A breakthrough year for Barry men's basketball team?

Looking to build on 10- and 13-win seasons, the Barry University men's basketball team appears poised for a breakthrough.

``We have an exciting style of basketball,'' coach Cesar Odio said of his team, which finished fifth in the Sunshine State Conference last season after finishing last the year before. ``We've got a really good group of kids that play a high-tempo style of offense and defense. I think it's going to be fan-friendly, and hopefully that will translate into some wins this year.''

Though two of their top three scorers from last season (Karega Tucker, 14.0 points per game, and Erick Nsangou, 9.7 PPG) are gone, the Buccaneers have a veteran-laden roster.

Freshman trio lifts Lightning against Spartans

In late-game situations most coaches try to get their most experienced and most poised players on the court.

For Krop girls basketball coach Ray Thompson, that means he calls the names of three freshmen.

Guards Brandi Harrington and Ieshia Small and center N'Kiru Anyagaligbo all played invaluable minutes Saturday night as Krop defeated host Pace 53-50 in the MVP Sports MLK Holiday Classic.

For Krop boys' basketball, coming up short is not an option

The Krop boys' basketball team is tired of being turned away at the door.

Three times in the past four seasons, the Lightning has reached the regional finals only to be denied a trip to the state final four by a Miami-Dade rival.

And twice the team it lost to has won the state championship.

Common theme surrounds Miami Hurricanes men's and women's basketball teams

Talented guard transfers to the University of Miami, sits out a year per NCAA rules, razzle-dazzles during practice and emerges as a team leader before the fans even get a chance to see him. Sound familiar?

Turns out the player who will attempt to replace Jack McClinton for the Hurricanes this season followed a similar path to Coral Gables and is eager to get the season started Nov. 9 against Florida Southern.

Malcolm Grant, a 6-1 guard from New York, began his college career at Villanova, where he drew national attention as a freshman, when he scored 18 points in the final seven minutes of a 21-point comeback victory over LSU. Fourteen of the points were in the final 2:55, and the game was televised on ESPN.

Gators prep for Varnado

Erving Walker used his quickness off the dribble to defeat Alabama on Thursday. The Florida Gators' 5-8 sophomore guard will likely have to rely on his outside shot Saturday against Mississippi State.

UF (16-6, 5-3 SEC) hosts the Bulldogs (16-6, 4-3) at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday at the O'Connell Center. That means Mississippi State forward Jarvis Varnado will be clogging up the lane.