College basketball is here, and that can only mean one thing: its time for the newest NCAA installment from 2K Games. Grab your rhythm stomping boots and your favorite jersey from the closet, because College Hoops 2K7 is as much for the die-hard b-ballers as it is the casual gamer.

Having come out mere months after its 2K6 predecessor, Hoops tries to take full advantage over making the move to a next gen system. Graphically speaking, not much has changed since last year’s model. Facial expressions still need some work on the cutscenes, and lighter colored jerseys look shinier than a disco ball. Other than the weak lighting and lack of eyebrow motion, the game still looks pretty sharp.

If you close your eyes while playing, you’ll probably lose - very badly. After you get past that fact, you’ll notice that the audience sound effects are remarkable. With the ability to add your own chants and heckles with the all new Create-A-Chant, the audience comes alive with a slew of things to yell at your team. Play well and they’ll love you, sitting on the edge of your every shot. Play poorly and they’ll tear you an audible new one. And, as before, Vern Lundquist and Bill Raftery are at your side calling the play-by-play.

College Hoops 2K7 plays out with very few changes from 2K6. It features a number of gameplay modes including Quick Play, Tournaments, and Legacy Mode, where you’ll build up your team and mold them into a name that strikes fear into the heart of your rival.

As I said before, 2K7 is just as much fun for the floor seat ticket holder as it is the casual gamer who has never played a basketball game in their life. By default, the computer handles your in-game coach work, but, if you really want the true NCAA coach feel, you can work every detail of the game, right down to which player you want to double team. For the John Brady in you, the game sports a Coach mode, in which every detail of offense and defense command is at your fingertips, even putting you in the heat on the floor with the coach’s point of view.

The beauty of this game is its vast number of features. You can make highlight clips from your matches using the in-game film editor. Should you find yourself with a few hours of free time, you can even build your own heckles with the all new Create-A-Chant (sadly, 2K took out all the words you really want the audience to yell at your opponents). If you venture into your campus store, you’ll even find air hockey and darts mini-games.

As always, you can bring a friend and take them on in a multiplayer match, or you can hook up to XBOX Live and pit your handcrafted team against the best in online tournaments.

In College Hoops 2K7’s Quick Game mode, you’re only as good as the team you’re playing. Before match-ups, you can look at a team’s stats so you won’t be mismatched, giving you a balanced (or, should you choose, unbalanced) game.

Defenders are better than before at keeping you from the rim. No longer will a flick of the stick put you around your opponent. You’ll now have to rely on precision ball handling to score. After you get the ball to your side of the court, there’s almost always someone in your face. Of course, the ball can always be put in your court with the ability to manipulate A.I. settings and penalty frequencies.

In Legacy mode and on XBOX live, difficulty solely depends on which team you’re matched against. Its never a good idea to put a fresh-faced team with no floor time against some guy who’s spent weeks raising his stats.

As previously stated, College Hoops 2K7 is totally customizable to fit your style of gameplay. The sheer number of option menus alone is enough to make any control freak drool uncontrollably. Between plays and during timeouts, you can perform substitutions, customize player on player match-ups and double teams, and pressure settings.

2K7 also gives you total control over the ball and your player with the right analog stick. While on defense, you can use it to dive in front of a pass or second guess your opponent’s next move. On offense, the direction you press the stick chooses what type of shot, while the duration of you holding it down gives you precise aiming control.

To move the ball past defenders, you’ll have to use the large number of ball handling combos, of which there are many. The only problem is, by the time you’ve recalled which combo gives you a shutter cross, the ball’s already been snatched from your hands. Also, many of the combos depend on which hand the ball is in, and the split seconds it takes to determine that can be the difference between a win and a loss.

College Hoops 2K7 is definitely a step up from past b-ball games, fixing a lot of the old problems without creating many new ones. Because the game is so customizable, everybody from the newb to the sport fanatic can pick this one up and be evenly matched. If you’re a fan of the court, this one’s a must have.