Tuesday's Shootaround: Notre Dame's big win, Hofstra's big comeback

This post can also be found at Beyond the Arc.

No. 14 Notre Dame 56, No. 2 Pitt 51: See here.

One more note on this game -- Carleton Scott, who is one of the more undervalued players in the Big East, was sensational last night. He had 16 points, hit 5-6 from three, and helped battle Pitt's big men in the paint. His return from a hamstring injury has been a major boost for this club.

Kansas State 69, Baylor 61: An offensively atrocious first half that saw a total of 43 points led into a second half plagued by fouls and whistles, but in the end, K-State picked up an enormous win. It wasn't enormous because Baylor is a great team -- far from it, actually -- but no team in the country needed a confidence boosting win as badly as Kansas State. And, frankly, this is the way Kansas State needs to win. They have to win ugly -- forcing turnovers, forcing bad shots, getting defensive rebounds -- because they simply don't have the offensive firepower to do otherwise. Will Spradling looked fantastic last night, leading the team with 17 points.

As far Baylor is concerned, the Bears are in a bad spot right now. They have zero quality wins and have not played like they can beat a quality team. If Baylor has 17 turnovers against K-State's pressure, what is going to happen when they are playing Missouri? The more time goes by, the more evident it is how much Baylor misses Tweety Carter.

The CAA:

• Hofstra 92, James Madison 90 OT: Hofstra remained tied with VCU for first in the league as Charles Jenkins scored 35 points to lead the Pride to a comeback win over the Dukes. Hofstra was down 52-38 at home with 14:47 left, but rallied to force the extra frame on two free throws with 17 seconds left.
  
• VCU 80, Towson 76: VCU struggled a bit on the road against 4-15 Towson, but Joey Rodriguez had 18 of his 28 points in the second half as Ed Nixon hit 3-4 late free throws to seal the win. VCU and Hofstra will square off on Thursday night.
• Old Dominion 58, UNC-Wilmington 43: Frank Hassell had 25 points and 13 boards as the Monarchs rebounded to knock off UNCW.
  
• George Mason 69, Delaware 49: The Patriots stayed a game behind Hofstra and VCU thanks to 20 points from Cam Long.
  

Furman 73, Wofford 68 OT: Amu Saaka had 22 points and Furman used a 7-0 run to open overtime as they knocked off Wofford on the road. Both teams are now tied for second place in the SoCon South at 7-2, a half game behind Charleston.

Morehead State 50, Ball State 48: MSU managed just 15 first half points, but Kenneth Faried sparked a second half comeback as the Eagles picked up a win they desperately needed to help build some momentum. Faried finished with 13 points, 15 boards, three blocks, and two assists.

Mississippi Valley State 89, Texas Southern 76: The Delta Devils got 21 points and nine assists out of Terrence Joyner and scored 60 first half points as they coasted to a win and a first place tie in the SWAC. Both TSU and MVSU are 7-1 in league play. And if you were wondering, Kevin Galloway -- a former member of USC, the College of Southern Idaho, and Kentucky -- had 20 points for MVSU.