College basketball mailbag

College basketball mailbag

Texas over KU?

In your league power rankings you rated Texas ahead of Kansas based, in part, on its victory over Michigan State. And you rated KU down because of its inability to put away middle-tier teams. If Texas is truly above KU, it can’t be by much. I don’t think they’ve earned it yet. KU still owns Texas and will until Texas can win at Allen Fieldhouse. Kansas, I think, tried to schedule tougher competition, but the teams they scheduled didn’t cooperate. While I agree that the top two teams in the Big 12 are Texas and Kansas, I think KU still gets the nod until the Jayhawks lose. Imagine how impressive Kansas will look when it actually starts playing as good as it is capable of playing. Right now, Kansas is not playing as good, but the Jayhawks are still winning. Texas is already playing near its peak. I don’t expect the Longhorns to get much better than they are now.

 

Mike Mulcahy
Lenexa, Kan.

I, too, think Kansas will prove to be the best team in the Big 12 over time. But the rankings are about who is playing the best at the moment and, right now, that team is Texas. Sure, Kansas is undefeated. But the Jayhawks haven’t been all that impressive against schools from other power conferences. They barely escaped unranked USC and UCLA at home and weren’t all that impressive against Arizona in Las Vegas. I don’t put much stock in the win against Memphis. The inexperienced Tigers were overmatched. On the flip side, look at Texas’ resume. The Longhorns whipped Michigan State in one of country’s top road environments and beat a talented North Carolina squad on what was anything but a neutral court in Greensboro. Yes, the Longhorns lost to a USC team that was without Jio Fontan – but that was nearly a month ago. Texas is a different team now. Also, its other loss came against Big East-favorite Pittsburgh in a game that came down to the final possession. That’s pretty impressive for a young team. I disagree that Texas has already peaked, mainly because two of its top players (Cory Joseph and Tristan Thompson) are freshmen who are bound to get better. That being said, I still think Kansas will surpass Texas in the rankings in the coming weeks. Kansas needs Marcus Morris to rediscover the fire with which he was playing at the beginning of the season, and Josh Selby needs more time to get acclimated. Making a bunch of shots (which Selby did in his first two games) can mask a lot of shortcomings. And the truth is that it’s still going to take some time for Selby to develop in other areas such as his floor game, his leadership and his defense. Once that happens, though, Kansas will be a scary, scary team that’s capable of winning the NCAA title. I don’t know that I can say the same thing about Texas.

 

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Iowa State’s status

Two things that usually fire up college sports fans are when their team is publicly dissed by a sports reporter while their chief rival is undeservedly praised. Although it was probably just a passing remark, I think it was unfair to label Iowa State a “cellar dweller.” We’ve been down a few years since our Elite Eight run but nowhere near as bad as Colorado and Nebraska. On the flip side, why all the breaks for Iowa? They are flat out awful. Check out the scoreboard from the Big Ten vs. Big 12 games this year. Why do all of the sportswriters suck up to the Big Ten? It seems way overrated, as usual. Thanks for the opportunity to share an opinion.

Dan Conrad
No location given

The last thing I want to do is disrespect Iowa State. I think the Cyclones are one of the top stories in college basketball thus far. If the voting were today, Fred Hoiberg would be the easy pick for Big 12 Coach of the Year. I definitely think Iowa State is going to take some lumps once conference play begins. But, heck, the Cyclones have already won 12 games. Considering all that they lost, I didn’t think they’d win that many all season. If Hoiberg’s squad wins five or six conference games it will probably end up in the NIT. What an accomplishment that would be. As for Iowa, I never said the Hawkeyes were good. Much like Iowa State, I’m simply impressed that they’re even able to compete given the attrition that’s taken place in that program over the last few seasons. I figured Iowa would be right there with Oregon State, DePaul and Auburn as one of the worst major conference teams in America. The fact that they’re playing hard, staying in games and keeping the score respectable is what impresses me about the Hawkeyes.

 

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Regarding Sidney

Jason, I read your “Monday Tip” column with Gerry Ahern and I couldn’t believe your take on it. It’s true we don’t know who started the fight between Renardo Sidney and Elgin Bailey, but what does it matter? You also said, “Do you really alter a kid’s future and kick him off of a basketball team because of one lapse in judgment?” One lapse? I count at least four. There were the illegal benefits that led to his suspension, the fight in practice the day before and then the one at the game – never mind the fact that he came into the season overweight. The kid just doesn’t get it. I have to agree with Gerry Ahern. That’s three strikes. He should be out. That kid will never learn.

Craig Martin
Fresno. Calif.

It’s not fair to blame Sidney for the NCAA rules violations that occurred when he was in high school. He was 16-year-old kid doing what his parents told him to do. That’s what’s so sad about so many of these situations. Kids take bad advice from their elders and end up paying for it down the road. It’s no wonder so many of them end up having “trust issues” when they get older. As far as Sidney being out of shape, that was certainly a factor when he played his first exhibition game on Dec. 15. But it wasn’t as big of an issue by the time the Bulldogs got to Hawaii. The guy hadn’t played in a competitive game in nearly two years. It’s understandable that it took him a few games to re-adjust. Plus, if Sidney truly was that out of shape, an equal amount of blame should be placed on Mississippi State’s strength and conditioning staff. As for the fights, I don’t know what happened in practice, but it was obviously severe enough to warrant a suspension. And you’re right – no matter who started the altercation in the stands, Sidney should’ve been man enough to walk away from it. I just think you’re dealing with a completely different type of kid in Sidney. He’s been coddled and spoiled his whole life. Now that he’s finally being held accountable for his actions, he doesn’t know how to handle it. I think Rick Stansbury is sticking by Sidney because he sees a lot of good in him and truly believes he can help him turn things around. Either that or he knows his team has no chance at a winning record without him. In the end, though, I don’t think getting into a fight – or even two of them – should be enough to get a guy kicked off a team, especially considering the crimes that have been committed by other athletes who are still playing Division I ball.

 

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Mizzou and Mitchell

Can you provide an update on whether Tony Mitchell will be eligible to play for Missouri during the second half of the season?

Ben
St. Louis

Missouri spokesman Dave Reiter told me Thursday that there is no new information regarding Mitchell. The NCAA Clearinghouse is still examining his situation and has yet to make a ruling. The last day to enroll at Missouri for the spring semester is Jan. 24, so if something is going to happen, it better happen fast. At this point I wouldn’t expect Mitchell to be in uniform this season. Luckily Missouri still has a Top 10-caliber team without him.

 

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Bearcats for real?

Don’t count on Cincinnati beating Xavier. It will be obvious by halftime that Tu Holloway is by far the best player on the court.

Greg
Cincinnati

I’m not counting on that happening, but it certainly wouldn’t surprise me. Even though they’ve yet to beat a good team, the Bearcats’ 13-0 start has given Mick Cronin’s squad a lot of swagger. And sometimes swagger can make teams play above their heads. That’s what Cincinnati will have to do to beat Xavier.

 

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Pat Knight’s days

You wrote an article last month suggesting that Pat Knight would be safe for at least another year in Lubbock. Now that the Red Raiders are 6-7, do you still have the same opinion?

Bryan Harrison
Lubbock, Texas

Unless Knight resigns – and I can’t imagine that happening – I expect him to be back in Lubbock next season, mainly because he’s going to benefit from the timing of Texas Tech’s change in athletic directors. Outgoing AD Gerald Myers isn’t going to fire Bob Knight’s son during his final months on the job. And I can’t envision the new AD – whoever that may be – firing Knight just a month into his tenure.