CLICK HERE for our latest Under the Radar Video Podcast
-KENNESAW STATE AT NORTH ALABAMA (Atlantic Sun). If Kennesaw State loses it will be mathematically impossible for them to qualify for the Atlantic Sun Tournament, which would make them this year’s first team to be removed from the Survival Board.
NEWS AND NOTES
-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day between Vermont and Stony Brook, which has major first place implications in the America East – CLICK HERE
-Duke DID NOT look like a top ten team last night. They fell behind huge to NC State, but were actually coming back and got as close as 9 (I think), but then NC State blew it open again and ended up winning 88-66. It was a win that NC State desperately needed since they had been straddling the bubble for the last several weeks.
-Auburn lost their second straight game to a team that’s nowhere close to the tournament as they fell to Georgia 65-55. Auburn is in absolutely no danger, and if anything still has a very good chance at ending up as a protected seed, but you do have to question if their bloated record is indicative of how good this team actually is. They have a very high ceiling. It’s just that they don’t always play up to it.
-Butler led for most of the game at Seton Hall, and it appeared that they were going to get one of their biggest wins of the year, but with less than a second to go Seton Hall ran an inbounds play that resulted in a game winning tip-in. Seton Hall had been dominating, but after losing a couple of games they probably needed a win like this to help reclaim the driver’s seat in the Big East.
-Michigan got a huge road win at Rutgers. This improves their own tournament resume by a ton, and it puts Rutgers in a situation from desperately needing a road win to VERY DESPERATELY needing a road win!!
-Cincinnati hit a mid court shot at the end of overtime while behind by 2!!! The only problem was that it was after the horn went off. They ended up falling to UCF 89-87 at home, which is a rather damaging loss for a bubble team. BTW, this was Cincinnati’s fourth straight overtime game, which I think ties some sort of record. BUT IT IS NOT THE SAME AS A QUADRUPLER!!!!
-East Tennessee State picked up a big home win against Furman, and their chances of landing inside the bubble continue to increase.
-Indiana got a monster road win at Minnesota. The Hoosiers were lacking big time when it came to wins away from home, so this helps them out a ton.
-South Carolina had been on a roll, and seemed to be in a position to play their way inside the bubble had they been able to win at Mississippi State last night. They ended up falling 79-76, but they still have a path to the NCAA Tournament if they can finish strong. Mississippi State is also straddling the bubble, so this was a very big win for them.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-OHIO STATE AT IOWA (Big Ten). Ohio State has won five of six and has really been playing well lately. A road win at Iowa would be another really big win on their resume and would help out their seeding. Iowa is coming off a nice road win at Minnesota and other than a blowout loss at Purdue, is going through a stretch where they have been playing really well as well.
-NORTHERN IOWA AT INDIANA STATE (Missouri Valley). If Northern Iowa wins out through the regular season, which it looks like they are good enough to do, then they should be inside the bubble even if they don’t win their conference tournament.
-OREGON STATE AT ARIZONA (Pac 12). Arizona has really been on a roll lately and should land pretty far inside the top half of the bracket. But, they still need to keep holding serve in games like this.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). This should be a winnable road game for a Michigan State team that’s been somewhat disappointing this year, but is still safely in the field, appears to be safely in the top half of the bracket, and is still a very talented and potentially dangerous team.
-OREGON AT ARIZONA STATE (Pac 12). Oregon is still having a big year, but if they want to end up as a protected seed then they need some road wins like this one in order to cement it. And, it won’t be easy. Arizona State appears to have played their way inside the bubble and continues to look better and better as the season goes along. This would be another big win for them tonight.
-USC AT COLORADO (Pac 12). USC is inside our bubble, but is in that 9-11 seed range. A win tonight would really boost the value of their resume. Colorado looks to be safely in the top half of the bracket and is continuing to play to improve their seed.
-SANTA CLARA AT BYU (West Coast). BYU looks to be a solid tournament caliber team, and they are looking to push their winning streak to seven games before they host Gonzaga this weekend.
-STANFORD AT WASHINGTON (Pac 12). We’ve about given up on Stanford. They have fallen outside the bubble, but could still reach it if they can finish strong. That would mean sweeping the Washington schools and adding two more road wins to their resume.
-SAN FRANCISCO AT GONZAGA (West Coast). These two had a battle earlier in the year, but with tonight’s game being at Gonzaga it may not be as close. The Zags continue to dominate the league and have a very wide path to a #1 seed in the NCAAs.
-LMU AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast). Saint Mary’s appears to be inside the bubble and will likely stay there so long as they continue to hold serve.