Posted by Graham Hays
Long time, no links. Let's rectify that.
It's not technically about college basketball, but Jeff Nelson's feature on the H.D. Woodson High School girls' basketball team is a must-read for any hoops fan.
A good account of Michigan's overtime upset of Notre Dame, knocking the Fighting Irish from the ranks of the unbeaten. A lot of coaches love to micromanage end-of-game situations, but it's interesting that Kevin Borseth let Jessica Minnfield find her own play on the tying basket with time running out in regulation.
In case anyone hasn't seen this, seven players are blogging throughout the season for The Associated Press, and the entries are consistently entertaining reads. Case in point: Courtney Paris' latest entry on Blake Griffin, rebounds and streaks.
While hoping that South Dakota State finally cracks the top 25 next week, here's an interesting read on what the move to Division I for several schools in the Dakotas is doing to the regional talent pool.
Tennessee is looking for more consistency in its shooting, reports Dan Fleser, although it won't help that Cait McMahan's surgically repaired knee might force her out of the lineup.
Arizona didn't look like it was going to be a quick fix for Niya Butts, so it's not surprising the Wildcats are going through some up-and-down performances.
Iowa didn't look good when I saw the Hawkeyes last week against Duke. But that result, along with blowout losses against Cal and Kansas, did provide Iowa with a chance to make a character statement against in-state rival Iowa State last Sunday. After wrapping up nonconference play against Northern Iowa and Drake, the Hawkeyes play fellow tipping-point occupant Purdue twice in 12 days during their first four games of Big Ten play.
There might not have been a team I was more wrong about last season (it's a long list, I know) than Wisconsin. Even with Jolene Anderson, the Badgers were simply never much of a factor in the Big Ten, let alone nationally. One year later, with few outside expectations, the Badgers are 9-1, with a win against Baylor and Wednesday's win at Wisconsin-Green Bay -- the latter not an easy place to win on the road.
I can't imagine there is anyone reading this who didn't long ago bookmark the Women's Hoop Blog, but just in case that lone surfer exists, do yourself a favor and make it part of your routine.
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