NCAA Rewind

College basketball has begun, and it started with some good games throughout the opening weekend, but particularly on Friday evening. Let’s recap the start of the season, while previewing the week to come:

This Week’s Winners

Baylor – I watched a lot of Baylor’s game against Colorado, and I came away very impressed. They controlled the game the entire way against a good and experienced Colorado team. Cory Jefferson is a beast, and while I doubted the Bears guard play before the season, Kenny Chery eased those doubts.

Oregon Ducks – Even without two of their key players (Artis and Carter), the Ducks went to South Korea and defeated a veteran Georgetown squad. This was a great win regardless, but particularly good without their suspended players.

Armed Forces Classic – I think for the second year in a row, the Armed Forces game was a big winner. Not only were we able to honor our military leading into Veteran’s Day, but for the second year in a row we saw a great basketball game between two solid teams.

Providence and Oklahoma – You never know how things will be come March, but Providence and Oklahoma pulled out nice under the radar wins on Friday night that could help them if they end up on the bubble. Oklahoma held off Alabama, and Providence did the same with Boston College (in OT). All four of these teams could end up being “bubble teams”, so these wins were key.

This Week’s Losers

Maryland – Maryland didn’t play a bad game and was without a likely starter in Seth Allan, but they had multiple chances to win against Connecticut down the stretch. In fact, UCONN did everything they could to lose, and Maryland still couldn’t take advantage. Dez Wells had multiple shots to win the game, yet failed on both attempts. These types of losses kept them from the tourney last year, and this is another failed attempt at a key win.

Florida Gulf Coast – The Cinderella story from last year had a chance to make a statement taking on Nebraska, a team that isn’t that good but it’s at least a team from the Big Ten. Well, they didn’t take advantage losing by a whopping 24 points. Beloved Brett Comer had 3 points and 3 assists. Ouch.

USC – Andy Enfield’s new team has made a lot of offseason noise to give the program hope. But they opened the year losing to Utah State by 13. Not what Andy likely envisioned.

Miami (FL) – What a difference a season makes. Last year, Miami dominated the ACC and was one of the best teams in the country. Now, they are rebuilding and opened the year losing to St. Francis at home.

My Impressive Starting Five

Richard Carter (Guard, Drake) – In a season opening 2-point win at Illinois-Chicago, Carter put up 38 points, which was the most of any player in the country. 14 other players went over 30, but no one else scored more than 36 outside of Carter.

Jerian Grant (Guard, Notre Dame) – Notre Dame started 2-0, but Grant stole the show and is putting up nearly 21 points, 6 assists, 2 boards, and 2 steals per game.

D.J. Balentine (Guard, Evansville) – This kid is from Kokomo, IN (where I live) so I had to include him on this list one time. In his team’s opening win, he scored 29 points and dished out 9 assists.

Julius Randle (Forward, Kentucky) – Andrew Wiggins gets all the headlines, but this kid may be the best freshman and player in the nation. He led Kentucky to a 2-0 record to start the year, and did so averaging 22.5 points and 14.5 rebounds in his first two games of his career.

Sam Dower (Center, Gonzaga) – People worried about Gonzaga inside because of who they lost. But worry no more as Dower had 21 points and 17 rebounds in the first game of the year.

What to Watch this Week

Kentucky vs. Michigan State – I couldn’t start this section any other way. #1 vs. #2 (in many polls). Inexperience vs. experience. Coach Cal vs. Coach Izzo. What’s not to like? Tune in Tuesday night.

Kansas vs. Duke – This is the “other” game in the Champions Classic on Tuesday, and it is just as good. These are two storied programs, with storied coaches, and each features a top rated freshman: Andrew Wiggins vs. Jabari Parker.

Florida at Wisconsin – This is another great game on Tuesday with plenty of March impact. Florida will be without a few key players, but this still is a game with a lot of talent and experience on the floor.

VCU at Virginia – Yet another Tuesday battle of two ranked teams. This one is a major clash in styles, as VCU is havic all the time while Virginia is slow and methodical. Should be fun.

Ohio State at Marquette – On Saturday, two more ranked teams battle, both being from the Midwest. Both sides lost key players from last season, but both believe they are just as good if not better than a year ago. We’ll find out this week.

Michigan at Iowa State – Michigan is trying to prove they are as good a team as last season. Iowa State is searching for a non-conference major win that they lacked a year ago. Both teams are keying on this early season tilt on Sunday.

Enjoy this week in college basketball!

By: The Sports Guys