Early Analysis: Gonzaga's Non-Conference Opponents

The non-conference schedule for the Zags was released last week. Once again, as is becoming the trend, big time programs are coming to Spokane and the Zags are playing only two true road games before WCC play. The farthest the Zags will travel is Orlando, for the Old Spice Classic. In mid January the Zags will travel to Butler for the second of a home and home series with the Bulldogs that started last season in Spokane. I'm excited for this year's schedule because it has a lot of big games and a decent (though in my opinion too many) games that should be entertaining blow out home wins for the Zags. The Zags will face three teams that made the NCAA tournament last season and five that made the postseason, potentially six depending on how the Old Spice Classic works out.

Zags' non-conference schedule, click for larger size.

1.  November 9th in The Kennel.
Southern Utah Thunderbirds, Big Sky Conference.
2011-12 Record: 14-17 (8-10), 6th Summit League.

Key Losses:

• Ramell Taylor. The 6' 5" forward was second on the team in scoring and rebounding with 11.3ppg and 4.5rpg.
• Ray Jones Jr. The 6' 2'' senior guard led the team in assists with 4.5 per game and three point percentage at .348. Fourth leading scorer with 9.9ppg.

Southern Utah's 2011-12 season was it's last as a member of The Summit League, in which it was geographically both an outlier as well as the most literal fit for the league's name. At 5,846 feet, Cedar City (home of SUU) is 4,225 feet above the second highest Summit League member, South Dakota State in Brookings, SD. However, Southern Utah's closest Summit League opponent, Oral Roberts (which is moving to the Southland for next season) in Tulsa, OK, is 955 miles away.

Over the past few seasons head coach Roger Reid has had the Thunderbirds moving in the right direction, albeit slowly. They've added to the previous years' win total in both of the past two seasons. None of those wins have come against quality opponents however. Last season the Thunderbirds quality non conference games were against Weber State, Utah State, and San Diego State. They lost all three, and in the game at San Diego State put up only 37 points to the Aztecs 70. The two quality teams in the Summit League, Oral Roberts, won all 5 games they played against Southern Utah.

The Thunderbirds return their leading scorer but lose three of their starters. After two years of slow improvement, 2012-13 might be a step backwards for the Thunderbirds.

Key Player: Jackson Stevenett. The 6'4'' forward led the Thunderbirds in scoring and rebounding last season as a Junior with 14.1ppg and 5.7rpg. Stevenett was second in effective field goal percentage and has the highest eFG% of the returning players. He set a career high with 26 points in a win against Oakland in the first round of the Summit League tournament. Oakland was the third best team in the league last season and one of the best teams the Thunderbirds faced. Stevenett is hit and miss when it comes to performing in big games. His career high came in a do or die tournament game, he was one shy of it with 25 points in a loss to Summit League champion South Dakota State. However he managed only two points in the loss to San Diego State, and four in the second meeting with South Dakota State.

2. November 12th in The Kennel.
West Virginia Mountaineers, Big 12 Conference.
2011-12 record: 19-14 (9-9) 8th Big East.
Postseason: 10 seed NCAA, lost in round of 64 to 7 Gonzaga 54-77.

Key Losses:

• Kevin Jones: The 6' 8", 260lbs forward had a stellar senior season that resulted in being voted first team all-Big East and second team All-America. Led the Mountaineers in points, rebounds, blocks, and minutes with 19.9ppg (16th in the nation), 10.9rpg, 1bpg, and 38.2mpg. Committed only 1.3 fouls per 40 minutes played, 8th best in the nation.
• Darryl (Truck) Bryant: The 6' 2" senior guard was second on the team in scoring with 16.2ppg but shot a measly 35.8% from the field.

West Virginia wrapped up it's final season in the Big East by going 9-9, the Mountaineers will be a member of the Big 12 starting this season. The Mountaineers made it to the NCAA tournament, and even earned a 10 seed, despite not making it to 20 wins, going .500 in conference play, and getting bounced in their first game of the Big East tournament by an equally mediocre Connecticut team. Outside of Big East play the Mountaineers played a solid schedule, with wins over Oral Roberts, Akron, Kansas State and Miami. They dropped non-conference games, to Kent State back on November 15th, #24 Mississippi State, and #7 Baylor in overtime. During conference play the Mountaineers picked up only two more quality wins, both at home, against #9 Georgetown and Cincinnati.

In their NCAA tournament opener against Gonzaga, the Mountaineers proved they were overrated with a 10 seed, and possibly undeserving of making the big dance at all. The Zags destroyed the Mountaineers by 23 points, despite the game taking place in Pittsburgh, a mere 74 mile drive from Morgantown. That was the first meeting between the schools. Now thanks to the ESPN Tip Off Marathon the second meeting will take place with only one game (for West Virginia) separating it from the first. Keep reading to hear about the third meeting.

Key Player: Deniz Kilicli. The bearded 6' 9", 260lbs, to be Senior forward from Turkey looks to be the leader of the Mountaineers this season. He was third in points per game last season with 10.7, second in rebounds per game with 5.3. The loss of Kevin Jones in the frontcourt and his nearly 20 points and 11 rebounds per game frees up a lot of opportunity for Kilicli to increase his statistical output significantly. Kilicli is a tough guy in the interior and had this to say about physical play before the WV/GU game last March, "I think they're physical in their conference, but we play in the Big East". Without Sacre down low, Kilicli's view of the Zags' style of play should be more true when these two teams meet for the second time than it was when he first said it.

3. November 19th in The Kennel.
South Dakota Coyotes, Summit League.
2011-12 record: 10-18 (5-13) T-8th Summit.

Key Losses:

•  Charlie Westbrook: the 6'4'' senior guard led the team in scoring with 18.7ppg, minutes with 32.4mpg, steals with 1.7spg, as well as efficiency, true shooting percentage and points per shot.
• Ricardo Anderotti: the 6'8'' senior forward led the team in rebounds with 6.8rpg and blocks with 1.4bpg.

The Coyotes are entering their second season in the Summit League and have just completed a four year transition from D-2 to D-1. Dave Boots is in his 25th season as a head coach with the Coyotes and his 30th overall, during which time he has compiled a 608-278 record. This is the first meeting between the two schools.

Last season the Coyotes only decent win came on the road at Morehead State, a team that finished 3 wins over .500. That was one of only three road wins for the Coyotes, which is bodes well for the Zags as they are the host team in this match-up.

The Coyotes are a rather weak team right now but that is to be expected from a team transitioning to D-1. Luckily they have a successful veteran coach leading them thru the transition. However it is yet to be seen if coach Boots D-2 success can translate to success in D-1.

Key Player: Trevor Gruis. The 6'10'' junior to be was third on the team in scoring (of those who played in over 10 games) at 11.3ppg. He scored those points very effectively, from the field at least, as he connected on 52.8% of his shots. Gruis was the starting center last season and clocked 30.8mpg and played in all 28 games for the Coyotes. With the loss of Robert Sacre inside Gruis may be set for a big game against the Bulldogs. On the flip side of that however is the fact that the trio of Sam Dower/Kelly Olynyk/Przemek Karnowski will be coming off a game against physical big man Deniz Kilicli which should help the staff determine who will be the starter in the 5 slot.

4. November 22nd in Buena Vista, Florida.
Old Spice Classic.
Clemson Tigers, Atlantic Coast Conference.
2011-12 record: 16-15 (8-8) 7th ACC.

Key Losses:

• Tanner Smith: The 6'4" senior guard led the Tigers in assists and steals per game with 4.1 and 1.7 respectively. He also led in 3pt%, efficiency, effective fg%, true shooting percentage and points per shot. Smith was second in scoring with 11.2ppg.
• Andre Young: The 5'9'' senior guard led the Tigers in points and minutes per game with 13.3 and 34.5 respectively. He also led in free throw percentage and assist to turnover ratio.

The Tigers had an interesting mix of classes in their 2011-12 squad. They lose four seniors, two of which were starters in the back court (Smith and Young). They return their only two juniors, both starters in the front court, who were first and second on the team in rebounding. The rest of the team, exactly half, consisted of freshmen.
Last season's 8-8 ACC campaign ended at the hands of Virginia Tech (who suffered a home loss to BYU in January) in the first round of the ACC tournament. The Tigers picked up quality wins against then #22 Virginia and NC State. On the other hand, in a home game they provided South Carolina one of their ten wins and gave Boston College one of their nine wins, though that loss was on the road.
The Tigers lose approximately over one third of their scoring. In Smith and Young alone they lose the core of team. 7'2'' center Catalin Baciu's eligibility also runs out this offseason, and while he only averaged 4.1ppg in 10mpg, the presence of a 7'2'' player on the court is hard to replace.
Two of the Tigers five signed recruits have ESPN grades of 90 or above, while all five are at least rated 88, and three are at least 6'7'' tall.
A five man recruiting class joining a team with only two upperclassmen can only be pulled off flawlessly by John Calipari, and he's not the coach at Clemson. The Tigers are on track to move up in the ACC standings, but not just yet.

Key Player: 6'8'' 245lbs to be senior forward Devin Booker. He led the team in rebounds and blocks per game with 7 and 0.9 respectively. Booker's 45.9% field goal shooting was best on the team among players who averaged over 20 minutes per game. Booker will be one of the two upperclassmen on the team, and his experience of playing over 30 games in each of the past three seasons will force him into the leadership role for the Tigers. He racked up five double-doubles last season and scored in double figures 14 times. Two times he came within one point of a double double. For a big man who played nearly 30 minutes per game and banged around under the basket he managed to only foul out two times.

5. November 23rd in Buena Vista, Florida.
Old Spice Classic.
UTEP or Oklahoma.

• Oklahoma Sooners, Big 12 Conference.
  2011-12 record: 15-16 (5-13) 8th Big 12.

• UTEP Miners, Conference USA.
  2011-12 record: 15-17 (7-9) 9th C-USA.

6. November 25th in Buena Vista, Florida.
Old Spice Classic.
West Virgnia, Vanderbilt, Davidson, or Marist.

• West Virginia Mountaineers, Big 12 Conference.
  2011-12 record: 19-14 (9-9) 8th Big East.
  Postseason: 10 seed NCAA, lost in round of 64 to 7 Gonzaga 54-77.
  (See #2 above for full analysis.)

• Vanderbilt Commodores, Southeastern Conference.
  2011-12 record: 25-11 (10-6) T-2nd SEC.
  Postseason: 5 seed NCAA, lost in round of 32 to 4 Wisconsin 57-60.

• Davidson Wildcats, Southern Conference.
  2011-12 record: 25-8 (16-2) 1st SoCon.
  Postseason: 13 seed NCAA, lost in round of 64 to 4 Louisville 62-69.

• Marist Red Foxes, Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.
  2011-12 record: 14-18 (7-11) 8th MAAC.

7. November 29th in The Kennel.
Lewis-Clark State College Warriors, NAIA Frontier Conference.
2011-12 record: 16-13 (5-9) 7th Frontier.

Neither NCAA or D-1 so I will not spend much time on them. Located in nearby Lewiston, Idaho the Warriors have been a common exhibition opponent for the Zags and in 2010 were a regular season opponent for the first time. Gonzaga leads the series 9-0 all time. Formerly proximity was the reason for these match-ups but now there's some intertwining of coaching tree branches. Second year Warriors head coach Brandon Rinta was formerly an assistant at Eastern Washington University under then head coach, and current Gonzaga assistant, Ray Giacoletti. Rinta played college ball at Yakima Valley Community College under former Gonzaga assistant Leon Rice, who is currently head coach at Boise State.

8. December 2nd in The Kennel.
Pacific Tigers, Big West Conference.
2011-12 record: 11-19 (6-10) T-6th Big West.

Key Losses: None (The Tigers will have eight seniors on their roster this upcoming season. Meaning they will have to replace over half their roster AND their head coach, who is retiring after this season, heading into their first season in the WCC).

The Tigers won only 11 games last season which is their lowest win total since 2000, when they also won only 11 games. Their 6-10 record put them in a tie for sixth place in the nine team Big West. Long Beach State, Cal State Fullerton and UC Santa Barbara, the three teams in the Big West to win 20+ games, all swept the season series with Pacific. The Tigers best win in conference play came at home against RPI #220 Cal Poly, the Mustangs finished with 18-15 and fourth in the Big West Standings.
In non-conference play the Tigers dropped back to back games in mid-December at San Francisco and Santa Clara. In the game against the Dons the Tigers lost by ten but against the winless-in-WCC-play Broncos the difference was only two points. The Tigers best non-conference opponent was their first D-1 opponent of the season in the RPI #76 Nevada Wolfpack, the game was a lopsided 76-54 home win for the Wolfpack. Utah State, which beat Brigham Young in their first game of the season, suffered an eight point loss in Stockton on December 3rd which would be by far best win the Tigers would pick up all season.
In addition to Nevada and Utah State the Tigers played three other games against WAC teams, two against Hawaii and one against Fresno State. They went 2-3 against the WAC last season. This season, in advance of their move to the WCC the Tigers will play road games at Gonzaga and Saint Mary's. In addition to those road games the Tigers will host San Francisco and Santa Clara to complete their preview of the WCC's Bay Area schools. Depending on how the Anaheim Classic works out the Gaels could face the Tigers twice this season as both are participating in the early season tournament. 

Key Player: 6'7'' to-be-junior forward Ross Rivera. Rivera's 11.1ppg was a mere tenth of a point below the team leader, to-be-senior Lorenzo McCloud. Rivera led the team in field goal percentage, free throw percentage and three point percentage at 50.0%, 84.7%, and 43.8% respectively. As Rivera is heading into his junior season he will be, barring a transfer, a senior and the probable leader of the Tigers in their first WCC season.

9. December 5th in Pullman, WA.
Washington State Cougars, Pacific 12 Conference.
2011-12 record: 19-18 (7-11) T-8th Pac-12.
Postseason: Lost 65-71 at Pittsburgh in game three of the best of three championship series of the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) postseason tournament.

Key Losses:

• Marcus Capers: The 6'4'' senior guard led the team in shooting percentage by hitting 57.8% of his shots from the field. He also pulled down 4.9 rebounds per game. Despite being only 6'4'' tall he led the Cougars in blocks with 30.
• Faisal Aden: The 6'4'' senior guard was second on the team in scoring with 14.5ppg and hit 47% of his shots from the field. He missed the last two months last season with a torn ACL.

The Cougars opened last season by making the scenic drive thru the Palouse to Spokane to play Gonzaga in ESPN's Tip Off Marathon (the game tipped off the Tip Off Marathon). The Zags allowed the Cougars to hang frustratingly close throughout the game, but Kevin Pangos' nine made three pointers made sure the Zags escaped with the win, 89-81. One week later the Cougars played another WCC team when they made the trip to Portland and picked up a ten point win over the Pilots. Then, on December 11th, in their third match up with the WCC the Cougars blew out the Santa Clara Broncos 93-55 in Pullman. On December 22nd they picked up an 11 point win over Pepperdine in Seattle. Then, after somehow earning a berth in the CBI (which they would eventually prove worthy of) the Cougars ended San Francisco's season in the first round of the CBI on March 13th.
Strangely, in a year when the WCC was challenging the Pac-12 for west coast supremacy it was the 8th place team with a record below .500 at the end of the regular season that would save the Pac-12.  WSU's 4-1 record against the WCC made the difference for the Pac-12, which went 8-6 against the WCC last season. It's worth noting, however, that other than San Francisco, the Cougars' wins in the series came against the WCC's three worst teams.
The Cougars managed to make the post-season, despite ending the season with a losing record, with a berth in the CBI. Apparently they were worthy as they marched all the way to the final game of the tournament. The CBI, unlike every other college hoops tournament, has a best of three championship series. So, after wins over San Francisco, Wyoming and Oregon State, the Cougars found themselves in the finals with Pittsburgh. They picked up a one point in over the Panthers in Pullman. Unfortunately the Cougars didn't win much on the road and dropped the next two games in Pittsburgh by five and seven points respectively.
I had the chance to see a Gonzaga game in Pullman years ago, back when Ronny Turiaf was the star for the Zags. The familiarity between the teams and fan bases is extreme, with the Spokane metro area being Cougar crazed in football season then going Zag nuts for hoops. Despite the closeness and familiarity, I don't expect this to be any more a Zag friendly environment than any other road game, mostly because the drunk Cougar fans will drown out however many Zag fans make the short drive south on 395.

Key Player: Brock Motum. The 6'10'' to-be-senior forward from Brisbane, Australia, returns for his final season on the Palouse after an all-Pac-12 first team junior campaign. Motum's 18ppg led both the Cougars and the Pac-12 last season. He also led the Cougars in rebouding with 6.4 per game, yet he only managed to pick up a double-double three times last season. Motum is a strong three point shooter as well, he connected on 39.7% of his attempts from long range last season.

10. December 8th in The Kennel.
Illinois Fighting Illini, Big Ten Conference.
2011-12 record: 17-15 (6-12) T-9th Big Ten.

Key Losses:

• Bruce Weber: Head coach in Champaign for nine seasons. Weber was fired after the Illini went from a 10-0 start and a top-25 ranking to a sub-.500 record and complete collapse in Big Ten play. Weber is the reason this game is happening, as he and Mark Few set up a four game series with two neutral court games, and one home game for each team.
• Meyers Leonard: The 7'1'' sophomore center was taken with the 11th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. Leonard was second on the team in scoring with 13.6ppg, first in rebounding with 8.2rpg, and first in field goal percentage at 58.4%. He also led the team in efficiency, effective and true shooting percentage, and points per shot.
  

The Illini got off to a solid start last season including a win over then #18 Gonzaga in Champaign on December 3rd. On January 10th they were 15-3 and had just picked up a win over then #5 Ohio State. Their three losses came to UNLV, Purdue, and then #8 Missouri, all of which would make the NCAA tournament. After that win over the Buckeyes the Illini would lose three straight, win one, lose six straight, win one, and finish the season by losing three straight.
That horrible finish resulted in the firing of Bruce Weber (stay tuned, coach Weber will return in "The Battle in Seattle"), a tenth place finish in the Big Ten, and the Illini missing out on the postseason. Replacing Weber is John Groce who is fresh off leading the Ohio Bobcats to a 29 win season and an appearance in the Sweet 16.

Key Player: Brandon Paul. The 6'4" 200lbs to-be-senior guard led the Illini in scoring last season with 14.7ppg. Paul also pulled down 4.7rpg and dished out 2.9apg. In the Illini's 79-74 win over then #5 Ohio State Paul put up a career high 43 points by shooting 73% from the field. In that game he hit eight of ten from long range and 13 of 15 from the line and also pulled down eight rebounds and blocked four shots. Paul returns for his fourth season in Illinois but this time under new coach in John Groce so Paul figures to be the undisputed leader for the team next season.

11. December 15th at KeyArena in Seattle.
Kansas State Wildcats, Big 12 Conference.
2011-12 record: 22-11 (10-8) 5th Big 12.
Postseason: 8 seed NCAA, lost in round of 32 to 1 Syracuse 59-75.

Key Losses:

• Jamar Samuels: the 6'7'' senior forward was first on the team in rebounding with 6.6rpg second on the team in scoring with 10ppg. He recorded seven double-doubles over the season.
• Frank Martin: Head coach for the past five seasons. Under Martin the Wildcats made the NCAA tournament 4 times, including the past three seasons. Kansas State was Martin's first head coaching job and he compiled a 117-54 record during his time as head coach in Manhattan (he was an assistant for one season prior to becoming head coach). Martin left the program to take the head coaching job at South Carolina.

The Wildcats completed the 2011 portion of their schedule with a 11-1 record. That one loss came to Bob Huggins, Frank Martin's predecessor in Manhattan, and his West Virginia Mountaineers. The 77-60 win over Long Beach State in the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu was the only quality win for the Wildcats in their non-conference slate.
During Big 12 play the Wildcats were swept by Kansas and Iowa State. Baylor won two out of three against the Wildcats and Texas won one of two. The Wildcats managed to win both games against Missouri. Against teams that did not make the NCAA tournament from the Big 12 the Wildcats performed better, though they were swept by Oklahoma. Their season sweep of Missouri and win against Baylor seem to be the reason the Wildcats received an at-large bid to the big dance.
In their first game of the NCAA tournament 8 seed Kansas State was matched up with 9 seed Southern Mississippi in Pittsburgh, PA and they won 70-64. Their next game, against 1 seed Syracuse was a lopsided loss 59-75.
Bruce Weber, who apparently loves playing Gonzaga, was hired by the Wildcats after being fired as head coach of the Illini. This will be the second time in three seasons that Weber will face Gonzaga in the Battle in Seattle as his Illini won the 2010 edition.

Key Player: Rodney McGruder. The 6'4'' to-be-senior guard led the team in points and minutes per game with 15.8 and 32.9 respectively. McGruder is also their leading three point shooter at 38.5% from behind the arc. He recorded three double-doubles last season and averaged 5.4rpg. His career high of 30 points was set in a loss to Baylor and once again in their first NCAA tournament game. McGruder committed four fouls only twice last season and did not foul out once.

12. December 19th at The Kennel.
Campbell Fighting Camels, Big South Conference.
2011-12 record: 17-15 (11-7) T-3rd Big South.

Key Losses:

• Eric Griffin: The 6'8'', 190lbs, senior forward led the Fighting Camels in rebounds and blocks per game with 8.6 and 2.4 respectively. He was second on the team in scoring 15.7ppg. Amazingly, his 61% field goal percentage was only good for fourth best on the team. Griffin recorded 12 double-doubles last season.

To be honest I was completely unaware of the Campbell Fighting Camels, despite their cool name, up until the schedule was released. Campbell has made one NCAA tournament, I was not yet one year old when the 16 seed Fighting Camels lost to eventual national champion Duke in their first and only NCAA tournament game in 1992. They won only 19 games that season and have not won more than that in any season since.
Last season the Fighting Camels managed only their second winning season this century. The best win for the Fighting Camels came as a 16 point victory on November 23rd at Iowa, the Hawkeyes would go on to make the NIT. In their next game, which doubled as the biggest game on their schedule, the Fighting Camels were demolished by Creighton, 81-104. Campbell also played, and lost to, Virginia Tech and NC State during their non-conference slate.
In Big South play Campbell went 11-7, good for the three seed in the conference tournament. Campbell was given a bye into the quarterfinals thanks to their seeding but lost their first game, against six seed Winthrop, 55-71 at UNC-Asheville.

Key Player: Darren White. The 6'4'' to-be-senior guard led the team in both points and minutes per game with 16.8 and 32 respectively. He was also involved in more of the teams possessions than any other player, his usage percentage was 43.5% last season.

13. December 28th in The Kennel.
Baylor Bears, Big 12 Conference.
2011-12 record: 30-8 (12-6), T-3rd Big 12.
Postseason: 3 seed NCAA tournament, lost 70-82 to 1 seed Kentucky in the Elite 8.

Key Losses:

• Perry Jones III: The 6'11'' forward led the team in rebounds with 7.6 per game and was second in points (only .3ppg behind the team leader) with 13.5 per game. Jones III went to the Oklahoma City Thunder as the 28th pick in the NBA Draft.
• Quincy Acy: Led the team in field goal percentage at 57.7% and blocks per game with 1.8. Acy was third in scoring with 12 points per game. The senior forward was taken as the 37th pick in the NBA Draft by the Toronto Raptors.
• Quincy Miller: The freshman forward was fourth on the team in scoring with 10.6 points per game. Miller was taken with the 38th pick in the NBA Draft by the Denver Nuggets.

Baylor had an incredible season last year with 30 wins including 17 straight to start the season, a trio of NBA Draft picks, and a trip to the Elite 8. Naturally such a season, if it must end in a loss, should end at the hands of the eventual national champion, as it did in the Bears' case. Baylor played a ridiculous schedule, 10th in the nation in SOS, including wins against Saint Mary's and Brigham Young.
Baylor's great last season will cost them next season. The three main cogs for the Bears; Perry Jones III, Quincy Acy, and Quincy Miller, are now in the NBA. They do return their leading scorer, senior point guard Pierre Jackson (13.8ppg), and his backcourt mate, junior guard Brady Heslip. Beyond those two though, this will be a very different Baylor team next season. Besides Jackson and Heslip the Bears return virtually none of their production or minutes from last season. Since they're losing their front court to the NBA, Scott Drew's staff has assembled one of the top recruiting classes in the nation for the 2012 season.
Four of the five recruits have ESPN grades above 90, the lone one below 90 has a mere 89. The top recruit, 7' center Isaiah Austin, is a McDonald's All American and ranked the #3 member of the 2012 class. Joining Austin in the front court is 6'7'' power forward Ricardo Gathers who is 36th in the ESPN top 100.

Key Player: Pierre Jackson. Led the team in scoring despite not being one of Baylor's big three.  Jackson was named an AP All-American Honorable Mention, All-Big-12 first team, and was a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award which goes to the nation's top point guard. He is wisely returning for his senior season.

14. December 31st in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
Oklahoma State Cowboys, Big 12 Conference.
2011-12 record: 15-18 (7-11) 7th Big 12.

Key Losses:

• Keiton Page: The 5'9'' senior guard led the team in points and minutes per game with 17 and 35.1 respectively. Led team in free throw and three point shooting percentage and was second in field goal percentage. Also led in steals per game, assist to turnover ratio, efficiency, effective fg%, true shooting percentage, points per shot and points per 40 minutes (among players to average 20+ minutes per game).

These two programs have met four times since 2005 with one of those meetings also coming on New Years Eve. Gonzaga has won each of the previous four meetings, though none of those games were in Stillwater (Spokane, Seattle, Orlando and Oklahoma City).
Last season's 15 wins is the lowest win total in over 20 years for the Cowboys. They ranked 29th in strength of schedule last season, both due to playing in the strong Big 12 but also because they played a solid non-conference slate of games. During those non-conference games the Cowboys lost to NCAA tournament teams New Mexico and Alabama, NIT champion Stanford, CBI champion Pittsburgh, and to Virginia Tech twice. The Cowboy's only decent win came at home against Tulsa.
In Big 12 play they picked up quality wins, but only at home, over Texas, Missouri and Iowa State. Kansas, Baylor and Kansas State swept the Cowboys. Their worst loss in conference play, and the only loss to a team that would finish below them in the standings, came at rival Oklahoma on February 22nd.
The Cowboys have lost New Years Eve games the past two years. Last season they suffered their worst defeat of the season on December 31st to Virginia Tech, one year earlier it was Gonzaga that beat the Cowboys on the last day of the year.

Key Player: Le'Bryan Nash. The 6'7'' to-be-sophomore returns for a second year in Stillwater after a freshman campaign that earned him a share of the Big 12 Freshman of the Year Award, which he shared with now former Baylor Bear Quincy Miller. Nash averaged 13.4ppg, 5rpg and shot 40% from the field as a freshman. His first season came to an unfortunate end as he suffered an injury to his non-shooting hand on February 22nd in a loss to Oklahoma. Coming into his freshman year Nash was seen by many to be a one and done player for the Cowboys. The combination of the injury and his acknowledgement that he played below expectations are bringing him back for another go for coach Travis Ford.

15.  January 18th in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Butler Bulldogs, Atlantic 10 Conference.
2011-12 record: 22-15 (11-7) T-3rd Horizon League.
Postseason: Lost in CBI semifinals to Pittsburgh 62-68 in OT.

Key Losses: Ronald Nored. The 6' senior point guard was the last remaining starter from the Bulldogs' first national championship game appearance back in 2010. Nored led the team in minutes per game last season at 31.4. He also led the Bulldogs in assists and steals per game with 5.2 and 1.8 respectively, as well as assist to turnover ratio and assist rate. Nored was always one of the best defenders on the floor. His leadership and experience (two national championship games, three NCAA Tournaments and four postseasons) will be missed.

Last season was Butler's hangover. For two straight seasons this undertalented squad (particularly in the second of those two seasons) overconsumed wins as the season wound down and managed back to back national championship appearances. Okay, actually the hangover started in that second national championship, during which Butler set the record for worst field goal percentage and two point shooting in a national championship game. But anyways, Butler was the new Gonzaga for those two years, America's favorite giant killer. Last season they were just another mid-major, except everybody knew who they were. Their NCAA title game streak, along with their five year NCAA tournament appearance streak, came to an end. The Bulldogs finished not atop the Horizon League, but in a three way tie for third.
During their non-conference schedule the Bulldogs used their newly obtained national recognition to schedule some of the nation's big time programs at both the mid and high-major levels. Butler played an extreme and impressive non-conference slate, with games against Indiana, Purdue, Louisville, Stanford, Xavier and Gonzaga. Indiana, Louisville, Xavier and Gonzaga all beat Butler, and all did so with a cushion of over ten points. Stanford and Purdue fell to the Bulldogs, both games were decided by less than five points,  in what would be the Bulldogs' best wins of the season.
In Horizon League play the Bulldogs lost all three match-ups with in state rival and regular season champion Valparaiso (Valpo lost to Loyola Marymount in a Bracket Busters match up). Cleveland State, which finished in second place, split their series with Butler. Detroit and Milwaukee finished the season tied with Butler in the standings. Detroit swept the Bulldogs, and would go on to upset Valparaiso for the Horizon League's bid to the big dance. Milwaukee split their regular season series with Butler but fell to the Bulldogs in the Horizon League Tournament.
Butler earned a postseason berth in the CBI where they marched to the semis before falling to eventual champion Pittsburgh.
Butler enters the Atlantic 10 this season, along with fellow mid-major darling and one time Final Four foe Virginia Commonwealth.

Key Player: Andrew Smith. The 6'11'' center was on both National Championship Game squads though he only played one minute in the first. In the second he was responsible for two of the Bulldogs' three made two point shots, he also pulled down nine boards in the loss. Smith will be a senior this season. As a junior Smith led the Bulldogs in scoring with 10.4ppg. He also led in 3pt%, blocks per game, efficiency, effective fg%, true shooting percentage and points per shot.