What We Learned Tuesday in Men's College Hoops
This Tuesday’s tipoff marathon featured four of the top 13 ranked teams in men’s college hoops. Top ranked Duke battled 7th ranked Kansas, while 2nd ranked Kentucky beat up 13th ranked Michigan State. Five of the other top 10 ranked teams were in action. With nine of college men’s top 13 teams in action Tuesday, what did we learn?
Duke and Kentucky are really good
Yes, Duke lost, but there was a lot to be learned during the hard-fought game Tuesday night. While Kansas won, Duke fought until the final seconds while being down three prized freshmen in Harry Giles, Marques Bolden, and Jayson Tatum. In the end, it took a game winner in the final seconds by Kansas star senior guard Frank Mason III to seal the game. Kansas is not a team to be taken lightly, and should be considered a top contender for a spot in the final four, but the game really told fans more about the Blue Devils and just how good they are. Kansas star freshman Josh Jackson, who many scouts say have more upside than former Jayhawk Andrew Wiggins, looks like the real deal if he could learn to stay out of foul trouble.
Kentucky beat 13th ranked Michigan State by 21 points. With the Spartans now starting 0-2, they look more like a team searching for answers than a top contender. Perhaps, there will be more to be learned in a November 29th showdown at Duke. Until then, the Spartans need to focus on getting on track or else they might be embarrassed by a top team once again. At this point, they do not have the look of a team that can challenge for the final four.
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Oregon had a tough matchup against Baylor, but the 4th ranked Ducks did not look worthy of that ranking. They were blown out by 17 points by an unranked Baylor team, and never really seemed to be in the game right from the first half. Yes, the Ducks were without top player Dillon Brooks, but it’s hard to imagine Brooks would have made up the entire 17-point deficit himself.
North Carolina had an easier matchup vs Long Beach State. It was an easy win, but the important takeaway is that the Tar Heels continue to share the ball well. This was a concern with Marcus Paige graduating, but the Tar Heels currently have five players dishing out at least 3 assists per game. Virginia also had an easy matchup, and easily blew out St Francis by 40 points. With a lack of competition, it’s hard to have any real takeaways from this game.
Wisconsin, who came into Tuesday ranked 9th, lost to 22nd ranked Creighton. This came as a bit of a shock, with Creighton completely controlling the game in the 2nd half. What was most troubling for the Badgers was their 16 turnovers and only 5 free throw attempts. Wisconsin has a history of playing good defense, but gave up 50% shooting from the field and from 3-point range in the game. With the lack of ability to create easy offense, and mediocre defense, this game raised some concerns for Wisconsin moving forward. Time will tell if it was a one-time thing, or if this is going to be a trend for the Badgers this season.
Arizona had an up and down game against the CSU Bakersfield Roadrunners. The 10th ranked Wildcats jumped to an 18 point halftime lead and stretched the lead to 21 a little over 5 mins into the 2nd half. From there, it seemed like the Wildcats went into cruise control. They allowed to Roadrunners to go on a 17-0 run and close the lead to 4, before kicking it back into gear and coming away with a 12 point win. Arizona freshman Lauri Markkanen was sensational in the game, and to this point is looking like one of the better freshman in all of college basketball. Arizona can’t get complacent against tougher competition and still come away with the win, so this game should be one to learn from for the Wildcats.
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It’s still early in the season. With all the top teams only having played two or three games, there is still plenty to learn. There will be plenty more ups and downs throughout the season, injuries, top players returning from injuries, and teams building chemistry. That said, there was still a lot to be learned Tuesday night. As of now, it appears Duke and Kentucky stand above the rest, while many other teams face questions that need to be answered.
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