GAME OF THE DAY: George Mason 64, Manhattan 63
We’ll be hard-pressed to find a more miraculous finish in college basketball this season, as the Patriots managed to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in Fairfax. Instead of making the second free throw Manhattan’s Shane Richards missed deliberately in hopes of forcing George Mason to go forward without the assistance of an inbounds pass. Unfortunately for the Jaspers, Jalen Jenkins only needed one dribble before letting a shot go from 75 feet out...and the shot fell.
THE OTHER GAME OF THE DAY: Belmont 83, Ohio 81
Jenkins wasn’t the only guy to hit a buzzer-beater on Saturday. Craig Bradshaw hit one, too.
IMPORTANT OUTCOMES
1. Old Dominion 73, No. 14 VCU 67
The combination of their taking care of the basketball and a career afternoon from Aaron Bacote resulted in ODU beating their old rivals in Norfolk. ODU committed just 12 turnovers, and Bacote made all eight of his field goal attempts in scoring 31 points. Bacote entered the game shooting 16 percent from the field in ODU’s first five games of the season. Treveon Graham scored 35 points to lead VCU, but their inability to win the turnover battle and an 8-for-25 day from three proved to be the difference.
2. No. 9 Wichita State 75, Tulsa 55
Fred Van Vleet tallied 21 points and nine assists and Ron Baker established a new career high with six made three-pointers as the Shockers extended their regular season win streak to 35 straight games. Baker added 19 points, and just as important moving forward is the play of Darius Carter. Carter accounted for 14 points on Saturday, and he’s reached double figures in three of Wichita State’s first four games. Last season Carter didn’t reach double figures in a game until Wichita State’s ninth game of the season. Next up for the Shockers: a trip to Utah Wednesday night.
3. Harvard 75, UMass 73
Similar to the George Washington/Seton Hall matchup, this was a game that could have an impact in March with the Crimson beating the Minutemen in Cambridge. Wesley Saunders scored a game-high 27 points to lead the way for Harvard, which needs to take advantage of their non-conference games against quality opponents before Ivy League play begins. Trey Davis and Cady Lalanne scored 13 apiece to lead five players in double figures for UMass.
STARRED:
1. Craig Bradshaw, Belmont: Belmont finished with 42 points, including the game-winner linked above, as the Bruins outlasted Ohio.
2. Stefan Moody, Ole Miss: Moody scored 26 points as the Rebels knocked off Cincinnati, 66-54, the day after they beat No. 23 Creighton.
3. Wesley Saunders, Harvard: Saunders had 27 points in a key win for the Crimson. They knocked off UMass 75-73, a nice boost to a non-conference profile that took a hit with a loss to Holy Cross.
STRUGGLED:
1. Rutgers: No. 9 Virginia scored 45 points and still covered the 18 point spread against Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights scored eight points in the second half. They scored just two points in the final 15:54 of the game. They shot 12-for-48 from the floor and 0-for-13 from three. Ugly, ugly, ugly.
2. Kevin Larsen, George Washington: Larsen was 1-for-7 from the floor and had four turnovers as GW lost a tough one at Seton Hall, 58-54. As a team, the Colonials had 18 turnovers and just seven assists.
THE REST OF THE TOP 25:
- No. 19 Michigan 91, Nicholls State 62
- No. 23 Creighton 57, Middle Tennessee 47
NOTABLES
- Rashad Vaughn had 29 points as UNLV picked up their first easy win of the season, knocking off Albany.
- R.J. Hunter had 27 points, including the game-winning three, in a 66-63 win for Georgia State over IUPUI.
- Jerian Grant had 26 points and five assists as Notre Dame beat down Chicago State.