Kentucky-UNC lived up to all the hype as the Wildcats’ freshmen continued to grow, dominating a second half in which they outscored Carolina in the paint 20-6 and shot 14-25 from the field. The good news for Roy Williams is that when he plays Kentucky again, it won’t be at Rupp Arena.
Under the Radar…For Now
The word is starting to get out about some mid-major players that are flying under the radar, such as Deonte Burton of Nevada. He went on a 10-3 run in the last two minutes of overtime to help his team beat Washington 76-73. He poured in 31 points in the game in all. Burton creates, scores and can flat out play. And what about Doug McDermott of Creighton? His 25 against San Diego State was the difference in the victory over the Aztecs. Mark it down right now: Creighton is a sleeper team come tourney time.
Even though Steve Fisher’s team lost at home to the Jays, they continued their domination over Pac-12 teams by kicking around a ranked Cal team 64-63. It was SDSU’s 9th straight win against Pac-12 opponents. According to Bears coach Mike Montgomery, the Aztecs have a KickBack program, but the KickBack Kids beat Cal for a second straight time and won their 19th straight over California opponents. Chase Tapley was the star man, scoring 25 points on 10-17 shooting from the field.
Finally, the state of Utah gave us Jimmer Fredette last year and now I invite you to say hello to Damian Lillard of Weber State. Lillard, the nation’s leading scorer (28.2 ppg), improved that average with a career-high 41 versus San Jose State in overtime last weekend. What’s even more impressive is he did it taking only 21 shots!
Remember the names Burton, McDermott, Tapley and Lillard. They won’t be under the radar for long.
– Bill Frieder
Former Michigan and Arizona State head coach Bill Frieder is an analyst for Westwood One’s coverage of NCAA Basketball. In his weekly blog Boxed Out, Bill scours the box scores to bring you interesting stories from the world of college basketball.
