NEWS AND NOTES
LOTS OF LINKS!!
For Jon Teitel’s latest Bracket Projections – CLICK HERE
For Jon Teitel’s interview with UNC Asheville Athletic Director and current Selection Committee member Janet Cone – CLICK HERE
-After playing what was perhaps the singular most impressive game of the season with their decisive win at Xavier and appearing to be in the driver’s seat for a first place finish and a #1 seed, Villanova fell at Creighton. For the Bluejays it was a much needed win that pulled them out of a bit of a slump. For Villanova it shouldn’t hurt them that much, especially when you consider that winning the conference tournament will still land them as one of the top 2 teams on the #1 line, but it did expose them a bit.
-Kansas got another hugely impressive road win at Texas Tech yesterday. It was the third straight loss for Texas Tech and has been battling injuries, but will still be a dangerous team if they can get healthy before March.
-Florida got a much needed win at home against Auburn. They weren’t in any danger of missing the dance, but this does polish up their resume.
-Arizona has had an interesting week. We’ll detail some of that in a later post and/or podcast, but for now they lost on the road at Oregon. They actually played really well for the first thirty minutes or so, but fell apart down the stretch.
-Marquette is on the bubble. Marquette did not need to lose to a non-tournament team. Marquette lost at DePaul. Marquette did not need that.
-TCU got a real nice win and has won three straight. They have a very solid resume and are now a virtual lock.
-Louisville desperately needed a good win, and they got one yesterday. They’re still outside our bubble, but are infinitely closer after a road win at Virginia Tech.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-TULSA AT CINCINNATI (American). Cincinnati is in good shape, but it looks like they need one more big win to secure a protected seed. If they hold serve and pick up a win against either Wichita State next week or against Houston in the conference tournament then they should get it.
-EAST CAROLINA AT HOUSTON (American). Houston is coming off a somewhat surprising loss against Houston, and should be able to bounce back today. If they can’t, then they’re in real trouble.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). Michigan will likely get a #1 seed if they win out through the Big Ten Tournament.
-MINNESOTA AT PURDUE (Big Ten). Purdue is a virtual lock for a protected seed and should skate into it if they’re able to hold serve.
-COLORADO STATE AT NEVADA (Mountain West). Nevada has been playing really well and should cruise into the top half of the NCAA Tournament bracket if they’re able to hold serve.
-UCLA AT COLORADO (Pac Twelve). UCLA is right on the bubble and every game has a pivotal feel. This is a road game, but it’s against a Colorado team that is nowhere near making the field, so a loss would really hurt UCLA.
-PENN STATE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). Both teams are outside the bubble, but a win today and a strong showing in the Big Ten Tournament could be enough to get one of these teams in.
-FLORIDA STATE AT NC STATE (ACC). Both teams are in our field, but both have room for improvement. This is a resume building game and will look good for whichever team pulls it off.
-NORTHERN KENTUCKY AT IUPUI (Horizon League). Northern Kentucky will clinch first place with a win today.
-FURMAN AT EAST TENNESSEE STATE (SoCon). East Tennessee State is tied with UNC Greensboro in the standings and can get at least a share of it with a win today.
-SAMFORD AT UNC GREENSBORO (SoCon). See above..
-IONA AT RIDER (Metro Atlantic). Rider is tied with Canisius in the conference standings, but won both meetings during the season and owns the tiebreaker.