Archive - 2010

The Big Ten As I See It: "Movie Night" Helps a Talented Big Ten Teenager Take a Step Toward Maturity

When watching talented college athletes, it is easy to forget that the players are still teenagers -- or have just left that stage. At least it is easy most of the time. But sometimes their immaturity makes their young age impossible to ignore. Such was the case with Ohio State point guard Samantha Prahalis last season.

When she maintains her composure, Prahalis can carry the Buckeyes. When she loses it, she can bury them. At her best, Prahalis is the player OSU fans love and opponents love to hate. She is flashy, very clever with the ball and plays with the swagger she learned on the playgrounds in her native New York City. Unlike those of players who are more flash than talent, Prahalis's passes normally find their targets and her ball handling befuddles opponents, rather than teammates.

She is a fiery, passionate player who must walk a fine line between feeding on her passion and being consumed by it. She does not always stay on the correct side of that line. After several flare-ups during the regular season, there were two games in the postseason when Prahalis's sometimes tenuous hold on her composure was evident.

Can Duke and Texas A&M Go the Distance? (It Sure Looked Like It Monday!)

Can Texas A&M and Duke fight their way into the Final Four picture?

Both coaches hope so. Gary Blair hasnt had a team ranked this high this early since he was at Stephen F. Austin in the early 90s. His No. 5 (AP No. 7) Aggies lost for the first time in a heartbreaker to Duke on Monday, 61-58, but they figure to improve once star guard Sydney Colsons right foot gets healthier.

Joanne P. McCallies No. 4 Duke team is the first in her 19 years as a Division I head coach to open a season with nine straight wins. McCallies heralded freshman class is just getting integrated into her demanding system, and her three senior starters--led by preseason Player of the Year candidate Jasmine Thomasare tough minded and anxious to show that the Blue Devils are the class of the ACC this year.

The Full Court Top 25: 2010-11 Women's Collegiate Rankings (Week Four, ending December 5, 2010)

Many members of our Top 25 saw some nationally ranked competition last week as the Big Ten faced two challenges, the first against the ACC and the second against Big 12 opponents. Still, there was very little movement among the Top 10, with the exception of Kentucky, which dropped from No. 9 to No. 14 after losing to unranked Louisville by 26 points.

There was plenty of jockeying for position from there down, however. Tennessee leapfrogged over No. 12 Georgetown after the Hoyas survived a near-miss against the unranked Richmond Spiders. Oklahoma actually moved up a notch after acquitting themselves well in a loss to No. 5 (last week's No. 6) Ohio State. Green Bay and Iowa State slid up to fill the voids left by other teams taking a tumble.

Florida State slipped to No. 18 and Texas dropped to No. 21 after falling to Michigan State, which moved up from No. 20 to No. 17, thanks to these two wins over ranked teams. Maryland drops still further, to No. 22, after a near miss at a Purdue depleted by the loss of both its starting point guard and its leading scorer and rebounder Drey Mingo.

Vandy, Penn State and Georgia fall out of the rankings after dropping losses to unranked opponents. St. John's returns, joined by Kansas State and DePaul, to take their places in the Full Court Press Top 25.