LSU women's basketball team faces difficult three-team tournament

BATON ROUGE -- The LSU Lady Tigers (2-3) know they have a lot of work to do to get back on track for the World Vision Classic this weekend.

LSU will travel to Connecticut to take on three teams in three days. They'll play Lehigh (1-3) on Friday, Howard (2-3) on Saturday and then face off with No. 1 Connecticut (3-0) on Sunday. Lehigh and LSU both are coming off heartbreaking losses, LSU to Tulane and Lehigh to Villanova. LSU took Tulane down to the wire but lost 54-52, and Lehigh fell to Villanova 69-68 in overtime.
After Lehigh and Howard, the Lady Tigers will face the reigning national champion Huskies. Connecticut is on an 81-game winning streak, and looking to break the UCLA men's team's record streak of 88 consecutive wins.
"They're good. It's a great opportunity, you know, to get a chance to play UConn and knock them off their streak, but I just say we take a game at a time," said LSU forward Taylor Turnbow. "So when we get to it, we get to it."

CBE Preview: Duke vs. Kansas State

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Sometimes, everything goes according to plan.

Sure, Gonzaga and Marquette fans -- who watched their teams lose to Kansas State and Duke, respectively, Monday night -- might not be feeling the pre-ordained big-game love. (Gonzaga fans in particular are likely feeling a dearth of enthusiasm at this point. Tough start for the Zags, huh?) But pretty much everyone else will, because the Wildcats' and Blue Devils' wins in the CBE Classic semifinals set up the best early-season tournament matchup in recent memory.

When you looked at the holiday tournament schedules -- and if you're like us, you scoured those things like a "Lost" fan hunting for dead-end clues to whatever silly plot twist that show threw at you next -- it was the prospective match up that stuck out most, and now it's here: Tuesday night, we get to watch No. 1 Duke and No. 4 Kansas State, two of college hoops' most serious national title contenders, play in front of a raucous Kansas State crowd in a gleaming new arena in downtown Kansas City. Short of March Madness, college hoops doesn't get much better than this.

College basketball history of the Illini

When Elwood Brown walked onto the hardwood in 1906 to coach the first University of Illinois basketball game, most spectators still considered horse racing and boxing to be superior sports. Today, the notion is laughable to more than one million faithful Illini fans. Since finishing 6-8 in that inaugural season, Illinois has won 866 more times. The blue-and-orange also won the majority of the affairs. Heading into the 2010 season, Illinois possesses an all-time record of 871-626, which correlates to a .582 winning percentage.

The past 104 years boasted much in terms of historical milestones, and the team celebrated its long tradition of excellence in 2006, the program's centennial. The celebration featured the return of a host of past stars in addition to some of the most successful coaches in college basketball history.

In all, Illinois has had 16 different head coaches. Two, though, hold a special place in the hearts of Illinois fans. In 1948, Harry Combes arrived on campus to lead the team. He replaced J. Craig Ruby. Combes led the team to 316 wins over 20 seasons. Illinois won the Big Ten Conference title four times and finished second three times during Combes' era. Two of the young men who played for Combes went on to enjoy even more notoriety among basketball fans in the state. Johnny "Red" Kerry

Basketball Union Head Billy Hunter Says NBA Lockout Likely

NY, NY, United States (AHN) - National Basketball Players Association executive Billy Hunter made a bold statement Tuesday, saying a lockout looks inevitable next season.

Hunter, 67, virtually guaranteed a work stoppage in 2011 unless NBA owners and officials change their stance on several labor issues, including player’s salaries and benefits.

“I’d be 99 percent sure as of today that there will be a lockout, Hunter told New York Times Monday.

Hunter stated he already advised players to start saving money in case a work stoppage happens next year.