LINKS:
CLICK HERE for the latest HOOPS HD REPORT Video Podcast where we recap a busy week of conference play and preview this upcoming week
-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-HOUSTON AT IOWA STATE (Big 12). Houston remains unbeaten and is up to #2 in the polls, but this could be their biggest test of the year. Iowa State isn’t in the rankings, and they’re actually coming off a loss to Oklahoma, but they are very tough to beat on their home floor and they will be jacked way up for this one.
-TEXAS AT CINCINNATI (Big 12). Texas has done nothing outside of winning home buy games, yet they are somehow in the rankings. They need some wins like this just to get the committee’s attention because so far they’ve done absolutely nothing. Cincinnati had gotten fat on cupcakes as well, but is coming off a HUGE win against BYU, which suddenly changes the entire complexion of their season.
-WAKE FOREST AT FLORIDA STATE (ACC). Wake has won nine straight and is coming off a big win against Miami FL. Their resume is starting to look better and better and they’ve got a chance to add a conference road win to it tonight.
-SOUTH CAROLINA AT ALABAMA (SEC). This is a really interesting game between a South Carolina team that is 13-1 with some decent wins, including their last game game against Mississippi State, but who could really strengthen their resume even more with some big road wins, and an Alabama team that’s really good, but who needs to string together some wins in conference in order to shore up their resume.
-OKLAHOMA STATE AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12). Texas Tech is an impressive 12-2 on the season, but their SOS is very unimpressive, so they still have a lot of work to do now that conference play has started and they need to hold serve at home in this one.
-PURDUE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). Nebraska is showing signs of being a possible tournament team. They’re 12-3 overall, and they have a few decent wins against teams like Kansas State, Michigan State and Indiana. A win today would REALLY put them on the committee’s radar. Having said that, despite being at home in front of what will undoubtedly be a raucous crowd, they’ll have to play way over their heads to beat a Purdue team that I think is the best in the country.
-DUKE AT PITTSBURGH (ACC). Duke is having a pretty good year, but they have just one true road win up to this point, so a win today really helps improve their resume. Pitt is within reach of the bubble, but they need to pick up some wins in games like this in order to get inside of it.
-BYU AT BAYLOR (Big 12). Both teams are in the rankings and both are almost assured to land in the top half of the bracket, so this is really just a resume-building opportunity. Having said that, BYU is coming off of a loss and doesn’t have a true road win yet, so this would likely be their biggest win of the season to date if they’re able to pull it off.
-TEXAS A&M AT AUBURN (SEC). Both are likely tournament teams, but both resumes still have room to improve, so this is a resume-building opportunity. TAMU is coming off a surprising home loss to a so-so LSU team, and will face Kentucky after this, so this is a big game for them to try and get things turned around and avoid a bit of a skid.
-COLORADO STATE AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West). Colorado State is coming off just their second loss of the season, but they’re still in the rankings and still in good shape. Having said that, they’re really going to be tested today against a Boise State team that is pretty good, but currently outside the bubble, and who needs wins like this in order to get on the right side of the cutline.
-NEW MEXICO AT UNLV (Mountain West). New Mexico’s record is impressive at 13-2, but their schedule isn’t impressive at all, which is why I think they’re currently outside the bubble despite their big record. They need to show they can hold serve and win on the road in games like this, which is against a UNLV team that is NIT-ish at best. NCAA Tournament teams should be able to win road games against fringe-NIT teams.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:
-Seton Hall @ Georgetown (Big East) – Seton Hall is really on a roll and this should be a winnable conference road game for them
-Missouri @ Kentucky (SEC) – Mizzou has been kind of disappointing this season and Kentucky has suddenly gotten red hot
-Kansas State @ West Virginia (Big 12) – this should be a winnable road game for K State
-Indiana @ Rutgers (Big Ten) – both teams have work to do and both could really use this one tnoight
-VCU @ George Mason (Atlantic 10) – George Mason can get to 14-2 with a win, but their schedule has been so weak that they are still outside the bubble
-Wyoming @ Utah State (Mountain West) – Utah State shouldn’t have too much trouble holding serve
-Creighton @ DePaul (Big East) – it’s a road game for Creighton, but it’s also at DePaul, which should be an easy road game to win
-Air Force @ Nevada (Mountain West) – AFA isn’t always the easiest team to play against, but Nevada should be able to get this one at home without too much trouble
-San Diego State @ San Jose State (Mountain West) – San Diego State should be able to get this one on the road and improve to 14-2