Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Tuesday, Nov 10th

Posted on November 10, 2026 by David Griggs

NEWS AND NOTES:

-For the latest Hoops HD Report Video Podcast – CLICK HERE

-Syracuse and Indiana!! Two blue-blood programs with rich histories!! They went at it in Indianapolis yesterday!!! And…it looked like there were about a hundred people at the game. I asked someone if they had forgotten to unlock the doors, and it turns out the price for tickets was just through the roof. The game itself was exciting. It was close throughout, Syracuse had a chance to force overtime at the buzzer, but couldn’t convert and the Hoosiers survived 83-80. It would have been a nice road win for Syracuse who has been kind of low when it comes to nice wins in recent years.

-Cincinnati and Minnesota went back and forth. It was a mistake filled game in the final minutes or so and it appeared that Cincinnati gave it away. The Bearcats had a 61-60 lead in the final seconds, but committed a foul that sent Minney to the line. Minney missed the front end of a one-and-one and was forced to foul Cincinnati, who then missed their front end of a one-and-one and that led to a last second 3pt buzzer beater and a really nice 63-61 road win for the Gophers. There isn’t much buzz around either of these teams right now, but I think both will end up having big years and this game will prove to be bigger come March when we are looking at the team sheets than what it appeared to be at the time. Even though I said Cincinnati kind of gave it away, it was still a big road win and impressive showing for Minnesota.

-Seton Hall improved to 3-0 with a 68-62 win over Charlotte at the Palestra. It was part of the Palestra 100 series and one of many games that we will see played there this year. Whenever I think of the Palestra, I think of matchups like this one!!! (I don’t. I’m kidding).

-Portland got a big road win out at Hawaii last night 73-66. This was a Hawaii team that had looked pretty good prior to last night whereas Portland had looked…well…not good at all.

-In Under the Radar news, South Carolina State picked up their second true road win of the season and is now 3-0 overall after their 82-67 win at Chicago State. This wasn’t exactly one of the toughest road environments in the country, but they not many teams have won two true road games at this point.

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-FLORIDA AT FLORIDA STATE. Florida already has one big win away from home but this is their first true road test. Florida State is a team we don’t know much about yet, and I guess we will learn something tonight. It’s a rivalry game, both teams are unbeaten, and if FSU can somehow pull off the upset they’ll be thrown into the spotlight.

-MICHIGAN STATE VS DUKE (Champions Classic – Chicago, IL). Both teams are in the top five, both are contenders for #1 seeds, and both are early season contenders to make the Final Four. Some feel Duke is the best team in the country. This will be the first really big regular season test for both of them, so it’ll be interesting to see how it goes.

-VIRGINIA TECH AT IOWA. This is the first real test for both these teams. I think Iowa can have another big year this year and they should be able to hold serve at home.

-MEMPHIS AT VANDERBILT. A lot of teams like to ease in to their seasons. Memphis did not go this route. They’ve already managed wins over Iowa State and VCU and have a really tough test tonight in a true road game against a very talented Vanderbilt team. I’m really looking forward to this one! Both teams look like top 25 caliber teams so far and it’s a chance to build up their resumes.

-ILLINOIS AT TEXAS TECH. Neither team is at full strength, but this is still a fantastic early season game. Illinois is my pick to win the Big Ten and Texas Tech is my pick to win the Big 12. I think both teams can go deep into March and this is a chance for them to pick up a massive early season win.

-KANSAS VS KENTUCKY (Champions Classic – Chicago, IL). Both teams have won their two home buy games and this is the first real test. Kansas has a young roster, but they added some experience when Trey Kaufman-Renn became eligible. This is a big early season game for both these teams and it’s one of many tough games they’ll both play throughout the season. Even though it’s early, you there seems to be a sense of urgency to this one with Kentucky, whose fans are becoming a little impatient and want to see this program high in the rankings and deep in the tournament.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Wright State @ Toledo – Wright State has looked good in their first two games, but this is their first road test

-Bradley @ Davidson – this is a sneaky good game. I don’t know if either team will end up inside the bubble, but I’m not ruling out the possibility yet either.

-Washington State @ Duquesne – Duquesne is trying to get to 3-0

-La Salle @ Villanova (Big Five) – worth watching just for the postgame hand shake.

-Harvard @ Northeastern (Bean Pot) – Harvard is 2-0 and already has a road win (albeit it was against a nonD1 team)

-Wyoming @ North Carolina – both teams are unbeaten and North Carolina has struggled a little bit early on. This is their toughest opponent so far. Having said that, the Tarheels should roll

-Belmont @ Lipscomb – The Battle of the Boulevard!!!!!! Belmont is off to a 2-0 start, but this is their first road game. This rivalry NEVER disappoints!!

-Texas State @ UTRGV – both teams 2-0

-San Diego @ Colorado – I don’t think either team gets anywhere close to the bubble, but for now we will keep our eyes on them

-Creighton @ Kansas State – this should be a very winnable road game for Creighton

-Montana @ San Francisco – a fairly decent game between two solid teams. San Francisco should get to 3-0, but they should also get a bit of a test tonight

BUY GAMES:

-NJIT @ Rutgers
-Delaware State @ Georgetown
-South Alabama @ UCF – UCF can remain unbeaten
-Eastern Kentucky @ Georgia Tech – both teams 2-0
-Presbyterian @ NC State
-Elon @ George Washington – both teams 2-0
-Siena @ Dayton
-UMES @ Boston College
-Detroit Mercy @ Xavier
-Alcorn State @ Murray State
-Prairie View A&M @ SMU
-Northern Kentucky @ Saint Louis – SLU should win, but NKU isn’t bad
-Southern @ Iowa State
-Yale @ Baylor – Baylor should win easily, but Yale will do well in the Ivy League
-Fairfield @ Wisconsin
-SELA @ Ole Miss
-Bucknell @ Virginia
-Northern Arizona @ Arizona
-Queens @ BYU – Queens will do well in the ASun, but probably not tonight
-Utah Tech @ Utah State
-Little Rock @ New Mexico
-Hofstra @ Arizona State
-Weber State @ Utah
-UL Monroe @ TCU

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The Hoops HD Report – Week 1 and 2

Posted on November 9, 2026 by David Griggs

It’s the regular season premiere of the Hoops HD Report!! We look back at a busy first week where Memphis surprised us all with two big wins over Iowa State and VCU, UCLA picked up one of the biggest wins of the young season as they knocked off Arizona in Las Vegas, and UConn won a big rematch from last year’s national championship game against Michigan. While some teams have excelled, others have struggled. Purdue was upset by Valparaiso, Dayton fell at home to Northern Illinois, and Oklahoma fell to East Texas A&M. We run through all the power conferences and multi-bid leagues, review all the action from Week 1, and look ahead to the upcoming games.

And for all you radio lovers, below is an audio only version of the show…

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Hoops HD Merit Rankings/Bracket Projections – Nov 9th

Posted on November 9, 2026 by David Griggs

I want to make sure everyone knows what they are looking at. This IS NOT a ranking of how good I think the teams actually are. It also IS NOT me trying to guess what the actual selection committee will do on Selection Sunday. It is merely me putting together the rankings while asking one question….

How difficult was it for a team to win the games that they’ve won so far?

Teams that have only played and won home buy games did not make the list. Some made it if they played Under the Radar teams that may end up in our UTR Top Ten, but most didn’t. Duke is an excellent team. If I were ranking teams based on how good I thought they were, Duke would be ranked 2nd or 3rd. But Duke has also only played two home buy games so far against exceptionally weak teams, so they are not on this list at all.

So, why do I do this?? Many will say “It’s too early for rankings and/or bracketology!” Well…take a look at the picture below. The score and the clock are displayed on the scoreboard for the entire game, and they should be. It’s very obvious to everyone that the network is not predicting that Morehead State will win this game simply because they had a lead two minutes in. No one watching this game at this point thought that. But, nevertheless, the score and the clock are still there, as they should be, and no one is saying that it’s too early in the game to have the score and the clock on the screen.

If the season were a basketball game, this is the point of the game we’d be at. We’d be two minutes in. And the score would be on the screen even though it is not always an indication of what the final outcome would be. So, that’s what you’re looking at. The scoreboard when we are two minutes into the game that is this season.

And, if I’m being honest, I also think it’s kind of fun to see some of the Under the Radar teams high up in the rankings after they’ve won some big OOC games early on.

THE PUPPET’S MERIT RANKINGS: (bold teams are the current conference “leaders.”):

  1. UCLA – 2-0, neutral win vs Arizona
  2. FLORIDA – 2-0, neutral win vs Miami FL
  3. MEMPHIS – 2-0, win vs Iowa State, home win vs VCU
  4. CONNECTICUT – 2-0, neutral win vs Michigan
  5. VIRGINIA – 3-0, neutral win vs Arkansas
  6. SAINT LOUIS – 2-0, neutral win vs Missouri
  7. BYU – 2-0, neutral win vs Ohio State
  8. VALPARAISO – 2-0, road win @ Purdue
  9. NEVADA – 2-0, neutral win vs Saint Mary’s
  10. Notre Dame – 2-0, neutral win vs Villanova
  11. EAST TEXAS A&M – 2-0, road wins @ Oklahoma and @ Rice
  12. GONZAGA – 2-0, neutral win vs Purdue
  13. Nebraska – 2-0, neutral win vs Providence
  14. SOUTH DAKOTA STATE – 2-0, win @ Kansas State
  15. Davidson – 2-0, win @ Washington State
  16. Usc – 2-0, neutral win vs Wichita State
  17. DePaul – 2-0, home win vs South Florida
  18. North Texas – 1-0 vs D1, home win vs McNeese
  19. HIGH POINT – 3-0, neutral win vs Liberty
  20. Vanderbilt – 2-0, home win vs Wake Forest
  21. San Diego State – 2-0, neutral win vs Colorado
  22. PACIFIC – 1-0, win @ Bradley
  23. QUEENS – 2-1, neutral win vs Winthrop, win @ LMU
  24. Houston – 2-0, neutral win vs Cal
  25. OHIO U – 2-0, win @ South Alabama
  26. GREEN BAY – 1-1, win @ Saint Thomas, lost road buy game
  27. TENNESSEE TECH – 1-1, loss @ Mississippi State, home win vs Western Kentucky
  28. GRAMBLING – 1-0, neutral win vs Northern Illinois
  29. Jackson State– 1-1, win @ Tulane, road buy game loss at Texas Tech
  30. North Dakota– 1-1, win @ Winthrop, buy game loss @ Minnesota
  31. Northern Kentucky – 2-1, neutral win vs UTEP, win @ South Dakota
  32. Boston College – 2-0, neutral win vs UMass
  33. ELON – 2-0, win @ UNC Greensboro
  34. UNC Wilmington – 1-0, won @ East Carolina
  35. Akron – 1-0, win @ Louisiana
  36. Bowling Green – 1-0, win @ Georgia State
  37. Charlotte 2-0 – win @ Indiana State
  38. UMASS LOWELL – 2-0, win @ Merrimack
  39. Tulsa 1-0 – win vs Northern Illinois
  40. North Florida – 1-1 – win @ Cal Baptist
  41. Hawaii – 3-0, home win vs Seattle U
  42. McNeese – 1-1, neutral win vs UAB, road loss @ North Texas
  43. QUINNIPIAC – 2-1, lost road buy game, won @ Vermont
  44. Georgetown – 2-0, home win vs Maryland
  45. Boise State – 1-0, home win vs Butler
  46. UMass – 1-1, win @ Troy, neutral loss vs Boston College
  47. Youngstown State – 1-1, win @ Saint Bonaventure, lost road buy game
  48. Murray State – 2-0, neutral win vs Tennessee State
  49. NORTH ALABAMA – 1-0, won @ UC Davis
  50. OLD DOMINION – 2-0, win @ Bucknell
  51. Appalachian State – 1-0, win @ Merrimack
  52. UT Arlington – 1-1, won @ Portland, lost @ Hawaii
  53. CHICAGO STATE – 1-1, win @ Incarnate Word, lost road buy game to Texas
  54. Central Michigan – 1-0, win @ UL Monroe
  55. Rhode Island – 2-0, neutral win vs Monmouth
  56. KENNESAW STATE – 1-0 with a home win over Austin Peay
  57. YALE – 1-1, home win vs Howard, road loss at UCF
  58. UTAH VALLEY – 1-0, win @ Weber State
  59. HOWARD, – 1-1, win @ Alcorn State, loss @ Yale
  60. Western Carolina – 1-1, lost at North Carolina, won @ UNC Asheville
  61. Morgan State – 1-0, road win @ Niagara
  62. South Carolina State – 1-0, win @ USC Upstate
  63. UC San Diego – 1-0, win vs Fresno State
  64. Oregon State – 2-0, neutral win vs Cal Baptist
  65. BOSTON U – 2-0, win @ Brown
  66. Eastern Michigan – 1-1, road buy game loss @ Xavier, win @ Coastal Carolina
  67. Saint Bonaventure – 1-1, lost home buy game to Youngstown State, won @ Canisus
  68. Northern Illinois – 1-2, win @ Dayton, losses @ Tulsa and home vs Grambling
  69. Fairfield – 1-1, home loss to Vermont, win @ Bryant
  70. Sacred Heart – 1-1, home loss to Maine, win @ New Hampshire
  71. Alabama – 2-0, home win vs Arkansas State
  72. Kentucky – 2-0, home win vs James Madison
  73. Louisiana Tech – 1-0, home win vs Kent State
  74. Saint Mary’s – 2-1, home win vs North Dakota State
  75. Arkansas State – 1-1, buy game loss @ Alabama, home win vs Toledo
  76. Saint Thomas – 1-2, win @ Presbyterian, buy loss @ Minnesota, home loss vs Green Bay
  77. Houston Christian – 1-0, win @ Western Illinois
  78. MONTANA STATE – 1-1, only Big Sky team with a D1 win
  79. SEMO – 1-1, only OVC team with a D1 win

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And you don’t really appreciate how bizarre these rankings are until you see them in a bracket…

NOTES ON THE BRACKET:

-The games in bold and italics are the AQ opening round games. The games in regular italics are the at-large opening round games.

If you’re a guru, you’ll notice that the dates of the Opening Round are wrong. And here’s what I have to say to that. Right now…I DON’T CARE!! CHAD CAN EAT ME IF HE JUMPS ON TO CRITICIZE ME ABOUT IT!!!!

There are supposed to be six opening round games in both Wichita and Dayton, (three that feature at-large teams and three that feature the lowest ranked automatic qualifiers), which means we’d have three AQ games and three at-large games each day. This bracket does not have that. And…I do not feel like playing around with it right now to make that work. It’s a crazy enough of a bracket anyway that you can kind of get the idea.

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It Takes a Village: HoopsHD interview Ibrahim Oladotun about his son Baba

Posted on November 9, 2026 by Jon Teitel

Even though there are plenty of old men in college basketball these days (including 24-year old Tyler Lundblade at Tennessee, 25-year old Isaiah Shaw at UConn, and 26-year old Dawson Baker at BYU), there is still a ton of talent on the other side of the spectrum. 17-year old Joaquim Boumtje-Boumtje is averaging 12 PPG/3 BPG through his 1st 2 games at Duke, 17-year old Davion Thompson is playing almost 20 MPG for Arkansas, and 17-year old Baba Oladotun has already become a key part of the rotation at Maryland. Yesterday HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Baba’s father Ibrahim Oladotun about his son’s decision to reclassify to the Class of 2026 and what it takes to raise 1 of the highest-ranked freshmen in the country.

Your son Baba turned down several 6-figure offers to attend fancy prep schools so that he could remain close to home at Blake High School: was it just a case of prioritizing geography over money? It was more about family unity over money. I also have a younger son and 3 daughters so the chemistry of keeping everyone together was the priority. They will all eventually grow up and move away so I do not know how long it will last.

He played for Kevin Durant’s AAU team, worked with Durant’s former trainer, and spent 10 days last year with Durant in Los Angeles: what kind of relationship does he have with the future Hall of Famer? Kevin cares about Baba a lot and we try to see him whenever he is available. He has given us an open door despite all his commitments: it is more of an open-heart policy!

He was ranked #1 in the nation in the Class of 2027 but decided to skip his final year of high school and reclassify to the Class of 2026: how difficult a decision was it? It was not a difficult decision. With his future trajectory and the talent he has, it seemed a good idea to take advantage of the resources that he can get in college. For example, he suffered an ankle injury in high school: if he was in college at the time then instead of waiting weeks to see a doctor he could have received an MRI right on campus. He can eat in the cafeteria, access all the great facilities, and also get a good education.

To get all his work finished by graduation day, he would sometimes have to eat meals in the car and do homework in between workouts: if you want to be a basketball star, does that mean you cannot spend your time being a normal kid? Some parents make their kids focus on academics and spend all their time in the library but I do not know if that counts as “normal”. Baba has 4 siblings and goes to church camp: the main qualities I worry about with my children are video games/social media. He played soccer/basketball and did other things, and being a born-again Christian is integral to his values. In Africa we have open doors but in America it is more of a closed-door society: you might have to go to the community center to meet other people and make friends. He is as normal as he can be, but basketball keeps him very busy, so we have to say no to some things and it is not easy. Last summer we turned down a chance to go to Nike Academy, skipped USA Basketball so that he could attend his homecoming dance, and even turned down offers from multiple shoe companies.

He missed most of last season due to an ankle injury, but in the state semifinals he made the game-winning shot in a 2-PT OT win over Meade, then helped his team beat Walt Whitman to clinch the school’s 1st-ever state championship in any sport: how bad was the injury? The injury was not that bad, but he had never been injured before on the basketball court, so we just went to a local orthopedist. He had to get an X-ray and when there was some swelling he ended up wearing a cast for 6 weeks, then went to physical therapy every week as a precautionary measure because we wanted to play it safe.

He received scholarship offers from several great schools including Arkansas/Georgetown/Kentucky: what made him choose Maryland? At age 17 he wanted to remain close to his home “village”. I am also a College Park landlord with several rental properties so it is very convenient for me!

You have invested a lot of time/money in your son’s training, which has allowed him to greatly increase his strength/flexibility: do you think it would have been much harder for your son to become such a great player if your family did not have the resources to support his development? The biggest resource at 1st was time. I arranged my life in a certain way and then my rental properties helped create enough income that it allowed me to work with Baba on his game. However, every time he grows a few inches he has to retrain his body so that it can get used to the angles/mechanics of the court. We have to be patient because there is no limit to where he can go.

You played pro basketball in England/Greece, your son Wale plays basketball in high school, and your daughters Shola/Yemi/Adeola played volleyball in high school: who is the best athlete in the family? Baba is up there…but my 2 youngest daughters are natural athletes who can jump effortlessly and are very fast.

He turns 18 next month: what are you getting him for his birthday? At this point I think I will just get him a hug: the best thing is that he will probably not be asking me for any money!

Any predictions for this season? I am a process guy so I take everything day-by-day. The coaching staff has a lot of confidence in him as a player and I think he will have a good chance to do amazing things this year. You cannot sleep on Coach Buzz Williams and his staff based on what they have done: only God knows where we can go. I am not a fan of “1-and-done” because it can put you in a cage, but I know that if he can take full advantage of the opportunity that Buzz is giving him then he can go far. There are not many 6’10” freshmen who can run the offense for their college team and push the ball up the court. The staff/team believes in him so hopefully they will bring the best out of him. He can exploit mismatches and he has proven that during practice.

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Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Monday, Nov 9th

Posted on November 9, 2026 by David Griggs

NEWS AND NOTES:

-We will be recording our Hoops HD Report Video Podcast tonight, so be sure and check that out. We should also be posting our first bracket of the season later on today, and the bracket after Week 1 is always…well…interesting!!

-Virginia had no problems with Arkansas. They won 91-72 out in DC and at no point did it feel like the Hoos were not in control. Keep in mind that Calipari teams seemingly never start off fast. We saw them struggle early on last year as well. They tend to really kick it in gear over the winter holidays, so I’m not about to write off the Razorbacks, or even question their potential yet.

-USC got a battle from what appears to be a solid Wichita State team, but held on to win 93-86. Wichita State is a team that will likely make some noise in the American. That entire league appears to be stronger than it was a year ago.

-The game of the day was an overtime thriller between Saint Mary’s and Nevada in the Lake Tahoe Classic. Nevada pulled it out 96-95 in what is their biggest win of the early season so far. The only problem is that there was no video stream available. All the other games in this event were streamed but this one. I think I speak for all of us when I say…WTF!!??

-Pittsburgh is off to a 3-0 start after beating Penn State 82-76 in the Palestra. I’m still not all that big on Pitt, but as of today they’ve won three and that’s all they’ve played.

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-SYARCAUSE VS INDIANA (Indianapolis, IN). I gotta be honest, neither team excites me all that much, although I do think Indiana may find their way into the NCAA Tournament. But neither team has lost yet (neither has really been tested either) and we always keep teams on our radar until they give us a reason to take them off. It’s the first real test for either team and we should learn something tonight.

-MINNESOTA AT CINCINNATI. This is the first real test for both teams and I think both could end up having nice seasons and making the NCAA Tournament. Cincinnati in particular is a team I’m big on. We should learn something about both fo them tonight.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-UNC Greensboro @ UIC – no real huge storyline here other than whether or not UIC can remain unbeaten?

-South Dakota State @ Chicago State – SC State likely won’t end up anywhere near the bubble, but as of now they are 2-0 and are looking for their second true road win

-Louisiana Tech @ LSU – both teams are unbeaten, and LA Tech may have some life in them this year, but they’re probably way overmatched in this one.

-Illinois State @ Purdue – this is a buy game, but Illinois State is a solid team from the MVC and Purdue is still looking for their first win

-Seton Hall @ Charlotte – I’m not all that big on either team, but both come in 2-0 and Charlotte did manage a road win at Indiana State

-Boston U @ Northwestern – both teams 2-0

-Portland @ Hawaii (Rainbow Classic) – Hawaii is trying to improve to 4-0.

BUY GAMES:

-Marshall @ Ohio State
-Wagner @ UConn
-Grambling @ Texas – both teams are unbeaten
-Radford @ Tennessee
-North Florida @ Miami FL
-Oakland @ Alabama
-Eastern Illinois @ Notre Dame
-North Dakota @ Clemson
-FGCU @ Georgia
-College of Biblical Studies (nonD1) @ McNeese
-Jackson State @ Mississippi State
-SIUE @ Missouri
-UL Monroe @ Texas A&M
-North Alabama @ Oklahoma – North Alabama is 2-0 and Oklahoma has lost a home buy game
-Appalachian State @ Auburn – both teams unbeaten
-Alabama A&M @ DePaul – both teams 2-0
-Eastern Washington @ Oregon State – Oregon State can get to 3-0
-Rice @ Stanford – Stanford can remain unbeaten

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Hanging with the Cavaliers and Razorbacks

Posted on November 8, 2026 by Jon Teitel

HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel will spend the upcoming months covering several Georgetown basketball games, with (hopefully) a very special reward coming in March. When the Hoyas have an off-day, Capital 1 Arena has become a hotbed for big-time non-conference games: last February we had a sold-out building for Duke-Michigan, and Sunday we had another great crowd for Arkansas-Virginia. Jon was in attendance for both of them and prepared this photo essay about today’s “Capital Showcase”:

No pregame meal, sadly, but when I went across the street to Chopt to get a salad I bumped into Shawn Andrews. Back in the day he was a 2-time All-American offensive lineman on the Arkansas football team, then became a 2-time Pro Bowler for the Philadelphia Eagles (play the song, Chad!), but is now turning into “the father of JJ Andrews”, a 2026 McDonald’s All-American who now plays basketball for his father’s alma mater:

No baseline seating either, so this will be heavy on essay and light on photos. I figured it was okay to miss the 1st 4 minutes of the game while conducting a phone interview with the father of Maryland super-frosh Baba Oladotun: I will try to get it posted later this week. The crowd appears to be about 2/3 Virginia and 1/3 Arkansas, which makes sense based on each school’s distance from DC. Since Charlottesville is just 120 miles from the nation’s capital, the Hoos were able to bring their band/spirit team:

For those of you who were wondering if adult Arkansas fans actually wear those plastic Razorback helmets on their head…I regret to inform you that the rumors are true:

As you might expect from a John Calipari-coached team, the Razorbacks are very inexperienced due to a roster that is full of freshmen, but 2 of them are 6’2″ guards who played years beyond their ages. Davion Thompson made 3 jump shots in the 1st half, while Jordan Smith Jr. had a big STL/dunk and 2 other baskets in the lane. However, Virginia’s sophomore class seemed even more spectacular regardless of size/nationality. 5’10” Charlottesville native Chance Mallory made a pair of threes and a turnaround jumper in the lane, while European big men Thijs De Ridder/Johann Grunloh dominated the paint to give their team a 46-27 halftime lead. It also helped the Hoos that Arkansas made exactly ONE shot from behind the arc before intermission.

Neither of the 2 most exciting plays of the 2nd stanza involved Virginia. The 1st play did not even involve a human being, but rather a trio of birds trapped inside the arena who flew around while trying to find the exit…probably because this game has turned into a blowout. When they could not find an exit midway through the 2nd half, 2 of them decided to make their way down to the court!

The 2nd play involved Smith: the DC native tried to chase down Mallory on a drive to the hoop and ended up jumping OVER him while trying to block his shot before the under-16 timeout.

It was a tale of 2 halves for the Razorbacks’ 3-PT shooting: after shooting 1-8 in the 1st half, they made 6-11 behind the arc in the 2nd half including 3 from Jeremiah Wilkinson (who went scoreless during the 1st 20 minutes) and 2 from 7-footer Miikka Muurinen. However, Virginia simply had too much scoring balance as all 5 starters finished with 13-16 PTS. Nolan Adekunle made a pair of corner threes, Sam Lewis knocked down a 3 from the top of the key and another 1 from the corner, and the Cavaliers cruised to a 91-72 victory with a Tier 1 win that will look very impressive from now all the way through Selection Sunday.

In the postgame press conference I asked Arkansas F Cooper Bowser about his teammate Smith Jr. having so much success so early in his college career (19+ PTS/3+ STL in each of his 1st 2 games). He said he sees it every day in practice because Jordan has a relentless motor and is a great kid/elite competitor. He just wishes they could have got Smith Jr. a win during his return to his hometown of DC:

Today was Coach Calipari’s largest non-conference loss since he was coach at Kentucky and had a 118-84 loss to Duke in Zion Williamson’s college debut at the Champions Classic in Indianapolis in November 2018 (www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkj-RC1lX5s). The good news is that such a loss does not always ruin your entire season, as the Wildcats won 30 games that year and made the Elite 8 before losing to Auburn in OT…but I did not get to ask him about it because there were a LOT of other media members ahead of me:

I asked Grunloh about the biggest advantage he has a sophomore when facing a team that played 7 freshmen, be it physical/mental/emotional/other. He said that it is a little of everything, but that a big key is the mental aspect of staying focused and not getting distracted by minor things:

Since nobody else had mentioned the birds yet, I had to see if UVA coach Ryan Odom had ever seen anything crazier at a game during his 3 decades in the business. He said it was incredible because “DC pigeons are tough”…but also recalled the 2024 A-10 tourney title game when he was head coach at VCU facing Duquesne. That game was proceeding as normal early in the 2nd half when confetti started raining down from the rafters (www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXCo6fJZ14I):

That is a wrap for now, but check back later this month when Georgetown returns to its home arena.

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