NCAA Basketball Mailbag: Big East favorite, Big 12 title race and more

What are the biggest NCAA Basketball and NBA Draft questions you have this week? We answer them all in this week’s Mailbag.

We’re now into the last week of January and the NCAA Basketball season is getting into high gear as teams try to put the necessary touches on their resume to earn an NCAA Tournament berth.

While the on-court product is plenty entertaining, there are several other off-court happenings that are generating excitement. The top prospects for the upcoming NBA Draft are becoming more clear now that we’re over halfway through the season and, with the McDonald’s All-America rosters being released, it has shined a renewed light on recruiting.

So, with all that going on, what’s on the minds of fans around the country? We start this week’s mailbag with the annual tradition of wondering if anyone can end Kansas’ streak of Big 12 titles.

Do you have a college basketball or NBA Draft question you want to have answered? Join the conversation on Twitter @brauf33. Thanks as always to those who contributed this week.

I said earlier this year that Kansas is only the third-best team in the Big 12 and I still think that’s the case. Kansas State, Iowa State, and Texas Tech have all looked like better teams at one point or another. They’re relying on Dedric Lawson to carry them since Udoka Azubuike was lost for the season and, while they’ve been able to hold serve at home, they look extremely vulnerable on the road.

Here’s the deal – I still think KU wins at least a share of the conference title because of the advantage that is Allen Fieldhouse and how the other teams in the conference cannibalize each other. Texas Tech is currently on the three-game losing streak, the Cyclones just blew a chance to sweep the Jayhawks, and Kansas State got off to a slow start.

I actually think K-State has the best chance of accomplishing that feat but their offense has been known to leave them for games at a time.

Neither. Villanova has improved greatly from early on the season and I know believe they can win a game or two in the tournament, but they still don’t have the talent level we’re used to them having.

Marquette isn’t good enough defensively and is too reliant on big games from Markus Howard. He and the Hauser brothers are capable of leading them on a short run in March but they don’t have the ceiling to make the Final Four.

If I’m picking the Big East champ this year, I’m still going with the Golden Eagles. I think Howard and the Hauser’s would start for Villanova and I trust Marquette’s bench more. We’ll get our first look at this matchup in Milwaukee on February 9.

Short answer? Yes.

Long answer? They will be a contender but they won’t be a favorite. With all that experience returning and that freshman class, they’re bound to be a top 10 or 15 team nationally. I expect those returners to improve even more with their first full offseason under Chris Mack, and that will only help them.

That said, while the Cards have a bunch of really good freshmen, none of them figure to be immediate stars. I think we’ll start looking at Louisville as a top five or No. 1 team in 2020-21 when that recruiting class has a year under their belt and will be joined by (likely) another very talented group.

Right now I’m going with Washington – they have the most talent and experience to go along with the least amount of bad losses – but things seem to change in that conference on a weekly basis. That lack of a bad loss also gives them the best chance to get an at-large bid, and their schedule sets up nicely for them, which I detail here.

In terms of the conference tournament, I think it’s completely up in the air. Arizona State’s defense will make them extremely tough but they may very well tire out before they even get to the final (the fact they can’t shoot hurts, too). I’d probably go with them but I could see four other teams (Arizona, Oregon, UCLA, Washington) winning it, too.

I actually think it’s the SEC.

The Big Ten certainly has a case, but there are only two really good teams and both Indiana and Ohio State are absolutely bottoming out.

The ACC is the common answer, as they have a ton of top teams like Duke, Virginia, and North Carolina. However, both Florida State and Virginia Tech are not the teams we thought they were going to be, and Clemson has also been a major disappointment.

Meanwhile, in the SEC, Kentucky and Tennessee are surefire top 10 teams while Mississippi State and LSU have delivered on the preseason hype to become ranked teams. Both Alabama and Auburn look like NCAA Tournament teams and both Ole Miss and South Carolina have proven to be major surprises. Florida’s also in the NCAA Tournament mix as well.

I’ve said the ACC for the entire year but, right now, I think the SEC is playing slightly better.

a) Yes, this draft class isn’t great at the top and he still has a ton of upside as a slasher.
b) Yes, though now I think he goes towards the back end. May not be a surprise to see him go in the 15-20 range, either, but I still think he ends up in the lottery.

Charles Matthews will be in the draft as a senior, and I could see Ignas Brazdeikis joining him as well. He’s an old freshman after spending a year in prep school and some scouts have first-round grades on him.

The guy I’m interested to see is Jordan Poole. I think he’ll be the best NBA player currently on the Wolverines. However, his draft stock ranges from late in the first round to being undrafted. If he returned for his junior year, he’d get a chance to thrive as Michigan’s go-to guy.

In the end, I think two will enter and be drafted – Matthews and then either Brazdeikis or Poole. I think one of them goes and one of them returns to school.

His biggest strengths are his defense and shooting ability, making him a quintessential 3-&-D NBA prospect. It helps he can create his own shot, too.

However, his biggest weakness is his inconsistent decision-making. He lacks elite quickness but too often hoists questionable shots or makes careless decisions.

In terms of player comps, I think the best-case scenario is him turning into a better shooting version of Gary Harris. The worst-case scenario would be maybe Ian Clark.

There’s a chance someone will take him in the second round because of his skill set but I’d put him as undrafted right now. He’s not the best athlete and already has injury concerns. It only takes one team, but I’d lean on him getting a chance as an undrafted free agent.

what r your thoughts on Illinois freshman ayo desunmo? is he a 1st rounder this year? – RUDEBOY (@RUDEBOY_______)

Given his size (6-5) and athleticism, there’s a very real possibility Dosunmu ends up going in the back half of the first round. We saw the same thing last year with guys like Josh Okogie and Anfernee Simons. Teams picking in the back-end of the first round are good enough to be able to gamble on upside and I think we could see Dosunmu be the latest example of that.