18 Jan29 - South By Midwest (MIDCONFERENCE/Major)
Volume XXII, No. 13 - 18 Jan29: MIDCONFERENCE/Major - [] Top 25 Ballot
South By Midwest
The resurgence of SEC Basketball was officially confirmed when the league won its head-to-head CHALLENGE with the BIG 12 for the first time in the five-year history of the event. The fourth-rated Southerners (81-35 in major interconference clashes this season) beat their top-rated Midwestern counterparts 67-20) by a 6-4 score with both Kentucky (over host West Virginia) and Tennessee (over host Iowa State) claiming two road wins to counter just one by Texas Tech (over host South Carolina). Last year's postseason was strong for the SEC (placing three of five teams in the Elite Eight [including surprise Final Four South Carolina]), but this year's performance may be deeper.
WVA is the only team to knock off Virginia this season, but the Mountaineers couldn't handle UK as the Wildcats won (83-@76 as bKevin Knox[34p7r] outdueled 26p7a by pJevon Carter). The battle of SuperFrosh point guards was a push between Alabama's Collin Sexton(18p) and Oklahoma's pTrae Young(17p8a5to) as the host Crimson Tide beat the visiting Sooners (@80-73). More surprising was lowly Vanderbilt's home win over solid TCU (@81-78 as the visiting Horned Frogs shot no free throws the entire game). Florida dumped slumping Baylor (@81-60) while Kansas handled visiting Texas A&M (@79-68). Arkansas escaped at home against Oklahoma State (@66-65 on Daniel Gafford's game-winner).
Tennessee had no trouble road-dumping struggling host Iowa State (68-@45). Texas Tech won on the road at South Carolina (70-@63 as gKeenan Evans[31p3a] starred). Texas handled struggling Mississippi (@85-72 on cMohamed Bamba[25p15r] breakout performance). Kansas State held on at home to edge Georgia (@56-51).
Earlier in conference play, unheralded Penn State handed Ohio State its first league loss, edging 92-@89 on the road. Elsewhere in the BIG 10, Purdue handled Michigan (@92-80 on 62 percent shooting led by pVince Edwards[30p5a5r]).
In the BIG 12, Oklahoma edged Kansas (@85-80 behind bTrae Young[26p9a5to]). TCU beat WVA (@82-73 as pAlex Robinson[17p9a7r5to] countered 16p7a6r5s from pJevon Carter). Kansas State kept Baylor on a downward spiral (@90-83 on Barry Brown[34p]'s star turn). Texas Tech edged Oklahoma State (@75-70 as pKeenan Evans[26p5a] and tJarrett Culver[25p8r] both starred).
Florida tripped at home in SEC play against South Carolina. LSU beat Texas A&M (@77-65 despite being outrebounded 30-50), but Auburn turned around and dumped the Bayou Bengals.
Virginia continued to dominate the ACC with a huge double: dumping Clemson (@61-36 limiting the Tigers to 3-for-20 shooting on threes) and then edging Duke at Cameron (65-@63 on Kyle Guy's game-winning free throws despite 30p14r from cMarvin Bagley III).
Virginia Tech won twice: handling North Carolina (@80-69) and then edging slumping/undermanned Notre Dame (80-@75 despite 27p5a5to from pT.J. Gibbs). Miami(Florida) split overtime results: first, edging Louisville (@78-75[OT] led by gLonnie Walker[25p]); then, tripping at Florida State (94-@103[OT] as the Seminoles shot 60 percent from the floor). North Carolina's 0-2 week ended with a home loss in overtime to N.C. State (@91-95[OT] as bAl Freeman[29p5r] dueled 31p12r from xLuke Maye).
In the PAC-12, slumping Arizona State tripped at Utah.
In the AMERICAN, SMU couldn't keep pace, falling at Connecticut.
In the BIG EAST, Marquette was the big loser on the week: first, getting thumped at Xavier (70-@89 despite 33p from 5-11 Markus Howard); then, tripping at home against Villanova (@82-85 as bJalen Brunson[31p1a5r] dueled 29p from gAndrew Rowsey).
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada tripped in triple-overtime at Wyoming (103-@104[3OT] in a multi-player shootout complete with 80 combined free throws). UNLV was up and down: first, falling on the road at Fresno State; but then, bouncing back at home to handle San Diego State (@88-78).
Loyola(Illinois) continued to roll in the MISSOURI VALLEY, road-dumping @Drake (80-@57).
Georgia Southern split on the week in the SUN BELT: tripping at Texas State, but bouncing back at home to dump Texas-Arlington (@74-59 despite 29p8r from tKevin Hervey).
Inside the Red Swirl, SOCON/UNC-Greensboro beat Furman (@71-61). PAT/Bucknell continued to roll, handling Boston University on the road. MAC/Central Michigan fell out of contention with two home losses to Miami(Ohio) and Kent State. C-USA/UAB couldn't keep pace, falling at home to Texas-San Antonio. SKY/Northern Colorado road-dumped Idaho (80-@63). South Dakota thumped South Dakota State (@87-68) to tie up the SUMMIT race at the break. In the COLONIAL, Towson split on the week: edging William & Mary in overtime (@96-82[OT] as gZane Martin[35p] dueled xJustin Pierce[27p14r]) but falling at home to Elon; meanwhile, Northeastern tripped on the road at Drexel. BIGW/UC-Santa Barbara edged host Cal State-Fullerton (70-@65 led by Max Heidegger[28p]). SLAND/Stephen F. Austin fell at Central Arkansas (92-@100
as 5-11 bJordan Howard[43p7r;15/20ft] outdueled 31p3a from gShannon Bogues).
At the MAAC CLASSIC triple-header at Uniondale,NY: Quinnipiac edged Fairfield (@75-@70), Iona handled Manhattan (@78-@65) and Monmouth beat Marist (91-@78); it was the second loss on the week for Fairfield which earlier tripped at home against Rider (@88-90 despite 24p5a11r from xTyler Nelson). HORIZ/Oakland split on the week: winning on the road at Western Kentucky (83-@70 as bKendrick Nunn[33p6r] starred) but then falling at Wright State (51-@64). IVY/Harvard edged host Yale (54-@52) to remain unbeaten at 4-0. BIGS/Radford tripped in overtime at home against lowly Charleston Southern (@81-84[OT] as bChristian Keeling[31p7r] starred). NEC/Wagner won its first-place showdown with Robert Morris on the road (77-@64).
Hats off to SWAC/Mississippi Valley State who snapped a 21-game losing streak (dating back to last season) with a @72-67 squeak home win over Jackson State.
- - - - - -
The midway point in conference play has come to all the rest of the conferences now (except for the IVY LEAGUE, still a week away).
In the BIG 12 (What a surprise!), Kansas came through in first place; Texas Tech and Oklahoma both were tied for second; West Virginia and Kansas State both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (TCU and Texas both couldn't hang. Oklahoma State and Baylor both were flops.)
In the BIG EAST (no shocker), Villanova came through in first place; Xavier was second; Seton Hall and Creighton both were tied for third; Butler and Providence both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Marquette couldn't hang. St. John's was winless.)
In the ACC, Virginia came through undefeated. THREE GAMES BACK, Duke, Clemson and Louisville all were tied for second place; Florida State, Miami(Florida), Virginia Tech, North Carolina and North Carolina State all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Syracuse and Georgia Tech both couldn't hang. Notre Dame [after cBonzie Colson's injury] and Boston College both were flops. Pittsburgh was winless.)
In the SEC, surprising Auburn came through in first place. Two games back, Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida all were tied for second; Alabama hung in, skirting .500, for fifth. (Mississippi State, Arkansas, Missouri, South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi all couldn't hang. Texas A&M and LSU both were a flop.)
In the AMERICAN, Cincinnati came through undefeated. Two games back, Wichita State was second; Houston was third; SMU and UCF both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth place.
In the PAC-12, Arizona came through in first place; USC was second; Washington was third; Oregon, UCLA, Utah and Stanford all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (Arizona State couldn't hang.)
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada came through in first place; Boise State was second; Wyoming and New Mexico both were tied for third; UNLV and Fresno State both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (San Diego State and Utah State both couldn't hang. San Jose State was winless.)
In the ATLANTIC-10, Rhode Island came through undefeated. Three games back, VCU, Davidson and Richmond all were tied for second; St. Bonaventure and Duquesne both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (St. Joseph's couldn't hang.)
In the SUN BELT, Louisiana came through undefeated. Two games back, Georgia State and Texas State both were tied for second; Georgia Southern was fourth. (Texas-Arlington couldn't hang.)
In the WAC, New Mexico State came through undefeated. Two games back, Utah Valley, Grand Canyon and Seattle all were tied for second place. (Chicago State was winless.)
In the SOCON, East Tennessee State came through undefeated. Two games back, UNC-Greensboro and Wofford both were tied for second; Furman was fourth.
In the MID-AMERICAN, Buffalo was in first in the East (and overall); West-leader Toledo was second overall; Ball State, Western Michigan and Miami(Ohio) all skirted .500, tied for third overall. (Central Michigan and Ohio University both were flops.)
In CONFERENCE USA, Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky came through tied for first place; Old Dominion was third. Two more games back, Marshall, UAB and North Texas all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (Louisiana Tech couldn't hang.)
In the AMERICA EAST, Vermont came through undefeated. Two games back, Maryland(Baltimore County) was second; Hartford and New Hampshire both tied for third; Albany hung in at .500, for fifth.
In the BIG SKY, Montana came through undefeated. Weber State was second; Idaho and Eastern Washington both were tied for third; Northern Colorado, Montana State and Idaho State all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Portland State couldn't hang.)
In the SUMMIT, South Dakota and South Dakota State came through tied for first place. Two games back, North Dakota State was third.
In the BIG WEST, UC-Santa Barbara, UC-Davis and Long Beach State all were tied for first place; Cal-State Fullerton and UC-Irvine both were tied for fourth; Hawaii hung in at .500 for sixth. (UC-Riverside was winless.)
In the SOUTHLAND, Stephen F. Austin, Southeast Louisiana, Nicholls and New Orleans all came through tied for first place; Sam Houston State was fifth; Lamar, Abilene Christian and Central Arkansas all hung in, skirting .500, tied for sixth. (Incarnate Word and Northwestern State both were winless.)
In the METRO ATLANTIC, Rider, Iona and Canisius all came through tied for first place; Niagara was fourth; Manhattan and Quinnipiac both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Fairfield was a flop.)
In the ATLANTIC SUN, Florida Gulf Coast came through undefeated. Two games back, Jacksonville was second; Lipscomb and North Florida both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth.
In the MEAC, North Carolina A&T and Savannah State came through tied for first place; North Carolina Central and Bethune-Cookman both were tied for third; Norfolk State was fifth; Hampton, Morgan State, South Carolina State, Howard and Coppin State all hung in at .500, tied for sixth. (Eastern Shore was a flop.
Delaware State was winless.)
In the SWAC, Arkansas-Pine Bluff came through in first place. Two games back, Grambling State, Jackson State and Texas Southern all tied for second; Southern and Prairie View A&M both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Alcorn State was a flop.)
- - - - - -
Virginia should continue to roll when it hosts Louisville (Wednesday). Villanova looks to cruise at home when both Creighton (Thursday) and Seton Hall (Sunday) come to town. Cincinnati can put away the AMERICAN with a home win over Houston (Wednesday). Florida hosts rising Alabama (Saturday). How often has this been said: "Gonzaga needs to beat BYU (Saturday) to stay in contact in the WCC race"? Louisville has no margin for error in the ACC, so beating visiting Florida State (Saturday) is a must.
TCU needs a win against visiting Texas Tech (Saturday) to pad its resume. Clemson hosts North Carolina (Tuesday). Kansas State has a huge week ahead: hosting SUNFLOWER rival Kansas (Monday) and visiting tough West Virginia (Saturday). Texas A&M hosts Arkansas (Tuesday). UCLA looks to spoil the PAC-12 hopes of visiting arch-rival USC (Saturday).
Washington needs a big week to stay in contact in the PAC-12 when both Arizona State (Thursday) and Arizona (Saturday) come to town.
.
C-USA tri-leaders clash (Thursday) when Old Dominion hosts Middle Tennessee. Host Maryland-Baltimore County appears to be the only thing standing in the way (Saturday) of a second-straight undefeated run in the AMERICAN EAST for visiting Vermont. North Dakota State can shape the SUMMIT race with a big week: visiting South Dakota State (Thursday) and hosting South Dakota (Saturday). COLONIAL tri-leaders clash (Thursday) when Northeastern hosts College of Charleston. In the BIG WEST free-for-all: UC-Santa Barbara hosts Hawaii (Thursday) while Long Beach State hosts UC-Davis (Saturday). New Orleans hosts Nicholls (Saturday) in the SOUTHLAND free-for-all.
Penn hosts Yale (Saturday) as the IVY race begins to take shape. BIG SOUTH tri-leaders clash (Saturday) when Winthrop hosts Radford. Jacksonville hopes to stay in the A-SUN race when Florida Gulf Coast comes to town (Saturday). Arkansas-Pine Bluff hosts Jackson State (Monday) with first place in the SWAC on the line.
-- Ron
Top 25 - 18 Jan29: MIDCONFERENCE/Major - [] Column
South By Midwest
The resurgence of SEC Basketball was officially confirmed when the league won its head-to-head CHALLENGE with the BIG 12 for the first time in the five-year history of the event. The fourth-rated Southerners (81-35 in major interconference clashes this season) beat their top-rated Midwestern counterparts 67-20) by a 6-4 score with both Kentucky (over host West Virginia) and Tennessee (over host Iowa State) claiming two road wins to counter just one by Texas Tech (over host South Carolina). Last year's postseason was strong for the SEC (placing three of five teams in the Elite Eight [including surprise Final Four South Carolina]), but this year's performance may be deeper.
WVA is the only team to knock off Virginia this season, but the Mountaineers couldn't handle UK as the Wildcats won (83-@76 as bKevin Knox[34p7r] outdueled 26p7a by pJevon Carter). The battle of SuperFrosh point guards was a push between Alabama's Collin Sexton(18p) and Oklahoma's pTrae Young(17p8a5to) as the host Crimson Tide beat the visiting Sooners (@80-73). More surprising was lowly Vanderbilt's home win over solid TCU (@81-78 as the visiting Horned Frogs shot no free throws the entire game). Florida dumped slumping Baylor (@81-60) while Kansas handled visiting Texas A&M (@79-68). Arkansas escaped at home against Oklahoma State (@66-65 on Daniel Gafford's game-winner).
Tennessee had no trouble road-dumping struggling host Iowa State (68-@45). Texas Tech won on the road at South Carolina (70-@63 as gKeenan Evans[31p3a] starred). Texas handled struggling Mississippi (@85-72 on cMohamed Bamba[25p15r] breakout performance). Kansas State held on at home to edge Georgia (@56-51).
Earlier in conference play, unheralded Penn State handed Ohio State its first league loss, edging 92-@89 on the road. Elsewhere in the BIG 10, Purdue handled Michigan (@92-80 on 62 percent shooting led by pVince Edwards[30p5a5r]).
In the BIG 12, Oklahoma edged Kansas (@85-80 behind bTrae Young[26p9a5to]). TCU beat WVA (@82-73 as pAlex Robinson[17p9a7r5to] countered 16p7a6r5s from pJevon Carter). Kansas State kept Baylor on a downward spiral (@90-83 on Barry Brown[34p]'s star turn). Texas Tech edged Oklahoma State (@75-70 as pKeenan Evans[26p5a] and tJarrett Culver[25p8r] both starred).
Florida tripped at home in SEC play against South Carolina. LSU beat Texas A&M (@77-65 despite being outrebounded 30-50), but Auburn turned around and dumped the Bayou Bengals.
Virginia continued to dominate the ACC with a huge double: dumping Clemson (@61-36 limiting the Tigers to 3-for-20 shooting on threes) and then edging Duke at Cameron (65-@63 on Kyle Guy's game-winning free throws despite 30p14r from cMarvin Bagley III).
Virginia Tech won twice: handling North Carolina (@80-69) and then edging slumping/undermanned Notre Dame (80-@75 despite 27p5a5to from pT.J. Gibbs). Miami(Florida) split overtime results: first, edging Louisville (@78-75[OT] led by gLonnie Walker[25p]); then, tripping at Florida State (94-@103[OT] as the Seminoles shot 60 percent from the floor). North Carolina's 0-2 week ended with a home loss in overtime to N.C. State (@91-95[OT] as bAl Freeman[29p5r] dueled 31p12r from xLuke Maye).
In the PAC-12, slumping Arizona State tripped at Utah.
In the AMERICAN, SMU couldn't keep pace, falling at Connecticut.
In the BIG EAST, Marquette was the big loser on the week: first, getting thumped at Xavier (70-@89 despite 33p from 5-11 Markus Howard); then, tripping at home against Villanova (@82-85 as bJalen Brunson[31p1a5r] dueled 29p from gAndrew Rowsey).
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada tripped in triple-overtime at Wyoming (103-@104[3OT] in a multi-player shootout complete with 80 combined free throws). UNLV was up and down: first, falling on the road at Fresno State; but then, bouncing back at home to handle San Diego State (@88-78).
Loyola(Illinois) continued to roll in the MISSOURI VALLEY, road-dumping @Drake (80-@57).
Georgia Southern split on the week in the SUN BELT: tripping at Texas State, but bouncing back at home to dump Texas-Arlington (@74-59 despite 29p8r from tKevin Hervey).
Inside the Red Swirl, SOCON/UNC-Greensboro beat Furman (@71-61). PAT/Bucknell continued to roll, handling Boston University on the road. MAC/Central Michigan fell out of contention with two home losses to Miami(Ohio) and Kent State. C-USA/UAB couldn't keep pace, falling at home to Texas-San Antonio. SKY/Northern Colorado road-dumped Idaho (80-@63). South Dakota thumped South Dakota State (@87-68) to tie up the SUMMIT race at the break. In the COLONIAL, Towson split on the week: edging William & Mary in overtime (@96-82[OT] as gZane Martin[35p] dueled xJustin Pierce[27p14r]) but falling at home to Elon; meanwhile, Northeastern tripped on the road at Drexel. BIGW/UC-Santa Barbara edged host Cal State-Fullerton (70-@65 led by Max Heidegger[28p]). SLAND/Stephen F. Austin fell at Central Arkansas (92-@100
as 5-11 bJordan Howard[43p7r;15/20ft] outdueled 31p3a from gShannon Bogues).
At the MAAC CLASSIC triple-header at Uniondale,NY: Quinnipiac edged Fairfield (@75-@70), Iona handled Manhattan (@78-@65) and Monmouth beat Marist (91-@78); it was the second loss on the week for Fairfield which earlier tripped at home against Rider (@88-90 despite 24p5a11r from xTyler Nelson). HORIZ/Oakland split on the week: winning on the road at Western Kentucky (83-@70 as bKendrick Nunn[33p6r] starred) but then falling at Wright State (51-@64). IVY/Harvard edged host Yale (54-@52) to remain unbeaten at 4-0. BIGS/Radford tripped in overtime at home against lowly Charleston Southern (@81-84[OT] as bChristian Keeling[31p7r] starred). NEC/Wagner won its first-place showdown with Robert Morris on the road (77-@64).
Hats off to SWAC/Mississippi Valley State who snapped a 21-game losing streak (dating back to last season) with a @72-67 squeak home win over Jackson State.
- - - - - -
The midway point in conference play has come to all the rest of the conferences now (except for the IVY LEAGUE, still a week away).
In the BIG 12 (What a surprise!), Kansas came through in first place; Texas Tech and Oklahoma both were tied for second; West Virginia and Kansas State both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (TCU and Texas both couldn't hang. Oklahoma State and Baylor both were flops.)
In the BIG EAST (no shocker), Villanova came through in first place; Xavier was second; Seton Hall and Creighton both were tied for third; Butler and Providence both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Marquette couldn't hang. St. John's was winless.)
In the ACC, Virginia came through undefeated. THREE GAMES BACK, Duke, Clemson and Louisville all were tied for second place; Florida State, Miami(Florida), Virginia Tech, North Carolina and North Carolina State all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Syracuse and Georgia Tech both couldn't hang. Notre Dame [after cBonzie Colson's injury] and Boston College both were flops. Pittsburgh was winless.)
In the SEC, surprising Auburn came through in first place. Two games back, Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida all were tied for second; Alabama hung in, skirting .500, for fifth. (Mississippi State, Arkansas, Missouri, South Carolina, Georgia and Mississippi all couldn't hang. Texas A&M and LSU both were a flop.)
In the AMERICAN, Cincinnati came through undefeated. Two games back, Wichita State was second; Houston was third; SMU and UCF both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth place.
In the PAC-12, Arizona came through in first place; USC was second; Washington was third; Oregon, UCLA, Utah and Stanford all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (Arizona State couldn't hang.)
In the MOUNTAIN WEST, Nevada came through in first place; Boise State was second; Wyoming and New Mexico both were tied for third; UNLV and Fresno State both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (San Diego State and Utah State both couldn't hang. San Jose State was winless.)
In the ATLANTIC-10, Rhode Island came through undefeated. Three games back, VCU, Davidson and Richmond all were tied for second; St. Bonaventure and Duquesne both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (St. Joseph's couldn't hang.)
In the SUN BELT, Louisiana came through undefeated. Two games back, Georgia State and Texas State both were tied for second; Georgia Southern was fourth. (Texas-Arlington couldn't hang.)
In the WAC, New Mexico State came through undefeated. Two games back, Utah Valley, Grand Canyon and Seattle all were tied for second place. (Chicago State was winless.)
In the SOCON, East Tennessee State came through undefeated. Two games back, UNC-Greensboro and Wofford both were tied for second; Furman was fourth.
In the MID-AMERICAN, Buffalo was in first in the East (and overall); West-leader Toledo was second overall; Ball State, Western Michigan and Miami(Ohio) all skirted .500, tied for third overall. (Central Michigan and Ohio University both were flops.)
In CONFERENCE USA, Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky came through tied for first place; Old Dominion was third. Two more games back, Marshall, UAB and North Texas all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (Louisiana Tech couldn't hang.)
In the AMERICA EAST, Vermont came through undefeated. Two games back, Maryland(Baltimore County) was second; Hartford and New Hampshire both tied for third; Albany hung in at .500, for fifth.
In the BIG SKY, Montana came through undefeated. Weber State was second; Idaho and Eastern Washington both were tied for third; Northern Colorado, Montana State and Idaho State all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Portland State couldn't hang.)
In the SUMMIT, South Dakota and South Dakota State came through tied for first place. Two games back, North Dakota State was third.
In the BIG WEST, UC-Santa Barbara, UC-Davis and Long Beach State all were tied for first place; Cal-State Fullerton and UC-Irvine both were tied for fourth; Hawaii hung in at .500 for sixth. (UC-Riverside was winless.)
In the SOUTHLAND, Stephen F. Austin, Southeast Louisiana, Nicholls and New Orleans all came through tied for first place; Sam Houston State was fifth; Lamar, Abilene Christian and Central Arkansas all hung in, skirting .500, tied for sixth. (Incarnate Word and Northwestern State both were winless.)
In the METRO ATLANTIC, Rider, Iona and Canisius all came through tied for first place; Niagara was fourth; Manhattan and Quinnipiac both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Fairfield was a flop.)
In the ATLANTIC SUN, Florida Gulf Coast came through undefeated. Two games back, Jacksonville was second; Lipscomb and North Florida both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth.
In the MEAC, North Carolina A&T and Savannah State came through tied for first place; North Carolina Central and Bethune-Cookman both were tied for third; Norfolk State was fifth; Hampton, Morgan State, South Carolina State, Howard and Coppin State all hung in at .500, tied for sixth. (Eastern Shore was a flop.
Delaware State was winless.)
In the SWAC, Arkansas-Pine Bluff came through in first place. Two games back, Grambling State, Jackson State and Texas Southern all tied for second; Southern and Prairie View A&M both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fifth. (Alcorn State was a flop.)
- - - - - -
Virginia should continue to roll when it hosts Louisville (Wednesday). Villanova looks to cruise at home when both Creighton (Thursday) and Seton Hall (Sunday) come to town. Cincinnati can put away the AMERICAN with a home win over Houston (Wednesday). Florida hosts rising Alabama (Saturday). How often has this been said: "Gonzaga needs to beat BYU (Saturday) to stay in contact in the WCC race"? Louisville has no margin for error in the ACC, so beating visiting Florida State (Saturday) is a must.
TCU needs a win against visiting Texas Tech (Saturday) to pad its resume. Clemson hosts North Carolina (Tuesday). Kansas State has a huge week ahead: hosting SUNFLOWER rival Kansas (Monday) and visiting tough West Virginia (Saturday). Texas A&M hosts Arkansas (Tuesday). UCLA looks to spoil the PAC-12 hopes of visiting arch-rival USC (Saturday).
Washington needs a big week to stay in contact in the PAC-12 when both Arizona State (Thursday) and Arizona (Saturday) come to town.
.
C-USA tri-leaders clash (Thursday) when Old Dominion hosts Middle Tennessee. Host Maryland-Baltimore County appears to be the only thing standing in the way (Saturday) of a second-straight undefeated run in the AMERICAN EAST for visiting Vermont. North Dakota State can shape the SUMMIT race with a big week: visiting South Dakota State (Thursday) and hosting South Dakota (Saturday). COLONIAL tri-leaders clash (Thursday) when Northeastern hosts College of Charleston. In the BIG WEST free-for-all: UC-Santa Barbara hosts Hawaii (Thursday) while Long Beach State hosts UC-Davis (Saturday). New Orleans hosts Nicholls (Saturday) in the SOUTHLAND free-for-all.
Penn hosts Yale (Saturday) as the IVY race begins to take shape. BIG SOUTH tri-leaders clash (Saturday) when Winthrop hosts Radford. Jacksonville hopes to stay in the A-SUN race when Florida Gulf Coast comes to town (Saturday). Arkansas-Pine Bluff hosts Jackson State (Monday) with first place in the SWAC on the line.
-- Ron
- Key games this week:
- Monday:
- Kansas-@KansasSt(KS), @
ARPine Bluff-JacksonSt,
- Tuesday:
- @Clemson-NCarolina, @TexasA&M-Arkansas, @KentSt-
Buffalo,
- Wednesday:
- @Virginia-Louisville, @Cincinnati-Houston,
- Thursday:
- @Villanova-Creighton, @Washington-ArizonaSt, @SoUtah-WeberSt(UT),
@OldDominion-MidTennessee, @SDState-NDState, @Northeastern-ColofCharleston, @UCSantaBarbara-Hawaii,
- Friday:
- RhodeIsland-@VCU,
- Saturday:
- Arizona-@Washington, @Florida-Alabama, TexasTech-@TCU(TX), @Gonzaga-BYU, @Louisville-FloridaSt, @WVirginia-KansasSt, @VirginiaTech-MiamiFL, @MDBaltimoreCo-Vermont,
@UCLA-USC(LosAngelesCA), @LaSalle-StJosephs(PhiladelphiaPA)(BIG5), @NDState-SDakota, @LongBeachSt-UCDavis(CA), @NewOrleans-Nicholls(LA), @Penn-Yale, @Winthrop-Radford, @Jacksonville-FLGulfCoast(FL), @SacredHeart-CConnecticutSt(CT)(CT6),
(new)NEW YORK-A HG CLASSIC 1Off @ NewYorkNY/MSG/
-(Duke-@StJohns),
- Sunday (SUPER BOWL LII)
- @Villanova-Seton Hall,
- - - - - - -
- Monday week:
- Monday week:
- @Oklahoma-WVirginia.
Top 25 - 18 Jan29: MIDCONFERENCE/Major - [] Column
- Virginia (20-1)
- Villanova (20-1) 5-PEATBIG5u
- Cincinnati (19-2)
- Purdue (21-2)
- St. Mary's (21-2)
- Auburn (19-2)
- Kansas (17-4) (vSEC)
- Rhode Island (17-3)
- Arizona (18-4)
- Florida (15-6) (vBIG12)
- Kentucky (16-5) (@BIG12)
- Texas Tech (17-4) (@SEC)
- Ohio State (18-5)
- Michigan State (20-3)
- Xavier (19-3)
- Gonzaga (19-4)
- Wichita State (17-4)
- Oklahoma (15-5)
- Duke (18-3)
- Nevada (18-4)
- North Carolina State (15-7)
- Louisville (16-5)
- Tennessee (15-5) (@BIG12)
- New Mexico State (16-3)
- Louisiana (17-3)
- Honorable Mention:
- Penn State (15-8), South Carolina (13-8), Wyoming (14-7), Miami (Florida) (15-5), TCU (15-6), Virginia Tech (15-6),
Alabama (14-7) (vBIG12).
East Tennessee State (16-4),
Buffalo(15-5),
Montana(14-5),
South Dakota(15-6).
posted by Ron @ Sunday, August 05, 2018
