Welcome to The Sports Bank’s second annual college basketball season preview series. Last year we looked at 99 teams in 99 days. This year, we are being slightly more aggressive and expanding to 111 teams in 111 days. We will rank the 74 power conference teams and top 37 mid-majors in reverse power ranking order. We’ll break down rosters, non-conference schedules, and pick a player to watch for each team.
Defense, size, and physicality; that has been the name of the game for the Florida State Seminoles the past few seasons and will once again be the case for the 2011-2012. The ‘Noles are not at the level of North Carolina or Duke, but are certainly a class above the rest in the ACC.
FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES
Last Season: 3rd, 11-5 in ACC, 23-11 overall
Predicted ACC Finish: 3rd
Projected Depth Chart
C: Bernard James (Sr)/Jon Kreft (Sr)/Kiel Turpin (Jr)
PF: Xavier Gibson (Sr)/Okaro White (So)/Terrence Shannon (Jr)/Antwan Space (PF)
SG: Deividas Dulkys (Sr)/Terry Whisnant (Fr)
SG: Michael Snaer (Jr)/Ian Miller (So)
PG: Jeff Peterson (Sr)/Luke Loucks (Sr)
Gone: SF-Chris Singleton, PG-Derwin Kitchen, PG-Pierre Jordan (transfer-Georgia Tech)
2011-2012 Outlook:
Even though they lose one of the top defenders in the country in Chris Singleton, the Florida State frontcourt still features a lot of size and intimidators inside. 26-year old and former member of the Air Force Bernard James made an impact in his first season with the ‘Noles due to his size and strength inside. James, seven-footer Jon Kreft, Xavier Gibson, and JUCO transfer Kiel Turpin give FSU four players 6-10 or taller.
Gibson could be an x-factor this season. He possesses the size, athleticism, and versatility to be a nightmare match-up for defenses, but has yet to pull it all together yet. Okaro White, Terrence Shannon, and freshman Antwan Space offer even more size and versatility up-front. The 6-8 Space is an intriguing prospect due to his ability to shoot it from deep and handle the ball like a guard while also using his size to be effective with his back to the basket.
Playing for his third college team, Jeff Peterson will replace Derwin Kitchen at point guard. Peterson played at Arkansas last season but becomes immediately eligible since he enrolled at FSU as a grad student. Luke Loucks will back up Peterson and brings experience to the floor having been a key reserve for the ‘Noles the past three seasons.
Michael Snaer and Deividas Dulkys will return to their starting spots on the wing. Both guys are high volume shooters who don’t necessarily shoot it at a high percentage though. Ian Miller will push both of those guys for minutes and might actually be the most talented of the three. Freshman Terry Whisnant is probably the odd man out of the rotation.
I would be surprised if Florida State was able to catch UNC or Duke in the race for first place in the ACC. I would also be surprised if any of the other nine conference teams finished with a better record than the ‘Noles. Their size inside and experience in the backcourt will be key factors in their success. As we learned last year when FSU suffered an overtime loss to VCU in the Sweet 16, if their defense is causing nightmares for their opponents, this team is capable of making a run come March.
Player to Watch: Michael Snaer
Every team needs a perimeter player who can go one-on-one in late game and shot clock situations. Snaer will have replace Kitchen by stepping into that role up his game and become the go-to scorer on the wing. With Miller nipping on his heels for playing time, expect Snaer to have somewhat of a breakout season.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/14 vs. UCF
11/24 vs. UMass (Battle 4 Atlantis)
11/25 vs. Harvard/Utah (Battle 4 Atlantis)
11/24 vs. UConn/UNC-Asheville/UCF/Charleston (Battle 4 Atlantis)
11/30 at Michigan State (ACC/Big Ten Challenge)
12/22 at Florida
12/30 vs. Princeton
1/4 vs. Auburn
OTHER 111 IN 111’S:
#34 Notre Dame Fighting Irish
#35 Harvard Crimson
#36 Illinois Fighting Illini
#37 Oregon Ducks
#38 Wichita State Shockers
#39 Cal Golden Bears
#40 Belmont Bruins
#41 Mississippi State Bulldogs
#42 Saint Mary’s Gaels
#43 Purdue Boilermakers
#44 BYU Cougars
#45 Kansas State Wildcats
#46 West Virginia Mountaineers
#47 Virginia Cavaliers
#48 George Mason Patriots
#49 Old Dominion Monarchs
#50 VCU Rams
#51 Kent State Golden Flashes
#52 Arkansas Razorbacks
#53 St. John’s Red Storm
#54 Northwestern Wildcats
#55 Georgetown Hoyas
#56 Miami Hurricanes
#57 Nevada Wolfpack
#58 Detroit Titans
#59 UCF Knights
#60 Long Beach State 49ers
#61 Virginia Tech Hokies
#62 Clemson Tigers
#63 New Mexico State Aggies
#64 Tennessee Volunteers
#65 Iona Gaels
#66 Murray State Racers
#67 N.C. State Wolfpack
#68 Fairfield Stags
#69 George Washingon Colonials
#70 Indiana State Sycamores
#71 Oklahoma State Cowboys
#72 Indiana Hoosiers
#73 UAB Blazers
#74 Iowa State Cyclones
#75 Creighton Bluejays
#76 USC Trojans
#77 Weber State Wildcats
#78 Maryland Terrapins
#79 Tulsa Golden Hurricane
#80 Minnesota Golden Gophers
#81 Western Michigan Broncos
#82 Dayton Flyers
#83 Stanford Cardinal
#84 Yale Bulldogs
#85 Georgia Bulldogs
#86 Rutgers Scarlet Knights
#87 Richmond Spiders
#88 Ball State Cardinals
#89 Utah State Aggies
#90 Arizona State Sun Devils
#91 Marshall Thundering Herd
#92 Oregon State Beavers
#93 Washington State Cougars
#94 Iowa Hawkeyes
#95 Ole Miss Rebels
#96 Nebraska Cornhuskers
#97 Oklahoma Sooners
#98 South Florida Bulls
#99 LSU Tigers
#100 Colorado Buffaloes
#101 DePaul Blue Demons
#102 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
#103 Wake Forest Demon Deacons
#104 Seton Hall Pirates
#105 Providence Friars
#106 Auburn Tigers
#107 South Carolina Gamecocks
#108 Texas Tech Red Raiders
#109 Penn State Nittany Lions
#110 Boston College Eagles
#111 Utah Utes
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft on the web.
You can follow him on Twitter at DavidKay_TSB.