Hope Wisconsin basked in the glory of beating Ohio State the last three days. Now the Badgers get their own road test.
No. 11 Purdue plays host to No. 10 Wisconsin in Wednesday night’s biggest game. The winner gets to retain (some) hope of catching the Buckeyes in the Big Ten standings. The loser falls to 9-4 in conference play and probably loses any chance of grabbing a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.
How’s that for some pre-game build up? (6:30 p.m., BTN)
(For an added dose of symmetry, the Boilermakers play host to Ohio State on Sunday. Think of what those two victories would mean for Purdue.)
Georgetown at Connecticut, 7 p.m. (ESPN3): Few teams are hotter than the Hoyas, winners of eight straight, half of which have come on the road. The Huskies have had issues lately, losing three of their last five (coincidence that Kemba Walker’s in a shooting slump? Probably not.) I’m just hopeful we get to see a game with a finish this good.
Louisville at Cincinnati, 7 p.m. (ESPN): The Cardinals are going to be a trendy darkhorse NCAA tournament team. They’ve beaten ‘Cuse, UConn and West Virginia and have given Georgetown and Notre Dame fits. Meanwhile, the Bearcats are just trying to stay off the bubble. This could be a prime time for Cincy to do just that.
Vanderbilt at Georgia, 7 p.m. (ESPNU): The winner improves to 7-4 in the SEC East – two games behind leader Florida. The loser? It gets weeks and weeks of bubble talk.
New Mexico at San Diego State, 10:30 p.m. (The Mtn.): For the Mountain West to be more than a two-bid league, a few things would need to happen. UNLV has to stop messing around, Colorado State and New Mexico could use a few more marquee wins. They don’t get much bigger for the Lobos than a trip to San Diego State.
Vermont at Maine, 7:30 p.m.: The Catamounts can clinch America East with a win tonight. If that happens, they’d be the first of the season. Just ahead of …
Saint Mary’s at San Diego, 11 p.m. (ESPN2): The Gaels haven’t wanted to talk about the possibility of a WCC title. Can’t say I blame ‘em. One win would clinch a share of their first crown since 1989 – and officially end Gonzaga’s stranglehold on the conference. There’s something to be said for focusing.
EAST
American U. at Army, 7 p.m.
Georgetown vs. Connecticut at the XL Center, Hartford, Conn., 7 p.m.
Binghamton at Hartford, 7 p.m.
Navy at Holy Cross, 7 p.m.
Bucknell at Lafayette, 7 p.m.
Colgate at Lehigh, 7 p.m.
Rider at Loyola, Md., 7 p.m.
Iona at Manhattan, 7 p.m.
Duquesne at Massachusetts, 7 p.m.
Canisius at Niagara, 7 p.m.
South Florida at Pittsburgh, 7 p.m.
Xavier at Saint Joseph’s, 7 p.m.
St. Peter’s at Siena, 7 p.m.
Saint Louis at St. Bonaventure, 7 p.m.
Marist at Fairfield, 7:30 p.m.
Vermont at Maine, 7:30 p.m.
SOUTH
Georgia Southern at Davidson, 7 p.m.
Morehead St. at E. Kentucky, 7 p.m.
Vanderbilt at Georgia, 7 p.m.
S. Virginia at Longwood, 7 p.m.
Rice at Marshall, 7 p.m.
UAB at Memphis, 7 p.m.
South Carolina at Tennessee, 7 p.m.
Duke at Virginia, 7 p.m.
Dayton at Charlotte, 7:30 p.m.
Chattanooga at Georgia Tech, 7:30 p.m.
Auburn at Mississippi, 8 p.m.
Lamar at SE Louisiana, 8 p.m.
Wofford at Samford, 8 p.m.
UTEP at Southern Miss., 8 p.m.
UCF at Tulane, 8 p.m.
MIDWEST
Wisconsin at Purdue, 6:30 p.m.
E. Michigan at Cent. Michigan, 7 p.m.
Louisville at Cincinnati, 7 p.m.
Youngstown St. at Detroit, 7 p.m.
Kent St. at Miami (Ohio), 7 p.m.
Cleveland St. at Wright St., 7 p.m.
Loyola of Chicago at Ill.-Chicago, 8 p.m.
Louisiana Tech at North Dakota, 8 p.m.
Murray St. at SE Missouri, 8 p.m.
Valparaiso at Wis.-Milwaukee, 8 p.m.
Illinois St. at Creighton, 8:05 p.m.
Indiana St. at S. Illinois, 8:05 p.m.
Michigan at Illinois, 8:30 p.m.
SOUTHWEST
Florida A&M at Arkansas, 8 p.m.
SMU at Houston, 8 p.m.
Colorado St. at TCU, 8 p.m.
Iowa St. at Texas A&M, 8 p.m.
Stephen F.Austin at Texas-Arlington, 8 p.m.
McNeese St. at UTSA, 8 p.m.
East Carolina at Tulsa, 8:05 p.m.
Nebraska at Oklahoma, 9 p.m.
Oklahoma St. at Texas, 9 p.m.
FAR WEST
E. Washington at N. Arizona, 8:35 p.m.
Idaho St. at Montana, 9 p.m.
Wyoming at Utah, 9 p.m.
Portland St. at Weber St., 9 p.m.
Montana Western at Utah St., 9:05 p.m.
Fresno St. at CS Bakersfield, 10 p.m.
CS Northridge at Cal Poly, 10 p.m.
UC Riverside at Long Beach St., 10 p.m.
UC Irvine at Pacific, 10 p.m.
Cal St.-Fullerton at UC Santa Barbara, 10 p.m.
New Mexico at San Diego St., 10:30 p.m.
Pepperdine at Loyola Marymount, 11 p.m.
Saint Mary’s, Calif. at San Diego, 11 p.m.
Want more? I’m also on Twitter @MikeMillerNBC.
