With just a week left in the regular season of conference play, there is still plenty left to be determined. Although the top spot seems to be all but locked up by Houston, no other spot in the AAC basketball standings is locked up. Five teams are separated by just 2.5 games, which means there will be even more madness before the conference tournament starts on March 10th.
Houston sees their tournament bid all but locked up regardless of their performance in the conference tournament while SMU and Memphis sit firmly on the bubble. This last week will be crucial to them proving they belong in the NCAA Tournament. With all teams still alive to capture the AAC’s automatic bid as tournament champions, there is still plenty to play for in the wild AAC.
AAC Basketball Weekly Headlines
Houston Basketball Dominates SMU on the Glass
Rebounding is always important, but in games where both teams are struggling to put the ball in the net, it becomes even more crucial. A big reason SMU won their last meeting with Houston was thanks to winning the rebounding battle. On Sunday, Houston basketball made a statement by destroying SMU on the glass on both sides of the court.
Houston outrebounded SMU, 49-25. An absurd 21 of their rebounds came on the offensive glass. Houston will always prove tough for any team to go up against. If they can continue to have their guards crashing the boards on top of their big men inside, they’ll be nearly impossible to beat. If Houston can build some consistency off of this performance, they may find themselves in the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament once again.
Lights Out Shooting for Memphis Basketball
A cause for concern this year for Memphis has often been their inefficient offense. Even with plenty of top-tier recruits and transfers, the Tigers have still struggled to find consistent shooters on their team. Wichita State plays solid defense and played a top-tier Houston team as tough as anybody else in their last outing. This game would be a good indicator to see if Memphis would continue to struggle, or if they could find an offensive spark.
Luckily for Memphis’ tournament hopes, they found their shooting stroke. The Tigers shot over 55% from the field and 50% from deep. Memphis even shot over 85% from the line where they have struggled immensely multiple times this season. This is clearly not sustainable for the Tigers, but this kind of performance does put the rest of the country on notice for the type of damage they can do if you’re not careful.
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.
Cincinnati at Houston
Date: Tuesday, Mar. 1
Time: 9 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPNU
Memphis at South Florida
Date: Thursday, Mar. 3
Time: 9 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPNU
Houston at Memphis
Date: Sunday, Mar. 6
Time: 12 pm EST
TV Coverage: CBS
Tulane at SMU
Date: Sunday, Mar. 6
Time: 3 pm EST
TV Coverage: ESPN+
