Welcome to “The Daily Scoop”, an article to bring you up to date with the latest news from college basketball and a preview of the day ahead.

Daily Headlines

#2 Houston outlasts #6 Iowa State in matchup between Big 12’s top two teams

After a Purdue loss on Sunday, the Houston Cougars jumped the Boilermakers in the AP Poll for the #2 spot. The Cougars backed up this ranking with a statement win Monday night over an Iowa State team who had beat them earlier this season. Houston now owns the nation’s longest home winning streak and were in control from start to finish against the Cyclones. Jamal Shead is starting to separate himself as one of the best guards in the country, scoring 26 points, dishing out six assists and grabbing three steals. Emanuel Sharp chipped in 20 points and four steals, and a consistent presence from Sharp on the offensive end will be key in a postseason run. Shead and Sharp were also able to wreak havoc on Iowa State’s guards, forcing 10 turnovers combined between Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert, while holding Lipsey to four points on 1-8 shooting. This Houston team impressed me a ton tonight, and I think they are the firm second best team in the country right now. If I were to vote for my National Player of the Year right now, my vote would go to Jamal Shead. This team is great both defensively and on the glass, and with offensive performances like tonight, they will go far in the NCAA Tournament and have a real chance to win it all.

Top 15 matchup sees #1 UConn visit #15 Creighton (8:30 ET, FS1)

The most dominant team in college basketball right now is the UConn Huskies, adding an exclamation point to this statement with their 28-point win over Marquette on Saturday. UConn will face another tough test Tuesday night though, visiting Omaha for a matchup with a Creighton team who has won three in a row. The Bluejays are 11-2 at home this season, with the two losses coming in overtime to Villanova and in a 1-point loss to Butler. UConn head into the game with a 14-game winning streak, the longest active streak in the country. Baylor Scheierman scored 27 points in Creighton’s win over Butler on Saturday, but the Bluejay with the most eyes on them in Tuesday’s matchup will be Ryan Kalkbrenner, who faces off against UConn’s Donovan Clingan. Kalkbrenner (17.2 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.7 bpg) and Clingan (12.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 2.2 bpg) are two of the best bigs in both the Big East and in the country and affect the game heavily both offensively and defensively. This one should go down to the wire, and it’s hard to pick against a team like UConn, so I’ll give the Huskies the advantage in this one.

#19 San Diego State visits Utah State with first place on the line (9:00 ET, CBSSN)

Two Mountain West heavyweights meet in Logan for their second matchup of the season on Tuesday night. Both teams sit at 9-4 in Mountain West play, atop the conference, but have gone through struggles recently. San Diego State is just 1-4 in their last five road games, with the lone win coming at Air Force. Utah State is just 2-3 in their last five games, with all three losses coming by 14+ points, including the loss at San Diego State. Jaedon LeDee (20.4 ppg, 8.2 rpg) is the current frontrunner for Mountain West Player of the Year and leads the Aztecs in scoring and rebounding. His matchup in this one will be Great Osobor (17.8 ppg, 9.2 rpg), the Aggies’ leading scorer and rebounder. This is yet another game with a marquee matchup inside, with the two players among the best in the conference at their position. I’ll give San Diego State a slight edge in this matchup, as the Aztecs guards out-performed Utah State’s guards in the first meeting and I think they can do it again. I’m a believer in this San Diego State team and I think Brian Dutcher has the pieces to make another run in the NCAA Tournament.

Other Things to Note:

• Virginia Tech dominates from start to finish, beats rivals Virginia 75-41
• Texas A&M Commerce takes down Incarnate Word in OT, massive brawl ensues post-game
• Dylan Disu scores 20 to lead Texas to 62-56 win over K-State
• Butler visits Villanova in big game for both teams’ tournament hopes (6:30 ET, FS1)
• Akron (11-1 MAC) faces Toledo (10-2 MAC) in MAC rivalry game at the top of the standings (7:00 ET, ESPN+)
• #25 BYU hosts #11 Baylor looking for revenge from January’s loss in Foster Pavilion (9:00 ET, ESPN)
• #23 Texas Tech hosts TCU in game between two Big 12 tournament-level teams (9:00 ET, ESPN2)
• Pitt visits Wake Forest as both teams search for quality win while on the bubble (9:00 ET, ACCN)
• #18 Saint Mary’s aims to remain undefeated in WCC play as San Francisco comes to town (11:00 ET, ESPN2)