This week, FanHouse is taking a look at the top teams heading into 2008 with a BlogPoll decided on by our college hoops bloggers. To help with the team capsules, we've brought in some of the top fan bloggers around the internets to give us insights on their teams.Today, we have enlisted me, The Sportz Assassin, of FanHouse and SportzAssassin.com, to break down the Davidson Wildcats.
We all remember last season. Davidson began the season taking on top programs like North Carolina, UCLA and Duke, rolling through the Southern Conference schedule and then getting to the Elite Eight. Along the way, the Wildcats popped Gonzaga, Georgetown and Wisconsin and nearly beat eventual champion Kansas.
Stephen Curry became a superstar. Head coach Bob McKillop was finally getting his national recognition. The little school just outside of Charlotte is now big time.Everything begins and ends with Curry. What was most impressive about Curry is the fact that he was able to find his shots (and hit them) despite the opponent focusing on shutting him down. The coaches he faced in the NCAA Tournament were only Mark Few, John Thompson III, Bo Ryan and Bill Self. His quick, sweet shot is one of the most beautiful things in sports.
However, Curry will be asked to do more this season. Point guard Jason Richards led the nation in assists last year and now he's gone. Curry is attempting to move over into more of a lead guard role and what this will entail is still up in the air. The thinking is that Curry will just set up the offense and then go back to what he normally does. Still, there are certain responsibilities that point guards have defensively that could affect Curry's offense.
Coming back to Davidson are long-range marksmen Bryant Barr and William Archambault; one of which will enter the starting lineup and extending defenses even more. Down low are Thomas Sander and Andrew Lovedale who are workhorses around the basket and setting screens for Curry.
Davidson is approaching the 2008-09 season in the same manner as last season. The Wildcats will take trips to Duke, Purdue, West Virginia and host NC State.
Why they should be ranked here: Davidson nearly did what no one else could: beat Kansas in the Tournament. Yeah Curry did his thing but don't sleep on how well they defend. The Wildcats are one of the better defensive teams in the country and are able to keep the "better" teams from getting too far away from them.
Why they should be ranked higher: Davidson's postseason run last year was not a fluke. This is a very well-coached team who has a nearly unguardable star who can cover up most of their deficiencies. If Curry takes to his expanded role fairly well, the Wildcats could have another long stay in the NCAA Tournament.
Why they should be ranked lower: Losing Richards hurts and the strain on Curry as a point guard could hurt the team's offensive production and wear him out late in games. Curry dabbled at point guard in high-school and was a turnover factory. This is a SoCon team and if they somehow get upset in the conference tournament, it would be tough to give them an at-large bid. That is, unless, they can pull out a few big wins against those big names they will play in the non-conference schedule.
