Road woes

Some dislike neutral-site games because crowds can be sparse. And while I respect that, I support anything that creates more top-tier matchups. Nevertheless, true road games in front of a raucous crowd can be the ultimate equalizer — a certain top-5 team found that out the hard way last night.

Let's get to it.

1. Arizona's offense goes blank

Arizona began the week No. 1 in scoring (97.5 ppg) and, depending on your preferred site, had the most efficient offense (nearly 1.2 points per possession). They play fast and score easily. They averaged 88 points a game at Maui. And they were 6-0 and ranked fourth in the AP Poll. But conference play is just different.

Example A: Thursday night at Utah. Out the gates, the Utes were faster and more efficient, never trailing in an 81-66 win. The Wildcats made a couple of second-half runs, but it ended in a surprising, stunning loss for the favored team.

Arizona's frontcourt came to play, with Azuolas Tubelis and Oumar Ballo combining to produce 44 points and 13 rebounds. However, the backcourt let it down on both ends. Kerr Kriisa had nine assists, Courtney Ramey scored 11 points, and Pelle Larsson pulled down 11 boards, but the three combined for 17 points on 5-of-27 shooting from the field. The Cats shot just 35 percent overall — by far their worst performance of the young season.

They'll be fine, by the way. Arizona wasn't going to average nearly 100 points on the season, but the consistency from Ballo and Tubelis gives them a high ceiling and a high floor. Additionally, the guards won't shoot this poorly many more nights. And there are some reasonable excuses to give them too — recovering from travel after Maui, the first true road game on the season, Utah's high elevation, playing a desperate team, etc.

Also, Utah (6-2) may grow into a threat in the Pac-12, which adds a surprising element. It was picked 10th in the preseason media poll.

No need to panic if you're an Arizona fan. Just remember, it's conference play. Things happen.

2. Jays' offense stays in the nest

Thursday provided a huge game that doubled as the headliner of the Big East/Big 12 Battle. No. 7 Creighton ventured to No. 2 Texas, and it was everything you could've hoped for (unless you can't stand missed 3-pointers).

The Longhorns staked an early lead and maintained it throughout for a 72-67 victory. But it wasn't easy. The Bluejays led twice in the first half and were always within striking range, including being down just three points with less than a minute left. And this was despite only making one 3-pointer in the first 37 minutes.

Ryan Kalkbrenner missed one shot in a 20-point, 3-rebound performance. Ryan Nembhard caught fire late, finishing with 17 points and six assists. But they were the only reliable offensive threats. Trey Alexander missed all eight of his field-goal attempts. Baylor Scheierman hit two late 3s but never found his stroke, going just 4-of-14. Don't expect Creighton (6-2) to have many shooting nights like that. Considering what Texas did to Gonzaga last month, it should make you even more impressed with the Jays.

As for Texas, they were good, but they weren't an offensive juggernaut, either. They made 42 percent of their shots, were just 4-of-19 from beyond the arc, and their backcourt of Marcus Carr and Tyrese Hunter combined to go 14-of-35. Still, both made plays when needed, whether it was timely buckets or defensive pressure.

Texas (6-0) is clearly better than last year's group but hasn't faced a tough test away from home. That changes on Tuesday with a matchup against Illinois in the Jimmy V Classic. Meanwhile, Creighton has a road trip at BYU next weekend, which could be a sneaky matchup for them against a team that could use the resume booster.

Other notable Thursday results

UConn 74, Oklahoma State, 64: Jordan Hawkins posted a career-high 26 points to pace the Huskies (9-0), while Adama Sanogo contributed 20. OK State's defense did limit UConn to under 40 percent from the field, but 17 turnovers and just 5 assists (0 from the starters) doomed the Cowboys (5-3).

UCLA 80, Stanford, 66: The Bruins (6-2) got a Jaime Jaquez game-high 27 points. Amari Bailey's 19 gave another indicator that he has shaken off poor performances from the earlier losses. Stanford (3-5) got good production from its bench, but only Spencer Jones (18 points) got into double figures among the starters.

Arizona State 60, Colorado 59: This might be the most impressive win of the night. The Sun Devils (7-1) got the W without leading scorer and passer Frankie Collins (sickness) thanks to a last-second shot by Desmond Cambridge. His brother Devan Cambridge had 18 points, while KJ Simpson led the very inconsistent Buffs (3-5) with 13. (How did they beat Tennessee?)

Oregon State 66, Washington 65: After beating Saint Mary's in the Wooden Legacy Classic, the Huskies (6-2) suffered a setback with a close loss to an Oregon State (4-4) squad that had previously lost four straight, two of them to Portland State. The star was Dzmitry Ryuny, who stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals.

Kansas 91, Seton Hall 65: Six Jayhawks scored in double figures, led by Kevin McCullar's 17 points. This is now back-to-back games where from Kansas (8-1) shot over 50% from the field, and this time against a good defensive team in Seton Hall (4-4). Has Bill Self's squad solved some of those issues? A trip to Missouri next week will tell.

Utah State 86, Utah Tech 81: The Aggies (6-0) remained one of 15 unbeaten team in D-I, getting 27 points from Steven Ashworth and 20 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists from Taylor Funk.

Belmont 76, Valparaiso 64: The Bruins (5-3) got 20 points from Drew Friberg in their first-ever Missouri Valley Conference game.

Murray State 70, Illinois State 67: The Racers (4-3) kept pace with the Bruins, also getting a victory in their Missouri Valley Conference debut.

Robert Morris 80, Wright State 59: The Colonials (3-5) pulled off a surprise at Wright State (5-3), throwing an early wrench in the Horizon League race.

3. Plans tonight? Break 'em.

Who needs to go out on a Friday when you've got two Top 25 matchups to watch?

The first, and one of the most anticipated matchups of the non-conference schedule, is Baylor vs. Gonzaga at the Sanford Pentagon in South Dakota. It's their first meeting since the Bears ran the Bulldogs off the floor in the 2021 national title game.

Interestingly enough, No. 14 Gonzaga (5-2) and No. 6 Baylor (5-2) each have dealt with questions on defense after respective blowout losses to Texas and Marquette. And that's probably why there won't be as much talk about their last meeting, since the loser will have three losses in early December.

Drew Timme and Julian Strawther will cause problems against Baylor's inconsistent frontcourt, while Gonzaga's inconsistent perimeter defense will have to contend with the trio of Keyonte George, LJ Cryer and Adam Flagler.

Win or lose, the headline of this game will likely be Baylor's defense. If they give up 80 points in another loss, that will cause speculation on their long-term outlook. All eyes also will be on Zags point guard Nolan Hickman. Can he handle this pressure?

The real winner might be NBC, which is making people download Peacock to watch the game. Hope you didn't delete the app after the Olympics. (8 pm ET)

But wait, there's more!

No. 22 Maryland (7-0) has been one of the season's biggest surprises, setting up a quality matchup to open Big Ten play against No. 16 Illinois (6-1). With Indiana and Purdue leading the way and both Michigan schools having their issues, there's a clear opportunity for these two teams to get an early big win — not just for the jockeying of standings position but to add to their NCAA Tournament resumes.

The frontcourt battle between Maryland's Julian Reese and Donta Scott and Illinois' Dain Dainja and Coleman Hawkins could be the deciding factor. There are probably more questions about Maryland's ceiling compared to Illinois, so it may be more important for them to get the home victory tonight. (9 pm ET, Big Ten Network)

4. Ram tough

Colorado State got an early Christmas present this week when Isaiah Stevens, a 3-time All-Mountain West player, with around 100 career starts, played Wednesday night. A foot injury was supposed to keep him out until league play at the end of the month, putting the Rams' chances for résumé wins in serious jeopardy.

But Colorado State managed without its star guard, thanks to John Tonje (16.1 ppg and 6.4 rpg) taking on the lead role. The team is now 6-2 with no bad losses and more importantly, can get Stevens some run with crucial games coming up (Colorado, Saint Mary's, USC). He might not need long to get into form, either. In 19 minutes vs. LMU, he put up 13 points and four assists.

"Obviously, I'm so proud of him, the way he's handled everything through this has been extraordinary," coach Niko Medved said this week. "He obviously scores, but he creates so much for others, but it's that confidence he brings, and I think our guys really feed off that".

The Rams now have the best of both worlds. They get Stevens back for the rest of his senior year and are surrounded by players that have shown they can be effective contributors, such as Tonje, Isaiah Rivera, and freshman guard Taviontae Jackson. In a Mountain West that features San Diego State and an improved New Mexico squad, Colorado State is now fully equipped to compete with them.

5. The "decline" of college basketball rivalries

Philadelphia's "Big 5" matchups are one of college basketball's proud traditions. But it was hard to tell earlier this week. Temple defeated La Salle, and St. Joe's beat Penn. But the only national noise that came out of those games was the lack of fan attendance.

It's something that affects the whole sport, thanks to the never-ending conference realignment that has forced many former rivalries to be played in November and December on random days of the week. Did anyone notice the "Backyard Brawl" (Pitt vs WVU) last month? And how much attention will the "Holy War" (BYU vs Utah) or the "Crosstown Shootout" (Xavier vs Cincy) garner?

(As an aside: West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, who coached the Bearcats in the past and faces the Musketeers tonight, didn't have any warm words for his former rival. The game needs more coaches invested like Huggins.)

Several factors affect college basketball rivalries. Individual programs can't control conference realignment, but they can control scheduling. It took forever for Kansas and Missouri to restart their rivalry last season. One thing would be to stop ducking certain opponents and/or dropping petty issues that prevent games from being played.

And in the case of the "Big 5", it would help to have a viable program not named Villanova that brings something to the table. Temple and St. Joe's are teams that have underachieved for a while now, so it's hard to blame fans for not wanting to go to a double-header when there is nothing on the line. It's hard to even include "bragging rights" in that when both teams involved likely aren't making it to a postseason tournament.

With the landscape continually changing, so will what's important to fans of specific teams and the sport overall. In the end, though, fans will come to see winning teams, regardless of who they're playing. For the games to feel important again, the teams will have to be good again.

Avoiding a hairy situation

This was a staple of Matthew Mayer's time at Baylor. A throwback to a time when Billy Ray Cyrus ruled the airwaves and Dwayne Schintzius roamed the SEC. However, Mayer's in a new spot at Illinois. And the mullet didn't come with him. But ...

Dunno if you'd call this "clean," but it's definitely no mullet.

"A battle of the bigs, innit?"

Two of the best players in college basketball will head across the pond to go against one another at 1 pm ET on ABC. Hunter Dickinson and Oscar Tshiebwe headline the Michigan-Kentucky matchup in London. The Wolverines get another crack at a marquee victory after losing at home to Virginia in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Meanwhile, it's Kentucky's first true test after getting beaten by Gonzaga a couple of weeks ago by 16 points.

The bigs for both teams will do their part but it'll come down to the supporting casts to decide who wins this neutral site matchup. Jett Howard may be the best freshman on either side, averaging 15.1 ppg through seven games.

What to watch the rest of the weekend: (All times ET)

Saturday

• Syracuse (3-4) at Notre Dame 6-1), Noon (ESPN2)

• Oklahoma (6-1) at Villanova (2-5), 12:30 pm (CBS)

• No. 10 Indiana (7-0) at Rutgers 5-2), 4 pm (Big Ten Network)

• Wisconsin (5-2) at Marquete (6-2), 4:30 pm (FS1)

• West Virginia (6-1) at Xavier (5-3), 6:30 pm (FS1)

• Saint Mary's (6-2) at No. 1 Houston (7-0), 9:30 pm (ESPN2)

Sunday

• St. John's (8-0) at No. 23 Iowa State (6-1), 3 pm (ESPN2)

• Oregon (4-4) at No. 21 UCLA (6-2), 5 pm (ESPN)

• No. 18 North Carolina (5-3) at Virginia Tech (7-1), 3 pm (ACC Network)

'We were sandbagging a little bit'

Purdue lost three starters from last year's 29-8 team, including an NBA lottery pick in Jaden Ivey. So how did Matt Painter's squad reload so fast? This 7-0 start — including marquee wins over Gonzaga and Duke — is a sight to behold, especially with its freshmen guards.

Painters details the Boilermakers' fast start to Jeff Goodman, who's doing his best to stoke the in-state rivalry flames with his attire.

Subscribe to The Field of 68 on YouTube and click here subscribe to the Goodman and Hummel podcast.

Links as you figure out how to get Peacock for the Gonzaga vs Baylor game.

• DePaul announced that senior Nick Ongenda had surgery and will miss the next 8-10 weeks,

• Antoine Davis dropped 22 points in Detroit Mercy's win over Purdue-Fort Wayne; he is now the all-time scorer in Horizon League history.

• UVA head coach Tonny Bennett was very complimentary of his team after the Michigan win.

• House Rep Bill Pascrelli has weighed into the debate of growing coach salaries.

• Boston College freshman guard Donald Hand (ACL) is out for the season.

Grab that gear while it lasts

Don't wait. Get ready for conference play — or those fun early season battles — with t-shirts or hoodies of your favorite team. Use promo code "DAILY" to received 20% off between now and Christmas. Shop now.

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