College Hoops Today

Serving College Basketball 365 Days a Year

The Breakfast Buffet: Marcus Carr, a big night in the Big East, Chase Audige

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

Marcus Carr has quietly made massive offensive strides for Texas
While the majority of the recent focus surrounding the Longhorns has been on things off the court, Carr is making major strides in between the lines. After only averaging 11.4 points a year ago in his first season in Austin, this fifth-year senior has taken major steps in his efforts to be a more efficient offensive player. Carr enters tonight’s game against TCU in Austin averaging 17.7 points while shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 44.6 percent from three-point range. The 6-2 guard shot just 39.4 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from long distance last season. Carr has also already made 41 three-point shots this season — he made 47 during all of last year.

A big night in the Big East
Four of the league’s five best teams — Creighton, Xavier, UConn, and Marquette — will be showcased in what is a massive night for the conference. Xavier puts a nine-game winning streak on the line against Creighton at the Cintas Center while UConn hits the road and faces Marquette in Milwaukee. One big thing to keep in mind? The Huskies already have two conference losses on their resume and a third would put them in a very difficult position in their quest to win a Big East regular season title. Xavier and Providence are the only two teams in the Big East that currently still have a perfect record in conference play.

A healthy Chase Audige has made a major difference for Northwestern
A year ago, a hip injury limited Audige to just 24 games and he was never his normal self, averaging just 9.6 points while shooting 33.8 percent from the field and 25 percent from three-point range. Now fully healthy, the 6-4 senior is playing the best basketball of his career and has had a major hand in Northwestern’s 12-3 start. Audige enters tonight’s game against Rutgers in Evanston averaging 16 points, 3.3 assists, and 3.1 rebounds while shooting 36.6 percent from three-point range. He’s also emerging as a defender. Audige has 10 steals in his last two games and is averaging 2.8 steals each time that he takes the floor.

On The Side

  • One big thing to remember when you’re evaluating both Arkansas and Indiana: Both teams are currently playing without two projected starters. The Razorbacks don’t have Nick Smith Jr. (knee) and Trevon Brazile (knee) while the Hoosiers don’t have Xavier Johnson (foot) and Race Thompson (knee).
  • Duke and Kentucky are a combined 1-5 in true road games this season. The one win was the Blue Devils’ one-point victory at Boston College on Saturday.
  • Florida State freshman Baba Miller will make his season debut tonight against Wake Forest. The 6-11 big man was forced to sit out 50 percent of the season after the NCAA ruled that he received improper travel benefits, even though Miller and his family eventually repaid the benefits when they were informed that they had committed an NCAA violation. Miller was a four-star prospect.
  • UCF has won seven of its last nine games entering tonight’s matchup with Memphis in Orlando. The two losses during that span? A heartbreaking defeat at the buzzer against Missouri and a six-point loss at Houston.
  • Charleston’s game tonight at UNC Wilmington should be the toughest remaining tilt on the Cougars’ remaining regular season schedule. The matchup features the nation’s two longest winning steaks as Charleston has won 15 straight while the Seahawks have won 13 in a row.

Daily Specials

  • Alabama at Arkansas
  • Creighton at Xavier
  • UConn at Marquette
  • Pitt at Duke
  • TCU at Texas

Leftovers