NEWS, AND NOTES:
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-Purdue survivied a scare at Michigan State in a game that was close all throughout (and that the final minute seemed like it took an hour to play), and held on to pick up yet another impressive road win 64-63.
-Miami FL survived a scare from Syracuse, but escaped with an 82-78 win after trailing most of the game. Syracuse has been playing better, but to get all the way back into a position to where they are on the bubble they’ll need to keep stringing together wins.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-HOUSTON AT TULANE (American). It’s a showcase game for Tulane, they’re going to be way up for this one, and they have been playing well lately. But at the end of the day Houston is a #1 seeded caliber team and Tulane looks more like an NIT team than an NCAA Tournament team. But, a win tonight would be HUGE for them, so it should be fun.
-KANSAS AT KANSAS STATE (Big 12). When it comes to game atmospheres this one tonight may be among the best we’ll see all season. K State is having a monster year, it looks like they’ll be a protected seed, and they’re hosting their big rivals who many feel should be the #1 overall seed right now. Kansas certainly has a shot at becoming the #1 overall seed and a win tonight would be a huge step toward that. This one is going to be tons of fun!!
-TENNESSEE AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC). Tennessee is fighting to end up as a protected seed, and Mississippi State is fighting just to get into the field. Tennessee is still ranked in the top ten and is looking to bounce back from a somewhat surprising home loss to Kentucky, and Mississippi State has lost five of their last six and are trying to snap out of that tailspin.
-NC STATE AT GEORGIA TECH (ACC). NC State has been playing really well and can continue to secure a spot inside the bubble. This should be a winnable road game for them.
-BOSTON COLLEGE AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC). UNC appears to be safely inside the bubble for now and just needs to hold serve in games like this where they’re playing teams at home that are nowhere near the bubble.
-CREIGHTON AT BUTLER (Big East). Creighton is just 10-8 on the year and still doesn’t have a true road win this season. This is perhaps the most winnable road game they have remaining and if they can’t take care of business tonight then they are in legitimate danger of missing the field entirely.
-KENT STATE AT EASTERN MICHIGAN (MAC). I still think there is a place for Kent State inside the bubble if they can either win out or come close to winning out.
-TEXAS AT IOWA STATE (Big 12). It’s yet another Big 12 matchup between two teams that are high in the rankings and competing for protected seeds. That seems to be the storyline for nearly every Big 12 game this year. Iowa State is coming off a close loss at Kansas, and Texas is also on a complete tear where they’ve strong together a lot of wins against a lot of good teams.
-ALABAMA AT VANDERBILT (SEC). Alabama has proven they can win tough games, and they should be able to get this one on the road tonight, but Vandy isn’t a cakewalk when they’re at home, and they just beat a fairly decent Arkansas team their last time out.
-PENN STATE AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). Penn State is hovering around the bubble, and winning a road game like this against a very good Wisconsin team is a very good way to get inside the bubble. Wisky has lost three in a row and needs this win tonight to help get things turned around.
-CLEMSON AT WAKE FOREST (ACC). Wake is just a bubble team, but this might be Clemson’s toughest game of the year so far considering it’s on the road, and that Wake is unbeaten at home, and that they also really need this win to help them land on the right side of the bubble. On paper this means quite a bit to both teams.
-BAYLOR AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12). Baylor is one of the many teams in the Big 12 that’s fighting for a protected seed, and Texas Tech is still simply looking for their first win in conference play.
-GEORGIA AT KENTUCKY (SEC). With the win at Tennessee, Kentucky seems to have pulled themselves out of the tailspin and has things turned around, but they need to keep stringing together wins in order for their stability to be…well…stable. Georgia is fighting for a spot inside the bubble and a road win like this would be huge for them.
-UNLV AT UTAH STATE (Mountain West). Both teams are on the outside looking in, but both could still reach the bubble if they can string together some wins.
-SAN JOSE STATE AT NEW MEXICO (Mountain West). New Mexico’s win at San Diego State changed the entire complexion of their season, and they now look like a team that is solidly inside the bubble and will remain there so long as they hold serve in games like this.
-NEVADA AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West). I think Boise is inside the bubble and is good enough to remain there. Nevada is fighting for a spot in the field and a win in a game like this would be huge for them.