Monday 11/4 (0-0-0 YTD)

If college football has been any sort of precursor as to how the college basketball season is gonna go, then its gonna be a whole lot of fun, and a whole lot of madness!  I've got a couple early games in the Field of 68 Showcase that peak my interest, so here they are:

College of Charleston -2

Moving on from the Pat Kelsey era was never going to be easy at CoC, but getting an experienced coach like Chris Mack will be certain to lessen the stress.  Having Ante Brzovic back is a HUGE help, but having a PG like Fulton (led country in Ast:TO) back, should really be the key to early success in Macks tenure in Charleston. On the other side, Scott Nagy comes in from Wright St, where he had lots of success, and should try and implement his up-tempo offense.  Only problem being, he returns only 10ppg from last years squad, so a LOT of new faces in Carbondale.  They did bring in some scorers in Elliot and Steffe, but I think it will take some time for all this to gel, and Nagys team last year at Wright St had a horrific defense. Experience and continuity hold a lot of value for me, especially early in the year, so I'm on Charleston.

Santa Clara -1

There is a lot of hope here in St. Louis this year, and all of it has to do with the incomers for Indiana St.  Coach Josh Schertz comes to a program that has been pretty bad in recent years.  But he's the perfect guy for the job.  Bringing an All American with him in Robbie Avila doesn't hurt either.  Isaiah Swope also comes over and paired with returning guys Jimerson and Hughes Jr, the Billikens have 4 legit guys that can get 20 any night.  Santa Clara on the other hand is quite the opposite.  They are one of five teams in the country to not lose anyone to the transfer portal.  It says a lot about Herb Sendek and what his guys think of him.  He also has Stewart returning back to SC after a one year stint at LSU.  Schertz offense is as efficient as they come, but again, how quickly can they the Bills get everyone on the same page.  Experience and continuity win again for me.

I'll have a couple more games a bit later on.  GL everyone.

@STLTarHeels

Good luck this season my friend......

Always nice to read your previews! BOL this year sir! 

Texas AM -4.5

Sticking with the theme here, as UCF has 11 new members on their team and although they have some dudes that can really score coming in, it takes a bit to figure out how everyone is going to get theirs within the system.  And to have to face the physicality of a Buzz Williams coached team, isn't a recipe I'd sign up for.  Being a true home game helps, but the Aggies bring a wealth of experience to Orlando so I'm not sure how much the home floor matters tomorrow.  Taylor, Coleman and the gang will bring the boom on the defensive end, and ultimately will be too much for UCF to handle. 

Wright St/Kentucky Over 160.5

This is mostly a "fade Wright St defense" play, but their pace on offense will come into play as well.  As long as coach Clint Sargent sticks to what he learned from coach Nagy, and keeps the "try and outscore everyone" mentality, WSU will be scoring plenty of points, and giving plenty up.  Last year they were 33rd in Kenpom ADJO, and 348th in ADJD.  Quite the delta. Kentucky comes in with a clean slate.  Gone are the days of Cal and the one and dones.  Only four underclassmen are even on the roster.  The upperclassmen that are coming in may be new faces in Lexington, but they are hardly strangers to DI basketball.  WSU will play at a speed that fits right in to what coach Pope wants to do, and the Kats will get out and run all night.  100+ from Kentucky is expected, just need WSU and their pace to keep up. 

Probably a couple more in the morning.

Good luck STL 

Great write ups 

@STLTarHeels

 Thanks for the informative write up. Info like this is greatly appreciated. 

Awesome….have a great year 

Brown -3

Siena brought in Syracuse legend Gerry McNamara to lead the program, after many years on the 'Cuse bench as an assistant.  And while he could bring back the excitement to Loudonville, it could take a bit, as they are starting over.  As we know from above, that doesn't play well with me early in the year. As for the Bears from Brown, they return 3 guys that started for them last year, in a year that they really got things going late (winning 7 of last 8), and were a couple missed free throws away from dancing in March. Coach Martin has 6 guys back that contributed on a nightly basis last year, and that continuity will pay its dividends tonight, in my opinion. Owusu-Anane should be the focal point of the offense, and should clean up on the glass, while All-Ivy guard Kino Lilly Jr looks to jump right back in off his 19ppg season a year ago.  

Western Kentucky -1

Although this is Hank Plonas first DI head coaching job, he's a proven winner.  He won 225 of 259 games at Indian Hills Community College before joining the bench of coach Steve Lutz at WKU.  Now that Lutz has moved on to Power 4 ball, its time for Plona to shine.  He gets 11 guys back that contributed to last years 22 win team, and a CUSA championship is in their sights.  Wichita St is looking to rebound from a not so flattering season, finishing 15-19.  They do bring back 5 of their top 7 scorers from last season, and have some length that will cause issues for some teams.  That being said, I don't think the Hilltoppers will continue to play the fast, uptempo offense (1st in ADJ tempo last year), and the Shockers won't be able to keep up.

I don't know if I'll have time to get write ups in for the rest so heres my full card:

College of Charleston -2

Santa Clara -1

Texas AM -4

Wright St/Kentucky Over 160.5

Brown -3

Western Kentucky -1

Quinnipiac +8

Mississippi Valley St/Iowa St Over 132

Gonzaga/Baylor Over 156.5

GL today everyone, and enjoy 14ish hours of hoops to kick things off.  I'll hopefully be around a little this morning and later in the evening.

Bol this year 

Heels 

BOL 

GL this season STL 

Good luck  and thanks for the write ups!

GL STL