Preview Roundups
November 24, 2014
East Carolina at Green Bay 12:00 PM ET
East Carolina gets an early endurance test with three games in as many days when it begins play at the Gulf Coast Showcase against Green Bay on Monday in Estero, Fla. The Pirates have notched a pair of wins against non-Division I teams and lost to UNC-Asheville as they prepare for their first American Athletic Conference season with a young squad. East Carolina must contend with a Green Bay team led by senior guard Keifer Sykes, who has scored more than 1,500 points in his career.
Purdue at Kansas St. 2:30 PM ET
Purdue will try to continue its dominant early-season defense when the Boilermakers meet Kansas State in the opener of the Maui Invitational on Monday. Purdue is ranked No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense (42.3) and the 127 points allowed through the first three games are the fewest the Boilermakers have allowed in that stretch since 1942. Kansas State is coming in off a rough performance Friday at Long Beach State, shooting 3-for-21 from beyond the 3-point stripe in the 69-60 loss.
Clemson at Louisiana State 4:00 PM ET
Clemson and LSU, a pair of teams who were able to push aside discouraging losses in the first round of the Paradise Jam, meet Monday in the Virgin Islands for fifth place. Led by Jordan Mickey’s personal best 27 points and 14 rebounds, LSU downed Weber State on Saturday, 72-58, in a consolidation semifinal game.
Missouri at Arizona 5:00 PM ET
Arizona will try to run its regular-season non-conference winning streak to 31 games—the longest in the nation—when the No. 2 Wildcats meet Missouri in an opening-round game Monday at the Maui Invitational. The Tigers will need to be efficient in their half-court sets, as Arizona has allowed just four fast-break points this season. Team rebounding will also be key for Missouri, as five players for the Wildcats average at least five rebounds.
Santa Clara at Michigan St 7:00 PM ET
With a tough road loss now in the rear-view mirror, No. 19 Michigan State sets its sights on maintaining home dominance when it hosts Santa Clara on Monday. The Spartans rebounded from a 10-point loss at No. 3 Duke last Tuesday to rout Loyola Chicago 87-52 in their home opener Friday. Branden Dawson and Marvin Clark Jr. scored 15 points apiece as Michigan State won its 38th straight home debut and improved to 128-10 at the Breslin Center versus non-conference opponents under head coach Tom Izzo.
Nicholls State at Wake Forest 7:00 PM ET
Wake Forest began its season-high five-game homestand on a bit of a sour note, but the Demon Deacons stand a good chance of rebounding Monday when they host Nicholls State. Wake Forest dropped its second straight game in Friday’s 85-81 loss to Iona, two days after the Demon Deacons were routed by 30 at Arkansas. First-year coach Danny Manning’s squad did not help itself versus the Gaels, shooting 27.3 percent in the first half while giving up at least 83 points for the second straight game.
Savannah State at Louisville 7:00 PM ET
Junior Montrezl Harrell is off to a flying start at Louisville but with the All-American forward in foul trouble Friday, the eighth-ranked Cardinals were forced to slog their way to a 85-67 victory over Marshall. The Cardinals figure to have an easier time Monday at home against Savannah State, three days after going 3-for-22 from 3-point range and shooting 38.6 percent while Harrell played only 24 minutes. Harrell finished with a season-low 12 points.
Villanova at VCU 7:00 PM ET
Villanova coach Jay Wright knows that if his team is going to defeat quality competiion like VCU, it must play better than it did the last time out. Four days after posting a lethargic victory over Bucknell, the 12th-ranked Wildcats square off with the 15th-ranked Rams on Monday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The Wildcats are coming off a 72-65 win over the Bison in which they trailed with under two minutes left before Dylan Ennis made four late free throws to secure the victory.
Murray St. at Xavier 7:00 PM ET
Before heading out west to play in the Wooden Legacy starting on Thanksgiving, Xavier would like to finish out a four-game homestand with a perfect record. The Musketeers can achieve that goal with a win over visiting Murray State on Monday night. Coach Chris Mack's squad hasn't been tested yet in winning its first three games of the season, averaging a 24.7-point margin of victory.
Arizona St. at Maryland 7:00 PM ET
Maryland is off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2010 as it prepares to face Arizona State in the CBE Classic in Kansas City, Mo., on Monday. “This is a Top 25 team," Fordham coach Tom Pecora told the Carroll County Times before his Rams lost 66-50 to the Terrapins on Thursday. "I think (that) because of their depth, their ability to shoot the basketball. They’ve got great size, and I know (coach Mark Turgeon) well enough to know they’re going to get better."
Eastern Washington at Indiana 7:30 PM ET
Indiana waved goodbye to a lot of talent over the last two years but is quickly restocking the shelves. Freshman star James Blackmon Jr. will try to lead the Hoosiers to a fifth straight win when they host Eastern Washington on Monday. Blackmon is averaging 22.8 points and 5.5 rebounds while helping out on the defensive end for an Indiana squad that is winning by an average of 22.3 points.
Rider at Kansas 8:00 PM ET
After getting dominated by Kentucky, the Jayhawks seek to regroup Monday at home against Rider in the Orlando Classic. The fifth-ranked Jayhawks were throttled by the top-ranked Wildcats in The Champions Classic on Tuesday, losing 72-40 while mustering just 12 second-half points and scoring their fewest points in a game since 1982. “We never once did anything that resembled a team offense at all,” coach Bill Self told reporters after the Jayhawks shot 19.6 percent from the field.
Prairie View A&M at Memphis 8:00 PM ET
Memphis, which lost a season opener for the first time since 2003, will try and get on track Monday night when it hosts winless Prairie View A&M in the on-campus portion of the Continental Tires Las Vegas Invitational. The Tigers will have had six days to try and fix things since an ugly 71-56 loss to Wichita State in a neutral-court game played at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Tuesday afternoon.
Brown at Illinois 8:00 PM ET
It is early, but Illinois is showing an ability to dominate on the offensive side of the floor, something that was lacking at times last season. The Fighting Illini look to stay hot as they continue a four-game homestand to open the season Monday against Brown in the on-campus portion of the Las Vegas Invitational. After going nearly 10 years without a 100-point effort, Illinois has put up two in a row, the first time it has accomplished that feat since 1993.
Mississippi Valley State at Texas Christian 8:00 PM ET
TCU seeks to continue its strong start to the 2014-15 season when winless Mississippi Valley State visits Monday. The Horned Frogs suffered through an injury-filled campaign a season ago, struggling to get 10 healthy bodies at times, and the results were understandable. TCU finished 9-20, including 0-18 in the Big 12, but the Horned Frogs are healthy this season and return four starters, including senior point guard Kyan Anderson.
Pepperdine at Iowa 8:00 PM ET
Fresh off a rough 0-2 visit to the 2K Classic in New York, Iowa returns home hoping to get back on the winning track when it hosts Pepperdine on Monday. The Hawkeyes took on two ranked teams in Texas and Syracuse, and fell to the Orange by just three, so there were some positives to build on from the trip. The Waves are looking to start 4-0 for the first time since 1998-99 but won't have it easy taking on the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Stephen F. Austin at Baylor 8:00 PM ET
With two easy home victories over a pair of 11-win teams from a season ago, Baylor hasn’t exactly been taxed in its familiar surroundings. That could change on Monday when the Bears host an NCAA Tournament team from a season ago in Stephen F. Austin. Excluding its trip to the Las Vegas Invitational later this week, Baylor will leave campus one more time – having already won at South Carolina last Wednesday – before the start of Big 12 play in early January.
Clayton State at Mississippi St. 8:00 PM ET
After a disappointing season in which Mississippi State finished 14-19 and won three games in the SEC, coach Rick Ray emphasized the importance of his getting off to a fast start. Ray has to be thrilled with his Bulldogs, who are 3-0 as they host Division II Clayton State on Monday. The Lakers are off to a 4-0 start.
Oregon St. at Oklahoma St. 8:30 PM ET
Oregon State, off to its second 3-0 start since 2000, looks for its first signature win under new coach Wayne Tinkle when the Beavers face Oklahoma State on Monday in the MGM Grand Main Event in Las Vegas. The Cowboys have won their first four games by an average of 27.5 points, but the competition has included the likes of Southeastern Louisiana and Prairie View A&M. They’ll likely receive a tougher test from Oregon State, which is holding opponents to 52.7 points per game.
New Jersey Tech at Marquette 9:00 PM ET
Marquette will look to end a two-game losing streak when it hosts NJIT in the first meeting between the schools Monday. The Golden Eagles are coming off a road loss to Ohio State and a defeat to visiting Omaha on Saturday. The Highlanders have also lost two in a row as they open a four-game road trip.
Pittsburgh at Chaminade 9:00 PM ET
Chris Jones, Michael Young and Jamel Artis didn’t get a chance to contribute much last season, but the Pittsburgh sophomores are being asked to play big roles heading into the Maui Invitational on Monday against host Chaminade. All three have moved into the starting lineup after averaging single digits in scoring last season. Young and Jones have each produced career highs this season, while Artis reached double figures in the first two games before going scoreless in Friday’s loss at Hawaii.
Michigan at Oregon 9:00 PM ET
Michigan coach John Beilein is interested in developing his young players, but not at the expense of winning games. After the veterans bailed out the 22nd-ranked Wolverines on Thursday, the team will look for more contributions from its younger players Monday when Michigan takes on Oregon at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Three key contributors from last season scored at least 16 points in Thursday's win over Detroit.
Seton Hall at Illinois St. 9:00 PM ET
Of all the favorites heading into the Paradise Jam – a list that included Clemson and LSU – only Seton Hall advanced to the winner’s bracket where it will play Illinois State for the tournament championship Monday in the Virgin Islands. The Pirates grabbed an 85-67 victory over Gardner-Webb in the semifinals and the final score was just as lopsided as it indicates.
Iowa St. at Alabama 9:30 PM ET
Iowa State returns to the friendly confines of the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Mo., on Monday to meet Alabama in the CBE Classic. The No. 14 Cyclones defeated Baylor 74-65 on March 15 to win the Big 12 championship in their previous game at the venue and won their first nine neutral-site contests last season before losing to eventual national champion Connecticut 81-76 in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.
Auburn at Tulsa 11:00 PM ET
Bruce Pearl has already made his presence known at Auburn, which reached the 100-point mark for the first time since 2003 in Friday’s 105-80 win over Louisiana. The two-time SEC Coach of the Year looks to carry that momentum to Las Vegas on Monday, when the Tigers face Tulsa in the MGM Grand Main Event. Tulsa has won two straight following its season-opening loss to Oral Roberts, including a dominant 65-39 victory over Abilene Christian on Wednesday.
Brigham Young at San Diego St. 11:30 PM ET
Two former conference rivals will meet up in the opening round of the Maui Invitational on Monday as No. 16 San Diego State collides with BYU in the final game of the tournament’s first day. These teams last met in the Mountain West Conference tournament championship game in March 2011, then the Cougars bolted for the West Coast Conference. The Cougars have won seven of the last nine against San Diego State overall.