2011-2012 Top 50 Countdown: Nos. 35-31

Over the coming weeks, we will be counting down our Top 50 teams in the country. Teams 26-50 will be posted in groups of five, while we will count backwards from No. 25 to the No. 1 team in the country. You can find a complete schedule of our 2011-2012 Season Preview coverage here. To browse through the rest of the Top 50, click here.


35. Illinois Fighting Illini:

Last Season: 20-14, 9-9 (Big Ten)

Head Coach: Bruce Weber

Key Losses: Demetri McCamey, Mike Davis, Mike Tisdale, Jereme Richmond, Bill Cole

New Additions: Nnanna Egwu, Tracy Abrams, Mike Shaw, Mychael Henry, Devin Langford, Ibrahima Djimde, Sam Maniscalco, Jereme Richmond?

Projected Lineup:

- G: Sam Maniscalco, Sr.
- G: Brandon Paul, Jr.
- G: DJ Richardson, Jr.
- F: Tyler Griffey, Jr.
- C: Meyers Leonard, So.
- Bench: Crandall Head, So.; Tracy Abrams, Fr.; Mike Shaw, Fr.; Myke Henry, Fr.; Devin Langford, Fr.



Outlook: Illinois is in an interesting position this season. On the one hand, they are losing four starters and a key reserve. On the other hand, they are losing Demetri McCamey and Jereme Richmond, two talented head cases that may end up being an addition by subtraction. So while Bruce Weber's team is losing 56.5 percent of their minutes and 59.2 pecent of their scoring, the team chemistry -- which is so valuable and so underrated -- stands to increase without the fights Richmond may or may not have been involved in and the professional career McCamey may or may not have been preparing for. So what's left? Its going to start on the perimeter for the Illini. Juniors DJ Richardson and Brandon Paul should become the first and second options with the ball-dominating McCamey gone. Bradley transfer Sam Maniscalco -- who is legit -- should slide into the point guard role for a year while freshman Tracy Abrams gets used to the Big Ten. Sophomore Meyers Leonard should be able to provide some solid interior defense and rebounding if he can keep his fouls down while Tyler Griffey gives Weber a face-up four with a dangerous jump shot. Throw in a couple youngsters off the bench -- Crandall Head, Joseph Bertrand, Mike Shaw, Myke Henry, Devin Langford, Nnanna Egwu -- and Illinois has a bright future.


34. Washington Huskies:

Last Season: 24-11, 11-7 (Pac-10)

Head Coach: Lorenzo Romar

Key Losses: Isaiah Thomas, Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday, Venoy Overton

New Additions: Tony Wroten Jr, Shawn Kemp Jr, Hikeem Stewart, Jernard Jarreau, Martin Breunig, Andrew Andrews

Projected Lineup:

- G: Abdul Gaddy, Jr.
- G: Tony Wroten Jr, Fr.
- F: Terrence Ross, So.
- F: Darnell Gant, Sr.
- C: Aziz N'Diaye, Jr.
- Bench: CJ Wilcox, So.; Scott Suggs, Sr.; Shawn Kemp Jr, Fr.; Hikeem Stewart, Fr.; Jernard Jarreau, Fr.


Outlook: Washington is going to have a lot of important pieces to replace next season. Its starts with the most obvious -- Isaiah Thomas -- but with Matthew Bryan-Amaning, Justin Holiday and Venoy Overton also graduating, Lorenzo Romar is going to have quite a few minutes to replace. He certainly will have talent at his disposal, however, especially on the perimeter. It starts with Abdul Gaddy, who should be healthy after tearing his acl a third of the way through last season, and stud point guard recruit Tony Wroten Jr, who is the kind of playmaker that can fill the role Thomas vacated. CJ Wilcox and Scott Suggs should be able to provide an offensive pop off the bench. The x-factor, however, will be Terrence Ross. The sophomore wing has had quite a bit of hype throughout the off-season and could end up being a first-team all-conference performer if he lives up to those expectations. The front court will be a bit of a question mark. Aziz N'Diaye is seven-foot shotblocker, but he doesn't provide much offensive pop. Darnell Gant can stretch the floor with his ability to shoot, but he's not much of a banger. Four freshmen -- Shawn Kemp Jr, Desmond Simmons, Martin Breunig and Jernard Jarreau -- will be competing for front court bench minutes, and Washington is going to need one or two of that group to become impact contributors.


33. Michigan State Spartans:

Last Season: 19-15, 9-9 (Big Ten)

Head Coach: Tom Izzo

Key Losses: Kalin Lucas, Durrell Summers, Garrick Sherman, Korie Lucious, Mike Kebler

New Additions: Branden Dawson, Brandon Kearney, Travis Trice, Brandon Wood

Projected Lineup:

- G: Keith Appling, So.
- G: Brandon Wood, Sr.
- F: Branden Dawson, Fr.
- F: Draymond Green, Sr.
- C: Delvon Roe, Sr.
- Bench: Adreian Payne, So.; Derrick Nix, Jr.; Austin Thornton, Sr.; Brandon Kearney, Fr.; Russell Byrd, Fr.


Outlook: Last season was, frankly, a disaster for the Spartans. After being picked as a consensus top five team heading into the season, Michigan State never found that rhythm. There were chemistry issues, Kalin Lucas couldn't get healthy, Durrell Summers couldn't get a shot to fall and Michigan State found themselves knocked out in the first round of the tournament after failing to crack the 20 win barrier. Next season will be an interesting mix. The strength of this group will be the front court. Draymond Green and Delvon Roe (Ed. Note: Only hours after we posted this, news of Roe announced his retirement) are senior leaders that have been through quite a few battles in their careers. Adreian Payne and Derrick Nix both have some question marks -- Payne needs Nix to donate him about 30 pounds, among other things -- but if they can put it together, both have the potential to be impact players in the Big Ten this year. Freshman small forward Branden Dawson has drawn comparisons to Raymar Morgan and should fit well with this team. The back court is a bigger question. Sophomore Keith Appling is going to be asked to take over a much more prominent role while senior Valpo transfer -- who, like Maniscalco at Illinois, is legit -- will be counted on to provide some back court experience. Austin Thornton will see minutes, as will Brandon Kearney and Russell Byrd (if he can get healthy), but the only natural point guard on the roster is freshman Travis Trice. Tom Izzo is going to need to turn this group into an old-school, beat-em-up Spartan team.


32. Wichita State Shockers:

Last Season: 29-8, 14-4 (MVC)

Head Coach: Gregg Marshall

Key Losses: JT Durley, Graham Hatch, Gabe Blair, Aaron Ellis

New Additions: Jake White, Evan Wessel, Tekele Cotton, Ron Baker, Carl Hall, Ede Egharevba

Projected Lineup:

- G: Joe Ragland, Sr.
- G: David Kyles, Sr.
- F: Toure' Murry, Sr.
- F: Ben Smith, Sr.
- C: Garrett Stutz, Sr.
- Bench: Carl Hall, Jr.; Demetric Williams, Jr.; Jake White, Fr.


Outlook: The Shockers had some rough luck during the regular season, taking a couple of tough losses that cost them the MVC regular season title and a trip to the tournament. That said, they did make a run to the NIT championship. Wichita State should be able to compete for an MVC title this season based on their back court alone. Its headlined by a trio of talented and unselfish seniors that buy into what Gregg Marshall is selling. Joe Ragland is the point guard, David Kyles is the shooter, and Toure' Murry is the play-maker and the slasher. All three are capable of producing big games, but they also all understand their role within the team. Junior Demetric Williams showed flashes of promise last season, but he will be battling for bench minutes with freshmen Evan Wessel and Tekele Cotton. Where the Shockers have question marks is along their front line. Garrett Stutz, their seven-foot senior center, returns. He is going to need to increase his productivity to make up for JT Durley's scoring and Gabe Blair's rebounding and physicality inside. The undersized Ben Smith will be back, although he tends to spend more on his time on the perimeter. Beyond that, Marshall is going to have a lot of fresh faces manning the paint, but the most interesting are two newcomers. Jake White is a face-up four that had some legitimate high-major interest and Carl Hall is a JuCo transfer that has some hype coming into the program.


31. UNLV Runnin' Rebels:

Last Season: 24-9, 11-5 (MWC)

Head Coach: Dave Rice

Key Losses: Tre'Von Willis, Derrick Jasper, Lon Kruger

New Additions: Mike Moser, Dave Rice

Projected Lineup:

- G: Oscar Bellfield, Sr.
- G: Anthony Marshall, Jr.
- G: Justin Hawkins, Jr.
- F: Chace Stanback, Sr.
- C: Quintrel Thomas, Jr.
- Bench: Mike Moser, So.; Carlos Lopez, So.; Kendall Wallace, Sr., Brice Massamba, Sr.; Reggie Smith, So.


Outlook: UNLV is going to be going through a regime change as the Mountain West goes through a membership change, but there is plenty of talent on this roster to compete with New Mexico in the two-horse race to win the MWC. Oscar Bellfield and Anthony Marshall are going to share ball-handling and playmaking duties. Bellfield is a better shooter and creator than Marshall, but Marshall is the kind of player coaches love. He does seemingly everything well and can be a lock-down defensive presence. Defensive stopper Justin Hawkins and three-point sniper Kendall Wallace, who is coming off of an acl tear, will both be back as well. Don't be surprised is Marquette transfer Reggie Smith works his way into the lineup when he gets eligible in December. Up front, Rice figures to continue the three-man rotation that Kruger had last season. Quintrel Thomas, Brice Massamba and Carlos Lopez are all big and strong and do enough well to get on the court but don't do enough to earn a permanent starting spot. UCLA transfer Mike Moser will also see time in the front court, which would allow Chace Stanback to slide over and play some three. The x-factor is going to be Stanback. With much of the MWC's star power gone from last season, he has a real shot at being the Player of the Year in the conference. A 6'8" wing, he can do a lot of different things on the floor -- shoot from deep, score, rebound, defend multiple positions -- but is he ready to become "the man"? Will he take that next step towards being a star? If he does, UNLV has a very good chance of winning the MWC.


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Preseason Q-and-A Series: Jason King of Yahoo Sports

Over the next month, we will be unloading a plethora of preseason college basketball content. From top-25 rankings, to conference previews, All-American teams, player profiles, and even the vaunted "B.I.A.H All-Name Team" selections. We will also be providing a handful of Q-and-A sessions with some of the biggest names in college hoops.

We start off our series of preseason interviews with Jason King of Yahoo Sports. He is one of the premier writers in the college basketball community and is a daily must-read and must-follow.

Aside from writing for Yahoo Sports, Jason authored a highly-anticipated book on the past decade of Kansas basketball. Beyond the Phog: Untold Stories from Kansas Basketball's Most Dominant Decade is available for pre-order and will be available for purchase on October 1st. We had a chance to get to know the author and pick his mind about the book, Kansas hoops, the state of college basketball, and of course, barbecue.


Your new book, Beyond the Phog: Untold Stories from Kansas Basketball's Most Dominant Decade is set to be released soon. What inspired you to write the book and when did you start working on this project?

One of the most frustrating things about being a beat writer is that you can’t always print everything you know. You’ll hear rumors about things that happen during practice or in the locker room or at the nightclubs. You know the stories are probably all true, but no one will confirm them for you on the record because they’re too scared of being yelled at or disciplined by the coach. I knew that would change once guys left the program.

I made a list of 40 players I wanted to interview along with Roy Williams and Bill Self. I’d kept in touch with a lot of them over the years via e-mail and telephone, and the others weren’t hard to contact. My first three interviews were with Luke Axtell, Jeff Graves and Drew Gooden. Each interview lasted more than an hour, and the latter two were conducted in person. Let’s just say that, after those interviews, I was a big believer in the cliché, “Time loosens lips.” I couldn’t believe how candid and honest they had been with me. Frankly, it was pretty refreshing. At that point I knew I had to press forward with the book.

I recruited Lawrence Journal World sportswriter Jesse Newell – who I’ve long considered one of the field’s hidden gems – and combined we interviewed 38 players and both coaches from June to mid-August. I conducted 28 of the interviews and Jesse did 12. The only two guys we didn’t get were Marcus and Markieff Morris, but it certainly wasn’t from a lack of effort. Still, literally every other big name is in the book with his own chapter: Hinrich, Collison, Simien, Rush, Hawkins, Reed, Morningstar, Henry, Chalmers, Wright, Selby, Giddens, Giles, Arthur, Collins, Aldrich, Langford, Boschee, Chenowith, Miles … no one is missing.

We started the book in early June and had it to the printer by August 26. So much for a relaxing summer. In all seriousness, it was a lot of fun. The players couldn’t have been any more friendly and cooperative.



Is this your first foray into the book world? Have you thought about following this book up with something else?

I actually did a book on Kansas’ 2008 national championship season entitled “Kansas Jayhawks: A Year to Remember – Inside the Greatest Season in Kansas Basketball History”. I’m still mad I didn’t come up with a better title. “A Year to Remember” … riveting, I know. I definitely think this is the end of the road for me when it comes to Kansas basketball books. But if I find a topic I’m passionate about down the road, I’d be open to writing another one.

Right now, though, my plan is to spend the next few weeks marketing this book and doing some signings. Then I’m going to focus 100 percent of my attention on the college basketball season. It’s going to be a fun year in college hoops.



Some excerpts from your book were released last week and seemed to gain a lot of attention, especially the story of Kris Humphries' recruiting visit and the Kansas/Villanova tournament game. Are they any good stories that didn't make the cut for the book?

Honestly, no. I really didn’t chop anything. My goal was to hold the book to 400 pages and, after we turned in all the chapters, it came in at 390. Jesse and I just let guys talk and talk and talk until their heart was content. Believe it or not, there’s some really good stuff in there from some of Kansas’ walk-ons. Matt Kleinmann’s chapter is about 5,000 words. (Sherron Collin’s chapter is the longest at 8,000-plus words/20 pages).

I know you’re probably thinking, “Why would I want to read 5,000 words about Matt Kleinmann? Well, the chapter isn’t all about him. It’s Kleinmann telling funny stories about his teammates or about things that happened at practice. Nick Bahe and Stephen Vinson have good stories, too.



Take us through how you ended up writing for the Dallas Morning News at 15 years-old? Were you covering games then?

I was very lucky. I attended Hillcrest High School in Dallas, and the newspaper there (The Hillcrest Hurricane) was routinely named one of the best high school publications in the country. The paper’s advisor at the time has been named national teacher of the year and speaks at conventions throughout the country. I signed up for his Journalism I class as a high school freshman and was immediately hooked.

Mr. Tate pushed his students like a football coach would a player. He was very demanding but was also a great motivator. After completing Journalism I, I was allowed to join The Hurricane staff as a sophomore. Sensing my growing passion, Mr. Tate suggested I contact the Dallas Morning News about covering high school football games. I asked him if he thought they’d hire a 15-year-old. “Don’t tell them you’re 15,” he said. Sure enough, I called them and they hired me to cover a game each Friday for $45.

The stories were only three paragraphs, and I was responsible for providing complete stats and a full boxscore. Still, at the time, it felt like a big deal. The Dallas Morning News had about 50 other stringers doing what I was doing every Friday night. Who knows, maybe I wasn’t even the only 15-year-old. But ever since then I’ve loved hanging out in press boxes, keeping stats and just being around the action.

The thing I’ll remember the most, though, is Mr. Tate going to that very first game with me and teaching me how to keep stats and then sitting next to me in an assistant coaches’ offices as I dictated my story to a Dallas Morning News employee around 11 p.m. – and then high-fiving me after I hung up the phone. More than 20 years later, Mr. Tate is still my No. 1 mentor. And he’s still going strong as a teacher. He’s got students at some of the top journalism schools in the country and has produced multiple National High School Journalists of the Year.

What’s funny is that he moved to the Kansas City area a few years after I did to take a job at Shawnee Mission East High School. I joke that he’s just following me around to be my own, personal writing coach. In all seriousness, sometimes I wonder what I would’ve done with my life if I wouldn’t have walked into his class as a 14-year-old high school freshman.



Now, you graduated from Baylor. What has it been like as an alumni to see the basketball program go through such highs and lows in the past decade?

Nobody believes me when I say this, but I’m not a diehard Baylor fan. Because of my job, I’m not a fan of any school. I want my coverage of Baylor to be balanced and fair, and I think it has been. I’ve been extremely critical of Baylor in the past.

The only thing that used to upset me was when people said Baylor didn’t belong in the Big 12 or that Baylor would never compete in the Big 12. To me, that was always an asinine statement. I always knew Baylor would do just fine in the Big 12 as long as it made the right coaching hires. Unfortunately, they had some whiffs that caused them to take a few massive steps back. Harry Miller and Dave Bliss in basketball; Dave Roberts and Kevin Steele in football … awful, awful hires.

But look at Baylor now with Art Briles, Scott Drew and Kim Mulkey. Not a bad trio. When the preseason basketball polls are released in November, Baylor will likely be the only school in the country with a top 25 ranking in football and men’s and women’s basketball. And this is the school that can’t compete in the Big 12? Um, OK.

Say what you want about Waco, Texas – I can name four Big 12 towns that are much worse, by the way – but it sits smack dab in the middle of one of the nation’s most fertile recruiting areas. Houston is three hours away, San Antonio is two hours away and Austin and Dallas are just 90 minutes away. Considering that, it shouldn’t be a surprise at all that Baylor’s athletics program is faring so well across the board.



Is this finally the year that the Baylor hoops team breaks through and dethrones Kansas from atop the Big-12?

They definitely have a good chance. I honestly think that, other than North Carolina and Kentucky, Baylor matches up with any team in America in terms of pure talent. Again, I’m not saying they’re the third best team in the country overall. I’m not sure I’d put them in the top 10.

But in terms of talent … wow. They’ve got two players (Perry Jones and Quincy Miller) who are projected to go in the top 10. Quincy Acy had 10 dunks in a single game a few years ago. Anthony Jones is a 6-11 three-man who can bring the ball up the court. Pierre Jackson was last year’s National Junior College Player of the Year. One publication listed Deuce Bello as one of the top 20 dunkers in the entire world. And we haven’t even mentioned guys like Brady Heslip, a combo guard who will likely start, and Gary Franklin, another combo guard who started at Cal as a freshman before transferring in December.

Still, even with all of that talent, I’m still picking the Bears to finish second in the league behind Kansas. Chemistry is just as important as talent, and I’ll be interested to see how well this team plays together. Are the Bears going to play streetball and take terrible shots like they have in the past? Or are they going to resemble the selfless team that advanced to the Elite Eight in 2010.

That’s why Kansas does so well each and every year. The Jayhawks take pride in sharing the ball and playing solid defense. They don’t care about scoring stats or about the NBA scouts sitting on press row. They know that, if they win, all that other stuff will take care of itself.

The only problem is that I’m just not convinced this Jayhawks team has enough pieces to win an eighth straight conference title. There is no depth in the post. They’re unproven at the three-spot – although I won’t be surprised if Travis Releford steps up there – and their first guard off the bench will be a true freshman. In other words, I’m picking the Jayhawks because they’ve won seven straight, and I’ll always stick with a winner until they lose. But I don’t feel as good about this one. Luckily, the rest of the league will be mediocre this season, so if Kansas was ever going to have a down year, it picked a good time.



What happens to Kansas if they are left out of the expansionocalypse free-for-all? Five years down the road, what conference are they playing in? How long does the Big 12 last?

I think Kansas will always have a home in one of the Big Six conferences. The Jayhawks basketball program is just too strong. Who wouldn’t want to add a national brand, a national team to its conference? I kind of think the Big 12 will stay together for awhile now. Even if Missouri leaves for the SEC, the Big 12 could add four more teams and be fine. Kansas doesn’t want to move unless it absolutely has to.



There was a bit of an uproar on twitter surrounding Perry Ellis and his decision to go to Kansas when Seth Davis of SI.com broke the news just five minutes before Ellis was set to announce. I know Seth was doing his job, but do you think it’s fair to take away a kid's moment like that? Would you have done the same if you had the information?

I don’t blame Seth one bit. I would’ve done the exact same thing, and I can’t imagine there’s a credible beat writer out there who would disagree. He didn’t do anything wrong. Perry Ellis and the University of Kansas don’t sign Seth’s paychecks. Sports Illustrated does, and one of Seth’s job responsibilities is to break news.

I guess the only difference is that I probably wouldn’t have been pursuing that story very hard in the first place. I mean, is it really that big of a deal to tweet where a kid is going five minutes before he announces it? At that point, who cares? That’s certainly not a scoop to celebrate.

Don’t get me wrong. I’d tweet the information if I had it, which is exactly what Seth did. But with five minutes to go, I wouldn’t be knocking myself out to obtain it just so the small percentage of my twitter followers who were online could see it a few minutes before the kid announced the decision. And the thing is, I think Seth would agree with me. Those aren’t the kinds of stories he chases. He probably just happened upon the information while he was working on something else and put it out there like anyone would. Seth is an excellent journalist. He has a good grasp of what’s important. I’ve learned a lot from him.



One of the most controversial story lines of the offseason involved UConn and how they were able to manipulate the scholarship numbers to circumvent the punishment they received from the NCAA and get Andre Drummond into uniform. Who do you blame? Is this the NCAA's fault, another example of just how toothless the organization is? Or do we blame Calhoun, the coach that actually took a kid that grew up in a group home off scholarship?

The obvious reaction is to blame Calhoun, but it’s hard for me to do that, because I think just about any coach in the country would’ve done the same thing if they had a chance to add Andre Drummond to their team.

I’m not saying it’s right, but that’s the way it is. As long as the NCAA allows this stuff to happen, it’s going to occur. Man … I’ve gotta think someone promised something to the kid who gave up his scholarship. A job after graduation, perhaps? Maybe a cut of Drummond’s first NBA paycheck. Someone needs to take care of that guy.



This is broad, but if you could make one change to college sports, what would it be?

I think kids should be able to jump straight to the NBA out of high school – but only if an evaluation committee determined that the kid would likely be drafted. In other words, they would have to be approved to enter the draft. Anyone not approved would have to spend at least two years in college.

That would help bring stability to some of the programs (i.e. UCLA) that have been hurt by early departures. And letting the John Walls, Kevin Durants and Michael Beasleys of the world skip college altogether would eliminate some of the corruption we see in recruiting circles. Granted, there would still be corruption, just not quite as much.



We know you're a bit of an expert when it comes to food, so if you only had one meal left, what would it be?

Toughest question so far.

I’d probably pick Babe’s Chicken Dinner House. There are several locations in North Texas. Babe’s is tied with Gus’s in Memphis for the best fried chicken I’ve ever had. Babe’s gets the nod, though, because of the family-style helpings. For $11.99 you get five pieces of chicken and all of the salad, mashed potatoes and green beans you can eat. Not a fried chicken fan? No problem. Babe’s also has fried catfish, chicken fried steak, pot roast, smoked chicken and ribs. Just like the fried chicken, the portions are huge. I’m getting excited just thinking about it. (www.babeschicken.com).

Honorable mention goes to Oklahoma Joe’s barbecue in Kansas City, Ted’s Café Escondido in Oklahoma City and George’s Bar & Grill in Waco.



Quick hitters:

Favorite arena to cover a game in?

I honestly think Kansas’ Allen Fieldhouse is the best. And I don’t think I’m biased here, because most of the writers who cover – or have covered – the national scene seem to agree with me. I’ve never seen a pregame video as impressive and jarring as the one that plays before KU games, and I don’t think I’ve ever been anywhere that gets as loud as it does at Kansas. It’s truly a special place.



Best fan base in hoops?

Kentucky’s fans are about as passionate as I’ve seen anywhere. I’ll never forget DeMarcus Cousins and Eric Bledsoe telling me about a girl, a student, who started shaking uncontrollably as they were posing with her for a picture at a campus restaurant.



Best student section?

I think the whole game day experience at Purdue is underrated, and a lot of that is because of the students. They make Mackey Arena a tough place to play.



Best tradition in college hoops?

The pregame video at Kansas, but I already mentioned that. Another thing I always enjoy is Crazy Towel Guy at Duke. I’m sure there are hundreds of better traditions out there, but I always get a kick out of watching him revel in his 20 seconds fame, when the whole crowd is chanting his name as he twirls that towel above his head. Sometimes I’ll look at him near the end of a close game, once he’s finished with his routine for the night, just to see how animated he gets when he’s not waving that towel on center stage. He’s actually pretty mellow.



What is #1 on your college hoops bucket list?

I’ve still got a handful of arenas I’ve never experienced. I’ve been to Wisconsin’s Kohl Center – but never for a Badgers game. That needs to change. I also want to go to games at Gonzaga and New Mexico. I hear those places are pretty fun.



Most quotable player and most quotable coach you've covered?

My favorite coach to interview is Kevin O’Neill at USC. Funny, candid, and not nearly as full of himself as some people may think. He’s done a nice job at USC under difficult circumstances. Former Kansas player Keith Langford is my all-time favorite player when it comes to interviews. Read my book. You’ll see why.



Better barbecue? Texas or Kansas City?

Just depends on what you’re after. I like both places. The pulled pork and pork ribs in Kansas City will embarrass anything Texas has to offer. But Texas will do the same thing to Kansas City with its brisket. I’m not a barbecue snob, though. I like it all. Actually, the only thing I don’t like very much is the diced-up, vinegary pork in North Carolina. I don’t really mind the taste, but when I looked at it I feel like I’m looking at dogfood. Barbecue wasn’t meant to be served in an ice cream scooper.







Don't forget to pick up a copy of Jason's new book, Beyond the Phog: Untold Stories from Kansas Basketball's Most Dominant Decade, available now


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Andre Drummond probably won't be in trouble over video

If Andre Drummond ends up being ruled ineligible this season, it more than likely won't be a result of the video that was posted on Stack.com.

Yesterday, news leaked that Drummond was among a handful of kids that filmed videos touting and promoting a new shoe from Adidas. But, as UConn said in their statement yesterday, the videos were taken down -- and apparently scrubbed from the internet -- at the request of the Huskies. So while UConn will have to report this to the NCAA and deal with some paperwork, the fact that the video was filmed and posted prior to Drummond enrolling at the Storrs campus and the fact that the Huskies acted immediately to get it taken down, Drummond's probably in the clear.

In other words, nothing to see here folks.
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Thursday Morning Dump

- Maybe, just maybe, the Big-XII is done with this expansionocalypse nonsense. Kansas State coach Frank Martin is happy that the conference is finished playing musical chairs

- Part-II of a fantastic Big East blogger round table discussion: which player needs to step up the most

- Rick Pitino has been putting expansionocalypse on blast all week. Check out his best quotes and the 5 stages of Rick Pitino grief (This is kinda-awesome)

- The SEC wants 14 teams so it can get it's own network deal

- Andy Katz provides a great "where are they know" on former-Wake Forest head coach Dave Odom

- Southern Mississippi head coach Larry Eustachy received a three-year extension with the school

- Speaking of Southern Miss, Former-Kentucky guard Darnell Dodson may get another chance to play for Southern Mississippi. Dodson transferred out of Kentucky after the 2009-2010 season, but was kicked off the Southern Mississippi team in January 2011

- NCAA President Mark Emmert wants the big universities to see beyond just the money (Yeah, that's going to happen...Seriously, where can I get an application for his job?)

- Andy Bottoms previews the Harvard Crimson. Yes, this is the same Andy Bottoms who hosts the Bottoms Line college basketball podcast, featuring @Ballinisahabit and @BIAHtroymachir (Click the link for this week's episode)

- Just in case you needed more evidence as to why Kentucky has the most passionate fan-base in the country, here you go

- Jay Bilas relays some pertinent information to us: The end is near for the Big East (Insiders Only)

- NC State head coach Mark Gottfried hasn't coached a single ACC game yet, and he's already calling out Jim Boeheim, who, umm, hasn't coached a single ACC game either. Speaking of Boeheim, he's made it apparent that ACC opponents will only play Syracuse at the Carrier Dome

- Speaking of NC-State, the school is close to finalizing an agreement to have a series with Kansas

- Big Apple Buckets provides preseason power rankings for the NYC-area. I know Iona is going to be good, It's just surprising to see them at the top of this list

- Jason Groves does a terrific job breaking down the schedule of the New Mexico State Aggies

- Doug Haller had himself a nice conversation with Arizona State junior Carrick Felix

- Is it really "now or never" for John Calipari? I certainly don't think so, but this guy does.

- Rhode Island head coach Jim baron is a native of Brooklyn. You can imagine his reaction to the announcement of the A-10 moving it's tournament to Brooklyn

- Who wants to be Texas A&M's new cross-division-rivals?!?

- Former-St. John's commit Jevon Thomas has popped for Dayton and new head coach Archie Miller

- Former-UAB redshirt freshman Tony Criswell has committed to play at Missouri (I'm displaying great self-control by not making fun of him for his first quote)

- Creighton got a commitment from 6-foot-1 guard Andre Yates

- Duquesne got their first commitment in the class of 2012 in the form of 6-foot-9 power forward Donovan Jack

- Highly-touted recruit Rodney Purvis will make his college decision later this week

- After initially setting a date for his college decision (November 15th), Chris Walker will take his time making a choice

- Louisville's Jared Swopshire will be granted an extra-year of eligibility because of his season-ending injury that took place last year

- Former-St. John's commit JaKarr Sampson is going to visit Baylor

- Former-Jayhawk J.R. Giddens didn't have nice things to say about Kansas head coach Bill Self. Is Kansas the opposite of a "players-first program"

- Virginia Commonwealth is getting new uniforms

- Antonio Bigelow, the 2011 Southern California JuCo Player of the Year, will not start the season at Montana State, as previously indicated

- Former-West Virginia guard Joe Mazzulla has become an assistant coach at D-II Glenville State

- In case you didn't read this article yesterday, you should probably get to it today. It's Gary Parrish after all

- I might have to get me one of these: Kenneth Faried "Manimal" T-shirt


Solid preseason pump-up video




Kentucky-freshman Anthony Davis makes a Kentucky fan's dream come true





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UPDATED: Eligibility issues for Andre Drummond, multiple high school prospects

A number of top basketball players around the country may have to deal with some amateurism questions as Stack.com, the website for a magazine geared towards athletic training, posted a number of videos using the players to promote a new basketball shoe from ADIDAS.

The kids involved -- Providence commit Kris Dunn, Baylor commit Isaiah Austin, Texas commit Javan Felix, and Kentucky commit Archie Goodwin from the Class of 2012; Elijah Brown from the Class of 2013; and the teams from St. Xavier and Archbishop Moeller in Cincinnati. You can find all the videos here. (UPDATE: It looks like the videos have been taken down. If anyone has a link to the video, PLEASE send it our way. Contactbiah at gmail dot com.)

As you can imagine, this may be an issue for high school kids. They aren't supposed to be endorsing products. And while we can argue all day about whether or not its fair that these kids are unable to capitalize off of their notoriety and basketball ability, the fact of the matter is that the current rules strictly forbid it. It's essentially the opposite of amateurism. (So is the NCAA, but that's a different post for a different day.)

But the biggest issue deals with the biggest player involved -- UConn freshman Andre Drummond. One of the videos featured him and Dunn. The Norwich Bulletin pulled a couple of quotes before the videos were pulled:

In the video, Dunn, while holding a shoe, says, “I like to run up and down the court and with these shoes I’d probably run faster, make better decisions out there. If you get more speed, you can see things quicker.”

Drummond looks into the camera and says, “I want them.”

This is NCAA Bylaw 12.5.1.3 in full, which deals with a high school player who was involved in an advertisement or a promotion:

If an individual accepts remuneration for or permits the use of his or her name or picture to advertise or promote the sale or use of a commercial product or service prior to enrollment in a member institution, continued remuneration for the use of the individual's name or picture (under the same or similar circumstances) after enrollment is permitted without jeopardizing his or her eligibility to participate in intercollegiate athletics only if all of the following conditions apply:

(a) The individual's involvement in this type of activity was initiated prior to his or her enrollment in a member institution;

(b) The individual became involved in such activities for reasons independent of athletics ability;

(c) No reference is made in these activities to the individual's name or involvement in intercollegiate athletics;

(d) The individual does not endorse the commercial product; and

(e) The individual's remuneration under such circumstances is at a rate commensurate with the individual's skills and experience as a model or performer and is not based in any way upon the individual's athletics ability or reputation.

Not a single one of the player's listed above qualifies beyond the first condition. But for the kids still in high school, the fact that the videos have been scrubbed from the web should limit NCAA issues as long as they weren't paid.

Drummond will face more serious questions, however, since he is currently enrolled at UConn. Bylaw 12.5.2.1 specifically states that a player is immediately ineligible if he "Accepts any remuneration for or permits the use of his name or picture to advertise, recommend or promote directly the sale or use of a commercial product or service of any kind." According to the article from the Norwich Bulletin, it doesn't matter whether or not the video was posted prior to Drummond's enrollment at UConn. The fact that it was still in circulation when he finally did enroll means that he is ineligible and will have to apply for reinstatement.

Stay tuned. We'll update this as we get more information.

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UPDATE: UConn has commented on the matter.

"UConn was made aware of the video in question late this afternoon and has reviewed it," the school said in a statement. "Our compliance staff is comfortable that the video was made in advance of Andre’s enrollment at UConn. Our next step is to simply follow up with the website on which it is posted and ask that it be removed, which we have already done."

Gavin Keefe of the New London Day spoke with UConn's SID Kyle Muncy about the video.

"Obviously, every case is treated on a case by case basis," Muncy told Keefe. "It wouldn't be exaggerating to say we dealt with this identical situation eight to 10 times last year and never had any athlete lose eligibility. ... We will inform the NCAA what the issue was and they’ll review it. We anticipate everything will be fine ... There's not any concern." Continue reading...

2011-2012 Top 50 Countdown: Nos. 40-36

Over the coming weeks, we will be counting down our Top 50 teams in the country. Teams 26-50 will be posted in groups of five, while we will count backwards from No. 25 to the No. 1 team in the country. You can find a complete schedule of our 2011-2012 Season Preview coverage here. To browse through the rest of the Top 50, click here.


40. George Mason Patriots:

Last Season: 27-7, 16-2 (Colonial)

Head Coach: Paul Hewitt

Key Losses: Luke Hancock, Cam Long, Isaiah Tate, Jim Larranaga

New Additions: Eric Copes, Corey Edwards, Vaughn Gray

Projected Lineup:

- G: Andre Cornelius, Sr.
- G: Vertrail Vaughns, So.
- F: Sherrod Wright, So.
- F: Ryan Pearson, Sr.
- C: Mike Morrison, Sr.
- Bench: Eric Copes, Fr.; Corey Edwards, Fr.; Bryon Allen, So.; Johnny Williams, Jr.; Vaughn Gray, Fr.


Outlook: George Mason is going to be a very interesting team to watch this season. On the surface, this team looks to have the pieces necessary to win the CAA title even with the change in coaching regimes. They start three seniors, they have a big and talented front line, and they have a couple of young kids that should be able to excel playing a role. Ryan Pearson -- a crafty and bearded 6'7" lefty that looks and plays like the old guy at the park -- will have to take over the role of go-to guy for this team, and should be capable of doing so. Mike Morrison and Eric Copes should provide plenty of size, rebounding and shot-blocking on the interior. Andre Cornelius, when (if?) he returns from a suspension for an arrest for credit card fraud, is their senior ball-handler. Vertrail Vaughns is a sharp-shooting off-guard that did a lot of damage in limited minutes. Sherrod Wright missed last season with an injury, but he had some big games late in his freshman year. The question mark, as I see it, will be replacing the playmaking of Luke Hancock and Cam Long. Those two were responsible for 240 of Mason's 483 assists last year. Can freshman Corey Edwards or sophomore Bryon Allen play the role of creator? Will Cornelius, Wright or Vaughns be able to expand their game? If yes, Mason should once again be competing for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.


39. Drexel Dragons:

Last Season: 21-10, 11-7

Head Coach: Bruiser Flint

Key Losses: Gerald Colds

New Additions: Damion Lee, Tavon Allen, Aquil Younger, Casey Carroll, Kazembe Abif

Projected Lineup:

- G: Franz Massenat, So.
- G: Chris Fouch, Jr.
- G: Derrick Thomas, Sr.
- F: Samme Givens, Sr.
- F: Daryl McCoy, Jr.
- Bench: Dartaye Ruffin, So.; Damion Lee, Fr.; Tavon Allen, Fr.; Aquil Younger, Fr.; Casey Carroll, Fr.; Kazembe Abif Fr.


Outlook: Drexel returns six of the seven players that were in their rotation from last season's 20-win team and will be a trendy pick to win the conference this season. Drexel is one of the most unique teams in the country playing the game in the simplest manner -- getting stops. They led the country in defensive rebounding percentage and were seventh nationally in defensive effective field goal percentage, which is a long-winded way of saying they forced their opponents into taking tough shots and then cleaned the glass on those misses. Expect more of the same this year. The undersized Samme Givens is a potential player of the year in the league, a guy that, at 6'5", averaged a double-double last season. With Daryl McCoy and Dartaye Ruffin joining him up front, the front court should once again be rugged, physical and dominant on the glass. Sophomore Franz Massenat will be expected to, once again, be a playmaking force on the offensive end of the floor. Their are two keys to the season. The first is on the offensive end of the floor. Derrick Thomas will be counted on to up his production on the perimeter, but more importantly Chris Fouch is going to have to stay healthy. Fouch was as dangerous as any perimeter threat at the mid-major level early in the season, but he went cold late in the year as injuries kept him out of practice and out of a rhythm. The other key will be their depth. They have a solid, five-man recruiting class. If a couple of those guys can become reliable options on the bench, Drexel will make quite a bit of noise.


38. Purdue Boilermakers:

Last Season: 26-8, 14-4

Head Coach: Matt Painter

Key Losses: JaJuan Johnson, E'Twaun Moore, Patrick Bade

New Additions: Jacob Lawson, Donnie Hale, Anthony Johnson,

Projected Lineup:

- G: Lewis Jackson, Sr.
- G: Ryne Smith, Jr.
- F: DJ Byrd, Jr.
- F: Robbie Hummel, Sr.
- C: Travis Carroll, So.
- Bench: Kelsey Barlow, Jr.; John Hart, Jr.; Terone Johnson, So.; Anthony Johnson, Fr.; Jacob Lawson, Fr.; Donnie Hale, Fr.; Sandi Marcius, So.


Outlook: Purdue is one of the most difficult teams in the country to peg this season. There are just so many unknowns surrounding this team. For starters, they are losing two of the best players in the Big Ten the past few seasons in JaJuan Johnson and E'Twaun Moore. Their star heading into this season, Robbie Hummel, has complete just a single practice with the team since tearing his acl in February of 2010 -- he missed last season after tearing his acl again on the second day of practice last season. Just how good is he going to be coming off of back-to-back devastating knee injuries? And who is going to step up and replace the 38.5 ppg, 13.7 rpg, and invaluable leadership on the court provided by Johnson and Moore? I like Lewis Jackson at the point, but who is going to join him on the perimeter? Ryne Smith and DJ Byrd both started over 20 games as sophomores. Kelsey Barlow, a junior now, and Terone Johnson, a sophomore, started a handful as well. Junior John Hart and freshman Anthony Johnson will no doubt be looking for an opportunity to prove their worth. Will a young front line of sophomores Travis Carroll and Sandi Marcius and freshmen Jacob Lawson and Donnie Hale be able to battle with the bigger teams in the Big Ten? There is no doubt that Purdue will be well-coached and physical defensively this season, a credit to the coaching of Matt Painter. And there certainly are some talented pieces on this roster, the question is simply how are they going to fit together?


37. Cal Golden Bears:

Last Season: 18-15, 10-8 (Pac-10)

Head Coach: Mike Montgomery

Key Losses: Gary Franklin, Markhuri Sanders-Frison

New Additions: Justin Cobbs, Alex Rossi, David Kravish, Christian Behrens

Projected Lineup:

- G: Brandon Smith, Jr. or Justin Cobbs, So.
- G: Jorge Gutierrez, Jr.
- F: Allen Crabbe, So.
- F: Richard Solomon, So.
- C: Harper Kamp, Sr.
- Bench: Cobbs or Smith; Bak Bak, Jr; Jeff Powers, So.; Alex Rossi, Fr.


Outlook: Cal is a sleeper in the Pac-12, a team that may end up competing for the league title depending on how things shake-out this season. This is a group that won 10 league games a year ago and returns their big three. Jorge Gutierrez, a 6'4" off-guard, is the heart and soul of this team, a potential first-team all-league player and one of the best all-around guards in the country you've never seen. He defends, he can shoot, he can put the ball on the floor and create and he's not afraid to mix it up with an opponent to defend his team. Allen Crabbe, who averaged 13.4 ppg as a freshman, was the rookie of the year in the conference last season and also has a chance to be an all-league player. Senior Harper Kamp is an experienced low-post presence and consistently underrated from a national perspective. The question for the Bears will be how they fill the holes in their line-up. Brandon Smith, who played well filling in for Gary Franklin when he transferred to Baylor in the middle of the season, and Justin Cobbs, a transfer from Minnesota, will battle it our for the right to start at the point and should combine to solidify the position. Richard Solomon showed flashes as a freshman, but he'll struggle to fill the void left by Markhuri Sanders-Frison as he is literally half the size of the burly Sanders-Frison despite being three inches taller. Bak Bak will get some help from a couple of freshmen to provide front court depth, while Jeff Powers and Alex Rossi, a redshirt freshman that missed last season with an injury, will give the Bears some perimeter depth. The big three on Cal are good enough to get them to the NCAA Tournament, but how well the rest of the Cal roster developed during the off-season will determine whether this has a shot of competing for a league title.


36. St. Mary's Gaels:

Last Season: 25-9, 11-3 (WCC)

Head Coach: Randy Bennett

Key Losses: Mickey McConnell

New Additions: Paul McCoy, Elvidas Petrulis, Brad Waldow, Zach Sanchez

Projected Lineup:

- G: Matthew Dellavedova, Jr.
- G: Stephen Holt, So.
- F: Clint Steindl, Sr.
- F: Rob Jones, Sr.
- C: Kenton Walker, Sr.
- Bench: Jorden Page, So.; Tim Williams, Jr.; Paul McCoy, Jr.; Mitchell Young, Jr.; Kyle Rowley, Jr.


Outlook: There is no question that losing a player of Mickey McConnell's caliber will hurt. He was so efficient and so smart and such a threat from the perimeter. But the Gaels have enough perimeter talent returning this season that they may be able to nullify that loss. Matthew Dellavedova will take the reins of this team as a junior and he should be primed for a big season as the feature guard in Randy Bennett's offense. He will likely be joined in the back court by sophomore Stephen Holt, a highly-regarded recruit when he entered the program that had a couple of impressive performances late in the season. Jorden Page missed most of last season with a knee injury. He had a couple of big games in the WCC Tournament two seasons ago and should provide a spark off the bench. Same with Paul McCoy, a transfer that averaged 13.4 ppg as a freshman in 2008-2009. In the front court, Clint Steindl and Rob Jones will start at the forward spots. Steindl is a lanky, 6'7" sharpshooter at the small forward spot while Jones, despite standing just 6'6", is the team's second-leading scorer and best rebounder. He's more of a combo-forward than a pure power forward, but Jones plays with a mean streak. Kenton Walker got 26 starts last season, but only played 15 mpg. Mitchell Young actually played more minutes that Walker and averaged double figures off the bench. Tim Williams and Northwestern transfer Kyle Rowley will also be in the front court rotation. If Dellavedova embraces the role of the leader and youngsters like Page and Holt develop into big-time players, ranking St. Mary's 36th may look silly come March.
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The Only Conference Preview You Need To Read: Mountain West

Over the next month and a half, we will be rolling out all of our 2011-2012 Season Preview posts. You can find a full schedule of all the preview posts here. If you want to browse through the rest of the conference previews, click here.

AWARDS

Player of the Year: Drew Gordon, Sr., New Mexico

Simply put, Gordon is a force on the block for the Lobos. One of the best big men in the country as a high school senior, Gordon never found his rhythm at UCLA. But in Steve Alford's uptempo offensive system, Gordon flourished. After becoming eligible in December, Gordon finished the season as one of the best big men in a conference with a number of quality front court players. On the season, he averaged 13.0 ppg and 10.5 rpg. While his rebounding numbers may end up taking a hit if Alex Kirk and Cameron Bairstow see a jump in production as sophomores, Gordon should become a productive offensive force. He will have had a year to learn the system, Steve Alford will have had an offseason to figure out how to run an offense through Gordon and with Dairese Gary gone, someone on the Lobos is going to have to become the offensive focal point.


And a close second goes to...: Chace Stanback, Sr., UNLV

There isn't much that Stanback can't do on a basketball court. A 6'8" wing, he's extremely valuable to the Runnin' Rebels spread attack. He's big enough that he can rebound like a power forward, but his range and perimeter ability make him a matchup nightmare for opposing fours. And believe it or not, Stanback's DUI arrest over the summer may end up being the reason that he finally puts all of that talent together. Instead of returning home to LA for the summer, Stanback stayed in Vegas and refocused himself towards becoming a better player. He was inconsistent throughout much of conference play a year ago, but if a summer of work can build on his strong finish to the 2010-2011 season, Stanback should finally develop into the star most believed he would be when he first arrived on the UNLV campus.

Breakout Star: Kendall Williams, So., New Mexico

Williams can flat out play. As a third and fourth option for the Lobos as a freshman, Williams -- who won the freshman of the year award in the MWC -- finished with averages of 11.5 ppg and 4.0 apg despite playing alongside Dairese Gary. Gary graduated in the offseason, which means that Williams, along with Drew Gordon, will become the center of the New Mexico attack. To get an idea of what kind of production can be expected, Williams scored 18 points in both of the Lobo's NIT games after Gary suffered a season-ending knee injury. Ironically enough, Williams was originally committed to UCLA, which means that Ben Howland actually could have had Gordon, Williams and Stanback on his roster at the same time.

All-Conference First-Team:

- POY: Drew Gordon, Sr., New Mexico
- G: Hank Thorns, Sr., TCU
- G: Kendall Williams, So., New Mexico
- G: Anthony Marshall, Jr., UNLV
- F: Michael Lyons, Jr., Air Force
- F: Chace Stanback, Sr., UNLV

All-Conference Second-Team:

- G: Oscar Bellfield, Sr., UNLV
- G: Wes Elkmeier, Jr., Colorado State
- G: Chase Tapley, Jr., SDSU
- F: Drew Wiley, Jr., Boise State
- F: Afam Muojeke, Sr., Wyoming

Four summer storylines

- Realignment: The MWC has been in the midst of conference realignment since the first rumors were floated a year and a half ago. They were also the first league to go ahead and make a move. It started with Boise State's addition to the league, a move made for football that backfired when both Utah (to the Pac-12) and BYU (WCC and Independent) left the conference. The next step was TCU jumping ship to join the Big East, where their football program will reign king while their basketball team may go winless for a decade. Next summer, it will be Nevada and Fresno State coming into the conference. That's it, well, for now at least. If the Big 12 manages to remain an entity, some believe that the MWC could see a couple of their programs fill in the gaps.

- Key players that aren't returning: The future of a number of players was up in the air this summer, and unfortunately many of the kids in question will no longer be playing in the Mountain West. Perhaps the most important was the saga of Brian Carlwell, the San Diego State big man. Carlwell, if you remember, was originally a member of Illinois when he was injured when teammate Jamar Smith crashed his car when driving drunk. He applied for a sixth year of eligibility but was denied. TCU's star guard Ronnie Moss was kicked off the team in January and he will not be returning to the program. Wyoming was able to make a solid hire by bringing in former Florida assistant Larry Shyatt, but that was not enough to keep the Cowboy's two leading scorers -- Desmar Jackson and Amath M'Baye -- from transferring out. Emmanuel Negedu's career is officially over, which may actually be a good thing. He's the former Tennessee forward that nearly died when his heart gave out during a workout two summers ago. Perhaps the only player whose future was in doubt that returns is Player of the Year candidate Chace Stanback at UNLV, who changed his lifestyle after getting a DUI during the offseason.


- Kevin Young vs. Steve Fisher: With Malcolm Thomas, Billy White, Kawhi Leonard and Brian Carlwell all leaving the program this offseason, Steve Fisher knew that he needed to bring in some front line players that would be able to contribute immediately. So Fisher recruited former Loyola Marymount power forward Kevin Young, who committed to SDSU only to change his mind in June and opt to transfer to Kansas. It was a no-brainer for Young to make the move -- when a top-six program of all-time offers you a scholarship and has minutes available, you go there -- but it put Fisher in a terrible position. He didn't have any big men because he stopped recruiting them when Young committed. Fisher spouted off in the media, Bill Self responded, and that was the end of it, at least publicly. I have to admit, I was happy to hear about this decision by Young. If Fisher had been taken a job at one of the high-major openings this offseason, would he have been concerned about Young's commitment?

- Old faces back at UNLV: Rice is a former player at UNLV. He was a member of Jerry Tarkanian's Runnin' Rebel teams of the early 90's, warming the bench for the likes of Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony. Rice will be attempting to bring UNLV back to their glory years, and what better way to do that than by creating as many ties to those great teams. He added Stacey Augmon to his coaching staff. His next move should be to make amends with Grandmama.

Four storylines heading into the season

- The holdover season?: In many ways, the 2011-2012 season seems like one where the Mountain West will be playing the waiting game. For starters, the league is down to just eight members this year with BYU and Utah leaving and Boise State joining the fray. With Nevada and Fresno State on the way for the 2012-2013 season, the league moves back to ten teams -- well, at least that's the plan -- while also bolstering their basketball product. Nevada and Fresno State both have solid basketball programs with some national relevance. The Wolfpack were down last season, but they have a talented young nucleus while Fresno State is just a year removed from sending Paul George to the lottery.

But its more than just what programs the league is waiting for. Boise State is a young team, but Leon Rice has done a good job bringing in some young talent. They may need a year to gel, but don't be surprised if they are competing for conference titles sooner rather than later, especially if he is able to tap the Australian pipeline he started by bringing in freshmen imports Anthony Drmic and Igor Hadziomerovic. Colorado State also seems to be in a holding pattern this season. Most of their core are juniors, and with Colton Iverson (a Minnesota transfer) and Daniel Bejarano (an Arizona transfer) sitting out this season, they may be competing for a spot in the NCAA Tournament in a year. San Diego State's core will be in the fold for two more seasons -- Chase Tapley and James Rahon are juniors and Xavier Thames is a sophomore -- that will be joined by Dwayne Polee (a St. John's transfer) and JJ O'Brien (a Utah transfer) in a year.

- Who is third?: New Mexico and UNLV are the clear favorites to win the Mountain West. Both are borderline top 25 teams and, barring something unforeseen, both will be playing in the NCAA Tournament come March. After that? Who knows. San Diego State has a talented back court but they will struggle to fill the void in their front court. Boise State brings in quite a bit of talent, but their roster is has 10 freshmen and sophomores. Colorado State has an experienced team, but they lack a go-to scorer. Air Force and TCU have two of the best players in the conference in Michael Lyons and Hank Thorns, respectively, while Wyoming might have the third most overall talent on their roster if they can keep their players healthy. The MWC is going to be a two-horse race for the top spot, but the battle to finish in third may end up being more exciting.

- Shabazz Muhammad: UNLV has always been able to mix-it-up with the big boys when it comes to recruiting. They've been an ideal landing spot for transfers that fizzled out at some major programs -- Tre'Von Willis transferred in from Memphis, Quintrel Thomas began his career at Kansas and Mike Moser and Chace Stanback are both former UCLA Bruins. Bryce Jones (a USC transfer) will be sitting out this season per NCAA rules while Reggie Smith (a Marquette transfer) won't become eligible until December. Katin Reinhardt is a top 100 point guard currently committed to the Rebels, but perhaps their biggest splash will be if they can land Shabazz Muhammad. With Andre Drummond now a member of the Class of 2011, Muhammad is hands down the best high school senior in the country. He also happens to hail from Vegas. Will Rice and company be able to keep him home?



- How long does Jim Christian have?: TCU may be on their way out of the MWC, but it will be interesting to see if head coach Jim Christian makes it through the season. The Horned Frogs have gone a combined 24-41 the last two seasons and just 6-26 in league play. With leading scorer Ronnie Moss now out of the program, TCU doesn't look like they will be getting much better this year, and that's coming off of a 1-15 campaign in league play. If you can't win in the Mountain West, what makes you think you will be relevant in the Big East?

Power Rankings

1. New Mexico: The Lobos just never seemed to find a rhythm as a team last season. Whether it was the result of Emmanuel Negedu having his career end in December or the mid-season addition of UCLA transfer Drew Gordon, New Mexico just never quite became the team that many of us expected them to be heading into the season. After starting the season out 10-1, New Mexico lost six of their next nine games -- including four of five to start out MWC play -- before finishing at 8-8 in league play. In addition, they had two four game winning streaks and one four game losing streak in league play, twice beating BYU while getting swept by Utah and losing to Wyoming.

The good news for the Lobos is that they return essentially everyone from last year's team. Drew Gordon, who turned into a double-double machine by the end of the season, will be back and should be the best big man in the conference. Joining him up front will be fellow senior AJ Hardeman and talented sophomores Alex Kirk (Ed. Note: Kirk had surgery on his back in August)and Cameron Bairstow, giving the Lobos one of the best front lines out west if the young guys can grow into the potential they displayed as freshmen. Shooting guard Kendall Williams is back after earning MWC Freshman of the Year last season. He'll be joined on the perimeter by Philip McDonald, who averaged double figures as a junior, and Tony Snell, a promising sophomore that had a couple of big games as a freshman. Arizona State transfer Demetrius Walker, whose name should sound familiar to you, will become eligible this season, and don't be surprised when freshmen Dominique Dunning and Hugh Greenwood crack the back court rotation as well. There are two keys to the season for Steve Alford's club. The first is how well the young guys develop. Will Kirk, Snell and Bairstow be more consistent this season? Can Walker, Dunning and Greenwood have an impact immediately? The second, and more important, factor will be at the point. The only player New Mexico loses is Dairese Gary, who was one of the most underrated point guards in the country. He could score, he was a tough defender and he was a leader for this club. Junior Jamal Fenton will get first crack as his replacement. After Gary blew out his knee in the MWC Tournament, Fenton shot 3-14 in the NIT but did have 12 assists to just four turnovers. New Mexico has the potential to be a top 25 team and will contend for the league title.


2. UNLV: The Runnin' Rebels had a bit of disappointing season in 2010-2011. Most people had them pegged as the third best team in the conference heading into the season, and that's exactly where they finished, the margin between them and co-champs BYU and SDSU was significant. It seemed like UNLV, at times, struggled with a lack of leadership. They didn't have a go-to player offensively with Tre'Von Willis battling knee problems. And while there were times when the Rebels looked borderline unstoppable offensively -- they had a litany of options -- there were times were it seemed apparent no one wanted to take a big shot.

This season, Willis is gone. He graduated along with Derrick Jasper. Lon Kruger left for the opening at Oklahoma. But the core of this team returns to play for Dave Rice, a former BYU assistant and a member of UNLV's teams in the early '90's. As was the case last season, UNLV's back court is going to be their stretch. Oscar Bellfield will probably be listed as the team's point guard -- and most likely will be their primary ball-handler -- but he will share playmaking duties with Anthony Marshall, an athletic, left-handed junior that does a little bit of everything. Sharpshooter Kendall Wallace is back after tearing his acl and missing the 2010-2011 season, as is defensive stopper Justin Hawkins. Marquette transfer Reggie Smith may also see some minutes once he gets eligible in December. Up front, Quintrel Thomas will be counted on to have a big season. The former Kansas big man is capable of putting up big numbers, but struggles with his consistency. Sophomore Carlos Lopez and senior Brice Massamba, who both provided quality minutes off the bench, return to the rotation and will be joined by UCLA transfer Mike Moser. The x-factor is going to be Chace Stanback. With much of the MWC's star power gone from last season, Stanback has a real shot at being the Player of the Year in the conference. A 6'8" wing, he can do a lot of different things on the floor -- shoot from deep, score, rebound, defend multiple positions -- but is he ready to become "the man"? Will he take that next step towards being a star? If he does, UNLV has a very good chance of winning the MWC.


3. San Diego State: The Aztecs had, without a doubt, the best season in the program's history in 2010-2011. They won 34 games. They were ranked in the top ten for much of the season. They won their first ever NCAA Tournament game, advancing to the Sweet 16 before succumbing to the powers of Kemba Walker. It will be tough for Steve Fisher's club to build on that success, however. They lost their entire front line -- Billy White, Malcolm Thomas and Brian Carlwell all graduated while Kawhi Leonard went pro -- and their starting point guard in DJ Gay. That is a lot of talent and production to replace.


There are some pieces at Fisher's disposal, however. For starters, he does get back the perimeter tandem of Chase Tapley and James Rahon. Throw in Washington State transfer Xavier Thames, who averaged 4.6 ppg and started four games as a freshman, and the Aztecs have a solid core in their back court. It will be interested to see if Jamaal Franklin or LaBradford Franklin can handle an expanded role as well, paticularly LaBradford, who will have a shot at significant minutes at the point. The front court will be a much different story. Fisher caught a break when Garrett Green, a 6'11" forward who started for LSU, opted to transfer to SDSU for his final season. He will be eligible immediately. Where the rest of the help comes from up front will be interesting to watch, however. Tim Shelton is an injury-prone senior. Alec Williams played all of 10 games as a junior. DeShawn Stephens is a JuCo transfer. Seeing the lack of size up front should tell you why Steve Fisher was so upset with Kevin Young changed his mind and transferred to Kansas. SDSU should have enough talent to finish above .500 and in the top half of the league, but they likely won't be competing for the MWC crown.


4. Colorado State: Its hard to call Colorado State's 2010-2011 campaign anything but disappointing. At least the finish, that is. After starting the year 18-7 overall and 8-3 in the MWC and finding themselves firmly in the bubble conversation, the Rams lost four of their last five in the regular season -- including an inexcusable 17-point loss to Air Force -- and fell in the first round of both the conference tournament and the NIT. To make matters worse, Tim Miles' club will lose first-team all-conference forward Andy Ogide and his front court mate Travis Franklin to graduation.

The strength of Colorado State's team this season is going to be the back court. They return Dorian Green, a junior point guard that has started every game since he's been on campus, and sharpshooting junior Wes Eikmeier, a transfer from Iowa State that averaged 9.1 ppg last season. Throw in junior Jessie Carr -- a kid that has all kinds of potential as a freshman before getting injured and missing most of the 2009-2010 season -- and freshman Cody Mann, and the Rams have a solid group in their back court. The issue is going to be replacing the production up front, where they lose 29.0 ppg and 12.2 rpg in Ogide and Franklin. The two most likely replacements will be Greg Smith and Paul Hornung. Hornung is a more physical presence on the block and while Smith is a more dangerous offensive option, he did grab 15 boards against Fairfield in the NIT. Both are a bit undersized, however, which raises the importance of the development of redshirt freshman Chad Calcaterra and redshirt sophomore Trevor Williams. Can either provide minutes inside this season? There are a number of solid pieces that Tim Miles has at his disposal, but without a real go-to scorer on the roster and a lack of size inside, Colorado State's upside is limited.


5. Boise State: The Broncos, under the tutelage of former Gonzaga assistant coach Leon Rice, finished second in the WAC a year ago. And while a late-season eight-game winning streak vaulted Boise into second-place and carried them to the WAC Tournament final and the CBI semis, their move to a new conference next season is going to come with a new-look team. Boise graduates their top four scorers from a year ago, including star guard La'Shard Anderson.

Boise is going to be very young this season. In addition to the seven freshmen and three sophomores on the roster, junior Drew Wiley is a transfer from Oregon that sat out last season and the two seniors -- Westly Perryman and Tre Nichols -- are both Juco transfers in their second year in the program. There is some reason to be optimistic about the Broncos next season, however. Both Perryman, who started last season, and Nichols, who came off the bench, had some big games late in the year and will provide as experienced of a back court as you can hope for on this roster. Sophomore forwards Ryan Watkins and Thomas Bropleh both had promising freshmen campaigns, as did sharpshooter Jeff Elloriaga. Throw in the 6'7" Wiley, who played in 46 games with Oregon in his two years there, and Rice has some pieces to build around. The biggest question mark is at the point. Can Perryman and Nichols become playmakers and facilitators, replacing the production BSU got from Anderson? The x-factor are the newcomers. Rice has an incoming class of eight kids -- including two JuCo transfers -- that can make an impact. Point guard Mikey Thompson and big man Darrious Hamilton are the two most highly-regarded players in the class, but the two to keep an eye on are Aussie-imports Anthony Drmic and Igor Hadziomerovic, both of whom are 6'5" wings that can score. If everything clicks for the Broncos, there's a shot this team could finish in the top three in the league, although they are probably a year or two away from contending.


6. Air Force: No one expected much of anything out of the Falcons last season. After going 1-31 in the previous two seasons in MWC play, Air Force was once again expected to bring up the rear of the Mountain West. Losing their second game of the season to D-III Colorado College only reinforced that notion. But Air Force clicked during the year, going 9-4 in non-conference play -- including a win over Wofford -- and finishing 6-10 in league play. While the season as a whole can be seen as mediocre, the Falcons advanced to the CIT where they won a game, just the sixth time in program history that they made a postseason tournament.

There is reason to be optimistic for next season as well. While Air Force loses two starters and three of their top five scorers -- including point guard Evan Washington and second-leading scorer Tom Fow -- they do return Michael Lyons. The 6'6" junior is the kind of athlete and explosive scorer (he went for 20 seven times last season) that rarely makes his way through the program. He averaged 13.9 ppg as a sophomore on one of the slowest teams in the country. He has a chance to be one of the better players in the conference next season. The question is where he will get his support. In addition ot the loss of Washington, Fow, and Brooks, Evan Bohannon decided to transfer out of the program and into Wisconsin, where his brother Jason played. Taylor Broekhuis, a slender 6'10" center, returns inside, although he'll be expected to pick up more of the interior slack. Taylor Stewart, Mike Fitzgerald and Todd Fletcher are all back on the perimeter, although they are going to have to provide more production this season. With a mediocre recruiting class coming in, if Air Force can repeat their success of a year ago, it will be a good season.


7. Wyoming: The Cowboys kicked off the 2011 coaching carousel early, firing head coach Heath Schroyer with seven games remaining after Schoyer coached the team to an 8-15 start and just one win in their first nine conference games. Interim head coach Fred Langley didn't do much better, as the team went 2-6 in his tenure. Wyoming made a solid hire in Florida assistant Larry Shyatt, but he won't have much to work with in his first season. His two leading scorers -- Desmar Jackson and Amath M'Baye -- left the program to transfer to Southern Illinois and Oklahoma, respectively. And Afam Moujeke, who was one of the best young players in the conference two seasons ago, suffered a second catastrophic knee injury in January.

The key to Wyoming's competitiveness next season is going to be health. Muojeke averaged 13.8 ppg as a freshman and 16.8 ppg as a sophomore, but after suffering a season-ending knee injury as a sophomore, he struggled to get healthy last year before a torn meniscus ended his season early. How much is he going to be able to produce this year? The same can be said for Adam Waddell, who averaged 9.4 ppg as a sophomore but played in just 23 games as a junior. Those two will be joined by USC transfer Leonard Washington -- the guy that hit Blake Griffin with this cheap shot -- along the front line, which means there is some potential for the Cowboys. Don't be surprised if freshman Larry Nance, Jr, gets in the mix as well. The back court has some potential as well. Senior point guard JayDee Luster is back, as is Francisco Cruz, who was Wyoming's third-leading scorer a year ago. The x-factor on the perimeter may end up being JuCo transfer Luke Martinez, a high-scoring guard that missed last season with a broken elbow. Shyatt has some potential on his roster, and if his team can stay healthy and play together, finishing in the top-half of the league isn't out of the question.


8. TCU: 2010-2011 was a disaster for the TCU program. After a promising, 9-4 start in non-conference play -- which included wins over Texas Tech and USC -- the Horned Frogs put together one of the worst seasons in Mountain West history. TCU went 1-15 in league play. Their last regular season win came on January 12th, which happened to be 10 days before leading scorer Ronnie Moss was kicked out of the program by head coach Jim Christian. They did beat Wyoming in the play-in game for the MWC Tournament, the second time they beat the Cowboys -- who fired their coach midway through the February. Like I said, last season was a disaster.

The cupboard isn't exactly empty, however. Point guard Hank Thorns led the league in assists (7.0 apg) despite playing on a team that, at times, struggled to score. He's the team's leader. Junior forward Garlon Green (not to be confused with this guy) proved to be a consistent scorer last season. Senior swingman JR Cadot came on strong late in the season and should develop into a double-digit scorer this year. Also expect to see a jump in production from Amric Fields, a sophomore big man. Those are all solid pieces for TCU, but there are still going to be a number of issues with this team. They lack a real go-to scoring threat and they don't have any depth. While Kyan Anderson, a three-star point guard recruit, should help, Ryan Rhoomes getting ruled ineligible by the NCAA is going to hurt. TCU has a ways to go before they are competitive in the MWC, which makes it laughable this team is going to the Big East next season.
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Wednesday Morning Dump

- The Big East isn't going to add any schools located in states with current Big East members. So basically, schools in Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Washington D.C., West Virginia, or Wisconsin won't be allowed to join

- Gary Parrish wrote a fantastic article on what Bruce Pearl's assistants are going through now

- Speaking of CBS writers and exiled coaches, Jeff Goodman has good stuff on Kelvin Sampson

- Former-Maryland coach Gary Williams is one of the many people who believe that college basketball (and college football) needs it's own commissioner

- Arizona guard Kevin Parrom, who was involved in a shooting in the Bronx over the weekend, is back in Arizona now. According to head coach Sean Miller, his status will be unknown for a month or so

- Apparently BYU has been offered a spot in the Big-12. Is Temple on the Big East's radar? The ACC isn't likely to make a decision on UConn any time soon. What the Hell is this? Duke should leave the ACC?


- Jeff Eisenberg's conference preview on the C-USA is a must-read

- Tyler Hansbrough breaks down the current crop of Tar heels

- William Buford is hoping to end his collegiate career with a bang

- Rick Pitino continues to spit hot fire on conference realignment. What are the pros and cons of UConn and Rutgers joining the ACC

- Eli Holman, the kid who once broke a potted plant in Tom Crean's office, is taking a leave of absence from the Detroit team

- On Monday, Harvard got a commitment from top-100 forward Mike Hall. Now we understand they got another commitment, this time from Siyani Chambers. The Crimson are doing serious work on the recruiting trails (Hmm, this article has no mention of the terrific piece done by our very own Rob Dauster)

- John Calipari is unsure of what's next for the SEC. He think's Maryland, Missouri and Virginia Tech would fit in well

- Percy Allen of the Seattle Times put together a solid list of all the Class of 2012 verbal commitments made to Pac-12 schools. Parsing the WAC did something similar with recruits in it's conference

- A pretty cool story on a JuCo Center who never got D-I looks is finally go going pro

- Former-Zag Dan Dickau will serve as a color-commentator for Gonzaga games this season televised on KHQ/SWX

- Butler got a solid pickup in the form of 6-foot-8 forward Nolan Berry

- DePaul got their second commitment in the class of 2012

- Cal State-Fullerton is barely hanging on to it's D-I status. Budget cuts, lack of revenue and a high tuition prices are all reason why CS-F might be forced to cut some of their athletic programs

- Take a gander at Mt. St. Mary's full 2011-2012 schedule

- Rush The Court breaks down the schedule of the Missouri Tigers

- An entertaining Atlantic-10 preview

- Tennessee's live mascot Smokey tore it's ACL. But don't worry, it had successful surgery

- Washington is taking a proactive approach by educating new student athletes on social media


This may be the best mixtape I've ever seen



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Eli Holman to take a leave of absence from Detroit

A major reason why Detroit was a trendy pick to win the Horizon League this season was the presence of center Eli Holman.

Holman, one of the better big men at the mid-major level, was one of five Detroit players to average double figures, posting 11.8 ppg, 9.6 rpg and 1.6 bpg last season for the Titans. But after being asked by the school to take an indefinite leave of absence, its unclear when -- or if -- he will actually suit up for the Titans.

"We have been working with Eli Holman for some time to assist him in addressing his personal matters," Detroit's Director of Athletics Keri Gaither said in a statement. "At this time, we feel it is in Eli's best interest to step away from basketball to allow him to concentrate on these matters. He has been excused from all team-related activity for an indefinite period while actively addressing these issues. We continue to support Eli during this time and we are asking everyone's cooperation in respecting his privacy."

This isn't the first time that Holman has been in trouble. The 6'10" Richmond, CA, native began his career at Indiana, but his transfer to Detroit was suspicious. After a meeting in which Armon Bassett and DeAndre Thomas were told that they were being kicked off of the team, Holman decided to transfer to Detroit, following former IU assistant Ray McCallum in a move that didn't make Tom Crean too happy.

Neither did the way that Holman made his exit -- he threw a potted plant in Crean's office and had to be escorted out by the police.


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UPDATED: Harvard lands another recruit

(UPDATE: For the second straight day, Harvard landed a commitment from a recruit with plenty of high-major interest. This time lefty point guard Siyani Chambers, a Minnesota native, pledged for the Crimson. He had schools like Washington State, Nebraska, and Georgia Tech pursuing him.)

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They did it again.

The new Ivy League powerhouse once again reached into the national rankings and snagged a player that should be headed to a high-major program.

This time, Harvard landed a commitment from Mike Hall, a 6'10" Georgia native that cracked Rivals Top 150 list for 2012. Hall was on campus for a visit during one of the Crimson's most important weekends in recent memory. They had a number of talented recruits from the Class of 2012 as well as a handful of Top 50 players in the Class of 2013.

"Just the experience I had this weekend [pushed me over the edge]," said Hall, who noted that he had arrived in Cambridge without expecting to make a decision in the near future. "I really enjoyed my experience up there. It just felt like the right fit for me."

"Also, [it was] the fact that I had a really good relationship with Coach Amaker," added Hall, who joins Evan Cummins in Harvard's 2012 recruiting class. “He showed me some film of his style of play. It’s great, and it really seems like a great fit for me."

Earlier this summer, we wrote extensively about Harvard's recruiting and how they managed to get themselves mixed in with some of the best players in the country. Frankly, its quite simple. They are exhaustive in determining the kids that they believe they have a chance to land -- high-academic players that truly care about their education. And once they get their sights on a player, they are relentlessly thorough in recruiting him.

Looks like the tactics worked again.
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