Starting Five: ACC/Big Ten Challenge Edition

1. Have to admit that I am surprised that the ACC/Big Ten Challenge ended in a 6-6 tie.  The bottom four Big Ten schools (Purdue, Iowa, Penn State, and Nebraska) are all pretty weak, but two of those (Purdue and Nebraska) actually picked up victories.  Miami's upset of Michigan State and Virginia knocking off Wisconsin in Madison on the Challenge's second night really helped the ACC against the conference I believed to be the best heading into the season.

2. Illinois is not a Top 25 team.  Yes, the Illini are an undefeated 8-0 after beating Georgia Tech tonight and are ranked 22nd in both polls.  And I will admit that new head coach John Groce's perimeter trio of Brandon Paul (who is performing at a first team all-conference level), D.J. Richardson, and Tracy Abrams probably give Chief Illiniwek enough firepower to earn an invite to the NCAA Tourney.  I will even go so far as to say that this team has the potential to finish in the top six of a very competitive Big Ten - ahead of Wisconsin (more on the Badgers later) and Northwestern.  However, this is not a Top 25 team.  Illinois' best win thus far is a 17-point win over Butler in Maui.  While Butler soundly defeated North Carolina and knocked off Marquette on a buzzer beater, I'm not sold on the Bulldogs.  Illinois also has one-point wins over Hawaii (overtime) and Gardner-Webb.  A December 8 trip to Spokane to play Gonzaga should give us a better idea of where the Illini stand.

3. With victories over Kentucky, Louisville, and now Ohio State, Duke has the most impressive resume in the country.  Still, I'm not ready to label Coach K's squad a contender.  The Blue Devils are ranked third in RBP's most recent Top 25, so it is not as if we are ignoring the extremely impressive early season accomplishments of Mason Plumlee and Company.  In fact, there are a number of reasons to be bullish on the Blue Devils.  Mason Plumlee, who just put up 21 and 17 against the Buckeyes, has turned into a very good college basketball player.  Similarly, Ryan Kelly appears to have stepped up his level of play in his senior season.  And Quinn Cook, who tallied 8 assists compared to 3 turnovers with Aaron Craft hounding him tonight, looks like the point guard Coach K was missing last season.  That being said, it is Ohio State, and not Duke, that I see as having the most room for growth and being the more likely of the two to contend for a National Championship.

4. Wisconsin is struggling.  RBP ranked the Badgers 16th in its preseason Top 25, and that looks like it may have been a mistake.  The torn ACL suffered by Josh Gasser in a late October practice has robbed Bo Ryan of the one player on the Badgers' roster who could have stepped into Jordan Taylor's shoes at point guard.  The Badgers were going to feel the effect of Taylor's departure regardless of Gasser's availability, but Gasser's absence has taken its toll, as no Badger is averaging more than 2.2 assists per contest.  Despite tonight's loss to an underwhelming Virginia squad, I expect Wisconsin to ultimately right the ship and avoid missing out on March Madness for the first time in Bo Ryan's tenure.

5. Did you watch Indiana beat up North Carolina?  The Hoosiers are the best team in the country.  I can't help but notice the ease with which they score and their marked improvement on the defensive end.  Freshman Hanner Mosquera-Perea (suspension) and senior Derek Elston (injury) will be on the floor soon for Tom Crean, adding to what is already a ridiculously deep roster.  Also, I have no idea what is going on in Chapel Hill.  There can be no doubt that the Tar Heels missed P.J. Hairston's services against the Hoosiers, but that was just ugly.  It's not even December yet, but I wouldn't criticize anyone for wondering if maybe this Carolina team just isn't very good.  

Top 25

*previous rank in parentheses

1. Indiana 6-0 (2)
2. Syracuse 4-0 (3)
3. Duke 6-0 (6)
4. Michigan 5-0 (4)
5. Louisville 5-1 (1)
6. Ohio State 4-0 (5)
7. Florida 5-0 (7)

8. Kentucky 4-1 (8)
9. Kansas 4-1 (10)
10. Michigan State 5-1 (9) 

11. Cincinnati 6-0 (11)

12. Oklahoma State 5-0 (13)
13. Georgetown 4-1 (NR)
14. Creighton 6-0 (17)
15. San Diego State 4-1 (18)
16. Gonzaga 6-0 (19)
17. Arizona 3-0 (21)
18. Missouri 5-1 (16)
19. North Carolina State 4-1 (14)
20. Colorado 5-0 (25)
21. New Mexico 6-0 (NR)
22. Pittsburgh 5-1 (NR)
23. Minnesota 6-1 (22)
24. UNLV 3-1 (15)
25. North Carolina 5-1 (12)

IN: Georgetown, New Mexico, Pittsburgh

OUT: Memphis, Wisconsin, UCLA

Starting Five: Jared Swopshire Edition

1. As it turns out, there is life after John Shurna in Evanston. When Shurna, the sharpshooting small forward who lead the Wildcats in scoring each of the last three seasons, graduated this past spring, Northwestern seemed to have missed its best chance to earn the program's first ever NCAA Tourney bid. Enter Louisville-castoff Jared Swopshire. Swopshire is no Shurna. He's not going to match Shurna's 20 points per game, but he does give head coach Bill Carmody a shooter with length and, more importantly, a third option to go along with guard Reggie Hearn and swingman Drew Crawford.. Swopshire, who provided Louisville's Final Four team with valuable minutes just a season ago, is currently averaging 10.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest in just over 25 minutes of playing time. While the Wildcats have yet to beat a team of note, their 4-0 record includes margins of victory of 30, 13, 27, and 19. The Big Ten looks to be the nation's most competitive conference for a second year in a row, and the top six teams (Indiana, Michigan, Ohio State, Michigan State, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) all look really strong. However, the bottom four programs (Purdue, Iowa, Penn State, and Nebraska) are going to struggle. That leaves Northwestern and an Illinois team that, despite topping Butler for the Maui Invitational title, has major question marks. While there are plenty of reasons to think the Wildcats will fall short in their quest, they are at least in the discussion. A lot of the optimism surrounding the program has to do with Swopshire. I, for one, am rooting for the kid. The Louisville program has described Swopshire's departure with a year of eligibility remaining as being a mutual decision that will provide Swop the opportunity to see more minutes. Regardless of spin, Swopshire was discarded by Rick Pitino, despite being a quality player and student. Fortunately, what is one program's trash is another program's treasure. And, perhaps appropriately, it may be the Cardinals, who look like shooting may be their only weakness, that end up regretting showing Swop the door (or at least encouraging him to walk through it).

2. After Georgetown took Indiana to overtime before falling short in its upset bid, the Captain commented that the Hoyas may have reached that level where you just go ahead and slot them into your preseason Top 25 based on coaching alone. I had the same thought a night before as they beat up on UCLA. It would be hard for me to describe just how much I like John Thompson III. I think he is one of the brightest minds in coaching. If I was a blue chip recruit, Georgetown would be on my short list based, in large part, on my infatuation with JT3. He was also RBP's Big East Coach of the Year for the 2011-12 campaign. That being said, Georgetown has been left out of RBP's Preseason Top 25 for three seasons running. Prior to the 2010-11 season, I was worried about Greg Monroe's departure and did not believe Austin Freeman and Chris Wright could carry the team. Then, before the 2011-12 season, I was convinced Georgetown was heading for a rebuilding year without Freeman and Wright. As it turned out, Jason Clark, Henry Sims, and Hollis Thompson were ready to fill the void, and the Hoyas did not miss a beat. This year I believed the Hoyas would be at a loss to replace Clark, Sims, and Thompson. I also doubted the hype surrounding sophomore forward Otto Porter. Four games into the new season, the Hoyas appear to have proven me wrong yet again. Porter looks like the best player in the Big East. Greg Whittington is averaging 12.8 points and 8.5 boards per outing. And Markel Starks is looking about as explosive as you can look in JT3's modified Princeton offense. Throw in a really productive supporting cast, and this team looks like a top ten-type team – which should not surprise anyone, since the Hoyas have been ranked in the AP top ten at some point in the season each of the past six years.

3. I am also regretting doubting Jamie Dixon and his Pittsburgh Panthers. After last year's disappointing 22-17 finish, I was a little gun shy of predicting much success for the Panthers. After watching Pitt battle a very talented Michigan squad in the NIT Season Tip-Off before coming up short in the game's final moments, I am convinced last year was merely an aberration. The Panthers are back to playing gritty, grimy basketball. With point guard Tray Woodall back to full health, this is a Top 25 team with good size and a lot of depth. Looking forward to watching more rock fights involving Dixon's squad.

4. Staying in the Keystone State, RBP would be remiss not to mention that Penn State senior guard Tim Frazier is out for the season with a ruptured Achilles tendon. As a junior, Frazier averaged 18.8 points, 6.2 assists, 4.7 rebounds, and 2.4 steals per game for a pretty poor Penn State team. Despite his lackluster supporting cast, he almost bumped Minnesota's Trevor Mbakwe from RBP's preseason All-Big Ten squad this year. The Nittany Lions plan to apply for a medical redshirt, but we will all be missing out on the pleasure of watching one of the best guards in the country perform this year.

5. Speaking of injuries and general bad luck, things could not be going much worse for Providence. This was supposed to be the year Ed Cooley's Friars contended for a NCAA Tourney bid. Much of that enthusiasm was generated by Providence's stellar recruiting class, featuring Ricardo Ledo and Kris Dunn (Rivals' numbers 6 and 16-rated recruits from the 2012 class). Providence also returned senior point guard (and RBP preseason first team All-Big East performer) Vincent Council. And then the bad news hit. Ledo is academically ineligible and will not suit up for the Friars until next season. Dunn had surgery on his shoulder and will still be out until late December. Council is out 4-5 weeks with a hamstring injury. While the Friars have managed to get out to a 3-2 start, Ed Cooley's squad likely has a long year ahead of it.

Top 25

*previous rank in parentheses

1. Louisville 3-0 (1)

2. Indiana 3-0 (2)

3. Syracuse 2-0 (3)

4. Michigan 3-0 (7)

5. Ohio State 3-0 (5)

6. Duke 3-0 (11)

7. Florida 3-0 (9)

8. Kentucky 2-1 (4)

9. Michigan State 2-1 (12)

10. Kansas 2-1 (6)

11. Cincinnati 3-0 (15)

12. North Carolina 3-0 (14)

13. Oklahoma State 4-0 (NR)

14. North Carolina State 3-1 (8)

15. UNLV 2-0 (21)

16. Missouri 3-0 (19)

17. Creighton 3-0 (18)

18. San Diego State 2-1 (10)

19. Gonzaga 3-0 (NR)

20. Memphis 2-0 (17)

21. Arizona 2-0 (20)
22. Minnesota 4-0 (NR)

23. Wisconsin 2-1 (16)

24. UCLA 3-0 (24)

25. Colorado 4-0 (NR)

IN: Oklahoma State, Gonzaga, Minnesota, Colorado

OUT: Notre Dame, Florida State, Lehigh, New Mexico

Preseason Conference Predictions

ACC
1. North Carolina State
2. Duke
3. North Carolina
4. Florida State
5. Miami
6. Clemson
7. Maryland
8. Virginia Tech
9. Virginia
10. Wake Forest
11. Boston College
12. Georgia Tech

All-ACC
Lorenzo Brown, North Carolina State [jr]
Michael Snaer, Florida State [sr]
P.J. Hairston, North Carolina [soph]
C.J. Leslie, North Carolina State [jr]
James Michael McAdoo, North Carolina [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Michael Snaer, Florida State
Top Defender: Michael Snaer, Florida State
Best Freshman: Rodney Purvis, North Carolina State

Big East
1. Louisville
2. Syracuse
3. Notre Dame
4. Cincinnati
5. Georgetown
6. Marquette
7. Pittsburgh
8. South Florida
9. St. John's
10. Rutgers
11. Connecticut
12. Seton Hall
13. DePaul
14. Providence
15. Villanova

All-Big East
Vincent Council, Providence [sr]
Sean Kilpatrick, Cincinnati [jr]
C.J. Fair, Syracuse [jr]
Jack Cooley, Notre Dame [sr]
Gorgui Dieng, Louisville [jr]

Awards
Player of the Year: C.J. Fair, Syracuse
Top Defender: Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
Best Freshman: Steven Adams, Pittsburgh

Big Ten
1. Indiana
2. Ohio State
3. Michigan
4. Michigan State
5. Wisconsin
6. Minnesota
7. Illinois
8. Northwestern
9. Purdue
10. Iowa
11. Penn State
12. Nebraska

All-Big Ten
Aaron Craft, Ohio State [jr]
Trey Burke, Michigan [soph]
Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State [jr]
Trevor Mbakwe, Minnesota [sr]
Cody Zeller, Indiana [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Cody Zeller, Indiana
Top Defender: Aaron Craft, Ohio State
Best Freshman: Sam Dekker, Wisconsin

Big 12
1. Kansas
2. Baylor
3. Oklahoma State
4. West Virginia
5. Kansas State
6. Texas
7. Oklahoma
8. Iowa State
9. TCU
10. Texas Tech

All-Big 12
Myck Kabongo, Texas [soph]
Pierre Jackson, Baylor [sr]
Rodney McGruder, Kansas State [sr]
Le'Bryan Nash, Oklahoma State [soph]
Jeff Withey, Kansas [sr]

Awards
Player of the Year: Pierre Jackson, Baylor
Top Defender: Jeff Withey, Kansas
Best Freshman: Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State

Pac-12
1. Arizona
2. UCLA
3. Washington
4. Stanford
5. Colorado
6. California
7. Oregon
8. Oregon State
9. USC
10. Washington State
11. Arizona State
12. Utah

All-Pac-12
Chasson Randle, Stanford [soph]
Allen Crabbe, California [jr]
E.J. Singler, Oregon [sr]
Andre Roberson, Colorado [jr]
Brock Motum, Washington State [sr]

Awards
Player of the Year: Andre Roberson, Colorado
Top Defender: Aziz N'Diaye, Washington
Best Freshman: Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA

SEC
1. Kentucky
2. Florida
3. Missouri
4. Tennessee
5. Arkansas
6. Mississippi
7. Alabama
8. Texas A&M
9. Auburn
10. LSU
11. Georgia
12. Mississippi State
13. Vanderbilt
14. South Carolina

All-SEC
Flip Pressey, Missouri [jr]
Michael Dixon, Missouri [sr]
B.J. Young, Arkansas [soph]
Kenny Boynton, Florida [sr]
Jeronne Maymon, Tennessee [sr]

Awards
Player of the Year: Flip Pressey, Missouri
Top Defender: Laurence Bowers, Missouri
Best Freshman: Alex Poythress, Kentucky

2012-13 Preseason All-Americans and Award Predictions

First Team
Isaiah Canaan, Murray State [sr]
C.J. McCollum, Lehigh [sr]
Jamaal Franklin, San Diego State [jr]
Doug McDermott, Creighton [jr]
Cody Zeller, Indiana [soph]

*Zeller is the only player from a Power Six conference on the first team.

Second Team
Aaron Craft, Ohio State [jr]
Trey Burke, Michigan [soph]
Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State [jr]
Tony Mitchell, North Texas [soph]
Mike Moser, UNLV [jr]

*The first man out is senior Matthew Dellavedova of Saint Mary's, one of the Gaels' Australian imports.

All-Defense
Aaron Craft, Ohio State [jr]
Fuquan Edwin, Seton Hall [jr]
C.J. Aiken, St. Joseph's [jr]
Gorgui Dieng, Louisville [jr]
Jeff Withey, Kansas [sr]

*Indiana junior Victor Oladipo gets beaten out for the final spot by Seton Hall's Fuquan Edwin, who was second in the nation in thefts per contest during the 2011-12 campaign.

All-Freshman
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Rodney Purvis, North Carolina State
Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA
Alex Poythress, Kentucky
Nerlens Noel, Kentucky

*UNLV's Anthony Bennett, who will be joining forces with Mike Moser in Las Vegas, is the sixth man on RBP's All-Freshman team.

Player of the Year: Cody Zeller, Indiana
The youngest of the Brothers Zeller was the single biggest reason for the Hoosiers' remarkable turnaround from Big Ten doormat just two seasons ago to the preseason pick to win the title according to both the AP and Coaches' polls.

Top Defender: Aaron Craft, Ohio State
If you have read RBP before, then you know how I feel about Mr. Craft.

Best Freshman: Alex Poythress, Kentucky

Poythress edges North Carolina State's Rodney Purvis for the preseason honor but could end up being only the third best freshman to suit up for the Wildcats this year.

RBP 2012-13 Preseason Rankings

1) Louisville: The best defensive team in the country is also one of the most talented, but I'm not sure the Cards can shoot from outside.

2) Indiana: The Hoosiers are more skilled and have better shooters than Louisville but are not as athletic or as tenacious on the defensive end.

3) Syracuse: I'm predicting a breakout season for junior forward CJ Fair.

4) Kentucky: The inexperienced Cats may take their lumps early, but Coach Cal will have this team ready to make a third straight trip to the Final Four by March.

5) Ohio State: If the supporting cast, especially on the frontline, steps up, the Buckeyes have a chance to win a national championship.

6) Kansas: The gap between the Jayhawks and the rest of the Big 12 seems like it has never been larger.

7) Michigan: Trey Burke is college basketball's version of Chris Paul.

8) North Carolina State: If Lorenzo Brown and Rodney Purvis can share the ball without incident, the Wolf Pack could have a special season.

9) Florida: The Gators will score points in bunches, but the national title contenders are ranked 1-8 on this list.

10) San Diego State: You would be hard-pressed to find a better perimeter trio than Xavier Thames, Chase Tapley, and Jamaal Franklin.

11) Duke: If the Blue Devils hope to make a deep run in March, freshman Rasheed Sulaimon will have to step into the role of go-to scorer vacated by Austin Rivers.

12) Michigan State: I have questions about Keith Appling as a floor general, but I resolved to stop doubting Tom Izzo's Spartans.

13) Notre Dame: Jerian Grant and Jack Cooley give the Irish an extremely productive inside-outside combo.

14) North Carolina: Lots of talent on Roy Williams' roster but not a lot by way of killer instinct.

15) Cincinnati: Mick Cronin's Bearcats have taken the title of the nation's grimiest team from the Pitt Panthers.

16) Wisconsin: As long as Bo Ryan is grinding meat in Madison, the Badgers will have a spot in RBP's  Preseason Top 25.

17) Memphis: After losing the hugely underrated Will Barton, the pressure is on junior point guard Joe
Jackson to fulfill his considerable potential.

18) Creighton: Doug McDermott and Gregory Echenique give the Bluejays a frontline that can play with teams from the Power Six conferences.

19) Missouri: Top ten-type talent in Columbia, but Frank Haith has his work cut out for him in terms of getting a bunch of new faces to play together.

20) Arizona: Sean Miller has done an excellent job of recruiting talent to Tucson, but I'm worried chemistry issues will plague this program for a second straight season.

21) UNLV: Dave Rice's squad is the second of three Mountain West teams on this list, as the MWC will once again outclass the Pac-12 as the premiere conference on the west coast.

22) Florida State: The Noles return one of the nation's best backcourts in Ian Miller and Michael Snaer.

23) Lehigh: After shocking Duke in the NCAA Tournament, the Mountain Hawks return their top four scorers and will "upset" Baylor on November 9 in Waco.

24) UCLA: This program is a mess, and the Bruins' ranking assumes Shabazz Muhammad will be cleared to play.

25) New Mexico: Lots of questions on the interior for the Lobos, but juniors Kendall Williams and Tony Snell provide plenty of perimeter firepower.