Thought there’s still plenty of conference play to go, for a Texas team starting 4 freshman to be tied for the Big 12 lead is no small accomplishment. Then again, D.J. Augustine and Kevin Durant are no ordinary freshman, and the latter was nothing short of brilliant Wednesday night, scoring 37 points and collecting an eye-popping 23 rebounds. ESPN2’s broadcast crew were effusive in their praise of Durant, calling his performance “the finest in the short history of the Big 12”. Not very big fans of “Knight School”, I suppose.
While No. 3 North Carolina routed Miami and No.1 Florida disposed of Buster Olney University, No. 2 Wisconsin suffered their 2nd loss of the season, a 71-66 defeat at Indiana. Hoosiers G A.J. Ratliff scored 20 points off the bench, and D.J. White (above) had 16, only to be torn limb from limb by an overzealous mob at the buzzer.
Michael David Smith cites the Buckeyes’ Mike Conley Jr. as the best freshman in the country. Well, other than Kevin Durant and Ohio State teammate Gred Oden. Ohio State took their time putting away Purdue tonight, but eventually prevailed, 78-60, with Conley scoring 17 and dishing out 5 assists.
The only thing stopping Charlotte’s Gerald Wallace from becoming the NBA’s Most Valuable Player is the league’s reluctance to allow the Bobcats to play the Knicks 82 times a season. On a night when Jared Jeffries most definetly came back to earth, it was doubly depressing to witness the ice cold Eddy Curry put the “ugggggg” in sluggish.
Has anyone else noticed that if you close your eyes, Kiki Vandeweghe sounds exactly like Reggie Miller?
Oden’s terrific, and continues to impress me whenever I get the chance to see him, but what team wouldn’t take Durant first overall? Any? Tech’s nothing special, but he really does remind me of Garnett. There’s nowhere on the floor where he’s not a threat. And I don’t mean in the Vernon Maxwell sense.
yeah, much like KG, Durant is a genuinely solid long-range shooter and only likely to improve. His shot blocking/altering, rebounding skills continue to improve…and he puts the ball on the floor like few big men we’ve ever seen. And something that won’t show up in the box score —- for a guy that’s supposedly getting the fuck outta Dodge come the next draft, he really seems to give a hoot about whether or not the Longhorns win or lost. The guy’s work rate can’t be questioned even on the rare occasions he isn’t wiping the floor with the opposition.