Competition for player of year narrows to Robinson, Davis

The opinions on college basketball's 2011-12 national player of the year seem to be narrowing toward two players - junior forward Thomas Robinson of Kansas and freshman center Anthony Davis of Kentucky. The 6-foot-9 Robinson is second in the nation in rebounding (11.9 per game) and in double-doubles (19) while averaging 17.4 points. The 6-10 Davis is not a pure scorer but gets notice with his defense, leading the nation in blocked shots (4.8). He also averages 9.8 rebounds and shoots 64.6 percent from the field. Other contenders for the honor are Jared Sullinger of Ohio State, Doug McDermott of Creighton, and Draymond Green of Michigan State.

Robinson and Davis are considered surefire lottery picks when the NBA draft comes up in June. But ESPN.com reports that NBA general managers aren't as excited about this draft as they were after the 2011 edition, when a lot of top talent decided to stay in school for another year because of the NBA lockout. The website said Robinson, Tyler Zeller of North Carolina, and Damain Lillard of Weber State are the only players who returned that have lived up to expectations. Out of all the freshmen who were expected to be outstanding pros, the scouts say the best are Davis, teammate Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Somerdale, N.J.), and Cody Zeller of Indiana.

One of our favorites for POY group, and certainly the best player in the Big East, is Kevin Jones, a 6-7 forward from West Virginia. Jones leads the league in scoring (20.3 points) and rebounding (11.2), putting him in the top 15 in the nation in both categories. "He's a tremendous player, very efficient around the basket," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "He's become a good jump shooter, and he plays every single play in the game." Jones may not get the recognition he deserves playing for a team that has sputtered because of his youth, but he's the main reason the Mountaineers may gain an NCAA bid.

Entering the next-to-last weekend of the regular season, we find a number of teams teetering on the bubble hoping to steady themselves by the time Selection Sunday rolls around in 15 days. Cincinnati and Seton Hall helped their cause this week by beating ranked teams. Miami and Minnesota frittered their latest chance away. St. Joseph's, while it may have hurt itself by losing at home to so-so Richmond the other night, can get back in the bubble discussion with a win Saturday night over Temple. And we're all waiting to see if a CAA team such as Drexel can eventually force the selection committee into taking a member as an at-large.

Both sides have plenty of motivation when No. 3 Missouri and fourth-ranked Kansas meet for the last time in the regular season as members of the Big 12. The Tigers, heading to the SEC next season, would like to finish off a season sweep of the Jayhawks and remain alive for the conference title. Kansas, meanwhile, needs a win to clinch at least a share of the championship, which would be its eighth in a row and 12th in the 16-year history of the Big 12. Missouri gave the Jayhawks that opening by losing at home to Kansas State on Tuesday night.

The Missouri-Kansas game reminds us about how traditional rivalries throughout the country are fading because of conference expansion and changes. It's true in the ACC, which will be made up of 14 teams once Syracuse and Pittsburgh join. That means most old rivalries of the original members will be reduced to home and away only once every three years. Who knows how the Big East will figure out scheduling once its new all-sports members - Houston, SMU, Central Florida, and Memphis - get on board. "Inasmuch as we want to respect and keep the old traditions, new ones are going to be established," Georgetown coach John Thompson said. "How that plays out, we'll see."

Binghamton happily saw the zero from the left-hand column of its record removed Tuesday night with a 57-53 home win over Vermont. The Bearcats snapped a 27-game losing streak, 26 of those defeats coming this season. "To see the happiness on [the players'] faces was uplifting," said Binghamton coach Mark Macon, a former Temple star. The celebration, however, was short-lived as the Bearcats lost Thursday night to Albany, and they need a win in Saturday's regular-season finale at New Hampshire to avoid setting an America East record for most losses in a season.

Pat Knight, son of fiery Hall of Fame coach Bob Knight, has had a decent season in his first year as head coach at Lamar. But a postgame rant against his seniors Thursday night following his team's home loss to Stephen F. Austin showed he's not enjoying himself much. "It's a mentality," he said. "We've had problems with these guys off the court, on the court, classroom, drugs, being late for stuff." He called the seniors "the worst group . . . right now, that I've ever been associated with. Their mentality is awful. Their attitude is awful." The Cardinals, of Beaumont, Texas, are 17-11, 8-5 in the Southland Conference.

Point guard Kevin Burwell, a 5-10 senior from Imhotep High, has led Mississippi Valley State on an unbeaten run through the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Burwell is second in the league in assists (4.4), third in free-throw percentage (80.6) and averages 8.4 points for the Delta Devils, who are 15-0 in the SWAC after going 1-11 in nonconference play against the likes of North Carolina, Notre Dame, and Wisconsin, all on the road. MVSU is coached by Sean Woods, the former Kentucky star who hit what could have been the winning shot of the 1992 NCAA East Regional final at the Spectrum had Christian Laettner not nailed a jumper at the buzzer to give Duke the win in what remains the greatest college game ever played.

North Carolina point guard Kendall Marshall put up some great numbers, and we're not just talking about his 13-assist, zero-turnover performance in Tuesday night's win over North Carolina State. Marshall needed only eight shots to score 22 points, going 7 of 8 overall from the field and 4 of 5 from three-point territory. Marshall is just 10 assists off the Tar Heels' single-season record held by Ed Cota.

1. Kentucky 27-1

2. Syracuse 28-1

3. Duke 24-4

4. Michigan State 23-5

5. North Carolina 24-4

6. Missouri 25-3

7. Kansas 23-5

8. Ohio State 23-5

9. Marquette 23-5

10. Florida 22-6

         - Joe JulianoEndText

Top Choice

Missouri at Kansas, Saturday at 4 p.m., CBS3: The intensity of the final regular-season meeting between these teams as Big 12 archrivals will be searing, and the talent - Kansas' Thomas Robinson and Tyshawn Taylor, Missouri's Marcus Denmon and Kim English - will shine.

Starting Five

North Carolina at Virginia, Saturday at 4 p.m., ESPN: The Tar Heels are gunning for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and need to keep winning.

Syracuse at Connecticut, Saturday at 9 p.m., ESPN: The Huskies have been losing their grasp on a surefire NCAA berth, but a victory over the No. 2 Orange would help their cause.

Wisconsin at Ohio State, Sunday at 4 p.m., CBS3: The Buckeyes want to keep the heat on Michigan State at the top of the Big Ten, while the Badgers are trying to secure a first-round tournament bye.

Notre Dame at Georgetown, Monday at 7 p.m., ESPN: The Hoyas are in a three-team battle to grab the final two-round bye in the Big East tournament.

Florida at Vanderbilt, Tuesday at 9 p.m., ESPN: These teams are battling for the No. 2 seed behind Kentucky in the SEC tournament and love to shoot the three-pointer.

- Joe Juliano

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