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SURVIVAL BOARD UPDATES (Click here to view)

-Incarnate Word from the Southland was the second team of the year to be eliminated yesterday.  As always, we had lengthy discussions and concluded that they were not an at-large candidate, so the team total is now down to 347.

-Milwaukee out of the Horizon League will be eliminated today if they lose at UIC, or if IUPUI beats Green Bay.  They are currently three games back with three games to go, so either scenario would eliminate them.  Detroit is currently the 8th place team, but since they swept the season series against Milwaukee they own the tiebreaker.

NEWS AND NOTES

So much happened yesterday that I think we have a week’s worth of notes for just one day.

-Duke picked up a much needed road win without Zion Williamson against a Syracuse team that’s hot and cold, but typically hot at home.  Syracuse did play well and was in it until the final minutes, but couldn’t hold on.  It was the biggest on campus crowd in basketball history!!  Next year, they will break that record!!  The year after that, they will break it again!!  And the year after that, and the year after that, and the year after that.  Each time, the media will talk about it as if it is the first time it’s happening and not acknowledge that it is being done by design, and it will continue to drive me crazy!

-Tennessee led LSU for most of the way, but it was close all throughout and LSU ended up forcing overtime, and ultimately getting the win.  They did this without Tremont Waters, who is obviously a key player, so even though they were at home it was a fantastic win.  The game was so good, that the referees kept wanting to watch replays of it on TV!  Over and over and over again!!  If you added together all the time the refs spent at the monitor it had to come close to equaling 30 minutes.  It’s was beyond ridiculous!!  It really did ruin the flow of a fantastic basketball game.

-Kentucky beat Auburn so badly that it raises the question of whether or not Auburn is even a solid tournament team.  I think they’ll make it, but “solid” is not an adjective I would use to describe them.

-Florida State’s eight game winning streak came to an end when North Carolina knocked them off rather easily.  The Noles are still in good shape, though, and given how well North Carolina is playing you start to wonder if they have a path to the #1 line.

-Nevada had to sweat, but ended up holding off Fresno State.

-Texas Tech’s football team had a tougher time beating Kansas than the basketball team did last night.  Texas Tech just blasted them.  I know Texas Tech is really good, and I know they were at home, but Kansas has just two true road wins, and they are not the same team since the injuries.  It is time to acknowledge that they have not looked like a protected seed, particularly away from home, for over a month now!!

-TCU got a much needed home win over a really good Iowa State team to help stabilize what was becoming a rather flimsy resume.  It ended a three game losing streak for the Horned Frogs.

-Oklahoma blew a big lead against Texas, but held on at home to pick up a hugely important win.  It was a rivalry game, and it was their second straight, so they appear to be coming out of the tailspin that they were in.  They’ve got another huge week ahead.

-Florida and Ole Miss both won home games against teams that are nowhere close to making the NCAA Tournament….BUT BARELY!!  Those would have been rather damaging losses had they not held on, especially for Florida.

-South Carolina started out strong at Mississippi State and held the Bulldogs to 1-of-11 shooting to start the game, but Mississippi State shot over 65% from the field the rest of the way and ended up winning at home against double digits. Mississippi State clearly looks to be the best SEC team outside of the Big 3 and also means a missed opportunity for a South Carolina team that has an outside shot at an NCAA at-large bid themselves.

-Wofford picked up a HUGE win at Furman that I think makes them a probable NCAA Tournament team even if they don’t win the SoCon Tournament.  It was just the second home loss of the year for Furman, which makes this the third very impressive road win for the Terriers.

-Saint John’s sprinted out to a big early lead against Seton Hall and the Hall was never able to catch up.  While the Pirates were able to cut the deficit to 5 points at the under-2 minute mark; at no point did it appear that the Johnnies were in any serious danger of losing the game.

-There was a lot of Under the Radar carnage yesterday with Liberty losing on the road, Texas State barely winning, Georgia State losing big (although they did come back), Radford falling at home to Hampton when they could have locked up the Big South, Yale losing at the buzzer to Harvard in a thriller, Hofstra going down to James Madison, UMBC went down big, and Northern Kentucky fell at home to a Cleveland State team that was mathematically eliminated from the conference tournament earlier this week.  It was a rough day to be at or near the top of the standings in a UTR Conference!!

-The wildest game of the night was actually Houston Baptist at Sam Houston State – the Bearkats had a 25-point lead with 5:17 remaining, but Houston Baptist managed to somehow extend the game to overtime and even take a 6-point lead in the first overtime themselves. Nonetheless, SHSU was able to extend the game to a second overtime and ended up with 18 3-pointers in a 119-113 victory that also gave the Bearkats a share of the Southland regular season title.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-SMU AT UCF (American).  We have UCF just outside the bubble, and if they want to end up on the right side of it then they best not lose at home to a non-tournament caliber team.

-VILLANOVA AT XAVIER (Big East).  Villanova has been mostly hot this year, but they have gone through some cold stretches, and are currently trying to pull themselves out of a stretch where they’ve lost three of their last four games.  Xavier has actually won three in a row, including two on the road, so while their resume is still a 100 miles from the NCAA Tournament, they do have a bit of momentum built up and this probably won’t be the easiest game for Nova to win.

-CINCINNATI AT UCONN (American).  Cincinnati just keeps winning, and they’re probably one of the more overlooked teams in the country this year.  They don’t have much in the way of wins against heavyweight teams, but they haven’t exactly been only eating of the pastry cart either.  A win today gets them to 23-4, and to 6-3 in true road games.

-MICHIGAN STATE AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten).  It’s a rivalry game between two teams that are basically cruising toward protected seeds, and who have the chance to possibly end up as a #1 seed depending on how everything plays out, and depending on who wins when they play each other.  This one should be wild!

-WAKE FOREST AT NC STATE (ACC).  NC State is squarely on the bubble and needs to hold serve against the weaker teams in the conference.

-CALIFORNIA AT ARIZONA STATE (Pac Twelve).  One never knows what Arizona State is going to do on any given night, and they need to finish strong in order to feel safe on Selection Sunday.  Cal is one of the worst teams in the country, so if they were to stumble and lose this one it may kill any hopes they have for an at-large bid.

-MINNESOTA AT RUTGERS (Big Ten).  Minney will most likely end up in the field, and they should be able to win this one today, but Rutgers has improved as the season has gone along, and it’s becoming more and more difficult to go there on the road and win.

UTR NOTES

-Lehigh and Bucknell are tied for first place in the Patriot League with just three games to go.  The first place team gets home court advantage throughout the conference tournament.  Both are in action today with Lehigh hosting Holy Cross and Bucknell, who’s lost two straight, hosting Lafayette.

We’ve got another jam packed Saturday with over 13 straight hours of college basketball!!

SURVIVAL BOARD GAMES (Click here to View)

-INCARNATE WORD AT STEPHEN F. AUSTIN (Southland). Incarnate Word is eliminated with a loss today.

-MOREHEAD STATE AT TENNESSEE TECH (Ohio Valley). TN Tech would be eliminated with a loss PLUS wins by 2 out of the following group of teams: Eastern Kentucky, UT-Martin, SIU-Edwardsville and Tennessee State.

NEWS AND NOTES

-Iowa did it again. Indiana was looking like they were going to get a much-needed win of any kind, and a win at Iowa would have helped to stabilize a profile that has been hemorraging blood by the day. But Jordan Bohannon hit a game-tying 3 pointer just before the end of regulation and Iowa ended up surviving a hard-fought game in overtime.

-Friday night MACtion had one surprise last night – Ohio came from behind to beat Bowling Green in overtime last night. Buffalo now is back in first place outright in the conference after they beat Kent State without too much trouble last night.

-Penn’s inexplicable slide continued last night with an overtime loss at HOME to last-place Columbia after the Lions hit a game-winner with under a second remaining in overtime. Even Harvard was not immune from a wild night in the Ivy – they lost at Brown last night.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-VIRGINIA AT LOUISVILLE (ACC).  This could be a tough match up between a Virginia team that’s trying to land on the #1 line and finish with at least a tie for first place in the ACC, and a Louisville team that’s trying to end up as a protected seed and fix whatever their ‘end-of’game’ issues are.

-TENNESSEE AT LSU (SEC).  This is a hugely important game in terms of seeding.  LSU is a likely protected seed, but after their most recent loss to Florida you get the chance that they need a big bounce back from that.  Tennessee is a potential #1 seed, but in order to get it you almost feel like they need this one because their resume isn’t quite as strong as the other #1 seed candidates, but getting this win away from home would be HUGE.

-MARQUETTE AT PROVIDENCE (Big East).  Marquette is on top of the Big East and has a very manageable path to a protected seed.  It involves being able to win games like this on the road, though.

-BOSTON COLLEGE AT CLEMSON (ACC).  Clemson is just outside the bubble, but very much in reach of landing inside the field if they can finish strong.

-TEXAS AT OKLAHOMA (Big 12).  It’s a rivalry game, and it’s a bubbilicious game.  Oklahoma has a good overall resume, but has struggled in conference.  Texas has been schizophrenic all season long with some really good wins and some really questionable losses.  Both teams need stability, and a win today would really help.  Not to mention, give them temporary bragging rights.

-TULSA AT TEMPLE (American).  Temple is squarely on the bubble and needs to avoid a home loss to a non-tournament team.

-AUBURN AT KENTUCKY (SEC).  Auburn has a flimsy resume and we’ve been beating them up all year.  If they were to somehow win this game, it totally changes the complexion of everything and could vault them all the way up into the top half of the bracket.  Kentucky actually has a path to a #1 seed, but they basically need to win out in order to get it.

-IOWA STATE AT TCU (Big 12).  Iowa State has lost two out of their last three, but a road win like this would be a big bounce back and keep them within reach of a protected seed.  TCU has lost three straight and is squarely on the bubble.  They need a big win to help stabilize things.

-OHIO STATE AT MARYLAND (Big Ten).  I really like how this Maryland team is playing.  This is a winnable home game for them that would enable them to keep their momentum going.  Ohio State has a fairly solid profile as well, but a win today would certainly solidify it even more.

-WEST VIRGINIA AT BAYLOR (Big 12).  This is a winnable home game for Baylor, which would improve them to a very good 9-5 in the conference.

-GEORGE WASHINGTON AT VCU (Atlantic Ten).  If VCU wins out, which they are certainly good enough to do, then they should be inside the bubble regardless of what happens in the conference tournament.

-WYOMING AT COLORADO STATE (Mountain West) (Front Range).  We at Hoops HD Love the Front Range!!!  Yes…we do!!……We…..Hello??  Anybody here??

-GEORGETOWN AT CREIGHTON (Big East).  If Georgetown has a path to the NCAA Tournament, then it involves them destroying the planet between now and the end.  They pretty much can’t lose to anyone.

-GEORGIA AT OLE MISS (SEC).  Ole Miss is in relatively good shape and has a solid chance of landing in the top half of the bracket.  They shouldn’t have too much trouble holding serve against Georgia today.

-FLORIDA STATE AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC).  Florida State has won eight straight, but this is a harder than normal road test.  UNC looks to be a solid #2 seed at worst, and is coming off a huge win at Duke.  For them it’s about putting another big win on their resume and taking another big step toward landing on the top two lines.  For Florida State it’s a chance to take another big step toward locking up a protected seed.

-PURDUE AT NEBRASKA (Big Ten).  This is a very winnable road game for a Purdue team that has been playing great lately, and that’s coming off a win at Indiana where they played horribly on offense, but still won.

-VIRGINIA TECH AT NOTRE DAME (ACC).  VA Tech should be able to pick this one up on the road, which would be their third win in four games.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS STATE (Big 12).  K State has a one game lead in the conference standings and can hold onto that if they can hold serve in this one.  I know they weren’t all that impressive out of conference, but I still really like their team and resume, and cannot imagine them not getting a protected seed if they finish in first place.

-MISSOURI AT FLORIDA (SEC).  Florida is squarely on the bubble and needs to hold serve at home against non-tournament teams.

-SAINT LOUIS AT DAYTON (A-10). Not only is this the second installment of the fabled Arch Baron Cup, but the Flyers are now trying to get in on a longshot at-large bid after beating Davidson on the road Monday night. They will be looking to avenge an earlier loss to Saint Louis from earlier in the season.

-WOFFORD AT FURMAN (SoCon).  I really like this Wofford team, but their last three regular season games are on the road, and the conference tournament is at a pre-determined site.  One way of looking at that is that they can build up their resume even more with more wins away from home.  Another way of looking at that is that it’s more chances to stub their toes and fall outside the bubble.  This is one of their more challenging games of the year.  It’s a big rivalry game against a Furman team that’s playing their best basketball of the season, and that includes the part of the season back in November when they were ranked in the top 25.  The first meeting went into overtime.  This meeting promises to be just as big.

-SAVANNAH STATE AT NC CENTRAL (MEAC).  The Team of the People!!  They’re looking to improve to 8-5 in conference play as their last year as a div1 program.

-DUKE AT SYRACUSE (ACC).  Duke will be without Zion Williamson, and they haven’t looked nearly as good without him as they have with him.  This is the second time Syracuse will face Duke when they are shorthanded.  Duke is still squarely on pace to earn a #1 seed.  A win today would help their mental health out more than anything else.

-SOUTH FLORIDA AT HOUSTON (American).  Houston is on pace to earn a protected seed, and is good enough to win out.  South Florida is pretty far outside the bubble, but they have played well at points this season so the Cougars won’t want to completely overlook them.

-OREGON STATE AT USC (Pac Twelve).  I think Oregon State is good enough to win out, and if they do they should get a serious look from the selection committee.

-SOUTH CAROLINA AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC).  South Carolina isn’t anywhere near the bubble right now, but I think they’ve got a path to the NCAA Tournament because of how well they’ve been playing, and because of the opportunities they have left.  They would certainly need a strong finish, and they’d need games like this on their resume.  Mississippi State is a team that should land in the top half of the bracket barring a collapse.

-VANDERBILT AT ALABAMA (SEC).  Alabama is squarely on the bubble.  They need a strong finish, and they need to avoid losses at home to teams that are winless in conference play.

-FRESNO STATE AT NEVADA (Mountain West).  Fresno State is one of the better teams in the Mountain West, but winning at Nevada is a very tall order, and Nevada has extra motivation considering that they’re looking to bounce back from a loss earlier in the week.

-KANSAS AT TEXAS TECH (Big 12).  Both teams are ranked really high, and both are looking to end up as protected seeds.  For Texas Tech, they’ve played really well but don’t have a win against a huge heavyweight on their resume just yet.  For Kansas, they only have two true road wins, so a win tonight would really help that as well as establish that they can beat good teams on the road without Azubuike.

-SETON HALL AT SAINT JOHN’S (Big East).  Both teams have big wins this year, but both have also been hot and cold and have some headscratching losses.  Both are likely tournament teams, but both could also really use some stability, and a win today should provide some of that.

-WISCONSIN AT NORTHWESTERN (Big Ten).  This is a winnable game for a Wisconsin team that has a really good profile and will have some chances to build on it before Selection Sunday.  They just need to hold serve on the road tonight.

-BYU AT GONZAGA (West Coast).  Gonzaga should win this game rather easily, which should vault them into the #1 ranking in both polls next week.  But, BYU has given them trouble in the past, so they best not overlook them.

-COLORADO AT WASHINGTON (Pac Twelve).  This should be an easy home win for a Washington team that’s running down hill and may be good enough to win out all the way through the Pac Twelve Tournament.

UNDER THE RADAR

-WESTERN KENTUCKY AT OLD DOMINION (Conference USA).  This is the first game out of CUSA pod-play, and it features perhaps the two teams that are most capable of winning a game in the Round of 64.  WKU doesn’t always play up to their ceiling, but when they do they are tough to beat.

-VERMONT AT BINGHAMTON (America East).  Vermont still has a one game lead in the standings despite their loss at UMBC, and with just three games to go they can get one step closer to clinching home court advantage in the conference tournament.

-GEORGIA STATE AT COASTAL CAROLINA (Sun Belt).  Georgia State is now back into a tie for first place with Texas State.  I do think they are a potentially dangerous team in the Round of 64 if they can win the auto-bid.

-YOUNGSTOWN STATE AT WRIGHT STATE (Horizon League).  Wright State and Northern Kentucky are tied for first with just three games to go. Even though the Penguins had their 6-game winning streak snapped on Thursday, they went down swinging at NKU. The Raiders have to be on upset alert for tonight.

-LIBERTY AT NORTH FLORIDA (Atlantic Sun).  Liberty now has a one game lead over Lipscomb and controls their own destiny for earning home court all throughout the conference tourney.

-LOUISIANA AT TEXAS STATE (Sun Belt).  Texas State is looking to bounce back from a loss and stay with Georgia State in the conference standings.

-HAMPTON AT RADFORD (Big South).  One more win for Radford clinches at least a share of first place.  Two more clinches it outright and guarantees that they host the conference tournament.

-OMAHA AT NORTH DAKOTA STATE (Summit League).  Omaha and South Dakota State are tied atop the Summit League with just three games to go.

-SOUTH DAKOTA AT SOUTH DAKOTA STATE (Summit League).  As previously mentioned, South Dakota State and Omaha are tied for first place.

-UTRGV AT NEW MEXICO STATE (WAC).  A win for New Mexico State guarantees them at least a share of first place in the WAC.

-SIUE AT BELMONT (Ohio Valley).  Belmont is tied for first place, and if they win out I think they committee will take them whether they win the conference tournament or not.

-CLEVELAND STATE AT NORTHERN KENTUCKY (Horizon League).  NKU is in a tie for first place with Wright State with just three games to go.

-HARVARD AT YALE (Ivy League).  These are the top two teams in the league.  If Yale wins it widens the gap to a three game lead with four games left to play.  Harvard is coming off of a stunning loss at Brown, but nonetheless it’s a rivalry game where anything can happen.

-UMBC AT ALBANY (America East).  UMBC is just a game behind Vermont, and in a tie for second place.  With first place having home court advantage throughout, and with second place getting to play at home in the semis, this is a big finish to conference play.

-MAINE AT STONY BROOK (America East).  Like UMBC, Stony Brook is tied for second and just one game out of first.

-SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AT MURRAY STATE (Ohio Valley).  Murray State is still in a tie with Belmont and looking to at least secure a double bye into the semifinals of the conference tournament.  A win tonight gets them one step closer.

-DARTMOUTH AT BROWN (Ivy League). The Brown Mouth Cup! That is all.