This week’s slate of college basketball features a showdown of Tobacco Road Powers, two Big 12 stalwarts in the midst of late season runs, but also a slew of match ups between tournament hopefuls and upset-minded conference foes. In this week’s edition of the Weekly Five, we take a look at some of the more under-the-radar affairs.
No. 12 Louisville at Syracuse: Don’t they say that the most dangerous man in a fight is the one with nothing to lose? Well, if that is indeed the case, then Syracuse has to be taken seriously here, especially with the game being in New York. The Orange certainly competed well with Duke after receiving news that they would be ineligible for postseason play, but is that reason enough to believe that they can pull off the upset here? Duke was able to knock down shots from deep, sure, but more importantly they put the ball inside to Jahlil Okafor and got Rakeem Christmas in foul trouble. Montrezl Harrell is not the same kind of offensive talent that Okafor is, but a similar game plan (not to mention some hot shooting from Terry Rozier and Wayne Blackshear) could be in the works for UL.
Most importantly though, Louisville must pressure the Syracuse guards defensively into silly mistakes, and not allow Michael Gbinije to continue his high scoring ways as of late. If Rozier and Jones can control the tempo, and avoid settling for the type of jumpers that Jim Boeheim’s group prefers, then I like them to pick up an important road win. Pick: Louisville
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Purdue at Indiana: While Indiana has been on the bubble scene for quite some time, Purdue has worked its way on as of late, with a No. 64 RPI ranking thanks to recent wins over Iowa, Indiana and Ohio State. The catch, though, is that all of those wins have come at home and the Boilermakers have yet to make any splashes on the road. Changing that with a win in Bloomington would certainly change that for the better, as it is the first in a trio of trips that also include Ohio State and Michigan State.
For the Hoosiers, they’re looking to pick up their tenth win over an RPI Top 100 team, and do so on the home court where they’ve only lost once, Nov. 28 against Eastern Washington. A loss would be a tremendous hit to Purdue’s tournament hopes, as it would mean another chance gone by for a notable road win. While their defense has generally been reliable, Indiana has played tremendously offensively at home and it would be a surprise for that to change here. Pick: Indiana
Temple at SMU: The American conference has been shaken up quite a bit as of late, with Tulsa losing its first two conference games and allowing SMU to grab the top spot over Tulsa. The Golden Hurricane are still on pace with the Mustangs in the loss column, but now Temple is just one loss off the lead as well. After dropping three in a row near the beginning of conference play, the Owls have run off seven straight wins.
On the other side, Larry Brown’s group has won 11 of their last 12. Something has to give here, right? I do love what Temple has done in their effort to save their season but winning at SMU right now feels like a bit too big of a task for them. I’d go with the Mustangs. Pick: SMU
Xavier at Cincinnati: We don’t always get these non-conference treats this late in the season, but the Crosstown Classic is always one of the most fiercely entertaining games of the year. Sometimes the competition goes too far, as it did a few years ago with a mid-game brawl. Still, we love this game and couldn’t be more excited for it. On one side, you have an Xavier team who’s been extremely dangerous at home but inconsistent on the road, while Cincinnati is 13-2 at home.
Each team enters on a bit of a down note, with the Bearcats having lost two straight. If UC can inflict their defensive minded, physical style of play, then I see them holding serve at home. Pick: Cincinnati
No. 9 Utah at Oregon State: Wayne Tinkle has worked wonders in Corvallis during his first year, but Oregon State is still just 16-9, 7-6 on the year. So, why are they part of our featured Games of the Week? Oregon State is undefeated at home, having already knocked off Arizona there, while the Utes are 4-3 on the road. What would it take for Tinkle and company to replicate that result?
The key to beating Utah is finding a way to make dynamic plays off the dribble offensively, and doing just enough defensively on Delon Wright and Brandon Taylor to force more jumpers than they’re comfortable with. Ultimately though, I do expect Utah to keep their current roll going, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see OSU give them a bit more of a run than some think. Pick: Utah
