There are now just two weeks left in regular season play, and there is still plenty to be decided in the AAC basketball standings. Houston currently leads SMU by a single game, but the teams still go head to head one more time this season. Just because the regular season title has become a two-team race doesn’t mean that there isn’t much left to play for the other teams.
Currently, in the AAC, only Houston and SMU are anywhere near the NCAA Tournament picture. With AAC basketball’s automatic bid still very much in play, seeding for the conference tournament becomes critical for those looking to make a Cinderella run to the dance. With plenty of craziness still left in this season, the AAC has officially become must-watch TV for college basketball fanatics.
AAC Basketball Weekly Headlines
Josh Carlton Plays Hero in Houston’s Double Overtime Win
This Houston vs Wichita State game could be the AAC basketball game of the year.
For a brief moment late in the second overtime, it looked as if all of Josh Carlton’s contributions would go unnoticed. With 23 seconds left, Carlton received a beautiful touch pass with a wide-open layup. Carlton missed it and the game stayed tied. Houston regained possession and Carlton got the ball inside again. He made a tough and-one layup to put Houston up three with just 13 seconds to go to put his botched layup in the rearview mirror.
That wasn’t the only contribution from Carlton either. With the shot clock about to expire, Carlton had to fire up a three. It fell and it was his first collegiate three-point make. More importantly, it put Houston up three with just under four minutes left in the second overtime. Carlton made play after play when Houston needed it, finishing with 23 points, 11 rebounds and two steals.
In a game where forward Fabian White Jr. fouled out in the first overtime, Carlton stepped up in his absence. Houston can’t always play perfect basketball, but if players can step up in big moments when the rest of the team is struggling, this team can go a long way in this year’s NCAA Tournament.
Cincinnati Basketball Takes Care of Wichita State, 85-76
The main problem for the Shockers this season has been in giving up too many big runs to their opponents. In the first meeting between these two teams, Wichita State held the lead for most of the game until they fell flat late. The Bearcats did just enough to push past them and steal a win on the road. On Thursday night, the game couldn’t have started worse for the Shockers.
The Bearcats went on a 23-4 run early in the first half to push their lead to 32-11. Wichita State has also struggled with getting consistent offense all season, so at this point, the game was all but Cincinnati’s to lose. It was clear from the body language of Wichita State that they too believed the game to be over. While they made a little push at the end of the first half to cut the lead to seven, the run took too much energy out of them and Cincinnati made sure to close them out.
Updated AAC Basketball Standings
| Team | Conference Record | Overall Record |
|---|---|---|
| Houston | 15-3 | 26-5 |
| SMU | 13-4 | 22-7 |
| Memphis | 13-5 | 19-9 |
| Temple | 10-7 | 17-11 |
| Tulane | 10-8 | 13-14 |
| UCF | 9-9 | 17-11 |
| Wichita State | 6-9 | 15-12 |
| Cincinnati | 7-11 | 17-14 |
| East Carolina | 6-11 | 15-14 |
| Tulsa | 4-14 | 10-19 |
| South Florida | 3-15 | 8-22 |
Upcoming AAC College Basketball Games to Note
With a full slate of AAC college basketball games on deck this week, there is plenty to watch. Here are the biggest matchups to watch this week.
Houston at Tulane
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 23
Time: 8:00 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPN+
Temple at Memphis
Date: Thursday, Feb. 24
Time: 7:00 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPN2
SMU at Houston
Date: Sunday, Feb. 27
Time: 12:30 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPN
Wichita State at Memphis
Date: Sunday, Feb. 27
Time: 2:30 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPN
