Belmont

By this time next Sunday there will be more than 20 teams guaranteed inclusion in the 2011 NCAA Tournament and the first three tickets were punched on Saturday. UNC Asheville (Big South), Belmont (Atlantic Sun) and Morehead State (Ohio Valley) all won their conference tournament finals while Princeton (Ivy) missed out on a chance to join the fun with their loss at Harvard. Now the Tigers need to beat rival Penn at the Palestra to forge a tie atop the standings, forcing a one-game playoff with Harvard for the Ancient Eight's automatic bid.

With three NCAA Tournament tickets assured of being punched (that number becomes four if Princeton wins at Harvard in a crucial Ivy League tilt), it makes sense to touch on each of those games as opposed to the usual daily preview. The title game in the Atlantic Sun provides a matchup of the prohibitive favorite taking on the underdog, a storyline that usually doesn't come into play for another two weeks.

Before Thursday night's game between Richmond and Temple the Atlantic 10 may have been in some trouble with regards to getting three teams into the NCAA Tournament. Both the Owls and Xavier are seen to essentially be locks to get into the NCAA Tournament, and after Thursday night they may be the only two teams that get in come Selection Sunday.

If you were upset that the game between Florida and Georgia wouldn't end in time for the tip between Purdue and Ohio State that's understandable. Because by the time ESPN switched its coverage from Athens to Columbus the Buckeyes had just about ended the game, going on a 17-1 run following a Purdue basket to make the score 6-4 with 17:27 remaining.

No mistaking what the biggest game of the night is, especially when considering the conference title implications involved. Top-ranked Ohio State (20-0, 7-0) host #12 Purdue (17-3, 6-1) in a matchup of the top two teams in the Big Ten and a win over the Boilermakers would put Thad Matta's team on the fast track towards another conference championship. But this game also provides one of the best individual matchups of the season to date, one that will have the attention of both NBA scouts and college fans.

In this era of the BCS and multi-million dollar television contracts it takes quite a bit to receive proper respect (and attention) if your conference flies under the radar. It's safe to say that Rick Byrd's Belmont Bruins, 8-0 in Atlantic Sun play and 16-3 overall, have served notice this season that they've got the ability to not only get to the NCAA Tournament but also take someone out once in the field.

Minnesota went into Thursday night's game against #8 Purdue in need of a victory and thanks to Blake Hoffarber and some solid late-game defense the mission was accomplished. Hoffarber's 26 points led the way offensively and the Golden Gophers managed to hold the Boilermakers without a field goal for the last nine minutes in a 70-67 victory in Minneapolis. JaJaun Johnson led all scorers with 29 points to go with 11 rebounds while Lewis Jackson added 15, but Purdue was unable to overcome the rough shooting night of E'Twaun Moore.

With the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game between Auburn and Oregon taking center stage (the pick here is Oregon) there isn't a whole lot to keep tabs on in college basketball. But there is an important resume-boosting opportunity for arguably America's favorite cardiac program as Marquette (11-5, 2-1) looks to rebound from their loss at Pitt on Saturday. And the return to Milwaukee won't come without a challenge as Mike Brey's Fighting Irish are the visitors, and they're looking to build on a productive 2-0 week (wins over Connecticut and St. John's).

In the most recent installment of his "Forgotten Legends" interview series, CHN writer Jon Teitel spent some time with Joe Behling, who played just one year of high school basketball before going on to become the all-time leading scorer in Belmont history. Behling, who finished his career with 2,823 points, is best remembered by fans in the Nashville area for his 58 points scored in a win over city rival Lipscomb, which was ranked number one in the nation (NAIA) at the time. Behling is now an elementary school teacher in Nashville.  

Belmont

Campbell

ETSU

Jacksonville

Lipscomb

Mercer