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The Morning Mix

Mic Cronin facepalm

This is the last day of a shortened holiday week for The Morning Mix. If you’re like most of us and taking it easy tonight (in order to prepare for NEw Years), then you will have a handful of quality games to watch tonight.

Considering how there was only one major game on last night, we got a lot of news and notes to get to today.

Lets hit the links.

Thursday’s Top Games:
3:00 p.m. - Rider @ Rutgers
7:00 p.m. - Iona @ St. John’s
7:00 p.m. - Providence @ Brown (NBC Sports Network)
7:30 p.m. - Bucknell @ Loyola (Md.)
7:30 p.m. - Southern Miss @ Morehead State
8:00 p.m. - Baylor @ No. 13 Gonzaga
8:00 p.m. - Jacksonville @ No. 5 Indiana
8:00 p.m. - Oral Roberts @ Memphis
10:00 p.m. - No. 7 Missouri @ UCLA
10:00 p.m. - Yale @ Nevada


Read(s) of the Day:
With the Battle for the Bluegrass taking place this weekend between Louisville and Kentucky, Dana O’Neil’s piece on the great divide is a must-read. Make sure you read it. (ESPN)

Read(s) of the Day:
It is great to see that Bob Valvano is back in good spirits following a cardiac arrest last week. Make sure you read this great piece from Tim Sullivan. Bob is one of the all-time greats and we wish him nothing but the absolute best. (Courier-Journal)



Top Stories:
Cincinnati needs to find an offensive threat in the paint, and quickly: The Bearcats suffered their first loss of the season last night in a close battle with New Mexico. But throughout the 40 minutes, it was apparent that the Bearcats had no answer for the Lobos’ 7-foot 250-pound Alex Kirk, who dominated the paint and was the main reason why Cincinnati is no longer unbeaten.

Tony Parker’s homesick tweets say more about UCLA than about Parker: The third member of UCLA’s loaded recruiting class hasn’t been very happy riding the pine while the Bruins team struggles on the hardwood. The Georgia-native sent out cryptic tweets indicating he was homesick, but it does not appear as if he intends to transfer.

UNLV forward Mike Moser returns to practice, but will he play Saturday? UNLV’s star forward has been on the shelf the past three weeks due to a dislocated right elbow, but returned to practice for the first time since December 9th. But it is still unknown if Moser will be able to go against North Carolina in Chapel Hill on Saturday.

Coach Cal to the Nets? Despite his remarkable success at Kentucky, John Calipari has been linked to almost every high-profile NBA opening in recent memory. With the firing of Brooklyn Nets head coach Avery Johnson yesterday, speculation swirled about Cal’s desire to return to the NBA. But like most rumors, this one has no legs.



Hoops Housekeeping
- Missouri backup forward Tony Criswell will miss tonight’s game against UCLA with a broken finger. (Rock M Nation)

- Providence guard Vincent Council is set to make his return tonight against Brown. The senior guard injured his hamstring just minutes into the Friars season opener against N.J.I.T. (Providence Journal)

- Northern Iowa freshman Chris Olivier has left the program and will transfer. The forward spent last season as a redshirt and played just once this season, in the season-opener against Wartburg (D-III). (Sporting News)

- The game between Temple and Detroit was postponed yesterday because the Titans were unable to get out of the midwest because of the intense winter storms. The game will hopefully be made up later in the season. (Philahoops.com)

- Pittsburgh sophomore center Malcolm Gilbert has decided to leave the program and will transfer elsewhere. (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

- Kwamain Mitchell is set to return for the Saint Louis Billikens and should provide the talent and experience the squad needs to propel them to the top of the A-10 leaderboard. (Billiken Report)


Observations & Insight:
- Thanks to a big performance from big-man Alex Kirk, the New Mexico Lobos handed Cincinnati their first loss of the season. (Sporting News)

- Gorgui Dieng will in fact play this weekend when Louisville takes on Kentucky, and thanks to an act of generosity, his parents will be able to see him play college hoops in person for the first time. (The Dagger)

- Luke Winn makes some college hoops predictions for 2013. As is the case with most of Mr. Winn’s work, this is must-read stuff. (Sports Illustrated)

- You may not realize it, but tonight’s game between Loyola (Md.) and Bucknell could have possible NCAA Tournament implications. (Baltimore Sun)

- Jeff Goodman’s “Good N’ Plenty” column doesn’t have a lot of direction to it, but it is loaded with news and notes. Which is why I highly recommend you read it every week. (Eye on College Basketball)

- A look back at the top-5 LIU-Brooklyn games of 2012. I was at No. 2, and let me tell you, I haven’t been to many games that had a more electric environment. I’d go back in a heartbeat. (Blackbirds Hoops Journal)

- Remember that crazy idea to have four basketball games take place simultaneously at Cowboy Stadium? Well, it’s not going to happen. Thank God. It would have been a nightmare. (Sporting News)

- Former-Florida State forward Bernard James has always been a favorite of ours. He’s a former-serviceman who went back to school and played hoops the way it should be played: Hard, gritty, tough and with 100% effort. This story from Mike Scotto is just one of the many reasons why James will always be a fan favorite around these parts. (Real GM)

- A top-10 list of the best basketball shoes worn by teams through the first part of the season. (Nice Kicks)

- Seth Greenberg takes a look at four teams that still have a shot to make the tournament despite a slow start. (ESPN Insider)

- Rush The Court released their all-conference non-conference team for the Big-10. (Rush The Court)

- Glen Logan explains how Kentucky can defeat Louisville as an underdog. (A Sea of Blue)

- Speaking of Kentucky, they desperately need a signature win. You know it’s bad when Dick Vitale is writing about it. (ESPN Dick Vitale)

- Portland State’s scoreboard is turning into an eyesore. (Big Sky Bball)


Picture of the Day:
Cincinnati suffered their first loss of the season last night to a tough New Mexico squad. The Bearcats shot 9-for-28 from inside the 3-point arc. This photo of Mic Cronin says it all. (The Mock Session)

Mic Cronin facepalm



Video(s) of the Day:



Do you like the new Morning Mix? Hate it? Have a suggestion or want something featured? Troy Machir will take all your praise, insults and inquiries via Twitter (@TroyMachir)