College Basketball 11/13-11/15

[Crimson's Ghost]

Pitt  #30 KenPom       Gonzaga (in Japan) Friday 7:00 ESPN 
Pitt opens the year with quite a challenge as they face top ten Gonzaga. The gimmick of this game is that it will be on a military base in Japan.  Obviously it's a long haul, but a cool experience for the players.  Jamie Dixon and Mark Few are two of the most successful active coaches without a trip to the final four.  Both programs are solid, but obviously Gonzaga has a better squad on paper to start the year. Their front line of Karnowski (7-1) Sabonis (6-11) and Wiltjer (6-10) is arguably the best in the country and will be tough for the Panthers combat. Pitt's strength rest with their junior trio of forwards, Mike Young, Jamel Artis, and Sheldon Jeter.  The Panthers also have the rarity of a four year starting point guard to lead their team.  Pitt is not a great team this year, but they are better than last year.  A return trip to the Big Dance should happen, and if they could pull off a win - they would be well on their way to making that happen. 

Penn State #119 KenPom    VMI Saturday 1:00
Penn State should be able to start the year with a win over VMI.  The Keydets only won 11 games last year. I'm still unsure of what Penn State will be able to do this year without DJ Newbill.  They return just about everything else, but that group only managed to win four conference games with Newbill.  Unless Shep Garner takes a big leap forward and Reaves is the real deal, this is a pretty average team. 

Duquesne #129 KenPom    Seton Hill Friday 7:00
Duquesne has an opportunity to take a step forward this season. They return a good backcourt with Micah Mason and Derrick Colter, and welcome in some quality transfers.  Quality post play and good defense are two things they need to develop to be a better team this season.  They shouldn't see much trouble from DII Seton Hill Friday. 

Saint Francis #277 KenPom  @ Notre Dame Friday 7:00
SFU heads to South Bend to take on a very talented Notre Dame Friday. It will be a tough task, but one they may benefit from as the season goes on.  The Flash have been competitive the past two seasons, and they would like nothing more than to keep it going in 2016. Malik Harmon and Ronnie Drinnon are two good players. 

[konjo78]

Whats the excuse this year if and when dixon and Pitt misses or exits early in the tourney????

If he misses it again i have 0 idea how you can not fire him. He is a great guy but Pitts level of basketball has just gone down the last 5 years to an embarrassing level

[Crimson's Ghost]

Pitt doesn't have an ultra high ceiling this year. They are picked 10th out of 15 in the ACC. I think they'll make the tournament and win a game and probably dip out in the second round. Next year when this junior class are seniors is the year Pitt should have some legitimate success.

Dixon would really have to tank to get fired any time soon. It just is what it is. He's been very successful, he's well liked, runs a clean program. It would take a lot for him to get fired.

[konjo78]

Crimson's Ghost:
Well Pitt probably shouldn't have lost to Hawaii, but that's hardly grounds for dismissal for a very good coach like Jamie Dixon. Most Pitt fans I know, and myself including, expect big things behind this five man sophomore class. Thought maybe they would be an 8/9 seed again this year, maybe jump to a 4/5 seed next year, and be a top 8 team in 2016/17 season. That's the plan right now.



Boy have expectations changed after 1 year.... still happy to see pitt fans have goggles on. I remember the years they came i every year as a top 4 seed. Now we are a bubble team and we "hope" to get better.

Dixon is a great coach but he and pitt need some new blood. They have stalled out

[Crimson's Ghost]

Haha, yeah a year ago at this time I didn't think Pitt would miss the tournament, but it happened. Johnson's suspension, Wright never got any better, and Newkirk took a step back.  Three things we all thought would happen just never came to fruition. I appreciate you digging up something from 12 months ago, nice work. But the expectations I pointed out there for next season haven't really changed, and realistically this season they aren't too far off.  They'll be a tournament team.  I was thinking a 7-10 seed, but Dixon's a good enough coach he could get them to a 4-5 or seed.

They just didn't have the depth last year, but they do have more depth this year on paper.  They are still picked tenth in the league, so they do have a lot to prove.  They managed to destroy North Carolina last season, and UNC is preseason top 5 this season, so I do think they have some optimism to point to.  They cut the dead weight like Randall, Uchebo, and Haughton and added some more useful pieces to the team this season like Nelson-Ododa, Sterling Smith, and Rafael Maia. Freshmen Cam Johnson and Damon Wilson should also help.


Like I said, they aren't going to fire Dixon unless he really drives the ship into the ground. It's not how Pitt will handle Dixon.  He's earned the right to have some time to figure things out, his assistants have not.  It's probably time to bring in some new help on the bench.

They probably won't beat Gonzaga on Friday, but that won't be the end of their season.  We'll have to see how they respond. 

[konjo78]

Not we, i definitely pointed out at things happening similar to what they did last year.

4 and 5 seed is a huge difference from 7-10. What happens next year? Is 4-5 the new goal for seniors that were expected top 10 or will it still be that 7-10 bubble. Crimson you stated this is going to be one of dixons best classes and its been a huge bust.

[Crimson's Ghost]

I guess we'll have to see what happens.

[Crimson's Ghost]

[table][tr][td]Kentucky[/td]
[td]8/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Duke[/td]
[td]17/2[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Maryland[/td]
[td]9/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]North Carolina[/td]
[td]10/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Virginia[/td]
[td]12/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Kansas[/td]
[td]14/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Michigan State[/td]
[td]18/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Arizona[/td]
[td]25/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]California[/td]
[td]25/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Gonzaga[/td]
[td]25/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Villanova[/td]
[td]25/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Iowa State[/td]
[td]28/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Wichita State[/td]
[td]28/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]UConn[/td]
[td]35/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Indiana[/td]
[td]40/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Michigan[/td]
[td]40/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Oklahoma[/td]
[td]40/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Butler[/td]
[td]50/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Louisville[/td]
[td]55/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Texas[/td]
[td]60/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Florida State[/td]
[td]70/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Georgetown[/td]
[td]70/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Purdue[/td]
[td]75/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]LSU[/td]
[td]85/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Notre Dame[/td]
[td]85/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Utah[/td]
[td]85/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Wisconsin[/td]
[td]85/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]NC State[/td]
[td]90/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Baylor[/td]
[td]100/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Syracuse[/td]
[td]100/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Cincinnati[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Dayton[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Florida[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Miami, Fl.[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Ohio State[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Oregon[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Providence[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]San Diego State[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Texas A&M[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]UCLA[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Vanderbilt[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]West Virginia[/td]
[td]110/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Georgia[/td]
[td]125/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Iowa[/td]
[td]175/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Pittsburgh[/td]
[td]200/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Boise State[/td]
[td]220/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Illinois[/td]
[td]220/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Rhode Island[/td]
[td]220/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Tulsa[/td]
[td]220/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Xavier[/td]
[td]220/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]UNLV[/td]
[td]250/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Alabama[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Arizona State[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Auburn[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]BYU[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Marquette[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Memphis[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Old Dominion[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Ole Miss[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]South Carolina[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]UAB[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]VCU[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Valparaiso[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Field (Any Other Team)[/td]
[td]300/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Arkansas[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Belmont[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Clemson[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Colorado[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Davidson[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]George Washington[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Illinois State[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Kansas State[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Minnesota[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Miss State[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Missouri[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Northern Iowa[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Oklahoma State[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Oregon State[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Richmond[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]St. John's[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Stanford[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Stephen F Austin[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Tennessee[/td]
[td]500/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Buffalo[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Cal Irvine[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Central Michigan[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]LaSalle[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Louisiana Tech[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Nebraska[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]New Mexico State[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Northwestern[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Penn State[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Saint Mary's[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]TCU[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Temple[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]USC[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]UTEP[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Wake Forest[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr]
[tr][td]Washington[/td]
[td]1000/1[/td][/tr][/table]
Courtesy: VegasInsider.com
If you were a betting person, who would you take? Give me 5 teams/bets that you would put money on.

[konjo78]

Kentucky, duke, kansas, michigan state and louisville for my upset value pick

[DragonsDoExist]

Heels!!!