Here’s today’s installment of “The Breakfast Buffet”, a daily column that can be found here every single morning getting you caught up to date on everything that’s happened from the day/night before and everything that’s going to happen in the next 24 hours.
Mangia!
Things To Sample
Marquette is the best offensive team that Shaka Smart has ever coached
That is not hyperbole. After Saturday’s 21-point decimation of Seton Hall in Newark, the Golden Eagles are averaging 82.3 points while shooting 50.3 percent from the field. Marquette (16-5) is also averaging 18.2 assists. The only team that Smart has coached that comes close to averaging these types of offensive numbers is the 2012-13 VCU team that averaged 78 points and 15 assists while shooting 45.1 percent from the field. That team lost in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Michigan, who wound up advancing all the way to the national title game. The Golden Eagles have won six of their last seven games and will next visit DePaul on Saturday.
Marcus Sasser is taking things to another level for Houston
Sasser came into this season as a preseason All-American, but hasn’t received as much as ink as other guards in college basketball over the last month. Expect that to change shortly. The 6-2 senior — who had 20 points in the 2021 Final Four against Baylor — enters today’s game against Temple on an absolute tear. Sasser is averaging 27 points in his last two games and is 15-30 from the field during that span along with an impressive 13-24 mark from long distance. Remember: Sasser only appeared in 12 games last season due to a foot injury and didn’t play in the Cougars’ run to the Elite Eight last March. He’s now playing like one of the elite guards in the sport.
UConn aims to get its mojo back against Butler
Desperate times call for desperate measures and the Huskies are desperate for a win today against the Bulldogs. Beyond the fact that UConn has lost five of its last six games after starting the season 14-0, its upcoming schedule is exceptionally difficult. After today’s game against Butler, the Huskies will host Xavier on Wednesday and then play back-to-back road games at DePaul and Georgetown which will be followed with a home game against Marquette and then a trip to Creighton. While DePaul and Georgetown aren’t currently contenders for the NCAA Tournament, the Blue Demons turned some heads by beating Xavier in Chicago this week and somebody is going to be the team that ends the Hoyas’ Big East losing streak. UConn is as desperate for a win today as it’s been all season.
On The Side
- A knee injury to Race Thompson has allowed Jordan Geronimo to again become a prominent piece of Indiana’s rotation. The 6-6 forward has tallied 25 points and 19 rebounds in his last two games. The Hoosiers are aiming for their third straight win today against Michigan State at Assembly Hall. Tip off is at 1 PM ET on CBS.
- TCU’s win on Saturday at Kansas was only Bill Self’s 17th loss at Allen Fieldhouse. Self was hired as the Jayhawks’ head coach in 2003.
- Alabama won’t play a team that was ranked in last week’s ROTHSTEIN 45 until it visits Auburn on Feb. 11th. The Crimson Tide have won eight straight games.
- With Villanova (10-10) expected to lose Caleb Daniels (16.6 points), Brandon Slater (11.1 points), and Cam Whitmore (12.5 points) following this season, one could argue that the upcoming spring will represent the most critical recruiting period that this program has had in a very long time. Eric Dixon (15.8 points) is the only double figure scorer that is slated to return for the Wildcats in 2023-24. Villanova has only one player signed in its 2023 recruiting class.
- There’s a lot of things that the Atlantic 10 needs to do to regain national relevance. Moving its conference tournament to The Palestra on an annual basis would be a tremendous first step.
Daily Specials
- Butler at UConn
- Michigan State at Indiana
- Maryland at Purdue
- Memphis at Cincinnati
- Temple at Houston
Leftovers
- The Breakfast Buffet: UConn’s dominance, Andre Jackson, Florida Atlantic’s path is similar to Loyola Chicago in 2018
- The Breakfast Buffet: Things come full circle for Gonzaga and UConn, Kansas State, Rodney Terry
- The Breakfast Buffet: Markquis Nowell, UCLA will always be left wondering what could have been, FAU
- The Breakfast Buffet: Rick Barnes’ best chance to return to the Final Four, Adama Sanogo, Gonzaga/UCLA
- The Breakfast Buffet: Tobin Anderson, the Big East’s roster of head coaches is elite, Bobby Hurley
