Beers, Bubbles and Brandon

Sometimes we know what to expect. For example, when I stay up on a Wednesday night to watch Boise State vs. New Mexico and don't come to bed until 1 am ET, I expect that my sleeping wife will audibly groan when she inevitably hears me enter the bedroom. This isn't anyone's fault; it's just nature. Dogs are going to bark, my wife is going to host a book club once a month where all they do is eat cheese, and I'm going to be up well past midnight sweating bets on Mountain West hoops.

But sometimes, you get the unexpected. Wednesday night illustrated the unpredictability of the beautiful, ugly sport of college basketball. Few expected a Top 6 team to lose to Boston College. A select few expected the price of beers at Gampel Pavilion to play a role in a massive UConn victory over Providence. And nobody expected Brandon Miller, with a brighter spotlight on him than any college player has had in years, to respond with a career-high 41 points and a game-winning shot.

If you did predict any of that, kudos. Let's get to the recap.

1. All eyes on Brandon Miller

We covered the latest developments in the Jamea Harris murder on Tuesday, both in the Daily and on After Dark, including that police say Alabama star freshman Brandon Miller transported the gun that was used to kill Harris. Wednesday, we had new statements from Brandon Miller's attorney, and from Alabama athletics. Both offer more insight into how the situation has been handled.

Last night at South Carolina, Miller played for the 11th time in 11 games since Harris was killed. He faced loud boos every time he touched the basketball.

And he delivered the best performance of his college career.

With 14 seconds left in regulation and No. 2 Alabama trailing 68-66, coach Nate Oats called timeout. He put the ball in Miller's hands, and Miller delivered. Miller drove left, used his length to finish over a defender scrambling to recover and tied the game with a bucket off the glass. As the buzzer sounded at the end of regulation, the South Carolina crowd went quiet for one of the first times all evening.

It was more of the same in overtime. The game again was tied with less than 20 seconds remaining, and there was little doubt about who would get the ball.

Much like the game-tying bucket to end regulation, Miller drove left, exploded past multiple defenders and soared for a game-winner. He finished with a career-high 41 points on 25 shots, making six of his 13 attempts from beyond the arc.

This week will not be the last time Oats (or Miller) are asked about the case. It's not one of those things where anyone knows what to expect. Things will probably remain odd (Alabama's men's hoops Twitter handle didn't mention Miller during or after the game). But last night, when it appeared the Crimson Tide were distracted or not at their best, Miller took over. His performance was the difference. It'll be interesting to see how it continues for the rest of the season.

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2. $2 beer night

No. 18 UConn took down No. 20 Providence thanks to big nights from Jordan Hawkins, Tristen Newton and a raucous Gampel Pavilion Senior Night crowd.

Or, as Ed Cooley put it, "$2 beers."

The Huskies ran the promotion along with a White-Out in honor of Senior Night, resulting in a crowd that rarely quieted. Cooley said afterward, “I think the crowd had something to do with that, so the $2 beers worked.”

Cooley noted that it wasn't just the beer, calling his Friars "soft" and "not connected." Avoiding those descriptors is easier said than done when playing UConn on a night when the Huskies find their A-game.

The contest was even early before UConn (21-7, 10-7 in Big East) made a series of explosive runs, one at the end of the first half and a huge 14-0 second-half run that extended the lead over Providence (20-8, 12-5) to 22 points.

Hawkins led the way, notching 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting. The Huskies had four starters finish in double figures, including Alex Karaban (16), Adama Sanogo (16) and Tristen Newton (12), who chipped in seven rebounds and seven assists to boot.

Karaban, in particular, loved the promotion, saying, "We might need to continue $2 beers because I never heard Gampel that loud."

In related news, Field of 68 founder/UConn fan (and my boss) Rob Dauster has not responded to my texts since sending me this at halftime:

If that fake text joke didn't resonate, here's another:

3. 'Hoos ACC is it anyway?

If UConn's win resulted from a Top 5 team in the country playing to their ceiling in an electric environment, Boston College's win over No. 6 Virginia was...something else.

Those of us lucky enough to watch on ACCNX (I pay for every subscription service possible, and I had never heard of it before last night) saw the Cavaliers stumble to a 63-48 loss while shooting 32 percent from the floor and just 4-of-21 (19 percent) from 3.

Boston College's Makai Ashton-Langford led the Eagles with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists. Jayden Gardner finished with 16 points and was the only Virginia player to reach double figures.

Virginia (21-5, 13-4 in ACC) hasn't been sharp lately, narrowly escaping defeat against Notre Dame and Louisville in its previous two games. Those games and this loss will raise questions about whether this Hoos team is a serious contender come March.

They are a half-game behind first-place Miami and tied with Pitt. The loss drops the Cavs all the way down to 34th on Kenpom (one spot below Nevada, two spots below Kentucky) at the time of writing, lending more credence to the skeptics that don't buy Virginia's No. 6 ranking nationally.

Virginia will head to Chapel Hill on Saturday to take on a desperate North Carolina team. Anything could happen there, though great basketball seems unlikely at this point.

4. Bubbles blossoming, and other scores to know

As we inch closer and closer to the NCAA Tournament, we have officially reached #RESUMESZN, where for plenty of fine college basketball teams, every single result feels like the difference between "WE'RE GOING TO THE FINAL FOUR" and "Honey, how much are NIT tickets?"

Some of the most 'on the bubble' bubble teams secured key victories tonight, including North Carolina, Wisconsin and Clemson. Here's a rundown of the night's results.

North Carolina 63, Notre Dame 59The Tar Heels (17-11, 9-8 in ACC) scored just 19 points in the first half, but a 44-point second half kept their slim NCAA Tournament hopes alive. The Heels were led by Armando Bacot and Caleb Love, who both scored 16 points. Brady Manek stunt double who very clearly isn't Brady Manek no matter how many special effects the UNC social media team puts on him Pete Nance totaled 11 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.

Clemson 91, Syracuse 73Clemson's odd pattern of "lose to the worst teams on the schedule but beat teams that are solid" continued in a blowout win against the Orange (16-12, 9-8 in ACC). The Tigers (20-8, 12-5) will be one of the most divisive teams on Selection Sunday if they can continue to win a few games down the stretch. Hunter Tyson scored 29 points and added 10 rebounds in the win. Judah Mintz tallied 23 points for Cuse. When asked what he liked about his team's performance, the imaginary Jim Boeheim that appears in my nightmares said, "nothing, that's a stupid question."

Wisconsin 64, Iowa 52The Badgers (16-11, 8-9 in Big Ten) shut down Kris Murray (five points, 2-of-10 shooting) en route to a much-needed win over Iowa (17-11, 9-8). Connor Essegian (17 points) tied a Wisconsin record for 3s made in a season by a freshman that Brad Davison previously held. Wisconsin still has plenty of work to do to steal an at-large bid, but last night's result was a good start.

Kentucky 82, Florida 74Oscar Tshiebwe dominated a Colin Castleton-less Florida squad, going 12-of-13 from the floor for 25 points in an impressive Kentucky (19-9, 10-5 in SEC) road win that leaves it all alone at third in the SEC. This oft-criticized Kentucky team has now won three straight games to move firmly off the bubble and into "weird things could happen!" territory. Unnamed members of this beautiful college basketball network went to sleep in a cold sweat muttering quietly to themselves, "Is Calipari DONE at KENTUCKY?!?"

Other games that happened and one quick sentence to describe it:

Maryland 88, Minnesota 70Maryland (19-9, 10-7 in Big Ten) routed a hapless Minnesota team thanks to double-figure scoring from all five starters and a 21-point, 12-rebound double-double from Julian Reese.

LSU 84, Vanderbilt 77LSU (13-15, 2-13 in SEC) ended Vanderbilt's five-game win streak, led by 35 points and 10 rebounds from KJ Williams.

Houston 89, Tulane 59The No. 1 Cougars (26-2, 14-1 in AAC) looked the part of "The Best Team in the Country" on Wednesday night, methodically dismantling an overpowered Tulane squad behind 26 points from J'wan Roberts.

NC State 90, Wake Forest 74Jarkel Joiner and DJ Burns combined for 50 points as NC State (22-7, 12-6 in ACC) comfortably defeated a Wake Forest team (17-11, 9-8) that moves further off the bubble.

Auburn 78, Ole Miss 74Wendell Green Jr. led Auburn (19-9, 9-6 in SEC) with 23 points and four assists to beat Ole Miss and avoid a dreaded "Bad Loss" on their tournament résumé.

Boise State 82, New Mexico 77Max Rice scored 22 of his 30 points in the second half as the Broncos (22-6, 12-3 in MWC) ran past the Lobos (20-8, 7-8) and stayed one game behind MWC-leading San Diego State.

Dayton 72, UMass 54The Flyers (19-9, 11-4 in A-10) stayed on VCU's heels for the regular-season conference title behind DaRon Holmes' 22 points.

Drake 82, Illinois State 51Tucker DeVries had 18 and the Bulldogs (24-6, 15-4) won their 10th in a row.

Bradley 76, Valparaiso 66Rienk Mast had 18 and the Braves (22-8, 15-4 in MVC) won their ninth in a row. In case you're skimming this section, yes, that means they're tied with Drake in the Mo Valley. They each have one last game: Sunday at Bradley.

Old Dominion 69, Southern Miss 64The Golden Eagles (24-6, 13-4 in Sun Belt) lost for the second time in three games and are now tied atop the conference. Their regular-season finale is Friday at Texas State.

Marshall 92, James Madison 83The Thundering Herd (24-6, 13-4 in Sun Belt) got 31 from Taevion Kinsey and pulled into a tie with Southern Miss atop the league. They close on Friday at Old Dominion.

Liberty 85, Queens 77Darius McGhee (35 points) stayed hot as the Flames (23-7, 14-3 in ASUN) remained tied atop the league and will play Queens again on Friday in their regular-season finale.

Kennesaw State 79, North Alabama 66Chris Youngblood scored 19 for the Owls (22-8, 14-3 in ASun), who finish their regular season on Friday at Central Arkansas.

Vermont 81, Binghamton 70Back to things you do expect. Like the Catamounts (18-10, 12-2) winning the America East title outright. They've won 10 straight games.

Samford 75, Chattanooga 70Jermaine Marshall had 25 and the Bulldogs (21-9, 15-2 in Southern) kept their one-game conference lead over Furman and UNC Greensboro.

Furman 70, Mercer 67The Paladins (23-7, 14-3 in Southern) got 27 from Jalen Slawson. They're at Samford on Saturday to close the regular season.

UNC Greensboro 71, Western Carolina 52Keyshaun Langley scored 28 for the Spartans (20-10, 14-3), who are at East Tennessee State to finish their regular season.

5. Not your momma's Duke

While Coach K made his public re-appearance at a Duke basketball game last week, his successor seems ready to differentiate.

In a new Dana O'Neil piece for The Athletic, first-year Duke coach Jon Scheyer told O'Neil, "I don’t think we’ll recruit as many freshmen" in future years. This would be quite the change for a Blue Devils program that has repeatedly ranked near the bottom of the country in experience and near the top of the country in recruiting rankings.

Since Duke's last national championship in 2015, the program has ranked no lower than sixth in consensus recruiting class rankings. When you recruit players of that caliber as consistently as they do, it's hard to build a roster complete with upperclassmen.

We're seeing a small step in a different direction this season — as Duke added experience via the transfer portal in former Northwestern center Ryan Young and former Illinois wing Jacob Grandison. But Young and Grandison are role players, and the only other upperclassmen in the entire Duke playing rotation is junior guard Jeremy Roach — a former top 20 recruit.

It's easier said than done as far as Scheyer is concerned. Freshmen Kyle Filipowski, Dariq Whitehead, Mark Mitchell and Dereck Lively are all potential one-and-done players this season. Next year's class currently consists of five (5?!) 5-star recruits — Mackenzie Mgbako, Sean Stewart, Jared McCain, Caleb Foster and TJ Power.

There will be early departures. In the new era of transfers and NIL, college athletes have more options than ever before. Even the players Scheyer may wish would stick around could opt for greener pastures.

Whether it actually happens, it is notable to hear Scheyer speak publicly about a new direction. It is yet another reminder — as if this screenshot wasn't enough — that Coach K is no longer manning the sidelines in Durham.

Chicago's Big Ten Team

Northwestern (20-7, 11-5 in Big Ten) heads to Illinois (18-9, 9-7) with dreams of catching Purdue for a share of the Big Ten regular-season title. No seriously, I'm not kidding! Chris Collins' Wildcats own sole possession of second place in the Big Ten and have road wins at Indiana, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Ohio State and Nebraska. The Wildcats are one game back in the loss column, and a win over Illinois in Champaign would keep them hanging around (and hoping that Zach Edey picks up two quick fouls against Indiana this weekend). We are less than one year removed from watching a team that nobody saw coming with a historically inefficient backcourt that just caught fire at the right time to make a run all the way to the National Championship game. I'm not saying it will happen, but I am saying weirder things have happened. Go Cats. (9 pm ET on Big Ten Network)

• Penn State (16-11) at Ohio State (11-16), 6:30 pm ET, FS1

• Michigan (15-12) at Rutgers (17-10), 8:30 pm ET, FS1

• San Diego (11-17) at Gonzaga (23-5), 11 pm ET, ESPN2

• No. 4 UCLA (23-4) at Utah (17-11), 11 pm ET, FS1

• Pacific (13-16) at No. 15 Saint Mary's (24-5), 10 pm ET

Check the vitals

Our college basketball road trip extravaganza continues to make its way across the midwest. On this week's episode, we traveled to Columbus, Ohio, on Super Bowl Sunday with the hopes of reviving Ohio State basketball's season. Instead, we saw a 14-point half from the Buckeyes, and my co-host (who genuinely, I'm not making this up, brought a STETHOSCOPE to the arena) pronounced them dead. Hey, they say it's a football school anyway. Next stop? Purdue for the final game of the regular season, where the Boilermakers will host Illinois.

You can watch College Hoops To Go here.

Links as you tweet at Rob Dauster to ask him if those texts were really his:

• Re-ranking the top transfers from this offseason.

• Wake Forest's Damari Monsanto was injured in the first half against NC State and "it doesn't look good".

• Michigan's Jett Howard, who did not return to the game against Michigan State, will travel to Rutgers and was seen without a walking boot.

• John Fanta takes us on a spin on the Coaching Carousel.

• Rick Pitino is nowhere near retirement.

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