2012-2013 College Basketball Game Discussion Thread

[Built Ford Tough]

Season got underway today so I figured it would be time to make a new thread for anybody who wants to post their thoughts about any college games they are watching, even if the thread last season was mainly me talking to myself.

 

I didn't watch the game, but McAdoo had a monster game for UNC today. I don't recall the exact numbers (and don't feel like looking it up) but it was something like 24/15 on over 50+ shooting. I'm expecting a huge season for him this season as the undisputed number one option for the Heels.

 

I wish I could've saw it to see how Paige looked, though. He has some huge shoes to fill as Marshall was arguably the best point guard in college basketball last year, but I think he is going to be a very good player for this team. Crappy thing is that with my schedule, I probably won't be able to see many UNC games so I likely won't see a lot of him.

[Built Ford Tough]

UNC didn't look very good in the first half against Florida Atlantic. If it wasn't for all the turnovers which led to run out opportunities and 2nd chance points, the Heels would probably be down going into the half instead of up 8th. Their half court offense does not look good at all and their free throw shooting has been absolutely abysmal (4-13 or smething like that). If McAdoo doesn't get a touch, this team really labours on offense in the half court.

 

Defensively they've done a nice job letting Greg Gantt get his (13 points on 5-9 shooting) while limiting the rest of the team (10 points on 2-18 shooting). Tokoto lost track of Gantt on a couple of occasions which resulted in wide open 3's, but other than that I like what I've seen from them defensively. Then again, it is Florida Atlantic, far from an offensive juggernaut.

 

I'm not going to jump to any conclusions based on one half of the 2nd game of the season, but this team has a lot of work to do if they want to be a factor come March. Of Course, that was expected as it is widely known that this is more of a rebuilding year for UNC anyways.

[Built Ford Tough]

UNC looked better in the 2nd half, but I still question how much offense they are going to get outside of McAdoo when games slow down and they can't get out in transition. They are going to really need Bullock, Hairston and Paige to be consistent knock down shooters because otherwise teams are just going to clog the paint in order to limit McAdoo.

 

They did play a lot better in the 2nd half, though. I liked what I saw from Joel James. I think he will be a nice presence down low for them in the future, although I'm not sure if that will be late in this season or if we will have to wait until next year.

 

I like the core that they have in place with Paige, James, Johnson and Tokoto. I don't see any of them leaving until at least their junior seasons and will grow together to form the nucleus of this team for the next few years.

[Built Ford Tough]

Marcus Smart is a stud.

 

A lot of the talk when it comes to the freshman class this year is about Muhammad, Kentucky's 3 (Noel, Poythress and Goodwin), Anderson and the 3 Wolfpack (Warren, Lewis and Purvis) but Smart can ball. I think he has the potential to have just as big of an impact as any freshman this season.

 

In this game he has been money with his jumper and nobody should be surprised with his athleticism. That finish he had on the ally-oop was nasty and he had an awesome chase down block as well. He really is dominating this game and not only on offense, but completely taking Lorenzo Brown out of the game defensively as well.

 

Also need to give credit to the Cowboys' defense as well. I mentioned Smart really bothering Brown, but they are doing a great job on CJ Leslie as well. Purvis has gotten some looks and they need to do a better job on him, but if given the choice between having Leslie and Brown go a combined 1-8 and have more turnovers than points and have Purvis put up 12 points on 9 shots, I'd take the latter every time.

 

Pretty much the perfect 1st half for OK State. The lead is only 10 so they'll need to keep it up if they want to pull off the upset because this Wolfpack team has the talent to go off at any moment.

[DunkinDerozan]

Where do you watch these games?

[Built Ford Tough]

Where do you watch these games?

 

http://www.thefirstrow.eu/sport/basketball.html

 

 

North Carolina looks like garbage against Butler so far. I've only seen about 6 minutes or so, but there wasn't a single positive I saw from them. Sloppy turnovers, stupid fouls and forced shots on offense. It isn't just the freshman either, as I saw Strickland try and go 1-5, McAdoo took a ridiculous running hook in the paint and Bullock with an unforced turnover with 2 seconds left in the first half.

 

I never thought the Heels were a top 10 team in the country and that their 9th ranking was pretty generous, but I didn't think they'd be dominated like this against any team in Maui, no disrespect inteded to Butler or any of the other teams in the tournament.

[DunkinDerozan]

http://www.thefirstrow.eu/sport/basketball.html

 

Thanks. I already knew about this website, just wasn't sure if you were subscribed to some college basketball network or anything.

[Built Ford Tough]

Thanks. I already knew about this website, just wasn't sure if you were subscribed to some college basketball network or anything.

 

I probably would if I knew of any that would allow me to watch games whenever I wanted. If there was a college basketball version of NBA League Pass Broadband, I'd buy it for sure.

 

 

I don't know if it is because he is still getting in game shape or what, but Muhammad doesn't look anything like the explosive athlete he was billed to be in high school. He is playing way too fast and out of control in this game, but even in the Georgia game where he dropped 21 he never really made any play where I thought that he was "wow, that was an explosive move". He looked a lot more methodical and cerebral in his approach like a Manu Ginobili than a super athletic wing like a Dwyane Wade, who he drew a lot of comparisions to. It will be interesting to see what kind of bounce and explosion he shows later in the season when he is in better shape and has adjusted to the college game.

 

There is something about Kyle Anderson that I love to watch. SlowMo is a perfect nickname for him as he definitely looks like he is moving in slow motion, yet he still manages to always get to where he wants to go on the floor. I love watching him get a defensive board, slowly weave his way up the court and make a pin point bounce pass for an easy basket for a teammate.

[Built Ford Tough]

UCLA has looked awful to start the season.

 

Got beat down by Georgetown, squeaked past UC Irvine by 1 point in overtime and now they lose by two to Cal Poly after blowing a 17 point lead with 10 minutes left in the game.

 

The best part of the collapse was that the refs bailed them out by calling a travelling violation on Cal Poly after a missed Drew II free throw when it could've easily been a foul on Muhammad instead. On the ensuing inbounds play they get a wide open look under the hoop for Adams who tied the game.

 

Then on the next Cal Poly possession Powell intentionall fouled a Mustang thinking that UCLA was still trailing. He sinks two free throws to put them back up 2, UCLA comes down the floor and Muhammad and Drew both nearly turn the ball over. Adams ends up missing a tough 3 at the buzzer and the collapse was complete.

[Real Deal]

UCLA hasn't done much to impress me so far...I agree, but I did notice a lot of people were already being hard on Shabazz. He didn't shoot well in that game against Cal Poly, but he did other things to win (crashed the glass, played some defense). Not that he reminds me of Kobe, but that's what players have to do when they aren't hitting any of their shots, like Bryant in Game 7 vs. Boston, and Muhammad did just that.

 

Losing to Cal Poly is never good, though...came out of nowhere. I didn't watch most of the game, since I figured it would be a waste of my time, but I had to go back and see the second half after I heard about the upset.

 

--------

 

The Jayhawks aren't looking that bad, but they have me worried. I don't like how they tend to let those leads slip, and it seems like they always struggle to come out of the gates, even against teams they should really be blowing out ten minutes into the game. Look what happened when we played Chattanooga...we were down 36-28 at the half. I don't know. I had confidence in last year's team, even when most thought we would be an early elimination in the tourney (didn't expect us in the championship, but maybe the Elite Eight, at least, lol)...but this year feels different. We really miss a guy like Thomas Robinson.

 

Hopefully, Ben McLemore continues to develop, and becomes that one guy we can rally behind in big games. It would be nice to see Withey involved a bit more, but his offense is still shaky, and I'm just happy he's still our anchor on the defensive end.

[Lkr]

Our team is so bad this year

[Built Ford Tough]

Indiana's ball movement and transition offense is something else. They do an awesome job picking teams apart with their passing. Ferrell and Hulls in particular were doing a great job in all areas. It didn't matter if it was dribble penetration to find an open shooter on the perimeter (or a dump off to Zeller inside), making a crisp swing pass or a 40 foot stretch pass to Zeller streaking down the floor, both Hoosier guards were on point with their passes.

 

Speaking of Zeller, he really is something else when it comes to big men running the floor. As much as I loved watching Tyler Zeller run the floor for UNC these past few years, Cody is even better and has even better hands, which is pretty scary considering how good Tyler was at that. The way Cody is able to create seperation and beat everybody down the floor without leaking out and sacrificing defensive rebounding position is remarkable. It must be awesome to be a Hoosier point guard when they know all they have to do is get the pass in the general vicinity of Zeller and it is going to be an easy assist. Dude has ridiculous hands for a big.

 

 

For UNC, those last 3 minutes really hurt them. They did about as well as you could hope for the first 17 minutes and were answering every Indiana basket or run with one of their own but they just couldn't finish out the half and that 15-6 run is going to be a turning point in this game in my mind. It is going to absolutely crucial for UNC to get off to a fast start in the 2nd half or else I can see Indiana blowing this thing wide open. They really need Bullock to get going on offense. McAdoo had a solid 1st half and Brice Johnson gave them some awesome minutes, but they are definitely going to need Bullock to start contributing if they want to pull off the upset.

 

That was a really entertaining first half, though. Definitely the best first half I've seen so far this season.

[Paris]

how are you guys liking branden dawson? he needs to stop turning the ball over. and be more aggressive on offense. him and keith Appling are going to have to be those guys for this michigan state team this year. he's fresh off acl surgery etc. so he didn't have a summer to improve on the needed areas of his game. but still is having a great season nonetheless. can't wait to he gets better handlesand a better jumpshot. he's nba bound no doubt but if he stays for the last few college years and fixs a couple of nix in his game, we're looking at a budding all star.

 

here's a article on him

http://www.freep.com/article/20121125/SPORTS07/311250231/After-recovery-Michigan-State-s-Branden-Dawson-is-a-work-in-progress

 

Season Averages

SEASON TEAM MIN FGM-FGA FG% 3PM-3PA 3P% FTM-FTA FT% REB AST BLK STL PF TO PTS

2012-13 MSU 27.7 5.0-8.9 .565 0.0-0.1 .000 1.3-2.6 .500 6.1 1.7 0.9 2.6 1.7 2.6 11.3

2011-12 MSU 20.6 3.5-6.1 .577 0.0-0.1 .000 1.3-2.2 .594 4.5 0.9 0.8 0.9 1.3 1.4 8.4

 

there's his stats for last year and this year.

Edited November 29, 2012 by Paris

[Cobb]

Turn on my TV to the Notre Dame up thirteen on Kentucky. Something isn't right here.

[Built Ford Tough]

Duke has gotten off to a ridiculous start. It isn't even December yet and they've beaten:

 

Kentucky

Louisville

VCU

Minnesota

 

all on neutral courts.

 

They've also got a win against OSU at home.

 

I absolutely hate the team, but even I can give them some serious props for that. That is basically a season's worth of marquee non-conference wins in a single month.

[DunkinDerozan]

Duke has gotten off to a ridiculous start. It isn't even December yet and they've beaten:

 

Kentucky

Louisville

VCU

Minnesota

 

all on neutral courts.

 

They've also got a win against OSU at home.

 

I absolutely hate the team, but even I can give them some serious props for that. That is basically a season's worth of marquee non-conference wins in a single month.

 

My uncle just passed away not long ago, and he was a huge Duke basketball fan. I was planning on cheering for them in March Madness this year, hopefully they can keep it up.

[DunkinDerozan]

Baylor vs. Kentucky is on CBS right now. I'm going to check it out and see how Noel looks.

Edited December 1, 2012 by DunkinDerozan

[Built Ford Tough]

Awesome day of college basketball.

 

Baylor and Kentucky now

Oklahoma Sate and Virgina Tech in about 15 minutes.

UNC playing in about 4 hours.

Then to finish the day we have SDSU and UCLA.

 

(these are just the games I'll likely be watching, not what I consider the best games of the day)

 

Not to mention OSU, Duke, Creighton, Gonzaga, Michigan, Arizona and Indiana are all playing throughout the day as well.

 

I definitely see myself vegging out and watching college ball all day today.

 

 

Baylor vs. Kentucky is on CBS right now. I'm going to check it out and see how Noel looks.

 

You probably won't come away too impressed. His role on the team is basically that of a lesser version of Davis last year in that he doesn't really do a whole lot on offense and makes most of his impact on the defensive end. However, he isn't the same defensive monster that Davis was last year so he doesn't stand out as much.

 

Not that he isn't a good player because he is, but I imagine you will notice somebody like Archie Goodwin or Alex Poythress (assuming he shows up since he has a tendency to disappear for games at a time) more.

[Built Ford Tough]

Kentucky has some serious issues to work out that will be interesting to watch as the season goes on.

 

Can Goodwin develop as a point guard and effectively run the offense? Or will he always be a 2 guard masquerading as a point? Will Harrow step up and be that guy which would allow Goodwin to shift to the 2 and do what he does best, which is score the ball?

 

Where will the easy baskets come from? Noel isn't polished enough to dump the ball to and expect a basket and Wiljter is strickly a stretch 4.

 

Who is the leader of this team? When things are going rough, like in this game against Baylor, who gathers the team and settles everybody down? Even though they've also been young under Cal, they had experienced upper classmen like Darius Miller and Josh Harrellson. They don't have that guy this season.

 

I'm hardly a Kentucky fan, but it will be fun to see how they team progresses as the season goes along. I won't deny that it will be nice to see a possible down year for Kentucky because I fully expect next season to see them as a top ranked team yet again with their ridiculous recruiting class (which could get even scarier if they get Wiggins).

 

 

On to the 2nd half of the Cowboys game. Looking forward to getting my 2nd look at Marcus Smart. As I mentioned above, I think he is an absolute stud and is going to be an awesome player.

[Built Ford Tough]

UCLA sucks. A lot of people, myself included, are looking like idiots thinking that this team was a top 10 team in the country prior to the season. Sure, they are young but I haven't seen a single thing that would suggest to me that they are going to all of a sudden become a threat in the Pac-12, let alone for a National Championship. They're lucky to have beaten a very mediocore (and probably even worse than that without Kabongo) Texas team yesterday.

 

Then again, I should've known better than to think a team with Lary Drew starting on it would be worth a damn.

 

 

Speaking of making me look like an idiot, Anthony Bennet is doing a great job of that as well. I figured he would be a good player in a year or two, but I definitely didn't think he would become the best player on the UNLV team, the best freshman in the country and be playing like an All-American. After his 25/13 game today against California, he is averaging 19.5 ppg and 8.3 rpg on about 55 FG% and 37 3PT%.

[Built Ford Tough]

Butler with their 2nd huge upset of the season. They just beat Indiana by 2 in overtime. Really though, the Hoosiers were lucky the game even went to overtime as it took a perfect storm of calls going their way, Bulldog players fouling out (Roosevelt Jones, who was having an awesome game, and Andrew Smith), some poor late execution from Butler (a blown bunny and a turnover) that even enabled them to be in the position for Yogi to knock down the game tying 3 with 5 seconds left (great play, though). Butler was definitely the better team in regulation, although overtime could've gone either way. Barlow ended up hitting a floater in the lane with 2 seconds left and Hulls missed a half court heave that would've won the game.

 

It was pretty awesome to see, although it was bittersweet since it likely means Duke is going to be the new #1 seed. Ugh.

 

 

Looking forward to the Florida/Zona matchup tonight. Should be a great game.

[Built Ford Tough]

Looking forward to the Florida/Zona matchup tonight. Should be a great game.

 

And it definitely was. Wow.

 

Florida really should've won that game but give full credit to the Wildcats for their late run to steal this game right out of the Gators' hands. Their pressure late really rattled Florida and won them the game. The Gators just fell apart down the stretch. They could barely get the ball inbounds and when they did, they threw it into dead zones and because of that they would turn the ball over. The one time they execute an inbounds play and get teh ball to Boynton, a 90% FT shooter, he misses the front end of the 1-and-1.

 

I know it is a cliché but Florida played not to lose rather than to win. I'm sure the electric atmosphere played a part in their falling apart, but that really shouldn't be an excuse since this is such a veteran team.

 

Give full credit to Zona, though. They hung around all game long and always kept the game in striking distance and that enabled them to steal this one. Big win for this young Wildcat team.

 

A fantastic game to watch. Between this game, the Butler upset of Indiana and Trey Burke's performance against West Virgina, this was an awesome day of college basketball.

[DunkinDerozan]

I'm going down to South Carolina in March with my mom and I think I'm going to see how far out of the way it would be to stop somewhere in North Carolina to watch a college basketball game. I'm thinking probably Duke as long as its not too far out of the way.

[Built Ford Tough]

UNC with a brutal loss to Texas and will finally be knocked out of the top 25. Even their name power, which is probably the only thing keeping them in the top 25 because it sure as hell isn't based on their play, won't be able to save themselves after that pathetic loss.

 

James Michael McAdoo has been a huge disappointment so far. I, like many Tar Heel fans, thought he was held back by the frontcourt depth of last year but after seeing his play so far this season, that really doesn't seem to be the case. Sure, his numbers (15/8 on 48%) may look solid on paper but he has been a dud in pretty much every game against even a half decent team.

 

vs. Butler - 10 points, 5 rebounds and 7 turnovers on 45%

vs. Indiana - 10 points, 9 rebounds and 1 turnover on 27%

vs. East Carolina - 19 points, 7 rebounds and 1 turnover on 36%

vs. Texas - 14 points, 9 rebounds and 5 turnovers on 36%

 

He hasn't taken this team by storm like expected of him. Not to say that UNC's struggles are squarely on his shoulders because everybody from Bullock to Hairston to Paige to Strickland haven't played up to expectations this season but as the marquee player on that team he needs to be better.

[Built Ford Tough]

UCLA sucks. A lot of people, myself included, are looking like idiots thinking that this team was a top 10 team in the country prior to the season. Sure, they are young but I haven't seen a single thing that would suggest to me that they are going to all of a sudden become a threat in the Pac-12, let alone for a National Championship. They're lucky to have beaten a very mediocore (and probably even worse than that without Kabongo) Texas team yesterday.

 

Then again, I should've known better than to think a team with Lary Drew starting on it would be worth a damn.

 

And whattaya know, I look like an idiot again by jumping the gun on a very young Bruins team. Impressive overtime win against Mizzou tonight. They looked like a vastly different team compared to the last time I watched them, which was the Texas game that resulted in me making this post that I am quoting. Much better ball movement, a lot crisper offensive execution and playing at a faster pace has really got this team playing well.

 

It also doesn't hurt that Muhammad is finally in shape and is averaging 25 ppg on 54.4 FG% and 50% from deep over his last 4. He is still a complete blackhole (he has taken 66 shots and has just 5 assists in his last 4 games) but at least now he is scoring the ball efficiently unlike earlier in the year. It is definitely no coincidence that UCLA is looking a lot better now that Bazz is in shape and producing.

 

They still have a lot of work to do, but they have made tremendous strides since the last tiem I saw them play.

 

At least I can still take solace in the fact that Phil Pressey dominated Larry Drew tonight. He dropped 19 points and 19 dimes (would've been 20 if not for a blown wide open layup) tonight.