Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES

-It was a pretty chalky night.  Xavier, Florida State, and Baylor had to sweat a little bit in their buy games, but all were able to avoid upsets.

-West Virginia won rather decisively in their road game against rival Pitt.  Pitt isn’t exactly a world-beater caliber team, but West Virginia is showing all signs of being much better than they were a year ago and back to being nationally relevant.

-Rhode Island sprinted ahead of Alabama and never really had to sweat.  Rhody may be better than what we anticipated, while at the same time Bama, who hasn’t looked all that good in any of their games so far, may not be quite as good as we thought.

-BYU won a thriller at Houston where they led most of the way, but Houston was able to come back and get the lead in the final minutes.  After what appeared to be a game winning steal and breakaway for Houston in the final ten seconds, they were called for a carry, which gave the ball back to BYU with 5 seconds to play.  They ended up hitting a shot at the buzzer and getting a huge road win.

-Utah knocked off Minnesota in an exciting game to remain unbeaten on the year as well.  Minney now has three losses, but none of them are really all that awful, so there will be time for them to bounce back.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-OLD DOMINION AT NORTHEASTERN.  A pretty solid UTR match-up.  Northeastern has a nice win over Harvard, but needs to bounce back from a loss to UMass in their last game.

-NORTHERN COLORADO AT NORTHERN IOWA.  More UTR goodness.  Northern Colorado is a team that we think can contend in the Big Sky, and Northern Iowa is unbeaten and in our UTR Top Ten.

-BELMONT AT BOSTON COLLEGE.  BC is unbeaten, but they face a challenge today against a Belmont team that’s pretty good.  Belmont did lose their opener at Illinois State, and probably isn’t as good this year as they were last year, but they are still good enough to make quite a bit of noise.

-SAINT JOSEPH’S AT LOYOLA CHICAGO.  Saint Joe’s just got a big win at UConn and have another winnable road game today.  Not a bad week for a team that I thought would be in complete rebuilding mode!!

-TEMPLE AT LA SALLE (Big Five).  Temple is trying to beat a crosstown rival and improve 3-0 on the season.

-HARVARD AT BUFFALO.  Buffalo began the season with a loss to Dartmouth and doesn’t look anything like the top 25 team that they had a year ago.  Harvard has a somewhat head-scratching loss to Northeastern and really struggled in their game against Siena on Thursday.  We thought they could be a top notch UTR team and a top 40 team nationally, but they haven’t shown it so far.

-NICHOLLS AT LSU.  Obviously this is a buy game, but with Nicholls’s near win at Illinois, and actual win at Pitt to start the year, we have reason to think that this may be a game worth watching.  If Nicholls somehow gets this one, they aren’t just for real in the Southland.  They are for real PERIOD!

-VERMONT AT SAINT JOHN’S.  Very intriguing game here!!  Both teams come in 3-0, and if you asked me which team I thought was better I’d say Vermont.  Do I think they’re so much better that I believe this to be a slam dunk win for them in a true road game? No.  The Johnnies have looked better than I thought they would in this young season as well.  But this is a Vermont team that may be a top 40 team that can land inside the NCAA Tournament bubble.  If they are, then this is a game that they should be able to win.

-LIBERTY AT EAST CAROLINA.  This is a winnable road game for the Flames, and they should be able to remain unbeaten on the season.

-WASHINGTON VS TENNESSEE  (Toronto).  Washington is pretty accomplished already this season with a big win over Baylor up in Alaska.  Tennessee has looked pretty good as well, but this is by far their first real test.  If Washington can pick up yet another notable win away from home then you have to think they’re on pace (albeit an early pace) to end up as a protected seed.  If Tennessee can get the win, then I think that it’s safe to say that they are, yet again, better than we thought they’d be in the preseason.

-DELAWARE AT LAFAYETTE.  Highlighted because if Delaware wins, it will already be their fourth win away from home.  Granted, this is their first true road game, but still.

-MONTANA AT ARKANSAS.  This is a buy game, but this (or should be) a fairly decent Montana team.  Arkansas is in a bit of a rebuild mode, but they do come into this game at 2-0.

-MONTANA STATE AT UNC GREENSBORO (Spartan Invitational).  This game deserves to be highlighted.  Montana State went into Utah State and took them to the wall.  UNCG is a team that we think can play their way onto the bubble, so while it’s a UTR game, it should be a very competitive and entertaining UTR game between two teams that can make quite a bit of noise this year.

-KENT STATE AT WRIGHT STATE.  Both teams are unbeaten, and both are likely to make quite a bit of noise in their conferences.

-SAINT BONAVENTURE VS RUTGERS (Toronto).  These two teams are heading in very different directions.  The Bonnies haven’t won, and Rutgers hasn’t lost.  A 4-0 start for the Scarlet Knights, even if it is against poor competition, is some great early season momentum for a team and program that is trying to build.

-WOFFORD AT BUTLER.  Wofford is nowhere near the team they were a year ago, but they’re still off to a decent 2-1 start.  Butler is a team that we didn’t expect much out of at all, but they’ve looked impressive in their first three games and are coming off a home win against Minnesota.  A 4-0 start is likely, and it’s a lot better than where I thought they’d be.

-SAN FRANCISCO AT SOUTHERN ILLINOIS.  San Francisco can get to 4-0 with a win.

-OREGON STATE AT WYOMING.  This is a winnable road game for the Beavers.  I know they’re coming off a loss to Oklahoma, but I still think they’ve got quite a bit of potential and could end up having a big year.  If that’s true then this is the kind of game that they should be able to win.

-SAN DIEGO AT COLORADO.  The Buffs are off to a great start with their win against Arizona State in their non-conference conference game.  Tonight is their debut in the United States!!  A win gets them to 2-0.

-SANTA CLARA AT STANFORD.  Both teams are unbeaten.  Santa Clara has struggled the last several years.  To get to 4-0 with a win against Stanford may be the high water mark since Herb Sendek arrived.  I don’t mean that as a backhanded compliment.  They’ve made steady progress since he arrived and a win tonight would be a huge step forward.

-USC AT NEVADA.  USC is looking to get to 4-0 and pick up their first road win, and really their first win of note.  Nevada has struggled this year and is just trying to hang on.

BUY GAMES

-Oakland @ Maryland
-Columbia @ Virginia
-Ohio U @ Villanova – Ohio is out to a somewhat surprising 3-0 start
-Saint Francis Brooklyn @ NC State
-Central Connecticut @ UMass
-Cornell @ DePaul
-Lehigh @ Virginia Tech
-Alcorn State @ Memphis
-Quinnipiac @ Miami FL
-Chicago State @ Purdue
-Northwestern State @ Tulane – a win for Tulane gets them to 3-0
-Saint Peter’s @ Providence
-UT Martin @ Wichita State
-McNeese @ New Mexico – a win for New Mexico gets them to 4-0
-Louisiana Tech @ Creighton
-Marist @ Fordham – a win for Fordham gets them to 3-0
-Seattle @ Syracuse
-UNC Wilmington @ Davidson – Davidson still looking for their first win
-Charleston Southern @ Dayton
-James Madison @ George Mason
-Jackson State @ SMU
-Troy @ Indiana

NEWS AND NOTES

CLICK HERE for our latest Under the Radar Video Podcast

-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day, which features the Battle of the Bluegrass between Eastern Kentucky and Western Kentucky – CLICK HERE.  Don’t get confused, and don’t correct me!!!  EKU v WKU is the Battle OF the Bluegrass!!  Louisville v Kentucky is the Battle FOR the Bluegrass!!!  If you thought that I got the name of the rivalry wrong, THEN YOU ARE WRONG!!!!

-Michigan State played their second game away from home against a top 15 team last night, and pulled out what was an exciting win that should be big on their resume.  In the final couple of minutes Seton Hall seemed to be in control, but back to back three pointers by Michigan State gave them the lead, and two defensive stops helped them keep the lead.  Seton Hall will probably argue that they got homered at home with no foul being called on their final two possessions.

-Florida really had to sweat out Towson.  The game was tied with less than two minutes to go, and it wasn’t until the last couple of possessions that the Gators were able to put it away.  So far they have not looked like a top 25 team.

-Penn State pretty much had a double digit lead from tip to buzzer at Georgetown last night.  An impressive win for the Nittany Lions.  Suddenly they are 3-0 with a rather impressive road win.

-Richmond stayed unbeaten with an overtime win at home against Vanderbilt in what was a very exciting finish.  Vandy had the ball on what looked to be the final possession of the first overtime when Richmond got a breakaway steal and was fouled with less than a second to go.  They hit one of the two freethrows, and that was all they needed.

HIGHLIGHTED MATCHUPS

-WEST VIRGINIA AT PITTSBURGH.  BACKYARD BRAWL!!!!!!!  This rivalry has cooled off a ton.  It’s not a conference game, and neither team was any good last year when it was finally renewed.  But, it’s still the Backyard Brawl and it could still be reignighted.  Pitt is trying to bounce back from their loss to Nicholls, and a win over their rivals at home would be a good way to do that.  West Virginia is trying to get to 2-0, pass their first real test, and win their first road game.

-MISSOURI STATE AT XAVIER.  It’s a buy game, but with Missouri State being one of the favorites in the Missouri Valley, and Xavier being in the top 25, it’s still a game that’s worth watching.

-LIPSCOMB AT DUQUESNE.  Lipscomb is rebuilding, but Duquesne may be built.  They haven’t lost a game yet (and to be fair they haven’t really been tested yet and probably won’t be tonight), and can improve to 3-0 with a win tonight

-HAMPTON AT WILLIAM & MARY.  Both teams are unbeaten.  W&M has been a bit of a surprise this season.

-ALABAMA AT RHODE ISLAND.  We think that both of these teams have potential, but neither has really shown it yet.  They could both use some meat on their early season resumes, and tonight is an opportunity for them to get it.

-GONZAGA AT TEXAS A&M.  After a few buy games, this is the first real test of the season for the Zags, but then again how much of a test is it??  TAMU is unbeaten, but they’re also untested and not expected to do much this season.  Having said that, that entire narrative changes if they’re able to pull off this upset.

-BYU AT HOUSTON.  BYU was a team we liked coming into the season, but they really haven’t shown it yet.  They have a home loss to San Diego State, and needed to come from behind to beat Southern Utah the other night.  They’ve got a monster challenge tonight on the road against a very good Houston team.

-MINNESOTA AT UTAH.  It’s early in the year, but at 1-2 and with no real meaningful wins yet Minney should have a sense of urgency coming into this game.  Utah already has a nice win at Nevada and is looking to stay unbeaten.

-UNLV AT UCLA.  UCLA is unbeaten, but this is their first (sort of) test.

-Georgia State @ Duke
-CSU Northridge @ Auburn
-Tennessee Tech @ UNC Greensboro
-Western Carolina @ Florida State
-Marshall @ Notre Dame
-Delaware State @ Georgia
-Western Michigan @ Ole Miss – both teams unbeaten
-Cleveland State @ South Carolina
-Elon @ Michigan
-South Wesleyan (nondiv1) @ Furman
-Monmouth @ Kansas
-Oral Roberts @ Iowa
-Prairie View A&M @ Texas
-Gardner Webb @ North Carolina
-NC A&T @ Utah State
-Texas State @ Baylor
-Cal Baptist @ California

NEWS AND NOTES

-For John Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day between Winthrop and East Tennessee State, which may be the best overall game of the day today – CLICK HERE

-LSU v VCU was an entertaining game.  VCU kept pulling ahead, and LSU kept coming back, and the fans were going crazy, and when the horn went off VCU picked up a huge win to remain unbeaten on the season.

-Ohio State blew Villanova off the planet last night.  Granted, Ohio State hasn’t really been challenged away from home yet, but they played poorly against a good Cincinnati team and still won, and when a team can play poorly and still win it’s a sign that they’ve got a high ceiling.  Last night they played fantastic and won huge.

-South Florida, who we thought of as a potential dark horse, has dealt with injuries and it shows.  IUPUI blew them off the court last night 70-53.  Their expectations aren’t quite what they were a few weeks ago, and it’s hard not to feel for them.

-Penn continues their dominance over the Big Five!!  They didn’t have any trouble with La Salle last night in their 75-59 win.

-Saint Joseph’s looked like they had quite a bit of rebuilding to do at the start of this season, and while they may not get to the NCAA Tournament, the rebuilding is going rather smoothly.  They got a big win at UConn last night, and were actually blowing the Huskies out for much of the game before UConn had a late comeback.  They didn’t come back far enough, though.

-Oklahoma State looked impressive on the road against a pretty good Charlotte team.  It wasn’t an Earth shattering win, but it’s at least worth mentioning because they played well on the road against a good team.

-Northwestern is rewriting the book on schizophrenia!!  They followed up their loss to Merrimack with a win over Providence.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-MICHIGAN STATE AT SETON HALL (Gavitt Tipoff Games).  We’ve got yet another match-up between ranked teams.  Michigan State is still looking for their first really big scalp, and they’re going to need a few of them if they want to end up on the #1 line.  Seton Hall is looking to knock off a highly ranked team at home.  This one should be a fun one!

-PENN STATE AT GEORGETOWN (Gavitt Tipoff Games).  Both teams come in 2-0, and while it hasn’t always looked pretty they’ve both managed to win.  This will be the biggest test of the season for both teams who (we think) are much improved.

-VANDERBILT AT RICHMOND.  We still don’t think either team is all that good, but neither have lost yet, so we will go ahead and highlight it.

-WINTHROP AT EAST TENNESSEE STATE.  It’s Stalica’s UTR Game of the Day, and it’s a good one!  Winthrop is coming off a huge road win against Saint Mary’s, and East Tennessee State is a team that we think can land inside the bubble.

-SAN JOSE STATE AT ARIZONA.  I don’t like putting this with the buy games since San Jose State isn’t in a UTR conference, but it probably should be down with the buy games.

BUY GAMES

-Towson @ Florida
-UL Monroe @ Mississippi State
-Alabama A&M @ Cincinnati
-Long Beach State @ Saint Mary’s
-Central Connecticut @ Arizona State – Arizona State looking for their first win