College Hoops Today

Serving College Basketball 365 Days a Year

The Breakfast Buffet: Arkansas needs more out of its guards, Coleman Hawkins, Arizona State/Grand Canyon

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

Arkansas needs more out of its guards
The Razorbacks can’t finish at the top of a loaded SEC unless they start getting some perimeter help for five-star freshman Boogie Fland (15.3 points), who has been very good out of the gate. Arkansas improved to 2-1 overall with a 65-49 win over Troy on Wednesday night at Bud Walton Arena, but it still continues to struggle to get quality offensive production from both D.J. Wagner and Florida Atlantic transfer Johnell Davis, who were a combined 3-13 from the field and 1-6 from three-point range on Wednesday. Wagner is 7-21 from the field on the season and has not made a three-point shot while Davis is 12-30 from the field and 2-13 from long distance. John Calipari’s team can’t be what it’s supposed to be unless both of these guys become consistent double-figure scoring threats that can help take pressure off both Fland and Adou Thiero (17 points).

Coleman Hawkins steps into the spotlight for Kansas State
The Wildcats’ matchup against LSU tonight in the “Octagon of Doom” is their first head-to-head encounter this season with a power conference opponent. It’s also the first big game for the 6-10 Hawkins, who was one of college basketball’s most coveted transfers during the offseason. Through two games, he’s averaging 8.5 points, 5.5 rebounds, 5.0 assists, 2.5 blocks, and 2.0 steals. Kansas State needs Hawkins to be an All-Big 12 caliber player if it’s going to finish in the league’s top half and earn a quality seed in the NCAA Tournament. We’ll know more about both he and the Wildcats after tonight’s tilt against LSU.

Arizona State/Grand Canyon
Bobby Hurley deserves credit for how far his team has come since being blown out by Duke a few weeks ago in a Charity Exhibition. The Sun Devils took Gonzaga to the brink at The Kennel last Sunday and showed tremendous long-term promise. Another dangerous opponent awaits Arizona State tonight in Grand Canyon, who won a game last March in the NCAA Tournament and should again be one of college basketball’s best mid-majors under Bryce Drew. Tonight’s game will mark the season debut for Grand Canyon star Tyon Grant-Foster, who has yet to play this year for undisclosed reasons, but averaged 20.1 points and 6.1 rebounds in 2023-24.

On The Side

  • The most underrated thing about Baylor freshman V.J. Edgecombe? How well he rebounds the basketball. In three games this season, the 6-4 Edgecombe has tallied 25 rebounds.
  • North Carolina’s top five scorers — RJ Davis, Seth Trimble, Elliot Cadeau, Seth Trimble, and Jalen Washington — were all in the Tar Heels’ program a year ago.
  • Memphis’ PJ Haggerty looks like an AAC Player of the Year candidate. A transfer from Tulsa, the 6-3 guard is averaging 27.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.0 assists through his first two games. The Tigers have had a sneaky good start to the season, posting wins over both Missouri and UNLV.
  • Georgetown will not play a true road game until it travels to West Virginia on Dec. 6th as part of the Big East-Big 12 Battle. The Hoyas’ first eight games of the 2024-25 college basketball season will be played in Washington D.C. Ed Cooley’s team is 2-0 and will get a true litmus test on Saturday when it hosts Notre Dame.
  • Nick Martinelli is emerging into a star for Northwestern. With All-Big Ten wing Brooks Barnhizer out of the lineup with a foot injury, the 6-7 Martinelli is averaging 28.3 points and nine rebounds in his first three games. 

Daily Specials

  • LSU at Kansas State
  • Arizona State/Grand Canyon (Phoenix)

Leftovers