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Nebraska-Omaha at Western Illinois, 8:00PM Eastern (no TV)

The SCGD is back in action today, heading to Macomb, Illinois for the Summit League Battle between the Omaha Mavericks and the Western Illinois Leathernecks.  As was discussed in our Under the Radar podcast last night (link to it coming soon), Omaha has been one of the bigger surprises among non-major conference teams, sitting at 10-5 on the season with an RPI of 74, BPI of 90 and KenPom of 117.  Their 8 Division 1 wins so far this season is just two shy of tying their combined wins against Division 1 opponents from their past two seasons.  While the Mavs are still transitioning from Division II, and are ineligible for postseason play this season and next, coach Derrin Hansen is clearly building a program in Omaha that could be a legitimate contender in the Summit League for years to come.

Omaha takes to the road tonight to battle the Western Illinois Leathernecks.  WIU is off to a rough 6-9 start with only three D1 wins to date.  This seasons has been a step back for the Leathernecks, who have posted winning records the past two seasons, including a school record 22 wins last season.  They have played in the CBI the past two seasons, the only two postseason appearances in the school’s Division I history.  Head coach Jim Molinari needs to rebuild again this year, though, if he wants to keep this program at the top of the Summit League standings.  If he can, it will continue to strengthen this conference which was bolstered this season with the addition of Denver and will benefit from Oral Roberts’ return next year.

Long Island U-Brooklyn at St. Francis College (Brooklyn), 7:00 PM Eastern (no TV)

THE BATTLE OF BROOKLYN, ROUND 1

There is nowhere else for the SCGD to be tonight than Brooklyn, New York for round one of this year’s battle of Brooklyn between LIU and St. Francis College.  By far the most intense rivalry in the Northeast Conference, these two schools, mere blocks away from each other, will be meeting for the 99th time tonight, with Long Island holding a 62-36 all-time series lead.

This year’s two contests (the second game will be played February 16 at the Barclay’s Center) present an even more compelling edge as the Blackbirds enter as three time defending NEC champions, yet the Terriers have played as the team more likely than Long Island to win the conference championship this year.  Despite having played eight of their first nine games on the road, St. Francis, at 9-6, has the most overall wins of any NEC team as the schools begin conference play tonight.  Their resume includes a hard fought 6 point loss at Syracuse, in a game they really had shots to win late.

The Long Island Blackbirds sit at 5-8 on the season, including a one point loss at Indiana in their second game of the season.  Their ratings are all significantly worse than the Terriers, including an RPI almost 150 spots lower than their rivals.  However, as with all great rivalries, records, ratings, stats and everything else you may put on paper do not really matter.  This game should be a fun one as always, with the bragging rights — at least until the two schools meet again in February — being possibly even more important than the W or L in the standings.

-VILLANOVA AT SETON HALL (Big East). I look for Nova to continue to blow through the league and earn a seed on the top two lines.

-SOUTH CAROLINA AT FLORIDA (SEC). The Gators will be undermatched in the majority of their conference games, including tonight.

-KANSAS AT OKLAHOMA (Big Twelve). Oklahoma has played well lately, and Kansas is coming off a disappointing loss, but I still think the Jayhawks are the better team and can get it done tonight. If Oklahoma wins, it will go a long way as far as landing them on the right side of the bubble.

-SAINT JOSEPH’S AT UMASS (Atlantic Ten). UMass is having a banner season, and should be able to take care of business at home tonight.

-HARVARD AT UCONN. This is a game that UConn suddenly needs to win. They’re coming off of two straight losses, and really need to take care of business against a good team at home.

-WAKE FOREST AT VIRGINIA (ACC). No one is talking about Wake, but they’re 11-3 and now have a big win against North Carolina. If they win tonight, you have to start looking at them as a legit team. Virginia, on the other hand, isn’t looking nearly as legit as many thought they would be.

-GEORGETOWN AT PROVIDENCE (Big East). Georgetown could use a decent road win on their profile.

-RICHMOND AT SAINT BONAVENTURE (Atlantic Ten). Richmond has a lot of work to do if they want to make the field. Winning at Saint Bona, who has yet to lose at home, would be a start. It’s the kind of game that the Spiders need to win.

-OHIO AT KENT STATE (MAC). These are two of the better teams in the MAC. Both could be dangerous NCAA teams, but both would need to blow through the MAC schedule to even have a shot at making it if they don’t win the conference tournament.

-TOLEDO AT WESTERN MICHIGAN (MAC). Toledo has just one loss, but they still have a small margin for error. If they can go through league play and only lose one game, I think they’ll be safe for a bid regardless of what happens in the conference tournament. With that in mind, they need to take care of business every single night, including tonight.

-MINNESOTA AT PENN STATE (Big Ten). Minney is off to a good start and could get another decent conference road win tonight. Penn State isn’t a tournament caliber team, but they are tough to beat at home.

-ILLINOIS STATE AT WICHITA STATE (Missouri Valley). It’s the same story every night for the rest of the season. Wichita will be undermatched and simply needs to hold serve.

-MISSISSIPPI STATE AT KENTUCKY (SEC). Mississppi State is much improved from last year’s pitiful team, and is off to a respective 10-3 start, but they aren’t likely to a level where they can win a road game like this one.

-GEORGIA AT MISSOURI (SEC). A win for Mizzou gets them to 13-1.

-INDIANA STATE AT DRAKE (Missouri Valley). See here: https://hoopshd.com/2014/01/08/small-conference-game-of-the-day-january-8-2/

-ILLINOIS AT WISCONSIN (Big Ten). The Illini are having a much better year than expected, but this is an extremely tall order against one of the nation’s best. Wiscy is one of those temas who is competing for a #1 seed.

-TEXAS AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big Twelve). Okie State has been somewhat disappointing, but they’re still very good and shouldn’t have too much trouble at home tonight.

-COLORADO AT WASHINGTON STATE (Pac Twelve). Colorado hasn’t played that many true road games, but they’ve won the two that they have played and probably won’t be challenged that strongly tonight.

-MIAMI FL AT NORTH CAROLINA. UNC has been bi-polar all season long, and really cannot afford a slip-up in a game like this.

-NEW MEXICO AT WYOMING (Mountain West). This is the kind of road game that New Mexico should be expected to win.

-ARKANSAS AT TEXAS A&M (SEC). Arkansas is 11-2, but still hasn’t gotten the attention of the national media. That’s largely because they are just 1-2 in road games. This is the kind of game that they should be expected to win if they’re a tournament team.

-UTAH AT WASHINGTON (Pac Twelve). Washington has had an unspectacular season, but they played great on the road in their last two games. Utah has a good record, but it has come against a weak schedule, so they need to come in with a sense of urgency despite only having two losses.

-BOISE STATE AT SAN DIEGO STATE (Mountain West). San Diego State is coming off a huge win at Kansas, and has had a tremendous season so far. Boise has a good record, but no good wins and could really use this one.

Indiana State at Drake, 8:00 PM Eastern (MC22 – local TV in Iowa only)

The SCGD heads to Iowa tonight as we begin the battle to determine who the second best team in the Missouri Valley Conference is.  Wichita State is by far the class of this conference and may be good enough to run the table in the league (though doing would probably still be a “shocker”).  Tonight’s game features two of the other three teams that have picked up 10 or more wins so far, Indiana State and Drake (the third being Missouri State).

Indiana State enters tonight’s game at 2-0 in MVC play and 11-3 on the season overall.  They have the best KenPom after Wichita, a solid 59, and do have a win at Notre Dame…though there are quite a few teams that can say that this season.  Other than the Notre Dame game and a loss to Belmont, the Sycamores have played a very weak schedule and have a bad loss in the Great Alaska Shootout to Tulsa.  That loss was actually doubly bad, as it also relegated them to the consolation bracket and a non-D1 game against Alaska-Anchorage rather than a chance at a title game against Harvard.  Indiana State will most likely have to win almost all of their MVC games, including at least one over Wichita, to have any shot at even being in the at-large discussion this season.  And it would have to all start with a win over Drake tonight.

Drake, on the other hand, enters tonight’s game at 10-4 overall and 1-1 in conference.  Their RPI, BPI and KenPom numbers are all right around the 100 mark.  Other than a loss last time out to Bradley, the rest of their losses have been respectable (St. Mary’s, New Mexico State and Iowa).  However, they were unable to pick up any top 100 wins to date and probably will not have enough chances at them in league play to be in at-large contention.  Ray Giacoletti’s team will not be an easy out though, as they should give all the top teams in the MVC tough games and could be a factor in Arch Madness, the Missouri Valley’s conference tournament.  A win over Indiana State tonight would not be much of a surprise to anyone.

Be sure to check out Chad Sherwood’s SCGD…

https://hoopshd.com/2014/01/07/small-conference-game-of-the-day-january-7/

-BAYLOR AT IOWA STATE (Big Twelve). It’s a conference game between two teams that appear to be protected seeds. Iowa State has been tough at home, and overall is more tested than Baylor.

-GEORGIA TECH AT DUKE (ACC). Duke looks to rebound after losing their conference opener at ND.

-SAINT LOUIS AT RHODE ISLAND (Atlantic Ten). I like SLU’s team and they have a good record, but they don’t have any really good wins. They’re still in good shape, but they don’t have the widest margin for error now that they’re in to league play.

-TENNESSEE AT LSU (SEC). Both of these teams have a lot of work to do, so there should be a sense of urgency to this game.

-KANSAS STATE AT TCU (Big Twelve). TCU is a respectable 9-4, but they haven’t been playing this caliber of team.

-SYRACUSE AT VIRGINIA TECH (ACC). I think Syracuse is the class of the ACC and shouldn’t have too much trouble picking up the road win tonight.

-OHIO STATE AT MCIHIGAN STATE (Big Ten). Ohio State is unbeaten and has looked good, but this is by far their biggest test of the year. If they can get the win, it’s a statement that they’re a #1 seed caliber team.

-CINCINNATI AT HOUSTON (AAC). Cincinnati has had a pretty good year, and is in good shape at 13-2 overall. Houston is coming off a big win against UConn, but I’m still thinking that was more of a fluke than anything else.

-NC STATE AT NOTRE DAME (ACC), Despite their big win against Duke, I still think Notre Dame has a lot of work to do. Same with NC State.

-CREIGHTON AT DEPAUL (Big East). Creighton needs to hold serve and take care of business in games like this.

Green Bay at Chicago State, 8:00 PM Eastern (no TV)

As we wind to the very last handful of non-conference games this season, the SCGD will be traveling tonight to the Windy City for the matchup between the Horizon League’s Green Bay Phoenix and the WAC’s Chicago State Cougars.  Already 2-0 in Horizon League play, Green Bay gets their final non-league game tonight.  Overall, the Phoenix sit at 11-3 with an RPI of 53, BPI of 78, KenPom of 73 and SOS of 61, all very solid numbers for a team not in a major conference.  Unfortunately, just to maintain those ratings they will have to keep winning.  The only remaining top 100 KenPom opponent for Green Bay is a road trip in late February to Cleveland State (who may no longer even be top 100 at that point).  The Phoenix did score one win of note in non-conference play, a home victory over the Virginia Cavaliers.  They also did stub their toes at Eastern Michigan (though Eastern Michigan is a solid yet underrated team).  An at-large bid would be a longshot for the Phoenix, and would probably require them to win out all the way to their conference tournament final..or close to that.  A loss tonight at Chicago State would be devastating.

Chicago State enters tonight’s game at 6-8 overall and 1-0 so far in WAC play.  Their one WAC victory, at RPI 279 Idaho, is also their best win of the year.  The Cougars are in their first year playing in the WAC but are no strangers to being in a “western” conference.  They have spent the past several years as members of the now-defunct (but always remembered in the hearts of SCGD fans everywhere) Great West Conference.  In fact, they have the distinction of being the last team to win a Great West game, when they defeated Houston Baptist to win the Great West tournament championship last season before losing to Illinois-Chicago in the first round of the CIT.  They also were and possibly forever will be the only team to play in the CIT with a losing record, as that tournament will only select teams that are .500 or better overall, other than an automatic bid that it gave to the Great West tournament champion the past few years.  A win by the Cougars tonight when they host Green Bay would be a major upset — but one should never count out what may be the best team in Chicago (ok, DePaul did beat them this season–but it took overtime to do so!)