Small Conference Game of the Day – January 21

Slightly belated, tonight’s small conference game is a non-conference matchup between a team from the smallest conference out there, the Great West, and an independent.  At 8:00 PM Eastern, NJIT will be traveling to New Orleans to take on the Privateers.

Of note in this game is that New Orleans is (with Cal State-Bakersfield) one of only two independents.  Further, both New Orleans and CS-Bakersfield will be joining conferences next season, with UNO set to join the Southland.  New Orleans spent years in the Sun Belt Conference but after Hurricane Katrina, funding for their athletic programs just kept getting smaller and smaller.  Finally, about two years ago, they elected to drop their athletics down to Division III.  Before dropping, the school reconsidered and decided to transition to Division II instead.  They did so before last season and spent the year playing a D2 schedule.  Then, after last season, they reconsidered again and chose to return to Division I.  As UNO had never fully transitioned out of Division I, they did rejoin as a full D1 member, meaning they are technically eligible for the NCAA tournament (but of course only through an at-large bid that they would not get even if they won out the rest of their games at this point).

Speaking of independents, NJIT at the moment is scheduled to be the only Division I independent next season.  This is the final year of the Great West as its four other members have accepted invites to other conferences (one of them, Houston Baptist, will be joining UNO in the Southland in fact).  This is not to say that NJIT wants to be an independent, they simply do not yet have a conference invite.  It would be of no surprise at all if they do find a conference home before next season, with the America East being the most rumored destination (and the Northeast is a possibility as well).

As for tonight’s game, NJIT enters at 6-9 overall with an RPI of 308, though they are 2-0 so far in conference play and could be a serious threat to win the Great West’s final championship.  New Orleans is only 2-12 with a 345 RPI.  NJIT should win the game, but it is being played in New Orleans so an upset would not be a shocker by any means.

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Bracket Racket Podcast 1-20-2013

Ken Pomeroy is the guest this week. A great discussion about the current state of affairs in college hoops.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/crimsoncast/2013/01/21/bracket-racket-12013

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Small Conference Game of the Day – January 20

For those that missed it, Jackson State cruised to a double digit win at Grambling last night, a loss that may go a significant way to Grambling claiming the title of the worst Division I team ever.  We will continue to monitor their progress as the season progresses, but now it is time to focus on the huge rivalry game on the slate for today — the Noon Eastern tipoff on CBS Sports Network of Navy at Army.

If this was football, the game would be circled on millions of fans’ calendars for months in advance.  However, the basketball rivalry between these two service academies has never risen even close to that level.  That being said, there is certainly no love lost between these two schools and regardless of their overall records on the season, this should be a fun and entertaining game.

Navy enters today’s game at 0-2 in conference and 6-12 overall.  Their RPI is 326 and Pomeroy is 293.  Army comes in at 1-1 in conference and 8-9 overall with a 250 RPI and 211 Pomeroy.  Neither is a serious threat in the Patriot League this season which looks like a two team dogfight between Lehigh and Bucknell, but that doesn’t matter much when it comes to today’s game.  This should be a close game between two great rivals…and don’t forget that they will meet again next month for a rematch.

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Small Conference Game of the Day – January 19

After a rather entertaining win by Jacksonville over North Florida last night, it is time to turn our attention from the top of the mid-major/small conferences to the bottom…and I mean the very bottom.  While I did not intend to focus this early in the season on the woeful state of affairs that is Grambling State basketball, it would be a complete crime for this column to miss out on what may be their best chance for a victory all season.  So for today’s game: Jackson State at Grambling State, 6:00 PM Eastern (no tv or webstream unfortunately…or maybe we should say thankfully).

Jackson State has been woeful so far this season.  They sit at 1-14 overall with just a home win over Seattle University to their credit.  With the exception of home losses to some pretty weak teams from Alabama A&M and Alabama State, every loss of theirs has been by double digits.  Their RPI sits at 339 out of 347 teams, and the Pomeroy rating is only slightly better at 329.

All that having been said, Jackson State is clearly the favorite in this game.  While they may be bad, Grambling has been almost pathetically bad this season.  Grambling is coming off a one year postseason ban for low APR rates but is still being hit by significant sanctions…leaving them with only five scholarship players on the roster.  They are 0-15 on the season with an RPI of 346 out of 347 and a Pomeroy rating of 347 out of 347.  the only reason they are not dead last in RPI yet is their strength of schedule, having loaded up on guarantee games against Top 6 conference teams on the road.  KenPom has their actual rating score at .0044.  To put that in context, the team rated 346 is at .0471 – creating an absolutely huge margin between these two teams.

If Grambling can go winless on the season, they have a great shot at going down in history as one of the worst teams ever to play Division I hoops.  Their only loss that was not by 20 or more points so far was a 13 point loss to a 4-13 Alabama State team.  While tonight’s game will not be their last chance at a win (they still have Mississippi Valley state twice and the aforementioned Alabama State team at home among other games), this definitely appears to be the most winnable game left on their schedule.  And, as Griggs pointed out earlier, if this team can remain winless on the season, they are a shoe-in for the Annual HoopsHD.com Centenary Award, given to the worst Division I team every season.

 

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Highlighted Games For Saturday, Jan 19th

-HARDIN SIMMONS (nondiv1) AT BAYLOR. I put this game on top only to mock Baylor.

-JACKSON STATE AT GRAMBLING (SWAC) (****CENTENARY WATCH!!***) . Jackson State has just a single win this year, but sometimes just one can be one too many. This is their chance to get taken down by the unanimous frontrunner for the award and put themselves in the conversation. This is likely Grambling’s least challenging game for the rest of the year, so you have to like their chances if they drop this one.

-SYRACUSE AT LOUISVILLE (Big East). It’s a game with potential #1 seed implications. To get a #1 seed, you have to be able to beat pretty much anybody.

-GONZAGA AT BUTLER. A huge showcase OOC game. It is a shame that Butler may not be at full strength, but it should still be a great game to watch. Both teams will likely end up as protected seeds.

-CREIGHTON AT WICHITA STATE (Missouri Valley). Wichita went down earlier in the week, but they’re still a team who could play their way into a protected seed, as is Creighton. In regards to potential NCAA seeding, it’s an important game for both teams.

-MISSOURI AT FLORIDA (SEC). Showcase game for the SEC, although Florida has looked much better than Mizzou as of late. In fact, Mizzou has yet to win a true road game.

-OHIO STATE AT MICHIGAN STATE (Big Ten). Ohio State has looked a lot better than Michigan State so far, but the Spartans will be way up for this one. OSU could use a big road win, and Michigan State could use a big win.

-ARIZONA AT ARIZONA STATE (Pac Twelve). Arizona State has a good record, but still hasn’t beaten a team that would be solidly in the field if the season ended today. They can do a lot to change that today if they can upset their rivals.

-SAN DIEGO STATE AT WYOMING (Mountain West). Wyoming really needs a big win. Their record is still good, and their profile is still okay, but they need to beat some teams that are tournament caliber teams. Like most MWC games, this one should be good.

-UNLV AT COLORADO STATE (Mountain West). Both teams have good records, but Colorado State probably has a slightly bigger sense of urgency because their overall wins aren’t quite as good.

-UCONN AT PITT (Big East). Pitt’s resume continues to improve. If it keeps up they’ll solidify themselves as a tourney team.

-MARQUETTE AT CINCINNATI (Big East). Marquette has been playing well lately. Cincinnati has been off and on, and really needs some more wins of note.

-WISCONSIN AT IOWA (Big Ten). Wisconsin picked up a huge win earlier in the week, which really boosted their profile. Iowa really needs quality wins, so it’s a somewhat pivotal game for them.

-MARYLAND AT NORTH CAROLINA (ACC). Maryland managed a nice win against NC State, which gave their profile a much needed boost. They’re in good shape, but they still have work to do. The same is true for UNC.

-OREGON AT UCLA (Pac Twelve). These two teams have looked very good as of late. They are two of the three Pac Twelve teams that are looking like first ballot teams.

-HARVARD AT MEMPHIS. Interesting OOC game. Harvard is likely an NCAA tourney team, but not of the at-large variety. Memphis has avoided bad losses, but that’s all they’ve done, so their margin for error is small.

-SAINT BONAVENTURE AT TEMPLE (Atlantic Ten). Temple has been schizophrenic, but overall their profile is still pretty good.

-IOWA STATE AT TCU (Big Twelve). This is a winnable conference road game for an Iowa State team that has looked pretty good lately. They’re just 1-3 on the road, though, so they need this one.

-ARKANSAS AT MISSISSIPPI (SEC). I’ve seen Ole Miss a few times, and I like them better every time I see them. They don’t always play well, but they do always play hard. With just two losses on the season they should be in decent shape if they avoid bad losses.

-TEXAS TECH AT OKLAHOMA STATE (Big Twelve). Okie State needs to avoid a bad conference loss at home.

-LA SALLE AT XAVIER. La Salle is outside the bubble, and Xavier is nowhere near it. If La Salle wants to be taken seriously, they need to win on the road against sub-tournament caliber teams.

-KANSAS AT TEXAS (Big Twelve). Texas is 7-1 at home and they will be way up for this one, but Kansas is more than capable of winning games like this.

-AKRON AT KENT STATE (MAC). At 12-4, Akron might get a serious look if they can win out in the league.

-GEORGE WASHINGTON AT UMASS (Atlantic Ten). They haven’t played a tough schedule, but UMass is 12-4, and will have opportunities at quality wins in conference. Not today, though.

-BOISE STATE AT AIR FORCE (Mountain West). I love this Boise State team. They’ve played well and managed a big win even though they’re currently shorthanded. When they get back to full strength they’ll be even better. Having said that, Air Force is not an easy team to play against, especially on the road.

-NORTH DAKOTA STATE AT WESTERN ILLINOIS (Summit League). Very good game between two of the better teams in the Summit League. Both teams have strong records and could play their way onto the bubble if they dominate the conference. Of course, that would mean beating the other team.

-RUTGERS AT NOTRE DAME (Big East). Both teams have a few good things on their resumes, but both still have some work to do.

-FLORIDA STATE AT VIRGINIA (ACC). Virginia can still do it, but they’re running out of strikes.

-OKLAHOMA AT KANSAS STATE (Big Twelve). Oklahoma has some good things on their profile. A win today would really give it a boost.

-GEORGETOWN AT SOUTH FLORIDA (Big East). Georgetown has work to do if they want to end up as a protected seed. USF just has work to do if they want to end up with any seed.

-TEXAS A&M AT ALABAMA (SEC). TAMU was blown to bits earlier in the week, but they still have some notable things on their profile and will get a look with a strong showing in conference.

-KENTUCKY AT AUBURN (SEC). Auburn is unbeaten in conference play, and for the first time in years there is a buzz around their basketball team. That’s worth pointing out because Kentucky has struggled, and they’re going up against a team that is going to be way up for this game.

-CHARLOTTE AT RICHMOND (Atlantic Ten). Charlotte can improve to 16-2 with a win. They haven’t faced the heavyweights yet, though, and they need to avoid losses to non-tournament teams until they do.

-UAB AT SOUTHERN MISS (Conference USA). A win gets Southern Miss to 15-4, and for the most part they’ve avoided bad losses. Their chances at good wins are pretty much non-existent, though, so their margin for error is small.

-UCF AT HOUSTON (Conference USA). Houston is a very quiet 12-4. Southern Miss and Memphis also have decent records, so one of them should emerge in the discussion.

-LOUISIANA LAFAYETTE AT MIDDLE TENNESSEE (Sun Belt). Same old story with MTSU. If they win out they’ll get a look.

-LAFAYETTE AT BUCKNELL (Patriot League). Bucknell is worth keeping an eye on.

-COLGATE AT LEHIGH (Patriot League). So is Lehigh.

-VCU AT DUQUESNE (Atlantic Ten). I believe this will be VCU’s thirteenth straight win if they pull it off.

-NICHOLLS AT STEPHEN F AUSTIN (Southland). SFA can improve to 16-1. Their only good win was against Oklahoma, though.

-RHODE ISLAND AT SAINT LOUIS (Atlantic Ten). A win for SLU gets them to 13-4.

-WRIGHT STATE AT VALPO (Horizon League). Probably not an at-large caliber game, but both teams have good records and it could impact who wins the regular season in the HL, and gets home court advantage.

-SIUE AT MURRAY STATE (Ohio Valley). Murray needs to win out, or they’ll be left out.

-SAN DIEGO AT BYU (West Coast). BYU lost a heartbreaker, and somewhat of a backbreaker in their last game Saint Mary’s. They cannot afford to stub their toes because their margin for error is very small.

-SAINT MARY’S AT PORTLAND (West Coast). SMC just picked up perhaps their best win of the year at BYU, but like the Cougars they cannot afford bad losses.

-COLORADO AT WASHINGTON STATE (Pac Twelve). Colorado had some big wins early in the season, but has struggled lately and is teetering on irrelevance. They simply cannot afford to lose at Wazzu.

Griggs

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Small Conference Game of the Day: January 18

After last night’s Belmont win over Eastern Kentucky (in a game that Belmont looked to be cruising through early only to see EKU come storming back to take a second half lead before Belmont finally put them away), it is time to turn our attention to the Friday night schedule.  With only three games on the entire Division I slate tonight, the most tempting pick is a potential battle among the top two teams in the America East, Stony Brook and Vermont.  However, instead we are focusing tonight’s attention on the 7PM Eastern game between Jacksonville and North Florida in the Atlantic Sun.

In terms of great rivalries, North Florida has only been a member of Division I for a handful of seasons and thus these games do not have a great history.  But both universities are located in Jacksonville, Florida, which means that this could bud into a great rivalry as time goes by.  It is billed by some as a Braggin’ Rights game, though the current “official” name is the SunTrust River City Rumble.  Tonight’s game is being played at UNF Arena (there will be a second matchup next month at Jacksonville’s arena).  North Florida head coach Matthew Driscoll has stated that the two Jacksonville-North Florida games are the second and third biggest sporting events each season in the city of Jacksonville (after the Florida-Georgia football game).  I guess that says a lot about the professional football team that allegedly plays in Jacksonville as well.

The Atlantic Sun standings are a complete jumble this early in the season, with Jacksonville tied for first at 4-2 in conference and North Florida only a game back at 3-3.  Neither team has registered a marquee win as of yet on the season, but with Belmont gone from the A-Sun, this conference should be wide open for anyone to win.

Keep an eye out during this game for North Florida’s Parker Smith.  Smith is currently leading the NCAA’s with 76 3-pounters made on the season.  He will be matched up with Jacksonville’s top player, Keith McDougald, who has scored 58 points in his last four games after returning from a shoulder injury.  The two players should provide an entertaining matchup in what hopefully will be a high-scoring affair.

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