Live Blogging ESPN’s 24 Hours of College Basketball: Evening

We’re in the homestretch now. This is Part IV of IV in our epic live blog of ESPN’s Season Tip Off Marathon. We’ve been covering it since 2 AM. You can check out the Overnight here, the Morning here, and the Afternoon here. For the Evening, both John S and Tim will cover Duke vs. Charlotte, then Tim will bring you his thoughts on Gonzaga at Michigan State and Memphis at Kansas.

12:20: Well, roughly 22 1/2 hours after we’ve started, it’s time to wrap up our live blog of the college basketball marathon. Can’t complain about those last two games: The No. 1 and No. 2 teams were taken to the wire. We discussed rust, the career of Timmy Chang, Jerry Glanville, what constitutes an X-factor, and if Temple and Georgetown played the worst half in the history of sports.

From the recliner in my parents’ basement, good night, and good luck.

12:18: After the pick with Coleman, Williams had a look from the right wing that looked pretty good–just a tad long. Can’t kill him for going for the win as the underdog.

I must admit, there was a small part of me that wanted Collins to hit both, Memphis to push the ball, and Williams to hit a game-tying three at the buzzer to send it to OT.

12:17: Tired legs: Sherron Collins comes up short on his first free throw. Memphis is out of timeouts, so you have to expect Elliot Williams and Coleman to run a pick-and-roll down the other end here. Kemp and Mack for kickouts.

12:13: Okay, Elliot. Don’t show off too much to your new friends. KU’s lead is one.

By the way, even though it didn’t work, I love how Pastner threw a zone at the Jayhawks last time down. And I love that Collins knew exactly what to do when he saw it.

Live Blogging ESPN’s 24 Hours of College Basketball: Afternoon

We’re back for our third of four parts of our college basketball marathon. Between now and noon, we’ll be live blogging Northeastern v. Siena, Arkansas-Little Rock v. Tulsa, and Temple v. Georgetown. Tim will bookend the afternoon with the first half of the opener and the second half of the closer, while John S takes everything in-between.

6:00: Luis Guzman pushes it until he runs into two guys, who force a jump ball. Nobody works the possession arrow like the Hoyas. With 0.3 left and Georgetown on the line, I think this one’s about done.

5:58: Monroe on the high post works. Now, Temple will have about six ticks to go the distance, which means it’s not enough time for a pick-and-roll with Allen. Go with Brooks on the penetration, and either kick to the open look on the perimeter or toss it toward the tin; Allen has been very good on the boards.

5:55: Well, they did a pick-and-pop with Monroe, Temple recovered, and then the Hoyas did a pick-and-roll, but it was too late to go into him on a mismatch. Of course, the Owls miss another front end, and so G’Town is still down one with the ball with 17 ticks to go.

Monroe on the block…seriously this time.

5:52: Out of a timeout, Temple hoists a desperation three. Nice work, Fran. Being 3-for-22 from deep before that, you really think you’re due.

Let’s see if JT III can top that with the Hoyas in their own timeout, down one with 55 seconds. It’s a clear two-for-one situation, and it’s inconceivable that they wouldn’t go to Monroe on either the block or the high post.

Live Blogging ESPN’s 24 Hours of College Basketball: Morning

We’re in the midst of our 22 straight hours live blogging ESPN’s College Basketball Marathon, although you probably should have inferred that from the title. If you want to catch up and take a stroll down Timmy Chang Memory Lane with John S, check out the Overnight Post. Tim will handle the 6 a.m. game between two of his favorite Jersey schools, Monmouth and St. Peter’s, and the 8 a.m. contest matching Drexel and Niagara. John S will be back at 10 for No. 24 Clemson and Liberty.

11:55: Well, Liberty screwed that up too. They’ll end up with 39 points, as Clemson wins the game by 40 points. Get ready for Northeastern and Siena, today’s noon game. We’ll be starting a new post at NPI, and Tim will be taking the reins back for the start of that game.

11:48: At this point, I’m basically just rooting for the teams to put up identical halves. Clemson needs to close the game on a 12-2 run, and they would have won each half 42-19. That would be pretty cool, right?

11:43: It’s a little hard to know how much to take away from a game like this, but Clemson looks like a pretty deep team. They’ve had eleven players score and are getting some nice contributions from Devin Booker, Andre Young, Milton Jennings, and Noel Johnson. If some of those guys can contribute in ACC play and tougher nonconference games, then the Tigers could be a pretty dangerous team.

11:35: The game’s getting pretty sloppy as we head into the final 8 minutes. Both teams are turning the ball over (Liberty’s got 18 on the game) and taking, and missing, bad shots. Clemson hasn’t been much better than the Flames over the last few minutes, but I think their 34 point lead is still safe. I know it’s not over till it’s over and all, but…..this one’s over.

11:25: By the way, Adrian Branch. Was that whole “willingness to compete” thing a veiled shot at Coach Taylor of East Dillon?

Live Blogging ESPN’s 24 Hours of College Basketball: Overnight

Tim has already announced his excitement for the start of the college basketball season. Well, he’s not the only one who’s excited: ESPN is covering college basketball throughout its family of networks on Tuesday, including 12 different games on ESPN itself. Well, if ESPN is up for 24 hours of college basketball, then so is NPI. In Part I of IV, we’ll cover the 2 AM game (San Diego State at Saint Mary’s), and the 4 AM game (Northern Colarado at Hawaii).

6:10 AM: Well, Northern Colorado holds on to win 81-75. It’s probably for the best: I didn’t have another great pun about Jeremy Lay’s name lined up. I’m handing off to Tim now, as he covers the 6 AM game, featuring his hometown Monmouth. Be sure to stay with us throughout the day.

6:06 AM: Williams’ legs just aren’t holding up down the stretch. He air balled a shot a few minutes earlier and was short on his second free throw. That may spell the end for Hawaii, as they fall back down five with 11.9 seconds left.