KU Basketball Thoughts

College Basketball in November is a little bit like eating a bowl of hot chili outside in July. However, yesterday's bowl of chili was super delicious.

If I were to continue with this analogy, then Michigan St's Darnell Valentine would have to be considered head chef. He was incredible last night. Better than Billy Ray Valentine slingin' pork rinds to Clarence Beeks.

Admission: Point forward types are my favorite basketball players to watch. Royce White. Boris Diaw. Blake Griffin. Anthony Mason back in the day. Georges Niang today.

My guys, Parkins and C-Dot led off their Monday show with how College Basketball is lacking quality. It sure wasn't last night. And a lot of the rule changes seemed positive as well. Shorter shot clock. A fewer timeout. Shorter timeouts. An evolved take on commercials. Everything sped the game up.

On to Kansas. They lost the game, but I thought they showed well. They have enough talent to cut down any and all nets in March, even without The Mali Popper, Cheick Diallo.

Experience in the backcourt + Talent in the frontcourt = Recipe for success in March.

Backcourt

Devonte' Graham - Went 1-9 last night and I still loved his performance. No need to ask Granny, this kid is spry. He's very heady, always calm and in control. Exactly what you want from a point guard. And the best part? He should be a four year player, which means three more seasons with him. My favorite player.

Frank Mason III - The second PG in the starting lineup, a strategy I think I like. KU can continually swing the ball around the perimeter and still have a natural PG running the show. This is a dynamic duo that should lead to an entertaining brand of basketball this season.

Wayne Selden - He's never done it for me. This coming from a guy who never stopped loving Tyshawn Taylor or Elijah Johnson. So this isn't your typical KU fan angst. Selden is kind of average at everything, which makes him a natural role player (I could see him being a better pro than college player). He's a 4th or 5th option on offense, who should be a better defender. Honestly, I'd prefer to see Brannen Greene in the game at crunch time to add spacing, unless there's a bigger guard who only Selden can match up with (and even then, ehh).

Svetlana Mele Kalikimaka - That dude has....a lot of confidence? Not sure what to make of him yet.

Frontcourt

Perry Ellis - A monster who gets a bad wrap. I guess he's kinda soft and is capable of getting intimidated. Can freeze up. But appreciate him for what he is - a relentless scorer down low. I've never seen him more aggressive around the basket then he was last night. Reminds me of Pau Gasol (with the way he's perceived) and Darrell Arthur (with his ability to get buckets). Also, good to see him developing his outside game, which is his ticket to the NBA.

Carlton Bragg Jr. - That boy gangly. Has the body type to develop into a lockdown defender (who could take Selden's place, in my scenario, if he's quick enough to hang with small forwards - remains to be seen). Banged a few jumpers too, he's a guy to keep an eye on.

Jamari Traylor and Landon Lucas - Just a couple of guys, who can eat up space, rebound, play solid defense, and utilize 10 fouls. They are interchangeable, in my opinion.

Honestly, I didn't care much about the loss, but I'm not nearly as hardcore as I was when I went to KU. And I prefer to take a laissez-faire attitude with them, because KU fans can be a little...how should I say this -- Self-serious? Get it? Because of Bill, you guys.

I tend to watch KU non-conference games with one eye open, and the other eye on the future. I have no problem dropping a few games before New Year's if it helps the team's development come March -- Or even conference season, to help the team extend one of the more impressive streaks I've seen in sports in my lifetime.

All praise Andrea Hudy,

His Dirkness

2011 NCAA Tournament Picks

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I've set out on a quest on different stracketagies to mold and form the perfect bracket this year. I officially submerged myself beyond the extent of reality more so than ever before, which sounds like enough of a reason to celebrate to me. A sampling of different stracketagies applied this year:

• Bass-ackwards - Picking a National Champion first, then working it inside out like a Blooming chrysanthemum. To see (hopefully) click here.
• Coin Flip - Pretty standard. Flip a coin for every game. Bet a dollar against Dave's coin flipper (although I could probably handle his real one too). My Final Four was Kentucky, Cincinnati, Illinois, and UC-Santa Barbara baby! Kentucky wins it all. Dave's has St. John's over Temple.
• Probability Coin Flip - The most extensive bracket of my career. I set probabilities on each game by multiples of 10% (for example: Xavier 60% over Marquette, Michigan vs. Tennessee 50%) and proceeded to let 10 dominoes carry out those percentages (for example: if Marquette had 6 dominoes turn up in its favor, then they advanced). Don't worry, I don't expect you to understand. Hell, I didn't even understand. I knew what I was taking part in was bigger than me, bigger than life itself. However, I must warn you the National Championship takes a nasty, vicious turn for KU fans. To see, (hopefully) click here.

The Dirkness' Bracket (Main Bracket):

East Region:

~First Round winners: Ohio St, George Mason, West Virginia, Kentucky, Xavier, 'Cuse, Washington, North Carolina
~Sweet 16: Ohio St, Kentucky, 'Cuse, UNC
~Elite 8: Kentucky, UNC
~Regional Champ: North Carolina

West Region:
~First Round winners: Duke, Michigan, Arizona, Oakland, Cincinnati, UConn, Temple, San Diego St
~Sweet 16: Duke, Arizona, UConn, Temple
~Elite 8: Arizona, Temple
~Regional Champ: Arizona

Southwest Region:
~First Round winners: KU, UNLV, Richmond, Morehead St (!), Georgetown, Purdue, Texas A&M, Notre Dame
~Sweet 16: KU, Richmond, Purdue, Notre Dame
~Elite 8: KU, Purdue
~Regional Champ: Kansas

Southeast Region:
~First Round winners: Pitt, Old Dominion, K-State, Wisconsin, Gonzaga, BYU, UCLA, Florida
~Sweet 16: Pitt, K-State, 'Zaga, Florida
~Elite 8: Pitt, Florida
~Regional Champ: Pittsburgh

Final Four:
~North Carolina over Arizona
~Pittsburgh over Kansas

National Championship:
~Pittsburgh over North Carolina

Up to my hambone in brackets,
His Bracketness

KU vs Oklahoma St. Gametox

KU vs. Missouri Live Feed

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Gametox-

The idea of this live chat is to create the best forum possible to watch a KU (or any other) game. Essentially, it is designed to create an environment equivalent to watching the game with a group of your friends, or atleast, people who's opinions you respect.

His Dirkness and DeBrockius Nephews will be dee-jaying tonight, but also I'll be publishing anything that readers have to say (preferably game relevant, but not a requirement). To let your voice be heard, simply just type in any question or comment into the box and send it my way. OR for you Twitter folk, simply tag any comment with "#hisdirkness" to throw your insights into the mix.

This is meant to be very informal and unprofessional, so do not hesitate to say anything dumb, offensive, cringeworthy, or zingtastic.

Also, I'll be including commentary brought to you via Twitter from Kansas City radio hosts Nick Wright and Shan Shariff, who will both be in attendance at the game tonight. I think it could really add something. If I pick up on anybody else talking about the game, I'll be sure to include them as well. Don't hesitate to let me know what you think.

Here we go.......

College Football Week 5: What 2 Watch 4

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With bye weeks looming for both of my teams this week, I thought I'd take a more expansive look at what's happening around the country this weekend, starting with College. I'll share any and all thoughts I have for this weekend's run of games. Quick note: It's going to be tough for any team to out-impress Nebraska's 17-3 victory over South Dakota St. last week. They completely dominated the Jackrabbits.

On to the games (teams ranked according to Dirkness Top 25):

11am- Kansas at Baylor- The Bears have been steady so far, blowing out three lesser teams and getting blown themselves by their big little brother, TCU. The Jayhawks have been anything but stable, somewhere between this guy and this guy. They tend to show up on even numbered weeks (beat GT, blow out NMSU) and fall flat on their face on odd numbered weeks (losses to NDSU and S-Miss). That's good news for lil' Baylor, who's Robert Griffin (III!) is rounding back into form after missing all of last year. KU might be set up for the future with a freshman quarterback and running back leading the way, but they ain't there yet. Predirktion: Baylor 27-17.

2:30- (22)Texas vs (8)Oklahoma- This game lost a lot of its luster after the Longhorns crapped the bed against UCLA (who had already lost to K-State and to Stanford 35-0). Oklahoma has three different one-score victories to their credit over mediocre teams (Utah St, Air Force, Cincinnati) coupled with a stomping of Florida St, who should prove to be the toughest of those teams. So is motivation the problem? Or did they just play over their heads that one game? Something tells me both of these teams are overrated in one of the worse Red River Shootouts we've seen in a while. If that's true, then the Big 12 is headed for a down season (good news for the Huskers!), its last in existence. I think Texas comes out fired up, but this game rarely produces upsets, which makes it a relatively overrated rivalry in my books, so I'm going chalk. Predirktion: Oklahoma 20-19.

7:00- (9)Florida at (2)Alabama- The Gators have improved every week after (literally) fumbling 15 snaps in its first game. That decision to cancel fall practice so the team could watch Tim Tebow preseason highlights may have backfired. Alabama expended a lot of energy in their comeback victory over Arkansas last week (and it doesn't get easier traveling to South Carolina next week). Will that play a factor? I say yes. Their defense looked vulnerable, and if Arkansas would've kept their foot on the gas they would have come away victorious. The Tide rolls with RB's Mark Ingram (averaging an astonishing 9.3 yards per carry) and Trent Richardson (7.6 ypc). The Gators counter with the 11th ranked rush defense in the country. Strength vs. strength. Florida has been looking forward to this game all offseason. They want to be the team to spoil Alabama's shot at a repeat, much like 'Bama did to them last season. Florida has to manufacture points to win which puts this game squarely on Urban Meyer's shoulders. I think he's been saving just enough. Predirktion: Florida 20-17.

7:00- (3)Stanford at (4)Oregon- Possibly the Dirkness Game of the Year. Regular season Dirkness-favorite Stanford travels to the renowned Autzen Stadium, home of preseason Dirkness-favorite Oregon.  The Mighty Ducks gave up 597 total yards to Arizona St. last week, and probably would've lost if they hadn't forced 7 turnovers, which solicited a demotion in the Dirkness 25. Meanwhile, Stanford is crushing opponents (on the road nonetheless) at an impressive, albeit nationally unknown, rate. If I were in charge, and the first rankings didn't come out until three weeks had been played, Stanford would be properly rated in the Top 5 right now. The other top storyline of this game is the rise of the Pac-10, with three Top 10 teams in my latest poll (most of any conference). The Cardinal are led by Andrew Luck, who has defaulted his way to the top of my Quarterback list (after Jake Locker and Ryan Mallett's failures- might just be his turn this week). This game should be a shootout with two of the Top 4 scoring offenses in the country (Oregon-1st, Stan-4th). The difference will be Jimmy Harbaugh's stout defense. This game is MUST SEE TV! Predirktion: Stanford 34-30.

His Dirkness

2010 College Basketball Rankings

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His Dirkness' Top 10...and 1

1. Kansas- Hard to believe will probably end with better record than 2008 Championship team in what amounts to as a better conference- Next three games are all very losable- Will be hard to lose if Xavier Henry plays with as much confidence as he is right now- Let me be the first to make the joke of him being the X-factor
2. Kentucky- Mistakenly claimed West Virginia as best rebounding team in the country last rankings- It is actually Kentucky (West VA best offensive rebounding)- Potential downfall will be lack of 3-point shooting- Could have three lottery picks come NBA draft (Wall, Cousins, Patterson)
3. Syracuse- Have now won at West Virginia and at Georgetown- Seem to struggle most against mediocre competition- Patented 2-3 zone is vulnerable to good outside shooting teams- Top 3 teams are a cut above the rest right now
4. Ohio State- Evan Turner. Evan Turner. Evan. Turner.- The rest of the country might have finally caught on to just how good Ohio State and the Player of the Year are- Evan Turner
5. Kansas State- At first glance seem to have accomplished very little since KU defeat- A closer look shows evidence of a very good team by beating inferior teams on the road handily- Possible 1 seed if they can beat KU in Lawrence
6. Villanova- I feel like Scottie Reynolds is the most underpublicized player in the country(He hit the shot to send them to the Final 4 last year-pictured)- Might be a bit worn down after running the gauntlet the second half of the Big East season- Don't see enough size to consider them winning it all
7. Purdue- Very impressive resume- Would be number 4 if they hadn't just lost Robbie Hummel (2nd leading scorer) for the season- Part of the very underrated Big 10 which is right on par with the Big 12 and Big East eons above the ACC, Pac-10, and SEC
8. West Virginia- Big n' rough- Will not go down easy in the big dance- Like their chances of winning it all over the previous two teams- This is how I would build a team if in charge of a program
9. Georgetown- Really up and down- Their efficient offense and size down low make them a scary team come March
10. Duke- I guess? I just can't take them seriously until I'm convinced Coach K is still alive
AND 1. Michigan State- Something doesn't seem fully right with them this year- Will most likely end up being the 4 seed that none of the 1 seeds want to see

2009-2010 College Basketball Rankings

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His Dirkness' Top 10 (And 1!):

1. Texas- Damion James + Dexter Pittman = Best 1-2 punch in the nation
2. Syracuse- Most impressive resume so far- Unheard of 6 players averaging double digs
3. Kentucky- Could be best by year's end- Reminiscent of Michigan's Fab Five
4. Kansas- Yet to impress- Plenty of time though- Most pure talent in country
5. Connecticut- Have the necessary personnel to win in March- LOVE Stanley Robinson (pictured)
6. North Carolina- Toughest schedule to this point- Huge drop off from number 5
7. Villanova- The 15th year of eligibility for Scottie Reynolds provides experience
8. Purdue- Haven't seen them yet- Seem good though
9. West Virginia- Ditto- Senior De'Sean Butler screams All-American
10. Kansas State- Frank Martin doing a great impersonation of a good coach
11. Duke- Don't trust Scheyer or Singler in March- The opposite of UConn- Yes, I realize they beat UConn- in November