College Basketball 2008-2009

[Rhom]

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1553582' date='Oct 12 2008, 22.50'][url="http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a201/tbag112004/Picture1-27.png"]Here's another photo[/url], and holy crap those aren't shorts, those are fuckin' pants![/quote]

Maybe those are actually the real game uniforms for 7'0" Jared Carter and those guys are only 5'10" or something... :unsure:

Apparently, Nike has said that they designed the tops to be more form fitting so opposing teams can't grab their jerseys in the post. But the pants are pretty baggy which almost gave them the appearance of some sort of dress when combined with the tighter jersey. The "theme" of the checkerboard is to coincide with racing silks worn by thoroughbred jockeys. :rolleyes:

The outlined "K" is to honor Mr. Wildcat [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Keightley"]Bill Keightley[/url] who passed away after last year.


[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1553582' date='Oct 12 2008, 22.50']And while the denim uni's were terrible, I think[url="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1329/1215253516_0203a12f47_o.jpg"] these[/url] might have been worse.[/quote]

Those were bad. I'm trying to remember when that was, I'm thinking it was 94-95. Pitino had a flair for new uniforms, he knew that he could generate big bucks for the school by changing the design pretty frequently. Tubby stayed pretty standard with the unis.

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1553582' date='Oct 12 2008, 22.50']I had read that Billy G was selling playing with Patterson to Orton. So, PP may really intend to stick around, but after his injury last year I wonder why he would risk staying if he's a lock for the lottery.[/quote]

I read that Patterson was huge in helping to recruit Orton as well. Like I said, I'd love to see him stay through his junior year... but considering his injury last year, I really think Gillispie will practically kick him out the door if he is a lottery pick (which he almost certainly will be). From everything I've read about Orton, his AAU team actually runs some offensive sets and he has looked good running a high-low post offense. That will be a big plus if true. BCG loves working that high-low post, we just didn't have a complementary piece for PPat last year to run it effectively.

[Rhom]

Several other major programs kicked off their [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3649815"]Midnight Madness[/url] sessions last night. We're creeping closer and closer to the start of games!

REG, were you able to watch Late Night in the Phog? Or was it unavailable where you are?

[RedEyedGhost]

[quote name='Billy Clyde' post='1560190' date='Oct 18 2008, 08.01']Several other major programs kicked off their [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3649815"]Midnight Madness[/url] sessions last night. We're creeping closer and closer to the start of games!

REG, were you able to watch Late Night in the Phog? Or was it unavailable where you are?[/quote]

No, I wasn't able to watch it. It was "covered" on ESPNU, but I'm not going to pay extra for that channel. And it was broadcast on-line, but I couldn't get it to work. I doesn't sound like I missed too much though.

We did get another commitment from it though. Elijah Johnson, 5 star PG/SG '09 prospect out of Vegas.

Now we just play the waiting game on Henry/Snaer/Cheek. I hope the dominoes will start falling early this week.

[Rhom]

Andy Katz has his final [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?id=3640708"]preseason poll[/url] posted.

I never thought I'd live to see the day that Davidson, St. Mary's, and Baylor are in a preseason top 25 poll from a "respected" sports writer and teams like Syracuse, Georgetown, Arizona, Kansas, and Kentucky are on the outside looking in.

From his list, I expect Miami to drop like a rock. Wake Forest will stick around and then eventually fall out when they hit the cream puff ACC schedule that will nevertheless be too hard for them. USC doesn't deserve to be in the poll at all, they'll drop. Florida will cruise through its creampuff non-conference schedule with little difficulty, but I just don't see them having much more success in the SEC this year than last but I do think they'll be a tourney team. The Big 12 will brutalize Baylor. LSU was a train wreck last year and I see no reason to believe that they will be better enough to be a top 25 team.

Lastly, UNC will win 34 games and lose in the Final Four.

[Rhom]

And now for our latest episode of [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3659611"]As the Wildcat Turns.[/url] (Or should that be Days of our Olsens? Or maybe Guiding Lute? Or how about All My Arizonas?)

Jesus... I really feel bad for Arizona fans. I don't think I've ever seen an aging coach come unraveled quite like this.

[RedEyedGhost]

Holy shit... that is such a fucked up mess.

I feel very bad for their fans (well, not [i]very[/i] bad, I'm still a little bitter over '97).

I just hope other programs can learn from this mess - we're both set, though. I'm pretty sure Gillispie and Self we be in their current positions for a long time.

I just cannot get over just how much he has screwed over their program in the past two years. I know [u]he made the program[/u], but that does not give him license to single handedly destroy it as well. I wonder how long it is before Abdul Gaddy is back on the market (again). Good thing Buddinger came back so that he could play for Lute.

[Rhom]

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1565730' date='Oct 23 2008, 22.48']I feel very bad for their fans (well, not [i]very[/i] bad, I'm still a little bitter over '97).[/quote]

You and me both! :tantrum:

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1565730' date='Oct 23 2008, 22.48']I just cannot get over just how much he has screwed over their program in the past two years. I know [u]he made the program[/u], but that does not give him license to single handedly destroy it as well. I wonder how long it is before Abdul Gaddy is back on the market (again). Good thing Buddinger came back so that he could play for Lute.[/quote]

That's exactly right. Kevin O'Neill got screwed over in the deal too. For a guy that always seemed like a class act (the white hair and suits seem to lend a little air of distinction anyways) I am stunned how this is going down. Say one thing for Paterno and Bowden... at least they don't waffle on whether they're staying or not!

The sad thing is, you know the only reason Arizona made the tourney last year was so Lute could come back this year and have his streak still intact.

I do wonder what they'll do about a head coach search. Dunlap isn't a big enough name to coach one of the top ten programs in the country. But if Lute had just decided to bail at the end of last season, they could have gone after coaches like Johnson, Crean, and Ford instead of another season of interim coach hell. I'll be shocked if they win 20 games.

[Rhom]

Even more interesting... Dunlap was offered the interim job, but told the university he'd [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3661126"]like to sleep on it.[/url] This doesn't look good.

Even if he does take it, his resume isn't quite up to par with what you'd expect of someone preparing to take the reins of a top program:

[quote]Dunlap arrived in Tucson last spring after spending the last two seasons as an assistant with the Denver Nuggets. Dunlap was the head coach at Metro State in Denver, Colo., for nine years prior, winning two Division II national championships.

Dunlap was a professional coach in the Australia national basketball league prior to Metro State. He has been mentioned for a number of head coaching jobs of late, including his alma mater, Loyola Marymount.[/quote]

Oh really? He was [i]mentioned[/i] as a possibility at Loyola Marymount? Well, hells bells son... lets just plan on hanging some more banners in the real close future.

As the article points out, they may lose their three stud recruits for next year and then lose Budinger and Hill to the NBA. I don't think this will be Indiana bad, but its certainly shaping up to be one gigantic mess.

[Young Wolf]

:tantrum:

Thanks Lute. What a clusterfuck in Tucson.

[Rhom]

[quote name='Young Wolf' post='1566232' date='Oct 24 2008, 13.28']Thanks Lute. What a clusterfuck in Tucson.[/quote]

You said it. [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3662241"]Is this any way to run a basketball program?[/url]

So Dunlap turned down the job because he was angling for a long term deal and not just interim tag. Understandably, Arizona wants the opportunity to do a national search. So they turn to another assistant, Russ Pennell.

[quote]The move that makes Pennell interim head coach may be as stunning as Olson calling it quits. Pennell was most recently an AAU coach in Phoenix and a radio broadcaster for Arizona State. Before that, Pennell was on Arizona State's staff for eight seasons, but that didn't end well[/quote]

I'm not sure how that resume even gets you a job as an assistant at a top ten program like Arizona.

[quote]Olson's abrupt announcement could lead to the Wildcats losing their three-player committed recruiting class. The weeklong early signing period begins Nov. 12.

Arizona could be headed toward an Indiana-like implosion if juniors Chase Budinger and Jordan Hill declare for the NBA draft in June.[/quote]

My thoughts exactly.

[quote]Once Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood moves on to the business of conducting a national search, he is expected to reach out in some form to gauge the interest of Gonzaga's Mark Few and Pittsburgh's Jamie Dixon.[/quote]

Good places to start. I think he's probably got a better chance of landing Dixon than Few though. For some reason, it seems like Few is content to beat up on West Coast Conference. Moving to replace a legend is never easy though.

[quote]Livengood said he first learned of Olson's decision in a report on ESPN. He said Olson phoned him in the afternoon.[/quote]

This is pretty much the clencher that tells me Olson is a piece of trash. How do you not tell your athletic director before Dukie V gets the news plastered all over ESPN and the internet???? :stunned:

[Rhom]

Yep. Arizona's three recruits for next year have all [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3667137"]decommitted.[/url] Sounds like UCLA and USC could be reaping the benefits of it.

I've read message boards where people are trying to defend Olson, and honestly I just don't get it. If he had just decided to retire after the season and let Arizona go through a normal off-season hiring process, they could be in good shape right now. Instead he pretty much left at the worst possible time.

[Rhom]

Okay... [i]any[/i] day now other people are going to start getting interested in basketball... [i]any[/i] day now... :|

Well, news of major significance out of Chapel Hill today. [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3674076"]Tyler Hansborough is out indefinitely with a "stress reaction" in his shin.[/url]

That sucks. I have a healthy dislike for all things Carolina related, but I hate to see a guy who plays so hard and obviously loves the game to go out like this. Hopefully, he can stay off it and make a full recovery. I also hate it because he's likely to be out for the Kentucky game. If we manage to beat the Heels, all of ESPN will remind us all year that we did it without Psycho T. Additionally disappointing is the fact that I was looking forward to watching Patrick Patterson eat Hansborough’s lunch on national TV.

[WarGalley]

[quote name='Billy Clyde' post='1573162' date='Oct 31 2008, 07.54']Okay... [i]any[/i] day now other people are going to start getting interested in basketball... [i]any[/i] day now... :|

Well, news of major significance out of Chapel Hill today. [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=3674076"]Tyler Hansborough is out indefinitely with a "stress reaction" in his shin.[/url]

That sucks. I have a healthy dislike for all things Carolina related, but I hate to see a guy who plays so hard and obviously loves the game to go out like this. Hopefully, he can stay off it and make a full recovery. I also hate it because he's likely to be out for the Kentucky game. If we manage to beat the Heels, all of ESPN will remind us all year that we did it without Psycho T. Additionally disappointing is the fact that I was looking forward to watching Patrick Patterson eat Hansborough’s lunch on national TV.[/quote]

Caught that on Sportscenter this morning. That sucks, North Carolina's a fun team to watch. Hopefully he comes back healthy soon, and if not, Roy Williams has a lot of talent to work with.

Also, Tyler's supposed to break the UNC record for most points scored and most rebounds grabbed, right? Damn..

[Rhom]

[quote name='WarGalley' post='1573213' date='Oct 31 2008, 09.18']Caught that on Sportscenter this morning. That sucks, North Carolina's a fun team to watch. Hopefully he comes back healthy soon, and if not, Roy Williams has a lot of talent to work with.[/quote]

Yeah, Carolina will be fine. Even without Hansborough, I think they're still the best team in the country.

[quote name='WarGalley' post='1573213' date='Oct 31 2008, 09.18']Also, Tyler's supposed to break the UNC record for most points scored and most rebounds grabbed, right? Damn..[/quote]

Yeah. He should have shattered the mark. Phil Ford leads the list with 2290 and Hansborough is 2168. As long as he can get back by mid-season, I would think that he should be fine. In fact, he could get it in as few as 6 games if his career average holds up.

Its stunning to me actually to think of all the great players who went through there and never broke that. A lot of those big marks will probably never be broken though. A player like Hansborough who scores that many points at a major college and stays for all four years is a rarity. At 34 games a year, it would take almost 17 points a game to break that scoring average. Most freshmen who score 17 or more/game are 1 or (at best) 2 year players. A lot of the old records were set when players like Ford at UNC or Issel at Kentucky only played 3 years because freshmen were ineligible.

Of course, Pete Maravich's record will never be broken. Maravich scored 3,667 points - 1,138 points in 1968, 1,148 points in 1969 and 1,381 points in 1970 while averaging 43.8, 44.2 and 44.5 points per game.

[Rhom]

Ooops. Double post. :dunce:

[RedEyedGhost]

Abdul Gaddy, AZ's best commitment has already chose UW - and there's rumors on the net that Olson told Gaddy to chose UW because he thinks Romar and one of Lute's former assistants would be his best assistance to getting into the NBA. One of there top players for this class, Jeff Withey, [url="http://www.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/11392738"]has decided to leave before playing a game[/url].

Did you read that [url="http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/11067628"]Lute had a frontal lobe stroke[/url]? That definitely explains why he's been acting so erratically.

[url="http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/story/1270131.html"]How about the Roy and Kxsszdxkszkgizsxtrk trying to make kids decide whether or not they should stay in the NBA draft only within only 10 days of the NCAA title game...[/url][quote]Karl Hicks, the ACC's associate commissioner for basketball operations. "We feel that's what would work best for the student- athletes and that's what would work best for the coaches."[/quote]
I understand how it would work best for the coaches, but seriously, anybody that thinks this is best for the "student"-athlete is either a liar or a moron.

I think Hansbrough's injury is the worst thing that could happen to college basketball. Not because I think we'll miss some great performances or anything like that, it's terrible because [b]it is all we are going to hear about for the next 6 months[/b]. The announcers will not stop talking about it, and if he comes back [i]even one day [/i]before the projected 8 weeks, all we will here about is how [url="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3017/2989781888_7576070f28_o.jpg"]he's such a warrior[/url] and [url="http://cache4.asset-cache.net/xc/80537535.jpg?v=1&c=NewsMaker&k=2&d=17A4AD9FDB9CF193CE41B024AE96D64DFAB0833B0C788D94E30A760B0D811297"]he has so much heart[/url] and will to win, even if it means sacrificing his body. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

[Rhom]

Dana O'Neil over at ESPN.com writes fluff pieces, but I enjoy them. Earlier this summer she had a nice one about Clem Haskins (coach at Minnesota when the academic scandal went down... now retired just 20 minutes down the road from me in Campbellsville). Today she has an interesting one comparing the paths of [url="http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/columns/story?id=3679569"]Derek Caracter and Samardo Samuels[/url] at UofL.

We should start seeing games creeping up in the next two weeks! Its finally here! :wideeyed:

[RedEyedGhost]

Geeze Rhomb, no comment on my [b]EPIC[/b] halloween post?


[url="http://www.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/11340714/1"]Well this link should earn one[/url]. I typically use sportsline for my sporting news (because I try to avoid ESPN as much as possible), but after the crazy spewed all over that "top 10" list I may have to start looking elsewhere.

[Rhom]

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1576145' date='Nov 3 2008, 19.18']Geeze Rhomb, no comment on my [b]EPIC[/b] halloween post?[/quote]

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1573512' date='Oct 31 2008, 13.02']Abdul Gaddy, AZ's best commitment has already chose UW - and there's rumors on the net that Olson told Gaddy to chose UW because he thinks Romar and one of Lute's former assistants would be his best assistance to getting into the NBA. One of there top players for this class, Jeff Withey, [url="http://www.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/11392738"]has decided to leave before playing a game[/url].

Did you read that [url="http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/11067628"]Lute had a frontal lobe stroke[/url]? That definitely explains why he's been acting so erratically.

[url="http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/story/1270131.html"]How about the Roy and Kxsszdxkszkgizsxtrk trying to make kids decide whether or not they should stay in the NBA draft only within only 10 days of the NCAA title game...[/url]
I understand how it would work best for the coaches, but seriously, anybody that thinks this is best for the "student"-athlete is either a liar or a moron.

I think Hansbrough's injury is the worst thing that could happen to college basketball. Not because I think we'll miss some great performances or anything like that, it's terrible because [b]it is all we are going to hear about for the next 6 months[/b]. The announcers will not stop talking about it, and if he comes back [i]even one day [/i]before the projected 8 weeks, all we will here about is how [url="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3017/2989781888_7576070f28_o.jpg"]he's such a warrior[/url] and [url="http://cache4.asset-cache.net/xc/80537535.jpg?v=1&c=NewsMaker&k=2&d=17A4AD9FDB9CF193CE41B024AE96D64DFAB0833B0C788D94E30A760B0D811297"]he has so much heart[/url] and will to win, even if it means sacrificing his body. :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:[/quote]

Probably because all I would have to say about it was:

:agree:

:rofl:


[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1576145' date='Nov 3 2008, 19.18'][url="http://www.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/11340714/1"]Well this link should earn one[/url]. I typically use sportsline for my sporting news (because I try to avoid ESPN as much as possible), but after the crazy spewed all over that "top 10" list I may have to start looking elsewhere.[/quote]

[size=7][b]Who the @#$% does Gary Parrish think he is?!!? Ohio State and Texas as better jobs than Kentucky?!!? @#$% him!!![/b][/size] :tantrum:

Alright, now that I have that out of the way. I can dismiss it as the sheer ridiculous ramblings of a man who knows he just increased his readership "hits" by hundreds of thousands. This is, afterall, the same guy who [url="http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/10906544"]acknowledged that Kentucky fans dominate internet polls.[/url] From a more serious standpoint, I would argue that UCLA's extended down periods in the 80's and late 90's/early 2000's prove that it is a distant runner-up to Duke, Carolina, and Kansas as the top programs under his "criteria."

With that addressed... lets get down to business. My Cats are looking much better!!!!!!!!! Sure it was an exhibition against Division 2 Missouri-Saint Louis, but they broke 100 points for the first time in [i]over 5 years[/i] last night. Sad Sad Sad. There were some pretty good teams there 4/5 years ago and we played some stinker teams the last 3 years, the fact that our offense had stagnated that much is really sad. The bottom line is, Kentucky looks much sharper this year out of the gate than last year's squad.

[Rhom]

[quote name='RedEyedGhost' post='1576145' date='Nov 3 2008, 19.18'][url="http://www.sportsline.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6271764/11340714/1"]Well this link should earn one[/url]. I typically use sportsline for my sporting news (because I try to avoid ESPN as much as possible), but after the crazy spewed all over that "top 10" list I may have to start looking elsewhere.[/quote]

And you know what? Now that I think about it... Duke has problems selling out their 10,000 seat arena for non-conference home games. They don't even have a football team to compete with for attention! Sad and pathetic fan support.

:tantrum:

And here's a link to the [url="http://collegebasketball.rivals.com/photofeature.asp?fid=25472"]10 most intimidating players in college basketball[/url] by Rivals.com. Some tough looking hombres in that photo spread.