Preview Roundups
March 01, 2018
Wisconsin at Maryland 12:00 PM ET
Wisconsin takes on Maryland in the second round of the Big Ten tournament at New York's Madison Square Garden Thursday, with both teams desperate to build their resumes for postseason consideration. The ninth-seeded Badgers, who have reached the final of this tournament three times in the last five seasons, will need to make a surprising run to extend their streak of NCAA Tournament appearances to 20, while eighth seed Maryland could use at least a pair of wins to get an NCAA bid.
Iowa at Michigan 2:25 PM ET
No. 13 Michigan made a miracle run to win last year's Big Ten Tournament and begins defense of its crown when it faces 12th-seeded Iowa on Thursday in a second-round game at New York's Madison Square Garden. The fifth-seeded Wolverines are a certainty to make this season's NCAA Tournament field no matter what happens in the conference tourney.
Northwestern at Penn St. 6:30 PM ET
Seventh-seeded Penn State will take on No. 10 Northwestern in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament on Thursday in New York City. The Nittany Lions wrapped up the regular season with three consecutive losses to fall out of the NCAA Tournament picture and hope to play their way back into contention with a deep run in the conference tournament.
Wichita St. at Central Florida 7:00 PM ET
Wichita State continues its pursuit of an American Athletic Conference title when it tries for its seventh straight victory Thursday at Central Florida. The No. 11 Shockers are coming off an 84-78 win over SMU on Saturday and are second in the AAC, trailing No. 10 Cincinnati by one game with two to play as a showdown against the Bearcats looms Sunday.
Tulsa at East Carolina 7:00 PM ET
East Carolina was dominated by Tulsa in its American Athletic Conference opener and not much has changed in the last two months. The scuffling Pirates will play their home finale Thursday as they welcome the Golden Hurricane, who are seeking to bounce back from a rare defeat their last time out.
Western Kentucky at Middle Tennessee St. 8:00 PM ET
No. 23 Middle Tennessee can clinch its second straight Conference USA regular-season title when it hosts second-place Western Kentucky in a pivotal league clash Thursday night. The Blue Raiders have vaulted into the national rankings while winning 10 straight games, a streak that began with a 66-62 win over the Hilltoppers on Jan. 20.
NC State at Georgia Tech 8:00 PM ET
Georgia Tech looks to snap a seven-game losing streak in its penultimate home game of the season as the Yellow Jackets host streaking North Carolina State on Thursday in an ACC contest The Wolfpack are getting hot at the right time of year and are winners of four in a row, including a 20-point home win over Florida State on Sunday.
Virginia at Louisville 8:00 PM ET
No. 1 Virginia wrapped up its third outright ACC regular-season title in five years over the weekend and won’t take a breather with two games left before the conference tournament, starting with a road contest against hungry Louisville on Thursday night. The Cavaliers have won three in a row since their lone ACC loss to Virginia Tech and will be challenged by Louisville, which badly needs a win to enhance its NCAA Tournament resume.
Rutgers at Indiana 8:55 PM ET
Indiana knows that its only path into the NCAA Tournament is to win four games in four days and the sixth-seeded Hoosiers begin tackling that assignment when they face 14th-seeded Rutgers in Thursday's second round of the Big Ten Tournament at New York's Madison Square Garden. Indiana finished the regular season with back-to-back losses and is just 4-8 away from home this season.
South Florida at Memphis 9:00 PM ET
South Florida heads to Memphis seeking the end of its eight-game skid in its final regular-season game of the season. The teams last met on the final day of January, with the Tigers rolling past the Bulls 86-74 to extend their series record over USF to 25-4.
Cincinnati at Tulane 9:00 PM ET
No. 10 Cincinnati can earn a share of the American Athletic Conference regular-season title with a victory Thursday over host Tulane, but they have their sights on a much bigger game. The Bearcats are hoping to use Thursday's contest as a tuneup for their regular-season finale against powerhouse Wichita State.
Oregon at Washington St. 9:00 PM ET
Oregon still has a shot at a first-round bye in the Pac-12 tournament, but the Ducks need to win at Washington State on Thursday. Oregon is tied for sixth in the conference standings with Washington, one game behind third-place Stanford and a half-game behind UCLA and Utah, putting the Ducks within reach of a top 4 finish.
California at Arizona State 9:00 PM ET
Frustration is setting in at Arizona State, which appeared to be a lock for the NCAA Tournament last month but has fallen to ninth place in the Pac-12 standings. The Sun Devils look to snap a three-game losing streak Thursday when they host last-place California, which will set an all-time program record with its next loss.
Stanford at Arizona 10:00 PM ET
After being in the news for all the wrong reasons over the past few days, No. 22 Arizona returns to the court Thursday to face visiting Stanford in a key Pac-12 matchup. The Wildcats can clinch a share of the league title with one more win but are battling a whirlwind of distractions and will likely be without coach Sean Miller for the second straight game.
Oregon St. at Washington 11:00 PM ET
Washington is still in the hunt for its first NCAA Tournament bid since 2011, but the Huskies can't afford to lose to visiting Oregon State in their second-to-last Pac-12 regular-season game on Thursday night. Washington is tied for sixth in the conference standings with Oregon and likely needs to win its final two games and post at least one victory in the Pac-12 tournament next week to make the NCAA field.