By Pat Taggart, College Basketball Staff Writer
FACTS & STATS: Site: American Airlines Center (20,000) — Dallas, Texas. Dates: Thursday, March 9th through Sunday, March 12th. Television: ESPN Plus, ESPNU, ESPN2, ESPN (Championship). Annual 10th. Defending Champion: Oklahoma State.
OUTLOOK: The 10th annual Big 12 Tournament begins on Thursday, March 9th, and all 12 teams will compete for the championship and resulting automatic bid to the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Only four schools have won this event in its nine-year history, and Texas A&M is the only league member without a single Big 12 Tournament victory. Oklahoma State has won the last two titles, and Oklahoma won three in a row from 2001 through 2003. In fact, the only year one of those two schools did not reach the title game was in 1997, the inaugural year of this event. Kansas and Oklahoma have each won three championships, while the Cowboys have two titles to their credit. Iowa State is the only other conference member to claim the trophy, as it did so in 2000. This season, Kansas enters as the second seed, while Oklahoma is the third seed. Those two clubs, along with top-seeded Texas, appear to be the class of the conference. Fourth-seeded Texas A&M enters with a great deal of confidence and plenty to prove.
The first of four opening round games on Thursday pits the ninth-seeded Kansas State Wildcats against the eighth-seeded Texas Tech Red Raiders. Kansas State lost three of its final four regular season games, but it is important to point out that the three losses came against the top three seeds in this tournament. Both the home defeat against Texas and the road setback at Oklahoma came by a single point, proof that the Wildcats are capable of hanging with the league’s elite on occasion. Cartier Martin leads Kansas State with 18.3 ppg to rank fourth in the conference, and he was recently named to the All-Big 12 Second Team. As for Texas Tech, it is paced by All-Big 12 First Team performer Jarrius Jackson, as he leads the league with 20.3 ppg. The Red Raiders are ranked 11th in the conference in rebounding margin, and the lack of quality performers up front has hurt the squad.
Fifth-seeded Colorado is clearly favored in its opening round clash with 12th- seeded Baylor. Colorado is the top-scoring team in the conference with 78.7 ppg, and it is outscoring opponents by a healthy 9.1 ppg this season. The Buffaloes, who lead the league in offensive rebounding and three-pointers made, are paced by All-Big 12 First Team performer Richard Roby. Just a sophomore, Roby is netting 17.8 ppg. Baylor has two players listed among the conference’s top 20 scorers, as Curtis Jerrells checks in with 13.1 ppg, while Aaron Bruce is close behind with 13.0 ppg. The Bears are last in the league in scoring offense (63.3 ppg) and next to last in scoring defense (73.0 ppg).
A pair of teams that have endured difficult seasons will meet on Thursday as Oklahoma State takes on Iowa State. The Cyclones figured to contend for the Big 12 title, but poor play at the defensive end on many occasions has the club just three games over .500 overall. Iowa State is last in the league in scoring defense, as it is surrendering 74.5 ppg. The strength of the squad is its backcourt, as Will Blalock and Curtis Stinson combine to average 34.7 ppg. Blalock is second in the league with 6.1 assists per game, while Stinson is close behind with 5.6 apg. As for Oklahoma State, it continues to play without legendary head coach Eddie Sutton, who has not been with the team since a well-publicized DUI charge. The Cowboys haven’t won back-to-back games since the middle of January, and although there are some talented performers in the lineup such as Mario Boggan (14.6 ppg) and JamesOn Curry (13.5 ppg), the club is far from loaded.
The final opening round game pits the 11th-seeded Missouri Tigers against the sixth-seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers. It has been two months since Missouri has won two straight contests, and the pressure and negative attention that results from losing forced a coaching change for the Tigers. There is some reason for optimism heading into Thursday’s game however, as they did knock off this Nebraska team less than a week ago in the regular season finale. Nebraska enters this event on a serious down swing, as it has lost three straight games. The Huskers have not had a great deal of success in recent years, so earning the fifth seed in the Big 12 Tournament is a solid accomplishment. Still, they are shooting just 41.1 percent from the floor this year and are ranked in the middle of the pack among league teams in many important statistical categories.
The winner of the Kansas State/Texas Tech game has the unenviable task of playing top-seeded Texas, which is surrendering only 58.8 ppg to place first in the Big 12. The Longhorns are also scoring 76.4 ppg, third best in the conference, and they possess two of the five First-Team All-Big 12 members. P.J. Tucker was named Big 12 Player of the Year, and he remains the heart of this Texas team. The undersized forward is scoring 16.1 ppg, and he reminds many of Charles Barkley because of the fact that he is pulling down 9.0 rpg despite his 6-5 frame. Teammate LaMarcus Aldridge is second in the Big 12 in rebounding (8.9 rpg) and ninth in scoring (15.4 ppg). Texas is outrebounding opponents by 10.0 rpg, and Brad Buckman joins Aldridge and Tucker to form perhaps the nation’s premier front line.
Forth-seeded Texas A&M is slated to take on the winner of the Baylor/Colorado game. Considering that Texas A&M has won its last seven games, it seems fair to say that there isn’t a hotter team in the Big 12. Strong defense has been key to the success for the Aggies, as they are limiting opponents to 60.2 ppg. They are also second best in the league in turnover margin, a sign that they are well coached. The duo of Joseph Jones and Acie Law scares opponents, as both are capable of dominating a game. Law is posting 16.0 ppg, while Jones is contributing 15.6 ppg. Should Colorado advance to the quarterfinal round as expected, the Buffs and Aggies should produce an entertaining game.
The Iowa State/Oklahoma State winner will take on second-seeded Kansas, which is led by Big 12 Coach of the Year Bill Self. The Jayhawks are extremely young, as a host of freshmen have led the way for the squad. The Big 12 All- Rookie Team features five players, three of which are on the Kansas roster. The best of the rookies is Brandon Rush, as he was named to the exclusive All- Big 12 First Team. Fellow rookie Mario Chalmers and sophomore Russell Robinson were Big 12 All-Defensive Team selections, and the youngsters are playing like experienced veterans at this point. The Jayhawks are only surrendering 60.4 ppg this season, and opponents are shooting a mere 36.6 percent against them.
The last quarterfinal matchup will feature the third-seeded Oklahoma Sooners against either Missouri or Nebraska. The Sooners are paced by a pair of All- Big 12 Second Team selections, Taj Gray and Terrell Everett. Gray is netting 14.4 ppg on 57.2 percent shooting from the floor, and he is pulling down 7.7 rpg as well. As for Everett, he is contributing 12.3 ppg and has amassed 179 assists. Michael Neal, the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year, adds 13.0 ppg to the mix on his 43.1 percent shooting from three-point range, and Kevin Bookout (11.1 ppg, 6.8 rpg) brings a great deal of toughness to the lineup. Oklahoma was crushed by Texas in the regular season finale by a 72-48 final, and it will be interesting to see how the club will respond in this tournament.
Texas, Kansas and Oklahoma are all impressive squads that simply know how to win. One of those three will undoubtedly win this tournament, and the smart money is on Texas. Tucker is a beast on the low block, who attacks the glass with a level of intensity unrivaled by opponents. Expect the Longhorns to win this event for the first time and make a deep run in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
(Basketball News) Predicted Champion: Texas
