TSR 11/23/19 CBB Picks

Big Takeaways From Friday
1-Merrimack put the hurt on Lesley in their Friday night contest. The Warriors won 110-16, and no that is not a typo! This game was 47-9 at halftime before they outscored them 63-7 in the second half. All eleven Warriors who played scored at least four points in the game, the same amount that Lesley's highest scorer achieved. The Lesley Lynx, a Division III team, were overmatched. They are coming off of a 2-23 season, and they have now given up at least 102 points in four of their seven defeats.

2-UCONN showed that it has the physicality to match up in the Big East on Friday night. They went blow for blow with Xavier, the most physical team in the Big East most seasons, taking them to double overtime before eventually falling short. Danny Hurley has implemented a different culture of basketball in Storrs, and it is starting to pay off.

3-Utah State is legit. The Aggies were down by as many as nineteen in the second half against LSU before they rallied for an 80-78 win. Sam Merrill hit the big shot and Alphonso Anderson added 24 points. This bunch isn't even at full strength, as Neemias Queta is still nursing an injury. Watch out for this team, as they could get to the program's first Sweet 16 since 1970.

Yesterday's Pick Results (Season Pick Standings can be found here) Sam 8-2 Nick 7-3 Zach 7-3 Our Picks for Saturday's Action

Game 1: Ole Miss at Memphis (1:00, ESPN3)

Nick: Memphis--Precious Achiuwa is an absolute monster, but don’t forget about Lester Quinones. In five starts, he has averaged 12.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG and 3.4 APG for the Tigers. This team is still a second weekend bunch without Wiseman.

Sam: Memphis-- Even without James Wiseman the Tigers have tons of talent, including fellow star freshman Precious Achiuwa, a walking double double.

Zach: Memphis-- This is the first big game for Memphis without Wiseman, but even in his absence they are a top team in the country. They hand Ole Miss loss number one.

Game 2: Arizona State vs St. John’s (2:30, ESPN3)

Nick: Arizona State--Mike Richardson has a long way to go in order to get the Red Storm back on track. 

Sam: Arizona State-- The experienced backcourt of Remy Martina and Rob Edwards is just so fun to watch.

Zach: St. John's--This game is as close of a toss up as you can get. Mustapha Heron is the X-Factor.

Game 3: Yale at Penn State (4:00)

Nick: Penn State

Sam: Penn State

Zach: Penn State-- The Nittany Lions have looked really good this season, and today they will improve to 5-0 on the year.

Game 4: Belmont at Saint Louis (5:00, ESPN+)

Nick: Belmont

Sam: Belmont

Zach: Belmont

Game 5: SMU at UNLV (10:30)

Nick: SMU--Tyson Jolly has been an ironman, averaging nearly 35 minutes per game for the Mustangs, while scoring 18.3 PPG. He is going to square up against Amauri Hardy, who was once a highly heralded recruit at Oklahoma State. This year, he’s starting strong at 18.8 PPG.

Sam: UNLV

Zach: UNLV

Game 6: DePaul at Boston College (12:00, ACCN)

Nick:DePaul

Sam: DePaul-- Kansas transfer Charlie Moore has been one of the best point guards in the country early on this season.

Zach: BC--In a rematch of the game I was at last year in Chicago, the result is the same. Although DePaul looks like a different team this season, BC still gets the win.

Game 7: Virginia vs UMASS (12:00, ESPN NEWS)

Nick:Virginia

Sam: Virginia

Zach: Virginia

Game 8: Penn at Providence (4:00, FS2)

Nick: Providence

Sam: Providence

Zach: Providence

Game 9: Charleston at UCF (2:00, ESPN3)

Nick: UCF

Sam: UCF

Zach: UCF

Game 10: Robert Morris at Marquette (2:00, FS2)

Nick: Marquette--This should be a fantastic opportunity for Marquette to try and find their scoring threats. Markus Howard is the man in charge, Koby McEwen has played strong as of late, but they need to get guys such as Brendan Bailey and Sacar Anim going.

Sam: Marquette

Zach: Marquette--This has all the makings of a big blowout.

Upset Pick (not in games above): 

Nick: The Citadel over Marist

Sam: SIU-Edwardsville over Northern Illinois

Zach: Presbyterian over Quinnipiac—This is a big one for me after yesterday’s mistake.