Some wonderful hoops this weekend, and I will spend it under a blanket of ice. Not due to any Kentucky snowstorms, but due to my running of the Memphis marathon tomorrow. Lots of fun, pain, recovery foods, and bags of ice/frozen peas on my joints on tap for me this weekend. But, that also means lots of hoops to watch.
Last Night's GOI
--UConn 68, at Buffalo 64. It was NOT easy. I like these kinds of games. It helps the nation pause before they criticize good teams from non-Big 6 conferences for losing conference road games. It's not easy to win on the road--ANYWHERE.
--Butler 50, at Cleveland State 48. Caught the 2nd half of this fantastic game. The Vikings led throughout, but a couple of late threes (including one as the buzzer sounded!) pulled this one out of the fire. Dogs get a BIG leg up in the Horizon race with a road win at a contender's place.
--Murray State 58, at Eastern Kentucky 50. Anther big conference road win among conference contenders.
--at Oklahoma 73, Southern Cal 72. Not even a punch to the man tackle could stop Blake Griffin and the Sooners.
--at Texas 68, UCLA 64. These two will be around all season for your enjoyment. These should be two very complete basketball teams by season's end. As usual.
Weekend Forecast
Tonight
--Arizona at Texas A&M. Neither has been terribly impressive to this point.
Saturday
--Dayton at Akron. Flyers are probably better, but there's that whole road thing again.
--Utah State at BYU. Combined 11-0.
--UAB at Cincinnati. One of those "It's early, but it feels like it means something" games.
--NC State at Davidson. Big State U on an in-state "mid-major's" home court. And a Wolf Pack win would be a MAJOR upset.
--Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech. One will bounce back from a baffling loss (Vandy to Illinois-Chicago at home and GA Tech to Penn State at home).
--Gonzaga vs Indiana. At some point, the Hoosiers will have that "we're still IU" game. Zags should be careful even though they are a much better basketball team.
--Miami (FL) at Kentucky. Cats have looked better lately, so this is a big test for the Canes after being tripped up by Ohio State at home.
--Wisconsin at Marquette. Always a special in-state game. Make sure you read Chris West's take after the game.
--Duke at Michigan. Round 2: Duke won round one in the 2k Sports Classic on Nov 21. Huge opportunity at home for the Wolverines to get that signature win for their resume.
--Murray State at Morehead State. Yes, I know Murray is good. Yes, I know Morehead is 1-6. But the Eagles should be OK this year and they have yet to play a home game. Keep an eye on this one.
--DePaul at Northwestern. A Chi-town brawl and it actually matters! Both have just one loss to date. The winner can wear the label of "NCAA hopeful."
--Rhode Island at Providence. In-state rivalry alert!
--Creighton at Saint Joseph's. Both need it pretty badly.
--Albany at Siena. One of America East's best vs One of the MAAC's best.
--Western Kentucky at Tulane. WKU is quietly building a resume. This is the first of three dangerous road games (at Evansville and at South Alabama follow).
--Baylor at Washington State. Another game that feels meaningful in future Bubbledom.
Sunday
--Nebraska at Arizona State. Combined 11-1 so far.
--Florida at Florida State. In-state rivalry alert! Combined 13-2 to date.
--Maryland at George Washington. Regional rivalry with ACC at A14. Colonials are 3-1.
--Oklahoma at Tulsa. In-state rivalry alert!
--NCCU vs UT-Pan American. Combined 0-12. SOMEBODY will get their first win!
