Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES:

-Miami OH ran away from Toledo on the road. It was never really even a game. The Redhawks remain unbeaten on the season after what is perhaps their most impressive showing to date.

-USC got a much needed road win against a so-so Minnesota team, but needed overtime to do it. They barely escaped 70-69.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-NEBRASKA AT INDIANA (Big Ten). Indiana has won four straight, is 3-1 in Big Ten play, and is unbeaten at home. Nebraska is unbeaten for the entire season, but this will be a very tough challenge going on the road to face a team that’s playing well and who should be way up for this one.

-TENNESSEE AT FLORIDA (SEC). This is a very tough road test for the Vols who are still looking for their first true road win of the season. Florida has won five of their last six, is coming off a big win against Georgia, and is starting to play a lot better, so it won’t be an easy road game.

-VCU AT GEORGE MASON. George Mason has a bloated record against a weak schedule. While VCU is good, they still feel like more of an NIT team than an NCAA Tournament team, so this is one that GMU can’t afford to lose.

-HOUSTON AT BAYLOR (Big 12). It’s a tough road test for Houston, but we’ve seen that Houston is certainly capable of passing this type of test. A win for Baylor would give their resume a boost even though they’re at home. (Stat of the Day from Jon Teitel: Kelvin Sampson is 25-1 as a head coach against Baylor; the Bears’ only win came in the 2021 Final Four)

-SMU AT DUKE (ACC). SMU is coming off a loss at Clemson and they’ll face an even tougher opponent on the road today as they take on Duke. Duke is coming off a very impressive win against Louisville and is in the hunt for a #1 seed.

-SAINT JOHN’S AT CREIGHTON (Big East). Both teams have a lot of work to do and both could really use this win. Both can still make the NCAA Tournament, but they’ll need to finish a lot stronger than how they started and there should be a sense of urgency coming into this one.

-STANFORD AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Stanford’s last two games have been huge wins against Lousiville and then on the road at Virginia Tech. I’m now a believer in the Cardinal! I don’t know if I’m such a believer that I think they can win at Virginia, but the Hoos better not overlook them.

-OKLAHOMA AT TEXAS A&M (SEC). Both have shown signs of being able to play really well, but both still have a ton of work to do and both could really use this win today. It has a bubblicious type of feel to it.

-ARIZONA AT TCU (Big 12). TCU is coming off what had to be a maddening loss at Kansas where they appeared to be in complete control with less than 90 seconds to play. They need to bounce back and focus on another big game today. They’re hosting the top ranked team at home. Arizona’s resume is already phenomenal and this is their chance to add another very good win to it.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT IOWA STATE (Big 12). Oklahoma State has an impressive 13-2 record, but none of their wins are anything close to the caliber that this one would be if they’re somehow able to pull off the upset. Iowa State is one of the best teams in the Big 12 and is in the hunt for a #1 seed.

-CALIFORNIA AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). Both teams feel like bubble teams right now, and both could really use a win in this game to help get them on the right side of it. Both are also coming off losses, so there should be a big sense of urgency to this one.

-ARKANSAS AT AUBURN (SEC). It’s been a frustrating year for Auburn and they are coming off what is perhaps the most frustrating of all their losses. But they’re still positioned to make a run at making the field and they’ve got another tough game at home today. Arkansas is just 1-1 in true road games, so this is a win that would polish up their resume some.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Boston College @ Louisville (ACC) – this should be a virtual buy game

-Georgia Tech @ Miami FL (ACC) – Miami is having a solid year and should be able to hold serve at home

-NC State @ Florida State (ACC) – NC State has fallen way short of expectations so far and needs to start stringing together wins just to get themselves into the tournament discusison

-Kansas @ West Virginia – Kansas is coming off a big come from behind win against TCU. This is a road game they should be able to pick up

-DePaul @ Connecticut (Big East) – UConn should be able to hold serve at home

-Wisconsin @ Michigan (Big Ten). Michigan got a scare in their last game but held on to beat Penn State. Wisky has struggled all season long and appears to be overmatched in this one. They need some big wins just to get back inside the bubble

-LSU @ Vanderbilt (SEC). LSU has lost two straight and they’re still looking for their first win. Vanderbilt is unbeaten on the season and has been very tough to beat at home, so they should be able to hold serve in this one.

-Penn State @ Purdue (Big Ten). Penn State gave Michigan a scare in their last game. They’ve got another seemingly impossible task today going on the road against Purdue.

-Georgia @ South Carolina (SEC) – this is a game where the Bulldogs should be able to pick up their second true road win of the season. However, the Gamecocks are coming off of a surprising win at LSU. Dawgs beware.

-High Point @ Charleston Southern (Big South) – a fun UTR matchup in the Big South. High Point is the better team, but they may have their hands full in this one

-Syracuse @ Pittsburgh (ACC) – This should be a winnable road game for the Orange, and it’s one they kinda need.

-Yale @ Princeton (Ivy League) – Yale should hold serve in this one. Yale really should be able to win out

-Buffalo @ Ohio U (MAC) – a tough road game for Buffalo who is looking to stay perfect in MAC play and get to 14-2 overall on the year

-Villanova @ Marquette (Big East) – Nova needs to rebound from a somewhat surprising loss earlier in the week, and they should be able to do that against a struggling Marquette team

-South Florida @ Tulsa (American) – simply put, I don’t think Tulsa can afford to lose another game

-Kansas State @ Arizona State (Big 12) – I’m still not sold at all on Kansas State, but I know several at Hoops HD still have their eyes on them. They are still looking for their first conference win, and what would be their second road win

-New Mexico @ Air Force (Mountain West) – New Mexico should be able to hold serve in this one

-Liberty @ Sam Houston (Conference USA) – it’s a challenging road game, but it’s one Liberty should be able to win and remain unbeaten in CUSA

-Saint Louis @ La Salle (Atlantic 10) – this should be a layup road win for SLU.

-UIC @ Illinois State (Missouri Valley) – Illinois State should be able to hold serve at home

-Washington State @ Saint Mary’s (West Coast) – SMC should be able to hold serve at home

-SELA @ McNeese (Southland) – if McNeese can win out they should get a serious look from the committee, but anything short of that and they’ll need the auto-bid

-Wake Forest @ North Carolina (ACC) – it’s a rivalry game and Wake has really pushed some good teams to the limit this year, but it’s still one that UNC should win at home

-Belmont @ Drake (Missouri Valley) – blowing through this conference the rest of the way is probably too hard for Belmont to do, but they do have a really good team and will be a dangerous opponent in the round of 64 if they can get into the field

-Seton Hall @ Georgetown (Big East) – Seton Hall’s astonishingly good season continues. They have what should be a winnable game today, which would get them to 14-2 overall on the season

-Clemson @ Notre Dame (ACC) – Clemson is having a fantastic year, but this will not be an easy road game. ND is just 10-5 on the year, but they’ve lost in some real battles and they are a very solid 7-1 at home

-UNC Wilmington @ Stony Brook (CAA) – UNCW is looking to remain unbeaten in conference play

-Missouri @ Ole Miss (SEC) – Mizzou has managed back to back wins against Florida and at Kentucky and is starting to play a lot better. To get another one on the road would give their profile another boost

-Texas Tech @ Colorado (Big 12) – winning this on the road could be a challenge, but Texas Tech has shown that they are capable of winning games that are challenging to win

-Texas @ Alabama (SEC) – Alabama should hold serve in this one; Texas is coming off of a loss at Tennessee that saw 3 starters benched for almost the entire second half. More Sean Miller Theater today?

-Maryland @ UCLA (Big Ten) – UCLA needs to start stringing together wins. What they don’t need is to drop games at home against teams that are nowhere near the bubble

-UC San Diego @ UC Riverside (Big West) – UCSD has had a tough start to conference play and they’re running out of strikes. Tonight is another tough road game

-Mississippi State @ Kentucky (SEC) – Kentucky is still looking for their first conference win and Mississippi State is looking to improve to 3-0 in SEC play

-Utah State @ Boise State (Mountain West) – this will be a tough road test for Utah State, but it’s one they should be able to win if htey are a top 25 caliber team, which is what I believe them to be

-BYU @ Utah (Big 12). It’s one of the most bitter rivalries in all of college sports! It’s also a huge mismatch. You never want to discount the role that the rivalry plays in a game like this, but even with this being on the road it’s one that BYU should win.

-UC Irvine @ Hawaii (Big West) – this is a tough road test for the Eaters who are looking to remain unbeaten in Big West play

After a couple of days that were absolutely slammed with big games, very little happened yesterday in terms of games that will likely impact the bubble and board.

-Santa Clara hung with Gonzaga for about 25 minutes before the Zags got control and went on to win 89-77.

-Hofstra remains unbeaten in CAA play and has two nice ACC road wins on top of that. They took down Towson on the road yesterday 78-67

-Lipscomb, who we thought was the top team in the ASun, fell on the road at Stetson 91-83 in a game that was a bit of a surprise.

-Vermont was much more fortunate to escape an upset bid at home against Binghamton. The Catamounts trailed by as much as 6 late in the second half before denying Binghamton a pair of shots in the closing seconds and ended up winning by a single point.

-UT Martin came from behind to beat Morehead State on the road, and is once again looking like one of the top teams in the OVC.

-Seattle U, after playing both Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s very tough in back to back games on the road, did not look tough yesterday. They fell 68-55 to Oregon State.

-UC Irvine won the first leg of the Black and Blue Rivalry as they knocked off Long Beach State 74-64 to remain unbeaten in Big West play.

-MIAMI OH AT TOLEDO (MAC). This will be a tough road test for Miami. It’s a game they should win, but it’s also one of the tougher games they’ve had to play up to this point. Can they stay unbeaten?

-USC @ Minnesota (Big Ten) – USC has hit a bit of a skid and could really use this road win to help get things turned back around.

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NEWS AND NOTES:

-Connecticut got a much bigger battle than expected from Providence and was actually behind for most of the game. In the final minutes of regulation Providence appeared to be in control, but through a sequence of big and crazy plays UConn got it to overtime and escaped with a 103-98 OT win.

-Alabama stayed within arms reach of Vanderbilt, but Vandy still felt like they were in control and picked up a tough 96-90 win against a Bama team that is not easy to beat. Vandy remains unbeaten and has a case for being the best team in the SEC.

-Saint Louis picked up their biggest and most impresssive win of the year as they went into VCU and won 71-62. It was a road game in a tough environment against a good team, and every time VCU appeared to be building momentum SLU had an answer. They are getting close to the top 25, and they deserve it.

-Clemson survived a late from from SMU to hold on for a 74-70 win at home. The Tigers are now 13-3 on the year and are still perfect in the ACC.

-Belmont bounced back from two tough 1pt losses and got a big win at Northern Iowa 78-65. Northern Iowa is a very tough place to play and if Belmont can play like that the rest of the way they can win the league and be a very tough team in the NCAA Tournament.

-Miami FL is now 13-2 on the year and a perfect 2-0 in the ACC after getting a nice road win against a Wake Forest team that at one time looked to be getting better, but who has now lost three of their last four.

-Stanford went across the country and got a huge road win at Virginia Tech. This follows up a big home win against Louisville, which improves them to 13-3 on the year and makes their resume look a lot better.

-Virginia was less than hospitable against California. The Hoos beat the Golden Bears by 24 on the heels of a win at NC State.

-Missouri won their second straight game as they knocked off Kentucky on the road 73-68. The Tigers are now an impressive 12-3 on the year with back to back wins against Florida and Kentucky. They are looking a lot better than they did just a week ago. The Cats, meanwhile, are running out of lives and need to begin cracking the win column, injuries or no injuries.

-Villanova, who seemed to be cruising, hit a major pothole yesterday with a somewhat surprising 76-72 loss at home to Creighton. Creighton is coming off a loss to Seton Hall where they seemed to have the game wrapped up, but just collapsed down the stretch. The Bluejays still have work to do, but they are also getting better and this win certainly helps.

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-SANTA CLARA AT GONZAGA (West Coast). I like this Santa Clara team and think they can play their way inside the bubble. An upset win tonight will have everyone else saying the same thing. Having said that, Gonzaga is one of the hardest places to win in the entire country. The Zags are a solid protected seed, they are good enough to win out, and if they do they may have a shot at earning a #1 seed. Still, tonight should be fun and worth staying up for.

-Northwetern @ Michigan State – Michigan State is a solid protected seed level team and should be able to hold serve at home in this one

-Liberty @ Louisiana Tech (Conference USA) – Liberty has looked really good in conference play so far and while this can be a tough road trip it’s still one they should be able to win

-Rutgers @ Illinois (Big Ten) – the Illini should hold serve at home without too much trouble

-Western Kentucky @ New Mexico State (Conference USA) – Western Kentucky has a talented team, but this will be a really tough road game. I’m highlighting this simply because I feel it will be one of the more entertaining games of the day

-Seattle U @ Oregon State (West Coast) – Seattle has had two straight tough losses, but this should be a winnable road game for them

NEWS AND NOTES:

-Top ranked Michigan got a big scare at Penn State. In fact Penn State had a chance to tie or win on their last possession (which was a little disappointing on the part of Penn State given how well Penn State played up until the last possession), but Michigan escaped. This was the first game for Michigan that wasn’t a complete blowout since mid-November.

-Houston and Texas Tech was once again a battle. The entire game seemed to be played within an 8pt window with neither team building up more than a two possession lead. Houston made some big plays in the final minute and held on for a massive 69-65 win. As for Texas Tech, they battled in one of the toughest places to play in the country and had a chance to win. I think they’re fine.

-TCU had a double digit lead on the road at Kansas in the second half, and had a 9pt lead with just over a minute to go, but fell apart at the end of regulation after having played such a great game up to that point. Kansas somehow got it to overtime and then once they did they took control and escaped with a 104-100 win.

-The game that won the award for most controversial last night was Auburn v Texas A&M. Auburn hit what appeared to be a game winning shot right at the buzzer after having just 0.6 seconds to even get a shot up. The shot initially counted. After they reviewed it, they waived it off and TAMU escaped. Auburn’s fans were understandably not thrilled. It was about as close as it could have been, but I think the referees got it right and here is why. The only real official clock is the one that is at the scorer’s table. Any timekeeper will tell you that the other clocks in the arenas, and by that I mean EVERY arena, will always be a few milliseconds off. They’re never all absolutely precisely synced down to the thousandth (0.001) of a second because they can’t be. The game officially ends when the light comes on behind the backboard. Sometimes this happens while some of the arena clocks still show a tenth of a second remaining. And, that’s what happened. Now, this is normally not that big of an issue because the human eye can’t even tell they’re not in perfect sync down to the thousandth of a second. You can watch ten thousand games and never see an ending where it is that close, but last night’s was.

-Louisville jumped on Duke in the first half, but then went ice cold in the second half. Duke ended up pulling away and got a big 84-73 win on the road.

-Florida, who lost on the road to Missouri over the weekend, bounced back with a big home win over Georgia. This game probably does as much for their confidence and momentum as it does for their profile.

-UCF, after getting a big win against Kansas over the weekend, could not get it done at Oklahoma State and fell on the road 87-76. Oklahoma State is now 13-2 on the year and starting to show some signs of life themselves.

-Saint John’s went on the road and got a win they really needed at Butler 84-70. The Johnnies struggled in the first half but got control of the game in the second half. Butler is in serious trouble and may be neutered for all intents and purposes since the Big East won’t offer many opportunities for the Dawgs to catch up.

-Iowa fell to Minnesota 70-67 after being behind for most of the game in what looked to be a winnable road game for the Hawkeyes. Iowa has a ton of potential, but right now their profile is kind of meh.

-LSU stubbed their toes at home and lost 78-68 to South Carolina. The Tigers actually trailed by 25 at the half.

-New Mexico picked up a nice road win at Colorado State to improve to 12-3 overall and a solid 3-1 in Mountain West play.

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HIGHLIGHTED GAMES:

-SAINT LOUIS AT VCU (Atlantic 10). This is perhaps the toughest test of the year so far for SLU. VCU has dropped four games, but three were close ones against solid opponents. They’ve been looking better and will not be easy to beat at home. SLU actually needs a win like this in order to strengthen their profile, so it’s both a tough test and a big opportunity.

-MIAMI FL AT WAKE FOREST (ACC). I highlight this because right now it just feels like a bubblicious type of game between two teams that have shown they can play well, but who need to strengthen their resumes and who could both really use this win tonight.

-STANFORD AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). This is another game between two teams that have shown a lot of promise and who have picked up some notable wins, but who also still have a lot of work to do and who could really use this win tonight. Stanford is starting a rough stretch of their schedule, so picking up this win and a few more will really make their profile look a lot better.

-MISSOURI AT KENTUCKY (SEC). Neither team has a strong profile and while Mizzou did pick up a nice win against Florida in their last game they still need to add a lot to their resume in order to be seriously considered. Kentucky’s resume is really weak as well. This game seems to feel like it’s more about avoiding a loss than it is picking up a big win.

-CREIGHTON AT VILLANOVA (Big East). Nova is having a fantastic season. While Creighton is starting to play a little better and is off to a solid 3-1 start in conference play, they still have a lot of work to do. A road win tonight would be huge, but it’s also not going to be easy.

-IOWA STATE AT BAYLOR (Big 12). This is a road test for the Cyclones, but they’ve passed some tough road tests already and should be able to get this one. Baylor needs to build up their profile some, and a big win like this would certainly do the trick.

-ALABAMA AT VANDERBILT (SEC). Both teams are protected-seed caliber teams and Vandy is still unbeaten on the season. They’ll be tested tonight at home, but they are at home. Sometimes when a team relies as much on the 3 as Alabama does, it’s hard for them to go on the road and win against a good defensive team. It will be fun to see what happens tonight.

-CALIFORNIA AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Cal has some decent wins on their profile and making the NCAA Tournament is definitely within reach. They can really boost up their profile if they’re somehow able to get this one on the road.

-SMU AT CLEMSON. SMU is coming off a big home win against North Carolina, but they’re just 1-1 in true road games and will likely face an even tougher test tonight. Clemson may not be as good as the Tarheels, but winning at Clemson is probably harder to do than it is to beat North Carolina at home, so it’s a big test for the Ponies.

OTHER NOTABLE GAMES:

-Indiana @ Maryland (Big Ten) – Indiana is starting to string together wins and they need to keep it up. This is a road game, but it’s one they should get and kind of need to get

-Connecticut @ Providence (Big East) – UConn is in the hunt for a 1-seed and while Providence is coming off a nice win against Saint John’s and should have some momentum built up for this one at home, it’s one UConn should still win

-Belmont @ Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley) – these are two of the better teams in the MVC and both could potentially be dangerous in the Round of 64. Belmont’s last two losses have been by a single point, so a win like this on the road would be big

-Richmond @ Saint Bonaventure (Atlantic 10) – both teams have respectable records, but both need to build up their profiles and have a razor thin margin for error when it comes to landing inside the bubble

-George Mason @ Fordham (Atlantic 10) – this should be a winnable road game for Mason and improve them to 15-1 on the season

-Oklahoma @ Mississippi State (SEC) – The Sooners have won five straight, but only have one true road win so far. They should be able to pick up their second one tonight

-Washington @ Purdue (Big Ten) – Purdue should be able to hold serve at home. Washington can boost their profile up into orbit if they’re somehow able to win this, but it isn’t likely

-Kansas State @ Arizona (Big 12) – Arizona shouldn’t have too much trouble holding serve at home

-Arizona State @ BYU (Big 12) – BYU is having an amazing year and while Arizona State looked good at times during the OOC portion of the season, they have fallen back to Earth and may end up getting buried under it tonight

-Arkansas @ Ole Miss (SEC) – it’s never easy to win on the road, but this is one that Arkansas should be able to get

-Utah @ Colorado (Big 12) – the Buffs have work to do and they need to hold serve at home tonight

PILLOW FIGHT OF THE NIGHT

-Xavier @ Marquette (Big East) – 3 years ago, this was the Big East championship game. Now it’s looking more and more like a battle for 10th place.