CAA thread

[O's are Legends]

Looks like I missed a great game by my two alma maters. I was going to write in the previous approach that I didn't think Long was aggressive enough in looking to score. Well, he dropped 30 today for a big road win.

Excuse the delay, got caught up with work yesterday.

Washington Post write up for the JMU/GMU game.

Highlights of that game (left hand side you can find highlights)/ also tonight’s game is free online as well because of the snow.

Cam Long has been getting some good publicity on the ESPN college basketball shows. Last week, him and Sullinger finished 2nd to Jimmer Fredette for player of the week.

Andre Cornelius stats for the year; unfortunately he hasn’t been having too many games like he did against Drexel. Shooting .318 from three this season (last year .433) and has gone through some bad stretches of turnovers.

Really was rooting for JMU to beat Hofstra but sir Charles went off as usual. Feel bad for the Dukes fans; tough game to drop there. Semenov probably needed to find his own transportation after the game – lane violation, taking the last shot. Hubert Davis called Charles Jenkins the best pure scorer in NCAA right now.

The CAA had the most OOC road wins out of any conference this season. Ranked 10th best conference in RPI. Mason currently has a real time RPI of 29 and strength of schedule at 44. Both will probably take a small hit after playing Towson and W&M.

Think that is it for now. Hofstra at VCU tomorrow on ESPNU 7pm.

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Game update.

Mason game delayed due to Towson being stuck at Tysons Corner. Can’t believe they didn’t leave campus early enough. Hope the Tigers lose by 50 now.

[backwardsk]

Excuse the delay' date=' got caught up with work yesterday.

Washington Post write up for the JMU/GMU game.

Highlights of that game (left hand side you can find highlights)/ also tonight’s game is free online as well because of the snow.

Cam Long has been getting some good publicity on the ESPN college basketball shows. Last week, him and Sullinger finished 2nd to Jimmer Fredette for player of the week.

Andre Cornelius stats for the year; unfortunately he hasn’t been having too many games like he did against Drexel. Shooting .318 from three this season (last year .433) and has gone through some bad stretches of turnovers.

Really was rooting for JMU to beat Hofstra but sir Charles went off as usual. Feel bad for the Dukes fans; tough game to drop there. Semenov probably needed to find his own transportation after the game – lane violation, taking the last shot. Hubert Davis called Charles Jenkins the best pure scorer in NCAA right now.

The CAA had the most OOC road wins out of any conference this season. Ranked 10th best conference in RPI. Mason currently has a real time RPI of 29 and strength of schedule at 44. Both will probably take a small hit after playing Towson and W&M.

Think that is it for now. Hofstra at VCU tomorrow on ESPNU 7pm.

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Game update.

Mason game delayed due to Towson being stuck at Tysons Corner. Can’t believe they didn’t leave campus early enough. Hope the Tigers lose by 50 now.

I was in Tyson's yesterday. It was the worst thing ever.

[backwardsk]

Mason moved into first place tonight with a win at home over Hofstra and a VCU loss in Boston.

[backwardsk]

ODU went in to Richmond to knock of VCU and GMU holds off JMU. The Patriots move into sole possession of 1st place!

[O's are Legends]

CAA gets serious respect on ESPN for “mid-majors” that can make a run to at least the Sweet 16. Jay Bilas picked George Mason, Digger Phelps picked Old Dominion, and Hubert Davis believes VCU can get to the Sweet 16 as well. Serious props for the CAA!

[Goop]

CAA gets serious respect on ESPN for “mid-majors” that can make a run to at least the Sweet 16. Jay Bilas picked George Mason' date=' Digger Phelps picked Old Dominion, and Hubert Davis believes VCU can get to the Sweet 16 as well. Serious props for the CAA![/quote']

The top of the conference looked real good in the Bracketbusters games. I really hope we can get 3 in the dance this year. I think realistically the CAA can get 2, but hopefully 3.

[backwardsk]

The top of the conference looked real good in the Bracketbusters games. I really hope we can get 3 in the dance this year. I think realistically the CAA can get 2, but hopefully 3.

Three may be obtainable with the expanded field.

[Goop]

Three may be obtainable with the expanded field.

Well there goes VCU's chance at an at-large bid. They just lost to Drexel...unbelievable.

[BaltimoreTerp]

Towson gets to go for a pretty amazing feat on Saturday against Drexel. 0-for-the-conference.

*Sigh*

[backwardsk]

Well there goes VCU's chance at an at-large bid. They just lost to Drexel...unbelievable.

The slide continues with a loss at home to JMU. A non-GMU, ODU team would have to win the CAA tourney for the NCAA to consider 3 teams. If Mason wins, ODU still may be on the bubble.

[Moose Milligan]

Been going to a lot of Mason games this year, glad to see them kicking ass all the way up to the tournament. 25-5, 15 game win streak, undefeated at home.

[BaltimoreTerp]

Towson University Football and Basketball: Unvictorious in conference play since March 2010!

[Goop]

The slide continues with a loss at home to JMU. A non-GMU, ODU team would have to win the CAA tourney for the NCAA to consider 3 teams. If Mason wins, ODU still may be on the bubble.

I'm so incredibly disappointed in the way VCU ended the season. Not only did they lose 4 straight CAA games, but they lost 3 straight home games, which for them is unheard of. They better get their heads together before the tournament this weekend.

[Goop]

Been going to a lot of Mason games this year, glad to see them kicking ass all the way up to the tournament. 25-5, 15 game win streak, undefeated at home.

Congrats on a great season so far. Mason is the team to beat right now going into the tournament.

[O's are Legends]

The Colonial may be the most competitive conference tournament outside of the power six. The top four seeds -- George Mason, Old Dominion, VCU and Hofstra -- are all capable of winning the event in Richmond, Va. Drexel, the No. 5 seed, has shown that it can beat anybody in the league as well as lose to just about anybody. The winner of this tournament will be battle-tested for a first-round NCAA tournament matchup. A George Mason-ODU final would be an NCAA-caliber type affair.

Conference USA is highly competitive from top to bottom. But that doesn't mean it should get more than one bid. If forced to choose the stronger conference between the CAA and C-USA, I'd go with the CAA -- it will have more bids and a better chance to advance in the tournament.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/blog/_/name/katz_andy/id/6171945/thoughts-final-week-regular-season

And speaking of hair, there is George Mason. You don’t want to draw them. The Patriots have won 15 in a row and have vowed to avoid haircuts until they lose. This in itself is reason to believe. This has to happen, doesn’t it?

If George Mason goes deep into the tournament, by the end of the month it will have a whole team of guys who look like Jackie Moon.

ELE. Everybody Love Everybody.

Plus, all the kids who were named “George Mason” in the wake of the Patriots’ miracle Final Four run are about to turn 5. That’s mojo you just can’t go against.

http://msn.foxsports.com/collegebasketball/story/kansas-state-among-most-dangerous-ncaa-tournament-teams-030111

CAA (March 4-7)

Top seed: George Mason (25-5, 16-2)

Storyline: George Mason is the obvious choice with guys like Cam Long and Ryan Pearson. In fact, George Mason, a winner of 15 straight games, is probably the best mid-major in the country right now. ODU will be another tough out, as I absolutely love Frank Hassell, Ben Finney and Kent Bazemore. This team can really guard. And then there is possibly the best player ever to play at Hofstra in Charles Jenkins, who leads a team fueled by desperation, as the Pride need to earn the conference's automatic bid to get into the NCAA tournament, in my view. Speaking of desperate, there's also VCU, which has lost four of its past five games, but I have to think that Shaka Smart can rally his troops. Drexel can really guard, and James Madison has great talent. This is the best top-half-talented tournament of all the mid-majors.

My pick: George Mason

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?id=6173796

As they prepare for this weekend’s CAA Tournament at Virginia Commonwealth University

http://www2.insidenova.com/sports/2011/mar/02/george-mason-ready-defend-its-turf-caas-no-1-seed-ar-879650/

George Mason Patriots (25-5, 16-2 Colonial)

This year marks the fifth anniversary of the Patriots' amazing run to the 2006 Final Four in Indianapolis. Who knew that head coach Jim Larranaga would choose to celebrate the occasion with a team that has the same kind of potential?

It's a long shot, of course. The NCAA tournament excels at putting tough opponents between you and the next round. But GMU has the profile of a team that can make a deep run. For one thing, they're strong on both sides of the ball. Mason is both the Colonial's best offensive team (by a mile) and its top defensive squad (by a hair).

The Patriots haven't lost a game since Jan. 8. In running off 14 straight CAA wins since then, Larranaga's team has outscored opponents by an outlandish 0.27 points per possession. Both Cam Long and Ryan Pearson have proved they can score from either side of the 3-point line; GMU actually doesn't shoot 3s that often, but in CAA play those perimeter shots went in 43 percent of the time. This offense minimizes turnovers, draws fouls and gets good looks at the basket, never being held to less than a point per possession in any CAA game this year.

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/insider/news/story?id=6170708&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2finsider%2fnews%2fstory%3fid%3d6170708

Mason 6 seed, ODU 8 seed.

http://collegebasketball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1195739

ESPN experts pick their POY, COY for the top 10 conferences.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=6172684

CAA on the rise!

--All links work now, enjoy.