For Jon Teitel’s interview with Michigan/Purdue alum Spike Albrecht as he previews the Sweet 16 for both teams – CLICK HERE
Yesterday, the major coaching news as expected was that Louisville will not retain David Padgett as head coach going forward; the Cardinals won a pair of games in the NIT before being eliminated by Mississippi State on Tuesday night. This morning, ESPN’s Jeff Goodman is now reporting that Dan Hurley will have a 6-year deal in place to become the new head coach at Connecticut.
As for the rest of the NIT, Western Kentucky and Utah will move on to the NIT Final Four at Madison Square Garden next Tuesday. This leaves open the possibility that Rick Stansbury and his current team at Western Kentucky could take on his old team of Mississippi State.
North Texas also advanced to the CIT Championship Best-of-3 round with a 90-68 victory against Jacksonville State last night. The Mean Green had 5 guys in double-figures last night; they were led by Roosevelt Smart’s 20 points.
The first two CIT quarterfinals saw Northern Colorado get a win on the road at San Diego last night. The Bears had 3 guys with at least 20 points; Andre Spight led the way with 26 points; Jordan Davis had 21 and Anthony Johnson had 20 points off the bench. Illinois-Chicago also got a big win at Austin Peay last night; Godwin Boahen hit the game-winner for the Flames with under a second remaining to send the Flames into the CIT semifinal round.
(1) FERRIS STATE VS. (4) WEST TEXAS A&M (7:00 PM, CBS Sports Network). What was a little surprising was that Ferris State had the closest game in the opening round of the Elite Eight on Tuesday, but nonetheless the Bulldogs bring a 24-game winning streak into tonight’s contest. The Buffaloes of West Texas A&M had a fairly more comfortable 14-point win in their opener against Le Moyne.
(2) QUEENS (NC) VS. (3) NORTHERN STATE (approx. 9:30 PM, CBS Sports Network). The Royals outlasted Cal Baptist in a 100-94 shootout on Tuesday night – they will move on to play Northern State (located in South Dakota) following the Wolves’ 79-71 win against East Stroudsburg on Tuesday night. The semifinal winners will play in the NCAA Division II championship at 3 PM EDT on Saturday on the flagship CBS network.
CAMPBELL AT SAN FRANCISCO (10:00 PM). The Dons have been able to survive a pair of close wins at home against Colgate and Utah Valley in the CBI; Campbell hits the road for the first time after beating the Miami RedHawks and a thrilling win against New Orleans in Round 2. The winner will play North Texas in the CBI Best-of-3 Championship Series.
SAM HOUSTON STATE AT TEXAS-SAN ANTONIO (8:00 PM, CBS Digital Network). The UTSA Roadrunners have had about a week off after their opening-round victory against Lamar last week; they host another in-state foe Sam Houston State after the Bearkats beat Eastern Michigan in the 2nd round of the CIT on Monday night. The winner will know their semifinal opponent after the final quarterfinal game between Central Michigan and Liberty is played on Saturday.