UNC Wilmington picks up their second win over the year with a 78-75 victory over East Carolina on the road. Patrick Wessler led the team with a monster 24 point, 18 rebound double-double on 8-11 shooting. The Seahawks held ECU to just 24% shooting from three-point.

We're just a few days into the regular season, but the Valparaiso Beacons gave us the most electric game of the season thus far. The Beacons took down the Purdue Boilermakers 83-80 in double-overtime in a game full of buzzer-beaters and plays you have to see to believe. Rakim Chaney averaged 10.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.4 steals as a freshman last season. When he announced that he'd be returning to Valpo, their potential skyrocketed. Last night, that proved true. Chaney filled up the box score with 35 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal while shooting 14-22 overall and 4-8 from beyond the arc. His shining moment came in the first overtime as the Beacons were down 70-67 with just four seconds left. Chaney was at the line for a one-and-one, missed the first free throw, got the offensive rebound, and drained the game tying three-point shot as the clock expired. At one point in overtime, the Beacons were just 4-23 from beyond the arc, but finished 7-27, as JT Pettigrew drained the electric game winning three-point shot. While a heartbreaking loss for Purdue, this is a momentum building win for Valparaiso. Head Coach Roger Powell has been building this program year-by-year and it appears that this could be the season they breakout.

The North Texas Mean Green took down a tough McNeese team 77-67 on Thursday, led by Je'Shawn Stevenson's 30 point performance. When Stevenson announced that he'd be returning to North Texas, he immediately elevated the potential of the Mean Green this season. Originally picked to finish 7th in the American this season, that's already looking like it could be a low estimate.

The Queens Royals have opened up the 2026-2027 season 2-0, taking down Winthrop in the Field of 68 Opening Day Marathon 103-98 and Loyola Marymount on the road 96-95. The Royals have leapt from 194th in KenPom to 168th in just two games, driven by their strong offensive performances. In particular, the duo of sophomore Jordan Watford & senior Nasir Mann is proving to be a lethal combination that could drive Queens throughout the entire season. Through two games, Nasir Mann is averaging 23.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 70.8%. Watford is averaged 23 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, and 1.5 steals while shooting 54.8%. Ahead of the season, we knew that retaining these two players was going to lead to great things for Queens, but they are now proving that this is a dangerous mid-major team. They have opportunities to pick off a Power 5 program with games against Oklahoma State, BYU, LSU, Houston, and Baylor. They have the potential to pull off an upset if their offense stays this hot!

Last night, South Dakota State went on the road to take down Kansas State 68-66 to kick off their season with an upset victory. Coming out of Linn-Mar in Iowa, the 6'9 forward Davis Kern was unranked, but he proved last night that he could become a diamond in the rough for the Jackrabbits. Kern poured in 24 points, while racking up eight rebounds and shooting 5-8 from three-point. The freshman has fantastic mobility, and his ability to flex beyond the arc and knock down shots at his size while still being a force in the paint is a lethal combination of skills. You'll need to keep your eyes on Kern & South Dakota State going forward.

We are just a month and a half away from college basketball

Roster turnover is the new normal in the college basketball, and the Richmond Spiders felt it as much as anyone this offseason with ten total players leaving the roster. However, one rising star decided to run it back for year two with the Spiders. Aiden Argabright (@AidenArgabright) is back in Richmond for his sophomore season after a stellar freshman campaign. Coming out of high school, he held offers from Mississippi State, Murray State, and several other mid-majors before committing to Chris Mooney and the Spiders. He hit the ground running. Over his first five games, Argabright averaged 13.2 points and 2.2 steals. He never slowed down, and more importantly, he got better as the season went on. By the end of the year, the 5'11 guard was averaging less than one turnover per game against two assists. Argabright finished the season averaging 10.8 points, two rebounds, two assists, and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 42.1% overall and 35% from beyond the arc. He posted a 122.5 offensive rating which was 236th overall, a 60% true shooting percentage, a 15.9 assist rate, and an 8.9 turnover rate that ranked 98th in the country. He drew 6.5 fouls per game and turned that into an 88.4 free throw rate, converting 82.7% from the line on 168 attempts against Division I opponents. Chris Mooney is entering year 22 at Richmond, and he rebuilt this roster around defense and interior scoring, two areas the Spiders badly needed to address. Argabright is the piece that didn't need addressing. He's only going to get better as time goes on. #cbb #collegebasketball #ncaabasketball #basketball #richmond #atlantic10 #midmajor

Every summer, the FIBA U20 EuroBasket gives fans a window into the next wave of international talent. And every summer, a few of those names turn up on mid-major rosters before the rest of the country catches on. Roman Domon went from the tournament to becoming a budding star at Murray State. Dragos Lungu was trending toward a breakout at UT Martin before injury. Gabriel Pozzato starred as a freshman at Evansville before landing at Xavier. This year, the Racers went back to the same well. Mark Padjen is a 6'5 guard out of Slovenia, and he spent this summer running his national team as a legitimate floor general. Across seven games in the U20 EuroBasket, Padjen averaged 15.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 50.8% overall and 33.3% from three-point on 3.9 attempts per game. Coming into the tournament, Padjen was a vital piece for Ilirija in the ABA League, where he appeared in 20 games and averaged 11.3 points, five assists, 3.2 rebounds, and nearly a steal per game. He shot 42.5% overall, 50% from inside the arc, and 35.4% from beyond the arc. What stands out most is the control. Padjen averaged just 2.3 turnovers per game for Slovenia and 2.3 with Ilirija. That's better than a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio at 20 years old, against strong competition, on two different stages. The Racers keep finding these guys before anyone else does. Padjen is the next name on that list. #cbb #collegebasketball #ncaabasketball #basketball #murraystate #midmajor

Baraka Okojie is back at George Mason, and he's coming off one of the most underrated seasons in the SoCon. The 6'3 guard averaged 19.7 points, 5.3 assists, and 1.4 steals last year at Mercer while drawing fouls at a 69.8 free throw rate. His 29.6% possession usage was 69th in the country. He drew the 9th-most fouls per game in all of college basketball.

Brandon Fussell averaged 17.3 points, 5.4 assists, and 2.1 steals last season at Division II Montevallo. He shot 44.8% overall and 38% from three on 171 attempts. Strip out his first six games and that three-point number jumps to 41.4%. Samford has found their point guard!

Remember the last time Saint Louis played a SEC team?

The Duquesne Dukes showed growth in year two with Dru Joyce at the helm as they finished 18-15 overall and 9-9 in the Atlantic-10. Heading into year three, Coach Joyce has already made a slash with three important additions from the transfer portal. Yoav Berman is an incoming junior from Queens University where he averaged 12.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.6 assists while shooting 41.5% overall. While his three-point shooting dipped to 29.7% last year, he shot 40.4% from beyond the arc his freshman season on 3.3 attempts per game. Josh Smith is an incoming senior from West Georgia who is electric on offense. The 6'3 guard averaged 16.2 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game while shooting 39.7% overall and 34.8% from three-point. Izaiah Pasha is an incoming junior from Virginia Tech where he appeared in 18 games and averaged two points, 0.8 rebounds, and 0.7 assists per game. His freshman season, he played at Delaware where he started in 33 of 35 games while averaging 11.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.9 assists per game. While the Dukes are losing some important veteran talent on the team, these three additions are just the beginning of the reload for next season. Keep your eyes on the Dukes!

Anthony Martinez has told @BBustersHoops that he is entering the transfer portal. The 6'2 guard played his freshman season at Monmouth after stellar campaigns in France. While playing for Orleans in the U21 circuit, he averaged 20.8 points, 3.9 assists, and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 51% from inside. He jumped to Lyonso in the France-NM1 League where he finished averaging 9.6 points, 2.1 assists, and shooting nearly 47% from inside through 17 games. Martinez is crafty on offense and can take over to facilitate offense for the rest of the team.

While the transfer portal has exploded with an enormous volume of entries, some mid-major teams are finding success at retaining key talent. The Austin Peay Governors are returning two of their key players in Zyree Collins & Rashaud Marshall. Collins put up incredible metrics in his freshmen season. He finished with a 26.4 assist rate which was 164th best in the country and a 4.1 steal percentage which was 30th overall. He averaged 13.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 2.1 steals per game while shooting 43.1% overall from the floor and 31.3% from beyond the arc. He put up some incredible games like 16 points with 14 assists against Bellarmine and racking up seven steals against North Florida. Rashaud Marshall finished the season in the top percentile of offensive players with a 130.2 offensive rating which was 55th overall. He was 24th in effective field goal percentage, 21st in true shooting percentage, and 87th in two-point shooting percentage. He averaged 16.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and one steal per game while shooting 65.5% overall from the floor. With two of their most talented players coming back, the Governors are already positioning themselves for success in the 2026-2027 season after putting together a strong campaign this year. #collegebasketball #cbb #ncaabasketball #basketball #austinpeay

At this point, it feels like this while looking through portal entries and commitments:

First weekend without any college basketball in 2026...what do we do now?

Congratulations to @taterenzenbrink on winning the Bracket Busters' Bracket Challenge and a $50 giftcard to @HomefieldApparl! 99.9% is insane! We had three exceptional brackets separated by just a couple of games.

Disappointing end to the NIT

The Tulsa Golden Hurricane are heading to the NIT Finals! They took down the New Mexico Lobos 74-69 at Hinkle Fieldhouse behind David Green's 13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 blocks. Tulsa held New Mexico to 7-33 shooting from deep as they pick up their 30th win!

Izaiah Day (Taylor ~ NAIA) has told @BBustersHoops that he's heard from the following schools: - Morehead State - The Citadel - Gardner Webb - East Carolina - App State - Lincoln Memorial (D2) - Catawba (D2) The sharpshooting guard averaged 16.3 points and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 48.4% overall and 42.3% from beyond the arc. He'll be an immediate sparkplug on a team's offense!

We're putting together a fun, recap piece that will be coming out next Monday, but we want to hear from you! Aside from Miami's perfect regular season, what were the top Mid-Major college basketball stories to come out this season? Drop them below!👇

The Illinois State Redbirds are headed to the NIT Semifinals after taking down the Dayton Flyers on the road 61-55! Johnny Kinziger led the team with 16 points, 2 rebounds, and 3 assists as Chase Walker followed up with 13 points and 10 rebounds. The MVC is still alive!

TULSA! The Golden Hurricane are headed to the NIT Quarterfinals after rolling past UNLV 77-66! Romad Dean racked up 11 points & 11 rebounds as Ade Popoola & Miles Barnstable finished with 16 points each. They'll take on the winner of Oklahoma State and Wichita State!

Let's give a huge shoutout to Seattle U. The Redhawks finished 21-14 on the season and just took Auburn to the final stretch in the second round of the NIT. They outscored the Tigers 54-49 in the second half. Excited to see what Chris Victor can do next year in the WCC!

The Illinois State Redbirds are headed to the NIT Quarterfinals as they took down Wake Forest 78-75 on the road! Ty Pence led the team off the bench with 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals on 8-11 shooting. Johnny Kinziger hit the game winning three with 1.7 seconds left!

We are getting an absolutely masterful game at 1:18 on Friday afternoon

Winning by 25 points as a 9-seed over an 8-seed gives the exact vibes of a team that could pull off the upset against the 1-seed in the next round. Do we have a 2023 FAU on our hands?

The 11 Seed VCU Rams complete the 19 point comeback to upset 6 Seed North Carolina 82-78 in overtime! Terrence Hill Jr. was playing on another level, finishing with 34 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, while shooting 7-10 from deep. THE RAMS ARE GOING TO THE ROUND of 32!

THE HIGH POINT PANTHERS HAVE TAKEN DOWN THE WISCONSIN BADGERS 83-82 IN A 12-5 UPSET IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT! Rob Martin led the team with 23 points and 10 assists as Terry Anderson finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds with 3 steals. Cinderella is very much alive!

30 minutes until tipoff

Who's pulling off the big upsets today?

TODAY IS THE DAY ALEXA, QUEUE ONE HOUR OF THE MARCH MADNESS THEME SONG ON LOOP youtube.com/watch?v=IQ225YTI…

THE MIAMI REDHAWKS HAVE WON IN DAYTON, TAKING DOWN SMU 89-79 IN A THREE POINT SHOWDOWN! Eian Elmer was absolutely electric from deep, dropping 23 points with 3 rebounds on 6-9 shooting from three-point. The RedHawks have a date with Tennessee on Friday in the Round of 64!

Seattle U has advanced to the second round of the NIT while taking down St. Thomas 67-52! Brayden Maldonado led the team with 14 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals as the Tommies had 21 turnovers. The Redhawks will take on Auburn in the second round!

The Tulsa Golden Hurricane complete the comeback to advance to the second round of the NIT, taking down Stephen F. Austin 89-84 in overtime! Jaylen Lawal came up huge off the bench with 24 points on 7-12 shooting. Tulsa will take on the winner of UNLV and UC Irvine next!

The Shockers advance! Wichita State has taken down Wyoming 74-70 in the first round of the NIT! TJ Williams was unstoppable off the bench with 17 points and 14 rebounds. The Shockers will take on the winner of Oklahoma State and Davidson in the second round!

UNCW Wilmington advances in the NIT, knocking off the Yale Bulldogs on their home court 68-67! Christian May (@cmay___) led the team with 16 points and 8 rebounds as four Seahawks finished with 10+ points. The Seahawks will take on the winner of Dayton and Bradley next!

The Howard Bison have won their first NCAA Tournament in program history, taking down the UMBC Retrievers 86-83! Ose Okojie dropped 23 points as Bryce Harris finished with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 5 assists. The Bison will face off against Michigan in the Round of 64!

Working through some Region breakdown posts going out over the next two days and this is how we're looking at Hofstra right now

The Penn Quakers are headed back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2018 as Ivy League Tournament Champions! TJ Power put on a show with 44 points & 14 rebounds, with a game-tying three to send it to OT. Fran McCaffrey has now brought his 5th team to the NCAA Tournament.

With Selection Sunday upon us, learn why we think this year's Saint Mary's Gaels team could potentially be the one to return to the Sweet 16! With Paulius Murauskas, Mikey Lewis, and Joshua Dent, this Gaels team is deep and loaded with elite talent. youtu.be/apYkEGqCumE

Happy Selection Sunday to everyone that celebrates!

Kennesaw State stays hot to advance to the Conference USA Championship as they take down Sam Houston 79-73! Freshman Amir Taylor led the Owls with 23 points and 6 rebounds. They'll matchup against Louisiana Tech as they fight for a bid to the NCAA Tournament!

The Hofstra Pride will play in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 25 years, but it's not just a fun story...this is a legitimate potential Bracket Buster. With Cruz Davis leading the charge, this is a well-balanced, dangerous team. youtu.be/0ar_b7LtZyQ?si=wj-X…

The Mean Green are HOT! North Texas has taken down FAU 74-70 in the American Conference Tournament! Je'Shawn Stevenson led the team with 24 points and 4 assists. They've now won 7 of their last 9 games on the season as they advance to take on Tulsa in the quarterfinals!

We've got another upset in the Conference USA Tournament! The 6-seed Kennesaw State has defeated the 3-seed Western Kentucky 96-87 in the quarterfinals! Trey Simpson led the team with 26 points & 5 rebounds. The Owls will take on 2-seed Sam Houston tomorrow in the semifinals!