Hoops fans, rejoice. It’s the first true college basketball Saturday of the season.
With college football’s regular season over and teams amid bowl prep, college basketball takes center stage on a Saturday for the first time this year. Last weekend provided quite the warmup despite being overshadowed by football’s championship Saturday, with No. 1 Purdue, No. 3 Marquette, No. 4 UConn, No. 7 Duke and No. 12 Kentucky all losing between Friday and Saturday night. What type of magic will we see with an even more loaded slate of games this weekend?
Here’s a look at the best showdowns ahead and some predictions for the biggest games.
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No. 20 Illinois at No. 17 Tennessee, 12 p.m. ET
Both of these teams may well be better than their current AP poll rankings suggest. Tennessee’s No. 17 rank is the result of three close road/neutral losses to good teams, while Illinois looked the part of a Big Ten title contender in a win over FAU earlier this week. The level of athleticism on the floor for this one will be awesome: Illinois has been elite defensively thanks to its impressive positional size and versatility, while the Vols’ speed and physicality make them one of the best defenses in the sport.
Illinois will be a very tough out if Terrence Shannon Jr. keeps playing as well as he has lately, headlined by a 33-point outburst Tuesday against FAU. The battle between him and Tennessee star wing Dalton Knecht (19.6 points per game) should be something to behold. This feels like an important game for Tennessee to protect its home court and get a signature win in the process.
The Pick: Tennessee
No. 4 Purdue vs. Alabama, (Toronto), 1:30 p.m. ET
Nate Oats has been very critical of his Alabama team’s defensive effort this season. That being an area of concern heading into a matchup against Purdue and National Player of the Year Zach Edey sounds like something that would cause a coach to have plenty of sleepless nights, though Alabama is dynamic enough offensively to make this a game. The Crimson Tide’s ability to put multiple explosive smaller guards on the floor like Mark Sears and Aaron Estrada could cause problems for Purdue. They’ll just have to hang in on the interior, where Edey figures to have his way with Mohamed Wague and the rest of an undersized Tide frontcourt in a homecoming of sorts for the Canadian big man.
The Pick: Purdue
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No. 23 Wisconsin at No. 1 Arizona, 3:15 p.m. ET
Being No. 1 in the college hoops polls has been an uncomfortable spot in recent years, and this game should give Arizona its first real test as top dog. The Wildcats draw a Wisconsin team playing great basketball as of late, fresh off an upset win over Marquette and a road win at Michigan State. Can the Badgers make it three straight upset wins? It won’t be easy against an Arizona team with an intriguing combination of high-level skill and athleticism that already has wins over the Spartans and Duke. All this provides a great litmus test for the Badgers: How will they handle a team with athletic guards like Kylan Boswell and Caleb Love in a tough atmosphere like the one they’ll face in Tucson on Saturday?
The x-factor in this game: Wisconsin wing AJ Storr. He’s the type of athletic two-way wing Wisconsin hasn’t had in a while, and his 22 points against Marquette were a strong reminder of his potential impact on this team. Another big day would give Wisconsin a chance to pull off a major upset.
The Pick: Wisconsin
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Arkansas vs. No. 19 Oklahoma (Tulsa), 4 p.m. ET
The 8–0 Sooners have been one of the biggest surprises in college basketball this season, with quality wins over Iowa, USC and Providence early in Porter Moser’s third season. They could add to that résumé with a neutral-court win Saturday against an Arkansas team that bounced back from a rough week at Battle 4 Atlantis with a big win over Duke. Oklahoma’s strength has been its backcourt: Transfer Javian McCollum has made a big impact, as have sophomores Milos Uzan and Otega Oweh. Plus, the Sooners have looked far more connected on the defensive end than most transfer-heavy teams have so far. That’s a good recipe against an Arkansas team that has struggled with perimeter defense and has had some spacing issues on the offensive end.
The Pick: Oklahoma
No. 14 BYU at Utah, 7 p.m. ET
Picked No. 13 out of 14 in the Big 12 preseason poll, BYU has been surprisingly dominant early on and tops the NCAA’s NET rankings. Are the Cougars the best team in the country? Almost assuredly not, but they are still one of the nation’s most improved teams and have a shot at an important road victory in Salt Lake City against the Utes. Can Utah find a way to disrupt what has been one of the most efficient offenses in the country? That may hinge on whether star center Branden Carlson is able to suit up after missing the Utes’ matchup with Southern Utah earlier this week.
