DATE: Tuesday, Dec. 9
A- — Louisville

How did Indiana shoot nearly 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from behind the arc against Louisville's formidable defense and still lose by 20 points? Simple. The Hoosiers gave the Cardinals far too many extra possessions.
Nineteen Indiana turnovers against Louisville's aggressive ball pressure were a big factor, as was the Cardinals punishing the smaller Hoosiers on the glass for 24 offensive rebounds. All-American candidate Montrezl Harrell had six and seven of his teammates tallied at least two as Louisville gobbled up well over half its 43 missed shots on the night en route to a 94-74 victory.**
Forcing turnovers and converting second-chance points kept Louisville in good position most of the game until it finally began stringing together stops and pulled away midway through the second half. Harrell finished with 21 points — mostly on an array of dunks — and starting guards Terry Rozier and Chris Jones combined for 50 points. Louisville improved to 8-0 and passed its last significant test before its showdown with Kentucky at the end of the month, meaning there's a good chance both teams will enter that game unbeaten.
B+ — Villanova

When Aaron Cosby buried a 3-pointer to tie the score at 50 with just over eight minutes to play, it appeared as though Tuesday's matchup between Villanova and Illinois might come down to the wire. Instead the Wildcats pulled away for a 73-59 victory by doing something unusual — scoring on 10 consecutive possessions.
Dylan Ennis launched the 23-7 barrage with back-to-back threes and finished with 10 of his 18 points during that stretch. Daniel Ochefu delivered six points during the run, while Josh Hart had four and Darrun Hilliard three.*

Villanova's victory improves its record to 9-0 with victories over Michigan, VCU and now Illinois, pretty impressive for a starless roster that is the true definition of team. The Wildcats are ranked in the top 10 even though no player is likely to be drafted this June, nor are any averaging more than 12.3 points per game.
C — Seton Hall

If Seton Hall's visit to Wichita State was a barometer for what its 7-0 start meant, then the Pirates' 77-68 loss wasn't as flattering a result as the scoreline might indicate. They ceded control of the game during a 26-5 first-half Shockers surge and never really posed a serious threat thereafter, falling behind by as many as 21 points midway through the second half.
What hampered Seton Hall was its inability to handle Wichita State's disruptive defense. The Pirates committed 17 turnovers, leading to some key layups and contributing to Shockers' 52.8 percent shooting. Isaiah Whitehead had 18 first-half points and Sterling Gibbs had 19 second-half points to keep Seton Hall competitive in spurts, but a balanced Wichita State attack led by Ron Baker's 22 points kept the Pirates at arm's length.
The one-sided outcome wasn't a huge surprise considering the best team Seton Hall has beaten this year was George Washington. A road game against Wichita State was a much bigger test, especially since the Shockers are motivated after their loss at Utah last week.
F — Michigan

Michigan's stunning Saturday afternoon loss to NJIT was disturbing because the unheralded Highlanders have long been a bottom-tier Division I program. In some ways, the Wolverines falling to Eastern Michigan three days later may have been even more alarming, however, because they should have been focused and motivated facing a respectable 7-1 MAC team after a loss.*
Whereas Michigan's downfall against NJIT was its inability to get defensive stops, the Wolverines' primary issue against Eastern Michigan was their ineffectiveness against the Eagles' trademark 2-3 zone. Michigan settled for far too many threes instead of patiently attacking the middle of the zone, shooting 4 of 21 from behind the arc and 32.6 percent from the field.
Never was Michigan's futility more apparent than the final three minutes when Eastern Michigan practically begged the Wolverines to salvage a win. The Eagles turned the ball over three times and missed the front end of a 1-and-1, yet Michigan failed to take advantage of five chances to either tie or take the lead, turning those into a turnover and four errant threes from normally reliable Spike Albrecht, Zak Irvin and Caris LeVert.

NOTES:
• NJIT followed up its upset of Michigan with a 68-66 home win over St. Francis (NY), which brings up an interesting question. Will St. Francis (PA) fans buy up NJIT T-Shirts to commemorate their rival losing the same way Ohio State and Michigan State fans did?

• Ask anyone to project the last 10 unbeaten teams a month ago, and nobody would have listed TCU. The Horned Frogs nonetheless improved to 9-0 on Tuesday with an 80-69 win over Furman. Granted the best teams TCU has beaten are Ole Miss and Mississippi State, but this is still progress for a program that has been a Big 12 doormat since joining the league.

• Evansville took advantage of facing Belmont without leading scorer Craig Bradshaw (leg injury). The Purple Aces rallied from 11 points down at halftime for a 65-62 win that improved them to 7-1 so far this season.*
• Before Tuesday night, Texas A&M rebounded just over a third of its misses, not a great percentage but certainly a respectable one. That's why it's shocking that Baylor held the Aggies without an offensive rebound in a 77-63 victory over their former Big 12 rival. Part of that is the pace of the game was slow. Part of that is Texas A&M shooting 57.5 percent from the field and committing 17 turnovers. Nonetheless, it's not often you see a team shut out on the offensive glass and it contributed to the Aggies' loss.
• First they upset Oklahoma. Then they fell to Ole Miss and Tulsa. Then came a road win at Nebraska. And now they need double-overtime just to escape with a win over South Dakota. Hey Creighton, can you make up your mind how good you are? The schizophrenic Bluejays survived Tuesday night despite allowing late threes that tied the game at the end of regulation and in the final minute of the first overtime.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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