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Late Night Snacks: Holiday slate highlighted by Syracuse/Cincinnati

Cincinnati v Syracuse

SYRACUSE, NY - JANUARY 21: Michael Carter-Williams #1 of the Syracuse Orange passes the ball against Sean Kilpatrick #23 of the Cincinnati Bearcats during the game at the Carrier Dome on January 21, 2013 in Syracuse, New York. (Photo by Nate Shron/Getty Images)

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A few decent games on Martin Luther King Day -- not to mention President Barack Obama was sworn in for his second term -- were highlighted on this all-day affair. It’s Late Night Snacks.

Game of the day

No. 3 Syracuse 57, No. 21 Cincinnati 55 - The early game of the day featured two Top 25 teams and it lived up to the billing. Sean Kilpatrick continued his recent scoring binge with 21 points, but got little help from his team as the Orange notched their 35th-straight home court victory. Michael Carter-Williams finished with 16 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Orange, who have one of the more impressive conference season runs right now, with wins at then-no. 1 Louisville and a home win over the ranked Bearcats.

Games of note

Georgetown 63, Notre Dame 47 - Georgetown proved they could get it done without Greg Whittington on the road, getting a big game from Otto Porter and 14 from D’Vauntes Smith-Rivera. Moses Ayegba pulled down 10 rebounds for the Hoyas. Jack Cooley had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Fighting Irish.

Oklahoma 73, Texas 67 - Romero Osby had a big night for the Sooners and the Longhorns got 25 points from Sheldon McClellan, but Texas hit just 6-of-19 threes in the loss. Good win for Oklahoma, but it becomes more and more obvious this Texas team is a shell of its former self without Myck Kabongo...and I wonder how much it would help, even if they had him.

New Orleans 96, New Jersey Institute of Technology 94, 3 OTs - I’ve learn no matter where they happen, you respect a three-overtime game. The two teams combined for a ton of fouls and free throws (more on that later), but Lovell Cook turned in a career night (more on him later, too) and Isaac Mack nailed a jumper with two seconds left to give the Privateers a two-point win.

Southern 82, Alabama A&M 68 - The Jaguars are impressive and deserve your attention. They’ve won 10 in a row, eight in a row in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. This team is much better than the Mississippi Valley State that finished with one conference loss last season and had a legitimate shot at being something other than a 16-seed and a participant in the First Four in Dayton this year.

Starred

Romero Osby, Oklahoma - The big man finished with 29 points and eight rebounds in a dominating performance on national television. He also hit 10-of-11 free throws on the night.

Patrick Cole, Coppin State - It was a full slate for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tonight and Cole turned in the best game in the conference, dropping 29 points, six rebounds and shooting 52.9-percent from the field in 67-65 win at Hampton.

Lovell Cook, New Orleans - The soon-to-be member of the Southland Conference is enjoying their short stop as a Division I Independant. Cook is definitely making the most of it, scoring 32 points, pulling down six rebounds and hitting shots at a 54.5-percent in the win.

LeBryan Nash, Oklahoma State - The Cowboys leaned heavily on the sophomore in this one. It was a loss, but Nash continues to show his development, pouring in 24 points on 52.6-percent shooting in 64-54 defeat at Baylor.

Otto Porter, Georgetown - The Hoyas continue to make pundits scratch their heads. Playing again without Greg Whittington, Porter finished with 19 points and nine rebounds on 70-percent shooting in 63-47 victory at Notre Dame.

Struggled

Markel Brown, Oklahoma State - The junior normally drops in 15.2 points per game this season. He left Waco with just two points on 1-of-10 shooting in a loss. Also finished with four fouls and three turnovers in 26 minutes.

New Orleans/N.J.I.T.'s ability to not foul - In the three overtime game, the two teams combined for 57 fouls and 79 free throws taken. The Privateers hit 23-of-34 from the stripe and committed 30 fouls. The Highlanders shot 28-of-45 from the free throw line and committed 27.

Stuffing the stat sheet

Cory Jefferson and Isaiah Austin, Baylor - We alluded to it earlier, but the tandem in the paint did work tonight for the Bears. They combined for 11 blocks in the home win over Oklahoma State. Jefferson had six, Austin had five. They won’t get that every night, but about half that a night would be a welcome sign for a team that can be erratic on offense at times.

A decent day of hoops despite a light slate of games. Hope you enjoyed you holidays, everyone. Or at least those of you that didn’t have to work.