-OHIO STATE AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). Illinois is actually the more accomplished team in this match up. Ohio State is still looking for their first notable win. Having said that, Ohio State appears to be every bit as good, if not better, than the Illini. A win like this would go a long way in establishing the Buckeyes.
-GONZAGA AT SANTA CLARA (West Coast). Santa Clara is coming off a loss at Duke, but they are a very good team that needs a notable win on their profile. Beating Gonzaga at home would certainly give them that. If they’re able to win a game like this and avoid bad losses the rest of the way, Santa Clara should be in the discussion. Gonzaga has just one loss and is looking like a protected seed, but this won’t be an easy road game for them to win.
-BUCKNELL AT MISSOURI. I think this is a very good Bucknell team that is an at-large caliber team, but they may be in over their heads today. Having said that, a win for Bucknell would not entirely shock me, and it would really boost the quality of their resume. They need a big win because they won’t have any opportunities in conference play to get them.
-OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS STATE (Big Twelve). This is the conference opener between two good teams who will likely be dancing in March. This would be a good win for whoever pulls it off. Okie State has played in only one true road game and lost, so this would really help out their profile.
-LEHIGH AT VCU. These are two good teams that are somewhat under the radar. Lehigh has a good record, but is nearly out of chances of earning a high quality win. VCU has not lost since playing in the Battle for Atlantis tournament over Thanksgiving. Unlike Lehigh, they’ll have plenty of shots at quality wins as they get into conference play, so if Lehigh wants any sort of consideration at all, they’ll need to win this one.
-PITTSBURGH AT RUTGERS (Big East). Pitt is slightly more tested than Rutgers, but this is still their first true road game. Rutgers has not lost at home. Both need good wins on their profile, and both could use this one.
-INDIANA STATE AT CREIGHTON (Missouri Valley). Creighton continues to look like a protected seed when they play, and are coming off a big road win against Illinois State. Indiana State has potential, but in order to get the attention of the committee they’ll need a win in a game like this.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT MARYLAND (ACC). Maryland has won twelve straight since losing their opener to Kentucky. Virginia Tech has some decent wins, but still has a lot of work to do. This is another game between two teams who have big records, but still need to add quality wins to their profile.
-SETON HALL AT NOTRE DAME (Big East). Another game between two teams with good records, but that need good wins on their profile.
-SAINT JOHN’S AT CINCINNATI (Big East). Cincinnati is coming off a big win at Pitt, and with just one loss on the season appears to be in great shape.
-NC STATE AT BOSTON COLLEGE (ACC). NC State has just two losses, and one was on the road at Michigan. Maybe I was a little too quick to write them off. I still don’t think they’re anywhere close to the sixth best team, which is where they began the season, but perhaps they are the #16th best. I don’t expect them to have a whole lot of trouble today.
-MIAMI, FL AT GEORGIA TECH (ACC). I really like both these teams. Georgia Tech has looked good, but could really use a win of note on their resume. This is a winnable conference home game that a tournament team should be expected to win so we should learn something about them.
-SAINT BONAVENTURE AT COLORADO STATE. Colorado State is off to a 12-2 start and should be able to make the NCAAs with a strong showing in conference play. Saint Bonaventure is good, but not quite NCAA good.
-GEORGETOWN AT MARQUETTE (Big East). Marquette has a good record, but they need a good win.
-PURDUE AT MICHIGAN STATE (Big Ten). Michigan State is off to a good start, and Purdue is…well…not. The Spartans shouldn’t have too much trouble picking up a conference win at home.
-LMU AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast). Saint Mary’s has a good record, but their lack of quality wins has given them a small margin for error the rest of the way.
-UTAH AT ARIZONA (Pac Twelve). Arizona is coming off an exciting overtime win against Colorado. They’re unbeaten with a smattering of good wins and shouldn’t be challenged too strongly today.
-WAKE FOREST AT DUKE (ACC). Duke isn’t likely to be challenged very often as they go through ACC play, especially not at home against Wake Forest.
-TEXAS AT BAYLOR (Big Twelve). I think Baylor is a good team, but they really need a strong showing in conference and really can’t afford to lose a game like this at home.
-OKLAHOMA AT WEST VIRGINIA (Big Twelve). West Virginia has not been impressive at all this year, but they are unbeaten at home and we should see an electric crowd in this game for their first ever Big Twelve game. Oklahoma has a decent record, but needs some substance on their profile. A road win today would help.
-FLORIDA STATE AT CLEMSON (ACC). Both of these teams are trying to remain relevant.
-NORTHERN IOWA AT ILLINOIS STATE (Missouri Valley). Illinois State is a very dangerous team, but at 9-5 they still don’t have a resume that is up to NCAA Tournament standards. They must avoid losses to non-tournament teams the rest of the way.
-UAB AT DAYTON. Dayton looks very much like a bubble team right now, and cannot afford to lose at home to non-tournament teams.
-BELMONT AT TENNESSEE TECH (Ohio Valley). If Belmont can win out, they should be in the discussion.
-MURRAY STATE AT SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE (Ohio Valley). Murray’s margin for error is practically zero. They will likely be challenged throughout conference play, especially on the road. SEMO is 6-1 at home so far.
-IDAHO AT UTAH STATE. Utah State has just one loss on the year. We’ve seen this movie before. They’ve run up a big record against a weak schedule, and are always in the discussion, but never a certainty.
-BYU AT SAN FRANCISCO (West Coast). BYU looks like a bubble team and has a very small margin for error.
-NORTH DAKOTA STATE AT UMKC (Summit League). With just three losses on the year, NDSU may get a look at the selection committee if they’re able to win out. Chances are they’ll be favored in all but one of their remaining games.
-MIDDLE TENNESSEE AT SOUTH ALABAMA. MTSU has just four losses, but they don’t have any real quality wins. Still, they should be favored in nearly all their remaining games and if they win out they should get a serious look from the committee.
-STANFORD AT UCLA. I was very quick to write off UCLA, but they don’t look all that bad on paper. A win today gets them to 12-3 overall and keeps them unbeaten in conference.
-BETHUNE COOKMAN AT LSU. As bad as the SEC is, LSU should make quite a bit of noise once they get into conference play. They shouldn’t be challenged in this one today.
-SOUTH CAROLINA STATE AT SOUTH CAROLINA. A win for the Gamecocks will get them to 10-3 going into conference play.
-EASTERN MICHIGAN AT UMASS. UMass hasn’t made a whole lot of noise, but a win will get them to 10-3.
-NEW ORLEANS AT BUTLER. Butler appears to be way undermatched in this one.
-CAL STATE BAKERSFIELD AT UNLV. UNLV remains in good shape and likely won’t be challenged today.
-WALLA WALLA (nonvdiv1) AT BOISE STATE. Boise has just two losses and appears to be an NCAA Tournament caliber team. This is a complete throwaway game, though.