I think this may be the first year where the Big Ten is clearly superior. It's been closer than the results indicate but there were a few years where the ACC was so much better.

The infusion of talent into the Big Ten is really starting to show now. Lots of teams have been recruiting really well for a while and the depth is coming back.

The Indiana game is huge tonight. I can't see how the Big Ten doesn't win the whole thing unless they lose that game. I think Michigan State, Minnesota, and Penn State get at least 2 out of 3 to seal it.

Wisconsin is in for a rough night unless they can hold North Carolina under 60.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

I am looking forward to the Indiana game. This will be their first road test this year. Beating Butler on Sunday was nice, but Butler appears to be down this year.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

The Coaching talent in the Big Ten is also far superior to the ACC. Really solid for the most part, which leads to better recruiting and better results.

Nice win by the Illini last night. Maryland isn't very good, but Illinois went on the road and came back in the second half for the Victory. Showed toughness and grit that hasn't been evident for the last 3-4 years. Still going to be a long year with all the stupid mental mistakes, but the potential is there.

I went back and forth on the Illini game but did catch a majority of it. This team would be awful without the new
PG from Bradley, he has a nice outside shot. Paul had a nice game and hustles but isn't a very good shooter unless
he is aiming at his foot which he hits often. I saw some grittiness out of the young guys both down low and from the
guard spot. They have a tough schedule ahead before the Big Ten meat grinder starts. Gonzaga, Mizzou, and UNLV
just to name a few. I think they'll have an up and down year but off to a nice start. Gotta get to 20 wins before you
can even think about the tournament.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

They still rely too much on the outside shot. Leonard isn't a good offensive post player, yet, but he has potential. He can't really get and hold his position.

BUT, if Paul can keep penetrating effectively and start to finish at the hoop, and Maniscalco continues to hit shots late in the time clock when he needs to, and Richardson starts to hit shots again, and Griffey keeps working on the Hi/Low with Leonard, and Leonards keeps from getting in foul trouble early like every big man Illinois has ever had, they might really have something....

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You know me like that.

business as usual at Illinois.

Is Weber going to get Zooked at the end of the year?

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

I had to work last night so I just watched the Duke-OSU game this morning. I think OSU is the best team in the country. I agree that the entire Big 10 is really good this year, probably the deepest conference in the country.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

If he makes the tournament I don't see how you can. I think I heard them say there is
only one returning starter from last year. A lot of youth and potential. If they go into a
tailspin though, I'd say there is an outside shot.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I like Weber, but you gotta wonder how long its supposed to take to get some better results. I am holding out hope that they can win 21 games and make the tourney so he has a chance to see this group through. He screwed himself the last 4 years with his crappy recruiting when he first got to Illinois.

Weber deserves at least 5 more years. Give the man some time.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Last year's team should have been better. That wasn't a recruiting issue.

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You know me like that.

If Mike Davis, Demetri McCamey, and Mike Tisdale are the stars of your team, you have done a very poor job recruiting.

I don't know that Weber has done a lot to warrant getting much more time at Illinois, but I'm also not sure what the expectations should be. I dont think of Illinois as a very high team on many top recruit wish list.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

Agreed, I actually like the way he dealt with the Richmond issue. A lot of coaches might have tried to
sweep that under the rug but he sat him for the tournament. It wasn't his fault the kid was a fuck-up,
he was Mr. Basketball in the state. Although the kids have been disappointing thus far if he doesn't
lock up those 2 consecutive state players of the year, everybody starts questioning his recruiting. I
think he has some tough kids in there and they had a stat last night showing that he has 11 players
on the roster averaging 10 minutes or more a night. That is some nice depth that will likely pay off
down the line, he just needs to find some more guys to put the ball in the hoop.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

I disagree. That's a talented trio of Seniors. You should be able to win a road game with that nucleus of experience. That was the worst road team I've ever seen. What were they? 2-12 on the road?

None of those guys developed, Tisdale did offensively but he always was in foul trouble. McCamey actually regressed. Richmond was a cancer. Richardson regressed into the fetal position. Paul remained undisciplined. That team had plenty of talent it just was not coached well.

I'm a Weber fan but last year probably would have gotten him fired if Guenther wasn't still there and I wouldn't have really had much of an argument with it.

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You know me like that.

Davis and McCamey are ridiculously overrated. Neither tried or cared. They never showed any leadership, played zero defense, and never showed any physicality. That is why they weren't drafted.

Again, Weber recruited those losers, so its his fault. He also allowed their poor attitudes to effect the entire team, which is also his fault. And he continued to play them even though they consistently were killing the team, and that is also his fault.

Weber can coach, but he shows blind loyalty to bad players and couldn't recruit a ham sandwich before Jerrance Howard was hired. The question is: Does he get a do-over because he finally has good recruits? I think, if he makes the tourney this year, he will be kept. If he doesn't make it, he will be fired.

Indiana with a nice win.

Tom Crean apparently knew what he was doing.

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LOVED what I saw tonight from Indiana.

This is the best I have felt about Indiana in a LONG time.

Cannot wait for the Big 10 schedule to start.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Please do not show close ups of Minnesota fans again.

Thank you.

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The Big Ten wins for the 3rd straight year.

Clearly the best conference in college basketball.

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