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Late Night Snacks: Tip-Off Marathon begins with a top-ten team losing

monte morris

GAME OF THE DAY: Miami 69, No. 8 Florida 67

Not many people counted on Miami to deliver the night’s biggest victory, but thanks to an unbelievable second-half performance from point guard Angel Rodriguez, the Hurricanes charged back and earned a road win over a top-10 team. Rodriguez’s absurdly tough game-winning three-pointer with 16 seconds left was as tough as they come and he finished with 24 points. The junior scored 22 of those 24 points in the last nine minutes of the game and essentially carried Miami to victory.

Rob Dauster has more on this game here.

IMPORTANT OUTCOMES

1. No. 14 Iowa State 81, Georgia State 58

This was a six-point game at halftime that quickly got out-of-hand in the second frame as the Cyclones finally got out in transition and started knocking down perimeter shots. The Iowa State defense also did a nice job of containing the Panthers’ perimeter firepower and overall this was a nice early-season win for Fred Hoiberg’s team.

I have more on this game here.

2. Winthrop 77, Clemson 74

The Tigers dropped an early home game despite holding Winthrop to 38 percent shooting and outrebounding them 46-29. So how did Clemson blow this one? Sixteen turnovers will certainly help with that and it didn’t help that Brad Brownell’s team also shot 23 percent (3-for-13) from three-point range. Wintrhop, meanwhile only turned the ball over six times and used a team-high 19 points off the bench from guard Keon Johnson. This is a pretty bad loss for Clemson, especially since many considered Winthrop to be a middle-of-the-pack team in the Big South this season.

3. Temple 82, Louisiana Tech 75

Playing a very tough Conference USA favorite at home is no easy contest and Temple picked up a solid win on Monday by holding off Louisiana Tech. Despite a game-high 26 points from Raheem Appleby, Temple moved to 2-0 on the season thanks in-part from its ability to get to the free-throw line. The Owls went to the charity stripe 49 times on Monday and converted 34 of those and it aided a Temple offense that struggled from three-point range. Will Cummings and Quenton DeCosey each finished with 20 points to pace the Owls.

STARRED

1. Monte Morris, Iowa State

One of the most efficient players in the country, the sophomore point guard had 17 points, nine assists, five rebounds and zero turnovers for the Cyclones in the win over Georgia State. Morris also shot an efficient 7-for-9 from the field and always seemed to make the correct decision with the ball in his hands.

2. D’Angelo Harrison, St. John’s

With St. John’s trailing 50-43 at the half to Division II Franklin Pierce, the guard put the team on his back, scoring 31 points and grabbing 17 rebounds in a 91-83 win.

3. Angel Rodriguez, Miami

Besides the game-winning three-pointer, the junior guard and Kansas State transfer had 22 of his 24 points in the last night minutes in a road win over No. 8 Florida.

STRUGGLED

1. Ryan Harrow, Georgia State

The senior point guard had a night to forget as he went 6-for-22 from the field and struggled against Iowa State’s defense. Some players have bad shooting nights because they miss makeable looks, but Harrow was forcing way too many contested shots on Monday.

2. Kasey Hill, Florida

The sophomore point guard finished with only two points on 1-for-9 shooting and was thoroughly outplayed by his counterpart, Angel Rodriguez. Hill badly needs to improve his perimeter jumper to keep defenders honest.

3. The Washington State Cougars

In a 27-point loss on the road at TCU, Ernie Kent’s ballclub only shot 35 percent from the field and was soundly outplayed for the entire game. Even worse, the Cougars were 39 percent from the free-throw line as they went 11-for-28 on the evening.

NOTABLES


  • A fun mid-major battle went to overtime as Florida Gulf Coast outlasted UC Santa Barbara 81-75. Mid-major stars Brett Comer (FGCU) and Alan Williams (UCSB) both put on a show as Comer had 28 points and 11 assists while Williams had 29 points and 16 rebounds.
  • Western Carolina guard James Sinclair finished with 31 points in a loss to Alabama. The 6-foot-3 Sinclair also had 20 points in a loss to Mississippi State earlier this season.
  • Junior forward Jake Wiegand led UIC with 28 points and 11 rebounds in a close home win over Western Illinois.
  • Dez Wells went for 27 points in Maryland’s win over Central Connecticut State.
  • Texas Pan American sophomore big man Janari Joessar had 17 points, 18 rebounds and six blocks in a win over UT San Antonio.
  • Eastern Michigan senior forward Karrington Ward finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds in a win over Oakland. He also nearly ended a life dunking on someone.

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