FIVE KEY GAMES THIS WEEK IN COLLEGE BASKETBALL
With Feast Weeks tournaments in the books, non-conference play continues this week in College Basketball with a slew of great matchups. Here are five key games to watch this week.
Florida State (5-1) @ #2 Purdue (6-0), Tuesday 11/30, 7:30PM, ESPN
Purdue comes into this game having just beat good North Carolina and Villanova teams to win the Hall-of-Fame Tip-off Classic. Although early, Jaden Ivey looks like one of the top guards in the country, and the center combination of 7-4 Zach Edey and 6-10 Trevion Williams has proven extremely difficult for teams to deal with. This is a deep Florida State team per usual, but with no true star emerging yet this will be an uphill battle.
#1 Duke (7-0) @ Ohio State (4-2), Tuesday 11/30, 9:30PM, ESPN
Duke is riding high after beating previously #1 Gonzaga in an instant classic. The duo of Paolo Banchero and Wendell Moore has completely taken over games at times and the size and versatility of this team have cemented them as the best team in the country early. However, this is their first true road game and could prove to be a trap. Ohio State’s been up and down in the first six games, but EJ Liddell has been phenomenal averaging 22 PPG. If Liddell can win his matchup against Banchero Ohio State could pull the upset.
Louisville (5-1) @ #22 Michigan State (5-2), Wednesday 12/1, 7:15PM, ESPN
Two teams rich in tradition square off here as Louisville Head Coach Chris Mack returns to the bench after serving a six-game suspension. The Cardinals seem to be hitting their stride having just beat Mississippi State and Maryland in the Bahamas. Contrarily, the last time we saw Michigan State they were getting thumped by Baylor in the Battle for Atlantis. With Carlik Jones and Aaron Henry gone both teams are still figuring out who their go-to guy is offensively so look for this to be a low-scoring toss-up.
#24 Michigan (4-2) @ North Carolina (4-2), Wednesday 12/1, 9:15PM, ESPN
This should be an extremely evenly matched game featuring two teams slightly underperforming this year despite returning a good amount of talent. Both teams rely heavily on their big men so Hunter Dickinson and Armando Bacot are both X-Factors and if one can get the other in foul trouble that will be huge. North Carolina’s three-point shooting, an area where Michigan struggles could give the edge here at home.
#3 Gonzaga (6-1) vs #16 Alabama (6-1) (Neutral Site), Saturday 12/4, 8:00PM, ESPN2
In my opinion, this is the best game of the week as Gonzaga continues its brutal non-conference slate against a loaded Alabama team. Two offensive juggernauts with completely different styles, Gonzaga relies heavily on their frontcourt duo of Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren while Alabama loves to play up-tempo with guards Javon Quinerly, Jaden Shackelford, and company. The two contrasting styles should make for a fascinating matchup in Seattle Saturday night.