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- Thread starter ajwildcat
- Start date
oldrunner
Active member
Thanks AJ;
Looks like a good breakdown to me. The only thing I would add is that the bottom 5 are extremely hard to predict. There are just too many unknowns with so many new players and coaches. There can certainly be some surprises in there. All you have to do is look back to Randy's first year. The team was in disarray and the expectations were quite low. All we did was play hard and win. There was not a ton of highly regarded talent on that team. All I'm saying is don't write off Northern Colorado, or SUU for that matter.
Surprises in the top 5...? ISU could do a little better than expected. They have been building in all the right ways.
Can we start the season now, please?
Looks like a good breakdown to me. The only thing I would add is that the bottom 5 are extremely hard to predict. There are just too many unknowns with so many new players and coaches. There can certainly be some surprises in there. All you have to do is look back to Randy's first year. The team was in disarray and the expectations were quite low. All we did was play hard and win. There was not a ton of highly regarded talent on that team. All I'm saying is don't write off Northern Colorado, or SUU for that matter.
Surprises in the top 5...? ISU could do a little better than expected. They have been building in all the right ways.
Can we start the season now, please?
ajwildcat said:
:thumb: Nice find! I agree with virtually everything in this.
Robert Jones, 6-7 JC F, has a chance to be a real difference maker for Idaho State. He's extremely athletic and fills a position of need. He'll certainly need some JUCO deprogramming, but ISU's incredibly difficult non-conference schedule should expose everybody's weaknesses before it's over. Then we'll see who's mentally tough enough to endure. ET gets all the headlines, with some justification, but Luzcando is one of the best defenders in the league -- and had two perfect 10 for 10 shooting nights last year. Should be a fun year in the league, a lot of talent returning. Let's get started!oldrunner said:Thanks AJ;
Looks like a good breakdown to me. The only thing I would add is that the bottom 5 are extremely hard to predict. There are just too many unknowns with so many new players and coaches. There can certainly be some surprises in there. All you have to do is look back to Randy's first year. The team was in disarray and the expectations were quite low. All we did was play hard and win. There was not a ton of highly regarded talent on that team. All I'm saying is don't write off Northern Colorado, or SUU for that matter.
Surprises in the top 5...? ISU could do a little better than expected. They have been building in all the right ways.
Can we start the season now, please?
oldrunner
Active member
I watched the team practice several times over the season and three times during the summer session. Dallas is a skilled player with good moves around the basket and has a good mid range jumper. He needed to work on developing a DI body. He made steady progress with that throughout that time. Last I saw him, you could see some muscle definition. He still does not have all of the strength he should but he does have the skill level he will need to contribute well in the BSC. I think he will be the first big man off the bench. After that, I'm not sure who will be the 4th or 5th. Kiko's injuries could keep him out for the first part of the season and I don't know how ready Darling will be. He is very athletic, but very thin. It may well be a walk on to take that 4th spot. I don't think there would be a lot of pressure on the 4th or 5th big men unless there is a major injury.
That is my opinion, anyways.
That is my opinion, anyways.
oldrunner
Active member
I'm not quite as high on PSU or MSU as the writer was. PSU had a weak perimeter game and Forte, the stud, inside. He carried them at the end of the season and has now gone to graduation. I don't see any of the replacement bigs filling Forte's shoes. To get better, they will have to improve a lot on the perimeter and that is a long shot at best.
MSU has the exact opposite problem. They lost their leader and point guard. He made their team run. They may have to rely on a true freshman PG and that is a crap shoot for any team, let alone a team that struggled with their interior game, as MSU did for most of the season. They better hope that the freshman PG grows up in a hurry. He won't be playing against HS players now. There are some really good guards around the BSC.
MSU has the exact opposite problem. They lost their leader and point guard. He made their team run. They may have to rely on a true freshman PG and that is a crap shoot for any team, let alone a team that struggled with their interior game, as MSU did for most of the season. They better hope that the freshman PG grows up in a hurry. He won't be playing against HS players now. There are some really good guards around the BSC.
Thanks, ajwildcat. I'm looking forward to basketball early after reading this.
NAU has nowhere to go but up after last season's troubles. Their immense group of freshmen are now sophomores and should know the ropes a bit better. Having Neely and Martin return from injuries last season can only help.
I'm cautiously optimistic that NAU will at least be competitive next season.
NAU has nowhere to go but up after last season's troubles. Their immense group of freshmen are now sophomores and should know the ropes a bit better. Having Neely and Martin return from injuries last season can only help.
I'm cautiously optimistic that NAU will at least be competitive next season.
oldrunner
Active member
I agree that NAU will be better this year. I'm expecting a turnaround for UNC, and SUU as well. I just don't know how fast those turnarounds might come. It took ISU a few years to bring it back to where it is from the bottom. When our rebirth happened, we weren't so far down.
oldrunner
Active member
That hurts, but you do have the two returning from last years injuries.MT Jack said:
Those are two very athletic guys. The freshman can get a RS year in. That helps a lot for the future. Your guard could lose a year, which would really suck. We have a guy in that same circumstance. You just don't wish that on anybody. I can remember one year that we finished the season with 5 guards starting. It's interesting, but it still sucks. :doh:
oldrunner
Active member
The problems experienced lately by NAU, UNC, and PSU have less to do with lack of talent, more to do with lack of chemistry/leadership. SUU's issues were all about lack of talent. That said, those teams that deal with those issues the best will improve the fastest. A good recruiter can go out and find enough talent, but it takes a lot to find and develop the leadership needed to develop the kind of chemistry and teamwork needed to truly contend.
Like I have said before, here at WSU, we are spoiled. Even in the years when we lack talent, we still have the other elements needed to contend. It's recruiting, and it's cultivating the culture.
Like I have said before, here at WSU, we are spoiled. Even in the years when we lack talent, we still have the other elements needed to contend. It's recruiting, and it's cultivating the culture.
oldrunner
Active member
Having watched UND since they entered the league, I have a hard time seeing how they will be better than UM. UM has a better guard line and depth at guard. Neither one of them has much in the post this year. When I factor coaching into the equation, UND finishes no better than 3rd. It's not that I don't like Hooker, I do. However, I don't see him as the best guard in the league. He is somewhere between 4th and 6th best. UM has three guys who are as good or better. Senglin may well be the best and Hall at MSU has to be in the conversation. Hooker stands out on that team because they have little else. To some extent, the same could be said of Hall on MSU's team. I haven't even talked about UI's team and their top guard. I can see UND finishing anywhere from 3rd to 7th. You can feed my words back to me if it turns out any different.thescout said:
Webergrad02
Active member
Here is another predicting us at the top. Interesting that he has the Griz at 4th. I hope the players aren't busy reading all the press clippings and come out hungry. Reminds me a little of two years ago when we were picked by everyone to win and we came out as the cocky, chest pounding team with no chemistry and leadership.
http://collegebasketball.nbcsports.com/2016/10/03/big-sky-conference-preview-weber-state-headlines-but-league-is-strong-up-top/
http://collegebasketball.nbcsports.com/2016/10/03/big-sky-conference-preview-weber-state-headlines-but-league-is-strong-up-top/
oldrunner
Active member
webergrad02 said:
I don't know what parallel universe NBC Sports is living in but there is no way, IMO, that UND finishes the season ahead of UM. It is more realistic to switch those two around in that ranking. The one thing that I agree with in that piece is that the BSC will be very competitive for the top 4 or 5 teams. After that, there are just too many questions. With all of that in mind, an injury here or there could change everything. Most teams in the BSC are not deep enough to withstand an injury to a key player.
thescout said:
I couldn't find anyone on NAU's roster with the last name White? Did you mean JoJo Anderson by chance?
On the plus side, NAU has Neely and Martin back. On the negative side, Torry Johnson will be hard to replace.
As I said, there's nowhere to go but up after last season.
Yes I meant Anderson....who I hear has a knee issue going on. UND has a much easier BSC schedule this season vs last season plus top 7 scorers back.. Montana will miss Breunig in a big way....like Bolomboy BSC teams often did some doubling on these guys at the expense of covering other players. Weber has a couple proven low post options Montana does not. Idaho looks rock solid also
oldrunner
Active member
Yes, Montana's attack will have changed. They will often be in a 4 guard lineup. However, that does not mean that they will be less productive. They have three very good guards and a 6'5'' wing type player who had been rated a 3 star coming out of high school. Their post play may not be as big of an issue as you would think. They are going to be very quick and athletic. They may make up the difference in rebounding by turning other teams over on a regular basis. Shooting and scoring should not be an issue. The way to beat UM this year is to not turn the ball over and out rebound them. I think we can do that. I'm not so sure about UND's ability to do that. UI has a better chance of doing it than UND. UND will win some games, but enough to contend? UM has a better chance of that and UI as well.thescout said:
