slufan13

link for those with insider http://insider.espn.go.com/mens-coll...ence-teams-ncb

1. Memphis
2. UNLV
3. Saint Louis -Saint Louis is a team that, like Memphis, was beloved by the advanced rating systems but largely shrugged off by the traditionalists. BPI rated the Billikens No. 15 overall team entering the NCAA tournament, but they received just a 9-seed and the tall order of facing fellow advanced metric darling Memphis in the first round. They beat the Tigers and put a real scare into the 1-seeded Michigan State Spartansbefore bowing out. Saint Louis can be underrated by the eye test because it plays slow, grinding, defense-first basketball.
The good news is that the keys to the Billikens' defense are all back -- the extraordinary 25 percent defensive rebounding rate of junior Dwayne Evans, the ball pressure of juniors Mike McCall Jr. and Jordair Jett and the rim protection of junior Rob Loe. The bad news is that their offense went through departed senior Brian Conklin, a combo forward who was one of the most dominant post scorers in the nation. Point guard Kwamain Mitchell and forward Cody Ellis are both proven 3-point bombers. If the Billikens can put together an interior attack that still gets Mitchell and Ellis shots, they should be top-25 material.

4. Creighton
5. Gonzaga
6. San Diego St.
7. New Mexico
8. Davidson
9. VCU - It shouldn't be considered a shock if the Rams' defense is the best in the country. They placed six players in the top 350 in steal percentage last year, and they're all back, including national leader Briante Weber.
Star forward Bradford Burgess has graduated, though, and that means points will be harder to come by.
10. Butler - Defensive superstar Ronald Nored graduated, but Butler has plenty of talent on the roster.
Last year's biggest issue was 27 percent 3-point shooting, and that should be remedied nicely with transfer Rotnei Clarke and freshman Kellen Dunham -- two of the best shooters in the country -- in the 2013 rotation.

Next tier: BYU, Harvard, Murray State, Ohio, South Dakota State, Saint Mary's

X-man47

I will not be surprised if Xavier cracks this list before conference play. They are young, but very talented. Of course I am somewhat biased on the subject.

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Xavier always goes to the NCAA tournament, and almost always makes some noise while there. Projecting anything less than that this season feels like folly.
Eamonn Brennan, ESPN (Summer Shootaround, 2012)

Blue Blobster

X doesn't need to start there. I would definitely bet that they would be on it at the end of the year. When it matters most.

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Xavier likes to Play in the NCAA tournaments
Dayton likes to host them while they play in the NIT

paulxu

That list makes a lot of sense to me. Each of those teams returns the core of their players, and some have picked up proven transfers.

We graduated one of the best backcourts in the country and a 7' center. What we start with (other than Dez) is pretty much unproven. But the new class seems promising so I'm looking forward to a great A10 season.

(we can sneak up on people)

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...he went up late, and I was already up there.

JHG722

Still a lot of disrespect to X and Temple. I dont think people realize nationally the depth Temple has this year. Yeah, we're undersized, but we always defend well and should score a ton this year.

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Temple Owls football and basketball

BU Terriers hockey

DoubleJayAlum

If I had my way, that list would contain 4 A10 schools instead of 3.

Steve81

Temple needs to earn respect, one in out in the A10 Tourney and NCAA.

However, extremely jealous that your best recruit is the son of a UMass player.

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ace93

There is also another UMass connection with recruit Daniel Dingle whose brother Dana went to UMass.

cpico

We all know Temple is a perennial power and will be solid again. But there are legitimate questions about them this year.

You mentioned one concern - about them being undersized.

And yes Temple has depth at the 2 and 3 positions, but I would think even Temple fans have to be concerned about their point guard position, and depth at that position, this season. DiLeo is more of a role player in the A-10 (and that's not a bad thing, all teams need guys like that) and Cummings is a sophomore who averaged 6.3 minutes a game last season. It sounds like Cummings has talent, but playing 25+ minutes a night as a point guard in college is not the easiest thing to just jump right into and play like you're a senior, especially with as little experience as he got last season. I'm assuming, like most young, inexperienced players, that he will have his ups and downs this season as he develops and learns.

And Wyatt, as good as he is, really isn't a traditional point guard - he's basically a two guard.

I think Temple will be good this year, but I think it will be tough for them to be in the top 4 of the A-10 this year.

SDW

I can only assume that the omission of UMass from this list means that they were granted an exemption and included among the BCS schools. As potential national championship contenders, that is of course their rightful place.

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Spider Fever...it's spreading.

JHG722

I cant wait for people to see how good Will Cummings is.

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Temple Owls football and basketball

BU Terriers hockey

e-parade

It's a common mistake, due to our vast successes of the past.

cpico

As I said, it sounds like Cummings has talent. But the A-10 is a league where you have a lot of really good point guards (Chaz Williams, Kevin Dilliard, Tyreek Duren, Cedrick Lindsay, etc) who have a lot of experience.

Just realize it might take some time for a sophomore who only averaged 6.3 minutes a game (while playing in 21 games as a freshman) to perform at a high level, especially in a league with as many talented guards as the A-10.

rworkman09

Still don't understand the Butler love. They weren't very good last year. They did add a 4 star recruit, but I don't see how untested freshmen get them into the top 10 list here. I'd put X and TU over them.

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Charlotte 49ers Message Board

antboy

They've had more postseason success recently than X and TU (close with X) and they didn't lose as much. At least I think that's the thinking, not sure I agree with it. I did read one analyst make a fairly good argument that their biggest weakness last year was outside shooting, and that their recruits are supposed to be very good at that.