Merry Basketballmas, friends. The best five months of the year are finally here, so we asked some of our writers to sit down and talk about what they’re most excited about for the upcoming season.
Player of the Year Prediction
Sean Bock: Miles Bridges. The obvious favorite this year for player of the year, Bridges shocked the college basketball world returning to East Lansing and has plenty of pieces around him to take the pressure of his shoulders. Should average 18-7-5 this season.
Clemson Carl: Corey Sanders, Rutgers. The kid is ELECTRIC. He would have been all over the news already if he played for a better school, but alas he plays for a trash team in the trash city of New Brunswick. Nevertheless, averaging over 20 points in the Big 10 will catch some attention and he wins POTY in a wild upset.
Chase Swaringen: Tacko Fall, UCF. The 7’6” center decided to skip the NBA draft and return for his junior season. The Knights made a deep NIT run last season and picked up some solid recruits in the class of 2017. Fans are excited for this years’ team which will be led by Fall. After a deep NCAA tournament run and a triple-double average in the regular season, Tacko Fall is a unanimous POTY and the first center to win the award since Anthony Davis in 2012.
PJ Guippone: My real answer is Miles Bridges, but I’m going to be different and say Grayson Allen. They play Michigan State on Tuesday and if he gets through that game without having a temper tantrum, he is going to have an absolutely electric season. I’m talking like 2015-2016 Buddy Hield electric. I want to say Jalen Brunson from Villanova, but he just isn’t exciting enough to win the award.
Jackson Paisley: Miles Bridges, Michigan State
Coach of the Year Prediction
Sean: Kevin Willard. I’m super high on Seton Hall this year. Willard has all the talent around him to win the Big East and make the Pirates a factor in the NCAA Tournament.
Clemson Carl: Steve Pikiell, Rutgers. Pikiell took Rutgers over after they finished 7-25 (1-17 in the Big 10) in 2015-2016. He walked into a dumpster fire of a team at a school that never goes all in on supporting athletics. Somehow, he more than doubled their wins last year as he took them to 15-18 and pulled together 4 Big 10 wins. The recruiting news out of Rutgers has been exciting. Rutgers fans should expect their first return to the NIT since 2006, with an outside shot at their first NCAA appearance since 1991. If they make the NCAA you can lock this guy up for coach of the year, but he’ll still have a chance regardless.
Chase: Andy Enfield, USC. Enfield’s team returns 97% of their minutes from last year. Bennie Boatwright dipped his toe into the NBA draft but chose to return for his junior season. Chimezie Metu, Elijah Stewart, and Shaqquan Aaron also elected to return for another year. Enfield has led the Trojans to two straight NCAA tournaments and his team has the veteran leadership to make a Final Four run this time around.
PJ: Kevin Willard at Seton Hall. I think the Pirates are the biggest threat to Villanova in the Big East and will probably end the season inside of the top ten. Look for them to be a top 3 seed in the tournament and a probable spot in the Sweet Sixteen.
Jackson: Mike White, Florida
Final Four Prediction
Sean: Michigan State, Wichita State, Seton Hall, and Arizona. These teams are full of depth, talent, and experience and have a significant chance of making it to San Antonio.
Clemson Carl: Michigan State, Arizona, Kansas, and West Virginia. Depth, speed, talent, and the PRESS respectively.
Chase: Michigan State, Wisconsin, Arizona, and USC. All of these teams are loaded and have veteran leaders. This will be one of the more difficult tournaments to predict in years.
PJ: Michigan State is my one lock. Sean Miller will finally break through the wall and make the Final Four with Arizona. The idea of Jay Wright with a five star big man in Omari Spellman and a National Player of the Year candidate in Jalen Brunson terrifies me, so Villanova. Finally, Wichita State with real competition during the season and Landry Shamet seems like a pretty good pick.
Jackson: Michigan State, Kansas, North Carolina, Florida
Team you’re most excited to watch (not your favorite team)
Sean: Missouri. I’m so excited to watch Michael Porter Jr., I mean, the Missouri Tigers. Expectations are high for a program that finished dead last in the SEC last year and Porter and his younger brother Jontay are the saviors for this group.
Clemson Carl: USC. USC returns 97% of the minutes they played last year, on a team that won 26 games and upset SMU in the tournament. I’m interested to see if they can build on that success and challenge Arizona for the PAC 12
Chase: Illinois. I believe the roster the Illini have thrives under new coach Brad Underwood. Michael Finke has a breakout season in the Big Ten and freshman Mark Smith wins Big Ten Freshman of the Year and leads a backcourt Illini fans haven’t seen the likes of since 2005.
PJ: Duke is probably going to be absolutely amazing as much as I hate to say that. The team I’m most excited to watch, though, is probably USC. I am a big fan of big man basketball, and this team has a lot of that in dynamic fashion with stretch four Bennie Boatwright, who just so happens to be really fucking good also, and Chimezie Metu, who is more of a classic big man.
Non-conference game you’re most looking forward to
Sean: Duke vs. Michigan State. The Blue Devils are once again one of the most talented teams in college basketball this year while Sparty has all the tools to make it to the Final Four. The Marvin Bagley Jr./Miles Bridges matchup is going to be good.
Clemson Carl: Texas A&M vs. West Virginia. The SEC in basketball is similar to their football conference lately. One or two powerhouses every year, and the rest of the conference is trash. Some of them have started to improve record-wise in the past few seasons, but it’s not translating to tournament success. So, I believe it’s all from scheduling weaker non-conference opponents. I have to give Texas A&M for scheduling West Virginia so early in the season, and am excited to see how they fare against a Huggy Bear team.
Chase: Indiana vs. Duke. In Assembly Hall, during Archie Miller’s first season. A new era of Indiana basketball is upon us and with it comes an entire states-worth of excitement. Will Archie get the Hoosiers the banner that has for so long eluded them? This ACC-Big Ten challenge game will be the first of many big tests for Archie Miller and his team this year.
PJ: Duke Michigan State next week is going to be really fantastic. I think MSU will take the dub because of how early in the season it is, but this could be a prediction for a game later in the season, maybe even the National Championship.
Will Grayson Allen get suspended at any point this year and, if so, when?
Sean: I hear all this talk of Grayson Allen being a changed man, and I buy it 100%. Coach K seems to have this kid under wraps, so I think Allen’s emotions won’t be a huge problem this year.
Clemson Carl: Yes. 3rd ACC game for Duke. At halftime, he’ll listen to his favorite song, “Everytime We Touch” by Cascada. He gets caught up in the part that says “They wipe away tears that I cry.” He’s on the verge of tears the entire second half, starting to get chippy. He goes up for a layup and is clearly hacked, but surprisingly the refs don’t give Duke the call. That’s when he ERUPTS. Throws the ball at the ref and the waaaaambulance makes an appearance as he grabs some french cries and leaves the court for the locker room.
Chase: No. If Allen’s dad-like dance moves to the song “Everytime We Touch” didn’t prove to you that he’s matured, then I don’t know what will. He will for sure have some pouty-faced moments caught on camera but at least he’s moved on from the ‘use violence when things don’t go your way’ phase that most people get over after kindergarten.
PJ: In order for my player of the year pick to come to fruition, it’s basically essential that he doesn’t get suspended. I think his entire season hinges on the Michigan State game. If he plays well, he will have a great season. If not, it could be more of the same and he could free fall out of the draft entirely next summer.
One bold prediction for the year
Sean: Duke is back. The Blue Devils were expected to run the table last year, but then they collapsed. Coach K and his team will be ready to make it back to the Final Four this year.
Clemson Carl: Duke is not back. Duke gets upset in the first round of the tournament again.
Chase: Rhode Island makes a deep tourney run. E.C. Matthews and Jeff Dowtin put up video game like numbers and the Rams take the nation by surprise this season.
PJ: UCLA and Purdue, who are both ranked in the preseason poll, will not be higher than a nine seed in the tournament, if they make the field of 64 at all.
Conference Predictions: Champion and number of NCAA Tournament teams
ACC
Austin Brown: Duke, 9
Sean: Duke, 8
Jackson: North Carolina, 9
Clemson Carl: North Carolina, 9
Chase: Duke, 8
PJ: Notre Dame, 8
American
Austin: Wichita State, 4
Sean: Wichita State, 4
Jackson: Wichita State, 4
Clemson Carl: Wichita State, 3
Chase: Wichita State, 3
PJ: Cincinnati, 4
Big Ten
Austin: Michigan State, 7
Sean: Michigan State, 8
Jackson: Michigan State, 9
Clemson Carl: Michigan State, 7
Chase: Michigan State, 8
PJ: Michigan State, 6
Big 12
Austin: Kansas, 7
Sean: Kansas, 6
Jackson: Kansas, 6
Clemson Carl: West Virginia, 6
Chase: Kansas, 5
PJ: Kansas, 5
Big East
Austin: Xavier, 6
Sean: Seton Hall, 5
Jackson: Villanova, 7
Clemson Carl: Villanova, 6
Chase: Villanova, 6
PJ: Villanova, 7
SEC
Austin: Florida, 7
Sean: Kentucky, 8
Jackson: Florida, 6
Clemson Carl: Kentucky, 5
Chase: Missouri, 6
PJ: Florida, 7
PAC 12
Austin: Arizona, 5
Sean: Arizona, 5
Jackson: Arizona, 4
Clemson Carl: USC, 4
Chase: USC, 5
PJ: Arizona, 3
