Hoops HD

Chicago State at Utah Valley, 9:00 PM Eastern, UVU-TV

If someone had said a month ago that first place in the WAC would be on the line in Orem, Utah on January 25, they would have been laughed at.  However, here we are approaching the end of January and the Utah Valley Wolverines (5-0, 11-7) are in first place while the Chicago State Cougars (4-1, 9-10) are in second — both ahead of preseason favorite New Mexico State.  In fact, yours truly had predicted that New Mexico State would run the table in the WAC — and they instead have already lost to both Chicago State and UMKC…with two games against Utah Valley still to go.

Chicago State is a program on the rise after years being amongst the bottom feeders in Division I.  CSU was pretty much kicked out of the Summit League, spent several years as an independent, and found a home..of sorts…in the Great West Conference.  Even their time in the Great West was rough, including a year spent on the APR ban list.  They finished the regular season in 2012-13 at 9-21, but promptly won both games they played in the Great West tournament to capture the GWC’s last ever basketball championship and earn their first ever postseason bid, an automatic bid into the CIT.  They have already matched last year’s 9 regular season wins…and a shot at a winning record this season does not seem out of reach.  It would be only their second winning season in the past dozen.

Utah Valley had won five straight games heading into tonight’s contest and has been establishing themselves as a legitimate contender in the WAC, especially if New Mexico State cannot bounce back from their recent struggles.  Tonight’s game will be the 14th all time meeting between these former Great West “rivals”, with UVU holding a 9-3 series lead.  A win by UVU will give them a two game lead in conference play as the league season nears its mid-point.

On this week’s edition of the Bracket Rundown, Lee Devlechio joins Chad and David, and they discuss where Wichita State and San Diego State should be on the s curve, and whether or not one or both of them should end up as #1 seeds. There is also disagreement over Colorado, Missouri, North Carolina, Pitt and Dayton.

They cover all the teams from the #1 seeds down to the bubble and discuss what their current status is and where they would be seeded if the tournament started today. Check it out!!

Click here to check out Chad Sherwood’s SCGD:  https://hoopshd.com/2014/01/22/small-conference-game-of-the-day-january-22-2/

-IOWA AT MICHIGAN (Big Ten). Michigan got off to a slow start, but they’re playing better now. Both of these teams could end up as protected seeds. Michigan has more work to do than Iowa, but both are in good shape.

-LOUISVILLE AT SOUTH FLORIDA (American). Louisville is coming off a big win at UConn, which they desperately needed, and shouldn’t have too much trouble winning tonight.

-UMASS AT RICHMOND (Atlantic Ten). UMass has been cutting it close over the past few weeks, but they’ve continued to win. This will be another tough road test against a Richmond team who has been good, but not as good as some of us (Me) expected.

-SAINT LOUIS AT DUQUESNE (Atlantic Ten). I really like this SLU team and think they can win the league.

-VCU AT DAYTON (Atlantic Ten). I have both teams on the right side of the bubble with VCU in slightly better shape, but both teams still have work to do between now and the end of the year. Both should approach this with a sense of urgency.

-DUKE AT MIAMI FL (ACC). Duke better be on upset alert. They haven’t won a true road game yet, and although Miami hasn’t had a great season, they’ve been playing much better lately.

-INDIANA STATE AT LOYOLA IL (Missouri Valley). I think Indiana State could end up on the bubble, or even inside it if they can pull off a win against Wichita, but they have almost no margin for error.

-ARKANSAS AT TENNESSEE (SEC). This is a very bubbly game. Arkansas needs to do something on the road if they want to make the field, which they really haven’t done yet. Tennessee needs to do more as well.

-OAKLAND AT GREEN BAY (Horizon League). Every game is a big game for Green Bay because they can’t afford to lose any of them.

-WICHITA STATE AT ILLINOIS STATE (Missouri Valley). Wichita could get a #1 seed, but only if they win out. Illinois State isn’t the best team, but this will be a showcase game for them. Every time Wichita plays on the road, it’s a showcase for that other team.

-WISCONSIN AT MINNESOTA (Big Ten). Wiscy has lost two straight, but I still think they’re very good and could even end up on the #1 line. Minney looks like a solid tournament team as well, and this would look really good on their profile. It’s a conference rivalry with something at stake for both teams.

-TCU AT OKLAHOMA (Big Twelve). Oklahoma has been playing much better lately and should win this one at home easily.

-SAN DIEGO STATE AT SAN JOSE STATE (Mountain West). I’m a huge fan of this San Diego State team and think they could end up on the #2 or #3 line.

-CALIFORNIA AT USC (Pac Twelve). This Cal team is really coming on strong. They’re safely inside the bubble and I expect they’ll stay there.

BOSTON UNIVERSITY AT AMERICAN, 7:30 PM Eastern, free streaming at http://www.campusinsiders.com/network/patriot_league

Following Mike Jarvis’ most significant win in years in last night’s SCGD, we head to a battle tonight involving the first D1 team he coached, Boston University.  The Terriers are in their inaugural season in the Patriot League, and have started it with a bang, off to a 6-0 league record and 13-6 overall.  They have won five of their six league contests by double digits and have been living up to the hype as preseason conference favorites.

Tonight, the Terriers travel to Bender Arena in Washington DC (assuming they can get there after last night’s snowstorm) to take on the American Eagles in a battle of undefeated teams in conference play.  American is also off to a 6-0 start and 10-7 overall.  6-0 is the best ever Patriot League season start for the Eagles, and their best conference start since going a perfect 11-0 in the East Coast Conference back in 1981, when Gary Williams was their head coach.  American’s great start this season is thank in part to junior John Schoof.  Schoof leads the league in rebounding and is second in scoring and is the defending Patriot League Player of the Week.  This should be a great game tonight between two of the best teams in the Patriot League, withe the winner having the early lead in the battle for the regular season title.