-For John Stalica’s Under the Radar Game of the Day – CLICK HERE
-It was a very slow night of college basketball. Most people’s attention seemed to be elsewhere for whatever reason. People were just glued to the news. I guess they were tensely and anxiously waiting for the scores of last nights games to be announced??
-Washington did get a big of a scare from a UC Davis team that may be a little better than most of us expected, but held on to win 79-73. Arizona State had to sweat out Idaho State in their 55-48 win, which means all signs are pointing to Arizona State being every bit as bad as we were expecting them to be this season.
-VERMONT AT AUBURN. Vermont started the season with a win at UAB, which so far is probably the best true road win that any team has managed. We thought the Catamounts would be dominant in the America East, but a road win at UAB is a win that looks really good on a resume. If they were to win at Auburn, who I think is even better than their #11 preseason ranking, would be AMAZINGLY good and probably warrant Vermont cracking the top 25. That being said, Vermont is probably swinging way over their heads tonight, but it’s still a really interesting game and a good opportunity for both teams.
BUY GAMES (and other games worth a mention):
-Wagner @ Rutgers – season opener for both. Rutgers looks really good this year -Sacred Heart @ UConn -Mount Olive (nonD1) @ Richmond -Stonehill @ Notre Dame -Columbia @ Villanova – both teams 1-0 -Lehigh @ Georgetown -Campbell @ Virginia -West Georgia @ Georgia Tech -Lipscomb @ Arkansas – Lipscomb will likely do very well in the ASun, but is probably overmatched tonight -SIUE @ Indiana -Oral Roberts @ Minnesota -UL Monroe @ LSU -UTRGV @ Creighton -Western Illinois @ Pepperdine – Western Illinois won their opener on the road at San Jose State -Oakland @ Boise State -Alcorn State @ Utah State -UC San Diego @ San Diego State
Seattle (0-0) at Eastern Washington (0-1) – 9:00 PM ET (ESPN+)
Tonight’s UTR Game of the Day goes to Cheney, Washington for an intrastate matchup between the Seattle Redhawks and the Eastern Washington Eagles. Eastern Washington had a lead midway through the 2nd half in their opening game at Colorado, but a 23-5 run helped turn a close game into a 76-56 rout. Nic McClain led the Eagles with 16 points in the loss.
Seattle comes into this season after winning the CBI Invitational in Daytona Beach last year. Seven players return from that team, including 1st-team All-WAC Preseason pick John Christofilis. As a team, Seattle was picked to finish 3rd in the WAC (where Grand Canyon was picked to win the league this year).
EDITOR’S NOTE: I was also going to highlight this as the season opener for Chad’s mythical Top Range league, but he neglected to add Washington and Seattle to the mix.Click HERE for all of Chad’s mythical matchups.
-At one point last evening we estimated that there were 142 D1 games all going on at the same time. I’m pretty sure that is a record.
-Most highly ranked teams played at home yesterday and blew out their opponents. Having said that…
Gonzaga was one of those highly ranked teams that played at home (or at least in their home city) and blew out their opponent. But the team they blew out was Baylor, who was also a highly ranked team. I’m not too surprised that the Zags won. We did believe them to be the better team and they were in a home-ish environment. But the fact that they just blew Baylor into the sun 101-63 is beyond surprising. It was easily the most impressive showing of any team yesterday.
-Texas A&M, a team who we were highly praising during the preseason, went on the road to UCF and fell 64-61. It was a road game, but we believed TAMU to be a top 15ish team and that UCF was…well…not. Now it’s time to start paying a little bit of attention to UCF. They may be able to make some noise in the Big 12, or at the very least be good enough to play with some of those teams when they’re at home.
-Ohio State got a really nice 80-72 win against what we think is a really good Texas team out in Las Vegas. We weren’t expecting too much out of the Buckeyes, but now that they’ve started off with a win against a ranked team on a neutral floor, they certainly have our attention.
-Saint Louis was a team we were very big on coming into the season and thought they would be a team that would end up inside the bubble. They still could, but they weren’t able to beat Santa Clara in the Field of 68 Showcase yesterday. The Broncos picked up a very impressive 85-78 win that not many of us were expecting, and now they are a team that has our attention right out of the gate.
-James Madison, who had an outstanding season last year, started things off yesterday with an 88-78 win over an Ohio U team that we (or, at least ME) was expecting to be very good. It wasn’t as big as last year’s season opening win at Michigan State, but it was impressive how JMU was pretty much in control the entire time.
-Vermont got a HUGE 67-62 win at UAB in what may end up being one of the more important results of the day. UAB is a team that we felt was really strong coming into the season, but were concerned about the overall strenght of their schedule and whether it was good enough to get them inside the bubble. Vermont was an Under the Radar team that we were super big on, and now that they’ve gone out on the road and gotten what was perhaps the most impressive true road win any team managed yesterday, we’re now even higher on the Catamounts.
-McNeese State, another Under the Radar team that we were really big on and thought could make a push to land inside the bubble, did not get off to the start they needed to yesterday. They fell 80-73 to South Dakota State in the Field of 68 Showcase, and even though it was just the first game of the season it is still a rather big blow because their margin for error is so small.
-Seeveral Big East teams really struggled last night. Butler, Providence, and Xavier all won, but all had to sweat a lot more than expected against teams that we were expecting them to blow out. Butler edged out Missouri State 72-65, Providence barely got by Central Connecticut 59-55, and Xavier had to come from behind in the second half to beat Texas Southenr 79-68. Seton Hall also barely edged out Saint Peter’s 57-53, and DePaul’s game against Southern Indiana came down to the last possession, but the Blue Demons held on to win 80-78. I suppose that last one wasn’t too surprising. No one is really expecting DePaul to be any good this year.
-Princeton got a huge scare from Iona, but barely held on to win 81-80. Princeton was a team that I had pegged as a likely top 40 team. They still could be. It was just one game. But, they didn’t look like a top 40 team yesterday.
-Wichita State went on the road and got a nice win against what should at least be a talented Western Kentucky team. Wichita State has been somewhat absent from the spotlight in recent years, but this was a nice start to the season for them yesterday.
-Lastly, I want to give a shout out to Chicago State. They didn’t win against Loyola Chicago, but they competed at an impressively high level against a team that’s expected to do very well in the Atlantic 10 in their 79-72 loss. Them, along with Central Connecticut, played in a way that shows they are likely good enough to make quite a bit of noise in the NEC. We were debating resurrecting the Team of the People this year and elevating Chicago State to that highly esteemed status.
Evansville (0-0) at North Texas (0-0) – 8:00 PM ET (ESPN+)
Tonight’s UTR Game of the Day goes to Denton, Texas for the season opener between the Evansville Purple Aces and the North Texas Mean Green. UNT was picked to finish seventh in the American this upcoming year, although they have typically been one of the stingiest defensive teams in the country in recent years. The Mean Green have only allowed 57.2 points a game at home going back to 2020.
Evansville had an 11-game improvement from a 6-win campaign in 2022-23 to 17 wins in 2023-24, including a quarterfinal appearance in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament last season. Tanner Cuff played in all 35 games for the Purple Aces last year averaging 7.4 points a game and 4.2 rebounds a game, but he figures to play an even more prominent role this upcoming season.
Charleston (0-0) vs. Southern Illinois (0-0) – 12:00 PM ET (YouTube)
While there is one game that starts at 11:00 AM between IU-Indianapolis and non-D1 IU-Columbus, the season begins in earnest at noontime in Sioux Falls, South Dakota at the historic Sanford Pentagon. The College of Charleston begins the season with a new coach in Chris Mack; his one-time assistant Pat Kelsey took over at Louisville during the offseason. Two notable players stayed behind – CAA Preseason Player of the Year Ante Brzovic and CAA 2nd Teamer CJ Fulton.
There is also a change in the coaching ranks for Southern Illinois – Scott Nagy left behind a perennial Horizon League contender in Wright State to take over as head coach of the Salukis. Kennard Davis is one of three players returning from last year’s team; he was a third team-preseason MVC pick. Ali Dibba was another third team-MVC pick; he played last year for Abilene Christian.
-HAPPY COLLEGE BASKETBALL SEASON EVERYBODY!!!! There are 199 games today! That makes today the busiest day of the whole season! Quite honestly, well over 170 of them will likely be complete crap. The tendency for most schools is to ease into their season, and to sort of eat their desserts first before getting to the real meat and potatoes of their schedule. The result is a lot of crap games to kick things off, which I do not feel is the best thing for the sport when the opening night consists of 170+ crap games. But, there are a few decent games, including a top-ten matchup!
-It is important to remember that every team is starting off at zero. Even some of the preseason metrics that have a preseason rating will phase out any preseason data and by the 10th game or so will only be using data from this season. It is a 355-way tie for 1st place right now!! All the analysis below is nothing more than my own personal supposition, so take that for what it is worth: not even I think it is worth all that much.
-It is also important to remember that the committee evaluates every game on every night of the season pretty much the same. A tier-1 win on opening night impacts the metrics and shows up on the team sheet just the same as a tier-1 win in late February. So, these early games all matter and they all count. I think the biggest reason Virginia was selected for the NCAA Tournament last year is because they managed an out of conference win away from home against a team that was inside the bubble (Florida) and no one else on the bubble really did. That win came on just the fourth day of the season. James Madison’s big win against Michigan State came on the very first night of the season. So, these early games (and this year they are EXCEPTIONALLY early) still mean just as much as the games that are played at any point in the year. They all count the same in the metrics and they all appear the same on the Team Sheets
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-IU COLUMBUS (nonD1) AT IU INDY. The only reason we highlight this game is because it is the first official tip off of the season that involves a D1 team.
-CHARLESTON VS SOUTHERN ILLINOIS (Field of 68 Showcase – Sioux Falls SD). This is a very liberal use of the word “Showcase”…but it is a somewhat interesting match-up. Chris Mack takes over at Charleston and has a chance to get what may at least be a somewhat notable win away from home to start things off.
-SAINT LOUIS VS SANTA CLARA (Field of 68 Showcase – Sioux Falls SD). I really like this Saint Louis team, and if you liked Indiana State a year ago you should like them too. Santa Clara is actually expected to make some noise in the WCC this year, so this is a really good early-season test for them as well. On a day where most of the games are complete crap, this looks like it may actually be a good one!
-MCNEESE VS SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (Field of 68 Showcase – Sioux Falls SD). McNeese is probably a legit top-40-caliber team. The problem is they just do not get that many opportunities for the kinds of big wins that would impress the committee, so their margin for error when it comes to landing inside the bubble is razor-thin. South Dakota State appears to be down this year, but playing them at the Pentagon is still tougher than playing a home buy game like many other top-40ish teams are doing today.
-MIAMI OH AT APPALACHIAN STATE. I highlight this not so much because I expect either team to be anywhere near the bubble at the end of the season, but because I think it might actually be a halfway-decent game. This is also one of a dozen games being played today in the first of two rounds of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge (Round 2 coming in January).
-TEXAS A&M AT UCF. We are really big on this TAMU team this year and think they can end up as a protected seed. They are the road team, and they are playing a UCF team that does at least have a bit of a pulse, so you cannot call this an automatic win for the Aggies, but it still one that you would expect them to win. Starting off the season with a true road win is better than starting off with a blah home-buy-game win.
-TOLEDO AT TROY. Another interesting game on a night where there simply are not very many. I do not think either team will wind up inside the bubble, but both should do very well in their conferences: I think Troy is a darkhorse in the Sun Belt this year. This game is also part of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge.
-OHIO U AT JAMES MADISON. If you ask me to guess whether or not Ohio U will end the season inside the bubble, my guess would be that they will not. Having said that, I do at least think their chances of doing it are far greater than zero, and this would actually be a really nice road win on their resume. James Madison has undergone a substantial roster overhaul, but they are still good and are still likely to win most of their games at home, so if Ohio U can beat them on their floor the committee will notice that. This game is also part of the MAC-Sun Belt Challenge.
-INDIANA STATE AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC. Both teams are coming off very strong runs in recent years, especially FAU, but both teams have also been completely gutted and are now tasked with rebuilding almost from scratch.
-VERMONT AT UAB. Vermont is the likely America East frontrunner and while this is a very difficult road game, it is not beyond their capabilities to win it. UAB is a team that we think is a top-40 caliber team, but one of their issues appears to be their schedule. They just do not play anybody, which basically means any game they lose will look very damaging. Will they look like a top-40 team on paper come March given what their schedule is?
-WICHITA STATE AT WESTERN KENTUCKY. Wichita State is looking to make a huge improvement this season, and they are starting out on the road against a WKU team that is very talented. This is a really good opener and a good opportunity for both teams.
-QUINNIPIAC AT YALE. An odd game to highlight, but it is a fun in-state match-up between two teams that are expected to do well in their conferences, so…why not?
-MISSOURI AT MEMPHIS. Expectations are not all that high for Mizzou this year. Memphis is talented, but the question for them is can they play up to their potential? They should be able to win this one at home tonight.
-LIPSCOMB AT DUQUESNE. This is a road game that Lipscomb may be able to win. Duquesne had a fantastic run last year, but is faced with a complete rebuild and will be challenged right out of the gate tonight against a Lipscomb team that is expected to finish atop the ASun.
-SOUTH FLORIDA VS FLORIDA (Jacksonville FL). South Florida had a very special season last year, and are beginning this year with heavy hearts as they will take the floor after the sudden passing of Amir Abdur-Rahim. The Gators look like they can be a solid NCAA Tournament-caliber team and should be able to start things off with a win in this one.
-TEXAS VS OHIO STATE (Hall of Fame Series – Las Vegas NV). Expectations are really high for Texas this year and they start things off with a bit of a test against an Ohio State team that is picked to finish around the middle of the Big Ten and could end up making a push for the bubble. While expectations are not as high for the Buckeyes, winning this game will certainly put a big spotlight on them right out of the gate, so it is a good opportunity for both teams.
-TOWSON AT SAINT MARY’S. This is a buy game, and the final result will likely resemble it, but Towson is at least projected to be a conference frontrunner in the CAA, so they likely will not be complete pushover and may be able to play with the Gaels and make it somewhat interesting.
-CHATTANOOGA AT USC. Another buy game, but USC will want to be on upset alert. Chattanooga is one of the stronger teams in the SoCon, and while USC should win this one, they will not if they just completely overlook them.
-BAYLOR AT GONZAGA. A huge game to finish off the night!! After a long day of mostly one-sided affairs, we get a solid match-up between two top-ten teams to close things out!! I think Baylor is a likely protected seed, but Gonzaga is a potential #1 seed/Final Four caliber team, and given that they are playing at home the Zags should win this. But, it is still a great opportunity to get a massive win that will most likely mean a lot come March when the committee evaluates both these teams, and it is a great early season showcase for the fans! Teams have more to gain and less to lose by opening in a game like this instead of opening against a team they got off the pastry cart. For a list of all those games, check out what’s below..
NOTABLE BUY GAMES (or games that might as well be):
-Denver @ Stanford -Valparaiso vs Liberty – I am not that big on the Flames this year, but some at Hoops HD liked them -TAMUCC @ Purdue – TAMUCC should do well in the Southland, but they are overmatched today -Fordham @ Saint John’s -Missouri State @ Butler -Maine @ Duke -Gardner Webb @ Tennessee -Arkansas Pine Bluff @ Cincinnati -Wright State @ Kentucky – Mark Pope’s first regular season game as Kentucky’s coach -Monmouth @ Michigan State -SC Upstate @ NC State -New Hampshire @ UMass – UMass may be able to make some noise in the A-10 this year -Saint Francis U @ Dayton -NC Central @ George Mason -Radford @ Pittsburgh -Fairleigh Dickinson @ Miami FL -Northern Kentucky @ Florida State -Central Connecticut @ Providence – CCSU is likely the NEC frontrunner, but is overmatched today -North Florida @ South Carolina -Manhattan @ Maryland -Robert Morris @ West Virginia – Darian DeVries’s first game as WVU’s coach -Le Moyne @ Syracuse -Iona @ Princeton – We really like this Princeton team and think they can end up in the top-40 and inside the bubble -Morehead State @ Louisville -Charleston Southern @ Clemson -Bellarmine @ VCU -Navy @ Saint Joseph’s -York (nonD1) @ Drake -Texas Southern @ Xavier -Saint Peter’s @ Seton Hall -Binghamton @ Penn State -West Georgia @ Mississippi State – Welcome to D1 West Georgia!! -Tennessee Tech @ Georgia -Howard @ Kansas -Jackson State @ Houston -Mississippi Valley State @ Iowa State -UMES @ Vanderbilt -SEMO @ Bradley – Bradley is the MVC favorite this year -Mercyhurst @ George Washington – Welcome to D1 Mercyhurst! -Lafayette @ Villanova -Holy Cross @ Wisconsin -Lehigh @ Northwestern -TAMU Commerce @ Iowa -UTRGV @ Nebraska -Cleveland State @ Michigan -Eastern Illinois @ Illinois -Florida A&M @ TCU -Delaware State @ Virginia Tech -Coppin State @ Wake Forest -Stony Brook @ Marquette -Long Island @ Ole Miss -Chicago State @ Loyola Chicago -Tarleton State @ SMU -UNC Asheville @ Alabama -Elon @ North Carolina -Lindenwood @ Oklahoma -Cal State Fullerton @ Grand Canyon -Nicholls @ New Mexico -Alcorn State @ Utah -Green Bay @ Oklahoma State -Eastern Washington @ Colorado – This would have been a great game a season ago -North Dakota @ Colorado State -Canisius @ Arizona -Rider @ UCLA -UC Riverside @ Oregon – UCR should be strong in the Big West, but is probably overmatched tonight -Chapman (nonD1) @ UC Irvine -Portland State @ Washington State -Alabama State @ UNLV -Cal State Bakersfield @ California – CS Bakersfield may actually be able to win this one
