Brendon Mulvihill is the head curator for @SportsGawker and an RTC contributor. You can find him @TheMulv on Twitter. See bottom of the post for the Official RTC Star System.

Thanksgiving week, otherwise known as “Feast Week” for college hoops fans tuning into ESPN, provides us a bunch of viewing options while we gorge ourselves with turkey and stuffing. Several of the higher profile preseason tournaments get going or finish up this week including the Maui Invitational, the NIT Tip-Off, and the Battle 4 Atlantis. While we don’t know all the potential match-ups in those tourneys just yet, you can be sure there will be some great games. We’ll take a look today at the first round games for a few of the tournaments but definitely tune into the later rounds as they progress. Let’s get to the breakdowns.

Game of the Week

#5 Michigan vs. Pittsburgh (PNIT Semifinals) – 9:30 PM EST, Wednesday on ESPN HD (****)

The battle between Michigan’s Trey Burke (above) and Pitt’s Tray Woodall could be the best point guard match-up we see all season(AP)

• The battle between Pittsburgh’s Tray Woodall and Michigan’s Trey Burke at the point guard position could be one of the best we see all season. Woodall is averaging 14 points and seven assists through four games this season and shooting a fantastic 57.1% from inside the arc. Burke is averaging 18 points and eight assists through three games and is also shooting 57% from inside the arc. There are two areas to keep an eye on as these two battle throughout the night – turnovers and three-point shooting. Burke is turning the ball over at a slightly higher rate than Woodall – 20% vs. 15%. While both are excellent distributors of the basketball, the player who wins the defensive battle and can create more turnovers will give his team a huge advantage. Additionally, Burke is extending defenses with his 43.8% shooting from downtown. His ability to continue to hit threes against a Pitt team that has shown weakness against perimeter shooting will be vital to a Michigan victory — particularly so if Michigan wants to free up space on the inside for its frontcourt.
• Speaking of the frontcourt battle, Michigan’s Glenn Robinson III, Mitch McGary, Jordan Morgan, and Jon Horford finally give coach John Beilein some rebounding to go along with his penchant for the outside shot. Michigan has been a three-point heavy squad with very little rebounding support under Beilein. With the additions of McGary and Robinson, the Wolverines can go big and hit the offensive boards hard should their outside shooting go cold. They are going to need it because the Panthers bring their own talented frontcourt to the party in Talib Zanna, J.J. Moore, and 7’0” freshman center Steven Adams. Offensive rebounding will be a huge factor in this game. Michigan is only allowing opponents to grab 14% of their offensive rebounding opportunities, good for third in the nation. They face a much tougher Pitt frontline however whose offensive rebounding rate is sixteenth in the nation at 46%. Something has to give.
• Given the great match-ups we are going to see in this game, it should be a close one in Madison Square Garden. The difference could be Michigan’s outside shooting. The Wolverines are currently hitting 49% of their three-point attempts. Outside pressure can come from Burke, Tim Hardaway Jr., freshman Nick Stauskas, and even Robinson. If Jamie Dixon’s squad can improve its perimeter defense and get Adams more involved in the offense, they will have a chance to take down the Wolverines. Otherwise, U of M will walk out of the Garden with a victory.

Six Other Games to Watch This Week

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1. Conference realignment is a hot topic again, but this time the focus is squarely on the Big Ten. The conference reportedly is interested in expanding to the east coast markets, specifically targeting Maryland and Rutgers to become a 14-team league. University officials at Maryland may make a decision as early as early this week on whether to apply for admission in the B1G. Maryland will have to pay approximately $50 Million if it chooses to leave the ACC, and if Maryland leaves its conference, it is likely that Rutgers will follow suit from the Big East. From a basketball perspective, the Terps would make an excellent addition to the Big Ten.
2. ESPN is putting Bobby Knight in some tough situations during this year’s broadcasting schedule. First, he called a Kentucky game, and now he is scheduled to call an Indiana game. Knight will call the IU game against Georgia with Dan Shulman on Monday’s ESPN telecast . It is well settled that Knight has not associated himself with the Hoosiers since he was fired over a decade ago but he will have to cross paths with the university now. The broadcast will likely be oriented around the game as usual and there might not be much else to this event except for Knight being around thousands of vocal Hoosiers fans during the game.
3. Coming into this season, Illinois head coach John Groce has expressed his concerns about the guard play on the Illini roster. Despite depth at the guard position, he was not sure if there was a true point guard fit to run his up-tempo offense without turning the ball over. After three games, Tracy Abrams is doing a great job at that position but Groce has bigger issues with his big men. The Illini were outrebounded by 20 by Hawaii on the road on Friday night, and it took a buzzer beater by D.J. Richardson to win the game. Nnanna Egwu and Sam McLaurin will continue to be a focal point as opponents will try to dominate the Illini in the paint and this could be a concern for Groce as the season goes on.
4. Speaking of big men, Michigan State freshman forward Matt Costello played for about 11 minutes against Texas Southern and that was enough to impress coach Tom Izzo. Costello injured his back during an exhibition game and had not seen any playing time until Michigan State’s home opener over the weekend. Freshman guards Gary Harris and Denzel Valentine have already shown their abilities but Costello may provide some valuable minute for Izzo off the bench to complement Derrick Nix. He averaged 25.1 PPG and 19.1 RPG in high school but understands that he needs to be patient throughout this year and hopes to constantly improve his game to earn more minutes on the floor.
5. Ohio State’s Deshaun Thomas is doing everything he promised so far this season. He scored a career high 31 points against Washington as the Buckeyes beat the Huskies 77-66 on Sunday. But Thad Matta knows that his team needs a “third guy” on offense in addition to Thomas and Aaron Craft who can consistently contribute. Lenzelle Smith Jr. was supposed to be that third option but he did not score a single point on Sunday. Matta understands that there will be certain days when Craft or Smith won’t be effective so he needs a couple of the sophomores to step up in order to achieve their long-term goals. Amir Williams and Laquinton Ross may be able to provide that spark over time — Williams is more effective defensively but Ross has the offensive skills to contribute 8-10 PPG for the Buckeyes.

1. Michigan State freshman Gary Harris came into this season a highly touted recruit for Tom Izzo. He was ranked in the top 30 by Rivals and proved his worth against Kansas by scoring 18 points on Tuesday night. But the other freshman Spartan, Denzel Valentine, may end up being just as valuable as Harris this season. Valentine has the ability to become a great guard in Izzo’s system with his passing skills (four assists against KU) and the zeal to buckle down on the defensive end. Both Harris and Valentine may end up being a dynamic duo for Izzo over the next couple of years assuming both of them stay in school.
2. Bo Ryan may find guards to fill in the void created by Josh Gasser’s injury on the offensive end but the defensive side might suffer a bit this season. Shane Ryan of Grantland outlines the Badgers’ defensive issues based on the road game against Florida on Wednesday night. Gasser was a lockdown defender on defense last season and his freshman replacements, George Marshall and Traevon Jackson, may have issues keeping up with superior backcourts. Both of them are athletic enough but it takes a while for freshmen to understand and communicate properly about the defensive sets. Ryan’s teams have ranked in the top 10 defensively in the nation for a long time and will need to figure out their issues soon before conference play begins.
3. After long discussions with Minnesota’s Charles Buggs‘ family, Tubby Smith and Buggs have decided that he will redshirt this season. The 6’9″ forward’s services may not be needed because Trevor Mbakwe will play a major role in the frontcourt for Tubby Smith. Buggs weighs about 195 lbs. right now, so one of his main goals during the redshirt year will be to add some size in order to compete in the rugged B1G. Smith compared him to forward Damian Johnson who redshirted as a true freshman and became a key defensive player for Smith in Minneapolis. Rodney Williams will mostly play at the power forward position once Mbakwe is back to 100% game shape over the next couple of months.
4. Northwestern has signed point guard Jaren Sina and guard Nate Taphorn for the 2013-14 season. Sina was also considering Seton Hall, Alabama, Memphis and Pittsburgh, while Taphorn is supposed to have great range on his jumper and should contribute from the wing next season after Drew Crawford’s graduation. Head coach Bill Carmody continues to bring in quality guards to Evanston but he will have to recruit some athletic size who can hold their own in the paint if he wants to win more than nine or 10 games in the conference season. Forward Chier Ajou may end up being a valuable big man for Carmody as he gains more experience over the course of the season.
5. After a 2-0 start, Illinois will play Hawaii on the road on Friday night. John Groce and his Illini took a trip to Pearl Harbor and met some World War II veterans while in Honolulu. The Illini could beat Hawaii convincingly but they will have a big challenge against USC on Monday night to kick off the Maui Invitational in Lahaina. This talented group of new Trojans may not compete with Arizona and UCLA for the Pac-12 regular season title but could very well end up among the top five teams in their conference. A win against USC would be a huge confidence booster for Illinois as it learns to adjust to Groce’s up-tempo offensive schemes.

1. One of the main concerns for the Michigan Wolverines this season was their long-range shooting. After losing Zach Novak and Evan Smotrycz, two of their best shooters from last season, it was unclear if there would be a designated gunner this season. Freshman guard Nick Stauskas was expected to take on that role and his shooting after three games proves that he is ready for the big stage. On Tuesday night, Stauskas shot 3-of-4 from beyond the arc in scoring 15 points against Cleveland State. John Beilein’s offense requires at least one good shooter from long range and Stauskas might fit well within the system. He has been coming off the bench and will continue to provide a spark to lead the second unit on a very talented Wolverines roster.
2. Indiana head Tom Crean was already getting paid well before this season but his contract was recently extended with a raise through 2020. The raise bumps his salary to $3.16 million per year, falling in place behind only John Calipari, Tom Izzo and Billy Donovan. Indiana’s athletic director Fred Glass has several reasons to keep Crean in Bloomington for the rest of the decade. He recognizes Crean’s work to make Indiana relevant again on the national stage and his top 20 recruiting class for the 2013-14 season cements the notion that he is not slowing down despite currently enjoying the top ranked team in the country. Glass believes that the next big project in Bloomington is to renovate the Assembly Hall and Crean will help him with the campaign over the next few years.
3. Throughout the offseason, Michigan State assistant coaches described Branden Dawson’s recovery from his ACL injury ahead of schedule. They might not have been completely honest. His recovery should be described as more than “ahead of schedule” because he has surprised everybody with his progress after only two games this season. Dawson’s double-double in the season opener has caught NBA scouts’ attention, in particular, as he scored 15 points and pulled down 10 boards during 34 minutes of action against Connecticut. At this pace, Dawson may be at 100% game shape by conference season, if he isn’t already. He didn’t slow down against Kansas on Tuesday night either as he played 33 minutes en route to 12 points. With a healthy Dawson and Travis Trice moving forward, the Spartans may be poised to exceed expectations during the conference season.
4. Illinois fans know better than anybody else that verbal commitments are not finalized until the recruits sign the letter of intent (sorry to bring up Eric Gordon). After just seven months on the job, John Groce has recruited a top 30 class for the 2013-14 season and all five players signed with Illinois on Wednesday. Kendrick Nunn, Malcolm Hill, Maverick Morgan, Jaylon Tate and Austin Colbert are his first official class in Champaign and they could easily become the starting five in Champaign after a couple of seasons. Rivals ranks the class at #10 but that might change over the next few months — nevertheless, Groce has already proven that he can recruit in the Big Ten.
5. Early season match-ups may result in blowouts for some of the top-ranked teams but the coaches are always picking at the players about their intensity on the court. Ohio State beat Albany 82-60 on Sunday but Thad Matta was not impressed by his team’s defensive effort, especially in the first half. The Buckeyes got beat on several layups and thus Matta called a 30-second timeout to send a message about the Buckeyes’ lack of energy on the defensive end. After the game, Matta also discussed his rotation and said that there could be “20 different starting lineups” this season. Sophomore Sam Thompson started at the small forward position but Laquinton Ross may get a start at some point during the non-conference season as Matta tries to establish his rotations before Big Ten play.

1. Minnesota’s Trevor Mbakwe has gone through a lot over the last 14 months or so. He tore his ACL forcing the talented big man to miss part of last season and was arrested for a DWI during the offseason. As he prepares to lead the Gophers on the court this season, he is motivated by another superstar in Minnesota, Vikings running back Adrian Peterson. Peterson has also recovered from an ACL injury and is one of the leading rushers in the NFL this season. Mbakwe hopes to mimic Peterson’s performance on the basketball court after going through a long rehabilitation process. Against Toledo Monday night, Mbakwe played 14 minutes off the bench and scored six points. Mbakwe has been wearing a knee brace as he plays but he claims that his knee is “fine” and will continue to see extended minutes as the season progresses.
2. The finalists for the Naismith Award have been announced and there are seven Big Ten players on the list – Cody Zeller, Christian Watford, Trey Burke, Deshaun Thomas, Aaron Craft, Trevor Mbakwe, and Tim Frazier. Zeller might be the preseason favorite for this award and the last Hoosier to win this award was Calbert Cheaney in 1993. Scott May also won the award in 1976 when he led the Hoosiers to an undefeated season and a national championship. Penn State’s Frazier might finally be getting the credit he deserves on the national stage, but may not continue in the spotlight very long if Penn State is not contending for an NCAA bid.
3. You won’t notice any Badgers on the Naismith list and that should not come as a surprise after Jordan Taylor’s departure. But Bo Ryan already has an experienced guard who has stepped up into a leadership role after a couple of games – junior guard Ben Brust. Brust scored 14 points against Southeastern Louisiana over the weekend and will be the most experienced returning guard for Ryan. He came off the bench last season but will see plenty of time on the court after the loss of Josh Gasser to an injury. Brust will have to guide younger guards such as George Marshall and Traevon Jackson through the non-conference season in addition to being the primary defensive guard for the Badgers.
4. The first week of the basketball season has been very good for Illinois head coach John Groce. Groce received a commitment from a top 100 forward, Austin Colbert, and the Illini are now 2-0. Overall, the new head coach appears to be pleased with the Illini after two games. Groce may have revived Tyler Griffey’s confidence as the senior forward scored 17 points against St. Francis. A trip to Hawaii will be a test for the Illini as they travel four time zones west and will play USC in the Maui Invitational next Monday. The game against the Trojans will be their first true exam under the new offensive system and if they win, Texas may be their next opponent.
5. Another new head coach in the league, Nebraska’s Tim Miles, is willing to consider some scheduling changes over the next few seasons in Lincoln. One of the main revisions could include playing Creighton twice, which hasn’t happened since the 1986-87 regular season. Miles said he hasn’t discussed the possibility with Creighton head coach Doug McDermott, but he for one is willing to consider the change. Creighton clearly has been a dominant program in the Missouri Valley Conference over the last decade or so and beating them would be a great first step for the new head coach. Miles is also focused on trying to convince some of the high school talent in Nebraska to stay in-state rather than go to other nearby schools such as Creighton or Iowa.

We still don’t know how John Groce will pan out as a head coach at Illinois, but one thing is for sure as his first offseason wraps up — he can recruit. Groce closed out his 2013 class Monday with the signing of three-star power forward Austin Colbert. Colbert, a Gladstone, NJ, native, ranks as the No. 30 power forward in the country. He’s the fifth commitment of this class, joining four-star guard Kendrick Nunn, four-star guard Malcolm Hill, three-star center Maverick Morgan and three-star point guard Jaylon Tate. Scout ranks the class at No. 22 in the country.

Colbert Adds to an Impressive Haul for John Groce

While Colbert is a New Jersey recruit, this class as a whole puts to bed the myth that Groce cannot recruit Chicago. Nunn was a huge get for the Illini, and while Tate isn’t as highly regarded, the Simeon teammates established Illinois’ ability to recruit their area. The Illini were also in the top 10 for Simeon forward Jabari Parker, who is the nation’s top player, even though he has taken them off his list by now. They’re hitting Chicago hard in the 2014 class, too, with offers out to stars Jahlil Okafor, Cliff Alexander and Paul White. Groce also proved he could recruit the rest of the state, retaining Malcolm Hill after he got to Illinois and looking at Kieta Bates-Diop and Larry Austin for the class of 2014.

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1. College hoops’ opening day was supposed to feature two of the best Big Ten teams against formidable opponents, but only one of them was able to play on Friday. Michigan State‘s game in Germany against Connecticut started at the scheduled time but the Ohio State Buckeyes never got past the warm-ups against Marquette because the Carrier Classic game was cancelled due to condensation on the court. Referee John Cahill discussed the problem with both of the head coaches and decided that the conditions on the deck of USS Yorktown were too risky for the players and it was called off. According to reports, the athletic directors will discuss scheduling the game again but it likely won’t be during this season. The Buckeyes would have had their hands full against a Marquette squad who may not win the Big East but will be competitive throughout the year.
2. Even though the Spartans were able to play their game at Ramstein Air Base, it was not a pleasant one. They not only lost the game to Connecticut but might also lose sophomore guard Travis Trice for a couple of games because of a minor concussion suffered during the game. After having played about 18 minutes off the bench, Trice left in the second half after getting hit on the head. He will go undergo further tests but Spartan fans can expect Tom Izzo to slowly bring him back into the rotation due to the nature of the injury. Trice will be an integral part of the Spartan backcourt this year, therefore any major setback will mean more minutes for freshman guard Denzel Valentine.
3. It is never too early to make changes and Purdue head coach Matt Painter is quick to pull the trigger on his rotations. The Boilermakers were upset by Bucknell on Friday, 70-65, and Painter decided to shift his lineup for their next game against Hofstra on Sunday. Senior Dru Anthrop and freshman Rapheal Davis started that game and the Boilers won 83-54. Painter has several underclassmen on his roster and Purdue fans can expect several combinations of starting lineups during the non-conference season until his team’s identity is established. Junior guard Terone Johnson missed the first game due to an ankle injury but returned for the Hofstra game and contributed six points in the victory.
4. While Purdue lost its home opener, Illinois beat Colgate 75-55 in Champaign on Friday night. The win was expected but the home crowd took the occasion to execute the “Orange Hush” during the game. In this coordinated event, the fans remain silent until the Illini score their 10th point, a tradition that exists at John Groce’s Alma Mater, Taylor University. Once the home team scored the 10th point, the crowd erupted in a celebration. The fans at Taylor University call it “Silent Night” and go through the tradition in one game every season. The Orange Krush and the home crowd carried this tradition to Champaign and it was a nice gesture to welcome Groce and his family to Champaign.
5. Life is pretty good for Tom Crean nowadays. His contract has been extended through 2020 and his athletic director Fred Glass announced the extension to the home crowd after the Hoosier starting lineup was announced on Friday. His base salary will increase to $3.16 million per year after the contract extension. As if the #1 ranking in the country wasn’t enough to justify Crean’s presence in Bloomington, he backed it up by proving his recruiting prowess as top high school recruit Noah Vonleh committed to Indiana to join the Hoosiers in the 2013-14 season. Vonleh is a 6’8″ forward who was also considering Ohio State, Georgetown, North Carolina, Syracuse and Connecticut.

This Weekend’s Lede. It’s time to put all that preseason chatter on the backburner, and start drawing first impressions, because the 2012-13 season officially got underway Friday night. Unlike the murmuring fizz of an opening that usually christens a new college hoops campaign, we were treated to several high-profile clashes over the weekend. College basketball set out to establish a definitive starting point, and this year (more than any other in recent memory), it succeeded. There are inherent risks to overanalyzing single-game sample sizes, but even after just one weekend’s action, we were able to learn quite a bit about some of the teams headlining the opening weekend. 

Your Watercooler Moment. Stick to Dry Environments (or, Why Naval Ship Games Need to Only Take Place in San Diego).

Things Started Off Well, But Quickly Deteriorated With These Games

When inclement weather forecasts pushed the Syracuse-San Diego State game from Friday to Sunday, you knew this year’s slate of naval ship games were off to a bad start. That game, which concluded Sunday evening with Syracuse pretty much dominating the hometown Aztecs (62-49) in one of the Orange’s rare non-conference games outside the state of New York, was played under gorgeous 60-degree San Diego skies. The two other scheduled match-ups – Ohio State-Marquette in South Carolina and Georgetown-Florida in Jacksonville – did not proceed as planned, as both games were called off when officials noticed condensation developing on both playing surfaces. The Florida-Georgetown game tipped off and ran into the half with minimal fuss. Up the coastline, though, the slick playing surface aboard the USS Yorktown prompted coaches and players from Ohio State and Marquette to mop the court in the hope that some good old-fashioned clean-up work could diffuse mother nature’s influence on their much-hyped shipside season-opener. As both teams quickly learned, the condensation kept coming back, and officials then made the logical move of calling the game off. Spiritually, emotionally and patriotically, the outdoor aircraft carrier games are an excellent idea. Last season’s Carrier Classic, played before gorgeous vistas and naval troops, and featuring two of the nation’s most respected programs in North Carolina and Michigan State, was a definite win. And there have been few times when a college basketball non-conference game to begin the season has drawn so much national attention. It was a special night. Logistically, though, playing basketball games outdoors in November on the East Coast is fraught with risk, and event organizers learned as much Friday. If the aircraft carrier trend is to continue, the games must be played on the West Coast, where a more favorable late fall climate will increase the chances of staging contests without conflict.

Also Worth Chatting About. Give That Man a Contract (Or, Kevin Ollie Has His Squad Playing Hard).

Kevin Ollie Cannot Escape His Former Coach’s Shadow, But With Wins Like These, He May Not Have To (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

The long-term status of UConn’s head coaching job remains unresolved for the moment, but we gained some clarity on the issue Friday night. Its leading candidate, former assistant Kevin Ollie, made a resounding statement to open his one-season job trial by knocking off Big Ten contender Michigan State 66-62 at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. The Huskies lost the core of last season’s underachieving yet talented team, including two first round draft picks (Jeremy Lamb and Andre Drummond) and two transfers (Alex Oriakhi and Roscoe Smith). Backcourt mainstays Ryan Boatwright and Shabazz Napier carried the torch Friday night against the Spartans, with Napier pouring in 25 points on 8-for-16 shooting and Boatwright adding 13. Highly-touted freshman Omar Calhoun logged 25 minutes but finished with just one point, two rebounds and two assists. The season could not have begun in a better way for Ollie, who faces the massive burden of proving athletic director Warde Manuel he’s the right man for the job, the right personality to succeed the legend that preceded him in Storrs. There were concerns as to whether UConn would lack motivation this season, given their ineligibility for the postseason, but that was hardly the case Friday night. The Huskies played inspired basketball against a top-tier Big Ten foe known for its toughness and grit. If I were to grade Ollie’s job candidacy one game into the season, nothing less than an A+ would suffice.

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1. According to Penn State star Tim Frazier, the Nittany Lions may have something in newcomer D.J. Newbill that the team hasn’t seen in some time — swagger. Frazier, an All-Big Ten player in his own right, has already come away with a strong impression of Newbill, who transferred from Southern Mississippi to Penn State. “He’s just got that Philly swagger in him,” Frazier said at Penn State’s media day on Monday. Second-year coach Pat Chambers echoed Frazier’s thoughts: “I’m going to use a very popular word right now: Swagger,” Chambers said, according to an Associated Press report. “He just has that ‘Philly chip.’ He’s got that toughness. He’s from the streets of Philly. He’s going to grind. He’s never going to give up.” Frazier could use a little help with the scoring load and it looks as if Newbill — who averaged 9.2 PPG and 6.2 RPG in 30 minutes per game as a freshman at Southern Miss two years ago — could be the man for the job.
2. The Iowa basketball program hasn’t had much success in recent years and, as The Gazette‘s Mike Hlas points out, much of that has to do with the failed tenure of previous head coach Todd Lickliter. But if one good thing did come of those years, it was the recruitment of Devyn Marble, a player who appears poised to lead the Hawkeyes this year as a junior. “When I met him the first time I was really impressed with him,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said. “So much of being a great player is who you are as much as what you can do.” Of course, this young Marble has plenty of shoes to fill — namely those of his father, Roy, who is Iowa’s all-time leading scorer. Marble may not reach that level of play in his Hawkeye career, but if he can give Iowa what it needs this season — a vocal leader — then the Hawkeyes surely will be better off for it.
3. In most cases, nobody likes to be called a pest. But sometimes, particularly if you’re playing for Bo Ryan, that can be a term of endearment. Forward Mike Bruesewitz has regularly fulfilled that role for the Badgers, but with the senior forward out 4-6 weeks with a leg injury, Wisconsin needs another player to step up. Enter Zach Bohannon. The scrappy junior guard impressed in the Badgers’ first exhibition, tallying 13 points but his six rebounds (four on the offensive end) may have been what stood out the most. Bohannon isn’t much of a scorer, but if he can scratch and claw his way onto the stat sheet, he could become a valuable player both before and after Bruesewitz returns. “He’s a digger,” Ryan said. “If you get lazy with a rebound, it’s gone around him.”
4. Michigan State freshmen Matt Costello and Kenny Kaminski are paying tribute this season to their friend Dorian Dawkins, who died on the Michigan State campus three summers ago at the age of 14. From Diamond Leung’s poignant story for MLive.com, Kaminski wears No. 30 so as to say “3 and nobody else” in honor of Dawkins, who was an AAU teammate of the Spartan duo who also dreamed of one day playing for Tom Izzo at Michigan State. Together now, Kaminski and Costello carry memories of Dawkins with them every time they take the floor.
5. One of the most concerning aspects of Illinois‘ season last year were their inconsistencies, particularly with the knowledge that the Illini had so much potential and squandered it so often. There’s a new regime in Champaign under head coach John Groce, but there are still plenty of lingering concerns. Illinois was admittedly sloppy in an exhibition win against Division II West Chester (PA) on Sunday, and maybe the most troubling aspect were the 21 turnovers (five from senior Brandon Paul) to just seven assists. Paul has the potential to be one of the best players in the Big Ten this season, but brain lapses like those exhibited against West Chester will surely haunt Illinois again this year if not corrected soon.

College basketball coaches are consistently under the microscope throughout the year. Talent on paper does not always translate to wins and when it doesn’t, the fans demand an explanation. The Big Ten has five teams ranked in the preseason Top 25 but the entire league from top to bottom is considered by many as the best in the nation. The joy of looking good on paper will only last a few more days for each team because once the season tips off, the coaches in the conference will have to answer pointed questions about team chemistry, injuries and player rotations. Every coach feels pressure, but the following are five coaches from the Big Ten who need to show results and have to meet fairly high expectations this season. Any issues on or off the court will be heavily scrutinized and they will feel the pressure for different reasons throughout the season.

• Tubby Smith: Even though Smith’s contract was extended through the 2016-17 season over the summer, his job security is not guaranteed after recent issues off the court with Trevor Mbakwe and Saul Smith. Even though Smith can’t be blamed directly for Mbakwe’s legal troubles, his son’s DWI is a bad mark on his ability to control the program. Minnesota’s athletic director has to be concerned with the negative press that the program has received over the past few months. Keep in mind that this program went through a period of probation from violations committed under former head coach Clem Haskins in the late ‘90s. It took years to recover from those penalties and Smith was brought in to lead the Gopher program back to relevance. Even though he has been able to recruit quality talent to Minneapolis, he has not been able to compile much consistency during his tenure. The injury bug has bitten his teams over the years but certain players did not mesh with the program and Smith has not been able to implement the proper amount of discipline to foster good team chemistry. Both Royce White and Devoe Joseph were expected to contribute for a couple of seasons but they left the program on a bitter note. At some point, Smith needs to have a season where he wins 24 games, competes for the conference title, and make a serious run to reach for the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament. He has a talented squad this year and if his team continues to find turmoil and not make the postseason, he might be in trouble.