1. Trent Johnson deserves a toast this morning. He won’t coach a game at TCU for another month, but he earned his first major victory as the Horned Frogs’ head coach on Monday by landing a commitment from blue-chip center Karviar Shepherd. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why it’s important Johnson landed an in-state, top-50 prospect — a guy who, by the way, had an offer to play for Bill Self at Kansas — but the most intriguing part of this decision has to do with a quote Shepherd gave to ESPN. “They really do a great job of improving bigs like they did at Stanford with the Lopez twins,” Shepherd said. Johnson may as well plaster that statement all over campus to boost his recruiting efforts. He may not have the most impressive facilities or much basketball tradition to pitch at TCU, but kids in high school apparently still remember his Stanford days with Robin and Brook Lopez. That’s a terrific sign for a coach who needs to increase his talent level as soon as possible.
2. After a year of injuries, transfers and general shenanigans in Stillwater, Travis Ford certainly increased his talent level by adding freshman Marcus Smart to his roster this season. Le’Bryan Nash entered his freshman season a year ago with similar hype, but there’s something different about Smart. Before ever stepping on the court, he’s earned a reputation as a gritty leader, the kind of guy who’ll do whatever it takes to win and contribute on both ends of the floor. This is just the latest article about Smart’s leadership and winning style, and we’ll certainly hear more about this as fall practice drags on. There’s a danger in hyping a freshman too early, but by all accounts, Smart seems like the type of grounded star who can excel immediately and play within himself.
3. Let’s stay in the state of Oklahoma. Sooners’ coach Lon Kruger sat down with an SB Nation contributor to discuss all sorts of topics, including his team’s intense workout with the Navy this offseason and the growth of his returning nucleus. In the interview, Kruger sounds energized by his 2012-13 roster, which includes good size in the frontcourt, a few scoring guards/wings and a very good point guard in Sam Grooms. It’s also interesting to note that Amath M’Baye is the first player Kruger mentions in his interview. That’s not surprising. M’Baye, a Wyoming transfer who teammates called the best player on the team a year ago during his redshirt year, could be a matchup nightmare and might add an extra element to the Sooners’ roster. Keep an eye on that name — it’s not easy to forget — and keep an eye on Oklahoma this season.
4. CBS launched its college basketball preview on Monday, and it opened its pre-season Top 25 with Big 12 newcomer West Virginia. There’s nothing too surprising in Gary Parrish’s analysis. He’s high on the Mountaineers’ three transfers (Aaric Murray, Juwan Staten and Matt Humphrey), but he’s also concerned about Murray’s attitude  and the program’s ability to rebound from a fairly successful but rather difficult 2011-12 season. The Mountaineers’ season boils down mostly to how well they respond to Huggins’ demands. This team did not defend up to his standards a year ago, and they did not look like a typical Bob Huggins team. Still, in addition to the transfers, you’ve got to think Deniz Kilicli will team with a vastly improved sophomore class to play tough-as-nails basketball again after a year of losing that identity.
5. We mentioned on Monday that Kansas State introduced a new, giant practice facility, but ESPN.com‘s Eamonn Brennan expanded on the topic this week. There’s a funny reaction included from coach Bruce Weber, who didn’t think the place could possibly be ready to go by the start of fall practice. Construction crews got down to business, though, and Weber now has a brand-new facility to show off to recruits.

With Midnight Madness mere days away, and college basketball action kicking off next month, today we begin to ramp up our coverage of Big East hoops in 2012-2013. In anticipation of the upcoming season, the Big East Microsite will examine the season outlook for each conference team. Each day, we’ll be posting a synopsis of one Big East squad, in ascending order based our writers’ predicted final conference standings. Today, we’ll begin our preseason coverage with the team we predict will finish last, Rutgers (13-16, 5-13 Big East).

Rutgers Has a Steep Mountain to Climb This Season

Rutgers finds itself in an uncertain and inauspicious position entering the 2012-13 season; the most positive news out of Piscataway this offseason was video footage of coach Mike Rice rappelling down a building in New Jersey to raise money for cancer research. The Scarlet Knights enter our preseason Big East rankings squarely at the bottom. Rice brings some nice pieces to the table this season, but loses the mercurial Gilvydas Biruta. It also remains to be seen whether Rutgers’ young talent has matured enough to win more games away from the RAC.

Schedule

Rutgers eases into the Big East gauntlet with a manageable non-conference schedule. Their most daunting tests will come against Iona in New York City and at Ole Miss (although admittedly they dodge a bullet once again in the Big East/SEC Challenge, after facing LSU last season). Rutgers benefits from a manageable conference slate in what appears, on paper at least, to be a down Big East. The Scarlet Knights trade visits with Cincinnati, Georgetown, Seton Hall and St. John’s, but get both Louisville and Marquette at home this year. Last year Rutgers played its best basketball at the RAC –– putting together wins against Florida, Cincinnati, UConn and Notre Dame –– so the schedule sets up nicely for them to win a couple of games they won’t be favored in. But considering the issues they had playing on the road in 2011-2012, they could easily head into Big East play with several bad losses.

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1. The preseason accolades continue to flow in for the Indiana Hoosiers. Sophomore forward Cody Zeller was selected to the pre-season All-American team by CBSSports.com and was also selected as their player of the year. Zeller’s selection should come as no surprise but he is accompanied by a few other talented teammates who are just as important if Indiana hopes to make a run at the title — freshman Kevin (Yogi) Ferrell, senior guard Christian Watford and junior wing Victor Oladipo. Ferrell will need to share point guard duties with senior guard Jordan Hulls and Oladipo needs to assert himself as the defensive stopper for the Hoosiers. The Hoosiers gave up 1.06 points per possession last season and need to be more consistent on defense against teams that have similar offensive talent.
2. Wisconsin’s big men have always been unique in their style but also very efficient. Bo Ryan’s former players such as Jon Leuer and Mike Wilkinson had amazing shooting range but also improved their inside game as they progressed through their college careers. Senior forward Jared Berggren hopes to have a similar impact during his final upcoming season for the Badgers. ESPN interviewed the big man about the upcoming season and his experience in playing for Bo Ryan. Berggren improved his game tremendously during last offseason by increasing his average from 2.5 PPG during his sophomore campaign to 10.5 PPG during his junior season. By Ryan will need Berggren to contribute heavily on the offensive end to pick up the slack after Jordan Taylor’s departure, especially during the non-conference season until stud freshman Sam Dekker gets acquainted with the offensive schemes.
3. The Jared Uthoff saga at Wisconsin has been well documented over the last few months. He wanted to transfer out of Wisconsin but there were certain restrictions in place with respect to his final destination. But after an intense offseason, Uthoff will finally begin practicing with Iowa this week. Uthoff is very excited to be at Iowa and believes that he can add depth to Fran McCaffery’s frontcourt. The 6’8″ wing should fit in well with an up-tempo Hawkeyes offense that averaged 65.8 possessions per game last season and ranked first in the Big Ten. He was also named Iowa’s Mr. Basketball in 2011 but will be not be able to play this season due to NCAA transfer rules. Uthoff will learn a fair amount during practice from such key returning players as Roy Devyn Marble who averaged 11.5 PPG and 3.6 APG and is hoped to lead Iowa back to the NCAA Tournament over the next two seasons.
4. Speaking of new faces on campus in the Big Ten, the Michigan freshmen class is considered as one of the best in the country. Featuring two top 75 players – forward Mitch McGary and wing Glenn Robinson III – the class is supposed to aid an already star-studded roster for the Wolverines. MGoBlue.com has compiled a video that introduces the five freshman to Big Ten fans. McGary will add some size to the frontcourt in addition to junior forward Jordan Morgan who averaged 5.6 RPG game last season. The Wolverines ranked tenth in offensive rebounding (25.8%) in conference play last season and will need a more consistent presence in the paint if they hope to make a run at the Final Four. Robinson will add depth to the scoring attack in addition to Tim Hardaway, Jr., who averaged 14.6 PPG last year.
5. In addition to compiling videos to introduce the freshmen to the fan base, schools also host events as part of  Midnight Madness celebrations to let the fans get their first peek of the team in live action. And when it comes to this annual event, Michigan State’s Tom Izzo never ceases to surprise Spartan fans with his antics. What will Izzo’s grand entrance be this year? Nobody knows. In the past, Izzo has shown up to the event on a motorcycle, on a horse and in the old-school Volkswagen van. Izzo’s demeanor on the sidelines can be very intimidating during the games but he has always shown his lighter side during these opening practice events. MSU will host their latest event this upcoming weekend which is also Homecoming weekend in East Lansing.

1. We all know Patric Young is a star, but you might not know that his stardom isn’t just confined to the basketball court. Young recently appeared in a commercial for the Providence School, the private high school he attended in Jacksonville, Florida. But don’t worry about NCAA sanctions for his involvement. The University of Florida compliance office has cleared him to participate under an exception allowing student-athletes to promote educational services as long as any payments for his services are donated to a non-profit agency. Young passed up entering the NBA Draft (and likely an opportunity to endorse products for money… that he can keep AND spend) for another chance to lead in his junior year with the Gators.
2. Frank Martin struck again with another big commitment for the class of 2013. Justin McKie, the son of former South Carolina guard BJ McKie, committed to Martin on Monday after a visit to watch the Gamecock football team beat up on Georgia on Saturday. “The visit went real well, just the atmosphere, just watching the football game and seeing those fans so excited about football, I feel like it can be that way for basketball,” McKie said. “I know coach Martin is a winner and is going to come in and get that winning tradition going. I have a lot of pride at South Carolina I want to be part of that.” McKie’s father, BJ, averaged 17.2 points per game over his career with USC, and is the Gamecocks’ leading scorer with 2,119 points.
3. McKie was not Martin’s only commitment over the last couple of days. First, 6’9″ forward Desmond Ringer chose Martin’s Gamecocks over a host of other SEC and Big East schools. Then, Sindarius Thornwell, one of the top guards in the country, chose South Carolina over North Carolina State last week. “I feel comfortable with Coach Frank and I believe in him,” Thornwell said. “I feel closer to them than I do to North Carolina State.” If Martin continues to recruit like this, he’ll have South Carolina back in the hunt in the SEC far quicker than expected.
4. Kentucky fans are seeking the second coming of last year’s super-human freshman center Anthony Davis, and many expect rookie Nerlens Noel to step into that role immediately. But don’t mention the comparisons to coach John Calipari. “He shouldn’t be compared,” said coach Cal. “They’re totally different. They’re not even the same. Nerlens is going to give us a different type of game. Anthony understood how to compete on possessions. Nerlens is still learning. Like, he’ll take possessions off. Well, you can’t do that. What he is, is a normal freshman.” Didn’t Calipari assure us that his Wildcats were not very good last year? We aren’t falling for your mind games again, John.
5. Kentucky has its fair share of celebrity followers, and Calipari knows how to treat a star. Drake snagged a national championship ring after pledging his allegiances to the Cats a couple of years ago. Ashley Judd can be found in Rupp Arena during big home games throughout the year. And she sure doesn’t sit in the nosebleed section. Now rapper Henry Ogirri recorded a song just about the Big Blue’s trek for a ninth championship. Somebody get this guy a gig at Big Blue Madness. A spot on the bench as a celebrity coach? Or at least some front row seats. What does a guy have to do to be the “Y” at halftime around here? Come on.

Brian Joyce is a writer for the SEC microsite and regular contributor for Rush The Court. Follow him on Twitter for more about SEC basketball at bjoyce_hoops.

1. Raleigh News & Observer: Rodney Purvis had to fight for his eligibility. As part of the first graduating class at Upper Room Christian Academy, the NCAA took an extra long look at Purvis’ academic record before clearing him to play in mid-September. Teammate Lorenzo Brown tried to keep Purvis optimistic — throwing a barb at North Carolina while he was at it: “Plus, with the whole UNC thing, if they got off, how could he not [be eligible]?”
2. Charlotte Observer: Speaking of Purvis and the Wolfpack, NC State and Mark Gottfried want to keep their momentum going from the end of last season. With all of the hype surrounding the team, it’s hard to remember that many thought NC State should be left out of the NCAA Tournament thanks to a schedule lacking in quality wins. We know NC State has the talent and experience, but can it make the leap to become a top-10 team?
3. The Seventh Floor: Miami blogger Jerry Steinberg took the time to rank the position players around the conference. His rankings are detailed and interesting, though I like NC State’s front line better than Miami’s (they’re miles better at running the floor and don’t have as many no-shows) and Duke and North Carolina should be ahead of Maryland (Mason Plumlee gets a bad rap, and McAdoo has the chance to be a bona fide star). Still definitely worth a read.
4. RoundballChat.com: Some optimism for the Eagles! That’s right, Scott Shirley thinks Boston College will be one of the top 100 teams in college basketball. This would obviously be a huge improvement over last season, which is to be expected with almost everyone returning. The players to really watch are Patrick Heckmann and Ryan Anderson.
5. Keeping It Heel: Dexter Strickland will be back on the hardwood, which means good things for North Carolina’s defense. What remains to be seen is how much he trusts that rehabilitated knee. Recovering from knee injuries generally takes close to a year with nearly as much time going into getting confidence back as letting it physically heal. This could be tough on Strickland, whose greatest strength lies in his quickness and agility.

1. CBS Sports rolled out a few major parts of its college basketball season preview yesterday, including the “expert” picks for this season and Jeff Goodman and Gary Parrish’s picks for preseason All-American honors. Goodman, Parrish, and Jeff Borzello picked Louisville to win the Big East this year, with Matt Norlander and newcomer Doug Gottlieb choosing Syracuse. The Cardinals also proved to be a popular Final Four pick, with Goodman choosing the Cards as his preseason national champion.  Bob Huggins also makes a cameo as Goodman’s coach of the year pick. The All-American picks were less Big East-friendly; only Georgetown forward Otto Porter cracked the four teams listed, with a fourth team selection alongside Kansas block artist Jeff Withey and Lehigh’s Duke-killer C.J. McCollum.  Pittsburgh freshman Steven Adams cracked the All-Freshman second team. The Kiwi center is expected to man the middle for the Panthers, and help prevent a second straight disappointing season for Pittsburgh in its final Big East campaign.  These lists include a number of incoming blue-chip freshmen and mid-major superstars, while the Big East has a number of consistent contributors aiming for breakout seasons.  It will be interesting to see if the conference is better represented on these lists come March.
2. Hopefully for Pitt, Adams’ signing turns out to be worth the effort, because it put a lot of stress on head coach Jamie Dixon. According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dixon suffered a pulmonary embolism after one of the 16-hour flights from Wellington, New Zealand, and was hospitalized after he discovered he was having difficulty breathing.  The article goes on to describe Adams’ unique story, one that I’m sure will spread quickly if the seven-footer helps the Panthers make it back to the top of the Big East and into the NCAA Tournament in 2013.
3. In yesterday’s ‘5’, we told you about Georgetown’s new athletic training facility, which is set to break ground in the “very near future.” Well, Connecticut is following suit in upgrading their facilities… the school just doesn’t want people to know how it’s doing it.  According to Boston.com, Husky sponsor Webster Bank will be footing some of the bill for these new facilities, but the university declines to disclose various other financial agreements, like the one with Webster, as well as the identities of many private donors. The legal matters involved in situations like this are not nearly as fun as the basketball implications (unless you’re into that sort of thing), so my biggest takeaway from this situation is that UConn is moving swiftly to stabilize its program as a national contender in the post-Calhoun era. We’ve seen other Big East programs get major boosts from upgraded facilities recently, like Syracuse with it’s Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center and Louisville with the Yum! Center, as well as Kentucky who just opened some ritzy new basketball-focused dorms. Nailing down the coaching situation, whether that’s Kevin Ollie or someone else, is important, but new practice facilities should definitely help UConn sell itself on the recruiting trail going forward.
4. Those of you in the Mid-Atlantic region will be able to catch quite a few Georgetown (and Big East) basketball games on MASN this season.  The Big East slate here includes the Hoyas’ trips to Marquette, South Florida, and Rutgers, as well as home games against Providence, Seton Hall, and DePaul. In my experience, there are few things worse than trying to find a way to watch your team’s less marquee match-ups on television, so I fully support any agreement that will get more league basketball on TV. If we’re being honest, the real winners here are the DMV-area Western Carolina fans who will be able to catch their December 10 bout with the Hoyas.
5. Former St. John’s guard Nurideen Lindsey‘s hardship waiver was granted by the NCAA this weekend, and the feisty guard will be able to open the season with his new team Rider this season.   The 6’3″ Lindsey was very impressive in his short, nine-game St. John’s career, during which he averaged 12.4 and 2.8 assists per game. In his debut against William and Mary, for example, Lindsey scored a season high 19 points and added four assists. Later in the year, he added 18 points and two assists in an 81-72 loss to then-#16 Arizona. Lindsey and the Broncos open their season at home against Robert Morris on November 9.

1. With the season now rapidly approaching, the CBSSports.com guys have moved away from interviewing anonymous coaches about their perceptions on cheating and whatnot to doing some bona fide analysis. On Monday, the group released its four All-America teams and two All-Freshman teams for the 2012-13 season, with UCLA and Ohio State the big winners. The Bruins and Buckeyes each placed two players among the list of 20, as UCLA’s Baby Bruins (Shabazz Muhammad – first team; Kyle Anderson – fourth team) and OSU’s Junior League (DeShaun Thomas and Aaron Craft – both third team) were selected. The first team other than Muhammad includes Indiana’s Cody Zeller (also their NPOY), Creighton’s Doug McDermott, Murray State’s Isaiah Canaan, and Missouri’s Phil Pressey. A good list, yes, but we probably would have gone with Michigan’s Trey Burke at the point guard slot, even as much as we love the spectacular dime-master Pressey.
2. The same guys were certainly busy Sunday night, as CBSSports.com on Monday also released its top 100 players in college basketball for the coming season. We’ve mentioned before just how much of an exercise in futility it is to distinguish between, for example, the 37th best and 38th best players in America, but the list is always a fun jumping-off point to spur discussion. Some of the stratifications of their list are interesting, with only 12 players entering as incoming freshmen while a total of 56 of the chosen players are upperclassmen (juniors and seniors). Additionally, over a quarter of their selections (28) were from non-power conferences while the Big Ten and Big 12 tied for the most players from a single conference, each with 14.  For what it’s worth, their top five players closely mirrors their AA team (with one difference), but take a look at it and see who you think is vastly over- or under-rated or who they left off the list.
3. There was some interesting news out of the NEC yesterday, as two-time defending champion LIU announced that the four players who were involved in a campus altercation last month that resulted in third-degree assault charges were reinstated. The players, including NEC POY Julian Boyd and fellow first-teamer Jamal Olaswere, will be placed on probation by the school and forced to sit out the first two NEC games next season. The standard remedial measures of anger management counseling and community service were added to their punishments, but we’re guessing that more than a few of the other schools in the NEC are rolling their eyes at the rather convenient outcome decided by school administrators.
4. Speaking of rolling your eyes, Bob Knight is building a cottage industry with his multitude of enemies within college basketball, which wouldn’t be a problem if he weren’t acting as an ESPN analyst/personality who is paid handsomely to give his blustery opinions on a regular basis. Everyone knows the story about his tacit refusal to acknowledge #1 Kentucky last season, and apparently he’s moving on to this year’s likely preseason #1 with an equal amount of tenacity. According to WDRB.com‘s Rick Bozich and Eric Crawford, here’s a recent answer Knight gave in an interview where Indiana was mentioned as a possible title contender: “I have no idea [about Indiana]. I can’t even begin to talk to you about teams because I haven’t seen anybody play yet. Next question.” Ever the charmer, Knight.
5. John Calipari has spent nearly as much time improving the overall marketability and cool factor of his program as he has working on the x’s and o’s on the practice court. World famous rappers such as Jay-Z and Drake have becomes friends of the program, occasionally stopping by the locker room and attending games, with the obvious outcome that young studs around the country who idolize those artists will notice. On Monday a video by a Massacusetts-based artist named Henry Ogirri went viral within the Big Blue Nation (and by proxy, the college basketball universe) with his new release about the Wildcat basketball team called “Drive for 9.” As many others have already noted yesterday, every team can use a catchy anthem to rally the players and fans throughout the season, and this one appears to have already taken hold among the UK faithful. Have a look and listen…

Throughout the preseason, the Pac-12 microsite will be rolling out these featured breakdowns of each of the 12 league schools. Today’s release are the Colorado Buffaloes.

Strengths: Tad Boyle is starting to build up quite a reputation in Boulder. In his two years at Colorado, he’s gone 32-4 at the Coors Event Center and after being snubbed from the NCAA Tournament in his first year, he proceeded to win the Pac-12 Tournament and upset UNLV in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last year. Boyle has a system that relies on getting out in transition while playing great team defense, and everyone on this team fits that mold.

From a roster standpoint, a returning trio of Andre Roberson, Spencer Dinwiddie, and Askia Booker will certainly help the Buffaloes try to overcome their lack of experience. The core of this team is very strong; Booker and Dinwiddie provide quickness, power, and efficient shooting while incoming freshman Josh Scott should present a good complement to Roberson with his rebounding ability. The biggest strength in the starting five is Roberson, as he averaged a double-double last year and continues to improve in every facet of the game. There is no one better than him defensively in the post in the Pac-12 and his rebounding skills are hard to match.

Andre Roberson is a candidate for Pac-12 Player of the Year. (AP)

Weaknesses: It’s safe to say this team is very young. There are no impact seniors and only one impact junior. Consequently, the youth of this team could very well affect its depth. However, when you take a look at last year’s team, the same things were said and look where the Buffs ended up. Josh Scott and Xavier Johnson, two projected starters, are incoming freshmen and will be expected to make an impact immediately. Although college basketball is a sport where freshmen can be influential right away with the most ease, it’s no sure thing. The bench of this team is still very much in question. Sabatino Chen can shoot the ball well when open and Jeremy Adams can get a bucket here and there, but the bench’s ineptitude is going to hurt the Buffaloes early on until someone proves they can contribute. The depth and youth of this team will determine how successful the Buffaloes will be this year.

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1. Today is the rare double holiday and no offense to Columbus Day, which is great and all, but let’s face it, the first day of the 2012-13 Big East Microsite is a far bigger deal across the country. If you read Will’s opening post, you know that we have a solid group of folks this year and we are aiming to be bigger and better this season. So let’s dive right in, shall we? It seems only fitting that we should lead off with a note involving new commissioner Mike Aresco, who spoke to reporters about the state of the conference this weekend and had some interesting things to say about basketball in particular. The jist of his chat was that he isn’t worried about weak football teams dragging down the brand because Big East basketball is “legendary.” I guess we shouldn’t tell him that some of the conference’s most “legendary” programs are leaving soon enough for greener pastures and one has already left. We will cut him some slack since its his job to make the conference sound good and because the basketball will remain pretty darn good. Frankly, we have always thought of the Big East as a basketball conference, I am sorry, but Syracuse v. Connecticut just doesn’t hold the same allure on the gridiron as it does on the hardwood.
2. Well, that was quick. Facing a rather grim season outlook, UConn fans got a surge of hope in September when the nation’s No. 1 prospect, Jabari Parker, took an in-home visit from the Huskies after new head coach Kevin Ollie was promoted last month. But just as quickly as it began, it has ended, as Parker has announced his five finalists and UConn is not among them. UConn was hardly a favorite at any point in the race so it shouldn’t be too disappointing. And in some sense, just the fact that Ollie has enough influence to get through Parker’s doorway after the Huskies had already been cut from the list means that the program’s recruiting is in capable hands.
3. I don’t have any idea how far away the “very near future” is but it sure sounds like Georgetown and coach John Thompson, III, are very close to getting a new, on-campus, athletic facility that would help Georgetown’s athletic teams stay competitive in the conference’s ongoing facilities race. The new building will cost $60 million dollars and basically only needs a final round of fundraising before the school can get started on its construction. The facility is going to house multiple sports teams, but make no mistake about it, Georgetown knows where its bread is buttered, and this move is designed to help the basketball teams stay competitive. The conference is full of programs with glimmering, shiny, multi-million dollar facilities, and it is high time that Georgetown got its own.  It is far too early to see what type of impact the facility will have on recruiting, but needless to say, it won’t hurt.
4. The good folks over at CBS Sports examined the question of whether Madison Square Garden is better-suited to host the ACC Tournament than the Big East Tournament, especially in the wake of all the defections. There are a lot of angles to analyze here but it does seem surprising Madison Square Garden didn’t at least take a shot at landing the ACC, which figures to feature better altogether basketball programs and programs like Syracuse and Pittsburgh that always draw well in New York City. It is also pretty clear that while the Big East has done an admirable job of patching up its basketball holes, the tournament isn’t going to have the same aura about it. I would explain more but frankly they do a better job, so just go read the article.
5. We end with something fluffy and really there is nothing fluffier than a nice “top list.” Taking a break from its excellent coverage of the local Orange, Syracuse.com ranked the top five transfers coming into the Big East this season and the list is pretty excellent. Personally I would have said Luke Hancock will make more of an impact for Louisville than Tony Chennault will for Villanova but that is the beauty of these lists. They are pointless and fun-to-read at the same time. We will try to stay away from these for the most part and deliver some actual news. But it’s the first day, and this post is already late. So enjoy and welcome back for what should be another excellent season of college basketball.

We’re just four days away from the official opening to the 2012-13 college basketball season as schools will be able to start officially practicing Friday night. Before then, though, we’re going to take a look at the various pre-conference tournaments that have become synonymous with the first month of college basketball. Nearly every Big 12 school is competing in one of those tournaments this season and we’ll take time each day this week to preview each bracket, from Hawaii to Puerto Rico to New York City. We start the week with the premier programs in the conference, Kansas and Texas.

CBE Hall of Fame Classic

Dates: November 20-21
Location: Sprint Center, Kansas City, Missouri
Teams: Kansas, Texas A&M, Washington State, Saint Louis

The Sprint Center Will Have a Partisan KU Crowd at the CBE This Year

Technically, there are 12 teams in the CBE Hall of Fame Classic. The four host schools listed above each play two “host round” games at home before advancing — win or lose — to the Championship Rounds at the Sprint Center in Kansas City. The “win or lose” part is why talking about teams like Chattanooga or Utah Valley as if they’re really in the tournament field is unnecessary. If you cut through the algebraic details of the “host rounds” and “sub-host rounds” listed on the tournament website, things get much simpler. Texas A&M plays Saint Louis on Monday, November 20. Kansas plays Washington State soon after that. The winners and losers play the next day.

Most of the Sprint Center will be decked out with KU’s Crimson and Blue, but the biggest storyline heading into the 12th annual tournament might be the unexpected departure of Saint Louis head coach Rick Majerus, who stepped down in August due to heart problems. The Billikens nearly knocked off No. 1 seed Michigan State in the second round of last season’s NCAA Tournament and have been a fringe Top 25 team on many preseason ballots.

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