NEWS AND NOTES
CLICK HERE for our most recent Under the Radar Podcast
For Chad Sherwood’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE
-Florida State outscored Georgia Tech in the second half last night. The problem was they were down by close to 30 at halftime and still ended up losing by 22. It’s time to start thinking of Georgia Tech as a tournament team. I’d like to see them do more on the road, and had they held on to win at Virginia Tech I’d have them much further inside the bubble, but they’ve avoided bad losses and they now have wins over North Carolina and Florida State.
-USC defeated UCLA last night, which is their fourth win against the Bruins and was a win they kind of needed to help shore things up on their resume. UCLA is still in the protected seed range, but they have lost two straight.
-Butler picked up a nice road win at Seton Hall, who isn’t a great team by any means, but is still a pretty good team and it gives Butler a true road win, which is an area where they had been struggling.
-Creighton continues to struggle without Mo Watson. They lost by 20 at Georgetown yesterday. Truth be told, this appears to be more of a setback than what it should be. To lose to a non-tournament team by a much wider margin than what Watson’s ppg average even was is a bit alarming. Creighton may be in for a rough ride down the stretch.
-Memphis lost at Temple. So much for me singing their praises anymore.
-Miami FL held on to beat Boston College at home. By 1 point. As much as I rant about being unimpressed with Arkansas, I’m even less impressed with the Canes this year.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-XAVIER AT CINCINNATI. This game is of heightened importance for several reasons. It’s a rivalry game, but it’s also a chance for both teams to boost their resumes. This is important because Cincinnati has very few (if any) chances remaining to beat a team that’s likely to end up on the top half of the bracket, and for Xavier they currently have just one true road win and their best win of the season is currently against Clemson, who is barely inside the bubble at the moment. So, not only is this a rivalry game, it’s a rivalry game with a sense of urgency.
-NEBRASKA AT NORTHWESTERN (Big Ten). Northwestern isn’t just inside the bubble at the moment, they’re on track to be wearing white in the Round of 64. They should be able to win this game and hold serve, which would get them to a very impressive 6-2 in the conference play.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC). North Carolina still looks safe for a protected seed, and Virginia Tech still looks safe for the NCAA Tournament. If the Hokies could somehow pull this off the quality of their resume would undergo a huge spike.
-INDIANA AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Indiana appears to have righted their ship having won four of their last five, but I still get the sense that they are good enough to make their profile a lot better than what it currently is. Michigan needs to string together some wins just to land on the right side of the bubble, so they need to have a sense of urgency coming into this game.
-SAN DIEGO AT GONZAGA (West Coast). Gonzaga should roll in this game as if it were a buy game. They will stay unbeaten, and could be the #1 team in both polls when they come out Monday.
-WASHINGTON STATE AT ARIZONA (Pac Twelve). Arizona is coming off a huge win against UCLA from this past weekend, and shouldn’t have too much trouble at home in this one.
-NEW MEXICO STATE AT SEATTLE (WAC). It’s the same thing with New Mexico State for every game. They’re good enough to win out, and if they do the committee should at least consider them.
-OREGON AT UTAH (Pac Twelve). I really think both of these teams have improved as the season has progressed, but feel Oregon has improved at a higher rate. Utah is at home, and this won’t be an easy game for Oregon to win, but they’re certainly capable of doing it. This would be a really good win for either team’s profile, which is important because Oregon is trying to secure a protected seed and Utah is trying to land on the right side of the bubble.
-SAN FRANCISCO AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast). Saint Mary’s should coast to an NCAA Tournament bid so long as they continue to hold serve.