Under the Radar – Jan 18th

Posted on January 18, 2023 by David Griggs

Tonight’s feature conference is the Missouri Valley, which is traditionally one of the most successful Under the Radar conferences and has routinely placed teams inside the bubble, and has even made some Final Four runs (albeit not with current members), but that didn’t have the collective out of conference success this year that they normally do.  Still there are several teams like Drake, Indiana State, Bradley, Southern Illinois, and even Belmont (and a few others) fighting for first place, so it’s as exciting as ever!

From there we run through the other 22 UTR leagues and discuss how strong Kent State has been and what their chances are of landing inside the bubble, how crazy leagues like the Sun Belt are with so many teams tied or close to tied at the top of the standings, how exciting the WAC and Conference USA are shaping up to be, Youngstown State as a surprise team in the Horizon League, 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, Jan 18th

Posted on January 18, 2023 by David Griggs

NEWS AND NOTES:

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

-Let’s start off with some news mixed in with a rant….

Kansas and K State lived up to the hype with the game going into overtime and K State holding on to win 83-82.  Kansas had a disallowed 3 pointer in the final minute that would have counted had a timeout not been called from the Kansas bench.  They also had a chance to win it on their last possession with a HUGE mismatch in the post, but then yet another timeout was called from the Kansas bench.  Out of the timeouts K State was able to regroup defensively and come up with two big stops.  Now, is there a lesson here??  I hope so.  As a fan, no one likes watching multiple committee meetings in the final minute of a game, which is what timeouts ultimately are.  As a player, no one likes having the flow of the game disrupted over and over and over again in the final 60 seconds of play, and it seems like it’s very rare when a team comes out of a timeout in a better position to convert on offense than they were in before the timeout was called.  I hate that this is now how games typically end.  And…this is NOTHING!!  The final minute of Michigan State vs Purdue the other day took about TWENTY minutes!!!  You know who was a really good coach who almost NEVER called timeout??  JOHN WOODEN!!!

But a HUGE win for a Kansas State team that is having a very special year!  Congrats to the Wildcats.

-Other than that it was a fairly chalky night.  Iowa State got a big win against Texas at home 78-67, Tennessee was sleepwalking in the first half against Mississippi State but picked up the 70-59 road win, Wake Forest got a nice 87-77 win over Clemson which is the first ACC lost for the Tigers, Baylor got an 81-74 road win at Texas Tech, Wisconsin really had to sweat at home but held off Penn State 63-60, and Kentucky got control of the game late in the second half to hold off Georgia 85-71.

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-TCU AT WEST VIRGINIA (Big 12).  West Virginia is still looking for their first conference win, and despite the fact that they are a good team they won’t make the field if they keep losing games, even if they are to high caliber teams like TCU, who looks to be on pace to get a protected seed.

-AUBURN AT LSU (SEC).  Auburn has a solid resume, but it still has room to improve and picking up road wins in conference is one way to do that.  LSU has been strong at home, but they still need some notable wins to get them on the right side of the bubble.

-PROVIDENCE AT MARQUETTE (Big East).  Both teams are in the rankings.   Both are playing well.  Both are within reach of a protected seed.  And both are looking to bounce back from a loss in their last game.  Providence can really boost their resume if they can pick up some high caliber road wins.

-ARKANSAS AT MISSOURI (SEC).  Both these teams are heading in the wrong direction and could really use this game to get things turned back around.  This game actually has a pivotal feel to it because you get the sense that whoever wins it will have gotten a much needed notable win, and whoever loses it will continue to be on the decline.

-OKLAHOMA AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big 12).  BEDLAM!!!!!!!  God, I love this rivalry!!!  I hope they keep it going after conference realignment even though it doesn’t look like they will.  Oklahoma can use a big road win to move them further inside the bubble, and Oklahoma State needs some big wins just to reach the bubble, so this game means quite a bit both on and off paper.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-UConn @ Seton Hall (Big East) – UConn has lost four out of five and needs to pull themselves out of the tailspin they’re in.  This SHOULD be a winnable conference road game
-Virginia Tech @ Virgniia (ACC) – this is a rivalry game, but it’s also a big mismatch in favor of the home team.  UVA is a protected seed and VA Tech will have to do better just to make the NIT
-Xavier @ DePaul (Big East) – Should be a winnable road game for a Xavier team that is absolutely on fire right now
-Pittsburgh @ Louisville (ACC) – this is almost a buy game on the road
-Ohio State @ Nebraska (Big Ten) – this isn’t quite a buy game on the road, but it’s a game that Ohio State should absolutely be expected to win
-Florida @ Texas A&M (SEC) – TAMU has strung together quite a few wins, and if they keep it up Uncle Buzz can get his team back on the right side of the bubble!!
-San Diego State @ Colorado State (Mountain West) – it’s almost always tough to win on the road, but this should be a winnable road game for a San Diego State team that just fell back out of the top 25, but who we still believe is a top 25 caliber team

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Under The Radar Game of the Day – Wednesday, January 18th

Posted on January 18, 2023 by John Stalica

UMBC (13-6, 3-1) at UMass-Lowell (15-4, 3-2) – 6:00 PM ET (ESPN+)

Tonight’s UTR Game of the Day returns to eastern Massachusetts for a matchup in the America East between the UMBC Retrievers and the UMass-Lowell River Hawks. UMBC has won 10 out of their last 12 games; their only losses in that span were at Maryland and at Vermont in their conference opener. Last time out, UMBC beat one-time conference foe Hartford 87-62; Jacob Boonyasith had 19 points in the win against the Hawks that included a 4-for-6 performance beyond the 3-point arc.

However, it is UMBC that is in a tie for first place and not UMass-Lowell; the River Hawks had increased expectations after a surprising 12-2 start in nonconference play that included a road win against the flagship UMass across the state. They’ve lost 2 of their last 3 games against Albany on the road and Binghamton (the other co-leader in the America East) on the road. Everette Hammond averages 12.7 points a game and 5.4 rebounds a game for the River Hawks.

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Hoops HD Daily Rundown – Tuesday, Jan 17th

Posted on January 17, 2023 by David Griggs

NEWS, AND NOTES:

For the latest HOOPS HD REPORT Video Podcast – CLICK HERE

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

-Purdue survivied a scare at Michigan State in a game that was close all throughout (and that the final minute seemed like it took an hour to play), and held on to pick up yet another impressive road win 64-63.

-Miami FL survived a scare from Syracuse, but escaped with an 82-78 win after trailing most of the game.  Syracuse has been playing better, but to get all the way back into a position to where they are on the bubble they’ll need to keep stringing together wins.

 

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-HOUSTON AT TULANE (American).  It’s a showcase game for Tulane, they’re going to be way up for this one, and they have been playing well lately.  But at the end of the day Houston is a #1 seeded caliber team and Tulane looks more like an NIT team than an NCAA Tournament team.  But, a win tonight would be HUGE for them, so it should be fun.

-KANSAS AT KANSAS STATE (Big 12).  When it comes to game atmospheres this one tonight may be among the best we’ll see all season.  K State is having a monster year, it looks like they’ll be a protected seed, and they’re hosting their big rivals who many feel should be the #1 overall seed right now.  Kansas certainly has a shot at becoming the #1 overall seed and a win tonight would be a huge step toward that.  This one is going to be tons of fun!!

-TENNESSEE AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC).  Tennessee is fighting to end up as a protected seed, and Mississippi State is fighting just to get into the field.  Tennessee is still ranked in the top ten and is looking to bounce back from a somewhat surprising home loss to Kentucky, and Mississippi State has lost five of their last six and are trying to snap out of that tailspin.

-NC STATE AT GEORGIA TECH (ACC).  NC State has been playing really well and can continue to secure a spot inside the bubble.  This should be a winnable road game for them.

-BOSTON COLLEGE AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC).  UNC appears to be safely inside the bubble for now and just needs to hold serve in games like this where they’re playing teams at home that are nowhere near the bubble.

-CREIGHTON AT BUTLER (Big East).  Creighton is just 10-8 on the year and still doesn’t have a true road win this season.  This is perhaps the most winnable road game they have remaining and if they can’t take care of business tonight then they are in legitimate danger of missing the field entirely.

-KENT STATE AT EASTERN MICHIGAN (MAC).  I still think there is a place for Kent State inside the bubble if they can either win out or come close to winning out.

-TEXAS AT IOWA STATE (Big 12).  It’s yet another Big 12 matchup between two teams that are high in the rankings and competing for protected seeds.  That seems to be the storyline for nearly every Big 12 game this year.  Iowa State is coming off a close loss at Kansas, and Texas is also on a complete tear where they’ve strong together a lot of wins against a lot of good teams.

-ALABAMA AT VANDERBILT (SEC).  Alabama has proven they can win tough games, and they should be able to get this one on the road tonight, but Vandy isn’t a cakewalk when they’re at home, and they just beat a fairly decent Arkansas team their last time out.

-PENN STATE AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten).  Penn State is hovering around the bubble, and winning a road game like this against a very good Wisconsin team is a very good way to get inside the bubble.  Wisky has lost three in a row and needs this win tonight to help get things turned around.

-CLEMSON AT WAKE FOREST (ACC).  Wake is just a bubble team, but this might be Clemson’s toughest game of the year so far considering it’s on the road, and that Wake is unbeaten at home, and that they also really need this win to help them land on the right side of the bubble.  On paper this means quite a bit to both teams.

-BAYLOR AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12).  Baylor is one of the many teams in the Big 12 that’s fighting for a protected seed, and Texas Tech is still simply looking for their first win in conference play.

-GEORGIA AT KENTUCKY (SEC).  With the win at Tennessee, Kentucky seems to have pulled themselves out of the tailspin and has things turned around, but they need to keep stringing together wins in order for their stability to be…well…stable.  Georgia is fighting for a spot inside the bubble and a road win like this would be huge for them.

-UNLV AT UTAH STATE (Mountain West).  Both teams are on the outside looking in, but both could still reach the bubble if they can string together some wins.

-SAN JOSE STATE AT NEW MEXICO (Mountain West).  New Mexico’s win at San Diego State changed the entire complexion of their season, and they now look like a team that is solidly inside the bubble and will remain there so long as they hold serve in games like this.

-NEVADA AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West).  I think Boise is inside the bubble and is good enough to remain there.  Nevada is fighting for a spot in the field and a win in a game like this would be huge for them.

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Under The Radar Game of the Day – Tuesday, January 17th

Posted on January 17, 2023 by John Stalica

Murray State (10-8, 5-3) at Belmont (13-6, 6-2) – 9:00 PM ET (CBS Sports Network)

For several years, the fate of the Ohio Valley Conference hung in the balance with the Murray-Belmont rivalry. Tonight will be the first time they face off as conference rivals in the Missouri Valley as the Racers travel to Nashville to face Belmont. Murray State did come back to earth in the conference after a winless road trip against Drake and Northern Iowa. Rob Perry leads the Racers with 14.9 points a game.

Belmont is currently in a 3-way tie for first place in the Valley alongside Southern Illinois and Indiana State. The Bruins are currently in a stretch where they have won 7 out of 8 games overall; the only loss in that stretch was against the aforementioned Salukis on the road. They only play Indiana State once and Drake twice, so there is a bit of an easier schedule for the Bruins as they contend for the Valley regular season title. Ben Shepard averages 18 points a game and 4.8 rebounds a game for Belmont.

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The Hoops HD Report – Jan 16th

Posted on January 16, 2023 by David Griggs

We’ve got a bit of an extended edition tonight because it was such an eventful week in college hoops, and there is a ton to get to.  We had nine ranked teams lose over the weekend, which included Tennessee losing at home to a Kentucky team who picked up not just a good win, but an elite level win, which will really help their resume.  The Big 12 has as many as six teams that could end up as a protected seed, and each week is chuck full of elite games.  We look back at a busy week from last week, and look ahead to all the exciting games this week.  The Big Ten is also hugely competitive with Purdue looking like a #1 seed, Michigan State and Iowa playing a lot better, and Rutgers and Northwestern are also looking like Tournament caliber teams.  New Mexico had a big win at San Diego State out in the Mountain West, and Boise State is also putting together a strong resume.  We discuss all that, and more…

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

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