So give me a stage where this bull here can rageWelcome to the Big Ten Hoops Recap: Boxing Day edition. For those of you unaware of this non-American holiday, its origin symbolizes charitable giving while its present-day celebration is centered around sports and leisure…wait, why don't we observe this holiday?
In honor of the former, if anyone is in possession of an old cell phone, perhaps a Britta-approved Totorola or a new old phone thanks to a gift under the tree yesterday, I'd like to encourage you to recycle it through Verizon's HopeLine program1, which would refurbish it and donate the proceeds to domestic violence victims. You can either drop it off at any Verizon store or mail it postage-free via a label from their website.
As for the sports and leisure parallel, we are about to enter league play, which in B1G terms, is often as physical as a pugilistic match. Although we still have one last non-conference week to cover, it seemed an appropriate theme for this recap, despite Boxing Day's meaning having no correlation to the sport of the same name.
Michigan State, adding two more wins to extend their streak to 11 straight, is the team of the week, even if the Spartans trailed Lehigh at halftime in East Lansing. Channeling arguably the greatest boxing film in cinematic history2, Tom Izzo raged like Jake La Motta, earning a technical right before the break that allowed the team from O Little Town of Bethlehem (PA) to temporarily grab the lead. It's safe to assume that he performed a monologue in front of the mirror in the locker room, ending with the refrain, "I'm the boss." His team, who watched this unfold, responded accordingly.
MICHIGAN STATE (2-0) // Beat University of Missouri-Kansas City 89-54, Beat Lehigh 90-81
On the strength of the Branden/on duo of Dawson and Wood, Michigan State rolled past UMKC. Each scored 16 points as the Kangaroos failed to put up a fight worthy of their namesake.
The Spartans quickly rebounded from a 38-35 deficit to overcome pesky Lehigh. Normally a poor free-throwing shooting team, Michigan State converted 32/39, including a 12/12 effort from Keith Appling, who led Sparty with 19 points total. Draymond Green, who took himself out of the starting lineup for arriving late to a team meeting, recorded his seventh double-double of the season. To go along with his 16 points and 10 rebounds, he blocked a personal-best six shots. Still, the Mountain Goats gave it the Old College Try and stuck around all game, as if to say, "You didn't get me down, Dray."
INDIANA (2-0) // Beat Howard 107-50, Beat University of Maryland-Baltimore County 89-47
Apparently haters of his directorial outing, Cinderella Man, Indiana KO'd Howard. With six Hoosiers scoring in double figures, led by Jordan Hulls' 16, it was the second-largest margin of victory in IU history. Indiana hit 67.3% from the field while holding the Bison to 30.6% and telling them, "you're going home in butcher paper, pal! BUTCHER PAPER!"
To complete their perfect 12-0 nonconference record, their best start since the undefeated 1975-76 season, Indiana breezed past UMBC. Christian Watford paced all scorers with 22 points, and Matt Roth3 received increased playing time due to three injured teammates. He responded with 14 points, including 4/5 from three-point range. Chase Plummer sang "Edelweiss" on the way to 10 points and 7 rebounds for the Retrievers. Although Will Wise did not score, he committed four fouls, presumably the kind of aggression he learned from his brother Cutty's Baltimore-located boxing gym.
IOWA (2-0) // Beat Central Arkansas 105-64, Beat Boise State 81-72
This is mostly likely the only time the following phrase will be written all season: Iowa clobbered an opponent, the Bears of Central Arkansas. Five Hawkeyes, with Devyn Marble's 19 leading the way, posted double figures, and all 17 members on the roster saw the court. Chris Rickert recorded a 2 trillion.
After a halftime tie, Iowa held off Boise State for their third straight win. Marble and Aaron White twinsied themselves to 18 points a piece while Melsahn Basabe chipped in a double-double consisting of 14 points and 11 rebounds. A winning streak for the Hawkeyes heading into Big Ten play probably means that Iowa will soon be asking to be euthanized. Mo cuishle.
PENN STATE (1-0) // Beat Cornell 74-67
THAT'S WHAT THE MONEY IS FORTrailing by as many as eight in the first half, Penn State came back to down Cornell. Up went Tim Frazier with 17 points and 11 boards for the Nittany Lions, who only made 37.5% percent of their shots but converted 7/14 from behind the arc in the second half. As played by Will Smith in his first Oscar-nominated role, the Big Red will get the better of Frazier the next two times they face off, concluding with the Thrilla in Manila.
MICHIGAN (1-0) // Beat Bradley 77-66
Another game tied at halftime turned into another B1G win, with Michigan besting Bradley. Each team relied heavily on its bench as everyone in the starting lineup scored in the double digits. Evan Smotrycz notched his second dub-dub in a row with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Meanwhile, UM coach John Beilein will need to engage in some boxing robot-based bonding to repair his relationship with his son Patrick, the director of basketball operations for Bradley.
PURDUE (1-0) // Beat Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne 81-56
Purdue, at home of course, cruised to victory over the blessedly initialed IPFW. Six Boilermakers put up 10 points or more, including the Great White Hope Robbie Hummel, who added 10 rebounds to his metric-friendly stat line. Presumably, IPFW's Hichem Benayad-Cherif don't like it. The Mastodons also have a John Peckinpaugh on their roster, so while they may not have won the battle, they did win the name war.
WISCONSIN (1-0) // Beat Mississippi Valley State 79-45
Once again refusing to allow an opponent to reach the half-dollar mark, Wisconsin dispatched MVSU. Jordan Taylor totaled 17 points and Jared Berggren had 15 as the Badgers went to the free-throw line 44 times, making 31 of them. They held MVSU to a paltry 29.2% from the field and 20 points fewer than their season average. In regard to the Delta Devils, Bo Ryan looked on and coldheartedly declared, "if he dies, he dies."4
MINNESOTA (1-0) // Beat North Dakota State 63-59
A close game all night long, Minnesota escaped North Dakota St. Although Rodney Williams (14 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) and moniker champ Maverick Ahanmisi (13 points, 3, assists, 3 steals) played well for the Golden Gophers, and the Bison's Taylor Braun led his team with a double-double (13 points, 11 rebounds), it was Ralph Sampson III who decided he was going to earn the star of the game honors and "not you, not you, and not you." Sampson scored a game-high 15 points, grabbed six boards, and blocked four shots. He was 7/8 at the charity stripe, two of which came in the final 14 seconds.
| TEAM | CONF | OVERALL |
|---|---|---|
| Indiana | 0-0 | 12-0 |
| Ohio State | 0-0 | 12-1 |
| Minnesota | 0-0 | 12-1 |
| Illinois | 0-0 | 11-2 |
| Michigan State | 0-0 | 11-2 |
| Wisconsin | 0-0 | 11-2 |
| Michigan | 0-0 | 10-2 |
| Northwestern | 0-0 | 10-2 |
| Purdue | 0-0 | 10-3 |
| Nebraska | 0-0 | 8-3 |
| Iowa | 0-0 | 8-5 |
| Penn State | 0-0 | 8-5 |
NEBRASKA (1-0) // Beat Central Michigan 72-69
Nearly blowing an 11-point lead, Nebraska edged Central Michigan. With layups and free throws, Bo Spencer (15 points, 9 assists) and Caleb Walker (11 points, 5 rebounds) came through in the latter portion of the game for the Cornhuskers. My prediction for anyone who watched this game? Pain. So, I'm going to bring the topic back to Cutty Wise. While I support any actor from The Wire booking a steady acting gig, why does Chad L. Coleman's have to involve I Hate My Teenage Daughter, a show that looks CBS-kinds-of-awful?
ILLINOIS (1-1) // Beat Cornell 64-60, Lost to Missouri 78-74
In the first of two four-point games for Illinois, they topped Cornell. Illini center Meyers Leonard hurt his back in the second half, no doubt from carrying his team in the first half. He finished with 19 points and 16 boards. D.J. Richardson fueled the second half of the back-and-forth game, when he scored 11 of his 17 points.
Apparently, that win took a Champ-like toll on the Illini, who fell to ninth-ranked Missouri. Leonard was well enough to record another dub-dub (14 points, 13 rebounds), and Illinois overcame a 13-point deficit to take the lead with two minutes to go. That didn't last long as the Tigers reeled off seven straight points and led the rest of the way. Off the bench for Illini, Joseph Bernard was a perfect 9/9 from the field for 19 points, a career best.
NORTHWESTERN (0-1) // Lost to Creighton 87-79
Down by just one at halftime, Northwestern was unable to muster enough in the second to prevail against #23 Creighton. Drew Crawford's Rocky imitation, a valiant effort in defeat, was to the tune of "Eye of the Tiger" 34 points. When he was called for his fourth foul, the Bluejays went on a decisive run, and Creighton beat a Big Ten team for the third time this season.
Well, Crawford, I guess there's always the sequel...as long as it doesn't come on Wednesday.
- 1 Though this is for a good cause, an FCC disclaimer still applies: Verizon presented 11W with a Droid and a Xoom tablet, which I have been testing out. The copious amount of pop culture references should clue you into the fact that all words are my own.
- 2 Some say it's Scorsese's best work, but I'm partial to Taxi Driver.
- 3 Nope, not that one. Or that one.
- 4 I saw this with my own eyes while I was watching this contest on my Droid. For smartphone users, this B1G game was available live on Verizon Video, as are several more this week including Ohio State's conference opener against Northwestern.
