Hoop, Line And Sinker

A weekly column on men's college basketball.

Sunday, November 03, 2019

19 Jan28 - When Is A Win Not A Win? (MIDCONFERENCE/Minor)

Volume XXIII, No. 13 - 19 Jan28: MIDCONFERENCE/Minor - [] Top 25 Ballot

When Is A Win Not A Win?

The final CONFERENCE CHALLENGE took place with the BIG 12 edging out the SEC 6-4 thanks to the sole road win by Iowa State past host Mississippi (87-@73 shooting 69 percent [on 26 assists] as tTalen Horton-Tucker[23p5a8r] starred). But it's the SEC who was the winner in The Big Picture - - it had the two best (home) wins; four of its losses were by 5 points or less; three of its best teams (LSU, Mississippi State and Auburn [along with Missouri]) didn't even play; and, in fact, its overall rating went up (edging just ahead of the BIG 12 itself for third place [behind the BIG 10 and ACC] in the final interleague calculations).
     Kentucky's team effort bested Kansas (@71-63 despite 20p15r from cDedric Lawson) while lowly Texas A&M stunned Kansas State (@65-53). Unheralded Georgia outran up-and-down Texas (@98-88 shooting 67 percent from the floor) while TCU edged up-and-down Florida (@55-50). Baylor and Texas Tech had more trouble than expected at home against Alabama (@73-68) and Arkansas (@67-64). Disappointing Oklahoma State edged suprising South Carolina (@74-70). Only Tennessee and Oklahoma rolled at home against lowly teams West Virginia (@83-66) and Vanderbilt (@86-55 despite 24p3a8r6to from tSaben Lee).

Michigan State "only" managed to go 2-1 against three ranked opponents: first, the Spartans handled Maryland (@69-55) and then, road-routed Iowa (82-@67 sinking 20-for-21 free throws); but it was Purdue who finally took down MichSt (@73-63 despite 23p8a7r from pCassius Winston). Maryland fell to lowly Illinois (67-78) at the BIG 10 SUPER SATURDAY specialty event at MADISON SQUARE GARDEN. Iowa also dropped a second game, coming up short at Minnesota (87-@92 as xJordan Murphy[23p11r6a] starred). Nebraska dropped two: falling away at mediocre Rutgers (69-@76) and at home to Ohio State (@60-70). Indiana fell twice as well: at Northwestern (66-@73) and tanked at home to Michigan (@46-69 only shooting 3-for-20 on three-pointer). Mich also edged Minnesota (@59-57 on Charles Matthew's game-winner).
     Inside the BIG 12, Kansas edged Iowa State (@80-76 as cDedric Lawson[29p15r] outdueled 26p6r from bMarial Shayok); Kansas State stopped Texas Tech (@58-45 despite 17p3a7r5s from bJarrett Culver) and TCU edged Texas (@65-61).
     In the MID-AMERICAN, Buffalo tripped at mediocre Northern Illinois (75-@77 on Noah McCarthy's game-winner) but bounced back win on the road at Kent State. Toledo couldn't follow suit, tripping in overtime at KentSt (85-@87[OT] on bJaylin Walker[36p5r]'s star turn).
     In the ACC, North Carolina outran Virginia Tech (@103-82 sinking 16-for-34 on threes as pCoby White[27p6a7r] outdueled 19p17r5a from cKerry Blackshear Jr.). VaTech bounced back to dump Syracuse (@78-56 on pJustin Robinson[35p8a]'s star turn). Louisville beat North Carolina State (@84-77 sinking 24-for-29 free throws).
     Inside the SEC, slumping Mississippi tanked at Alabama (53-@73). Slumping Auburn fell twice: tripping at South Carolina (77-@80 on cChris Silva[32p14r]'s star turn) and falling at Mississippi State (84-@92 as Quinndary Weatherspoon[27p5to] led the way). Earlier, rising Kentucky dumped MissSt (@76-55 allowing 3-for-20 on threes).
     In the BIG EAST, fading St. John's fell at home to Georgetown (@78-89 as pMac McClung[25p5a5r] starred). Villanova dumped slumping Seton Hall (@82-50 as pPhil Booth[25p5a5r] starred).

In the AMERICAN, Memphis dumped UCF (@77-57) while Cincinnati edged Temple on the road (72-@68 dominating the boards 46-22 on tJarron Cumberland[25p3a8r]'s star turn).
     In the SOUTHERN, Furman tripped at home to Samford (@73-75 on Robert Allen's game-winning three).
     In the PACIFIC-12, Arizona State tripped at USC (67-@69); but it was rising Washington who opened a gap in the standings with two big road wins: edging host Oregon (61-@56) and beating host Oregon State (79-@69).
     In the MISSOURI VALLEY, perplexing Loyola(Illinois) tanked at mediocre Missouri State (35-@70 as the MS/Bears dominated the boards 28-9). Meanwhile, Drake won on the road at Valpariaso (70-@59 as bD.J. Wilkins[20p4a6r5to] led the way).
     Yale completed the sweep of Brown (@79-71 as xMiye Oni[15p4a12r] dueled 24p15r5a from xTamenang Choh).

In the competitive OHIO VALLEY, Belmont posted two big road wins: handling Murray State (79-@66) and edging Austin Peay (96-@92 as cDylan Windler[23p12r] starred).
     In the SUN BELT, Texas State managed a split in its toughest week of the season: first, winning the showdown for first place on the road at Georgia State (81-@68 behind gNijal Pearson[27p]) but then tanking in the follow-up at Georgia Southern (58-@74 despite 25p6r from bTre'Larenz Nottingham).
     In the ATLANTIC 10, VCU fell at Rhode Island (65-@71) but bounced back to win on the road at Duquesne. Slumping St. Louis tripped away at Duq (73-@77) and at home to Davidson (@53-54 on Jon Axel Gudmundsson[27p]'s game-winning free throws).
     In the jumble that is CONFERENCE USA, Old Dominion tripped at Texas-San Antonio (73-@74) while North Texas tripped at home against UAB (@49-52). Louisiana Tech won twice: edging Marshall (@89-80[TO] as pDaQuan Bracey[26p6a6r] dueled 29p12r from xC.J. Burks) and handling Western Kentucky (@62-50). Meanwhile, WeKy beat Marsh (@68-59 on gJosh Anderson[25p5r5to]'s star turn) and Marsh made it an 0-3 week, tanking at mediocre Southern Mississippi (51-@101).
     In the BIG WEST, UC-Irvine edged Hawaii in overtime on the road (75-@74[OT] on Max Hazzard's game-winner).
     In the PATRIOT, Bucknell fell at mediocre American (68-@76).

In the SOUTHLAND, Abilene Christian tripped at Sam Houston State (60-@61).
     In the NORTHEAST, St. Francis(New York) tripped at Fairleigh Dickinson (58-@60 on pJahlil Jenkins[16p6a6r]'s game-winner).
     In AMERICA EAST, Vermont fell at home against Maryland-Baltimore County (@61-74) but bounced back to road-dump Stony Brook (73-@52 as bErnie Duncan[25p3a5r] starred).
     In the METRO ATLANTIC, Rider fell at Iona (71-@77 as tRickey McGill[19p7a9r7to] led the way).
     In the BIG SKY, Montana beat Weber State (@75-68 as cJamar Akoh[25p10r] starred).
     In the MEAC, North Carolina Central tripped at home against North Carolina A&T (@48-51).
     In the SWAC, slumping Grambling lost twice: tanking at Prairie View A&M (66-@86 committing 26 turnovers) and tripping at home to lowly Jackson State (@63-65).

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Penn completed the job, beating St. Joseph's (@78-70) at The PALESTRA to finish 4-0 and earn its first BIG 5 City Series title since 2002!!!

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It's the midconference break (give or take a game) for some leagues.
     In the 20-game BIG 10, Michigan and Michigan State both tied for first; Purdue was third; Maryland and Wisconsin tied for fourth; Minnesota skirted .500 for sixth; Iowa hung in for seventh. (Ohio State, Indiana and Rutgers as well as Nebraska all were flops. Penn State was winless.)
     In the SOUTHERN, Wofford came through unbeaten; UNC-Greensboro was second; East Tennessee State was third. Two games back, Furman and Chattanooga both hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth.
     In the MISSOURI VALLEY, Loyola(Illinois) came through in first place; Drake and Illinois State both were tied for second; Valparaiso, Missouri State and Northern Iowa all hung in, skirting .500, tied for fourth. (Bradley was a flop.)
     In the OHIO VALLEY, Murray State and Jacksonville State both came through tied for first; Belmont and Austin Peay both tied for third; Eastern Illinois was fifth; Morehead State hung in for fifth.
     In the SUN BELT, Texas State and Georgia State both came through tied for first place; Georgia Southern and Texas-Arlington as well as Louisiana, Louisiana-Monroe and Coastal Carolina all were tied for third.
     In the COLONIAL, Hofstra came through unbeaten WITH A THREE-GAME GAP. Delaware and Northeastern both tied for second; College of Charleston hung in for fourth.
     In the HORIZON, Northern Kentucky came through in first place with a two-game gap. Wright State and Oakland both tied for second; IUPUI and Detroit both hung in, tied for fourth.
     In CONFERENCE USA, North Texas, UAB and Texas-San Antonio all came through tied for first; Old Dominion and Marshall both tied for fourth; Louisiana Tech, Florida International and Western Kentucky all hung in, tied for sixth. (Florida Atlantic couldn't hang.)
     In the PATRIOT, Lehigh, Bucknell and Army-West Point all came through tied for first. Two games back, Colgate, American and Loyola(Maryland) all hung in, tied for fourth. (Holy Cross couldn't hang. Boston University was a flop.)
     In the SUMMIT LEAGUE, South Dakota State came through in first place; Omaha was second; Purdue-Fort Wayne was third; North Dakota State and Oral Roberts both hung in at .500, tied for fourth. (South Dakota couldn't hang.)
     In the ATLANTIC SUN, Lipscomb and Liberty both were unbeaten. Two games back, New Jersey Tech was third; {North Alabama} skirted .500 for fourth. (Kennesaw State and Stetson both were winless.)
     In the NORTHEAST, Robert Morris came through in first place with a two-game gap; St. Francis(New York) was second; Long Island, Wagner, Fairleigh Dickinson, St. Francis(Pennsylvania), Sacred Heart and Bryant all hung in, tied for third.

- - - - - -

Duke hosts St. John's (Saturday) in the final interconference matchup of the year. Michigan hosts Ohio State (Tuesday). Purdue hosts Minnesota (Sunday). Iowa State hosts Texas (Saturday). Texas Tech has a big week: hosting TCU (Monday) and visiting Kansas (Saturday). Houston hosts Temple (Thursday). Louisville looks for the sweep when North Carolina comes to town (Saturday).
     North Carolina State has a big week: hosting Virginia (Tuesday) and Virginia Tech (Saturday). Iowa hosts Michigan (Friday). Wisconsin has a big week: visiting Nebraska (Tuesday) and hosting Maryland (Friday). Mississippi State hosts Mississippi (Saturday). Baylor has a big week: visiting Oklahoma (Monday) and hosting TCU (Saturday).
Texas hosts Kansas (Tuesday). Arizona State hosts Arizona (Thursday).
     Utah hosts Oregon (Thursday). Illinois State has a big week: visiting Drake (Wednesday) and hosting Loyola(Illinois) (Saturday). Harvard hosts Yale (Friday).
     Jacksonville State has a big week: hosting Murray State (Thursday) and hosting Austin Peay (Saturday). Old Dominion hosts North Texas (Thursday). UC-Santa Barbara has a big week: hosting UC-Irvine (Thursday) and visiting Hawaii (Saturday). Army-West Point hosts Lehigh (Saturday).
     Liberty has a big week: hosting Lipscomb (Tuesday) and hosting New Jersey Tech (Saturday). Winthrop hosts Radford (Saturday). Maryland-Baltimore County hosts Stony Brook (Wednesday).

-- Ron
Key games this week:
Monday:
@TexasTech-TCU(TX), @Oklahoma-Baylor, @ARPineBluff-PrairieViewA&M,
Tuesday:
Virginia-@NCState, @Michigan-OhioSt, Kansas-@Texas, @Nebraska-Wisconsin, @Liberty-Lipscomb,
Wednesday:
@Drake-IllinoisSt, @GardnerWebb-HighPt(NC), @MDBaltimoreCo-StonyBrook, @Niagara-Canisius(NY)(BIG4),
Thursday:
@Houston-Temple, @JacksonvilleSt-MurraySt, @ArizonaSt-Arizona(AZ), @Utah-Oregon, @OldDominion-NTexas, @UCSantaBarbara-UCIrvine(CA), @RobertMorris-StFrancisPA(PA),
Friday:
Michigan-@Iowa, @Wisconsin-Maryland, @Harvard-Yale,
Saturday:
@Duke-StJohns, @Kansas-TexasTech, @IowaSt-Texas, NCarolina-@Louisville, Hofstra-@Northeastern, @NCState-VirginiaTech, @Baylor-TCU(TX), @MississippiSt-Mississippi(MS), @IllinoisSt-LoyolaIL(IL), @Harvard-Brown, @JacksonvilleSt-AustinPeay, @GeorgiaSt-GeorgiaSo(GA), @Hawaii-UCSantaBarbara, @ArmyWP-Lehigh, @Liberty-NJIT, @Winthrop-Radford, @StonyBrook-Hartford, @BethuneCookman-NCCentral, @CoppinSt-MorganSt(BaltimoreMD), @GramblingSt-ARPineBluff,
Sunday (SUPER BOWL LIII @ Atlanta, GA /M-BENZ/)
@Purdue-Minnesota,
- - - - - -
Monday week:
@VirginiaTech-Louisville, @Oklahoma-IowaSt, @Lehigh-Colgate.



Top 25 - 19 Jan28: MIDCONFERENCE/Minor - [] Column
  1. Duke (17-2)
  2. Tennessee (17-1) (vBIG12)
  3. Michigan State (18-3)
  4. Gonzaga (18-2)
  5. Virginia (18-1)
  6. Michigan (19-1)
  7. Purdue (14-6)
  8. Kentucky (16-3) (vBIG12)
  9. Kansas (16-4)
  10. Iowa State (15-5) (@SEC)
  11. Marquette (18-3)
  12. Louisiana State (16-3)
  13. Kansas State (15-5)
  14. Texas Tech (16-4) (vSEC)
  15. North Carolina (15-4)
  16. Virginia Tech (16-3)
  17. Houston (20-1)
  18. Villanova (16-4)
  19. Cincinnati (18-3)
  20. Buffalo (17-2)
  21. Nevada (18-1)
  22. Louisville (15-5)
  23. Washington (16-4)
  24. Wofford (14-4)
  25. Hofstra (18-3)
Honorable Mention:
Illinois (6-14), Texas A&M (8-10) (vBIG12), Minnesota (15-5), Northern Illinois (12-9).

Pennsylvania (11-6).

Loyola(Illinois) (12-8),
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Murray State (14-3)/Jacksonville State (15-6),
Texas State (15-4)/Georgia State (14-6),
Northern Kentucky (16-4),
North Texas (15-3)/UAB (14-7)/Texas-San Antonio (12-9),
Lehigh (13-7)/Bucknell (12-8)/Army-West Point (11-10),
South Dakota State (16-6),
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Lipscomb (14-4),
Robert Morris (12-9).