College hoops tip-off marathon live blog: 24 straight hours of coverage

Coming into the Duke-Kansas game, I had not seen much of either Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker. Like everyone else, I was really looking forward to my first glimpse of two guys who, at various times, had been billed as “the best high school prospect since LeBron James.”

However, after everything that happened with Shabazz Muhammad, I’ve become a little more skeptical of the heavily hyped high school stars. Last year, a lot of these same folks were telling us that an unathletic 6’6 small forward was a sure-fire Top 5 pick.

The billing between the two star freshmen lived up to the hype. Parker exploded for 19 points in the first half in front of his hometown, but he had to earn his points in the second half as the Kansas defense adjusted. Parker finished the game with 27 points and nine rebounds. He still had plenty of highlight reel plays, including this impressive one-handed alley-oop.

Wiggins also stepped up in the big showdown, but was limited in minutes by foul trouble. He had six points in the first half, but only played nine minutes after picking up his second foul. Coach Bill Self put him back on the bench in the second half after he picked up his fourth. He brought him back out during an instrumental 15-4 run to close out the game, and Wiggins finished the game with 22 points, 10 rebounds, two assists and a block. He also ran the floor and pulled off this nice alley-oop as well.

Jabari Parker has wowed in an incredible game between Duke and Kansas: in front of his hometown crowd in the first marquee game of his Duke career, he had 19 points in the first half, including four threes. But his play of the night was probably this second-half alley-oop from Quinn Cook:

It drew immediate comparisons to a dunk by Grant Hill in the 1991 NCAA Championship game:

• What to watch in college basketball’s 24-hour marathon

• Wiggins, Randle and Parker impressive in debuts

Michigan State beat Kentucky! They’re going to be the No. 1 team in the nation!

That’s worth celebrating, and when the song “Yeah” by Usher came on in the United Center, one Spartans fan took his opportunity to shine. Directly behind the College GameDay people.

Eleven down, one to go, and the last one should be a goodie.

Pregame reading:

The Spartans looked well on their way to overwhelming the young Wildcats right out of the gate, jumping to a 10-0 lead. They increased the lead to 15 points at one point, but Kentucky was able to whittle it away a bit and went into the half trailing by 12.

As good as the Wildcats looked on occasion, their youth was on display at inopportune times. Kentucky shot much better in the second half, but made careless turnovers that allowed the Spartans to stay in the game. The Wildcats also struggled mightily from the free throw line, going 20-of-36.

It might not be the last game of the tip-off marathon, but it’s hard to argue that it isn’t the main event.

For the first time since 2008, the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country will square off Tuesday night when top-ranked Kentucky takes on Michigan State in the first game of the Champions Classic from the United Center.

It’s the final tune-up before the night’s event(s), and it should be a pretty good one between a pair of teams with top 25 aspirations.

5:34 - We join our AAC and ACC heroes with just a little over 8 minutes remaining in the first half. Cincinnati leads 23-19 thanks in large part to Sean Kilpatrick’s 10 points.

Watching Kentucky, Michigan State, Kansas and Duke all in the same day is a college basketball fan’s dream.

Thanks to the State Farm Champions Classic, played at the United Center in Chicago, this dream is a reality. It is the first time in 30 years that four of the top five ranked teams play each other on the same day, in the same building during the regular season. It is also the earliest the top two teams in the nation have faced off since Indiana and UCLA played on Nov. 29, 1975.

It’s the second straight surprise Sweet 16 Cinderella during the early morning portion of the tip-off marathon. La Salle is expected by many to be even better this season than they were a year ago, which is why this game has the largest spread of any in the marathon.

Let’s see what you got, Philly.

This is always the low point. When the Hawaii game comes on, you know you’re not going to get a game that demands any significant level of attention, and you know that there is no reason for you to be awake.

This is usually where things get weird. Or weirder.

A pair of NCAA Tournament teams from last season take us into the belly of the tip-off marathon beast. This is where the eyes start getting a little heavy, where it’s impossible to ignore that all normal people are asleep. Let’s dig in.

3:11 - I’m always a little bit disappointed by the Saint Mary’s home crowd when they get these games, because they’re so impressive in ordinary situations. You’d think they’d embrace the event, if for no other reason than to upstage their arch-rivals from Gonzaga.

It’s not every year that the first post-midnight game of the marathon features a top 20 team that was five good minutes away from playing from the national championship the season before. Oh, and Western Kentucky’s also been in the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons and four of the last six.

The best part about this game: it’ll be played in front of a full house.