Precap 2/17 - Purdue's potential fix, and Horizon League leader emerges

2/16

Recap

• Top teams among close conferences emerge

Yesterday, we had a couple of games between teams at the top of their conferences, and surprisingly, the results finally gave us an idea about who the favorites in the conference are going to be. Starting with the ASUN, we had a game between the undoubtedly two best teams in the conference, Kennesaw State and Liberty. Kennesaw State was picked for 5th place in the conference preseason poll because of their young talent getting more experience, while Liberty was picked first behind Darius McGhee’s return as one of the top point guards in the country. And, in this game, Kennesaw State surprisingly won, taking first place in the conference. They don’t meet again this season, and Kennesaw State only has 3 games left, so there’s a high likelihood that they secured first place going into the conference championship with this win.

Next, in the Horizon League, there was a 2-way tie for first place, and those two teams played - Youngstown State and Milwaukee. Milwaukee had really been struggling recently, barely beating one of the worst teams in the country in IUPUI, then following that up with a loss to an even worse team in Green Bay. They bounced back, barely beating two middle-of-the-road teams, then last night, they got obliterated by Youngstown State. They lost by 29, and Youngstown State played really well. It’s no doubt at this point that the Penguins are the best team in the conference, but Milwaukee needs to turn things around if they hope for an NCAA Tournament bid.

• Purdue falls AGAIN!!!

After losing 2 of their last 3, Purdue again lost to Maryland. Purdue’s once very secure spot in first place is now overtakable by Northwestern, who’s only one and a half game behind. I’ll get straight to the root of their struggles - Purdue’s guard play, specifically Fletcher Loyer. Outside of Zach Edey, Loyer and fellow freshman Braden Smith are the only reliable scorers on the team. Smith played well, scoring 18, but Loyer once again was very bad. Smith can’t carry all the weight in the backcourt, and since teams are finding a solution to Zach Edey, Loyer needs to turn things around before Purdue starts to fall off the map in front of a decently hard schedule coming up.

Preview

As are most Fridays, today’s basketball slate is extremely lackluster. Since high-major conferences rarely play on Fridays, it’s up to mid-major conferences to give us something entertaining.

• Biggest Ivy League day of the season.

In one of the only two games between two teams that could legitimately win their conference tournaments, Yale visits Penn in a game that has huge standing implications. Right now, Yale and Princeton lead the conference, but Penn and Brown are both a single game behind from first. So, in a game between 2 of these four teams that are trying to take first, there should be a lot of interest and tension during this game. Last time they played, Yale won by 7 at home. Now that they’re away, it should be much closer as both teams look to move forward in conference standings.

Likewise, in a very similar position, Brown visits Princeton in another game that could shake up the standings if Brown were to win. This game is especially interesting because Brown pulled off the upset the last time these two played. Because of that, now at home, Princeton should win this one, but Princeton has lost 2 of their last 4 while Brown has won 6 of their last 8.

It’ll be a big night for momentum and shake ups in the Ivy League, so this night is a must-watch if you’re looking to learn more about the potential Ivy AQs.

• Big day in the Horizon League

I know, it’s boring, but the Ivy League and the Horizon League are legitimately the most interesting games we have tonight. And, these games are not that interesting anyways. We have #3 Northern Kentucky vs. #8 Purdue Fort Wayne in a game that was a big rivalry last year, but may not be as interesting this year as PFW is having a far worse season than they were last season. But, coming off a Horizon League semi final appearance, they could still have the talent to turn things around.

Next up, we have another semi final rematch in Cleveland State - Wright State. Once again, neither of these teams are as good as they were last year, with Cleveland State in 4th place and Wright State in 6th. However, both of these teams have the talent to dominate the league and could re-awaken it against a familiar face. 

Well that’s all I got. This has been the hardest preview to write since i’ve started, but I hope you found something at least a bit interesting to watch today.