This year I set expectations high. Looking at the team on paper, I said they had elite eight potential and they did. However, they have not even come close to living up to it. They started off the season with a loss to Temple and then two wins over a lowly Cornell team and a very good Alabama team. I was getting excited. Hazell was dominating and the other players were doing there thing. As Herb Pope's health continued to improve we would only get better. I wake up the next morning and go to southorangejuice.com and see that Hazell broke his wrist. AT first I thought it was wrong. He did not show any signs of pain during the Bama game and this must be a mistake. It wasn't. He indeed break his wrist and would miss every game until the Depaul game. Over that stretch we were bad. Downright awful. We consistently put forth embarassing offensive efforts that my High School team could have done better. We lost to Clemson, Xaiver, Richmond, Dayton, Arkansas, Louisville, Cincinatti, and Syarcuse over the course of the time. Our best win once Hazell got hurt: measly South Florida. We were bad but with Hazell coming back I thought we still had hope. Yet again I was wrong. Hazell was awesome in his opening game vs. Depaul. He was downright awful vs. Pittsburgh. He put forth decent efforts vs. Georgetown and Rutgers but both of those games ended with disappointing losses. We blew a big opportunity vs. Georgetown and we crapped the bed vs. Rutgers. We went to the Carrier Dome in what was bound to be a loss that would drop us to 2-7 in the Big East. But Hazell led us to a stunning 22 point victory over Syracuse. WE then came home and beat Providence. We were back. We were 4-6 in the conference and had 2 very winnable games coming up against WVU and UCONN. It was not to be. We were embarrassed by WVU and blew a 14 point 2nd half lead vs. Uconn. I was devastated and heart broken. It was now clear that perhaps the most talented SHU team in recent memory would not make the NCAA tournament. Heck, they might not even make the NIT.  But I still watched and prayed. WE beat Rutgers at the RAC and I thought we had a great chance vs. Nova. And we did. But again we blew it. The players played with great effort and intensity but they could not pull it out. Now we have just 4 games left. We probably have to go 4-0 to even be considered for the NIT.

But now I have learned my lesson. When you are an SHU fan you MUST set your expectations and hopes low every September so you can be pleasantly surprised if they make the post-season. Here is what I expect and hope for next year:

What I hope for:

Herb Pope to play out of his mind and lead us to a great season

Jordan Theodore to become the PG we all thought he could be.

The freshman and sohpomores to continue to develop and get better.

Fuquan to become a very good scorer and remind us SHU fans of Brian Laing.

A couple of the unknown freshman to be very, very good.

Make the NCAA tournament.

What I expect:

Herb Pope to be very good and solidify himself as a 1st round draft pick.

Jordan Theodore to become a very good but not great PG and maybe be a 2nd round draft pick.

Fuquan Edwin to become a 15 to 17ppg scorer.

One of the freshman to average around 10 points per game but overall they will be average

Patrik Auda to become a good SF/PF.

The team to compete hard and be decent

The team will finish around .500 and be in the running for an NIT berth.

Thanks for reading. What are your guys expectations and hopes for next year?