10 Biggest Surprises from the Start of the 2016-17 CBB Season
We're in the home stretch now. This is when all the stats and trends really mean something. We must analyze all data at hand so that we might extrapolate the outcomes when the Big Dance arrives.
Hold on. I'm being told in my earpiece that this is not the home stretch. In fact, it's still early. From what I'm being told, it's very early.
Fine, so we're three games in, give or take. But does that mean we can't talk some college basketball? Do we just silence ourselves until, say, mid-January? I don't know about you, bro, but I shan't be silenced. I believe a discussion about college basketball can still take place even when, yes, it's still early. Who's with me?
Preseason predictions have the same shelf life as your average hollandaise sauce. That's why they're the logical place to start in these early analyses. More to the point, there are already surprises in the season relative to those predictions. Who has and hasn't borne out the expectations that circulated so rapidly around Midnight Madness time? Let's dive in and find the top 10 biggest shockers of this newborn campaign.
Connecticut Disconnect
1 of 10
Things were supposed to be lining up again for the Connecticut Huskies.
The preseason American Athletic Conference champs had Jalen Adams and others coming back to the fold, plus the 14th-best recruiting class in the nation, according to Scout.com.
It, uh, hasn't panned out in a positive way thus far.
That's right; there's no joy in Storrs, as the Huskies are off to a dismal 1-2 start. First, they lost to Wagner by nine, then they lost to Northeastern by three. Both at home and both keyed by dismal three-point shooting and unimpressive rebounding.
You know the refrain: There's still a long way to go. If head coach Kevin Ollie and UConn can't turn it around, no one will know that better than they do.
Villanova's Fast Start
2 of 10
On Friday the Villanova Wildcats moved to a crisp 4-0, downing Wake Forest by 19. On Monday they survived a tough and 15th-ranked Purdue team by three.
With apologies to Kentucky, the defending national champs may be in the catbird seat for the top spot in next week's rankings.
Villanova is currently third, so this possibility isn't what you might call a massive shocker. Still, Kansas and Duke both going down early probably is, as is the continuation of Villanova's hot shooting from deep.
The Wildcats currently sit in a tie for 12th nationally in three-pointers made with 31. That comes with Josh Hart, their leading scorer and National Player of the Year candidate, making only 27 percent of his attempts. Imagine what they'll be like if he can turn it on and join the rest of his fast-starting teammates.
Badgers Speaking out
3 of 10
It seems the Michael Jordan era is, in some sense, over.
Perhaps following the lead of LeBron James, several Wisconsin Badger players—most notably star forward Nigel Hayes—are speaking out on political topics of the day.
Hayes set the tone when he posed with a sign reading "Broke Athlete" in front of some TV cameras. But guard Jordan Hill and forward Bronson Koenig have also joined in, with Hill recently protesting the national anthem alongside Hayes.
Hayes told Marc Tracy of the New York Times on Wednesday:
"I’ve had people tell me: 'Hey, Nige, you need to stop. Be quiet. Stop voicing your opinion. It may hurt your draft stock next year. Teams may not want you.' But at the end of the day, the quote I hang my hat on is, I was black before I picked up a basketball, and when I retire, I’ll still be black.
"
Hayes alludes to why this sort of expression may be viewed as surprising. Not to cast undue aspersions on the GOAT, but the Jordanesque insistence on marketability above all else is crumbling in at least some modern athletes, including James, Colin Kaepernick and now Hayes and his teammates.
They dropped one to Creighton recently, but this team returns its entire roster from last season. Looks like they're poised to make plenty of noise in the Big Ten.
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Oregon Falls Short
4 of 10
Save your angry cards and letters. I'm aware they didn't have Dillon Brooks.
But wasn't this Oregon Ducks team supposed to be loaded? For that matter, weren't they supposed to be different? The Elite Eight, where Oregon wound up last season, is certainly nothing to sneeze at, but come on. They were the top seed in their home West region. You can understand why some people wanted more.
Ah, but that was last season. This, as you know, is this season. The Ducks, ranked fourth in the AP national rankings, fell to 1-1 Tuesday after losing to the unranked Baylor Bears 66-49.
On Thursday they rebounded with a defeat of Valparaiso, but the damage has been done. Their best player, Brooks, can't come back fast enough.
Without Larry Brown Aboard, Mustangs Charge out of the Gate
5 of 10
Yes, they lost to Michigan on Friday. But 3-1 is still a solid start for an SMU group that wasn't expected to vie for an AAC title now that Larry Brown is out as head coach.
They also weren't expected to be paced by Semi Ojeleye, a junior from Kansas who transferred to SMU from Duke, and whose 22.7 points per game to date have nearly doubled up the second-highest-scoring Mustang. In helping to topple Pitt, the forward poured in 24 points on 9-17 shooting, plus five points and two blocks for good measure.
Credit new coach Tim Jankovich for helping the new-look Mustangs look pretty good at the opening bell.
Duke, Allen Falter
6 of 10
The AP's preseason No. 1 team lasted all of two weeks in that sport before dropping a close 77-75 contest to the No. 7 Jayhawks.
Duke will have better days. Don't you worry about the Duke Blue Devils. With their typically loaded team and the head devil, Mike Krzyzewski, at the helm, they're going to be just fine come spring.
That's what makes a loss all the more surprising. But in case you needed more, look to the uninspired play of top on-court Blue Devil Grayson Allen. Although he leads the team with 17.7 points per game, he's taking four more shots per game than the second-leading scorer to get there. A 34.9 percent shooting average—and not just from three—isn't going to cut the mustard against top squads.
Baylor Has a Bear of a Time, in a Good Way
7 of 10
Before the season started, the Baylor Bears were penciled in for sixth in the Big 12 Conference standings.
As of early Saturday morning, they were first.
And it's not just some feat of scheduling happenstance, either. They shellacked the aforementioned Brooks-less Oregon by 17, then took care of perennial spring darling Florida Gulf Coast by nine.
On the court, most of the credit goes to Jonathan Motley, the junior forward averaging 17 points on 53 percent shooting.
We'll find out more about this Bears team on Saturday when they face a tough VCU squad. In the meantime, the surprise success must be a welcome PR boost inside the university's athletic department, which is still mired in football controversy.
Down Goes Georgetown
8 of 10
This is not what you want if you're a Georgetown Hoyas fan.
Dropping a squeaker to Maryland on an essentially neutral court is one thing. Falling to Arkansas State on your home campus—and trailing the entire time—is another.
"The defeat was so bad that prominent Hoya voices are now calling for John Thompson III to be fired," observed Matt Norlander of CBS Sports. "That's not going to happen, at least not any time soon, but you could even hear chants on the broadcast that urged his removal."
The preseason coaches' poll had the Hoyas tied for fourth in the Big East Conference. They're currently dead last. Time to pull out of the tailspin? I'd say so. But it still sucks to be in one three games into the season.
Could This Be Gonzaga's Year?
9 of 10
It depends on who you ask, but it's probably safe to say last season left Gonzaga fans a little disappointed, despite the Elite Eight berth that ultimately resulted. Regular losses to ranked and unranked teams alike always seemed to trip up the Bulldogs right when they had a head of steam going.
This season returns some key players like Nigel Williams-Goss and added guys like Cal transfer Jordan "Not The Eagles Receiver" Matthews, who paces the team with 16.5 points per game. Freshmen like French big man Killian Tillie (8.5 points and a team-leading 9.5 rebounds per game) are making immediate impacts.
They haven't played anyone of note yet, and we'll see what happens when they do. But with an average margin of victory of 28 points in their 3-0 record, it looks like the pieces may finally be coming together sooner rather than later in Spokane.
No Letdown for Wichita State
10 of 10
Were you like me? Did you assume that once Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker left, the Wichita State men's basketball program would fade back into the wheat?
Looks like we've all got another thing coming. The Shockers are still expected to top the Missouri Valley Conference, and their early performance has that expectation looking spot on.
In three games thus far, no opponent has topped 60 points. One didn't top 40. They're doing it with a balanced rotation that sees 10 players averaging double figures in minutes per game. Markis McDuffie leads the team offensively with 12.3 points each contest, but six players average at least seven points per game.
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