Undefeated UConn has yet to leave home for a game. Duke has yet to play a
"true" road contest. The only time that Syracuse has left the Carrier
Dome was when Jim Boeheim's club came up short against Oklahoma State in Madison
Square Garden.
With legitimate road games becoming a thing of the past, especially for
high-major teams, we take a look at the Road Warriors - the top 10 wins on an
opponents' home floor.
1) Wichita State 57, LSU 53 - This was the win that really started to earn
the Shockers some national respect. It was balance and defense that got Mark
Turgeon's club the win in Baton Rouge.
2) Oral Roberts 78, Kansas 71 - Marchello Vealy lit up the Jayhawks in
Lawrence when he went for 22 points and made 7-of-8 from long range.
3) Vermont 77, Boston College 63 - Mike Longergan put the Catamounts back on
the map as Vermont had no problem with the Eagles in Conte Forum thanks to Mike Trimboli and Joe Trapani.
4) Brown 51, Providence 41 - This one seemed to have woken up the Friars, but
it was ugly at the time. It was the first career win for Bears coach Craig
Robinson.
5) Oregon 57, Georgetown 50 - This was the first sign that Ernie Kent's Ducks
were for real - and the Hoyas weren't as good as advertised. It was the first
road win for Oregon against a ranked team in the Eastern time zone.
6) Wichita State 64, Syracuse 61 - One week after knocking off LSU in Baton
Rouge, the Shockers were at it again - this time at the Carrier Dome. Kyle Wilson and Sean Ogirri were the stars for Turgeon's team against the 'Cuse.
7) Wisconsin 70, Marquette 66 - It may not be much of an upset, but anytime
you can win a game on the road against another in-state power, it's huge. That's
exactly what the Badgers did in front of the biggest crowd to see a college
basketball game in the state.
8) North Texas 90, Charlotte 72 - We realize that Bobby Lutz' team isn't very
good this season, but losing by 18 at home to North Texas? C'mon. Kendrick Davis, who spent his first two seasons at Arkansas, led the Mean Green with 20
points.
9) Maryland 72, Illinois 66 - The bottom line is that anyone you win at
Champaign, it's a big deal. The last time that the Illini had lost a
non-conference game at home was back in 1988.
10) San Diego 72, California 67 - The Toreros got 23 points from sophomore
guard Brandon Johnson to beat Cal in its own tournament.
TEAM OF THE WEEK: Georgia - The Bulldogs earned their biggest win in the
Dennis Felton era with a resounding victory against Gonzaga. Senior guard Levi Stukes scored a career-high 25 points as Georgia beat a ranked opponent for the
first time in nearly two years.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK: The Wisconsin duo of Alando Tucker and Brian Butch will
gladly share the award after the pair combined for 59 points and 21 boards in a
win over then-No. 2 Pittsburgh. Tucker has been doing it all season while it was
a breakout game for Butch - a former McDonald's All-American.
BEST WIN: Bobby Knight climbed to within one victory of tying Dean Smith
after his Red Raiders put a thumping on Arkansas in North Little Rock. Jarrius Jackson scored 16 points in the first half and Charlie Burgess led Texas Tech
with 19 as the Red Raiders improved to 9-3.
WORST LOSS: Xavier lost to a Cincinnati team that was absolutely crushed by
Ohio State just days later. There is no reason for Sean Miller's Muskateers
getting manhandled by a much-less talented Bearcats club. The team's toughness
is certainly a question after giving up 17 offensive boards to Cincinnati.
WEEK TO FORGET: Louisville coach Rick Pitino just finished up a week in which
he lost to former assistant coaches Tubby Smith and Travis Ford. The talented
Cardinals lost to Kentucky and UMass - both at home. The natives are getting
restless in Louisville and for good reason. Pitino's first order of business
should be to ban Terrence Williams from taking 3-pointers.
STILL LOOKING: Southern and Nicholls State both got into the win column this
past week, which leaves a trio of D-1 teams still searching for their first win:
Delaware and rookie coach Monte Ross, Iona and former NBA player Jeff Ruland and
second-year St. Francis (N.Y.) head man Brian Nash.
WASTING NO TIME: Kansas State athletic freak Bill Walker wasted no time in
making an impact - just as Wildcats coach Bob Huggins predicted. Walker finished
with 15 points and four rebounds in the rout over Kennesaw State as K-State
improved to 7-3.
TAKING A HIT: Oklahoma State coach Sean Sutton and the Cowboys are cruising
along, but their margin of error just got even smaller after freshman guard Obi Muonelo broke his ankle and is expected to miss the rest of the season. Muonelo
was third on the team in scoring and now OSU has just three guards: JamesOn Curry, Terrel Harris and Byron Eaton.
BROWN RED-HOT: Cal State Fullerton senior point guard Bobby Brown showed he's
really more of a scorer when he went for a school-record 47 points in a rout
over Bethune-Cookman. Brown was 17-of-20 from the field, including 11-of-13 from
long distance. His 11 trifectas matched a Big West record while his scoring
output was the second-highest in conference history.
NEAR-HISTORY: Alabama big man Jermareo Davidson returned to the lineup after
missing one game and dominated Southern Mississippi, scoring 25 points, grabbing
11 boards and blocking 9 shots. Davidson was one rejection shy of becoming the
second Crimson Tide player to register a triple-double (Roy Rogers did it twice
a decade ago). 'Bama point guard Ron Steele played just four minutes due to
ankle and knee injuries.
ROOKIE STAR: We're not talking about a freshman player, but instead a
first-year coach. Former Florida assistant Anthony Grant was the best hire of
the offseason and the VCU head man has the Rams out to an 8-2 start. VCU not
only knocked off UAB over the weekend, but held Mike Davis' team to just 44
points. The Rams have won six straight.
SIX-PACK ON TAP
1) Ohio State at Florida, Saturday at 4 p.m. ET - This game may be the best
game of the year on paper. Greg Oden against the Florida big man duo of Joakim Noah and Al Horford. This will be the Buckeyes chance to make a statement if
they can knock off the Gators in Gainesville.
2) Gonzaga vs. Duke, Thursday at 9 p.m. ET in New York - The Zags are coming
off a loss at Georgia while the Blue Devils have been winning - but haven't
played teams the caliber of Gonzaga since losing to Marquette earlier in the
season.
3) Memphis at Arizona, Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. PT - This will be a matchup of
wings with the Wildcats trio of Marcus Williams, Chase Budinger and Jawaan
McClellan against Chris Douglas-Roberts, Antonio Anderson and Jeremy Hunt.
4) Pittsburgh at Oklahoma State, Thursday at 7 p.m. ET - The Cowboys have a
brutal week, traveling to play Tennessee in Nashville on Monday night and then
hosting the Panthers 72 hours later. Mario Boggan will have his hands full with
Pittsburgh's front line.
5) Boston College at Kansas, Saturday at 1 p.m. ET - Jared Dudley & Co.
travel to Lawrence to face the talented and enigmatic Jayhawks. Sean Williams is
the best shot-blocker in the country and he'll have to try and contain Julian Wright and a trio of talented guards from getting to the rim.
6) LSU at Washington, Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. ET - The Tigers duo of Glen Davis and Tasmin Mitchell will go up against a talented Huskies 1-2 punch of
Spencer Hawes and Jon Brockman. The key here will be whether Garrett Temple, one
of the best defenders in the country, can contain Washington scoring point guard
Justin Dentmon.
|