-MIDDLE TENNESSEE AT RICE (Conference USA). Middle Tennessee will be eliminated if they lose.
NEWS AND NOTES
-Baylor was upset on the road by TCU yesterday, which probably means they’ll need to win out and win the conference tournament in order to get the overall #1 seed. I still don’t think it knocks them off the #1 line, and probably doesn’t even knock them out of the top 2 of the seedlist.
-Kansas struggled at K State, but ended up pulling out the 62-58 win and should hold on to the overall #1 spot.
-San Diego State and Gonzaga both had to sweat, but both also pulled out wins and both will likely hold on to their spots on the #1 line.
-Florida State had a lead for most of the game against Clemson, but the Tigers fought back at the end of the game to get the lead, and after several lead changes in the final minute drove the length of the court and hit the winning shot as time was expiring. For Florida State, it hurts their chances for an outright first place finish, but they are still a solid protected seed. Clemson has beaten three top ten teams this year, but is still likely to miss the NCAA Tournament.
-Duke continues to struggle on the road as they fell at Virginia 52-50. Virginia has struggled at times throughout the season, but they’ve done what they’ve needed to down the stretch in order to land inside the bubble.
-Michigan State jumped out early on the road at Maryland, and the Terps were never able to catch up. On paper, this is probably the biggest win of the year for Sparty. On the court, it was probably also the best they’ve looked all year. They picked a really good night to have a really good night.
-Providence picked up another massive win as they beat Villanova on the road 58-54. They jumped out to an early lead and held it for pretty much the entire game, although it was close down the stretch. I think Providence has done enough to put themselves in the field so long as they avoid a collapse between now and the end.
-Iowa got another nice win at home against Penn State, which will help shore up their resume.
-West Virginia is really struggling. Yesterday they lost at home to Oklahoma, which makes them 1-6 in their last seven games. Oklahoma, on the other hand, was squarely on the bubble and picked up a big win that they desperately needed.
-Texas Tech is also in a bit of a tailspin after falling at home to Texas yesterday. They’ve now lost two in a row and while it is unlikely that they’ll fall all the way outside the bubble, they’re not exactly heading in to March with a big head of steam. Texas, on the other hand, has now won four straight and if they can close out with wins against Oklahoma and Oklahoma State they will be within reach of making the field.
-Every time I think Florida has turned it around and is finally in step, they lose a game that they should win. They fell at Tennessee yesterday 63-58.
-East Tennessee State got a huge scare at home against Western Carolina as they were behind for the entire game, but made big plays in the final minute to hold on for the 68-67 win. This should keep them inside the bubble.
-Arizona State lost their second straight game as they fell at USC last night. It was a big win for USC who needed it to help keep them on the right side of the bubble, and while it wasn’t a damaging loss for Arizona State, it was their second in a row after they had really been playing well prior to this week.
-UCLA was behind for a good portion of the game against Arizona, but they came back and got the 69-644 win. Sean Miller wasn’t there to see the end of it as he was ejected with two technicals. The Bruins are likely inside the bubble, and not only that, but they are potentially a dangerous team.
-The Colonial ends its regular season today. Keep an eye on our Conference Tournaments page for all your brackets!
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-CREIGHTON AT SAINT JOHN’S (Big East). Creighton is playing as well as anyone in the Big East right now. Perhaps as well as anyone in the country. They are just a game back of first place, appear to be a solid protected seed, and could end up as high as the #2 line. A win today would add another road win to an already very impressive resume.
-CINCINNATI AT HOUSTON (American). Cincinnati is squarely on the bubble and a win in a game like this could make the difference as to whether or not they get in. Houston appears to be relatively safe, but they still need to hold serve and avoid a collapse.
-XAVIER AT GEORGETOWN (Big East). Xavier looks to be inside the bubble and will stay there so long as they can keep winning. Picking up another road win against a Georgetown team that still has a chance of making the field if they can string together some wins down the stretch would be another boost to their resume.
-INDIANA AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). Indiana is inside the bubble and the one thing they could use to really improve their resume is more road wins. Picking this one up against a very solid Illinois team would be a big one.
-SAINT LOUIS AT RHODE ISLAND (Atlantic Ten). Rhody looks like they’re squarely on the bubble, so pretty much every game is going to be big the rest of the way.
-MICHIGAN AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). Both teams are in the top 25, both look like locks for the NCAA Tournament, and both have a chance to end up as protected seeds if they’re able to finish strong.
-WICHITA STATE AT SMU (American). Wichita State is still barely inside our bubble, but their resume is really flimsy. A road win today against a decent SMU team would help them out some.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT LOUISVILLE (ACC). Louisville will end up as a protected seed so long as they’re able to hold serve the rest of the way.
-COLORADO AT STANFORD (Pac 12). Colorado lost earlier this week to Cal in a game that was kind of a surprise. A win today would be a nice bounce back for them. They’re really just playing for seeding right now, but they’ll have the opportunities between now and the end to really put together a strong resume.
-MINNESOTA AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). Minnesota is outside the bubble, but with the Big Ten being as strong as it is they can still make the field if they’re able to string together some wins at the end of the season and in the conference tournament. Wisconsin is a lock that’s won five in a row and could easily stretch that out to six and then seven as they head into the Big Ten Tournament.