Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES:

-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day – CLICK HERE

-Last night we saw the top two ranked teams both lose to unranked opponents.

-Purdue fell at Nebraska 88-72 in a game where the Huskers opened up a lead near the end of the first half, and every time it looked like Purdue was shifting the momentum back their way the Huskers would answer with a big bucket. Even though it was a home win, it was still a huge win for Nebraska and will likely land them inside the bubble for now.

-Houston fell behind early and fast to Iowa State, and then came back to tie it early in the second half after being absolutely anemic on offense in the first half. It looked like they would pull it out once they pulled even, but it stayed close throughout the second half and Iowa State got a huge 57-53 win that will do wonders for their resume.

-Baylor came from behind in the second half to knock off BYU 81-72 and pick up a big win for themselves. Its’ the second straight loss for BYU, but all and all they’re still in good shape.

-Colorado State lost their second straight game as they fell on the road to Boise State 65-58. The Broncos pretty much sustained a lead all throughout the second half and picked up a really big win that could put them on the bubble.

-I had mentioned earlier in the week that I thought if a fifth team from the Mountain West would play their way onto the bubble, it would likely not be New Mexico. Last night they showed everyone why I thought that when they lost (albeit on the road) 83-73 to a UNLV team that no one thinks is within a hundred miles of the bubble.

-Texas had done nothing at all on the season to warrant their top 25 ranking going into their game at Cincinnati last night. Now, the Longhorns HAVE done something! They held off Cincinnati 74-73 in an exciting game that seesawed back and forth and that saw a couple of lead changes in the final minute of play. Texas really needed this win. I mean, their resume was absolutely flat prior to last night.

-On Monday I talked a little bit about how I was starting to like Wake Forest. Last night Wake lost 87-82 team to a Florida State team that none of us really like. I am no longer starting to like Wake Forest.

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-PROVIDENCE AT SAINT JOHN’S (Big East). Both teams look good on paper, but with the recent injuries you get the sense that Providence is going to struggle the rest of the way whereas the Johnnies really seem to be hitting their stride. This has a bit of a pivotal feel for Providence. Can they play well in a tough road game given their recent setbacks?

-TENNESSEE AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC). The Vols have looked great both on paper and on the court. This will be a tough road test against a solid-looking Mississippi State team that appears to be good enough to make it to the NCAA Tournament and who should be jacked up pretty big for this one.

-CLEMSON AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). Clemson has lost two straight, and while they should be good enough to win this one on the road, VA Tech is no pushover and can get within reach of the bubble themselves if they can string together some wins.

-NORTH CAROLINA AT NC STATE (ACC). I think North Carolina is good enough to end up as a #1 seed. I’m not predicting that they will, but I am saying they’re in the mix. That being said, they’ll be tested tonight in a rivalry game against an NC State team that’s pretty good themselves and looking for a chance to put themselves into the spotlight.

-INDIANA STATE AT DRAKE (Missouri Valley). These look to be the two best teams in the Missouri Valley, and Indiana State in particular looks to be a team that can land inside the bubble, but for that to happen they need to come close to winning out. This should be a fun one tonight.

-CONNECTICUT AT XAVIER (Big East). UConn is ranked in the top five, and it’s a ranking they’ve definitely earned. Xavier is starting to look better and better as the season continues, and a win tonight can change the entire complexion of their resume and give them a huge amount of momentum moving forward.

-WISCONSIN AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). Wisconsin clearly looks to be the better of the two teams, but it’s not easy to go on the road and win, and Ohio State is still looking like a tournament caliber team. This is actually a nice resume-building opportunity for both of them.

-OKLAHOMA AT TCU (Big 12). TCU has had an unspectacular year, but they nearly won at Kansas in their last game, which indicates they’re good enough to get the wins they need between now and the end of the year to land inside the bubble. Oklahoma is currently ranked in the top ten, and while I believe the Sooners are a good team, they’ve done absolutely nothing to warrant a ranking that high. I may change my opinion if they’re able to get this one on the road, though.

-BOSTON COLLEGE AT SYRACUSE (ACC). Both teams are outside the bubble, but both are also perhaps within reach of it. That makes this a big game for both these teams.

-ARKANSAS AT GEORGIA (SEC). Arkansas has been somewhat disappointing this year given all their talent. Having said that, they are a talented team, and are capable of turning things around. Georgia has been better than expected. They’ve won eight straight and while none of those wins were against opponents that were super-strong, they’ve still played well during that stretch and are good enough to get this win at home tonight.

-FLORIDA AT OLE MISS (SEC). I like this Florida team, but they need some more meat on their resume if they want to land in the top half of the bracket. Ole Miss suffered their first loss against Tennessee over the weekend, but it was also their only real test so far. They’ll be tested again tonight despite being at home, and it will be interesting to see what they do in this one.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Northwestern @ Penn State (Big Ten) – Northwestern has a solid looking profile, but to date they only have one true road win so they could really use this one
-Purdue Fort Wayne @ Youngstown State (Horizon League) – perhaps the two best teams in the HL
-Kansas @ UCF (Big 12) – this should be a winnable road game for the Jayhawks, but even when highly ranked it can be tough to win on the road
-Louisville @ Miami FL (ACC) – this should be an easy bounce back game for the Canes
-Western Carolina @ East Tennessee State (SoCon) – a win for WCU gets them to 14-2 on the year
-Western Kentucky @ Sam Houston (Conference USA) – WKU would probably need to win out to reach the bubble, but a win gets them to 13-3
-UTSA @ Memphis (American) – this is a virtual buy game for Memphis
-Colorado @ California (Pac 12) – this should be an easy road win for the Buffs

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