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Welcome to the NCAA Roundtable (still looking for
fans) This week we have Alexander Jefferson, Joe
Cantiello and David Snipes
Alexander Jefferson: I'd say it's pretty high up there;
maybe even the second highest of the draft. Looking just at his
production, he's averaging 18+ points and 10+ rebounds in SEC play and his
double-double streak looks pretty good. Cousins is pretty good at altering
shots and picking up blocks and he can play some defense when he wants to-
however, that's the key...can he do it consistently? But for me, what
seperates him is his athleticism. Yes, there are a lot of 'athletic' bigs
out there, but I've played a and watched a lot of basketball and I've
never seen someone as big as Cousins (6-11) who can play legitimate
defense on guards at the top of the key and stay with them. He can move
his feet, he has post moves and he's still just a freshman, the ceiling
looks pretty high.
Joe Cantiello:
DeMarcus Cousins can score. He can block. He is tenacious
under the rim. However he can be too selfish underneath the rim and will
take the bad shot in traffic instead of passing to the outsided. In short
he needs refinement. He can beat college players under the rim but I don't
think he can beat pros under the rim, even NJ Net pros. (I root for the
Nets so I can say that.)
Can he be a pro right now? Yes.
Can he thrive in the pros right now? I doubt it.
But if he can go to a decent team and if he is teachable (and right now
that is question mark) and willing to come off the bench for two years his
upside is real big. I see him possibly going late in the first round
if he goes pro.
David Snipes: Cousins is just another Kenyon Martin for Cal, he
does the exact same moves and is going to be a star- If not for Wall he
would be in the mix to be a #1 pick. I don't think he is as good a
defender as Martin and is not CLOSE to being the same shooter- but is on
his way- this time next year some NBA team is going to be REALLY happy
with him (love to see him in Milwaukee with Jennings)
2. Uconn and Louisville are both
flying far under the rader- who is going to make the biggest run in March?
Alexander: I'd say UConn, simply
because of all their talent. Yes, the record isn't impressive and they
haven't looked good. But they still hav one of the best backcourts in the
conutry with Kemba Walker and Jerome Dyson and there is plenty of other
talent there. My question would be this: you're a 4, 5 or 6 whatever seed
and you've got a game against a Big East school, who do you fear more out
of UConn and Louisville? Obviously Louisville is a good team, but there's
a reason that UConn was a top ten team. It's a longshot for them to get to
the Final Four like a lot of people were saying, but I wouldn't be
surprised if the Huskies made a run into the Sweet Sixteen.
Joe: Right now? Neither because I don't know if either team can even get into the field of 64. UConn has no spirit and frankly I think is dead in the water right now and needs t owuin the confernce tourney to get into March Madness. And Louisville needs some more signature wins. The Cardinals have games upcoming against Syracsue and Georgetown.. If they win both they coud lock up a low seed. If they win one and sweep the rest of their games they could still get a low seed. David: I think they could both get a lot better- I'd lay odd on UConn more than UL as the Rick has a tendency to tear apart his seniors when things don't go right- But both teams have a TON of depth there and while not exactly going to be playing in late march, no one wants to see those jerseys in round 1.
Alexander: I don't like their chances.
Their bigs are inconsistent, the freshman still aren't doing much, they
can't win on the road (just 1-3) and...here's the big one...they've lost
their last three at home, negating what used to be a big advantage.
Looking at their record, theyt haven't beaten a big six team above .500 in
their conference since December 1st. They 're 6-7 since the Michigan
State game, with losses at home to Wake Forest, Virginia and Georgia
Tech and on the road at College of Charleston. I doubt any of us can ever
count out a North Carolina team with a bunch of NBA prospects being
coached by Roy Williams, but it just doesn't look good at this point.
Joe: UNC is, despite some decent wins, not impressing me at all. I think they better run the table right now or they are dead.
David: Maybe- They will only go as far as Drew takes them,
but you people need to understand- they go 40% in the ACC and win 2 games
in the tourney and they are the most dangerous 5-8 seed out there and If
Ginyard gets to 100% - then no one wants them in their bracket. They are
done with the regular season title- but watch out for them in late
Feb.
4. Is Duke the best bet the ACC has for a deep March run?
Alexander: Honestly, no. I think
Georgia Tech is the best bet to make an NCAA Tournament run. I've been
saying all year that Duke is the most overrated of the college basketball
elite, and they really haven't done much to make me look that bad. GT has
a couple of really good post players with Gani Lawal and Derrick Favors,
and they have seven guys (counting the bigs) who can go for double-digits
on any night. If Duke's threes aren't falling, they'll be in trouble, and
they just don't have the firepower to compete with the best teams in the
country. There are still some things that Coach K needs to figure out
before they really become a complete team.
Joe: The short answer is "Yes". But they showed some vulnerability against Georgetown by allowing the Hoyas to shoot over 70% when they lost to team recently. They also let NC State shoot 58% against them in another loss. They are vulnerable and can be upset early if they ain't careful. David: For some reason I like Wake as the best team in the tourney. Duke needs the 3 point shot and I don;t trust them if they face some mid-major with a talented 7 footer, and Tech has no guy that can take the ball and tell his team "See this? None of you touch this for 3 minutes unless you are passing it to me."
Alexander: All the way from Philly!
Villanova has a ton of depth, led by four guards who can go for 20
including two of the best scorers in the Big East, Scottie Reynolds and
Corey Fisher. Antoino Pena and Taylor King look pretty good at forward,
and when they go small and have King at the 5 with the ability to step out
and hit the three, there really isn't a team who can match up with them.
As we all know, it's not easy to have a lot of success in the Big East,
and after seeing what they can do last year, nobody would be surprised
with another Final Four trip.
Joe: This is a excerpt/preview of an article I am writing right now and hope to have posted soon:
"Villanova is quietly
surprising people this year as they have ascended to the number two
position in the latest AP poll. However, what is surprising is that
anyone should be surprised at their steady and strong play throughout
this season heading into February. After all, Villanova was a
Final Four team last season. And unlike some of the
other Elite Eight teams from last season, notably the aforementioned in
this article, the Wildcats have played as good if not better this season
than they did last season. The Cats have signature wins against
Georgetown, Seton Hall and Maryland. Only Temple (AP 19) has been able
to solve Villanova’s tenacity on the court. The
Rising Big East team can probably lock up a number one seed by winning
out especially considering that would include games at Georgetown 2/6
(AP 7), Pittsburgh 2/21 (AP 22) and Syracuse 2/27 (AP 3). A loss in any
of those three mentioned games could hurt their number one seed, but
depending on the rest of the nations teams results, not
irreparably."
David: Nova plays old school Big East ball - they rebound, they defend and they smack you in the mouth. No one really was looking to them in pre-season, but they have an excellent chance to go deep in March. But do I take them player for player with Kansas, Kentucky or Texas? No. Can they beat all three? Yes.
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