Conference Tourney Action
Higher seeds went 9-3 last night. Two of those upsets were thrillers in the Patriot, as (7) Bucknell upended (2) Navy by one in TRIPLE OT and (5) Army took out (4) Lehigh by three in single OT. The other was a 10-point win by visiting Troy at Louisiana-Lafayette in Sun Belt actions.
In addition, the Patriot's other two quarterfinal games were each decided by TWO points.
See all results in the One Stop Shop.
Lockbox has been mildly adjusted as well.
Bubble Boys
Who helped themselves?
Texas A&M got a massive road win at fellow Bubbler Baylor to help salve their recent wounds. They could put themselves in great position with a win over visiting Kansas on Sat. Syracuse got a much needed road win at Seton Hall. Cuse are still just 2-5 in their last seven, so they may need to beat visiting Marquette on Saturday and do some damage in the Big East tourney. Temple kept its slim hopes alive by taking care of Duquesne and thus maintaining 2nd all alone in the A10. Oh, where would they be without that home loss to Fordham?
Who got hurt?
Baylor suffered and untimely 14-point home loss to aforementioned Texas A&M. They may need to take care of Texas Tech in Lubbock to rest easy. Florida played Tennessee tough, but they need ACTUAL victories, not moral ones at this stage. There will be no bye for UF in the SEC tourney, and they badly need to win at Kentucky. Oklahoma State is now in must win mode to stay alive after losing at home to Oklahoma. If they can win at Texas, they can get back into the conversation.
Last Night's GOI
--Texas A&M 71, at Baylor 57.
--Tennessee 89, at Florida 86.
--Oklahoma 68, at Oklahoma State 56.
--Syracuse 85, at Seton Hall 73.
--at Temple 90, Duquesne 85. Owls TCB.
--at Vanderbilt 86, Mississippi State 85 (OT). Shan Foster made nine straight threes en route to 42 points. Meditate on that for a minute.
Tonight's GOI
--Arizona State at Oregon. HUGE stakes in this one for both teams.
--Xavier at Saint Joseph's. Hawks probably must have this one.
--Stanford at UCLA. Stanford is gunning for a 2-seed, UCLA is trying to hang on to a 1.
--Atlantic Sun quarters, Big South semis, Missouri Valley first round, and Northeast quarters
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Wednesday, March 05, 2008
We Have Life!
I am having a few FTP issues, but those should be sorted out this afternoon. I will update the OSS later today.
Chalk Holds Up
There were 12 games in three conference tourneys last night, and the chalk held up well. In the Big South, Horizon, and Ohio Valley Conference tournaments, the higher seed hosts the first round games. Those teams went 10-2, with Loyola-Chi pulling a 8/5 job on UW-Milwaukee and Tennessee State doing the same to Morehead State in a 6/3 upside-downer.
Today, the Atlantic Sun, Patriot, and Sun Belt will play 13 games total, and the higher seeds host the games in the Patriot and the Sun Belt.
Bubble Talk
FINALLY, a few Bubble Boys are showing life.
Who helped themselves last night? New Mexico, Kansas State, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Mississippi. New Mexico finally got a big win over UNLV, and are 7-1 in their last 8. Kansas State is all but IN, and will lock it up with a win at Iowa State. VA Tech has obliterated its last two opponents and looks to be very dangerous heading into their game with Clemson this weekend and the ACC tourney. They have won four straight. Ohio State scored a huge win over Purdue, and has Michigan State in Columbus on the weekend. That could put them back into the bracket. Ole Miss is in must win mode and they did win last night over Arkansas.
Who got hurt last night? Ohio, Florida State, Arkansas. Ohio is likely dead. FSU will need to stack up some serious cheese in the ACC tourney. Arkansas is now 2-5 in their last 7. They need to take care of Auburn this weekend or risk missing out.
Last Night's GOI
--at Ohio State 80, Purdue 77 (OT). Step one to getting IN is complete for tOSU. Next up: beat Sparty.
--at New Mexico 59, UNLV 45. I like the Lobos right now. It's nice to see a Bubble Boy winning down the stretch.
--at Virginia Tech 80, Wake Forest 58. Hokies are opening up a can on a regular basis right now. A win at Clemson would make them quite viable.
Tonight's GOI
--Texas A&M at Baylor. Aggies probably need this one to stay on the good side of the Bubble.
--Tennessee at Florida. Gators have a game tailor-made for teams in need.
--Oklahoma at Oklahoma State. HUGE stakes, especially for surging OK State.
--Syracuse at Seton Hall. Orange must have it.
--Duquesne at Temple. Owls must hold onto 2nd in the A10 at all costs.
--Mississippi State at Vanderbilt. Dogs are likely IN, but this would clinch it.
--Atlantic Sun, Patriot, and Sun Belt first round
Chalk Holds Up
There were 12 games in three conference tourneys last night, and the chalk held up well. In the Big South, Horizon, and Ohio Valley Conference tournaments, the higher seed hosts the first round games. Those teams went 10-2, with Loyola-Chi pulling a 8/5 job on UW-Milwaukee and Tennessee State doing the same to Morehead State in a 6/3 upside-downer.
Today, the Atlantic Sun, Patriot, and Sun Belt will play 13 games total, and the higher seeds host the games in the Patriot and the Sun Belt.
Bubble Talk
FINALLY, a few Bubble Boys are showing life.
Who helped themselves last night? New Mexico, Kansas State, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Mississippi. New Mexico finally got a big win over UNLV, and are 7-1 in their last 8. Kansas State is all but IN, and will lock it up with a win at Iowa State. VA Tech has obliterated its last two opponents and looks to be very dangerous heading into their game with Clemson this weekend and the ACC tourney. They have won four straight. Ohio State scored a huge win over Purdue, and has Michigan State in Columbus on the weekend. That could put them back into the bracket. Ole Miss is in must win mode and they did win last night over Arkansas.
Who got hurt last night? Ohio, Florida State, Arkansas. Ohio is likely dead. FSU will need to stack up some serious cheese in the ACC tourney. Arkansas is now 2-5 in their last 7. They need to take care of Auburn this weekend or risk missing out.
Last Night's GOI
--at Ohio State 80, Purdue 77 (OT). Step one to getting IN is complete for tOSU. Next up: beat Sparty.
--at New Mexico 59, UNLV 45. I like the Lobos right now. It's nice to see a Bubble Boy winning down the stretch.
--at Virginia Tech 80, Wake Forest 58. Hokies are opening up a can on a regular basis right now. A win at Clemson would make them quite viable.
Tonight's GOI
--Texas A&M at Baylor. Aggies probably need this one to stay on the good side of the Bubble.
--Tennessee at Florida. Gators have a game tailor-made for teams in need.
--Oklahoma at Oklahoma State. HUGE stakes, especially for surging OK State.
--Syracuse at Seton Hall. Orange must have it.
--Duquesne at Temple. Owls must hold onto 2nd in the A10 at all costs.
--Mississippi State at Vanderbilt. Dogs are likely IN, but this would clinch it.
--Atlantic Sun, Patriot, and Sun Belt first round
Tuesday, March 04, 2008
Bubble Boy Breakdown 3/4; Conf Tourneys Begin
The One Stop Shop has more than 1/3 of the 30 brackets complete now. The WCC is also set after last night's results and I will update those tonight. The conference tourney season begins today!!!
The Lockbox is also filling up. And, with lots of teams losing, some teams that have played well lately are getting into the mix. Virginia Tech, New Mexico, South Alabama, Oklahoma State, UAB, and Temple have been trending up at a time when most of the Bubble is crashing (Texas A&M, Maryland, most of the A10 Bubble Boys, etc).
Tomorrow, we'll look at the remaining schedules for some of the Bubble Boys and see who has a leg up in that department.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--23 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--5 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Twelve of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that fourteen At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have six teams listed in blue today. With the LOCKS and "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 22 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 12 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is rough and the Bubble is very crowded. Some of this will sort out this week and in the conference tourneys. Hopefully, some of these teams will clear things up with a strong finish.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--at Kansas 109, Texas Tech 51. And it wasn't as close as the score indicates. All I can say is: WOW.
--at West Virginia 76, Pittsburgh 62. WVA can breathe fairly easy barring a loss at St. John's to end the season which could push them back onto the Bubble. Pitt is still probably OK, but they should go ahead and drill DePaul to remove all doubt.
Tonight's GOI
--Purdue at Ohio State. The Bucks have this one and then Michigan State at home to end the season. These two games will likely decide their bid status. Win both? IN. Split? Bubble. Lose both: OUT.
--UNLV at New Mexico. Rebs are in pretty good shape. Lobos can probably get on the good side of the Bubble with a win.
--Wake Forest at Virginia Tech. Hokies need to keep rolling to have any shot.
CONFERENCE TOURNEYS
And so it begins!!!
--Big South Quarters
--Horizon First Round
--Ohio Valley Quarters
The Lockbox is also filling up. And, with lots of teams losing, some teams that have played well lately are getting into the mix. Virginia Tech, New Mexico, South Alabama, Oklahoma State, UAB, and Temple have been trending up at a time when most of the Bubble is crashing (Texas A&M, Maryland, most of the A10 Bubble Boys, etc).
Tomorrow, we'll look at the remaining schedules for some of the Bubble Boys and see who has a leg up in that department.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--23 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--5 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Twelve of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that fourteen At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have six teams listed in blue today. With the LOCKS and "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 22 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 12 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is rough and the Bubble is very crowded. Some of this will sort out this week and in the conference tourneys. Hopefully, some of these teams will clear things up with a strong finish.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--at Kansas 109, Texas Tech 51. And it wasn't as close as the score indicates. All I can say is: WOW.
--at West Virginia 76, Pittsburgh 62. WVA can breathe fairly easy barring a loss at St. John's to end the season which could push them back onto the Bubble. Pitt is still probably OK, but they should go ahead and drill DePaul to remove all doubt.
Tonight's GOI
--Purdue at Ohio State. The Bucks have this one and then Michigan State at home to end the season. These two games will likely decide their bid status. Win both? IN. Split? Bubble. Lose both: OUT.
--UNLV at New Mexico. Rebs are in pretty good shape. Lobos can probably get on the good side of the Bubble with a win.
--Wake Forest at Virginia Tech. Hokies need to keep rolling to have any shot.
CONFERENCE TOURNEYS
And so it begins!!!
--Big South Quarters
--Horizon First Round
--Ohio Valley Quarters
Monday, March 03, 2008
Bracket Update 3/3
Sorry for the little hiatus last week. I was traveling for an education conference, and it was a PACKED schedule on Thurs/Fri. No time to blog, although I did get to hear Robert Kennedy, Jr., speak.
Today's bracket is up. I know I sound like a broken record, but the bottom is really, really bad. There are a number of slots just waiting to be taking by ANY team willing to finish strong.
At the very nasty bottom, I took Illinois State, Maryland, Florida, Kentucky, Saint Joseph's, New Mexico, and Texas A&M. I took them over teams like Syracuse, Oregon, Temple, Ohio State, Rhode Island, UAB, Villanova, Creighton, VA Tech, Villanova, Houston, OK State (watch out for the red-hot Cowboys!), Dayton, WKU, Ohio and SIU. I want to address the Bubble more thoroughly tomorrow or Wed.
The One Stop Shop has been cleaned up a bit (thanks to a couple of very nice, helpful readers) and I have the Sun Belt and Horizon brackets set. I'll work on more of those today. By the end of the week, all 30 conference tourney brackets will be ready to go.
Congrats to Cornell, the first auto qualifier in the 2008 Bracket!
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, Louisville, UConn, Notre Dame, Marquette, Pitt, Villanova, West Virginia
Pac-10 (6): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State
Big XII (6): Texas, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Baylor, Texas A&M
ACC (5): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Miami-FL, Maryland
SEC (5): Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Kentucky
Big Ten (4): Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan State
Mountain West (3): BYU, UNLV, New Mexico
Atlantic 10 (3): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, UMass
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Missouri Valley (2): Drake, Illinois State
Tonight's GOI
--Texas Tech at Kansas. Raiders are mostly dead, but this Miracle Pill could allow them wiggle their fingers and toes a bit and have a little head jiggle.
--Pittsburgh at West Virginia. Both are likely going to Dance, but WVA needs to hold serve at home here. Do that, and I think the 'Eers will be in pretty good shape.
Today's bracket is up. I know I sound like a broken record, but the bottom is really, really bad. There are a number of slots just waiting to be taking by ANY team willing to finish strong.
At the very nasty bottom, I took Illinois State, Maryland, Florida, Kentucky, Saint Joseph's, New Mexico, and Texas A&M. I took them over teams like Syracuse, Oregon, Temple, Ohio State, Rhode Island, UAB, Villanova, Creighton, VA Tech, Villanova, Houston, OK State (watch out for the red-hot Cowboys!), Dayton, WKU, Ohio and SIU. I want to address the Bubble more thoroughly tomorrow or Wed.
The One Stop Shop has been cleaned up a bit (thanks to a couple of very nice, helpful readers) and I have the Sun Belt and Horizon brackets set. I'll work on more of those today. By the end of the week, all 30 conference tourney brackets will be ready to go.
Congrats to Cornell, the first auto qualifier in the 2008 Bracket!
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, Louisville, UConn, Notre Dame, Marquette, Pitt, Villanova, West Virginia
Pac-10 (6): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State
Big XII (6): Texas, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Baylor, Texas A&M
ACC (5): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Miami-FL, Maryland
SEC (5): Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Kentucky
Big Ten (4): Wisconsin, Purdue, Indiana, Michigan State
Mountain West (3): BYU, UNLV, New Mexico
Atlantic 10 (3): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, UMass
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Missouri Valley (2): Drake, Illinois State
Tonight's GOI
--Texas Tech at Kansas. Raiders are mostly dead, but this Miracle Pill could allow them wiggle their fingers and toes a bit and have a little head jiggle.
--Pittsburgh at West Virginia. Both are likely going to Dance, but WVA needs to hold serve at home here. Do that, and I think the 'Eers will be in pretty good shape.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Lockbox and Bubble Boys
An updated Lockbox is ready for perusal. Given Ohio State's loss last night and 2-5 record in their last seven, I put Illinois State in for them today.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--16 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--7 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Eleven of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that twelve At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have eight teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 20 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 14 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is rough and the Bubble is very crowded. Some of this will sort out in the last couple of weeks. Hopefully, some of these teams will clear things up with a strong finish.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--SIU 71, at Bradley 60. Egyptian Dogs possess amazing resiliency. Here they come.
--at Indiana 72, Ohio State 69. Bucks are fading away into Boliva (thanks, Mike Tyson).
--BYU 70, at New Mexico 69 (OT). Lobos let the Big Fish get away.
--at UNLV 68, San Diego State 58. Rebels strengthen their hand. They are in decent shape at this point.
--at Vanderbilt 72, Tennessee 69. Yesterday, TBB said: "'Dores are 17-0 at home and Tennessee is playing at #1 for the first time. It has all the makings for an upset." It happened. "Memorial Magic" is real.
Tonight's GOI
--Miami-FL at Clemson. Both are on track, but both still have work to do.
--Creighton at Illinois State. Both need a terribly strong finish, and ISU is in a better overall position.
--Mississippi at Kentucky. Both must have it.
--Oklahoma at Nebraska. Huskers are showing life, so OU needs to proceed with caution.
--Texas Tech at Texas A&M. Aggies cannot afford a 4th straight loss at this juncture.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--16 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--7 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Eleven of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that twelve At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have eight teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 20 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 14 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is rough and the Bubble is very crowded. Some of this will sort out in the last couple of weeks. Hopefully, some of these teams will clear things up with a strong finish.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--SIU 71, at Bradley 60. Egyptian Dogs possess amazing resiliency. Here they come.
--at Indiana 72, Ohio State 69. Bucks are fading away into Boliva (thanks, Mike Tyson).
--BYU 70, at New Mexico 69 (OT). Lobos let the Big Fish get away.
--at UNLV 68, San Diego State 58. Rebels strengthen their hand. They are in decent shape at this point.
--at Vanderbilt 72, Tennessee 69. Yesterday, TBB said: "'Dores are 17-0 at home and Tennessee is playing at #1 for the first time. It has all the makings for an upset." It happened. "Memorial Magic" is real.
Tonight's GOI
--Miami-FL at Clemson. Both are on track, but both still have work to do.
--Creighton at Illinois State. Both need a terribly strong finish, and ISU is in a better overall position.
--Mississippi at Kentucky. Both must have it.
--Oklahoma at Nebraska. Huskers are showing life, so OU needs to proceed with caution.
--Texas Tech at Texas A&M. Aggies cannot afford a 4th straight loss at this juncture.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
A few more teams LOCKED up bids in the last few days. These teams could lose out and still get in:
Wisconsin, Xavier, Stanford
A few more teams are right on the cusp (Marquette, Vandy, Purdue, Indiana, Notre Dame, maybe a couple of others).
A full, monster Bubble Boy breakdown comes tomorrow.
Tonight's GOI
--SIU at Bradley. Salukis are quietly building steam. If they can win out until the Valley final, they could be viable.
--Ohio State at Indiana. At some point, tOSU will have to win a big game.
--BYU at New Mexico. Lobos could make themselves viable with a win here.
--San Diego State at UNLV. Neither can really afford a loss, although UNLV's position in stronger.
--Tennessee at Vanderbilt. 'Dores are 17-0 at home and Tennessee is playing at #1 for the first time. It has all the makings for an upset.
Wisconsin, Xavier, Stanford
A few more teams are right on the cusp (Marquette, Vandy, Purdue, Indiana, Notre Dame, maybe a couple of others).
A full, monster Bubble Boy breakdown comes tomorrow.
Tonight's GOI
--SIU at Bradley. Salukis are quietly building steam. If they can win out until the Valley final, they could be viable.
--Ohio State at Indiana. At some point, tOSU will have to win a big game.
--BYU at New Mexico. Lobos could make themselves viable with a win here.
--San Diego State at UNLV. Neither can really afford a loss, although UNLV's position in stronger.
--Tennessee at Vanderbilt. 'Dores are 17-0 at home and Tennessee is playing at #1 for the first time. It has all the makings for an upset.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Bracket Update 2/25
Link to the new bracket is ready.
It continues to be a nasty affair at the bottom. When Kentucky finds their way in with THREE top 100 wins, you know it's bad. But, honestly, who would you put in for UK at this point? Seriously, send me emails. This should be fun. Remember, UK has committee representation. I know that it's not supposed to matter, but here's what representation did to last year's seeding. Granted, this is where I had teams seeded, so your mileage may vary.
I wanted to put Illinois State in, but I simply do not think they have good enough wins and they have no committee representation. It could be a one-bid year for the Valley for the first time in a long time. Now, if they can close by beating SIU and Creighton, they are back in business.
So, I took Arizona State, Saint Joseph's, Arkansas, Maryland, Baylor, Wake Forest, Villanova, Ohio State (!) and Kentucky (!!!) over teams like Illinois State, New Mexico, Dayton, Florida, Rhode Island, Creighton, Ohio, Oregon, and Cal. It's not pretty down here. Every season has a couple of rough ones at the bottom, but it seems the quality of the 10, 11, and 12 seeds is lower this season.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, Louisville, UConn, Notre Dame, Marquette, Pitt, Villanova, West Virginia
Pac-10 (6): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State
Big XII (6): Texas, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Baylor
ACC (6): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Miami-FL, Maryland, Wake Forest
SEC (5): Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Kentucky
Big Ten (5): Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (3): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, UMass
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
It continues to be a nasty affair at the bottom. When Kentucky finds their way in with THREE top 100 wins, you know it's bad. But, honestly, who would you put in for UK at this point? Seriously, send me emails. This should be fun. Remember, UK has committee representation. I know that it's not supposed to matter, but here's what representation did to last year's seeding. Granted, this is where I had teams seeded, so your mileage may vary.
I wanted to put Illinois State in, but I simply do not think they have good enough wins and they have no committee representation. It could be a one-bid year for the Valley for the first time in a long time. Now, if they can close by beating SIU and Creighton, they are back in business.
So, I took Arizona State, Saint Joseph's, Arkansas, Maryland, Baylor, Wake Forest, Villanova, Ohio State (!) and Kentucky (!!!) over teams like Illinois State, New Mexico, Dayton, Florida, Rhode Island, Creighton, Ohio, Oregon, and Cal. It's not pretty down here. Every season has a couple of rough ones at the bottom, but it seems the quality of the 10, 11, and 12 seeds is lower this season.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, Louisville, UConn, Notre Dame, Marquette, Pitt, Villanova, West Virginia
Pac-10 (6): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State
Big XII (6): Texas, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Baylor
ACC (6): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Miami-FL, Maryland, Wake Forest
SEC (5): Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Mississippi State, Kentucky
Big Ten (5): Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (3): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, UMass
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Weekend Forecast 2/22-23
TON'S of big games this weekend.
Saturday
--Kansas State at Baylor. Bears need to hold serve at home.
--Brown at Cornell. If Bears are going to stay in it, they need to win here.
--Arkansas at Kentucky. UK wins here, they are back in serious contention.
--Mississippi at LSU. Rebels cannot afford losses like this one.
--Tennessee at Memphis. You may have heard about this one.
--Maryland at Miami-FL. Terps are in need after that home loss to VA Tech.
--Wisconsin at Ohio State. Bucks sure could use a big one.
--BYU at San Diego State. Cougs need to keep rolling in case they slip in the MtW tourney.
--Oklahoma at Texas. This would like lock up the Sooners.
--Oregon at UCLA. Ducks need it badly.
--UConn at Villanova. Cats are not dead yet and this could make them very vialble.
--Arizona at Washington State. Zona still has some work to do.
--Drake at Butler. The Coffee Cakes need it more.
--George Mason at Ohio. Both are very fringe Bubble Boys.
--Creighton at Oral Roberts. Same here.
--Kent State at St. Mary's. Flashes must win to harbor AL hopes.
Sunday
--Xavier at Dayton. Flyers REALLY need it to stay on the good side of the Bubble.
--Wake Forest at North Carolina. Would carry the Deacs into safety.
--Syracuse at Notre Dame. Orange are in dire need.
--Louisville at Pittsburgh. Cards now looking to snap up a 2/3 seed.
--Saint Joseph's at Rhode Island. Whoever loses is in a dicey situation.
--Cal at Stanford. Bears almost have to win.
Saturday
--Kansas State at Baylor. Bears need to hold serve at home.
--Brown at Cornell. If Bears are going to stay in it, they need to win here.
--Arkansas at Kentucky. UK wins here, they are back in serious contention.
--Mississippi at LSU. Rebels cannot afford losses like this one.
--Tennessee at Memphis. You may have heard about this one.
--Maryland at Miami-FL. Terps are in need after that home loss to VA Tech.
--Wisconsin at Ohio State. Bucks sure could use a big one.
--BYU at San Diego State. Cougs need to keep rolling in case they slip in the MtW tourney.
--Oklahoma at Texas. This would like lock up the Sooners.
--Oregon at UCLA. Ducks need it badly.
--UConn at Villanova. Cats are not dead yet and this could make them very vialble.
--Arizona at Washington State. Zona still has some work to do.
--Drake at Butler. The Coffee Cakes need it more.
--George Mason at Ohio. Both are very fringe Bubble Boys.
--Creighton at Oral Roberts. Same here.
--Kent State at St. Mary's. Flashes must win to harbor AL hopes.
Sunday
--Xavier at Dayton. Flyers REALLY need it to stay on the good side of the Bubble.
--Wake Forest at North Carolina. Would carry the Deacs into safety.
--Syracuse at Notre Dame. Orange are in dire need.
--Louisville at Pittsburgh. Cards now looking to snap up a 2/3 seed.
--Saint Joseph's at Rhode Island. Whoever loses is in a dicey situation.
--Cal at Stanford. Bears almost have to win.
Friday, February 22, 2008
One Stop Shop Up!
I'm still in mourning over the WKU loss to South Alabama last night.
So, I guess I'll drown my sorrows in the 2008 One Stop Shop. If you find errors, feel free to kindly pass them in a nice email.
So, I guess I'll drown my sorrows in the 2008 One Stop Shop. If you find errors, feel free to kindly pass them in a nice email.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
One Stop Shop
Later today or tomorrow I will have a link up to the first draft of the One Stop Shop. It will have all 30 conference tourney brackets in one handy, dandy location. They are simple and clean with no ads and they will updated very often during conference tourney. Let's go ahead and congratulate Davidson for clinching the 1-seed in the SoCon (applaud now) and Drake for capturing the top line in the Valley (applaud now, but not as vigorously due to the Bulldogs recent struggles).
Also, congratulate (?) Oregon State for clinching the 10-seed (last place) in the Pac-10. With a 15 game losing streak including 0-13 in conference, the worst RPI of any Big Six team (#255), no wins over any team with an RPI better than 266 (Idaho State), the Beavers have certainly earned this ten seed.
Tonight's GOI
--Dayton at LaSalle. Flyers could use a road win to get to .500 in conference.
--Pitt at Notre Dame. Hefty Big East matchup.
--UMass at Rhode Island. Both need it. URI must defend the home court. UMass can ill afford to fall to 5-7 in the A10.
--Oregon at Southern Cal. Again, both are needy--Ducks moreso.
--Arizona State at Washington State. Devils are capable of beating anyone, but that RPI has got to come up a bit (#75) to harbor real AL hopes.
--South Alabama at WKU. Here is your game of the night. The winner is likely going to win the regular season title and grab the conference tourney 1-seed. Both are Bubble Boys, too, although USA's profile is MUCH stronger than WKU's. Toppers MUST win to have any AL chance.
Also, congratulate (?) Oregon State for clinching the 10-seed (last place) in the Pac-10. With a 15 game losing streak including 0-13 in conference, the worst RPI of any Big Six team (#255), no wins over any team with an RPI better than 266 (Idaho State), the Beavers have certainly earned this ten seed.
Tonight's GOI
--Dayton at LaSalle. Flyers could use a road win to get to .500 in conference.
--Pitt at Notre Dame. Hefty Big East matchup.
--UMass at Rhode Island. Both need it. URI must defend the home court. UMass can ill afford to fall to 5-7 in the A10.
--Oregon at Southern Cal. Again, both are needy--Ducks moreso.
--Arizona State at Washington State. Devils are capable of beating anyone, but that RPI has got to come up a bit (#75) to harbor real AL hopes.
--South Alabama at WKU. Here is your game of the night. The winner is likely going to win the regular season title and grab the conference tourney 1-seed. Both are Bubble Boys, too, although USA's profile is MUCH stronger than WKU's. Toppers MUST win to have any AL chance.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
More Hay in the Barn
Duke and Memphis LOCKED their spots last week. I come bearing Lockbox-shaped gifts for these teams:
North Carolina, Kansas, Texas, UConn, Georgetown, Louisville, UCLA, Tennessee
These teams have done enough even if they lost their last few games.
A few other teams are pretty close (Purdue, Indiana, Wisconsin, Xavier, Notre Dame, Butler, Washington State, St. Mary's). A win or two will do it for these teams.
Also, I made slight adjustment in who's IN/OUT. With Syracuse's loss this week, I put South Alabama IN for the Orange.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--10 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--15 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Ten of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that fifteen At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change (I'm looking at you, Drake!), but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have six teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 21 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 13 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is pretty rough and the Bubble is getting crowded. Some of this will sort out in the coming weeks.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
North Carolina, Kansas, Texas, UConn, Georgetown, Louisville, UCLA, Tennessee
These teams have done enough even if they lost their last few games.
A few other teams are pretty close (Purdue, Indiana, Wisconsin, Xavier, Notre Dame, Butler, Washington State, St. Mary's). A win or two will do it for these teams.
Also, I made slight adjustment in who's IN/OUT. With Syracuse's loss this week, I put South Alabama IN for the Orange.
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--10 teams have LOCKED their spots.
--15 other teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Ten of the LOCKS or virtual locks are conference leaders. That means that fifteen At-Large bids are spoken for at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with a few games to go. This could change (I'm looking at you, Drake!), but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--I have six teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 21 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 13 slots are up for grabs. The bottom is pretty rough and the Bubble is getting crowded. Some of this will sort out in the coming weeks.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Forty-Seven Days
My latest entry at WNKY.net focuses on WKU's long winning streak. Their 11-game string now trails only Memphis (25) and Davidson (15) in longevitity.
New Lockbox with major movement coming tomorrow.
New Lockbox with major movement coming tomorrow.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Bracket Update 2/18
Oy, it's a wreck at the bottom of today's bracket. I reluctantly put in Wake Forest, Syracuse, Arizona State and Dayton (!!!) over teams like South Alabama, Miami-FL, UMass, Houston, Mississippi, Florida, NC State, Cal, and Temple.
I hope some of this is sorted out in the next couple of weeks. It is less than four weeks until Selection Sunday.
Oh, and Temple fans, you are most welcome for the jinx I threw on them last week. The Owls still have time.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, UConn, Notre Dame, Louisville, Marquette, Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse
Pac-10 (7): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State, Oregon
Big XII (6): Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma
SEC (4): Tennessee, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State
Big Ten (5): Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (5): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, Rhode Island, Dayton
ACC (5): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Maryland, Wake Forest
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
Tonight's GOI
--Syracuse at Louisville. Cards are rolling along and are expected to win here. Cuse could do a lot to solidify themselves with a good road win.
--Xavier at Rhode Island. First of a huge three-game home stand for Rams (X, UMass, Saint Joe's).
--Texas A&M at Texas. Aggies dropped a puzzler at home to OK State on the weekend. Horns are groovin' right now.
I hope some of this is sorted out in the next couple of weeks. It is less than four weeks until Selection Sunday.
Oh, and Temple fans, you are most welcome for the jinx I threw on them last week. The Owls still have time.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (8): Georgetown, UConn, Notre Dame, Louisville, Marquette, Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse
Pac-10 (7): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal, Arizona State, Oregon
Big XII (6): Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma
SEC (4): Tennessee, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Mississippi State
Big Ten (5): Purdue, Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan State, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (5): Xavier, Saint Joseph's, Rhode Island, Dayton
ACC (5): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Maryland, Wake Forest
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
Tonight's GOI
--Syracuse at Louisville. Cards are rolling along and are expected to win here. Cuse could do a lot to solidify themselves with a good road win.
--Xavier at Rhode Island. First of a huge three-game home stand for Rams (X, UMass, Saint Joe's).
--Texas A&M at Texas. Aggies dropped a puzzler at home to OK State on the weekend. Horns are groovin' right now.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Forecast Delayed
Too little time today due to a friend's unexpected and potentially serious illness and other general busy-ness. I'm on the road tonight, so we may have to skip the forecast this week.
New bracket and lots of sorting to do next week, though.
New bracket and lots of sorting to do next week, though.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
First LOCKS and Temple
Congrats to Duke and Memphis! They have been upgraded to LOCK status in the Lockbox. No team ever achieving LOCK status at TBB has ever missed the Dance. Duke has 10 ACC wins, leads the conference by two games, yada, yada, yada. Memphis is STILL undefeated in mid-February.
You might scoff and say, "Duh!", regarding Duke and Memphis being LOCKS. But, the term "lock" is thrown around SOOOOOO casually these days. TBB means it. A team does get LOCK status until they can lose out the rest of the way and still get into the bracket. These two have done that.
Temple
Do you like horses that come off the pace? This is your hoss, right 'cheer. They are tied with Saint Joseph's for 2nd in the loss column, one game ahead of Rhode Island, two over UMass, and three over Dayton. While they had a rough stretch early on and their 13-10 overall record is not that impressive, they have won 7 of 9. Further, they have played the #22 toughest slate in the country. Their RPI is currently 63, but they have room to grow. Have a look at their remaining games.
at Dayton
at St. Bonaventure
FORDHAM
CHARLOTTE
at Saint Joseph's
DUQUESNE
at LaSalle
If they can snip flailing Dayton on the road on Saturday, they will be at 14-10 with six games left. From there, it's defend the home court, win expectedly vs St. Bonnie and LaSalle, and maybe take their medicine at Saint Joe's. That's going to give them a 19-11 record, a healthy RPI, multiple top 50 RPI wins, a top 2 or 3 finish in the A10, and a 10-2 record in their last 12...if they can pull it off.
It must begin with a win at Dayton this weekend, and the Flyers are desperate. Can they do all of this? Maybe not. But, their recent play and their position in the A10 suggests that we should keep one eye on Fran Dunphy's bunch.
Tonight's GOI
--at Alabama 76, Mississippi 67. Welcome to Sweatyville, Rebs.
--Xavier 62, at Charlotte 60. X escapes a tough road test.
--at UConn 84, Notre Dame 78. This puts G'town alone in first and creates a 3-way tie for second (UConn, ND, Louisville).
--at Duke 77, Maryland 65. That's just Duke being Duke.
--Wisconsin 68, at Indiana 66. Hoosiers have much larger worries than a 2-point home loss to Wiscy.
--at Memphis 68, Houston 59. Tigers trailed at half before remembering that they are a junior NBA team.
--New Mexico 73, at San Diego State 63. Lobos are still a very long shot for an AL.
--at SIU 65, Drake 62. My money would have been good (see yesterday's GOI). Like grandma always says, "Never count out an Egyptian dog."
--at Temple 92, Rhode Island 89 (OT). Has anyone noticed that Temple is becoming a viable AL team?
--at Tennessee 93, Arkansas 71. The SEC has one legit Final Four threat. Also, with Kentucky, Florida, and Mississippi faltering badly this week, their bid count could take a monster hit depending on the weekend games.
Tonight's GOI
--Cal at Arizona. Both could really use, but Cal needs it more.
--Stanford at Arizona State. Devils are likely playing for a spot in Monday's bracket.
--NC State at Boston College. Pack has to win these kind at this stage.
--South Alabama at Middle Tennessee. Raiders are playing better and host Belt brass USA and WKU this week. Jags better be careful here.
--
You might scoff and say, "Duh!", regarding Duke and Memphis being LOCKS. But, the term "lock" is thrown around SOOOOOO casually these days. TBB means it. A team does get LOCK status until they can lose out the rest of the way and still get into the bracket. These two have done that.
Temple
Do you like horses that come off the pace? This is your hoss, right 'cheer. They are tied with Saint Joseph's for 2nd in the loss column, one game ahead of Rhode Island, two over UMass, and three over Dayton. While they had a rough stretch early on and their 13-10 overall record is not that impressive, they have won 7 of 9. Further, they have played the #22 toughest slate in the country. Their RPI is currently 63, but they have room to grow. Have a look at their remaining games.
at Dayton
at St. Bonaventure
FORDHAM
CHARLOTTE
at Saint Joseph's
DUQUESNE
at LaSalle
If they can snip flailing Dayton on the road on Saturday, they will be at 14-10 with six games left. From there, it's defend the home court, win expectedly vs St. Bonnie and LaSalle, and maybe take their medicine at Saint Joe's. That's going to give them a 19-11 record, a healthy RPI, multiple top 50 RPI wins, a top 2 or 3 finish in the A10, and a 10-2 record in their last 12...if they can pull it off.
It must begin with a win at Dayton this weekend, and the Flyers are desperate. Can they do all of this? Maybe not. But, their recent play and their position in the A10 suggests that we should keep one eye on Fran Dunphy's bunch.
Tonight's GOI
--at Alabama 76, Mississippi 67. Welcome to Sweatyville, Rebs.
--Xavier 62, at Charlotte 60. X escapes a tough road test.
--at UConn 84, Notre Dame 78. This puts G'town alone in first and creates a 3-way tie for second (UConn, ND, Louisville).
--at Duke 77, Maryland 65. That's just Duke being Duke.
--Wisconsin 68, at Indiana 66. Hoosiers have much larger worries than a 2-point home loss to Wiscy.
--at Memphis 68, Houston 59. Tigers trailed at half before remembering that they are a junior NBA team.
--New Mexico 73, at San Diego State 63. Lobos are still a very long shot for an AL.
--at SIU 65, Drake 62. My money would have been good (see yesterday's GOI). Like grandma always says, "Never count out an Egyptian dog."
--at Temple 92, Rhode Island 89 (OT). Has anyone noticed that Temple is becoming a viable AL team?
--at Tennessee 93, Arkansas 71. The SEC has one legit Final Four threat. Also, with Kentucky, Florida, and Mississippi faltering badly this week, their bid count could take a monster hit depending on the weekend games.
Tonight's GOI
--Cal at Arizona. Both could really use, but Cal needs it more.
--Stanford at Arizona State. Devils are likely playing for a spot in Monday's bracket.
--NC State at Boston College. Pack has to win these kind at this stage.
--South Alabama at Middle Tennessee. Raiders are playing better and host Belt brass USA and WKU this week. Jags better be careful here.
--
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Big Blown
Well, this article had more mojo before Kentucky was decapitated at Vandy last night, but here is a piece I wrote yesterday for WNKY, a local TV station here in Bowling Green, KY.
Last Night's GOI
--at Purdue 60, Michigan State 54. As mentioned yesterday, this was not an upset and was expected.
--Marquette 89, at Seton Hall 64. SHU was the Big East's "it" team for awhile, but their AL hopes look to be over without a monster finish.
--at Vanderbilt 93, Kentucky 52. I have watched a lot of Kentucky basketball in my life, and I do not remember a domination as thorough as this one when there was this much on the line for UK. It was 32-6 to open the game and 41-11 at half. Unequivocal devastation.
Tonight's GOI
--Mississippi at Alabama. The Rebs have zero SEC road wins. That will have to change if they are going to dance.
--Xavier at Charlotte. Fairly tough roadie for streaking Muskies.
--Notre Dame at UConn. Irish are fighting to stay in a tie with G'town at the top of the conference. Huskies are just one game back.
--Maryland at Duke. Terps are playing well and could really solidify themselves with an unlikely win here.
--Wisconsin at Indiana. Badgers can drag Hoosiers down into a tie for 2nd and leave Purdue alone at the top.
--Houston at Memphis. The Cougars last real chance to make themselves a viable AL candidate.
--New Mexico at San Diego State. Neither is likely to gain an AL bid, but one team's hopes will almost certainly be extinguished tonight.
--Drake at SIU. The demise of the 12-12 Salukis has been well-documented, but no Valley team has beaten them at home and there is a lot of pride on the line against Johnny-come-lately Drake. If Drake is going to lose in conference, this is where I'd put my money.
--Rhode Island at Temple. Resurgent Owls can pick up a nice win at home...and get into AL consideration.
--Arkansas at Tennessee. Two of the top three teams in the SEC.
Last Night's GOI
--at Purdue 60, Michigan State 54. As mentioned yesterday, this was not an upset and was expected.
--Marquette 89, at Seton Hall 64. SHU was the Big East's "it" team for awhile, but their AL hopes look to be over without a monster finish.
--at Vanderbilt 93, Kentucky 52. I have watched a lot of Kentucky basketball in my life, and I do not remember a domination as thorough as this one when there was this much on the line for UK. It was 32-6 to open the game and 41-11 at half. Unequivocal devastation.
Tonight's GOI
--Mississippi at Alabama. The Rebs have zero SEC road wins. That will have to change if they are going to dance.
--Xavier at Charlotte. Fairly tough roadie for streaking Muskies.
--Notre Dame at UConn. Irish are fighting to stay in a tie with G'town at the top of the conference. Huskies are just one game back.
--Maryland at Duke. Terps are playing well and could really solidify themselves with an unlikely win here.
--Wisconsin at Indiana. Badgers can drag Hoosiers down into a tie for 2nd and leave Purdue alone at the top.
--Houston at Memphis. The Cougars last real chance to make themselves a viable AL candidate.
--New Mexico at San Diego State. Neither is likely to gain an AL bid, but one team's hopes will almost certainly be extinguished tonight.
--Drake at SIU. The demise of the 12-12 Salukis has been well-documented, but no Valley team has beaten them at home and there is a lot of pride on the line against Johnny-come-lately Drake. If Drake is going to lose in conference, this is where I'd put my money.
--Rhode Island at Temple. Resurgent Owls can pick up a nice win at home...and get into AL consideration.
--Arkansas at Tennessee. Two of the top three teams in the SEC.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Lockbox Update 2/12
The Bubble by the Numbers
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--21 teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Nine of them are conference leaders. That means that twelve At-Large bids are virtual locks at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with several games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--Some of the "projected in, but need more validation teams" either moved up to virtual locks or slid back onto the Bubble this week. I have 11 teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 22 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 12 slots are up for grabs.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--at Georgetown 55, Villanova 53. Cats were game, but this dropped them to 4-7 in the league.
--at Nevada 85, Utah State 80. Pack keeps regular season WAC title hopes alive.
--at Texas 72, Kansas 69. 'Horns positioning themselves for a shot at Big XII title. But, K-State is now alone in first.
Tonight's GOI
--Michigan State at Purdue. Sparty has played only five true road games: Bradley, Iowa, Minnesota, Northwestern, Penn State. They lost to Iowa and Penn State. No reason to expect they will win at Purdue.
--Marquette at Seton Hall. SHU needs it badly to stay in the AL convo and Marquette has not been tearing it up lately. Interesting match up.
--Kentucky at Vanderbilt. Tonight's game is going to tell us a lot about Kentucky. The win over Tennessee in Rupp was big. But, their last four wins are against teams that are 9-25 in SEC play. A win over Vandy in Nashville will give them some legitimacy.
--31 Automatic Bids. That number will not change this season.
--34 At-Large Bids. That also is a static number.
--21 teams are in fantastic shape. They are listed as "virtual locks" in lower case black font in the Lockbox. Nine of them are conference leaders. That means that twelve At-Large bids are virtual locks at this point. It is hard to imagine any of these teams missing even with several games to go. This could change, but most if not all of these teams are not going anywhere.
--Some of the "projected in, but need more validation teams" either moved up to virtual locks or slid back onto the Bubble this week. I have 11 teams listed in blue this week. One of those is a conference leader. With the "virtual locks" added to this group, that accounts for 22 At-Large bids that are not "bubble slots." Hence, 12 slots are up for grabs.
--The Bubble Boys who made it in are in green and those left out are in red in the Lockbox.
Last Night's GOI
--at Georgetown 55, Villanova 53. Cats were game, but this dropped them to 4-7 in the league.
--at Nevada 85, Utah State 80. Pack keeps regular season WAC title hopes alive.
--at Texas 72, Kansas 69. 'Horns positioning themselves for a shot at Big XII title. But, K-State is now alone in first.
Tonight's GOI
--Michigan State at Purdue. Sparty has played only five true road games: Bradley, Iowa, Minnesota, Northwestern, Penn State. They lost to Iowa and Penn State. No reason to expect they will win at Purdue.
--Marquette at Seton Hall. SHU needs it badly to stay in the AL convo and Marquette has not been tearing it up lately. Interesting match up.
--Kentucky at Vanderbilt. Tonight's game is going to tell us a lot about Kentucky. The win over Tennessee in Rupp was big. But, their last four wins are against teams that are 9-25 in SEC play. A win over Vandy in Nashville will give them some legitimacy.
Monday, February 11, 2008
Bracket Update 2/11
The bottom was quite difficult in today's bracket. I took teams like Dayton, UMass, West Virginia, Syracuse, UNLV, and Florida over teams like NC State, Arizona State, Oregon, Illinois State, Houston, Creighton, Seton Hall, and Cal.
With BracketBusters tracking behind us, we might take a look at the Lockbox tomorrow instead of Wednesday. Several teams have moved into "virtual lock" territory.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (9): Georgetown, UConn, Notre Dame, Louisville, Marquette, Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse
Big XII (6): Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma,
Pac-10 (5): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal
SEC (5): Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Vanderbilt, , Mississippi State, Florida
Big Ten (5): Wisconsin, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (5): Xavier, Rhode Island, Saint Joseph's, Dayton, UMass
ACC (4): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Maryland
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
Tonight's GOI
--Villanova at Georgetown. Nova probably needs this one to keep hope alive. They cannot afford to drop to 4-7 in the league. And, they will have to deal with an angry Hoya team in DC.
--Utah State at Nevada. If the Pack has any hope of staying in the conference title race, they must win here.
--Kansas at Texas. Did someone say, "Big Monday?"
With BracketBusters tracking behind us, we might take a look at the Lockbox tomorrow instead of Wednesday. Several teams have moved into "virtual lock" territory.
Multi-Bid Conference Breakdown
Big East (9): Georgetown, UConn, Notre Dame, Louisville, Marquette, Pitt, West Virginia, Syracuse
Big XII (6): Kansas, Texas, Kansas State, Texas A&M, Baylor, Oklahoma,
Pac-10 (5): UCLA, Stanford, Washington State, Arizona, Southern Cal
SEC (5): Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Vanderbilt, , Mississippi State, Florida
Big Ten (5): Wisconsin, Michigan State, Indiana, Purdue, Ohio State
Atlantic 10 (5): Xavier, Rhode Island, Saint Joseph's, Dayton, UMass
ACC (4): Duke, North Carolina, Clemson, Maryland
West Coast (2): St. Mary's, Gonzaga
Mountain West (2): UNLV, BYU
Tonight's GOI
--Villanova at Georgetown. Nova probably needs this one to keep hope alive. They cannot afford to drop to 4-7 in the league. And, they will have to deal with an angry Hoya team in DC.
--Utah State at Nevada. If the Pack has any hope of staying in the conference title race, they must win here.
--Kansas at Texas. Did someone say, "Big Monday?"
Friday, February 08, 2008
Weekend Forecast 2/8-2/10
Last Night's GOI
--at Belmont 85, Jacksonville 78. Bruins draw even in the loss column in the A-Sun.
--at UMass 78, Rhode Island 76. UMass stays in the at-large picture.
--Western Kentucky 94, at North Texas 84. I doubt WKU can get an at-large bid, but they are playing the best hoops in the Belt these days and have won 9 straight.
--Portland State 71, at Northern Arizona 68. The Vikings are your clearcut Big Sky favorite.
--at Pacific 78, CS-Northridge 73. Pacific ties CS-N for Big West lead.
--at Pittsburgh 55, West Virginia 54. Pitt gets a needed win and WVU falls to 5-5 in the Big East due to losing 3 of 4.
--at Stanford 72, Oregon 43. Death, taxes, and Oregon underachieving.
--UCLA 67, at Washington State 59. Wash State now has to be considered the 4th or 5th best team in the Pac-10.
WEEKEND FORECAST
Saturday
--Mississippi at Arkansas. Rebels need to avoid falling to 3-5 in SEC.
--Oregon at Cal. Ducks are on their last (webbed) leg.
--Bradley at Illinois State. Braves are your Valley sleeper. They have won 7/8 and only lost at home to Drake by 1. I do not think a Bradley win is an upset here.
--Baylor at Kansas. Bears can make a huge statement with a win here, though it's not likely.
--Georgetown at Louisville. Louisville is searching for that signature win and they have a big fish at home.
--NC State at Maryland. Winner here solidifies their bracket spot on Monday.
--Marquette at Notre Dame. Irish try to stay within one game of G'town and could tie with a win if UL can top the Hoyas.
--North Texas at UALR. There are five teams in the Belt West tie or within one game of the lead. Here are two--and the two best of the West, in TBB's opinion.
--Seton Hall at Villanova. SHU cannot afford any slip-ups.
--Southern Cal at Washington State. Cougars have lost 3 straight at home and trail USC by a game in the standings.
--Purdue at Wisconsin. Two of the Big Televen's three one-loss teams.
Sunday
--Clemson at North Carolina. Tigers are playing well and UNC is coming off a home loss.
--Indiana at Ohio State. Hoosiers narrowly escaped at Illinois and OSU is better than the Illini.
--Siena at Rider. Saints have payback on their mind after Rider blew them off the court a few games back.
--UMass at Temple. Minutemen have a dangerous game on their hands.
--Saint Joseph's at Xavier. Great A-10 matchup--#1 vs. #2 in the current standings.
--at Belmont 85, Jacksonville 78. Bruins draw even in the loss column in the A-Sun.
--at UMass 78, Rhode Island 76. UMass stays in the at-large picture.
--Western Kentucky 94, at North Texas 84. I doubt WKU can get an at-large bid, but they are playing the best hoops in the Belt these days and have won 9 straight.
--Portland State 71, at Northern Arizona 68. The Vikings are your clearcut Big Sky favorite.
--at Pacific 78, CS-Northridge 73. Pacific ties CS-N for Big West lead.
--at Pittsburgh 55, West Virginia 54. Pitt gets a needed win and WVU falls to 5-5 in the Big East due to losing 3 of 4.
--at Stanford 72, Oregon 43. Death, taxes, and Oregon underachieving.
--UCLA 67, at Washington State 59. Wash State now has to be considered the 4th or 5th best team in the Pac-10.
WEEKEND FORECAST
Saturday
--Mississippi at Arkansas. Rebels need to avoid falling to 3-5 in SEC.
--Oregon at Cal. Ducks are on their last (webbed) leg.
--Bradley at Illinois State. Braves are your Valley sleeper. They have won 7/8 and only lost at home to Drake by 1. I do not think a Bradley win is an upset here.
--Baylor at Kansas. Bears can make a huge statement with a win here, though it's not likely.
--Georgetown at Louisville. Louisville is searching for that signature win and they have a big fish at home.
--NC State at Maryland. Winner here solidifies their bracket spot on Monday.
--Marquette at Notre Dame. Irish try to stay within one game of G'town and could tie with a win if UL can top the Hoyas.
--North Texas at UALR. There are five teams in the Belt West tie or within one game of the lead. Here are two--and the two best of the West, in TBB's opinion.
--Seton Hall at Villanova. SHU cannot afford any slip-ups.
--Southern Cal at Washington State. Cougars have lost 3 straight at home and trail USC by a game in the standings.
--Purdue at Wisconsin. Two of the Big Televen's three one-loss teams.
Sunday
--Clemson at North Carolina. Tigers are playing well and UNC is coming off a home loss.
--Indiana at Ohio State. Hoosiers narrowly escaped at Illinois and OSU is better than the Illini.
--Siena at Rider. Saints have payback on their mind after Rider blew them off the court a few games back.
--UMass at Temple. Minutemen have a dangerous game on their hands.
--Saint Joseph's at Xavier. Great A-10 matchup--#1 vs. #2 in the current standings.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Daily Grind
Last Night's GOI
--at Baylor 80, Texas Tech 74. Baylor holds serve at home and stays in the fight for a protected seed.
--Maryland 70, at Boston College 65. BC looks dead in the water.
--at Dayton 69 ,Charlotte 64. Flyers get back on track after some struggles.
--at Duquesne 102, Saint Joseph's 88. Tough loss for Hawks, but not a resume killer.
--Vanderbilt 67, at Georgia 59. 'Dores get a game they had to win.
--Florida State 62, at Miami-FL 55. Canes are now 2-6 in ACC.
--Duke 89, at North Carolina 78. Now more questions about who is the ACC's best. Duke is two games clear of the field.
--Texas 64, at Oklahoma 54. Big roadie for the Horns.
--Notre Dame 95, at Seton Hall 69. Irish are quietly building a fine, fine resume. Welcome to the "virtual lock" club, ND.
--UConn 63, at Syracuse 61. In a theme of the night, the Huskies get a nice road win.
Tonight's GOI
--Jacksonville at Belmont. Bruins can draw even in the loss column for the A-Sun lead with a win.
--Rhode Island at UMass. UMass needs this one, because are 3-5 in their last 8.
--Western Kentucky at North Texas. WKU has won 8 straight and is one of the two elite teams in the Belt. NT is a great home team (9-1) and is clawing toward the top out West.
--Portland State at Northern Arizona. NAU can draw even at the top of the Big Sky with a win.
--CS-Northridge at Pacific. Tigers can draw even at the top of the Big West with a win. I sense a pattern here.
--West Virginia at Pittsburgh. Both believe they are NCAA teams. Both need to convince me.
--Oregon at Stanford. Flailing Ducks need it.
--UCLA at Washington State. Cougars have fallen from "elite" status. A win here would help to restore them.
--at Baylor 80, Texas Tech 74. Baylor holds serve at home and stays in the fight for a protected seed.
--Maryland 70, at Boston College 65. BC looks dead in the water.
--at Dayton 69 ,Charlotte 64. Flyers get back on track after some struggles.
--at Duquesne 102, Saint Joseph's 88. Tough loss for Hawks, but not a resume killer.
--Vanderbilt 67, at Georgia 59. 'Dores get a game they had to win.
--Florida State 62, at Miami-FL 55. Canes are now 2-6 in ACC.
--Duke 89, at North Carolina 78. Now more questions about who is the ACC's best. Duke is two games clear of the field.
--Texas 64, at Oklahoma 54. Big roadie for the Horns.
--Notre Dame 95, at Seton Hall 69. Irish are quietly building a fine, fine resume. Welcome to the "virtual lock" club, ND.
--UConn 63, at Syracuse 61. In a theme of the night, the Huskies get a nice road win.
Tonight's GOI
--Jacksonville at Belmont. Bruins can draw even in the loss column for the A-Sun lead with a win.
--Rhode Island at UMass. UMass needs this one, because are 3-5 in their last 8.
--Western Kentucky at North Texas. WKU has won 8 straight and is one of the two elite teams in the Belt. NT is a great home team (9-1) and is clawing toward the top out West.
--Portland State at Northern Arizona. NAU can draw even at the top of the Big Sky with a win.
--CS-Northridge at Pacific. Tigers can draw even at the top of the Big West with a win. I sense a pattern here.
--West Virginia at Pittsburgh. Both believe they are NCAA teams. Both need to convince me.
--Oregon at Stanford. Flailing Ducks need it.
--UCLA at Washington State. Cougars have fallen from "elite" status. A win here would help to restore them.
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