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Championship Recap

IHOF

The Texas Tech Red Raiders (5-0) looked quite impressive in handing the Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-1) their first loss of the season in the Hall of Fame Classic final in Kansas City. Jarrett Culver scored 26 points, including a banked in three with 2:05 to play that all but sealed the win for the Red Raiders.

In the third-place game, USC Trojans (3-2) had an easy time of it against Missouri State Bears (3-2), winning 99-80, with Bennie Boatwright scoring 23.

Shamorie Ponds pushed the St. John’s Red Storm (5-0) past the VCU Rams (4-1) in a Legends Classic final that went to OT in Brooklyn. Ponds had 35 points, his second 30-point game in as many nights, including the winning bucket for the Johnnies.

The Temple Owls (5-1) rolled over the California Golden Bears (1-3) in the consolation game, 76-59.

In the event’s subregional in the Motor City, the host Detroit Mercy Titans (2-3), which entered the bracket winless, took a second straight win and the championship by blasting the Bowling Green Falcons (3-2), 82-67. In the all-DMV third-place contest, the Loyola (Md.) Greyhounds (2-4) got the better of the Hampton Pirates (1-4), 75-66.

In the Cayman Islands Classic’s Mainland bracket, the host ETSU Buccaneers (4-2) took the title with a 77-63 victory over the Sam Houston State Bearkats (3-4). In the consolation game, the Jackson State Tigers (1-4) won its first game of the season, 81-68, over the still-winless Chicago State Cougars (0-7).

Tip Time Schedule

Gulf Coast Showcase Finals

7th/8th Place: UTSA Roadrunners (0-5) vs. FGCU Eagles (2-4), 11 a.m. (BD Global stream ($))
5th/6th Place: South Dakota State Jackrabbits (4-2) vs. Colorado State Rams (4-1), approx. 1:30 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))
3rd/4th Place: Tulane Green Wave (2-2) vs. Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (2-3), 5 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))
Championship: UC Irvine Anteaters (6-0) vs. Toledo Rockets (4-1), approx. 7:30 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))

Full bracket

In tonight’s championship game, UC Irvine will look to extend its season-opening win streak to seven against Toledo. (That wouldn’t be bad for a team that won just five non-league games a season ago.) Last night, the Anteaters used a dominant second half to push past Tulane, 67-55, while the Rockets were even more impressive in their final 20 minutes against Louisiana, romping to a victory.

In the first game of the day, FGCU will have to keep UTSA winless to avoid an 0-3 finish in a tournament being held just miles from campus. As for that all-Louisiana third-place game, the Ragin’ Cajuns will look to top Tulane for the first time, though the two last met in the 2010-11 season. (H/T Sports Reference CBB)

Cayman Islands Classic Finals

7th/8th Place: Akron Zips (3-2) vs. St. Bonaventure Bonnies (1-4), 11 a.m. (Stadium on Facebook Live)
5th/6th Place: Illinois State Redbirds (3-2) vs. Boise State Broncos (2-2), approx. 1:30 p.m. (Stadium on Facebook Live)
3rd/4th Place: Georgia Bulldogs (3-2) vs. Georgia State Panthers (3-2), approx. 5 p.m. (Stadium on Facebook Live)
Championship: Clemson Tigers (5-0) vs. Creighton Bluejays (4-1), approx. 7:30 p.m. (Stadium on Facebook Live)

Downloadable bracket

Tournament favorite Clemson cruised past Georgia in the afternoon semifinal, 64-49, thanks to 24 from Marcquise Reed, a 12-point, 11-board performance by Elijah Thomas, and this dunk by David Skara.

Brad Brownell’s Tigers will meet Creighton in Wednesday evening’s championship game, as the Bluejays throttled Georgia State, 93-68. Mitch Ballock led the Jays with 23, while Damien Jefferson chipped in 20. Jacob Epperson also got what’s likely to be the easiest in-game dunk he’ll get this season.

The semifinal results happened to set up an in-state third-place contest, the first meeting between Georgia and Georgia State since the Bulldogs won 72-61 in Duluth, Ga. on December 10, 2005!

The fifth-place game between Boise State and Illinois State is a rematch of last season’s Puerto Rico Tip-Off (in Myrtle Beach) semifinals, won handily by the Broncos, 82-64.

Bad Boy Mowers Battle 4 Atlantis Quarterfinals

Florida Gators (2-1) vs. Oklahoma Sooners (3-0), 12 p.m. (ESPN)
Wisconsin Badgers (3-0) vs. Stanford Cardinal (2-1), approx. 2:30 p.m. (ESPN)
Butler Bulldogs (3-0) vs. Dayton Flyers (3-0), 7 p.m. (ESPNews)
Virginia Cavaliers (3-0) vs. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (3-1), approx. 9:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Four of this season’s Atlantis participants are returnees from the 2014 event, which saw Wisconsin defeat Oklahoma by 13 in the final, with Butler finishing third (defeating Big East rival Georgetown in the process, as both were invited before the Bulldogs moved over from the A 10), while Florida finished a disappointing sixth in a rare non-postseason year. Stanford also finished in sixth-place during its 2012 trip, while three-quarters of the bottom half of the bracket—Dayton, Middle Tennessee, and Virginia—are making their bow in the Atlantis ballroom.

Virginia and Wisconsin look to be the favorites here, though the Cavaliers appear to have a slightly clearer path to the final. But that ultimately depends on how well the Florida-Oklahoma winner is able to test the Badgers, provided Wisconsin gets past Stanford this afternoon (though that contest seems like a foregone conclusion).

Barclays Center Classic Presented by Honda

Showcase at Brooklyn

Saint Louis Billikens (4-0) vs. Pittsburgh Panthers (5-0), 12 p.m. (ACC Network Extra)

This season, instead of being a pair of doubleheaders not necessarily played in the event’s namesake arena, the Barclays Center Classic reverted to its original format—a round-robin with the two marquee teams playing three home games each before a showcase game in Brooklyn. This contest pits a Saint Louis team picked to win the Atlantic 10 with a Pitt squad that Jeff Capel will attempt to keep out of the ACC basement.

Cancun Challenge Finals

Mayan Bracket Finals

Consolation: Western Carolina Catamounts (1-4) vs. Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles (3-1), 12:30 p.m. (CollegeSportsLive.com)
Championship: Jacksonville State Gamecocks (1-3) vs. North Florida Ospreys (2-3), approx. 3 p.m. (CollegeSportsLive.com)

Jacksonville State used defense to topple Western Carolina in Tuesday afternoon’s first Mayan semifinal.

Ray Harper’s Gamecocks will take on the 2014 Mayan Division champs, North Florida, in this afternoon’s championship game. The Ospreys handed Southern Miss. its first loss of the 2018-19 season, 64-48.

Riviera Bracket Semifinals

Consolation: SMU Mustangs (2-3) vs. Wright State Raiders (3-2), 6 p.m. (CBSSN)
Championship: Bradley Braves (4-1) vs. Penn State Nittany Lions (3-1), approx. 8:30 p.m. (CBSSN)

SMU’s difficult Jarrey Foster-less start to the season continued, as the Mustangs were handily beaten to a place in the Riviera final by Bradley.

The second semifinal was even less thrilling, as NIT champ Penn State had its way with Horizon champ Wright State.

MGM Resorts Main Event Finals

Middleweight Bracket Finals

Consolation: Hartford Hawks (1-4) vs. Iona Gaels (1-2) , 2 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))
Championship: Utah Valley Wolverines (2-3) vs. Long Beach State 49ers (2-3), 5 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))

On Monday afternoon at Cox Pavilion on UNLV’s campus, Utah Valley held off Hartford, 72-65, to pick up its second win of the season. They’ll meet Long Beach State in an all-Western final, as the 49ers beat Iona at the buzzer in the final game of the Middleweight doubleheader.

Heavyweight Bracket Finals

Consolation: Saint Mary’s Gaels (3-1) vs. Arizona State Sun Devils (4-0), 8:30 p.m. (BD Global stream ($))
Championship: Utah State Aggies (5-0) vs. Arizona State Sun Devils (4-0), approx. 11 p.m. (ESPNU)

Maybe Saint Mary’s will indeed take a step back this season. The Gaels were completely outclassed by Utah State in Monday night’s first semifinal at T-Mobile Arena, 80-63. Not too bad for a team picked to finish near the bottom of the Mountain West this season. Neemias Queta led the Aggies with 24 points and nine rebounds, while Sam Merrill had 23 and 8 assists.

Saint Mary’s will take on this field’s only ranked team, Mississippi State, in the consolation game. That’s because Arizona State, the Heavyweight Bracket’s lone 2018 NCAA entrant, took down the Bulldogs, 72-67, in Monday’s nightcap. Kimani Lawrence led the Sun Devils with 22, while Aric Holman recorded a 22-point, 10-rebound double-double in vain.

Maui Jim Maui Invitational Finals

5th/6th Place: San Diego State Aztecs (3-1) vs. Iowa State Cyclones (4-1), 2:30 p.m. (ESPN2)
Championship: Duke Blue Devils (5-0) vs. Gonzaga Bulldogs (5-0), approx. 5 p.m. (ESPN)

7th/8th Place: Xavier Musketeers (2-3) vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (1-3), 9 p.m. (ESPNU)
3rd/4th Place: Auburn Tigers (4-1) vs. Arizona Wildcats (4-1), approx. 11:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Downloadable bracket

Auburn needed to play a sterling offensive and defensive game to beat Duke on Tuesday night, and while they had their moments and were able to get within eight or nine pretty consistently in the second half, the Blue Devils always had an answer—occasionally in dunk form.

Thus, Mike Krzyzewski’s squad won its 17th Maui game in as many attempts, 78-72, and they’ll just need to extend that streak by one to claim a sixth title.

Arizona, meanwhile, hung tough with Gonzaga for a good portion of the nightcap. But the turning point in the game came with 12:04 in the second half.

It didn’t help that the Wildcats stuttered on offense, even with Justin Coleman scoring 28, and were shut out on second chance points by the Bulldogs’ front line. Of course, it helps when you have someone like Rui Hachimura (24 points) who is able to score from all over the floor.

That being said, Gonzaga’s guards are going to have to really step up their game for the Bulldogs to have any chance this afternoon. And Killian Tillie’s won’t help matters, even with Mark Few’s talented frontcourt.

The Zags prevailed 91-74 to move on to a top-three final against Duke tomorrow afternoon. And yes, that’s a 5 p.m. Eastern/12 p.m. Hawai’i time start because of ESPN’s NBA doubleheader featuring LeBron James’ return to Cleveland as a member of the Lakers. You can see why the Worldwide Leader didn’t want to bury the Maui final on ESPN2 opposite that. Auburn will play Arizona in the third-place game, the actual conclusion of the tournament at 11:30 p.m. Eastern or so.

In the consolation bracket, the day opened with a thrilling fight back by San Diego State against Xavier, with the Aztecs coming back from the dead to win, 79-74.

The Aztec lead came with 13 minutes left in the game, part of an impressive SDSU run.

Similarly, Iowa State trailed Illinois 39-34 at the break before routing the Fighting Illini in the final 20 minutes, claiming an 84-68 win to set up a fifth-place game matchup with SDSU. The Cyclones’ Talen Horton-Tucker did a little stat sheet stuffing two days before Thanksgiving—26 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 blocks.

NIT Season Tip-Off Semifinals

Louisville Cardinals (3-0) vs. Tennessee Volunteers (3-0), 5 p.m. (ESPN2)
Marquette Golden Eagles (3-1) vs. Kansas Jayhawks (3-0), approx. 7:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

Downloadable bracket

If you’re in New York and the Legends Classic over the last two nights and this afternoon’s Barclays Center Classic showcase game aren’t enough for you, stick around Brooklyn for these two intriguing contests.

While Kansas has won this event three times, the Jayhawks last did so in 1997, basically a generation ago. It’s been less of a wait for Tennessee, which defeated the Villanova Wildcats to win the title in 2010. Meanwhile, neither Louisville or Marquette has won the in-season version of the NIT.

A Jayhawk-Volunteer final would be a Final Four/Elite Eight-type matchup pitting the Big 12 and SEC favorites. (If you doubt Tennessee, let me ask if you’ve seen Kentucky play yet.) But with the Cardinals getting used to Chris Mack and Marquette coming off a blowout loss at Indiana (and win over Presbyterian), any other final matchup could be a disappointment.

Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans Fort Myers Tip-Off Finals

Consolation: Richmond Spiders (2-2) vs. Wyoming Cowboys (1-4), 5 p.m. (FS1)
Championship: Loyola Chicago Ramblers (4-1) vs. vs. Boston College Eagles (3-1), approx. 7:30 p.m. (FS1)

In Monday’s first semifinal, Loyola started slowly before pulling away in impressive fashion, 82-66.

The Ramblers will face Boston College in the title game, as the Eagles evaded a Wyoming rally in Monday’s nightcap, 88-76.

And with Porter Moser struggling mightily to get quality games for his 2018 Final Four club, a victory over B.C. will be vital for their at-large hopes—even if the Eagles’ own at-large hopes are questionable at this point.

Wyoming and Richmond will meet in the third-place game/Mountain West-Atlantic 10 Challenge preview.

TCL Vancouver Showcase Day 3

Minnesota Golden Gophers (4-0) vs. Washington Huskies (4-1), 6:30 p.m. (BTN)

Last night, the Gophers took down the hapless Santa Clara Broncos (0-4), 80-66, in a game that got chippy late, with Bronco head coach Herb Sendek getting ejected—with three technicals! While Gabe Kalscheur led the Golden Gophers in scoring with 25 points, Jordan Murphy had the MVP performance of the night—15, 17 rebounds, and six assists. In the second game of the doubleheader the In the nightcap, the Huskies rallied to take down the Texas A&M Aggies (1-4), who led by five at the halftime interval, 71-67. Noah Dickerson had a monster game for the Huskies, with 24 points and 17 rebounds.

With the Broncos and Aggies both headed back to the States, the Golden Gophers and Huskies will close the inaugural Vancouver Showcase with an added game. And you might not see a more balanced matchup all day, as KenPom’s 45th and 48th ranked squads meet in a coin-flip contest—projected to end 75-74 Golden Gophers on 71 possessions. No matter which way the ball bounces in B.C., the winner should head home with a nice victory for its selection sheet come March.

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