Checking in on what happened during a busy Wednesday ...
RISERS
* Florida State. As long as Michael Snaer is around to make last-second shots, the Seminoles are going to be a nuisance at the least and a serious threat against just about anyone at the most. Maryland became the latest team to learn what it's like to be enSnaered in a nasty late-game situation.
* Massachusetts. And there's the Minutemen's top-70 victory, a 61-60 edging of La Salle in Philadelphia. It's easily UMass' best accomplishment on the road, as well.
* Oklahoma. It's not as though the Sooners direly needed a win at Baylor, but a 74-71 triumph in Waco goes down as the best road victory on Oklahoma's dossier to date.
* Oklahoma State. The Cowboys knocked off a team with a similar profile (Iowa State) at home, which does a bit more to help the Pokes than it does to harm the Cyclones. Chalk it up as a useful night for Oklahoma State.
* Stanford. The Cardinal is polishing off a rout of Pac-12 leader Oregon as 1 a.m. passes on the East Coast. This from a Stanford bunch that had accomplished nothing of consequence so far. Even if the Ducks probably aren't the class of their conference (over 18 games, that will probably be Arizona), this was a good night for Johnny Dawkins' team.
TREADING WATER
* Air Force. Handled Fresno State at home like it was supposed to.
* Colorado State. Snagged a home game against fellow Mountain West bubbler Boise State, solidifying itself as the No. 4 team in that league.
* Georgetown. The Hoyas forced or were handed some combination of 25 turnovers, spurring a 74-52 rout of an utterly flummoxed and outfoxed Seton Hall bunch.
* Memphis. Won at East Carolina and thus avoided a loss that would damage its tenuous at-large profile down the road. Moving along ...
* Saint Mary's. Knocked off San Francisco at home, thus avoiding a lousy loss to the West Coast Conference's non-Gonzaga, non-Brigham Young contingent.
* St. John's. Played with fire and outlasted DePaul in overtime at home. Not a flattering performance, but no harm done to the Red Storm.
* Temple. The Owls rebounded from a loss at Butler, dismissing Richmond 71-64 at home. Next up: A date with fellow Big Five school Saint Joseph's on Saturday.
* Texas A&M. The Aggies survived a trip to Starkville, winning 55-49 in overtime. Here's hoping no video of that game was saved for posterity.
* Virginia Commonwealth. Shaka Smart's bunch is halfway home to claiming the Atlantic 10's Ram-tough crown. VCU edged Rhode Island 70-64, and get Fordham this weekend.
DECLINERS
* Boise State. The Broncos have dropped four of five and have UNLV and San Diego State up next. Not good.
* La Salle. A one-point loss to Massachusetts is no dagger, but it was a wasted opportunity for the Explorers to create some separation in the clogged Atlantic 10.
* Maryland. The Terrapins fell to 0-4 on the road in the ACC after getting Snaered at Florida State. Couple that with a lousy nonconference schedule, and Maryland's margin of error is shrinking by the day. The schedule, however, does become considerably more manageable in February --- but it will also place an onus on any ill-advised loss to come.
* Missouri. The Tigers are still winless on the road after a 73-70 stumble at Louisiana State, which entered the night dead last in the tepic SEC. Yuck.
* Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights weren't exactly supposed to be in the postseason picture, but they looked like an NCAA possibility at 12-4 a few weeks ago. Four losses later --- including an understandable 62-54 setback at Cincinnati --- and optimism is fleeting in Piscataway.
* Texas-El Paso. The Miners couldn't afford to fool around with a sub-.500 UAB team and went ahead and lost in overtime in Birmingham. That's four losses to teams outside the top 100 for Tim Floyd's bunch, which is an indication it'll probably take three wins in as many days to avoid the NIT or CBI.
* UCLA. An overtime loss at home to Southern California? Blech. The Bruins aren't in any immediate danger, but three losses in four games is not a good trend.
* Wyoming. The Cowboys have already lost three home games in Mountain West play, the latest a four-point setback to New Mexico. Wyoming isn't in the Boise State danger zone yet, but it is getting there.
--- Patrick Stevens
Thanks for the list. I'll definitely get back on these when I need it.
Posted by: Auto Accident Lawyer Austin | 02/10/2013 at 07:24 AM