Here's what we learned in November

There was only three weeks of basketball in November, but there was still plenty to be learned. Here are some of the the conclusions that can be drawn from early-season play:

That November Still Counts: Securing quality wins in November is really important. After all, when you get to the last few teams being considered for selection into the NCAA field, all of those teams have proven they can lose games. The separating factor is the kind of teams they have proved they can beat.

Last year, Michigan finished 9-9 in the Big Ten (and was clearly in the field), but also proved it could lose games. But even if Michigan had finished 8-10, the Wolverines would likely have made it into the field because of important early wins over UCLA and Duke (a December win … but you get the point). This November, Portland and Northwestern really helped themselves with the Pilots' wins against Minnesota and UCLA and the Wildcats' wins against Iowa State and Notre Dame. Those wins are in the bank and will serve as additional brownie points should the Pilots and Wildcats get knocked to the canvas a few times later on.

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