Jan. 29-Feb. 4, 2018
4 feature games for you this week, so we'll get started with those.
1/29/18-
#7 Kansas (Dave Johnson) @
TCU (Bee Mighty) -- About what we expected in this one. TCU played it close for a few minutes, but it was all Jayhawks. Kansas shot 51.6% and held TCU to just 36.2% shooting as they roll to a road victory.
Final Score: #7 Kansas- 87, TCU- 60
1/31/18-
#12 Michigan State (Al Mighty) @
#24 Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- The first half was the difference in this one, as Northwestern could not get it going and trailed by 14 at halftime. They fought back valiantly in the second half, but it was too much Sparty in this one.
Final Score: #12 Michigan State- 56, #24 Northwestern- 50
2/3/18-
Michigan (Cillian Tribble) @
#12 Michigan State (Al Mighty) -- The Wolverines have done it again! Despite turning the ball over 16 times, Michigan was 43.9% from the field and made 5 more shots than Sparty. This was enough to give Michigan a road upset over their in-state rivals for the second straight season.
Final Score: Michigan- 68, #12 Michigan State- 63
2/3/18-
#23 Florida (Noah Oppenheimer) @
Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- The Crimson Tide raced out to a 12 point halftime lead and played their best game of the season. Despite neither team shooting well and Florida making 6 more shots, Alabama got to the free throw line more often, and made more free throws to get a big, big win.
Final Score: Alabama- 61, #23 Florida- 60
Now to the rest of the weekly recap:
Hartford (David Ginsberg) -- 13-12, 5-6 T-4th America East.
1/31/18 vs. New Hampshire (L 78-57).
Just 1 game for the Hawks this week, but it was yet another loss, and that makes 3 in a row.
ECU (Al Hutt) -- 7-13, 4-7 8th American.
1/31/18 at Tulane (W 74-64).
2/3/18 vs. Houston (L 61-48).
A split for the Pirates, who are playing better basketball as of late.
Tulsa (Will Brown) -- 15-8, 7-4 T-4th American.
1/31/18 at SMU (W 74-58).
2/3/18 vs. Memphis (L 96-70).
A split for the Golden Hurricane, who get a nice road win at SMU, then get blasted by Memphis.
Davidson (Randolph Childress) -- 17-5, 9-1 T-1st Atlantic 10.
1/31/18 at UMass (W 61-60).
2/3/18 vs. St. Louis (W 81-52).
Getting the win at UMass was big, as there are really only a couple tough games left for the Wildcats in the regular season.
Clemson (Charles Johnson) -- 10-11, 4-7 11th ACC.
1/31/18 at Georgia Tech (W 78-65).
2/3/18 at Florida State (W 61-57).
Nice week for the Tigers who got a couple big road wins, including one over a hot Florida State team.
Duke (Dean Hoo) -- 11-10, 3-8 ACC.
1/31/18 vs. #16 Syracuse (L 94-63).
2/3/18 at Pittsburgh (L 53-40).
The slide continues for the Blue Devils, who are really struggling. That 31 point blowout loss to Syracuse has people wondering if Coach Hoo is the answer.
#7 Kansas (Dave Johnson) - 18-5, 9-2 2nd Big 12.
1/29/18 at TCU- feature game, highlighted above.
2/3/18 at #17 Iowa State (L 87-79).
A split for the Jayhawks on the road, a bit of a shocking loss to Iowa State, but next week they get a rematch with Oklahoma, who handed them their first conference loss.
TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 9-14, 1-10 10th (last) Big 12.
1/29/18 vs. #7 Kansas (L 87-60).
2/3/18 vs. Kansas State (L 65-62).
Well, the 3 points loss is the closest game the Horned Frogs have played in quite a while, and it sure won't get easier in the Big 12.
Michigan (Cillian Tribble) -- 12-10, 5-5 T-6th Big Ten.
1/31/18 at #1 Ohio State (L 89-60).
2/3/18 at #12 Michigan State- feature game, highlighted above.
A big win for the Wolverines at Michigan State, for the second straight season they win a game against their in-state rivals. No shame in losing to Ohio State. After all, everyone else has this season.
#12 Michigan State (Al Mighty) -- 19-3, 9-1 2nd Big Ten.
1/31/18 at #24 Northwestern- feature game, highlighted above.
2/3/18 vs. Michigan- feature game, highlighted above.
A split for the Spartans this week, and they won't take too kindly to losing to their in-state rivals, again.
#24 Northwestern (Ess Vee) -- 16-5, 5-5 T-6th Big Ten.
1/31/18 vs. #12 Michigan State- feature game, highlighted above.
2/3/18 vs. Maryland (L 70-68).
Not the best of weeks for the Wildcats. They played tough in both their losses, but they don't need losses to prove they are turning the corner. They need to not fade now, it's been a heck of a season for them so far.
Hawaii (B.B. Gunn) -- 13-10, 6-3 T-1st Big West.
1/30/18 vs. UC Davis (W 70-56).
2/3/18 at Long Beach State (W 71-63).
Good week for the Warriors, who are back on a 4 game winning streak. Fortunately, nobody is really walking away in the conference, so it's still up for grabs.
Charlotte (Timmy Tribble) -- 6-16, 3-7 T-11th Conference USA.
2/1/18 at Louisiana Tech (L 63-53).
2/3/18 vs. Old Dominion (L 68-57).
2 more losses for the 49ers who continue to struggle after that upset win over UAB.
Rice (Charlie Shocker) -- 10-11, 4-6 T-9th Conference USA.
2/1/18 vs. UTEP (L 79-58).
2/3/18 vs. Middle Tennessee (L 98-85).
Can't say I didn't see these 2 losses coming, as you're dealing with 2 of the best in the conference here. Winnable games coming up next week for the Owls.
Monmouth (Thomas Carrano) -- 13-12, 10-6 T-3rd MAAC.
2/2/18 vs. Quinnipiac (W 60-58).
2/4/18 vs. Iona (W 71-70).
2 big wins for the Hawks, even though it was by a combined 3 points. Doesn't matter how you do it, as long as you win. This gives them a small lifeline for postseason play.
Norfolk State (Payten Carrano) -- 10-12, 5-4 T-4th MEAC.
1/29/18 at Niagara (L 65-53).
2/3/18 at Hampton (W 52-47).
Let's face it, the Spartans only method of getting to the postseason is by winning the conference, so winning the conference game against Hampton this week means more than losing the non-conference game to Niagara.
Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 12-9, 7-3 T-2nd Pac 12.
2/1/18 at Washington (L 60-49).
2/3/18 vs. Arizona State (W 70-61).
A split for the Buffaloes, who can't be losing to single digit win teams at this point in the season, especially if they want to see the postseason again.
Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 16-6, 7-3 T-2nd Pac 12.
2/1/18 vs. Oregon (L 68-66).
2/3/18 at Oregon State (W 65-58).
The Cardinal also split this week, losing a tough one to Oregon. Given the fact they didn't get any respect last season, splits are not what they need.
#9 UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 19-3, 9-1 1st Pac 12.
2/1/18 at Arizona (W 81-50).
2/3/18 vs. California (L 62-54).
Well, at least the Bruins didn't wait until the last week of the season to lose their first conference loss, unlike last season. But wow, losing to an 8 win team? That can hurt their seeding, especially if it happens again.
Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 13-9, 5-5 T-3rd Pac 12.
2/1/18 vs. California (W 68-52).
2/3/18 at Utah (L 77-67).
Another split for the Cougars, as they see their brief 3 game winning streak come to an end. How crazy is it that a 5-5 team is tied for 3rd in the conference? Just goes to show how much parity there is in the Pac 12 this season.
Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 11-11, 6-4 T-5th SEC.
1/31/18 at Missouri (W 70-40).
2/3/18 vs. #23 Florida- feature game, highlighted above.
Good week for the Crimson Tide, who are trying to make a late push in the conference. Starting a nice winning streak would certainly help.
#23 Florida (Noah Oppenheimer) -- 15-7, 5-5 T-7th SEC.
1/31/18 at Ole Miss (W 78-68).
2/3/18 at Alabama- feature game, highlighted above.
Tough week for the Gators, losing to Alabama could hurt their bubble chances.
#5 Kentucky (Patrick Hutt) -- 19-3, 8-2 1st SEC.
1/31/18 at LSU (W 87-62).
2/3/18 at Auburn (W 94-71).
The Wildcats take care of business on the road and have what should be 3 easy wins in their next 3 games before they meet up with VCU.
Troy (Brett Hawkins) -- 8-15, 5-9 9th Sun Belt.
2/1/18 at Texas State (W 68-50).
Just 1 game for the Trojans this week, as they get a nice win against an overmatched team.
Here's a look at the national top 25 heading into next week:
Code:
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Ohio State (72) 23-0 1800 1 Big Ten Conference
2. Virginia 21-2 1720 2 Atlantic Coast Conference
3. Baylor 22-2 1633 4 Big 12 Conference
4. Kentucky 19-3 1557 5 Southeastern Conference
5. Gonzaga 24-0 1538 6 West Coast Conference
6. Wichita State 22-2 1421 8 Missouri Valley Conference
7. Villanova 19-3 1409 3 Big East Conference
8. Kansas 18-5 1299 7 Big 12 Conference
9. UCLA 19-3 1204 9 Pacific-12 Conference
10. Marquette 18-5 1173 11 Big East Conference
11. Iowa State 18-5 1017 17 Big 12 Conference
12. VCU 17-5 918 10 Southeastern Conference
13. Cincinnati 19-4 913 14 American Athletic Conference
14. La Salle 20-2 878 15 Atlantic 10 Conference
15. Syracuse 17-5 770 16 Atlantic Coast Conference
16. Michigan State 19-3 763 12 Big Ten Conference
17. Richmond 19-4 737 18 Atlantic 10 Conference
18. Illinois State 21-3 532 19 Missouri Valley Conference
19. Illinois 17-5 529 21 Big Ten Conference
20. Wisconsin 17-6 344 13 Big Ten Conference
21. Oklahoma 15-8 339 22 Big 12 Conference
22. Miami 16-7 226 20 Atlantic Coast Conference
23. Cleveland State 17-7 207 25 Horizon League
24. Stephen F. Austin 19-3 177 NR Southland Conference
25. Memphis 19-4 123 NR American Athletic Conference
Others Receiving Votes:
Notre Dame 16-6 60 Atlantic Coast Conference
Davidson 17-5 59 Atlantic 10 Conference
Middle Tennessee 18-4 21 Conference USA
Old Dominion 18-4 12 Conference USA
Florida State 16-6 5 Atlantic Coast Conference
North Carolina 15-7 5 Atlantic Coast Conference
Northwestern 16-5 4 Big Ten Conference
Connecticut 16-6 3 American Athletic Conference
Stanford 16-6 2 Pacific-12 Conference
Florida 15-7 1 Southeastern Conference
Northeastern 18-5 1 Colonial Athletic Association
Kentucky moves up 1 spot after blasting 2 opponents this week while Kansas moves down 1 spot. UCLA stays the same, and Michigan State moves down 4 spots after their upset loss to Michigan. Davidson needs to win a few more games to crack the top 25, while Northwestern, Stanford, and Florida need to win all their games next week just to keep receiving votes.
Now for the mid-major top 25:
Code:
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Gonzaga (40) 24-0 1768 2 West Coast Conference
2. Wichita State (32) 22-2 1760 1 Missouri Valley Conference
3. Cincinnati 19-4 1655 3 American Athletic Conference
4. La Salle 20-2 1532 4 Atlantic 10 Conference
5. Richmond 19-4 1523 5 Atlantic 10 Conference
6. Illinois State 21-3 1406 7 Missouri Valley Conference
7. Cleveland State 17-7 1405 6 Horizon League
8. Davidson 17-5 1275 8 Atlantic 10 Conference
9. Memphis 19-4 1248 10 American Athletic Conference
10. Middle Tennessee 18-4 1133 9 Conference USA
11. Stephen F. Austin 19-3 1031 11 Southland Conference
12. Connecticut 16-6 983 13 American Athletic Conference
13. Old Dominion 18-4 862 14 Conference USA
14. Northeastern 18-5 748 20 Colonial Athletic Association
15. Rhode Island 16-6 734 24 Atlantic 10 Conference
16. UTEP 16-5 551 NR Conference USA
17. Belmont 17-7 431 NR Ohio Valley Conference
18. Harvard 17-6 402 NR Ivy League
19. Oakland 18-5 395 NR Horizon League
20. South Dakota State 18-6 341 NR Summit League
21. UNLV 14-8 302 21 Mountain West Conference
22. Dayton 16-6 244 16 Atlantic 10 Conference
23. Colorado State 16-6 222 12 Mountain West Conference
24. San Diego State 12-9 211 NR Mountain West Conference
25. Manhattan 19-7 184 NR Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Others Receiving Votes:
Massachusetts 14-8 173 Atlantic 10 Conference
Boise State 15-7 159 Mountain West Conference
Quinnipiac 18-6 92 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference
Stony Brook 18-6 78 America East Conference
Sam Houston State 17-4 76 Southland Conference
Louisiana Tech 15-6 71 Conference USA
BYU 14-10 66 West Coast Conference
North Florida 18-5 66 Atlantic Sun Conference
Mercer 17-6 64 Southern Conference
American 17-6 63 Patriot League
SMU 15-8 50 American Athletic Conference
Temple 15-7 24 American Athletic Conference
High Point 18-7 23 Big South Conference
Tulsa 15-8 18 American Athletic Conference
Eastern Kentucky 17-6 7 Ohio Valley Conference
Drexel 16-6 6 Colonial Athletic Association
Buffalo 14-9 4 Mid-American Conference
North Carolina Central 16-7 4 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Northern Iowa 16-9 3 Missouri Valley Conference
Duquesne 15-8 2 Atlantic 10 Conference
Green Bay 16-7 2 Horizon League
UAB 15-7 2 Conference USA
Lehigh 18-7 1 Patriot League
Davidson stays put at #8 in the mid-majors, and Tulsa is still receiving a few votes.
It's that time of year again, Bubble Watch time. 2 of our FOFC teams are listed in the first Overall Bubble Watch.
Code:
Team Record RPI vs. 1-50 vs. 51-100 vs. 101-200 vs. 200+ SOS Projected
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Indiana 14-8 .577 (40) 5-6 1-1 1-0 7-1 63 In
SMU 15-8 .589 (34) 1-3 2-3 6-2 6-0 48 In
Duquesne 15-8 .563 (55) 2-3 1-3 5-1 7-1 84 In
Stanford 16-6 .555 (68) 2-4 2-0 11-2 1-0 161 In
UNLV 14-8 .598 (24) 1-2 0-3 7-3 6-0 21 In
Massachusetts 14-8 .565 (54) 1-5 3-1 2-1 8-1 66 In
Lafayette 15-9 .559 (61) 0-2 3-2 4-4 8-1 104 In
Memphis 19-4 .553 (72) 0-2 6-0 3-1 10-1 247 In
Quinnipiac 18-6 .553 (71) 1-0 3-2 6-3 8-1 222 Out
Xavier 13-8 .561 (59) 4-2 2-5 3-1 4-0 58 Out
Georgia 13-8 .610 (17) 2-6 2-2 6-0 3-0 10 Out
Northern Iowa 16-9 .551 (79) 2-4 5-0 4-4 5-1 91 Out
Northwestern 16-5 .524 (120) 3-3 0-0 4-2 9-0 281 Out
Tulsa 15-8 .548 (84) 3-2 5-2 3-2 4-2 145 Out
Temple 15-7 .544 (90) 2-2 2-2 1-3 10-0 148 Out
The SOS is really hurting Stanford, but 4-4 against the RPI top 100 is helping. If not for the terrible SOS, we probably wouldn't even be mentioning Stanford as a bubble team.
Northwestern on the other hand, has the worst RPI and SOS among all the bubble teams, yet they are still 3-3 against teams in the top 100, and even better, that's actually 3-3 against the top 50. But still, they will need at least 1 or 2 more marquee wins to be considered a tournament team.
Now for the rest of the teams:
Lock: Davidson, Kansas, Michigan State, UCLA, Kentucky, Florida
All the other teams are projected out. Keep in mind, this is for the NCAA Tournament only.