Thursday's Scores

Top 25:

(24) Vanderbilt 64 (15-7, 5-3) - A win would have been great, but proved they can compete with the best, and still get another chance at them at home.
(1) Florida 74 (20-2, 7-0) - Struggled early, but finished like the best team in the country.

(2) Wisconsin 66 (21-2, 7-1) - Stops 17 game win streak; a loss on the road to a good team isn't going to hurt their NCAA seed.
Indiana 71 (16-5, 6-2) - Great win to really improve their seed in the tournament.

Miami (FL) 64 (9-13, 2-6)
(3) North Carolina 105 (20-2, 6-1) - Need to be careful to avoid a letdown @ N.C. St on Saturday before @ Duke next week.

(4) Ohio St. 78 (19-3, 7-1) - Jump into a tie for first in the Big 10, and still get to host Wisconsin.
Purdue 60 (14-8, 3-5)

Iowa St. 49 (11-10, 2-5)
(10) Texas A&M 73 (18-3, 6-1) - @ Kansas on Saturday to try to get their 1st big win.

(11) Memphis 87 (18-3, 8-0) - Just another step to an undefeated C-USA season.
UCF 65 (15-6, 4-3)

(13) Butler 71 (21-2, 9-1)
Youngstown St. 58 (9-14, 4-7)

(15) Nevada 79 (20-2, 8-1)
Louisiana Tech 71 (6-15, 4-5)

N.C. State 70 (12-8, 2-6)
(16) Virginia Tech 59 (16-6, 6-2) - Bad loss at home, but still in good shape.

(19) Alabama 73 (16-5, 3-4) - Could go on a run with SC, Miss. St., and Ole Miss coming up.
LSU 70 (13-8, 2-5) - Swept by Bama and lost 4 in a row.

(22) Texas 76 (16-5, 6-1) - Very good win on the road, and stay in a virtual tie for first in the Big 12.
Texas Tech 64 (15-7, 4-3) - 3 of next 4 are away and all could be losses (Oklahoma, Okla. St, Texas A&M).

Gonzaga 90 (16-7, 6-1) - Good road win over a top 25 team will help alot.
(23) Stanford 86 2OT (14-6, 6-3) - 5 of next 7 are away.

Other Scores:

Missouri St. 87 (16-7, 7-5) - Barely avoid a loss that would have really hurt their NCAA chances.
Drake 82 OT (12-11, 3-9)

Indiana St. 48 (11-10, 4-7)
SIU 61 (18-5, 9-3) - Continue to play well stay on top with Creighton.

Creighton 82 (15-7, 9-3) - One of the few MVC teams that should feel comortable right now.
Bradley 71 (15-9, 6-6) - Trouble with the leaders of the MVC will cost them a tournament appearance.

Iowa 69 (12-10, 3-5)
Michigan 62 (16-7, 4-4) - This home loss should pretty much end their NCAA hopes.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Georgia 71 (13-7, 5-3) - @ Vandy is a big game for SEC placement.
Tennessee 82 (15-7, 3-4) - Good win without Lofton, and they should be ok if they continue to win at home.

Auburn 80 (14-9, 4-4) - Still managing to stay on top in the SEC West.
South Carolina 75 (12-8, 2-5)

Louisville 69 (16-6, 6-2) - Won 4 straight and any road win is good.
Cincinnati 53 (10-11, 1-6)

UConn 58 (13-8, 2-6) - They're done. Lost 7 of 8 and are in danger of not even making the Big East tournament.
DePaul 66 (13-10, 4-5)

Rice 63 (10-10, 4-3)
Houston 70 (11-9, 5-2)

More Missouri Valley

I've paid close attention to the MVC this year, and I last wrote about how they may been in trouble when the NCAA Tournament field is announced. It is a very balanced league that has 5 or 6 teams that are capable of playing with (and beating) anybody in the country. The problem is that it is still considered to be below the 6 BCS conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big 10, Big East, Pac-10, and SEC).

According to Pomeroy's RPI, the MVC is ranked 5th, and it has 6 teams in the top 61. The problem that I'm seeing with the conference is that the teams have too many losses. After Tuesday nights game between Wichita St. and Norther Iowa, the MVC has only one team with fewer than 7 losses (Southern Illinois). I'm just not sure that the selection comittee is going to pick teams from this conference with so many losses.

The contenders for an automatic bid all have many more big games left on their schedule. This is going to push some of these teams out of the picture. Here's how it breaks down:

SIU (17-5, 8-3): 8 games left, including @ Wichita St., vs. Bradley, vs. Creighton, @ Missouri St., and @ Butler (non-conference).

Creighton (14-7, 8-3): 8 left, including @ Bradley, @ SIU, vs. N. Iowa, vs. Drexel (non-conference), vs. Wichita St.

Missouri St. (15-7, 6-5): 8 left, including @ N. Iowa, vs. SIU, vs. Winthrop (non-conference), @ Wichita St.

Bradley (15-8, 6-5): 8 left, including vs. Creighton, @ SIU, @ VCU (non-conference), vs. N. Iowa.

Northern Iowa (15-7, 6-5): 8 left, including vs. Missouri St., @ Creighton, @ Nevada (non-conference), @ Bradley.

Wichita St. (15-8, 6-6): 7 left, including vs. SIU, vs. Appalachian St. (non-conference), vs. Missouri St., @ Creighton.

When you look at these schedules, it becomes clear that the conference is going to continue to beat up on itself. SIU could very likely be the only MVC team with less that 10 losses. The Bracket Buster games that these teams have are also very important. The non-conference teams these MVC teams are facing have a combined 108-21 record. If the conference makes a good showing in these games, you can expect more MVC teams in the big dance.

The one wild card in this race is the conference tournament. Obviously the winner gets an automatic bid, and there are at least 6 teams that are very capable of winning it. It might be the most competitive conference tournament this year, and the most important.

Tuesday's Scores

Top 25:

(21) Notre Dame 103 (18-4, 6-3) - Won the 1st of 3 straight road games (this should have been the hardest). Could go on a run with the easy schedule (except vs. Marquette) left.
Syracuse 91 (15-7, 4-4) - Already lost 4 home games; 3 straight losses; falling fast in the Big East.

Other Games:

Georgia Tech 75 (13-8, 2-6) - Really bad loss with their already bad ACC record. Will have a tough time reaching .500 in the conference; still have @ Duke, and vs. UNC.
Wake Forest 85 (10-11, 2-8)

Maryland 79 (16-6, 2-5) - Lost 4 of last 6, and still have 2 vs. Duke, and vs. UNC.
Florida St. 96 (16-6, 4-4) - Continue to play well at home, and hang around in the ACC.

Michigan St. 50 (17-6, 4-4) - Let down game in between the 2 vs. Ohio St; 1-4 on the road in the Big 10.
Illinois 57 (16-8, 4-5) - Have alternated wins and losses their last 8 games.

UNLV 76 (19-4, 6-2) - Good win at a pretty hard place to play; @ BYU on Saturday is big.
Colorado St. 59 (14-6, 4-4)

Wichita St. 67 (15-8, 6-6) - Won 3 in a row (longest streak since mid December); vs. SIU on Saturday is a huge game to determine their tournament hopes.
Northern Iowa 61 (15-7, 6-5) - Lost 3 in a row and the next 2 are on the road.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Mississippi St. 73 (11-9, 2-5) - This should be better with all of the talent they have.
Mississippi 85 (14-8, 3-5)

Northern Illinois 59 (4-16, 1-7)
Miami (OH) 62 (9-11, 5-3)

Monday's Scores

Top 25:

(6) Kansas 76 (19-3, 6-1) - Vs. Texas A&M on Saturday in what could decide the conference. They just play A&M once, and it's at home.
Nebraska 56 (12-8, 1-5)

(7) Pittsburgh 65 (20-3, 8-1) - Good win on the road. Still in control in the Big East.
Villanova 59 (14-7, 3-5) - Had been playing well, but now lost 2 in a row. Need to get the conference record above. 500, and have a big game vs. Louisville on Saturday.

Ill. Chicago 45 (9-14, 4-6)
(13) Butler 71 (20-2, 8-1) - Will host Southern Illinois in the biggest Bracket Buster next month.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Saint Louis 58 (13-7, 3-4)
Houston 59 (10-9, 4-2)

Charleston 56 (15-8, 8-3)
Appalachian St. 67 (17-5, 9-2)

Furman 68 (11-11, 5-6)
Chattanooga 61 (9-14, 2-9)

Tennessee Martin 57 (6-18, 4-10)
Eastern Kentucky 94 (11-9, 6-6)

Miss. Valley St. 84 (9-12, 6-3)
Grambling St. 78 OT (8-8, 6-3)

Pepperdine (6-17, 2-5) 55
Santa Clara (15-7, 5-2) 77

Sunday's Scores:

I know I've already talked about this, but the SEC East is now 17-4 vs. the SEC West. If Tennessee is able to pick their season back up, the East could get 5 of 6 teams in the NCAA tournament. The West currently has no team with a winning record in conference play.

Top 25:

(3) UCLA 68 (18-2, 7-2) - Had a 12 point halftime lead, but couldn't hang on.
Stanford 75 (14-5, 6-3) - Continue to play well, and are in a good position for an NCAA bid; vs. Gonzaga on Wednesday would be another big out of conference win to go with wins @ Virginia and @ Fresno St.

(2) Wisconsin 57 (21-1, 7-0) - Just keep on winning; @ Indiana on Wednesday will be a big challenge
Iowa 46 (11-10, 3-4)

Boston College 61
(10) Duke 75 (1803, 5-2) - Won 5 in a row, and are back in their usual place in the ACC; @ Virginia on Thursday is a tough place to play.

(15) Marquette 7o (199-4, 6-2) - Almost a bad loss, but they won, and the next 2 are at home.
South Florida 68 (11-11, 2-6)

Virginia 64 (13-6, 5-2)
(19) Clemson 63 (18-4, 4-4) - Really needed to win this at home. Lost 4 of 5.

(21) LSU 54 (13-7, 2-4) - Lost 3 straight, and this was the most offense they've had in any of those 3 games.
Georgia 57 (13-6, 5-2) - Another big SEC win. Stay tied with Vandy and UK at 2nd in the East.

(24) Virginia Tech 73 (16-5, 6-1) - Next 3 are all winable, and could go into UNC at 9-1 in the ACC on Feb. 13th.
Georgia Tech 65 (13-7, 2-5) - 3rd straight loss; 0-4 on the road in the ACC.

Other Scores:

Tennessee 57 (14-7, 2-4) - Lost 5 of 6 and are tied for last in the SEC East
Kentucky 75 (16-5, 5-2) - Stops 2 game losing streak; Best rpi win of the year.

Kentucky's Opponents:

UMass 66 (15-6, 5-2)
Charlotte 61 (8-11, 2-5)

DePaul 52 (12-10, 3-5)
West Virginia 64 (16-4, 5-3)

Kentucky 76 Tennessee 57

Kentucky played a great 2nd half this time and ended up handling UT pretty easily. Bradley shot the ball much better and was able to drive to the goal for 21 pts. Meeks also had a big game with 16 pts. on 4-5 3 pointers. Crawford had 15 and Morris had 9 due mainly to foul trouble. Morris didn't score alot today, but there was a stretch in the 2nd half where he gave UK some big points that really allowed the Cats to build their lead.

Tennessee has now lost 6 of 7 with their only win a 3 point win over South Carolina. They haven't had Lofton the last 2 games, but they were struggling with him too. They're now at 14-7 and 2-4 in the SEC. They do have 4 of their next 5 at home, but they've already played what I consider the lower level SEC teams (Ole Miss., Miss. St., and Auburn). I don't think UT has any for sure wins left on their schedule. They might be able to go on a run like they did early in the year, but I think that the SEC has figured out how to beat this team. They have no size, and their halfcourt defense is terrible. If they can't force a turnover in the backcourt, they seem to almost concede a basket.

Even with Tennessee struggling, this was a big win for Kentucky. They have a full week to prepare for a hard game @ Arkansas, and they stay in a tie for 2nd in the SEC East. It's also a good rpi win. Tennessee's difficult schedule is keeping them high in the rpi and it just makes Kentucky's already difficult schedule look even better.

Saturday's Scores

Top 25:

(1) Florida 91 (19-2, 6-0) - 1st in the SEC West vs. 1st in the East. Another example of why the East is so much better.
Auburn 66 (13-9, 3-4)

(4) North Carolina 92 (19-2, 5-1) - If they keep up this kind of play, nobody in the ACC (maybe even the country) can beat them.
(17) Arizona 64 (14-6, 5-4) - Alot of people thought this would be close, even though Arizona had lost 4 of their last 6. Maybe this will finally prove that they are still overrated.

Michigan St. 64 (17-5, 4-3) - Still have a very difficult schedule left, but they're capable of being the 3rd or 4th best in the Big 10.
(5) Ohio St. 66 (18-3, 6-1) - Next Saturday @ Michigan St. will be a better test to see how far this team has come.

Oklahoma 61 (11-8, 3-4) - 0-4 on the road in the Big 12.
(6) Texas A&M 70 (17-3, 5-1) - Good bounce back after losing @ Texas Tech.

(7) Oregon 77 (19-2, 7-2) - Very big win on the road after losing @ Washington.
(20) Washington St. 74 OT (17-4, 6-3) - Not a bad loss; have a good chance @ Arizona on Thursday.

Colorado 74 (5-12, 1-6)
(8) Kansas 97 (18-3, 5-1) - Dominated the two bottom dwellers, but I think @ Nebraska will be pretty tough.

St. John's 46 (12-9, 3-5)
(9) Pittsburgh 72 (19-3, 7-1) - Next 2 @ Villanova and @ West Virginia; 2 tough places to play.

Southern Miss 64 (13-6, 3-3)
(11) Memphis 67 (17-3, 7-0) - Closer than expected, but they stay perfect in C-USA.

Arkansas 63 (14-7, 3-4) - 1st road win of the year. In good shape with 2 wins over Alabama and a win over LSU.
(12) Alabama 57 (15-5, 2-4) - Really needed this game after losing bad @ Auburn.

Iowa St. 50
(13) Oklahoma St. 62 (18-3, 4-2) - @ Colorado should be easy, but then it gets harder with @ Oklahoma, vs. Texas Tech, and @ Texas.

(14) Butler 68 (19-2, 7-1) - Get another chance vs. Il. Chicago on Monday, the only conference team to beat Butler.
Detroit 58 (7-13, 4-5)

(16) Air Force 52 (19-3, 6-2) - I knew this would be tough, but I wasn't sure BYU could pull it out.
BYU 61 (15-6, 5-2)

Utah St. 62 (15-6, 4-3)
(18) Nevada 79 (19-2, 7-1) - The rematch @ Utah St. in March will be a tough game, and so will the next one vs. New Mexico St.

Villanova 63 (14-6, 3-4) - Had been playing well, but this wasn't a bad loss on the road.
(22) Notre Dame 66 (16-5, 5-3) - Very good win over a team that had been hot.

Michigan 61 (16-6, 4-2)
(23) Indiana 76 (15-5, 5-2) - Wednesday vs. Wisconsin is their biggest game of the year.

(25) USC 76 (16-6, 6-3) - Adjusting to being the favorite in a road Pac-10 game.
California 73 (12-9, 4-5)

Other Scores:

Texas Tech 58 (15-6, 4-2) - So inconsistent; lose @ Baylor, beat Kansas and Texas A&M, lose @ Missouri.
Missouri 71 (13-6, 2-4)

Providence 84 (14-6, 4-3)
UConn 72 (13-7, 2-5) - 4 straight losses, lost 7 of 9, and are in big trouble. I keep talking about them only because they were once ranked so high, and are a great example of how you're record means nothing when play a bunch of cupcakes.

Illinois 47 (15-8, 3-5) - Had a good win over Indiana, but this hurts alot with their NCAA hopes.
Purdue 64 (14-7, 3-4)

Indiana St. 55 (11-9, 4-6)
Creighton 71 (14-7, 8-3) - Stay in a tie for 1st in the MVC with SIU.

Illinois St. 62 (11-11, 3-8)
Southern Illinois 73 (17-5, 8-3) - Maybe the only MVC team that doesn't need to worry about if they are going to get in the tournament or not.

Wichita St. 66 (14-8, 5-6) - Trying to get back to .500 in the MVC, but the next 2 @ N. Iowa, and vs. SIU could completely crush their NCAA hopes.
Evansville 61 (12-10, 5-6)

Bradley 70 (15-8, 6-5)
Missouri St. 85 (15-7, 6-5) - Had to win this after losing 3 straight.

Northern Iowa 61 (15-6, 6-4) - Another routine upset in the Missouri Valley.
Drake 74 (12-10, 3-8)

New Mexico 72 (12-10, 1-6)
UNLV 76 OT (18-4, 5-2) - Move into 2nd place tie with BYU, just 1/2 game behind Air Force.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Mississippi 80 (13-8, 2-5)
Vanderbilt 85 (15-6, 5-2) - Won 4 straight, but can they keep it up @ Florida on Wednesday?

South Carolina 66 (12-7, 2-4) - 2-0 vs. West, 0-4 vs. East.
Mississippi St. 63 (11-8, 2-4) - 2-0 vs. West, 0-4 vs. East.

Syracuse 71 (15-6, 4-3) - 2 straight losses and host Notre Dame on Tuesday.
Louisville 76 (15-6, 5-2) - Great win to move them up in the Big East race.

Houston 77 (9-9, 4-2)
Marshall 61 (7-13, 2-4)

Miami (OH) 56 (8-11, 4-3)
Toledo 61 (11-8, 7-0)

Charleston 67 (15-7, 8-2)
Chattanooga 54 (9-13, 2-8)

Miss. Valley St. 60 (8-12, 5-3)
Jackson St. 66 (12-9, 6-2)

Loyola Marymount 74 (9-13, 1-5)
Santa Clara 71 (14-7, 4-2)

Thursday's Scores

Top 25:

(3) UCLA 62 (18-1, 7-1) - Have a good case for being number 1; only loss to Oregon.
California 46 (12-8, 4-4)

(7) Oregon 77 (18-2, 6-2) - This isn't a bad loss, but it could hurt with the next 3 @ Wash. St., @ UCLA, and @ USC.
Washington 89 (12-7, 2-6) - Stops a 3 game losing streak; need to go on a huge run to make the tournament.

(19) Clemson 66 (18-3, 4-3) - Lost 3 of 4, but still in good position with the easier part of their ACC schedule ahead.
(10) Duke 68 (17-3, 4-2) - Barely avoided their 2nd home loss of the season.

(14) Butler 70 (18-2, 6-1) - The early wins over Tennessee and Gonzaga aren't as impressive as they once were, but they did also beat Indiana and Notre Dame. A loss tonight could have dropped them a place or two in the NCAA tournament.
Loyola Chicago 66 OT (13-8, 4-4)

Louisiana Tech 67 (6-13, 4-3)
(18) Nevada 84 (18-2, 6-1)

Oregon St. 55 (9-12, 1-7)
(20) Washington St. 70 (17-3, 6-2) - Big game vs. Oregon on Saturday.

(25) USC 50 (15-6, 5-3) - Were never in this game, but that happens on the road sometimes.
Stanford 65 (13-5, 5-3) - Won 6 of 7 and are making a good push for an NCAA bid.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Tennessee St. 63 (10-10, 6-4)
Eastern Kentucky 62 (10-9, 5-6)

Wednesday's Scores

There is some debate on which conference is the hardest, but I am certain that the SEC East is just ridiculously hard. The East is 10-4 against the other side of the SEC and 4 of the 6 teams have at least 4 conference wins. The West is being lead by AUBURN with a 3-3 conference record. The other 4 teams all have just 2 wins each.

One great example of the strength of the East is South Carolina's win over Arkansas on Wednesday. SC was 0-4 vs. the East, but beat Arkansas, a team that had blown out Alabama and LSU, the two supposed powers in the SEC West.

Top 25:

(1) Florida 70 (18-2, 5-0) - Any road in the SEC is huge this year.
Mississippi St. 67 (11-7, 2-3)

Michigan 58 (16-5, 4-2)
(2) Wisconsin 71 (20-1, 6-0) - Next 2 are tough @ Iowa and @ Indiana.

(4) North Carolina 88 (18-2, 5-1) - 3 of next 4 are away, including @ Arizona and @ Duke.
Wake Forest 60 (9-10, 1-6) - What's happened to this program?

(5) Ohio St. 59 (17-3, 5-1) - Can't play like this when they go anywhere else on the road.
Northwestern 50 (11-9, 1-6)

(6) Texas A&M 68 (16-3, 4-1) - Not a bad road loss, but it does bring them into a tie for the Big 12 lead.
Texas Tech 70 (15-5, 4-1) - Beat Kansas on Saturday and now this. How did they manage to lose at Baylor?

(8) Kansas 82 (17-3, 4-1)
Baylor 56 (11-8, 1-5)

(9) Pittsburgh 67 (18-3, 6-1) - Putting up an impressive record both in and out of conference.
Cincinnati 51 (10-9, 1-4)

Tulsa 59 (12-6, 2-3)
(11) Memphis 72 (16-3, 6-0) - I wonder if they ever get bored? Only one C-USA team has come within 10 points.

Seton Hall 76
(15) Marquette 89 (18-4, 5-2) - Won 4 straight and maybe the only Big East team that can challenge Pittsburgh for the conference title.

Arizona St. 47 (6-14, 0-9) - Wow, they're bad.
(17) Arizona 71 (14-5, 5-4) - Stops 3 game losing streak.

Vanderbilt 64 (14-6, 4-2) - Beat 3 straight ranked teams.
(21) LSU 53 (13-6, 2-3) - It might be time to worry; @ Georgia on Sunday will be tough.

Other Scores:

Kentucky 69 (15-5, 4-2) - The bad news is they've lost 2 straight. The good news is that future games vs. LSU, Tennesse, and Alabama don't look near as bad now.
Georgia 78 OT (12-6, 4-2) - Great win for NCAA chances.

Creighton 66 (13-7, 7-3) - Good conference road win.
Missouri St. 62 (14-7, 5-5) - Lost 3 of 4 including 2 @ home. I know most "experts" would think I'm stupid, but I don't think the MVC will get more than 2 in the NCAA tournament. Mainly because too many of the teams will have 10+ losses.

Georgia Tech 65 (13-6, 2-4) - Need to improve ACC record to insure an NCAA bid.
Maryland 80 (16-5, 2-4) - Good win, but the next 2 are onl the road where they are 0-2 in the ACC.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Tennessee 69 (14-6, 2-3) - They played without Lofton, but they were struggling with him too. Lost 4 of 5. If they don't make a quick recovery it could get ugly very quickly with next 6 including 2 vs. Kentucky, vs. Georgia, @ Florida, vs. LSU, and vs. Vandy.
Mississippi 83 (13-7, 2-4) - Continue to play well @ home, where their only loss was a close one to Kentucky.

Arkansas 60 (13-7, 2-4) - Continue to be the worst team in the SEC. You can't lose to a team that is struggling this badly.
South Carolina 66 (11-7, 1-4) - If they stay at lest .500 they might have the NIT 3peat.

DePaul 52 (12-9, 3-4)
Georgetown 66 (14-5, 4-2)

UCF 70 (14-5, 3-2)
Houston 73 OT (8-9, 2-3)

Miami (OH) 72 (8-10, 3-3)
Cent. Michigan 52 (7-11, 2-4)

UMass 72 (14-6, 4-2)
Rhode Island 75 (13-8, 6-1)

Georgia 78 Kentucky 69 OT

Kentucky managed to blow a 17 point lead and lose to Georgia in overtime tonight. UK looked great in the 1st half on offense and defense. They passed well, ran the court, and forced Georgia into bad shots, but everything changed in the 2nd half. UK hit just 9-21 FGs in the 2nd half and overtime and allowed Georgia to go 19-34. There was no movement on offense, they completely stopped running up the court, and the defense was terrible.

I hate to single out individuals, but I really think there were 2 people that really hurt Kentucky tonight. The first person is Ramel Bradley. He had just 2 pts, 2 reb, 0 ast, 1 to, 0 blk, 0 stls, and shot 1-5 FG, and 0-3 3FG. He managed to do all of that in 37 MINUTES! That brings me to the other person who is at fault tonight. Tubby Smith claims that he rewards players on their play, but it is obvious that wasn't the case tonight. Not only did Bradley put up terrible numbers, he couldn't stop his man from getting to the goal on defense. When it became obvious that tonight wasn't Bradley's night, Tubby should have gone a different route. Instead, he played Bradley at point much of the 2nd half, and the offense came to a grinding halt.

Jasper had 3 pts, 3 reb, and 6 ast. Porter had 5 pts, 1 reb, 1 ast, 1 blk, 1 stl. They each managed to put up better numbers than Bradley in a combined 29 minutes. Jasper and Porter did combine for 4 turnovers, so maybe that is why Bradley played the point so much, but it still isn't a good strategy. Jasper and Porter make up for their turnovers by creating for other players. Bradley doesn't turn it over as much, because he dribbles the clock away and leaves either himself or his teammates with a bad shot. I love Bradley at the 2 guard, and he was playing great there, but for some reason Tubby keeps putting him at the point.

Crawford was the bright spot for UK tonight. He had a career high 29 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast, 2 to, and 1 stl. He had 17 of UK's 43 in the 1st half and 12 of their 26 in the 2nd and overtime. It is pretty pathetic that the rest of the team only combined for 40 pts. Perry had 0 in 18 minutes, Bradley 2 in 37, Thomas 2 in 27. Morris was in foul trouble and had just 11, and Meeks had 10.

Tuesday's Scores

Top 25:

(12) Alabama 57 (15-4, 2-3) - Somehow they've convinced people to still rank them this high even though they are not very good. Have lost 3 of 5 and all of those were by more than 20 points.
Auburn 81 (13-8, 3-3)

TCU 39 (10-8, 2-4)
(16) Air Force 72 (19-2, 6-1) - @ BYU on Saturday could be close.

(22) Notre Dame 68 (16-4, 4-3) - Another team that can't win on the road (0-3).
St. John's 71 (12-8, 3-4)

(23) Indiana 43 (14-5, 4-2) - Still in a pretty good position in the Big 10; vs. Wisconis next Wed.
Illinois 51 (15-7, 3-4) - Good win, but have to start winning on the road in the conference (1-2).

Other Scores:

Florida St. 82 (14-6, 2-4)
Boston College 85 (14-5, 6-1) - I know they lost one of their best players, but they are actually in the lead in the ACC. They won't stay there, because their schedule is going to get tough, but I don't think they'll fold like most people do.

Villanova 82 (14-5, 3-3) - Recovered well from 1-3 Big East start, but the next 2 are @ Notre Dame and vs. Pitt.
Providence 73 (13-6, 3-3) - Lost 3 of last 4.

Northern Iowa 54 (15-5, 6-3) - Still in good shape, but 3 of next 4 are away.
Southern Illinois 56 (16-5, 7-3) - Lead the MVC and have beaten all of the big names (Mo. St., N. Iowa, Wichita St.)

San Diego St. 61
UNLV 68 (17-4, 4-2) - Could still get an NCAA bid if they avoid many more losses; 2 of their losses are to ranked teams (Air Force, Arizona).

Monday's Scores

Top 25:

Oklahoma 61 (11-6, 3-3) - This was the first in a tough stretch of games (except Jan. 30 vs. Longwood) over they next few weeks. They need to win some big games to make some noise for an NCAA bid.
(12) Oklahoma St. 66 (16-3, 3-2) - Good rebound after loss @ A&M, but they still aren't going to contend for 1st or 2nd in the conference.

Kentucky's Opponents:

UConn 54 (13-6) - Same story for UConn as it has been all year. They have zero quality wins. They must get some wins vs. Providence, DePaul, @ Rutgers in the next 2 weeks.
Louisville 68 (14-6, 4-2) - Now in a 4 way tie for 2nd in the conference. If they go 5-5 the rest of the year, they will probably make the tournament, but they have to beat the lower level conference teams.

Santa Clara 61 (14-6, 4-1)
San Francisco 58 (7-13, 3-2)

Wofford 75 (6-14, 1-8)
Charleston 77 (14-7, 7-2)

Texas Southern 54 (9-9, 5-2)
Miss. Valley St. 64 (8-11, 5-2)

Sunday's Scores

Marquette proves they're sticking around in the Big East chase, Va. Tech does the same in the ACC, and the top teams in the Missouri Valley continue to struggle.

Top 25:

(24) Marquette 77 (17-4, 4-2) - Great turnaround after 0-2 Big East start; now tied for 2nd.
(6) Pittsburgh 74 OT (17-3, 5-1) - Stops 7 game winning streak; still in the lead in the Big East.

South Florida 58 (10-10, 1-5)
(20) Notre Dame 82 (16-3, 4-2) - 5 of next 7 are on the road.

Maryland 64 (15-5, 1-4) - Getting dangerously low in the ACC standings.
(23) Virginia Tech 67 OT (14-5, 4-1) - Good rebound after their 1st conference loss.

Other Scores:

Missouri St. 56 (14-6, 5-4) - Lost 3 of 4 and 0-3 against the conference leaders.
Evansville 63 (11-9, 4-5)

Syracuse 60 (15-5, 4-2) - Just when it looked like they were starting to click they have a bad loss; next 4 could be trouble.
St. John's 64 (11-8, 2-4)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Ohio 69 (12-6, 3-2)
Miami (OH) 72 OT (7-10, 3-2)

Duquesne 87 (5-11, 1-4)
UMass 101 (14-5, 4-1)

Saturday's Scores

Top 25:

Mississippi 70 (12-7, 1-4)
(1) Florida 79 (17-2, 4-0) - Only undefeated SEC team left.

(2) Wisconsin 71 (19-1, 5-0) - Games have been close lately, but they're still winning.
Illinois 64 (14-7, 2-4) - Lost 5 of last 7.

(11) Arizona 69 (13-5, 4-4) - Lost 3 in a row and have UNC next Saturday; it's time to stop ranking them on potential and start judging them by what they've actually done.
(3) UCLA 73 (17-1, 6-1) - Big to keep Arizona down in the Pac-10 race.

Georgia Tech 61 (13-5, 2-3) - Have been playing better lately, but their next two @ Maryland and vs. Va. Tech are very important; don't want t wind up 2-5 in the ACC.
(4) North Carolina 77 (17-2, 4-1) - By far the team to beat in the ACC.

(5) Kansas 64 (16-3, 4-0) - Stops 10 game winning streak; they will struggle on the road some, but could be great by March.
Texas Tech 69 (14-5, 3-1) - Great win for NCAA chances; vs. Texas A&M on Wed. for another chance at an upset.

Iowa 63 (10-9, 2-3)
(7) Ohio St. 82 (16-3, 4-1)

(12) Okla. St. 49 (16-3, 3-1) - Blown out by both of the top teams in the Big 12.
(8) Texas A&M 67 (16-2, 4-0) - First impressive win of the year and are on top in the Big 12.

California 84 (12-7, 4-3)
(9) Oregon 92 (18-1, 6-1) - Playing as good as anybody; next 4 are big (@ Wash, WSU, UCLA, & USC).

Georgia 76 (11-6, 3-2) - Had this game won, but blew it down the stretch.
(10) Alabama 78 (15-3, 2-2) - Very lucky to win this game.

San Diego St. 51 (13-6, 2-3) - Were thought to be a tournament team ealier in the year.
(13) Air Force 56 (18-2, 5-1)

(14) Duke 79 (16-3, 3-2) - 3 straight easy wins; trying to get back near the top of the ACC.
N.C. State 56 (11-7, 1-4)

(15) Nevada 73 (17-2, 5-1) - I said the other day I still wasn't convinced they were so good (unlike most of the media) and now I think they are very overrated.
New Mexico St. 80 (15-4, 5-1)

(16) LSU 52 (13-5, 2-2) - Speaking of overrated, LSU hasn't played like a Top 25 team any this year.
Arkansas 72 (13-6, 2-3) - If they could just get up for the lower teams like they do the ranked teams, they'd be really good.

(17) Memphis 61 (15-3, 4-0) - Not much to say about them until the tournament.
East Carolina 44 (5-12, 0-4)

Wisc. Green Bay 59 (10-9, 2-4)
(18) Butler 80 (17-2, 5-1)

Boston College 54 (13-5, 5-1)
(19) Clemson 74 (18-2, 4-2) - Huge game @ Duke on Thursday.

(21) Texas 69 (13-5, 3-1) - Lost 2 straight; I doubt they go down much in the rankings though (although they should).
Villanova 76 (13-5, 2-3) - Good win for their tournament resume.

South Carolina 61 (10-7, 0-4) - First time they hadn't lost by more than 20 in SEC play.
(22) Tennessee 64 (14-5, 2-2) - Better start playing better because 3 of the next 4 are on the road (where they are 1-3) including @ UK and @ Florida.

Vanderbilt 72 (13-6, 3-2) - 1st conference road win; have already beaten Alabama, Tenn., and UK.
(25) Kentucky 67 (15-4, 4-1) - Stops 11 game winning streak; next 3 are rough (@ Georgia, vs. Tenn., @ Arkansas).

Other Scores:

West Virginia 83 (14-4, 4-3) - I know it was on the road, but this was a bad loss to a bad team.
Cincinnati 96 OT (10-8, 1-3)

Southern Illinois 58 (15-5, 6-3) - 1st conference road win and it was a big one.
Creighton 57 (12-7, 6-3) - Total losses are getting high for NCAA hopes.

Indiana St. 64 (11-7, 4-4)
Northern Iowa 74 (15-4, 6-2) - Lead the MVC now by themselves.

Wichita St. 63 (12-8, 3-6) - NCAA hopes are pretty much gone now; lost 8 of 11.
Bradley 78 (14-7, 5-4)

Washington 47 (11-7, 1-6) - Another team who's going to miss the tournament.
Washington St. 75 (16-3, 5-2) - Always good to blow out your in-state rival.

Arizona St. 49 (6-13, 0-8)
USC 58 (15-5, 5-2) - Only Pac-10 losses are to UCLA and Wash. St.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Louisville 59 (13-6, 3-3) - Doing a good job of staying in the running for an NCAA bid.
DePaul 50 (12-8, 3-3)

Indiana 77 (14-4, 4-1) - They belong in the Top 25.
UConn 73 (13-5, 2-3) - Still no impressive wins and have lost 5 of 7.

Houston 69 (7-9, 2-2)
Tulsa 67 (12-5, 2-2)

Eastern Kentucky 46 (10-8, 5-5)
Samford 55 (11-8, 8-2)

Elon 45 (4-13, 2-5)
Charleston 67 (13-7, 6-2)

Chattanooga 63 (9-12, 2-7)
Wofford 66 (6-13, 1-7)

Prairie View A&M 61 (2-16, 0-6)
Miss. Valley St. 64 (7-11, 4-2)

Santa Clara 61 (13-6, 3-1)
San Diego 47 (12-7, 2-2)

Auburn 76 (12-8, 2-3)
Mississippi St. 87 (11-6, 2-2)

Vanderbilt 72 Kentucky 67

Kentucky couldn't stop Vandy's 3 pt. shooting today and it cost them the game. UK allowed 11/23 on 3's and 50% overall FG's. Kentucky shot just 6/22 from the 3 and 43% overall. The Cats were at their best on offense when they moved the ball around and create open shots. However, there were too many times when the ball stopped moving and players such as Bradley just dribbled and waited for something to happen. UK also didn't look inside to Morris in the 2nd half even though he was much better in that half. I don't know why Bradley played point in the last few minutes, but it hurt Kentucky. He ended up with 4 turnovers and shot 0-5 from 3. Meeks and Crawford also both struggled shooting a combined 5-23. Kentucky's only good offense came inside with Thomas, Perry, and Morris combining for 36 points on 13-21 FG's.

I think the main point of this game was Kentucky tried to match Vandy's hot 3 point shooting instead of trying to exploit the advantage UK had in the paint. Kentucky actually shot 20 of 38 on 2's, but they settled for too many 3's. Kentucky has proven they are able to hit 3's in the past, but they have to let them come as a result of their inside game.

Bad News for the Missouri Valley?

Most of the national media loves to talk about the Missouri Valley Conference and how they are no longer a mid-major and deserve to have at least 5 teams in the NCAA Tournament this year. I agree that the MVC is probably the best "non-BCS" league, but I disagree on just how good they really are. Last year the conference had pretty good success in the tournament, so most writers think it's a given that they deserve 4 to 5 teams in the tournament again this year. But, I don't think these people are looking at what is actually going on in conference play.

Here are the standings through Thursday:

Creighton 12-6, 6-2
Northern Iowa 14-4, 5-2
Southern Illinois 14-5, 5-3
Missouri St. 14-5, 5-3
Indiana St. 11-6, 4-3
Bradley 13-7, 4-4
Wichita St. 12-7, 3-5
Evansville 10-9, 3-5
Drake 11-8, 2-6
Illinois St. 10-9, 2-6

First off, Wichita St. is not going to make the tournament unless they are able to put together a very impressive 8 or 9 game win streak. They have to win 6 of 10 just to finish at .500 in the conference. That kind of record in a conference like this shouldn't get you in.

Indiana St. is doing pretty well in the conference, but losses to Middle Tenn., Ball St., and Drake hurt them pretty badly. However, they have beaten Butler, Purdue, and Creighton, so a good finish in the conference could get them in.

Bradley is a team that gets hardly any mention, but they have the 3rd best rpi in the conference. They still have a tough conference schedule ahead of them, and I don't see them finishing above .500 in the conference either. Plus they'll more than likely have at least 10 losses which is too many in this league.

So the 4 main contenders are Creighton, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, and Missouri St.

Creighton's 6-4 non-conference record hurts them, and so does their early conference loss to Indiana St. They still have 2 games vs SIU, @ Missouri St, @ Bradley, and vs. N. Iowa, and Wichita St. So, they also have a good chance of having at least 10 losses.

Northern Iowa is in pretty good shape right now after their win @ Missouri St. on Thursday. They only have 4 losses, but their rpi is 7th in the league. But if they finish above teams with higher rpi's they should be ok to get in.

Southern Illinois has an rpi of 15 and a win over Virginia Tech that is looking pretty good now. They also have 6 of their last 10 at home.

Missouri St. has an rpi of 14 and a very good win over Wisconsin, who has a good chance at a number 1 seed. If they finish in the top 4 in the conference it would be hard to keep them out of the tournament, but they need haven't been able to beat any of the teams ahead of them so far.

So after looking at all of this, I think the most the conference can get in is 4, but I think that is unlikely. There may be only 2 teams with under 10 losses after the regular season and conference tournament is over. Another thing that might hurt this conference is that none of the teams get a shot to take down a really big name like the teams from the power conferences do. The Bracket Buster challenge could help a few of these teams, but a loss would really hurt the conference's credibility.

Thursday's Scores

Top 25:

Arizona St. 50 (6-12, 0-7)
(3) UCLA 60 (16-1, 5-1) - Still just one loss, but they haven't been blowing teams out like they did earlier, and they should have tonight.

Stanford 59 (11-5, 3-3)
(9) Oregon 66 (17-1, 5-1) - Continue to surprise and impress me, but they have four straight on the road @ Washington, Wash. St., UCLA, and USC starting next Thursday.

(11) Arizona 73 (13-4, 4-3) - Not playing well in the Pac-10; @ UCLA on Saturday for a chance to climb back near the top of the conference.
USC 80 (14-5, 4-2) - Biggest win of the year.

Wake Forest 40 (9-8, 1-4)
(14) Duke 62 (15-3, 2-2) - The 3 straight vs. Miami, Wake, and NC St. is exactly what they needed to get out of their funk; still haven't proved they can beat the teams at the top of the conference.

Fresno St. 75 (13-5, 2-3)
(15) Nevada 85 (17-1, 5-0) - Are they really as good as their record? We won't find out until the NCAA tournament.

Other Scores:

Wichita St. 75 (12-7, 3-5) - You can't play this badly in the MVC and expect to make the NCAA tournament. Have to win 6 of last 10 conference games to reach .500 in the league, and still have @ N. Iowa, vs. SIU, vs. Mo. St., and @ Creighton, and they are 0-4 on the road in the conference.
Illinois St. 83 (10-9, 2-6)

Bradley 54 (13-7, 4-4)
Creighton 65 (12-6, 6-2)

Northern Iowa 75 (14-4, 5-2)
Missouri St. 65 (14-5, 5-3)

California 77 (12-6, 4-2)
Oregon St. 74 (9-10, 1-5)

Kentucky's Opponents:

UMass 77 (13-5, 3-1)
Xavier 83 (13-5, 3-1)

Eastern Kentucky 56 (10-7, 5-4)
Jacksonville St. 66 (4-14, 2-7)

Home Court Update 1/17

Through Wednesday's games:

Home Court Record:

ACC: 15-10, 60.00%
Big East: 25-13, 65.79%
Big 10: 19-5, 79.17%
Big 12: 14-7, 66.67%
Pac-10: 13-14, 48.15%
SEC: 17-4, 80.95%

Total: 103-53, 66.03%

Wednesday's Scores

Top 25:

Purdue 64 (13-6, 2-3)
(2) Wisconsin 69 (18-1, 4-0) - Will be interesting to see how they play on the road against the top half of the conference since they are now the "hunted."

(4) North Carolina 77 (16-2, 3-1) - Still in great position to win the ACC even with a loss @ Va. Tech.
(19) Clemson 55 (17-2, 3-2) - 2nd straight loss; next few games a huge to see if they can really contend in the ACC.

Northwestern 41 (10-8, 0-5)
(7) Ohio St. 73 (15-3, 3-1)

(10) Alabama 73 (14-3, 1-2) - 0-3 on the road and none of the games have been close; lost by 14 @ Notre Dame, 27 @ Arkansas, and 21@ Vandy.
Vanderbilt 94 (12-6, 2-2) - Huge home court advantage, but 0-2 on the road; 3 of next 4 are @ Kentucky, @ LSU, and @ Florida.

Mississippi 55 (12-6, 1-3)
(16) LSU 62 (13-4, 2-1) - Haven't looked impressive in conference play yet.

Youngstown St. 39 (8-11, 3-4)
(18) Butler 67 (16-2, 4-1)

(20) Notre Dame 87 (15-3, 3-2) - 0-2 on the road in the Big East.
Villanova 102 (12-5, 2-3) - Big win that may help them get back in contention for the tournament.

(22) Tennessee 80 (13-5, 1-2) - 3 straight losses.
Auburn 83 (12-7, 2-2)

(23) Virginia Tech 73 (13-5, 3-1) - Have to be able to win the "non-marquee" games.
Florida St. 82 (13-5, 1-4)

Other Scores:

Cincinnati 76 (9-8, 0-3)
Syracuse 77 (15-4, 4-1) - 2nd place in the Big East.

Georgetown 68 (12-5, 2-2)
Rutgers 54 (8-10, 1-4)

New Mexico St. 71 (14-4, 4-1) - Stops 13 game winning streak; this kind of loss hurts when you're trying for a bid and you play in a "mid-major."
Louisiana Tech 73 OT (5-12, 3-2)

Southern Illinois 68 (14-5, 5-3) - Big games they need to win @ Creighton and vs. N. Iowa coming up.
Evansville 75 (10-9, 3-5)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Georgia 67 (11-5, 3-1)
Arkansas 64 (12-6, 1-3) - Bad home loss especially when they 0-4 on the road this year.

Houston 71 (6-9, 1-2)
Rice 76 (9-7, 3-1)

Bowling Green 60 (6-10, 2-2)
Miami (OH) 66 (10-7, 1-3)

Tuesday's Scores

Top 25:

UConn 54 (13-4, 2-3) - Lost 4 of 6; vs. Indiana Saturday.
(6) Pittsburgh 63 (17-2, 5-0) - Continue to roll in the Big East, and push toward a 1 or 2 seed.

(21) Texas 103 (13-4, 3-1) - Potential let down after hard fought game @ Villanova on Saturday.
(11) Oklahoma St. 105 3OT (16-2, 2-1) - Had to win this one at home after blowout @ Kansas and going to Texas A&M on Saturday.

(13) Air Force 79 (17-2, 4-1) - Stops 13 game winning streak; the #13 team shouldn't be beaten by a team that had lost 6 straight, was 0-4 in the MWC, and has a losing record; it won't happen, but a loss like this should drop you at least 10 spots.
Utah 85 (6-12, 1-4)

UAB 54 (10-8, 2-2)
(17) Memphis 79 (14-3, 4-0) - There might not be a team in this conference that can beat them.

(25) Kentucky 87 (15-3, 4-0) - 11th straight win; can beat anybody when they are hitting their 3's.
South Carolina 49 (10-6, 0-3)

Other Scores:

Maryland 91 (15-4, 1-3) - Haven't even started the hard part of the ACC schedule and already have 3 losses.
Virginia 103 (10-6, 2-2) - Score alot in their biggest wins (93 vs. Arizona, 108 vs. Gonzaga, 103, vs. Maryland).

Miami (FL) 63 (9-10, 2-3)
Boston College 82 (13-4, 4-0) - Haven't faced any ACC heavyweights, but have a chance to compete for one of the top spots in the conference.

Citadel 54 (6-12, 3-4)
Davidson 79 (16-3, 7-0) - 12th straight win; losses came to Michigan, Missouri, and Duke.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Iowa 64 (10-8, 2-2)
Indiana 71 (13-4, 4-1) - Finally starting to get some credit for their play.

St. John's 63 (10-8, 1-4)
DePaul 71 (12-8, 3-2)

Kentucky 87 South Carolina 49

Kentucky totally dominated USC tonight on offense and defense. The Cats lead by just 10 at halftime, but it didn't seem that close. After UK outscored by USC 50-22 in the 2nd half, the Gamecocks had their worse home loss since 1915. Obviously South Carolina is not very good, but Kentucky still did exactly what they needed to do. They put up a very impressive showing on national television. Crawford is playing the best basketball of his career and Morris and Bradley just keep producing.

There weren't many negatives, but here are some key stats:

Crawford: 23 pts, 9/12 FG, 3-5 3FG
Morris: 17 pts, 11 reb, 3 blk
Bradley: 15 pts, 5 reb, 6 ast, 2 stl
Meeks: 12 pts
Stevenson: 8 pts, 4 reb, 2 blk

Offense: 62.5% FG, 50% 3FG, +10 reb, 21 ast
Defense: 26.8 % FG, 25.9% 3FG, 7 blk, 6 stl

Monday's Scores

Top 25:

Missouri 77 (11-6, -4) - Almost pull out a huge upset, but instead lost 4th straight and 6 out of 8.
(6) Kansas 80 (16-2, 3-0) - 3 0f next 4 on the road will be a good test.

(24) Marquette 74 (16-4, 3-2) - Not an easy place to win.
Louisville 65 (12-6, 2-2) - A system built on 3 pt. shooting and defense with no shooters and unable to stop dribble penetration..

Other Scores:

Creighton 59 (11-6, 5-2)
Wichita St. 62 (12-6, 3-4) - Have to keep winning to avoid slipping out of the NCAA.

Gonzaga 75 (12-7, 3-1) - Rare conference loss; strength of schedule will help them make the tournament even if they have some more conference losses.
St. Mary's 80 (10-9, 2-1)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Georgia Southern 64 (9-9, 2-5)
Charleston 67 (12-7, 5-2)

Chattanooga 66 (9-11, 2-6)
Elon 56 (4-12, 2-4)

Miss. Valley St. 64 (6-11, 3-2)
Southern 72 (4-14, 3-3)

Portland 41 (6-14, 2-2)
Santa Clara 57 (12-6, 2-1)

Sunday's Scores

Top 25:

(15) Oregon 79 (16-1, 4-1) - Very impressive road win at a place where not other visitor has won.
(10) Arizona 77 (13-3, 4-2) - Not going to get any easier with @ USC and UCLA next week.

(11) Duke 85 (14-3, 1-2) - I don't want to hear about Duke being "back"; Miami is awful with losses to Buffalo, Cleveland St. and Binghamton (at home).
Miami (FL) 63 (9-9, 2-2)

Seton Hall 76 (10-6, 2-2)
(22) Notre Dame 88 (15-2, 3-1) - Stay in 2nd place in the Big East.

Other Scores:

Illinois 57 (13-6, 1-3)
Michigan St. 63 (15-4, 2-2) - 13-0 at home, but 0-3 on the road.

Cincinnati 59 (9-7, 0-2) - Only winless team in Big East play
South Florida 74 (10-8, 1-3) - Finally found a Big East team they can beat.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Miami (OH) 51 (5-10, 1-2)
Buffalo 68 (9-7, 1-2)

UK 64, Miss. St. 60

It wasn't very pretty, but Kentucky was able to hold on and beat Mississippi State to stay unbeaten in the SEC. UK was being out hustled and out rebounded in the 1st half, but they came out much more aggressive and ended up out rebounding MSU by 1. The Cats had 0 offensive rebounds at halftime, but came back with 10 in the 2nd half. They also hit 15/19 FT's being led by Morris's 7/8. Jasper played one of his best games 8 pts, 8 reb, 1 blk, 4 stl, 3 ast, and 3/4 FT's.

Tonight's win makes it 10 in a row for Kentucky and they stay in a tie with Florida for the lead in the SEC East. They are also the only 2 teams in the SEC that haven't lost a conference game.

More stats later.

Saturday's Scores

Top 25:

(1) North Carolina 88 (15-2, 2-1) - Losing 1st road game might be a bad sign; @ Clemson on Wed, and still have @ Arizona Jan. 27.
Virginia Tech 94 (13-4, 3-0) - Very impressive win (more than @ Duke); can they keep it up win they aren't in the spotlight?

(2) Florida 84 (16-2, 3-0) - Will move into 1st in the polls after 8th straight win.
South Carolina 50 (10-5, 0-2) - Tuesday's game vs. Kentucky is a chance to turn around their 0-2 SEC start.

(16) Tennessee 66 (13-4, 1-1) - Lost last 2 by total of 3 pts.
(5) Ohio St. 68 (14-3, 2-1) - Best win of the season; Oden dominated UT's small front line.

(6) Kansas 68 (15-2, 2-0) - Good road win for a young team.
Iowa St. 64 OT (11-6, 2-1) - Were prepared for this game, but couldn't quite pull it out.

Georgetown 69 (11-5, 1-2) - 2nd loss in a row.
(7) Pittsburgh 74 (15-2, 4-0) - Looking like by far the best in the Big East.

(8) Texas A&M 87 (15-2, 3-0) - 7th straight win, start getting some better Big 12 competition starting with Okla. St. next Sat.
Colorado 69 (4-9, 0-3)

South Dakota St. 47 (4-13)
(12) Butler 62 (15-2) - This kind of game just hurts their RPI.

Auburn 63 (11-7, 1-2)
(13) LSU 65 (12-4, 1-1) - Barely able to avoid a bad home loss and 0-2 SEC start.

(17) Clemson 87 (17-1, 3-1) - Finally lost; now they have to face UNC, BC, and Duke.
Maryland 92 (15-3, 1-2) - Good win after bad loss vs. Miami.

(18) Air Force 58 (17-1, 4-0) - 12th straight win.
Wyoming 56 (11-6, 2-1)

(19) Nevada 68 (16-1, 4-0) - This was easily a potential loss, but they made it out with a win.
Hawaii 66 OT (10-7, 1-3)

(20) Memphis 75 (13-3, 3-0) - Another easy win over one of the "better" C-USA teams.
Southern Miss 62 (11-4, 1-1)

(21) West Virginia 63 (13-3, 3-2) - 2nd straight loss; can they win on the road?
Marquette 81 (15-4, 2-2) - Big game @ Louisville on Monday to try to climb back into the Big East race.

(22) Washington St. 68 (15-3, 4-2) - This would have been a big win with next 3 all at home.
Stanford 71 OT (11-4, 3-2)

(24) UConn 68 (13-3, 2-2) - 1st road win of the year, but @ Pitt on Tuesday might be a different story.
St. John's 59 (10-7, 1-3)

Oklahoma 69 (9-6, 1-2)
(25) Texas 80 (13-3, 3-0) - @ Okla. St. will be a big test for this young team.

Other Scores:

Mississippi St. 60 (10-6, 1-2) - Very close losses @ Tenn. & UK.
Kentucky 64 ( 14-3, 3-0) - 10th straight win, but does the national media care?

Washington 69 (11-6, 1-5) - They need a .500 record in the Pac-10 to make the NCAA, which means they need to win 8 of 12, and they still have to go to Pittsburgh.
California 77 OT (11-6, 2-3)

Missouri St. 56 (13-4, 4-2)
Southern Illinois 76 (13-4, 4-2) - Impressive win to stop 2 game losing streak.

Texas Tech 70 (13-5, 2-1) - Bad loss with Kansas and Texas A&M coming up.
Baylor 73 (11-5, 1-2)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Indiana 84 (12-4, 3-1) - @ UConn next Sat. could be a chance to show the nation that they are a contender in the Big 10.
Penn St. 74 (10-6, 1-2)

DePaul 60 (11-7, 2-2)
Rutgers 37 (8-9, 1-3)

Providence 63 (12-4, 2-1)
Louisville 78 (12-5, 2-1) - Monday vs. Marquette is a big game to determine if they can compete with the top Big East teams.

SMU 67 (11-5, 1-1)
Houston 82 (6-8, 1-1)

Temple 77 (6-9, 0-3)
UMass 88 (13-5, 3-0)

Gonzaga 77 (12-6, 3-0) - Conference play always gets them on a winning streak.
Santa Clara 69 (11-6, 1-1)

Furman 55 (7-9, 1-4)
Charleston 67 (11-7, 4-2)

Chattanooga 57 (8-11, 1-6)
N.C. Greensboro 67 (8-9, 5-2)

Eastern Illinois 62 (5-14, 1-9)
Eastern Kentucky 63 (10-6, 5-3)

Vanderbilt 73 (11-6, 1-2)
Georgia 85 (10-5, 2-1) - Can either of these teams win on the road?

Arkansas 72 (12-5, 1-2) - Typical road struggels for this team under Stan Heath.
Mississippi 74 (12-5, 1-2) - Dangerous team @ home in the SEC.

Thursday's Scores

Top 25:

Oregon St. 72 (8-9, 0-4) - 4th straight loss.
(10) Arizona 83 (13-2, 4-1) - Next 3 = vs. Oregon, @ USC, @ UCLA.

(15) Oregon 60 (15-1, 3-1) - They did beat UCLA, but I think they'll struggle @ Arizona on Sunday.
Arizona St. 55 (6-10, 0-5)

(20) Memphis 79 (12-3, 2-0) - This was supposed to be one of their harder conference road games.
Houston 69 (5-8, 0-1)

(19) Nevada 72 (15-1, 3-0) - @ Hawaii on Saturday could be 1st (and maybe only) conference loss.
San Jose St. 63 (1-14, 0-3) - How does a team that's won just 1 game stay within 9 points of a top 25 team?

(22) Washington St. 73 (15-2, 4-1) - Have 3 straight at home after Saturday @ Stanford.
California 56 (10-6, 2-2)

Other Scores:

Washington 77 (11-5, 1-4) - Lost 4 of last 5; hardest Pac-10 schedule so far.
Stanford 78 (10-4, 2-2)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Miami (OH) 52 (5-9, 1-1)
Akron 54 (10-4, 1-1)

Home Court Update 1/10

All 4 games in the Big East were won by the road team, which is weird.

Kentucky has the only road win in the SEC.

Home Records:

ACC: 8-7
Big East: 12-9
Big 10: 12-2
Big 12: 7-4
Pac-10: 9-9
SEC: 10-1

Total: 58-32 = 64.44%

UK vs. Auburn Breakdown

Kentucky led the entire game vs. Auburn and managed to dominate at the end after Auburn started making some 3's. Morris was in foul trouble some tonight, but Crawford and Bradley were able to pick up the slack. Those 3 are all capable of huge games, and when they all 3 produce, UK is one of the best teams in the country. Turnovers were somewhat of a problem and the Cats gave up a lot of open 3's in the 2nd half, but the stats are really good for UK.

Bradley: 18 pts, 11 reb, 7 ast, 2 stls, Just 1 turnover
Crawford: 21 pts, 5 reb, 2 ast, 5 turnovers - can put up points in a hurry.
Morris: 12 pts, 6 reb, 4 blks - played just 23 minutes due to foul trouble.
Perry: 12 pts (2-4 3FG)
Jasper: 6 pts, 0 reb, 0 ast, 4 turnovers - needs to get back to playing a solid game.
Stevenson: 4 pts - looked much better and more aggressive.
Meeks: 4 pts, 9 reb - contributes in some way every game.
Thomas: 0 pts, 1 ast, 4 turnovers - had played better lately, but made some terrible passes.

Team:

55% FG, 28% FG Defense
64% FT - got better in the 2nd half, but this could be important in a close game.
Allowed 20 offensive rebounds
7 blocks - so much better in this area than last year's team.
19 ast on 28 FG
19 TO's

Wednesday's Scores

Top 25:

Virginia 69 (9-5, 1-1)
(1) North Carolina 79 (15-1, 2-0) - 12th straight win.

(9) Oklahoma St. 57 (15-2, 1-1) - Were out of the game from the moment it started.
(6) Kansas 87 (14-2, 1-0) - 8th straigh win; looked like one of the best in the country tonight.

(7) Pittsburgh 59 (15-2, 3-0) - The team to beat in the Big East.
DePaul 49 (10-7, 1-2)

(11) Duke 63 (13-3, 0-2) - Just not athletic enough to play with teams like this; lost to a team that committed 28 turnovers.
Georgia Tech 74 (12-4, 1-2) - Big win for ACC positioning; avoid 0-3 start.

(12) Butler 67 (14-2, 3-1) - Beat Notre Dame, Indiana, Tenn, Gonzaga, but have lost to Indiana St. and Ill. Chicago who has a LOSING RECORD.
Ill. Chicago 73 OT (8-9, 3-1)

(16) Tennessee 81 (13-3, 1-1) - First road game is a loss; 4 of next 5 are on the road.
Vanderbilt 82 (11-5, 1-1) - Biggest homecourt advantage in the SEC.

Marquette 73 (14-3, 1-2) - Had to win this to avoid terrible 0-3 Big East start.
(24) UConn 69 (12-3, 1-2) - When you play nobody until December 30th, you're not prepared for conference play; should win @ St. John's, but then @ Pitt, and vs. Indiana will be tough.

Missouri 68 (11-4, 0-2)
(25) Texas 88 (12-3, 2-0)

Other Scores:

Auburn 57 (11-6, 1-1)
Kentucky 84 (13-3, 2-0) - 9th straight win; maybe a blowout like this will get them more attention.

Miami (FL) 63 (9-8, 2-1)
Maryland 58 (14-3, 0-2) - You can't lose this game at home when you're trying to climb back into the top 25.

Wichita St. 63 (10-6, 1-4) - Playing themselves out of the NCAA tournament; lost 6 of 7.
Indiana St. 68 (11-4, 3-1)

Southern Ill. 46 (12-4, 3-2) - 2nd straight loss.
Bradley 48 (12-6, 3-3)

UNLV 76 (14-4, 1-2) - 2nd straight loss; have a chance at the an at-large bid, but are not off to a good start in the conference.
Wyoming 86 OT (11-5, 2-0)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Purdue 58 (12-5, 1-2)
Indiana 85 (11-4, 2-1) - at least the 3rd best in the Big 10.

Louisville 81 (11-5, 1-1) - Still have a chance to succeed in a weak Big East.
South Florida 55 (9-8, 0-3)

George Washington 84 (10-4, 1-1)
UMass 91 (12-4, 2-0)

Ga. Southern 58 (9-7, 2-3)
Chattanooga 67 (8-10, 1-5)

South Carolina 56 (10-4, 0-1) - Can never win on the road in the SEC.
Georgia 80 (9-5, 1-1) - Breaks 4 game losing streak; will be tough at home in the SEC.

Ole Miss 67 (11-5, 0-2) - 3rd straight loss.
Miss. St. 77 (10-5, 1-1) - @ Kentucky on Saturday.

Kentucky 84 Auburn 57

Kentucky goes to 2-0 in the SEC with tonight's blowout over Auburn. Ramel Bradley played a great all around game falling just 3 assists shy of a triple-double. Crawford went over 20 again and Perry found his shooting stroke.

I'll have more on the game later.

UK vs. Auburn Broadcast

In case you haven't heard, the game vs. Auburn will be interrupted by President Bush's speech. You can watch the entire game for free at Yahoo by following this link.

http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaab/collegebroadcast;_ylt=Ag4paASmu.rvBOuvU9.2J8fevbYF

Tuesday's Scores

Top 25:

Arkansas 72 (12-4, 1-1) - Very good effort, and but they weren't able to surprise Florida after blowing out Alabama.
(2) Florida 79 (15-2, 2-0) - 3 0f next 4 are not too hard, but they are on the road where the Gators are 0-1.

(5) Ohio St. 69 (13-3, 2-1) - Everybody knows they're good, but they haven't been able to get a big win; 3 "good" losses (1. UNC, 2. Florida, 3. Wisc.).
(3) Wisconsin 72 (16-1, 2-0) - Maybe now people will acknowledge that they have a good chance to win the Big 10 which is down this year after the top 2; only other ranked team left is @ Ohio St.

(8) Texas A&M 61 (14-2, 2-0) - Won 7 straight; much like Ohio St., don't have a big win yet.
Baylor 51 (10-5, 0-2)

(13) LSU 61 (11-4, 0-1) - Road games are tough in the SEC, just ask Alabama.
(14) Alabama 71 (14-2, 1-1) - Great rebound victory after getting blown out @ Ark.

(17) Clemson 87 (17-0, 3-0) - Already have 2 ACC road wins.
N.C. State 76 (10-6, 0-3)

New Mexico 57 (11-7, 0-3)
(18) Air Force (16-1, 3-0) - Able to rally from a 15 point halftime defecit.

(21) West Virginia 58 (13-2, 3-1) - Another big conference game @ Marquette on Sat.
(22) Notre Dame 61 (14-2, 2-1) - Big East might be down, but the top is very even.

Other Scores:

Boston College 95 (11-4, 3-0) - Even with losses to Vermont, Providence, & Duquense, they are still in good shape in the ACC.
Wake Forest 85 (9-6, 1-2)

Northern Iowa 64 (13-3, 4-1) - Bad loss to a team that was 0-4 in the conference.
Illinois St. 67 (9-7, 1-4)

Kentucky's Opponents:

Morehead St. 65
Eastern Kentucky 73 (9-6, 4-3)

Charleston 74 (10-7, 3-2)
Citadel 62 (5-11, 2-3)

Monday's Scores

Top 25:

Boise St. 86 (7-6, 1-1)
(17) Nevada 90 (13-2, 1-0) - Not in a strong league, but everybody is going to be after them; watch out for @ Hawaii and vs. Freson St. on Jan. 13th and 18th.

Other Scores:

Villanova 56 (11-4, 1-2) - Huge win to avoid 0-3 start in the Big East.
Georgetown 52 (11-4, 1-1) - Seemed to be playing great lately, but rough loss at home.

SE Missouri St. 96 (5-12, 4-4)
Murray St. 85 (7-9, 5-3) - This game means nothing to most of you, but I'm a Murray St. graduate. MSU had a chance to hire Scott Edgar, but instead they let him go to SEMO. I'm afraid the next few years are going to be rough for a team with a great tradition in the OVC.

Texas Tech 62 (13-4, 2-0) - Should go to 3-0 in conference @ Baylor on Saturday, then have a chance to make some noise when they host Kansas and Texas A&M next week.
Kansas St. 52 (10-6, 0-2) - Lost Bill Walker for the season, and it pretty much wipes out this first season for Bob Huggins.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Alabama St. 57 (4-11, 2-2)
Miss. Valley St. 59 (6-9, 3-0) - Played at Ole Miss, Creighton, Kentucky, USC, and LSU to prepare for their conference, and it appears to be paying off.

Weekly Poll Rant

The new AP and Coaches' polls came out today and both have UNC at the top which I would agree with. It's hard to determine who is better than who right now, so you could re-arrange numbers 6-25 and make a good argument for it. What I don't understand is why some of these teams are still getting votes.

In the AP Poll:

(24) UConn 188 votes - there is absolutely no justification for ranking this team right now. They've played 2 good teams this year and got embarrassed in both games (WVU, LSU).

(29) Marquette 69 votes - 5-4 after 9-0 start including losses at home to NORTH DAKOTA ST., Wisconsin, and Providence, and @ Syracuse.

(36) Wichita St. 10 votes - Obviously the people making these polls haven't heard that they've lost 5 of 6 to New Mexico, USC, Northern Iowa, SIU, and Missouri St with the only win over Bradley. They are currently 8th in their mid-major conference!

My Top 25

It will look quite a bit different than the other polls, but it's just my opinion. I'll try and justify why the team is so high or low.

1. North Carolina (13-1, 1-0) - Only loss was a month and half ago. Have since beaten Tenn, Kentucky, Ohio St, and blowing other competition out.

2. Florida (14-2, 1-0) - Easily handled Ohio St., and are starting to play just like they did last year.

3. UCLA (14-1, 3-1) - New they would lose eventually, but still have wins over Kentucky, Ga. Tech, Texas A&M, Wash. St, and Washington.

4. Wisconsin (15-1, 1-0) - Dominating their competition right now; get a chance to prove themselves vs. Ohio St. on Tuesday.

5. Kansas (13-2) - Another team that is easily winning right now; win over Florida showed their talent, just need more steady play to have a chance at the Final 4.

6. Tennessee (13-2, 1-0) - This was hard since I'm a UK fan, but they have won 9 straight including wins over Memphis, Okla. St., and Texas; only 2 losses were to Bulter and UNC.

7. Clemson (16-0, 2-0) - Schedule hasn't been incredibly hard, but they just keep winning.

8. Ohio St. (13-2, 2-0) - Yes, they would have a chance to beat any of the teams above them, but lost their 2 big games by 11 and 26 to UNC and Florida; also 0-2 on the road.

9. Arizona (12-2, 3-1) - Can beat anybody with their great offense, but can also lose to almost anybody due to weak defense.

10. Air Force (15-1, 2-0) - Only loss to Duke; blowing out some good teams and teams from good conferences: Stanford +34, Colorado +38, Texas Tech + 14, Wake Forest + 36, Santa Clara + 30.

11. LSU (11-3) - Maybe not as good as last year, but really starting to come together.

12. Memphis (11-3) - Can be dominant when their outside shots are falling; 3 losses to good teams: Ga. Tech, Tenn., Arizona.

13. Kentucky (12-3, 1-0) - What did you expect from a pro-UK site? Won 8 straight and played a very difficult schedule. 3 losses to UCLA, Memphis, and UNC.

14. Oklahoma St. (15-1, 1-0) - Only loss vs. Tennessee; if they win @ Kansas this week they'll jump alot in my poll.

15. Pittsburgh (14-2, 2-0) - Might be better than this, but best win is over an ok Syracuse team.

16. Washington St. (14-2, 3-1) - Win over Arizona and 3 pt. loss @ UCLA prove they are capable of playing with anybody.

17. Notre Dame (13-2, 1-1) - I'm not sure they're this good even with wins over Maryland and Alabama, but I think they'll contend for the Big East crown.

18. Oregon (13-1, 2-1) - Good wins over UCLA and Georgetown, but I think they could easily drop quite a few in the Pac-10.

19. Duke (13-2, 0-1) - Loss to Va. Tech at home will motivate them, but I think that talent not motivation is the question.

20. West Virginia (13-1, 3-0) - Best win was over UConn, but they're way overrated to begin with. So dependent on the 3 and a zone defense that it makes me question them.

21. Texas A&M (13-2, 1-0) - My philosophy is simple: beat somebody and I'll rank you higher; best wins are vs. Auburn, Winthrop, and Kansas St.

22. Butler (13-1, 3-0) - Do have good wins over Notre Dame, Indiana, Tenn, and Gonzaga, but the loss to Indiana St. hurts.

23. Indiana (10-4, 1-1) - 4 losses came to Bulter, Duke, Kentucky, and Ohio St. and were by a combined 19 points; destroyed Mich. St. to show they are a contender in the Big 10.

24. Nevada (13-1, 1-0) - Yes they have a great record, but their best win was over Gonzaga who is not as good as once believed.

25. Georgetown (11-3, 1-0) - Won 7 straight and have been winning easily including beating Notre Dame by 18.

My next team in would be Maryland, but I only had room for 25. I know I left out teams like Marquette, Alabama, Washington, and UConn, but their recent play doesn't prove they are top 25 teams. I also think MVC teams like Missouri St., Northern Iowa, and Southern Illinois are deserving of a top 25 ranking, but they either have some bad losses, or they keep beating up on each other.

Sunday's Scores

Top 25:

Florida St. 58 (12-4, 0-2) - 4 losses have come to Pitt, Wisc., Clemson, UNC.
(2) North Carolina 84 (14-1, 1-0) - Haven't lost since Nov. 22; Closest game since loss was vs. Ohio St. 98-89.

(9) Kansas 70 (13-2) - Won 7 straight; vs. Okla. St. on Wednesday.
South Carolina 54 (10-3)

South Florida 48 (9-7, 0-2) - Teams like this and Rutgers, Seton Hall, and Cinci, are why the Big East doesn't deserve to be in consideration for the toughest conference.
(10) Pittsburgh 69 (14-2, 2-0) - I'm still undecided abouth how good they are; lost their 2 big games vs. Wisconsin and Okla. St.

Syracuse 70 (12-4, 1-1) - Best win of the season.
(15) Marquette 58 (12-4, 0-2) - Since starting out 7-0 have lost to North Dakota St, Wisc., Providence, and now Syracuse; 3 of 4 losses were at home.

Mississippi St. 84 (9-5, 0-1) - Lost 3 straight
(19) Tennessee 92 (13-2, 1-0) - Won 9 straight, but 3 straight road games @ Vandy, Ohio St, & Auburn.

Other Scores:

Wichita St. 87 (9-5, 1-3) - Lost 5 of last 6; N. Iowa, SIU, MO St, Creighton, Indiana St, and Bradley all have better RPI's.
Missouri St. 95 (11-3, 3-1)

Stanford 76 (9-4, 1-2) - Came East to get a win after rough Pac-10 start.
Virginia 75 (9-4, 1-0) - Next 2 @ UNC & BC, then vs. Maryland; lose all 3 and season will be in big trouble.

Rutgers 54 (8-7, 1-1) - Rare conference road win.
Cincinnati 42 (9-6, 0-1) - Can't lose this game at home; now the NIT bid may not even be there by the end of the year.

Kentucky's Opponents:

Michigan St. 51 - 2nd straight loss; win vs. Texas on Nov. 16 is only impressive win; why were they ranked in the coaches' poll?
Indiana 73 (10-4, 1-1) - Getting no credit for all their close losses to good teams (Bulter, Duke, Kentucky, Ohio St.); 3rd best team in Big 10 in my opinion.

Kent St. 63 (7-7, 0-1)
Miami (OH) 65 (5-8, 1-0) - Tough non-confernce schedule could pay off now that they are facing easier competition.

Home Court Update

Home Court Records:

ACC: 5-4
Big East: 10-2
Big 10: 7-2
Big 12: 3-2
Pac-10: 9-9
SEC: 3-1

Total: 37-20 (64.91%)

Kentucky 68, Mississippi 58

Kentucky managed to pull out a road at Ole Miss with the leadership of Joe Crawford. Ole Miss held tough by driving to the basket and getting 2nd chance points, but the 3 point shooting of Crawford and Bradley (7-9 total) was too much for the Rebels to overcome.

Quick Positives & Negatives:

Morris: 14 pts, 10 reb, 3 stl
Crawford: 23 pts, 4 ast
Bradley: 13 pts, 7 reb, 5 ast
Jasper: 7 pts, 4 ast - Stayed in foul trouble with 2 questionable charges called on him.
Perry: 3 pts, 2 reb, 2 ast - Continued to struggle from the field (1-4)
Meeks: Made a big 3 late in the game
Harris: Played 3 minutes and didn't look lost, got 2 rebounds.

Team: 55.6% FG, 47.1% 3FG, +3 rebound advantage, 18 ast. on 25 FG

It seemed like Ole Miss had more than 8 offensive rebounds; Defense allowed too much penetration, and some people got lost on screens on the inside.

UK is doing a good job closing out close games, and get to stay at home for the next 2 games vs. Auburn and Mississippi St.

Saturday's Scores

It's so hard to win on the road during conference play, but Virginia Tech was able to pull it off at Duke. The Blue Devils have let too many opponents stay close at home this year, and today it cost them a win. This Duke team isn't bad, but they aren't one of the best teams in the nation either. They couldn't stop the athletic players of Va. Tech from getting into the lane and making easy shots. Usually when you see an upset like this, it's due to the underdog shooting great from 3 pt. range. Today Tech hit just 4-10 3's, but they were still able to outplay Duke.

Top 25:

(1) UCLA 66 (14-1, 3-1) - New it would be hard to give Oregon 2 straight home losses.
(16) Oregon 68 (14-1, 2-1) - Came through to avoid 0-2 conference start; another big game next Saturday @ Arizona.

Georgia 51 (8-5, 0-1) - 4th straight loss although they were all to pretty good teams (Ga. Tech, Clemson, Wisc., Florida)
(3) Florida 67 (14-2, 1-0) - SEC schedule stays pretty easy until Feb. 3 when Tennessee comes to town.

Minnesota 45 (7-9, 1-1)
(4) Wisconsin 68 (15-1, 1-0) - Huge game vs. Ohio St. on Tuesday.

VA Tech 69 (11-5, 1-0) - This is the kind of win that will help a ton when they're trying to get a bid to the tournament.
(5) Duke 67 OT (13-2, 0-1) - Just 2nd loss, but they could not keep up with Va. Tech's athleticism; Tough game @ Georgia Tech on Wednesday.

(6) Ohio St. 62 (13-2, 2-0) - Illini are down this year, but this is still impressive on the road.
Illinois 44 (12-5, 0-2) - Good record, but lack a big win; need to prove they belong in the tournamnent.

(7) Arizona 73 (12-2, 3-1) - Can be beaten when opponents decide to play real defense.
Washington St. 77 OT (14-2, 3-1) - Able to stay in a tie for first in the Pac-10.

(8) Alabama 61 (13-2, 0-1) - Welcome to playing on the road in a tough SEC; Never had a chance in this game.
Arkansas 88 (12-3, 1-0) - Big win, but can they follow it up with another one @ Florida on Tuesday?

Kansas St. 65 (10-5, 0-1)
(11) Texas A&M 69 (13-2, 1-0) - Until they get a win over a big name team, I'm going to say they're overrated.

Baylor 77 (10-4, 0-1)
(12) Oklahoma St. 81 (15-1, 1-0) - Might have been looking ahead to @ Kansas on Wed.

Wright St. 42 (9-7, 2-1)
(13) Butler 73 (14-1, 3-0) - Will anybody challenge them in this weak league? Maybe Loyola Chicago on Jan. 25.

(18) UConn 49 (12-2, 1-1) - 0-2 on the road; Still very overrated.
(14) LSU 66 (11-3, 0-0) - Big game @ Alabama on Tuesday.

(17) Notre Dame 48 (13-2, 1-1) - Tough road game; out of sync all day.
Georgetown 66 (11-3, 1-0) - Jumped out to an 18-2 lead; seem to be back to what everybody thought they would be; 7 game win streak.

UNLV 50 (14-3, 1-1) - Will get another chance vs. Air Force next month; both teams should make the NCAA tournament.
(20) Air Force 56 (15-1, 2-0) - Just keep on proving people wrong by winning.

Georgia Tech 74 (11-4, 0-2) - 9-0 at home, 0-3 on the road, 2-1 neutral; get a shot to beat Duke at home on Wednesday.
(23) Clemson 75 (16-0, 2-0) - Came from behind to stay unbeaten; should be ranked higher at this point.

Arizona St. 53 (6-9, 0-4)
(24) Washington 64 (11-4, 1-3) - Ended 3 game losing streak; next 2 games on the road where they are 0-3.

St. John's 46 (10-5, 1-1)
(25) West Virginia 73 (13-1, 3-0) - Proven they can win at home, but how will they do @ Notre Dame and @ Marquette next week?

Other Scores:

Kentucky 68 (12-3, 1-0) - 8th straight win, now 2-1 on the road.
Mississippi 58 (11-4, 0-1) - Kept it close, but just don't have the talent.

Iowa St. 66 (10-5, 1-0)
Missouri 65 (11-3, 0-1) - Bad way to start off conference play with a home loss.

USC 91 (13-4, 3-1) - Next 2 vs. UCLA & Arizona will determine if they can play with the top of the conference.
Oregon St. 46 (8-8, 0-3)

Boston College 74 (10-4, 2-0) - Might be getting close to where most thought they would be.
N.C. State 58 (10-5, 0-2) - Can't afford to lose home games when they are already struggling.

Southern Illinois 61 (12-3, 3-1) - Still in a very good position in the MVC and to make the NCAA tournament.
Northern Iowa 66 (13-2, 4-0) - 5th straigh win; have a good tournament resume, but the loss to Loyola Chicago looks bad; other loss @ Washington.

Loyola Marymount 62 (8-9, 0-1)
Gonzaga 97 (10-6, 1-0) - Finally end 4 game losing streak.

Kentucky's Opponents:

St. Mary's 69 (8-9, 0-1)
Santa Clara 76 (11-5, 1-0) - Big game vs. Gonzaga next Saturday.

DePaul 73 (10-6, 1-1) - Big win on the road to even record in the Big East.
Villanova 65 (10-4, 0-2) - 2 losses in the conference already and @ G-Town & Syracuse next week.

UMass 79 (11-4, 1-0)
La Salle 71 (6-8, 0-2)

Alabama A&M 41 (5-9, 0-3)
Miss. Valley St. 55 (5-9, 2-0)

Appalachian St. 77 (12-3, 4-0) - Already have wins over Virginia and Vanderbilt.
Chattanooga 63 (7-9, 0-4)

Charleston 73 (9-7, 2-2)
Davidson 81 (13-3, 4-0)

Vanderbilt 65 (10-5, 0-1) - 12/26 3FG; Host Tennessee on Wednesday.
Auburn 68 (11-5, 1-0) - 14/28 3FG; Next 3 @ Kentucky, @ LSU, vs. Tennessee.

Kentucky @ Ole Miss

Kentucky plays its first SEC game Saturday at Ole Miss. The two teams actually have identical records at 11-3 heading into conference play. However, Mississippi is coming off a loss at St. Louis while UK is trying to run its winning streak to 8 in a row. Two of Ole Miss' losses have come to good team is UConn and Memphis, and the Rebels are undefeated at home. They actually played Memphis closer than Kentucky did earlier in the season.

This game will once again be closer than most UK fans would expect. It's neve easy to win on the road in conference, and Ole Miss has a tradition of keeping games close by making the game ugly. They'll be physical and come out fired up to get a great opening win in the conference. Kentucky has to look for better shots, and not settle for the 3 pointer like they did vs. Houston. Morris will be matched up with Dwayne Curtis, a 6'8" 290 lb. center that will not back down to anybody. I'm anxious to see how first year coach, Andy Kennedy will try to match up with the Cats.

My prediction: UK 64 Ole Miss 59

Ole Miss Results:

Miss. Valley St. W 72-49
LA Lafayette W 69-54
vs. Fairfield W 70-67
vs. Cent. Ark. W 75-61
@ UConn L 59-77
Tenn. Tech W 86-77
Nicholls St. W 100-80
New Orleans W 85-77
@ Memphis L 70-82
LA Monroe W 87-53
@ South Alabama W 82-72
Illinois Chicago W 77-64
Alabama A&M W 81-57
@ St. Louis L 56-59

Home Court Advantage

With conference play starting to take place in almost every conference, I thought it would be interesting to see just how often the home team actually wins. You're going to see a fair share of upsets during the conference schedule, but these are often misleading when the higher ranked team is playing on the road. It is very difficult playing at a team who knows you well, because they play you once or twice a year, and their fans hate you.

I'm going to track the 6 power conferences and see how much of a home court advantage there is. This occurs in every conference, but I just wanted to give a glimpse of how obvious it is using the most prominent teams.

Total Conference Games So Far: 31
Home team record: 21-10
Home team record by conference:
ACC: 4-1
Big 10: 4-0
Big 12: 0-0
Big East: 7-1
Pac-10: 6-8
SEC: 0-0

Clemson won @ Florida St. & Pittsburgh won @ Syracuse in the ACC and Big East.

The Pac-10 is really crazy right now with 7 different teams already having road wins. Oregon State and Arizona State have already lost 2 home games each, but these two teams also combined for 7 home non-conference losses. The one big surprise was USC winning @ Oregon.

Thursday's Results

Top 25:

(1) UCLA 71 - 1st road game turned out to be pretty easy; Stay undefeated at 14-0 (3-0).
Oregon St. 56

(7) Arizona 96 - Will outscore anybody if you try to run with them; UCLA is probably the only team in the Pac-10 that is disciplined enough to beat them.
(24) Washington 87 - 3rd straight loss; 0-3 in Pac-10; play no defense as usual; allowed 97, 86, 96, & 96 in 4 losses this year.

(10) Pittsburgh 74 - Lost both games against ranked teams (Wisc., Okla. St.), but this is a good road win to open up the conference.
Syracuse 66 - Ranked as high as 15th when they were playing nobody and started of 7-0; have since gone just 4-4.

(15) Marquette 59 - Not a good way to open up the conference schedule.
Providence 74 - 11-3 with ok losses @ Florida and vs. Florida St., but the loss to Brown doesn't look good on their resume.

USC 84 - Another Thursday upset like last weeks win over Washington.
(16) Oregon 82 - 1st loss of the year (13-1), but you have to win at home in the Pac-10.

Cincinnati 55 - Can't spell NIT this year without ciNcInnaTi; last 3 losses came by a combined 64 points.
(22) Memphis 88 - When they're making their 3's (12/28) they can beat anybody in the country.

Other Scores:

Creighton 52 - Ranked in the pre-season, but have to avoid losses to the "lower level" MVC teams.
Indiana St. 55

Bradley 63
Wichita St. 84 - Stop 4 game losing streak and finally win in the MVC (1-2).

Southern Illinois 59 - Go to 3-0 in tough MVC.
Drake 54

Michigan St. 60 - Snaps 7 game win streak; Tough game @ Indiana on Sunday.
Iowa 62

Kentucky's Opponents:

Eastern Kentucky 53
Tennessee Tech 75

Wednesday's Scores

Top 25:

Pennsylvania 64
(2) North Carolina 102 - Enter conference play at 12-1 and start off with a pretty easy conference schedule until @ Clemson Jan. 17th.

Louisville 62 - Not a bad loss, but if they lose at South Fla. (9-6) in their next game it will be a long season for the Cardinals.
(17) Notre Dame 78 - Play first road game of the season @ G-Town on Saturday.

(20) Air Force 81 - Will be fighting for 1st in the MWC with UNLV.
Colorado St. 75

(23) Clemson 68 - Impressive win on the road where FSU was 9-0 including a win over Florida; stay undfeated with 15-0 record.
Florida St. 66

Villanova 56
(25) West Virginia 67 - Go to 2-0 in the Big East.

Other Scores:

Gonzaga 87 - Trailed by 34 at halftime; what has happened to this team? could end up on the outside in March even with the difficult schedule; 4th straight loss and just 4-6 since starting off 5-0.
Virginia 108

Kansas St. 66 - Ends 6 game winning streak and now have to go to Texas A&M to open up conference play.
Xavier 76

Purdue 59 - Very bad way to open up the conference season after a pretty good 11-3 non-conference record; a loss to a 7-8 team looks bad when you're fighting for a spot in the tournament.
Minnesota 65

Illinois 61 - 2nd straight loss (Xavier); might be a rough Big 10 season.
Michigan 71 - Are going to have to be really impressive in the Big 10 if they hope to make it into the tournament.

Houston 70
Kentucky 77 - 7th straight win; All 3 losses have come to ranked teams (UCLA, UNC, Memphis).

Kentucky's Opponents:

Western Carolina 53
South Carolina 67

DePaul 53
St. John's 64

Chattanooga 56
Furman 69

Kentucky 77 Houston 70

Kentucky was able to hold on for the win despite a great effort from Houston. Kentucky jumped out to an impressive early lead, but they were unable to sustain the large margin for very long. Houston's speed and ability to drive to the basket and pass to open shooters gave UK tons of problems. It was very similar to the way Memphis beat Kentucky back in November. The difference this time was that Houston had no interior game.

Kentucky's problems started when they quit going inside to Morris who was able to dominate down low and instead settled for 3 pointers. UK shot 30 3's on the night and just 36 2's. Part of that was caused by the zone that Houston played, but many times it appeared that UK didn't even try to get the ball down low. Houston didn't shoot well, but were able to get up 75 shots including 34 3's. This is exactly the kind of game that Kentucky needs to stay away from. The focus should be on getting the ball to Morris, penetrate with Jasper, Meeks, and Crawford, and let the 3's come as a result of that kind of play. Thankfully UK was able to hold on tonight, but the result could have just as easily been a loss.

Positives & Negatives:

Morris: 20 pts, 10-12 FT, 10 reb, 4 blks, 3 ast - Continues to be so steady and dominate; was able to pass out of double teams and create for others.
Meeks: 8 pts, 9 reb (6 offensive) - played very big down the stretch with a rebound off a missed freethrow and then converted a 3 point play.
Jasper: 12 pts, 6 ast, 3 reb - able to score inside due to height advantage.
Thomas: 5 pts, 7 reb, 2 ast - rebounded when it seemed like nobody else could hold onto the ball.
Bradley: 11 pts, 7 reb, 2 ast - shot just 3-10 on 3's; settled for the 3 too much.
Crawford: 10 pts, 4 reb, 4 ast - at his best when he penetrates and pulls up for the mid-range jumper.
Perry: 8 pts, 6 reb, 2-11 FG, 0-4 3's; the 8 pts. and 6 reb. are fine, but needs more consistent shooting.
Woo, Porter, Stevenson: combined for just 11 minutes; Woo is doing a good job backing up Morris, but Stevenson has gone MIA.

Team:

Positive: 48-36 rebound advantage, 19 ast. on 26 FG, just 10 turnovers, defense held Houston to 36% FG, 32.4% 3FG

Negatives: 39.4%FG, 26.7% 3FG, Forced just 8 turnovers

Kentucky vs. Houston

Kentucky is coming into Wednesday's game vs. Houston at 10-3 with a 6 game winning streak. The Wildcats have actually not lost in over a month now, but are still getting very little national attention. Houston is 5-6 with a 3 game losing streak after getting off to a 4-1 start. They have scored over 80 points in 4 of their 5 wins, but just once in their 6 losses. They also have allowed 83 ppg. in their 6 losses and scored just 69.2.

Kentucky's defense has been impressive in the last 6 games. During that period UK has held opponents to just 59.8 ppg. and no team has scored over 68 points. This game is an opportunity for the defense to show they can hold a high scoring team down.

Kentucky is capable of running up and down the court, but I would rather see UK impose their will on the inside with Morris. If UK shoots well from outside, this game could get ugly early, but teams that can put up alot of points sometimes challenge Tubby's teams.

I'm going to predict an 83-64 Kentucky win.

Here's Houston's results so far:

@ Rhode Island = W 102-99 OT
Monmouth W 89-80
Grambling W 96-61
@ St. Louis L 78-81
Prairie View A&M W 101-54
@ Va. Commonwealth L 84-101
@ Arizona L 62-87
vs. Charlotte W 68-46
vs. Creighton L 72-80
vs. Nebraska L 57-70
UNLV L 62-78

Tuesday's Results

Even though Wichita St. may not be as good as it looked like they might be, the Missouri Valley is a very impressive conference. According to the Pomeroy Ratings, there are 8 teams sandwiched between 54 spots in the polls. These teams will beat up on each other, but last year's impressive showing in the NCAA tournament will help them get probably 4-6 teams in again this year. What is so weird is that Wichita St., the team with the most media attention this year, is 0-2 in the conference.

Top 25:

Liberty 58
(3) Florida 89 - Enters SEC play at 13-2; Get to play Alabama & Arkansas at home this year; Hardest stretch may be last 3: @ LSU, @ Tennessee, vs. Kentucky.

Temple 55
(5) Duke 73 - Impressed with just 1 loss going into ACC play.

Indiana 67 - 9-4 with the losses coming at a total of 20 points. They can compete with anybody, but they need a better win than vs. SIU at home.
(6) Ohio St. 74 - Start Big 10 1-0, but have to go to Illinois and Wisconsin for next 2 games; so far they're 0-2 on the road.

Winthrop 51
(11) Texas A&M 71 - Some picked them to win the Big 12, but I would put them at 3 right now behind Kansas and Oklahoma St; Don't have another chance to get an impressive win until Jan. 20 vs. Okla. St.

SW Oklahoma 77
(12) Oklahoma St. 129 - 14-1 going into Big 12 play; Next Wednesday @ Kansas will be one of the biggest early season conference games.

South Florida 50
(18) UConn 69 - Even their record to 1-1 in the Big East, but will have a tough time Saturday @ LSU.

Other Scores:

Missouri St. 86 - Rebound from loss @ Creighton to avoid 0-2 start to conference schedule.
Bradley 78

Kentucky's Opponents:

Auburn 54
Southern Miss. 56

Miami (FL) 72
UMass 71 - Shouldn't have lost this game @ home; could hurt later on.

SE Missouri St. 88
Eastern Kentucky 74

Mississippi St. 75
Missouri 83 - Enter Big 12 @ 11-2 and could cause alot of unexpected damage.

Vanderbilt 74 - Have won 9/10 after starting 1-4.
Rice 69

Tulsa 59
Arkansas 68

Miss. Valley St. 63
Ark. Pine Bluff 55

Monday's Scores

I was going to write a long comment on how ridiculous the new AP & Coaches' Polls are, but it's pretty useless. I do this blog as just a hobby, but I am willing to bet that me, countless other bloggers, and everybody who reads this page follows college basketball just as close as the people voting in these polls. I'm so glad that basketball is different from football in determining a champion.

Top 25:

Oklahoma 55 - Pretty good schedule strenght, but have no quality wins (8-4).
(8) Alabama 70 - Going into conference play at 13-1 (only loss @ Notre Dame); they get overlooked, but I think they're much better than LSU in the SEC west.

Other Scores:

Wichita St. 68 - 4th straight loss to go to 9-4 & 0-2 in the MVC; Need to get it toghether quick with games vs. Bradley and @ Missouri St. coming up.
Southern Illinois 73 - Aren't getting the attention that Wichita St. and Missouri St. are, but are 10-2 (2-0) with losses to Arkansas and @ Indiana.

New Mexico 68
Texas Tech 70 - Knight broke the all time wins record, so now we won't have to watch a mediocre team (that gets attention just due to their coach) on ESPN all the time now.