DWG College Hoops Preview: Teams #33-26

Pablo Sandoval hits three home runs.  Barry Zito not only is unhittable, but also knocks in a run against probably the best pitcher of this generation.  Angel Pagan gets a double by hitting a routine bouncer that hits the third base bag.  Tim Lincecum strikes everyone out in a season where he's basically been a pitching machine.  Gregor Blanco can suddenly get to everything.  Call me crazy, but are you getting a vibe that the Giants stole that Cardinal October magic?  Good thing I got in on the Giants to win at +160 already.  I know I said I was going to be rooting for the Tigers and thought they were the better team, but so much money poured in on Detroit that the +160 for the Giants was too juicy to pass up.  Obviously.  Any way, I wrote some more previews while watching the game. 

33. Kansas State Wildcats.  You know, K-State has a pretty good thing going lately and have morphed into one of the most consistently athletic teams in the country year-after-year, and that's not going to change this season.  The Wildcats have most of last year's team back, including eight of their top nine scorers from last season, which means they'll most likely still be a god awful jump-shooting team (unless someone or someones went Eric Harris on it this offseason) but that's ok because they should make up for it, again, by being phenomenal at attacking the basket and grabbing a high percentage of all those bricks they throw up there.   Of course, they just hired Bruce Weber and since we all know a coaching match-up between Weber and paper bag would be a toss-up we can probably expect this nice little run by K-State to fall by the wayside as they descend into mediocrity once again and Weber moves on to destroy yet another program.

32.  St. Mary's Gaels.  I know what you're worrying about, and yes don't worry floppy haired uber Beiber dork Matthew Dellavedova is back for one more year.  And someone tell me if I'm totally crazy, but I'm getting a distinct Steve Nash vibe from this kid.  Think about it.  Floppy hair.  From a foreign country that speaks a weird brand of English.  Under the radar recruit who lands at a WCC school.  Immediate impact as a freshman, then end up getting progressively better, developing into one of the best PGs in the land, and single-handedly leading their team to upsets against bigger (and better) teams.  I really think we're in for a monster year from both Dellavedova and St. Mary's, if only to validate my Nash theory.  But if St. Mary's ends up making the Sweet 16 this year I'd start finding ways to bet YES on things like "Someday Matthew Dellavedova will win two NBA MVP awards."

31.  St. Louis Billikens.  St. Louis has been on a slow build since they hired Rick Majerus, so it'll be interesting to see if is absence (taking a year off for some kind of medical leave) hurts them, because this team has a chance to be very good this year.  It's actually kind of a an interesting case because they only lose one dude from last year's team, but it's the dude that was kind of their leader who did everything (1st in points, 2nd in rebs, 5th in assists, 4th in steals, 1st in FG%, 1st in FT%).  Talent-wise they're pretty loaded, but losing the head coach, the team leader, and now their best returning player, Kwamain Mitchell, is out for six weeks with a broken foot.  I don't know, that seems like a lot to deal with for a team who is supposed to be in good shape for this season.  Kind of makes me think of the Cincinnati Bengals for some reason.

30.  BYU Cougars.  It's always interesting how the Mormon faith impacts college hoops.  There's the scheduling, because BYU can't/won't play on Sundays which impacts the NCAA Tournament.  Brandon Davies got suspended for the season two years ago because he had sex and then admitted it to his coach.  And there's always the random Mormon mission that takes a player off the team mid-way through his career.  This time, however, BYU is actually getting a big boost, because Tyler Haws back.  Two seasons ago Haws averaged 11 points and 4 rebounds per game as a freshman and still has a 48-straight made free throw streak.  Getting a guy back who has already proven he can play is golden, and add Haws to a mix that includes the 6-11 Davies (15 & 8 last year) and point guard Matt Carlino (12 & 5) and BYU won't even miss the loss of a couple of seniors and should have no problem grabbing an NCAA bid.  Assuming everybody keeps their pants on, or at least has the common sense to not go running to their bishop about it.

29.  Drexel Dragons.  You know what's a really sweet team name?  Dragons.  Awesome.  Anyway, the Dragons, who are routinely one of the best defensive squads in the country, are set up for success this year.  The only lose one major contributor off last season's team that set a school record for victories, and with VCU now in the A-10 and Old Dominion ineligible for the conference title since they're bolting to C-USA after this season it's wide open for Drexel to take the league crown.  As I mentioned Drexel is always nails defensively, but last year's edition could actually score some points as well and a Dragon team that can score is pretty scary for somebody in round 1 of the tournament.  Like, scary like that Tiamat five-headed dragon from the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon.  Yes I watched it as a kid and it was awesome.  I also own a DVD with 10 episodes on it, what of it?  No you're the nerd.

28.  Wisconsin Badgers.  Ok, I've learned my lesson.  I don't know if it's my hatred of the Badgers because they're evil (I mean they even wear red, pay attention) or just because they're so boring, but every year I think the Badgers will be horrible and every year I'm wrong.  Look at this season - Jordan Taylor is gone and there isn't a player on the roster who looks like they can replace his production, even by committee.  Jared Berggren and Ryan Evans are the two best players coming back, and Evans should be a six man and Berggren is terrible.  Their top guards are going to be Ben Brust and Josh Gasser and neither of them scares anybody.  But of course, none of that matters.  They're going to play so slow it puts everyone to sleep, bore everyone to death, never turn the ball over, grab all the available rebounds, and win way more games than I'd ever expect.  Just like every year.  It's like an evil version of college basketball Groundhog Day.

27.  Marquette Golden Eagles.  At first when I was ranking teams off the top of my head I think I had Marquette in the 40s or 50s simply because losing both Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom to the NBA is a crusher, but when I did more reading I realized there is plenty still here to work with (plus counting out Buzz Williams is like counting on Bruce Weber).  Their back court is loaded with Junior Cadougan and Vander Blue, who is one of my favorite players because he has a sweet name, a sweet game, and he pissed on Wisconsin, and their returning leading scorer is a big man so they'll have a nice balance.  The back court should be their strength, but that doesn't mean their shooting - the three returning guards shot combined 48-162 from 3 last year and that will probably hold them back from being a truly dangerous team.  Still better than Wisconsin though.

26.  Ohio Bobcats.  You only need to know one thing - yes, D.J. Cooper is back.  You remember Cooper, right?  He's the guy who pretty much beat Georgetown two years ago and Michigan last year in the NCAA Tournament.  And he was pretty good against South Florida too, helping Ohio to the Sweet 16.  Yes, he's back and now a senior.  As is last year's second leading scorer Walter Offutt.  And #3 Reggie Keely.  #4 Nick Kellog is back too, but he's only a junior.  #5 Ivo Baltic is a senior though.  You see where I'm going with this?  The Bobcats have their top nine players back and all but one is a senior or junior.  The have top end talent in Cooper and Offutt.  And they must have a pretty good chemistry together because even though their coach left to take the Illinois job nobody transferred out.  This could be a very special year, which feels weird to say about a MAC team. Plus DJ Cooper makes me think of D.B. Cooper and that's awesome.   Of course since they are a MAC team, it's pretty likely if they don't win their conference tournament they don't go dancing at all.  Which would suck like Nick Blackburn.  Or Justin Verlander, I suppose.


Previous:
Teams #68-60
Teams #59-53
Teams #52-47 
Teams #46-39 
Teams #38-34

A Gambling Perspective on the Sweet 16

I am now ready to write again. You may think the reason I haven't put any words down is because I filled out the world's worst bracket. And yes, I most certainly did fill out the worst bracket, but since I've never had any credibility anyway I don't really care how badly I look. The reason I haven't been able to put anything up is I'm still trying to recover from Chicago. Three nights of drinking until 3am - two of which started around noon - is way too many for an old man like me to handle. I've been trying to maximize my sleep in order to try to recalibrate myself back to normal. It hasn't worked yet but it's getting better, so I'm going to at least put something up so nobody thinks I'm dead.

There's no doubt my bracket is god damn awful, and I think I've figured out why other than that I suck - overthinking. It's hard to even rank the stupid things I did in making my picks, starting with believing in a Jamie Dixon Pitt team. Perennial underachievers, taking them to the Final Four would have been stupid, let alone picking them as my national champ. And he's not even the worst coach I backed, because I actually put my money behind Rick Barnes. Rick. Effing. Barnes. So dumb. Hell, after those two believing in a Lorenzo Romar-led Washington Huskies team doesn't even look bad, and that would normally be the biggest mistake one could possibly make in a bracket.

It wasn't just backing obviously poor coaches either, because there were some teams I was behind that should have had more obvious red flags. The most obvious is Notre Dame, and somehow I completely missed it and had them in my final four. Yep, I took a team that is almost 100% reliant on the jump shot to score points and suddenly expected them to be able to beat four straight NCAA Tournament caliber teams. Just stupid. But possibly not as stupid as expecting a team that just lost one of it's best players and leading rebounders to make a surprise run to the elite 8. Why did I back St. John's despite all that? Again, I'm an idiot.

The good news, however, is that although my bracket picks were god awful I did manage to come out ahead by a bit with the gambling gods thanks mainly to a heavy bet on George Mason, a heavy bet on the Zona/UNC over, and a super mega heavy bet on Darius Morris over 4 assists against Duke. So let's all clear our minds, forget my poor picks, and concentrate on picking the sweet 16 from a gambling perspective using what I learned this past weekend. We'll do Thursday's games today and Friday's games tomorrow.


UCONN -1 vs. San Diego State: Right away we hit up one of the biggest subplots of the weekend - don't back a poor game coach. Although I love Steve Fisher and the man has a national championship and a couple other Final Fours, he's the epitome of a "recruit great athletes, roll the ball out and let them play" style coach. That can work, but you run into trouble against teams with similar athletes who are backed by a game coach who can actually influence a game, and that's what you have with the Huskies and Jim Calhoun.

Two big x-factors in this game:  home court advantage for the Aztecs and Kemba Walker for the Huskies.  The game is going to be played just 2 hours from SDSU's campus so it should be a partisan crowd for them, while if you watched any basketball this year you know Kemba Walker is the kind of player who can carry a team by himself - and not only can he, but he's done it over and over in big spots.  I give the x-factor advantage to UCONN, and along with the coach factor that makes this one an easy decision.  Take UCONN -1 (3 units).

Florida -3 vs. BYU:  This one's a rematch of a thrilling first-round match-up from last year that saw BYU take the Gators down in triple-overtime.  Both teams are mainly still intact from last year, particularly Florida who has the same starting five, so if you're looking for some kind of x-factor that could be it.

Personally, I'm a bit more interested in how BYU's has survived without being exposed for a lack of a big man by Brandon Davies suspension for playing a little pickle.  Basically neither of their first two opponents has been able to throw an athletic big man at them - the type of player the Cougars need Davies around in order to slow down.  Wofford's Noah Dahlman is efficient, but he'll never be described as an incredible athlete, while Robert Sacre from Gonzaga is more of a defensive presence.  The real question is if Florida's interior players can make BYU pay for their honor code.

Neither Alex Tyus or Vernon Macklin are offensive juggernauts, although they average 20 pts and 11 rebounds per game between the two of them, but the biggest stat affecting this game is their three-point shooting - specifically their lack of interest in in with just 5 attempts between the two of them all season.  This means they're basically just going to camp in the lane - bad news for the Cougars.  SDSU's Billy Thomas and Malcolm White are similar players to Tyus and Macklin, and in the first two games with Davies BYU held them to a combined average of 17 points and 12 rebounds - both Cougar wins.  In their third game with Davies in street clothes those two went off for 30 and 19 and the Aztecs won.  Good enough for me.  The pick is Florida -3 for 2 units.  BONUS:  Take the OVER 149.5 for a unit.  Florida is going to score at will in the paint, which means BYU is going to have to score a ton to keep this close, pushing the final up into the 80s range each.

Duke -8.5 vs. Arizona:  The coaches are a wash because both are excellent in game, although maybe peg Krzyzewski half a point for pre-gaming, and give Arizona a small advantage for being the quasi-home team in this one with the Dukies traveling across the world to play.  What I'm really curious is to see how Derrick Williams of Arizona plays here, because I'm getting a bit of a Danny Manning vibe from him.

Williams, who averaged 19 and 8 this season and was one of the most efficient players in the league with a FG% of .600 (.581 from three), has scored 22 and 17 (with 10 and 9 boards) in the Wildcats' first two wins and had a game-winning play in each, one from each end (blocked shot vs. Memphis, 3-point play vs. Texas).  Of note is that Duke played a similar player to Arizona's Williams this year twice in Maryland's Jordan Williams, who went for 20 and 10 and 16 and 16 in the two games.  In Duke's late loss to UNC John Henson went 10 and 12.  Virginia Tech's Jeff Allen scored 18 and grabbed 15 in their win over the Dukies, and Justin Brownlee was 20 and 9 in St. J's win - nearly double his season averages.

Look, I'm not saying Arizona is going to win, but I am saying this is interesting.  You have one of the best players in the country carrying his team right now and running himself into possibly the #1 pick in the NBA Draft, and he just so happens to be the kind of player who Duke struggles to contain - the same Duke team that's flying all the way across the country for what will be a semi-road game.  Personally, I'm taking Arizona and the +8.5 points for 3 units, but right now if you threw a little cash at the moneyline on Zona you're getting nearly 4/1 odds.  I can see it.

Wisconsin -4.5 vs. Butler:  In many ways, Butler is just a slightly worse version of Wisconsin - both teams play very efficient offense, good but not great defense, limit opponents possessions by taking extreme care of the basketball and not allowing offensive rebounds, and play at a slow pace.  Hell, they even have the same black guy do everything ball-handler guard and big white guy combination.  The real question is:  is Wisconsin 4.5 half points better than Butler, or less?

Two things have me thinking that Butler is the play here:  Timing, and Ronald Nored.  As far as timing goes, Butler has struggled all year, even losing five Horizon games and suddenly looking like they wouldn't get an invite to the tournament.  Since a three-game losing streak mid-season they've now won the next 11 in a row including a sweep of the second best team in their league (Cleveland State), a win over a team that had previously swept them (Milwaukee) and wins over two very good teams in ODU and Pitt - clearly they're hot.  The other reason is Nored - the Bulldogs best defender.  He's not much for scoring (he'd be great as a BYU student) so he can just chase Jordan Taylor around all day and use his energy up that way, leaving Shelvin Mack free to concentrate on offense.  On the flip side, Wisconsin doesn't have anybody outside of Taylor who I can see Bo Ryan using to guard Mack, so Taylor's going to be playing double duty.  Not that he can't handle it, but it's a small advantage toward the Butler side of this one.

Look, I don't know who is going to win this one and I'm really glad I don't have to pick a winner.  I think this game is straight 50/50, but those small advantages detailed above tell me that the best bet here is to go ahead and take Butler +4.5 for two units, because this should come down to the wire.  As a little bonus, that OVER/UNDER 124 number looks pretty interesting, and I'm taking the OVER 124 for three units.  Both teams play slow but neither is a necessarily great defense.  Since both teams take great care of the basketball (and neither defense is particularly adept at taking it away), both teams will get their shots.  Since both teams are efficient scoring machines, they should score some points.


So there's Thursday's games.  Those should work out pretty well because I've got a lot better feeling for this set than I do for the next nights.  I'll do some math, run some numbers, read some things, and see how I come out.  Right now I'm thinking Ohio State and three question marks.  Stay tuned.

Our Long National Nightmare is Over

And we're done.  That's really all I have to say about that.  Nothing has changed since I wrote this post, so you can head there if you want to read my thoughts on this season further.  There's a lot of interesting basketball going on around the nation, so let's not dwell on the Gophers who I probably won't touch on until the NIT brackets are announced, if then.

Last night there were plenty of games with postseason implications.  Cincinnati now moves to lock status after winning at Marquette, as does Georgia with their win over LSU.  On the flip side, Memphis's loss to East Carolina absolutely sinks them, while Maryland's loss at Miami probably does the same, barring a big run in the ACC Tournament.  As far as team's still up in the air, Michigan State got the win they needed over Iowa - a win that doesn't but them in, but avoiding the loss keeps them from slipping out.  Clemson missed an opportunity by losing to Duke, but at Cameron you can't really expect a win, whereas staying the ACC, Florida State missed their chance to hit lock status by losing at home to UNC on a Harrison Barnes three-pointer.  The Seminoles are still in good shape, but are going to want to win at NC State in the regular season finale to keep the pressure off once the ACC Tourney starts.

The biggest win of the night goes to UAB, who not only kept their at-large chances alive, but did it by picking off Southern Miss on the road, giving them not only another quality victory (RPI 39) they desperately needed but an impressive road win as well.  As long as they don't slip up in the finale against East Carolina (the team that just knocked Memphis from at-large consideration) they should only need a win or two in the C-USA tournament to get a bid.  The biggest loss, aside from those teams that basically killed themselves, was Colorado losing in Ames to Iowa State.  The Buffaloes made some serious strides in recent weeks towards bid-dom, and although this loss doesn't doom them it hurts badly.  Finally, Utah State and Richmond did what they needed to do, beating subpar teams on the road where a loss would have killed their chances.  Both remain alive and in good shape.

Also of note, BYU got crushed at home by a mediocre New Mexico in their first game after kicking Brandon Davies off the team for, get this, having premarital sex.  What a terrible crime, and it's great to see a school destroy their National Championship chances in order to punish a lawless lad, running around with no regard for other people and threatening to destroy the fabric of this great country.  It's about time someone stood up to these college kids who think they can just go around, destroying morals and promoting anarchy.  Good for BYU I say, this should stem the tide.  One down, millions more to go.

As usual during this week, there are a few conference tournaments kicking off today:

NORTHEAST CONFERENCE:  Usually one of the poorer conferences from year-to-year from a basketball playing standpoint, the NEC is a little bit better this year mainly thanks to a couple of decent teams in Long Island and Quinnipiac who went a combined 45-13 this year.  That doesn't mean either team is actually good since the only decent win between the two of them was Quinnipiac's win over Rhode Island, but at least the NEC rep, assuming it's one of these two squads, might be able to stick with their first round opponent for a short while.  Or not.
FAVORITE:  Long Island.  Not since the days of Charles Jones picking fights with Miles Tarver has there been this much excitement for Blackbird basketball.  At 16-2 in conference, 24-5 overall, and playing an excited brand of ball with the 3rd fastest overall pace in all of the NCAA this year, I'm hoping they win.
SLEEPER:  Robert Morris.  They're the third place team, they've won this thing the last two years, and they actually played a bunch of very good teams this year - West Virginia, Pitt, Arizona, Cleveland State - and they beat Duquesne.
W's PICK:  Robert Morris.  They have the experience and they're the best defensive team in the conference. Add in a slow tempo that could wreak havoc with LIU and I think the Colonials take this for the third year running.

MISSOURI VALLEY:  It doesn't seem that long ago that the Valley was getting multiple NCAA at-large berths and was the darling of the mid-major crowd.  They had high hopes again this year, thinking Northern Iowa, Missouri State, and Wichita State all had good shots at grabbing bids, but at this point it looks only Mo State still has a prayer, and even that's a pretty big longshot.
FAVORITE:  Missouri State.  Although Wichita State rates slightly better using nerd stats, Mizz State won the conference and swept the Shockers to do it.  I'd feel a little better about the Bears if they had beaten anybody outside of the conference and hadn't gotten spanked by Valpo in Bracket Busters, but hey, at least they have Cuonzo Martin.
SLEEPER:  Indiana State.  The other three teams I mentioned get most of the press, but the Sycamores quietly finished in third place and swept Northern Iowa, beat Missouri State, and took Wichita to three overtimes before losing.
W's PICK:  Wichita State.  I watched these guys play UCONN to the wire in Maui and in their loss to VCU, and they just seem like they're on a completely different level than the rest of the conference, including Missouri State.  I have no idea how they lost to them twice.

AMERICAN EAST:  Outside of perennial garbage conferences the SWAC and MEAC and the brand new Great West (which includes a school from New Jersey) this is the worst conference in America.  Can you feel the excitement?
FAVORITE: Vermont.  They're the #1 seed, they play good defense, and um, they beat Iona.  Woo hoo.
SLEEPER:  Maine.  On Jan. 29th, the Black Bears looked like a juggernaut at 8-1 in conference play with non-conference wins over UMass and Penn State and wins over both Vermont and Boston, their two toughest competitors.  Since then, they've gone 1-7, and I can't find any evidence of an injury or reason.  So I'll say if they can figure out what's going on - and it's a senior laden team so I think it's possible - they could definitely win this.
W's PICK:  Boston.  The AEC generally comes down to Vermont vs. Boston every year, and this year the Terriers hold the upper hand after sweeping Vermont in the regular season.


TONIGHT'S BUBBLE GAMES

Tennessee @ South Carolina - The Vols have a ton of good wins, but have enough bad losses that they still can't quite feel safe.  A win here would likely seal the deal.

UCLA @ Washington - The Bruins are in, but Washington, who once looked like the class of the Pac-10, is still reeling a bit.  A win over an NCAA lock like UCLA would go a long way, and would probably be enough to guarantee them a bid.

Also keep an eye on the Big South semifinal between Coastal Carolina and VMI.  Coastal Carolina has been the class of the conference all year, but are facing some off court issues.  The program is being investigated by the NCAA which led to the suspension of leading scorer Desmond Holloway (sweet name).  If they can get through this tournament and have the team whole in the NCAAs they could do some damage, but I picked VMI as a sleeper in the Big South so this is a dangerous game, especially with everything else going on.

Week in Review - 02.28.2011

 So I didn't watch the Gopher game.  I would have, but circumstances conspired to keep me from witnessing that crime against basketball.  We had a family bowling tournament that normally would have ended up with me watching the game with Snacks and Grandslam at a bar or at the alley, but one of my damn wiener kids got all barfy and we had to go home before after just one game (132 - holla).  Then I had the game tivo'd and was going to watch it later, but I got a texted from Bogart referencing the NIT, one from Dawger that mentioned he hated the gophers and hated his life, and one from Snacks that just flat out said, "Don't bother watching.  Gophers lose."  So I didn't watch.

I mean, what's the point?  I would just end up angry and probably hurt either a loved one or myself or a stranger who was walking past my house life before, so I didn't bother.  Not sure if I'll watch another Gopher game this year outside of the Penn State game, and that's only because I'll be in attendance with Wonderbaby^TM who rocks way more than you do.  There were years in the past when I really enjoyed the NIT, and enjoyed going to games at Williams and checking out teams I normally would never see in person.  This is not that kind of year.  This is more like, at the beginning of the year the NIT was a worst case scenario and the kind of thing that could only happen if there was a complete collapse.  Nobody thought this would be the end result, even if there was always a little nervous laughter and whistling past the graveyard if it was brought up.

Kill me. 


WHO WAS AWESOME

1.  Syracuse Orange.  Well here's a team that's impossible to figure out.  They start 18-0 and look like they're on the road to a #1 seed, then lose six out of eight and appear to be unable to guard quick, penetrating guards, then they follow it up with a four game winning streak including two this week against Villanova and Georgetown - teams with excellent guard play (and even with Wright hurt the Hoyas have good guards), and win both of those on the road no less.  I had a chance to watch decent chunks of both those games and all I can say is wow to Scoop Jardine.  Kris Joseph is a dynamic scorer and Rick Jackson is a beast in the paint, but this team may go as Scoop goes, and this week he was on fire going for 20 pts and 6 assists against Nova and 17 and 5 against G-Town.  I was convinced I would have the Cuse as an early out in March as soon as they faced a team with good guards, but watching the adjustments Boeheim has made to their 2-3 (less ball pressure, more gap help) and Scoop's resurgence now I just don't know.  Just like everything else about this god damn stupid season.

2.  BYU Cougars.  If you're like me you're handsome, rich, and successful, but you also figured that San Diego State was the real threat out of the Mountain West while BYU was more of a one-man trick with Jimmer and weren't a "real" team.  Well you couldn't have been more wrong and should hang your head in shame because the Cougars went to SDSU this weekend and smacked them right in the face, walking out with an 80-67 win, a season sweep of the Aztecs, and what is now looking quite likely like a 2-3 seed in March.  That win followed up a trouncing of bubble hopeful Colorado State earlier in the week, and suddenly BYU's challenges prior to a MWC Tournament semi-final are pretty much done with.  Will this finally be the year they breakthrough and make a run?  Last year they beat Florida in overtime, their first NCAA victory since 1993, snapping an 0-7 streak.  With most of the same team back that went first round-first round-second round, a bonafide star in Fredette, and at worst a 4-seed, I'd say the sweet 16 should be an absolute minimum goal right now.

3.  Colorado Buffaloes.  I realize as Gopher basketball fans we aren't really accustomed to this, but occasionally it happens where a team making a run towards an NCAA bid has the opportunity for a huge, almost status-changing win and actually, you know, wins.  Colorado is just such a team this year, seizing their chance and knocking off the #5 Texas Longhorns 91-89.  They did it in very impressive, "we're not going to let this season die yet dammit we're going to fight" fashion, storming back from a 22-point first half deficit to grab the marquee win they really needed, moving themselves from probably not in to squarely in the middle of the "maybe" tier.  It's just so nice to see a team actually rise up and win a tough game they really need.  I wish I knew what that was like.

4.  Marquette Eagles.  Another middle of the bubble team that took a huge step towards the good side, it now looks extremely likely the Big East is going to send 11 teams to the big dance.  The Eagles snagged a huge marquee victory earlier this week by going into Storrs and beating UCONN.  Not only was that a monster win for them in terms of beating a top flight team on the road, but it also got them above .500 in Big East play - a not insignificant milestone considering the strength of the league.  They then managed to avoid falling into a lull and beat Providence this weekend.  I guess that's not that big a deal since they've lost six straight, but anytime you got a guy who can go for 52, as the Friars' Marshon Brooks did against Notre Dame on Wednesday, you're dangerous.  In any case, Marquette is now almost assuredly in - as long as they don't choke here in the last few games.

5.  JaJuan Johnson.  Man, as much as it's going to help the Gophers I'm really going to miss watching this guy - he's freaking unreal.  When he was younger I compared him to Hakim Warrick, and Snake always refers to him as "The College KG", and he might be better than that.  I loved Hakim Warrick, and compared Johnson to him because of their long arms and ability to shoot outside, but Johnson is so much more than Warrick ever was - and that's no slight to Hakim.  His line in Purdue's 67-47 win over Michigan State was incredible:  20 points on 8-13 shooting, 17 rebounds, and 7 blocks.  The amazing thing is that it's not really even that far off his normal night.  He's shooting 50% on the year, and while that might not seem that great for a center, if you watched him play you know how many 18 footers and so on he takes, so that 50% is very, very good.  [Side note:  does anybody know of a site that keeps insane stats for college like shooting percentage on long 2s or other things like that you can find for NBA players?]  The guy is absolutely in a class by himself and should be the runaway winner for Big 10 player of the year.  I'm going to shed a tiny tear when Purdue gets bounced from the tournament and his career comes to a close.  And I'll make sure to follow his pro career in Europe closely. 


WHO SUCKED

1.   Corey Fisher.  Holy Scottie Reynolds, batman!  Villanova lost two games this week, both at home, but both were to very good teams (Syracuse and St. Johns) so it's hard to rip on the Wildcats too much.  Good thing for us though it's not too hard to rip on Corey Fisher, who had a truly Reynolds-esque run this week, shooting a combined 4-26 from the floor in the two games.  That's not a joke or anything, he went 3-16 against 'Cuse and then went 1-10 against St Johns.  And this is their leading scorer here.  Is there some kind of law that Nova must always have a gunner with no conscience who sucks at shooting but loves shooting?  Did Reynolds "will" his ability to Fisher in the school paper after he graduated?  Seriously, anybody who has Villanova surviving the first weekend in their bracket should be committed. 

2.  Arizona Wildcats.  Ah, the Pac-10, where good teams continually find ways to die.  Washington looked like the class of the league but bombed out, leaving the top clear for Arizona.  Until this week, that is, when the Wildcats took their LA trip and lost to both USC and UCLA, and although both losses are understandable the USC loss is a game a good team wins and the UCLA loss was an absolute shellacking by 22.  Suddenly UCLA is looking like the class of the league, but in reality I still think Washington is the only Pac-10 team with a legit chance at making the sweet 16.  Arizona would have to get a really good draw to do it and UCLA has no chance, so it's up to Washington, who recently got swept by the Oregon schools.  Wow, the Pac-10 is awesome.  Good thing for them they have all the hot chicks at least.

 
3.  Nebraska Cornhuskers.  On the completely opposite end of the spectrum from Colorado stepping up is Nebraska, who crashed on burned their NCAA chances to a level that could only be described as St. Marysian.  First they got bounced at home by Kansas State, a fellow bubble team, and then followed it up by losing at Iowa State - a school/team I love but also a team that you absolutely, 100%, guaranteed cannot lose to if you want to get a bid to the NCAA Tournament.  So that won't be happening, but you'll be very happy to know that Nebraska, after decades of ineptitude, has decided to become frisky just as they're about to enter the Big Ten.  Yeah, another team the Gophers should beat but won't.  Another crappy team that will beat them at home as the season winds down and the Gophers desperately need a win.  Another shitty team they won't be able to beat on the road, even when they are supposed to have a good team.  God dammit.  All of it.  Everything.  I hate everyone.  I hate you.

4.  Boston College Eagles.  Allegedly BC is still alive to get a bid, but after they lost to Miami - at home, I'm just not seeing it.  They bounced back by beating Virginia over the weekend, but that brings them to just 7-7 in a very weak ACC this year.  They do have a very good win with their victory over Texas A&M in Orlando, but they also have some brutal losses - Harvard, Yale, Rhode Island, and they got swept by the Hurricanes.  They're just a thoroughly mediocre team, and if they get in the tournament this year that just goes to show just how weak the teams are and just how easy it is to get a bid this year.  And yes, I'm aware that in a year where it's looking extremely easy to get in the Gophers won't make it in Tubby Smith's fourth year here.  Yeah, I'd say we're right where we thought we'd be in Year Four.

5.  Tennessee Volunteers.  There are plenty of confusing teams this year, teams who you can't quite get a handle on, but Tennessee might be the worst of all.  Just this week was a pretty good microcosm of their season - beating a very good, sweet-16 type team in Vanderbilt on the road, and then coming home and losing to mediocre at best, potential Gopher NIT opponent Mississippi State.  As far as the entire season goes, here are some impressive games they've won:  @ Kentucky, @ Vandy, Memphis, Pitt, Villanova, Vandy, VCU - that's a damn impressive list of wins.  But here are some of their losses:  Oakland, Charlotte, USC, @ Arkansas, Mississippi State - those are some bad teams.  Just a mess of a confusing and weird team.  They're so schizo I won't even bet on them come March.

Just kidding.
 


Take heart, Gopher fans.  Not because of anything to do with the Gophers, but this week kicks off conference tournament week, which is followed by BCS conferences tournament week, which is then followed by the NCAA Tournament.  So just go ahead and let go of this season and enjoy all the high quality ball that's coming in the next two weeks.

NCAA Basketball: Thanksgiving Tournament Wrap

A hell of a lot of good basketball just wrapped up with the pre-Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving tournaments the last two weeks, so much so that it would be easy to miss some of the important stuff, especially with all the drinking and eating and football watching and generally being a complete moron doing really stupid stuff going on.  So I'm here to help.  Tournament by tournament, here's what you need to know:

PUERTO RICO TIP OFF
Championship:  Minnesota Gophers over West Virginia Mountaineers
Biggest positive:  Minnesota.  I wasn't really sure where they'd fall in the Big Ten pecking order.  Somewhere in the middle, likely, but towards the top of that middle or towards the bottom?  Well, wins over three potential tournament teams help answer that and push the Gophers towards the top of the conference.
Biggest negative:  North Carolina Tar Heels.  A year after the worst season for UNC in recent memory, the Tar Heels started this year with a lot of positivity and a lofty #8 ranking the country, but losses to both Minnesota and Vanderbilt show that this team isn't quite there yet.  A loss to one or the other could be shrugged off, since both are possible NCAA Tournament teams, but losses to both sends up a bit of a red flag.
Also of note:  Davidson 64, Western Kentucky 51.  This game, as well as WKU's narrow 2-point win over Hofstra, say that the Hilltoppers aren't going to be making the NCAA Tournament as at at-large.

NIT SEASON TIP OFF
Championship:  Tennessee Volunteers over Villanova Wildcats
Biggest positive:  Tennessee.  All their losses from last season had me convinced they were badly overrated and would be in the NIT at best this year, and then all the Bruce Pearl nonsense solidified that thought for me.  Turns out their better than I gave them credit for, and the combination of super freshman Tobias Harris on the inside and dynamic scorers Cameron Tatum and Scotty Hopson on the wings is looking like enough to drive the Vols to success.
Biggest negative:  Wake Forest Demon Deacons.  "Wait, I didn't see them in New York" is what you might be saying, and you're right, but that's because they got bounced out of the qualifying round - the "gimme" round held on their home floor.  Of course they also drew Virginia Commonwealth who was probably the favorite to come out of that region, but it just confirms that this is going to be a dark, dark year in Winston-Salem.  If this loss to VCU (by 21, if I didn't mention it) doesn't cement it, the earlier loss to Stetson and subsequent loss to Winthrop (both also at home) are pretty big clues.  But the biggest clue?  Iowa was favored over them in their ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup tonight, and the game was at Wake.
Also of note:  VCU 89, UCLA 85.  Not content with just getting to New York, VCU then went ahead and beat UCLA to nab a third-place finish.  That's going to go a long way in getting the Colonial multiple bids this year.

COACHES VS CANCER CLASSIC
Championship:  Pitt Panthers over Texas Longhorns
Biggest positive:  Texas.  Last year the Longhorns had all the talent in the world, were ranked #1 at one point, and then death spiraled down and didn't even receive an NCAA bid.  This year saw a lot of turnover, and I'm not sure anybody really knew what to expect, as usual with a Rick Barnes team.  Beating Illinois and then hanging right with Pitt before losing by two shows they have some talent, it's just a matter of if they put it all together.  
Biggest negative:  Cory Joseph.  In the two games in New York, Joseph shot just 3-13, including 0-4 from three, with 5 assists and 3 turnovers, and threw up a ridiculous shot at the end of the final with the Longhorns down two when he thought he had been fouled in an attempt to get to free throw line.  The ref disagreed, and he threw away Texas's chance to win. 
Also of note:  Maryland Terrapins.  They went 0-2 in New York, but they weren't expected to win either game.  Losing to Pitt by nine and to Illinois by four bodes well for the Terps' chances in ACC play.


MAUI INVITATIONAL
Championship:  Connecticut Huskies over Kentucky Wildcats
Biggest positive:  Kemba Walker.  Coming into this tournament nobody was really sure what to make of UCONN.  Sure, they'd be a middle of the road Big East team most likely, but where would that really put them in the overall pecking order?  Well, Walker carried them on his back to the title here with games of 31, 30, and 29 points, and made sure everybody knew that he was good enough, and had enough talent around him, to make the Huskies a threat.
Biggest negative:  Oklahoma Sooners.  Eesh.  The Sooners looked decent in their opener, hanging with Kentucky, but completely fell apart from there.  First, they lost by 18 to a terrible Virginia squad who just go rolled by Washington by 40+, then they lost to Chaminade, the little host school who had won just five times in the 26 years prior of the tournament's existence.  Not only did they go down, but they went down bickering amongst themselves.  This is going to be a long year in Norman. 
Also of note: Wichita State goes 2-1, but leaves disappointed after blowing their opening round game against UCONN, a game they led by four with just four minutes to go.  It would end up being the only resume-building opportunity the Shockers would get, matching up against Virginia and Chaminade in their final two.  That could hurt come Selection Sunday.


CBE CLASSIC
Championship:  Duke Blue Devils over Kansas State Wildcats
Biggest positive:  Duke.  I have no idea how anybody is going to beat this team.  Marquette tried to go small to match Duke's quickness and whichever Plumlee it was destroyed them inside, then K-State tried to run with them and Duke ran 'em out of the gym.  They are good inside (Plumlees), have great guards (Nolan Smith, the unguardable Kyrie Irving), and have dead-eye shooters who you can't leave to go help (Andre Dawkins, Seth Curry).  And that's all without bothering to mention the ACC pre-season player of the year in Kyle Singler.  Look out, because they have a chance to go undefeated.  No, I'm not crazy. 
Biggest negative:  Duke.  The exact paragraph I just wrote is actually more of a negative because I, and everybody with a soul, hates Duke.
Also of note:  Gonzaga 66, Marquette 63.  Marquette lost both games in Kansas City, first to Duke by five and then this one to the Zags by 3.  Though those are both big missed opportunities, they also signal that for the second straight year a down year in Marquette might not be as down as we think.


OLD SPICE CLASSIC
Championship:  Notre Dame Fighting Irish over Wisconsin Badgers
Biggest positive:  Notre Dame.  The Irish picked up two wins over NCAA caliber teams, beating both the Badgers for the title and Georgia in the opening round.  It's very likely Temple and Texas A&M were the only other teams to even pick up one in Orlando.
Biggest negative:  Temple.  As noted, the Owls did pick up a win over Georgia that looks good, but losses to both Cal and Texas A&M are huge negatives.  A&M might be a bubble team, so that one will hurt, and Cal is likely to be a bottom of the barrel Pac-10 team while the Pac-10 is likely to be a bottom of the barrel conference.  The Owls were supposed to be the class of the A-10, but they sure didn't play like it.
Also of note: Notre Dame 58, Wisconsin 51.  The Badgers came into Orlando with a chance to pick up some nice victories, but Boston College's win over Texas A&M took that game off the board, and Wisconsin blew their chance against the Irish.  They come without a high profile win to show-off in March.


CHARLESTON CLASSIC
Championship:  Georgetown Hoyas over North Carolina State Wolfpack
Biggest positive:  Georgetown.  This wasn't exactly a murderer's row of teams, but beating Big South favorite Coastal Carolina by 19, SoCon favorite Wofford by 15, and a very good NC State team by 15 is a pretty nice weekend.  The Hoyas will be good, and in an odd-twist, guard dominated - their three top scorers are all guards.   
Biggest negative:  George Mason Patriots.  There's been a lot of early season success out of the Colonial Conference so far this year (VCU, Old Dominion), but George Mason whiffed on their chance to join in by losing to Wofford in the third-place game.  It's not an awful loss, but when you're a mid-major you need to win every one of these types of games to have a shot at a bid.
Also of note:  Wofford 82, George Mason 79.  I already mentioned this above as a negative for GMU, but it's a definite positive for the Terriers.  They have a brutal early schedule, but unfortunately missed out on a chance for an even bigger win by losing to Xavier in triple-overtime last week.  The 2-5 record also includes a loss to lowly Air Force, so an ambitious schedule goes for naught and Wofford will need to win their way in if they want to play in the NCAAs.


PARADISE JAM
Championship:  Old Dominion Monarchs over Xavier Musketeers
Biggest positive:  ODU.  This is what you need to do if you're a mid-major hoping to be in at-large consideration come March.  The Monarchs won the Paradise Jam Championship, beating St. Peter's (doesn't matter), Clemson (possible tournament team), and Xavier (very likely tournament team).  That is two huge wins, and assuming they don't falter in a strong Colonial ODU is in great shape.  
Biggest negative:  Alabama Crimson Tide.  From NCAA possibilities to the bottom of the league, the Tide embarrassed themselves, losing to Seton Hall (acceptable), Iowa (not acceptable), and St. Peter's (abominable).  Remember in Monson's last year or almost last year when the Gophers went to the Old Spice Classic and went 0-3, including a loss to Montana?  This is like that.
Also of note:  Clemson 64, Seton Hall 58.  Two teams that will likely find themselves in similar spots come year's end, this third place game could mean the difference between NCAA and NIT. 


SOUTH PADRE ISLAND INVITATIONAL
Championship:  BYU Cougars over St. Mary's Gaels
Biggest positive:  BYU.  It's questionable how much the two wins BYU picked up will really help them because I'm not sure South Florida or St. Mary's are tournament teams, but the way in which the Cougars won could be valuable in March.  The win over South Florida went to double OT before BYU hit a game-winner, and then the win over the Gaels was a one point victory on a 3-pointer by the Jimmer with 10 seconds left.  That kind of late game experience could pay-off big.  
Biggest negative:  Texas Tech.  The obvious choice as a downer since they were the team that went 0-2, it's sad for Tech because they have an experienced team with postseason aspirations, but getting blown out by St. Mary's and then blowing the lead against USF late says they suck.
Also of note:  Liberty 67, Chicago State 65.  This tournament has two brackets, a good one and a crappy one, and Liberty won the crappy one.  I can't think of a single reason why that's remotely noteworthy.


76 CLASSIC
Championship:  UNLV Runnin' Rebels over Virginia Tech Hokies
Biggest positive: UNLV.  Wins over both Virginia Tech and Oklahoma State give the Rebels two quality victories.  Since the Mountain West is likely to be very solid again with four very good teams, even if they beat up on each other the Rebels are in good position to nab an NCAA bid once again.
Biggest negative:  Murray State Racers.  Murray State has been tabbed as this year's Butler - not a bad call considering there stellar play in March last year and that they have essentially that whole team back - but they missed out on a big opportunity here.  After beating Stanford in round 1 they lost to both UNLV and Oklahoma State in the next two rounds, and neither game was close.  With their earlier loss to Ole Miss and nothing really left on the schedule outside of the Ohio Valley conference games their hopes at an at-large disappeared this weekend.
Also of note: Virginia Tech 56, Oklahoma State 51.  The Hokies have missed the tournament the past two years due to weak non-conference scheduling and a lack of quality out-of-conference wins.  This at least gives them one good victory - more than they had either of the last two years.

CHICAGO INVITATIONAL CHALLENGE
Championship:  Richmond Spiders over Purdue Boilermakers
Biggest positive:  Richmond.  The Spiders were supposed to be at the top of the Atlantic-10 this year and were considered a very likely NCAA Tournament team.  An early loss to Iona, however, had experts like me questioning if this was just another in a long line of A-10 "sleepers" who were actually not very good.  This win over Purdue helps put some of that unease to rest.  
Biggest negative:  Purdue.  No surprise here, this was set-up as basically a coronation for Purdue, but Richmond spoiled that, and that's not good for the Boilers.
Also of note:  Wright State 82, Oakland 79.  Oakland (which is in Michigan) is supposed to be a mid-major sleeper due to the presence of seven-footer Keith Benson, but if you can't even beat Wright State...I mean, come on.

LEGENDS CLASSIC
Championship:  Syracuse Orange over Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Biggest positive:  Georgia Tech.  They aren't going to make the NCAA tournament or anything, but the Yellow Jackets needed some positives after losing to lowly Kennesaw State early this year and looking like they might be nothing more than a big joke this season.  Blowing out Albany and Niagara in the early rounds, beating UTEP in the semis, and then losing to the Cuse by just four in the final is a step in the right direction.
Biggest negative:  Michigan Wolverines.  Michigan started the year playing well, beating up on the cupcakes and then even hung tough with Syracuse in the semis, leading for most of the game before losing by just four.  Unfortunately, instead of still salvaging something they ended up losing to UTEP in the third place game instead.
Also of note:  Detroit Titans.  There was a second, consolation regional held in Michigan, and Detroit won it by beating Albany, Bowling Green, and Niagara in consecutive days.  Even if it's not exactly a murderer's row of opponents it's still a nice little run and was highlighted by former Indiana Hoosier Eli Holman who put up a double-double in each game.  Detroit is a nice little sleeper in the Horizon.

LAS VEGAS INVITATIONAL
Championship:  Kansas Jayhawks over Arizona Wildcats
Biggest positive:  Kansas.  The Jayhawks stomped MAC favorite Ohio, easily handled a very good Arizona team, now rank sixth in the polls and first according to Ken Pomeroy's tempo-free stats (www.kenpom.com).  And they've done all this without the services of their top recruit Josh Selby.  When he finally starts playing this team is an instant title contender.  Of course, some times a high profile freshman disrupts chemistry to a point where the team gets worse, so let's hope for a little Kris Humphries/Stephon Marbury from Selby.
Biggest negative:  Nobody, really.  Everybody finished where they should, the good teams stomped the bad, and nobody's play stood out as exceptionally poor.  If you had to pick one negative, go with Ohio.  Last year's upset winner over Georgetown in the first round of the tournament was picked to win their conference again, and losing by 57 to Kansas is certainly not what they had in mind. 
Also of note:  Solomon Hill.  Arizona has one of the best player's in the country in Derrick Williams, but he can't do it himself.  If Hill can play like he did against Santa Clara (20 pts) rather than how he did against Kansas (9 pts) more often, Arizona will have a much better chance of getting back to the NCAA Tournament.

GREAT ALASKA SHOOTOUT
Championship:  St. Johns Red Storm over Arizona State Sun Devils
Biggest positive:  St. Johns, my Big East sleeper pick, started the season questionably enough, losing to St. Mary's, but handled themselves nicely in Alaska by going 3-0.  With no other possible NCAA Tournament teams in this field, the Red Storm basically had to win this tournament.  And they did. 
Biggest negative:  Ball State.  Not that Ball State is supposed to be anything (it's been a long time since Theron Smith), but it's never good to lose to non-Division I squad, and the Cardinals were dropped by the host Alaska-Anchorage, and in embarrassing fashion, 62-44.
Also of note:  Weber State 82, Drake 81.  Weber State won't be an at-large NCAA team, but they are considered the favorites to come out of the Big Sky, and taking third place in Alaska is a solid outing for this team.  Plus Mrs. W went to Weber State for a year and I visit Ogden almost yearly, so it's always nice to give them a little pub.


And that should pretty well cover it.  There were a few others, but really nobody cares who wins the Cancun Challenge or the Philly Hoop Group Classic because the teams involved are irrelevant, and I think I've typed just about enough for one evening.  There are a bunch more of these tournaments coming up around Christmas-time, including a couple involving Big Ten representation (Northwestern in the MSG Holiday Festival and Indiana in the Las Vegas Classic) so I might recap them after the holidays.  By then I'm pretty sure there will be nothing left to care about as far as the Gophers are concerned.  That team is absolute garbage.

Mountain West College Basketball 2010 Preview

1.  San Diego State Aztecs.  I don't want to oversell a Mountain West team, because then I'd end up looking like some kind of jackass who pimps Dayton as a dynasty, but this Aztec team is loaded, and if you're looking for a final four sleeper from a non-BCS conference, look no further.  Kawhi Leonard is a complete stud, a potential NBA draft pick, and is top five amongst returnees in the conference in points, rebounds and steals and top 20 in blocks, assists, and field goal percentage.  Mean amongst boys, you might say, and he has his whole posse coming back with him.  You got his buddies down low in Malcolm Thomas, a double-digit scorer who was top 5 in rebounding, blocks, and FG% last year, and Billy White, another double-digit scorer who led the league in FG percentage at 59%.  And you get your starting back court back in double-figure scorer D.J. Gay (ha ha) and Chase Tapley.  Really the only thing they need is a true point guard (Gay is more of a combo) and a shooter.  Well, they signed a top point guard prospect in LaBradford Franklin, so really all they need is a shooter - if they need anything at all.  In case you can't tell, I'm high on SDSU this year.  Got 'em at 100-1, baby.  We goin' sizzla'.

2.  BYU Cougars.  Jimmer is back, and Jimmer is Jimmer, but he unfortunately loses his boy Tyler Haws to his weird mormon mission, what with the strange underwear and the weird supplementary bible works.  That's not to say Jimmer is on his own, because his third little buddy in the back court, Jackson Emery, is back, as is Noah Hartsock to man the lane.  The losses will hurt (along with Haws the Cougars also lose do-everything forward Jonathan Tavernari and starting center Chris Miles), but there is enough talent surrounding Jimmer that BYU should be dancing again this year, if dancing was allowed by the Mormon religion.  And by the way, Jimmer is totally a Utah/Mormon name.  My wife was raised mormon, and her family is bonkers.  She has cousins who named their kids Londyn, Brooklyn, Okland, Dagon, Presley, Daxton, Lindy, Maximus, and Braden.  I swear to god I'm not kidding.

3.  UNLV Runnin' Rebels.  The Rebels looked like the were going to be in great shape, getting all five starters back from last year's NCAA Tournament team, but then Tre'Von Willis choked some chick (that's frowned upon), Matt Shaw was booted after failing a drug test, and Kendall Wallace tore his ACL and is out for the year.  Ouch.  Luckily (for the team and Willis, not so much for the girl) Willis is only going to miss three games, and he'll be joined by Chace Stanback and Oscar Bellfield, as well as Derrick Jasper assuming he's back from his own knee injury.  That's enough to be near the top in the MWC but bad luck and dumb choices knock them down from loaded to merely good.

4.  New Mexico Lobos.  Usually when a program like New Mexico loses a couple of guys like Darington Hobson and Roman Martinez from a team that went 30-5 and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament you can count on a down period to follow.  Luckily for Lobo fans, Steve Alford has them looking like the kind of team where a letdown still means an NCAA bid.  Stepping in for those two are Drew Gordon, the transfer from UCLA who played well in Westwood before heading to the desert, and Alex Kirk (who the Gophers were looking at at one point) who is the one of only two Rivals Top 150 recruit coming to the MWC (he's #116, the other is BYU's Kyle Collinsworth at #134).   It's not an even trade, of course, because Martinez and Hobson were do-it-all wings while Gordon and Kirk are post players, but it's the kind of influx of talent that will help, along with returning point guard Dairese Gary - particularly if Gordon has his head on straight.  Don't forget, he was a top 50 player as a freshman, and was averaging double-figures in points and 2 blocks per game last year.  He's still got the talent to be a star.

5.  Colorado State Rams.  Tim Miles has done a hell of a job, Travis Busch signing notwithstanding (and by the way, I heard he likes to hang out by himself in bars near the campus on Saturday mornings - true story), and he has the Rams solidly turned around from "shitbox" to "mediocre."  I don't know that they can turn the corner just yet, but there is some talent here.  Andy Ogide returns to man the paint for the Rams and he was top five in the league in both rebounding and field goal percentage, and Dorian Green had a very nice freshman season at point for CSU last year, averaging 12 points and 3 assists per game.  And don't forget this is where one-time Gopher PF target Chad Calcaterra landed.  He'll have a chance to contribute right away, but this team isn't quite ready to compete for an NCAA berth yet.  If only they had Travis Busch for one more year, that kind of hustle cures all ills.    

6.  Wyoming Cowboys.  The success (it's a relative term) of the Cowboys' season this year pretty much rests on the health of Afam Mujoeke's knee.  Two seasons ago Mujoeke won the MWC Freshman of the Year award, and then last year he was having a fine season averaging 17 points per game before he blew out his patella tendon, which sounds pretty terrible.  If he's back at full strength he'll join sophomore Desmar Jackson to give the Cowboys a nice one-two scoring punch, and make them viable enough that they will at least threaten to upset a team or two.  If he's not all the way back, it's going to be a long year in Laramie.  Or longer, at least.  I mean, I assume it's always a long year in Wyoming, what with all the long hours baling hay and milking cows before class and what not.

7.  Utah Utes.  This will be the last season for the Utes in the Mountain West, and it's probably about time to leave before they tarnish their legacy, because after being the dominant force in the conference since it's inception in 1999, winning five of the first seven league titles, they've fallen off, finishing better than 5th just once in the last five seasons and gaining just one NCAA berth.  That probably won't get much better this year.  Both of last year's two leading scorers are transferring (Carlon Brown to Colorado, Marshall Henderson to Texas Tech), and a host of bench fodder is leaving as well (missions and what have you) and the Utes will have a whole slew of new faces.  If some of those new guys turn out to be good guards Utah could finish higher than this because they do have a lot of size in 7-3 David Foster and 7-0 Jason Washburn, both of whom finished in the top five in blocked shots in the MWC with Foster finishing fourth nationally.  So they're big.  And probably slow since I assume the whole team is white.

8.  TCU Horned Frogs.  Well if we want to start with something nice, let's talk about TCU's back court because it's actually quite solid.  Ronnie Moss is an excellent all-around player who led the team in scoring (14.9 per game) and assists (5.9 per game, good for 1st in the conference and 9th nationally) and also chipped in with more than 3 rebounds and almost a steal per game.  He's not exactly a wizard with the jump shot (just 40% shooting last year) and he turns it over way too much (3.8 per game) but still - he's a heck of a player.  Joining him in the back court this year will be Hank Thorns, a transfer from Virginia Tech who had some limited success in his two years as a Hokie, hampered only by the fact that he can't shoot (30% from the field as a sophomore).  And speaking of can't shoot the third guard and second leading returning scorer, Greg Hill, shot just 41% last year, which actually makes him the marksman of the group.  So the guards are good but they can't shoot.  Now let me tell you all the good things about their front court players:  at least they aren't Air Force. 

9.  Air Force Falcons.  Remember when Air Force was kind of good for a minute there, using that slower-than-a-Vickers-Gunbus-offense?  They actually made the tournament in 2004 and 2006, but things have fallen off faster than Maverick after Goose died, and the Falcons have won just won conference game combined the last two seasons - lost that lovin' feeling indeed.  I'd love to sit here and make Top Gun/Fighter Jet jokes for another few sentences, but researching the Falcons makes me feel like Cougar after getting missile locked, and there's no Viper to be my wingman.  Great Balls of Fire!!

Five Game Lead.

Home from the hospital and watching the end of the Twins game.  Might as well put some thoughts down on paper (as it were).  We're in the top of the seventh, Twins up 7-5 with a runner on first and one out. 

Just got a text from Snacks:  "Wow chris sale is fucking nasty, not looking forward to seeing him for the next 20 years."  Agree with the nasty part, and I'll assume 20 years in hyperbole.  Follow up text "Or he could be the next Mike MacDougal."  Also possible.  I don't know if he's projected to end up a starter someday, which is what I'd bet on, but let's hope the Sox ship him out in a trade for Manny Ramirez or something.  He made Joe Mauer look silly, and that doesn't happen often.

-  Jesse Crain is in, and man has he turned a corner for me.  It wasn't long ago I would cringed at him coming in here, but right now I'm pretty happy he's in for this high leverage situation.  Don't let me down Jesse.  Everybody I know named Jesse just ends up disappointing me or letting me down and I just don't like any of them.  If you know anybody named Jesse, they probably suck, am I right?  Don't be like that Crain, don't be like that. 

-  Strikes out Konerko who did not, in fact, Konork one.  Inning over. 

-  Justin Morneau commercial here, where he's drinking any size softdrink from McDonald's for just a buck while lifting weights with a bear.  Do McDonald's any size soft drinks for a dollar cause symptoms similar to a terrible concussion?  Dizziness?  Disorientation?  Bloating?  Who hasn't felt that after eating (and, presumably, drinking) at McDonald's?  Has anyone investigated this?

-  So I'm pretty happy with the Trevor Mbakwe news (he's back on the Gopher squad) and you should be too assuming you're not an old white guy who hates any black player who has ever had a minor scrape with the law, deserved or not.  If nothing else this proves that Mbakwe is slippery enough to work his way out of an obvious frame job by some kind of anti-Minnesota cabal.  Something Royce White couldn't manage.  Worth mentioning.

-  Sale walks Kubel.  Guess he's not that good afterall.

-  Tall, throws 97+, and wild as hell. He could end up the next Randy Johnson.  Or the next Odalis Perez.

-  Knock for Cuddy (suck it Snacks).  He hit that ball as slow as one can and still get it through the SS/3B hole, but it's still a hit.  Guys a stud.

-  Strikes out Thome on 3 pitches and made him look silly.  If nothing else, Sale has a future as a LH specialist, although I suspect he's going to embarrass some Twins as a starter for years to come. 

-  Wait, Brett Favre is coming back to QB the Vikes?  How do I not know this?  Why isn't there any media coverage of something this big?  An embarrassment of epic proportions for the media here.  Like when Torii Hunter dove for that ball Mark Kotsay hit.

-  Scott Linebrink in.  So the Sox bullpen has Linebrink, Santos, Putz, Thornton, and Sale?  Holy god does that sound good.  Too bad they suck.

-  Delmon with a hard hit ball to first for an out which moves the runners up.  I'm stunned right now that Bert isn't extolling his virtue for "sacrifing" himself to move the runners along.

-  One thing I would post about if I was doing a 6 things post tonight is how BYU is leaving the Mountain West.  Having Boise move in seemed to legitimize the conference (football wise), but then having Utah leave neutralized that move, so I guess BYU figured they weren't ever going to get a BCS bid this way (note:  try being good first) so they are taking this step.  Although this means the rest of their sports are apparently moving to the WAC, which kills their basketball team.  Now I understand football makes the money, but BYU in hoops could basically pencil themselves in for an NCAA bid every single year, and now they are moving to a conference where it takes an absolute incredible season to get a bid (ask Utah State).  About the only upside I see here is that when I attend my semi-annual USU game I get a shot at seeing BYU.  Although I fail to see how that helps the Cougars.  Maybe they feel pretty good about throwing off the shackles on a conference affiliation.  Next is throwing off the shackles of an oppressive religion.  Baby steps, I suppose.

-    Quentin (who I still thinks looks like a retarded Cartman) laces a hit to center.  AJ now up with nobody down.  And you know what?  I have no idea why people boo A.J. when he comes to Minnesota.  The guy played his heart out when he was here, has nothing but good things to say about the Twins organization if you listen to him when he's on KFAN, and is just a gamer, which white people seem to love.  The alleged Delmon Young play which isn't a controversy although people seem to be trying to make it one?  When asked about it AJ said, "He had no other play and it's part of the game" or something similar.  You want me to say it?  Fine.  I love A.J. Pierzinski.  And I love him even more now because he hit into a double play.

-  We might be heading towards a Capps appearance here.  That makes me far more nervous than bringing in an acquired at the trade deadline closer should.  Oh and I saw earlier today on Twitter (follow me @downwithgoldy) that the Nationals called up Wilson Ramos after he had a solid few weeks at AAA.  Man, if he ends up becoming a star, I won't care at all because the Twins are winning the World Series this year.

-  First and third now after Hudson and Mauer hits.  Makes Mauer 4-5, with a HR and a double.  Pretty good night.  He's been about as hot as anybody since the break.  Do you realize how good this lineup would be if Morneau hadn't gotten whacked in the head?  Or how good it is without him?  Snacks made an interested point last time he was drunk and rambling;  getting Morneau back basically just takes Thome out of the lineup.  Do ou want Thome out of the lineup?  I sure as hell don't.  Maybe Morneau will clear waivers and they can trade him for Dan Haren.

-  Kubel grounds out because he sucks and that's why I traded him.  Capps in.  Breath being held.

-  Text from Snacks:  "I feel like Capps blwing saves now will benefit the Twins so Crain is doing it in October."  I don't even know what to say here.  Poor kid has an obsession with Jesse Crain that borders on the creepy.  Also, I'd assume he means "doing it in October" as saving games, but really.  Jesse Crain in the 9th in a one run game against the Yankees in the playoffs?  I can't imagine anybody likes that idea, not even Crain lover #1.

-  It's the Final Countdown.  Bu-du dah dah, buh-dah dah dah dah, dah-du dah dah dah, the Final Countdown!

-  One out.  Easy.  Omar Vizquel should retire.

-  Jason Repko in right to replace Kubel.  Good.  Game needs more Repko.

-  Double by Beckham.  Terribel terrible terrible pitch.  Right down the middle.  Seriously, if we rate Rauch as say a 7.0, Capps is a 7.1.  Ugh.

-  Base hit by Pierre.  One run game.  Ugh.

-  Ramirez somehow misses on an absolute meatball and grounds out to third base.  Tying run on second, two away.  I really really really hope nobody was expecting Joe Nathan when they traded for Capps.  If you were you are an idiot and should stop watching baseball.  Giving up Ramos for him was just terrible. 

-  Konerko grounds out to first, Twins win and are now up 5 games.  Wrap this one up, it's over.  Looking forward to getting swept by the Yankees.  Good night everybody.

Week in Review - 12/28/2009

Wonderbaby^TM seemingly brought home what I can only assume to be the black plague from her day care, infecting everyone who got within a mile of her with a horrible stomach bug that attacked at both ends.  And yes, now it's my turn to have it - joy.  Yet I struggle through to still bring you, constant reader, your daily entertainment.  Some of these entries I wrote earlier in the week, and some I just typed up now while running to the bathroom every five minutes.  See if you can guess which are which.



WHO WAS AWESOME

1.  Mountain West Football.  Can someone tell me why the hell the MWC isn't included in this BCS garbage?  The Mountain West, after Utah killed Cal and BYU thrashed Oregon State this week, is now 3-0 in bowl games, and has just been destroying anybody foolish enough to accept a bid to play against them.  It started with the New Mexico Bowl, a game where Fresno was a 10-point favorite against Wyoming, but the Cowboys represented the conference well with an upset win in overtime.  Then it got really fun, with the BYU destroying an almost-in-the-Rose-Bowl Oregon State 44-20 in the Las Vegas Bowl (and it wasn't nearly that close) and then Utah winning their ninth straight bowl game in impressive fashion, stomping on Cal 37-27 in the Poinsettia Bowl.  Really folks, the Mountain West's continual success against other conferences, not to mention TCU's monster year, should be all the argument you need that these guys are every bit as good as any of the other conferences out there.  Time to expand the BCS agreement. 

2.  Elliot Williams.  You familiar with this kid at all?  He's the former Dukie who transferred to Memphis last season to be closer to his ailing mother who is now single-handedly making sure the Tigers are still the tops in Conference USA.  He was a top 20 recruit who didn't play much for Duke last season (although he did hit double-figures in four of their last 8 games), but his transferring to Memphis has made a world of difference.  After a monster game against SE Missouri State on Tuesday (20 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists) he's now averaging 20-5-4 on the season and has the Tigers at 8-2, and although I sort of think Memphis is a paper tiger this year (their best win is over Montana State), there is no doubting Williams is the real banana (perhaps even the famous "Kirk Cameron Banana").

3.  Old Dominion.  As badly as I wanted to include ODU last week after they knocked off Georgetown, I just couldn't find room for them.  Now, after they made a pretty good Charlotte team essentially clean their room and then give them a BJ, I can't possibly keep the Monarchs and their single-handed effort to make the Colonial relevant again out any longer.  These guys might be just 8-4, but they have played a bitch of a schedule and all four losses area to good teams - Dayton, Missouri, Mississippi State, and Richmond - and they had a huge week with wins over both Georgetown and Charlotte.  With VCU looking very good once again (wins over Oklahoma, Nevada, Rhode Island, and Richmond) and William & Mary looking relevant for the first time ever (wins over Wake Forest, Richmond, and VCU), the Colonial might be looking at another multi-bid year, and ODU will be right there all season long.  Ken Pomeroy agrees, his numbers have them ranked 8th in the country right now.  Obviously they aren't the 8th best team, but they are certainly looking like an NCAA caliber team, and would probably beat the Gophers by ten or so.

4.  USC.  Can one program redeem an entire conference in one week?  Of course not, that's ridiculous, but it was a great week for the Trojans who won the Diamond Head Classic and brought a little ray of hope and competitiveness to a so far pretty lackluster Pac 10.  USC beat Western Michigan (yawn), St. Mary's (pretty good), and UNLV (good win) to take the championship, and in a wide open (code for sucky) Pac 10 they've suddenly become the third best team in the conference. 

5.  Greg Monroe.  Put up an impressive 16 point, 16 rebound, 4 steal, 5 block performance in the Hoyas one-game this week, a 86-70 win over Harvard.  You know how people always draft guys like Roy Hibbert, Spencer Hawes, and Hasheem Thabeet early in the lottery and then act all shocked when they turn into either stiffs or nothing more than defensive players.  Watch Monroe - this is the guy you should be salivating over.  6-11, super athletic, and a good ball-handler, whoever drafts him is getting a super star.  He seriously reminds me a lot of David Robinson.  I would love to see the Wolves get him, even with Love and Jefferson; he could end up being a franchise changer for somebody.



WHO SUCKED

1.  Oklahoma.  Wow.  Capel is letting things fall apart all over the place in Soonertown.  They only had one game this week, one in which they got whooped by UTEP, and it did end a six-game win streak, but there are some unfortunate rumblings (and that loss to UTEP gives them four, three of which are to likely non-tournament teams which isn't good).  First, Capel came out and said he was "tired of trying to figure out" star guard Willie Warren.  Then, just two days later, he said he said, "It's amazing you have to tell him to be a good player" in reference to star freshman Tiny Gallon.  Third, that same day, Warren came out and asked "Does he not trust me with the ball?", despite the fact that Warren ranks 21st in the country in terms of % of his team's possessions he is involved in.  Like I said, the loss to UTEP isn't a killer, and even though the other three losses are not great none of them are killers, but there is some serious dissension in Oklahoma City.  I have a feeling they either get their shit together and go on a run and make the tournament (the talent level here is good enough to finish as high as third in the Big 12), or this thing is going to implode in a huge, huge way.  Stay tuned (note:  my money is on the imploding.).

2.  Tulsa.   Coming into this season the Golden Hurricane was thought to be a challenger to Memphis's throne in C-USA, but has gone from contender to "has no shot at an at-large at all" in a hurry.  They were in the Las Vegas Classic field this week, and essentially it should have been nothing more than an easy win over Nebraska to set up what would have been a very entertaining final against BYU..  Well, Tulsa clearly had no interest in that, instead choosing to drop that game to the Huskers and then by losing to Nevada by 30.  Yes, 30.  I mean it's not that the loss to Nebraska or Nevada is crippling (or their earlier loss to Missouri State), but they didn't exactly schedule themselves a whole lot of chances to get quality wins, so whiffing on these hurts.  Colorado is the only decent opponent left before the C-USA season starts (and there is an unwinnable game against Duke in late February), but as it stands right now they have a nice win over Oklahoma State and that's pretty much it.  Conference USA overall is better this year than it has been in the past, but Tulsa will have to have a very nice run to have a chance at an at-large.

3.  New Mexico.  Nothing quite like taking your school's highest ranking in ten years and just flushing it right down the toilet, eh?  The Lobos had ascended all the way to #12 in the polls on the strength of a 12-0 start to the season that included wins over Cal and Texas A&M, and with a very balanced (4 double-figure scorers) and efficient (#16 offensive efficiency) team they were looking likely the favorite in the Mountain West and maybe even a sleeper to do some damange in March, but last week's game against Oral Roberts was officially a suck.  The Lobos lost 75-66, thanks mainly to their two leading scorers (Roman Martinez and Darrington Hobson) combining to shoot 6-23. ORU is not a good team at just 7-6 with a couple of ugly losses mixed in their, but I'm not quite ready to dismiss the Lobos as frauds just yet.  We should find out pretty quickly - UNM plays Texas Tech and Dayton next week.  Stay tuned.

4.  New York Giants.  If you need to win out to make the playoffs, and all you have a home game against a crappy Carolina team, you probably should make more of an effort than getting steam rolled 41-9 - and once again, this was at home.  The Giants turned it over 4 times and allowed Jonathan Stewart to rush for a club record 206 yards.  They don't belong anywhere near the playoffs.

5.  Indiana, DePaul, Florida, Illinois, and Utah.  The Hoosiers lost at home to Loyola (Maryland), the Blue Demons lost to Florida-Gulf Coast, the Gators lost to South Alabama at home, the Illini got rolled by Missouri (following up a loss to Georgia), and Utah lost to Pepperdine (following up a loss to Illinois State) - take your pick for this last spot, too close to call (I'd go DePaul if I had to make a choice).


I hope to feel well enough to get a preview of the Penn State game up today or tomorrow, but just in case I don't, TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE TALOR BATTLE.

NCAA Basketball Preview: MOUNTAIN WEST

A very balanced conference over the last few years, albeit one that can't seem to do anything other than get eliminated in the first round of the NCAA tournament, will change this year with one dominant team and a whole bunch of question marks.  Also you can watch how I peter out at the end here, and if you hate these long-winded, stat and name filled previews you're in luck - I'm burned out.  The previews are going to be much less fact-intensive going forward.

1.  BYU.  The Cougars lose their best player in do everything swingman Lee Cummard, but return two other do everything types in swingman Jonathan Tavernari (16 pts/7rebs/2assist per game) and point guard Jimmer Fredette (16/3/4) along with two other starters, including guard Jackson Emery, who made the MWC's All-Defensive Team last year.  The Cougars have been a very efficient team, both offensively and defensively the last few years, and there is no reason to expect that to change.  BYU should be able to cruise to it's fourth straight Mountain West crown.  Also seriously yes, that guy's name is Jimmer.  Mormons make up some of the weirdest names. 


2.  SAN DIEGO STATE.  Nearly every contender in the MWC is hit hard by graduation, and the Aztecs are no different.  They drop over 50% of their scoring and lose four starters, but are my pick for #2 because they are bringing in some nice talent.  Malcolm Thomas and Tyrone Shelley, two former high school teammates as well as teammates of THE MAN Rico Tucker at Pepperdine give them two immediate scoring options -they were the Waves top two scorers two seasons ago and combined to average 28 points and 15 rebounds per game.  The Aztecs also welcome in a very solid recruiting class, highlighted by small forward Kawhi Leonard, a major get for the program as the #48th ranked prospect on Rivals150, and former Illinois big man Brian Carlwell. 

3.  UTAH.  The Utes lose their top four scorers from last year, including MWC player of the year Luke Nevill, but still return three starters including point guard Carlon Brown, who is an excellent all-around player and nearly notched a triple-double against Wyoming last season (15-9-9).  There are a bunch of intriguing newcomers as well, including two junior college players who ranked on JucoJunctions Top150 List (Rivals), and a freshman shooting guard in Marshall Henderson who can fill it up, going for over 40 three times this past season who turned down Gonzaga and Marquette to become a Ute.  Most intriguing are a pair of seven-footers; the 7-3 David Foster who returns from a Mormon mission, and 7-0 Jason Washburn, Rivals #90 before last season, which he ended up redshirting.

4.  UNLV.  Like SDSU, the Rebels lose over 50% of their scoring and will be relying quite a bit on newcomers, but ultimately their fate may rest in the hands of holdover Tre'Von Willis, a former transfer from Memphis and the team's leading returning scorer (11.4) and rebounder (4.3).  He can score, but can also be wildly inconsistent and shot better than 50% in only one of the team's final seven games and finished the year at just 38%.  The newcomers are highlighted by a couple of transfers - PG Derrick Jasper from Kentucky and combo forward Chace Stanback from UCLA.  Both were top 75 type recruits who, for one reason or another, didn't pan out at their original schools but still bring top tier talent.  They will be expected to start and be big contributors immediately.  Also incoming is Rivals #66 prospect for this year, shooting guard Anthony Marshall who could also see big minutes.


5.  NEW MEXICO.  Yet another team hit hard by graduation, the Lobos are losing their top three scorers, including All-MWC First Teamer Tony Dandridge, who was awesome.  The good news is that they have a lot of options at guard, including former Gopher commit for like a minute Nate Garth, as well as one-time Iowa commit Dairese Gary who followed Alford into the desert.  Add in a couple talented freshmen guards, their best returning player in small forward Roman Martinez, their second leading returning scorer and former top 100 recruit Phillip McDonald, and Junior College All-American wing Darrington Hobson, and the Lobos should end up being a pretty up-tempo team this year - a change from last year's 172nd tempo ranking.  The challenge will be finding someone to take over the frontcourt.


6.  WYOMING.  Maybe the team hit worst by graduation, the Cowboys lose three double-digit scorers including Brandon Ewing, one of the best player's in the school's history.  Wyoming will look to Afam Muojeke, the only returning scorer over 5.2 ppg, and a whole host of newcomers this year.  The two most interesting newcomers are a pair of opposites; a giant and a midget.  The giant comes from Auburn in the form of 7-2 (with a 7-5 wingspan) Boubacar Sylla, who suffered from foot problems and only played in four games for the Tigers.  Wyoming coach Heath Schroyer claims he's not a project or a stiff, but we shall see.  The little midget is 5-9 point guard JayDee Luster, a transfer from New Mexico State, who was ranked the #19 player in the state of California his senior year of high school and was being recruited by schools like Florida and Wake Forest before hurting his ankle and ending up at NMSU.  


7.  TCU.  Jesus, two and 2/3rds conferences done and I'm already getting burned out.  Time to make these shorter.  Whatever happened to Brandon Smith?  Does anybody know?  After he transferred to TCU, he just never showed up.  I even checked out a TCU message board at some point last year, and they had no idea over there either.  Maybe he's actually Devron Bostick in the witness protection program or some such, or like a Verbal Kint/Kaiser Soyze kind of thing.  Makes a lot of sense.


8.  COLORADO STATE.  Last season I predicted the Gophers would lose when they traveled into Colorado to play CSU.  I was wrong, but not by much.  I also thought the Rams would be a decent team.  I was wrong again.  They won just 9 games all year, mainly because their stud Marcus Walker shot just 41%.  He's gone now, but your boyfriend and former NDSU coach Tim Miles has the team moving in the right direction, bringing in a nice recruiting class including big man Trevor Williams, who the Gophers showed interest in at one time.  He also has already grabbed Chad Calcaterra for 2010, no if only he could find another weiner guard like Ben Woodside his master plan would be complete. 


9.  AIR FORCE.  Triple-option in hoops?  Only if the options are slow, slower, and slowest.  The Falcons are perennially one of the slowest (read:  boringest) teams in all of NCAA basketball.  The past five years they have been 2nd, 3rd, 6th, 4th, and 6th in slowest tempo.  That shtick was working well a few years ago when they were good, but that coach is gone and now the players are terrible and the team is terrible.  They ranked last in, well, almost everything last season and grabbed not a single conference win.  Oh, and four of their "best" players from last year are long gone.  They're like the Fordham of the Rockies.  



I think those got a lot better towards the end there.  Plus, as the kind folks from the Xavier board pointed out, I don't really know what I'm talking about anyway.  Expect future conference previews, and oh yes, I don't plan to quit, to contain less facts, less research, and more nonsense.  I can only believe this is an improvement.


Other Previews:
Conference USA
Atlantic 10