Your obligatory Big 10 conference primer
by Nick Fasulo on Oct 29, 2009 10:13 PM EDT
5 comments
Is this the year when the Big 10, a conference that is poked fun at for being a boring, the tops in the land? It could certainly happen with two Final Four contenders, and about a half dozen more looking for inclusion into the field of 65. Michigan State will dominate the headlines, but Purdue may be the most intriguing team. Remember that recruiting class of 2007? Well now they're juniors and probably realize it's about time they live up to some of the hype. No pressure here kids.
Ohio State has the league's biggest playmaker in Evan Turner, who uses this year to audition for next year's NBA Draft. As in the previous three seasons, Thad Matta doesn't have a highly touted freshman center to build around. This team is going to run and look to outscore its opponents, but I guess that's the sport's operative goal right?
People are also talking about Northwestern. Is it worth the chatter? That remains to be seen but you have to at least respect Kevin Coble & Company. The Wildcats will rely on the deep ball to stay in games.
Tourney teams (in order of conference finish)
- Michigan State
- Purdue
- Ohio State
- Michigan
- Illinois
- Minnesota
All Conference Team
- Kalin Lucas, Michigan State
- Raymar Morgan, Michigan State
- Evan Turner, Ohio State
- Robbie Hummel, Purdue
- Manny Harris, Michigan
Most overrated - Northwestern (if that's possible)
Most underrated - Purdue's Junior class finally putting "getting it," Evan Turner's scoring ability
Notable non-conference match-ups:
- 11/19 - Ohio State vs. North Carolina
- 12/1 - Michigan State @ North Carolina
- 12/19 - Michigan @ Kansas
- 12/22 - Texas @ Michigan State
- 1/1 - West Virginia @ Purdue
Five story lines to keep tabs on:
- Michigan. A surprise team last season, the Sims-Harris duo could be one of the best inside outside threats.
- Talor Battle. He literally may carry the Nittany Lions on his back. The diminutive guard has a flair for the dramatics.
- Northwestern. How mind-boggling is it to say that the Wildcats are being overhyped on whether or not they can just make the NCAA Tournament?
- Wisconsin. Bo Ryan is pretty good at doing something with nothing. This year might be the ultimate test.
- Raymar Morgan. Battling mononucleosis last season, he underperformed. If he plays to his potential then the Spartans are going to be scary.
0 recs |
5 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
Couple of Q's
What makes NU overrated? They return their top player and everyone but one player from last years team. I have a hard time seeing them doing any worse then last when they were on the bubble.
Why do you have Michigan higher then Minny?
Michigan went 21-14
Michigan went 1-1 in the tourny beaing Clemson and losing to Okie
Michigan is around 4th in returning players in the Big Ten
Michigan brings in one 4 star and three 3 stars. Not ranked in top 30
Minn went 22-11
Minn went 0-1 and lost to Texas
Minn is 1st in returning players in the Big Ten
Minn brings in two 4 stars, one 3 star, and one 2 star. Ranked 16th by scouts
"There are no next times when you're competing for big things." - Tom Izzo
Go Spartans
by msufan23 on Oct 30, 2009 1:01 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
alright… NU, yes it’s a bit weird to call them overrated. but with that, they got a lot of chatter this preseason- and this is a program that has NEVER made the tournament. therefore whatever sort of ‘rating’ they receive i deem ‘over.’
michigan is better than minnesota. i don’t need numbers to tell me that. they way you broke them down was great, and backs up your argument, but you’re splitting hairs with the recruiting classes. you can’t expect either group to have a huge impact.
sure ill be wrong about all of this come march, but it’s how i see it at this time.
thanks for reading
by Nick Fasulo on Oct 30, 2009 10:49 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
FAIL
Minnesota is better than Michigan and will finish 3rd in conference (nevermind that Michigan was 2-0 vs. Minn last year).
Seriously though, the Gophers are going to be very strong. They are lacking a dominant scorer like Harris but they will be the best interior defensive team in the conference and a couple well placed additions will make a huge difference. All of this is assuming Trevor Mbakwe is cleared to play, he will make a HUGE difference. If he plays watch Minnesota go from 7th in defensive rebounding to top 3; that my friends will improve their conference record by 3 games. 12-6 says this Gopher rube!
btw, I love SFBE!
what you say here can, and will, be used against you
by GopherNation on Oct 30, 2009 2:53 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Scheduling
MSU travels to Austin to play Texas. Another notable matchup, Florida-MSU if they both reach the finals of that tourney. Gonzage @ MSU. Once again, toughest schedule in the country. Traveling to the homes of two top 4 teams brings four words to my mind. Scary. Exciting. Masochistic. Championship.
by RewertsSpartan on Nov 2, 2009 1:54 PM EST reply actions 0 recs
its like immersing yourself in a girl talk concert. shit that just happened to me. why the hell am i checking this right now? anyway, i didn’t really want to assume any of the potential great matchups in this early season tourneys. but yes, florida-msu, among others, are on the radar.
by Nick Fasulo on Nov 2, 2009 11:52 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
