Another day, another defensive gem for the Wright State Raiders as they held Loyola to 29.4 percent shooting for the game and 15.4 percent in the second half to get a homecourt win, 68-47.
Conference Notes
Lots Of Overtime For Boston University
You can be forgiven for thinking that Boston University likes multiple overtime games. The Terriers have had two of them three days apart, winning in four overtimes against Stony Brook on Monday and surviving two overtimes against UMBC on Thursday for an 80-77 win. But the depleted Terriers could have used a break from the extra sessions.
Terriers Outlast Seawolves in Game for the Ages
t took four overtimes: That’s twenty minutes, the equivalent of playing an entire extra half of basketball, before the game was decided. When the dust finally settled, it was BU who came away with a 99-97 victory in the greatest regular season game in America East history. “What a game. It’s a shame somebody had to lose,” remarked Stony Brook head coach Steve Pikiell.
Horizon Notebook – CSU Loses Wisconsin Two-Step for the Two-Seed
Coming into the weekend just past, with Butler a perfect 5-0, Wisconsin-Green Bay and Wisconsin-Milwaukee each had one loss, Cleveland State had two, and Wright State had three. And predictably, Butler stayed perfect, taking care of business this weekend in Chicago, beating Loyola and Illinois-Chicago; also predictably, Wright State took care of business in its lone game at Detroit, still stuck on three losses. So there was Cleveland State on its annual brutal trek through Wisconsin, needing two wins to be tied for second and a split to stay close; it got neither.
Big East Notebook – Cardinals and Golden Eagles Streaking
The Cardinals have won five straight, including knocking off No. 1 Pittsburgh. They have now won their past three games in the regular season against ranked opponents – Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Villanova. In addition, Louisville has won three straight against the No. 1 team in the country. The previous two were over Florida on Dec. 13, 2003 and Kentucky on Dec. 27, 2003.
America East Notebook – Separation at the Top
Vermont’s inside-outside combination of Mike Trimboli and Marqus Blakely has been the best duo in the conference, as both are playing like All-Conference first teamers, but it’s been the Catamounts’ supporting cast that has made them hands down the team to beat in the America East.
Colonial Notebook: A Senior Struggles in Atlanta
A key opening stretch of four games in eight days for each team has just concluded. While there are still 13 CAA games left to play for each team, how a team starts can influence how they finish, especially if they start strong or in the hole.
Horizon Notebook: Great Week Clarifies Horizon Race – or Does it?
By late Friday evening I was pretty sure what I was going to write in this space. With Wright State still playing without injured star Vaughn Duggins, 20th ranked Butler had no trouble dispatching the Raiders at home on Thursday night, 64-48. Remarkably (truly remarkably), Loyola-a team that I said elsewhere with some hyperbole does not have a true Division I player on its roster–removed Wisconsin-Green Bay from the ranks of conference undefeated, upsetting the Phoenix 62-60 on Monday night on Chicago’s north side.
Butler Fends Off Wright State
It is a typical year in the Horizon League, the tenth ranked conference according to the RPI rankings. Butler is rolling along coming into the game 12-1 and a perfect 3-0 in Horizon League play.
Colonial Notebook: Symmetry in the Standings and Change of Pace for Tribe
CAA play has begun in earnest, and already it’s gotten interesting. As we enter the middle of the big five-day stretch with three games for each team (save for Drexel and VCU, who play their third game of the stretch on Thursday), there is some symmetry in the standings as three teams are 2-0, six are 1-1 and three are 0-2. But that’s not all. After five of the six games played in December went to the road team, the home teams had their revenge on Saturday as only Drexel pulled out a road win at Hofstra.
