2019-2020 Predictions Thread

#105      
Giorgi is going to play more than 5-10 minutes at the 4. He and Kofi should see a bit of time on the court together.

Agreed Giorgi will almost end up splitting his minutes imo between the 4/5 (28-30)for all games unless foul trouble creeps in on Kofi.
 
#106      
Prediction non-conference is charmin soft and we go 9-2. More than 3 losses there is extremely disappointing. Conference schedule we end up 9-11. Overall 18-13 and squarely on the bubble. Probably need 2 wins in the BTT to get in.

A lot of people have high expectations but until I see it I can’t go all in. Defensively we’ve been pretty terrible under BU. Sadly I think this year might actually be the peak under him too. Felt the same way going into football this year and that has been realized. Hope I’m wrong here.
 
#107      
11/5 - Nicholls State- W
11/8 - at Grand Canyon- W
11/10 - at Arizona- W
11/18 - Hawaii- W
11/20 - The Citadel- W
11/23 - Hampton- W
11/26 - Lindenwood- W
12/2 - Miami- W
12/7 - at Maryland- L
12/11 - Michigan- W
12/14 - Old Dominion- W
12/21 - Missouri- L
12/29 - North Carolina AT&T- W
1/2 - at Michigan State- L
1/5 - Purdue- W
1/8 - at Wisconsin- L
1/11 - Rutgers- W
1/18 - Northwestern- W
1/21 - at Purdue- L
1/25 - at Michigan- W
1/30 - Minnesota- W
2/2 - at Iowa- W
2/7 - Maryland- L
2/11 - Michigan State- W
2/15 - at Rutgers- W
2/18 - at Penn State- L
2/24 - Nebraska- W
2/27 - at Northwestern- W
3/1 - Indiana- W
3/4 - at Ohio State- L
3/8 - Iowa- W

I think that puts us at 23-8 if I counted my tallies correctly. I think that's the optimistic view...I just went with my gut when reading each game individually but I admittedly have a severe Orange and Blue lean...ILL
 
#108      

Illwinsagain

Cary, IL
11/5 - Nicholls State- W
11/8 - at Grand Canyon- W
11/10 - at Arizona- W
11/18 - Hawaii- W
11/20 - The Citadel- W
11/23 - Hampton- W
11/26 - Lindenwood- W
12/2 - Miami- W
12/7 - at Maryland- L
12/11 - Michigan- W
12/14 - Old Dominion- W
12/21 - Missouri- L
12/29 - North Carolina AT&T- W
1/2 - at Michigan State- L
1/5 - Purdue- W
1/8 - at Wisconsin- L
1/11 - Rutgers- W
1/18 - Northwestern- W
1/21 - at Purdue- L
1/25 - at Michigan- W
1/30 - Minnesota- W
2/2 - at Iowa- W
2/7 - Maryland- L
2/11 - Michigan State- W
2/15 - at Rutgers- W
2/18 - at Penn State- L
2/24 - Nebraska- W
2/27 - at Northwestern- W
3/1 - Indiana- W
3/4 - at Ohio State- L
3/8 - Iowa- W

I think that puts us at 23-8 if I counted my tallies correctly. I think that's the optimistic view...I just went with my gut when reading each game individually but I admittedly have a severe Orange and Blue lean...ILL
Agreed, optimistic, EXCEPT for that game on 12/21 and getting swept by Maryland. However, unlike some, I would take this, even with the loss to Mizzou, the season means more to me than any single game. At least until the tourney starts, than every game is the most important thing. Rather be a 10 seed making a run to the Championship, than a 1 seed losing the first weekend.
 
#110      
1/2 - at Michigan State- L

We could go into this game with only 1 loss on our record actually. Realistic chance if all the hype is not just that?

Miami/Maryland are the possible bad ones...I think we match up with all the rest?
 
#111      
Going to put forth a contrarian view.

Honest question: How is this team different from last year's 12-21 team that got destroyed by 21 against Iowa?

Ayo was fantastic last year, improved as he went, but how much better can he get over the summer?
Same for Giorgi, and to a lesser extent, Feliz.
Kofi should be expected to be inconsistent. Even still, I'll give a slight bump to the true freshman over an injured ADR and Kane.
AJ graduated. 27 mpg and shot 42% from 3, and was our best FT shooter (Tevian had the highest FT% but didn't shoot enough to qualify IMO). AJ rebounded well too, and didn't turn it over. People are glossing over the loss of a plus player.
Trent I would expect to be productive if healthy.
Tevian and AG should improve, but it seems like people are expecting miracles.
BU has not shown the ability to install his system quickly, and that's not good if you're in a world of high roster turnover. We looked like crap for half the season. I couldn't stand watching the !!!!-show we put on early. I felt like we were watching one team that hadn't practiced vs a team that had. As far as intangibles, I'm not optimistic about us knowing how to win close games, simply because we trailed off so heavily at the end of the season (2-6 after the winning stretch). There were positives, for sure, and I appreciate the effort these guys put in. Nothing against them, but I see some serious concerns about us getting to the level people here are expecting.

Anyway, I'm not expecting as much as many others. If we get above .500 in conference I'll be pretty happy. The non-conf is a lot more forgiving this year, and hopefully we've progressed enough, that we won't lay an egg in the games that matter. That could put us in bubble territory, something I would be loathe to see for a program that should be well into a strong rebuild.

This team is not that much different, and that's why fans and media are so excited. While many teams in college bball are dealing with high roster turnover, we are not. Finally, BU can get into the intricacies and details in his system like never before. We have heard about how in depth his offense gets, but we have also heard that he has had to dumb it down the past couple years because of all the new faces.

T-rank has us at 14th preseason by the way. Mainly because we get over 80% of our production back. Really all these pre season predictions boil down to 1 thing. Do you have faith in BU's coaching abilities or not. If you do, that 80% production is going to come back much more efficient, which is what the T-rank is banking on.
 
#112      
With the scheduling of Lindenwood, the schedule is finalized. Seems like as good a time as any to start the prediction thread!

Games:
11/5 - Nicholls State W
11/8 - at Grand Canyon W
11/10 - at Arizona W
11/18 - Hawaii W
11/20 - The Citadel W
11/23 - Hampton W
11/26 - Lindenwood W
12/2 - Miami W
12/7 - at Maryland L
12/11 - Michigan W
12/14 - Old Dominion W
12/21 - Missouri L
12/29 - North Carolina AT&T W
1/2 - at Michigan State L
1/5 - Purdue L
1/8 - at Wisconsin L
1/11 - Rutgers W
1/18 - Northwestern W
1/21 - at Purdue L
1/25 - at Michigan L
1/30 - Minnesota W
2/2 - at Iowa L
2/7 - Maryland L
2/11 - Michigan State W
2/15 - at Rutgers W
2/18 - at Penn State W
2/24 - Nebraska W
2/27 - at Northwestern W
3/1 - Indiana W
3/4 - at Ohio State W
3/8 - Iowa W

22-9 (12-8). We get off to a rough start in the conference, but finish on fire to steal that 4 seed and double bye on the last day of the season.
 
#113      
Prediction non-conference is charmin soft and we go 9-2. More than 3 losses there is extremely disappointing. Conference schedule we end up 9-11. Overall 18-13 and squarely on the bubble. Probably need 2 wins in the BTT to get in.

A lot of people have high expectations but until I see it I can’t go all in. Defensively we’ve been pretty terrible under BU. Sadly I think this year might actually be the peak under him too. Felt the same way going into football this year and that has been realized. Hope I’m wrong here.

You have more than every right to be pessimistic. For more than a decade we have been driven mad as slightly more talented teams went to the dance and we just couldn't take that next step. I will argue it is because we didn't' have the talent or the depth.

This year we have both. Let's Dance Son.
 
#114      
We could go into this game with only 1 loss on our record actually. Realistic chance if all the hype is not just that?

Miami/Maryland are the possible bad ones...I think we match up with all the rest?

Forgive my ignorance, what’s the deal with Miami? What makes them a tough matchup for us? They were bad last year, are they relying on freshmen or transfers, or just expecting to be better with the same starters?
 
#116      
Forgive my ignorance, what’s the deal with Miami? What makes them a tough matchup for us? They were bad last year, are they relying on freshmen or transfers, or just expecting to be better with the same starters?

Wouldnt' say ignorance on this....Miami is simply a team that seems to give us fits year in year out...they will be very athletic regardless of age of players...and will be willing to run with us I suspect. Their team ## reflect similiar to ours and the player talent is with us, they are however positioned in what could easily be a trap game for us...following Lindenwood and before Maryland?
 
#117      
Prediction non-conference is charmin soft and we go 9-2. More than 3 losses there is extremely disappointing. Conference schedule we end up 9-11. Overall 18-13 and squarely on the bubble. Probably need 2 wins in the BTT to get in.

A lot of people have high expectations but until I see it I can’t go all in.
Defensively we’ve been pretty terrible under BU. Sadly I think this year might actually be the peak under him too. Felt the same way going into football this year and that has been realized. Hope I’m wrong here.

That's where I'm at. Freshman Kofi is a huge question mark in my view --he has to make good reads, stay out of foul trouble, take care of the ball in the pinch post, and understand when he has a mis-match. I think expectations of him are too high, and he didn't get to play in Italy. Doesn't mean he won't be an impact freshman, but it's hard to pencil him in with all those skills without seeing it run.

If BV is able to play the 4, it means Kofi won't need to do as much, and we won't be so concerned about Kipper's consistency. But again, that's a question mark. Need to see something before I get too excited about our ceiling.
 
#119      
Have to love the guard combo of Ayo, Trent, and Dre. Believe they are the best combo in the BIG. Pretty optimistic about Alan at the three based on the end of the year defense and his performance in Italy. Tevian should be at least serviceable as a backup. We know Giorgi can play the five but not sure how good he will be at the four offensively but believe he will be a significant improvement in defense and rebounding due to his +4" over Jordan. Believe much the same about Kofi over Giorgi at the five. Biggest question for me is his ability to stay out of foul problems and the backups for them both. We have no proven BIG quality backup players at the 4 or 5. That is much more of a question than Kofi IMO.
 
#120      
Have to love the guard combo of Ayo, Trent, and Dre. Believe they are the best combo in the BIG. Pretty optimistic about Alan at the three based on the end of the year defense and his performance in Italy. Tevian should be at least serviceable as a backup. We know Giorgi can play the five but not sure how good he will be at the four offensively but believe he will be a significant improvement in defense and rebounding due to his +4" over Jordan. Believe much the same about Kofi over Giorgi at the five. Biggest question for me is his ability to stay out of foul problems and the backups for them both. We have no proven BIG quality backup players at the 4 or 5. That is much more of a question than Kofi IMO.
How BU uses GB isnt going to change much whether Kofi is on the floor or not. The great thing is GB will just draw a smaller defender. Kofi will just be on the opposite side of the floor to catch a lob o crash the boards. We are not going to go away from GBs strengths. We get too caught up labeling the players. They vwill all be used to play to their strengths and BU is a good coach and knows how to do that.
 
#121      
How BU uses GB isnt going to change much whether Kofi is on the floor or not. The great thing is GB will just draw a smaller defender. Kofi will just be on the opposite side of the floor to catch a lob o crash the boards. We are not going to go away from GBs strengths. We get too caught up labeling the players. They vwill all be used to play to their strengths and BU is a good coach and knows how to do that.
Defense will be different! Offense will not be a problem but rebounding and paint defense must be dramatically different.
 
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#122      
Biggest question for me is his ability to stay out of foul problems and the backups for them both. We have no proven BIG quality backup players at the 4 or 5. That is much more of a question than Kofi IMO.

Kofi will be supported by Giorgi at the 5. I think Kofi’s floor is high enough that the 2 of those guys will cover the 5 pretty well. Hamlin might get sprinkled in, although I doubt he sees any usage in any meaningful/close game unless Giorgi and Kofi are both in deep foul trouble or do something else to upset BU.

Giorgi will probably start at the 4. Depending on how well Kofi does, Giorgi could see 5-15 minutes at the 4. Kipper will likely have first shot at being the primary backup at the 4. BU has been hyping Kip’s improved defensive consistency which could turn into minutes at the 4 for Kipper. After that BBV, Tevian, and Alan would be next up for minutes at the 4.

At the 3 I could see either Griffin or Da’Monte starting. Either way I think they will see the majority of the minutes at the 3. Tevian and Kipper might get some time at the 3 if Giorgi and BBV or Hamlin are also on the floor with them but I think that most of their minutes will be played as the 2nd tallest guys on the court.

At the 1/2 it will be a 3 man rotation of Ayo, Trent, and Feliz. Da’Monte, Griffin, and Tyler May see a few minutes here throughout the season but not too often.
 
#123      
Maybe the football team set up the turn around at WI. WE HAVE MORE TALENT AND IT IS TIME TO START WINNING THERE.
 
#124      
Based on the Pomeroy ratings we only lose to Arizona in non-conference but start 0-4 in conference games.
MSU 1, Purdue 7, Mary 16, and Mich 21. Don't really understand Arizona at 24 or Purdue at 7 but may be objective view.
 
#125      
I think this is 22-9 overall, 12-8 in B1G

W 11/5 - Nicholls State
W 11/8 - at Grand Canyon
L 11/10 - at Arizona
W 11/18 - Hawaii
W 11/20 - The Citadel
W 11/23 - Hampton
W 11/26 - Lindenwood
W 12/2 - Miami
L 12/7 - at Maryland
W 12/11 - Michigan
W 12/14 - Old Dominion
W 12/21 - Missouri
W 12/29 - North Carolina AT&T
L 1/2 - at Michigan State
L 1/5 - Purdue
L 1/8 - at Wisconsin
W 1/11 - Rutgers
W 1/18 - Northwestern
L 1/21 - at Purdue
W 1/25 - at Michigan
W 1/30 - Minnesota
W 2/2 - at Iowa
W 2/7 - Maryland
L 2/11 - Michigan State
W 2/15 - at Rutgers
L 2/18 - at Penn State
W 2/24 - Nebraska
W 2/27 - at Northwestern
W 3/1 - Indiana
L 3/4 - at Ohio State
W 3/8 - Iowa