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The Breakfast Buffet: Tobin Anderson, the Big East’s roster of head coaches is elite, Bobby Hurley

Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, the morning column on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.

Mangia!

Things To Sample

Tobin Anderson had a week to remember
Seven days ago, Anderson led FDU to a win in the First Four over Texas Southern. Two days after that, he led the Knights to a victory over top-seeded Purdue in what was arguably the biggest upset in the history of the NCAA Tournament. Today, he’s the head coach of Iona. That’s a heck of a week for a guy who was the head coach of St. Thomas Aquinas (Division II) a year ago.

The Big East’s roster of head coaches is elite
Eight of the 10 sitting head coaches in this league have taken programs to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. Three of them — Rick Pitino (St. John’s), Thad Matta (Butler), and Shaka Smart (Marquette) — have taken programs to the Final Four while both Sean Miller (Xavier) and Shaheen Holloway (Seton Hall) have advanced to the Elite Eight. Those are some impressive credentials. Many wondered how this conference would survive as a basketball centric entity, but it’s done nothing except flourish. Three Big East teams — Xavier, Creighton, and UConn — are still playing in the NCAA Tournament.

Arizona State did the right thing by extending Bobby Hurley
The news broke on Tuesday night that the Sun Devils were rewarding Hurley with a two-year contract extension after he guided Arizona State to the NCAA Tournament for the third time during his tenure. How long has it been since Arizona State played in three of five NCAA Tournaments? It last happened in the 1960s. Hurley has found his niche in Tempe and is set to return several key players next season who were integral parts of this year’s team that beat Nevada in the First Four and nearly picked off TCU a few days later in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

On The Side

  • Michigan State’s Tom Izzo is making his 15th Sweet 16 appearance in the last 25 seasons — that’s utterly ridiculous.
  • UCLA’s first two opponents in the NCAA Tournament — UNC Asheville and Northwestern — have shot a combined 37.2 percent from the field. Meanwhile, Gonzaga — the Bruins’ opponent in the Sweet 16 — has shot an average of 49.2 percent from the field in its first two NCAA Tournament games. Something’s gotta give on Thursday night in Las Vegas.
  • Sean Miller has a career record of 4-3 in the Sweet 16 entering Friday night’s game against Texas in Kansas City.
  • UConn’s Andre Jackson has 14 assists to just three turnovers in two NCAA Tournament games. The 6-6 junior is also averaging eight points and 5.5 rebounds during that span.
  • Providence is zeroing in on George Mason’s Kim English to be its next head basketball coach, multiple sources told College Hoops Today. Barring something unforeseen, an official announcement could come in the next few days.

Leftovers