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Big Ten Basketball Thread

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2010-11 Conference Preview: Big Ten
By Mike_Misek
Tue, 11/09/2010

Ohio State Buckeyes

2009-2010 Record: 29-8

Postseason Finish: NCAA Sweet Sixteen

No program in the country has produced more first round picks in the previous four drafts than Thad Matta and Ohio State?s six. Programs that develop the kind of pipeline to the NBA are unique in that they can lose the College Player of the Year in Evan Turner and still have a reasonable expectation of competing deep into March. While Turner is off in Philadelphia, the next crop of wannabe Turners, Odens, and Conleys have arrived and ready to follow in their footsteps.

Let?s start with the big man. Jared Sullinger enters the college ranks with one of the most polished prep resumes. He was co-MVP with Harrison Barnes at the McDonald?s All-American game, poured in 22 points in the Nike Hoops Summit, and was the first Ohioan to be named PARADE Player of the Year since LeBron James. He also began his Buckeye career with a bang as he posted a rumored 40 points in a ?silent scrimmage? against Baylor a week ago. Whether the number was correct or not, his performance earned him rave reviews from his teammates. It is confirmed that he had 22 points and 10 rebounds against Walsh University in the first official exhinition. The burly 6?9? 280 lbs Sullinger might not only be the best player to come out of the Big Ten but arguably one of the best in the country. His lack of explosive athleticism, tendency to play below the rim, and propensity to carry close to 300 lbs might cause some concern as the draft approaches, but he should be nothing short of a dominant presence in the NCAAs this season.

While Sullinger is the big name of the group, the rest are not far behind. Forward Deshaun Thomas was a McDonald?s All-American and ranked by this site as the 40th best pro prospect among incoming freshman. According to Matta, he entered Columbus with his body fat at 14.6 percent body fat and already has it down to 8.2. He has also been among the best scorers on the team in preseason scrimmages. The guards, Jordan Sibert, Lenzelle Smith Jr., and Aaron Craft, are also highly acclaimed. Sibert and Craft stand to compete for minutes right away with the latter possibly getting the starting nod at the point sooner or later. Smith is recovering from a torn ligament in his wrist and has not practiced yet, though he might be cleared this week.

Oh wait, the Buckeyes have pretty good returning players too. William Buford spent the summer impressing NBA people while practicing with Team USA in their run up to the World Championships. He is their top returning scorer, and capable of scoring from all over. He is the second best shooting guard prospect entering the season according to this site. Jon Diebler already owns the all-time school records for career 3-pointers and single-season 3s. Fifth-year senior David Lighty has played with all six of those previously mentioned Buckeyes first round draft picks and is an often overlooked player for the team. He is coming off a season where he averaged 12.6 points per game, was awarded third-Team All-Big Ten honors, and was incredibly valuable when guarding bigger opponents when the Buckeyes went to their four-guard lineups.

Key Departures: Evan Turner, Jeremie Simmons, and P.J. Hill

Notable Newcomers: Jared Sullinger, Deshaun Thomas, J.D. Weatherspoon, Jordan Sibert, Lenzelle Smith Jr., and Aaron Craft

Top Returning Players: William Buford, David Lighty, Jon Diebler, Dallas Lauderdale
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http://www.nbadraft.net/2010-11-conference-preview-big-ten
 
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Illinois rolls Toledo 84-45 in their 2nd game of the 2K sports classic to go to 2-0

6 Big Ten teams get into action Friday

Ohio State Vs North Carolina A&T
Indiana Vs Florida Gulf Coast
Penn State Vs Lehigh
Minnesota Vs Wofford
Michigan State Vs Eastern Michigan
Northwestern vs Northern Illinois
 
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Big Ten: Men's overview
Thursday, November 11, 2010
By Bob Baptist
The Columbus Dispatch


The Big Ten championship race could be a rerun of last season, when Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue shared the trophy before the Buckeyes settled the question in the conference tournament. But no conference in the nation returns a better senior class, and other teams that have been trying to break into the upper echelon, such as Illinois and Minnesota, are deeper and more experienced than ever. Who has the depth and seasoning to survive the battle?

The teams

CONTENDERS

Michigan State: Seven of nine regulars and 82 percent of the scoring return from a team that played in the 2010 NCAA championship game. But the Spartans have more Final Four appearances (three) than Big Ten titles (two) in the past nine years.

Ohio State: Three seniors and a junior who started on a Big Ten championship team are complemented by a touted freshman class of six. Are those 10 together capable of taking up Evan Turner's slack and more?

Cont...
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http://www.dispatch.com/live/conten.../bk10-big-ten-men-art-gr3agobp-1.html?sid=101
 
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The team in the B10 being overlooked is Minnesota. I watched them play Siena the other night. They have a couple of young guys that are impact player...Nbakwe and Wiiliams both are names to remember. Minnesota may not win the B10 but they very well may determine who does. Teams like Illinois that have weak bigmen will have trouble against them.
 
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Illinois should have won that game - they held Texas without a field goal for 7 minutes in the last quarter of regulation, but they were unable to score themselves. I think Tisdale fouling out with about 6 minutes left really hurt Illinois.
 
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DZ83CK;1814736; said:
I think Tisdale fouling out with about 6 minutes left really hurt Illinois.
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If he doesn't foul out, Illinois wins this game by a nose without going into OT. All Tisdale would have had to do is help account for one basket that they missed, either by a second chance rebound or by putting one in himself.

Speaking of Illinois, they're up 40-36 on Maryland at the half in the consolation game of that tourny on ESPN2.
 
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brutus2002;1814370; said:
The team in the B10 being overlooked is Minnesota. I watched them play Siena the other night. They have a couple of young guys that are impact player...Nbakwe and Wiiliams both are names to remember. Minnesota may not win the B10 but they very well may determine who does. Teams like Illinois that have weak bigmen will have trouble against them.
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Good call 13 hours before they beat UNC in Puerto Rico. Nbakwe is a great rebounder, Hoffarber has the quickest trigger I've ever seen (although he travels every time he sets to shoot, it never gets called), and they've got a young kid name Williams who is an unreal athlete.
 
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brutus2002;1814370; said:
The team in the B10 being overlooked is Minnesota. I watched them play Siena the other night. They have a couple of young guys that are impact player...Nbakwe and Wiiliams both are names to remember. Minnesota may not win the B10 but they very well may determine who does. Teams like Illinois that have weak bigmen will have trouble against them.
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Good call on Minnesota. I've seen them play twice this week and they look solid. The rotation on their 2-3 zone is a thing a beauty.
 
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