Thursday's Pregame Beat

Quiet day on the hoops front. There is only one really intriguing game on.

7:00 pm: Washington @ Texas Tech: The Huskies can play, and if you read this blog, than you should already be fully aware of their weapons. Isaiah Thomas, Abdul Gaddy, Quincy Pondexter. But Texas Tech is a bit of an unknown commodity right now. They are 7-0, albeit against a relatively weak schedule. There three best wins are against Oregon State, Texas A&M-CC, and at Stephen F Austin. Not terrible, but it isn't exactly beating Kansas in the Phog. To be honest, I don't know all that much about the Red Raiders. They are balanced, they have a couple talented kids (their best player is named Mike Singletary, and no, he is not related to the 49ers coach), and they are coached by Pat Knight. But is the 7-0 record just a result of their schedule? I'll be watching tonight to find out.

9:00 pm: USC @ Texas: This could end up getting ugly. I know there was a reason for Alex Stephenson transferring from UNC back to USC, but do you think he is regretting that decision right now? He and Nikola Vucevic are going to have their hands full inside tonight.

10:30 pm: Baylor @ Arizona State: Damn you RCN for not carrying the Fox Sports channels. This should be a very interesting game to watch. Arizona State looks like a team that could end up third in the Pac-10 and make their way into the tournament. Derek Glasser might be the most underrated point guard in the country (say it everytime, love that kids game), Eric Boateng is a serviceable, albeit inconsistent, big man, and Herb Sendek has a number of options on the wings. But Baylor is a team with a lot of size and athleticism up front, and two good guards in LaceDarius Dunn and Tweety Carter. Baylor will need to hit their perimeter shots against the ASU zone, but this game is going to be decided on the glass; can the Sun Devils keep the big guys from Baylor from getting second chance points?

Other notable games:

• 7:00 pm: Lafayette @ La Salle
• 7:00 pm: Hartford @ Seton Hall