NEWS AND NOTES
–Please CLICK HERE check out our latest Under the Radar Video Podcast from last night. It is a bit of an extended version, but we have a very special treat for you!! Zach joins us for the first time all year!! From his car!! In a Five Guys parking lot!! After leaving the UMBC v Hartford game!! There is no better entertainment on the entire internet!!
It was another very entertaining night.
-Kansas was able to get it done against a pretty good TCU team despite being very shorthanded, which they will be for the rest of the year. It was a good showing by TCU, and a sign that they should get the wins they need in conference to land safely in the NCAA Tournament field.
-Everyone’s favorite crazy uncle, Uncle Buzz!!, had a rough time at Georgia Tech last night. VA Tech got the win, but it was surprising that it was such a struggle.
-Ole Miss beat Auburn rather handily at home. I think this is a sign that Ole Miss is better than we thought. I also think it’s a sign that Auburn isn’t as good as we thought. Given how Auburn has struggled against UAB, Murray State, Dayton, and a few others, perhaps they’re not a top ten team after all. I know some of those teams are good teams, but none are so good that a top ten team should struggle to beat them, much less struggle to beat all three.
-Ohio State went to Rutgers for what was probably their most winnable remaining road game, and lost!! A nice feelgood win for a Scarlet Knights program that still has a very long way to go, but is getting better.
-Houston suffered their first loss of the year at Temple, and it wasn’t without some controversy, A driving layup that would have tied the game in the final seconds was waved off due to a charge, and Temple held on to pick up a win that they desperately needed.
-Marquette got a nice road win at Creighton. No sweat!. They were down 5 with 5 seconds to go. They hit a shot with less than a second to go, and after Creighton threw the ball the length of the court in an attempt to burn the final second, Marquette got the ball back under their own basket, inbounded the ball, and hit a three that just barely beat the buzzer. After that they pulled it out in overtime.
-Vanderbilt, who we kind of liked, was blown out at Georgia. That’s not good for Vandy.
-Georgetown fell on the road at Xavier in a game where both teams were beaten up with injuries.
-Kansas State was down by about 20, and appeared to be dead to rights, but somehow came back and beat West Virginia. It was a win that both of those teams really needed, and it will put WVU into an even bigger tailspin.
-Louisville fell at Pittsburgh in overtime. The Cardinals trailed for most of the game, but mounted a comeback and got a lead both late in regulation and in overtime, but couldn’t hold on.
-Fresno State picked up an impressive and exciting win at Utah State. If we are going to see a second team out of the MWC, I guess it’s going to be Fresno.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-SMU AT UCONN (American). SMU has been playing better. They’re off to a 2-0 start in league play and could use this road game tonight. They’ve still got a lot of catching up to do.
-CINCINNATI AT TULSA (American). Cincinnati is trying to bounce back after a horrendous loss to East Carolina, and they’ve got a really rough road test tonight against a Tulsa team who’s unbeaten at home, and who could play their way toward the bubble if they can have a strong showing in conference.
-MICHIGAN AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). If all goes as expected, Michigan should win and stay unbeaten on the year.
-PENN STATE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). Nebraska looks to be a home court hero this year. If that’s true, then they need to win at home against teams that have been playing as poorly as Penn State.
-WASHINGTON AT UTAH (Pac Twelve). I still think there is room inside the bubble for a Pac Twelve team to get an at-large, but it’ll have to be someone that totally dominates league play, and Washington may be one of the few teams that’s good enough to do it. Utah had struggled for most of the season, but they’ve come to life lately and won’t be easy to beat at home.
-PACIFIC AT GONZAGA (West Coast). It’s a conference game that will end up looking like a buy game.
UNDER THE RADAR
-EAST TENNESSEE STATE AT THE CITADEL (SoCon). ETSU is one of four teams that we think could win the SoCon this year, and they have a very compelling road game against a much improved and very exciting to watch Citadel team.
-WOFFORD AT UNC GREENSBORO. Wofford and UNCG are two of the four teams that we think could win the SoCon this year.
-LOUISIANA AT GEORGIA STATE (Sun Belt). If Georgia State blows through this league, and I mean pretty much wins out, then there may be room for them on this year’s bubble.
-OLD DOMINION AT FLORIDA ATLANTIC (Conference USA). I think ODU is the best team in CUSA, and that they certainly have the best resume despite a surprising loss this week. This will be a somewhat tough road test.
-MOREHEAD STATE AT BELMONT (Ohio Valley). Belmont is one of the horses in the two horse OVC race…
-MURRAY STATE AT UT MARTIN (Ohio Valley). Murray State is the other horse.
-NORTH TEXAS AT UTEP (Conference USA). North Texas shouldn’t have any trouble improving to 16-1 on the year.
-GRAND CANYON AT NEW MEXICO STATE (WAC). This is quickly becoming one of the more intriguing UTR rivalries. New Mexico State may insist that it’s not a rivalry based on how they’ve dominated the series, but it is at the very least a feud. NMSU again looks to be the toughest team to beat in the WAC.
-UC DAVIS AT UC IRVINE (Big West). Irvine has had a good season up to this point and should land in a good spot if they can dominate Big West play.