November Madness

That’s right folks only 130 days until selection Sunday, the greatest day in sports. College hoops season officially gets underway tonight and I am fucking pumped! Obviously I am excited for a new season for my Gamecocks but I am an overall hoops junkie. I guess the story of this season will be the new coach's in new places. Some of the most talked about are Tubby Smith to Minnesota, Billy Gillespie to Kentucky, John Beiline to Michigan, Bob Huggins to West Virginia, Steve Alford to New Mexico and John Pelphrey to Arkansas, and of course the unfortunate situation at Wake Forest with Dino Gaudio taking over for the late Skip Prosser. Every year when all of these coach's changes happen you can find some prognosticator who says things like "this is a great fit for (insert university here)" or "this guy will be able to recruit (insert local geographic area of said university)." Now of course me being the negative nellie that I am, I think they all suck and will all fail miserably. That being said here are some of my favorite and least favorite teams for the year.

The Good

Memphis- What’s not to love? Okay, the last two years they have fallen short of the Final Four after super regular seasons. Well get ready for the same thing, with the addition of Frosh Derrick Rose they most likely won’t lose a regular season game, certainly not a C-USA game

Gonzaga- Early in their rise I was never on the bandwagon but recently as they have stumbled in the Tournament I have been driving the bandwagon. The return and redemption of Josh Heytvelt will be this season’s theme and he has the good to be among the best big men in the country.

Connecticut- Their 7 freshmen from last year all made it back for their sophomore year including big man Hasheem Thabeet. Junior scorer Jeff Adrien could be the best player in the Big East.

Tennessee- Benefitting from the two most favorable transfer decisions in recent memory; JP Prince played a year and a handful of games his 2nd year at Arizona but transferred to Tennessee and starts his sophomore year over again after sitting out & Tyler Smith an All Big 10 performer last year transferred to Tennessee and received a waiver to not have to sit out a year. Add those two to a lineup that brings back 4 starters including All American candidate Chris Lofton and you could have a Final Four squad in Knoxville.

Marquette- The Warriors..er…Golden Eagles are lead by the most un-talked about backcourt in the country in Dominic James and Jerel McNeal. Coach Tom Crean has a core of solid veterans to go along with his explosive backcourt.


The Bad

Louisville- Pitino has resorted to recruiting the biggest thugs he can find and hoping he can coach them up. The growth of Edgar Sosa and the re-emergence of David Padgett are what people are counting on for this team and I just don’t see it happening.

Oregon- Conventional wisdom says this team will be better after losing only Aaron Brooks their star senior last year. However, I was not all the enthralled with them when they had Brooks, so my chance of liking them this year are slim.

Arizona- Lute Olson is taking a leave of absence and leaving the team in the incapable hands of Kevin O’Neal. Combine that with a shoot happy Chase Budinger and a freshmen shoot first PG Jerryd Bayless and things could get interesting in the desert.

NC State- Yeah they have a ton of talent coming back and they had a good year last year, but I know a handful of middle school coach’s who could out coach Sidney Lowe in a big spot. Good regular season team, but don’t look for much in the postseason.

Kentucky- Now some of you will say this is already revisionist history but I have been off the Cats bandwagon since they basically forced my main man Tubby Smith out. That and the fact that Billy Gilliespie hasn’t made any friends in Lexington with his antics make me think the Cats may struggle. Three of Billy’s least favorite people are his main guards Ramel Bradley, Joe Crawford and Jodie Meeks, and since they control the bal most of the time it could be a long year in the Bluegrass State.



The All Americans

Dominic James, Marquette- This young man has started every game at Marquette and his primed for a breakout year. He is an explosive scorer in the open floor with a solid jumper and good leadership skills. He has the ability to put his team on his back and carry them to big victories

Chris Lofton, Tennessee- He has steadily improved his game each year, so that being said if he improved this offseason he his hitting half court shots on a regular basis. With other scorers around him this year his numbers may be down, but when the game is on the line the ball will be in his hands and being launched from anywhere inside the arena.

Brandon Rush, Kansas- Last year injuries slowed the super talented soph, but this year back healthy nothing should be able to stop Rush. He is a superb athlete with the ability to shoot the three and drive and finish over people and through traffic. He has the total package and this is the year for him to put it together.

DJ White, Indiana- Strong, physical and explosive are the three best words to describe White. Down low he is almost impossible to stop, and with the help of freshmen guard Eric Gordon White should have less double teams to face which will increase his numbers.

Derrick Rose, Memphis- This guy is special, already forcasted as the #1 pick in next years draft, Rose is just getting started in Memphis. He has a quickness and gear with the ball in his hand that is impossible to stop at his height. This finally gives Coach Cal the go to scorer he has needed to get them over the top.