The Breakfast Buffet: Dan Hurley, the Big Ten doesn’t have a clear top challenger to Purdue, Missouri

Here’s today’s edition of The Breakfast Buffet, a daily column that can be found here every morning, keeping you up to date on everything that happened the day/night before and everything that’s to come in the next 24 hours will happen.

Mangia!

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Dan Hurley is the early favorite for National Coach of the Year
Purdue’s Matt Painter is another high-profile contender for that honor, but the way the Huskies have fared so far — they’ve won all of their first 13 games by double digits — gives Hurley a nod to the top. Another thing not getting enough attention? After losing RJ Cole at point guard — an All-Big East first-team player a year ago — UConn have blossomed offensively and become a brilliant passing team. The Huskies average 19.3 assists with 29.5 field goals scored. UConn also currently has seven Quad 1 and 2 wins – more than any other team in college basketball. It’s all a credit to Hurley.

The Big Ten does not have a clear top contender for Purdue
At least not yet. The Big Ten had nine teams — Purdue, Ohio State, Indiana, Maryland, Northwestern, Rutgers, Illinois, Penn State and Wisconsin — that ranked in the NET’s top 50 as of Friday, but none of the other teams except the Boilers have shown that they have the consistency required to be highly seeded in the NCAA tournament. Will Purdue lose games in the Big Ten? Naturally. No one’s unbeatable this season, but while this league is on track to regain quality representation in the NCAA tournament, there aren’t many teams that consistently take on the role of powerhouse other than the Boilers. Only two teams from the Big Ten were placed in the top 15 last week Rothstein 45. That was before Illinois lost at 22 to Missouri on Wednesday night.

Missouri can add to its dynamism
The Tigers’ 22-point win over Illinois was their best moment yet under freshman head coach Dennis Gates, but there are more opportunities to move the needle in the near future. Missouri (11-1) will open Wednesday night’s SEC game in Columbia against Kentucky and then visit Arkansas on Jan. 4. Those are two more chances for the Tigers to move further toward the NCAA tournament talk. Missouri was one of the “First Four Out” on Friday BRACKET DEPARTURE.

On the website

• Arizona’s Azuolas Tubelis shoots 42.9 percent from three-point range. Last season he shot just 26.3 percent from long range. The 6-10 Tubelis has already made six three-point shots this year after making just 10 in the 2021-22 season.
• Illinois (8-4) is conceding an average of 73 points in their last four games. In the first eight games of the season, he only allowed an average of 60.5 points.
• St. John’s guard Posh Alexander has averaged just 5.7 points in his last three games and is shooting just 13 percent from three-point range this season. The Red Storm can’t compete with the top teams in the Big East unless Alexander plays like an All-Big East player.
• Steve Alford deserves recognition for his work in Nevada. The Wolf Pack lost both Grant Sherfield (Oklahoma) and Desmond Cambridge (Arizona State) to the transfer portal but still got off to a 10-3 start. On Friday, Nevada was one of six Mountain West teams ranked in the NET’s top 59.
• One thing I didn’t think I would write on December 24th? Duquesne and Fordham are 22-4 combined and have the top two records in the Atlantic 10.

leftovers