Dec. 9-15, 2019
We have 1 feature game this week, an ACC/AAC showdown.
12/9/19-
Clemson (Charles Johnson) @
Tulsa (Will Brown) -- A nice little shootout here, as both teams shot over 40%. The difference was fouls and free throws. Tulsa committed 27 team fouls, allowing Clemson to go 26-35 from the line. Clemson on the other hand committed 10 team fouls, and Tulsa was 8-9 from the line. That 26-8 differential at the free throw line was almost the exact differential in the game.
Final Score: Clemson- 90, Tulsa- 71
Hartford (David Ginsberg) -- 4-3, 0-0 America East.
12/12/19 at Lehigh (L 82-70).
12/15/19 at Fordham (W 72-51).
A split for the Hawks, a road split no less. Both opponents this week have the potential to be playing in the postseason, so a pretty successful week.
ECU (Al Hutt) -- 3-4, 0-0 American.
12/10/19 vs. High Point (W 78-56).
12/12/19 at Minnesota (L 88-81).
A gallant effort for the Pirates, on the road against a team that is about to be ranked. This is an improved ECU team.
Tulsa (Will Brown) -- 3-3, 0-0 American.
12/9/19 vs. Clemson- feature game, highlighted above.
The Golden Hurricane are not a fan of the officiating crew they had against Clemson. Normally it's the home team that gets the benefit of the calls, but not this time.
Davidson (Randolph Childress) -- 3-3, 0-0 Atlantic 10.
12/9/19 vs. UNC Wilmington (W 85-63).
12/11/19 vs. Southern Illinois (W 73-64).
Good week for the Wildcats as they get back to .500 with a couple solid home victories.
Clemson (Charles Johnson) -- 3-3, 0-0 ACC.
12/9/19 at Tulsa- feature game, highlighted above.
12/11/19 vs. UNC Greensboro (L 53-49).
The Tigers split this week, but as mentioned above, they can thank a very aggressive Tulsa team and some questionable officiating in their win.
#22 Duke (Dean Hoo) -- 9-1, 0-0 ACC.
12/10/19 vs. Elon (W 77-59).
Just 1 game this week for the Blue Devils, but they take care of business and have 1 more game before the New Years Eve showdown with Kentucky.
Kansas (Dave Johnson) -- 5-3, 0-0 Big 12.
12/9/19 at Minnesota (L 94-51).
12/13/19 vs. Georgia State (W 85-76).
Yikes! When's the last time the Jayhawks were beaten that bad? Either KU is down, or Minnesota is just that damn good.
TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 5-3, 0-0 Big 12.
12/9/19 vs. Lamar (W 77-57).
12/13/19 vs. Montana State (W 103-94).
A nice shooting display for the Horned Frogs this weekend against subpar competition. They'll take all the wins they can get right now.
Michigan (Cillian Tribble) -- 2-6, 0-0 Big Ten.
12/12/19 at Wichita State (L 81-76, OT).
Just the 1 game this week for the Wolverines. If that were a real result, I'd love it. But since I'm rooting for all the FOFC teams to do well, curse you Wichita State!
Michigan State (Al Mighty) -- 5-3, 0-0 Big Ten.
12/11/19 vs. #11 Gonzaga (W 93-92, OT).
12/13/19 vs. Boston College (W 61-54).
Don't look now, but the Spartans have won 5 in a row after finishing dead last in their season tournament. They've got some players healthy, and Coach Mighty is just 1 win away from career win #100.
Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 5-4, 0-0 Big Ten.
12/15/19 at SMU (L 88-76).
The Wildcats played tough, but it was not to be, as they lost a tough one on the road in their only game of the week.
Hawaii (B.B. Gunn) -- 4-3, 0-0 Big West.
12/7/19 at UL Lafayette (W 64-52).
12/11/19 vs. Northeastern (L 78-68).
12/14/19 at Bowling Green (W 92-87, OT).
The Warriors certainly aren't doing it conventionally by winning on the road and losing at home, but things look good if they keep that pattern because their next 3 games are on the road.
Charlotte (Timmy Tribble) -- 2-6, 0-0 Conference USA.
12/21/19 at Georgetown (L 87-79).
12/14/19 at N.C. State (L 87-64).
The 49ers feel like they are just a couple players away from being able to handle their brutal yearly non-conference schedule. They play both teams tough but ran out of gas in both games.
Rice (Charlie Shocker) -- 3-3, 0-0 Conference USA.
12/11/19 vs. UT Arlington (W 65-56).
12/14/19 at La Salle (L 65-58).
A conventional split for the Owls who win at home and lose on the road.
Monmouth (Thomas Carrano) -- 4-3, 2-0 MAAC.
12/13/19 at Iona (W 63-62).
A tough road win for the Hawks this week. They are enjoying it, because they know this is the most wide open the MAAC has ever been.
Norfolk State (Payten Carrano) -- 1-7, 0-0 MEAC.
12/14/19 at James Madison (L 79-63).
1 game for the Spartans this week, and it's 4 losses in a row after they get hammered on the road.
Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 2-9, 0-0 Pac 12.
12/10/19 vs. Weber State (L 77-69).
12/13/19 at #17 Iowa (L 68-49).
12/15/19 at BYU (L 81-45).
My, my my! What is going on with the Buffaloes? Coach Nielsen has to get it figured out soon. Right now it's do get in the conference season or he may be looking for a new job. At the very least, his seat is getting warmer as the season goes on.
Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 4-3, 0-0 Pac 12.
12/9/19 at Nevada (W 58-46).
12/11/19 vs. Northern Illinois (L 68-60).
There's no excuse for the Cardinal to be losing to Northern Illinois. Sure, they are a good team, but Coach Sanchez has to have his team ready for that. He's also 1 win away from career win #100.
UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 4-1, 0-0 Pac 12.
No games this week for Coach Shepard and the Bruins.
Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 5-3, 0-0 Pac 12.
12/13/19 at North Carolina A&T (W 74-66).
1 more win for the Cougars on the road. They aren't big wins as far as point differential, but they are big for the Cougars anyways.
Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 6-1, 0-0 SEC.
12/10/19 vs. Nicholls State (W 65-52).
12/12/19 vs. Miami (OH) (W 115-104, OT).
12/14/19 vs. Alabama A&M (W 97-69).
The Crimson Tide do get all 3 of the wins they were expected to get this week, but 2 were tougher than expected. Now they have a grind their remaining 4 non-conference games, and we'll learn more about them quickly.
Florida (Noah Oppenheimer) -- 6-3, 0-0 SEC.
12/10/19 vs. Georgia Tech (W 85-69).
12/12/19 vs. Loyola MD (W 68-48).
Good week for the Gators with 2 victories. They seem to be getting it together, sans that loss to Miami. Coach Oppenheimer countdown begins as he is just 4 wins away from career win #100.
#4 Kentucky (Patrick Hutt) -- 7-0, 0-0 SEC.
12/10/19 vs. Buffalo (W 76-63).
12/14/19 at Northern Iowa (W 79-56).
RPI wise, those 2 wins for the Wildcats are huge, as Buffalo now has an RPI of 11. Northern Iowa's isn't as good at #171, but still, Kentucky continues to take care of business.
Troy (Brett Hawkins) -- 5-2, 0-0 Sun Belt.
12/11/19 at Evansville (L 75-74).
12/13/19 vs. Alcorn State (W 75-67).
An agonizing defeat for the Trojans against Evansville as they couldn't hold on to a late lead after trailing most of the game. They are still much improved, and the Sun Belt as per usual appears to be wide open, so we'll see.
Here's a look at the national top 25 heading into next week:
Code:
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
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1. North Carolina (72) 9-0 1800 1 Atlantic Coast Conference
2. Maryland 7-0 1718 2 Big Ten Conference
3. Kentucky 7-0 1614 4 Southeastern Conference
4. Baylor 9-1 1594 5 Big 12 Conference
5. Syracuse 7-0 1526 6 Atlantic Coast Conference
6. Vanderbilt 7-1 1416 10 Southeastern Conference
7. Indiana 7-0 1400 9 Big Ten Conference
8. Iowa State 7-1 1274 3 Big 12 Conference
9. New Mexico 8-0 1183 12 Mountain West Conference
10. Illinois 7-1 1114 18 Big Ten Conference
11. Iowa 3-1 949 17 Big Ten Conference
12. Duke 9-1 860 22 Atlantic Coast Conference
13. Texas 7-1 806 8 Big 12 Conference
14. Louisville 7-2 800 20 Atlantic Coast Conference
15. Ohio State 6-2 692 24 Big Ten Conference
16. California 7-1 673 NR Pacific-12 Conference
17. Minnesota 6-1 615 NR Big Ten Conference
18. Arizona 5-2 531 7 Pacific-12 Conference
19. SMU 7-1 335 NR American Athletic Conference
20. Notre Dame 7-1 288 NR Atlantic Coast Conference
21. Florida State 7-1 260 25 Atlantic Coast Conference
22. Marquette 7-1 199 14 Big East Conference
23. DePaul 4-1 189 NR Big East Conference
24. Seton Hall 6-1 182 NR Big East Conference
25. South Carolina 6-1 166 NR Southeastern Conference
Others Receiving Votes:
Texas A&M 6-2 148 Southeastern Conference
Alabama 6-1 119 Southeastern Conference
Wisconsin 6-2 106 Big Ten Conference
UC Santa Barbara 7-1 99 Big West Conference
VCU 4-1 82 Southeastern Conference
UTEP 7-1 78 Conference USA
Providence 7-1 74 Big East Conference
Connecticut 7-2 67 American Athletic Conference
Dayton 6-1 53 Atlantic 10 Conference
Niagara 9-1 47 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Portland 7-1 47 West Coast Conference
Nebraska 6-1 40 Big Ten Conference
Richmond 5-1 38 Atlantic 10 Conference
Virginia Tech 5-1 31 Atlantic Coast Conference
USC Upstate 6-1 30 Atlantic Sun Conference
Missouri State 7-1 28 Missouri Valley Conference
UCLA 4-1 23 Pacific-12 Conference
Rutgers 6-1 22 Big Ten Conference
Oakland 6-1 20 Horizon League
Cal State Bakersfield 6-1 19 Western Athletic Conference
Drake 7-1 14 Missouri Valley Conference
Western Michigan 6-1 11 Mid-American Conference
Mississippi 4-1 9 Southeastern Conference
Virginia 5-2 6 Atlantic Coast Conference
Howard 6-1 4 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
UAB 4-1 1 Conference USA
Kentucky moves up a spot to #3, but one of the 2 teams ahead of them are gonna have to lose if the Wildcats are to move up higher. Not sure how a win over Elon equates to a 10 spot rise for Duke, but so be it. Alabama gets a lot of votes after beating up on 3 putz opponents, and the week layoff didn't hurt UCLA much, they still have some votes.
Now for the mid-major top 25 going into next week:
Code:
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. New Mexico (72) 8-0 1800 2 Mountain West Conference
2. SMU 7-1 1592 6 American Athletic Conference
3. UC Santa Barbara 7-1 1587 3 Big West Conference
4. UTEP 7-1 1504 10 Conference USA
5. Portland 7-1 1325 24 West Coast Conference
6. Connecticut 7-2 1299 18 American Athletic Conference
7. Dayton 6-1 1281 15 Atlantic 10 Conference
8. Drake 7-1 1237 17 Missouri Valley Conference
9. Missouri State 7-1 1213 13 Missouri Valley Conference
10. Niagara 9-1 1195 14 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
11. Oakland 6-1 1038 11 Horizon League
12. Wichita State 4-1 1009 NR Missouri Valley Conference
13. USC Upstate 6-1 967 NR Atlantic Sun Conference
14. Western Michigan 6-1 907 19 Mid-American Conference
15. Howard 6-1 880 5 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
16. Richmond 5-1 862 21 Atlantic 10 Conference
17. Dartmouth 4-1 626 NR Ivy League
18. South Dakota State 5-1 623 4 Summit League
19. Cal State Bakersfield 6-1 615 NR Western Athletic Conference
20. UAB 4-1 589 NR Conference USA
21. Boise State 5-2 388 NR Mountain West Conference
22. Gonzaga 7-2 289 1 West Coast Conference
23. Cincinnati 7-2 191 NR American Athletic Conference
24. Saint Mary's 7-2 133 NR West Coast Conference
25. South Florida 7-2 72 9 American Athletic Conference
Others Receiving Votes:
Temple 6-2 45 American Athletic Conference
Northern Illinois 5-2 26 Mid-American Conference
Louisiana Monroe 5-2 25 Sun Belt Conference
Eastern Michigan 6-2 15 Mid-American Conference
San Jose State 6-2 14 Mountain West Conference
Utah State 6-2 12 Mountain West Conference
Florida A&M 5-2 11 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Fordham 5-2 11 Atlantic 10 Conference
Furman 5-2 6 Southern Conference
Saint Joseph's 5-2 4 Atlantic 10 Conference
Texas A&M Corpus Christi 5-2 4 Southland Conference
Cal State Fullerton 5-2 2 Big West Conference
Appalachian State 4-2 1 Sun Belt Conference
Kennesaw State 5-2 1 Atlantic Sun Conference
North Dakota State 4-2 1 Summit League
Troy loses all their mid-major votes following a 1 point loss to Evansville. I disagree with that completely. I have a hard time making sense out of the polls on this game.