Each week, I'll write about the sport I love: college basketball.
• Michigan State suffered a blow when forward Marvin Clark Jr. suffered a foot injury that could sideline him for the season opener. Clark was expected to have a greater role this season after averaging 4.5 points per game last season.
• One early-season game that should be very interesting features Baylor at Oregon. It is part of the ESPN Tip-Off Marathon, and both schools made the Big Dance last season.
• On Nov. 15, NC State takes on South Alabama in hoops. Mark Gottfried's team will have a hard time duplicating what the Wolfpack football team did to the Jaguars; a 50-point win last weekend (63-13).
• Avery Johnson doesn't have an easy start in his first month as Alabama's coach. There is a trip to Dayton, a game against Xavier and a possible matchup with Wichita State (AdvoCare Invitational) in November.
• Sorry to learn of the passing of former Saint Joseph's basketball player Bob Gormley. He played for the Hawks from 1960 to 1962 and was a member of the Dr. Jack Ramsay team that reached the NCAA Final Four in 1961.