Kansas-Baylor clash in Big 12 headlines the biggest men's college basketball games this weekend
Last weekend’s men’s college basketball slate is hard to top. This week’s schedule, well, doesn’t.
There are, however, several games worth watching Saturday as Selection Sunday creeps ever closer. And, as always, it’s often just this sort of week with few apparent marquee contests that tend to produce unexpected chaos, so keep an eye on the scoreboard.
With all that out of the way, we’ll get straight to this week’s Starting Five. The headliner is the seemingly inevitable Top 25 clash in the Big 12, with a couple of March Madness fixtures trying desperately to hold on to at-large hopes. We’ll conclude with a couple of middle-tier SEC squads hoping to take advantage of home-court opportunities to bolster their respective resumes.
All times Eastern.
No. 13 Baylor at No. 4 Kansas, 6 p.m., ESPN
The lone pairing of ranked squads matches these recent national championship programs looking to optimize their position for this year’s version of March Madness. The Bears are trending in the right direction. The Jayhawks were also until Monday night’s setback at archrival Kansas State, a result partly attributable to a quick turnaround from last Saturday’s big win against Houston. Baylor’s current three-game winning streak has been fueled in part by increased productivity – and a few highlight dunks – from big man Yves Missi. But Kansas figures to be better rested for this one, and Johnny Furphy has been more reliable from distance in his home venue.
No. 12 Illinois at Michigan State, 2 p.m., CBS
After starting the campaign ranked in the top five, the Spartans now find themselves in need of a quality win to stop their slide toward the wrong side of the bubble. Their predicament is of little concern for the Fighting Illini, however, who are now alone in second in the Big Ten and looking to stay within just a game of league leader Purdue. Michigan State came up just three points short in last month’s encounter with Illinois in Champaign, but the Spartans’ shooting woes were on display again in Tuesday night’s loss at Minnesota. The Illini can get points in a variety of ways but will need a big game from Coleman Hawkins to control the glass in hostile environs.
Gonzaga at No. 15 Kentucky, 4 p.m., CBS
Any remaining at-large prospects Gonzaga might harbor come down to this trip to Lexington and their season-ending visit to West Coast Conference rival Saint Mary’s, and the Zags will almost certainly need to win both. The Wildcats, however, won’t be in a charitable mood as they seek a quality result of their own for seeding purposes. Both teams got in needed tune-up wins midweek, as Gonzaga routed Portland while Kentucky took out some recent frustrations on Vanderbilt. The teams’ issues this season have been at opposite ends, as the Bulldogs have found scoring difficult at times while the ‘Cats struggle to get stops. Some early success for Ryan Nembhard getting his own shots would enhance Gonzaga’s chances, but Kentucky has several candidates to light it up, most recently freshman Rob Dillingham.
No. 6 Tennessee at Texas A&M, 8 p.m., ESPN
While Tennessee fans are understandably cautious about getting too far over their proverbial skis, the team’s performance over the last week was a pretty clear indication of what is possible. The key now for the Volunteers is sustaining their level of play at both ends of the floor beginning with this visit to College Station, where the Aggies could use another positive result to overcome their slow start in SEC play. The Vols will be tough to beat if Josiah-Jordan James can continue his recent hot streak, providing a complementary outside threat to Dalton Knecht. A&M’s Wade Taylor IV is a high-volume shooter who will likely draw the attention of Tennessee’s defensive specialist Santiago Vescovi.
No. 11 Auburn at Florida, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network
The Tigers put an emphatic end to the narrative that their resume lacked quality results with Wednesday night’s dominant outing against Alabama. They’ll now put their share of the SEC lead on the line as they visit the rested Gators, who are in need of a similar resume booster. Auburn’s Johni Broome has developed into one of the league’s most versatile big men. His opposite number for Florida will be Tyrese Samuel, who will need to establish his presence on the boards while avoiding early foul trouble.
