The Close Out: Recent Episodes
Noah Litton and Matt Hargrove
Lifelong friends Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove cover and debate everything in the world of basketball and much more.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove cover the first weekend of the NCAA tournament and look ahead to the Sweet 16 and Elite 8.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove cover and predict the first round of the NCAA tournament, the final four, and pick their champion.
Matthew Hargrove is joined by Turnover Sports' College Basketball writer and fellow Western Nebraska Pioneers intern, Alec Musa, to get you ready for one of the biggest sporting events of the year. Matthew and Alec discuss if the softer schedules will hurt Gonzaga and Baylor in the end, as well as go over mid-major sleepers across the country. Alec also explains what goes into his strategy when filing out his bracket and picking upsets. Plus, the guys take the occasional trip down memory lane and talk about their favorite memories together over the 2020 summer in the Midwest.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove share their immediate reactions to the blockbuster four team trade that sent James Harden to the Nets. The guys discuss what this means for the NBA, Lebrons legacy, and winners and losers.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove celebrate the pod's one year anniversary and look back at the craziness of 2020. The guys dive into college basketball and discuss Michigan's dominance, the Big 10's inconsistency, and the Texas Longhorn's incredible week. Jakob Litton joins the episode to cover why the regular season matters for the 76ers, how the Pelicans need to improve, Steph's killer week, and Rookie of the Year predictions.
Noah and Matthew are back for one last go around before the clock strikes midnight on the worst year ever. The last show of 2020 features college basketball's best of the best, where the guys try and decide if anyone can contend with Gonzaga and Luka Garza. Also, the NBA has just returned and the Brooklyn Nets look unstoppable. The guys discuss Brookyln's start, as well as James Harden's Dennis Rodman like stint to begin the year. Plus, Matthew talks himself into believing that the Bucks best chance to team Giannis up with a superstar is now...with James Harden.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are TOGETHER for this very special episode, it is the first time the two have been in the same room to record since the beginning of June. We finally have our 2020 NBA champions, the Los Angeles Lakers. The two talk discuss the game, what this means going forward, Lebron's legacy, and so much more.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove discuss the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, pick their MVP's of the series so far, make finals predictions, and FINALLY talk about some college hoops.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to talk about the new movie Tenet, The Batman trailer, Chadwick Boseman's passing, Steve Nash's hiring, and the first and second round of the NBA playoffs.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to talk about the first week of the NBA restart.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back from their hiatus to discuss the upcoming NBA bubble season.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back from their three week hiatus and bring on Stephen Carter to discuss 'The Last Dance' documentary and the possibility of the NBA returning this summer.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove bring Noah's dad back on the podcast to talk about 'The Last Dance' parts 3 and 4.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to dive deeper into Jalen Green deciding to forego college and play in the NBA G-League, they talk about the Woj Bomb that might get things rolling for the NBA, the two do a deep dive into the 2011 NBA Finals Game 6, and debate the best way for college basketball coaches to recruit during quarantine. Noah's dad comes on to talk about the first two parts of 'The Last Dance' documentary.
Matthew Hargrove is finishing up his last dance of the semester, which is studying for a human anatomy exam. So, Noah Litton talks about Jalen Green going to the NBA G League and what that means for college basketball, Cole Anthony declaring for the NBA draft, and a way too early look into next season of college basketball. Noah gives his immediate reactions of "The Last Dance" documentary and his Top 5 NBA coaches of all-time.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to talk about their social distancing struggles, drinking wine on the podcast, and try to cope with the fact that college basketball won’t return for 200 plus days. Matthew proposes an idea of starting March Madness before the 2020-2021 season. The two discuss Matt Haarms transfer decision and the most loaded college basketball teams that didn’t win a national championship. The guys talk about the NBA H.O.R.S.E competition, the NBA 2k tournament, and debate some NBA What If’s?
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove take this week's episode to Noah's back porch. The two discuss Marcus Garrett winning National Defensive Player of the Year, the NCAA giving an extra year of eligibility to Spring but not Winter sports, Noah's Outlandish Conspiracy of the week, Dads' wearing basketball jerseys, Lamelo Ball buying his NBL team, and the two analyze Bleacher Report's latest 2020 Mock NBA Draft.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to their regularly scheduled program after their episode series, "Close Out Madness". The guys talk about Dayton's Obi Toppin winning player of the year, All-American Team selections, Rick Pitino's return to basketball, and Noah gives his "Stranger Things in Basketball Conspiracy" that may be a little outlandish. The guys give an NBA COVID-19 update, talk about Kenyon Martin Jr. declaring for the draft, and Steve Ballmer buying the Forum as a potential new home for the Clippers.
Noah Litton, Matthew Hargrove, and Stephen Carter play out the Final Four and National Championship in their fourth episode of the Close Out Takes On Corona series using Joe Lunardi's most recent bracket.
Noah Litton, Matthew Hargrove, and Stephen Carter play out the Sweet 16 and Elite 8 in their third episode of the Close Out Takes On Corona series using Joe Lunardi's most recent bracket. Next stop... The Final Four.
Noah Litton, Matthew Hargrove, and Stephen Carter play out the Round of 32 in their second episode of the Close Out Takes On Corona series using Joe Lunardi's most recent bracket. Next stop.. the Sweet 16.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove cope with their sadness by playing out March Madness in their episode series "Close Out Takes on Corona". This episode, the guys bring on Stephen Carter and play through the Round of 64 using Joe Lunardi's most recent updated bracket.
Matthew Hargrove is on vacation this week and taking time off of the podcast to prepare for March Madness. So, Noah Litton brings on his dad to talk about the Corona Virus outbreak and what that means for basketball, the college basketball conference tournaments, Joe Lunardi’s bracketology, Kansas’ response to the NCAA, and Lebron James breakout week.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove cover all of the conferences they have neglected this season, so basically every conference but the Big 12 and Pac-12. The guys dive into the SEC, ACC, Big Ten, and Big East conferences, look at all the Top 25 teams that lost this week, and preview the big games coming up this week. Noah and Matt debate the Harden vs. Giannis beef and the Giannis vs. Lebron MVP race. The guys talk about Russell Westbrooks performance, the Lakers working out JR Smith and Dion Waiters, and they do an NBA Standings update.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove review Kansas vs. Baylor, BYU upsetting Gonzaga, San Diego State losing to UNLV, and Oregon getting a big overtime win over Arizona. The guys talk about Ohio State’s bounce back, Creighton heating up, Florida State’s dominance, and Duke’s back-to-back loss against an unranked opponent. Noah and Matt discuss the Lakers vs. Celtics game, Tatum’s 41-point performance, Lavine’s frustration, and Beal’s unfortunate situation. The two breakdown what it would look like if the playoffs started today.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to do their Saturday Special. The guys talk about Duke losing to NC State by 22, Iowa knocking Ohio State out of the Top 25, Arizona State upsetting Oregon, and reviewing the Pac 12 Standings. The guys do a preview for Kansas vs. Baylor and Gonzaga vs. BYU. Noah and Matt cover John Beilein’s resignation as Cleveland’s head coach, Kyrie Irving’s season ending surgery, Joel Embiid’s big game, Westbrook's ejection, and the two give their bold predictions for the weekend.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove are back to analyze a mock March Madness bracket, review the AP Top 25 Poll and the Wendy’s Wooden Award Finalists, as well as review the games of the week in college basketball. The guys review the NBA trade deadlines and talk about All-Star Weekend events such as the three-point contest and the dunk contest. Noah and Matt bring on Noah’s dad to discuss the new and improved NBA All-Star game, Michael Jordan conspiracies and preview the big matchup of the week in college basketball: Kansas vs. Baylor.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove discuss Virginia upsetting Florida State, Texas Tech upsetting West Virginia, Coach K chewing out the Cameron Crazies, and preview the games for the upcoming weekend. Noah gives an update on his intramural basketball team. The two talk about Victor Oladipo’s return from injury, Aaron Gordon announcing he will take part in this years Dunk Contest, the All-Star game set-up, the Lakers and the Clippers postponing their game in honor of Kobe, and Matthew gives a preview of the upcoming games this weekend. Noah and Matthew debate if the NCAA and NBA should change the way they end games.
Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove remember the life of Kobe Bryant. The two talk about the Big 12/SEC challenge, the AP Top 25 Poll, the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Philadelphia 76ers, and the Los Angeles Clippers vs. Miami Heat.
In this week’s episode of the Close Out podcast, Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove talk about the Kansas vs. Kansas State brawl, Baylor jumping Gonzaga for the number one spot, Seton Hall moving from 18 to 10 in the AP Poll, Auburn dropping from 4 to 12, and undefeated San Diego State moves to 4. The guys talk about the games of the week: Villanova beating Butler and Tulsa beating Memphis. Noah and Matt discuss Zion’s return, the NBA All-Star team, Damian Lillard’s 61-point game. The two debate which team is going to be the biggest threat to the Milwaukee Bucks in the East, and which players in NBA history would make-up the best dunk contest. Noah and Matt bring on Noah’s dad to talk about the Kansas situation.
Noah and Matt are back to talk about the Butler, Auburn, Kentucky, and Duke upsets. It’s Christmas for Noah because both Kentucky and Duke lost. They also discuss Big 10 teams struggling on the road, including Ohio State losing at Indiana and Maryland, Michigan State losing at Purdue, Michigan losing at Minnesota, and Maryland losing at Wisconsin. The guys debate whether Baylor is the real deal after they went into Allen Fieldhouse and beat the Jayhawks last Saturday. Noah gives his Houston Rockets update, and the two continue the ongoing discussion concerning the Westbrook/Harden duo. Devonte Graham continues to light it up, and Noah gives Matthew an update on his success. Noah and Matt discuss the Grizzlies' future, and Kyrie saying the Nets need more pieces.
Noah and Matthew sit down and discuss the chaos of this college basketball season. More specifically, the guys talk about Oregon losing to Colorado, Ohio State losing to Wisconsin, Memphis losing to Georgia, Louisville losing to Florida State, and Villanova beating Marquette. They go on to cover the game of the week, Kansas vs. Baylor, and give their predictions for the inner conference battle Saturday night. NBA All-Star voting is taking place, so Noah and Matthew dive into the All-Star game, dunk contest, and much more. The two discuss the Kevin Love incident with Cleveland and which team would be the best destination for him, as well as talk about the NBA players of the week. The guys wrap up the show by arguing about the Isaiah Thomas Ejection.
For the debut of their new podcast, Noah Litton and Matthew Hargrove talk about the weirdest college basketball season of their lifetime. The guys debate which team looks the best right now, and which teams are pretenders, they also dive into who they think the best player is this season. The two discuss the James Wiseman situation with the NCAA, analyze the NBA Christmas games, and talk about the biggest disappointments and surprises of this NBA season. Noah and Matt pick players for their pickup basketball teams, and cover the “Top 5 Basketball Moments of the Decade”.