Hoops HD

Hoops HD Bracket Rundown: Thursday, March 7th

Posted on March 7, 2019 by John Stalica

Note: This was recorded on Thursday, March 7th at 10 PM EST. Since ballots were submitted before 7 PM EST, games like Iowa-Wisconsin and Central Florida-Cincinnati were NOT reflected in the voting. None of the games that went final after that time are reflected in the show, the seedlist, or the bracket.

Tonight, everyone on the Hoops HD Panel submitted a seed list of teams rated 1 through 55 to Chad Sherwood; Chad cross-country scored the teams and made a seedlist of the top 49 teams into the tournament bracket. The way the scoring was reflected, NC State ended up being the last at-large team voted into the field, for example. The panel also made it clear on the podcast that the Wolfpack would likely be motioned out of our field if they were anywhere among the last four teams in.

And without further ado, here is the video link to the podcast:

With the exception of the NC State spoiler, here is the completed bracket – do not look at it in full until watching the show!

And finally, for those of you who are radio/MP3 lovers and/or like to listen to Hoops HD on the go, here is the audio link:

Posted in Bracketology, Podcasts, Videocasts | Comments Off

News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Thursday, March 7th

Posted on March 7, 2019 by David Griggs

For yesterday’s Championship Week video notebook (including the Survival Board and conference tournament brackets) – CLICK HERE

NEWS AND NOTES

-The Big East continues to show why they may be the most balanced league top-to-bottom in the country. Seton Hall got a much-needed win at home to increase their odds of getting an NCAA at-large bid against Marquette where the Pirates ended the game on an 18-0 run. Georgetown got sand-blasted on the road at DePaul to hurt their chances, and coupled with Creighton’s OT win at home against Providence, there is suddenly a five-way tie for 3rd place between Seton Hall, Xavier, St. John’s, Creighton and Georgetown.

-While Washington and Clemson walked the tightrope successfully with an overtime win at home against Oregon State to stay on the right side of the fence, NC State might have completely fallen off the fence with a home loss to Georgia Tech. That is a bad, bad loss for a team that, like Washington, doesn’t have many wins against potential NCAA Tournament teams. Worse yet, their #352nd ranked nonconference strength of schedule is now sticking out like a sore thumb.

-Ohio State also lost on the road at Northwestern – this is the second straight game they have lost by double digits without Kaleb Wesson (suspension) in the lineup. The Buckeyes are now sweating bullets as to whether or not they make the field, and if Wesson doesn’t return, they’re dead on arrival barring a couple of quality wins between their regular season finale at home against Wisconsin and the Big 10 Tournament next week.

-The Big 12 also is looking like a conference where West Virginia and Oklahoma State, who are not contenders for any postseason play, could be potential noisemakers. West Virginia beat Iowa State at home to knock the Cyclones down to 9-8 in conference play, and Oklahoma State went into Baylor and handed the Bears a Quad 3 loss. The Bears now share the same dubious distinction that Arizona State has – wins AND losses against all four quadrants on their team sheet!

SURVIVAL BOARD NOTES

-Troy would be eliminated with a loss against Appalachian State tonight.

-Little Rock would be eliminated with a loss against Louisiana AND wins by Appalachian State (against Troy) and Arkansas State (against UL-Monroe).

-Mississippi Valley State would be eliminated if Southern wins at Prairie View.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-CINCINNATI AT UCF (American). Both teams are (probably) just playing for seeding at this point, but this is still a huge game for both teams. Neither one of them got the dozens of chances at Quad-1 wins that some of the ACC, SEC, and Big 12 teams got, so this is a rare opportunity for both of them to really sweeten up their resumes.

-IOWA AT WISCONSIN (Big 12). Iowa is in a bit of a tailspin, but I still think they’re on pace to at least land in the top half of the bracket if they come out of it. Wisky still has a path to a protected seed, but they need to finish strong.

-TEMPLE AT UCONN (American). Temple is straddling the bubble’s fence right now, and basically every game the rest of the way is hugely important. Losing to a non-NCAA Tournament caliber team would be damaging.

-INDIANA AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten). Indiana is one of the harder teams to figure this year. Are they in because of their good wins, or are they out because of the sheer volume of their losses? One thing we can all agree on is that winning this game would be good, and losing it would be bad.

-SMU AT HOUSTON (American). Houston is coming off a somewhat surprising loss, but will still in all likelihood end up as a protected seed if they’re able to hold serve the rest of the way.

-UC IRVINE AT CAL POLY (Big West). UC Irvine has already wrapped up first place.

-MONTANA AT PORTLAND STATE (Big Sky). Montana can clinch at least a share of first place with a win tonight.

Posted in Daily Rundown, News and Notes | Comments Off

Championship Week Video Notebook: Day 3

Posted on March 7, 2019 by John Stalica

CLICK HERE for the updated Hoops HD Survival Board

CLICK HERE for all the conference tournament brackets

We begin tonight’s podcast by reviewing results of games by teams on the bubble – for Seton Hall, for example, they helped themselves tremendously with a win at home against a Marquette team that is suddenly fading. For Washington and Clemson, they survived potentially devastating losses. For NC State, Ohio State and Georgetown, those teams had devastating losses against Georgia Tech, Northwestern and DePaul, respectively.

The Northeast Conference and Ohio Valley conferences began their tournaments and the Horizon League completed their quarterfinal games that were played on campus sites. We also looked ahead to other conference tournaments resuming tomorrow – the Atlantic Sun will have their semifinal games tomorrow while the Big South, OVC and Patriot will all have their quarterfinal games tomorrow.

Finally, we also previewed three conferences that will begin their tournaments tomorrow – the Metro Atlantic, the Missouri Valley and the West Coast Conferences.

And for all of you who are radio lovers and/or on the go, here is the audio-only link:

ATLANTIC SUN SEMIFINALS:

BIG SOUTH QUARTERFINALS:

OHIO VALLEY QUARTERFINALS:

PATRIOT LEAGUE QUARTERFINALS:

METRO ATLANTIC OPENING ROUND:

MISSOURI VALLEY OPENING ROUND:

WEST COAST CONFERENCE OPENING ROUND:

Posted in Bracketology, Championship Week Video Notebook, Podcasts, Videocasts | Comments Off

News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Wednesday, March 6th

Posted on March 6, 2019 by David Griggs

CLICK HERE for our Championship Week Video Notebook: Day 2

NEWS AND NOTES

-Last night started off with some good news for bubble teams – Xavier lost at Butler and may have struck out at least as far as at-large seeding goes. They would still clinch at least a bye into the Big East quarterfinals with a home win against St. John’s on Saturday – it would also be the 37th consecutive season of at least a .500 conference record.

-The biggest game came from a completely unexpected source. Duke had to sweat out Wake Forest at home and got a really fortuitous bounce at the end when a potential game-winner from Wake rimmed out. The fact that Duke is a #1 seed with Zion Williamson, and sweating out Wake Forest at home without Zion Williamson is….shocking. I know he’s good, but they’ve got other players who are also good. You’d think they’d at least be good enough to not have to sweat out a team that’s outside the top 100 at home.

-It is official. Kansas will not win the Big 12 regular season title thanks to their loss at Oklahoma. They are looking like they will not be a protected seed either unless they make a deep run in the Big 12 Tournament next week.

-Minnesota was another bubble team that helped itself immensely with a win at home against Purdue. The loss drops the Boilers into a three-way tie with Michigan and Michigan State in the Big 10 standings.

-The basketball Iron Bowl went to Auburn last night – they got a decent road win at Alabama and puts the Tide squarely on the fence going into their regular season finale at Arkansas.

-Florida State also won a crucial game at home against Virginia Tech – the Noles are now the best team below the Big 3 of Virginia, Duke and North Carolina in the ACC. Their odds of getting a protected seed got better.

-Kentucky and Buffalo both had to sweat out games on the road, but ended up winning nonetheless.

-MARQUETTE AT SETON HALL (Big East). This is suddenly a very pivotal and rather crucial game for Seton Hall. They have some big wins, but with a schizophrenic profile that has an equal share of questionable losses, an overall record of just 16-12, and already being two games under .500 in Big East play, they need some stability on their resume. This one is huge. It’s a big game for Marquette as well if they want to end up as a protected seed.

-LSU AT FLORIDA (SEC). LSU has a chance to finish first in the SEC, and some feel has an outside chance of playing their way all the way up to the #1 line. The Gators are squarely on the bubble. Strangely enough, their biggest win of the season was against LSU, but they’ve got a little more work to do if they want to make the field and beating them for a second time would certainly help.

-IOWA STATE AT WEST VIRGINIA (Big 12). This is a winnable road game for an Iowa State team that still has a shot at a protected seed if they can finish strong. They’re a respectable 5-5 in true road games, so picking the low hanging fruit here would certainly help.

-GEORGETOWN AT DEPAUL (Big East). Some feel that Georgetown still has a path to the NCAA Tournament, and perhaps they do, but that path does not involve them losing to DePaul. Whatever small chance they have will be gone (without the auto-bid, that is) if they don’t win this one.

-OHIO STATE AT NORTHWESTERN (Big Ten). Ohio State could REALLY do without a loss in this one. They’re in the field for now, but this is the kind of game that could have them really sweating on Selection Sunday if they end up losing it.

-CLEMSON AT NOTRE DAME (ACC). Clemson is squarely on the bubble, so every game has a pivotal feel to it. This is a winnable road game and they need to take advantage of it.

-GEORGIA TECH AT NC STATE (ACC). NC State doesn’t have the strongest of resumes either. It is important that they hold serve at home.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT BAYLOR (Big 12). Baylor should be able to hold serve in this one. They’re pretty much a virtual lock for the tournament minus a massive meltdown and are just playing for seeding now.

-OREGON STATE AT WASHINGTON (Pac Twelve). The loss to Cal last week may have burned up all of Washington’s remaining strikes. They need to take care of business at home tonight, and win their final regular season game this weekend as well.

Posted in News and Notes | Comments Off

Championship Week Video Notebook: Day 2

Posted on March 5, 2019 by David Griggs

Welcome Selection Committee Members!! We are here to help you!! Watch the show and we will tell you what to do!!

CLICK HERE to view the Survival Board and see the status of all the teams that are still playing

CLICK HERE to view all of the conference tournament brackets with the dates, times, and viewing information for all games

We begin by reviewing some of the notable regular season games from Tuesday night, and then look at the action from the opening rounds of the Patriot League, and Big South, and the quarterfinals of the Horizon League. We also take a look at the opening round of the Ohio Valley and the quarterfinals of the NEC that get underway tomorrow.

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

NORTHEAST QUARTERFINALS

HORIZON LEAGUE QUARTERFINALS

OHIO VALLEY OPENING ROUND

OTHER SURVIVAL BOARD NOTES

-McNeese State is eliminated if they lose at home to Northwestern State

-Nicholls is eliminated if they lose at home to TAMUCC

Posted in Bracketology, Championship Week Video Notebook, Podcasts, Videocasts | Comments Off

News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Tuesday, Mar 5th

Posted on March 5, 2019 by David Griggs

CLICK HERE for our latest Hoops HD Report and Championship Week Video Notebooks

-If you fell asleep last night and missed everything, you pretty much missed nothing. None of the meaningful games were all that exciting with Texas Tech, Virginia, and K State all winning easily. The four quarterfinal games in the A-Sun were also duds for the most part. Anyway, on to Day 2 of Championship Week!

-XAVIER AT BUTLER (Big East). Neither team is inside the bubble. The only reason we highlight this is because Xavier has been on a rampage, and if they keep it up they could very likely end up crashing the dance. A win today would be their 6th straight.

-WAKE FOREST AT DUKE (ACC). This is such a mismatch that it will likely resemble a buy game. Duke is a likely #1 seed and Wake Forest is not a top 100 team.

-NEBRASKA AT MICHIGAN STATE (Big Ten). Nebraska is in a total tailspin and now seems like they’re just going through the motions until the season ends. Michigan State is coming off a somewhat surprising loss to Indiana, which snapped a five game losing streak, and is looking to bounce back from that.

-VIRGINIA TECH AT FLORIDA STATE (ACC). Both teams are in the rankings, both teams are virtual locks, and both are pretty much just playing for seeding at this point. Both still have a path to a protected seed and this would be a big step forward for whoever wins this.

-BUFFALO AT OHIO (MAC). Buffalo is cruising toward getting in on the first ballot, and should get there easily if they win out through the regular season, which they are certainly good enough to do.

-VCU AT GEORGE MASON (Atlantic Ten). George Mason has been hot and cold this year, so VCU does not want to overlook them, but they’re certainly capable of winning the game and if they win out through the regular season they should be safely in.

-NORTH CAROLINA AT BOSTON COLLEGE (ACC). UNC is now ranked #3 in the nation, and wth a regular season game against Duke and then the ACC Tournament remaining, they’ll have the chances to get up to the #1 line. That is much easier said than done, though.

-PURDUE AT MINNESOTA (Big Ten). Purdue is looking more and more like a solid protected seed, and may lock that up with just a few more wins. They face a Minnesota team that’s inside the bubble, but not so far inside that they can just coast through to the end. A win tonight would do wonders for the Gophers.

-MISSISSIPPI STATE AT TENNESSEE (SEC). Tennessee has a path to a #1 seed and I don’t see them doing any worse than a #2. Mississippi State can pretty much cement themselves into the top half of the bracket if they were somehow able to pull off the upset tonight. Both teams are really just playing for seeding at this point.

-KANSAS AT OKLAHOMA (Big 12). I have beaten up Kansas all year for not winning on the road. They’re coming off of a road win, and if they can pick up another one today I’ll relent and admit that they are not just a protected seed, but a solid protected seed. Oklahoma has been hot and cold this year and while I think they’re in, they’re just 6-10 in league play and could really use a win like this. A loss by Kansas officially ends The Streak as well.

-AUBURN AT ALABAMA (SEC). This is a high stakes games for so many reasons. Auburn is lacking wins of this quality. Alabama is squarely on the bubble and could use a big win to help nudge them to the right side of the fence. And on top of everything else, it’s a rivalry game. This has an EXTREMELY pivotal feel to it.

-UTAH STATE AT COLORADO STATE (Mountain West). Utah State is coming off a huge win against Nevada, which should land them on the right side of the bubble so long as they’er able to hold serve the rest of the way in games like this.

-NEVADA AT AIR FORCE (Mountain West). Nevada is still safely in the field and is simply looking to maintain a healthy seed. They should be just fine so long as they don’t trip up in games like this.