SB Nation - Brandon Costner

James Johnson to participate on Chicago Bulls summer league team

MRickman84 — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:32:56 -0000

The 16th pick overall, Wake Forest's James Johnson, will be playing on the Chicago Bulls summer league team as he transitions his game from college to the pros. The Bulls will kick off their summer session on July 14 against Golden State and will play four more games from the 15th to the 19th.

The Bulls summer roster reads like an ACC all-star team, with notables including Johnson, DeMarcus Nelson, Julius Hodge, Brandon Costner and AD Vassallo. Also on the team are players like Taurean Green, Taj Gibson, James Augustine, Luke Zeller, Nick Lewis and Josh Shipp.

Wednesday Workout: Terrence Williams and Some Longshots

Seth — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:49:05 -0000

Each of the workouts so far has included at least one or two players predicted to be reasonable selections at the Knicks' number 8 spot. Today's has a different feel. Terrence Williams of Louisville is the big name of the bunch, but he's generally projected in the mid- to late-first round. The rest of the list includes a few names you may recognize, but nobody expected to warrant a first-round pick next week. From Zag's Blog:

Nemanja Aleksandrov – Forward, 7-0, 220, Serbia & Montenegro

Brandon Costner – Forward, 6-9, 230, North Carolina State, junior

Daniel Hackett – Guard, 6-5, 215, Southern California, junior

Chartrael Hall – Guard, 6-2, Bellarmine University, senior

Kyle McAlarney – Guard, 6-0, 195, Notre Dame, senior

Hackett's a solid defender at the two-guard (and friend of Danilo Gallinari), but has a contract worked out with Bennetton Treviso, so he's not all that invested in the draft. McAlarny, according to Chris Alvino at TKB, is "a Staten Island kid who was the best high school player I have ever seen live". Costner's a Jersey kid who put up reasonably solid numbers at NC State, and who can forget Swing Vote? Mr. Hall's first name reminds me of these, so I like him right off the bat. Aleksandrov was once thought to be a lottery pick but is in the midst of recovering from ACL surgery. He's compared to Keith Van Horn. Intriguing.

At the very least, we should expect to see a few of these guys make it onto the Knicks' summer league squad. At the very most, this can be taken as a good sign that Donnie Walsh is working to acquire a later pick. This draft's wealth of guards extends deep into the second round, so grabbing a later selection could mean a free shot at more backcourt help. Or we could get Vyacheslav Kravtsov. There's a world of possibilities.

Heytvelt, Downs Workout for NBA Teams Today

Zach B — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:43:06 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

Micah Downs blocks North Carolina's Deon Thompson in the Sweet Sixteen. Today, Downs will be hoping to impress the Blazers. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Browse more photos »

Like our loyal reader GUnit pointed out yesterday, Micah Downs will be working out with the Portland Trailblazers today. A late addition, Downs is replacing Tasmin Mitchell, the forward out of LSU. He will be working out with Chris Johnson also from LSU, Omri Casspi from Israel, Jerel McNeal from Marquette, Greivis Vasquez from Maryland, and Chinemelu Elonu from Texas A&M. Aside from Casspi, all the players working out for Portland today are probably guys that will be projected in the second round or undrafted. The good thing for the six working out today is that Portland has a lot of picks to throw around. While Portland will probably be looking for a point guard in the first round, Casspi could be worth selecting with the Blazers 24th pick. You'll be hearing Portland's name a lot in the second round as they have four picks (#33, #38, #55, #56). It'd be great to see Micah remain in the Pacific Northwest and get drafted by the Blazers. Hopefully his work out goes very well and make sure to check BlazersEdge throughout the day as their writers will be at the workout today.

Also working out today is Gonzaga center Josh Heytvelt. JH has been projected as a mid-to-late second round pick and the Milwaukee Bucks will be testing him out today along with five other prospects. Josh has, much like Austin Daye, had some very mixed reviews throughout the pre-draft process. He got some raves during the combine and people were enamored with his size since graduating. The most recent review of Josh, however, was not so glowing:

Speaking of Gonzaga, several GMs were ranting about big man Heytvelt. "He looked completely disinterested," one GM said. "He was awful. He had his teammates urging him to compete harder. It was weird."

That was from ESPN's Chad Ford who has been covering the workouts. This makes you wonder about Josh's passion for the game, especially since he no longer has the option to come back another year. These three weeks could become very crucial for Josh because he is a guy that some think could be an end of the first round type guy but could also drop out of the draft. Milwaukee has two picks in this year's draft. With the tenth overall pick, Josh will not be the pick but if he impresses them enough, he could fit in as the 41st selection. Joining Josh in today's workout is UCLA's Josh Shipp, Miami of Ohio's Michael Bramos, Alabama's Alonzo Gee, West Virginia's Alex Ruoff, and North Carolina State junior Brandon Costner.

Lunchtime Links 3/26

MRickman84 — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:49:58 -0000

Light on the links today, seems like a slow news day overall aside from the Kentucky rumors of the Billy Gillispie firing.

For the ladies...Playboy is casting for their "Girls of the ACC." They come to Wake on April 2nd and 3rd.

Ken Tysiac says the Wolfpack are in a spot of trouble with Brandon Costner (and Ferguson) leaving.

The Lions may not go "safe" with their #1 pick.

Todd McShay ranks the OLB prospects as one deep class, with Curry at the top. (ESPN Insider)

Inside Higher Education speaks against "one and done" players.

The Chicago Bears were, in fact, looking at Alphonso Smith during Wake's pro day.

Nice Dave Telep of Scout.com audio chat about Seth Curry, ACC Recruiting and NC State.

This UConn stuff sure is getting dicey.

A write-up of C.J. Harris, J.T. Terrell and the rest of the AP First Team All-State players.

More Alphonso Smith pub, this from the Dallas Morning News.

Terps Keep Dream Alive, Beat Wolfpack

Ben Broman — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 01:43:17 -0000

Maryland had to fight back tonight, but the Terps were able to grab the comeback win on the backs of Eric Hayes and Greivis Vasquez. Now they need to focus on Wake Forest tomorrow to clinch a bid.

First off, I don't know what it is with Hayes and the state of Georgia, but the last time he was in Georgia, he scored 15. When he played a team from Georgia before that (GT) he dropped 17. Tonight, he was instrumental in the win, with 21. Without a doubt in my mind, he was the MVP tonight (Vasquez was a close second). Without a couple of threes in a row in the middle of the first half, Maryland doesn't make a run to tie the lead at half and probably end up losing. His three point shooting was perfect tonight, he played solid defense, and made good decisions. If he can play similarly tomorrow night, I like Maryland's chances. For whatever reason, he gets a pretty big amount of open threes; if he starts to knock them down, Maryland is a much better team.

He wasn't alone, though - Greivis Vasquez had another big game, this time earning a double-double. He had trouble with outside shooting tonight (1-5 from three), but he was great when he drove the lane. Not only did he hit the runner in the lane consistently, he made great pass-outs from those situations to open guys (particularly Hayes). When Vaz and Hayes play the way the they did tonight, Maryland is a very difficult team to beat.

On Mr. Church League, Dave Neal is as clutch as clutch gets. He's not always the most consistent, but when he needs to make a big shot, he usually hits it. He made two really big threes tonight when Maryland needed them, which made up for a couple of poor defensive possessions.

I don't like comparing the two because they're different styles, but Dino Gregory outplayed Landon Milbourne at the four tonight. Gregory only had six points, but he took a charge, had a huge block on the fast break, grabbed seven boards, and didn't consistently get stuffed. Milbourne, meanwhile, had seven points and just three boards in 35 minutes, compared to Dino's 23. Oh, and he got rejected about three times. I'm not saying Milbourne should be benched, but why did he play 35 minutes tonight when Dino was clearly outplaying him? He's been coming up short recently - he's due for a big game against Wake Forest.

Credit where credit is due: the zone worked perfectly tonight. Costner only had four points (though much of that was due to foul trouble), and NCSt had to rely on a freshman bench player for offense. I'll take my chances on that every day of the week.

Looks like the FT problem was fixed tonight, as well. Maryland had 21 attempts, which was a nice return to getting points from the line.

Again, the minutes were a little funky tonight. Both Bowie and Tucker only had 13 minutes, which was a bit lower than I would've had. When they were really struggling offensively, Tucker should've been in the game. He's one of the bigger offensive weapons on the team, and Maryland needed all the help they could've gotten.

On the bubble front, Maryland got helped out; Miami is officially dead in the water, Virginia Tech, although they got a win, were hurt badly by Clemson's loss. Clemson has really been slumping lately, and that was VT's "marquee win". Providence was blown out, Arizona State beat Arizona, and Rhode Island lost to Duquense. A few bubblers got wins, but it was about as good as you could expect.

ACC Tournament: NC State vs. Maryland Recap

MRickman84 — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 01:23:54 -0000

Obviously this game had a lot of weight seeing as the winner plays the Deacs tomorrow and that put more emphasis on the outcome. That doesn't mean that it was the best ACC Tournament game I've ever seen...

This was an ugly game all around. Both teams plodded and made poor decisions and shot selections. At the end though, Eric Hayes' 21 points on 5-6 three-pointers and 6-8 free throws and Greivis Vasquez's 17 points, 10 assists and four rebounds were too much for the Wolfpack.

The Pack got a combined 2-15 performance good for 9 total points from Brandon Costner and Courtney Fells. Not exactly what you would be hoping for from two of your court leaders. State was paced by a great effort from Ben McCauley (7-10 shooting, 14 points and seven rebounds) and a career game from Julius Mays--18 points.

NC State was able to stay in it midway through the second half, even leading 62-61 at one point. They were unable to get any offense going after that though, allowing Maryland to go on an extended run that basically put the game away.

Vasquez, who announced today that he was going to declare for the NBA draft, tied his career high in assists and only had two turnovers. He looked poised and focused, but his words about the Demon Deacon defense after their loss in College Park makes for good bulletin board material.

The Deacs know what is at stake, especially with Pitt, Kansas and Oklahoma going down today. Not only is the battle for Greensboro still up for grabs, but there is a potential number one seed on the line if Wake could pull out a miracle ACC Tournament Championship. To get there though, they have to go through the Terrapins who gave the Deacs a run for their money just recently.

Wake will need to play solid defense and get the ball inside early and often. They absolutely must seal off Dave Neal and Eric Hayes from getting open opportunities and just make Greivis beat them--play him like everyone else and shut down the rest of the Terps and beat up on Maryland inside. This is a game Wake should win. Now they need to go out and do it.

Wake Forest vs North Carolina State Preview

Brian Burke — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 07:48:52 -0000

In a season full of almosts and could have beens, N.C. State does have one signature win this season. An 82-76 win over Wake Forest.

These schools will clash again on Thursday, but this time Wake is the one with something to prove... and they'll have a chance prove it on their home court...

Wake Forest (20-5, 7-5 ACC) is looking to prove to the nation that they are still the same team that started the season 16-0, earning them the nation's #1 ranking on January 19. Over a month later, the Deacons are only 4-5 in their past nine, including a 6-point loss at N.C. State.

But proving the naysayers wrong isn't Wake's only motivation right now. They are fighting for one of the ACC's coveted top four spots, which would mean a first round bye in the conference tournament. And right now, those spots are wide open:

Standings	Conference				Overall
	W	L	GB	PCT	W	L	PCT
North Carolina	10	3	-	.769	24	3	.889
Duke	9	4	1½	.692	23	5	.821
Clemson	8	5	1½	.615	22	5	.815
Florida State	8	5	2	.615	21	7	.750
Wake Forest	7	5	2½	.583	20	5	.800
Boston College	8	6	2½	.571	20	9	.690
Virginia Tech	7	6	3½	.538	17	10	.630
Maryland	6	7	3½	.462	17	10	.630
North Carolina State	5	7	4½	.417	15	10	.600
Miami (FL)	5	8	5	.385	16	10	.615
Virginia	3	9	6½	.250	9	14	.391
Georgia Tech	1	12	9	.077	10	16	.385

North Carolina State (15-10, 5-7 ACC) has had a disappointing season, with close losses to Davidson, Marquette, and Florida. They have played arguably their best basketball of late, winning three of their last four, including a win at Georgia Tech, just their second road win of the year. Their only previous road win came as their first game of the year, against New Orleans.

Wake, meanwhile, has been tremendous at home this season, where they have only lost once all year. Wake has also tended to rebound from losses well this year, and they are coming off a loss at Duke last Sunday.

Despite their ability to rebound from losses well, Wake still doesn't rebound the basketball as well as they should, especially given their size. If the Demon Deacons can prevent Wolfpack offensive rebounds and play their style of fast-paced up and down games, then expect revenge to be served on Thursday night.

N.C. State, who prefers a much slower tempo, will need to focus on protecting the basketball and finding someone who can step up and be a leader on the road. State's leading scorer (Brandon Costner) averages just 14.3 PPG, lowest of any team's leading scorer in the ACC.

It will be a battle between the Wolfpack's versatility and depth against the Demon Deacons' size and speed. We've already seen Wake avenge a road loss once this season, beating Georgia Tech by 18 on February 18. And with an ACC tournament bye on the line, expect a repeat performance.

Wake Forest vs. N.C. State Preview

Brian Burke — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 07:13:25 -0000

Wake Forest has payback on its mind when it goes to Raleigh on Wednesday to take on an N.C. State team that has yet to win an ACC game in regulation this season.

Wake Forest (18-3, 5-3 ACC) hasn't traveled to the RBC center since February 3 of last year, when Ben McCauley dunked in a Gavin Grant miss with one second on the clock to beat the Deacons 67-65. While Wake hasn't forgotten that loss, McCauley and the Wolfpack are just trying to remember what it's like to win an ACC game in regulation. The last time they won a conference game in 40 minutes was February 5 of last year, just two days after they beat Wake on the buzzer beater...

Still, the Wolfpack (12-9, 2-6 ACC) have won two ACC games this year, both in overtime, and both at home. In conference play this season, N.C. State is averaging about 10 points per game more at home than on the road. In fact, they haven't won an away game of any kind since their first game of the season, beating New Orleans by just six.

And although State will be happy to play on their home court, Wake Forest has shown an ability to win on the road this season. Before losing back-to-back road games at Georgia Tech and at Miami, Wake ended BYU's then nation's best 53-game home winning streak, beat an undefeated Clemson team on the road, and won at Boston College... by 20.

The Demon Deacons completed the season sweep of the Eagles this past Sunday, defeating Boston College 93-76. This win may prove to be a turning point in the young team's season, after losing three of their previous four. The difference was more consistent passing and ball control from the Deacs, who had 16 assists to only 12 turnovers in the game.

The key stat to keep your eye on in Wednesday's match-up is turnovers. N.C. State doesn't have a true ACC-caliber starting point guard, while Wake has two in Teague and Smith. Neither Wake nor State is particularly good at protecting the rock on offense, ranking 163^rd and 228^th respectively in turnover percentage (turnovers per possession) on offense.

The difference is that Wake is good at forcing turnovers on defense, whereas the Wolfpack rank in the bottom 15 in the nation in that category. If they want to stop the Deacons' high-powered offense, N.C. State, who has had 42 turnovers in their past two games, will need to hold on to the basketball.

Other noteworthy stats:

N.C. State's highest scorer (Brandon Costner) only ranks 19^th in the ACC in PPG, lower than any other ACC team's highest scorer.
40.6% of the minutes played for N.C. State have been by bench players, good for 11^th in the nation.
Wake Forest hasn't won at the RBC Center since 2005.
N.C. State is coming off of an OT loss to Virginia Tech, and teams are only 3-24 in games after OT losses this year in men's college basketball (top 125 matchups only).

Predictions:

Big East Basketball Preview: 50 non-conference games of note

Mike Rutherford — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 02:53:31 -0000

Only games guaranteed to be played are eligible for the list.

Anyone who watches all 50 games in their entirety wins a night of dinner, drinks and dancing with me and This Guy at the White Castle on Westport Rd.

50. Connecticut vs. Hartford (Nov. 17)

Coming off their best season in two decades, the Hawks will provide the only semi-test for Connecticut before the Huskies head to Spokane on Dec. 20. Big man Warren McClendon is gone, but U of H returns its other four starters, including sharp-shooter Joe Zeglinski.

49. Notre Dame vs. Indiana (Nov. 24)

The two schools from the Hoosier state meet in the opening round of the Maui Invitational with preseason expectations significantly higher for the less storied program.

48. Pittsburgh vs. Vermont (Dec. 6)

Pitt's non-conference schedule doesn't feature a big-name opponent - although participation in the Legends Classic could bring about one - but it does feature several formidable mid-major foes, including the preseason favorites in the America East. The Panthers will be tested by the inside-out duo of Mike Trimboli and reigning league POY Marqus Blakely.

47. Rutgers at Rider (Dec. 31)

Jason Thompson is gone, but Rider still returns four starters and should provide a solid road test for a young Scarlet Knight squad looking to prove it's ready to compete in the Big East.

46. West Virginia vs. Miami (OH) (Dec. 20)

The Redhawks figure to finish near the top of the standings in the always tough Mid-American Conference, but this is the type of game Bob Huggins' team can't afford to have lost if they find themselves planted squarely on the bubble come early March.

45. Pittsburgh vs. Belmont (Nov. 25)

Belmont knocked off Cincinnati in the season-opener for both a year ago, and the Bruins are picked to win the Atlantic Sun yet again this season.

44. Georgetown vs. American (Dec. 6)

American appears to be the class of the Patriot League, and the Eagles have the experience and maturity to deal with Georgetown's methodical style of play.

43. Louisville vs. UAB (Dec. 27)

The Cardinals will have to avoid a holiday hangover because they'll get the best shot of a Blazer team needing a marquee win to bolster its NCAA Tournament hopes.

42. St. John's vs. Cornell (Nov. 17)

The Johnnies open the preseason NIT with a dangerous draw in the defending Ivy League champs.

41. Pittsburgh at Texas Tech (Nov. 28)

Pat Knight's Red Raiders don't appear to be destined for anything approaching greatness this season, but there's enough there to test Pitt in the Panthers' Legends Classic opener.

40. South Florida at Wright State (Dec. 21)

A trip to the Nutter Center to take on one of the better mid-major teams in the land should be a good challenge for Stan Heath's guard-heavy squad.

39. Depaul at St. Louis (Dec. 22)

The Billikens made great strides in Rick Majerus' first season, and should serve as a formidable first-round opponent in the Las Vegas Classic for the Blue Demons.

38. Marquette at North Carolina State (Dec. 22)

The Pack is down, but Brandon Costner and Ben McCauley will test Marquette's emaciated frontcourt early in the season.

37. Cincinnati vs. UAB (Dec. 6)

The former C-USA rivals meet in an early December game that could have a great impact on the NCAA Tournament resume of each.

36. Pittsburgh vs. Miami (OH) (Nov. 17)

Pitt begins the season on Nov. 14 with Fairleigh Dickinson and gets its first real test three days later when Charlie Coles and the Redhawks come to the Peterson Events Center.

35. Depaul at California (Dec. 3)

Dar Tucker and Mac Koshwal can make the rest of the league take notice by going out West and knocking off a beatable Cal squad.

34. West Virginia vs. Cleveland State (Dec. 6)

The 'Eers return from Vegas and begin a tough four-game stretch at home with the favorites to take the Horizon League.

33. Connecticut vs. Michigan (Feb. 7)

The Huskies take a break from Big East play to host the Wolverines and sophomore stud Manny Harris.

32. Louisville at Minnesota (Dec. 20)

Tubby Smith had a solid amount of success against Rick Pitino when he was at Kentucky, but the odds are a bit more stacked against him in this game which will be played in Phoenix.

31. South Florida at Vanderbilt (Dec. 16)

How the Kentrell Gransberry-less Bulls handle A.J. Ogilvy should serve as a barometer of how they'll fare in the post talent-heavy Big East.

30. West Virginia at Mississippi (Dec. 3)

Serving as the X factor against a talented Ole Miss backcourt, this could be Devin Ebanks' first opportunity to really sparkle.

29. Providence at Boston College (Dec. 20)

If Keno Davis wants to prove he can get the talented Friars to play to their potential then he needs to go on the road and take care of a BC team that has little outside of Tyrese Rice.

28. Villanova vs. St. Joseph's (Dec. 11)

The Wildcats are the clear favorites on paper, but All-American candidate Ahmad Nivins presents a real matchup problem.

27. Syracuse vs. Cleveland State (Dec. 15)

Seniors J'Nathan Bullock and Cedric Jackson might be the two best players in the Horizon League, and could easily lead the Vikings to an early season upset. The fact that Syracuse has just a day to prepare after a home tilt with Long Beach State certainly doesn't help.

26. St. John's vs. Miami (Fla.) (Dec. 27)

Norm Roberts could make a lot of folks in Brooklyn more comfortable about his contract extension if he could lead the Johnnies to an early upset of a nationally ranked foe.

25. Marquette vs. Dayton (Nov. 29)

The Flyers have been tough to beat in pre-Atlantic 10 action in recent years, which makes this tussle in Chicago a dangerous one for the Golden Eagles. Chris Wright can jump super high.

24. Louisville vs. Mississippi (Dec. 18)

The guard trio of Huertas, Polynice and Warren should provide a tough early test for the occasionally eccentric Cardinal backcourt.

23. St. John's vs. Duke (Feb. 19)

This one stopped being cute when Ron Artest rode out of town.

22. Depaul at UCLA (Dec. 13)

The Blue Demons might be just a bit outclassed in this John Wooden Classic game being played in Anaheim.

21. Rutgers at North Carolina (Dec. 28)

If RU keeps it closer than 22 (UNC won 93-71 a year ago), I say they win. Which means a lot.

20. Pittsburgh vs. Siena (Dec. 17)

The Saints return all five starters from the squad that routed Vanderbilt in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

19. Villanova vs. Temple (Dec. 29)

'Nova will have to find an answer for Dionte Christmas if they want to prevail in what could end up being the de facto Big Five title game.

18. Louisville vs. UNLV (Dec. 31)

The Runnin' Rebs hung with the Cards for 35 minutes a year ago before falling apart and losing by 20. They return their top two scorers and add highly-touted freshman Beas Hamga.

17. Cincinnati vs. Xavier (Dec. 13)

If Cincinnati can take as large a stride in Mick Cronin's second season as they did in his first, then this could be the most even Crosstown Shootout in quite some time.

16. Seton Hall vs. USC (Nov. 20)

The Pirates have next-to-no non-con challenges outside of the Puerto Rico Tip-Off, so a strong performance on the island is paramount for the squad's postseason aspirations. It all starts with a date with the 18th ranked Trojans.

15. West Virginia at Ohio State (Dec. 27)

Seven-foot freshman sensation B.J. Mullens is a matchup nightmare for the undersized Mountaineers.

14. Cincinnati at Memphis (Dec. 29)

Things started to turn around for the Bearcats a season ago when they hung with the top-ranked Tigers for 40 minutes. Expecations are a bit higher at UC 12 months later.

13. Providence at Baylor (Nov. 27)

A huge opening round matchup in the Anaheim Classic for a pair of programs looking to take giant leaps forward in 2008-2009.

12. Syracuse vs. Florida (Nov. 24)

A win over the Gators could be the difference between NCAA and NIT if the Big East threatens to swallow SU's postseason dreams for a third straight year.

11. Notre Dame vs. Ohio State (Dec. 6)

Lots of talent + contrasting styles = December fun for the whole family.

10. Marquette vs. Wisconsin (Dec. 6)

The most underrated rivalry in college basketball will almost assuredly again involve a pair of top 25 teams.

9. West Virginia vs. Davidson (Dec. 9)

I hear these guys are kind of dangerous. Apparently have a decent little guard.

8. Syracuse at Memphis (Dec. 20)

The Tigers' mini-tour of the Big East hits its second stop when the Orange roll into the FedExForum. Chances are 100% that Eric Devendorf and Tyreke Evans have words.

7. Louisville vs. Kentucky (Jan. 4)

The most hate-filled rivalry in the sport could turn into must-see-TV if the Cats show early improvement in their second season under Billy Gillispie.

6. Georgetown vs. Memphis (Dec. 13)

Memphis exposed the Hoyas with their athleticism a year ago, but the two main culprits - Chris Douglas-Roberts and Derrick Rose - are now being paid to play the game.

5. Marquette at Tennessee (Dec. 13)

Sensational veteran guards vs. athletic veteran wings. Also, two programs who have or have had a head coach with the first name Buzz.

4. Villanova vs. Texas (Dec. 9)

This Jimmy V. Classic tilt will feature a pair of nationally ranked teams and a couple of shot-happy guards who have the potential to go for 30 every time they step on the floor.

3. Georgetown at Duke (Jan. 17)

The Hoyas get a quick reprieve from Big East play, unfortunately it involves a trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium.

2. Connecticut at Gonzaga (Dec. 20)

The sixth-annual Battle in Seattle will be a rematch of last year's classic which the 'Zags won 85-82.

1. Notre Dame at UCLA (Feb. 7)

A February clash in Pauley featuring two presaeason top ten squads that will affect the seeding of multiple teams in both the Pac-10 and Big East.