The return of college basketball is right around the corner, as Division I programs tip off the season this coming Tuesday, Nov. 9. With over 350 teams and a high amount of roster turnover due to the transfer portal and early entrants into the NBA Draft, the college basketball landscape can often be hard to stay on top of. Here is Sport Editor Sam Dils ’22’s guide to what is shaping up to be another memorable season that will span from now until March Madness.
Top-three reasons to be excited about this season
1. Talent like never before
There exists a slight misconception among casual viewers that the “one-and-done” approach of players spending only their freshman season in college before jumping ship to the NBA Draft has diminished the overall talent pool in the college game. This is certainly true in some regard: sadly, A-list superstars Ja Morant and Zion Williamson have moved on to greener pastures, even though they are still young enough to be college students. Additionally, some top recruits have foregone college basketball entirely to join the G-League or play overseas as 17 or 18-year-olds.
With all of that said, the talent in college this year will be off the charts. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the NCAA granted participants an extra year of eligibility, meaning that some fifth-year seniors (like Villanova’s Collin Gillespie and Jermaine Samuels) are coming back. Elite incoming talent such as the freshman duo of Emoni Bates and Jalen Duren reclassified from the 2022 high school class to play for Coach Penny Hardaway at the University of Memphis. With a much-hyped incoming freshman class that oozes talent, featuring Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren and Duke’s Paolo Banchero (both likely top-3 picks in next year’s draft), the player pool is arguably the strongest of the decade.
2. Strong, recognizable returners
For those who tuned into March Madness last year, many of the big names will be back on center stage this season. Who could forget UCLA’s Final Four run as a #11 seed in the tournament? They return with one of the nation’s best scorers in Johnny Juzang, as well as all of their other starters. Gonzaga fell one game short of an undefeated season last year, but are fully loaded once again with junior forward Drew Timme, who continues to rock his iconic mustache and headband combination. Fellow All-Americans back on the hardcourt are two dominant Big Ten centers in Illinois’s Kofi Cockburn and Michigan’s Hunter Dickinson. Both Michigan and Illinois earned #1 seeds in last year’s tournament and hope to be back in that position this Mar. 2022.
3. A wide-open battle for the national championship
Some years, the title race is over before the season even starts. Last season, Gonzaga and Baylor were ranked first and second in the preseason Associated Press (AP) poll and went on to meet in the national championship. This year, the title conversation is much more open, as each of this year’s preseason top-20 have a legitimate reason to believe their team can go all the way. Gonzaga is back at #1 in the rankings, followed by UCLA, Kansas, Villanova and Texas to round out the top five. Duke and Kentucky should bounce back in a big way following disappointing 2020–21 seasons. Kentucky has imported insane talent through the transfer portal with center Oscar Tshiebwe, point guard Sahvir Wheeler and wing Kellan Grady. Duke has yet another top recruiting class led by three five-stars in Paolo Banchero, AJ Griffin and Trevor Keels. Teams like Michigan and Purdue are each returning with incredible talent and look to build off strong seasons in 2020–21. The AP’s top 25 is as deep as ever.
The Title Favorites and Prediction
Gonzaga Bulldogs
Coming into the season as the defending national runners-up, the Bulldogs have to be in the title conversation. Coach Mark Few has led the most consistent program over the last decade, with six consecutive appearances in the Sweet Sixteen, with two Final Four berths in the past five years. Gonzaga’s grueling non-conference schedule will show us what they are made of right out of the gate.
The duo of Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren will lead the charge. Timme is a preseason First Team All-American and Holmgren is the top prospect in the 2021 class, with a praying mantis-esque frame at 7’0’’ with a 7’6’’ wingspan. With these two, alongside returning senior point guard Andrew Nembhard and fellow freshman phenomenon Hunter Sallis, Coach Few has plenty of talent to earn yet another 1-seed and make another deep tournament run.
Kansas Jayhawks
As another one of the most consistent programs over the past 20 years, Kansas is returning four of its five starters from a team that earned a 3-seed in the NCAA Tournament last season. Senior center David McCormack blossomed over the second half of last season. Paired up with sophomore Jalen Wilson, the Jayhawks have one of the best frontcourts in the country. The X-factor is fifth-year Arizona State transfer Remy Martin, a pure scorer who has averaged over 19 points per game each of the last two seasons in Tempe. With much better talent around him, can he help lead Kansas to its first title since 2008?
Purdue Boilermakers
In a loaded Big Ten Conference, Purdue will undoubtedly be the most fun team to follow. Sophomore Jaden Ivey is primed for a breakout year after averaging 20 points per game over Purdue’s final four games last season. The rangy guard already has NBA executives intrigued. With returning veteran guards in seniors Eric Hunter and Sasha Stefanovic, and the nation’s best interior with Trevion Williams and 7’4’’ sophomore Zach Edey, the Boilermakers will be as athletic, physical and talented as any team in the nation. After a heart-crushing upset loss to North Texas in the first round of March Madness last year, expect this group to be motivated and hungry for a title.
Sleeper Pick: Auburn Tigers
Only ranked at #22 in the opening AP Poll, I expect Auburn to exceed expectations this season. My two reasons are Walker Kessler and Jabari Smith. Kessler is a 7’1’’ sophomore transfer from North Carolina who is primed to break out with more playing time, and Smith is a top-five incoming freshman who might average a double-double. Junior wing Allen Flanigan is a returning star hiding in plain sight — he averaged 14.3 points and 5.5 rebounds — who will look to lead the improved crop of talent to a potential Final Four berth, a feat that Coach Bruce Pearl and the Tigers pulled off not long ago back in 2019.
Official Championship Prediction: Texas Longhorns
The moment you have all been waiting for: my prediction for 2021–22 National Champion belongs to the Texas Longhorns. Texas has been a hotbed of top-tier talent over the past few seasons, but it has not translated to tournament success. The solution? Hiring one of the best coaches in the country in Chris Beard to replace an unsuccessful and slightly overrated Shaka Smart. Beard has a proven track record, leading a Texas Tech squad that lacked title-worthy talent on paper within seconds of a national title in 2019. Beard now has the most prestigious job in the state and oodles of talent.
The Longhorns probably have the deepest and most talented roster in the country. Returners Andrew Jones and Country Ramey each scored over 12 points per game for a #3 seed Texas team that shockingly dropped its opening round game to Abilene Christian in 2021. The returners will be bolstered by the nation’s best transfer class, which includes legitimate stars in Minnesota transfer Marcus Carr and UMass transfer Tre Mitchell, who average a whopping 19.4 and 18.8 points at their respective schools. Add in another batch of double-digit scorers and above average rebounders and defenders in Vanderbilt’s Dylan Disu, Creighton’s Christian Bishop and Utah’s Timmy Allen, and the Longhorns look like a scary, deep team. With one of the nation’s best coaches and best depths of talent, I am picking Texas to go all the way. With so many transfers, the regular season will not be perfect, but if the pieces can mesh by Mar. 2022, they have as legitimate a claim as any other team nationwide.
