Jan. 2-8, 2017
1 feature game to tell you about this week, as we head to the Big Ten.
1/7/17-
#1 Michigan State (Al Mighty) @
Michigan (Cillian Tribble) -- The Wolverines used the home court advantage tonight, as 29 fouls were called on Michigan State. Even then, Michigan was called for 18. The difference was the the Spartans shot just 37.1% from the field. Despite committing 17 turnovers, everything else went the Wolverines' way, and they pulled a huge upset.
Final Score: Michigan- 82, #1 Michigan State- 70
Now back to the rest of the weekly recap:
Hartford (David Ginsberg) -- 7-10, 2-2 America East.
1/4/17 at Vermont (L 82-60).
The Hawks have a long way to go to compete against what has easily been the class of the America East, as Vermont pounded them in the only game of the week.
ECU (Al Hutt) -- 2-12, 0-3 American.
1/4/17 vs. Temple (L 84-61).
1/7/17 at Memphis (L 78-68).
Nothing doing for the Pirates this week, as they continue to struggle and even stay competitive.
Davidson (Randolph Childress) -- 7-7, 2-0 Atlantic 10.
1/4/17 at St. Louis (W 88-79).
1/7/17 vs. #19 Richmond (W 81-69).
A promising start to conference play for the Wildcats, as they beat a couple really good teams and they've now won 4 in a row.
TCU (Bee Mighty) -- 7-8, 1-3 Big 12.
1/2/17 vs. Texas Tech (W 74-46).
1/7/17 vs. Oklahoma (L 70-62).
Give the Horned Frogs credit for a spirited effort this week. First they hammered Texas Tech then they gave Oklahoma all they wanted.
Michigan (Cillian Tribble) -- 9-5, 2-0 Big Ten.
1/4/17 at Maryland (W 68-58).
1/7/17 vs. #1 Michigan State- feature game, highlighted above.
Big week for the Wolverines who upset #1 and in-state rival Michigan State. It's important to keep the momentum going next week.
#1 Michigan State (Al Mighty) -- 13-2, 1-1 Big Ten.
1/4/17 vs. Ohio State (W 87-79).
1/7/17 at Michigan- feature game, highlighted above.
A split for the Spartans this week, but that stings losing to your in-state rivals, especially as the #1 team in the nation.
Hawaii (B.B. Gunn) -- 7-8, 2-0 Big West.
1/5/17 at Cal Poly (W 80-61).
1/7/17 at UC Riverside (W 65-50).
Conference play is where Hawaii really made their move last season, and I see no reason to think they won't do it again this season.
Charlotte (Timmy Tribble) -- 5-8, 1-1 Conference USA.
1/5/17 at Louisiana Tech (L 71-63).
1/7/17 vs. UTSA (W 71-62).
A conventional split for the 49ers, who lose on the road and win at home.
Rice (Charlie Shocker) -- 7-6, 2-0 Conference USA.
1/5/17 vs. North Texas (W 76-67).
1/7/17 at Middle Tennessee (W 84-68).
Nice start to conference play for the Owls who are playing much better basketball so far this season. Even in losses they've been competitive for the most part.
Monmouth (Thomas Carrano) -- 8-10, 6-5 MAAC.
1/6/17 vs. Manhattan (L 78-54).
1/8/17 vs. Fairfield (W 52-43).
A home split for the Hawks this week, as they just didn't play well against Manhattan.
Norfolk State (Payten Carrano) -- 6-10, 1-2 MEAC.
1/2/17 at Morgan State (W 80-67).
1/7/17 at Maryland Eastern Shore (L 83-77).
A tough road split for the Spartans, who just got going much too late against UMES.
Colorado (Rob Nielsen) -- 7-7, 2-0 Pac 12.
1/5/17 vs. Arizona State (W 53-48).
1/7/17 vs. Utah (W 55-44).
Good start to conference play for the Buffaloes, as they win 2 tough home games, but next week gets tougher as they have a date with UCLA.
Stanford (Benito Sanchez) -- 11-3, 2-0 Pac 12.
1/5/17 vs. Oregon State (W 46-45).
1/7/17 at Oregon (W 73-66, OT).
To say that the Cardinal survived this week would be an understatement. They almost let a 16 point halftime lead slip away against Oregon State, and had to go to overtime against Oregon.
#4 UCLA (Tim Shepard) -- 13-1, 2-0 Pac 12.
1/5/17 at Oregon (W 81-62).
1/7/17 vs. Arizona (W 86-78).
So far we have a nice trend, as 3 of our 4 Pac 12 teams have started 2-0 in Pac 12 play. The Bruins got a big win against rival Arizona and really do look to be the class of the conference so far.
Washington State (DeShawn St. John) -- 6-8, 1-1 Pac 12.
1/5/17 vs. #25 Washington (L 71-61).
1/7/17 at Arizona State (W 55-50).
The Cougars battled against Washington but couldn't get over the hump, but they did get a nice road win to end the week.
Alabama (Roy Rogers) -- 4-10, 2-0 SEC.
1/4/17 at #22 Vanderbilt (W 52-47).
1/7/17 vs. Georgia (W 74-71).
2 tough ones to start conference play for the Crimson Tide, but they are starting in a good way. Let's see if it continues.
#14 Florida (Noah Oppenheimer) -- 11-3, 1-1 SEC.
1/4/17 vs. Arkansas (L 75-62).
1/7/17 at Auburn (W 84-63).
A split for the Gators this week, but losing to Arkansas isn't terrible as they have only lost twice so far. Good recovery win at Auburn.
Kentucky (Patrick Hutt) -- 11-3, 2-0 SEC.
1/4/17 at Georgia (W 66-52).
1/7/17 vs. South Carolina (W 87-52).
No problem for the Wildcats this week as they blow past a couple SEC opponents and should continue next week, as the 2 teams they play have a combined 5 wins.
Troy (Brett Hawkins) -- 7-7, 3-2 Sun Belt.
1/2/17 vs. Grand Canyon (W 76-57).
1/7/17 at UT Arlington (L 59-48).
So the Trojans win a non-conference game, but can't take care of business in their road conference game this week. Still a wide open Sun Belt though.
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. Cincinnati (47) 17-0 1775 2 American Athletic Conference
2. UCLA (25) 13-1 1750 4 Pacific-12 Conference
3. Michigan State 13-2 1633 1 Big Ten Conference
4. La Salle 14-0 1570 8 Atlantic 10 Conference
5. Kansas 13-2 1547 3 Big 12 Conference
6. Virginia 13-2 1385 12 Atlantic Coast Conference
7. Iowa 12-2 1346 13 Big Ten Conference
8. Georgetown 13-2 1236 5 Big East Conference
9. Marquette 13-2 1216 9 Big East Conference
10. Miami 13-2 1199 6 Atlantic Coast Conference
11. North Carolina 13-2 1129 7 Atlantic Coast Conference
12. Duke 12-2 1020 16 Atlantic Coast Conference
13. Baylor 13-3 834 10 Big 12 Conference
14. VCU 12-2 805 NR Atlantic 10 Conference
15. Stephen F. Austin 14-1 765 17 Southland Conference
16. Kentucky 11-3 699 NR Southeastern Conference
17. San Diego State 13-3 589 23 Mountain West Conference
18. Syracuse 11-3 572 18 Atlantic Coast Conference
19. Florida State 14-1 530 20 Atlantic Coast Conference
20. Florida 11-3 439 14 Southeastern Conference
21. Wichita State 13-3 400 11 Missouri Valley Conference
22. Murray State 16-1 313 NR Ohio Valley Conference
23. Villanova 12-3 184 21 Big East Conference
24. SMU 12-2 164 15 American Athletic Conference
25. UTEP 11-1 111 NR Conference USA
Others Receiving Votes:
Oklahoma 12-4 60 Big 12 Conference
New Mexico State 12-2 46 Western Athletic Conference
Arkansas 12-2 29 Southeastern Conference
Wisconsin 11-4 27 Big Ten Conference
Washington 11-3 16 Pacific-12 Conference
Pittsburgh 12-3 10 Atlantic Coast Conference
Xavier 12-3 1 Big East Conference
So Michigan State and Florida both drop in the polls after losses this week, while UCLA jumps up a couple spots and Kentucky is back in the top 25. A little surprised not to see Michigan at least getting some votes.
And now a look at the mid-major top 25 heading into next week. This is where we get to be disappointed at how our FOFC mid-majors are faring.
Code:
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
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1. Cincinnati (72) 17-0 1800 1 American Athletic Conference
2. La Salle 14-0 1728 2 Atlantic 10 Conference
3. VCU 12-2 1614 6 Atlantic 10 Conference
4. San Diego State 13-3 1588 8 Mountain West Conference
5. Stephen F. Austin 14-1 1490 5 Southland Conference
6. Wichita State 13-3 1489 3 Missouri Valley Conference
7. SMU 12-2 1307 4 American Athletic Conference
8. Murray State 16-1 1284 10 Ohio Valley Conference
9. New Mexico State 12-2 1233 9 Western Athletic Conference
10. UTEP 11-1 1207 11 Conference USA
11. Akron 11-3 969 17 Mid-American Conference
12. Gonzaga 14-3 939 13 West Coast Conference
13. Valparaiso 13-3 864 15 Horizon League
14. Northern Iowa 13-3 832 18 Missouri Valley Conference
15. Richmond 11-3 658 7 Atlantic 10 Conference
16. BYU 11-4 647 25 West Coast Conference
17. Colorado State 12-2 641 16 Mountain West Conference
18. Cleveland State 12-4 543 12 Horizon League
19. Illinois State 12-3 543 19 Missouri Valley Conference
20. Memphis 13-3 531 22 American Athletic Conference
21. Georgia State 11-4 459 24 Horizon League
22. Rhode Island 11-3 375 NR Atlantic 10 Conference
23. Southern Miss 11-2 341 14 Conference USA
24. Portland 14-3 133 NR West Coast Conference
25. Oral Roberts 11-2 64 NR Summit League
Others Receiving Votes:
Mercer 12-3 42 Southern Conference
UNC Wilmington 12-3 37 Colonial Athletic Association
Dayton 10-4 21 Atlantic 10 Conference
Boise State 10-4 12 Mountain West Conference
North Dakota State 13-3 7 Summit League
Massachusetts 10-4 2 Atlantic 10 Conference
Anybody surprised that none of our FOFC mid-major teams are represented? I'm not. On to next week.