NEWS AND NOTES
-So Minnesota came within seconds of picking up what may have been the most single impressive road win of the season (or at least forcing overtime), but Michigan hit a shot as time expired on both the shotclock and the game clock to pull out a much more exciting than expected win. Michigan is in a bit of a slump, and you know they’re good because their definition of a slump is a close win against a pretty good team, and a road loss against another pretty good team, but they haven’t had their best week.
-Kentucky seemed like they were up by about 15pts at tip off. Mississippi State made a few runs, but for the most part they were blown off the court by a Wildcats team that just keeps getting better and better.
– Kansas State has now won three straight games against a ranked team by knocking off Texas Tech at home. On the flip side, it was the third straight loss for Texas Tech and while none of those losses were bad, their resume is looking a little light by protected seed standards. Their best overall win was probably against Nebraska in Kansas City, and Nebraska isn’t exactly a road warrior. They’ll need some bigger wins between now and the end of the season to end up on one of the top four lines.
-One of the more shocking results of the night was Buffalo’s loss at Northern Illinois. Buffalo fell behind early, which we’ve seen them do. They came back and got the lead and appeared to be in control, which we’ve seen them do. But, they failed to hold onto the lead, which we haven’t seen them do. It’s definitely a setback, but the Bulls are still in really good shape to make the NCAAs as an at-large.
-Auburn fell at South Carolina, which is another big step in the right direction for a Gamecocks team that has completely turned things around, and another setback for an Auburn team that has very few decent wins, let alone good wins. Their NCAA Tournament resume is nowhere close to matching their ranking.
-Alabama blew Ole Miss’s doors off. A really impressive home win for the Crimson Tide after a couple of really heartbreaking recent losses.
-Indiana has now lost five straight games, and only one of them was a close game. Northwestern ended up winning by 7, but at no point did it appear that they were not in control of the game. IU’s tailspin is probably about to get worse since their next game is against Michigan.
-Fresno State had a huge second half comeback against a rather weak San Diego State team to stay at the top of the Mountain West standings and keep their at-large hopes alive.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-PROVIDENCE AT XAVIER (Big East). Both of these teams are slipping further and further outside the bubble. It’s still possible that either team could end up making the field, but they’re gonna need to sprint to the finish.
-TENNESSEE AT VANDERBILT (SEC). Tennessee is a #1 seed contender, which basically means they have to beat everybody. Vandy looked solid at times prior to conference play, but they’ve lost all five of their SEC games and things aren’t going to get any easier tonight.
-GEORGIA AT LSU (SEC). LSU has really come on strong lately and shouldn’t have too much trouble against a Georgia team that seems to be on pace to finish below .500
-TEXAS AT TCU (SEC). Texas is schizophrenic, but at least they have some big wins on their resume. TCU does not. They have a good record against sub NCAA Tournament caliber teams, and could really use a win in a game like this.
-VCU AT RHODE ISLAND (Atlantic Ten). VCU already has a conference loss, but if they can finish in first place and blow through the league the rest of the way they should end up making the field.
-PURDUE AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). It’s starting to get a little bit desperate at Ohio State. They’ve lost four straight games, and their next win will be their first of 2019. Purdue has had several close losses throughout the season, but seems to be firing on all cylinders now having won six of their last seven. This is another road game that they can win.
-EAST CAROLINA AT HOUSTON (American). Houston should have very little trouble holding serve and improving to 19-1
-SAINT LOUIS AT DUQUESNE (Atlantic Ten). Saint Louis is perfect in conference play, and if they can continue to dominate and not lose games to…well…the vast majority of the league, they should be on the right side of the bubble come March.
-UCF AT TULANE (American). This is a winnable conference road game for UCF. The better way to say it is that UCF is hovering around the bubble, and they better not lose this game.
-DEPAUL AT MARQUETTE (Big East). This sounds crazy to say, but DePaul has a few good things on their resume and if they can string together a couple of wins this week we may need to start thinking of them as a tournament contender. That’s much easier said than done, though. Marquette is a contender for a protected seed, and beating them on the road is a very tall order.
-OKLAHOMA AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big 12). BEDLAM!!!!! Oklahoma is in a bit of a tailspin, and although none of their recent losses are bad things will probably be magnified a little bit if they fail to win this one.
-WISCONSIN AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). After hitting a bit of a skid where they lost four out of five, Wisky just knocked off Michigan. I’d say that they’ve turned things around. They’ve got a very winnable game tonight against Illinois. It is perhaps the most winnable road game remaining on their schedule.
-COLORADO STATE AT NEVADA (Mountain West). Despite only having one loss, Nevada seems to be slipping. They’re still winning, but barely, and they’re playing teams that aren’t all that good. They need to hold serve tonight.
UNDER THE RADAR
-UMBC AT VERMONT (America East). Vermont is still perfect in league play and is keeping pace with Stony Brook
-STONY BROOK AT ALBANY (America East). Stony Brook is unbeaten in league play, and has another winnable road game, which would add to their overall total, which is the highest in the nation.
-UC IRVINE AT HAWAII (Big West). UC Irvine is one of the two best teams in the Big West, but they have what is perhaps their toughest road game tonight.