The Homestand

Consider the following facts:

• The Aggies, who had previously won two SEC road games in two years, just went 4-1 in a five game conference stretch that included four road games.
• The lone home game in that stretch (Vanderbilt) drew a crowd of 12,722, the biggest crowd of the Billy Kennedy era.
• Vanderbilt is not good at basketball or interesting to watch.
• The Aggies' next three games are all at home.
• Those three opponents include two teams currently projected to make the NCAA tournament (Georgia as an #8, LSU as an #11) and a desperate 5-5 Florida squad with more talent than their record indicates.
• Important college basketball home games are just the best.

With that fact pattern, there's no reason for Reed to be anything short of slightly-controlled chaos for the next week. Let's take a quick look at the seven day stretch that will define the season.

Wednesday Night (6PM): The Georgia Bulldogs

Georgia has pretty much followed us step-for-step since New Year's day. They started 0-2 (75-79 at home to Arky; 84-87 @LSU) then ran off five straight (@Vandy, Florida, Ole Miss, @MSU, Vandy) to steady the ship. The only difference between their 6-4 and our 7-3 is a mis-step at South Carolina.

Item to watch: Leading UGA scorer Marcus Thornton could miss this game through injury. It will still be a dawgfight (LOLPUNS) regardless, but Georgia's recent two losses came with him on the bench. It's a different squad when he's in the lineup.

Saturday Night (530PM): The Florida Gators

What started as a team that couldn't catch a break has slowly devolved into a talented team that just can't put it together. On paper, the Gators have enough talent to make the tournament, but with the exception of a recent home victory over Arkansas, Florida has failed every single test thrown their way this season.

Item to watch: The Gators host Ole Miss in a huuuuuge game on Thursday night. With a loss, a 5-6 Gator squad might see the season slipping away. But a win could yield a spirited effort on Saturday from a team that truly believes their NCAA dream is still alive. Either way, we'll have an extra day of rest.

Tuesday Night (8PM): The LSU Tigers

This was the game that started it all. At the time, it seemed like our annual early one-off road surprise, but we have since learned that our impressive road victory in Baton Rouge was a harbinger of things to come. LSU, to their credit, rebounded nicely from that game, but two inexplicable recent losses (@MSU, Auburn) have the locals asking some pretty pointed questions. Beware of the Tiguhs, though. The talent is there, and they have some impressive team-wide statistics pretty much across the board. On a good day, they are very difficult to beat.

Item to watch: LSU's schedule down the stretch is absolutely brutal. They are going to rue those early bad losses when they're halfway through a gauntlet that includes Ole Miss, Kentucky, A&M, Tennessee (twice), Arkansas, and Florida. Kentucky and @Tennessee precede our game.

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In summary

Current students, B/CS locals, and Austin/Houston former students: Get to Reed

San Antonio and D/FW former students: Grab a Red Bull, take advantage of the gas prices, and get to Reed.

People living farther away: Support basketball on TV, and badger your friends within a few hours of CS to get to Reed.

BTHO Georgia

BTHO Florida

BTHO LSU