The realignment saga will likely continue with lawyers and public relations specialists, and twitter fights. In the mean time, we have some quality basketball on display. Remember, whatever you think about what the conference realignment means for you, these current players on the squad have little or nothing to do with any of that.
The Standings
East
- Middle 8-3
- FAU 8-4
- WKU 7-6
- CLT 6-6
- ODU 5-7
- FIU 4-8
- Marshall 2-10
West
- NT 11-1
- UAB 9-3
- LT 9-3
- UTEP 7-5
- Rice 6-6
- USM 1-10
- UTSA 1-12
Tonight’s Games
Middle at FIU
Good teams beat bad teams. We know FIU is bad, but we aren’t quite sure that Middle is good. They have the best record in the East but that does not tell us they are a good team. Just that they are least bad.
NT at FAU
We know NT is good, and we know FAU is trying to be good. Last week we saw the Owls drop statement game vs Western in Bowling Green. This is a chance to right that wrong, so to speak, and make a statement about the program’s progress this season. NT is a very good team and losing well, or outright beating the defending champ is a great way to make some noise. For NT, this is a preparation game for the tournament. We have seen NT play well, but this is a challenge about focus. Next up for NT is UAB, and any looking past FAU is dangerous.
Charlotte at Western
I predicted that WKU would claw their way back up to respectability and this is where they do it. Charlotte is a solid team but they already dropped one of these to WKU this season and I feel like it will happen again. Watch for some Young/Sharp fun. One is a guard, one is a big. Both will entertain.
ODU at Marshall
ODU was right on the edge of letting the season slip away and the jumped up and beat UAB fairly impressively. Last season they made a run to get a bye. The east is wide open so we cannot discount much of anything but seven losses is hard to overcome. The rest of the season is about establishing the team they want to compete in the tournament. Marshall is playing for respect.
Rice at UAB
I would say UAB has nothing to worry about but this Owl team beat UAB already. The Blazers have a tendency to lose focus against bad teams away (all of their losses!) and have to guard against looking past this opponent toward NT this Saturday.
UTEP at Tech
UTEP has the 14th highest (worst) strength of schedule thus far. They also dropped game to Marshall. Tech is not as good as they were a year ago, but they still remain the third best team (by a few measures) in this league. Their should be no problem handling UTEP tonight.
UTSA at USM
USM is in a better place than UTSA and I do not know anyone outside of friends and family that want to watch this game.
Watchability
If you had to choose (you do not, really) I would tune into the FAU game. North Texas slows the pace but it is not grinding basketball. It is deliberate. There is a difference. Beyond that I always like watching Tech and Western, just because of the talent. ODU might deserve a peek to see if they will continue the start of a resurgence or just fade away. Finally, I will check the UAB score to see if Rice is making a run and hanging around. I expect Jelly Walker to go off, but you can always watch the highlights for that.
This email is brought to you by the Deranged Pengwin Podcast. It features Yours Truly, and there is a decided lack of sports talk. You can call it general interest, but it is a more focused and recently discusses some of life’s questions as answered by three long-time friends scattered across the American South. I promise you will at least chuckle.