Winners and losers: Helping and hurting

The effects of LSU’s 73-70 victory over Kentucky on Saturday could end up being twofold. Along with winning the SEC title, the Tigers might have knocked Kentucky out of the NCAA tournament for the first time in 18 years.

“We’re down,” Wildcats guard Jodie Meeks said, “but we’re not out.”

But Kentucky could be out if it doesn’t win its final two regular-season games. Billy Gillispie’s squad will be heavily favored against Georgia on Wednesday, but after that the Wildcats will face a tremendous test against Florida on Saturday in Gainesville.

Kentucky is 19-10 overall and 8-6 in SEC play, but three of its last four games resulted in losses.

Here are 10 other teams that either helped or hurt their postseason causes Saturday:

Oklahoma State – The Cowboys’ victory over No. 25 Texas means they will finish no less than .500 in Big 12 play. Still, at 19-9 and 8-6, Oklahoma State still probably needs to win one of its final two regular-season games against Kansas State and Oklahoma to feel good about its chances.

Memphis – One year after losing Derrick Rose, Joey Dorsey and Chris Douglas-Roberts from its national runner-up squad, the Tigers are in contention for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament. Saturday’s victory over Southern Mississippi marked the 20th straight win for Memphis, which is 26-3 and 14-0.

Penn State – The Nittany Lions avoided what was nearly a disaster against the Big Ten’s worst team Saturday. Penn State went 6-for-17 from the foul stripe but still managed to defeat Indiana 61-58 at home. At this point it looks as if the Nittany Lions will make the NCAA tournament, although a victory over Illinois or Iowa would certainly help.

Duke – Saturday’s win over Virginia Tech kept Duke’s hopes of an ACC title alive while keeping the Blue Devils in the mix for a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. Most bracket analysts currently have Duke as a No. 3 seed, but they could certainly move up by ending the year with wins over Florida State and North Carolina.

Texas A&M – The Big 12 might be hard-pressed to get six teams in the tournament, but the Aggies still feel as if they have an outside shot of either unseating Oklahoma State as the fifth team or forcing the committee to take a sixth. Saturday’s win over Iowa State – the Aggies’ fourth in a row – certainly helped. Now they need to close out with victories over Colorado and Missouri.

Arizona – A week ago the Wildcats were the talk of the Pac-10 after winning seven straight games. But losses against Arizona State, Washington State and Washington dropped Arizona’s conference record to 8-8. Suddenly Russ Pennell’s squad has no margin for error.

Virginia Tech – The Hokies could’ve solidified themselves in the NCAA tournament field with a victory over Duke on Saturday. Instead they’re back on shaky ground following a 72-65 loss. Even worse is that Virginia Tech (17-11, 7-7) has a brutal remaining schedule that includes a road game at No. 23 Florida State and a home showdown with North Carolina.

Villanova – Jay Wright’s squad seemed destined to earn a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament – but that was before Saturday’s loss to a Georgetown squad that entered the day with losses in nine of its last 11 games. The Wildcats also almost lost to DePaul last week before escaping with a two-point win.

Notre Dame – The Fighting Irish might have been considered favorites to make the 65-team field had they defeated Connecticut on Saturday. Instead Notre Dame lost 72-65 and must now defeat Villanova and St. John’s – as well as win a game or two in the Big East tournament – in order to even be considered. Notre Dame is 16-12 and 7-9.

USC – Somehow, an extremely talented USC team is 7-9 in the Pac-10 following a rather shocking loss against Stanford on Saturday. It would be outrageous to include the Trojans in the field unless they finish 9-9, meaning they need to defeat Oregon and Oregon State this week. USC has lost six of its last seven games.

And now onto this week’s winners and losers:

LSU – As a whole, the SEC might be down this year. But anyone who watched the Tigers beat Kentucky 73-70 at Rupp Arena on Saturday knows the league is still strong at the top. Trent Johnson’s squad has won 13 straight SEC games since opening conference play with a Jan. 11 loss at Alabama. Marcus Thornton scored 23 points and Tasmin Mitchell hit the game-winning 3-pointer with nine seconds remaining in a victory that gave LSU the outright league title. It was also the Tigers’ first win at Rupp Arena in 20 years.

Cole Aldrich – There aren’t many 6-foot-11 players who perform as well from the free-throw line as Kansas’ big man. Even with an unorthodox shot, Aldrich has managed to hit 77.4 percent of his free throws this season, a mark that ranks 12th in the Big 12. With 15 points and 10.7 rebounds a game, the future first-round NBA draft pick is one of the main reasons the Jayhawks are in a position to win their fifth straight league title.

Washington State – No team had a better eight-day stretch than the Cougars, who defeated UCLA, Arizona and Arizona State. The most exciting moment came in Saturday’s 51-49 victory over the No. 14 Sun Devils, when Taylor Rochestie made a 27-foot, game-winning 3-pointer with two seconds remaining. Rochestie also scored a career-high 33 points in the UCLA win.

Bob Huggins tribute – Cincinnati’s video crew did an excellent job of compiling a pregame video honoring former Bearcats coach Bob Huggins, who’s now the head coach at West Virginia. Huggins was brought to tears as flashbacks from his 16-year Cincinnati career flashed across the video board. Huggins was then given a standing ovation before his West Virginia team suffered a 65-61 loss.

Underrated players: Here’s a few who aren’t getting nearly the attention they deserve: Devan Downey (South Carolina), Jeff Adrien (Connecticut), Malcolm Delaney (Virginia Tech), Tasmin Mitchell (LSU), DeMarre Carroll (Missouri), Nic Wise (Arizona), Jon Brockman (Washington) and James Johnson (Wake Forest).

Keno Davis – Providence’s victory over No. 1 Pittsburgh on Tuesday was a testament to the ability of the Friars’ first-year coach. Don’t be surprised if Providence becomes a top 25 mainstay within the next two years, which would make Davis a candidate for some of the top jobs in the country.

Texas Tech associate coach Chris Beard – Beard filled in for the suspended Pat Knight, and the struggling Red Raiders nearly pulled off a huge upset before falling 87-81 at Texas on Wednesday. The loss was the ninth for Texas Tech in its last 10 games. Still, despite the setback, Texas Tech’s effort and execution was as good as it’s been all season. Coincidence? Perhaps. Or maybe Beard actually had something to do with it.

Washington’s offensive rebounding – In their last three games (all victories) the Huskies have outworked opponents 47-28 on the offensive glass. Leading the way has been senior forward Jon Brockman, who averages 11.3 rebounds a game for a team that on Saturday clinched at least a share of the Pac-10 title.

James Anderson – Oklahoma State’s standout guard is beginning to generate quite a buzz among NBA scouts – and for good reason. The 6-foot-6 sophomore is averaging 25.2 points over his last five games for the Cowboys, who have won four straight.

Tubby’s Twin Towers – Freshmen Ralph Sampson III (who stands 6-foot-11) and Colton Iverson (6-10) were so popular with Gophers fans earlier this season that they were given their own nickname. Lately, though, Iverson and Sampson seemed to be hitting the freshman wall. They’ve combined to average just 9.9 points in Minnesota’s last seven games, five of which resulted in losses.

Clemson – The Tigers have the pieces and the talent to be an elite team – but they’re not. Saturday’s loss to Florida State was the third in the last five games for Clemson, which is 6-6 since opening the season with 16 straight wins. It’s baffling how Oliver Purnell’s squad can beat schools such as Duke and Maryland by 30 points and then lose to ACC bottom feeders such as Virginia. Clemson hasn’t won more than two straight games in nearly a month, which doesn’t speak well for its potential in the NCAA tournament.

Season-ending injuries – It’s tough not to feel for any athlete who has his season cut short by a torn knee ligament or a broken ankle. But what’s really sad is when the injury happens to a key player on a team that seems primed for a conference championship or a deep NCAA tournament run. Such was the case when Connecticut junior Jerome Dyson went down last month, and it happened again Monday when Marquette lost standout guard and senior leader Dominic James because of a broken bone in his foot. A shame that such a fantastic career ended in that fashion for James.

Conference USA – As good as Memphis is, the Tigers are far from being the elite team they were in 2007-08. In other words, they’re beatable – except when they’re playing an opponent from a league that’s so bad that Memphis appears destined for an undefeated conference season. You’d think an upper-half team with a seasoned coach such as Tom Penders (Houston) or Mike Davis (Alabama-Birmingham) could’ve devised a plan to beat Memphis at least once. But the Tigers keep rolling. Nine of Memphis’ last 10 victories have been by double digits.

UCLA’s 2008 recruiting class – With five players ranked among the nation’s top 50, it was no surprise when Rivals.com declared the Bruins’ haul as the nation’s best. So far, though, the class has done little to contribute. In fact, other than starting guard Jrue Holiday – who has hardly looked like the top-five draft pick that so many people say he will be – UCLA’s freshmen have non-factors. Forward J’Mison Morgan has been labeled as lazy and unmotivated and rarely gets off the bench, point guard Jerime Anderson recently committed five turnovers during a seven-minute span and wing Malcolm Lee hasn’t scored more than six points in a game since Dec. 23. The other freshman, forward Drew Gordon, is averaging just 3.6 points.

DePaul, Air Force and Southeast Missouri State – The Blue Demons, Falcons and Redhawks have yet to win a conference game.

Ohio State – The Buckeyes continue to play poorly at the worst possible time. Saturday’s loss to Purdue was the fourth in the last five games for Thad Matta’s squad – and this one wasn’t even close, as Ohio State struggled to score in a 75-50 loss. The Buckeyes have remaining games against Iowa and Northwestern.

Mike Anderson and Jeff Capel rumors – Talk continues to heat up that Anderson might consider leaving Missouri for Alabama while Oklahoma’s Capel could be a candidate for a number of openings, including Georgia. Both coaches are on the verge of greatness in their current jobs and should stay where they are – at least for now.