FAST BREAK (November 29): ACC/Big Ten Challenge Intesifies

For this week, I will be trying something different from the usual "Games to Watch" articles that have been posted for the past two weeks.  Each day, an article titled "Fast Break" will be posted, giving you a quick recap of the action that you may have missed from the previous night.  Since it is Wednesday, this article will feature games from Tuesday night.  In addition, the bottom of the article will feature games to watch for the following day.  So in this case, there will be highlighted games for Wednesday.  Without further ado, here is your...

FAST BREAK

Michigan State (4-4)
#5 Duke (7-1) W
69-78

Duke's Amile Jefferson (Photo by Gerry Broome/AP)

Despite a close game through the first half that ended in a 35-35 tie, Coack K and the Duke Blue Devils were able to pull away in the second half due largely in part to the tremendous play out of junior forward Grayson Allen.  Allen finished the game 24 points and 4 assists, stroking 5-11 from deep.  Senior forward Amile Jefferson also came to play, posting a double-double with 17 points and 13 boards.  Coach Izzo came out last week and apologized to his team for such a difficult schedule to begin the season.  Whether it's been a tough schedule, an extremely young team, a lack of talent or all of the above, Michigan State needs to figure things out.  Looking ahead, they hit a bit of lull in their schedule before conference play begins at the end of the month.

Notable Players:

DUKE - Grayson Allen (37 minutes, 24 points, 4 assists, 5-11 from three)
DUKE - Amile Jefferson (35 minutes, 17 points, 13 rebounds, 7-12 from field)
MICH ST - Miles Bridges (34 minutes, 11 points, 9 rebounds, 4-13 from field, fouled out)

Buffalo (4-3)
#10 Creighton (7-0) W
72-93

This was another contest that featured a tight first half lead turn into a Bluejays second half stomping.  It's been a bit of a tale of two halves for the top-10 ranked Bluejays this season.  Greg McDermott's squad has often struggled through the first half, drawing doubt that they're as good as their ranking suggests.  Yet, they have found a way to come out of the break and blow teams out, suggesting that they can be much better than their ranking.  One thing's for certain: this team likes to run and they like to score lots of points.

Notable Players:

CREIGH - Marcus Foster (33 minutes, 22 points, 3 rebounds, 8-16 from field)
CREIGH - Justin Patton (32 minutes, 21 points, 10 rebounds, 9-10 from field)
BUFF - Blake Hamilton (35 minutes, 21 points, 3 rebounds, 8-23 from field)

#22 Syracuse (4-2)
#17 Wisconsin (6-2) W
60-77

A 4 point difference at the half turned into an 17 point Wisconsin lead just 5:35 into the second half.  The Badgers almost got a triple-double out of senior forward Nigel Hayes, who finished the game with 9 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists.  Syracuse doesn't have a clear playmaker at this point in the season.  Andrew White III, who leads the team in PPG with 15.5, finished this one with 14 points on 5-15 shooting.

Notable Players:

WISC - Nigel Hayes (32 minutes, 9 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists, 4-11 from field)
WISC - Ethan Happ (32 minutes, 24 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 10-12 from field)
WISC - Bronson Koenig (27 minutes, 20 points, 1 assist, 6-9 from three)

#21 Rhode Island (5-2)
Valparaiso (7-1) W
62-65

Valparaiso's Alec Peters, #25 (Photo by Joe Raymond/AP)

Upset of the night!  Head Coach Matt Lottich and company defeated Rhode Island, who, if you weren't aware of, is ranked #21 in the country.  This is the first Valparaiso win against a ranked opponent since 1998, when the Crusaders knocked off Ole Miss in the NCAA Tournament on a Bryce Drew three pointer at the buzzer. Since 1998, Valpo had lost 40 straight games to ranked opponents.  Senior forward Alec Peters helped secure the enormous win by blocking Jarvis Garrett's potential game-tying three with under 2 seconds left.

Notable Players:

VALPO - Alec Peters (38 minutes, 27 points, 9 rebounds, 8-17 from field)
VALPO - Tevonn Walker (34 minutes, 10 points, 7 rebounds, 5-6 from field)
RHODE - Hassan Martin (38 minutes, 16 points, 6 rebounds, 6-10 from field)

Pittsburgh (6-1) W
Maryland (7-1) 
73-59

Pittsburgh's Michael Young, #2 (Photo by Tommy Gilligan/USA Today)

The "sleeper" game of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge was dominated from the jump by Pittsburgh, who is off to a rather impressive start this season.  So was Maryland though, who takes their first loss of the season after giving up 45 first half points to the Panthers.  Pittsburgh once again got major scoring out of their senior forwards Michael Young and Jamel Artis.  While this game may seem like just another Tuesday night college basketball game, it could hold a lot of weight come March.

Notable Players:

PITT - Michael Young (33 minutes, 25 points, 9 rebounds, 7-17 from field)
PITT - Jamel Artis (38 minutes, 22 points, 6 rebounds, 8-15 from field)
MARY - Melo Trimble (35 minutes, 13 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 4-13 from field)

UT-Arlington (5-3) W
Texas (3-3) 
72-61

Maybe not as flashy as some of the other games Tuesday night, UT-Arlington quietly got an upset win against fellow Texans.  After starting the year 3-0 and reaching #22 last week on the AP Top 25, Texas has struggled mightily, dropping three straight.  This one may be the worst of the three.  I understand that the Longhorns are young and that they still have a chance to compete this season.  However, they must find an answer now after getting roughed up by UT-Arlington.

Notable Players:

UTA - Kevin Hervey (31 minutes, 18 points, 10 rebounds, 6-15 from field)
TEXAS - Tevin Mack (30 minutes, 19 points, 7 rebounds, 8-14 from field)
TEXAS - Jarrett Allen (33 minutes, 13 points, 12 rebounds, 4-10 from field)

Houston (5-1)
LSU (5-2) W
65-84

What became a theme Tuesday night was a close halftime score leading into a second half blowout.  This was the case once again.  With a one point LSU lead to begin the second half, the Tigers quickly jumped out to an 11 point advantage just 4:08 into the half.  Houston cut the lead to 9 shortly after but a three by LSU's Wayde Sims extended the lead to 12 and it was all Tigers from there.  Houston receives their first loss of the season with #21 Rhode Island lurking a week from Saturday.

Notable Players:

LSU - Antonio Blakeney (34 minutes, 23 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 10-23 from field)
LSU - Brandon Sampson (30 minutes, 16 points, 6 rebounds, 4-7 from three)
HOU - Rob Gray Jr. (29 minutes, 19 points, 6-11 from field, 6-6 from free throw)

NC State (5-2)
Illinois (5-3) W
74-88

Illinois' Malcolm Hill (Photo by Illinois Athletics)

Coming off of three straight losses after a 4-0 start to the year, the Illinois Illini hosted NC State as part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.  The Wolfpack feature one of the best players in the country in freshman guard Dennis Smith Jr., but he failed to impress Tuesday night, scoring 12 points on 4-11 shooting.  On the other side, Illinois' Malcolm Hill finished the night with 22 points and 9 rebounds.  It was the Fighting Illini's bench though that made the difference in this one.  They outscored NC State 39-22.

Notable Players:

ILLINOIS - Malcolm Hill (35 minutes, 22 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists)
ILLINOIS - Leron Black (26 minutes, 15 points, 8 rebounds, 7-14 from field)
NC STATE - Dennis Smith Jr. (38 minutes, 12 points, 7 rebounds, 4-11 from field)
NC STATE - Torin Dorn (31 minutes, 17 points, 7 rebounds, 7-11 from field)

Iowa (3-4)
Notre Dame (7-0) W
78-92

Notre Dame's Bonzie Colson, #35 (Photo by Matt Cashore/USA Today)

Finishing the night was another ACC-Big Ten matchup between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame.  This was a tight one for the majority of the game, with Iowa leading by 2 points five minutes into the second half.  Notre Dame took over from there, thanks in large part to junior forward Bonzie Colson and the free throw line.  The Fighting Irish finished 30-33 from the charity stripe, with Colson going a perfect 12-12 from there.

Notable Players:

ND - Bonzie Colson (37 minutes, 24 points, 17 rebounds, 3 blocks, 12-12 from free throw)
ND - Steve Vasturia (38 minutes, 22 points, 9 rebounds, 7-7 from free throw)
IOWA - Peter Jok (36 minutes, 15 points, 6 rebounds, 4-20 from field, 2-11 from three)
IOWA - Jordan Bohannon (32 minutes, 23 points, 7 assists, 7-15 from three)

Games to Watch Today (Wednesday, November 30)

Note: All times are Central Standard Time

6:00pm - ESPN

#15 Purdue (5-1)
#14 Louisville (5-1)


6:00pm

Washington (4-2)
TCU (6-0)


8:15pm - ESPN

#3 North Carolina (7-0)
#13 Indiana (4-1)


8:00pm - ESPN2

Ohio State (6-0)
#6 Virginia (6-0)


10:00pm

#12 Saint Mary's (5-0)
Stanford (6-1)


That's all for today.  Be sure to check back tomorrow for recaps of the action from Wednesday night!

Stats from ESPN.com