Feb. 22, 2007

By Bryan Armen Graham

CSTV.com

	BRYAN GRAHAM Bryan is a basketball editor for CSTV.com and contributes on a regular weekly basis. E-mail here!

        ---   Column Archive   --- 7/12: Summer Vacations On The Hardwood 7/5: Slipping Through The Cracks 6/29: NBA Draft Superlatives 6/28: Draft Depth > Drama 6/25: The Bust Ratio 6/21: Tigers, Heels Top Early-Summer Top 25 6/21: Stuckey Shooting For 1st Round 6/18: Big Baby: "I'm Glad I Stayed" 6/14: Should I Stay Or Go? 6/7: The Trigger-Happy 10 6/7: Afflalo Finally Focuses On Own Skills 6/7: Why Billy Should Have Gone 5/31: More Fans in the Seats 5/24: Porter's Comeback Tale Takes Tragic Turn 5/17: Piecing Together the Puzzle 5/10: A Look at Personality Types 5/3: One Month After Atlanta 4/26: Should I Stay Or Should I Go Now? 4/19: Six Super Sophs 4/12: Making The Grade 4/5: March Madness Superlatives 4/3: Never Too Early To Look Ahead 4/3: Final Four Fodder 4/3: Gators Score Rare Championship Double 3/30: YOu Final (Four) Exam 3/24: Matta's Vision Realized With Ohio State Victory 3/23: South Regional Notebook 3/22: Tigers Silencing Critics 3/22: Handicapping the Sweet 16 3/21: 35-Second Clock: The First Weekend 3/17: Painful End For Xavier's Cage 3/13: The March Madness List of Lists 3/12: Second-Round Wish List 3/7: At the Knee of John Chaney 3/5: Niagara Outruns Siena in MAAC Title Victory 3/2: The Month In Hoops: February 3/1: Conference Calls 2/25: Corralled Oden Still Makes Difference 2/22: Rolling the Dice for Final Four Tix 2/19: Experience, Balance Help Wounded Panthers 2/15: Bubble, Yum! 2/8: Drexel Guts Out Crucial CAA Win at Hofstra 2/8: The Sharper Image: A Look Ahead 2/2: The Month In Hoops: January 2/1: Halftime: From A to Z 1/30: Freshman Saves Day For Surging Manhattan 1/25: Snakebitten Gaels Just Can't Get A Break 1/18: Calhoun, Roberts Revisit Wiggins Situation 1/14: Calhoun's Work In Progress At The Garden 1/11: Tigers Earning Their Stripes One Win At A Time 1/4: Strange Cases 1/2: The Month in Hoops - December 12/28: Mejia Powers "New Drexel 12/28: Seven Weeks Down: Taking Stock 12/21: Paulus Spirits Duke To Garden Victory Over Zags 12/21: Secret Santa: Helping Cagers and Coaches in Need 12/14: Villanova's Arizin Was Rags-To-Riches Story 12/10: Throwback Guard Jordan Has Brady Bunch Clicking 12/9: Seton Hall Wakes Up In Time To Tame Nittany Lions 12/7: 31-0: Why Butler Can Run The Table 12/5: Welcome Freshmen 12/3: Irish Upset Tops Day At BB&T Classic 12/1: The Month In Hoops: November 11/30: Youngest Graves Making Biggest Splash 11/24: Three Is A Magic Number For Unlikely NIT Champ Butler 11/22: No Morrison, No Problem For Zags in Upset of UNC 11/22: Tennessee Joins Roll Of Butler Upset Victims 11/17: Terps Edge Spartans For 2K Sports Classic Title 11/16: Spartans Snatch Classic Upset 11/16: Jinxed Jayhwaks Need To Get It Together 11/15: Icy Shooting Dooms Rutgers in Season-Opening Loss to K-State 11/12: Maggie Dixon Remembered 11/10: Starting Over in Morgantown 11/9: Before Keydren, Houston Was Scoring King 11/7: Stuck On You 11/6: Gillispie Has Aggies Positioned For Success 10/31: Five Frosh Faces 10/26: Climbing Ev'ry Mountain 10/24: Transfers of Power 10/23: Circle The Date 10/13: 65 Things to Know, Part IV 10/12: Starting Over in Baltimore 10/12: 65 Things to Know, Part III 10/11: Winthrop Stud Aims to Get Back to NCAAs 10/11: 65 Things to Know, Part II 10/10: 65 Things to Know, Part I THE HARDWOOD FLASH 11/1: Scheduling With Big Boys A Laughing Matter In Valley 10/26: UConn Still The Team Thabeet 10/19: Demon Daze 10/12: Southern Comfort 9/28: Playing The Numbers Game 9/21: Favorite Sun Returns to Silicon Valley 9/14: THe Head of the Class 9/8: Gavitt Rolls Back Years At Enshrinement 9/7: For Davis, Long and Winding Road Ends in Spokane 9/1: Preps Shine In Elite 24 Hoops Classics 8/31: Studying Abroad 8/24: Still Busting After All Those Years 8/17: Rematches Made In Heaven 8/10: Few's Good Men 8/3: House of Boateng 7/27: Tangled In The Web 7/20: Not-So-Big Baby 7/13: Vegas, Baby, Vegas 7/6: July's Recruiting Heat 6/29: Don't Expand 6/22: Calipari and C-USA 6/15: Cat Calls For Tubby 6/8: Down With Diploma Mills 6/1: Pepperdine's New Coach 5/25: Dunphy's New Chapter 5/18: No Rest At Florida 5/11: Recruiting Update 5/4: The Colonial Carousel 4/27: Are 65 Teams Enough? 4/20: NC State's Search 4/13: A Longer Season? 4/7: The Wright Move? 3/31: Final Four Flash 3/22: The Second Weekend 3/15: The First Weekend 3/10: The Tournament Edition 3/3: Gearing Up for the Tourney 2/23: Coming Down the Stretch 2/16: Calhoun Questions Calls 2/9: No Luck for the Irish 2/2: Big 5 Down to the Wire OTHER 8/31: The Moore Things Change... 8/30: UNH Rides High-Powered Offense 8/30: Previewing the I-A Independents 8/20: Old, Young Blend At IU 8/17: Looking For Leaders In L.A. 7/10: Reebok ABCD Camp: Best In Show 7/9: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 4 Recap 7/8: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 3 Recap 7/8: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 3, Session 2 7/7: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 3, Session 1 7/7: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 2, Session 2 7/7: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 2, Session 1 7/6: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 1, Session 2 7/6: Reebok ABCD Camp: Day 1, Session 1 7/6: Reebok ABCD Camp: Holding the Mayo 7/5: Reebok ABCD Camp: Quick Hits 6/27: Top Five Sleepers 6/6: Miller's Crossing 5/4: Duke Wins Lance Thomas Sweepstakes 4/19: Sunny Future for Signee 3/13: Tribute to Chaney 3/7: Foye, Wright Get Big East Honors 2/27: A Class Above NCAA TOURNAMENT 4/4: Howland, Bruins Come Up Short 4/4: Final Four Fodder 4/3: Addition by Subtraction 4/2: Pitino's Bad Advice 4/1: Bruins Tame Tigers 4/1: Midnight Strikes For Mason 3/31: GMU Duo Survive to Reach Indy 3/31: Tigers and Bears, Oh My! 3/31: UF, Mason Crash NCAA Party 3/31: How They Got Here: LSU 3/31: How They Got Here: UCLA 3/31: How They Got Here: G. Mason 3/31: How They Got Here: Florida 3/27: Fairfax Feels Final Four Frenzy 3/26: Slipper Fits For George Mason 3/26: Let Us Praise Infamous Men 3/25: Patriots Look To Make History 3/24: UConn, Mason Move On 3/20: Subregional Wrap-Up 3/19: Ray, Foye Lift Villanova 3/19: Huskies Bend, Don't Break 3/18: Shakur Can Go Home Again 3/17: My Almost-Super Sweet 16 3/17: Cat Power: 'Zona, 'Nova Survive GRAHAM AT THE GAME 6/16: The U.S. Open: Collegiate Notebook 6/15: Do You Want Moore? 5/13: Notre Dame's Two-Sport Star Enjoys Balancing Act 4/22: Young Leads White in Jordan Classic 3/11: McNamara Spirits `Cuse to Title 3/10: Syracuse, Pittsburgh To Meet 3/9: Big East's New Top Seed 3/9: Old School Look In Big East 3/9: For Huskies, Now Or Never 3/8: Rutgers And Pitt Win Ugly 3/8: Two Close Contests in Big East 3/6: Iona Plucks Peacocks in MAAC

Wake Forest fans have waited a long time -- since Billy Packer sported the Old Gold and Black -- for their team to get back to the Final Four.

Probably not going to happen this year. But it could.

Despite their last-place standing the ACC, it is conceivable for the Demon Deacons to earn a bid to the NCAAs through their conference tournament and win four straight games in the Big Dance.

It's this remote chance which a Baltimore-based company called yOOnew.com (pronounced "you knew") is using to drive its sales of so-called Fantasy Seats -- a fancy name for futures contracts -- to championship games. With a few clicks of the mouse, a Wake fan can buy a ticket to see the Deacons play in this year's Final Four for the reasonable price of $9.57 -- a far cry from the hundreds of dollars a ducat might command during the first weekend of April.

If the Deacons fall short during their run to Atlanta as expected, the buyer receives nothing and yOOnew keeps the payment. But if Wake does make a miraculous run, the buyer receives a ticket to the game for pennies on the Benjamin. Since securing tickets to the Final Four the legitimate way is no simple task, with the NCAA conducting lotteries close to a year before the event, the three-year-old company presents a welcome addition to the market.

While yOOnew doesn't possess the tickets to the games upon their sale, the company sources its product through a network of ticket brokers, ticket agents and season ticket holders (read: scalpers) using the proceeds from futures contracts and reserve funds, if necessary. In the unlikely event that the company is unable to fulfill an order, yOOnew promises to refund the buyer triple the amount paid.

While commodities brokers have dealt with futures markets for generations, yOOnew is just now transposing the concept to the sales of sports tickets. For under 10 bucks, the risk is moderate enough to tempt devout Wake fans to make the plunge. But predictably, tickets for more heralded teams with a higher probability of tournament success -- like North Carolina ($389.97), Florida ($331.72), Ohio State ($316.26) and UCLA ($304.83) -- present much higher risks for the buyer.

Below is a sampling of some teams and their ticket prices as of Thursday. In some cases, the prices of teams reflect popularity more than on-court success (like, uh, Connecticut):

At the very least, it's a thought-provoking business model. And since I can't resist: My three best bang for your buck are Indiana at $57.89, Nevada at $52.43 and UNLV at $19.22.

Busting Moves

A quick look at the winners and losers from the fifth annual BracketBusters weekend:

to Winthrop, which opened the event Friday with a road triumph over Missouri State -- its first victory of the season in a game that the Eagles were not supposed to win. Each of Winthrop's four losses have come against favored teams from power conferences: North Carolina, Maryland, Wisconsin (in overtime) and Texas A&M. Even if the Eagles are upset in the Big South Tournament, which tips off Tuesday on campus sites, the Missouri State victory makes Winthrop that much more deserving of at-large consideration despite an unspectacular standing in the RPI (No. 70).

to Wichita State, which saw its post-Christmas downward spiral continue with an agonizing two-point loss on its home court at the hands of Appalachian State. Since sprinting to an 8-0 start and ascending to No. 9 in the AP Poll, the Shockers have dropped 12 of their last 20 decisions while slipping into the second division of the Missouri Valley Conference.

to Drexel, who came through with a 64-58 victory over Creighton at Qwest Center Omaha -- one of the most difficult venues in the country for a visiting team to come away with a win. The Dragons have undermined their RPI (No. 50) with some head-scratching losses (like road setbacks against Rider and William & Mary) but have collected the most road victories (12) of any team in Division I -- a number that should catch the committee's attention if the West Philly school falls short in the conference tournament.

to Butler, whose inability to defend its home court in a 68-64 loss to Southern Illinois might have cost the Bulldogs a top four seed and the right to host a first- and second-round pod. Even if Butler wins out, the Indianapolis school won't see its RPI climb much higher than its current standing: No. 28.

to Bradley, which has flown under the radar of the under-the-radar teams. Despite receiving the occasional vote in the CSTV.com Slipper Rankings, the Braves didn't even crack the Cindex until their 73-64 road victory Saturday over CAA-leading Virginia Commonwealth. The fourth-place team in the nation's sixth-best conference moved into the RPI Top 40 and onto the tournament bubble with the victory.

to George Mason, whose 68-62 loss to Kent State in Fairfax, Va., dropped the media darlings of last March to 14-13. One year ago, Jim Larranaga's team used a BracketBusters victory over Wichita State to ignite the late-season run that pushed the Patriots all the way to Indianapolis. This time around, Mason will need to win the CAA Tournament, which gets underway in Richmond on Mar. 2.

to Iona, which won its first road game in more than a year -- and doubled its victory total for the season -- with a 52-50 victory over Delaware at the Bob Carpenter Center. First-year guard Mike Harris scored 13 points and sank four free throws in the final 40 seconds to help the Gaels secure their second win.

Trivia Bag

Name two of the three World Series-winning managers who played college basketball. (Answer below.)

Bubble Team of the Week

Candidate: Villanova

Record (Conference): 18-9 (6-7)

RPI: 19

SOS: 5

Vs. RPI Top 50: 4-6

Best Win (RPI): @ Georgetown (17)

Worst Loss (RPI): @ Syracuse (65)

The Wildcats present an interesting case. Naysayers and Saint Joseph's fans are quick to point out Villanova's sub-.500 record in a Big East that's as down as it's ever going to be. But the defending regular-season conference co-champions have played the nation's fifth-most difficult schedule, collecting victories over Georgetown, Texas, Notre Dame, Louisville while sweeping the always-competitive Philadelphia Big 5 city series for the second straight season. What's more, the `Cats have avoided anything resembling a bad loss -- their worst defeat is a shameless 11-point setback against `Cuse in the Carrier Dome. Remember how the committee penalized George Washington for its punchless '05-06 schedule with a No. 8 seed despite a 26-2 record? This is the same principle. At the end of the day, barring a homestretch meltdown, omitting the Wildcats from the field would discourage BCS conference teams from playing difficult schedules -- an implied statement I can't believe the committee wants to make.

At-Large Verdict (if Selection Sunday were today): IN

Joe Must Go?

Mathematical elimination from the Ivy League race on Feb. 16 would have been an unthinkable prospect for Princeton even five seasons ago.

But that's exactly what happened to the cellar-dwelling Tigers (11-12, 2-7) on Friday with their 57-50 loss to Cornell. And since the Ivy League is the only conference in Division I that has no postseason tournament -- instead awarding its automatic bid to the regular-season champion -- the Tigers are the first group in the nation who know without question they will not be going to the NCAA tournament.

Since assuming the reins from John Thompson III prior to the 2004-05 season, Princeton coach Joe Scott has endured a rocky tenure in the Garden State.

In his first year, Princeton finished below .500 in Ivy League play for the first time in the program's history. Last season, the Tigers finished second in the league but made national headlines with their out-of-conference ineptitude -- mustering just 238 points overall during a six-game losing streak that included a soporific 41-21 loss to Monmouth and a 51-46 stumble against Carnegie Mellon, a Division III program.

This season started promising enough with victories in nine of their first 13 games. But the Tigers have collapsed since the start of Ancient Eight play and any success enjoyed down the stretch will be too little too late.

Princeton has been patient with Scott during the program's unprecedented struggles even if the fans haven't. But one can't help but wonder how much longer that will last.

Trivia Answer

Walter Alston played hoops for Miami of Ohio before leading the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers to three world championships in 1955, 1959 and 1963; Alvin Dark played for Louisiana State before helming the Oakland Athletics to their third straight Series crown in 1974. Dallas Green played for Delaware before leading the Philadelphia Phillies to their first and only Series win in 1980.

Paine-ful Viewing

They're not going to send this one to the Hall of Fame -- so thank goodness for the Internet.

In a Division II contest that found its way onto the CSTV airwaves (and later onto YouTube), Paine College recorded zero assists against an eye-popping 29 turnovers Thursday against Stillman -- and still managed to negotiate a 42-37 victory on its Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference rival's home court.

Senior shooting guard Brian Harper, whose free throws with two seconds remaining iced the victory for the Lions, finished with a game-high 20 points and seven rebounds.