Game #163.  RTC Live loves the little guys too.  An Ivy League title is on the line in Cambridge tonight.

This one’s for all the Tostitos.  It’s a nascent Ancient Eight rivalry in its second year.  Harvard has tons of talent but lacks experience (no seniors).  Princeton relies on two seniors and two juniors to anchor a deliberate but efficient offense.  Harvard has never won an Ivy League title; Princeton has won the title 28 times.  The Ivy League regular season title carries significant weight, as the winner gets the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.  Harvard hasn’t danced since 1946.  Needless to say, Harvard’s campus is buzzing with basketball relevance.  A loss last weekend at bitter rival Yale will keep the Crimson from winning the title outright, but a win here guarantees at least one more game.  The Ivy League tiebreaker is a one game “playoff” on a neutral site.  Princeton does play one more game at Penn, which only matters if Harvard wins because it would clinch the title.  Princeton is led by senior Dan Mavraides and its solid frontline of Kareem Maddox (senior), Patrick Saunders (junior) and Ian Hummer.  Harvard is led by junior co-captains Oliver McNally and Keith Wright.  McNally is one of the most efficient players in the country (averaging the gold standard 50% from two, 40% from three and 90% from the free throw line).  Wright might be the best big in the Ivy League, averaging over 15 points and almost nine boards a game.  Brandyn Curry runs Harvard’s offense, flanked by sharpshooters Christian Webster and Laurent Rivard (the frontrunner for Ivy Rookie of the Year).  First and foremost the Crimson have to limit Hummer and Maddox, who combined for 31 points in the first meeting at Princeton.  Princeton won that game because Harvard couldn’t take care of the ball and let the Tiger frontline score too efficiently.  Princeton needs to keep Harvard’s shooters from getting anything resembling an open shot.  If this turns into a shootout, it favors the Crimson.  Both of these teams are coming off of dominant performances Friday night, Princeton over Dartmouth and Harvard over Penn.

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Game #164.  Marquette is seeking to get wins any way it can to leave nothing to chance; Seton Hall is coming off a great win earlier this week.

Marquette brings almost as many questions as answers tonight when they visit Seton Hall tonight. The Golden Eagles, projected to finish 9^th in the preseason coach’s poll, sit in a three-way tie for 9^th with Connecticut and Villanova, two teams projected to do better this season. Should Marquette win and all other scenarios fall in place, the Golden Eagles would dodge the Tuesday round in Madison Square Garden next week with an 8^th place finish. In any case, Coach Buzz Williams would prefer to draw DePaul (whom they beat by 30 in January) in their first round game, rather than Providence (whom they beat by 20 last week) or South Florida (they escaped with a one point win on February 9). Marquette utilizes a guard-oriented drive to the basket offense, combined with a series of man and zone defenses to keep their opponent off balance. Marquette’s back court combines a pair of veterans, Darius Odom-Johnson and Dwight Buycks with a trio of freshmen, Vander Blue, Davante Gardner and red shirt Junior Cadougan. The trio could use more game time to prepare for the Big East Tournament and the post season beyond. Though a shorter, quicker squad, the Golden Eagles will slash and drive to earn their points, rather than pass around the perimeter and look for a catch-and-shoot play from the three point line. Seton Hall has secured the #12 seed in the Big East Tournament, but the Pirates have more than a few questions still to answer in this, their last regular season game at home. Coach Kevin Willard would like to see the Hall win their second consecutive Big East Conference game, a feat they have only accomplished once this season, and build some confidence as they prepare to face in state rival Rutgers, seeded #12, in their first round game on Tuesday.

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Game #162.  The Keystone State rivalry takes on additional meaning this Saturday with Pitt defending its home court for a Big East title.

Welcome to a rainy Saturday in Pittsburgh at the Petersen Events Center for a Big East match up between Pittsburgh and Villanova. Join us for a game that will determine all of the regular season marbles in the Big East. Pittsburgh has met preseason expectations, whereas Villanova has fallen short. These two teams want to win, but for different reasons. Pittsburgh wants to close out the regular season on top and win the title outright. Villanova wants redemption and a chance to salvage a disappointing season. In their last game, Pittsburgh won by three, but unfortunately for Villanova, it didn’t include the service of Pittsburgh’s leading scorer, Ashton Gibbs. This is really anyone’s ball game though. The edge should go to Pittsburgh, especially at home, but I don’t want to discount how much this victory means to Villanova prior to the postseason and NCAA Tournament.

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Game #161.  Notre Dame has its eyes on a Big East title as the Irish travel east to face UConn and Kemba Walker.

UConn’s play over the past ten games has been consistent with how the coaches presumed the Huskies would perform in the Big East—Jim Calhoun’s squad was picked to finish 10^th in the 16 team conference. For much of the season, UConn’s youth were playing well beyond their years as they sprinted out to a 17-2 record and appeared to be a legitimate contender for the Big East title. Losing six of their last ten games, however, has brought UConn back down to earth. Kemba Walker has received little help as of late—something that he consistently received earlier in the season—and it has shown in UConn’s results and play. With Notre Dame—arguably the best team in the Big East with such potent shooting from beyond the arc—invading Gampel Pavilion, UConn has a great opportunity to earn a signature win before the Big East tournament begins. More importantly, the Huskies will undoubtedly gain a renewed sense of confidence heading into the postseason if they can knock off the Irish. It won’t be easy for UConn as Notre Dame is playing some of the best basketball around having won 10 of 11 games with Ben Hansbrough and Tim Abromaitis raining threes from all over the court, but the Huskies are playing within the friendly confines of Gampel Pavilion where they are almost unbeatable compiling a 27-2 record on their on-campus arena dating back to the 2007-08 season. Notre Dame has already locked up a top four seed in the upcoming conference tournament which gives them a double-bye into the quarterfinals. One may assume that ND does not have as much to play for as UConn, who is on the brink of having to play in the first round of the tournament, but they have a shot at earning a favorable seed in the NCAA Tournament—maybe even a #1 seed if they went onto win the Big East Tournament. With Notre Dame looking to obtain a top seed in the Dance and UConn jockeying for position in the Big East tournament, Saturday’s matinée affair in Hartford, CT will certainly be a great one.

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Game #160.  RTC Live is back at the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament with the best game of the day on paper.

Friday’s quarterfinal matchup between Creighton and Northern Iowa features two of the MVC’s heavyweights: the teams have combined to win nine of the previous 12 MVC Tournament titles. Its also a matchup of teams who played just six days ago in the regular season finale, a game Creighton won 63-55. That’s a relatively rare occurrance, though its happened six times to Creighton over the past 12 years. Conventional wisdom might hold that the team winning the first game would struggle in the rematch, but in four of the last five times it’s happened, the team who won the regular season finale also won the MVC Quarterfinal game.  Northern Iowa comes into the game having lost six of seven without their senior leader, Lucas O’Rear, who fractured his ankle in early February, and have been outrebounded in four of their last five games — not surprising, considering O’Rear was their leading rebounder. The Panthers had been averaging ten more three-point attempts a game since losing O’Rear, but in the game with Creighton last week, they proceeded to shoot just 12 of them, the fewest attempts of any game all season. Their game plan was to drive it inside and get to the line, which worked: they got Creighton’s second-team All-MVC point guard Antoine Young in foul trouble early, and without him, the Bluejays struggled offensively. They scored just eight points in the final twelve minutes of the first half with him on the bench; when he returned in the second half, they opened up an 11-0 run to take a lead they didn’t give up.

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Game #158.  It’s been another rough season for Tom Crean at Indiana, but the Hoosiers will get a shot to play spoiler against the visiting Badgers tonight.

Welcome to Bloomington, Indiana and to Assembly Hall.  Tonight’s matchup features the #10-ranked Wisconsin Badgers (22-6, 12-4 Big Ten) vs. the Indiana Hoosiers (12-17, 3-13 Big Ten).  This game is a rematch of a January 20 tilt between the Hoosiers and Badgers in front of the “Grateful Red” at Madison’s Kohl Center.  That game ended 69-60 in favor of the Badgers. Any and all fans who follow this game live, on tv, or on the web will be offered free admission to the Jordan Taylor show.  The Wisconsin junior out of the Twin Cities is arguably the nation’s finest all-around point guard, averaging a 4.1 assists to turnover ratio and 17.8 points per game.  Patience is a virtue at Wisconsin, and Ryan will attempt to make the Hoosiers play a half court game.  The Badgers do not take many bad shots.  However, easy shots are tough to come by on the road in the Big Ten. What’s more, this is no ordinary road game.  It is senior night in Bloomington, which means it is a night to honor Jeremiah Rivers.  The senior guard has meant a great deal to the resurrection of the Hoosier program under Coach Tom Crean.  Can the Hoosiers walk off Branch McCracken Court for the last time this season with some momentum for next week’s in-state Big Ten Tourney? Catch all the action LIVE Thursday evening. 

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Game #159.  The surging Johnnies head across the Hudson River to take on Seton Hall in the Rock this evening.  Can Lavin’s boys keep it up?

The red hot St. John’s Red Storm will look to make it seven wins in a row when they travel across the Hudson River to New Jersey tonight to pay a visit to the Seton Hall Pirates. St. John’s has gone from a bubble team to a club looking at a top four seed in the NCAA Tournament thanks to this recent run. Since losing to Georgetown on January 26, the Johnnies have lost only once, a 66-59 setback at UCLA in early February. Another win tonight would likely seal the deal for a double-bye in next week’s Big East Tournament, played on their home floor at Madison Square Garden. Should they win tonight, St. John’s would only need to beat South Florida at home on Saturday to hold off Syracuse for the #4 seed in the conference tournament. Big East Player of the Year candidate Dwight Hardy has been the catalyst for Steve Lavin’s team, averaging 25.1 PPG over SJU’s 8-1 run since the Georgetown loss. As for Seton Hall, problems off the court, injuries and a lack of ability to put the ball in the basket have crushed their season, one that appeared somewhat promising back in the fall. The Pirates are 11-17 (5-11) and will look to finish strong with two games at home, starting tonight. Join us from the Prudential Center as we cover this New York City area rivalry.

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Game #157.  It’s a battle of rapidly fading bubble teams in the last week of the regular season.  Pretty much a knockout game, in the best-case scenario.

Northwestern wraps up its Big Ten Conference season with a game against reeling Minnesota on Wednesday night. It’s Senior Night for Juice Thompson, Northwestern’s career leader in assists, minutes, games played and starts. It’s also the Wildcats’ final tune-up before they head to Indianapolis needing to win the Big Ten Tournament in order to make their first-ever NCAA Tournament. For Minnesota it’s a key bubble game. The Gophers have lost seven of their past eight games and look to be out of the field of 68 right now. Even wins against Northwestern and Penn State in the regular season finale might not be enough to guarantee a spot, but it’d be a good start. Interestingly enough, this might also be a preview of a first round Big Ten Tournament contest. Join John Templon from Welsh-Ryan Arena at 8:15 p.m. ET for all the action.

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Game # 156.  Notre Dame has been the surprise team in the Big East this season; can they once again protect home court against the visiting (and slumping) Wildcats? 

Notre Dame will look to finish their home season undefeated, as the suddenly sputtering Villanova Wildcats enter the Purcell Pavilion on Monday evening. Mike Brey’s Fighting Irish are 16-0 on their homecourt this season and need a win over the Wildcats to move closer to earning a double bye in what will be an ultra-competitive Big East tournament. Following Pittsburgh’s loss to Louisville on Sunday, the Irish possess an outside shot of winning the Big East regular season title outright. Villanova had a week to forget last week with home losses to Syracuse and St. John’s. A feature of this year’s Wildcat squad has also been that they have not been very strong on the road, as they have lost at both Providence and Rutgers along with barely defeating dreadful DePaul. On a night where Notre Dame will honor seniors Ben Hansbrough, Tom Kopko and Tyrone Nash, the Irish will look to offset the Wildcat attack that is led by senior guards Corey Fisher and Corey Stokes. If Mike Brey’s team is able to jump out to an early lead and get strong contributions from Hansbrough and forward Tim Abromaitis, then it is likely that Notre Dame will finish their home season undefeated.

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Game #154.  Notre Dame has put together a fantastic regular season, and they seek to finish up strong with a home game today against Seton Hall.

After a close call victory over Providence on Wednesday evening, Notre Dame returns home after a three game road trip that featured stops at South Florida, West Virginia, and Providence. The Irish are undefeated at home this season, as the Seton Hall Pirates enter the Purcell Pavilion on Saturday evening. Kevin Willard’s squad has struggled mightily in his first year, as the Pirates are just 11-16 and have faced a myriad of personnel problems. The Irish led by seniors Ben Hansbrough, Tim Abromaitis, and Carleton Scott will look to defeat Seton Hall to continue their quest of ensuring the possession of the number two seed in what will be an ultra-competitive Big East tournament. Seton Hall will attempt to play spoiler, as well as getting a win to highlight the illustrious career of their senior guard Jeremy Hazell. Irish coach Mike Brey will look to lead his team to a victory on a night where Notre Dame will honor one of its legends- Austin Carr- by inducting him into the Irish Ring of Honor- currently only occupied by former ND great Luke Harangody and Irish women’s legend Ruth Riley. If the Irish march out to an early lead then it is reasonable to conclude that the Irish will provide its fans with a stirring home victory.

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