Could there be a brand new No. 1 in our updated Rivals150 rankings?


Find out at 12ET today and chat all about the rankings with our basketball analyst Eric Bossi at 2 ET for FREE here:



Updated Rivals150 rankings

GBK staff - thanks for taking the time to keep basketball on the radar. There is no reason to believe anything other than this program will take another step forward this winter the question is how big will the step be. My hopes remain modest - a winning season and 7 win season in league play ( .500) and win a first round game in league tournement play. If Ella Ellis just duplicates his play from last year and natural maturation of last year's team occurs, that should be worth 3-4 alone. Expect tour best season in 30 or so years in 2012-13 season. Suggest you all make an effort to catch a game !

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Weather Moves Game Time Between Black Knights and Cavaliers

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Because of heavy storms in the area, Friday's game time between Army and Virginia at the NCAA Charlottesville Regional has been moved to 11 a.m.

The fourth-seeded Black Knights (41-13) were set to face the top-seeded Cavaliers (38-17-1) in the afternoon in the opening game but weather has necessitated bumping the game to 11 a.m. The #2 Oklahoma and #3 Appalachian State contest is now set for 3 p.m.

Army held its final practice on Thursday, followed by a press conference.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. ?- Fans who can't make the trip to Virginia to cheer on the Army baseball team will have plenty of options to follow all of the action.

As the Black Knights embark on their fifth NCAA appearance .... there will be radio coverage of all of the Army games as well as the Army Baseball Regional Roundup on Thursday evening, will be offered in the Hudson Valley on WALL 1340 AM or WEOK 1390 AM and on-line at goARMYsports.com free of charge.

Army (41-13) drew the Charlottesville, Va., Regional, and will play top-seeded Virginia (38-17-1) in the opening game of the regional at 4 p.m. on Friday. #2 Oklahoma (38-22) and #3 Appalachian State (39-16) will meet in the other opening-round game at 8 p.m.

NCAA and host University of Virginia will provide Game Tracker for all of the games. They can be accessed at www.goARMYsports.com by clicking on the baseball schedule.

Army and Virginia have met five times previously, and the Cavaliers own a 3-1-1 advantage in the all-time series. The two schools have not squared off since 1913. Army and Appalachian State faced each other in 2006, with the Mountaineers taking both games (11-8 and 4-2). The Black Knights and Sooners have never met on the baseball diamond.

The 64 teams in the NCAA field will open play Friday, June 1, at 16 regional sites across the country. The winners of each of the 16 regionals advance to the best-of-three Super Regionals, taking place June 8-11. The eight Super Regional winners travel to the College World Series to be held June 15-26 at TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Neb.

CHARLOTTESVILLE REGIONAL SCHEDULE
Friday, June 1
Game 1: #1 Virginia vs. #4 Army - 4 p.m.
Game 2: #2 Oklahoma vs. #3 Appalachian State - 8 p.m.

Saturday, June 2
Game 3: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 - 1 p.m.
Game 4: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 - 6 p.m.

Sunday, June 3
Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4 - 1 p.m.
Game 6: Regional Championship Game (Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 5) - 6 p.m.

Monday, June 4
Game 7: Second Regional Championship Game (Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 6) - 6 p.m.
**Played if Game 5 winner wins Game 6**

Senior Becomes Fourth Straight Army Player to Earn the Honor

CENTER VALLEY, Pa. - Army senior standout Zach Price added another award to his burgeoning career resume on Wednesday as the Black Knights' second baseman was selected as the Patriot League Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year.

Price, who was also named to the Academic All-Patriot League Team for the second year in a row, was recently selected to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 1 Baseball Team. In addition, he was named to the All-Patriot League first team for the third time in his career on Tuesday.

It marks the fourth consecutive season that an Army baseball player has won the conference's top academic award, the longest run by any school in the 22-year history of the Patriot League. It also signifies the eighth time an Army player has been named Patriot League Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the most of any conference school.

This season, Price leads the Patriot League with 44 runs scored, ranks third in the conference with 60 base hits and 14 stolen bases, and lists fifth in the league with a .323 batting average, a .426 on-base percentage and 25 walks.

Price currently ranks second all-time at Army with 167 runs scored, fifth in Academy history with 231 career base hits and sixth with 49 stolen bases. The Patriot League's all-time walks leader (123), Price is a three-time all-conference selection. The Cantonment, Fla., native earned first-team honors as a freshman, junior and senior, while winning Patriot League Rookie of the Year honors in 2009.

One of Army's co-captains, Price maintains a 3.732 grade point average in systems engineering. He has been named to the Dean's List every semester since arriving at the Academy. Price has also been tabbed a Distinguished Cadet following each semester for maintaining a GPA of 3.67 or higher.

Price has earned a spot on the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll following each of his first three seasons at the Academy.

Bill Mullee was the first Black Knight to be presented with the award, taking home the hardware in 1996. Mike Scioletti followed by winning the honor in both 1997 and 1998. Schuyler Williamson became the third different Army player to earn the accolade when he won it in 2004. Tyler Anderegg captured the honor in 2009, and Ben Koenigsfeld earned it in both 2010 and 2011.

To be eligible for the Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year award, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 cumulative grade point average and be a starter or key player in his or her sport. Freshmen are not eligible for the honor.

The Patriot League Scholar-Athlete of the Year for each individual sport comprises the pool of nominees for the Patriot League Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards, which will be announced this summer. One male and one female are selected for the honor.

Army (37-12) returns to action May 12-13 when the top-seeded Black Knights host fourth-seeded Lafayette (14-35-1) in a best-of-three Patriot League Tournament semifinal series at West Point's Doubleday Field. Second-seeded Holy Cross will host third-seeded Navy in the other semifinal series.

The winners of those semifinal matchups will advance to the Patriot League Championship Series the following weekend (May 19-20). The winner of the best-of-three Patriot League Championship Series will earn the conference's automatic berth in the NCAA Regionals. Army captured Patriot League championships in 1997, 2000, 2004, 2005 and 2009.

Army Hurler Tossed Fourth No-Hitter in Academy History Last Weekend

WEST POINT, N.Y. - The weekly accolades continue to pile up for Army senior LHP Logan Lee, who was named the CollegeBaseballInsider.com Northeast Pitcher of the Week on Thursday.

Lee has picked up a slew of national and regional honors this week after tossing Army's first no-hitter since 1957 in the Black Knights' 8-0 victory over Bucknell last Saturday. The Laguna Niguel, Calif., native became just the fourth Army pitcher in the storied history of the program to throw a no-hitter, joining Bob Neyland (1914), Rod Vitty (1955) and John Rindfleisch (1957).

The fourth-year hurler struck out seven batters and carried a perfect game into the seventh inning for the second week in a row. He retired the first 18 Bucknell batters of the contest, before walking the leadoff hitter in the seventh. Lee then retired the next three batters in order to complete Army's first no-hitter in 55 years.

Lee, who boasts a 5-1 record to go along with a 3.53 earned run average, is in the midst of his best season since arriving at West Point. He lists second on the team with three complete-game shutouts, and his 41 strikeouts rank third on the club.

Army (33-10, 16-0 PL) will close out its Patriot League regular-season schedule this weekend (April 28-29) when the Black Knights travel to Worcester, Mass., to face Holy Cross.

Army had the deck stacked against them. Apparently nobody told this gritty group that. As it's another year, another star for the Black Knights.

Army-Navy Baseball Recap

In bullets:
- Open with losses to Air Force ( OK), and Citadel ( Bad) - struggled early losing winnable games - NJIT and Marist being particularly painful.

- Enter League play projected as last place team. Sweep both Navy & Colgate who had 2 wins combined in league play - against each other !!! ( Colgate won both).
- Nice upset win at Holy Cross provided one more win in league that last year and 6th in conference ( up from 8th).

- 9 of 10 league losses ( including tournement) by double digits and most all those games were not close.

- Won one more game overall vs. 2011 schedule.

- Still very young but most team in the league have lots of returning starters . American always seems to bring an impact player in leaving a big conference school. Lafayeete losing 3 key contributors. Pretty youthful league otherwise - Bucknell looks especially stacked.

- How many underclassmen will return , especially out of this year's freshman class and who's in the pipeline that can impact in 2012-13 ? A rebound with some size and touch would be very significant, but very hard to find. Rumor suggests a strong contigent may be on the way but where are minutes going to come from ?

- Navy will remain down from all indications given the HUGE loss of J.J. Avila. We will need to put our foot on their throats.

- A similar soft schedule out of conference like this year, and a great majority of minutes returning suggests a 15-17 win season may in line with goal of 6-8 , 7-7 in league play.

- Dream season - 18 wins and playing in Patriot League Championship. Win or lose, that would be the biggest year in 35-40 years.

This may sound simple, but I'm switching over to Verizon and want to ensure that I'm receiving quality online access (e.g., speed, etc.).

What are some typical questions that I should ask?

The B-Ballers have officially met and exceeded my league play expectations. I would have to go back but this may be the first time Army has swept the seasonal 2 game series against 2 league foes ( Navy and Colgate). The team continues to grow and the future is looking brighter.

At 5-6 in league play, the Black Knights have secured no lower than a 6th place finish which eclispes last season's last place finish and 4-10 record. If you recall, Army was an all but unamimous pick to finish last again this season.

When sizing up the Patriot League, it would be surprise from this observer if anyone other than Bucknell & Lehigh end up in the conference championship game and auto bid to the NCAA tournement. What I see is 4 very clear quartile's in the league - 1st - Bucknell & Lehigh 2nd - American and Lafayette. 3rd - Holy Cross & Army and holding up the rear Colgate and Navy. League play has not been all that exciting as more than half of all games have been decided by double digits. Every one of Army's losses have come by 12 or more . 3 of the 5 wins have been by 12 or more. That's how it's gone all season. The only possible blimp on the scale might be between Lafayette and Holy Cross. The Crusaders have picked it up a notch and seem to be playing to expected form. For Army to earn a home game, it would take wins in 2 of the final 3 with the best chances coming agaist American today and Holy Cross on Wednesday. ( Our final game is at Lehigh - very unlikely "W"). Winning both home tilts would be more than impressive. It would mean Army would be .500 in league play for the first time ever in the Patriot League which encompasses over 20 years. It could also allow for the team's 2nd home game ever in the conference tournement.

When all is said an done, the program is moving forward but still a second class citizen in this league. A win today could help change that perception with more than a few Patriot League observers. PS - Ella Ellis is looking very good in his bid to make 1st team all-league.

My father, who was Class of '68, passed away, and I had to clean out his office of his artwork. One of his prints is a signed and numbered Ben Maile '89 print, The Long Gray Line. This print also includes the West Point seal, and it is framed. It is valued up to $7000, but I need to make room in my house, because it is big and takes up space. I am asking for $4000 OBO. Email me if you are interested. aggiemustang2001@yahoo.com

The young Black Knight ballers are meeting my modest 2011-12 expectations to date. Winners of 3 of their last 4, they have raised their record to 7-8. Very young team with lots of minutes by plebes is evident but upperclass leadership is being displayed by Firstie Julian Simmons who recently eclipsed the 1000 point barrier for his USMA career and especially Cow Ella Ellis who has , IMO, a real shot at making the conference first team at season's end. He is carving out a very nice career at Army and is clearly the player Army can least afford to lose.

Team's 19 point victory at home against a poor Longwood Team (Navy, with only 3 wins, beat them by 8 at Longwood to open the season) was the result of one of those too rare good shooting nights. Army will earn another surprise win or two by having a hot night beyond the arc. Fouls and turnovers remain major issues. Free throw shooting which started out very strong has tapered off significantly in recent games. It must reverse itself immediately if Army expects to compete in league play.

It must be noted that the Black Knights have earned their 7 wins against the now easiest schedule in D1 basketball, yep 345/345. It also includes an inexcusable loss at home to NJIT. The team is averging barely 500 fans /game and will remain close to that for all remaining weeknight games.

Army has N-E-V-E-R attained a .500 season or better in the Patriot League with over 20 years of opportunity in the rear view mirror. I am not optimistic that the trend will change this season. The aforementioned issues of ball control, sporatic shooting from game-game, fouls resulting in large negative total free throw attempts/game compared to opposition and general youth all stack against the Black Knights. Frankly, a 5-9 conference record would be deemed successful and be an improvement over last year 3-11 season.

Program is not going backwards but not quite ready to breakout either. I do like the current scheduling philosophy that allows Army to post some wins on the schedule early that earns the program some confidence and something to talk about when coaches go on the recruiting trail ( we can win..... see !). The year Army can go into league play with a universal opinion by Patriot League coaches voting Army as the 3rd or forth best school preseason ( Almost exclusively 7th and 8th sincejoining) and earn an 8-6 record in the league would constitute a dream season. Keeping more of each recruiting class and developing a deep core of Jr.-Sr. leadership is essential to attaining that dream. We were there 3 years ago but we have been restocking from a softer base since our competitive 6-8 league seasons in 2007-08 and 2008-09 years.
This post was edited on 1/6 3:08 PM by KnightNight

Congrats to the Mens BBall team for a big time win over Navy

As a Navy veteran and WV fan, I am really enjoying this years Army-Navy game. Navy has dominated too long. Good Luck, Black Knights
Can someone explain what the #12 designates?

Question #1 - Who knows where Bryant is withour looking up ? Beat Navy - you don't count ( is that a hint for everyone lese ?)

Tim,
So glad to have you on board. Nice to get some insight on the B-Ball team. Youth is being served. With so many plebes getting big minutes you can expect some extreme up and down play from game to game, just the way it is .... and they are entering crunch time with term ends just around the corner. Josh may have hit 7 3's last night, but if he gets to pull off 15+ agains anytime soon, that personal record is in jeopardy. Nice to see Julian get in the flow with his 19. We will desperately need those 2 excllent 3 point shooters on game along with Ella staying out of foul trouble and being his normal complete player self in order to compete successfully in Patriot League play.

Yale coming up - If I were a betting man, would expect Yale to be 10 point favorite. Tall order on Saturday - Would be a breakthru win IMO.

Only 1 voter had Army outside last place in this year's poll.... and that was seventh place. 8 plebes on the roster - On CBS Sports tonight vs. Air Force at 9:30 PM.

AM - do you know what happened to Chris Welker... thought he was going to be a solid player for us as a plebe last year. Did he leave USMA or just decide not to play ball ?

Coach Spiker and his staff have added two more commitments to the 2012 Recruiting Class.

Tanner Omlid 6'4 SF from Independence, Oregon Central High School and Shane Smith 6'3 SG from Atlanta, GA Wesleyan High School (Atlanta All-Stars AAU).

Both players are USMAPS bound.

More to come on each player.

Not only did the football team pull off a solid win on Saturday, bus so did Army Head Basketball Coach, Zach Spiker, who received the verbal commitment during halftime of Army's 55-0 over Fordham.

GBK will have more tomorrow morning on three newest members of the basketball squads 2012 recruiting class. Not to mention there is a 4th who is also on the verge of saying yes to the Black Knights.

Keep right here on GBK for all your Army recruiting information.

With Army pulling down 3 verbal commitments and a 4th on the way, it should also be noted that earlier that week Matt Gramling 6'3 SG San Antonio Mac Arthur HS, TX also recomfirmed his commitment on an official visit.

His brother is a freshman guard, Chris Gramling.

on the baseball team next spring?

Go Army!

Anyone out there with an old 'classic' style lacrosse helmet they want to get rid of?

Contact me: 703-675-2706

Check out Timothy Parks' debut article as he sat down with the Army basketball head coach for some pre-season insight to the 2011 season.

CLICK HERE!

Great pick up from Mater Dei -CAL State Champs-
http://ocvarsity.freedomblogging.com/2011/04/18/mds-brown-to-army/168985/

smart team leader and play maker

Brother Andy plays for Stanford

This past weekends unsigned Bay Area's top prospects at the Nor Cal Clash.

http://www.youtube.com/user/passportplayasTV