There's no way I can possibly reference all the good games this weekend, so forgive me if I skip your team . . . and jump in and do it your-damn-self, ya lazy bastids! In the balance of Saturday's action:
Murray State 67 - Austin Peay 58 = As said above, a great win for the Racers. I thought they had a good chance to win it, yet I thought it might be closer. Maybe this MSU is getting some of that good karma that MSU in Michigan seems to have lost.
Mississippi 69 - Arkansas 60 = If some team in another league wants to win a conference championship this season, see if you can move into the SEC now. Seems as if nobody else wants it.
Boston College 58 - Virginia Tech 56 = Aside from being a low-scoring affair, a good game for two who hope to get bids in March. Both need to earn a few more Ws, so keep your eye on the rest of their season.
Arizona 107 - California 105 (3OT) = A win on the road is always good, but as I said above, the fact that it took the 'Cats an extra 15 minutes, and they STILL just squeaked by a 13-10 team, should not promote a lot of confidence in their fans.
Charleston 73 - Furman 54 = Another big conference victory, putting CoC atop the Southern Conference (South).
Duke 76 - N. C. State 52 = This one should come as no surprise to anyone. But Sidney Lowe could look on the bright side, for if he's fired at the end of this season, this will be the last time he gets spanked in Cameron.
East Carolina 68 - UCF 61 = I throw this in because I am fascinated by the Orlando Mickeys' story so far. After their 14-0 start, this makes 7 losses in a row, and if their game with UTEP had not been postponed that would likely be 8. Good night, Knights.
Florida 70 - Kentucky 68 = A very good game, close from start to finish, and precisely what I'd wish for. I do not like Billy Donovan all that much. I dislike John Calipari quite a bit more. Since both could not lose, I'll take this.
Memphis 62 - Gonzaga 58 = Speaking of Cal, here's a good non-conference win for his former employer. Were the 'Zags as good as they've been in past years, it would even be a great one, but the Tigers will take all they can get at this point.
Louisville 61 - DePaul 57 = Are you joking? Louisville beats an absolutely lousy Blue Demon squad by a stinkin' 4 points, and in their new Crum Bucket, and needed more late-game heroics to even manage that? Do you think I'm stating this too strongly? Forget that DePaul is now at 6-16 this year. Even forget they are 0-10 in league play. All you need know is this is their 23rd straight loss to a Big East foe.
Mississippi State 58 - LSU 57 = And this victory is just about as bad . . . or would be, were it not for the fact that it is about what we've learned to expect in the SEC.
Miami 70 - Virginia 68 (OT) = Well, if nothing else, we at least know that neither of these two teams want to end up in the ACC cellar with Wake Forest. Both wanted the win, and they gave us a good contest.
Oklahoma State 81 - Oklahoma 75 = I guess this is a good enough win for the Cowboys, and a disappointing loss for the Sooners. But I'd imagine they are a bit more focused now on the count of sexual battery and three counts of "rape by instrumentation" (I hestitate to guess) charged against starting forward Darrell Williams today. And I thought the Larry Drew II story was embarrassing.
Oregon 81 - Washington 76 = I mentioned this above, and stick with what I said. I am not surprised the Huskies lost a game they maybe should have won. I am surprised that it was the Ducks who did it.
San Diego State 60 - TCU 53 = Much as with the Louisville/DePaul game above, this one's hard to believe. Are you telling me the Aztecs beat the absolutely horrid Horned Frogs by a couple of possessions . . . on their own court? OK, fine, but don't tell me you actually believe they're one of the best teams in the nation also. I'll believe one or the other, but not both.
U.Conn 61 - Seton Hall 59 = And the only difference here is that the game was in Newark, not Storrs nor Hartford. That's still insufficient excuse, and the Huskies dodged a bullet the size of Calhoun's ego here.
St. Bonaventure 64 - Duquesne 62 = This one was of huge significance in the A-10, as it dropped the Dukes into a tie at 8-1 with Xavier. I expect both of these two to get NCAA bids, but it's always better safe than sorry. Watch this race closely from now on.
Baylor 76 - Texas A&M 74 (OT) = The Bears haven't had as good a win as this one all year. Plus, coming off their loss to the Sooners, they needed one.
There was much less notable action Sunday:
Rider 96 - Fairfield 87 = A bit of a shock to me, since I thought the Stags would take a stranglehold on the MAAC with a win here. They still have a 2-game cushion, but that's not yet a safe margin. Again, here's one to keep your eyes on.
Notre Dame 76 - Rutgers 69 = Just one more of those "WTF?" games. And yes, it was in South Bend too. Why oh why do all these experts think the Big Mouts Conference is so great, when they can't even dominate their own cellar-dwellers? They must have a lot of reporters on the payroll, that's all I can think.
North Carolina 89 - Florida State 69 = It is no big surprise that the Tar Heels beat FSU in Chapel Hill, since they've been doing that with nice consistency for decades. Hell, that's the proximate cause of Charlie Ward's famous quote about the "wine and cheese crowd" of Tar Heel fans. Shoot, what reason did the Heel faithful have to get excited when the Semiholes came to town? Hey, if Charlie had been a better point guard (or a worse quarterback) and played for Dook instead, he'd have seen some lightning in the stands. But back to the game: This is the reaction I hoped for, after He Who Shall Remain Nameless fled town Friday night. The team got hurt, got confused, then got mad. Kendall Marshall had 9 points and 16 assists, Dexter Strickland scored 15 and grabbed 6 boards, Barnes, Henson and Zeller also scored in double digits, and FSU got no closer than 7 in the 2nd half. So, an expected win became a welcome stomping, and is the 3rd such spanking issued in a row. It might not last (
), but it's fun while it does.
Tonight has only a few games of import:
Pitt vs. West Virginia = I figure the Panthers won't have all that much trouble with the Mountaineers, despite the fact that WVA has played very well on occasion. But Pitt knows it can put its hands around the throat of the regular season and make it their own, so I expect them to remain focused on the task at hand.
Murray State vs. Eastern Illinois = Joe's Racers should not have much trouble with these Panthers, since nobody much else has had a lot of trouble with them so far. But sometimes after a big win a team can let down. I'm not sure EI is good enough to take advantage if that occurs, but who knows?
Missouri vs. Kansas = The Jayhawks are somewhat better, and have been more consistent than the Tigers. But Missou, despite their 4-4 conference mark, are capable of beating most anybody on a given night. Can they do what Texas managed, and shoot down the Jayhawks in Allen Fieldhouse? Probably not, but it should be fun to watch anyway.
That's all I have time for tonight. Enjoy, and Screw Drew.