JONESBORO, Ark. – The
Pioneers are running through shoot around in the Convocation Center at Arkansas
State, while the weather outside the building is cold and rainy. The team flew
into Little Rock yesterday afternoon and bussed a little more than two hours to
Jonesboro in northeastern Arkansas.
The season is in its final stretch with three games
remaining. While the coaches want the players to focus on continuing to improve
and winning games, those of us at the scorer’s table are gazing at the Sun Belt
standings, trying to figure out who Denver will be playing and where in the
first round of the SBC Tournament.
The top team in each division, along with the team with the
third best record regardless of division, receive a bye in the first round. The
teams with the next five best records host the remaining five teams. The No. 4
seeded team hosts No. 13. No. 5 hosts No. 12, and so on. The teams with the
byes and the winners of the first round games advance to the quarterfinals in
Hot Springs, Ark. Western Kentucky (12-3), UALR (12-3) and Troy (12-4) seem to
have the byes wrapped up.
With an 11-2 record at Magness Arena, the Pioneers (7-8) are
working for one of those home games in the first round, and as of now DU is in
line for the seventh seed. However, North Texas (9-6), South Alabama (9-7) and
Middle Tennessee (8-7) are all within striking distance. Meanwhile, Florida
International (6-9), Louisiana-Lafayette (6-9) and New Orleans (6-10) are not
fall behind the Pioneers.
Clearly, there is a high likelihood of ties in the
standings. The first tie-breaker is the record between the teams that are tied.
If the teams split their meetings, the second tie breaker is the records
against the No. 1 seed, followed by the No. 2 seed and so on, until the tie is
broken.
Needless to say, the Pioneers are looking for more wins so
that the tie-breakers become irrelevant.
About Jonesboro: Thanks
to loyal reader Steve Honda, we learned this week that Jonesboro was once the
home to Bartleby Clown College. Apparently from 1952-59, the clown college
operated in Jonesboro, which was convenient due to its many railroad
connections. According to Wikipedia, which of course is the leading resource
for clown college information, “The loss of Arkansas [sic] only clown college
disappointed many in the industry.” There was no clarification about whether
that was the clown industry or the clown teaching industry.
Yearly travel totals:
Total Flights – 20
Total Mileage Flown
– 19,764
Total Bus Miles –
1,701
Total Number of Hotels – 16
Total Number of
Different Airports – 14
Total Number of
Airline Delays – 1
Total Number of
Cancelled Flights – 1
Total Number of Bags
Lost – 3
Total Number of Consecutive
Weeks DU flew through the Little Rock Airport – 3
Total Number of Years
Kyle Lewis has been alive – 20 (Happy Birthday, Kyle)
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