Thursday
N.C. State at Duke (ESPN, 7 ET): The Blue Devils get a primer for Maryland in a pesky Wolfpack team that is feeling more and more confident. The Wolfpack are no longer a pushover and should give the Blue Devils a game, for 30 minutes.

Notre Dame at Rutgers (ESPN, 9 ET): The Irish are hot with five straight Big East wins but who is tougher at home right now in the league than Rutgers? The Scarlet Knights can continue their glimmering hopes for a bid with another upset of a Big East foe. And even then, should it be considered an upset?

Central Connecticut State at Wagner: Central Connecticut can essentially wrap up the Northeast Conference title (barring a collapse in the final two weeks) by creating a three-game lead over Wagner with a win on the road.

Arizona at UCLA: UCLA guard Cedric Bozeman is fine and will play. But what about Billy Knight's shot selection? He beat USC on a desperation 3-pointer but that was at the buzzer. He had six seconds against Villanova and wanted to be the star again by heaving a 3-pointer that was no good. The Bruins have to play smarter down the stretch and hold leads (remember they blew a big one at Arizona) to beat the Wildcats.

Friday
Manhattan at Rider: The Jaspers dropped back to the pack and are two games behind Rider and Marist in the MAAC. As the tournament draws closer the No. 1 seed is up for grabs and the Jaspers desperately need a road win like this to draw even closer.

Saturday
Saint Joseph's at Xavier (ESPN2, 8 ET): Xavier was brought back to Earth by St. Bonaventure. The Hawks are still searching for that quality win and beating Xavier would certainly qualify. Saint Joseph's might have to win the A-10 tourney to get into the Dance and getting one of the top two seeds would certainly help in the quest.

Pittsburgh at West Virginia (ESPN, 9 ET): The Panthers haven't played West Virginia yet and the Mountaineers have the quickness to cause Pittsburgh problems. Plus they would like nothing more than to spoil their rival's quest for the Big East West title.

Pepperdine at Gonzaga (ESPN2, 10 ET): The Waves can actually win the West Coast Conference with a sweep of Gonzaga. The Bulldogs would then be thrust into the No. 2 spot in the WCC tournament and possibly have a tougher road to the conference tournament title.

Arizona at USC (ABC, 6 PT): USC, perhaps, the most talented team in the Pac-10 lost three games in the final few possessions in the Pac-10. The only game they were simply out of was at Arizona. They would like nothing more than a payback. Beating Arizona handily or by one will keep the Trojans in the race for the title.

Illinois at Seton Hall: This is another dangerous road stop for the Illini. It's a game they should win but UCLA should have beaten Villanova, too. Illinois doesn't have as much margin for error right now and needs every win it can get to feel more secure, especially after the Michigan State game.

Georgetown at Villanova: The Hoyas continue their road swing through dangerous territory. Georgetown could pull off a BC-like win or be in serious trouble by the end of the weekend if it drops two this week.

Boston College at Connecticut: On the surface, the Eagles shouldn't have a chance against the Huskies. But then again BC beat Miami twice this season. Who knows? What is certain is a win over the Huskies would go a long way toward helping the Eagles still flickering tournament hopes.

Georgia State at Troy State: Georgia State is two games behind Troy State in the loss column entering the week and is tied with them in the win column. Can we say must win for Georgia State? The top seed in the Atlantic Sun tournament doesn't guarantee a tournament bid but it certainly helps.

Kentucky at Georgia: The Wildcats will be looking to avenge the homecourt loss to the Bulldogs last month while Georgia gets a chance to knock the Wildcats out of the SEC East race if the Bulldogs beat Florida earlier in the week. The sweep of Kentucky would certainly be another strong resume builder for Georgia's seed in the tournament.

Florida at Ole Miss: The Gators continue a tough road swing to one of the hardest places to win in the SEC West. Florida is better prepared for this game then they were a month ago. But Ole Miss' defense could be problems for the Gators who can rely too much on perimeter shooting.

Ohio State at Iowa: The Hawkeyes are past the must-win phase. They might have to win the Big Ten tournament. But getting a better seed could begin with a win over Ohio State. Ohio State's visions of hanging with Indiana could end with another road loss.

Sunday
Texas at Missouri (ABC, 3:30 ET): The on-again, off-again Tigers are hard to figure. Texas has the physical players to cause them problems in the post and a point in T.J. Ford that Missouri could have trouble defending. Missouri will need another Virginia-like (see this past Sunday) crowd from the Tigers' faithful to push this team to a win.

Syracuse at Notre Dame (ABC, 3:30 ET): The Irish can start to push Syracuse further down in the standings with a home win. Syracuse fell flat against Pittsburgh last Sunday and could have trouble if the Irish play just as physical. Syracuse's DeShaun Williams will have to keep tabs on Chris Thomas wherever the Irish point roams.

Miami (Fla.) at Rutgers: The 'Canes drew a tough crossover road game in Rutgers. Rutgers could play spoiler in the ‘Canes quest to win the Big East East Division as well as continue to bolster their suddenly impressive Big East credentials.

Duke at Maryland: Should be as good as the first one -- or at least the first half of the first one. Maryland has a legit shot to win this game in what should be (no offense Virginia) the last big game at Cole Field House. The arena should be absolutely rocking for the Sunday afternoon game.

Rider at Marist: This could be to break a first-place tie in the MAAC. Neither team was expected to win the league title but have been the two most consistent teams in the conference all season.

Virginia at Wake Forest: The Cavaliers re-established themselves at home with a win over Clemson Sunday but what about the road? They have the talent to steal one in Winston-Salem and could use it to bolster national confidence in Virginia's ability to win away from Charlottesville.

Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.