College Basketball's 10 Games to Watch for on Opening Night
November brings a time of cheer and joy to most people as the holiday season approaches. For college basketball fans, it also means the start of a new season.
With over 100 games tipping off on Friday, here is a look at 10 of the most interesting games to watch for on opening night.
The selection of these games is based off the hype, circumstances and matchups of the teams involved, but the games are not ranked in any order of importance.
These selections are also the few games that will be televised on national or regional networks for most, if not all, fans to watch.
Read on to find out what you can watch to keep yourself busy for a couple of hours this Friday.
Kentucky vs. Grand Canyon
1 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. ET
Where: Rupp Arena; Lexington, Kentucky
TV: SEC Network/WatchESPN
The Wildcats are right back where they were last year as they hold the preseason No. 1 rank to start a new season.
First item on the ledger is the first game of two in the Cawood Ledford Classic against Grand Canyon, a team that just joined Division I last season in the Western Athletic Conference and finished 15-15.
All anyone will care about in this game, however, is how good Kentucky will look coming out of the gates.
The main component of success is still there in yet another loaded freshman class made up by Karl-Anthony Towns, Trey Lyles, Tyler Ulis and Devin Booker, but the slight change in the formula this time around for head coach John Calipari is the surprising number of returning players for the Wildcats.
For a program with a culture of fostering one-and-dones, Kentucky only lost two star freshmen from last year’s class to the NBA in Julius Randle and James Young.
Dakari Johnson, Willie Cauley-Stein, Alex Poythress and the Harrison twins, meanwhile, highlight the returning players who decided to stick around for another shot at the national title.
The season opener for Kentucky may seem like a cakewalk, but with some tough nonconference games scheduled for this season against the likes of Kansas, Texas, North Carolina and Louisville, it’s important for Calipari to take advantage of these easy games to get the Wildcats in a good rhythm and establish an ideal rotation with the amount of talent on the team.
Wisconsin vs. Northern Kentucky
2 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 9 p.m. ET
Where: Kohl Center; Madison, Wisconsin
TV: Big Ten Network
Wisconsin fell victim to Aaron Harrison’s clutch shooting at last year’s Final Four, but the Badgers will return four of the starters from that team, and that should give people enough reason to tune in for their season opener on Friday night.
The top attraction is obviously Frank Kaminsky, the top-rated college basketball player this season according to ESPN.com.
The 7-foot senior is coming off a season in which he averaged 13.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game while shooting 37.8 percent from three-point range. He was the top weapon for head coach Bo Ryan in 2013-14, and things should be no different this time around.
The most interesting thing to watch for on Friday night, however, will be the growth of Sam Dekker, literally and figuratively.
Dekker, who averaged 12.4 PPG last year, grew two inches taller to 6’9” during the offseason and put up some impressive performances at the LeBron James Skills Academy during the summer.
Projected as a lottery pick at the end of the season, Dekker can give the fans a glimpse of just how much better he has gotten when No. 3 Wisconsin hosts Northern Kentucky.
Texas vs. North Dakota St.
3 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. ET
Where: Frank Erwin Center; Austin, Texas
TV: Longhorn Network/WatchESPN
With all five starters returning and the addition of Myles Turner, Texas suddenly became a preseason favorite and presented head coach Rick Barnes with some good problems to have.
The biggest issue at the moment is how can Barnes play Turner alongside Jonathan Holmes and Cameron Ridley, two big men who have already established themselves as defensive anchors and rebounding machines.
If Barnes can figure it out and make the trio co-exist without sacrificing any parts of their games, then there are not many teams—if any—in the country that can match up with Texas’ size.
Barnes will get his first chance to try to solve that when the Longhorns face North Dakota State on Friday night in the opening round of the 2K Classic to begin their season.
The Bison are coming off a successful season in which they advanced to the third round of the NCAA tournament.
However, this year’s team will have to deal with some major transition in light of the departures of its top three scorers from last season, as well as its former head coach, Saul Phillips.
There are things to keep an eye on for both teams in this game, and it should give the fans on both sides a good sense of where their respective programs may be heading this season.
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North Carolina vs. North Carolina Central
4 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m ET
Where: Dean Smith Center; Chapel Hill, North Carolina
TV: ESPNU/WatchESPN
With some high hopes in sight for the season, No. 6 UNC begins its 2014-15 season with an in-state contest against NC Central on Friday night, and all eyes will be on the preseason AP All-American Marcus Paige.
Paige is coming off a breakout season that saw him emerge into one of the best guards in the country and the leader of the Tar Heels.
This season, with the help of a talented freshman class and a few seasoned veterans on the team, Paige should be able to further assert himself into head coach Roy Williams’ system and take UNC deep into March.
The newcomers Joel Berry, Justin Jackson and Theo Pinson were some of the best recruits in the nation, and they can each provide Williams with an assorted set of skills that will make UNC not only a contender in the loaded ACC, but in the entire country.
Expect the Tar Heels to experiment a bit in the backcourt on Friday night as to where Paige will play and which guard will play alongside him.
Kansas vs. UC Santa Barbara
5 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. ET
Where: Allen Fieldhouse; Lawrence, Kansas
TV: ESPN3
Losing two players who both ended up being top-three picks in the NBA draft usually takes a little while to recover from, but Kansas managed to cover that gap somewhat instantly by inserting freshmen Cliff Alexander and Kelly Oubre into its roster to fill the voids left by Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid.
As for the returning players, Perry Ellis and Wayne Selden both have one more year under their belts now and should be poised for breakout seasons.
But the point guard situation is quite muddy at the moment and is an issue that head coach Bill Self needs to sort out as soon as possible.
Sophomore Frank Mason will get the nod as the starter this season, but the 5’11” guard had an inconsistent 2013-14 and was virtually a non-factor during the postseason.
Add in the departure of Conner Frankamp last week and the raw talent that is Devonte Graham, and the Jayhawks really don’t have any reliable options as of yet to run the offense.
However, one thing to be sure of is that this year’s Jayhawks have a lot of promise in them.
The season opener is not only a good chance for KU fans to see what they have to work with, but a good chance for the Jayhawks to establish some dominance to build up confidence and momentum heading into their second game against top-ranked Kentucky.
Wichita State vs. New Mexico State
6 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 9 p.m. ET
Where: Charles Koch Arena; Wichita, Kansas
TV: ESPN3
After a historic season that saw the Shockers go undefeated during the regular season, head coach Gregg Marshall and his team are hoping for similar success this time around.
The good news is that they return one of the best backcourts in the nation in Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker, who averaged 11.6 PPG and 13.1 PPG, respectively, last season.
The bad news is they have to find a way to replace the production of Cleanthony Early (16.4 PPG, 5.9 RPG) and face an NCAA tournament team in New Mexico State to begin the season.
The Aggies are coming off a 26-10 season that ultimately ended in an overtime loss to San Diego State in the second round of the tournament, but they do return all three of their top scorers from that team in Daniel Mullings (16.8 PPG), DK Eldridge (11.2 PPG) and Tshilidzi Nephawe (11.1 PPG, 7.8 RPG).
New Mexico State will present a tough matchup for Marshall’s team on Friday night, and this game has a huge potential to end in an upset.
Duke vs. Presbyterian
7 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 6 p.m. ET
Where: Cameron Indoor Stadium; Durham, North Carolina
TV: ESPNU/WatchESPN
First-year center Jahlil Okafor became the third freshman in the last five years to be selected to the preseason AP All-American team, and since Coach K doesn’t expect Okafor to stick around Durham for long, every game Okafor gets to play for the Blue Devils is pretty much a must-see.
Okafor leads a top-rated freshman class for Duke this season, and the exhibition games already showed just how good these new guys can be.
In the team’s exhibition wins over Livingstone and Central Missouri, the freshman class of Tyus Jones, Justise Winslow, Grayson Allen and Okafor combined to averaged 51.5 points, 19.0 rebounds, 13.5 assists and 6.0 steals.
Jones, Winslow and Okafor are all expected to start for No. 4 Duke on Friday night, while senior Quinn Cook and junior Amile Jefferson—two team captains and returning starters—should fill in the other two spots on the court.
A couple of things to look for in Duke’s opener is how well can Jones and Cook play together, and what kind of role junior guard Rasheed Sulaimon will have this season with the amount of depth now in the backcourt.
Connecticut vs. Bryant
8 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 7 p.m. ET
Where: Gampel Pavilion; Storrs, Connecticut
TV: ESPN3
With all the pomp and circumstance already out of the way after the celebration on First Night, the defending champion can focus solely on basketball come Friday night and begin its title defense against Bryant.
UConn fans will miss Shabazz Napier dearly, but they will also see the official debuts of Rodney Purvis and Daniel Hamilton, two exciting additions to this year’s team who should somewhat ease the loss of Napier.
Purvis sat out last season after transferring from NC State, and Hamilton is head coach Kevin Ollie’s top recruit to date. Together, the two can give UConn a more physical attack on the floor, rather than the jump shooting the team relied on last year.
Senior guard Ryan Boatright is expected to be the leader of this year’s team, and he should have no problem guiding a young team that also received plenty of experience last season.
The No. 17 preseason rank in the AP poll is the lowest for a defending champion since the 2008-09 Kansas Jayhawks, and the Huskies did not necessarily blow away their competition during the exhibition games—winning by single digits in both games—so there is a chance for this game to get very interesting.
Arizona vs. Mt. St. Mary's
9 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. ET
Where: McKale Center; Tucson, Arizona
TV: Pac-12 Network
There is tremendous hype surrounding Arizona this year, and for good reason. The No. 2 Wildcats are loaded with talent again this season, despite the departures of Aaron Gordon and Nick Johnson.
Brandon Ashley is back and healthy, and the likes of T.J. McConnell, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Kaleb Tarczewski have all matured their respective games as well.
Then there is the explosive freshman Stanley Johnson, who is bound to turn heads once he shows what he is capable of.
Johnson brings a brand of intensity and physicality that is unrivaled by many others into Sean Miller’s program, and the excitement in the air is reasonable for a team destined for great things this season.
Johnson alone is enough to generate a buzz about the program, but when he’s thrown in the mix with all those players named above, every game the Wildcats play this season will be worth watching.
Louisville vs. Minnesota
10 of 10
When: Friday, Nov. 14, 7:30 p.m. ET
Where: U.S. Air Station Borinquen; Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
TV: ESPN
Father vs. son. Pitino vs. Pitino.
That’s what’s on tap for Friday night as Rick’s No. 8 Louisville squares off against Richard’s Minnesota in prime time in the 2014 Armed Forces Classic at the U.S. Air Station Borinquen in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico.
According to ESPN.com’s Andy Katz, although “The Worldwide Leader in Sports” contacted Rick first about participating in the competition, it was Richard’s idea to have Minnesota in the contest in hopes of promoting the program.
And deservingly so, the Gophers are a team worthy of some attention after winning 25 games last season en route to the NIT title in Richard’s first year at the helm.
Most of the players from that team have returned, as Minnesota will likely feature four senior starters this season and be a sleeper in the Big Ten.
As for Louisville, it will be led by preseason AP All-American Montrezl Harrell, followed by an influx of freshman talent as the Cardinals prepare for the demanding ACC in their inaugural season.
Look no further for a way to tip off the college basketball season than this matchup.
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