- ESPN has released a list of the 50 best college hoops programs over the past 50 years. The order is based on a scoring system that awards points for national titles, Final Four appearances and conference titles, but also penalizes the program for any NCAA violations or sanctions. The details of their exhaustive scoring system can be found on the ESPN blog. How did the Big Ten fare in this system? Indiana is the only top 10 team on this list, coming in at #7. Michigan State is ranked #11, with Michigan at #13 and Ohio State at #15, which adds up to four B1G teams in the top 15 of this list. College hoops fans love these types of lists and this leads to hours and sometimes days of debates about the efficiency of the scoring system or the historical significance of these programs.
- Speaking of questions that could spark a debate, how about this one: “If you pick any active coach to lead your program, who would it be?” CBSSports.com conducted an anonymous poll among coaches and this was one of the questions posed. Michigan State’s Tom Izzo placed first with 27% of the vote followed by Kansas’ Bill Self at 23%. Now, the criteria on which the coaches voted is tough to decipher but Izzo’s rank should not come as a total surprise for a guy who has been so clutch in March and demands the respect of his players and rest of the coaches around the country. Izzo has won over 70% of his games at Michigan State and has created a culture of tough-nosed Spartan basketball since the mid-90s.
- Matt Painter and the Purdue Boilermakers have released their non-conference schedule for the 2012-13 season. They will participate in the 2K Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden after playing a couple of home games against opponents that have yet to be determined. The Boilers will play 10 games at home during the non-conference schedule and some of the key match-ups include contests against Xavier and West Virginia. The overall schedule is challenging yet does not seem to overbearing which is helpful for a team that has lost at least three starters from last season. They will field a young squad that needs some time to gel together before conference play begins and playing several tough but winnable games at home will be a huge confidence boost to youngsters such as Anthony Johnson and Terone Johnson.
- Former Iowa Star Matt Gatens is heading overseas to play for a Spanish team, UCAM-Murcia. The team is located in Murcia, Spain, and Gatens has signed a one-year contract with the club after playing for the Phoenix Suns summer league team in July. Gatens hit for 41% shooting from beyond the arc and his long-range abilities make him a good fit for the European style of play. In recent years, some other former Iowa alumni such as Luke Recker and Jared Reiner have played in Spain as well. Gatens gives a lot of credit to Fran McCaffery for his improvement during his senior season as his scoring average increased from 12.6 PPG to 15.2 PPG. Many players take another shot at the NBA after a few seasons in Europe and Gatens has already indicated that he won’t give up his dream of playing in the US again after his time in Spain.
- Big Ten fans are aware of the new additions to the Michigan rotation in the 2012-13 season, specifically incoming freshmen Mitch McGary and Glenn Robinson, III. Both of these freshmen will be part of a great starting five as they will collaborate with returning players such as Jordan Morgan, Tim Hardaway, Jr., and Trey Burke. But John Beilein needs production from his bench in order to make a serious run at the Final Four and redshirt freshman Max Beilfeldt might be able to contribute after sitting out last season. The 6’7″ forward enoyed a successful high school career, averaging 20 PPG and 11.2 RPG during his senior season. The departure of Evan Smotrycz leaves some playing time for others and Beilfeldt might be one of those new faces in the rotation. MGoBlue‘s Morgan Bailey caught up with the redshirt freshman wing this offseason as he is eager to contribute to a potential national championship contender.