Maui Invitational 2009: Who's a Contender, and Who's In Trouble

Back in the 90s, the cream of the crop went to Maui. However, with the development of other preseason tournaments and stronger fields, Maui was a bit subdued this year in terms of talent. However that didn't stop the talent as the 2009 tournament was one of the more thrilling in recent memory.

Outside of Chaminade, I will take a look at each of the teams who played on the Islands, and give some realistic insight on what to expect throughout the season.

Seventh Place: Colorado Buffaloes

Though the Buffs got the dreaded 1-2 in Maui with the only win against Chaminade, they showed something.

The Buffaloes drew two tough matchups against Gonzaga and Arizona, and played well against both losing by a combined eight points. They even showed signs of being able to hang with the big boys holding a 15-point lead against Gonzaga and staying with both UA and GU until the final buzzer.

Colorado also found a bunch of scorers on their team led by Junior Cory Higgins, St. Louis transfer Marcus Relphorde, and freshman Alec Burks. CU showed a lot of talent for being the pre-season pick for the BIg 12's worst team.

However, Colorado needs to build on their near misses in Maui and close out games come January to be a surprise in league play

Sixth Place: Arizona Wildcats

Over the past four years, Arizona has been described by four words: A team in transition.

With their fourth coach in as many years, Sean Miller's club headed to Maui with a lot of new faces and played three tough games against good teams (Wisconsin, Vanderbilt, and Colorado). Miller's club finished 1-2 but showed positive signs that they would be a tough matchup in the Pac-10.

As usual, Arizona was led by senior point guard Nic Wise who did it all for the Wildcats. However, Arizona needed to develop a No. 2 and No. 3 option when Wise is ineffective. Stepping up for the No. 2 appears to be Junior Jamelle Horne.

Also positive signs for the Wildcats were the emergence of two freshman, Solomon Hill and Derrick Williams.

Two sophomore guards, Branden Lavender and Kyle Fogg, also showed steady play.

Like Colorado, Arizona needs to finish games. They were down by eight against Wisconsin in the opener, but showed poise and battled back but two late baskets by the Badgers doomed them.

They closed out against Colorado, but blew a halftime lead against Vanderbilt and got worn out in the second half.

Arizona will be competitve in the Pac-10 this year and they have a shot to return to the tourney but they need to have Horne become Jordan Hill and the freshman and sophomores to grow up fast.

5th Place: Vanderbilt Commodores

Despite their fifth place finish, I thought the Commodores were impressive. The 'Dores came out extremely flat in game one and Cincy took advantage of their sluggishness.

However, after playing a cream puff in Chaminade, they finished up strong by beating Arizona for fifth place, trailing at half by five and wearing out the Wildcats en route to a 12 point victory.

Kevin Stallings club will be a factor in the SEC East and should be up in the top three with a second place finish not too much a reach.

As usual, the 'Dores were led by Junior Center A.J. Ogivy. VU needed a second socring threat to emerge and it looks like Senior Jermaine Beal will make the transition from role player to SEC Star.

Vandy also showed a lot of talented underclassmen especially in the sophomore class as Andre Walker, Jeffrey Taylor, Brad Tinsley, and Lance Goulbourne look to be important contributors to the 'Dores this season. And Fr. John Jenkins is the real deal at point guard, he will be on the SEC All Rookie team.

All in all, I'm sure Vandy was disappointed in fifth place, but two-of-three isn't bad and they showed a lot more promise than other teams in Maui.

Fourth Place: Maryland Terrapins

By far, Maryland was easily the most disappoting team on the islands. Maryland, like Colorado, got the dreaded 1-2 with the one victory over Chaminade.

However, while the Buffaloes showed promise and a competiveness, the Teps did not. Maryland was outmatched against Cincinnati and they were worn out late vs. Wisconsin.

This team also did not answer any speculation as to a No. 2 scoring threat. We all know that Greivis Vasquez is a terrific scorer, but Landon Milbourne, Sean Mosley, and Eric Hayes all proved that when Greivis struggles, they can't take the load off him.

Maryland's frontcurt is also very young with two freshman, James Padgett and Jordan Williams, looking over-matched against Cincy and Wisconsin. Greivis will have his days, but when he doesn't, the Terps are going to have trouble finding ways to win.

Third Place: Wisconsin Badgers

Bo Ryan's club were very impressive during their stay in paradise. The Badgers played great defense and used experience to wear out their opponents.

The Badgers were led by their guards Seniors Trevon Hughes and Jason Bohannon. Junior forward Jon Leuer seems like he will be the next low post threat for the Badgers, and redshirt freshman Ryan Evans and sophomore Jordan Taylor are x-factors.

All in all, the Badgers will be a test for anyone and should see a top 3 finish in the BIg Ten

Second Place: Cincinnati Bearcats

Cincinnati was by far the most exciting team in Maui. The Bearcats, a sexy sleeper pick by many this year, lived up to the expectations in the tournament.

In game one, they came out and embarrassed Vanderbilt. In game two, they came out an exposed Maryland, before falling to Gonzaga. They played well in the final, and at times looked like they were going to run away with the game, but lack of experience led to their defeat.

As for personnel, Cincinnati has their most talented team since Bob Huggins roamed the sidelines. Senior Deonta Vaughn is the heart and soul of UC, and doesn't have to do it all like he has had to do in the past three years.

Freshman Lance Stephenson, is a gift and he will be on the AP All Freshman team and possibly Big East newcomer and AP Freshman of the year.

Sophomore Yancy Gates is an x-factor, and he has the size and potential to be a dominant force down low.

Cashmere Wright, coming off a knee injury from last year, looks ready to lead the Bearcats at the point, and sophomore Dion Dixon is a steady backup.

Junior Rashad Bishop looks like the "glue guy" who will do all the little things to ensure a victory, and Senior Steve Toyloy will provide depth in the frontcourt.

The Bearcats are for real this year, and this loss in Maui will help them. Mick Cronin has the 'cats back in the national spotlight and a top six finish in the Big East and a return to the NCAA's is not a stretch of the imagination by any means.

Champion: Gonzaga Bulldogs

Gonzaga returned to Maui after a heartbreaking loss in 2005 to Connecticut with a vengeance. Gonzaga drew three tough match-ups on the islands (Colorado, Wisconsin, and Cincinnati), and though at times looked like they were going to be blown out, the Zags used their experience to pull out games late, the sign of a good basketball team.

Take game one for example: Colorado had a 15-point lead against Gonzaga and looked like they were going to send Gonzaga into the losers bracket. The Zags came back and ended up winning the game by four.

After overpowering Wisconsin in the semi's, they trailed at half to Cincinnati and with about 10 minutes left in the second half, GU was down by 10! No problem! The Zags fought there way back, using their experience to their advantage forcing overtime, and passing the heartbreak off to Cincy with a thrilling two-point victory for the championship.

Gonzaga also proved that they have a solid starting five. We all knew about Senior Matt Bouldin and Junior Steven Gray, but sophomore point guard Demetri Goodson picked up right where he left off last year in the NCAA's providing solid point guard play and torching defenses with his up-tempo style of play.

Fellow classmate Robert Sacre seems like he will develop into a nice low post threat, and freshman Elias Harris showed his versatility, not bad for a unknown freshman out of Germany. Hard to believe this team after losing Josh Heytvelt, Jeremy Pargo, Austin Daye, and Micah Downs seems like they will be even better this year.

This team will win the WCC easily but they do have question marks. They seem to only go five-men deep, the Zags bench was a non-factor in Maui with their starters logging a lot of minutes. The Zags need to develop a bench because come March, this talented starting five will be gasping for air.

However, the winners of Maui have had a recent track record of success, and the Zags hope the trend continues come March.