NEWS AND NOTES
-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day, which is actually one of the better overall games of the day between Vermont and UNC Greensboro – CLICK HERE
-Ohio State, Dayton, Florida State, Washington, Georgetown, and Marquette all won buy games.
-Florida beat Providence so easily that it may as well have been a buy game even though Florida was the road team. Providence has not looked good, and that is an understatement. On the other hand, Florida is at least passing the eye test now. They could be high in the rankings at the end of the year just like they were at the beginning.
-Miami FL also got a really nice win against Temple in Brooklyn. Miami’s record is looking better and better, and with a smattering of decent wins it may be time to start paying a little bit of attention.
-San Francisco led at Stanford for the vast majority of the game, but not at the end. Stanford finally got control in the final minutes and ended up winning 64-56.
-Creighton picked up a very respectable home win against Oklahoma to improve to 9-2 on the year.
HIGHLIGHTED GAMES
-TENNESSEE AT CINCINNATI. Tennessee is coming off a loss to rival Memphis, which was probably more damaging to their egos than it was to their resume. Cincinnati has looked like an NIT team on their best day, and is coming off the most stupidistiest (I like making words up) loss I have ever seen in my life. It’s definitely a winnable road game for the Vols.
-EAST TENNESSEE STATE AT LSU. ETSU needs a win like this if they want to show that they belong inside the bubble. It is more than just a test for them. It is a chance to really put a quality win on their resume.
-DEPAUL AT CLEVELAND STATE. This is a winnable road game for a DePaul team that’s having a great year.
-RICHMOND AT OLD DOMINION. This is an old CAA rivalry, but this edition of it appears to be a mismatch. Richmond is off to a great start and has been a big surprise in a good way, whereas Old Dominion has been a huge disappointment.
-VCU AT CHARLESTON. This is a tougher road game than what many realize. Charleston, while off to a bit of a slow start, is still good and still tough to beat at home.
-HOUSTON BAPTIST AT STEPHEN F AUSTIN (Southland). If SFA dominates the rest of their schedule I think they’ll end up inside the bubble.
-UTAH STATE VS SOUTH FLORIDA (Battleground 2K19). This is a chance for Utah State to pick up some more wins away from home if they’re able to hold serve.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT NORTHWESTERN (Big Ten). Michigan State has struggled this season, but if they can win this game tonight, then they will be the first Big Ten team to win a Big Ten road game!
-NORTH CAROLINA AT GONZAGA. This should have been a big game, but given how poorly North Carolina has been playing and considering how beat up they are with injuries, this could end up looking a lot like a buy game.
-SAINT MARY’S AT ARIZONA STATE. Both teams have looked good, but both teams’ profiles could really use a win like this. It should be a fun one.
-UTAH VS KENTUCKY (Las Vegas). It’s usually around mid-to-late December that you really see Kentucky start to improve. It will be interesting to see what they look like tonight. Utah has been decent, but not great this season. A win like this could completely change the complexion of their season, but it is far easier said than done.
BUY GAMES (and equivalences)
-Oregon State vs UTSA – Battleground 2k19
-Stony Brook @ Virginia
-Western Carolina @ Xavier – WCU is a surprising 7-2 so X better not overlook them
-Radford @ Mississippi State
-Oakland @ Syracuse
-Miami OH @ Louisville
-Albany @ Saint John’s
-Baylor vs UT Martin (Battleground 2K19)
-Montana @ Oregon
Bracket Projection – Hoops HD Staff Bracket
This week, it is staff member John Stalica’s turn to do the weekly staff bracket. This is not an ultimate projection of what the bracket will be (as that is the expertise of our colleague Jon Teitel), but rather a checkpoint of where we stand through games of Sunday the 15th of December. And here is the bracket:
First Four Out: Xavier, Utah State, LSU, Seton Hall
COMMENTS FROM JOHN
– Once again, there is no clear cut team for the #1 overall slot. I was set to put Ohio State in that spot after what they did to Cincinnati, Villanova, North Carolina and Penn State. Losing at Minnesota stings, but it’s very odd that home teams are a perfect 13-0 in the B1G so far this season.
– Gonzaga is once again looking like a team that will be seeded #1 in the West Region. The Bulldogs have beaten two of the top teams in the Pac-12 all on the road and also beat Oregon down in Atlantis last month. If they finish noncon play without any further slipups, there’s a very good chance of Gonzaga running the table the remainder of the season.
– Memphis is also showing that they can win games of significance without James Wiseman. Winning at Tennessee is not only good for the profile, it’s a big boost for the fanbase that hasn’t had a team this solid since the days of Calipari (even if the NCAA insists on a “Vacant” entry or two in the record books.
– There is a team from the Keystone State that is a protected seed this week not named Villanova. Penn State has shown that they can win games of significance both home and away, and beating Maryland had to be a feather in their cap. The Nittany Lions are now ranked in the Top 25 for the first time since the 1990s.
– Northern Iowa is a team that can potentially get above the First Four later on in the season. Their best wins are against South Carolina down in Cancun and at Colorado. Their only loss is against West Virginia, and it’s possible they could have an at-large case depending on whether or not they’re able to win the regular season crown in the Missouri Valley.
COMMENTS FROM THE STAFF
FROM DAVID -I agree that it is tough to pick the overall #1, but I also think that Stalica got it right in Kansas. A rarity! He did something right! Kansas played Duke in their first game and turned it over about once a minute, which is bad. But, they still nearly won the game despite not playing well, and they haven’t lost since. They also have a really nice win against Dayton (more on them in a second), and a profile that looks pretty good.
I’m also really impressed with what Gonzaga has done, and agree that they should be on the #1 line. I could see putting them even a little higher up than 4th on the seedlist.
I like Dayton a lot more than Stalica. I know that their profile shows no wins over ranked teams, so if you’re going strictly off of merit one could argue that the #5 line is where they belong. But, this is a team that’s only loss to Kansas is in overtime, and that has blown everyone else they have played off of the floor. I think they are easily one of the best 15 teams in the country, and perhaps even one of the 10 best teams in the country. I’d have them as a protected seed.
Rutgers makes the field!! An argument can definitely be made. I’d like to see them win at least one game away from home, though.
I like Penn State, but not THAT much!!! Sheesh Stalica!!
Something I don’t understand. Butler has one loss, by one point, at Baylor, who Stalica has up on the #2 line. He has Butler down on the #5 line. How does a team that loses by just a point on the road, IN THEIR ONLY LOSS, MIND YOU!, end up seeded three lines below the team that barely beat them?