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+---- Thread: BB Rosters are set ???? (/thread-878406.html)
BB Rosters are set ???? - cleveland - 06-27-2019 08:14 PM
Rank your Top 5 MAC basketball teams for 2019-2020 no matter what division.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - pono - 06-29-2019 03:43 AM
well, as a big MAC hoops fan I'll bite. however, i'd rather say what i think about each team's chances. alphabetical
akron best case: the senior guards peak as a tandem- i could see cheese having a big year. the big men stay healthy and solidly average. williams, the dayton transfer, is a good fit at forward and rebounds his position well. somebody, a freshman? end of the bench guy? late eligible transfer? provides a spark off the bench. groce accepts that his crazy erratic side is less bobby knight and more i don't like you and focuses on being the best ok basketball coach and clever assembler of lineups he can be. if everything goes good akron could challenge for an east division - why does the mac have these stupid divisions in basketball?- or a mac tourney championship behind a veteran backcourt.
worst case: loren jackson just isn't that great against good competition. a key guy gets hurt and depth becomes a real problem. they simply don't have enough offense to escape the middle of the pack. or, all this happens and groce has a major freakout and the team managers finish the season.
ball state best case: tyler persons was tons of fun to watch play, but ball state has some other equally efficient options needing more shots. as the season goes on they start to gel as a patient and relatively veteran offense with some shooting and crafty big guys. depth is a strength as they can go a little deeper than most and still play decent guys with some experience. the team defense is good enough to manage the fact they don't have a lot of great individual defenders. as usual they play an interesting and tough non conference schedule and win enough to make the mac show up in non conference play, are a threat for a division title or a mac tourney.
worst case: ball state tends to underperform for a reason. we may never know it but it will happen. they are a little slow overall. there isn't any elite ballhandling ready for the moment. teague isn't quite an all-mac player? who is the second option? their 9th 10th 11th and 12th guys might be better than yours but good teams' good players will find holes most nights and tho the cardinals will win some games there will be no east title or conference tourney.
bowling green best case: people remember that last year they were the mac's 2nd best team in conference play and almost everyone is back. they have perimeter players who on a good night can beat tough competition and enough of a team culture and togetherness on the court to beat most teams of comparable talent. they find a tall shining star of a frontcourt guy to make an apparent weakness into a strength go 14-4 and win the mac overall and are a favorite in the mac tourney.
worst case: they are kinda small with an offense that can look good one night and look average the next. they have a pretty good mac record but can't seize the opportunity.
buffalo best case a bunch of good players are back from a great team. yeah, they lost an all time great 5, but they got several stars still playing and some are just starting to shine. jeenathan williams is a problem. the transfer johnson from middle tenn st is really solid and breaks a mac team's spirit with a dunk. trust me. this will happen. jordan is the best on ball defender in the conference. and stops shooting free throws like a 3rd grader. graves is all mac. ub is still fun to watch. they defend hard and actively and create fastbreaks. of course, they have big holes in the frontcourt. either they play small and make it work. or a late recruit/transfer/mballa getting a waiver happens and they don't have guys playing out of position. yeah, buffalo has a small chance of being really good again and a solid chance of winning the mac and the mac tourney. probably, an even bet w bg.
worst case: they don't have a proper ready and eligible big man and smart teams with some size will exploit it. they lost a great coach. they lost classic players. no one will be cj massenberg. no one will make you forget jeremy harris or nick perkins. dante curruthers was arguably the mac mvp last yr. the dude whose name you don't remember was 6-11 and could block shots and play within himself. they're all gone stupid. buffalo will be fine against weak-average mac teams but will take a full step back into the pack.
central michigan best case is people forget they are usually solid and keno davis is a master at backfilling graduating senior guards with solid confident transfers. central runs their stuff better than most, play fast and make enough shots to have another winning season. they probably go small and play athletic 6-6 to 6-7 guys in the post. dileo has a strong senior year. with some breaks they could win 3 in cleveland.
worst case. central continues to be good against bad to mediocre teams, but rarely beats anyone else. the new guards are ok, but a step backwards. they don't have a star player.
eastern best case rob murphy pulls a stud late transfer or recruit to reinforce his patched together new roster which actually likes playing team basketball and focuses on toure as a junction of the offense to create opportunities for others. there's a scenario, stick with me, where eastern has the most versatile and impactful big guy in the conference. better shooting. more players playing their natural position on offense, and they remember the joy of causing havoc in the syracuse zone. eastern could be dangerous in the east or in the tourney, but...
eastern michigan worst case: who can definitely handle the ball? who can make tough d1 jump shots? remember those 3s are a step back this year. murphy can't coach anything beyond that zone and his ego. toure will be mis-used. murphy offenses are only good once every 6 season. those are the odds and this isn't your year huron-eagles.
kent state best case: this is the league's cinderella favorite right? kent is always good. we know they will play defense and be aggressive. walker was as good as they get on occasion, but overall not a highly efficient player. antonio williams is really good and it doesn't matter that he doesn't have a position because the new mex transfer simons is good and can do different things. williamson becomes a defensive beast in the league's best and most veteran overall backcourt. there is new impact talent or 2 in the incoming class. pippin comes back strong and hungry. wittington has a solid senior year and eats up younger softer bigs. kent wins the mac and is a favorite in the conf tourney.
worst case: kent just lost a classic sg who led them out of losses into victories. they also lost a good pg. they don't have a lot of proven scoring. they may be pretty good but not better than last year and win neither a mac division, overall or tourney title.
miami best case: the roster is actually pretty stable. sibande finds his groove and learns to play to his strengths. the fat big guy just keeps making jump shots. there are actually interesting ball handling prospects in the program and that tortured final year of ringo will be forgotten. miami is a team learning to believe in itself with some shot makers in a weaker conference. they have a good year with a top 5 record and are a threat in the mac tourney.
worst case: miami still hasn't learned to win. nobody on that team knows how to win college games. there isn't a lot of overall talent or rim protection. sibande takes and misses too many jump shots. miami is still not very good.
niu best case: everything is ok, right? german will play.?. and is healthy. montgomery, can coach and often gets the team to play hard and this team develops confidence. someone or 2 emerges out of a weak incoming class to surprise. remember, this team was a problem in last years conf tourney and most of the team is back. german will be a 2000 point scorer and mac mvp. niu has a top 5 mac record and is a threat in the mac tourney.
niu worst case: this is a team with 1 good scorer and nothing else. niu loses too many position battles 1-8 throughout a 40 minute game to be a winning team. german gets frustrated and scores 50 a night and they still lose by 4.
ohio best case: has already happened. the coaching turnover turned into a turnaround. they signed some good young players who are eligible right away. they found a veteran grad transfer acc big guy who is more than capable of holding his own and rebounding his position in the mac. dartis is healthy and makes a lot of 3 pointers. ohio sneaks its way into the mac east race and has an outside shot in the mac tourney.
worst case: ohio was bad last year because they had bad players. a lot of those guys are back but the best of the them left or are hurt. there's some promise in the freshmen and maybe a decent record. but it's a young team that's still a year or two away and not a factor in the mac.
toledo best case: as a rockets fan i think i know a little more. toledo has a 6-11 guy knapke who will be all mac and a 6-10 guy, edu, who could be among the nation's leaders in blocked shots. the coach has announced he will build the team's style around playing those 2 guys together. toledo has the best all around true pg in the mac and he has a big junior year. and an offense reworked by the league's best offensive coach works. the rockets do miss the graduated jump shooters but with a strong recruiting class and some young talent simply reload and 1-8 have the best players in the conference. they win the west and are a threat for the conf tourney.
toledo worst case: there is little pg depth and marreon jackson ended last season with his arm in a sling and a visit to the surgeon. the 2 big guy thing looks less gonzaga and more emu thompson and toure. the guys taking jump shots can't make as many as the guys taking em last year. toledo is good average allright but can't win the mac or break the ncaa tourney drought.
western michigan best case: hawkins is actually the league's best coach when it comes to teaching how to play basketball. this year they are healthy and the low expectations and rumors of positive team identity bring back good team basketball. the younger forwards start to be good. johnson is healthy and emerges as a strong role player and good mac 4 man. flowers was actually one of the mac's better guards last year and this team is deeper in the backcourt allowing him even more freedom to play his game and he reveals himself to be a good leader. there is some magical solution to what is on paper a very weak front court. western sneaks up on some people and has a winning season, a top 5 mac record and a shot in the conf tourney.
worst case: western has a couple good players and a couple ok players who could be good. they are outplayed regularly at the 5. they are heavily relying on freshman and sophomores to fill out their rotation. they won't be good.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - Dwight - 06-29-2019 10:24 AM
Awesome analysis, pono, but you didn't go much out on a limb with your "best case/worst case" analysis. I will do the opposite, providing no insight but making firm predictions. Anything can happen in the conference tourney, so I won't go there. Regular season, I would say 1) Bowling Green, 2) Buffalo, 3) Ball State, 4) Toledo.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - cleveland - 06-29-2019 12:57 PM
(06-29-2019 10:24 AM)Dwight Wrote: Awesome analysis, pono, but you didn't go much out on a limb with your "best case/worst case" analysis. I will do the opposite, providing no insight but making firm predictions. Anything can happen in the conference tourney, so I won't go there. Regular season, I would say 1) Bowling Green, 2) Buffalo, 3) Ball State, 4) Toledo.
Don't see a No.5, Dwight ....
But using PONO's analysis... I'd go 1) Toledo, 2) Bowling Green, 3) Buffalo, 4) Central Michigan, 5) Akron ...
And reserve the right to change my mind on Christmas ...!!!
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - pono - 06-29-2019 06:59 PM
well, if you want me to go out on limbs I'd say Buffalo has the best collection of guards and small forwards which is usually the key to winning the MAC and they parlay their national reputation into a late impact signee to shore up the frontcourt and repeat. toledo and BG and Kent tie for 2nd as the rocket's 2 big man lineup is a partial success and the young guys are good but young and inconsistent in the clutch while BG is good but not great and forced to either play small or use a mediocre true big. Kent state is solid and as good as buffalo on defense but struggles at times to space the floor and get easy shots. Ball State is 5th with a lot of pretty good players and pretty good team play but not enough to win a title. the mac title is about whoever is hot and healthy so unless their is a dominant team i have no idea who wins that.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - Dwight - 06-29-2019 08:29 PM
(06-29-2019 12:57 PM)cleveland Wrote:(06-29-2019 10:24 AM)Dwight Wrote: Awesome analysis, pono, but you didn't go much out on a limb with your "best case/worst case" analysis. I will do the opposite, providing no insight but making firm predictions. Anything can happen in the conference tourney, so I won't go there. Regular season, I would say 1) Bowling Green, 2) Buffalo, 3) Ball State, 4) Toledo.
Don't see a No.5, Dwight ....
But using PONO's analysis... I'd go 1) Toledo, 2) Bowling Green, 3) Buffalo, 4) Central Michigan, 5) Akron ...
And reserve the right to change my mind on Christmas ...!!!
OK . . . 5) Ohio
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - UofToledoFans - 06-30-2019 09:52 AM
MAC leader in blocks and all frosh team AJ Edu (Toledo) tore his ACL yesterday and is out for 2019-2020
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - cleveland - 06-30-2019 06:48 PM
(06-30-2019 09:52 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote: MAC leader in blocks and all frosh team AJ Edu (Toledo) tore his ACL yesterday and is out for 2019-2020
OUCH ...
Changes my 5.
1. Bowling Green
2. Buffalo
3. Toledo
4. Central Michigan
5. Akron
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - pono - 07-01-2019 11:40 PM
Yup Toledo loses their budding defensive and rebounding star and buffalo adds a 6-9 stud transfer who might be eligible right away. I'd say UB now firmly the favorite
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - Dwight - 07-03-2019 08:56 AM
Pretty amazing for the Bulls to take the hits they did and still remain a favorite. They lost an extremely strong five-person senior class, lost their coach, and as a result lost their stellar incoming recruits. Part of the credit goes to Oats, who last year recruited two strong players who had to sit one year to play one. Part of the credit clearly goes to the new coaching staff for going out and getting quality players late in the recruiting process. The other key fact is that Buffalo had no transfers out (to my knowledge - at least no significant ones) despite the coaching change.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - BullBoy - 07-03-2019 12:08 PM
(07-03-2019 08:56 AM)Dwight Wrote: Pretty amazing for the Bulls to take the hits they did and still remain a favorite. They lost an extremely strong five-person senior class, lost their coach, and as a result lost their stellar incoming recruits. Part of the credit goes to Oats, who last year recruited two strong players who had to sit one year to play one. Part of the credit clearly goes to the new coaching staff for going out and getting quality players late in the recruiting process. The other key fact is that Buffalo had no transfers out (to my knowledge - at least no significant ones) despite the coaching change.
Thanks for the kind words, it definitely is very impressive for a new coaching staff to keep the entire team intact. Look at the college landscape when there are over 1,000 players in the portal, there can't be too many that kept everyone out, especially with a new staff.
I think the Bulls will definitely be right up there amongst the favorites in the league again this season.
Can we just bypass college football?
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - OUVan - 07-03-2019 12:38 PM
(07-03-2019 12:08 PM)BullBoy Wrote: it definitely is very impressive for a new coaching staff to keep the entire team intact. Look at the college landscape when there are over 1,000 players in the portal, there can't be too many that kept everyone out, especially with a new staff.
Not sure it's that surprising. Ohio didn't lose a single player of consequence from their 2012 team after Groce left. But they did lose out on quality recruits, Caris Levert and Evan Bradds. Good teams tend to have good locker rooms. Well, everyone outside of Akron who always seemed to have some kind of turmoil under Dambrot.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - kreed5120 - 07-03-2019 01:24 PM
The turnover rate at Akron seemed pretty low compared to other D1 schools when Dambrot was here. I honestly can't think of any big name contributors that left the program to play for a bigger time program. In fact, several guys came out saying they turned down opportunities to assume a lesser role at a bigger program.
I feel what Buffalo did that was smart was promote from within. Bringing in someone from the outside who would have most likely tried to implement a different offense or defensive system would have likely led to a higher turnover. Promoting from within the players have already built a relationship with the guy for 1-3 years so there is much less uncertainty. This has allowed them to keep moving forward instead of taking 3 steps back.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - BullBoy - 07-03-2019 02:08 PM
(07-03-2019 12:38 PM)OUVan Wrote:(07-03-2019 12:08 PM)BullBoy Wrote: it definitely is very impressive for a new coaching staff to keep the entire team intact. Look at the college landscape when there are over 1,000 players in the portal, there can't be too many that kept everyone out, especially with a new staff.
Not sure it's that surprising. Ohio didn't lose a single player of consequence from their 2012 team after Groce left. But they did lose out on quality recruits, Caris Levert and Evan Bradds. Good teams tend to have good locker rooms. Well, everyone outside of Akron who always seemed to have some kind of turmoil under Dambrot.
Definitely not disagreeing with you, but with the emergence of the transfer portal, the transferring situation in college athletics is much different in 2019 than it was in 2012.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - pono - 07-04-2019 03:49 AM
(07-03-2019 01:24 PM)kreed5120 Wrote: The turnover rate at Akron seemed pretty low compared to other D1 schools when Dambrot was here. I honestly can't think of any big name contributors that left the program to play for a bigger time program. In fact, several guys came out saying they turned down opportunities to assume a lesser role at a bigger program.
I feel what Buffalo did that was smart was promote from within. Bringing in someone from the outside who would have most likely tried to implement a different offense or defensive system would have likely led to a higher turnover. Promoting from within the players have already built a relationship with the guy for 1-3 years so there is much less uncertainty. This has allowed them to keep moving forward instead of taking 3 steps back.
buffalo was in a unique position as whitesell had experience already as a mid major head coach. not sure if bringing him in was oats or other folks at UB, but that was a smart move. whitesell knows how to teach basketball. now, he's in a better program with better talent with successful offensive and defensive schemes and sets and coaching already installed. and since buffalo is very solid at guard they will control a lot of tempo. i don't know if there's as many shooters, maybe not, but they should win a lot of guard play at both ends.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - Siborg - 07-04-2019 01:36 PM
1. Buffalo
2. Bowling Green, hopefully BG can push Buffalo. Need a reasonably good 5 position out of 4 or 5 options.
3. Toledo
4. Central Michigan
5. Kent
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - pono - 07-04-2019 11:23 PM
kent has more talent and size than central
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - axeme - 07-05-2019 06:46 AM
New look Flashes enjoying productive off-season
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - cleveland - 07-05-2019 06:12 PM
(07-04-2019 11:23 PM)pono Wrote: kent has more talent and size than central
Maybe it's just a matchup problem/style of play ... but Central often beats Kent with ease (see MAC Tournament and reg season 2019) while Kent when it beats CMU usually it goes down to the wire (see MAC Tournament 2017).
Kent may very well have more talent ... but CMU has more KNOWN talent returning that Kent ... certainly just as much.
RE: BB Rosters are set ???? - axeme - 07-05-2019 07:43 PM
(07-05-2019 06:12 PM)cleveland Wrote:(07-04-2019 11:23 PM)pono Wrote: kent has more talent and size than central
Maybe it's just a matchup problem/style of play ... but Central often beats Kent with ease (see MAC Tournament and reg season 2019) while Kent when it beats CMU usually it goes down to the wire (see MAC Tournament 2017).
Kent may very well have more talent ... but CMU has more KNOWN talent returning that Kent ... certainly just as much.
KSU vs CMU last five seasons
2019--CMU by 10 and CMU by 7
2018--KSU by 18 and KSU by 8
2017--CMU by 7 (OT) KSU by 10 (OT)
2016--CMU by 27
2015--KSU by 10
Each team won 4 with a total point differential of CMU +5 points in 8 games.