Wednesday was a good day. Not only did I not have to go work thanks to a winter storm, but every single one of K-State's opponents won (except those who lost conference games to other K-State opponents, of course).
Duke, Florida, James Madison and UNLV all won key conference games, which should help boost our resume.
But last night's results had very little immediate effect on our RPI and SOS, maybe because Colorado is on the cusp of becoming a bad loss for us.
Meanwhile, I've had Texas A&M penciled in as a top-four seed for a while due to its remaining schedule, so I wasn't entirely disappointed to see the Aggies come back and win in Boulder.
Colorado absolutely blew that game, by the way.
When you have a three-point lead with four seconds to go, you have to foul before the inbound to prevent a circus shot precisely like the one B.J. Holmes drained to tie the game, force overtime and create a wave of momentum that the Buffs never could overcome.
When will these coaches ever learn? (Rutgers miracle comeback win notwithstanding...)
Sure, some will say that Colorado is mad now and its back is against the wall, but I don't think that really matters.
Saturday's game is all about K-State and the mentality with which it plays.
If we bring a better defensive and offensive effort than we did the last time we played the Buffaloes, we will win — and bury them even further in the Big 12 standings.
Texas pounding Oklahoma came as little surprise, and neither did Nebraska's close loss at Baylor. The Huskers have made quite a habit of losing close games — but losing nonetheless — on the road.
Strangely, I found myself actually rooting for them for the first time this athletic year simply because continued chaos in the muddied middle probably benefits K-State (and because I hate Baylor), but seeing NU lose made me happy, too.
So, the mediocre Six-Pack saw its numbers shrink from six to five in preparation for Saturday's showdowns. Can K-State win a fifth conference game, and join Baylor and Texas A&M slightly ahead of the pack? We shall see...
Overall Record = 16-8
Big 12 Record = 4-5
RPI = 32
SOS = 15
Signature Wins (RPI 1-30) = none
Quality Wins (RPI 31-100) = James Madison, Virginia Tech, Gonzaga, Washington State, Baylor, Nebraska
Bad Losses (RPI 101 or greater) = none
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James Madison (18-8, 8-6 CAA) | RPI = 84: Win at Drexel (68-54)
- Virginia Tech (15-7, 5-4 ACC) | RPI = 67
- Presbyterian (10-15, 4-9 Big South) | RPI = 195
- Gonzaga (15-9, 5-3 WCC) | RPI = 74
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No. 5 Duke (22-2, 9-1 ACC) | RPI = 7: Win over No. 20 North Carolina (79-73)
- Texas Southern (11-10, 9-1 SWAC) | RPI = 193
- Emporia State (11-12, 8-9 MIAA*)
- Washington State (16-7, 6-5 Pac-10) | RPI = 62
- Alcorn State (3-19, 3-9 SWAC) | RPI = 333
- Loyola-Chicago (13-11, 4-9 Horizon League) | RPI = 209
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No. 17 Florida (19-5, 8-2 SEC) | RPI = 13: Win at South Carolina (79-60)
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UNLV (18-6, 6-4 Mountain West) | RPI = 25: Win at TCU (94-79)
- UMKC (14-9, 7-5 Summit League) | RPI = 181
- North Florida (9-16, 6-8 Atlantic Sun) | RPI = 167
- Savannah State (6-17) | RPI = 263
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Oklahoma State (16-7, 4-5 Big 12) | RPI = 45
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Colorado (15-10, 4-6 Big 12) | RPI = 98: Loss to No. 22 Texas A&M (70-73 in overtime)
- Texas Tech (11-13, 3-6 Big 12) | RPI = 147
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No. 19 Missouri (18-6, 4-5 Big 12) | RPI = 29
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No. 22 Texas A&M (18-5, 5-4 Big 12) | RPI = 30: Win at Colorado (73-70 in overtime)
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Baylor (16-7, 6-4 Big 12) | RPI = 72: Win over Nebraska (74-70)
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No. 2 Kansas (23-1, 8-1 Big 12) | RPI = 1
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Nebraska (15-8, 3-6 Big 12) | RPI = 95: Loss at Baylor (70-74)
- Iowa State (14-10, 1-8 Big 12) | RPI = 141
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Oklahoma (12-11, 4-5 Big 12) | RPI = 123: Loss to No. 3 Texas (52-68)
- No. 3 Texas (21-3, 9-0 Big 12) | RPI = 8: Win at Oklahoma (68-52)
*Division II