Highlighted Games for Saturday, Jan 17th

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-DUKE AT LOUISVILLE (ACC) (***Spotlight Game***).  Both teams are potential #1 seeds, and both are playing for preferential geographic placements in the NCAA Tournament.  Duke has one huge road win already.  This would go a long way toward them getting a #1 seed if they picked up a second one.

-UTAH AT ARIZONA (Pac Twelve) (***Spotlight Game***).  I really like this Utah team, and if they can win today, I think it shows they belong at least on the #2 line, which is where they have them.  Both these teams are really good.  It should be a fun one.

-BYU AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast) (***Spotlight Game***).  A very late and very bubblicious game tonight.  Both teams REALLY need to win this one.  Both are either on or outside the bubble, and both need quality wins.

-TULSA AT SOUTH FLORIDA (Conference USA).  I’m not sold on Tulsa yet at all, but they’ve played well in conference and if they go on a roll they may get close to the bubble.

-MARQUETTE AT XAVIER (Big East).  Xavier continues to be great at home and awful on the road.  They’re right inside the bubble and need to keep taking care of business on their home court, but until they win some road games they’re in real trouble.

-SFA AT ABILENE CHRISTIAN (Southland).  We say it all the time, but if SFA wins out they have a chance.

-TEXAS A&M AT LSU (SEC).  I like this LSU team, but they don’t always play up to their ceiling.  Still, I think they’re safely inside the bubble.

-SAINT LOUIS AT DAYTON (Atlantic Ten).  Dayton continues to take care of business and win the games they’re expected to win.

-NC STATE AT FLORIDA STATE (ACC).  I still think this NC State team has work to do, but they’ve looked much better lately.  This is a winnable road game for them.  Speaking of winnable road games…

-VIRGINIA AT BOSTON COLLEGE (ACC).  I like Virginia as a #1 seed caliber team and will be shocked if they have any trouble in this one.

-MIAMI FL AT NOTRE DAME (ACC).  Both teams are really good, and I think rather safely inside the bubble despite Miami’s inconsistent play at times.  Both teams come in with a lot of momentum.

-WICHITA STATE AT EVANSVILLE (Missouri Valley).  This isn’t likely to be a walk in the park for Wichita.  Evansville is a pretty good team who will likely be very tough to beat at home.

-VCU AT DUQUESNE (Atlantic Ten).  We have VCU on the #3 line, which seems high.  I can safely say if they lose this one we will not have them up there next week.

-OHIO STATE AT IOWA (Big Ten).  Both teams are good, but both have a lot of room for improvement.

-FLORIDA AT GEORGIA (SEC).  Georgia is right on the bubble and Florida is way outside of it.  Both teams really need this one.

-BAYLOR AT KANSAS STATE (Big Twelve).  This is one of the easier road games Baylor will have, and it’s not THAT easy.

-NJIT AT DARTMOUTH.  Our adopted and beloved team, which is also the team of all the people out there, NJIT, can improve to 11-9 with a win on the road today, and be on pace to make a postseason tournament.

-GREEN BAY AT DETROIT (Horizon League).  Green Bay is coming off a very damaging loss to Oakland.  They may be out of strikes as far as an at-large goes.  If they lose this one, they definitely will be.

-KENTUCKY AT ALABAMA (SEC).  Will Kentucky sleep walk and win, or will they win in a blowout??  Alabama is a respectable 12-4, and a high profile win like this will boost their profile.

-GONZAGA AT LMU (West Coast).  Gonzaga is looking like a #1 seed caliber team.

-MICHIGAN STATE AT MARYLAND (Big Ten).  Maryland is having a fantastic year and should get a huge home crowd for this one.  Michigan State is inside the bubble, but close to it, which is not where they’re used to being.  An upset win in a game like that would be huge for them, though.

-TCU AT TEXAS TECH (Big Twelve).  Are we still talking about TCU??  If they lose this game, we won’t be.

-EAST CAROLINA AT SMU (American).  SMU has improved as the year has gone on, and now appears to be the best team in the AAC.

-SYRACUSE AT CLEMSON (AAC).  I’m not overly impressed with Syracuse when I watch them play, but they keep winning, so they’re kinda hard not to like.

-MIDDLE TENNESSEE AT LOUISIANA TECH (Conference USA).  After last night’s discussion, we’ve decided that LA Tech is good enough to land on the bubble if they win out, and that they’re good enough to win out.  After we said that, they had to sweat out a rather mediocre UAB team at home.

-VANDERBILT AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC).  Vandy is having a quiet year, but they’re 11-5 and can pick up another road win tonight.

-GEORGE MASON AT GEORGE WASHINGTON (Atlantic Ten).  Since winning the Diamondhead Classic, GW has had to sweat out several teams that are nowhere close to the field, but for the most part they’ve survived.

-BUTLER AT GEORGETOWN (Big East).  This is the second meeting between these two, but the first conference game.  Butler has been inconsistent this year, but they have some big wins away from home so their profile looks really solid.

-DAVIDSON AT RICHMOND (Atlantic Ten).  Davidson has a bloated record against a weak schedule, but they can still get onto the bubble.  This the kind of game they need to be able to win to do it, though.

-UNLV AT SAN DIEGO STATE (Mountain West).  SDSU is tough to beat at home, and UNLV has not looked good lately.  As much as a big win like this would turn their season around, it doesn’t look too likely right now.

-WEST VIRGINIA AT TEXAS (Big Twelve).  West Virginia continues to improve.  If they can pick up a road win like this it will really jack up the value of their resume.

-VILLANOVA AT PENN (Big Five).  Nova should roll.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT OKLAHOMA (Big Twelve).  BEDLAM!!!!!  It happens twice a year, and it’s never boring!!  Both teams are in the rankings, and both could use a big win to boos their resumes.  To get a big win over a rival would feel extra good.  This one will be fun.

-WYOMING AT FRESNO STATE (Mountain West).  Wyoming is in the rankings, but the rest of their profile is somewhat underwhelming.  This is the kind of game that tournament teams are expected to win.

-NORTH TEXAS AT OLD DOMINION (Conference USA).  If ODU won out it would not surprise me.  They’re really good.

-TEMPLE AT CINCINNATI (American).  Temple is on the bubble, and needs this win.  Cincinnati is outside the bubble, and needs this win.

-PROVIDENCE AT CREIGHTON (Big East).  Providence is looking better, but this won’t be an easy road game for them.  There is no such thing in this league.

-NORTHWESTERN AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten).  Michigan has a lot of work to do if they want to make the field.

-SOUTH CAROLINA AT AUBURN (SEC).  We currently have South Carolina right on the bubble, and this is the kind of road game they need to be able to pull off if they want to make the dance.

-KANSAS AT IOWA STATE (Big Twelve).  It’s two highly ranked teams that should end up high on the s curve, both of whom seem to be improving as the year goes along.

-UCONN AT STANFORD.  A little showcase OOC action.  UConn needs this win, and several others, just to get back into the picture.  Stanford is inside the bubble and should be able to beat teams that are not at home.

-OLE MISS AT ARKANSAS (SEC).  Arkansas has been very good this season, especially at home.

-COLORADO STATE AT SAN JOSE STATE (Mountain West).  SJSU is a very weak opponent that Colorado State simply cannot afford to lose to.