Super Tuesday High, Low, Meh

Last night was a pretty solid Super Tuesday (I don't even know if ESPN officially referred to it as such, but I will anyway.) that featured six ranked teams in five different games. (3) Purdue, (4) Oklahoma, (12) Cincinnati, (15) North Carolina, (18) Kentucky and (20) Clemson were all in action, and 3 of those six lost. These games aren't going to define each team's season, but they can serve as mid-season checkpoints. For each team, I'll give them a classification of HIGH (I like this team), LOW (I don't like this team) or MEH (I'm not really sure about this team). Let's start. 

Purdue- HIGH

Extremely high. I like Purdue so much that I think they should be the favorite to win the whole thing. Ever since I started this blog, the one fan base that has consistently been in my ear was that of the Purdue Boilermakers. I usually dismissed this as blatant homerism for a mid-level top 25 team, but this year they were right about the Boilers. Purdue is really good. They are top-5 in both offensive and defensive efficiency per KenPom, which is extremely rare. On Tuesday Purdue just spanked Wisconsin 78-50. This dazzling display of power has me officially on notice. Matt Painter has himself a Final Four favorite in West Lafayette. 

Oklahoma- LOW

Trae Young had 12 turnovers in a loss at Kansas State last night, which is starting to become a frequent thing rather than an off-night. We all know about Young's tremendous skill and shot-making ability, but the turnovers are becoming tiresome. He isn't a good decision-maker and often loses the ball as a result. He averages 5.2 TOs per game, and a terrifying 7.7 in Big 12 play. Trae Young is a good player, but the problem is that Oklahoma is a one-trick pony. Outside of Young they aren't even a top 25 team. The more teams get used to Trae Young, the more nights like this he will have. That's why I'm low on Oklahoma. 

Cincinnati- MEH

I don't care enough to watch even the highlights of a 49-38 Cincinnati win over UCF, but if I can infer from the score, I'd say it was quite the defensive battle. Cincinnati is one of those teams that'll get a 4 seed, make the Sweet 16, and bow out to a superior 1-seed. I see this quite clearly. It's hard for me to see them getting upset, but it's also hard for me to see them upsetting someone themselves. Gary Clark provides post stability. He had 17 points and 14 rebounds tonight, but I don't know if they have COACH stability. We all know what Mick Cronin did against Xavier. I believe his intensity will ultimately be a detriment to one of his best teams at UC. 

The Other 3 Teams Have Shorter Descriptions: 

North Carolina- HIGH

North Carolina looks solid again after winning their last two games at Notre Dame and vs Clemson. The young bigs are starting to develop so the rebounding concerns should fizzle. 

Kentucky- LOW

With the loss to South Carolina, Kentucky has finally lost my interest. This team just isn't good. The typical Cal teams have legitimate NBA star talent, but this year is lagging behind. This is the youngest Wildcat team in the Calipari era, and it shows. 

Clemson- MEH

I don't know a lot about this team, but their win over Miami says a lot about them. The NC State and North Carolina losses in the road ill forgive just because the Tigers are still performing way above their expectations.