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The Breakfast Buffet: Life comes full circle for Patrick Ewing, Big Ten semis feel like the Final Four, Avery Anderson

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

Life has come full circle for Patrick Ewing
27 years after leading the New York Knicks to the NBA Finals in 1994, Ewing is on the verge of another massive career milestone at Madison Square Garden. The Hall-of-Fame player has his best opportunity as a head coach on Saturday night, as he’ll lead his alma mater — Georgetown — against Creighton in the Big East Tournament title game. The Hoyas have not won a conference postseason title since they went to the Final Four in 2007. Georgetown has never played in the NCAA Tournament under Ewing as coach, but would clinch an automatic berth with a victory tonight. 

The Big Ten Tournament semis is Final Four caliber
Again, I’m not just writing that because I work for CBS Sports. It’s the absolute truth. The four teams that will take part in today’s doubleheader from Indianapolis — Ohio State, Michigan, Iowa, and Illinois — were ranked in the Top nine of this past week’s AP Top 25. That’s utterly ridiculous. The Buckeyes and Wolverines get things started today at 1 PM ET on CBS. 

Avery Anderson is a burgeoning star
Cade Cunningham and Isaac Likekele are a terrific tandem, but Oklahoma State’s perimeter may soon be known as a prolific troika. Anderson has exploded like a volcano in his past few games and is averaging 22.7 points over his last three outings. The 6-3 sophomore is also averaging over seven points more (11.4) than he did last season as a freshman (4.2). He had 20 in Friday night’s win over Baylor. Oklahoma State is trending towards being a common Final Four pick on Selection Sunday and Anderson is a major reason why. This guy has elevated the Cowboys’ overall ceiling. 

COVID-19 again showed us how precious each game is
Two programs that have won national titles in the last 13 years — Virginia and Kansas — were denied the opportunity to finish their respective conference tournaments on Friday due to issues related to COVID-19. While both are expected to play in the NCAA Tournament in some form next week in Indianapolis, these cancellations are a perfect reminder for all of us to enjoy each and every game. Remember: We are attempting to have a college basketball season in the middle of a once-in-a-century global pandemic. 

Western Kentucky finds itself in a familiar position 
Rick Stansbury has done everything during his tenure in Bowling Green except reach the NCAA Tournament. That can change if the Hilltoppers beat North Texas tonight in the Conference-USA Tournament title game (9 PM ET, CBS Sports Network). It will likely be the last opportunity for this program to go to the NCAA Tournament with 6-11 big man Charles Bassey, who had 22 points, seven rebounds, and four blocks in Friday’s against UAB, This is a feast or famine situation for Stansbury and Western Kentucky, who have lost in championship game twice since 2018. It’s NCAA Tournament or bust.

Leftovers: