Another top 10 team lost yesterday, and it was one of the most head scratching losses of the season. Illinois lost to Maryland at home. Maryland was one of the worst road teams in the country and it was just the second time Maryland had won a Big Ten road game in their last 13 tries. Maryland now stands at 2-11 in Big Ten road games over the last few seasons. In other Big Ten action, Michigan State blew out Rutgers thanks to a 19-0 run in the second half.
UConn blew out Georgetown, Florida Atlantic beat UAB, Stanford beat Utah, and UCLA got back to winning with a 12 point win over Washington. Stanford has had a little resurgence and while they are a long way from the NCAA tournament they could be playing themselves into an NIT spot.
Yesterday I went 10-6 in my picks which brings my 68 day total to 1,962-743 overall. Today is Martin Luther King Jr Day which always brings about excellent games. There are also games on all day long. Conference games in the Big Ten, Big East, and ACC highlight the day but there are many other conferences in action as well. The MAAC, NEC, Atlantic 10, Ivy League, SWAC, Southland, Patriot League, and CAA are all also in action. Picks for day 69 January 15, 2024, are below.
Michigan over Ohio State
Niagara over Siena
Canisius over Fairfield
Wagner over Stonehill
George Washington over George Mason
Cornell over Penn
Princeton over Dartmouth
Harvard over Brown
Marquette over Villanova
Texas Southern over Mississippi Valley State
Northwestern State over Houston Christian
Saint Joseph’s over La Salle
Central Connecticut over Merrimack
Prairie View over Pine Bluff
Iowa over Minnesota
Boston College over Notre Dame
Stetson over Chicago State
American over Loyola MD
Sacred Heart over Le Moyne
Fairleigh Dickinson over St Francis PA
Yale over Columbia
Southeastern Louisiana over Texas A&M Corpus Christi
Alabama State over Alabama A&M
Nicholls over New Orleans
Southern over Bethune
Florida A&M over Grambling
McNeese over Lamar
Hampton over North Carolina A&T
There are a lot of games on today and there are a ton of games with NCAA tournament resume consequences. Ohio State needs to beat Michigan to not have the bad loss on their resume. No matter how bad each team is that game is always one that Michigan and Ohio State get ready for. It is a huge rivalry and the schools and fan bases do not like each other. Marquette gets another tough game at home against a Villanova squad that is inconsistent but is going to give Marquette a game.
Iowa and Minnesota is my game of the day. Iowa just came off a huge win over Nebraska in Iowa City, but the Hawkeyes play differently on the road. Minnesota is much better than they have been in the last two seasons and will give Iowa a game. Each team is loaded with offensive weapons. The Howard Bison get a game on National TV today when they take on Morehouse College. It is the fifth year in a row that Howard has hosted a game at Burr Gymnasium on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. They hosted Notre Dame last season.