What Happened Last Night

• Georgia 87, Winthrop 82: The ‘Dawgs escaped with a five-point win. Despite a late push, UGA was able to survive the test from the Big South’s Winthrop Eagles. Xavier Cooks was phenomenal, scoring 31 points for the visitors, but Yante Maten was no slouch, either. Maten scored 25 points and had 11 rebounds, an assist and a block.
• Arkansas 92, Colorado State 66: After taking one on the chin to the Houston Cougars, the Arkansas Razorbacks rebounded in a big way. They dumptrucked the visiting Colorado State Rams, 92-66. Despite 31 points from Prentiss Nixon, the Hogs held the Rams to 29 first half points and no other player emerged with more than nine. Jaylen Barford had 19 points and so did C.J. Jones, who did so off the bench and missed only two shots from the field. Daniel Gafford added 14 off the bench, too. It’s worth noting that CSU was up 13-2, and then were promptly dropped 90-53 in the remainder of the game.
• Arizona 67, Texas A&M 64: The Texas A&M Aggies missed a huge missed opportunity to cut down the struggling Arizona Wildcats. A&M got tripped up 67-64 to UofA in a game in which the Ags held a four point lead early in the 2nd half. Deandre Ayton was terrific for the ‘Cats, putting up a 13 and 10 line with a block and three assists. Robert Williams was held to just four points and had seven boards, two assists, two blocks and two steals. But he, for the most part, was held in check. Tyler Davis had 21 and Duane Wilson had 14, but the Aggies were held to under one point per 100 possessions. Given the state of things, this one might sting down the line.
• Mizzou 70, Miami (OH) 51: Even without Michael Porter Jr.’s presence, the Missouri Tigers continue to roll. Days after winning against the UCF Knights, the Tigers notched another home win, defeating the Miami-Ohio RedHawks 70-51. Mizzou shot 43.5 percent from the 3-point line, as Jordan Barnett led the way with five 3-pointers. Four players, Barnett included, finished with double figures, with Kevin Puryear leading the game with 20. Kassius Robertson had 17, Barnett 15 and Jeremiah Tilmon had 12. While the younger Jontay Porter had just two points off the bench, he had eight boards, two blocks and two assists.

Tonight’s Schedule

The slate is a little light on quality. However, Rhode Island Rams vs. Alabama Crimson Tide should be intriguing. URI has scored two big wins this year the Big East’s Seton Hall Pirates and Providence Friars. They’ve done so shorthanded, as E.C. Matthews remains out with an injury. Jared Terrell has been integral to the process, as he has had just one game this year out of double figures. He and the other three active seniors (Andre Berry, Stanford Robinson and Jarvis Garrett) have all played major roles this year. Collin Sexton & Co. will certainly have a tough task in Tuscaloosa tonight at Coleman Coliseum.

The Vanderbilt Commodores’ matchup with the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders provides a bit of intrigue. MTSU has ripped off three straight wins after losing 69-63 to the Belmont Bruins back on November 16. That includes two wins over the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, whom they played both in Murfreesboro AND Fort Myers. Vandy comes in reeling at 3-5, having lost to the Kansas State Wildcats on Sunday.

In a way, it will be interesting to see how the Florida Gators respond to their worst performance of the season. UF was bowled over by the Florida State Seminoles on Monday night at home. They will aim to stop a two-game losing streak against the Loyola Chicago Ramblers. UF certainly has a prime opportunity.

Finally, Auburn faces Gardner-Webb, and South Carolina takes on Wyoming.

Odds

No picks from Tom today. However, if you’re interested, here are the odds. All come via OddsShark.

South Carolina (-9) vs. Wyoming

Alabama (-2.5) vs. Rhode Island

Vanderbilt (-3) vs. Middle Tennessee

Florida (-15) vs. Loyola Chicago