I know this isn’t a big basketball community, but this is a thread for the few of us who are into the college b-ball.
As a Maryland fan, let me start with: fuck Kentucky! Nah just kidding; the Terps put up a respectable showing and had plenty of chances, but they were throwing up bricks the whole first half and just didn’t have enough to finish in the end. shrug What are you gonna do, UK is the #3 team in the country for a reason (they cheat! ;)). Again, kidding. Maybe. Anyways it was a good game and I’m happy college basketball has begun and am looking forward to the rest of this year.
Kansas Jayhawk fan here. KU is supposed to be loaded this year, but you sure wouldn’t know it from looking at their two exhibition games and their season opener last night against SE Missouri State. Throwing up bricks all night (2 of 21 three-point shooting), they were only up by six with about 10 minutes left. It was their defense and deeper bench that helped them grind out a win. Up next is Michigan State, and unless they manage to pull it together pretty quick, they’re in for a whuppin’.
Having said that, I’m sure they will be a much better team by the time conference play starts, they’re just not looking so hot right now.
Missouri Tigers fan and apparently the mortal enemy of Shoeless.
I’ve been waiting for this since our 1st round loss last year in the tournament.
Can’t wait until the holiday tournaments start in a couple weeks.
Gonzaga is going to be good this year. Their two freshman point guards are now sophomores. They lost their big man (Sacre) to the draft but picked up a late addition of a huge European with pro prospects (Karnowski). Elias Harris is finally healthy, he could always score but now he is rebounding above the rim. Sam Dower is one of the smoothest looking left-handed big men in the college game. We also picked up two transfers (Barham [Memphis] and Coleman [Providence]) which will help us with depth and age without damaging future recruiting. I thing we are set up to be a final four team in the next two years.
UK fan, no, I don’t expect this years team to be like last years. I worry about the Duke game tonight, we’re definitely getting a trial by fire. Also concerned that Harrow is apparently sick and not making the trip.
Overall, I think we’ll be ok. Not a championship team, but I’m sure we’ll win the SEC and go deep into the tournament.
IU fan and i do expect good things this year. I know I suffered mightily during the Davis and Sampson years. I think the depth of this years team is amazing and is almost like being able to field two starting squads. I hope we can dial up the defensive intensity this year. I don’t have much worry about scoring points, they can come from any number of players, but we will need to get stops against good teams to win like expected.
On a related note, I think the Big Ten is going to be a meat grinder this year with a lot of very talented teams.
Wisconsin fan. I expect Wisconsin will be better than people think, but then again Bo Ryan’s teams are consistently underrated. They may struggle at guard but have some good talent on the inside and are well coached. They will hover around 15th ranked, which in the Big 10 puts them about 4th or 5th. They will make the Big Dance and lose in the second round.
Ga Tech alumni, ACC Fan. I am not very bullish on GT or the ACC this year.
Ga Tech won their opening game in the Refurbished/Rebuilt Alexander Memorial Coliseum now known at the McCamish Pavillion. (that will be tough to get used to).
I got my diploma is an extremely hot AMC almost 30 yrs ago and it will always be the Alexander Mammory Coliseum to me.
I feel exactly the same way. The Duke loss doesn’t trouble me, especially the way Calipari’s teams are built with so much youth every year. They way UK played last night will not be remotely similar to the way they will be playing in February. Early November basketball is a poor measuring stick of a team.
My 'Noles blew their first game, but recovered nicely and beat the crap out of Buffalo. I expect them to be a fairly good team this year (i.e. I expect them to make it thru 2 rounds of the NCAA Tournament). The guys need to step it up on defense sooner rather than later, and the return of Snaer and White will help (as it did the other night).
The other team I’m watching this year is Baylor. They were terrific last year, and I hope they’ll build on that success and have a great season.
The Gators have looked better than I’d hoped so far, and with two of our top six guys not playing. Our game against Wisconsin tonight was a beautiful thing to watch. We have a loaded non-conference schedule, so we’ll have plenty of chances to see how we measure up. There will be ups and downs, but I’m sure we’ll win the SEC and go deep into the tournament.
I’m a die-hard LSU fan overall. Bleed Purple and Gold and all that.
However, for college basketball, my real love is Memphis. I was a teenager in the general Memphis area during a period where Memphis State was really good. Keith Lee, Andre Turner, Bobby Parks, Doom Haynes, William Bedford, etc. Coach Dana Kirk’s daughter went to my middle school. Of course, he went to prison for tax evasion, ticket scalping, kickbacks from boosters, and the like. But hey! I love the team no matter how crooked they’ve been and how few players they’ve graduated.
So I’ve followed Memphis ever since then. I think they will be pretty good this year, but from what I understand they will be absolutely loaded with the recruits they will be getting next year.
Nah just kidding; the Terps put up a respectable showing and had plenty of chances, but they were throwing up bricks the whole first half and just didn’t have enough to finish in the end. shrug What are you gonna do, UK is the #3 team in the country for a reason (they cheat! ;)). Again, kidding. Maybe. Anyways it was a good game and I’m happy college basketball has begun and am looking forward to the rest of this year.