Highlighted Games For Tuesday, Jan 13th

NEWS AND NOTES

-There were three major upsets on Saturday with Duke, Arizona and Wisconsin all losing conference road games to teams that currently don’t appear to be anywhere close to making the NCAA Tournament.  We’ll see how things play out.

-There was no Bracket Racket this week due to other commitments that our staff and panelists had.  We will get back into the regular swing of things later on this week with Under the Radar and the Bracket Rundown.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-VIRGINIA TECH AT LOUISVILLE (ACC).  Louisville is coming off a close loss in what was a very exciting game to UNC.  The loss wasn’t at all damaging, and if anything it proved that Louisville can play on the road against tough teams.  Tonight they’re at home against a team that isn’t really that tough.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS (Big Twelve).  Oklahoma State has a good record and has cracked the rankings.  They’re coming off their first big win of the year against Texas.  Winning this one on the road is a much taller order, though.

-OKLAHOMA AT WEST VIRGINIA (Big Twelve).  These are two top twenty teams who can add a big win to their resume tonight.

-ARKANSAS AT TENNESSEE (SEC).  Arkansas has been a huge surprise this year, and they’ve even shown they can win on the road.  They’re ranked in the top twenty, and deservedly so.

-BUTLER AT SETON HALL (Big East).  Butler is good, but has room to improve and build upon their profile.  Seton Hall has been a huge surprise this year and is still in the rankings.  They’re tough to beat at home.

-PENN STATE AT INDIANA (Big Ten).  Both teams are bubblish, if they’re even that good.  There is a sense of urgency for both teams.

-MICHIGAN AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten).  Ohio State will still be celebrating.  Within 24 hours they can win the national title in football and knock off their hated rivals in basketball.  I’m a little worried because Kyle Lamb was last left unsupervised.

-VCU AT RHODE ISLAND (Atlantic Ten).  Rhody is having a really nice year at 11-3 and they’ve won their first three conference games.  They need a big win like this to get the attention of the committee, though.

-CLEMSON AT VIRGINIA (ACC).  Virginia remains unbeaten.  They’re ranked #2 and they’re not overrated.

-NORTHERN IOWA AT BRADLEY (Missouri Valley).  This is a very good UNI team who shouldn’t have too much trouble picking up this conference road win.

-WAKE FOREST AT SYRACUSE (ACC).  I keep thinking Syracuse is having a down year, but they are a very respective 12-4 and have won their first three ACC games.

-SFA AT CENTRAL ARKANSAS (Southland).  SFA needs to win out just to get into the conversation.

-MISSOURI AT KENTUCKY (SEC).  Kentucky has struggled in their last two games, which was surprising.  They’re at home tonight against a team that is traditionally awful on the road, but is improving.

-MIAMI FL AT DUKE (ACC).  Duke is coming off a surprising loss.  Miami has fallen onto the bubble and their resume could use some work.  An upset win in a game like this would certainly do the trick.

-GEORGETOWN AT DEPAUL (Big East).  This is a winnable road game for Georgetown, and they need to get it.

-IOWA AT MINNESOTA (Big Ten).  Iowa has some big wins, but their profile is a little inconsistent.  This is the kind of road game that they should be expected to win if they really are a solid tournament team.

-ALABAMA AT SOUTH CAROLINA (SEC).  Alabama has just three losses, and got their first road win in quite some time over the weekend.  South Carolina has lost two straight after their big win against Iowa State, and needs to turn it around if they want to get back inside the bubble.

-UNLV AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West).  Both teams need to turn it around in a hurry if they want to be safely in the field.