Shockers can claim MVC title with win over Redbirds
NCAA Basketball Betting Lines
02/22/2012 - Normal, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The 19th-ranked Wichita State Shockers set their sights on the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title, as they head to Redbird Arena to take on Illinois State in conference bout.
This will be the second encounter this season and 69th in history between Wichita State and the Redbirds. Illinois State holds a 36-32 lead in the rivalry, but the Shockers have won five straight in the series. Wichita State won the first meeting between these programs this season, 65-62 at Charles Koch Arena on Jan. 10th, as it shot 41.5 percent from the floor and held Illinois State to 39.6 percent shooting.
WSU is a win away from outright ownership of the MVC title. Head coach Gregg Marshall had done a terrific job leading the program to its first ranking since 2006-2007. The Shockers won for the 14th time in 15 tries on Saturday as they topped Davidson, 91-74 in non-conference action behind 63.6 percent shooting from the floor. Wichita State has only lost once in a true road game this season. The Shockers could not be playing any better coming into today, as they have outscored their last four opponents by an average of 19.5 ppg.
The Shockers are led by the trio of Garrett Stutz, Joe Ragland, and Toure Murry. Stutz is carrying team-high averages of 14.1 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. Ragland contributes 13.7 points and 3.3 assists per game, while Murry adds 12.1 points and 3.3 assists per contest. Ragland had an incredible outing against Davidson in Saturday's BracketBusters, as he finished with 30 points and seven rebounds. Murry added 16 points and Stutz made an impact on the defensive end with three blocked shots to help the Shockers past the Wildcats.
Illinois State snapped a two-game losing streak its last time out with a 79-75 victory over Oakland on Saturday. Tim Jankovich's team is now 17-11 overall and 8-8 in league action with the win. The Redbirds have not had very much success versus ranked foes, as they are currently riding a 23-game losing streak against top 25 teams. The last ISU win over a ranked opponent came in Dec. 29th, 1987 versus Iowa. The Redbirds came up just short on the road in their first matchup with WSU, and they have outscored their opponents by an average of 4.8 ppg.
Jackie Carmichael is the go-to-guy for the Redbirds, as he is averaging team- bests of 13.8 points and 9.3 boards per game. Tyler Brown is adding 13.1 ppg while Jon Ekey and Nic Moore both get into the mix on the offensive end as well. Carmichael was phenomenal in ISU's win over Oakland on Saturday, as he led the way with 25 points and 19 rebounds. Ekey chipped in 19 points and John Wilkins had 12 in the winning effort.
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Teams that should be in: Stanford
Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds | |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do: Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney. Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson. Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable. Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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