Andy's September 09 Digital College Basketball Blast

Hoops fans, it's that time -- time for me to give a rundown of the month that was in the world of college basketball...

College Hoops season is getting close! ESPN announced they will kick off the season with 24 hours of basketball on November 18. Among the highlights are Memphis vs. Kansas and Gonzaga vs. Michigan State. Link here.

One day before that, November 17 is the launch of EA Sports’ NCAA Basketball 10. (OK, am I going to get anything done for two days?) The game’s team ratings are powered by Blue Ribbon Yearbook, and here’s their top 25 squads. Link here, list of squads below (and sick picture above).

1. Kansas
2. Michigan State
3. Texas
4. Villanova
5. North Carolina
6. Purdue
7. Kentucky
8. California
9. Duke
10. Tennessee
11. Butler
12. West Virginia
13. Georgia Tech
14. Minnesota
15. Syracuse
16. Ohio State
17. Oklahoma
18. Connecticut
19. Dayton
20. Maryland
21. Oklahoma State
22. Michigan
23. Washington
24. Georgetown
25. Siena and Illinois (Tie)

Yahoo Sports launched a countdown for the Most Interesting Team in the World of College Basketball. As they put it, “Talent and possible success are factors, but neither shall trump amusement in our complicated and arbitrary calculus. Make sense? Get it? Good. Now don't send me complaints asking why your team isn't ranked. Because your team is obviously boring.”

Killer. Link is here.

If you need any reason to follow this, check no further than this breakdown of the #64 squad: New Jersey Institute of Technology Highlanders. The rundown:

• 2008-09 Record: 1-30
• 2009-10's Toughest Games: Manhattan, Seton Hall, Vermont, Rutgers
• Primary Attraction: Indomitable spirit in the face of failure

Did I tell you I love this? Link here.

Curious about the Top 50 Non-Conference Matchups of the Year? Click on this link.

FanHouse is previewing the NCAA season by heading out and interviewing players. Here’s a feature on UCLA hoops, link here (or see below).

The Horizon League launched a ridiculously good website. I reviewed it here. The site will both serve as a place to launch hundreds of live and on-demand videos plus creates a way for fans to interact via blogs, Twitter, and message boards. Oh, and share photos with each other from each championship via Flickr. Or, as they put it, . "This site will change the way Horizon League fans watch and interact with HLN's video content. With a simple click, visitors will be chatting with their friends on Facebook or posting to their Twitter account. Obviously the video content will still be the focal point of the site, but visitors will never have to leave the site to access their favorite social media platforms." I guess you could say this site’s worth a click, link here

There have been some interesting things out there in the college side of Twitter. Is Twitter changing college uniforms? North Carolina State posted potential new jerseys on their athletic department’s Twitter site, then changed course of the uniforms when fan reactions were overwhelmingly negative. Click here.

Who should you follow on Twitter? Portland U coach Eric Reveno is one of the best coaches on Twitter – check out his Twit Pic of the team in the weight room (link here). It’s simple but imagine the impact that has on potential recruits. The more that happens, the more power it has... they're working out now, are you? I love it.

If you want to follow him, click here.

I hope you enjoyed this...

AP