In this instance, legendary Oscar Robertson would definitely be accurate in a rambling, self-absorbed speech to describe their game as inferior to his era. But in deference to Oscar Awards, following are movie actors/directors who "had game" as well-rehearsed college basketball players before becoming famous entertainers:

LLOYD VERNET "BEAU" BRIDGES, UCLA
Actor with the hit movie Fabulous Baker Boys among his credits. He is the son of Lloyd Bridges and brother of Jeff Bridges.

The 5-9 guard averaged 0.6 points and 1.4 rebounds per game for UCLA's 1960-61 freshman team that compiled a 20-2 record. He was a frosh teammate of Fred Slaughter, the starting center for the Bruins' first NCAA championship team in 1964.

JIM CAVIEZEL, Bellevue (Wash.) Community College
Former Gap model played Jesus in Mel Gibson-directed The Passion of the Christ (2004) and was in Bobby Jones Stroke of Genius the same year. Also played the part of Slovnik in GI Jane (1997) with Demi Moore, Private Wit in Thin Red Line (1998), Catch in Angel Eyes (2001) with Jennifer Lopez, and Ashley Judd's husband in High Crimes (2002) with Morgan Freeman. In the TV drama Person of Interest on CBS, he played the role of Reese, a former member of the elite Special Forces who is now drinking heavily and at the end of his rope in New York City.

Bellevue coach Ernie Woods called Caviezel the hardest worker he had in 30 years. Caviezel's younger brother, Tim, played for the University of Washington, averaging 3.6 ppg in 1990-91 as a freshman and 4.2 ppg in 1991-92 as a sophomore before transferring to Long Beach State. Tim, a 6-7 swingman, subsequently transferred again to Western Washington, where Jim's wife, Kerri, ranks among the career leaders in five statistical categories for the women's basketball squad.

"Basketball taught me to train for every possible situation but always stay in the moment," Caviezel said.

CHEVY CHASE, Haverford (Pa.)
After a one-year stint on Saturday Night Live, Chevy quit to move to Los Angeles. Following mixed success in a variety of films, he became one of the biggest box-office draws in the U.S. in the 1980s with hits such as Caddyshack and National Lampoon's Vacation. One of his popular movie roles was as "Fletch" when he played for the Los Angeles Lakers in a dream sequence.

Chase was a JV basketball and soccer player as a freshman in 1962-63 before transferring to Bard (N.Y.).

MICHAEL CLARKE DUNCAN, Kankakee (Ill.) Community College/Alcorn State
Former bodyguard appeared in four films with Bruce Willis: Armageddon (1998; cast as Bear), Breakfast of Champions (1999), The Whole Nine Yards (2000) and Sin City (2005; cast as Manute, a powerful mobster). Breakout role occurred when he earned an Academy Award nomination and a Golden Globe nomination in The Green Mile. Voiced a dog Sam in Cats & Dogs (2001) and played Colonel Attar, a gorilla, in Planet of the Apes (2001). Starred alongside his friend, The Rock, in The Scorpion King (2002) and was the criminal mastermind behemoth Kingpin in Daredevil (2003).

The 6-5 Duncan was a teammate of eventual Chicago State coach Kevin Jones with Kankakee's 31-4 squad in 1980-81 before enrolling at Alcorn State under coach Davey Whitney. An excerpt in the Braves' 1983-84 media guide said: "He adds size, speed and excellent jumping ability to the roster. A very hard worker, he'll add tremendous depth to the bench." After dropping out of college because of family problems, he spent several years digging ditches for a gas company in his hometown of Chicago. "He was a tough, physical player," Whitney told CBSSports.com. "He was undersized and didn't weigh much back then, but he was very strong and powerful. He was just tough. He'd knock guys around."

LOUIS GOSSETT JR., New York University
The son of a porter and maid, he turned to acting in high school after a leg injury temporarily impeded his hopes for a basketball career. Following his Broadway debut at 17, he attended NYU on an athletic scholarship while continuing to perform on TV and the stage. He won an Emmy in 1977 for his role in the TV miniseries Roots-Part I before winning an Oscar in 1982 as supporting actor in the box-office hit An Officer and a Gentleman.

Gossett played for NYU's freshman squad in the late 1950s.

DENNY MILLER, UCLA
Miller became the first blond Tarzan in Tarzan, the Ape Man (1959), which lifted most of its footage from earlier Johnny Weissmuller movies. "Playing Tarzan is like being in a circus," says the 6-4 Miller on his web site. "Go ride that elephant, play with that chimp, swing on that vine. It's a terrific job for a guy who grew up to be a kid." Miller was a regular on Wagon Train in the early 1960s as Duke Shannon (his name was then Scott Miller) and played Juliet Prowse's husband in the TV series Meet Mona McClusky in 1965. For years, he was the "Gorton Fisherman," appearing in numerous commercials in his yellow rain gear.

Denny (7.4 ppg and 5.3 rpg in only eight games) and his brother Kent (7.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg) Miller were on the same Bruins squad in 1958-59 (16-9 record under coach John Wooden) as teammates of decathlete Rafer Johnson and eventual Hall of Fame coach Denny Crum. Denny Miller spent three years in the U.S. Army between averaging 4 ppg in 1954-55 and 3.1 ppg and 2.3 rpg in 1957-58.

PAUL ROBESON, Rutgers
World renowned orator and baritone was a 6-3, 215-pound two-way end who finally was named to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1995. Valedictorian when he graduated in 1919, learned to speak 15 languages and forge a glorious international career as a singer and actor. Earned law degree from Columbia, financing way through school by playing pro football with the Akron Pros and Milwaukee Badgers (scored two touchdowns). Robeson, son of a runaway slave, was an outspoken antifascist and champion of racial equality and socialist causes who remained enough of a supporter of the Soviet Union to get him blacklisted on Broadway. Founder of the Progressive Party played roles in 11 films and established works such as The Emperor Jones and Show Boat and became the first black to play Othello with a white cast.

Robeson was a center for Rutgers' basketball team.

LEON ROBINSON, Loyola Marymount
Goes by the stage name "Leon." He was a lover-boy idol in Waiting to Exhale, and played a similar character in Tim Reid's acclaimed Once Upon a Time ... When We Were Colored. Robinson was the ruthless killer, Kinette, in Cliffhanger and was Derice, the sweet and charming captain of the Jamaican bobsled team, in the surprise comedy hit, Cool Runnings. Leon appeared as a football teammate of Tom Cruise in All the Right Moves, and was the leading man as New York high school hoop sensation Earl (The Goat) Manigault in Above the Rim. Leon starred opposite Robin Givens in the TV mini-series, The Women of Brewster Place and was cast as Jesus in Madonna's controversial 1989 music video Like a Prayer. Received critical acclaim for his portrayal of two legendary singers in made-for-TV movies: David Ruffin in the 1998 NBC miniseries The Temptations and Little Richard in the self-titled 2000 NBC production based on the life of the rock-and-roll pioneer.

Robinson lettered for the Lions in 1978-79 when he averaged 2.9 ppg and 1.4 rpg. The Bronx native also attended Orange Coast Community College (Calif.).

TOM SELLECK, Southern California
Television and movie star won an Emmy in 1984 for his work in Magnum, P.I. He had a two-year stint (1974-75) on The Young and the Restless. His big-screen career got a major boost with the box-office hit Three Men and a Baby in 1987.

Selleck was a 6-4, 200-pound forward for Southern California. After serving as captain of the basketball team at Los Angeles Valley Community College, he scored four points in seven games for the Trojans in 1965-66 and was scoreless in three games in 1966-67. Excerpt from USC's school guide: "Agile and quick performer who adds depth on front line. Business administration major is good jumper with fine mobility. Rapidly improving shooter has impressed coaches with his hustle in practice. Needs to work on defense."

RON SHELTON, Westmont (Calif.)
Writer-director is synonymous with sports movies such as The Best of Times (high school football/1986), Bull Durham (minor league baseball/1988), White Men Can't Jump (street basketball/1992), Cobb (major league baseball/1994), Blue Chips (college basketball/1994), Tin Cup (golf/1996) and Play It to the Bone (boxing/1999). One of his non-sports films, Blaze, became a personal milestone for him as he went on to marry one of the stars, Toronto-born Lolita Davidovich. In Blue Chips, actor Nick Nolte was coach Pete Bell, who broke the rules in order to get the players he needed to remain competitive. "I played pickup into my 40s, right up until the time I made White Men Can't Jump," Shelton said. "I knew the game. I just loved that world."

Shelton scored 1,420 points in the mid-1960s, finishing the 20th Century among his alma mater's top 10 career scorers. He went on to play five seasons of Organized Baseball as a second baseman in the Baltimore Orioles' minor league system.

RON TAYLOR, Southern California
Best known for his roles as Lothar in The Rocketeer (1991) and Roc in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994). He also played Al, the tall police detective whose face is never seen, in The Naked Gun (1988) and on the TV series Police Squad. Nicknamed "Tiny Ron," the seven-footer also appeared on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the role of the Hupyrian alien Maihar'du.

Three-year USC letterman in the late 1960s was a second-round choice by Seattle in the 1969 NBA draft (18th pick overall). He played three seasons in the ABA before competing professionally in Austria in the 1970s before starting his film career.

MIKE WARREN, UCLA
Television star portrayed Officer Bobby Hill on hit series Hill Street Blues. Also appeared in the following movies: The Kid Who Loved Christmas (1990), Heaven is a Playground (1991), Buffalo Soldiers (1997) and After All (1999).

The 5-11, 160-pound guard for UCLA averaged 16.6 points per game in 1965-66 as a sophomore, 12.7 in 1966-67 as a junior and 12.1 in 1967-68 as a senior. He was an All-NCAA Tournament selection in 1967 and 1968 when the Bruins won national titles by combining for a 59-1 record. Warren was named to Converse and Helms All-American squads as a junior. In his senior season, he was named to the 10-man United States Basketball Writers Association All-America team and was a third five selection on the Associated Press and United Press International All-American squads. Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 14th round of the 1968 NBA draft.

Excerpt from school guide: "Named on the Academic All-American first team. One of UCLA's all-time great ballhandlers as well as being an outstanding driver and jump shooter."

DENZEL WASHINGTON, Fordham
Oscar award-winning actor Denzel Washington earned rave reviews for his performance as a high school football coach in Remembering the Titans. Most Hollywood buffs remember Washington's performances as a regular on the TV drama series St. Elsewhere while becoming a critically-acclaimed screen actor and major box-office draw in the 1990s with his performances in hit films Malcolm X, The Pelican Brief, and The Preacher's Wife. The hits continued with Man on Fire (2004).

But what the most ardent moviegoer doesn't know, let alone remember, is that Washington was a walk-on freshman basketball player for Fordham under coach P.J. Carlesimo. Washington probably was acting when he said "he had game" in describing his basketball ability in an interview about his movie role as the father of the nation's No. 1 player in director Spike Lee's 1998 release He Got Game.

Will Trump University earn a "huge" at-large invitation to the NCAA Tournament since a couple of quality teams are on the sideline? What might have been for Louisville and SMU if they didn't double dribble their way into the NCAA's detention hall and become ineligible to participate in postseason play? There is little doubt the tourney trespassers would have been consensus choices to reach the Sweet 16 and boasted potential to advance to the Final Four. But this isn't the first time multiple competent clubs were stymied in the same year. Two Top 20 quality teams were also denied a chance to appear in the tourney in 1959 (North Carolina State and Seattle), 1974 (Centenary and Long Beach State), 1977 (Clemson and Minnesota) and 1982 (UCLA and Wichita State).

NCAA Tournament history probably would be substantially different if assorted celebrated squads in the last 60 years weren't ineligible to participate because of penalties stemming from investigations by NCAA enforcement. Among the repeat offenders denied opportunities at least twice to generate postseason headlines were Florida State, Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina State and Wichita State. North Carolina could join this two-timer penalized list when the NCAA finally finishes its review of academic anemia.

NCAA "cops" appear to have been on strike the previous 20 years until the depth of deceit involving Louisville and SMU left officials no choice. Numerous touted teams were banished decades ago from competing in the NCAA playoffs while serving a sentence for wrongdoing. Is there tangible evidence regarding many of the "renegades" boasting the ability to rewrite history if they had avoided a rap sheet? If so, prominent players such as Rick Barry, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish probably wouldn't have a blemish on their resumes from failing to participate in the NCAA tourney due to sanctions. Dirty laundry prohibited the following outstanding squads with fewer than 10 defeats from receiving invitations to the NCAA's preeminent party:

Weep On It/Think On It/Sleep On It/Drink On It. That could have been the motto for Xavier after the Musketeers remained a "Susan Lucci" school in Division I last season after losing in the NCAA Tournament. Brigham Young, Missouri and Xavier are the only three schools participating in at least 25 NCAA Tournaments but never advancing to a Final Four. But X is exhibiting traits where it could mark a spot at the national semifinals in 2016.

Missouri has reached a regional final on four occasions but fell short in advancing to the Promised Land. Boston College is another bridesmaid multiple times, losing three regional finals (1967, 1982 and 1994) in 18 tourney appearances (22-19 record) since the field expanded beyond eight teams in 1950.

Alabama (20-20) is the only school with a non-losing NCAA playoff record among the following list of five frustrated institutions in a quagmire because they've made a minimum of 20 appearances without reaching the Final Four:

There was little doubt Duke's Grayson Allen, despite a Louisville scholar punching him while down on the floor, would be up and running as an All-American competing in the NCAA playoffs this campaign while compiling the largest one-season scoring average increase in ACC history. Allen, who averaged 21.6 points per game, posted a modest 4.4 mark a year ago as a freshman. Allen didn't "trip up" and wound up ranking sixth on the following list of first-time All-Americans posting increases of at least 14 ppg from the previous season:

Allen was averaging a modest 3.9 ppg entering last year's Final Four prior to becoming an overnight sensation by erasing a nine-point, second-half deficit virtually by himself to spark a rally against Wisconsin in the NCAA championship game. From a historical perspective, only one unsung player in history had more of a Final Four impact than Allen, who finished with 16 points in the final after contributing nine in the national semifinals against Michigan State. Nothing compares to the version of Washington coming "out-of-the-valley forge" when UCLA's Kenny Washington was instrumental in helping venerable coach John Wooden capture his first NCAA Tournament championship in 1964. Washington, the only player with a single-digit season scoring average (6.1) to tally more than 25 points in a championship game, scored 26 points in a 98-83 triumph over Duke in the final. Teammate Gail Goodrich contributed 27 points as he and Washington became the only duo to each score more than 25 in an NCAA final.

Although Washington became the only player to score 25 or more points in a final and not be named to the All-Tournament team, he wasn't rebuffed again the next year. Washington, averaging a modest 8.9 points per game entering the 1965 Final Four, scored a total of 27 points in victories over Wichita State and Michigan as the Bruins successfully defended their title en route to 10 crowns in 12 years under Wooden. Washington joined teammates Goodrich and Edgar Lacey on the 1965 All-Tournament team with co-national players of the year Bill Bradley (Princeton) and Cazzie Russell (Michigan).

In 1969, UCLA was without two-time All-Tournament team selection Lucius Allen because of academic problems, but the Bruins got another significant increase in point production at the Final Four from an unlikely source. Guard John Vallely averaged 22 points in victories against Drake and Purdue after arriving at the national semifinals with a 10.2-point average. Allen is the only freshman on the following list of six championship team rank-and-file players to average fewer than eight points per game entering the Final Four before seizing the moment and averaging double digits in scoring in their last two games with an increase of more than 7 ppg from their pre-Final Four scoring mark:

NOTE: Washington State junior guard Kirk Gebert, who scored 21 points in a 39-34 loss against Wisconsin in 1941 final to finish the year with a 6.6-point average, is the only player other than Washington with a single-digit season average to score more than 20 points in a title game.

ESPN analyst Dick Vitale has good reason comparing Allen to former Ohio State standout John Havlicek. But Allen will need to keep on improving at a comparable dramatic pace upon reaching the professional level to join the following "Magnificent 7" list of All-Americans (including Havlicek) who posted career scoring averages more than five points per game higher over more than 10 NBA seasons than they did in multiple college campaigns:

The most ardent college hoops observer probably didn't realize Akron zips along as one of only five Division I schools likely posting more than 20 victories each of the past 11 seasons. After Memphis and Pittsburgh fell off the consecutive 20-win list last season, the Zips are joined by the following more recognizable institutions with a look at their best and worst seasons during these streaks:

*If Buckeyes win at least two games in March at end of 2015-16 campaign.

Much is written about college basketball in the daily newspaper sports pages, weekly/monthly specialty magazines and on the internet. But you might be surprised the extent to which the written word beyond The Audacity of Hoop, much of it outside the world of sports, emanates from former college basketball players who became politicians.

For instance, politician extraordinaire Dean Rusk, Davidson's most noted alumnus pre-Stephen Curry who wrote his memoirs in the book As I Saw It, was a star center in the late 1920s and early 1930s with former Davidson President Dr. D. Grier Martin (1957 until 1968).

"Basketball at Davidson reminds me of the old French proverb, 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose,'" said Rusk, who served as Secretary of State under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson during the Vietnam War era. "The game itself has been revolutionized since I played it. We once beat North Carolina 17-12; it was not a slowdown game. We both were trying like everything. What has remained the same has been the sheer fun of it, the stimulation of competition, the experience of losing as well as winning and the recognition that basketball is a sport in which a small college can take on the big fellows."

Former Princeton All-American Bill Bradley, a three-term U.S. Senator (Democrat-N.J.) until 1995, took on the "big fellows" as a presidential candidate in 2000 and wrote a book called We Can All Do Better. Bradley, a tax and trade expert with a strong voice on race issues and campaign finance reform, authored two basketball volumes (Life on the Run in 1976 and Values of the Game in 1998).

"The lessons learned from it (basketball) stay with you," Rhodes Scholar Bradley wrote of the sport he still loves. "I was determined that no one would outwork me."

The information is as difficult to pry loose as transcripts of Shrillary's overpaid speeches before Wall Street benefactors. You might not know it, but there is a striking number of luminaries who displayed determination in the political arena and wrote books after "working the crowd" in a college basketball arena. Essentially, the following lineup represents a rebuttal to the chronic complainers who cite politicians generally and writers specifically as individuals who don't know anything about sports generally and college hoops specifically. In deference to Presidents' Day and the prospect of former college hooper Scott Brown becoming Donald Trump's running mate, following is an alphabetical list of additional politicians-turned-authors who played the game:

SCOTT BROWN, Tufts (Mass.)
Stunning upset victory in special election in January 2010, becoming the first Republican elected to represent Massachusetts in the U.S. Senate since 1979. Brown, filling the Senate seat that opened when Ted Kennedy died the previous August, drove his GMC Canyon pickup with over 200,000 miles on it everywhere during a savvy campaign. Authored a book Against All Odds released in 2011.

At Tufts (class of '81), he was known as "Downtown" Scotty Brown because of his long-range marksmanship. Averaging 9 ppg as a freshman in 1977-78, he earned an ECAC Rookie of the Week award that season. As a sophomore, he averaged 9.9 ppg and scored 35 points in a victory against Bowdoin. As a junior, he made 54.3% of his shots and had back-to-back games of 26 and 25 points against Curry and Trinity, respectively, en route to averaging 10.8 ppg. Senior co-captain capped his career with a 10.3-point scoring average, including a 35-point outburst against Brandeis. "He was not born with great basketball attributes," said his coach (John White) in a feature about Brown during his senior season. "He has gone beyond his limitations, which is very admirable." Converted more than half of his career field-goal attempts (422 of 853). Brown's 6-0 daughter, Ayla, was a starting guard most of her career with Boston College from 2006-07 through 2009-10, posting career highs of 18 points against Clemson and 14 rebounds against Wake Forest. Ayla has also released three albums after being a semifinalist in the fifth season of "American Idol," impressing the judges with her rendition of Christina Aguilera's "Reflection."

ROBERT CASEY, Holy Cross
Pennsylvania's 42nd governor served two terms from 1987 to 1995 after winning in his fourth attempt for the office. Casey, a coal miner's son, ran in the Democratic presidential primary in 1996. Pro-life candidate suffered from a rare hereditary disease that caused him to become a heart-liver transplant recipient. He died in late May, 2000, at the age of 68.

He was a 6-2 freshman in 1949-50 when Holy Cross senior Bob Cousy was an NCAA unanimous first-team All-American. The 6-2 Casey averaged 1.3 ppg in 1950-51 and 1952-53. Excerpt from Casey's 1996 autobiography Fighting for Life: "I remember best the moments I was on the court with Cousy. He was an icon in the making - a genius with a basketball. Our freshman team provided cannon fodder for Cousy and the rest of the varsity team in practice. What I remember most about Cousy was that he was always the first guy on the court at night, refining his moves a hundred times before practice even started."

WILLIAM COHEN, Bowdoin (Maine)
Moderate Republican was Secretary of Defense in President Clinton's administration after serving as a Senator from Maine. He moonlighted as an author and had a stint in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979. Cohen's first bask in the national spotlight came when he voted, as a House member, to impeach President Nixon. In 1992, he pushed to reauthorize the "independent counsel" law and became a founder of the Republican Majority Coalition. "In team sports, there's a game plan," Cohen said in Ira Berkow's Court Vision. "When you're talking military it's still a game plan, but it's a war plan.

It's either how to prevent a war from taking place or what happens if you have to go to war and how you structure your forces, what happens if, what are the contingency plans, what is the escalation. All of that is not identical to a game plan, but it's training and practice." Cohen wrote The New Art of the Leader among several books, including mysteries, poetry and (with George Mitchell) an analysis of the Iran-contra affair. His second wife is author Janet Langhart, who was known as "First Lady of the Pentagon" during Cohen's tenure as Secretary.

The New England Basketball All-Star Hall of Fame inductee led Bowdoin in scoring all three varsity seasons from 1959-60 through 1961-62 (career-high 16 ppg as a junior). "A two-handed set shot was obsolete in college when I was playing, but I shot it," Cohen said. "I was able to shoot it from very far and get it off very fast. Dolph Schayes was kind of a role model for me."

ROBERT J. DOLE, Kansas
Represented Kansas in the U.S. Senate from 1969 to 1997. Senate majority leader from 1985 to 1987 and again starting in 1995 when he began his third quest for the Republican presidential nomination. He was the Republican nominee for Vice President as Gerald Ford's running mate in 1976.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Ben Cramer described Dole as a good player who "could handle the ball, shooting that newfangled one-hand push shot, and big and tough under the boards." Member of Kansas freshman basketball team in 1942-43 for one semester before enlisting in the Army during World War II, where his right shoulder was destroyed in a mortar barrage in the Italian mountains. He spent 39 months in and out of hospitals, returning to his hometown of Russell, Kan., to recuperate from the wound that also cost him a kidney. A book about his recovery, A Soldier's Story, was published in 2005.

JOHN H. GLENN JR., Muskingum (Ohio)
U.S. Senator (Democrat from Ohio) for 24 years and former astronaut. In 1962, Glenn became the first American to orbit the Earth. Nearly 40 years later, he became the oldest human to enter space when he joined the crew of the Space Shuttle Discovery in 1998. Among the seven candidates who lost to Walter Mondale for the 1984 Democratic Party nomination.

In Glenn's memoir, he wrote: "I went out for the freshman basketball squad and made that, but I noticed that while I had not gotten any faster or grown any taller, the other players had." He also played freshman football in college before World War II interrupted his career. "Each individual has to prepare himself to do his very best, whether it's in an individual or team sport," Glenn said. "In team sports, you have to have great teamwork to reach any goal, which is exactly what we have to do in life after athletics and college."

AL GORE, Harvard
Democratic Presidential nominee against George W. Bush in 2000 waged a long-shot campaign for president in 1988, when he was 39. Vice President in Bill Clinton's administration was a Senator from Tennessee after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1977 to 1985. Shared the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize after his film An Inconvenient Truth, a documentary on global warming, won an Academy Award. Gore's book with the same title was published concurrently with the theatrical release. For the "Unabomber" crowd that believes dinosaurs became extinct because they burped and farted too much, he subsequently wrote similar environmental-related books called The Assault on Reason, Our Choice and Earth in the Balance.

Gore averaged 2.8 points per game for Harvard's 12-4 freshman team in 1965-66. In the biography Inventing Al Gore, he was described as "rarely playing but working on his game incessantly." His competitive drive led him to challenge roommates "out of the blue" to push-ups, a vestige of the boyhood regimen imposed by his Senator father. He "wanted to challenge you or himself, intellectually or physically. He was always, `I bet I can beat you at the last thing you did.'"

LEE H. HAMILTON, DePauw (Ind.)
Vice Chairman of 9/11 Commission and co-chair of Iraq Study Group in 2006 was a leading Democratic voice on foreign policy and a steadying force in the House of Representatives for 34 years from 1965 through 1998. He chaired three committees - Foreign Affairs, Intelligence and Joint Economic - and was the ranking minority member of the House International Relations Committee. Representing Indiana's Ninth District, he retained not only his crew cut but also his moderate, common-sense approach and a Methodist work ethic that got him to his office nearly every day before 6 a.m. Wrote a book called How Congress Works and Why You Should Care.

Ranked fourth on DePauw's career scoring list when he graduated in 1952. The 6-4 Hamilton led the team in scoring as a junior (11.4 ppg) and was the second-leading scorer as a sophomore (9.8 ppg) and senior (10.9 ppg).

HENRY "HANK" HYDE, Georgetown/Duke
Starting out as a Democrat, he became a 12-term Republican Congressman from Illinois and eventual chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. His towering stature as a lawmaker made him the ideal GOP point-man to lead an impeachment inquiry of President Clinton. Wrote books called Moral Universe and Forfeiting Our Property Rights.

He was a forward-center for Georgetown's 1943 NCAA Tournament runner-up that compiled a 22-5 record. The 6-3 Hyde scored two points in a 53-49 victory over a Chicago hometown team, DePaul, and fellow freshman George Mikan in the Eastern Regional final (playoff semifinals) before going scoreless in a championship game loss against Wyoming. "I can only say about the way I guarded him (Mikan scored one point in the second half) that I will burn in purgatory," Hyde deadpanned. "The rules were considerably bent." The next season as a Naval trainee at Duke, he earned a letter but was scoreless in the Blue Devils' 44-27 Southern Conference championship game victory over North Carolina. Hyde served as an ensign in the Asiatic and Pacific Theaters during World War II before re-enrolling at Georgetown, where he graduated in 1947. Twenty-one years later, Clinton earned his diploma from the same university. Sketch of Hyde in Georgetown guide: "Possesses a pivot shot, difficult to stop, and a shot made while cutting from the bucket to give his scoring threats a double edge."

TOM McMILLEN, Maryland
Co-chairman of the President's Council on Physical Fitness under Bill Clinton. Elected in 1987 as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Maryland. From 1991 to 2003, he served on the Knight Foundation's Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics investigating abuses within college sports. He is co-author of Out of Bounds, a book on sports and ethics in America.

The 6-11 center averaged 20.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game in three seasons for Maryland from 1971-72 through 1973-74. Member of 1972 U.S. Olympic team is the only player in Terrapins history to have a career scoring average above 20 ppg. Averaged 8.1 points and four rebounds in 11 NBA seasons (1975-76 through 1985-86) with four different franchises.

GEORGE MITCHELL, Bowdoin (Maine)
Devout Democrat assumed position as Majority Leader in 1989 after arriving in the Senate from Maine in 1980. The son of a janitor received more than 80% of the vote in 1988. He served as independent chairman of talks that culminated in the signing of the Northern Ireland peace accord in April, 1998 and was tapped by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig to spearhead an investigation into the use of performance-enhancing drugs by players. Mitchell served as Disney Chairman of the Board from March 2004 until January 2007. He has written several books - Not For America Alone, World on Fire and Making Peace.

Wiry point guard was a senior in 1953-54 when he scored eight points in eight games.

SAM NUNN, Georgia Tech
Democratic Senator from Georgia retired in 1996 after four six-year terms. Chairman of the Armed Services Committee, who served in the Coast Guard, helped defeat President Clinton's intention to allow open gays and lesbians in the military. He authored books on working to reduce the global threats from nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.

His sketch is included in the 1957-58 Georgia Tech guide as a non-scholarship sophomore. However, Nunn is not included in the 1957-58 school scoring statistics, which include all players who scored, and is not listed on the 1958-59 roster. His son, Brian, played for Emory University in Atlanta.

BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA, Occidental (Calif.)
U.S. Senator from Illinois outlasted Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election before defeating Republican John McCain to become the nation's first African-American commander-in-chief. Authored a book entitled Audacity of Hope.

The 6-1 1/2 lefthander played on Occidental's junior varsity squad in 1979-80 before transferring to Columbia and subsequently attending Harvard Law School. In Dreams From My Father, Obama described basketball as a comfort to a boy whose father was mostly absent, and who was one of only a few black youths at his school in Hawaii. "At least on the basketball court I could find a community of sorts," he wrote. Pickup basketball was his escape from the sport of politics. Brother-in-law Craig Robinson, a two-time Ivy League MVP with Princeton, was Oregon State's coach when Obama was elected.

ALAN K. SIMPSON, Wyoming
U.S. Senator from Wyoming (1978-96) was a staunch conservative and loyal lieutenant to Republican leader Bob Dole. Simpson's father, Milward, served in the same capacity (1962-67). The younger Simpson, who garnered 78% of the vote in 1984, served as chairman of Veterans' Affairs and Social Security and Family Policy. He charmed the Washington establishment with his earthy wit and folksy wisdom, becoming somewhat of a media darling because of his pithy quotes. Simpson authored a book Right in the Old Gazoo - a lifetime of scraping with the Press.

Forward-center earned a letter in 1952-53 after scoring seven points in six games for a team that went on to participate in the NCAA Tournament. He also played football for the Cowboys.

MORRIS "MO" UDALL, Arizona
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1961 to 1991) and candidate for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. Brother of former Secretary of the Interior Stew Udall served as Chairman of the House Interior and Insular Affairs. Stemming from his wit, columnist James J. Kilpatrick labeled him "too funny to be president," which wound up being the title of his autobiography.

He was the Wildcats' captain and second-leading scorer with an average of 10 points per game for the 1946-47 Border Conference titlist finishing with a 21-3 record. The next year, he was the leading scorer (13.3 average) on an Arizona squad that successfully defended its league crown. The 6-5, 200-pound forward-center was named to the first five on the 1947-48 Border Conference all-star team and finished second in the league in scoring. He played with Denver in the National Basketball League in 1948-49.

Fran Dunphy has had only one Top 20 team in 27 seasons of coaching (Temple in 2009-10), but he is in exclusive company. Dunphy, who was bench boss for Penn 17 years prior to joining the Owls, is one of only four Division I mentors compiling more than 200 victories and at least seven NCAA Tournament appearances with two different universities.

"I've just been coaching a long time," said a modest Dunphy, who could join Roy Williams as the only coaches with 300 triumphs for two DI schools if he maintains the same success rate five more campaigns with the Owls. Following is an alphabetical list of Dunphy, Williams and the two other coaches in this select circle (Rick Pitino made six straight NCAA playoff appearances with Kentucky in the mid-1990s):

NOTE: Henson (Hardin-Simmons), Pitino (Hawaii, Boston University and Providence) and Sutton (Creighton, Kentucky and San Francisco) also coached other colleges.

Louisiana-Lafayette's Shawn Long, the nation's second-leading rebounder overshadowed in the Bayou State by LSU freshman sensation Ben Simmons, is on the precipice of a career feat previously achieved by only a handful of the premier players in major-college history. In mid-season, Long joined the 2,100-point/1,300-rebound club, an exclusive 19-member group failing to include four-year standouts such as Joe Barry Carroll (Purdue), Pervis Ellison (Louisville), Danny Ferry (Duke), Hank Gathers (Loyola Marymount), Mike Gminski (Duke), Tyler Hansbrough (North Carolina), Christian Laettner (Duke), Danny Manning (Kansas), Doug McDermott (Creighton), Calvin Natt (Northeast Louisiana), Sam Perkins (North Carolina) and Keith Van Horn (Utah).

Mid-major competition doesn't appear to have anything to do with Long's exploits. The Mississippi State transfer (never played for Bulldogs) showed power-league opponents don't slow him down at all, assembling impressive double-doubles this season in three non-league road games at Miami (21 points - 13 rebounds), Alabama (25-14) and UCLA (26-16). After scoring a career-high 35 points in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament, he ended up joining the following alphabetical list of first five DI collegians (La Salle's Lionel Simmons was only other one since 1967-68) with career totals of more than 2,300 points and 1,400 rebounds:

NOTE: Baylor collected 814 points and 492 rebounds in 26 games his freshman season for College of Idaho (now known as Albertson College). He and Hayes were three-year players.

Scrutiny of Louisville's program has a shelf life lasting a mite longer than 15 seconds, leaving the white suit coach Rick Pitino occasionally dons a drunk-on-power symbol for anything but purity. There is little doubt a self-imposed one-year postseason competition ban and future scholarship/recruiting reductions (a/k/a preemptive plea bargain) implied the Cardinals face more significant sanctions on down the road. If there was any good news, at least UL's upper brass didn't don Mexican garb for the "trick-or-treat" announcements and doesn't seem to buy stock into dimwitted deflection tactics blaming book publishing company owned by Indiana's largest-ever donor with law school named after him. However, it was disappointing Pitino didn't have an opportunity to cowardly boycott or conduct a Cam Newton-like walkout, departing hand gesture or not, at any postseason press briefing this year.

Amid full-figure female fallout from fact-filled tell-all tale (Breaking Cardinal Rules), pretentious Pitino recently said: “There's only one good thing about being 63 – you don't care what people think anymore.” The reprehensible regaling all sounded vaguely familiar. After all, it seems as if thin-skinned Pompous Pilot didn't care when he was in his 50s (restaurant affair with staffer's soon-to-be spouse), 40s (quit in mid-season after lured by $50 million to try to become reincarnation of Red Auerbach rather than next Adolph Rupp), 30s (BU Revue) and 20s (Hawaii infractions)?

Essentially, a tawdry timeline stems from philosophy of do as I say; not as I do. One of Pitino's books lecturing everyone else discusses how the past can haunt you. As an assistant at Hawaii, Pitino was implicated in eight of 64 violations leading to the Rainbows' two-year probation stint in the late 1970s. Nonetheless, the narcissist didn't care upon setting foot in Kentucky years ago as his one-day contract stump speech unfolded prior to incessant recycling. Is there any Pitino-linked symbolism this year when probation-bound Hawaii earned a berth in the NCAA playoffs while UL was banished?

“I think it's a positive because I know exactly what can go on the wrong way,” Pitino smugly self-assessed about suspect hoop activities in the Paradise of the Pacific shortly before he was hired by UK in the late 1980s. “There's no one in this business with more integrity (than me). It didn't happen in Hawaii as far as I'm concerned. I didn't make any mistakes, I don't care what anybody says. I'm not going to comment on it anymore because I don't have to.”

Need more I-don't-give-a-rip integrity? The alternate-reality program wallowed in self-absorption last fall when Louisville failed to care about providing anything but a lame spin-tour remark stemming from an inquiry regarding an anecdote in the incisive book Raw Recruits written by dying-breed respected journalists Alexander Wolff and Armen Keteyian (more on media later). With apologies to “dictator” Dick Vitale's personal library, Season on the Brink (written by John Feinstein) and Raw Recruits rank 1-2 or vice versa as the all-time most compelling behind-the-scenes books on college basketball. After a big win for Pitino-coached Boston University at Rhode Island in the early 1980s, Raw Recruits alleged he rewarded the Terriers by having their bus stop at a jiggle joint on the way back to campus and hand out dollar bills to players so they might tuck them into G-strings.

Thirty years later, a ridiculous response from condescending UL about the book's sewer snippet was the famished BU brigade innocently walked in to get food, presumably thinking neon lights and all were essentials for a lively restaurant, but promptly bailed with hands covering their eyes. How many times have you heard about a booby bar being confused with fast food unless it is difficult to differentiate between excessive makeup on a Dancin' Girl and same for Ronald McDonald? Of course, there's not much happy-deal difference between unwrapped buns “having a good day” at the Golden Arches and gold jewelry near strategic arches on naked bodies. Maybe the classy New England establishment was simply a topless diner for roadie academic tutors, unbeknownst to coach, keeping GPA (Great Party Atmosphere) of squad members up by cramming for anatomy class on trek home.

Dwelling a little more on distinguishing between day-of-reckoning dignity and depravity, how low can you sink when self-proclaimed Elvis Presley (ex-UL All-American Terrence “Why Would I Pay Anybody for Anything” Williams) is a credibility reference for Hookergate scoring considering his checkered past? It may be the equivalent of Pitino vouching for former UK guard Richie "He Can Do No Wrong" Farmer when he ran afoul of the law.

Here is what genuinely "doesn't make any sense at all" for someone who is kind of a big deal. Pitino, boasting a master-puppeteer reputation, has a penchant for "can't-find-one-person" pap not knowing what the hell is going on around him even if it is a relatively minor thing such as six-year UL assistant coach Steve Masiello failing to complete requirements for a diploma during and after his ex-Knicks ball-boy playing for him at UK before immersed in an academic controversy as Manhattan's coach.

Understandably, the contrived Sgt. “I know nothing” Schultz routine regarding the "we have a different way we recruit" rot really gets old. One of Pitino's books also honed in on when it's best not to delegate. Pitino, saying he was “still trying to understand the motive,” treats his former player/assistant coach Andre McGee as if aspiring to explain a Shakespearean production ("Et tu, Brutus?"). Actually, it would be helpful to know when fall-guy target McGee was first exposed to this scurrilous stagecraft before he is thrown under the intellectually-and-morally bankrupt bus. The bluster bus is driven by Pitino, who said: "We have the most compliant coaches in the NCAA, no matter what you hear." If relevant at all, did we hear if this commendable credential predated McGee as a player and/or coach or kicked in after McGee departed for UMKC and subsequently working as a driver for car service Uber?

Do Pitino's longstanding don't-care comments credibly pass a sincere threshold to where the nation should deluge him with speedy-recovery well wishes to help mend his broken heart? As most ardent hoop observers are aware, the BU rock-star sojourn wasn't the only time he mistook a restaurant for adult entertainment. Amplifying on the toxic topic via common sense, it is inconceivable to accept no-compulsion premise there was nothing abnormal maneuvering from normal extracurricular habits to chance stop-on-a-dime meeting with extortion-bound stranger on an upscale restaurant table. Just wondering, but did the fine-diner owner leave keys thinking the hangers-on were going to sweep the floor and clean the dishes exercising 15 seconds of shame? Perhaps they were waiting on UL football coach Bobby Petrino and hoop sage Bo Ryan to compare notes about exploits on and off the court.

Seems as if there was lack of credibility everywhere one turned. In the wake of such boorish behavior, should we bother to contemplate what went on to relieve stress at higher-stakes citadels such as New York (Knicks) and college cage capital (Lexington, KY)? It almost makes a Client 9-curious individual want to enlist the services of a PI to rummage through little black book of whomever the Manhattan Madam happened to be in late 1980s before conducting survey of coeds attending UK the first half of 1990s about any love lodge or perhaps big and blue van featuring tinted windows. First step learning about "good times" equipment might be giving amnesia antidote or truth serum to gatekeeper/chauffeur. Winston Bennett, an assistant under Pitino with UK and the Boston Celtics, may also be able to offer some insight based on the former All-SEC second-team selection admitting he "slept with 90 women a month" despite stature as the ultimate NBA scrub.

What transpired at UL is precisely why a control freak orchestrated construction of a basketball dormitory (named for his brother-in-law who tragically died in 9/11 attack) to monitor his roster and keep them from becoming salacious scholars. Instead, what repeatedly resulted was a classic example of lack of institutional control. So what if Pitino wasn't the whore-dorm booking agent or could pass a lie-detector test on a well-crafted question skirting the predatory activity. Doesn't his pact with UL have provision about “diligently supervise compliance of assistant coaches and any other employees for which he is administratively responsible”?

“I'm totally saddened to the point of disbelief over the incidents,” Pitino said during one of his incredible sulks. “We've built a very strong culture here of discipline and doing the right things.” You've got to be kidding! If so, did a single disciplined student-athlete exhibit sufficient strength to do the right thing, go to him and describe detestable culture infecting Club Minardi? If not, why are his family-atmosphere players more loyal to a subordinate than head coach? Pleading with the Hoop Gods, please don't put public through the traditional "plausible-deniability" focus on disgruntled former "employees" defense.

Whether or not it was a byproduct of culture or karma, the Pitino brand also faced a brewing sex-lies-and-videotape scandal involving his son's recruits at Minnesota, which featured more suspended players than Big Ten Conference victories. Any video this year involving Gopher players, on or off hardwood, probably is filth and should be erased. Amid the disturbing credibility gap, it's probably time to shift gears and sarcastically add to the sad state of affairs with the following pointless plot lines for entertaining episodes on HBO's soon-to-be-announced Pitino Place show:

• Jilted Karen, after escaping confinement by having sex with prison security guard boasting slick black hair, undergoes race-and-name change becoming Katina and trying to extort main character Slick Rick again before going on the cover of Vanity Fair and “earning” some sort of ESPY courage award for her copious copulation commentary.
• In a what-might-have-been dream, Slick Rick learns in a confession booth about an innocent baby boy named Rowe Vee Wade if Catholic principles really meant more than abortion creating new definition for “health care” money. Rowe Vee Wade would have been a blue-chip playmaking prospect who played for half-brother and averaged more assists per game in college career than his look-alike estranged father (5.6 apg). Upon waking up from Rip Van Winkle slumber, Slick Rick decides to become a sperm donor to try to clone Mr. Nifty Jr. (donor's college nickname).
• Slick Rick groupie Vinny, moonlighting as an NCAA enforcement agent, taught boss to hold the tail during horse breeding and told tales about anything dealing with human breeding. But the aloof horse owner already was a thoroughbred Breeders' Cup Secretariat wannabee and only had eyes for what was under some of those gaudy race-track hats. Vinny, who was actually a double agent, eventually spilled his good-times guts to authorities when he was supposed to be conducting opposition research on rival Coach Pay-pal Cal including going through trash in Memphis trying to unearth any Slick Rick-like transgressions or rookie salary-cap violations he could possibly find to help prevent ninth defeat in last 10 confrontations.
• Slick Rick blames Sick “You Better Put Some Ice On It” Willie for infecting him with some unnamed pants-dropping defect in front of stranger after shaking Bubba's cigar-stained hand before introducing President Stainmaker, still basking in the glow of an Arkansas title, at a campaign rally on the eve of the 1996 election. Finishing “expensive” speech on humility to Wall Street executives and meeting filing deadline for book on success, he had to take a rain check regarding cheerleader-recruiting/saxophone-lesson trip with Shrillary's Secret Weapon and equally frail contemptible Clintonista cronies to “Orgy Island.” Bubba's backup plan to reconnect with Slick was to become his boss as school Prez insofar as he has vast experience in such an overpaid category via $16.46 million over five years as honorary chancellor of Laureate University.
• Intervention for Slick Rick unfolds to stop drinking bourbon named after him. Becoming delusional as much as Kanye is in debt, he claimed his new Kanye West/adidas shoes helped him win a dunking contest as college freshman decades ago against varsity standout Julius Erving in 1970-71 before Dr. J became a professional basketball highlight reel. Boasting super-human strength capable of reeling in mammoth marlin, Slick Rick claimed he won a home-run derby against Mike Flanagan in 1971-72 when the eventual 18-year MLB pitcher averaged 13.9 ppg for the same school's frosh squad. In a bizarre rant by Slick Rick after pain killer wore off from getting a title tattoo, the egomaniac thought he should receive Bill Cosby's Presidential Medal of Freedom if award is stripped from the widely-condemned comic. Meanwhile, Kanye ($53 million in debt) makes guest star appearance begging Taylor Swift for 53 cents for his "Famous" ideas so he can impress fashionable Kim by having more "rep" cred than 50 Cent with music endorsement by Slick Rick linked to any affiliated dorm dance.

All silly-season sarcasm aside, the bottom-line drivel is what do you expect from a program where the coach can't control himself? Louisville native Muhammad Ali issued his support while Pitino's boss had his thoughts with the Pitino family and delusional AD Tom Jurich, apparently an abortion advocate, said Pitino “has a perfect track record.” We presume Jurich's perfection testimonial isn't hampered by Parkinson's and includes Pitino settling for more than $2,500 to get rid of evidence. Maybe some of these unprincipled folks would show a shred of humanity if a female member of their immediate family was affected.

Just like the majority of scandals, follow the money trail of a plot that may have had its genesis in a Barbershop sequel of sorts. Whatever the amount spent by McGee for physical activity by saving gas money moving party venue closer to home, it's virtually impossible to believe the bank-bundled funds came entirely from his personal account. Pitino, responding as if he was kneed in the groin by some unknown assailant, had Olympian gall telling McGee “to step up” after skating around issue crying “Why?” way more than Nancy Kerrigan.

Of course, the most disgusting “why” involved fathers/guardians tagging along for a recruiting ride to LarryFlyntVille when not busy helping prospects with their studies. In employing a perverted version of father-son bonding, why was there the incentive way horsing around driving it homeboy rather than “a dolt” just having fond memory of playing horse against his boy in the family driveway. What would the party-planner incentive be if the recruit actually helped UL reach a Final Four?

Pitino, who said bump-and-grind allegations made him “sick to my stomach,” can always cure chronic tummy tumult via some dessert delicacy at his favorite upscale restaurant. Actually, frequent health references simply raise suspicion about his mid-season walking-out-through-the-door “flight” to Cleveland Clinic in 2003-04 three years after the "wounded tiger" quit the Celtics because Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish weren't walking back through their door.

An inalienable right exists to be stupid like Apple protecting phone of Islamic terrorist, but we saw the outline of a clever problem-solving act just last season when problem-child guard Chris Jones was dismissed. You've got the comedy-relief brains of a doorknob if you believed Louisville's shedding of a little light via a door-opening salvo explaining life-without-Jones stemmed primarily from a 9 p.m. curfew violation. It's unclear whether Pitino, exhibiting a theatrical flop reminiscent of Jones' chin-rubbing charade in a match-up with cross-state rival Kentucky, includes himself in refuting any bad acting.

Jones, described by Pitino as “type of guy who always has his hands in the cookie jar,” dropped out of school to defend himself as rigorously as the ACC's leader in steals average defended opponents. Wouldn't you like an insider to drop some knowledge regarding the rigorous classes the scholar took and stack them up against North Carolina's no-show way or the intellectually-stimulating spring-semester coursework for the one-and-done crowd? Depending upon your perspective, didn't the culture Pitino portrayed “steal” a scholarship from perhaps an authentic student-athlete? Some viewers want to be assured they can't catch a STD from TV and seek to promptly take a shower after watching UL these days.

The shameless local and national media covering UL also are to blame, but they already have a laser-like fixation on touchy-feely timing of ban rather than incalculable more vital issues such as academic integrity and power-structure lack of accountability of coaching staffs for revenue-producing sports. There should be a one-year ban on reading or watching the presstitutes because of their failure to live up to news-gathering obligations by allowing an Escort Queen to “(hard)cover” the program better than they did. How in the name of Edmund R. Murrow did Katina discern more about what was going on than Pitino, university officials and a seemingly enabling press stripped naked by her firsthand research?

Pitino claimed he hasn't read Powell's expose but said “people will do anything for money.” Does the same assessment apply to Sextino regarding his series of what now seem like tainted hypocritical volumes (Success is a Choice, How to Add Value to Every Minute of Your Life, Lead to Succeed, Rebound Rules, etc.)? Taking the power of positive thinking to an extreme, he'll have additional exposure to a couple of bullet points in his 10-step plan – thriving on pressure and learning from adversity.

Collateral damage caught in the middle of mess created by others, do you think chattel-graduate transfers Damion Lee (Drexel) and Trey Lewis (Cleveland State) were credibly “recruited” with emphasis on prospect of participating in NCAA playoffs? Lee said last summer: "If we buy into the system and what coach Pitino preaches, then we can be successful." Standing O from UL fans notwithstanding, the betrayed duo "tabled" by Preacher Pitino's program should sue the system - coaching staff and school - for fraud after enduring the pressure connected to this adversity. Mercenaries Lee and Lewis were wronged, but they triggered the wrongdoing and suffered the consequences by wrongly choosing to attend UL. If the NCAA doesn't embrace a penalty for time served upon sanctioning UL, the media will predictably preach about this time next year regarding a players' rights pity party for ensuing graduate-school transfer (Tony Hicks from Penn). Perhaps the NCAA can compromise and let UL humbly compete in the NIT, CBI, CIT or inaugural Vegas 16 after interviewing Little Richard about what transpired during his second stint on daddy's staff in 2011-12.

Meanwhile, self-described “soldier-in-this-army” Pitino asked: “If I resign, would people feel better about it?” Answer: Well, yes, if anyone credible amid the debris remains boasting a moral compass rather than emphasizing morale-building comp-a__. Sticking with military references post-infiltration of his program, it's time for court-martial and discharge; mid-season or not. Not caring what anyone says, such a departure would be a positive for going the wrong way. Securing generous dose of humility sooner rather than later, author Pitino can take an adult education refresher course ruminating on his own following words in "The One-Day Contract":

• "The egotistical coach, the arrogant athlete, they are stereotypes that too often ring true."
• "The longer I live and the more I experience, the more I believe that humility is the quality essential to sustained success, and a lack of it is the major stumbling block for those who find success for a time, then lose it."
• "There's no question when you coach at Kentucky, you fall into a trap of thinking you're much better than you really are, because of the adulation and attention. It is constant and seems to come in a never-ending supply. I did not know it in the midst of it, but that arrogance, that thinking of yourself as the best, is one of the biggest reasons successful people stumble and fail."
• "The consequences of not learning humility can be tragic. If we don't always see these consequences in our own lives, we should be able to recognize them all around us. Not learning humility is, for one, an expensive lesson."
• "Self-aggrandizement, alienation of friends, family, or teammates, a tragic tendency to overestimate one's talent that leads to overreaching, they all are traits of people who lack humility. This also is a story that is not new. The ancient Greeks had a word for this very situation: hubris."
• "The same cycle (of self-destruction) can be seen in many fields. The list of those for whom humility not only might have saved a fortune, but their future, is long and star-studded."
• "The decadent lifestyle, the entourages, the unrealistic expectation of stature and longevity - all this leads to poor choices and reckless decision making."
• "With humility, you are better able to enjoy and understand success, and you are better able to examine and handle failure."
• "Humble people always handle adversity so much better because they understand who they are. So many come to disappointing ends and wonder why it happened. Most often, it was a lack of humility, leading to arrogance, leading to the mistakes they made. They think they are more significant than they are and it makes them gamble with their lives and their professions. Then, when things go wrong, they lash out and blame others. Arrogant people spread around their failure with blame."
• "Not only is humility the key to finding lasting success, but it is the key to lasting happiness. Go back through history, literature, spiritual books, and this cycle is repeated throughout generations and cultures: arrogance, fall, acceptance, humility, healing. We're no different from people who came before us. I can't state enough how important a lesson this is to learn, and the importance of learning it before life forces you to."

Is it too much to ask, not force, schools to display some modicum of proper behavior? The naked truth is an arranged or deranged marriage might be more suitable for Pitino by heading West again and hook(er)ing on with UNLV, where he could revive the glory days of Tark the Shark in a more suitable brothel environment including parts of state where prostitution is legal. If our ciphering is correct (perhaps Syphering in this instance) in the throes of Vegas' syphilis outbreak, he could humbly heal thyself by becoming the only bench boss guiding four different schools to the Final Four before turning the Rebels' program over in nepotism fashion to his coach-in-waiting son if offspring learns how to avoid humility of losing to visiting South Dakota and South Dakota State in the same week. The (cr)apple doesn't fall far from the family tree. For $2 million a year (after $450,000 bonus at end of April), Little Richard should have at least humored us by announcing the humble Gophers joined Get-Your-Fill-In-The-Ville by accepting a 2016 postseason ban.

Duke, unranked at the start of February, fell out of the national rankings for the first time in 167 weeks, dating back to 2007. If the defending NCAA champion Blue Devils, ranked fifth in the AP preseason poll under coach Mike Krzyzewski, could be the latest touted team failing to live up to enormous preseason hype. There has been an average of one such squad end up in this dubious category each year thus far this century. Two hyped schools could fall out this campaign if Kentucky keeps losing to mediocre opponents such as Auburn, Louisiana State and Tennessee.

The previous 21 squads in this great-expectations category incurred at least double digits in defeats. Following is a chronological list of the first 25 teams included among preseason Top 5 selections since 1968-69 but finishing out of the AP's final Top 20 poll:

The most prolific outbursts came against small-college competition, but the three highest-scoring games in history by NCAA Division I players occurred in the month of February - Furman's Frank Selvy (100 points vs. Newberry SC in 1954), Villanova's Paul Arizin (85 vs. Philadelphia NAMC in 1949) and Portland State's Freeman Williams (81 vs. Rocky Mountain MT in 1978).

Louisiana State's Pete Maravich, the NCAA's career scoring leader who had the highest output in a power-conference game this month (69 at Alabama in SEC play in 1970), wasn't the only prolific point producer in the Pelican State from the guard position. In February 1972, Southwestern Louisiana junior Dwight "Bo" Lamar erupted for 51 points in each of back-to-back Southland Conference road games at Louisiana Tech and Lamar during USL's inaugural season at the major-college level before the school changed its name to Louisiana-Lafayette. For the record, Maravich twice tallied more than 50 in back-to-back SEC contests away from home (end of junior campaign and midway through senior season). This month also featured a third still-existing single-game scoring record by an individual opponent when "Bo Knows (Scoring)" Lamar exploded for 62 points at Northeast Louisiana the previous campaign en route to becoming the only player in NCAA history to lead the nation in scoring average at both the college and university divisions.

Existing single-game scoring standards for Bradley (Hersey Hawkins) and Detroit (Archie Tullos) were set in the same February assignment in 1988. As for regal rebounding records, Alabama's Jerry Harper retrieved 28 missed shots in back-to-back SEC contests two days apart in February 1956 and Wayne Embry pulled down 34 boards in back-to-back games for Miami of Ohio in the same time frame the next year. Following is a day-by-day calendar citing memorable moments in February college basketball history:

FEBRUARY
1 - Arkansas State's Don Scaife (43 points vs. Northeast Louisiana in 1975), Coppin State's Fred Warrick (40 at Howard in 1999) and Tulane's Jim Kerwin (45 vs. Southeastern Louisiana in 1961) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . North Carolina State's school-record 38-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Maryland (98-97 in 1975). . . . Rudy Tomjanovich (30 vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1969) set Michigan's single-game rebounding record.
2 - Brown's Harry Platt (48 points vs. Northeastern in 1938) and Delaware State's Tom Davis (50 vs. Brooklyn in 1989) set school single-game scoring records at the Division I level. . . . Campbell's Clarence Grier (38 vs. Radford in 1987) and Central Arkansas' Nate Bowie (39 at Nicholls State in double overtime in 2008) set school single-game scoring records against a DI opponent. . . . In 2014, Oakland's Travis Bader set an NCAA Division I record for most career three-pointers, surpassing the previous mark of 457 established by Duke All-American J.J. Redick. . . . Arizona's Bob Elliott (25 vs. Arizona State in 1974) and Long Island's Carey Scurry (26 vs. Marist in 1983) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
3 - Buffalo's Mike Martinho (44 points vs. Rochester NY in 1998), Dayton's Donald Smith (52 at Loyola of Chicago in 1973), Grambling State's Brion Rush (53 vs. Southern in overtime in 2006), Portland State's Freeman Williams (81 vs. Rocky Mountain MT in 1978) and Wyoming's Joe Capua (51 vs. Montana in 1956) set school single-game scoring records. . . . Walt Lysaght (35 vs. North Carolina in 1953) set Richmond's single-game rebounding record.
4 - La Salle's Kareem Townes (52 points vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1995), Monmouth's Rahsaan Johnson (43 vs. St. Francis NY in 2001), Rhode Island's Tom Harrington (50 vs. Brandeis MA in 1959), South Carolina's John Roche (56 vs. Furman in 1971) and Western Michigan's Gene Ford (46 vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1969) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Dan Cramer (50 vs. Southern Mississippi in 1974) set Denver's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Illinois' school-record 33-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Penn State (66-65 in 2006). . . . Alabama's Jerry Harper (28 vs. Georgia Tech in 1956), Fordham's Ed Conlin (36 vs. Colgate in 1953), Georgia Tech's Eric Crake (27 vs. Georgia in 1953), South Carolina's Lee Collins (33 vs. The Citadel in 1956) and Wake Forest's Dickie Hemric (36 vs. Clemson in 1955) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
5 - Akron's Joe Jakubick (47 points vs. Murray State in 1983), East Tennessee State's Tom Chilton (52 vs. Austin Peay in 1961), Kent State's Dan Potopsky (49 vs. Western Michigan in 1955), Marquette's Mike Moran (44 vs. Creighton in 1958), Prairie View A&M's Paul Queen (46 vs. Alabama State in 1994) and Troy State's Detric Golden (45 at Jacksonville in 2000) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Yale's Brandon Sherrod extended his NCAA record of consecutive successful field-goal attempts to 30 covering five 2016 games before misfiring against Columbia. . . . Kenny Davis (25 vs. Arizona State in 1977) tied Arizona's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent. . . . Eventual MLB Hall of Fame OF Tony Gwynn (18 vs. UNLV in 1980) set San Diego State's single-game assists record against a DI opponent.
6 - Ernie McCray (46 points vs. Los Angeles State in 1960) set Arizona's single-game scoring record. . . . Southern Mississippi's John White (41 at Virginia Tech in double overtime in 1988) and Tulane's Calvin Grosscup (41 vs. Mississippi State in 1956) set school single-game scoring records against a major-college opponent. . . . Virginia Tech sophomore guard Bimbo Coles set Metro Conference single-game record with 51 points in a 141-133 double overtime victory against visiting Southern Mississippi in 1988. . . . Bradley's school-record 46-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Drake (86-76 in 1961). . . . Belmont erased an 18-point deficit with 3:22 remaining (75-57) to defeat Campbell, 87-84, in 2009. . . . Alabama's Jerry Harper (28 vs. Vanderbilt in 1956), American University's Kermit Washington (34 vs. Georgetown in 1971), West Virginia's Jerry West (31 vs. George Washington in 1960) and Wichita State's Terry Benton (29 vs. North Texas State in 1971) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
7 - Dartmouth's Jim Barton (48 points at Brown in overtime in 1987), Louisiana State's Pete Maravich (69 at Alabama in 1970) and South Dakota State's Nate Wolters (53 at IPFW in 2013) set school single-game scoring records. Maravich's output is also a SEC record in league competition. . . . Phil Hicks (41 at Samford in 1974) tied Tulane's single-game scoring record against a Division I opponent. . . . In 1976, Purdue (25) and Wisconsin (22) combined to convert all 47 of their free-throw attempts, an NCAA record for two teams in a single game. . . . Duquesne's Dick Ricketts (28 vs. Villanova in 1955) and Southern's Jervaughn Scales (32 vs. Grambling in 1994) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
8 - Cincinnati's Oscar Robertson (62 points vs. North Texas State in 1960) and UNC Charlotte's George Jackson (44 at Samford in 1975) set school single-game scoring records. Robertson's output is also a Missouri Valley Conference record in league competition. . . . Buzz Wilkinson (45 vs. North Carolina in 1954) set Virginia's single-game scoring record against a major-college opponent. . . . Iowa State's Melvin Ejim (48 vs. TCU in 2014) set Big 12 Conference single-game scoring mark in league competition. . . . Kentucky established an NCAA single-game record by grabbing 108 rebounds against Mississippi in 1964. . . . Wofford set an NCAA three-point percentage record (minimum of 20 attempts) by hitting 17-of-21 shots from beyond the arc (81% against VMI in 2016). . . . Niagara's school-record 51-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Syracuse (60-55 in 1950). . . . Boston College's Terry Driscoll (31 vs. Fordham in 1969), Davidson's Fred Hetzel (27 vs. Furman in 1964), Eastern Michigan's Kareem Carpenter (27 vs. Western Michigan in 1995), Harvard's Bob Canty (31 vs. Boston College in 1955), Marquette's Pat Smith (28 vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1967), Oklahoma City's Willie Watson (32 vs. Denver in 1969) and Seattle's John Tresvant (40 vs. Montana in 1963) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Gene Estes (24 vs. Oklahoma City in 1961) set Tulsa's single-game rebounding record against a major-college opponent. . . . Utah State All-American Wayne Estes, after scoring 48 points vs. Denver to eclipse the 2,000-point plateau, was electrocuted following a home game in 1965 when the 6-6 forward brushed against a downed high-power line upon stopping at the scene of an auto accident near campus. . . . Dayton center Chris Daniels, who finished the season as the nation's leader in field-goal shooting (68.3% in 1996), died because of a heart ailment.
9 - UALR's Carl Brown (46 points at Centenary in overtime in 1989), Butler's Darrin Fitzgerald (54 vs. Detroit in 1987), Canisius' Larry Fogle (55 vs. St. Peter's in 1974), Clemson's J.O. Erwin (58 vs. Butler Guards at Greenville in 1912), Colorado State's Bill Green (48 vs. Denver in 1963), Hofstra's Demetrius Dudley (44 vs. Central Connecticut State in 1993), Loyola of Chicago's Alfredrick Hughes (47 vs. Detroit in 1985) and Virginia Military's Jason Conley (42 at Western Carolina in overtime in 2002) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Brown's output is also an Atlantic Sun Conference record in league competition. . . . DePaul's Tom Kleinschmidt set the Great Midwest Conference single-game scoring record in league play with 37 points against UAB in 1994. . . . Charleston Southern's Tony Fairley set an NCAA single-game record with 22 assists against Armstrong State GA in 1987. . . . Dartmouth ended Penn's Ivy League-record 48-game winning streak in 1996 and Duke's school-record 46-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Maryland (98-87 in 2000). . . . Southern Mississippi's Wendell Ladner (32 vs. Pan American in 1970) and Syracuse's Frank Reddout (34 vs. Temple in 1952) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Canisius' Larry Fogle (22 vs. St. Peter's in 1974) and Idaho's Gus Johnson (31 vs. Oregon in 1963) set school single-game rebounding records against a major-college opponent.
10 - Massachusetts' Billy Tindall (41 points vs. Vermont in 1968), Morehead State's Brett Roberts (53 vs. Middle Tennessee State in 1992), Northeast Louisiana's Calvin Natt (39 vs. Northwestern State in 1977), Ohio State's Gary Bradds (49 vs. Illinois in 1964) and Larry Lewis of Saint Francis PA (46 vs. St. Vincent PA in 1969) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Detroit's school-record 39-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Wisconsin-Green Bay (65-61 in 2002), Oral Roberts' school-record 52-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Marshall (106-103 in 1973) and Virginia Commonwealth's school-record 33-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Virginia Tech (71-63 in 1978). . . . Georgetown's Charlie Adrion (29 vs. George Washington in 1968), Houston's Elvin Hayes (37 vs. Centenary in 1968) and Rider's Jason Thompson (24 vs. Siena in 2008) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Eventual Chicago White Sox RHP Dave DeBusschere scored a career-high 44 points for Detroit against Dayton in 1962.
11 - East Carolina's Oliver Mack (47 points vs. South Carolina-Aiken in 1978), Florida State's Ron King (46 at Georgia Southern in 1971), Hartford's Vin Baker (44 vs. Lamar in overtime in 1992), Southern California's John Block (45 vs. Washington in 1966) and Wisconsin-Green Bay's Tony Bennett (44 at Cleveland State in 1989) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Mal Graham (46 at Holy Cross in 1967) set New York University's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Morehead State (53) and Cincinnati (35) combined for an NCAA single-game record of 88 successful free throws in 1956. . . . Indiana State set an NCAA single-game record for most three-pointers without a miss by making all 12 attempts from beyond the arc (against Southern Illinois in 2012). . . . Weber State's school-record 44-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Idaho (68-67 in 1967). . . . Andrew Nicholson (23 vs. Duquesne in 2012) tied St. Bonaventure's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent.
12 - Marist's Izett Buchanan (51 points at Long Island University in 1994), Northern Iowa's Cam Johnson (40 at Drake in 1994) and Villanova's Paul Arizin (85 vs. Philadelphia NAMC in 1949) set school single-game scoring records. . . . Chris Rivers (40 vs. Canisius in 2001) set Fairfield's single-game scoring record against a Division I opponent. . . . Wake Forest's Len Chappell (50 vs. Virginia in 1962) set ACC single-game scoring record in league competition. . . . Gonzaga's school-record 50-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Santa Clara (84-73 in 2007). . . . Drake's Ken Harris (26 vs. Tulsa in 1977) and Navy's David Robinson (25 vs. Fairfield in 1986) set school single-game rebounding records.
13 - Boise State's Ron Austin (42 points vs. Montana in 1971), Colorado's Cliff Meely (47 vs. Oklahoma in 1971), Furman's Frank Selvy (NCAA-record 100 vs. Newberry SC in 1954), Portland's Matt Houle (43 vs. San Francisco in 1993) and San Francisco's Keith Jackson (47 at Loyola Marymount in 1988) set school single-game scoring records. . . . Alabama's Bob Andrews (46 vs. Tulane in 1965), East Carolina's Gus Hill (43 at Navy in 1988), UNC Asheville's Andrew Rousey (41 at Radford in 2014), San Jose State's Olivier Saint-Jean (37 at Air Force in 1997) and Virginia's Buzz Wilkinson (45 vs. Georgetown in 1954) set school single-game scoring records against a Division I opponent. . . . In 1985, Connecticut became the first school to be ranked No. 1 in the men's and women's national polls at the same time. . . . Syracuse's school-record 57-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Georgetown (52-50 in 1980). . . . Kentucky's Bill Spivey (34 vs. Xavier in 1951), New Mexico's Tom King (26 vs. Wyoming in 1960), Northwestern's Jim Pitts (29 vs. Indiana in 1965) and Western Michigan's Frank Ayers (25 vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1973) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Dan Roundfield (25 vs. Bowling Green State in 1974) set Central Michigan's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent.
14 - Auburn's John Mengelt (60 points vs. Alabama in 1970), Central Connecticut State's Kyle Vinales (42 at Wagner in 2013), Coppin State's Larry Stewart (40 vs. South Carolina State in 1991), Mount St. Mary's Sam Prescott (44 vs. Bryant in 2013), South Alabama's Eugene Oliver (46 at Southern Mississippi in 1974), Southwestern Louisiana's Bo Lamar (51 at Louisiana Tech in 1972) and Tennessee's Tony White (51 vs. Auburn in 1987) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Lamar's output also set a Southland Conference record in league competition. . . . Villanova's Larry Hennessy (45 vs. Boston College in 1953) and Virginia's Buzz Wilkinson (45 vs. Clemson in 1955) set school single-game scoring records against a DI opponent. . . . William & Mary's Bill Chambers, standing a mere 6-4, grabbed an NCAA-record 51 rebounds against Virginia on Valentine's Day in 1953. . . . Miami of Ohio's Wayne Embry (34 vs. Eastern Kentucky in 1957), Texas Tech's Jim Reed (27 vs. Texas in 1956), Wagner's Mike Aaman (23 vs. Fairleigh Dickinson in 2015) and West Virginia's Mack Isner (31 vs. Virginia Tech) set school single-game rebounding records against a major-college opponent. . . . Jacksonville junior-college recruit Artis Gilmore, the only player in major-college history to average more than 22 points and 22 rebounds per game in his career, had his only DI contest retrieving fewer than 10 missed shots (8 caroms at Loyola LA in 1970). . . . Massachusetts' school-record 33-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by George Washington (80-78 in 1995). . . . Kentucky's Adolph Rupp became the coach to compile 600 victories the fastest with a 71-52 win over Notre Dame at Chicago in 1959 (705 games in 27th season).
15 - Coastal Carolina's Tony Dunkin (43 points vs. UNC Asheville in 1993), Columbia's Leonard "Buck" Jenkins (47 at Harvard in 1991), Maryland-Baltimore County's Derell Thompson (43 at Towson State in 1992), Southwest Missouri State's Danny Moore (36 at Creighton in 1997) and Wake Forest's Charlie Davis (51 vs. American University in 1969) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Rasaun Young (39 vs. Northeastern Illinois in 1997) set Buffalo's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Kentucky tied an NCAA record by erasing a 31-point, second-half deficit at LSU (99-95 UK victory in 1994). . . . Princeton's Bill Bradley (51 points vs. Harvard in 1964) set Ivy League scoring record in conference competition. . . . Oregon State ended UCLA's Pacific-8 Conference-record 50-game winning streak (61-57 in 1974). . . . Kentucky's Adolph Rupp became the coach to compile 400 victories the fastest with a 90-50 win over Mississippi in 1950 (477 games in 20th season). . . . Kansas' Wilt Chamberlain (36 vs. Iowa State in 1958), Oregon State's Swede Halbrook (36 vs. Idaho in 1955) and Rice's Joe Durrenberger (30 vs. Baylor in 1955) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Paul Millsap (29 vs. San Jose State in 2006) set Louisiana Tech's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent. . . . Eventual MLB All-Star RHP Sonny Siebert scored a career-high 31 points for Missouri against Oklahoma in 1958.
16 - Illinois' Dave Downey (53 points at Indiana in 1963), Tennessee Tech's Jimmy Hagan (48 vs. East Tennessee State in 1959) and Texas-Pan American's Marshall Rogers (58 vs. Texas Lutheran in 1976) set school single-game scoring records. . . . Wichita State ended Cincinnati's school-record 37-game winning streak (65-64 in 1963) and South Carolina's school-record 34-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Notre Dame (72-68 in 1974). . . . Cincinnati's Connie Dierking (33 vs. Loyola New Orleans in 1957), Miami of Ohio's Wayne Embry (34 vs. Kent State in 1957), NYU's Cal Ramsey (34 vs. Boston College in 1957) and Texas Christian's Goo Kennedy (28 vs. Arkansas in 1971) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Texas-El Paso's Jim Barnes (27 vs. Hardin-Simmons in 1963) and Pittsburgh's DeJuan Blair (23 vs. Connecticut in 2009) set single-game rebounding records against major-college opponents. . . . Eventual 13-year N.L. LHP Joe Gibbon grabbed a career-high 24 rebounds for Mississippi against Georgia in 1957.
17 - George Washington's Joe Holup (49 points vs. Furman in 1956), Holy Cross' Jack Foley (56 vs. Connecticut in 1962) and Southwestern Louisiana's Bo Lamar (51 at Lamar in 1972) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Lamar's output tied his own Southland Conference record in league competition. . . . Antoine Gillespie (45 at Hawaii in 1994) set Texas-El Paso's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Dartmouth's school-record 38-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Army (44-36 in 1940). . . . Fresno State's Larry Abney (35 vs. Southern Methodist in 2000), Loyola of Chicago's LaRue Martin (34 vs. Valparaiso in 1971) and Toledo's Ned Miklovic (27 vs. Ohio University in 1958) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent. Abney's total is the highest among all schools at the DI level since 1973.
18 - Evansville's Scott Haffner (65 points vs. Dayton in 1989) and Samford's Jonathan Pixley (39 vs. Mercer in 1995) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Haffner's output is also a Horizon League record in conference competition. . . . Gonzaga's Adam Morrison (44 at Loyola Marymount in 2006) and Portland State's Freeman Williams (50 at UNLV in 1978) set school single-game scoring records against a DI opponent. . . . Gonzaga and Loyola Marymount each scored 86 points after intermission in 1989 to set an NCAA record for highest offensive output in a half by both teams (172). . . . Louisiana State's school-record 42-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Mississippi (23-22 in 1921). . . . Florida's Jim Zinn (31 vs. Mississippi in 1957), New Orleans' Ervin Johnson (27 vs. Lamar in 1993), Penn's Barton Leach (32 vs. Harvard in 1955), Southern Illinois' Joe C. Meriweather (27 vs. Indiana State in 1974) and Xavier's Bob Pelkington (31 vs. St. Francis PA in 1964) set school single-game rebounding records.
19 - Delaware's Liston Houston (52 points vs. Lebanon Valley PA in 1910), Liberty's Matt Hildebrand (41 vs. Charleston Southern in 1994), Longwood's Tristan Carey (40 vs. Liberty in 2013), Marquette's Tony Smith (44 at Wisconsin in 1990), Mississippi Valley State's Alphonso Ford (51 vs. Texas Southern in overtime in 1990), Northeastern's Reggie Lewis (41 vs. Siena in 1986), Oral Roberts' Anthony Roberts (66 vs. North Carolina A&T in 1977), Stetson's Mel Daniels (48 vs. UNC Wilmington in 1977) and Texas Tech's Dub Malaise (50 at Texas in 1966) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Bobby Mantz (44 vs. Lehigh in 1958) set Lafayette's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Holy Cross' Rob Feaster (46 vs. Navy in overtime in 1994) set Patriot League scoring record in conference competition. . . . Creighton's Paul Silas (38 vs. Centenary in 1962), Northern Illinois' Jim Bradley (31 vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1973) and Purdue's Carl McNulty (27 vs. Minnesota in 1951) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Cedric "Cornbread" Maxwell (24 vs. Seton Hall in 1977) set Charlotte's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent.
20 - Baylor's Vinnie Johnson (50 points vs. Texas Christian in 1979), Idaho State's Willie Humes (53 at Montana State in 1971), Illinois State's Robert "Bubbles" Hawkins (58 vs. Northern Illinois in 1974), San Diego State's Anthony Watson (54 vs. U.S. International in 1986) and South Carolina State's Jackie Robinson (40 at Morgan State in 1993) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Humes' output is also a Big Sky Conference record in league competition. . . . Delaware State's Tom Davis (47 vs. Florida A&M in 1989) set MEAC scoring record in league competition at DI level. . . . Art Stephenson (28 vs. Brown in 1968) set Rhode Island's single-game rebounding record. . . . Kansas' 28-17 victory at Drake in 1924 triggered an NCAA-record 35-game road winning streak.
21 - Boston College's John Austin (49 points vs. Georgetown in 1964), Rutgers' Eric Riggins (51 vs. Penn State in double overtime in 1987) and Virginia Tech's Allan Bristow (52 vs. George Washington in 1973) set school single-game scoring records. Riggins' output is also an Atlantic 10 Conference record in league competition. . . . Earl Boykins (45 vs. Western Michigan in 1998) set Eastern Michigan's single-game scoring record against a Division I opponent. . . . LSU's Pete Maravich (64) and Kentucky's Dan Issel (51) each scored more than 50 points in the same game in 1970. . . . UCLA's 98-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Oregon (65-45 in 1976). . . . Clemson's Tommy Smith (30 vs. Georgia in 1955) and North Carolina's Rusty Clark (30 vs. Maryland in 1968) set school single-game rebounding records.
22 - Bradley's Hersey Hawkins (63 points at Detroit in 1988), California's Ed Gray (48 at Washington State in 1997), Detroit's Archie Tullos (49 vs. Bradley in 1988), Manhattan's Bob Mealy (51 vs. CCNY in 1960), Missouri-Kansas City's Michael Watson (Summit League-record 54 at Oral Roberts in double overtime in 2003), Oklahoma State's Bob Kurland (58 vs. St. Louis in 1946) and Oregon State's Gary Payton Sr. (58 vs. Southern California in overtime in 1990) set school single-game scoring records. . . . Appalachian State's Junior Braswell (43 at Davidson in 1997), High Point's Nick Barbour (44 vs. Campbell in 2012), Long Island's Antawn Dobie (53 vs. St. Francis NY in 2003) and Mississppi State's Bailey Howell (45 vs. Louisiana State in 1958) set school single-game scoring records against a Division I opponent. Dobie's output is also a Northeast Conference record in league competition. . . . Nebraska stunned Wilt Chamberlain-led Kansas, 43-41, in 1958 to avenge a 56-point defeat four games earlier. . . . Memphis' school-record 47-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Tennessee (66-62 in 2008). . . . Massachusetts' Julius Erving (32 vs. Syracuse in 1971) and Mississippi's Ivan Richmann (25 vs. Tulane in 1958) set school single-game rebounding records. . . . Hakim Shahid (25 vs. Jacksonville in 1990) set South Florida's single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent.
23 - Boston University's Jim Hayes (47 points vs. Springfield MA in 1970), Illinois-Chicago's Cedrick Banks (39 vs. Wright State in 2005), Indiana's Jimmy Rayl (56 vs. Michigan State in 1963), Louisiana Tech's Mike McConathy (47 vs. Lamar in 1976), Miami's Rick Barry (59 vs. Rollins FL in 1965), Providence's Marshon Brooks (52 vs. Notre Dame in 2011) and Texas Southern's Harry "Machine Gun" Kelly (60 vs. Jarvis Christian TX in 1983) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Brooks' output is also a Big East Conference record in league competition. . . . Los Angeles State's Raymond Lewis set Pacific Coast Athletic Association (now Big West) single-game scoring record with 53 points vs. Long Beach State in double overtime in 1973. . . . Kentucky's Adolph Rupp became the coach to compile 700 victories the fastest with a 99-79 win over Auburn at Montgomery in 1964 (836 games in 32nd season). . . . Jimmie Baker (26 vs. San Francisco in 1973) set UNLV's single-game rebounding record before transferring to Hawaii. . . . Eventual 13-year N.L. LHP Joe Gibbon scored a career-high 46 points for Mississippi against Louisiana State in 1957.
24 - Alcorn State's DeCarlos Anderson (41 points vs. Southern in 1996), Florida A&M's Jerome James (38 at Delaware State in overtime in 1997), Houston's Elvin Hayes (62 vs. Valparaiso in 1968), Iowa's John Johnson (49 vs. Northwestern in 1970), Northwestern's Rich Falk (49 vs. Iowa in 1964), St. Bonaventure's Bob Lanier (51 vs. Seton Hall in 1969) and Utah's Billy McGill (60 at Brigham Young in 1962) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . East Tennessee State's Tom Chilton (47 vs. Western Kentucky in 1961) and Ohio University's Dave Jamerson (52 at Kent State in 1990) set school single-game scoring records against a DI opponent. . . . Washington & Lee's Jay Handlan had an NCAA-record 71 field-goal attempts vs. Furman in 1951. . . . Alabama A&M's Mickell Gladness set an NCAA single-game record with 16 blocked shots against Texas Southern in 2007. . . . Temple's school-record 33-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by West Virginia (64-61 in 1987). . . . Ed Corell (30 vs. Oregon in 1962) set Washington's single-game rebounding record.
25 - Austin Peay's Bubba Wells (43 points vs. Morehead State in 1997 quarterfinals) set Ohio Valley Conference Tournament single-game scoring record. . . . Alabama A&M's Desmond Cambridge (50 at Texas Southern in 2002), Central Florida's Jermaine Taylor (45 vs. Rice in 2009), Cleveland State's Frank Edwards (49 at Xavier in 1981), Indiana State's Larry Bird (49 vs. Wichita State in 1979), Texas' Raymond Downs (49 at Baylor in 1956) and William & Mary's Jeff Cohen (49 vs. Richmond in 1961) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Lew Alcindor (61 vs. Washington State in 1967) set UCLA and Pac-12 Conference single-game scoring record. . . . Jim Christy (44 at Maryland in 1964) set Georgetown's single-game scoring record against a DI opponent. . . . Southwestern Louisiana's Sydney Grider set the American South Conference single-game scoring record in league competition (40 vs. Louisiana Tech in 1989). . . . St. Bonaventure's 99-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Niagara (87-77 in 1961). . . . Appalachian State's Tony Searcy (23 vs. The Citadel in 1978), Memphis' Ronnie Robinson (28 vs. Tulsa in 1971) and Northern Iowa's Jason Reese (21 vs. Illinois-Chicago in 1989) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
26 - Denver's Matt Teahan (61 points vs. Nebraska Wesleyan in 1979), Florida Atlantic's Earnest Crumbley (39 vs. Campbell in 2004), Richmond's Bob McCurdy (53 vs. Appalachian State in double overtime in 1975), San Diego's Mike Whitmarsh (37 at Loyola Marymount in 1983), Texas' Slater Martin (49 vs. Texas Christian in 1949), Western Illinois' Joe Dykstra (37 vs. Eastern Illinois in 1983) and Yale's Tony Lavelli (52 vs. Williams MA in 1949) set school Division I single-game scoring records. . . . Kansas' Isaac "Bud" Stallworth set Big Eight Conference single-game scoring record with 50 vs. Missouri in 1972. . . . New Mexico's school-record 41-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Brigham Young (83-62 in 1998). . . . Cornell's George Farley (26 vs. Brown in 1960), Old Dominion's Clifton Jones (23 vs. UNC Wilmington in 2001), Rutgers' George "Swede" Sundstrom (30 vs. Army in 1954) and Saint Joseph's Cliff Anderson (32 vs. La Salle in 1967) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent.
27 - Bowling Green's Jim Darrow (52 points vs. Marshall in 1960), George Mason's Carlos Yates (42 vs. Navy in 1985), Georgetown's Jim Barry (46 at Fairleigh Dickinson in 1965), San Diego's Marty Munn (37 vs. Loyola Marymount in 1988), Texas State's J.B. Conley (42 at Northwestern State in 2010) and Towson's Devin Boyd (46 at Maryland-Baltimore County in double overtime in 1993) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Darrow's output is also a Mid-American Conference record and Boyd's output is a Big South Conference record in league competition. . . . Houston's Robert McKiver (52 vs. Southern Mississippi in 2008) set C-USA scoring record in league competition. . . . Connecticut's Toby Kimball (34 vs. New Hampshire in 1965), Maryland's Len Elmore (26 vs. Wake Forest in 1974) and Tulsa's Michael Ruffin (24 vs. Texas Christian in 1997) set school single-game rebounding records against a DI opponent. . . . Holy Cross' school-record 47-game homecourt winning streak snapped by Connecticut (78-77 in 1954).
28 - Xavier's Byron Larkin (45 points vs. Loyola of Chicago in 1986 semifinals) set Horizon League Tournament single-game scoring record. . . . Air Force's Bob Beckel (50 vs. Arizona in 1959), Army's Kevin Houston (53 vs. Fordham in overtime of MAAC Tournament opener in 1987), Long Island's Sherman White (63 vs. John Marshall in 1950), Northern Illinois' Paul Dawkins (47 at Western Michigan in overtime in 1979) and Purdue's Rick Mount (61 vs. Iowa in 1970) set school Division I single-game scoring records. Houston's output is also a MAAC Tournament single-game record and Mount's output is a Big Ten Conference record in league competition. . . . The first basketball game telecast occurred when W2XBS carried a doubleheader from Madison Square Garden in 1940 (Pittsburgh vs. Fordham and NYU vs. Georgetown). . . . Ron Weilert (21 vs. Tulane in 1970) set Air Force single-game rebounding record against a DI opponent. . . . Eventual MLB All-Star 1B Joe Adcock contributed 15 field goals for Louisiana State in a first-round victory against Tulane in 1946 SEC Tournament.
29 - Tony Miller (54 points vs. Chicago State in 1972) set Florida's single-game scoring record. . . . Paul Marigney (40 vs. Pepperdine in 2004) tied Saint Mary's single-game scoring record against a major-college opponent. . . . Pittsburgh's school-record 40-game homecourt winning streak was snapped by Syracuse (49-46 in 2004). . . . Bernie Janicki (31 vs. North Carolina in 1952) set Duke's single-game rebounding record. . . . Eventual eight-time N.L. All-Star SS Dick Groat scored a career-high 48 points for Duke against North Carolina in 1952.

Memorable Moments in January College Basketball History
Memorable Moments in December College Basketball History
Memorable Moments in November College Basketball History

Arizona's 49-game homecourt winning string was snapped by Oregon earlier this season. But the Wildcats were years away from approaching their all-time school standard of 81 consecutive victories at home in the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Numerous prominent programs have failed to come close to 49, let alone 81. Did you know power-conference members Arizona State, Baylor, Butler, California, Clemson, Colorado, Creighton, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Iowa, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, Miami FL, Michigan, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oregon, Oregon State, Rutgers, Southern California, Stanford, Texas, Texas Christian, Vanderbilt, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest and Washington State never have won as many as 30 consecutive home contests? Maryland had a chance to reach 30 by the end of this regular season before Wisconsin became the first Big Ten Conference member to prevail at UM in league competition since the Terrapins joined the loop by breaking their school-record 27-game homecourt winning streak. Oregon probably is the best bet to become the next power-league member to reach 30 straight triumphs at home.

Which opponents broke school-record home-court winning streaks of at least 30 games? Oddly, more than half of the aforementioned power-league schools are in this category, including Texas on three occasions (ended school-record HC streaks for Arkansas, Kansas and Texas A&M). This season, Old Dominion snapped Louisiana Tech's 39-game homecourt winning streak a week before the Monarchs had their 32-game string ended by UAB. Following is an alphabetical list including schools already crossing the 30-game homecourt winning streak threshold: