On The Horizon

Jim Squire

SUNDAY’S SNACKS: No. 16 Providence outlasts No. 4 Villanova, No. 8 SMU falls--CollegeBasketballTalk

OTHER NOTABLE RESULTS
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Valparaiso rebounded from its loss at Wright State Friday night with a 71-46 win at Northern Kentucky. Keith Carter scored 16 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Crusaders.

W-7 BP68--Basketball Predictions

Meanwhile, 8 new teams were eliminated from at-large contention: Air Force, Cal Poly, George Mason, Green Bay, Oral Roberts, South Florida, Tennessee Tech, and Vermont. That leaves 111 teams currently out of the projected bracket that still have a chance for an at-large bid.
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12. MONMOUTH (MAAC)
12. VALPARAISO (HORIZON)
12. SAN DIEGO STATE (MOUNTAIN WEST)
12. ARKANSAS-LITTLE ROCK (SUN BELT)
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Still alive, but pretty much need a miracle:
UCF, East Carolina, Tulane, Albany, Boston College, Duquesne, Fordham, La Salle, UMass, Saint Louis, DePaul, St. John's, Weber State, Minnesota, Penn State, Rutgers, TCU, UC Santa Barbara, Long Beach State, Charleston, Elon, Northeastern, Towson, Marshall, Old Dominion, Western Kentucky, Milwaukee, Oakland

Youngstown State tops Cleveland State 70-55--CBS Sports
Valparaiso coasts to 71-46 win over Northern Kentucky--CBS Sports
Wright State runs away from Illinois-Chicago 80-66--CBS Sports
On The Menu: January 24, 2016--Blogging the Bracket

Elsewhere
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Valparaiso Crusaders (16-4, 6-1) at Northern Kentucky Norse (7-11, 3-4), 1 p.m. (ASN/ESPN3)

The Norse could be in for a long afternoon, considering they're the Crusaders' opponent following Valpo's first conference defeat of the season.

Under the Radar Game of the Day – Sunday, January 24: Illinois-Chicago at Wright State--Hoops HD

Day After: Wichita State 88, Bradley 54--Wichita Eagle

Rotation watch: Morris turned in another solid game with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting.

A week ago, it seemed as if Morris and Anton Grady shared the center position. With Morris’ performances the past two games, it feels more like he is the starter and Grady the backup. That change, in my mind, reflects Morris’ improvement more than any slippage by Grady.

Morris scored most of his points around the basket in the past two games, largely abandoning short jumpers. He is finishing strong, often dunking, and moving aggressively without the ball to catch passes close to the rim from VanVleet. That seems a better fit for the offense than Grady’s preferred jump shots. Morris shooting 58.8 percent from the field. Grady is shooting 44.9.

Those numbers make the case for Morris’ playing time to continue to rise, if he can avoid fouls and play with focus.

Grady scored eight points against Bradley, his most since he scored 17 against Evansville. We’ve seen Morris play inconsistently before and his minutes limit will top out around 20 no matter how well he plays, so there no doubt will be games in which Grady will need to shine.

U of L's Lee, Lewis find their shots in win--Louisville Courier-Journal
MSU takes down Maryland in 'must-win' game--The Detroit News

Now, the confidence is back.

“We needed it a lot,” Forbes said. “We’ve been struggling for three games and no one saw that coming after starting 13-0. But to come back and play the way we played, be who we are, do the things that we do, it felt great.”

Effort on defense leads MSU to win over Maryland--The Detroit News

“The emotion and the attention to detail on defense (were the difference),” said senior Matt Costello, who blocked three shots to go with 15 points and 12 rebounds. “We knew they attacked the gap really well and if you look back on the film you’ll see Bryn (Forbes) was 20 feet off his man to help and then get back. Eron was doing the same thing, Denzel (Valentine) was doing the same thing. Alvin (Ellis III) came in and did the same thing.

College Basketball Schedule & Scoreboard for January 24, 2016--Cleveland Plain Dealer

Matinee at the Q: The Cleveland State Vikings play host to Youngstown State in a Horizon League game today at 1 p.m. in Quicken Loans Arena. The teams have identical records (7-13 overall, 2-5 HL), but while CSU is riding a two-game win streak, the Penguins have lost three straight.

Youngstown State tops off Cleveland State, 70-55, at The Q--Cleveland Plain Dealer
Vikings Drop 70-55 Contest to Youngstown State--csuvikings.com

Titans Set For Monday Night Match-Up At Green Bay--detroittitans.com

GAME 21: OAKLAND CONCLUDES WISCONSIN ROADTRIP MONDAY AT MILWAUKEE--ougrizzlies.com

Dixson Nets Career-Best 29 Points Sunday at Wright State--uicflames.com

Panthers Open “Suits & Sneakers” Week Monday Against Oakland--uwmpanthers.com

Keith Carter, Valparaiso bounce back to rout Northern Kentucky--The Post-Tribune
Valparaiso suffers first Horizon League loss--The NWI Times
Crusaders overcome slow start to dominate Northern Kentucky--The NWI Times
Crusader Men Wrap Up Another Dominating Road Win--valpoathletics.com

College basketball: Wright State's turnaround has Raider fans thinking about dancing--NCAA.com
@NKUNorseMBB falls to Valpo, 71-46--nkunorse.com