College Hoops Thread '10-'11

[DocLogic77]

Being a Buckeye fan I'm excited about the upcoming season. We have some leadership back and some very special freshmen. But, I'm not sure they have enough beef in the middle to contend with some of the more physical teams. It should be a great season though.

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by DocLogic77

Being a Buckeye fan I'm excited about the upcoming season. We have some leadership back and some very special freshmen. But, I'm not sure they have enough beef in the middle to contend with some of the more physical teams. It should be a great season though.

I could see OSU making some noise this year. And though beef down low is important for defense and boarding, the college game is often more one of guards and wings. It will be interesting to see how this team develops.

Originally Posted by kelmac07

Damn...Pitt barely got by Rhode Island. Here we go again.

Well, Mac I told you . . . twice even. First, I said that Pitt has never fully proven themselves to me, as there is a big difference between "good" and "great". Then, I flat-out said that Rhode Island is one feisty herd of Rams, and not some meek flock of sheep to be fleeced. But last night's game should make you feel a bit better:

# 5 Pittsburgh 97 - Ill. Chicago 54 = If you didn't see this spanking coming, you're not paying attention. It does not take a "great" team, but only a "good" one, to respond to a scare by stomping the next David that shows up in Goliath's gym.

But it wasn't a completely lost night for the state of Illinois:

# 13 Illinois 84 - Toledo 45 = This is more like the whipping the Illini should have handed out to UC Irvine in their opener, yet it still don't mean jack. We'll have to wait a few weeks to see what they have, after they visit Texas, host North Carolina, then go see Gonzaga. That may tell you something.

Speaking of Texas:

Texas 89 - Louisiana Tech 58 = Once again, you can't say I didn't warn you. This game, as well as the previous two, were in the books before the tip-off. Maybe had it been the ladies playing instead, it might have been a better game. But the Longhorns don't lose games like this one . . . they normally wait until they actually count.

And just to prove to you that I'm not totally clueless on the subject of college basketball:

Maryland 75 - Charleston 74 = Heeheeheeheehee. And Maryland had to come back for this, since they were down by 8 with 8 to play. I knew . . . I KNEW! . . . Charleston would give the Terps fits. People outside the South may not know these boys, but they should be looked at the same way Gonzaga on the other coast is considered. No, the won't ever win a National Championship, but they don't mind one bit beating one every now and then. This is a good program, and Bobby Cremins is at least as good a coach as is Gary Williams.


There are no games this evening, but I might be back a bit later to start the preview of Friday's marathon early madness. One way or the other . . . enjoy.

[tchariya]

Scary what Bruce Weber landed as a recruiting class for the Fighting Illini during this past weekend.

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by tchariya

Scary what Bruce Weber landed as a recruiting class for the Fighting Illini during this past weekend.

I looked for a "smilie" that said "THIS POST IS WORTHLESS WITHOUT NAMES", but I couldn't find one. Give me a few of them, and I'll tell you if it scares me too. Regardless, I don't think they'll win Illinois many games THIS year.

Being early in the season, it is hard to tell what games have meaning, and which are meaningless. Hey, are you gonna tell me you foresaw the seasons Butler and Northern Iowa had last year . . . or the season U. Conn or my Tar Heels did? So I'm going to give a quick rundown now of the contests involving ranked teams tomorrow, then try to go back later to pick out a few that . . . at the least . . interest me.

As for "Name Games", we'll have:

# 2 Michigan State vs. Eastern Michigan = An in-state battle that won't be much of one.

# 3 Kansas State vs. James Madison = In past years, JMU may have given K-State a game. This is not a past year.

# 4 Ohio State vs. N.C. A&T = Do you really have to wonder?

# 6 Villanova vs. Bucknell = Were this one of those scholar's College Bowls, we'd have a contest. But as it's not in the boardroom, but on the hardwood, we won't.

# 7 Kansas vs. Longwood = It seems the Jayhawks still won't have Josh Selby for this game. They won't need him, either.

# 8 North Carolina vs. Lipscomb = The Heels should be better this season. They won't have to be to win this one.

# 9 Florida vs. N.C. Wilmington = Off the top of my head, I could name a dozen teams from the Old North State who could give the Gators a better test.

# 10 Syracuse vs. Northern Iowa = Were this last year's NI team, this would be interesting, with their tough man-to-man pitted against the Orange zone. But this isn't last year's Northern Iowa team. Yet it ain't last year's 'Cuse team either. This could be half a game, for a half or so.

# 11 Kentucky vs. East Tennessee State = This shouldn't be half a game after the first ten minutes, even if Enes isn't "freed" . . . or if somebody else isn't "bought" on his behalf.

# 12 Gonzaga vs. Southern = The Zags are much too cocky for their own good, and will likely never be as good as they think they are. But they don't lose games like this one.

# 16 Baylor vs. Grambling State = The Bears had, for them, a phenomenal season last year. I don't expect this one to be better, but it won't get worse with this type of competition.

# 19 Memphis vs. Centenary = And by contrast, the Tigers had a "bad" season in the C-USA, at least by their normal standards. If their young talent, and young coach, are as good as their reputations, they will start their turnaround with a total walkover.

# 20 Georgetown vs. Old Dominion = Hmmmmmm. HMMMMMMMMM! Now, wait a second here. Could we actually have a real game here? The Hoyas have not been world-beaters in recent years, and the Monarchs were pretty damn good last year . . . and might even be better this one. If you only have time to watch one game tomorrow, this could be the one to pick.

# 21 Virginia Tech vs. Campbell = And this might be the one to skip. No, the Hokies ain't that great, and the Camels ain't that bad, but thing is . . . who cares?

# 22 Temple vs Seton Hall = The Owls have a decided edge here, and would even IF the Pirates hadn't had such a soap-opera going on the last few months. Next year, or maybe the next, and this could be more fun. This year, I'd expect the Hall to play as though lost . . . spelled with a LOT of "L"'s.

# 23 Tennessee vs. Chattanooga = And speaking of soap-operas, the Vols have had their share too. As for the Mocs, they may be better than they were, and could hang for a good part of this match-up. But just because they are not the "Mocks" does not mean they can win in Knoxville.

# 24 BYU vs. Fresno State = BYU is another of those teams I refuse to bvelieve in, until they prove me otherwise. Fresno State lost some key players from last year's squad, but still have a pretty decent team. It would not shock me if the Cougars and the Bulldogs have a real fight here.


So this is a quick breakdown of the "haves", and tomorrow I hope to get back to you about the "have-less". As for the "hapless" . . . well, you're reading his post now. Enjoy.

[jcruse64]

Speaking of Rhode Island, I remember a Murray State team that played them in Round 1 of the Dance several years back. One of MSU's better teams, led by future pro Marcus Brown. Jim Harrick's team tore them apart in the 2nd half, as MSU choked and started playing street ball instead of good, team B'ball. Where is Harrick these days anyway? Scandals ran him out of a couple of place, I remember, but have not heard of him in a few years now, or his son.

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by jcruse64

Speaking of Rhode Island, I remember a Murray State team that played them in Round 1 of the Dance several years back. One of MSU's better teams, led by future pro Marcus Brown. Jim Harrick's team tore them apart in the 2nd half, as MSU choked and started playing street ball instead of good, team B'ball. Where is Harrick these days anyway? Scandals ran him out of a couple of place, I remember, but have not heard of him in a few years now, or his son.

According to Wikipedia, Harrick Sr. is now an analyst for Prime Ticket, a Southern California affiliate of Faux Sports Net. As for Junior, I don't know what he's up to, after he followed in his father's footsteps by getting booted out of Georgia for cheating and lying . . . like daddy did both there and earlier at UCLA.

And speaking of cheating and lying, it's time for me to pick my first 'Cat-fight with the Kentucky fans. The NCAA has decided that Enes Kanter will NOT be allowed to play for UK, due to his receipt of pay and benefits from a Turkish pro team over the previous two years. Calipari is not happy, and Kentucky will appeal this decision . . . naturally. As we all know, the only thing that matters in Lexington is winning, not how it is done.

If these dang customers stop coming in, nickel-and-diming me to death, I'll be back with a post on other action tonight.