College Basketball

The Red Raiders couldn’t keep up with the Wildcats in their first and only exhibition of the season, losing 76-65 on the road. There’s a lot to unpack from Texas Tech’s loss, both positive and negative. More Physicality on Defense One thing from this game seemed clear. Texas Tech will need Jamichael Stillwell and JT Toppin back in the lineup …

The Bruins seemingly dominated in all facets against Cal Baptist in their first exhibition game Wednesday night. UCLA walked away with a 100-53 win over the Lancers in a game that was lopsided from the very beginning. The Bruins passed both the eye test and lit up the stat sheet, exceeding just about every area in the box score. Advertisement …

One of the most asked questions among Tar Heels fans has been regarding the eligibility of big man Cameron Fens. It’s become a frustrating situation for North Carolina and their fans, as many fifth-year players around the country have become eligible to play in the 2026-27 season. However, UNC’s likely starting center and South Dakota transfer, Cameron Fens, still remains …

The Duke Blue Devils will wrap up preseason play with an exhibition game against No. 17 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse on Sunday (1:00 pm ET, ESPN). Through two preseason contests at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Blue Devils have looked practically unbeatable. Duke defeated Belmont 102-62 in a scrimmage on Oct. 8, then ran No. 8 Tennessee out of the building …

We are now through the second exhibition game for the Illinois basketball program, and there are some interesting things going on with the team. Illinois has an embarrassment of riches when it comes to scoring. We can shoot from anywhere on the court, and this might be the most high-powered Illini offense I have ever seen. Advertisement Defense could be …

Northwestern entered the offseason in rebuilding mode, returning just three players from its 2025-26 season. With eight incoming transfers and little film on the team, head coach Chris Collins plans to attack the Big Ten with size, experience and a feeling of mystery. Entering his 14th season, Collins has established an astounding foundation in Evanston, guiding Northwestern to back-to-back NCAA …

Illinois basketball went into an exhibition on Friday night and could have easily had our doors blown off by Baylor. The Bears are no joke. They just beat No. 1 Florida in an exhibition, so they are a really good team. The Illini felt their wrath early on, as Baylor came out punching. Advertisement Baylor couldn’t miss a shot in …

FAYETTEVILLE — A grueling nonconference schedule is on the horizon for Arkansas basketball. The Hogs will test themselves today during a top-15 bout inside Bud Walton Arena. The No. 13 Razorbacks host No. 12 Gonzaga in a preseason exhibition on Saturday, Oct. 24. Hall of fame coaches John Calipari and Mark Few will get first looks at their respective rosters …

Throughout the offseason, there’s been one area that has been a concern for this UCLA team, and specifically this frontcourt. However, the Bruins looked fantastic in the exhibition against Cal Baptist, and it looks like that concern may be shrinking heading into the season. The concern was centered around UCLA’s rebounding abilities, and specifically whether this frontcourt could put up …

There are certain athletes who have mastered a skill in their sport to the point where they can pretty much deploy it whenever they want and it remains successful. Randy Johnson put together one of the most impressive bodies of work an MLB pitcher ever has over a 22 season career in which he threw almost exclusively fastballs and sliders, …

Coach Brad Underwood’s Illinois Fighting Illini men’s basketball team suffered a 95-91 exhibition loss to coach Scott Drew’s Baylor Bears on Friday night amid a big game from freshman Quentin Coleman and tough injury news on AP Preseason All-American David Mirkovic. The Fighting Illini are now 1-1 on the exhibition season heading into its final tilt against the Illinois-Chicago Flames …

UNLV basketball plays Kansas on Nov. 17. Among the Jayhawks facing Josh Pastner’s Rebels will be former Purdue standout Trey Kaufman-Renn, who signed with Kansas after being receiving a sixth season of college basketball through a temporary restraining order he was granted in September. Advertisement A first-team All-Big Ten pick last season, Kaufman-Renn was drafted No. 59 overall in the …

It’s been a notable week for The Tatnall School (Del.) small forward Mason Collins in his recruitment. Not only did the 6-foot-6, 195-pound five-star become only the fourth prospect in the 2028 class to land on the Duke basketball wishlist with an offer from Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils, but he also rose to No. 3 overall on ESPN’s …

Good morning, BBN! It’s gameday in the Bluegrass as the No. 12 Kentucky Wildcats welcome the Vanderbilt Commodores to Kroger Field for another SEC showdown. Kentucky (6-1, 4-1 SEC) enters Saturday riding a five-game winning streak following an impressive 21-13 road victory over Oklahoma. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt (3-4, 0-4 SEC) has struggled this season, losing four straight games. Advertisement Under first-year …

Ever since Mark Pope’s return to Lexington, the BBN has been clamoring for more matchups with former coach Rick Pitino. We got that last year in the CBS Classic. Now, it appears that could be coming in the next year. Advertisement According to a report by Jon Rothstein, the Cats and Johnnies are in discussions that would start a series …

Although it is only exhibition season in college basketball, 4-star freshman guard Mason Williams has impressed in Kentucky Basketball’s first two exhibition games. On Friday night, Williams scored 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 from 3-point range, adding two rebounds in 27 minutes during Kentucky’s 76-65 win over Texas Tech inside Rupp Arena. Advertisement In Kentucky’s …

The Casey Alexander era at K-State began on Friday night, as the Wildcats lost 71-67 in an exhibition game to Missouri. While the loss was disappointing, there were encouraging signs for a program looking to turn the page after a disappointing 2025-26 season. The Wildcats opened the game on fire, taking an early 9-0 lead and a 32-27 lead into …

The St. John’s Red Storm have done a great job of restocking the roster year after year under head coach Rick Pitino. He has lived in the transfer portal, bringing in players who have helped elevate the team each season. Entering Year 4 at the helm, he has seen his team’s postseason performance improve every year, missing the NCAA tournament …

It’s early, but the Duke Blue Devils have looked like the most dominant team in college basketball thus far through the preseason. Duke took down Belmont 102-62 in a scrimmage on Oct. 8, then followed that up with a 103-64 rout of No. 8 Tennessee in its first exhibition on Tuesday night. The Blue Devils will finish preseason competition with …

SAN DIEGO — Rodney Rice scored a game-high 23 points and Alijah Arenas added 22 points and 12 rebounds as No. 21 USC used a dominant first half and an aggressive defensive effort to defeat San Diego State 85-68 in an exhibition game Friday night at Viejas Arena. The Trojans never trailed, building a 23-point lead before holding off a …

Being a Kansas men’s basketball coach means you’re in rare company with some of the greatest who have ever coached the game. From James Naismith to Bill Self, there has been no shortage of leaders at Kansas who have made their mark on college basketball. Ted Owens is one of those eight coaches whose legacy at Kansas has now been …

Tommy Lloyd and the Arizona Wildcats wrapped up a perfect exhibition season on Friday night, picking up a comfortable 85-54 win over the Eastern Washington Eagles at the McKale Center in Tucson. The Wildcats now turn their attention to the season-opener against UCLA, coming up on Nov. 2 in Las Vegas. Advertisement Arizona put together its most complete exhibition game …

Things will be quite different for Arizona State men’s basketball, but is different always good? When former ASU head coach Bobby Hurley was originally hired back in 2015, the former legendary Duke guard brought his name value to Tempe, but had only two years under his belt as a college head coach. Advertisement 11 years later, Randy Bennett moves his …

Mark Few and the Gonzaga Bulldogs received another piece of good news ahead of Saturday’s exhibition opener against Arkansas, with Izan Almansa getting his eligibility cleared by the NCAA. Gonzaga announced Almansa officially in a social media post on Friday afternoon, which included a clip of the 6’10 forward making a long jumpshot in practice. He joins 23-year-old French point …

Illinois basketball fans have plenty of reasons to be excited about the upcoming season, but the Fighting Illini will once again be without one of their most important players when Baylor visits State Farm Center on Friday night. David Mirkovic is expected to miss the exhibition as he continues recovering from a foot injury. His absence creates an important storyline …