NEWS AND NOTES:
-North Carolina came from 15 down at the half and actually had a lead in the final few minutes of the game at Kansas, but the Jayhawks held on for a thrilling 92-89 win. I was every bit as impressed with the Tarheels as I was with the Jayhawks considering it was a true road game and they almost knocked off the #1 team in the country. It’s a big early win that will almost assuredly look good on Kansas’s profile come March, but UNC showed that they’re good enough to pick up some big wins of their own between now and the end.
-Alabama had to sweat out Arkansas State and led by just 2 with less than 6 minutes to go, but they finally got control at the end and held on for an 88-79 win. Still, an impressive showing for Arkansas State, who we think will be a very good Under the Radar team this year.
-Ole Miss narrowly escaped an upset against Grambling. That’s right! GRAMBLING!!! We really like this Ole Miss team, but they didn’t exactly show out last night in what should have been a cakewalk for them. It’s not like Grambling is expected to be a top level UTR team. Still, the Rebs managed to escape with a 66-64 win.
-New Mexico made a big splash last night as they beat 22nd ranked UCLA 72-64. The Lobos were in control for pretty much the entire game and showed us that they’re probably better than what many people were expecting coming into the season. This is a win that will likely look really good on their resume come March. UCLA should still end up having a big year and will show improvement as we get further into the season.
-Butler was one of my personal dark horse teams coming into the year. As of now they have yet to leave the starting gate. They struggled to win their season opener, and last night fell to Austin Peay 68-66. This was a really good win for the Govs and gets them to 2-0 on the season, and I don’t want to overlook how good Austin Peay might be, but I also need acknowledge that Butler hasn’t exactly looked like the team I thought they’d be so far.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-TENNESSEE AT LOUISVILLE. This is the first real test for both these teams as both teams blew through home buy games in their openers. Expectations are super-high for Tennessee and this will be a good road test against a Louisville team that appears to be much improved under Pat Kelsey. As for Louisville, it’s a big opportunity to land back in the national spotlight after being about a hundred miles away from it during the past several years. I’m actually looking forward to this one and think it should be fun.
-TOLEDO AT MARSHALL. This is clearly an Under the Radar match-up, but it’s between two pretty good UTR teams that can pick up a somewhat notable win early on. Marshall won their opener whereas Toledo fell to Troy and is looking to bounce back, but it won’t be easy on the road.
-MEMPHIS AT UNLV. Both teams won their season openers, but neither were really tested. Memphis did beat Missouri, but Mizzou is awful so that hardly qualifies as a test. Both teams appear to have quite a bit of potential due to their talent, but there are also big question marks as to whether either of them can play up to the collective level of their talent. We should learn something about both of them today.
-BAYLOR VS ARKANSAS (Dallas, TX). Baylor was absolutely smoked on opening night out at Gonzaga, and they’ve got another super-tough test against a very talented Arkansas team tonight. Both teams are incredibly talented, but both also consist of rosters that are still getting used to playing together. This is a great early season game, but I expect both of them to improve as the season goes on. On paper, it’s a chance at a notable win early on, which is why these games are so good for the teams that actually choose to go out and play tough teams in the first week.
-NORTHWESTERN AT DAYTON. Both teams are potential NCAA Tournament teams, and even though it’s early in the year both teams could really benefit from having a win like this on their resume. In short, it is a really interesting early season match-up where there is something at stake. This win will look good on either team’s profile.
-AUBURN AT HOUSTON. I’ll start by saying I don’t know what happened on Auburn’s plane or why it had to turn back, but I don’t really care because I don’t think it will matter. Both teams are ranked really high, and I actually think both should be ranked even higher. I think Houston is the best team in the country and they are my pick to win it all. They’re at home tonight, so this will likely be the toughest game for Auburn to win all season long. Having said that, I think Auburn is a Final Four caliber team. They blew what is actually a very good Vermont team off the floor earlier this week, and I’m curious to see what they can do against a very strong Houston team.
-WASHINGTON AT NEVADA. Both teams are sort of going through transitions, but both won their openers and the team that wins this tonight will have some early momentum built up.
-BOISE STATE AT SAN FRANCISCO. I think Boise State is a tournament caliber team. Tonight is a test. This is not an easy game to win, but tournament teams are supposed to be able to win games that aren’t easy to win, so we’ll learn something about Boise tonight.
BUY GAMES (and other games worth mentioning):
-Little Rock @ Winthrop – both teams 1-0, and it’s a road test for a Little Rock team that should do well in the OVC
-Fordham @ Seton Hall – Seton Hall can get to 2-0
-Colgate @ Drexel – both teams 1-0
-Delaware State @ Columbia – Columbia is coming off a big road win at Villanova and can get to 3-0 on the season
-Jackson State @ High Point – we really like High Point and they can get to 2-0 today
-Quinnipiac @ Saint John’s – the Johnnies should roll and remain unbeaten, but Quinnipiac is probably one of the better teams in the MAAC
-Arkansas Pine Bluff @ Tulsa – Tulsa is 1-0
-Omaha @ Minnesota – both teams unbeaten
-Old Dominion @ Arizona – Arizona is 1-0
-Bucknell @ Kentucky – both teams are unbeaten
-UTEP @ Utah Valley – both teams unbeaten
-Coastal Carolina @ East Carolina – both teams 1-0
-Charlotte @ Utah State – both teams 1-0
-Fairfield @ Georgetown – Georgetown is 1-0
-Cleveland State @ Kansas State – K State is 1-0
-Louisiana Tech @ UT Arlington – both teams 1-0
-James Madison @ Norfolk State – both teams unbeaten, and it should be a winnable road game for a pretty good JMU team
-UC Santa Barbara @ Portland – both teams 1-0
-Marist @ Richmond – Richmond is 1-0
-Stonehill @ Providence
-Middle Tennessee @ Abilene Christian – both teams 1-0
-Vermont @ Merrimack – Vermont can pick up their 2nd road win of the year
-Montana State @ Wichita State – I almost highlighted this one. Montana State lost their opener, but should be strong in the Big Sky, and Wichita may be one of the better teams in the AAC
-Florida State @ Rice – Both won their opener, but Rice will be tested more tonight
-New Hampshire @ UConn
-Western Kentucky @ Grand Canyon – we really like this GCU team and think we will see them in the top 25 before the end of the season
-Bethune Cookman @ Nebraska
-Kennesaw State @ California Baptist – both teams 1-0