2019-20 CBB Central - Top 100

[WuShock Reaper]

"Preseason Top 100" – CBB Central

By Kevin Sweeney
Posted: 08/19/19

https://cbbcentral.com/

"We are getting closer and closer by the day.

International trip season is on to its last legs, and some schools have officially begun classes for the 2019-20 academic year. College football starts this weekend, and college basketball will be here before we know it.

With schools getting underway, rosters are more or less set. A few minor moves could still happen, but the season-changing stuff is over. It’s time to start building out rankings in conferences and nationally, and I couldn’t be more excited to release my official top 100 for the upcoming season! A few moves may be made before the season, but this is more or less where I’ll be at on November 5th.

Throughout this week, I’ll release the rankings with my writeups on all 100 teams. We begin today with #100-81, counting down to our #1 team on Friday...

#88. East Tennessee – Steve Forbes head coach and former asisitant coach at Wichita State
#84. South Carolina – Cancun Challenge Non-Conference opponent
#78. Temple – play them twice
#73. UConn – play them once on the road
#61. Wichita State –
#60. New Mexico State – Chris Jans head coach and former asisitant coach at Wichita State
#58. West Virginia – Cancun Challenge potential Non-Conference opponent
#55. Missouri State – Dana Ford head coachand former asisitant coach at Wichita State
#53. Ole Miss – AAC/SEC Challenge opponent
#52. South Florida – play them twice
#50. Oklahoma State – on the road to Stillwater
#38. Oklahoma – at Intrust Arena
#37. Houston – .play them twice
#31. Cincinnati – play them twice
#21. VCU – at the "Roundhouse"
#9. Memphis – get to play them twice!!!

[WuShock Reaper]

https://cbbcentral.com/2019/08/19/preseason-top-100-100-81/

#84. South Carolina– Winning 11 SEC games despite losing multiple buy games in the non-conference last year was surprising, though the bad start doomed any hopes of dancing. AJ Lawson is impressive– an all-conference talent who can create for himself or others. However, the loss of Chris Silva may be too much to overcome in a loaded SEC.

[WuShock Reaper]

https://cbbcentral.com/2019/08/20/preseason-top-100-80-61/

#78. Temple– Evaluating the Owls in year one of the Aaron McKie era is somewhat difficult given we have no background on McKie as a head coach. Combine that with losing star point guard Shizz Alston as well as starting center Ernest Aflakpui, and Temple is in a pretty interesting spot. The wing pairing of Quinton Rose, Nate Pierre-Louis, and Kennesaw State transfer James Scott is NCAA Tournament-level good. However, finding someone to create for others and someone to grab boards determines where they’ll stand in a wide-open AAC.

#73. UConn– We’ll see how many of the early recruiting wins Dan Hurley has registered thus far can be turned into wins on the floor this season. The four-man freshman class Hurley brings in, headlined by skilled fringe 5-star forward Akok Akok and guards Jalen Gaffney and James Bouknight, is the future of the program, without a doubt. But getting consistent point guard play from Alterique Gilbert is a question mark, and the Huskies have to find a way to win games against “up” competition after going just 2-15 in Tier A&B games per KenPom.

#61. Wichita State– This is a tremendously young Shocker team, with just three juniors and seniors on the roster (and one of those, Trey Wade, a JUCO transfer). Gregg Marshall has loaded up on guards, landing a trio of highly-touted ballhandlers in the 2019 class with Grant Sherfield, Tyson Etienne, and Noah Fernandes to go with returning guards Jamarius Burton, Erik Stevenson, and Dexter Dennis. A big question: will Marshall elect to go small and play Dennis as a small-ball 4? Or will we see two-big looks consistently with guys like Jaime Echenique, Asbjorn Midtgaard, and talented freshman Josaphat Bilau?

[WuShock Reaper]

https://cbbcentral.com/2019/08/21/preseason-top-100-60-41/

#58. West Virginia– The Mountaineers should absolutely wreck some teams up front this season. Adding man-child fringe 5-star Oscar Tshiebwe to a frontcourt that already featured double-double machine Derek Culver should allow the Mountaineers to bully teams on the glass and make things difficult for opposing teams at the rim. Finding better guard play is what determines whether the Mountaineers get back to the NCAA Tournament. Jordan McCabe’s strong finish to the season (13.5 ppg, 5 apg, 38% 3-pt FG% in his final 10 games) provides some reason for optimism, and JUCO guard Sean McNeil can shoot the cover off the ball.

#53. Ole Miss– Kermit Davis finding a way to get the Rebels to the NCAA Tournament in year one was impressive, but par for the course given what Davis did during his run at MTSU. Losing Terence Davis is a major blow, though Devontae Shuler and Breein Tyree is a very nice duo in the backcourt. JUCO product and former Virginia Tech big Khadim Sy will be asked to do a lot in the frontcourt and will have to control the glass for the Rebels to Dance again.

#52. South Florida– Coming off a CBI title and an important 14-win improvement in year two of the Brian Gregory era, optimism is high for the Bulls as they enter the 2019-20 season. LaQuincy Rideau is one of my favorite point guards in the nation, an absolute bulldog on the defensive end who can hit shots and get downhill offensively. Throw in a pair of promising 3rd-year players in David Collins and Alexis Yetna, and a strong core is in place. It feels like USF needs one more scorer– perhaps Oklahoma State transfer Zack Dawson can be that guy.

#50. Oklahoma State– The Cowboys just lacked too much depth to win games consistently in the Big 12, but the 5-man core of Isaac Likelele, Thomas Dziagwa, Lindy Waters, Cam McGriff, and Yor Anei showed plenty of promise. A 6-man recruiting class that features four top-150 recruits, as well as a grad transfer in Jon Laurent who should be able to play rotation minutes, should help that depth issue.

[WuShock Reaper]

https://cbbcentral.com/2019/08/22/pr...top-100-40-21/

#38. Oklahoma – A trio of newcomers in the backcourt are a major source for optimism in Norman, as freshman De’Vion Harmon, JUCO transfer Alondes Williams, and Wichita State transfer Austin Reaves will be added to a backcourt that already featured the multi-talented Jamal Bienemy. The question is how the frontcourt looks, and whether small ball will again be en vogue for OU or if Kur Kuath can provide competent minutes at the 5. Going small could be a blow to the Sooner defense, but could open up several intriguing offensive lineups.

#37. Houston – Kelvin Sampson turned down overtures from Arkansas and got his son Kellen the “head coach in waiting” position in the process, then continued the upward trajectory of the program by landing Kansas transfer Quentin Grimes this offseason. The early NBA departure of Armoni Brooks may make it more difficult for the Cougars to score, with a massive offensive load likely to be dumped on the shoulders of the dynamic Dejon Jarreau. A waiver for Grimes to play right away would certainly help matters, and if that waiver were to be granted the Cougars would certainly be in line for a bump in these rankings.

#31. Cincinnati – John Brannen had a lot of work to do to fill out this Cincinnati roster around the margins after he took over in April following Mick Cronin’s departure for warmer pastures in Westwood. With an eclectic mix of grad transfers and late signees, Brannen checked almost every box– surrounding Jarron Cumberland with enough talent to maximize his scoring ability. Cousin Jaevin Cumberland can really shoot it, and paired with Keith Williams and fringe top-50 recruit Zach Harvey should form quite the formidable backcourt. Perhaps most interesting will be how Brannen handles the point guard position: buzz around the program is that Jarron Cumberland could take the reigns and run offense, but that’s a role he has never played before.

#21. VCU – The Rams rode a terrific defense to an at-large bid last season, and are well-positioned to be even better this season thanks to improvements on the offensive end. A healthier Marcus Evans along with the introduction of top-75 guard Na’Shon Hyland should help the Rams create offense more efficiently, and the presence of veterans De’Riante Jenkins and Marcus Santos-Silva should also help the cause on that end of the floor. Consistent floor-spacing would go a long way towards pushing this group into the top 20.

[WuShock Reaper]

https://cbbcentral.com/2019/08/23/preseason-top-100-20-1/

#9. Memphis – Without a doubt the most polarizing team in the country, we’ll see just how good an almost-entirely freshman roster can fare under a coach not named Calipari or Krzyzewski. The athleticism and versatility up front is off the charts, with the potential for three NBA players starting at the 3, 4, and 5 spots in DJ Jeffries, Precious Achiuwa, and James Wiseman. The real question is who runs the show– can the wired-to-score Boogie Ellis be the lead guard who helps mesh together all these talented pieces? Damion Baugh played well in the team’s international trip, and could wind up starting at point guard as well. The answer to those point guard questions could determine if the Tigers are a national title favorite or a significant disappointment.

[TheShocktocles]

Well I guess if the shockers can win some games against the likes of #9 Menphis, #21 VCU, #31 Cincinnati, #37 Houston, #38 Oklahoma, #50 Oklahoma State, #52 South Florida, #53 Mississippi, and #58 West Virginia, we might be able to convince Joe Lurnardi and the other power brokers that WSU with its very young team would be worthy of an invite to the tournament.

We must keep in mind that the shocks took a step back last year and Marshall and WSU have not shown they can consistently compete outside of the Mid Major Missouri Valley. Last year the shocks were a lowly 5 seed in the NIT. Clearly the decline of the shockers program has started now since Fred Vanvfleet and Ron Baker have left. Marshall should have left for a legitimate Power 5 school when he had a chance. Does Wichita State even have any players since McDuffie left? That's the outsiders story point of view and they are sticking to it.

[WuShock16]

I was about to roast you but then saw what you were doing. Well played.