Indiana Hoosiers coach Tom Crean

Preseason college basketball tournaments are on tap, but calling it the “preseason” just isn’t right. These non-conference games definitely count – the NCAA selection committee will be paying very close attention, as will handicappers.

The best of the tip-off tournaments feature top programs like North Carolina and Texas at the Maui Invitational, or Wisconsin and UConn at the Paradise Jam in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Maui will also be our first look at Tom Crean’s rebuild at Indiana; good thing he has a 10-year contract to do the job.

Teams also began announcing their 2008-09 regular-season schedules on Tuesday. The A-10 schedule gets underway on Jan. 7 with Charlotte at Duquesne and St. Bonaventure at Fordham. The Atlantic Coast Conference also released its slate on Tuesday; ACC teams will be on national television 151 times this year. Keep an eye on the official NCAA men’s basketball newswire for the full 2008-09 sked.

Ah, back to school. You can hear the sound of sneakers squeaking on gym floors across the nation, as another year of college basketball draws close. How are you preparing for the new betting season? Are you committed to making more money than last year?

Let’s start by refreshing your memory about the golden rule of NCAAB betting: go to the mid-major and low-major conferences. That’s where the top bread-winners are. Last year’s most profitable teams were the New Mexico Lobos (23-8-1 ATS) of the Mountain West Conference and the Drake Bulldogs (20-8-1 ATS) of the Missouri Valley Conference.

Your other handicapping mandate is to make use of advanced statistics. Basketball is second only to baseball in the development of metrics that bettors can use to make smarter choices. Look at the Wisconsin Badgers – ranked No. 5 in efficiency, but only No. 10 in the final polls. No wonder they were 19-14 ATS last year.

The Class of 2009 is already being snapped up by hungry college basketball programs. North Carolina has been particularly busy, getting verbal commitments from three of the Top 20 high-school players on the ESPN100 list. But the best of the best are still considering their options. Here are the Top 5:

Derrick Favors, PF, South Atlanta
Xavier Henry, SG, Putnam City (OK)
Kenny Boynton, SG, American Heritage (FL)
Lance Stephenson, SG, Lincoln (NY)
Dominic Cheek, SG, Saint Anthony’s (NJ)

UNC has its eye on both Favors and Cheek; however, Duke is also in the Favors Sweepstakes. He’s the kind of player that coaches drool over: 6-foot-9, 220 pounds, explosive, soft hands, solid defense. Like many of the leading recruits, he plays AAU ball, in this case for the Atlanta Celtics. Alumni include Dwight Howard and Josh Smith.

Favors will reportedly hold off on making a decision until the April 2009 signing period. The buzz has him leaning toward staying in-state.

In the grand scheme of things, ESPN’s Prestige Rankings for men’s college basketball are meaningless. Duke fans are not going to refer to them in an argument over why the Blue Devils are better than the North Carolina Tar Heels. But the rankings do tell handicappers something about which programs are consistent threats to win basketball games.

The aforementioned Blue Devils are No. 1 in these rankings, easily the most successful Tournament team since the 64/65 format made its debut in 1985. Nobody has more than Duke’s three wins, 10 Final Fours and 17 trips to the Sweet Sixteen. They must always be treated seriously – like a virus, Duke haters might say.

The Kansas Jayhawks are the reigning national champions, but they have to settle for No. 2 in the prestige rankings. North Carolina follows at No. 3. These three teams were a combined 63-42-2 against the spread last year. Prestige equals money.