College Hoops Today

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The Breakfast Buffet: Colorado/Tennessee, Tyler Wahl, Pac-12 hasn’t had a great start

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

Colorado/Tennessee
Today’s game in Nashville feels more like a coronation for the Vols as one of the best teams in the country than it does a matchup between two programs from power conferences. And that has nothing to do with the fact that Colorado lost on Friday night at Grambling. Tennessee’s 19-point win over Gonzaga in a charity exhibition a few weeks ago put the country on notice. Rick Barnes’ squad has perimeter play, depth, size, and experience. The Vols are good enough to push Kentucky for the SEC regular season title. It will be interesting to see how Tennessee performs now that there’s some expectations and it will be interesting to see how Colorado bounces back. This is the game of the day in college basketball.

Wisconsin’s Tyler Wahl has graduated from “Glue Guy” status
This is no longer a utility player. The 6-9 Wahl — who Greg Gard told College Hoops Today in the preseason was “dominating practice” — has looked the part early of a guy that’s primed to be one of the best players in the Big Ten this season. In Friday night’s win over Stanford in Milwaukee, Wahl was the best player on the floor, finishing with 17 points, nine rebounds, and three steals. Through two games, he’s leading the Badgers in both scoring (18 points) and rebounding (7.5). As we’ve seen for years in the Badgers’ program, the importance of player development along with the concept of delayed gratification can’t be understated. Wahl averaged just 2.6 points as a freshman and 5.2 points as a sophomore. Now a senior, he’s trending towards writing a tremendous final chapter of his college career in Madison.

The Pac-12 hasn’t had a great start
Through six games, this league has already lost three buy games and Colorado — who was expected to be near the top of the conference — dropped a road tilt at Grambling. To make matters worse, two of the teams that lost buy games — Oregon and USC — were picked in the top four of the league’s preseason poll. Washington State also lost on Saturday to Boise State. The Pac-12 has had problems for years marketing its league properly, which ultimately led to UCLA and USC leaving the conference for the Big Ten. Its problems over the past couple of days have been in between the lines. This league needs to get going over the next couple of weeks if it wants to have quality representation in the 2023 NCAA Tournament.

On The Side

  • UConn’s Adama Sanogo (23 points, 10.5 rebounds) has already made two three-point shots this season. He didn’t make one during his first two years of his college basketball career. The 6-9 Sanogo was the Big East Preseason Player of the Year.
  • It’s taking some time for Pete Nance to get going for North Carolina. The grad transfer from Northwestern is only averaging 6.5 points through the Tar Heels’ first two games and is 0-3 from three-point range during that span. The 6-11 Nance is North Carolina’s replacement at power forward for Brady Manek.
  • Looking for an under-the-radar freshman? Try Baylor’s Josh Ojianwuna. The 6-10 big man is extremely active around the rim and has given the Bears good mileage early, averaging seven points, seven rebounds, and one block in his first two games. Ojianwuna could play a key role for Baylor up front with Jonathan Tchamwa Tchatchoua (knee) unlikely to play this season.
  • Anyone who loves great offense should make a point to regularly watch Virginia Tech (2-0). The Hokies’ offensive sets are crisp, precise, and filled with purpose. Mike Young’s team is averaging 86.5 points while shooting 53.8 percent from the field and 41.3 percent from three-point range entering tonight’s game against William & Mary.
  • One thing that I didn’t think I’d be writing on Nov. 13th? Florida State is 0-2.

Daily Specials

  • Colorado/Tennessee (Nashville)
  • Oklahoma State at Oakland
  • Arizona State at Texas Southern
  • Towson at Penn
  • North Texas at Saint Mary’s

Leftovers