Wisconsin needs to find a PG. F. A. S. T.

Posted: November 15, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Uncategorized | 4 Comments

Think hard. Really hard. What’s the one thing that Bo Ryan’s good Wisconsin teams have always had?

I’ll give you a hit. Alando Tucker. Need another? Jordan Taylor.

Yea, smart point guards.

With Josh Gasser out for the season with a torn ACL and Taylor exhausting his eligibility, the Badgers don’t have that smart point guard. It showed in a 74-56 thrashing at the hands of Florida on Wednesday night. And the game wasn’t even that close.

The numbers aren’t staggeringly bad. Through two games, Wisconsin has 18 turnovers against 26 assists. But it was clear in an admittedly hostile arena like the O’Connell Center, you need a calming presence. Gasser was that. Taylor was that. Without it, a team can give up 74.

Gasser, Tucker and Taylor were also incredibly good on-ball defenders. Taylor averaged a steal per game while Gasser was at 0.7 per game last season. Tucker averaged a little under a steal per game for his career. When you don’t have that, the opposing teams’ guards does his thing. Dre Evans scored 13 for Southeastern Louisiana in the season opener and Kenny Boynton and Mike Rosario combined for 25 points in the Gators’ win.

It’s not like the Badger could do anything about this. Gasser suffered the injury on Oct. 27. But the point is, they have no choice. Find a replacement, or the closest thing to it, or have fun losing a few games you should win.

Florida is by-and-large a good team. With proven scorers like Rosario, Boynton and Erik Murphy (24 in the win), along with a serious banger like Patric Young, they are a tough match-up for anyone.

But one thing that Bo Ryan’s best teams have had is a great point guard who can control the team in the half-court and one that can hold down the perimeter defensively. Gasser can’t be that guy this year and it’s going to have tragic consequences in B1G play if Ryan can’t find someone to replace him to some extent. Whether individually or by-committee.

2012-13 Superlatives: A bunch of “Who?” and Doug McDermott

Posted: November 9, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Forwards, Guards | Tags: , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Over the next day or so, we’re bring you a few superlatives we believe will pan out, or not. The choice is yours to  believe. Over the weekend, we’ll have our “Superlatives of the Ridiculous” up.

For now, four serious topics, with four totally subjective answers.

Most likely to win National Player of the Year

Doug McDermott, Creighton – Shocker, right? The leading returning scorer in the nation at 22.9 points per game has so much in his arsenal that it’s not fair. He can score on the inside (60.1 percent from the field), the perimeter (48.6 percent from three), can get ot the foul line (79.6 percent) and can move without the ball to get open. It’s frankly not even a tough decision. He’s a future NBA lottery pick whenever he chooses to come out for the draft and with the team he has around him, it’s fair to say the Bluejays will have no problem running the Missouri Valley Conference and a deep run in the NCAA Tournament isn’t out of the question. And we all know being on a good team just helps your cause.

Most likely to lead the nation in scoring

Frank Gaines, IPFW – WHO!? That’s the general reaction I get when I tell people this. But this dude can pour it in. He averaged 21.2 last season for the Mastadons (best mascot in sports) and has been the focal point of the Fort Wayne offensive attack for the past two seasons and knows how to handle double-teams and every team’s best defender. He’s a fifth-year senior who will contend with South Dakota State’s Nate Wolters for Summit League Player of the Year honors. Though he’s not as complete at Wolters. But he has to score to help IPFW, so score he will.

Most likely to lead the nation in 3-pointers

Kris Davis, SIU-Edwardsville – Again, WHO!?!? This one is actually easier than you would think. Davis led the nation in 3-point percentage last season but didn’t have the amount of shots to qualify at 59.8 percent (58-of-97). This season, he’s got some eyes on him, even if he does play for one of the worst teams in the Ohio Valley Conference. He’s going to get the green light on a team that doesn’t have a ton of scoring — Davis is their third-leading returning scorer at 11.6 ppg — so expect the volume to come, but does  the  percentage follow? I think so.

Most likely to lead the nation in rebounding

Dennis Tinnion, Marshall – Not so much of an unknown name. Tinnion averaged 10.2 points and 10.0 rebounds last season in his first year of Division I basketball. With DeAndre Kane back, he won’t be the focal point again and he’s got the athleticism, even at 6-8, 232 pounds, to get to balls that seem impossible. Most of rebounding is positioning and Tinnon lives under the basket. He’ll make his living cleaning glass this year.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF: Creighton University; SIU-Edwardsville

2012-13 Player Superlatives

Posted: November 7, 2012 | Author: | Filed under: Big 12, Big Ten, College Basketball | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

For the rest of the week, we’ll be picking the players, coaches and teams most likely to do some big things, or, well, bad things for the upcoming season. We’ll start today with four individuals poised for big seasons.

Most Likely to Win National Player of the Year:

Cody Zeller: Easy answer, right? He’s being heralded as the best player in the nation on the best team in the nation. As someone who grew up in southern Indiana watching and reading about all three Zeller brothers, I’m pretty excited to see what Cody is capable of this year. Simply put, he can do it all. With freshman year averages of 15.6 points per game, 6.6 rebounds and a 62 percent field goal percentage, Zeller helped bring an IU team back from the dead into one of the top 10 teams in the nation. He also averaged over a steal and a block each time out. The Hoosiers have a really deep team this year, but I still anticipate Zeller getting more touches this year. Last season he only had 11 games with more than 10 field goal attempts. This is Zeller’s award to lose, as expectations are as high as they’ve been in over 20 years in Bloomington. Creighton’s Doug McDermott and Murray State’s Isaiah Canaan are the two guys that could challenge Zeller the most.

Most Likely to Lead the Nation in Scoring:

Doug McDermott: One of the guys that could possibly give Zeller a run for his money for PoY, McDermott can flat out score. Averaging 22.9 points per game last year for Creighton, good for third in the nation, McDermott did so shooting a staggering 60 percent from the field. Plenty of people shoot 60 percent, but very few of them are also deadly 3-point shooters. The Creighton sharpshooter connected on 49 percent of his three’s last season, making 1.5 a game. Word is he’s improved his shot off the dribble, so the Missouri Valley better be on the lookout now more than ever.

Most Likely to Lead The Nation in 3-pointers:

Brady Heslip: With apologies to Indiana’s Jordan Hulls and Butler’s Rotnei Clarke, I just can’t get Heslip’s performance from last year’s NCAA Tournament for Baylor out of my head. In a second-round game against Colorado, he made nine threes and scored 27 points. For the year he made 100 of them. All this kid does is shoot three’s, but why fault him when he makes 44 percent of them? He made 2.6 three’s per contest, and only 0.6 two-point field goals. Something tells me the folks down in Waco don’t mind, though.

Most Likely to Lead the Nation in Rebounding:

Andre Roberson: Fifth in the nation in rebounding last year, I think this Colorado big man has the tools to finish out on top for 2012-13. Last season he averaged 11.1 rebounds per game, grabbing down double figure boards 26 times. He helped Colorado upset UNLV in the  first round of the NCAA Tournament last year, hauling down 16 rebounds to go with 12 points.

Images: Google Images/SI.com