Late-Night Snacks: A recap of Sunday’s action

While Sunday’s college basketball schedule wasn’t loaded with games there was one match-up of ranked teams and eight other contests involving Top 25 squads. So for those who may have spent the day hemming and hawing over their fantasy football team(s), here are some of the important happenings on the first Sunday of the college basketball season.

Games of the Day 

1. South Carolina 82, Milwaukee 75 (OT)
The first win of the Frank Martin era in Columbia was a tough one, as the Gamecocks needed two free throws from Mindaugas Kacinas to send the game into overtime. Brenton Williams scored 12 of his 14 points in the extra session and freshman Michael Carrera went for 17 points and 15 rebounds to lead South Carolina past the Panthers.

2. No. 12 Arizona 83, Charleston Southern 73
This one ended up being much closer than many expected, but the Wildcats were able to hold off Charleston Southern to win their season opener. Mark Lyons may not have shot his best (5-of-14 FG) but he finished with 17 points, six assists and no turnovers. Arlon Harper led the Buccaneers with 20 points, and the two teams combined to attempt 60 three-pointers (making 21).

3. Holy Cross 74, Morgan State 73
Two free throws apiece from Dave Dudzinski and Justin Burrell gave the Crusaders a four-point lead with 4.8 seconds remaining, and they needed all four as Morgan State’s DeWayne Jackson hit a three as time expired. Dudzinski led Holy Cross with 20 points and eight rebounds.

Important Outcomes

1. No. 9 Syracuse 62, No. 20 San Diego State 49
The Battle on the Midway wasn’t pretty from an offensive standpoint, as the Aztecs shot just 27% from the field and nearly as bad (14-of-33) from the foul line. C.J. Fair led the Orange with 17 points and ten rebounds while Michael Carter-Williams scored 17 in addition to five assists, four rebounds and four steals.

2. Villanova 80, Marshall 68
With the Thundering Herd having the talent to challenge in Conference USA this was a tough home game for Villanova, especially considering the fact that they opened up against the University of the District of Columbia. Freshman point guard Ryan Arcidiacono led the way with 25 points, six assists and four rebounds.

3. Washington 85, Loyola (MD) 63
The Huskies weren’t at their best in the first half, turning the ball over 11 times and leading the preseason MAAC favorites by just two (33-31) at the intermission. Abdul Gaddy and company took far better care of the ball in the second half, and as a result Washington put up 52 points and rolled to a comfortable victory.

Starred

1. G Ahmad Starks (Oregon State): 33 points, five assists, five rebounds and four steals in the Beavers’ 71-62 win over New Mexico State.

2. F Ryan Anderson (Boston College): 29 points and 17 rebounds in the Eagles’ 84-70 win over FIU.

3. G Michael Lyons (Air Force): 33 points (7-of-12 3PT) to lead the Falcons past The Citadel 77-70.

Stunk

1. San Diego State: 17-of-63 (27%) from the field, 1-of-18 (5.6%) from three and 14-of-33 (42.4%) from the foul line.

2. Alabama State: Nine points in the first half of their 84-35 loss to No. 10 Florida. Sure they were overmatched, but nine points in 20 minutes of basketball?

3. Evan Hymes and Rob Poole (Siena): These two struggled mightily in the Saints’ 54-49 overtime win at Navy, combining to go 5-of-28 from the field (2-of-17 3PT).

Three Facts

1. The championship coach (Larry Brown) and Most Outstanding Player (Danny Manning) of the 1988 NCAA tournament both picked up wins in their debuts at new jobs. Brown’s SMU Mustangs beat Loyola Marymount 73-58, and Manning’s Tulsa squad blew out LSU-Shreveport 110-54.

2. The Pac-12 went perfect this weekend, with wins by Arizona, Washington and California moving the conference to 12-0. No real marquee wins, but when considering the three years prior that’s not a bad start.

3. Hofstra, who dropped an 83-54 decision at Purdue on Sunday, has lost back-to-back games by 29-point margins. The last time the Pride lost consecutive games by 29 or more was during the 1986-87 season, when they were the Flying Dutchmen.

Other Top 25 scores of note

1. No. 2 Louisville 79, Manhattan 51
Russ Smith led the way with 23 points and five steals, but there’s room for improvement in the shot selection department. The Cardinals struggled offensively in the first half, then dropped 51 points on the Jaspers in the final 20 minutes.

2. No. 23 Wisconsin 87, Southeastern Louisiana 47
The Badgers rolled as expected, and also of importance was the return of senior forward Mike Bruesewitz to the lineup after suffering a nasty cut in a weight room accident. Ben Brust posted a double-double (14 points, 11 rebounds) and Jared Berggren scored 19 points and grabbed eight boards for Wisconsin, who won their 11th straight season opener.

3. No. 4 Ohio State 82, Albany 60
All four teams involved in the two aircraft carrier game cancellations on Friday won their season openers on Sunday. Aaron Craft knocked down five of his seven shots from beyond the arc and led the Buckeyes with 20 points and seven assists, and Deshaun Thomas added 19.

Raphielle also writes for the NBE Basketball Report and can be followed on Twitter at @raphiellej.