Big man Radford’s unlikely catch GREENSBORO, N.C. - Radford center Artsiom Parakhouski’s journey to the NCAA tournament began when he knew nothing about it - a 17-year-old kid from Minsk, Belarus, two years of basketball experience to his credit, traveling to Russia with his country’s junior national team in summer 2005. Competing against players two and three years older, he didn’t dominate. But his coach, Kanstantin Shereverya, had dropped his name to a friend, Ali Ton, an official with Turkey’s national team. Ton was about to begin his first season as an assistant coach at Binghamton University. Parakhouski, 6-10 and thick, impressed Ton with his potential.

Needed: a mid-major stimulus If the NCAA men’s basketball tournament tells us anything, it is that bailouts are for the big guys. The mid-size and little guys need not apply. This year, Arizona and Wisconsin were too big to fail. They were bailed out by the NCAA selection committee. St. Mary’s and Creighton received no such help from the selection committee.

Leitao total didn’t equal sum of parts Dave Leitao appeared to have everything necessary to succeed as the men’s basketball coach at the University of Virginia. He had the pedigree. He played for Jim Calhoun at Northeastern and served two terms as an assistant coach for Calhoun at Connecticut. Leitao had six years experience as a head coach. He led DePaul to three postseason appearances.

In a game that ended at 1:22 a.m., Syracuse tops No. 3 Connecticut 127-117, and will next face West Virginia in Big East semifinals.

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. In a clawing, scratching kind of game, one good offensive spurt and a slew of offensive rebounds by Dayton tripped the University of Richmond. In the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament last night, the Spiders fell 69-64 before 4,333 at Boardwalk Hall. Third-seeded Dayton (26-6) outscored sixth-seeded Richmond (18-15) 6-0 during a quick burst with about 13 minutes left, and that was about all that separated these defensive-minded teams.

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.—A Ryan Butler steal started a University of Richmond fast break. Kevin Anderson took a couple of dribbles and whipped the ball behind his back to David Gonzalvez for a layup. That sequence early in the second half gave UR a 13-point lead Wednesday night over St. Bonaventure and reflected the Spiders’ advantages in their 65-49 win. Before about 1,000 at Boardwalk Hall in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament, sixth-seeded Richmond (18-14) advanced behind the defense of Butler (5 steals, 6 rebounds) and the offense of guards Anderson (22 points) and Gonzalvez (18 points).

As Boston College point guard Tyrese Rice headed to the Boston College locker room after a shootaround at the Georgia Dome yesterday afternoon, he ran into a longtime friend, Cory Alexander. “I’ve known Cory all my life, just about,“ Rice said later. “He works me out and stuff when I’m at home in the summer, and he always calls me, telling me things I can fix, things I can do better, and he tells me to be assertive at all times.“

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.—A Ryan Butler steal started a University of Richmond fast break. Kevin Anderson took a couple of dribbles and whipped the ball behind his back to David Gonzalvez for a lay-up. That sequence early in the second half gave UR a 13-point lead last night over St. Bonaventure and reflected the Spiders’ advantages in their 65-49 win. Before about 1,000 at Boardwalk Hall in the first round of the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament, sixth-seeded Richmond (18-14) advanced behind the defense of Butler, who had five steals, and the offense of guards Anderson (22 points) and Gonzalvez (18 points).

The University of Richmond has extended the contracts of men’s basketball coach Chris Mooney and women’s basketball coach Michael Shafer. UR announced the extensions at a news conference this afternoon.

BLACKSBURG When the North Carolina Tar Heels enter the NCAA tournament, chances are good they will be a No. 1 seed. The reason is the Tar Heels are a “too” team. They’re too big, too deep, too quick and too fast. They have too many players who can do too many things well. The Tar Heels are just too good. The Virginia Tech Hokies are a “just about” team. They can play with just about anyone. They are just about a complete team. They just about get over the hump in games against good teams.

Not so long ago, the men’s basketball teams in the Colonial Athletic Association were on the brink of fame, fortune and, even better, the undying affection of the NCAA tournament selection committee. In 2006, George Mason received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament and reached the Final Four. In 2007, VCU won the conference tournament and Old Dominion received an at-large bid. VCU beat Duke—Duke—in the first round of the NCAA tournament and took Pittsburgh into overtime before losing in the second round.

If Jeff Allen has to sit out tonight’s game against the University of Virginia, he should not be alone. He should be joined by the fans who disregard civility when they enter an arena. Allen should have the company of coaches who express their displeasure with players and referees by spewing profanity-laced diatribes. Allen, a forward for Virginia Tech’s basketball team, fouled out Saturday at the University of Maryland. He flashed an obscene gesture at the Maryland fans as he headed to the bench.

CHARLOTTESVILLE—The first signs of progress appeared Feb. 4 at John Paul Jones Arena. After an embarrassingly inept first-half performance that night, the University of Virginia men’s basketball team outscored Boston College 48-38 in the final 20 minutes. The Cavaliers lost that game, and they lost their next one too, at No. 3 North Carolina, and the one after that, at No. 25 Florida State. But U.Va. played with energy and purpose against the supremely talented Tar Heels, and it led the Seminoles at halftime.

BLACKSBURG – For the second time in Jeff Allen’s two seasons at Virginia Tech, his unsportsmanlike behavior has earned him a suspension.

CHARLOTTESVILLE—In an attempt to reassure University of Virginia fans upset about the struggles of the school’s football and men’s basketball programs, Athletic Director Craig Littlepage sent out a message to donors and season-ticket holders today. Many received it by e-mail; others will get it U.S. mail. Here is Littlepage’s statement: