Blogging away your Saturday

With no big games in our area today, BIAH will once again be posted up couch-side, remote in one hand and a pint of Bells Two-Hearted Ale in the other as we blog away the Saturday. So hit the jump, follow along, and leave a comment joining in the conversation!

Here's today's key games:

• 12:00 pm: Michigan State @ Penn State
• 12:00 pm: Miami FL @ Clemson
• 12:00 pm: Cincinnati @ UConn
• 1:00 pm: Maryland @ Duke
• 1:30 pm: LSU @ Vanderbilt
• 1:45 pm: Missouri @ Baylor
• 2:00 pm: Oklahoma @ Oklahoma State
• 2:00 pm: Indiana @ Wisconsin
• 2:00 pm: Providence @ Villanova
• 2:00 pm: Butler @ Cleveland State
• 2:05 pm: Northern Iowa @ Bradley
• 4:00 pm: UNLV @ SDSU
• 4:00 pm: Dayton @ St. Louis
• 4:00 pm: NC State @ UNC
• 4:00 pm: Rhode Island @ Temple
• 4:00 pm: George Mason @ Old Dominion
• 4:00 pm: Arkansas @ Alabama
• 4:00 pm: Wazzu @ Cal
• 4:30 pm: Iowa @ Purdue
• 5:00 pm: Texas A&M @ Texas Tech
• 6:00 pm: Xavier @ Florida
• 6:00 pm: Cornell @ Princeton
• 6:00 pm: Air Force @ BYU
• 6:00 pm: Colorado @ Kansas State
• 7:00 pm: Memphis @ Tulsa
• 7:00 pm: Auburn @ Mississippi State
• 8:00 pm: Marshall @ UAB
• 8:00 pm: Georgia Tech @ Wake Forest
• 8:00 pm: Virginia @ Va Tech
• 8:00 pm: Iowa State @ Kansas
• 8:00 pm: Oregon State @ Arizona
• 8:30 pm: South Florida @ Marquette
• 9:00 pm: Tennessee @ Kentucky
• 9:00 pm: St. Mary's @ Portland
• 9:00 pm: New Mexico @ Utah
• 10:00 pm: San Diego @ Gonzaga
  

8:10 pm: That's it for us tonight. We're going to sit back and enjoy Va Tech-UVa and USF-Marquette before turning on UT-UK.

8:08 pm: Cornell held on to beat Princeton late, regaining the lead in the Ivy.

8:06 pm: Florida came all the way back against Xavier and even took the lead despite trailing by as much as 16 points in the first half. But Xavier was just too big inside, and Florida missed too many free throws. Jason Love, Kenny Frease, and Jamel McLean combined for 40 points and 29 boards, 13 offensive.

7:19 pm: Texas Tech loses a winnable game at home to Texas A&M. Its a big loss for the Red Raiders, whose lofty RPI does not really reflect where the stand on the bubble. Tech needed this game. That said, with the win, A&M moves into second place in the Big XII, at least momentarily, as K-State is now up 36-30 on Colorado.

7:18 pm: Cornell is locked in another battle, as they are currently tied with Princeton at 30 with 13 minutes left in the game. Princeton is playing very well.

7:06 pm: Florida got down huge to Xavier, but the Gators were able to come back at the end of the first half. At the break, the Muskies are up 40-33 and Jason Love has 14 points and 5 boards. And you were wondering why the A-10 has more tourney teams than the SEC?

6:58 pm: Kansas State is really struggling with the methodical pace that Colorado likes to play. They are up just 28-26 at the half, but were trailing for much of the first half. Cory Higgins has 12 points and 3 assists to lead the Buffs, but Jacob Pullen got in a bit of groove late, finishing with 10 points for the half.

6:40 pm: St. Louis hangs on to win in 2OT, beating Dayton. The big shot was a three with 37 seconds left by Ellis the give the Billikens a 66-63 lead.

6:14 pm: Dayton has a chance to win this game as it is tied with 21 seconds left. Out in Lubbock, A&M has scored the first two buckets of the second half and taken a 39-30 lead. Aggies have taken control of this one.

6:10 pm: OT in STL kicks off with a three ball for the Billikens, but Williams answers with a three of his own.

6:09 pm: After two Bama free throws, Fortson turned the ball over and JaMychal Green knocked down two free throws.

6:02 pm: Courtney Fortson was fouled going after a loose ball, must missed the first of two free throws that could have tied the game.

6:01 pm: Wow! Shot of the day from Kwamain Mitchell, who banked in a 28 footer from the wing to force OT against Dayton. The Flyers missed the front end of a 1-and-1 twice in the final minute.

5:57 pm: Word out of Florida is that Erving Walker will not be starting for Florida. He was late for a team meeting.

5:57 pm: Cal has taken control of this one, up 78-70 after going on a 7-0 spurt in the last few minutes.

5:53 pm: After getting down 18-7, Texas A&M has taken a 33-27 lead over Texas Tech. John Roberson, as I typed that, hit a three to give him 16 for the half.

5:51 pm: Dayton has stretched their run to 12 straight, taking a 54-46 lead with just over two minutes left. It looks like Dayton is going to pull this one out as well.

5:50 pm: Downey got a good look to tie the game, but threw up an air ball from the corner. Game over.

5:48 pm: Cal has also taken the lead 71-68 with just four minutes left. After scoring 23 points in the first half, Cal has held Thompson to five second half points.

5:47 pm: Dayton is now up 50-46 after going on a 8-0 run. Chris Wright scored six of those points, and Dayton looks like they are starting to retake control of this one.

5:46 pm: Brandis Raley-Ross gets an open three after Georgia double-teams Downey, but he misses. 46 seconds left and Georgia is up one with the ball.

5:45 pm: Exciting finish to come in Georgia. USC blew a 52-42 lead, and with a minute left free throws have given Georgia a 60-59 lead.

5:44 pm: But back-to-back buckets from Chris Wright tie the game up.

5:40 pm: Dayton is now trailing St. Louis by two points. The Bilikens have been a comeback team (they won their last tow games after trailing by double digits), but Dayton is supposed to be a good defensive team. They aren't supposed to blow leads. As I wrote this, STL got an and-one layup from Salazich.

5:39 pm: A&M's run has reached 11-1, as Tech cannot seem to hit a free throw. They are 3-11 in the half.

5:26 pm: Both Dayton and Alabama blew big leads. Alabama has cut the lead to 47-45, while Dayton is up just 39-38 at the under 12 timeouts.

5:25 pm: Texas Tech has opened up an 18-11 lead early against Texas A&M. John Roberon son has 7 points and 2 assists.

5:23 pm: Reggie Moore knocks down a huge three to push the Cougar lead back to seven points. Cal has played much better in teh second half, especially when it comes to slowing down Klay Thompson.

5:18 pm: And of course, as I wrote that SDSU pushes the lead back to 41-34, capped by a poster dunk from Kawhi Leonard.

5:16 pm: UNLV has come out strong here at the start of the second half. They got the lead all the way down one and are playing with much more energy than earlier in the game. The Rebels cannot afford to feel comfortable about their standing in the NCAA Tournament just yet, especially if they lose here today.

4:54 pm: Temple, Texas, and Dayton all up big at the half. Washington State, SDSU, and Arkansas all in control at the break.

4:51 pm: UNC has looked as good as they have in weeks as a run late in the first half has given them a 33-26 lead over NC State.

4:47 pm: Its looking early like people got too excited about UNLV's win over BYU. They looked sluggish in a loss at home against NewMexico, and now have gotten themselves down 30-21 at SDSU.

4:46 pm: Weird stat of the day: Wazzu had nine first half blocks against Cal.

4:40 pm: Avery Bradley has 20 points with four minutes left in the first half as Texas has opened up a 20 point lead on Nebraska.

4:39 pm: Arkansas looks to take a game and a half lead in the SEC West as they are up 34-22 early at Alabama. Courtney Fortson has 10 points and 3 assists.

4:35 pm: ODU up 22-9 on George Mason at home early, and Dayton is up 25-16 on St. Louis on the road. Dayton and ODU are two teams that are very difficult to come back against. Dayton really needs this win in they want to earn a bid, while ODU-Mason features two teams a game behind Northeastern atop the CAA standings.

4:33 pm: Wow. Just noticed Jason Bohannon had 30 points in Wisky's win.

4:32 pm: Temple has taken a 28-15 lead on URI early. The Rams just lost at home against Richmond on Wednesday, which makes this game against Temple very, very important to their tournament hopes. Not a good start for Rhody.

4:30 pm: ANOTHER THREE FOR THOMPSON!!!! He has 19 in 13 minutes, 5-5 from three.

4:29 pm: SDSU is up 18-13 on UNLV midway through the first half. The scary part? Kawhi Leonard just scored his first basket for the Aztecs.

4:28 pm: Texas seems to have figured out their issues for the time being, as they are up 26-14 on Nebraska at home. Avery Bradley has 11 early points and hit his first three threes.

4:27 pm: Wazzu-Cal is a lot of fun to watch if you like offense. 29-21 midway through the first half, combined 10-13 from three. Thompson has 16 already.

4:22 pm: Klay Thompson has 11 points early and Wazzu has gone on a 17-4 run to take a 22-12 lead over Cal. The Bears cannot afford to lose this game at home if they want to earn an at-large bid. A lot of shooting in this game - the two teams have combined to go 7-9 from three thus far.

4:06 pm: Northern Iowa was outscored 45-27 in the second half, losing their second game in the Valley 68-59 at Bradley.

4:02 pm: Oklahoma State wins big, as will Wisconsin. Butler and Richmond have pulled away in the second half and look safe. Vilanova is up 79-68 with just four minutes left.

3:53 pm: Well, forget what I said earlier about Oklahoma. They are down 24 to Oklahoma State, and have given up 92 points with three minutes left.

3:50 pm: Sharaud Curry got tangled up with Scottie Reynolds, picking up a personal foul and then a technical for arguing. Scottie Reynolds hits three of the four free throws and Nova takes a seven point lead. Curry fouls out in the process.

3:47 pm: Vandy pulled away late from LSU, and will keep the Tigers winless in the SEC.

3:44 pm: Dunn hit the first, but missed the second. Quincy Acy got the offensive rebound, missed a fadeaway, and after the ball bounced around for a while, Udoh tipped the ball in to give Baylor a 64-62 win.

3:41 pm: What a finish in Waco. Mizzou misses a layup, LaceDarius Dunn draws a foul in transition. Two shots. Refs missed a blatant over the back call on a rebound where Laurence Bowers actually landed on Anthony Jones' back.

3:39 pm: Huge play in the Baylor-Mizzou game. Missed jumper by Baylor leads to a run out for English. He finished the layup, and LaceDarius Dunn was called for an intentional foul. English hit a free throw, and Mizzou gets the ball back, up 62-61 with 47 seconds left.

3:36 pm: Big, big three from JT Tiller cuts the Baylor lead to 61-59 with under two minutes left.

3:34 pm: Bradley has taken a 46-44 lead on UNI with nine minutes left in the game. UNI has just one loss in the MVC, and another will put that much more pressure on the Panthers to avoid losing in the MVC tournament.

3:33 pm: LSU has been impressive hanging with Vandy on the road for this long. But they have yet to get over the hump. After tying the game, and-one bucket for Ogilvy gives Vandy the lead back.

3:24 pm: Richmond has opened their biggest lead of the game, going up 40-32 on St. Bonaventure's at the under 16 mark.

3:19 pm: Vanderbilt is tied with LSU with 8:00 left in the game. Bo Spencer has 16 points. AJ Ogilvy has been very quiet, with just four points.

3:16 pm: Providence has come out much better in the second half. They scored the first four points before Reggie Redding picked up a tech for pushing Peterson. On the very next possession, he went straight to the basket and picked up the foul. Remember the 18:30 mark in this one, and see if Peterson wakes up.

2:59 pm: Ekpe Udoh is going to be a very good player in the league. Long, athletic, very good defender, blocks shots, has a nice looking stroke, can handle the ball. There isn't much Udoh can't do on a basketball court.

2:55 pm: Brian Zoubek is playing the game of his life right now. 16 points, 17 boards, 8 o-boards, 2 blocks. Might say more about Maryland's front line than anything, but still. Helluva game for the big fella.

2:52 pm: Vandy starts the second half with a 9-4 spurt to take a five point lead. James Anderson finishes the first half with 27 points, and OK State is up 48-36. Baylor is up 38-32 at the break, and Dunn had 14 points.

2:47 pm: Big, big trouble now for OU. Tony Crocker just went to the bench with his third foul. 43-32 lead for the Pokes.

2:45 pm: Oklahoma has no answer for James Anderson. He has 20 points has OK State has gone on a 26-8 run to open a 41-29 lead.

2:44 pm: Vilanova is starting to assert their dominance in the transition game, as they've taken a 37-29 lead. Scottie Reynolds and Greedy Peterson have both been quiet here in the early going.

2:31 pm: Bo Spencer has scored 11 points as LSU takes 29-28 lead into the half over Vanderbilt. On the road. Vandy needs to wake up, they have still have a shot at the SEC East.

2:30 pm: Wow, OK State can really put up points in a hurry. They scored 14 points (Anderson 11) and hit four threes in the span of about 90 seconds.

2:28 pm: Oklahoma (as I wrote this, James Anderson scored eight straight points) simply looks better without Warren and Gallon on the floor. They move the ball better, they look like they are playing with energy. I don't think it is hard to see that those two kids are not the best locker room presences.

2:27 pm: Providence has gotten hot from deep, especially Sharaud Curry. Curry's knocked down back-to-back triples as Providence has taken a 17-16 lead on Providence after being down by nine early.

2:17 pm: Villanova and Wisconsin both get out to quick starts against Providence and Indiana. LSU is beating Vanderbilt early on the road.

2:12 pm: Duke pushes the lead to 20 in the opening seconds against Maryland. I'm giving up for now and heading over to Villanova-Providence. We might make it to 200 points in this one.

2:09 pm: Clemson picks up a win over Miami FL and Michigan State holds on against Penn State. Kalin Lucas had 24 and 6 dimes in the win, beating Talor Battle, who had 30 and 5 dimes.

2:08 pm: Baylor is handling Missouri's pressure early. They are up 22-14 and are hitting from the perimeter.

2:05 pm: UConn made a run, but couldn't get closer than six. Bad loss for the Huskies, and now they need to win out if they want to make the dance.

1:54 pm: Scary fall in Mizzou-Baylor. Justin Safford takes a charge on Anthony Jones, but Jones lands on Safford's head and neck. He is hurting, that's for sure.

1:53 pm: Maryland is 0-7 from three and Vasquez has 2 points and 2 turnovers. That's a good way to get yourself down 40-24 at the half.

1:50 pm: And we've tipped out in Waco for Missouri-Baylor. Hopefully, this game will be a little more exciting than the first four I've followed.

1:40 pm: Oklahoma will be without Willie Warren and Tiny Gallon will not be playing today against Oklahoma State. Warren has a virus and is still battling an ankle injury and did not make the trip to Stillwater. Gallon, who is averaging 10 ppg and 8 rpg, was recently benched in favor of Ryan Wright and has reportedly been suspended indefinitely.

1:39 pm: Michigan State has put this one away, taking a 10 point lead with just four minutes left. A Lucas three was the dagger.

1:35 pm: 30 minutes into this game, UConn has 27 points. 10 minutes into the second half, they have five points and just a single field goal. Regardless of coaching, this UConn team is flawed, especially on the offensive end.

1:32 pm: Back-to-back threes from Singler and Scheyer have pushed the lead to 16 points. Maryland is turning the ball over, they aren't getting back in transition, and they are getting killed in the paint. I thought the Terps were supposed to be an ACC challenger?

1:31 pm: Michigan State has cooled off Talor Battle, and PSU has no other answers. Sparty is on a 9-0 run, and looks to have taken control.

1:29 pm: Dino Gregory hustles down and blocks a layup attempt from Andre Dawkins after a turnover, but no one else on MD runs backs, and Mason Plumlee gets a wide open layup. FYI, Brian Zoubek, with 6 points and 5 boards, is Duke's leading scorer and rebounder.

1:26 pm: Maryland really looks lost right now. They are down 20-6 and cannot get anything going. Cinci's stretch their lead to 34-25 as their defense as really shut down the Huskies.

1:21 pm: Duke's defense is really picking up. The Blue Devils are on an 11-0 run, haven't given up a point in almost five minutes, and are in firm control of this game early. Maryland needs to start moving the ball more on offense, they aren't really getting much in the way of good looks offensively.

1:17 pm: Duke is off to a quick start, knocking down a couple of threes as the have taken a 12-6 lead here early on. And Mason Plumlee finishes an alley-oop fro Nolan Smith forcing Gary Williams to use a timeout.

1:15 pm: Talor Battle nails his sixth three of the game. He now has 24 of PSU's 43 points as the Nittany Lions are down just 44-43 with 14 minutes left.

1:13 pm: Cincinnati opens up the second half with an 8-1 run to take a 30-23 lead over the Huskies. UConn looks terrible in the half court.

1:11 pm: That was a great post-up, seal, and finish by Zoubek. How often do you hear that?

1:06 pm: And there's the tip in Cameron. A couple of starting line-up notes. Zoubek is getting the start of Miles Plumlee, while Lance Thomas is starting despite bruising his knee.

12:59 pm: Halftime scores: 31-25 Michigan State over Penn State. UConn and Cinci are tied at 22. Clemson has a 33-28 lead over Miami. Trevor Booker has 13 points already in a must-win game for the Tigers.

12:48 pm: Talor Battle is beating Kalin Lucas 15-14, but MSU is up on PSU 31-25.

12:47 pm: Word coming out of ESPN is that the Gameday crowd at Rupp was over 22,000, which is triple the previous record set at Kansas State two Saturdays ago.

12:41 pm: And there is Stanley Robinson's first poster of the day. The amazing thing about that move is that he dunked reaching back across his body with his right hand after making a diagonal hop-step to his left. People aren't supposed to be able to dunk after that move.

12:40 pm: Apparently, Michigan State's back up point guard Korie Lucious didn't make the trip to Penn State because he did not fulfill academic requirements.

12:37 pm: Talor Battle is single handedly keeping Penn State in this game. He and Lucas both have 14 points, and Battle's last three came from about 25 feet.

12:35 pm: That three from Vaughn breaks a five minute scoring drought by Cinci. Neither Cincinnati or UConn can run offense in the half court, and its turning this game into a slow paced, ugly battle. Not a lot of energy in this game.

12:29 pm: Lucas is on fire. Michigan State is up 22-15 and he has 12 points on 6-6 shooting.

12:25 pm: A Kemba Walker three gives UConn their first lead of the game, 10-9. The Huskies are on an 8-2 run in a quite XL Center.

12:15 pm: I think that Kalin Lucas is feeling better. He has 8 pts on 4-4 shooting in the first six minutes against Penn State.

12:13 pm: Clemson has jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead on Miami FL. I'm not quite sure how the Canes managed to knock off Georgia Tech this week.

12:09 pm: Cinci takes an early 4-0 lead, as UConn has looked pretty bad on the offensive end. I think someone needs to explain to UConn that they are fighting for their tournament lives, because they are not playing with any urgency. The leadership on this team in non-existent.

12:00 pm: And hear we go! The crown at the XL Center may be small, but they game UConn a nice ovation when he took the court today.