One of the major themes of this college basketball season so far has been the sheer strength of the Big 12, not only in the teams at the top (Kansas, Kansas State, Texas), but the depth of the conference as well.
Just last week, TCU, a team that carried high preseason expectations but had since fallen out of the AP Top 25 and was 3-3 in conference play entering the weekend, went into Allen Fieldhouse and walloped Kansas 83-60. And let’s talk about those Jayhawks for a moment, who won their first five Big 12 games and appeared to be on their way to a typical Kansas-like season, but have now lost three in a row with a schedule that won’t be letting up anytime soon.
For a college basketball fan, it is the most entertaining conference to watch. Hands down. For fans of those programs? Maybe not so much.
This weekend however, conference play in the Big 12 takes a backseat as the annual Big 12-SEC challenge tips off on Saturday with 10 games between the two conferences, headlined by Kansas visiting fellow blueblood Kentucky Saturday night.
Of course, the SEC is also a wildly entertaining conference to watch, led by two of the highest-ranked teams in the country in Alabama and Tennessee, a Kentucky team that is now surging, and a host of other schools in or on the periphery of the Top 25.
All that means we should be treated to another terrific weekend of college basketball, highlighted by one final day of non-conference action before March.
All stats courtesy of sports-reference.com/cbb, unless otherwise noted.
Last week’s record: 8-4
Season record: 23-15
Friday, Jan. 27
Iona @ Siena, 7:00 p.m., ESPNU
Rick Pitino’s Iona Gaels have already lost two games in MAAC play, but there doesn’t seem to be much debate that Iona is the best team in the conference. The Gaels score and defend at a high level, don’t turn the ball over often, and have numerous candidates for conference player of the year. That said, a road game at Siena could present challenges for the presumptive MAAC favorite. Siena, led by guard Javian McCollum, shoots the three well and could give Pitino’s squad a tremendous game in an intriguing mid-major showdown.
Prediction: Iona
Saturday, Jan. 28
#15 Auburn @ West Virginia, 12:00 p.m., ESPN
The Tigers and Mountaineers kick off the Big 12-SEC Challenge on Saturday, with Auburn coming off a home loss to Texas A&M on Wednesday. The loss to the Aggies continued to highlight a major red flag with Auburn, which is their inability to shoot the three. Auburn is ranked No. 341 in 3-point percentage. Auburn does play great defensively though, meaning Saturday’s game with West Virginia could be an ugly one. I trust the Mountaineers to force costly turnovers late and Auburn’s inability to shoot their way back into the game could be the difference.
Prediction: West Virginia
#13 Xavier @ Creighton, 12:15 p.m., CBS
If you like points, check out the Musketeers and Bluejays on Saturday afternoon. Sean Miller’s squad has established itself as one of the best offensive teams in the nation, ranked fourth in Kenpom’s adjusted offensive efficiency metric. Xavier also shoots over 40 percent from beyond the arc, third in the country as of Thursday. But Creighton can score the ball well also, as evidenced by all five starters scoring in double figures during their win over St. John’s on Wednesday. The Bluejays are clearly much more formidable when center Ryan Kalkbrenner is playing and effective, and he has been over his last four games (15.8 PPG, 7.3 RPG).
Prediction: Creighton
NC State @ Wake Forest, 1:00 p.m., ACCN
My affinity for NC State, particularly their talented guards, has been made clear in previous iterations of this article series, but the group will be tested against a talented guard duo for Wake Forest. For the Wolfpack, Terquavion Smith and Jarkel Joiner have combined for 35.4 points and 7.9 assists per game, while the Demon Deacons’ Tyree Appleby and Cameron Hildreth check in at 31.0 points and 8.9 assists per game. A truly heavyweight battle between some of the ACC’s best guards could come down to defense, where Wake’s No. 161 adjusted efficiency mark doesn’t bode well for them as they look to snap a two-game losing skid.
Prediction: NC State
#12 Iowa State @ Missouri, 2:00 p.m., ESPN2
Iowa State has really snuck up on me this year. They are not the first or second or even third team that comes to mind when talking about the Big 12’s best, yet here are the Cyclones at No. 12 in the AP poll with wins over Baylor, TCU, Texas and Kansas State in the last four weeks. Iowa State has some issues scoring the ball at times, but the defense is among the best in the nation and could give Missouri fits this weekend. The Tigers have been an impressive bunch in Dennis Gates’ first season as head coach, and may even reach the NCAA Tournament, but will need to be firing on all cylinders against a Cyclones team that causes havoc on the defensive side.
Prediction: Iowa State
Illinois @ Wisconsin, 3:00 p.m., FOX
The Badgers started conference play 3-0 and looked poised to remain among the Big Ten’s better teams throughout the winter. Alas, Greg Gard’s team has fallen back in a major way in January, losing five of their last six games, including a 79-69 defeat at Illinois back on Jan. 7. There’s just not a lot to like about this Wisconsin team right now. They don’t make shots, especially from 2-point range, they grab very few offensive rebounds, and just have not received nearly enough production from their guards. Illinois on the other hand has won five of six and has held each of their last six opponents under 70 points. Sometimes it’s just that simple.
Prediction: Illinois
Arkansas @ #17 Baylor, 4:00 p.m., ESPN
Three straight losses to open Big 12 play had Baylor in a tough spot earlier this month, but the Bears have climbed out of their funk in a big way. Their winning streak is now up to five games after Tuesday’s home win over Kansas and another tough test awaits with the Razorbacks coming to Waco. This game would be a whole lot more fun if Arkansas guard Nick Smith Jr. was playing, as he and Baylor’s Keyonte George are among the best freshman in the country. However, Arkansas has struggled to score points in Smith’s absence as he manages a back injury and going into Waco and beating a scorching Baylor team is a lot to ask for Eric Musselman’s squad right now.
Prediction: Baylor
#20 Miami @ Pittsburgh, 4:00 p.m., ESPNU
Is Pittsburgh good? It’s a confounding question really because the Panthers have shown two very different teams this season. Are they the team that beat North Carolina and Virginia in back-to-back games at the beginning of the month, or are they the team that got beat by a 7-14 Florida State team at home last weekend? Saturday’s game could go a long way toward answering that question with the Hurricanes visiting. Miami can really score the basketball efficiently, and when in doubt can turn to guard Isaiah Wong, who averages 16.3 points per game and is among the contenders for ACC Player of the Year.
Prediction: Miami
The traditional blue-blood matchup between Kansas and Kentucky will draw the most attention, but we get a terrific prelude between the Longhorns and Volunteers. Texas has hardly missed a beat since Rodney Terry stepped in for the now-fired Chris Beard, with the Longhorns sitting among the best offensive teams in the country. Of course, much of that is predicated on Texas connecting from inside the arc, as they shoot only 33 percent from three. And against this Tennessee team, teams have to hope they have their best offensive game of the season. The Vols, who are the No. 1 ranked defense on Kenpom, lead the nation in effective field goal percentage allowed and 3-point percentage allowed and flummox their opponents into taking bad shots and turning the ball over frequently.
Prediction: Tennessee
Florida @ #5 Kansas State, 6:00 p.m., ESPN2
An emotional storyline could be at the forefront of this game as Kansas State star forward Keyontae Johnson goes up against his former team. The same team that he was playing for when he collapsed on the court during a game in December 2020. Now with the Wildcats over two years later, Johnson has not only found his way back to the court but has thrived, leading Kansas State to a 17-3 record (6-2 in the Big 12) and into the top five of the AP poll. Florida’s Colin Castleton will present a challenge to Johnson inside, but the Wildcats have too much talent to lose this game on their home court.
Prediction: Kansas State
#9 Kansas @ Kentucky, 8:00 p.m., ESPN
Two weeks ago, Kansas was unbeaten in Big 12 play, while Kentucky was coming off an embarrassing home loss to South Carolina. What a difference two weeks can make. Now the Wildcats have won four in a row, including an impressive road win at Tennessee, while the Jayhawks have lost three in a row, despite the hot play of forward Jalen Wilson. The two teams will square off at Rupp Arena Saturday night in what should be a terrific basketball game. Beyond the storylines of who is playing better now, the result could come down to Kansas’ ability to keep Oscar Tshiebwe and Kentucky off the boards, and Kentucky’s ability to slow down Wilson. Look for Tshiebwe to have a monster game down low, while Wilson can’t singlehandedly beat a surging Kentucky team without more help from his teammates, particularly in the frontcourt.
Prediction: Kentucky
Sunday, Jan. 29
Michigan State @ #1 Purdue, 12:15 p.m., CBS
We have not even arrived in February yet and the Purdue Boilermakers just won their 20th game of the season Thursday night. Of course, that may not be too unexpected right now, considering Purdue has the Player of the Year frontrunner in Zach Edey, a dynamic backcourt duo of Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith and one of the most efficiently run offenses in college basketball. Purdue will continue their march to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament Sunday against Tom Izzo’s Spartans, who have yet to put together a consistent stretch of winning basketball. In the last two weeks, Michigan State lost to Illinois and Purdue, beat Rutgers, lost to Indiana, and then beat Iowa earlier this week. Edey should thrive against a Spartans team with no regular contributors over 6”9.
Prediction: Purdue
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