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Chat Reel: Tim Crothers
With Cleaves back in the fold, MSU is title favorite
Posted: Monday January 10, 2000 07:37 PM
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With Mateen Cleaves back in the fold at Michigan State, the Spartans are now a legitimate choice to go all the way. Jonathan Daniel/Allsport |
Sports Illustrated senior writer Tim Crothers recently began a series of weekly college basketball chats (each Monday at 2 p.m.) with CNNSI.com users. He discussed the legitimacy of Syracuse's unbeaten streak, Michigan State's chances for a national title and Pepe Sanchez's claim to the mantle "best point guard in the country." A transcript of the chat follows.
CNNSI.com Host: Welcome to our first weekly college hoops chat with Sports Illustrated's Tim Crothers. Thanks for joining us today, Tim.
Tim Crothers: Thank you. Glad to be here.
CNNSI.com Host: Let's get started with the questions.
From Guest: Why won't anyone recognize Syracuse as one of college basketball's elite teams this season?
Tim Crothers: I think the general feeling at this point is that their schedule does not measure up to the early season schedules of some other top 25 teams. Michigan State, Cincinnati, Kentucky, UConn and Arizona have all played a number of other ranked teams. Syracuse has played a weaker schedule and has only played Miami on the road so far this season.
From Guest: What do you think of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane and its ability to play well on the road? I think Tulsa should be ranked in the top 10, don't you?
Tim Crothers: The top 10 might be stretching it a little at this point, but in the weekly SI seed report I included Tulsa among the top 16 teams in the nation this week. I acknowledged their start, which included a couple of quality wins that a team like Syracuse has yet to capture.
From Rich: Not since Byron Scott has Arizona State had such an offensive weapon as Eddie House. What are your thoughts about House's recent scoring rampage> And will Rob Evans will help the Sun Devils get into the hunt in the Pac-10?
Tim Crothers: I wrote about Eddie House last week in SI. At the time I talked to him for the story, Rob Evans told me he believed Eddie was preparing for an offensive explosion along the line of the 61 points he scored against California. I don't thing ASU as a team is prepared to compete with Pac-10 powerhouses like Stanford and Arizona, but House may very well be the best offensive player in the conference.
From Chris: Do you think Indiana has a legitimate shot at winning the Big Ten Conference? All the pre-season polls had them really low.
Tim Crothers: I think all of us underestimated Indiana in the preseason. A.J. Guyton is having an exceptional year, and I believe a huge measuring stick for IU will occur tomorrow night in East Lansing when they face Michigan State in a game everyone expects MSU to win now that Mateen Cleaves is healthy and back in the lineup. If IU wins that game, they've proven that they are contenders to win the Big 10.
From Guest: Why are the Wisconsin Badgers such a powerhouse at home, beating the likes of Texas, Temple and Illinois, but just horrendous on the road? This is probably true for a lot of teams, but I go to Wisconsin and the Kohl Center is not the menacing presence the Fieldhouse used to be!
Tim Crothers: I think that's more coincidence than fact. Wisconsin has an unusual defensive system that causes every team unfamiliar with them some problems. But their success at home is pure coincidence.
From Guest: Do you think Stanford can be this successful once it faces quicker teams in the Tournament? Or is the Cardinal they athletic than its get credit for being?
Tim Crothers: Stanford is in the tradition of the North Carolina teams -- a powerful half-court offensive team with the Collins twins and the recently returned Mark Madsen. They may struggle as they did on Saturday against quicker teams, but North Carolina has proven in the past that height can conquer speed in the Tournament.
From Guillermo: Tim, what is your opinion about Temple point guard Pepe Sanchez? Can he carry his team to the Final Four? Is he "the best point guard in America", as his coach John Chaney used to say?
Tim Crothers: Obviously Sanchez has only recently returned, so it's hard to judge his play so far. Along with Cleaves, Ed Cota and Scoonie Penn, Sanchez is certainly among the best point guards in the nation. But Temple will need extraordinary performances by Mark Karcher and Lamont Barnes to advance as far as the Final Four.
From Guest: What do you think about the Texas/UConn matchup tonight? Is Mihm going to pose problems for Wane and Voskuhl? I firmly believe that El-Amin and Freeman must be much more productive for UConn to win, especially after taking Notre Dame way too lightly last week in Storrs.
Tim Crothers: Mihm is by far the best center in college basketball today. NBA scouts have told me he could be drafted first overall in next year's draft. Jake Voskhul will struggle to defend him in the post and on the perimeter. UConn's El-Amin and Freeman may be able to take advantage of Texas' inexperience in the backcourt. I like UConn to bounce back and beat Texas, especially after underachieving against Notre Dame.
From coach: How do you think Houston will do in Conference USA? And do you feel Clyde Drexler will make it through another year if they finish under .500 again?
Tim Crothers: College basketball observers -- including myself -- have questioned Drexler's long-term dedication to the Houston program. They have one excellent scorer -- Gee Gervin -- but I don't think he can carry them to an above-.500 finish in a league that also includes Cincinnati, Louisville, DePaul and an over-achieving team from South Florida.
From Badrish: The ACC seems to be a much more level playing field this year. Though there's still plenty of talent in the conference, Carolina, Maryland and Duke seem to be struggling to get comfortable with their games. Who do you think will end up on top of the ACC, and what chance do you think a team like N.C. State or Virginia has at stealing the show?
Tim Crothers: Entering the season I felt UNC was clearly the class of the conference, but Duke's young players have grown up faster than expected and I believe Duke and North Carolina should be regarded as co-favorites in the conference. Virginia players, especially freshman Travis Watson, showed great promise, taking Duke to overtime last week. And N.C. State plays excellent defense and should finish third in the conference, but isn't ready to overtake those two traditional powers.
From Guest: With the return of Cleaves to MSU, how far do you think they will go?
Tim Crothers: I believe that Michigan State was among the top five teams in the nation without Cleaves. While he re-habbed his injury, Morris Peterson steps into the spotlight and carried the Spartans offensively in Cleaves's absence. Now that Cleaves is back, Peterson and Cleaves give the Spartans two marquee players, and with premier role players like Charlie Bell, Andre Hutson and A.J. Granger, I believe Michigan State is the favorite to win the national championship if Cleaves stays healthy.
From coach: The SEC seems to be a strong conference this season. Where do you see Kentucky finishing?
Tim Crothers: I think Kentucky's fans buried the Wildcats prematurely after a disappointing 4-4 start. But Tubby Smith switched to a smaller lineup before the Louisville game and the Cats have run off six straight. I can't wait to see how far Kentucky has progressed when they travel to Auburn tomorrow night. I believe the Wildcats are back among the SEC's elite with Auburn, Tennessee and Florida.
From Guest: You mentioned Kentucky-Auburn tomorrow night as a game to watch. What other games are you most looking forward to now that the conference season has revved up?
Tim Crothers: We've talked about how Duke and North Carolina are evenly matched, so I anticipate that game -- as always. Also, tomorrow night, Indiana-Michigan State game is a chance for someone to make a statement. I also look forward to Syracuse's first game against Connecticut in the Carrier Dome on Jan. 24, to decide if Syracuse is for real.
From Guest: That's all we have time for today. Join us again next week, same time, same place for another college basketball chat with Sports Illustrated's Tim Crothers.
From Guest: Thanks, Tim. See you next Monday.
Tim Crothers: O.K. Thanks guys.
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