The improvement of Cashmere Wright each season of his career has been striking, and for those looking to jump ship after one season, it speaks to the benefits of a full college career. Wright’s play has been impressive. But, look, I think “impulse buying” is dangerous. And I am not going to put Wright as a first-team Big East player over Peyton Siva after Wright scores 28 points against Campbell – yes, Campbell – and both teams have played exactly zero Big East games. Louisville will have to be dealt with this season and as will Siva. I really like both as players; I just don’t feel it’s time to bail on Siva.

The ACC performed better than I expected, that’s for sure. Let’s be honest, I would have bet my steak dinner last night – nearly did, really — that Michigan State would have beaten Miami. But I remember what Frank Haith told me before this season: This was the year he thought the Hurricanes could do the most damage. And I would not be surprised to see a shakeup of what we all thought about the ACC standings before the season. Maryland may be quite good. And I admit it, NC State – gulp – may not be quite as good as thought. After beating Ohio State – which reached the Final Four last season, just in case any so-called experts forgot that — Duke can take a month off and have the nation’s best resume. All that said, the Big Ten remains the nation’s best conference in my mind.

I’ve said it for a while now, I expect to see Ohio make another run this season. You’ve got the core of the team back from the squad I saw make the Sweet 16 run last season. And to be honest, the number that I watch most closely – in addition to South Dakota State’s Nate Wolters’ daily statistical totals – is the shooting percentage of one D.J. Cooper. Cooper can be a high volume shooter. In another words, he is apt to keep jacking shots up regardless of the … [For more on Mailbag: Big Ten-ACC Challenge, MWC, UCLA's stumbles, click here.]