NEWS AND NOTES:
-Top ranked Arizona blew out 23rd ranked Wisconsin 98-73, and the game was well within hand before halftime. Top ranked Arizona looks like they should be the top ranked team.
-Missouri actually held a lead against Kansas for most of the first half, but Kansas went on a flurry to close the half and then never really looked back before winning 73-64. It wasn’t a blowout, but it wasn’t an exciting game either. None of the Border Wars have been exciting since the series resumed.
-Purdue took care of Alabama in the Hall of Fame Classic up in Toronto, but Bama took quite a bit of taking care of. This was one of the better games that Alabama has played this season, and more than anything they showed how tough they can be. I think both teams showed they could be tough. Whenever there was a momentum shift or it felt like the game was getting away from one of the teams, the other team had an answer. It was just a great game to watch with Purdue winning 92-86.
-For the first time in I think 19 years, Washington has beaten Gonzaga. They got it done at home 78-73, and had to come from behind to do it. Gonzaga went ice cold in the second half, and Washington kept making plays. First they kept getting closer, then they tied it, then they went ahead, and in the final minute of the game they got control. As good as it feels to beat a rival, it also a really important win on paper for the Huskies, who are now suddenly 6-3 with all three losses being competitive games against really good teams, and now they have a win over a really good team in Gonzaga.
-It took a month for it to happen, but Saint Mary’s FINALLY played like a top 25 caliber team and got a MASSIVE win at previously unbeaten and highly ranked Colorado State 64-61. It was close throughout most of it, but SMC also held a lead through most of it. Is this the game that finally turns things around for the Gaels?? Prior to yesterday they hadn’t even looked like an NIT team. I guess they were waiting for the Winter Break before they started playing.
-BYU fell behind early at Utah in front of a crowd that was absolutely bonkers, but actually stayed tough and played their way back into it in the second half. After seeming like they were totally out of it and were just about to get run off the floor, they actually had a chance to tie or win on their last possession. The Utes made a great defensive play, and really played well throughout the entire game to preserve the 73-69 win after a couple of very late freethrows, but BYU showed some toughness in the way that they came back. As for Utah, it was their biggest win of the season both on and off paper, and their resume is starting to look good.
-Tennessee got a fight from Illinois, but ended up winning 86-79. Tennessee’s schedule has been absolutely brutal, and while facing a top 20 team is certainly a challenge even if you’re at home, Tennessee was ready for it after playing multiple top ten teams away from home.
-Oklahoma remains unbeaten after knocking off Arkasnas 79-70. As they did last year, Arkansas is showing some rust on their armor early on. Eric Musselman got to go to the locker room early after he was ejected, so perhaps the Hogs have some work to do.
-Clemson faced an undefeated team for the second straight game as they went up against TCU up in Toronto, and for the second straight game they managed to win. They knocked off the Horned Frogs 74-66, and even though they’re unbeaten, and even though they’re in the ACC, and even though their last two wins have come against unbeaten teams…they still seem to be a little bit below the radar for some reason.
-UC Irvine has a win against USC, and after falling behind by as many as 16 against San Diego State last night came all the way back, got the lead, and appeared to be in control of the game with less than a minute to go. To get a second big road win like this would have been a huge statement for the Eaters belonging inside the bubble. San Diego State made some big plays in their final few possessions and ended up escaping 63-62. This was a big win for the Aztecs, as they were coming off a loss at Grand Canyon. I also want to point out that while San Diego State’s last two games have not been against “brand name” opponents, they wee in fact against very good opponents that would beat most “brand name” teams, so they shouldn’t be written off or overlooked. If anything, they should continue to be recognized for being good themselves. Speaking of the team that just beat San Diego State…
-Grand Canyon is for real, and it’s time that people start thinking of them as a top 40 caliber team that can land inside the bubble. They followed up their win against San Diego State by going on the road and getting a win at Liberty 69-64. The win at Liberty is arguably even more impressive than the home win against San Diego State. Liberty is a really good team that doesn’t lose at home very often, and may not lose at home for the rest of the year. In fact, although they do have a tough game at Lousiana Tech on their schedule later on, Liberty is good enough to where it’s possible they’ll win out. This was a GREAT win for the Lopes, and it’s one they deserve a lot of credit for!
-Kansas State got a nice 75-60 win at LSU in their first game without a key player. It’s just one game, but all accounts are that they are still going to be a good team this year.
-Auburn blew Indiana off the floor 104-76. Indiana isn’t that great of a team, but it’s still an impressive showing from an Auburn team that should be in the top 25, but for some reason isn’t.
-Santa Clara had looked interesting coming into their game yesterday against New Mexico in the Jack Jones Classic, and it was a chance to see what they could do against a pretty good Lobos team. They didn’t do much. New Mexico pretty much dominated all 40 minutes of the game and won 93-76.
-Ohio State fell at Penn State 83-80 and I’m not quite sure how that happened. It was arguably one of the bigger surprises of the day. It wasn’t super cataclysmic result as Ohio State is likely still fine and Penn State is likely 1000 miles from the NIT, but it was a surprising result.
-Cincinnati suffered their first loss of the year as they fell to rival Xavier 84-79. Xavier led for most of the game, but Cincinnati did make some runs to keep themselves in it. Every time it looked like X was about to blow it open, Cincinnati had an answer. As for Xavier, they had lost three straight coming into this and really needed it.
-PFW keeps winning games. They’re now 10-1 after knocking off SEMO 89-80.
-Wichita State was starting to get our attention, but they fell at home to South Dakota State 79-69 and didn’t look all that great at any point. South Dakota State is likely the Summit League Frontrunner, but they were just 4-5 on the season and had been somewhat disappointing going into yesterday’s game. Getting a win at the Round House against a Wichita State team that appeared to be pretty good could be the start of a turnaround for them.
-Villanova held off UCLA 65-56 to get a nice home win. Both these teams have shown moments of being good, but they’ve also had some disappointing results this year. You had a sense that there was a sense of urgency for both of them, especially for Nova since they were playing at home.
-Drake is now 9-1 after handily beating a Nevada team that came into this one unbeaten. We were all really big on Drake coming into the year and thought they could land inside the bubble, but they did lose some key players from a year ago, and after getting blown out by Stephen F Ausitn a few weeks ago we just kind of wrote them off. Well, I think it’s time to write them back in. They’re now 9-1 with a couple of notable and impressive wins.
-Arizona State played their first road game of the year at San Diego, and lost it 89-84. San Diego is 6-0 at home, but it’s still the kind of road game that a tournament-caliber team needs to be able to win.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-PRINCETON AT SAINT JOSEPH’S. This is a much more important game than I would have ever expected prior to the start of the season. Both teams are good, both have started to build really good resumes, both have a shot at landing inside the bubble, and today’s game is another resume-building opportunity for both teams.
-COLORADO VS MIAMI FL (Brooklyn NY). Both are likely NCAA Tournament teams that I was fond of coming into the year, and that I think can improve as the year continues to play out, but neither has managed a really big tournament-caliber win yet this season and today’s game is an opportunity for each team to get their first.
-MEMPHIS AT TEXAS A&M. Memphis is playing their third straight true road game. Of the nine games they will have played this season (including today’s) seven will have been away from home. The upside to that is that they’ve build a nice resume with wins at Missouri, and against Michigan and Arkansas. This would be their best win of the season so far if they’re able to pull it off. TAMU has some nice wins of their own, is in the rankings, and will likely make quite a bit of noise once they get into SEC play.
-OLE MISS AT UCF. Ole Miss is unbeaten and does have a nice win over Memphis, but this is still a big test and one of the tougher games they’ve had to play this year. It’s on the road against a fairly decent UCF team.
-SAINT JOHN’S VS BOSTON COLLEGE (Brooklyn Showcase). Both teams have decent records, but other than the Johnnies’ win over Utah neither team really has any overly spectacular wins yet, and this would perhaps be the best win for BC this year so far, and one of the better wins for the Johnnies so far.
-TULSA VS OKLAHOMA STATE (Oklahoma City). Tulsa is a respectable 5-2 on the year and this is a winnable game for them.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). The Spartans have been disappointing so far this season, but they’re the kind of team that may start to pick it up now that final exams are over and the practice restrictions are no longer in place. This is a pivotal game for the Spartans. It’s a conference road game against a team they should be able to beat.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES/BUY GAMES:
-Brown @ Providence
-Prairie View A&M @ Iowa State
-Detroit Mercy @ Northwestern
-Long Beach State @ USC – this is a game USC needs to win and should win, but Beach is good, and if they overlook them, they may NOT win
-Iowa @ Michigan (Big Ten) – both teams have been somewhat disappointing this year, both look to have more potential than what they’ve shown, and both could really use this win today
-Elon @ UNC Greensboro – a win for UNCG gets them to 8-1 on the year
-Grambling @ Washington State