Preview Roundups
February 22, 2020
Virginia at Pittsburgh 12:00 PM ET
Virginia appears to have put a mid-season swoon behind it and is attacking an NCAA Tournament berth. The Cavaliers seek a seventh win in eight games when they visit Pittsburgh on Saturday in the only game between the teams this season.
Marquette at Providence 12:00 PM ET
Marquette's dynamic offense has hit a cold spell and the 19th-ranked Golden Eagles will try to snap out of their funk and end a two-game losing streak when they visit a desperate Providence team on Saturday. With the nation's second-leading scorer Markus Howard shooting 12-of-34 over his last two games, Marquette has dropped consecutive games against No. 13 Villanova and No. 15 Creighton to slip into the middle of the pack in the Big East.
Tennessee at Auburn 12:00 PM ET
No. 12 Auburn did not fare well in the first two games without injured freshman star Isaac Okoro and hopes to change that trend while remaining unbeaten at home when Tennessee visits for an SEC matchup Saturday afternoon. Okoro (hamstring) was not in the lineup as the Tigers lost at Missouri and Georgia by a combined 22 points last week, but is riding a 17-game winning streak at home - 14-0 in 2019-20.
Tulane at Central Florida 12:00 PM ET
A pair of American Athletic Conerence teams looking for some momentum square off on Saturday afternoon when Tulane travels to face Central Florida. The Green Wave snapped a nine-game losing streak with a victory over SMU on Wednesday, while UCF is coming off a double-overtime win at Cincinnati on the same night.
Kansas at Baylor 12:00 PM ET
The Big 12 boasts one national champion, three national runners-up and 10 Final Four teams in its 24-year history, but no program in the league has enjoyed a longer run of success in a single season than Baylor owns after its most recent victory. After making conference history earlier this week by extending their winning streak to 23 games, the top-ranked Bears look to take a huge step toward securing their first regular-season Big 12 crown Saturday when they host No. 3 Kansas.
Missouri at Arkansas 1:00 PM ET
Missouri goes for a third straight win to climb over .500 on the season when it travels to face Arkansas for an SEC contest on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers are coming off a home win over Ole Miss on Tuesday, while Arkansas is looking to snap a five-game losing streak which includes Tuesday's 73-59 loss at Florida.
Michigan at Purdue 2:00 PM ET
Michigan looks to continue its late-season surge when it visits Purdue on Saturday. The Wolverines have won six of their last seven games, including four straight following a 60-52 victory over Rutgers on Wednesday, and they hope to climb back into the national rankings by knocking off the Boilermakers on the road for the first time since Feb. 26, 2014.
Houston at Memphis 2:00 PM ET
No. 22 Houston travels to Memphis on Saturday in a battle between the two teams picked to win the American Athletic Conference in the preseason coaches' poll. It has been a tale of two seasons for both squads as Houston is leading the race for the AAC regular season title while Memphis is currently sitting on the outside of the NCAA Tournament field.
Duquesne at Dayton 2:00 PM ET
It is nearly impossible for fifth-ranked Dayton not to start thinking about March Madness, but there's still plenty of work to do starting with an Atlantic 10 game against visiting Duquesne on Saturday. The Flyers have won 15 consecutive contests after a 66-61 victory at VCU on Feb. 18 and are 24-2 for the first time in school history.
Texas at Kansas State 2:00 PM ET
Texas looks to keep its faint NCAA Tournament hopes alive when it visits Kansas State on Saturday. The Longhorns ended a four-game losing skid with a 70-56 win against TCU on Wednesday, and they hope to avoid a damaging loss to their tournament resume by sweeping the season series with the Wildcats following a 64-50 victory on Jan. 11.
West Virginia at Texas Christian 2:00 PM ET
West Virginia owns one of the best defensive squads in the country, but a lack of offensive consistency has been its undoing a bit too often during Big 12 action. Neither was much of an issue in the Mountaineers' rout of TCU last month, and No. 18 West Virginia hopes for a repeat performance Saturday when they visit the offensively challenged Horned Frogs.
Villanova at Xavier 2:30 PM ET
Looking to cement its place in the NCAA Tournament, Xavier has a great opportunity to pick up an impressive win Saturday when it hosts No. 13 Villanova. The Wildcats won the first meeting between the teams this season and have won three in a row overall entering their matchup with the Musketeers.
Southern Methodist at Tulsa 3:00 PM ET
SMU has been sensational on its home court this season with a 14-1 mark – the only American Athletic Conference team with a single home loss – but have managed just a single victory in six opportunities on the road during league play. The Mustangs will look to flip the script on Saturday when they visit Tulsa in the only regular-season meeting between the teams.
Mississippi State at Texas A&M 3:30 PM ET
Mississippi State visits Texas A&M on Saturday in an SEC game that could go a long way toward conference tournament seeding and earning recognition from the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Each club has won two straight games with the Bulldogs sitting tied for fifth - one game ahead of the Aggies - as seven teams are within two contests of each other from second place to seventh in the standings.
Florida State at NC State 4:00 PM ET
It's been an up and down year for North Carolina State, but the Wolfpack came up huge last time out, taking down No. 6 Duke 88-66 at home -- the Blue Devils' largest margin of defeat to an unranked opponent in 40 seasons under Mike Krzyzewski -- and now they look for a repeat performance in front of the hometown crowd Saturday against No. 8 Florida State. The Seminoles have won five of their last six after spanking Pittsburgh 82-67 and they have been ranked in the top 10 for a school-record seve
Georgia Tech at Syracuse 4:00 PM ET
In a season where not much has gone right for Syracuse, a resounding win over Georgia Tech remains a bright spot. The Orange and Yellow Jackets are set for a rematch Saturday, this time on Syracuse's home court, in a contest between two middle-of-the-pack ACC foes.
North Carolina at Louisville 4:00 PM ET
Locked in a three-way duel with Duke and Florida State for the ACC regular-season championship, Louisville can't afford to misstep against struggling North Carolina on Saturday. First-time starters David Johnson and Malik Williams provided a big lift in a rout of Syracuse and hope to help the 11th-ranked Cardinals keep the momentum flowing going forward.
Oklahoma at Oklahoma State 4:00 PM ET
Oklahoma is in need of victories to strengthen its postseason resume and it seeks a season sweep of host Oklahoma State when the teams meet Saturday in Big 12 play at Stillwater. Junior forward Brady Manek matched his career best of seven 3-pointers and poured in 30 points to lead the Sooners to an 82-69 home win over the Cowboys on Feb. 1.
UCLA at Colorado 4:00 PM ET
No. 17 Colorado has won five of its last six to
take sole possession of the Pac-12 lead as it seeks its first regular-season
conference crown since 1969. The Buffaloes continue the chase Saturday
afternoon in their home finale as they host UCLA.
Clemson at Boston College 6:00 PM ET
Clemson will be well-rested and coming off its biggest win of the season when it pays a visit to Boston College on Saturday for an ACC matchup. The Tigers rolled to a 77-62 win over then-No. 5 Louisville last Saturday, following up a 20-point victory at Pittsburgh three nights earlier to make for a solid week that provided a pulse for the squad's mediocre-at-best NCAA Tournament resume.
Florida at Kentucky 6:00 PM ET
No. 10 Kentucky gets set to host Florida on Saturday in the first of two meetings between these SEC foes. The Wildcats have won five straight after defeating LSU 79-76 last time out and they stand all alone atop the league standings, while the Gators have turned it on of late with five victories in the last six games and they are in a three-way battle with Auburn and LSU for second place.
Georgia at Vanderbilt 6:00 PM ET
Georgia travels to Vanderbilt on Saturday for a matchup of the bottom two teams in the SEC who have combined for four league victories this season, but the Bulldogs hope they can build off Wednesday’s upset of No. 12 Auburn. Freshman guard Anthony Edwards scored 18 points to spark a 65-55 victory, just Georgia’s third win in conference play, and after seeing second-half leads evaporate in several games recently the Bulldogs limited Auburn to 31.3 percent shooting.
Louisiana State at South Carolina 6:00 PM ET
LSU heads to South Carolina on Saturday looking to end a two-game skid that has dropped the Tigers two games out of first place in the SEC standings, jeopardizing their shot at getting a double bye into the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. The Tigers fell 79-76 on Tuesday against No. 10 Kentucky, three days after a six-point loss at Alabama, and coach Will Wade lamented his team’s recent cold shooting and defensive breakdowns.
Texas Tech at Iowa State 6:00 PM ET
After flushing the worst loss of the season, Texas Tech tries to make it two straight wins when it visits Iowa State on Saturday in a Big 12 game. The Red Raiders, who control their own destiny to finish third in the Big 12, begin a string of three straight contests against teams with losing conference records before closing the regular season at No. 1 Baylor and against No. 3 Kansas - the only clubs ahead of them in the standings.
California at Washington 6:00 PM ET
One of the biggest Pac-12 mysteries has been the fall of the Washington Huskies, who were expected to contend for the league title but enter Saturday’s matchup against visiting California riding a nine-game losing streak. The Huskies began the season with a 10-2 mark but have dropped 13 of their last 15 games and are 1-11 since point guard Quade Green was ruled academically ineligible in early January.
UNLV at San Diego St. 7:30 PM ET
Fourth-ranked San Diego State already has clinched the seventh regular-season Mountain West championship in school history. But the Aztecs, the nation's lone undefeated team, still have plenty riding on the line when they host UNLV on Saturday afternoon.
Virginia Tech at Duke 8:00 PM ET
Coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters sixth-ranked Duke was “not competitive” in a lopsided loss last time out, so expect the Blue Devils to come out flying when they host struggling Virginia Tech for an ACC battle Saturday night. Duke had won seven straight contests before giving up 10 of the first 11 points en route to getting thumped by unranked North Carolina State 88-66 on the road Wednesday.
Oregon St. at Arizona State 8:00 PM ET
A pair of Pac-12 teams headed in opposite
directions meet Saturday night in Tempe as Arizona State hosts Oregon State.
The Sun Devils own a conference-best six-game win streak while the Beavers have
dropped seven of their last 10 contests.
Alabama at Mississippi 8:30 PM ET
Alabama will need to be in desperation mode during the final five games of the regular season, including in Saturday's SEC contest at Ole Miss. Any more losses like the one suffered Wednesday at home to Texas A&M, and the Crimson Tide, who have taken four of the last five games against the Rebels, can probably turn the lights out on their season.
Georgetown at DePaul 9:00 PM ET
Georgetown faces some tough sledding in its attempt to qualify for the NCAA Tournament with the only likely breather coming Saturday in a Big East Conference game at DePaul. The Hoyas will face three ranked teams and another fighting for a tourney bid after taking on the Blue Demons.
Oregon at Arizona 9:00 PM ET
Five teams are bunched within one game of the top spot in the Pac-12 heading into this weekend's action. Two of those five, No. 16 Oregon and No. 21 Arizona, square off on Saturday night in Tucson in a make-it-or-break-it contest in the conference title race.
Gonzaga at Brigham Young 10:00 PM ET
Second-ranked Gonzaga is in search of its 20th consecutive victory but expects a tough challenge when it faces fast-charging BYU on Saturday night in West Coast Conference play at Provo, Utah. The Cougars have ripped off seven straight wins and are a stellar 13-1 at home.
For more information,
© Sports Direct Inc. All Rights Reserved