Do you want to know an even better way to predict how the team will fare?

Go over to The Pit and observe what all the sheep predict. They're always wrong. There's one dude there who actually understands anything about basketball, and though he has been doom and gloom, too, at least he knows what he's talking about and has a substantive critique.

Perhaps the biggest positive from this game was how Koehler took over. He's the most talented player on the team and he needs to see himself that way and become the leader. This should help his confidence. He plays with an edge, which I always like. Like I said before the season, if he becomes a 14/8 guy this year, he will be drafted, so unless he just loves college, I would advise him to enter and stay in the NBA Draft. A no-brainer, really. His stock would probably never be higher.

I'm a little worried about what's going on with Duncomb. He only played 20 minutes. He left the Dayton game after playing only four minutes, and I read that he has some sort of injury.

Most won't like to hear this, but Braeden Shrewsberry needs to shoot at least eight threes per game. Until someone else steps up, he is the best distance shooter on the team, and he provides no other real value. Yes, Ive seen him occasionally turn in a strong defensive effort, but it isn't consistent. He'll have fewer contested threes this year because Smith will look for and find him in rhythm more than backcourt mates did in the past, plus Duncomb and Ahneman are both good passers. I saw that from film of Duncomb at Winthrop and Ahneman in high school.