Great Season of College Hoops Begins

One of the best things about last season's college basketball is that things might be even better this year.

In the 2008-09 season, San Diego State's men went to the NIT Final Four in Madison Square Garden, propelled by a victory over St. Mary's in one of the most exciting moments ever in SDSU athletics; the women won a Mountain West Conference co-championship and hosted the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament, defeating De Paul before the home fans in the first game of the Big Dance.

Still, there was room for improvement. The Aztecs men struggled out of the gate with injuries and Lorrenzo Wade's suspension, costing them games against Arizona and Arizona State that likely would have been Ws if at least Wade had been available (vs ASU) and in playing shape (vs UA). They were also passed over for the NCAA Tourney when several major conference also-rans won post-season tournaments, and the BCS takeover of college basketball became apparent. The women didn't win the league outright, fell short in the MWC Tournament, and the second round NCAA loss to Stanford showed just how far the program still had to travel to reach national prominence.

Things also could have been better because all the above writing is about SDSU, not the University of San Diego. The Toreros men were hampered by an Achilles tendon tear suffered by star G Brandon Johnson and, despite wins over Nevada, Oregon and Mississippi State, never built any consistency before finishing 16-16 and 6-8 in the West Coast Conference. The women were 19-13 and beat State, but no one else of note and were just 7-7 in the WCC.

Absolutely, there's room for improvement.

SDSU Men: It says a lot for the credibility coach Steve Fisher has built for his program that a team losing five important seniors should be better because recruiting has gone so well. The Aztecs might have a legitimate center in transfer Brian Carwell for the first time since Mike Mackell, have a freshman in Kawhi Leonard who might become one of the school's all-time greats, a proven scorer in Tyrone Shelley, an intimidating shot blocker and rebounder in Malcolm Thomas and a point guard of the future in Chase Tapley. Oh, those are just the new guys. Returning forwards Billy White and Tim Shelton are among the best in the Mountain West, and DJ Gay appears comfortable running the point. It might take some time to blend the mix together, but watch out when that happens. The key stretch is in December when they play Arizona, Arizona State and Drake, the latter two on the road. Fisher is now having trouble finding non-conference opponents, so those are the only chances for quality wins before MWC play begins.

SDSU Women: Coach Beth Burns and her Lady Aztecs aren't shy, that's for sure. In the first month alone they play Arizona, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and South Carolina. At least we'll know early whether they deserve to be ranked. G Jene Morris leads the team again, and look for Paris Johnson to blossom now that she has inside help from transfer Jessika Bradley. F Allison Duffy returns from last year's suspension and is joined by her younger, and maybe more talented, sister, Ashley. Another sister act, Quenese and Coco Davis, is also back. I'm not here to sell tickets, but seriously, go see this team, which might be the most nationally competitive Aztecs in any sport since the 1977 football squad or the 1973 national volleyball champions. The only question this year is just how high they will climb.

USD Men: A second surgery for Johnson during the summer means he probably won't be at full speed until the conference season, bad news with a tough non-conference schedule ahead. The Toreros open with Stanford Friday at the Jenny Craig Pavilion, and then go play Pacific in Stockton where they're very hard to beat, open against Oklahoma in the Great Alaska Shootout, host SDSU, New Mexico and Mississippi State and take on mid-major power Southern Illinois in Vegas. While Johnson returns, inside strength leaves with forwards Gyno Pomare and Rob Jones, though the latter transferred out and might be addition by subtraction. There are some young guys waiting in the wings, but I don't know if even the prediction of sixth place in the WCC holds water for coach Bill Grier's boys this season.

USD Women: Return pretty good players in PG Dominique Conners, F Sam Child and F Morgan Henderson, and add freshman Danesia Williamson, a three-time All-CIF guard from Mt. Miguel HS. The non-conference schedule shouldn't be bad. The biggest issue could be replacing dominant C Amber Sprague. If the starting lineup in the exhibition win over San Diego Christian is any indication, coach Cindy Fisher is going with a three-forward lineup that goes 6-1, 6-1, 6-0. They're projected for sixth place in the WCC. Look for Fisher's coaching to get them a notch or two higher.