March is fastly approaching and while there has been some movement in the league standings, Wright State and Oakland have been solid in the top two spots for weeks. While neither team will play in a marquee matchup this week, their games will be intriguing for other reasons. There are plenty of chances for chaotic results round out the schedule. Below are five games everyone should tune into this week, for a variety of reasons.
Northern Kentucky (15-11, 7-8 HL) at IU Indianapolis (7-18, 3-11 HL)
Thursday, Feb. 12, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
There are few games with zero league title implications in February with the potential to be as fun as this game. IU Indianapolis, in terms of scoring points, is the best team in the league. It also happens to be last in the standings by a game and a half thanks to a last-place defense. Two spots behind the Jaguars in scoring offense is Northern Kentucky. The two teams average a combined 167.1 points per game. The Norse’s defense has been more than 10 points per game better than that of IU Indianapolis, but it has had its games where it allows a ton of points.
Between the Jaguars’ Kyler D’Augustino and Northern Kentucky’s Donovan Oday and Dan Gherezgher, there could be a ton of backcourt fireworks in this contest, but Finley Woodward is a unique point forward for IU Indianapolis. LJ Wells and Kael Robinson each pose major threats up front for Northern Kentucky. Again, there’s no real championship implications here, but there’s enough offensive upside for this game to be put amongst the league’s best for the week.
Robert Morris (16-10, 8-7 HL) at Cleveland State (10-15, 6-8 HL)
Thursday, Feb. 12, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
Prior to its disappointing loss to IU Indianapolis over the weekend, Cleveland State was the hottest team in the league. Despite the loss, the Vikings will have another great opportunity to make headlines this week. While Robert Morris isn’t in position to repeat in the regular season as champions, a home game against the defending champions is always important. The Colonials have built some momentum in the last week or so, namely by downing Wright State, which sits atop the standings.
Matching up in this game in one of the more underrated individual matchups fans will see all year will be DeSean Goode and Dayan Nessah. Both forwards do a little bit of everything for their respective squads and lead the way in scoring quite often. Each offers production down low and stretches the floor. It will be a fun head-to-head, despite the game itself not being as significant as others on this list.
Robert Morris is back over .500 and quietly climbing the standings, looking to gear up for a tournament run in efforts to get back to the Big Dance. Cleveland State still sits a few games below .500 but has shown in the past few weeks it can compete with anyone. This is an under the radar but worthwhile game.
Purdue Fort Wayne (14-11, 8-6 HL) at Green Bay (14-12, 9-6 HL)
Thursday, Feb. 12, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN2
National TV opportunities don’t come around the Horizon League all that often, but this game is worth the national audience. Green Bay and Purdue Fort Wayne enter the week separated by a half game in the standings, and have flip-flopped a few times in recent weeks. The Mastodons had surged to pass the Phoenix before dropping both games last week as Green Bay went 2-0 to get back in front. Entering the week as the third and fourth ranked teams, both squads are well-equipped for deep runs in the league tournament next month, and this game could be a preview of a potential late-round matchup in that tournament.
Green Bay is riding high after a win at the buzzer early last week, followed by a convincing win over the weekend. Purdue Fort Wayne was throttled by Youngstown State then fell narrowly to Wright State. In desperate need of a win, the Mastodons have a grand opportunity on the road. Between Preston Ruedinger, Justin Allen and C.J. O’Hara for Green Bay and Corey Hadnot II, Mikale Stevenson and DeAndre Craig Jr. for Purdue Fort Wayne, this game will have no shortage of quality guard play and could have major implications on seeding.
Oakland (14-11, 10-4 HL) at Robert Morris (16-10, 8-7 HL)
Sunday, Feb. 15, 2 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
Once again, the defending champs will have an opportunity to take on a top team at home after defeating Wright State last week. Should Isaac Garrett remain out for the Golden Grizzlies, this could be one of the best 2-on-2 big-man battles all season in the league. Goode and Nikolaos Chitikoudis have been some of the lone consistent pieces for Andy Toole, and Tuburu Naivalurua and Michael Houge are two of the more physically imposing bigs in the conference. A healthy Garrett would add another interesting piece to the puzzle, but should he not be able to go, the big-man matchup remains intriguing. Setting things up for those bigs will be Ryan Prather Jr. and Brody Robinson, each of which have been exceptional running the show for their respective squads this season.
The headlining pieces have been strong for these teams all season. Oakland has gotten better production from its other guys, accounting for the record difference. Still, Robert Morris seems to be finding its footing, and the individual matchups in this game could make it a thriller.
Wright State (16-9, 11-3 HL) at Cleveland State (10-15, 6-8 HL)
Sunday, Feb. 15, 2 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
For a team looking to close out a league title, no game can be overlooked and despite Cleveland State being eighth in the league standings, this game should be circled on Wright State’s calendar. Just a few weeks ago, the first-place Raiders dropped a game at home to the Vikings. Dropping a home game to a bottom-tier team could be detrimental to a team’s championship hopes, but Wright State has held steady for now. The opportunity to avenge that loss and continue to inch closer to the crown will be on the table for the Raiders Sunday.
However, that win for Cleveland State was a part of a win-streak that flipped the script on its season in a sense. The heat wore off a little as the Vikings fell to IU Indianapolis over the weekend, but when a team shoots the ball as well as Cleveland State did in its win streak, it is dangerous in any game. The Vikings will look to continue playing spoiler as the Raiders will look to avenge a let-down loss and stay atop the league standings.
