Game of the Year

Is it too late to adjust James Madison’s schedule? We’re gonna need more of the Dukes in our life.

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1. James Madison had a helluva opening week

After winning Monday at No. 4 Michigan State, it didn’t seem possible for James Madison’s season to get any more thrilling.

Oh, college basketball. You’re the best.

The Dukes beat Kent State, 113-108 in double overtime on Thursday night, the early leader for Game of the Year.

James Madison (2-0) didn’t even get a big game from forward TJ Bickerstaff (foul trouble) and seemed to be fading down the stretch. Kent State (1-1) was finding gaps in the Dukes’ defense and had a 10-point lead with about six minutes left. But once the Golden Flashes stopped being aggressive on offense, it opened the door for a comeback.

Still, after Kent State forward Chris Payton made a pair of free throws to make it an 89-84 lead with 3.8 seconds remaining, there’s no way a team can win, right?

Right?

Noah Freidel’s 5 remarkable points allowed the Dukes to take the game to overtime, where they controlled most of the extra period. Kent State (rightfully) appeared deflated, down six points in the final minute of OT

No chance to win, right? Right?

The teams were clearly spent in the final five minutes of the game, combining to score just nine points in the first three minutes of double OT before James Madison pulled ahead for good thanks to free throws.

After scoring 24 points against Michigan State, Terrence Edwards once again came through, leading James Madison with 25 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists.

For their part, Kent State showed it’ll be a threat in the MAC. Jalen Sullinger, last season’s MAC 6th Man of the Year, went off for a career-high 30 points on 7-of-12 from deep. And Payton ended up with 25 points and 17 rebounds before fouling out.

Ultimately, this is about James Madison and its epic first week. It had no business even taking the game to overtime after being thoroughly outplayed in the second half AND needed a perform storm of events to survive those final seconds in regulation. Now the Dukes have a Quad 1 and Quad 2 win on their resume, and may not lose for quite some time.

2. Saint Mary’s handles New Mexico

It was always going to be an uphill climb for New Mexico to come into Moraga and beat No. 23 Saint Mary’s. But without guard Jaelen House, who averaged 16.9 ppg and 4.6 apg in the last two years, it was an impossible task.

The Gaels turned the game into a double-digit route from the opening minutes, and coasted to a 72-58 win. Aidan Mahaney did most of his work when the game was somewhat competitive, scoring 20 of his 25 total points in the first half.

The Gaels’ defense took care of New Mexico’s other star guard, Jamal Mashburn Jr. He was held to just seven points on 3-of-16 shooting. The one positive for the Lobos is the continued development of Donovan Dent, who led the team with 15 points and five assists.

Another development is Harry Wessels, the backup center for Saint Mary’s who was second on the team with 12 points and five rebounds off the bench. After limited minutes as a freshman, the 7’1 center from Australia is an early breakout contributor, now in double figures in both games. In fact, he may be forcing Coach Randy Bennett’s hands in future rotations.

Other notable Thursday results

Michigan State 74, Southern Indiana 51
The Spartans left no doubt, limiting the Screaming Eagles to just 14 first-half points. But 3-point shooting woes remain; MSU made just 1-of-14 from deep to add to the 1-of-20 effort against James Madison. Duke looms on Tuesday.

USC 85, Cal State Bakersfield 59
Freshman sensation Isaiah Collier continues to shine. He scored a game-high 19 points, while DJ Rodman had 15 points on just 4-of-6 shooting from the field. The celebs are starting to take notice.

UC Davis 79, Pepperdine 78
The Waves led 99% of the game, up by as much as 19 points. But their hopes of ending a 25-game road losing streak went down in the final seconds, as the Aggies came back to win. Ty Johnson led the comeback effort, scoring a game-high 28 points.

Tarleton State 82, Florida International 65
The highest-scoring game of the day goes to Jakorie Smith, who dropped a career-high 34 points to lead the Texans. It was their first non-conference road win since joining D-I.

Elon 79, East Tennessee State 76
After blowing as a 20-point lead against Wake Forest, Elon held off ETSU to get its first non-con win over a D-I opponent since Dec. 15, 2021. It wasn’t easy with JUCO transfer Quimari Peterson scoring a game-high 31 points for the Bucs.

Utah Valley 79, Sam Houston State 73 (OT)
The battle of former WAC peers ended up with the Wolverines prevailing in overtime, led by 16 points and eight rebounds from Trevin Dorius. It’s all the more impressive that they won without much from Tanner Tooson, who was limited to 4 points on 1-of-7 shooting.

Middle Tennessee 67, Stephen F. Austin 62 (OT)
The Blue Raiders were down by double-digits in the second half, but made a comeback led by 14 points from Elias King.

Portland State 82, UC Santa Barbara 76
Big West Player of the Year Ajay Mitchell did not play. While guards Josh Pierre-Louis and Cole Anderson combined for 37 points in his place, the Vikings were able to get the road upset.

Washington 75, Northern Kentucky 67
Northern Kentucky continued the trend of Horizon League teams being feisty against power conference programs, staying between 4-8 points throughout the night. Unfortunately, star guard Marques Warrick going 0-of-12 from the field doomed the Norse. Washington had two key contributors in Keion Brooks (32 points and 10 rebounds) and Sahvir Wheeler (18 points and 7 assists).

3. On second thought, Jaylon Tyson can play for Cal

A few weeks ago, Cal Bears got bad news when the NCAA denied the waiver of two-time transfer Jaylon Tyson, who left Texas Tech after the firing Mark Adams. Tyson wasn’t alone in being rebuffed by the NCAA, though his situation is much different.

In an article by Kevin Sweeney of Sports Illustrated, Tyson alleged racial discrimination. “Last year, I was racially discriminated against on multiple occasions,” he told SI. “I was called a slave, and that Mark Adams was my master.” It highlighted a unique situation and one that could very well argue for a waiver.

Cal announced Thursday that the NCAA ultimately agreed.

It’s an important outcome for the Bears. The 6-8 wing averaged 10.7 ppg and 6.1 rpg last season with the Red Raiders and shot 40% from deep. Cal needs that type of player, both for depth — four starters played 30+ minutes in a 71-66 win over St. Thomas this week — and his ability.

We’ll see Tyson’s debut tonight against Pacific.

4. Can the ACC keep up its solid start?

Just four days into the season we’ve already seen some power conference upsets, including Rutgers and Michigan State.

And the ACC? Not too shabby. No team has lost yet. At this rate, Terrence Oglesby is going to be a certified genius.

But starting today, things will get tougher. And that’s been the plan for the ACC, a league who’s reputation has suffered the last few years, resulting in fewer NCAA Tournament bids than usual. That’s due in part to collective failures to win key non-conference games and in other cases, avoiding the dreaded Quad 3 & 4 losses.

Even first-year Syracuse coach Adrian Autry knows that the ACC must improve its non-conference results. “You don’t really move the needle once you start conference play,” per the the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

That’s why Louisville holding on to beat UMBC, and Wake Forest coming back from 20+ down vs. Elon; you have to limit the bad losses. But the ACC also must win a few upcoming big opportunities, such as the ACC/SEC Challenge, and various MTEs.

Friday is also a good example, with five matchups featuring an ACC team with a power conference opponent.

Miami vs UCF: 7 pm ET (ESPN2)
Nijel Pack scored just eight points, yet Miami still dropped 101 points in a dominant win over NJIT, thanks to 21 from Wooga Poplar. UCF will be a tougher challenge and we’ll see if Poplar’s breakout campaign is truly real.

Wake Forest at Georgia: 7 pm ET (SEC Network)
Wake escaped against Elon. But this is an entirely different proposition. Georgia’s coming off a loss to Oregon, and will be focused on stopping Cameron Hildreth and Hunter Sallis.

Virginia at Florida: 7 pm ET (ACC Network)
Ten Cavaliers played double-digit minutes in the opener against Tarleton State. Expect that to shorten against Florida, which was impressive against Loyola (MD). Riley Kugel vs. Reece Beekman is the marquee matchup, but perhaps more important will be the Cavaliers’ new-look frontcourt vs. Tyrese Samuel and Micah Handlogten, who combined for 31 pts and 14 rebs in the opener.

Virginia Tech at South Carolina: 9:30 pm (ACC Network)
The first real test for both teams. Best backcourt wins? Ta’lon Cooper and Meechie Johnson (SC) will have to match the play of Sean Pedulla and Hunter Cattoor for a chance to win. This is a key game for the Hokies if they want a shot at the Big Dance.

5. Friday night lights: Zona-Duke, and more!

The fifth ACC game of the night is the biggest game of the season thus far: No. 12 Arizona at No. 2 Duke (7 pm ET on ESPN2).

Kyle Filipowski, coming off a 25-point, seven-rebound night against Dartmouth, will have a bigger challenge than he saw Monday in Arizona center Oumar Ballo. Does Duke coach Jon Scheyer start Ryan Young at the five again? Or will we see a battle of 7-footers all night?

Also important for Duke is the health of starting wing Mark Mitchell.

Mitchell missed Monday’s game. If he misses tonight’s game, it’ll put even more pressure on Filipowski up front because of Mitchell’s defensive versatility. (Do freshmen Sean Stewart and TJ Power see more time against the formidable Arizona frontcourt?)

As for Arizona, all eyes will be on Caleb Love, who is making his return to Cameron Indoor Stadium. His North Carolina career ended with a whimper, but that’s not what Duke fans think of with Love.

Love had 12 points and no turnovers in his Arizona debut. The crowd will certainly be all over Love, but Cats coach Tommy Lloyd doesn’t seem to be concerned. “I’m not worried about it. I think Caleb’s pretty tough and tough-minded. Obviously, I know it’s probably gonna draw a lot of attention, but he’s built for it.”

Hope you’re built for more than just one game. Because they’re a bunch of other notable matchups tonight.

Texas A&M at Ohio State: 7 pm ET (Peacock)
After a closer-than-expected win against Oakland, Ohio State needs a more convincing effort against No. 15 Texas A&M and its All-America guard Wade Taylor. How the young Buckeyes’ backcourt handles this pressure will be key.

Dayton at Northwestern: 8:30 ET (Big Ten Network)
Dayton won’t have point guard Malachi Smith (out for the season), but it still has elite big man DaRon Holmes. Northwestern has its own star in Boo Buie, who dropped 27 points in the season-opening win against Binghamton. The remaining Flyer guards will need to slow him down to have a chance.

Tennessee at Wisconsin: 9 pm ET (Peacock)
The other must-see game of the night. Especially if you like defense. Both teams had no trouble scoring in their openers, but expect buckets to be a little more difficult tonight. Can new Volunteers Dalton Knecht and Jordan Gainey find gaps in Wisconsin’s D?

San Diego State at BYU: 9 pm ET (ESPN+)
BYU doesn’t need this game when it comes to resume-building, but beating a longtime rival (from their days in the WAC and the MWC) it’s certainly a meaningful game for both sides.

Memphis at Missouri: 9 pm ET (SEC Network)
Both teams have new-look rosters so seeing which transfers stand out will be a major storyline.

Gonzaga vs Yale: 9 pm ET (ESPN+)
Gonzaga never got a chance to feature sharpshooting wing Steele Venters, who’s now out for the season. Top-50 freshman guard Dusty Stromer will likely start in his place. They could’ve used Venters to stretch the Yale defense, too. The Bulldogs are experienced, deep and an NCAA tourney-caliber team.

Upset on the Horizon?

One Horizon League team that hasn’t faced a power conference opponent yet is Milwaukee, one of the favorites to win the conference. It didn’t BJ Freeman on Monday (held out for reportedly violating team rules), but if he’s back this weekend, thinking could get interesting in Providence. The Friars were good, but not great on Monday against Columbia. We’ve already seen a Horizon team beat a Big East school (Purdue-Fort Wayne over DePaul). This would qualify as a significant result. (Sat, 6 pm ET, FS2)

Other games to watch (all times ET)

Saturday

• Stonehill at UConn, Noon (FS2)

• North Dakota State at Creighton, 2 pm (FS2)

• UNC Wilmington at UNC Asheville, 2 pm (Check Local Listings)

• Texas Southern at Arizona State, 3 pm (Check Local Listings)

• Utah State at Bradley, 8 pm (ESPN+)

Sunday

• Lehigh at UNC, 2 pm (ACC Network)

• San Francisco at Boise State, 4 pm (Check Local Listings)

• Howard at James Madison, 4 pm (Check Local Listings)

• Weber State at Saint Mary’s, 8 pm (ESPN+)

• Nevada at Washington, 10 pm (Pac-12 Network)

Give the man his due

When Randolph Childress and Josh Pastner compiled their ideal starting fives — not necessarily the best players, but the five they’d take in an actual game — both of them selected Terrence Shannon on the wing. Does that make the Illinois senior the game’s most underrated player?

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Links as you try to understand what’s going on with these NBA Team accounts.

• GW and coach Chris Caputo agreed to a contract extension.

• Several former New Mexico State players were charged with felonies from last season’s scandals.

• The NCAA cleared Saint Louis freshman center Bruce Zhang to play.

• UConn coach Dan Hurley opens up about his own mental health struggles, even after winning a national title.

• Seton Hall landed 4-star center prospect, Godswill Erheriene.

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