College Hoops Today

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The Breakfast Buffet: Isaiah Livers, The Eye Test, Marcus Sasser

Who’s hungry for college basketball?

Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, a daily column that can be found here every single morning getting you caught up to date on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.

Mangia!

Things To Sample

Isaiah Livers in Michigan’s X-Factor
Put this guy in bold print when the Wolverines visit Purdue (11-5) tonight in West Lafayette. Last season, Michigan (12-1) was one of the top teams in the country before losing Livers for an extended period of time due to injury. Over the course of his career, he’s been the epitome of a difference maker in Ann Arbor. Michigan is 35-4 over the last four years in games where Livers scores in double figures. The 6-7 forward is currently averaging a career-best 14.1 points and 5.7 rebounds.

Indiana and Seton Hall reiterate the importance of the “eye test”
Let’s hope that the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee was paying close attention this week. Both of the teams listed above are currently 9-6 and both are significantly more capable than their records indicate. The Hoosiers beat a team ranked in the top five of this week’s AP Top 25 on the road when they won at Iowa on Thursday night while the Pirates lost to another top five team on the road earlier this week when they fell at Villanova by two. These results again show why it’s imperative to not seed this year’s NCAA Tournament solely based on metrics. Given the landscape created by COVID-19,  teams have played fewer games and records aren’t as inflated due to less guarantee games in the non-conference portion of the schedule. Indiana and Seton Hall may have both only won just 60 percent of their games this season, but this week they both proved that they’re each capable of beating teams that could be one or two seeds on Selection Sunday. 

Marcus Sasser is emerging for Houston
Great programs have great players ready to step in when roles are vacated and that’s just what has happened with the Cougars. Following Caleb Mills’ decision to leave Houston’s program and transfer to Florida State, Sasser has flourished in the role that Mills left behind. In the five games since Mills’ departure, Sasser is averaging 18.2 points while shooting 40 percent from three-point range. Kelvin Sampson now has a second all-conference caliber player to play alongside Quentin Grimes. The Cougars are 12-1 and will next travel to Temple on Saturday. Tip off is at Noon ET on CBS.

On The Side

  • There’s been a great deal of talk regarding Virginia’s improved offense this season, but that doesn’t mean Tony Bennett’s squad has forgotten how to defend. Through five ACC games, the Cavaliers are only surrendering an average of 57 points. 
  • UCLA is 8-0 in Pac-12 play for the first time since the 1982-83 season; it’s also 5-0 in games that have been decided by five points or less. The Bruins will next play at Stanford on Saturday. 
  • Alabama’s Herb Jones made a total of 14 three-point shots during the first three years of his college career. He’s already made 11 this season, while shooting 47.8 percent from long distance. This the Crimson Tide’s most indispensable player. 
  • The Mountain West feels like it’s regained some momentum back from the WCC for the title of the top mid-major conference on the West Coast. What’s it going to take for these two leagues to get together and take part in annual challenge? 
  • Since beating Florida in Gainesville on Jan. 9th, Kentucky has lost three straight games and is shooting a combined 9-of-48 from three-point range during that span. That’s under 19 percent. 

Daily Specials

  • Michigan at Purdue
  • Rice at UAB
  • Nevada at Wyoming
  • Fresno State at Boise State
  • San Diego State at Air Force

Leftovers: