Tag: North Carolina Basketball

Wes Flanigan on Auburn’s recruiting: ‘We keep the families close’

Auburn assistant coach Wes Flanigan talks recruiting, winning and coaching his son.

Auburn assistant coach Wes Flanigan recently caught up with Jake Crain of The Jboy Show. The two talk about everything from recruiting to the future stars of Auburn hoops.

Recruiting:

Recruiting has skyrocketed after Auburn’s historic run to the Final Four in 2019. Auburn’s 2020 class is currently ranked ninth nationally on 247Sports. They bring in 5-star PG Sharife Cooper, 4-star PF JT Thor, 3-star PF Chris Moore, 3-star SG Justin Powell, and 3-star C Dylan Cardwell.

What’s Auburn’s biggest secret to success? According to Coach Flanigan:

“A lot of it is based on winning. When you start winning you create this fanbase, and our fanbase is unbelievable. I feel like we’ve got the best home court advantage in the SEC and one of the best in the country.”

Family is also important when it comes to Auburn’s style of recruiting. “We keep the families close. Our families are a part of our team, we don’t push those families back we urge them to continue to support their kids.” Flanigan continues to describe how Coach Pearl built Auburn basketball on the foundation of family. Bruce Pearl’s son Steven has coached alongside his father for six years now and was promoted to assistant coach in 2017. Flanigan’s son Allen had a successful freshman season appearing in all 31 games and finished as the Tigers’ third-best rebounding guard.

On coaching his son:

Flanigan never imagined that he and his son would be at Auburn at the same time, but it feels like a dream come true for the assistant coach.

Coaching your son’s basketball team isn’t always easy. Flanigan describes the experience to be, “like a roller coaster,” citing the he and his son’s different emotions as well as the ups and downs that come with coaching. Now that he coaches his son he feels an additional level of anxiety that didn’t exist before. “I want him to do so well a lot of times so that adds a little anxiety and pressure to me.”

On the 2018-2019 season:

Against Georgia: Flanigan realized a major turning point in the season as Auburn faced Georgia on the road after a brutal loss to Ole Miss. Georgia didn’t have a great RPI and the Tigers knew that another humiliating loss would damage their tournament hopes. The game came down to a three from Chuma Okeke. Flanigan said that was Chuma’s, “I’m ready, now I’ve arrived” moment.

Skip to 2:30 for that Okeke three:

Against Kansas: “When I watched us play the way we played against Kansas, that was the first time I felt really, really good about us getting to the Final Four.”

Against North Carolina: “When we played North Carolina I felt like there was no way we was losing to them.”

Which Auburn players we should start buying stock in:

“As a dad, Allen Flanigan,” Wes laughs. (he’s not joking, buy stock now).

Tyrell Jones, Babatunde (Flanigan cites his impressive work ethic), Jaylin Williams-all highly recruited (buy stock now).

“The thing we’ll miss that we’ve had the last few years is the level of experience, but the talent is there.” Flanigan says there are a lot of (Auburn basketball 2020-2021, these boys are going to be fun to watch just buy stock now).

The entire interview is great, listen here.

The Last Dance: Five Notre Dame Connections to Michael Jordan

Have you enjoyed “The Last Dance” on ESPN? Michael Jordan never played against Notre Dame but he did have more than a couple connections.

If you’re like most of sports fans in the United States you probably spent a good amount of your last five Sunday nights taking in ESPN’s documentary, “The Last Dance”.  For a kid growing up in the nineties it was a great walk down memory lane and incredibly informative for stories about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls dynasty.

What connections to Notre Dame did the documentary have?  Let’s look back at just a few:

Michael Jordan’s Former Teammate Turns Notre Dame Coach:

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Scouting Report: 2021 five-star Patrick Baldwin Jr.

After tackling a number of Wisconsin commits in our BadgersWire scouting report series, we now turn to one of the top in-state recruits in the history of the Badger state. Patrick Baldwin Jr. is the truth. The class of 2021 “small forward” (in …

After tackling a number of Wisconsin commits in our BadgersWire scouting report series, we now turn to one of the top in-state recruits in the history of the Badger state. Patrick Baldwin Jr. is the truth. The class of 2021 “small forward” (in reality, he does not have a true position) has an NBA frame and an NBA jumper to go along with it. The Sussex, Wis. (Hamilton) native recently released his top ten schools, and had Wisconsin included with the likes of ACC powerhouses Duke (where he has been closely linked), North Carolina, and Virginia. He also has family ties included on his list as his father Patrick Baldwin Sr. is the Head Coach at UW-Milwaukee.

Patrick Baldwin Jr. in one word: Ok, I have to cheat with this one. Using two words, the 6-foot-9 prospect can best be described as under control. There are nearly no moments on tape where the Hamilton star looks rushed, frazzled, or like he is not playing at his own pace. In fact, oftentimes he looks like he is playing at a completely slower pace than others around him, yet he dominates games without being in a hurry.

Breaking it down: Breaking down Baldwin Jr’s strengths begins with his jump shot. When you watch the five-star prospect shoot it almost looks like his shot was created in a lab. His mechanics are scary good. Like NBA sharpshooter Klay Thompson-level good. At 6-foot-9 with tremendous length, he can get his shot off against almost anybody at any time. Whether it’s a pull-up three in transition, a quick catch-and-shoot, or an off the dribble jumper, Baldwin Jr. can cash it because of consistent mechanics and a quick trigger.

His handle is fluid and consistent for his size. There is an element of smooth in his dribble moves, and he has quite a few in the bag. The Wisconsin native has a bounce to his step with the basketball in his hands and the explosive ability to go up and over nearly all defenders at the high school level.

Baldwin Jr. also excels with his face-up game. Instead of playing with his back to the basket, he is more comfortable facing up against his defender and making a quick move off the dribble.

As I previously said, there never seems to be any rush in the five-star prospect’s game. Couple that with his size, length, and mobility, to go along with a perfect jump shot from a mechanics perspective, and you have one of the best offensive recruits in the history of Wisconsin high school basketball.

In terms of his size, many will say that the class of 2021 prospect needs to add muscle in the weight room. At under 200 pounds and 6-foot-9, he will certainly add muscle at the next level, but just how much should he add to his frame? When I watch Baldwin Jr., one of the first NBA comparisons that pops into my mind is Kevin Durant. Durant is not only one of the greatest scorers in the history of the game, but also a player that is known as the ‘slim reaper’ and a star that never added to his frame in a significant way. The way Baldwin Jr. plays and the direction that the game is headed in makes me question just how much he should change his physique.

Overall: Whoever gets the Wisconsin product is obviously landing one of the best players in the country. It is hard to find a glaring weakness offensively, and the combination of a pure jump shot, mobility, and size is rare to see at any level. If things go as planned for a player that is currently a consensus top-five prospect in his class, Baldwin Jr. is going to be a high-NBA lottery pick.

 

Notre Dame Viewing Tonight – 2015 ACC Basketball Tournament

Before the NCAA Tournament run came the ACC Tournament where Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish, led by Pat Connaughton, Bonzie Colson, Demetrius Jackson, Jerian Grant and a slew of others went from the first team eliminated in the 2014 tournament to champs a year later.

Got plans tonight?  Sorry for the late notice but this just popped into my feed and I wanted to share it because it should be a fun watch.

Five years ago Notre Dame’s Men’s Basketball team went on a run to the Elite Eight and came within one field goal of knocking off Kentucky and heading to the Final Four for what would have been just the second time in program history.

Before the NCAA Tournament run came the ACC Tournament where Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish, led by Pat Connaughton, Bonzie Colson, Demetrius Jackson, Jerian Grant and a slew of others went from the first team eliminated in the 2014 tournament to champs a year later.

The link takes you to the ACC Facebook page where the showing will begin tonight at 8 p.m. ET.  I’d be lying if I said I knew anything about what previously unseen footage will be shown or if some unknown stories will be shared but just going back to Mike Brey’s best season at Notre Dame should mean for a fun program tonight.

Badger moments: 2015 Sweet 16 win over North Carolina

The Badgers conquer Carolina

The last game the Wisconsin Badgers played in the 2014 NCAA Tournament was their Final Four national semifinal against Kentucky. Wisconsin was seeded several notches higher than Kentucky, but the Wildcats were a blue-blood, and blue-bloods have a way of carrying themselves in big moments. Kentucky might have been a No. 8 seed at that tournament, but in the Final Four, the Cats were a newly confident team. They had overcome the problems which dogged them during the regular season. Kentucky played like a No. 2 seed, so when the Wildcats met the second-seeded Badgers, it felt like a battle of equals, as opposed to a game in which one team was several leagues better than the other.

Kentucky was a good team to play in the 2014 regular season, but not in the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats came alive and played like an elite team. Wisconsin engaged UK in a superb Final Four game, but the Wildcats hit the last and biggest shot to advance to the national championship game.

With this memory in mind, Wisconsin entered the 2015 Sweet 16 against a lower-seeded blue-blood, the North Carolina Tar Heels. North Carolina had a decent but hardly spectacular regular season. The Tar Heels were a No. 4 seed, which is not what North Carolina coaches, players, or fans expect. Carolina was emerging from a brutal two-year period in which nothing went right for the program and people wondered if Roy Williams had lost his fastball.

North Carolina came into that Sweet 16 game as a diminished version of itself, but in one game, one moment, the Tar Heels had a chance to reinvent themselves, much as Kentucky did in the 2014 NCAA Tournament.

Midway through the second half, Carolina’s revival effort was in very good shape.

The Tar Heels led Wisconsin, 53-46. The Badgers, as a No. 1 seed for the first time in the school’s NCAA Tournament history, had to once again respond to adversity. The good news was that Wisconsin faced this kind of adversity against Michigan State in the Big Ten Tournament final, a week and a half earlier. The bad news was that continuing to tempt fate the way the Badgers did in March of 2015 can lead to ultimate ruin and heartbreak.

Once again, the 2015 Badgers refused to accept a lesser fate. They reeled off a 19-7 run with a slightly injured Frank Kaminsky (he had been hit by a Carolina player) on the bench. Zak Showalter steadied the team. Sam Dekker scored 23 points. The Badgers rallied around themselves — and rallied against North Carolina — to defeat the Tar Heels, 79-72, in Los Angeles.

Wisconsin took a blue-blood’s best punch and punched back. The 2015 Badgers were enormously skilled, but their skill was matched by their resilience and competitive greatness. That’s why they went to the national championship game — the resolve, not the talent.

The roadsides of history are littered with broken dreams from talented teams which didn’t know how to fight when the going got tough. The Badgers had smooth, velvet-glove skill, but they also had rugged iron-fist determination. That latter quality helped them past North Carolina and back to the Elite Eight for a second straight season in 2015.

ACC Football Basketball School Rankings: Hoops and Helmets 2019-2020

Which ACC schools had the best and worst years in the two major sports – football and men’s basketball?

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Which ACC schools had the best and worst years in the two major sports – football and men’s basketball? Which fan bases got the glory, and which ones didn’t have any fun?

Contact @PeteFiutak

On the field and court – whose fans had the most fun?

Of course every school has sports outside of the big two that matter and generate revenue, but when it comes to what athletic departments need, it’s really all about college football and men’s basketball.

Which ACC schools had the best and worst seasons?

Here’s how these rankings work.

1) The top-ranked schools with teams that went to a bowl game and would’ve played in the NCAA Tournament.

2) The next group had stronger football seasons and were okay in basketball. The superstar basketball schools get credit – that’s obviously a huge deal in the ACC – but football is the bigger revenue generator.

3) One or the other. Usually there’s a disparity with one good season in one sport an a clunker in the other. It’s sort of a catch-all before …

4) The disasters. No bowl game, there wouldn’t have been a trip to the NCAA Tournament, no fun.

The worst-to-best ACC schools in 2019-2020 in college football and college basketball …

ACC Hoops and Helmets: Losers In Both Sports

These schools suffered the indignity of failing to come up with a winning season in either of the two major sports. The fans didn’t get to have any fun.

14. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 85
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 114
Football: 3-9 overall, 2-6 in conference, 7th in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 17-14 overall, 11-9 in conference, 5th in ACC

13. Syracuse Orange

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 21
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 75
Football: 5-7 overall, 2-6 in conference, 6th in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 16-15 overall, 10-10 in conference, T6th in ACC

12. NC State Wolfpack

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 37
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 14
Football: 4-8 overall, 1-7 in conference, 7th in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 20-12 overall, 10-10 in conference, T6th in ACC

ACC Hoops and Helmets: Good In One Sport, Not The Other

11. Boston College Eagles

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking:  86
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 55
Football: 6-7 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 13-19 overall, 7-13 in conference, T10th in ACC

10. Miami Hurricanes

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 83
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 8
Football: 6-7 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 15-16 overall, 7-13 in conference, T10th in ACC

9. North Carolina Tar Heels

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking:  64
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 67
Football: 7-6 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 14-19 overall, 6-14 in conference, T13th

8. Wake Forest Demon Deacons

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking:  77
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 74
Football: 8-5 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 13-18 overall, 6-14 in conference, 14th in ACC

7. Pitt Panthers

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 65
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 117
Football: 8-5 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 16-17 overall, 6-14 in conference, T13th in ACC

6. Duke Blue Devils

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 12
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 15
Football: 5-7 overall, 3-5 in conference, 6th in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 25-6 overall, 15-5 in conference, T2nd in ACC

5. Virginia Tech Hokies

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 22
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 17
Football: 8-5 overall, 5-3 in conference, 2nd in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 16-16 overall, 7-13 in conference, T10th in ACC

ACC Hoops and Helmets: Bowl and probably would’ve made the NCAA Tournament

OR, if something massive happened in one sport – like football – for one particular school.

4. Florida State Seminoles

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 53
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 16
Football: 6-7 overall, 4-4 in conference, T3rd in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 26-5 overall, 16-4 in conference, 1st in ACC

3. Louisville Cardinals

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking:  75
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 46
Football: 8-5 overall, 5-3 in conference, 2nd in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 24-7 overall, 15-5 in conference, T2nd in ACC

2. Clemson Tigers

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 6
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 2
Football: 14-1 overall, 8-0 in conference, 1st in ACC Atlantic
Basketball: 16-15 overall, 9-11 in conference, 9th in ACC

1. Virginia Cavaliers

2019 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking:  1
2018 Hoops & Helmets National Ranking: 20
Football: 9-5 overall, 6-2 in conference, 1st in ACC Coastal
Basketball: 23-7 overall, 15-5 in conference, 2nd in ACC

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Watch: Four Quick Thoughts on Roy Williams F-Bomb

Roy Williams doesn’t usually crack quite like that.  The only thing to come to mind for me is Bonnie Bernstein upsetting him because she dared to ask him about leaving for North Carolina after his Kansas team lost is the only to leave for North Carolina shortly after.

Roy Williams is a college basketball legend.

He’s won three national championships during his time at North Carolina, led his teams at Kansas and Carolina to a combined nine Final Four appearances and has coached 11 Consensus All-Americans.

The 2019-2020 season is another story however as Williams and North Carolina are just 10-16 after Notre Dame beat them in the final seconds Monday night.  After surrendering a 15 point lead Williams finally cracked, at least as much as he can in front of a camera.

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A few thoughts on this one:

  1.  Has anyone ever apologized faster than that for letting the mother of all cuss words fly?  The apology is legit out before the f-bomb is even completed.
  2. It just breaks your heart to see North Carolina basketball going through this tough run.
  3. Roy Williams doesn’t usually crack quite like that.  The only thing to come to mind for me is Bonnie Bernstein upsetting him because she dared to ask him about leaving for North Carolina after his Kansas team lost is the only to leave for North Carolina shortly after.
  4. I am no way, shape or form offended by his honest slip-up but am offended by you if you are.

Notre Dame/North Carolina: Irish a Home Favorite

For what it’s worth (probably very little), Notre Dame has covered just once in their last eight games played on a Monday.

I know North Carolina is struggling this season and that Roy Williams pretty much told his team earlier this year that they were painful to watch, awful and every other negative adjective you could think.

I also know that that Tar Heels are just 9-15 since their opening night win over the Fighting Irish in November and have struggled mightily even with Cole Anthony (19.3 ppg) returning to the lineup.

But it’s still a rare day, or at least feels like one when Notre Dame is favored over North Carolina in basketball and that’s exactly what we have in the case of Monday night’s game.

Notre Dame is listed as a 2.5 point favorite over the Tar Heels tonight with the total set at 147.5.  A successful North Carolina money-line bet would pay +105.

Odds via BetMGM. Access USATODAY Sports Betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated February 17 at 11:15 a.m. ET

North Carolina defeated Notre Dame 76-65 to open the season on November 6 but has since struggled to a 10-15 overall record and a 3-11 ACC record, good for last place in the conference.

Notre Dame meanwhile enters 15-10 overall, 6-8 in conference and 12-3 on their home court this season.

Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN tonight.

For what it’s worth (probably very little), Notre Dame has covered just once in their last eight games played on a Monday.

Want to get in on the action? Place your bet now at BetMGM.

-Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

5 ugly stats show how much Roy Williams’ ‘least gifted’ UNC team is struggling

The Tar Heels have lost nine of their last 12 games.

If you’re wondering how long it’s been since the North Carolina men’s basketball team was this bad, the easy answer is that it’s been a while.

The Tar Heels look terrible this season, and that’s not by the standards of a blue-blood program and (almost) a perennial national championship contender. That’s by average college basketball standards. They’re having a historically bad season, and the injuries — particularly playing without star freshman guard Cole Anthony, who’s been out since December after undergoing an arthroscopic knee procedure for a partially torn meniscus — aren’t helping.

After being down by 20 points on the road against Pitt on Saturday, UNC ultimately lost to the Panthers, 66-52. The final score makes it seem closer than it was, with the Tar Heels shooting 31.7 percent from the field, going 10-for-21 from the free throw line and turning the ball over 16 times.

With the loss, UNC drops to 8-9 overall and 1-5 in ACC play, including last weekend when Clemson snapped its 0-59 losing streak in Chapel Hill by beating the Tar Heels in overtime. Afterward, coach Roy Williams called the loss the “lowest” point in his coaching career and said he should “probably” be fired for it. (He wasn’t.)

Although Williams’ took some responsibility after losing to Clemson, he also passed the buck to his players after the 96-83 loss to Georgia Tech, saying this squad is “probably the least gifted team I have ever coached.”

Their only ACC win was the season-opener against Notre Dame, and they’re in a tie with Wake Forest at the bottom of the conference standings. They could also miss the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 2009-10 season.

To add a little more context, here are five stats illustrating the bigger picture of UNC’s uncharacteristic struggles this season.

1. It’s UNC’s worst start in almost 20 years

This is what we meant by historically bad. Through a little more than half of the 2019-20 season, the Tar Heels are 8-9, marking this the program’s worst start since the 2001-02 season when they opened at 6-11, the Associate Press noted. That’s… not great.

2. UNC still has not won a game in 2020

Yeah. The team is 0-4 through its first games of the new year, losing to Georgia Tech, Clemson and Pitt twice. Two of them were by double digits, and against the Yellow Jackets, the Tar Heels were down, 47-27, at the half. In the early January 73-65 loss to Pitt, the Tar Heels blew a nine-point halftime lead and were massively outscored in the second half.

3. UNC has lost 9 of its last 12 games

The Tar Heels’ three wins in there were against Oregon (now ranked No. 8), UCLA and Yale. However, their losses range from now-No. 1 Gonzaga to Wofford, which is currently the fifth-best team in the Southern Conference.

4. UNC isn’t shooting among the top-300 teams

(Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

Through the first 16 games of the season, UNC shot 40.5 percent from the field, putting it in a three-way tie for No. 322, along with Oklahoma State and Florida A&M. While the DI teams’ stats will be updated again when all of Saturday’s games end, it’s safe to stay that with the Tar Heels’ performance against Pitt, they’re not jumping into the top 300.

5. UNC is ranked 119th

Forget about the top-25 teams; out of 353 total teams, the NCAA had UNC ranked No. 119 going into Saturday, and with the loss to Pitt, we’re thinking the team stays put or drops a spot or two. Additionally, at the time of this post, the Tar Heels were ranked 89th in the KenPom ratings.

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Ohio State basketball beats North Carolina: 3 Things we learned

Ohio State rolled into Chapel Hill and put on a display that’s going to turn heads. Here’s three things we learned.

There’s no doubt Ohio State thought it had its toughest test of the year in 2019 Wednesday night. It traveled to play one of the blue bloods in the sport in a hostile environment against a very athletic team.

North Carolina might still be trying to find itself a little bit early on in the year, but it was still a good test to go against a team that offers so many challenges across the board.

In the end, it was a great resume building blowout win of a Power five basketball power, and one that went a totally different direction than anyone thought. It was blowout city — a 74-49 victory.

Here’s three things we learned.

Next … Turnovers have to get better

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