Editor’s Note: We like to laugh here at the Byrd Cage and we hope you do too. That’s why we’re happy to announce the return of Mort & Hugs. Our two in-house professional gripers/comedians who’ve never met a D1 athlete they weren’t scurd to anonymously mock on the internet.
Just in case you forgot:
Thank the Lord for pot stirring ‘Adult Steve’ (who got a shout out from Troy Machir this morning at NBC) because, frankly, I’m nervous about this game. I know, I know – Murray so far has been a bit of a disappointment this year. But I just can’t shake the nervousness when we’re favorites away in a must win game (-4). The expectations from last year were definitely high, about as long as the line to Coach Prohm at OVC Media Day at the beginning of the season. But you know how we do. The Byrd Cage was in there – and we were able to get three questions out before the OVC realized they let us crazies in and hastily hurried us out. Ok, that’s not true. The OVC people were wonderfully generous. Read the rest of this entry »
Editor’s Note: We like to laugh here at the Byrd Cage and we hope you do too. That’s why we’re happy to announce the return of Mort & Hugs. Our two in-house professional gripers/comedians who’ve never met a D1 athlete they weren’t scurd to anonymously mock on the internet.
MORT: We’re almost halfway through the OVC schedule and it is time to dust off the obligatory weekly lampoon. Hugs and I enjoyed our column last year, but have yet to muster enough inspiration this season to spend the necessary fifteen minutes to put 350 words to word processor due to the fact that our initial excitement for entering this new conference was whittled away by the drubbing of our first 5 conference opponents by a combined 120 pts. If this conference was a movie, it would have the plot twist of a yawn and the critical acclaim of “Jack and Jill”, which sucked, but was the inspiration for the greatest movie review headline of all time: 0 out of 5 stars, laughingly unfunny. What incredible headline does this conference inspire? “Nobody watched, but no one threw up.”
For the love of Marty Dickens can someone PLEASE turn up the damn speakers in the event center? There are THREE guys sitting at the sound booth. ONE of you needs to find the volume knob and turn it up to awesome. Lipscomb’s system makes my ears bleed, and it is amazing. We are losing to Lipscomb, an inferior school with an inferior team in a barely inferior conference. Then someone needs to tell God or whoever is in charge of the karaoke selection that a.) please no karaoke, and b.) please never play that Turtles song ever again. I get it. It’s a Belmont institution. But it shouldn’t be. I think “neat fact” is as far as that haunting carol should have ever gotten, but someone somewhere in the quality assurance department fell asleep when Karaoke Turtles Song in the Third Quarter Every Game was proposed before the season began.
Also, ByrdCage column DEMAND: Spreadin’ The News with Nick. Every Belmont game, Nick tells us which team he took against the spread and why, complete with his descriptions of his disgust with our opponents’ lack of quality coaching.
HUGS: Listen everyone, I don’t have time for this nonsense; I’m not in grad school anymore. Just kidding. But not really.
In all seriousness though, I do feel a DEEP sense of shame for my lack of commitment to our Bruins in their inaugural year in the OVC. But it looks like they’ve been doing fine without me. Seriously, conference opponents. Get your crap together. The one game I’ve managed to make it to this year was the least compelling sporting contest I’ve ever witnessed, and I’m a Cubs fan. If we are just going to run roughshod over the conference, then I have little motivation to pay close attention. I’ll have to come up with more exciting ways to fill my time, like becoming a hockey fan or watching my 26 year old roommates rediscover Tony Hawk Pro Skater for Playstation.
I am happy for our boys though. It’s not their fault they’re playing the Globetrotters to the OVC’s Generals. Or maybe it is. Maybe they should start shaving some points to make these contests more engaging. It will definitely make Nick’s gambling addiction more exciting.
What does excite me is that if we continue the current pattern, it WILL make for a very interesting Selection Sunday. Until then, wake me up when we go to Murray State. However, I won’t be awake for very long because IMMEDIATELY after the game I will be heading to the Murray fixture and culinary GOLD MINE that is Mary’s to eat an A-Train (steak sandwich between two grilled cheese sandwiches), which will send my organs into the most pleasant meat and cheese-related shutdown imaginable. Stay tuned to Ian Clark being amazing.
Sweet Bruin Baller Tweets:
@2sicksideburns: I made a wish at 11:11 and it came true!! Juwanna Mann is on Comedy Central!!!
I would like to note that this tweet was composed during the second inauguration of President Barack Obama, which also happened to be on Martin Luther King Day. This future schoolteacher chose instead to watch Juwanna Mann. There’s a joke here somewhere.
This confirms all my suspicions. Baker is a 14 year old schoolboy in a schoolteacher’s body.
@DrewHanlen: Just watched Shawshank Redemption w/ my mom. Love that movie! Buddy tunneled his way out of jail w/ a small hammer. Persistence pays off!
Drew, your twitter account is the one of the most consistently inspirational things I regularly read. I admire your upbeat attitude and your ceaseless encouragement. That said, take it down. Just. take it. down. a notch. This is a movie of vicious beatings, corruption, and crawling through poop. It is not an after school special.
When did Hoopin’ become the single greatest person of all time? Seriously, the dude watches Shawshank (the most inspirational movie of all time save Mighty Ducks, D2, and Bridesmaids) WITH HIS MOM. He hangs out with NBA All-Stars and counts “persistence” as a hobby. Rumor is he’s both a knight and a saint. Compared to Drew, Tim Tebow is a drunk-driving prostitute. If you wouldn’t trade lives with this guy, then put me down for an eighth of whatever you are smoking.
…yeah me too.
@Itsburgtime: Drank so much coffee I’d fail a drug test. #BurgyProbz
Remember that one time… ? Roasted.
The above picture is of Belmont Head Coach Rick Byrd. He is smiling because not only is he taking the Belmont Bruins to their fifth NCAA Tournament berth since 2006, but because he has his Bruins on a red-hot 14 game winning streak heading into the Big Dance.
A Look Back At The Season
Belmont almost did what the Byrd Cage predicted back in its first post in November against Duke at their home opener in Cameron indoors. The Crazies were almost left silent by Coach Byrd’s disciplined team that didn’t get its head down all game, and came back from a significant deficit in what is, arguably, the hardest place in college athletics to sustain confidence and control the game. The game was ultimately lost by one point, and everyone pointed to the Bruins as being “for real” and all those sports qualities that the talking heads give sports teams they ultimately do not know anything about. But the Bruins had their chance to prove themselves four days later in Memphis, only to lose by 16 points.
Still waiting for that “signature” win, the Bruin faithful kept in good spirits heading into conference play, and looking to get some quality wins from non-conference opponents on the national level. Playing at MTSU twice, the Bruins played a Blue Raider team that looked to be the best in their history, and split the series 1-1. After a quality handling of future OVC foe Tennessee State University, the Bruins arrived at Miami of Ohio on December 17 with a record of 10-3, the respectable losses to Duke, Memphis, and MTSU in Murfreesboro. The team had confidence, their fans expecting another 30 win season, and their opponents largely expecting a whole heck of a lot from every match-up.
But it wasn’t as easy as everyone thought, and the magic season started to get a little messy. Belmont dropped two in a row at Miami of Ohio and Marshall. The Bruins limped back to Clarksville with a win against struggling future OVC opponent Austin Peay on December 21st and had Christmas to think about what they did. Who were the Bruins? What happened to that 30 win season we were all expecting? A few more wins got the Bruins back in the flow— moving to squash their rival in the the Battle of the Boulevard, a sold-out rivalry game to a struggling Lipscomb team. But the Bisons had different ideas and had 6 of their players were in double-digits, giving the Bruins a thorough wake-up call after a beating 85-74.
It was time to get worried. Dropping another game to USC Upstate, the Bruins nursed a 13-7 overall record toward the end of January. There was a major flaw somewhere in all this basketball, and if anyone could change things around and get this team playing to its full potential, it was Coach Byrd. On January 23, 2012, Coach Byrd made a decision that would change the season for the Bruins. Starting Blake Jenkins against ETSU that night to defend 6-6 senior guard Adam Sollazzo, the Bruins had a new life injected into the team. Winning 14 straight, it is hard to over emphasize the way the team has responded to the injection of Jenkins’ play (You can read our breakdown on “The Blake Jenkins Effect” here).
A lot has happened since ETSU that January night for Belmont. The Bruins are now ranked in the top offensively in the nation, Ken Pomeroy has Belmont ranked 25th overall, and Mid-Major Top 25 has Belmont ranked 15th. The Bruins go into the Madness with one of the top winning streaks in the NCAA and have an awful lot of coaches hoping the Selection Committee doesn’t choose that music school from Nashville come Sunday.
Seeding
Belmont received the highest seed in their history last year at 13, and faced a number 4 Wisconsin team that many members of the sports media picked to be upset by the 30-4 Bruins. But the Badgers were too much under the basket for the Bruins, and our 3-point shooting just wasn’t working. The Bruins’ tournament dreams were crushed under a score of 72-58. Badger Coach Bo Ryan’s mixture of stalwart big men and tempo change, moved the game from Belmont’s usual high level of possessions to a creeping slow pace.
What seed will Belmont receive this year? That is a story that will have to wait for Sunday to break, but we can speculate. Many of the “experts” have Belmont at a 14 seed this year. As of right now, CBS has us playing number 3 seed Michigan at the Columbus, Ohio tournament site. Other 3 seeds are Baylor, Georgetown, and Marquette.
The Byrd Cage will have you covered on all previews as the week progresses. Be sure to follow us on twitter via @BelmontByrdCage and “Like” us on Facebook for all your Belmont basketball needs.
If you watched tonight’s semi-final, you know that you really watched two games; the first half, and the second half.
In a disturbingly cold defensive effort by the Bruins in the first half and an on fire Adam Sollazo, Belmont gave 8 easy points to him in the lane, and responded by shooting a measly 8-22. The head hangs were all around the blue and white jerseys, after being pummeled inside time and time again. Out-rebounded 38-28, the Bruins walked to the locker room in silence and the Bruin faithful nervously shuffled in the seats.
But the second half was a different story. The Bruins came out on fire with an 18-4 run, silencing not only Sollazo’s inside game, but defending the perimeter with pressure and intensity. And in what might be the major story here, Trevor Noack and Reece Chamberlain both made key three point shots in critical times of the game, showing confidence in their playing time and tough defensive resolve.
With under 10 minutes left, some costly turnovers brought the game from a 12 point lead by the Bruins to within 6. It was a back-and-forth for here on out. In an impressive feat of speed and agility,Kerron stole an ETSU inbound, but his pass to Ian Clark ended up a missed three opportunity. In the customary ETSU-Belmont tournament fever, the game was a nail-biter until the end. ETSU brought it to 5 points with 30 seconds left, but the Bruins’ second half start was too much for an energized and very motivated Buccaneer team that was eventually worn down by a second-half motivated Rick Byrd team.
Ian Clark led the Bruins in points with 19, showing the abdominal injury was nothing worse than what Coach Byrd let on. Our big men scored 9 points with 10 rebounds combined, and Kerron also put up 12. All in all, it was the classic nail-biter. The Bruins did enough to get the win with some huge offensive spurts, but also showed they could come out flat at the beginning. Belmont will face either Mercer or Florida Gulf Coast tomorrow and will do well to remember what can happen if they think March Madness is a given.
The Championship game starts tomorrow at 7 p.m. ET.
You may have seen this guy’s awful dunk on the Byrd Cage Facebook page or even here. I guess it doesn’t even count as a dunk, because it didn’t go in, but defining Jordan Burgason on that one clip alone is simply not fair, I hate to say.
Now understand this, I hate Lipscomb. As far as journalistic integrity goes, I post the truth- but you need to understand that the truth is going to be a bit biased here. This fact is unavoidable. I love the Bruins and I hate the Bisons.
All that being said, Jordan Burgason needs to be talked about. He is currently ranked fourth in the entire NCAA in 3-Point Field Goal % Per Game. He also averages 16.9 points per game.
So, it isn’t like he is just playing a few minutes and shoots a few threes. The guy is clutch, and the fact that we held to him four attempts (making two) is an admirable goal in and of itself.
So what went wrong last time?
PART ONE: LOSING AT HOME
Belmont’s defense allowed double-digit points from every starter and one bench player against Lipscomb on January 6 putting together a total of 85 points against us in total. We have only allowed three other teams to score 80 points or more against us this year, and those teams were; Memphis, MTSU, and Marshall. We even kept Duke below 80.
So what was the deal with Lipscomb? That always seems to be the question. Drew Hanlen, in our exclusive Byrd Cage interview, even said the same thing- and he didn’t have an answer. But to not look at last game as two separate halves drastically changes the story.
In the first half, Belmont and Lipscomb were evenly matched. Ian Clark had 14 by halftime, Drew Hanlen and Clark were a combined 6-9 from the three, and our bench even had five steals. We walked into the locker room at half-time up, 39-36, feeling hopeful about the outcome of the game. But things were going in for Lipscomb as well. Shooting over 50%, the Bisons obviously didn’t feel too bad about their position coming back out.
This is where things changed.
J.J. Mann made 1 out of 7 three-pointers. Kerron missed all four of his three-point attempts. In the second half we shot 5-19 at the 3 point arc. A miserable 26.3%. Of course they out-rebounded us in the second half. Our post players scored 7 total, with only 6 total rebounds.
We fell apart. They made 15 of 16 free throws.
I felt sick.
Lipscomb took the game 85-74 and proceeded to stand in the middle of our court in a huddle after the game.
“Get off the floor!” some yelled. ”Isn’t it curfew?” others screamed. Others stood silently, holding up 4 fingers. You may have won the battle, but we always win the war Bruin fans seemed to pronounce without words.
Defeat at home, in the worst way.
But now it is February, after-all, the Bruins favorite time of the year.
Tonight we will come in swinging.
PART TWO: THE THREE PART COMBO FOR WINNING AT ALLEN ARENA
1. Blake Jenkins. Blake has steadily risen to the top of the Bruins lineup, proving he can score below and stand tall as a strong arm defender in both the passing and shooting lanes. Jenkins’ success tonight will be a deciding factor in tonight’s game.
2. Controlling the ball. Drew Hanlen leads the tempo of the game in explosive bursts. His expert footwork, skilled ball-handling, speed, and minimal turnovers give Belmont the edge in the A-Sun when it comes to controlling games. But I would like to see what the Bruins can look like as a controlled, composed, and in-charge squad at the end of games. I haven’t seen that this year. Hanlen’s last minute lob down the court at the end of their last game against UNF gave Hanlen an ear-full from Coach Byrd when we were up and needed to control the clock. We’ll need to be focused down to the last-minute of tonight’s game with a quiet confidence to win at Allen Arena.
3. Shutting Down Jordan Burgason. The man has averaged 21.5 points a game since the first meeting with Belmont. He is, frankly stated, on fire and this must be squelched. While their team has only gone .500 since our last meeting, their inconsistency as a team cannot be counted upon at Allen Arena tonight. Hands must be in Burgason’s face during every shot attempt. An open Burgason equals a losing Belmont squad.
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Now, if you will, a moment of silence for the last A-Sun conference rivalry game between these historic squads.
Tip-Off is at Allen Arena tonight at 6. Tickets may still be available here
-Brett McReynolds
Drew Hanlen joined the Byrd Cage earlier today for an interview. He was asked about the Lipscomb rivalry, the team’s expectations, and his friendship with Vanderbilt’s John Jenkins. Read below for the full interview.
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Brett McReynolds: You’ve been Academic All Conference every year, you ranked 6th in the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio last year, and you’ve averaged double-digit points a game while leading your team to a successful season thus far. What does a regular day in the life of Drew Hanlen look like?
Drew Hanlen: You know it really depends on the day, but, usually I wake up, attend classes and we pack our mornings full of classes because we have afternoon practice and we’ll go in, do 30-45 minute weight training session. This includes, not only weight-lifting, but stretching and agility and kind of making sure our bodies are staying healthy. After that, we’ll go through an hour and a half practice. It is really critical we give our bodies a break, so, as we go further into the season, practices get shorter and more strategic- instead of just, you know, wear and tear on the body. I’ll have Tuesday and Thursday night classes, but after that we normally just get together as a team, you know, go to a movie, or just hanging out and watching NBA games all night.
BM: You are majoring in Entrepreneurship and you’re finishing up your last year at Belmont. What is next?
DH: I actually currently own a basketball training company, so i’ll continue doing that… i’ll travel around the country and host camps and clinics, as well as- right now I work with a couple NBA guys and other college basketball players and I do strategic consulting, breaking down their video and also doing training with them during the off-seasons.
BM: Coach Rick Byrd has been praised multiple times by top coaches in the NCAA like Duke’s Coach K and Vanderbilt’s Coach Stallings, what has it been like for you playing under Coach Byrd?
DH: It’s been a great experience. You know, when I came into Belmont I knew that he obviously had tons of accolades as far as wins under his belt, and he just came off three straight NCAA tournament appearances, but the biggest thing i’m going to get from Coach Byrd is the stuff I get off the court. Alot of coaches teach basketball, but he teaches life lessons through basketball. Something really special. I think he feels like we are more than basketball players to him, we feel like we a part of his family. He makes sure to invite us over on our birthdays, or make sure to let us know when we do something well off the court, in the classroom, or in the community. I just feel like there is so many different lessons- and just the respect he gives us is something that is going to last a lot longer than anything he has ever taught me on the court.
BM: What is Coach Byrd like at half-time of a close game in the locker room? If you don’t mind, take us there.
DH: It depends on how we are playing. Coach Byrd does a really good job not worrying about the score, but worrying about the process. And so, you know, a couple nights ago we were in a tie ballgame and we were not playing well. So he focused on us getting better and being the best team we can become by the tournament down in Macon. But if we are playing well, and shots just aren’t falling- He focuses on the importance of letting those misses go, focuses on the makes and keep doing what we’re doing… Most of the time he tries to point where we can get better, what we are doing well, and what we need to do coming out in the second half- then hopefully we can get the win.
BM: At the beginning of the year, some previews of Belmont’s team had them as high as an 11 seed in the NCAA Tournament. If you look now, some are saying it is Mercer’s A-Sun tournament to lose. What do you say to those critics who might say this team isn’t playing to earlier expectations?
DH: You know, I think that is partly true. I think that we dropped a couple games that we shouldn’t have dropped, but one thing that Coach Byrd has done a good job is we are the same team that we were when everyone was projecting us an 11 seed, we were the same team that we were when we lost to Duke by 1 point, you know what I mean? So, we had better wins this year than we did last year. We had the win at Middle Tennessee, I don’t know what their record is now- but with three losses they are one of the better teams in the country. A win against Marshall. I mean, those are two quality wins that we didn’t have last year. So our strength of schedule is up. And the other thing is, Mercer has been playing great- and not to take anything from them, but we have the same team we had last year, and we have the capability of being the best team in the Atlantic Sun- we just gotta keep getting better, and hopefully put it all together and be more consistent by the time the tournament comes. And we feel like, if we play our best, we are the team to beat.
BM: Blake Jenkins has started the past three games. What can you say about him as a player?
DH: Oh man. Blake is our X-Factor right now. He has been playing great, we knew he had it in him, and uh- I don’t know what it took to get it out of him but, you know what- it started with his defense. That is the reason he got in the game. He is a longer, taller defender that can guard almost any position out on the floor. So we used him to guard [Adam] Sollazzo from ETSU. And he has really fed off his defensive productivity and that has led to great offensive productivity. You know, he is a guy who is really athletic and obviously gives us easy baskets below the rim. Or he is just floating around and finding the right spots, and when we get it to him, he is either dunking it or finishing it home. He is definitely that X-Factor, if he can keep playing the way he has been playing, he is going to help us go deep in March.
BM: How do you think Belmont’s move to the OVC will affect the program?
DH: You know, I think it is going to be good for them. Obviously, it won’t be as exciting for the players not traveling to Jacksonville and changing that out with some of the cities that the OVC has to offer, but the reality is when we go on these trips you don’t get to do much anyway. You are in the hotel and then you play games. I think it will add to the experience as a Belmont basketball player because I think the games are closer which means fans can actually travel. I think that other fans will come to Belmont, watch those games, which will increase attendance and ultimately it will create better rivalries. With the OVC everything is close and everyone is close where these games play. You know, if we played Murray State this year it would be sold out in both places. They always typically have one good team, or multiple teams at the top of the league. I think it is going to add to the overall, I guess, attraction of Belmont basketball.
BM: Be honest. What is the first thing the comes to mind when I say this next word; BISONS.
DH: Um. Well, really the first thing is, “I can’t believe we blew it.” You know, the last few times we played them (and its more of a phrase than a word) I feel like we have lost the game instead of them winning the game. I think it was a 16 or 18 point lead last year at Lipscomb that we blew. And it was an 11 point lead, I think, this year. I don’t really know what happened in those games. I always get asked that question, “What happened in those games?” But we will need to do a better job of finishing out games in general. We have lost a couple this year where we have blown leads… We are going to make sure that, if we get that lead, we are going to keep it on Friday.
BM: Drew, one time I was on Lipscomb’s campus at 3 a.m. (I won’t tell you why), and they had speakers all over campus blasting Contemporary Christian Music. What is up with that?
DH: You know what, I have no idea. You know, obviously Lipscomb has their own ways and we have alot of different things than them. But I will respectfully just say that [Laughter], its their choice and they do things differently than Belmont in that way. And i’m just glad i’m on this end of the Boulevard and not that end.
BM: I noticed Vanderbilt Coach Stallings’ John Jenkins and Festus Ezeli sitting in the stands of a Belmont game. Are they trying to steal your moves? I think there is a friendship there, how did that start?
DH: Well I actually am John’s trainer- I train John. I mentioned a little bit earlier about my company, and he is actually one of my clients. So it started out as me working him out in the offseasons and just getting him better, and it transitioned into me meeting alot of the guys from Vanderbilt. And i’ve probably worked out almost every player on Vanderbilt’s team. John and I are best friends, you know, I work him out probably 3-4 times a week, and we go through video all the time. But, we also go to the movies all the time. We go to Chili’s probably every night. John’s a big Chili’s fan. So we go to Chili’s all the time and watch NBA games. But you know, John’s one of my best friends and Festus and all those other Vanderbilt guys go to the games because i’ve worked them all out and also developed friendships with all of them.
BM: Thanks for taking time out of your day to talk to the Byrd Cage. Anything you’d like to say to the fans?
DH: Just hope everyone can continue supporting us, and following us, and we won’t disappoint. We will be better team than we have been all season, and come March our goal is to make it to the NCAA tournament and do damage like we wanted to last year.
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