Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES

-Someone pointed out yesterday that they thought that Gonzaga had a C- game at Saint Mary’s, but that they still won rather easily.  That’s the best way to describe it.  Even when they don’t play anywhere close to their best game, they can still easily beat decent teams on the road.

-Baylor really got a fight from Texas Tech, which was not a surprise, but ended up picking up the huge road win.  Baylor was already a #1 caliber seed, but whenever you pick up road wins against protected seeds it is worth pointing out.

-Minnesota continues to look like the Harlem Globetrotters at home and the Washington Generals on the road.  They handed Michigan their first loss of the season in a 75-57 blowout.

-Creighton, who looked like a solid top ten team, went on the road and fell to Butler in overtime.  It is a bit of a surprising result and setback for the Bluejays, but only a bit of one.  They’re still a solid team that just had a blah day.

-What Virginia did to Clemson is probably illegal.  I believe it was 23-1 at one point, and it never really got any closer.  Clemson had just 3 points halfway through the first half.  It was a huge statement win against a ranked team for the Hoos.

-Illinois dropped another game as they fell at home to Ohio State.  I think Illinois is good, but they haven’t done much at all this season to indicate that they are a protected seed caliber team or that they belong in the top 15.  I think a lot of people are overvaluing them.

-Louisville had a bit of an inexplicable loss on the road against Miami FL team that had really be reeling.  The Canes pretty much led from tip to buzzer and were in control the whole way.  It is a bit of a head scratching loss for a Louisville team that had been looking pretty good.

-Pitt continues to distance themselves from the really bad season opening loss and look more and more like a tournament team.  They blew Syracuse off the court yesterday.  Syracuse isn’t particularly good, but the are at least decent, and Pitt just boat-raced them.

-San Diego State fell for the second game in a row to Utah State, which is a big win for the Aggies as they improve to 11-3 on the year and put two really good wins on their resume, but also a setback for a San Diego State team that’s suddenly not looking anything like a protected seed.

-Kentucky fell on the road to Auburn and is now 4-8 on the season.  I think you can forget about all the things I said about how they appeared to be improving.

-Alabama blew out Arkansas and continues to look as good as anyone in the SEC.  If they aren’t in the rankings when they come out tomorrow then we’ll need to get all new voters.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-IOWA AT NORTHWESTERN (Big Ten).  Northwestern is in a tailspin, and being able to pull out of it today against a top five Iowa team is a super tall order.  Iowa is still within reach of the #1 line, whereas Northwestern is trying to stay inside the bubble.

-PENN STATE AT PURDUE (Big Ten).  Purdue has won their last two and is looking more and more like a solid tournament team.  They need to hold serve at home today.

-UCF AT HOUSTON (American).  UCF has looked good at times, but not enough of the time to call them a solid tournament team.  Houston should be able to hold serve and cruise toward a protected seed.

-WESTERN KENTUCKY AT MARSHALL (Conference USA).  WKU has slumped a little bit since conference play began, but they still look like the most talented team in the league and are still good enough to win out and play their way inside the bubble.  They won at Marshall the other night, and if they can repeat that tonight they should be running down hill most of the rest of the way.

-MEMPHIS AT TULSA (American).  Tulsa has put together some big wins, but has also suffered some setbacks.  This is the kind of game they need to hold serve in if they want to be inside the bubble at the end.

-SANTA CLARA AT SAN DIEGO (West Coast).  Santa Clara’s margin for error is extremely small (unless they beat Gonzaga, of course) but I still think they have a path (albeit narrow) to landing inside the bubble.

-NORTHERN IOWA AT LOYOLA CHICAGO (Missouri Valley).  If Loyola Chicago can finish strong and collect some wins against the likes of Drake and Missouri State, then they may be in the discussion for a bid come March.

-VIRGINIA TECH AT WAKE FOREST (ACC).  I kinda keep waiting for Virginia Tech to begin to taper off, but it hasn’t happened yet, which makes me now think that it’s not going ot happen.  They’re coming off of a win against Duke and have another winnable road game tonight.

NEWS AND NOTES

-Wisconsin outlasted Rutgers and added another nice road win to their resume.  Rutgers, while good, needs to pull themselves out of the tailspin that they’re in.  The issue is that in the Big Ten seemingly every game is a battle between two really good teams, and only one of them can win.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-OHIO STATE AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten).  Both teams are in good shape, but both have to do a little more if they want to solidify themselves as protected seeds.  Today’s game is a big opportunity for both.

-MARQUETTE AT SAINT JOHN’S (Big East).  Marquette has been very schizophrenic this year with some monster wins and some head scratching losses.  They need to be able to win these games to bring some consistency and stability to their resume.

-SYRACUSE AT PITTSBURGH (ACC).  I think both these teams are outside the bubble, but Pitt is getting pretty close and can pick up another notable win today.

-NORTH CAROLINA AT FLORIDA STATE (ACC).  I don’t think Florida State has quite reached their potential yet, and that they need to continue to string together wins in order to get their.  UNC needs some wins on their resume just to establish that they’re a team that belongs in The Tournament.

-GEORGIA AT OLE MISS (SEC).  Georgia has a lot of ground to make up, but they are still in the race for a bid.

-MISSOURI AT TEXAS A&M.  Missouri still looks like they could end up as a protected seed even though they’ve dropped a couple of conference games.  TAMU seems to be improving as the year goes along.  I don’t think they are on Missouri’s level, but a win today could completely change the complexion of their resume.

-SAN DIEGO STATE AT UTAH STATE (Mountain West).  Utah State picked up a big win the other night, and if they can repeat that then they’ll start looking like they belong in the NCAA Tournament discussion.  San Diego State could use a win to stabilize their profile.

-VCU AT RICHMOND (Atlantic Ten).  This game is always fun, and today should be no exception.  It’s a rivalry game, both teams are hovering around the bubble, and both could really use the win. CANCELLED

-IOWA STATE AT KANSAS (Big 12).  Kansas shouldn’t have too much trouble holding serve in this one and keeping themselves within reach of a #1 seed. CANCELLED

-MICHIGAN AT MINNESOTA (Big Ten).  Michigan’s resume is incredible.  They’re undefeated and have beaten some heavyweights.  Minnesota has been awful on the road, but is unbeaten at home and has taken down some heavyweights of their own.  So, something’s gotta give!!

-CREIGHTON AT BUTLER (Big East).  Creighton is ranked in the top ten, they look like a top ten team on the court, and their resume is top ten caliber.  They should be able to hold serve today.

-COASTAL CAROLINA AT GEORGIA STATE (Sun Belt).  I don’t think Georgia State will be able to make a run at the bubble unless they win out, but…they may be good enough to do just that.

-TOLEDO AT AKRON (MAC).  I really like how this Toledo team has been playing and think they may get a serious look if they can continue to blow through the conference.

-STANFORD AT COLORADO (Pac 12).  Stanford is hugging the bubble right now and could really use some big wins to help establish that they belong inside of it.  Colorado continues to look like a solid team that should be able to hold serve at home.

-ARKANSAS AT ALABAMA (SEC).  Arkansas is outside the bubble, and while we kind of picked on them the other night, a win at Alabama, who’s looking more and more like a solid top 25 team, would change everything.

-BAYLOR AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12).  Baylor is unbeaten and chasing Gonzaga for the #1 ranking.  Texas Tech just picked up a huge road win against Texas, and if they can follow that up with a win against Baylor, even if it is at home, then the Red Raiders should be bound for the top ten.

-WYOMING AT AIR FORCE (Mountain West, Front Range).  Wyoming has been fun to watch at times, but the only reason we highlight this is because We at Hoops HD Love the Front Range!!

-FLORIDA AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC).  Florida has had to deal with some big setbacks to say the least.  A road win like this would certainly help.

-EAST TENNESSEE STATE AT FURMAN (SoCon).  Furman has a shot at the bubble, but they pretty much need to win out in order to get there.

-WASHINGTON AT UCLA (Pac 12).  These two teams are going in extreme opposite directions.  UCLA looks like they belong in the top 25 (at least) and Washington looks like they might win this year’s Stallings Award.

-BELMONT AT JACKSONVILLE STATE (Ohio Valley).  A win for Belmont will get them to 14-1 on the season, and it may be time to start looking at them as a team that could crash the bubble.

-VANDERBILT AT TENNESSEE (SEC).  I want to give a shout out to Vandy because they are noticeably better than they were a year ago, but I don’t think they’ve improved to the point of being able to take down a top ten team like Tennessee.

-VIRGINIA AT CLEMSON (ACC).  You get the sense that Virginia is getting stronger and stronger.  They’ve got a big test today against a Clemson team that has a lot of decent wins, but probably none as good as this one would be if they’re able to pull it off.

-COLORADO STATE VS SAN JOSE STATE (Phoenix) (Mountain West).  Colorado State looks to be straddling the bubble, so it’s important that they hold serve in games like this.

-KANSAS STATE AT TEXAS (Big 12).  Texas is coming off a loss, but they are still an outstanding team and should have very little trouble bouncing back with a win tonight.

-LOUISVILLE AT MIAMI FL (ACC).  Louisville hasn’t played the toughest schedule, but they’ve blown through most of what they have played, have built up a respectable resume that they’ll have the chance to improve on, and have the chance to add to that tonight with another road win.

-BYU AT SAN FRANCISCO (West Coast).  San Francisco isn’t the most consistent team, but they are tough to beat when they play up to their potential.  BYU looks like a solid tournament team, and that means they should be able to win games that are hard to win, so we will see what they do tonight.

-OKLAHOMA AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big 12).  BEDLAM!!!!!  I hate that we won’t have fans at this game.  Both teams are good, both look like tournament caliber teams, and both could help themselves out with a win tonight.  CANCELLED

-SOUTH CAROLINA AT LSU (SEC).  South Carolina hasn’t had the opportunities to play that many games.  I think they have a lot of potential, but it’s hard to say for sure.  A win tonight against an LSU team that’s really been playing well lately would certainly be a big statement.

-WASHINGTON STATE AT USC (Pac 12).  USC had a scare earlier in the week in a buy game against UC Riverside, but they did get the win and their resume keeps looking better and better as the season goes on.

-GONZAGA AT SAINT MARY’S (West Coast).  We’ve seen some classics between these two, but Gonzaga has been so dominant this year, and without any fans to give SMC a push it just looks like it’s going to be another dominant performance for the Zags.

NEWS AND NOTES

-I for one am done in thinking that UCF is good.  They lost at Temple last night, and that’s a pretty sure sign that you’re not a tournament team.

-Stanford went into Utah needing a win, and Stanford left Utah without them.  The Cardinal are within reach of the bubble, but now seem to be on the outside looking in given how they always seem to come up empty when they play in the kinds of games that tournament caliber teams need to win.

-Purdue got a nice win at Indiana and improve to 9-5 on the season.

-San Diego State fell to a Utah State team, that is now 10-3.  Utah State didn’t have much on their resume before last night, but the win against San Diego State is something.  SDSU, on the other hand, is looking less and less like a team that belongs in the top half of the bracket.  I still expect them to safely make the field, but they aren’t exactly protected seed material right now.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-MARSHALL AT WESTERN KENTUCKY (Conference USA).  These are the two best teams in CUSA, and probably the only two that have any sort of a path to an at-large, which makes this a huge series.

-LONGWOOD AT WINTHROP (Big South).  The WinWood Cup!!!!!!  Part Two of one of the great traditions of college athletics takes place tonight!!  Winthrop is looking to remain unbeaten on the season.

-DUQUESNE AT SAINT BONAVENTURE (Atlantic Ten).  Saint Bonaventure needs to find a way to get a few more games in, because if they can I think they are good enough to put together a solid resume.  A win tonight gets them to 6-1 on the season.

-WISCONSIN AT RUTGERS (Big Ten).  Rutgers is trying to pull themselves out of the tailspin they’ve been in.  They’re up against a heavyweight, but they are at home, and a win tonight would certainly get things turned around for them.

-WINGATE (nondiv1) AT MARYLAND – buy game