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The Breakfast Buffet: Chris Collins, UCLA, Texas’ road to a Big 12 regular season title

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!

Chris Collins should be the Big Ten Coach of the Year
That is not an emotional statement after Northwestern’s win on Sunday over Purdue, which was the first time in program history that the Wildcats beat the No. 1 team in America. I know that Matt Painter has Purdue in position to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament after losing four of his top six scorers from a Sweet 16 team, including a lottery pick in Jaden Ivey. I also know that Painter has the National Player of the Year in Zach Edey and Collins doesn’t have anybody close to a player of his caliber. Additionally, Northwestern lost its two best big men — Pete Nance and Ryan Young — to North Carolina and Duke respectively after last season via the transfer portal. With all that said, the Wildcats are 18-7 and in prime position to reach the NCAA Tournament for the second time ever. There’s nobody in the Big Ten that’s done a better job with their team this season than Collins.

UCLA is still in play for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament
The Bruins currently only have four Quad 1 wins, but there’s still plenty of opportunities for this team to move the needle before Selection Sunday. In addition to the Pac-12 Tournament, UCLA’s road games later this month at Colorado and Utah are currently in line to be Quad 1 opportunities along with a home game against Arizona at Pauley Pavilion. Another thing to keep in mind: Houston (23-2) — who was projected to be a No. 1 seed in last week’s BRACKET BREAKDOWN — has a very similar resume as of today to the Bruins except the Cougars currently have a Quad 3 loss and UCLA (21-4) does not. 

Texas’ road to a Big 12 regular season title starts tonight at Texas Tech
The Longhorns are now 13-4 under interim head coach Rodney Terry and in sole possession of first place in the Big 12 standings entering tonight’s game against the Red Raiders in Lubbock. With a one game lead over both Kansas and Baylor, Texas’ ability to win its next three games — tonight at Texas Tech and then at home against Oklahoma and Iowa State — will be critical in its quest to win a regular season title. Why? The Longhorns close the regular season with back-to-back road games at Baylor and TCU before coming home to host Kansas in Austin.

On The Side

  • Kansas freshman big man Ernest Udeh has tallied a combined 14 points and six rebounds in 25 minutes over the past two games. This is a name to watch moving forward for the Jayhawks, who have lacked interior size all season. The 6-11 Uden was a four-star prospect. 
  • Things are not going to get any easier this week for Kentucky (16-9). The Wildcats travel to Mississippi State (17-8) — who just won at Arkansas — on Wednesday and then host Tennessee (19-6) on Saturday at Rupp Arena. 
  • Maryland is 12-2 this season in games where Hakim Hart scores in double figures. 
  • Saint Mary’s Logan Johnson is playing the best offensive basketball of his career. Primarily known as a defensive stopper, Johnson has scored a combined 65 points in his last two games. 
  • Fordham has won 20 games for the first time since the 1990-91 season. There’s not many first-year head coaches doing a better job than Keith Urgo. 

Daily Specials

  • Miami at North Carolina
  • Texas at Texas Tech
  • West Virginia at Baylor

Leftovers