Archives: Previews

No. 20 Baylor and Auburn will take the first step toward proving they belong with college basketball’s upper echelon on Tuesday when the two perennial powerhouses open their respective seasons at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. Baylor was 23-11 last season and lost to Creighton in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Bears were picked to finish fourth in the stacked Big 12 Conference in the coaches’ preseason poll, the 13th

The University of Michigan basketball team has a completely different look this season. The team’s top scorer and rebounder each of the past two seasons, Hunter Dickinson, transferred to Kansas. Guards Jett Howard and Kobe Bufkin were selected in the top half of the NBA draft. Juwan Howard remains the head coach. But he underwent heart surgery in September and he’s still in the recovery phase. Another of his sons, Jace Howard, will miss 4-6

While the outside focus on the 2023 Iowa Hawkeyes is fixed on subtractions and lost star power, the internal outlook of optimism has everything to do with a freshman class the team views as program-building pillars. Once the central orbit of the Iowa program, twin brothers Keegan and Kris Murray were first-round NBA draft picks the past two summers: Keegan with the Sacramento Kings in 2022 and Kris to the Portland Trail Blazers in June.

No. 8 Creighton was certifiably elite in March. The Bluejays are determined to get back to that level this season. Creighton maintains great expectations for the 2023-24 campaign despite losing two key cogs from the team that advanced to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament last season. With All-Big East preseason first-team representatives Ryan Kalkbrenner and Trey Alexander leading the way, the Bluejays look to start off on the right foot Tuesday when they

Indiana might not embrace the common ground with a neighboring Big Ten rival ahead of a Saturday afternoon date at Illinois in a Big Ten crossover game. But the Hoosiers (3-6, 1-5) and Fighting Illini (4-5, 2-4) can’t ignore it exists. Neither team performed to the level it had hoped and through nine games is grasping at faint hope for a postseason. But there is optimism thanks to upset wins by both programs last week.

Hiring Ed Cooley as coach in March was Georgetown’s first step toward re-establishing its storied legacy following six tumultuous seasons under Patrick Ewing. Cooley and his squad will begin the long climb toward regaining respectability when the Hoyas host Division I newcomer Le Moyne on Tuesday in Washington, D.C., to open the 2023-24 season for both teams. Georgetown meandered to a 62-59 record through Ewing’s first four seasons as coach, the last of which saw

The instant Rick Pitino arrived to coach St. John’s on March 20, expectations were raised for a program without an NCAA Tournament win since 2000. After a busy offseason highlighted by a roster revamp, the highly anticipated Pitino era gets underway on Tuesday night when the Red Storm host Stony Brook in the season opener for both teams in New York. “Everyone is looking forward to it,” Pitino said last month. “There is an anticipation

As it comes off a 23-win campaign, Indiana will feature several new faces when it opens its season against Florida Gulf Coast on Tuesday evening in Bloomington, Ind. The Hoosiers will welcome newcomers Kel’el Ware, Mackenzie Mgbako and Gabe Cupps. Ware is a sophomore transfer from Oregon who was a McDonald’s All-American in 2022, and Mgbako is a true freshman who earned McDonald’s All-American status last season. Indiana coach Mike Woodson hopes the influx of

Maryland is not going to sneak up on anybody this season. A year ago, the Terrapins tied for fifth in the Big Ten Conference after being ranked 10th in the preseason poll. Maryland then earned a No. 8 seed in the NCAA Tournament and fell 73-51 to top-seeded Alabama in the second round. This year, the Terps placed third in the preseason poll behind Purdue and Michigan State, and they will look to extend their

The Orlando Magic will need to adjust with injured center Wendell Carter Jr. sidelined for the next few weeks, but altering their defensive focus won’t be among the changes. The Magic have been one of the league’s top defensive teams early this season, and they’ll need another strong effort when they face the visiting Dallas Mavericks on Monday. Dallas improved to 5-1 with a 124-118 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday. Luka Doncic scored