... the safe, smart AM read for college basketball fans
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ESPN's nonstop hoops marathon is almost here, and over the next two days the casual fan should be able to crawl out of the woodwork and snag some legit basketball. But for us, this overwhelming set of games is almost like a tease. The sport is basically daring us bloggers to stay up for 24+ hours and document the happenings, health be damned. And oh boy, is it ever tempting.
But after conferring with Nick on the topic, we've officially chosen to sit out this year and keep our sanity intact. Let the overzealous folk who don't enjoy sleep quite as much as we do watch TV until their eyes bleed. You can go right ahead. Because unless you're partial to Hawaii basketball, or have an issue with missing this game, you should be able to safely hit the sack and not feel like you've missed anything. But to the 24-hour guys out there, on whatever Doritos-encrusted couch you dwell, we send both our blessings and our apologies. Brave souls, indeed.
The local guys
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Texas needs J'Covan Brown to step up and carry the offense, and LOOK, he did it quite well yesterday (Houston Chronicle)
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Mark Gottfried thinks he's got a dangerous squad, even with C.J. Leslie yet to take the floor (Fayetteville Observer)
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Glad to see Kevin Parrom back on the court for Arizona after a rough summer (Arizona Daily Star)
The blogosphere
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Rick Pitino gets a 20-point win over Lamar, loses swingman Mike Marra to a torn ACL (Card Chronicle)
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Here's how Cleveland State managed to frustrate John Jenkins (The Mikan Drill)
Who won it best
California - More specifically, Cal's backcourt. The trio of Gutierrez, Crabbe and sixth man extraordinaire Justin Cobbs combined for 52 points and 12 assists while shooting 58.6% from the floor. This unit edges out Washington for the most intriguing 1-2-3 guard punch in the Pac-12.
Who lost it worst
Vanderbilt - Ouch. Beating Oregon was a piece of cake, oddly enough. Cleveland State? Not so much. Not having a Festus for the rest of us hurts too, no doubt. But this is Cleveland State, and you're masquerading around as the No. 7 team in America. The path of legitimacy is a long, winding road, and Kevin Stallings' team can't be losing games like this.
MVP
Kendall Marshall, UNC - The quick triggered floor general is going to have nights like he did against UNC-Asheville (15 assists, 1 turnover) throughout the year, but these numbers were just plain silly. It's almost like he's playing streetball out there. Take that, Jordan Taylor.
By the numbers
1.05 - Points per minute scored by Creighton's Doug McDermott in a massacre of Chicago State. He finished 10 of 12 shooting and added eight rebounds.
It was tweeted
This really happened
Butler vs. Evansville, the controversy