After all that turkey, potatoes, yams, and pie, nothing tastes quite so good as a bowl of high-fiber cereal and a cup of coffee, eh? If you're like me, plans to watch hoops are often derailed during family holidays, so we'll all get caught up on the haps in the holiday tourneys this morning.
76 Classic: West Virginia 84 - Portland 66
Da'Sean Butler scored 26 to make damn sure the Mountaineers went home with the Classic championship, capping off a revealing Feast Week with the expected dominance coming at the expense of an unexpected foe. Portland shot 20% from behind the arc as a team, and that just won't get it done against a Bob Huggins-coached team.
Old Spice Classic: Florida State 57 - Marquette 56
Plenty of fans made the relatively short drive from Tallahassee to Orlando to do that damned annoying Tomahawk Chop, and the Seminoles made it worth their time. After falling behind by 12 points at the half, FSU roared back behind a power game from Chris Singleton, who led the team in points (18), rebounds (10), and steals (4). Derwin Kitchen kicked in 14 big ones and God Shammgod Trophy candidate Luke Loucks dished out four assists.
NIT Season Tip-Off: Duke 68 - UConn 59
The unathletic unforgivably white Duke Blue Devils grabbed a big early win at MSG with our own Jacob Osterhout watching from the skybox. Jon Scheyer led a winning effort, tallying 19 points, 5 assists, and 4 absolutely ree-dikkulous faces for the Devils. Brian Zoubek grabbed 11 boards and made some nifty passes out of the paint. Non-caucasian athletes Nolan Smith and Lance Thomas also scored in double figures for Duke.
CBE Classic: Texas 78 - Pitt 62
Pitt will be decent this year, but they didn't have enough firepower to beat Texas in this one. Damion James scored 20 with 9 boards. The Longhorns lost Varez Ward (6.7 ppg, 2.3 spg, 2.3 apg) for a long while after he suffered a torn tendon in his quad muscle.
Cancun Challenge: Kentucky 73 - Stanford 65 (OT)
Freshman John Wall had 23 points to lead the Wildcats to the Strictly Ballroom Trophy in Cancun. John Calipari's team needed OT to beat Johnny Dawkins' 3-3 Cardinal, and I think I know why. 6'7" senior Landry Fields led Stanford in every major statistical category, with 23 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 steals, and 1 block. Future opponents might want to get a body on that guy.
Legends Classic: Florida 71 - Rutgers 58
It's tempting to gloss over this Florida win in a minor tournament, in which Kenny Boynton scored 29 to beat the Scarlet Knights. That would be fine, except that the Gators beat #2 Michigan State in the semis just to get to the final. Billy Donovan is still kickin', hoops fans.
Great Alaska Shootout: Washington State 93 - San Diego 56
I actually thought the crappy economy had killed the Great Alaska, but there it was on my TV, in grainy home-movie-like footage (thanks, Carrs/Safeway!). Klay Thompson scored 43 for the 6-0 Cougs. Ken Bone's run-and-gun style is working for WSU so far, eh? Quite a turnaround from Tony Bennet's rusty-shot-clock offense. Fans in Pullman must be thrilled.
Maui Invitational: Gonzaga 61 - Cincinnati 59
The Zags grabbed a championship early this year, taking their first-ever Maui crown. Robert Sacre survived a tussle with new STF All-Star candidate Steve Toyloy to score 14 points for the Bulldogs, but Matt Bouldin (11 boards) and Steven Gray (13 points) shared co-MVP honors, which no doubt came with a bucket of free poi. Host Chaminade stumbled to a shocking eighth-place finish.
Puerto Rico Tip-Off: Villanova 79 - Ole Miss 67
The Wildcats had to hold off an early challenge from George Mason, then narrowly escape a Dayton surge before meeting the Rebs in the final. There the drama ended, as Antonio Pena had a 17 point, 16 board day to help 'Nova dominate Ole Miss. Scottie Reynolds scored 21 and Corey Stokes chipped in 18.
STF's first mid-major crush of 2009: The Portland Pilots. These guys bear watching. They have a Japanese point guard, Jack Sikma's son in the paint, a trash-talking German big man named Smeulders, and a coach who gave ESPN the "Don't call us cute" speech. They couldn't handle WVU, but they have handled Minnesota, UCLA, and Oregon so far this year. They get excellent shots at non-con foes Washington and Nevada in December, as well.
Champions of Suck: The UCLA Bruins. Cal State Baskersfield and Pepperdine should be ashamed of themselves. They're the only two wins on the Bruins' dance card this season. Fullerton, Portland, and Butler have waxed the rebuilding powerhouse during a very rough November. Add to that the repugnant behavior of Euro-trash Forward Nikola Dragovic, and you've got a team in a full-on swoon.
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As a Gator fan, I'll admit they have not played very well in several games this year. However, when everything is on the line, I believe they can and will do whatever it takes to win. Gators should be always competitive enough to keep pace with the others. I used to attend their games even their tickets get sold out. Luckily I fond a good place to get my seat
http://www.ticketsinventory.com/college/basketball/florida-gators-tickets/
Go Gators!! Go Gators!! Go Gators
Wow. I guess someone should inform the person who runs the Legends Classic website, then: http://www.gazellegroup.com/events/legends/index_main.htm
Kenny Boynton scored 19 points, not 29, in Florida's win over Rutgers.