Thursday kicks off more non-stop hoops
Posted: Wednesday, November 18, 2009 6:42 PM
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Early season tournaments
If you didn’t catch up on sleep Wednesday after 24 hours of hoops, you blew it. More days and nights of basketball await, starting Thursday and extending Nov. 29 with the 76 Classic finals.
That’s 11 days of 20 college basketball tournaments. It’s not round-the-clock action, but it’s close. And that doesn’t even include the non-tournament games. (A complete schedule can be found here.)
So what to watch? Glad you asked.
Jay LaPrete / AP |
Evan Turner will be the main attraction for Thursday's games.
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Luke Winn highlighted the 10 best tournaments and listed the teams involved, reasons why you should care and picked winners.
Take particular notice of The Paradise Jam finals on Nov. 23 (a potential Purdue-Tennessee matchup), 76 Classic title game on Nov. 29 (where Butler and West Virginia are likely to meet) and the preseason NIT championship on Nov. 27 (Duke vs. UConn?). All of ‘em feature Top 15 showdowns.
But Thursday is the real treat. The Coaches vs. Cancer semifinals involves four ranked teams, while the Puerto Rico Tip-Off has at least five NCAA tournament teams – and it starts with No. 18 Dayton vs. No. 21 Georgia Tech at 11:30 a.m. ET.
How’s that for more hoops?
The Flyers – led by dunker extraordinaire Chris Wright – are trying to secure their spot as the A-10’s top team and perhaps the country’s best mid-major. They displayed uncharacteristically efficient offense during a home win against Creighton, but the Yellow Jackets should provide a much bigger test. You know, because their players are taller.
With 6-9 Gani Lawal and 6-10 Derrick Favors along the frontline, Tech has the size to keep Dayton off the offensive boards (something the Flyers did very well last season), but I anticipate a game very similar to Kansas’ win against Memphis Tuesday night – physical and low scoring. The winner gets a likely matchup with Villanova! Lucky!
After that, grab a late lunch and settle in for the CvC semis. Syracuse vs. Cal (7 p.m. ET) kicks things off. Both teams are trying to cement themselves among the game’s elite teams, which sets up an intriguing matchup: the Orange’s 2-3 zone vs. Cal’s 3-point shooters.
The Bears hit 42.7 percent of their 3s last season (tops among D-I teams), and after wins against Murray State and Detroit, they’re close to that again (41.4). Yet their defense hasn’t fared as well. Opponents are making nearly 50 percent of field-goal attempts. That’s just asking Wesley Johnson and Andy Rautins to shoot. A lot.
And if that whets your appetite for offense, you’re in luck. North Carolina and Ohio State (9 p.m.) are content to push the pace. Both average more than 70 possessions this season. But would you be surprised to know that the Buckeyes are far more efficient doing so? (Correct, dear reader, you said no. You undoubtedly figured the Heels’ relative youth is making it tough for Roy’s team to – in analyst speak – score the basketball.)
Perhaps it’s because Evan Turner is the next coming of Tyreke Evans, or because William Buford and Jon Diebler are turning into reliable scorers.
But I’d say taking care of the ball helps. A lot. Ohio State’s only giving away the ball once every 10 possessions, while UNC is doing so once every four (and forcing foes into turnovers every five possessions). Something’s gotta give Thursday night.
Provided Turner can handle those long-armed Carolina defenders (and they are plentiful), the Buckeyes will pull off one of the early season upsets. And it’ll have been the perfect way to end a day of hoops.
Follow me on Twitter (@BeyndArcMMiller) and get more college basketball news at NBCSports.com.
