Saturday’s 6-pack:
— Dallas 148, Hawks 143- Luka Doncic scored 73 points, had 7 assists.
— Rockets 138, Hornets 104- Houston shot 75% in the second half.
— Pacers 133, Suns 131- Indiana outscored Phoenix 28-17 in 4th quarter.
— Grizzlies 107, Magic 106- Memphis won its third straight game.
— Clippers 127, Raptors 107- Harden had 22 points, 10 rebounds, 13 assists.
— Cavaliers 112, Bucks 100- Cleveland won nine of its last ten games.
Quote of the Day
“He’s got some stuff to him. I don’t think the shot is
that good. But he’s got some real tools. He’s 7-2, he can move, he can transfer the ball on the perimeter, he can pass it some, he has enough fluid athleticism in the open floor and can already shoot it [well] enough.”
An unnamed NBA scout, talking about Kentucky’s Zvonimir Ivisic
Saturday’s quiz
Michael Jordan was the #3 pick in the 1984 NBA Draft; who was the first pick?
Friday’s quiz
Brett Favre is career leader in passing yards for the Packers, with 61,655 yards.
Aaron Rodgers threw for 59,055 yards with Green Bay.
Thursday’s quiz
New Orleans Saints started playing in 1967, but they didn’t win a playoff game until 2000; Jim Haslett was the coach when they got that first playoff win.
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Notes from 13 of the best leagues in the country:
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Southern
71% free throw % is 2nd-worst of any conference.
35.3% on 3’s is 7th-best %age in country.
NC-Greensboro/Samford are tied for first, at 6-1
Furman/Chattanooga are game behind, at 5-2.
From 2015-22, Western Carolina was 101-151, 54-89 in SoCon.
Last two years, Western Carolina is 33-21, 14-11 in SoCon.
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WAC
WAC teams are playing 2nd-fastest tempo in country.
WAC games have the most free throws of any league in country.
Grand Canyon is 8-1; they lead the WAC by 2.5 games.
Antelopes will have pressure in WAC tourney; this is a one-bid league.
In three years under Chris Victor, Seattle is 55-29, 30-15 in WAC games.
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WCC
WCC teams are shooting 53.4% inside the arc, best in country.
WCC teams have the 3rd-fewest turnovers of any league.
Saint Mary’s is 6-0 in WCC, after a 9-6 pre-conference mark.
Santa Clara is 6-1, Gonzaga 5-1, right behind the Gaels.
Right now, according to ESPN’s Bracketology, this is a one-bid league, with Gonzaga the first team out of the field of 68, but we’re still in January, still a long way to go.
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Missouri Valley
Valley teams are #6 in country in eFG%; lot of good shooters.
Valley teams are outside top 20 in steals, blocked shots; not a great defensive league.
Indiana State leads the Valley with an 8-1 record.
Drake/Bradley are both a game behind. Right now, this is a one-bid league.
Belmont has won 20+ games thirteen years in a row; right now, they’re 11-9.
Last two years, Bradley is 40-15, 23-6 in Valley games.
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American
39.6% of shots AAC teams take are 3’s, 3rd-highest %age.
AAC teams rebound 31.2% of their missed shots, #5 in country.
FAU/Charlotte are 6-1 in AAC; North Texas/South Florida are 5-1.
From 2010-21, Wichita State was 168-43 in league games; the last three years, Shockers are 15-24, 0-6 this season.
East Carolina is 3-5 in games decided by 6 or less points, lot of close games.
Florida Atlantic is 6-1 in AAC this year, only 2-5 against the spread.
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Atlantic 15
A-15 teams are shooting 48.5% inside arc, 3rd-worst in country.
Home teams are only 25-22 SU in A-15 league games (#24 home win %age)
Dayton/Richmond are tied for first in A-15, with 6-0 records.
Loyola (5-2), VCU (4-2) are next in the standings.
This is a one-bid league, unless Dayton loses in the A-15 tourney- Flyers are getting in.
In 8 years under Bob McKillop, Davidson was 91-46 in A-15; in the two years since he retired and his son took over the program, Davidson is 10-14 in A-15 games.
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Baseball Note of the Day: Minnesota Twins won the World Series in 1991; since then, no Minnesota team has won a championship, or gotten to the finals in their league. Of the 13 places with teams in all four major sports, Minnesota’s drought is 10 years longer than anyone else’s.
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Thought of the Day: Insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting a different result.
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Mountain West
Mountain West teams are playing 4th-slowest tempo in country.
Mountain West teams are shooting 52.9% inside arc, #4 n country.
Utah State/Boise State are 6-1; San Diego State/New Mexico are 5-2.
Colorado State was 12-1 in pre-conference, but is only 3-3 in league games.
Bracketology has five Mountain West teams in Field of 68.
16-4 Nevada is in Next Four Out; MW has six teams in the top 60.
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Pac-12
Pac-12 teams are shooting 36.6% on arc, #2 in country.
Home teams are 37-14 in Pac-12 games, #2 %age in country.
Oregon is 6-2 in Pac-12, followed by Colorado at 6-3.
Arizona schools are both 5-3.
Last four years, UCLA was 99-36, 58-19 in Pac-12. This year, they’re 8-11, 3-5.
Arizona is 6-5 in its last eleven games, after an 8-0 start.
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ACC
ACC teams are shooting 74% on foul line, 3rd-best in country.
ACC teams are shooting only 49.8% inside arc, #20 in country.
North Carolina is 8-0 in ACC games; their last loss was December 16.
Florida State/Duke are next in standings, at 5-2.
Bracketology has Wake Forest/Virginia in Next Four Out.
Other than UNC, they have Duke as a 5-seed, Clemson as a 7-seed.
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Big 14
Big 14 teams are shooting 36% on the arc, #3 in country.
Big 14’s turnover %age is 15.9%, #5 in country.
Wisconsin is 8-1 in Big 14, Purdue 7-2.
Illinois/Northwestern are tied for third, at 5-3.
Bracketology has six Big 14 teams in the Field of 68.
Michigan State is 12-8, 4-5; they haven’t missed NCAA’s since 1997.
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SEC
SEC teams have 48.8 eFG%, 4th-worst in country.
SEC teams are playing 4th-fastest tempo in country.
Auburn/Alabama are both 5-1; Tennessee is 4-1.
Kentucky, South Carolina, Georgia are all 4-2.
Last 4 years, Arkansas was 95-42, 41-30 in SEC; this year, they’re 10-9, 1-5.
Bracketology has seven SEC teams in, with Ole Miss/Florida near-misses.
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Big East
Big East teams are rebounding 30.1% of their misses, #7 in country.
Big East teams are shooting 75.3% on foul line, best in country.
Defending national champ UConn is 7-1 in conference games.
Creighton/Seton Hall are 6-3; Marquette is 5-3.
In Jay Wright’s last nine years, Villanova was 263-53, 130-31 in conference.
In 1.5 years since Wright retired, Villanova is 28-25, 14-14 in conference.
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Big X
Big X teams are playing 5th-slowest tempo in country.
Big X teams are shooting 33.2% on the arc (#24)
Texas Tech is 4-1 in Big X; four other teams are 4-2.
Four new teams in the Big X this year are 11-13 in league games.
Bracketology has six teams in, with Texas/TCU in the play-in games
Last 3 years, Oklahoma State was 27-27 in Big X; they’re 0-6 this year.