Side Dishes
The Horizon League Tournament began their semifinal round with a shocker as No. 4 UIC blitzed No. 1 Wright State by running out to an early 17-6 lead and leading by 20 early in the second half en route to a 73-56 win over the team that led the conference wire to wire in the regular season. In the nightcap, No. 2 Northern Kentucky took over in the second half en route to an 80-69 win over No. 3 Green Bay.Bubbles, Sitting on the Fence and Brackets Part 7: 2015-19--Hoopville
Tonight’s Menu
Five more automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament go out tonight, and a couple of the big boys are among the ones that get their tournaments underway.
- The Horizon League championship game in Indianapolis will have No. 2 Northern Kentucky taking on No. 4 UIC (7 p.m.)
2015
Left out: Colorado State (27-6), Iona (26-8), Miami (Fla.) (21-12), Murray State (27-5), Old Dominion (24-7), Richmond (19-13), Temple (23-10), Wisconsin-Green Bay (24-8)
Multi-bid conferences: 11
Others just missing included Wisconsin-Green Bay for the second year in a row, the Phoenix no doubt weighed down by a struggling Horizon League that played a part in their having 16 of 22 wins against teams outside the top 200. UWGB did win at Miami (Fla.), which was in the ballpark but went just 2-7 against the top 50 and also had four sub-100 losses, including one to Eastern Kentucky by 28 points. Texas A&M even without a top 50 win was in position for a bid until losing four of five to close the season. Iona won 26 games, but not a single one came against a team inside the RPI top 125. Even a win at an ACC team (Wake Forest) only graded as a victory over the 150th-rated team.
2016
Michigan was nothing less than one of the worst at-large picks of all-time, from this view. The Wolverines were rewarded for four top-30 wins, ignoring the fact they went 4-11 in all against the top 50. High end wins, fine. But Michigan also was just 4-12 against the top 100, and if it wasn’t squeaking out a win against those top 50 teams (the four came by a combined 17 points), it usually lost handily with an average margin of defeat of 13.9 points, and just one game closer than 10 points. And again, four top-100 wins. Michigan could’ve scheduled better. It could’ve played some MAC or Missouri Valley or American teams out of conference for some games in that 51-100 range. Instead, it chose the likes of Bryant, Elon, Houston Baptist, Northern Kentucky and Youngstown State.Norse take 3rd Horizon title in 4 years with win over Flames--Associated Press
If you had not already heard the CBI cancelled its tournament for 2020 due to “the uncertainty about the corona virus and the impact it is having on college campuses across the country”.
The CIT released a statement this afternoon saying “At this time, the CollegeInsider Tournament (CIT) is still scheduled to be played starting next week.
CIT (32 teams)
Midwest
- Youngstown State (18-15 Horizon)
- Valpo (19-16 MVC)
- Ball State (18-13 MAC)
- Kansas City (16-14 WAC)
- Eastern Kentucky (16-17 OVC)
- Marshall (16-15 CUSA)
2014
Left out: Arkansas (21-11), Belmont (24-9), California (19-13), Florida State (19-13), Georgetown (17-14), Louisiana Tech (27-7), Minnesota (20-13), St. John’s (20-12), SMU (23-9), Toledo (26-6), Wisconsin-Green Bay (24-6)
Multi-bid conferences: 10
Sometimes the ball bounces in one direction, sometimes in another, but it’s not as if there weren’t candidates. The committee could’ve easily selected a team like Toledo with a 26-6 record in the No. 12-ranked conference, no top 50 wins (in one chance) but a 6-4 record vs. teams 51-100. Belmont was the best team in the Ohio Valley all year, went 4-6 against the top 100 including a top 25 win at North Carolina, and was 9-8 against the top 150. Louisiana Tech was 2-2 against the top 50, 5-5 vs. the top 100 and won 26 NCAA Division I games, including at NCAA 5 seed Oklahoma. Wisconsin-Green Bay with a 4-2 mark against the top 100 and a win over an eventual NCAA tourney 1 seed Virginia in December was clearly considered, as it was mentioned as one of the first teams left out.UWGB men fall to Northern Kentucky in Horizon League semifinal--Green Bay Press Gazette
| Rank | School | Record | Change | Our reasoning | This week's games |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | Wright State | 25-6 | 1 | A lot of time has passed since the Raiders last took the court, but they remain the odds-on favorite to win the Horizon League Tournament. Chalk it up to another great season from HL Player of the Year Loudon Love. | 3/9 vs. UIC (Horizon League Tournament semifinals) |
Tonight’s MenuBreaking down the Horizon League basketball tournament schedule--Draft Kings Nation
Championship Week is in full swing, with tonight being one of the lighter nights of action along the way.
- The Horizon League Tournament has semifinal action in Indianapolis with No. 1 Wright State taking on No. 4 UIC (7 p.m.) and No. 2 Northern Kentucky battling No. 3 Green Bay (9:30 p.m.)
