BYU – 83, Kansas State – 73
Lead by player of the year candidate AJ Dybantsa who dropped 24 points and grabbed 8 rebounds, the cougars were able to come out victorious in Manhattan. He can score in a variety of ways, has good length and gets to his spots on offense This one remained close throughout despite BYU not giving up their lead from halfway through the first half until the buzzer sounded. A big contributor for BYU’s win is their margin on rebounds and points off turnovers.
Vanderbilt – 83, South Carolina – 71
Vanderbilt continues to roll, remaining undefeated at 14-0. It was a balanced attack for the commodores. Their top 4 scorers scored 19, 17, 16, and 15 points. Looking ahead for Vanderbilt they have the opportunity to improve their resume vs a Quad 1 opponent Alabama.
Arizona – 97, Utah – 78
This outing further validates Arizona’s position atop the big 12 and as a top 1 or 2 team in D1 along with Michigan. Thier top 7 scoring margin was yet again on display as well as their top 3 rebounding margin. A matchup down the road that is intriguing is their tilt with BYU on January 26. Arizona could build their resume even more down the stretch in BIG 12 play. As it stands, they have 8 straight Q1 opportunities. It should surprise no one if the wildcats earn a 1 seed come selection Sunday. I see Utah struggle to make noise with the league they are in. They aren’t currently in bracketologists bracket and have a lot of work to do.
SMU – 97, North Carolina – 83
Boopie Miller lead SMU in their upset win over the Tar Heels with 27 points and 12 assists. SMU won this game in the 2nd half, outscoring UNC by 14 and not giving up their lead for the majority of the half.
Other notable performances on Saturday:
Braden Smith (Purdue) – 14 pts, 12 asts. Win @Wisconsin
Isaiah Evans (Duke) – 28 pts, 6 3PT. Win @Florida State
Darryn Peterson (Kansas) – 26 pts, 6 rebs, 5 3PT. Loss @UCF
Jeremiah Wilkinson (Georgia) – 31 pts, Win vs Auburn