Here are the latest men's basketball standings in the Classic OVC, based on Ken Pomeroy's rankings:
129. Mid. Tenn. St: 3-1
147. W. Kentucky: 3-1
162. Murray St: 2-1
163. E. Kentucky: 2-1
230. Austin Peay: 2-2
232. Morehead St: 2-3
267. E. Tenn. St: 2-2
327. Tennessee Tech: 1-4
If we conclude that the team with the highest final ranking on Ken Pom was the Classic OVC Champion for that year, then the list of champions (with Ken Pom ranking) back to 1999 looks like this:
1999: Murray St. (70)
2000: Murray St. (93)
2001: W. Kentucky (58)
2002: W. Kentucky (44)
2003: W. Kentucky (56)
2004: Murray St. (61)
2005: W. Kentucky (86)
2006: Murray St. (89)
2007: W. Kentucky (116)
2008: W. Kentucky (43)
2009: W. Kentucky (88)
2010: Murray St. (53)
2011: Morehead St. (89)
2012: Murray St. (35)
2013: Mid. Tenn. St. (44)
2014: Mid. Tenn. St. (89)
2015: Murray St. (57)
2016: Mid. Tenn. St. (119)
2017: Mid. Tenn. St. (43)
2018: Mid. Tenn. St. (45)
2019: Murray St. (51)
2020: E. Tenn. St. (56)
2021: W. Kentucky (99)
2022: Murray St. (36)
2023: Mid. Tenn. St. (116)
So in the last 25 years, the breakdown is:
Murray St: 9 titles (99, 00, 04, 06, 10, 12, 15, 19, 22)
W. Kentucky: 8 (01, 02, 03, 05, 07, 08, 09, 21)
Mid. Tenn. St: 6 (13, 14, 16, 17, 18, 23)
E. Tenn. St: 1 (20)
Morehead St: 1 (11)
By this measure, the best Classic OVC team of the last 25 years was the 2012 Murray State team, which went 31-2 and lost to Marquette in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. The 2022 Murray State team, which went 31-3 and lost to Saint Peter's in the Second Round, was almost as good.
Western's best team of the last 25 years was the 2008 team, which went 29-7. The Hilltoppers beat Drake 101-99 (in overtime) in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament, and then beat San Diego 72-63 in the Second Round, before losing to U.C.L.A. 88-78 in the Sweet 16.
In a matchup of two teams that deserve each other, Tennessee leads Syracuse 38-31 with 15 minutes left in their game in the first round of the Maui Invitational. By the way, they aren't playing at Maui this year -- the tournament is being played in Honolulu.
ReplyDeleteIt's weird to see Syracuse playing a man-to-man defense, and it's interesting to watch UT play a team willing to match it blow for blow. Tennessee leads 40-35 with 13:44 left.
ReplyDeleteI'm a Classic SEC guy and all that, but I have rarely seen a team that I dislike as much as the Rick Barnes Tennessee squads. They have the violence of the old Dale Brown LSU teams, but without the charm.
ReplyDeleteSince 2018, Barnes has taken UT to the NCAA Tournament five different times. His teams were seeded 3d, 2d, 5th, 3d, and 4th. One team was eliminated in the first round. Two others were eliminated in the second round. The other two were eliminated in the Sweet 16.
ReplyDeleteBarnes did go with the old Ernie and Bernie uniforms, with "TENNESSEE" on top of the jersey number, and "VOLUNTEERS" below the number. I do like that. And I enjoyed watching them beat up Duke in last year's tournament. Just watching the stunned look on the Duke players' faces as they realized that they were trapped with Tennessee for several hours of pain was hilarious. But personally, I'd rather watch football in football season, and basketball in basketball season.
ReplyDeleteNow the game has been stopped for an injured player, which happens a lot with Barnes's teams. This time it's an injured Vol. UT leads 42-39 with 10:20 left.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those games where both teams' offense is built around getting their own rebound and drawing a foul on the put back.
ReplyDeleteYou know how everyone in the press talked about what an exciting game UK and KU had last week? This game is like the opposite of that.
ReplyDeleteI agree with everyone in the press that the UK-KU game was exciting, and I agree with you that I wouldn't want to watch Tennessee-Syracuse.
DeleteTennessee leads 50-45 with 7:32 left, and I have no desire to see how this comes out. I'm going to get something to eat.
ReplyDeleteTennessee pulls away, and wins 73-56. They will take on the winner of Purdue-Gonzaga, who are about to tip off.
ReplyDeleteI was about to say that Purdue is the best college team from the 1950's, but then I realized that the 1950's featured players like Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, and Elgin Baylor. So I'll just say that if you told me that Gene Keady was still coaching Purdue, I wouldn't be surprised -- the Boilermakers always look exactly like they did when he was there.
ReplyDeleteI will make an exception for the 2019 Purdue team, which was fourth in the nation in offensive efficiency, and which beat Tennessee 99-95 in overtime in the Sweet 16. That was a fun team. And they should have beaten UVA in the Elite Eight. But they did not.
DeleteOf course, if they played the NCAA Tournament in November, Gonzaga would win it almost every year. So I'm not surprised to see the Zags jump out to an early 20-15 lead.
ReplyDeleteKentucky hasn't played Purdue since December 3, 1997. At no point during all that time have I ever thought, "You know, I'd really like to see the Cats play Purdue."
ReplyDeleteI choose to believe that the organizers of this tournament wanted to have Purdue play Gonzaga in the first round because they were afraid one of them would lose to Tennessee in the first round and then we wouldn't get this matchup at all.
ReplyDeleteZags lead 35-30 at the half.
ReplyDeleteI'm switching to ESPNU, where Indiana is playing U of L in Madison Square Garden.
ReplyDeleteHoosiers lead 44-35 with 15:21 left in the game. I watched a documentary called "Kings of Indiana" over the weekend. It was about Barr-Reeves High School, in Montgomery, Indiana, and its efforts to win the Class 1A championship of Indiana in 2015. It was pretty well done, but of course it would have been much better if Barr-Reeves had been trying to become the champions of the whole state.
ReplyDeleteLouisville 52 - 49 Indiana (10:32 left in 2d half)
ReplyDeleteK-Pom has IU winning this game 76-71.
ReplyDeleteI have some issues with Coach Cal, but I am really happy we don't play in Thanksgiving tournaments any more. I hate it when UK plays in these things.
ReplyDeleteUK appeared in the Maui Invitational five times: 1993, 1997, 2002, 2006, and 2010. 1993 was the only time we won it, beating Arizona 93-92 on a tip-in at the buzzer. The only other time we reached the final was in 2010, when UConn crushed us 84-67.
ReplyDeleteUK made three trips to the Great Alaskan Shootout: 1979, 1988, and 1996. We won the 1979 and 1996 tournaments, and lost in the semi-final in 1988.
ReplyDeleteIn 2009, UK went to the Cancun Challenge in Cancun, Mexico. I believe this is the only time in my life that the Cats played official games outside the United States. This was the John Wall team, and the games were played in a place that looked like a big hotel room. We beat Cleveland State 73-49, and then beat Stanford 73-65 in overtime.
ReplyDeleteLouisville 60 - 53 Indiana (7:55 left)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, tonight the Cats will be at home in Rupp Arena, to play the St. Joseph's Hawks. This will be our third game with St. Joseph's. On January 6, 1939, the Cats went to Philadelphia and beat St. Joseph's 41-30. On March 20, 1997, the Cats beat St. Joseph's 83-68 in the Sweet 16 at San Jose, California. Ron Mercer and Cameron Mills each had 19 points as the Cats went 8-16 from three-point range.
ReplyDeleteLouisville 60 - 57 Indiana (6 minutes left)
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, Purdue has stormed to a 52-47 lead with 9:57 left.
ReplyDeleteLouisville 64 - 61 Indiana (3:34 left)
ReplyDeleteLouisville 64 - 65 Indiana (2:56 left). Hoosiers on a 12-4 run.
ReplyDeleteLouisville 64 - 67 Indiana (2:04 left). Hoosiers on a 14-4 run.
ReplyDeleteLouisville misses a three. IU up by 3 with the ball.
ReplyDeleteIU draws a foul, goes to the line, and makes the first FT. IU leads 68-64 with 1:16 left. U of L looks like the Cats did at the end of the KU game.
ReplyDeleteLouisville misses another 3, and the Cards trail 69-64 with 40 seconds left. IU ball.
ReplyDeleteIU wins 74-66, ending the game on a 21-6 run.
ReplyDeleteKen Pomeroy!
DeleteMeanwhile, Purdue figured out how to defend Gonzaga, because the Zags have only scored 20 points in the second half. Purdue leads 66-55 with 3:45 to go, and the nation will get to see UT against Purdue tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteTonight the Cats play a game starting at 6 PM Central, and they're not on ESPN Plus. My cup runneth over.
ReplyDeleteHere are the Cats' starters:
ReplyDeleteD.J. Wagner, G, (6' 4", 192 lbs.), Freshman, Camden, N.J.
Antonio Reeves, G (6' 6", 195 lbs.), Fifth Year, Chicago
Justin Edwards, G, (6' 8", 203 lbs.), Freshman, Philadelphia
Adou Thiero, G (6' 8", 222 lbs.), Sophomore, Leetsdale, Pa.
Tre Mitchell, F (6' 9" 231 lbs.), Grad Student, Pittsburgh
My current favorite Wildcats are Adou Thiero, D.J. Wagner, Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard. But I like them all.
DeletePurdue wins 73-63.
ReplyDeleteAt the half, the Cats lead St. Joseph's 41-38.
ReplyDeleteUK:
7-13 from 3-point range (53.8 percent)
7-16 from 2-point range (43.8 percent)
6-7 from the line (85.7 percent)
41 points, 15 rebounds, 12 assists, 6 turnovers
St. Joe's
6-17 from 3-point range (35.3 percent)
8-19 from 2-point range (42.1 percent)
4-4 from the line (100 percent)
38 points, 22 rebounds, 10 assists, 8 turnovers
Because of the rebounds, St. Joseph's took seven more shots than UK.
DeleteAntonio Reeves leads the Cats with 13 points, followed by Rob Dillingham with 10.
ReplyDeletePlus-minus scores for UK at the half:
ReplyDeleteReed Sheppard: 13
Antonio Reeves: 6
Adou Thiero: 2
Rob Dillingham: 2
Jordan Burks: 2
Tre Mitchell: 1
D.J. Wagner: -4
Justin Edwards: -7
Cats win a thriller, beating St. Joe's 96-88 in overtime. This result will kill them on Ken Pom -- who had them winning 82-66 -- but it was an exciting game to watch with some amazing offense and a lot of clutch plays by the Cats in overtime. Check out these numbers:
ReplyDeleteUK:
12-25 from 3-point range (48.0 percent)
21-39 from 2-point range (53.8 percent)
18-27 from the line (66.7 percent)
96 points, 37 rebounds, 24 assists, 9 turnovers
St. Joe's
15-37 from 3-point range (40.5 percent)
17-38 from 2-point range (44.7 percent)
9-12 from the line (75.0 percent)
88 points, 42 rebounds, 20 assists, 14 turnovers, including a key steal by Reed Sheppard to put the game away.
If you notice, you'll see that there were 27 made three-point shots in this game. It was very entertaining. I don't think this UK team is very good -- they are probably headed for their usual place in the high 20's on Ken Pom -- but they play exciting games.
DeleteAnd for once UK did have some luck. Down 77-76 with 14 seconds left in regulation, St. Joe's was fouled and went to the line for two shots. The St. Joe's player was an 83 percent free throw shooter, but he made the first and missed the second. That's why the game went to overtime. If he'd made that second free throw, the result could have been very different.
DeleteFor the Cats:
ReplyDeleteTre Mitchell: 22 points, 6 rebounds
D.J. Wagner: 22 points, 6 assists
Antonio Reeves: 20 points, 5 rebounds
Rob Dillingham: 13 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists
Justin Edwards: 12 points
Adou Thiero: 7 points, 5 rebounds
That's all the scoring. Reed Sheppard had no points, and took only one shot. But he had 5 steals, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists, and UK was plus-16 with him in the game.
Someone on the Internet claims that this is the first time UK has had three different players score 20 points each in a game since November 19, 2009, when DeMarcus Cousins, Patrick Patterson, and John Wall all had at least 20 points against Sam Houston St. The Cats won that game 102-92.
DeleteThis was UK's first overtime game since the Cats lost 86-77 to Michigan State in double overtime last season. Their last overtime game before that was the 85-79 loss to Saint Peter's in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
ReplyDeleteThe last time the Cats won an overtime game was on January 25, 2022, when UK beat Mississippi State 82-74 in Rupp Arena.
ReplyDeleteKen Pom had Tre Mitchell as UK's MVP for tonight: 3-5 from 2-point range, 4-10 from 3-point range, 4-6 from the line, 22 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists in 41 minutes.
ReplyDeleteUK MVP's this year:
DeleteMitchell: 2
Dillingham: 1
Sheppard: 1
Cats fall to number 18 on Ken Pom. Now projected to go 11-7 in the SEC and 21-10 overall. Cats are 10th in the nation in offensive efficiency, with a rating of 116.9. Cats are 51st in the nation in defensive efficiency, with a rating of 96.2.
ReplyDeleteUK's average possession length is 14.9 seconds, which is 21st in the country. They are shooting 3-point shots on 44.1 percent of their field goal attempts, and they are making those shots 39.5 percent of the time. They are also fourth in the country in offensive turnover percentage. If that sounds like a fun, guard-laden team, well that's exactly what they are.
ReplyDeleteYes.
DeleteThis year's team continues a trend of UK teams that are much better on offense than defense. Throwing out the 2021 team, which was a mess, here's UK's ranking in offensive efficiency since 2019:
ReplyDelete2020: 112.7 (24th)
2022: 120.0 (5th)
2023: 116.2 (17th)
2024: 116.9 (10th)
Those are some very good offenses. But now look at the defenses:
2020: 95.1 (52d)
2022: 94.3 (36th)
2023: 98.8 (68th)
2024: 96.2 (51st)
That won't get it done. Here are the defensive efficiency numbers for Cal's Elite Eight teams at UK:
2010: 88.3 (6th)
2011: 92.0 (16th)
2012: 89.6 (7th)
2014: 95.8 (32d)
2015: 84.4 (1st)
2017: 91.4 (7th)
2019: 90.1 (8th)
Until Cal can get another top 10 -- or at least top 20 -- defense, the Cats probably aren't returning to the Elite Eight.
Also, bad defense kills you down the stretch. Here's UK's "luck" numbers since 2019, again excluding 2021:
ReplyDelete2020: 138th (Tyrese Maxey created a lot of luck by himself)
2022: 279th
2023: 239th
2024: 255th
Tonight we have Tennessee playing Purdue in the semi-finals of the Maui Invitational, which is not being played in Maui. As usual, Tennessee is playing its violent style. And as usual, no one can run a normal offensive play. But Purdue is the Number 2 team in the Nation, and the officials are not just going to let the Vols get away with its usual brutality. In only 16 minutes of play, the officials have called 10 fouls on the Vols, and Purdue has already shot 20 free throws. Those FT's are keeping Purdue in the game. UT leads 27-26 with 3:44 left in the first half, and Coach Barnes is already having it out with the refs.
ReplyDeleteImagine being Purdue and going all the way to Hawaii just to find yourself in a cage match with UT.
ReplyDeleteI still think the 2019 Tournament was one of the best ever played, but a National Title game between UVA and Texas Tech convinced a lot of coaches that violence is the answer. San Diego State rode this same style all the way to the final last year. So it's not going away.
ReplyDeleteGonzaga and UCLA both lost in Hawaii yesterday, and both won today, so they'll play tomorrow for 5th place. That's usually a great matchup.
ReplyDeleteWith two seconds left in the first half, UT heaves a long shot that misses. Santiago Vescovi, playing for the Vols, blatantly shoves a guy from Purdue in the back while trying to get the rebound. The Purdue folks all scream for a foul. The refs have to stop the game and do a review to see if Vescovi's foul took place before the half ended. Finally, they put Purdue on the line, and the fouled player makes 1 of 2 free throws. UT leads 31-30 at the half. Vols basketball!
ReplyDeleteNow Rich Barnes (who was called for a technical foul) is complaining about the referees to the ESPN reporter. Vols basketball!
ReplyDeleteLook at these stats:
ReplyDeletePurdue:
2-10 from 3-point range (20 percent)
4-20 from 2-point range (20 percent)
16-26 from the line (61.5 percent)
30 points, 24 rebounds, 3 assists, 7 turnovers, 9 fouls
Tennessee:
3-12 from 3-point range (25 percent)
7-15 from 2-point range (46.7 percent)
8-13 from the line (61.5 percent)
31 points, 18 rebounds, 5 assists, 5 turnovers, 13 fouls
Does this seem like a game you'd like to watch? Vol fans get to watch this stuff 35 times a year.
Twitter is reporting the Aaron Bradshaw will return to practice with UK tomorrow, but still no word on whether he will play in a game.
ReplyDeleteBoiler up! Just as they did yesterday, Purdue starts strong in the second half. Purdue leads 40-35 with 15:39 left.
ReplyDeleteTennessee's best player appears to be Dalton Knecht, a fifth-year guy who transferred to Knoxville from Northern Colorado. So far, he has 13 points and 5 rebounds. Zach Edey, of course, is Purdue's best player. He has 15 points and 10 rebounds.
ReplyDeleteIn all seriousness, Purdue should be really good. Edey is basically unstoppable, and that should open up the game for everyone else to shoot open three's. But Purdue messed this up last year, and if I were a Boilermaker fan, I'd be worried that they will mess it up again.
ReplyDeleteActually, Purdue messed up in 2022 as well. They were the team that lost to Saint Peter's in the Sweet 16 that year.
ReplyDeleteEdey is called for his third foul with 14:55 left, and that should put the Vols back in business.
ReplyDeleteBut it does not. With 12:57 left, Edey re-enters the game with Purdue up 43-37. Good job by the Other Purdue Guys.
ReplyDeleteThe good news here is that if Tennessee loses this game, they'll probably have to play Marquette tomorrow, and they could lose that game as well.
ReplyDeletePurdue 45 - 42 Tennessee (11:15 left)
ReplyDeleteNow they're showing a clip of a guy for Purdue driving to the basket, and Josiah-Jordan James, a 6' 7", 220 lb. fifth-year for Tennessee, simply hammers the guy in the face while he's trying to make a layup. It's a flagrant foul on Tennessee, but of course Purdue makes only one of the two FT's.
ReplyDeleteKyle Tucker points out that the two teams have combined for 36 fouls, 50 free throws, and only 24 made field goals. Vol basketball!
ReplyDelete'Twas ever thus. Look at these scores from 1939 (home teams listed first):
ReplyDelete01/21/39: Kentucky 29 - 30 Tennessee
02/18/39: Tennessee 34 - 36 Kentucky (2 OT)
03/04/39: Tennessee 38 - 46 Kentucky (SEC Tournament Championship)
They played the SEC Tournament in Knoxville, and the Cats won a game where the officials called 17 fouls on UT and 18 on UK. The referees were Ben Chapman of Birmingham and Bowser Chest of Nashville, and they must have been men of integrity.
With 9 minutes left, Edey exits with 4 fouls. Purdue leads 50-48.
ReplyDeletePurdue decided to push back, so naturally the Vols are spending most of the second half at the FT line. Now UT has 28 FT's, and Purdue has 29.
ReplyDeletePurdue 50 - 48 Tennessee (8 minutes left). UT is now 20-28 from the line. Purdue is 18-29. Boilers are 4-15 from 3-point range. Vols are 4-18.
ReplyDeleteEdey has 19 points for Purdue. Fletcher Loyer, a shooting guard who is 3-10 from 3-point range, has 20 points. The entire rest of the team has 11.
ReplyDeleteEdey is 6-9 from 2-point range. The rest of the Purdue team is 4-21.
ReplyDeleteThis game started at 7 P.M. Central. It's now 9:08 PM Central, and there are still five minutes to go. ESPN is letting the Kansas fans know that their game is next, but at this rate the Jayhawk fans will be up very late.
ReplyDeletePurdue 61 - 58 Tennessee (4:45 left)
ReplyDeletePurdue 61 - 61 Tennessee (4 minutes left)
ReplyDeleteUT is 21-30 from the line. Purdue is 23-34.
DeleteK-Pom had Purdue winning this game 71-67, and he's going to be pretty close.
ReplyDeletePurdue 64 - 64 Tennessee (3 minutes left)
ReplyDeleteThere's a moment in one of the Harry Potter books where Harry tries to use an Unforgiveable Curse, and someone -- I think it's Bellatrix LeStrange -- says that to use one of those curses, it's not enough to just say the words: you have to really mean it. And that's what it's like to play Tennessee. You can't just say you're going to win, you have to actually take the punishment the Vols dish out. Like just now, there was a whole sequence where UT kept shooting, missing, and getting the rebound. Finally, a guy for Purdue got the rebound, and was promptly hammered to the ground. He then made the free throws. That's the type of thing you need against the Vols.
ReplyDeletePurdue 68 - 64 Tennessee (1:17 left) UT missing three-pointers from everywhere.
ReplyDeletePurdue 70 - 64 Tennessee (22 seconds left). UT missed everything in the last few minutes of the game, and they are headed for a deserved loss.
ReplyDeletePurdue 70 - 67 Tennessee (13 seconds left). After I typed that, Purdue missed two more FT's, and the Vols (Knecht) finally hit another 3.
ReplyDeleteTennessee has only made 11 two-point shots in this game.
ReplyDeleteESPN thought it was clever to make Kansas the second half of the double-header, but they didn't count on the Vols and their propensity to foul.
ReplyDeleteWith 12.1 seconds left, Purdue leads 71-67 -- K-Pom has it on the nose. Can this score hold?
ReplyDeleteDown 4, with 9.5 seconds left, and the nation waiting to watch KU and Marquette play real basketball, the Vols call time. Rick Barnes is not a guy to "read the room."
ReplyDeleteBest paragraph on college basketball I'll read all season long.
DeleteI saw someone on Twitter complaining that the refs should have "let them play" in this game. Believe me, that's what they've done. None of the fouls was close -- in fact, they let a lot of stuff go. If they had "let them play," none of the Purdue players would have survived the evening.
ReplyDeleteWith 2.9 seconds left, UT commits yet another foul, but the Boilers miss the FT's, and the game ends 71-67. K-Pom hit it on the nose!! Good for him.
ReplyDeleteAmazing.
DeleteCheck out these numbers and be happy you didn't watch:
ReplyDeletePurdue:
4-15 from 3-point range (26.7 percent)
15-39 from 2-point range (38.5 percent)
29-48 from the line (60.4 percent)
71 points, 44 rebounds, 8 assists, 16 turnovers, 21 fouls
Tennessee:
8-30 from 3-point range (26.7 percent)
11-27 from 2-point range (40.7 percent)
21-30 from the line (70.0 percent)
68 points, 32 rebounds, 9 assists, 10 turnovers, 30 fouls
This was a great win for Purdue against a team that is never easy to beat.
And the Kansas game won't tip until 9:58 Central.
ReplyDelete