Some big wins by the conference over the weekend. Kansas, Maryland, Nebraska all go down at the hands of Big East teams.
besides Ohio St and Wisconsin, the Big Ten is average, just look at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, and it shows that
The BE definately has a different look this year than last year. While we have some top teams (Pitt, UCONN, MU, Syracuse), there are some real bottom feeders that bring down the RPI. As a matter of fact, i'm amazed that ND, St. Johns, Seton Hall and the like have been able to stay above water so far. I'm not so sure that will once conference play starts.
i was at the notre dame-maryland game last night in DC. Despite for the obvious fact that they won, notre dame is a much better team than i thought they were. all five of their starters can handle the ball, and russel carter is a LOT more athletic than i remember him. mcalarney has improved his game a ton over the summer, and you could just see his confidence on the court last night. when they needed a bucket, he wanted the ball. Rob kurz, the starting four, is gonna be a handful for ooze. he plays a little like mcroberts, where he's not afriad to put the ball on the floor away from the hoop, but he is much more polished around the rim. luke zeller, while he has bulked up a tad, still looks lost out there. how he beat out DJ for mr. indiana i will never know. they did not seem like an extremely deep team, but maryland pressed pretty much the whole game, and ND handled it well for the most part. they have no one who can really be a one-man press break, but they were able to pass thorugh it just fine. our athleticism, as usual will be our trump card, but maryland is also an extremely athletic team, especially their big guys. their defense was very susceptible to midrange jumpers, as DJ strawberry was able to get into the lane and pull up pretty much at will. it will be a tough game, especially since it is in south bend.