[The Poet]

The balance of Saturday action gives us one holy hell $#!+load of potential good matchups, many between so-so teams that both will fight for the victory, and thus may give us great games. But I'd be at it all day if I posted them all, so I will limit myself to only a few too many, as opposed to one damned overkill:


# 1 Duke vs. Butler = This rematch of last year's championship game won't be that, at all. I'd be surprised if the Blue Devils win by less than 20.

# 3 Pitt vs. Rider = Please. This one's already over.

# 6 Michigan State vs. Bowling Green = So is this one, though it could be argued that the Spartans deserve a break about now.

# 8 Syracuse vs. N.C. State = The Wolfpack has not shown much improvement over last year, and although I'm not convinced the Orange is a Top Ten team I don't think they will have a big problem here . . . if they show up, anyway.

# 14 Memphis vs. Western Kentucky = Now this might be a better game. So far, Memphis has won, but not convincingly over better opponents. WKy might just give them as much as they can handle.

# 15 Minnesota vs. Cornell = Don't even bother here. Of their 5 losses, Cornell's been spanked by both Seton Hall and Syracuse, so expect their Big Red bottoms to take more punishment today.

# 17 San Diego State vs. Wichita State = Now here's another one that could be fun, at least for a half, or a half and a half.

# 20 Illinois vs. Gonzaga = And here too. The 'Zags need a big win in the worst way, and Mark Few will have them ready for this one.

# 21 BYU vs. Hawaii = Although this may not be a total mauling, I'd expect the Cougars to prevail with some ease.

# 22 Purdue vs. Alabama = The Boilermakers have looked to me like a team looking to collapse. They may not do so against a "meh" 'Bama team, but don't expect a hammering either.

# 23 Washington vs. Texas Tech = On the one hand, the Huskies have only lost to Kentucky and Michigan State, so they have that going for them. On the other, their "quality" wins are over the likes of Virginia and Long Beach State. Yet, on the third hand, the Red Raiders' losses to St. Mary's and South Florida are their only "quality losses", if you get my meaning, and aside from those two games they have played absolutely nobody. Hey, the guys from Lubbock could surprise me, but I wouldn't bet the ranch.

# 24 UNLV vs. Nevada = The Rebels are off and Runnin', at least for now, while this Wolf Pack from the desert has played much worse than the one from Tobacco Road. Although they have played next to nobody, they've only managed to win once so far. They will not double down today.


That's it for the "ranked" squads, and I'll be back soon with some other action, and some early scores.