Ball State knocked off two top 10 teams in Maui last year, got plenty of pub, but didn't reach the NCAAs.

Ball State did it twice year ago in Maui -- shocking Kansas and UCLA on back-to-back nights. Who'll make a name for itself this week in NYC, Hawaii or Alaska? This is a week that can make a team, give it shelf life for the entire season. ESPN.com's Andy Katz breaks down each team's chances during Feast Week. Story

Tuesday San Diego at UCLA: The Bruins have already lost two exhibition home games and they always seem ripe for an early-season loss to a lesser-known, in-state team. Northridge and Pepperdine have victimized the Bruins in recent years. The Torreros could be next. Boston University at Boston College: This game wouldn't have made our list a week ago, but the Terriers gave Stanford at it wanted in Palo Alto and the Eagles were downright awful, save freshman Craig Smith, in their opening loss to Saint Joseph's at home. BC can't afford a 0-2 hole at home. USC at Rhode Island: For some reason, Henry Bibby was willing to travel across the country to open Rhode Island's new arena -- the 7,571-seat Ryan Center. This should be a Trojan win, but this is also the Rams' new home. Wednesday Georgia at Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets got off to a sensational start, albeit against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Chris Bosh lived up to expectations with 26 points and 14 rebounds (10 offensive boards). With both major D-I programs expecting banner seasons, there should be a buzz about this game in Atlanta. We underscore the word should. Friday Alabama vs. Ohio State, Tipoff Classic, Springfield, Mass.: The Tide gets another shot at a high-profile team on a neutral court in the Northeast. Expect Alabama to roll, unless the Buckeyes can slow down Mo Williams and the experienced Erwin Dudley and Kenny Walker up front. Saturday Duke vs. UCLA, John Wooden Tradition, Indianapolis: This looked like a dandy early-season matchup. But if the Bruins don't get their act together earlier in the week against USD, this could be a rough wakeup call. Georgia at Minnesota: The Bulldogs continue a brutal Thanksgiving week with a road trip to the Gophers, who are desperate to make their mark early in the season. The Jarvis Hayes-Rick Rickert matchup is worth circling. Cincinnati at Dayton: The Flyers have a shot to get noticed by beating a offense-starved Cincinnati. They're talented enough but are the Flyers tough enough to pull it off? Ohio at Providence: The MAC favorites open at Providence, the first of five straight road games to start the season and a good barometer as to whether they deserve any early-season hype.

Player of the Week Matt Walsh, G, Florida Walsh wasn't even the headline recruit in the class. That was reserved for Anthony Roberson, Christian Drejer and to some extent, Mario Boggan. Yet, it's Walsh who has starred for the Gators, scoring 46 points in the first two Preseason NIT games and then 19 Sunday night. Walsh made 25 of his 35 shots in three games, 6 of 13 treys and also dished out 17 assists. Walsh even does those things that don't show up in the box score like diving for loose balls, and making his teammates better by creating shots for them because of the attention he now commands. Walsh's play last week symbolized the impact freshmen are having around the country two weeks into the season. Team of Week Stanford The Cardinal weren't supposed to get to New York, let alone enter the Garden 3-0. It lost its starting point guard when Chris Hernandez broke his foot and then weren't sure if Julius Barnes, Matt Lotich and Dan Grunfeld could all adjust their positions and handle -- in the case of Lotich and Grunfeld -- more minutes. Stanford withstood a flurry of chances by BU and Xavier and still held on to win the two Preseason NIT home games because Josh Childress became a go-to scorer, worked hard to get second-shot conversions and Justin Davis was just as diligent on the glass. The Cardinal was picked to finish seventh in the Pac-10 and they're proving once again that they're still one of the top teams in the league.

Supporting Cast MARCUS MOORE, Washington State:The Cougars were desperate for some good news to start the season and Moore delivered in nearly every minute. The junior point guard scored 35 points in 36 minutes in leading the Cougars to a win over San Jose State. Washington State, picked to finish last in the Pac-10, shouldn't have any self-esteem issues as long as Moore is on the floor. EBI ERE, Oklahoma: Ere got the Sooners back on track with wins over UC Irvine and Princeton, scoring 27 points in 29 minutes against the Tigers. Getting the senior small forward to be a go-to scorer was lacking against Alabama, even though he scored 24 points in the opener. They came too late and without much authority, unlike his 38 points in two games this weekend. RICKY CLEMONS, Missouri: Clemons scored 25 points and dished out four assists in his debut win against American after transferring from a junior college. The Tigers needed Clemons to be a scorer, despite playing the point, after losing Jimmy McKinney for the first few games with a broken bone above his eye. Clemons took some heat off of Ricky Paulding by being more of an offensive threat. AMIT TAMIR, California: The Bears came back from 17 down to beat New Mexico at the Pit, largely because of the Israeli forward. He notched a double-double, scoring 20 points and grabbing 10 boards for the forward-challenged Bears. Tamir's emergence as a go-to guy in game one is a blessing for Ben Braun, who was unsure if anyone had it in them to step forward and become a scoring leader. DWYANE WADE, Marquette: Wade continued his torrid streak with 24 points in the win over Coppin State; and 32 in 35 minutes in the victory over Texas-San Antonio. The Golden Eagles are 3-0 and largely because of Wade's ability to score whenever he wants. The junior guard's most impressive stat from the week might be his free-throw numbers from the UTSA game, making 10 of 13 free throws, meaning fouling him isn't slowing him down either.

Freshmen Watch

SHAVLIK RANDOLPH Duke Randolph's debut really came in London when he proved he could be Nowitzki-like. But the real deal occurred against Army when he scored 23 points in 18 minutes, including seven boards, a 3-pointer and no turnovers.	RASHAD MCCANTS North Carolina He started off the week with 28 points in the rout of Penn State, scored 18 in the win over Rutgers and then finished it off with 17 in the win over Old Dominion. He immediately solved the Tar Heels' perimeter woes from last season.	TORIN FRANCIS Notre Dame He didn't shy away from shooting, but his assertive play was rewarding for John Calipari who pushed him to produce throughout the preseason. Carney scored 12 points, had nine boards, five assists and two blocks in the win over the 'Cuse.	HASSAN ADAMS Arizona Adams' debut in the rout over Western Kentucky was nothing short of efficient. He scored 22 points in 17 minutes, making 9 of 12 shots. He had four rebounds, three assists and had only one turnover.

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On Our Radar
Danny Granger, Bradley: The sophomore forward was sensational in the upset win over Pepperdine, scoring 29 points, grabbing 20 rebounds and dishing out two assists in Jim Les' Bradley coaching debut. The loss could haunt Pepperdine for months.

Kyle Korver, Creighton: The Bluejays cruised into the Guardians Classic semifinals behind Korver's 19 points, 4.5 boards and four assists in two games last week.

Corey Gipson, Austin Peay: He scored 19 points, grabbed five rebounds and handed out three assists in the shocking win at Memphis in overtime. The junior point guard took advantage of the Tigers' inexperience at the position.

Brad Boyd, Louisiana-Lafayette: Boyd led the Caguns to an upset victory over the Mario Austin-less Mississippi State Bulldogs with 33 points in 40 minutes. He had seven turnovers but he made nine 3s.

Taylor Coppenwrath, Vermont: The Catamounts' view Coppenwrath as being Bird-like and he produced an all-around type of game over the weekend with 27 points, six boards and 9 of 10 from the line in a win at Marist for the 2-0 Catamounts.

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Good Wins Prairie View A&M 78, Houston 75: That's right, this isn't a misprint. Houston lost to nearby Prairie View, spoiling the debut of Indiana transfer Andre Owens (25 points). The Panthers won just 10 games last season, 19 in the previous three. Saint Joseph's 85, Boston College 58: The Hawks proved that they are a contender in the A-10 East Division with the crushing victory over the Eagles on Saturday in Chestnut Hill. This win will help their RPI come March. Rice 72, Tulane 58: The Owls most likely won't reach the NCAAs, but beating Tulane gives the program confidence that it lacked in non-conference games. Losing at Stanford Sunday was understandable after such an emotional win.

Bad Loss San Diego State 70, Eastern Washington 75: The Eagles are one of the Big Sky favorites so it's not embarrassing. But the Aztecs had visions of winning the Mountain West and they can't afford to get nipped at home by Big Sky schools. Oregon State 73, Idaho State 76: The loss was in overtime, but still smarts Jay John in his head coaching debut. First impressions are critical and losing to a Big Sky school at home doesn't help. Washington 53, Montana State 56: That's right, the Big Sky went 3-0 in big road games with wins over a MWC school and two Pac-10 schools over the weekend. The Bobcats spoiled Lorenzo Romar's head coaching debut at Washington in Seattle Sunday.

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Caught Our Eye Inside the Top 25: Connecticut was impressive in dispatching Quinnipiac on Saturday with Ben Gordon living up to his potential as the team's leading scorer (22 points), Emeka Okafor producing a double-double (16 and 12 and three blocks) and Taliek Brown giving the Huskies a stable presence at the point (16 points and 10 assists).

Outside the Top 25: BYU cruised into a matchup with St. Bonaventure in the title game of the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands on Monday by beating Toledo and Kansas State. The Cougars are still a threat to be a contender in the Mountain West and Travis Hansen is living up to expectations by averaging 22 points, eight boards and five assists in two games. The Cougars also held Kansas State to 28 second-half points in the win Saturday.

RON SLAY: The Tennessee senior forward came back from an ACL tear to score 31 points in a surprisingly tight two-point win over Gardner-Webb. Slay could end up leading the SEC in scoring by January.

MAC: The conference that complains about getting only one bid to the NCAAs didn't help itself during the first week of action. The MAC lost 11 of 20 games in the first weekend and that won't help this conference's RPI.

PROVIDENCE FT SHOOTING: The Friars were 16 for 16 from the line, including Ryan Gomes' 7 for 7 effort, in a win over Brown. Those intangibles will help offset some deficiencies (like interior scoring) in the Big East.

BIG WEST: This league started out 4-12 in the first weekend. The marquee team from last year -- UC Santa Barbara -- went 1-2 at the Top of the World Classic in Fairbanks and UC Irvine came home empty in two games at Oklahoma's tournament.

ST. BONAVENTURE: Jan van Breda Kolff is working wonders again under the radar as he has the Bonnies acting like a thorn in the sides of bigger teams once again. The Bonnies pounded Virginia Tech and Michigan in the first two games at the Paradise Jam, with Marques Green averaging 28 points in two games.

PENN STATE'S OFFENSE: The Nittany Lions rely almost exclusively on Brandon Watkins (24 points) but they barely got his average in scoring a meager 37 points in a loss to Penn. That followed a 30-point blowout loss at North Carolina.

ARKANSAS' REBOUNDING: It wasn't a typo -- the Hogs grabbed 77 boards in the win over Jackson State. What's even more amazing is that Jonathon Modica (13) was the only player to grab double-figure boards out of the 12 players who were credited with a rebound. Now, the Hogs did miss shots -- 40 field goals and 21 free throws with 24 of the 68 (there were nine team boards) coming on the offensive glass.

TEMPLE'S RECORD?: The Owls started out 0-1 after missing a chance to beat Rutgers at home Sunday. Temple's next six games are at Wake Forest, at South Carolina, at Charlotte, at Penn, at Penn State, and at Illinois in Chicago before coming home to play Indiana.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com. His Weekly Watch, a look back at the week and a preview of the week ahead, runs every Monday.