NEWS AND NOTES:
-Indiana continues to improve both on paper and on the court. They had a big win against rival Purdue last night 68-65. The game was close all throughout, the the Hoosiers led for most of the way. It was a home win, but it still looks really good on their resume.
-UCLA had to sweat a lot more than expected at Utah, but still held on for a 63-58 win.
-San Francisco had a fantastic start to their game at Gonzaga, but as expected the Zags got control at the second half and cruised to a 78-62 win. It doesn’t set San Francisco back at all, though. No one is going to get dinged for not winning at Gonzaga.
-USC needed a big win, and got one yesterday at Colorado. Colorado isn’t a team that is inside the bubble, but it is still a really tough place to win.
-SMU picked up a decent road win at Memphis last night. They are still outside the bubble, but appear to be within reach of it.
-Belmont is probably outside the bubble now, and it’s going to be very tough for them to get back inside of it. They fell at Morehead State last night 83-74 in a game that probably wasn’t even as close as the score indicated.
-New Mexico State lost badly at Sam Houston 71-46. This is a surprising result for a team that we thought was among the top Under the Radar teams, and had a chance of being solidly in the discussion for an at-large bid at the end of the year.
-Boise State picked up another decent win at Utah State 62-59 to keep them well within reach of the bubble. Their margin for error is small, but they do have a path to making the field.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-TOLEDO AT OHIO U (MAC). These are the top two teams in the MAC. I think Ohio U can get inside the bubble if they can win out, and I think they’re good enough to do it.
-ILLINOIS AT MARYLAND (Big Ten). This is a winnable road game for an Illinois team that’s got a good resume and looks like they will continue to build on it.
-SAINT BONAVENTURE AT DUQUESNE (Atlantic Ten). I haven’t given up on the Bonnies yet, but I’m close. They need to put together a long string of wins just to get back into the conversation.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). This is a big time resume building opportunity for both these teams. Both look to be solid protected seeds, and Wisconsin appears to have a path to a #1 seed.