Jon Teitel is HANDING OUT THE HARDWARE!!! See all of his Midseason Awards by clicking HERE FOR PART 1, and HERE FOR PART 2
NEWS AND NOTES:
-What Michigan has been doing since Thanksgiving is just plane crazy. I don’t think a team has been this dominant this regularly since the early 1990s UNLV teams. I’m serious. Not the Kentucky team that went undefeated all the way up to the Final Four, or the North Carolina team that made the 2009 NCAA Tournament look like the Tarheel Invitational, not ANYONE EVER! They beat USC, a legit top 25 team, 96-66 last night. In their last nine games, they’ve won eight of them by 28pts or more. The one exception was a mere 18pt road win at Maryland. The teams they have beaten during that stretch include San Diego State, Auburn, Gonzaga, Villinova, McNeese, and now USC.
-Gonzaga trailed Seattle U for pretty much the entire game last night, and for much of that time they were down by double digits, but they made some big plays down the stretch and came up with some big stops and were able to force OT. They then pulled it out 80-72. This was a big missed opportunity at what would have perhaps been a season defining win for Seattle. It certainly would have been a great looking win on their tournament resume.
-Nebraska remains unbeaten after knocking off Michigan State 58-56 at home. The Spartans had a chance to tie or win on their final possession, and even got to the foul line with less than a second to go on a play where the ref really must have used his imagination, but they were unable to convert.
-After a decisive win at California a couple of nights ago, Louisville could not get it done at Stanford and fell 80-76. Stanford held a lead for most of the game and this should give their resume a bit of a boost. As for Louisville, they’re a rather meh 1-3 in true road games so far, but are otherwise very solid.
-Notre Dame v California was a close battle all throughout and the end was amazing. ND was up 3, Cal had the ball, and ND opted to foul while up 3. Due to the new continuation rules (I guess) Cal was able to hit a 3 as they were being fouled, and then sink the game winning freethrow which capped off the 4pt play and gave them a 72-71 win. The 3-pointer they hit was initially counted, then waived off, then counted again, and if you go back and watch it there does not appear to be a foul committed on the shooter at all. ND once again loses a game at the buzzer to a solid opponent that could have really helped their resume. After the game, Irish fans took to social media and were ranting about how they should have been selected for the College Football Playoff and how the results of this game some how proves that. I’m kidding, of course, and to be fair the officiating in the final few seconds was comedically awful.
-An Under the Radar note, Manhattan came from behind in the second half to beat the Hoops HD MAAC preseason favorite Quinnipiac 80-79. I thought Quinnipiac was cruising, so I turned the game over and missed all the fun. There was a hard foul, both coaches got ejected in the ruckus that followed, and somehow Manhattan was able to come back and win.
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-VIRGINIA AT NC STATE (ACC). This has the feeling of an important and almost pivotal, game for both teams. Both are good, but both have profiles that could stand to be improved upon. UVA is looking to bounce back from a tough loss to rival Virginia Tech and NC State is just looking to solidify themselves as a top 25 caliber team.
-KENTUCKY AT ALABAMA (SEC). Kentucky is starting to play better, but while they clearly have the potential to end up as a strong top 25 caliber team, they’ve still not lived up to it yet. This is a tough road game against an Alabama team that probably also feels they have room to improve and who will be looking for a big feel good win of their own.
-VILLANOVA AT BUTLER (Big East). This game has a bit of a bubblicous feel to it. Even though Nova is a very solid 11-2, they’ve still got a lot of work to do and a road win against a Butler team that seems to currently be hovering right about the bubble would be a good boost to their resume. Butler, like all other bubble teams, could use all the wins they can get.
-VIRGINIA TECH AT WAKE FOREST (ACC). VA Tech is 12-2 and just won a big overtime game against rival Virginia, but they have just one true road win, so if they can get this one then their resume will look a lot better. Wake just needs wins in conference to help build up their profile. They’ve lost several close games to good teams and need to start actually winning some of them.
-OKLAHOMA STATE AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12). Oklahoma State’s record is an impressive 12-1, but their overall schedule has been a little less than impressive and this would be by far their biggest win of the year if they can pull it off. Texas Tech is ranked in the teens and appears to be getting better as the season progresses.
-KANSAS AT UCF (Big 12). UCF is 11-1 against a weak schedule. They get a shot at a very good team that’s also a blue blood at home and can thrust themselves into the spotlight if they’re able to pull it off. Kansas only has one true road win so far, so it’s a test for them as well and a chance to give their profile a bit of a boost.
-BAYLOR AT TCU (Big 12). This is another game that has a bubblicious feel to it. It’s also a rivalry game. Both teams are good, but both have work to do and both could really use this one.
-NORTH CAROLINA AT SMU (ACC). SMU is a very respectable 12-2 overall and is positioned to land inside the bubble if they can can pick up some wins in the ACC. But, that’s easier said than done. UNC has had a great year, but this is just their second true road game of the season so they will be tested.
-TENNESSEE AT ARKANSAS (SEC). Both teams are solidly in the rankings, both have won big games, and both have the chance to pick up another resume-building win. Tennessee is still looking for their first true road win of the season, so to get it against a ranked Arkansas team would make their resume look a ton better.
-AKRON AT MIAMI OH (MAC). This is getting featured because Miami OH is unbeaten on the season and while this is a home game Akron I think is (by far) the best team will have played up to this point. This is as much a litmus test as it is a big game on paper.
-LSU @ TEXAS A&M (SEC). I don’t know how you can be in the SEC, be 12-1, and have it be a quiet 12-1, but that is seemingly what LSU has done. Having said that, this will perhaps be one of their toughest tests of the season so far and it comes on the road against a TAMU team that could really use the win themselves. Neither team played a very tough OOC Schedule, so both kind of need this to help boost their profile.
-UCLA AT IOWA (Big Ten). Both teams could really use this one because both need to build up their profiles. UCLA is good, but this is just their second true road game of the season. Iowa’s record is good, but their profile seems void of any notable wins and they could really use this one.
-WYOMING AT NEW MEXICO (Mountain West). I don’t think I’d have either of these teams inside the bubble, but I would say that both are (perhaps) good enough to reach it. Having said that, in order to do that, they have a small margin for error and will probably need a win today.
OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:
-VCU @ Duquesne (Atlantic 10) – if VCU is going to get themselves into The Dance they need to blow through the A10
-Clemson @ Pittsburgh (ACC) – Clemson should hold serve in this one, pick up another road win, and stay safely inside the bubble
-Auburn @ Georgia (SEC) – Georgia is an impressive 12-1 and Auburn has been kind of disappointing this year. Having said that, Auburn can fix a lot of what’s wrong if they can somehow pull off the win against a ranked conference rival on the road. Wins against ranked conference rivals tend to do the trick!
-Northern Illinois @ Kent State (MAC) – Kent State is one of the better teams in the MAC and should hold serve at home
-BYU @ Kansas State (Big 12) – a lot of people are saying K State has a path to the NCAA Tournament. I have not been all that impressed with them at any point this year, but they can change my mind today if they can beat what I believe is a very good BYU team at home
-Houston @ Cincinnati (Big 12) – should be a rather routine conference road win for the Cougars
-Vanderbilt @ South Carolina (SEC) – Vandy is undefeated and is one of the better teams in the SEC. This should be a winnable road win for them
-Ole Miss @ Oklahoma (SEC) – this is the conference opener for Oklahoma and they should be able to hold serve at home
-Duke @ Florida State (ACC) – Duke has not played many true road games, but this is one that they should be able to win
-Arizona @ Utah (Big 12) – Arizona is ranked #1 and is richly deserving of that ranking. Utah is nowhere near our bubble and is richly deserving of the NIT.
-Rhode Island @ George Mason (Atlantic 10) – Mason got a scare in their last game, but they should be able to hold serve against Rhody at home
-San Jose State @ Utah State (Mountain West) – Utah State clearly looks to be the best team in the MWC, they may get into the rankings in the next week or two, and they should be able to hold serve at home
-South Alabama @ Troy (Sun Belt) – I just wanted to mention this because it’s two of the better teams in the Sun Belt and it’s a bit of a rivalry game
-Colorado @ Arizona State (Big 12) – both these teams have shown promise OOC, but both need to get right, and a win today would be a big step toward doing that for whoever pulls it off
-Mississippi State @ Texas (SEC) – not much to say about this one other than Texas needs to hold serve
-Illinois @ Penn State (Big Ten) – Penn State can be tough to beat at home, but Illinois should be good enough to win a game like this
-Nevada @ Fresno State (Mountain West) – Nevada can improve to 3-0 in MWC play and in order to be anywhere near the bubble discussion they need to blow through this league
-Purdue @ Wisconsin (Big Ten) – Purdue is a likely #1 seed and Wisconsin is a possible tournament team. Wisky has struggled, but if they can win a game like this it could give them the jumpstart they need. Having said that, it won’t be easy even though they’re at home
-Florida @ Missouri (SEC) – it’s a tough road test for the Gators, but it’s one that they should be good enough to win
-Boise State @ San Diego State (Mountain West) – in order for either team to land inside the bubble they need to start stringing together wins
-Hawaii @ UC San Diego (Big West) – these are two of the best teams in the Big West and this is a massive road test for Hawaii. UCSD is looking to bounce back from a somewhat surprising loss earlier in the week
