Eye On College Basketball

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12/09: Tennessee proves it's a legit national title contender; Kansas is now No. 1; Kentucky isn't top-25 material Dec 10, 2018

Show notes

Tennessee upset Gonzaga 76-73 on Sunday afternoon. Incredible game. Parrish and Norlander open on that and touch on a whole bunch with both teams, then get to Kentucky (16:09) dropping out of Parrish's Top 25 and 1 rankings. The new No. 1? Kansas (27:44). It had to rally this weekend to beat New Mexico State 63-60 in Kansas City. Elsewhere, there were a couple of good one-point games this weekend between currently unranked, but still big-time, basketball programs. Indiana beat Louisville 68-67 (37:32) and Syracuse beat Georgetown 72-71. The guys close on Villanova (42:51) and Bill Walton's polarizing nature as a color commentator (45:58).

12/07: Gonzaga's Rui Hachimura might be the POY so far -- and here comes a huge test vs. Tennessee this weekend Dec 07, 2018

Show notes

Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander look ahead to a stacked weekend of good college hoops, but start at the top with Duke landing Vernon Carey Jr., the No. 2 prospect in the class of 2019. From there, predictions and chatter on undefeated Nevada playing undefeated Arizona State late Friday night (6:49). And on Saturday, Kentucky-Seton Hall (15:20) leads off a loaded day slate. Also going down Louisville-Indiana and Wisconsin-Marquette's big games (18:20) and the CBS noon tip on Saturday of Michigan State-Florida (20:20). And yes, Buffalo -- unbeaten! -- gets some shine (23:50). The big game on Sunday is Gonzaga-Tennessee (26:35), but there's something the guys have to address with Texas (33:15), which has a big game vs. Purdue.

12/05: Oklahoma seems like it's better without Trae Young; Kansas' big injury; Fred Hoiberg's chances of returning to college Dec 05, 2018

Show notes

Matt Norlander was at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night for a doubleheader featuring Oklahoma-Notre Dame and Florida-West Virginia. This episode opens on that, and specifically: Is Oklahoma better without Trae Young? Florida (6:17) beat West Virginia, but pro prospect Jalen Hudson is oddly a non-factor. It's weird. In injury news, Kansas (10:30) big man Udoka Azubuike suffered a right ankle injury in Tuesday's win over Wofford that's expected to sideline him for a significant amount of time. The Miami Hurricanes (13:22) have lost four straight games for the first time under Jim Larranaga. How did the Hurricanes go from 5-0 to 5-4 with losses to Seton Hall, Rutgers, Yale and Penn? The pod closes with a discussion about the Chicago Bulls firing Fred Hoiberg (19:13). Is a return to college basketball inevitable?

12/02: Lagerald Vick saves Kansas; Nevada exceeding the hype; comparing the CFP to the NCAA Tournament Dec 03, 2018

Show notes

There were no major upsets this weekend. But a handful of good teams -- No. 1 Gonzaga, No. 2 Kansas, No. 20 Texas Tech, etc., -- were pushed by unranked opponents. The pod opens on that, then gets to Lagerald Vick and Kansas (3:09) and Nevada's 8-0 start (12:43). On Sunday, Arizona got to 6-2 (20:17). Is Sean Miller going to get the Wildcats back to the NCAA Tournament even though most predicted he wouldn't? As for UConn (24:45), Akok Akok committed, which is big. Then the fun begins. Norlander has Parrish play "Guess the Celebrity" (28:31) and the guys wrap with a wide-ranging conversation on the College Football Playoff and how it compares to the NCAA Tournament process (37:10).

11/30: Michigan looks as good as any team in college hoops; Bob Knight documentary; weekend rundown Nov 30, 2018

Show notes

Michigan is 7-0 with blowout wins over the past two national champions. And the Wolverines are, once again, excellent defensively thanks to John Beilein's hiring of Luke Yaklich. Matt Norlander and Gary Parrish open this episode by discussing what appears to be the Big Ten's best team.

After that, the conversation went like this:

7:03: Roy Williams said North Carolina stinks. Is he right?

11:52: The Bob Knight 30 For 30 -- "The Last Days of Knight" -- made its television debut on Thursday. The guys spent a few minutes discussing the controversial coaching icon. There's also a bacon story from Parrish.

24:50: Weekend preview, including Gonzaga-Creighton, Nevada-USC, Arizona-UConn and Oregon-Houston.

11/28: Louisville tops MSU, Duke throttles Indiana, Coach K throttles his jacket, and early thoughts on the NET Nov 28, 2018

Show notes

Chris Mack got his first signature win as Louisville's coach Tuesday night when the Cardinals upset Michigan State in overtime. Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander open on that, then get to a lot going on with Duke and its win over Indiana (13:04), including Coach K's jacket-throwing technique and why Duke team managers run like Usain Bolt at the end of each half. Elsewhere, Nevada had no issues with Loyola-Chicago (26:09). Unfortunately, Vanderbilt's NCAA tourney chances could be doomed with Darius Garland likely out fot the year (33:33). The pod wraps with a lively discussion about the NCAA's NET rankings making their debut this week (41:05). GP and Norlander closed on whether college basketball fans should really be concerned about the algorithm and what the NCAA should've done differently to avoid yet another public relations nightmare.

11/25: Villanova clicking again, but something's still amiss; Big Ten-ACC Challenge picks and preview Nov 26, 2018

Show notes

Villanova got its first quality win of the season by beating Florida State 66-60 on Sunday in the title game of the AdvoCare Invitational. Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander start this episode by discussing a lingering curiosity with Villanova, then get to Oklahoma State (10:02), which is off to a nice, under-the-radar start. From there, predictions and thoughts on the ACC-Big Ten Challenge (17:29), Duke thoughts (22:42) and a discussion on the best mid-major game of the week, Nevada vs. Loyola Chicago (30:14). and I opened this episode of the Eye On College Basketball by discussing the reigning national champs and Quinerly's disappointing start.

11/24: Kansas should be ranked ahead of Gonzaga at No. 1; tourney takes from throughout Thanksgiving week Nov 24, 2018

Show notes

Parrish and Norlander were all over the country this week, covering top-five matchups in person and reporting on them for CBS Sports. This special Saturday episode leads with Kansas beating Tennessee late Friday night at Barclays Center. From there, the guys get to Virginia's 6-0 start (10:03) and what happened in Vegas with Michigan State, Texas, UNC and UCLA (13:06). On the other side of things, Florida's off to a ragged 3-3 start (16:16). Arizona State (20:28) is doing well for itself again after last year's good start. Bad news: Vanderbilt's Darius Garland has a torn meniscus (23:00). A look ahead to Sunday's big game between Villanova and Florida State (29:40).

11/22: Gonzaga puts an end to all that premature Duke-undefeated talk; No. 1 prospect James Wiseman picks Memphis over Kentucky Nov 22, 2018

Show notes

The undefeated talk is over. Duke didn't make it past Thanksgiving without a loss. No. 3 Gonzaga beat No. 1 Duke 89-87 in the championship game of the Maui Invitational. Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander lead this Thanksgiving podcast with that -- and give their thanks to the listeners, of course. From there, the guys got into what worked for Gonzaga and evaluated Duke's freshmen both on Wednesday and overall in Maui. Also,

James Wiseman (23:30), the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2019, is going to Memphis. How big is that for Penny Hardaway? How bad is that for John Calipari? And did you know that Friday will bring another top-five matchup? No. 2 Kansas vs. No. 5 Tennessee (38:07) is on tap. Predictions included.

11/18: Villanova and Syracuse plummet; a full-blown preview of the stacked Maui Invitational Nov 19, 2018

Show notes

At the top, Norlander and Parrish open on Hawaii. Then it's on to Villanova (12:42), which lost again on Saturday — to Furman. Also 2-2: Syracuse (20:49). The Orange lost to UConn and Oregon at Madison Square Garden. Which team is more disappointing at this stage? Speaking of disappointing losses, Indiana let one get away at Arkansas on Sunday (26:07). How about the 3-ball this season (31:18): teams continue to bomb away more than ever before. The episode closes with a wide-ranging preview and set of predictions on the Maui Invitational (36:05).

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