1.28.08
Posted by Ryan at 4:08PM

Texas moved up two spots in each of the polls this week, sliding into the #10 slot in both the AP and ESPN/USA Today rankings, while Kansas holds steady at #2. The Big 12 has five teams in the AP poll with Kansas State (22nd), Texas A&M (23rd) and Baylor (25th) all hanging around on the lower rungs.

Stefhon Hannah could miss the rest of the season after a brawl outside a Columbia nightclub late on Saturday night. The Tigers still have to tackle a rematch with Kansas, a pair of showdowns with K-State, and roadies in Waco and Norman. Without their leading scorer, Mizzou could be a lot closer to the cellar than anticipated.

This afternoon, Luke Winn introduces us to twin brothers and UNC commits Travis Wear and David Wear, Jr. The 2009 class for Roy Williams is looking absolutely ridiculous when you add in Dexter Strickland and Round Rock product John Henson, who had Texas in the mix before committing to the Heels earlier this month.

Joe Lunardi is high on the Big 12 this week, putting six of the conference’s teams in today’s Bracketology. Kansas still leads the way with a 1-seed, while Texas is slotted as a 3 in Little Rock. K-State (6 seed), Baylor (7), Texas A&M (9), and Oklahoma (9) make up the rest of the conference’s dance card.

Missed Scott Drew’s interview on Sportscenter after the 5-OT thriller on Wednesday night? Thanks to the technical know-how of an LRT co-traveler, you can watch the video through the interweb tubes. Check it out below, and be sure to check out the rest of his Longhorn videos on his website.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

12.12.07
Posted by Ryan at 3:34PM

A scary, scary moment in the Raptors game in Atlanta last night when T.J. Ford was fouled hard by Al Horford and fell straight to the court, slamming his head. T.J. was carted off on a stretcher, but has since been released from the hospital and is cleared to play. I’m guessing he won’t be right back out there, but it’s good to know things are looking up after seeing that frightening footage last night.

So much for St. Mary’s being ranked when they come to town. The Gaels ran into Southern Illinois on the wrong night, losing 71-56 to a team that had almost no offense over their first six games. All this really does to Texas is give a slight ding on the RPI later in the season, but it’s better to be playing a tough, one-loss St. Mary’s squad than a 16-loss Prairie View A&M.

Tyler Hansbrough really wanted to be in the Cal band.

Don’t ask me how I missed this in SI’s weekly power rankings last week, but apparently the Penn students brought their A-game for Tyler Hansbrough and UNC. They blew up pictures of his mother, who was a former Miss Missouri, and waved copies of this horrible senior picture collage. I pulled the photo from Tyler50.com, the official website of Mr. Hansbrough. Why, oh why would you put something this hilariously awkward on the internet when you are a college athlete? I half-expect to find Uncle Rico’s glamor shots if I keep clicking around long enough.

Chris Low at ESPN.com has a good feature on A.J. Ogilvy over at Vanderbilt. After seeing the Commodores shock a lot of folks last year, I thought they just needed a good inside presence to help out Shan Foster and get them over the hump. There was some below-the-radar buzz on the Aussie before he hit the college hardwood, but I wasn’t sure he’d be the answer as only a freshman. It turns out that Ogilvy is just as good as advertised, if not better, and has Vandy poised to be one of the top three or four teams in the SEC.

Finally, some more action on the tube for hoopsheads tonight. Cincy takes on Xavier and former OU guard Drew Lavender in the Crosstown Shootout (6 PM, ESPN2). Check out the 7-1 Musketeers if you haven’t had a chance yet, as they should absolutely school the ‘Cats. If you don’t believe me or Chris Low about the Ogilvy kid, watch Vandy hunt for a road win at DePaul (7 PM, ESPN Classic). And if you remember when UMass was solid and the A-10 was a part of the Big Monday package, reminisce as the Minutemen host BC (8 PM, ESPNU).