What We've Learned: College Basketball's Opening Week

There were some early storylines from college basketball’s opening week. Here’s a few of them:

The Defending Champs Start Off 3-0:

North Carolina enjoyed two home games earlier in the week as part of the 2k Sports Coach vs. Cancer Classic. The defending champions were led by the play of returnees Deon Thompson, Ed Davis and Marcus Ginyard.

Roy Williams’ Tar Heels took care of Isaiah Thomas and Florida International and blew out North Carolina Central. On Sunday, they picked up their third win of the year over Valparaiso. Some early challenges approach this week as the 2k Sports Classic will wrap up in New York City.

If Critics Haven’t Moved On From the LeMoyne Loss, It Sure Is About Time:

As most college basketball fans know already, Syracuse lost to Division II LeMoyne in an exhibition game nearly two weeks ago. They began their regular season by solidifying their place as the No. 25 team in the country.

While proving that the loss to LeMoyne did not mean a thing, the Orange played terrific defense in coasting to two easy victories over Albany and Robert Morris as part of the 2k Sports Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.

Kentucky Cruises In Opener Under John Calipari:

John Wall did not play, but that didn’t seem to bother Kentucky fans all that much. All-American candidate Patrick Patterson played well. He hit his first career three-pointer while freshmen Eric Bledsoe scored 24 points and put on a show for the fans at Rupp. Big Blue Nation will get their first look at the highly touted Wall on Monday in a game against Miami (OH).

Xavier Henry Dominates In Collegiate Debut:

No. 1 Kansas rolled over Hofstra 101-65 in their season debut. Leader of the nation’s top team, Sherron Collins had 23 points. But the big story of the night was the collegiate debut of freshmen Xavier Henry. The highly touted freshmen led the way for Kansas with 27 points, a Kansas freshman record, including five three-pointers.

The Jayhawks will take on Memphis on Tuesday at 10:00 p.m. as part of the 24-hour college basketball marathon on ESPN.

Rider Shocks No. 18 Mississippi State, No Renardo Sidney:

Freshmen Renardo Sidney did not play for the Bulldogs, but that turned out to be the least of their problems the other night. Rider, a member of the MAAC Conference, stunned the No. 18 team in the country.

Jarvis Varnado played well for the Bulldogs, scoring 22 points on 8-for-8 shooting. Four Rider players finished in double figures in the 88-74 victory. After an opening game like this, it will be interesting to see if Mississippi State can get themselves re-focused.

America East Favorite, Boston U. Goes Down to Iona:

This might not seem like any big news, but it is a disappointing start of the season for Boston University. As the favorite heading into the America East Conference season, the Terriers botched a road game they certainly had been hoping to win. BU shot only 38 percent from the field and had many of their key contributors in foul trouble. Iona won by a final score of 82-73.

Alcorn State Is Really Bad, Rontei Clarke Shows Why:

There are bad teams in college basketball. Alcorn State is one of them. After getting blown out by Ohio State earlier in the week, the Braves took the phrase to a different level. They were crushed by Arkansas, 130-68. That is a 62-point loss.

Other than the final score, the story of the game was Arkansas sophomore Rotnei Clarke, who poured in a career-high 51 points on 13 (yes, 13) three-pointers. The Razorbacks will certainly get more of a challenge in their next game, a Tuesday match-up with Louisville.

Despite Losing, Is Creighton Underrated?

It was a 90-80 victory for Dayton over Creighton on Saturday afternoon, but certainly some positive things can be taken away from this game for the Blue Jays. Junior P’Allen Stinnett led the way with 18 point for Creighton, one of five scorers in double figures.

Dayton’s Chris Wright played exceptional while registering a game-high 25 points. But for much of the game Creighton was able to counter his efforts and stay with the Flyers. After holding a five-point lead at the half, Creighton appeared to have an upset opportunity. However, Dayton was too strong down the stretch. A strong showing by the underdog in this one, though.

Freshmen Power Oklahoma In Season Opener:

The Griffin brothers are gone, but Jeff Capel may have found enough firepower in his newcomers to keep Oklahoma in the thick of things on the national scene. The Sooners took care of Mount St. Mary’s 95-71 to open the season behind a combined 64 points from four of their key freshmen contributors. Steven Pledger led the way with 21 points in 19 minutes, while Tiny Gallon poured in 18 points and snagged a team-high 15 rebounds.

Mount St. Mary’s is the favorite in the Northeast Conference and has an opportunity to be an NCAA Tournament team in March, but the story of the day has to be the impressive debut of the Sooners’ freshmen class.

Cornell Ruins Anthony Grant’s Alabama Coaching Debut:

The Rider over Mississippi State upset is certainly the upset of the week; however, what might be as equally impressive is Cornell’s victory over Alabama. Then again, Cornell was an NCAA Tournament team last year and is the favorite in the Ivy League again, so earning a win over Alabama might not be considered in upset in their eyes.

Ryan Wittman led the way with 23 points for Cornell, who controlled the lead for much of the second half. A late push by Alabama made things interesting, but the Big Red did a great job in holding them off to earn a 71-67 win. With the loss, new Alabama head coach Anthony Grant certainly cannot happy. The Crimson Tide will face Jackson State on Tuesday, while Cornell will head to UMass on Wednesday.

Any other key moments from this past week worth discussing? Leave them on the comment board.

Check-in tomorrow morning for a look at some key games in the second full week of college basketball action (Nov. 16-22).