NEWS AND NOTES:
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-Neither Auburn or Houston had been tested coming into yesterday’s game, and Auburn had nearly blown their opener against Bethune Cookman, but both played at a high level in an exciting game that was close throughout and that came down to the final possession. Houston came up with a huge stop and held on for a 73-72 win in Birmingham. This series has been great for both teams. Auburn won it last year and both teams went on to go to the Final Four. Both look to be positioned to have big seasons again this year.
-Ohio State and Notre Dame played a close game that also came down to the last possession with Notre Dame missing what would have been a game winning shot at the buzzer. Ohio State held on to win 64-63. It was the first real test for either team and both still have a lot of work to do.
-Florida pulled away from Miami FL in the final ten minutes or so to go on to win 82-68. It’s been a good start for the Gators with wins over Florida State and now Miami FL. The early loss to Arizona will not end up being damaging.
-UNLV, who hadn’t looked good at all in their first few games, looked really good yesterday as they went into Memphis and won 92-78. they basically had a comfortable lead from tip to buzzer. Memphis now falls to just 1-2 on the year and even though it’s early you get the sense that they are falling behind.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-VCU AT NC STATE. VCU is one of the expected frontrunners in the A10, but has so far only managed to win home buy games. They’ve got a major test tonight against an NC State team that I think is a solid top 25 team despite them not being in the rankings (yet). Having said that, VCU is probably the best team NC State has faced so far this season, so we should learn a little more about them.
-TULSA AT KANSAS STATE. Both teams are unbeaten and while the preseason expectations weren’t all that high for either one of them, there is some reason for optimism and the winner tonight will have some early season momentum built up. Tulsa has a decisive win against Rhode Island under their belts, and K State won an exciting game against California their last time out.
-LMU AT UC SANTA BARBARA. LMU flew under the radar in the preseason, but they come into this one undefeated and looking for their 2nd true road win of the season. This is their biggest test of the year as UCSB is also unbeaten and will likely be one of the better teams in the Big West.
-OERGON STATE AT OREGON. The Civil War!!!! Both teams are unbeaten, and while neither has passed a major test yet, they’ve both managed to beat a few UTR teams that are at least decent. Oregon has battled injuries early on, but has managed to avoid any slipups and is starting to get healthier. This one is always fun and tonight likely will be as well.
-Saint Joseph’s @ Penn (Big 5) – Joe’s is still looking for their first road game, and I think can advance to the championship game with a win tonight.
-Southern Illinois @ North Dakota State – these are two solid UTR teams that are off to decent starts this season
-Florida A&M @ Georgia
-Carolina (nonD1) @ Liberty
-Oakland @ UCF
-Lafayette @ West Virginia
-Canisius @ High Point
-Bucknell @ Pittsburgh
-Stonehill @ Iowa State
-SIUE @ Wisconsin – SIUE is off to a solid 3-1 start, but will likely get clobbered tonight
-Prairie View A&M @ Missouri
-Rice @ Tennessee
-Southern Utah @ Gonzaga
-Alabama State @ Colorado
-Georgia State @ Arizona State
-North Alabama @ Clemson
