courtesy of WFAN.COM

Written by Vin Parise
February 3rd, 2010

A Bad Red Storm

One of the worst losses in a long time took place for St. John’s last night.  The Red Storm lost 84-72 at Rutgers.  If you can’t beat Rutgers….it is safe to say things are not looking good for Norm Roberts and his team the rest of the way.  Two months ago, everything was great…..a solid record and talk of an NIT berth at worst.  And now it’s a total disaster in Queens.  Mike Rosario scored a career high 33 points for Rutgers in the win.
Can someone explain to me why St. John’s didn’t just face guard Rosario?  Forget trying to contain….forget trying to contest…..face guard!  Play him like your playing a Box & 1!  Rutgers does not have enough scoring to beat you with the rest of the team….but Rosario can when he’s hot.  A really poor job defensively by the Red Storm.
In an interview with WFAN last year….St. John’s Athletic Director Chris Monasch stated that making the NCAA Tournament was a realistic goal for 2010.  His reasoning was because Anthony Mason Jr. would be back and all of Norm’s recruits would be Juniors and Seniors.
St. John’s is now 2-7 in Big East play and in the basement with Rutgers and DePaul.  And the game clearly will not quiet down the speculation regarding Norm Roberts and whether he’ll be back next season.


*How about the Big Red!
Cornell has earned their first national ranking in 59 years!  The Big Red are ranked 25th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.  It is also the first time a team other than Princeton or Penn from the Ivy League is ranked since 1970.


Steve Donahue’s team is impressive.  The are 18-3 overall and 4-0 in league play.  But most importantly, they went 14-3 in their non conference portion of the schedule.
And how about their wins….they’ve beaten Alabama, UMass, Davidson, St. John’s and St. Joe’s.  And one of their three losses was at #1 Kansas by five points.

This team is led by the scoring of Ryan Wittman and Jeff Foote - but it’s Donahue’s name that you’re going to be hearing a lot about.
Look for Steve Donahue to receive more than a few phone calls this spring when some high profile jobs open.



*The best coaching job in the metropolitan area is going on in New Rochelle, NY.  Kevin Willard and his Iona Gaels are in 2nd place (preseason picked 9th) and now have a showdown with Siena Friday night in Albany.  Siena is undefeated in MAAC play and the cream of the crop when it comes to mid major basketball.  The Saints have won back to back MAAC Championships and have won their 1st round NCAA Tournament games both times.  The game is expected to be a sellout at TIme Union Arena and Iona has the chance to win one of its biggest games in a long, long time.  In the last two seasons, Iona has had the largest jump in RPI in all of college basketball.

*Check in next time for the updated version of VP’s Super 7 in the metropolitan area!


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A BOUNCE BACK WIN INDEED

Written by Vin Parise
January 28th, 2010

*This is why you can’t figure college basketball out all of the time.  Providence goes from the ‘Collapse of the Weekend’ to beating UConn 4 days after the Huskies beat #1 Texas.  Greedy Peterson led the way with 23 points and 14 rebounds as the Friars won 81-66.  And talk about having a team’s number….Providence has won 4 out of the last 5 vs UConn.  I cover Providence & URI very closely with The Tipoff show that I host up in Rhode Island.  And to say the Friar fans have been unhappy recently is an understatement.  You would think that PC was a lot worse than 4-4 in conference play.  UConn has shown that they are a very good team….but not an elite team.  And not having Jim Calhoun on the bench is a factor….no matter how respected and good George Blaney is.

*Things just got more interesting in the A-10 conference.  UNC Charlotte beats #15 Temple by 10.

*Tonight could be that signature Big East road upset Norm Roberts has been looking for.  St. John’s plays at #17 Pitt tonight.  This is not when you wanna be playing Jamie Dixon’s team….the Panthers have dropped 2 straight.  But at least they have shown some cracks in the armor.  Norm’s career conference road record is 6-40 and has never beaten a Top 25 team on the road.  C’mon Johnnies….give us something to talk about tomorrow!

*Guess what?  There is actually a New Jersey Net involved in NBA All Star Weekend.  Brook Lopez will play with the sophomore team in the Rookie Challenge Game.  We heard the rest of the team will be on MTV’s Jersey Shore Show trying to meet Snooki that weekend.

*Marist plays at Iona tonight.  The Red Foxes are 1-19 overall and have to face Iona….the hottest team in the area.  The Gaels have won 11 out of their last 13 games.  I’m sure Marist head coach Chuck Martin is hoping for a lot more snow to fall on the ground this afternoon….a lot more.

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COLLAPSE OF THE WEEKEND

Written by Vin Parise
January 24th, 2010

Keno Davis and his Providence Friars lost to  South Florida in overtime 109-105 Saturday night at home.  The Friars led by nine points with under a minute to play and lost.  South Florida’s Dominique Jones hit a 3-pointer to begin overtime and the Bulls never trailed again. Jones scored a career-high 46 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out eight assists. Dominique’s 46 points is the second most all-time in a Big East game.  Erick Murdock from Providence scored 48 points in a conference game in 1991. (stat courtesty of Providence Sports Information)

And could the last minute have been any worse for Providence?  They get outscored 14-5 in the final minute, PC misses 3 out of  their last 4 free throws and then Jones hits a 3-pointer at the buzzer to send the game into overtime!

I knew this season would not be an easy one for Keno and his young team, but does it get any worse than this?  Leading by 9 in the final minute and losing is disastrous no matter who you play.  The fact that it was South Florida at home makes it that much worse.

Providence has UConn at home on Wednesday night.

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COURTESY OF WFAN.COM

Written by Vin Parise
January 20th, 2010

The following will be posted later today on wfan.com


METROPOLITAN AREA REVIEW

Metropolitan area college basketball will always be the greatest thing in the world.  Even during a season like this one.  There have not been many bright spots thus far for our local teams.  Yet, there have been some nice surprises!
Gaels are Red Hot

Kevin Willard’s Iona Gaels are on fire.  They were 3-0 last week and Kyle Smyth won his 2nd MAAC Rookie of the Week Award.  Iona is clearly the talk of the MAAC right now.  This team that was picked to finish at the bottom of the league; has quietly swept the preseason number 2 & 3, Rider Broncs & Niagara Purple Eagles.  Iona is 13-6 overall and in 3rd place behind Siena and Fairfield.  The scary part…Willard returns nearly the entire team.  He has 9 freshmen and sophomores.
How Good is Seton Hall?

In the preseason a lot of analysts liked Seton Hall’s chances this season.  I was one of them.  I liked the lineup they returned and I knew Gonzo would have this team playing hard and defending.  But we’ve been waiting a little bit too long for their first big win this year.  They’ve had some good battles and tough losses - but other than the Cincinnati win, Gonzo’s Pirates haven’t really done much in the past month at all.  And in with a rare 7 days off during January, Seton Hall returns to action tomorrow night for the first time since their loss at Georgetown.  The bad news is that it’s against Rick Pitino’s Louisville Cardinals.  Louisville has lost a few heartbreakers recently so they’re going to be looking for blood.  The good news for The Hall is that the game is New Jersey.  The ROCK will be rocking indeed tomorrow night.  This game is huge for both teams right now.
Rutgers Trying to Stay Positive

And this is some task these days.  If you’re a Rutgers fan, I feel for you right now.  The Scarlet Knights have not won a game since they beat St. Peter’s on December 22nd.  They are 0-5 in Big East play and it doesn’t look to be getting any easier.  Jay Wright and Villanova enter the RAC tonight in Piscataway.  The Cats are ranked #4 in the country and are playing their best basketball of the season right now.  Then, Rutgers has to play at Georgetown and at Marquette.  Marquette just beat Providence by the way by 30 points in Milwaukee - and Providence will finish at the bottom of the league this season.  Then it’s back to the RAC to face Mike Brey and Notre Dame.  Unless an upset takes place, Fred Hill has to circle February 2nd-home vs St. John’s on his calendar as a very important date….and possible win.
Manhattan Nightmare

The Jaspers are in the basement of the MAAC Standings and it’s only mid-January.  Barry Rohrssen’s team is 7-11 and 2-6 in the league - good for 9th place in the MAAC.  Here’s why I’m concerned….2 out of the team’s top 3 scorers will be graduating this season.  Darryl Crawford and Antoine Pearson will graduate with good careers, but not many MAAC Tourney wins.  However, there is a bright spot….newcomer Rico Pickett seems to be the leading scorer in every box score and he returns for next season.  The Jaspers play red hot Iona at home this Friday night on ESPNU.  After that game, Manhattan plays 2 out of their next 3 on the road.
Norm Needs Signature Win

Things could be a lot worse in St. John’s land fans.  The Red Storm are 12-5 overall and after starting off 0-3 in Big East play - beat both Cincinnati and DePaul recently.  There’s not many teams in the area that have won two conference games in a row in any league.  But things start to get tough for Norm Roberts soon.  How about these next 3 games….at UConn, Nova at home and at Pitt.  February 2nd’s game at Rutgers will be big for both teams, for many reasons….but we’ll save those topics for next month.  The thing I like most about Norm’s team is the balanced scoring.  St. John’s averages almost 70 points per game and only has two guys that score in double figures.  After DJ Kennedy at 15ppg and Dwight Hardy at 11ppg….9 players then average between 8.6ppg and 2.6ppg.
Hard Hofstra Times

I recently had the chance to spend some time Hofstra coach Tom Pecora.  He was a little down because these days he’s lucky if he dresses 8 guys for a game.  The Pride….who are 9-11… have really been hit hard with injuries and eligibility issues this season.  And it has shown in the win-loss column indeed….Hofstra lost at home last night to George Mason by 18.  Pecora’s team has lost 6 out of their last 7 and need to stop the bleeding quick.  He feels that their offense will improve greatly when 6′0 shooter Brad Kelleher from Australia can finally step on the court and play.  Stay patient, that time should be coming very soon Hofstra fans.
Aching Rams in the Bronx

Let’s face it.  This season is a wash for Fordham Basketball.  A.D. Frank McClaughlin will hopefully retire soon and this program can start from scratch at the end of the season.  Jared Grasso’s Rams are 2-14 overall and may not win a game in A-10 play.  They need to just stay positive and try to get some moral victories along the way. They are still fighting hard and there have some ‘moral moments’ - Fordham lost a tight one at UMass and gave Dayton a game for a half at the Garden last week.  But most importantly, they need to hang their hat on Chris Gatson most likely being the A-10 Rookie of the Year.  He leads the team in scoring nearly every night and is playing extremely well.  Now just make sure he doesn’t leave like Jio Fontan did!
VP’s Super 7
1. Iona - The Gaels are 9-2 in their last 11 games.  Kevin Willard’s team is by the far the hottest in the area right now.
2. St. John’s - The Red Storm have won back to back conference games but have some tough tests ahead.
3. Seton Hall - Gonzo’s team needs a Big East win bad, but are still 10-6 overall.
4. Hofstra - Pecora’s team gave both UConn and St. John’s a tough game earlier in the season.  They get the nod over Rutgers right now.
5. Rutgers - It could get ugly at the RAC tonight the way Big East Player of the Week Scottie Reynolds is playing.
6. Manhattan - Thing are not good for the Jaspers right now.  They need more guys to step up on both ends of the floor.
7. LIU - Sorry Fordham, moral victories can only last so long.  LIU has won 3 out of their last 4 and are 5-1 in league play.
-Vin Parise has been the college basketball analyst for WFAN since last March. His analysis can be read throughout the season on WFAN’s college basketball blog. During March Madness, Parise has been on with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts, among others, giving insight and predictions.

Parise is also the host of “Tip Off”, a pre-game basketball show that airs on Cox Sports New England prior to all Providence & URI basketball games. In addition, Parise is a color analyst for MSG-Varsity Television and Iona College Men’s Basketball Radio. Besides blogging for wfan.com, Parise has his own blog at vphoops.com– one of the hottest new metropolitan area basketball blogs around. Parise was a college basketball coach for 8 seasons at Iona, Rutgers & Fairleigh Dickinson.

Vin lives in New Rochelle, NY with his wife Amy and son Dylan.

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A GREAT PARTNERSHIP FOR COLLEGE BASKETBALL FANS

Written by Vin Parise
January 20th, 2010

College Chalktalk and Blue Ribbon have announced a strategic partnership that will benefit diehard college hoops fans tremendously.

Blue Ribbon has been known as the bible for college basketball for the past 30 years.

College Chalktalk is the most informative, new website around for college basketball.

It’s a match made in heaven and fans are going to love how easy it will be to find out about their favorite teams.

Check out more by clicking  here.

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UPDATE ON EX-LOCAL STAR

Written by Vin Parise
January 20th, 2010

Sundiata Gaines is currently on his second 10 day contract with the Utah Jazz.

While on his first 10 day contract, Gaines hit a three-point shot at the buzzer to beat Lebron and the Cavs.  The next day they started working on a new deal.

Sundiata played his high school ball at Archbishop Molloy for legendary coach Jack Curran.  And then in a weird move, went down to play at Georgia in the SEC.  He was never drafted out of Georgia but has been working his butt off in the D-League for the past 2 seasons.

Nice to see the hard work paying off.

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KUDOS TO CAL

Written by Vin Parise
January 20th, 2010

Another example of how John Calipari is not just a college basketball coach - but a major celebrity as well.  And it’s good to see when this fame is put to good use.

By putting his name behind the cause, Calipari has single-handedly raised over a million dollars for the families in Haiti.

Great job by Coach Cal and Big Blue Nation.

Check out more at:   coachcal.com

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Courtesy of WFAN.COM

Written by Vin Parise
January 13th, 2010

With conference play officially in full swing, teams are starting to show their true colors in the area.

The title of a tale on local Big East Hoops would read “The decent, the bad and the ugly.”  Neither Seton Hall, St. John’s or Rutgers has truly turned the corner - but the three schools are at different levels right now.
*Seton Hall is clearly better than both the Red Storm and Scarlet Knights at the moment.  Jeremy Hazell is at the top of the Big East in scoring and the Pirates are 10-5 overall.  More importantly, they are 1-3 in the league after defeating Cincinnati over the weekend.  Hazell averages nearly 24 ppg and in conference play has been even better.  He scored 41 points against West Virginia and 33 points against the Bearcats.  Seton Hall’s next game is Thursday night at Georgetown.  If Bobby Gonzalez’s team could ever steal this game vs the Hoyas…they could potentially go on a big run here.  The next two games afterwards are Louisville and Pitt…and these two games are winnable because they’re at home.  The Pirates play very well at the ROCK in Newark.  And then they play at South Florida - you don’t get any more winnable than that.  But Jeremy Hazell needs help.  Herb Pope is the only other player that averages double digits at 13ppg.
*St. John’s let a huge opportunity slip away when they lost to Providence at home at the beginning of conference play.  Then a tough loss at Louisville which was expected….but now it’s time to get going.  The good news is that Cincinnati at the Garden is a very winnable game for them.  The bad news is that Mick Cronin’s team just lost at Seton Hall over the weekend, so they’re going to come out looking for blood.  But the excuses have to end now in St. John’s land.  No more rebuilding, no more ‘Beast of a Conference’ talk…..get some wins. Anthony Mason Jr…..stay healthy.  Players other than DJ Kennedy and Dwight Hardy….put the ball in the basket.  Norm Roberts has a done a very good job and his kids play hard.  Now these guys have to start showing some results.
*To say things are rough in the land of Rutgers is an understatement.  They have a four game losing streak going, 0-3 in the Big East and one of the best sophomores in the league, Gregory Echenique, has transferred.  And their games the rest of January consist of Syracuse, Villanova and Notre Dame at home….and they have to play South Florida, Georgetown and Marquette on the road.  Rutgers has to improve defensively folks.  Big East opponents are shooting 47% against them.  It’s hard to win when you’re giving up almost 50% from the field.
VP’s Super 7

1.  Seton Hall:  I still think the Pirates are the best team in metropolitan area.  Jeremy Hazell can score 30-40 points on any given night and this team has a big time home court atmosphere.  Their last win vs Cincinnati keeps them in this spot for another week.
2.  St. John’s:  I’m gonna keep the Red Storm in the #2 spot but I’m not thrilled about it.  But Norm’s team has to show me something in these next two home games vs Cincinnati and DePaul or there will be some repercussions.
3.  Iona:  I can’t think of a team in the area in recent years that has exceeded expectations more.  Kevin Willard’s team was picked to come in 9th place this season because he has 9 freshmen and sophomores on the team.  Meanwhile, the Gaels have 11 wins already, have beaten Providence and this month have beaten Niagara, Rider and Loyola on the road.
4.  Rutgers:  The Scarlet Knights are ice cold and need a win badly.  Syracuse at home is tough but if Rutgers could knock down some shots against the zone….you never know.  I like the game after that for RU….at South Florida.
5.  Manhattan:  The Jaspers crushed St. Peter’s at home recently and only lost by 1 point to Rider and by 3 points to Fairfield.
6.  Hofstra:  The Pride are 2-6 in their last 8 games and have lost two in a row.  They dropped a tough one at home last night to VCU 81-68.
7.  Fordham:  The Rams are 2-12 overall….And other than the two point loss at UMass last week, Jared Grasso’s team hasn’t been in a close game in a long time.

No can do….for LIU

A good amount of readers have written to me recently about LIU potentially making the cut - perhaps by bumping out Fordham or Manhattan.  And here’s the deal….
The Blackbirds are close….they’re only 6-9 overall but they are 4-0 in NEC play and beat Robert Morris recently.  But before that, they lost 6 games in a row - and 2 of the losses were Morgan State and Bethune-Cookman.  And as bad as Fordham is….the A-10 is light years ahead of the NEC.  But they’re close, very close.
*Vin Parise has been the college basketball analyst for WFAN since last March. His analysis can be read throughout the season on WFAN’s college basketball blog. During March Madness, Parise has been on with Joe Benigno and Evan Roberts, among others, giving insight and predictions.Parise is also the host of “Tip Off”, a pre-game basketball show that airs on Cox Sports New England prior to all Providence & URI basketball games. In addition, Parise is a color analyst for MSG-Varsity Television and Iona College Men’s Basketball Radio. Besides blogging for wfan.com, Parise has his own blog at vphoops.com– one of the hottest new metropolitan area basketball blogs around. Parise was a college basketball coach for 8 seasons at Iona, Rutgers & Fairleigh Dickinson.

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A LOT HAPPENING IN NEW JERSEY

Written by Vin Parise
January 11th, 2010

Whether it’s Big East or Mid-Major….there’s a lot of overachieving and underachieving going in the Garden State right now.

First off, huge win for Seton Hall yesterday against Cincinnati.  If they lost, the Pirates would have been 0-4 in conference play.  I still think that the Pirates will rack up some Big East wins as we move along here.  Keep in mind, their 3 conference losses are UConn, Syracuse and West Virginia.  On the flip side, bad loss for Mick Cronin’s team.  The Bearcats….who started off red hot….are now 2-2 in league play.

Jeremy Hazell….the best player in New Jersey….had 33 points.  Hazell is the 2nd leading scorer in the Big East and as he goes, the Pirates go.  Herb Pope also played well.  He had 14 points and 7 rebounds.

Moving south in Jersey, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights still can’t get anything going.  You know it’s going to be a long year when your team is down big at Providence this season.  Rutgers loss at Providence over the weekend 94-81.  However, there were some bright spots….Dane Miller had 26 points and Jonathan Mitchell scored 18 in the loss.

I’ve been saying since the summer that this kid Miller was going to be an excellent player and it’s playing out that way.  He is a very, very talented wing player.  The one I’m surprised about is Jonathan Mitchell.  I’ve never been a huge fan but he’s shown some things this season to change my mind.

Now the bad news in Rutgers land.  Gregory Echenique is leaving the program.  This is too bad and this a big blow to RU.  Local Mid-Majors should not get excited and think that they have a shot at Gregory transferring to them.  It’s too early to speculate where he ends up but the options are terrific.  I’m hearing from the coaching world that Florida, V-Tech, Georgia Tech and Maryland are interested….to name a few.  Remember this, if Jio Fontan went from Fordham to USC, it’s safe to say Gregory will have a lot of great options.

Going a little bit more south in Jersey.  How about Rider recently?

I remember not too long ago it was November and the Broncs just beat #18 Mississippi State and head coach Tommy Dempsey was pretty confident in his comments.  Almost too confident.  I believe the quote was ” I didn’t see any difference in the talent level” when he was asked for his thoughts after the game.

Since then….

I think that Rider is playing very average basketball right now.  They are 9-8 overall and 2-3 in the league.  And they got torched at home by Iona over the weekend.  The Gaels won by 20 and continue to make the MAAC rethink their preseason predictions.

And I’m glad that the Ryan Thompson buzz has calmed down.  All of the fans that have been saying that Ryan is better than his brother Jason….ex-Rider star and current Sacramento King….has been, and always will be far from the truth.  Ryan is one of the best players in the MAAC.  But the fact that he was not only compared; but deemed better than Jason has never been fair to either Thompson brother.

We’ll check in with New York next time….

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COX SPORTS RHODE ISLAND

Written by Vin Parise
January 4th, 2010

This is for the URI and Providence fans in the area that have reached out since our “Tip Off” Show at Cox Sports has begun.

The next two blogs at Cox are for Rhode Island and PC fans that want to follow their teams on a daily basis.  The two blogs are terrific and any college basketball would enjoy them!

To check in on Jim Baron’s Rams click HERE

For Keno’s Friars click HERE

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