NEWS AND NOTES:
-For the latest HOOPS HD BRACKET RUNDOWN Video Podcast, where we cross country rank our seedlists, build a bracket, and release that bracket on the air team by team and line by line – CLICK HERE
-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE
-Florida Atlantic suffered just their second loss of the season as they fell at UAB 86-77. I don’t think the loss will set them back THAT much though, so long as they hold serve for the rest of the year. UAB is suddenly playing really well, and this would have been a very tough road game to win. They’ve got enough on their resume to where they should remain inside the bubble for now.
-Wisconsin snapped their losing streak with a much needed 65-60 win at Ohio State. Ohio State’s slump continues. They are in real trouble.
-Northwestern, who had been playing well, did not play well at all last night as they were beaten handily on their own home floor by Michigan 68-51. Michigan has played well at times this year, but not enough of the time to place them anywhere near the bubble.
-Utah was also hovering around our bubble. Stanford was so far from the bubble that they can’t see it with a telescope. Yet, Stanford won at Utah last night 78-72, and that might all but kill the Utes.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-THE IVY LEAGUE. This is a strange way to write this up, but right now just one game separates 3rd place from 7th place and only the top four teams make the conference tournament, so every game has a pivotal feel to it. Harvard and Yale are both in that logjam, and they both face each other tonight. So do Brown and Dartmouth. Cornell and Princeton are tied for first, and they play each other tonight. Penn faces Columbia in what should be a winnable game for the Quakers, but they are in that mix as well. The Ivy League has become destination programming for Friday nights!!
-VCU AT SAINT LOUIS (Atlantic Ten). If VCU runs the table they’ll get a serious look from the committee, but anything short of that and they’ll likely need the auto bid to get in.
-BOISE STATE AT SAN DIEGO STATE (Mountain West). Both of these teams are inside our bubble right now, but both still have a lot of work to do in order to strengthen their position. Not only is this a pivotal game that is highly important for both teams, it should be a really good game as well.
-KENT STATE AT AKRON (MAC). The Wagon Wheel!!!! This is one of the better rivalries not just for Under the Radar teams, but really in all of college basketball. And, like it does most years, it involves what appear to be the two best teams in the conference and Kent State is perhaps in a position to land inside the bubble if they can run the table. This would probably be their best win of the year given that it’s a road game and how well Akron has played. And…oh yeah! It’s a BIG rivalry game!
-AIR FORCE AT NEVADA (Mountain West). Nevada is hovering right around our bubble and needs to avoid losing to teams like Air Force who are nowhere near it in order to stay there.