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The Morning Mix

I hope you all enjoyed the Tip-Off Marathon. Today is a “Rest & Recovery” day. But here’s what’s going on in today’s Morning Mix:

Wednesday’s Top Games:
7:00 p.m. - St. Bonaventure’s @ Cornell (NBC Sports Network)
7:00 p.m. - No.22 Wisconsin @ No.10 Florida
8:00 p.m. - Santa Clara @ Saint Louis
8:00 p.m. - Toledo @ Northern Iowa
8:00 p.m. - Western Illinois @ SIU-Edwardsville
8:05 p.m. - UAB @ N0.15 Creighton

Top Stories:
Wichita State able to outlast VCU’s havoc, grabs hard-fought 53-51 win: In a rematch of last season’s NCAA tournament first round game, the Shockers of Wichita State were able to overcome the intense pressure of VCU’s patented “HAVOC” defense. Oregon-transfer Malcolm Armstead hit a jumper with 3.8 seconds left in the second half to give the Shockers a solid road win.

Lackluster performance against Xavier raises concerns about Butler Bulldogs: Butler’s offense struggled to click in the 62-47 loss to a thin Xavier squad. Sharpshooter Rotnei Clarke struggled to run the offense, and big-man Andrew Smith didn’t get enough touches. Maybe we were wrong to pour on so much preseason love for the Bulldogs.

Keith Appling’ game-winning bucket proves that he can be the Spartan’s leader: Keith Appling’s last-second lay-up in heavy traffic gave the Michigan State Spartans a 67-64 in the opening game of the Champions Classic. The junior showed poise and confidence and looks to be the leading candidate to fill the void left by the graduation of Draymond Green.

Shabazz Muhammad’s family releases statement: The family of ineligible UCLA freshman Shabazz Muhammad released a statement to the LA Times disputing many of the NCAA’s claims. The high-profile freshman has had his eligibility status in limbo for the last three months, and it was announced last Friday that the NCAA was denying him eligibility.

Hoops Housekeeping:
- San Diego State freshman Winston Sheppard suspended three games for taking improper benefits (Eye on College Basketball)

- Kansas picked up their fifth recruit from the class of 2013 in the form of 7-footer Joel Embiid (Kansas City Star)

Observations & Analysis:
- UMass’s Sampson Carter hit a buzzer-beater to knock off Harvard as part of the Tip-Off Marathon (The Dagger)

- The Washington Huskies dropped a head-scratching loss to the Albany Danes on Tuesday, which is the first of what we imagine to be many ugly non-conference losses for pac-12 teams (Seattle Times)

- With star guard Vincent Council going down with an injury, Providence fans must be very grateful that Bryce Cotton ultimately decided against transferring (Rush The Court)

- Princeton struggled with Northeastern, but it became evident that Ian Hummer is the Ivy League’s top performer (New Jersey Hoops Haven)

Odds & Ends:
- Texas-Arlington doesn’t get many high-profile home games. So with the Oklahoma Sooners on the way into town, the atmosphere is already starting to buzz (Dallas Star-Telegram)

- UCLA’s Josh Smith struggles with lay-ups (The Mock Session)

- St. John’s Jakarr Sampson airball’d a lay-up. You just hate to see that happen. (Big East Coast Bias)

- At halftime of the Champions Classic game between Duke and Kentucky, John Calipari said that the Duke players were flopping and would be suspended if they played in the NBA. He was clearly joking, but nobody knew it. (The Dagger)

Video(s) of the Day:
The Tip-Off Marathon featured a bevy of highlight reel dunks, led by Detroit’s Doug Anderson and Kansas’ Jamari Traylor (Ballin’ is a Habit)

Do you like the new Morning Mix? Hate it? Have a suggestion or wanted something featured? Troy Machir will take all your praise, insults and inquiries via Twitter (@TroyMachir)