Hofstra at Stony Brook, 7:00 PM Eastern, espn3
It is time for the Battle of Long Island in Stony Brook, New York tonight as the America East’s Stony Brook Seawolves host the Colonial’s Hofstra Pride. Stony Brook is going to be attempting to narrow Hofstra’s all-time 9-3 lead in this young rivalry series. The Seawolves enter tonight’s game at 4-6 on the season, though they have been playing much better lately after a tough 0-4 start. They picked up a solid road win at Columbia last time out, 77-72, behind 30 points and 9 rebounds from sophomore Awkasi Yeboah.
Hofstra enters tonight’s game at 6-3 on the year, including back-to-back road wins over the past week at Monmouth (by one point) and at Rider. Eli Pemberton had 28 points and 8 rebounds in the Rider win while both Joel Angus and Rokal Gustas each had double-digit rebounds. In fact, a 40-26 overall edge on the glass was likely the deciding factor in that 6 point victory. Also keep an eye on Justin Wright-Foreman, who has been in double figures in scoring every game, and is averaging over 25 points per game in his team’s last four outings. The Colonial Athletic Association seems to always present us with fun and competitive regular season battles, and so far it appears that Hoftsra should be right in the mix for the league crown this year.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES
-A slightly better night tonight than what we had last night where nothing happened. I mean that. We always write up the notable action from the night before. Last night had absolutely nothing worth noting.
-MISSISSIPPI STATE AT CINCINNATI. Mississippi State is unbeaten. They’ve also yet to leave home and have had some close calls against teams that don’t appear to be anywhere close to the NIT, much less the NCAAs. A win in this game would be the statement win on their resume so far. Cincinnati’s wins haven’t been that much better and they could use this one as well.
-FORDHAM AT RUTGERS. You know it’s a busy night when one of the games we are HIGHLIGHTING is Fordham vs Rutgers! It’s a game between two non UTR teams and Rutgers can improve to a respectable 9-3 on the year with a win.
-LOUISIANA AT LOUISIANA TECH. You know what?? This one might be fun!! I’m a little disappointed it wasn’t the UTR Game of the Day. Both teams have good records, and both have demonstrated having a pulse with LA Tech nearly winning at Alabama and Louisiana (formerly Louisiana Lafayette) playing well in the Cayman Islands tournament. Louisiana, along with UT Arlington, could be one of the better teams in the Sun Belt, and LA Tech should be a force in CUSA.
-MURRAY STATE AT SAINT LOUIS. I know their chances are pretty slim of landing inside the bubble, but Murray State just one loss on the year and can get their third true road win today. If they can keep winning at this clip and then blow through their conference they may end up in the discussion.
-MICHIGAN AT TEXAS. Both teams have looked good at times, but up until now neither really has the resume to show it. They both appear to be good enough to get the big wins that they need, but the sooner that starts the better, and this game has a pivotal feel for both teams.
-ALBANY AT MEMPHIS. As bad as Memphis has looked, their 6-2 record doesn’t have me quite holding my nose as hard as I think I should be. Albany is 10-1 on the year, they have looked to be as good as Memphis, and if they can pick this one up it would be their fifth true road win of the season. They more they keep winning the more we need to pay attention to them.
-JACKSONVILLE STATE AT OREGON STATE. Jax State comes in at 7-2 and has looked really strong during parts of the season. Oregon State is a modest 6-3. I know this is a buy game, but it’s a buy game where the team being bought is certainly capable of winning it.
-Saint Peter’s @ Seton Hall – a mildly interesting buy game based only on geography
-Columbia @ Boston College – buy game
-Catholic (nondiv1) @ Maryland – buy game
-SELA @ UCF – buy game
-Eastern Washington @ Wyoming
-Eastern New Mexico (nondiv1) @ New Mexico State