CLICK HERE for our CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK VIDEO NOTEBOOK: DAY 3
For Chad Sherwood’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE
NEWS AND NOTES
-Iowa picked up another huge win as they beat Ohio State rather handily on the road. I have gone from liking Iowa, to thinking they were overrated, to emphatically arguing that they were overrated, to liking them, to REALLY liking them! This is a team that will almost undoubtedly be a protected seed and could end up as high as the #2 line. As for Ohio State, they have lost three straight, but somehow still seem to be within grasp of the #1 line if they get things turned back around. That’s how good of a season they were having before they dumped three straight games.
-Villanova went into Butler, and basically played like Butler has been playing all season long. They seemingly trailed from tip to buzzer and lost 73-61. That won’t wreck their resume entirely, but it is going to leave a bit of a dent.
-Memphis continues to string together wins. The problem is that their schedule is made up of mostly NIT-ish teams, so they haven’t been able to really build a strong resume, but they are playing well right now and the committee will probably take a close look at them.
-Both Maryland and Michigan State came into yesterday’s game on hot streaks, and it was Maryland who clearly appeared to be hotter. It was a very impressive showing by the Terps in a 73-55 win. Not only is Maryland looking like a solid tournament team, they are looking like a potentially dangerous one.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL AT WESTERN KENTUCKY (Conference USA). WKU still has a path to an at-large, but it is a narrow one and it involves basically winning out until the conference final.
-DAYTON AT SAINT BONAVENTURE (Atlantic Ten). The Bonnies are a hard team to evaluate (at least for me they are) due to playing a smaller schedule, but I still think the committee will take them if they continue to win at the clip they have been. Dayton has been hot and cold this year, so the Bonnies don’t want to overlook them.
-MIAMI FL AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Virginia is on a path to earn a protected seed if they finish strong. Of course a slip up in a game like this would set them back.
-SAINT JOSEPH’S AT RICHMOND (Atlantic Ten). If Richmond has any hope at all of making the field they basically need to win out, and even that might not be enough.
-RUTGERS AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). Rutgers is safely inside the bubble and will remain there so long as they hold serve. That means not blowing it in games like this one tonight.
-NORTH CAROLINA AT SYRACUSE (ACC). North Carolina has been playing a lot better and appears to be heading toward the NCAA Tournament, but they need to keep stringing together wins in order to safely get there.
-OKLAHOMA AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big 12). BEDLAM!!!!! The first meeting between these two was an overtime thriller, so I can’t wait for this one!! Both teams are fighting for protected seeds and it’s a huge rivalry game, so this one will be fun.
-ARIZONA AT OREGON (Pac 12). Oregon is on the bubble and needs to win in order to stay on the right side of it. It’s pretty much as simple as that.