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Although the exciting college basketball season begins in March, the regular season is officially underway.
We get a little taste of pleasure with the 24 straight hours of college basketball that aired earlier this week on ESPN, a preview of what March Madness will bring in the future.
College basketball displays different aspects of the sport that are forgotten at the pro level — the atmosphere provided by a swaying student section added to the hustle of an undersized forward who is playing his last games of his senior year, and topped off with the best playoffs in all of sports.
No matter what the outcome, get ready for an exciting four months of basketball and Hall of Fame broadcaster Dick Vitale screaming, “it’s awesome, baby” until your mute button doesn’t work anymore.
The talk in the preseason has been the reigning National Champion Duke Blue Devils. Duke recruited the highly touted Kyle Irving to play point guard and will also add Liberty transfer Seth Curry into the mix.
Irving received more attention for his ability to push the ball and score points in bunches, but NBA star Stephen Curry’s little brother has breakout potential. As a freshman, Curry averaged 20 points a game and will change Duke’s offensive mentality this year. At the end of last season, they turned into a defensive team that relied on the lumbering Brian Zoubek to rebound and block shots. This season, they will push the ball with Irving and find shooters Curry and preseason All-American Kyle Singler. Replacing point guard Jon Scheyer and his 18 points per game as well as Zoubek will be tough, but Duke is a popular pick for a repeat.
Another team that will be going deep into March is Ohio State University. Ranked fifth overall going into the season, the Buckeyes have high expectations. Despite the loss of No. 2 NBA draft pick Evan Turner, the Buckeyes replaced him with stud recruit Jared Sullinger.
The 6-foot-9-inch, 280-pounder was No. 2 on ESPNU and recorded 19 points and 14 boards in his first game, making him the first Buckeye to record a double-double in his first game since Herb Williams in 1977. Sullinger followed it up with a 26 point, 10 rebound performance in the win over No. 10 University of Florida. With Sullinger picking up the slack from the departed Turner, along with three point specialist Jon Diebler and junior guard William Buford giving them experience and size, the Buckeyes have the talent to compete for a national championship.
The No. 3 Kansas State Wildcats probably have the best overall player in the nation in Jacob Pullen. The guard averaged 19 points a game, and will team up with an athletic frontcourt of forwards Curtis Kelly and Wally Judge to make a national title run.
Pullen was named to the preseason watch list for the Naismith Trophy, which is awarded to the best player in college basketball. With the star power of Pullen and the athletic and deep front court the Wildcats could have a big season.
Another title contender will be the Michigan State Spartans. Lead by second team pre-season All-American guard Kalin Lucas, the Spartans are talented and, as usual, well-coached under Tom Izzo. The Spartans return everyone except Raymar Morgan and have been to back-to-back final fours. A big reason for the Spartans potential is the development of guard Durrell Summers. Summers became a star in March and averaged 19 points a game in his last five games of the year, proving he could change games with his shooting.
The title contenders have their star power, but there is one more player that deserve some ink. ESPNU number one overall recruit Harrison Barnes seemingly flipped a coin between Duke and North Carolina, walking away with Roy Williams and the Tar Heels.
The AP named Barnes a preseason All-American — the first time the honor has ever been given to a freshman. Barnes is 6-foot-8-inch, 210 pounds, and has been compared to Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant without the “scorer’s mentality.” Buy into the hype.
Cutting down the nets in April: Michigan State.
Bangor Daily News