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-DUKE AT SAINT JOHN’S. As one of my Hoops HD colleagues said (John S.) earlier this week, this is a home game for Duke against Saint John’s at MSG!! The Johnnies have been a train wreck since conference play began, but they actually looked pretty good OOC, and since this is an OOC road game at home we’ll see how it goes!
-OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS (Big 12). The oddity that is Kansas basketball and how they play better on the road than at home continues. They should skate through this one…but they’re at home, so they need to be on upset alert.
-NOTRE DAME AT NC STATE (ACC). Notre Dame has been hit with injuries perhaps worse than anyone else and it just doesn’t look like it’s going to happen for them. NC State has a bit of a schizophrenic profile, but they’ve been playing really well lately and should be able to pick up another conference win at home.
-HOUSTON AT UCF (American). Houston is squarely on the bubble, so every game the rest of the way will likely have a pivotal feel. They missed a golden opportunity to get a win at Cincinnati, but this would be a decent (not great, but decent) road win for the Cougars if they can pull it off.
-DEPAUL AT BUTLER (Big East). There aren’t many easy games in the Big East, but playing DePaul at home is about as close as it comes. Butler seems to be continuing to improve and they can get to a very impressive 7-4 in league play with a win today.
-CINCINNATI AT UCONN (American). Cincinnati is on cruise control, but a lack of wins against teams that will make the field will likely hurt their chances of ending up as a protected seed if they happen to stub their toes in a game like this.
-TEXAS TECH AT TCU (Big 12). This one should be good. TCU is having their best season in recent memory and can add a huge win to their resume by taking down a Texas Tech team that is…well…also having one of their best seasons in recent memory. Texas Tech is in strong contention for a protected seed, which almost never happens, and TCU is well on pace to make the NCAA Tournament, which almost never happens.
-CLEMSON AT WAKE FOREST (ACC). Amazingly, Clemson continues to win despite the injuries that they’ve had to endure. No road win is easy, but this is one of the more winnable road games they’ll have in conference play.
-KENTUCKY AT MISSOURI (SEC). This is a hugely important game for a Kentucky team that’s been playing better and is now on the fringe of a protected seed, and a Missouri team that’s on the fringe of the bubble.
-MIAMI FL AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). Both teams REALLY need this win. Virginia TEch is battling a weak OOC schedule, and typically that means having to finish more than two games above .500 to make the field. Miami is in much better shape, but they still don’t have a lot of great wins on their resume. A conference road win against a bubble caliber team would actually look fairly decent.
-SOUTH CAROLINA AT TEXAS A&M (SEC). Right now it looks as though both teams are on the outside looking in. TAMU is playing better, but they need to continue to string together wins to get to a point to where they are safely inside the bubble.
-MISSOURI STATE AT LOYOLA CHICAGO (Missouri Valley). Loyola may have shot themselves in the foot earlier this week when they failed to win at Bradley, but they still have a strong resume and should at least get a look if they win out through the regular season.
-RADFORD AT WINTHROP (Big South). Will Radford continue to separate themselves along with UNC-Asheville for the conference lead, or will they get caught in the conference logjam again?
-MINNESOTA AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Michigan just needs to hold serve in games like this and they should cruise into the tournament.
-PROVIDENCE AT MARQUETTE (Big East). Providence is in the bottom half of our bracket right now, and Marquette is squarely on the bubble. This is a game that both of these teams really need.
-VIRGINIA AT SYRACUSE (ACC). Virginia is now our top #1 seed and they can pick up another road win today against a Syracuse team that’s probably headed to the NIT (minus a huge finish), but that’s also not the easiest team to beat at home.
-LOUISIANA AT LOUISIANA MONROE (Sun Belt). Louisiana continues to win and if they finish the regular season with just three losses, the committee still isn’t likely to take them without the auto-bid, but they will at least be in the discussion.
-ARKANSAS AT LSU (SEC). LSU has fallen way off the bubble and needs to string together several wins just to get back within reach of it. Arkansas is in our field for now, but you can hardly call them a lock at this point. They still have a lot of work to do and road wins like this will help.
-PURDUE AT RUTGERS (Big Ten). Purdue continues to win and continues to look like a #1 seed. Rutgers is capable of giving them a scare at home if the Boilers overlook them, but Purdue hasn’t really overlooked anyone since Thanksgiving.
-KANSAS STATE AT WEST VIRGINIA (Big 12). Both these teams are going in different directions, but they’re both still really far apart. West Virginia hasn’t looked like a protected seed in a while and their resume is slipping (having lost 5 out of their last 6), but they’re still way inside the field. K-State is right on our bubble, but they’ve been playing pretty good basketball (minus their home loss to Kansas earlier this week). K-State’s OOC schedule will likely hurt them if they’re on the bubble, so they need to be safely inside of it, and this is the kind of win that can make the difference of whether they make it or not.
-ALABAMA AT FLORIDA (SEC). Both teams look to be in the field and both have time to improve their resumes between now and the end. A win today would certainly help.
-FLORIDA STATE AT LOUISVILLE (ACC). Right now we have both teams in the top half of the bracket, but both still have room to improve. Louisville won the first meeting between these two, which is still one of their biggest wins of the year. They’re coming off a road loss to Virginia and are looking to rebound.
-CHATTANOOGA AT EAST TENNESSEE STATE (SoCon). I say this every game, but ETSU’s chances are small. They are not non-existent. If they win out, which they are good enough to do, the committee should look at them.
-VERMONT AT UMBC (America East). Vermont is very close to clinching home court advantage for the America East Tournament, and with just five losses on the season the committee may keep them on the board if they win out but fail to win the conference tourney. They aren’t likely to select them, but they should at least look at them.
-WESTERN KENTUCKY AT UT-SAN ANTONIO (Conference USA). Western Kentucky has a good chance of making the field if they win out but lose in the conference tournament. They can add another road win to their resume tonight.
-OREGON AT STANFORD (Pac Twelve). Oregon has won three straight, and can put another semi-decent road win on their resume today. They still have a lot of work to do, but they are moving in the right direction and it isn’t entirely impossible.
-NICHOLLS AT NEW ORLEANS (Southland). Both teams are tied with SFA in the loss column in the Southland – definitely some stakes here since the top 2 teams in the conference get byes into the semifinal of the conference tournament.
-GEORGETOWN AT XAVIER (Big East). Xavier is on a roll and is solidly on our #2 line. It’s not impossible to think they can end up as a #1 seed if they can continue to blow through the conference and knock off Villanova in the tournament. It’s much easier said than done, but it is possible.
-OLE MISS AT TENNESSEE (SEC). Tennessee has had a fantastic season and they seem to keep getting better. They are actually in contention for a protected seed. They need to hold serve against an Ole Miss team that has not been good on the road.
-IOWA AT PENN STATE (Big Ten). They would have to absolutely thunder down the stretch, but Penn State still has a slim chance of playing their way onto the bubble.
-GEORGIA AT MISSISSIPPI STATE (SEC). Georgia is still right on our bubble and could really use this road win.
-USC AT UCLA (Pac Twelve). USC has lost just two league games, but they still aren’t completely safe. UCLA is pretty far outside our bubble, but they are a solid NIT team and have shown that they’re capable of beating good teams. It’s also a rivalry game, so it should be a fun one.
-UTRGV AT NEW MEXICO STATE (WAC). I think the committee will take New Mexico State if they win out. They shouldn’t have any real trouble today at home.
-FLORIDA GULF COAST AT JACKSONVILLE (Atlantic Sun). We mention this one only because if FGCU gets the win they are almost assured getting home court advantage throughout the A-Sun Tournament.
-OKLAHOMA AT TEXAS (Big 12). The Red River Rivalry! Oklahoma has dropped three out of their last four and the road has not been their friend. Texas has had their struggles as well. They typically play well but their resume doesn’t have the big wins on it to indicate they’re a potential protected seed. Still, if the Horns pull this off at home it would be a huge win, especially when you consider how they’re coming off a close road loss against Texas Tech that would have really boosted their resume.
-CHARLESTON AT HOFSTRA (Colonial). The Cougars passed their first road test at Northeastern earlier in the week and can finally separate themselves a bit from the rest of the conference if they can sweep their weekend roadie.
-MIDDLE TENNESSEE AT CHARLOTTE (Conference USA). Middle Tennessee is coming off a huge road win at Old Dominion and they are currently squarely on our bubble. It’s hard to say what the committee will do with them, but their chances are pretty good of making it if they win out but don’t win the conference tournament.
-PITTSBURGH AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC). UNC has been slumping recently, but they shouldn’t have too much trouble pulling themselves out of that slump tonight against a Pitt team that’s yet to win a conference road game. They’ve also yet to win a conference home game.
-UNLV AT BOISE STATE (Mountain West). Boise is not in our field, but I can’t help but think the committee will look at them favorably if they continue to win throughout conference play.
-NEVADA AT COLORADO STATE (Mountain West). Nevada fell out of the rankings this week, but they’re still a solid team and should safely make the field if they hold serve in conference the rest of the way.
-MICHIGAN STATE AT INDIANA (Big Ten). Indiana is not making the tournament unless they win out, or win the auto-bid, or do something crazy. But, they have been playing better lately and this is the kind of game that could be a season defining moment for them. Michigan State is a little thin when it comes to quality wins, so they may not be able to drop that many more games and still end up as a protected seed. This one, if nothing else, should be a fun one.
-VANDERBILT AT AUBURN (SEC). Auburn continues to impress, and are now as high as the #2 line on our staff brackets. They shouldn’t have too much trouble holding serve at home.
-SAINT MARY’S AT SAN DIEGO (West Coast). Saint Mary’s is kind of a hard team to seed given how weak their schedule is and how they have just one good win, but that one win was REALLY good. They should still end up in the top half of the bracket if they continue to dominate the league.
-BYU AT GONZAGA (West Coast). Gonzaga, like Saint Mary’s, is kind of hard to seed, but they should still easily end up in the top half of the bracket if they win out. They may get a little bit of a test tonight. Amazingly, Gonzaga’s seniors have NEVER beaten BYU in the Kennel – two of those BYU wins came when Gonzaga was a Top 10 team (including last year when the Zags were #1 and the last undefeated team in early March).
-ARIZONA AT WASHINGTON (Pac Twelve). Last, and CERTAINLY not least. Washington is currently right on the bubble, but they’ve been playing really well and have some quality wins on their resume. This would certainly be another one and would go a long way toward them moving safely inside the bubble. Arizona has lost just one game since Thanksgiving, but they have had some close calls. It’s funny to say this about a team that’s ranked #9th in the nation, but I still don’t think people are taking them as seriously as they should be.
