The Purple Aces don't have the look of a team ready to make a deep run in Daytona Beach, having lost 8 of 9 into the CBI and E'ville playing without its top two scorers and rebounders (Ben Humrichous and Yacine Toumi) in the draining 64-63 nailbiter against Quinnipiac on Sunday. Seattle is no team to mess with, having played WC champ Grand Canyon very tough on three occasions (beating the Lopes once), and acquitting itself well vs. a challenging non-league slate that included wins over UTEP and La Tech. The Redhawks also have the best scorer on the floor in G Cameron Tyson (17.6 ppg). Play Seattle (CBI at Daytona Beach)

Evansville somehow won its CBI opener minus top players Ben Humrichous and Yacine Toumi. Humrichous did not make the trip while Toumi remained on the bench. Assuming both are out, the Purple Aces will be stretched thin on back-to-back playing days. Seattle cruised to a 13-point win in its opener, its fourth in the past five by double digits. The teams are separated by 89 spots in the KenPom ratings, which are based on Evansville being at full strength. The Aces are far from it.

No. 3 seed Seattle dispatched Delaware State 79-66 on Saturday at the CBI, held at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, Fla. So the Redhawks were resting Sunday while No. 11 Evansville upset Quinnipiac. On Sunday the Purple Aces played without starters Ben Humrichous and Yacine Toumi, who account for 25.5 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. Humrichous did not make the trip; it's unclear if Toumi will play Monday. Either way, I like the Redhawks -- a team that beat Grand Canyon once and lost by single digits in the other two matchups. Sunday's win over Quinnipiac was just the second game Evansville won all season without Humrichous (14.7 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 41.4 percent on 3-pointers).