North Carolina, Utah State Headline a Loaded Friday Hoops Slate

Time for a Public Service Announcement: The Miami Hurricanes, with their new coach and roster, look promising, and the expectations for that team may change given their strong start to the season. We now return to your regularly scheduled programming. Miami and Bethune-Cookman was a game I was going to keep an eye on, given how well Bethune played against Auburn, and how good the Wildcats should be this season. The Hurricanes put the Wildcats to bed early and won by a 40-point margin. 

In the other games highlighted today, Ohio beat Illinois State, and Northern Iowa blew out Northridge. Those games didn't fit in with the theme of the day, which was upsets. The games that looked like they had the best chance for upsets were actually blowouts. Some upsets came out of nowhere, with Mercyhurst (360 in KenPom) going into Chicago and beating Loyola-Chicago. Robert Morris beat Drake in Des Moines, and Division II Northwood beat Western Michigan.

The Friday slate is loaded and is a tremendous primer for the first Saturday of the season. There is a top-25 vs. top-25 game, two games between great mid-major schools, and, most importantly, basketball all day. The preview and picks for the best games are below.

No. 19 Kansas Jayhawks at No. 25 North Carolina Tar Heels- Two lottery picks go at it.

Darryn Peterson of Kansas and Caleb Wilson of North Carolina are two players who have seen their names thrown around as the top pick in the draft. Each player led their team in scoring in the first contest of the year, and each player has the potential to lead their team in scoring for the season.  

It's a prove-it game for North Carolina, which many believe doesn't deserve to be ranked in the top 25 in the preseason. Kansas is a team that is expected to be significantly better than last season, but is still a long way from the vintage Jayhawks we all grew up with. North Carolina needs this game a lot more than Kansas does. In the end, Wilson proves to be too much for the Kansas frontcourt.

VCU Rams at Utah State Aggies- Two of the best mid-majors doing battle in the Mountains

There have been few teams that have had the kind of sustained success that these two teams have had in their history. The Rams and Aggies are two perennial tournament teams who are likely going to make it again this season. There will be a ton of points scored in this game, with a lot of threes being made, and the pace will be aesthetically pleasing for everyone to watch.

Yale Bulldogs at Navy Midshipmen - Veterans Classic features two conference favorites

Yale has been one of the best mid-majors in the country for a while under James Jones, and while they have yet to take the floor in the 2025-2026 season, the Bulldogs enter as the overwhelming favorite to win the Ivy League again. The Navy hasn't made the NCAA Tournament since the David Robinson days, but they have been close, coming out of the Patriot League. Austin Beningi is the best player in that league and has no problem winning games by himself for the Midshipmen.

The picks for the rest of the games are below: