College Hoops Season 2023-24

Lunch Pail Guy said:
Top performers in the top 25 so far:

SR Hunter Dickinson, C Kansas- 22.0-12.3-2.3-1.7-1.0
SO Braden Smith, G Purdue- 11.7-6.0-8.3-1.3-0.0
SR Tyler Kolek, G Marquette- 14.7-5.3-4.7-1.0-0.0
SO Alex Karaban, F UConn- 17.0-6.3-1.0-0.7-1.0
SR Cam Spencer, G UConn- 15.0-2.7-5.0-1.0-0.3
SO Donovan Clingan, C UConn- 15.0-6.7-0.7-0.3-2.7
SR Dalton Knecht, G Tennessee- 19.7-3.7-1.0-0.7-0.3
SR Baylor Scheierman, G Creighton- 18.0-6.0-4.5-0.5-0.3
SR Ryan Kalkbrenner, C Creighton- 12.8-5.3-1.5-0.3-2.3
SO Kyle Filipowski, C Duke- 18.8-7.3-1.3-1.3-1.3
FR Braden Huff, F Gonzaga- 21.0-7.5-0.0-0.0-0.5
FR Reed Sheppard, G Kentucky- 13.3-2.8-2.8-3.0-1.5
SR Grant Nelson, F Alabama- 13.8-6.8-2.5-0.8-1.8
SR Tristan da Silva, F Colorado- 17.0-4.0-3.3-0.7-1.3
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Thanks for sharing those stats and welcome! I think this year we have some of the top players on the top teams in the country. Should make for a memorable season.
 
my guy Aidan Mahaney is in a TERRIBLE shooting slump, and like almost all young players it is hurting his overall performance. and as the lead guard for the Gaels, it has really hurt the team. hopefully, he can work through this quickly, because the Gaels are playing well below expectations.

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i feel bad for Wisconsin fans. when your two leading scorers (Storr and Hepburn) are the worst shooters on the team (38% and 46%) AND are guards that average nearly as many combined turnovers (3.3) as assists (4.3), it’s a recipe for disaster … except the two aforementioned “stars” are Upside Americans, so they can’t be the problem. Madison has surely gone Mad.

they face off today with a Virginia team that lacks a true superstar but plays very, very sound defense, which is “weird” since they have so many non-affletes in the rotation.

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the Maui Invitational tips off today with a LOT of highly rated teams. the most notable first-day matchup features #2 Purdue vs #11 Gonzaga, so lots of firepower and gym rats should be on display.

the early game is scheduled to start in about an hour, with #7 Tennessee squaring off with Syracuse. in a bit of a strange turn (based on recent history), Tennessee is led by White athletes (Knecht and Vescovi) whilst the Orange are very dark.

later tonight, #1 Kansas feasts on Chaminade, and #4 Marquette plays a seemingly-overmatched UCLA.

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#5 UConn and their balanced lineup face off against #19 Texas in a contest between two undefeated teams.
 
2 whites starting for Tennessee! So does that mean they have more white starters on their basketball team than football team!
 
jphoss said:
2 whites starting for Tennessee! So does that mean they have more white starters on their basketball team than football team!
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if true, how sad is that for the Volunteer State and the legacy of Daniel Boone?!

also in this game, i've been VERY impressed with Justin Taylor for Syracuse. I’ve not seen him play before, but he’s AGGRESSIVE going to the glass from his wing spot. dude could play for me, for sure.
 
Jimmy Chitwood said:
i feel bad for Wisconsin fans. when your two leading scorers (Storr and Hepburn) are the worst shooters on the team (38% and 46%) AND are guards that average nearly as many combined turnovers (3.3) as assists (4.3), it’s a recipe for disaster … except the two aforementioned “stars” are Upside Americans, so they can’t be the problem. Madison has surely gone Mad.

they face off today with a Virginia team that lacks a true superstar but plays very, very sound defense, which is “weird” since they have so many non-affletes in the rotation..
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It's been irritating to see Essegian ride the pine while Wisconsin struggles for life. His play hasn't been great but he hasn't even gotten the minutes to get warmed up. I hope he starts getting some minutes--maybe even tonight.
 
these Upside Americans for Tennessee are amongst the dumbest basketball era i’ve ever seen. they’ve caught the ball whilst standing out of bounds (during live game play) at least 5 times already. three times by the same player! Un-Real!

i can honestly say that, in the literal thousands of games i’ve played in, i have NEVER committed that boneheaded error.

and speaking of Tennessee affletes, i can’t stand how Ziegler plays. he’s far too loose with the ball and routinely makes lazy, habit passes. as a result, despite his limited minutes in this game, he’s STILL committed 6 turnovers already. simply awful.
 
early on, this Purdue-Gonzaga game is living up to its billing. very fun, fast paced, high level basketball being played. lots of our guys are showing out, too.
 
Jay Bilas is being extra careful to only read off the kosher-approved script in this game. Purdue’s black players are all “fast twitch athletes” that are “really athletic” because the Boilermakers wanted to bring in more “athleticism.” meanwhile, it’s the White players who are dunking on people and soaring for blocked shots, but obviously doing it unathletically. clown world.
 
much of the talk entering the Purdue-Gonzaga game was about the Zags’ new transfer point guard, Nembhard. and to be fair, the junior is very good.

BUT!

he got outplayed in this matchup by Purdue’s sophomore point guard, Braden Smith. Smith not only dictated tempo more effectively, he also out-performed his counterpart on the stat sheet.

Nembhard: 11 points (5-17 shooting), 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, with 2 turnovers.
Smith: 13 points (6-8 shooting), 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, with 2 turnovers.

and contrary to what Bilas said about the darkies in the game “fast twitch affletes,” it was the boring, blue collar, gym rat players who had all the dunks and blocked shots except one in the game. “weird,” huh?

hat top to Purdue for earning a tough win. Gonzaga looked good, but they wore down over the final six minutes.
 
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Jimmy Chitwood said:
he got outplayed in this matchup by Purdue’s sophomore point guard, Braden Smith. Smith not only dictated tempo more effectively, he also out-performed his counterpart on the stat sheet.

Nembhard: 11 points (5-17 shooting), 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, with 2 turnovers.
Smith: 13 points (6-9 shooting), 4 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals, with 2 turnovers.
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Smith has been having a great season so far. He's fun to watch too. I thought Gonzaga would stick around with a deep bench but Purdue was too much to handle. They're going to be a contender.
 
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wow! #24 Virginia ran into a buzzsaw today against Wisconsin. nice to see the Badgers turn things around, behind an offense that ran through Crowl (who responded magnificently!) and a defense sparked by Wahl.

the Badgers were up 24 when they took their foot off the gas pedal and started subbing a lot. Crowl looked like a man amongst boys out there.
 
Jimmy Chitwood said:
Jay Bilas is being extra careful to only read off the kosher-approved script in this game. Purdue’s black players are all “fast twitch athletes” that are “really athletic” because the Boilermakers wanted to bring in more “athleticism.” meanwhile, it’s the White players who are dunking on people and soaring for blocked shots, but obviously doing it unathletically. clown world.
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I heard that pregame. Purdue has gotten “more athletic.” Thank you , Jay Bilas. How so?
 
sophomore guard Fletcher Loyer played some impressive basketball for Purdue in their hard fought, VERY physical game vs Tennessee today. scorching the nets for 25 points, the “Tax Attorney” (as i call him) defied his unassuming appearance and repeatedly cut the heart out of the Vols, chipping in 6 rebounds and 3 steals to lead the Boilermakers to victory.

Caleb Furst and Ethan Morton made big impacts off the bench, especially with their defense.

Dalton Knecht barely played in the second half (continuing struggles from his cramping issues yesterday?) yet still had team-highs with 16 points and 7 rebounds. he’s the real deal, even though he still has tons of upside, especially tightening up his handle and improving defensively.
 
this Kansas-Marquette game should be a good one, but there’s something i (obviously?) just don’t get …

the clearly-best player from each team is a White player (Dickinson and Kolek respectively), yet they’re the only White player in each team’s starting lineup. why don’t these coaches ever make this connection? if the best players play, then why don’t they search for more players like their very best? “weird,” huh?
 
Hunter Dickinson bounced back from a subpar performance last night against Marquette with a stellar outing against Tennessee. the big man finished with an efficient team-high 17 points (7-13 shooting) and a WHOPPING 20 rebounds! his Jayhawks outlasted the Vols for the 69-60 win, earning third place out in Maui.

in the loss, for the first time this season someone other than Dalton Knecht led the Volunteers in scoring. Knecht had a woeful shooting performance, finishing only 4-17 for 13 points. he’ll undoubtedly bounce back. rising to the occasion, Santiago Vescovi kept Tennessee in it with a game-high 21 (8-16 shooting) and a team-high 3 assists with only 1 turnover. he’s very good and very capable of scoring, but has willingly accepted a complimentary role to Knecht.

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#4 Marquette is about to tip off against #2 Purdue for the championship of the Maui Invitational. it should be a good one.

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Baylor Scheierman (21 points and 5 boards) and Ryan Kalkbrenner (15 points and 4 rebounds) are carrying Creighton against a game Loyola Chicago squad. no one else has scored more than 3 points for the Bluejays in the first half.
 
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Tyler Kolek put on quite a show (team-highs of 22 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists) for Marquette, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the monster game of Purdue’s monster inside. Zach Edey, despite being fouled near-constantly, carried the Boilermakers (and many of the Golden Eagles) on his back, as he finished with game-highs of 28 points (11-19 shooting), 15 rebounds, and 2 blocks. sophomore point guard Braden Smith had a superb showing in a supporting role, adding 18 points (7-11 shooting), 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. dude is an angry little ball of hate on the hardwood, and plays tougher than nails.

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Wisconsin earned a tough win over all-black SMU, thanks to gritty performances by Tyler Wahl (team-high 14 points) and Max Klesmit (12 points). finally, the ball-hogging guards quit jacking up a crazy, inordinate amount of shots, and the improved quality of ball movement noticeable. to be fair, black freshman guard John Blackwell provided a HUGE boost of energy and defense off the bench.

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Creighton plays for the title of their little tournament this afternoon after taking care of business. Kalkbrenner dominated the second half, and the Bluejays didn’t miss a beat despite missing Mason Miller who didn’t dress out due to illness.

Creighton will be facing Colorado State in a battle of unbeaten teams. Both are 5-0 entering the game.
 
Good breakdowns. Was able to catch the Wisconsin game. Great comeback for them, down 11 at one point. Storr played better driving and Blackwell admittedly is an above average Freshman. Essegian even got going a bit with 5 points. Was happy to see some 3s fall for Klesmit. He needed those. Wahl was great and 7 out of 8 at the free throw line!
 
Creighton and Iowa both had absolutely TERRIBLE shooting games today, and not surprisingly they took frustrating losses to less talented, albeit solid defensive, teams.

Iowa only hit one, ONE!!!, three-point shot while the game still mattered against Oklahoma, before (finally! thankfully!) finishing with a still horrid 4-23 (17.4%) from deep. they weren’t much better overall at just 35%.

Ouch!

Creighton was slightly better(?) from deep against Colorado State, connecting on a woeful 6-29 (20.7%) but even worse overall at an abysmal 27.9%.

Ouch Again!

those numbers will definitely get you the L.

as an additional note on the Oklahoma-Iowa game, a VASTLY underrated player was in action. Sam Godwin, a former walk-on and transfer from Wofford, is one of the nation’s elite offensive rebounders. he snags an almost-impossible-to-believe 39% of his own team’s missed shots. simply incredible!!! he’s also the Sooners’ leading shot blocker, having more than twice as many blocks as any teammate. yet, the announcers assured me that he’s “not very athletic,” but rather he amassed those numbers “by being in the right place at the right time.” how consistently fortunate he must be!
 
Godwin is definitely a sleeper! I was combing through Oklahomas statistical leaders earlier this morning and his name jumped out to me. Very efficient post player and he’s doing it off the bench!
 
Bucky said:
Godwin is definitely a sleeper! I was combing through Oklahomas statistical leaders earlier this morning and his name jumped out to me. Very efficient post player and he’s doing it off the bench!
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he actually got the start today, and he was solid all around, chipping in a very efficient 10 points in 19 minutes to go with his rebounding and defense.

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i’m currently watching the Boise State-Virginia Tech game, and with 10 minutes left in the first half both teams have given substantial minutes to 4 White athletes. for significant stretches, there have been as many as 7 gym rats on the court at one time.
 
hey, this BSU-VaTech game is a good one! lots of our guys balling out, and it’s a wide open, pretty, back-and-forth game, as well. it’s been fun to watch.
 
I was gone all day long so I missed most of the football and basketball games. Great updates guys. Thanks.
 
BYU up 15 over ASU at half. Noah Waterman with 13 points and 5 boards so far. Game is on ESPN2.
 
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