2019-20 Top 144 Previews Men's Basketball

[abdullah_sharif]

the zags used to have that issue but they scheduled strong and didnt slip. credit to the wcc, theyve gotten much better.

to throw it in perspective, the ivy league what is the 10th/11th rated conference last year. The valley was number 14. The Ivy League does not offer scholarships (other than needs based)

[WSUwatcher]

I miss the days of “The Valley of Death” but we are in a better place. I do not miss the days of winning a conference road game and having RPI slip because of the poor quality of the conference and its members.

Once the Valley of Death became the Valley of Even -- a change that was underway even before Creighton ran to the Big East of the Rockies -- the league's value to WSU was limited. It's theoretically possible to become Gonzaga 2.0 in a two or three team league, but it's hard; otherwise more teams would have done it. And it's harder still when you're basically by yourself, as WSU pretty much was once the Jayboys departed.

[wufan]

The MWC is where the Valley could have topped out at under better leadership. Instead...ugh

[WSUwatcher]

Not a perfect analogy, because the MWC is an all-sports D-I (i.e., FBS football with basically its regular lineup of teams) conference, whereas the Valley isn't and hasn't been for a long time. The Valley's split personality may have made it tougher, especially considering the additional public vs. private split, which isn't really something the MWC has to deal with to such an extent.

[Aargh]

The MWC is where the Valley could have topped out at under better leadership. Instead...ugh

I don't know about that. In a way, Elgin may have done the best he could with the financial problems that almost every school was having. MSU, UNI, InSU, and SIU are running their athletic departments on fumes. Then there's Evansville and Drake. Hoping for a decent conference with that many schools with one type of issue or another approaches impossible.

[Kung Wu]

I don't know about that. In a way, Elgin may have done the best he could with the financial problems that almost every school was having. MSU, UNI, InSU, and SIU are running their athletic
departments on fumes. Then there's Evansville and Drake. Hoping for a decent conference with that many schools with one type of issue or another approaches impossible.

Elgin confused keeping the competition fair (which he has absolutely has to), with keeping the reward system fair (which he absolutely should not).

In his role he had one of two choices:

1) Reward success by pushing for and highlighting the biggest and best deals for the schools that make the biggest impact in the most popular sports. That means only 15-25% of the schools get attention and maximum benefits any given year, or

2) Ignore success by appeasing the lowest common denominator, by minimizing disparity. This means you are supporting the 85-75% of the conference that didn't really achieve anything.

#1 maximizes national name recognition for your conference, maximizes the money being brought into the conference, and makes sure the schools spending the effort to elevate their program are incentivized to keep doing so. But #1 also has the downside of not being "popular" with the "other" school presidents and ADs because they are not getting much of the money from winnings, and are under constant scheduling and spending pressure.

#2 is a self fulfilling prophecy of decline, but makes you think you are doing well because more presidents and ADs are patting you on the back than if you choose #1.

#1 causes schools to leave the conference that "can't hang", and to be replaced with schools that are willing to commit money to growth in sports.

#2 causes schools to leave the conference that "have outgrown", and to be replaced with schools that have a marginalized world view of sports success.

[im4wsu]

Elgin confused keeping the competition fair (which he has absolutely has to), with keeping the reward system fair (which he absolutely should not).

In his role he had one of two choices:

1) Reward success by pushing for and highlighting the biggest and best deals for the schools that make the biggest impact in the most popular sports. That means only 15-25% of the schools get attention and maximum benefits any given year, or

2) Ignore success by appeasing the lowest common denominator, by minimizing disparity. This means you are supporting the 85-75% of the conference that didn't really achieve anything.

#1 maximizes national name recognition for your conference, maximizes the money being brought into the conference, and makes sure the schools spending the effort to elevate their program are incentivized to keep doing so. But #1 also has the downside of not being "popular" with the "other" school presidents and ADs because they are not getting much of the money from winnings, and are under constant scheduling and spending pressure.

#2 is a self fulfilling prophecy of decline, but makes you think you are doing well because more presidents and ADs are patting you on the back than if you choose #1.

#1 causes schools to leave the conference that "can't hang", and to be replaced with schools that are willing to commit money to growth in sports.

#2 causes schools to leave the conference that "have outgrown", and to be replaced with schools that have a marginalized world view of sports success.

#1 is capitalism
#2 is socialism

[Kung Wu]

Hmmm, not a bad metaphor.

[BOBB]

#1 is Command Capitalism. Semantics, but the "government" maintains a role in controlling the economy by promoting perceived winners and losers.

[WuShock Reaper]

#82 Temple Owls
Conference Rank: #7 American

https://www.collegesportsmadness.com/article/17711

"The Fran Dunphy era came to an end with a surprisingly good season for Temple. The Owls reached the NCAA Tournament despite relatively low expectations heading into the campaign. The program will have a very smooth transition as assistant coach Aaron McKie takes over as the head man. With three starters back, Temple will hope for a good start to the Coach McKie era....

Projection:
Losing Shizz Alston leaves a big hole on the roster. Alston led the team with 19.7 points and 5.0 assists. Quinton Rose and Nate Pierre-Louis are double digit scorers too and will take on an even bigger role in 2019-2020. Rose averaged 16.3 points and an impressive 2.2 steals per game, while Pierre-Louis added 13.3 points and 5.8 rebounds. Both are decent shooters, but were not particularly consistent shooting from beyond the arc last season. The backcourt has more options with senior Alani Moore and Kennesaw State transfer Monty Scott. Scott averaged 17.3 points per game with Kennesaw State in 2017-2018. The frontcourt never had a consistent scoring threat last season. De’Vondre Perry, J.P. Moorman, Justyn Hamilton and Damion Moore all started at least a few games last season. There is plenty of experience in the frontcourt, but Temple lost their best rebounder on a bad rebounding team and that is a huge concern heading into the 2019-2020 campaign.

Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT..."

[WuShock Reaper]

#81 Oklahoma State Cowboys
Conference Rank: #10 Big 12

https://www.collegesportsmadness.com/article/17715

"After Brad Underwood led Oklahoma State to a 10-seed in the NCAA Tournament in his lone season with the program, Mike Boynton has gone 0-for-2 in getting the Cowboys back to the Big Dance. This does not necessarily reflect on Boynton doing a poor job, though. He actually led Oklahoma State to 21 wins in his first season, which was more than Underwood won the prior year. Boynton’s Cowboys have won 13 games in arguably the toughest conference top-to-bottom over the last two seasons. The 2019-20 season could be the year Boynton gets his team to the NCAA Tournament with all five starters returning from last season....

Projection:
All five starters are back for Oklahoma State, led by top scorer and rebounder Cameron McGriff. McGriff was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention after averaging 12.3 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.2 steals as a junior. Lindy Waters was also named an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention after a strong junior season. Waters averaged 12.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals. Waters is a sharpshooter who hit 44.8% of his threes which was second highest in the Big 12. Thomas Dziagwa is a similarly talented marksman who hit 105 three-pointers last season, tops in the Big 12. McGriff, Waters and Dziagwa were joined by sophomore Isaac Likekele in starting all 32 games last season. Likekele is clearly the youngest of the group but could have the highest upside on the Cowboys. Likekele was a member of Team USA during the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup where he averaged 8.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.7 steals. Likekele put up similar stats as a freshman last season and is primed for a huge sophomore campaign. Finally, Yor Anei returns after starting 29 games as a freshman. Anei largely made his presence felt on the defensive end where he averaged 2.7 blocks per game, seventh most in the entire NCAA. Anei also averaged 7.7 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting 61.6% from the field. Though the Cowboys have a strong returning starting five, depth could be an issue as the rest of their roster are all new additions. Jonathan Laurent is the lone non-freshman out of the newcomers. Laurent is a grad transfer from UMass who also spent two seasons at Rutgers. Laurent averaged 9.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists last season as a junior. Laurent also led the A10 in three-point shooting last year with a 46.7% mark from downtown. The rest of the roster is composed of six freshmen. The recruiting class is a pretty good one though, with four of the six ranked in the top 150 by the 247sports composite. Of those top four, Marcus Watson and Avery Anderson are both 4-star prospects, while Kalib Boone and Chris Harris are 3-stars. Kalib’s brother, Keylan Boone, is also a 3-star recruit while Hidde Roessink is an unranked prospect from The Netherlands. Oklahoma State may have one of the best starting five in the Big 12, but their depth could be the deciding factor of how well they fare in the always challenging conference.

Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT..."

[Signman]

Chris Jans and New Mexico State in @ #78 yesterday.

https://www.collegesportsmadness.com/article/17724

I would have thought they might have come in around 50.

[WuShock16]

The Aggies are going to be good. I counted 7 seniors on that list (though maybe one or two were walk-ons...not sure). The only issue is that the WAC might hold them back again. Chris has had a 58-9 regular season record over the last two years and only had 12 seeds each season to show for it. Absolutely yes, you should coach where you are loved, but I’m wondering if there is a ceiling to the NCAA Tournament success that can be had in Las Cruces.

That said, if Chris is waiting for 3G to retire, I’m good with that too.

[WuDrWu]

Talked to Chris the other day and he's always been careful about how good he thinks his teams will be, even when he was here. He knows they are going to be good.

Fortunately it's going to take a high major program to pry him away from Las Cruces. His next stop is likely Iowa or here, imho.

[Kel Varnsen]

Bart Torvik's site has NMSU as preseason #34 if I remember correctly. The team is literally all juniors and seniors.

[Shocker_Power]

Bart Torvik's site has NMSU as preseason #34 if I remember correctly. The team is literally all juniors and seniors.

If that is the case he needs to be looking to make a move after this season.

[shock]

That’s a mid major mentality. Chris is not mid major

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

That’s a Mark Turgeon mentality. Chris is not Mark Turgeon

[abdullah_sharif]

new mexico state is a good name. it wouldn't surprise me if he is there for some time. it checks the boxes of recruiting, winning, and support (for the most part). they should be good enough at least 4 of 5 years to win the league.

after a few more seasons, especially with a second weekend run in march, potential suitors will look past the bar incident and view him for his coaching again.

[Shocker_Power]

It's a mid-major school in a less than mid-major town. If he has any opportunity for a slightly upward move he needs to get the hell out of there.

[SHOCKvalue]

It's a mid-major school in a less than mid-major town. If he has any opportunity for a slightly upward move he needs to get the hell out of there.

If I could just can this and send it back in time say, oh, about 15 years.