Forget about asking what Thad Matta had in mind when he sent his Ohio State Buckeyes out on the court, down three with 12 seconds left. After an awkward, bumbling sequence that included two no-chance trey attempts by star Evan Turner, the first question is what was Matta doodling on his clipboard in the huddle, because it obviously wasn’t an offensive play.

In a close game all the way through, the 2-seed Buckeyes went up by one on 6-seed Tennessee when Turner dropped a Raftery-certified “ONIONS!” triple with 41 seconds left. Tennessee came right back to regain the lead on a Brian “Big Baby” Williams tip-in, and after Turner missed on a driving layup, Ohio State turned it over when Kyle Madsen‘s attempted pass back to Turner got intercepted. Read More »

It’s only halftime, but I’m gonna go ahead and say St. Mary’s run as one of the tournament Cinderellas is over. They’re down 46-17 right now, and a few minutes before halftime, Baylor’s LaceDarius Dunn was outscoring the Gaels by himself, shooting 5-for-7 from the field while St. Mary’s had shot 5-for-25 as a team.

So onto a more intriguing matter than this game: Is St. Mary’s big man Omar Samhan ready for the NBA? Read More »

With Duke taking on Purdue in the nightcap this evening, I figured now was as good a time as any to show off the shoes that will be on their feet. As a Kobe school, the Blue Devils will be wearing their player exclusive version of the Nike Zoom Kobe V. Check them out in more detail below. Read More »

Although the prosecutor recommended a three-month prison sentence, after getting a look at the James Bond-style guns Gilbert Arenas was carrying around, we were thinking the judge in Arenas’ weapons possession case might be compelled to make the three-time NBA All-Star spend some significant time in jail.

Not so much. Today, Arenas was sentenced to 30 days in a halfway house and two years’ probation.

The other day, when we were throwing out names for consideration on the 10 NBA Players with the Most Range ranking, talk naturally turned to the long-distance gunners we watched growing up. Then, as Xavier and Kansas State got into an in-game three-point shooting contest in Thursday’s NCAA Tournament class, those old-school names popped up again while the Dime crew texted and e-mailed back and forth.

After Reggie Miller, my favorite non-Sonics shooter growing up was Glen Rice. Read More »

Earlier this week, Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) point guard Brandon Knight became just the fourth player to win back-to-back Gatorade National Player of the Year awards. Knight, who is ranked No. 2 in the High School Hoop national top 50, joins LeBron James, Greg Oden and Candace Parker in the elite club. We came across some behind-the-scenes footage of Knight being surprised in his second period class by 1988 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year, Alonzo Mourning. Check it out after the jump. Read More »

Buy Low: Chris Paul is averaging 8 points, 2 threes, 1 rebound, 5 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.5 turnovers in his two games since returning from knee surgery. He played 21 minutes in his first game and 31 minutes in his second game, which is good to see. Expect CP3 to return to something close to his peak form before the season is up. Read More »

Throughout this year, House of Hoops has been opening up new locations across the country. Last time we checked in, Dallas was the latest city to be graced with a HOH, and now Wayne, N.J. can add their name to the list. With Funkmaster Flex on the 1′s and 2′s, and New Jersey native John Celestand (a member of the Lakers’ 1999–2000 championship team) on the mic, you definitely don’t want to miss this event. Read More »

When I first heard this rumor, my initial reaction was, “Thank God!” Manu Ginobili has been a hand-check and hard-foul waiting to happen for too long. He’s won his rings, he’s built his legacy, now it’s time for him to bring his “Euro game” back to Europe. According to FIBA.com, Spanish powerhouse Real Madrid are rumored to be offering Ginobili a contract worth $13.5 million for next season – which is much more than the $10.7 million he’s making this season in the final year of his deal with San Antonio. For the love of guards and the Western Conference, please take the money and run. Read More »

With Dayton’s 77-71 victory over Illinois in the NIT quarterfinals Wednesday night, the three-seeded Flyers have earned themselves a trip to the semifinals and Madison Square Garden for the tournament’s Final Four. Dayton (8-8, 23-12) will face off against Ole Miss (9-7, 24-10) next on Tuesday March 30th – UNC and Rhode Island make up the rest of the Final Four. Dayton’s success this season has been up-and-down – with wins coming over Old Dominion, Xavier and Cincinnati – but coach Brian Gregory has the Flyers poised to make good on his team’s NIT selection. A major reason why Dayton has persevered on after a rough conference schedule in the A-10 is junior forward Chris Wright. Read More »