Tonights BBALL

Long Beach State +13.5 V Pittsburgh
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I had heard a lil rumor about how long beach state was going to win the big west, and granted, we are not talking about an incredible conference, but certainly decent basketball. So I went and looked into who the fuck long beach state really is and I came up with this play.

Pitt is a good team, and as long as they keep winning like they did last year, top recruits are going to keep them in the top 20-40 of college basketball, but with that being said they have a lot to work on. Despite having fell asleep at the wheel against rider, there is much more to the story tonight. Pitt has 10 Underclassmen on their roster. They are a very very talented team, but also a team that has work to do on their rotation, their lineups, and their leadership.

Long Beach is a team that is lead by two very strong seniors Casper Ware and Larry Anderson and these two do not lack experience in any way. Ware is likely going to have to match up with gibbs, and although I would be foolish to think that Ware is on the same talent level as his counterpart, i think the bottom line is this is a much bigger game for Ware and his Senior laden squad, than it is for a big name BIG EAST team whose just trying to get it together before the conference season (aka the real season) begins.

Long beach will need to drive to the basket and get pitt into foul trouble, as they know that they are not as talented or as deep as Pitt, especially on offense. So they must utilize their veterans in this big game, and to be honest there must be many people in their program and around the country who think this LBSU team is worth its salt.
They play a VERY tough non conference schedule, and that is obviously their Athletic Director's way of pushing his school for a tournament bid.

They play San Diego State, Louisville, Kansas, North Carolina and Xavier - all before Christmas.

Somebody thinks this team is decent.

This will also be Pitt's 3rd game in 6 days, and they do not play great defense as it is, so I think winning by 14 might be a bit of a stretch as long as LBSU plays good hard nosed basketball and keeps the turnovers to a minimum.

FINALLY, LBSU starts a pretty decent sized lineup with a front court that boast 6'6 6'7 6'8 and decent weight on the PF and C positions. Pitt is an undersized team this season and their starting Center Malcolm Gilbert may have a tough time catching the ball tonight as he injured his finger last game. Gilbert seems to be the key factor in their possible championship run this year, we will see if his play is as sharp as it needs to be tonight against a solid west coast team.