NEWS AND NOTES:
-After today, we will be in Holiday Mode until December 27th. I hope all the people who follow us (and for that matter, all the people who don’t as well) have a safe and happy holiday season. I realize that a lot of people love the holidays, but a lot of people hate them as well. I can certainly relate to both feelings. It can be a very difficult time for a lot of people for very understandable reasons. If you are one of those people, then I wish you the best as you battle through whatever challenges and hardships you may be facing.
As for college hoops…
-The Braggin’ Rights game wasn’t much of a game at all. Illinois just blew Mizzou off the floor. The final score was 97-73 and the game was in hand long before halftime.
-George Mason picked up a really nice 69-66 road win at Tulane. It was Tulane’s first home loss of the season, and GMU is now a very respectable 10-2 overall on the year. This win makes their resume look a whole lot better.
-Drake suffered their second loss of the year as they fell at UAB in overtime 79-78. Drake had a chance to win at the end of the game, but couldn’t convert on their final offensive possession and the Blazers held on. Any loss against a non-tournament caliber team feels like a setback whenever a UTR team is trying to land inside the bubble. I still think Drake has a path to make the field, but their margin for error is small.
-Nevada beat TCU in the semis of the Diamond Head Classic without having to sweat too much. Jamie Dixon was ejected early on, but I’m not sure if that would have made much of a difference. Nevada improves to 11-1 and will face Georgia Tech in the championship game, who knocked off Hawaii. GA Tech had strung together some pretty good wins in the last few weeks and is a team that we need to start paying attention to.
-Maryland picked up a much needed 69-60 win out at UCLA. It was a game that both teams really needed to win. UCLA is now just 5-6 on the year and as of now appears to be going nowhere. The Bruins have been one of the bigger surprises/disappointments of the season.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-BUTLER AT PROVIDENCE (Big East). Both teams are having much better seasons up to this point than I think any of us expected, and both teams won their conference openers. Providence looked really impressive with their win over Marquette and Butler knocked off Georgetown for their seventh straight win overall. This should be a fun one between two teams that have outperformed their preseason expectations.
-MISSISSIPPI STATE VS RUTGERS (Newark NJ). Mississippi State has a solid 9-2 record and they’re still a highly talented team, but they haven’t always looked solid on the court. This would be one of their better wins of the season so far if they’re able to knock Rutgers off in a semi/mostly road game.
-OLE MISS VS SOUTHERN MISS (Biloxi MS). Ole Miss should be able to win this and remain unbeaten, but they may be challenged more than most are expecting. Southern Miss has underperformed somewhat, but they’re still a talented team that can make a lot of noise in the Sun Belt once they get into league play, and they have won four of their last five after getting off to a really disappointing start, so Ole Miss better not just overlook them.
-SETON HALL AT XAVIER (Big East). Seton Hall is coming off a huge win against UConn and that suddenly has them on our radar as a potential NCAA Tournament team. This is just their second true road game, though, and it would be their first true road win if they’re able to get it done against a Xavier team that has struggled for most of the year.
-ARIZONA VS FLORIDA ATLANTIC (Desert Holiday Classic, Las Vegas NV). Both teams are ranked in the top 20. FAU is a potential protected seed and Arizona is almost assuredly a protected seed who has a shot at a #1 seed. This will probably be FAU’s biggest test of the year, and Arizona can continue to build on their already solid resume by picking up yet another top 20 win away from home.
-DUQUESNE VS SANTA CLARA (Las Vegas NV). Duquesne is off to a much better than normal 8-2 start for them and looks to be good enough to make quite a bit of noise in the Atlantic 10. They will be tested on a neutral site tonight against a Santa Clara program that has also been getting better in recent years.
-SAINT JOHN’S AT CONNECTICUT (Big East). UConn is one of the best teams in the country, but is coming off a loss in their conference opener and will be looking to bounce back tonight. They appear to be better than this Saint John’s team and they are at home. Having said that, the Johnnies blasted Xavier in their Big East opener and will be coming into this one with a lot of confidence.
-MISSOURI STATE AT SAINT MARY’S. SMC has started to string together wins after a real sluggish start and can get to a respectable 9-5 on the year with a win tonight.
–DIAMOND HEAD CLASSIC (Dec 24th): The two games of note today are TCU @ Hawaii and Nevada vs Georgia Tech. TCU still has a good record, but amassed it against a weak schedule and has no wins on their resume that even come close to being as good as this one would be. Georgia Tech has put together quite the resume, and if they’re able to beat Nevada who is 11-1 and looking like a top 40ish/tournament caliber team themselves, then we’ll have to start thinking of Georgia Tech as a team that can land inside the bubble. The Yellowjackets have some solid wins at home already, and if they win this tournament by beating Nevada then it really strengthens their profile.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES/BUY GAMES:
-Detroit Mercy @ NC State
-Vanderbilt @ Memphis – It’s not a buy game, but it may end up looking like one. A win for Memphis gets them to 10-2 on the year and should help them climb the rankings
-Villanova @ DePaul (Big East) – it’s a very winnable road game for a Villanova team that has looked like a top 25 caliber team outside of the three Big 5 games they’ve played
-Eastern Kentucky @ Alabama – Bama should be able to bounce back and get to 7-5