#National Player of the Year

If it's true that defense wins championships, say hello to the top candidate to win the 2023 men's NCAA tournament: the Tennessee Volunteers. They've never won it all before. Heck, they've never even come close. The Vols have gone to 24 NCAA tournaments with nary a Final Four appearance and only one trip to the Elite Eight (2010). And head coach…

It was not the best of weeks for the Atlantic Coast Conference as Virginia fell two spots to No. 13, Miami went from 12th to 16th and Duke tumbled all the way to 24th in The Associated Press Top 25 poll. Then, North Carolina's Armando Bacot, the top scorer and rebounder in the conference, suffered an ankle injury early in the much-anticipated…

Now that the college football season is officially over, men's college hoops can take center stage. On Tuesday night, there are 4 conference matchups in the SEC: South Carolina at Kentucky - 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2 Florida at LSU - 7 p.m. ET on SECN Vanderbilt at No. 5 Tennessee - 9 p.m. ET on SECN No. 21 Auburn at Ole Miss - 9 p.m. ET on ESPNU It's an…

The Alabama Crimson Tide look to become the first SEC team to go 3-0 in league play when they host the Kentucky Wildcats. Read on for our top Kentucky vs. Alabama pick. Kentucky (10-4, 1-1) played four games against KenPom top 44 competition and lost them all. The Wildcats won each of their last four home matchups but lost their previous two on the…

Saturday afternoon, the Alabama Crimson Tide (12-2, 2-0 SEC; Kenpom: 8; T-Rank: 9; NET: 8) plays host to the Kentucky Wildcats (10-4, 1-1 SEC; Kenpom: 16; T-Rank: 35; NET: 36) in a game that matters significantly more to the'Cats than it does the Tide - in January. Quite the sentence to type out on this Friday morning, but it's true. Such is life…

TV Schedule: Thursday, January 5, 7:00 PM ET, FS1 Location: Value City Arena in Columbus, OH When the week started, it appeared the Purdue Boilermakers would march into Value City Arena as an undefeated squad, the best candidate to be declared the best team in the land and worthy of its No. 1 ranking in the AP poll. That's no longer the case. On…

One of college basketball's fiercest rivalries is set for Saturday as No. 20 Kentucky and Louisville square off on CBS in a battle between two squads dealing with their share of struggles. It's been a nightmare start to Kenny Payne's coaching tenure at Louisville as the Cardinals enter just 2-11. But a win over the Kentucky would cover a multitude…

COLUMBIA - Whether on the field, court or track, it has been a big year for the South Carolina Gamecocks. From NCAA and conference championships to historic upsets and recruiting wins, here are the 10 best moments for South Carolina sports in 2022: The Gamecocks had one of the most dominant seasons in the history of college women's basketball en…

If you are having a hard time keeping-up with all of the transfer portal news for ASU football, this is the place to be. Roster turnover continues to happen every day, and House of Sparky will do its best to monitor all incoming and outbound transfers from the program. This post is updated as of 12/19 Inbound transfers Drew Pyne - Quarterback -…

The 2022 DI women's volleyball national championship match is set between Texas and Louisville. The Cardinals are in the championship match for the first time in program history, while Texas is looking to win its first championship since 2012. The Longhorns have been in the championship game three times since then, but finished runner-up all three…

The Bruins' road trip will come to an end at the CBS Sports Classic in New York on Saturday, giving them a chance to solidify their resurgence with a win over the Wildcats. WHO: UCLA vs. Kentucky DATE: Saturday, Dec. 17 TIME: 2:15 p.m. PT LOCATION: Madison Square Garden, New York City, NY TV: CBS - Brad Nessler (play-by-play), Bill Raftery…

It's the big 4-0 for the women's NCAA tournament, and here's what a tour through the record book tells us: There was no shortage of unusual feats and quirky numbers in the first 39 years. To mark the 40th birthday as the opening games near, here's a sampling: 1. The men have not seen a champion with a perfect record in 45 seasons. The women have…

The 2022-23 men's college basketball season is a wee infant, less than two weeks old, but we've seen enough to jump to conclusions that may fly in the face of preseason expectations. After months of offseason portal watching, injury-update checking and exhibition-box-score dissecting to concoct a "definitive" ranking of teams heading into the…

Yuri Collins swears he's not counting assists. Well, at least not usually. But when 20 assists in a single game is achievable, you have to at least try, right? "I didn't really start hunting [assists] until I got to 17," Collins says with a laugh. "Then, I was like, 'I might as well get three more.'" Collins is college basketball's assist king, and…

PHILADELPHIA - Time isn't up for the biggest underdog of the N.C.A.A. men's tournament just yet. Tiny St. Peter's University is alive and well and moving on to the final eight of the N.C.A.A. tournament after slaying yet another basketball powerhouse. Playing inspired defense and without any fear, the No. 15 seed Peacocks stunned No. 3 Purdue,…

The No. 19 Kentucky Wildcats look to win their second game in a row after a tough start to their season when they take on the visiting Bellarmine Knights on Tuesday night. The Wildcats (4-2), who were beaten by Michigan State and No. 2 Gonzaga earlier this month, are coming off a 96-56 victory over North Florida on Wednesday. The Knights (2-5), who…

She knew the odds were long, but Charisma Osborne asked anyway. Would UCLA, with a 14-12 record after losing to Oregon in the second round of the Pac-12 Conference tournament, have a chance to hear its name called during the NCAA selection show? Coach Cori Close delivered the bad news. "I could just see in her eyes, this will never happen again,"…

Two of men's college basketball's most storied programs tip off in the Champions Classic for the first time since 2019. Michigan State and Kentucky are familiar with one another on this stage. Tuesday at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse marks the fourth time the Spartans and Wildcats meet in the Champions Classic, though it will be the first meeting…

Kentucky vs. Michigan State is the first game of the annual Champions Classic on Tuesday night. The No. 4 Wildcats will take on the unranked Spartans before No. 6 Kansas and No. 7 Duke square off in the nightcap. It will be the first real test for the 2-0 Wildcats, who have looked dominant against inferior competition and could have star big man…

No need to stop and take a shower for this year's 50 things to know about the college basketball season. We don't care how dirty you are. Duke has a new coach, Jay Wright has a new job, and find out why they're giving out boxing lessons in Arizona. North Carolina is the No. 1 team, but there's plenty of parity and uncertainty out there which only…

In the spirit of the 2022-23 season tipping off, it's never too early for a bracket prediction. Let's take a look at how I believe teams will be seeded by the selection committee in March. I created my field of 68 that includes my at-large bids and then filled out the rest with my automatic qualifiers (listed below). It is worthy to note that many…

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The 2022-23 SEC basketball season is sure to be full of surprises. Maybe Kentucky will be the top team in the league, a traditional expectation, or perhaps another conference team will step up to claim that honor. Perhaps Auburn will reach a No. 1 national ranking as it did last season, or it could be Tennessee or Alabama or Arkansas capturing that…

Eight SEC products are being touted as potential first-round picks in the 2023 NBA Draft and that list doesn't not include the conference's preseason player of the year - Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe. Kentucky, Arkansas and Tennessee are all in the top 10 in the preseason national polls. Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina and Auburn all…

There's a lot of déjà vu for the Zags this season. Again, they're national championship contenders (ranked No. 2 in preseason polls). Again, Drew Timme returns and is the favorite to win national player of the year. And again, the team will only be judged by NCAA tournament results by most onlookers. With Julian Strawther, Rasir Bolton and Anton…

February is upon us and with only the Super Bowl left to wager on, we're here to fill that void with College Hoops insight and opportunity as we build into the sport's crescendo in March. We'll begin with the futures market, a few conference champ races that provide great value. Kansas: +140 The Big 12 is the best conference in the country with a…

The Pac-12 lost quite a bit of talent with six players selected in the 2022 NBA Draft and some key contributors transferring elsewhere. Still, Arizona and UCLA are considered to be national title contenders, and perhaps Oregon will be viewed in the same way at some point this season. According to the college basketball playoff odds, UCLA is priced…

And next year, his title won't have the word " interim " in front of it. BUY MLB TICKETS: STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS, TICKETSMARTER, TICKETMASTER The Los Angeles Angels signed Nevin to a one-year contract on Wednesday before the final game of the regular season. ESPN reported that Nevin became emotional in the dugout before Wednesday's game against…

Schedule: Saturday, January 5, 2022, on ESPN at 12:00 P.M Location: Assembly Hall in Bloomington, Indiana Indiana goes into this game with a record of 16-5. Their five losses have come against Penn State, Wisconsin, Syracuse, Michigan, and Iowa. Their best win of the season has come against Purdue. Indiana was not ranked in this week's AP Poll, but…

TV schedule: Tuesday, March 1st, 9:00 pm ET. ESPN Arena: Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin There was a ton of mayhem on Saturday among the top teams in college basketball, with many of them losing. Purdue (24-5, 13-5) was one of them, falling on the road at Michigan State. Zach Edey had 25 points to lead all scorers, while Jaden Ivey chipped in…

This week's edition takes us to Bourbon country, where an always-talented Kentucky squad looks to redeem itself after a monumental upset loss at the hands of Saint Peter's, one of the most memorable underdogs in NCAA Tournament history. While the viewing public fawned over the Peacocks' miraculous run to the Elite Eight, Big Blue could only stew at…