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Under the Radar Game of the Day – Tuesday, February 15: Valparaiso at Cleveland State

Posted on February 16, 2016 by Chad

Under the Radar Game of the Day: Valparaiso at Cleveland State, 7:00 PM Eastern, espn3

For our latest HOOPS HD Report featuring special guest Jerry Palm of CBS Sports, CLICK HERE.

The Under the Radar Game of the Day heads to Cleveland, Ohio tonight as Bryce Drew brings his Horizon Leagues leaders from Valparaiso in to take on Gary Waters’ Cleveland State Vikings. Valpo is a team that we have been following all season and discussing how they have a serious chance of making the field as an at-large team if they slip up in their conference tournament. Unfortunately for the Crusaders, that may no longer be the case as they suffered their fourth bad loss of the season this past week, falling at home to Wright State. Coupled with a loss at Wright State, a loss at Belmont and a loss at Ball State, and only a win at Oregon State to really try to offset those defeats, the Crusaders have now likely placed themselves in a position where the automatic bid is their only way into the Big Dance. They enter play tonight with a 2 game lead in the loss column over Oakland in the Horizon League, meaning they are in solid shape for the top seed in the conference tournament and the double bye into the semifinals that comes with it. They stand at 11-2, 21-5 overall, but their RPI has fallen to 67.

Cleveland State enters play tonight with a record of 8-18 overall and 3-10 in conference play. Their RPI sits at 256 and their only win of any note came back in December when the knocked off Belmont at home by two points. The Vikings broke out of a five game losing streak this past weekend with a 64-59 win at Youngstown State. They are led by Demonte Flanigan. Flanigan has been a breakout star for this team this year after seeing minimal action during his first two seasons in Cleveland. He dropped a career-best 30 points against Youngstown, and has now scored in double figures each of his last 6 games. If he can put up another effort like that tonight, especially against Valpo’s defense which ranks among the best in the entire nation, the Vikings could pulls off the upset and end even the slightest hopes of an at-large bid for the Crusaders.

Posted in Under the Radar | Tagged Cleveland State, college basketball, Horizon League, under the radar, Valparaiso, Valpo | 1 Comment

Hoops HD Bracket Projections (John Stalica) : February 15th

Posted on February 15, 2016 by David Griggs

The bracket below was posted by John Stalica on Monday, February 14th, at 1am, est. It is not a prediction of what he thinks the real committee will do on Selection Sunday, but rather what he personally thinks the field should look like if the season ended today. Below the bracket are comments and criticisms from others on the Hoops HD Staff.

Jon Teitel is our resident selection committee guessing expert. To see his latest seed list (bracket coming soon) – CLICK HERE

JOHN’S NOTES

– Slowly but surely, we are seeing law and order being restored to the bracket this week. If you’re a fan of a traditional power like Duke and Kentucky, this was a week where you began to rise closer to protected seed territory. Kentucky won’t have as many chances to improve as Duke will; the Blue Devils get their next round of mid-term exams with upcoming games at North Carolina and Louisville. As for Carolina, playtime in the ACC bakery is over; 5 of their final 6 games will involve 2 games with Duke, a game at Virginia and home games against Miami and Syracuse.

– While the bad news for many Under-The-Radar programs was that only Monmouth and Arkansas-Little Rock remained above the First Four this week, it doesn’t drastically affect the seeds for teams like Chattanooga, Valparaiso and Wichita State. However, they have no margin for error now if they lose in their conference tournaments (especially Wichita; they would be in line to face a very dangerous Northern Iowa team in the Valley semifinals).

– If you want to look at a pair of programs left for dead going into January, look no further than Alabama and Wisconsin. Alabama scored some solid SEC wins against Texas A&M and Florida; Wisconsin vaulted their way back in the field with a venegance after winning at Maryland on Saturday.

– If you’re a fan of blueblood programs, the South Region would be the place to be. If you’re looking for intriguing matchups (and potential Big 5 rematches), the East Region is for you.

-If Louisville and SMU were still eligible for postseason, they would have been on the 7-line as of this week.

COMMENTS

Chad’s Comments:

– I actually do not have many comments about the top of John’s brackets, and my first major disagreement with him comes on the 8 line, where he has Seton Hall. I just don’t see the profile there for the Pirates, and personally would have them barely in the field, if at all. The Pirates do not have much in terms of bad losses (other than arguably Long Beach State and Creighton at home), but also only have one win against teams that are solidly in. That win, at Providence, does not look as good anymore as it used to either as the Friars have fallen. I think he Pirates belong several seed lines lower.

– My disagreements with John get even stronger at the 9 line where he has both St. Joe’s and VCU. The Hawks simply do not have the paper to be this high and would be my very last team in right now. They only have 3 top 100 wins, and none against teams solidly in the field. They would only be in right now because two of those wins were road wins (at Temple and at GW). VCU does NOT belong in the field at all right now. The Rams had a great start to A-10 play, but have fallen apart badly. They have no wins against teams solidly in the field and two bad losses, including an awful loss this past week at UMass. I simply do not see a tournament profile here for now — though they have a chance with a game at Dayton on March 5. (The team he left out that I would have in is Cincinnati, but they would be in the First Four).

– I actually would have both Temple and California higher than John does. Temple has some blemishes on their resume, but is 6-0 on the season against Cincinnati, UConn, SMU and Tulsa. Given that those are the only other four quality programs in the American this year, it is very impressive to me. They have a chance for a season-making win this week hosting Villanova in a Big Five game. California is one of the stranger resumes I remember seeing in a long time. In terms of quality wins, they are way up there, with 10 Top 100, 5 Top 50, and 3 Top 25 victories, including a win over Oregon this past week. The problem is only one win away from home. But if ever a team deserved a bid without doing anything on the road, this is the team that does. The Golden Bears do have four of their last six games away from home and better win a few of those!

David’s Comments:

-Chad already touched on this, but I’m not as big on Saint Joe’s either for pretty much the same reasons he’s not.

-Chad likes Temple more than John. I can’t stop laughing about that.

-There is one area where I think John is way different from what the actual committee will do, and that’s with Monmouth. But, having said that, I’m with John on this. This Monmouth team has won a ton of road games, and beaten multiple NCAA Tournament teams away from home. They should be on the #8 line, and should be in on the initial ballot if they win out during the regular season.

-Wisconsin on the #11 line is interesting. If the season ended today, I think John has it about right. But, I think Wiscy’s profile is going to improve drastically between now and the end of the season.

-I’m still not big on California and their one true road win. I know winning on the road is tough, but to make the tournament you should at least have to beat the teams that suck. They need to add to that if they want to land inside the bubble. Now, having said that, I think they will, but until they do I personally wouldn’t have them in at all.

-John isn’t big on Texas, and he’s not alone. I seem to like them more than just about everyone else. I know they’re coming off of two straight losses, but one of those was at Oklahoma, and the other was at Iowa State. Both of those are snake pits, so I don’t think they should even get dinged for not picking up either win.

Posted in Bracketology, News and Notes | 3 Comments

Under the Radar Game of the Day – Monday, February 15: Long Island U-Brooklyn at St. Francis (Brooklyn) ..(and other Highlighted Games)

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Chad

Under the Radar Game of the Day: Long Island University-Brooklyn at St. Francis College (Brooklyn), 1:00 PM Eastern, ESPNU

For Jon Teitel’s latest Bracketology, CLICK HERE.

Rivalry Week kicks off today on the ESPN networks and, although it may be nothing much more than a way to stretch the hype around some game that is being played Wednesday night in Chapel Hill, NC into a week-long event, the network does get credit for starting it off this afternoon with one of the best Under the Radar rivalries out there. The 105th meeting in the Battle of Brooklyn will be taking place this afternoon as the Terriers of St. Francis College host the Blackbirds of LIU-Brooklyn. Long Island holds the all-time lead, 63-41, in this matchup between two schools that are practically right across the street from each other. However, the Terriers have won the last four games including the win at LIU back on January 23.

The LIU-Brooklyn Blackbirds enter play today with a record of 12-12 overall and 6-7 in Northeast Conference play. They are coming off of one of their better wins of the season, defeating the team that had been leading the conference, Wagner, by a convincing 82-69 margin at home. Jerome Frink led the way for the Blackbirds in that win, scoring 26 points and pulling down 14 rebounds, while also getting 3 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocked shots. The Blackbirds do have several players that can light up the scoreboard beyond Frink, including Aakim Saintil, Martin Hermannsson and Joel Hernandez. Hernandez was their top player in the earlier loss to St Francis College, with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

St. Francis is currently 11-15 overall and 7-6 in conference play. Despite being only one game above .500 in the NEC, the Terriers are also only one game in the loss column behind what is now a four-way tie for first place. The Terriers are led by Chris Hooper and Tyreek Jewell. Hooper had 15 points in the earlier win over LIU, and Jewell has been in double-figures each of his last three games, including a double-double in a win last week over Fairleigh Dickinson. As we have noted before, the Terriers are one of only five teams that have been members of Division I since divisions began in the NCAA that have never made it to the Big Dance. Given the parity in the Northeast Conference this season, they certainly will have a chance to win the automatic bid — though finishing high in the standings and getting home court advantage for the conference tournament may be the key. Picking up a win over their top rival will certainly go a long way in helping that cause today.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTED GAMES (David Griggs)

-NC STATE AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Virginia is coming off a close and controversial loss at Duke over the weekend, but they’re still in very good shape and should remain that way so long as they hold serve in games like this.

-MANHATTAN AT MONMOUTH (Metro Atlantic). The Hawks get their 3rd chance to avenge an earlier loss in the season; this time the 2-time defending champion Manhattan is the opponent. As King Rice said during the postgame Friday night, they cannot look ahead to Iona (a Friday game this week) and overlook the Jaspers.

-NEW MEXICO STATE AT WICHITA STATE. This is a makeup game from earlier in the season. It’s suddenly a game that Wichita really cannot afford to lose.

-OKLAHOMA STATE AT KANSAS (Big Twelve). Kansas is coming off one of their biggest wins of the season, and is in the drivers seat for first place in the Big Twelve.

Posted in Under the Radar | Tagged college basketball, Long Island University-Brooklyn, NEC, Northeast Conference, St. Francis-Brooklyn, under the radar | Comments Off

Bracketology 2016: March Madness Predictions (Version 7.0)

Posted on February 15, 2016 by Jon Teitel

Welcome back to another year of NCAA tourney predictions. Last year HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel correctly picked 66 of the 68 teams that made the tourney, including 62 right on the money or within 1 spot of their actual seed. He will spend the next 4 weeks predicting which 68 teams will hear their names called on Selection Sunday, with new updates each week. See below for his list of who would make the cut if they picked the field today, and let us know if you agree or disagree in the comments section. To compare how we stack up with other websites, check out: www.bracketmatrix.com.

SEED: TEAM (CONFERENCE)
1: Villanova (Big East)
1: Kansas (Big 12)
1: Oklahoma (Big 12)
1: Iowa (Big 10)

2: Virginia (ACC)
2: Maryland (Big 10)
2: North Carolina (ACC)
2: Xavier (Big East)

3: Oregon (Pac-12)
3: West Virginia (Big 12)
3: Michigan State (Big 10)
3: Miami Florida (ACC)

4: Iowa State (Big 12)
4: Dayton (A-10)
4: Purdue (Big 10)
4: Kentucky (SEC)

5: Texas A&M (SEC)
5: Arizona (Pac-12)
5: USC (Pac-12)
5: Texas (Big 12)

6: Duke (ACC)
6: Utah (Pac-12)
6: Baylor (Big 12)
6: Notre Dame (ACC)

7: South Carolina (SEC)
7: Providence (Big East)
7: Indiana (Big 10)
7: Florida (SEC)

8: Pitt (ACC)
8: Colorado (Pac-12)
8: California (Pac-12)
8: Syracuse (ACC)

9: Wichita State (MVC)
9: Connecticut (AAC)
9: VCU (A-10)
9: St. Joseph’s (A-10)

10: Michigan (Big 10)
10: Seton Hall (Big East)
10: Florida State (ACC)
10: St. Mary’s (WCC)

11: Oregon State (Pac-12)
11: Gonzaga (WCC)
11: George Washington (A-10)
11: Washington (Pac-12)
11: Monmouth (MAAC)
11: Butler (Big East)

12: Cincinnati (AAC)
12: Valparaiso (Horizon)
12: San Diego State (MWC)
12: Arkansas Little-Rock (Sun Belt)

13: Chattanooga (SoCon)
13: Akron (MAC)
13: Stony Brook (America East)
13: South Dakota State (Summit)

14: Hawaii (Big West)
14: Yale (Ivy)
14: UNC-Wilmington (CAA)
14: UAB (CUSA)

15: Belmont (OVC)
15: Stephen F. Austin (Southland)
15: New Mexico State (WAC)
15: Montana (Big Sky)

16: North Florida (Atlantic Sun)
16: UNC Asheville (Big South)
16: Bucknell (Patriot)
16: Texas Southern (SWAC)
16: Hampton (MEAC)
16: Wagner (NEC)

CONFERENCE: # OF TEAMS
AAC: 2
America East: 1
ACC: 8
Atlantic Sun: 1
A-10: 4
Big East: 5
Big Sky: 1
Big South: 1
Big 10: 6
Big 12: 6
Big West: 1
CAA: 1
CUSA: 1
Horizon: 1
Ivy: 1
MAAC: 1
MAC: 1
MEAC: 1
MVC: 1
MWC: 1
NEC: 1
OVC: 1
Pac-12: 8
Patriot: 1
SEC: 4
SoCon: 1
Southland: 1
SWAC: 1
Summit: 1
Sun Belt: 1
WCC: 2
WAC: 1

Posted in Bracketology | 7 Comments

News, Notes, and Highlighted Games: Sunday, Feb 14th

Posted on February 14, 2016 by David Griggs

NEWS AND NOTES

-Happy Valentines Day from Hoops HD! Well, I guess. I know this is a difficult day for a lot of basketball fans, because Valentines Day activities can distract from more important activities such as college basketball. I encourage everyone to realize that if he or she wants to do anything other than watch college basketball today, then chances are they are not worth keeping!!!

-For Chad Sherwood’s Under the Radar Game of the Day between New Hampshire and Stony Brook – CLICK HERE

-Wisconsin got a huge road win against Maryland, which blasts them into the tournament picture. Maryland’s profile didn’t sustain that much damage because the one thing that’s missing from it is a big time road win, and they’ll still have their chances to pick that up, but Wiscy’s profile is a million times better than it was before the game.

-Normally winning at Maryland would be one of the most impressive wins that anyone manages all season. As it turns out, it wasn’t even the most impressive road win of the day. Kansas went into Oklahoma, and pulled off the win of all wins by downing the Sooners on the road. Kansas has now beaten Oklahoma twice. Kansas is now in first place of what we believe the toughest conference to be. Kansas has the most impressive singular win of anyone this season. I’ve got to believe that this win puts Kansas on the #1 line, and perhaps even as the overall #1 seed.

-Xavier went into Butler and won convincingly, which was a 180 from how they had looked in their previous road game against Creighton earlier in the week.

-Virginia went down at Duke, but as instant replay has shown us they should have won the game. In defense of the referees, I didn’t notice it when I watched it in real time, but when Grayson Allen (who was very well defended), got up a desperation heave, his feet left the ground, and then touched the ground, and then he shot the ball. That’s a travel. But, it wasn’t called, and it went in, and Duke came out with a huge win. It stings for Virginia, but I don’t think it does anything to hurt them, and wouldn’t be surprised if they still ended up as a #2 or even a #1 seed based on ho well they’re playing and how they have opportunities to keep building their resume.

-Oregon lost their second straight when they fell at Stanford. I was starting to like them an awful lot, but two straight road losses to a team that’s on the bubble, and another team that’s nowhere near the bubble isn’t exactly playing like a #1 or #2 seed.

-LSU got a big win against Texas A&M. Texas A&M has now lost five of their last six. Things really started to go south for TAMU after Lee Delvecchio and Chad Sherwood began discussing how they thought they could be a #1 seed.

-Kentucky’s coach John Calipari was kicked out within the first three minutes of their game against South Carolina. Kentucky then went on to absolutely blast the Gamecocks out of their own gym. Calipari was apparently furious that a foul had been called on South Carolina (yes, this happened after a foul had been called on the other team) and wouldn’t stop yelling about it until they kicked him out. I believe he was channeling his inner Norman Dale for whatever reason. I really don’t know the reason, but if he did do it on purpose then I guess it worked.

-Baylor lost badly a home to a Texas Tech team that doesn’t appear to be going anywhere other than the NIT. Baylor could have really done without that.

-Wichita State lost for the second straight weekend to a Northern Iowa team that only scored 15 the second half, but still won. Wichita State could have really done without that.

-Valparaiso became the fourth Under the Radar team who appeared to be inside the bubble to pick up a really damaging loss when they lost to Wright State at home after the Raiders scored the last eight points of the game. This is the second time they’ve lost to Wright State. Valpo really could have done without that.

-Washington came very close to picking up a big road win in each of their last two games, which really would have helped them out, but they fell by a point at Colorado yesterday.

-Last, and definitely not least, Yale improved to 8-0 in the Ivy League with their win yesterday at Harvard. That sets up a big game against Princeton this Friday that will have NCAA Tournament implications

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-SYRACUSE AT BOSTON COLLEGE (ACC). Syracuse seems to be getting better and better as the season progresses, and they shouldn’t have too much trouble picking up a road win against a BC team that’s winless in ACC play.

-PITTSBURGH AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC). UNC is easily a protected seed, and Pitt is safely in the field. Pitt can really help their profile if they’re able to win this game.

-INDIANA AT MICHIGAN STATE (Big Ten). Indiana got a huge win against Iowa earlier in the week. If they manage to pick up a road win against a likely protected seed then I think it will completely change the complexion of their resume.

-SOUTH FLORIDA AT TEMPLE (American). We are looking at Temple, but we likely won’t be anymore if they lose a game like this.

-WASHINGTON STATE AT UTAH (Pac Twelve). Utah has a solid profile and just needs to hold serve today.

-MIAMI FL AT FLORIDA STATE (ACC). Miami has yet to win a true road game against a team that’s likely to make the field, so today is a chance to add something to their profile that they don’t have. It’s also a chance to beat a rival on the road. Florida State is inside our bubble, but they’d be much safer if they can get another notable win or two.

-MINNESOTA AT IOWA (Big Ten). Iowa is coming off a loss at Indiana, so this is a good chance for them to rebound.

-USC AT ARIZONA (Pac Twelve). Both teams are safely in the field, but both teams have room for improvement. USC doesn’t have that many notable road wins, and Arizona could use a few more wins of note.

-UCLA AT ARIZONA STATE (Pac Twelve). UCLA is way outside looking in, but if they finish strong they can at least play their way into the picture.

Posted in News and Notes | Comments Off

Under the Radar Game of the Day – Sunday, February 14: New Hampshire at Stony Brook

Posted on February 14, 2016 by Chad

Under the Radar Game of the Day: New Hampshire at Stony Brook, 2:00 PM Eastern, americaeast.tv

The UTR Game of the Day heads to Long Island this afternoon as the longest win streak in the nation is on the line. Head coach Steve Pikiell’s Stony Brook Seawolves have won 17 straight games heading into today’s contest, and join Yale and Stephen F. Austin as the only three teams remaining in the nation that are undefeated within their conferences. The Seawolves sit at 21-4 overall, 12-0 against America East play and four games away from completing the perfect conference regular season (though a big trip to second place Albany looms on Wednesday). Jameel Warney is the clear star for Stony Brook. He has 17 double-doubles on the season, and has scored in double digits every single game. Warney’s average of 10.5 rebounds per game has him ranked 15th in the nation. If the Seawolves can get the wins today and Wednesday at Albany, they will clinch the top seed in the America East tournament and have home court advantage for all three rounds.

New Hampshire enters plays today with a record of 15-9 overall and 8-3 in AEC play. The Wildcats have won 7 of their last 8 games, including a huge home win Thursday night over Albany. With that win, New Hampshire clinched at least fourth place in the conference and guaranteed themselves a home game in the conference tournament for the second straight season. UNH’s home quarterfinal game last season had been the first ever Division I conference tournament game played in the state of New Hampshire. This year, we will be seeing at least the second, if not more. The Wildcats have won their last three without the help of Jacoby Armstrong who is in the midst of serving a five game suspension for violation of team rules. Tanner Leissner has been leading the way in his absence, including a 20 point effort against Albany and 26 points in a win over Maine. The Wildcats have clearly been one of the hottest teams in the conference, and if they can pick up the road upset today have a chance to move up to the #2 seed and establish themselves as potentially being Stony Brook’s top challenger as we head towards connference tournament play.

Posted in Under the Radar | Tagged america east, college basketball, New Hampshire, stony brook, under the radar | 1 Comment