College Basketball Preview

Conference play is beginning for all teams on Monday and some have started so here we go with our picks for the upcoming weekend games. Speaking of College Basketball, read Club Trillion- a blog by an Ohio State walk-on Mark Titus, its the funniest thing on the Internet right now and I am buying a Club Trill T-Shirt.

1. Pittsburgh-vs. St. Johns (Sunday) A first for the Pittsburgh Panthers basketball fans and they have been known to have a classic slip-ups. The Red Storm is much improved since last year but this is their first real road test which I dont see coming out pretty. PITT 67-52

2. Duke-at Florida State- Beware of Tallahassee. The Dukies have struggled mightily when they head to Seminoles. I think the Blue Devils are playing really good basketball right now and they need a good shooting night out of Jon Schyer, Greg Paulus, and Kyle Singler. Duke is head and shoulders better than the Noles and will pull away late. DUKE 84-77

3. North Carolina-at 4. Wake Forest (Sunday) Tough start for the Heels as they are looking to bounce back against a good young Wake Forest team. Lawrence Joel Arena hasnt been the greatest for North Carolina recently but you wonder if this young team will be able to handle the pressure of facing arguably the best team in the nation. Wake hangs with them for awhile but UNC pulls away late. UNC 87-81

5. Connecticut-at Cincinnati- The Bearcats are reeling as of late and things do not get easier as they welcome the Huskies. Hasheem Thabeet and Yancey Gates will be an absolute battle down low but I dont think the Bearcats have enough to answer the Husky scoring attack. UCONN 73-60


6. Oklahoma-at Kansas State- The Sooners have got a couple easy wins after Arkansas and the Wildcats are an alright team led by Jacob Pullen although I think Kansas State record is thanks to a pretty easy schedule. Blake Griffen should take over in this game as the Wildcats have a real lack of size. OKLA 76-65

7. Texas-vs. Iowa State- The Longhorns suffered their third defeat of the season against Arkansas this week and looking to bounce back against a decent Iowa State team. For the Cyclones to make this a game they need to find another scorer and stop A.J. Abrams. Likely not to happen though, expect Texas big in this one. TEXAS 85-67

8. UCLA-at USC- Tough game for the Bruins who are off and running in the Pac-10. The Trojans have been one of the bigger disappointments all year so far. Although this will be the upset of the week as its the coming out party for DeMar DeRozen. USC 75-70

9. Syracuse-at Rutgers- Do you realize that the Orange are one freak shot away from being undefeated? Sorry Shannon, anyways Rutgers has been put through the gauntlet and it doesnt get any easier. Trust me this team will be scrappy and looking for the upset but the Cuse are able to handle the Scarlet Knights. CUSE 76-71


10. Georgetown-vs. Providence- The Hoyas finally get somewhat of a break facing Providence at home. They struggled against Notre Dame and the Friars have not played any challenging Big East opponents so this will definitely be overwhelming for Providence. I think the Hoyas and DeJuan Summers should be able to handle Providence. GT 70-56

11. Clemson-vs. NC State- Havent we seen this all before? The Tigers are once again in the top 15 thanks to beating teams they should. I would hope that because this is a veteran team that they will not falter this upcoming season. The Wolfpack need to learn to win close games but they are going to be a threat in the ACC this year. The Tigers will win this one but dont expect a blowout. CLEM 73-67


12. Michigan State-vs. Kansas- The defending champs are getting no love so far and it should be a great matchup between Sheron Collins and Kalin Lucus. The Jayhawks need to be make sure to start out strong or else it could be a long game. The Spartans are red hot right now and I think Rock Chalk cant stop that. MSU 68-63


13. Notre Dame-vs. Seton Hall- The Fighting Irish kept their streak alive on Monday beating the Hoyas. Like I said in my original post this week, they need McAlernary to have a big game because it makes Harangoody more of a threat. No way do they Irish slip up in this one. ND 77-62

14. Purdue-vs. Wisconsin (Sunday) Many of my Badger fan friends spirits are high after a quick start but now they face an 0-2 Boilermaker team whose hungry for a victory and the Badgers havent played well at Purdue in the past years. If Hummel plays, I think Purdue wins if he doesnt, they likely dont. I will take Wisconsin assuming he isnt. UW 57-52

15. Marquette-vs 22. West Virigina- Huge matchup this weekend for the Golden Eagles. They have been one of the hottest teams in the nation. They are going to need another good defense effort as the Mountaineers are not shy to come in on the road and knock a team off. They were a bad three point shot away from beating UConn earlier this week too. Marquette wins this one, very close. MARQ 76-72

16. Arizona State-vs. Oregon- The Sun Devils suffered a tough loss to California on Sunday. This a down year for the fighting Pratts and this one is on the road so ASU shouldnt have any problems taking care of the Ducks. ASU 78-61


17. Villanova-vs. 21. Louisville- A great Big East matchup as the Cardinals play their first ranked opponent all year. Pratt was right all along about the Cards even though I still believe they will come back with a vengeance. Terrence Williams needs to take the ball to the hole more, he isnt scoring enough to win these type of games. Nova cant have guys like Antonio Pena and Dante Cunningham in foul trouble or it will be a long day for the Wildcats. I will take Louisville on a late Earl Clark shot. LOU 79-77.

18. Xavier-at Fordham (Sunday) Fordham is one of the worst basketball programs in America. The X will win big time. XAIVER 83-56

19. Minnesota-vs. Penn State- The Gophers face a tough Penn State squad but they should be able to win. MINN 65-56

20. Butler-vs. Detroit- The Bulldogs find their way back in the top 25 and they play a pretty weak Detroit team at home. Butler will take care of business and the walk-ons will definitely play. BUT 72-51

23. Baylor-vs. Texas Tech- The Bears suffered a tough loss by the South Carolina Gamecocks. They start out conference play against a defenseless Texas Tech team. When they have faced good teams, they really havent been able to stop them. This one will get ugly. BAY 98-74

24. Boston College-vs. Miami- The Hurricanes were another team that I hyped up and have failed to live up to the potential. The Eagles had a classic letdown at home as they lost to Harvard on Wednesday night. Knowing Al Skinner, he will have his guys ready for this one and I have a tough time seeing them losing. BC 70-64

25. Tennessee- at Georgia-The Volunteers are searching for answers after they have lost two straight to Gonzaga and Kansas. Georgia is always a tough place to play but I think the Vols will be able to overcome the Dawgs rather handily. UT 75-66