7:00 pm: George Mason @ VCU: Believe it or not, the most important -- and likely the best -- game of the night occurs in the CAA, as the Patriots and the Rams battle for first place in the conference.
Mason lost roadies to Hofstra and Old Dominion back in early January to fall to 2-2 in the conference, but since then they have been one of the hottest teams in the country, winning 11 straight. The biggest reason? Cam Long, who finally seems to be playing up to his potential. The GMU senior guard has averaged 17.5 ppg, 4.8 rpg, and 3.3 apg during that stretch. A win for GMU on the road would open up a commanding two game lead on VCU, Hofstra, and ODU with just two games left in the regular season.
VCU had a nine game winning streak of their own snapped two weeks ago, losing two of four since then to drop a game behind Mason in the league standings. But since this is the only time that the two play each other, a win for VCU will give them the tie breaker.
Both teams are currently jockeying for position in the race to earn an at-large bid on the bubble. The Patriots have a better RPI but VCU has better wins. Regardless, both of these teams are capable of winning a game in the tournament and this is definitely a game worth tuning into.
9:00 pm: Michigan State @ No. 3 Ohio State: The Spartans at least momentarily returned to form last week when they ran Penn State out of their gym. But the Buckeyes are a different story, as their only loss of the season came at Wisconsin on Saturday. The Spartans are on firmly on the bubble right now and, like Kansas State last night, really could use a win like this to solidify their tournament standing.
This is one of the more intriguing games of the season to date. How does Ohio State respond to their first loss? Has Michigan State finally turned things around?
7:00 pm: Mississippi State @ No. 22 Kentucky: Kentucky is one of the most talented teams in the country, and they play like it at home. Their issue has been the inability to close out close games on the road. Tonight won't help that, but a beat down of a Mississippi State team that has had one of the most tumultuous seasons in recent memory -- and is coming off of a loss to Auburn -- is a good way to erase the memory of the Wildcat's road woes. Of note -- it appears that Darius Miller won't be playing tonight.
7:00 pm: Texas Tech @ No. 21 Missouri: Missouri is like Kentucky in that they are a very good team at home but struggle to win on the road. Texas Tech has been playing teams tougher of late, and the Tigers may be without Marcus Denmon, who caught an elbow the last time out and required stitches.
8:00 pm: No. 14 Villanova @ Seton Hall: The Wildcats are coming off of back-to-back losses, including an ugly road loss where they blew leads of 13 point with five minutes, eight with two minutes left, and five with 16 seconds left. Villanova will be without Corey Stokes, but this Seton Hall team -- which just kicked Keon Lawrence and Jamel Jackson off the team -- is a good place to rebuild their confidence.
8:00 pm: Maryland @ Virginia Tech: There are all kinds of bubble implications in this one. The Hokies are on barely on the inside, while Maryland is still on the outside looking in.
9:00 pm: St. John's @ Marquette: This will be one of the more intriguing matchups of the night. The Johnnies have some impressive wins at home, but their best road win is at a Cincinnati team that barely played Yancy Gates. Marquette, on the other hand, is in a position where they cannot afford to lose a home game to a team on their level. The Golden Eagles have 10 losses, but none of them are "bad" losses.
Other Notable Games
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Tuesday's Pregame Beat: A CAA battle for first place |
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