Official: College Basketball Thread

[TRR]

It's about that time of the year again where College BBall is rolling in. And if your pro/college football team isn't doing so hot, then your looking forward to College basketball.

So, I thought I would create this thread to post about what "our" favorite college basketball team is going to have this season. We'll see how this thread goes.

I am a big Iowa Hawkeye basketball fan. I've been disappointed in seasons past, but I feel very good about this upcoming season. The Hawks starters will include:

Jeff Horner PG: 3rd team All Big Ten. Solid as they come

Pierre Pierce 2G: 3rd team All Big Ten: IMO, one of the best College basketball Juniors in the country. Averaged over 17+ last season as a Soph and is just getting better.

Adam Haluska 3G: Many of you Big 12'ers will remember Haluska. He is a 6'5 combo guard that can fill it up. He was a member of the Big 12 All Frosh team when he played for Iowa State.

Greg Brunner PF: Big Body (6'7, 245) and loves to bruise. Bru' is a tough, hard working ball player that relies on true grit over natural skill.

Erek Hansen C: 6'11 shot blocker. Was the 3rd string C last season, and ended up as the starter midseason. He led the Big Ten in blocked shots last season. Defensive specialist.

Other notables are Doug Thomas, a 6'8 JUCO PF/C that has a 44+ inch vertical. The guy can grab the top of the backboard flat footed. No joke. Also Mike Henderson, an athletic guard will help out, and Alex Thompson, a 6'10 true freshmen will log some minutes. A Ryan Bowen type.

Now for "your" team.

[Saulbadguy]

Oh boy..I expect alot of flak on this one.

But, here goes for Kansas State.

Jeremiah Massey PF: Big 12 newcomer of the year, solid interior guy, lead the team in scoring and rebounding last year. This guy is our leader. He transfered here from a JUCO last year and had one heck of a season.

Cartier Martin PF: Had a decent freshman year. He was recruited by KSU and OSU big time, but KSU got this 4-star recruit. I expect him to step up to lead this team after Massey leaves.

Fred Peete/Clent Stewart PG: So far I like Peete better than Stewart from what i've seen (2 exhibition games). Peete is a JUCO transfer, and just has a more refined game than Stewart. He hit alot of big scores vs Pitt State on thursday night. Clent looks like a freshman..lots of energy, but lots of bad passes. Clent Stewart was the 2004 Oklahoma High School player of the year.

Lance Harris SG: Man..what can I say about this guy so far? He has 2 HUGE games in a row, albeit both being Exhibition. He didn't see much playing time last year, but vs EA Sports All Stars (whom KSU has lost the previous 2 meetings, but won this time around) he had 26 points and double digit rebounds. Vs Pitt State he didn't score as much, but he had one of the best dunks i've ever seen...I wish I could find a video of it I could post here, but you'll just have to believe me and ChiTown for now.

Marques Hayden F: Just saw him play for the first time on thursday night, but he impressed me...he quietly amassed a double double, and shot well. He led the team in FG Percentage last year.

Reserves...we've got big men. Justin Williams, Tyler Hughes, Travis Canby, Dramane Diarra.

As for expectations, I am hoping for some sort of a post season appearance. The 'Cats have quietly improved since Wooldridges arrival, and had their first "non-losing" regular season last year, which was capped off by a victory vs #10 Texas.

[Saulbadguy]

I'll tell you more about Kansas University

...after I get back from the game tommorow night.

[TRR]

Good post! I love hearing about other College BBall teams.

And for good measure, anybody hear about ESPN College Hoops 2K5? I heard it's suppose to be the best basketball game (College or Pro) this year.

[Saulbadguy]

Originally Posted by TRR

Good post! I love hearing about other College BBall teams.

And for good measure, anybody hear about ESPN College Hoops 2K5? I heard it's suppose to be the best basketball game (College or Pro) this year.

Haven't heard much about it..I'm picking up a copy of NCAA March Madness 2005 when it comes out next week.

[Saulbadguy]

As for the Big 10, who is the favorite this year? Illinois and Indiana look good IMO....

[TRR]

A lot of people like Wisconsin and Michigan State, but the Illini are going to be TOUGH to beat. They get relatively every player back from Dee Brown to Luther Head to Derron Williams, etc.

Another dark horse is suppose to be Northwestern lead by Tony Parker's little bro' T.J Parker.

IMO, Indiana may struggle a bit this season. They lost some heart and soul from their team last season and I don't see Bracey Wright shouldering the load all himself.

[TRR]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

Haven't heard much about it..I'm picking up a copy of NCAA March Madness 2005 when it comes out next week.

Supposedly, ESPN is suppose to be the better game. I work at GameStop, and everyone swears up and down that ESPN has the more accurate rosters and have better add ons like the dunk contest, recruiting, etc.

Also, I believe both will have "roster updates" available online this season supposedly.

[Saulbadguy]

Originally Posted by TRR

Supposedly, ESPN is suppose to be the better game. I work at GameStop, and everyone swears up and down that ESPN has the more accurate rosters and have better add ons like the dunk contest, recruiting, etc.

Also, I believe both will have "roster updates" available online this season supposedly.

I guess i'm a "loyalist" to EA...but i'll probably try both out. Roster Updates would be nice...last year on NCAA MM 04 they left out ALL of the freshman off KSU's team, and even spelled their courts name wrong. Bastards.

[TRR]

Originally Posted by Saulbadguy

I guess i'm a "loyalist" to EA...but i'll probably try both out. Roster Updates would be nice...last year on NCAA MM 04 they left out ALL of the freshman off KSU's team, and even spelled their courts name wrong. Bastards.

I didn't buy EA's last season because they made two of Iowa's black players (Pierce #3 and Worley #4) White. You can go in and change them, but to have that much inaccuracy..even though Iowa isn't a basketball powerhouse...is grounds for me to try something else.

BTW, the ESPN College Basketball 2K5 is $19.99!!!!!

[AeroSquid]

Kansas Jayhawks

That says it all.

[DJay23]

I see UNC as vastly overrated (not just hating on Roy, I think they've got chemistry problems combined with lack of big game experience).

Georgia Tech is for real, and I think they have a great shot at getting back to the final 4.

Wake will be solid, but I think a bit overrated as well. They'll make noise in March, but not as much as so many people are predicting. No doubt that the ACC is head and shoulders above every other conference in the country. Chris Paul is fantastic, but they seem a little inconsistent underneath him.

I also think NC State will end the year in the top 5. I just have a feeling, and don't count out Maryland. Duke is due for a down year.

I think Illinois is well above the fray in the Big Ten. Michigan State filled the holes it was missing last year, but that means youth at key leadership positions, which more often than not means growing pains. At least they don't have a schedule that looks like a tour of college basketball powerhouses. Wisconsin lost Devin Harris and has a lot of ifs as far as recovery from injuries. They've always been solid but not spectacular which I think Illinois will be. I like Michigan to push both the Badgers and Spartans for number 2 in the conference.

In the Big East I think 'Cuse and UConn will battle it out for the title. Notre Dame may figure in if Thomas can play consistently during conference season. I don't think UConn is as good a returning champ as some publications I've seen have them. They lost a lot of leadership. Sure they still have some horses, but some of the glue is lost from that team.

In the Big XII, of course (and I'm biased) KU should take the conference, but if Okie State can win in the Phog, I like them to repeat this year. I think Texas lost too much with their seniors last year. It's awfully hard to expect a top 10 finish when you throw that many freshmen into key roles. They will be tough as always because of how deep they are. OU will probably push Texas for that 3 spot. I think Iowa State comes in next. I really like Stinson and Blalock in the back court. They scare me the most out of all of the North teams. After that I think there is a huge drop off. Mizzou has tons of talent, but when have they ever delivered on it under Snyder (well I'll give you the Elite 8 a couple years ago. Where was that all year?) I think Nebraska could be strong this year and give fits to the big dogs. They had a good year for their program last year.

The Pac 10 is down this year, I think. Arizona is the best team there, and then maybe Washington, though I wonder if last year was over achievement and they'll fall back a bit this year. Stanford is usually strong, but losing Childress and Montgomery won't be easy to overcome. I'd expect UCLA to make a move this year or next.

The SEC will be a dog fight between Kentucky and Florida in the East. The Gators return a lot of talent, none of which has produced much. Kentucky will be down a bit because they're reloading right now, but I think they're good enough to push Florida. After that I can't think of anyone who's very good in the East. Vanderbilt had a decent year last year. Missisippi State is the best team in the conference in my opinion, but they don't do much with their talent either, like Florida. Alabama will be solid but nothing anyone should be too scared of. Too inconsistent when the pressure's not on, pretty good when it heats up.

As far as other teams, I've always felt that Gonzaga is just an underdog small school that gets overhyped. They've got a good team returning, but they'll never make it past the Elite Eight. All they're good for is weakening the Pac 10 by stealing a few blue chip recruits now and then.

Conference USA is interesting to me. Louisville should be strong, but they seem to lose at least a couple of games a year that make you scratch your head and then win some in the same way. Memphis is scary at times, maybe sweet 16. I like what Calipari has done there. They've got a good chance of beating out Louisville for top honors. Under them, Cincy has really fallen off. UAB had an impressive run in the tourney last year, but they lost a lot of leadership. Something like 5 seniors including that Mo Finley guy.

So anyway, as you can see, I can't wait for hoops to get going. These are all my opinions of course and what I can recall from all the reading up I've done.

[HolmeZz]

I agree with your assessment of my Huskies, DJay. We lost a lot of court presence with Okafor, Taliek, and Gordon. However, we've still got the deepest team in the country. It's pretty crazy. I thought last year was as stacked a team as we could be, but we're just as stacked this year. Unfortunately that doesn't make you a champion. You have to find a way to gel and play as a team, which is what last year's team was able to accomplish. If this year's squad can come together like last season, another NC is definitely a possibility. I wouldn't bet on it as of this second though.

I also wouldn't sleep on Pittsburgh in the Big East. They still have Krauser and Taft returning. It's the next best 1-2 combo in the conference after McNamara-Warrick. Providence should do well with Gomes this season as well.

Should be a great season.

[DJay23]

Originally Posted by HolmeZz

I agree with your assessment of my Huskies, DJay. We lost a lot of court presence with Okafor, Taliek, and Gordon. However, we've still got the deepest team in the country. It's pretty crazy. I thought last year was as stacked a team as we could be, but we're just as stacked this year. Unfortunately that doesn't make you a champion. You have to find a way to gel and play as a team, which is what last year's team was able to accomplish. If this year's squad can come together like last season, another NC is definitely a possibility. I wouldn't bet on it as of this second though.

I also wouldn't sleep on Pittsburgh in the Big East. They still have Krauser and Taft returning. It's the next best 1-2 combo in the conference after McNamara-Warrick. Providence should do well with Gomes this season as well.

Should be a great season.

When all is said and done, I wouldn't be totally surprised by UConn being there. Like you said, they have some cohesion to work on after losing so much, but certainly not out of the realm of possibility. I'd reference Syracuse two years ago as far as teams that don't seem to be that "together" but ended up winning it all.

I also like Pitt. Hell if a gun were put to my head and I had to pick another team to root for it would be Pitt (have spent some time on campus there). Don't forget my boy Chevy Troutman. He's from my high school alma mater. Big, strong, consistent shot in the post, and he's a senior leader. I like Pitt too, but they don't do themselves any favors by playing such a weak non conference schedule. I know the conference season gets you ready for March more than anything, but I still think it's important to play and beat good non cons, especially on the road.

Providence reminds me of a poor man's Wake Forest. They have one really good player, and then the rest of the guys are expected to follow the leader. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. If I remember right they hit a skid at the end of the year last year, when they really needed some wins.

[Misplaced_Chiefs_Fan]

Haven't heard too much about the upcoming MIAA season, but win, lose or draw, I'll be rooting for my Central Missouri team.

Go Mules!