Let us remember, Thanksgiving is not about being thankful for what we have and for the ones around us. The true meaning of Thanksgiving is watching college basketball players duke it out in exotic locations and pretending that it's March.
Here's this week's College Basketball Notebook:
Vernon Carey Jr. has quickly established himself as the top Duke freshman. Carey proved last week averaging 25.5 points and 11.0 rebounds in two win against California and Georgetown in the 2K Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden.
While Jones scored 13 points on the night he struggled from the floor shooting 3-for-13, including 0-2 from behind the arc. 7 of Jones' 13 points came from the free-throw line.
The seven assists that Jones provided, along with his consistent defensive intensity and the play of Carey and fellow freshman Cassius Stanley (21 points) were enough for Duke to overcome a good Georgetown team.
It'll be important that the Duke freshman, mainly Carey, continue to have night's as they did in the second half against Georgetown but Duke will at some point need more offensive consistency from Jones down the road, particularly against high-caliber opponents.
The East Regional final will be held at MSG in May. The Blue Devils second straight week atop to the AP Poll and success in Midtown Manhattan may be a harbinger for what's the come.
We should be able to get a better gauge on this North Carolina team this week as Roy Williams' squad travels to the Bahamas for the 'Battle 4 Atlantis'.
The field boasts the most ranked teams in any of college basketball's premier holiday tournaments, including No. 8 Gonzaga, No. 11 Oregon, No. 13 Seton Hall, and, of course, the No. 6 Tar Heels.
Carolina will have to get past Alabama and the winner of Iowa/Michigan before getting to face either of the ranked foes on the other side of the bracket.
A championship in the Bahamas would go a long way to alleviate the angst surrounding the first Williams coached team to fail to score 80 points in either of the first four games of the season, while also failing to shoot at least 50 percent in any of those contests.
Williams made a point entering the season to let the North Carolina media contingent know that he wasn't sure how this team would score consistently.
Cole Anthony entered last Wednesday night's Elon game atop KenPom's rankings as the Player of the Year only to drop behind Louisville's Jordan Nwora after his least efficient game of the season posting a 78 offensive rating during a 4-for-14 shooting night in which Anthony scored a season-low 9 points.
I wrote last week that someone on Carolina needed to help Anthony on the offensive end.
Fellow freshman Armando Bacot offered his assistance in the less than convincing win over the Phoenix with 22 points and 14 rebounds.
Which, in part, can be credited to the lack of size Elon possesses.
The imminent return of Brandon Robinson, who is likely to be available in some capacity while at Atlantis, should hopefully give the Tar Heels another offensive weapon to go alongside Anthony and Bacot.
Impressive showing from Wake Forest on Friday night against Davidson at the Spectrum Center. Most outside observers would've characterized the game as a major opportunity for the Wildcats to build upon their resume, even if a Demon Deacons team projected to finish last in the ACC isn't seen as a "marquee" win.
Still, a much-needed victory for the seemingly always embattled Danny Manning.
The Demon Deacons deserve even more praise for their 12-point "road" win when the injury situation is take into account.
Junior guard Chaundee Brown (ankle) and sophomore guard Sharone Wright Jr. (illness) both missed Friday night's game leaving the Deacons to lean on the "next man up," as Manning put it.
That "next man" was graduate transfer guard Torry Johnson, who provided Wake with 32 "valuable" minutes.
Entering Friday night's contest, Johnson was averaging less than a point per game at 0.8 in 10.0 minutes per outing. Johnson blew past that total, providing 15 points off the bench.
While the game was assuredly important for Manning to see his bench step up, for senior guard Brandon Childress the game against Davidson was "personal".
Childress clarified that the matchup wasn't necessarily a personal one involving another Davidson player but it was for him in terms of living up to the standards he has set for his team.
"Not just against anybody. Just wanted to bounce back. Because I felt like we lost one last week and we needed this one so I took this game really, really personal".
Childress finished the night with a team-high 18 points to go along with seven assists, which was important considering Childress turned the ball over six times during the Demon Deacons recent loss at Charlotte.
When asked who was more disappointed in his six turnover outing Childress said that he'd let the meeting contingent "take a guess on that one". Childress later revealed that "the bald guy" was the most upset about his turnovers.
The "bald guy" being his father, Randolph, who is an associate head coach on the Demon Deacons staff.
The win will certainly provide Wake Forest with a boost heading out West for the Wooden Classic.
Childress said the win provided "huge momentum" for the team as they enter a field highlighted by Providence and Arizona.
- Isaiah Mucius had a career-high 10 rebounds in the win against Davidson. Overall, Wake Forest out-rebounded the Wildcats 43-29 on the night.
- Manning noted that he's unsure what the status of Brown's ankle injury is and would know more following a Saturday morning MRI.
Continuing the theme of learning more about teams, the Wolfpack's Thanksgiving meeting with Memphis at the Barclays Center Classic should provide more insight into Kevin Keatts team than the previous four contests against Arkansas Little-Rock, Alcorn State, St. Francis (NY) and Florida International.
It's early but as of Wednesday morning, the Wolfpack has played 345th ranked non-conference strength of schedule.
Last season, the Pack played the 353rd ranked non-conference schedule of schedule. There are only 353 teams in men's Division I college basketball.
The Wolfpack's weakest strength of schedule is a major reason why the selection committee left them out of the NCAA Tournament last spring despite 22 wins and a .500 ACC record.
Which makes it all the more surprising Keatts has allowed his program to start the season against pushovers once again.
The good vibes for Charlotte aren't gone but they certainly weren't enough to carry the Niners past Appalachian State last Thursday night in Boone.
The Mountaineers, in their first season under Dustin Kerns, controlled the opening session, leading 28-9 with 2:43 in the first half. Charlotte chipped into that lead in the second half coming within seve with under 50 seconds to play before App close the game out, 64-55.
Charlotte's stud freshman point guard Jahmir Young particularly struggled in Boone, scoring a season-low 2 points on 1-of-6 shooting.
Young had a night all freshman tend to have at some point or another but he needs to be an offensive catalyst for the Niners to reach the heights they did a week prior against Davidson and Wake Forest.
I think it's fair to ask whether the pressure of expectations is getting to Davidson early in the season.
Following the Wildcats 91-71 win over Nevada, Davidson head coach Bob McKillop said that the Cats "lacked joy in the first two months of the season."
The joy appeared to be back after home wins over UNC-Wilmington and Nevada but it may have exited again thanks to an 82-70 loss to Wake Forest at the Spectrum Center in uptown Charlotte.
Davidson struggled to defense Wake Forest throughout the game, particularly early in the second half when the Demon Deacons made their first six field goals of the half.
The defensive principles and intensity that was there against Nevada disappeared as Wake managed to connect on 10 of its first 11 attempts of the half.
While the struggles against the Demon Deacons can be attributed to size and athleticism, which McKillop acknowledges noting the Deacons affiliation with the ACC, there seems to be more going on with the Wildcats.
Following the game, I asked McKillop whether he was pressing. McKillop admitted that it "has to be a little bit of a factor."
McKillop added, "Confidence is ever so fragile. I told the team after the game that I don't think we could've been better prepared and worked harder to prepare than they did. Then all of a sudden we got knocked to the mat and all of a sudden the confidence was a little bit edgy."
The Wildcats will have to pick themselves off of the proverbial mat quickly, as Marquette awaits them in Game One of the Orlando Invitational, an event, which McKillop acknowledge "has very high-powered programs".
The season is five games old. The prologue of 2019-20 Davidson Wildcats season hasn't even be finished. The Cats have plenty of time and opportunities to show redeem all of those preseason accolades.
Unfortunately, in terms of the non-conference portion, of that story, the Wildcats are running out of time to build upon their resume.
Auburn and Wake Forest are opportunities wasted. Charlotte could be a potential landmine depending on if losses to Appalachian State prove to be the norm for the 49ers.
Orlando could present meetings with USC and Maryland, but those same dates could be filled by Fairfield and
Not to mention, the Atlantic 10 is markedly improved, boasting six Top 100 teams in KenPom.
- Davidson sophomore center Luka Brajkovic is averaging 3.3 points per game in the Wildcats three losses.
In each of those games, Brajkovic has been saddled with two fouls in the first half. It's obvious that when his offensive presence is missing it disrupts the inside-out game the Wildcats like to deploy.
Not a ton to report out of Winthrop early this season. The Eagles have traded wins and losses in their first seven games, yet to have a winning or losing streak of any sort.
Last week, the Eagles dropped their third contest of the season, once again by three points. Losses at Fresno State and at East Tennessee State were both by a three-point margin.
- Gardner-Webb and High Point are off to less impressive starts. The Runnin' Bulldogs, fresh off of the program's first-ever trip to the NCAA Tournament, and Panthers are 0-5 and 0-6 starts, respectively. Yikes.
Why: Carolina has a chance to quell any doubts about this team. Plus, a Friday afternoon title game meeting against either Seton Hall, Oregon or Gonzaga looms.
Why: NC State is playing a real team
Why: Wake has a chance to keep up the momentum out West. The Wooden Legacy features a potential meeting with Providence in the semifinal and Arizona in the final.
Why: Davidson is in desperate need of a marquee non-conference win and a strong showing in Orlando.
Why: Vernon Carey Jr. is playing basketball on television and your preferred streaming device.
Why: Wes Miller has team more than capable of winning the Southern Conference.