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College Hoops Go-Round: December 19

By ChrisDobbertean

I managed to escape DC before the snow started and am writing this before I drive to Sunrise to check out the Orange Bowl Classic. 

Friday night was a busy night for mid-majors, but it's a pity none of these games were on TV.

Defending OVC champ Morehead State won a thriller at home over A-Sun champ ETSU, 60-58.

It wasn't a great night for the Big West, as the league went 1-4 on the night.

The win came courtesy of Long Beach State, who beat former conference-mate Utah State, 75-62.

Otherwise, Montana State knocked off UC Santa Barbara, Drexel won at Cal State Northridge, St. Mary's beat Pacific in Moraga, and UC Irvine fell at home to San Jose State.

It's the Saturday before Christmas, which means it's going to be a busy day and night of action. However, the quality of games is higher in the afternoon than evening. All times are p.m. Eastern.

  • Michigan at No. 1 Kansas (ESPN, 12): This is being billed as the Green Game for some reason. (I somehow have yet to hear Kermit the Frog's spiel, which is honestly a true miracle, considering how often I've seen it on muted TVs.) Regardless, Michigan has been struggling since Thanksgiving day, and Lawrence may not be a place where Manny Harris and DeShawn Sims will be able to get back on track.
  • UCLA at Notre Dame (CBS, 2): Remember when this game meant something? Now both teams can't beat Big West and West Coast Conference teams.
  • No. 10 North Carolina at No. 2 Texas (ESPN, 2): This seems about right for the first college basketball game in the monstrosity that is Jerry World.
  • Xavier at No. 21 Butler (ESPN2, 2): Maybe they can drag Thad Matta over to referee. The Musketeers will try to knock off their second ranked foe of the week, while the Bulldogs look to not drop one they need to win.
  • Stanford at Northwestern (Big Ten, 2): Usually, the Cardinal would have the upper hand in this battle of the academic schools, but the Wildcats look to be a real tourney threat. I wonder how many threes NU will attempt today.
  • No. 15 Gonzaga vs. No. 7 Duke in New York (CBS, 4): This one is weather permitting at the moment. If it goes off, this one has plenty of star power. Don't expect Matt Bouldin to let Jon Scheyer to score 36 in this one.
  • Western Kentucky at Louisville (ESPN2, 4): The Hilltoppers knocked off a better Cardinal team last year, but that game was in Nashville, not Freedom Hall.
  • Ball State vs. No. 4 Purdue in Indianapolis (Big Ten, 4): The Wooden Tradition was reduced to one game this year, and it should be an easy Boilermaker win.
  • Austin Peay at No. 3 Kentucky (SEC on CSS/Full Court, 4): Another chance to see the John Wall show, this time against an OVC contender.
  • No. 9 Tennessee at USC (FSN, 4:30): This one would have been far more fun last season.
  • Memphis at Massachusetts (ESPN2, 6): Bobby Knight would have a name for this one.
  • Illinois State at Utah (the mtn.,6): The Redbirds fell on their faces at the Convo earlier in the week. They're going to find the Huntsman Center a completely different challenge.
  • Drake at Iowa (Big Ten, 6:30): The Hawkeyes look for an in-state win in their last attempt.
  • San Diego State at Arizona State (FS Arizona/FCS Pacific, 6:30): The Aztecs can sweep the Pac 10 Arizona schools with a victory.
  • Illinois vs. Georgia in Duluth, GA (ESPNU, 7): This is a return from a semi-neutral site game last season. The Illini won that one by 34.
  • Old Dominion at No. 11 Georgetown (Big East/Full Court, 7): The last time the Hoyas faced the Monarchs at home when they were ranked, ODU beat them by 13 (2007).
  • Creighton at No. 19 New Mexico (the mtn., 9): The Lobos hope to keep a good thing going against a Blue Jay team that's been a bit disappointing so far.
  • Portland at No. 24 Washington (FS Northwest/FCS Atlantic, 10): Remember the Pilots? A win over the Huskies would give them a shot to put themselves back on the map.

In other televised action today

  • IPFW at No. 12 Michigan State (Big Ten, 12)
  • Northern Colorado at Oklahoma (Full Court, 1)
  • Lipscomb at No. 25 Cincinnati (FS Ohio/SNY/Full Court, 2)
  • No. 6 West Virginia at Cleveland State (Big East/Full Court, 2)
  • Northern Iowa at North Dakota (FCS Central, 2)
  • South Carolina at Wofford (SportSouth/FCS Atlantic/Full Court, 7)
  • North Carolina Central at Indiana (Big Ten, 8:30)
  • Gardner-Webb at Penn State (ESPNU, 9)

There are a lot of games today that will only be televised regionally

For more on these, visit Matt Sarz' College Sports on TV site.