CBB Games to Watch Week 2 - Picks and Predictions
- Luke Loew
- 5 days ago
- 10 min read
Week 1 of the CBB season featured a handful of big games, but predominantly buy-games and D1 vs D2 tune-ups for everyone to get up to speed. We saw some big match-ups -- Arizona upset the Defending Champs Florida, Alabama took down St. John's at MSG, UNC got revenge on Kansas, Michigan State beat Arkansas at home. And we saw some shocking results -- Boise State losing to a D2 team Hawaii Pacific on their home court, TCU dropping a game to New Orleans, and Auburn getting taken to Overtime against Bethune-Cookman in their home opener.
If Week 1 was the tune-up -- the next couple weeks is where we settle in with some much more notable match-ups before Holiday Tournament play opens up. This Week we have a slew of Top-25 grudge matches on deck -- and below we're going to preview the 7 biggest games of the week, complete with times/channels to watch, players to watch, and predictions/picks.
For what it's worth -- our predictions were 4-1 last week for the 5 biggest games -- which either means we're due for some misses this week, or we're going to keep the hot streak rolling.
Tuesday 11/11 - 8:00 pm ET, ESPN
Spread: LOU -5.5
Top-2 most-anticipated game for me this week, one of the best rivalries in College Hoops -- in a year both teams have legit National Championship aspirations. Mark Pope in his 2nd year at Kentucky, Pat Kelsey in Year 2 at Louisville -- both with dynamic freshman and loads of transfer portal talent -- making for an exciting match-up at the Yum Center.
Kentucky's being touted as one of the deepest rosters in CBB this year. Otega Oweh is their leader (16.2 ppg last yr), but they have tons of guards -- Jaland Lowe (17/4/5.5 @ Pitt last yr) and Denzel Aberdeen (6th man @ Florida last yr) are the big portal adds, Collin Chandler is back, and Jasper Johnson is a highly-touted Freshman. In Jayden Quaintance's absence, Brandon Garrison, Mo Dioubate (Bama xfer), and freshman Malachi Moreno make up the frontcourt.
Louisville went from 8 wins in 23-24 to 27 wins last season. Very new roster, but 3 key returners: Khalani Rooths played limited min as a Freshman, but the 6'10 big leads them in scoring through 2 games (18 ppg). J'vonne Hadley is a veteran presence on the wing, and Kasean Pryor got hurt early last year, but is a 6'10 contributor. Mikel Brown Jr. is their star freshman, a true point with dynamic scoring ability. Isaac McKneely (Virginia xfer) and Ryan Conwell (Xavier xfer) are 40% high-volume 3-pt shooters to stretch the floor.
These are in my estimation the two deepest teams in the country -- both have 10+ guys ready to contribute when their number is called. Kentucky's won the last 3 and owns the rivalry series in the past 30+ years -- but I really like Louisville this time around. I think they have the better freshman, better shooting, and enough size/frontcourt depth to be competitive in the paint.
Bean's Prediction: Louisville Wins
Bean's Gambling Pick: Louisville -5.5
Tuesday 11/11 - 8:30 pm ET, FS1
A Big 12 contender vs a Big 10 contender is also on tap Tuesday Night -- and 2 of the most underrated coaches in all of College Basketball. Grant McCasland is in Year 3 at Tech with 2 NCAAT appearances, coming off an Elite 8 run last season. Brad Underwood's teams have ups and downs in March, but he's got 5 straight Tourney appearances, and an Elite 8 of his own as recently as 2024.
Texas Tech has, in my opinion, the most dangerous 1-2 punch in College Basketball between JT Toppin and Christian Anderson. Toppin is a legit Player of the Year candidate after leading Tech to the Elite 8 last year, averaging 18 & 9. The 6'9 forward went for 31/14/4 in his debut last week. Anderson is a talented 6'3 guard who can shoot, pass, defend -- you name it. Went for 34 with 11 assists, 7 boards, 4 steals in Game 1. Need to see more from the supporting cast, but Donovan Atwell from UTRGV has stepped up thus far -- 12 made 3's thru 2 games at a 50% clip.
Illinois has a very different roster this season -- many dubbing the new squad "Balkan Ball" for how many Eastern Europeans are on the team. Kylan Boswell is one of the returners, and the senior guard has looked strong early. Tomislav Ivisic is back, but looking like he'll miss this game with an injury. His brother Zvonimir will be asked to step up in his stead -- a 7'1 Center with floor-spacing skill. Ben Humrichous and Andrej Stojakovic are complementary wings that can shoot it/move it -- and they have a pair of intriguing freshman in David Mirkovic and Keaton Wagler.
This line opened at -6.5 in favor of ILL, and it's all the way down to -3.5 now. Illinois is much deeper, has way more size, and a lot of shooting and High-IQ players. The line movement confirms what I already thought -- Texas Tech will have the 2 best players on the floor. And while I'm nervous about the movement and the home court advantage at Champaign, I'm rolling with the Red Raiders.
Bean's Prediction: Texas Tech wins close
Bean's Pick: Texas Tech Spread +3.5, Sprinkle ML +145
Tuesday 11/11 - 10:00 pm ET, ESPN
Spread: Gonzaga -12.5
I wrote a little bit on Gonzaga before their game against Oklahoma in Spokane last week, saying I expected them to win handily behind Graham Ike, Braden Huff, and Tyon Grant-Foster. They won by 15, covered, and those 3 combined for 46. They're still in need of a true ball-handler and playmaker to emerge, but this is a quality Zags team once again. But a greater foe comes to Spokane Tuesday night.
Creighton's only played one game thus far -- a win over South Dakota -- but there's reason to believe the Blue Jays can once again compete for the Big East Title. The Iowa transfers Owen Freeman (6'10 Center) and Josh Dix (6'6 guard) will be key pieces -- both averaged 14+ ppg at Iowa. Charlotte transfer Nik Graves looked strong in his debut, Howard transfer Blake Harper is a 6'7 scorer. 6'10 forwards Jackson McAndrew and Isaac Traudt are guys McDermott hopes will make a leap this season.
I really like Creighton and respect Greg McDermott as one of the better coaches you'll find in CBB, but I think this new team will need some time to gel and figure things out. However, -12.5 is a huge number for a Gonzaga team that hasn't looked indestructible. Both teams are strong in the paint, lack play-making, and are streaky. I think Gonzaga wins, but that's a lot of points.
Bean's Prediction: Gonzaga Wins
Bean's Pick: Creighton +12.5
Thursday 11/13 - 7:00 pm ET, ESPN2
Love him or hate him, you can never discredit Nate Oats' willingness to put together a gauntlet non-conference schedule, even knowing he'll play a gauntlet in the SEC every year. Matt Painter and his preseason #1 Boilermakers travel to Tuscaloosa Thursday for an early-season heavyweight bout.
We wrote in this blog last week that we thought Alabama would waltz into MSG and take down #5 ranked St. John's on Saturday -- and that's exactly what they did, scoring 103 points in the process. The guards in that game were getting anything they wanted -- Labaron Philon got to the rim with ease, Latrell Wrightsell had the ball on a string hitting off-the-dribble 3's, Aden Holloway scored 21. Taylor Bol Bowen was the unsung hero putting up 17 with 9 boards and 4 stocks -- tons of energy and athleticism. And the Tide as a whole offensive rebounded very well.
A key factor in Purdue's struggles against Oakland was the absence of Trey Kaufman-Renn, who averaged 20 ppg last season for Purdue. He's missed their first 2 games but could return on Thursday. Braden Smith -- pre-season Player of the Year, will be leaned on heavily. He's the best lead guard in the nation (9 apg last season) and is the catalyst for Painter. Outside Smith, Foster Loyer is back and scored 30 in their first game. Oscar Cluff -- 6'11 big-bodied center has looked good, but 7'4 soph center Daniel Jacobsen has looked uncomfortable returning from injury.
Nate Oats' philosophy -- take 3's and shots in the paint, no mid-range -- worked pretty damn well against St. John's. You'll see plenty of mid-range from Purdue -- especially if TKR plays -- setting up an interesting dichotomy of styles. In Tuscaloosa, this spread is going to be heavy Bama, but Purdue won't feed into Bama's up-tempo style like SJU did. If TKR plays, I'll be on Purdue's spread.
Bean's Prediction: Purdue Wins Close if TKR Plays, Bama wins Close if he Sits
(Hall of Fame Series in LA)
Friday 11/14 - 10:00 pm ET, Peacock
Arizona made a statement on Night 1 of the CBB season by beating Florida, sky-rocketing up to the #5 ranked team in the country. They'll travel to Los Angeles for a showcase game against UCLA -- a team that has gone under the radar a bit in the noise of the preseason, but has a reloaded roster and a coach in Mick Cronin that knows how to win.
The biggest eye-opener in Arizona's opening win was the arrival of Freshman Koa Peat. He announced his presence with a 30-point, 7 rebound, 5 assist performance in his first collegiate game, and the 6'9 forward will be a name to watch all season. Jaden Bradley also was terrific, stepping into the lead guard role and scoring 27 points in that game. Arizona has tons of size -- 7'2 Motiejus Krivas, athletic freak Ivan Kharchenkov, Tobe Awaka, and Peat. Lack play-making guards.
UCLA hasn't looked like the preseason #12 team with narrow home wins over mid-majors to start, but they have a revamped roster that was ranked highly for a reason. Donovan Dent, a New Mexico transfer who averaged 20+ppg last season, is the star for this team. Skyy Clark and Eric Dailey Jr. are two more backcourt pieces for Cronin's offense, and he's got returner Tyler Bilodeau and transfer Xavier Booker bolstering the frontcourt. Figuring out the bench and finding a sparkplug to absorb some of those starter minutes is a priority.
Arizona will continue to be a popular early season pick -- but I think this will be an easy spot to pick UCLA. Everyone's high on Zona, everyone's low on UCLA (myself included), so I expect the spread to be big in favor of AZ despite the game being in LA. I don't believe in UCLA right now, Arizona looks incredible -- which is exactly why UCLA is the play in my mind.
Bean's Prediction: UCLA upset Win
Bean's Pick: UCLA spread (small sprinkle on ML)
(Hall of Fame Series in Boston)
Saturday 11/15 - 7:00 pm ET, FOX
The #1 most anticipated game for me this week is between Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies and Kevin Young's BYU Cougars. UConn has been the class of the NCAA for the past several years, but BYU has burst onto the scene with AJ Dybansta and company -- setting up a must-see early-season matchup on Saturday Night.
UConn's got some familiar faces back and a few new ones to round out the roster. Back for his seemingly-17th college basketball season is Alex Karaban, a do-it-all forward that's a great shooter. Solo Ball is another perimeter sniper from last year stepping into a bigger role. A pair of transfer guards in Silas Demary (Georgia) and Malachi Smith (Dayton) will be leaned on for playmaking and creation. A big factor will be Tarris Reed Jr.'s availability -- they don't have much proven production or size in the frontcourt without Reed.
We've written about BYU on this page before, and everyone following CBB knows AJ Dybansta is the storyline for the Cougars. He's averaging 19/7/3 through 2 games looking comfortable. Rob Wright III will be needed as well -- lead guard who transferred from Baylor. Richie Saunders is looking strong early at 17.5 ppg. My favorite player on the roster is Keba Keita -- 6'8 Center who is an incredible defender (switches on guards, blocks shots). Also like STL native Kennard Davis' game.
Harder with games that are a few days away to make a gambling prediction not knowing the spread. But I think the fact that the game is in Boston and the veteran leadership UConn has is the difference maker for me. I like their guards more -- but BYU could punish them on the boards if Tarris Reed doesn't play. Tentatively, I think this is a smash spot for UConn if healthy. BYU lacks play-making and I think they can be a bit erratic offensively.
Bean's Prediction: UConn Wins
Bean's Pick: UConn Spread if it's less than 6 or so points
(The Battleground 2k25 - Birmingham, AL)
Sunday 11/16 - 3:00 pm ET, ESPN
Closing things out with a Sunday afternoon Top-25 duel between two teams that made the Final Four last season -- the National Runners-up Houston, and The Auburn Tigers. Expectations have never been higher for Kelvin Sampson's group, and drama has been circling Auburn since Bruce Pearl's retirement -- setting up an important game for both sides.
Coach of the Cougars Kelvin Sampson is that motherfucker. Best coach in the country for my money, and proving himself as one of the best recruiters while other coaches turn full focus to the portal. He's retained 3 vital pieces from last year's team -- Emmanuel Sharp (bulky guard with a strap), JoJo Tugler (the best defensive player in the country), and Milos Uzan (silky guard with playmaking chops). He's added 2 freshmen that are proving to be studs -- 6'11 Chris Cenac Jr. and 6'4 wing Kingston Flemings.
Auburn survived a massive scare in Game 1 at home with Bethune-Cookman pressing them to OT, but don't let the slow start fool you. Auburn graduated/lost a ton of production from their F4 team, but have reloaded in a big way. Tahaad Pettiford is the returning lead guard people are super excited about (I think he's very overrated and have questions about him being a #1). Keyshawn Hall from UCF has gone for 28/8 and 25/14 in back-to-back games. Keshawn Murphy is a scary mfer on the block from Miss State, but is banged up. I like Kevin Overton a lot as well from Drake/TT.
The game being played in Birmingham should be a benefit to Auburn, who's fans are rabid. Auburn beat Houston early last season on the road, and Pettiford had a huge game in that one. I think this is a revenge spot for Houston and think they are going to win this game with suffocating defense and efficient offense -- but will be keeping an eye on how big this spread gets.
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