Men’s Basketball Games of the Week 2/20 – 2/24
Catch your breath from BracketBusters weekend and all the big matchups? Good. This week will provide a little bit of a break. Most of the games to watch this week involve mid-major and high-major matchups. Only two of the nine games are a true battle for a major conference championship. Otherwise, we are slowly winding down the month of February and headed for the most exciting period in college basketball: March Madness, whether it be conference tournaments or postseason.
TEXAS SOUTHERN at MISSISSIPPI VALLEY STATE (7 p.m. Monday at Harrison Complex in Itta Bena, Mississippi)
The Southwestern Athletic Conference race could come to a close Monday night if Mississippi Valley State wins one more conference game. Texas Southern (10-15, 9-4) should not provide much competition in this field, but the game is worth watching because the Tigers took Mississippi Valley State to overtime before losing, 77-69, in the last meeting. Texas Southern also lost to Jackson State, Alcorn State and Prairie View A&M. Mississippi Valley State (15-11, 14-0) hasn’t had the best of seasons overall but is unbeaten in SWAC play, and that will be enough to gain some sort of tournament berth. The Delta Devils haven’t lost since snapping a seven-game winless string on New Year’s Eve, but they have fed on SWAC competition.
No. 1 KENTUCKY at MISSISSIPPI STATE (9 p.m. Tuesday at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi)
The second game with some sort of implications in Mississippi takes place on Tuesday. Kentucky (26-1, 12-0) hasn’t lost since that 73-72 setback against Indiana on December 10, a span of 18 straight games. The Wildcats can clinch the Southeastern Conference’s regular-season championship with a win and a Florida loss to Auburn. Kentucky just beat Ole Miss 77-62 but has not played Mississippi State this season. The Bulldogs (19-8, 6-6) have dropped three games in a row to Georgia, LSU and Auburn, and these teams are at or below 6-6 in league play. Looks like Kentucky can celebrate.
TEXAS-ARLINGTON at McNEESE STATE (8 p.m. Wednesday at Burton Coliseum in Lake Charles, Louisiana)
The Southland Conference’s divisional leaders face off in what could be a pretty entertaining contest, not to mention a true test of Texas-Arlington’s tournament power. Texas-Arlington (20-6, 12-0), the West Division leader, just lost 72-70 to Weber State on BracketBuster Saturday, but the Mavericks’ other losses include a 10-point loss to Baylor. In the grand scheme of things, that’s not a bad loss. FYI: That loss broke a 16-game winning streak for Texas-Arlington. East Division leader McNeese State (15-10, 10-2) has an eight-game winning streak, including a 74-61 win over Southeast Missouri State.
UC-SANTA BARBARA at LONG BEACH STATE (11 p.m. Wednesday at The Pyramid in Long Beach, California)
The Big West Conference could be decided on Wednesday if undefeated Long Beach State can knock off UC-Santa Barbara. A loss by the Gauchos, plus a Cal State-Fullerton loss to Pacific on Thursday, would give Long Beach State the outright championship. The Gauchos (15-8, 9-3) lost by 23 points to Long Beach State in the teams’ previous meeting, but they have won six of seven since then. Orlando Johnson leads UCSB at 20.0 points per game, and that has been the big scoring stat so far for the team. Long Beach State (19-7, 12-0) lost 81-79 to Creighton on BracketBuster Saturday, breaking the team’s 12-game winning streak. The 49ers would win their 20th game with a victory Wednesday; combined with wins over Xavier and Pittsburgh and competitive losses to Louisville, Kansas and Kentucky, that would make Long Beach State quite an attractive tournament team.
No. 5 DUKE at No. 15 FLORIDA STATE (7 p.m. Thursday at Donald L. Tucker Center in Tallahassee, Florida)
And then there were still three. The Atlantic Coast Conference has Duke, North Carolina and Florida State on top of the league, all with identical 10-2 records, and all with an equal chance at winning the regular-season title and the top seed in the conference tournament. Duke (23-4, 10-2) recovered from a 20-point deficit to wipe out North Carolina State and then destroyed Boston College 75-50 behind Seth Curry’s 18 points. Duke has Virginia Tech and Wake Forest after this before a season-ending showdown with North Carolina. Florida State (19-7, 10-2) just beat North Carolina State 76-62 as Ian Miller’s 17 points led the way. A Florida State win would be beneficial for the Seminoles, who close the season with three games against Miami, Virginia and Clemson.
BUCKNELL at AMERICAN (7 p.m. Thursday at Bender Arena Sports Center in Washington, D.C.)
The Patriot League has come down to the final two games of the season, but the race for the title could end Thursday night if Bucknell wins and gets a little help. The Bison (20-8, 10-2) picked up 20 points and 10 rebounds from Mike Muscala in a heartbreaking 54-52 loss to Holy Cross. Bucknell also lost to Lehigh in the last week, which isn’t good, but the Bison can tie for the Patriot title with a win over American. Bucknell closes the season with winless Navy. If Bucknell wins and Lehigh loses to Navy on Thursday (not likely, but stranger things have happened), then Bucknell wins the Patriot title outright. American (18-9, 9-3) is only a game behind Bucknell and can upset the race with a victory.
No. 13 MURRAY STATE at TENNESSEE STATE (8 p.m. Thursday at Gentry Center in Nashville, Tennessee)
For people that were waiting to condemn Murray State for losing just one game, Saturday’s 65-51 win over ranked Saint Mary’s provided proof that Murray State will be a formidable team to watch in the future. The Racers (26-1, 13-1) already have the Ohio Valley Conference title locked up, but keep in mind this is the team that denied Murray State a perfect season. Dare we say the Racers want revenge? Murray State only has one more game after this with Tennessee Tech, so Murray State would love a 28-1 season coming into the conference tournament. Tennessee State (19-10, 11-4) has a nine-game winning streak going into this contest, so another Murray State win would give the Tigers 20 victories and a leg up on an NCAA or NIT bid.
BRIGHAM YOUNG at GONZAGA (10 p.m. Thursday at McCarthey Athletic Center in Spokane, Washington)
Four teams are within two games of the West Coast Conference lead, including these two teams, but there will be some whittling of the standings after this. Brigham Young (23-6, 11-3) is tied with Gonzaga for second place in the league, one game ahead of Loyola Marymount and one game behind Saint Mary’s. On February 2, Brigham Young scored an 83-73 win over Gonzaga at home, but this game is in Gonzaga’s gymnasium so all bets are off. Gonzaga (21-5, 11-3) just lost 66-65 to San Francisco on a short basket with 3.3 seconds remaining. The WCC is still in play.
BUTLER at VALPARAISO (7 p.m. Friday at Athletics-Recreation Center in Valparaiso, Indiana)
Don’t look now, but here comes Butler. After a 5-7 start to the season, Butler (17-12, 10-6) has won 12 of its last 17 and is starting to show signs of the team to reach the NCAA finals each of the past two years. Valparaiso (19-10, 12-4) has the Horizon League title pretty much locked up because this is the final regular-season game for both teams. It may be too late for Butler to earn an NCAA bid, but don’t be surprised to see the Bulldogs get some consideration if they knock off Valparaiso and then have a strong showing in the Horizon tournament.
