Georgetown fans unveil a Catholic 7 banner before Monday's game against Marquette (photo by Christine Burns)

Since Georgetown plays its home games in a cavernous NBA arena about four miles from its campus, the Hoyas don't have the same kind of raucous home atmosphere some of their chief rivals do.

Changing that won't be easy, but an alumni (Photo via the Stonewalls)organization dedicated to creating a European soccer-style supporters group for Georgetown basketball is hoping to take on that challenge.

The group, known as the Stonewalls, has created soccer-style scarves for members to wear and has also unveiled a pair of memorable banners at recent Georgetown home games.

The first one was a jab at Big East deserter Pittsburgh at a game last month that read, "Traitors and Liars will not be missed." The second was a massive 25-by-20-foot tifo at Monday night's Marquette game celebrating the future of the Big East breakaway schools known as the Catholic Seven.

"The tifo echoes Georgetown coach John Thompson III’s sentiments that while the schools forming this new league each value their Catholic identity, it is their long tradition of and commitment to basketball that will bond them together," reads an explanation on the website of the Stonewalls. "The Stonewalls support these schools’ trailblazing move and want to demonstrate to the sports world that fans of the “Basketball 7″ are passionate and excited for this new venture."

Buzz Williams (Getty Images)

1. Buzz Williams isn't buying that his second-half technical swung the momentum during Marquette's 63-55 loss to Georgetown on Monday night even though the Hoyas unleashed an 8-1 run afterward to extend a three-point lead to 10. Williams received the technical for arguing an out-of-bounds call. "I was trying to get my average up on technicals," Williams said dryly. "This is my 162nd game in the Big East and I'm averaging one every 50 games." Technically it's more like one every 30 games or so, but point made coach.

[Also: Oklahoma loses freshman Buddy Hield with fractured foot]

2. Between injuries and transfers, Mississippi State already has suffered plenty of roster attrition, so it's understandable first-year coach Rick Ray wasn't happy about having to suspend one of his veteran players. Junior guard Jalen Steele will sit indefinitely as a result of a team rules violation that Ray has deemed a "selfish act." Said Ray to the Clarion Ledger, "I think more than anything you’re screwing your team and you’re screwing your teammates when you get into trouble like that."

3. An abdominal injury Andrew Smith suffered at George Washington on Saturday will likely keep Butler's starting center out for the team's next two Atlantic 10 games. The Bulldogs have a home game against Charlotte on Wednesday before visiting last-place Fordham on Saturday. Though Butler could go to a smaller lineup with three guards and forward Khyle Marshall in the middle, the more likely scenario Butler would be 6-foot-9 Kameron Woods filling in for Smith at center.

4. The return of Oregon starting point guard Dominic Artis still doesn't appear to be imminent. According to The Oregonian's Adam Jude, Artis was still in a boot at practice on Monday and is unlikely to play Wednesday at Washington. Oregon has lost three of five games without Artis, falling into a three-way tie for first place in the Pac-12 with Arizona and UCLA.

5. Plenty has been written about Jeff Withey's rise from seldom-used backup to one of the elite centers in the nation, but this superb account in the Lawrence Journal-World is still worth a read. Writer Jesse Newell details how the Kansas 7-footer regained his love for basketball thanks to a challenge from Bill Self and how he came to better appreciate the love of his grandmother just days before her death.

Ben McLemore (Getty Images)

In jeopardy of falling two games out of first place in the Big 12 with a loss to rival Kansas State on Monday night, Kansas responded with a performance worthy of a champion staggered but not beaten.

The host Jayhawks snapped a three-game losing streak by pounding the Wildcats 83-62, reaffirming their status as the Big 12's premier team and quelling concerns at least for now that their eight-year league title streak is in jeopardy.

Buoyed by a roaring crowd at Allen Fieldhouse seemingly intent on willing Kansas back to its usual winning ways, the Jayhawks broke the game open with a 21-6 first-half blitz. They led by 11 after 10 minutes, by 20 after 15 minutes and by 23 two minutes into the second half, never letting Kansas State any closer than 15 the rest of the way.

Redshirt freshman Ben McLemore demonstrated why he's a likely top-five pick next June, erupting for 30 points and six 3-pointers. Senior center Jeff Withey was also terrific on both ends, scoring 17 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking five shots. But the real key for Kansas was the play of Naadir Tharpe, a reserve thrust into an increased role as a result of starting point guard Elijah Johnson's ongoing struggles.

[Watch: North Carolina's fading tourney chances]

Tharpe only scored seven points, but he played solid defense, pushed the tempo and dished out eight assists against only one turnover. If Tharpe can build on that performance and play with consistency going forward, it will allow Self to ease the pressure on Johnson and use them both together, giving Kansas two ball handlers on the floor at the same time.

That Kansas shot 48.3 percent and put up 83 points employing that strategy Monday night was a welcome sign considering the team's offensive struggles during a three-game losing streak to Oklahoma State, TCU and Oklahoma. Against TCU in particular, the Jayhawks scored only two points in the game's first 13 minutes en route to one of the biggest upset losses of the season.

If there's any college basketball coach I'd have guessed would be standing stationary in the midst of a student flash mob, Nebraska coach Tim Miles would have been very near the top of my list. Miles has a fun-loving personality, a great sense of humor and an eye for marketing. He tweets at halftime of almost every game. He scrubbed body paint off a fan in one commercial back at Colorado State and appeared as a Twitter superhero in another. Miles' personality alone won't win over Nebraska fans -- it will take wins too -- but in year one of a rebuilding process, fun stuff like his flash mob appearance doesn't hurt.

Michael Snaer's game-winning 3-pointer at Duke last year is still the biggest of his game winners (Getty Images)

Twenty seconds remained in a tie game between Florida State and Georgia Tech last Tuesday night when Seminoles guard Michael Snaer overheard two of his teammates say something that made him chuckle.

Michael Snaer sinks a game-winning layup at Georgia Tech last week (AP)"A couple guys said in the huddle, 'Oh, we're going to win this game. Mike's got it," Snaer said. "It was funny to me to hear them say that, but it's a good feeling knowing that your teammates, your coaches and the fans at home are thinking in their heads, 'We got this because we've got Mike.'"

College basketball's king of clutch validated his team's faith in him that night, attacking the rim off the dribble and scoring a game-winning layup just before time expired. The basket was Snaer's third buzzer beater in the previous two weeks and his fifth since January 2012, all in the final 2.6 seconds of a game and all securing victories for Florida State.

[Also: Cal stuns Arizona, throws Pac-12 race into chaos]

Having a reputation for sinking game-clinching shots is still surreal to Snaer because the 6-foot-5 senior still agonizes over his misses far more than he cherishes his makes.

Midway through ACC play Snaer's debut season in Tallahassee, referees called him for charging and nullified a basket that would have tied a game against Maryland in the final 15 seconds. Weeks later, the highly touted freshman missed a jump shot that could have wrapped up a victory over Miami.

"You don't get over those," Snaer said. "I'm going to always remember. Those are the moments that have helped me mature to this point to where I can actually hit game winners. I think it takes failure first."

Allen Crabbe led Cal to a surprising victory in Tucson on Sunday (Getty Images)

1. Arizona's loss to California on Sunday not only knocked the Wildcats out of the 'Who's No. 1?' debate but also tightened the Pac-12 standings considerably. Would you believe that Arizona, UCLA and Oregon are all tied for the conference lead and that seven Pac-12 teams are within two games of first place? The Ducks still have the advantage of being done with the Bruins and Wildcats, but they need Dominic Artis back to have realistic hope of a Pac-12 title.

2. Former Duke point guard Jay Williams was seemingly on his way to a promising NBA career before a motorcycle crash ended his career prematurely. Greg Bishop of the New York Times shares the inspiring tale of how the ex-Chicago Bulls draft pick rebounded from that crushing disappointment and carved out a new career as an excellent analyst for ESPN.

3. One of the obvious questions that emerged when Larry Brown accepted SMU's head coaching job last spring was why would a hall of fame NBA coach want to spearhead the rebuilding process at seldom-relevant program. This excellent Grantland piece seeks the answer that question and produced a nuanced theory as to why Brown continually jumps from one job to the next every few years.

4. The game of the weekend – and heck, maybe the regular season – was Notre Dame's thrilling five overtime victory over Louisville on Saturday night. Here are my two favorite deadline pieces to emerge from that game, one a well-written game story from the Chicago Tribune's Brian Hamilton and the other a column from ESPN.com's Eamonn Brennan that puts the game into context while also making you feel like you were there.

5. Team I wouldn't want to draw if I were a top four seed in the NCAA tournament: Montana, one of the nation's most dangerous mid-majors from the perimeter. Since getting star guard Will Cherry back in time for the start of league play, the Griz have been on a tear, winning their first four Big Sky games. That gives them a Big Sky record 25-game win streak in league play when including the 11 in a row Montana won at the end of last season.

Bob Knight and other members of Ohio State's 1960 national title team were honored in 2011 (AP)

Just before tipoff of Sunday's Big Ten clash between Ohio State and Indiana, the Buckeyes took a memorable jab at the visiting Hoosiers.

The video board at Value City Arena played a taped message from Bob Knight, the onetime Ohio State player who became the face of Indiana basketball while leading the Hoosiers to three national championships from 1971 to 2000. Said Knight to the delight of the Buckeyes crowd, "I used to coach a little bit, and there's nothing better than Ohio State basketball."

According to Indianapolis Star columnist Bob Kravitz, the quote from Knight was from a speech the former Indiana coach made years ago at halftime of an Ohio State game. In that case, give the Buckeyes credit for finding a clever time to use it to pump up its crowd and rub salt in old wounds that have yet to heal at Indiana.

Knight has severed all ties with Indiana since former school president Myles Brand controversially fired him 13 years ago. The final straws were a series of incidents that included an Indiana freshman accusing the coach of grabbing him by the arm and ex-player Neil Reed alleging Knight choked him during practice.

Indiana officials have since made repeated but unsuccessful attempts to mend fences with the man who brought the Hoosiers 11 Big Ten titles and won a school-record 661 games.

In 2009, Indiana inducted Knight into its athletic hall of fame but he declined to attend despite multiple written invitations from athletic director Fred Glass. Indiana coach Tom Crean has also reached out to Knight to no avail, even hiring former player Calbert Cheaney onto his staff.

If Knight's comments on the video board stung Indiana fans, they can take solace in this: For at least one day he was wrong. The Hoosiers were better than Ohio State on Sunday, riding 26 points from Victor Oladipo and 24 from Cody Zeller to an impressive 81-68 road win.

James Southerland will be in uniform for Syracuse today against St. John's (Getty Images)

A two-day wait for the results of James Southerland's appeal has apparently ended with the news Syracuse fans have been craving.

The senior forward has reportedly been reinstated.

Southerland, Syracuse's premier outside shooter, will be a welcome addition for Syracuse when it hosts St. John's on Sunday afternoon. The 6-foot-8 senior had missed the team's previous six games as a result of being declared ineligible on Jan. 12 due to an undisclosed academic issue.

Southerland was Syracuse’s second-leading scorer during the first half of the season, averaging 13.6 points and 5.2 rebounds and hitting 37.5 percent of his attempts from behind the arc. Without him in the lineup, the Orange still went 4-2 but they were just 29 of 90 from 3-point range during those six games

The return of Southerland will boost a frontcourt that had been shorthanded without him and center Dajuan Coleman, who underwent a surgical procedure on his left knee that will sideline him until the end of the month. Freshman Jerami Grant performed well with increased playing time, so Syracuse now should only have more depth once it returns to full strength.