Duke sucks, Red Sox, Red Sox Red Sox, World Series, Sox sweep

Taking some advice from my friend C-Stone, I just put Red Sox in the title a lot to get people to read this, as it will get picked up by search engines.

Most of my hatred lately has been focused on Red Sox Nation and naturally that is justifiable. Just imagine what Fair-weather Sox Nation is going to be like if they win another title. That dooms day scenario is actually highlighted in my friend C-Stone’s blog (http://beltwaysports.blogspot.com/). Check him out if you like Baltimore/Washington area sports. Also check him out at dcsportsbox.com.

But I digress…


I write to you today, my loyal readers who love to see/read my sports rage, about college basketball. With the season starting in a few weeks, today marks the release of the ESPN/USA Today Poll. A quick breakdown of the Top 10, and then some ranting about one of my most hated teams, Duke.

1. North Carolina (10) 0-0 739
UNC was the unanimous pick to win the ACC; they’re returning a lot of good players, especially Tyler Hansbrough. If I had to do my own top 10, they’d probably be #1.

2. UCLA (12) 0-0 734
Another good team, no problem with them starting #2. Actually got more 1st place votes then UNC.

3. Memphis (8) 0-0 731
Remember when people didn’t want to rank Memphis high because they played in a mid-major conference? Those days are long gone…going gaga over mid-majors is the college basketball equivalent of rooting for the Red Sox…it’s the latest popular trend.

4. Kansas (1) 0-0 669
Had a great year last year, finishing 14-2 in Big 12 play. Look for more of the same this year.

5. Georgetown 0-0 625
I hate Georgetown and their fans (especially if they’re members of Late Night Shots – more on all of that in a future post). I think it will be hard for Georgetown to repeat the run they had last year, especially with some of the players they lost, but when you have a go to center like 7’ 2” Roy Hibbert, you’re going to be a good team. Probably a top 15 team when all is said and done and starting off rated a little high.

6. Louisville 0-0 620
Not too sure why Louisville is rated so high. They have 3 seniors this year, all of which averaged less than 10 ppg last season. They only have a few players who averaged over 10 ppg at all, so I worry who their “leader, take over the game” person is going to be. They also play in the overrated Big East, so expect these guys to fall, maybe an early loss at UNLV or in January at Kentucky.

7. Tennessee 0-0 598
How far will Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith carry this team? Can they repeat their excellent season from last year?

8. Michigan State 0-0 503 9.
A very young team guided by Drew Neitzel. Can he get others around him to play the same way? They have a big test early against NC State who is picked to finish 3rd in the much more competitive ACC. Very overrated in my opinion. Only finished 8-8 in conference play last year in the Big 10.

9. Indiana 0-0 479
I don’t know how folks see this team starting as a top ten team. D.J. White is the only good player on this team. I’m very much against people rating teams high based on new recruits from high school. NEWS FLASH MEDIA – these kids haven’t proven shit at the College Level yet, so don’t rank them high until they prove they can handle it.

10. Washington State 0-0 464
Could be a good team this year. This group could actually play like a “team” with different people stepping up at different times. Derrick Low and Kyle Weaver are both good guards.


So there you go. My top 10 reviews. I wasn’t really mad with any of the top 10 teams (well, maybe Michigan State). I did however flip off the handle when I saw who was ranked #11.

YOU GUESSED IT, from Durham, North Carolina, a team that people love to overrate, the Duke Blue Devils. ARE YOU SERIOUS? ARE YOU SERIOUS? I’m not just saying this as a Maryland fan who hates Duke; I’m saying this as a fan of College Basketball – HOW IS DUKE #11?

The rest of this post is devoted to how STUPID this poll is and why Duke got this ranking for no reason whatsoever. Any decent team needs a few things, most importantly a GOOD point guard to run the offense. Duke does not have a good point guard. Greg Paulus is terrible! And don’t give me any of this “he was just a sophomore” crap. Maryland had 2 freshmen who both played point guard and could run circles around this clown. Paulus is not a good point guard. Period. His assists to turnover ratio went DOWN from his freshman year to his sophomore year, as did his assists per game! You only have a few people who are capable of scoring. Paulus can do that, but is extremely streaky (see Mike Jones). The only senior on the team is DeMarcus Nelson and he is also their best player. Jon Scheyer can score, between crying fits when Duke is doing bad.
Duke has only 2 proven players and has no business being even in the top 25. They went 8-8 in ACC play last year, were knocked out of the NCAA tourney in the first round, and have NO PROVEN PLAYERS!
THIS my friends is why Duke sucks. I don’t know how they get the pollsters to vote like this for them every year, but some how they do. I predict that Duke will finish, at BEST, 9-7 in the ACC this year. Mark my words…