Cowboys 31, Raiders 24
Dallas defeated Oakland on Thanksgiving after falling behind 21-7 in the second quarter. DeMarco Murray ran for three touchdowns and Lance Dunbar helped out in the run game with 82 yards on just 12 carries before leaving the game in the fourth quarter with a left knee sprain. Tony Romo had a solid game, completing 23 of 32 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown with zero picks. It was the sixth game this season Romo has not thrown an interception.
The Cowboys fell behind 7-0 on the opening kickoff when Terrance Williams fumbled on the return and Oakland picked up the loose ball and ran it in.
It was a good solid win for the Cowboys. Obviously, ideally, the fans would like an easy win from the Cowboys, but that rarely happens. They made it interesting early by falling behind. The defense played a great game after getting down 21-7, however, allowing just three more points and 305 yards in the game (most of that in the first half). Romo continued to have a solid, if unspectacular, season. The offense isn't always clicking and isn't always moving the ball, but it has kept turnovers to a minimum. Romo and the receivers seem to be off at times, but he has only thrown seven picks all season. The running game also helped things out against the Raiders. Any running game helps balance out an offense and for the Cowboys, it means Romo doing less and forcing the issue less. Against Oakland, Dallas racked up 144 yards rushing. Dallas has its usual fair share of close losses this season, against Denver, Kansas City, and Detroit, but has also shown an ability to win close games this year, especially recently, over Minnesota, the Giants, and now the Raiders. Down the stretch, the Cowboys will surely been in some more close games so coming up big in the clutch will be necessary if they hope to make a push toward winning the NFC East and making the playoffs.
Dallas' remaining schedule is at the Bears, vs. the Packers, at the Redskins, and vs. the Eagles. In an unlucky turn of events, though some teams have battled the Bears and Packers this season without Jay Cutler and Aaron Rodgers, the Cowboys will likely have to play those two teams with their star QBs. Dallas will probably have to win one of those games. The Redskins game, you think would be a win with the way Washington looks, but you just never know in that rivalry game and the Redskins will surely want to damage the Cowboys' season. And, if it happens, the Eagles-Cowboys game in Texas on Week 17 could once again find Dallas playing for the division against a NFC East foe.
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Virginia vs. SMU in Corpus Christi, Texas 7:30 p.m. CBS Sports Network
The Cavaliers take on SMU today in the Corpus Christi Challenge. The Mustangs are 5-1 and coached by the legendary Larry Brown, longtime NBA and college coach. He is still the only coach who has won an NBA title (2004 with the Pistons) and a college championship (Kansas, 1988). SMU was 15-17 last season but had a good start to its season like this year, at 5-0. This year, the Mustangs have taken down TCU, Rhode Island, Texas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Sam Houston State. They lost to Arkansas. Brown brought in the No. 14 recruiting class before the season despite the 15-17 record in 2012-13. SMU is led by 5-foot-9 sophomore guard Nic Moore, who averages 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game. Second on the team in scoring is 6-foot-11 junior center Yanick Moreira at 11.7 points and seven rebounds per game. SMU has six other players averaging at least six points per game so they have been a very balanced team this year, much like Virginia has been. UVa will need to be ready to stop all kinds of weapons. SMU is 123rd in the nation in points per game (77.5), 55th in rebounds per game (40.7), 25th in assists per game (17), and 28th in field goal percentage (50.8).
Virginia is also 5-1 and on a four-game winning streak after losing to VCU on Nov. 12. Since then,
the Cavs have beaten Davidson, Navy, Liberty, and Hampton. Not exactly a who's who list of great teams but Virginia has mostly dominated these opponents starting with the second half against Davidson. Against Hampton, the Wahoos found themselves in a 16-16 dogfight but then went on a 23-0 run before getting up by more than 30 points at one point. Virginia cruised to a 69-40 win. Virginia has been looking better on offense, something that was lacking against JMU and VCU. The 'Hoos have been shooting the ball better, especially from the 3-point line. Virginia went 5 of 8 from beyond the arc against Hampton. Early in the year, UVa was at 19 percent from beyond the arc but is now up to 34.1 percent. Joe Harris seems to have snapped out of his funk, as well. He had 20 points in 20 minutes vs. the Pirates and made all of his seven shots, including four 3-pointers. UVa has still been struggling at the free throw line, though, so it is still an area of concern. The team is shooting 57.5 percent from the line.
The game against SMU is a big challenge. It is on a neutral court, but certainly, SMU is closer to Corpus Christi than Virginia so most of the fans at the game will be Mustang supporters, probably similar to the Davidson game which was in Charlotte, which is obviously closer to Davidson than Charlottesville. Virginia has a tendency to come out sluggish on neutral courts and if that happens, a loss could be in the making. This could be a solid resume-building win for March over what looks to be a quality team or a setback and missed opportunity.
The winner of this game takes on the winner of the Texas A&M-Missouri State matchup Saturday night. The loser will play the loser of that contest then.
Dallas defeated Oakland on Thanksgiving after falling behind 21-7 in the second quarter. DeMarco Murray ran for three touchdowns and Lance Dunbar helped out in the run game with 82 yards on just 12 carries before leaving the game in the fourth quarter with a left knee sprain. Tony Romo had a solid game, completing 23 of 32 passes for 225 yards and a touchdown with zero picks. It was the sixth game this season Romo has not thrown an interception.
The Cowboys fell behind 7-0 on the opening kickoff when Terrance Williams fumbled on the return and Oakland picked up the loose ball and ran it in.
It was a good solid win for the Cowboys. Obviously, ideally, the fans would like an easy win from the Cowboys, but that rarely happens. They made it interesting early by falling behind. The defense played a great game after getting down 21-7, however, allowing just three more points and 305 yards in the game (most of that in the first half). Romo continued to have a solid, if unspectacular, season. The offense isn't always clicking and isn't always moving the ball, but it has kept turnovers to a minimum. Romo and the receivers seem to be off at times, but he has only thrown seven picks all season. The running game also helped things out against the Raiders. Any running game helps balance out an offense and for the Cowboys, it means Romo doing less and forcing the issue less. Against Oakland, Dallas racked up 144 yards rushing. Dallas has its usual fair share of close losses this season, against Denver, Kansas City, and Detroit, but has also shown an ability to win close games this year, especially recently, over Minnesota, the Giants, and now the Raiders. Down the stretch, the Cowboys will surely been in some more close games so coming up big in the clutch will be necessary if they hope to make a push toward winning the NFC East and making the playoffs.
Dallas' remaining schedule is at the Bears, vs. the Packers, at the Redskins, and vs. the Eagles. In an unlucky turn of events, though some teams have battled the Bears and Packers this season without Jay Cutler and Aaron Rodgers, the Cowboys will likely have to play those two teams with their star QBs. Dallas will probably have to win one of those games. The Redskins game, you think would be a win with the way Washington looks, but you just never know in that rivalry game and the Redskins will surely want to damage the Cowboys' season. And, if it happens, the Eagles-Cowboys game in Texas on Week 17 could once again find Dallas playing for the division against a NFC East foe.
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Virginia vs. SMU in Corpus Christi, Texas 7:30 p.m. CBS Sports Network
The Cavaliers take on SMU today in the Corpus Christi Challenge. The Mustangs are 5-1 and coached by the legendary Larry Brown, longtime NBA and college coach. He is still the only coach who has won an NBA title (2004 with the Pistons) and a college championship (Kansas, 1988). SMU was 15-17 last season but had a good start to its season like this year, at 5-0. This year, the Mustangs have taken down TCU, Rhode Island, Texas State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Sam Houston State. They lost to Arkansas. Brown brought in the No. 14 recruiting class before the season despite the 15-17 record in 2012-13. SMU is led by 5-foot-9 sophomore guard Nic Moore, who averages 12.8 points and 5.3 assists per game. Second on the team in scoring is 6-foot-11 junior center Yanick Moreira at 11.7 points and seven rebounds per game. SMU has six other players averaging at least six points per game so they have been a very balanced team this year, much like Virginia has been. UVa will need to be ready to stop all kinds of weapons. SMU is 123rd in the nation in points per game (77.5), 55th in rebounds per game (40.7), 25th in assists per game (17), and 28th in field goal percentage (50.8).
Virginia is also 5-1 and on a four-game winning streak after losing to VCU on Nov. 12. Since then,the Cavs have beaten Davidson, Navy, Liberty, and Hampton. Not exactly a who's who list of great teams but Virginia has mostly dominated these opponents starting with the second half against Davidson. Against Hampton, the Wahoos found themselves in a 16-16 dogfight but then went on a 23-0 run before getting up by more than 30 points at one point. Virginia cruised to a 69-40 win. Virginia has been looking better on offense, something that was lacking against JMU and VCU. The 'Hoos have been shooting the ball better, especially from the 3-point line. Virginia went 5 of 8 from beyond the arc against Hampton. Early in the year, UVa was at 19 percent from beyond the arc but is now up to 34.1 percent. Joe Harris seems to have snapped out of his funk, as well. He had 20 points in 20 minutes vs. the Pirates and made all of his seven shots, including four 3-pointers. UVa has still been struggling at the free throw line, though, so it is still an area of concern. The team is shooting 57.5 percent from the line.
The game against SMU is a big challenge. It is on a neutral court, but certainly, SMU is closer to Corpus Christi than Virginia so most of the fans at the game will be Mustang supporters, probably similar to the Davidson game which was in Charlotte, which is obviously closer to Davidson than Charlottesville. Virginia has a tendency to come out sluggish on neutral courts and if that happens, a loss could be in the making. This could be a solid resume-building win for March over what looks to be a quality team or a setback and missed opportunity.
The winner of this game takes on the winner of the Texas A&M-Missouri State matchup Saturday night. The loser will play the loser of that contest then.
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