Sorry this is a bit late, but I just couldn't have a basketball blog without mentioning the epic Champions Classic we saw on Tuesday night.
What a great night of basketball. Four great programs colliding in Madison Square Garden. The first game featured two young squads in Kentucky and Michigan St, and Kentucky just outclassed the Spartans. They looked as sharp as a team could be in November. Malik Monk had quite an outing, scoring 23 points on 7 threes. As for Michigan St, they looked pitiful. It seems like this team (for the first time like ever) doesn't have that leader established. Last year it was clear with Denzel Valentine, but this year that "guy" just isn't there. It's not time to completely hit the panic button, but Sparty has to cut down on the turnovers and find a leader sooner rather than later.
The second (and better) game of the night featured Duke and Kansas. The intensity was there throughout as much as the refs tried to screw with it. (There were 48 total fouls called and the first half was extremely choppy with dumb off-the-ball fouls every six seconds). Even though the refs were a bit too whistle-happy, the second half was probably the best half of basketball all year. We finally got to see Josh Jackson be the guy we expected him to be coming out of high school as he sparked a big Kansas run early in the second half. If he plays like that the entire season, somebody's prediction will be correct. As for Duke, all the talk has been about Grayson Allen, but Luke Kennard and Frank Jackson stole the show. Kennard had 22 points and Jackson had two clutch threes late in the game. However, it was Frank Mason III that shined the brightest on Tuesday, finishing with 21 points and the game-winning shot to propel Kansas to its first victory of the season.
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