College basketball is back. This is good news if you are a Michigan State fan and if you are an Ohio State fan, you’ve probably just started rooting for the Buckeyes.
The Big Ten is down, but there is a plethora of talented freshman entering the conference. None of my predictions have ever been even remotely close to correct, but I like doing it so back off. Without further ado, the 2006-2007 Big Ten Preview.
1. Michigan State – just joking.
1. Wisconsin – I don’t like the Badgers and I hate Bo Ryan. However, he has one of his best teams in his career at Wisconsin. Kammron Taylor is the best point guard in the Big Ten and Alando Tucker is a can-do-it-all forward. Brian Butch needs to become more consistent, but the Tucker/Taylor one/two punch should carry the Badgers to a very successful season. Prediction: 14-2, Sweet Sixteen
2. The Ohio State – How Thad Mata has been able to hall in these recruits is beyond me. The Buckeyes don’t have much recent success in which to hang their program, but they are loaded for their next two classes. Greg Oden will be a very good freshman and it will be interesting to see how open the perimeter with him in the post. Thad’s teams love to jack-up the three. Remember the Thad Five are freshman and will struggle at times with Big Ten player’s size and speed. David Lighty and Daequan Cook will have solid freshman campaigns, but Mike Conley is over-rated and will face problems with tougher guards in the Big Ten. Prediction: 13-3, Elite Eight
3. Michigan – Hello NCAA Tournament. Lester Abram is back for his 32nd year as a Wolverine and Courtney Sims will provide solid frontcourt play. DeShawn Sims is as talented a player U of M has had in recent years, but he loses focus at times. He will be sporadic, but still contribute. Jarrett Smith does not instill a lot of confidence at the point, but Dion Harris has shown he can fill that role and with Ron Coleman on the wing scoring should not be a problem for the Wolverines. Prediction: 11-5, Second Round of NCAA Tournament
4. Illinois – I will never bet against a coach like Bruce Weber. He does not have the proven firepower at the guard positions this year, but Jamar Smith and Calvin Brock will be ready to step-up and try to fill the void. Shawn Pruitt is more athletic than James Augustine, but is not nearly as polished. Look for Brian Carlwell to provide some steady play in the post. Prediction: 10-6, Second Round of NCAA Tournament
5. Indiana – Kelvin Sampson has not been in the Big Ten too long and he is already pissing off the other coaches. He recently stole a Bruce Weber recruit for the class of 2007 (star point guard, Eric Gordon) and he is complaining about his recruiting restrictions. A new coach will invigorate the Hoosiers and if DJ White stays healthy he will be tough to beat in the post. The Hoosiers aren’t deep, but they will sneak out some wins this season. Prediction: 9-7
6. Michigan State – The Spartans could surprise some people this year. Remember last year’s National Champion was a team that lost their top three scorers and returned a solid group of sophomores and juniors. Michigan State is in that same boat, but they won’t win a championship of any sort this year. Raymar Morgan will be mentioned as freshman of the year in the Big Ten and Goran Suton is a forward who can shoot from the outside. State has not had that luxury in recent years, but pulling other teams bigs out to the perimeter should open Marquise Gray on the block and room for dribble-drive penetrations. Drew Neitzel will play the two a lot this year and will flourish while Travis Walton holds down point guard duties. Prediction: 9-7, Sweet Sixteen
7. Iowa – Adam Haluska won’t have the privilege of playing with the other two parts of his Caucasian triad (Jeff Horner and Greg Brunner). The Hawkeyes are young and not very athletic. They may steal a win or two at home, but will not fair too well on the road. Prediction: 7-9, NIT
8. Minnesota – Without Vincent Grier, the Gophers do not have an explosive wing player. Freshman Bryce Webster is a large body power forward who may be able to partner up with center Spencer Tollackson for decent frontcourt play. Minnesota always has a home court advantage and that should help, but not too much. Prediction: 6-10, No postseason
9. Purdue – Carl Landry is back. That’s good news. Who will get him the ball? That’s bad news. Who else will score for the Boilermakers? That’s more bad news. Purdue will play solid defense, but without another true scorer and sufficient depth won’t make a push for post-season play this year. Prediction: 6-10, No postseason
10. Penn State – The Nittany Lions are starting to look better on the court, but do not have the talent to compete in the Big Ten. They do have the talent to be better than Northwestern. Prediction: 6-10, No postseason
11. Northwestern – The Princeton offense is cute and effective. The Wildcats will hang in there in some games. They won’t win a lot though. Prediction: 5-11, No postseason
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
15 comments:
First of all, let me say, you are a true Spartan fan!
I don't want to hear the term "rebuilding" this year, but there is no way to avoid it. We lost some big-time players from last year, including the top three scorers and rebounders and well rounded players.
I took a different approach to the season this year as in years past. You won't see all of these pre-conference marquee matchups as in years past. We have a couple of challenges, but it is to get us ready for Big Ten play.
Here are some things to look for in the upcoming season: (This is my favorite starting lineup-so far)
PG - Travis Walton - look for him to improve on his 2.07 assist / TO ratio, which wasn't bad for a freshman who logged 19 minutes per game. He handles the ball well, and needs to figure out the flow of this young team. He won't be much of a scorer, but will probably average around 7 points and 5 assists.
SG - Drew Neitzel - Drew is going to be more free to play this year. He is the most experienced player on the roster, and was 3rd in the Big Ten in assists last year. We are moving him from the point guard to the 2 guard to allow him more opportunities to get free. He was 40% from the field and from 3 point land last year. His shot has improved and so will his scoring average. He can be downright hot sometimes! Look for Drew to average 18.
F- Marquise Gray - Gray has improved his strength and confidence this off season. He is able to bang around a little more and will go to the hoop more often. Look for him to be a good rebounder, and you will be surprised by how much he has worked on his free throws. He will add 12 points a game.
C - Goron Suton - Don't get me wrong, Suton will still make some bonehead plays. He has more weapons in the post, bur lacks speed and quickness. His jump hook is much better, but he will have to evade the defenders' blocks. On D, if he gets into foul trouble, we have plenty of bodies with Naymick and Ibok on the bench. Suton adds 14 a game.
F - Raymar Morgan - This uber-talented freshman will step up in an attempt to shine this year. He will be one of the Big Ten's breakout players. He is a little timid thusfar, but will gain confidence as the season opens up. He is strong, athletic, and has a good head for the game. Look for him to surprise, adding 15 per game.
That leaves us with 10 points/per from the bench a night, coming from Naymick, Ibok, and Joseph mainly.
We will be a better rebounding team, because damnit, I will not let us not be. I have taught and taught anf taught these guys about the importance of rebounding.
We will be sloppy and cold at times. Fans will be frustrated. Neitzel and Morgan will have step-up-ability. It won't be as long of a year than some think. I pick us to be 3rd in the Big Ten behind Wisconsin and Ohio State.
Make sure you watch us open our season against Brown tomorrow night at 7pm Eastern. It is being televised on ESPNU, so if you need to go out and have a cold one for the Spartans.
Thanks Fans!
I LOVE MSU HOOPS!
Go State!
hmmm...tom izzo? do you really read the blog alliance? i think this might be a fake. but good info. where is tommy amaker, i gave u of m a lot of love.
I thank you for the props. I almost didn't have enough time to read this, but when I heard that Tom Izzo posted, I figured that was the right thing to do.
You may have given my Wolverines a little too much credit though. It was a hard off season for me. With all of the trying on of mock-turtle necks, polo shirts, and other unconventional tops to wear under my sportcoat, I have hardly had time to look at our schedule, not to mention game plans. I am still not comfortable that I will look my best on the sideline. Maybe I will wear my polo collar up, that is what the kids were doing.
Oh well, I don't have anything to worry about. I am Tommy Amaker. I played for Duke. I am second on the all-time list for assists there. I was a defensive player of the year. Did I mention that we only lost to Louisville by 3 for the National Championship in 1986?
I'm Tommy Amaker.
now that tommy amaker reply is much more believable. i didn't give you too much love, you have a good team. and you do wear some cool turtle necks. i know you went to duke, but i think duke might be evil. thanks for the comment. godspeed on your upcoming season
OK fine. You got me. Tom Izzo didn't really write that. It was me, his good buddy Steve.
You remember me don't you? I was fired from San Francisco and took a job close to home in Michigan, with the Detroit Lions. I'm not sure why, but they asked me not to coach there anymore.
I guess I am available if, you know, something became available at MSU. Can you carry me through this Tom? Please?
Geez...Whats next?
indeed. there are many fraudulent comments being posted.
steve, i don't believe this is you either. come on now. but if it is you, i don't like you. please don't come to state. you're not a very good football coach.
You do not really follow Big 10 BB other than your beloved!
I miss Bobby Knight...IU isn't the same without the in your face and chair throwing antics anymore. It is down right boring.
well anonymous, i don't know what to say. my beloved is michigan state, but i scout every other because i want to know how state matches up. and i follow prep sports and know a lot about the freshman entering the big ten. so i know a decent amount about what is going on.
where exactly have i shown a lack of knowledge about the big ten? i follow every team. and i watch almost as many games as possible. but i appreciate your opinion of my lack of knowledge.
as for other anonymous, or same person, for bobby knight it was pretty simple - don't strangle your kids. i don't hate knight, but i'm not a huge fan either. his coaching style became antiquated and he wasn't able to recruit the same talent he once was. he is a great coach and entertaining at times, but the big ten still has great coaches who can be entertaing.
I think you said it best. Antics. Thats all they were. In his prime, Bobbk Knight was an excellent recruiter, a well respected teacher of the game. He was a mentor to young talent and a strict disciplinarian. When he let his emotions overcome him, he became bigger than the game. That is when his "antics" ruined him and left him washed up the river banks.
jon, good points.
I sat next to Coach Sampson at some swanky restaurant in Bloomington at the end of April as he was recruiting some really tall white boy. He kept talking about trying to get the program to the level that MSU is at. I thought that was cool.
Anonymous is an asshole.
i remember you telling me about that. it is cool to think msu is used as the standard of something. last night that standard only mustered up 46 points against brown. yikes. tall white boy? i'd like to know who that was.
speaking of recruits, yesterday was signing day and the spartans snagged the eighth best class according to rivals.com and the fifth best according to usatoday.com. durrell summers, kalin lucas and chris allen are all guards and are very good players. with summers and raymar morgan on the court in 2007-2008, watch out. and this team has the foundation to win it all in detroit in 2009. that would be sweet.
Post a Comment