NEWS AND NOTES:
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-Not too many cataclysmic results yesterday, but there were some really exciting games…
-Saint John’s held off North Texas 53-52 in the Charleston Classic. North Texas is rebuilding somewhat, and this event was a chance for them to make some noise early on. This would have been a nice early season upset for them had they been able to pull it off.
-Vermont out of the America East is off to a 3-0 start with a 73-64 win over what we think is a pretty good Charleston team. They’ll be on the winner’s side of the bracket in the Myrtle Beach Invitational.
-Dayton came from behind late to get a 70-67 win over LSU. The Flyers hit a 3pt shot late in the game and then came up with a big defensive stop to secure the win.
-UAB, who we were kind of big on this year, had to sweat out Alcorn State who we were…well…NOT kind of big on this year. They did escape 80-77, but the alarm bells are going off.
-Missouri, who we were kind of big on this year, had to sweat out Minnesota who we were…well…NOT kind of big on this year. Mizzou escaped with a 70-68 win (albeit on the road), but the alarm bells are going off.
-Utah got a nice 77-70 win against Wake Forest. I still think Wake could end up having a big year, but they’re off to a somewhat small start. As for the Utes, they’re now 3-0 and moving on to the winners’ side of the bracket in the Charleston Classic.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-VERMONT VS SAINT LOUIS (Myrtle Beach Invitational). Both teams are unbeaten and both picked up notable wins yesterday. Events like this allow for notable wins away from home, which can really help build up a resume. That’s important for both these teams because they won’t have as many chances as the P5 teams do later in the season.
-DAYTON VS SAINT JOHN’S (Charleston Classic). Dayton had to come from behind yesterday to beat LSU, and the Johnnies barely held on to beat North Texas yesterday. Both teams could use this event to build up their early season profile.
-ABILENE CHRISTIAN VS SAN JOSE STATE. (Paradise Jam) – ACU started off with a big win at Oklahoma State, but now has a loss to Prairie View. They need to do well in this event if they want their resume to remain strong.
-GEORGIA VS MIAMI FL (Bahamas Championship). Georgia has looked a lot better than expected, but they are REALLY going to be tested today against.a Miami FL team that I think is good enough to win the ACC. Both teams will be tested plenty this year, but this event is a good way to get out of the blocks early.
-HOUSTON VS UTAH (Charleston Classic). Houston had no trouble with Towson yesterday and while Utah is better than Towson, Houston isn’t likely to have much trouble today either. Still, the Utes are undefeated and beat a pretty good (at least I think) Wake Forest team yesterday. Today is a chance for them to really step into the national spotlight if they can somehow pull off the upset.
-YALE AT COLGATE (Atlantic Slam). For UTR teams, doing well in these early season oftentimes makes the difference as to whether or not they end up inside the bubble come March. Colgate had a chance at a notable road win at Syracuse and sort of blew it, and they need to get over it quickly because they’re up against a Yale team that is also very good (probably better than Syracuse, actually) and who’s also looking to build up their NCAA Tournament resume. It’s a game that flies under the national radar, but it is a HUGELY important early season game.
-KANSAS STATE VS PROVIDENCE (Bahamas Championship). Providence, despite so many offseason changes, is off to a 3-0 start and has a chance to really make a statement today against what I think is a really good K State team (or at least a team that will be come really good). Having said that, K State already has a loss to USC and is looking for their first notable win of the season as well.
-BUTLER AT MICHIGAN STATE (Gavitt Games). I’m watching this one with curiosity, Michigan State is just 1-2 and everyone is down on them, but if they win their next six no one will remember that they were ever just 1-2. Butler has blown through their buy games so far. I know they were buy games, and that this is their first real test, but they blew through them in such a way that they at least have my attention. There is a reason to turn on the TV tonight and check this one out.
-AUBURN AT SAINT BONAVENTURE (Legends Classic). I really like this Auburn team and don’t think they’ll have too much trouble with the Bonnies tonight. Still, Saint Bona got a somewhat notable win over Oklahoma State to get here, and they’ve got a chance to pick up a really good win tonight.
-HARVARD AT UMASS. Oh yes!! WE ARE HIGHLIGHTING THIS!!! Both teams are unbeaten!! Now UMass isn’t likely to end up anywhere near the top of the Atlnatic 10, but for now they are unbeaten!! Actually, watch out for Harvard in the Ivy League! They may be better than expected and I’m actually expecting them to get this win tonight, which would get them to 4-0 with two of those wins coming on the road.
-FLORIDA STATE AT FLORIDA. This is a rivalry game that is almost always fun, and this particular year it’s between two teams that we at Hoops HD are kinds still trying to figure out. We should learn something about both of them tonight, and whoever pulls it off gets both bragging rights and a nice win on their resume.
-MARYLAND AT VILLANOVA (Gavitt Tipoff Games). Both these teams should have a sense of urgency coming into this one. Nova is coming off a surprising loss to Penn, and Maryland is just 1-2 after losing back to back games to Davidson and UAB. Both teams will have a lot of chances at big wins later, but both have also gotten out of the gate slowly and could really use this win tonight.
-GRAND CANYON VS SAN FRANCISCO (Arizona Tip-Off). GCU comes in without a loss and while they should be able to remain unbeaten against a San Francisco program that’s rebuilding, the Dons did play really well at Boise State. They lost the game, but they were far more competitive than what we were expecting, so they’re worth keeping an eye on.
-WICHITA STATE VS LIBERTY (Myrtle Beach Invitational). Liberty is once again looking like one of those very dangerous Under the Radar teams that can make a run at the bubble, and perhaps even crack the rankings by the end of the season. We weren’t expecting much at all out of Wichita State this year, but they come into this one at 4-0. This will be their biggest test of the year so far, though.
-SAINT MARY’S VS SAN DIEGO STATE (Las Vegas NV). Neither of these teams is currently in the rankings after they both sustained an early loss, but I think by the end of the year both will be in the top 25 and both will land in the top half of the NCAA Tournament bracket. This is a great and fun early season match-up, and a chance to pick up what should turn out to be one of the better wins of the season for whichever team ends up pulling it off.
-UNLV AT PEPPERDINE. A lot of people are big on the Rebels this year. This is a road game, but if they’re as good as everyone says they should be then it’s a road game that they should be able to win.
-DEPAUL VS SOUTH CAROLINA (Arizona Tip-Off). Not the most exciting game, but South Carolina is undefeated and should be able to stay that way after tonight.
-WASHINGTON VS XAVIER (Continental Tire Main Event). Xavier is rebuilding after a Sweet Sixteen season a year ago, but I thought they played pretty well in their game against Purdue. Washington’s expectations aren’t high, but an early season win in a game like this could change that.
BUY GAMES AND OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:
-North Texas vs LSU (Charleston Classic) – a chance for North Texas to get a notable win, and a chance for LSU to try and bounce back
-Norfolk State vs Fordham (Paradise Jam)
-Charleston vs Wyoming (Myrtle Beach Invitational) – both teams are looking to rebound after a loss yesterday
-Weber State vs Gardner Webb (Atlantic Slam) – Weber State can stay unbeaten and pick up yet another win away from home
-Presbyterian vs Maine (Jacksonville FL) – Presby has been one of the surprise teams of the season and is looking to remain unbeaten
-Purdue Fort Wayne @ Northern Arizona (Arizona Tip-Off) – PFW looking to stay unbeaten
-Notre Dame vs Oklahoma State (Legends Classic) – You know what?? Forget it…
-Hampton vs Kent State (Paradise Jam) – a lot of people are suddenly big on Kent State. It’s important they do well in this event
-Bucknell @ Duke
-Coastal Carolina vs Furman (Myrtle Beach Invitational)
-Stonehill @ Kentucky
-Radford @ James Madison – Radford hasn’t looked all that bad this year, but they’re likely overmatched tonight
-UT Martin @ Eastern Kentucky – EKU can get to 3-0
-Morehead State @ Penn State – Penn State looking to remain unbeaten
-Davidson @ East Tennessee State – a bit of an odd road game for Davidson, but a fairly decent on to play. A win gets them to 3-1 on the season and puts a true road win on their resume
-Sacramento State @ Tulane – Tulane is unbeaten
-Robert Morris @ Wisconsin – Wisky needs to even their record at 2-2
-Rider @ Duquesne – a bounce-back game for the Dukes
-Charleston Southern @ NC State – NC State is unbeaten
-Towson vs Wake Forest (Charleston Classic) – Wake is now just 1-2 and could really use a win
-Long Beach State @ Michigan – Michigan is a lot better than I expected (so far) and should cruise tonight
-Jacksonville @ Pittsburgh – Pitt trying to remain unbeaten
-TAMU Commerce @ Saint Joseph’s – Joes is unbeaten
-Oral Roberts @ Texas A&M – TAMU trying to get to 4-0
-UNC Greensboro @ Arkansas – UNCG could make some noise in the SoCon this season, but they’re likely way overmatched tonight by a super-talented Arkansas team
-UC Riverside @ North Carolina
-Mercer @ Alabama
-Valparaiso @ Illinois
-Arkansas State @ Iowa – Iowa’s only loss was at Creighton, and they didn’t play badly in that game
-UTRGV @ Oklahoma – Sooners unbeaten
-Alabama State @ Memphis
-Mississippi Valley State @ TCU
-Austin Peay @ UTEP – UTEP can get to 4-0
-Sam Houston @ Ole Miss – Sam Hosuton will be pretty good once they get into league play, and Ole Miss is unbeaten
-Tennessee State @ Oregon – I was legit impressed with Tennessee State the other night against LMU. It was a buy game, and Oregon is a much stronger team, but the Ducks better not overlook them
-Eastern Washington @ Stanford
-Kansas City @ Colorado State
-Portland State @ CA Baptist – both teams are unbeaten, and watch out for Portland State! They are MUCH better than expected!
-Belmont @ Arizona