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NEWS AND NOTES:
-Houston is clearly the best team in the Big 12. Pretty much all of those teams look good at home, but Houston has gone out and won big games on the road, and yesterday they beat another tournament caliber team on that team’s floor as they held off Oklahoma 87-85. Houston actually led by as much as 15 in the second half, but the Sooners came back and had a chance to win.
-Purdue did get a battle from Michigan State, but held on at home to beat the Spartans 80-74. The end result is that I don’t think it really moves either team. Purdue is still on the #1 line, and Michigan State is still around the 7-10 range of the bracket.
-Tennessee got a MONSTER road win at Alabama last night 81-74. This was a high level and high intensity game that was just fun to watch, and it’s a road win that keeps Tennessee within reach of a #1 seed.
-Creighton held off Marquette 89-75. It was close for much of the game, and Marquette was within 2 with less than 5 minutes to play, but Creighton finally got control at the end and picked up another big win on what was already a very impressive looking resume.
-Kansas hung in at Baylor, but the Bears pulled it out and picked up the 82-74 win. It’s a solid win for Baylor, and is another step toward virtually locking up a protected seed, but as good as Kansas is they have struggled in true road games this year. They haven’t struggled to the point of them not being a protected seed, but they are probably no longer within reach of a #1 seed.
-Gonzaga struggled for much of the season, but they’ve picked a good time to hit their stride. They got a big win at Kentucky a few weeks back, and last night they had a very impressive looking win against a Saint Mary’s team who was unbeaten both at home and in conference play. This will certainly help the Zag’s resume, and push them to the right side of the bubble. Now, when you look at their resume, it looks like a solid tournament caliber resume.
-Florida battle at South Carolina, and actually had a lead for much of the game, but South Carolina made some big plays late in the game and held on for the 82-76 win. South Carolina is just 1 game out of 1st place in the SEC standings, and I think they are within reach of a protected seed. Not bad for a team that was picked to finish last!!
-South Florida did get another impressive road win as they won decisively against a Charlotte team that had played well at home this year. South Florida remains this year’s most interesting case in terms of their NCAA Tournament resume. Can they get in without the auto-bid?
-Villanova got a VERY nice road win at Providence 71-60. Both teams were squarely on the bubble, and both really needed this one. Now, suddenly when you look at Villanova they’ve won five of their last six with the only loss in that stretch being at UConn, and they’ve now added a road win at Providence. They are definitely moving in the right direction.
-Richmond held off VCU to clinch at least a share of 1st place in the Atlantic 10, and they are now two whole games in front of Dayton. One has to now think that the committee will be taking a very close look at them.
-Wake Forest, who everyone was excited about after their win at Duke, has now lost two straight road games to teams that are not going to make the field. They fell 87-76 at Virginia Tech yesterday after looking very impressive in the first half. It’s not easy to win at Virginia Tech, but it’s the kind of game that teams who are trying to make the field need to be able to win most of the time.
-Iowa got a big 87-80 road win at Northwestern, and that’s going to move them pretty close to the bubble. I think the Hawkeyes would be at least be on the board if the committee were meeting today, and they may be able to play their way all the way inside the bubble if they can pick up a few more big wins.
-There were a lot of good games yesterday, but there was also a fair amount of chalk. Arizona held off Oregon, Iowa State got a nice road win at UCF, North Carolina held off NC State, Duke blew Virginia’s doors off, Auburn got a home win over a Mississippi State team that continues to struggle away from home, BYU picked up a nice home win against TCU, and Kentucky had to sweat out Arkansas but held on to win.
-In a game that was the complete opposite of chalk….Clemson went on the road and lost at Notre Dame 69-62. Clemson seems to have a propensity for not winning games they should win. This team won at North Carolina! This team can beat really good teams! But, they then go and lose to Notre Dame. You may recall their loss to Louisville last year, and how that loss probably kept them out of the NCAA Tournament. If this continues to happen they are going to turn themselves into a verb here at Hoops HD. A ‘Clemsoning.’ Losing a game to a team that is objectively far weaker than you are. They are still safely inside the bubble, but GEEZ!!!
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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:
-SETON HALL AT CONNECTICUT (Big East). Seton Hall is on the bubble, and a win in a game like this would define their season and virtually assure them of a spot in the field. UConn is on our #1 line and has been blowing through virtually every team they’ve faced at home, so a win for Seton Hall is far easier said than done.
-BRADLEY AT DRAKE (Mountain West). I don’t think Drake has a path to the NCAA Tournament other than the auto-bid, but if they want any chance at all, then they basically have to win out.
-MURRAY STATE AT INDIANA STATE (Mountain West). Indiana State is squarely on our bubble and needs to hold serve in order to stay there. Basically any loss before the MVC Championship Game would likely knock them off of it.
-MICHIGAN AT OHIO STATE (Big Ten). I don’t think Ohio State can reach the bubble, but they have been playing very well recently and if they can win out through the regular season and then pick up some big wins in the tournament, then…maybe??
-RUTGERS AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten). The Huskers are solidly in our field and will remain there so long as they hold serve, and that certainly means a avoiding home losses to teams that are nowhere near the field.
-STANFORD AT COLORADO (Pac 12). Colorado is on the outside looking in, and they need wins.
