MIDWEEK RECAP

I came across a retweet this afternoon from a KU fan rejoicing in the “fact” that KU has a two game lead over Mizzou.

Were that this were true in the REAL world. In the REAL world, the Jayhawks are in first place, but by a tenuous half game margin over its arch-rival for more than 100 years and for a few more weeks. This due to the fact that Mizzou has Ames, Waco, Manhattan, and–yes–Stillwater in its past. All places the Jayhawks have yet to visit.

Meanwhile, KU has only Norman, Austin, and Lubbock in its rear view mirror.

Of course, the Jayhawks, as competitors, would prefer zero losses and a daunting schedule to two losses and a softer road out ahead. But a loss in Ames this Saturday, and all bets are off. We will then have a flat-footed tie atop the REAL Standings.

in the meantime, KU enjoys a 1/2 game lead in the REAL Big 12 Standings, thanks to 49 points from two Okie St freshmen in the Cowboys’ 79-72 victory over Mizzou. And Mizzou can take scant comfort in the fact that this was a Road loss, because the team that wins the Big 12 title would be expected to beat Okie St wherever the two teams play.

The saving grace for Mizzou is that Okie St has some impressive young talent and a senior later in Page Keeton, the late Dean at the University of Texas School of Law. All right, this guy only seems that old.

At any rate, if Okie St has come of age, that game could be a test for the Hawks.

Aside from the Stillwater Surprise, the other Midweek contests went as projected: KU outlasted A&M; Texas took down Iowa St in Austin, in the game that nobody saw, either in person or on TV; Baylor downed OU in Norman; and K-State happily accepted its working-bye in Lubbock.

                       
                                                          THE TIERS

           
Tier 1:  Baylor, KU, Mizzou
 
Tier 2:  Iowa St, K-State, Texas
 
Tier 3:  Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M 

Tier 4: Texas Tech

 
                             REAL BIG 12 STANDINGS

1-26-12
 
     
1.     15-3

KU      (7-0)                Projected L’s:  at Mizzou, at Baylor
                                   At Risk games: at ISU, at K-State

2. 14.5-3.5

Mizzou (5-2)              Projected L’s:  at KU
                                 At Risk games: at UT

3. 14-4

Baylor (5-2)               Projected L’s:  at Mizzou
                                  At Risk games: at UT, at ISU

 
4. 10-8

K-State (4-3)              Projected L’s:  at ISU, at Texas, at Baylor, at Mizzou
                                   At Risk games: vs. KU, at A&M

Iowa St (4-3)              Projected L’s:  at Baylor, at K-State, at Mizzou

                                 At Risk games: vs. KU, at OU, at Okie St, vs. Baylor

6. 9.5-8.5

Texas (3-4)                Projected L’s:  at Baylor, at KU
At Risk games: vs. Mizzou, at A&M, at OU, at Okie St, vs. Baylor

7. 5.5-12.5

Oklahoma (2-5)        Projected L’s:  at K-State, at
KU, vs. Mizzou, at ISU, at Baylor, at Texas

At Risk games: vs. ISU, at Tech, vs. Texas

Okie St (3-4)              Projected L’s: at A&M,  vs. Baylor, at KU,
at Mizzou, at OU, vs. KU, at K-State

                                   At Risk games: vs. ISU, at Tech, vs. Texas

 
9. 4.5-13.5
                                  
Texas A&M (2-5)      Projected L’s:  vs. Baylor, at K-State, at ISU, vs.
Mizzou, vs. KU, at Okie St, at OU

                                   At Risk games: vs. UT, at Tech, vs. K-State

10  1.5-16.5
 
Texas Tech (0-7)         Projected L’s:  at Mizzou, at Texas, at K-State, at KU,
At ISU, vs. Texas, at Baylor, vs. Mizzou
                               
                                    At Risk games: vs. Okie St, vs. OU, vs. A&M
 
 
                                               ON THE TUBE

SATURDAY
 
           Texas at Baylor****: (Noon—CBS) (Projected W: Baylor)

Texas is desperate for a nice Road W to strengthen its case for inclusion in the Big Dance. The Fighting Calipari-Lites, however, are despert themselves; they can ill afford another loss at Home. Well worth watching. For an hour, anyway.

           Texas Tech at Mizzou *: (12:30p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: Mizzou)

Projected W for Mizzou? Don’t we have something stronger than “Projected”? “Guaranteed” might not be too strong in this case.

KU at Iowa St****: (1:00p.m.—ESPN) (At-risk Game)

KU’s first opportunity to cut into Mizzou’s “venues already won in” advantage. Now if Royce White will just cooperate by getting into foul trouble and playing only 27 minutes

           Oklahoma St at A&M***: (3:00p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: A&M)

Okie St’s opportunity to validate its W over Mizzou.
 
Oklahoma at K-State***: (6:00p.m.—Fox Sports) (Projected W: K-State)

Lonnie tries to go Home again.

 –Mark
           

Just Awesome. Share this thing.

WEEKEND RECAP

Nick Wright, a sports talk guy in Kansas City, tweeted, in connectio with the Mizzou/Baylor game: “Is Baylor overrated? At 3, sure they are. But they’re legit top 10 team. And #Mizzou is spanking them in their building.”

Not living in K.C., I don’t get much of a chance to listen to Mr. Wright, but I hope his forte is football, because Baylor is not a legit top 10 team. Emphasis on “team.”

Yes, they have Top 10 talent. Maybe Top 3 talent along with Kentucky and North Carolina. Almost certainly Top 5.

But the Bears are not a legit Top 10 “team,” because they are not well coached. Which is part of what makes a team. Well, no more than an AAU team.

Okay, that’s unfair. Scott Drew is better than an AAU coach. He is to basketball what Turner Gill is to football.

Well, okay, that’s unfair, too. Scott is not the worst coach in the history of major college basketball.

But he is not a good coach by any means. He is not a developer of talent. He is not a builder of teams. His team is deficient in three areas (at least) attributable in part to coaching:

1. Defense;
2. Rebounding; and
3. Competing.

Saturday,afternoon, Baylor, vastly superior in size and athleticism, was dominated on the boards to the tune of 21-11. It was so bad that the official scorer could have reasonably recorded ever Mizzou missed shot as an assist.

If Mr. Wright intended to say that Baylor is a Top 10 team in the Big 12, he’s got a point. Or in the Top 10 of bad defenses. Or the Top 10 of overrated teams. But not Top 10 in this country.

At least not in late January 2012. Not until they learn to play hard-nosed Defense, instead of just reacting (generally too late) to what their opponents are doing. And learn to box out.

But who is going to teach them these skills? Dave Bliss is not walking through that door. Bobby Knight is not walking through that door. Kim Mulkey is not walking through that door.

Oh, wait. She is.

In short, this is not the great team it has been portrayed to be because of its talent and 17-0 start to the season. KU’s rout of the Bears in Lawrence and Mizzou’s victory in Waco should be assessed accordingly.

Nevertheless, Mizzou’s win in Waco was huge in the REAL Standings. It moved them to the Top of the REAL Standings.

This is precisely the function of the REAL Standings. To look past the records in the newspaper and take into account the difficulty of each team’s remaining schedule.

KU has a one game lead over Mizzou in the newspaper standings, because Mizzou lost a game that KU has not yet played (K-State in Manhattan). However, Mizzou has two significant W’s that KU still has to attempt to grind out (at Iowa St and at Baylor), while the Jayhawks have but one important victory at a venue yet to be visited by Mizzou (UT in Austin).

In sum, Mizzou has a ½ game edge in the REAL Standings because:

○ Although having a loss, it has only one remaining projected Loss (at KU) and one at-risk game (at UT) remaining on its schedule; while
○ KU has two remaining projected losses (at Mizzou and at Baylor, and two at-risk games (at ISU and at K-State)

Had the Jayhawks not eked out a victory themselves in Austin, this would have been one of the most meaningful days in Big 12 basketball history. Not only would Mizzou have put the onus on the Hawks to win in Waco, but would have had a virtual free pass in Austin. The Big 12 Title would have been Mizzou’s to lose in its final attempt to claim a championship in any sport that matters.

But it didn’t happen any other way than in victory for both teams. As they say in golf, “It’s not how, it’s how many.”

How many is that Mizzou has one loss and two lose-able games remaining, while KU has no losses and four loseable games remaining, As a result, the two ancient legendary rivals have earned an early degree of separation from the rest of the field.

Not to say that the game can’t or won’t be decided by a loss at Oklahoma or Okie St (or even A&M), or by one at Home. But that’s not what is expected of your ultimate Big 12 champ. Nor is it the way to bet.

Only one game Saturday did not contain REAL Standings significance: A&M’s Home Court victory, as projected, over Oklahoma. K-State picked up ground by winning its at-risk game at Okie St, as did Iowa St by beating lowly Tech handily in Lubbock.

THE TIERS

One third of the way into the season, every team in the Big 12 has established its competitive level, subject to change as the season progresses.

The most likely teams to make substantial improvement are Iowa St (which makes Mizzou’s early win in Ames particularly noteworthy) and Texas (good for KU for the same reason), because of the number of newcomers on those teams who are starting to hit their stride and fully gel with their teammates.

The highest ceiling, despite my comments above, still belongs to Baylor, because of their sheer size, athleticism, and shooting prowess. I have seen teams come together in spite of their coaches once they get tired enough of losing. Not a REAL likely development considering Baylor’s lack of upper class leadership, but possible.

The other team that appears to yet have room to grow—and with their schedule, they will need it—is KU. The Jayhawks start four juniors and a senior, but only one started regularly prior to this season (Taylor), and only two played serious minutes with games on the line (Taylor and Robinson). More importantly, all five starters are still learning to recognize and make the smart play all the time.

With six down and twelve to go, here are the tiers the teams have played themselves into:

Tier 1: Baylor, KU, Mizzou

Tier 2: Iowa St, K-State, Texas

Tier 3: Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M

Tier 4: Texas Tech

REAL BIG 12 STANDINGS

1-22-12

1. 15.5-2.5

Mizzou (5-1) Projected L’s: at KU
At Risk games: at UT

2. 15-3

KU (6-0) Projected L’s: at Mizzou, at Baylor
At Risk games: at ISU, at K-State

3. 14-4

Baylor (4-2) Projected L’s: at Mizzou
At Risk games: at UT, at ISU

4. 10-8

K-State (3-3) Projected L’s: at ISU, at Texas, at Baylor, at Mizzou
At Risk games: vs. KU, at A&M

Iowa St (4-2) Projected L’s: at Texas, at Baylor, at K-State, at Mizzou
At Risk games: vs. KU, at OU, at Okie St, vs. Baylor

6. 9.5-8.5

Texas (2-4) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at KU
At Risk games: vs. Mizzou, at A&M, at OU, at Okie St, vs. Baylor

7. 5.5-12.5

Oklahoma (2-4) Projected L’s: vs. Baylor, at K-State, at
KU, vs. Mizzou, at ISU, at Baylor, at Texas
At Risk games: vs. ISU, at Tech, vs. Texas

8. 4.5-13.5

Okie St (2-4) Projected L’s: vs. Mizzou, at A&M, vs. Baylor, at KU,
at Mizzou, at OU, vs. KU, at K-State
At Risk games: vs. ISU, at Tech, vs. Texas

Texas A&M (2-4) Projected L’s: at KU, vs. Baylor, at K-State, at ISU, vs.
Mizzou, vs. KU, at Okie St, at OU
At Risk games: vs. UT, at Tech, vs. K-State

10 1.5-16.5

Texas Tech (0-6). Projected L’s: vs. K- State, at Mizzou, at Texas,
at K-State, at KU, at ISU, vs. Texas, at Baylor, vs. Mizzou
At Risk games: vs. Okie St, vs. OU, vs. A&M

ON THE TUBE

MONDAY

A&M at KU*1/2: (8:00p.m.—ESPN) (Projected W: KU)

Before the season, this looked like it would be more than a schedule filler.

TUESDAY

Baylor at OU***: (7:00p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: Baylor)

Not the ideal way to try to end a losing streak—Tech at Home would be better—but it’s what’s on the schedule. And it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Kruger could out-coach Drew badly enough at Home to make things uncomfortable for Baylor. If that happens, we have a two team race.

Iowa St at Texas****: (8:00p.m.—Long Freakin’ Horn Nework) (Projected W: Texas)

UT will be desperate coming off three consecutive losses. ISU has had an easy time of it thus far in the Lone Star State. Should be the most entertaining and interesting game of the Midweek Slate. But will it be enough to keep UT’s fans in the arena for forty minutes—unlike Saturday when they were filing out with 8.8.seconds remaining in a two point game with Thomas Robinson at the line?

WEDNESDAY

Mizzou at Okie St**: (6:30p.m.—ESPN2) (Projected W: Mizzou)

This is a “just in case” game—as in watch it just in case Mizzou decides to try winning just by showing up, or just in case Okie St does a complete 180 and plays as well Wednesday night as it played poorly Saturday.

K-State at Texas Tech**: (8:00p.m.—ESPNU) (Projected W: K-State)

Tom Penders tweeted recently that Tech has no Big 12 players. I wouldn’t go that far, and I think they will beat someone in Lubbock, but Lord have mercy on whoever it is. Did I mention that Baylor was lucky to get out of Tech alive?

–Mark

MIDWEEK RECAP

It is not that KU’s stomp of Baylor Monday night changed anything: it was a projected W, meaning that neither the Jayhawks nor the Fighting Calipari-Lites gained any ground in the REAL Standings–or lost any. Baylor, in fact, retains its half game edge over the Hawks and Mizzou. The importance of the game was that the status quo was not disturbed—as it would have been had Baylor walked out of Allen Fieldhouse still undefeated.

A Baylor W would have placed everyone else in the conference in dire straits. A win in Lawrence, and where do they lose? At least often enough to allow KU, Mizzou, or anyone else back into the race? With W’s in both Manhattan and Lawrence, the rest of the conference race would have approached being a foregone conclusion.

As it is, barring unlikely events, Baylor gets its chance to negate Monday’s loss on February 8, when it hosts the Jayhawks in Waco. One word of advice to the Bears, however: Defense. Look into it if you want a REAListic chance of avoiding the patented Jayhawk Sweep.

In a game between the teams ranked 21 and 26 by KenPom, K-state tried desperately to give Texas a post-holiday in Manhattan by missing six free throws in the final minute of a close game. Somehow, Texas avoided unwrapping that present and left Manhattan with its customary loss. It was even suggested in Tweetdom that, at this point, “K-State could beat Texas in a competition of who has the better Longhorn mascot.”

Both teams appeared ready, subjectively, for a demotion form the lofty heights of Tier One, to the less prestigious residence in Bubbledom. However, I will wait until the the third-way point of the season on Saturday before reassessing their quality. Especially since UT has done nothing objectively yet to justify its removal from Tier One. Losses at K-State and Mizzou–even Iowa St–are not necessarily fatal to a championship run. (Although relying too much on freshmen and not having a legitimate big man might be.)

In games which involved minimal sound and fury and also signified nothing, Mizzou defeated A&M in Columbia, and OU squeezed by Tech in Norman, both as projected. In a contest that contained a level of excitement, Hilton worked its magic as Iowa St erased a 66-60 deficit in the final two minutes to escape Okie St 71-68–as projected..

In short, zero change in the REAL Standings

THE TIERS

Pending Saturday’s games:

Tier 1: Baylor, KU, K-State, Mizzou, Texas

Tier 2: Iowa St, Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M

Tier 3: Texas Tech

REAL BIG 12 STANDINGS

1-19-12

1. 13-5

Baylor (4-1) Projected L’s: at Mizzou, at Texas
At Risk games: at OU, at A&M, at Okie St, at ISU

2. 12.5-5.5

KU (5-0) Projected L’s: at UT, at Mizzou, at Baylor, at K-State
At Risk games: at ISU, at A&M, at Okie St

Mizzou (4-1) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at Texas, at KU
At Risk games: at Okie St, at OU, at A&M

4. 11.5-6.5

Texas (2-3) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at KU
At Risk games: at A&M, at OU, at Okie St

5. 10.5-7.5

K-State (2-3) Projected L’s: at Texas, at Baylor, at Mizzou
At Risk games: at Okie St, at ISU, at A&M

6. 8-10

Iowa St (3-2) Projected L’s: at Texas, at OU, at Okie St,
at Baylor, at K-State, at Mizzou

At Risk games: at Tech, vs. KU, vs. K-State, vs.
Baylor

7. 7-11

Okie St (2-3) Projected L’s: at A&M, at KU,
at Mizzou, at OU, at K-State

At Risk games: vs. K-State, vs. Mizzou, at Tech, vs.
Baylor, vs. Texas, vs. KU

Oklahoma (2-3) Projected L’s: at A&M, at K-State, at
KU, at ISU, at Baylor, at Texas

At Risk games: vs. Baylor, vs. Mizzou,
at Tech, vs. Texas

9. 6-12

Texas A&M (1-4) Projected L’s: at KU, at K-
State, at ISU, at Okie St, at OU

At Risk games: vs.Baylor, vs. Texas, at Tech, vs. Mizzou,
vs. KU, vs. K-State

10 2-16

Texas Tech (0-5). Projected L’s: vs. K- State,
at Mizzou, at Texas, at K-State, at KU, at ISU, vs.
Texas, at Baylor, vs. Mizzou

At Risk games: vs. ISU, vs. Okie St, vs. OU, vs. A&M

ON THE TUBE

SATURDAY

K-State at Okie St**: (12:30p.m.—Big 12 Network) (At-Risk Game)
K-State has played three bad games in a row since taking out Mizzou at Home. They can’t afford another one. Going 0-2 in Oklahoma is not OK.

Mizzou at Baylor*****: (1:00p.m.—ESPN) (Projected W: Baylor)
Baylor assumes the position KU was in on Monday. Nothing to gain. Everything to lose. You would think that, with Baylor’s length, athleticism, and motivation, this would be a relatively easy game at Home. Not necessarily, if they give Mizzou’s offense as much space as they gave KU Monday. Still, one game where KU fans should pull for Scott Drew. A Mizzou win puts them in control of the REAL Standings and the conference race.

Oklahoma at A&M**: (3:00p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: A&M)
With all the talk about the strength of the Big 12 at the top, and even the middle, the fact that there are 2-4 teams that suck (depending on your personal definition of “suck”) is frequently overlooked.

KU at Texas****: (3:00p.m.—CBS) (Projected W: Texas)
UT”S opportunity to come of age and inject itself into the Big 12 race. If the Jayhawks come out flat, thinking they accomplished more than they did Monday, they could find themselves with a loss that will be difficult to make up.

Iowa St at Texas Tech***: (4:00p.m.—ESPN2) (At-risk game)
Tech is going to beat somebody in Lubbock. Iowa ST is the better team, but not so much better that it can just show up and count this one as a W.

–Mark

We are big technologists here at the Phog Blog, and using our awesome lip reading skills, plus NSA level recording devices concealed in secret locations throughout the Phog, we were able to pick up an under-the-breath comment from Scott Drew after shaking Bill Self’s hand. We’ve created a pictorial overview in lieu of the actual recording:

WEEKEND RECAP

The only game of consequence in the REAL Standings this weekend was K-State’s loss to Oklahoma in Norman. This was K-State’s second L of the week that will prove extremely difficult to make up. The conference champion is not likely to lose to Baylor at Home or to OU anywhere.

Not that K-State is a bad team. Their schedule caught up with them. After playing their first three games against the three best teams in the league, they were clearly spent emotionally and could not create any energy in front of a crowd that could not even properly be called a “crowd.” I have seen better turnout and more passion at Wal-Mart the morning after Thanksgiving. Well, I’ve heard of it.

Not to mention that OU was coldly efficient, focusing on mid-range jump shorts and seemingly making them all.

At any rate, K-State is not talented enough to go on the Road, sleepwalk for thirty minutes, and walk out with a W against a team that executes its game plan on that particular day. At least not anyplace not called Lubbock.

The Almost Game of the Week was, of course, in Lawrence. This game followed the same script as K-State/OU well into the second half, with two key differences: the margin generally gravitated to 4-7 points, as opposed to 9-11; and the Jayhawks were playing catch-up at Home. Had this game been in Ames, the Hawks would likely have given up precious ground to Baylor and Mizzou–especially the latter, MU having won already in Ames. But this particular game was, indeed, in Lawrence, and the Hawks kept their heads above water heading into Monday night’s first game of the year vs. Baylor.

As for Mizzou, the most notable aspect of its game vs. Texas was that it featured two players on my All-Conference team with 22% of the season having been played. That would be Marcus Denmon and J’Covan Brown, along with Thomas Robinson, Perry Jones, and Royce White. I would put that lineup up against North Carolina any day of the week. Might even challenge Florida St.

Meanwhile, Baylor put the rest of the conference on notice that, after its near death experience in Manhattan, it might have shifted gears, with a 41 point swamping of Okie St. Not that Okie St is to be taken seriously; but a 41 point margin over even a mediocre team is nothing to sneeze at.

Finally, A&M took out Tech, if anyone cares.

Or if they don’t.

THE TIERS

There will almost certainly be some reshuffling of the tiers next Saturday at the third-way point of the season next Saturday. K-State and Texas, in particular, will be subject to close scrutiny. In the meantime, only four games into the season, the Tiers as I see them remain:

Tier 1: Baylor, KU, K-State, Mizzou, Texas

Tier 2: Iowa St, Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M

Tier 3: Texas Tech

REAL BIG 12 STANDINGS

1-15-12

1. 13-5

Baylor (4-0) Projected L’s: at KU, at Mizzou, at Texas

At Risk games: at OU, at A&M, at Okie St, at ISU

2. 12.5-5.5

KU (4-0) Projected L’s: at UT, at Mizzou, at Baylor, at K-State

At Risk games: at ISU, at A&M, at Okie St

Mizzou (3-1) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at Texas, at KU

At Risk games: at Okie St, at OU, at A&M

4. 11.5-6.5

Texas (2-2) Projected L’s: at K-State, at Baylor, at KU

At Risk games: at A&M, at OU, at Okie St

5. 10.5-7.5

K-State (1-3) Projected L’s: at Texas, at Baylor, at Mizzou

At Risk games: at Okie St, at ISU, at A&M
6. 8-10

Iowa St (2-2) Projected L’s: at Texas, at OU, at Okie St,

at Baylor, at K-State, at Mizzou

At Risk games: at Tech, vs. KU, vs. K-State, vs.

Baylor

7. 7-11

Okie St (2-2) Projected L’s: at ISU, at A&M, at KU,

at Mizzou, at OU, at K-State

At Risk games: vs. K-State, vs. Mizzou, at Tech, vs.

Baylor, vs. Texas, vs. KU

Oklahoma (1-3) Projected L’s: at A&M, at K-State, at

KU, at ISU, at Baylor, at Texas

At Risk games: vs. Baylor, vs. Mizzou,

at Tech, vs. Texas

9. 6-12

Texas A&M (1-3) Projected L’s: at Mizzou, at KU, at K-

State, at ISU, at Okie St, at OU

At Risk games: vs.Baylor, vs. Texas, at Tech, vs. Mizzou,

vs. KU, vs. K-State

10 2-16

Texas Tech (0-4). Projected L’s: at OU, vs. K- State,

at Mizzou, at Texas, at K-State, at KU, at ISU, vs.

Texas, at Baylor, vs. Mizzou

At Risk games: vs. ISU, vs. Okie St, vs. OU, vs. A&M

ON THE TUBE

MONDAY

Texas A&M at Mizzou*: (4:30 noon—ESPN) (Projected W: Mizzou)

How exactly does this pathetic excuse for a game honor MLK’s legacy? Other than A&M having a dream of winning in Columbia. Unfortunately for the Aggies, a dream is different from a nightmare.

Baylor at KU**********: (8:30p.m.—ESPN) (Projected W: KU)

On a four star scale, this game, in the words of the inimitable Dickie V, is a Bo Derek in her prime. A W here for Baylor, and it puts a Bear Hug on the Big 12 championship trophy. Fortunately for KU, Bill Self usually does well against the REAL Calipari, let alone his Clone.

TUESDAY

Texas Tech at Oklahoma*1/2: (7:00p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: OU)

Wake me when it’s over, Siri.

WEDNESDAY

Texas at K-State****: (8:00p.m.—ESPN2) (Projected W: K-State)

A REALly must win game for K-State. Another Home loss, and its NCAA hopes are in jeopardy.

Okie St at Iowa St***: (8:00p.m.—ESPNU) (Projected W: ISU)

Iowa St looks like it will do nothing but improve the rest of the season. If the Clones (not to be confused with Kentucky and Baylor) take care of business at Home and steal a game or two on the Road, they can look forward to being in the NCAA mix in March.

–Mark

MID-WEEK RECAP

Thanks a lot, K-State. Thanks a lot, Iowa St.

Thanks for nothing.

K-State had to work hard to let its Home game vs. Baylor get away from it, but was highly successful. To this casual observer, it appeared that K-State handed Baylor at least 20 points on a silver platter, points that required little or no effort from the Bears. As in: “Here, Baylor, I am dribbling the ball aimlessly near mid-court. Please take it as a special gift in honor of—I don’t know, something or other. Just remove it from the space directly in front of my body, at a point where you can waltz unimpeded to the basket for an uncontested dunk or layup.

“While we’re at it, please allow me to turn the ball over by shuffling my feet while holding the ball in the lane, as opposed to making a three foot pass to my teammate standing completely unguarded under the basket for an uncontested dunk to tie the score I the game’s final minute. And if it’s not too much, I hope you aren’t offended if I leave the ball exposed while driving a wide open lane for a layup that would send the game into overtime if I simply protected it. Not to mention in bounding the ball in a manner to avoid any possibility of attempting a game tying or winning shot at the buzzer. Gotta give Frank something to talk about post-game.”

Reluctantly accepting the Wildcats’ generosity, Baylor jumps into first place in the REAL Standings, claiming the first full game pickup of the season by a Tier One team. They now have a W that might not be matched by any other team having a REAListic chance at the conference championship. The pressure to win in Manhattan is now on everyone else.

To a lesser extent, Iowa St did no favors for KU or any other contender in letting Mizzou walk out of Ames with a W. With its victory, Mizzou picks up a half game in the REAL Standings and moves into a tie with the now second place Jayhawks. What’s more, although the REAL Standings are primarily objective, Mizzou, in my opinion, has a slight edge, because it will be more difficult for KU to match Mizzou’s Road win in Ames than for Mizzou to match KU’s win in Norman. Especially if Royce White doesn’t get in early foul trouble as he did Wednesday night.

Nothing of interest in the other three games. KU won, as expected and as is right, in Lubbock. The only matter of interest being the 35 point margin of victory, an impressive Road margin against even the worst of teams. Which, pretty much, is Tech. No one else will beat the Red Raiders by 35 in Lubbock. But all the contenders will beat them.

Okie St. also won as expected in the Stillwater edition of Bedlam. And, to the surprise of no one, Texas took out A&M in Austin.

THE TIERS

In the last edition of the REAL Standings, A&M and OU were placed on notice that they are under consideration for demotion. With reasonable efforts in their Road losses, both avoided that fate. Meanwhile, ISU took itself out of consideration for Tier One consideration—at least for the time being. Home court losses will do that to you.

Tier 1: Baylor, KU, K-State, Mizzou, Texas

Tier 2: Iowa St, Oklahoma, Okie St, Texas A&M

Tier 3: Texas Tech

REAL BIG 12 STANDINGS

1-8-12

1. 13-5

Baylor (3-0) Projected L’s: at KU, at Mizzou, at Texas
At Risk games: at OU, at A&M, at Okie St, at ISU

2. 12.5-5.5

KU (3-0) Projected L’s: at UT, at Mizzou, at Baylor, at K-State
At Risk games: at ISU, at A&M, at Okie St

Mizzou (2-1) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at Texas, at KU
At Risk games: at Okie St, at OU, at A&M

4. 11-7

K-State (1-2) Projected L’s: at Texas, at Baylor, at Mizzou
At Risk games: at OU, at Okie St, at ISU, at A&M

5. 11.5-6.5

Texas (2-1) Projected L’s: at Mizzou, at K-State, at Baylor, at KU
At Risk games: at A&M, at OU, at Okie St

6. 8-10

Iowa St (2-1) Projected L’s: at KU, at Texas, at OU, at Okie St,
at Baylor, at K-State, at Mizzou

At Risk games: at Tech, vs. KU, vs. K-State, vs.
Baylor

7. 7-11

Okie St (2-1) Projected L’s: at Baylor, at ISU, at A&M, at KU,
at Mizzou, at OU, at K-State

At Risk games: vs. K-State, vs. Mizzou, at Tech, vs.
Baylor, vs. Texas, vs. KU

8. 6.5-11.5

Oklahoma (0-3) Projected L’s: at A&M, at K-State, at
KU, at ISU, at Baylor, at Texas

At Risk games: vs. K-State, vs. Baylor, vs. Mizzou,
at Tech, vs. Texas

9. 6-12

Texas A&M (0-3) Projected L’s: at Mizzou, at KU, at K-
State, at ISU, at Okie St, at OU

At Risk games: vs.Baylor, vs. Texas, at Tech, vs. Mizzou,
vs. KU, vs. K-State

10 2-16

Texas Tech (0-3). Projected L’s: at A&M, at OU, vs. K-
State, at Mizzou, at Texas, at K-State, at KU, at ISU, vs.
Texas, at Baylor, vs. Mizzou

At Risk games: vs. ISU, vs. Okie St, vs. OU, vs. A&M

ON THE TUBE

SATURDAY

Texas at Mizzou****: (12:00 noon—ESPN2) (Projected W: Mizzou)
No one is taking Texas seriously to this point. Blair Kerkhoff, for example, noted recently that he saw the Big 12 getting four teams in the NCAA tournament. Presumably, he was omitting UT. I think they get in, but they will need a nice Road win somewhere along the way. If J’Covan Brown is ready to go and Myck Kabongo keeps maturing, they can match Mizzou’s guard play. And everyone can match Mizzou’s inside play—even stiffs like Chapman and Wangmene.

K-State at Oklahoma***: (12:30p.m.—Big 12 Network) (At-risk game)
It is probably unfair to say that K-State is out of the race just because they lost a Home game. Then again, that might be precisely the case. Regardless, they cannot afford to lose an at-risk game if they want to hang around to even the mid-point of the season.

Texas Tech at A&M*1/2: (12:30p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: A&M)
If you are aware of anything to recommend this game, let me know. Wait, it’s Billy G’s return to the program he left high and dry to take a job as a temp in Kentucky. So there is that.

Okie St at Baylor**: (2:00p.m.—ESPN2) (Projected W: Baylor)
What are the chances Okie St can take down the Calipari Lites? If not slim and none, slim and slimmer. . .

Iowa St at KU***1/2: (3:00p.m.—Big 12 Network) (Projected W: KU)
It is the best of times. It is the worst of times. The best in the sense that virtually every game is must see TV. You can’t take any game for granted—at least not vs. any team as good as, say, Davidson. It is the worst in the sense that virtually every game is must see. You can’t take any game for granted—at least not vs. any team as good as, say, Davidson. And Iowa St is at least that good. Tune in.

–Mark