Author: Aidan Joly

When people think of great conferences out on the west coast, they think of the PAC-12, or maybe even the WCC, mostly it comes to Gonzaga and their success.

Allow me to discuss the Mountain West.

The league has been a fringe top-ten league in the country over the years, and has traditionally had one good team (I’m looking at you, late 2000s New Mexico and the past couple Nevada teams), but now there is multiple good teams in this league that have gotten national recognition and this is now a league that has the might to send multiple teams to the tournament. Right now, they are ranked 10th out of 32 conferences in KenPom rankings, one of 12 with a positive rating.

Coming into the season, it was Utah State that was supposed to be making the noise on the national level, stud senior Sam Merrill and other key pieces in Justin Bean, Alphonso Anderson and Neemias Queta to start the season ranked no. 17 in the nation in the preseason AP rankings, and jumped to as high as no. 15 after they got off to a 7-0 start before suffering a road loss to St. Mary’s. They are still off to a strong start at 13-4 and are sure to win a lot of league games.

Now, the team that is making the rankings now is San Diego State, which was not as expected. They are 15-0, now one of two remaining unbeatens in the country. Their biggest test so far this season came on Saturday night in a road game against none other than Utah State, on the road. They came out of it with a 77-68 victory in what will most likely end up being their toughest test of the season. At this point, it would not be overly shocking if they went undefeated through the regular season and conference tournament and potentially earn a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

The Aztecs have gotten to this point through having four double digit scorers, all of them upperclassmen, who all play a great style and compliment each other in the best possible way. Malachi Flynn is their best player, averaging just under 16 points per game, as well as Matt Mitchell, Yanni Wetzell and Jordan Schakel. According to KenPom they play the slowest tempo in the conference that stifles defenses and allows them to get good shots, and that leads to them making them.

Nevada, under first-year coach Steve Alford, has been a joy to watch so far this season and have made a very smooth transition to losing Eric Musselman to Arkansas, and the loss of their top three players from last year in Jordan Caroline as well as Caleb and Cody Martin. They are the second-fastest offense in the conference behind New Mexico and make their threes at a very good 38.6% clip. The Mountain West has traditionally been a league that favors fast offenses and good shooters, but having a three-point percentage is great, even for that. On top of that, they hold their opponents to a 26.3% from behind the arc, allowing them to limit triples as well as those all-important points in transition.

Jazz Johnson has filled a void nicely, as has Jalen Harris and Lindsey Drew as their new big three. Nisre Zouzoua is a solid depth piece and Zane Meeks is a freshman that they can build around to keep the program towards the top.

Like I mentioned before, New Mexico is another team that is similar to the Wolf Pack and can be a tournament team. They have the second-best offensive efficiency in the conference, behind Nevada, but have the fastest team in the league. Paul Weir has gotten the team running, and it has paid off, with a 13-3 start, but admittedly, a loss to perennial basement-dweller San Jose State on New Years’ Day throws a giant wrench into their at-large case, as did a loss to UTEP in November.

Not to be forgotten is UNLV, off to a 3-0 start in league play, which included a convincing win against Utah State, but the losses have piled up a bit for them as they sit at 8-8 currently, already close to too many losses to be seriously considered for an at-large bid.

Overall though, after a quiet couple of seasons that saw Nevada dominate the league, there are a couple different teams that can be challengers on the national level come March. It’s no secret that San Diego State is the best team in the league, but they will now see everyone’s best every night looking to pull off the upset.

However, the Aztecs potentially getting a top seed and seeing multiple at-large bids would be a great look for the league and allow the league to be taken seriously when it comes to the top non-power 5 conferences in college basketball.

The decade of the 2010s is drawing to a close, so I’m going to look at my all-decade team for college basketball. To be eligible, the player had to have played at least one season in the decade, and that includes the 2009-10 season. I named a starting five and a coach, as well as a quick list of bench players at the bottom. Here we go!

Guard: Kemba Walker, UConn, 2008-11
Cardiac Kemba! Walker’s first two seasons with the Huskies were very good, but his junior season in 2010-11 was the stuff of legends. They finished ninth in the Big East with a 9-9 record but Walker led them to an improbable run to the Big East championship, which included an incredible step-back jumper against Pittsburgh in the quarterfinals, part of winning five games in five days and then going on to win the national championship, winning 11 straight to close the season. He averaged 23.5 PPG in his final collegiate season, and was named to the All-America first team and the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament.

Guard: Jimmer Fredette, BYU, 2007-11
Jimmer Mania was at an all-time high for his senior season in 2010-11, and he delivered. He averaged 28.9 PPG, and was named the AP National Player of the Year. He got the Cougars to as high as third in the nation in early March and got them to the Sweet 16. During the season, he became the all-time leading scorer for the Mountain West, an honor he still holds to this day.

Forward: Doug McDermott, Creighton, 2010-14
Another four-year player, McDermott remains potentially the most underrated college player of the decade. Under his father as the coach, McDermott was the best scorer in the nation for the good part of his four years, leading the country in scoring his senior year after finishing second his junior season and third in his sophomore campaign. In his career, he became one of three players in NCAA history to have 3,000 points and 1,000 rebounds, and was the first player in 29 years to be named an AP All-American three times.

Forward: Zion Williamson, Duke, 2018-19
Perhaps the most hyped-up player in recent memory for his high-powered athleticism and his highlight-reel dunks, he showed up at Duke in the fall of 2018 and became the best player in the nation, averaging 22.6 PPG and 8.9 RPG, shooting 68% from the field. He earned legend status when he broke his shoe during a game against North Carolina on February 20, even causing former President Barack Obama to take notice. He was held out of the team’s final six regular season games, coming back for the postseason and getting Duke to the Elite Eight. He won a host of awards and was drafted first overall by the New Orleans Pelicans last summer.

Center: Anthony Davis, Kentucky, 2011-12
Davis averaged a double-double in his lone season at Kentucky, with 14 points and 10.4 rebounds per contest and was one of the top defensive players in the country while he led the Wildcats to a 38-2 record and a national championship, the program’s first since 1998. He was the national player of the year, a first-team All-American, SEC Player of the Year, the NABC Defensive Player of the Year, and was selected with the first overall pick by the New Orleans Hornets (now Pelicans) in 2012.

Head coach: John Calipari, Kentucky
Calipari has gained a reputation as one of the best coaches in the country and is the most talented recruiter in the country as well, embracing the notion of getting the best players and being fine with one-and-done. In the decade, starting with the 2009-10 season, his first at Kentucky, Calipari has a record of 313-74 to go along with a national championship in 2012, four Final Four’s, five SEC Tournament titles, three SEC Coach of the Year awards and one each AP and Naismith National Coach of the Year and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. He’s the best to do it this decade and will be remembered for a long time.

Bench:
Buddy Hield, Oklahoma, 2012-16
Jahlil Okafor, Duke, 2014-15
Denzel Valentine, Michigan State, 2012-16
Jalen Brunson, Villanova, 2015-18
Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin, 2011-15
Jared Sullinger, Ohio State, 2010-12
Frank Mason, Kansas, 2013-17

Final exams are just about finished up at colleges around the country, so I thought it would be a good time to look back at each preseason Top 25 team and give them a letter grade based on their season so far.

A quick note before I begin: the order of the teams is based on the preseason rankings, not the ones right now. All current rankings are based off of the latest AP Top 25, which came out on December 16.

1. Michigan State:
Now: #15, 8-3

The Spartans, who came into the year as a national title favorite, lost their season-opening game to Kentucky and have not fully figured out themselves yet. It seems like every time they start to get hot, they have a setback in losing a game, as since the Kentucky loss they have lost to Virginia Tech, in Maui, and Duke. Not having Josh Langford, now for the entire season, hurts. They need to find a way to turn it around before it gets too late.

Grade: C

2. Kentucky:
Now: #6, 8-2

Kentucky doesn’t have a lot of problems, but outside of the Michigan State win they don’t have the best resume, mainly because of the lack of quality opponents. The glaring loss to Evansville is there, too, as is a loss to Utah last night, but to a lesser degree. Their next two games, a neutral site game against Ohio State and a home game against Louisville, will be very telling.

Grade: C+

3. Kansas
Now: #1, 9-1

Their lone loss was to Duke in their first game of the year but the Jayhawks have not lost a game since with one of the best offenses in the country. Having Silvio de Sousa back is a win in and of itself, even though he hasn’t had the biggest impact. They won the Maui Invitational including an instant-classic win against Dayton in the championship game. A statement win against Colorado helps their case as a top-five team in the nation right now.

Grade: A

4. Duke
Now: #4, 9-1

The Blue Devils have done almost everything right. They got the win over Kansas and also beat Michigan State, as previously stated. The killer, obviously, is the loss to Stephen F. Austin at home, but that hasn’t affected them too badly, staying consistent at #4 in the country after falling to as low as #10. Duke is still Duke and will be in ACC play.

Grade: B-

5. Louisville
Now: #3, 11-1

Louisville is another team that hasn’t faced many quality opponents yet, but the win against Michigan stands out. However, the loss to Texas Tech, who was depleted at the time, also stands out. Jordan Nwora is a star but we’ll find more about this team as the season wears on.

Grade: B-

6. Florida
Now: not ranked, 7-3

Their 2-2 start to the season knocked them way down. They did get back on track and win the Charleston Classic, which included a win over Xavier as part of a four-game win streak, where if you remember I wrote about them getting better. That streak was snapped with a loss to Butler on December 7, following only beating Marshall by six. The results aren’t there, and the wins aren’t overly convincing with wins over Towson by six and a now 2-9 St. Joseph’s by eight. They need to re-convince everyone that they’re a true contender, because they are not showing it.

Grade: D

7. Maryland
Now: #7, 10-1

Another consistent squad. They suffered their first loss of the year to Penn State on December 7, but it should have been to Illinois three days prior. Other than that, the Terps have won games but I haven’t been overly impressed, or overly critical. They’re consistent and that’s really all there is to them right now.

Grade: C+

8. Gonzaga
Now: #2, 12-1

I think the Bulldogs are the best team in the country. Filip Petrusev, Corey Kispert and Killian Tillie are a three-headed monster that have come early and have given Mark Few’s squad wins over the likes of Oregon, Washington and Arizona, with the latter two coming on the road. The only blunder is a loss to Michigan during the Wolverines’ run in Atlantis, but at this point I’m willing to overlook that for them. They’ve established themselves as the premier program on the west coast.

Grade: A+

9. North Carolina
Now: not ranked, 6-5

Yikes. Right now, we’re staring straight into the possibility of an NCAA Tournament without the Tar Heels. This is not a good team. Cole Anthony is out and will be out for the next 4-6 weeks, Armando Bacot is inconsistent as all hell, Leaky Black is not as advertised, and for some reason K.J. Smith is starting now. When you have to look to Garrison Brooks to be the guy on offense, it’s not good. They lost to Michigan, got blown out by Ohio State, held to 47 by Virginia, lost to Wofford at home, and finally lost to Gonzaga last night by 13 in a game that the Zags led by at least 15 most of the way. This team is a mess and it will take a lot to fix.

Grade: F (Disclaimer: I originally had Florida as an F but I changed it when I got here)

10. Villanova
Now: #18, 8-2

The Wildcats haven’t done anything world-shattering this season, having lost both of their games against ranked opponents, that being Ohio State (by 25) and Baylor. With that, they’ve won all the games they were supposed to. They have a huge chance to close out their non-conference schedule with a bang, facing Kansas in Philadelphia on Saturday.

Grade: C

11. Virginia
Now: #9, 9-1

The defending champions might have a better defense than they did last year, and that’s saying something. They’ve allowed over 50 points just twice this season, that being 55 in a win against Vermont on November 19, and 69 in their lone loss of the season, to Purdue on December 4. My concern with this team is that teams can find a way around it, like Purdue did, and beat them. Otherwise, expect another deep run from the Cavaliers.

Grade: A-

12. Seton Hall
Now: Not ranked, 6-4

Not the best start for the Pirates. Myles Powell has been great, but my concern coming in came to fruition, who can work well around him. Sandro Mamukelashvili and Quincy McKnight have potential but it has not come to full. On top of that, Myles Cale has very much regressed. They looked the worst in a 20-point loss to Rutgers last Saturday. They need to turn it around and do it fast, or else this could become a freefall.

Grade: D

13. Texas Tech
Now: #24, 7-3

I thought this was a bit high for the Red Raiders coming in. What I have said is that the voters ranked the program, not the team, because of all the newcomers. They had a tough stretch at one point, losing three straight in late November and early December. Their one saving grace is a win over then-#1 Louisville on December 10, but other than that they haven’t looked overly impressive, which is okay for a young team. They’ll be solid in the Big 12, but don’t expect them to contend for a national title this year.

Grade: C

14. Memphis
Now: #11, 9-1

It’s been a roller coaster season for the Tigers. Having James Wiseman, losing to Oregon, Wiseman getting suspended for NCAA violations, beating Tennessee in Knoxville, and then having Wiseman leave the program after playing in all of three games to prepare for the NBA Draft earlier today, after serving more than half of his suspension. Losing him for good hurts, but they have the pieces to compete in the AAC like they have shown in non-conference, but probably will not have as much success in the NCAA Tournament now.

Grade: B-

15. Oregon
Now: #8, 9-2

The Ducks have done well so far this year. They got key wins against Memphis, Seton Hall and Michigan, but lost to Gonzaga and North Carolina, which was before the true downward spiral. They should be the best team in the Pac-12 heading into conference play and should compete for a conference title.

Grade: A-

16. Baylor
Now: #10, 9-1

Baylor has quietly become one of the better teams in the country. They did have their lone loss to Washington in their second game of the season but have turned it around, picking up wins against Villanova, Arizona and Butler. They have no true bad losses and have done everything they have needed to do to improve and be ready for Big 12 play.

Grade: B+

17. Utah State
Now: Not ranked, 11-2

They were the weird team that as soon as they lost, they were done in the polls. The signature win was on November 22, against LSU in Jamaica and got as high as #15 in the nation, but a loss to St. Mary’s did them in, and they suffered a second loss at the hands of BYU on December 14. They have had their thunder stolen a bit in the Mountain West by San Diego State, who is currently #20 in the nation as one of four remaining unbeaten teams in the land (Auburn, Liberty and Duquesne (???) are the other three). However, the Aggies are still a tournament team to keep an eye on.

Grade: C+

18. Ohio State
Now: #5, 10-1

One of the biggest surprise teams this season, the Buckeyes have transformed themselves into a national title contender with no true star, but a ton of solid role players that blend well. We first got wind of them was when they beat Villanova by 25, and then they just continued to win and win big. They also picked up a 25-point win against North Carolina and beat Penn State by 32. They suffered their first loss on Sunday, to Minnesota, but that can be overlooked. They will be a top Big 10 team and have made a statement so far this season.

Grade: A

19. Xavier
Now: Not ranked, 10-2

Not a bad start for Xavier, but not one good enough to keep them ranked. They have won all of their games against lesser opponents but haven’t done as well against more quality ones, with their losses coming to Florida and Wake Forest. The wins over UConn and Cincinnati were not bad, but they need to do more to get back in the rankings.

Grade: C-

20. St. Mary’s
Now: Not ranked, 11-2

The WCC is strong this year, and the Gaels are one of those strong teams. They have good wins against Wisconsin, Utah State and a 40-point beat-down against Arizona State. They would probably still be ranked if not for a loss to Winthrop on November 11. Their other loss was to Dayton on a neutral floor where they just played a bad first half, which is forgivable. Once they get into WCC play and winning more games, you’ll see them in the polls again.

Grade: B-

21. Arizona
Now: #16, 10-2

The Wildcats don’t have a really good win to this point but have won two Power 5 games, against Illinois and Wake Forest. Both of their losses have come to ranked opponents, one of them on the road (Baylor) so neither of them look too bad. Right now, they’re probably the second-best team in the Pac-12 and have stars like Zeke Nnaji, Nico Mannion and Josh Green that do a lot of things well, and that has benefited Sean Miller’s squad.

Grade: B

22. LSU
Now: Not ranked, 7-3

Skylar Mays and Emmitt Williams are for sure good players, but this team may have been a little over-hyped. They started 3-2 with losses to VCU and Utah State but none of those three wins were impressive. Their best win has been against Rhode Island on a neutral floor, which is nothing to write home about for an SEC squad. They are at their low point right now after a loss to East Tennessee State last night. If they don’t turn it around and struggle in conference play, it’ll be hard to get back into the rankings.

Grade: C-

23. Purdue
Now: Not ranked, 7-4

The Boilermakers are a strange team. They started 1-2 following losses to Texas and Marquette, got a win against VCU, lost to Florida State, became the only team in the country to beat Virginia, then two games later, lose to Nebraska. All in that order. I’m struggling to get a true sense of what this team is about. They have solid pieces in Jahaah Proctor, Matt Haarms, Eric Hunter, Jr. and Sasha Stefanovic (one of my favorite players to watch), but have struggled to put it together cohesively. They have a good test against Butler on Saturday shortly before Big 10 play begins.

Grade: C

24. Auburn
Now: #12, 9-0

Bruce Pearl’s squad is one of four remaining undefeated teams in the country and have jumped up 12 spots in the polls thanks to that. The issue is that they have not really challenged themselves so far, and have been expected to win all of their games so far, but some of their wins have been close: 70-69 against South Alabama, 81-78 against Furman and 67-61 against St. Louis. They are for sure a well above-average team, but I’m not all-in on them yet.

Grade: B+

25. VCU
Now: Not ranked, 9-2

They have done what they were supposed to so far this season, but back-to-back losses to Purdue and Tennessee is what did them in in the rankings after they got as high as #20. The win against LSU is quality, though, and their best win to this point. They are a very solid team, and their games against Dayton are sure to be huge ones.

Grade: C+

The Atlantic 10 is going to have one of its best seasons in recent memory. Four undefeated teams and two more one-loss teams, but one team I’ve been intrigued by and finally watched them for the first time yesterday, is Dayton.

In their game against Georgia on Monday, they dominated their way to an 80-61 win in the first round of the Maui Invitational.

The Flyers are an extremely strong team, headlined by the star power that they have in leading scorer Obi Toppin, who has averaged 24 points per game this year for the 4-0 team, and had 25 of them on 9-11 shooting on Monday, as part of a season where he has shot a ridiculous 72.5% from the field. He has household name potential and it seems to be more and more increasingly likely that has is going to get selected in the NBA Draft in June.

It’s not just Toppin that can be very good for their team. He has a very good complementary piece next to him in Jalen Crutcher, who can play very well with him and be the guy when Toppin has to be off the floor for rest. Crutcher is an above-average shooter who shoots nearly 30% from behind the three-point line, and that’s even a dip to start the season as he shot 36% from three last season as a sophomore. He also benefited hard from the soft rims of the Lahaina Civic Center at the end of the first half, where his buzzer-beating three bounced softly off the rim more than once and ended up falling in to give the Flyers a 43-25 lead at the break.

It’s not just those two guys either. They are a very deep team that can play nine or ten guys per game, which is something that you don’t see too much anymore in today’s college basketball, when so many teams are star-driven. That’s not the case with Dayton. On top of Toppin and Crutcher, Rodney Chapman, Ryan Mikesell, Trey Landers and Ibi Watson all average over 20 minutes per game and they all can contribute to the team’s success and that depth is a big part of why they have done so well at the beginning of the season. Chase Johnson and Dwayne Cohill also see a decent amount of time off the bench, 13 and 17 minutes per contest respectively.

Anthony Grant has done a great job developing talent on both sides of the ball and is has shown in a big way on the floor. I was thinking, before the game against Georgia got started, if they could hold potential #1 overall pick Anthony Edwards to only 10 or 12 points, they had a chance to win the game. They came out and did much more than that, holding Edwards to just six points on a terrible 2-10 shooting and went 0-5 from three. Holding him to that low of a point total and the defense forcing him to have that poor a game on the defensive side, and then doing that well on offense, was what really allowed them to win that game and do so by the margin they did.

They have two more games in the Maui Invitational, starting tonight with a matchup against Virginia Tech in the semifinals after they shocked the college basketball world with their upset against Michigan State. I don’t expect them to win the tournament, especially with Kansas looming in the other semifinal game. However, if they can beat Virginia Tech and get the opportunity to (likely) play Kansas, that’s a win for them in and of itself. BYU will be the probable sacrificial lamb against Kansas in that semifinal game.

The Atlantic 10 is going to be run by VCU this year, that’s basically a given. However, in a league with a handful of strong teams that is expected to receive multiple NCAA Tournament bids, if they can get close the level of success that VCU is projected to have, the Flyers are a team that people should have their eyes on come March.

I was originally going to write this last weekend when Florida was still struggling, but then I watched Friday’s game. And then I watched Sunday’s game.

Wow, what a weekend for Florida.

They came into the Charleston Classic as probably the most disappointing team in the country, with two losses to Florida State and UConn, and had a six-point win against Towson that was tied with just over a minute to go.

In the first half they got a taste of what their success looks like, having a 16-point lead at the break, despite Kerry Blackshear not scoring at all, but provided a lot of off-the-ball help on both sides of the ball. However, disaster struck when he was ejected 90 seconds into the second half for elbowing Hawks junior Taylor Funk in the face. St. Joe’s played much better than they did in the second half, outscoring them by 12 but Florida held on for a 70-62 win. Then, people believed that he was supposed to be the senior leader, and can’t be getting thrown out of games for dirty plays like that that affect a team’s chances to win, especially in the first game of an early-season tournament. They won, but it wasn’t convincing.

However, they didn’t let yet another miscue bother them. They went out again not even 24 hours later and thrashed Miami, winning 78-58 in a game that saw Blackshear lead the team with 20 points on 6-12 shooting and also add 11 rebounds, freshman sensation Scottie Lewis added 13 points and eight rebounds while Keyontae Johnson had 12 and seven. As a team, they shot 53.6% to Miami’s 41.8%. To me, this is the game that has turned their season around so far. They got a complete game from Blackshear and the team as a whole played a 40-minute game and they realized what they could be if they can do this game in and game out.

On Sunday, they beat then-18th ranked Xavier in the championship game in the tournament 70-65, where the Gators had four guys in double figures in Johnson (15), Andrew Nembhard (15), Blackshear (14) and Noah Locke (13). Blackshear had 10 rebounds as well.

Moving forward, they need their key guys to play complete games, because they for sure have the raw talent to have a lot of success in the SEC. That success will lead to a deep run in the NCAA Tournament, which is this team’s ultimate goal. Florida reached the Final Four in 2014 as part of the program reaching four straight Elite Eight’s from 2011-2014 when the program was still under Billy Donovan, this team is arguably on par with those teams when it comes to talent, and more talented than current coach Mike White’s team that made the Elite Eight in 2017.

Winning an early-season tournament like this will always give a team a ton of confidence moving forward through the rest of the non-conference season, because admittedly it can be drag for a team, especially a power-five team, where they are expected to win most of their games and a lot of those games won’t matter in the long run, and really only do if they end up taking a really bad loss, like what have been if the Gators had lost to Towson, or another example of it finished off with a certain SEC program in Lexington losing to the Missouri Valley’s Evansville. Granted, those losses are few and far between, but they can get old if you’re winning every game by 30.

These early-season tournaments have a lot of benefit for teams, you’re going to end up playing a quality opponent or two in them. Honestly, that first game is the most important because that’s the one that decides what teams you play for the rest of the tournament, and more often than not they’re the weaker ones. If Florida had lost that St. Joseph’s game, the outlook on their team would be a lot different.

People are looking at them with a more positive attitude. The AP committee rewarded them for winning this tournament by putting them back in the top 25, hitting the board at #24 when Monday’s rankings came out. If they can build off of this momentum moving forward, people will forget about that slow start.

The three games north of the border on Saturday brought on a lot of action and good basketball, with Buffalo beating Harvard 88-76, Tennessee beating Washington 75-62 and St. Bonaventure grabbing an 80-74 win over Rutgers. Here is one major observation I had for each squad.

Buffalo can rely on different guys

The Bulls had four guys in double figures, including three with 18 or more, headlined by a career-high 21 points for sophomore Ronaldo Segu off the bench. Antwain Johnson had 19 as well, and arguably their best player in Jayvon Graves had 18, including a buzzer-beating three at the end of the first half, giving Jim Whitesell’s squad a two-point lead at the break and seemed to be a momentum-shifter after a slow start on the defensive end. They really turned it on in the second half, scoring 48 points with a number of players. Davonta Jordan was no slouch either, with eight points to go along with seven assists. Jeenathan Williams had 10 points and eight rebounds. The MAC won’t be as easy for them with a few more talented teams, most notably Bowling Green, but they can easily make a run to try to get to their third straight NCAA Tournament.

Harvard’s size will define them

All five of Harvard’s starters are at least 6’5″, and three of them are 6’7″ or taller. The tallest of the bunch is the 6’9″ Chris Lewis, who scored 11 points and had eight rebounds, one of three Crimson to have eight or more. They have a balanced scoring attack and their size allows them to force the ball inside, but have deep threats in Bryce Aiken, Justin Bassey and Luka Sakota. Their size is not seen too much in the Ivy League and really helps them. They are a team that has a real shot to win the Ivy and get to their first NCAA Tournament since 2015. This is the last shot for a senior class that has seven players, including Aiken and Bassey, who have never been in the tournament.

Tennessee is very legit

The Vols had a run to the Sweet 16 last year, a run that was ended by Carsen Edwards and Purdue. They lost Grant Williams and Admiral Schofield and a lot of people said they would take a step back. However, the win over Washington was very convincing, a win in which they shot the ball extremely well, including having a well-above average mid-range game that really picked apart Mike Hopkins’ 2-3 zone at times. Jordan Bowden played very well, as did Yves Pons and John Fulkerson, and Lamonte Turner did a great job at drawing fouls and was rewarded, shooting 11 free throws and making nine of them, finishing the game with 16 points, seven rebounds and eight assists, but did have six turnovers. With their balance and excellent fundamental play, they can be a top-three team in the SEC.

Washington still has work to do

Like I said before, Tennessee picked apart Washington’s 2-3 zone during significant portions of the game. The 2-3 zone is one that I believe has grown out of style and doesn’t work in college basketball all too well today, especially against high-level teams. They need to improve their defensive structure, but whether that will happen remains to be seen. On offense, they looked good at certain moments, but at others they didn’t really gel and they struggled because of that by trying to get too fancy. Hameir Wright didn’t score in his 20 minutes, and Jaden McDaniels struggled shooting. Nahziah Carter did do well, as did Isaiah Stewart. However, chemistry will come in time, as they start two freshmen, and non-conference play is a good time to work out the kinks.

St. Bonaventure will be fine

An 0-3 start got a lot of people in Olean panicking. They lost home games to Ohio and Vermont and then lost by 13 to Siena on the road. Saturday allowed Bonnie fans to take a deep breath and look at the team in a more positive note. The freshman pairing of Alejandro Vazquez and Justin Winston was terrific, scoring 20 and 19 points respectively. Despite being a very young team relying on some sophomores in Kyle Lofton and Dominick Welch, they play like an experienced team. Will losing Osun Osunniyi for an extended period hurt? Of course. However, they have a lot of talent to rely on, and Mark Schmidt always has his teams prepared, so they will be alright.

Rutgers is too young to really compete in the Big 10

Tell me if you’ve heard this one before: Rutgers can’t compete in the Big 10 right now. Starting four sophomores doesn’t help with that. However, all four of the sophomores, most notably Ron Harper, Jr. and Montez Mathis have a lot of potential to be stars, but just not yet. Steve Pikiell is definitely in the second half of rebuilding a program that hasn’t made a tournament appearance since 1991 and has a conference record of 13-43 in the Pikiell era. They did take a step up last year, winning seven conference games, the first time they had done that since the 2005-06 season and another step up, maybe an NIT appearance, can be realistic if they do so. It’ll still be a struggle for them to compete in the top tier of the Big 10 this year, but give it two years. They have potential.

College basketball is back, for real. The first night of games came and went last night, so here’s my reactions from opening night.

Kansas had a bad night

The Jayhawks did not look like their usual selves at all. The biggest thing that stood out in their 68-66 loss to Duke was the fact that they turned the ball over 28 times, to the Blue Devils’ 16. They don’t seem to have a ton of solid scoring options, Devon Dotson was really the only one who shot the ball well. He can be a solid number one guy, but Ochai Agbaji ends up being their second scoring option, that can spell some problems. It might have to do with the fact that Duke looks to have an elite defense, but you can only say so much about that. They were lucky to only lose that game by two, even after the three at the buzzer that cut it from five.

Tyrese Maxey!

The freshman stole the show and had a great game for Kentucky off the bench, dropping 26 points on 7-12 shooting and hit an Onions-esque three to put the game away for the Wildcats against Michigan State. He was obviously the best player for John Calipari’s squad and will probably be inserted into the starting lineup soon if he can keep this pace up.

New eras at Alabama and Nebraska off to a bad start

The Nate Oats era with the Crimson Tide and the Fred Hoiberg era for the Cornhuskers got off to rocky starts, with Alabama losing 81-80 at home against Penn and Nebraska getting blown out by UC-Riverside, 66-47. At least some people expected that there was a chance that Alabama could lose to a very solid Penn squad, and they did, despite a noble performance from Kira Lewis, Jr., even though he missed the potentially game-tying and winning free throws in the final seconds. However, everyone on Nebraska had a poor night, and it showed as they got their teeth kicked in on their home floor. Nebraska will need to turn it around quickly if they want to be taken seriously, and especially now with a big name at head coach, or else the fans could turn on the program due to the fact that they were expected to turn it around. It obviously won’t be immediately, but they can’t afford to be the same program it has been.

Good win for Virginia Tech, bad loss for Clemson

Mike Young got his first win with the Hokies with a 67-60 win over Clemson on the road. Virginia Tech got an unexpected jolt from Landers Nolley II, who scored 30 points in his collegiate debut on 12-23 shooting. Virginia Tech does not have a lot of size and depth, but if they can get a lot of performances like that out of him, he can be a star in the ACC and the rebuild after Buzz Williams and Kerry Blackshear left may not take as long as was expected. For Clemson, the seat of Brad Brownell gets hotter for a team that has already taken a drop of sorts.

A quick note, I really enjoyed the ACC conference games on the first nights of the year, it created a fun storyline to the season starting.

New rules are good

We saw the new rules, the extended three-point line, the reset shot clock after an offensive rebound and the new timeout rules come into play for the first time. I’m a fan of all three. The extended three-point line especially, and I tweeted this at one point, it creates a lot more spacing on the floor and forces players to move the ball around a lot more than they had, and makes the shot itself more difficult, and I saw less teams just chucking up threes because of that.

The reset shot clock is good too, because it speeds up the game. No team needs a full 30 seconds after an offensive rebound to put a shot back up.

About the new timeout rule with coaches allowed to call live-ball timeouts in the final two minutes, it’s clearly going to be a work in progress as coaches get used to it. I watched in the Stony Brook-Yale game, I saw Yale go to the free throw line down one in the final seconds, made the first one to tie the game at 62, miss the second, Stony Brook got the rebound and the ball got tied up. It makes you wonder why Seawolves coach Geno Ford would not call timeout there (he had one left) to reset it. They ended up getting a wild shot off, but it missed and Yale ended up winning 74-69 in overtime.

Quick hits

I feel like outside of Utah State, the Mountain West is pretty even this year. I watched Utah beat Nevada, the Wolf Pack are solid under Steve Alford but have some work to do.

Markus Howard is still very here. He put up 38 points, 30 of them in the first half on 11-20 shooting and 7-10 from three as Marquette beat Loyola (Md.) 88-53.

Baylor is very solid and rugged defensively. It showed in a big way, especially in the early portions, of their win against Central Arkansas, opening on a 19-0 run and winning 105-61. They are legit in the Big 12 this season.

Ohio beating St. Bonaventure rather handily in Olean in the first game of Jeff Boals’ tenure with the Bobcats is really interesting. The Bonnies are probably still figuring out the kinks, and maybe it shows that Ohio can compete in a MAC that’s no longer run by Buffalo.

The most hyped-up team coming into the college basketball season is easily Penny Hardaway’s Memphis Tigers.

Hardaway is entering his second year at the helm of his alma mater. Before this, he had a lot of success in his tenure as an AAU coach and his time at Memphis East High School.

He has already proven himself as an elite recruiter, beating out the bluebloods to get the top prospect in the country in James Wiseman, as well as getting numerous other very good recruits. Those included fellow five-star recruit Precious Achiuwa, four-stars Boogie Ellis, who de-committed from Duke, Lester Quinones, Malcom Dandridge, Kentucky de-commit DJ Jeffries and Damion Baugh. All of them are freshmen for this upcoming year.

Hardaway is doing something different than what former coaches — most notably the past two in Tubby Smith and Josh Pastner — did not do, and that’s recruit guys that are from the city of Memphis, one of the best basketball hotbeds in the country. The Tigers have five players on this year’s roster that were born in Memphis and two more in Nashville, one of them being Wiseman.

The Tigers went 22-14 in Hardaway’s first year last season, making it to the second round of the NIT and increased attendance at Fedex Forum by nearly 8,000 fans per game from the previous year, averaging an AAC-leading 14,065 per game, which also ranked 17th in the country, all according to the official NCAA records.

This season is easily the most hyped-up season at Memphis since the 2008-09 season, the year following a trip to the national championship game and John Calipari’s final year before he left for Kentucky. The Tigers delivered, albeit not as much, that year, finishing 33-4, 16-0 in Conference USA and reached the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament.

That 2007-08 season was also the last time that the team had the program had AP All-Americans. Chris Douglas-Roberts was named to the first team and a guy named Derrick Rose was named to the third team in his lone season at Memphis.

The coaches between Calipari and Hardaway, that being Pastner and Smith, failed to carry the program to those heights, with only four NCAA Tournament appearances, resulting in just two wins and never making it past the Round of 32. Memphis fans are used to success, especially the success they had in the 80s and 90s, so it’s easy to tell they were getting very restless, and so far, Hardaway seems like the guy that can change that. They enter the season as the No. 14 team in the country.

One concern that some have had, is his actual coaching skill and his ability to coach a young core. The coaching style in college is a lot different from AAU and high school, and although a lot of his players have played for him before, there’s a way out there that you can see that the skills that they have may not translate as well in the college game. Also, the team is young, starting five freshman is always a daunting task, no matter who you are. The jury will be out coming into the year about that.

When it all comes down to it, they should have some good wins. Hardaway did a solid job with scheduling and that results on them having some good non-conference tests. They have a neutral site game against Oregon as part of the Phil Knight Invitational on November 12, another neutral site game against N.C. State on November 28 and a true road game against Tennessee on December 14.

With the AAC projected to be down this year, there is a good chance that they will roll through the conference with only one or two losses, but the real test will come in the NCAA Tournament — will they be able to make a deep run? That’s what is up for questioning coming into the season.

I was texting with a friend earlier this week about how much I like the “new” Big East and the talent in it. It got me to thinking, in a world of college basketball that revolves around the ACC, Big 10, Big 12 and the SEC, the Big East is — almost quietly — one of the best conferences in the country.

First off, looking at the true metrics of the conference, the Big East is rated by KenPom as the second-best conference in the country coming into this season, its highest rating since the 2014-15 season, two years after the re-alignment of the conference. In addition, the conference has four teams; Villanova (8), Marquette (17), Xavier (18) and Seton Hall (20) in the top-20 in the country for KenPom and three more in the 21-40 range. That’s not too shabby for a conference that only boasts 10 programs, much less than a conference like the ACC (15), Big 10 (14) and the SEC (14). For the record, the Big 12 also has 10.

Coming into this season, the conference has a pretty clear top, middle and bottom tier. Villanova and Seton Hall both checked in in the top 15 in the country when the preseason AP Poll came out on Monday. Villanova has a strong recruiting class headlined by Jeremiah Robinson-Earl and Bryan Antoine as well as a strong returning group of Colin Gillespie, Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree and Saddiq Bey.

Villanova may have the best team overall, but two more teams both have top-five players in the country, that being Myles Powell of Seton Hall and Markus Howard of Marquette.

I’ll admit, I’m a tad concerned about Seton Hall struggling a bit because I can see a scenario where they become a one-man show around Powell, especially against conference opponents. Quincy McKnight, Myles Cale, Jared Rhoden, Sandro Mamukelashvill and Taurean Thompson all have skill but I don’t really see any of them becoming the guy that can really compliment Powell and give them another guy to give the ball to if/when he has an off-night.

However, Howard is an absolute joy to watch. For Marquette, losing the Hauser brothers hurts but they still have the talent to compete, not necessarily for a conference title, but they are for sure a tournament team. They have the pieces in Sacar Anim, Theo John (who’s style of play I love), Jamal Cain, Ed Morrow as well as incoming transfers Koby McEwen and Jayce Johnson give them a lot of depth. If everything goes right, they can see a run to the second weekend.

Xavier made it to the NIT last year in a disappointing year but have the pieces to do well in Travis Steele’s second year at the helm. They have a lethal backcourt in Quentin Goodwin and Paul Scruggs. Freshman KyKy Tandy should be a huge help as well. In the frontcourt, Naji Marshall should have a big year, as well should Tyrique Jones. They have a future too, as a lot of young freshmen are coming in to help. They might not make the second weekend, but the future is laid out in Cincinnati and they should have a lot of success in the next couple years.

Another group that will see some significant growth this year is Creighton. Admittedly, I don’t watch many games for the Bluejays, maybe only one or two last year, but I’ll definitely be paying more attention to them. Ty-Shon Alexander was awesome last season and should be even better this season and with the help of senior Davion Mintz that should make for a great backcourt. Marcus Zegerowski provides depth. One thing that they need to worry about is the forward position as Martin Krampelj kept his name in the NBA Draft, but Southeast Missouri transfer Denzel Mahoney will be able to fill some of that void. They have a fast style of play that encourages running in transition and shooting a lot of threes, which is something that fans love and a decent number of college teams will struggle to keep up with.

That’s just the top teams. Georgetown is finally set to take a step up under Patrick Ewing Providence has a star in Alpha Diallo and a solid complementary piece in A.J. Reeves. The Friars got coach Ed Cooley locked up with a contract extension after he was seen as a leading candidate for the job at Michigan last May. Both of those teams have a good shot at ending up as tournament teams depending on how they do, which could potentially put the Big East at seven NCAA Tournament teams.

As for those non-tournament teams, strides are being made. Butler has a lot of work to do and probably will not be a tournament team. Mike Anderson, after a laughable coaching search by St. John’s led to him, will try to get some real excitement back into the program after the stagnation of the past couple years under Chris Mullin, but are not ready to be true contenders yet.

Even DePaul, the laughingstock of the league, albeit not a tournament team, is finally making some progress under Dave Leitao. They’ve had an up-and-down year, having their first winning season since 2006-07 and reaching the finals of the CBI, having their top three scorers graduate but bringing in a quartet of four-star recruits and finally having Leitao get slapped with a three-game suspension for self-reported NCAA violations by former staff members. They have a future and if they can keep it together, they could very soon see their 15-year NCAA Tournament drought get snapped. Not this year, but maybe soon.

The Big East doesn’t get a lot of attention outside of the east coast, but probably should. It’s one of the best group of programs in the nation and it seemingly flies under the radar. Pay attention to them, because they have the teams and power make some serious noise this season.

The 2019 NBA Draft is now less than a month away, and the order of the draft has been decided. Here is my full 60-pick mock draft. I’m not going to delve into every pick, but I’m providing some commentary on the top 10 picks, players that I like and can have potential.

Quick note before I begin: This is barring any trades that come up on draft night, or guys ending up going back to school.

1. New Orleans Pelicans: Zion Williamson, F, Duke
The Pelicans won’t screw this one up. Zion is the best draft prospect in recent memory, and is bound to be one of the most athletic players in the NBA right off the bat.

2. Memphis Grizzlies: Ja Morant, PG, Murray State
Another extremely dynamic athlete that creates highlight-reel passes and dunks. Personally, one of the best passers that I have ever seen. Plus, it is a golden opportunity for Morant to be the successor to Mike Conley at point guard.

3. New York Knicks: RJ Barrett, SG, Duke
There’s a reason that Barrett was once projected to be the first overall pick this year. He’s a great scorer and is a solid playmaker overall. Honestly, in the long run he may be the best player to come out of this draft.

4. Los Angeles Lakers: DeAndre Hunter, F, Virginia
A fantastic shooter who shot 43% from three last season, he can have an immediate impact on the team to possibly strengthen LeBron’s chance to win another championship.

5. Cleveland Cavaliers: Cam Reddish, SG/SF, Duke
This might be a little high for a third Duke player, but this is because he did not get a ton of chances at Duke as he was their third scoring option. However, he’s a great shooter and above-average at defense, and should translate quickly to the NBA.

6. Phoenix Suns: Jarrett Culver, SG, Texas Tech
A very all-around player but I’m a bit concerned him because he does not really do one thing great. Despite this, I can see him as a role player that the Suns can work on with new coach Monty Williams.

7. Chicago Bulls, Coby White, PG, North Carolina
He can score the ball in bunches and is really fast. White is an elite transition player that can be someone to build around in Chicago.

8. Atlanta Hawks: Nassir Little, F, North Carolina
He was a bit underwhelming with the Tar Heels this year, but the freshman was playing on a team with a ton of upperclassmen, so did not get a ton of touches. Despite this, he is a great athlete that can do a lot with the ball.

9. Washington Wizards: Darius Garland, PG, Vanderbilt
I would be a little wary of Garland, who only played five games at Vanderbilt before going down with a season-ending injury. However, he was fantastic in those first few games, shooting nearly 50% from three. He’s elite at ball-handling and would be a great complement to Devin Booker in the backcourt.

10. Atlanta Hawks: Sekou Deoumbouya, PF, France
He might be close to five years away, so he’s a serious project. However, if any team can afford that, it’s Atlanta.

11. Minnesota Timberwolves: Jaxson Hayes, C, Texas
12. Charlotte Hornets: Rui Hachimura, F, Gonzaga
13. Miami Heat: Grant Williams, PF, Tennessee
Williams seems like a Pat Riley type of player. He’ll go under-the-radar on the national spotlight, but he’ll get a lot of respect in the league because of his hard-nosed defense and his ability to play under the basket.

14. Boston Celtics: Brandon Clarke, F, Gonzaga
15. Detroit Pistons: Romeo Langford, SG/SF, Indiana
Langford was one of the best players in the country coming out of high school a year ago, but had some injury trouble in his lone season at Indiana, and his numbers fell off a bit because of that. However, if he is healthy, he can be a great player that can help Detroit.

16. Orlando Magic: Kevin Porter Jr, SG, USC
17. Brooklyn Nets: Tyler Herro, SG, Kentucky
A great shooter who can be a really good player for the Nets if he is developed right. He’s not fully ready, but will be soon.

18. Indiana Pacers: Goga Bitadze, C, Rep. of Georgia
19. San Antonio Spurs: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, SG, Virginia Tech
20. Boston Celtics: PJ Washington, PF, Kentucky
21. Oklahoma City Thunder: Bol Bol, C, Oregon
The case with Bol is a curious one. It’s tough to tell where exactly he’ll go, but this seems right. He stands at 7-2 and weighs 235 pounds, so he’s a good size, but only played nine games before an injury ended his season after averaging 21 points and 9.6 rebounds per game. The injury concerns are there so that may make him slip.

22. Boston Celtics: Keldon Johnson, SF, Kentucky
23. Utah Jazz: Bruno Fernando, C, Maryland
An elite rebounder with a wingspan of 7-4, but he’s a major project, because of a lot of careless mistakes, that could go either way in the NBA.

24. Philadelphia 76ers: KZ Okpala, SF, Stanford
25. Portland Trail Blazers: Mfiondu Kabengele, C, Florida State
26. Cleveland Cavaliers: Matisse Thybulle, SF, Washington
27. Brooklyn Nets: Cameron Johnson, PF, North Carolina
28. Golden State Warriors: Daniel Gafford, C, Arkansas
29. San Antonio Spurs: Carsen Edwards, PG, Purdue
Call me crazy, but I think Edwards is a major sleeper in this draft after having a breakout NCAA Tournament, including two games with over 40 points against Villanova and Virginia, which obviously you can’t do every night. I think the potential is there, though. He’s a great pull-up shooter, which helps in today’s NBA. If the Spurs do indeed take him, it can be another situation where a non-top pick turns out to work wonders.

30. Milwaukee Bucks: Charles Bassey, C, Western Kentucky

Round 2
31. Brooklyn Nets: Jordan Nwora, PF, Louisville
32. Phoenix Suns: Louis King, SF, Oregon
33. Philadelphia 76ers: Nic Claxton, C, Georgia
Claxton improved his stock wildly with a great combine. I have him in the early parts of the second round for now, but he could sneak into the first.

34. Philadelphia 76ers: Admiral Schofield, SF, Tennessee
35. Atlanta Hawks: Ty Jerome, G, Virginia
36. Charlotte Hornets: Jontay Porter, C, Missouri
37. New Orleans Pelicans: Jalen Lecque, PG, Brewster Academy (New Hampshire)
38. Chicago Bulls: Talen Horton-Tucker, SG, Iowa State
39. Dallas Mavericks: Luka Samanic, PF, Croatia
He would be a great fit in Dallas with all of the European talent that they bring in.

40. Sacramento Kings: Jalen McDaniels, PF, San Diego State
41. Atlanta Hawks: Dylan Windler, SF, Belmont
42. Atlanta Hawks: Chuma Okeke, PF, Auburn
43. Minnesota Timberwolves: Kris Wilkes, SF, UCLA
44. Philadelphia 76ers: Tacko Fall, C, UCF
And there it is. The 7-7 center finally goes mid-second round. He held his own against Zion Williamson in the NCAA Tournament, but I don’t see him being a dynamic NBA talent, but someone will take a chance on him.

45. Detroit Pistons: Ky Bowman, PG, Boston College
46. Orlando Magic: Luguentz Dort, SG, Arizona State
47. Sacramento Kings: Isaiah Roby, PF, Nebraska
48. Los Angeles Clippers: Adam Mokoka, SG, France
49. San Antonio Spurs: Ignas Brazdeikis, PF, Michigan
50. Indiana Pacers: Jaylen Nowell, SG, Washington
51. Boston Celtics: Eric Paschall, PF, Villanova
52. Charlotte Hornets, Cody Martin, SF, Nevada
I’ve said this a couple times before, but I’ll say it again. Nevada, Martin being part of that, could have been a top-10 team in the country, and Martin could have been a real draft prospect. However, they ruined it by playing hero ball with a bunch of selfish players.

53. Utah Jazz: Tremont Waters, PG, LSU
54. Philadelphia 76ers: Darius Bazley, PG, Princeton HS (Ohio)
55. New York Knicks: Miye Oni, SG, Yale
56. Los Angeles Clippers: Brian Bowen, SF, Australia
57. New Orleans Pelicans: Aubrey Dawkins, SG, UCF
58. Golden State Warriors: Jordan Bone, PG, Tennessee
59. Toronto Raptors: Oshae Brissett, PF, Syracuse
60. Sacramento Kings: Jaylen Hoard, PF, Wake Forest