BracketBusters Saturday 2009 :: The Mid-Majority

BracketBusters Saturday 2009

February 21, 2009 9:09 am ET by Kyle Whelliston

So here we are again, it's late February and it's time for Mid-Major Christmas... BracketBusters VII, brought to you locally by Flying J Travel Plazas and Ballito's Powdered Horchata. Here's a handy clip-n'-save list of all Saturday's televised games, with links to handy print-n'-collect Basketball State previews in all their ridiculous comprehensiveness. That's all followed by the 38 matchups that didn't quite make the production-truck cut. The way we see it, though, it's just a 51-way tie for Game! Of! The! Night! this weekend. Enjoy the hoops today, and we'll be back at you Monday with a recap. All times Eastern.

Liberty (Big South) at Old Dominion (Colonial)
LIB: 20-8 (11-5) [158 RPI/126 State] ODU: 17-9 (10-6) [130 RPI/119 State]
11:00 am - ESPNU
Constant Convocation Center - Norfolk, VA

It started out as a showcase for Seth Curry (20.7 ppg), who's related to some guy, but thanks to Liberty's four-game win streak and VMI's recent slump, it's also a chance to see a team that could challenge top Big South team Radford and represent the conference at the Dance. Old Dominion's greatest recent accomplishment was winning the CAA in our mock selection simulation, but the Monarchs have won six of seven and are just as capable as anyone of emerging from the chaotic CAA autobid race. To-Do List: Undersized Liberty needs to find some way to keep 6-10 Gerald Lee (15.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 55.0 FG%) from exploding for a huge night. ODU just needs to get him the ball as much as possible. U'useless: The two morning starts allow the CAA the opportunity to open up an even greater advantage in the all-time Buster standings. Currently, it's a Hoops Nation-best 8-3 (.727). The Valley is ahead in wins (18-9), but behind percentage-wise at .667.

Northeastern (Colonial) at Wright State (Horizon League)
NU: 16-10 (11-5) [90 RPI/104 State] WRIG: 16-11 (10-6) [104 RPI/102 State]
11:00 pm - ESPN2
Ervin J. Nutter Center - Dayton, OH

This looked a lot more interesting two weeks ago. Northeastern has been a mirror image of ODU lately, losing four of five to relinquish its CAA lead. Wright, meanwhile, was trounced by Butler five days after being selected for this game and have fallen out of the RPI's top 100. To-Do List: Both teams prefer the 30-second possession and will try to grind this one out, but the more chances the teams get, Wright's likelihood for a victory goes up because NU has superior shooters. U'useless: Northeastern and Wright State have played twice before, in a 2004 and 2005 home-and-home. The Raiders won both.

Butler (Horizon League) at Davidson (Southern)
BUTL: 22-4 (13-3) [27 RPI/19 State] DAV: 22-5 (15-2) [55 RPI/51 State]
12:00 pm - ESPN
Belk Arena - Davidson, NC

This was set up as the giant super showdown/throwdown, a matchup of teams that could very well strike into the NCAAs' second weekend. While both are capable, cracks have shown up on both sides lately. Butler's early streak came in spite of a lot of young players; the long season has seemed to cut into their focus, and the Bulldogs have lost two straight heading into this one. Davidson's been trying to prove that it was more than just national leading scorer Stephen Curry (29.0 ppg); after his ankle sprain last weekend, the Wildcats were blown out by The Citadel. (He's planning to play today.) If anything, this is a chance to see two of Hoops Nation's best and most resourceful bigs go at it: Andrew Lovedale (12.4 ppg, 8.9 rpg) in red, Matt Howard (14.1 ppg, 7.0 rpg) in blue. To-Do List: Butler's backcourt needs to get its groove back; the team recently conceded the Horizon League's turnovers-per-game lead to Wright. Davidson needs to have Curry on the floor for as many minutes as possible. U'useless: Butler is going for its 11th road win of the season, which would momentarily put it alone in first in that category among all D-I teams.

Buffalo (Mid-American) at Vermont (America East)
BUFF: 17-7 (9-3) [95 RPI/84 State] UVM: 21-7 (12-3) [100 RPI/101 State]
1:00 pm - ESPN2
Roy L. Patrick Gymnasium - Burlington, VT

It's a first-place battle between the MAC and the A-East, two teams that are hoping to somehow climb up to that magic 13-seed line and get an NCAA game against what promises to be the softest bunch of power-league runner-ups ever. Reggie Witherspoon has turned around a two-year slump and climbed to the top of the profoundly symmetrical MAC, but is coming off a rough two-loss week. Mike Lonergan is on the verge of bringing Vermont back to glory, and is on a five-game streak to climb atop the Cats and Dogs Conference. To-Do List: Vermont needs to use it's A-East best turnover-forcing power to crack Buffalo, the stingiest ball-control team in the MAC. The Bulls' superior bigs have to grab a lot of offensive rebounds to overcome their weak shooting. U'useless: You have to go back to 1961 to find the last meeting between UB and UVM. Vermont won it.

Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley) at Siena (Metro Atlantic)
UNI: 18-9 (12-4) [86 RPI/85 State] SIE: 21-6 (15-1) [31 RPI/41 State]
3:00 pm - ESPN2
Times Union Center - Albany, NY

The luster is off this one a bit as well. UNI, although fundamentally sound to a fault, has found its four-game lead in the Bizarro Valley dissipate into a piffly memory. Siena has already clinched the MAAC regular-season title, but a win here wouldn't help their rÃ©sumÃ© that much. The Selection Committee will have to figure out how to handle that 0-3 Old Spice Classic performance and the missed opportunities. To-Do List: Simple: dictate tempo. Siena will win if the game stays fast, and the Panthers can steal a roadie if they're able to milk clock and find the right shots. U'useless: Like Northeastern and Wright State, these two teams once played a home-and-home series (2004 and 2005). The home team won both games.

Miami (Oh.) (Mid-American) at Evansville (Missouri Valley)
MIO: 15-9 (8-4) [72 RPI/77 State] EVAN: 15-11 (7-9) [94 RPI/118 State]
3:30 pm - ESPNU
Roberts Municipal Stadium - Evansville, IN

Miami had been destined to run the MAC until point guard Kenny Hayes went down with a season-ending hand injury after eight games. The RedHawks have made their hay against the woeful and weak West, but are just 3-3 within their own division. Evansville's fine start helped make the Valley Bizarro, but the Purple Aces are fading down the stretch a little: three straight losses have dropped them below .500, two of which were away from Roberts Stadium a/k/a 1 Vertigo Place. To-Do List: Miami needs to drive to the basket and take advantage of Evansville's lack of size. Evansville's got to force turnovers, something that had been keeping the Aces competitive in the Biz-Val. U'useless: Miami has a four-game win streak in the series.

Utah State (Western Athletic) at Saint Mary's (West Coast)
USU: 25-2 (12-1) [32 RPI/26 State] SMC: 20-5 (8-4) [64 RPI/37 State]
5:00 pm - ESPN2
McKeon Pavilion - Moraga, CA

It's a game between the Nos. 3 and 4 teams in our TS-22 index... what's not to love? Utah State is the most complete and well-balanced team in Hoops Nation right now; balanced scoring, great shooting, ball control, rebounding and defense are all there. The Aggies just haven't had the chances to prove it against top competition, thanks to head coach Stew Morrill's relentlessly conservative scheduling. SMC is still figuring itself out after the loss of PG Patty Mills, who's on track to return sometime around the WCC tournament, but has been adjusting to its reshuffled backcourt of late. To-Do List: Saint Mary's guards cannot play tentative at all: if there's an open shot, shoot. USU needs to make sure both members of the lay-down-the-law firm of Samhan & Simpson are covered at all times. Either big mancan slip away for an uncontested dunk that will look really embarrassing on TV. U'useless: After Illinois State's loss to Niagara last night, Utah State is the only school that's a perfect 3-0 all-time in the BB event.

Wisconsin-Green Bay (Horizon League) at Long Beach State (Big West)
UWGB: 20-8 (12-4) [73 RPI/62 State] LBSU: 13-11 (8-4) [132 RPI/117 State]
5:30 pm - ESPNU
The Pyramid - Long Beach, CA

Long Beach is struggling to stay ahead of the pace in a conference it was running back in January; since a foot injury to leading scorer Donovan Morris, the 49ers are 2-2 and have won the pair by a combined two points; it's been gut and grit that has served the Big West's top halfcourt defensive team well. The Phoenix picked a bad time to have a road slump; since making a Horizon League statement by handing Butler its first league loss the day after BB selections were announced, they were reverse-swept in Ohio (Youngstown and Cleveland). Two timezones away is a tough place to get dark-jersey mojo working again. To-Do List: LBSU needs to somehow get out in transition and force the hardnosed 'Nix out of their halfcourt comfort zone. Green Bay needs to just run its stuff, because it's good stuff. U'useless: Both teams are going for their first Buster win. Green Bay is 0-1, and Long Beach has never participated before.

Hofstra (Colonial) at Fairfield (Metro Atlantic)
HOFS: 18-9 (10-6) [83 RPI/121 State] FAIR: 15-12 (8-8) [92 RPI/156 State]
7:00 pm - ESPN360
Arena at Harbor Yard - Bridgeport, CT

Hey, Tri-State Area mid-major fans, just remember that ESPN360 has 358 more degrees of awesomeness than Tha Dooce. Hofstra is gaining momentum down the stretch, and has become one of the seeming 1,482 CAA teams with 10 wins. Fairfield's promising season has been derailed by injuries and strangeness; the Stags are suiting up seven players, and lost stalwart PG Jonathan Han, who left the team after a dust-up with an assistant coach. Despite all that, Fairfield could end up with its third straight winning MAAC record. To-Do List: Hofstra has a chance to really crush undermanned Fairfield on the boards, they'll win with at least a +10 margin there. The Stags just need to keep their turnovers to an absolute minimum, the only remaining thing they do well, and survive the game. U'useless: Fairfield has had three three-game losing streaks this season. They're on one of those right now.

Boise State (Western Athletic) at Portland State (Big Sky)
BOIS: 17-8 (7-5) [88 RPI/98 State] POST: 18-9 (9-5) [149 RPI/100 State]
7:30 pm - ESPNU
Rose Garden - Portland, OR

Here's a matchup of underperforming conference champions. The Broncos snuck out of Las Cruces with the WAC title last March with a 3OT classic, but have had trouble replacing lost production. The huge home win over league leader Utah State, however, was a glimpse of the well-rounded team that Boise was supposed to be. Portland State was supposed to dominate the Big Sky again -- especially after dumping Gonzaga on Festivus -- but have yielded control of the race to Weber State after losing two of three and four of seven. The rebounding has been anemic. To-Do List: Boise needs to pound the ball inside and eliminate silly turnovers; when they do that, they can beat anyone (ask Utah State). The Vikings guards would be well-served to just shoot the crap out the ball. Returning Big Sky POY Jeremiah Dominguez is shooting 42 percent from 3. U'useless: This is the first time in three years that Boise State has not played a team from New York's Capitol Region in the BB. It was Siena last year, and UAlbany the year before.

George Mason (Colonial) at Creighton (Missouri Valley)
GMU: 18-8 (11-5) [54 RPI/72 State] CREI: 22-6 (12-4) [52 RPI/42 State]
9:30 pm - ESPNU
Qwest Center - Omaha, NE

When the matchups for BB2K9 were announced, this looked like a matchup of the best two teams in BracketBusters' two most accomplished leagues, not necessarily the top two. But both have shown that they're ready for the postseason in these past two weeks. Jim Larranaga's Patriots are rounding into another March machine, and dumped Drexel and Northeastern within the last seven days. The only remaining question is: can they win on the road? (They're 13-0 at home, and 5-8 elsewhere.) The glittering Qwest Center is a good place to find out. Creighton is on a seven-game win streak and has refound its focus after a rough January; the answer, as is often the case around here, is ball control. The Bluejays have not been under-turnovered during the streak, which has nullfied a previous Northern Iowa four-game standings lead. To-Do List: Mason needs to have another all-around game, and get solid performances by at least two of three double-figure scorers; this could be a big game for 6-7 senior Darryl Monroe. Memo to the size-challenged Bluejays: if Monroe or anybody else is driving to the rim, hack 'em. Mason is awful (63 percent) from the line. U'useless: Creighton beat Mason by 20 during the 2005-06 season, four months before the Patriots' big March run.

* * *

And don't forget there are a whole lot of other BracketBusters going on out there in radio-only land. Here's a list of the games that are helping beautify Hoops Nation for the future: the return matches in November or December mean one fewer BCS guarantee game or glorified NAIA exhibition on each team's schedule.

Tennessee Tech (Ohio Valley) at Ball State (Mid-American) - 12:00 pm
TNT: 11-16 (5-12) [281 RPI/280 State] BSU: 11-13 (6-6) [232 RPI/196 State]

Iona (Metro Atlantic) at Boston University (America East) - 1:00 pm
IONA: 12-15 (7-9) [175 RPI/197 State] BU: 14-12 (9-5) [153 RPI/184 State]

Appalachian State (Southern) at Winthrop (Big South) - 2:00 pm
APST: 11-15 (8-10) [245 RPI/267 State] WINT: 8-18 (7-9) [243 RPI/285 State]

Manhattan (Metro Atlantic) at William & Mary (Colonial) - 2:00 pm
MAN: 15-11 (9-7) [144 RPI/183 State] CWM: 9-17 (4-12) [247 RPI/277 State]

Fairleigh Dickinson (Northeast) at Central Michigan (Mid-American) - 2:00 pm
FDU: 7-20 (6-10) [302 RPI/328 State] CMU: 8-16 (5-7) [280 RPI/260 State]

Eastern Illinois (Ohio Valley) at Western Michigan (Mid-American) - 2:00 pm
EIU: 11-15 (8-8) [288 RPI/264 State] WMU: 9-16 (6-6) [256 RPI/231 State]

Canisius (Metro Atlantic) at Bowling Green (Mid-American) - 2:00 pm
CANI: 8-18 (3-13) [221 RPI/284 State] BGSU: 15-10 (8-4) [173 RPI/154 State]

Toledo (Mid-American) at Indiana State (Missouri Valley) - 2:00 pm
TOL: 5-21 (3-9) [309 RPI/307 State] INST: 8-19 (6-10) [205 RPI/250 State]

Delaware (Colonial) at Bucknell (Patriot League) - 2:00 pm
DEL: 11-17 (5-11) [227 RPI/255 State] BUCK: 6-20 (3-9) [290 RPI/306 State]

Louisiana Tech (Western Athletic) at Murray State (Ohio Valley) - 3:00 pm
LTU: 11-16 (4-9) [210 RPI/208 State] MURR: 15-10 (10-5) [152 RPI/109 State]

Cleveland State (Horizon League) at Wichita State (Missouri Valley) - 3:05 pm
CLST: 20-8 (11-5) [71 RPI/59 State] WICH: 13-14 (7-9) [165 RPI/161 State]

Morgan State (MEAC) at Towson (Colonial) - 4:00 pm
MORG: 17-10 (12-2) [155 RPI/162 State] TOWS: 9-19 (4-12) [241 RPI/291 State]

Bradley (Missouri Valley) at Loyola (Ill.) (Horizon League) - 4:00 pm
BRAD: 15-12 (9-7) [106 RPI/116 State] LOYO: 14-15 (6-11) [191 RPI/212 State]

Maryland-Baltimore County (America East) at Rider (Metro Atlantic) - 4:00 pm
UMBC: 12-14 (6-8) [198 RPI/244 State] RID: 15-11 (10-6) [142 RPI/155 State]

Georgia State (Colonial) at Eastern Michigan (Mid-American) - 4:00 pm
GSU: 9-18 (7-9) [263 RPI/279 State] EMU: 4-22 (2-10) [324 RPI/322 State]

Saint Peter's (Metro Atlantic) at Youngstown State (Horizon League) - 4:35 pm
SPC: 9-17 (6-10) [250 RPI/283 State] YSU: 10-16 (7-9) [224 RPI/226 State]

Loyola (Md.) (Metro Atlantic) at Drexel (Colonial) - 5:00 pm
LMD: 11-17 (6-10) [185 RPI/262 State] DREX: 14-11 (10-6) [103 RPI/123 State]

Gardner-Webb (Big South) at James Madison (Colonial) - 7:00 pm
GWB: 11-15 (7-9) [222 RPI/242 State] JMU: 17-11 (9-7) [125 RPI/144 State]

Elon (Southern) at North Carolina-Wilmington (Colonial) - 7:00 pm
ELON: 9-16 (6-11) [255 RPI/293 State] UNCW: 6-22 (3-13) [282 RPI/324 State]

Morehead State (Ohio Valley) at Kent State (Mid-American) - 7:00 pm
MORE: 16-12 (12-4) [172 RPI/175 State] KENT: 15-11 (8-4) [162 RPI/124 State]

Ohio (Mid-American) at Eastern Kentucky (Ohio Valley) - 7:00 pm
OHIO: 13-12 (6-6) [177 RPI/142 State] EKU: 17-10 (10-6) [161 RPI/145 State]

Missouri State (Missouri Valley) at Tennessee-Martin (Ohio Valley) - 7:00 pm
MOST: 10-17 (3-13) [220 RPI/233 State] UTM: 19-6 (12-3) [122 RPI/99 State]

Hartford (America East) at Marist (Metro Atlantic) - 7:30 pm
HART: 6-22 (2-12) [297 RPI/330 State] MAR: 8-20 (4-12) [264 RPI/299 State]

Jacksonville State (Ohio Valley) at Georgia Southern (Southern) - 7:30 pm
JXST: 12-15 (5-12) [239 RPI/241 State] GS: 7-18 (5-12) [291 RPI/302 State]

Southern Illinois (Missouri Valley) at Illinois-Chicago (Horizon League) - 8:00 pm
SIU: 11-16 (6-10) [159 RPI/187 State] UIC: 13-14 (6-11) [183 RPI/172 State]

North Dakota State (Summit League) at Wisconsin-Milwaukee (Horizon League) - 8:00 pm
NDST: 20-6 (14-2) [116 RPI/61 State] UWM: 15-11 (10-6) [114 RPI/112 State]

Akron (Mid-American) at Valparaiso (Horizon League) - 8:05 pm
AKR: 17-9 (8-4) [108 RPI/90 State] VALP: 7-20 (4-12) [251 RPI/254 State]

Austin Peay (Ohio Valley) at Drake (Missouri Valley) - 8:05 pm
APSU: 15-11 (11-5) [127 RPI/159 State] DRKE: 16-12 (7-9) [136 RPI/157 State]

Detroit (Horizon League) at Tennessee State (Ohio Valley) - 8:30 pm
UDM: 7-19 (2-14) [262 RPI/276 State] TSU: 9-17 (7-9) [254 RPI/274 State]

Northern Illinois (Mid-American) at Southeast Missouri (Ohio Valley) - 8:45 pm
NIU: 7-17 (3-9) [327 RPI/294 State] SEMO: 3-24 (0-16) [336 RPI/341 State]

Pacific (Big West) at San Diego (West Coast) - 9:00 pm
PAC: 14-10 (7-6) [176 RPI/132 State] USD: 13-14 (5-7) [207 RPI/179 State]

Cal State Fullerton (Big West) at New Mexico State (Western Athletic) - 9:00 pm
CSF: 13-13 (7-7) [189 RPI/185 State] NMSU: 14-12 (8-5) [124 RPI/129 State]

South Dakota State (Summit League) at Cal Poly (Big West) - 10:00 pm
SDST: 12-16 (7-9) [270 RPI/229 State] POLY: 6-17 (3-10) [292 RPI/275 State]

Fresno State (Western Athletic) at California-Davis (Big West) - 10:00 pm
FRES: 10-17 (2-10) [246 RPI/249 State] UCD: 12-14 (7-6) [248 RPI/234 State]

Montana State (Big Sky) at California-Santa Barbara (Big West) - 10:00 pm
MTST: 13-12 (6-7) [230 RPI/190 State] UCSB: 11-13 (5-7) [192 RPI/186 State]

California-Riverside (Big West) at San Jose State (Western Athletic) - 10:00 pm
UCR: 14-10 (6-6) [206 RPI/160 State] SJSU: 11-13 (4-8) [202 RPI/192 State]

Cal State Northridge (Big West) at Idaho (Western Athletic) - 10:05 pm
CSN: 12-11 (8-4) [181 RPI/134 State] ID: 12-13 (6-6) [139 RPI/153 State]

California-Irvine (Big West) at Hawaii (Western Athletic) - 11:59 pm
UCI: 9-17 (6-7) [269 RPI/256 State] HAW: 13-12 (5-8) [214 RPI/191 State]