Post-Election Hoops!

And we are baaaaack after the election extravaganza...

Watch out for the Wildcats!
Both the Arizona and Kentucky Wildcats may surprise people this year. Both teams were on a collision course at the Final Four a few years ago, but they both got stuck in the Elite 8, with Roy's Kansas taking out Arizona and D-Wade taking out Kentucky. They haven't recovered since it seems. As you may recall that year they were the top two teams but the silly NCAA selection cmte had them meeting in the National Semifinal instead of the Final. This prompted a change in the way teams are seated, so the national #1 and #2 are now projected to meet in the final instead of the semifinal (duh!)

Kentucky's freshmen are severly underrated. The 2006 class is so loaded that players that would normally be considered top 10 talent in other classes are considered top 50 talent here. This will benefit these teams as they are less likely to bolt for the NBA after one year since the draft will be loaded with the likes of Oden, Durant, Billy Walker (expected to debut December 16 this year with Huggins State). Both teams have a candidate for the "Tyrus Thomas of this year" award: Perry Stevenson of Kentucky and Jordan Hill of Arizona. Both were under-rated by the experts for different reasons: Stevenson was way too skinny (even though he averaged a triple double in HS (blocks included)), and Jordan Hill had just two years of organized basketball experience. Jasper will prove to be the ultimate team player, not just a "stat-sheet staffer" as Clark Kellogg puts it. Meeks is another versatile player that compliments the other two.

Arizona seems to always be on the brink of the Final Four each year, partly because of Lute (which by the way is featured in a new IN MY OWN WORDS on FSN), partly because they are loaded with talent. Only two of the Moody Blues remain, with Salim Stoudamire, Chris Rodgers and Hot Sauce exhausting their eligibility. The remaining two members of the Moody Blues are not as ...moody, so there is hope. Shakur could still undergo the "Terry" transformation in his senior year, but Nic Wise is available to take over as soon as he gets enough games under his belt (drawstring really). Kirk Walters just needs to block and rebound, and with the emergence of Hill he can be as moody as he wants ;-) Jordan Hill has already become #3 in the big man rotation, even though the analysts had him penciled in as a redshirt-candidate. This guy is gonna be huge this year. If you don't believe me, watch the Arizona exhibition game against Victoria of Canada on one of its many reruns on Fox College Sports. Chase Budinger has been described as an athletic version of Luke Walton. While Budinger may be a bit overrated imho, he is still a big talent. A rotatation of 10+ athletic, skilled and interchangeable players is definitely a plus. The Arizona team will make history as it will be the team that plays Virginia in their first ever game at their shiny and new John Paul Jones arena. Lute Olson is either brave or crazy - that's his first regular season game - on the other side of the country playing a ribbon-cutting-ceremony game!


What to watch on TV this weekend - all times Pacific (add +3 for EST)

Friday

4:30pm-10pm Five games on ESPN FULL COURT, including Ohio State, UConn, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Iowa State hosting cupcakes!

5pm VMI - Ohio State on CSN (Comcast Sports Net) - debut of the THAD FIVE but without the injured Greg Oden

5pm Eastern Washington - Gonzaga on FCS (Fox College Sports) and regional FSNs - debut of Gonzaga-Part1. Gonzaga will add two spring transfers in mid-late December: Micah "Moody Blues" Downs and big Burgess. Make sure you watch or tape this game!. Eastern Washington's Rodney Stuckey is an NBA-caliber talent. Gonzaga may actually lose this game, since this is a local rivarly game!!! Repeats at 930pm and 1am on FCS

730pm Denver at Colorado on FCS. Lame-duck coach Ricardo Patton's first game...

5pm Classic game from 1992: BYU - Utah on BYUTV (religious channel usually available on digital cable); commercial-free game

Saturday

530am: Feature on John Wooden on PBS's Between the Lines. PBS schedule varies from station to station.

1pm Sienna at Stanford on FSN, with repeats on FCS. The debut of one of the Lopez twins. The other one is recovering from surgery/injury. I forgot who is injured.

5pm NAU at Kansas on ESPN FULL COURT. In the midst of college football craziness, ESPN PayPerView is showcasing the highly ranked 1st-round-exiters (oops! the Bill Self Jayhawks)

Sunday

Massive number of 30-minute team previews on FCS. With Bobby Cremmins back in the coaching business, FSN has gone to a single-analyst format. The last couple of years they had a committee of three (Bobby Cremins, Eddie Fogler and another dude). According to the TV schedule they have 14 of them scheduled.

4pm Arizona at Virginia on FCS. Repeats at 1130pm. The Christening of the John Paul Jones arena (pun intended!). Lute Olson is brave-crazy for doing this. Dave Leito has a chance of winning this game, no doubt assisted by the "emotionalness" of the brand new arena.

730pm Pepperdine at Washington on FCS. First of three back-to-back days with Washington games on FCS. No B-Roy, no Nate Robinson, no Spencer Hawes (injured), but look out for Q and Phil Nelson. Pepperdine as you may recall has hired the Fresno State JC coach whose offense is prominently showcased by Calipari's Memphis Tigers. This should be an up-and-down affair!

1230pm through 5pm: four games on ESPN FULL COURT

10pm Classic game on ESPN-Classic: 1983 NCAA Final, Houston vs NC State. The Jimmy V championship game!


To get the TV college basketball game available in your region, search for "college basketball" at tv.yahoo.com/advsearch. To get a listing of the 30-minute FSN previews search for "hoops preview". For CSTV classic games search for "retrovision". Search for "NCAA basketball" for well, NCAA events :)