College Basketball: 2019-2020 Season (Men and Women)

[JohnBM01]

With tonight being the 2019 NBA Draft, I figured I'd start VERY early on a new college basketball thread. There is a lot of talk that goes on about players making moves, coaching moves, and more. So let me start off the 2019-2020 thread of college basketball today.

When we talk about defending champions, here are the champs of the 2018-2019 season:

--- 2018-2019 College Basketball Champions ---
NCAA D1 Men: Virginia
NCAA D1 Women: Baylor
NCAA D2 Men: Northwest Missouri State (undefeated!)
NCAA D2 Women: Lubbock Christian
NCAA D3 Men: Wisconsin-Oshkosh
NCAA D3 Women: Thomas More
NIT Men: Texas
NIT Women: Arizona
CIT: Marshall
CBI: South Florida
NAIA D1 Men: Georgetown College (Kentucky)
NAIA D1 Women: Montana Western
NAIA D2 Men: Spring Arbor University
NAIA D2 Women: Concordia (Nebraska)
NJCAA D1 Men: Vincennes
NJCAA D1 Women: Gulf Coast State
NJCAA D2 Men: Kirkwood
NJCAA D2 Women: Kansas City (Kansas)
NJCAA D3 Men: Herkimer
NJCAA D3 Women: Hostos

Can these teams repeat as champions? Will there be changing of the guard? Can not-as-talented teams overtake the better teams of today? This thread is all about all of the goings on in college basketball. Anything is fair game- from players transferring, new coaching hires, and all the preseason college hoops talk all the way to the National Championship games in Tournaments.


Time to tip off a new season of college basketball. So... GO!

 

[JohnBM01]

Recent word has it that the University of Michigan now has a new head coach after John Beilein took the Cleveland Cavaliers' job. Who's the new men's basketball coach of Michigan? Get to know Mr. Juwan Howard. Yep- J. Howard has gone from being an assistant of the Miami Heat to being the coach of the Michigan Wolverines men's basketball team. Michgan has been pretty baller in recent seasons, especially for a school traditionally known as a football power. Maybe Juwan Howard can help keep Michigan as being one of the most solid teams in college basketball.

 

[JohnBM01]

The NCAA has voted to extend the 3-point line to the international distance. So that means the three-point line, at least in the NCAA Men's Basketball ranks, will be moved to 22 feet, 1.75 inches. NCAA Divisions 2 and 3 will follow with this distance the following season. Another change is that the shot clock will reset to 20 seconds after an offensive rebound.

A few other changes have also been made. To see some of the other material I didn't mention here, take a look at this article: https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketbal...asketball-3-point-line-extended-international .

 

[JohnBM01]

RECENTLY REPORTED...

Kansas University and Bill Self are being investigated for a lack of institutional control (insubordination?). They are being investigated with some sort of deal with Adidas. Bill Self will extensively battle this claim.

 

[JohnBM01]

Georgia Tech's mens basketball team got hit with a ban on the 2019-2020 postseason due to various violations. They are on a four-year probation with reduced scholarships and such. More information on GT's postseason ban can be read here: https://sports.yahoo.com/georgia-tech-basketball-hit-with-postseason-ban-by-ncaa-165849747.html .

 

[JohnBM01]

College basketball will tip off 2019-2020 this month. Most people don't follow college hoops around this time of year, but every game counts towards making the Tournament. So get ready for a new season!

 

[JohnBM01]

College basketball is back TONIGHT! Among the many regular season games is the State Farm Champions Classic to be aired on ESPN. The Champions Classic consist of these games to be played at Madison Square Garden:

* #1 Michigan State vs. #2 Kentucky
* #3 Kansas vs. #4 Duke

I forgot to post the Preseason AP rankings for men and women. So let me post those now. These are as accurate as October 21, 2019...


--- Preseason Top 25: NCAA Division 1 Men (as of: October 21, 2019) ---
01: Michigan State
02: Kentucky
03: Kansas
04: Duke
05: Louisville
06: Florida
07: Maryland
08: Gonzaga
09: North Carolina
10: Villanova
11: Virginia <<< defending Nat'l Champion
12: Seton Hall
13: Texas Tech <<< Nat'l Champ. runners up
14: Memphis
15: Oregon
16: Baylor
17: Utah State
18: Ohio State
19: Xavier
20: St. Mary's
21: Arizona
22: LSU
23: Purdue
24: Auburn
25: Virginia Commonwealth

--- Preseason Top 25: NCAA Division 1 Women (as of: October 30, 2019) ---
01: Oregon
02: Baylor <<< defending Nat'l Champion
03: Stanford
04: Maryland
05: UConn
06: Texas A&M
07: Oregon State
08: South Carolina
09: Louisville
10: Mississippi State
11: UCLA
12: Florida State
13: Kentucky
14: North Carolina State
15: Texas
16: Notre Dame
17: Michigan State
18: Miami (Florida)
19: DePaul
20: Arizona State
21: Syracuse
22: Arkansas
23: Minnesota
24: Indiana
25: Michigan

Enjoy the 2019-2020 season!

 

[JohnBM01]

A newcomer to NCAA Division 1 basketball pulled off a nice win earlier tonight! Merrimack joined the Division 1 ranks and beat the Northwestern Wildcats of the Big Ten. The Merrimack Warriors of the NEC defeated Northwestern 71-61 at Northwestern.

 

[JohnBM01]

Have you heard? Last night, the Purple Aces of the University of Evansville knocked off the Kentucky Wildcats 67-64. Oh... and did I mention Kentucky was ranked No. 1 in the nation at that time? And also, this game was AT Rupp Arena! So can you imagine the 20K or so fans in attendance seeing their Wildcats fall hard last night? HUGE win for the Purple Aces!

 

[JohnBM01]

You can never take anybody lightly. You can never assume big schools will take down smaller ones. We saw (then) No. 1 Kentucky fail hosting Evansville. Last night, No. 1 Duke lost at home to the Lumberjacks of Stephen F. Austin State. I'm sure this will hurt Duke pretty hard. Most of the early season Tournaments are wrapping up or maybe about to start or are continuing. Enjoy whatever college basketball action you are getting into!

 

[JohnBM01]

College basketball still in full anger, but let me talk about some of the better teams right now. Let me share some Top 25 rankings with you all. Check it (source: NCAA.com)...

! = currently undefeated

--- NCAA Division 1 Men's Basketball AP Rankings (as of: January 5, 2020) ---
01 - Gonzaga
02 - Duke
03 - Kansas
04 - Baylor
05 - Auburn!
06 - Butler
07 - San Diego State!
08 - Michigan State
09 - Oregon
10 - Florida State
11 - Ohio State
12 - Maryland
13 - Louisville
14 - Kentucky
15 - Dayton
16 - Villanova
17 - West Virginia
18 - Virginia
19 - Michigan
20 - Penn State
21 - Memphis
22 - Texas Tech
23 - Wichita State
24 - Arizona
25 - Colorado

--- NCAA Division 1 Women's Basketball AP Rankings (as of: January 6, 2020) ---
01 - Connecticut!
02 - Oregon
03 - Oregon State!
04 - South Carolina
05 - Stanford
06 - Baylor
07 - Louisville
08 - UCLA!
09 - North Carolina State!
10 - Texas A&M
11 - Florida State
12 - Indiana
13 - Mississippi State
14 - Kentucky
15 - DePaul
16 - Gonzaga
17 - Maryland
18 - Arizona
19 - West Virginia
20 - Missouri State
21 - Arkansas
22 - South Dakota
23 - Tennessee
24 - Michigan
25 - Princeton


I was going to report on NCAA D2 and NCAA D3, but I didn't have as reliable of sources to report on those rankings. I hope your favorite team(s) are doing well. Keep playing hard!

 

[JohnBM01]

Pittsburgh defeated North Carolina 66-52 earlier today in Pittsburgh. Can you believe UNC is now 8-9 on this season? North Carolina- usually one of the most baller programs in all of America... now under .500 after this loss. They are also now in last place in the ACC. Wow! Can you believe it? What's up with the Tar Heels this season?


Elsewhere...

* The University of Houston Cougars upset the No. 16 Wichita State Shockers 65-54 earlier today in Wichita, KS. UH improves to 14-4 on the season against a very game Wichita State crew. I really like where today's UH Cougars are going the past few seasons. They got a solid team and a great coach keeping everybody in check with Kelvin Sampson. This is a stretch, but I am hoping today's Houston Cougars can be as great as the Phi Slamma Jamma Cougars... only do what Phi Slamma Jamma couldn't do- win the National Championship.

* Auburn is no longer undefeated. The Auburn Tigers got lit up like a Christmas tree as the Florida Gators beat Auburn 69-47 in Gainesville, FL.

* West Virginia didn't have a good day themselves. The No. 12 Mountaineers were bested 84-68 in Manhattan, KS by the Kansas State Wildcats.

* Despite getting ejected on a Double Technical, John Calipari's Kentucky Wildcats escaped the Arkansas Razorbacks with a 73-66 victory.


Congratulations to all other winners from today- men's and women's basketball.

 

[JohnBM01]

Let's get ready to RUMBLE!!! The big news maker from this week has been the after-game brawl that ensued between rivals Kansas State at Kansas. Punches and a thrown chair were being thrown after the Jayhawks trounced the K-State Wildcats 81-59. Hmm... sounds like a No Disqualification WWE match, huh? De Souza of KU was suspended for at least 12 games for his involvement of throwing a chair.

More info: https://sports.yahoo.com/massive-fi...tate-basketball-game-bill-self-021543414.html

Wow. Insane brawl.

 

[JohnBM01]

Did you know San Diego State is the only undefeated team in men's Division 1 basketball? The Aztecs are 25-0. Their next game is at Boise State this Sunday. San Diego State is ranked 4th in the nation on the NCAA Division 1 men's side.

 

[JohnBM01]

HEADS UP!

On ESPN right now is a Big Top 5 match as Big XII foes Kansas and Baylor are squaring off. Kansas is No. 3 in the nation at 23-3 (12-1 in Big XII), and Baylor is No. 1 in the nation (13-0). Enjoy any college basketball action that interests you!

 

[JohnBM01]

All congratulations to U. of Oregon Guard Sabrina Ionescu. She is the first player in NCAA Division 1 basketball history (male or female) to record over 2K points, over 1K assists, and 1K rebounds in a career. It is an amazing accomplishment no matter how you look at it. S. Ionescu could have done this for a national power, but she did it at Oregon and asserted herself VERY well. No. 3 Oregon went on to beat No.4 Stanford 74-66 at Stanford.


Congratulations to all other winners from tonight's games.

 

[JohnBM01]

Most people don't care about college basketball until it's March. Most don't really care until it's Tournament time. Guess what month it is? Right- March! All that hard work on the hardwood is going to pay off as teams will make their case to play in the postseason. The Tournament brackets will be set later this month. So get ready for some collegiate roundball action all month long!

 

[JohnBM01]

Concerns over Coronavirus/COVID-19 affected various college basketball games of late. According to something I read on ESPN's Bottom Line, there were NCAA Division 3 basketball games being played in empty arenas. You all PLEASE be careful if heading out to these games and such. This is also where a lot of different conference championship tournament games are being played out. Selection Sunday is next Sunday. So if your favorite team(s) still have a chance to make the postseason, take full advantage!

 

[JohnBM01]

THIS JUST IN...

Due to concerns about the Coronavirus/COVID-19, the NCAA has recently reported that the college basketball tournaments will go on as planned... only with no fans at the games. I'm sure this will even mean not having all the fans pack the Final Four venues. This is quite an interesting move. All of you please be careful. I read this as part of Breaking News on ESPN's Bottom Line a few moments ago.

Earlier this week, the Ivy League cancelled its conference tournaments because of Coronavirus as related news.

 

[JohnBM01]

--- 2019-2020 Season Canceled ---

The tournaments in conference and the National Championship tournaments will no longer progress this season. This is a move to prevent the spread of COVID-19/Coronavirus. Player safety and the overall health of others have led to this season's basketball tournaments be canceled. So therefore, it is with great sadness we will not be able to crown any further champions this season.

 

[JohnBM01]

Today would have been the start of NCAA Division 1 Men's March Madness. But of course, that's not going to happen thanks to COVID-19/Coronavirus. The ESPN networks are mostly just showing a lot of older games right now. As of this post, they are showing the semifinal match of the 2007 Big XII Championship between Kansas vs. Texas. This is kind of like binge watching for you sports fans, since we're seeing a lot of older sporting events.

But again... no March Madness for 2020. So enjoy whatever college hoops action you can find on TV. Most importantly, be safe through all of this.