AP Preseason 11-20

With Layla home sick I’m working from home today-working on my basketball research, that is. As a public servant, I can justify it by designating these research hours as being paid for directly by the Zahn brothers’ tax dollars. I can only assume that they find this research much more important than my regular work on finding cures for fatal neurological diseases.

Anyway, in an effort to wrap up my preseason analysis before the in-conference games begin, let’s look at 11-20. But first, some highlights since my last post:

Sunday’s UConn v Oklahoma score was 106-78!! Impressive. If there was an over, I think they might have covered. Two great quotes from OK’s coach: (1) "I told Geno (UConn’s coach) after the game that if they play like that and shoot like that they might win the men's championship." (2) "I don't think North Carolina and UConn are really close. Maybe North Carolina had a bad night and UConn had a good night, but there's a chasm between them." (UNC is the only other team to beat OK this season)

Rutgers has dropped to #15 after losses to Cal (who sat both centers) and Stanford (who lost their starting PG JJ Hones to a season ending knee injury in the first half-bad news for Stanford). Their biggest problem seems to be keeping Prince and Vaughn out of early foul trouble.

Games to watch: 12/3 UNC @ Oh St, 12/5 UMD @ Purdue, 12/7 Purdue @ ND,

11. Texas A&M (Big 12) – Big 12 defending champ is 7-0…currently at #5. I haven’t seen this team play, but I love the stats for senior Danielle Gant (5’11” G). Talk about well rounded--as a guard she’s the team’s high scorer (13.7 ppg), rebounder (8.2 rpg) and blocker, and comes in 2^nd with assists and steals. Takia Starts also deserves mention as a consistent scorer. This looks to be a stable tournament team-they have leaders and a ridiculously deep bench.

12. Vanderbilt (SEC) – Sweet 16 team from 08. Will rely on shooting %age after graduating star center. Counting on 6’ Tuomi and 6’1” Wirth to handle the inside (27.3 ppg comb)–may get them through the conference, but could prove troublesome against the NCAA field.

13. Texas (Big 12) – Currently 7-0 against meaningless teams. They have size, a seasoned point guard in Carla Cortijo (5’7”), and a scorer in Britt. Raven (G 6’). They also have a deep bench. But, I’d like to see them against Tenn and Ariz St in mid Dec before I get too excited about this team.

14. Oklahoma St (Big 12) – Lost to Duke to start the season. I still can’t figure how the tiny 5’5” Andrea Riley can score so darn many points (23.8 ppg)!

15. Virginia (ACC) – After an impressive win over Tenn, UVA has lost to ODU and Gonzaga. They could be good for some big upsets in the ACC, but I think they’ll struggle for consistency. One possible reason: 9 of the 11 Cavs with playing time this year have assist-TO ratios <= 1. Their PG-the only starter with a positive ratio-is only at 1.6.

16. Notre Dame (Big East) – Undefeated record (6-0) includes wins over Michigan St. and LSU. ND runs a quick, high-scoring offense supported by guards Ashley Barlow and Lindsay Schrader (27 ppg combined). They are not big by any measure and have a low-scoring center, but the bench is productive.

17. Arizona St (Pac-10) – Lost every game to Stanford and Cal in 2008 (0-5). Probably not a contender this year either.

18. Ohio St (Big Ten) – 6’4” center Jantel Lavender (21.7 ppg, 12.1 rpg) is the best player in the Big Ten. If the rest of the team can support her, they’ll have a chance at the conference.

19. Baylor (Big 12) – Currently over-ranked at #10. They’ll be lucky if they finish 4^th in the Big 12. Jhasmin Player (5’10” G 12 ppg) returned after missing end of 08 with torn ACL.

20. Auburn (SEC) – Now #14. With Tenn struggling, I like Auburn to top the SEC. They have a great core in DeWanna Bonner (6’4” F), Alli Smalley (5’8” G), Whitney Boddie (5’9” G--if she can keep her grades up), and Sherell Hobbs (5’11” G). Shooting 45% overall and 43% from 3 pt land this season.