Hoops HD Bracket Rundown – Thursday, Feb 23rd

NOTE:  This broadcast was recorded at 10pm, est on Thursday, February 2nd, and the seedlist was created prior to 8pm, est.  No games that were played that day, particularly Northwestern vs Illinois or Rutgers vs Michigan, were factored in

The Hoops HD Staff have each created their own personal seedlists.  Those were cross country ranked to create a master seedlist, which was then put into a bracket by Chad.  On this show, we reveal that bracket team by team, and then line by line in a Selection Sunday type format.  The panel is seeing the bracket for the first time as it is revealed, and they debate, discuss, and assess each team as they are revealed.

Below is a final copy of the bracket, but don’t look at it until you’ve watched the show!!

And below is an audio only version of the show, but don’t look at it until you’ve watched the show!!!

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Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Thursday, Feb 23rd

SURVIVAL BOARD UPDATE (click to view):

-OHIO VALLEY – Eastern Illinois fell to Morehead State yesterday, so they fall a half game behind Little Rock for 8th place and the final spot in the conference tournament.  Little Rock will face SIUE tonight and can get a one game lead with one game to go with a win.  I THINK Little Rock currently has the tiebreaker.  The two teams split during the regular season, and they also split with the two teams that are tied for second, but Little Rock has the next highest win in the conference standings for now.  Either way, it is a very tight race.

-We discuss more of this, as well as the rest of the UTR teams in our final UNDER THE RADAR Video Podcast of the season.  To check it out – CLICK HERE

NEWS AND NOTES:

-I am not going to talk about Alabama’s off the court issues other than to say I’m not going to talk about them.  If that’s what you want to read about, there are thousands of other things out there you can easily find.  They had to sweat last night at South Carolina, and needed overtime, but escaped with a 78-76 win, which should keep them atop the seedlist as the #1 overall.

-Virginia lost 63-48.  At Boston College.  Virginia has been asleep for the last couple of weeks.  They had to sweat out both Louisville and Notre Dame in their two games prior to this one.  What is going on in Hoo-Ville?

-UConn actually ran away from Providence in the second half, and ended up winning 87-69.  I know they were at home, but it was one of the more impressive 20 minute stretches that we’ve seen out of UConn in quite some time.

-North Carolina really had to sweat, but they did escape from Notre Dame 63-59.  It wasn’t the kind of performance that instills a lot of confidence that the team is actually any good, but it was enough to at least keep them within reach of the bubble.  For now.

-Auburn also survived at home against Ole Miss 78-74. It wasn’t the kind of performance that instills a lot of confidence that the team is actually any good, but it was enough to at least keep them within reach of the bubble.  For now.

-Wisconsin, who had been playing really poorly and slipped pretty far down the seedlist (and perhaps outside the bubble), got a 64-52 home win over Iowa that they DESPERATELY needed.  All of their games from here on out will have a pivotal feel to them.

-Boise State needed a big win, and got it against New Mexico 82-77 at home last night.  New Mexico is in very serious trouble as they are now just 7-8 in Mountain West play.  the Mountain West isn’t exactly an Under the Radar conference, but it’s not exactly the Big 12 either.  New Mexico needs a strong finish to their season.

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-MICHIGAN AT RUTGERS (BIG TEN).  This should be a game where Rutgers is able to hold serve.  Michigan can in theory make a run at the bubble, but they’d need to win tonight, finish the regular season strong, and then make a big run in the Big Ten Tournament.

-NORTHWESTERN AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten).  This series has always had a little bit of heat to it, and I suppose some would consider it a rivalry, but RARELY has it ever had this kind of storyline to it.  Northwestern (not Illinois) is ranked in the top 25 and should land comfortably in the top half of the seedlist.  This would be another nice road win and improve their resume even more if the Wildcats are able to pull it off.  Illinois has a strong resume as well, and while they’ve lost three of their last five they have still shown they can play at a high level and will also have the chance to move up the seedlist between now and the end.

-UCLA AT UTAH (Pac 12).  UCLA is up to 4th in the rankings, and while they don’t have quite as much at the top of their profile as some of the other teams that are in the hunt for a #1 seed, I definitely think it is possible, and definitely think that regardless of what their seed is they’re good enough to go deep into the NCAA Tournament.  Having said that, this won’t be an easy road game.  Utah still has NCAA Tournament hopes that are barely flickering, and a win tonight could kindle them up some more, but I think it’s pretty much the consensus that they are much more of an NIT team than an NCAA Tournament team at the moment.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Memphis @ Wichita State (American) – Memphis is on the bubble.  If they can avoid losses to all of the teams other than Houston the rest of the way then I believe they will make it into the field
-UTSA @ Florida Atlantic (Conference USA) – if FAU wins out through the regular I think they’ll be selected on the first ballot regardless of what happens in the CUSA Tournament
-North Texas @ Charlotte (Conference USA) – it would be a stretch, but North Texas should get at least a look from the committee if they win out until the CUSA Championship game, but then fail to beat FAU
-Towson @ Charleston (Colonial) – Towson is capable of playing at a high level and be able to test Charleston tonight
-USC @ Colorado (Pac 12) – USC is on the bubble, and Mountain Roadtrip is a difficult one, but it’s one that they need to come out of with wins.
-Pacific @ Saint Mary’s (West Coast) – should be a layup win for Saint Mary’s right before the big finale with Gonzaga
-San Diego @ Gonzaga (West Coast) – should be a layup win for Gonzaga right before the big finale with Saint Mary’s

UTR WATCH:

-FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON AT SAINT FRANCIS, PA (Northeast).  These are the 3rd and 4th place teams, but they are also the top two teams that are eligible for the NCAA Tournament and are separated by just one game.  If Merrimack wins the conference tournament, then the highest eligible team in the standings is who will get the auto-bid, and tonight’s game could play a big role in determining that.

-ORAL ROBERTS AT SOUTH DAKTOTA (Summit League).  Oral Roberts has already clinched first place in the conference and is now just warming up for the conference tourney.

-SOUTHLAND – TAMUCC has a one game lead over Northwestern State and can clinch at least a share of first place if they win their game at home against TAMU Commerce and Northwestern State loses at Incarnate Word.

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Happy Birthday! HoopsHD interviews New Hampshire legend Al McClain

There are not a lot of players from the America East Conference who get drafted by an NBA team but Al McClain was 1 of them. After setting career records at New Hampshire for PTS/STL he was drafted by the Houston Rockets in 1984 (along with some other guy named Hakeem Olajuwon). A decade later he was inducted into the New Hampshire Athletics Hall of Fame. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Al about being a great scorer/defender. Today is Al’s 63rd birthday so let us be the 1st to wish him a happy 1!

Your nickname is “Ski”: who gave you the nickname, and how do you like it? I had that name for so long it is hard to remember where I got it from. I must have got it while I was in Boston and just carried it to UNH.

You grew up in Massachusetts: what made you choose New Hampshire for college? I went to prep school in Maine and the UNH coach was calling me every day because he was highly interested. Other schools got involved later like Louisville/UNC but I wanted a coach who would put me in the best place to succeed…and that was Coach Gerry Friel. Louisville brought in a couple of great high school players in Milt Wagner/Lancaster Gordon. I scored 28 against Milt in a game so I knew that I was at his level, but I just wanted playing time.

You scored 22.8 PPG as a senior and you remain the all-time leading scorer in school history: did you realize at the time how prolific a player you were, and do you think that anyone will ever break your record? I did not think about the record when I was there but I played both guard spots: if I had only played SG then I would have scored even more. We had a chance to go to the 1983 NCAA tourney but I was hurt for most of the year. I am grateful to be 1 of the best players ever at UNH and it is a good feeling just to be in the conversation. Records are made to be broken: I broke my brother-in-law Robert Dixon’s record!

You also have the most STL in school history: what is the secret to being a great defender? Hard work/dedication. I had fun playing PG because my job was simple: try to disrupt the other team’s offense. I had good stamina and tried to deny passes from the opposing PG. I kind of made it an art by staying in the passing lanes to deflect the ball. I do not think that anyone will break that 1 for a while: it was a lot of fun.

You are also #2 on the career AST list: how were you able to balance your scoring with your passing? I had the green light to make those decisions but I knew that I had to put some points on the board for us to win. I tried to make the right decisions and my coach gave me the freedom to do so: it was not that stressful. I was literally a combo guard but a little more unselfish than I had to be. Looking back, if I had shot more I think we would have won more games.

In the summer of 1984 you were drafted in the 5th round by Houston: could you tell at the time that your rookie teammate Hakeem Olajuwon was going to become a Hall of Famer? Oh yeah: he is the Dream! He was a freak of nature even back then. If I had made the team then I think I would have been very helpful. I played against most of those guys during high school but there is a lot of luck involved depending on which team you go to. The Rockets were a championship-level team and Coach Bill Fitch was 1 of the toughest coaches ever who went with some bigger guys like 7′ Hakeem/6’10” Jim Petersen.

You work as a counselor with the Dorchester Youth Collaborative and run your own developmental basketball and mentoring program: why did you decide to dedicate your post-basketball career to helping kids? I think it was because of my NBA story. We had a broken home growing up but my mother worked around the clock to take care of our family. It led me to think that if my father had been there then he could have helped me get over the hump. I needed a strong mentor to take me under his wing and help me figure things out so I took it upon myself to help anyone who needed it. The Dorchester Youth Collaborative was the best thing to ever happen to me: I still performed NBA-type duties by taking all of my energy to be a fixture in the community. In my heart everything turned out fine. I received a lot of praise from the Celtics, who were instrumental in acknowledging the work that I have done: they have been unbelievable. I was named Junior NBA Coach of the Year for the work that I have done: they have been the backbone for me to keep working with youth. I have helped send kids to charter schools/college: it has been a great journey. Hyde Prep School also inducted me into their Hall of Fame.

You still play in the Living Legends Adult Basketball League (for players over age 40): how competitive are the games, and how long do you think that you can keep playing for? I am done now: we stopped playing several years ago. I played in another league up in Harlem that a lot of NBA greats played in like Charles Smith/Allan Houston/Gus Williams. I also played in a league in Greater Springfield that was unbelievable: we won the championship and I hung it up after that at age 53! All I play now is H-O-R-S-E against the kids.

Your sister Almanda/brother Wes also played basketball: who is the best athlete in the family? I was the best athlete but all of my brothers played high school basketball. Wes played at FAMU and my twin brother toured the US with Bobby Brown!

When people look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered the most? I want to be remembered as a great teammate: 1 who cared about others more than himself. My numbers/Hall of Fame inductions speak for themselves. I am a legend in my community both on/off the court and love every kid in the Boston area and try to help them out in any way that I can. The new thing I am trying to do is recreate the Boston Shootout, which was 1 of the best high school tourneys ever. Paul Pierce played in it, as well as Dominique Wilkins. The Boston team won it last year with 8 players who ended up at D-1 schools. Check it out this spring: Battle New England.

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Under The Radar Game of the Day – Thursday, February 23rd

Fairleigh Dickinson (16-13, 9-5) at Saint Francis U (11-16, 8-6) – 7:00 PM ET (ESPN3)

Tonight’s UTR Game of the Day takes us to Loretto, Pennsylvania for a pivotal matchup in the Northeast Conference between the FDU Knights and the hometown Saint Francis Red Flash. With the top 2 teams in the conference being transitional teams who are not yet eligible for the NCAA Tournament, we look instead to tonight’s matchup between the 3rd and 4th place teams to see who could potentially clinch an NCAA Tournament bid in the event that Merrimack wins the NEC Tournament (bear in mind that Stonehill cannot participate as a 1st-year transitional team, but Merrimack as a 3rd-year transitional team can play in the NEC Tournament).

Coming into tonight, FDU is in 3rd place by a full game against Saint Francis. Should they end up tying Merrimack in the conference standings, FDU would clinch the #1 seed in the NEC Tournament and at worst a spot in the NIT. Saint Francis could also get as high as the #2 seed should they be able to finish a game ahead of FDU in the standings; they cannot get the #1 seed since they were swept by Merrimack in the regular season.

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Under the Radar – Feb 22nd

Tonight’s feature conference is the Ivy League, which currently has a three way tie for first place, and four teams that are still fighting for the last spot in the conference tournament.  We discuss what a wild year it has been, and how important it is as we head into the final two games of the season.

From there we run through the other 22 UTR leagues and look at who has clinched first place, who has a path to first place, and how the last few games of the season impact the upcoming conference tournaments.  Charleston and Hofstra are neck and neck in the Colonial, and while Charleston has had the better overall season, we think Hofstra might be playing better right now.  Drake has finally come to life in the Missouri Valley, and they’ve got a huge game against Bradley this Sunday that will decide first place.  North Texas is looking real strong out of Conference USA, and we discuss the chances of that league getting two teams into the NCAA Tournament.  We talk about all that, and more.  And, as we do every week, we close with this week’s UTR Top Ten.

And for all you radio lovers, below is an audio only version of the show…

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Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Wednesday, Feb 22nd

SURVIVAL BOARD UPDATE (Shout out to Chad Sherwood for Tracking):

up to 4 teams could be knocked out Wednesday night:

-ASUN:  Loser of Jacksonville State @ Central Arkansas is out no matter what.  If either FGCU (home vs Lipscomb) OR Jacksonville (home vs Bellarmine) win, both Jax State and UCA are out.  If FGCU wins AND Jacksonville loses, the field will be set and Jacksonville will be out as well (swept by FGCU this season)

-AMERICA EAST: Albany is out if NJIT wins (home vs Bryant)

 

NEWS AND NOTES:

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

-Xavier continues to baffle me.  They recently lost on the road at Butler, which was surprising, but easy to dismiss as a fluke loss.  Or…was it a fluke??  Because they also lost at DePaul.  Then they went into Marquette, who I thought was the best team in the Big East, and despite being short handed took Marquette to the wall.  They didn’t win, but it was a very impressive showing on the road against a really good team.  So, of course, Xavier was hosting Villanova last night in a game that appeared to be a layup win for them…and they lost 64-63, and seemingly appropriately missed a layup in the final seconds that would have won them the game.  This Xavier team might go to the Final Four!  Or, they may lose in the Round of 64.

-Texas blew Iowa State off the court 72-54.  Texas is looking like they may belong on the #1 line, and while Iowa State is in no danger of missing the field they are looking less and less like a protected seed.  It’s not that they failed to win at Texas, but that they failed to compete for even the first half.

-Marquette got a HUGE road win at Creighton 73-71.  Creighton had been playing really well and was in the rankings, and Marquette getting this one on the road is probably one of their best singular wins of the season in terms of how impressive it was.

-We knew Texas A&M had rattled off a lot of SEC wins, but that their schedule was extremely backloaded.  We basically thought “Well, let’s see what they can do when they start playing the tough games.”  Well…they’ve shown us.  They followed up their win at Missouri last night with a home win against Tennessee.  Not only is TAMU solidly in the field, they should be wearing white in the Round of 64.

-Miami FL got a nice 76-70 win at Virginia Tech.  On the surface that may not seem like much, but VA Tech has been very tough at home this year so the Canes deserve some credit for that win.

-Michigan State picked up a nice win over Indiana 80-65, which is important both on and off paper.  You certainly feel for what the Michigan State community has been through, and while winning a basketball game in and of itself isn’t that big of a deal, it is at the very least a positive community experience for a community that needed it.  Indiana is still in good shape and still has a path to a protected seed despite the loss.

-Missouri held off Mississippi State 66-64 in a close, and intense, and exciting game that both teams really needed.  Mississippi State probably needed it more than Missouri because they are just squarely on the bubble and a game like this could make the difference as to whether they get in or not.  Every game the rest of the way will have a pivotal feel to it for the Bulldogs.

-Texas Tech, a team I had pretty much written off, has now won four straight, and now has a very visible path to the bubble.  They won at Oklahoma last night 74-63, which in and of itself isn’t jaw dropping, but it’s still a road win, it’s still their fourth straight win, and the previous teams they had beaten in that stretch are either protected seeds or also fighting for a spot inside the bubble.  So….I’m about to say something I didn’t think I’d be saying a week ago.  Texas Tech can make the field.  They have three games left prior to the conference tournament.  If they win two of them, they’ll be right there in the discussion.

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-PROVIDENCE AT UCONN (Big East).  Both teams are ranked, UConn is within reach of a protected seed, and Providence is looking to add what would probably be their best win of the season to their resume.  Road wins against ranked teams tend to make resumes look better!  It’s a Big East game, and there have been very few Big East games that haven’t been awesome this year.

-WAKE FOREST AT NC STATE (ACC).  NC State appears to be rather safely inside the bubble, and it would take one hell of a collapse for them to miss the field, so they are largely just playing for seeding the rest of the way.  Wake is outside the bubble, and I suppose it’s possible for them to get inside of it, but they’d need to win tonight.  And they’d need to win their next one too.  And the one after that.  And…so on.

-NORTH CAROLINA AT NOTRE DAME (ACC).  I’ve had UNC outside the bubble since Christmas, but as rough as I have been on them, they can still reach the bubble.  Or, if they fail to win tonight, they may be so far away from it that nothing short of a run to the ACC Championship Game could get them there.

-IOWA AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten).  Iowa seems to be safely in the field, but a road win in a game like this would still look good on their profile.  Wisconsin has sort of crashed into a mountain and needs to string together wins just to get back inside the bubble.  It is still within reach, but they probably need to win three of their last four regular season games.

-NEW MEXICO AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West).  This is a super bubblicous game.  Both teams really need this one.  New Mexico State has some good things on their resume, but they’ve lost four of their last five and have slid down both the seedlist and the MWC standings.  Boise has been playing much better than New Mexico recently, but you still get the sense that they have some work to do, and a win tonight would certainly help.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Virginia @ Boston College (ACC) – this should be a winnable road game for the Hoos, who should end up with a protected seed so long as they hold serve the rest of the way
-Syracuse @ Clemson (ACC) – Clemson is now outside the bubble, and in order to get back into it they basically need to…well…win out and stop losing games to teams that are nowhere near the bubble
-Minnesota @ Maryland (Big Ten) – Maryland’s biggest problem is that they are a terrible road team, and winning at home against Minnesota isn’t going to help that at all, but they still need to hold serve
-Vanderbilt @ LSU (SEC) – Some say that Vandy can make a run at the bubble, and while I’m not predicting that to happen….I do think that it is at least possible!  They need to win tonight, though
-Kentucky @ Florida (SEC) – Kentucky is inside the bubble right now and will stay there so long as they don’t fall apart down the stretch.  This is a chance at another winnable road game
-Tulane @ Houston (American) – Houston has a very wide path to a #1 seed, and will get there so long as they hold serve.  Tulane is improving as a program and has had a good year, but is way overmatched tonight.
-Alabama @ South Carolina (SEC) – Alabama is the #1 overall seed and will likely stay there so long as they hold serve.
-Ole Miss @ Auburn (SEC) – Auburn is squarely on our bubble, and can’t afford to lose a home game to a team that’s nowhere near the NIT tonight

UTR WATCH:

-CHARLESTON SOUTHERN AT UNC ASHEVILLE (Big South).  UNCA has already clinched first place and their last two regular season games are just warm ups for the Big South Tournament.

-BINGHAMTON AT VERMONT (America East).  Vermont can clinch first place, and home court advantage in the America East Tournament, with a win tonight.

-SAMFORD AT CHATTANOOGA (SoCon).  I’m about to say something that I never expected to say.  Samford can clinch at least a share of first place in the SoCon tonight with a win!  An INCREDIBLE season for the Bulldogs this year!

-SOUTHERN MISS AT OLD DOMINION (Sun Belt).  Southern Miss had a bit of a surprising blowout loss last Thursday at South Alabama, but all and all it has been an amazing season for the Golden Eagles that certainly exceeded any expectations I had for them coming into this year.  They can clinch at least a share of first place in the Sun Belt with a win tonight.

-MARSHALL AT JAMES MADISON (Sun Belt).  I highlight this because both are still technically mathematically alive, and while they’ve been inconsistent this year, both are capable of playing really well and both are fun to watch.

-LIBERTY AT QUEENS (Atlantic Sun).  Liberty is tied with Kennesaw State with two games to go, and while most would say they feel Liberty is the best overall team in the conference, Kennesaw State actually has the tiebreaker.  Still, they are guaranteed at least a tie for first if they can win their last two games, which strangely enough are back to back games against Queens.

-KENNESAW STATE AT NORTH ALABAMA (Atlantic Sun).  As mentioned above, Kennesaw State is in a tie for first place with Liberty, and has the tiebreaker due to a head to head win.  If they win their last two games they will earn the #1 seed and have home court advantage throughout the ASun Tournament.

-ILLINOIS STATE AT DRAKE (Missouri Valley).  Drake is tied with Bradley with just two games to go, and the two will face each other on the final game of the regular season this Sunday.  I like how this Drake team is now playing and feel if they had been playing at this level all along they wouldn’t need to win the MVC Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament.

-MOREHEAD STATE AT EASTERN ILLINOIS (Ohio Valley).  Morehead State can clinch an out right first place finish with a win tonight, and earn a bye into the semifinals of the OVC Tournament.

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