College Hoops Thread '10-'11

[The Poet]

Last night, as already mentioned:


Notre Dame 93 - Villanova 72 = The boys from South Bend win their 13th conference game, and are only 1/2 back of Pitt for the regular season title. Meanwhile, 'Nova has lost 3 in a row now, and 5 of their last 7, and are now 11th in the league with their 9-8 record. As they finish at Pitt, they seem likely to end with a .500 mark . . . yet they are still ranked in the Top Twenty in the nation! And you wonder why I call this the Big Mouth Conference? What a load of crap.

Kansas State 75 - Texas 70 = This is one of those whose meaning is hard to nail down. Does it mean that K-State has gotten over their mid-season doldrums? Does it mean the Longhorns are doing what they seem to always do this time of year, which is crumble? Regardless, a good victory for the prairie 'Cats, and just one more reason for the 'Horn fans to hold their peace.


Today conference tournament action begins in the Big South (yeah, I said SOUTH, not Mouth) and the Horizon, with the Atlantic Sun, Patriot, and Ohio Valley starting tomorrow. Unless the first round or two give us some upsets, I'll wait until they shake out a little before I really get into them. Otherwise tonight we have:


Florida vs. Alabama = The winner of this one, against the leaders in the SEC East and West divisions, will give us our league champ. Though both are coming off losses, the Gators lost to a better team, and are a better team themselves than are the Tide. Plus, it is in Gainesville. I figure they win by a dozen.

Baylor vs. Oklahoma State = To me, the Bears are squarely on the bubble, and need some late help. And although a win in Stillwater won't be a huge deal, it will be better than another poor loss. Give Baylor a slight edge, but don't be shocked if they spit the bit again.

Purdue vs. Illinois = And the Boilermakers are safe, but the Illini are also on that bubble. I really don't see them helping themselves this evening. Hey, it could happen, but don't hold your breath.

Ohio State vs. Penn State = In fact, I give the Nittany Lions a better shot at shocking the Buckeyes than I give the Illini above. It's still not much of a shot, but they have been tough at times on their own court, while OSU doesn't have all that much to play for . . . except their # 1 ranking, and 1st place in the Big Ten. So, on second thought, go with the Buckeyes, big.

Vanderbilt vs. Kentucky = And here's the battle for 3rd place in the SEC, with Vandy holding a game lead over UK. You KNOW they want to finish ahead of the Wildcats so bad they can taste it. That won't be easy. Though they did beat them the first time, that was in Nashville, whereas this one's in Rupp. Kentucky is tough in Lexington. This is a pick 'em, with maybe UK a point or two favorite.

Missouri vs. Nebraska = The Missou Tigers have gotten just about the same consistent respect, and play from their team, all season long. They aren't great, but they aren't just lucky or feeding off a weak schedule. But the Cornhuskers themselves, who've gotten damn little respect, have had a couple of good wins themselves. This might actually be a pretty good game in Lincoln tonight.

Boston College vs. Virginia Tech = The Hokies are assured of finishing above .500 in the ACC, and that along with their signature victory over Duke makes them a shoo-in for an at-large. But BC is in a dogfight with Maryland to stay at .500 in the league, AND for a shot at getting onto that bubble, much less getting safely over it. It is in Blacksburg, but I'm not sure that VT has yet recovered from this weekend, and may have a let-down. I figure this one to be close, start to finish.

N. C. State vs. Virginia = And these two are safe too . . . safe in the knowledge that, shortly after The Selection Show March 13th, they will get calls from the NIT. Their 5-9 records in the ACC are good enough to warrent that. Still, it should be a pretty competitive game in Charlottesville, and another of those pick 'ems.

San Diego State vs. Wyoming = The Aztecs just lost their 2nd game of the year, to the same BYU squad to whom they lost their FIRST game of the year. So, since they are not playing BYU tonight, I'm gonna go with SDSU to rebound in Laramie.


That's it for me for now, so I'll hit "submit" before I lose another one. Enjoy. Screw Drew.

[jcruse64]

You said screed...heh

Purdue's having a rough 1st half, but climbing back into it with less than 5 in the 1st.

Or, rather, they were just spotting Illinois some points before getting into it...

[The Poet]

Originally Posted by jcruse64

You said screed...heh

Purdue's having a rough 1st half, but climbing back into it with less than 5 in the 1st.

Or, rather, they were just spotting Illinois some points before getting into it...

And they obvoiusly didn't spot them quite enough. They managed to tie the Illini 37-all by the break, then:


Purdue 75 - Illinois 67 = The win is no shock, and I suppose that when one considers the problems those 'Makers have had maker'ing shots from time to time, the margin's no biggie either, even at home. Are the Illini clearly off the bubble, on the wrong side? Maybe.

Florida 78 - Alabama 51 = No surprise to me at all. The SEC East is pretty good. The SEC West is pretty ugly.

Kentucky 68 - Vanderbilt 66 = A good win for the 'Cats to defend homecourt, and a decent attempt at the "upset" for the Comms.

Nebraska 69 - Missouri 58 = And it seems like I said the Tigers might be vulnerable if they didn't come to play.

Oklahoma State 71 - Baylor 60 = Baylor has done its very best to avoid an at-large bid. This makes their 4th loss in 6 games, and one of those wins was against Wayland Baptist. You can pretty much stick a fork in these Bears.

Virginia 69 - N.C. State 58 = And these two were done long ago. Question now is, is Sidney Lowe done too?

Boston College 76 - Virginia Tech 61 = So the Hokies beat Dook in blacksburg, then lose to BC big on the same court? Does this mean the Eagles have earned themselves off the bubble? We will see.


Today already, in the Atlantic Sun tourney, Belmont crushed Kennesaw State 72-57. Later tonight we have:


Iowa vs. Michigan State = The only question here is, can the Spartans get enough to earn an at-large? A win will help them a little, and a loss will hurt them a lot.

Louisville vs. Providence = I can't see the Friars taking the Cards in the Yumi. If they do, Pitino won't be happy.

U. Conn vs. West Virginia = In Morgantown, so this could be a total war.

Western Michigan vs. Ball State = And why bring this up? Well, it is for 1st place in the MAC West . . . for what that's worth. Still, give them both some props. As I know next to nothing about either team, I won't predict a victor.

Temple vs. U. Mass = I do know a little about these two, and don't think the Owls will have much trouble here.

UNC vs. Florida State // Duke vs. Clemson = I lumped these two together for a reason. The Heels and the Blue Devils are tied for the ACC, and both have good opponents here. UNC will have a tougher time beating the 'Noles on the road than Dook will have against the Tigers in Cameron, but both could go either way. Hey, I don't care if you hate Duke and/or Carolina, or if you really don't give a damn one way or the other, but if you love college basketball you'll be hoping both win, or both lose, tonight. That way, when they meet Saturday night in Chapel Hill, it will be for all the marbles.

Maryland vs. Miami = The Terps need to do something to get into the discussion for an at-large, and even then it may be too late. At 7-7 in ACC and 18-11 overall, you might think they're safe, but you'd be wrong. They have to win this one on the road, and beat UVA in College Park to end the season, then win at least a game in the ACC Tourney. It starts tonight . . . or ends, if they're not careful.

UAB vs. Southern Miss. // Memphis vs. East Carolina // Tulsa vs. Rice // UTEP vs. Marshall = Here might just be the night that decides the CUSA for good. UAB is on top at 10-4, with Southern Miss locked in that 4-way for 2nd at 9-5. So this game is a pick 'em. Memphis is also 9-5, playing at ECTC, who ain't terrible themselves. So here's another close one, with the Tigers having a teeny edge. Now Tulsa (9-5) should not have much trouble with Rice, but UTEP (9-5) will have a struggle with the Herd. Keep you eye on all of these.

Cincinnati vs. Marquette = Are the experts right, that the Committee will go 10 or 11 deep in the Big Mouth Conference? Maybe, and if so then maybe both these teams are safe. But they should not count on that, especially the Golden Eagles, so they'd better bring it tonight.

Pitt vs South Florida = And if the Panthers lose THIS one on the road, they should just stay in Tampa and look for jobs making cheap cigars.

Kansas vs. Texas A&M = This is in Phog Allen, so give the Jayhawks an edge. But it still should be a pretty decent game, at least until the last 5 minutes or so. And who knows? KU's not unbeatable.

BYU vs. New Mexico = The Cougars play their first game after losing their best big man (see above), and do so against one of the two teams they've already lost to this year. The Lobos have a pretty good team, and if they can take advantage of BYU's new doughnut (hey, are doughnuts forbidden in Utah too?), maybe they can steal one, and take away all hopes for a # 1 seed for the Stormin' Mormons.


That's it for me today. Enjoy. Screw Drew.