By R.L. Bynum
Cade Tyson has more field goals in five games at Minnesota than he scored in 31 games at Carolina last season.
The senior wing kept his early-season momentum going Tuesday night, scoring a game-high 22 points and three 3-pointers in the Gophers’ 66–54 home victory over Chicago State, his fourth time with at least 20 points in five games, to push his average to 23.4 points per game.
Tyson is second in the Big Ten in scoring at 23.4 points per game and has led the 4–1 Gophers in that category in all five games. In the “win shares” metric (which quantifies a player’s contribution to victories), Tyson is third in the country at 1.3, behind Duke’s Cameron Boozer (1.6) and Carolina’s Caleb Wilson (1.4).
Tyson scored 29 field goals and 81 points in 246 minutes last season and already had 32 field goals and 117 points in 160 minutes this season, including a transition dunk on Tuesday.
Tyson scored all three of his 3-pointers in the first 15 minutes of the first half, notching a 3-pointer and a layup in a 6–0 first-half run.
Minnesota doesn’t face a ranked team until it visits No. 1 Purdue on Dec. 10.
On Monday, Ven-Allen Lubin scored in double figures for the second time in four games, just missing a double-double with season-highs of 11 points and nine rebounds as No. 25 N.C. State (4–0) fended off a challenge from VCU 85–79.
Lubin, who scored 13 3-pointers two seasons ago at Vanderbilt but was 0 of 3 outside the arc for Carolina last season, was 1 of 2 on 3-point attempts Monday. His previous 3-pointer came in the Commodores’ season-ending 90–85 overtime loss to Arkansas on March 13, 2024.
In their first season at SMU after moving over from Arizona, it’s not going well so far for Coach Adia Barnes and former Tar Heel Paulina Paris.
The Mustangs fell to 1–3 on Tuesday with their third consecutive loss, a 76–60 road setback at Grand Canyon.
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Paris, a senior guard, came off the bench after starting the first three games and scored 12 points, nearly equaling her point total of 13 entering the game. She only has one assist in 79 minutes.
Teonni Key had six points on 1 of 8 shooting, seven rebounds, and three assists Tuesday as No. 20 Kentucky rolled to a 76–35 home win over Purdue.
In action on Wednesday night:
— Elliot Cadeau’s 3–0 No. 7 Michigan team hosts Middle Tennessee at 6:30 (Big Ten Network).
— Will Shaver’s 2–2 Samford team is at home against Florida Gulf Coast at 7 p.m. (ESPN+).
On Thursday night:
—Tray Crisp’s 4–0 Mississippi State team is at Texas Tech at 7 p.m. (ESPN+).
—Ian Jackson’s No. 14 St. John’s team hosts Bucknell at 7 p.m. (TNT, truTV).
—Vanderbilt (4–0), with Tyler Nickel and Jalen Washington, is at home against Texas Southern at 7 p.m.
Elliot Cadeau, Michigan guard
6–1, 180 pounds | Junior | UNC 2023–25 (2 seasons)
Roster situation — Starter
Season statistics — 38 games, 38 starts, 10.2 points, 41.6 FG%, 37.7 3P%, 69.4 FT%, 2.7 rebounds, 5.8 assists
Team record: 35–3; Rank: No. 3
Friday: 90–77 win Midwest Regional Sweet 16 in Chicago vs. No. 18 Alabama — Started; 33:37, 17 points, 6–14 FG, 3–8 3FG, 2–5 FT, 5 rebounds, 2 fouls, 7 assists, 1 turnover, 1 steal, 1 block, +15
Sunday: 95–62 win Midwest Regional final in Chicago vs. No. 23 Tennessee — Started; 34:20, 8 points, 3–7 FG, 1–2 3FG, 1–2 FT, 3 rebounds, 2 fouls, 10 assists, 3 turnovers, 2 steals, +30
Next game — 8:49 p.m. Saturday vs. No. 2 Arizona at Final Four in Indianapolis, TBS
Trayanna Crisp, Mississippi State guard
5–8 | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter
Season statistics — 30 games, 30 starts, 8.7 points, 38.3 FG%, 37.1 3P%, 84.6 FT%, 2.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists
Team record: 18–13
Season ended with SEC tournament loss
RyLee Grays, Tulsa forward
6–4 | Junior | UNC 2023–24 (1 season)
Roster situation — One of four forwards competing for time
Season statistics — 30 games, 2.3 points, 43.6 FG%, 4–10 3FG, 69.7 FT%, 2.3 rebounds, 8 blocks, 12 steals
Team record: 19–12
Season ended with loss in American Conference tournament
Ian Jackson, St. John’s guard
6–5, 195 pounds | Sophomore | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter, sharing time in a point-guard-by-committee mix
Season statistics — 36 games, 19 starts, 9.4 points, 40.9 FG%, 34.3 3P%, 90.0 FT%, 2.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists
Team record: 30–7; Rank: No. 13
Friday: 80–75 loss in East Regional Sweet 16 in Washington vs. No. 1 Duke — Didn’t start; 16 minutes, 5 points, 2–8 FG, 1–7 3FG, 2 rebounds, 2 fouls, 2 assists
Season ended with loss to Duke
Puff Johnson, Ohio State
6–8, 190 pounds | Graduate | UNC 2020–23 (3 seasons)
Roster situation — Reserve
Team record: 21–13
Season statistics — 9 games, 1 start, 2.3 points, 33.3 FG%, 3–7 3FG, 6–9 FT, 1.1 rebounds
Season ended with first-round NCAA tournament loss to TCU
Teonni Key, Kentucky forward
6–4 | RS senior | UNC 2022–24 (2 seasons)
Roster situation — Starting forward
Season statistics — 28 games, 28 starts, 11.4 points, 51.2 FG%, 2–15 3FG, 69.8 FT%, 7.5 rebounds, 1.2 blocks
Team record: 25–11; Rank: No. 17
Saturday: 76–54 loss in Fort Worth Regional 1 Sweet 16 vs. No. 3 Texas — Started; 31:31, 10 points, 2–8 FG, 0–1 3FG, 6–6 FT, 9 rebounds, 4 fouls, 2 assists, 2 assists, 3 turnovers, 1 steal, 1 block, -17
Season ended with loss to Texas
Ven-Allen Lubin, N.C. State forward
6–9, 250 pounds | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starting center
Season statistics — 34 games, 34 starts, 13.6 points, ACC-leading 66.8 FG%, 27.3 3P%, 73.3 FT%, 7.1 rebounds
Team record: 20–14
Season ended with NCAA First Four loss to Texas
Tyler Nickel, Vanderbilt wing
6–7, 220 pounds | Senior | UNC 2022–23 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starting forward
Season statistics — 36 games, 36 starts, 13.5 points, 44.4 FG%, 40.0 3P%, 84.7 FT%, 3.3 rebounds, 1.2 assists
Team record: 27–9: Rank: No. 22
Season ended with loss to No. 4 Nebraska in the second round of the NCAA tournament
Paulina Paris, SMU guard
5–9 | Senior | UNC 2022–24 (2 seasons)
Season statistics — 20 games, 12 starts, 9.6 points, 39.9 FG%, 25.0 3P%, 69.7 FT%, 2.9 rebounds, 1.6 assists
Team record: 9–21, 2–16 ACC
Season ended with left foot injury in February
Will Shaver, Samford center
6–10, 265 pounds | RS junior | UNC 2022–23 (1 season)
Roster situation — Reserve minutes
Season statistics — 30 games, 2.6 points, 47.6 FG%, 33.3 3P%, 59.3 FT%, 2.6 rebounds, 17 blocks, 7 steals
Team record: 18–14
Season ended with loss in Southern Conference tournament
Cade Tyson, Minnesota wing
6–7, 180 pounds | Senior | UNC 2024–25 (1 season)
Roster situation — Starter
Season statistics — 31 games, 32 starts, team-leading 19.6 points, 50.0 FG%, 42.2 3P%, 82.6 FT%, 5.4 rebounds, 2.2 assists
Team record: 15–17
Next game — 10:30 Wednesday at College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas vs. Baylor, FS1 (first game since March 11)
Jalen Washington, Vanderbilt center
6–9, 240 pounds | Senior | UNC 2022–25 (3 seasons)
Roster situation — Backup center
Season statistics — 36 games, 9 starts, 8.9 points, 56.3 FG%, 29.4 3P%, 74.1 FT%, 5.6 rebounds, 1.3 blocks
Team record: 27–9; Rank: No. 22
Season ended with loss to No. 4 Nebraska in the second round of the NCAA tournament
Photo via @GopherMBB
Hi,
Excellent update on the former Tar Heels making waves at their new programs. It’s great to see both Tyson and Lubin finding immediate success and significant roles. Tyson putting up numbers like that in the physical Big Ten is especially impressive and speaks to his adaptability.
My question is about fit versus opportunity: In your opinion, is their individual success more a product of landing in a system that perfectly highlights their skills, or is it primarily a function of getting the major minutes and usage that simply weren’t available in last year’s crowded UNC frontcourt?
It varies by the player. Tyson is getting more of an opportunity, but really struggled when he got his chances at Carolina. Jackson is hard to figure but you have to think he would have thrived at UNC in the right situation. Hopefully, he has a big season at St. John’s. It’s still too early to know if Washington’s move will work out well for him. Obviously, Nickel’s move to Vandy has worked well.