The college basketball season began Tuesday across the country, and as this silly sport is wont to do, it took a pretty bland slate on paper and still produced a memorable opening day full of drama with upsets, near-upsets, buzzer-beaters and much more.
Avoiding upset was No. 17 Ohio State — a 16.5 point favorite over in-state foe Akron — with a 67-66 win vs. the Zips. The Buckeyes surrendered a 4-point play in the final 10 seconds that put them behind, but Zed Key drained a go-ahead bucket on the opposite end just before time expired to take back the lead for good.
Cal, though, could not escape the same fate. The Bears on Tuesday were 14.5 point favorites over UC San Diego and fell by nearly that margin to open their season at home.
Those are but a few of many wacky results as the season got underway, of course. Highlights of the many others are below in our opening-day recap.
Cal gets trounced by second-year DI member
Cal took arguably the worst loss of opening day in college hoops among power schools, falling to UC San Diego — a still-transitioning Division I school — 80-67. The Tritons, as they are known, trailed for the majority of the contest before taking the lead midway through the second half and cruising to a comfortable victory.
UC San Diego transferred from Division II up to Division I in 2020 and has long been a consistent performer at the lower division so it’s not completely shocking. Ah, who are we kidding? It’s a brutal, shocking loss for Mark Fox and Cal at home to open the season against a UC San Diego team that with the win is now 1-0 against Pac-12 opponents.
Kansas puts away turnover-prone Michigan State
The first of a Champions Classic doubleheader on Tuesday between No. 3 Kansas and Michigan State wasn’t even competitive late as the Jayhawks strutted their big beaks to a big 87-74 win. It was a coming-out party for KU guard Ochai Agbaji as he led the way with a career-high 29 points and was easily the best player on the floor. For Michigan State, it was a game of mistakes and missed opportunities as it committed 16 turnovers, of which KU converted for 16 points on the other end.
Villanova flashes dominance early
As 23-point favorites over Mount St. Mary’s, No. 4 Villanova nearly doubled up that number in its 91-51 win to open the season. The Wildcats looked brilliant and deep in the outing, with junior Justin Moore pouring in 27 points and Jermaine Samuels, Brandon Slater and Collin Gillespie teaming up to add a combined 47 in a supporting performance. It was to be expected from a top-five team at home as a heavy favorite, but an eye-opening performance nonetheless. Jay Wright’s got a stacked, experienced roster that demands your respect.
Trayce Jackson-Davis and IU avoid collapse
Indiana big man Trayce Jackson-Davis, Mr. Double-Double in the flesh, opened his season for the Hoosiers as only he could: with — you guessed it — a double-double and a dub. The junior tallied 21 points and 14 rebounds in a 68-62 win over Eastern Michigan to go with three steals, three blocks and one of the best sequences of the season:
It wasn’t exactly a convincing way to usher in the Mike Woodson era — IU led by as many as 21 points in the second half before EMU got within one point down the stretch — but IU avoided a collapse and its star played like one.
“We’re trying to learn how to win,” Woodson said after the game. “I was happy we didn’t crack down the stretch and we made winning basketball plays to secure the game.”
