Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Pregame Shootaround 12.12.12: Memorable date with forgettable match-ups

Jahii Carson

Each day, CollegeBasketballTalk brings you the “Pregame Shootaround,” which will lay out a preview for the slate of games that night. We’ll take a look at some key match-ups and important games, as well as make some predictions and point out what you need to watch for. Take a look below at today’s edition:

Note: The weekend editions of Pregame Shootaround will be published half an hour prior to tip-off of the day’s first game.

Game of the Day: DePaul vs. Arizona State

Really? Yes, and here’s why. This match-up is the only one Wednesday that features two BCS conference schools. Would you rather tune in to see No. 7 Ohio State likely take care of Savannah State early? Perhaps. But individuals are the ones who make DePaul-Arizona State worthwhile.

Point guard Jahii Carson has completely transformed the way the Sun Devils play offense this season. Last year, Herb Sendek’s team finished 305th in the nation with just 61.0 points per game. This year, with Carson running the point and pushing the offense, the Sun Devils are ranked 29th in the country with 79.0 points per game.

On the other side, Cleveland Melvin is another major asset on a team that has struggled in recent years. He’s averaging 18.6 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.

Mid-Major Matchup of the Day: Towson vs. Temple

The slate is pretty dry Wednesday night on quality mid-major match-ups, so Towson vs. Temple is your best bet. The Tigers are coming off a game against Georgetown that was about as ugly as they come, and they came up six points short. They now travel to Temple, which was handed its first loss of the season to Duke over the weekend.

Scootie Randall was unable to get going for Temple against Duke, but expects the Owls’ leading scorer to bounce back against Towson. Khalif Wyatt also struggled, shooting just 3-of-15 from the floor in the loss.

Five Things to Watch For

1) Point guard Jahii Carson has completely revitalized the Arizona State offense and he faces off against Cleveland Melvin and DePaul tonight. (See above).

2) Ohio State is the lone ranked team in action Wednesday night. They take on Savannah State. Who will be the second scoring option alongside Deshaun Thomas?

3) Since losing its season opener to Kentucky, Maryland has won eight in a row. Alex Len continues to look like a lottery pick. He matches up with Monmouth Wednesday.

4) After beating Kentucky, Baylor stumbled with a loss to Northwestern. They have a chance to bounce back against in-state rival Lamar, who is just 1-8 this season after making the NCAA tournament in 2011-12.

5) Wisconsin lost a tough in-state game to Marquette on Saturday. Freshman Sam Dekker was just 2-of-10 in that game. See if he bounces back against Green Bay.

The Rest of the Top 25:

No. 7 Ohio State vs. Savannah State

Other Notable Games

Colorado vs. Fresno State

Monmouth vs. Maryland

Green Bay vs. Wisconsin

Lamar vs. Baylor

Oregon State vs. Portland State

Daniel Martin is a writer and editor at JohnnyJungle.com, covering St. John’s. You can find him on Twitter:@DanielJMartin_