Steve Alford's Pierre Pierce Statement: The Ultimate Spin Move

New UCLA coach Steve Alford and his athletic director, Dan Guerrero, released a statement today designed to finally stop people nagging him about former Iowa star Pierre Pierce, whose repeated legal issues and multiple cases of sexual assault were a major black eye to the Hawkeye program during his abbreviated career.

Unfortunately for Alford, all the statement has done is fan the flames higher, serving as a spin move more flamboyant than anything the former Indiana Hoosier legend ever uncorked on the court.

College Basketball 2012-13 Review: The Nation's Top 10 First-Year Coaching Jobs

Last May, I ran down a ranking of every college basketball coaching change made official at the time. A few more trickled in, including a Hall of Famer bailing to elevate his former point guard at UConn.

With the season now complete, which guys performed the best in their new jobs? Once again, to clarify, we're talking about coaches in their first year at a new school, not necessarily men in their first seasons ever as head coaches.

Some of these coaches may become hot names a la new USC coach Andy Enfield if lightning strikes right next season. Some may be out of jobs this time next year. For now, though, these 10 men did great work following a change of scenery.

Conference Calling: Players to Watch for Championship Week (Part III)

Yeah, it's Tuesday, not Saturday. I get it. Anyway, let's get into the final batch of conference tournaments and the players that might make some impact therein.

More after the jump.

Conference Calling: Players to Watch for Championship Week (Part II)

Tuesday, we hit up the first batch of conference championships to point out some players who would make an impact. Some are still alive, some have already been sent home. (Looking at you, Alex Francis, although major props to first-year Mt. St. Mary's head coach Jamion Christian. Dude's done some good and fast work.)

Today, 10 more events, and then we hit up the rest tomorrow.

Read on after the jump.

Conference Calling: Players to Watch for Championship Week (Part I)

Conference tournaments begin in the next few hours, with the Big South tipping off near Myrtle Beach and the Horizon League playing its openers tonight.

It's about to get real, kids.

In honor of those events starting, let's examine each league and find one player who can determine his team's fate as relates to an automatic NCAA Tournament bid. We'll hit the first 10 today, the next 10 on Thursday and finish up on Saturday, by which point most brackets should be close to set.

Tournaments will be presented in the order they begin after the jump.

Diamonds in the Dirt: 10 More of College Basketball's Best Players on Losing Teams

Over at Bleacher Report, I've produced a list of the 10 best players in America that are condemned to toil in silence because their teams have records at or below .500 this year.

For those who might be a little indignant that their favorite team's not represented, try this supplemental list on for size. Consider them Nos. 11-20.

Check out the next 10 hidden gems after the jump.

Back Iron Bracketometry Feb. 9: Signs of Life for Kentucky, Illinois

I was once a Professor of Sports Philosophy on 4 Quarters Radio (still in occasional podcast form) before I got a doctorate in Bracketometry. As a fully accredited doctor, I'm qualified to pronounce college basketball teams' tournament hopes alive and dead.

There are a few schools who looked to be on life support a couple of weeks ago that are recovering nicely. Conversely, we've got some patients who are deteriorating before our eyes.

Read on to see if any of your loved ones are approaching terminal status.

Back Iron Bracketometry: Could Kentucky vs. Bucknell Happen?

In the second week of the expanded Back Iron Index, we see that the struggles of teams near the top of the human polls can certainly have some bearing on the computer ranks as well.

While we may not have much use for the SEC as a whole, only myopic jingos can deny that Florida has been playing some strong basketball. That solid ball has earned them five number-one rankings among the 10 BII metrics, good for the new No. 1 overall seed.

Don't expect Duke to go away quietly, though. The Blue Devils are still the only team ranked in the top five all the way across the BII board. Ryan Kelly is still conspicuous by his absence, but freshman Amile Jefferson is getting his legs under him in ACC play. Jefferson has potted averages of 10 points, seven rebounds and almost two blocks per game over his last four. Now, perhaps he can work on learning not to foul everyone he sees (15 fouls in those four games).

At the other end of the Bracketometry projections, Big Blue Nation now needs to go into a Big Red Panic. More explanation after the jump.

NEW and IMPROVED Back Iron Bracketometry: January 22

Those of you who have read in the past about the Back Iron Index (both of you) have seen brackets pitting the real 68 best college basketball teams in the nation. But, it was an incomplete sample.

Where were all the teams that might be on the bubble? Was I missing someone? How many more teams would make up the NIT pool, and possibly rank ahead of the ones that I was already listing?

From here on, the arduous process of ranking the best teams in America will include nearly ALL of the teams in America. Every team in every conference with an NCAA automatic bid has been ranked in the 10 BII metrics (including our newcomer TeamRankings.com, which replaces the pointless Bilas Index).

This does leave out the two independents and the last handful of teams left in the Great West, who'll just about all join the WAC soon enough anyway. Still, anyone want to take odds that a selection committee member will throw NJIT out there for an at-large bid? ("Hey, they nearly beat Providence." "Shut up and go pay the pizza guy.")

Yeah, me neither.

Read on to see what other improvements have been made to the Index.

Back Iron Tournament: The REAL 68 Best Teams in America

It used to be called the Bilas Invitational, but the Back Iron Tournament (BIT for short) has evolved to a point where even Bilas's epic swag cannot contain it.


Suffice it to say that this is a tournament that will never happen, but certainly should. It lacks the democratic appeal of the everyone-has-a-vote NCAA tournament, preferring a more résumé-based approach.

The only way to get into the BIT is to earn it by being one of America's 68 best teams.

For those who are unfamiliar, check the explanation after the jump. For those who are familiar, the parameters have changed, so they need to check after the jump, too.