Community Picks: Louisville 0% vs Pittsburgh 0%

Michigan State fans chanted “MVP..MVP..MVP” on Thursday night as Denzel Valentine stood dribbling the ball with more than a minute to play in the Spartans’ 69-57 victory over Wisconsin. Valentine eventually forced up a wild, spinning shot that missed badly to avoid a shot clock violation. It wasn’t the pretty ending his performance deserved and seconds later coach Tom Izzo subbed in the reserves. Continue to Article

February 18, 2016 11:46:pm EST

Texas Tech was left for dead just two weeks ago after losing for the seventh time in eight games, but coach Tubby Smith’s team has given itself new life with a stunning three-game winning streak over ranked opponents that culminated Wednesday when the Red Raiders took down No. 2 Oklahoma. The Red Raiders have work to do to make more out their resurgence than simply a fun stretch of basketball, but they can longer be counted out of the NCAA Tournament discussion. Consecutive wins over Iowa State, Baylor and now the Sooners puts Texas Tech into the bubble conversation but its going to have to keep winning to stay there. Texas Tech upsets No. 3 Oklahoma 65-63 pic.twitter.com/uUtxOH3jbZ — Phil Terrigno (@philterrigno) February 18, 2016 [ College basketball's All-time Starting Five: Louisville Cardinals ] The Red Raiders held the nation’s best 3-point shooting team to a 6-for-23 performance Wednesday and national player of the year candidate Buddy Hield scored only 16, going 3-for-10 behind the arc himself. Aaron Ross scored 17 points off the bench for Texas Tech and Keenan Evans scored 14 as the Red Raiders limited their turnovers to nine and competed for every rebound and loose ball in a tight game from start to finish. [ Who is going to March Madness? Brad Evans’ Big Board ] The loss likely knocks Oklahoma out of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, at least for now, though other competing teams for those seeds such as Iowa and North Carolina also lost Wednesday. The Sooners had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds but failed to get Hield even a touch as the clock drained. After a timeout with 14 seconds remaining, Isaiah Cousins took the inbound pass, surveyed the court and then drove to the left throwing a lob toward the rim that was high and off-target for forward Khadeem Lattin. Ryan Spangler grabbed the offensive rebound but his short layup came up short off the front of the rim and the Red Raiders claimed the ball and their best victory of the Tubby Smith era in Lubbock. The Red Raiders are 16-9 overall and 6-7 in the rugged Big 12 with more opportunities to help themselves before the regular season ends. They still must play at Kansas and West Virginia. The thing about Smith's team is it doesn't have anything resembling a really ugly loss. It's worst setbacks are Arkansas and Kansas State. Don't count out the Red Raiders just yet. - - - - - - - [ Kyle Ringo is the assistant editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at kyle.ringo@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo Continue to Article

February 17, 2016 11:43:pm EST

Providence guard Kris Dunn has been filling up the stat sheet all season for a team that needs him to be a superstar night in and night out. Myles Davis has put together a workmanlike junior season for one of the most well-rounded teams in the country at Xavier and Wednesday night he stole Dunn’s thunder. Continue to Article

February 17, 2016 10:02:pm EST

Damion Lee scored 15 points, Trey Lewis added 14 and No. 18 Louisville pulled away in the second half to beat Syracuse 72-58 on Wednesday night. The Cardinals (20-6, 9-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) snapped a two-game slide, shooting 56 percent in the second half. Lee shot just 6 of 14 but made all three 3-pointers in just under three minutes in the second half to key one of several runs that put Louisville comfortably ahead. Continue to Article

February 17, 2016 9:18:pm EST

With March Madness right around the corner, The Dagger is picking an all-time starting five from some of college basketball's most tradition-rich programs. Our picks were based on a variety of factors, including stats, tourney success, All-America selections, and of course, our opinions. Next up: Louisville Cardinals. Who was considered from Louisville: Darrell Griffith, G, 1976-80 (18.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg) Wes Unseld, F, 1965-68 (20.6 ppg, 18.6 rpg) Pervis Ellison, F/C, 1985-89 (15.8 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 2.4 apg) Charlie Tyra, F/C, 1953-57 (18.2 ppg, 17.0 rpg) Rodney McCray, F, 1979-83 (9.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg.) Russ Smith, G, 2010-14 (14.3 ppg, 2.8 apg) Junior Bridgeman, G, 1972-75 (15.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg) DeJuan Wheat, G, 1993-97 (16.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg) Butch Beard, G, 1966-69 (19.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg) Terrence Williams, F, 2006-09 (11.2 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 3.9 apg) Louisville’s All-Time Starting Five G — Darrell Griffith He lost only 25 games in four seasons with the Cardinals and his creative dunks led him to be nicknamed ‘Dr. Dunkenstein.’ He led the Cardinals to their first national title in 1980 averaging a career-best 22.9 points. The first player in Louisville history to score more than 2,000 points and eclipse 700 in a single season. G — Rodney McCray He started 132 consecutive games in a career that included three Final Four appearances. One of four players in school history to score more than 1,000 points and grab more than 1,000 rebounds. He finished his career as the Metro Conference player of the year in 1983. F — Ulysses ‘Junior’ Bridgeman He was a versatile player who beat opponents off the dribble and with his shot. Bridgeman was the Missouri Valley Conference player of the year in 1974 and 1975 and earned All-America honors as a senior when he led the Cardinals to the Final Four. In his three seasons in the program, the Cardinals went 72-17 and won two conference titles. F — Wes Unseld He only played three seasons and very likely would have been the career scoring leader to this day if he had played four. His career averages of 20.6 points and 18.9 rebounds are best among all Cardinals. He still holds the single-game scoring record of 45 points set in the first game of his final season in 1967 C — Pervis Ellison One of the best shot blockers in NCAA history was much more than that to the Cardinals. He led the school to its second national title in 1986 and finished his career as the only player in the program’s history to score more than 2,000 points and grab more than 1,000 rebounds. He earned the nickname ‘Never Nervous Pervis’ on the way to the title when he became the second freshman in history to be named most outstanding player at the Final Four. Continue to Article

February 17, 2016 3:48:pm EST