We are now less than two months from Selection Sunday and bubble teams are trying to make their case to be in the tournament field while top 25 schools valiantly attempt to move up seeds. Although there was some shakeup last week, it proved to be somewhat minimal compared to prior weeks with very few top 25 match-ups. But just by scrolling through the schedule, I can tell you now that this week will be something else. There is not one day this week without a phenomenal matchup.
Hot Takes:
Purdue is the real #1:
After an embarrassing performance at The Battle 4 Atlantis in November, I thought there would be no chance for Purdue to make it back into the top 5. Well, I was wrong. Not only are they ranked 3rd in the nation, but they are also playing like the best team in the country. This team is stacked with talent and experience. If they continue to play at this level, anything short of a Final Four appearance at the end of the year will be a disappointment. They play a somewhat difficult Michigan team at home, then play their rival Indiana on the road in their coming games. I’d be surprised if they don’t win by more than ten points in each of those games.
Half of the top ten will lose this week:
Only those who follow college basketball will know I’m not crazy. Half of the top ten teams in the nation will lose before next Monday. This year has been extremely different from years prior. There is not one super team and you can make a case for all of the top ten teams to be on upset alert this week. Per Usual, the top 25 will look nothing like it did next week after these teams come out on the other end of this week’s gauntlet.
Kentucky doesn’t deserve the top 25:
It is weird not seeing the Kentucky Wildcats inside the top 25, but it has just been one of those years for them. They are one of the most inexperienced teams in the nation with no upperclassmen and an all-freshman starting five. It would surprise me if they don’t make the tournament, but if they lose in the first round, I wouldn’t be stunned. Keep an eye on this team down the road. They are playing in a developed SEC conference. Things aren’t looking up for the Wildcats.
Tuesday:
Kansas at Oklahoma:
I have heard from plenty of people that Oklahoma’s Trae Young is getting way too much hype. Those people are wrong. In fact, he probably deserves more. Opponents have tried everything–including double teaming him–but he still manages to score 40+ points. Tuesday night they play the Kansas Jayhawks who are coming in hot to Norman. There is one major determinant for Oklahoma if they want to win this game. Someone other than Trae Young needs to make a huge impact on both sides of the ball. Young can’t beat the Jayhawks by himself. He will have the home crowd behind him, but he will also need another player to step up if they want to have a chance at pulling the upset. Khadeem Lattin, who has three years of experience against KU, could be a player to watch for. He hasn’t been very efficient on offense, but certainly is a positive attribute on defense. Kansas is now riding a five-game win streak thanks to incredibly clutch performances from Devonte’ Graham, as well as a pleasant surprise of talent from Svi Mykhailiuk and Udoka Azubuike’s dominance in the paint. Looking at the full sc0pe of this matchup, I don’t see any reason why the Jayhawks should lose. Don’t get me wrong, it will be an extremely tight contest, but I am taking KU’s experience in late game situations over the Sooners.
Clemson at Virginia:
The Virginia Cavaliers have a huge week in front of them and it all starts at home against Clemson. Currently ranked #2 in the nation at 18-1, Virginia is perfect at home and will probably keep it that way Tuesday night. Kyle Guy and Devon Hall continue to be phenomenal on offense, but it really is their defense that has been above par. Opponents only average 52.4 points per game, which really speaks volumes as to why they are ranked in the top three. As for the Tigers, a signature win is on the line that would really prove to the world that they are a legit team. Clemson doesn’t necessarily have that one go-to shooter, but does a good job by spreading the ball and taking reasonable shots. So, can Clemson pull the upset? It’s feasible, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Virginia is too good–especially at home. A low-scoring contest wouldn’t surprise me, but in the end, I like the Cavaliers by double digits.
Games To Watch:
Providence at Villanova
Clemson at Virginia
Kansas at Oklahoma
Duke at Wake Forest
Oklahoma State at Texas Tech
Picks:
Villanova beats Providence
Virginia beats Clemson
Duke beats Wake Forest
Texas Tech beats Oklahoma State
Wednesday:
Marquette at Xavier:
Round one of this matchup was quite entertaining as Marquette nearly pulled the upset. Now, they play for the second, and potentially final time this season in Cincinnati. After losing to Villanova two weeks ago, Xavier has regained their mojo with three straight wins and are prepared to take on an underrated Marquette team. J.P Macura came alive against Seton Hall on Saturday, scoring 27 points to supplement Trevon Bluiett’s 15-point effort. The Golden Eagles will surely have their work cut out for them, especially on the road, but don’t rule out the potential of an upset. Marcus Howard and Andrew Rowsey will both need to have huge games and shut down Macura, Blueitt and Kareem Kanter at the same time. The Golden Eagles will need to be at their absolute best Wednesday night in order to pull off the stunner, but I doubt that will be the case. I am taking Xavier in a tight one in the Queen City.
Louisville at Miami:
In the most recent rankings that came out Monday, neither Miami or Louisville managed to break the top 25. However, they finished 26 and 27th respectively. What does this mean? Well, knowing that there are plenty of shake-ups in the top 25 every week, the winner of this game will likely be ranked when the next polls come out. Dewan Huell and Bruce Brown Jr. have definitely slowed down since the beginning of conference play, but are still outperforming the majority of their teammates. They will need to get hot Wednesday night in order to beat out a Cardinals team that is averaging 77 points per game. Louisville, on the other hand, is tearing up the ACC with a (5-1) mark in conference play second only to the Virginia Cavaliers. They had two recent promising road wins, along with a battle with Clemson that needed overtime before the Tigers could pull of the W. Anas Mahmoud, V.J King and Deng Adel make up this sleeper Cardinals team that is on the verge of the top 25. Miami is not an easy place to play, but given Louisville’s track record as of late, I am going to take them in an upset over the Hurricanes.
Games To Watch:
Marquette at Xavier
Louisville at Miami
Auburn at Mizzou
Temple at Cincinnati
Picks:
Xavier beats Marquette
Louisville beats Miami
Mizzou beat Auburn
Cincinnati beats Temple
Thursday:
Michigan at Purdue
The Michigan Wolverines continue to stun the world of college basketball as they narrowly remained a top 25 team in the last AP poll. Thursday evening they travel to West Lafayette to take on the #3 Purdue Boilermakers. Charles Matthews along with Moritz Wagner have been phenomenal in getting the Wolverines back into the tournament picture, but will need to have someone other than themselves to play a huge offensive roll in order to defeat Purdue on the road. You will hear me talk about Carsen Edwards and Isaac Haas for as long as this Purdue team is among the nation’s best. The Boilermakers have all the talent they need to win the Big Ten and beyond. I am not going to sugarcoat it. Purdue is going to dominate the Wolverines. Michigan will be lucky if they have a chance. I like Purdue… Big.
Games To Watch:
Michigan at Purdue
Colorado at Arizona
Penn State at Ohio State
Picks:
Purdue beats Michigan
Arizona beats Colorado
Ohio State beats Penn State
Friday:
Wisconsin at Michigan State
Who would have thought that at this point in the season, the Wisconsin Badgers would be 10-10. To say the least it has been a season full of disappointment after making a Sweet 16 run last year. Ethan Happ, who was ranked as one of the top college basketball players in the country heading into the season, has been mediocre. Other players haven’t been able to step up and help this inexperienced team have a shot at March Madness besides Brad Davison, who has been a pleasant surprise. Meanwhile, Sparty has recovered well from their loss to Michigan after dominating the Indiana Hoosiers. Miles Bridges, along with Nick Ward and Joshua Langford, continue to provide a huge boost to this team, which is why they ranked among the best programs in the nation and made light work of Illinois on the road last night. Even if the Badgers pull off a miracle and beat MSU, it is too late to turn their season completely around. The only thing they are fighting for now is a higher spot in the NIT tournament. This is probably the easiest prediction of the week. The Spartans will win by 20.
Games To Watch:
Wisconsin at Michigan State
Harvard at Yale
Buffalo at Ohio
Picks:
Michigan State beats Wisconsin
Harvard beats Yale
Buffalo beats Ohio
Saturday:
Virginia at Duke (Blockbuster of the Week):
It isn’t every day that we get to see two top five teams go head to head in one of the world’s most famous arenas. This week Virginia looks to make a statement victory on the road at Cameron Indoor Stadium against the Duke Blue Devils. As I said earlier, a big part of the reason why the Cavaliers have been so successful is due to their phenomenal pack-line, Tony Bennett defense. However, in order to beat the Blue Devils on the road, their offense needs to come ready to play. Duke is averaging 92.1 points per game, which is insane for the college level. The biggest key for Virginia will be to shut down Marvin Bagley III. He outperforms nearly all of his opponents in the paint in averaging 21.9 points per game. The biggest question linked to this game will be if Virginia’s offense can hang with Duke. It will likely be a high scoring game into the 80s, but in the end I like Duke to beat the #2 team in the nation.
Kentucky at West Virginia:
This matchup was supposed to be the Blockbuster of the Week, but both teams started to choke and now Kentucky is unranked and West Virginia is coming in having lost their last three of four. The outcomes of this game will be simple. If the Mountaineers lose again, then they will be borderline unranked and if the Wildcats fall, then cracking the polls again this season will be difficult. All in all, this is a huge bounce back game for both teams. For WVU to avoid an upset at home, they need to limit turnovers and hold Kentucky to under 70 points. Kentucky’s freshman are yet to play in an environment like the WVU Coliseum and will probably come out slow out of the gates. If that happens, then you wonder if a comeback is even possible. Well, believe it or not in two of the Mountaineers’ three most recent losses, they had a lead of seven or more points at the half. This team is building themselves a reputation for choking. Kentucky will come back late and steal one in Morgantown. Despite the teams inexperience, I can’t see Coach Calipari’s team fall apart like this.
Games To Watch:
Texas Tech at South Carolina
NC State at North Carolina
Virginia at Duke
Oklahoma at Alabama
Texas A&M at Kansas
Kentucky at West Virginia
Picks:
South Carolina beats Texas Tech
North Carolina beats NC State
Duke beats Virginia
Oklahoma beats Alabama
Kansas beats Texas A&M
Kentucky beats West Virginia
Sunday:
Villanova at Marquette:
Being in the Big East, there will always be potential for the Villanova Wildcats to get upset. This week, they have to travel to Milwaukee to play in a hostile environment against the Marquette Golden Eagles, who only lost by ten to Villanova on the road earlier in the year. Although predicting this game isn’t easy, only a couple things need to happen for Marquette to walk away with the upset W. You can expect their offense to put up close to 90 points–that much doesn’t worry head coach Steve Wojokowski. However, their defense has been what has held them out of the top 25 all year. If they can hold the Wildcats to under 75 points, they have a legitimate shot. They need to shut down the efficient productivity of Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges. If they can do that, they will win. I can guarantee you that either Marcus Howard or Andrew Rowsey will score over 30 and Sam Houser will also contribute to their offense, but the X-factors in this game will be big men Matt Heldt and Theo John. I’ll reiterate the fact that defense wins this game. If they can eliminate Nova’s opportunities in the paint and avoid foul trouble, the Golden Eagles will get a massive dub.
Purdue at Indiana:
From what I’ve watched so far this season, Purdue looks like the best team in the country. Yes, the Big Ten certainly doesn’t have as much depth as other conferences do, but the Boilermakers are dominating their opponents, in fact, a team hasn’t came within double digits of them since December 3rd. Purdue makes the short trip to Bloomington Sunday afternoon, to take on the Indiana Hoosiers who are not nearly as good, but are certainly improving. Carsen Edwards has been a lights out shooter for the Boilermakers, while 7’ 2’’ senior Isaac Haas continues to be a monster in the paint. Purdue everything they need to be a final four team. Meanwhile, Juwan Morgan, De’Ron Davis and Robert Johnson won’t be enough for the Hoosiers. This is a big in-state rivalry game in Indiana and should be close in the first half, but expect Purdue to pull away and win later in the contest.
Games To Watch:
Villanova at Marquette
Michigan State at Maryland
Purdue at Indiana
Picks:
Marquette beats Villanova
Michigan State beats Maryland
Purdue beats Indiana
As I mentioned in my opening, this is not going to be a pretty week for ranked teams. There are plenty of huge matchups with immense implications this week, partially thanks to the Big 12/SEC Showdown along with a blockbuster in the ACC and upset alerts in the Big East. This week is set to be one of the best so far in the college hoops season. Upsets will happen. Just know that.
Last Weeks Record:
(15-5)
Overall Record:
(84-37)
