UK's OK, but which teams should panic?
Posted: Monday, November 17, 2008 11:19 AM
Filed Under:
Links roundups
DON’T PANIC.
The “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” has it right. One can’t afford to lose one’s head at a time like this.
Of course, the book is referring to space travel, planets blowing up, coping with aliens and such. I’m merely focused on the early season college basketball games. Losses in November aren’t the end of the world, no matter how dire the situation may seem after a fun opening weekend.
We saw as much last season when Kentucky lost to Gardner-Webb in its second game. The ‘Cats eventually recovered (though they were 6-7 at one point), made a run at the SEC East crown and once again made the NCAA tournament.
Wait, Kentucky lost again this year? Other Big Dance hopefuls Alabama, Washington and Providence did the same? And others like Wisconsin, Kansas and UNLV all struggled? Yeesh. Maybe it is time to panic – at least for a few teams.
The sky is falling!
Alabama’s Mark Gottfried may want to freshen up that résumé. The Tide turned the ball over in the final 10 seconds at home and lost to Mercer. It’s the second straight season Alabama’s lost to an Atlantic Sun team (Belmont last season).
Even with a healthy Ronald Steele and a McDonald’s All-American in freshman JaMychal Green, the Tide can’t pull off a win? Ouch.
Yes, fans are focusing on the Crimson Tide’s BCS aspirations right now, but this won’t help Gottfried’s hot seat status.
"This one sits squarely on my shoulders," Gottfried told the Birmingham News. "It's my responsibility to have our team playing better. The effort was there, but our execution in a lot of areas was not."
‘Bama has missed the last two NCAA tournaments. A trip to the Maui Invitational and home games against Texas A&M and Georgia Tech still remain before SEC play begins. If the defense doesn’t improve, the Tide is toast.
Washington has the same issues. A 67-63 loss to Portland won’t do any wonders for Seattle’s sports doldrums. Losing to a team that won nine games last season? Ouch. The Huskies’ issues can be summed up thusly:
Opening on the road. Always a bad idea for a BCS team.
Jon Brockman wasn’t involved early. He took one shot in the first 12 minutes when the Huskies fell behind 28-16. He finished with 30 points and 14 rebounds. Let the All-America candidate carry the load.
Isaiah Thomas will be better. Chalk it up to freshman nerves. UW’s point guard played just 15 minutes. The more he’s on the court, the better.
I’d like to say the Huskies will rebound, but I’m not sold. Lorenzo Romar’s teams usually suck on defense (progressively worse the last three seasons; see here, here and here), but could usually stay in games because of their offense. If Brockman’s not getting any help AND Washington doesn’t get him the ball in times of need, the Huskies aren’t going to be a player in the Pac-10, let alone the Big Dance.
Worrisome, but not the end
It’s déjà vu all over again in Lexington. Kentucky’s 111-103 loss to VMI – the new millennium’s answer to Loyola-Marymount – was a surprise in that the ‘Cats got caught up in running with the Keydets. Only one team had more possessions per game last season than VMI, which wants to run, run, run. Not playing your style and committing too many turnovers never helps.
Maybe more aggravating to ‘Cats fans is that VMI lost its next game to Virginia, which is picked to finish in the ACC’s cellar. So why shouldn’t Kentucky panic? Two things: Jodie Meeks and that huge roster.
Meeks’ 39 point-night signals UK has another genuine scoring threat to pair with Patrick Patterson. Expect those two to play off each other more and more. Kentucky’s 20-man roster isn’t a good thing. Sure, it gives coach Billy Gillispie options, but once he settles on an 8- or 9-man rotation, it should create more cohesion among the players.
Losing to Portland – which hasn’t been to the Big dance since ’96 and won nine games last year – is embarrassing, but that’s about it.
Wisconsin need a big three from Marcus Landry, then a big defensive play moments later to seal a 68-62 home win against Long Beach State.
Normally, close calls with the Badgers wouldn’t bother me. But when a Bo Ryan team allows an opponent to make 48 percent of its attempts, that’s an issue.
Wisconsin’s been among the nation’s top 10 most efficient defensive teams four of the last five years. If the defense isn’t up to its usual standard, the Badgers will be in more close games than they can handle.
Don’t worry, you weren’t going dancin’ anyway
Keno Davis didn’t win his Providence debut. Don’t sweat it, Keno. The Friars are playing against a stacked deck (the loaded big East) this season. A .500 record would be gravy.
Same goes for Craig Robinson. His Oregon State debut was a big thud against Howard, but for a team that was winless in the Pac-10 last season, getting to 10 wins would be a big deal.
After two sub-.500 seasons, Utah won 18 games last season. But losing to D-II school Southwest Baptist at home? Ouch. Maybe the Utes will just hope for a BCS bowl.
