BTB's amazing college hoops preview thread

[Beyond the Bets]

Collaborative effort here. Just like what we've done in the past for college football.

Here's how I want this to work.

We all have the preseason annuals and we all have access to newspapers, our favorite teams, previews, databases, kenpom and so on. Anytime you stumble on something you think might be useful, I want you to reply to this thread.

In the "Subject" box, write the team name. Then, write whatever you want. The goal here is to help us all become better informed about every single team before hoops season really starts to get rolling. If we can identify sleepers, great. Undervalued teams? Perfect. Sleeping giants? Excellent.

A week from now, when we have literally hundreds of replies in this thread (make it happen!), I'll begin sorting through all the data collected and will organize it in a useful way to create a larger, team-by-team preview.

To provide some sort of template, see my next post. Again, I don't care how short or how long you want to make your posts. As long as you contribute something, it will be helpful to all of us.

[Beyond the Bets]

The Eagles were impressive down the stretch last year after a ho-hum start (see losses to Providence, UMass, Yale, etc.), and I give a lot of credit to coach Steve Donahue for making that happen. Donahue, you might recall, was the head coach at Cornell and consistently did more with less; and then, once he had a strong squad, he did more with more, if that makes any sense. (Probably not.)

Anyways, he'll have his hands full with this year's BC squad. Only 8.6 percent of the offense returns from last year's team, or, if you prefer, 209 total points. The team's top five scorers are gone, including Reggie Jackson, Joe Trapani, Corey Raji and Biko Paris. All of them averaged double figures and led a very balanced scoring team for BC.

Raji, in particular, will be greatly missed. Same is true of Trapani, who I really thought played a critical role down the stretch and became a go-to guy for the Eagles as they made a late push for the tourney before getting snubbed.

What to expect

Donahue has a project on his hands. He knows it and everybody else does, too. BC has nine freshman. Matt Humphrey, a transfer from Oregon, is the only upperclassmen and will be asked to make an immediate impact. He can hit the three and is a strong ball handler, but he's far from a guy who can carry a team.

He'll need to hold the fort on the outside while some of these younger guys (namely Ryan Anderson and to some degree Dennis Clifford) develop in the front court.

I think this is going to be a team that, much like last year, comes together down the stretch. They'll be highly undervalued by the middle of the ACC season and that might be where you find some value.

Projected ACC finish

• Dead last; 3-13 ACC; 12 wins overall
  

ATS Notes

• BC went 17-13 ATS last year
  

• Since 2004, the year Donahue began pulling Cornell out of the muck, his teams are 45-33 ATS after Feb. 1. Last year, BC was 6-3 in the final month-plus; and the year before that, Donahue's Cornell squad went 7-2 ATS.
  

[Beyond the Bets]

Brad Brownell led Clemson to a fifth-straight 20-win season last year in his debut, but he'll have a tough time duplicating the effort with this year's roster. The Tigers have five new players and very little experience.

Brownell deserves credit for what he accomplished last year, transforming Clemson into a half-court team that plays tough man-to-man defense after it played a mostly fast-paced, up-and-down style under former coach Oliver Purnell.

But there's no question Brownell relied heavily on his seniors, and this year he doesn't have that luxury. That's why it will be interesting to see how this team comes together by the time ACC play rolls around.

What to expect

Milton Jennings, the first McDonald's All American to come to Clemson in two decades, will be relied upon heavily. He did most of his work last year on the perimeter and by getting to the basket, but this year he'll be asked to play more in the post due to the Tigers' lack of size. Devin Booker and Andre Young will also be asked to play prominent roles.

Outside of that? Bring on the freshmen. Most, if not all of them, will be asked to contribute immediately. That includes T.J. Sapp and Devin Coleman, a pair of three-star guards that should make an impact from the outset. (They'll have no other choice.)

The Tigers will struggle with size, but they wouldn't if their 7-foot-2 goon, Catalin Baciu, actually played worth a damn. He bulked up in the offseason but it won't matter. He averaged 1 point per game and one rebound last year. The guy sucks and should trade in his Nikes for clown shoes.

Overall, Clemson will regress in 2011. They have too many new pieces and not enough leadership. The backcourt won't overwhelm opposing ACC teams, but it should be able to hold its own. The frontcourt is very concerning and will need to come together in November and December before conference play rolls around.

Projected finish

• I'll call for an NIT berth out of this squad. Let's go with a 17-win season and 7-9 in ACC play.

ATS Notes

• Clemson went 14-14-2 ATS last year.
  

• The over went 11-18 last year in Clemson games, likely because the market did not adjust to Brownell's slowed-down style.
  

[SkyBlues42]

Virginia's 2010-11 season was much like a roller-coaster ride. The Cavaliers got off to a hot start and were 6-3 before Mike Scott suffered an ankle injury that sidelined him for the rest of the season. Virginia improved to 10-5 but began to struggle in ACC play before winning four of five conference games to close out the regular season. The Cavaliers' ride ended when they blew a 10 point lead against Miami in the conference tournament.

What to expect

Virginia's game plan was shot as soon as its big man went down, and they were forced to spread the offense and take more of a jump-shooting approach. This year, the Cavaliers can get back to a preferred style of play since Scott will be healthy and ready to go.

Scott gives Virginia a scoring threat that they honestly didn't have last year. Also returning is Sammy Zeglinski, who has the ability to control the tempo of the game and get Scott the ball on the post.

Controlling the tempo is a big part of head coach Tony Bennett's scheme as he likes to slow the game down. It's an effective strategy until his team starts to turn the ball over or until the Cavaliers play a team like UNC, which applies high pressure and likes to run the court.

Overall, Virginia will be much improved and should play its way to the NCAA tournament. The only downside is that the Cavaliers play in a conference with Duke, UNC and Florida State, so an ACC title looks to be out of the question.

Projected finish

• I think Virginia will impress and win nine or 10 conference games. Their non conference schedule is fairly easy, aside from games against Michigan and Oregon, so I'll put them at 19-9 overall.
  

ATS Notes

• Virginia went 17-9 ATS last year.
  

• The under went 14-11 in the Cavaliers' games, including a 9-2 mark at home.
  

[Screech99]

I don't know a ton about the ACC but I'll attempt to contribute here.

Remember when Wake Forest was good? It doesn't seem like that long ago.

I was never that impressed with Jeff Bzdelik when he was at Colorado, and his first year at Wake Forest was extremely bad. The Demon Deacons went 8-24 (10-16-2 ATS), including losses to Stetson, Winthrop, UNC-Wilmington and Presbyterian, and they won only one ACC game (Virginia at home). Bzdelik had problems on and off the court with player discipline, and his roster was depleted with an injury to freshman guard Tony Chennault and two suspensions. He started three freshmen 11 times.

What to expect

From the outside, it looks like Wake's success this year will depend on if Bzdelik can find himself a reliable point guard. 6-7 forward Travis McKie was impressive in his freshman season, leading the team with 13.0 ppg and 7.7 rpg. But he and 7-footer Carson Desrosiers are really the only two inside contributors returning. I don't know how a 7-footer only averages 3.2 boards in about 20 minutes a game, but Desrosiers will have to get stronger inside if the Deacons hope to compete on the glass.

Which leads us to the guard play. If Wake isn't going to dominate inside (and they won't), they'll have to win the battle somewhere else. Chennault will likely be the point guard of choice at the beginning of the season, as Bzdelik hopes he can up the tempo of the team. I'm interested to see what Anthony Fields — a freshman from Detroit — can do in his first season. He's supposedly a lightning-quick point guard who played with other Division I signees in high school, so he has more of a chance to be unfazed by the jump from HS to college.

This is still a very, very young team, but if Bzdelik used the offseason wisely to teach his youngsters and establish more of an up-tempo system, they could see improvement from last season.

Projected finish

• Wake is picked to finish dead last by Athlon. The talent is there to see some improvement, but it's still young. Wake will win more than the one conference game this season, but this might be a team to track and then jump on later in the year if there's signs of them catching on to Bzdelik's system.
  

ATS Notes

• The over went 16-11 in Wake's games in 2010-11.
  

[cscalzo22]

SYRACUSE ORANGE

My Syracuse Orange squad coming off a 27-8 season and a disappointing loss to Marquette in the dance last year have high hopes for 2011-2012. I can tell you personally the vibe in Syracuse right now is were looking to cut down nets in march and we have the team this year to do it. Syracuse return almost everybody with the exception of Rick Jackson however from what we've seen of our big guys so far this year, no one is worried.

What to expect

Expect this Syracuse team to be the best you have seen in a while. A very dangerous and experienced backcourt with Jardine and Triche, and projected starters Joseph, Melo, and new-comer Rhakeem Christmas give great length to our super-duper 2-3 zone defense. We are very VERY deep and dont be suprised to see almost everybody contributing to this team throughout the season.

One thing that excites me as a fan is recently our very talented 6th man Dion Waiters has released statements in local newspapers about his attitude last year not being a starter which caused disruption and speculation of him being cut / transferring. I have seen numerous articles quoting him saying he was selfish and this year he wants to take pride in his role and do everything he can to help this team.

Projected finish

My Projection 15-3 in the big east. Splitting with Louisville and UCONN and slipping up once somewhere else.
Also like i said look for them to be in contention for Big East / National Titles

ATS Notes

15-18 ATS in 2010-11

[SkyBlues42]

(11-05-2011 04:37 PM)cscalzo22 Wrote:  SYRACUSE ORANGE

My Syracuse Orange squad coming off a 27-8 season and a disappointing loss to Marquette in the dance last year have high hopes for 2011-2012. I can tell you personally the vibe in Syracuse right now is were looking to cut down nets in march and we have the team this year to do it. Syracuse return almost everybody with the exception of Rick Jackson however from what we've seen of our big guys so far this year, no one is worried.

Is there a way to move this post later? It's a great breakdown, but I thought we were doing the ACC first. I'm working on Virginia Tech right now.

If we keep the team previews in order or conference it will look much cleaner and will be easier to find info.

[cscalzo22]

(11-07-2011 12:41 PM)SkyBlues42 Wrote:  

(11-05-2011 04:37 PM)cscalzo22 Wrote:  SYRACUSE ORANGE

My Syracuse Orange squad coming off a 27-8 season and a disappointing loss to Marquette in the dance last year have high hopes for 2011-2012. I can tell you personally the vibe in Syracuse right now is were looking to cut down nets in march and we have the team this year to do it. Syracuse return almost everybody with the exception of Rick Jackson however from what we've seen of our big guys so far this year, no one is worried.

Is there a way to move this post later? It's a great breakdown, but I thought we were doing the ACC first. I'm working on Virginia Tech right now.

If we keep the team previews in order or conference it will look much cleaner and will be easier to find info.

Yea I didn't know we were goin through ACC first I just wanted to put one out for my home team Its a better idead to keep them sorted anyway

[Beyond the Bets]

Technically, Syracuse IS in the ACC. Just not yet.

[SkyBlues42]

Virginia Tech has been on the bubble so many times that it's only fitting to refer to them as the Bubble Yums from here on out.

Over the last four seasons, the Bubble Yums have been on the bubble four times and have ended up in the NIT (not the NCAA) four times. In terms of numbers, the Bubble Yums (ok, I'll give up now), have been to the NCAA tournament just once in the last 15 years. In 2007 they advanced past the first round before losing to Southern Illinois.

Last year, Virginia Tech went 9-7 in conference play and finished with a 22-12 record. The Hokies were knocked out of the NIT in after a second round 79-76 loss to Wichita State.

What to expect

Virginia Tech's biggest concern heading into the 2011-12 season will be finding a way to replace the scoring of Malcolm Delaney and Jeff Allen. Delaney led the team with 18.7 points per game and Allen added 13 points, but was also the team's best rebounder, averaging more than nine per game.

The tough task of replacing the school's No. 2 and No. 3 all-time scorer and assist leader, respectively, will be given to Erick Green. Green is a junior point guard who averaged 11 points per game in 2010-11, which was a large jump from the two points he averaged as a freshman.

Along with Green, Virginia Tech returns three other experienced players that has this team once again projected to finish on the bubble, which is disappointing because things are only going to get more difficult once Syracuse and Pittsburgh join the ACC.

Overall, I think the Hokies will have a fairly successful regular season but will end up in the NIT for the fifth straight year. Virginia Tech just doesn't have the start power necessary to compete with the top teams in the conference.

Projected finish

• 8-8 in ACC and 17-11 in the regular season
  

ATS Notes

• The Hokies went 13-15-2 ATS last year
• The OVER hit in nine of the Hokies' 12 home games last year
  

[mount187]

NORTH CAROLINA TARHEELS

What to expect

Projected finish

ATS Notes

*Reserving this space; I'll fill it in ASAP.