NEWS, NOTES, AND LINKS:
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-Baylor picked up another highly impressive road win as they went into a hostile environment at Texas, and played against a really good Texas team, and got the 68-61 win. They are once again knocking on the door for a #1 seed.
-Kansas State was right with Texas Tech until the very end, but couldn’t pull it out. K State has a lot of good wins on their resume, but they are now just 14-15 overall and I can’t imagine that the actual committee would select a team that’s below .500. I know they’ve said there isn’t a rule against it, and there isn’t, but…it has never happened before.
-San Diego State picked up what was easily their biggest win of the year as they knocked off Wyoming 73-66 on the road. I think they were squarely on the bubble prior to last night. I now think they are squarely inside of it. It was Wyoming’s first loss at home.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-PROVIDENCE AT VILLANOVA (Big East). Both of these teams will likely end up as protected seeds regardless of what happens, but Providence has a chance to get a win that’s so big that they could argue that they belong on the #1 line.
-TENNESSEE AT GEORGIA (SEC). It feels like Tennessee is close to locking up a protected seed and just needs to avoid bad losses. Like..Georgia, for instance.
-OLE MISS AT KENTUCKY (SEC). Kentucky still has a chance of ending up on the #1 line, but they pretty much need to win out in order to do it. The thing is, I think they’re good enough to win out, so…
-NEBRASKA AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). Ohio State is coming off of a somewhat surprising loss to Maryland, but they’re still in really good shape and will easily be in the top half of the bracket if they can hold serve in these last few games.
-WEST VIRGINIA AT OKLAHOMA (Big 12). If Oklahoma has any chance at all at getting inside the bubble they need to win these last couple of games and avoid an early exit in the Big 12 Tournament.
-DUKE AT PITTSBURGH (ACC). Duke is sailing to a protected seed and shouldn’t have any trouble picking up another road win tonight.
-KANSAS AT TCU (Big 12). Kansas is within reach of a #1 seed, and this would be yet another really good road win if they can knock off a TCU team that looks like they could land in the top half of the bracket. It goes without saying that it’d be a really big win for TCU as well.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Michigan State picked up a much needed win over the weekend over Purdue, which hopefully pulls them out of the slump they’re in. They should still easily land in the top half of the bracket. Michigan’s situation is a little more desperate as they are right on the bubble and need some big wins to help get them on the right side of it.
-SAINT BONAVENTURE AT VCU (Atlantic Ten). This is a very big game as it appears that both teams are very close to the bubble. That makes this game a very high stakes opportunity for both of them.
-FLORIDA AT VANDERBILT (SEC). Florida is inside our bubble, but barely. A loss in a game like this could knock them out of it. They really need to get this one on the road tonight, which they should be able to do, but it won’t be a cakewalk.
-PURDUE AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). Both teams look to be solid protected seeds, and Purdue will have a case for a #1 seed if they can pick up a big time road win like this one. It’s more of a litmus test for both than it is a high stakes game for both. No matter what happens, both are locks not just to make the field, but getting close to being locks as protected seeds.
-CINCINNATI AT HOUSTON (American). Houston will go in to The Tournament on the first ballot so long as they avoid losses to teams outside the bubble the rest of the way. Teams like Cincinnati, for instance.
-LOUISVILLE AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). Virginia Tech’s Tournament hopes are still barely flickering, and it goes without saying that if they want to get there they can’t lose a game like this.
-NEVADA AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West). Boise State is likely a lock for the NCAA Tournament and is now just playing for seeding. They should be able to knock off Nevada at home.
-ARIZONA AT USC (Pac 12). Arizona can almost assuredly lock up a #1 seed if they can win this one on the road tonight, but they are coming off a road loss at Colorado, so they are in a bit of a rebound mode. USC is locked into the field and is playing only to improve their seed, which if they were to win this one, it would improve a lot.