John Clay's Sidelines

A college hoops look-around for Wednesday:

• Wisconsin hands Tubby Smith and visiting Minnesota a 68-60 loss.
  • Myron P. Medcalf: “The Minnesotan weaved in and out of the lane. He hit shots from all over the floor and carried his team in crunch time. But Jordan Taylor, who led Wisconsin to a 68-60 victory over the No. 14 Gophers at the Kohl Center on Tuesday night, doesn’t wear maroon and gold.”
• Syracuse opens Big East schedule with 81-74 win over Providence.
  • Mike Waters: “When Providence trimmed Syracuse’s 16-point lead down to four points with a little more than three minutes remaining in the game, the Orange relied on the experience it gained in early season nail-biters against the Tribe, Wolverines, Yellow Jackets and Wolfpack.”
• Purdue trounces Michigan 80-57 in Big Ten opener.
  • Jeff Washburn: “The 23-point Big Ten road victory is Purdue’s most lopsided since the Brian Cardinal-led Boilermakers defeated Iowa 84-58 on Feb. 5, 2000. Purdue, which got 22 points and eight rebounds from senior center JaJuan Johnson and 21 points and nine rebounds from senior guard E’Twaun Moore.”
• Kansas’ Marcus Morris benched for hitting player.
  • Gary Bedore: “Marcus Morris faced no NCAA-mandated suspension for committing a flagrant foul and getting tossed from Kansas University’s heated 78-63 victory over the University of California last Wednesday in Berkeley, Calif. He’s encountered some discipline, Bill Self-style, however. KU’s junior small forward from Philadelphia will come off the bench for the first time this season.”

• Georgetown-Notre Dame meet in Big East opener.
  • El-Bashir: “The Hoyas have connected on 52.8 percent of their shots, the nation’s second-best mark, as they open their Big East schedule Wednesday at No. 15 Notre Dame. In fact, if the season ended today, it would represent the second-best percentage in the program’s storied history.”
• Illinois wants to complement outside shooting against Iowa.
  • Hine: “When Illinois visited Iowa City last season, the plodding, defensive-oriented yawn-fest hardly was one for the scrapbook. But it was a game Illinois may want to bring back from the recesses of its memory before visiting the Hawkeyes Wednesday in the Big Ten opener for both teams. The Illini won that game 57-49 despite their perimeter shooting betraying them.”
• All eyes on the Ohio State Buckeyes.
  • Eamonn Brennan: “Sullinger has been a dominant force on the interior. He’s among the best rebounders in the nation on both ends of the floor and he finishes plays around the rim as well as any player in the country. He’s been the perfect centerpiece for OSU’s four-out/one-in offensive style.”
• Pac 10 is hoping to restore its missing mojo.
  • Ben Bolch: “Good thing the Pacific 10 Conference hired Creative Artists Agency as part of its image makeover, because it could take some imagination to put a positive spin on the state of the conference’s basketball teams. Among the possible slogans heading into the start of conference play Wednesday: The Pac-10: We’re no longer behind the Colonial Athletic Assn. in RPI.”