SWC75
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THE SCHEDULE
Maybe the biggest threat to continuing the winning season streak or doing anything beyond that is this year’s schedule, which many consider to be our toughest ever.
November
Tuesday, 11/9/21 7PM at the Dome LAFAYETTE TV: RSN (Regional Sports network which last
year was the ‘Yes’ network – the same one that you get Yankees games on)
I still remember the 1971 game in which Bill Smith set the SU scoring record with 47 points. Tracy Tripuka, (son of former Notre Dame and Broncos quarterback Frank and brother of Notre Dame basketball star Kelly), scored 41, including 7 points in 10 seconds: he drove to the basket, was fouled, scored anyway and made the foul shot. Roy Danforth got a technical, which was worth only one foul shot, Tracy made that, drove to the basket, was fouled and scored anyway. Roy kept his mouth shut after that.) SU won 106-92. They had scores like that in those days.
Last year’s Lafayette was 9-6. They lost the Patriot League’s leading scorer, guard Justin Jaworski (21.5ppg) and his backcourt partner E.J. Stephens (16.4). Their sole double-figure returnee is versatile 7-0 280 center Neal Quinn, who averaged 10.6p/5.5r/3.8a. Athlon projects them 6th in the Patriot League, Lindy’s 7th. I think we would finish higher.
Sunday, 11/14/21 5PM at the Dome DREXEL TV: ESPN2
The Dragons were 12-8 last year and won the Colonial AC tournament, going to the NCAA tournament for the first time since we beat them in 1996. They have a coach named Zach Spiker. (Maybe he should coach volleyball?)
It’s a sign of the times that Lindy’s praised Spiker for “keeping his key players out of the transfer portal”. They would be 6-2 guard Camren Winter who “keeps opponents guessing with dribble-drive skills while shooting 41.5% from three”. He averaged 16.2p/3.6a. 6-8 242 James Butler averaged 12.8p/9.2r while shooting 57%. Lindy’s has them as the 8t h best team in the Colonial. Athlon has them 3rd. Will it matter?
Saturday 11/20/21 TBA (To Be Announced) at the Dome COLGATE TV: ACC Network Extra, (an on-line streaming service)
We’ve lost to Colgate 45 times in our basketball history but the last time was on February 24, 1962. They’ve been toothpaste to us since. We are 54-0 with an average margin of victory of 24 points. But these are not your father or grandfather’s Raiders. Last year, they were dropped off the schedule due to the pandemic and had their finest team in memory, going 14-2 and scoring 85 points a game, second in the country. Unfortunately, the Patriot League decided not to participate in the NCAA tournament. But the Raiders are for real. They’ve been 82-36 over the last four seasons, during which they have won the Patriot League every year. Our ‘other streak’ may also be in jeopardy if we don’t bring out ‘A’ game in this one.
They’ve lost guard Jordan Burns, (16.8ppg), the Patriot League player of the year. But the other four starters are back: 6-10 245 center Keegan Records hasn’t set any but averaged 9.1p/6.9t; 6-6 220 Ryan Moffatt (5.3p/3.3r), 6-5 205 Tucker Richardson (11.6p/5.8r) and 6-0 180 Nelly Cummings (12.4p/2.8r), along with 6th man Jack Ferguson, 6-3 180, (12.5P/4.6r), who shot 50.7% from the arc.
Then comes the “Battle 4 Atlantis”, which we won in 2015. That was key to getting the NCAA invite that year and we wound up in the Final Four. The one opponent we can be sure of is:
Wednesday, 11/24/21 Paradise Island, the Bahamas 5PM VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH
TV: ESPN 2
The Rams have always been an interesting mid-major. Last year they went 19-7 and lost by 6 to St. Bonaventure in the Atlantic 10 title game, then didn’t get a chance to play Oregon in the NCAAs because of a Covid break-out.
They’ve lost their leading scorer, guard Nah-Shon Hyland, (19.5p) to the NBA and guard Adrian Baldwin (6.7p/4.4A) tore his achilles heel over the summer and won’t be back until at least January.6-3 guard Marcus Tsohonis, (10.4p), transferred in from Washington. 6-4 freshman Jayden Nunn “is a scoring machine” who averaged 21/5p and 52% three point shooting in high school. 6-7 Vince Williams hit 41.3 from the arc and scored 10.6p. 6-8 245 Levi Stockard and 6-9 210 Harvie Ward are a “bruising big-man duo inside. The Rams always play good defense. Teams made just 30.5% of their threes against them and Rams forced 17 turnovers a game.
After that it depends on who win the other games. There are a total of 8 teams and they have losers brackets so that everyone will get three games out of it, to be played on Thursday 11/25 and Friday 11/26. The other teams in the field are:
ARIZONA STATE – The Sun Devils went 11-14 last year. But last year’s team isn’t this year’s team. They had nine players leave, including their top 3 scorers. Bobby Hurley has bro0guth in a lot of transfers. 6-1 Marreon Jackson was the MAC player of the year at Toledo, where he averaged 18.1p/6.1r/5.9a. 6-3 Jay heath scored 14.5p/3.1r/1.8a at Boston College. 6-1 DJ Horne averaged 15.1p/3.7r/2.7a at Illinois State. 6-4 Luther Muhammed is a defensive wizard who started 56 games at Ohio State. That’s their new backcourt. They do have returnees up front: 6-8 215 Marcus Bagley averaged 10.8p/6.2r and hit 34.7% of his three pointers. 6-9 220 Jalen Graham is a “bouncy shot-blocker”. 6-8 210 Kimaei Lawrence averaged 8.1p/5.0r but had a 21/20 game at Washington. Hurley also wound up with Enoch Boakye, a 6-10 255 freshman center from Canada we wanted who originally committed to Michigan State
AUBURN – These Tigers were 13-14 last year. They were the youngest team in the country and playing under a self-imposed post season ban. Two guys left for the NBA but, per Lindy’s, Bruce Pearl has “the best transfer class in the nation” to add to 6 returnees and “the highest ranked recruit in Auburn history”. That would be 6-10 220 power forward Jabari Smith Jr. 247 has him as the #6 recruit in the country and the #2 power forward. He has “a nice scoring touch that extends outside the paint”, (Athlon). Pearl also brought in North Carolina’s Walter Kessler, a 7-1 255 center “a stretch 5 who can knock down threes consistently”, (Lindy’s). What’s a ‘stretch-5’? Pearl: “They didn’t play him as a stretch-5, which is what he is. He is going to be a shooting five-man for us.” 6-6 215 Allen Flanigan averaged 14.3p/5.5r. 6-1 Zep Jasper, (Zep Jasper?) averaged 15.1p for College of Charleston. 5-11 Wendell Green averaged 15.8p/5.0a for Eastern Kentucky.
BAYLOR – Let’s see what did Baylor do last season? Oh, yeah, they went 28-2 and won the national championship. They crushed the Houston team that whipped us. They lose four starters from that team, including all three guards but “he and his staff have r-loaded to the point where this should be anything but a re-build”, (Athlon). The Bears have “three of their top six scorers, two top-30 prospects and a pair of high-scoring transfers” (Lindy’s). Their new backcourt will feature 6-1 James Akinjo from Arizona, where he averaged 15.6p/5.4a. (He once played for Georgetown, too, so this is his third stop.) 6-3 returnee Alan Flagler hit 43.4% of his threes last year. 6-8 205 Kendall Brown was the #13 recruit in the country and the #4 small forward and “will give the team elite athleticism” (Athlon). 6-9 225 Matthew Mayer averaged 8.7p in 15.7 minutes per game.
CONNECTICUT - Our old Big East buddies were 15-8 last year and lost in the first round of the NCAAs to Maryland. Coach Dan Hurley didn’t take any transfers: “I want to build something with young players that come in the program and develop”. Good luck with that, Dan. But “they’ve got a couple of sophomores with NBA-type talent, a top ten rated freshman trio and another major talent returning from injury”, (Lindy’s). They also have the Big East defensive player of the year in 6-9 230 Isaiah Whaley and it’s best 6th man in 6-9 215 Tyler Polley. 6-1 RJ Cole is the top returning scorer (12.2). Andre Jackson’s, (remember him?) “freshman season wasn’t up to par for a variety of reasons but the 6-6 wing boasts NBA athleticism” and is a “deft-passing athletic freak who needs to shoot better”. Akok Akok, (They got Akok: we got Ajak) is a 6-9 215 ‘wild card’ after rupturing his achilles last year. 6-1 freshman Rahssool Digigins is a “cocky, verbose point guard”.
LOYOLA (Chicago) – The Ramblers rambled to a 26-5 record last year. They spanked my NCAA favorite, Illinois 71-58 in the second round of the NCAAs before losing to Oregon State in the Sweet 16. Coach Porter Moser moved on to Oklahoma but his top assistant, Drew Valentin has taken over and gets back 8 players. They did lose center Cameron Krutwig, the MVC player of the year. 6-4 Guard Lucas Williamson (8.8p) was the conference defensive player of the year. His backcourt partner Keith Clemons (7.5p), hit 44% of his threes. They’ve got transfers from Princeton, (6-7 205 Ryan Schwieger 10.7) and Dartmouth, (6-7 225 Chris Knight 14.8), will try to help out up front. What makes the Ramblers dangerous is that they no longer ramble and prevent you from doing so: they led the nation in defensive scoring average (56.1p), quite different from their long ago national champions, (1963), who averaged 91.8 to lead the nation in scoring.
MICHIGAN STATE – Tom Izzo’s team was a mediocre 15-13, 9-11 in the Big Ten, last year. It was their worst season since 1996. The lack of a true point guard was damaging. He got 6-0 Northeastern guard Tyson Walker (18.8p/4.8a) to transfer to State to solve the problem. He also brought in the #48 recruit, 6-3 Jaden Akins, the ‘Mr. Basketballs’ of both Michigan, (Pierre Brooks 6-6 205, 33.5p,10.7r) and Illinois (Max Christie 6-5 195 24.0p 10.0r). 6-8 220 Joey Houser, a Marquette transfer averaged 9.7p/5.6r with four double-doubles and 27 points against Wisconsin. The centers, 6-9 25 Mady Sissko and 6-8 225 Julius Marble, are “strong-bodied bangers” per Athlon.
Fortunately, we only have to play 2 of these six teams. But we should emerge from Atlantis with a good idea of who we are – and aren’t – as a team.
Tuesday 11/30/21 7 or 7:30AM at the Dome INDIANA ESPN or ESPN2
We are 5-1 all-time vs. the Hoosiers but the ‘1’ was the big one- the 1987 national championship game, (curse you, Keith Smart!) We got back at them – a nibble anyway - by beating their #1 seeded team in the regional semis on our way to the Final Four in 2013. The Hoosiers have been spinning their wheels even more than we have in recent years, going 85-74 in the last five, (we’ve been 98-67 over the same stretch). Last year they were 12-15 and 7-12 in the conference. Per Athlon, their problem has been an “uninspired offense” under the fired Archie Miller. Mike Woodson, a former star under Bob Knight, has come from the NBA to liven things up again. He talked 5 IU players out of the transfer portal and brought in a couple other transfers as well.
Pitt transfer Xavier Johnson, (6-3 200, 14.2p/3.4r/5.7a) will be a big help. Tamar Bates, the #28 recruit in the country and the 5th best shooting guard, “is a strong finisher, excellent defender and a savvy player whose shot is improving.” (I haven’t heard the term ‘savvy’ in a while.) 6-9 245 Trace Jackson-Davis (19.1p/9.0r) is a “fine inside scorer, strong rebounder and shot blocker”, (Lindy’s). Getting him to come back is a major coup. 7-0 250 Michael Durr, (8.8p/7.9r) transferred in from South Florida to make the Hoosiers one of those intimidating inside teams we have had so much trouble with in recent years.
We need to win the Dome games and not go 0 for Atlantis because December isn’t a tiptoe through the tulips, either.
Maybe the biggest threat to continuing the winning season streak or doing anything beyond that is this year’s schedule, which many consider to be our toughest ever.
November
Tuesday, 11/9/21 7PM at the Dome LAFAYETTE TV: RSN (Regional Sports network which last
year was the ‘Yes’ network – the same one that you get Yankees games on)
I still remember the 1971 game in which Bill Smith set the SU scoring record with 47 points. Tracy Tripuka, (son of former Notre Dame and Broncos quarterback Frank and brother of Notre Dame basketball star Kelly), scored 41, including 7 points in 10 seconds: he drove to the basket, was fouled, scored anyway and made the foul shot. Roy Danforth got a technical, which was worth only one foul shot, Tracy made that, drove to the basket, was fouled and scored anyway. Roy kept his mouth shut after that.) SU won 106-92. They had scores like that in those days.
Last year’s Lafayette was 9-6. They lost the Patriot League’s leading scorer, guard Justin Jaworski (21.5ppg) and his backcourt partner E.J. Stephens (16.4). Their sole double-figure returnee is versatile 7-0 280 center Neal Quinn, who averaged 10.6p/5.5r/3.8a. Athlon projects them 6th in the Patriot League, Lindy’s 7th. I think we would finish higher.
Sunday, 11/14/21 5PM at the Dome DREXEL TV: ESPN2
The Dragons were 12-8 last year and won the Colonial AC tournament, going to the NCAA tournament for the first time since we beat them in 1996. They have a coach named Zach Spiker. (Maybe he should coach volleyball?)
It’s a sign of the times that Lindy’s praised Spiker for “keeping his key players out of the transfer portal”. They would be 6-2 guard Camren Winter who “keeps opponents guessing with dribble-drive skills while shooting 41.5% from three”. He averaged 16.2p/3.6a. 6-8 242 James Butler averaged 12.8p/9.2r while shooting 57%. Lindy’s has them as the 8t h best team in the Colonial. Athlon has them 3rd. Will it matter?
Saturday 11/20/21 TBA (To Be Announced) at the Dome COLGATE TV: ACC Network Extra, (an on-line streaming service)
We’ve lost to Colgate 45 times in our basketball history but the last time was on February 24, 1962. They’ve been toothpaste to us since. We are 54-0 with an average margin of victory of 24 points. But these are not your father or grandfather’s Raiders. Last year, they were dropped off the schedule due to the pandemic and had their finest team in memory, going 14-2 and scoring 85 points a game, second in the country. Unfortunately, the Patriot League decided not to participate in the NCAA tournament. But the Raiders are for real. They’ve been 82-36 over the last four seasons, during which they have won the Patriot League every year. Our ‘other streak’ may also be in jeopardy if we don’t bring out ‘A’ game in this one.
They’ve lost guard Jordan Burns, (16.8ppg), the Patriot League player of the year. But the other four starters are back: 6-10 245 center Keegan Records hasn’t set any but averaged 9.1p/6.9t; 6-6 220 Ryan Moffatt (5.3p/3.3r), 6-5 205 Tucker Richardson (11.6p/5.8r) and 6-0 180 Nelly Cummings (12.4p/2.8r), along with 6th man Jack Ferguson, 6-3 180, (12.5P/4.6r), who shot 50.7% from the arc.
Then comes the “Battle 4 Atlantis”, which we won in 2015. That was key to getting the NCAA invite that year and we wound up in the Final Four. The one opponent we can be sure of is:
Wednesday, 11/24/21 Paradise Island, the Bahamas 5PM VIRGINIA COMMONWEALTH
TV: ESPN 2
The Rams have always been an interesting mid-major. Last year they went 19-7 and lost by 6 to St. Bonaventure in the Atlantic 10 title game, then didn’t get a chance to play Oregon in the NCAAs because of a Covid break-out.
They’ve lost their leading scorer, guard Nah-Shon Hyland, (19.5p) to the NBA and guard Adrian Baldwin (6.7p/4.4A) tore his achilles heel over the summer and won’t be back until at least January.6-3 guard Marcus Tsohonis, (10.4p), transferred in from Washington. 6-4 freshman Jayden Nunn “is a scoring machine” who averaged 21/5p and 52% three point shooting in high school. 6-7 Vince Williams hit 41.3 from the arc and scored 10.6p. 6-8 245 Levi Stockard and 6-9 210 Harvie Ward are a “bruising big-man duo inside. The Rams always play good defense. Teams made just 30.5% of their threes against them and Rams forced 17 turnovers a game.
After that it depends on who win the other games. There are a total of 8 teams and they have losers brackets so that everyone will get three games out of it, to be played on Thursday 11/25 and Friday 11/26. The other teams in the field are:
ARIZONA STATE – The Sun Devils went 11-14 last year. But last year’s team isn’t this year’s team. They had nine players leave, including their top 3 scorers. Bobby Hurley has bro0guth in a lot of transfers. 6-1 Marreon Jackson was the MAC player of the year at Toledo, where he averaged 18.1p/6.1r/5.9a. 6-3 Jay heath scored 14.5p/3.1r/1.8a at Boston College. 6-1 DJ Horne averaged 15.1p/3.7r/2.7a at Illinois State. 6-4 Luther Muhammed is a defensive wizard who started 56 games at Ohio State. That’s their new backcourt. They do have returnees up front: 6-8 215 Marcus Bagley averaged 10.8p/6.2r and hit 34.7% of his three pointers. 6-9 220 Jalen Graham is a “bouncy shot-blocker”. 6-8 210 Kimaei Lawrence averaged 8.1p/5.0r but had a 21/20 game at Washington. Hurley also wound up with Enoch Boakye, a 6-10 255 freshman center from Canada we wanted who originally committed to Michigan State
AUBURN – These Tigers were 13-14 last year. They were the youngest team in the country and playing under a self-imposed post season ban. Two guys left for the NBA but, per Lindy’s, Bruce Pearl has “the best transfer class in the nation” to add to 6 returnees and “the highest ranked recruit in Auburn history”. That would be 6-10 220 power forward Jabari Smith Jr. 247 has him as the #6 recruit in the country and the #2 power forward. He has “a nice scoring touch that extends outside the paint”, (Athlon). Pearl also brought in North Carolina’s Walter Kessler, a 7-1 255 center “a stretch 5 who can knock down threes consistently”, (Lindy’s). What’s a ‘stretch-5’? Pearl: “They didn’t play him as a stretch-5, which is what he is. He is going to be a shooting five-man for us.” 6-6 215 Allen Flanigan averaged 14.3p/5.5r. 6-1 Zep Jasper, (Zep Jasper?) averaged 15.1p for College of Charleston. 5-11 Wendell Green averaged 15.8p/5.0a for Eastern Kentucky.
BAYLOR – Let’s see what did Baylor do last season? Oh, yeah, they went 28-2 and won the national championship. They crushed the Houston team that whipped us. They lose four starters from that team, including all three guards but “he and his staff have r-loaded to the point where this should be anything but a re-build”, (Athlon). The Bears have “three of their top six scorers, two top-30 prospects and a pair of high-scoring transfers” (Lindy’s). Their new backcourt will feature 6-1 James Akinjo from Arizona, where he averaged 15.6p/5.4a. (He once played for Georgetown, too, so this is his third stop.) 6-3 returnee Alan Flagler hit 43.4% of his threes last year. 6-8 205 Kendall Brown was the #13 recruit in the country and the #4 small forward and “will give the team elite athleticism” (Athlon). 6-9 225 Matthew Mayer averaged 8.7p in 15.7 minutes per game.
CONNECTICUT - Our old Big East buddies were 15-8 last year and lost in the first round of the NCAAs to Maryland. Coach Dan Hurley didn’t take any transfers: “I want to build something with young players that come in the program and develop”. Good luck with that, Dan. But “they’ve got a couple of sophomores with NBA-type talent, a top ten rated freshman trio and another major talent returning from injury”, (Lindy’s). They also have the Big East defensive player of the year in 6-9 230 Isaiah Whaley and it’s best 6th man in 6-9 215 Tyler Polley. 6-1 RJ Cole is the top returning scorer (12.2). Andre Jackson’s, (remember him?) “freshman season wasn’t up to par for a variety of reasons but the 6-6 wing boasts NBA athleticism” and is a “deft-passing athletic freak who needs to shoot better”. Akok Akok, (They got Akok: we got Ajak) is a 6-9 215 ‘wild card’ after rupturing his achilles last year. 6-1 freshman Rahssool Digigins is a “cocky, verbose point guard”.
LOYOLA (Chicago) – The Ramblers rambled to a 26-5 record last year. They spanked my NCAA favorite, Illinois 71-58 in the second round of the NCAAs before losing to Oregon State in the Sweet 16. Coach Porter Moser moved on to Oklahoma but his top assistant, Drew Valentin has taken over and gets back 8 players. They did lose center Cameron Krutwig, the MVC player of the year. 6-4 Guard Lucas Williamson (8.8p) was the conference defensive player of the year. His backcourt partner Keith Clemons (7.5p), hit 44% of his threes. They’ve got transfers from Princeton, (6-7 205 Ryan Schwieger 10.7) and Dartmouth, (6-7 225 Chris Knight 14.8), will try to help out up front. What makes the Ramblers dangerous is that they no longer ramble and prevent you from doing so: they led the nation in defensive scoring average (56.1p), quite different from their long ago national champions, (1963), who averaged 91.8 to lead the nation in scoring.
MICHIGAN STATE – Tom Izzo’s team was a mediocre 15-13, 9-11 in the Big Ten, last year. It was their worst season since 1996. The lack of a true point guard was damaging. He got 6-0 Northeastern guard Tyson Walker (18.8p/4.8a) to transfer to State to solve the problem. He also brought in the #48 recruit, 6-3 Jaden Akins, the ‘Mr. Basketballs’ of both Michigan, (Pierre Brooks 6-6 205, 33.5p,10.7r) and Illinois (Max Christie 6-5 195 24.0p 10.0r). 6-8 220 Joey Houser, a Marquette transfer averaged 9.7p/5.6r with four double-doubles and 27 points against Wisconsin. The centers, 6-9 25 Mady Sissko and 6-8 225 Julius Marble, are “strong-bodied bangers” per Athlon.
Fortunately, we only have to play 2 of these six teams. But we should emerge from Atlantis with a good idea of who we are – and aren’t – as a team.
Tuesday 11/30/21 7 or 7:30AM at the Dome INDIANA ESPN or ESPN2
We are 5-1 all-time vs. the Hoosiers but the ‘1’ was the big one- the 1987 national championship game, (curse you, Keith Smart!) We got back at them – a nibble anyway - by beating their #1 seeded team in the regional semis on our way to the Final Four in 2013. The Hoosiers have been spinning their wheels even more than we have in recent years, going 85-74 in the last five, (we’ve been 98-67 over the same stretch). Last year they were 12-15 and 7-12 in the conference. Per Athlon, their problem has been an “uninspired offense” under the fired Archie Miller. Mike Woodson, a former star under Bob Knight, has come from the NBA to liven things up again. He talked 5 IU players out of the transfer portal and brought in a couple other transfers as well.
Pitt transfer Xavier Johnson, (6-3 200, 14.2p/3.4r/5.7a) will be a big help. Tamar Bates, the #28 recruit in the country and the 5th best shooting guard, “is a strong finisher, excellent defender and a savvy player whose shot is improving.” (I haven’t heard the term ‘savvy’ in a while.) 6-9 245 Trace Jackson-Davis (19.1p/9.0r) is a “fine inside scorer, strong rebounder and shot blocker”, (Lindy’s). Getting him to come back is a major coup. 7-0 250 Michael Durr, (8.8p/7.9r) transferred in from South Florida to make the Hoosiers one of those intimidating inside teams we have had so much trouble with in recent years.
We need to win the Dome games and not go 0 for Atlantis because December isn’t a tiptoe through the tulips, either.
