CBB Saturday: Winners and Losers From Finals Weekend
We had another phenomenal college basketball Saturday with games carrying us all the way into the early a.m. on Sunday. The weekend after finals never disappoints.
But who were the biggest winners and losers from all the action? Here’s what you need to know:
WINNERS
NEBRASKETBALL — The Cornhuskers are 11-0 for the first time in school history and are No. 19 on Kenpom. This team is FOR REAL. Jamarques Lawrence was the hero, draining a buzzer-beater to ultimately beat No. 13 Illinois in Champaign. This could be the team to give the Nebraska program its first-ever NCAA Tournament win.
Arizona guard Brayden Burries — The freshman averaged 7.8 points in Arizona’s first five games while picking up wins against Florida, UConn and UCLA. He’s now turning it on, and the entire country should be terrified. After 16 points against Auburn, Burries dropped a career and game-high 28 points in Arizona’s rout of No. 12 Alabama, including a stretch in the second half where he scored 15-straight for the Wildcats. Per Matt Norlander, Arizona is now the first team in the last 30 years with five wins over ranked opponents in its first nine games.
Kansas‘ OTHER star guard — Melvin Council has been rock solid for Kansas all season, even with him shooting just 18.5% from three coming into Saturday. He’s never lacked confidence, and everything clicked for him against the Wolfpack. Council finished with 36 points and NINE triples to lead Kansas to a 77-76 win in OT. He had 18 of the Jayhawks’ last 24 points and had no problem running the offense without Darryn Peterson down the stretch. An update on Peterson’s status is here. Bill Self said postgame Council had the best road performance he’s seen in his 23 years at Kansas.
Michigan State guard Divine Ugochukwu — In his first start for the Spartans, Ugochukwu poured in a career-high 23 points and seemed to hit every big shot for Michigan State down the stretch to beat Penn State. He had the triple to take the lead with 3:30 left and then the dagger a few possessions later. Michigan State doesn’t win without the Miami transfer, and his teammates mobbed him in the locker room postgame. Ugochukwu could be the answer alongside Jeremy Fears in Michigan State’s backcourt.
Kentucky’s effort — It was an ugly game for the Wildcats offensively, and Mark Pope admitted so in his postgame press conference. However, the defensive effort from the Wildcats was extraordinary. Indiana was held to its worst effective field goal percentage (38.6%) of the season, Lamar Wilkerson and Tucker DeVries scored 15 points apiece but were inefficient, and everyone else was held in check. This is the type of effort Kentucky fans have been looking for, and they got it. Pope also praised the response of Brandon Garrison postgame.
Arkansas forward Trevon Brazile — Against Louisville 10 days ago, Brazile was all over the place, hitting threes, blocking shots and finishing at the rim to help Arkansas pull off a much-needed upset win at home. On Saturday, Brazile once again came up big for the Razorbacks: 24 points, 10 rebounds, 4/5 3FG and two blocks to beat No. 16 Texas Tech. He went bump for bump with All-American JT Toppin. If he continues to play like this, Arkansas is going to be really tough to beat, especially with Darius Acuff looking more and more like a top 5-10 NBA Draft pick. Rob Dauster discusses Acuff more in depth here.
Georgia’s NCAA Tournament hopes — Behind a dominant second half performance, Georgia secured a lopsided win over Cincinnati. The Bulldogs are now 9-1 on the season with wins over Cinci, Georgia Tech, Florida State and Xavier. None of those really stand out, but Georgia has been efficient and the Bulldogs are up to No. 22 on Kenpom after Saturday’s win.
UMass and Hofstra! — Frank Martin and UMass escaped the winter cold, headed down to Amerant Bank Arena in South Florida and walked out with a 103-95 win over Florida State. Four players — Daniel Hankins-Sanford, K’Jei Parker, Leonardo Bettiol and Marcus Banks — finish with 18+ points to secure a huge program win. The Seminoles (5-5) have lost four straight games, while UMass (8-3) has secured back-to-back wins against ACC opponents. As for Hofstra, a win over Syracuse in the Carrier Dome is massive for Speedy Claxton’s program. Junior guard Cruz Davis with 22 points and nine assists for the Pride.
LOSERS
Texas Tech’s resume — The Red Raiders can’t seem to get that big win in the non-conference. They’ve lost to Illinois, Purdue and now Arkansas and have Duke left before Christmas to get a marquee win. Beating Wake Forest and LSU may hold up decently on Selection Sunday, but Texas Tech is after a top-16 seed. With this non-conference resume its going to be tough sledding to secure one. The Red Raiders lost to Arkansas despite 30 points and 11 rebounds from JT Toppin and 26 points and 11 assists from Christian Anderson.
Oklahoma State’s undefeated record — The Cowboys dropped their first game of the season to their in-state rival Oklahoma, 85-76. Porter Moser’s bunch really needed this win for their NCAA Tournament hopes, and they played like it. The backcourt of Xzayvier Brown (21 points and five assists) and Nijel Pack (18 points, six rebounds) led the way for the Sooners (7-3).
Creighton/Syracuse’s Tourney Hopes — The Blue Jays are now 5-5 after losing to Kansas State at home, 83-76. The five losses are all against power conference opponents, and Creighton’s only P5 win is against 4-5 Oregon. You can cross Creighton off the list for at-large NCAA Tournament consideration. Kansas State (7-4) has a lot of work to do in the Big 12 to have a shot. Syracuse’s loss to Hofstra will not help the Orange come Selection Sunday, and their marquee win over Tennessee isn’t aging well.
Marquette, again — Purdue destroyed Marquette in Mackey Arena behind 22 points, 11 rebounds and two blocks from big man Oscar Cluff. Braden Smith also had 10 assists.
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