this one from James Madison freshman Tarik Hislop: "My New Year's resolution is to bring the intensity every night for every game, no matter who the opponent. And my team's New Year's resolution is to win the CAA championship." Looks like Hislop went 2-for-2.
- Much of the talk heading into the CAA tournament centered on how anyone could win it. That's good PR for the conference - the more fans believe their team has a chance, the more interest is sustained across the board. As it turned out, though, form most held throughout the championships. Eight of the 11 games were won by the higher seed, and two of those "upsets" - No. 5 Delaware nipping No. 4 Drexel in the teams' third overtime game of the season and No. 2 James Madison defending its home court in the final against No. 1 Old Dominion - weren't terribly surprising. Only No. 10 UNC Wilmington's 50-30 rout of No. 7 Towson falls into the "Huh?" category. But who knew the Tigers would leave their offense in Baltimore?
- Brittany Wilson update: Here's the latest from the Northeastern sports information department on Wilson, the Northeastern star who suffered a seizure after an Old Dominion player landed on top of her during a CAA quarterfinal last Friday: "Brittany suffered a concussion but her CT scans came back negative and she was released from the hospital later in the day. She slept through most of Friday and on the bus Saturday (we had a sleeper bus), but when she was up and about she was her normal self."
- Coaching clinic: With Old Dominion down 13 in Sunday's CAA final and less than a minute to go, Jasmine Parker picked up her fifth foul with a frustration hack at JMU's Jalissa Taylor. Lady Monarchs coach Wendy Larry calmly called her players to the bench, and in about 15 seconds sternly - but with a hint of compassion - explained to them why they were losing - "The team that works the hardest wins" - and how they were to conduct themselves the rest of the way - "We show class! Show class!" Yet another reason why Lady Monarchs fans should be thankful their team has Larry as a coach - and that Comcast Sportsnet has excellent sideline microphones.
- It was nice of Delaware coach Tina Martin to vow "We will be back!" after the Blue Hens' 50-49 loss to Old Dominion in the CAA semis. But if I was a rival coach, that's exactly what I'd be hoping - that that same Delaware team will be back next season and beyond. This isn't meant to disparage the non-Elena Delle Donne Blue Hens, and we'll take them at their word that they'll buts their tails this offseason to improve. But if Delaware wants to max out with a once-in-a-generation talent like Delle Donne, clearly an infusion of talent is required. So far Delaware has signed just one incoming recruit, and she's an accomplished one - Virginia's own Kelsey Buchanan, a 6-3 center who on Saturday had 24 points and 16 rebounds in leading Freedom High to its second straight Division 4 state title. But aren't there others that want to play with a talent like Delle Donne? Martin said in a News-Journal story that last summer, the high-profile recruits were more interested in playing in the big conferences. But that was when Delle Donne was mostly hype, myth and rumor. Now that she's proven to be everything as advertised - and then some - it'll be interesting to see what happens when Martin hits those same trails again.
- Much of the talk heading into the CAA tournament centered on how anyone could win it. That's good PR for the conference - the more fans believe their team has a chance, the more interest is sustained across the board. As it turned out, though, form most held throughout the championships. Eight of the 11 games were won by the higher seed, and two of those "upsets" - No. 5 Delaware nipping No. 4 Drexel in the teams' third overtime game of the season and No. 2 James Madison defending its home court in the final against No. 1 Old Dominion - weren't terribly surprising. Only No. 10 UNC Wilmington's 50-30 rout of No. 7 Towson falls into the "Huh?" category. But who knew the Tigers would leave their offense in Baltimore?
- Brittany Wilson update: Here's the latest from the Northeastern sports information department on Wilson, the Northeastern star who suffered a seizure after an Old Dominion player landed on top of her during a CAA quarterfinal last Friday: "Brittany suffered a concussion but her CT scans came back negative and she was released from the hospital later in the day. She slept through most of Friday and on the bus Saturday (we had a sleeper bus), but when she was up and about she was her normal self."
- Coaching clinic: With Old Dominion down 13 in Sunday's CAA final and less than a minute to go, Jasmine Parker picked up her fifth foul with a frustration hack at JMU's Jalissa Taylor. Lady Monarchs coach Wendy Larry calmly called her players to the bench, and in about 15 seconds sternly - but with a hint of compassion - explained to them why they were losing - "The team that works the hardest wins" - and how they were to conduct themselves the rest of the way - "We show class! Show class!" Yet another reason why Lady Monarchs fans should be thankful their team has Larry as a coach - and that Comcast Sportsnet has excellent sideline microphones.
- It was nice of Delaware coach Tina Martin to vow "We will be back!" after the Blue Hens' 50-49 loss to Old Dominion in the CAA semis. But if I was a rival coach, that's exactly what I'd be hoping - that that same Delaware team will be back next season and beyond. This isn't meant to disparage the non-Elena Delle Donne Blue Hens, and we'll take them at their word that they'll buts their tails this offseason to improve. But if Delaware wants to max out with a once-in-a-generation talent like Delle Donne, clearly an infusion of talent is required. So far Delaware has signed just one incoming recruit, and she's an accomplished one - Virginia's own Kelsey Buchanan, a 6-3 center who on Saturday had 24 points and 16 rebounds in leading Freedom High to its second straight Division 4 state title. But aren't there others that want to play with a talent like Delle Donne? Martin said in a News-Journal story that last summer, the high-profile recruits were more interested in playing in the big conferences. But that was when Delle Donne was mostly hype, myth and rumor. Now that she's proven to be everything as advertised - and then some - it'll be interesting to see what happens when Martin hits those same trails again.
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