NEWS AND NOTES:
-There is A LOT to recap and a lot to preview!!
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-Baylor hit a last second 3 in double OT to knock off Saint John’s 99-98 in a highly entertaining, well played, back and forth game. It’s Baylor’s biggest win of the season so far, and while it was a missed opportunity for the Johnnies, I’d say their team is still in a very good spot.
-In one of the more surprising results of the day (at least to me) Drake knocked off Miami Fl 80-69 in the Charleston Classic, and at no point did it really ever feel that Drake was not in control. I didn’t think Drake would have much at all this year after the roster overhaul from a year ago, and I thought Miami FL would end up being a solid top 25 team. This is why I don’t bet on sports.
-Memphis, who I have been beating up on for a while for underperforming, is NOT underperforming this year!! They got a very nice win against a good San Francisco team on the road yesterday 68-64, and had to come back after a sluggish first half to do it. The Tigers are for real! They’re not in the top 25 yet, but they definitely should be.
-In that same Charleston Classic, Florida Atlantic got a nice win against Oklahoma State. FAU had played well this year, but had come up just short of picking up some really nice wins, so it would really help them if they can do well in this event.
-Also in the Charleston Classic, Seton Hall was in another rock fight where neither team could score, but they held off VCU 69-66 in overtime to advance to the winner’s side of the event. VCU won’t have quite as many opportunities as signature wins for the rest of the year, so picking up some wins in this event, even if it’s on the losers side of the bracket, is important.
-Syracuse, who had not looked good at all against bad opponents, nearly upset Texas yesterday, but came up just short 70-66. Texas moves on to the winning side of the Legends Classic, but my takeaway from this one is that Syracuse may be better than we thought whereas Texas may not be as good.
-Saint Joseph’s, who we liked coming into the year, then wrote off after a really bad early season loss to Central Connecticut, is now a team we are starting to like again! They picked up a really nice 78-77 win against Texas Tech in the Legends Classic yesterday to improve to 4-1 and will face Texas tonight.
-Princeton, a team that I was very big on coming into the season, struggled early on against weaker opponents, and was blown into the sun yesterday by Wright State 80-62. Princeton will likely get better as the season progresses, but they aren’t there yet.
-Vanderbilt picked up a very nice 73-71 win against Nevada in the Charleston Classic. They weren’t a team we had a close eye on coming into the year, but it’s looking like they may be able to make some noise in the SEC this year.
-Oregon went on the road to beat rival Oregon State 78-75. Both teams came in unbeaten, but both were also untested, so it was a notable win for the Ducks both on and off paper.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-DRAKE VS FLORIDA ATLANTIC (Charleston Classic). Both teams are coming off of really nice wins, both really needed those, and both could really use this win today. FAU has looked good this season and just missed putting some really nice wins on their resume in the previous week, but they got a nice one yesterday against Oklahoma State. Drake remains unbeaten after getting a nice win against Miami FL yesterday. Both appear to be good teams, but both also have limited chances at notable wins, which is what makes the games in this event so important.
-MIAMI FL VS OKLAHOMA STATE (Charleston Classic). Both teams lost yesterday, but at the end of the day this still goes on the team sheet just the same as any other neutral floor game would. Both teams still have potential this year, and this could end up being a win that looks reasonably good on either team’s resume come March.
-PITTSBURGH VS LSU (Greenbrier Tip-Off). Both teams are unbeaten, and both have semi-notable wins on the season already, but this is the first time either has been tested away from home, so we should learn something about both of them.
-ILLINOIS STATE VS MCNEESE (Paradise Jam). If McNeese is going to build up their resume at all, they need to do well in this event. It’s pretty much as simple as that.
-WISCONSIN VS UCF (Greenbrier Tip-Off). Wisconsin has a really nice win against Arizona on the year, but they followed that up with a near upset loss to UTRGV, and this is their first really big test away from home. UCF has already made some noise with wins over FAU and Texas A&M, but like Wisky this is their first really big test away from home.
-SETON HALL VS VANDERBILT (Charleston Classic). Every Seton Hall game seems to turn into a rock fight, but after a sluggish start they had a really nice win against VCU yesterday and have another shot against an unbeaten Vandy team today who comes in after a close win against Nevada.
-SAINT JOHN’S VS VIRGINIA (Bahamas Championship). It’s a third place game, but like we always say it’s the same as any other neutral floor game. Saint John’s lost to Baylor in a double overtime thriller and has the chance to bounce back against a Virginia team that was beaten handily by Tennessee, but who should still end up having a good year.
-SYRACUSE VS TEXAS TECH (Legends Classic). After not looking good at all for most of the season, Cuse nearly upset Texas yesterday, which was easily their best and most inspiring performance of the season despite the loss. They get Texas Tech today, who’s coming off a loss to Saint Joseph’s and who also needs a quality win.
-VCU VS NEVADA (Charleston Classic). Both teams have a bit of a sense of urgency coming into this one. Both are coming off losses, and both need to pick up notable wins in this event. While they’ll get some other opportunities throughout the year, they won’t get quite as many as the teams in the P4 leagues will.
-HOFSTRA AT HOUSTON. This is a buy game, and it is admittedly probably a huge mismatch, but it is still worth highlighting simply because Hofstra has shown out a little bit this season. It will be interesting to see how competitive they can be tonight.
-NEBRASKA AT CREIGHTON. Nebraska has looked okay this season, but doesn’t have a win anywhere near the caliber that this one would be if they could somehow pull it off. The Huskers played really well against Saint Mary’s in their last game despite the loss. This is also Creighton’s first non-buy game of the year, so while I think the Bluejays will win, I wouldn’t pencil it in just yet.
-UTAH STATE VS IOWA STATE (Hall of Fame Classic). Both teams come in unbeaten, and both have expectations of being good this year, but this is also the first real test for both of them.
-GEORGE WASHINGTON VS KANSAS STATE (Paradise Jam). GW is 4-0, but has not been tested at all. K State is 3-1, but has only been tested once and lost that game. This event is a chance to add some decent wins onto their resumes because right now all they’ve won is buy games.
-MISSISSIPPI STATE AT SMU. This is a really interesting match-up between two teams that didn’t get a lot of love in the preseason, but who I think have potential. This would be a really nice road win for a Mississippi State team that just beat Utah their last time out, and it would be SMU’s first real win of note.
-TEXAS VS SAINT JOSEPH’S (Legends Classic). Saint Joe’s was a team that I liked coming into the year, and I know a lot of people (including me) kind of wrote them off after they lost to Central Connecticut. While that loss does make you hold your nose, It’s their only loss of the year, and they just beat a pretty good Texas Tech team yesterday. If they can somehow beat Texas tonight, who got here after having to really sweat out Syracuse, we have to once again start paying a lot of attention to Saint Joe’s.
-BAYLOR VS TENNESSEE (Bahamas Championship). Baylor won a double OT thriller yesterday against Saint John’s, and gets a shot at Tennessee who has blown through their schedule. This is probably the toughest test of the year so far for the Vols, but they’ve had no problems with anyone they’ve faced so far, so it will be interesting to see how they do tonight. In short, it’s a chance for both teams to pick up what will almost assuredly be a high caliber win for their tournament resumes.
-DUKE AT ARIZONA. Both teams have already faced big tests with Arizona going to Wisconsin and Duke facing Kentucky. While both teams are very good, and both will almost assuredly end the season very high in the metrics, neither has a really big win of note yet, so that’s what’s at stake tonight.
-SAINT LOUIS VS WICHITA STATE (Hall of Fame Classic). Saint Louis was a team we had high expectations for this year, but they’re off to a bit of a slow start. This would be a really nice win for them if they can knock off Wichita State, who comes in without a loss, but who’s also looking to pick up a win of note for their resume.
-NORTH CAROLINA AT HAWAII. Hawaii is unbeaten, but they haven’t faced a test like this yet, so even though they’re at home they are probably way overmatched.
BUY GAMES (and other games of note):
-UIC vs La Salle (Boardwalk Battle) – it’s still a chance for La Salle to pick up some wins away from home
-Longwood vs UAB (Paradise Jam) – Longwood is unbeaten, but this is their first real test. UAB has been a bit of a disappointment so far.
-Middle Tennessee vs South Florida (Myrtle Beach Invitaitonal) – both teams had nice wins yesterday and are off to pretty decent starts this season
-James Madison vs UC San Diego (Boardwalk Battle) – both teams won their games yesterday
-Bradley vs Wright State (Myrtle Beach Invitational) – Wright State pulverized Princeton yesterday, and Bradley has made some noise early, so it’s a good match-up and opportunity for both
-Temple vs Florida State (Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off) – both teams have just one loss, but neither has what appears to be a quality win yet
-Jacksonville State vs Toledo (Boardwalk Battle) – both teams come in 4-1
-Louisiana vs Liberty (Paradise Jam) – Liberty has looked really good early on and has a chance to build up their resume in this event
-Utah Tech @ Utah
-Campbell @ Ohio State
-Jackson State @ Kentucky
-Southern Illinios @ Florida
-William & Mary @ NC State
-VMI @ Davidson – Davidson is unbeaten
-Merrimack @ Butler
-Winthrop @ Louisville
-Texas State vs Princeton (Myrtle Beach Invitational) – both are UTR teams that have shown promise, but both are coming off losses and Princeton has been a little disappointing so far
-New Orleans @ Tulane – Tulane can get to 5-1
-Elon @ Notre Dame – ND can stay unbeaten
-Pacific @ Missouri
-Utah Valley @ Murray State – Murray State can get to 4-1
-Rice @ Houston Christian – Rice can get to 5-1 and pick up their 2nd road win
-Pepperdine @ Northwestern
-Little Rock @ Arkansas
-Norfolk State @ Grand Canyon – two good UTR teams, and it’s a game GCU cannot afford to lose
-UC Riverside @ Colorado State
-UC Irive @ Weber State – we really like this UC Irvine team, and they can pick up their 3rd true road win tonight
-Alcorn State @ Washington
-Cal State Fullerton @ UCLA