Coast to Coast...like Tyus Edney against Mizzou

I wish we could start with just games, but we have to start with the injury bug which has bitten Kansas and Gonzaga. As reported yesterday, KU's leading scorer Sherron Collins will miss the next six weeks with a stress fracture in his foot. Gonzaga's best big man Josh "The 'Shroom" Heyfeldt will also be missing six weeks with a "stress reaction" in his foot. It's been a week and a half into the college basketball season and there are three main topics of conversation: The Atlantic Sun Conference (Did I mention Belmont beat Cincinnati last week too?), injuries and Freshman studs. Last night several of the fabulous Freshman were on display last night, including the debut of the one who may be the best of them all. You may remember him as Michael Jordan's son in Space Jam.

Indiana 99 Chattanooga 79 - The man we were speaking of is Eric Gordon. I say man because he plays like one. In his first college game, he dropped 33 including 7-11 from deep. make sure you see the highlights because at least four of them were from NBA range. He added six rebounds and four assists. PG Armon Bassett added 20 on 8-10. That was the good news. The bad news? The were trailing Chattanooga by five at the half and were tied with 10 minutes left before Gordon took over. Enjoy him while you can Hoosier fans, he won't be in Bloomington after than this year.

UCLA 83 Youngstown State 52 - Speaking of Freshman ready for the NBA, wait until you see Kevin Love. He already has an NBA body. He followed up his impressive debut with 21 and 9 in a blowout win. Lorenzo Mata-Real (who added his mother's name to his this summer) had 14 and 14. Knowing Mata's game, it takes a team like Youngstown State for him to have a game like that. He managed 2-5 from the line , which improved his career free throw percentage, once again proving he is the Sasha Kaun of the West coast. Once again, no Darren Collison for the Bruins.

Syracuse 97 Siena 89 - Another game, another Freshman leader. This time it was Burger Boy AA PG Jonny Flynn. In his first game in the dome, Flynn scored a Syracuse freshman record 28 points including 6-7 from deep. All five Syracuse starters were in double digits, including Paul Harris' double-double 14 and 14. It took one game to see vintage Boeheim. He already doesn't trust his bench. Not only did all five starters score in double figures, they also all played at least 33 minutes. Four of the five played 36 or more.

Duke 86 New Mexico State 61 - The Devils were in control from the tap. Jon Scheyer, who is now coming off the bench and will undoubtedly be one of the top sixth men in the country, scored 22 on 8-11 shooting, including four triples. The game was on ESPN2, so we peeped a little bit. This team is one dimensional, all they do is shoot jumpers. They have ZERO interior play. That works if you are a mid-major team.

Marquette 66 Utah Valley State 55 - Even though they are now 2-0, I nominate Marquette for the most unimpressive team of the week. They struggled to beat IUPUI by eight three nights ago, and last night they trailed Utah Valley State at the half 34-32. As good as their guards are, they have an affinity for going cold at the same time on occasion. Last night Jerel McNeil was 3-14 and Dominic James was 4-11. Luckily, sixth man David Cubilian came strong with 12 off the bench.

Oregon 97 Western Michigan 88 - The man who three-plus years ago said he wanted to go to Oregon and "Carmelo-ize" the Ducks, flashed some of that talent last night. Senior Malik Hairston went off for 29, Maarty Leunen added 18, and MTAC favorite Joevan Caetron's double-double 17 and 10 led the Ducks to their third win. Like Jim Boeheim, Oregon's Ernie Kent doesn't seem to trust his bench either. All five starters played 31 plus minutes. Four of the five played 35 or more.

Texas 58 UT-San Antonio 37 - The Post-Kevin Durant era began with a snoozer. 22-19 at the half? I'm glad I wasn't watching. PG D.J. Augustine scored 19 and played all 40 minutes in the Longhorns win. I can see what Rick Barnes' problem will be already; no depth.