Early Thursday Observations

Well, early on it doesn't look so good for the A-10. Xavier is struggling and MSU is giving Temple fits with their defensive pressure.

Temple has some big athletic guards but they just seem to want to stand around the 3 point line and jack up shots. It's obvious the Spartans are making the Owls uncomfortable by getting up and guarding them and making them do something off the dribble.

Temple needs to get aggressive and get to the basket, then the 3's will start to open up. If they don't this game could get ugly. A couple buckets by Ryan Brooks as I write this gets Temple off the schnide.

In the other game, Xavier came out looking confident. They jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead and then CJ Anderson missed a wide open layup and got elbowed in the face afterward. It was extremely EARLY but that missed layup and the loss of Anderson to the bench seemed to kill Xavier's rhythm. The whole first half after that was a struggle. Credit goes to Georgia for extending their defense and making Xavier beat them off going to the basket and not out on the 3 point line.

Temple-MSU just went to half with the Spartans up 9....same exact score as the Xavier-UGA game.

Temple really needs Dionte Christmas and Tyndale to do something on offense. The two combine to average 34 points a game.....right now at half they have 2....

These poor early showings by these A-10 schools doesn't bode well for anyone who picked a St. Joe's upset in their bracket. The A-10 doesn't look very good right now...

Upset Watch - Thursday - Early (Noon) Games

I know a lot of people are probably going to be looking at the Xavier-Georgia game as a possible early day upset on Thursday. Not me....I like the Musketeers to roll over the Dawgs. Georgia played their butts off to win a spot in the tourney, now they will run into a team with just too much talent. Xavier is a good team...a tournament-tested team as well.

Many of this year's players still have a sour taste in their mouths from last year's classic against Ohio State. Remember...??



Man...just watching that makes me remember how much I love Gus Johnson....and his yelling. I wonder what games Gus is doing tomorrow?

They should let Gus be like the CLOSER in baseball during March Madness. The regular announcer could call the game, but if it got close at the end the guys over at CBS could come into the booth and hand the ball....or in this case mic.....to Gus Johnson.

As for Georgia.....sorry....Xavier will be hungry and focused on their way to a win.

The Upset Watch will be out in Denver, where Michigan State and Temple match up in a classic 5-12 game. Tom Izzo's Spartans were 19-2 at one point this year, but have not looked so hot of late.

This game against Temple will be a test. The Owls have won 7 straight and LOVE to shoot the "3". This Temple teams shoots an average of 21 3-pointers a game.

Dionte Christmas, the Owls leading scorer at 20.2 a game, jacks up more than 8 3's a game.....and still manages to drop in 38% of them.

MSU is going to have to tighten up it's perimeter defense and see if Temple is willing to pass up the 3's and take the ball inside. If they don't the Owls could walk out with a win.

Michigan State has been a "Jekyl and Hyde" team all season....I think it will continue Thursday and I think Temple is going to walk out with a victory and show basketball fans that the A-10 is making a comeback this year.

Little Man Alert : While Drew Neitzel will get all the media attention here, keep an eye on Temple little man Chris Clark - a 5-8 senior who is averaging more than 14 points in his last 4 games....more than double his season average. Clark has given the Owls a spark of late and I think he'll be a factor in this matchup.

I've got the Owls in the upset in my bracket....we'll see what happens.

Just make sure Tom Izzo keeps an eye out for this guy -