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
Gonzaga looks like a force
Many people — including myself — wondered how the Bulldogs would perform this season after having what seemed to be a drop off at point guard following Jalen Suggs, Andrew Nembhard, and Ryan Nembhard at the most the important position on the floor in four of the last five years. If early indications are anything, Gonzaga is better than it’s been in quite a few years. Mark Few’s team overpowered Alabama on Monday night in Las Vegas en route to a 95-85 win and now boast four wins over power conference opponents this season. The Bulldogs have also beaten Oklahoma, Creighton, and Arizona State. Gonzaga returns to action tonight against Maryland in Sin City.
Steven Pearl is answering the bell
Auburn looks like Auburn post-Bruce Pearl. The Tigers took Houston to the wire a few weeks ago in Birmingham and then earned a convincing 84-73 win over Oregon on Monday night in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas. That’s a credit to Steven Pearl, who has looked the part during the first three weeks of his head coaching career. Having Tahaad Pettiford and Keyshawn Hall — who combined for 42 of the Tigers’ 84 points against Oregon — doesn’t hurt either. The Tigers return to action tonight in Las Vegas against Michigan.
Flory Bidunga is coming into his own for Kansas
With Darryn Peterson out of the lineup due to a hamstring injury, Bidunga is picking up some of the slack that he left behind. In his last four games, the 6-9 Bidunga is averaging 17.3 points and 8.3 rebounds while shooting an impressive 31-43 from the field during that span. This is the type of production from Bidunga that the Jayhawks are going to need when Peterson returns to the lineup if they’re going to be a team that finishes in the top tier of the Big 12. Kansas resumes action today in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas against Syracuse.
On The Side
- Arkansas’ John Calipari is today’s guest on INSIDE COLLEGE BASKETBALL NOW. The Razorbacks will play Duke on Thanksgiving Night on CBS at 8 PM ET. To watch the full interview, click HERE.
- St. John’s is giving up an average of 93 points in two games this season against power conference opponents.
- UCLA’s Donovan Dent has 12 assists and just one turnover in his last two games. The Bruins return to action tonight against Cal at the Chase Center.
- Seton Hall’s 11-point win over NC State on Monday in the Maui Invitational was its first double-digit regular season win over a non-conference opponent from a power conference since Dec. 12, 2021. That’s 1,443 days ago.
- The sleeper game on today’s loaded slate? A battle between undefeated teams in Palm Springs as Iowa faces Ole Miss in the Acrisure Classic. Tip off is at 9:30 PM ET on CBS Sports Network.
Daily Specials
- St. John’s/Baylor
- Tennessee/Houston
- Kansas State at Indiana
- Michigan/Auburn
- San Diego State/Michigan
Leftovers
- The Breakfast Buffet: Tobe Awaka, Nebraska’s defense, Texas/Kentucky
- INSIDE COLLEGE BASKETBALL NOW (1/20): Guest — Virginia’s Ryan Odom
- The Breakfast Buffet: Michigan returns home, Seton Hall/St. John’s, Kansas hits the road at Colorado
- INSIDE COLLEGE BASKETBALL NOW (1/19): Florida, Kentucky, The ACC, The Big East, JT Toppin, Darryn Peterson
- The Breakfast Buffet: Brad Brownell, Florida, St. John’s is thriving on the road
