I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and were able to get some much-needed time with your family and friends. It was a good break for me. There were games on Christmas day, and we saw Nebraska win the Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii. Nebraska beat Oregon State in the championship game. The Huskers have turned up the defense this year and have one of the best players in the country on their team. If they continue to play at that level, they will be tough to beat.
In the rest of the games in the Diamond Head Classic on Christmas, there were some surprises. Murray State beat Loyola Chicago. The Ramblers went 0-3 in Hawaii and entered the tournament as one of the favorites. Charleston beat Charlotte for fifth place, and Hawaii beat Oakland for third place. Oakland entered the tournament with three wins, should have made the championship game, and took Hawaii to the brink. The Horizon League favorites will be okay.
Welcome back College Basketball with a huge Saturday slate. Conference play in the Mountain West and Southland continues, there is a battle of two top 25 teams in Inglewood, CA. The HBCU Showcase begins. West Coast Conference play begins. That league might be a lot of fun this year. Picks for day 51 December 28th, 2024, are below.
Winner | Loser |
|---|---|
Georgetown | Coppin State |
Maryland | Maryland Eastern Shore |
Louisville | Eastern Kentucky |
Saint Joseph's | Delaware State |
Memphis | Ole Miss |
North Carolina A&T | North Carolina Central |
Georgia State | Mercer |
Davidson | Eastern Michigan |
George Mason | Mount St. Mary's |
Georgia Tech | Alabama A&M |
DePaul | Loyola Maryland |
Syracuse | Bucknell |
New Mexico | Colorado State |
Texas A&M | Abilene Christian |
Gonzaga | UCLA |
Hampton | Howard |
Nevada | Wyoming |
Columbia | Fairfield |
Boston College | Fairleigh Dickinson |
Boise State | San Jose State |
McNeese | New Orleans |
San Diego State | Utah State |
Richmond | Florida Gulf Coast |
St. John's | Delaware |
Grand Canyon | San Diego |
Elon | Marshall |
Santa Clara | Pepperdine |
Cal Baptist | Jackson State |
Saint Mary's | Pacific |
Washington State | Portland |
UNLV | Fresno State |
San Francisco | Loyola Marymount |
Two games stand out above the rest, and the first one is Memphis and Ole Miss. Memphis has a bad loss to Arkansas State on the resume, but they have some good wins over Clemson, UConn, and Michigan State. They are tough and have a deep roster that will pose a lot of problems for Ole Miss. The Rebels have a two-point loss to Purdue on the resume and lack good wins. This would be a good one to get if they can head into the FedEx Forum and leave with a win. Never count out Chris Beard.
The best game of the day is a midday game between Gonzaga and UCLA. UCLA has one of the best defenses in the country and likes to keep games low-scoring. Gonzaga has an explosive offense, never turns the ball over, and plays as fast as possible. Something is going to give in this game; it seems like this is a game that Gonzaga normally wins going away. Enjoy the hoops.