Welcome to the first full month of the season! November, probably suffering from a serious case of indigestion after gorging on tournament action over the past few days, slipped out the back door and went to bed.
Before the month departed, It left us a few final contests.
- DeMarcus Cousins had 24 points and 10 boards, while John Wall added 12 points and 14 assists (!) to lead fifth-ranked Kentucky to a 94-57 win over UNC Asheville in Louisville.
- No. 8 Syracuse defeated Colgate for the 44th straight time, 92-58.
- No. 16 Georgetown took care of Mount St. Mary's, 83-62.
- Rider beat St. Joseph's, 81-73.
- And to serve as a segue for December, Penn State drew first blood for the Big Ten in their series with the ACC, slipping by pesky Virginia, 69-66.
With the first game out of the way, Tuesday's televised action is dominated by the first of two full nights of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. (All times are p.m. ET).
- No. 4 Purdue, who claimed the Paradise Jam last week, hosts Wake Forest, who, um, just lost at home to William and Mary (ESPN, 7). ADVANTAGE: Big Ten
- Northwestern visits NC State (ESPNU, 7). The Wildcats may not have Kevin Coble and Jeff Ryan, but they do have John Shurna. The Wolfpack are unbeaten, thanks to four wins in the Glen Wilkes Classic, but have yet to face the tests Northwestern has. At this point wins against Auburn and Akron don't carry as much cachet as ones against Notre Dame and Iowa State. ADVANTAGE: Big Ten again
- Maryland travels to Indiana (ESPN2, 7:30). The Terrapins finished a disappointing 1-2 in Maui, but the young Hoosiers didn't win a game in San Juan, falling to George Mason in the seventh place game. ADVANTAGE: ACC
- The showcase game of the event is the rematch of last season's National Championship game, as No. 9 Michigan State visits 10th-ranked North Carolina (ESPN, 9). The hosts again looked shaky against Nevada on Sunday evening, as Roy Williams continues to integrate a lot of new talent. The Spartans, meanwhile, rebounded well from their Legends Classic semifinal loss to Florida, as they blew out Massachusetts in the consolation game. The Spartans have more key pieces back from last year's team than the Heels, but the game is in Chapel Hill, so it is a PUSH.
- The nightcap features Virginia Tech and Iowa from Iowa City (ESPN2, 9:30). The Hawkeyes' two wins come against teams who rank well below 300th in the Pomeroy Ratings. The Hokies have won four times, but the best of those victories is against Brown, who ranks 238th. I don't have a clue how to read this one. PUSH
There are a couple of other games you can check out if you have a good pay per view/online package.
- Florida A&M at No. 13 Florida (SEC on FSN/Full Court, 7)
- Texas Southern at No. 22 Cincinnati (FS Ohio/SNY/Full Court, 7:30)
- Fort Hays State at Kansas State (FS Kansas City/Full Court, 8)
- San Francisco at Colorado (FS Rocky Mountain/Full Court, 9)
- UTEP at New Mexico State (Aggie Vision/Altitude 2/Full Court, 9)
For games that are only telecast locally, visit Matt Sarz' College Sports on TV site.
It's time for me to head back East. I'll be on planes for most of the afternoon and evening, so expect my next Go-Round post a little bit later than usual on Wednesday, December 2.