The first day of Feast Week delivered in a huge way! There were upsets all over the place. There was also a game we will talk about for quite some time. Let's just start with the early games. In the Boardwalk Battle, James Madison beat Illinois-Chicago, Jacksonville State beat East Carolina, Toledo beat Stetson, and UC San Diego beat La Salle. In the Myrtle Beach Invitational, Middle Tennessee beat Ohio in overtime. That game was fantastic, which I knew it would be. South Florida beat Portland, Bradley beat Texas State, and Wright State blew out Princeton.
Then there was the Charleston Classic. Vanderbilt beat Nevada, Seton Hall found their offense and beat VCU in overtime, Florida Atlantic beat Oklahoma State, and over 50 fouls were called in that game. In the first surprise of the day, Drake blew out Miami. The Axe ‘Em Classic saw Youngstown State beat Monmouth and Presbyterian beat host school Stephen F. Austin. Those were the games that likely didn’t get a lot of eyes because the games in prime time were fantastic.
Baylor beat St. John’s on a buzzer-beater in double overtime in what will go down as one of the best games ever. St. John’s started out in cruise control and got to an 18-point lead late in the first half. Then in the second half Baylor made a ton of threes and took a late lead before St. John’s tied it. At the end of the second overtime, the Johnnies missed two free throws, and Jeremy Roach got the ball and buried a last-second three to win the game. In the rest of the night games Texas beat Syracuse, Saint Joseph’s blew a big lead in the second half to hang on and beat Texas Tech by one point. Philly basketball runs through Hawk Hill this year. We finished the night with two fantastic games as Memphis beat San Francisco and Oregon took their first lead late in the second half and fought off Oregon State.
Yesterday I went 23-15 in my picks. That brings my 18-day total to 585-160 overall. Are you all ready for day 2 of feast week? I know I am! The Boardwalk Battle, Myrtle Beach Invitational, Charleston Classic, Axe ‘ Em Classic, Legends Classic and Bahamas Classic resume. There are a slew of tournaments that start today. Those events are the Homewood Suites Classic, Paradise Jam, Puerto Rico Clasico, Greenbrier Tip-Off Mountain Division, Cream City Challenge, Bulldog Bash, Hall of Fame Tip-Off, Akron Basketball Classic, BBN Invitational, Hall of Fame Classic, and the Metro NY/NJ Classic. Those are all sandwiched in between some huge non-tournament games. Picks for day 19, November 22, 2024, are below.
La Salle over Illinois-Chicago
Florida Gulf Coast over Bakersfield
Ohio over Portland
Florida Atlantic over Drake
UAB over Longwood
East Carolina over Stetson
Northeastern over Florida International
South Florida over Middle Tennessee
Miami over Oklahoma State
Pitt over LSU
McNeese over Illinois State
UC San Diego over James Madison
Youngstown State over Presbyterian
Kansas City over American
UCF over Wisconsin
Wright State over Bradley
Vanderbilt over Seton Hall
St Thomas over Wofford
Coastal Carolina over IU Indy
Florida State over Temple
Toledo over Jacksonville State
Utah over Utah Tech
Liberty over Louisiana
Stephen F. Austin over Monmouth
UT Martin over Le Moyne
Akron over Lamar
Ohio State over Campbell
Kentucky over Jackson State
Florida over Southern Illinois
St. John’s over Virginia
Texas Tech over Syracuse
NC State over William & Mary
Georgia State over NC Central
Manhattan over Army
Davidson over VMI
Harvard over Colgate
Indiana State over Chicago State
Buffalo over Morgan State
ETSU over SC Upstate
Fordham over Drexel
Butler over Merrimack
Louisville over Winthrop
Princeton over Texas State
Nevada over VCU
Northwestern State over Louisiana Monroe
Tulane over New Orleans
UNC Asheville over SEMO
Notre Dame over Elon
Missouri over Pacific
Houston over Hofstra
Creighton over Nebraska
South Dakota over Southern Indiana
Murray State over Utah Valley
Green Bay over Evansville
Alabama A&M over South Carolina State
Northern Arizona over Incarnate Word
Rice over Houston Christian
Milwaukee over Portland State
Northwestern over Pepperdine
Iowa over Utah State
Kansas State over George Washington
Omaha over Alabama State
Wyoming over Southeastern Louisiana
SMU over Mississippi State
Arkansas over Little Rock
Texas over Saint Joseph’s
Grand Canyon over Norfolk State
Colorado State over Riverside
UC Irvine over Weber State
Tennessee over Baylor
Southern Utah over San Diego
LMU over North Dakota
Washington over Alcorn State
UCLA over Fullerton
Arizona over Duke
Wichita State over Saint Louis
North Carolina over Hawaii
There is a lot of games today and so many good games. Let’s do it by time slot here again. Drake and Florida Atlantic is a game with two new coaches and new rosters, but both offenses can light it up. That will be a fun one. Pitt and LSU is a game between two undefeated teams playing in the first ever Greenbrier Event. Wisconsin and UCF is a game featuring two teams who are better than most thought at least right now. That game will be a battle, and a physical one at that. Creighton and Nebraska have a heated rivalry that is usually one-sided. Nebraska was embarrassed last year, and Creighton is a good team. Nebraska can keep this close and prove something.
Arizona and Duke shouldn’t need an explanation as to why that is a fantastic game, and the Blue Devils are playing a true road game in November. Hawaii and North Carolina is the biggest game for Hawaii in a long time North Carolina is playing the game as a primer for Maui. The Tar Heels are the better team, but these types of games sometimes have weird results. Enjoy the hoops.