Before the year, I make predictions and had beliefs about certain things and now I am reflecting on how accurate I was.

Right: Kansas – I was dead accurate on this team before the year. I said that they were the best team in the country and they would win the national championship. I said they had it all depth , shooting, size, veterans, and talent. I stand by that and right now they are my pick to win it all.

Wrong: Maryland- I had such high expectations for this awfully talented team. They had 5 great players at all five positions and I thought Carter, Suilimon, and Layman would be great compliments to stars Melo Trimble and Diamond Stone. I had Final Four dreams. I might have bitten off more then I could chew. I expected Trimble to play better and by me watching him more closely, he has been a solid floor general, great passer, but hasn’t had the clutch “it factor” he had last year. Diamond Stone on the other hand has been solid but not as consistent where he either gets 20-15 or 8-4.

Right: North Carolina- I liked this team a lot going into the year but I had reasonable expectations, unlike others who thought that UNC was the best team in the country. They have great depth and they have Brice Johnson, but they are an on and off team and have too many times that their offense goes cold. They are great in transition but rely on offense to give them momentum. I had them going to the final four and I am sticking with that.

Wrong: Providence-A couple months ago, I made bold predictions and one of them was that providence would make it to the final four. It could still happen but it’s a long shot. They have Kris Dunn and Ben Bentil but the rest of the team isn’t on par and it’s a two man show. They have really struggled down the stretch… They will make the tournament but won’t do much once they get there.

Right: Big 12- Before the year, I said time and time again the big 12 will be once again dominate. I had higher hopes for Iowa state who has a great team, but Oklahoma has lived up to my expectations with being a top 10 team, West Virginia has been consistently great, Baylor, Iowa state, and Texas have been having good years, and Texas Tech will make the Tourney after having NIT questions coming into the year. Best, deepest conference in the country.

Wrong: LSU – I thought this team could make a run this year. They were hyped up by the media and Ben Simmons “the best prospect since lebron” led the way. They had Quarterman, and Hornsby and had another top 15 recruit, Antonio Blakeney, Joining the squad. But this team has underperformed due to lack of leadership, effort, chemistry, and the fact that this team was not that talented. This proves one man can’t do it all.

Right: Michigan State- This team was ranked 13 coming into the year but I was scared to death of them. They lost their leaders in trice and Dawson but still had their core in Valentine, Forbes and costello. They also had Davis coming to East Lansing. Imagine this team if Caleb Swanigan hadn’t changed his mind and de-committed from Sparty. I liked this team before the year and I love them now. I didn’t see Valentine and Forbes playing this well though…

Wrong: Wichita state- Similar situation to Providence….I picked them to go to the final four because of Ron Baker and Fred Van Vleet even though they had lost Tekele Cotton, Seth Davis’ “Glue Guy”. Both those guys have played up to standards but the others have been lacking behind. This team will be an 8-9 seed or might not even make the tournament. Yikes! That was a clunker pick.

Jury still out on…: California, Vanderbilt , Kentucky

Right: Award predictions- I was right on a lot of award predictions before the year. I picked Buddy Hield to win POY, Coach of year to be Bill Self, National champs to be Kansas and Freshman of the year to be Jamaal Murray. Murray might not win, but he is in the running… I was dead-on pre-season… If you want to see my predictions before the year click the link below.

College basketball preview

I will go through each top 25 team and say if they are a contender or pretender

1. Kansas- Contender: They are definitely are contenders as they have depth, talent, a blend of youth and experience, and ability to close games. Mix that with a great coaching staff and you have a team with the capability of going to the final four.
2. Michigan state- Contender: This team is also very capable of making a run. In East Lansing, there is a saying, December, January, February, Izzo. He has always been great in march, but he has at his display his best shooting team ever with bryn Forbes and Denzel Valentine, and still has great big in Deyanta Davis and Matt Costello, Mr. Hustle.
3. Villanova – Contender…I guess? I really can’t get a hold of this team. They play great and have players like Kris Jenkins and Josh Hart. But when they have played big time competition, ( Virginia, Providence, Oklahoma, Xavier) they have lost. They also have bad history in the tourney with early exits. But this is a very good team and have to give them the benefit of the doubt that they could make a run.
4. Virginia- Contender: This team is clicking at the right time….Brogdon playing like a stud and Perrentes shooting lights out, them playing great defense as well, gives them a great shot at making a run.
5. Xavier: Pretender- I like this team I really do, They have depth like no other team in the country. Sumner, Davis, Macura, Farr, Reynolds, Bluett etc. But I don’t have the feeling that they have “the guy” to get them a bucket when they need one. Happened against Seton Hall and I believe it will happen in the tourney. Sweet 16 team in my opinion
6. Oklahoma: Pretender: This team does have the potential to be a final four. They have the best player in basketball in Buddy Hield, and they have great seniors in Jordan Woodard, Cousins, And Spangler. But their inconsistent shooting and the fact that they rely on the three ( 40% of points) makes me believe they could get upset.
7. North Carolina: Contender- They along side Michigan state and Kansas have the best and most talented teams in the country. They have brice johnson and marcus paige and that’s all they need to make a run. But they also have Jackson, Meeks, Britt, and Berry.
8. Oregon: Pretender- This team is a very good team. But these kind of teams without a player you can point to as ” a problem” will cause them trouble in the tourney. I simply don’t trust this team.
9. West Virginia: Pretender- This team relies on the forcing turnovers and against a team like Kentucky, who has three point guards, will be able to pick apart this team because West Virginia relies on their defense to generate offense….To rich for my blood.
10. Indiana: CONTENDER- This team is a final four team hands down. They have everything…shooters, a big man, better defense, and leadership. They have Yogi Ferrel who can facilitate the ball and shoot it and they have a number of shooters around him. Then they have Thomas Bryant  who can be a rim protector. Watch out for this team in march.

Rest of top 25….

11.Miami- Pretender

12. Utah- Contender

13.Purdue- Contender

14. Lousiville- Ineligible

15. Arizona- Pretender

16.Kentucky- Contender

17.Texas a&m: pretender

18. Maryland – Pretender

19. Duke- Contender

20. Iowa- Pretender

21. Iowa state – Contender

22. Baylor- Pretender

23. Texas – Pretender

24. California – Contender

25. SMU – Ineligible