College basketball is back and I am hungry

That's me...hungry for basketball...

The return of college basketball is a joyous time to me. It is without a doubt my favorite sport to watch and watch I did last night. Shame on you if you missed the action.

The Champion's Classic, which started last night at 7:30 et and capped off ESPN's marathon of college hoops, was one of the greatest regular season events I have ever witnessed in basketball, or any sport for that matter. It pitted four of the five top-ranked teams in the country against each other as #1 Kentucky faced #2 Michigan State and #4 Duke played #5 Kansas. Neither game disappointed as MSU and KU each prevailed in their respective games.

Also on hand was a veritable buffet of basketball talent and I do love a good buffet. There was never a shortage of exciting play. It was like walking into Golden Corral on a Sunday morning where I could keep going back and back for more. It was tremendous.

The top three freshman coming into this year played last night on the same court in Andrew Wiggins (KU), Jabari Parker (Duke), and Julius Randle (UK). In the end they did not disappoint. They all had their struggles, but they all also took turns taking over their games at some point in time.

In the early game, Randle looked lost in the first half against the Spartans, and actually had some questioning his progress at this early point in the season. He only had four points at halftime as the young Wildcats trailed by 12. In the second half, he basically strapped Kentucky on his back and willed them back into the game, eventually tying the contest. Though the Wildcats eventually lost by four, it was not for lack of effort from Randle. He finished the game with 27 points and 13 rebounds, his third double-double in as many games to start this season. Unfortunately, he also finished with eight turnovers. I could make an argument that if he held on to the ball a couple more times instead of giving it away, Kentucky has no trouble winning that game.

The next act belonged to Parker. In the first half against Kansas, he was all over the place. He was active defensively, while scoring in a number of ways on the offensive end of the court. Parker went off in the first half, putting up 19 points, including going 4-of-5 from beyond the arc. He came out strong in the second half too, throwing down a monstrous one-handed dunk off a lob. He put his best foot forward and had himself looking like the best prospect of anyone that night. He finished the game with 27 points and 9 rebounds, but was outdone late in the second half by the number one prospect.

Wiggins saved his best for last. He was almost nonexistent in the first half against Duke, as Randle had been in his earlier game. He had a reputation for being a bit passive. I must admit I was quite disappointed to see Wiggins for the first time live. By halftime of the second game, I couldn't see why he had been ranked #1 after the performances I had seen from Randle and Parker. Then he came alive and showed all who were watching. He scored 16 points in the second half, making a number of key plays late to help the Jayhawks hold on for a victory over the Blue Devils. He finished with 22 and eight rebounds. He didn't exactly cement himself as heads-and-shoulders above the other two, but he made it known that he could live up to the hype on the big stage.

Don't forget about Michigan State. It wasn't their freshmen who were the show though. This is the most exciting team Tom Izzo has had in a long, long time. Normally, with Izzo I am prepared to watch a team slow it down, beat you down with defense, rebound the ball, and grind it out. These Spartans can run and they can run effectively. They killed Kentucky in transition. It was almost unbelievable how bad they made Kentucky look in transition defense in the first half. They were out and running though and that's a good sign for Sparty and for college basketball.

It's not often that I'm left fully satisfied after I've left the table and to be honest last night was no different. It would have helped if my Wildcats would have won, but ultimately it was a regular season game and really means nothing in the standings right now. I still hate to lose no matter the opponent though. Last night however was definitely a good night though. College basketball would be doing itself and every one of its fans a favor to keep the Champion's Classic going and to find other events like it. For now, it has been renewed for three more years, with the same four teams, so I can still whet my appetite with some quite delectable college basketball in November.

For now, I'll continue to look forward to each and every game as we approach March Madness (and #MarchFatness). It doesn't get a whole lot better than right now. I've got a basketball jones.