Pre-Bracket Update!

While, I'm not ready to unveil a bracket just yet, I think it is time to evaluate the where teams are at this point.

Virtual Locks
These teams look like sure-fire NCAA teams. It would take a season of monumental underachievement to miss out.

Boston College, Connecticut, Duke, Florida, George Washington, Gonzaga, Illinois, Iowa, Memphis, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, Villanova, Washington, Wake Forest

Overachievers
Not all of these teams will make the Dance, but some will and these clubs bear close watching after their better-than-expected starts.

Buffalo, Colorado State, Iona, Kansas State, Loyola-Chicago, Loyola-Maryland, Nebraska, North Carolina, Rutgers, Texas A&M, UNC-Wilmington, Vanderbilt

Underachievers
These clubs have high expectations, but have looked vulnerable early.

Arizona, Charlotte, Iowa State, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Miami-FL, Michigan State, Stanford, Southern Illinois, Texas Tech, West Virginia

On Track
With continued success, these teams could move into Virtual Lock status.

Alabama, Bucknell, Indiana, NC State, Wisconsin

Bubble Boys
At this early date, these teams look like the ones that will scrap for the 8-12 seeds.

Air Force, Arkansas, California, Clemson, Colorado, Creighton, Georgetown, Hawaii, Houston, Maryland, Marquette, Michigan, Missouri State, Northern Iowa, North Carolina, LSU, Oklahoma State, Ohio, Ohio State, Old Dominion, Syracuse, Utah, Wichita State

I'm sure I missed a few teams. Please email and tell me how I stupidly ignored the obvious. Thanks.

Tonights GOI
--Michigan State at Boston College. The Spartans need a statement win over a top opponent. The Eagles certainly qualify. I like BC, though.
--Villanova at Bucknell. That's right. AT BUCKNELL. The Cats go on the road against giant-killer U. The Bison have a great chance to pad their resume with a gargantuan win.
--Indiana at Indiana State. In-state games mean so much to the "smaller" school. The 3-0 Sycamores welcome the resurgent Hoosiers for some Indiana basketball. Cue the Gene Hackman speech.
--Iowa at Northern Iowa. See above, except that the Panthers have a much better chance to upend the Hawkeyes than the Sycamores do against IU. This should be a great in-state matchup.
--Saint Joseph's at Kansas. This Jimmy V Classic game is a big one for the young Jayhawks. Phil Martelli's Hawks are 3-1 and looking to return to the NCAA tourney after a one-year hiatus. They are looking to build on last year's NIT Runner-Up run.
The Sun Belt Slate
--Evansville (2-2) at Western Kentucky (4-1). The Purple Aces are coming in on a high after defeating in-state foe Purdue over the weekend, but the Hilltoppers are playing great basketball...in spurts. The Tops made a school record 16 three-pointers in their road win over Eastern Kentucky on Saturday.
--North Texas (1-2) at Texas A&M (4-0). The Mean Green have a tall task ahead. Going into College Station and pulling out a win over the undefeated Aggies will not be easy. The Sun Belt is in dire need of some big non-conference wins.

The Real Battle of the Bluegrass

Across most of the nation, the phrase “Kentucky rivalry” usually conjures images of former Kentucky and current Louisville coach Rick Pitino, the “Dream Game,” Tubby Smith’s defensive philosophy, or the Cardinals annual pasting of UK in their annual football game. For forty minutes in Richmond last night, that more TV-friendly rivalry took a back seat to one with a longer and equally storied past. The oldest rivalry in this state exists between Western Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky. This was a classic rivalry game, too. The teams were not evenly matched in terms of talent, but what the Colonels lacked in athleticism or speed, they made up with good, old-fashioned guts and desire.

As McBrayer Arena was filling to near capacity (6,250 on hand), the Kentucky Barbershop Chorus executed beautiful renditions of both the “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “My Old Kentucky Home.” The rich baritones and tenors echoed off of McBrayer’s cathedralesque, wooden-domed roof and the chorus drew bipartisan applause. The watertight harmonies soon gave way to a “WKU—YOU SUCK!” chant in a thick eastern Kentucky accent. Everyone was ready for some hoops at that point.

1^st Half
“The sun shines bright on my old Kentucky home.”
14.51: Both teams have come out ready to play. EKU senior PG Matt Witt scares the living crap out of me. He will pull up from anywhere and in a rivalry game with a throng of students and fans at his disposal that man is going to be hard to stop. He just juked and launched a fade away three from Pikeville that ripped the net. It is 13-10, WKU.

“The young folks roll on the little cabin floor.”
7.04: Topper young ‘un (FR) Daniel Emerson just made a nice spin to the goal for a hoop plus the free throw. The Toppers superior athleticism is starting to make an impact. That bucket capped an 8-0 run that forces an EKU timeout. 28-20, Tops.

4.39: A rash of EKU turnovers followed by a waterfall of Topper threes pushed the lead to 42-20. Western completes a run similar to the last ten minutes of their last game at UAB. Anthony Winchester has made two threes during this run and Ty Rogers added another. EKU’s Jason McLeish hits a three to end it and make it 42-23.

Halftime
It is 51-32 Toppers and EKU is on the verge of being royally embarrassed on their home court. This is a rivalry game though, and I do not expect them to go quietly. And they didn’t. Not by a long shot.

2^nd Half
“By and by hard times come a-knockin’ at the door.”
13.05: EKU storms out of the second half gate behind a barrage of threes from Witt and G Mike Rose (who hit five on the night). They have shaved a 19-point halftime lead to just six in seven minutes. The crowd finally gets to be a factor and is getting amped.

More hard times come a-knockin’.
3.03: The last ten minutes have consisted of both teams making a ridiculous amount of three-point shots. The WKU lead has fluctuated from six to ten for this stretch, but a Darnell Dials dunk and then two Witt free throws trim the once robust Topper lead of 22 point to just ONE. 83-82, WKU.

“Weep no more my lady!”
1:36: Back to back threes by Benson Callier removes the sinister specter of a monumental EKU comeback win. A three from the corner took guts, but with a six point lead, WKU only had to run clock and make free throws. Instead, they hoisted two rushed bricks, with the last ending up in Callier’s hands. He promptly lofted another ill-advised three that tickled the twine and buried the Colonels. Not a good shot, but a good result as that Three made it 91-82.

“To my old Kentucky home, goodnight.”
0.03: Courtney Lee leaks out for a monster two-handed slam to emphatically end the scoring. 97-89, WKU wins.

Click here for the game story and the box score. In short, WKU set a school record by making 16 Threes (16-37). EKU made 13 of 26 of their own. Lots of runnin’ and gunnin’ and lots of points, but the defense left something to be desired. Both teams must find a way to give up fewer wide-open perimeter looks. Still, it was a great game and it is a great rivalry. The Tops also got that valuable “gut-check” that they needed on the road.

More tomorrow on the national hoops scene.

Early Season Brackets

Since this is "The Bracket Board" and all, you might expect to see all kinds of early season brackets popping up on here. If need be, you can go to Bracketography.com or Bracketexpress.com and get your fix. Those guys do a nice job. But romancing the bracket is about MUCH more than simply slapping 64 teams into four regionals. There has to be some basis for placing teams into the bracket. Four or five games is not enough, in this (somewhat) humble writer's opinion. Three weeks ago, few teams had played a game! It's never too early for a bracket, but it is too early for a meaningful bracket.

So, until the New Year, here is what will happen at The Bracket Board. I will post lists of bracket-related items. Lists like "Remaining Undefeated Teams," "The Danger Zone" (Preseason/perennial powers who are on the ropes), "Stockpilers" (teams that have nice early season wins that will help come Selection Sunday), "Keep an Eye On..." and other lists like this. I will publish a non-conference season bracket at the end of the month to serve as a reference point for the weekly brackets that will start sometime in January.

For kicks, let's start today with a Danger Zone list. All records are against D-I teams.
1. Kansas (1-3). KU has Saint Joseph's, Cal (both in the Jimmy V Classic), and Kentucky (in Lawrence) left on the non-conference slate. In addition, they have Western Illinois, Pepperdine, Northern Colorado, New Orleans, and Yale left to play at home as well. That's right. Kansas plays ZERO true road games in the non-conference. NONE. They played neutral court games in Maui and will play two more in the Jimmy V Classic. If they head into Big 12 play with a losing record, the Jayhawks could be in major trouble.
2. Miami-FL (4-3). The 'Canes were a sexy pick to make serious noise this season, but already have sustained losses to Temple, Michigan, and Air Force. Those are not horrible losses, but Miami-FL's wins are Morgan State, TX-Arlington, and North Carlolina A&T. In a couple of weeks, the Canes will play NC State, Florida and Louisville. They will need to win a couple of those games to get back on track.
3. UW-Milwaukee (0-2). Last year's NCAA darlings have been utterly routed by Memphis and also lost to Tennessee Tech. It's only two games and they are transitioning under a new coach, so it's too early to panic, but UWM needs to start piling up some wins.
4. Southern Illinois (2-2). The unbelievable event regarding SIU was their loss to D-II Alaska-Anchorage (not reflected in the record displayed here). They also lost to Monmouth and Saint Louis. The perennial MVC power will have to step it up to hang with Northern Iowa and Creighton this season.


Last Night's GOI
--at Denver 78, Northern Arizona 63. The Pioneers (4-1) look like the team to beat in the Sun Belt West. They won the Top of the World Classic, then lost to undefeated Colorado State (5-0) before cruising past the Lumberjacks last night. C Yemi Nicholson went for 20 points and 18 boards. Ho hum.
--at Tennessee-Martin 80, Arkansas State 77 (OT). Oy. The Indians lose again. The Skyhawks roared back from a 30-19 halftime deficity to topple ASU in overtime.
--Nevada 72, at Kansas 70. What a big win for Nevada. They are a better team than Kansas and they went into Lawrence and proved it.

Tonight's GOI
--Missouri at Arkansas. Two coaches who need BIG seasons to cool their respective seats.

Dukies and Bison and Gaels. Oh My.

1. My latest SCS.com piece is up.
2. Kentucky's Randolph Morris is ineligible--for now.
3. Indiana's Marco Killingsworth went berserk last night in a tough loss to Duke.
4. I hate to say I told you so, but Bucknell is on fire. I said it then and I'll say it now. That win over Kansas was not THAT big of an upset.
5. Iona is on fire. Yes, I said Iona.

Tonight's GOI
--Northern Arizona at Denver (3-1). The Pioneers look to get back on track after a loss to undefeated Colorado State.
--Arkansas State (1-2) at Tennessee-Martin. ASU has not beaten a D-I team this season. They SHOULD get off the schnide tonight.
--Nevada at Kansas. Very important game for both teams. Nevada is looking to validate itself as a legit Top 25 team and Kansas needs quality wins, because they could take some lumps in conference this year.

Last Night's GOI
--Duke 75, at Indiana 67. Both teams made some bad decisions down the stretch. Both teams are going to be very good by the end of the season.
--at Iowa 45, NC State 42. I picked the Hawkeyes yesterday, but man, was this game ugly. Take a look at these ghastly shooting percentages.
--at Michigan State 88, Georgia Tech 86. I'm sorry, but Michigan State is not that good right now. They are just NOT.
--at Utah 67, Utah State 66. Told ya this was a huge in-state game.
--at Arizona State 83, North Texas 67. I must admit the Sun Belt is down this year overall.
--at Mississippi State 67, New Orleans 59 . I must admit the Sun Belt is down this year overall. Again. ASU and Miss State are not good teams this year and North Texas (0-2 vs D-I teams) and UNO (0-3 vs D-I teams) were supposed to have breakout seasons.

Tops Strike Down With Great Vengeance

(For this post, the part of Jules Winfield will be played by Courtney Lee. Vincent Vega is played by Anthony Winchester)

Act I (Cue Dick Dale surf guitar music)
Now I wanna dance, I wanna win. I want that trophy, so dance good. (Mia)
10.05: And this dance is a sixth grade sock-hop where the gangly girls tower over the prepubescent boys. It is an exercise in disjointed incoordination. It is UGLY. There is no rhythm, no tempo. It's a free-for-all and the Toppers have continued their turnover woes. Luckily, UAB cannot throw it in the ocean, so the Tops have somehow managed to hold a 2-point lead, 16-14. A Royale with cheese has more rhythm than this contest.

Oh man, I shot Marvin in the face. (Vincent Vega, er, I mean Anthony Winchester)
7.42: Winchester gets it going with a leaner +1 on a foul for an old-fashioned 3-point play. There is still little flow to this game as UAB continues to force a ridiculous amount of Topper turnovers, but cannot shoot straight against an intense WKU defense. 24-20, Tops.

I got a threshold, Jules. I got a threshold for the abuse I'll take. And right now I'm a race car and you got me in the red. (Vince/Winchester)
4.52: Winchester has been red-faced and furious all night. He's been getting in teammates' faces, murmuring to himself after poor decisions, and then he absolutely hammered a UAB player driving to the goal to send a message to the more physical Blazers, drawing boos from the surprisingly sparse crowd. He is a race car in the red...and he just drilled a Three to make it 28-25 Tops. Mike Walker added 1-2 free throws and a put back hoop to make it 31-25 Tops. Time out, Blazers.

Intermission: Tied at 36. (Cue "Girl You'll Be A Woman Soon" for halftime entertainment)
The home team closes with a furious run to tie it at 36. WKU has committed 17 first half turnovers. The Tops can run with the Blazers, but they MUST stop the throwaways. Freshman PG Orlando Mendez-Valdez has done a solid job and probably needs to log the bulk of the PG minutes. He looks the calmest and coolest of the Topper ballhandlers. Is there a home court advantage for the Blazers? UAB has shot 20 free throws...WKU? THREE.

Act II (Surf guitar reprise)
Every time my fingers touch brain I'm SUPERFLY T.N.T, I'm the GUNS OF THE NAVARONE! (Jules)
13.47: After committing three turnovers in 38 seconds to start the second stanza, the Toppers fell behind 43-36. But, the Topper Armada of three-point shooters started firing at will. Orlando Mendez-Valdez, Ty Rogers, and Benson Callier all drilled longballs during a 14-6 spurt that made it 50-49, Tops.

And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. (Courtney Lee)
7.58: Lee has taken over this game in the last five minutes. He tied the game at 55 with a Three, made two $5-dollar-milkshake-quality drives to hole and 2 FT's. A Winchester 3-ball off of a Mendez-Valdez steal followed by another Ty Rogers' Three has swelled the Topper lead to 11 (67-56). This team looks like it has found its groove.

Okay man, it was a miracle, can we leave now? (Winchester/Vince)
o.oo: Yes, we can leave now because the last few minutes have been a cavalcade of Topper Threes and Lee free throws. 92-76, Tops win. And though a team that markets itself as "The Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball" will never admit it, this Topper team wore down UAB. Yes, the tremendous Topper shooting did in the Blazers, but those open looks came largely as a result of a fresher Topper team. Those open looks were not there earlier in the game. UAB was tired, and the Tops scorched the earth to the tune of 15-23 from 3-point land as a result of open looks.

What's inside the briefcase? A gigantic road win for WKU and an exorcism of the Georgia demons. This Topper team gained a massive 92-76 road win for their season resume. UAB had 35 free throw attempts to WKU's 17, and the Tops turned it over 27 times ON THE ROAD...and the Big Red still won by 16. That has to be a good sign. I really liked the intensity and killer instinct of this team. Sophomore G Courtney Lee was simply brilliant as well, so says the Mid-Majority.

The 3.75 hour one-way drive was absolutely worth watching this team put it all together for the last ten minutes. I expect that wild inconsistently will often be the norm for this Topper team with so many new players (Does that mean that they actually ARE consistent? Hmmm...). Jules and Vince are always going to be there with guns blazing, but there will be nights that Mia snorts heroin and needs to be saved by a giant needle to the heart. Also, there will be nights when all cylinders click and this team looks nigh unstoppable. For now, I'm just savoring the nearly flawless last ten minutes of the UAB like one might savor a Big Kahuna Burger.

Last Night's GOI
--Dayton 75, at Cincinnati 66. It's official. The Bearcats are officially on the way-too-early season Bubble Boy list.
--at Iowa State 68, Northern Iowa 61. The Cyclones righted the ship a bit and UNI missed out on a big non-conference scalp.
--at Michigan 74, Miami-FL 53. OUCH. Canes are reeling.
--Illinois 68, at North Carolina 64. 2005 title game rematch goes to the Illini.
--at Wake Forest 91, Wisconsin 88. Great early season game. These teams both look like solid tourney teams early on.
--at Middle Tennessee State 81, Chattanooga 71. MTSU (2-1) rebounds a bit after the Indiana State loss.
--at FIU 69, South Florida 64 (2 OT) . The Golden Panthers (2-2) also bounce back with a win over a Big East team.
--at Georgia State 76, UL-Lafayette 61. The Cajuns (0-3) started with three road games and took three L's. They get Charlotte in the Cajun Dome on Saturday.

Tonight's GOI
--Duke at Indiana. Indiana has steamrolled everyone so far. They get #1 Duke in Bloomington. This should be a great barometer for both teams.
--NC State at Iowa. Another nice matchup of probable NCAA teams. I need more convincing that NC State is worthy of the attention that they have received so far. I like the Hawkeyes here.
--Georgia Tech at Michigan State. I am simply curious as to how the Jackets got blasted by 22 AT HOME to Illinois-Chicago. The Flames were promptly routed by 20 at Georgia Southern. Let's see if GT is that bad.
--Utah State at Utah. Huge in-state game that cannot be ignored.
--North Texas at Arizona State. Good chance for a Sun Belt win over a Big Six school.
--New Orleans at Mississippi State. See above.

Tops at UAB: Old Sun Belt Foes

WKU visits the Blazers of UAB tonight in a reunion of long-lost conference foes. The Tops (2-1) are coming off of a bitter home loss to Georgia on Saturday, while the Blazers (2-0) have defeated their first two opponents (UMass 86-77, and South Carolina State 79-48). The Tops will need more than the Big Three of Anthony Winchester, Courtney Lee, and Elgrace Wilborn to pose serious threat to UAB. Nine other players will likely play tonight for WKU, and at least a couple of them are going to have to contribute some scoring and some solid floor play.

This game should be a track meet. Both teams like to play an up-tempo, pressing style of hoops and score a lot of points off of that pressure D. UAB is led by F Demario Eddins (21 ppg, 5 rpg) and PG Squeaky Johnson (6.5 ppg, 8 apg). Eddins is one of the best frontcourt players that WKU will see all season and Johnson is one of the fastest, most disruptive PG's that the Tops will face. Click here for complete stats on UAB. They are deep, athletic, and are playing at home. This is a very tough road opener for the young Toppers.

These concerns are especially worrisome due to the horrendous PG play on Saturday against UGA. Freshmen Orlando Mendez-Valdez played solid in 14 mins of action, but fouled out in that short span. JC transfer Joemal Campbell had a terrible game and G Ty Rogers was clearly not ready to play PG against tough, athletic defenders. The Tops will need improvement at PG and some production from PF to challenge the Blazers. I will be making the trip, so I will have a full game log tomorrow.

Tonight's GOI
--Dayton at Cincinnati. In-state matchup that will tell us a lot about the Bearcats. Dayton played a very good Creighton team tough on Saturday (lost by one in double-OT).
--Northern Iowa at Iowa State. HUGE, HUGE game. UNI needs this scalp for their at-large resume and Iowa State has stumbled badly out of the gate (a 17-point loss at home to Iona).
--Miami-FL at Michigan. Two teams that figure to be on the bubble come March. This is as important as it gets in November.
--Illinois at North Carolina. 2005 title game rematch, but both have lost a lot. Illinois is better, but a win in the Dean Dome will not be easy.
--Wisconsin at Wake Forest. Why do people constantly underrate Wisconsin (4-0)? It would not surprise me in the least if they beat the Deacons tonight.

Sun Belt Games
--Chattanooga at Middle Tennessee State. MTSU (1-1) backed up a big home win over Utah State with an OT loss at Indiana State.
--South Florida at FIU. The Golden Panthers (1-2) have disappointed so far. This win could be a giant boost.
--UL-Lafayette at Georgia State. The Cajuns (0-2) have also been fairly lackluster in a blowout loss to struggling SIU and a loss at Tennessee. Then need a win badly.

Turnover, Boy! Good Dawg!

Coach Dennis Felton and the Georgia Bulldogs visited WKU on Saturday night, and honestly, I gave myself the full day on Sunday to recover before I attempted to write about this one. After a very emotional tribute to fallen Topper Danny Rumph, the Tops broke out in all black uniforms and in place of their individual names, they all had "Rumph" on the back of their jerseys. If that did not put a lump in your throat, then watching Coach Felton walk back into the UGA locker room before the game with tears streaming down his face surely did.

The irony of ironies is that Danny Rumph would have made a HUGE difference in this game. The Tops lacked a steady, level-headed PG, especially in the early going. FR Orlando Mendez-Valdez did an admirable job in his 14 mins (3 assists, 1 turnover), but he fouled out in that short span. Danny's measured passes and careful ball-handling sure would have helped the Tops on Saturday.

Thanks for everything, Danny. We still miss you...off and on the court.

^1st Half
15.29: Have I ever witnessed a worse start by a Topper team? Not that I can recall. Well, UGA hit their first four shots and have jumped all over the Tops to the tune of a 10-0 start. Some semblance of order is restored as WKU scored four straight to make it 10-4 at the first media timeout.

11.56: The Tops’ inexperience is being thoroughly exposed by a feisty Georgia defense. It’s 20-6, but it feels even worse. WKU has turned it over on nearly every possession it seems. The SOLD OUT crowd in Diddle Arena has been turned into little lambs in the pasture. There are 7,300+ plus in a small, loud arena and they have nothing to cheer about. That is truly an injustice. Panic is creeping in among the Topper faithful.

7.31: More of the same—our first-year PG Joemal Campbell (JC transfer) has been harassed into numerous turnovers and 5-second calls. Georgia’s stifling halfcourt defense is tremendous. They are making quite difficult for Winchester or Lee to find open space. They are going to force someone else to beat them…and the candidates are few at this point. 28-15, Dawgs.

3.48: Hello! The Topper defense comes alive and has been able to speed up the Dawgs and cause numerous some turnovers of their own. Freshman F Matt Maresca came in and made an immediate impact with a nice turnaround baseline shot and another nice post move resulting in a miss, but a Wilborn tip-dunk. 30-22, UGA. The crowd, and the Tops, are back in it!

Half: UGA closes on an 11-4 spurt to lead 41-26 at the half. Although the Dawgs are a young team, it is apparent that their Sophomores and Juniors are battle-tested from having to play on a very short-handed team last season. This is the first test of high-level Division I hoops for MANY Topper players including two starters (PG Joemal Campbell and F Daniel Emerson) and significant bench players (F Mike Walker, PG Orlando Mendez-Valdez, F Matt Maresca, F/G Butch Jointer). While both teams turned it over a great deal, the Tops made a lot of mental errors through throw-aways, lack of strength with the ball (especially Campbell and Ty Rogers) and blown defensive assignments. Plus, the free throw shooting was horrendous (3-8).

2^nd Half
15.33: Now, this is what a coach wants to see from his seniors! Seven straight points from G Anthony Winchester and then three straight from Elgrace Wilborn sandwich a Georgia bucket to pull the Tops within seven at 43-36. The defensive intensity by WKU is on another level out of the locker room. Then, a Wilborn rejection leads to a Three by Winchester to make it 43-39. The Tops have come out breathing brimstone in the second half. The crowd is in full throat for the first time all night.

11.34: Georgia methodically cranks up the D again and forces Campbell into back-to-back turnovers. The Dawgs have responded with a 10-3 spurt of their own. The lack of confidence from the WKU ballhandlers is really thwarting any effort to take full control of this game.

7.33: Wow…the Dawgs are playing STIFLING half-court D. It’s 57-43, and once again, the Tops are on the ropes. A run needs to begin right now.

4.37: And it does. Courtney Lee just made a lay-in to cut it to 61-54. This 11-4 run did not truly seem like a huge burst, but Lee has come alive during the stretch after being silent much of the night.

2.50: Another critical missed FT by Winchester…his fourth miss of the night. He has gone weeks without missing four!

1.19: Unbelievably, WKU is still alive in this game. It’s 65-61 after UGA finally misses a FT and Lee finishes off yet another drive to rack. UGA is coming unraveled a bit on offense. The Tops just need that final push to get over the hump. It’s ripe for the taking!

0.15: A Winchester lay-in cuts the UGA lead to two (65-63), but the Dawgs’ lumbering center, Dave Bliss, somehow gets behind the defense on the press and makes an awkward lay-up and gets fouled by Benson Callier (67-63). He misses the FT and Lee cashes in two FT’s on the other end to make it 67-65. Then, in a move that must have made UGA coach Dennis Felton quake with frustration, FR G Mike Mercer hoisted up an ill-advised shot that was grabbed by WKU…and promptly thrown out directly of bounds by Callier, which in turn probably sent WKU coach Darrin Horn into an apoplectic rage.

0.10: After UGA made 1-2 at the line (68-65), WKU calls timeout and sets up an inbounds play that gets Winchester an open look, but he opts to dribble left to get a cleaner shot. His pocket is picked from behind (his seventh turnover) by UGA G Billy Humphrey, and UGA makes 1-2 FT’s for the final margin of 69-65. I am utterly deflated.

Fifty-eight is numerical theme for this season so far. Last Tuesday vs. IUPUI, there were 58 fouls called during the game. In Saturday’s game vs. UGA, there were 58 turnovers—30 by the Dawgs and 28 by the Tops. WKU’s dynamic duo of Winchester and Lee were responsible for 13 of those WKU turnovers, which is completely out of character for them. Much credit goes to Georgia for their intense, Felton-brand half-court defense. The Topper press was extremely effective in the second half (helping to force 18 Dawg turnovers) and allowed to Tops to outscore the Dawgs 39-28. The Toppers played poorly in many phases of the game, but a lot of that was because of Georgia’s in-your-face, ball-hawking defense. The turnovers were indeed horrendous, but UGA turned it over even more. The keys to the game were free throw shooting (12-25 for WKU) and spotting UGA a 10-0 lead to start the game. Giving a great defensive team a 10 spot to start the game is a tremendous hurdle to overcome. For most of the game, the Tops looked like the better team. But, crawling out of a 20-6 hole was simply too much to overcome, especially for a team still trying to mesh so many new parts.

That is danger for fans of this Topper team. We see the talent and where they are going to be in February and not where they are right now. Horn will have to put on the lab coat and play chemist for awhile with this bunch of horses. They should have his full attention after losing a very winnable game at home—again, no slight intended to UGA. WKU is a very talented team with a lot of rotation issues to figure out.

It does not get any easier as the Tops travel to UAB on Tuesday. I will have a full preview tomorrow and a game log on Wednesday as I will be on hand in Birmingham to take in the game.

That's A Lot of Tears, Mr. Cash

“When I hear that whistle blowin’, I hang my head and cry.” ~Johnny Cash, “Folsom Prison Blues.”

It was not the dominating performance that the Tops put on display against Austin Peay last week, but WKU (2-0) did enough to keep IUPUI (1-2) at arm’s length for the duration of this whistle-prolonged game. Fifty-eight fouls were called in this affair, and it severely hampered either team’s ability to establish any offensive or defensive continuity. Johnny, if you can hear me, you would have had vertebrae damage from all of the head-hanging and crying in this game. The whistles blew every possession for awhile. There were 27 real-time minutes between media timeouts at one point in the second half. The Tops did not do a good job of adjusting to the tight foul-calling. And the end of the one hour and twenty minute second half, the Tops had earned an 89-75 victory.

1st Half
15.53: Both teams have come out with excellent defensive intensity. It is a mere 4-2 at the first media timeout.
11.14: The Tops go on a one-minute mini-burst that includes a Benson Callier leaner and an Anthony Winchester stick-back on the offensive glass to make it 14-6. I allow myself to entertain the thought of blowing this team right out the water.
7.57: Hee hee hee. No. IUPUI refocuses their defensive effort and the Jags slice through the Topper press at will. 18-17, Tops.
4.43: The Tops are starting to dictate tempo, and IUPUI seems to be just fine with it as George Hill buries a Three from the right wing. 28-25, Tops.
0.41: The next few possessions are characterized by sloppy Topper defense resulting in a bevy of open looks for the Jags. This nonsense is brought to a quick halt by my first pterosaur sighting of the season. The Great Red Pterodactyl (aka Elgrace Wilborn) throws down a monster two-handed jam that ignites the crowd and gives the Tops a 44-38 halftime lead.

2nd Half
Holiday travels…you gotta love it. I left my game notes in Bowling Green and I am now on the road. I'll do my best from memory.

Let me sum it up this way: IUPUI scored 35 second half points and only made FIVE field goals. There were 58 total fouls in the game. IUPUI shot 48 free throws as the road team. Just let those numbers sink in a bit.

With about 11 minutes to go, it was 60-56. The Tops then went on an 18-7 spurt that essentially put the game away by the 5-minute mark. Anthony Winchester and Courtney Lee both were there to make big baskets when needed…and they certainly were needed. They were the catalysts in the run that gave the Tops a comfy double-digit lead. Read more about the game and see stats here.

IUPUI played solid defense throughout and consistently broke the Topper press for the first 30 minutes, but they started to break down during the last 10 minutes. Lee and Winchester, coupled with the Tops’ depth, proved too much. The Jags should have some success in the Mid-Con this year, although Oral Roberts is likely to dominate the conference.

The Tops have a giant game on Saturday at 7 pm CT when former Coach Dennis Felton makes his return to Diddle with his Georgia Bulldogs (2-1). It will take a good effort to beat the young, but talented Dawgs. WKU made a quantum leap in Felton’s third year on the Hill, and I expect Georgia to be much better this year than most experts project them to be (it’s Year Three for Felton in Athens). Fallen Topper Danny Rumph, who died unexpectedly of cardiomyopathy this past summer, will be honored before the game. He was recruited by Felton and played under him for a year before Horn arrived. Emotions will be high for both Danny and for Felton’s return—and for a big win over a power conference opponent.

IUPUI and Medieval Torture

Indiana University-Purdue Univerisity at Indianapolis. Now, that's a mouthful. But not only is that lengthy title more commonly known as IUPUI or "Oooey Pooey" a mouthful, but in the Mid-Con the IUPUI Jaguars have been a handful for opposing teams as well. They went to the NCAA tournament as a 16-seed in 2003, and have been at or near the top of the conference for the last three seasons. In addition to Oral Roberts and Valpo, they have been one of the most consistent Mid-Con programs over the past few seasons. They are currently 1-1 this season after splitting two games at the Marquette Blue/Gold Classic. They were hammered by a solid Winthrop club (73-50), but defeated WAC member Rice, 58-56. Tonight, they venture into Diddle Arena to take on Western Kentucky (1-0) in an 8 pm CT tip.

Blue Ribbon picked the Jaguars to finish second behind Oral Roberts in the Mid-Con this season. The Jags have a lot of talent returning and have a real shot at competing for the MCC title. Senior F Brandon Cole (14.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg last season; 18 ppg through 2 games this season) is a do-it-all, workhorse type. In addition to being the leading returning scorer, Cole logged 37 minutes per game last year, shot 40% from 3-land, and hit 86% at the free throw line. He is an All-Mid-Con level player and could challenge for the conference MVP, although that will likely go to Ken Tutt or Caleb Green from Oral Roberts. The other returning starters are senior G Maushae Byles (8.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg), 6’9” C Michael Vavrek (3.1 ppg, 1.9 rpg), and 6’2” sophomore G George Hill (10.7 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.2 apg). Hill put up nice numbers as a freshman last year and could be the most talented player on the team.

The big addition is Xavier transfer Angelo Smith (6’9”, 230 pounds). He is a powerful presence on the block that IUPUI has lacked on recent squads. Smith served as AP Player of the Year David West’s backup three seasons ago at Xaver, and he figures to be a major contributor for the Jags. He tallied 14 points and 13 rebs in IUPUI's recent win over Rice. In addition to this strong starting five, the Jags return a bevy of solid perimeter role players in guards David Barlow, Blair Crawford, Troy Shanks and Matt Burks. In the frontcourt, seven-footer Bill Van Senus and freshman F Andy Hampton should provide serviceable depth.

The Tops cruised over Austin Peay without either of their point guards and without freshman F Daniel Emerson. If the Tops walk over IUPUI, it will be a bit of a surprise. This is a veteran team that has played in three of the last four conference title games in the Mid-Con. After being out-rebounded 35-32 against Winthrop, the Jags out-rebounded Rice 48-28 in their last outing. The Toppers still hold a distinct advantage on paper and will have the Diddle faithful on hand to cheer them on, but the Jags should offer a much stiffer test than did Austin Peay.

Last Night's GOI (Games of Import) Results
--Texas 76, West Virginia 75. The 'Eers let a huge win slip away late. As advertised, Texas has a lot of talent. I really like Texas' team.
--Iowa 67, Kentucky 63. A point guard with 19 rebs? Despite what you may be thinking, this is NOT a good thing. UK has three seven footers, and Rajon Rondo grabs 19 boards? Big win for Steve Alford's Hawkeyes, and this loss will have Tubby-haters out in full costume in Lexington.
--Arizona 61, Kansas 49.
--Miami-OH 58, Dayton 42.
--UConn 77, Arkansas 68.
--Gonzaga 88, Maryland 76. The Zags are good. They need to deliver in March this year.
--Georgia 76, Eastern Kentucky 68.
--Wisconsin 84, Old Dominion 81. The Monarchs could have used a major scalp to start their at-large resume, but Bo Ryan and the Badgers are always a tough out. No one is talking about Wisconsin, but they will be there in the end...just as they always are.
--Middle Tennessee 60, Utah State 59. Hold the phone! This is a HUGE win for the Blue Pegasi. Maybe this group with NINE new players will jell more quickly than anticipated.
--Mississippi State 68, Arkansas State 63. Different story if this game was in Jonesboro. Alas, that is the life Sun Belt scheduling. This is why all WKU fans should relish the upcoming Georgia and Virginia games in Diddle Arena.

Tonight's GOI
--Iowa vs. Texas. For the Guardians Classic Championship.
--Kentucky vs. West Virginia. To avoid two consecutive losses in two days.
--UConn vs. Arizona. To establish themselves as Final Four contenders.
--Kansas vs. Arkansas. To bolster their at-large resumes, because both could be bubble teams when it's said and done.
--Gonzaga vs. Michigan State. For the Zags, to solidify their status as a player as a Final Four-calibre team. For the Spartans, to somewhat offset the bludgeoning that they took from the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors (84-62!). And I'm talking about a good, old-fashioned, medieval-style bludgeoning with an old rusty mace in a dirty castle dungeon by an executioner named Olaf.
--Virginia at Richmond. We'll see what the Cavs (future WKU opponent) have on the road against an in-state team.
--Bucknell at Syracuse. The Bison struggled in their first game at Rider. They need to come strong if they want to start building an at-large case.

Sun Belt Games
Navy at Arkansas-Little Rock.
Central Conn at FIU.
South Alabama at Purdue.
UL-Lafayette at Tennessee.
New Orleans at Tulane.
North Texas at UNC-Wilmington.

Game log of the IUPUI game coming tomorrow.

Tops Flush Peay

Last Thursday, I blogged that APSU was no match for WKU on paper. Turns out, they were no match on the court either as the Toppers prevailed last Friday by an 83-54 count. The Tops blew the Govs' doors off with a 14-0 run in the first half that led to a 25-7 score and the home team never looked back. Florida State transfer Benson Callier exploded for 17 first half points (21 for the game) and G Courtney Lee chipped in 13 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals. Sophomore F Boris Siakam tossed in 12 tallies and 5 boards (4 offensive) in just 14 minutes in a most impressive display of efficiency. The Tops did this without either of their true PG's. JC transfer Joemal Campbell sat out with a busted jaw, and FR Orlando Mendez-Valdez attended his grandfather's funeral. Freshman F Daniel Emerson also sat out with an injured collarbone. Everyone should be healthy and in uniform tomorrow night against IUPUI or certainly for Saturday's game against the Georgia Bulldogs.

Of course, this rather bland recap comes as a result of my ill-timed education conference in Chicago. I had a frigid run down to Navy Pier in 19-degree weather with a 30 mph+ wind on Friday, but a much more pleasant 8-mile jaunt down to Solider Field and Grant Park on Saturday (31 degrees at 6 am! Nice!). T-minus 19 days until the Rocket City Marathon. I also took in some tremendous sushi at Kamehachi and some delicious Chicago deep-dish pizza at Gino's East while I was in town. As major cities go, I really like Chicago...and I'm not a big city guy. My home "town" was a postal area with lots of fields, cattle, tobacco, and soybeans in rural north-central Kentucky. Bowling Green, KY, a city of just over 50,000 people, seemed like a gargantuan metropolis when I came to WKU as a student in 1996. Chicago is nice. Great fun on Michigan Ave.

On with the hoops.

Tonight's Games of Importance
--Texas vs. West Virginia. 6:00 CT [ESPN2]
--Kentucky vs. Iowa. 8:30 CT [ESPN2]
--Arizona vs. Kansas. 8:00 CT [ESPN]
--Arkansas vs. UConn. 10:30 CT [ESPN2]
--Dayton vs. Miami-OH
--Gonzaga vs. Maryland.
--Eastern Kentucky vs. Georgia. The Tops host Georgia this Saturday (Nov 26) and play at EKU next Saturday (Dec 3).
--Old Dominion vs. Wisconsin. This is for the Paradise Jam title. ODU could really get onto the national map with this win and start building that at-large resume.

Sun Belt Games
--Utah State at Middle Tennessee. On Saturday, USU won at Oral Roberts in a matchup of two of the country's top non-power conference teams. This would be a BIG win for the Blue Pegasi.
--Arkansas State at Mississippi State. Tough roadie for the Indians, but this is the year to get the Bulldogs. They will be down from recent seasons, but the cavalry is coming in next year's recruiting class.

Tomorrow, a closer look at the IUPUI Jaguars.

Storm Warning

For the last couple of days, I have been assessing damage on my home due to a (probable) tornado that ripped through South Central Kentucky on Tuesday evening. Most of the damage came from shingles that were peeled off of a neighbors house and hurled at my vinyl siding like hundreds of ninja stars. That normally does not happen IN NOVEMBER in Kentucky, but 78 degrees and high humidity was tumultuously displaced by a fierce Canadian air mass that spurred some terrific storms and had us at 21 degrees this morning, just 36 hours later.

The warm bath-like atmosphere of goodtime exhibition games are past, and the cold, hard season starts tomorrow for WKU. The Tops have high expectations from fans, the conference, and themselves. The start with Austin Peay tomorrow night in Diddle Arena.

The Govs will be lead by local boy G Maurice "Squeaky" Hampton (14.7 ppg)and C Zach Schlader (12.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg). Truly, the Govs are no match for WKU on paper, but APSU always seem to play the Tops very tough. Last year, the Tops trailed by double-digits before storming back to win on the road by an 87-80 count. It should not be that close this time, but APSU is a regional rival with a local star. They will probably come out with guns blazing.

Sorry to cut this short, but I am leaving for Chi-town today. More on Monday after I return.

Also, my latest column dealing with the NCAA selection process is up on SCS.com.

Wed. Random Stuff

I. We have the first major contender for this year's UW-Milwaukee. The Seahawks of UNC-Wilmington won the BCA Classic by toppling Northwestern, 56-48. The Seahawks drop-kicked Butler and Wyoming (in Laramie) on the way to the BCA crown. UNCW has games at Colorado (on Friday) and at Wisconsin (Dec 12) left on the non-conference slate. It will be interesting to see if they can compound the interest accrued on this early season tourney title.

II. There are some pretty nice games on tap tonight and tomorrow. Tonight, Seton Hall visits Duke in the Preseason NIT (6:30 CT, ESPN). Tomorrow night, there are a four fairly important early season games.

Coaches vs Cancer
Florida vs. Wake Forest (6 pm, ESPN)
Texas vs. Syracuse (8 pm, ESPN)
Preseason NIT
Memphis at Alabama (9 pm CT, ESPN2)
Temple at UCLA (10 pm CT, ESPNU)

These are particularly important for Florida, Wake, and Temple, as they could be fighting with other Bubble Boys at the end of the season. Actually, ANY of these teams COULD be, but those three are projected as middle-of-the-pack or Bubble teams in regard to preseason seeding projections.

III. The Randolph Morris saga lurches inexorably to its controversial conclusion. Hiring a legal gun is not a good sign for Morris or UK. However this goes, it is going to cause pain and finger-pointing.

IV. Have a peak at Bracketography.com's preseason NCAA Tourney projection. They like Kansas, Wake, and Cincy a LOT more than I do, but you have to love the inclusion of San Francisco. However, after having followed current USF coach Jesse Evans at UL-Lafayette for many years, I'm fairly sure the Dons will find a way to stay out when it's said and done.

V. It's official: Michael Southall is back on the court at aforementioned ULL. Southall rang up 25 points, 10 boards, 4 blocks, 4 assists, and 4 steals in a Cajun exhibition win.

More tomorrow, and then a short hiatus for a conference trip to Chicago over the weekend.

Western Humbles Bellarmine, 91-67

I was unable to attend the Tops opening exhibition game, so ladies and gentlemen, I give you...Mr. Sivart Worfner. (Smattering of unsure applause)

S-Dub will be chronicling a couple of Topper games early in the season as I travel to conferences at incredibly inopportune times. Thanks, SW!

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While it was just an exhibition game, Hilltopper fans were a little concerned about the opener against the Bellarmine Knights of the Roundball. Bellarmine stayed within seven of Louisville in what was essentially a two point game until the end. They had stayed within three of Murray State, one of the favorites to win the OVC. Tack on that WKU would be without starting center Elgrace Wilborn, redshirt freshman forward Matt “MoMo/Dirk” Maresca, and true freshman manchild Daniel Emerson, and there was ample reason for doubt.

Starting lineup of JuCo transfer Joemal Campbell, senior Anthony Winchester, sophomore Courtney Lee, sophomore Ty Rogers and sophomore Boris Siakam, WKU jumped out to a 15-0 lead. Those former doubts, frankly, seemed silly at that point. But after Bellarmine scored their first basket (with 12:42 remaining in the first half) they got re-energized and the man to man pressure defense that held the Knights scoreless was matched with a 2/3 zone that cooled the Tops’ hot hands and allowed Bellarmine to tie the game.

WKU came back to take a 41-32 lead into the break then opened the second half on a 20-8 run into the first TV timeout. The game was history and the Knights of the Roundball were humbled to the tune of 91-67. Now that you know what happened, I’ll tell you how.

Darrin Horn’s commitment to defense is no joke. WKU swarmed the floor with impressive man to man full court pressure and even a trapping zone in the fullcourt. They created turnovers, they got steals, there were runouts, and there were dunks. It was exactly the kind of output Hilltopper fans have been anticipating with this team, if only against a good DII squad. The Tops gave up some transition threes, but it wasn’t bad for the maiden voyage.

Joemal Campbell is real fast. (No, that’s not how Cort would say it.) Joemal Campbell challenged the laws of physics and the arena was often filled with sonic booms when he accelerated. (That’s a little more Cort-esque.) He ran the offense well and he flat ran well. He was the kind of the guy that seemed so committed to defense it made him furious when someone got past him, the one time that someone actually did get past him that is.

Orlando Mendez-Valdez (henceforth, “Dez”) looked solid. His shot was a bit tentative, but he also ran the team well. While Dez is not nearly the defensive gem that Campbell is, he was solid and only got beat a few times. Mostly by Illinois State transfer Matt Miller who will give fits to the GLVC this year at DII.

The other PG was Courtney Lee. I SAID, the other point guard was Courtney Lee. But that honestly didn’t last too long. Lee had a typically strong night from the floor with double-digit scoring, driving baskets, pull up jumpers, and chipped in with seven rebounds.

The leading scorer was…Winchester. How anti-climactic is that? AW did his best “Robin of Locksley” impression as he drilled shot after shot, going 4-4 from outside and finishing with 23 points. Oh, did I mention he played PF most of the night and grabbed 7 rebounds. Does this even impress Hilltopper fans anymore? Anyone? Are we that spoiled? Yes, yes we are.

As predicted by Cort, Boris Siakam will be the X-factor and on Thursday night the X variable was equal to the sum of hard work + solid defense + good rebounding + steals at the top of the press + break away dunks. Siakam may be forgotten by some Hilltopper fans, but they were quickly reminded of what a good athlete he is and his boundless potential.

If Benson Callier was a playground legend in Florida, I’m glad I never played on that playground. Callier started out 0-3 (all from outside) before finding his touch and leading WKU with ten points at the break hitting from outside, working inside, and playing good defense. In the second half, his skin turned green, his eyes white and he ripped down two massive dunks that caused at least two Bellarmine players to require a change of dress.

Butch Jointer enjoyed a solid night stroking three pointers inspiring that age-old cliché, “There’s nothing wrong with that,” from yours truly. Jointer will fit in nicely and is going to get his share of minutes with hustle, good defense and nice looking jump shot. All very impressive contributions from a late signee.

Ty Rogers was Winchester, Jr. I’m usually one who hates to label a player like that, but Rogers just fits the mold. He’s willing to get in and mix it up, but has a feathery touch from outside that exudes confidence.

The jury remains out on Mike Walker. Not because of anything Walker did, but because he didn’t get time to do much of anything. Walker fought the law and the law won all night as he stayed in foul trouble.

All in all, the Tops dispatched Bellarmine by 27 points. If you’re scoring at home, that’s 20 points better than UofL. That’s 24 points better than Murray State. And NONE of that means anything except that WKU looked better in a game that doesn’t matter than those two teams did.

Still, the press is going to be a defensive weapon that would make Patton grin, we have more outside shooting than a night at the Source awards, we have more athletes than a BALCO stockholder meeting and we’ve got a coach who is moving this team forward quickly. It’s going to be a very fun season.

Thanks to Cort for letting me fill in for him. I’ll close with the immortal words of Jerry Reed.

“East bound and down, loaded up and truckin’. We gonna’ do what they say can’t be done.”
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Thanks again for the report, SW. Stay tuned for more Worfner during the season.

Tops vs. Bellarmine, New SCS Column

The WKU hoops team will be officially unveiled tonight at 7 pm. Well, most of the team will be unveiled. Two Toppers will remain veiled in street clothes. Freshman F Matt Maresca, who was redshirted last season after suffering a broken wrist, has a dinged foot and will be out. True frosh F Daniel Emerson is out with a fractured collarbone. He will be out for a couple of weeks. In addition, senior C Elgrace Wilborn will dress, but will see limited action due to a strained neck. The good news is everyone should be healthy in a couple of weeks, barring further injuries.

Bellarmine has played a couple of other D-I Kentucky schools very tough so far. The Knights lost to Louisville, 70-63, and to Murray State a 59-53 tally. With the Tops being shorthanded, it could be a good test for the home team.

Still, these questions should/could begin to be answered tonight.

1) Can newcomers Joemal Campbell and Orlando Mendez-Valdez handle the PG responsibilities? More importantly, does Coach Horn trust either of the two newbies to play the bulk of the minutes at PG?

2) How good is Mike Walker?

3) Was Benson Callier's Hilltopper Hysteria performance for real? Is he THAT good?

4) Will we really press a lot more this year?

5) Is all of the hubbub surrounding Ty Rogers' improvement legit?

My good friend, Mr. Sivart Worfner, has agreed to write a summary of tonight's game as the TBB will be prevented from attending by unavoidable circumstances. I'll post his take tomorrow.

EDIT----------
Also, I have addressed "20 Questions" about the new season in this week's column on SCS.com.

The Monday Ten

1. Here's my take on the new rules changes for this season in my SouthernCollegeSports.com weekly column.

2. The season officially kicks off tomorrow night when Saint Francis-PA v. Cornell, and Syracuse v. Bethune-Cookman square off in the Coaches v. Cancer. Both games will be played in the Carrier Dome. These games are for keeps! The seasons starts tomorrow!

3. Recently watched films: Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, Twelve Monkeys, In Good Company, Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

4. The WKU Hilltoppers play an exhibition this Thursday night, Nov 10, against Bellarmine University (Louisville, KY). Bellarmine played Louisville (lost by seven) and Murray State (lost by six) close last week. It should be a decent test for the Tops. The first regular season game occurs on Nov 18 when the Tops host Austin Peay.

5. Check out the Mid-Majority's philosophical waxing about the state of the game, Science v. Creationism, and how Einstein was a big, fat rip-off artist. Kyle has cooked up a nice batch of thought-provoking essays during the preseason.

6. T-minus 33 days until I run my first marathon. I have a massive 21-mile training run planned for Saturday. The weather looks supreme at this point.

7. The CBS hoops schedule of televised games is up.

8. The Sun Belt is celebrating it's 30th year of basketball with some optimism about this season.

9. Need more proof that it's hoops season? Wonk is back!

10. The preseason AP Poll is out.

First Coaches Poll Out

Some coach(es) out there think that the WKU Hilltoppers are for real, too. The Tops garnered three votes in the season's first ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, which was good for a 42nd place tie with Vanderbilt. The Tops sit just behind Miami-FL and just ahead of the group of two-vote teams (Cal, UNLV, Ohio, Utah State, and Oral Roberts). If the Tops can string together some early season wins, then they will not have to come from completely off the radar to crack the Top 25. While the real value of polls is minimal, it sure helps with exposure and name recognition.

It is also nice to see that the coaches recognize that George Washington and Nevada belong in the preseason Top 25. Old Dominion and Bucknell probably deserve more votes than they got.

Can't get enough of Top 25 polls? Head over to YOCO's rankings composite. See what a lot of the experts think.

My distaste for polls has been well-documented here, but in case you missed the unveiling of my preseason brackets, here were my top 6 seeds (or my "Top 24" if you prefer)

1 seeds: Duke, Texas, Michigan State, Villanova
2 seeds: UConn, Oklahoma, Boston College, Arizona
3 seeds: Gonzaga, Louisville, West Virginia, Kentucky
4 seeds: Stanford, Illinois, UCLA, Iowa
5 seeds: Washington, Memphis, Iowa State, Maryland
6 seeds: George Washington, Alabama, Nevada, Wisconsin

Early Season Tourney Preview

We are now just twelve days out from real college basketball games! I have written a preview of the early season tourneys for SouthernCollegeSports.com. Hop on over and give it a read if you have time.

Sports, Music, and Gnus

1. Villanova's Curtis Sumpter is hurt again. With fellow big Jason Fraser battling injuries yearly, the Wildcats cannot seem to keep everyone healthy for a season. Even worse, it sounds like Sumpter may be gone for the year. This is a tremendous blow to 'Nova's Final Four hopes. They will need their freshman frontcourt players (especially Shane Clark, who will become eligible in January) to mature quickly if they are to remain the top team in the Big East.

2. I ran the Bowling Green 10k Classic in 40.34 on Saturday. I harbored hopes of breaking the 40 minute barrier, but the realist in me felt that it was probably a year away. Still, I took nearly two full minutes off of my 10k time from last year (42.23), so next year should be my coronation into the sub-40 group. My wife finished the 5k in 27.32, also a personal best and good for 7th in her age group. I have one major race left this year: the Rocket City Marathon in Huntsville, AL, on December 10.

3. Who wants to bet a gazillion dollars that Memphis does not live up to the preseason hype? Any takers? None? I did not think so.

4. In my heavy rotation of music right now:
Willie Nelson's Red Headed Stranger: if there is a better country album EVER out there, I have not found it.
Sufjan Stevens' Illinoise: just try not to bob along to one of the trumpet-ladened tracks. I dare you.
Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits: some form of Paul Simon is always in my heavy rotation.
Wilco's Woody Guthrie Songs: if it's remotely country/folky and my wife likes it, it's good.

5. On Thursday, my first piece on SouthernCollegeSports.com should be up. I will be talking about the slew of early season tournaments that kick off a mere two weeks from today. The following week, I will look at some of the experimental rules being used in many of these tourneys.

6. My alt.country band, Redfoot, has a MySpace.com page up and running now. There are a couple of shows listed and there are a couple of more dates to be added soon. An album is coming in the early spring (hopefully).

7. Some non-power conference names to remember this season: Yemi Nicholson, Denver; Jose Juan Barea, Northeastern; Christian Maraker, Pacific; Anthony Winchester, Western Kentucky; Courtney Lee, Western Kentucky; Bucknell (NOT a one-year fluke last year); Nick Fazekas, Nevada; Paul Millsap, La Tech; Daniel Kickert, Saint Mary's-CA.

8. For everyone who thought I was off my rocker, here is proof that The Great Space Coaster was a real TV show for kids in the early-to-mid 1980s. "No gnews is good gnews with Gary Gnu." I loved that guy.

9. Shameless WKU plug: the #1-ranked (in D-IAA) WKU Hilltopper football team will play conference nemesis #8-ranked Southern Illinois on ESPNU at 6:30 pm on this Thursday night, October 25. The Tops (sledge) hammered the Western Illinois Leathernecks 42-7 in Macomb, IL, last week and appear to be putting it all together as they head for the home stretch.

10. I give little to no time to the NFL here, but I should mention that I will be attending my first NFL game on Sunday. I will be heading to Nashville to watch the Oakland Raiders (a team I half-heartedly call my own) play the Tennessee Titans. Thanks to a buddy who landed free tix, I will be watching these two mediocre teams battle to get to not-quite-.500. Catch the fever! Honestly, I am excited about the experience. I might actually devote some blog time to this trip. Road trips to any sporting event are made of life's good stuff.

On the Road Again...and Again

Ken Pomeroy, Lord of College Hoop Numbers, recently informed us that the New RPI did not impact the way that power conferences (ACC, Big East, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-10, SEC) schedule home and away basketball games. In fact, teams scheduled home games at a HIGHER rate for the upcoming season, despite the fact that road wins are worth 1.4 wins in the "teams winning percentage" portion of the RPI and home wins are worth only 0.6. Teams from the power conferences scheduled 84% of their non-conference games at home this season (read Pomeroy's post for more data and a conference-by-conference breakdown). Do these teams not care? Do they just not get it? Do they simply value the home gate receipts over a high RPI and achieving the best NCAA profile possible?

Pomeroy went with the economic angle by stating:

"We can only speculate on the reason for the lack of change in scheduling practices, but to me it’s clear. Teams with the big budgets are not willing to trade two or three spots in the RPI for the money that home dates bring in. This may come back to haunt one or two teams each season, thereby costing them revenue they would get from the NCAA Tournament, but most schools are willing to take that risk."

That last sentence lifts my heart like a Sufjan Stevens song. That is truly all that the non-power conference teams need. There are NEVER more than one or two MVC, MAC, or other non-power conference schools that truly get the shaft. If this new road weight does open up one slot for last year's Buffalo or 2004's Utah State, then this adjustment to the formula betters the tourney.

How much does the adjustment help? Well, Syracuse plays 19 home games, 3 neutral games and 8 road games this year. Their maximum win value is (19*0.6=11.4) + 3 + (8*1.4=11.2) for a total of 25.6. That is Syracuse's maximum win value for their 30 games. In contrast, Bucknell plays 12 home games, 1 neutral game, and 14 road games (including Syracuse). Their maximum win value is (12*0.6=7.2) + 1 + (14*1.4=19.6) for a total of 27.8. Bucknell's max potential win value is a full 2.2 wins more than Syracuse...and the Bison play three fewer games. Granted, a team's win percentage is only 25% of the total RPI, but this is a substantial advantage...not that The Cuse figures to be worrying on Selection Sunday.

The Bison have the potential to be finish in the "bulletproof" zone in the RPI (no team better than #33 in the final RPI has ever been left out by the selection committee). They return all five starters from last year and play some high profile teams (Cuse, Villanova AT HOME, Saint Joseph's, Duke) in the non-conference. Furthermore, they will likely win nearly every conference game in the Patriot League, although Holy Cross usually has something to say about that.

None of this is to say that the New RPI will assuredly help the non-power conference teams. But, Pomeroy's statement about Big Sixers trading the plump home slate for a few RPI slots bears watching. If a team can win a bundle of road games, they can juice their RPI (see Old Dominion and UW-Milwaukee from last season), but we certainly do not have a good handle on what this means to the committee.

We've only had one year with the New RPI. It's still a wait and see game for now.

So, you want to be a bracketologist?

Does Joe Lunardi drive you nuts with his projections? Can't understand the ramblings of the selection committee chair when he starts defending teams with terms like SOS, OOWP, and S-Curve? Bewildered by the seeding process? I have good news. You can answer a lot of these questions (or at least gain some context) by following TBB's Five Steps to Being a Bracketologist. (Enter sales pitch for three easy payments of only $39.99 each)

1. Forget the polls. The final AP poll is a fair predictor (better than the RPI, actually) of what seeds that the top 25 teams will get. Beyond that, the polls are mostly just a weekly list of what big conference teams are winning games. Conversely one can apply the NCAA selection criteria rules at any point during the season. Granted, they may not be any more accurate than the polls in December, but at least every team is evaluated under the same criteria.

2. Join CollegeRPI.com. Right now. Jerry Palm maintains the best RPI and bracketology info site anywhere. The RPI is updated daily during the season and the site has everything that you could ever want to know about past NCAA tourney results, historical team RPI data, past performances, and bracketology. It is well worth the $20.

3. Read and learn the NCAA Selection Criteria. Reading this document is about as entertaining as watching toenails grow for a lot folks, but for bracketologists it is scriptural. It will take awhile to get through, but readers will come away with a clearer understanding of how teams are selected, seeded, and assigned to their respective pods.

4. Consult TBB's "Bracketology/RPI section." It contains an explanation of the true purpose of the RPI, a philosophy of bracketology, and the "why's" of projecting brackets.

5. Now comes the fun part: watch A LOT of basketball. This is easier for some than others, but I teach, so I am off from Dec 10-Jan 23 this year. I travel to WKU games and set up a game watching TV schedule each week. The more hoops that a bracketologist watches, the more informed he/she is about what teams have improved and regressed. After combining all of the statistical data with what your eyes are seeing in games, it becomes much easier to split hairs between those closely bunched Bubble Boys. Of course, the data usually bears out who gets in and who does not, but momentum is a factor for the selection committee. An example, you ask? Here's one from last season.

UAB: 21-10 overall, 10-6 in CUSA, RPI #49
DePaul: 19-10 overall, 10-6 in CUSA, RPI #53

Both teams won one game in the CUSA tourney. Both teams were 5-5 in their last 10 games. Both teams had four losses to sub-100 RPI teams. DePaul actually had two Top 50 RPI wins while UAB had zero. UAB did have a better road record (10-7 to DePaul's 5-8), but that was the only glaring statistical advantage. That may have been offset by DePaul's good wins over Old Dominion and Cincinnati. This would seem to be a virtual dead heat.

The fact of the matter is, every serious bracketologist knew that DePaul was definitely out and that UAB was a classic bubble team (who wound up getting into the Dance). Why? UAB beat DePaul head to head in the CUSA Tourney. Although head-to-head matchups are technically not a part of the selection criteria, it had been proven on the court that UAB was a better team. The raw data says that teams were even, but from actually watching games late in the season, it was clear that UAB was a better team. Contrary to popular belief, common sense DOES play role in the selection process from time to time (although I still believe that Buffalo should have been in over UAB, but I digress).

So take this a charge to watch LOTS of hoops and go to lots of games this season. And the next time that you are watching paint dry or catch yourself mesmerized by a clock pendulum, dig out the NCAA selection criteria. It will come in handy on Selection Sunday.

Hilltopper Hysteria Causes...Well, Hysteria

Hysteria: a psychoneurosis marked by emotional excitability and disturbances of the psychic, sensory, vasomotor, and visceral functions (Webster's, 2005)

That accurately describes what Hilltopper Haven and much of Topper Nation experienced after Friday night's activities. The veterans looked primed and fit. The coaches were psyched and active. The newcomers met and even exceeded expectations. There are no injuries or academic casualties to report at this juncture. It is official: the expectations are officially off the charts for the 2005-2006 edition of Western Kentucky basketball.

The festivities began with a dunk contest. Everyone's favorite pterosaur, Elgrace Wilborn, took home the honors, but newcomer Benson Callier (6'6" junior Florida State transfer) gave The Great Red Pterdactyl a challenge. Callier also added a 360 degree dunk in the Red-White scrimmage. Sophomores Mike Walker and Boris Siakam wowed the crowd as well, but Wilborn and Callier were clearly a cut above. The contest aptly displayed the fantastic athleticism on this club. This teams lacks bulk and raw size, but they have a bevy of jumping jacks that will create havoc on the glass and on the full-court press.

Toppers and Lady Toppers were paired up to vie in the three-point shooting contest. Incoming FR Orlando Mendez-Valdez and Lady Topper Ashley Butler outgunned SR Anthony Winchester and LT Tifany Zaragoza. Mendez-Valdez possesses a sweet shooting stroke that had visions sugar plums dancing in the heads of the Topper faithful. It was difficult to not drink deep and long of the Topper Kool-Aid. However, this scrimmage lasted a mere 15 minutes and revealed little meaningful information in the grand scheme of the season. However, there are a few items that should not be ignored:

1. Orlando Mendez-Valdez owns some serious skills. After winning the 3-pt contest, 'Dez wowed the crowd with some slick passing and excellent dribble penetration. He is one of those guys that looks a bit slow, but he gets around people. His shot is quite fluid and he made a beautiful fading Three in the scrimmage that looked so comfortable and effortless. He may not start from Day 1 (JR transfer Joemal [pronounced jah-MEL] Campbell), but he is going to play serious minutes and may assume the starting role at some point this season.

2. The other newcomers are legit. Mike Walker, Benson Callier, Daniel Emerson, and Matt Maresca did dirty work inside and Campbell is a jet--all as advertised. Walker and Callier probably will contribute the most immediately due to their size and athleticism, but all five of these guys are going to play. Late signee Butch Jointer did not show much and may get pushed toward the end of the bench by the more polished newcomers. I do not see a Courtney Lee-type of impact from any of the newcomers, but Callier, Walker, Emerson, Maresca, and Campbell can all fill important holes from last season.

3. The returnees look fit and ready. Wilborn, Lee, Winchester, Rogers all look stronger and more confident. F Boris Siakam, a native of Cameroon, needs more seasoning and could possibly benefit from a redshirt year. He has a nice mid-range jumper, excellent hops and a strong, wiry frame, but needs more time to learn the game. He has only played organized basketball for three years. However, with all of the youth up front, a redshirt year for Siakam is unlikely.

4. This is the type of team Horn wants. He came into a program centered on half-court defense and a glacial big man (Nigel Dixon). The team went 15-14. Last year, he went super-small and scrappy, and played a faster pace. The team went 22-9 and won an NIT game. This year, he has added players with size and athleticism (Wilborn, Walker, Callier, Emerson, Maresca, the returning Siakam) to mix in with some extremely talented shooters (Winchester, Lee, Rogers, Mendez). Few teams on the Tops schedule will be able to match up favorably with them. This is the type of Hilltopper team for which Coach Horn played in the mid-1990s.

I have not put huge expectations on any Topper team since I have been a fan. The 2002 team was a bit of a surprise, and while I expected the 2003 team to be good, that team had some holes. This team cannot escape the expectations. They should make the NCAA tourney this year. There is simply too much talent to say otherwise. Beyond that, it is all about the matchups.

TBB on SouthernCollegeSports.com

Fans can get an extra dose of my musings on SouthernCollegeSports.com this season. I will be writing a weekly college hoops column beginning sometime in November. It will be more "straight" writing than what I write here, but I am looking forward to the experience. The column will consist of a short feature story and then a spin around the southern conferences including the ACC, Atlantic Sun, Big XII, Big South, CUSA, MEAC, Mid-Continent, Ohio Valley, SEC, Southern, SWAC, and Sun Belt. That is a load of conferences to cover, but the emphasis will vary from week to week to keep things fresh.

In the meantime, it is homecoming week here at WKU, so I will be heavily involved in campus activities over the course of the next few days. First up, the annual Chili/Cheese Luncheon and Pep Rally at noon today in downtown Bowling Green. Tomorrow night, the men's and women's basketball teams will officially kick off their practice season with Hilltopper Hysteria at 8:30 pm. I will have a full report on Monday.

Here is a must read for fans of non-BCS-type basketball teams. CBS has inked the Missouri Valley Conference championship game in a plum time slot. Thanks to Yoni Cohen for linking this on YOCO.

Distraction...with a Capital "D"

Consider this Part II of my exhortation to enjoy sports as an active experience. A few days ago, I wrote about the impact of fantasy sports on me and on how we view sports. But, it is not simply the matter of a stats-crazy sports culture. There is also this small matter of actually watching what happens during a game. This sounds so simple, but distractions from the actual game constantly bludgeon the viewer/listener during the course of a college basketball contest on television. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to focus on what teams are trying to do on the court.

1. Media Timeouts
In TV-land, there are commercial breaks every four minutes during regulation. That is four per half in addition to team timeouts. I realize that bills have to be paid, but watching a game on television means eight sessions of being bombarded by thirty second clips for Efferdent, Miller time, Viagra, and local car dealerships, plus the 15 minute halftime show (and I use the term "show" loosely). The frequent media timeouts break up the flow of the game tremendously and distracts folks from the on-court happenings.

2. Sports Ticker/Scoreboard
My wife and I watched Four Minutes (the Roger Bannister story) a few nights ago on ESPN2. When the movie started, my wife's first comment was, "Is that annoying ticker on the bottom of the screen going to be there the entire time?" "Uh, yeah," I replied, realizing that I did not even notice the ticker unless I made a conscious effort to do so. It has become just another component of my distraction-riddled existence...AL, NL, NFL, CFB, Bottom Line, AL, NL, CFB, Golf, Tennis, Bottom Line, AL, NL...it is neverending. Do I really need the same scores every three minutes distracting me during a movie? Is it even a distraction if I have become immune to it? Let's just move on.

3. Dickie V-ism
Dick Vitale may be good for college basketball on some levels, but he is the ultimate distraction when attempting to watch the game. His incessant hyperbole and ACC-pimping sucks the marrow from the actual game. He is like a flashy preacher at a megachurch. He may care about his work, but he also seeks to be bigger than his message. What he is selling is fantastic: college basketball IS "awesome with a capital 'A'." But, do we need to here it at 175 decibels before every commercial break? Many color commentators are less about offense, defense, backscreens, and dropsteps, and increasingly about catch phrases, coach worshiping, and furthering their own agendas...and perforating eardrums.

4. Dipsy-doo Dunkaroos
Acrobatic slams and rejections into the 15th row do indeed pump up the crowd and create excitement. I am all for dunking with ferocity and throwing shots into the bleachers to send a message to the opposition. However, that is often how the game is defined in a Sportscenter clip. As a result, Joe Fan has come to define "exciting basketball" as windmill jams and shots pinned above the square. The beautifully executed pick-and-roll often goes unappreciated. Our desire for violent throwdowns has eroded our appreciation for crisp passes, solid screens, tenacious half-court defense, and backdoor cuts. I am not advocating a no-dunk rule, but it would be nice to see some love for sweet, mid-range jumpshooting or Pete Carril-quality back cuts.

Where does it end? Hologram ads in the paint or behind the backboard on free throws? How far away are we from these added distractions? How do we combat this distracted existence? One easy solution is to PHYSICALLY go to games. Across the nation, attendance at college basketball games is trending downward. More games are available on TV packages, which is not inherently bad, but the live experience cannot be replicated. There is a D-I college basketball game within a reasonable driving distance nearly every weekend for most everyone in America. The Mid-Majority houses a sortable schedule that displays games closest to your zip code. Sometime this season, punch in your zippy and take a road trip with family or friends. Furthermore, many smaller conference teams have very reasonable ticket prices. Chances are, you will have a great experience and possible even hit a gem of a rivalry game (Western Kentucky vs. Eastern Kentucky on Dec 3, anyone?) or see a great player that gets little national pub (Yemi Nicholson at Denver or maybe Christian Maraker at Pacific?).

The college basketball played on TV constitutes a small portion of the hoop world. There are 330 D-I basketball teams playing in 31 conferences. The "Big 6" conferences are but a fraction of the important college hoops being played on a daily basis beginning in November. Find a game, take your spouse/friends/family, buy a t-shirt at the game, and discover something special: a game experience free of TV commercials, Dickie V, Sports tickers, and the like. You will be surprised how much you enjoy the sounds, the smells, the crescendos and decrescendos of the crowds, and the experience of watching a game in its natural environment. True, you will not be able to distract yourself with 12 other sports channels, or flip between four different games, or watch Coach K peddle Am Express. However, what you will be able to do is to hear a college pep band play songs, smell popcorn in the air, and during timeouts you can actually THINK about what has taken place in the last few minutes instead of being buried by an avalanche of 30-second ads for toothpaste or a Swiffer.

Get involved with a local team. You can watch Duke or UConn anytime on TV and be distracted on any given Saturday during major network TV games. Go to UNC-Greensboro, Tennessee Tech, Montana, or Northern Arizona and experience a game away from the machine of "big-time" college basketball. You might have a big time away from the "big time."

Caves, Country Music, and Homecoming

I did not intend to take a weeklong hiatus from blawgin', but I have covered a lot of ground in in the last seven days. First, I had to wrap up a load of work-related stuff last Tuesday and Wednesday before Western Kentucky University's Fall Break kicked in on Thurs/Fri. I simply did not have time to write on those days. Then, my wife and I took advantage of our two extra days off to hike and picnic at Mammoth Cave National Park on Thursday. The park is about a 30 minute drive from our house. It was a gorgeous, warm Kentucky fall day as we saw temperatures in the mid-80s and I absorbed a vicious no-see-um attack resulting in 14 visible bites. It was worth it. We also went to Jackson's Orchard, a wonderful local farm in Warren County, KY, and bought a fall pumpkin. Friday, we did more pedestrian, but equally important, activities like golfing (rained out!) and shopping for furniture. I got in a 12-mile run on Saturday morning (good-bye achilles injury...finally!) and some hang-out time with my wife's family in Glasgow, KY.

Sunday, my alt.country/indie/folk music project, Redfoot, embarked on its maiden voyage at a show with another local post-country group called God's Lonely Man and Portland, Oregon native, The Wanteds. Great stuff. Folks responded to us pretty well and we had a blast. I'm hoping to play some more solo acoustic shows soon and record an album in the near future. I will link up the Redfoot page permanently on this site when we have more info.

All of this to say that I have had an enjoyable week. The good gets even better this week as WKU Homecoming festivities are in full swing as the football Toppers prepare for Missouri State on Saturday. A chili/cheese luncheon and pep rally kicks it off on Thursday, then a parade, WKU Streetfest, and Big Red's roar (pep rally) all happen on Friday. The football game commences at 4 pm on Saturday.

In the midst of the floats, tailgating, pep rallies, and football, Hilltopper Hysteria (fka Midnight Madness) will take place in Diddle Arena at 9:30 pm on Friday night. Basketball season is upon us, and I will have a full report next Monday of Hysteria happenings. I have laid out my preseason Sun Belt picks and I have pored over the Topper schedule. In just four days, I will watch real players on a real court with real fans in the building. National parks, playing in an alt.country band, homecoming, and Topper basketball all in a matter of a 10-day span. (Sound of me taking a deep breath and letting out a satisfying "sigh") I love my life.

More random stuff coming this week.

Sun Belt West Preview

The Sun Belt West should be a fairly competitive division this season. Teams at the top lost a good bit and some of last year's lesser teams return a lot or made nice additions. I like Denver and UL-Lafayette again, but UNO, South Al, and NT should all be improved.

1. Denver Pioneers (20-10, 12-3 conf., 1st West)
They return conference POY C Yemi Nicholson (18.1 ppg, 8.4 rpg, 92 blks) and F Antonio Porch (12.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg), but lost two key pieces in their starting backcourt in PG Rodney Billups and sharpshooting G Erik Benzel. The steady G Andrew Carpenter (8.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg) returns to anchor the backcourt. The Pioneers will lean heavily on Mount Yemi, as he will likely see even more touches this season. He was an honorable mention All-American last year and is set to challenge for full honors this season. Someone will need to fill Benzel's sniper role to keep defenses honest on the perimeter. No returning bench player averaged more than 9 minutes per game, so there will be a host of inexperience players looking to fill the backcourt gaps. Denver has non-conference tests at Stanford, a neutral court game against Colorado State, and a home game against Wyoming. The rest of the slate is fairly soft.

2. UL-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns (20-10, 11-4 conf., 2nd West)
Will oft-troubled Michael Southall really play this season? All indicators point toward a return by the 6'10" center. If he does play, it gives the Cajuns a talented nucleus, as he joins senior C Chris Cameron (8.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 39% 3-pt) and do-it-all G Dwayne Mitchell (10.4 ppg, 5.8 rpb, 3.3 apg). The Cajuns lost their three top scorers in G Tiras Wade, F Brian Hamilton, and G Orien Greene, so this Cajun team does not figure to be as good as last year's squad. If Southall is out, then UNO, South Al, and/or NT could challenge the Cajuns. However, if Southall can stay eligible, he could team with Cameron to form one of the more formidable frontcourt duos in the conference. Perimeter play is also a huge question mark for this team. If they get solid ball-handling and find a perimeter scorer to compensate for the losses of Wade and Green, the Cajuns will be tough. They have challenging road games at SIU, Tennessee, UTEP, LSU, and Nevada in the non-conference and host a solid Oral Roberts club.

3. New Orleans Privateers (13-17, 7-8 conf., 3rd west)
The Privateers had big plans to challenge for the West crown in the offseason, but Hurricane Katrina will have them displaced and out of sorts until at least January. UNO returns 1st-team SBC G Bo McCalebb (22.6 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 3.7 apg) who penetrates better than anyone in the league and finishes well. If McCalebb improves his perimeter jumper (26% from 3-land), he will be nearly unguardable. UNO also returns three other starters in G Jamie McNeilly (7.7 ppg), F Shawn Malloy (7.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg) and C Ben Elias (5.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg). This is a team in search of scoring, as McCalebb too often is the only option. The non-conference schedule packs some serious firepower, with games at Mississippi State, LSU, Purdue, Vanderbilt, Kansas, and Tulane twice (home and home). Wow.

4. South Alabama Jaguars (10-18, 6-9 conf., 4th[tie] west)
This year is do or die for coach John Pelphrey. The native Kentucky boy has been roughed up during his three year tenure at South Al, and he needs a good season to get off the hot seat. He has a couple of big guns that may help him do just that. G/F Mario Jointer (16.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg, .394 % from Three) is a first-team SBC caliber player. The Jags also have Clemson transfer Chey Christie (9.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg as a junior at Clemson) available this year in addition to SMU transfer G Demetric Bennett. The Jags return four starters total and should have more depth than they have had in awhile. I am picking them fourth, but they are my official SBC dark horse team. They have notable games at Purdue, at Tennessee and home vs. Houston.

5. North Texas Mean Green (14-14, 6-9 conf., 4th [tie] West)
Everyone keeps waiting for NT to make the big jump in the West. Slow and steady improvement has been more their style. They have improved in each of coach Johnny Jones' first four seasons, and the West is as open as it's been in awhile. I have the Mean Green fifth, but the gap between first and fifth in the West does not appear to be that wide. The loss of super guard Leonard Hopkins makes me doubt that this is the year for them to soar, but NT does look to be on the right track. G Calvin Watson is a nice player (11.3 ppg, .402 for Threes) and Arkansas transfer G Kendrick Davis has nice credentials. NT also returns C Jeffrey Simpson (7.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 51 blks) who came on strong late last season, and dynamo PG Isaac Hines (6.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.5 apg, 2.2 spg). They have big dates at Arizona State, at Texas A&M, and at Houston. Not to be a broken record, but NT can challenge, too. The West is wide open.

6. Troy Trojans (12-18, first season in Belt)
The Men of Troy lost three starters from last season, but do return leading scorer Bobby Dixon (14.7 ppg) and Jacob Hazouri (9.6 ppg). This is Troy's first season in the Belt, so I have not seen them play too often. They had a couple of nice teams a few years back, but went 10-10 in the Atlantic Sun last season (8th seed in the conf tourney) and lost three starters. Unless they brought in some great recruits, they likely will find it tough going in the competitive SBC West. They do return all of their important bench players, so maybe they can hang tough in the league. They have highlight non-conference games at Mississippi State (Are the Bulldogs an honorary Belt member?) and at Xavier.

Some random stuff is coming this week.