Saturday, February 03, 2007

Ones to Watch on Saturday

There were no Top 25 teams in action last night, but a bevy of basketball to be played on Saturday. Here are some of the games to watch (conference records in parentheses):

12:00 pm Louisville 16-6 (6-2) at Villanova 14-7 (3-5) - Two teams with plenty of upside, both headed for the NCAA Tournament. Villanova needs to get back into the Big East race while Louisville can earn conference credentials with a road win.

3:30 pm #9 Oregon 19-3 (7-3) at USC 17-6 (7-3) - Second straight road game for the Ducks, and the first one didn't go well, losing to UCLA on Thursday. A win by the Trojans puts them back in the top 25 and tightens their hold on 2nd place in the conference.

4:00 pm #4 Ohio St. 19-3 (7-1) at Michigan St. 17-6 (4-4) - Road wins are essential and the Buckeyes need to win in East Lansing. The Spartans are likely a sleeper NCAA team and could upset.

5:30 pm UNLV 19-4 (6-2) at BYU 16-6 (6-2) - Winner will get eyeballs from the poll voters and likely stay tied with #17 Air Force in the Mountain West. The Falcons host Wyoming today.

7:00 pm Georgia 13-7 (5-3) at #24 Vanderbilt 15-7 (5-3) - Both teams seemed destined to dance in March, but suffered losses in their most recent outings. Georgia already has a win over the Commodores, 85-73 on January 13, so some home cookin' should be in order. The Bulldogs, however, are a tough beat.

8:00 pm #21 Notre Dame 18-4 (6-3) at South Florida 11-11 (2-6) - This may look like an easy date for the Fighting Irish, but South Florida isn't too bad, the Big East is balanced and Notre Dame has struggled on the road. Time for them to grow up.

9:00 pm #10 Texas A&M 18-3 (6-1) at #6 Kansas 19-3 (6-1) - Phog Allen Fieldhouse will be rockin' and rollin' with the best game of the day and 1st place in the Big 12 on the line. The Aggies have never beaten Kansas in the five years they've been in the conference. Billy Gillespie's mind will be on defending the Jayhawks' Brandon Rush, one of the top players in the nation. This should be fun.

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