I’ve seen 13th from publications. What are y’alls views? I’m not sure I can see Vic and Dererk letting us finish that low.
So where do we finish in the B1G this year?
- Thread starter VirginiaWildcat
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Middle of the conference is a complete crapshoot. I could see as high as 6th and as low as 13th.
I’ll say NU finishes 9th and sneaks into the NIT.
I’ll say NU finishes 9th and sneaks into the NIT.
I’ll definitly take 7th with PG being such a question mark. 13th just seems crazy to me, considering Law and Pardon. Those guys aren’t going to want to go out like that.
Naturally, we fans want more than the NIT, but after last years disappointment it would be nice to see the trajectory going the correct path again, which an NIT would do it.
The Bigten is going to have alot of good teams but I dont think we finish that low. We have made a strong effort to be strong on defense and I imagine that will continue. What we lacked were scoring threats. Lindsey was absolutely awful last year and never regained his shot from 2017. Same with Mac. It was actually quite bizarre because the offense was otherwise fine with great movement and plenty of open shots. Just didnt ever look comfortable at Allstate.
Fast forward, Turner is a pure shooter and same with the grad transfer. Never mind the true freshmen who already know basketball and should provide minutes off the bench. Im guessing anywhere from 9-11 to 11-9 in the standings. Based on the bigten being noticeably improved.
I’m not totally sold on Turner yet. Need to see him in action. As NU fans, how many times have we hyped the hell out of some transfer and it turned out he was average? I remember some people thought Danny Allouche (spelling?) would be a difference maker! There there’s the MT1 saga. Off the top of my head, Doyle was probably our best transfer since I started following the team in the early 90s, and he was the definition of average.
And now we’re almost relying on Turner to buck the trend of our “meh” transfers. Makes me nervous.
I think 6-6 transfer Ryan Taylor, not Turner, will be the key to the season. If he's as good as he showed at Evansville, we will go dancing because he could be the consistent scorer that we were missing last year. With a core of Taylor, Pardon, and Law, all we need is a good supporting cast from rest like Greer, Turner, Gaines, Kopp, Benson, Nance, Ash, etc. to be competitive every game.
I agree. I don't care if you're playing against YMCA talent, scoring 21 a game isn't easy. If he can shoot 42% from 3 again he'll be a scorer in the Collins offense, which seems to revolve around jacking up 3's.
I also left off the Maltese Falzon from the supporting cast. So we are quite deep this year unlike most previous seasons.
There's another guy that makes me nervous. If he's not making his shots, he's pretty detrimental. He's below average in most other categories. That said, when he's on, he can score 25. You never really know which Falzon you're getting from game to game.
There is no team that I’m SURE that NU is better than in the Big Ten, except for Rutgers.
My prediction for 9th is based on getting just out ahead of Illinois, Penn State, Iowa and some other team that underperforms.
I’d like to say 7th, but I just don’t know if I can have NU ahead of two other teams (who? Minnesota? Nebraska? Ohio State?) given what we know now. The Big Ten is tough and we no longer have BMac.
I agree with the previous statement of somewhere in the range of 7th place this is a very deep team.
ESPN has NU 12th in their Power Ranking today. How this squares with their BPI has me baffled.
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...es-better-ncaa-tournament-haul-2018-19-season
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...es-better-ncaa-tournament-haul-2018-19-season
For those saying 7th, I’d love to see the overall standings. It’s easy to say NU will finish right in the middle in the abstract.
Last year's Cubs playoff opponents (Dodgers and Nats) both had a Taylor and a Turner. Now the Cats do. No wonder they're hard to keep straight.
I still don't buy into Greg Gard enough to put Wisconsin into the top half of the conference by default, especially considering how they played last season.
Agreed, and 3rd place would provide the added benefit of eliminating the last of the troll posters here.
Teams the Cats can be better than:
Rutgers
Penn State
Wisconsin
Iowa
Nebraska
If the Cats overachieve vs expectations, then some other teams need to struggle. I'd look at:
Minnesota
Illinois
Ohio State
If the brick fest of 2017/18 continues, then Cats meet expectations. I just find it hard to imagine that this team shoots that poorly again. Last year was a full season hangover, sadly.
At least, as a fan, that's what I'd like to believe
I think that anywhere from 3 to 11 is possible.
For NU, the roster is absolutely loaded.
But, and there are two big "buts", we have no idea how they'll play together because there are so, so many new pieces. Quality pieces, but new pieces. And, because of the swiss cheese guard position the scheme may be very different so we have no idea how the team responds, performs, etc.
I post this every year....if the team makes a run in conference they can do big things.
There is nothing preventing this team from stringing together a 5, 6, 7 win streak against some good Big Ten teams. If that happens we'll be discussing the top of the standings (and screw the soft non con).
If the team is dysfunctional, the bottom of the standings is possible.
I think three things will kick in, though. Senior play (Pardon, Law, Turner, Taylor, Falzon, Ash...all fourth year at least) will kick in big time. From the group of Gaines, Benson, Kopp and Nance, there will be one high riser and one extraordinary riser. Last, and related to the first two, I think the post play will be very, very good.
The smart money is on a middling season. Those picking NU for the bottom are saying, "we don't know great detail about the Big Ten...we know MSU is supposed to be at the top....and here's the penalty on NU for making us look so dumb last year."
I have to add that I could say similar things about other conference teams. Iowa could be anywhere with a high quality roster. If it gels for them, they can compete with anyone. Wiscy could be extraordinary.....or a dud.
The Big Ten has a lot of quality....but so many questions.
For NU, the roster is absolutely loaded.
But, and there are two big "buts", we have no idea how they'll play together because there are so, so many new pieces. Quality pieces, but new pieces. And, because of the swiss cheese guard position the scheme may be very different so we have no idea how the team responds, performs, etc.
I post this every year....if the team makes a run in conference they can do big things.
There is nothing preventing this team from stringing together a 5, 6, 7 win streak against some good Big Ten teams. If that happens we'll be discussing the top of the standings (and screw the soft non con).
If the team is dysfunctional, the bottom of the standings is possible.
I think three things will kick in, though. Senior play (Pardon, Law, Turner, Taylor, Falzon, Ash...all fourth year at least) will kick in big time. From the group of Gaines, Benson, Kopp and Nance, there will be one high riser and one extraordinary riser. Last, and related to the first two, I think the post play will be very, very good.
The smart money is on a middling season. Those picking NU for the bottom are saying, "we don't know great detail about the Big Ten...we know MSU is supposed to be at the top....and here's the penalty on NU for making us look so dumb last year."
I have to add that I could say similar things about other conference teams. Iowa could be anywhere with a high quality roster. If it gels for them, they can compete with anyone. Wiscy could be extraordinary.....or a dud.
The Big Ten has a lot of quality....but so many questions.
Thanks for the reply, this is fair and I agree. I think saying the Cats “can” be better than just five teams is why I have them as finishing 9th.
I think among the teams you list, Minnesota and Illinois may struggle but I don’t see Nebraska or Wisconsin as worse than NU this season.
Like I said, there is no team except Rutgers that I feel 100% sure NU is better than right now, knowing what we know.
This is probably my second biggest concern, following the PG situation.
As fans, we're naturally inclined to hype new guys and expect them to be better than they probably are. I'm certainly guilty of that in the past (I.Brown being the latest example). I'm trying really hard this year to curb my expectations of the new guys because we all know it's not exactly easy to join the B1G and become a difference maker in someone's first year. That certainly doesn't mean I can't be proven wrong (which I'd love). I guess last season did a number on my "high hopes" outlook in the preseason.
Also, Pardon will be huge this year, but he can't try and force his play the way he did at the beginning of last season. He's so much better when the lets the plays come to him. Same with Law. So who becomes the play-maker that can set these guys up?
Are you looking for volunteers? I still have some eligibility, but as opposed to being a setup guy or 3 and D guy, im probably more of a cramping up and clueless on the court guy.
Nonesense! I thinking you’re more the Steph Curry type. Please contact Coach Collins ASAP.
I remember watching Falzon shooting at his peak performance level and the announcers were predicting he would soon become a top scorer in the conference. He was an exciting player. Then came the injury and he's been only the shadow of his former self. BUT we're two years past the injury now and Falzon could have a fine come-back year.
I'm thinking 9th or 10th, with an outside shot at the NIT depending on the strength of the conference. To be anything better than that, the team must have several players take significant steps forward and get significant contributions from the freshman class. That's possible, but it's not likely.
I would welcome the team proving me wrong, of course.
I would welcome the team proving me wrong, of course.
Gojng back to as many seasons not making the dance as Carmody did?
Funny thing iis, I used to support BC ,until I realized I was on the same side as people like DCF and Mystic and thus came to my senses...
I could swear BC has been gone for years and we have some new coach that we can judge on his own merits...
11th or worse in the regular season, first-round exit in the Big Ten Tournament, continued sense of apathy from the players, and not being competitive against the top teams in the conference.
But there’s no denying his biggest critics are those that lost their minds when BC was fired.
