NEWS AND NOTES
-For Chad Sherwood’s UTR Game of the Day, which highlights a tight conference race in the Big South – CLICK HERE
It was a pretty chalky night last night, but there was still quite a bit of excitement.
-The biggest surprise was Creighton’s win at Butler. It is hugely important because it is a high quality road win late in the season, which is something Creighton (or more specifically their head coach) seems to struggle to pick up, but they also managed to win without Mo Watson, which demonstrates they can win high caliber games without him. I have been nothing but critical of Creighton and Coach McDermott for how they typically finish the season. I will be the first to admit and acknowledge how impressive it would be if they’re able to shore things up and finish strong despite everything that’s happened to them.
-Tennessee also picked up a rather impressive and decisive win at Auburn last night. I love the way they’re playing right now and think that they’ll be safely in the field by the time Selection Sunday gets here. Their profile needs to improve, but it should improve quite a bit based on how they’ve been playing.
Other than that, it was the night of very close calls….
-Maryland won at Ohio State, but they had to sweat it out.
-North Carolina won at home against Pitt, but it was surprisingly close.
-Kentucky took care of Georgia at home, but needed five extra minutes to do it.
-Wake Forest remains on the bubble after their win at Boston College, but they only won by 5.
-Akron continues to run through the MAC with their win at Northern Illinois which keeps them on the bubble, but they trailed for most of the game and only ended up winning by 3.
-Dayton picked up the win at Fordham, but trailed for pretty much the entire second half until the final couple of minutes.
-Georgetown continues to inch closer to the bubble. They held serve against DePaul last night, but only won by 3.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-BAYLOR AT KANSAS (***Spotlight Game***) (Big Twelve). The storyline for this is quite incredible. It’s two teams battling it out for first place in the conference and for #1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament. With Kansas most likely going to the Midwest Region in Kansas City and Baylor most likely going to the Midwest Region in Memphis they actually aren’t completely in each other’s way, but it is the first chapter in what could be up to three hugely important games if the two end up meeting for a third time in the conference tournament. Both teams have just one conference loss, and for both of them it came at West Virginia. Kansas is coming off a huge win at Kentucky, so I like their profile a little better. They also haven’t lost at home for several years, so it won’t be an easy game for Baylor to win. -PENN STATE AT INDIANA (Big Ten). Indiana has lost two straight games by big margins. They’re back home today against a Penn State team who they struggled against earlier in the year and who they really need to beat on their home floor tonight.
-ALABAMA AT ARKANSAS (SEC). Arkansas is right on the fringe of the bubble. Alabama isn’t really in the tournament picture, but they’ve been playing much better since conference play began and they aren’t the kind of team that the Razorbacks can overlook.
-GEORGIA TECH AT CLEMSON (ACC). This game is extremely bublicious. Both teams are on the bubble, and both really need this win, especially Clemson who is just 2-6 in league play and cannot afford to drop a winnable conference home game.
-SYRACUSE AT NC STATE (ACC). I think both teams are outside the bubble right now, but both are also in a position to make a run at it if they can finish strong. Both could really use a win in this one. It has a pivotal feel for both teams.
-WICHITA STATE AT DRAKE (Missouri Valley). Wichita State should land on the bubble, and most likely in the field, if they win out through the regular season. Their profile is kind of weak when it comes to big wins, but they will finish the season with a lot of true road wins and almost no bad losses, and I think that will likely be enough.
-RICHMOND AT VCU (Atlantic Ten). both these teams are at the top of the A10 standings, but VCU is the only one with a solid chance of making the tournament. This is a rivalry game and it’s always fun when these two get together. Tonight should be no different.
-NEW HAMPSHIRE AT STONY BROOK (America East). The Team of the People!!! They are one game behind Stony Brook in the conference standings and can catch them with a win today!!
-VILLANOVA AT PROVIDENCE (Big East). Providence is coming off a huge win at Marquette, and although it’s unlikely if they’re somehow able to pick up this one they may be in a position to make a run at the tournament if they keep it up. Nova is coming off one of a huge win against Virginia and still appears to be on pace to end up on the #1 line.
-MARQUETTE AT SAINT JOHN’S (Big East). Marquette is coming off a somewhat surprising loss to Providence in their last game after picking up two huge wins in a row. This is a rare winnable conference road game for them so they need to take advantage.
-TCU AT KANSAS STATE (Big Twelve). TCU has slipped off the bubble and out of our projections. They’ll have chances to get back in there, but they’ll have to be able to win games like this in order to do it. K State has had some frustrating losses this season, but is still on pace to make the tournament so long as they hold serve in games like this.
-FLORIDA STATE AT MIAMI FL (ACC). This is a rivalry game with some added importance. Florida State still looks like a solid protected seed, but they don’t seem to be heading for the #1 line like they did a couple of weeks ago. They’ve lost two straight games and are trying to avoid a third straight loss. Miami FL has been outside of our bubble all year, but they just picked up a huge win against North Carolina over the weekend, and can build on that with a win at home tonight over their rivals.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Virginia is coming off one of their more impressive games of the season even though it was a loss. Beating their rival at home and picking up another conference win should make them feel better. I still think they’re the best team in the ACC.
-NORTHWESTERN AT PURDUE (Big Ten). Both teams are in the rankings!! Northwestern isn’t just on pace to make the tournament, but they’re on pace to be wearing white in the Round of 64. Purdue still has a shot at protected seed if they can finish strong.
-SOUTH CAROLINA AT LSU (SEC). South Carolina is continuing to cruise and should be able to pick up another road win and improve to 8-1 in SEC play. They’re tied atop the standings with Kentucky right now.
-TEXAS TECH AT TEXAS (Big Twelve). Texas Tech is squarely on the bubble, and this is the kind of game they need to win in order to stay there.
-CINCINNATI AT TULSA (American). Cincinnati has a shot at ending up as a protected seed, but they’ll pretty much need to run the table in order to do it. That means winning on the road against a Tulsa team that is nowhere near the bubble, but that has played well in conference.
-NORTHERN IOWA AT ILLINOIS STATE (Missouri Valley). Northern Iowa was having an atrocious season until about the middle of January, and although they have no shot at making the NCAAs without the automatic bid, they have won five straight games so they do come into this one with some momentum. Illinois State is having a fantastic season and should end up inside the bubble if they can win out, or even if they drop a game so long as they are an outright first place finisher.
-SETON HALL AT XAVIER (Big East). Seton Hall needs to stabilize their resume and picking up a road win like this is a great way to do it. Xavier just needs to pick up some wins. They still haven’t beaten anyone that is solidly in the field yet, so this would arguably be one of their biggest wins of the season if they’re able to pull it off.
-EAST CAROLINA AT SMU (American). SMU appears to be cruising toward the NCAA Tournament and will get there as long as they continue to hold serve.
-USC AT WASHINGTON (Pac Twelve). This is a chance for USC to pick up a conference road win and add a little bit of spice to a resume that’s already pretty solid.