Bob Huggins has West Virginia flying high in the top 10, and a light pre-Thanksgiving schedule should keep the 1-0 Mountaineers from much Kentucky-style heartburn or any Carolina hiccups. But to keep those lofty expectations realistic heading into Big East play -- and before that the 76 Classic in Anaheim beginning Nov. 29, headlined by UCLA and No. 11 Butler -- Huggins certainly needs big things from standout sophomore forward Devin Ebanks.
For that to happen, Ebanks would have to actually be playing with the team. Which, as of right now, he's not, with no timeline for his return in place, nor even an explanation of why he is not with the team.
NEW YORK -- Whether it was Villanova's Final Four trip last season or his bench demeanor, Wildcats coach Jay Wright has made a big impression on a majority of the Big East players.
Wright was the top vote-getter in FanHouse's poll of the league's players asking which coach, other than their own, they would like to play for. Wright, who received 29.7 percent of the votes, edged Syracuse's Jim Boeheim, with 24.3 percent.
Two weeks ago at the Big East's media day, FanHouse polled 37 players representing all 16 schools that attended Madison Square Garden on a variety of subjects. The players were guaranteed anonymity for their responses with only one stipulation: they could not vote for their coach, a teammate or their school in any of the categories.
While the players voted for Wright as the coach they would like to play for, Seton Hall's Bobby Gonzalez (24.3 percent) edged UConn's Jim Calhoun (21.6 percent) as the "opposing coach that screams the most."
In an effort to talk about something college basketball-related other than scandals in the summer, let's talk best current coaches. We'll attempt to order the top 25 current coaches in the nation. This is about the present and the future, not the distant past. What a guy did in the mid-90s doesn't matter near as much as the direction his program is currently headed. Past pedigree also matters, to an extent. For the perfect mix of past accomplishments with present achievement and a paved road for future success, look no further than the man atop the list.
The NCAA Tournament is so close we can smell it, so FanHouse's college basketball experts took some time away from their busy schedules to talk about who will come out of each region First up, the Midwest Region.
Headlining: Pittsburgh took over first in the country after beating Connecticut two weeks ago. All it had to do was beat Providence and the Panthers would get to sit pretty at No. 1 overall, possibly cruising to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Yet, they somehow lost. It's a testament to this year's college basketball season, not only in terms of parity and a lack of elite teams, but general confusion as well. Don't bother telling me you saw that coming.
There has been another lawsuit filed after the fallout of Ole Miss head basketball coach Andy Kennedy'srun-in with a cab driver in Cincinnati last month. Mohamed Jiddou claimed that Kennedy punched him while shouting racial slurs in front of a local bar. Kennedy denies all of this and has filed a defamation suit against Jiddou and a valet who said he witnessed the assault. Kennedy is due in court today for a preliminary hearing of the assault charge.
What got lost in the shuffle was another lawsuit filed by the Kennedy clan. Kennedy's wife, Kimber, is suing the cabbie and the valet over the claim that her husband hasn't been able to perform in the bedroom since the incident happened.
The Ohio State Buckeyes have surprised many people this season. They began the season 9-0 with impressive wins over Miami, Notre Dame and Butler. Their nice start vaulted the Buckeyes to the No. 13 ranking in the Coaches' Poll and among the Big Ten's elite.
It's hard to use the word "elite" when you get beat at home by 28 points to West Virginia. Yeah, the Mountaineers went into Columbus and pounded Ohio State, 76-48. Counting their N.I.T. championship last year, the Buckeyes had won 14 straight games heading into the day.
West Virginia used a late 35-9 to turn the game into a laugher. Ohio State was pitiful with just 31% shooting from the field and missing nine of their ten free throws.
The game was sweet for West Virginia's Bob Huggins. When Huggs was at Cincinnati, Ohio State refused to play them despite a push to make something happen. Huggs also tried and failed twice to get the head job at Ohio State.
When I first moved to the Cincinnati area (which, by the way, was exactly one decade ago today), I would be told that the Xavier-Cincinnati basketball rivalry was up there with Duke-UNC. I just moved from Charlotte and shot that down immediately.
It is a neat little rivalry that has fallen on some hard times. The event that once gripped the city has turned into a oh-that's-coming up game. It is coming up this Saturday.
So, wha' happened?
Obviously the fall of the Cincinnati Bearcats has contributed to this. The game used to feature a ranked Bearcats team versus the mid-major Muskies who are known to come up and bite you every once in a while. The Bearcats were a polarizing team that you either loved or hated; Xavier doesn't own that level of love or hate -- even from Cats fans. To outsiders, it was a matchup of the thuggish Bearcats and the small Jesuit school.
West Virginia head basketball coach Bob Huggins was in a Charlotte, NC hospital after bumping his head. Huggs was talking on his cell phone as he was deboarding a plane when he tripped over a cone.
Haley Gentry, public affairs manager at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, said, "Upon exiting the plane, apparently he became dizzy and required medical attention." Gentry said a report of the incident did not say Huggins fainted.
Huggins was in Charlotte to meet with an alumni group.
Though the story sounds somewhat funny now, hearing that he was in the hospital is no joke. In 2002, Huggins suffered a massive heart attack while in an airport in Pittsburgh. He had to be shocked back to life three times. Since then, his health has been a topic of discussion -- including during West Virginia's recent Sweet 16 run.
Though it doesn't seem serious, here's wishing for a speedy recovery for Huggins.
College basketball coaches are a weird bunch. They are control freaks who are media savvy and live in an isolated world of hoopdom. But what if they weren't coaching? What would they do? Who would they be?
The blog CatsandBeer.com attempts to figure that out to hilarious results:
Bob Huggins has West Virginia flying high in the top 10, and a light pre-Thanksgiving schedule should keep the 1-0 Mountaineers from much Kentucky-style heartburn or any Carolina hiccups. But to keep those lofty expectations realistic heading into Big East play -- and before that the 76 Classic in Anaheim beginning Nov. 29, headlined by UCLA and No. 11 Butler -- Huggins certainly needs big things from standout sophomore forward Devin Ebanks.
NEW YORK -- Whether it was Villanova's Final Four trip last season or his bench demeanor, 
There has been 
The Ohio State Buckeyes have surprised many people this season. They began the season 9-0 with impressive wins over Miami, Notre Dame and Butler. Their nice start vaulted the Buckeyes to the No. 13 ranking in the Coaches' Poll and among the Big Ten's elite.
When I first moved to the Cincinnati area (which, by the way, was exactly one decade ago today), I would be told that the Xavier-Cincinnati basketball rivalry was up there with Duke-UNC. I just moved from Charlotte and shot that down immediately.
West Virginia head basketball coach 
College basketball coaches are a weird bunch. They are control freaks who are media savvy and live in an isolated world of hoopdom. But what if they weren't coaching? What would they do? Who would they be?
