GAME OF THE DAY: No. 21 Michigan at No. 3 Michigan State (7 p.m., ESPN)
Michigan State may be playing this game in the Breslin Center, but it’s hard to see a way that the Spartans will be considered a favorite heading into this game. We already know they are going to be without Branden Dawson, who broken a bone in his hand slapping a table during a film session this week and the Spartans will be without Adreian Payne as well, as the big fella is still dealing with a sprained foot that is no where near healthy yet.
The good news? The Wolverines don’t necessarily have the size inside to take advantage of the Spartans missing their two most athletic big men. Keith Appling and Gary Harris should be able to matchup with Nik Stauskas and Caris LeVert. The key is going to be what happens with Glenn Robinson III. He’s been more aggressive of late, and the Spartans don’t have a win that can match his size and athleticism without Dawson.
The winner will take over sole possession of first place in the Big Ten.
THE OTHER GAME OF THE DAY: No. 22 Kansas State at No. 16 Iowa State (1:45 p.m., ESPN3)
Iowa State desperately needs this win. The Cyclones have lost three games in a row in league play. Their next three games? At Kansas, Oklahoma and at Oklahoma State. If this group doesn’t get things figured out quickly, there’s a real possibility that they could end up sitting at 2-7 in Big 12 play, a hole deep enough that it could cost them a trip to the NCAA tournament. Rebounding from seven straight losses is not an easy thing to do.
Kansas State is one of the best defensive teams in the country, and they’ll have their work cut out for them against an Iowa State team that thrives on the mismatches they can create with opposing front court. Thomas Gipson should have his way down low on Saturday, but who does he guard on Iowa State’s perimeter?
WHO’S GETTING UPSET? No. 9 Wisconsin at Purdue (5 p.m., Big Ten Network)
The Badgers are skidding right now, playing the worst defense a Bo Ryan team has ever played. Will they right the ship in West Lafayette? Wisconsin started the season at 16-0 but have dropped three straight following its Wednesday loss to Minnesota while Purdue is also hoping to figure things out after falling in double-overtime to Northwestern on the road earlier this week. These two teams have traded wins the last six games and Purdue owns a 37-3 advantage over Wisconsin in Mackey Areana -- although the Badgers won at Mackey Arena in 2012, the last time they went there.
Rebounding could come up big in this one. The Boilermakers lead the Big Ten with an average margin of plus-8.3 rebounds during conference play, while Wisconsin ranks 10th at minus-4.2 rebounds in conference play. The Badgers will have to defend and hit the glass to get out of Mackey Arena.
MID-MAJOR GAME OF THE DAY: Eastern Kentucky at Belmont, (8 p.m.)
The top two teams in the Ohio Valley Conference’s East Division square off on Saturday night as Eastern Kentucky (14-6, 5-2) travels to Belmont (15-7, 6-1). Belmont’s only loss in conference play came at Eastern Kentucky on January 16th, as the Colonels won 74-63 at home. Now Eastern Kentucky will look for the top spot in the East Division by sweeping Belmont. These two teams and Murray State are currently the class of the OVC and this game could mean a lot for conference tournament seeding purposes.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1) There will be two games on the NBC Sports Network on Saturday. George Washington heads to George Mason at 12:00 p.m. while the 4:00 p.m. tip features Atlantic 10 contenders St. Joe’s at Richmond.
2) A big day for Big East hoops in on-tap Saturday. This may be Marquette’s most important game of the season and they get No. 4 Villanova days after the Wildcats got embarrassed by Creighton at home. Georgetown will visit the sharpshooters at Creighton while 5-1 Xavier is at 4-2 Providence. Are the Friars really a Big East contender?
3) Texas battling No. 24 Baylor will be an intriguing Big 12 clash. The Longhorns are playing good ball and have the size to match-up with Baylor on the interior. Can Baylor bounce back from its 1-4 Big 12 start?
4) Two top-ten teams face interesting road tests as No. 2 Syracuse travels to Miami and No. 10 Iowa goes to Northwestern. Miami had the lead on Syracuse for about 35 minutes in the Carrier Dome. They’re a scrappy team that controls tempo and forces you to hit jumpers. Will Syracuse make enough jumpers in the MIA? Northwestern is essentially the Big Ten’s version of Miami. They’ve also beaten Illinois, Indiana (on the road) and Purdue. Is Iowa next?
5) If you want to end the night on a high note, check out the WCC contest between BYU and Gonzaga. Both BYU and Gonzaga can put up points in a hurry, and neither of them are very adept at defending. A high-scoring WCC game is a nice way to cap off a college hoops Saturday.
THE REST OF THE TOP 25:
- No. 5 Wichita State at Drake, 8:05 p.m.
- Tennessee at No. 6 Florida, 4 p.m., ESPN
- No. 7 San Diego State at Utah State, 11 p.m., ESPNU
- No. 8 Kansas at TCU, 9 p.m., ESPNU
- West Virginia at No. 11 Oklahoma State, 2 p.m., ESPN2
- Georgia at No. 14 Kentucky, 1:30 p.m., ESPN3
- Florida State at No. 18 Duke 12 p.m., ESPN
- No. 20 Pitt at Maryland, 6 p.m., ESPN2
- No. 25 Oklahoma at Texas Tech, 4 p.m., ESPN3
NOTABLES:
- Ohio at Eastern Michigan, 11 a.m., ESPNU
- Notre Dame at Wake Forest, 3 p.m., ESPN3
- New Mexico at Colorado State, 4 p.m., ESPN3
- Mississippi State at Ole Miss, 4 p.m., ESPN3
- Colorado at Arizona State, 7 p.m., PAC12
- Hawaii at UC Irvine, 10 p.m., ESPN3
