College basketball limped out of the gate yesterday, with substandard performances from Big Six teams for the most part, and uninspired challenges from mid-majors - also for the most part.
An Argument in Favor of the Big Ten Network
Most of us don't get the Big Ten Network in our homes. I did last season, but it seems to have been removed from the lineup this year. Anyway, if you plan on calling your cable provider to get new channels, the BTN should be on your list, and here's why: Ohio State all-around stud Evan Turner unleashed hell upon the Alcorn State Braves in one of the first games of the season, dropping a 14 point, 17 board, 10 assist triple-double on the hapless SWACcies, leading the Buckeyes to an easy 100-60 opening-day win. And it all happened on the BTN.
Racers Don't Half-Step
The Murray State Racers traveled from tiny Murray, Kentucky to meet the big, bad Cal Bears on their home floor in Berkeley last night. The OVC favorites showed why big-time programs might regret scheduling them for guarantee games this year, taking a couple of early leads and looking very confident while jousting with the Pac-10 contenders. Cal started to pull away with 11:22 remaining in the first half, which is where most of these games get out of hand. The Racers continued to execute their game plan, and were within six with less than 2:00 left in the game. Cal won a 75-70 squeaker on the strength of their backcourt play and a 41% mark from three-land. Murray State outrebounded the Bears and blocked three shots on defense.
Zeke Meets Roy. Hee Haw Cameras Nowhere to be Seen
Now we see why Isaiah Thomas fought so hard to avoid playing the defending National Champs. Carolina drew first blood and ran away with an 88-72 win in the 2KSports tournament. As expected, the Tarheel big men dominated, with Deon Thompson (20/10) and Ed Davis (13/11) both notching big-man double-doubles. Larry Drew II ran Roy's offense pretty well, dishing 6 assists to go with 7 points.
Albany took the ass-whuppin' that should have been LeMoyne's last night, rolling over, drooling, and kicking their legs for Jim Boeheim's 800th coaching victory. The Orange were a putrid 2-17 from three and lousy from the stripe (48%), but had no problem securing the 75-43 win.
Play of the Night
The proprieter of fnl4.com dropped by last night's chat, and captured this awesome video clip of Patrick Christopher's jaw-dropping jam in last night's Murray State/Cal game.
We also learned that the man with two first names loves to buy shoes. When I asked if athletic scholarships had a Nike rider, West Coast editor Seth Kolloen deadpanned "He has a paper route".
You know you're badass when you can throw down a dunk on your own nutsack. F'reel.