The College Basketball season took many unexpected turns last night as many of the top teams in the country squared off in conference battles with a load of unexpected outcomes. There were many different plays and games that made Wednesday night one of the most memorable nights of the season. A top ranked team got beaten along with other upsets, and another top 25 team goes down in one of the best finishes all year. The events that went down Wednesday night will definitely shake up next week’s rankings and leave a ton of one loss teams across the country battling for the top spot. In case you missed it, here is a review from one of the most exciting nights of basketball this season.

No. 1 Wake Forest upset by Virginia Tech

The No. 1 ranked Demon Deacons had it all going with a perfect record of 16-0 and the top ranking in America. Wake Forest was rolling after two big wins over top 10 teams North Carolina and Clemson. However, the Demon Deacons fell victim at home from unranked Virginia Tech 78-71. Surprisingly, the Hokies controlled the entire game leading by 10 at the break and as much as 13 later in the game. Wake Forest gave a valiant effort for a comeback as Jeff Teague added 23 points on the night, but in the end the Hokies simply made the shots that mattered most leaving the Demon Deacons in shock on their own
floor.

No. 5 North Carolina crushes No. 10 Clemson

Clemson had it all going in the first half. Terrence Oglesby and K.C Rivers seemed to knock down 3 pointers all over the court with Oglesby having 17 points at halftime. The Tigers seemed to hit everything in the opening half, but still trailed by 5 as they Tarheels were simply too much. In the second half, the Clemson shots that were falling quickly became a rarity to say the least. The Tigers shot 35% for the game and only 29% from the floor the entire second half. Meanwhile, the Tarheels proved why they are one of the best scoring teams in America. North Carolina’s 4 starters Wayne Ellington, Tyler Hansbrough, Ty Lawson, and Deon Thompson combined for 76 points with Ellington leading the way with 25 individually. The Tarheels matched their season average 94 points as they blasted the Tigers in Chapel Hill 94-70. The win marked the 54^th straight home win over Clemson in Chapel Hill equaling the longest streak in NCAA history.

No. 7 Michigan State stunned by Northwestern

Northwestern’s Kevin Coble and Michael Thompson had huge nights lifting the Wildcats over the Spartans. Coble went 10-16 from the floor racking up 31 points on the night. Teammate Michael Thompson got hot from behind the arc knocking down 4 3-pointers adding 20 more points on the night. Coble and Thompson combined for more points than the entire Michigan State starting lineup that shot a dismal 39% from the floor and never really got it rolling all night. Michigan State standout guard Kalin Lucas lead the way for the Spartans as he has much of the year with 20 points while center Goran Suton added 15 points, but there was not any other help present Wednesday night. The Spartans turned the ball over an incredible 18 times leading to their demise. The Spartans loss marked the ending of the 3^rd longest home winning streak in the nation with a previous 28 straight wins in East Lansing.

No. 24 Florida heart-breaker at South Carolina

Hard to imagine a game could steal the spotlight amongst all the other dilemma going on across the country, but Florida at South Carolina game was clearly the best game of the night. The two schools battled back in forth all night with Florida seeming to edge away at the end. The Gators took a 7 point lead with just under 3 minutes to play, but the Gamecocks made one last strive. Junior guard Devan Downey who is the second leading scorer in the SEC lead the charge knocking down 7 points including a crucial 3-pointer to cut the lead to two points. Zam Frederick got the opportunity to tie the game for the Gamecocks with 4.7 seconds left with two free-throw shots. Frederick made the first, but missed the second as Florida’s Chandler Parsons grabbed the rebound appearing to seal the deal as he was fouled with 3.3 seconds left. However, Parsons would miss the one-in-one and Mike Holmes grabbed the rebound for South Carolina launching the ball down court to hit Zam Frederick at the other end of the court to lay the ball in as time expired barely beating the buzzer. The play was one of the more exciting finishes to any college basketball this season and capped off a wild and crazy night of hoops action. In case you missed, it check it out here…

The College Football version of the postseason is underway and teams they would normally never play each other are squared off to battle in front of the nation. The College Football Bowl season is always exciting for a number of reasons. One reason is that fans get to see their favorite teams play one last game. Often times these teams get to play schools from another conference which promises for exciting football. Ever year the Bowl Season has some great games and its share of one-sided affairs. However, this season the majority of the Bowl Games have been really intriguing. Nearly every game has been very close and this Bowl Season has been perhaps a lot more entertaining than in previous years.

So far there has been 8 Bowl Games played this season. While usually the Bowl Games that take place early in the postseason are not as entertaining, this season all the games have been impressive. The majority of College Football fans do not tune into the Bowl Games until New Year’s Day or afterwards when the top games are featured. The early games are often mismatches and bad football games. This season has not disappointed as almost every game has been close and fun to watch. In the 8 Bowls played, 6 of those games have been settled by 10 points or less. Christmas Eve’s Sheraton Hawaii Bowl was a one-sided affair, but many watched to see if the Notre Dame Fighting Irish could end the nation’s longest Bowl losing streak. The Fighting Irish snapped the 9 straight Bowl losses streak pounded on Hawaii 49-21. While the game was not as close as others, it was still highly rated for viewings and was fun to watch. The only other game that was one-sided was that of the Magicjack Bowl with the South Florida Bulls crushing the Memphis Tigers 41-14. For the rest of the Bowl Season, it has been nothing but great football.

Wake Forest and Navy started off the season with a great game in the EagleBank Bowl. Navy jumped out in front 13-0, but could not hold off the Demon Deacons. Wake Forest would rally in an exciting comeback to pull off the victory 29-19. The New Mexico Bowl was the next to take the stage and it would showcase two very talented offenses in a scoring shootout. Talk about exciting, Colorado State and Fresno State combined to score 75 points. Colorado State would hold on late for a 40-35 win over Fresno State in what was a fun game to watch for two schools you normally may not see on T.V. The Bowl Season is always full of upsets and surprises, but nobody really expected Arizona to be able to pull off a victory against #16 BYU. However, the Wildcats did just that when they took down Brigham Young 31-21. The game was a great battle for the nation to watch between the PAC-10 and the Mountain West Conferences.

Two of the best games so far this postseason came from the Poinsettia and New Orleans Bowl Games. The New Orleans Bowl showcased an instant classic between Southern Mississippi and Troy. The Trojans came into the game as the favorites and the two teams went back and forth trading the lead the entire game. Regulation time could not decide this exciting battle as the teams had to go to overtime. In College Football, both teams get the ball in overtime. Southern Miss scored on a field goal in their offensive possession. Troy was held on offensive and attempted a field goal of their own, however the Golden Eagle blocked the field goal to end the game highlighting one of the more exciting games in recent history. Another absolute wonderful football games came in the way of the Poinsettia Bowl. #11 TCU faced off with one of only two undefeated teams in College Football this season in #9 Boise State. The battle between nearly two top 10 teams would be anything but disappointing. The Broncos felt a little disappointment as they felt they should have received an at-large BCS Bowl berth due to their undefeated campaign. A win over TCU who sports the nation 2nd best overall defense would have made their statement even stronger. The Broncos jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the game and seemed to be rolling. However, the defense for TCU would rise to the challenge shutting down Boise State for the rest of the game. TCU captured a late game winning in exciting fashion 17-16 ending Boise State’s undefeated season. The win marked the 4th straight Bowl victory for TCU which equaled a school-record.

Last night’s Bowl match-up was another that did not disappoint football fans. Florida Atlantic and Central Michigan held up a strong battle featuring two inferior programs. The Owls of Florida Atlantic held on by a field goal 24-21 to capture the win in the Motor City Bowl. The game capped off a series of great games in the last week over the Christmas Holidays. From here on out, the Bowl Games will pick up in numbers. Today there will be 3 exciting Bowl Games to take place and many will follow featuring highly notable teams. If the start of this Bowl Season is any indication of how the next two weeks will play out, then we are in for some very exciting football.

3 Other games that will be worth to keep an eye on besides the game everybody will be watching in the BCS Championship is:

Capitol One Bowl: Georgia vs. Michigan State

Two teams with identical records (9-3) square off in a classic battle between the SEC and the Big 10. Georgia brings the speed of the SEC and the Spartans bring a powerful running game to the table. This should be a great game highlighting the play of two conferences that take great pride in beating each other

Rose Bowl: USC vs. Penn State

This particular match-up features two of football’s elite powerhouses. The Trojans are hosting in their 4th straight Rose Bowl. The game should be rather low-scoring compared to the way many would expect. USC has one of the best defenses in recent memory and Penn State has a great defensive themselves along with a good running game. These two teams were both predicted at times to contend for a National Title this season and it will be interesting to see who can conquer who in a clash of titans.

Cotton Bowl: Ole Miss vs. Texas Tech

The Red Raiders were ranked as high as #2 this season before getting blasted by Oklahoma. Ole Miss is among one of the most improved teams in the nation. Texas Tech has one of the very best offenses in College Football, but it will be interesting to see how they stack up against an SEC defense. The SEC has made their name known for defense in recent years and they will get the chance again in a game that many think Ole Miss has no chance to win.

The 10^th annual college basketball ACC/Big 10 challenge is now underway. The ACC has dominated this affair winning the last 9 challenges in the series. The last two years in the challenge the ACC has won 8 of the 11 events. The ACC will be favored again to win the challenge this year, but there will be a number of interesting match-ups to watch. Also find out which games our experts like the Big 10 to be a factor in.

Last night in the first game for the ACC/Big 10 challenge, the #22 Wisconsin Badgers edged out the Virginia Tech Hokies 74-72. The Badgers win gets the Big 10 rolling in the right direction to try and finally win the challenge. Junior guard Trevon Hughes hit a game winning shot with just under 2 seconds in the game to seal the deal for the Wisconsin victory. The win marks the first of many exciting games to come.

The Challenge will hit full swing tonight as a slate of teams will take the floor. Highlighting the night will be the #5 Duke Blue Devils and #10 Purdue Boilermakers. (9EST) The Boilermakers have perhaps the best team in the Big 10 right now and they will try to pull off what would be a big win. Duke has been rolling fairly well this season winning 6 of their 7 games by 15 points or more. Purdue has already suffered one loss to #13 Oklahoma this season and definitely does not want to lose two games this early in the season.

Tuesday, 12/02 Games:

Clemson at Illinois 7:30PM ET – A pair of undefeated teams plays tonight in Clemson Tigers and Illinois Fighting Illini. Both teams considered middle of the road will square off with one team getting their first loss of the season. Clemson is the favorite for the game and considered the better all around team. Illinois has struggled with field goal % and 3 point shooting in some under rated games. Look for the ACC to roll in this one unless the Illini can pull of the upset.

Ohio State at Miami 7:00PM ET – This game will be a classic for size against speed in college basketball. Miami has some lethal guards led by Jack McClinton scoring 15 points per game. Ohio State has a really big team and will look to control the inside. Once again the ACC team in considered the favorite while the Big 10 will be looking to surprise.

Iowa at Boston College 7:00PM ET – The Boston College Eagles have won their last 3 games in the ACC/Big 10 challenge and look to make it four in a row. Their contest with the Iowa Hawkeyes showcases two very similar teams. These two teams may not have the ability to make a run at conference championships, but both teams do have the ability to pull of some big wins this season. Both teams shoot the ball well, but who will be able to pull out the win?

Virginia at Minnesota 8:30PM ET – The Cavaliers are one of bottom dwellers in the ACC while Minnesota is standing at a season record of 6-0. Minnesota is considered the favorite to win the game and improve the undefeated mark. Golden Gophers guard Lawrence Westbrook is an extremely gifted player that leads a strong offensive front for Minnesota. Watch and see if Minnesota can score a much needed win for the Big 10.

Wednesday, 12/03 Games:

Indiana at Wake Forest 7:00PM ET – Wake Forest should have a big advantage in this game giving their extremely talented team. Wake is one of the best teams in the ACC this season while Indiana is expected to struggle in the Big 10. Indiana is 3-2 this season with two of those wins coming against Division II opponents. The Demon Deacons on the other hand are a perfect 5-0 led by sophomore guard Jeff Teague averaging 22 points per game. Hopefully the Hoosiers can keep this game close.

Michigan at Maryland 7:30PM ET – Both teams have one loss this season and this contest looks to be an exciting one. Michigan upset #4 UCLA early this season while Maryland had an upset of their own knocking off #6 Michigan State rather convincingly. Michigan may have the slight advantage with their excellent back court in guard Manny Harris (23ppg). Watch for this game to go right down to the wire.

Florida State at Northwestern 9:30PM ET – The Noles are undefeated at 7-0 mark while Northwestern is 3-1. Florida State will be the favorite for the ACC to win yet another game, but I believe Northwestern could be primed for the upset. The Wildcats are on of the top field goal percentage teams in the country and I believe their slow pace style they sometimes find themselves playing present some problems for FSU. Interesting contest between two teams considered not so good in their conferences.

Penn State at Georgia Tech 7:30PM ET – Georgia Tech has been struggling against some pretty week teams despite their 4-0 record. The Nittany Lions are 6-1 on the season and love to shoot the ball from the 3-point range. Georgia Tech should be able to over power the Penn State defense scoring down low while controlling the boards. Advantage Georgia Tech

#1 North Carolina at #12 Michigan State 9:00PM ET – The #1 ranked Tarheels will take the court against #12 Michigan State in perhaps the most anticipated game in the tournament. North Carolina averages a 2^nd best 96 points per game and are in the top 20 in nearly every offensive category led by 2008 Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough. Michigan State forward Raymar Morgan is a force to be reckoned with averaging 17 points per game and 5 rebounds. The Spartans lone loss of the year came from another ACC opponent the Maryland Terrapins. Michigan State will look to even the score against the ACC in the last game of the Challenge.