NEWS AND NOTES
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-It was a pretty uneventful night. Florida State got an impressive win at Louisville, UConn blew a late lead against Saint John’s, and in the game of the night Baylor sprinted out to a big lead against Kansas and never really looked back. Kansas did play well in the second half and closed the gap a little bit, but Baylor was never not in control
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-PURDUE AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). Ohio State is really on a roll right now. They are stringing together wins and climbing the rankings. They face a Purdue team that’s also been playing well and help solidify their spot inside the bubble if they’re able to win tonight.
-KANSAS STATE AT OKLAHOMA (Big 12). Oklahoma is looking like they’re more likely than not a tournament team, but they need to be able to hold serve tonight.
-TENNESSEE AT FLORIDA (SEC). Tennessee continues to look like a solid protected seed and Florida continues to struggle. One team is gunning for the #1 line and the other is trying to pull themselves out of a tailspin.
-MARYLAND AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Maryland had a huge week last week and can really make some noise if they can knock off a top ten Michigan team on the road tonight. It’s easier said than done, and a loss certainly won’t set the Terps back, but a win would be another giant step forward.
-SOUTH CAROLINA AT MISSOURI (SEC). South Carolina is a team that I think has a ton of potential, but has just been snake bit with cancellations and postponements due to COVID and can’t seem to get into their rhythm. Missouri continues to hang on to a top 20 ranking and should be able to hold serve tonight.
-USC AT OREGON STATE (Pac 12). USC has had a really good season and shouldn’t have too much trouble picking up another road win tonight.
-MIAMI FL AT SYRACUSE (ACC). Both of these teams are on the outside looking in, and both really need to win this game tonight to avoid sliding even further back.
-WINTHROP AT PRESBYTERIAN (Big South). Winthrop can improve to 14-0 with a win tonight.
-PENN STATE AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). Penn State is probably better than what their resume indicates, but they’re still not anywhere close to the tournament and this is a game that Illinois can’t afford to lose if they want to demonstrate that they belong in the discussion for a protected seed (which right now, I don’t think they do).
-SETON HALL AT VILLANOVA (Big East). Villanova is still believed to be a Final Four candidate, but due to cancellations and postponements this is their first game since before Christmas, and it’s against a Seton Hall team that also looks like a solid tournament team and is trying to play their way inside the bubble.
-ALABAMA AT LSU (SEC). Alabama is looking like a protected seed. No one in the SEC other than perhaps Tennessee (who the Tide beat) has looked better than they have. They’re ranked in the teens, as they should be. They have a tough road test tonight against an LSU team who we think is good, but who hasn’t had too many opportunities at big wins, so this game is definitely worth watching.
-DUKE AT PITTSBURGH (ACC). Duke needs to string together some wins just to get back inside the bubble. Pitt seems to be getting better and better as the season progresses. I think they’re right on the bubble right now and can continue to strengthen their resume if they continue to string together wins.
-COLORADO STATE AT UTAH STATE (Mountain West). Both of these teams are having good years and are in the discussion for at-large bids, which makes this a big game tonight.