Week one’s NCAA basketball results are in. It was an interesting week, to say the least. While there were no major upsets, there have definitely been some eye-opening results. Some teams have their stock pointing up, while others have their stock pointing down.
Stock Up, Stock Down in NCAA Basketball
Stock Up
Duke Blue Devils
The Blue Devils defense has been the talk of the college basketball world. Through two games they have forced more turnovers than allowed field goals. What seemed to be a potential weak spot has turned into quite the strength.
This great defense single-handedly led Duke to a win over the Kansas Jayhawks and then helped them to dominate Colorado State. Duke needs to fine-tune the offense a bit, but so far they have been wildly impressive.
The one freshman that entered with some serious question marks, Cassius Stanley, has been Duke’s best player so far. His impact and energy on the court played major roles in both of Duke’s victories.
Louisville Cardinals
The Cardinals absolutely dominated the Miami Hurricanes in Coral Gables on opening night. It is always eye-opening when there is a blowout in conference play because the teams are typically somewhat close in terms of talent and there is a lot of knowledge about each other.
Jordan Nwora looks better than advertised. If he continues to play this way all year, Louisville will have the best chance of anyone to cut down the nets. The stellar play of Darius Perry has also added to this national championship hope.
PAC-12 Basketball
The PAC-12 is coming off a historically poor year but had some talented rosters coming into this season. After week one, the conference is 18-1 with the only loss coming from Arizona State in a conference game (which did not actually count as a conference game) to Colorado.
The most impressive teams thus far have been Washington and Arizona. Washington knocked off Baylor in a close game. The Huskies have weapons all across the board and Jaden McDaniels has top-five pick written all over him. Arizona just thrashed Illinois and looks to be every bit as good as initially thought and more. UCLA and Oregon are also very deep and talented and should make a lot of noise this season. All in all, the PAC-12 is loaded.
Vermont Catamounts
Some mid-major love! Vermont is one of the best mid-major teams in the country led by Anthony Lamb. So far, Vermont has gone on the road and defeated Bucknell and St. Bonaventure, both of which have decent chances to win their conference. They are off to an impressive start.
Last year, their season ended at the hands of Florida State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. This year, Vermont has a very good chance to win a first-round game.
Stock Down
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators were highly regarded to start the season. They return almost everyone from a good team last year and add two impact freshmen. Unfortunately, they have taken their first loss at home by the hands of an in-state rival, Florida State.
The Gators looked terrible in their game with the Seminoles and were unable to score. There was no point in the game that it felt like they were the better team. Ultimately, they need to establish a true offensive threat and play through that person in difficult situations. It seems like it should be Kerry Blackshear, but he put up a donut from the field.
Virginia Cavaliers
Even though it is said every year, this might be Tony Bennett’s best defensive team. They are holding opponents to a staggering 34 points per game. Yes, they played two weak teams in Syracuse and James Madison, but still.
Unfortunately, this may also be one of the worst offensive teams Bennett has ever had. Other than Diakite, there is no one to score consistently. When Diakite is ineffective, like in the Syracuse game, the result will be a team scoring in the 40s. They need to find a glimmer of offense somewhere or else they may be in for a frustrating season.
Georgetown Hoyas
The Patrick Ewing experiment is off to a strange start. He has yet to lead the Hoyas to the NCAA Tournament but has done well in recruiting landing promising stars James Akinjo and Mac McClung. This year feels like the year they have to make the tournament.
The Hoyas opened the season with a close win over Mount St. Mary’s who was leading at halftime, and squeaked out another win over Central Arkansas. Neither result is very promising for their postseason hopes. In the grand scheme of things, a win is a win, but they need to improve quickly because their schedule gets much more difficult in a hurry.
St. Mary’s Gaels
The Gaels were a popular mid-major this year with the return of Jordan Ford. They always end up battling with Gonzaga for a quality win at the end of the season, hoping to punch their ticket to the NCAA Tournament.
Unfortunately, the Gaels have already suffered their first loss of the season at the hands of Winthrop. They had a nice win against Wisconsin a few days earlier, but this loss to Winthrop hurts. Luckily, their non-conference schedule this year is better than usual so they have time to improve their resume.
Week One is Done
It was a great first week of basketball. For the next few weeks, teams will be playing a lighter schedule and trying to get their teams rolling before conference play starts. Do not worry, there are more big games right around the corner!
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