Here so we don’t get fined.
Hi! Welcome to Off Tackle Empire—now third in the blogosphere for Big Ten basketball content.
…you might’ve noticed we dont’ have any! Well, this is a Big Ten football site, and
we have always only been able to cover shootyhoops as volunteer contributors and my schedule permit. My schedule doesn’t permit—you needed a Mailbag Call this morning, after all—and our volunteers are off to bigger and better things (and we’re happy for them)! So, two things to note:
- OTE hoops content will largely consist of gamethreads and the occasional reaction or Bracketology roundup. Email me if (1) you’d like to kick in thoughts of your own, or (2) you have questions.
- Our season predictions are done, but my own busy schedule—a regularly-scheduled home day with my two girls and 80 midterm essays to grade—means that absent, like, some good ol’ hurry-up juice and/or money, they’ll be out tomorrow. Maybe.
What follows are tonight’s and tomorrow’s games, as well as an open thread, if you want to talk about them.
Monday, November 3
IU Indianapolis Jaguars at Ohio State Buckeyes
5:30pm | BTN+ | OSU -34.5 | O/U 171.5
New name, same stink: IUPUI lost the Pooey and is just Ooey. They’re also 354th in Kenpom out of 365 teams.
Coppin State Eagles vs. Maryland Terrapins
5:30pm | BTN | MD -28.5 | O/U 139.5 | in Baltimore
Part of a two-gamer, with Howard-Dr. Loyola to follow at 8pm. Coppin State is ranked only above UA-Pine Bluff and Mississippi Valley State in Kenpom. So there’s that.
Colgate Raiders at #22 Michigan State Spartans
6pm | BTN+ | MSU -22.5 | O/U 144.5
Gone are the days of Rapolas Ivanauskas in Hamilton. The Raiders are your run-of-the-mill Patriot League team (KP 205), but they’re probably favored to win the conference.
Fairfield Stags at Penn State Nittany Lions
6pm | BTN+ | PSU -15.5 | O/U 148.5
Genuinely thought Fairfield had dropped D-I athletics, then I remembered that was Hartford. They’re both in Connecticut, right? How many programs does one state need? AND they added a new one this year, D-I newcomer University of New Haven (the Chargers, at least an entertaining mascot). Penn State heads there next for a roadie.
I know. I don’t get it either.
Campbell Runnin’ Camels at #24 wisconsin badgers
7pm | BTN+ | wisc -21.5 | O/U 151.5
When did we agree to rank wisconsin again? What the hell?
Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs at Minnesota Golden Gophers
7pm | BTN+ | Minn -25.5 | O/U 146.5
Fun is, I think at least one of Campbell and/or Gardner-Webb has “Runnin’” or “Fightin’” appended to the front of it, but I can’t remember which and don’t care enough to look it up.
Will Minnesota be any good? I suspect we won’t know if that answer is “yes” for at least 6 weeks.
West Georgia Wolves at Nebraska Cornhuskers
7pm | BTN+ | UNL -24.5 | O/U 153.5
West Georgia gave us Newt Gingrich, speaking of government shutdowns.
Go Huskers.
Mercyhurst Lakers at Northwestern Wildcats
7pm | BTN+ | NU -26.5 | O/U 140.5
It’s Mercyhurst’s second year in D-I athletics. Their hockey programs had long been D-I, and in 2024 the Lakers made the full jump, blowing up their rivalry with fellow Erie-based Catholic school Gannon for…uh, the Northeast Conference. Y’know, when you have the chance to fly to Chicago State for games, you just gotta take it.
The Lakers are 359th in Kenpom. Dear God, is the NEC horrible top-to-bottom. I can’t wait to watch it all on NEC Front Row—free! on your Roku or where spare tires are sold.
Oakland Golden Grizzlies at #7 Michigan Wolverines
7:30pm | FS1 | Mich -24.5 | O/U 156.5
Jackson State Tigers at #17 Illinois Fighting Baltics
7:30pm | BTN | Illinois -29.5 | O/U 157.5
Package deal for these two.
One of the fun things about so many new streaming services getting access to the Big Ten is that fans of other teams are realizing what it’s like to see their team behind a paywall. Oh, you don’t like trying to cobble together access to Peacock? Imagine what it’s like trying to watch your team’s entire non-conference slate on BTN+ even though we’re playing the same 300+ tomato cans that you are.
Fuck Michigan and fuck Illinois, is what I’m saying.
Cal Poly Mustangs at USC Trojans
8:30pm | BTN+ | USC -24.5 | O/U 163.5
Much like WSR in college, the Ponies play fast and they play loose.
Much like WSR in college, also, they’re not very good at it.
Eastern Washington Eagles at #12 UCLA Bruins
9:30pm | BTN | UCLA -30.5 | O/U 149.5
Generic Big Sky team. Blood-red football field, though.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions at Washington Huskies
10pm | BTN+ | UW -34.5 | O/U 159.5
I mean, it’s pretty embarrassing that somehow Maryland isn’t even playing the worst team of the night, and they’re playing the third-worst-team in college basketball.
The honor falls to the Huskies, matched up with the Golden Lions of Pine Bluff, who are on their annual random-ass trip of the country, losing by 50 to everyone they meet. Best of luck, boys.
Tuesday, November 4
Evansville Purple Aces at #1 Purdue Boilermakers
5:30pm | BTN | PU -29.5 | O/u 147.5
At least have some balls and make the trip down the Wabash, Boilers.
Bobby Morris Colonials at Iowa Hawkeyes
7:30pm | BTN | Iowa -19.5 | O/U 143.5
Is this one of those mascots that’s about to be changed? Didn’t George Washington become the Revolutionaries, or something?
Long live Haiti.
Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors at Oregon Ducks
9:30pm | BTN | UO -12.5 | O/U 146.5
Finally, something vaguely interesting.
The ‘Bows struggled last year under tenth-year HC Eron Ganot, with a blushingly bad offense. But Gytis Nemeikša, future Illinois transfer, is a good watch in the Hawai’i front-court, and the ‘Bows usually roll out enough height to be vaguely entertaining.
Here’s your open thread for the next couple days of basketball. Love you all.
