LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Replacement referees? What's left to say about the NFL's penny-pinching ways?
Replacement subject? What could be better than college basketball, especially on a morning that looks and feels like November?
I'd heard the whispers that the Athlon Sports College Yearbook ($6.99) had arrived – so I made a fast break into the rain to secure my copy, the one featuring Louisville guard Peyton displaying his red Number 3 jersey with gusto. The first thing I did was study pages 48-49, which features a bracket for the 2013 NCAA Tournament.
Set your DVR for April 6 and 8. Athlon has a Louisville-Kentucky national semifinal game – with the Cards winning the rematch in Atlanta. In the opposite bracket, Indiana defeats Kansas.
Two nights later, the Hoosiers defeat the Cards for the championship.
Now, on to the Athlon Highlights:
*Kentucky coach John Calipari says he has good players. You win the national championship and you deserve the recognition as the Number One thing to watch in college basketball this season. Kentucky's quest to repeat was selected first.
"You're not going to believe this, but we're going to be young again," Calipari told Garry Parrish. "But I like my players. I have good players."
*Can Cody Zeller pull an Anthony Davis?
According to Athlon and Parrish, the Number 4 thing to watch in college basketball this season will be the quest by Indiana center Cody Zeller to follow the trail that Davis burned at Kentucky last season – college player of the year, national champion and overall first pick in the NBA Draft.
Zeller entertained the topic – to a degree.
"It's kinda neat to think about, but that's a long ways away," Zeller told Parrish. "A lot of things are going to have to change between now and next year's draft, if I decide to come out then. And I know I have lots of things to work on."
*Will Rick Pitino make another strong push at Louisville?
Pitino registered at No. 10 on Parrish's list of 10 things to watch. The Cards are ranked second in the nation by Athlon, behind Indiana and one spot ahead of Kentucky, which is followed by Kansas, Syracuse, Michigan, Arizona, Ohio State, Duke and Michigan State in the Top 10. Pitino knows he will have to deflect some of the hype on this team.
"If the players stay humble, hungry and healthy we will live up to our potential," Pitino told Parrish. "It's imperative to enjoy the journey."
*Louisville center Gorgui Dieng was named the center on Athlon's International Dream Team.
*After parking Murray State in the Top 25 for most of last season, Steve Prohm joined Mark Gottfried of North Carolina State, Frank Haith of Missouri, Pat Knight of Lamar and former U of L assistant Steve Masiello of Manhattan as the first-year coaches who did the best work last season.
*No pre-season yearbook would be complete without a Coaches on the Hot Seat list, right?
Two names with local ties jump off the list – former UK coach Tubby Smith, who is starting his sixth season at Minnesota, and former UK guard Travis Ford, who is hearing grumbling at Oklahoma State.
*Athlon's first all-American team features Zeller, guard Pierre Jackson of Baylor, UCLA freshman Shabazz Muhammad; Creighton forward Doug McDermott and UNLV forward Mike Moser.
*Nerlens Noel, Kentucky's freshman center, is joined on the second team by Murray State guard Isaiah Canaan. Siva made the third team.
*Two guys from the area were named honorable mention: Chane Behanan, Louisville and Alex Poythress of Kentucky.
*Louisville is the pick to win the Big East, finishing ahead of Syracuse, Notre Dame and Marquette. Siva was named Big East player of the year.
*Indiana is expected to win the Big Ten, with Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State filling the next three spots. Zeller is the pick as the league's best player.
*Even after losing its top six guys, Kentucky is the pick in the Southeastern Conference, ahead of newcomer Missouri, Florida and Tennessee. The player of the year award goes to Phil Pressey of Missouri, but Noel was named best freshman and best defender.
Copyright 2012 WDRB News. All Rights Reserved.
Louisville senior Peyton Siva is featured on the cover of the local edition of Athlon's Sports College Basketball Yearbook.
