Tim O'Shea is realistic.

While he certainly won't complain about the accolades being thrown at his 2002 Ohio Bobcat hoop squad, he knows all the preseason kudos in the world won't help Ohio advance to the NCAA tournament this March.

However, Ohio's head coach does see an opportunity for this year's team, loaded with seniors, to go out on top after several disappointing finishes, including last season's 17-11 mark. He would like nothing better than to send seniors Brandon Hunter, Steve Esterkamp and Sonny Johnson out with a MAC title, but knows there is still a lot of work to be done. He has challenged his upperclassmen.

"They've never been to postseason play. They've never even been to the finals of the MAC tournament," said O'Shea. "We have a lot to prove. Preseason hype is just that. It's meaningless."

With the addition of Marin Bota and Delvar Barrett to the front line, O'Shea said this year's team is bigger, but it will pose challenges defensively. The Bobcats have been working hard on getting back quickly on defense in transition.

"When you have a big team, you tend to bet back a little slower on defense," said the second-year coach.

He said he expects the Bobcats to score a lot of points on the offensive end of the court.