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College hoops is here. Amazing how fast time flies.
Princeton vs Bucknell
This game is being played at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse and it is officially the first game of the NCAA Division 1 B-Ball season. The Bucknell Bison are being picked as early favorites to win the Patriot League. Huh? What the hell is that? This is a team that went 14-15 last season and yet still finished tied for second in their league. All five starters are back this season and Charles Lee is the big man (scored 23 points in an exibition game last week). The Bison are a decent team but I would only take them in Conference play (keep that in mind). The Bison are 3-8 all-time against Princeton, the most recent meeting in 99-00 when Princeton won by 2. The Bison are 0-3 in their last three season openers, going down 68-55 at Central Connecticut in 2001, 73-42 at Notre Dame in 2002 and 64-52 in a near-upset of third-ranked Michigan State last season. I see Bucknell sticking around for the most part of this game but I also see them fading off near the end. This is a team that needs rebounding and if they don't rebound, they don't stay close.
The Princeton Tigers are coming off a 14-1 season and are ready to show the Country that they belong. All five Princeton players that started the final seven games last season, including the NCAA tournament game against Texas, return in 2004-05. This tournament is being played with the International THREE POINT LINE as an experiement and I expect that to benefit some of these Tigers shooters. New head Coach Joe Scott was fun to watch at Air Force last season and his style of play seems to be a perfect match for the defending Ivy League Champs. He is very defensive minded and he comes to a team ranked 3rd in points allowed last season. Can you say pressure on Bucknell? The only concern is that Princeton did not have an exibition game but they did scrimmage against Division II teams. Judson Wallace and Will Venable should control this game early and even if Bucknell leads for the first half, this Tigers team will take over and win late. Scott Greenman is the big three point shooter and trust me he can hit from Interantional distance. There are also a couple of outstanding near All-American freshman on the bench. This should be a good one, I like the favs.
My Play: Princeton Tigers -8
Princeton vs Bucknell
This game is being played at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse and it is officially the first game of the NCAA Division 1 B-Ball season. The Bucknell Bison are being picked as early favorites to win the Patriot League. Huh? What the hell is that? This is a team that went 14-15 last season and yet still finished tied for second in their league. All five starters are back this season and Charles Lee is the big man (scored 23 points in an exibition game last week). The Bison are a decent team but I would only take them in Conference play (keep that in mind). The Bison are 3-8 all-time against Princeton, the most recent meeting in 99-00 when Princeton won by 2. The Bison are 0-3 in their last three season openers, going down 68-55 at Central Connecticut in 2001, 73-42 at Notre Dame in 2002 and 64-52 in a near-upset of third-ranked Michigan State last season. I see Bucknell sticking around for the most part of this game but I also see them fading off near the end. This is a team that needs rebounding and if they don't rebound, they don't stay close.
The Princeton Tigers are coming off a 14-1 season and are ready to show the Country that they belong. All five Princeton players that started the final seven games last season, including the NCAA tournament game against Texas, return in 2004-05. This tournament is being played with the International THREE POINT LINE as an experiement and I expect that to benefit some of these Tigers shooters. New head Coach Joe Scott was fun to watch at Air Force last season and his style of play seems to be a perfect match for the defending Ivy League Champs. He is very defensive minded and he comes to a team ranked 3rd in points allowed last season. Can you say pressure on Bucknell? The only concern is that Princeton did not have an exibition game but they did scrimmage against Division II teams. Judson Wallace and Will Venable should control this game early and even if Bucknell leads for the first half, this Tigers team will take over and win late. Scott Greenman is the big three point shooter and trust me he can hit from Interantional distance. There are also a couple of outstanding near All-American freshman on the bench. This should be a good one, I like the favs.
My Play: Princeton Tigers -8