Utah State Keeps Rolling and UNI Drop the Ball

92 games are set to be played today, some with huge stakes on them. The top two teams in the Big East face off in a game that will decide the conference. Kansas attempts to clinch an outright Big 12 title and the Big 10 title race is still wide open.

Outside of that, there is the usual bubble action and mid-major tournaments to keep the masses entertained. All 3 of the teams from the bubble watch yesterday (Richmond, NC State and Utah State) were able to pull out big wins to not torpedo their respective seasons.

A shock came in the MVC Tournament though, as Northern Iowa contrived to lose to Drake by 21. This loss dropped them 11 places in the NET and leaves them with 3 Q3 losses and only 1 Q1 win. After that shocking performance and a pretty weak resume, it appears that the Panthers are on the outside looking in.

With all that sorted, let’s look ahead to today’s games

Rutgers (11) @ Purdue (First 4 Out), 2pm, BTN

This will be the first big bubble match up of the day and it has the potential to be a key win for both teams. They sit at 16-14, but they are also 32 in the NET and have 9 wins across the top 2 quadrants. Rutgers are 18-11 and 31 in the NET and could use this Q1 road win to solidify their spot in the tournament.

Texas (11) vs Oklahoma State, 4pm, ESPN2

Texas is relatively low in the NET at 57, but they are 19-11 and have no losses outside the top 2 quadrants. They’re also rounding into form as they have won 5 in a row. Including wins over West Virginia, as well as beating Texas Tech and Oklahoma on the road; all three are Q1 wins. OK State on the other hand, would need this win and then a miracle in the Big 12 tournament to even have a hope for an at-large.

Arkansas (Receiving Votes) @ Texas A&M, 4:30pm, SEC Network

Arkansas is still within reach of an at-large bid but they cannot afford to slip up today. They have no bad losses, 3 Q1 wins and a chance to pick up a few in the SEC Tournament. That all starts with not losing on the road today.

Utah State (First 4 Out) vs San Diego State, 5:30pm, CBS

After gaining no ground on the bubble with their win last night, the Aggies will need this win and the auto-bid to get them to the dance. Currently they have only 2 Q1 wins, a couple Q3 losses and over half of their wins in Quadrant 4. A loss tonight would see them watching with very little hope on Selection Sunday.

Cincinnati (First 4 Out) vs Temple, 8:30pm, CBSSN

Come on you Owls! UC is currently 19-10 with 2 Q1 wins, 8 in Q2 and a hilarious 4 Q3 losses. Most brackets that have them in put them in a play-in game, so they clearly still have work to do. Today’s game is yet another to file in the “Don’t Lose” category.

Stanford (11) @ Oregon, 11pm, FS1

While some teams are desperate to avoid bad losses today, Stanford will be looking to pick up a big win that could seal their spot in the tournament. Oregon has not lost at home all year, but Stanford did beat them by 10 when they hosted the Ducks back on February 1. Should Stanford pull this one off, they would surely be in.

There will be games starting at noon and running all the way into the early hours of Sunday morning. Among them is Xavier looking solidify their standing in the tournament and get a key win over Butler. It’s going to be exciting, stressful and possibly make us sick. Yay for March!