News On The Horizon 2/6/2024

#HLMBB Power Rankings — Week 13--HoriZone Roundtable
#HLMBB Games Preview – February 7th – February 10th--HoriZone Roundtable

#HLWBB Power Rankings — Week 13--HoriZone Roundtable

Cleveland State Men's Basketball Set for Midweek Matchup at Purdue Fort Wayne--csuvikings.com

Road split capped by historic shooting day for Panthers--HoriZone Roundtable
Panthers Open Important Road Swing At Youngstown State Thursday--mkepanthers.com

No go for NKU’s struggling Norse men in Horizon but a double-dip G-MAC win for Thomas More’s Saints--NKyTribune

Oakland hits the road after weekend home sweep--HoriZone Roundtable
2024 bracketology: Michigan State, Oakland basketball projected to make NCAA tournament--Detroit Free Press

Meanwhile, Oakland is projected to make the tournament as an automatic qualifier out of the Horizon League by some bracketologists. The Golden Grizzlies (15-9, 10-3) are tied for first place in the conference with Green Bay. The Horizon League is projected to be a one-bid league, so Oakland will need to win the conference tournament, which starts at campus sites on March 5 and wraps up in Indianapolis on March 12, to secure its first trip since 2011.

Here is a look at where bracketologists are projecting Michigan State and Oakland, with a month left in the regular season.

Michigan State & Oakland NCAA tournament projections

• USA TODAY does not project Oakland to make the tournament, instead slotting Green Bay in as the automatic qualifier with a 16-seed in the Midwest region playing Purdue. The bracketologists project six Big Ten teams and list Washington State, Gonzaga, Florida and Colorado as the first four teams out.
• Lunardi has Oakland in his field of 68 as the automatic qualifier out of the Horizon League, projecting the Golden Grizzlies as the No. 15 seed in the South region with a matchup against 2-seed Marquette in Indianapolis in the first round. If Oakland becomes the 12th No. 15 seed in tournament history to secure a first-round upset, it would play the winner of Texas-Mississippi State, the 7-10 matchup, in the second round.
• Palm also has Oakland in his tournament field via auto-bid. He projected Oakland as the No. 15 seed in the East region (with second-weekend games in Boston), playing No. 2 seed Kansas in the first round in Omaha. If Oakland manages the upset, the winner of Boise State and St. John's in the 7-10 matchup would await.
• Oakland, listed as the 59th overall team in Bleacher Report's projected field, is the No. 15 seed in the Midwest region, which will play its Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games here in Detroit at Little Caesars Arena. Tennessee is Oakland's projected opponent as the No. 2 seed and the first-round game would be played in Charlotte. Colorado State-Butler is the 7-10 matchup.
• DeCourcy has Oakland listed as the No. 15 seed in the East region, playing No. 2 seed Wisconsin in the first round. The projected 7-10 matchup in the bracket is TCU-Boise State.

Cleveland State Comes to Fort Wayne on Wednesday Evening--gomastodons.com

Feature Story: Maria Marchesano's Rebuild of Mastodon WBB--gomastodons.com

Wright State basketball: Nagy cautiously optimistic as Raiders hit stretch run--Dayton Daily News

#HLMBB Notebook - Feb. 6--Horizon League

#HLWBB Notebook – Feb. 6--Horizon League