TBB will be in full-on holiday travel mode Wed-Sun, so I truly do not know what this blog will look like for the remainder of the week. I will try to find time to maintain the GOI, but even that may prove to be a challenge. So, let me take this opportunity to set up the Thanksgiving hoopfeast.
1. WKU (3-0) welcomes Towson (2-1) to town this evening. Gary Neal (26.0 ppg) will bring his high-falutin' game to Diddle Arena in an attempt to besmirch the Toppers' currently blemish-free resume. As good as Neal is, Towson may lack the depth to hang around for the entire game.
2. Also, to tide you over, click here for the full listing of home and away teams for this year's ESPN BracketBusters event. In a couple of weeks, I will start posting full standings for the Buster teams.
3. Looking ahead to some tasty treats later this week:
--Maui Invitational games beginning at 12 pm CST (5th place), 2 pm (3rd place), and the championship game is at 8 pm tomorrow. All games on ESPN2.
--Preseason NIT Final Four plays on Wed. as well. Gonzaga vs North Carolina and Tennessee vs Butler will be two games that feature fours teams with a combined 14-0 record at this point.
--Great Alaska Shootout and the Old Spice Classic will be in full swing on Turkey Day.
Lots more on the weekend, but there will be an update before then. Hopefully. Safe travels to all and a Happy Thanksgiving.
Last Night's GOI
--at Maryland 71, Winthrop 60. The Terps are playing well early on. They built a nice lead and kept the Eagles at bay for the entire game.
CBE Classic
--Duke 71, Air Force 56. AFA got off to a rough start, then cut Duke's lead to five in the second half, but never could quite get over the hump. Duke's freshmen delivered in a big way.
--Marquette 87, Texas Tech 72. MU looks like contender. TX Tech...
Maui Invitational
--Kentucky 87, DePaul 81. Both teams looked better than expected. But, where was the D?
--Memphis 77, Oklahoma 65. Memphis is picking up where they left off last season.
--Georgia Tech 79, Purdue 61. Purdue stayed close for most of the way, but GT's young 'uns were too much late in the game.
Paradise Jam
--Alabama 63, Xavier 56. Close game that will turn out to be a nice win for Bama when NCAA selection time rolls around.
--Villanova 89, Iowa 60. Curtis Sumpter found his groove. Iowa has a long way to go.
Belt
--Arkansas State 68, at Tennessee-Martin 63. Any road win is a good road win, especially for a team struggling early on.
Tonight's GOI
--Mississippi State at Clemson. This is a meaningful game for two teams that figure to be mid-pack in their respective power conferences.
--Vermont at Michigan State. Rematch of a great NCAA Tourney game two years ago.
--Drexel at Penn. CAA and Ivy faves go head to head.
CBE Classic
--Texas Tech vs Air Force. Both look to bounce back from their first losses last night.
--Duke vs Marquette. Fancy early season match up.
Maui Invitational
--Memphis vs Georgia Tech. LOTS of athletes on the floor in this one.
--UCLA vs Kentucky. LOTS of history on the floor in this one.
--Purdue vs Oklahoma. LOTS of rebuilding pieces on the floor in this one.
Belt
--North Texas at Tulsa. NT already has a road win over Charlotte.
--UL-Lafayette at Oral Roberts. Eagles looking to build on Kansas win.
--FIU at South Florida. FIU has won two in a row after a rough start.
--Towson at Western Kentucky. Gary Neal (Towson) and Courtney Lee (WKU) are two of better non-power conference players in the land.
