NCAA Basketball Thread 2024-2025
Quick OP here just to get us up and running
Things to watch for this year:
1. Can UConn 3-peat? Hurley won back to back championships with Clingan, Tristen Newton, and company. Can he make it a third with only one returning starter?
2. Who will be this years national player of the year? Zach Edey was the best player I've seen play college basketball in my lifetime. People throw the term generational talent around alot and Edey was truly a generational talent winning back to back national player of the year awards. But, now he's gone. So who can win the award?
- the 5th year guards in Mark Sears(Alabama) and RJ Davis(UNC) are a good spot to start. Both elite shooters and engines of an offense, they should lead two really good teams.
- the 5th year centers in Hunter Dickinson(Kansas) and Ryan Kallbrenner(Creighton) are also viable options. They'll be the anchors to what should be two really good teams.
- The phenoms: Cooper Flagg(Duke), Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper(Rutgers), VJ Edgecombe(Baylor), and Tre Johnson(Texas) lead a loaded freshman class.
3. Who are the contenders?
Spoiler
Lettuce college basketball
I obviously understand that Cameron is a tough place to play, but Duke -3.5 against Auburn seems a little off.
If Broome is efficient in the half court and Auburn is able to play inside-out through him in the half court (as it has done all year), then I think Auburn wins. If Flagg is able to prevent Broome from scoring inside in the half court, then Duke probably wins. Broome is strong and has a weirdly deep bag, so I guess that I think the former is more likely than the latter. Either way, I think you will know in the first ten minutes.
Bullshit outcome of course will be if Flagg or Broome gets into early foul trouble.
Pretty sure dook was -4.5 against KU.
electric pace in the DD
at the half
41.1 possessions
Bama: 1.05 ppp
UNC: 0.83 ppp
0.22 diff
UNC has potential. Elite trio of guards for sure. But they aren't really one of the 25 best teams in the nation right now.
No, some of the players look like they’ve never played basketball before.
Hell, guards are a quartet, and right now the frosh is probably the one with the most potential.
1-14
insane
This sport is so elite right now. What a great year already.
UNC has potential. Elite trio of guards for sure. But they aren't really one of the 25 best teams in the nation right now.
they really aren't
what has been a major issue for UNC the past couple of seasons is the limitations (height wise and athletically in drives to the hoop / close offensive movements into the lane shooting to score, etc. ... in a nutshell, the 'CLOSE 2' Torvik metric) of said guards
let's compare UNC's guards to a few of the top teams' guards using this metric
UNC: 54.8%
Cadeu: 24/42
Davis: 20/38
Trimble: 24/44
KU: 61.8%
Harris: 16/26
Mayo: 11/19
Coit: 7/10
Tenn: 66%
Zeigler: 14/21
Gainey: 12/18
Mashack: 7/11
Duke: 61.3%
Foster: 13/20
Proctor: 4/9
Evans: 2/2
Iowa St.: 71.6%
Gilbert: 22/28
Lipsey: 15/22
Jones: 11/17
you get the idea
Isaiah Evans very Redickian
Purdue looking to avoid becoming the fifth Top 10 team to lose this week in their B1G opening tilt (airing on FS1)
20 mins to flip the script
at the half
34.2 possessions
Penn St.: 1.17 ppp
Purdue: 0.7 ppp
0.47 diff
Purdue w a shockingly high 38% TO%
Purdue has one player on its entire roster who can dribble a basketball. Teams just trap that one player, get the ball out of his hands, and there's nothing Purdue can do to attack because nobody else has the ability to dribble a ****ing basketball.
Hoyas up a bit in the final B12/BE Battle tilt (on ESPN2)
at the half
31.4 possessions
GU: 0.96 ppp
WVU: 0.89 ppp
0.07 diff
feels like the real regular season starts this weekend - conference action starts, the pre-season tourneys are done and the friday slate is lame.
i was wrong
more B12/BE Battle tilts this weekend
a tight one for the battle of Wisconsin (on Fox)
at the half
32.9 possessions
Wisconsin: 1.18 ppp
MU: 1.12 ppp
0.06 diff
not sure how y'alls rivalry games fared today? but I was pleased to see that the BUFFS beat up the CSU Rams at home tonight.
Believe it or not, the BUFFS had three players from last year's round of 32 team (which included winning the play-in game) drafted into the NBA. I doubt this year's team will do that well BUT at least no losing at home to our crappy instate rival.
speaking of rivalry games....New Mexico St. wins as a 20 pt dog at New Mexico!
YES! What a sick game
You didn't break up with me; I broke up with you!
GG. Not the first time Pope has outcoached Few. Gonzaga looked like **** in the 2nd half.
Really good overtime from #22 Williams
A lot of NBA scouts think he's better than Flagg. That's a big get for BYU.
