Thursday night was a light day with only one Power Five game on the schedule. The game did go well for a bubble team, though. Ohio State who is firmly on the bubble and trending towards making the tournament got a win over Maryland at Value City Arena. The Terrapins jumped out early in that game to a 17-point lead before Bruce Thornton and the Buckeyes started chipping away. Thornton had 31 points and made a huge three in the waning seconds to give Ohio State the lead. The Buckeyes have a showdown with Nebraska on Sunday.
There were two huge games in the West Coast Conference last night. San Francisco picked up a huge win over Saint Mary’s. The Gaels were undefeated in conference play and were dominating opponents. The Dons picked up the win and helped close the gap between first and second place. Gonzaga is the other team, in addition to San Francisco who is in second place in the WCC. The Bulldogs beat LMU at the Kennel last night, but it was a very weird game. There are some weird vibes going on with this Gonzaga team and it does appear they may have some chemistry issues. Hopefully, they get it figured out before the NCAA tournament.
Friday is going to be a light day in terms of quantity, with only seven games, but the quality of the games is going to be excellent. There is a huge game in the Big Ten featuring a top 10 team hosting a bubble team. There is a giant game in the Big East featuring the conference leader and the two-time National champion. The rest of the schedule has a big game in the Atlantic 10 and two huge games in the Mountain West. Picks for February 7, 2025, are below.
Winner | Loser |
|---|---|
Purdue | USC |
Dayton | VCU |
Princeton | Penn |
UConn | St. John's |
Boise State | San Jose State |
Saint Joseph's | Saint Louis |
Utah State | Fresno State |
It has been a long time since St. John’s was a relevant basketball program. Hiring Rick Pitino has been a great return on investment. The Johnnies are currently in first place in the Big East and have a one-game lead over Creighton. UConn is the two time defending National Champion who has struggled to find it at times this year. The Huskies are not defending very well. They meet in a showdown with a lot on the line. If St. John’s loses, they will be tied for first with Creighton. The Blue Jays have already beaten the Johnnies this year, so Creighton would have the tiebreaker. UConn needs to get a feel-good win against the tops of the league to get rolling on the home stretch. Gampel is going to be rolling tonight. Enjoy the hoops!