NCAA Basketball 2013-2014 Discussion

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Welcome back to the greatest sport in the land. Practices started nearly two weeks ago, so I'm a little late on this thread. But we've still got about 4 weeks until games start.

Part 1 - 2013 recap. If you want, feel free to ignore this and move on to Part 2. But otherwise indulge me for a moment as it's not every year your alma mater gets to celebrate a National Championship.

I start with post-season. The rest is just a prelude. 5OT at Notre Dame means nothing, except it was the last loss Louisville suffered, and they went on to win 16 straight.

So, highlights of the last real Big East Championship. Louisville fought back from 16 points down with 16 min left in the game to win running away with a 17-point victory and back-to-back championships. Key plays by Kevin Ware and freshman Montrezl Harrell sparked the comeback. Peyton Siva joined Patrick Ewing as the only 2-time BE Tournament MVP. Louisville chose not to cut down the nets, since they had the ones from 2012, and also because they were focused on a bigger prize.

Flash forward to the regional final against Duke. Highlights (no gore). Kevin Ware goes down with one of the most gruesome injuries seen on live TV. His teammates are in tears, save team co-captain Luke Hancock who immediately goes to his injured teammate and comforts him until the medical staff has stabilized him. The Cardinals look flustered, but then in the second half, in the words of Mike Krzyzewski, "they boom you". Louisville runs away with a 22 point victory and again chooses not to cut down the nets.

Final Four. Wichita St. Louisville down 12 with 12 minutes to go. What happens? Just like Kevin Ware predicted in his interview 4 days prior... "I think Tim Henderson will come in and hit a couple 3s". Which he did, cutting the lead to 6, and sparking another Louisville comeback. Highlights.

So, one game to win it all. Spike Albrecht comes out on fire when starter Trey Burke goes out with foul trouble in the first half. He scores 17 points (previous season high 7) while leading Michigan to a 35-23 lead. Then this happens: Luke Hancock's 4 3s in a row, plus a steal and alley-oop from Siva to Harrell, and Louisville is back in the lead in less than 3 minutes. 2nd half is close, but the Cardinals get the win, 82-76. One Shining Moment from CBS. Luke Hancock becomes the first non-starter to win MOP of the Final Four. His dad, very sick from cancer, made the trip to Atlanta for the only 2 games he saw his son play live during the year. He passed away in June. Just one of the stories about the young men on this team and how they suffered but persevered. From Peyton Siva driving a car at age 13 to track down his dad and talk him out of suicide to Luke's father, and through the Ware injury seeing the team come together... these guys have been through a lot, they are stand up young men, and pretty good basketball players to boot. Will never forget this team.

Champions again after 27 years. Whew. Here's another awesome tribute video to all 3 Louisville championship teams. And another special look at just the 2012-13 team, with many season highlights, including Chane Behanan's "Dunk of the Year" against DePaul.

And yes. Coach Pitino fulfills his promise to the team and gets a tattoo because... National Championship!

Ok... that was fun, for me anyway.

Part 2:

So, after losing 2 starters from the National Championship team, and returning the MOP from the Final Four, plus adding the best JuCo player in the country, Chris Jones, and several other highly touted recruits, Louisville is surely the #1 pre-season team right? I mean Kevin Ware is healed and will likely play in the season opener. So they should be favored to repeat and all that stuff...

Dick Vitale from last week? Nope. Kentucky, Mich. St, Louisville

OK, CBS entire slate of analysts from today. Nope. 6 guys. Louisville #2 by 5 of them, with UK #1 by 5 and MSU the other one.

USA Today? UK, MSU, Louisville.

And so it goes, on and on. Blue Ribbon. Athlon Sports. Magazine after magazine after newspaper after TV network... all buying in to the freshmen at UK. It's like not a single one of them remembers last year. Kentucky was #3 in most polls. How'd that work out for them?

IMAGE(http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2349551/NITcourtrush.gif)

Oh, right.

Anyway... mostly having a little fun with the polls. I know they really don't matter in basketball since we have a tournament and prove things on the court. But it's still amusing. Barring injury it seems very likely Louisville could return to the Final Four for a 3rd straight trip.

And good news for our resident Jayhawker: Kansas is ranked anywhere from 3-6 and expected to be pretty solid with the addition of freshman star Andrew "Ender" Wiggins. I don't care if that's not his real nickname or not because Ender's Game the movie is coming out during the season, so we're using it. :p

Speaking of stars, here's a pre-season All-American team from CBS Sports. They predict the aforementioned Wiggins as player of the year.

SBNation is doing a Top 100 players countdown this week. 100-81 and 80-61 have been released already with more each day.

Fun to talk about all this. But I'm really excited to see results on the court. Four more weeks!

For something besides rankings about about the upcoming season, here's an article about rule changes concerning hand-checking, arm bars, etc. Feels like they're trying to clean up the game a bit and hopefully get rid of some of those 40-50 point final scores. I still think they should just go to the 30 second shot clock. If it's good enough for the women, why can't the men use it too?

Also here's a comprehensive list of conference realignment for this year. If you're wondering why a certain team isn't where you remembered, blame football, and check the list.

Likewise, here's a list of coaching changes.

I'm in. Dunno if this is the year the Aggies find their way out of the desert, though.

From the original NCAA Basketball 2013-2014 Season Catch-All thread I put up almost a week ago :-p:

Looks like ESPN is not the only outlet for hype:

IMAGE(https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BWG-35cCcAA4VlT.jpg:large)

Sorry man. I looked. I figured it would be either you or me. Let me enjoy my championship celebration ok? Maybe you'll get one this year.

Yeah I agree. Even though we only had Gorgui Dieng for 3, he graduated at least. It's nice to get to know kids, see the improve and become part of the community.

Glad to see Russ Smith coming back for his senior year.

Talk that we might lose Montrezl Harrell if he had a solid sophomore year, as he has the length and talent to head to the NBA. But even 2 years is a lot better than the one-and-done.

It's all good. I should have linked. And the celebration is over. Everybody is 0-0.

Kansas has a hell of a team this year, but I am already tired of the one and dones. I know why Self has gone this route, but it would be nice to have guys for a few years to watch develop.

Top 100 countdown continues with 60-41

Also CBS Sports did the same thing without the daily countdown. Top 20 highlighted for the fun of it:

1. Andrew Wiggins

Kansas

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | G

Comment: Wiggins is projected as the consensus No. 1 pick of next June's NBA Draft. So he's only spending one year in college. And, as you can see by this ranking, he's expected to have a terrific season and maybe lead Kansas to a 10th straight Big 12 title. -- Gary Parrish

2. Marcus Smart

Oklahoma State

Vitals: 6-4 | Soph. | G

Comment: Smart passed on the chance to be a top-five pick to return to Oklahoma State. He's capable of leading the Cowboys to the Final Four. -- Jeff Borzello

3. Doug McDermott

Creighton

Vitals: 6-8 | Sr. | F

Comment: McDermott is the premier scorer in college basketball. Don't get caught up in his NBA potential; enjoy him in his final year of college hoops. -- Matt Norlander

4. Russ Smith

Louisville

Vitals: 6-1 | Sr. | G

Comment: Smith was the best player on the nation's best team last season. His return to Louisville for his senior season will give the Cards a chance to repeat as national champions.

5. Julius Randle

Kentucky

Vitals: 6-9 | Fr. | F

Comment: Wiggins is getting more attention among the nation's freshmen. But Randle is a physical specimen ready to dominate. -- JB

6. Jabari Parker

Duke

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | F

Comment: Parker was The Best Since LeBron® before Wiggins was The Best Since LeBron®. The Chicago native is the real deal because the game comes naturally to him. He's a great decision maker, a true 3 and a player that's going to contribute in just about every way. -- MN

7. Gary Harris

Michigan State

Vitals: 6-4 | Soph. | G

Comment: Harris battled injuries most of last season and has done the same this preseason. But he should be healthy soon and good enough to become the Big Ten Player of the Year. -- GP

8. Aaron Craft

Ohio State

Vitals: 6-2 | Sr. | G

Comment: One of the nation's premier defenders and leaders, Craft is ready to take on a bigger offensive role with DeShaun Thomas gone. -- JB

9. Jahii Carson

Arizona State

Vitals: 5-10 | Soph. | G

Comment: Smart enters the season as the nation's best point guard. I can see a world where Carson is considered better by February. Averaged 18.5 points and 5.1 assists last season. Those numbers will go up. -- MN

10. Aaron Gordon

Arizona

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | F

Comment: Gordon averaged 16.2 points and 6.2 rebounds in the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship, where he was USA Basketball's MVP. That performance secured his place as a projected future lottery pick. -- GP

11. Mitch McGary

Michigan

Vitals: 6-10 | Soph. | F

Comment: The sophomore big averaged 14.3 points and 10.7 boards in the NCAA tournament; can he do that consistently this regular season? -- JB

12. Andrew Harrison

Kentucky

Vitals: 6-5 | Fr. | G

Comment: Harrison is believed to be second only to John Wall in terms of UK point guards under John Calipari. At 6-5, 210 pounds, he's built tremendously well and will be a force because of his size and vicious, attacking personality. -- MN

13. Willie Cauley-Stein

Kentucky

Vitals: 7-0 | Soph. | F

Comment: Cauley-Stein could've been a lottery pick despite serving a reserve for much of his freshman season. He's the best of three future NBA bigs on the Kentucky roster. -- GP

14. Rodney Hood

Duke

Vitals: 6-8 | Soph. | F

Comment: After transferring from Mississippi State and sitting out last season, Hood is recovered from an Achilles injury he suffered in the summer. -- JB

15. Adreian Payne

Michigan State

Vitals: 6-9 | Sr. | F

Comment: Payne is a beast of a forward for Michigan State and said to be in great shape and ready to dominate the league. He plays taller than 6-9 because he gets above the rim on both ends. -- MN

16. Montrezl Harrell

Louisville

Vitals: 6-8 | Soph. | F

Comment: Rick Pitino told me this summer that he expects to coach Harrell for just one more season. This will be college basketball's breakout player, most think. -- GP

17. C.J. Fair

Syracuse

Vitals: 6-8 | Sr. | F

Comment: Underrated nationally, Fair is the focal point of what should be one of the deepest frontcourts around. He can score in different ways. -- JB

18. Glenn Robinson III

Michigan

Vitals: 6-6 | Soph. | F

Comment: Robinson's NBA stock should be for the better after returning to school. He has a smooth stroke and a great pro body. -- MN

19. Semaj Christon

Xavier

Vitals: 6-3 | Fr. | G

Comment: Christon is a pro point guard who mostly operated off the radar last season because Xavier was done, relatively speaking. But NBA scouts saw him plenty. -- GP

20. Shabazz Napier

UConn
Vitals: 6-1 | Sr. | G

Comment: The Huskies are looking to rebound after last season's postseason ban. It will be up to Napier to lead the way. -- JB

Looking over that list I found a name that makes me feel old: Roy Devyn Marble, SR, G, Iowa. I was in HS when his dad, Roy Marble, was playing for Iowa in the late 80's.

I hope the Transfer U train keeps rolling @ Iowa State this season. They say we had some good players sitting out last year.

Coaches poll is out today.

Not sure how Louisville ended up #3 with 10 first-place votes to MSU's 3. But whatever. Bring on the hoops!

And Final Four MOP Luke Hancock wins Homecoming King at the Louisville football game tonight. :Cool:

Definitely his 2nd best award of the year.

Fun exhibition by Louisville Tues night. 115-67.

But more impressive was the 0 fouls committed by guards Russ Smith and Terry Rozier. All this talk about the new rules might affect Louisville badly doesn't take into consideration how fast our guards really are. And Russ just lived at the line. I think the changes will help us much more on offense than they could ever hurt us on defense.

And Montrezl Harrell had 8 dunks out of 9 field goals.

Going to be a fun year.

AP poll is out now too.

Similar to coaches with UK, Mich St, Louisville, and Duke as the top 4. More love for Kansas than Arizona in the AP to round out the top 5.

At least the first place votes make more sense in this one. Still wondering which coach crapped all over the defending champs in that poll. :p

Stele, what is up with Louisville's lame non-conference schedule? They have 11 "warm-ups" before playing Kentucky. There is literally not one interesting Louisville game to watch before December 28th.

We should play UNC in that Hall of Fame Tipoff tournament, assuming we get by Fairfield and they get by Richmond. On some schedules (*cough*ESPN*cough*) it's not listed, but it's on Nov 24. We're definitely playing someone that day.

Western Ky is usually a tournament team. And the FIU game is only on there because his son Richard was there, and we're being nice and not dropping the return engagement part of the home-and-home contract now that he's at Minnesota. I think some people were hoping that would be replaced by a quality opponent.

So yeah... probably only UNC, WKU, and UK as "good teams" out of our first 13 pre-conference games.

When we were in the Big East that was more than enough, and will be plenty in the future in the ACC. This year, it seems a little tame.

We're also missing out on the conference challenge (BE/SEC, B10/ACC, etc.) this year. That would usually give us another likely tournament team before conference play.

The UNC game will add to schedule strength. I wish there was a good way to show those other games.

Kansas plays Wake, but not show are games versus USC or Villanova, and one of Xavier, Iowa, UTEP, or Tennessee.

But Kansas also has #4 Duke, #10 FLA, and #23 New Mexico. They also have a game versus unranked Georgetown that at least has some national appeal.

I just found a schedule in which you have to talk up Western Kentucky is kind of a problem. One thing Self has always done at KU is provide a tough non-conference schedule against powers and good trap games like Georgetown and Wake Forest. I believe it helps them going into the Big 12 that they have already been playing tough games. It also drives a lot of revenue, which is why I was surprised there was such a lack of marquee games for Louisville, since Louisville generates a healthy revenue stream.

Well, I'm hopeful Charleston's effort against Louisville next Saturday resembles the game in Louisville 2 years ago and not last year's debacle. Charleston btw joins the Colonial which is definitely a step up from the SoCon..

Stele wrote:

Top 100 countdown continues with 60-41

Also CBS Sports did the same thing without the daily countdown. Top 20 highlighted for the fun of it:

1. Andrew Wiggins

Kansas

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | G

Comment: Wiggins is projected as the consensus No. 1 pick of next June's NBA Draft. So he's only spending one year in college. And, as you can see by this ranking, he's expected to have a terrific season and maybe lead Kansas to a 10th straight Big 12 title. -- Gary Parrish

2. Marcus Smart

Oklahoma State

Vitals: 6-4 | Soph. | G

Comment: Smart passed on the chance to be a top-five pick to return to Oklahoma State. He's capable of leading the Cowboys to the Final Four. -- Jeff Borzello

3. Doug McDermott

Creighton

Vitals: 6-8 | Sr. | F

Comment: McDermott is the premier scorer in college basketball. Don't get caught up in his NBA potential; enjoy him in his final year of college hoops. -- Matt Norlander

4. Russ Smith

Louisville

Vitals: 6-1 | Sr. | G

Comment: Smith was the best player on the nation's best team last season. His return to Louisville for his senior season will give the Cards a chance to repeat as national champions.

5. Julius Randle

Kentucky

Vitals: 6-9 | Fr. | F

Comment: Wiggins is getting more attention among the nation's freshmen. But Randle is a physical specimen ready to dominate. -- JB

6. Jabari Parker

Duke

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | F

Comment: Parker was The Best Since LeBron® before Wiggins was The Best Since LeBron®. The Chicago native is the real deal because the game comes naturally to him. He's a great decision maker, a true 3 and a player that's going to contribute in just about every way. -- MN

7. Gary Harris

Michigan State

Vitals: 6-4 | Soph. | G

Comment: Harris battled injuries most of last season and has done the same this preseason. But he should be healthy soon and good enough to become the Big Ten Player of the Year. -- GP

8. Aaron Craft

Ohio State

Vitals: 6-2 | Sr. | G

Comment: One of the nation's premier defenders and leaders, Craft is ready to take on a bigger offensive role with DeShaun Thomas gone. -- JB

9. Jahii Carson

Arizona State

Vitals: 5-10 | Soph. | G

Comment: Smart enters the season as the nation's best point guard. I can see a world where Carson is considered better by February. Averaged 18.5 points and 5.1 assists last season. Those numbers will go up. -- MN

10. Aaron Gordon

Arizona

Vitals: 6-8 | Fr. | F

Comment: Gordon averaged 16.2 points and 6.2 rebounds in the 2013 FIBA U19 World Championship, where he was USA Basketball's MVP. That performance secured his place as a projected future lottery pick. -- GP

11. Mitch McGary

Michigan

Vitals: 6-10 | Soph. | F

Comment: The sophomore big averaged 14.3 points and 10.7 boards in the NCAA tournament; can he do that consistently this regular season? -- JB

12. Andrew Harrison

Kentucky

Vitals: 6-5 | Fr. | G

Comment: Harrison is believed to be second only to John Wall in terms of UK point guards under John Calipari. At 6-5, 210 pounds, he's built tremendously well and will be a force because of his size and vicious, attacking personality. -- MN

13. Willie Cauley-Stein

Kentucky

Vitals: 7-0 | Soph. | F

Comment: Cauley-Stein could've been a lottery pick despite serving a reserve for much of his freshman season. He's the best of three future NBA bigs on the Kentucky roster. -- GP

14. Rodney Hood

Duke

Vitals: 6-8 | Soph. | F

Comment: After transferring from Mississippi State and sitting out last season, Hood is recovered from an Achilles injury he suffered in the summer. -- JB

15. Adreian Payne

Michigan State

Vitals: 6-9 | Sr. | F

Comment: Payne is a beast of a forward for Michigan State and said to be in great shape and ready to dominate the league. He plays taller than 6-9 because he gets above the rim on both ends. -- MN

16. Montrezl Harrell

Louisville

Vitals: 6-8 | Soph. | F

Comment: Rick Pitino told me this summer that he expects to coach Harrell for just one more season. This will be college basketball's breakout player, most think. -- GP

17. C.J. Fair

Syracuse

Vitals: 6-8 | Sr. | F

Comment: Underrated nationally, Fair is the focal point of what should be one of the deepest frontcourts around. He can score in different ways. -- JB

18. Glenn Robinson III

Michigan

Vitals: 6-6 | Soph. | F

Comment: Robinson's NBA stock should be for the better after returning to school. He has a smooth stroke and a great pro body. -- MN

19. Semaj Christon

Xavier

Vitals: 6-3 | Fr. | G

Comment: Christon is a pro point guard who mostly operated off the radar last season because Xavier was done, relatively speaking. But NBA scouts saw him plenty. -- GP

20. Shabazz Napier

UConn
Vitals: 6-1 | Sr. | G

Comment: The Huskies are looking to rebound after last season's postseason ban. It will be up to Napier to lead the way. -- JB

\

The stinky thing about this list is that three of them, Gary Harris, Mitch McGary, and Glen Robinson played their high school ball in Indiana and the likes of IU, Purdue, or Notre Dame couldn't successfully recruit them.

Yeah, Rick has been good at "working the RPI" since we've been in the Big East. You play someone who is an easy win for you, like Southern Miss this year, but is expected to win their conference (CUSA, #2 last year, and #1 Memphis is gone now). They win 25 games and boost your RPI but don't really challenge you.

Also, he's playing several of his former players and assistants for a lot of these non-conference games. This year, UMKC is one of those, former assistant at Louisville Kareem Richardson is their new head coach. And FIU was supposed to be.

And of course we had a non-conference series with Memphis the last 2 seasons, and it's resuming in 2014. But this year we're in-conference with them for 2 games.

So yeah, SoS takes a little hit this year. We still have Cincy, UConn and Memphis in conference. But honestly I only expect Louisville to lose 2-3 games tops, if everyone is healthy. We should win @UK, as Russ Smith has played 3 games in Rupp and never scored less than 25. #RussArena will be trending that day. Maybe I see us dropping a game @Memphis, @UConn, or @Cincy. But not all 3. We should beat all of those teams at home.

In all honestly, Louisville is a lot more likely to go 40-0 this year than Kentucky is. But don't tell them that. They'll probably lose game 2 to Mich St and the talk will all be over. But until then, they're making 40-0 shirts and registering domain names in the pre-season. And not just cafepress custom stuff. But actual UK retail stores.

Whoa. Kevin Ware played tonight in the exhibition. Came in mid-way through the 2nd half. Hit a 3, and went 3-4 from the line for 6 points so far.

Kind of expected him to play Sat in the actual opener. Knew he was practicing and dressing for the game. This was a pleasant surprise. And the crowd went crazy.

Story

Basketball is back tonight!

Highlights include UConn-Maryland and Georgetown-Oregon. Maybe St John's-Wisconsin? A lot of top 25 teams in action, but some early cream-puff games for the first couple days it seems.

Tip-off Showcase in Dallas has Oklahoma-Alabama, SMU-TCU, and Baylor-Colorado all tonight. Only Baylor is ranked, but some good name schools there (mostly in football though ;)), maybe some entertaining games.

Kansas has a tune-up tonight before facing Duke in four days. Starting PG Nadir Tharpe is out for a one game suspension due to an exhibition game he played in while in Chicago this summer. While going with a freshman PG won't hurt them tonight, it would have been nice to get Tharpe work before Duke.

Game is on ESPN3 if folks want to see Wiggins do his thing in his first home game at Kansas. Should be fun.

Eager to see what Ollie does in his 2nd round with the Huskies this year.

I'm 3,000 miles away, but lucky enough that it's on ESPN2.

Foxua wrote:

Eager to see what Ollie does in his 2nd round with the Huskies this year.

I'm 3,000 miles away, but lucky enough that it's on ESPN2.

I'm cheering for you guys to go 30-something and 2... or 3 if we play you in conference tournament.

Well, Charleston kept it interesting for a half at least.

Stele wrote:

I'm cheering for you guys to go 30-something and 2... or 3 if we play you in conference tournament. ;)

We had no business winning that game last night. I'm going to chalk the whole experience, on both sides, up to first night jitters.

Badferret wrote:

Well, Charleston kept it interesting for a half at least.

Way longer than that. 3 point game with 6:47 left. Then, boom, 13-0 run and overall 22-3 run to finish the game.

Of course Louisville was ice cold in the first half. Like 2-10 on 3s, and some really open looks. And when they can't score they can't press, so the game stays close. But once things get going, boom.

Stele wrote:
Badferret wrote:

Well, Charleston kept it interesting for a half at least.

Way longer than that. 3 point game with 6:47 left. Then, boom, 13-0 run and overall 22-3 run to finish the game.

Of course Louisville was ice cold in the first half. Like 2-10 on 3s, and some really open looks. And when they can't score they can't press, so the game stays close. But once things get going, boom.

Yeah, watched the Dawgs vs. App live, and caught the replay. The Cardinals defense/pressure is still like a blitzkrieg when they get it going. Still, much better effort by CofC this year, and if they had hit just a few more outside shots, maybe they could have put more pressure on UL. I do think Charleston is a legitimate threat to win the Colonial in their first year in the league. There is real talent with Barry and Chealey and they will only get better as they get experience.

Well... I thought ESPN wasn't doing the tip-off marathon, 24 hours of basketball thing this year, since they didn't do it last week.

But it's happening tonight!

BYU-Stanford kicking it off now. Western Ky coming up at 1am. And lots more throughout the night, leading into those 2 top 5 matchups to finish it off tomorrow. Yes!

Jabari Parker looks legit.

Charleston bounced back nicely at home with a great comeback against Charlotte.

They were down fourteen with seven minutes to go. Down six with :26, and won it on a last second layup.

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