CBS Sportsline.com Preview

I don’t know if their online preview is identical to their annual magazine’s assessment, but CBS Sportsline.com does provide a hopeful look at Oakland’s upcoming season.

There are three parts to their preview — Strategy and personnel, Notes, quotes and Getting inside.  Be sure to look at all three sections.

I won’t spoil the whole thing for you, so just head over their and read it for yourself.  Of course, if the online content is exactly the same at the printed publication, I’ve already ruined it for you.  Sorry.

(Ed. Note: For future reference, I’ve add CBS’ Oakland team page to the blogroll.) 

Odds And Ends

Here are three random college basketball related items that you might find of some interest.  

* Oral Roberts Coach Scott Sutton suspends forward Marchello Vealy.  Sutton has left the door open for a return, so I would expect him back long before the Grizzlies see ORU in person.

* A free Insider preview at ESPN.com yeilds a preview of Michigan State.

* The coaches’ poll is out.  North Carolina holds down the top spot, although UCLA claimed more first place tallies.  No sign of Oakland.

Mid-Major Poll

Collegeinsider.com has issued it’s first Mid-Major Poll of the year.  Not too surprisingly, Gonzaga tops the charts.  Although, in light of their recent success, one does wonder if Gonzaga is still a mid-major program? 

I guess that depends on how you define mid-major to begin with.  That’s a debate I’ll hold off on for now because you really want to know where Oakland U comes in, right?  Well, Grizzlies Nation, Coach Kampe’s side garnered eight total votes.  That puts them towards the end of “others receiving votes”.  

If it makes you feel any better, no Summit League program finished in the Top 25.  Although, IUPUI and Oral Roberts grabbed over forty votes a piece.  Division I newcomer North Dakota State also finished with more votes than OU.  A bit discouraging, perhaps, but nothing to be concerned about.  It’s a poll, nothing more. 

Would I like to see OU ranked higher?  Absolutely.  However, I’m hopeful the Grizzlies will make steady progress up the Mid-Major charts as the season goes along. 

Things Unseen

In the wake of Tuesday’s media day, The Oakland Press ran a preview of Oakland’s upcoming season.  I believe was written by Dave Pemberton and it was in Friday’s paper.  However, The OP, per usual, didn’t provide a link to the Golden Grizzlies content on the free portion of their website.

I’ve got no real issue with The OP trying to generate some cash flow, but I don’t think the policy helps OU.  When the newspaper most likely to provide some in-depth Grizzlies coverage makes that material paid, it keeps OU basketball in the shadows.

I would like would-be recruits from Monroe to Manistee to New York City to Newport Beach to easily find as much information about the OU program as possible.  Having The OP charge for that coverage eliminates a great many from learning as much as they could about the program.

Now, while I’m whining about The Oakland Press, I should point out that the majority of Coach Kampe’s media comments can be found at the link above.  That will take you to the press release from the university and gives you the tone of The OP preview.

I’ll provide a synopsis.  Coach Kampe plans to return to the type of offense most long-time OU fans can recall — run and gun.  Kampe believes he now has the talent to play the up-tempo offense he traditionally ran prior to Oakland making the jump to DI.

Between Johnathon Jones, Erik Kangas, Derick Nelson, Brandon Cassise and freshman Tim Williams, Kampe has the perimeter players to both run and knock down the long-range shots the system will require.

The frontcourt is deep, if unproven.  Will Hudson, Keith Benson, Dan Waterstradt, Patrick McCloskey and GGH reader Shane Lawal should all see minutes as Kampe’s accelerated style of play should lead to lots of lineup changes.

I encourage everyone to check out the comments from Coach Kampe and some of OU’s players.  I’m ready for the season today.

I should also mention another item I’ve seen only one place — the OU message board.  A number of games are going to be on AM1310 in Detroit.  The voice of the Detroit Tigers, Mario Impemba, will have the call.

I haven’t seen a link to the story elsewhere, but this was supposedly announced during Midnite Madnezz. Being a blogger, I’m more than willing to accept message board fodder as fact, so I’ve decided to share this with you.

It’s great news and I look forward to seeing a complete list of the games that will be aired and to find out just what kind of signal 1310 has on winter nights.

Summit League Tabs IUPUI

In a poll of head coaches, SID’s and media members, IUPUI was selected as the pre-season favorites in the Summit League.  (The Oakland University press release is here.)

Our Golden Grizzlies were predicted to finish third behind Oral Roberts.  OU SG Erik Kangas was named as an all-conference first team member while Derick Nelson landed second team honors. 

About the only thing that struck me as terribly interesting about this news was pondering just who makes up the Summit League media?  Seriously, I’ve been breezing through the Oakland Press sports section Monday – Friday each week and have seen more information on Michigan and Michigan State basketball than Oakland. 

Are the Grizzlies previews saved for the weekend editions that I don’t see?  Maybe the other schools are the only game in town, thus have local newspapers giving them more coverage?    I’m not sure, but I can’t say I’ve found anybody giving Oakland much attention — even in their own county.

TSN/Street and Smith’s Preview

For those of you that don’t already know, The Sporting News and Street and Smith’s had some kind of merger/buyout/takeover that has the two publications fused into one.  I wasn’t crazy about the idea, as I liked TSN’s work and respected the long, long history behind S&S, but life moves on and I thumbed through their first college hoops annual a few days back.

I did as I always do — head for the back of the magazine to find the Summit League preview.  The TSN publication (alas, the Street and Smith’s name appears to be a casualty of the combined company) has OU finishing fourth in the Summit.  They predict Oral Roberts, IUPUI and North Dakota State ahead of the Golden Grizzlies.

Fair enough, but I did note one thing at makes me ponder slapping this preview with a honkin’ big asterisk –  It was written by a writer for a Tulsa newspaper.  Now, that’s not to say that a reporter in ORU-land can’t be fair and balanced.  No, he could not only be judging impartially, but he could be absolutely right to boot.  In fact, I tend to think the Golden Eagles will be as tough as nails again in 2007-08.

Yet, just as you have to think I’m a tad pro-OU, a Tulsa beat guy is probably a bit slanted towards ORU.  Regardless, I think it’s safe to say that everybody assumes the Summit League is a four team race.  IUPUI, ORU, ND State and OU are in everybody’s top four just the positions get flipped around as you go from source-to-source.

As for the paragraph preview, it surprisingly begins with a nod to transfer Dan Waterstradt.  Apparently, the writer feels the former Rutgers frontcourt player will have some immediate impact to mention him first.  I’m all in favor of that idea.

The Grizzlies preview goes onto mention PG Johnathon Jones.  Finally, a bit of extra love for JJ.  Then, comes Erik Kangas and Derick Nelson.  Kangas, was named by the magazine as a first-team All-Summit League player.

The Sporting News preview offers the typical, or should I say prototypical, look at the Summit League.  One page dedicated to paragraph long previews of each squad.  It priced about the same as the other pre-season publications and offers the usual information about the power teams and conferences.

If coverage of college basketball’s elite is what you desire, I couldn’t discourage you from buying the TSN fare.  However, if you are an OU fan (and, really, who isn’t?), I can’t say you get the best look at your Grizzlies from this magazine.

CBS Sportsline’s Preview Is Out

A few days ago, I found that CBS Sportsline has released it’s college basketball annual.  It offers the typical preview of the upcoming season, but I have to admit I was a bit impressed with its look at the Golden Grizzlies.

Now, don’t misinterpret my statement as meaning they had an extended look at OU or that they just heaped praise on them.  CBS’ gave the Grizzlies, roughly, the same amount of space as the rest of the previews.  It was a paragraph, perhaps, two in total.  However, they did mention a few more names than the competition.

OU’s three returning starters — Johnathon Jones, Erik Kangas and Derick Nelson all got mentioned with some stats included.  If I remember correctly, CBS referred to the Grizzlies trio as the best returning nucleus in the conference.

You’ll have to forgive me, if I get the details wrong about the magazine wrong.  I flipped through the magazine just long enough to read the OU preview and look at the page dedicated to the Summit League.  That’s all.  (Yeah, I was in the grocery store reading again.  Hey, I like to eat, so I’m in the grocery store on a regular basis.  What can I say?)

Now, other publications would have stopped there –  a paragraph complete with the names of the top three returnees.  However, CBS’ went on to mention the potential impact of freshmen Will Hudson and Tim Williams plus transfer Dan Waterstradt. They didn’t get very specific about any of the players, but just giving the OU newcomers ink earns the CBS annual some points for research, if nothing else.

The magazine didn’t seem to pick a conference winner.  Again, I didn’t sit down and read the whole thing, but I didn’t see any predictions for the Summit standings.  I believe the secondary headline indicated OU would be in the mix, which is what everyone else seems to think.

They did have a complete bracket projection for the tournament, but I couldn’t find the Summit League participant.  The Summit League does still get an automatic entry, correct?  Well, I didn’t see them in running through the fifteen and sixteen seeds.  There’s a better than 50-50 chance, I just skipped past whomever they projected into The Dance, but as I didn’t see OU, I have to assume CBS thinks someone else will win the conference tourney.

In addition, CBS gave OU’s Nelson a first team All-Conference nod.  Very impressive, out-of-the-box thinking on their part.  This is the only time I can recall seeing Nelson on a all-conference first team.  It’s also very cool for Derick.

Alas, Kangas was pushed to the All-Conference second team.  What?  We can’t have two first team All-Summit League players from OU?  Kangas’ second team pick is a bit unusual, as Erik has earned plenty of first team accolades in the pre-season.

Still no JJ, though.  What’s a man got to do to get some all-conference notice?

All in all, I thought CBS did a good job of giving the casual hoops fan a look at Oakland this season. They might not have given much more space to OU than the other publications, but they did a better job with what they had.  It also gave me the idea they did more research than the others vying for your college basketball preview money.

Game-By-Game Schedule Preview

Tonight is Midnight Madness or, Midnite Madnezz, as Oakland’s athletic department has dubbed it.  This is the first night of basketball practice, thus the unofficial opening of the college hoops season. 

In honor of this evening’s festivities, I’ve decided to do a quick game-by-game breakdown of OU’s 2007-08 schedule.  I’ll take a stab at wins and losses and try to learn the nicknames of all the teams in the Summit League along the way. 

Keep in mind this isn’t a terribly serious endeavor.  I’m not claiming to have anymore insight into this than you.  It’s just a fun pre-season exercise. 

@ Wisconsin-Green Bay (Nov. 9)  I hate to call the first game out of the gate a “swing game”, but it is.  Winning this kind of tough road contest gives you a shot at a great season.  Losing doesn’t kill that hope, it will just be that much harder.

Last year, OU prevailed at home.  This year, the Grizzlies are in cheesehead country.  It’s a revenge game, in their building, they are considered better on paper and Oakland’s got frontcourt questions.  LOSS

ADRIAN (Nov. 11)  Why do I have the feeling the home opener will end up closer than most suspect?  OU should win, though.  WIN

EASTERN MICHIGAN (Nov. 17)  For some reason, I think of EMU as a basketball school.  Based on their football attendance, so does their fanbase.  As to the game in question, for OU to get where I/we want them to be, the Grizzlies have to beat MAC teams when they come calling.  WIN

DUQUESNE (Nov. 20)  Yes, the Dukes have been beset by off-court issues, but they can still play.  An OU win would be a big accomplishment in my mind, but I can’t hand the Grizzlies a win yet.  Remember, it’s only October.  Let me see the frontcourt play first.  (Yes, this is another swing game.)  LOSS

@ Michigan State (Nov. 24)  Last year, MSU didn’t have it’s typical powerhouse and OU looked ready to challenge the Spartans.  Then, the game started.  What happened was probably the most embarrassing loss of the campaign. 

This year, MSU looks primed for a Final Four run and OU has more questions than 365 days ago.  I’m only hoping that the Grizzlies put on a better show.  LOSS

@ Xavier (Nov. 28)  The Musketeers have become a fine program.  It’s asking OU quite a bit to pull off a road upset here.  It’s just too much to ask.  LOSS

BOWLING GREEN (Dec. 1)  December begins with a visit from BG.  They are the second of three MAC programs on OU’s schedule this season.  Here’s a simple math formula to keep in mind:  MAC > Summit.  A home win here would be very good and is almost a necessity.  WIN

MISSOURI-KANSAS CITY (Dec. 6)  Hello, conference schedule!  The Grizzlies open the Summit League with a home date against the ‘Roos.  They should also open with a win.  WIN

SOUTHERN UTAH (Dec. 8)  The Thunderbirds?  I guess it’s better than just calling them the Eagles.  I have no clue how good USU is and, honestly, it doesn’t matter.  Oakland had best win.  WIN

@ Michigan (Dec. 12)  Being a homer, I think OU has a puncher’s chance in Ann Arbor.  This is the Wolverines next game after playing Duke.  It could be a letdown that Coach Kampe’s squad can use to hang around.  Stay in the game, drain a few threes late and who knows?

However, even though I want to take my Grizzlies, I can’t.  In spite of Michigan’s lack of recent success and having a new coach and new players, it’s still Michigan vs. Oakland.  (C’mon boys, prove my stomach correct and my head wrong.) LOSS

ROCHESTER COLLEGE (Dec. 19)  I know RC makes a fine break between big games, but in spite of being as close to a stone cold, lead pipe lock (apologies to ESPN’s Mike and Mike) as anyone on OU’s schedule, does this game really help the program?

I’m not sure what division Rochester College is in, but it isn’t DI.  Winning the game doesn’t help you in any tangible sense, but losing just makes your program look bad.  (ex: Appalachian State vs. Michigan.)  WIN

OREGON (Dec. 22)  What a Christmas present — a game at The Palace against Top 20 Oregon.  A little national media attention for the Golden Grizzlies to boot.  Few things in a basketball sense would make me happier than OU pulling off the upset, but I simply cannot expect it.  I’m loyal, not crazy.  LOSS

@ Toledo (Dec. 29)  Our final look at MAC competition and the last non-con game for OU.  The Rockets are another program with off-the-court problems looming overhead, but that doesn’t make this an automatic win.   LOSS

@ South Dakota State (Jan. 3)  The Grizzlies begin the new year with back-to-back games against Summit League newbies.  SDSU is stop #1.  The Jackrabbits (it is the Jackrabbits, right?)  aren’t getting much pre-season love.  I’m hoping the MSM knows what they are talking about on this one.  WIN

@ North Dakota State (Jan 5)  Conversely, NDSU is generally thought to be the second best team in the Summit.  They return three of the better scorers in the conference.  This will be OU’s third straight road game.  I’d love a win, I’m not counting on one.  We’ll get ‘em when they come to Rochester.  LOSS

CENTENARY (Jan. 10)  The best thing about this game?  It’s at home.  If OU had to travel to the Dakotas then to Louisiana, they would have a NBA-like road trip.  Unfortunately for the Gents, the Grizzlies should be ready for some home cookin’ and a win.  WIN

ORAL ROBERTS (Jan. 12)  They’re back.  The Golden Eagles took two of three from OU including the Mid-Con tourney crown last season.  (Yes, I’m still bitter about losing a big lead.)  However, the Grizzlies win did come at home – controversial as it may have been. 

Most everyone thinks ORU is down a bit.  I’m not convinced,  but I’m counting on Oakland finding a way to win at home.  WIN

@ Indiana/Purdue-Fort Wayne (Jan. 19)  Back on the road, again?  Is there a rule about consecutive home games?  And what’s with all of these alphabetical nightmare schools in Indiana?  If Indiana and Purdue just want to merge, go ahead.  Then, the Big Ten will actually have ten teams. 

Oh, wait.  I digressed a bit too far, didn’t I?  As an apology, please accept this win.  WIN

@ Indiana/Purdue – Indianapolis (aka IUPUI) (Jan. 24)  No one may know what IUPUI stands for, but we know they’ve got game.  Lots and lots of game.  The Jaguars are the near consensus pre-season favorites in the Summit League.  It’s hard to pencil in a road win for Oakland at this point.  LOSS

@ Western Illinois (Jan. 26)  This could be a tough night for OU.  It’s the third straight road contest and not only could the team be tired, but they might still be thinking about IUPUI regardless of the outcome.  Advantage: Leathernecks.  LOSS

NORTH DAKOTA STATE (Jan. 31)  The new bully on the block visits the O’Rena.  As stated earlier, the Bisons return all kinds of talent, but Oakland owes them for an loss early this month.  If OU hopes for a conference crown, a win here seems vital.  WIN

SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (Feb. 2)  I can’t believe it’s already February.  The Jackrabbits won’t fare any better at the O’Rena than they did at home.  WIN

@ Oral Roberts (Feb. 7)  This might be the best shot at a Golden Grizzlies win at ORU since, well, since I don’t know when.  However, the Golden Eagles come in mad about the loss the Grizzlies handed them last month.  ORU may be down, but they are not out.  LOSS

@ Centenary (Feb. 9)  Another game that might be easily overlooked — travel notwithstanding.  This is the kind of game the Grizzlies dropped late last year and it cost them the conference title.  I don’t think it happens here, though.  WIN

IPFW (Feb. 16)  Yeah, I’m getting lazy.  Just the abbreviations now.  Look, I’ve been typing for quite a while.  As for the game, I just don’t see the Mastodons trotting (do Mastodons trot?) onto OU’s home floor and winning.  Nobody should see that.  WIN

IUPUI (Feb. 21)  With March Madness on the horizon, the favored Jags com into our barn.  They’ve already given OU one “L”, I’m not accepting another.  Sorry, one’s the limit.  WIN

WESTERN ILLINOIS (Feb. 23)  See above.  WIN

@ Southern Utah (Feb. 28)  This is not my favorite game on the schedule.  The travel alone makes me leery.  Didn’t USU beat the Grizzlies last year?  I’m afraid they make it two straight in their building.  LOSS

@ Missouri-Kansas City (Mar. 1)  The conference schedule comes to a close the same way it opened — with UMKC.  I’ll be knee-deep in college baseball by this time, but I don’t see the results changing from December.  WIN

Well, that’s it.  The entire season at-a-glance.  If this ridiculous prediction comes true, the Grizzlies would finish at 17-12 overall; 13-5 in the Summit. 

Am I hoping for a season better than that?  Of course.  With the best backcourt in the Summit, I’m hoping OU can win the conference tourney they should have held onto last season.  

Let’s get the season started.  Happy Midnite Madnezz, everyone.

Update (12/15/07): I cannot believe I had SUU as Utah State all this time.  Didn’t either of you notice that?

Sports Weekly Sends OU Dancin’

USA Today’s Sports Weekly has a special college basketball preview on the newsstands.  I picked up a copy today and found something interesting — the magazine has Oakland in the NCAA Tournament.

According to the magazine’s projected bracket, the Golden Grizzlies will be a sixteen seed and take on top seeded North Carolina.  (OU vs. UNC, Part II?)  The magazine also believes that OU will bypass the play-in contest.  Next year, it’s straight onto The Dance.

Now, before we get too excited, let me provide a broader perspective on Sports Weekly’s projections.  The headline above the Summit League preview suggests Oral Roberts will prevail, but watch out for Oakland.

While giving love to the Grizzlies was more than enough to get me to part with five dollars, their ORU guess flies in the face of the prevailing thought.  Nearly everyone else I’ve seen has IUPUI as the conference champion.

Would anyone be surprised if the Golden Eagles won the Summit League?  Nope.  They are the kings until someone dethrones them.  I’m tempted to give the magazine respect for not blindly following the crowd and picking IUPUI.

However, I can’t help but feel the magazine kind of mailed this preview in.  We all know ORU is the premier program in the conference, they always win, so why not just write them down and be done with it?

What muddles the matter further is that Sports Weekly provides a projected order of finish in the Summit and our Golden Grizzlies came out on top.  Their headline for the conference preview implies an ORU repeat with Oakland a possible contender.  Their projected order of finish (which was provided by some organization called the Sports Xchange) has the Grizzlies beating ORU for the title.  Which is it?

Underneath each team in the projected order of finish comes Jerry Palm’s , of CollegeRPI.com fame, prediction.  The magazine used Palm’s analysis to create their pre-season field of 64.  Palm has Oakland in The Dance, so Sports Weekly does as well.

Confused, yet?  Hold on, it gets a bit worse.

Following in the footsteps of ESPN’s Summit League Summer preview, Sports Weekly has Shawn Hopes still on the Grizzlies roster.  As has been well established here, Hopes used up his eligibility at the conclusion of last year.  No matter what the MSM believes, Hopes isn’t a member of the 2007-08 Grizzlies.

The question becomes do Sports Weekly, the Sports Xchange and Mr. Palm think Hopes is still in the black and gold?  If so, wouldn’t his absence alter their predictions?  I would certainly think so.

While I’m happy to see Oakland get some pre-season attention, and love the thought of making the NCAA tournament again, we have to take this all with a grain of salt.  Can we trust a preview that believes OU still has a player that, in fact, has left the program?

There is some other good news for OU fans, though.  Guard Erik Kangas made Sports Weekly’s All-Summit League first team.  That seems to be a consensus opinion at this point.

I was also pleased to see Derrick Nelson’s name in Oakland’s preview, but disappointed to see Johnathon Jones get snubbed.  Not even a mention of JJ?  That ain’t right.

Make of this preview magazine what you will.  You get another single paragraph preview of Oakland.  Even worse it’s a paragraph that includes a player no longer in the program and ignores a freshman All-America point guard.

On the upside, part of the preview has OU winning the Summit League and there’s a full two page pre-season NCAA tournament bracket that has the Golden Grizzlies in the field of 64.

At $5, Sports Weekly’s preview is less than the high gloss annual publications, but if their Summit League preview is any indication, you get what you pay for.  It’s a reminder of why I stopped subscribing when they dumped the Baseball Weekly theme.

Pistons Visit The O

The Detroit Pistons held a marketing campaign disguised as a practice at Oakland University a few days ago.  The Pistons and Grizzlies both tried generating some interest in their product, so it’s all good.

According to the university’s report, several thousand showed up at the O’rena to watch the Pistons warm-up for the 2007-08 season.  Hopefully, we get a few (hundred) more of those people to show up for Oakland basketball.