Big Weekend for Upstarts, Top Teams Alike

Thursday I wrote about what to watch for.  Fridays, which I have humorously dubbed the “weekend pregame” will be a hodgepodge of interesting matchups, recommended games to watch, and predictions.  So without further ado:

Interesting Matchups

Villanova at DePaul-

Surprise!  DePaul actually won a conference game.  Sure, it was against lowly Providence, who is even worse than last year’s squad (at least they could shoot the three ball last year).  Nevertheless, a win is a win for the blue demons.  In fact, DePaul is definitely on the rise.  They’re actually staying in some games this year, losing three conference games to decent teams by four points or less (WVU, @L’ville, Cincinnati).  The improved DePaul team coming off its first conference win of the season may pose an interesting problem for a Villanova team that many consider have been sliding to a degree as of late.  In fact, the last three teams Villanova has played against on the road are a combined 12-28, yet Villanova is just one 1-2 in those games.  The one game they did win was a three point edge at Seton Hall; the losses were at Providence and Rutgers.

Pittsburgh at St. John’s-

It’s no surprise by now the Johnnies are capable of springing some upsets of big teams.  They followed up their romp over Duke by getting another statement win over UConn and will now host 12-1 Pittsburgh in the Mecca of basketball.  To the surprise of most fans, the Red Storm are tied with the likes of UConn, Villanova, and Louisville.  St John’s could definitely present a problem to the panthers without start guard Ashton Gibbs, who’s still out with a minor MCL injury.  Even if Pitt were to lose, though, they’d still be in command of the Big East- but you can’t deny the impact a loss to St. John’s could have on an injured Pitt team coming down the stretch.

Virginia Tech at UVA

UVA has been a bit bipolar this year, often playing solid games (or at least solid halves) in Charlottesville.  They managed a three point win in Blacksburg to take the first game of this series, and they can finish off the sweep of Virginia Tech this weekend.  Obviously the Cavaliers won’t be competing for an at large bid this year, but they can still earn bragging rights over their archrivals if the semi-decent UVA team decides to show up.

Recommended Saturday Basketball Watching Schedule (this is based on the “best” games to watch in my opinion, NOT the highest ranked teams that are playing.  If you want that information, get on ESPN.  Also, if you plan on following this schedule, you will probably need to access ESPN3)

12-1- first half of Pitt at St. Johns
1-3- Georgia at Tennessee
4-6- Oklahoma at Kansas St (if you’re looking for a really physical game, though, check out Oregon St at Oregon)
6-8- Washington at Arizona
9-11- Utah St at Saint Mary’s (or Illinois at Michigan St)

Predictions- For this section, I will predict the winners of all the USA Today top 25 matchups- NOT the AP poll’s top 25.  I may also feature one or two other games that have big implications.  Sunday I will reveal how well I did, so you can all have the privilege of mocking me.  Teams in bold are my predictions. 

Friday


UConn at Louisville

Saturday

Colorado at Kansas
Texas at Nebraska
Pittsburgh at St. Johns
San Diego St at Air Force
Notre Dame at West Virgina
BYU at TCU
Georgetown at USF
Washington at Arizona
Villanova at DePaul
Texas A&M at Oklahoma St
Vanderbilt at Auburn
Boston College at UNC
Rutgers at Syracuse
Missouri at Iowa St
S. Carolina at Kentucky
Utah St at Saint Mary’s

Sunday:

Georgia Tech at Duke
Ohio St at Purdue
Penn St at Wisconsin
Florida at LSU
St. Joes at Temple