After a long offseason(it felt so much longer this year), college basketball is back. With a full season of coverage, I wanted to have an avenue to give you my daily thoughts. And so, I present The Fast Break. I'll break down games, give my thoughts, preview the day's slate, as well as whatever else I feel like doing. I hope you enjoy.
What I Saw
Saint Francis (PA) @ Buffalo
- Saint Francis gave the Bulls all they could handle for the first 30 minutes of this game. In the end, Buffalo's talent shone through as they began to make threes that weren't falling earlier in the game. A lot of credit has to go to the Red Flashes though, as their 2-3 zone frustrated Buffalo and they put up an excellent fight despite missing key pieces in Alex Wolford and Isaiah Blackmon.
- Buffalo is projected to be on of the top mid-majors this year, and they looked the part. They shoot a lot of threes, which for the majority of the game weren't falling, but they were getting clean looks off of penetration and kick outs. They also played great defense, forcing 20 turnovers as well as making Saint Francis into bad shots, specifically Jamaal King, who was just 4-14 from the field.
- I found it interesting that Nick Perkins didn't start for the Bulls. He still played, scoring 16 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in 24 minutes, but he is a key piece for them and it was odd to see Martin McRae over him in the starting lineup.
- Two players stood out to me: Myles Thompson from Saint Francis and Davonte Jordan from Buffalo. Thompson got a start thanks to the aforementioned injuries, and he looked good. He made 2 threes en route to 16 points, and he should be a big part of their rotation moving forward. He provides size that they other players don't offer at 6'6", and he looked good defensively. Jordan did a little bit of everything for the Bulls, scoring 8 points, with 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, and 2 rebounds. He is known as an excellent defensive players, and looked the part. He also showed potential as a floor spacer, making 2 threes, and he was arguably the best player in the game
Eastern Washington @Syracuse
- For those that don't follow me on Twitter (@ThreePointRange), I was in attendance at the Carrier Dome last night. The main takeaway for me was how good this Syracuse zone is going to be. They suffocated the Eagles, limited them to 34 points on 22% shooting. There is so much length available, from Tyus Battle to Oshae Brisset to Paschal Chukwu, and the defense should be excellent all season.
- The Orange are going to be much deeper this season. They had 9 players play double digit minutes, a stark contrast to the tight rotation Jim Boeheim deployed last season. They were also missing starting point guard Frank Howard, so there should be plenty of options all year for Syracuse.
- It certainly wasn't the best offensive performance. Most of the players looked rusty and the team struggled shooting, making just 3 three-pointers. Most of their offense came from put-backs, they grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, or off turnovers. They utilized a full-court press that could help speed up the game for a team that often played at a sluggish pace last season.
- The biggest standout was Oshae Brissett. He scored 20 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 3 steals. He is an outstanding athlete, which he showed off on multiple rim-rattling dunks. He also made a three, showcasing the continued development of his offensive game. I wouldn't be shocked to see him taken in the first 20 picks in next spring's draft if he keeps up this level of production.
Duke vs Kentucky (Neutral Floor)
- I might have been slightly off on Duke. I knew they would be good, but I didn't expect them to be this good, this soon. Their three-point shooting was my biggest concern coming into the year, but they were fine, shooting 46.2% from deep. They also looked great on defense, stifling Kentucky for most of the game. I don't think they'll play like that all season, they blew out a very good team, but they are going to be much better than I anticipated.
- Duke's freshman certainly lived up to the height. As you've probably seen, RJ Barret, Zion Williamson, and Cam Reddish scored 83 points on their own, just one less than Kentucky's entire team. Zion will get a lot of the publicity, and he was really good and looks borderline unguardable, but Barrett is the real star here. He had 32 points and 6 assists, including knocking down three shots from deep. I was skeptical of his All-American status, but of all the takeaways from this game, I think him being arguably the best player in the country is the biggest for me. Kentucky will bounce back, Duke will come back to Earth, but RJ should be stellar this year.
- The biggest thing for Kentucky was how bad they looked defensively. Part of that has to be attributed to how good Duke is, but they often looked lost on that end. They consistently allowed Duke to get to the rim, and allowed open threes all night. They were also atrocious in transition, and Duke always seemed to be running a 3 on 1 break. They need to make huge strides on that end if they hope to have success this season.
- The standouts, outside of Duke's triumvirate, were Keldon Johnson, EJ Montgomery, and Jack White. Johnson was the only player on Kentucky who looked like he could compete at the highest level, and he was great. He scored 23 points, leading the Wildcats and was in attack mode all night. Tyler Herro got a lot of preseason hype, but Johnson looks like he'll lead this team offensively. Montgomery impressed me in limited minutes. I think he's quickly going to demand more minutes. He scored 8 points and got 6 rebounds, and he may be the best NBA prospect on the roster. I expect to see more of him in the frontcourt going forward. Finally, Jack White came out of nowhere for Duke, leading the team with 11 rebounds, including 6 on the offensive end. He could end up being a part of their best five, along with the 4 freshmen, and he seems like the emotional leader of the team.
BYU @ Nevada
- A lot has been made of Nevada's depth this year, and it immediately paid off. With both of the Martin twins and starter Tre'Shawn Thurman in foul trouble early, they relied heavily on the bench, and they proved more than capable of playing with a good BYU team. Jazz Johnson had a big impact, picking up the scoring slack with 12 points, including 3 threes.
- Jordan Brown seems buried right now. He only got 5 minutes, which was shocking given the aforementioned foul trouble. Instead, Eric Musselman favored Trey Porter, who played well, and four perimeter player. Porter was solid, but Brown definitely has a higher ceiling. It is a situation to monitor going forward for the Wolf Pack.
- Jordan Caroline is an absolute monster. He posted a double double, scoring 25 points to go along with 16 rebounds, and led the team with the Martin's on the bench. He was always attacking the rim, and he either finished or got to the foul line. He is so key at the power forward position, since he provides great rebounding to go along with defensive versatility and offensive spacing. The same can be said for Cody Martin, who although he didn't score, dished out 11 assists and got 7 rebounds. He is the de facto point guard for this team, and at 6'7", has elite size and length on the defensive end.
Miscellaneous
- Providence looks like they could be better than many thought. They had a very good offensive showing, with freshman AJ Reeves leading the way, scoring 29 points. They face Wichita State on Friday, which should be a much better test.
- Not a great day for Baylor. They lost to Texas Southern, which is never a good thing. A perennial play-in game team from the SWAC, they weren't even considered the favorite by some. It could be a very long year in Waco if things don't change fast.
- It was a very good day for the Big West, however. CSU Northridge lost to New Mexico on a buzzer beater, and CSU Fullerton almost knocked off Arizona State, taking them to 2 overtimes, and the backcourt of Kyle Allman (35 points) and Khalil Ahmad (31) will be tough to compete with. However, if there's one team that can, it'll be UC Santa Barbara. They went into Wyoming and knocked off the Cowboys. Even more impressive is the fact they did it without leading scorer last season Max Heidegger. They are one of my favorite mid-major teams this year, with lots of high major transfer on their roster, including leading score JaQuori McLaughlin from Oregon State who put up 17 points, 6 points, and 4 assists, Devearl Ramsey from Nevada, who chipped in with 14 points, and Ar'Mond Davis from Alabama. They should be really good this year and a team no one wants to play come tournament time.
- Finally, congratulations to Andrew Jones. The Texas guard took the court for the first time after his battle with leukemia yesterday. He scored one point, and contributed all over the court. He is one on the Longhorns' best players, but more importantly, he is a true inspiration and one of the best stories you'll see this year in sports.
A Look Ahead
I will be catching up on the games I missed tonight, including Kansas and Michigan State, Western Kentucky at Washington, UNC at Wofford, Florida at Florida State, along with some mid-major contests over the next two days. I'll give my thoughts on the ones I watch today in tomorrow's Fast Break. As for tonight's games:
Ohio State at Cincinnati, 6 PM: A very intriguing matchup between two programs that lost a lot from last year. I'm pretty down on Ohio State overall, but this matchup will prove whether or not they can play with tournament level competition. As for the Bearcats, it's a good opening test for a program with lots of new faces in big roles. There are also two excellent coaches on the sidelines that I think will do very good jobs this season especially given the losses they face. I'm going to go with Mick Cronin's always solid defenses and the team with the best player, Jarron Cumberland.
Prediction: Cincinnati 62-54 Ohio State
North Florida at Dayton, 7 PM: I received a question about this game from AJ Casale on Twitter, and with a weak slate, I figured I'd break it down. Luckily, this is actually a pretty good game. Both teams return a lot of production from last year. The Flyers isn't getting a lot of preseason love in the A-1o, but they have Josh Cunningham, one of the best big men in the conference, returning along with a sophomore backcourt of Jalen Crutcher and Jordan Davis who could breakout this season. The Ospreys are one of the better teams in their conference, the Atlantic Sun, and they return their 6 leading scorers from last season. They should have an excellent offense once more, led by point guard Ivan Gandia-Rosa and big man Nate Hochler. Although their defense was bad last year, I think it improves and the Atlantic 10's woes continue with an upset in Ohio.
Prediction: North Florida 81-77 Dayton
Saint Francis (PA) @ Buffalo
- Saint Francis gave the Bulls all they could handle for the first 30 minutes of this game. In the end, Buffalo's talent shone through as they began to make threes that weren't falling earlier in the game. A lot of credit has to go to the Red Flashes though, as their 2-3 zone frustrated Buffalo and they put up an excellent fight despite missing key pieces in Alex Wolford and Isaiah Blackmon.
- Buffalo is projected to be on of the top mid-majors this year, and they looked the part. They shoot a lot of threes, which for the majority of the game weren't falling, but they were getting clean looks off of penetration and kick outs. They also played great defense, forcing 20 turnovers as well as making Saint Francis into bad shots, specifically Jamaal King, who was just 4-14 from the field.
- I found it interesting that Nick Perkins didn't start for the Bulls. He still played, scoring 16 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in 24 minutes, but he is a key piece for them and it was odd to see Martin McRae over him in the starting lineup.
- Two players stood out to me: Myles Thompson from Saint Francis and Davonte Jordan from Buffalo. Thompson got a start thanks to the aforementioned injuries, and he looked good. He made 2 threes en route to 16 points, and he should be a big part of their rotation moving forward. He provides size that they other players don't offer at 6'6", and he looked good defensively. Jordan did a little bit of everything for the Bulls, scoring 8 points, with 5 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, and 2 rebounds. He is known as an excellent defensive players, and looked the part. He also showed potential as a floor spacer, making 2 threes, and he was arguably the best player in the game
Eastern Washington @Syracuse
- For those that don't follow me on Twitter (@ThreePointRange), I was in attendance at the Carrier Dome last night. The main takeaway for me was how good this Syracuse zone is going to be. They suffocated the Eagles, limited them to 34 points on 22% shooting. There is so much length available, from Tyus Battle to Oshae Brisset to Paschal Chukwu, and the defense should be excellent all season.
- The Orange are going to be much deeper this season. They had 9 players play double digit minutes, a stark contrast to the tight rotation Jim Boeheim deployed last season. They were also missing starting point guard Frank Howard, so there should be plenty of options all year for Syracuse.
- It certainly wasn't the best offensive performance. Most of the players looked rusty and the team struggled shooting, making just 3 three-pointers. Most of their offense came from put-backs, they grabbed 17 offensive rebounds, or off turnovers. They utilized a full-court press that could help speed up the game for a team that often played at a sluggish pace last season.
- The biggest standout was Oshae Brissett. He scored 20 points to go along with 8 rebounds and 3 steals. He is an outstanding athlete, which he showed off on multiple rim-rattling dunks. He also made a three, showcasing the continued development of his offensive game. I wouldn't be shocked to see him taken in the first 20 picks in next spring's draft if he keeps up this level of production.
Duke vs Kentucky (Neutral Floor)
- I might have been slightly off on Duke. I knew they would be good, but I didn't expect them to be this good, this soon. Their three-point shooting was my biggest concern coming into the year, but they were fine, shooting 46.2% from deep. They also looked great on defense, stifling Kentucky for most of the game. I don't think they'll play like that all season, they blew out a very good team, but they are going to be much better than I anticipated.
- Duke's freshman certainly lived up to the height. As you've probably seen, RJ Barret, Zion Williamson, and Cam Reddish scored 83 points on their own, just one less than Kentucky's entire team. Zion will get a lot of the publicity, and he was really good and looks borderline unguardable, but Barrett is the real star here. He had 32 points and 6 assists, including knocking down three shots from deep. I was skeptical of his All-American status, but of all the takeaways from this game, I think him being arguably the best player in the country is the biggest for me. Kentucky will bounce back, Duke will come back to Earth, but RJ should be stellar this year.
- The biggest thing for Kentucky was how bad they looked defensively. Part of that has to be attributed to how good Duke is, but they often looked lost on that end. They consistently allowed Duke to get to the rim, and allowed open threes all night. They were also atrocious in transition, and Duke always seemed to be running a 3 on 1 break. They need to make huge strides on that end if they hope to have success this season.
- The standouts, outside of Duke's triumvirate, were Keldon Johnson, EJ Montgomery, and Jack White. Johnson was the only player on Kentucky who looked like he could compete at the highest level, and he was great. He scored 23 points, leading the Wildcats and was in attack mode all night. Tyler Herro got a lot of preseason hype, but Johnson looks like he'll lead this team offensively. Montgomery impressed me in limited minutes. I think he's quickly going to demand more minutes. He scored 8 points and got 6 rebounds, and he may be the best NBA prospect on the roster. I expect to see more of him in the frontcourt going forward. Finally, Jack White came out of nowhere for Duke, leading the team with 11 rebounds, including 6 on the offensive end. He could end up being a part of their best five, along with the 4 freshmen, and he seems like the emotional leader of the team.
BYU @ Nevada
- A lot has been made of Nevada's depth this year, and it immediately paid off. With both of the Martin twins and starter Tre'Shawn Thurman in foul trouble early, they relied heavily on the bench, and they proved more than capable of playing with a good BYU team. Jazz Johnson had a big impact, picking up the scoring slack with 12 points, including 3 threes.
- Jordan Brown seems buried right now. He only got 5 minutes, which was shocking given the aforementioned foul trouble. Instead, Eric Musselman favored Trey Porter, who played well, and four perimeter player. Porter was solid, but Brown definitely has a higher ceiling. It is a situation to monitor going forward for the Wolf Pack.
- Jordan Caroline is an absolute monster. He posted a double double, scoring 25 points to go along with 16 rebounds, and led the team with the Martin's on the bench. He was always attacking the rim, and he either finished or got to the foul line. He is so key at the power forward position, since he provides great rebounding to go along with defensive versatility and offensive spacing. The same can be said for Cody Martin, who although he didn't score, dished out 11 assists and got 7 rebounds. He is the de facto point guard for this team, and at 6'7", has elite size and length on the defensive end.
Miscellaneous
- Providence looks like they could be better than many thought. They had a very good offensive showing, with freshman AJ Reeves leading the way, scoring 29 points. They face Wichita State on Friday, which should be a much better test.
- Not a great day for Baylor. They lost to Texas Southern, which is never a good thing. A perennial play-in game team from the SWAC, they weren't even considered the favorite by some. It could be a very long year in Waco if things don't change fast.
- It was a very good day for the Big West, however. CSU Northridge lost to New Mexico on a buzzer beater, and CSU Fullerton almost knocked off Arizona State, taking them to 2 overtimes, and the backcourt of Kyle Allman (35 points) and Khalil Ahmad (31) will be tough to compete with. However, if there's one team that can, it'll be UC Santa Barbara. They went into Wyoming and knocked off the Cowboys. Even more impressive is the fact they did it without leading scorer last season Max Heidegger. They are one of my favorite mid-major teams this year, with lots of high major transfer on their roster, including leading score JaQuori McLaughlin from Oregon State who put up 17 points, 6 points, and 4 assists, Devearl Ramsey from Nevada, who chipped in with 14 points, and Ar'Mond Davis from Alabama. They should be really good this year and a team no one wants to play come tournament time.
- Finally, congratulations to Andrew Jones. The Texas guard took the court for the first time after his battle with leukemia yesterday. He scored one point, and contributed all over the court. He is one on the Longhorns' best players, but more importantly, he is a true inspiration and one of the best stories you'll see this year in sports.
A Look Ahead
I will be catching up on the games I missed tonight, including Kansas and Michigan State, Western Kentucky at Washington, UNC at Wofford, Florida at Florida State, along with some mid-major contests over the next two days. I'll give my thoughts on the ones I watch today in tomorrow's Fast Break. As for tonight's games:
Ohio State at Cincinnati, 6 PM: A very intriguing matchup between two programs that lost a lot from last year. I'm pretty down on Ohio State overall, but this matchup will prove whether or not they can play with tournament level competition. As for the Bearcats, it's a good opening test for a program with lots of new faces in big roles. There are also two excellent coaches on the sidelines that I think will do very good jobs this season especially given the losses they face. I'm going to go with Mick Cronin's always solid defenses and the team with the best player, Jarron Cumberland.
Prediction: Cincinnati 62-54 Ohio State
North Florida at Dayton, 7 PM: I received a question about this game from AJ Casale on Twitter, and with a weak slate, I figured I'd break it down. Luckily, this is actually a pretty good game. Both teams return a lot of production from last year. The Flyers isn't getting a lot of preseason love in the A-1o, but they have Josh Cunningham, one of the best big men in the conference, returning along with a sophomore backcourt of Jalen Crutcher and Jordan Davis who could breakout this season. The Ospreys are one of the better teams in their conference, the Atlantic Sun, and they return their 6 leading scorers from last season. They should have an excellent offense once more, led by point guard Ivan Gandia-Rosa and big man Nate Hochler. Although their defense was bad last year, I think it improves and the Atlantic 10's woes continue with an upset in Ohio.
Prediction: North Florida 81-77 Dayton
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