By Aidan Joly
The college basketball season is now less than 24 hours away. Even though we had a good amount of games postponed or canceled for positive COVID-19 tests, there’s still a good number of good matchups on tap for opening day tomorrow. Here’s 10 to watch throughout the day on Wednesday, in the order of start time.
Memphis vs St. Mary’s, 2 p.m., ESPN2
The first of four games in the Crossover Classic at the Sanford Pentagon on Wednesday, both teams have a lot of talent. Even without James Wiseman, Memphis still has plenty of talent with Boogie Ellis, Lester Quinones, Landers Nolley II and DeAndre Williams, who is hoping to get a last-minute waiver. St. Mary’s isn’t as talented as some previous years but are still pretty good.
Illinois State @ No. 23 Ohio State, 2 p.m., ESPN
Ohio State isn’t 100% at full strength yet, Seth Towns is still limited and doesn’t have a timetable for a return and Musa Jallow will be a game-time decision according to CBS Sports, but this game is still worth watching to check out CJ Watson, Bucknell transfer Jimmy Sotos, California transfer Justice Sueing, as well as Kyle Young and EJ Liddell. DJ Horne is a fun watch for the Redbirds.
Oklahoma State @ UT-Arlington, 4 p.m., ESPN
Oklahoma State isn’t eligible for the postseason this year, but they still have freshman superstar Cade Cunningham, who is making his collegiate debut. Junior Isaac Likekele is a fun watch as well, a double-digit scorer. UT-Arlington, led by David Azore and Sam Griffin, were picked to finish fourth in the Sun Belt.
UNC Central @ No. 5 Iowa, 4 p.m., Big Ten Network
Every game involving Luka Garza is must-watch. He’s one of the best players in the country as Iowa looks to be a national title contender. Joe Wieskamp is a very solid sidekick for him as well. CJ Fredick had a good freshman year there too. Meanwhile, UNC Central, led by one of the best low major coaches in the country in LeVelle Moton, is always one of the best teams in the MEAC and this year should be no different. CJ Keyser is great for the Eagles, keep an eye on him.
Western Kentucky vs Northern Iowa, 4:30 p.m., ESPNU
A high-level mid-major matchup, both of these teams could be on your bracket come March. Western Kentucky, led by former Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury, was picked to win the Conference USA this year. Northern Iowa was picked to win the Missouri Valley. This will be a fun one for the die-hards. This is the second of four at Sanford Wednesday.
No. 18 Arizona State vs Rhode Island, 7 p.m., ESPN
This may be the best game of the day, at the Mohegan Sun bubble in Connecticut. This will be a great battle between starting point guards with ASU’s Remy Martin and URI’s Fatts Russell. Arizona State also boasts freshman Josh Christopher and Ohio State transfer Luther Muhammad. Still, don’t be surprised if the Rams pull off the upset here.
No. 15 West Virginia vs South Dakota State, 7 p.m., ESPN2
The third game at Sanford. West Virginia has a team that has a shot at winning the Big 12 with Miles McBride, Oscar Tshiebwe and Derek Culver all playing big roles. Meanwhile, South Dakota State tends to be one of the premier programs in the Summit League, led by junior Douglas Wilson, who averaged nearly 20 PPG last year. Matt Detlinger and Tray Buchanan are also good players for the Jackrabbits.
Clemson vs Mississippi State, 8:30 p.m., CBS Sports
Mississippi State was likely to play in the NCAA Tournament last year and bring in a top-100 recruit in point guard Deivon Smith. Clemson brings in PJ Hall, the top recruit out of the state of South Carolina. He will play along Aamir Simms, who led the Tigers in just about every major stat las year. This game is being played in Melbourne, Fla.
Utah State vs VCU, 9:30 p.m., ESPN2
The last game of the day at Sanford, this one will be a lot of fun. Sam Merrill is gone for the Aggies, but that just means Neemias Queta will have a much larger role and will be a star. They were picked to finish third in the Mountain West. As for VCU, they are young but have possibly the most underrated transfer in the nation in Coppin State transfer Brendan Medley-Bacon, who is ready for the big stage. Nah’Shon Hyland had a great freshman year for the Rams and will likely have a larger role this time around.
No. 22 UCLA @ San Diego State, 10:30 p.m., CBS Sports
Two of the best programs on the west coast face off. UCLA is one of the best teams in the Pac-12 and have a chance to win that league. Senior Chris Smith is one of the best players in the league. As for San Diego State they won’t be as good as last year, but they are incredibly deep. Most notably they return Matt Mitchell, Jordan Schakel and Nathan Mensah, and they bring in CSU-Northridge grad transfer Terrell Gomez, who averaged nearly 20 PPG for the Matadors last year.
AJ Hoops 