It would be far too difficult and boring to do an entire NCAA basketball preview. Plus, I would be lying if I pretended to know anything about some of those teams from the Pac 10 or the SEC. Instead I will do my best to preview the Big 10, culminating with my Iowa Hawkeyes and my predictions for the final Big 10 standings.
Illinois Fighting Illini –
Illinois has a ton of talent this year. Doug Gotlieb, who I think would be better suited as a fraternity president than a college basketball analyst, said he thinks the Illini will be one of the top teams in the nation this year. I tend to disagree that they will be a "top"team nationally (although he didn’t specify how elite he thought they were) but they are certainly a Big 10 title contender, and a real threat in the NCAA tournament. The Illini return all five starters from a team last year that went 18-15 and made the quarterfinals of the NIT. Their record wasn’t telling of how good they were. A late season collapse landed them on the bubble, and ultimately in the NIT. I will be the first one to tell you the Illini deserved a spot in the NCAA tournament last year, and I HATE Illinois, but the tournament committee saw it a different way.
The most important returning starter for the Illini is Demetri McCamey. He is a real stud. He reminds me a lot of Deron Williams by the way he is overlooked by the national media, but continues to lead the team, and dish out assists. He is, however, much weirder looking than Williams. Mike Davis and Mike Tisdale inside could be a tough duo. Both are seniors and both are really tall. I think the wild card this year for the Illini will be sophomore D. J. Richardson. I really liked him last year and felt he was overlooked.
The downfall of the Illini will be the loss of Marcus Jordan. His 1.2 points a game, or whatever it was, could cost them some real barn burners. Coaching certainly is not a problem. Bruce Weber has proven he can win with his own players. Never mind, I guess he has only won with Bill Self’s players. Oh well, scratch that. He has proven he can land the big recruits, like his high school coach brother’s star player Jon Scheyer. Dang, guess he didn’t close that deal either. Well at least us Quad Citians won’t have to look far next year to watch Rock Island star Chasson Randle and he continues his basketball career at Illinois. Ah…Stanford. Gotcha. Well I guess coaching is a problem. Bruce Pearl makes the orange jacket look cool, Weber makes it look like a used car salesman outfit. His recruiting class for next year looks solid, but his coaching at Illinois has been very sub-par.
The Illini will overcome the coaching and make the tournament this year. It will be hard not to with an elite point guard like McCamey. They should be an exciting team to watch on ESPN and the Big Ten Network all year. Let’s just hope most of them are away games so we don’t have to watch them play at Assembly Hall, otherwise known as the worst college basketball arena in the country to watch a game on TV.
Reasons to watch the Illini in 2010:
Weber’s awful orange jacket
McCamey’s passing
Five returning starters
A team to consistently root against
Indiana Hoosiers –
Year three of Tom Creen. Things have to turn around a little bit this year don’t they? The Hoosiers were bad last year, as most of us expected them to be, but not THAT bad. There is a lot of pressure on Creen this year. The only names I recognize on this roster are Tom Pritchard (not Dr. Tom, the former WWE not-so-superstar) and Christian Watford. I vividly remember last year’s Indiana team being worked over pretty good in Carver Hawkeye Arena last year, which is a bad sign.
The Hoosiers will have to finish at least 9th for Creen to avoid talk of being on the “hot seat”. The proud tradition-loving fans of Indiana basketball are a tough bunch to please. Just ask Mike Davis. If Creen doesn’t put out a team that shows marked improvement, we may be hearing calls for the General to roam the sidelines again.
Reasons to watch the Hoosiers in 2010:
Ollie
's underhand freethrows
Jimmy Chitwood
Coach Norman Dale…or wait THE Hoosiers? Not the movie “Hoosiers”?...Then..none.
Michigan Wolverines –
I really felt last year was the year Michigan would be a Big 10 Title contender again. With Harris and Sims leading the charge, I envisioned a Michigan team with an inside and outside threat that could beat any team in the conference. They were just that. The problem, as evidenced by the Evan Turner half-court shot in the Big 10 Tournament is that they were a team that COULD beat anybody, they just usually didn’t.
The Wolverines lost Harris and Sims and don’t return a whole heck of a lot. They have no seniors on the whole roster, and the best returning players are Stu Douglass and Steve Novak. DOUGLASS AND NOVAK! They do have some star power in the form of freshman Tim Hardaway Jr. Don’t know if he is any good, but I imagine he has a killer crossover, and is a heterosexual. Maybe there is hope for the Hawkeyes and Hoosiers to avoid the cellar with a lineup like that.
John Beilein has some pressure on him this year to perform. I have a feeling he and his buddy Rich Rod wish they were still singing John Denver with the rest of West Virginia. Even if it isn’t West Virginia, these two old Mountaineers may be together at some DII school next year if they don’t clean up Michigan athletics.
Reasons to watch Michigan in 2010:
Steve Novak taking the reins of the team!
Beilein’s possible last year at Michigan
The inevitable shot of a pissed off Tim Hardaway in the stands.
Michigan State Spartans –
Here is my (and most other people’s) pick to win the Big 10. I think Michigan State wins the Big 10 title and finishes as a #1 or #2 seed in the tournament for a couple reasons. 1) Big game experience. The final four last year, especially without leader Kalin Lucas, forced some of these Spartans to grow up fast. Korie Lucious and Delvon Roe really stepped their games up, and I expect that to continue. 2) Kalin Lucas is back. I am a huge Lucas fan. I don’t know how good of an NBA prospect he is, but he is a fantastic college leader. Think Mateen Cleves, but not as annoying. 3) The best in-game coach in college basketball: Tom Izzo.
The Spartans will take some losses this year since the Big 10 is so deep, but I fully expect this veteran team to really bring it this year. They have five studs starting, and a solid bench, which is rare to come by in this day and age. Anything less than a Big 10 title and a Final Four appearance will be a disappointment for these guys.
Reasons to watch Michigan State in 2010-2011:
A good, senior and junior-led team in college basketball. Rare these days.
Kalin Lucas’s last hurrah at MSU.
Korie Lucious hitting big shots.
Delvon Roe and Draymond Green getting to the rim.
Izzo’s hilarious faces.
Minnesota Golden Gophers –
Some people are really high on Minnesota this year after their Big 10 Title game run last season and their NCAA tournament win. I think they will be a team in the top half of the Big 10, and a tournament team again in 2011, but I’m not drinking the kool-aid yet.
Lawrence Westbrook is gone. Somehow, Blake Hoffarber is still there. So is Al Nolen. Hoffarber is on the Jess Settles plan at Minnesota apparently. Those two seniors will have to lead the backcourt and pick up the scoring left by Westbrook. The inside game for Minnesota should be solid. Ralph Sampson III returns for another year, and reportedly put on some beef in the weight room, and is up to 115 lbs this season. Actually, he is listed at 241, but he always looks so skinny and fragile that it is deceiving. Colton Iverson is also back to clog up the middle with Sampson. Speaking of beef, the Gophers got a freshman this year named Mo Walker who is listed at 6-10 289. That’s a big boy.
I think this team with be really solid defensively. They should be tough to score on inside with all of their big bodies, but I just don’t know where all of their scoring is going to come from. Hoffarber and Joseph both averaged right around 10 points last year, but most of the defensive attention was paid to Westbrook. It will be interesting to see what Tubby does to score points.
Reasons to watch Minnesota in 2010-2011:
To see if Mo Walker eats anybody.
Saul Smith and his “coaching”
Blake Hoffarber’s niche for last second shots.
Northwestern Wildcats –
Is it finally the year the Wildcats make the Dance? I am going to say it does not happen. I actually really like the grittiness of Bill Carmody coached teams, but I think it will be really tough for Northwestern to get many wins in Big 10 play. I will say, however, that if Northwestern was in any other conference in America I think they would have a good enough conference resume to make the tournament, just not the Big 10 this year.
Last year a big deal was made about the Wildcats losing Kevin Kobel. It turns out, he isn’t playing this year either, only this year it is by choice. He wants to focus on graduating. Why is this not a bigger story? Kobel had a chance to be All-Big 10 last season, and now he decides not to play on the year Northwestern has a chance to do something they have never done and I don’t hear about it until mid-November?!? Strange story.
Even without Kobel, the Wildcats will be tough this year. Much like their football team, the system they run always gives them the chance for an upset. It is nothing more than a Princeton offense, but it still works. Drew Crawford and Michael Thompson form a scrappy backcourt and John Shurna proved last year he could fill it up, while still looking like an un-athletic 12 year old. The Wildcats may not make the Dance this year, but they will be fun to watch.
Reasons to watch Northwestern in 2010-2011
Shurna’s shooting ability
The backdoor cuts
Luka Mirkovic’s usually hilarious haircut
Ohio State Buckeyes –
I hate Ohio State athletics. Excuse me, I hate THE Ohio State athletics…except basketball. For some reason, and I don’t exactly know why, but I find myself rooting for Thad Matta coached Ohio State teams. I had a huge man crush on Evan Turner last year. Three years ago I was a little smitten for Mike Conely Jr. Jon Diebler is still a douche, but he can shoot. It must be that Matta looks so much like Coach Norman Dale from Hoosiers, and who doesn’t love Hickory right?
The 2010-2011 version of Ohio State basketball will be a force once again. Everybody is focused on their star-studded recruiting class, and rightfully so, they will be great with man-child Jared Sullinger and J.D. Weatherspoon leading the way, but lots of people are looking past what this team returns from last year. Diebler will be back to stroke the three-ball. Dallas Lauderdale is back and still looking older than Greg Oden. (What if Oden had stayed in school for some reason, be it injuries or whatever, he and Lauderdale would no doubt be the oldest looking frontcourt in basketball history, I’m even including the NBA). William Buford is back and so is David Lighty. Keep in mind, there were times last year when Lighty took over games that Evan Turner was struggling in. I’d be very surprised if Ohio State doesn’t get a one or two seed in the NCAA Torunament.
Reasons to watch Ohio State in 2010-2011:
Sullinger. The second most touted freshman behind Harrison Barnes.
Lighty, Buford and Diebler. Perhaps the best backcourt in the nation. Yeah, I said it.
Lauderdale and Sullinger clogging the lane.
The rest of the freshman class.
Penn State Nittany Lions –
Talor Battle is really good. Andrew Jones is not too shabby. That’s about it for Penn State as far as I can tell. I really don’t know much about their freshman class, except that they are all from Pennsylvania or surrounding states. I do think some teams with poor guard play (Iowa) will have trouble with Penn State mainly because of Battle’s quickness. One thing can be sure, Ed DeChellis coached teams always play hard and will probably win a game or two they shouldn’t, but they won’t win much more than that.
Reasons to watch Penn State in 2010-2011 -
Talor Battle. That’s it.
Purdue Boilermakers –
Losing Robbie Hummel hurts. A lot. He is to Purdue what Kyle Singler is to Duke. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a very good team and has a chance to win a Big 10 title, but I considered them National Title contenders before the Hummel injury.
We saw last year in the Dance that they can compete without Hummel, but don’t forget that they still had emotional leader Chris Kramer. Even so, with E’Twaun Moore and JaJuan Johnson they will be a force to be reckoned with. Matt Painter is a very good coach and will have this team ready to be Hummelless. I look for Lewis Jackson to be a sleeper this year. He is a pretty good guard who often is overlooked because of Hummel, Moore and Johnson. Should be a fun team to watch and cheer for, because it is about impossible to not feel bad for Hummel…even if that “Boiler Up” chant is the stupidest and most annoying fucking thing since Thundersticks.
Reasons to watch Purdue in 2010-2011 –
JaJuan dominating most centers in the nation.
The emergence of Lewis Jackson.
The off chance Matt Painter starts to lose his hair and perfects the Gene Keady comb-over.
Wisconsin Badgers –
Can Bo Ryan finally get the respect he deserves? Every year we think Wisconsin will be down and every year, with a bunch of nobodies, Ryan has them in the top half of the conference and into the second or third round of the NCAA Tournament. Jon Leuer and Jordan Taylor are the only players on this team anybody has ever heard of. Leuer is really good. He plays a little bit like Kevin Love. He is not that good, but he is a crafty white guy who can beat you inside and outside. The defense will be there for Wisconsin, as always. The shooting will probably be there too, even with the loss of Jason Bohannon. The Badgers stole another player from the Hawkeyes in freshman guard Ben Brust, who is supposed to be a very solid wing player. Don’t look now, but I’d bet by the end of February the Badgers are booking a trip to the NCAA Tournament once again.
Reasons to watch Wisconsin in 2010-2011 –
Jon Leuer’s craftyness.
Ben Brust and his inevitable ride to stardom now that he isn’t a Hawk
Finally…
Iowa Hawkeyes –
Where to begin with this team. I know this is not new coach Fran McCafferty’s fault, but let’s list the players we have lost over the last four years: Tony Freeman, Tyler Smith, Jake Kelley, Jeff Peterson, Anthony Tucker, Adam Fuller, David Palmer, Ben Brust, Jermain Davis, Brennan Cougil and Todd Lickleiter Jr. Don’t get me wrong, seeing Cougil, Lickleiter, and Davis go are not bad things. They were not Big 10 players, although Davis showed signs of potential. Tucker is lighting it up at Winona State, Peterson is getting floor time at Arkansas, Kelley for Indiana State. Freeman and Smith would be graduated by now, but it still stings. And what are we left with? Cully Payne. Shoot me.
This year’s version of the Hawkeyes are not good. I really like what Coach Fran has done and said so far, but he came into a bad situation and it will take a while to turn it around. Do not be fooled by the 111 point output in the exhibition opener, we will struggle to score points. Let’s start with the guards. Cully Payne is still terrible. Even in McCaf’s transition offense he looks slow as molasses. He is a terrible shooter for a Big 10 PG, no matter what he did in last year’s final game against Michigan. Yet, for some reason, people still talk about him like he is Jeff Horner and Dean Oliver rolled into one. I have actually thought Cully has said and done all the right things since last year, and he was starting to grow on me, but then I saw him play again and punched my TV. (Sidenote: Did anybody see the BigTen Network graphic about “Sizzling Sophomores” in the opener Sunday? They said how the Sophomores Payne and May had carried the Hawkeyes. May WAS playing good. Payne’s stats at this point were 2pts, 0reb, 0 steals, 5 assists and 4 turnovers. WHAT?!? Carrying the team where? To the depths of Hell?) Anyway, I will give Payne one bit of credit, it was probably hard to improve much last year with Lickleiter guarding him every day in practice. Transfer point guard Bryce Cartwright may provide some assistance there. I was skeptical of Devyn Marble this year, but he has played quite well so far I thought. He has a lot to learn and a lot of muscle to pack on, but I think he has the athleticism to compete in the Big 10. My favorite player on the 2010-2011 Hawkeyes is Eric May. He is athletic, can create his own shot, which is something we haven’t seen since Jake Kelley left, and he plays solid defense. I am a big May fan.
The forward position will be better this year. Matt Gatens will likely benefit from the transition offense because he had a lot of trouble creating his own shot, and Lord knows the point guards didn’t do him any help last year. Gatens is supposed to be our team leader this year, but it worries me that after watching him for two years I feel he would have only gotten about 10-15 minutes a game on the Hawkeyes teams with Horner and Haluska. We will see if he shows any improvement in year three. Melsahn Basabe and Zach McCabe have looked promising in summer ball and throughout the first couple games, but they are young and obviously inexperienced. I expect a lot of freshman mistakes with them this year, but I think both could be decent Big 10 players.
The Hawks will get killed inside. I am a big Jarryd Cole fan and always have been. People forget, the guy is only listed as 6-7 and has to play center. Cole would be a very good PF. He rebounds well for his size and is very athletic. He is not a center. He is undersized against almost every opponent, but he goes to work and doesn’t complain about it. It is a shame he will have one of the worst careers record-wise in Iowa history probably and likely be forgotten by Iowa fans in a couple years. He is an example of a guy who really has given his all to the Iowa program, (while others were dropping like flies), fighting through injuries, playing out of position and working hard the whole time he was here. You know who Cole’s help inside is? Devin Archie is the junior transfer from Indianapolis who looks like a player, but didn’t get many, if any, minutes in the opener Sunday. Is he good? I really don’t know. If Archie sucks, do you know who Cole’s help is inside? Andrew Brommer. Crap.
Big 10 Standings –
Michigan State - 16-2
Ohio State - 15-3
Illinois - 15-3
Minnesota - 12-6
Purdue - 12-6
Wisconsin - 9-9
Northwestern- 8-10
Indiana - 5-13
Penn State - 4- 14
Iowa - 3-15
Michigan - 3-15
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