We realize the AFC and NFC championship games are the big ticket items for sports viewing on television this weekend. You’ve got Denver vs. New England, Seattle vs. San Francisco, Brady vs. Manning . . . and everyone else. But before you zone out in front of the big screen TV on Sunday, college basketball has a few treats to offer on Saturday.
Here’s your guide to the best games (all times ET):
No. 22 Pittsburgh (16-1, 4-0 ACC) at No. 2 Syracuse (17-0, 4-0), Saturday, 4 p.m., ESPN – It sounds strange to call this a big matchup in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Very strange. Big East brothers Syracuse and Pitt banded together a couple of years ago to trigger the latest round of conference realignment, and in their first season as ACC members they have stunned Tobacco Road with identical 4-0 starts to take control of the standings. No. 23 Duke is the only other ACC team in the Associated Press Top 25 this week. Forward C.J. Fair is having a sensational senior season for Syracuse and freshman Tyler Ennis is one of the most efficient point guards in the nation. Senior forward Lamar Patterson has been a force for the surprising Panthers, who would send waves rippling through college hoops with a win at the Carrier Dome.
No. 9 Oklahoma State (15-2, 3-1 Big 12) at No. 15 Kansas (12-4, 3-0), Saturday, 4 p.m, CBS – The headline on the Lawrence Journal World website KUSports.com this week is “OSU’s Marcus Smart returns to scene of backflip.” The Cowboys’ sensational sophomore scored 25 points and had nine rebounds as OSU defeated the Jayhawks in Allen Fieldhouse last Feb. 2. Before leaving the floor, Smart celebrated with a backflip on the court. The sellout crowd at the Phog Saturday certainly will remind Smart of his brazen insult during warmups, but after tipoff we will likely be treated to Smart guarding KU’s Andrew Wiggins. The Jayhawks seem to be coming together at the right time and have already won two conference road games – at Oklahoma and Iowa State. Big man Joel Embiid is stealing the headlines for KU now. The Cowboys have won three straight since losing at Kansas State.
No. 18 Louisville (15-3, 4-1 AAC) at Connecticut (14-3, 2-2) Saturday, 9 p.m., ESPN – Rick Pitino and the defending national champions stop by for a final visit to Storrs before Louisville leaves the American Athletic Conference for the ACC. Days like these remind you exactly how splintered things have become for the Big East, which features DePaul at No. 6 Villanova Saturday. The Cardinals are ranked and the Huskies are not, but it feels as if the teams are headed in opposite directions. UConn is coming off Thursday’s enormous 83-73 win at No. 17 Memphis. The Cardinals lost at home 73-67 to Memphis, but have bounced back to defeat SMU and Houston – two teams that defeated UConn in Texas to knock the Huskies out of the rankings. A sweep of Memphis and Louisville would put the Huskies back in the national spotlight. Pitino has had personnel problems all season and the latest is the uncertain status of guard Chris Jones, who missed the Houston game with a right hip injury. The pregame focus will be on point guards Russ Smith and Shabazz Napier, but the outcome could be decided by one of the many talented players on the floor as ESPN GameDay monitors the activity at Gampel Pavilion.
No. 25 Oklahoma (13-4, 2-2 Big 12) at No. 12 Baylor (13-3, 1-2), 2 p.m., ESPN – Oklahoma is coming off a 72-66 loss at Kansas State on Tuesday. Baylor limps back home after losing its last two road games, including a stunning 82-72 setback at Texas Tech on Wednesday. That makes it easy to see the importance of this game. Neither team wants to fall into a serious losing streak and neither team wants to pick up a third conference loss. It seems especially important for the Bears to hold court at home with a trip to Lawrence, Kan., to play the Jayhawks on Monday night. Senior forward Cory Jefferson leads Baylor, averaging 13.2 points and 8.4 rebounds. For Oklahoma, senior forward Cameron Clark has emerged as the main man, averaging 17.3 points and 6.0 rebounds but he was held to two points on 1-for-9 shooting at K-State Tuesday.
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