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Based on the practice footage, my top 8 players right now would be: 1. Shavon Shields 2. Tai Webster 3. Walter Pitchford 4. Terran Petteway 5. Benny Parker 6. Andrew White 7. David Rivers 8. Nick Fuller If I was to list top 8 eligible players, I would slide Tarin Smith in at 8 and, obviously, drop White out of the list. It would be a very close race between Rivers, Fuller and Smith for the 6th man spot. Tai Webster has shown significant improvement in his game from what I can see. I mean, significant improvement. Part of that is that I think he is, actually, a better player. He's worked on some things for sure. And part of that is that I think he just feels more comfortable. I think we have several guys with the potential to be able to light it up from deep. Shields looks like he's worked at being a better shooter. Pitchford still strokes it. And Fuller is a deep threat with near perfect form. I'm truly excited to see this team play. I think some of the pieces of the puzzle have clearly upped their game from last year, including Benny and Tai. This team is going to be deeeep with talent. A far cry from two years ago when Miles couldn't even substitute in the 2nd half of whatever game that was. Go Big Red, baby.

I see no mention of Trevor Menke. This list is dead to me.

It's called joking

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=gqxvTzrcNnU&app=desktop Yori met the media this morning and the above video is her 17 minute press conference Starts off with her saying they're a long ways from being where they were last year at this same time. Because of the 7 new players. Can't really say we're rebuilding with 4 starters returning. But they do have to replace Hooper. 2:18 mark - 2,3 or 4 freshmen will have to play hopefully they'll get at least 5 with playing time. 4:15 mark - The great relationship she has with Coach Miles. 5 minute mark - Extremely challenging non conference road schedule plus Duke and Utah at home. 6 minute mark - 11-12 teams will be better in the B1G. League has gotten stronger, could be a possiblity of getting 8 teams in the NCAA. 8 minute mark - She would be happy with only 5 losses in conference. 18 conference games no bye weeks. 10:25 mark - Expectations very high for Rachel this year. She's developed to be a great communicator on the court. 11:40 mark hesitant to say to much on Natalie. Could be the next Zeroes. "not quite to where Lindsey was as a senior" really fast. 14:15 mark - Teams she thinks might be at the top of the B1G. "It's wide open." MSU, Minnesota, Maryland, Iowa all will be good. 15:20 mark - B1G should be once again one of the top conferences in the country. This post has been promoted to an article

I noticed that the Big East has a team that's ranked. That's really nice for them. Big ol' shot in the arm for their league, probably, to see the Villanueva School is listed -- almost in the top 10! Wow! Way to go, guys. Just one spot behind that school from the Missouri Valley, Wichita State. So, good for the Big East. That's really, really neat. (Polite applause for the Big East, please.)

Nah, I've been to Hawaii before. Sipping Mai Tais on a beach while watching beautiful women prancing about nearly naked on a sun-drenched beach just isn't my cup of tea. I'm more of a beer guy.

Looks like a ranked team to me. Pitchford looked the most NBA ready of the bunch to me (and he's not ready). He's doing things at his size that only a couple of players in college can do offensively. Petteway is fine. He's still doing jaw dropping things with the ball and playing fantastic defense. Shields looks great on both ends. Benny looks majorly improved offensively, both as a facilitator and shooter. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out because his defense is still remarkable. Fuller has nearly flawless form on his jumper, and it goes in. I hope he can figure out how to get open when game time comes though. He was getting eaten alive on the perimeter. I like his willingness to rebound. Could be a great zone buster. Moses is a good defender. He'll help us. He got worked a couple of times by WP but those shots were contested. He's a lot calmer defensively than I anticipated, and that's a good thing. I like what he brings to the table, though it'll be entirely on the defensive end. Tarin is a hell of an addition. You can see his IQ all over the court. He's going to be a great facilitator and help balance our scoring. He's a good enough shooter too. He's not the defender Benny is (who is?), but it's obvious he's been coached well (duh) and will be effective at both ends. Very athletic. Tai should be lauded for his conditioning. He looks a full step faster and stronger than last year. I still don't know what to do with him though. He doesn't look like a 1 or a 2 to me. He looks like a 1.5. That can be good and bad. Defensively though, I think he can guard 1-3 now (he couldn't really guard the 1 last year), which is fantastic. I'm just not sure where he fits in offensively. I'm excited to see how the coaches use him. He kind of reminds me of Cookie Belcher right now. Rivers looked like Rivers, which is a compliment. I still think he starts. I really wish I could see Hammond. I think he'll play this year. So much depth. So many options with lineups. Very exciting times.

I've watched this in bits and pieces once and then full thing through again last night. Watching this vid leaves me very optimistic about this team. Some odds and ends: Tai stands out. There's an air of self-confidence about him that we didn't see last year. And it shows in his total approach. His stroke was much better, he was making hustle plays, and his recognition of shot opportunities was several steps above where he finished last year. For instance, at one point during the 4-on-4 half court action, he was in the corner with the ball and looking to pass along the baseline but the defender dropped to stop the pass and Tai immediately recognized he had an open 3 point opportunity and he took a step back beyond the arc and drilled it. He and Benny were kind of feeding off of each other in some of the scrimmaging action. I could easily see a lineup where Tai shifts over to the off-guard and Benny takes the point. Nick Fuller can shoot. During the shooting drills where they split the guards and bigs, they ran a drill where one player dribbles baseline and kicks to a spot up shooter in the far corner and then flashes to the near wing to catch and shoot. When Fuller was spotting up in the corner, he was money. It'll be nice to add that dimension to our arsenal this year. Moses Ayegba is ripped but raw. Can't believe he spent 3 years at G'town and still looks as raw offensively as he does. Don't they teach post-up moves anymore? Footwork was terrible. Keep your balance, stay over your feet and go up strong. BUUUUT, speaking of post up moves, Walter showed something we haven't seen before. Did anyone notice? Tarin Smith has game. I think a lot of people assumed that he mustn't be very good if he's still available in the spring when we got involved with him. I think a lot of people will be surprised. Kid has good handles and can penetrate and get to the rim. Decent size and length for a point and crazy ups. Not a bad shooter but that's something he probably needs work on. Not worried about Petteway. His biggest problem was ignoring what Miles told him early in the practice: "Like the 3, love the rim." Terran makes his living on the dribble drive and he was settling for perimeter shots most of the time. My guess is that he was just trying to find his range, which was off. Knowing what we know about the kid, it probably bugged the hell out of him that his threes weren't dropping and so he kept shooting them trying to find his range. When the ball is live, he'll be back to loving the rim. His D in the 4-on-4 half-court drill showed he wasn't just phoning it in for the day.

When we play Hawaii, the tickets may be tough but not impossible. But the rest of the time (from what I have seen in prior years on TV) good seats should be readily available. Yet, I acknowledge I have never been to this tournament live...perhaps others should also opine. Unless there is a home team most of these holiday tournaments are poorly attended

When we play Hawaii, the tickets may be tough but not impossible. But the rest of the time (from what I have seen in prior years on TV) good seats should be readily available. Yet, I acknowledge I have never been to this tournament live...perhaps others should also opine.

Yep, Miles has some pretty great one liners. I also appreciated the time he got after Terran. "You going to just grimace all day? Gonna be an old man today?"

37:30...something along the lines of "Is that menk hanging on you? 150 lb walk on pestering you?" Ouch....

They were ranked #16 in the 70's per this pre-season issue of S.I. But ended up 14-13. Sports Illustrated - November 27, 1978 Issue 16-NEBRASKA The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1978-79 should turn out to be no less explosive than its 1854 predecessor. Consider the matchups: the renowned Jayhawk fast break against the celebrated Cornhusker defense; big Kansas Center Paul Mokeski against agile Nebraskan Pivotman Carl McPipe; Jayhawk playmaking Guard Darnell Valentine against Cornhusker smoothie Brian Banks. On paper, the teams are close. What makes Kansas the favorite in the Big Eight is Nebraska's tendency to fold. Last year the Cornhuskers won their first 10 and were 19-3 at one point, but faded to finish at 22-8. Ranked in the Top 20 on three occasions, they lost their next game each time. "It was difficult to maintain high intensity," says Terry Novak, the captain of that team. "Maybe we got worn out by the practices." Adds Forward Curt Hedberg, a graduate student in architecture who is still eligible for the varsity under a new NCAA regulation, "Every year I've been here we've peaked and burned out.The coaches have let up a little in preseason practices this year,which is a good sign." For Nebraska to challenge Kansas, the 6' 8" McPipe cannot afford to burn out--or foul out. He was in foul trouble in 19 of 30 games last season. "I have to be smoother," he says, "and keep my hands to myself." If he can stop being so aggressive, McPipe should be the best center in the Big Eight. His statistics last season--15.3 points and 7.9 rebounds a game--were impressive enough. Back then he was spelled by 6' 7" Andre Smith, one of the country's best substitutes. An excellent shot inside of 15 feet, Smith came off the bench to score 21 points against Colorado and 18 against Kansas State. Having improved his rebounding, he will start this season in Novak's vacated forward spot. Hedberg, swingman Bob Moore and freshman Jerry Shoecraft, who starred on the Indiana championship high school team, will give Nebraska an excellent forecourt--if McPipe is not forced to the bench too often. Then there is Banks, a ball hawk, playmaker and shooter extraordinaire. Banks came out of the infirmary to engineer a 62-58 upset over Kansas, and he does less dramatic things well, too. "He can draw a charge better than anyone I know," says Novak. In fact, Coach Joe Cipriano kept Banks busy doing so many things that he tended to tire. "I know that Brian didn't get enough rest in the past," Cipriano says. "Now we have Jack Moore, and he should give it to him." Jack is no relative of Bob, but he was a teammate of Shoecraft in Indiana. Though only 5' 10", he was the MVP in the Hoosier high school tournament. Both Banks and Moore should stay fresh, thanks to a skilled third guard, Mike Naderer. Nebraska's man-to-man defense, eighth best in the country last season, is coached by Hank Iba's son Moe. "Everybody in the conference is scared of our defense," says Cipriano, "and they have a right to be. Of course, we have to outfinesse them because we're so small. We lost the best defensive player in the conference in Novak, but I think we'll improve on offense." The Cornhuskers had better, because their deliberate attack has frequently been a weakness. Although Cipriano expects to rely on his usual give-and-go offense that works for shots after two or three passes, in his wilder moments he envisions speedy Bob Moore scoring at the end of an occasional fast break. "We did wear down last season," says Cipriano. "We had to play with such intensity. This year we won't because our players will get more rest." Which means that fans in Kansas and Nebraska will not get a moment's relaxation.

Nebrasketball is ranked and the Royals are in the World Series. It's a cold day in hell.

I believe Tai may make the biggest jump this year. The video of him at the one hour practice was impressive. His shot looks tremendously better. He was playing hard a** defense and he LOOKS like a player. His added muscle can only help. I will surprised if he is not somewhere in the starting five.

Depending on who we start, Tarin might be our best scoring option off the bench.

I don't think that really matters. KSU and USC was a 8-9 matchup if I believe right or something close to that a couple of years ago. Overall a higher seed helps but trying to place teams and opponents close together is key. I think a 6 or 7 could be good enough depending on who makes it. Either way, my life will be complete if NE gets a tourney win on the jays floor and if they advanced to the sweet 16, something the jays haven't done, would be the ultimate slap. That K-State vs So Cal ballgame was a #11 vs #6 matchup in 2008... I think Kansas St just got lucky. You're right about whoever else makes it. If we were the 3rd #1 seed behind Kansas and Iowa St we probably wouldn't be playing in Omaha. Rooting against all teams with a 200 mile radius should be no problem for us. I dunno, I don't really have anything against UNO.

I don't think that really matters. KSU and USC was a 8-9 matchup if I believe right or something close to that a couple of years ago. Overall a higher seed helps but trying to place teams and opponents close together is key. I think a 6 or 7 could be good enough depending on who makes it. Either way, my life will be complete if NE gets a tourney win on the jays floor and if they advanced to the sweet 16, something the jays haven't done, would be the ultimate slap.

I think the German kid used up his eligibility last season. I haven't seen any worldwide Game and Parks reports on him.....

Only ranked show in the state.

You don't like communists?