The BIAH crew was out of office this afternoon, meaning our pregame beat obviously was not up in time to include this afternoon's hoops action. But there is still quite a bit of hoops on tonight that needs to be previewed.
7:00 pm: No. 22 Texas @ No. 12 Michigan State: Michigan State has been sputtering a bit to start the season, although losses to top ten teams like Duke, UConn, and Syracuse are hardly a reason to throw in the towel on the season. Texas, on the other hand, bounced back from a loss at USC to knock off UNC in what was essentially a road game. Cory Joseph looks like he has finally woken up, while Jordan Hamilton and Tristan Thompson are both potential lottery picks. Tom Izzo will be back on the sidelines for MSU after missing a game against Prairie View following a secondary recruiting violation, while Korie Lucious and Keith Appling have both had limited practice time this week as they battle injuries.
9:00 pm: No. 21 Illinois @ No. 10 Missouri: Missouri could be in a bit of trouble for this one. There is no word yet on whether Mike Dixon, who was suspended for violating team rules, will be available tonight (although most believe he will), while Phil Pressey is out of the lineup with a broken finger. That said, Illinois has not been playing their best basketball of late, struggling to beat inferior opponent's before finally succumbing to Illinois-Chicago on Saturday. There may not be a better point guard in the country that Demetri McCamey, but if the Illini continue to settle for jumpers against a high pressure Tiger team, they could be in line for their second consecutive loss.
11:00 pm: No. 3 Kansas @ Cal: The Jayhawks struggled against both UCLA and USC at home. What happens when they have to travel to a Pac-10 school?
7:00 pm: Drexel @ No. 5 Syracuse: The Dragons have already beaten a ranked Big East foe on the road this season. How did they do it? Well, Drexel forced Louisville to play a half court game, beat them up inside, and made them take tough perimeter shots. They won't beat up Syracuse inside, but if they can make the Orange have to settle for jumpers and play in the half court, you never know.
7:00 pm: Harvard @ No. 4 UConn: Harvard may not have Jeremy Lin this season, but this is still a good basketball team. Don't be surprised is Keith Wright outplays Alex Oriakhi on the block.
11:00 pm: Xavier @ Gonzaga: Its tough to call a game a must-win this early in the season, but this is close to a must win for both programs. Neither Xavier nor Gonzaga has lived up to expectations this season, but a win in this game will still be a good win.
7:00 pm: Clemson @ Charleston: It hasn't been the smoothest transition for Clemson going from Oliver Purnell to Brad Brownell. The Tigers come into this one with four losses on the season already. Tonight, they travel on the road to face a Charleston team with one of the most underrated back courts on the east coast. We all remember what Andrew Goudelock did to North Carolina when the Tar Heels visited Charleston last season, right?
7:00 pm: Dayton @ Seton Hall: Both the Flyers and the Pirates came into this season with high hopes regarding a shot at an NCAA Tournament bid, and both teams have really struggled early in the season. For Seton Hall, the issue has been figuring out their offense without Jeremy Hazell, while Dayton has simply been unable to shoot the ball early in the season.
7:30 pm: Vermont @ Iona: Two of the best small college forwards in the country go head-to-head with Mike Glover and Evan Fjeld taking the floor.
8:00 pm: North Texas @ LSU: North Texas is good this year. LSU, well, isn't. Oh, and read this.
Other Notable Games:
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Wednesday's Pregame Beat: A loaded night of games |
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