The schedule-makers are college basketball fans’ best friends this time of year. They always purposely load up the last weekend of the regular season with matchups between powerhouses, in the hopes that creating the NCAA Tournament becomes more clear-cut.
As March 11th’s Selection Sunday nears, the top eight teams can realistically settle anywhere from a #1 seed to a #4 seed depending on how they finish their seasons. No one is safe, and even one-loss teams Kentucky (28-1) and Syracuse (29-1) could fall from the top with a couple slip-ups over the next couple weeks.
Here’s a preview of the five most important games coming up this weekend:
No. 12 Georgetown at No. 7 Marquette (Saturday, 1 PM)
Marquette always seems to be hanging around in the top 25 polls, but they haven’t made a deep run into the NCAA Tournament since 2003, when Dwyane Wade led them to the Final Four. The Golden Eagles find themselves knocking on the door of a #1 seed, but that would still require a big win against the up-and-down Hoyas on Saturday, as well as a string of victories in the Big East Tournament. Senior Darius Johnson-Odom (18.4 points per game) looks to win his last game in the Bradley Center, where the Golden Eagles are 14-1 this season.
Prediction: Marquette 76, Georgetown 65
No. 18 Louisville at No. 2 Syracuse (Saturday, 3 PM)
On December 26th, Louisville found themselves at No. 4 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, with a perfect 12-0 record to boot. That would turn out to be the apex of their season, and they’ve since lost seven of 17 games. No one is expecting much of a tussle in the Carrier Dome this weekend, but the Cardinals played the Orange tough just a couple of weeks ago, falling 52-51 on February 13th. Louisville has the make-up of a team that could catch fire at the right time and run deep into March, but the ball has to get rolling this Saturday against Syracuse.
Prediction: Louisville 61, Syracuse 58
No. 6 North Carolina at No. 3 Duke (Saturday, 6 PM)
The Blue Devils have “backed into” the No. 3 slot, as they’re essentially the only team (besides Kentucky and Syracuse) that hasn’t lost in the past few weeks. They look to prove that their buzzer-beating, one-point victory at Chapel Hill in early February wasn’t a fluke, but keep in mind the Tar Heels controlled that game for almost the entire second half. A late barrage of threes, including freshman Austin Rivers’ dagger as time expired, let Duke steal a big win, but you can be sure that Carolina will be out for revenge on Saturday night.
Prediction: North Carolina 81, Duke 73
No. 1 Kentucky at No. 13 Florida (Sunday, 11 AM)
Since they are the only two ranked teams in the SEC, I guess you would have to call this the best matchup that conference has to offer. However, when they played in Kentucky on February 7th, Florida left with their Gator-tails between their legs after a 20-point blowout. Kentucky, winners of a nation-best 20 games in a row, is hitting on all cylinders right now. Even Florida’s home-court advantage won’t be enough to slow freshmen Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.
Prediction: Kentucky 70, Florida 62
No. 11 Ohio State at No. 5 Michigan State (Sunday, 3 PM)
This matchup lost a bit of its luster since OSU dropped three of its past five games, but it’s still a battle between the top two teams in what is widely regarded as the best basketball conference in the nation. Michigan State, led by senior Draymond Green, looks to rebound after a tough loss at No. 20 Indiana on Tuesday night. Perhaps the Spartans have the Buckeyes’ number this season; a couple weeks ago Sparty laid the smack down in Columbus, winning 58-48. Another win over a ranked opponent and the selection committee will have to give them serious consideration for a #1 seed.
Prediction: Michigan State 60, Ohio State 58