Hoops HD

NEWS AND NOTES

-Yesterday was another crazy day.  Saturdays usually are, but yesterday was a day where it seemed like there was almost no chalk.  So much happened that impacts the profiles of the teams we’re looking at, which is why today’s recap is a bit lengthy.

-For Chad Sherwood’s Under the Radar Game of the Day between Hofstra and James Madison – CLICK HERE

-Top ranked Oklahoma went down at Kansas State, which was a bit of a surprise in and of itself, but holistically when a team plays so many road games against so many home court heroes and has such a big bullseye on their back, chances are they’re going to lose at least one of them.  You rarely see #1 seeds lose to any non-tournament teams, but I still think the Sooners are okay.  In fact, considering they beat Villanova head to head, I’m guessing the committee would still have them as the overall #1 seed.

-North Carolina also went down on the road as they fell to Notre Dame.  They may be in a little more trouble than the Sooners, at least in terms of ending up with a #1 seed.  They still haven’t beaten a protected seed on the road.  Not only that, they’ve lost road games to teams that aren’t even likely protected seeds such as Notre Dame.  I don’t expect #1 seeds to win all their road games against protected seeds, but I do think they need to win more than zero, and then win the majority of all the rest.  UNC has not done that, and until they do their paper is going to give me pause.

-Villanova picked up a huge road win at Providence, and actually led for the entire game in a very hostile environment.  This should help their cause for a #1 seed.

-Maryland picked up another big time notable win as they downed Purdue at home yesterday.  I don’t think Maryland ends up on the #1 line despite their high ranking, but this win does help their profile.

-South Carolina picked up a monster road win, which should help move them up several seed lines.  They went into Texas A&M and came out with a win.  They were trying to give it away at the end, but managed to hold on.

-Virginia probably won’t get a #1 seed due to their overall body of work just not being there, but this past week they’ve certainly played like one.  They blasted Louisville on the road last week, and yesterday went into Pittsburgh and absolutely ran away from them.  They’ve looked as good as anyone in the country over these past eight days.

-Michigan State absolutely blasted rival Michigan on the road, which feels good for two reasons.  Blowing out your rival on the road is great, and picking up a big notable road win for the profile is also great.

-Wichita State, who had been rolling all over teams in their conference, blew a comfortable double digit lead in the second half and ended up falling to Illinois State 58-53.  It was actually kind of alarming to see them struggle so badly after Illinois State switched up their defense.  The Shockers are still okay, but they can’t afford too many more of those if they want to end up in on the first ballot.

-Indiana went to Penn State, and lost.  The Hoosiers are still okay, and will still safely make the field, but other than their win at Michigan they’ve shown no ability whatsoever to actually beat the caliber of team that they’ll be playing in the round of 64,

-Arizona is battling injuries, and picked up a huge road win at Washington yesterday.  I know the Wildcats are not having the season they had hoped for, but they deserve a ton of credit for what they’ve been able to do with a short handed roster.

-VCU suffered their first conference loss, which was kind of a surprise as they went down at home to George Washington.  GW was right outside of our bubble, and they really needed a win like this on their prifole.

-Cincinnati is right on the bubble, and they lost to a Memphis team that isn’t even in the picture.  That’s not good for the Bearcats.

-San Diego State needed overtime, and a little bit of controversy as well to get past New Mexico, but they remain unbeaten.  San Diego State trailed by 5 with about 20 seconds to go in regulation, then hit a three, and then “forced” a turnover on a bizarre call on an inbounds play, that the Mountain West Conference has since acknowledged to be a mistake.  Nevertheless, they forced overtime, and then won in overtime, and avoided what would have been a very damaging home loss to a non-tournament team.

-Clemson needs road wins.  Clemson appeared to have a winnable road game yesterday at Virginia Tech.  Clemson did not win.  They can’t afford to have this few road wins on their profile, especially if they lose to non-tournament teams on the road, if they want to land inside the bubble.

-Oregon State held on to win a game against Colorado that they desperately needed.  We were ready to write off the Beavers, but they had a big week this past week.  Granted, the wins came at home, but I think they’ve at least played their way back into the discussion.  They’re one of those bubble teams that may end up owing Louisville a big thank you.

-And, last and certainly least, Gonzaga once again looked like a team that doesn’t belong in the tournament without an automatic bid as they had to squeak by Pepperdine on the road.

HIGHLIGHTED GAMES

-EAST CAROLINA AT UCONN (American).  We believe UConn to currently be inside the bubble right now, but they’re not to a point to where they can afford to lose home games to non tournament teams, especially teams as weak as East Carolina.

-IOWA AT ILLINOIS (Big Ten).  I’m starting to like Iowa’s chances at a #1 seed more and more, and they should get it so long as they hold serve in games like this.

-MIAMI FL AT GEORGIA TECH (ACC).  Georgia Tech isn’t a tournament team, but they are capable of playing well at home.  Still, it’s the kind of game the Canes should be expected to win if they’re a legit protected seed.

-UTAH AT OREGON (Pac Twelve).  I’m starting to like Oregon more and more as the season progresses, and now think they’re good enough to land as high as the #2 line.  Utah is very safely in the field as well, and will probably be wearing white in the round of 64.  This is the kind of win that could really improve their seeding.