GAME OF THE NIGHT: No. 17 Vanderbilt 79, Stony Brook 72 (OT)
The Seawolves wasted a golden chance at picking up a marquee win on Thursday night, as they were in control at Vanderbilt for the first 38 minutes before a late 6-0 run by the Commodores tied the game and forced overtime. Stony Brook’s Jameel Warney was the best player on the floor, finishing with 22 points, 11 boards and four blocks. He totally outplayed Damian Jones, a projected first round pick, who finished with 13 points and six boards but who did the majority of his damage late in the game.
Wade Baldwin IV was also very good for Vanderbilt. He had 19 of his 21 points in the second half and made big play after big play to keep the ‘Dores close. To be frank, I think this score says more about Stony Brook than it does Vanderbilt. Warney is a big, physical five-man, the kind of guy that is going to give Jones trouble. Combine that with the fact that Vandy was just 5-for-18 from beyond the arc, and what you get is a score line that looks funny. Keep in mind, this Stony Brook team is considered by many to be one of the best mid-major programs in the country.
SCORES YOU NEED TO KNOW
No. 12 Arizona 88, Boise State 76: Gabe York scored 23 points as Arizona overcame 27 points from James Webb III to beat the Broncos. Allonzo Trier chipped in with 13 points, while Parker Jackson-Cartwright added 14. Ryan Anderson struggled offensively, but he did grab 15 rebounds, all on the defensive end of the floor.
No. 14 Indiana 86, Creighton 65: Tom Crean’s Hoosiers moved to 3-0 on the season with a comfortable win over the Bluejays in Bloomington. James Blackmon Jr. led five Indiana players in double figures with 19 points while also tallying seven rebounds and four assists.
No. 22 Butler 93, Missouri State 59: While the Bulldogs did lose a very good defender at the point of attack in Alex Barlow, there’s no overlooking the impact that the addition of Tyler Lewis has had on them offensively. The NC State transfer accounted for nine points, ten assists and no turnovers in Butler’s blowout win at the Puerto Rico Tipoff. Andrew Chrabascz and Kelan Martin led the way in points with 19 apiece. They take on Temple in Friday’s semifinals.
STARRED
Shevon Thompson, George Mason: Thompson racked up 19 points and 16 rebounds to help lead the Patriots to a 68-62 win over Ole Miss, the first win of the Dave Paulsen era.
Justin Sears, Yale: In a win over Lehigh, Sears went for 16 points, eight boards, seven assists and eight blocks while facing off with the reigning Patriot League Player of the Year, Tim Kempton.
Ben Simmons, LSU: The Ben Simmons Hype Train is rolling down hill without brakes, and Thursday’s performance won’t slow it down at all: 23 points, 16 boards, three assists, two steals.
STRUGGLED
Derrick Gordon, Seton Hall: Not only was Gordon 1-for-8 from the floor as the Pirates lost to Long Beach State, but he also allowed LBSU to grab an offensive rebound off of a missed free throw with 8.4 seconds left on the clock and Seton Hall down one point.
Mississippi State: The box score makes the 26-point loss look better than it really was. Miami made 16 of its first 19 shots and did not look back, jumping out to a 48-21 lead and cruising to a 105-79 in Puerto Rico. Next up for the Hurricanes, who have the talent needed to be an NCAA tournament team, is No. 16 Utah on Friday. Malik Newman’s 15 points off the bench looks good for fantasy sports buffs but all his damage came in garbage time.
Marquette: The Golden Eagles lost 89-61 to Iowa. It wasn’t that close. They were down 41-13 at one point. They were 2-for-19 from three at one point. They get Ben Simmons next. Good luck.
THE REST OF THE TOP 25
- No. 6 Virginia overcame a sluggish start to knock off an overmatched Bradley team, 82-55.
- It wasn’t the prettiest performance by No. 16 Utah advanced to the semifinals of the Puerto Rico Tipoff with a 73-63 win over Texas Tech. Lorenzo Bonam led the way with 20 points, seven rebounds and four assists, with Jordan Loveridge adding 18 points and five boards.
NOTABLES
- Also advancing in San Juan was Temple, which beat Minnesota 75-70 with Jaylen Bond leading four Owls in double figures with 19 points. Also of importance was the return of Obi Enechionyia, who missed the North Carolina game due to injury, and he added 14 points while providing valuable spacing on offense.
- Long Beach State followed up its win over BYU Monday night with an 80-77 win over Seton Hall at the Charleston Classic. Nick Faust led a balanced scoring effort with 16 points, while Isaiah Whitehead paced the Pirates with 21.
- Oklahoma State beat Towson 69-52, but the story here is guard Phil Forte III. Forte injured his left (non-shooting) elbow in the first half and only made a brief appearance in the second half. Chris Olivier and Jeffrey Carroll made up for Forte’s absence, with Olivier scoring 18 points and all 17 of Carroll’s coming in the second half.
- Tyler Davis scored 16 points to lead four players in double-figures as Texas A&M smoked Texas A&M-CC, 95-70.
- Tennessee erased a 16-point second half deficit to beat Marshall 84-74 in Knoxville. Kevin Punter scored 19, but just as important were the lines posted by Armani Moore (20 points, eight rebounds) and Robert Hubbs III (19 points, five rebounds).
- The Lawson brothers combined for 29 points as Memphis cruised to a win over Grambling.
- Nic Moore scored 17 points and dished out five assists and teammate Ben Moore accounted for 17 and seven boards as SMU won 85-70 at Stanford.