As I mentioned last week, we were supposed to head down to Ohio this past weekend to watch my niece play basketball. Unfortunately, there was a massive snow storm heading our way and we decided it wouldn't be a good idea to risk out lives making the trip.
It turns out that may have not been a bad thing. Along with the cold and snow up in Michigan on Friday night, things were pretty cold in Ohio too. They played a not great game and they ended up losing what I think should have been an easy win for them.
I have a feeling my niece wouldn't have been very good company if we had been down there. She is pretty competitive and she expects a lot from herself. I would imagine she was pretty down after the game and probably just wanted to spend some time alone or with her friends.
I get it.
Then, the game on Saturday got pushed two hours past when it was supposed to start. Not a big deal, but if we had been down there, we planned on leaving right after that game to come home. That would have put us home after midnight versus around 8:00 when we had planned on being home.
I think in the end, it turned out for the best that we didn't make the trip. That being said, their game on Saturday was against a really good team from Kentucky and there wasn't a lot of hope they would win. They ended up doing amazing and they crushed the other team by double digits. It was awesome to watch them play!
Tonight on the other hand is going to be tough for sure. They play against the number 1 team in Ohio tonight and it will be interesting to see how they hold up. The team has a lot of potential, they just don't execute the best sometimes. If they are "on", they might stand a chance.
As for college basketball, I actually watched quite a bit of it this weekend.
Friday there were no top 25 games on the schedule, but there were some teams playing who aren't currently ranked. I just want to remind you that there are tons of really good games played outside the top 25 each week. I just need to limit myself for the sake of staying sane. I encourage you to check out some of those non ranked games.
Saturday brought us a truckload of action in the top 25 with seventeen total games being played. I started off my day watching the Northwestern/#15 Wisconsin game. The Wildcats kept up with the Badgers pretty closely, but eventually Wisconsin pulled away.
During that game I was also keeping an eye on the St. John's/#22 Creighton game. I had put money on St. John's to win, so I was cheering for them. Ultimately, they came up short and fell by one point 66 to 65 to Creighton. I was pretty bummed to say the least.
As far as upsets go, New Mexico took down #19 San Diego State 88 to 70. Meanwhile in probably one of the best games of the day, Texas A&M took #6 Kentucky into overtime and ultimately beat them 97 to 92. I watched that game and it was pretty amazing. I wish I had put money down on that one instead of the St. John's upset.
#2 Houston continues to have struggles and they dropped their second game this past week against unranked TCU 68 to 67. That should definitely free up a lot of space in the top 5 for other teams this week.
Washington State beat #8 Arizona 73 to 70 in a close game and West Virginia beat #25 Texas to round out the upsets on Saturday.
I heard that #14 Baylor vs. Cincinnati game was pretty good as well, but the Bears won 62 to 59.
I wanted to try and watch the women's game between Wisconsin and Michigan on Saturday, but it was only available on the Big Ten Streaming service which I do not subscribe to. I'm hoping one day soon I get to see Tessa Grady play again.
On Sunday there were only four top 25 games, but my focus was most specifically on the Michigan State/Rutgers game. After a pair of losses to Northwestern and Illinois, MSU really needed a win. They got it in a big way with a commanding victory over Rutgers. In fact, by the end of the game they were up so much that Tom Izzo's son got to take the court and he finally scored his first points after 43 games.
Needless to say the crowd was going wild. It was awesome to watch.
The only upset on Sunday was a pretty big one. Maryland beat #10 Illinois 76 to 67. I wish it could have been MSU that beat Illinois earlier in the week, but it just wasn't meant to be. I still have my fears that Michigan State won't make it to the tournament in the Spring, but there is still plenty of basketball to be played, so I am hopeful.
#13 Memphis continues to look impressive putting up 112 points against Wichita State. I would definitely keep your eye on them come tournament time. A deep run from Memphis might not be too unbelievable.
If you are looking for something to watch tonight, there is a big matchup in the Big East between two 11-5 teams, Villanova at #11 Marquette. I think I might put some money on Villanova to win that one. Personally, I will be watching my niece play assuming the game is available via streaming!
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Flashback to my HS. This photo brought me right back to being on the basketball team, watching the girls play right before out. This looks just like our gym... if my memory serves well. Seems like it was just yesterday
I think a lot of gyms are really similar. They always have that padding under the baskets and a distinct smell. I can say with the introduction of LED lights, the lighting has gotten a lot better in them these days!
Yah no LEDs 😆 we had massive death trap lights over our heads but the team and gym colors were the same